Oct ober 23, 2015
I ssue 1: Orient at ion Volume 1- 3
Photos from wikipedia.com
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PRIVATE VS. PUBLIC SCHOOL EXPERIENCE Elise Tucker Editor-in-Chief Coming from a Catholic private grade school to a public high school was really a cultural shock to me rather than an academic shock. Seeing the different religions, outfits, and how people acted was surprising for a five foot freshman such as myself. Just the aspect of a new school, new people and new teachers scared me enough to want to run for the hills, but now I have fallen into the mold of "normal" here at Westside.
"Also Roncalli is way different from all the other private schools in my opinion," Merrill said. "We are small and the administration genuinely cares about all of us and knows us by name." My grade school's focus was English and Religion. When I went there there was only a couple good math teachers and science teachers. Freshman year English was a breeze for me and my family because I knew all of the material because we learned it in 6th grade. Merrill also describes the teachers and the adminstration as well.
Other experiences can be different though. Roncalli Catholic senior Emily Merrill shares what she thinks the academic differences she has faced from being in a Catholic high school.
"They (Roncalli) want us to do the best we can and they are super nice. I think there's maybe only a couple bad teachers but the rest are great and I actually learn stuff." Merrill said.
"Well I think the main difference academic wise would be were required to take a religion class every year," Merrill said. "Also we have to have a full 8 periods of classes we can't just have a half day or anything like that. I've never been to public school so I have no idea about the level of academics we have compared to you."
On the other end of the sectrum, we have the social aspect of high school. Each school has groups, bullying and access to technology in some way, but when you look at the class sizes Roncalli is smaller than Westside.
Westside is one of the largest schools in the Omaha Metro area and compared to Roncalli or any other private school it looks like a shark.
When I walk around Westside, I find new faces in the Landing everyday. In classes, I don't know a lot of people even though I'm now a senior. For Merrill she likes the smaller size of Roncalli.
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News "We are very small so everyone knows everyone and such. It's actually pretty nice in my opinion," Merrill said. "It's easy to find people with the same interests as you no matter what you like."
Roncalli and Westside are both amazing schools, but they are both really different. From the academics, to class sizes, to the people, both schools excel in their own ways.
NEBRASKA WEATHER STARTING TO GET FRIGHTFUL Elise Tucker Editor-in-Chief The outside is starting to get frightful. With the changing of the leaves and the colder temperatures it's starting to feel like fall. Let's face it. Nebraska winters are upon us. According to the National Weather Service, the weather is going to start to slowly change in early November. October is feeling more like September right now and it's all because of the rise of El Nino, a temperatures change in the fall and winter time that lets the Northern Hemisphere become warmer in the fall. Even though it's warm now that doesn't mean El Nino will be promising a "nice winter." It's actually polar opposite. El Nino will give the Phot o via Fl ickr Fall is upon Downtown Omaha. Midwest a winter full of snow, and hopefully snow days, but for now let's enjoy this summer weather in the fall and continue to wear shorts with t-shirts.
Phot o via Omaha Worl d Heral d Twins Molly and Maggie Phot o via nuca.com The Pinnacle Bank building shows off the "Omaha" art as the leaves fall in October. McChesney climb a maple tree after after school.
From westsidewired.org
"Also as far as cost it isn't that expensive," Merrill said. "They work with you a whole lot. Like there's a lot of people who go there who can't afford it at all so the principal works with them with like work study and financial aid. I do know that other private schools don't do that at all really. We're kinda the cheap ones."
From roncallicatholic.org
As for cost, since Westside is a public school it doesn't cost that much, but it can be hard to get in. I don't live in the district at all, so my parents needed to write a "pity letter" for me and my other siblings. Since Roncalli is a private school like Prep and Marian, families must pay tuition every year in order to attend. Merrill talks about how much she had to pay for tuiton and what her school does for families who can't afford the price.
Opinion
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Do people really care about politics? Elise Tucker Graphic via Clipart
Editor-in-Chief My dad has been involved in politics ever since I could remember. He would be in parades and events to promote the Republican party all throughout the summer. Of course, he made all of kids help out, so naturally, I became a hardcore worker for the political world. But then I realized something. Should I really care about politics? Young people today don't seem to care about much, so why should they care about politics? On social media I see people complaining about if Trump or Hilary were to ever be president that they would "move to Canada." If they complain so much then why aren't they taking action and actually participating in the world of politics. Voting for someone is a means of caring about your country and the well being of it. People are lazy and don't want to do anything especially going to a voting place and vote. To them voting is rubbish. It angers me that people complain then don't vote. If people want to change the country and the world they must care and vote. Sharing is caring and voting is caring.
CYBERBULLYING CREATES CONFLICT
ki lling themselves over cyberbullying in
Elise Tucker Editor-in-Chief
schools and I just don?t want that come to our school.
I typed up ?I?m just not a fan of Jack and Jack. Going to school with them just wasn?t that special,? on Twitter. With one click of my mouse, I sent out the tweet that would cause some controversy in the Jack and Jack fandom.
People have responded to the account, but the person just kept posting. The victim thinks that responding to the message will help the bullying stop, but the truth is cyberbullying can?t be stopped by doing any of that. The victim is just making it worse.
?Don?t judge them!? ?B**ch, you don?t know them like I know them,? and ?If you hate them you must hate yourself.? popped up on my screen. I was in shock. Seeing those comments made me feel targeted, so of course, I started to respond. That made it worse. I just encountered cyberbullying.
See the bully wants that angry text or tweet from the victim. that reaction. The reaction is what the bully is looking for.
I?m sure people has been affected in some way or another by cyberbullying. Whether it be being the bully online, being the victim, or helping a friend deal with the problem, people have been tied into the issue.
To help the cyberbullying victims, don?t just say to them, ?Oh I can fix it myself,? says the victim. The friend needs to look at what is happening and listen to the victim. If they don?t talk to the about it then their emotions will be bundled up inside and then their feelings will come bursting out when it?s too late. The friend needs to support them.
The victim can block the person who is sending the messages or even better. At Westside there has been a history Middle school and even high school students need to delete social media all of cyberbullying. A Twitter account named @westsidegossip9 was posting together. If it?s over text message the victim can block the number to get rid of rude comments about students in the bully. Don?t be tempted to look at the mid-August. As of September 17, the account has 28 followers and 21 tweets. cyberbullying?s account it will only get worse if he/ she does. No one knows who is behind the account with. I see articles, such as Overall, everyone needs to be nicer on Megan Meir's anniversary of her death social media and messaging because it and Amanda Todd in the media Graphic via Clipart
will be there forever.
Opinion Lighthouse Newspaper is a senior project that has been approved by Westside High School. All photos belong to Editor-in-Chief Elise Tucker, unless it starts with "Photo or graphic via/ from..." Please contact her if you would like to use any of her photos on social media or for other projects. Lighthouse Newspaper is a non-profit newspaper made for school and fun. Elise will not accept any cash or donations to this newspaper because it is online. If you would like a paper copy of this issue or future issues contact her at et.hershey@gmail.com. If you have questions or comments tweet her @R5girly, so she can get back to you immediatly. Thank for reading this newspaper! Make sure to follow us on Instagram and Twitter @LighthouseNWS.
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Graphic from Huffington Post
FEMINISM VS. MENINISM Elise Tucker
crazy lately, but so have the meninism groups.
Editor-in-Chief
Meninism has started to spring up and has been trying to take down the feminist groups. Meninism groups only focus on men's rights and how they should be the superior gender. There hasn't been a lot of protests and demonstrations for the group, but they have certainly tackled social media.
I read a quote that said, "We are all human beings and I believe that we all should have equal rights." -Blake Mycoskie. Blake is right. We all need to equal rights, but some feminism and meninism groups are going to the extremes to make their gender more superior over the other. On social media, accounts have been made to discriminate against each other. The most popular account for feminism is named @feministing. This account presents hardcore facts about the act and is trying to get a lot of people on board with their ideas. The account has been made "the hub of feminism" with 185k followers. Not only has the internet taken the topic under it's wing, ladies have been protesting around the world. Recently at the London movie premiere of "Suffragette," a group of women dressed with black with signs that read "Dead Women Can't Vote" invaded the red carpet. This event turned into an equal rights act and made the world turn towards feminism more. For that group, they want equal rights and I agree with them, but they have taken it way to far. They only want rights for women, but in my opinion I want everyone to get equal rights. Yes the feminism groups have been
A popular account named, @MeninistTweet has over 1 million followers on Twitter has racked a lot of support from many men and women. The account has blamed and bashed women on who are feminist, but they also communicate equal rights. People have been wearing # Meninist shirts to school around the country including here at Westside. There has been a video of an Ant-Feminism protest that has made the internet mad. A group of people made signs and scolded feminism and women's rights, but the catch was that it was a prank! Of course, many people didn't like the protest and it broken up by police. I liked how people came together to stop the protest though. Please do not make these topics turn into fandom like wars. We don't need another # TeamEdward vs. # TeamJacob thing going on online. The world needs to come together and not create teams that separate all of us from each other. All this fighting is downright useless.
Feat ure
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Oh! The Places You'll Go In Omaha Elise Tucker
Omaha is full of undiscovered little gems that not a lot of people know about like the O!s you can find all around Omaha. Also you can visit the Old Market and a candy shop named Hollywood Candy. The shop has a wide variety of candies such as fried crickets and bugs in suckers. The shop is attached to a vintage store which houses Lady Gaga's piano she played in "You and I." Omaha also offers great dining around town like in Aksarben or Nebraska spelled backwards. The small mall area is home to the Food Network winners Jones Bros. Cupcakes. The cupcake place has seasonal and favorite cupcakes that will definitely fill a person up. Overall, Omaha is a great place to explore or even just walk down memory lane.
Editor-in-Chief
Al l phot os t aken by El ise Tucker
Feat ure
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Al l phot os t aken by El ise Tucker
Sport s
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Phot os f rom t he NFL
NEBRASKA IS NOT A CHIEFS NATION Elise Tucker Editor-in-Chief Being a fan of the Denver Broncos, it was sort of painful for me to start selling Chiefs flags. The flags were for the new park named after Kerrie Orozco and I loved how the Chiefs were helping us fundraise, but Nebraska is not a "Chiefs Nation" according to the flags. We are next to Colorado and Kansas without our own NFL team, so people just assume we are for Kansas because it's closer to us than Colorado. But we can be for whoever we want to be for. Being in Nebraska is a great because no one will judge us if we are for the opposite team during games or even around town.
orange. People were yelling "Go Broncos!" while running across the street with a Broncos flag. I, of course, loved it, but if a tourist saw that was against the Broncos they might feel out of place in the city. In Nebraska, we don't always have crazied fans of football running around screaming "Go Huskers!" and will judge you if you don't scream back at them. That's the beauty of not having a big football team following. Not everyone will care as much if the team looses to a different team.
Ri v al r y Fact s 1. Joe Montana defeated John Elway. 2. Dante Hall breaks Bronco Mike's heart 3. Broncos beat Chiefs on way to Super Bowl Title (1997 Divisional Round) 4. Games played together have had close scores.
I went to Denver on the night of a game and downtown was an explosion of navy and
Even though it can be fun to be in rallies over your favorite team, it can be an overwhelming. So Nebraska will never be a "Chiefs Nation" or a "Broncos Nation." The state will forever be a "Whatever you want to root for nation."
Phot o f rom The Lat in Post C.J Anderson tries to make a call against the Chiefs.
Phot o f rom The Denver Post Number 7 Elway running against Derrick Thomas and Neil Smith.
5. Player doesn't shake player's hand. Aka WW3 on the field.
Sport s
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A WESTSIDE COMPILATION OF SPORTS Elise Tucker
All of these articles are from either Lincoln Journal Star or Omaha World Herald. or Westside Wired. The photos are not mine and the credit is given to the photographer.
Editor-in-Chief
From Omaha Worl d Heral d Lane Yates celebrates a win with a fellow teammate.
Matt Waldron's dominance on the mound appeared to be more of a sure thing than Omaha Westside winning its third-straight Nebraska Class A state baseball championship last week. But both events transpired Thursday, following Waldron's no-hit performance during Westside's 1-0 Class A state championship win over Millard South (Omaha). Waldron was solid all week, but he saved his best for the championship game. It took just 93 pitches for the Nebraska recruit to vanquish the Patriots after he walked three enemy batters and struck out 12. For the tournament, he was 3-0 in 21 innings of work and gave up just two earned runs, while striking out 26 batters to earn MVP honors for the two-class tournament. Waldron allowed a one-out walk to Millard South's Nate Mallott in the seventh inning and was in danger of seeing the tying run find its way into scoring position for the Patriots, when with two outs Mallott's courtesy runner Logan Lichter stole second. The home plate umpire, however, called batter interference on the play, thus ending the game. "He's a good ump," Millard South coach Greg Geary told the Omaha World Herald. "It was unfortunate but one play doesn't win or lose a game."
TENNIS TEAM SCORING: Creighton Prep 52, Lincoln Southwest 44, Millard North 36½ , Lincoln East 32½ , Lincoln Pius X 29, Lincoln Southeast 22, Omaha Westside 19, Papillion-La Vista 16, Kearney 14, Lincoln High 12, Lincoln North Star 12, Millard South 12, Omaha Central 12, Papillion-La Vista South 10, Norfolk 8, Bellevue West 6, Fremont 6, Grand Island 6, Millard West 6, Omaha Burke 6, Columbus 4, Omaha Bryan 4, Bellevue East 2, Lincoln Northeast 0, Omaha Benson 0, Omaha North 0, Omaha Northwest 0, Omaha South 0. NO. 1 SINGLES: Semif inal s--Brett Slezak, Creighton Prep, def. Raymond Thai, Millard North, 6-3, 6-0; Will Gleason, Southwest, def. Dillon Ketcham, Omaha Westside, 6-1, 6-1; t hird pl ace--Ketcham def. Thai 6-2, 6-3; championship--Gleason def. Slezak 6-2, 7-5.
From t he Omaha Worl d Heral d State baseball pose for a picture. FOOTBALL RUSHING Att. Yds Avg. TD Duryee, Omaha Westside 168 1,175 167.9 11 Sargbah, Omaha North 120 887 147.8 8 Bradley, Bellevue West 94 1,000 142.9 11 Fairchild, Papio South 170 963 137.6 10 Anderson, Omaha South 96 773 128.8 6 Torres, South Sioux City 75 539 107.8 3 Lambert, Fremont 119 753 107.6 10
Phot o f rom West side Wired
A&E
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ENTER THE SCORCH
Rating: ****
Film captures horror and action with romance Elise Tucker Editor-in-Chief Deserts, skyscrapers, zombies oh my! Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials opened on September 18 and made whopping $30 million in it's opening weekend. The action movie has become a hit with teens and readers of the series written by James Dashner. The Scorch Trials is about Thomas (Dylan O'Brien) and his friends find themselves in a sticky situation and must battle the "World In Catastrophe: Killzone Experiment Department (WCKD)" to survive. The plot was a lot of running and hiding for most of the movie. I didn't mind it, but I just wanted more action. O'Brien and the actors look like they have a great bond on screen and off screen. Their bond showed in the movie and made me care about their relationships. When one of them dies, I felt so sad like the characters on screen. They made me feel horrible about the death. Great actors can only make us feel emotional in movies.
Phot o f rom 20t h Cent ury Fox. The Scorch Trials came out on September 18, 2015 grossing $30 million over the opening weekend. The new "Hunger Games" type franchise has a great flow to it and romance was not the main point in the film which I liked. All of the special effects, explosions and makeup was on point. It was what you would expect for a mutli-million dollar action movie, but there were also some drawbacks. There was a lot of explaing to the audience who didn't read the books. I wanted them to show that to me not tell it to me straight like I'm dumb for not reading the books. Also the ending shouldn't have been the ending. I feel like if they stopped at the end of an action scene near the end it would have been, but overall The Scorch Trials made want to travel with them and experience what they experienced.
Phot o f rom 20t h Cent ury Fox. The cast of The Scorch Trials in order from left to right. Dylan O'Brien, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Ki Hong Lee, Kaya Scodelario, Jacob Lofland and Dexter Darden.
A&E
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COUNTRY STAR TO POP PRINCESS Singer wows the crowd with new sound Elise Tucker Editor-in-Chief From being a 15 year old girl who just wanted to play music with her old acoustic guitar to being one of the most notable pop superstars in the world, Taylor Swift has made a big impact on the world. And performing in concert is no different. On Oct. 9, the pop princess performed at the Centurylink Center in Downtown Omaha and wowed the crowd with her new sound and her special effects, but Swift wasn't the only one who made an impact on the crowd. Her opener Vance Joy, an Australian singer/ songwriter, surprised the crowd and me with his wholesome voice and stage presence. His hit single "Riptide" was the highlight of his set because everyone knew the words. My only critque is that I feel like he might be more comfortable in a smaller venue, like Sokol or The Waiting Room.
part was Swift singing her song "Fifteen" that lead into "Love Story." Tears were flowing done my face along with some girls' faces next to me. The moment brought me back to how she helped me get through a tough time in my life. The moment was special for Swift and I.
T-Sw i f t Fact s 1. Her first song was called "Lucky You." 2. Slowly started to transition into Pop when her "Red" album came out in 2012.
Her costumes were full of glitter and the special effects were spot on. Her management needs to get and some props for what they pulled off.
3. She gave her fans clues to help them find out which song is about one of Taylor's ex-boyfriends.
Overall, the concert was an amazing experience I will never forget. Looking at a couple pictures that I took will be printed, but the memories I have of the concert isn't on paper form. It's in my heart and my mind.
4. Her album "1989" was named after the year she was born. 5. She collaborated with Miley Cyrus.
Then the queen, Taylor Swift appeared from under the stage and made an impact on me and the crowd. Girls crying, holding their homemade signs were now present in the arena and the little world that I was in exploded into happiness. Swift started out with "Welcome to New York" which had a skyline, lights and taxi cabs. Swift then continued with "Bad Blood," "Wildest Dreams," and "Clean," but the best
Bot h phot os t aken by El ise Tucker Taylor Swift, pop singer, singing "Shake It Off" on October 9, 2015 at the Centurylink Center in front of 14,000 people.
A&E
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Fall Activities To Do Elise Tucker
From Clipart
From pinterest.com
From OmahaFilmFestival.com
Editor-in-Chief
GototheMovies It's time to cuddle up with your favorite blanket and popcorn because the fall time is perfect for discovering horror movies. The Omaha Film Festival is co-hosting a screamtastic event called "Scream in the Dark Festival." The event is the best place for your friendly fix of horror and gore. It houses a hall of fame for scary movies, special guests, and indie horror films. Some special guests include, Teri McMinn an actress in the 1974 version of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre," a composer for the hit TV show "Supernatural" and many more. The guests will be having there own panels and it will be like a mini horror Comic Con. Also you can't just watch horror movies without eating food. Chicago Dog will be a vendor there along with local shops that will be selling "horror merch" throughout the three days the event. The festival was on October 16, 17, 18 at the Scottish Rite Masonic Theatre. Everyday is different with different hours and will be a tradition in Omaha for a long time.
Try Out Fall Artwork Pinterest and Tumblr is the best place to try out fall art and DIYs. In this photo, you must buy a canvas, a permanent marker, Mod Podge, and a fake leave. First, write our your favorite fall quote on the canvas in marker. Then once your quote is dry, lay down the the fake leave onto the canvas in anyway you want it to be. It's your artwork, so go crazy with it. Then take a brush and dip it into the Mod Podge. Paint the glue/ finish over the leave and let dry. To make it more Tumblr inspired, you can display it on a table surrounded by pumpkins and candles. Art is about expressing yourself, so you can change up the way yours looks . Also, invite your friends to have day of crafts and fun. It may be cold outside, but that doesn't mean you can't have fun inside. You can make a party out of it complete with food and drinks. To find all of your art supplies go to your local craft store such as Michael's, Hobby Lobby or Nobbies. So be creative this fall and be true to yourself!
Address: 202 S 20th St, Omaha, NE 68102
From Clipart
From Clipart
A&E
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Fall ActivitiesTo Do Elise Tucker
From Clipart
From kimmelorchard.org
From valaspumpkinpatch.com
Editor-in-Chief
Vala's Pumpkin Patch Vala?s Pumpkin Patch is a haunted house and corn maze adventure. The attraction is full of fun things to do such as the oversized trampolines to the off road tricycle races, but what some people don?t know is that you can rent a campsite for a group. The group can bring their own food and drinks then go visit the park and hayride. Just pay for the admission and you will have a wonderful time! What I enjoy about Vala?s is the homemade kettle corn and the smoked turkey legs. With each bite of the food there, it intensifies your experience and makes you want to stay there all night. At Vala?s you can really tell that it?s for the family. With little kid attractions like the barnyard show, kids will love the experience just like parents do. For students at Westside, Vala?s has become a hangout spot because it?s not a scary place to be. If you are trying to be with your friends no one wants to be scared out of their wits. Overall, Vala's is a great place to enjoy some tasty food, explore or just hang out with family or friends. Address: 12102 S 180th St, Gretna, NE 68028
From Clipart
AppleOrchards Apple Orchards have always been a must for anyone who is wanting to do something fall related. Orchards can provide an experience that will last a lifetime with small admission price. Kimmel Orchard and Winery is free for admission, but for picking apples it?s only two dollars, but you will need to pay for your apples that you pick. They also offer hayrack rides on every Saturday and Sunday. Sometimes they have live music events on the weekends, so sure to check out their website. At this specific orchard, adults can sample different wines and cheeses while the kids go pick apples or go on the hay-rack ride. Kimmel Ochard and Winery is a family friendly place or even a new hangout spot with your friends. I remember when I was young picking apples, laughing and having a great time with my family and you can too. Those memories will always be with me. Apple Orchards make memories that will last forever/ After you pick apples you get to eat them of course, so travel to Kimmel Orchard and Winery for a fun time. Address: 5995 G Rd, Nebraska City, NE 68410
From Clipart
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