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GLENBROOK SOUTH HIGH SCHOOL

4000 W. Lake Ave, Glenview, IL 60026 VOLUME LII , ISSUE 4, FEB. 7, 2014

theoracle.glenbrook225.org

Administration, students team up to build block schedule CAROLYN KELLY & CHARLOTTE KELLY

co-news editors South has finalized the block schedule to be implemented in the 2014-15 school year, according to South Principal Dr. Brian Wegley.

Wegley said that the three features that needed to be decided were what the alternating block days should be called, how long passing periods should be and how the eight blocks should be numbered. The final version has

LB UE

The evolution of school discipline

CAROLYN KELLY

co-news editor staff reporter

South’s Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) hosted its first ever Around the World Dance on Jan. 31. Many South clubs joined with GSA to contribute music, food and activities from different cultures to the dance.

Senior Emily Leonard,

Full-credit policy marks latest modification to changing rules behind suspensions, expulsions

co-editor-in-chief *Name has been changed In the Dean’s Office, South’s own simulated judicial system, the sentence of an out-of-school suspension no longer comes with an academic blow. Although it has not yet been officially approved by the Board of Education, a new disciplinary policy was implemented in November that allows students who are suspended from school to make up homework, class-work and exams for full credit, Principal Dr. Brian Wegley said.

Before this year, suspended students’ grade reports would fill with zeros for every day that they were resigned to their homes. Wegley said that one flaw of the no-credit policy was that the magnitude of damage

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ENROLLMENT

done to a student academically varied depending on what time of the semester they were suspended.

According to the Illinois Association of School Boards, there is no state determination regarding whether a suspended student should be allowed to make up work for full credit. Most local school boards in the area have the full-credit rule written into their Board policy, including Chicago Public Schools and neighboring New Trier District 203 (see map of school districts on page 9).

During November 2012, before the full-credit policy was implemented at South, senior Elliott Elm* was suspended for five days out of school after he was caught using marijuana at an off-campus band competition.

After negotiating with teachers to make up missed work, two academic teachers agreed to allow it, while two did not. In math and English, Elm’s

grades dropped dramatically, which derailed his efforts to improve his grades junior year, he said.

“I feel like, yeah, I definitely made a mistake, and people have to deal with the consequences [for the mistakes] they make, but they shouldn’t allow it to let it affect your academic future,” Elm said. “The way I see it, that’s something that’s social rather than academic, and you’re punishing both sides of it.”

Sean Garrison, associate dean of students, said that, in November, students who were suspended starting August 2013 were retroactively allowed to make up school work and exams for full credit. Although Garrison doesn’t think that students should be penalized academically for their behavior, he is also concerned that excluding the academic punishment

See DISCIPLINE page 9

opinions features a&e

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COLLEGE APPLICATION PROCESS

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JKB LEADERSHIP FOUNDATION

See BLOCK page 4

GOLD

GSA aims to draws diverse crowd with Around the World dance KATIE CAVENDER

JULIA JACOBS

two alternating Gold and Blue days, three nine minute passing periods and four blocks labeled One, Two, Three and Four for each day. The start and end times of the school day will stay consistent with 2013-2014 year.

The defining features of the block schedule were decided in committee meetings of administrators and teachers, with input from Student Council members, according to Lara Cummings, assistant

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GSA club president, invited the other clubs to participate in an effort to encourage more South students to experience the dance. While many students from other schools have attended South’s past GSA dances, Leonard said she wanted to increase South involvement.

“It’s always been an other-school dance, and I didn’t

See GSA page 5

TWIST ‘N SHOUT: Forming a dance circle, (clockwise starting at top)

seniors Janna Lyhus, Vicky Radaios, Zahra Keshwani, Emma Yonkers and Ciosa DiStasio attend the Around the World Dance despite not being official GSA members. The goal of this dance was to get broader South involvement, Emily Leonard, GSA president said. Photo by Janie Kahan

RILEY KNIGHT’S ART

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WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

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Feb. 7, 2014

New year brings new rights for Illinois residents Students who will turn 18 by November’s general election can vote in March primary when 17 CHARLOTTE KELLY

co-news editor Illinois teenagers who will be 18 by the November general election are now able to vote in the March 18 primary election, according to House Bill no. 226.

Previously, voters had to be 18 years old to vote in primary elections, according to Laura Fine, representative from Illinois’ 17th district. Illinois is one of more than 20 states where 17-year-olds vote. Fine felt that younger votes would positively affect the election process.

“There are teens that will take on this responsibility and be very serious about it,” Fine said.

The motivation behind the bill was that if 17-year-olds would be voting in November, they had a right to choose who they could vote for in the primary election, according to Fine.

The bill may also boost primary voter turnout, which has been low in recent years. According to CBS Local, turnout for the 2012 primary election in Chicago was the lowest in 70 years.

David Kane, political science teacher, does not think that the law will drastically impact the turnout rate, but he still thinks it is a valuable change.

“Anything that enables people that want to vote is good for a democracy,” Kane said. “I strongly believe that democracies can only succeed in the long run if people are vested in the process by either voting or getting involved.”

Fine said that lawmakers are going to ‘wait and see’ how the change affects the elections, but if turnout does increase, it could shift which issues are emphasized in the election.

“I think our elected offi-

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cials realize this is a big voting bloc, they’re very interested in the process, and maybe some more of the issues that are important to [younger voters] will become the ‘number one’ issue,” Fine said.

Eligible South students can vote for the candidate they want to see on the ballot in November for offices including national Senator and Representatives, Governor, and state Senators and Representatives. In 2016, this will extend to presidential primaries.

South Political Science classes will host a voter registration drive on Feb. 6 to encourage students to register, according to Kane. According to Illinois law, voters must be registered to vote, but they do not have to register with a political party.

South students expressed mixed opinions about the law, according to an Oracleconducted survey of 84 eligible voters. Some

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students, like senior Calie Nowak, feel younger voters may be too uninformed and influenced by their families.

“The majority of people younger than 18 are heavily biased by their parents’ views,” Nowak said. “Voters should have their own opinions and should vote based on their own moral principles.”

The majority of eligible South voters intend to vote in the primary election, according to the survey. Senior Lizzie Baetz, able to vote because of the law, believes the change is positive. Baetz feels that because younger citizens will face the ramifications of political decisions made today, they should have a say in the decisions.

Baetz believes that only those who are educated about the political process would make the effort to register to vote; thus, younger voters are not inherently biased.

“Younger voters have fewer-to-no past voting decisions that would influence their voting in the present,” Baetz said.

“In other words, younger voters do not have a history of party loyalty that may make them choose a candidate purely because of that candidate’s party association rather than the nuances of [his or her] unique combination of opinions.”

Fine believes that voters will have access to enough information from teachers and other sources to be informed voters.

The deadline to register for the March 18 primary is Feb. 18.

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Graphic by Wyatt Richter and Kali Croke

Residents suffering from serious illnesses can now be prescribed medical marijuana AARON ACH

asst. news editor House Bill no. 0001, which legalizes medical marijuana use in Illinois, went into effect Jan. 1.

Illinois was the twentieth state to legalized medical marijuana, and it is implementing strict regulations about the drug’s usage and distributon. Those regulations begin with selecting who can legally take the drug, Rep. Laura Fine (17th district) said.

Patients considering medcical marijuana as a treatment option must have a certain condition– such as HIV/AIDS–to be eligible. They must also go through an extensive legal process, including a criminal background check and applying for a special photo ID, according to The Huffington Post.

Not only are there heavy regulations that control eliglibility, but there are also strict policies in place for growing standards and interested dispensaries.

One example is a rule that dispensaries’ locations have to be within certain manufacturing districts. Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Ald. Ed Burke (14th ward) also proposed that special-use

permits be issued for dispensaries and centers dedicated to growing marijuana, according to The Huffington Post.

“It is both timely and necessary to lay down a blueprint which spells out exactly how this new law will affect Chicagoans,” Burke told the Chicago SunTimes.

Glenview resident Samantha Grove*, who intends to open a dispensary in a local suburb, said that although regulations haven’t been finalized, she anticipates difficulty in getting the permit because the state will only give licenses to 60 of the groups that apply. Grove also expects a host of regulations from municipalities in addition to the state guidelines.

According to Fine, the regulations regarding the medical marijuana bill are so strict because they were a means of appeasing groups that opposed the bill.

Those groups and lawmakers made a compromise, part of which included the regu-

lations and and included the condition that the bill be a four-year pilot program.

“After four years, we’ll revisit this and say, ‘Do we need to be stricter? Do we need to be less restrictive?’” Fine said. “We just need to see.”

Fine addressed issues that concerned both the general population, in addition to other groups, such as law enforcement, about the bill. Issues include drug addiction and law enforcement having difficulty managing those illegal users when there are now legal users of medical marijuana.

Grove, however, believes that marijuana isn’t the first or the last substance to be abused illegally and that there will be more positive consequences than negative.

“I’ve seen all the people that [marijuana] has helped,” Grove said. “...They felt less drugged up when they had [medical marijuana].”

Grove also recognizes that marijuana isn’t the

“After four years, we’ll revisit this and say, ‘Do we need to be stricter [or] less restrictive?’”

-Rep. Laura Fine (17th District)

first nor the last substance to be abused.

“There is always abuse…alcohol is legal, and there are alcoholics everywhere,” Grove said. “…If the people who dispense the medicine are educated…people will realize that [dispensaries] aren’t just a place for people to come and get high.”

Grove explained that her grandmother, who was treated with chemotherapy, was affected positively by using medical marijuana, despite its illegality at the time.

“My grandmother had cancer. […] She could not eat and was so nauseous all the time because of her chemotherapy,” Grove said. “We had family members who got her [marijuana], and it was the one thing that eased her nausea and helped her be able to eat.”

Fine added that while medical marijuana still makes the patient experience hallucinogenic side effects, these side effects are less extreme, and the chemicals are less addicting than those in current legal medication.

“On the other side, doctors are saying, ‘We have 80-year-old patients who are addicted to narcotics or painkillers because what we have been giving is addicting,’ and [medical marijuana] is something that would help ease the pain that wouldn’t have the same addictive nature to it,” Fine said. *Name has been changed

Calliope showcases staff art, writing in first ‘Middle Issue’

Each issue, the Oracle features a club’s recent accomplishments.

GEORGIA ARVANITIS

staff reporter Calliope, South’s literary magazine, published its first “Middle Issue” on Jan. 24. This is the first time Calliope will publish three magazines, compared to the traditional two.

The “Middle Issue” was entirely staff produced, which meant that only Calliope staff members submitted work to the “Middle Issue.” For the other issues, a fall Halloween issue and a spring issue, both staff members and any students who submit work can be published.

According to sophomore Komal Gupta, Calliope

staff member, the “Middle Issue” is an exciting way to allow the staff to make an entire issue to express their talent.

“It gives us a chance to showcase our own work and show what we can do,” Gupta said.

According to senior Carolyn Kelly, co-editor in chief, the workload for the Middle Issue actually decreased compared to the other issues. Since it is entirely staff written, Calliope members didn’t have to advertise to the school about sending in submissions, which allowed the issue to come together faster.

“We thought if we were going to do three issues, we would probably need to do one that was just [staff written] because there is less work,” Kelly said.

Kelly believes the “Middle Issue” is a great way to show South that Calliope staff members have a lot of talent in a variety of artistic media. The magazine consists of many different pieces of work such as short stories, photography, poems and other pieces of art and literature, according to Kelly.

“Most people know us as the short story magazine or the poetry magazine, but we’re really here to showcase all the art that South has to offer,” Kelly said.

CREATE, COLLECT, COLLABORATE: Laying out works of art and writing, Calliope sponsor Cheryl Hope; Carolyn Kelly, co-editor in chief; and senior members Mariya Yoshovska and Inaara Tajuddin discuss the arrangement of pages for the Middle Issue. The theme of this issue centers on the idea of the middle, circles and cycles, according to senior Ciosa DiStasio, Calliope co-editor in chief. Photo by Wyatt Richter

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Feb. 7, 2014

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Free Throwers for Heroes shoot for higher donations CAROLYN KELLY & CHARLOTTE KELLY

co-news editors The South and North men’s and women’s basketball teams combined efforts to raise money for military families in the second annual Free Throws for Heroes fundraiser on Jan. 19.

Sydney DeHorn, South women’s varsity basketball player, organized the event, which challenges players from both schools to make as many free throws as possible out of 50 per team in addition to 15 chances for each school principal. Sponsors were encouraged to donate money for every shot made, with all proceeds going to the Charity Stripe, a non-for-profit that raises money for military families, according to Syndey.

Sydney has expanded the fundraiser from last year by adding South’s men’s basketball teams and teams from North. In 2013, only the South women’s basketball program participated.

They raised over $7,000. This year, because of the variety of teams that participated, the DeHorns set a higher goal, according to Sydney.

“We anticipate, with the addition of South’s men’s program and our rival high school, GBN, we’ll raise more than double what we raised last year,” Sydney said.

Sydney’s sister Annika, an eighth grader at Attea Middle School, plays for Energy Volleyball. Sydney invited the volleyball team to join the fundraiser. Sydney said she and Annika or-

ganized “Serve the Troops,” where Energy volleyball players will be sponsored for their serves on Feb. 9 and 10.

Sydney and Annika hope to jointly raise $30,000 between the two events. The total donations had not been calculated when the Oracle went to press.

Syndey and Annika plan to use the money to improve local veterans’ hospitals and continue helping military families, according to Sydney.

“One of the things we are planning to do [...] is build a miniature golf course at the James A. Lovell Federal [Veteran’s Affairs] hospital in North Chicago,” Sydney said.

Sydney was inspired to start the fundraiser when she met a local military spouse last year.

“I always thought that LEBRIAN: Joining the athletes in the campaign to raise money for the troops, South Principal Dr. Brian Wegley takes his chances at shooting free throws in a compe[people in] tition against Athletic Director Steve Rockrohr as members of the American military look on. Wegley said he was proud of the teams for organizing and participating the military in the event. Photo courtesy of Sydney DeHorn people...do so much for us, and I feel like we military],” Cowhey said. “It’s always for an important cause, we hope that much better about what I do,” Andeldon’t recognize them enough, so nice to give back and, with my brother both sides are equally outstanding.” baki said.

I just thought it would be an amazing being in the military, it’s always someLocal members of the military were Steve Weissenstein, women’s varthing,” Sydney said. thing I think about trying to do.” invited to shoot hoops as well. Corpo- sity basketball coach, believes that the Johnny Cowhey, varsity men’s basBen Widner, men’s varsity basketral Kamal Andelbaki Jr., South’s Maevent was indicative of South’s overall ketball captain, is connected to the miliball coach, said there was not much rine Corps representative, attended dedication to philanthropy. tary. His brother Tommy is currently a competition between South and North and expressed pride in the teams’ ef“I think the students really care senior at the Naval Academy. teams during the event. forts to help troops in the community. about what goes on outside the school, “I definitely thought [the team] “When it comes to basketball we’re “I think it’s an awesome thing, the and when they hear about people outshould do this because a lot of [playalways trying to beat them,” Widner fact that they’re willing to...show their side of school that are suffering, they ers], have personal connections [to the said. “When it comes to raising money support, it just makes me feel that make something happen,” he said.

“When it comes to raising money for an important cause, we hope that both sides are equally outstanding.”

- Ben Widner, men’s varsity basketball coach

New technology services consolidate District 225 student, staff information RICHARD PEARL & INAARA TAJUDDIN

co-web editors

NISH ASOKAN

staff reporter

Clear assists decisions on residency disputes The District 225 Board of Education has recently subscribed to Clear, an online service that compiles and organizes publicly available documentation about individuals.

According to Dr. Michael Riggle, District 225 superintendent, Clear will initially be used solely for residency cases determined to be questionable or suspicious.

“What we’ve been concerned about is gaining access to information that we think will bring clarity or accuracy to processes in the District that are important to us,” Riggle said. “One of them is residency.”

South Principal Dr. Brian Wegley said he believes that the district has a duty that implementation of Clear will help to accomplish.

“We have a responsibility to our community to ensure that the students we are educating live in our community,” Wegley said.

“I believe that is the focus of [Clear].”

According to Riggle, students who do not live in the district but attend South prevent educational dollars from being used to their full capacity.

“When I’m spending on students who really shouldn’t be here as students, then I can’t spend it on things that [students living in the District] actually want or need that can enhance their whole experience,” Riggle said.

Approximately 100 families each year re-

quire additional residency documentation for the district, according to Frank Santa, director of Glenbrook Evening School.

“Suspicious residency is not a prevalent issue in our district as compared to other school districts,” Santa said.

Riggle said, as of now, only a few individuals have access to the information Clear provides and that Clear will be used only when necessary.

“The Board and myself are concerned that we not go overboard pulling out information on people, because even though it’s out there and you can do it, it doesn’t necessarily mean that it is something that we ought to do,” Riggle said.

Infosnap centralizes student information

South is piloting a new software program, Infosnap, to work with Powerschool and better incorporate student information, according to Wegley.

According to Riggle, Infosnap could have multiple uses for South including registration, uploading medical information, and making payments, all from a built in interface into the Powerschool portal.

Ryan Bretag, District 225 director of instructional technology, said that the goal of the project is to centralize student information such as medical history, home address and emergency contact numbers into one place. Information will also be more accessible for parents.

“Infosnap basically takes all our paper registration and [...] digitizes all that and makes it easier for parents and students to register,” Bretag said.

This semester is a test run for Infosnap with new Titans filling out digital copies of registration forms, according to Bretag. Bretag said that South hopes to use Infosnap to streamline the summer book sale and help with clarity of information during registration of new students.

“No longer will we have the four to five page forms going home that were hand-filled out, sent back, then someone had to take the [handwritten form] and manually re-enter it digitally,” Bretag said.

According to Riggle, yearly subscription to Infosnap is $20,000, but the program saves costs when fewer people are needed for the book sale and in the long run will be beneficial.

Bretag said he believes that the efficiency of Infosnap will better allow staff to help parents and teachers and that having the information centralized and ready will make face-to-face interaction even more effective.

Dr. Lara Cummings, assistant principal of student services, said that when South switched to Powerschool, she knew it was compatible with Infosnap.

“We had Infosnap come out and give a demonstration for both South and North about what it could do for us and how it could help improve and how it could help us be more efficient,” Cummings said. “To be honest, the product sold itself.”

Cummings said she had used Infosnap with her own children’s schools and was very familiar and comfortable working with the program.

“We still have a lot to learn about [Infosnap],” Cummings said. “I’ve definitely used it on the user-end, but [we] haven’t used it behind the scenes, so we’ll learn as we go. But I feel confident it is the right move for District 225.”

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Feb. 7, 2014

SECOND IN A SERIES

growth spurt Feeder school growth propels South’s rising enrollment CAROLYN KELLY

co-news editor Total enrollment in Glenview District 34 schools reached a historic high of 4,923 students for the 2013-2014 school year, according to a December 2013 report on current and projected enrollment for the district by educational facility planning firm DeJong Richter.

The report said that this year’s total follows 10 years of continued growth in District 34, which includes students from Pre-K to eighth grade who attend Attea, Glen Grove, Henking, Hoffman, Lyon, Pleasant Ridge, Springman and Westbrook schools. Since 2004, District 34’s enrollment has grown by 19 percent for a total increase of 776 students, according to the report.

Shawn Eshoo, District 34 parent, said that the reputation of District 34’s schools influenced her family’s decision to move to Glenview in 2005.

“We knew that wherever we were going, [the schools] had to be something reputable,” Eshoo said.

Eighth graders from Attea and Springman middle schools make up the majority of incoming South freshmen, according to Dr. Lara Cummings, South’s assistant principal for student services. Attea and Springman are poised to funnel more than 600 of next year’s estimated 801 District 34 freshmen into South’s community, a larger amount than in the past.

Cummings said the increased sizes of Attea’s and Springman’s eighth grade classes complicate visits such as when the eighth graders come to South to tour the building and register for classes.

“I feel confident [the registration process] is going to look a little different this year,” Cummings said. “It will be a challenge as we go through February to make sure that, given the time frame and the time allotment that we allowed last year [...] Will we be able to register even more students in that same time frame, and do we need to restructure that?”

To accommodate the past growth in student population, District 34 decided to increase class sizes for the 2012-2013 school year, according to Brett Clark, executive director of communications and strategic planning for District 34. The cap on class sizes for each grade level increased by one student. Clark said that although the measure raised concerns about teachers’ workloads and classroom management, it has worked for the district.

Eshoo said she had experienced much of the concern and debate over increasing her daughters’ class sizes, but trusted the district to make the right decision.

“It’s just alarming to hear, ‘Oh, the classes are bigger now,’ but are they really too big?” Eshoo said. “I leave those kinds of decisions to the educators, and figure they know better than I do. So that’s not something I raise an opinion on, unless my kids were telling me that they thought [class size] was causing a problem — but they seem to be getting a good education.”

Projections for District 34’s future enrollment seem to indicate a sustained large size, according to Clark.

“The trend from the report is that enrollment is going to level off and decline,” Clark said. “However, with knowing what we know about the community and the different projects that we have with relation to living space […] we want to continue to monitor it. We don’t see any sort of decrease on the horizon; in fact we see more of a flattening out.”

As District 34’s growth parallels South’s trajectory, Cummings said that accommodating further students at South will present more complex challenges than at a lower level school.

“I think once you get to the high school level, it’s a bit different in that you have teachers and services that are more specialized [...] especially in terms of the electives [...] so you’re really increasing in lots of different areas,” Cummings said.

Along with the challenges associated with adjusting to a greater student population, South Principal Dr. Brian Wegley believes in its positive indications of the community’s attraction.

“I think it’s also kind of an exciting thing; you know, being a believer in Glenview, I think there’s a reason our enrollment is going up,” Wegley said.

“Wherever we were going, [the schools] had to be something reputable.”

-Shawn Eshoo, District 34 parent

FRESHMAN FIELD-DAY: At the activities night for incoming freshman, eighth graders fill the South Field House from wall-to-wall to sign up for sports and clubs. The Class of 2018 will be the largest in South history. Photo by Wyatt Richter

BLOCKS, continued from front principal for student services.

Cummings said that the decision to name the alternating days Gold and Blue days instead of A and B days was nearly unanimous in all groups.

“Because of […] the school spirit here as well, I think people just kind of glommed onto that [color idea] and thought, ‘Yeah, let’s run with this,’” Cummings said. “Visually, I think it will be helpful for staff, I think it will be helpful for students to distinguish the two.”

Susan Levine-Kelley, English department instructional supervisor (IS), said that the Gold and Blue day decision was unanimous in the IS council.

“We all thought that it, visually and cognitively, made so much more sense,” Levine-Kelley said.

Wegley said South’s Gold and Blue days will line up with North’s A and B days so that students attending both schools can have consistency.

“We’re starting with Gold because we do need to line up with North,” Wegley said. “North’s going to still be A/B, so our Blue day will line up with North’s B day.”

The decision to have consistent, nine minute passing periods will be differ-

ent from North’s ten-seven-ten minute system, and was a split vote across the committees, according to Wegley.

According to Jane Brennan, treasurer for the Junior class, the passing period length was the most debated topic among Student Council.

Wegley said the nine-minute passing period option will provide the best time frame for students and teachers, versus other options that were considered, like ten-seven-ten minutes or three eight minute periods.

“That was a split for everybody,” Wegley said. “But we felt that if you’re [in class for] 90 minutes, then nine minutes [free] is going to really be important. You need time to regroup and catch up [...] so we left nine-nine-nine.”

According to Cummings, the option to have the blocks numbered the same on each day was determined by what Powerschool, South’s student information system, could display.

“One through Four, Five through Eight, was ruled out because Powerschool cannot allow names of blocks to be called one thing on one day and [differently] on another day [...] although it was the favorite,” Cummings said.

According to Cummings, South administrators examined other schools on the block schedule, like North and Rolling Meadows, for ideas and feedback. “[We were] talking to other schools and using their wisdom, who [have]

“We all thought that it, visually and cognitively, made so much more sense.”

Susan Levine-Kelley, English instructional supervisor

gone through the [shift] [...] because many times schools made decisions and then [...] wound up changing it,” Cummings said.

Cummings said the idea for Gold and Blue days was modeled after Rolling Meadows, which has Purple and Gold days and every morning raises a flag with the color of the day. Superintendent Dr. Michael Riggle felt it important to fit South culture, like the colors, with the block schedule.

“If [the district has] two schools on a block schedule, there are certain things about the South culture that South teachers and South students understand,” Riggle said. “They have to look at how to take [the schedule] and make it work in keeping with the traditions.”

Brennan said that the overall view of Student Council towards the schedule was positive, especially after members shadowed a half-day at North and experienced that block schedule.

Brennan herself is excited for the switch, because of the additional classes greater depth of material due to longer time.

“Since it’s my senior year I get to mainly take classes I’m interested in, which will be nice due to the longer periods,” Brennan said.

Specific class details and frequently-asked-questions about the block schedule will be in a brochure called “New Kids on the Block,” compiled by Student Council and the Guidance Department. The brochure will be distributed before registration to help students plan classes.

news

Feb. 7, 2014

5

Hebson wins contest with original composition LAUREN BENSON

staff reporter

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Senior Atticus Hebson’s music composition, “Cradle Song,” won first place in its category at the Illinois Music Educators Association (ILMEA) Composition Contest and was performed in a showcase Jan. 23.

Judges of the competition were responsible for selecting the top compositions for performance at the ILMEA, according to Hebson. “Cradle Song,” a vocal solo, made the cut.

“I’ll be performing it [at ILMEA] with [senior] Lauretta Mosteller, who will sing the soprano part,” Hebson said.

“I’ll be playing the keyboard while she sings and wafterwards I’ll have the opportunity to discuss it with the audience and some of the [ILMEA] administrators.”

Hebson said “Cradle Song” was inspired by a poem by Alfred Lord Tennyson. The performance was the culmination of a long and difficult process, according to Hebson, who has been composing since age 12 and plans to continue in the future. “[While composing can] be kind of a pain, hashing out my ideas and seeing them come out into a fuller structure [...] in the moment [is] very exciting,” Hebson said.

Mosteller had listened to and performed Hebson’s works before ‘Cradle Song’ PIANO MAN: Playing without sheet music, senior Atticus Hebson improvises a song for piano. Accordand she admires his talent. ing to Hebson, sometimes a composition may go well and only take a couple days to complete, and other “I [would] love to be able to times it may take years. Photo by Marley Hambourger see how his mind works when he’s writing, and I love seeing [and lis- ty good pitch memory, so I can recall sues.” pitches I’ve heard before and know tening to] whatever he comes up with,” However, Mosteller said that the two Mosteller said. “It’s incredible to know what [notes] they are,” Hebson said. of them can work through the compliOnce Hebson’s compositions are somebody who writes so well.” cations, and the final result is worth it. down on paper, they are not finished.

Mosteller also admires Hebson’s abil“A song is a song and you learn the According to Mosteller, there is often a notes and you learn the rhythm, and ity to transform a tune in his head into gap between what Hebson plans and actual notes. Hebson said that being then what makes the music out of it is able to remember notes from years of what is humanly possible to perform. your understanding of it and the way “A lot of the trouble I run into is, practice helps him to compose. you push through the music and craft ‘When do you want me to breathe “I’ll hear something in my head [...] it,” Mosteller said. “There’s a feeling when I’m singing?’” Mosteller said. “I [and while] I don’t have what’s psyyou get from music when you play it, know that you hear this as one line, but chologically known as absolute pitch, I when you deeply connect with it durit can’t be, because I have breathing ishave over the years developed a preting a song.”

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GSA, continued from front want that,” Leonard said. “I was like, I want other people to be here because of course I’m trying to be inclusive, but we’re not representing us. Everybody else is like, ‘Oh, this is like Lake Zurich,’ or ‘This is Stevenson,’ but we would never have GBS. And now we [do]. And everybody else is still here.”

Stand for Peace (Stand) is one group that partnered with GSA. “Our goal for GSA is to key into [some] international issues [with] visual presentations for the dance,” senior Stand leader Julia Jacobs said.

According to Jacobs, around 76 countries still ban homosexuality. The main focus of their booth at the dance was to raise awareness of these issues.

Stand member Anbang Zhang said that he enjoyed the inclusion of all the clubs into the dance.

“It brings some new energy to it, es-

pecially because it brings people from different backgrounds than who usually go [...] I think it’s a way of introducing people to [the dance],” Zhang said.

Other participants included Desi Club members, who brought Indian food and music, French Club members, who made crepes and played French music, Japanese Club members, who gave origami lessons and sold handmade Japanese toys, and Latino Heat dancers, who performed a routine.

Sejal Schullo, Desi Club sponsor, said that Desi Club became involved after hearing GSA’s goals for the dance.

“They were trying to […] build a larger community of all the smaller communities, which [...] is a great thing to do here at GBS, because sometimes we are a little divided even though we’re such a big school,” Schullo said.

Schullo also thought it was important to show support because it was GSA’s first school-wide event.

“We decided we would come and attend and be supportive, because it’s the GSA’s […] first try, and I think it’s very successful, hosting something that is [school-wide], and I’m very excited to be part of it,” Schullo said.

Leonard hopes that the number of clubs at this year’s Around the World dance will continue with future dances, even if GSA chooses other themes.

“They don’t have to do Around the World obviously every year, but I think that now that we’ve got that connection with other clubs it’ll be easier to be like, ‘Hey, actually, Erika’s Lighthouse, we want to do this dance, do you think you could help us out with that?’”

Leonard said. “I think building a bond now will make it so much easier for the club next year and after that.”

Schullo said Desi Club would be interested in returning to a future dance.

“I think we would totally do it again in a heartbeat,” Schullo said.

6

The editorial expresses the opinion of the majority of the editorial board and not necessarily that of the publisher, adviser, school administration or staff.

Feb. 7, 2014

editorial

Students: focus on grave consequences of Adderall abuse

It seems simple: take this pill and you will focus better, you will be more productive and you won’t be slowed down by exhaustion or distraction. Although relieving some of the pressures of adolescent life with a drug such as Adderall sounds enticing, the Oracle Editorial Board urges students who have not been formally diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) to either stop taking it or reject the idea from the start.

Adderall is an amphetamine psychostimulant most commonly used in the treatment of ADHD to improve attention, hyperactivity and disruptive behaviors. According to an Oracle-conducted survey of 328 students, 65 percent of students at South either take or know someone who takes some sort of attention-enhancing drug.

As the stimulant was only approved by the FDA in 1996, Adderall abuse wasn’t a problem for our parents’ generation. ADHD diagnoses have risen to more than one in seven children in the United States, 70 percent of whom are prescribed drugs like Adderall or Ritalin, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

The commonality of the diagnosis and the prevalence of the drug in the pockets of teens makes it easier for the undiagnosed to find a source to buy it from.

What might appear as a quick-hit strategy to get through five hours’ worth of ACT testing or five days of finals studying has a slew of side effects and potential consequences that students should consider carefully before popping those pills.

Adderall is the most common ADHD medication despite the listed physical side effects: headache, stomach ache, trouble sleeping, decreased appetite, nervousness and dizziness. South students who have used Adderall, either bought using a prescription or illegally, reported feeling social anxiety, like their personalities have been muted, after taking the drug (see page 11 for the full story).

For people with ADHD, the benefits surpass the side effects. But for people who illicitly use the drug, the danger of those side effects should certainly not be overlooked because ultimately, health should be prioritized over academics, athletics or any part of their lives that students use Adderall to excel at.

Aside from the physical danger, students should understand the potential legal consequences to unprescribed Adderall use. Adderall is classified by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) as a Schedule II drug, the second most restrictive schedule, because it has a high potential for abuse. Although the potential for abuse is

PHOTO-ILLUSTRATION not as high as for Schedule I drugs such as heroin, LSD or marijuana, Adderall has the same punishment as many Schedule I drugs: the possession of any weight of the substance could result in a one to five million dollar fine and up to 20 years in prison for adults over age 18.

For South students under age 18 who are caught in possession of Adderall, Officer Mike Meier said that the punishment will be determined by a judge in juvenile court.

Even more serious are the legal and moral implications for selling Adderall to friends, acquaintances or strangers around school. A potential Adderall dealer must face the choice they’re making head on, weighing the benefit of easy cash with the fact that they’re providing other people with a substance that has the potential to damage them physically and mentally is simply immoral.

Photo by Dani Tuchman

Considering the steep punishment, the Oracle Editorial Board suggests that students search for a way to limit distractions using more natural or simply more legal methods.

For students who find it difficult for themselves to listen in class or read for extended periods of time, getting up to walk around briefly, or five to 10 minutes of meditation during work time can revitalize that focus. For shorter periods of time in which concentration is vital for success, such as the ACT or final exams, caffeine used in moderation can stimulate in a similar way to Adderall.

Attentional issues are common, especially in adolescence when academic pressure is on full force and technology is an important part of social interaction and schoolwork, and if you have trouble focusing, it doesn’t necessarily mean that

you have ADHD. If you suspect that you do have ADHD, your first stop should be to a specialist, not an Adderall dealer.

The quest for a substance to fix our problems, to make us extraordinary and to allow us to cheat nature is a classic struggle. In Harry Potter, wizards drink unicorn blood to keep themselves alive, but it also puts a curse upon the drinker’s life forever. In Lord of the Rings, the One Ring gives the wearer the powers of invisibility and immortality, but makes them obsessive and spiritually empty.

Although the power of Adderall is not comparable in scope to unicorn blood or an indestructible ring, the lesson is easily applied. Without a diagnosed need for it, taking Adderall is modifying your body and mind in such a way that could ultimately cause you to lose your grasp of yourself.

of

Graphic by Marley Hambourger

is published monthly by students at Glenbrook South High School, 4000 W. Lake Ave., Glenview, IL 60026.

The opinions expressed in the Oracle are that of the writer(s) and not necessarily of the staff or school.

The Oracle neither endorses nor rejects the products and services advertised.

editors-in-chief Julia Jacobs Camille Park news editors Carolyn Kelly Charlotte Kelly opinions editors Claire Fisher Sally You features editors Elisa Kim Madison O’Brien a&e editors Shea Anthony Kali Croke sports editors Rachel Chmielinski Breck Murphy

web editors Lauren Durning Richard Pearl Kelsey Pogue Inaara Tajuddin illustrations editor Nimisha Perumpel photos editor Wyatt Richter asst. news Aaron Ach asst. opinions Dani Tuchman asst. features Hailey Hauldren Calli Haramaras Addie Lyon

asst. a&e Lauren Frias asst. sports Hannah Mason asst. photos Marley Hambourger Cormac O’Brien adviser Marshall Harris gbsoracle@gmail.com “The Glenbrook South Oracle” @GBSOracle @gbsoracle

opinions

Feb. 7, 2014

7

Opposing views on chivalry: outdated or important?

Outdated-potentially offensive

Important-simply politeness

KALI CROKE

AARON ACH

co-a&e editor

asst. news editor

A guy on a date offers you his coat, goes out of his way to open the car door for you, protects you from the rain and pays for dinner.

This politeness and courtesy would have most girls drooling over this perfect gentleman, but in these situations, I’m uncomfortable.

At this point in the date, I wouldn’t storm out or call it quits—it’s just pure, innocent politeness, often termed as chivalry. However, what makes me incapable of opening my own door or handling a little rain or snow? Chivalry is an archaic concept that makes commiting small acts of courtesy a man’s duty while women remain passive, facilitating unnecessary gender roles.

I equate acts of chivalry with a loss of my sense of independence, as if I cannot care for myself or handle something because I’m a “lady.” If a guy paid for my dinner, I wouldn’t instantly be offended, but I couldn’t sit comfortably while questioning why society considers it a man’s duty to take me out or spend money on me because it’s the “proper” wooing technique.

Being polite doesn’t make anyone a misogynist, but I want to bring attention to a concept that took root from chauvinistic times when men were placed in a position to care for a “docile sex” that still carries on unknowingly today. It’s a sexist concept, but all intents of usage are innocent and well-meant.

I’m not trying to convince you that the politeness of a man is altogether disrespectful and shouldn’t be tolerated, but I do find it extremely strange and sometimes uncomfortable when guys think they need to be overly cautious.

Girls: if you love to be treated like a princess, I genuinely hope you find someone who will give you what you’re looking for.

Guys: my opinion does not necessarily speak for all females. If you feel un-gentlemanlike by not treating your girl the way you think you should, then pull out that chair. If you respect her opinion on these chivalrous acts and you mean well by them, then there’s nothing wrong with that.

With Valentine’s Day on the horizon, some are considering what they can do to give their better half especially romantic treatment, which usually means altering behavior in some way. What I am more interested in, however, is the way that people act toward one another the other 364 days of the year, how gender truly plays a role in this behavior and how the opposite sex feels about this behavior.

Chivalry traditionally means courteous behavior expected of gentlemen. Today, however, it is thought of solely as a behavior of men exhibited towards women for romantic purposes. I do not think there is a problem with being more mannered around women or anyone else, especially because politeness is on the decline in the world today, but chivalry seems to get a bad reputation.

Some argue that chivalry is a representation of male dominance in our supposedly equal world and that opening a car door for a woman puts her in a “damsel in distress” position.

Trust me, ladies, guys don’t think that you are incapable of opening a door for yourself.

Chivalry is simply a moral code among fellow members of society. I would certainly open a car door for a woman or pull out her chair for her to sit down at a restaurant, even knowing she may feel uncomfortable. However, I would just as quickly open the door for another man as he was entering the restaurant, as I hope he would for me.

While nobody is going to pay for another person’s meal on a date in the cafeteria, chivalry in the South community may look like picking up someone’s books when they fall because it saves them the trouble or holding the classroom door open for a fellow student.

Chivalry is not dead, and I firmly believe it should stay alive because it represents good manners that seem to be declining today. Offensive behavior towards women is completely unrelated to chivalry, and any association between the two gives a skewed perception of chivalry; it is simply a code that encourages good behavior towards everyone.

Oracle’s hunt for students CELEBRITY The who look like famous figures S LOOKALIKE

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opinions

Feb. 7, 2014

Embracing college app process reduces stress downfall. After I finished my early applications, I took a “break” until I didn’t get into those early schools—and then I had to scramble in the last week of school and over winter break to get enough applications done in time for the regular admission deadlines.

If you can get a good number of applications done before winter break starts (more than five), you’ll be in a good place and not have to stress over the break or during the beginning of the second semester. And if you’re feeling maniacal, you can sit back and watch the frantic Facebook statuses go up around 11:30 on the night of each deadline.

Something I think I did well, and that I hope you take my advice on, was seeking help from my counselor and the guidance department. I was able to sort things like transcript requests out with both my guidance counselor and Ann LePage, the college counselor, and I was able to go to them if I had any questions.

The college process is long and can be intimidating, but if you use the resources you’ve got— the guidance office and the College and Career Center—you’ll be able to keep everything in order and get everything done on time.

The last thing to keep in mind, for both seniors finishing the process and juniors just beginning it, is that nothing is the end of the world and nothing in the col-

CHRIS CALLAHAN

columnist It’s a beautiful sight: the green checks lined up next to each other on the online Common App form, all of your supplements turned in and the most stressful part of high school just about over.

Hopefully, just about every senior has had this experience. The first semester of senior year, for me and most seniors, was filled with college applications: essay-writing, questionnaire-answering and form-filling.

My own college application process has been mixed. I applied to three schools in the Early Action pool (Georgetown, the University of Chicago and the University of North Carolina), and I’ve been deferred from the first two and was recently accepted to the third.

For those who might not know, being deferred means that my application was rejected from the early application pool and moved to the regular application pool, with a final decision coming in April instead of December. While it doesn’t mean I won’t get in to those two schools eventually, it was certainly a bit demoralizing.

Actually, I’ll be honest—it was pretty devastating. Georgetown and UChicago were in many ways my ideal colleges, and while I did get in someplace else, the two deferrals within one week were quite the rude awakening.

H o w e v e r, while it’s been both positive and negative, this process has taught me a few things I wish I had known before starting entirely.

First, start early. This was my

EVAN SAWIRES

columnist

PHOTO-ILLUSTRATION lege application process defines you.

I’ll admit—it took me a while to realize this, but once I did, the whole process went a lot more smoothly.

If you don’t get into a college that you wanted to, it doesn’t mean your future is over. If one interview doesn’t go so well, your chances for a college aren’t over.

One of the things that “they” tell people during the college process is that “you’ll be happy no matter where you end up.” I didn’t believe this for the longest time, but I’ve realized that every college has something for everyone and it won’t be hard to have the time of your life at any number of places.

Use the resources you’ve got—the guidance office and the College and Career Center.

My struggle with anxiety:

CLAIRE FISHER

co-opinions editor I used to be very judgmental. I was never purposefully mean; rather, my judgment came from an innate sense of perfectionism that negatively af-

Boring Stupid

fected how I viewed myself and others. Then I developed General Anxiety Disorder.

I quickly learned that nothing about living with anxiety is perfect.

The disorder fed ravenously off my perfectionism, in that every move I made was magnified and secondguessed. I found myself thrown into a whirlwind of thoughts and emotions I didn’t understand or feel I had control over, which, for me, led to insecurity and self-criticism.

In a simple metaphor, I was tiptoeing on a tightrope. I desperately tried to keep my balance while fighting an intangible battle against myself, in my mind, completely unbeknownst

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Photo by Wyatt Richter

For the seniors finishing the process: I hope it hasn’t gone too badly for you and that you’ve been able to have fun throughout senior year at the same time.

For the juniors who will be starting it soon: plan things out, take a deep breath and start early. It can be rewarding or discouraging, but it all depends on what you make of it. You’re going to be fine.

Learning to connect with others when feeling most alone

to others. It was, and still is, exhausting.

Now I know I’m not alone. According to social worker David Hartman, the biggest trend he’s seen in the last five years concerning mental health is an uptick in the number of students with anxiety. The Student Services Department is starting a third anxiety support group because the need is increasing, Hartman said.

Although anxiety manifests in similar symptoms, anxiety can be prompted by very different things for different people. From what I’ve heard from others and from what I have experienced, crowds, schoolwork and social interactions are just a few examples on a long list of possible triggers. Some people’s anxiety is physical, resulting in random panic attacks that feel like bodily ailments.

I’m not going to sugarcoat—anxiety sucks however it manifests, but having anxiety has actually produced some positives for me. I said

Loser

Failure

Celebrities should not be burdened with unrealistic moral expectations

that I “used to be” very judgmental.

While it’s something I am continuously working on, I’ve come to accept that the rhythm of life is a series of ups and downs and that feeling imperfect is totally fine.

I want to make people aware of a disorder that afflicts many South students, including friends and classmates. However, what I hope more is that if anybody is feeling oppressed by negative, anxious or panicked thoughts and emotions, know you are not alone and can feel so, so much better with help. All you’ve got to do is ask for it.

It takes a lot of time and hard work to control severe anxiety, and I know mine will never truly go away. But through being honest, searching for help and consistently using the techniques I’ve learned to control the anxiety, I’ve developed support both externally and internally and made great strides in bettering my life.

When you know you have multiple safety nets beneath your tightrope, occasionally toppling off isn’t such a scary idea—I know that I can always keep moving forward.

As I’ve gotten older, it seems that my childhood idols have been falling slowly to mental health issues.

Ke$ha recently sought treatment for an eating disorder, Demi Lovato was treated for binge/purge type Anorexia Nervosa and self-harm in late 2010, and not long after, Amanda Bynes’ bizarre, drug-fueled descent began, which later turned out to be a “schizophrenic issue.” These examples of mental health issues are endless.

According to the National Eating Disorders Association, 0.5-1 percent of women in the U.S. suffer from Anorexia Nervosa and 1-2 percent from Bulimia Nervosa, a number that is even higher in the entertainment industry. It’s easy to blame the media’s distorted view of beauty for the epidemic of eating disorders in the U.S, but it’s important to remember how deeply internalized that image of beauty is: if every media outlet suddenly started portraying realistic bodies, people would stop responding because their expectations wouldn’t be fulfilled.

We think of our role models as immune to these emotional issues, forgetting that they are human. As a culture, we tend to view addiction as a moral failing rather than a health issue. Eating disorders are viewed the same way, but they’re not a diet gone wrong: they’re a complex, multi-layered, isolating nightmare that have little to do with food and require incredible strength to recover from.

The same applies to abusive relationships. After the first time Chris Brown assaulted Rihanna and it gained public attention, I remember being surprised by the reaction. There was, of course, an outpouring of sympathy, but in the following weeks a much nastier voice arose, attacking Rihanna for staying with him.

Domestic violence jokes became acceptable, but only when they were about a celebrity couple. These jokes have continued through the years: at last year’s Oscars host Seth MacFarlane introduced Django Unchained by saying, “This is the story of a man fighting to get back his woman, who’s been subjected to unthinkable violence. Or as Chris Brown and Rihanna call it, a date movie.”

Here’s the moral of the story: celebrities are people. They have emotions, lives and interests besides acting, singing and being attractive. It’s incredibly easy to dehumanize them, but it’s so important that we don’t.

Until we recognize celebrities for the fallible humans they are, it’s going to be difficult to extend that right to everyone else.

features continued from front page from the equation could turn an out-ofschool suspension into a vacation.

When sophomore Leonard Warner* was suspended out of school for five days in October for his involvement in a post on a private Facebook group planning drug use after the homecoming dance, he was able to make up his work for full credit. Although Warner was able to keep his grades up during his suspension, the punishment still deters him from future substance use.

“I consider myself staying away from drugs and alcohol as much as I can just because of that incident,” Warner said. “It’s not worth getting in trouble again. If you get in trouble there’s nothing really that you can do about

it.”

In an Oracle-conducted survey of 42 teachers, 66 percent said that they agree with the full-credit policy, while 22 percent disagree.

“There are always going to be two schools of thought: are you going to take a pound of flesh from the kid and offer punishment or are you here with the kid holistically, and I think that’s what we try to do,” Garrison said. “We try to work with the guidance counselors and the social workers and the psychologists just to make sure that kids go on the right direction. The goal is to get the kid the diploma and to put them into society as a functional member of society, not to suspend, not to expel.”

In the nine years Garrison has been

Feb. 7, 2014 a dean at South, school administrators have transformed the philosophy behind suspension, he said. While it may be necessary to take a “pound of flesh” from students who violate school policy in some districts, South, equipped with three psychologists, six social workers and 11 guidance counselors, has the resources to sidestep a custodial disciplinary program for a more holistic one, Garrison said.

For example, Garrison was part of a movement to allow thefts to be taken on a case-by-case basis rather than automatically punished with an out-ofschool suspension. For students whose infraction is a product of a situation that is being caused by extenuating circumstances, like stealing food from the cafeteria when they can’t afford it, the

dean’s office will do their best to lessen the punishment and work with counselors and social workers to improve their situation.

“If I can give a step down of a consequence and work with social workers and counselors to get whatever assistance for that kid, either emotionally or economically, so that doesn’t happen again, that’s all I care about,” Garrison said.

In his time at South, Garrison has also emphasized utilizing inschool suspensions and Saturday detentions over out-ofschool suspensions, Wegley said. With next year’s transition to a block schedule, Wegley supports the idea of replacing Saturday detentions with time spent during consecutive days of Student Resource Time, free periods that North currently uses to discipline students.

For a student who is expelled, the options for disciplinary action are also expanding. Expelled students are offered opportunities like taking online courses, working with a homebound tutor or enrolling in Ombudsman, an educational program located in Niles.

“For us, no student truly gets expelled,” Wegley said. “They get excluded from our education for the good of every other student here.”

Sophomore Marshall Rogue*, who was expelled for both semesters of this year for vandalizing school property, spends the first two to three hours of his morning working on online courses within Brigham Young University Independent Study. After his work time, Rogue will play guitar, read or write poetry, trying to spend his day in the most substantive way possible. The hardest part about expulsion is structuring his time when he’s used to having it structured for him, Rogue said.

“You don’t have any social interaction with anybody, you don’t have an actual person teaching you,” Rogue said. “It’s like learning everything off of a Wikipedia page. It’s not the same.”

Despite the addition of academic options to keep expelled students learning, the school must continue to uphold a zero-tolerance policy for certain infractions, like bringing a weapon to school or dealing drugs, Wegley

9

said. Punishment for drug and alcohol possession, which was once a zero-tolerance offense, recently became more flexible.

Starting in 2005, a student caught with drugs or alcohol was given the option of a two-week suspension or a one-week suspension if the student agreed to a period of counseling and drug screening through Peer Services, an opportunity that Elm took advantage of when he was suspended as a junior.

In the Peer Services program, a student is assessed and given a treatment recommendation from a trained drug and alcohol counselor, Garrison said. If the student follows through with the recommendation, their suspension will be reduced from five to ten days; if they don’t, they’ll be recommended to the Board of Education for expulsion.

Elm held his word on eight weeks of drug-screening and months of counseling. After his suspension, Elm said he lost hope— his drug use only got worse and his academic work continued to slip- but seeing a counselor gave him an outlet to talk about what was making it so difficult to readjust.

“One of [Peer Services’] philosophies was that drug use is not inherently bad,” Elm said. “It’s a choice. Everything in life is a choice. So, it’s about making the right choices in what you want to do with your life, choices that will affect people around you.”

Despite recent changes to disciplinary rules like the full-credit policy, Garrison suspects that removal from the school remains an effective punishment because it isolates students from the school culture. In the five days of his suspension, Warner and his friends were kept from going to homecoming activities. During his year-long expulsion, Rogue isn’t allowed to go to jazz band, his only extracurricular activity at South.

“I still have friends, but it’s the same old people every day, I feel like,” Rogue said. “I don’t get to meet new people or embrace the social experience. That’s why you go to high school.”

“The goal is to get the kid the diploma and to put them into society as a functional member of society, not to suspend, not to expel.”

-Sean Garrison, assistant dean

*Names have been changed

JKB Leadership Foundation spirit continues with positive outlook, despite ranch closing KATRINA LAZARA

staff reporter When Ken and Colleen Braid’s son Kyle commited suicide during a fit of aggression due to steroid abuse at the age of 16, the Braids founded the J. Kyle Braid Leadership Foundation (JKB) in 1994, according to www.jkbranch.org.

The Braids started a ranch where teens could learn leadership skills to use with their peers, according to senior representative Sydney Kiwaiko. The Braids state their goal on jkbranch.org: “To reach the best of America’s teens and teach them how to become effective and successful leaders in their schools and throughout their respective communities.”

According to Kiwaiko, the ranch is closing this summer, its 20th year. “[The Braid’s] were only planning on doing [the ranch] for 16 years because that was the age [Kyle] committed [suicide],” Kiwaiko said.

“They kept it on for 20 [years]. It has been a great run, and they wanted to keep it like that, so they are ending it this year.”

The faculty nominates South students to be a part of JKB during students’ sophomore year. Usually about 10 boys and 10 girls are nominated to be a part of JKB, according to senior representative Kurt Roemer.

After nominations, the nominees must get recommendation letters, complete the interview process and write a resume, according to Roemer.

From there, two boys and two girls are chosen to go to the ranch in Villa Grove, Colo. during the summer going into their junior year to learn techniques of leadership.

According to Kiwaiko, Ohio and Florida schools also participated in week-long trips to the ranch. About 200 kids experience the ranch per summer. Neighboring schools, including Glenbrook North, Highland Park, New Trier and Lyons Township also take part in JKB and the ranch, Roemer said.

“There is a huge emphasis on leadership, so about 35 plus hours [are] spent in the classroom [while at the

“There will still be a good group of kids together trying to make a difference [without the ranch]. [JKB] isn’t going to end [here].”

-senior Kurt Roemer

ranch],” Roemer said. “The rest of the time you are doing hands on activities [such as] a team building course.”

Among many activities at the ranch, junior representative Nicholas Suhadolnik, junior representative Jane Brennan, and Roemer all agree that white water rafting was one of their favorite adventures.

“You get to go on a class IV rapids,” Suhadolnik said. “Niagara Falls is a class VI, so you can tell a class IV gets pretty big waves.”

The activities conducted at the ranch, while seeming like purely fun in the moment, truly did possess purpose, according to Roemer.

Teens who experienced the week go through an intensive ropes course where working as a team is crucial, according to Suhadolnik, who was able to apply his leadership skills from the course to his football practices.

“You are only as fast as your slowest person,” Suhadolnik said. “When [I] had football overnight […] [the team] was trying to figure out how to cross over this rope and have everyone finish it. The heavier linemen had the most trouble. At the ranch [I] learned when you are faced with a problem, take care of the big rocks first. The people having the most trouble [should go first]. It has the lowest consequences because you can [always] start over.”

Despite the ranch closing, South is still going to continue to run its JKB program, according to Roemer.

RAPIDS RAFTING: Rafting down a class IV rapids, students from different schools participate in a leadership activity at the JKB ranch in Colorado, including seniors Anastasia Athas and Sydney Kiwaiko. According to Kiwaiko, team communication was a necessity in this activity. Photo courtesy of Sydney Kiwaiko The sponsors of the club have already begun looking for new leadership opportunities other than the ranch, according to Roemer. Roemer believes that the ranch closing down will not negatively affect JKB representatives.

“There are just as many kids who [are alternates] and don’t get a chance to go to the ranch,” Roemer said. “A big thing is feeding off the positive energy

of each other in the group, and that is something that will not be lost when the ranch is gone.”

Although the ranch is closing, the Braids remain positive. “[The Braids] always say don’t be sad it is ending; be happy it happened,” Roemer said. “There will still be a good group of kids together trying to make a difference. [JKB] isn’t going to end [here].”

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features

Feb. 7, 2014

Circle of Friends creates new friendships through engaging activities

HANNAH RAUH

staff reporter From painting to pizza parties and bowling to barbecues, Circle of Friends is a club at South where students in the Special Education Department get to hang out with their peers and teachers outside of school. The club hosts events and goes on field trips in order to make lasting relationships with club members.

Circle of Friends revolves around the monthly outings the group goes on.

Sherry Koch, Special Education teacher and one of the club’s sponsors, describes some of the club’s most recent outings.

“We start off the year with a welcome back party, a pizza party,” Koch said. “In December, we went to Northbrook Court and we saw movies, [had] dinner and [walked] around the mall.”

Julie Spellman, instructional assistant of the Special Education Department and club co-sponsor, said that the events are typically lots of fun for those involved in the club.

“We love [the events],” Spellman said. “We try to mix [them] up every year so it doesn’t get boring for the kids, but at the same time we [always go on] their favorite events, what they want.”

According to Koch, one of the club’s more exciting outings was their trip to Equestrian Connection, a therapeutic horse stable in Lake Forest, Ill. “It was amazing for me to watch the kids up on those horses,” Koch said. “[...] A lot of them think they could never do something like that. And watching their faces, you could just see them glowing up there.”

Junior Connie Hoekstra, a member of the club, said the events are an amazing opportunity for South students to get to know and hang out with students from the Special Education Department. “[The events are] meeting students with [their peers] in the Special Education Department and kind of putting them in an environment where there’s no boundaries,” Hoekstra said. “[...] It’s the most fun thing to see.”

HORSIN’ AROUND: Smiling big, junior Hannah Flanagan jokes around as she rides a horse at Equestrian Connection, a therapeutic horse stable in Lakeforest, Illinois. Equestrian Connection is one of the many events that Circle of Friends club has participated in this year. Photo coutesy of District 225 Junior Nina Santacrose, a club member, also enjoys the club’s events and spending time with her best friends. “ [ T h e events are] really fun and it’s a blast,” Santacrose said.

The outings are not only a fun time for all, but also provide a loving and accepting environment, according to Hoekstra.

“I’ve never seen so many people hugging in one room,” Hoekstra said.

“Watching their faces, you could just see them glowing up there.”

- Sherry Koch, Special Education teacher

David (age 5) Q: What are you going to write on your valentine cards?

“I love you, you’re very sweet and I hope you stay alive forever and ever.”

Q: What do you like about Valentine’s Day? “I like it ’cause I get chocolate from the Easter bunny.”

“[The kids with special needs are] so happy to be out with everyone [...] It’s just the best feeling ever to spend time with them outside of school.”

According to Spellman, Circle of Friends teams up with other clubs, including Interact, Key Club and the Peer Mentor program, for a number of events each year. Spellman describes the partnerships with other organizations in the school as helpful to the club.

“I think because of our main goal of the club, it benefits [our members],” Spellman said. “Having exposure to all of the kids in the school and group participation with things with Key Club and Interact [...] it really gives us so much.”

Libby (age 5) Q: What’s your favorite color on Valentine’s Day? “Pink and red. White is my favorite color ’cause it’s like snow.”

Q: Who do you love?

“My family.”

Another benefit of the club is the genuine friendships and relationships built between the members, according to Spellman.

“Just the other day, one of the kids slipped in the cafeteria and some of the other kids that they’ve met through Circle of Friends stopped and put down their lunch, helped them up and asked, ‘Are you okay?’” Spellman said. “It’s that kind of friendship and connections that we’re all about.”

According to Koch, the club not only forges friendships and builds community, but also benefits the participants personally and socially.

In addition to the relationships built, Koch also said that the club instills confidence, self-esteem and socialization

Eden (age 5) Q: What do you like about Valentine’s Day? “Eating turkey and candy.”

Q: What do you like to do on Valentine’s Day? “Play Candyland.”

Q: What’s your favorite candy?

“Chocolate.”

in the members of the club. She credits a large part of this boost in character to the accepting environment of South. “[The club] helps them with confidence, self-esteem [and] socialization,” Koch said. “I think the culture of our school is amazing. It’s very accepting.”

Senior Isabel McCanna credits Circle of Friends club with opening her eyes to something that she has now dedicated herself to over the past few years.

“I had never really encountered people with special needs before because we didn’t have the facilities at [my past] school,” McCanna said. “So being able to find that passion and getting to know each kid is a really incredible gift to me.”

Nathan (age 5) Q: What do you like about Valentine’s Day? “Giving cards to people.”

Q: Who are you going to make Valentine cards for?

“My mom, my brothers, my dog and my cats.”

features

Feb. 07, 2014

11

ADHD-medication abuse revealed among student body, worries administrators CALLI HARAMARAS HAILEY HAULDREN

co-asst. features editors To some students it may seem like a magic pill. It’s a drug, prescribed to those diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), that has the potential to increase focus while studying, perform better on tests and possibly raise grades. But despite the seriousness of these medications and the disorder that requires them, many South students have illegally turned to these drugs for academic aid in times of stress, especially during finals week.

According to webmd.com, ADHD can occur in children when the attention controlling areas of the brain are less active compared to children without the disorder. Common symptoms caused

by ADHD in children and teens include inattention and/or hyperactivity and impulsivity.

Graphic by Marley Hambourger

An Oracle-conducted survey revealed that of 328 South students surveyed, 65 percent said that they or someone they know has abused ADHD medications.

More than one in every seven children in the United States will be diagnosed with ADHD by the time they turn 18, and at least 70 percent of those are prescribed stimulant medication like Adderall or Concerta, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

Senior Sarah Roman* was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), a form of ADHD, and prescribed the medication Vyvanse at the end of her freshman year.

“I was initially embarrassed [by my diagnosis] because I was a freshman then so I hadn’t heard of Adderall or Vyvanse,” Roman said. “As time went on, the medication did help me in school, so it’s not a burden to have a prescription or to have ADD.” Monitoring the Future (MTF), a program funded by the National Institute of Drug Abuse, determined that in 2008, amphetaminebased ADHD medications, including Adderall and Vyvanse, ranked third among 12th-graders for past-year illicit drug use.

Junior Emma Sanders* was diagnosed with ADHD when she was 3 years old and started dealing her medication to friends her freshman year after being prescribed medication in 8th grade.

“When I first got prescribed medication, I remember my doctor telling me that people are going to come up to me and ask me for my medicine,” Sanders said. “I always thought I wasn’t going to do it.”

According to Sanders, she first sold her medication to friends who wanted to use it for recreational purposes. Now, most of the people she sells to use it for academic purposes, such as studying for finals or taking the ACT. “I usually give [my buyers] one to three pills, or as many as they need [to study],” Sanders said. “For my friends I try to be nice and charge $1.50 [per pill]. I get that I don’t make a big profit, but I feel guilty making a profit off of my friends.”

Contrary to Sanders, junior Tommy Howard* saw the financial opportunity in dealing once he was diagnosed with ADHD and seeked a prescription from his doctor to began selling his pills for extra cash.

“I don’t have ADHD, I just convinced my doctor that I did so I could [get a prescription for] Concerta,” Howard said. “I was short on money and I knew that people had sold it before, [which is why I started].”

Howard said he tries to make sure his

buyers know how the medication may affect them, to ensure they’re satisfied and will return for more.

“Usually it’s just like I give [my medication] to [buyers] and they take it responsibly,” Howard said. “I always let them know the constraints of how much they should take at a time.”

Sophomore Stephanie Clay* said that she illegally takes ADHD medication for academic purposes. According to Clay, the competitive environment and usual academic success of South played a part in her decision to use these drugs.

“I know that [taking ADHD medication unprescribed] is a bad thing to do, but I think it goes hand in hand with the pressure that a lot of times kids are put under,” Clay said. “Especially at South because it is such a good school, and I know that I want to do well and do the best I can.”

In addition to Clay, senior Jennifer Wilson* also purchases ADHD medication illegally. Though she does not believe she has the condition, Wilson thinks that the medication is essential for her to be able to study for tests.

“I’ve never taken [ADHD medications] for a reason other than academic,” Wilson said. “I use it to really get myself to be able to concentrate on what I’m doing and not let myself be distracted or want to do other things.”

Wilson says that she is aware of the consequences that come along with buying prescription medication that is not hers, and that she does take precautions to ensure her safety.

“I never have [my dealer] drop [the medication] off at my house, I always go to buy it from them so my parents don’t know,” Wilson said. “I have a secret part of my wallet that I put them in and then I’m very careful to not leave them laying out on my desk or loose in my bag; they are always contained on my person.”

Although Wilson never buys the drugs on school grounds, Howard says it is rare for him to sell anywhere other than school.

“I kind of have places [at school] where I always go where I know nobody is watching,” Howard said. “I really try to keep a low reputation and a low number of people that I sell to because you know, the more people that know, the more the word gets out.”

Roman said that her parents are aware of the

abuse that can take place with ADHD medications and they take extra precautions to ensure that she does not sell her prescription.

“My parents keep my medicine in a safe,” Roman said. “I get handed the pill every day.”

According to Dean Ronald Bean, the school handbook states the consequences for students involved in a drug purchase.

“The handbook and board policy is really clear that being involved in a drug purchase would result in a suspension for 10 days,” Bean said. “[In addition], we would review the case and then make a recommendation as to whether or not that student would be eligible to be expelled.”

Officer Mike Meier also explained that an exchange of prescription medication outside of school, whether it be selling, buying, delivering or possessing it, is considered a felony. The felony charge accompanies at least one year in jail and a large fine, while the punishment for cases involving students under the age of 18 would be determined by a judge in a juvenile court.

Social worker David Hartman assures kids that there are other strategies that can be used to deal with inattention. He suggests working on puzzles or crosswords to increase brain stimulation and help develop the ability to pay attention without medication.

Bean urges students who are abusing ADHD medications to seek an adult to talk to in order to help them find a solution.

“I would encourage [students abusing ADHD medications] to talk to their parents about the pressures that they’re feeling about school,” Bean said. “See if there are things that we can do here in the school or outside resources that we can use to help them.”

Previously unaware of the abuse of ADHD medication in the halls of South, Bean shared his fear for the students who are abusing these drugs.

“It really bothers me that I didn’t know that there are kids in our building that feel like in order to be successful [at South], they have to buy a drug from somebody else to help them concentrate and do better on finals,” Bean said. “School is important, I get it. Grades are important, but there are so many other things that are important. In the short term it might help [students], but in the long term there are going to be some consequences that they don’t even think about or know about right now and that’s the scariest part for me.” *Names have been changed

“I know that [taking ADHD medication unprescribed] is a bad thing to do, but I think it goes hand in hand with the pressure that a lot of times kids are put under.”

-sophomore Stephanie Clay*

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features

Feb. 7, 2014

Equal marriage law affects Illinois, LGBTQ community MADISON O’BRIEN

co-features editor This past November, Illinois became the 16th state to take action and legalize same-sex marriage. Illinois governor Pat Quinn described the legalization as “a big step forward”, in an article from abcnews.com. This “big step” has already impacted many South students and members of the LGBTQ community.

Senior Alex Canary, who is openly gay, expressed her excitement about the newly passed law.

“I’m excited that under the eyes of the law at least, we are recognized as equals — well, in society perhaps that’s not the same, there’s still a ways to go — that we are equal under the law is at least something,” Canary said.

Similar to Canary, Tony Vivacqua, openly gay equal rights activist who plans on moving from Indiana to Illinois in order to marry his partner of 11 years, was extremely surprised when he heard about the law. Having been an activist for equal marriage his entire life, Vivacqua was elated that Illinois had finally embraced the equal marriage law. The surprise, Vivacqua said, came from many years of not even being able to imagine a society where the LGBTQ community was accepted.

“When I was 16, you never even talked about being gay,” Vivacqua said. “It was just hidden, it didn’t exist.

There was barely anything on television of a gay character. It was a whole different world for me when I was 16.

There was nothing at all that was supportive or helpful in any way.”

According to Vivacqua, he is extremely excited to see how the law affects the upcoming generations. “[This] generation is the first generation where gay or straight doesn’t matter,” Vivacqua said. “It’s not something separate, it’s not something different or shocking or strange. [This] generation is like, ‘Why is this even an issue? What do you mean people can’t get married? Of course they should get married.’”

Junior Fiona Smialek was also excited about the implications of the new law. Although her two gay uncles have not decided to get married, even though it is now legal, she said they both were extremely happy about the effect it will have on the lives of other members of the LGBTQ community. Not only does the law just allow people who are LGBTQ the right to marry, it also shows the LGBTQ community that they are accepted, she said.

The new law represents a shift in society’s mindset Peter James*, a junior at South who is not openly gay, explained.

When first hearing about the law, James expressed mixed emotions.

“My reaction when hearing about the gay marriage law was by and large very positive,” James said. “While I don’t wish to be negative, I was also slightly sad that it was so controversial. I wonder sometimes: why did it take this long?”

Although upset by how long it took society to accept the idea of same-sex marriage, James expressed feelings of excitement about his future.

“I am really excited, whether I decide to marry another guy being beside the point, that I have the opportunity to have an official label the same as my societal peers,” James said. “The passage of this law is the start of what I hope to be a history of creating understanding and accepting between straights and gays that we have far more in common than we do differences.”

This law may mark new and stronger acceptance for the LGBTQ community, but according to Canary, South has been an accepting community for her entire high school career.

“I’ve never received any negative comments from anyone,” Canary said. “Even when walking in the hallways holding hands with my girlfriend or going to prom with my girlfriend. I think the majority of people [at South] either support gay marriage or are at least accepting, or tolerant of gay people.”

Although junior Eleni Trapp has nothing against the LGBTQ community, she expressed her feelings of disappointment in a Facebook post on Nov. 5 after first hearing about the passed law. In her post, Trapp declared that she believed marriage should be between a man and a woman and that she did not support the legalization of equal marriage in Illinois.

“From posting just two lines, I got over 100 comments from people supposing themselves to be more openminded than me,” Trapp said. “I think a lot of people are scared to say they don’t support gay marriage because they’re afraid of seeming old-fashioned or close-minded, so they go along with it. And I think that’s happening all over the country: more states will pass gay marriage laws in order to keep up with the times.”

According to Vivacqua, he recognizes that there are still people who are against equal marriage, which is why he believes there is still a ways to go.

“The work is never done but this is a major step in making sure that everyone gets treated fairly under the law,” Vivacqua said. “As far as the people that don’t like it, then they don’t have to worry. They won’t get an invitation to my wedding.” *Name has been changed

Gaining stepparents and stepsiblings positively affects South students’ lives KELSEY POGUE

co-web editor

While the cliché “evil stepmother” and “nasty stepsiblings” may hold true in movies, this is not the real case for certain South students.

Senior Maya Bassin’s parents divorced when she was 12, and while it wasn’t unexpected, she said it was hard for her nonetheless. Now her mom is remarried and her dad is engaged.

“I love [having stepparents],” Bassin said. “It

never ends up being another parent who ‘parents’ you; my stepparents are a lot more fun and easygoing and they’re just more people to be there for you.”

Bassin also gained two siblings from her parents’ marriage and six step-siblings. Her stepdad has three daughters and her stepmom-to-be has two sons and one daughter.

“I love [having stepfamilies] because I have so many more people in my life that I love,” Bassin said. “I have so many more people to be there for me, to be able to talk to, and more people to be a role model for, like my little siblings. I always wanted a big family.”

ONE BIG FAMILY: With three stepsiblings, two biological siblings, her biological father and stepmom, senior Maya Bassin (third from right) stands with the “big family” she always wanted. Photo courtesy of Maya Bassin

In addition to Bassin, senior Kelly Abarca’s parents also divorced and remarried. Like Bassin, Abarca enjoys having stepsiblings. “[Having stepparents] gave me siblings,” Abarca said. “I always wanted siblings when I was little, and I guess [my parents] remarrying made them happier, and that’s why they decided to have more children. I only wanted one [sibling], but now I have four.”

Initially, junior Paula Zdanowski did not see the possible benefits in her parent’s divorce and remarriage. According to Zdanowski, she struggled once her parents got divorced, but now sees how having stepparents has helped her.

“I used to blame my mom and my dad for anything bad that would happen,” Zdanowski said. “It would be like, ‘Oh, this happened because you guys divorced,’ which is never the answer because it’s not like they wanted to.

But having a stepfamily has made [me] who I am. They didn’t raise me, but they helped guide me in life.”

Zdanowski also admits that she and her stepsiblings had a difficult time getting along at first.

Luckily, she says that these relationships have improved, especially with her stepbrother.

“It was different getting used to each other,” Zdanowski said. “I remember [my stepmom’s family] lived in Northbrook and we went to their house, and they had their own stuff, and when we would come over it could be territorial I guess.

Now [mine and my stepbrother’s] relationship is so strong.”

Unlike Zdanowski, Bassin said that having her parents date other people wasn’t a big issue for her, since she didn’t meet many of their partners.

“With my mom, me and my brother would joke, saying, ‘You’re not allowed to get remarried’, and ‘You’re going to be a cat-lady’, and just stuff like that to make her mad,” Bassin said. “But the only boyfriend we ever met of hers was my stepdad.”

Abarca said that while having stepparents is mostly a good thing for her, not being able to spend time with her biological parents whenever she wants to is tough.

“There isn’t really a downside to having stepparents,” Abarca said. “[Besides] not being able to see your dad every day or your mom some weekends. They have a family of their own now. I live with my mom, but sometimes I want to go see my dad or my dad can’t pick me up and we have schedule conflicts.”

Bassin explained that it often feels like she has two completely separate families.

“It’s two separate families for sure,” Bassin said. “My stepsiblings on the two sides don’t know each other at all, so it’s weird [that] they just don’t interact. My brother, sister and I move [houses]. Half the week we’ll be with my mom, and half the week we’ll be with my dad.”

Despite some challenges, Bassin says that having additional parents and siblings has had a positive effect on her life that she is grateful for.

“Obviously [having stepparents] has changed my whole life because it’s where I live, what I do and the people I spend my time with,” Bassin said. “But I think it’s been a really positive change and there’s not a lot of negative stuff—like it’s hard blending two families and whatnot, but in the end I think we’ve done it pretty well.”

“I love [having stepfamilies] because I have so many more people in my life that I love.” -senior Maya Bassin

features

Feb. 7, 2014

15

Jordan’s Corner helps children with special needs through boxing

CASSIDY JACKSON

staff reporter Jordan Falcon was diagnosed with epilepsy at a young age. His brother Dan Falcon found that while working in the gym that Jordan improved both mentally and physically.

Jordan inspired Dan and his girlfriend Martha Parthe to create Jordan’s Corner, a non-for-profit organization.

The mission of Jordan’s Corner is to help children with special needs get fit and overcome obstacles through boxing. Jordan’s Corner offers free boxing classes for children between the ages 7 and 17 who have different disabilities.

“Not only does it help these kids in terms of teaching them more of a healthy lifestyle and getting physically fit, [but] it helps them with making friends in the class,” Parthe said.

In 2013, Parthe and Dan opened their own business, Falcon’s Boxing Gym, located in Glenview.

“We got the gym, which is opened for business, and we charge for membership,” Parthe said.

“We hold our Jordan’s Corner classes at the gym. We aren’t making any money from Jordan’s Corner. Jordan’s Corner truly is something we really want to keep free of charge. The gym and Jordan’s Corner are two separate organizations.”

Despite having to manage both Jordan’s Corner and Falcon’s Boxing

Gym, according to Parthe, the faculty of Jordan’s Corner works extremely hard to create a welcoming environment for the kids.

“We pride ourselves on creating a really supportive, nurturing and positive environment,” Parthe said. “We set our expectations high, but we allow them to get to the place they need to get to on their own time frame.”

According to Parthe, she has many memories of watching the students grow. One particular student comes to Parthe’s mind: Jacob.

Jacob has cerebral palsy, a disorder that harshly affects muscle tone, movement and causes a struggle when learning new lessons.

“It was hard to get him engaged,” Parthe said. “It took us a little over a year. The first time he put on those boxing gloves [...] he started hitting one of the instructors, sparring with them. It was the most amazing scene to watch.”

Jacob’s mom agrees that Jacob’s progress has skyrocketed.

“I love watching him [participating in class],” she said. “He is able to do something he wasn’t able to do before.

He likes this place so much.”

She feels that Jordan’s Corner has volunteers who are very dedicated.

“It’s people that really know exercise and discipline,” she said. “They also know how to deal with kids with special needs. Put [those] two things together and it came out perfectly.

“It’s taught me every day to be grateful for your life and to always give back to others.”

-Mary Parthe, co-owner of Jordan’s Corner

FIGHTING FOR OPPORTUNITY: At Falcon’s Boxing Gym in Glenview, children with special needs and volunteers participate in boxing

classes offered for free on Saturdays. The program is organized by Jordan’s Corner, a non-for-profit organization founded with the mission of helping children with special needs through boxing and fitness classes. Photo from www.jordanscorner.org

They are totally dedicated to helping these kids learn.”

Not only does Jordan’s Corner make a difference on students’ lives, but it also affects volunteers in a meaningful way.

“It’s taught me every day to be grateful for your life and to always give back to others,” Parthe said. “You can change these kids’ lives.”

Parthe’s niece, junior Olivia Flores, has also felt personal change through volunteering at Jordan’s Corner since her freshman year.

“You definitely learn how to motivate kids and they have such a positive

energy around you, that you have to be positive too,” Flores said.

According to Flores, Jordan’s Corner has helped her consider doing peer mentoring at South to continue to work with and help kids with special needs.

Another volunteer, South alumnus Kenneth Allen, also decided that he wants to work with more kids in the future. Allen has volunteered at Jordan’s Corner for more than five months.

“Ever since I started doing Jordan’s Corner, I’ve changed a lot from high school,” Allen said. “I’m here every single day. Jordan’s Corner made me want to work with [...] autistic kids

when I get older.”

Parthe said she wants Jordan’s Corner to benefit as many kids as possible by making Jordan’s Corner more nationwide. In addition, Parthe wants more volunteers from South to take part.

“It would be a dream of ours if we could franchise this out to other gyms,” Parthe said. “We want to start a volunteer program at [South] for [Jordan’s Corner]. We’re trying to find [...] students at [South] to start volunteering.

We feel that teaching how to give back and charity at an early age is a good thing.”

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features

Feb. 7, 2014

South student battles with conflict between her sexuality, religion SALLY YOU

co-opinions editor Senior Jessica Rose* was raised in a conservative Protestant family that withheld her from acknowledging and coming to terms with a significant part of her identity: her sexual orientation.

Though Rose now recollects her strong emotions towards females from her early childhood on as clear attractions, she shares that the thought of being lesbian never came across her mind, nor was even allowed to come across her mind, for most of her life.

“As soon as I started thinking about [kissing a girl or something], I’d be like, ‘No! Take all your thoughts captive and turn them to the Lord,’” Rose said. “I would think, ‘This is so wrong, why am I even thinking about it?’”

Having grown up in an environment where a constant negative light was shed upon the gay community, Rose learned to think that being gay was wrong.

“Anything associated with being gay [has] always been negative,” Rose said. “It’s always been [connected to] AIDS, sexual promiscuity and pedophilia. So it’s like, ‘Oh of course I’m not that because I’m never going to associate myself with being a pedophile or being sexually promiscuous.’”

But as a freshman, Rose began to recognize a progression in her attraction towards females and a lack of appeal towards males despite having been in romantic relationships with them throughout middle school.

“I was never boy crazy, ever,” Rose said.

“I never went through that phase. I felt like [dating a boy] was part of what you were supposed to do. [It was] more procedural than anything.”

Rose soon cautiously considered the possibility of being lesbian but swore to herself that no one would know, because coming out meant going against her religion.

“I just knew this was my deep, dark secret,” Rose said. “Those were the words prescribed to these feelings. These feelings could not be out because that would just promise: one, hell on earth for me, and hell after earth for me [because in my religion,] you’re going to hell if you [have] these feelings.”

Though Rose attempted

to pray away her feelings towards females, she found herself to be in a worse emotional state by doing so.

“All those times you verbally announce that you don’t want to feel the way you feel about something you can’t get rid of, you’re just digging yourself in a ditch,” Rose said. “You constantly feel guilty for feelings that you can’t help, and when you constantly feel guilty, you’re just like, ‘I’m not good enough for God, for anything.’ It’s a very self-deprecating place to be and I started to feel very depressed.”

The escalation of Rose’s sadness that resulted from her attempt to dissociate with being lesbian eventually led her to verbally acknowledge that her feelings were not going to change.

“I needed to finally accept that these feelings were not going away because, pray as I might, [it wasn’t making me feel better],” Rose said. “So junior year, I said it out loud, and I was like, ‘What do I do now? God’s not going to accept me. Does God really love me? Can he possibly be okay with me?’ And then I

got really angry and I was like, ‘Why can’t God love me the way I am? What does my love for another person have to do with anything? I don’t have to be this perfect person. The whole point [of Christianity is] that Jesus died for my sins.’”

Rose’s spiritual dilemma prompted her to seek methods of consolation through books, video clips and blog posts by Christians who supported gays or claimed to be gay.

These sources provided comfort for Rose that she could be accepted and loved by God and further gave her the courage to come out to her closest friends, though her parents were still forbidden to know.

However, when Rose changed her profile picture on Facebook to the red-hued version of the Human Rights flag in

support of gay marriage, her parents asserted their disapproval. “[My parents said], ‘It’s abominable, it’s disgusting. God is disgusted with anybody gay,’” Rose said. “Indirectly they were telling me all their opinions about me. I had my parents just tell me how despicable of a person and disgusting of a person I am and how they really see me.”

Though unintended for many more years, Rose’s parents found out about her sexual orientation. In attempts to avoid discomfort and furor at home, Rose, at first, told her parents that she was working to “pray away” her feelings towards females, even though she had no intentions of doing so and no longer associated herself with Christianity.

But instead of giving false hope to her parents that there was a chance she could be straight, Rose told them the truth. “[I said to my parents], ‘You know what, I don’t think God cares that I’m gay,” Rose said. “’I don’t think it matters. Something as external as the gender of the person I’m in love with, how does that matter to God? That shouldn’t. The quality and the pureness of the love I have for another person should matter to God, and that should be pleasing to God.’” Rose said while society has come a long way in slowly learning to accept the gay community, she attests that ignorance and homophobia are still completely prevalent.

“Education about [LGBTQ] is a good first step to ensure the decline of toxic behavior and thinking in the minds of peers and future generations,” Rose said. “It seems we as a society are on the right track, but there is always something more we can do [to] collectively make [LGBTQ], homelessness, self-hatred, bullying, hate crimes, suicide rates, etc, decrease. People shouldn’t have to feel guilty being who they are, especially if they are not hurting anyone, but it’s never okay to perpetuate a society that hurts groups of people.” *Name has been changed

“I just knew this was my deep, dark secret.”

-senior Jessica Rose*

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BBC’s ‘Sherlock’ achieves modern spin on classic sleuth LAUREN FRIAS

asst. a&e editor In the small flat of 221B Baker Street, private detective Sherlock Holmes meets with his clients to solve the mysteries at hand. With his right-hand man Dr. John Watson at his side, the dynamic duo hits the case head-on, not resting until the culprit is found.

The Sherlock Holmes series dates back to the early 20th century, originally written and made famous by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. But in 2010, the series made a comeback with a modern twist. Writers Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss do the series justice as they put a contemporary spin on a nearly century old tale, known simply as “Sherlock,” airing on BBC One in Britain and PBS in the U.S. Season one of “Sherlock” starts off by introducing danger-addicted retired soldier Dr. John Watson (played

by Martin Freeman) in search of a flat in the city of London. He coincidentally stumbles upon an offer at 221B Baker Street, where he meets his peculiar partner-in-crime, Sherlock Holmes (played

by Benedict Cumberbatch). The season continues with seemingly unsolvable cases, only to be cracked by Holmes’ keen deductive skills.

The screenwriters stuck relatively close to Doyle’s original characters, the added characters being Holmes’ love interest Irene Adler, archenemy James Moriarty and brother Mycroft Holmes.

It was great to put a face to the names that I spent so many years reading, but I felt that the characters seemed to be portrayed a little too differently than the novel. This modern adaption may be good for some, but as a fan of the classic, it was a bit difficult to adjust to a new storyline.

Aside from characters, Moffat and Gatiss followed the plot of the original Sherlock Holmes series for the most part, with a few modern twists, such as the replacement of Holmes’ iconic pipe with nicotine patches, as well as more

SNEAKY SHERLOCK: Standing outside notorious apartment 221B, Sherlock Holmes, played by Benedict Cumberbatch, prepares to solve another mystery. BBC One’s new television show Sherlock takes on the timeless story of this seriously successful detective with a fresh and modern twist. It airs on PBS in the U.S. Photo from of BBC One technologically centered methods of deduction.

The screenwriters go further to personalize the classic series with the addition of lovelorn Molly Hooper.

Hooper’s role is to assist Holmes in his investigations, demonstrating both her forensic skills and the love for her boss.

The addition of Hooper and the new tech take some credit away from Holmes’ superhuman deductive skills, but Holmes, for the most part, is given credit for solving those seemingly unsolvable cases, because he is, after all, Sherlock Holmes.

“Sherlock” kicked off the New Year with the release of season three, the most nail-biting of them all. The shock factor definitely built up from begin-

ning to end, starting off with a relatively uneventful first episode. Once all was explained as to how Holmes faced his death (which was how season two left off) the rest of the episode was just him attempting to solve cases with Molly Hooper instead of John Watson.

“Sherlock” definitely redeemed itself in the next two episodes, especially with the eventful episode two depicting the wedding between Watson and Mary Morstan and the spat with Holmes, one of my favorites from the entire series.

The episode depicted something much darker than a typical wedding.

While I don’t want to spoil anything, like always, Sherlock cracked the case, and everyone lived happily ever after,

especially the newlyweds Mary and John Watson. Aside from the serious antics of the episode, we saw through Holmes’ typical serious and emotionless demeanor as tears were shed during his poignant best man speech.

As for episode three, well-known psychopath Charles Augustus Magnussen makes an appearance. The entire episode was shocking, but nothing shall be revealed. Depending on the person, the cliffhanger that ends the season could be good or bad. I’m not patient when it comes to finding out how the story will play out.

I finished all three seasons of “Sherlock” over winter break. As sad as it was to watch nine one-and-a-half

their sound, but there is still a lot of room left for growth. They pushed their boundaries by getting rid of predictable chord progressions, and they stopped relying on catchy choruses to carry their songs.

There’s a depth to their writing in this album that they haven’t shown before, but in finding a new sound every band is sure to have its share of mishaps. The first half of Mind Over Matter keeps a lot of their old and more popular sounds intact, but it also does not display their full potential.

The album starts with “Anagram,” a bright and upbeat tune that keeps the band’s usual quick pace, and then moves on to “It’s About Time,”

featuring typical Young the Giant heavy guitar work.

These two tracks were stellar choices to start off the album; they are catchy enough to capture a wide audience, while still keeping old fans satisfied.

The next track to follow is “Crystallized,” another catchy piece on the album. Unfortunately, there is nothing special about it. It doesn’t have the appropriate rises and falls a song needs to keep you interested; I was ready to skip the rest of the song by the second chorus.

I would put the title track “Mind Over Matter” in the same category as “Crystallized” – nothing special.

The only thing that made it unique was the overthe-top vocals and heavier guitar that no one wants to hear.

I had started to give up hope until I hit “Firelight,” the turning point of this album.

Starting with just a simple plucked guitar, it contrasts the rest of the album comp l e t e l y, and that is the most beautiful

part of it.

On an album suffocated by synth, simplicity lets the genuine emotion seep through. For the first time Sameer Gadhia’s vocals really shine.

The rest of the album does not disappoint. This is where their growth and newfound diversity is really displayed.

“Cameras” starts with melancholy organ tones while “Eros” gives off a playful ‘80s vibe with a compelling bass line.

“Teachers” had a lot of layers and was interesting individually, but it didn’t add anything new to the album except a longer run time.

I have mixed feelings about the final track, “Paralysis.” The first time I listened through, I thought this was a lame ending to such a powerful record, but after a second listen I realized it was actually the perfect conclusion. It encompasses the best parts in a cohesive and fresh form.

The album definitely had its weak spots, but I’m okay with that. Young the Giant is still trying to find their sound, which means they’ll probably go overboard on the synth more than once. But what the second half of this album told me is that they are capable of monumental success.

hour episodes in one sitting, I don’t regret a single minute.

Although the series did hold some weak points, such as predictable outcomes or lack of action and suspense, the plot twists and cliffhangers that did occur outweighed the negatives.

Because of my previous love for the original Sherlock Holmes series, I had high expectations when I first began watching “Sherlock.” After finishing three whole seasons in a month, it is obvious that those expectations were met.

Young the Giant sticks closely to old sounds on new album RACHEL CHMIELINSKI

co-sports editor Three years after their self-titled debut album, Young the Giant takes on a new sound. No longer do their songs have the same radio appeal as the songs “Cough Syrup” or “My Body” from their previous album.

With the release of their sophomore album, Mind Over Matter, came the addition of synth, which added complex layers to each piece, but often too much synth was used. Although, when Young the Giant did fade the synth to feature the rhythm section, there was an unforgettable stroke of genius.

The band has matured a lot in

NEVER TOO OLD: Lined up in full, band members Sameer Gadhi, Payam Doostzadeh, Jacob Tilley, Eric Cannata and Francoi Comtois pose for a photo shoot. The alt-rock band members of Young the Giant formed in 2004.

Photo from of youngthegiant.com

Tracklist 1. Slow Dive 2. Anagram 3. It's About Time 4. Crystallized 5. Mind Over Matter 6. Day Dreamer 7. Firelight 8. Camera 9. In My Home 10. Eros 11. Teachers 12. Waves 13. Paralysis

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Feb. 7, 2014

Ahn takes a bow, named ILMEA concertmaster

MOLLIE CRAMER

staff reporter Students pass multiple football players, debaters and swimmers in the hallways of South. They have also passed at one time or another the newly-named two-time Illinois Music Education Association (ILMEA) orchestra concertmaster, senior Daniel Ahn. Ahn was chosen to be concertmaster of ILMEA, a leader of the orchestra selected through auditions out of 200 violinists. According to Glenbrook Symphony Orchestra (GSO) conductor Kristin Meyer, it’s a tremendous honor, and Ahn is someone who she always expects to excel.

“Daniel’s just exceptional in every way; he’s very creative and artistic,” Meyer said. “It’s his love of the music combined with his natural abilities...that elevate him to something like [concertmaster].”

Ahn thinks that he was named concertmaster as a result of his hard work and commitment. He’s gotten as much out of the experience as he has put into it, he said.

“I think I take on an interesting leadership role as concertmaster; everyone’s trying their best but they still look towards the concertmaster for leadership,” Ahn said. “I think that that leadership role has really helped me develop the sense that I wanted to become more of a leader in my life.”

According to junior Demetri Maroutsos, fellow GSO member, Ahn’s leadership and musical ability has been recognized by ILMEA but is continually shown in GSO. “For one of our concerts he had a solo, and the first time we heard him play in practice, literally the whole orchestra was speechless,” Maroutsos said. “No one was focusing on playing their own parts. They were all listening to Daniel.”

Ahn said that music has been a part of his life forever, and he tries to convey his passion to the audience whenever he performs.

“I love performing for the audience and trying to express that music is great, music is timeless,” Ahn said. “I want [the audience] to have an appreciation for the music that we’re playing. Any type of music is definitely worth appreciating, and we spend a lot of time and effort practicing, so I hope that what we play and convey through our music helps them appreciate it more.”

Daniel Chung, freshman orchestra member, said that Ahn also tries to convey his passion for music to the other students in the orchestra and is viewed as a role model by many students.

“I try to practice more often so I can be like him,” Chung said. “He’s passionate about orchestra, so he really influences other people.”

According to violin instructor Julie Fischer, Ahn is extremely talented but also interested in

VIOLIN VIRTUOSO: As senior Daniel Ahn pulls his bow across the strings of his violin, he continues his daily routine of practicing his art of music. Ahn practices one hour each day and attributes this determination to helping him being named concermaster of ILMEA, a spot that 200 other violinists competed for. Photo by Dani Tuchman

furthering himself musically.

“I’ll introduce a new topic and he’ll really get it and be inspired by it, so it seems like there’s something every time that makes the lesson a stepping stone to something else,” Fischer said. “Each time I feel like he’s putting his whole heart and mind into it and trying to get everything out of everything I tell him.”

According to Ahn, a lot of things in his life re-

late back to his musical education, including his interest in pursuing science in college.

“I think there’s a connection between my interest in science and music, especially with molecular biology,” Ahn said. “That helped me develop [the] idea that I need to look not in the big picture only but in the small picture as well and understand the connections.”

In addition, Ahn said that his musical educa-

tion factors into his life choices and personality.

“I think I have some strong holds on how I should approach music, and I think that that definitely translates into how I view life sometimes and how I make my life choices,” Ahn said. “So it’s hard to imagine where I’d be without the violin because it’s such an integral part to my life.”

Ahn was also named 3rd Chair Violin at ILMEA All-State held from Jan. 23-26.

North Shore Jazz Fest swings swanky tunes into halls of South occurred for the high school Jazz Ensemble and Jazz Lab, as well as middle school jazz staff reporter bands and Combos, which can have three to six parts, that features improvised solos.

Feet tapping and finger snapping kept the “There is Jazz Ensemble, which is by audibeat as jazz music played through the halltion only [...] and then there is Jazz Lab which ways of South. From is open to anybody,” Gordon said. “[Jazz Lab sweet blues to is] a lot bigger than Jazz Ensemble and the swanky swing purpose of Jazz Lab is to introduce people to m u s i c , jazz music and playing jazz so that when they middle and audition for Jazz Ensemble, they’ll make it. It’s high school like a preparation band.” students from Preparation had begun many months over 70 different prior to the actual event, according to Greg jazz bands perWojcik, band director and host of the all-day formed and comfestival. peted at the “The preparation for it is astronomical,” Greg said. “When you have that many bands coming in, you have to get judges. You have to make sure the rooms are ready. You have to get stands. [...] There’s just so much you have to do and it doesn’t end.”

According to Greg, although parents and other adults helped prepare for the competitions, the students were in charge of creating the event and making certain it ran smoothly.

“The kids really run the festival,” Greg said. “The students will be running the rooms. They’ll be setting things up. They’ll be working the microphones. They’ll be runBANGING BEATS: As the jazz band played out their jazzy tunes, syncopated drum patterns keep the band on beat in order to ning the judges’ things back earn the best score possible from the judges. During the North Shore Jazz Fest, more than 70 jazz bands from around the North Shore and forth. [...] If they didn’t, I attended to perform their jazz pieces for judges and the attending audience. Photo by Megan Springer ALEX SHARP

North Shore Jazz Fest on Jan. 18. This year’s grand champion was Naperville North Jazz Ensemble, according to Aaron Wojcik, assistant band diector.

The 37th Annual Jazz Fest consisted of four different rooms at South where students played for judges and were scored based on their performance, according to Joey Gordon, Jazz Fest leader. Because South hosted the event, each ensemble participated as a noncompetitive group.

Competitions

couldn’t do the fest.”

According to Lauren Yep, Jazz Lab member, Jazz Fest serves as a fundraiser for South’s band program, but money isn’t the only goal.

Improving as a band musically is also a key component behind Jazz Fest.

“My goal is not really to get first place or to place at all at [Jazz Fest] but more of just to come together as a band and be able to play the music at the best level that we can,” Yep said.

Many of the jazz bands at Jazz Fest have used scores given by the judges in order to improve. Style, notes, dynamics and other musical components of jazz music determine scores.

Judge Dr. John Cooper believes that these elements make jazz music so unique.

“I like the way it feels,” Cooper said. “It’s like the way a rose smells. You can’t describe it. You have to experience it.”

According to Greg, South’s unified jazz band is a reason that they are capable of accomplishing these important elements of jazz.

“You’ve got individual strong points throughout the ensemble,” Greg said. “Maybe in the past years we’ve had stars, but this is a more ensemble minded [band] so they sound pretty good.”

South’s jazz band has a lot of fun practicing and performing this style of music, according to Gordon. He believes that jazz is a unique style that isn’t as popular as it should be, and more people should come out to Jazz Fest.

“We like what we do and we have fun doing it,” Gordon said. “We have some great musicians. [...] Jazz is something that people don’t really get into a lot, but [...] it’s a whole new world and I think people miss out a lot on that.”

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Feb. 7, 2014

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MAKING HER MARK: Making her way across the stage at the Symphony Center, Stevi Marks, South choir director and conductor of children’s choir Voices Rising, is introduced as the conductor of the children’s choir. In her first year of directing the choir, Marks is making her mark on this 5-year-old division of the Midwest Young Artists, an organization that helps to improve the musical talent of aspiring young musicians. Photo courtesy of Stevi Marks

‘Voices Rising’ recognizes young vocal artists for musical talent CAROLINE BERG & MOLLIE CRAMER

staff reporters The choir group Voices Rising is a part of the organization Midwest Young Artists, led by teachers who strive to teach their students to appreciate and improve their voices. According to Stevi Marks, South choir director and conductor of Voices Rising, when people sing they’re putting their most personal thing they have out there, their voice.

Midwest Young Artists is a renowned organization that nurtures the musical abilities of youth. Voices Rising, their children’s group, recently sang at “Welcome Yule” at the Symphony Center with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Choir.

According to sophomore Jilly Herbert, Voices Rising member, she has gained experience and is proud that she was able to sing at the famed Symphony Center in Chicago, where the Chicago Symphony Orchestra performs. “[Performing at the Symphony Center] is so much of a bigger step,” Herbert said. “We were in bright red turtlenecks so we were just like, ‘Boom!’

I’m so happy that I got to do it even though it was nerve-wracking. I thought it was great to get the opportunity to be a part of.”

According to sophomore Tina James, Voices Rising member, not only does she feel that being a part of Voices Rising creates opportunities for her, but also the challenges that come with being a part of Voices Rising have helped her become a

better singer.

“I think it definitely helped out with singing because it comes with a lot of challenges,” James said.“[Some of the pieces] are definitely challenging, but I think that’s one thing that’s great about being a singer, just learning from all that. Especially with ‘Welcome Yule’, I got to learn a lot of stuff that I’ve never really been able to do.”

Herbert felt that the group worked extremely hard in preparation for “Welcome Yule” and showed support and resilience in the process.

“We were working on the same thing for the whole practice and we finally got it and everyone was like, ‘Yay we did it!’ and then the next time we did it we messed up,” Herbert said. “I was really proud of us because we all kept trying for it, and then even after we messed up we were just like, ‘Let’s do it again, let’s try again.’”

Junior Lauren Deal, former Midwest Young Artist member, misses the overall passion and closeness the group had as a whole.

“The one thing I miss the most was the enthusiasm,” Deal said. “Everyone involved was always so excited to sing and learn. Everyone sounded so great together, and we all became our own little family.”

Herbert also noticed a family-like atmosphere within the group, and though she and James take on a leadership role in the group as the oldest, they take away from the experience as well.

“The greatest thing I got out of this was the confidence that every kid there had because I wanted to mimic that,” Herbert said. “A lot of

“Everyone involved was so excited to sing and learn.”

-junior Lauren Deal

people were saying, ‘Oh they must look up to you because they’re younger than you,’ but I actually think that I looked up to them because they were so confident.”

According to Marks, Midwest Young Artists is known as a training ground for young musicians, and involvement in it is very valuable.

“It’s an experience in the professional world,” Marks said. “They’re growing their musical skills and having to step up to the plate, and that’s only going to make an artist stronger. Hard work very often has great rewards, and in this particular case, indeed it does. It provides a different kind of experience than we have here at school.”

Herbert said that being a part of Voices Rising opens doors because it demonstrates her motivation to pursue her passion.

“Being in a choir helps you get to know yourself on another level other than how you learn, how you speak, this is how your voice is,” Herbert said. “[Voice Rising is] just more learning about yourself and then pushing yourself to see how far expectation-wise you can get.”

WE WELCOME YULE: At the marquis outside the Symphony Center, (from left

to right) sophomore Jilly Herbert, South choir director Stevi Marks and sophomore Tina James take a photo to remember their performance in the “Welcome Yule” concert. Herbert and James were a part of the children’s choir, Voices Rising, that performed at the Symphony Center. Photo courtesy of Stevi Marks

Tech Talk is dedicated to examining technology and explaining it in order to better understand its use. This issue’s Tech Talk focuses on Netflix, the popular provider of on-demand Internet streaming media.

graphic by Cormac O’Brien info gathered through an Oracle-conducted survey of 186 students

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Feb. 7, 2014

Music Theory class teaches students secrets behind composition ELAINE SINE

staff reporter What makes a good song? There are the notes that form together to make a melody that may be good enough to be blended into a song. Listen more closely and hear chord progressions, key signatures and the elements that are synthesized to create the masterpiece.

The Music Theory classes at South teach students how music meets science.

The Music Theory course starts with teaching basic musical knowledge including music history, composers, forms, stylistic tendencies and a lot of supplemental material, according to Stevi Marks, Music Theory 1 teacher.

“The assumption is that when we start, no one knows anything [about music],” Marks said. “We start at the very beginning going, ‘This is a staff and these are the notes on the staff and let’s practice writing those and writing the musical alphabet, draw a bass clef, draw a treble clef, draw a flat, draw a sharp,’ and then two days later [students have already begun] writing scales.

Then you just fasten your seatbelt and hold on.”

Since the Music Theory classes speed through the information, Marks admits it can be difficult at times, but she relates the subject to other academics at school.

“Music theory is such a cumulative subject,” Marks said. “Everything you learn influences everything else you learn, like the math and the sciences, because it really is a combination of math and science. I don’t want that to scare people because I’m a terrible math student but I love music theory.”

Just like people can apply math and science to their lives, according to Marks, musicians in the class are able to utilize the information they learn in Music Theory by composing their own pieces. Senior Nick Langas, a student in AP Music Theory 2, particularly enjoys this part of the class.

“Listening to other people’s compositions is really fun to be able to hear what other people wrote and seeing what you can write,” Langas said. “A lot of the times you have a lot of ideas and you want to incorporate them all, and you have to remember [the saying], ‘Keep It Simple, Stupid,’ like KISS, because once you try to get too fancy it ends up not sounding as good.”

Students like Langas benefit from the information taught in this course, and although

Langas does not think he will pursue a career in music, this does not stop him from taking the class. According to Marks, Music Theory is open to all those interested in music, whether as a career or hobby.

“Kids come in with a variety of backgrounds,” Marks said. “Some are very serious like, ‘I’m planning on majoring in music so I wanted to get some credit towards college and be in a more advanced class.’ A lot of people are just like, ‘I play guitar, I would like to be able to play better, read the notes and understand the relationship between the chords,’ or ‘I’m writing poetry, I would like to put music to it.’ Everyone comes at it with a different perspective.”

Junior Minji Will, a student in AP Music Theory 2 said she’s considering music as a possible career path.

“I hope [to be] a music educator,” Will said. “It’s something I’ve been considering, and it’s better to learn [music] theory before you pursue it in college and to know earlier than later, so [the class is] definitely beneficial.”

After learning the different skills and other information she was taught in Music Theory, Will’s perspective on music began to change. She was also able to apply what she learned to her involvement in choir.

“After I started learning the difference between intervals and all of those relationships, I could identify chords in the music we were singing,” Will said. “It made music a lot more interesting to sing in choir because I had a deeper understanding of what we were singing.”

Sophomore Chuck Quinn does not plan to make music a career, but the experience has changed his outlook of music. Quinn felt this shift in thought after taking Music Theory 1.

“Before I listened to something and thought, ‘Oh that’s pretty,’ or ‘That makes me feel good,’” Quinn said. “Now I can understand what’s going on like, ‘Oh it changed from a major to a minor key,’ and ‘Oh that’s a weird chord progression, that’s cool.’ Stuff like that.”

In opening students like Will and Quinn to new skills, according to Marks, Music Theory will definitely change a student’s capabilities in music whether they maintain a career in the field or not.

“The thing I always say is that you will never listen to music the same way again because you learn to listen for some specific things,” Marks said. “If all these kids [who take this course] are musicians, they’re walking away with skills that are only going to make them better musicians.”

“The thing I always say is that you will never listen to music the same way again.”

-Stevi Marks, Music Theory 1 teacher

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CLASSY CHORDS: Playing the keyboard with one hand and writing music with the other, senior Erika Peterson reviews the chord progression of her composition. The Music Theory class at South teaches students how to detect note intervals and create their own music. Photo by Marley Hambourger

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MURAL, MURAL ON THE WALL: Standing with his art work, senior Riley Knight captures the finished results of his Calvin and Hobbes-inspired wall mural. According to Knight, the mural was finished in a matter of days and was painted

using only bare minimum house paint. Knight’s sketched tiger was drawn for a humanities project and is now his favorite personal piece (below). Knight channeled his affinity for doodling in a painting as part of his AP art concentration (bottom left), aqnd hisPainting One final depicts the eye and scales of a crocidile (bottom right). Images courtesy of Riley Knight

Knight discovers knack for art, finds freedom in expression SHEA ANTHONY

co-a&e editor Painted on senior Riley Knight’s wall is a tree with the cartoon-strip characters Calvin and Hobbes perched in its branches taking a snooze.

Calvin, a precocious six-yearold boy, has a lot more in common with Knight than one would assume.

Both have a discomfort for the structure of school, a love for sleep and larger-thanlife imaginations that define their characters.

Knight channels his imagination through his art, a field that he got into his freshman year. He had always been an avid doodler but had never taken any official classes, according to senior Vicki Mohr, fellow AP Art student.

“He has been doodling ever since I could remember,” Mohr said. “Both he and I would draw

cartoons while our teacher read books out loud.”

Currently, Knight is enrolled in South’s AP Art course that requires each student to set up a twelve-piece concentration of artwork that revolves around a certain theme. Knight focused his theme on school, matching each grade he’s been in to a different piece of art.

“Since there are twelve pieces, I’m doing a piece for each grade of school that I’ve gone through so far,” Knight said.

“Since this is our twelfth year of school right now, I’m doing a piece for each grade and how the structure that school is made of made me feel about myself and how creativity works.”

Knight’s choice of concentration is a genuine reflection of the clash between Knight’s personality and the rigid structure of the education system, according to Stephanie Fuja, AP Art teacher.

“He’s very driven, but he also is all over the

place with organization sometimes and sticking to deadlines, and I think that shows up in his work,” Fuja said. “A lot of his pieces this year are about that, about his story and his life growing up in the education system and how he never felt like he fit in. The work is almost a direct reflection of him, which is really cool. “ Accordingto Knight, his incompatibility with the school system is magnified by severe attention problems that make school a challenge.

“My teacher gave us tests in the old art classes I took where we’d have to know terminology and different styles of paintings, and I always got bad marks on those ones,” Knight said.

“I’d always do good on the assignments, B’s and A’s, but when it came to the quizzes on the actual hard knowledge, I’d always get C’s and below.”

This inability to focus is not part of his work ethic when it comes to art, however. According to senior Suge Lim, fellow AP Art student, Knight is very devoted to his artwork and spends a lot of time mastering the smaller things.

According to Knight, his knack for details is the exact reason why his favorite things to draw are hands and noses.

“What is fun or interesting to draw for me would be hands and noses,” Knight said. “They’re extremely difficult to draw because there are so many wrinkles and so many things about the

hands that you can’t see unless you’re looking at them very closely.”

Knight enjoys both creating art and observing other people’s art because he believes both are an accurate portrayal of the inner-workings of the mind.

“My favorite part of art is not only making art but being able to see somebody else’s art and getting a glimpse into how their mind works,” Knight said. “Same goes with creating art. You’re able to visually represent how your brain works to somebody else. It’s kind of like jumping into that person’s head.”

Knight’s passion for his work combined with his right-brained personality is conducive to a successful artistic career, according to Fuja.

“I can see him working in the graphic design, industrial design or illustration world and being very successful,” Fuja said. “You need that type of busy, all-over-the-place personality that has strong passion and drive for art to be successful in that world, so I do see him being very successful if he puts his mind to it.”

According to Knight, he has already applied to a handful of schools that will allow him to major in art. “[Art is] definitely going to be a career [for me] because I’m a firm believer that if you love what you do you won’t work a day in your life.” Knight said.

“My favorite part of art is not only making art but being able to see somebody else’s art and getting a glimpse into how their mind works.”

-senior Riley Knight

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sports

Feb. 7, 2014

Community supports South alumnus, Olympic athlete HANNAH MASON

asst. sports editor

hoops, 100-light holiday lights of the colors and a lot of duct tape,” Heneghan said. “The hula hoops weren’t solid colored, so we had to lay the lights onto the hoop, then surround it in duct tape of that color.”

In another effort to show

With the Winter Olympics beginning Feb. 7 and running until Feb. 23, the Glenview community is showing support for South alumnus and speedskater Brian Hansen as he heads to Sochi, Russia to participate in the Winter ON THIN Olympics for the second ICE: Skating time. his way to the OlymGlen Oak Acres, Hanpics, GBS alumnus and sen’s neighborhood, is speedskater Brian Hansen prepares to make his second first showing their supOlympic apperance in Sochi, port by making five illuRussia. Hansen won a silver minating Olympic rings medal in the Men’s Pursuit in and hanging them in the 2010 Olympics. front of Hansen’s house, Photo Courtesy of Stephen Pendlund said Hansen’s neighbor, Joyce Heneghan. Sophomore Brian Heneghan, Joyce’s son, both constructed and installed the rings.

“Since I had made posters for the Hansen’s parents to take to Canada in 2010 for [Boys Scouts], I thought it would be a good idea to help out again,” Heneghan said.

According to Heneghan, it took him three days to make the rings and about 35 minutes to install.

“First off, we bought five hula

Olympic spirit, members from the Glen Oak Acres neighborhood gathered on Jan. 24-25 in the Cole Park Field House to create a video presentation entitled, “Go Brian!” According to Joyce, the video was videotaped and edited by junior Kayla Staunton.

The video can be viewed on Youtube, the Glen Oak Acres Facebook page, and Brian’s fan page on Facebook.

“The video consists of Brian’s friends and neighbors from Glen Oak Acres cheering him on with their support,” Staunton said. “Really plain a n d s i m ple, but meaningful.”

For the last step of the support campaign, Heneghan and several others lined Lake Avenue with signs on Feb. 5, according to Heneghan.

“I think that GBS has been doing well to support [Hansen], but I feel like we could do more to support [him],” Heneghan said.

Hansen has been studying at Marquette University since his graduation from South in 2009.

“I really appreciate GBS being loyal to me!” Hansen said. “I realized after I graduated how great of a community and school GBS really is.”

Hansen made his first appearance in the Vancouver Olympics of 2010. There, Hansen won a silver medal in the men’s pursuit and 18th in men’s 1500m, according to www.usspeedskating.org.

As Hansen returns to the Olympics in Sochi, he hopes for gold medals in the 1000 and 1500 meter events.

“I am not the favorite, but it is definitely possible,” Hansen said. “Also, if everything comes together in the Team Pursuit, it is possible we win gold. I plan on achieving this by treating this competition like every other World Cup and doing what I know works for me. To not treat it as any different of a World Cup competition.”

Hansen and Heneghan’s friendship started from being neighbors. Brian was also in Hansen’s Boy Scout troop.

“I really appreciate [Heneghan’s] support,” Hansen said. “It is motivating to me when I see someone who wants to be a part of my journey and experience with the Olympics.”

Hansen arrived in Sochi on Jan. 30 and said that after training for the past four years, he is proud to be back at the Olympics.

“My hopes were just to give myself the chance to compete at the games again and now here I am!” Hansen said. “We are one of the first countries and team to get in the village. So not too many people are here right now. But it’s still definitely exciting to see all the other athletes. Everybody is excited to meet each other. Last night the U.S. speed skating team played Taboo with the Bobsled team which was fun.”

To follow Hansen during the Winter Olympics, view the graphic (right) for days he will be competing. To view the video made by the Glen Oak Acres community go to: http://tinyurl.com/GoBrianHansen.

Logo by Kali Croke

The Oracle’s monthly Q&A with a South alumnus who participates in college athletics

Kaylee Sherman, a 2013 South graduate, is currently cheering at Illinois State. While at South, Sherman was all-conference in 2011 and 2012.

BRECK MURPHY

co-sports editor Photo courtesy of Kaylee Sherman

What do you think of the cheer porgram at Illinois State?

I have been very blessed to be on the cheerleading team at Illinois State.

These cheerleaders that I get to work with every day are so committed and passionate about the sport and continuously want to improve.

It’s been a very positive experience, and I’ve learned skills that I never thought would be in my near future.

What advice do you have for GBS students who want to pursue college athletics?

I would say if any student athletes were hoping to join a team in college, to start early and initiate contact with coaches. Even if you are uncertain about joining a team, go for it because it could be one of the best decisions you make in college.

You may end up loving it. Lastly, academics are important too! You are a student before an athlete.

When did you start to become interested in cheerleading?

I became interested in college cheerleading during my junior year when I was starting to think about potential colleges to attend.

I loved the sport and could not even think about giving it up.

What has been your favorite memory from this year?

My favorite memory from this year has been cheering at the games packed with fans and getting to perform at the IHSA State Championships.

How did South sports prepare you for college athletics?

I learned how to organize and balance my schoolwork and sport from my experience at South. The rigorous workouts and practices also prepared me physically and mentally. My coaches were a huge help in preparing me for tryouts.

gh Valid throu

12/2014

Friday, Feb. 7 Monday, Feb. 10 Wednesday, Feb. 12

Saturday, Feb. 15 Friday, Feb. 21 Saturday, Feb. 22 Sunday, Feb. 23

Graphic by Marley Hambourger; information courtesy of Julie Hansen

sports

Feb. 7, 2014

State qualifiers lead team to success Must See

TYLER AKI

staff reporter

After finishing 18th in the state last year, the men’s swim team is looking to improve upon last year’s season. The Titans are off to a successful start by winning all six of their dual meets.

With five returning state qualifiers, the Titan’s expectations coming into this season were high, according to Jake Nelson, senior captain and state qualifier.

“This senior class is really good,” Nelson said. “[Having multiple state qualifiers] coming back contributes to us bringing back the strength we had last year and adding on with some of the other swimmers.”

The team is led by senior captains Kevin Benson, Seamus Henegan and Nelson and as well as junior John Salomon, sophomore Sam Salganik and standout freshman Sam Iida.

Head coach Keith MacDonald is content with the team’s success thus far and believes there are not many flaws with his unit.

“We’re pretty balanced throughout,” MacDonald said. “We don’t have a lot of weaknesses really. Our distance swimming has been [realSOARING SPALDING: Preparing for his swim, junior Jordan Spalding focuses on his start for the freestyle ly] good.”

100m. The Titans are currently 8-1, their only loss being to New Trier. Photo by Hanna Bilmoria The Titans are pleased with their season so far and look forward to their conference, sectional and state meets, start.” and how it has influenced their success.

MacDonald said.

According to Benson, the biggest meet “We’re all good friends and that means “The end of the season is key for swimthe team has competed in this season was that we can call each other out and be relentming,” MacDonald explained. “We want evthe Evanston Invite where they placed secless on each other,” Benson said. “The state eryone to have their best times at the chamond out of 18 teams, the best finish the Titans qualifiers really help lead the team to where pionship meet. We consider ourselves a top had at the invite since 2006. it needs to be.”

10 team in the state, and that’s where we “[The Evanston Invite] was coming off Salomon also expressed his contentedshould finish come the end of the year.” of our winter break training, and we always ness with the team’s unity. He credits the The Titans dove into their season on Dec. train very hard over winter break, so we were winter break training in Indianapolis for en7 in Wisconsin with a dual meet against Arvery tired at that meet,” Benson said. “I think hancing the squad’s chemistry. rowhead High School, one of the top teams everyone was pleasantly surprised with how “[The trip] is really good for team buildin the state of Wisconsin, according to Salothey performed at that meet despite being ing because we are around the guys for mon, a three-year varsity swimmer. very tired. I think the meet served as a genthree days straight,” Salomon said. “It really “[Arrowhead] was a big meet for us beeral example of how we’re performing well brings the team together, and it gets you to cause it was the first meet of the season,” Saeven under stress.” trust each other.” lomon said. “It came down to the last relay Even though swimming may be porThe Titans continue into their championand we won it. It got the team excited for trayed as an individual sport, Benson ship season with conference on Feb. 9, secthe season, and it got us started on our good stressed the importance of team cohesion tionals on Feb.16 and state meets.

Titans push hard for conference success KATIE WIBERG

staff reporter With a record of 9-9, South’s men’s varsity basketball team is looking to wrap the season up with a victories in the upcoming conference games.

Nine seniors, seven juniors and one sophomore make up the team with senior captains Danny Nikitas, Devin Maki and Johnny Cowhey. The players get along well and are all very close, according to Maki.

“A lot of them are a bunch of goons,” Maki said. “I love all my teammates. Basketball is a really long season so you get to know all of them really well.”

Head coach Ben Widner believes this year’s team is hardworking and responds well to challenges.

“They’re fun and they’re hard working,” Widner said. “We challenge them and they respond. We have a good mix of kids, [and I have] a team that I think has a good sense of humor but knows how to be serious when the time is right.”

The team started the season with a Thanksgiving tournament at New Trier. The Titans played Lake Forest, Saint Ignatius and Loyola. They ended with a placement of second, losing to Loyola in the championship and facing a very intense game against Lake Forest.

“Our game against Lake Forest was very exciting,” Widner said. “They are a ranked team and we beat them. That was our first game of the year.”

South also faced some disappointing defeats in their Christmas tournament at

HOPING FOR HOOPS: Dribbling around his opponents, senior Danny Nikitas looks for an open teammate. Nikitas, who is committed to Lake Forest College to continue his basketball career in the fall of 2014, leads the team with fellow captains Devin Maki and Johnny Cowhey. Photo by Wyatt Richter

Wheeling. The team played Deerfield, Niles North and Notre Dame.

“In Wheeling we placed sixth or seventh,” Nikitas said. “We didn’t do that well in that tournament.”

According to Maki, the most memorable game was one against Niles West, which helped the team start the season right. “[It was a] double overtime win in our second conference game,” Maki said. “If we would’ve lost that, we would’ve been 0-2 in conference and that would’ve been pretty brutal to take.”

The key reason for their win in the Niles West game is that they kept fighting back despite the fact that they had to play two overtimes, according to Nikitas.

“We could’ve given up so easily,” Nikitas said. “We got down like 10 or 11 points with two minutes in the fourth quarter and we just clawed our way back. That happened in the last overtime too, and we just kept fighting back, and that was great to see.”

Widner wants the team to work on their defensive skills along with a more efficient offense. He believes that if they can work on the little things, it will make a huge difference in their performance on the court. “[We want to] turn the ball over less, get to the free throw line more and get excellent shots every possession,” Widner said.

The goal for the team is to go undefeated in the rest of their conference games, according to Nikitas. They want to finish the season off strong and improve their record.

“I think we want to go undefeated in the rest of our conference season,” Nikitas said.

“We have four conference games left, and I think they are all winnable, but they aren’t going to be easy.”

The seniors, who set great examples for the whole team, have mainly led the team to success, according to Nikitas, Maki and Widner.

The Titan’s next home game is against New Trier on Feb. 14 at 7:30.

23

Home Games:

Men’s Basketball vs. New Trier Feb. 14, 7:30 p.m.

Men’s Swimming Conference Feb. 15, 9 a.m.

Photo by Wyatt Richter

Women’s Basketball vs. Waukegan Feb. 7, 7:30 p.m.

Photo by Jacqueline Dewitt

Wrestling Regionals Feb. 8, 9 a.m.

Women’s Track John Davis Relays Feb. 28, 5 p.m.

Photo by Wyatt Richter

24

sports

Feb. 7, 2014

Graphic by Cormac O’Brien

WINTER SPORTS

Women’s basketball capitalizes on age variety HALEY DAVIS

staff reporter With six games remaining, the women’s basketball team is looking to improve their current record of 8-13, according to head coach Steve Weissenstein.

According to senior captain Riley Dahiya, the beginning of the season was difficult on the team due to their struggles in the Schaumburg Thanksgiving Tournament, where they went 0-5.

“As the season goes on, we’re just going to keep getting better and better because we are so young, and we have so much learning experience to [use throughout the season],” Dahiya said.

More recently, the Titans lost by six points to New Trier.

They are looking to better prepare themselves and come back even stronger for their second matchup against the Trevians this season, according to senior captain CarREACHING WEINMAN: Fighting off Evanston defenders, freshman Carie Weinman struggles to get rid of the ball. The Titans lost to Evanston ly Weinman.

26-30 on Jan. 31. Photo by Wyatt Richter “We were so close,” Weinman said. “[Next this season in a 57-54 victory.

“They all get along really well ference tournament, according to time] we want to take “It was probably our best game even though we have every class Weissenstein. it to the next level and make it an of the year,” Weissenstein said. on our team,” Weissenstein said.

“We still have some strides to actual victory. [We just needed] a “Carly hit two huge threes that “You cannot say, ‘The seniors just make to get to Evanston and New few baskets here and there, maybe helped us get over the top. It was go over here, the juniors over here.’

Trier, but those are the two top one more stop on defense and we a close game, and she just seemed You can tell they’re a team. They all teams in our conference,” Weiswould have gotten it.” to hit some threes at the right time. like each other, they get along well, senstein said. “We will probably Although South took the fall to Her sister Carie made some nice they play well together. As far as end up playing one of those two New Trier, Weissenstein said the plays too. It was a really good team team chemistry goes, you can’t get teams in a Regional Final. We’ve Titans were quick to bounce back game.” better than this team.” got about three and a half weeks as Weinman and her sister, point Thus far this season, the Titans With the season approaching a before that starts, and we just have guard Carie Weinman, made imhave become close on and off the close, the Titans are set for a few to make those extra strides to get to portant plays to help the team beat court, according to Weissenstein. tough matchups in upcoming contheir level.”

Maine South for the second time

Cheerleading takes third place at ICCA State JUSTINE KIM

staff reporter The Titan Cheerleaders placed third at the 30th Annual Illinois Cheerleading Coaches Association (ICCA) State Championship held in Springfield, Ill. on Jan. 4.

This was a first for the varsity squad as they continue to make South history. South Cheer took home a third place trophy and medals for each of the participants.

To qualify for ICCA State, the team had to place at an invitational. On Dec. 21, the squad placed first in the An-

drew Invitational. According to head coach Stephanie Fuja, it was a great experience for the team to rise above the other 18 teams they competed with, which signified the progress the cheer program has made.

“We always set goals on getting stronger and more skilled,” Fuja said. “Last year really turned a huge corner where we became extremely competitive, and this year is [...] exceeding my expectations.”

Over the past season, the varsity squad has placed fourth at the Stevenson Invitational on Saturday Dec. 15, which was the highest finish South Varsity

Cheer has ever placed at the specific invite.

Along with their success at the Stevenson Invitational, the team placed first at the UCA’s cheer competition over the summer with four South cheerleaders honored as “All-American Cheerleaders”: senior captain Jaime Bendewald, junior Kara Sherman, junior Michelle Eriksson and sophomore Emily Weiss.

The Titans have been working on honing in on their tumbling skills and practicing their routines since before school started and have been focusing on maximizing their potential. According to senior captain Tara Graff, every person on the

team has been 110 percent committed to doing well at ICCA and IHSA State.

“We had a lot of talent [and drive] come in since last [season] and have been challenged with harder stunts for our competitions,” Graff said. “I definitely think that we performed the best we’ve ever done [at ICCA State, and I’m so proud to be on this team.”

Since last season, the cheer program has lost 10 seniors but has made up for the loss with the addition of 13 sophomores. According to Sherman, the program worked hard to scout out the best talent they could get to replace the departed upperclassmen.

“We lost some key players [last year] and we compensated by recruiting more girls,” Sherman said. “There has been a very versatile amount of talent this year and some strong stunting skills [compared to last season].”

Last season’s team was a turning point for the cheer program, Fuja said. They were the first team to qualify for ICCA State and place within the Top 10. However, this season’s team has built upon that foundation two-fold, Fuja said.

Most recently, the squad had one of their best performances at sectionals, Weiss said. This performance landed them with a seventh place finish.

BRING IT ON: In a full-team formation, the Titan cheerleading squad performs their routine in a competition at St. Andrews High School.

The squad finished in first place at this competition. Photo courtesy of Michelle Eriksson