THE PATRIOT VOLUME 53 / ISSUE 3 / NOV. 15, 2018 Shawnee Mission South High School 5800 W 107th St, Overland Park, KS 66207 913.993.7500
Yakarasika muShanduro Yakarasika muShanduro Yakarasika Týnt í þýðingu Týnt í þýðingu Týnt í þýðingu Týnt í Yotayika M’masulira Yotayika M’masulira Yotayika M’masulira Perdido na tradução Perdido na tradução Perdido na tradução Pierdut în traducere Pierdut în traducere Pierdut în Perdut en la traducció Perdut en la traducció Perdut en la Leungit di Tarjamahan Leungit di Tarjamahan Ilipotea katika Tafsiri Ilipotea katika Tafsiri Ilipotea katika Tafsiri Ilipotea Ferlern yn de oersetting Ferlern yn de oersetting Ferlern Ti sọnu ni Translation Ti sọnu ni Translation Ti sọnu ni Perdidit in Latin Perdidit in Latin Perdidit
Lost in Translation Lost in Translation Lost in Translation Ilahlekile ekuhumusheni Ilahlekile ekuhumusheni I humbur në përkthim I humbur në përkthim I humbur Nawala sa pagsasalin Nawala sa pagsasalin Nawala sa pagsasalin Tõlkes kaduma läinud Tõlkes kaduma läinud Tõlkes kaduma Verloren in vertaling Verloren in vertaling Verloren Izgubljen u prijevodu Izgubljen u prijevodu Izgubljen u Förlorat i översättningen Förlorat i översättningen Förlorat i Perdido en la traducción Perdido en la traducción Perdido en la
LOST IN TRANSLATION In a predominantly English speaking community, students struggle to communicate with each other.
02 / CONTENTS
ELL students and native English speaking studens often struggle to connect because monolingualism is the societal norm.
COVER BY NICHOLE THOMAS
THE PATRIOT
ON THE COVER
STAFF
AVERY WOODS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF MIAH CLARK ASST. EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, A&E EDITOR ANSLEY CHAMBERS COPY EDITOR ABBY COX PHOTO EDITOR EMMA HARDING ASST. PHOTO EDITOR ADDIE SOYSKI NEWS EDITOR MEGAN SMITH SPORTS EDITOR NICHOLE THOMAS FEATURES & INFOGRAPHICS EDITOR LILY WAGNER OPINION EDITOR GINI HORTON WEB EDITOR ALI HARRISON ADS EDITOR BRYNN TAYLOR SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER
REPORTERS JULIA CALDWELL CIARA DIAZ KATIE HIEBL MILAD JAHANI LEXINGTON LINK MCKENNA PICKERING ANNALIE POLEN MADDI ROBERTSON EVAN SHIBEL PHOTOGRAPHERS HANNAH CARTER TRINITY CLARK KYLA HUNTER QUINN KASPAR JILLIAN MCCLELLAND KATE RILEY LUCAS SILVA ABBY YORK
CLAIRE BRISSETT EDITORIAL CARTOONIST
MISSION STATEMENT The Patriot is a news magazine that aims to objectively present topics affecting Shawnee Mission South High School, as well as connect with readers on issues concerning the student body. Staff members reserve the right to express their views in the Opinions section. These pieces are labeled and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the staff as a whole, except the Staff Editorial, which represents the views of the editors. Each section editor designs their own section’s pages, unless otherwise specified. Under the First Amendment and Kansas Law, The Patriot staff is entitled to freedom of the press and neither the school nor district is responsible for any content or coverage. The staff encourages letters to the editor; they will only be published if signed. The editor-in-chief reserves the right to refuse or edit any letters for reasons of grammar, length and good taste.
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Find the hidden Rocky in the issue and win a gift card!
CONTENTS / 03
SMSOUTHNEWS.COM
TABLE OF CONTENTS
04.05 The Calendar Yorkers 06 New Get Schooled 08 We Can Do This 10 11 12 13
07 Mapping the App What goes down on a normal college visit.
Getting Fitter For Winter
10
Final Four Q&A with Coach Berg Sports Sneak Peak
with 14.15 Q&A Reagan Goforth 16.17 Lost in Translation 18 Trying to Fit In
21 Staff Editorial: Debate: 22.23 The Advisory 25 A Third Option 26 Getting Too Involved
A Season to Remember Following the journey of the 2018 Raider football season.
PHOTO BY KYLA HUNTER
SPORTS Balancing Act 19 AAlook at the lives of ultra involved students.
PHOTO BY QUINN KASPAR
FEATURES
22
Tired of This Sit
A detailed arguement as to why chairs are overrated.
PHOTO BY KYLA HUNTER
of The Brands: 27 Battle iOs vs. Android
29 Fall Break in Kansas Look: 30 The Ben Curtis
NEWS
PHOTO BY LILY WAGNER
OPINION
28
Saturday Night Space Jam An inside look at the annual IPS dance.
PHOTO BY EMMA HARDING
A&E
04 / NEWS
THE PATRIOT
SPORTS CLUBS ASSEMBLY PERFORMANCE OTHER
the CALENDAR
S Nov. 18
Nov. 25
Dec. 2
Dec. 9
Dec. 16
M
T
Nov. 19
• Thanksgiving Break
Nov. 26
• Beginning of conditioning for Track and Girls Soccer
Dec. 3
• Girls Basketball Tournament • Boys Basketball Game
Dec. 10
• Girls Basketball Game • Boys Basketball Game
Dec. 17
• Cram and Cocoa • Indian Woods Orchestra Concert
Nov. 20
• Thanksgiving Break
Nov. 27
• Wrestling Triangular
Dec. 4
• Final Yearbook Senior Ad Design Night
Dec. 11
• Choir Winter Concert • Girls Basketball Game • Boys Basketball Game
Dec. 18
• Boys Basketball Game • Finals
W Nov. 21
• Thanksgiving Break
Nov. 28
• Boys Swim Meet • ”Miracle on 34th Street”
Dec. 5
• Girls Basketball Tournament • Wrestling Meet
Dec. 12
• Band Chili Dinner • Band Winter Concert
• Finals
Dec. 19
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SMSOUTHNEWS.COM
TH
F
Nov. 15
Nov. 16
• Yearbook Club Pictures • French and Spanish Honors Society Initiation Ceremony
Nov. 22
• Thanksgiving Day
Nov. 29
• Boys Basketball Game • “Miracle on 34th Street”
Dec. 6
• Boys Swim Meet
Dec. 13
• Boys Basketball Game • Orchestra Pops Concert
• Finals
Dec. 20
• Masterworks Audition
Nov. 23
• Black Friday
Nov. 30
• Winter Sports Assembly • Boys Basketball Game • SM South Debate Tournament
• • • •
S Nov. 17
• Cheer Competition • Winter PAC Meeting
Nov. 24
Dec. 1
• Wrestling Tournament • “Miracle on 34th Street” • Girls Basketball Game
Dec. 7
Dec. 8
Dec. 14
Dec. 15
Girls Basketball Tournament • ACT Exam Boys Basketball Game • Wrestling Tournament Boys Swim Meet Final day to buy Yearbook
• Wrestling Tournament • Girls Basketball Game • Boys Basketball Game
• Finals
Dec. 21
• Boys Swim District Meet • Varsity Wrestling Johnson Country Invitational Tournament
NEWS/ 05
WHAT’S UP WITH THE WEB
.
smsouthnews.com
Revised: Peter Pan Flies into South
BY MILAD JIHANI REPORTER
Pumpkin Patch Poetry Festival BY ANNALIE POLEN REPORTER
Q&A With Mr.Hodge BY ANSLEY CHAMBERS COPY EDITOR
Stop Separating the Art from the Abusers BY MEGAN SMITH SPORTS EDITOR
KEY
Athletic events in bold= home game
For more information visit: Athletics- www.sunflowerleague.org Cheer- shawneemissionsouthcheer.com Band- www.smsraiderband.org Theatre- www.smstheatre.com Choir- www.smschoirs.com General- www.smsouth.smsd.org FROM left to right, seniors Maddy Musson, Olivia Chudik, and Manal Boullaouz join together during the fall Poetry Festival. Students wore red in remberance of a senior who passed.
PHOTO BY HANNAH CARTER
06 / NEWS
THE PATRIOT
NEW YORKERS GET SCHOOLED
A law in New York states that mental health should be addressed in schools in classes and seminars. BY MCKENNA PICKERING REPORTER
M
ental health affects one in every four people. In schools especially, students think it’s walked over instead of dealt with properly. As a solution, it has become a law that schools in New York start having mental health seminars and classes mandatory for the sake of students. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “focusing on establishing healthy behaviors during childhood is more effective than trying to change unhealthy behaviors during adulthood.” Something like what New Yorkers have in schools is advisory. It covers mental health briefly, but still resembles the class or seminar like in New York. Although faculty thinks that advisory is helpful with addressing mental health, to
some students, it’s not. “Advisory tends to depersonalize mental health and doesn’t really talk about how it feels to have a mental health disorder. I don’t think a mental health class necessarily needs to be a graduation requirement, but it would definitely be a good class to bring to South,” sophomore Maggie Holcomb said. Classes right now aren’t an option for school. Social workers and other faculty try to get people to talk about mental health or use visual aids to show to students. The only issue with that is there is almost little to no time to fit special guest speakers or visuals into the schedule. “I would like to look more in to that, but I don’t think students would find it stigmatizing, because we try to find appropriate times to address situations like
this that don’t interfere with academics and times in school. We don’t have that kind of free time like other schools might,” Erin Burvee said. “As a social worker, I think it’s important to talk about things like that, but it’s hard finding the balance of learning about both.” Burvee’s overall idea is that having some sort of class to educate students on mental health could be beneficial to the ones who need it. “I think teachers should be more educated about the topic before talking about it in school because so many high school students suffer from things like depression and anxiety,” Holcomb said. “I have anxiety so that has brought on a lot of challenges inside and outside of school.”
MIDTERMS RESULTS Kansas is no longer a red state. BY LEXINGTON LINK REPORTER
KS DISTRICT 03
In a historical race, Democrat Sharice Davids unseated fourthterm Republican incumbent, Kevin Yoder. Davids is now the first Native American woman to serve in Congress. She will also be the first openly LGBTQ+ person to represent the state of Kansas. Davids beat Yoder 54 percent to 44 percent.
LOCAL ELECTIONS
Local elections also had a strong Democratic showing. In the race for Kansas House, Republican Stephanie Clayton won District 19. Democrat Nancy Lusk ran unopposed for District 22. Democrat Susan Ruiz beat out incumbent Linda Gallagher for District 23. Democrat Brett Parker was reelected in District 29 for his second term.
DESIGN BY ALI HARRISON ADS EDITOR
KS GOVERNOR
Democrat Laura Kelly ended Republican control of Kansas after beating conservative Republican Kris Kobach for Kansas governor. In a close race that Kobach was projected to win by a slim margin, Kelly ended up taking roughly 48 percent of the votes while Kobach only took 43 percent.
TEXAS SENATE
In Texas, incumbent Ted Cruz narrowly beat out Democrat Beto O’Rourke for Senate with 50.9 percent of the votes as compared to O’Rourke’s 48.3 %. O’Rourke was the most popular and most financed Democrat to run in Texas in years, raising over $70 million more than any Senate candidate in U.S. history.
KS STATE HOUSE DISTRICT 30
Kansas again made history by electing our first openly gay member to state house. Democrat Brandon Woodard took 53.6 percent of the votes and beat out Republican Wendy Bingesser who gained only 45.1 percent of the votes. Woodard will represent District 30 in the state house.
OVERALL RESULTS
The Democratic Party has regained control in the House of Representatives and will likely vote Nancy Pelosi into the position of Speaker of the House. The Senate remains in Republican control for a third consecutive term. Across the country, we saw the highest voter turnout in a midterm election since 1966 with more than 110 million Americans voting.
NEWS / 07
SMSOUTHNEWS.COM
MAPPING THE APP
What goes down on a normal college visit.
S
BY LILY WAGNER OPINION EDITOR
PHOTO BY KATE RILEY
tudents slowly take seats around a table in the counseling the campus really offers in person can really help a student make office. College pennants and posters hang on the walls. An that decision for themselves,” Morgan said. admissions representative prepares information booklets Senior Zach Misic visited schools based on what he is and contact cards for the students. interested in studying. November is right in the middle of college applications season. “Well, I visited Stanford because it was my number one Early application deadlines have passed, regular deadlines are choice school, computer science-wise they’ve got a lot to offer and still on the horizon and some students are already hearing back that’s what I want to major in,” Misic said. “MIT (Massachusetts from the schools they applied to. For many students, figuring Institute of Technology) is the same way and Harvard was right out where they want to go to college can be daunting. However, next to MIT and they also do a good job with that so I just visited South has a variety of resources to aid in the process. based on my interests.” Every year a variety of colleges and Beyond just seeing the campus, universities come to visit South. These visiting a college can be a way to get visits are an opportunity for students to ask more information about programs that questions and receive information from a are offered. university’s admissions representative. “The first visit gave me the most “Maybe they don’t match the because I got information on financial academic requirements for a certain aid and the Free Application for Federal university. Meeting with the admissions Aid (FAFSA) and all of that, but then representative can give them the time I got the same information at all three and the opportunity to kind of talk about schools,” senior Faith Danaher said. maybe why their grades are a certain way, “And then I learned more about the explain their story and kind of how they program and the different ways I can got where they are academically,” college go with biomedical engineering so I counselor Jasmine Morgan said. learned a lot about that and the classes Morgan helps to arrange these visits, offered and the classes I’ll have to take.” which can be especially beneficial for Danaher, who is a KC Scholars COUNSELOR students who may not be able to visit recipient, visited the University of JASMINE MORGAN the campuses of the schools they are Arkansas, the University of Missouriinterested in. Columbia and Kansas State University. “It’s also a really great time to build a relationship with that “Everyone else is also talking about colleges and they’re representative because typically those admissions representatives applying to really prestigious ones, but you just have to focus on are the people that are reading your application,” Morgan said. your own college search and do what’s right for you,” Danaher A list of schools with upcoming visits to South is available on said. the counseling website and in the counseling office. In addition For students beginning the process, Morgan recommends to at school visits, South also takes students on campus visits. utilizing the resources that the counseling department has to Visits to the University of Kansas, Kansas State University, offer. Attending college fairs and school visits, going on campus University of Missouri- Kansas City and Rockhurst University tours, researching online and talking to your counselors are all have already taken place this year. Visits to Johnson County ways to start searching for the college that is right for you. Community College and another four-year university that has “There are always those students who say they get this yet to be determined will take place in the second semester. feeling, they can’t always put an exact descriptor to what it feels “It can look really nice on a brochure or on the computer, an like but they just kind of know that like being on campus, that’s admissions representative can talk it up, but at the end of the the place that you want to be,” Morgan said. “We want to make day, how a student feels being on that campus, walking around sure that you feel absolutely certain on where you ultimately it, seeing students, going into academic buildings, seeing what want to go.”
“
Meeting with the admissions representative can give them the time and the opportunity to kind of talk about ... how they got where they are.
”
08 / NEWS
THE PATRIOT
WE CAN DO THIS
Clubs and teams collect cans for the annual canned food drive. BY ANNALIE POLEN REPORTER
M
any cans were donated this year to the Johnson County Christmas Bureau through the canned food drive. If you decided to donate cans this fall, you were helping families around our community as well as supporting a sport or club you are involved in. Every can that is donated will end up at the Johnson County Christmas Bureau and help families in need have an enjoyable holiday season. “They are an organization that opens for about a month for families in need. They have food, winter coats, hats, self care products and things like that so we feel it’s important to donate to them. All of their items are donated, so without the Shawnee Mission schools they wouldn’t have any canned foods or clothing items,” StuCo president and junior Parrish Mock said. In previous years the way that StuCo has collected the cans is different from the way that they are doing it this year. In the past, cans would be brought to your fourth or fifth hour; however, this year there was a bracket. “We chose to do the bracket because we go to all these conferences with all the other StuCos in the district and we got the idea from Shawnee Mission East actually,” StuCo executive and sophomore Sadie Holloway said. “We thought that it would be fun to get people more involved because people like competition. We decided that we might as well
change it up to see if we can get more cans.” The bracket is a new take this year that StuCo hopes is more successful than previous years. With the can donations also comes the Mr. AmeriCAN pageant. For the pageant each sport or activity can nominate a senior boy. Each nominee chooses a talent, has a formal wear category and a performs a group song and dance. There are judges there to choose the best nominee. It takes place during dead week. “Mr. AmeriCAN is the funniest thing ever. Seeing guys make complete fools of themselves is hilarious. I think we have a really good group this year and they’re going to be fun,” Mock said. Mr. Girls Soccer, Colin Wilkinson, is confident that he will get the most cans and therefore win Mr. American. “Of course I will win. I don’t lose at anything I do. Anything I sign up for I win, so it should just be a piece of cake,” Wilkinson said. The canned food drive makes a big impact in the community. “Why it matters to Shawnee Mission South students is that there might be some students that benefit from the Johnson County Christmas Bureau and so these are their neighbors, their friends, people here in our neighborhoods that are actually getting the benefit of Johnson County Christmas Bureau. It’s a really good community outreach program,” Cline said.
AND THE WINNER IS... PACESETTERS won the canned food drive club competition, beating out Cross Country.
Senior Cole Fornal, accepts his crown as the winner of Mr. Americn. Fornal entered the contest as Mr. IPS.
Senior Broc Pashia shows off his school spirit with a green and gold outfit during the spirit wear portion. He ran out screaming, “Green and gold!” to pump up the crowd.
PHOTOS BY EMMA HARDING
SMSOUTHNEWS.COM
WHAT’S
THE SCORE? Your update on sports stats. BY BRYNN TAYLOR SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER
SPORTS / 09
A SEASON TO REMEMBER
FOOTBALL
WINS
LOSSES
8 3 BOYS SOCCER
WINS
LOSSES
7VOLLEYBALL 12
RAIDERS watch the game from the sidelines of the field. The football team finished their season with eight wins and three losses.
PHOTO BY KYLA HUNTER
A change in mentality caused South’s best football season in 3 decades.
I 10 23 GIRLS TENNIS WINS
LOSSES
STATE COMPETITION
12TH PLACE SINGLES - MARIANA OCHOA 11TH PLACE OVERALL
CROSS COUNTRY STATE MEET
24TH PLACE - HALEY CARTER
GYMNASTICS STATE COMPETITION
3RD PLACE OVERALL 11th all-around - Phoebe Holmes
GOLF
SUNFLOWER LEAGUE HONORABLE MENTION KATIE SCHULTZ AND McLAIN NEAL AS OF NOV. 7, 2018
BY EVAN SHIBEL & ANNALIE POLEN REPORTERS
f you spent your Friday nights watching the Raider football team, then you probably noticed the pattern of success that led them to the second round playoff game for the first time in 29 years. They also have won the most games in their program’s history since 1989. The team held on to many seniors that have played Varsity since freshman year. The immense amount of leadership they showed this year contributed to their success. “Having a strong senior class...has been the difference this year. All the guys want to win and they expect to win every time,” senior Jack Roberts said. The rest of the team also had a determined mindset and wanted to win. “Even on days that are storming and raining, you still had to have your pads and helmet on and go into the gym and practice for two and a half hours. Nothing was stopping our determination to win,” junior Parrish Bruce said. On top of that, Bruce also feels that the coaches have made a huge difference this year. “The coaching staff and their determination has helped the team to succeed,” Bruce said. “If you want to play on Friday nights, you have to come to summer weights. Coach always says, ‘Forget about everything else and just think about what’s on the field and what’s going to happen on Friday night.’” With a great season also comes the expectations for not only next year’s football season, but many years to come. “I think we have a good junior squad coming up. I think they will be pretty good next year,” senior Hunter Carpenter said. As a junior, Bruce also has high hopes for the team’s success going forward. “I don’t want to say better than this senior class, because this senior class is really talented, but I think we have a pretty good junior class coming up as well, so hopefully [next year we will be] about the same or maybe even better,” Bruce said. Check out the rest of the story at smsouthnews.com.
10 / SPORTS
THE PATRIOT
GETTING FITTER FOR WINTER
All the reasons it’s important to maintain your physical health during colder months.
T
BY MIAH CLARK ASST. EDITOR-IN-CHIEF & A&E EDITOR he season is upon us. With November’s cold weather comes the hard-to-argue-with want to stay in bed all day, watching Netflix or social media stalking or doing whatever it is that fits your fancy. Any interest in exercise goes out the window and excuses of cold weather or no indoor options pile up. We enter a form of human hibernation, eating more and doing less, but we aren’t bears. Despite the lost ease of exercising because of chillier temperatures, it is just as important to stay active in autumn and winter as it is in any other season. Nobody wants to lose their fitness progress from the summer and the easiest way to keep your summer body is by working it out just as consistently in the winter. Common outdoor exercises like running or walking or certain team games may become less enjoyable as temperatures drop, but a change in wardrobe or switches in exercises can easily be made. If staying outside, it’s important to note that even behind clouds, the sun is still your friend and Vitamin D is still always good for your body. If not, it’s notable that exercising indoors is more accessible, either at a gym or recreation center or even in the comfort of your own home. Free exercise videos on YouTube or downloadable mobile apps are revolutionizing the ability for people to work out at home, eliminating any excuses of those seeking to be fit having “nowhere to go” or “nothing to
do”. Favorite exercise apps of mine include DailyYoga and Sworkit. With the food-heavy holidays brought by November and December, working out also proves its importance in keeping you from looking like a stuffed turkey. If you’re exercising and burning calories, it will allow for a deficit that you can even out with delicious holiday meals and treats. Plus, if you still feel cute in the fall, you won’t have to waste your New Year’s resolution promising to start working out more. Win-win-win. And as we approach the unavoidable hell that is winter in Kansas, it is important to keep your body strong to fight off bacterial and viral infections. This calls for physical strength as well as strength in your immune system. When you exercise, the pumping of blood helps white blood cells circulate, helping them to more quickly seek and destroy infection. Exercise also helps with the production of serotonin and dopamine, “feel-good” chemicals in your brain that some people begin to lack in during the winter. A quick workout can ease day to day stress, boosting both your mental and physical wellbeing at the same time. It is undeniable that it’s nice to feel good in a season that leaves a lot of room to feel bad. Exercise can’t fix everything bad in your winter, but it sure can try. Fitness is a two-way street though; it won’t help you until you offer your own efforts towards it.
MIAH’S WAYS TO STAY FIT Sign up for a membership at Prairie Life or Matt Ross. Use a workout app. DailyYoga, Sworkit, 7m Women
Join a winter sport or a winter conditioning group.
How do you stay active in the winter? PHOTOS BY KYLA HUNTER
“ ”
Every day, I go to bowling practice and I walk up and down the stairs here. COACH THOMPSON
“ ”
I stay active in the winter by going to the gym in the mornings. COACH OBERZAN
SPORTS / 11
SMSOUTHNEWS.COM
FINAL FOUR
Senior cheerleaders are the last to spend all four years on Varsity.
A
BY ANNALIE POLEN REPORTER s the senior class graduates this year, so will the last four-year Varsity cheerleaders. Seniors Maddy Musson, Bergen Cooper, Annie Barry and Katie Ball made varsity as freshmen. The following year, freshmen were no longer allowed to make Varsity. Making Varsity as freshmen was a big deal for them, but one that came with many pros and cons. “Cheer has definitely consumed a large amount of my time,I really enjoy it … it is something that I found a lot of friends through,” Musson said. She was glad to have the experience of cheering on Varsity all four years but thinks it is a good thing that freshmen are no longer able to make Varsity. “It was a lot of pressure... I was very nervous just being so young; the senior captains terrified me,” Musson said. Like Musson, Cooper has also been cheering since seventh grade. She also feels that jumping into Varsity freshman year was almost too much to handle but did still have a good experience with it. “I think it made me a
better cheerleader and a better person,” Cooper said. Being on Varsity right away was an accomplishment, but Cooper still felt that she had to work to hold her spot for the rest of her high school career. “It’s made me grow up a lot faster; it’s made me realize that you can be given this varsity spot, but it doesn’t mean that you can stop working for it. I’ve had to work for everything that I have wanted on this team,” Cooper said. Barry feels that cheer has been very important to her. “I feel like cheer was my public speaking class,” Barry said. She has been cheering for about eight years. She also agrees that starting on Varsity had some difficulties with it. “The hardest part about starting Varsity as a freshman was definitely the fact that there’s… a 25 page packet and if you start on JV or Freshman you learn a little bit of it, then when you make Varsity you learn the rest. When you make Varsity as a freshman, you learn all 25 pages at once,” Barry said. Ball has been cheering since seventh grade. Starting on
“ ”
“ ”
FRESHMAN YEAR SOPHOMORE YEAR PHOTOS COURTESY OF MADDY MUSSON
JUNIOR YEAR
Varsity right away also held some challenges for her. “Having to jump right in to everything [was hard],” Ball said. “But it felt great. It made me feel good about myself because I didn’t think I was that good [at cheer].” Having the pressure of starting Varsity as a freshman came with challenges, but also gave the girls life-changing experiences that they are
“ ”
SENIOR YEAR
thankful for. As the last class of four-year Varsity cheerleaders finish out their final season cheering on the sidelines at football games, there has been a lot of excitement. “Football season has been awesome this year just because football is one of my favorite sports to watch. Having a team that’s had a winning record has been just an awesome experience,” Musson said.
“ ”
Cheer has taught me so much about leadership.
Cheer has made me a lot of friends in high school.
My favorite part of cheer is definitely the stunting.
I love making people smile and cheer is one easy way to do it.
MADDY MUSSON
KATIE BALL
ANNIE BARRY
BERGEN COOPER
SENIOR AND CAPTAIN
PHOTOS BY EMMA HARDING
SENIOR
SENIOR
SENIOR
Q&A
12 / SPORTS
THE PATRIOT
COACH BERG
with The new swim coach at SM South has high hopes for this year’s team. BY JULIA CALDWELL REPORTER
Q: How long have you been coaching? A: I’ve been a swim coach for 12 years. Q: What is your favorite part of being a swim coach? A: Working with kids and helping them improve is definitely my favorite part of coaching. Seeing the kids get better and watching them progress as the season goes on is great.
Q: How and why did you become a swim coach? A: I come from a family of teachers and coaches. Growing up, my dad was a
football coach and my mom was a track and basketball coach. When I got out of college and realized that I wanted to work with young people, I remembered how much I enjoyed every aspect of sports.
Q: A:
What does one of your typical practices look like?
Our practices this year are going to be a lot of intensity, focusing on a lot of technique work and swimming fast. I use a type of training called “race pace” so we do a lot of swimming at the pace at which we’re trying to race. The idea of it is to swim at the level that you want to swim at a meet over as much as possible.
Q: Did you swim in high school or college? A: Yes, I swam all the way through college at the University of South Dakota.
I competed in the 100 butterfly, 50 freestyle, and the 200 IM. I still hold my high school’s record for the 100 butterfly with a time of 52.42.
Q: What’s your favorite event to coach? A: I don’t really have a favorite event to coach, just watching kids swim fast and improve [is fun]. Seeing that their technique has gotten better is a lot of fun.
Q: What’s your favorite memory from being a coach? A: I have so many memories; I don’t know if I have a favorite. It’s hard to pick
out just one. There have been times when we won meets that we shouldn’t have won. There are times when we have won championships when I’ve been a coach. I was part of ... an underdog team that took the EKL Conference Championship because my team swam so well. I had another year where we weren’t projected to be in the top three and were first going into finals, ended up second in the meet. Overall, it was such a fun meet to watch; the kids really stepped up in prelims and really put themselves in the position to possibly win. So even though we didn’t actually win the meet, it was a lot of fun and very memorable.
Q: What are you hoping to teach South swimmers? A: My whole philosophy on coaching is to be better at the end than you were at the beginning. No matter where we’re at on day one, I want them to be better racers at the league or state meet. For some, that means that their technique will be better or that they’re going to get stronger, but regardless of their event I want them to be faster.
PHOTO BY HANNAH CARTER
SMSOUTHNEWS.COM
SPORTS SNEAK PEEK
SPORTS / 13
South’s winter sports begin their seasons. BY MEGAN SMITH SPORTS EDITOR
BOWLING
The Raider bowlers are ready for their season to begin, with hopes of making it to the State competition again this year. “We made it to State last year,” senior Lauren Moreland said, “I think we can make it again because we have some really key players on the team still.” Moreland says that while many may think
bowling is a difficult sport, many members of the team picked up the sport very quickly and have improved vastly. She says that going to bowl in her free time has helped her game and taught her new skills. “I think we’re going to do really well this year,” Moreland said. “We work really hard.”
GIRLS BASKETBALL The girls basketball team has been hard at work, getting ready for their season after the loss of their two top scorers and rebounders last year. “We’re going to have to step up this year if we want to do well,” senior Meredith Bunker said. “I think we’re capable of it; we’re just going to have to work pretty hard.”
The girls have had conditioning twice a week for the last two months, an open gym every week and many of the girls have played in the offseason to work on their skills. “Just because we might not be as fun to watch as the boys, we still work just as hard and I think we deserve some recognition this year for it,” Bunker said.
BOYS SWIM & DIVE After the retirement of longtime coach Bruce Bove, the boys swim and dive team has some new coaches this season. “We got a new dive coach and a new swim coach,” junior Sam Aldeguer said. Aldeguer, along with many other members of the swim and dive team, has been practicing
with a club team in the offseason to stay in shape and keep from getting too rusty. The boys have hopes for the State competition. “I think we’re going to do really well [this season],” Aldeguer said. “We all work really hard.”
THE FIRST BOWLING COMPETITION IS JAN. 1.
THE FIRST GIRLS BASKETBALL GAME IS DEC. 1 AT BV SOUTHWEST. THE FIRST BOYS SWIM &DIVE MEET IS NOV. 28 AT LAWRENCE FREE STATE.
BOYS BASKETBALL
The boys basketball team has been preparing for months to take on other schools this year and many of the guys are looking forward to their upcoming season. “There are summer camps and summer league games,” junior Hayden Polen said. “We’ve done a lot to get us in shape for the season.”
WRESTLING
The Raider wrestlers are ready for their season with a new coach after the retirement of coach Joel Rios last year. “I’m really hopeful that we’ll do well this season,” junior Louis Loeb said. This season, the boys will be competing against lots of other schools and, despite the
This season, the Raider boys will have a new freshman coach, Jake Caldwell, as well as a new senior Varsity transfer, Rio Bingley, from Lee’s Summit West. “We’ve got such a strong Senior Class and so many returning Varsity players,” Polen said. “I think we’re going to have a really good season this year.”
THE FIRST BOYS BASKETBALL GAME IS NOV. 30 AT HOME.
fact that most of the Raider wrestlers are small, the team is looking forward to a winning season and potentially the State competition. “I think a lot of people will go to State this year,” Loeb said, “We’re going to work really hard and do our best at every meet.”
THE FIRST WRESTLING MATCH IS DEC. 14 AT OLATHE EAST.
14 / FEATURES
Q&A
THE PATRIOT
with Reagan Goforth
Student takes four language classes at South.
S
BY AVERY WOODS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
enior Reagan Goforth speaks five languages and takes four language classes at South. She started learning Spanish and then progressed to other languages due to a recommendation from Spanish teacher Leigh Rysko. “I had a little meeting during seminar with [alum] Caroline [Cooper] and she told me she was taking Spanish and Arabic and I realized that I could too, and I just kept adding on languages,” Goforth said. Goforth says that her best languages are Spanish and Arabic. She doesn’t have a favorite language, but she does have favorite parts of each language and her favorite culture is the Arabic culture. “The language is so beautiful. It’s so crazy poetic; it’s not even comprehensible to English speakers,” Goforth said. Goforth plans on using her language abilities to travel the world and be an English teacher in other countries. She also wants to translate ancient scripts. For students who are struggling with learning a second language, Goforth has some tips. “Write down what you’re struggling with and force yourself to use it as much as possible. For example, I’m really bad at adjectives all the way around, in every single language, and so I try and force myself to use
PHOTO BY JILLIAN MCCLELLAND
them all the time so I get better,” Goforth said. “It’s just stuff like that, you have to force yourself to do what’s hardest, because you’re just going to push it off until you get even worse at it.”
Q: A: Q:
What are the languages you speak? English, Spanish, Arabic, French, Korean and Latin. Have you thought about using this talent to make a career
out if it?
A:
Yes. In the future I either want to teach in other countries
or I think it’s cool to study endangered or indigenous languages... Languages that are dying. Maybe I could learn how to decipher ancient text.
Q:
Do you ever get your languages mixed up whilst speaking
or writing?
A:
Yeah, I think sophomore year I accidentally spoke Spanish
on my Arabic speaking final and the teacher was super confused.
Q:
Are there any other languages you want to learn? Is there a
specific reason for learning it?
A:
Yes. I want to learn Korean, Chinese, a Native American
language if possible, but that’s going to be a hard one, and then I want to learn how to decipher ancient texts, so maybe an ancient language. I just really like different texts. I like being able to write in Arabic and I like to be able to write in Korean. Just knowing something that other people don’t. There’s something called the Voynich manuscript and some people are trying to figure out if it’s an actual document or a fake language made by some prankster dude who just wanted to mess with history. It’s really cool and it’s a huge debate.
FEATURES / 15
SMSOUTHNEWS.COM
TASTING the language. Thank you again @ConcLangVillage for the creative ideas for my Arabic students to experience language!
Q:
What inspired you to learn all these
new languages?
A:
I’m probably the best in Spanish
and Arabic, and then after that, French, and then last would be Korean and Latin. Obviously, you know how I speak Spanish; I’ve studied for six years. The only way I could get better at this point is by studying abroad. I need to get better at Arabic.
Q: Have these languages assisted you in school or life in any way? If so, how?
A:
Yeah. I can definitely understand
English words better now because I know the root of them, especially with Latin. And then it’s just really easy to bond with someone when you have something in common, like a language. I remember freshman year, I was friends with some girl from Thailand because she spoke a little bit of Korean and I spoke a little bit of Korean, and so that little thing kind of brought us together. People just like being able to communicate with you even if it’s not in their native language.
Q:
What tools did you use to help learn
and study?
A:
I go to bookstores and don’t buy
the books, and I’ll sit there and take notes out of the books there. Watching reality TV is probably the most helpful, because especially American Idol, it’s something that I’m familiar with and it’s in other places too and it’s the same kind of idea, so there’s no confusion. So you know they’re either going to say yes or no, and then explain why. With reality TV, I feel like it’s more engaging too, because you
MABROOK to our Arabiyya miiy miiya stars this week!
PHOTOS AND CAPTIONS COURTESY OF ANNIE HASAN TWITTER: @USTATHAANNIE
can imagine being in a situation. Another thing that I use is the Internet,
like
ThoughtCo.com,
Ms. Hasan has a lot of resources on her classroom, so I usually get it from teachers or TV.
Q:
What about [speaking these
languages] brings you joy?
A:
I like little different things
about each language. I like speaking
Spanish,
because
to me it’s easy and beautiful sounding. I like writing Arabic, I like listening to Korean, I like
Cosmic Bowling
$10
Bowling with shoes Cut out coupon and redeem at front desk.
speaking in French and reading in French.
Saturday 10pm-12:30 am www.missionbowl.com
18 / FEATURES
THE PATRIOT
TRYING TO FIT IN
ELL students work to succeed in school.
BY CIARA DIAZ LOPEZ REPORTER
L
iving in another country where you’re lost, don’t know anybody and struggle communicating is hard. English Language Learners (ELL) do their best to learn English, but if you’ve never heard or spoken it, it’s hard. People make fun of ELL students because they don’t speak English. They can’t defend themselves if they don’t understand what’s being said. But they’re just as much a Raider as anyone. “Some people help you, but I think Latinos help each other more than other people,” senior Ericka Reyes said, “We all have mouths, legs and hands; the only difference is the way people think... We are all equal.” Every ELL student has a class for getting help called “study skills”. Their teacher, Jonathan Callison, helps with English. Most ELL students have that class which is a big help for them, allowing them more practice with English. Knowing multiple languages is a gift, although it may be challenging. “Some students have some acquisition in English and, in which, case I just kind of start with wherever they are,” Callison said. For the students that don’t know English or the ones who don’t speak Spanish, they use a lot of visuals, hand gestures and technology. We have people like Nora Mejia to help ELL students go to their counselor, translate what they don’t understand and help the families with paperwork.
It’s important to make them feel comfortable. They have a new air, but a safe one, making them to want to learn more. Teachers help a lot, but communicating is difficult without a common language. Teachers have to be creative. Some have
“
The ELL students I worked with are very hard workers and they bring a lot to our class dynamic and in English class it’s always nice to have different perspectives.
”
English Teacher SAMANTHA GARBE used hand signs or technology. A very helpful tool is Google Translate. “I usually communicate with ELL students by talking to them like the normal students,” science teacher Aaron Dean said. Dean doesn’t treat ELL students different.He finds that most ELL students are hard workers, want to succeed, have positive attitudes with teachers and it’s
just a matter of time until they adapt to the language. Give them chances and stay patient. “I came to the United States to study and learn another language,” Senior Jair Cardelas said. He decided to come here even though he already graduated from high school in Mexico. He decided to finish high school here and go to college. For some ELL students it’s difficult to be in certain classes like English because they do not speak the language, making it harder to understand. Their writing and grammar may not be the best, even though they do everything they can and really work hard. However, everyone learns a lot from being in class with ELL students. “The ELL students I worked with are very hard workers and they bring a lot to our class dynamic and in English class it’s always nice to have different perspectives,” English teacher Samantha Garbe said. They want to become better people, have a better life and overcome their challenges. They miss home, but their families want them to accomplish their dreams. “Coming to this country, it was unexpected, but I didn’t want to waste the opportunity to come,” Sophomore Jamie Mendoza said. The worst thing for her was making friends. Friends are essential to make ELL students feel welcome, comfortable and learn English. Getting to know these people helps us be a better school and society where we can all grow.
SMSOUTHNEWS.COM
A BALANCING ACT
FEATURES / 19
Multiple extracurricular activities requires a lot of time management. BY KATIE HIEBL REPORTER
F
rom the end of 8th grade all throughout high school, students are told that they need to get involved in as many activities as they can. However balancing sports, clubs, homework, and a social life all while going to school can be challenging. There are many different sports and clubs that students can get involved in once entering high school. Students that are involved in what happens at football and basketball games, like cheer, pace, and band, as well as the players, while it may seem daunting some students actually like performing. “I really don’t get nervous I get like a huge smile on my face because I love performing I have been performing my whole life and I think it is more fun than being in the stands I feel like I am apart of the game,” junior Parish Mock said. In addition, students also attend school for seven hours a day and often have a large amount of homework after. Depending on whether or not a student sre in advanced placement classes
Junior Naomi Mitchell Band, Cheer, Cross Country Absolutely [being involved] is such a great way to meet new people and make friends.
they can have several hours of homework. “Homework stresses me out the most, just because I am taking higher level classes and those come with more homework,” junior Naomi Mitchell said. On top of homework, school, sports, and clubs, studentathletes find it difficult to balance family time sleep and a social life. “It’s really hard to manage social life, activities, school, and sleep, so that’s one of the most stressful things. Not getting enough sleep and deciding what to give up,” sophomore Maryn Sifrit said. Students that are involved in multiple activities say that time management and planning is the most important thing they do to stay organized and make sure they don’t fall behind in school and stay on top of their work. “Usually to manage my time I plan week to week based on what I have to do,” senior Tanner Thurlow said. It is sometimes challenging to be involved in many different things but getting involved in school activities is a great way to meet new people and make friends in High School.
Sophomore Maryn Sifrit PHOTOS BY IPS, Pacesetters, QUINN KASPAR Cross Country, Track Junior Parrish If I want to hang out with my friends Mock I’m not going to get as much sleep or I’m not going to be able to do my homework...it’s just a sacrifice.
Senior Tanner Thurlow Baseball, Football, DECA, IPS, Link Crew ...I think [getting involved] just makes you a better person and keeps you more on top of things.
Swim, StuCo, Cheer, NHS, International Club, Link Crew Homework will stress me out the most because I am like ‘Oh, I have to perform my best for these activities’, but then I also have to think about my grades during the school day.
20 / NEWS
THE PATRIOT
FOREVER RED IN OUR HEARTS South honors the life of senior Chandan Rajanna.
O
BY AVERY WOODS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF & MILAD JAHANI REPORTER n Oct. 21, senior Chandan Rajanna died in a car accident on the way to a Chiefs game. Rajanna was born March 2, 2001, and is survived by his three brothers, Kris, Ravi and Neil, his father, Krishna, his two sisters, Lisa and Mindy and his mother, Farah. Lisa and Krishna were in the car during the accident and both were injured. They both remain hospitalized. Rajanna wanted to be a trauma surgeon or an anesthesiologist, and was looking at the University of Kansas and the University of Colorado as postgraduation options. He had been shadowing at a hospital for a few months and worked at a vet clinic for the past year. Students and staff honored Rajanna by wearing red, his favorite color, the Friday after the accident. Some of his friends, juniors Anthony Young, Quinn Kaspar and Kamyar Karbalaei, organized a car meet in honor of Rajanna because of his love of cars. “It’s always tragic when you lose a friend, but in the car community, we don’t have friends. We’re all just brothers,” Karbalaei said. Rajanna’s first car was his 2012 Nissan Sentra, which he spent countless hours improving and modifying. The most notable modifications
were a cold air intake system, blue underglow, new upholstery, black rims, tinted taillights, a cut exhaust and hand-painted racing stripes on the hood. He then purchased a 2017 Mitsubishi Lancer, which was the car in the accident. Karbalaei came up with the idea for the car meet. It was located at the Life Church in Overland Park, where Rajanna and his friends often had small car meets of their own. Karbalaei said that it was a huge success, with even the Kansas City Exotic Supercar Club making an appearance. “A lot of people from South came and a lot of people came who I met throughout the car community,” Karbalaei said. “It’s what Chandan would have wanted.” Karbalaei felt that the overwhelming support the car meet received helped honor Rajanna’s memory. He said that most of all he’d miss Rajanna’s sense of humor. “Whatever he was doing, he just found a way to make everything fun,” Karbalaei said. According to friends, Rajanna’s spirit was always full of fun and adventure. During the past summer, Rajanna backpacked around Iceland alone without being able to speak any Icelandic. Rajanna was always eager to stay out late with friends at Loose Park during the summer, and loved snowboarding during the winter. His family and friends will always remember him as someone who put others needs in front of his own, no matter how busy he may have been. As of Nov. 9, the service is not yet scheduled as Rajanna’s father recovers.
1
2
4
1
3
A PICTURE in memory of senior Chandan Rajanna is surrounded by flowers from friends and loved ones. A car meet was put on by Rajanna’s friends in honor of him and his love for cars.
PHOTO COURTESY OF KAMYAR KARBALAEI
are wearing red in honor of Chandan Rajanna 2 STUDENTS as they watch the poetry slam.
3
PHOTO BY HANNAH CARTER
IN memory of senior Chandan Rajanna, students wore red to school, as well as for the football game later that night.
PHOTO BY EMMA HARDING
Owen Russell plays his guitar and sings in the 4 JUNIOR poetry slam. Russell also wore red for Rajanna.
DESIGN BY AVERY WOODS
PHOTO BY HANNAH CARTER
OPINION / 21
SMSOUTHNEWS.COM
CARTOON BY CLAIRE BRISSETT EDITORIAL CARTOONIST
STAFF EDITORIAL
The canned food drive is an admirable effort to end poverty, but the government should be doing more to help.
N
ovember. The time of year we collectively remember that not everyone has enough to eat so we all bring a few cans of corn in for the food drive and call it good, until next November when the same thing happens again. According to the United States Census Bureau, 39.7 million Americans experienced poverty in 2017 and according to feedingamerica.org, 40 million also experienced food insecurity. People who experience food insecurity struggle to pay for and acquire the food necessary to stay healthy and nourished. Hungry Americans rely on a patchwork of government programs and charitable organizations to eat. South’s canned food drive, as well as others like it around the district, keep
the Johnson County Christmas Bureau alive. And while the thousands of cans we bring in each November help, it’s only temporarily. Another way hungry Americans get assistance is through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, SNAP for short. As of July 2018, 39 million Americans received SNAP benefits. 213,577 of them were from Kansas. SNAP, often called “food stamps,” is a monthly supplement for those who are eligible and low income. The average SNAP recipient only gets $114 every month, which in many cases still isn’t enough to make ends meet. Especially since the SNAP has been under attack in recent years. SNAP is a piece of the Farm Bill, a large agricultural bill that creates policies for everything from international crop trade to
environmental protections. This bill was up to be renewed this year but expired after Congress could not come to an agreement on new, strict employment requirements for SNAP eligibility. It is downright embarrassing that a nation like the United States is unable to ensure that everyone who resides there has enough to eat. Much of the reason for the failure to end the problem is that we live in a society that enables a widening poverty gap and that also is content in allowing the patchwork of programs continue to act as a band-aid over the gaping wound of a problem that is hunger. It’s time we snap out of our delusion that hunger can be ended simply through donations and food drives and focus on a path that brings nourishment through social justice.
11/11 EDITORS AGREE WITH THE VIEWS EXPRESSED IN THIS EDITORIAL.
22 / OPINION
THE PATRIOT
THE DEBATE: PRO
What We Do in Advisory prepare portfolios for college go over power points pertaining to scholastic preparatories grade check in college plan overview classroom discussion KSMS advisory videos
BY MADDI ROBERTSON REPORTER
A
dvisory is an intellectual contingency for students. Introduced in 2016, advisory is now considered an integral element in a student’s education, not only as high schoolers, but as individuals soon entering a world without a so-called safety net. For years students have been practically begging school boards to implement a class into the scholastic curriculum to teach lessons pertaining to everyday life in and out of high school. The 45 minute advisory period is exactly what we as students have been asking for. One reason being is that it teaches us lessons that we don’t usually get to learn in a normal classroom setting, such as planning for our future, financial responsibilities, mental health awareness and social skills. Another reason is that it gives students a platform to discuss our values and opinions amongst an accepting group of people in a smooth and easy environment. When you’re in the middle of a classroom discussion, students are able to speak honestly with each other and bounce ideas around without being criticized or ridiculed, and that’s what advisory is all about. Advisory creates an atmosphere to debate impactful discussion topics, leaving students feeling heard. This can be especially useful for people struggling with speaking their beliefs out loud.
PHOTOS BY JILLIAN MCCLELLAND
Students can use this environment to our advantage to not only share our thoughts and ideas, but get people invested in common values leading to real change in our school, community or even the way we go about living life. Not only does advisory implement important topics that are a crucial part of everyday student life, students also get a chance to stay updated on what is happening in our own school. We often spend those 45 minutes watching KSMS videos and doing fun crafts, like decorating the door for Homecoming spirit week. Doing those kinds of things get students into the school spirit during special occasions. Not every class is serious debate between classmates; sometimes it is being able to spend our time having fun while being in a productive and enjoyable classroom environment. Lastly, advisory not only gives us an opportunity to think ahead, but the very teachers who lead our classes every Wednesday have lived through almost all of the lessons they teach. Our teachers are present to share their own experiences and lend us a hand when helping us to go forth in our education. Whether we are getting educated on student loans, mental health or environmental issues in our community, we always have our profound sage to lead us every step of the way.
37 63 percent
percent
Results from @SMSPatriot Twitter Poll of 52 students
OPINION / 23
SMSOUTHNEWS.COM
ADVISORY CON
BY LEXI LINK REPORTER
T
he idea of having a class where students can touch base with an advisor on a regular basis is great in theory, but has been poorly implemented throughout its existence. Although the information “discussed” in advisory is typically useless, there is still the chance of missing out on something that may, on rare occasion, be important. The things discussed in advisory are either useless or just poorly implemented. So far this year, students have been forced to discuss “grit”, take another career quiz and “learn” email etiquette. I personally do not need to take a new personality quiz each year to tell me what I want to do as an adult, yet I have wasted numerous hours in advisory taking the same quiz on a different website every year. Advisory could be used for passing along incredibly important information to students. We could learn in depth about our graduation requirements, explore colleges or even discuss simple tasks we will need to master before entering adulthood, like budgeting or resumes. Even the times they do try and teach us helpful things, like email etiquette, we run into the problem of students not being engaged. Students don’t ever participate in activities or discussions. There is no reason for students to be engaged because there is no penalty if they aren’t. There is also the problem of not having enough time to properly discuss complex things that students need to learn, like taxes.
Teachers do not have the ability to teach students what they need to know about taxes in a 30 minute class period. The biggest issue with advisory is that the entire structure is based on trying to have teachers teach students without prepping whatsoever. Advisory is designed to allow the teachers to just open up their presentation and start teaching, without even having to look at it. The expectation that teachers should be able to improvise a lesson plan ends up giving students the smallest amount of information that is often missing the essentials. Recently, seniors were supposed to talk about scholarships and financial aid in advisory. It seemed like we might actually gain something for once, but the lesson fell flat when teachers were not prepared to teach off of a powerpoint filled with little to no information. Many times students had to fill in the information on what teachers were unaware of. Advisory is just a waste of time. Before advisory, students had an hour and a half long seminar where they were able to focus on schoolwork or go to teacher’s classrooms to make up tests or get help. Now students have a little more than half the time that they had before. Ideally, advisory could be a great tool that allows students to have discussions about important issues and learn about skills that could be useful in the future. But the reality is, although the thought is there, advisory is poorly implemented and is a waste of time that could be used in a better way.
What We Should Be Doing in Advisory in-depth learning about graduation requirements exploring colleges learning how to budget learning how to create a resume learning how to do taxes
24 / OPINION
THE PATRIOT
TIRED OF THIS
SIT
Chairs unseated. BY ANSLEY CHAMBERS COPY EDITOR
S
chool and comfort aren’t exactly synonymous. Classrooms are either cold as a meat locker, causing students to curl into a ball, or so hot they sprawl out like starfish. Both solutions are hindered by the inability to sprawl or ball at a desk. At school many of us just want to go home and snuggle up in bed, free to sit, lay, squat, kneel, exist or hold any yoga pose we desire. Sitting in a confining chair just adds to the desire to walk out of school. Humans aren’t designed to sit in chairs. Our spines are made to sit up straight. When we sit in chairs, the pelvis curves under, rounding the spine. Sitting, back curved and distorted, legs bent at 90 degrees, for eight hours is the absolute worst. The disadvantageous seating options in school add insult to injury. The standard blue chair is a good height for
back popping, but that’s the extent of its perks. The screws hold hair hostage. The plastic often breaks, poking and cutting your legs, preventing optimal criss cross applesaucing. Everyone has a love-hate relationship with the science room stools. These can be fun if they spin. The seating surface is ridiculously small and they’re as tall as the table, making crossing your legs impossible, but so is reaching the ground, which leaves your poor legs dangling in the abyss. How could you focus on physics when you’re so concerned with balancing yourself on the tiny seat with a back that always gets in the way and takes up more space than what’s available to sit on? Not to mention the struggle of reaching a backpack on the floor, miles away, after having climbed all the way up into the ridiculously high perch. The absolute worst is the most common: connected desks. You can’t put your feet on your chair or sit criss cross applesauce unless you want to be branded by the desk pressing into your shins or the completely unnecessary
PHOTO ILLUSTRATIONS BY KYLA HUNTER
bar on the side aggressively grinding into your knee cap. The backs aren’t high enough to serve as a satisfactory back popper, which wouldn’t be a big deal if our vertebrae weren’t forced into stiffening from hunching over a desk with no lumbar support, comfort or the ability to rest in a more natural position, such as a straddle or middle split. Chairs are a social construct. Elevation signifies authority. If someone sits in a taller chair, it seems like they have authority over you and your lowly short legged chair. Stand up, correct your posture and seize your authority. Chairs restrict your position when moving furniture unacceptable. What if the only available chair is awkwardly placed in the center of a room? You’re the center of attention, whether you want to be or not. What if your chair’s facing a different direction? You just can’t be a part of the conversation circle. Standing, straddling, splitting, head standing, fetal positioning, balancing, etc. eliminates all of these social constructs imposed by the evil and corrupt chair manufacturers.
A THIRD OPTION
SMSOUTHNEWS.COM
OPINION / 25
In a country of increasing tension between two parties, having a party in the middle allows for new platforms, ideas and movements. BY ALI HARRISON ADS EDITOR & GINI HORTON WEB EDITOR
L
egalize marijuana: the most common and stereotypical libertarian stance. Considering the lack of representation from the party, the country doesn’t know they stand for so much more than that. The party stands for personal liberty - going along with the legalization of recreational and medical marijuana, no government regulation or involvement in any area, elimination of taxes and a free market. It’s the idea that you have the right to do whatever you wish as long as it doesn’t harm or infringe on another’s rights. Even though George Washington so wisely advised against a twoparty system, America has transitioned into a democratic country run by two main parties while third parties struggle to keep up. Being a Libertarian includes the inevitable comparisons with the two main parties of Democrat and Republican. It is hard to find a balance between being libertarian and conservative. Most often, this gets you pushed into a far-right category. It goes for both sides that radicals do not define the entire party, but with America’s divided political climate, it seems as if those radical voices are not as rare as sometimes claimed to be. No longer identifying fully or at all with either side, rose the Libertarian Party, which matched with many of our core beliefs: free speech, limited government and unrestricted constitutional rights. The Libertarian Party rarely wins elections and is therefore considerably unknown to the average citizen. The Libertarian Party’s official website shows there to be about 56 partisan offices and 130 nonpartisan offices being held by Libertarians. A recognizable figure for the average person would be Gary Johnson who ran for president in 2016 as a Libertarian and only earned 3.28% of the popular vote, according to the Federal Election Commission. However, after the radicals on both ends of the spectrum became more present in the media and politics in general after that presidential election, the Libertarian Party has been gaining a significant amount of support. In the midterms this year, several Libertarians ran in Kansas alone, including Jeff Caldwell for governor, who earned 1.8% and Chris Clemmons for Representative of the Third Congressional District who earned 2.5% of votes - all according to Ballotpedia. Clemmons even has a similar story to us about how he was pushed to the Libertarian Party. “Traditionally, Chris grew up as a conservative and considered himself to be a Republican until his college years. However, he became frustrated with both parties, as they seemed to have many of the same objectives: bigger budgets, more regulation, more war, less freedoms. His frustrations led him to run as the Libertarian candidate in 2014, in an attempt to push many liberty minded issues,” Clemmons’ campaign website states. Arguably, many Americans felt the same way as him. As of March 2018, there is a 92% increase in registered libertarian voters - the highest increase in ten years - while Democrats are down 8% and Republicans down 5%, according to Ballot Access News. LibertyHangout, a libertarian website, recently tweeted, “Make Libertarians Republicans Again.” Let’s not. We need our separate parties. We need a third option.
Q&A with Libertarian
Austin Petersen PHOTO COURTESY OF AUSTIN PETERSEN
Q: How does it feel to belong
to a party that doesn’t win? How do you stay motivated to defend your beliefs and promote libertarianism?
A: “I’m not as concerned about political parties as I am concerned about the philosophy in general and there are so many major libertarian institutions that are doing great work, that are winning victories, and while the libertarian party may not be being successful, many libertarian issues are successful…”
Q: What’s your advice for young libertarians?
A: I would say get a good education and
get really good skills - earn how to create websites, learn how to use technical skills, get good with photoshop, and also don’t forget to take care of your body because a healthy body is a healthy mind.
26 / OPINION
THE PATRIOT
GETTING TOO INVOLVED
Being involved looks good on applications, but can you be too involved?
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BY EVAN SHIBEL REPORTER
t the beginning of the school year you will hear many teachers tell you to “make sure you get involved.” The point of being involved is to have something not only to keep you busy, but getting involved also can contribute to your ideal “high school experience.” Being involved can be beneficial to your mental health, but getting too involved can be detrimental. In an advisory survey of 208 Shawnee Mission South Students, 64.4% of the students said they felt that they were stressed out most of the time, while another 77.9% said that they felt exhausted most of the time. To me, this is a tell tale sign that kids are being put under too much pressure and have too many things that they are trying to handle at once. I think that many high school students can get to a point in their careers that they are spread too thin amongst all of their activities. For example, junior Naomi Mitchell is involved in cross country, track, cheer and band. Mitchell told me that she is “constantly stressed, every day, and tries to plan her activities at least a month ahead at a time using a planner.” Other students you may know that are extremely involved including senior Bergen Cooper who is in cheer, gymnastics, link crew and yearbook, all of which have their most demanding time of the year in the same season. Along with cheering at Friday night football games, she is also constantly on the sidelines taking pictures for her yearbook assignments. She then gets up early for Saturday morning gymnastic meets. Balancing all of this can be tough for many students. In contrast, senior Tanner Thurlow seems to be managing his commitments with ease. Tanner has gotten himself involved in baseball, football, DECA, IPS and link crew. Each of these require a great deal of involvement during school hours and outside of school. He said that he tends to “go with the flow,” and tries to plan weekly and make sure he knows where he is needed and when. In all of my interviews one of the most common themes was planning. Each of
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY ABBY YORK
them was telling me about how they are constantly planning out there time weeks even months in advance to make sure that they had all of their activities accounted for. On top of all of this, many high schoolers are trying to balance all of these activities with a social life or even a job. Out of the four students I interviewed, Cooper was the only one to say she had a job, working six to eight hours per week in addition to her school activities. Another big mental health concern for these involved students can be how much
sleep they are getting. These four students averaged 6.5 hours of sleep. The Mayo Clinic recommends for high school teens to get at least 9.25 hours of sleep every night. While on one hand teachers are encouraging us to become involved in extracurricular activities, the expectation is that academics remain the top priority. One of the ongoing challenges of being a high school student is the balance between academics, activities and work, let alone having a social life.
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BATTLE BRANDS of the
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BY BRYNN TAYLOR REPORTER
iOS
he debate over iOS and Android has been going on for what feels like centuries, but this will put the dispute to rest. Since June of 2007, Apple has been the talk of the town when it comes to cell phone systems, but what is all the fuss about? Apple’s iOS is an operating system used primarily in mobile technology, iPhone, iPad or MacBooks. iOS is generally faster and has better hardware and software integration; its speed difference also makes playing modern AR games and social apps, a smoother more pleasant experience for the user. The customer service for Apple iOS, Apple Care, has
superior standards, thriving off the motto of “Peace of Mind” where every customer is put first. iOS users have access to a lump sum of cool features such as text effects, seamless Wi-Fi, SMS messaging and the latest in-app P2P, Peer to peer-venmo payment capabilities, which really means that Venmo and PayPal is a thing that is really helpful and effective, all you have to do is link your card and send money, which is an android option too. Yes, many other devices have these features as well, but with the constant software updates, iOS stays on the top of the speed aspect with quick loading and fast downloading. Also, iOS branded products have never blown up. Google Play has more apps than the App Store, yes, but both passed the million mark some time ago so at this point number totals aren’t quite relevant to this situation. What is truly relevant is quality.
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BY AVERY WOODS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF year. The one argument against it is that it’s slower– but who can blame Android for being slower when some apps are better designed for iOS? Every staple Android app is better than its iOS counterpart. Google Mmaps is much more accurate than Apple Maps and Google Chrome is easier to use and more widely accessible than Safari. Plus, Android’s ways of contacting people (calling, texting, etc) are available to everyone, no matter their phone. Apple users are the only ones who can use iMessage and FaceTime. Android can
PHOTOS BY EMMA HARDING
RESULTS FROM @SMSPATRIOT TWITTER POLL OF 41 STUDENTS
ANDROID
lthough the modern day aesthetic is a nice new iPhone X, it is undeniable that the Android operating system is much better. Yes, iOS looks better, but Android has more storage;: all photos can be backed up to the Google Drive for free, whereas Apple users have to pay for more than five GB of storage. Android is a more universally available operating system with brands such as Samsung, LG, Motorola, HTC, Sony and more using it. Additionally, Android is much more customizable as an operating system. An Apple iPhone looks much the same as any other iPhone unless it is jailbroken, which is technically illegal. The Android system is much more accessible and is available in over 100 languages. Additionally, to code or create an app, it’s free on Android, and only $25 to publish. Creating an app using the Apple software developer’s kit costs $99 a
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Space-themed dance is held for the PLS programs of Johnson County.
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BY MCKENNA PICKERING REPORTER n Nov. 10, PLS (formerly known as IPS) students held a dance for all the PLS students all over Johnson County. Schools around the area all came to the cafeteria to party with other students. IPS changed their name to PLS this year. The state of Kansas initiated the IPS (Individualized Plan of Study) in 2017 which was mixed up with what IPS (Interpersonal Skills) meant for the students. It was confusing for some parents and families of IPS/PLS students to see both, so they changed their name to PLS (Personal Life Skills). “It (the dance) will be in the cafeteria,” PLS teacher Sara Simpson said, “We order supplies or decorations months ahead of time so when the dance is sooner we are prepared to make or buy decorations.” It takes work to put the dance together so the PLS cadets are put into committees who take care of whatever needs to get done. “We have the outreach committee who goes around to other schools and gives out flyers for the dance to spread the word, and an infrastructure committee, which books the space and makes sure Mrs. Wagner okays it, and they also make sure the SRO’s are lined up; they do all the boring work so it’s done for when the dance happens.” Mrs. Simpson said The PLS dance focuses on bringing other students in the program together. Bringing students that are going through
the same thing together helps the PLS community come together and bond. “We have to learn our social skills so when it comes to a big dance like homecoming, they are prepared for it.” Simpson said, “It’s also letting kids all over the Johnson County area socialize within the PLS program, otherwise you don’t really meet people who are going through the same things as you,” The first PLS dance was such a hit that the PLS cadets, students, and teachers decided to make it an annual tradition for every year. Some of the reasons it did so well was not only does it bring together students in the PLS community, but it gives students who aren’t a part of the PLS program a chance to volunteer. It benefits the program with extra help and benefits the students by giving NHS hours. The students who are in the PLS program help decorate the week before with painting and making cardboard figures, painting lanterns to look like planets, etc. Everyone seems super excited for this dance. Although decorating seems fun enough PLS students what they like about the dance and what their favorite part was. “I’ve made a lot of friends at the dances and I like the dance there and being in groups” senior Cole Fornall said. “It’s really exciting. I like that there are a lot of new cadets there”.
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It’s really great seeing our hard work pay off, and seeing the other kids from different schools having fun.” SENIOR MEREDITH BUNKER
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My favorite part is the set up and decorating process before the dance, it’s the best.” JUNIOR LOGAN KILTS
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ABOVE WHILE IPS sets up for the dance, Junior Mia Musson and Sophomore Mariana Lopez help with decorations.
My favorite part of the dance is painting the decorations and dancing.”
LEFT PAINTING decorations, Junior Lily Murdock readies for the night in the cosmos theme.
PHOTOS BY EMMA HARDING
SOPHOMORE MARIANA LOPEZ
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FALL BREAK IN KS
SMSOUTHNEWS.COM
How to make the most of your Thanksgiving break. BY MADDI ROBERTSON REPORTER
PHOTOS BY EMMA HARDING & HANNAH CARTER
Fall Fun at Home leaf dive play touch football with friends carve pumpkins watch spooky movies have a bonfire eat candy apples light fall scented candles do fall crafts binge watch American Horror Story watch the Thanksgiving day parade knit a scarf go for a morning walk plan a coffee date with friends go to the library have a Friendsgiving go Black Friday shopping make a fall playlist watch the Harvest Moon have a photo shoot with friends take a train ride around the city
Louisburg Cider Mill
The Louisburg Cider mill is a great way to spend a fall day with the family. Enjoy the best apple cider in the state of Kansas while getting lost in their 10-acre-wide corn maze. 14730 KS-68, Louisburg, KS 66053 open Mon-Fri 8AM-6PM
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THE LOOK. THE PATRIOT
BY JULIA CALDWELL PHOTOGRAPHER
JUNIOR BEN CURTIS
FLANNEL l.l. bean $43 SHIRT bunker $21 JEANS old navy $35 SHOES adidas $65
visit smsouthnews.com for the full gallery.
JACKET patagonia $99 SHIRT tinman elite $15 JEANS old navy $42 SHOES nike $70
Socks are half the outfit, bro. - Ben Curtis
SOCKS
dsw $5 SHOES minnetonka $63
gift $8 SHOES adidas $65
JERSEY adidas $79 SWEATSHIRT xc $32 PANTS academy $16 SHOES nike $70 kohl’s $4 SHOES nike $70
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T PICKS
Social media stars from South.
Twitter The school really needs to invest in better toilet paper, like one ply seriously we live in Johnson County. August 20
@benshawking5 Junior
Still on high from the midterm elections. November 7
@amateur_arguer Freshman
Instagram @godsspeedjose Junior
The Patriot: stop tweeting emo things and we’ll feature you Me: you can’t just tell an artist to stop making art November 7
@carotuohey Junior
Watched a 33 minute mukbang...not disappointed October 16
@katharineswann Sophomore