February 19 issue

Remembering Jack Lipp p. 7

Meet chem teacher Mrs. Rukes p. 20-21 Wrestler Joey Gunther p. 26-27

FEBRUARY 19, 2015 VOLUME 88, ISSUE 5

A Principled Principal p. 11-13

LETTER TO THE READER 2014/15 STAFF LIST Alex Zoellick, Editor in Chief Kyle Laska, News Editor Ryan Jackson, Feature Editor Mike Gasick, Sports Editor Tom Ackerman, Opinion Editor Hannah Jenkins, Opinion Editor Korina Valenzuela, Photo Editor Maddie Salata, Layout Editor Abby St. Claire, Layout Editor Katie Vrba, Social Media Editor

DEAR READER...

While we are not writing attention-grabbing leads, we are designing well-thought-out pages that will make readers interested. In short, our job is to pull readers in, but not in the traditional way.

Our goal for the magazine is to create a visually stimulating and pleasing space for our readers. We want our designs to reflect the stories, as well as add to them by highlighting certain focal points, like photos and quotes. It’s not always easy -- often times it’s difficult to keep creating new and innovative designs -- but it’s definitely satisfying when we see the end product in the magazine.

Both of us hold blogs on the side. Maddie posts chic outfits on her blog “Runway to Hallway.” Every other Wednesday, she draws inspiration from the latest runways or red carpet events, and translates those outfits to ensembles that you can wear to school. Every other Monday, Abby posts on her blog called “Bien Fait Reviews.” There, she reviews recent albums and movies, and even some of her favorite things to watch and listen to. Even though we are not writing for the issues, we still get to take our passion for writing to another outlet. You can check out both Maddie’s and Abby’s blogs on lhsdoi.com under the tab labled “blogs.”

Manal Ahmed Lola Akinlade David Black Hannah Boufford Josh Bragg Becky DeAcetis Anna Demartini Kayla Fiore While you’re there, be sure to check out the rest of the Lauren Forrest website. It’s regularly updated with new stories that don’t Alo Garcia-Escobar always make it into the magazine.

Olivia Griffith

Emily Hamilton Eryka Jones SINCERELY, Conor Kennedy Jake Luce Jarrett Malec Jack Murphy Tia Petrzilka Connor Polk MADDIE AND ABBY Jillian Ruff Puja Saha Tyler Skinner Marijke Sommer Gabrielle Struik Maria Thames Sara Thunga Jasmine Turner Kate Vittore Jake Vogt Madeline Werner Kaitlyn Zabadal

Michael Gluskin, Faculty Adviser

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4-8 NEWS WHAT’S TRENDING & WHAT’S HAPPENING 9-10 DR. SCOTT IN A NEW LIGHT 11-13 LIBERTYVILLE OR GERMany?

15-17 18-19 DANCE IS WHAT THE HEART MAKES 20-21 W.I.S.E. (WOMAN IN SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING) STAFF EDITORIAL 22 ARE YOU OKAY WITH GUANTANAMO BAY? 23 24 LHS TEENIUS MOMENTS WINTER WONDER LOT 25 26-27 NOT-SO-AVERAGE JOE 28-29 PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT SUPERFAN GARY 30-31

Check out the latest news from LHS -- including the upcoming LHS color run and the status for senior finals exemptions next year.

Find out how to make the dark days of winter bright and stay in the know about news around the world.

Snow day heroine, certified fashionista, and yoga extraordinaire-meet your principal like never before.

Read up on DOI’s investigative swab job of the school.

So you think you can dance? Wait until you read about Orchesis, Libertyville’s premier dance company.

Ms. Sherri Rukes is no mad scientist; the chemistry teacher has found her passion in spreading her love for science.

How much is too much? A look into the excessive testing all students go through.

Staff writers Connor Polk and Conor Kennedy take sides on the issue of Guantanomo Bay in the greatest Connor battle since “The Terminator.

When our beloved senior citizens refer to us as “those dumb teenagers,” sometimes it’s justified.

Senior parking lot or slushy mosh pit? Read DOI’s take on the difference (Or lack thereof).

A look into LHS senior Joey Gunther’s journey to becoming a nationally ranked wrestler.

Spring sports often start before the snow is off the ground, which leads to a race for gym space between winter and spring sports.

A look into former LHS student Gary Graham and his love for Libertyville athletics.

Cover photo by Korina Valenzuela DROPS OF INK

3

LHS’S VERY OWN COLOR RUN

BY MADDIE WERNER

On Saturday, May 9, Libertyville High School’s Student Council executive board will be hosting their first ever race modeled after The Color Run. Welcoming all members of the community and beyond, LHS is hoping to mirror the popular event in order to raise money for charity.

Each year, student council coordinates many small philanthropic initiatives and one big one. Last year, the big philanthropic initiative was “Be the Giving Type” that earned an award for outstanding philanthropic initiative from the state of Illinois.

This year, student council has decided to host its very own color run as a way to raise money while hosting a unique event.

The money raised from the run will be donated to the organization Safe Water Kenya. This organization purchases water filters and donates them to community facilities in Kenya like schools or churches. The World Health Organization says that every year more than 3.4 million people die as a result of water-related diseases, making it the leading cause of disease and death around the world.

“They reached out to us because they felt it was probable that we could help and we can,” said philanthropic chair Shannon Roche, a senior.

The official Color Run that most are probably familiar with is a five-kilometer, untimed race in which the participants are doused in color from head to toe at each kilometer to promote happiness and healthiness, according to The Color Run’s website.

LHS’s version is slightly different with donating all profits to charity.

Student Council is still in the process of coming up with an official name for the race.

According to Roche, here are the basics: • Wear a white t-shirt provided by student council • Run (or walk) the mapped out, 5-kilometer course • Get covered in as much colorful powder as possible • Have fun!

“I’m really looking forward to the run. LHS poms is planning on participating as a team so that’ll be really fun,” said junior Nellie Richardson.

Since the profits from the event will be donated to Safe Water Kenya, the admission fee will be $30. The $30 will provide each participant with a white t-shirt, food and drink, post-race music from an awesome DJ, and will also go towards the price of the color powder used to cover the

participants. According to Roche, the color used may look like paint, but it is actually a heavy powder that will not stain skin or clothes.

The race will start at the football stadium and will wrap around the lake. Student Council has hopes of creating six different stations along the course with a different color at each station.

“We’re trying to make it a community thing. We definitely want as many students from LHS as possible but we’re also really trying to reach out to the community,” said Roche.

photo courtesy of Morgan O’Brien

Sophomores Lauren Sloan, Morgan O’Brien and Simone Mikaelian have participated in an official Color Run race in Milwaukee.

photo courtesy of Chris Phutully through Wikipedia Commons

Color Run participants throwing colored powder in the air, a well-known tradition associated with this event. jvcjvcjvcjvcjvcjvcjvcjvcjvc DROPS OF INK 4

tweet received many responses, which have since been deleted, but some were deemed inappropriate.

Senior jokester Thomas Peterson thought it would be funny to upload an inappropriate picture of his waste, and tag the district’s Twitter name as well. The tweet got many laughs from students, but Peterson’s dean sent a Saturday school his way, much to the dismay of Peterson.

“After it went up, my friends thought it was hilarious, but then I kind of realized that, well, poop is only funny in certain circumstances, and this wasn’t one of them,” stated Peterson.

By Mike Gasick and Josh Bragg Some may question if the school has any right to punish students for something they publish on social media, District 128 officials disciplined a small number of stusince it’s entirely outside of school. dents for their actions on Twitter following the district’s “Other districts have recommended the same thing, decision to open up schools on Friday, Jan. 9. that you don’t need to have a discipline consequence, The district decided to follow suit with other local yet the conversation and the learning that comes from it high schools by cancelling school on both Jan. 7 and 8 will take us in a positive direction,” stated principal Dr. due to harsh weather conditions. The wind chill effect Marina Scott. was reported to be around -25 degrees, which is within D128’s Facebook page also relayed a similar mesthe temperature range that can cause frostbite in just a sage to its followers and received a lot of complaints short period of time. Despite the belief that there were to from students’ parents concerning the safety of their be similar conditions the next day, the district decided to children. Some of the comments included complaints reopen LHS and VHHS on Jan. 9, mostly due to the fact about the district’s decision making being based around that schedules for final exams would be pushed off to a the schedule for final later date. exams and the fact The Board of that there would be Education took dangerous conditions many factors into such as “ ... black consideration ice, bad student when making drivers, other drivers, its decision, and students in a rush, one of the main extreme cold weathreasons was er.” One of the most that canceling frequent comments school on Jan. was that their chil9 would have dren would have to pushed the three wait for an indefinite days of testing amount of time until from a Wednesthe bus showed up or day-Thurswould have to walk day-Friday to school, and the format to a sub-zero temperaThursday-Fritures would have left day-Monday an impact. format. Including “We want stuthe weekend as a Photo by Kayla Fiore dents to tweet, but part of the testwe want them to do ing days would Principal Dr. Marina Scott stressed that district officals enjoy the funny tweets they receive, but when they turn inappropri- so in an appropriate have negatively ate, the district should take action. and safe way,” stataffected the flow ed Ms.Todoric. “We of test-takers, as are glad students returning from a weekend and then having to take tests tweet to us, and we often retweet, favorite and respond. would not have sit well with many students.

But, students need to understand that the district does not The district’s official Twitter account sent out a tweet make school closure decisions based on the number of that gave news of the decision to reopen the schools. The tweets we receive from students.”

Students disciplined after inappropriate tweets sent to district officials

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Late Students May be Honored by Memorial Stone

By Eryka Jones Due to the recent untimely passings of multiple LHS alumni, the administration may consider a memorial stone in their budget for next year, says Dr. Scott.

The administration had already considered a form of a memorial before the recent deaths had even occurred, and they got the idea from Lake Zurich High School. Lake Zurich seniors fundraised and provided memorials for two teachers who passed away in 2010. One memorial is an outdoor learning environment, used as a classroom and a hangout spot, and can seat 30 people, the other memorial is a garden. Dr. Scott said, “The memorial stone may be something we consider as we plan next year’s budget.”

Some students didn’t wait for the school to organize a tribute to the deceased students. Junior Dolores Palmieri, senior Mary Wilterdink and some alumni arrived at an LHS boys varsity basketball game on Jan. 9 in blue shirts, in memory of Jack Lipp, a past star basketball player.

Photo courtesy of Bear Facts Student Media

Lake Zurich’s outdoor learning environment memorial under construction.

The school currently is working on displaying black-and-white pictures of current and past athletes above the main gym. Athletic Director Mr. Briant Kelly says the “action shots will be rotated over time with newer pictures being displayed each year.” A picture of Lipp currently hangs toward the center, however there is no confirmation that his picture will be displayed forever for memorial purposes.

Although there’s hope for a future remembrance of the deceased students -- Lipp, Jake Messina, Connor Robinson and Kelly Hackendahl -- Meg Rolston, a senior, believes the school and students should do more: “Their death affects everyone at LHS, so I think it would be really nice if LHS came together and made memorials for the kids that have passed. I think it would bring us together as a community and school.”

Many agree with the making of the memorial but also believe the school has been doing an effective job by counseling students.

“Things like Erika’s Lighthouse and loss support group” are great options in helping kids, said LHS senior Kendall Herbert. “Students just have to be proactive in finding them, but the school should also have more outreach for students.”

Photo courtesy of Dolores Palmieri

Students and alumni keep Lipp in their memory by sporting his favorite quote, “‘Til the break of dawn, yo,” on a t-shirt, at a boys varsity basketball game against Mundelein.

Some believe that the school is too late in making an effort for a memorial. “It took [4] people to die to say something. I think it hasn’t been regarded in the way it should be,” Anna Lillydahl, a sophomore, said.

Ultimately, the decision will be up to the administration as to what they think is appropriate regarding the recent deaths. Dr. Scott said they’ll assess the budget in the spring when deciding about the memorial stone.

Photo by Lola Akinlade

A black-and-white picture of Lipp hangs above the entrance of the main gym as part of a new athletics display.

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by Kyle Laska

Libertyville High School Class of 2014 graduate and former basketball star Jack Lipp passed away at the age of 19 this past December, on Christmas Day. Lipp, a freshman at the University of Missouri, was at a party early on the morning of Dec. 13 when he fell from a balcony.

Lipp was in a medically-induced coma for over a week before passing, according to a Columbia, Mo., police spokesperson in an interview with the Chicago Tribune.

A gifted athlete, Lipp played golf and basketball for all four years of his high school career. He excelled in both sports, as he earned multiple varsity honors in his four years of golf and basketball, and gained respect from teammates both on and off the court.

Lipp had the special ability to own any situation he was put in and have fun with it. As imagined, this led to some great memories, memories like the one Johnny Vernasco, Class of 2014 and one of Lipp’s closest friends, will never forget.

“This past summer we went on a cruise with Jack [Lipp], Matt Reed, Justin Jost, Jeff Barton, and Steven Braun. We were at Atlantis on a slide that would time how long it took you to get down. We kept going up and down for two hours straight.

One of the times up, we ran past Sean Payton (Head Coach of the New Orleans Saints), and Jack yelled at him that his 40-yard dash time was faster than any of his players. It was hilarious,” reminisced Vernasco.

Another one of Lipp’s best friends, Anthony Monken, also Class of 2014, found it hard to recall just one memory. Because of Lipp’s nature, everything was memorable, and Monken had no problem recalling great memories.

“One was when he made that backwards shot in AAU basketball in spring of 2013 and made it on to ESPN Top Ten. What a lot of people didn’t know is that the very next day he came back and drilled a half-courter to win the championship as time expired on the same exact court and basket. Him making that game-winner got us qualified to go to Orlando to play in Nationals over that summer. It was so fitting for Jack to do that because he always had a way of being the most dramatic kid around,” shared Monken.

Although life ended much too short for Lipp, his ability to leave such a large and looming legacy allows for his life to carry on through all who knew him. Jack’s mother, Stephanie Lipp, explained just how Jack was able to be so influential.

“Jack was full of life. He had an amazing ability to make a personal connection with everyone he met. In some cases, it was people he saw every day, like classmates and faculty at LHS. In other cases, it was people whom Jack crossed paths with on an occasional basis. People who knew Jack well, and in passing, felt the connection, and the genuine interest he had in each and every person he met,” shared Lipp.

Lipp will always be remembered as a funny and outgoing kid who wanted to have a good time. However, he was also extremely kind and compassionate. Senior Matt Cordan, who teamed up with Lipp on the Libertyville golf team, spoke of just how great Lipp was to be around.

“Jack was a fun-loving kid who was always happy and friendly to everyone. He always showed up to golf in a great mood and was fun to have as a partner on the team. Jack didn’t have any enemies, everyone he knew enjoyed his presence. Everyone I have spoken with about him have only said good things and will always treasure the times they had with him. He has left an impact on his friends and family that will last a lifetime for all of them,” expressed Cordan.

As those who knew Lipp mourn over the enormous loss, the importance of highlighting the good times becomes more important. According to Monken, it may be hard to get through a time like this, but it must be done for Lipp.

“I think that through all of this, people will take away Jack’s constant and contagious smile. Everywhere he went that kid always had the biggest smile on his face. That is something that I know will always live on. He has taught so many people that in the hardest of times, all you can really do is smile. And I’m sure he is doing so right now as he looks down and sees how many people’s lives he has impacted and changed for the better. A part of him stays here with all of us, just as a part of us goes up there with him. Smile through the pain. You can never hug someone too many times, you can never tell someone ‘I love you’ enough, and you can never spend too much time with anyone in your life. Rest in Paradise Jacko.”

Although it can be hard to think about Lipp’s passing and how life ended much too short, those who knew Lipp can be comforted in the tremendous legacy he was able to develop in such a short time.

“Jack’s friends knew him as someone who was genuine and would never pass judgement. He accepted his friends for who they really were and treated people with respect. Jack was trustworthy and dependable, and quick to forgive,” Mrs. Lipp said. “His smile would light up a room, his humor made people laugh. Jack was thoughtful and someone who was a good listener. He was a loyal friend. If you were one of his ‘besties,’ you knew it and you loved it!”

For the complete story, visit lhsdoi.com.

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Seniors Set to Have Finals Exemptions Next Year, Despite the Rumors

By Katie Vrba

Common Core Parents of public school students are split on their opinions of the Common Core State Standards tests for grades K-12.

No opinion

32%

Positive 33%

Negative 35% © 2014 MCT Source: Gallup Graphic: Tyler Davis

Recently, there have been numerous rumors that seniors will not be able to exempt from finals next year. As of now, the rumors are false, but don’t get too excited just yet.

“It has been talked about. I won’t tell you it hasn’t been bantered about, but it hasn’t been talked about in a formal decision making meeting,” said Principal Dr. Marina Scott.

Finals exemptions are currently for seniors with an “A” in their class, eliminating the stress that comes along with taking the exams.

Many other rules apply to the situation, such as duration and type of class. Year-long courses only allow seniors to exempt second semester while the one-semester course allows seniors to exempt either semester.

“I have been looking forward to exempting from finals since freshman year. I don’t want to take finals because it’s stressful to study and take one test that could ruin the grade that you have been working hard to maintain all semester,” said junior Natalie Chow.

Finals are not only used to measure how well a student is doing academically, but also how well a teacher is teaching, Dr. Scott explained. The administration uses the test scores as data to help improve teaching and curriculum. But when all the seniors with A’s don’t take the final, it takes away some of that data that is crucial. This makes the

data inaccurate and does not show how well a teacher is doing.

The education system right now is constantly changing nationwide and this could affect finals exemptions. The Common Core curriculum is taking over all aspects of academics. Many finals are changing to skill-based, and an increasing amount of students must participate in PARCC testing, Dr. Scott remarked.

“It’s a really changing time in education. Where in the past you would think ‘Oh, this will stay like this forever, that’s how education is.’ But that’s not how education is right now,” said Dr. Scott.

If the district decides to formally discuss finals exemptions, it will be treated like any other decision, with administrators and teachers meeting as a committee to discuss potential changes.

“It could happen by next year [2016-17], that’s possible. I’m not saying ‘Oh that could never happen,’” said Dr. Scott.

“We usually wouldn’t do something just for the sake of doing it. There would be a purpose. And right now there are other options to that purpose such as restructuring finals or putting them at different times [of the school year]. There’s other options.”

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- What’s Happening? By Kate Vittore The United States has reported more cases of measles in January 2015 than the number that is typically recorded in a full year. The disease was declared eliminated from the country in 2000, until a major outbreak, tied to Disneyland, was found in December of last year. According to The Huffington Post, in the first month of its spreading, at least 40 people who had visited or worked at the theme park contracted the illness, and it has now spread to several other states, mostly in the western region of the country. As of January 30, there were 102 cases of measles reported across 14 states, according to NBC Chicago. No cases have been reported in Illinois. Last year, there were 644 cases reported for the year, setting January of 2015 up as an all-time high for the U.S., compared to previous years, according to CNN News.

According to The Huffington Post, two separate proposals are pending in the Illinois General Assembly that could lead to substantial changes for adults to possess up to 30 grams of marijuana. Both proposals, if approved, would eliminate the factor of jail time for possession charges of marijuana. Senate Bill 753 would legalize the possession and cultivation of the plant, while House Bill 218 would replace criminal penalties with an $100 fine for possession. “Low level offenders don’t belong in a jail cell,” said state representative Kelly Cassidy to NBC News. “We have a variety of local ordinances that allow for civil enforcement of low level marijuana possession. Those ordinances vary widely in terms of the amounts people can have and what fines are.”

A robbery in the heart of the campus of U of I turned deadly when a drug deal went wrong. According to NBC Chicago, Daniel Gonzalez and Reginald Scott were arrested for the murder of a 20-year-old student at the university in the first days of February. Champaign County Sheriff Dan Walsh said in a late-morning press conference on Feb. 2 that “the murder occurred as a part of a pre-planned armed robbery of Vincente Mundo involving relatively small amounts of marijuana and cash.” Mundo was last seen on Jan. 25 leaving a campus apartment to meet a friend. The victim’s body was found on Saturday, Jan. 31 between Interstates 45 and 57 near Willard Airport, according to police. An autopsy indicated his death was a homicide. Services took place shortly after his body was found.

Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird, will be releasing a second novel entitled Go Set a Watchman. The novel will be released on July 14 this year. According to the publisher’s press release, the manuscript of the book was thought to be lost until it was found in the fall of 2014. Lee’s editor originally suggested that she drop the novel, back in the 1950s when she wrote it. The sequel will take place 20 years after the original, setting the scene for Scout to be an adult, who returns to visit her father in New York. Two million copies will be printed at first, according to the publishing house.

The National Transportation Safety Board reports that the pilot of a small plane that crashed in Colorado last May likely became distracted and disoriented when he was taking selfies using a flash during the flight.

According to Fox News, a GoPro camera was found near the wreckage of Cessna-150, a two-seater plane, that shows the pilot, Amritpaul Singh, and his passengers taking selfies with their phones on several flights.

A report on the flight says that the plane crashed into an open field and “bounced one time before it came to rest upright.” Singh and one passenger died.

Photos courtesy of MCT Campus

What’s Trending: Valentine’s Day Edition Movies

“500 Days of Summer”

By Kaitlyn Zabadal

“The Vow”

“The Fault in Our Stars”

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“Jealous” Nick Jonas

“Thinking Out Loud” Ed Sheeran

“Style” Taylor Swift

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Alex and Ani Bracelets Photo Credit: Polyvore

Doc Martens DROPS OF INK 10

Skater Dresses

Dr. Scott

in a new light

By Maria Thames and Tia Petrzilka

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When one imagines a principal, they tend to picture a strict, dull educator who’s all about discipline, or a friendly person who gets to attend athletic events with no real obligations. Despite these common assumptions, principals have interests and personalities, as any person does, and their job can be quite difficult at times; they are not all fun and games. With a school as big as LHS, many students are not exposed to the real Dr. Marina Scott, the one who enjoys sewing and is a certified yoga instructor, the one who is also a thoughtful and hard-working person.

[ Background ] Dr. Scott, the oldest of three children, was born in Germany and emigrated to Chicago at age 5. She grew up in Franklin Park, Ill., near Linden High School. In high school and college, she was actively involved in running track, along with participating in tennis and gymnastics. Apart from sports, Dr. Scott enjoyed sewing, which her mother (who was a seamstress) taught her. This creative passion would eventually play a part in her career choice.

“I taught family and consumer sciences when I taught, so I taught mainly fashion and then child development so I started teaching that, but even before that, my mom was a seamstress. I can remember being a little kid and [being] under the sewing machine with all the dress fabric. So she taught me to sew,” explained Dr. Scott.

In college, Dr. Scott started to develop her love for education.

“I went away to college and I was running too aside from going to school, I was running track. And as part of that we worked with younger athletes to get them interested. That coaching piece kinda got me interested with working with people. Also when I started studying art and fashion, specifically fashion, I noticed in part-time jobs what I liked the best about creating fashion was the reaction people had to it, so I like the people connection with it so I think you can figure out pretty quickly if you need to be in a people profession or something where you’re more isolated and working on your own,” she said.

“Although I liked both both aspects about that, I enjoyed the connection with people best and this offers a lot of connection with a lot of people.”

Dr. Scott received a Bachelor of Science degree in Family and Consumer Sciences Education from Illinois State University. She attended Northern Illinois University and also has a Master of Science in Textiles and Fashion Design as well as a Master of Science in Administration.

She later attended Loyola University in Chicago and obtained her Doctor of Education in Curriculum and Instruction.

Dr. Scott has two kids, a son and a daughter, who both live in Chicago. Education runs in the family, as both her son and husband are teachers; they teach English and Physical Education, respectively.

Currently, both exercising and fashion/design are a part of her life.

However, according to Dr. Scott, her connection with fashion is more of a secondary thing compared to what it used to be. She’ll mainly just alter things that she buys or occasionally make curtains or redesign things at home.

“I still sew things. Not as much as I used to. I used to make everything I wore. Almost everything. So I don’t do that much anymore, more for my when my daughter went to dances, like you guys go to dances, every single dress I made. That’s my favorite thing to design,” shared Dr. Scott.

[ Career ]

Since 1982, Dr. Scott has been working in the field of education.

Prior to working in District 128, she worked within Township High School District 211, originally teaching family and consumer sciences at William Fremd High School. Eventually, Dr. Scott became assistant principal at both Fremd and Palatine High School (within the same district). In her last four years before joining District 128, she served as the principal at Fremd.

In 2008, Dr. Scott became a part of the LHS/VHHS family, as the district’s associate superintendent. However, this role would be short-lived as she would only last one year, but for a good reason. As

it turned out, there would be an opening for principal for the following school year and the school would need to find the right person to fill such a prominent position. Dr. Scott, as associate superintendent, was involved in this process of recruiting people for the position.

“When the principal job came open, actually it was my job to help find candidates for that job and in that process, I realized that I missed being principal,” stated Dr. Scott.

With permission from the superintendent, she applied for the job of principal.

In July of 2009, Dr. Scott officially became the principal of LHS.

[ Life at LHS ]

Regardless of the school, a principal’s job is demanding, as there are many obligations that come with it. Each day, a principal must interact with a variety of people.

On average, teachers typically work about 53 hours per week, according to an article from The Washington Post. Dr. Scott, on the other hand, works anywhere from 60 to 80 hours per week, in her estimation.

While students are more than likely snuggled up in their beds at 4:30 in the morning, Dr. Scott is wide awake.

“I wake up at 4:30, I know that’s early, isn’t it? It’s because I work out before school. So on Tuesdays and Thursdays, I run with Mr. Kelly, our athletic director, and Mr. Albin, the assistant principal. We run six miles,” stated Dr. Scott. “On Monday and Wednesday, I do a spin class. I’m always doing something in the morning because I have so many evening things [that] otherwise I wouldn’t get to do,” provided Dr. Scott.

To relieve her body of all the stress she already puts on herself by doing various exercises, Dr. Scott found a solution in yoga. Besides physical benefits of yoga, she found that yoga could was free the mind as well. Dr. Scott decided it would be beneficial to offer this experience for the staff, so she provides a 6 a.m.

class every Friday in the gymnastics gym.

“I just started offering it just because I thought...we do so much damage to our bodies, with the running and the lifting and stuff, that the stretching is a nice balance so I really offered it for balance for people. But in the end more and more people come for different reasons,” provided Dr. Scott.

Dr. Scott’s secretary and dear friend Mrs. Sandra Kruckman believes that yoga is a great opportunity for staff members to come together. “It brings us together and gives us a commonality amongst each other. We love being together and it gives us a bond we might otherwise not have,” stated Mrs. Kruckman.

Every day after her morning workout, the first thing Dr. Scott does is check her schedule and her email.

Dr. Scott’s schedule is always jampacked and is constantly changing; it’s filled with everything from teacher evaluations to send-offs.

While no day or week is ever the same for Dr. Scott, she frequently observes classrooms, attends administrative meetings, and constantly works with teachers.

Above, Dr. Scott leading her weekly yoga class. On the right page, Dr. Scott delivering a speech at the state send off for the competitive dance team.

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Evaluating teachers on their performance is a main aspect of her job. Dr. Scott will observe a teacher carefully for a class period and write down thorough notes. Within a few days, she meets with the teacher to provide feedback.

“When you hear the word evaluation it sounds like I’m going to say this was good or bad, and write some things, but really, hopefully, what you’ll hear in our conversation is I already know he’s an awesome teacher so I’m gonna go into that lesson, and watch it of course for signs to affirm to him ‘that was great’, but also places to ask him questions and ‘how do you think that worked?’ ‘What might work better?’

So, growth can happen, no matter how long you’ve been here, and how good you are. So that’s really the purpose of evaluation, is to help people grow, more so than measure,” explained Dr. Scott.

In addition to working with teachers, Dr. Scott is constantly working with students.

She will often meet with individual students, whether it be to give general support and feedback, to address a disciplinary situation, to acknowledge an accomplishment, or to work with those apart of student council, as they are the leaders of the student body.

“One of the first conversations I’ve had with Dr. Scott was last year in applying to go on the Student Council Exec Board, she interviewed me...This year, one of my roles as Student Council President is to represent our student body, and address concerns of my classmates. As an executive board, we’ve had multiple conversations with Dr. Scott,” stated Student Council President Cam Chen. “Specifically, one important topic we met to speak about was how to address tragedies. This year, unfortunately has been very tough, so we’ve met multiple times on how to address these situations to our student body. Another topic we’ve met for has been for our ‘Wake-up Wildcats’ video process. We gave her our input on what we wanted, and in return she gave us her ideas and gave us advice on where we should get help...Overall, she really is a great person to contact for our Student Council endeavors, as she is always open to listening to our ideas and sharing her opinion.”

Dr. Scott also plays an important role in student achievements, including the likes of Student of the Month and athletic “send-offs.”

On Feb. 2, she gave a brief, but thoughtful speech to the varsity dance team before they left for state, showing her support and acting as a pep leader.

“First of all, I want to explain the great theme that nothing is impossible. I have to tell you guys from the very first time I saw your team, I haven’t seen you compete in a competitive environment, the first time I saw you hit the floor in my heart I thought there is something really special about that routine. The costume first of all is unbelievable, you all look beautiful in anything, but you look really beautiful in that and then when you start dancing, I don’t know how the judges can see anything but that,” exclaimed Dr. Scott.

Dr. Scott often attends student activities such as sports games, plays, and dance competitions, to support the school, not because she is required to.

“I don’t feel like I’m working when I’m coming to see a play or going to an athletic event. I mean if there’s people there doing the work and they needed me, of course I’m there and I would [help], but I’m supporting really,” said Dr. Scott.

Aside from all of the activity based aspects of her job that she enjoys, Dr. Scott also must deal with more serious situations.

“There are some things that are kind of crazy that I have to do sometimes, like if it’s [a] weird situation that a parent has brought up or...sometimes it’s difficult when you’re working with someone who’s not performing well on their job, that part is hard. Or if you have a discipline situation or you know you have a consequence for somebody that they don’t like, whether it be [an] adult or student,” explained Dr. Scott.

More notably, she has to deal with incidents that concern the entire community.

“It was really difficult when we had the deaths lately, so things like that when you work in a big community like this, there’s things like that too, where if the community feels heavy weight, it’s kinda your responsibility to help people through that, provide resources to help people through things like that,” expressed Dr. Scott. “Or if there’s a big snow, we get to call snow day…no (laughing), I don’t get to do that!”

Despite some of the hard aspects that Dr. Scott handles, she genuinely enjoys what she does.

“I like dealing with people. You can see I have to deal with a lot of people. I like the energy in the building, I like [students], I like going to events, I like working with teachers, all those things,” stated Dr. Scott. “I think that it’s really important that you find a job that fits you well.”

[ Born to Lead ]

Many students at LHS do not know the real Dr. Marina Scott, due to the fact that she is involved with so many different aspects of the school and community, requiring her to take different roles in different situations.

“A principal at a school, especially a school as big as LHS, has a lot of different roles and for most people, they see the principal in one defined role because that’s their lens, that’s their viewpoint. But a principal has to be, they have to be in some cases the pep leader and school spirit leader for the school. At times they have to be the curricular leader for the school. At times they have to be the main point of contact for parents They have to help out with athletics, they help out with fine arts”, stated assistant principal Mr. Ray Albin. “There are so many ‘hats’ that a principal wears throughout a day, a week, a school year and all of those vary and people see a principal at different times

and so they think of, ‘well, I always see the principal as the person that’s doing this with athletics,’ and that’s mainly what they (students) see or think that’s all that the principal does and that’s not. It’s such a big role and Dr. Scott just seamlessly goes back and forth in those roles.”

Dr. Scott is the type of person who prepares her schedule the night before and plans ahead. She is known by fellow staff workers for being supportive, caring, aware, personable, positive, and a true leader.

“She’s very genuine and thoughtful. She’s probably one of the most incredible people I’ve ever known, aside from her being principal, just as a person. She has the most positive attitude you can ever imagine about everything. She is just so balanced, she seems so balanced in everything she does,” stated Mrs. Kruckman.

DROPS OF INK 13

Photos by Maria Thames

Layout by Maddie Salata

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14

Libertyville or Germany?

By Jillian Ruff and Alex Zoellick

Just as the flowers bloom in the spring, winter seems to be the time when germs fester into sickness at Libertyville High School. Between drinking fountains, railings, textbooks, and much more, students wage a daily battle against the objects they come in contact with throughout the school day. These pathogen and bacteria-ridden surfaces are major causes for student sicknesses, and it is nearly impossible to avoid them all.

According to ScrubClub.org, a website published by the National Sanitation Foundation (NSF), an organization dedicated to public health and safety, there is bacteria on almost all surfaces of a school. Though some bacteria is dubbed “good bacteria,” meaning non-detrimental and often times beneficial to bodily processes, the presence of good bacteria also lends itself to the presence of sickness-causing bacteria. Common ailments found in schools can include, but are in no means limited to, the flu, the common cold, salmonella and E. coli.

The human body’s main defense against sickness resides in the immune system, which protects the body against harmful germs. Sickness takes place when the immune system is weakened by exposure to detrimental bacteria. When this occurs, “[the] body is invaded by all sorts of bacteria, microbes, parasites... None of these things are able to get in when your immune system is working, but the moment your immune system stops the door is wide open,” wrote Marshall Brain, a researcher on the Howstuffworks blog, a website that provides simplistic explanations for complex processes.

In order to fully understand the many illnesses that seem to haunt the halls of LHS, it is crucial to see what the students and staff are up against. In an effort to accomplish this task, DOI has teamed up with Mrs. Tiffany Owens, a biology teacher, to bring readers a close-up view of the bacteria-filled world that is LHS.

MASH TEXTBOOK To LHS math teacher Mr. Tim Budge, germs and sickness are just another day at the office. He understands that working with kids means numerous germs and the sickness that follow. Mr. Budge spends his eighth period in the MASH, where he sees the textbooks as a sufficient medium for transferring germs given the frequency with which students use them: “Chromebooks, books, desks; a school, by nature is a germ factory. Kids and adults sneeze. I’m not worried about it, but I know it’s there,” he said. According to Mr. Budge, his immune system has built up over his 18 years as a teacher,

To test for the aforementioned germs, each of the following locations were swabbed with a Q-tip, and then the Q-tip was wiped on a petri dish coated in a growth-stimulating agar. When swabbed for germs and incubated for a duration of five days (Friday morning to Tuesday afternoon), the colonies of bacteria, fungi, and other pathogens grew visible to the naked eye. LHS nurse Ms. Cameron Traut sees students in the nurse’s office for illnesses like the cold, flu and other stomach bugs frequently; she states that those are the most common reasons for students missing school. The germs that cause these ailments are found on everyday surfaces around the school and spread through contact with other people. The main culprit: hands.

“Wash your hands, cough into your sleeves and use Kleenex,” said Ms. Traut. “It’s true germs are spread by hands, so when they talk about deep cleaning schools after certain viruses and outbreaks, that’s all fine and good until someone comes back into the building and starts touching things. That negates what you have just done.”

To prevent getting sick, hand washing is key, along with limiting the amount of contact with the eyes and face after touching something like a railing. Once students get sick, the biggest thing they can do to get better is to rest; according to Ms. Traut, it is the most effective way to bounce back early.

“The number one thing, everyone rolls their eyes when i say this, is to sleep and rest. It is true. Your body needs rest for your immune system to fight those bugs. Rest is key, meaning sleep. Going to bed earlier than you normally do. You will eventually fight it faster and shorten the course of the illness if you can allow your body to rest.”

Ms. Traut also explained that missing one day of school won’t kill students. Trying to push through illness will only prolong the problem.

which he credits to the germy nature of the school.

Though Mr. Budge sees the school as a “germ factory.” he was a little surprised when he saw the results of the test: “It’s the nature of the beast. We are in a school of 2,000 students and 100-plus, maybe 200 people who work in the school, so I understand there are going to be a lot of germ hazards. It’s hard to prevent. I don’t know if we could wipe down every single [book]. I think you are kind of aware of it, but when you see it, you are like wow!” he commented.

Photo by Kayla Fiore DROPS OF INK 15

DRINKING FOUNTAIN Junior Dolores Palmieri stops regularly throughout the day at the drinking fountain to fill up her water bottle. Palmieri, having taken a biology honors class as a freshman, knows all too well the germs around the school. “So many people get their faces up close to the nozzle! I feel like it is filled with germs. Also, the knob that you press down on must be gross too! People touch that and then go and touch their eyes or food! Germs will circulate that way,” she explained.

When shown the results, as much as she had prepared herself with her prior knowledge, Palmieri was still in a slight state of shock. Her reaction: “It’s a good thing they sell water in the lunch line.”

Photo by Korina Valenzuela

Cell Phone One of the most common places students expect to find germs is on their cell phones. The age of mobile technology has taken over; so many students use their phones excessively. Often times students will bring their phones everywhere. Senior Erik Dahlin said, “I’d say [I touch my phone] every five minutes, especially when I am [going to the bathroom]. I touch it a lot. Even when I’m not using it, I am usually holding it, so I’m almost always in contact with it.”

Dalhin was not very surprised when he saw the results of the test. If anything, he was underwhelmed. “I think [my phone] is absolutely disgusting. I even use it when I am in the bathroom. I think my phone is much worse. There are barely any dots on this petri dish; if it were my phone, it would be covered in dots, probably a lot bigger dots too,” explained Dahlin.

Photo by Alex Zoellick

Photo by Kayla Fiore

RAILINGS

For some people, the inviting look of a hand railing on the way up a staircase is intoxicating, almost irresistible. The extra support and grip provided by a railing make for an easy transition from the first to second floor, or the vice-versa. Once hand meets railing, there is an instantaneous transfer of bacteria, germs and microbes. Junior Toyosi Akinlade was never really scared of the railings: “You are always told that germs are everywhere, but I never really think about it when I use the railing.”

Upon the sight of the bacteria-covered petri dish, Akinlade was visibly disgusted: “I always knew there were a lot of germs in the stairwell, but actually seeing it is surprising. It made me not want to use the railings anymore.”

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LOCKER DIAL Individuals who partake in messing up the locker dials in random hallways for the pleasure of ruining someone’s passing period don’t know what they’re getting themselves into: a thick heavy pile of plague and disease.

Junior Sarah Broughton’s expression was priceless when shown the petri dish containing the germs from the crevices and crannies of her locker dial: “It’s not like it is constantly being touched for extended periods of time. I mean, each time I touch my locker dial I only touch it for a few seconds,” Broughton pondered aloud.

But, now a days, people sneeze and touch, pick and rub, without hesitation. And what do we touch every day, several times a day? Yes, that’s right, your locker dial.

After seeing the results of the swab, Broughton began to realized the predicament that was upon her. She stated,“I couldn’t even avoid touching my locker if I wanted to.

It is such an large part of my routine. So it’s basically impossible for me to avoid those germs.”

Photo by Kayla Fiore

CHROMEBOOK Chromebooks, scheduled to be distributed to every student in the coming school year (read more on lhsdoi.com), have become an integral part of the curriculum. The Chromebook results appeared the most drastic in regard to the amount of bacteria present.

Anthony Milunas, a junior, has never feared germs. “I just feel like they are tiny enough that they don’t really affect me in the long run. I mean, I wash my hands after handling anything dirty so germs aren’t really a big deal, especially since Chromebooks aren’t that dirty.”

When shown the results of the germ cultivation for the Chromebook, his reaction seemed to change: “I use Chromebooks almost every day in one class or another and have never thought of them as germ-infested.

That’s nasty. To be completely honest, I don’t know if I want to touch the Chromebooks tomorrow!” he exclaimed.

Photo by Kayla Fiore

All petri dish photos by Jillian Ruff DROPS OF INK 17

By Manal Ahmed layout by Abigail St. Claire

Dance is What the Heart Makes

Graceful turns, intricate footwork, and complex choreography are what a group of students at Libertyville High School work on for months. Often times overlooked, many LHS students do more than just study: they dance. They dedicate their time into perfecting what is imperfect, exercising their control of every limb and every muscle, and fine-tuning every dance move they make.

Orchesis is a dance company at LHS that features a variety of dance styles, including tap, ballet, lyrical, modern, and more. Students who take part in this audition-based company get an opportunity to work with guest, student, and faculty choreographers throughout the winter season and end with a fully staged production in March.

“Orchesis is a group where anyone who loves to dance can come and participate.

It’s a lot of student choreography, so it’s very student-led,” assistant director Mrs. Lauren Pothast stated.

The Orchesis season begins with auditions in November. Clinics hosted by directors of the show, Mrs. Eryn Brown and Mrs. Pothast, are where LHS students learn the dances they have to perform for their audition. During their auditions, students are asked to perform an across-the-floor sequence, which is a series of movements through a given space, and a more modern piece that is simple for all dancers from different backgrounds and styles to follow. There is also part of the audition where students have to improv and make up a dance on the spot for an allotted amount of time.

Along with normal auditions to be part of the Orchesis show, students can also audition to be a choreographer.

“If students want to choreograph, they can do a choreography proposal where they tell us what their dance is about, the style of their piece, and then they perform a small segment of it so we can get a taste of it,” Mrs. Pothast said.

After about a week of auditions, LHS students and choreographers are selected to be a part of the show, and, Mrs. Brown and Mrs. Pothast, began to help students schedule rehearsals. Dancers also get to pick what dances they prefer to be in.

“On Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays, we have rehearsals and they’re normally in one-hour time slots. So in every one-hour slot, there [are] probably 3-4 pieces that are being rehearsed. So students can be in two dances and be here for two hours and another student may be in nine dances and be here for nine hours,” Mrs. Pothast stated.

As time progresses, Orchesis dancers have scheduled rehearsals and get straight to work with their choreographers. Student choreographers also begin to polish up dances that they have prepared for the show and start to teach them to their dancers.

Student choreographers work long hours to formulate and perfect a dance that conveys a certain mood, or even a personal story.

“How I choreograph really depends on what’s going on in my life. If it’s a really busy time in my life and I’m feeling overwhelmed, I usually express my feelings through dance. Sometimes I tell stories through my choreography that shows how I may be feeling. This year my piece is about experiences I have had throughout high school, but it also ties together that all things are not as what they seem,” senior and Orchesis student-choreographer Gina Stoll stated.

Stoll tells her dancers what the purpose of her dance is, but does not give too many details on how she would like their emotions to be conveyed.

“For the first week, I explain to my dancers what my dance is about and how I’m trying to portray it, but I stop there and let them bring out their own artistic side because it’s cool to see how other people would interpret my feelings,” Stoll explained.

Teaching a group of students, all from different dance backgrounds, is not always easy. The student population involved in Orchesis is incredibly diverse. All of the dancers come from a variety of dance studios and companies and were all taught different ways. Some LHS students involved in Orchesis may have limited dance experience.

“Everyone is so diverse. I’m from an outside dance company, and there, we are all taught the same way and in Orchesis, everyone is from different dance studios, so you have to learn to work with different people and their strengths and weaknesses, but it’s also very cool because you get to learn everyone’s strengths and weaknesses,” Stoll said.

As months pass and showtime gets closer, dancers, choreographers, and faculty all begin to prepare for the final performance.

This month is when Orchesis dancers step up and give it their all. Rehearsals start DROPS OF INK 18

“I usually express my feelings through dance....I tell stories through my choreography that shows how I may be feeling.”

-Gina Stoll to become longer and more intense, and choreography and placements are perfected.

Dancers also start to focus on costumes. Costumes convey a specific mood in dance pieces. Many choreographers enjoy simple costumes that do not distract from the choreography, but it always depends on the type of dance and the choreographer.

“A lot of costumes are more simple dresses that are easier to move in. In a lot of modern lyrical dances, you dance barefoot. So there’s specific costumes for specific pieces,” sophomore and Orchesis dancer Molly Almer stated.

Orchesis dancers then begin to work on lighting for the show, music, and stage cues. The tech crew at Libertyville High School helps a lot with this and dancers in the show also have a huge say with what they prefer when it comes to lighting and cues. Because students choreograph their own dances, they know what works best with their pieces.

About 1-2 weeks before the show, dancers start to have nightly dress rehearsals. During these rehearsals, they have their hair and makeup done and their costumes on. Dancers also have all lighting and music present and run through the full show numerous times.

“During dress rehearsals, it’s really just running every dance consecutively and the lighting transitions and announcements of the pieces and getting all of the sound cues right. We make sure

each dance is perfect and polished so the show order is mainly the most important thing,” Almer proclaimed.

And as dress rehearsals come to an end, showtime begins. This year, the show is on the evenings of Thursday, March 5 and Friday, March 6 at 5 pm.

Showtime is an exhilarating thing for all dancers involved. Dancers are finally able to put all of their hard work out there and showcase what they have been working on for months.

“The idea of stress before the show has to be my favorite part. It gets you pumped for the show and you’re very driven.

You feel the drive to get stuff done and accomplish something you’ve been working hard on,” Stoll declared.

After showtime, Orchesis comes to an end.

Dancers create unbreakable bonds and learn a lot from the five months that they spend together. Both student choreographers and dancers acquire leadership skills throughout the Orchesis process. Students work with a diverse group and learn to adapt and help others through the months.

“Orchesis really prepares me to work with others. I am now able to work with different people without feeling stressed that someone can’t do a specific thing because everyone’s different. It also shows that I’m not able to do everything, so I can understand my own weaknesses, with other people’s strengths and weaknesses,” Stoll said.

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Photo by Korina Valenzuela

W

I

S

E

WOMAN IN SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING

by Puja Saha layout by Abigail St. Claire

In 2011, 4,473 Americans earned master’s degrees in physical sciences. Of them, only 1,657 (37 percent) were women, according to The National Academies. Women who hold degrees in science are rarities, and in that sense, LHS is fortunate to have an AP and Honors Chemistry teacher who is a member of this small percentage of the scientific workforce. Ms. Sherri Rukes, perhaps one of LHS’s most well-known and beloved faculty members, is a beacon for girls and women interested in science.

Everyone’s been there; at some time or another, faded pictures of toddlers clutching toy stethoscopes or dressed as firemen in plastic hats have surfaced, only to find that the grown-up versions of themselves haven’t chased that temporary passion for some career they’d presently never consider.

Ms. Rukes wasn’t one of those kids. “I wanted to a be a teacher, I would say, since I was a little girl,” she said. “I taught my stuffed animals, okay? I had a chalkboard and my dolls and stuffed animals, and I would teach them.”

Unlike the vast majority of her classmates at the University of Illinois, Ms. Rukes harnessed her longtime affinity and natural inclination for teaching and geared it toward chemistry.

However, unlike her desire to teach, Ms. Rukes’ knack for chemistry developed over time. Like many, she was inspired by a teacher who pointed her in the right direction. Ms. Rukes attributes her interest in the field to her high school chemistry teacher, Mr. Thorne.

“He was my second dad,” she recalled. “He pushed me, like, ‘Oh, have you seen this?’ or ‘Have you tried this?’ That’s what then gave me the glimmer that maybe chemistry was something I could do, because someone was noticing that I was good at it and wanted me to do more...I think it’s that connection with the teacher that is the deciding factor.”

Ms. Rukes’ belief that connecting with students makes a difference in who they become and their attitude toward learning is no strange concept to her own students. LHS senior and Ms. Rukes’ former AP and Honors Chemistry student Cameron Cuzmanko can attest to the importance of being inspired by and able to relate to teachers.

“She really gets down to knowing the kids on a personal level,” he said of Ms. Rukes. “For instance... when I worked at Sunset, she visited me, and she visited some other kids at their work too... and she’s just a genius at science. She knows everything, I swear.”

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Cuzmanko also acknowledges Ms. Rukes’ place in his choice of career.

“I’ve always been a science-y guy, and having her for two years, she’s been a big deal in my wanting to pursue chemistry as a career, like chemical engineering. [Even] though it’s just a grueling topic, she’s a major reason as to why I would pursue a future career in that field.”

According to Cuzmanko, the other aspect that makes Ms. Rukes an incomparable teacher is her innate ability to engage audiences. Her charismatic personality carries over into wild experiments that leave her students buzzing for days afterward.

“I brought in a gummy bear, and if you drop it into [potassium chlorate] it just starts flaming and flaring colors, and it just starts screeching, and it’s the funniest thing,” he remembers.

Despite all she does here at LHS (like arriving at LHS by 5 a.m. to make herself available even for students with zero hour and early bird for other AP sciences), Ms. Rukes still makes time to promote science outside LHS. Her winning personality and very prevalent passion for science have driven her to propagate the field and promote it amongst young minds nationwide.

“I do a lot of outreach. I really enjoy going out and doing outreach to elementary school and middle school kids to get them excited for science and for chemistry,” she said, also recalling and smiling at the memory of emails from scientist parents of middle schoolers wondering how she engaged their children with science if they couldn’t. “Convention wise, I have spoken at many, many conventions, and I think the two most notable, recently, were a couple of years ago, it was for Alabama, and I spoke at a convention somewhere, and there were people from Alabama there that really liked my idea, and I actually worked with them on developing a state curriculum.”

But Ms. Rukes’ path to success and a career she loves didn’t come without obstacles. In college, Ms. Rukes remembers often being the only woman, or one of very few women, in all of her classes. “There were very few girls... I had a lot of friends that were engineers, and when I was done with my classes, and I’d hang out with [them] in their engineering classes, and they would always laugh at me because I wasn’t enrolled in the class, but the professor knew who I was... because we were in a sea of men, and then there was me, and the same type of thing happened in a lot of my chemistry classes.”

In addition to being a unique teacher who wholeheartedly invests herself in her students’ well being, Ms. Rukes is an active and invaluable contributor to the science department.

“She has by far the most background in the subject matter and teaching methodology of anyone in the department,” said Mr. Greg Herman, LHS Human Physiology teacher and science department supervisor. “She’s done it all, she’s creative, she’s innovative, she’s thoughtful and willing to share, so... she just brings a whole new level of expertise to what we do.”

It’s obvious to anyone who knows Ms. Rukes that she stands for what universities, STEM companies, and science teachers vehemently approve of and do their best to promote. She’s a passionate and insatiably curious scientist who strives to encourage everyone, regardless of gender, to take interest in STEM fields. To female students who want to pursue science, she says there’s no reason to hesitate. “I say go for it,” she said. “I had the support of my parents and now my students, too. I think that if people are backing you, anything can happen.”

“She’s done it all, she’s creative, she’s innovative, she’s thoughtful and willing to share, so... she just brings a whole new level of expertise to what we do.”

-Greg Herman

DROPS OF INK 21

Photos by Kayla Fiore

Too Much Testing?

Staff Editorial

Too much testing can put a large amount of stress on high school students.

Between curriculum tests during class, final exams, and stanthe final, and then they will forget the material by the end of the dardized testing such as the ACT, SAT, and the new PARCC, our exam period. staff agrees that the amount of testing at Libertyville High School Students are not only pressured to do well on classroom exams should be decreased. but standardized tests as well. Between the ACT, the SAT, and now To many students, taking tests seems to be a never-ending cycle. the PARCC exam, students feel forced to spend much time and Students will learn the material, cram for the test, take the test, money in order to score well on these tests. These tests play a mathen forget the material. This routine of testing is not beneficial for jor role in deciding students’ futures, and our staff believes that this students because they usually do not retain the knowledge in their gives some students an unfair disadvantage. With the ACT, many long-term memory. In addition, this cycle is very time-consuming students take classes and pay for tutors in order to improve their and it may damage the social aspects of a student’s life. scores. However, many students cannot afford to spend the time Between tests over topics in the curriculum and final exams, our or money for these classes, due to various reasons; some students staff believes that grades put too much emphasis on testing rather are too busy with work or sports to partake in this extra studying. than knowledge itself. The point of students going to school for Because of these reasons, some students will not be able to score the first 18-plus years of their lives is to receive a good education. as high, and their futures may suffer. Our staff believes that in However, the amount of testing that takes place within the school order for the standardized test system to be improved, every student has shifted the focus from education to getting good grades. Our should get equal opportunities to prepare for the tests. staff concluded that if more direct application of learning was used Students can experience many negative side effects as a result in place of regular testing, students would not only learn more, but of over-testing. Many students are under a great deal of stress due they would enjoy learning it. to the amount of testing, and this causes many negative effects on Even after a student endures the various tests in all of their the body. According to the Mayo Clinic, stress can cause headaches, classes throughout the semester, they still must pass their dreaded muscle pains, sleep problems, anxiety, and even depression. Our final exams. Our staff found that practical-application finals and staff does not think any high school students should have to deal final projects are much more helpful than standard final exams. For with these problems, which is why the amount of testing should be instance, the Graphics class has to make a business card for their decreased. final. With this type of final, students are able to show what they There are many ways for teachers to test their students’ knowlhave learned over the semester, while also doing so in an entertainedge without using testing itself. Our staff concluded that tests ing and interesting way. can be useful at times, but the amount of testing should be reduced With regular finals, students are forced into the same cycle as because of the stress it puts on students. Classes should strive to mentioned earlier, but on an even larger scale. They must relearn have a more even ratio of tests, quizzes, and projects. This will take the facts that they have most likely forgotten from earlier in the stress off of students and possibly improve their overall attitude semester, they must cram for hours on end in order to prepare for towards school.

DROPS OF INK 22

Are You Okay With Guantanamo Bay? Frenzy. Panic. Terror. The days and months after 9/11 elicited an unprecedented outpouring of emotion and turmoil. America was thrust into hysteria, and in the midst of it--with the knowledge and understanding of few--bold new measures were enacted to combat terrorism. Included among these was George W. Bush’s executive authorization of the use of Guantanamo Bay in Cuba as a prison for the most dangerous detainees captured in the new War on Terror. According to Bush’s Secretary of State, Donald Rumsfeld, the site would be an optimal location for interrogation of suspected terrorists.

By Conor Kennedy

Fast forward to today. More than 14 years after the terrorist attacks, four years after America’s official withdrawal from Iraq, and on the verge of full troop disengagement from Afghanistan, there are still prisoners languishing in Guantanamo Bay, some of whom have been there since the prison’s opening in 2002, almost none of whom have ever been charged with a crime. And, not only have these detainees sat in Cuba with their right to due process blatantly violated but with their fundamental human rights disregarded as well. Apparently, neither the U.S. Constitution nor the Geneva Convention matter at Gitmo, and although the Supreme Court has ruled since 2004 that both of these documents have jurisdiction there, abuses still continue.

Only two months ago, a special Senate committee released a 525-page report divulging the CIA’s extensive use of “enhanced interrogation techniques”--widely known as a euphemism for torture--on prisoners at Guantanamo and at CIA “black sites” (secret prisons) around the world. What was most appalling about the Senate’s findings was perhaps not even the CIA’s unrestrained use of brutal interrogation methods; really, these were apparent all along, just never made official.

The committee’s most striking conclusion was that these techniques didn’t even work.

No information was obtained

By Connor Polk

regarding impending attacks, and according to the December report, any intelligence that was acquired could have been procured without torture.

This begs the question then: Why is the U.S. government keeping open the most notorious place for torture of individuals who have never even been charged? Why preserve a prison that, in President Obama’s own words, “the world condemns and terrorists use to recruit?” What’s more, why are there still prisoners there?

The answer is Congress, both houses of which are dominated by those who value supposed patriotism over personal liberty, monopolized by short-sighted politicians who preach to their constituencies the ever-imminent threat of a new terrorist attack and so keep Gitmo open. As always, Congress and the executive branch have reached a stalemate. They can’t even agree on an obvious, popular, and simple solution: close Guantanamo Bay.

Guantanamo Bay, despite its unfortunate track record and great controversy, should remain open.

Before I go on, it should be stated that in no way, shape, or form am I condoning any actions that have taken place in Guantanamo that have violated human rights in any way. These actions should cease and be condemned regardless of the circumstances.

But, as a matter of national security, GTMO (Guantanamo Bay Prison Facility) should remain nonetheless. It is no secret that the biggest current threat to Western society is terrorism. It has caused countless innocent deaths and fear all over the world and should not be taken lightly.

Throughout our nation’s history, the protection of our citizens and armed forces has been a critical issue. In 1917, the U.S. passed the Espionage Act, which restricted freedom of speech to keep our citizens and soldiers safe. The act was reinforced in the

Supreme Court case Schenck v.

United States, and much of the act remains in effect today.

Seeing as the U.S. government went as far to infringe upon to the First Amendment rights of its own citizens, it only makes sense that proportional actions are taken against threats overseas and towards GTMO. GTMO is just an example of the U.S. treating terrorism in a necessary manner. The fear spread by terrorism is one that has deeply pierced the heart of many Americans, and it is only pushed deeper by a fear-mongering media.

Bringing these terrorists, some of the most dangerous people apprehended by the U.S. government, onto U.S. soil would simply not go over well. Closing and transferring the prison to the U.S. also runs into logistical problems and the tidal wave of bureaucracy that is the U.S. government. The closing of GTMO is too financially, politically, and psychologically difficult.

Photo courtesy of MCT Campus Guantanamo Bay has been a source of controversy since its opening.

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LHS Teenius Moments

By Emily Hamilton

Photo courtesy of Yahoo! News

The cinnamon challenge is one of the many dumb trends that teenagers have done.

Countless teenagers are guilty of doing stupid things. A few examples of these things were given and labeled as “teenius” (teen genius) in an article last year on Kidspot, a website for parenting tips. One example was about a teen who recorded a video of him driving recklessly, weaving in and out of traffic, which caused him to hit a few cars. While he was in the hospital, recovering from his injuries from the car crash, this teen posted the video on YouTube, labeling it “Me Driving like an Idiot.” That gave the police enough evidence to charge him for his crimes.

A different teen got a McDonald’s receipt tattooed to his arm, “becoming an internet sensation for his bad decision,” according to Kidspot. A week later, he got his receipt from his McDonald tattoo tattooed to his other arm.

LHS also has some interesting “teenius” stories. Mrs. Rhoda Drije, science teacher, told a story about someone in one of her classes a few years ago.

“I had a kid in here, a freshman boy, he took a pair of dissecting scissors, which are pointy, and he stuck it in the outlet in the wall, and the scissors flew across the room, missed another kid by this much. And they’re pointy, so if it hit the kid in the eye or something...” she said. “That day I went ballistic. But he didn’t know what would happen; he just wanted to see what would happen when you put metal into an electrical outlet.”

Another story was told by Mr. Sean Ferrell, a dean here at LHS. “We had a student leaving school, who had been riding on the front hood of a car, driven by another student, all the way out, and they stopped right at the stoplight and there was a semi coming down 176 and it was not a safe thing, and luckily, nothing happened, but it was one of those ‘What if?’ situations. I feared for his safety.”

So why do teenagers do stupid things?

“I don’t think it’s just teenagers. I think all of those apply to even adults. Even adults do that, which you would hope that they would learn by now,” said Mr. Bill Mix, a social studies teacher.

Mrs. Drije added, “Partly, because they’re teenagers, they’re not

completely formed, mentally and physically, and partly, they like to screw around and get attention from other people.”

To give an even more scientific definition, Dr. Justin Coulson stated in the Kidspot article, that “adolescents take risks because they are highly responsive to emotion and the promise of reward (thanks to limbic system development), and because they are still in their infancy in terms of planning ahead, evaluating risk, and weighing potentially harmful consequences (thanks to an under-developed prefrontal cortex). As a consequence, they take risks because they think they’re invulnerable – they either fail to see the risk, or consider the reward to be worth the risk.”

Other stupid things teenagers have tried are the cinnamon, eraser, and the salt and ice challenges. According to CBS News and The American Association of Poison Control Centers, “about 88% of phone calls in the first three months of 2012 to the nation’s poison control centers were related to the ‘cinnamon challenge.’ The number is already up more than 240 percent from the whole of 2011.

Although only 25 percent of those calling needed hospital attention, the challenge can be especially dangerous for those with breathing problems like asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease...”

50,000 videos of the cinnamon challenge have been posted to YouTube, encouraging other teens to attempt it.

“I think the more people that view it, the more likely you’re going to find someone who believes that doing the salt and ice challenge is a sign of strength. I would say that the person who could resist all those social pressures would be, in my world, the stronger person than someone who conforms, just to have the approval of some others.” Mr. Mix commented.

Mr. Ferrell added, “I think that technology, especially for kids and for people in this day and age, it makes things more readily available, like in the moment. For example, kids are able to access videos or other images through social media, through the internet, so it makes it more visible, things are in kids’ faces more that they were ten years ago. But to me, that it doesn’t necessarily excuse the decision but can contribute to it.”

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Winter Wonder Lot

By Marijke Sommer

Photo by Marijke Sommer

The busy parking situation after a harrowing blizzard, which resulted in the D128 schools having an additional day off of school.

So here we are again. Obviously everyone loves the time when the snow starts piling up in the parking lot. This results in the formation of those incredibly obnoxious snow mounds all over the place, which encroach on the already icy and treacherous pavement.

Then, there are the seniors who are frantically trying to make the bell after getting Starbucks or Dunkin’ Donuts and you get a very calm and peaceful atmosphere of honking horns, speeding, and a new-and-improved version of bumper cars that is neither new nor improved.

Luckily for you, I am here to highlight every aspect of what goes on before school in the parking lot. You can use this information either for good (getting to school a whole 10 minutes earlier to avoid the rush) or for evil (let’s just add on to the chaos). We will first address the parking situation and then go into the rush to make it to school.

The Space Games: The first challenge is actually finding a parking space, which is when seniors can get pretty creative.

Oh, you see that pile of snow that’s conveniently on the ground, covering up the yellow parking lines? Well, this is probably where the classic example of adding a few spaces to each row comes in. Because somehow the parking lot just magically expands and somehow manages to fit even more cars into its spaces, nevermind the fact that the space in the lanes where cars have to drive keeps decreasing.

And then we have a terrorizing panic attack set off by the realization that there is one minute until class starts, which can lead seniors to ingeniously create their own parking spaces, even to the extremes of daring to park in the aisles. This will usually result in a commendation of their cleverness and originality by security and their dean, who will award them the vivid yellow ticket that only

the most hardcore rulebreakers end up obtaining.

The Before-School Rush: This is when every senior forgets about how bad the road conditions are, how backed up the traffic gets, and realizes that they have five minutes to get to school, park their car, and frantically sprint to their class. And, of course, they had to acquire their coffee supply for the day to keep them awake, active, and definitely hyper-aware of the fact that that little trip just made the time they have left to actually get to school decrease by two minutes, if not more.

Another added excitement is the fact that every single senior is in the same boat as you. This results in the parking lot being crowded with seniors desperate to get to class and introduces a new level of physical activity of sprinting for the front doors, dodging cars that are on a mission, and trying not to be taken down by the ice.

This brings a new level of understanding to the term exercise.

The Point of No Return: At this point, the bell has already rung and it’s just too much effort to actually try to book it to the school, so the seniors decide to walk into their classes fashionably late. And if they are already that late, then why should they even go to first period at all? Ten minutes have already passed, and the period is already one-fifth done with, so there’s really no point to going to class because you know that you’ll be too behind to actually understand what the teacher is teaching. Plus, there is downtown conveniently located right by the school, so you might as well grab another cup of coffee and some food because you missed breakfast due to the starting rush.

So, now that you have read the techniques of these master parkers, you can use these skills when you become seniors or to improve your seniorhood to bring the parking lot to even higher heights of congestion.

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Not-so-average Joe Joey Gunther has taken Illinois and United States wrestling by storm. But Libertyville’s golden boy won’t be the one to tell you.

By Jake Vogt and Ryan Jackson As the final whistle blows at the end of each practice, the members of the LHS Wrestling team drag their tired, beaten, and often ringworm-infected bodies up the seven steps from the wrestling room towards the lockers. However, one athlete always fails to fall into the stride, or dutiful march, with his teammates.

“He stays after practice every day, he lifts a lot after practice, and he never eases up in practice, always going 100 percent as hard as he can,” said senior teammate Sal Potts.

He is senior Joey Gunther, who has quietly shot, sprawled, and crossfaced his way to a number two state ranking and a scholarship to wrestle at the University of Iowa next season, one of the nation’s most prestigious programs. In a crop of talented wrestlers recently -- last year’s team sent three players to compete at the Division I level -- Gunther has been able to distinguish himself as an elite wrestler. How did he work his way up? By keeping his head down.

“He is real quiet,” LHS Wrestling coach Dale Eggert shared in an email interview. “He comes to practice every day to make himself better. If there is anything he can do to make someone else better, he is more than willing to help them.”

Gunther’s greatness isn’t only manifested in his record (he has posted a 28-1 mark so far this season) or his accolades (he owns roughly his body weight in medals and hangs his all-state patch in his room), but rather in his unwavering work ethic. While most kids would be exhausted after a three-hour practice after school, that is only the beginning for Gunther. After the team’s practice, he will routinely go to his younger brother’s practice and wrestle with his coach in order to improve his craft. Not only that, he will spend an hour or two every other day in the weight room, trying to physically prepare his body for the wear and tear of a long wrestling season.

“He comes to practice every day to make himself better,” said Eggert. Gunther’s knack for always looking to improve sets him up for success.

Gunther’s hard work doesn’t stop with the season; he practices with two other teams out of the high school season as well. Throughout the summer he competes with the Illinois National Team, which draws the best talent from across the state. He will also work out with the Oak Park-River Forest High School club team when his other two teams are not competing. On top of all this, he continues to lift in the offseason in Above: “This year he has made a major order to put himself in the best position to succeed. transformation to someone that comes “I don’t mind training hard. I like training hard, I work hard,” stated Gunther. This desire sets Gunther out trying to dominate his opponents apart from the other wrestlers in the state, and in the country. physically,” stated Eggert.

This overwhelming schedule, both in season and out, is worth it for Gunther. “Sometimes it gets kind of annoying missing a lot stuff on the weekends but it’s all definitely worth it,” he said.

Far Right: In front of a home crowd In addition to earning all-state honors last season, Gunther has established himself as a perennial conlast year, Gunther takes down his tender on the national stage. His last three trips to nationals have brought two runner-up finishes and one opponent en route to an All-State third-place finish. Trips campaign. around the country to places like Florida, Right: Gunther stands atop the podiOklahoma, and North um after winning his weight class at a Dakota have seasoned local meet.

Gunther to handle the most elite competition. All photos courtesy of Sheryl Barbian “He is willing to go anywhere and go against anyone to get top notch competition,” Eggert beamed. “Many wrestlers avoid top notch competition knowing their chances of winning aren’t very good. Joey relishes it.”

While Gunther’s notorious competitive nature is primarily intrinsic, he did gain much of it when he was baptized into the hard-nosed wrestling culture by three future Division I teammates -- all at least a year older than him.

Coach Eggert remembers a moment more than five years ago Gunther poses with fellow seniors Mark Dunsing (left) and Jordan McInerny (right).

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that proved to be an early indication of Gunther’s character. When he was in seventh grade, he squared off against Kayne MacCallum, (currently wrestling at Eastern Illinois) an eighth grader at the time who outweighed Gunther by about 25 pounds.

“Joey never backed down and wasn’t going to stop until both guys had gotten a good workout,” Eggert remembered.

“Most guys would try to avoid a matchup like that, but not Joey.”

Gunther cites his former teammates as helping hands on his path to success, applying the things they demonstrated day in and day out to his own game: “Kayne and I used to wrestle a lot, go back and forth a lot, so he was a really good training partner. Stevo (Polakowski, currently wrestling at Minnesota) was really tough, he was hard to wrestle even though he was smaller. He taught me to stay in there and fight hard for everything.”

Gunther’s mental toughness sets himself apart from other wrestlers as well.

While some athletes will be devastated after losses, almost afraid to lose, Gunther uses these experiences to develop into a better wrestler.

“He isn’t afraid of losing knowing you learn more from a loss than from a win,” Eggert stated.

According to Eggert, Gunther sets unusually high goals for himself as a high school wrestler. He knows what it takes to be successful in a grueling sport, and he will do whatever it takes to achieve it.

Gunther attributes much of his success to Coach Eggert, who has been coaching Joey throughout his high school career.

“He knows a lot about the sport and has taught me more than I ever could have imagined to learn,” said Gunther.

Gunther’s extensive recruiting process started early in the summer going into his senior year. He was first contacted by small Division I schools including Northern Illinois and Northern Colorado, before drawing Big Ten interest. Iowa, Minnesota and Illinois all started heavily recruiting Gunther, before one school set itself apart from the rest.

“I pretty much narrowed it down to [Iowa, Minnesota, and Illinois]. Then

Iowa gave me the best offer by far so I chose them,” explained Gunther.

Headed into a extremely competitive Big Ten wrestling conference next year, Gunther will join Polakowski, his former teammate. Although the two are in different weight classes and will not compete against each other, they will often compete at the same meets with their respective teams.

With the state meet three weeks away, Gunther is looking to continue his dominance all the way down to Champaign , the site of the state finals.

Gunther has showed his teammates that “hard work pays off. If you keep consistently working on it, eventually you’ll get to the point that you want,” according to Potts. The point Gunther ultimately wants is unclear -- a state title, a Big Ten Championship, maybe even an Olympic gold medal. At this point, little seems out of reach. What is clear is that Gunther will get there -- one practice at a time.

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PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

By Becky DeAcetis

It may be a winter wonderland, but for many athletes, it’s also a winter work out. Sledding, skiing and having snowball fights are all activities associated with winter. For some students, running, weight training and conditioning are also activities that define their winter; athletes start practicing long before spring, long before their season.

The main objective for most teams with a preseason is to develop the team’s physical ability. This prepares the athletes and helps them know what to expect for the rest of the season.

Although girls track’s outdoor season doesn’t start until after spring break, the team started its preseason Jan. 26. Most of the preseason is the indoor season, which is technically a seperate track and field season with indoor meets. The team will be participating in four meets this year; their first indoor meet will be on Feb. 21.

“We’re trying to give the girls the opportunity to get out there and race and experience the racing aspect of track and field,” said Mrs. Mary Kate Scoenbeck, the coach of the girls distance runners. “We added indoor season to give girls a one-up on the outdoor season. When we just had the outdoor season, girls would come to that first day of practice having not run in a while, out of shape and we would have to start from square one.

Now when outdoor season starts, we’re kind of ahead of the game and we’ve already had a couple meets under our belts. It gives us an advantage competitively and gives girls a one-up on their personal goals for the season.”

The girls track indoor season, which was added three years ago, mostly runs the same way as the outdoor season. For both seasons, the girls usually have about two workouts per week, which typically focus on speedwork, and they have about three endurance runs. Every Saturday, the entire team comes to LHS for morning practice at seven or eight in the morning. During indoor season, they usually use the spin room for about an hour on Saturdays, then move to the weight room for another hour. Outdoor season is very similar; instead of biking, the team usually runs on the track if the weather allows it.

“The only thing that’s really different is the weather,” Mrs. Schoenbeck laughed. “During indoor season we’ll meet in the fieldhouse, outdoor season we’ll meet by the track. It’s a seamless transfer. We’re still doing the same things, still having the same practice routines, but it’s outdoors now.”

Because track and field has a variety of events, the team splits up into different groups for practice; sprinters, distance runners and field event participants are usually the options the girls can choose from. However, not every athlete is only in one group; many are in short distance and field events, or short and long distance.

“We’ll typically run a little bit to warm up and do drills and then the girls will split up into their various groups: the sprinter and the distance runners,” Mrs. Schoenbeck said. “Each group of people has a different workout routine.”

Although the majority of track and field athletes join the preseason, some aren’t able to because they are involved in a winter sport: “If they’re in another sport, there’s nothing we can do. They have to finish that season...they’ll come right after [that sport] ends,” explained Schoenbeck.

Photo Credits of Mrs. Schoenbeck A major part of the preseason is also the bonding it provides. The indoor season is not just about getting in shape, but also about the team getting to Rainbow Day has become a tradition of the girls track team.

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,,

know each other.

“I like getting to know the team during preseason because I knew the team, but not super well. It’s really fun to form a bond with people before we start going into the actual season. It makes it more fun to be a close knit team,” said Samantha Campbell, a sophmore who was on the varsity track team.

The indoor season also allows the coaches to get to know the athletes on their team; they have plenty of time to assess their strengths and weaknesses, as well as help them pick an event: “It was nice to be able to have a few indoor meets before outdoor, to just see how they go…

It’s good experience before the big meets start coming and it’s good to see what event you’ll want to be in. It’s a really good tool to figure out where you fit best,” Campbell explained.

Track athletes have to choose what they are going to be doing. First, athletes decide if they want to run short, middle or long distance and/or participate in a field event.

“The hardest part is how cold it is and how snowy and icy it is when we’re trying to run,” Campbell said. “We have to take weird paths to get around the snow and ice and we have to wear a lot of layers because it’s really cold.”

The boys track preseason is very similar to the girls; it also started Jan. 26 and will last until spring break and is broken up into an indoor and outdoor season. Girls and boys track have one of the longest indoor seasons; however, it wasn’t always like that.

“It’s only the last couple years where we’ve started to have this much of an indoor season. When I first took over as head coach four years ago, we really didn’t have an indoor season. We had a couple weeks; we had one meet, now we have five meets,” said Mr. Jason Schroeder, the head coach of the boys track team.

The boys track’s preseason lasts the same duration as the girls. During the indoor season, there are five meets; during outdoor season, there are usually two meets per week.

“The overall intensity is different and it needs to be. It’s a long season. We don’t want to be the fastest, throw the furthest, run the farthest in February. We want to do that in May,” explained Mr. Schroeder.

Since there are many other teams practicing at the same time, it is always difficult to find room for practice. If the weather cooperates, the boys track team usually runs outside to avoid the cramped high school.

Softball and baseball also have large off-season training schedules; although tryouts for both begin the first week of March, the softball team began practicing in November and the baseball team started practicing in December.

“We have been having workouts and conditioning since November. It’s one hour, two times a week and it’s not mandatory,” explained Mrs. Katti Bachar, the assistant coach of the varsity softball team. “The purpose of the preseason is to come in and be active so you can be getting better,” Mrs. Bachar said. This part of the preseason has been part of the team’s routine for about four years.

“We do agility and core workouts the first half hour and then we go to the weight room and do specific muscle exercises… I get in so much better shape and I think other people also improve,” said sophomore Allison Flores, who was a member of the JV softball team last season.

During January and February, the team does more hitting and stations that allow the athletes to practice more aspects of the sport in one practice: “It’s a lot more open so that have a choice of what they want to do,” said Mrs. Bachar. This part of the season incorporates speed work, hitting and agility, whereas the first part focused on weight training and conditioning.

The preseason also helps the team get to know each other, which helps the athletes perform better as a team. “Most team members go, so it’s a bonding experience and it really gets us ready,” Flores said.

Baseball has a similar preseason; it starts in December instead of November but incorporates many of the same components. The team started using the weight room three times a week since before winter break; they started more rigorous training the last week of January.

“This week [the last week of January] we start our throwing program, we start playing catch in the fieldhouse in the morning. Every Monday night, most of the guys on the team go work out at Slammers, which is a place where you go hit--they have a bunch of cages in there,” said senior Nick Rossetti, a member of the varsity baseball team. “Right now, we’re getting stronger...we’re in midseason form by the time the season starts.”

Like other sports, the preseason in baseball makes close friends even closer: “The best part is being with the rest of the guys...We’ve been playing together, the senior class, since we were 9, 10 years old, and we’re really close with the junior class. Baseball’s a big chemistry sport, the more chemistry you have, the better you play, so getting to know each other a little better can really help,” Rossetti shared.

You’re getting their bodies ready but you’re also building the team so when you go to the outdoor season you’re ready to hit the ground running.

,,

-Mr. Schroeder

Photo by Korina Valenzuela

Softball practices from 6-9 p.m. on Tuesdays during their preseason.

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GIVE IT UP FOR An in-depth look into the life of Libertyville's #1 sports fan

Gary

By Kyle Laska

In today’s sports, the trend of being a “superfan” is greater than ever before. The “12th man” in Seattle cheer on the Seahawks, much like “Raider Nation” cheers on the Raiders in Oakland. The idea of becoming one large and unified group that can affect the game by getting loud when the opposing team has the ball is consistently popularized. However, not everyone needs to be in a group to affect a game. Some fans are able to make an impact on their own. LHS Class of 1978 graduate Gary Graham is this kind of fan.

A staple at Libertyville sporting events since his time as an LHS student, Graham is notorious for being the Wildcats’ number one supporter. Graham is also living with special needs and currently resides at Lambs Farm’s assisted living facility. Being classified as special needs all his life, Graham never let that stop him from following his love of sports.

Now, Graham can be found on the sideline of Libertyville’s football games in the fall. Graham acknowledged that his favorite sporting event to attend is football because he “gets to be a team manager.” He also enjoys how “excited everyone gets at the [football] games.” When the winter comes around, Graham moves from the turf to the hardwood to support the boys basketball team.

Senior basketball player Peter Feely has played basketball all four years of his high school career, meaning he has gotten to know Graham pretty well. Graham follows every level of basketball, not just varsity. According to Feely, Graham’s attitude towards the games is a huge advantage.

“Gary brings a great attitude. There is always a smile on his face and it’s a great reminder of the attitude we should have every game, regardless of distractions that we have outside of basketball,” acknowledged Feely.

The attitude he brings to each and every game is one of optimism and joy. Graham goes into each game with a mindset that the team can win, even when they are heavily disfavored. Graham simply cheers and wills the team to play as well as they can, which, according to boys basketball head coach Scott Bogumil, is the reason Graham is such a special person.

“Gary is truly a special person who just loves LHS. Our teams are part of his routine and he is part of ours. You know it is game day when Gary pops in the office just before we are ready to board the

Always looking for ways to help, Graham huddles up with the team.

bus for another tough road game, or when he comes in and grabs a Coke before another home game. Gary always says, ‘Coach, ready for a win tonight?’ It’s just great to see him and his love from our school and teams,” said Mr. Bogumil.

The truth behind Mr. Bogumil’s statement is impressive. Graham often shows up early for games to ensure he has time to spend with players and the coaches, and to ride the bus with the team. His dedication to the program is what makes his story so special. Even after years and years of the same routine, Graham still brings a sense of vibrant enthusiasm to each and every game.

“Gary is a part of our program and has been for a long time. He has unwavering support of the program. Having him around is a link to all of our former players and coaches. He has been a part of many special moments in Wildcats basketball so having him around is a tradition that never graduates,” stated Mr. Bogumil.

Although he has always been an LHS fan, it must be remembered where he started: As an LHS student. Graham was once in the position many of us are in now. However, as he continued to grow and change, he never lost his love for the sports he grew up with.

“I liked going to basketball games [in high school]. They were a lot of fun, so now I go to more of them,” joked Graham. When asked if they were still fun to go to, Graham laughed and responded, “you know it!”

Even though the games are fun and exciting for Graham, they’re also more than that to him. Libertyville sports have become a lifestyle for him. His constant interactions with players and coaches, matched with his smile and waves to fans, highlight the fact that Graham is truly a “superfan.” He isn’t a regular fan who will support the team

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when things are good and look away when things go awry. Instead, Graham pushes his message of positivity upon everyone.

Lifelong friend Jim Borcia, father of senior basketball player Joe Borcia, knows Graham better than perhaps anyone. And if there’s one thing Borcia knows, it’s just how unique Graham really is.

“Gary is a joy to be around; he’s very friendly and becomes your friend. You can see that by how many alumni stop and say hi to him before, during and after games. He is a fixture at the games and reminds former players [of] fond memories of playing for LHS. I have known Gary since I began playing basketball for LHS in 1979.

I also hired Gary to work for me as an usher when I managed a movie theater while I was in high school and college. Gary and I have become good friends,” said Borcia.

Graham continues to work every day. He can currently be found helping in the Lambs Farm Garden and Pet Center. He helps clean and care for the animals.

Graham really does enjoy the title of “Superfan.” Often seen donning

his letterman’s jacket decorated in orange and black, Graham is actually a secret weapon for the Wildcats. Graham helps the team with shootaround before the game. He makes sure players know they’ve got a supporter at all times as he cheers them on and will sometimes retrieve basketballs for the players.

“I love to help out [with] shootaround. I get the balls and sometimes make baskets. I always cheer on players, even if they miss,” shared Graham.

Just before the game, Graham will take his spot on the bench. According to Borcia, he is “very knowledgeable about the teams, and what they need to do to win.”

As soon as the tip-off gets the game underway, Graham goes into “superfan” mode.

He brings the same energy he brought before the game and does his best to inspire and support the team.

“Gary is a great supporter at all the games. I think [the players] have grown to think of Gary as sort of a comfort guy that’s always there. When we are at some random school on a Wednesday night and we have none of our own fans in the stands, I always take some comfort Graham is always sure to support the team, even when the team is losing. knowing that Gary is there to cheer us on,” said Feely.

As the games end and the seasons pass, LHS is able to take comfort in the fact that as long as he is able, Graham will be there to support the school. In times where true, die-hard fans are as common as a solar eclipse, Graham is here to show that there is hope for the livelihood of the “superfan.” As he continues his life as a bridge between the past and the future LHS, all anyone can hope is that he doesn’t lose the enthusiasm and joy that he has brought to so many different teams and fans.

However, as he cheers with a smile and a swagger that only comes from a true “superfan,” Graham only wants one thing from his alma mater: “I just want to win.”

“Gary always says,

‘Coach, ready for a win tonight?’ It’s just great to see him and his love from our school and teams”

- Coach Bogumil

Layout by Maddie Salata Photos by Korina Valenzuela

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