CENTRAL focus francis howell central high school volume 22, issue 1
blinded by the
Blue Light The evolution of technology and how it sets Gen Z apart
Table of Contents 2 CONTENT
DISCOVER
Ignorant bliss ... 4
Why teenagers remain one of the most apolitical groups in Amercica.
Replacing Spectra... 6
Introducing the new AP program being piloted in FHSD, replacing the gifted program in high schools.
Under pressure ... 7
Student’s feel the weight of intense testing competition from the school.
FEATURE
Stepping it up ... 10-11
Recognizing local artist from the St. Charles area, including everything from a choir to a solo artist.
Therapeutic arts ... 13
Ambitious senior Callie Bratsch goes through her routine and explains how she juggles her to-do list.
Universal language ... 14-15
Introducing the new principals, Mr. Downs and Mrs. Mair, and what they Up in smoke... 9 think FHC holds for them. The composition of a juul and how it can affect your body.
LIFESTYLE
VOICE
Striking up recognition... 24
Staff editorials ... 29
The school bowling team is making waves that are often unrecognized.
Better together ... 25
The JV and Varsity boy’s soccer teams practice together to strengthen themselves and each other.
A greater price ... 26
How school can lead to large amounts of stress, and the affect it has on the body.
Staff talks about what’s on their mind, and marching band tells of why they love competitions.
Push for AP ... 30
Gabby Buchholz believes that AP classes are marketed too hard, causing unecessary stress.
Calvin’s lens ... 31
Marc Falcomata tells of why he thinks Calvinism is the way to go.
SUPER SAVER: Varsity goalkeeper Chris Boerding, a junior, makes one of his many tough saves against conference rivals, Francis Howell High School. The Spartans fell 4-0 in their third game of the season in a stretch of games against some of the top teams in the St. Louis area. PHOTO BY GRACIE KRUEP
Dear Readers
F
Staff
rom the Nintendo DS’ to the iPod touch to VR headsets, our generation has grown up with
mobile technology and media. Every important moment of our lives is documented and put onto social media whether it was our cute and Liz Baker
Editor-in-Chief
healthy breakfast on Instagram or our first college acceptance letter on our mother’s Facebook. Family
photo albums became collections on Facebook. Our every outfit, meal, and hangout are now Instagram-able, fitting our ‘aesthetic’ perfectly. The effects span further than just mere looks, however. Technology has seeped into our classrooms, changing how we’re taught and evaluated. Our textbooks and even some of our classes have gone completely digital. It changed what myths our mothers nagged us about and what discipline they gave us. It turned daily newspapers into up-to-date websites. In this issue, we’ve explored the different effects it’s had on our bodies, minds, and the way we connect.
Sincerely,
About The Cover Stories Connected: Social media links everyone together and in this day and
age, the easiest way to communicate for even small high school clubs.
Teaching With Tech: Since desktop computers were made available for widespread use, they and their more high-tech ancestors have been moving into classrooms. Myths vs. Reality: Exploring the truth behind the old wives tale’s and myths surrounding technology Digital Overdependence: Generation Z seemingly has incorporated media into every part of their day, is it too much of a good thing?
16 18 20 22
“My Five” Find a sneak preview to the “My Five” lists that will be uploaded this week. These are lists that staffers from all three publications have written detailing their favorite five of any category you can think of. The lists are published daily! Read them out on fhctoday.com and be sure to check in regularly for new and exciting stories.
EDITORS-IN-CHIEF: Liz Baker & Gracie Kruep WEB EDITOR: Lanie Sanders DISCOVER EDITOR: Megan Percy FEATURE EDITOR: Jessica Fults MOVE EDITOR: Kana Chung VOICE EDITOR: Chloe Bockhorst ENTERTAIN EDITOR: Craig Eddy BEATS EDITOR: PJ Sheehan PHOTO EDITOR: Payton Amlong VIDEO EDITOR: Grant Boehne LIVESTREAM EDITOR: Zach Jones SOCIAL MEDIA EDITORS: Kierston Fisher and Whitney Klein COPY EDITOR: Gabby Buchholz STAFF REPORTERS: Breana Epperson, Marc Falcomata, Madison Fuller, Ruthann Kimbrel, Kierigan McEvoy, Kayla Reyes, Isaiah Salin, George Schlotzhauer, Natalie Walsh, Kalani West, Holly Whaley, Seth Wilcox, Margaret Wilkerson, Robyn Ziegemeier STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS: Faith Carter, Savannah Drnec, Paige Fann, Olivia Fong, Samantha Gnuse, Vincent Graczyk, Andrea Hake, Allison Huffman, Zoe Lentz, Sarah Skelly, Abigail Tarleton, Amelia Vohsen, Doug West, Meghan Zadell
THOUGHTS?
Have a letter for the editor or a question for us?
If something we wrote
demands your voice, please e-mail us at fhcpub@gmail. com or drop your handwritten letter off with Mr. Schott in Room 139. The Central Focus staff will print the entirety of your letter, providing it meets the standards of publication laid out in the FHC Publications editorial policy, which is available in Room 139 or at www.fhctoday.com for your perusal.
Connect With Us Instagram: @FHCToday
Spotify: @FHCPublications
Twitter: @FHCToday
Snapchat: FHCToday
ABOUT 3
DISCONNECTED: Sarah Percy is ignoring Mr. Lober, who is trying to teach about current events. This disconnection detrimentally affects teenagers these days, PHOTO BY GRACIE KRUEP
Out of touch
Why teenagers are disconnected from current events By Seth Wilcox
Staff Reporter Sophomore Reed Easterling walks into school, heart heavy from the death of United States Senator John McCain. He looks for someone to talk about this tragedy. Everyone around him is talking about Netflix, memes, “Fortnite,” and YouTube, causing Easterling to feel very isolated. This sort of thing happens on a daily basis for the rare teenagers who are paying attention to current events. It creates a stigma around kids who know about recent news, where teenagers who know about current events are seen as “nerds” or “radical political activists.” Senior JD Salser is one of these teenagers who believe current events are important. “It’s just important for the average American to understand what’s going on in our government,” Salser said. Current events are such a pivotal part of society, according to Salser. People can connect to and learn what is going on around the world. Recent news make us aware of the situations in our lives. Current events are, in a sense, modern history
4 DISCOVER
at our fingertips. Teacher Donald Lober considers that teenagers aren’t connected to the news because of the overwhelming amount of options. “Well, because there seems to be so many choices as to where one gets their news from. Meaning the sources of information are so varied these days. It’s hard to have an accepted version of what’s going on,” Mr. Lober said. With the excessive amounts of news outlets, teenagers cannot decide which information is vetted or not. Many of the news channels or apps send out stories at such a fast pace, kids don’t have time to check the reliability. “It’s about everything like everywhere and I guess that’s good, but it’s also like drinking from a water hose,” Mr. Lober said. The amount of news has become an overflow, creating a rift in news knowledge. It would be a mental overload if everyone knew about everything, but it is important to know about the large events that go on in the world. It’s hard to weave through all of the information
available at our fingertips to know what is most important or relevant at the time. This current events disconnection is not a new trend. It has been happening since news first started. “I think it’s been happening for all of human history. It’s just people who aren’t paying attention to what’s going on, and that’s been the case for forever,” Easterling said. This current event detachment has become an epidemic. Many kids these days have little to no knowledge of current events. It’s spread is becoming more extensive each passing day. A multitude of teenagers around the world often find things such as politics trivial compared to social media. “I think it has to do just with at least the new types of social medias when it comes to Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, I mean, the list just goes on and on. But I think it’s kind of just summation of all these meaningless interactions, essentially. And so it kind of just numbs us to the whole social interaction thing,” Salser said. The amount of new channels cannot
compare to the extent of social media apps and websites. These apps can help with learning about current news, but overall it distracts from reality. Apps such as Facebook and Twitter have a news sector, but it usually consists of unreliable news or unimportant stories about Tide Pods. But the overwhelming amount of other social medias have no news section at all. Considering this, many teenagers choose to ignore current events because of its lack of representation in social media. Another significant reason that teens don’t want to learn about the news is because of the amount of tragedy and murder portrayed in it, according to Salser. Many news outlets report on a numerous amount of catastrophes and it desensitizes the average person from tragedy. “It’s just like you kinda don’t know how to react to it anymore to a certain extent,” Salser
said. “Just because it loses its meaning every single time.” Tragedies in the world have become over-reported to the point where many kids become numb to homicides, mass shootings, racial divide, and politics. Considering the excessive disaster in the news, many teens avoid it all together. Though avoiding tragedies can be beneficial, avoidance of all types can have detrimental effects. If people refrained from learning about September 11 or the Sandy Hook shooting, society could be a very different place. Though current events have their flaws, it’s still important to learn about them. Without it, people would be left in a world of blankness and mass ignorance. Current events are modern history at our fingertips. With no history, people will inevitably repeat their mistakes and be unable to move
forward with innovations. This separation from the news is affecting people on a global scale. “It’s affecting us because we still live in a world of where we’re still affected by decisions. We have to be connected to the current events so that we can realize what’s happening,” Easterling said. There is no real clear way to fix this disconnection but there are a few suggestions that could get teenagers started. One way is to download a new app such as the Fox2 News or CNN news app on your phone. Another way to become more aware of current events is to take the current events class offered at our school. “The first step that I took was I took AP Government with Beckmann and then he kind of prompted me to take this current events class which is really just helping me be more aware,” Salser said.
Events Exam As of April, 2013, 25% of teens across America state they “rarely” or “never” watch TV news, and tend to be unaware of current events. Take a quick quiz to test your own knowledge of what’s going on around you.
1. How many were killed in the 2017 Puerto Rican natural disaster Hurricane Maria?
3. How many currently sitting Supreme Court Justices are there?
a) 64
a) 3
b) 3,000
b) 11
c) 2,000
c) 8
d) 16
d) 9
2. Who is the current governor of Missouri?
4. When are the 2018 midterm elections?
a) Mike Parson
a) December 25, 2018
b) Eric Greitens
b) September 29, 2018
c) Mike Pence
c) November 6, 2018
d) Hillary Clinton
d) November 2, 2018 Key: 1. B, 2. A, 3. D, 4. C
Source: https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/08/puerto-rico-death-toll-hurricane-maria/568822/
DISCOVER 5
a welcomed change Students welcome AP Seminar as Spectra replacement By Kierigan McEvoy
Staff reporter Walking into room 96 for second hour, junior Lizzy Dailey-LeFlore is nothing but smiles. She walks towards room and on her way in greets Mrs. Karen Flood who stands outside the door in the hallway everyday. Dailey-LeFlore walks into the room to quite a scene. Sitting at the tables around the room are 11 students all enrolled in AP Seminar. Dr. William Vanderpool, director of alternative learning at FHSD, has been in charge of gifted education for the past four to five years, and has decided to make a few changes at the high school gifted program level. Spectra was drastically dwindling at the high school level due to many developments in the district. “[The district] saw over the years the decline in students participating in programs at the high school level. And a big part of that was because of all of the great opportunities they had. So more AP classes, the Project Lead The Way stuff, there’s just a lot of different options,” Dr. Vanderpool said. The district needed something to keep the balance of Spectra but also open it up so more students could have the opportunity to keep the program alive. “What’s exciting to me is we’re not having to give up something, we’re actually just making it better and stronger,” Dr. Vanderpool said. Spectra is no longer taught at the high school level and is replaced by the AP Capstone program which is open to all students to take, not just gifted students. “This class came about because the
6 DISCOVER
College Board has been asked to come up with a presentation and research skills class,” Ms. Flood said. Ms. Flood is the former Spectra teacher and the current AP Capstone teacher. She also teaches Spectra at Saeger Middle School. The goal of the class is to allow students to immerse themselves in projects of their interest while learning proper research techniques, presentation skills, collaborative learning and identifying good questions. These are the skills the College Board deemed necessary in order for students to be college and career ready, making this program more vital in preparing students for the future. “Colleges recognize this as an advanced research and presentation class, so they know that the kids are coming there are going to be equipped with the skills that they need to be successful in college,” Ms. Flood said. The first year of the two-year course is called AP Seminar. In this class students learn the proper skills of research at the college level while getting to participate in passion projects. In this class, a teacher does not assign you a topic, but rather lets you choose a topic you want to learn about. The first year of the program is a stepping stone for the second year, where there is even more freedom for students to choose what to research and how to present it. At the end of the two year program students who pass the class and AP test are eligible to receive an AP Capstone diploma at graduation, a very prestigious honor that few students receive.
FHSD is lucky to be one of the few districts in the state to pilot this program in schools and among the 1,100+ high schools across the country introducing the program. The program is being launched in all three high schools and the district is hoping to have enough students for a second year course in the 2019-20 school year. According to Dr. Vanderpool, it took three years to get the program accepted and installed in the district. This was due to the request by the district to enroll all three high schools. “It took a little while for AP to accept all three schools for the program because it was a pilot for them initially, and we were lucky enough to get it rolling this year,” Dr. Vanderpool said. Dailey-LeFlore, and fellow student Jacob Radwanski, a sophomore at FHC, both regard the class as a great way to better prepare them for college. “The environment is very friendly, supportive, and they make you feel comfortable,” said Dailey-LeFlore. Many of the activities being done in the class require group work. Having a class that is comfortable with each other helps produce better group work results. Radwanski later also regards the class as welcoming. “I think [the class] will improve my work, and it will teach me how to present my ideas very clearly and efficiently,” Radwanski said. The point of the class is to not make students comfortable, but uncomfortable to where they must problem solve and think for themselves. “I am looking forward to hearing their final presentations. I know I am hoping that my students are more confident speakers, that they feel more confident in their research abilities, and that they’re ready to take these college level classes that are looking for that autonomous work,” Ms. Flood said.
BREAKING IN: Lizzy Dailey-LeFlore raises her hand during AP Seminar to answer a question posed by teacher Karen Flood. Dailey-LeFlore is activley engaging in her class discussion on her first research question of the school year. PHOTO BY WHITNEY KLEIN
Testing Frustrations The struggles and stress from standardized testing
By Holly Whaley
Staff reporter A student goes to school for eight hours a day. After school, they may have an extracurricular activity or job. After many daunting hours on their feet, a student does not want to go home and study for a test until bedtime. Unfortunately, however, this is the reality for most high school students. Students would rather be doing anything else, but why would someone waste their precious time on something that won’t get them into college? After all, it seems as though that is all that matters. These days, school is very test-focused. While testing is important to a certain extent, it is often relied on by teachers to measure a student’s understanding of the material. Principal Sonny Arnel has noticed problems with standardized testing at FHC. “We try to encourage teachers to get an idea of student’s understanding of the material in more unconventional ways, not just testing.” Dr. Arnel said.
Inconsistent results
While it’s great that this idea is being put into place, not every educator follows through with it. Not everyone can test well, and students with that problem tend to not enjoy school as much because of this. Dr. Arnel recognizes that all students learn differently and strives to help every student achieve their goals. Guidance counselor Miss Wendy Ahearn had some opinions on standarized testing as well. “I think that part is unfair and biased, and that is a way it is not an accurate reflection of what they actually know.” Mrs. Ahearn said. This struggle with accurate test reflection doesn’t just stop outside of the classroom either. Big tests such as the ACT and SAT are also frustrating for students to succeed on. “Lots of kids are disappointed in their lack of improvements in their ACT score, when they studied hard in hopes of getting better,” Mrs. Ahearn said. She talked about how the ACT has unreasonable time limits, as opposed to most of the tests that students have to take in school. “Tests like the ACT are very high stakes tests, and lots of money is invested in taking the ACT. There are lots of things about the ACT that I don’t agree with, mostly the time factor. In most school settings, we don’t have time limits to taking tests,” Mrs. Ahearn said. Many kids try their best and still do not get better scores. “Testing is definitely difficult for anyone,” says senior Stephanie Monson. “It always is that extra thing where it’s midnight and you have test in an AP test the next day, and you’re stressed out and tired.”
Stress and testing anxiety issues
Another contributing factor to testing stress problem is study techniques. “Lots of our kids don’t know how to study,” Mrs. Ahearn said. This issue can be helped with by counseling here at FHC; test strategy sessions with Mrs. Shannon Harting are used to help students learn techniques in order to help them with testtaking “She [Harding] holds sessions in the library to help students with anxiety overall, but also with test anxiety,” Dr. Arnel said. “We try to find ways in order to help students who need testing support.” Though these supports at Central are good for students with testing anxiety, they can be used by any student in need of testing help. Junior Kyle Bryan is enrolled in one pre-AP class and four AP classes. “A lot of kids freak out a lot over tests, but it’s a matter of tuning out that stress and knowing that you did all that you can to get a good grade.” Bryan said. “I wouldn’t consider myself a ‘natural test taker’. I just practice a lot and have taken a
ACT scores: State vs. FHC
21.8 22.9 20.4 21.6
MO ACT scores as of 2014 FHC ACT scores as of 2014
MO ACT scores as of 2017
FHC ACT scores as of 2017
is important to remember that your best is the most anyone can ask of you.
27.4%
lot of tests over the past couple years.”
2 or below
The true value of school
As a senior, Monson is quite used to testing by now. She got a perfect score on the ACT, and is an excellent test taker. “I think it does, in a way, because the whole point of standardized testing is that it is the national standard. It’s prominent so that you can really be compared to other kids across the nation. The whole focus on comparison really degrades from the pursuit of knowledge,” Monson said.
An overused necessary evil
Testing is important in some circumstances involving getting an idea of a student’s knowledge of the material; however, for these students who do what they’re supposed to academically but do not succeed on tests, they are at an extraordinary disadvantage. Seeing from statistics, FHC students, on average, are not bad test takers. Individually, on the other hand, kids who are just as smart as everyone else fall between the cracks inthe system because they cannot test well, for one reason or another. There are so many creative and intelligent young minds that have a difficult time getting opportunities, academically, until college because they struggle with testing. Even when teachers put effort into not focusing too hard on tests, we still can’t escape big standardized tests like the ACT. Even if you struggle with testing, it
72.6%
3 or above
“
It’s always that extra thing where it’s midnight and you have a test in an AP class the next day and you’re stressed out and tired.” -Stephanie Monson, senior AP student
DISCOVER 7
8 DISCOVER
Smoked out
By Whitney Klein Social Media Editor
37%
of juul users reported knowing that the product had Nicotine
12% of high school students and 3.3% of middle school students were using e-cigs in 2017
The hot new thing could be detrimental to your health
Juuls are the latest “cool” thing with today’s youth. They’re small, easy to conceal, could almost be mistaken for flash drives, and they get you a “nic buzz” fast. But what else are they doing to you?
JUULS
and Juul pods are found and advertised at most gas stations and head shops around St.Charles
1
juul pod delivers as much Nicotine as one pack of cigarettes
PROPYLENE GLYCOL
a chemical found in e-liquids, can irritate the eyes and airways.Studies have also revealed that when propylene glycol or glycerin are heated and vaporized, they can degrade into formaldehyde and acetaldehyde. Both of these chemicals are considered carcinogens, although it’s not yet clear how repeated exposure to them may cause cancer.
BRAIN IMAGING
studies have shown that smoking at a young age can decrease performance in memory and attention related activities
60%
of teens reported e-cigs as being made up of mostly flavoring
JUUL
delivers Nicotine 2.7 times fasters than other e-cigarettes
Sources: Businessinsider.com, Truthinitiative.org, CNN,com, Tobaccofreekids.org, CNBC.com
DISCOVER 9
PLAY IT SLOW: The Slow Boys, Bill Sander’s band opening for another band. The Slow Boys try to play different types of music with an overall theme of “indie punk”. PHOTO PROVIDED BY THE SLOW BOYS
on the scene By Liz Baker
Editor-in-chief Everyone starts somewhere and for these musicians, St. Louis was their somewhere. From the St. Charles Main Street to house parties in the area, bands like The Slow Boys and solo artist Claudia Hensley have been bringing crowds to their feet with mellow jams and rocking bangers. The local St. Charles local music scene also includes choirs like the Ambassadors of Harmony. Bill Sanders, guitarist and frontman of The Slow Boys, lives and breathes the scene here, befriending other bands, rehearsing more than twice a week, and performing around 2 shows a month. Sanders was hesitant to categorize the band’s style but noted they strayed more indie. “We try to diversify as much as possible, but an overarching theme, I’d say, would be indie punk,” Sanders said. “I like [our song] ‘Pizza for Peace’ a lot because it’s just really fun, a lot of people at our shows know it, people start jumping around and stuff.” The reaction of the crowd is a favorite of Hensley’s as well. Hensley has been
10 FEATURE
Local musicians profess their love for how St. Louis has inspired their music
playing guitar for two years now and does her own vocals, she’s a Picasso’s coffee shop ‘Open Mic Night’ regular, showing up every Thursday to perform a few songs. While Hensley covers many songs, she also writes her own and nothing brings more joy than a crowd that isn’t afraid to participate. “[I love] when people that are listening get involved, especially when I play one of my songs that I play a lot and then people will sing along with that. When people sing a song I wrote, I get chills every time, even if it’s just a cover, I get goosebumps,” Hensley said. For Ambassadors of Harmony member Ethan White, the energy of the crowd also can make or break the show. While White’s performances contrast heavily with those of Hensley and Sanders, (a typical performance is held at a church or a performance hall), he finds the same amount of contentment in an audience that engages with the show and isn’t afraid to serve back the energy the chorus puts out. “My favorite atmosphere for performing would be one where the audience likes to perform with you. It’s like if you’re singing a song that everybody knows, LOST IN THOUGHT: Claudia Hensley feels her art deeply. Often, she has goosebumps while performing. PHOTO BY AARON COOKE
Top 10 Musicals By Chloe Bockhorst
Elle Wood’s optimism is translated perfectly in “Legally Blonde the Musical.” It’s made better than the movie by catchy, upbeat songs but still keeps its unique plot line, yet everyone becomes much more relatable.
Sure, it’s cheesy, but that’s what makes “Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again” so entertaining. ABBA songs were made to be sung by Donna Sheridan living her life unapologetically.
“Little Shop of Horrors’” dark plot is disguised in a package of infectious bops and
REHEARSE: The Ambassadors of Harmony take a break in the middle of a practice for a future perfomance. They are a four-time international Chorus Champions. The group performs at major venues around St. Louis, like the Touhill. PHOTO BY JOEL CURRIER
and they know when to come in, like, they either seats. So you have people like on the balcony and clap or they sing along with you. I like that, it kind on the floor, and everyone’s watching you. You have of brings a smile to my face, because we’re able to this huge stage that you’re standing on, you have project that out and they’re able to project it back all this very up to date technology that they use for to us,” White said. projecting sound, it’s just really cool to see,” White Part of the joy of performing for these musicians said. is the atmosphere of where they perform. Here in For Hensley, the more chill vibes and loyal crowd St. Charles coffee shops, small stores, and house of patrons at the Picasso’s coffee shop are what parties are the favorite for artists in the area like brings her back every week. Sanders and Hensley. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to shake Picasso’s, “Honestly, venues are fun, I really love it in this general but house shows are the area. The vibes are always so best for me. I like playing good, everyone’s always so in someone’s basement nice. It’s just a good place to or something because not be,” Hensley said. only are there less rules as While Hensley performs to what you can do, it just at the coffee shop every feels more organic. It’s a Thursday, her favorite party atmosphere, but you’re memory of performing playing a show, so people occurred four hours away in are more likely to get into it,” Newtown, Mo., before she Sanders said. was a Picasso’s regular and The Slow Boys have also before she started her own gotten the chance to open music. for a bigger band “The “I was out in Newtown a Bill Sanders, member of Buttertones” at Off Broadway, while back, before I got really The Slow Boys a band Sanders and his serious about music and I bandmates are fans of. was just playing to play and “When they asked us to people put money in my open [for them], it was like ‘How did they hear case. That was just the moment where I was like ‘I about us?’ That was really fun. We talked to some have to get serious about this,’” Hensley said. of the dudes in the band, they were all really nice. Surrounded by music as a child, Hensley found They said we were opening bands they’d had on the only path that made sense was a musical one. the whole tour,” Sanders said. She laid the foundation for writing and creating her The Ambassadors of Harmony concerts are a bit own music by starting with covers of other artists of a different experience than those of The Slow like Britney Spears, Survivor, and the Black Crowes; Boys. Most of their concerts are held in performance her own sound is more scattered unlike other venues such as the Touhill Center or churches. The artists who tend to stick within a genre, Hensley Touhill is White’s favorite place to perform, there the draws inspiration from the people around her. barbershop choir sings to over a thousand people. “[I draw inspiration from] stories about my life “It’s a very different from what I usually have for and what my friends tell me about their lives. I the high school performances where it’s like, we like story during music, something to follow along sing in a church and it’s kind of like a small group with, so I like writing in that way,” Hensley said. and all that. The Touhill has, I think, close to 1,600
“
I like playing in someone’s basement or something because ... it just feels more organic.” -
funny characters. Seymour is portrayed as a sweet underdog, even though he becomes corrupt. It’s okay, though, because between the music, costumes, and plot, everything comes together to make it a kitschy story.
Sure, it mostly takes place in a prison or courtroom, but “Chicago” is a flashy looking and sounding musical. Like Little Shop, all the characters aren’t exactly good; but they’re still interesting to follow.
Lin Manuel Miranda’s “In The Heights” is lesser known but arguably a better musical. Hamilton is good. However, In The Heights comes from a more personal perspective, so it has more fleshed out characters and an easier to follow plot.
A little more whimsical, a little less creepy than the original. “The Wiz” pulls out all the stops and has all the bops.
Everyone loves a good explanation of why the whole first version of a story is wrong. In “Wicked,” Elphaba is unfailingly individualistic, and she actually becomes a good role model.
Sometimes the sequel is as good as the original. Both are just as catchy and entertaining, but the first “Mamma Mia” is just a little cheesier than the sequel, being made in the 2000s and everything.
It’s chaotic, so it’s relatable. No one is truly a protagonist, but the writers still make “Falsettos” work to where you cry in the end.
There are few musicals as sweet and sentimental as “Fiddler on the Roof;” it’s like a Hallmark movie, but sadder.
FEATURE 11
Driven by ambition Callie Bratsch shares what it’s like to be involved in so much and still do so well By Kayla Reyes
Staff reporter It’s 10 o’clock on a Tuesday night and senior Callie Bratsch is finally returning home, longing to retire to her bed. Exhausted after school, Sensations practice, and her shift at Title Boxing Club, she still has to do homework, eat dinner, and get ready for bed. To Bratsch, this hectic schedule has become normal. On top of her job, extracurriculars, and honors classes, she dances more than 30 hours a week for Sensations and studio dance. She routinely spends most of her time completing assignments for school, working, and practicing for Sensations and studio dance. Bratsch has always pushed herself to be involved in the most she can, both with school and with non-academic pursuits. In past years, Bratsch had taken all honors classes in addition to her numerous activities and extracurriculars. Before this school year, Bratsch had taken as many honors and AP classes as she could possibly fill her schedule with, and at times it took a toll on her, consuming such a large amount of her day that she barely had time for doing the things she enjoyed. She would have hours of homework on top of dancing and her other various extracurricular activities. After years of learning which methods work for her schedule, Bratsch has figured out how to balance school with sports and clubs. Taking fewer honors classes has reduced her workload and
12 FEATURE
helped to clear up her schedule, as well as helping her feel less stressed. “It’s way, way easier. My whole day basically ends after four hours because I have math first hour and then I have genetics, which is honors, and then I have AP Lit and then AP Spanish, and those are my SENSATIONS PREPARATION: Callie Bratsch perfectes a dance routine. She spends hours at long pratcies in preparation for only actual the Sensation team’s perfromance. PHOTO BY GRACIE KREUP classes. So basically I get many challenging courses that the actual, reasonable time,” Bratsch the bulk of my day done in the first workload from school alone took said. four hours and then I have my last up most of her time. Getting her schedule down has three hours to do the homework She had no extra time in any of taken time to perfect. from those classes,” she said. her classes to do homework, so she “I wasn’t very good at it last Bratsch decided to take some was left to do it all at home. year because I took so many hard of the academic pressure off On top of being inconvenient classes that I never really had a herself that she had experienced for her other commitments, this chance during the school day to previously. affected Bratsch mentally. She get my work done… but this year I While she is still taking honors resorted to staying up late to made sure that I had time to get classes, she has decided to take finish homework after attending everything done so that I would fewer than she had in past years. hours of dance practice and work. have time to work, and dance, and Her less challenging courses have Putting less pressure on herself hang out with friends,” Bratsch a smaller amount of work, so academically has allowed Bratsch said. she is able to get her other work to have time for activities while With a smaller workload, she done in class after finishing her still having room for recreation and experiences a considerably smaller assignments. sleep in her schedule. amount of stress than she’s had in In the past, Bratsch had taken so “I’ve been getting to sleep at an past years.
Now with more time, she She has studio dance on She’s got great work ethic. She’s a school that has a good can see friends over weekends, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and dedicated, which are all the dance program so I can attend meetings for her various Sundays, adding up to almost things we want in a Sensation,” major in dance,” Bratsch said. activities, and do what she loves 15 hours weekly plus at least 20 Fetsch said. She’s so passionate about most: dancing. hours of Sensations practice. Bratsch is always to-the-point dance that she wants to spend Bratsch has been dancing Spending such a large portion when correcting her teammates, the rest of her life doing it. She since age three, gradually of her life dancing shows just but does so in a way that helps also wants to place some of advancing her skill and how persistent and tenacious them improve. her focus on Spanish after she becoming a better dancer she is, as well as her true Without bringing the other graduates. as enjoys learning through years of long and hard dedication to dance. girls down, she helps them and speaking Spanish and has practices. She’s passionate about work on what needs to be fixed thought about teaching it after She possesses a natural dance and she isn’t fazed by and makes the team’s overall college. talent for dancing, but she the competition. She typically performance better. When Spanish Honor Society has only gotten so far with it competes in Chicago and at Junior Mackenzie Ryan has was introduced at Central, through dedication and hours of Nationals for Sensations each been on varsity Sensations with Bratsch signed up as soon as she practicing. year and has four regional Bratsch since last school year. could. Missing the deadline last As a freshman, she made competitions a year for studio She sees Bratsch as having a year due to being absent, Bratsch varsity Sensations here at Central dance. major impact on the team. signed up for it immediately this and she has since had a great Bratsch has grown to love “She’s always motivational and year. She is anticipating what effect on the team, inspiring awaits her and is excited to the girls to do their best and advance her knowledge of helping to improve their the Spanish language and dancing. Hispanic culture. Bratsch loves all aspects of Bratsch is focused in the dancing, both for Sensations classroom and puts a great and for studio dance. She is amount of effort into her grateful for the bonds she has work. made through dance with Taking all honors classes people she otherwise would in the past has allowed not have met. Bratsch to gain insight on “I love the relationships I’ve how to manage her time made through the team That’s regarding school. Bratsch also a great thing, for sure,” always does the best of her Bratsch said. ability on her assignments She also enjoys the more and studies hard for competitive aspects of dance. difficult tests. After dancing for the majority Mrs. Fetsch, her Algebra of her life, she has gotten used 3 teacher and Sensations to the nerves brought on by coach, characterizes performing and competing. Bratsch as a wonderful “I like competing and even student and hard worker. like daytime football games “She’s a great student. and everything like that, just She’s helpful to her dancing in general. I love it,” classmates. She pays Bratsch said. attention. She gets SENSATIONS PREPARATION: Callie Bratsch poses in front of the bleachers at a football game with When it comes to dance, coaches Stephanie Henry and Amanda Bond. She has been on Sensations for four years and motivates homework done. She Bratsch holds a characteristic her teammates through her work effort and commitment to the team. PHOTO COURTESY OF CALLIE does well on things. She BRATSCH that not many people have. participates. So not more She excels at something and I could ask for from a she loves doing it more than competing after years of doing it. she gets us to do our best even student,” Mrs. Fetsch said. almost anything else. She always puts her full effort into though sometimes our team Bratsch’s dedication and When looked at from an dance routines and motivates gets tired. She’s always there to hard work has led to her outside perspective, the extent and improves the Sensations bring us up... I think that’s how excelling in difficult classes of just how hard Bratsch works team, while improving the our team got so far last year, and impressing teachers with may not be evident. However, team’s performance at the same honestly because she pushed us the amount of effort she puts behind her charisma and almost time. to do our best,” Ryan said. into everything she does. always perfect perfromances is Sensations coach and math Bratsch motivates all of the Bratsch is able to give all her hours of practice and years of teacher, Mrs. Roxanne Fetsch, girls on the Sensations team so effort to each thing she does. exerience. describes Bratsch as a motivated the team can always perform Bratsch never lets one aspect of Bratsch has dedicated a and diligent dancer and roleat its best, showing her true her life fall behind. substantial amount of her life model. dedication to and passion for Mrs. Fetsch remarks on this to dancing. Since starting high “When it comes to giving the Sensations team and dance chacteristic. school, she spends almost feedback and corrections, she’s itself. “She is able to dedicate four hours daily training for not going to sugarcoat things, Bratsch takes any chance she a hundred percent to Sensations, between morning she’s going to tell you like it gets to dance and she wants to everything she does. Even and after-school practices each is. I think the team respects use it to lay the foundation for though she’s involved in so week. On top of that, they spend her, looks up to her because the rest of her life. much, she’s able to find that three to four hours practicing on not only is she a phenomenal “I know that I want to dance good time management and Sundays. dancer, but she’s a hard worker. in college… I’m looking for balance,” Mrs. Fetsch said.
FEATURE 13
TEAMWORK: The two new principals, Ms. Mair and Dr. Downs, stand beside Dr. Arnel for a photo in the parking lot. Both principals were formally teachers, so now Dr. Arnel is teaching them the ropes. PHOTO BY: Zoe Lentz
New beginnings, same place New principals explain what made them leave classrooms behind
By George Schlotzhauer
Staff reporter Welcoming faces and a warm environment was more than expected when Dr. Andrew Downs made his return to Central. Only this time, his return is as a principal. Dr. Downs was a teacher at Francis Howell North until he was offered a principal position at Central and decided Central was a chance for a new beginning. “They had an opportunity for me to be the associate principal which was a great opportunity for me to come back to a building that i really enjoy being at,” Dr. Downs said. Although he had to leave, the attitude the staff and students greeted him with has made it clear he made the right choice. “The staff have been amazingly welcoming and so have the students,” Dr. Downs said. His job, focusing on academics, primarily on teachers and testing, has him working
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with teachers in classrooms finding as a principal, the dynamic has changed. ways to improve teaching techniques. “It’s been nice to have so much of an Downs doesn’t have opportunity to talk any plans to change to kids to see what the current routine at they’re learning and to Central. He believes that have interactions with his role is to support them in the cafeteria, central and help it achieve at games, and in the its goals, not change it. hallways,” Dr. Downs said. This is his favorite part of Much like Dr. what he does here and Downs, Ms. Ashley Mairs when he is in classes is a new face when it interacting with students. comes to principals. “They’re extremely nice Formally a spanish kids here,” Dr. Downs teacher at FHC, Ms. said. “I appreciate Mairs is the new Dean of Dr. Andrew Downs, how the [students] Students, replacing Mrs. principal handle themselves Syron. She decided to take and how they treat one another.” the position after considering it for awhile Originally, Downs was a teacher so he could “It’s something I always wanted to do. I have more interactions with students, but wanted to do a new challenge I run an at
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The staff have been amazingly welcoming and so have the students.” -
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They can come talk to me anytime they need support or want to talk. I’m still the same person and have the same attitude. -Mrs. Ashley Mair, Dean of students
risk program called stat which is a student teacher assistant program, ” Ms. Mairs said. Ms. Mairs also helps emotionally support students in many ways across central. “I run an at risk program called stat which is a student teacher assistant program” said Ms. Mairs Before she became a principal, she helped students out as much as she could, explains Senior Grace James. “She did central outreach as a teacher and she was super involved in that,” James said. Ms. Mairs tries to be as welcoming and friendly as possible. She’s always willing to help out a student in whatever way that she can, whether it’s academically or emotionally “She’s a great mentor to me, she’s super nice and outgoing and really positive, “ James said. Ms. Mairs is willing to support any student that needs it in the hopes of creating strong bonds and connections. “She’s super relatable and I’d go to her class after school and just talk with her,” said Grace James She wants all students to be able to come to here with any problem they might have and let her work it out with them. “That they can come to me anytime they needs support or want to talk. I’m still the same person still have the same attitude and really enjoy being around kids” said Ms. Mairs
GROWTH: Ms. Mair strikes a pose outside while directing traffic. After joining staff, she’s working towards making the position her own. “Alot of it is learning the way that things are done here, and then making edits that I think are suitable,” Ms. Mair said. PHOTO BY WHITNEY KLEIN
GOING PLACES: The principals talk with Officer Insera during parking lot duty after school. Part ot their day consists of standing outside to help direct traffic. PHOTO BY Whitney Klein
FEATURE 15
Does the blue light of your phone cause eye damage?
Is using your phone at a gas station a hazard?
-No -No
-Yes
-Yes
Do more bars on your phone mean more service?
Does the light of your phone keep you up at night?
-No -No
-Yes
-Yes
16 FOCUS *based on a survey of 100 FHC students
FAct or fiction With new technologies comes new myths and rumors By Jessca Fults
Feature editor “Standing too close to the microwave causes cancer,” the headline flashes across the screen on Twitter. The ‘researchers’ who wrote the report found a correlation between the two. It sounds feasible, so it starts to rapidly spread throughout different social media platforms. The truth is, headlines are meant to grab the attention of the audience, but it doesn’t always mean it’s true or at least the whole truth. Psychology teacher Stacey Dennigmann teaches the students in her classes to always pay attention to the sources behind information because correlation doesn’t equal causation. “Any time you use a correlational study, it’s not going to determine cause and effect. We can say ‘this tends to’ or ‘this could predict’ or ‘this might be a possibility,’ but then we always need to see the data and the results afterwards,” Mrs. Dennigmann said. “How close is that to a perfect one? So I think a lot of times when we hear studies being released, we never ask ourselves, how strong was that? What were the numbers telling me? It can be a slight positive correlation, but it could still be a weak one.” Myths can be embedded in the beliefs of a family or community. For
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A lot of adults would tell me [standing too close to the TV] was bad.”
-Anna West, sophomore
example, sophomore Anna West grew up believing standing too close to the TV was harmful because that’s what her family believed was the truth. “A lot of adults would tell me [standing too close to the TV] was bad. My mom would tell me when I was at my grandparent’s house and sat too close. I thought I could see the show better but they said it was worse for you,” West said.
It sounds believable, but the experts at the American Academy of Ophthalmology disagree. In fact, it might actually be beneficial because children will be able to read the material in front of them more efficiently. “Contrary to the popular myth, sitting too close to a TV will not damage your eyes but it may cause eyestrain. Children can focus at close distance without eye strain better than adults. Therefore children often develop the habit of holding reading materials close to their eyes or sitting right in front of the television. There is no evidence that this damages the eyes either in children or adults.” While there are many myths about technology and social media, there are many truths backed up by trustworthy research. It’s important to question the source and do some digging to figure out if something is true or not. Dennigmann explains the truth behind how the light from our phones affect our brain. “When we look at the light spectrum the colors that are on our phones, even when they’re turned off or turned over, those colors directly impacts us and our brain picks up on them. Even though we are not aware of them, our brain is stimulated by those colors and starts firing and send us messages. So it does interfere with our sleep patterns,” Dennigmann said. The writers for the National Sleep Foundation explain the science behind how the light affects our brain and why it interrupts our sleep cycle. “Smartphones — like laptops, tablets, and televisions — emit something called blue light, which is a type of light that the brain interprets as daylight. The blue light actually suppresses melatonin (a hormone that affects circadian rhythm and should increase when you are preparing for bedtime). The result: Your brain feels stimulated.” Another factor Mrs. Dennigmann considers: Is the study complete yet? Assuming something is true due to past knowledge is not the same as proving something is true. At the moment, psychologists know technology is having an effect on the brain. Is it a positive or negative
impact? A little bit of both? The answer is not evident yet due to the lack of research done. “Being exposed to technology at such an early age is causing the brain to kind of rewire itself. Those are a few new things that are coming out in the American Psychology Association and Psychology Today magazine. It’s too soon to say “Is this good?” or ‘Is this bad?” There’s not enough research that’s been done on that, but they are seeing an impact,” Mrs. Dennigmann said. Certain studies could be influenced if the people behind the research behind the study are biased. It can ruin the credibility of the entire study because the results are just not accurate. If Instagram funded a study on whether or not social media is a healthy pastime, we all know what direction the data would be skewed. West agrees the opinions and experience of an author behind a study determines whether it is true or not. “Some studies could be untrue, it just depends on the author and whether or not they are biased,” West said. “A lot of authors who are older are biased towards social media and technology because they didn’t grow up with it and don’t understand how much teenagers use it.” There are benefits behind technology, and there are the negatives behind technology. When it comes down to it, always question the motives and the research behind everything on the internet. Be skeptical. Find trustworthy research. There’s nothing wrong with digging deeper than what is displayed in a headline. “It’s always a double-edged sword, there’s always good with technology because it gets results faster, it’s more convenient and it’s easier. What happens though is we feel like we don’t really need to pay attention to what’s going on,” Mrs. Dennigmann said. “We really truly don’t, in a learning situation, have to pay that close attention to encode to store it and retrieve it for later. We know we can go somewhere and the information will be there.”
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Teaching through a screen
-No
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-Yes
UNCONVENTIONAL: Mr. Ashton Witthaus’ fourth hour persona; finance class focuses to their computers. Rather than traditional lectures, business and marketing casses use computers to convey lessons. PHOTO BY GRACIE KREUP
17
Teachers are finding new ways to reach teens in the age of media By Kana Chung
Move editor Generation (Gen) Z. Although there are no definite cutoff years for what would make someone a part of Gen Z, it is often known as those born from the mid-1990s to the mid-2010s. That being said, it’s fairly safe to assume that students at FHC fall within that range, nearly all being born from 2000 to 2004. But with this title comes the newest age of technology and, as some might assume, laziness. However, it only seems natural to be curious as to how much Gen Z is truly being affected by the immense popularity of flashy computers and smart devices, especially in a learning environment. There is hardly anyone who knows the ins and outs of a classroom like a teacher does, and each teacher holds a different stance on how and when technology should be used in the classroom. For example, Spanish 2 and 3 teacher Michael Crowell, believes there are several benefits to making technology available for students. “When [I] do have the opportunity to get iPads in [the classroom], or the chromebooks, I use them for quickfeedback sort of activities. For example, today, we did quizzes and activities that revolve around grammar. It’s nice because then I can pull up the results and say, ‘so many missed this question, here’s why.’ And it’s just really good to get feedback quickly like that.” Mr. Crowell said. He has even taken the liberty of creating a website where his students can reach all of their classwork, and has found it to make it easier for them to stay organized, and creates less opportunity for excuses. “[The website] is where they can come to get the syllabus. This is where they can come to see the calendar for the semester and what we’re doing. This is where they come to see the notes from the packet, or if they want the digital version, they come here for all that.” Crowell said. FACS teacher Grace Clifford, who has been teaching for 37 years (21 of those being at FHC), has also come to adapt to technology over the years, but she believes having a backup plan is always important, because technology can be unreliable at times. “Technology could be used to enhance any curriculum,” Mrs. Clifford said. “I am looking forward to having access to some iPads that can be
used in class. As an old school teacher, I believe in having back up plans. Technology at FHC is still not always going to work as planned… I do like Google Classroom. It allows students to be responsible for the work when they miss class or forget notes or assignments in class.” Not only teachers, but students as well, are reaping the benefits that come with a tech- integrated classroom. Junior Teddy Rosen believes being allowed to use cell phones on assignments can be a huge help. “It allows us to understand things if we’re not getting it. So if we were to, say, be very confused over a subject, our teacher could allow us to pull out our phones and figure out what our problem areas are,” Rosen said.
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Students want immediate answersinstant gratification
-Mrs. Dennigmann, Psych Teacher
But even with all of its benefits, it’s difficult to ignore the drawbacks that have been paired with the use of modern technology. For example, Mrs. Clifford believes it can be just as distracting as it is helpful for students to carry their cell phones with them during class. “When I started teaching high school, student attention span tested at 30 to 40 minutes, blamed on the influence of 30 minute TV shows,” Mrs. Clifford said. “Today, the high school student attention span tests in the eight-second to three-minute range. Teachers have to switch gears [through repetition and doing things] to bring attention the way video games do today. Students want immediate answers- instant gratification.” Not only does Mrs. Clifford see it affecting the students directly, but also the district and school as a whole. “I believe technology is an underutilized benefit. Technology requires continuous updating and growth. That requires funding.[The school and district have] been working for several years to get us quality hardware and access, [but] we are still behind. For a teacher, technology
takes time to organize, set up [and] make sure it will work,” Mrs. Clifford said. Mr. Crowell, like Mrs. Clifford, also finds difficulty in circumnavigating student use of personal devices. He finds it to be an eminent distraction. “Normally, I don’t use it very often because it’s just not really available. Students have them, but they like to use them for other things that aren’t productive. It’s amazing how many technological issues arise when you’re trying to do something productive with personal devices,” Mr. Crowell said. Junior Jaaliyah Ellis can also attest to these observations. Although she enjoys the benefits that come with technology, she realizes that sometimes the digital world can cause unexpected problems. “[Technology makes] stuff easier to do homework wise. I don’t have to worry about having too many papers anymore, but is still has its drawbacks. [For example], if it’s not turned in on time or if [the internet] crashes,” Ellis said. In the end, it seems the school community favors a balance between traditional and tech-integrated learning. “I don’t want a paperless classroom, but I do believe in allowing us to incorporate it. I feel like paperless is bound to have mess-ups. With paper, you can write it down and sometimes writing, physically picking up a pencil and writing it down, is easier than just typing because you need to have that sense of remembering,” Rosen said. Mrs. Clifford also sees an importance in physically writing down material you need to know. However, she finds herself straying from paper assignments more often. “I have reduced paper over the my 37 years of teaching but I do not see me becoming a totally paperless teacher. I think we need to have students do somethings that require them to write. I like to use technology when I can, and when I can trust that the technology I have will work. I prefer to blend the traditional and the technological together,” Mrs. Clifford said. Mr. Crowell is another advocate for finding the right balance of modern and conventional teaching. “I think it’s a benefit, it’s just that people need to learn how to control themselves and balance it, and we don’t do that. We just assume people can figure it out, and that’s not what’s happening,” Mr. Crowell said.
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Teenagers dependence on social media is an addiction By Megan Percy
Discover editor Every morning, an alarm trills from a small speaker, waking freshman Clara Kilen. She then opens it, checking the news, her social media, her games, even the weather- she doesn’t even have to get out of bed to get a jump start on the day. Her life is on a portable device she and millions of others carry around everyday. A life without that privilege, though barely conceivable 20 years ago, is unimaginable now. “[I would be] not as connected. [It would be] much harder to make plans with people,” Kilen said. “I would have to be a lot more productive.” The wellbeing of today’s youth is being threatened by overexposure to technology. In becoming so necessary in the lives of kids, it has grown to become the cause of many issues they face today, or are expected to experience tomorrow. One of which is the slow but sure loss of sight, according to Genetics teacher Mrs. Kellie Staback. “[If] we’re staring at our phones for...a large amount of time, our photoreceptor cells in our eyes...start to become damaged and they can actually die off,” Staback said. “That blue light...your eye has no way to reflect it back so that’s what causes those cells to start to get destroyed in your eyes.” In addition to eyesight, sleep is also detrimentally affected by the exposure to tech. The circadian rhythm is defined by sleepfoundation.org as “...basically a 24-hour internal clock that is running in the background of your brain and cycles between sleepiness and alertness at regular intervals”. It decides energy level, and can get thrown off by the light of devices used daily. “When you’re looking at that white, especially before you go to bed in a dark room, it alters that pattern and sometimes you lose sleep because of that,” Staback said. Just by being attached to the technology can affect people in more indirect ways. Posture and exercise may suffer, for instance. Increased time sitting and using
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devices can be detrimental to your back, and concentration on a screen can jar fitness from a progressive course. “If you’re on your phone all the time or on other forms of technology, you’re probably not going to as physically active...which could lead to a plethora of different types of conditions,” Staback said. “Also, depending on how you’re sitting, if you’re using computers or things like that, you might be hunched over [which] can affect your spine.” In addition to the unfortunate decline of physical health, excessive tech usage takes its toll on mental health as well. Loneliness, depression, and social anxiety are all things technology nurtures by sidelining face-to-face social interaction. Psychology teacher Mrs. Stacey Dennigmann sees the decline and sees the effect it has on students. “The human to human interaction is suffering, it’s not there,” Dennigmann said. “A lot of times, people don’t know how to act in social situation, because they don’t have that face-to-face.” The evidence shown does seem to dictate that it is quite negative for any user, and yet, overexposure to technology is still occurring. Today’s youth still indulges their addiction instead of attempting to recover from it. One thing that is aiding this habit, according to Dennigmann, is the constant need for it to be on one’s person. “We rely on technology. Everything from sending messages, to communication, to homework,” Dennigmann said. “What makes it harder is your parents demanding that you have your phone.” This is a very difficult habit to manage, and in some cases, can be defined as an addiction. The need is so great for adolescents that it could be called that more commonly than most think. “Addiction is when you become dependent on something,” Dennigmann said. “Once you become dependent on something, when it’s not there, you go through withdrawal. So if I asked my students, ‘Can you go without your phone?’
[they ask], ‘Like when?’’For how long?’[Dennigmann] ‘The school day?’[students] ‘No.’ [Dennigmann] ‘For this class period?’ [students] ‘Yeah.’” Part of this addiction is also the
“
We rely on technology. Everything from sending messages, to communication,”
-Mrs. Dennigmann, Psych Teacher
social media on which most high schoolers are active daily users of. The competition for likes or other forms of positive feedback for whatever piece of themselves people put onto Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, etc. feeds the constant need for validation, and gives another level to the overall dependence on technology. “You get more likes, and...people are constantly checking their phones, ‘Did I get a like?’”,Dennigmann said. “[Once you get] like 20 likes, it’s no longer good enough for your tolerance...you need to increase it.” Over time, this generation has just grown to accept this as a part of their culture. It’s a key element of the changing times and a tool that has been utilised for good and evil for many years now. But not many stop to think about if it is doing more good or evil to those who have made it so ingrained in their lives. At this point in the grand amount people all over, especially teenagers, put into screens if it would ever be possible to reverse such dependency. “You’ve been born with it. And it has made life so much easier for you,” Dennigmann said. “But at the same time, that ease becomes the burden...because we rely so much on technology that we [have] to deal with all the ramifications, all the hidden meanings of what it is to rely on technology.”
relying on virtual Reality
LETHARGIC: Junior Craig Eddy is visibly exhausted. His inabiity to tear himself from the enticing glow of his phone has rendered him sleepless. PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY KIERSTON FISHER
FOCUS 21
Making Connections
Using social media can have social benefits
Seniors Aubrey Williams and Doug West make friends through social media. They find enjoyment in connecting with friends through their phones. PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY KIERSTON FISHER
By Craig Eddy
Entertain editor When it comes to connecting with other people, technology thrives, especially social media. In its many forms, it can help bring people together in different ways, and junior Isaiah Henry, the Central Theatre communicator, uses it to his advantage. “In theatre I have to use it to tell the club members where to go, what to do, and when they need to do [something],” Henry said. As a tool, social media can be very helpful in giving others the information they need in order to be somewhere or get something done. “It’s a way to stay involved in activities and programs and anything you need to know,” Henry said. The ability to communicate to a vast majority of people with little technology is incredible, especially for people who don’t or can’t go out into the world. For Mrs. Roxanne Fetsch, a diagnosis with cancer had left her without contact with her students and many of her friends. With social media however, she was able to communicate with them daily. “When I was diagnosed, that’s how [I] communicated to the masses instead of texting individually,” Mrs. Fetsch said. “Which was very cumbersome and half the time impossible.” With social media being as accessible as the tap of a finger, the amount of people using it has grown more and more over the years. For teachers and adults, social media can
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be used mainly for communicating with friends and family, but for students it is much more useful with hearing about school and upcoming events. Along with this, organizations can use the technology to appeal to certain users and get their information out to those who would like to find out. “If there’s a meeting I’ll just text ‘Hey, there’s a meeting tonight,’ and so many people will show up,” Henry said. “It’s a way to stay educated on what’s going on, you know exactly what’s going on in the school.” If someone needs information on a club or sport, they can easily go to a Twitter profile of the team and learn many different pieces of info, such as times of games or meetings. Teachers can use platforms such as Remind in order to get specific information out to their students, bringing teacher and student together more and more. “I run the Twitter for [the improv club] too and just seeing everybody show up and see the tweet or gotten the remind, it’s just really cool.” Henry said. Not only can these platforms be used for business, but also interacting with friends and family, students and teachers alike. “Oh yeah, I definitely [enjoy using social media],” Henry laughed. “I love seeing stuff about what everybody does, I’ve heard things that people post and what everyone else is doing and it’s wonderful.” All these different forms of social media have an ability to share information in one
way or another, and since many people all have the technology or some way to access social media in this age of technology, the connections people can make are greater and greater. “A majority of the people have smartphones, so it’s right there at their fingertips,” Mrs. Fetsch explained. “And they’re always able to keep in touch and stay in touch.” Along with the accessibility of the technology, the same goes for social media with how easy it is to use. Not only have teens made and interacted with friends using social media, but many also say that it better connects them to their friends’ feelings and lives. “It’s really nice because at a click of a button, you know exactly what’s happening and exactly what you need to know,” Henry said. Social media always has a way of connecting one person or many people to others. Outside of school, social media allows teens and adults connect with one another much easier than any other method. “A nice little click of a like, or something that lets them know I’m thinking about them,” Mrs. Fetsch said. “Without me having to reach out to them [in person].” With all the ways to use social media and the growing community focused around it, many agree that social media is incredibly helpful in connecting to friends, students, teachers, and family alike.
*Statistics from http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/08/06/chapter-4-social-media-and-friendships/and https://digitalmarketinginstitute.com/en-us/blog/
64% of teens have made friends through social media
78%
of businesses have a team dedicated to social media
70%
of teens say social media helps them connect with friends feelings
68%
of teens using social media have used it for support in hard times
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STRIKING UP RECOGNITION
FRIENDLY COMPETITION: The Spartan bowling team commends a teammate on a job well done with cheers and high-fives. The team is squaring off against Fort Zumwalt North. PHOTO COURTESY OF PAM MORELLI
24 MOVE
Giving the bowling team the publicity they’ve earned By Maddie Fuller
Staff reporter The room is silent, tensions are high. It’s the last frame. Junior Jocelyn Morelli is up to bowl, the last person to go. Grabbing the ball, she takes a breath, clearing her nerves. This is it, this can make or break it. She begins her run up to the lane, arm going back for the swing; she makes it up to the end, throwing her arm and releasing the ball. For Morelli, this is just a typical experience on the bowling team at FHC. The bowling team is a club sponsored by Pam Morelli, that consists of six teams and about 30 people in total. They meet every Sunday from 11 am to 1:30 pm at various bowling lanes across St. Charles County and participate in weekly games with various high schools, along with tournaments and state that some teams sign up for. Morelli has been apart of the bowling team since her freshman year along with her now graduated brother, “I’ve been bowling with my
brother since I was in the sixth grade and joined the team my freshman year under his request. I don’t regret joining,” Morelli said, “Honestly, I enjoy how competitive bowling is and how different the atmosphere is. It’s a very different atmosphere compared to Soccer or Tennis.” Junior James Poynter has
“
I just love being able to do what I love with some of my best friends.”
-,James Poynter Junior
had a passion for bowling since he was young, and has gotten first place twice at State in high school. His sophomore and junior year, he had gotten the opportunity to go to Worlds. “I had started bowling when I was eight,” Poynter said, “I just
love being able to do what I love with some of my best friends.” Since starting bowling, he has found out that it has other benefits. “Bowling is honestly a lot of fun and a great time. It also can provide tons of scholarship money for people to earn.” Poynter said. Senior Gabe O’Donnell learned about the bowling team from his older brother, similar to Morelli, and joined his freshman year. “Not a lot of people know about the team because there is only one announcement about signing up, most of us have learned from older siblings who were in it.” O’Donnell states, “Bowling, in my opinion, takes a lot of physical attributes and accuracy,.” “The club has some values, it’s a great time. Like any sport or club, you get to really know your teammates and it’s kind of interesting to find out some people that you didn’t know actually have the same interest in bowling like you do,” O’Donnell said.
better together By Breana Epperson
Staff reporter The boys JV and varsity soccer teams started their season practicing together, not only to insure the teams were being challenged, but also to help the future of the program. Head coach Derek Phillips thought it would better the teams to have a few weeks of combined practices. “JV and varsity teams only combined for practice purposes for about two weeks so that we could make sure the players were being challenged and on the same page. We have some players that will be rostered on both teams, so it was important to work them together,” Coach Phillips said. Sophomore Conor Phillips who plays midfield and forward on the JV team, finds working together is pushing himself and his teammates to do better. “[Practicing together is a] pretty good thing for us because we’re kind of a young team and [playing with] everyone will make us a better team in the future.” Conor Phillips said.
Joined JV and varsity practices improve the quality and depth of team
The advice of senior Brendan Flerlage, who plays forward on the varsity soccer team, is to always put forth your best effort. “[The practices] get some younger guys kind of used to playing against older kids and at a more fast paced game.” Flerlage said. Combined practices can be a tool for all the younger players and will give the teams time to learn from the more experienced players. Which will help the players that are rostered on both teams. “[Having the combined practices has] challenged our players to work harder because we have quality competition in our training sessions,” Coach Phillips said. Although the JV and varsity didn’t practice together for a long period of time, the shared practices will better the future of the program by pushing them to their limits and helping guide the players on both rosters. In addition, the practices will help the team be more prepared to play at higher levels in the future and have a higher competitive drive.
CONDITIONING: Coach Eddie Mulholland supervises members of the boys soccer team as they run through a conditioning exercise on Sept. 12. The soccer team began its season with the varsity and JV teams practicing together to build experience for the players on both teams. PHOTO BY GRACIE KRUEP
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Stressed out: Sophomore Sam Chen diligently focuses on his schoolwork while dealing with stress. Students who are involved in activites and difficult classes are put through this same stress every day. PHOTO BY SAVANNAH DRNEC
Battling stress
The daily struggle with stress and how it affects the body By Isaiah Salin
Staff Reporter On a typical school night, Sam Chen gets home from tennis practice or quiz bowl, exhausted, and goes straight to doing homework, which can take the rest of his night. Every high school student experiences stress in school, at work, or even at home. For those who get frequently stressed, the wear and tear can get to them, and affect their bodies. Whether they notice it or not, stress can affect memory, sleep, and even heart function. For Chen, the effects of stress have a greater magnitude because he is currently taking five college level (AP) classes and participates in Quiz Bowl, Tennis and Speech and Debate. “Usually [I have] around a half hour to three hours of homework [every night],” Chen explained. With his heavy workload comes a lot of stress and little to no free time to focus on anything aside from school and activities. According to a study by Harvard Medical Experts, students need 8-10 hours of sleep each night, which around only 16 percent of students actually get. “I get really tired and get minimal sleep on nights when I have homework and activities, and it affects my [quality of] schoolwork the next day,” Chen said. With sleep deprivation comes other issues that can change your body temporarily and permanently.
26 MOVE
As researched by the NICHD (the National A stomach ache caused by stress is Institute for Child Health and Human actually proven by NICHD to be the brain’s Development), sleep deprivation can lead reaction to too much input coming in, to poor motor control, memory loss and therefore causing anxiety. depression. For freshman Drew Black, stress really “Some days I also will get a headache hasn’t set in too much, but he still feels the when I’m stressed out, it depends on the heavy effects of homework every day and amount of work,” Chen elaborated. frequent studying. A stress headache, also known as a tension “I’m in all regular classes, so I don’t headache, happens have much homework, with extreme but I still feel stressed out… amounts of stress. everyday. For me, I only get For fellow stressed before a test or big sophomore Jason assignment,” Black explained. Gough, the same Even for students taking amount of stress is only regular classes, stress is put upon him by prevalent. his workload and “I get really weird when activities. stressed… I change moods Being in multiple and find myself getting angry AP courses as well easier,” Black said. as cross country and Frequent mood swings are track can become another effect of stress, and quite the workload. affect peers just as much as Sam Chen, “I also work at their own body. sophomore Psghettis from five to “I mean, [everyone] deals nine, so I tend to have a lot of homework with stress, but everyone feels it differently and get to bed late,” Gough said. and reacts distinctively,” Chen finished. Multiple hours of homework, sports and Everyone feels stress in some sort of a job can put a lot of stress on someone, way, no matter their curricular difficulties, resulting in some of the same symptoms activities/sports, or occupational status. Chen faced. Stress is something everyone has to deal “Sometimes I’ll have a day where I just get with, and everyone needs to find an escape a stomach ache before a test or something... from stress. Drinking less caffeine, or even it does affect the way that I then take the just go to bed a little earlier can provide test,” Gough said. relief from life’s stressors.
“
[Everyone] deals with
stress, but everyone feels it differently and reacts distinctively,”
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Love what you’re reading? Stop by Room 139 and talk to Mr. Schott about becoming a part of FHC Publications. move 27
CLUB QUESTIONS
focal points Every issue, the Central Focus staff is asked what issues have been bothering them as of late. The best are chosen to go on this page .
Members of a club or sports team are asked a question relating to their goals for this year. This issue, we asked marching band:
Why do you like competitions?
Michael Foley Color guard “I really enjoy the moments before we walk on, taking it all in, getting into ‘It’s time to go’ mode,” Foley said.
TEAM TENSION: The San Francisco 49ers kneeled during the national anthem to protest police brutality. Staff reporter Isaiah Salin writes his opinion on the recent ban of the protest.
Anasofia Carillo
Kneeling during the national anthem
Alto sax “Getting that feeling of when you get off the field knowing you did the best you could,” Carillo said.
Isaiah Salin
Austin Crudup Drum major “My favorite part of competitions is being with my friends for a whole Saturday,” Crudup said.
Olivia Nichols
Staff reporter
Buttersnap pretzels
Some people eat regular pretzels. Those people are wrong. Buttersnaps are the superior pretzel, but they’re also more than that, they are a godsend. Buttersnaps have all the salty goodness of a normal hard pretzel but they also have the creamy, buttery delight of something that’s salty and good. Whenever I see people eating plain pretzels, I know they’re plebeians and deserve to be treated as such. Praise the buttersnap. Those who eat plain pretzels are dweebs.
Required courses
Baritone sax “We all come together as a group and try to win the competition,” Nichols said.
Seth Wilcox Staff reporter
28 VOICE
Yes, I know, a little late to the kneeling craze. But, the NFL recently banned kneeling during the national anthem, which has thrown the fans and non-fans into a whirlwind of chaos. As a white male, I have no way to understand the hardships of racial oppression that are put upon African-Americans, but I know one thing for sure. Everyone should certainly be allowed to express their opinion, even if it is during the national anthem. No opinion or movement should be suppressed, especially on the sensitive topic of race.
Lanie Sanders
Web Editor-in-Chief
Many students question, “Why are these courses really required?” while others believe that four English classes should be required for every student. Though some courses make sense because they pertain to everyone, like Personal Finance; others are based on what administrators think are useful. Courses should be based more off of a student’s career path. For instance, if someone wants to be an engineer, they shouldn’t be forced to take three history credits. It would be more beneficial if required courses could be more fluid to match the student. This would create a more productive future for teenagers to thrive in, and less college years.
DYSPHORIA: Junior Rachel Deason stops to pose for a picture, an activity most teens do a hundred times a day. This picture. though perfectly taken, will be discarded and most likely taken at least three more times before Deason settles on one she deems suitable enough to show to the public. PHOTO BY WHITNEY KLEIN
Caption caption caption
VirtUal non-reality
Filters allow teens to present an unrealistic portrayal of themselves You’re bored. It’s history class, and your teacher is droning on about some royal family whose names you can’t seem to remember from some country in Europe. Your phone lights up; a little yellow icon on your screen, an itty bitty ghost pulling you away from the teacher’s lecture. You pick up your phone. You’ve got a Snapchat. It’s that really cute person from whom you’ve been waiting for a message. You swipe to your camera to reply, but despair. Dark circles, hair out of place, and, oh my god, is that a pimple? What on Earth will you do?! You can not let them see you like this, but don’t you worry, Snapchat’s got this one. They’ve devised the perfect way to make you seem ultimately flawless; a way, to put it frankly, to not look like you. Filters! For those days when you look like you rolled out of bed 10 minutes before coming to school or for any day you just don’t feel like allowing people to see how you actually look. They can change your skin tone, eye color, hair color, completely disform your face, or turn you into another creature! Just what the world needed: ANOTHER way to change what you look like and keep people from seeing the real you. From the very first dog filter and rainbowvomiting unicorn, to swapping faces with a
hamster, Snapchat has been there to save people from their fear of reality. Social media has created a toxic environment where it is considered normal to hide who you are. Self-worth is based on how many likes you get or how many people are commenting on your selfies. This social media dysphoria is killing people on the inside, forcing them to keep their true selves hidden. Who you are is a unique and beautiful thing, and that should be celebrated, not hidden due to inferiority or Internet trolls, but people like to twist something until it’s broken. With each person commenting things like “kill yourself” or “ugly”, “fat”, etc, the name of social media was kicked deeper and deeper into the mud. No one had any idea that what started out as simple bulletin board systems in the 70s would change completely to be what we now call social media. From Friendster and MySpace, to Twitter, Snapchat, Facebook, Instagram; each form created a step in a new direction. Friendster was intended to make meeting people less intimidating, MySpace was for sharing yourself online, your personality, what you love doing, but with that came bullies. Yes, social media was a place to share your thoughts, words, feelings, and so on. But with most things, there are positives and
dire negatives. People realized they could say whatever they wanted to about anyone because they could do it anonymously. Young girls turned to things like Photoshop and Facetune to make their photos “flawless” like the Instagram models who contort their bodies to make it appear as if they have a flat stomach for pictures. Boys tried Photoshopping abs onto photos, not realizing how drastic the color change between their own pale skin and the skin of the beach-laden muscle-head who they cut the abs from was. People created fake personas and hid behind usernames because they were too afraid of how people would react to their real selves, their real talent, the things that make them unique. This is what’s wrong with the world today. With changing technology, it’s so easy to find comfort in the safety of not being yourself when the truth is: people really just want to know you. The fear blinds you from those you could be hurting by not sharing who you are: your friends, significant others (potential significant others), family. So stop being scared to let the world see you. We are in a new generation. Everyone is being celebrated for just being themselves, so cut the Snapchat filters, delete your dozens of editing apps, and wake up and join the world, kids. It’s high time you caught up.
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The staggering push FOR ap As AP grows in school, students’ stress begin to elevates
Everything we do today is to help us tomorrow. You go to bed early so that you can wake up early tomorrow. You go to work today so that you can have money in the future. You take AP classes so that you can save money and time in college. In 2016, more than 2.6 million students across America took at least one AP exam. This is almost double the amount of students that took them a decade earlier. In the 20182019 school year here, there are now 20+ AP classes being offered- one for almost every department. From the beginning of a student’s high school career they begin to prepare for rest of their life. And many times, the rest of their life includes college. Now more than ever college has become a large and fundamental part of our By Gabby Buchholz futures. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, 69.7 Copy editor percent of high school graduates in 2016 enrolled in college. AP classes have become the norm, even for students who aren’t ready for them. At our own school, sophomores have to choose between regular and AP for their history class. They no longer have the option of pre-AP. More and more students load up their schedules with these AP classes and push themselves to earn college credit and prepare for their possible future majors. While AP is helpful in many instances, sometimes its uses can be hindered. Some colleges don’t accept AP as credit; leaving a year’s worth of work, stress, and time to waste. Likewise, because of the heavy push for enrollment in these classes, some students are in them without being ready, or don’t take them seriously. This inhibits the learning of those who want to be there. Because of the push for higher numbers of AP students, classes are inflating in size, leaving less one-on-one time with teachers. Some AP classes have become so big, teachers and students feel cramped in classes of 25 kids or more. Measures have already been put into place to help combat the stresses of AP. Classes like Foundations of AP help teach kids how to study and prepare for these classes. Despite the large class sizes, AP teachers still put in the effort to help all of their students when they need it. The solution is there, if students know where to find it. They need to learn their limits of stress and how much work they can actually handle. It’s okay to say no; it’s okay to go easy with the workload they make for themselves and take only as many AP classes as they feel ready for. Especially in students first year of taking AP classes. If they’re not confident they’ll do well on the AP exam at the end of the year, then is it worth the stress the whole year leading up? As a school, we need to encourage a balance of advanced classes with regular classes and electives. There should be a stronger push for art and other electives; by taking creative courses students enjoy, they’ll have classes to look forward that could help lower their stress. Overall, this could improve their grades and school life. In the end, it’s up to you to decide how much stress you want to give yourself. Find your balance, push yourself to do your best, and go.
Illustration by Savannah Drnec
30 VOICE
Calvin’s lens
A bold theology can provide a comforting outlook on life
HISTORICAL EVIDENCE: Calvinists in Lyon, France looting churches in 1562. The process of iconoclasm, or the elimination of ornate symbols in churches, was very common among protestants during this time period, Calvinists included. PHOTO BY ANTOINE CARON
It is no secret that our society today is extremely disconnected from the world of religion, faith, and theology. When I have religious discussion, it is not typical for the surface of theology to even be scratched. Typically, only a “Do you go to church?” Within Christianity, Marcus Falcomata there are around 33,000 Staff reporter different doctrines on how to interpret scripture (the Bible), called denominations. The denomination that I have aligned with for the whole of my life is termed “Southern Baptist”. Another doctrine on scriptural interpretation transects across denominational boundaries, and sheds the world and faith in a unique light. This past summer my friend and I read Romans 9 for the first time. Although we had rejected the idea of election (that God chooses those who are saved ahead of time) for so long, these verses made us think: Verse 16 - So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy. Verse 18 - So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills. Verse 22 - What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction… Upon reading this chapter I immediately had a new outlook on my salvation. The Calvinist Movement originated in 16th Century Geneva, Switzerland, led by its namesake, John Calvin. Calvin and other leaders
are termed “Reformed Theologians”. After pouring over scripture, Calvin found these five solid truths which make up the Calvinist doctrine: 1. Total Depravity: Asserts that man is predisposed to break the law of God and live in sin. No man can do anything on their own to keep from this sin. Therefore humans are completely submerged in sin from the beginning of their lives. 2. Unconditional Election: God has chosen a set amount of people to be saved from the payment by the blood of Christ. Those who are not chosen will pay the wrath that comes from their sin. 3. Limited Atonement: Christ’s death in the place of man was directly for those elected and for nothing else. This belief is not to put a limit on the immense power of Jesus’ sacrifice but to define whom will benefit the sacrifice. 4. Irresistible Grace: A person who is chosen to be saved by God cannot succeed in rejecting his gift of grace. The Holy Spirit will allow the person who is chosen to realize the truth of the gospel, and once the truth is known, there is no chance of rejection. 5. Perseverance of the Saints: Those who have truly been chosen will inevitably continue in faith until the end of their life on earth. If they falter from this faith, it can only mean they were never truly chosen by God. For Calvinists, these statements are truths, upheld by scripture, and they shape the way one thinks about salvation and the love of God. They are most definitely not the most appealing or desired beliefs from man’s perspective. With inclusion of the first point though, all men have fully and completely earned eternal death in hell. A God that rescues anyone from this is not
just, but good, because we justly deserve hell. Therefore, we have a God that is good. This doctrine is extremely bleak and depressing as it applies to our lives today. In a time when human rights were not nearly as valued, Calvin’s doctrine was much more palatable. The culture in the world, and especially the western world today purveys that all people are created equal and are inherently good. The worldly view of salvation would deem almost all people as qualifiers for passage into a heavenly realm based on their lives, yet Calvinism teaches the opposite. Even with modern ideas, Calvinists tend to find joy in a belief which includes ideas opposite to modern ones. The moment when God called on me, tapped me on the shoulder, and made it clear that I am his, was one of the most comforting things I have ever experienced. In that moment I knew that there is nothing I can do to lose his grace, and I felt pure joy rush over me. Many Calvinists use the selective nature of their beliefs in order to avoid evangelism. I think this is reprehensible and anti-scripture. There is scriptural support for Calvinism, but there is also scriptural support for evangelism. The two are not mutually exclusive, because no man can know who is chosen by God and who is not. Therefore, God’s plan may be for calvinists to evangelize those who are non-believers and help them realize the glory of God. Looking at the world through a Calvinist lens is not depressing. It is encouraging, and helps Calvinist thinkers become better people who want to be the best possible ambassadors for the Kingdom of God. There is no greater motivator to love and serve others than the knowledge that you may be worked through to help others receive God’s gift.
VOICE 31
Introducing the
Tune in on: The Science of Sports
Podcast editor Zach Jones discusses sports injuries and various sporting events throughout history that effected modern sports. Episode 1 premiered on Sept. 10 and will air every other Monday.
Lanie & Craig vs. The World
The Science of Sports
Are You Going to Finish That?
Premiering after fall break
Lanie Sanders and Craig Eddy put their unique minds together to produce interesting takes on everyday topics. Episode 1 premiered on Sept. 12 and will air every other Wednesday.
Love strange foods? Kana Chung and Megan Percy explore food in the St. Louis area. Episode 1 premiered on Sept. 18 and will air every other Tuesday.
Podcast editor Zach Jones discusses sports injuries and various sporting events throughout history that effected modern sports. Episode 1 premiered on Sept. 10 and will air every other Monday.
Inside the 300 will feature discussions with students, and staff from every corner of the FHC community. Episodes will premiere every Friday starting November 2.
FOCUS 32