When Hurricane Ian hit Florida’s southwest coast with 150 mph winds and relentless rainfall, the state entered a state of emergency. Starting on Wednesday, Sept. 29 and continuing through Thursday, the storm drifted over Central Florida, prompting Seminole County to close its schools on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Due to the fallout from the storm, first quarter exams were rescheduled, and although the county deemed bus routes clear enough to provide transportation the following Monday, some students could not attend school that day, trapped in their neighborhoods by the remaining floodwater. In fact, a large part of Lockwood Boulevard had to be closed all weekend.
While some were huddling at hurricane parties, expecting a mild storm, others prepared for potential damage. Nobody, however, expected the extreme flooding that arrived on the days following the hurricane. As the Econolahatchee River overflowed with rainwater following severe flooding along the St. John’s River, Florida’s major waterways, Seminole County’s neighborhoods quickly followed suit. By Friday morning, flooding reached its peak, leaving Oviedo underwater. Read the stories of students and staff as they recount the aftermath of Hurricane Ian.
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Savannah
Towne, who lives in Riverside, was working at Martin’s on Thursday, after the worst of Hurricane Ian had passed. During her shift, her father showed up to pick her up and drive her home. When she had left for work, the water was basically “a big puddle on the street.” But when she came home, it was up to her driveway and almost at her house.
“We weren’t expecting it to go up any higher because the pond was already pretty flooded in the backyard. And the street seemed like it would be fine. But then water just kept flowing from the other streets. The river kept flooding into the pond and from the pond into our yard,” Towne said.
It was 10 p.m. when her father brought her home. By then, the flooding had gotten so severe that they had to park up the street and put on rubber boots to wade to their house.
“We started prepping for our house to flood, so we were pulling everything off the ground, taking anything other than furniture and putting it up in the attic. We tried to go to bed, but my dad stayed up watching for water—we didn’t know what was going to flood.”
Towne did not sleep very long.
“I got woken up by my dad outside my door watching the water, and I heard him say, ‘Oh Savannah’s room will probably be the first one to flood.’ Then I woke up, thinking that if it did flood, everything would be ruined and we’d have so much work ahead of us.”
The water got into the house, soaking the floor in Towne’s room and several other rooms in the house.
“It was a couple inches in the kitchen and in the sunroom, and probably an inch in my room and my brother’s room. The other rooms didn’t flood too badly, but once the water started receding, we were left to suck up all the water we could to try and salvage the carpet. But in the end we had to tear it all up.”
Even though the water was
not inside the house for long, it was enough to do major damage. Though she never lost power and has been able to stay in her house the entire time, Towne is still trying to fully grasp the flood’s impact.
“I didn’t really anticipate the furniture to be ruined because it all ended up going to the curb. I can’t even do schoolwork because my desk is gone.”
When freshman Alyse May heard about Hurricane Ian, she expected heavy rainfall, strong winds and a few flickering lights. But while at her mother’s house in Deltona on
Friday, Sept. 30, she got up at 4:30 a.m. and found herself ankle-deep in water..
“It was extremely annoying. I was not happy,” May said. “I don’t wake up at 4:30, and that’s not what I expected.”
May and her mother live near the top of a hill, so they assumed that any floodwater would move away from their home. It did the opposite, seeping into their back porch, and later, their kitchen. Not having prepared for Hurricane Ian beforehand, they used what they could, bailing water out of their house with buckets.
“My mom said ‘We need to bail out water, so come help me,’ and then I see water slowly seeping in through the door,” May said. “I’m like, ‘I’m going to go unplug our electrical.’’’
Though May was able to salvage
her electricity, hours of work still lay ahead of her. That night, she vacuumed water out from underneath the floor tiles while keeping a close eye on the flooding in their backyard. Later, May’s above-ground pool ruptured, only adding to the floodwater. Even after five hours of bailing and vacuuming, her house was still flooded the next day.
“There are holes under the tile that are usually filled with air, so we got a shock vacuum and held it there and it filled up four times,” May said, “and there was still more water.”
Though the majority of the house remained untouched by floodwater, May expects it to take weeks for the damage to be repaired..
“There is really nothing you can do until after the [flooding],” May said. “We tried our best, but there’s still water on our back porch today.”
On Thursday, Sept. 29, history teacher Erin Foley was prepared for Hurricane Ian’s winds and rain, but she was not prepared to see two hulking military cars, in the aftermath of the storm, trapped in her neighbor’s front yard.
“Water was up to people’s windows. Cars were completely buried, and there were two National Guard vehicles outside at 8 a.m. The water was so bad that they got stuck in people’s front yards and were not rescued until Saturday morning,” Foley said.
With Gee Creek dangerously flooded the day prior, Winter Springs’ streets turned into rivers and its backyards into lakes. Though her neighborhood had already experienced significant flooding throughout Wednesday and Thursday, nobody anticipated what was the come after. As waters swiftly rose overnight, Foley’s neighborhood fell apart. She woke up Friday morning to a gaping hole in her street, its foundation washed away by the current of the creek underneath it.
“[The creek] had not only overflowed and taken out the
barricade, but it had started to wash away the road and it was like a little waterfall,” Foley said. “The water was so ferocious that it blew the big cement cover off of the water drains, and the north part of my street was completely flooded.”
According to Foley, her neighborhood was flooded up to three feet, with the water reaching driveways on her street and seeping into houses on the streets closest to the creek. While the inside of her house was not flooded, most of her neighbors are still dealing with cracked foundations, moldy floors
and spoiled furniture weeks after the hurricane had passed. Foley surveyed the damage in disbelief. Her neighborhood consists of mainly one-story houses, and little furniture was left untouched by the rising water, leaving many families to empty all their belongings onto the curb to throw away.
“Their cars, their houses, everything was flooded. All their contents were on the curb to be thrown away,” Foley said. “Dressers, furniture, drywall, everything-they just gutted these houses and put [everything] out on the street.”
In Twin Rivers, sophomore Matteos Ariosa spent the hurricane checking the rising water levels every hour.
“On Thursday night, there was only a little bit of flooding near the sewers,” Ariosa said. “And then it just kept on going up. My sister and I had to take everything off the floors.”
To Ariosa’s surprise, the streets along the Econolahatchee River were completely flooded by Friday morning.
“I expected it to be like how Hurricane Matthew was in our area, where barely anything happened,” Ariosa said. “I was shocked. You wouldn’t expect the street to be able to flood that much. It was almost above my knees.”
The floodwater reached all across Ariosa’s road, and in some areas, the water was three feet deep, but his house is far enough from the Econolahatchee River to have avoided it.
“I thought [the water] was going to keep on going up,” Ariosa said. “I got really lucky.”
Most of the floodwater in his neighborhood abated by Sunday morning. In an attempt to make the most out of his neighborhood’s dilemma, he dragged out a pool floatie.
“I went swimming and canoing in the water,” Ariosa said.“ It made me forget about [the hurricane], and it felt like a snow day. It was pretty fun.”
Scan the QR code to see more stories online, including principal Robert Frasca’s encounter with Hurricane Ian.
As a kid, James Bartlett loved socializing and connecting with other people, but no one was there to help him process his emotions. This would continue through his adolescence, and he realized how important it was to have a listening ear. When he reached college, he decided to become that person. Today, Bartlett works as a full-time counselor, looking to make it easier for students to talk about mental health.
that they may need. As a district mental health counselor, Bartlett wants to create a comfortable space within his office for his students to better their communication and allow students to feel safe.
I want to know what their interests are, what they’re like; I want students to know that by meeting me, I try to make it cool, calm and relaxed.
Two years of COVID has led to an increase in mental health issues, which has only continued post COVID. According to the CDC 1-in-5 Americans will experience a mental illness in a given year, leaving mental health as a big priority in Seminole County. Now, every school has a full-time mental health counselor.
“This year is the first year that we were able to do a mental health counselor five days a week at high schools which is awesome,” Bartlett said.
Bartlett only worked part-time at Hagerty last year, but now on campus the entire week, he offers more opportunities for students to get help
“I want to know what their interests are, what they’re like,” Bartlett said. “I want students to know that by meeting me, I try to make it cool, calm and relaxed.”
There is not a one-sizefits-all plan that Bartlett has in place, since students deal with a variety of different issues. Instead, he lets the student guide him on what goals they want to achieve so he can give them the best help possible.
“Some students are coming to me and they’re having anxiety, they’re having daily panic attacks, everything like that. So we kind of see where it’s at, and then we formulate those goals together,” Bartlett said.
As the school year goes on, many students will begin to experience mental health issues, such as anxiety, burnout and depression. These issues are usually tied to the classroom, as homework, studying for tests and extracurriculars can be
stressful to many.
“It’s big for me to destigmatize mental health, especially among the male student body, where there is very much a stigma with mental health and pursuing mental health,” Bartlett said. “So seeing that, I’m trying to get that out there and normalize mental health.”
For many, discussing mental health can be difficult due to the “weak” stigma surrounding anxiety and depression. In recent years, the negative connotation has started to disappear, and Bartlett intends to follow that trend by working with the PTSA and pushing the importance of mental health for everyone, not just students.
“Last year we had, unfortunately, a lot of students on campus who lost parents, and I’m talking to a parent and I’m trying to get help for the student,” Bartlett said. “But I’m also there for the parents as well and providing them support and say, what can I do to help you not just the student,”
Bartlett is working on a wellness initiative for the school, which is meant to get students more comfortable with talking about mental health. He hopes once the initiative is active students will eventually run it.
“Everyone is saying, ‘Let’s talk about it,’ and that will encourage those people who are like, ‘I don’t know what other people would think,’’’ Bartlett said.
• Estimated that 1 in 7 (14%) 10-19 year-olds experience mental health conditions
• Depression occurs in approximately 13 percent of 12 to 17-year-olds
• More than 1 in 3 high school students had experienced persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness in 2019, a 40 percent increase since 2009
• Anxiety occurs in approximately 32 percent of 13- to 18-year-olds
• About 3 in 4 children with depression also had anxiety (73.8%) and almost 1 in 2 had behavior problems (47.2%)
• In 2019, approximately 1 in 6 youth reported making a suicide plan statistics from CDC, WHO and HHS
FULL DAY OF WORK James Bartlett ends the day by looking through emails and preparing for the following day. Bartlett, who is now full-time at Hagerty, balances his time between meetings with students and communication. Photo | Nadia Knoblauch- Mental health counselor James Bartlett
“
expecting to win.”
On Oct. 6, culinary teacher Matthew Thompson was announced as Teacher of the Year. Thompson was teaching his Culinary 4 class when the announcement was made, and the class erupted into cheers when they found out. Senior Brody Kane was one of the loudest in the room, cheering and congratulating his teacher of four years.
“I was so happy for him,” Kane said. “I knew he deserved it. He really makes a connection with his students and he genuinely cares about them.” Thompson, equally surprised, expressed his gratitude to everyone who voted for him.
“[This award] means everything to me,” Thompson said. “I was not
Principal Robert Frasca came to the room to gift Thompson with balloons and a bouquet of flowers, and his wife and children even made a guest appearance to surprise him. Out of a list of more than 20 nominees, Thompson was selected to represent the school for Seminole County.
In previous years, Teacher of the Year nominees have been selected by a panel of teachers, but this year, the voting was in the hands of the students. Thompson credits all his success to his students.
“I couldn’t have done it without [my students],” Thompson said. “They all care about each other and take care of each other. They’re the reason our program is one of the largest, if not the largest, in the county.”
for homecoming
week has ramped up and people are waiting in anticipation. This year’s theme is “Party Rock Anthem,” which is a popular song from 2011 by electronic dance music duo LMFAO, and dress up days are as follows: Monday is “Wildest Dreams” where students will wear their favorite pajamas, Tuesday is “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll” vs “Dirt on My Boots” where students wear their western or rock n’ roll inspired attire, Wednesday is “All Star” in which people can wear their favorite sports attire, Thursday is “Neon Lights” where students wear their neon homecoming shirts. Seniors wear pink, juniors wear orange, sophomores wear green and freshmen wear yellow.
Friday is “Who Let the Dogs Out” where students wear their different assigned class colors. Seniors will wear black, juniors will wear blue, sophomores will wear gray and freshmen will wear white.
According to class of 2025 sponsor Sarah Bearss, the Leadership class forms proposals and different themes then submits them to administration for approval. While there were other contenders for the theme, Party Rock was ultimately chosen. Other contenders
will possibly be used for winter week or prom. The theme of the dance received some mixed reviews from the student body.
“I feel like it could be better because it’s just literally saying [the] homecoming [theme] is practically just a party, which it is, but they could have added more work on that,” senior Jordan Rivera said.
Those in leadership positions, however, feel thrilled for the future of homecoming.
“We’ve had some positive feedback from kids,” Bearss said.
Homecoming week is to start next Monday with the dress up days, football game on Friday, and the dance the following day.
Tickets are available on MySchoolBucks for $40 and will go up by $5 each week after that. Tickets at the door are $45. You can also purchase one with a Husky Buck.
As senior Celeste Pelayo flipped through the curriculum guide, looking for another half-credit class, her eyes caught on something more: African-American Studies. The first of its kind to be offered across Seminole County, African American Studies is a semester-long honors course open to all students which focuses on the history of African Americans.
“It’s nice to know that we have the course now— even better, an honors course, and hopefully now that it’s introduced, it widens the eyes [of the
class] to other schools,” said Pelayo.
The class is taught in a timelinelike manner using standards that are set by the state, but also includes influences from the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture.
In this class, students will learn about topics like the African Diaspora, Civil Rights movements and West African Heritage. Though this is the first year for the class, teacher Amy Bingham enjoys the curriculum and is excited for the class’ future.
“We can focus on different topics that as a history teacher, we don’t
always get as much time as we would like to look into. It’s exciting,” Bingham said.
Students taking the course are excited that more cultures are being explored and hope to see more people enroll in the future. The acknowledgment of the course has created a positive reception of the class.
“I feel seen by the school; the class is something long overdue,” senior Ciara Bibbs said. “I want to be a part of the change and involvement to show the county that there are students interested in our culture.”
Janell Lim | Online Editor Rachelle English | Staff ReporterUP THIS B—. SEPT. 20.”
When junior Ava West found this message in the cafeteria bathroom on Sept. 16, her heart dropped. What she had only seen on the news was now staring her in the face.
“I felt panicked to the point where I left school because of it,” West said. “All I thought was, ‘Why would someone do this?’”
But West was not the only student to find a shooting threat. Senior Rachelle English found one in the building 6 bathroom on the same day, and one more was discovered in the cafeteria on Sept. 19. The investigation was completed in late September, and the case is now closed, according to principal Robert Frasca. All three threats were found to be connected, and the identity of the student who wrote the messages will not be released.
As with any threat, administration’s first step was to consult law enforcement and take pictures of what was found to be used as evidence. After that, they reviewed video footage of students entering and exiting the bathrooms and interviewed anyone they saw, asking them if they noticed the threat and if they had any information about who might have written it. This allowed administration to establish a rough timeline of events and narrow down suspects, according to Frasca.
Just hours after the threats were first discovered, they were determined to be noncredible, and Frasca sent an email out to parents to inform them that classes would proceed as normal and that additional law enforcement would be placed on campus.
“99.9% of the time it’s somebody making a hoax,” Frasca said. “But I’m not going to take the chance that we will be that 0.1%.”
This is not the first time Frasca has dealt with shooting threats in his career—situations that happen more than people realize. On Sept. 11, a threat was posted against Lyman on social media, and it was determined to be non-credible (clickorlando.com). A similar situation arose at
Lake Minneola High School on Sept. 22 after someone airdropped a threat to multiple students in the classroom (Fox 35 News). The common denominator is that none of these threats are credible.
“I think that for some students who are struggling with things, they know they can get attention,” Frasca said. “Overwhelmingly, there’s no intention to action—no intention to carry out the threat.”
If a student is found to be threatening a school shooting, the disciplinary consequences go far past lunch detentions, regardless of their true intent. Frasca explained that each situation is different, but expulsion and arrest are likely.
“You have to look at each circumstance as it’s presented to you,” Frasca said. “But there are some very significant consequences that can be applied.”
As shooting concerns continue to grow across
the country, school safety initiatives constantly get updated. At a September county meeting, SCPS principals were told about safety campaigns that will encourage students to follow security procedures. The campaigns could start within the next few months.
“We want to keep our campus safe without causing a panic,” Frasca said.
No matter what policies schools have in place, the expectation is that students take safety seriously and actively participate in the process. According to Frasca, the biggest help throughout the investigation was students coming forward with information. He encourages students to speak up if they see or hear of anything suspicious, as it is the best way to keep campus safe.
“Any piece of information a student has relating to campus safety, they need to say something,” Frasca said. “See something, say something.”
Establish
Admin interviews students
Use interviews and footage
down who could have
Determine
“SHOOTSEE SOMETHING, SAY SOMETHING In recent years, shooting threats have become more common in schools. Principal Robert Frasca advises students to speak up if they find anything suspicious. Illustration | Josephine Lim
supposedly rule the school.
Juniors are almost on their way out. Sophomores are congratulated for making it this far. Then there’s the dreaded freshman class.
EAs you yell “Do it, do it, do it” then boo the freshman, think about what you’re doing. Is it really all that necessary? As you rush the gym floor, is it necessary? The dangers, sense of “team spirit” and mandatory participation in the pep rally take away from the experience.
SPep rallies are a fun way to introduce school spirit and camaraderie into all schools, almost like a team bonding activity, but booing your teammates doesn’t really make a perfect team. Through chants in which every class gets
to cheer for themselves and while each class is respectively booed, freshmen get it the worst.
Most can understand the anti-freshman sentiment because there was a time when they were the victims, but this is not the message to send in someone’s first year of high school. The feelings of so-called “hatred” for freshmen may not even run that deep, yet the actions still persist. Since pep rallies are held before games, it should be the home team vs. away teams—not home team vs. home team. Maybe more encouraging cheers could be worked into the process, like seniors chanting “SENIORS” instead of booing freshmen.
Another problem with pep rallies is the fight for the coveted spirit stick. When people get excited, their best judgment disappears. It is only a matter of time before someone gets hurt rushing the floor.
In the midst of all the enthusiasm, the administrators have trouble keeping rowdy students in their spots. Imagine: through all the rushing adrenaline and excitement of just being where you are, you and your friends decide to rush the gym floor, for the spontaneity of it all. Fun, right? Wrong. Fun for some students, but not as much fun for everyone else.
The mandatory participation should not be forced upon students. Think of this as a win-win: decreased attendance could help with space issues. If people want the option to opt out, then they should be aware that they could. It could help those sensitive to loud noises, and it could aid those that are concerned about COVID and may be immunocompromised.
The moment changes are made is the moment when things could start to get better.
band plays “Industry Baby,” the cheerleaders do backflips from other cheerleaders’ hands and the football team runs into the gym one by one to the cheers of the audience.
Pep rallies have always been a great way for students to feel a connection with their school, their grade level and see many of the performing arts and sports the school has to offer. They might not be perfect, but pep rallies are a high school highlight and should stay the way they are.
The cheers and competitions between classes create a sense of pride for the students. Cheers also create excitement within each class and encourages students to be more active in school activities. Some may
point out that the booing might lessen school spirit, but considering it is mostly equally spread between grades, it is unlikely to do anything other than empower the grade to cheer louder.
This not only increases camaraderie and gives students time to hang with their friends who they might not see elsewhere in the day, but also ensures the students are excited for, attend, and successfully represent their school, as it tends to be many schools’ first impressions of other schools. So without pep rallies, students will have less time to let loose from the stress of school and hang out with their friends. For some, the fact that these pep rallies are not optional can be a cause for annoyance, though they are much better than needing to finish off the week watching the clock while doing schoolwork.
In addition to the de-stressing, pep rallies also give the Performing Arts department the chance to show off the skills they learned for football season. This can create an interest for the arts as other performances, including halftime shows, are only attended by a portion of students. With mandatory pep rallies every student has the opportunity to see and hear all the performances.
Some schools do not have pep rallies and school spirit suffers, such as different charter schools like Econ River High School.
Overall, pep rallies help students get closer and have more fun all the while, by promoting student participation. This allows students a break from school work and increases student pride. So while no pep rallies are perfect, high school without them would be merely a bland routine.
What would you think of someone who said: “I know how to administer CPR. However, I will not administer CPR unless you’re a hot female… If you’re some fat dude and you just had a heart attack and I don’t really know you, you’re gonna die.”
Or this: “There are very few fat lonely men aged 60. With no money or family or hobbies. Who aren’t depressed–this is not a clinical disease. Most ‘depressed’ people are too lazy, it’s that simple ”
And this: “I think that women belong to men.”
You would think anyone who heard these comments would write him off as absurd, right? Unfortunately this is not the case. The person behind these quotes, Andrew Tate, is insanely popular across multiple online platforms. He is a highly controversial social media influencer who was banned from a range of social media sites due to the misogynistic content he created. He has been surrounded by human trafficking, abuse and fraud allegations as well as disturbing podcast appearances—and yet his fanbase continues to grow.
Tate’s wild ideas have received widespread support from young adults age 14 to 21, who make up his main audience. His listeners are constantly exposed to content that repeatedly encourages abuse towards women, dismissal of mental illnesses and discriminatory content. Although the messages he spreads are a big problem, the most dangerous part is that listeners get the idea that these harmful beliefs are normal. It is terrifying how large his outreach, popularity and influence have gotten over his younger male audience.
The thing most of his supporters miss is that Tate may only be spreading his deranged ideas, not because he believes them, but to expand his reach and to profit off of it. He gives listeners who are unsatisfied with their life a marketable solution— hating women—and they fall for it. Not only that, he manipulates true concepts like happiness and gratefulness and spins them into vessels for hatred.
“A bomb in Syria or a chemical attack in Yemen. There’s someone your age who just was given some bad f* news. This is why most of you f* don’t understand—you are not grateful for what you have,” said Tate. “If you were to sit there and explain your problem like ‘Yeah I’m depressed,’ and all your stupid reasons why you don’t like your life, they’ll switch in a heartbeat.”
The reality is that Tate is playing us all. He has a goal—a goal that he is reaching with our lack of thinking and countless interactions with his content. He wants everyone to react, it does not matter if it is positive or negative as long as it increases his popularity. Tate is able to reach this because we give fuel to the fire. Even as his personal accounts had been taken down, he still appeared in other creators’ podcasts who tried to debate him. These people fell for his game as they provided him a platform to voice more harmful opinions. They provided him views and recognition to start and collect even more followers.
We do not think about how our actions will affect his exposure. All the hate commentators, all the podcasts that make him a guest speaker. We are bringing more views to his content, and because of that we have the responsibility to shut him down. We all need to do a better job of distinguishing between truth and absurdity, how to recognize someone’s true intentions, and when we should give attention to —or ignore— controversies and the people involved in them.
Tate has recently posted a “final message” video where he explains that the social media ban had helped him become a better person and “get the reset he desperately needed.” It is hard to say if Tate truly will refrain from using social media and focus on charity work. Whether these allegations are true or not will not take away the negative influence he has brought to his young listeners.
The truth is that all was said and done, clips of his opinions have already been posted, reposted, saved—there is no way to get rid of the content. The question is what we, as viewers, will do with all these clips. Will we decide to discard them or keep interacting with them? And will we keep interacting with people who come after Tate, copycats or fans.
It is hard to ignore content that blatantly shames you or those around you, but we need to calmly assess the best way to deal with these people.
Do not bring them attention, that is what they strive for. That does not mean, however, to silently listen when someone is talking or even joking about these controversial figures. A simple “I don’t agree with ___’s views and rather not talk about him” will suffice. Just dismiss the topic and move on. It is not worth giving time and audience to someone who would not repeat the argument in front of his own mother.
We are used to seeing undocumented immigrants on the news, filmed huddling under shelters along the U.S. southern borders, and we’re used to hearing about them from feuding politicians who give “hot takes” on recent tragedies to mark their vote counts up a notch. Undocumented immigrants are given many faces on the national stage, but they are rarely seen as human.
When Gov. Ron Desantis’ administration paid Vetrol Systems Company $165,000 to transport immigrants from Texas to Massachusetts on Sept. 25, that fact rang true.
As an outspoken opponent to the Biden administration and its motion to appeal COVID-19 border restrictions in May, DeSantis has used countless tactics to target their policies, including Executive Order 21-223, which he issued in July 2021 to directly counteract the Biden administration’s open-border practice, prohibiting families from providing shelter to undocumented children and discouraging Florida agencies from assisting the Department of Homeland Security in the transport of illegal immigrants.
But recently, DeSantis’ attacks have gone beyond policymaking, bearing resemblance to careless popularity stunts. In transporting immigrants from Texas to Massachusettes with no means of shelter and little warning, then chalking the incident off as a personal victory, he shows his belief that immigrants’ lives are insignificant in contrast to his approval rates. And as DeSantis is only one of three Republican governors who have recently authorized the transportation of immigrants to northern, Democratic states, his actions do not come from genuine concern, but are only a part of a political catfight that immigrants are in the middle of.
It should go without saying that someone’s origins should not dictate how they are treated, but somehow, politicians always find a way to waive those morals when it comes to immigrants.
Sophia Canabal | Lifestyles EditorHagerty High School
3225 Lockwood Blvd.
Oviedo, FL 32765 hagertyjourn@gmail.com
Phone: (407) 871-0750
The BluePrint is a studentproduced newspaper in which the student editors make all content decisions. The newspaper belongs to the Columbia Scholastic Press Association, the National Scholastic Press Association and the Florida Scholastic Press Association.
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Brit Taylor Principal Robert Frasca
through Instagram stories, you notice a repost with a shocking headline: “Texas Schools Require Clear Bags To Prevent Students From Bringing In Books.” In a rage, your friend captioned his post “F America, we don’t have freedom anymore!” Seems like a serious problem, right?
Nope. The article was written by The Onion, a satire site.
As social media continues to become a more popular platform for political protest, misinformation is at an alltime high. Infographics, articles and pictures that look even slightly convincing tend to spread across platforms like wildfire. The problem is a complete lack of research and fact-checking, and it leads to untrue beliefs and unnecessary anger.
Of course, the headlines and posts that make our jaws drop are the ones we accept the quickest. According to a study by Nature, social media users were more likely to believe headlines that matched their political beliefs than those that were not. On top of that, users were more likely to share posts that were politically concordant, regardless of if they believed it was accurate.
One graphic that spread across Instagram was a banned book list. With all of the new education laws and textbook bans in Florida, it would make sense for a new ban to surface. While books from the list, like “To Kill a Mockingbird” and “Of Mice and Men,” have been the subject of bans across the country, other books, like “The Lord of the Rings” and the “Harry Potter” series, have not. An entire platform lost control for no good reason. A single Google search would have revealed that the list was not real.
If someone feels the need to advocate for a cause on their social media account, they should care enough to research it beforehand. Misinformation has a tendency to target and hurt specific groups of people; when people posted that monkeypox spreads only among gay people, the LGBTQ+ community was rightfully upset. Nobody should have to read lies about themselves.
Before you repost any debate-inducing information, do your research. To find out if a post is credible, look at where its information is from. Reliable news sites include the Associated Press and The Wall Street Journal—not The Onion. Additionally, if you see a picture with an outrageous caption, reverse search it before you share by pasting the image into Google. It will reveal the original source and context of the photo, either proving or disproving what social media made it out to be.
Beyond researching the publisher, using fact-checking sites like PolitiFact and Snopes can further verify whether information on social media is true. Social media platforms
do a poor job of fact-checking—none of The Onion’s posts are flagged as satire, and only blatantly obvious jokes get penalized. Use sites that clear up misconceptions about current events and provide facts that are not tainted by opinions or dramatic wording.
The bottom line: social media users need to think before they post. Good fact-checking and mediaconsuming skills are not only useful for social media scrolling; they come in handy when watching political ads for the next month. Research information before spreading it, and realize that the angry, dramatic headlines are often not true.
Illustration | Andrew WilsonDespite its recent release, BeReal is ranked top four in social media downloads behind Instagram, Snapchat and Pinterest
have two minutes left to BeReal!”
Grabbing her instrument before band practice, junior Lauren Verstrate ran back to her locker to rummage for her phone, hoping she would be able to post her BeReal on time.
“My friend yelled that the BeReal went off and we all started running and laughing. I
always try to post on time,” Verstrate
unedited, unplanned photo a day. This is done by sending a daily, time-sensitive notification randomly, prompting users that it is “Time to BeReal.” Once this notification is received, users have two minutes to take their BeReal, where the app takes a photo using both the front and back cameras to capture the user’s full surroundings.
“
- Emma Greenier, 11
As BeReal has brought a new wave of authenticity to social media, many students have embraced this new change and become avid posters on the app, enjoying the routine of posting their BeReals on time.
pressure of posting on social media for Verstrate, and altered it into a positive
“Whenever BeReal goes off, I do it right away, except if it goes off during my practice time,” junior Emma Greenier said. “I love posting on time because it gives a real representation of being real in that moment and not faking fun.”
said. “Instead, you create something
“It helps you not be fake,” Verstrate and it is just you in your natural state.” After blowing up on TikTok in early 2022, BeReal became one of the most popular apps of the summer, allowing it to gain new users through social media
“I first downloaded BeReal because I had heard about the app from my friends,” senior Aryan Patel said. “My first impression was that this was going to be boring, but since I tend to enjoy sharing my fun moments with friends and also seeing what fun things they
Originally released in 2020, the app encourages users to post one
Since cued post times often overlap with class time, BeReal has also reached teachers and staff. One way staff have interacted with the app is through students asking them to take their BeReals, often capturing the teacher in the post as well.
“It’s more fun to have a staff member take your BeReal because most adults aren’t aware of what BeReal is, so they aren’t prepared for their photo to also be taken,” junior Cailin Kilkenny said. “When the staff member sees their photo they are usually shocked and it makes the BeReal even more authentic and funny.”
Along with BeReal’s goal of showcasing more genuine depictions of peoples’ lives, the app also works
I love posting on time because it gives a real representation of being real in that moment and not faking fun.
“I like to have interesting people take my BeReals because it makes them stand out, it’s fun to see how people react.”
- Savannah Nguyen-Meyer, 11
Photos | Nadia Knoblauch and Julia Sumpter
to combat toxicity that can be found on other social media apps. BeReal’s gimmick is that it shows real-life situations, unlike other social media apps like Instagram. Through the app, students have begun to notice the differences between people’s social media lives and their real ones.
“Instagram is a great way to alter the way people see you and your real personality and lifestyle,” Greenier said. “People can put on a fancy outfit and Photoshop some background in their pictures to make their life seem like something it is not. I think the app BeReal changed the way people think to ‘Wow, this might make people seem as something that I’m not.’”
Even so, some students believe that BeReal can still be used to warp the appearance of users’ lives. As the app still allows users to post late, some take advantage of this and wait until later in the day, or even the next morning to post their BeReal. By doing this, people can control the environment they are in, their appearance and the overall look of their BeReal post, which in hindsight, is not truly showing an accurate depiction of their life.
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by
presence, many find themselves taking BeReals in odd or awkward situations, making their posts and feed especially interesting. Users can react to these by using “RealMojis,” which are photos they can take of their live reaction to the post, helping the app to be even more genuine and sincere.
“One time when my BeReal went off, two of my friends were fighting,” Kilkenny said. “When you take a BeReal in a strange situation you tend to get more reactions and comments, one time I had over 20 reactions.”
However, BeReal’s random notifications can sometimes go off at the perfect time, according to junior Katie Pollack, whose BeReal went off while at the Lady Gaga Chromatica Ball concert.
I think in some cases it can feel fake to post late, but in other cases, the timing of the BeReal is just inconvenient.
- Bryce Padilla, 11
“I thought it was cool because Lady Gaga is my favorite artist and she has had such an impact in my life,” Pollack said. “I was able to use this to document my experience in a unique way, getting both her on stage and me in the photo at once.”
“I sometimes choose to take my BeReal late either because I forget to do it on time, or I know I’ll be doing something more interesting later,” junior Bryce Padilla said. “I think in some cases it can feel fake to post late, but in other cases, the timing of the BeReal is just inconvenient.”
Despite the app’s efforts towards a more positive and realistic social media
Through simple notifications, BeReal has helped change the way students view their social media presence while also incorporating a new form of contact between friends into their daily routines.
“I think BeReal is so popular because you can share a moment with everyone at once,” Kilkenny said. “Having the app adds excitement to my daily life because when I am doing something fun or interesting, I am excited to get my notification so I can share those moments with my friends.”
The app is most widely
used in the United States, followed by the United Kingdom and France
BeReal has over 21.6 million active monthly users, with over 2.9 million daily app visits
perfect Gaga Alexis Barreyat, a former employee for GoPro, founded BeReal in 2020
Nina Nesbitt’s third album, “Älskar,” features 12 new pop tracks. Throughout the album, Nesbitt has a soft voice that portrays beautifully in every song she sings on the album. And with a mix of piano, guitar and violin throughout the album, each track is an instrumental surprise. Throughout the 38 minutes of the album, released Sept. 2, topics ranging from love to loss to heartbreak to living life to the fullest are covered in creative ways. With Nesbitt’s transfixing voice and instrumentals, “Älskar” is definitely an album everyone should listen to.
- Angelica Mendez
“Cobra Kai” season five picks up right where season four left off. Released on Sept. 9, it has lots of the action and drama fans loved in the previous seasons. Season five takes time to explore aspects of characters only hinted at before while also giving long-standing characters more depth. With its bright colors, plot twists and complex characters, it is no wonder why this show is so popular.
If you like the original karate kid movies, or just action, and drama you should definitely check it out.
- Audrey SmyersReleased Sept. 8, “Pinocchio” is the latest in the new line of live action remakes of Disney classics. The CGI at times is too obvious and overwhelming, like at Pleasure Island. Viewers can get sensory overwhelmed, even through the screen because the colors are too bright and too dim at the same time, making a dizzying sense of dirtiness and vivid lights. One of the other problems with “Pinocchio” is that some of the messages were displayed in harmful and damaging ways. No lie–this movie was not worth watching.
The new Netflix movie “Do Revenge,” was released Sept. 16. Even though it was a little confusing with the setting at times it was still put together nicely. The movie was entertaining the whole way through and kept the audience wondering what was going to happen next. There was so much tension and drama throughout the whole movie that it made it so fun to watch. All of the fake friendships and unexpected backstabs is what really makes this movie enjoyable. If you like thrillers, comedies, and unexpected scenes, this is a must see.
- Nicole Thompson
Halloween Horror Nights started on Sept. 8 and will continue on select nights until Halloween. This year HHN has 10 breathtaking houses, but the top six are: The Weeknd: After Hours Nightmare, Descendants of Destruction, Halloween, The Horrors of Blumhouse, Bugs Eaten Alive and Dead Man’s Pier: Winters Wake. However, the other four houses are still amazing and should not be disregarded. And the haunted houses are not all HHN has. Halloween Horror Nights is something everyone should experience at least one in their lifetime.
- Katie Karel
“Don’t Worry Darling” stars some of the world’s biggest stars including Harry Styles. Released in theaters Sept. 23, this film takes place in the 1950s and follows Alice (Florence Pugh) as she notices her ‘perfect life’ is not as perfect as everyone makes it out to be. The mystery and suspense throughout this movie draws viewers to its captivating storyline. With its phenomenal acting, cinematography and storyline, “Don’t Worry Darling” is sure to keep all of its viewers intrigued throughout the full two hours.
- Julia Sumpter
“Splatoon 3” arrived Sept. 9 and has already blown up, becoming the most bought game in Japan where it was initially released. There are some new features that make it different from “Splatoon 2,” but it may not be worth the $60. The core game seems to not have changed much, except for the addition of new maps, mechanics and guns. While there are many tweaks to help benefit the experience, there are not any real gamechangers from “Splatoon 2.” Nintendo made “Splatoon 3,” with not much changes from past versions.
Released on Disney Plus Sept. 30, “Hocus Pocus 2” is the long-awaited sequel to the 1993 classic “Hocus Pocus.” However, unlike the original, this new adventure of the Sanderson Sisters was not quite as bewitching as the original. Although the movie introduces two new main protagonists, they seemed merely like background characters. Since the sequel happens 29 years after the original, better quality would be expected, but the modern sequel to “Hocus Pocus” did not live up to the 1993 original.
- Angelica Mendez
When junior JJ Carbon left his friend’s house, he expected to go home and have a fun night before the school year started. He was helping his friend figure out how to play a phone game when, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a car pulling out in front of them. He pointed at the car and shouted to driver Austin Yonkin, but it was too late.
“I woke up with blood dripping out of my mouth,” Carbon said. “As soon as I realized what happened one of
my older friends got me out of the car because it caught on fire. I just fell to the ground.”
Carbon was in the passenger seat driving to his house on 419. They were nearing the Publix before the intersection of 419 and Snow Hill Road, going straight, when a car pulled out of the Publix parking lot
running a stop sign. Yonkin thought the car would see them and stop, but it kept going.
Carbon’s car impacted the back left side of the other vehicle. Both vehicles spun out in opposite directions, and Carbon’s car went over the median straight into a tree. The car started to smoke and caught on fire. Multiple people in the surrounding area rushed to help and were able to get Carbon and Yonkin out of the car before the fire could reach them.
intestines and a part of my colon because of how damaged they were,” Yonkin said.
The police shut down that part of the road for around three hours to conduct an investigation of the crash. It was determined that the car that came out of the Publix parking lot was at fault for not yielding to a stop sign.
This
front
Carbon’s
going
“After they took me out of the car, I felt like I was dead—I was going in and out of consciousness,” Carbon said.
When first responders arrived at the scene, they conducted five trauma alerts to let the hospital know there were severe injuries, and immediately transported them to the hospital. Carbon had a broken femur, hand, and two bones in his shoulder, and suffered whiplash and a concussion. Carbon and Yonkin were transported to the Orlando Health trauma center to be checked for any life-threatening injuries. Yonkin went into emergency surgery for internal bleeding and two broken vertebrae in his back.
The Oviedo Facebook group was filled with people’s opinions of the accident. Everyone assumed that it was Yonkin’s fault because he and Carbon
are both teenagers. Some rumors going around were that they were not wearing seat belts and were not paying attention.
“In a matter of minutes everyone in Oviedo knew about the accident,” Carbon said. “No one knew the real story of how it happened, and most assumed we were at fault.”
Carbon, a varsity football and baseball player, had been looking forward to his junior year since it meant the start of the recruiting process for college athletics.
ROAD TO RECOVERY JJ Carbon comes back to school after not being able to come for the first two weeks. Carbon was in a car accident that led him to have multiple serious injuries. Photo | Ava West
activities. The doctors believe there will be a long road to recovery, but he could possibly be back for baseball season this spring.
“I am starting physical therapy for my femur to try and gain the strength back in my left leg,” Carbon said.
Yonkin has come home from the hospital and has been able to walk around and do some daily tasks. He has to sleep with three pillows under his back to make an arch and has to attend physical therapy.
“I can finally eat real food and live a somewhat normal life,” Yonkin said. “Just going day by day and praying to heal quickly.”
where both head-on collisions happened. GoFundMe links are set up for Carbon and Austin Yonkin and are linked in the story.
Carbon was in the hospital for three and a half days recovering before he was able to go home. He had two surgeries for his femur and the top of his hand. Yonkin was in the hospital for a week recovering from his injuries.
“They had to remove around a foot of my
“The first thing I remember thinking after the accident was ‘How am I supposed to continue to do what I love?’” Carbon said. “I was looking forward to this season to get recruited and get a scholarship to go to college, at that time it seemed like my dream was ripped away from me.”
Carbon missed the first two weeks of his junior year to heal. He is now back at school walking around and continuing his healing process mentally and physically. He has been cleared to run and do atheltic
Carbon’s goal is to be able to play baseball this coming season and is willing to do anything he can to heal as quickly as possible.
“He is a great kid, he is just one of those people that you can never replace,” varsity assistant baseball coach Jacob Colquhoun said. “He can and will bounce back from this, his athleticism is one of his best qualities and I look forward to when he steps on the field again.”
Carbon and Yonkin both have GoFundMe pages set up to help contribute toward their medical bills.
“After they took me out of the car, I felt like I was dead—I was going in and out of consciousness.”
- JJ Carbon, 11
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years ago, Heather Ambrosi volunteered at the Special Olympics, cheering on athletes with disabilities as they raced down the track. Twenty-eight years ago, she found her passion in Special Education. Today, Ambrosi is one of eight Exceptional Student Education teachers who serve over 250 students at Hagerty, with classes ranging from Learning Strategies to Social Personal Skills.
ESE is defined as specially designed instruction for students with disabilities. These disabilities include an autism spectrum disorder, a speech impairment disorder or an emotional or behavioral disability.
When a student is eligible for ESE services, the classes they are placed in can range from AP courses to selfcontained classrooms, depending on the severity of their disability. In self-contained classrooms, one teacher instructs students on all their core subjects using a tailormade curriculum. In ESE teacher Tammy Harris’ class of 14, lessons are chunked and cover the same content as a regular class, but with less detail. After retiring from a career in journalism, Harris was drawn to ESE teaching after subbing in one of the classes.
whether to help them out with notes or homework or simply to interact and socialize with them.
Historically, education systems, including Seminole County, have received backlash for isolating ESE students from the rest of the general population, not giving them the same opportunities as typical students. However, with programs ranging from the PIT crew to the years-old Best Buddies Club, Hagerty is seeking to turn the stigma around.
A relatively new program to the school, PIT crew has grown from one member to 23 in one year. Assistant Principal Douglas Miller, who oversees the ESE programs, hopes the growth of PIT crew will foster more bonds between the ESE and general education students.
“People are often just scared to interact with ESE students because they don’t know how to, because they’re not exposed to that on a regular basis,” Miller said. “One of the missions of PIT crew is to expose people to ESE students and to dispel those myths and make them not so scary to interact with.”
people, especially when the payback is immediate and gratifying.
“
It’s really rewarding because you feel good about helping people and [the ESE students] really appreciate you.
“One of the primary things [that stood out to me] was their desire to really learn and grasp a concept,” Harris said. “And the pride that they feel when they accomplish something, even if it’s just a small step.”
- Annalise David, 12
Freshman Brooke Leonard is one of the PIT crew members. Motivated by her passion of working with special needs children, Leonard accompanies ESE students to volleyball class, teaching them basic plays and teamwork skills. She hopes that small actions like these will make a big impact on people’s lives.
“It’s really rewarding because you feel good about helping people and [the ESE students] really appreciate you. They really get to know you and you get a whole new set of friends,” she said.
David is also a member of Best Buddies, an after school club that seeks to integrate ESE students with the general population through club events like ice cream socials and music fests, all with the goal of fostering an appreciation for everybody’s differences.
For many ESE teachers, part of what makes their job rewarding is seeing their students grow. Ambrosi often has her students for all four years of high school, meaning she is able to watch them flourish and mature from young kids to adults, all while learning to embrace their disability.
Along with their core subject classes, ESE students attend elective classes such as Culinary, TV Production and art. In this way, ESE and general education students have a chance to interact and form connections outside an academic environment. In many of these classes, Peer Inclusion Team members accompany ESE students,
“Even when I’m walking with an ESE student in the hallway and people see me with them, I hope it shows that the world should be more of an inclusive place. Everybody should feel included walking around,” Leonard said. “Seeing just one person walking with an ESE student, seeing that might change people’s perspective.”
Similarly, senior Annalise David, a fellow PIT crew member, loves helping
“I think [Best Buddies] has cultivated a better understanding of what ESE kids are capable of and just understanding that ESE students are just like any other kid,” sponsor Tammy Harris said. “They have the same interests, they have the same likes, same dislikes as any other high school kid.”
Best Buddies meets on Fridays in room 7-107, and students interested in joining can join the GroupMe or follow them @hagertybestbuddies on Instagram for updates on club information. Those interested in joining PIT crew can request the course from their counselor for the next school year.
“Some of these students struggled with physical disabilities, and some with learning disabilities. Some were told they would never go to college or wouldn’t even graduate high school, but they all did,” Ambrosi said. “I am so proud of all of them, and to think I was just a small part of their success means the world to me.”
There is often a stigma that says ESE students are not smart enough, not good enough, that they will never be good enough. ESE teacher Darlene Mellott, who teaches a class of 11 students, feels that these stereotypes are wrong, and ESE students are just as capable of success as other students.
“Maybe people think ESE students are not capable of being successful academically,” Mellott said. “I would tell these people that they are wrong. They are kind and lighthearted students who just want to be like everyone else.”
BEST BUDDIES Sophomores Gabriella Heina and Angelina Acero enjoy some ice cream during the Best Buddies ice cream social on Aug. 26. Best Buddies members are partnered up with an ESE student as a buddy throughout the year. Photo | Janell Lim
with pearls, fur coats, tea dresses and classic vintage jewelry, senior Abby Adkins’s closet looks like it came straight out of a classic old Hollywood movie.
Periods like the ‘40s, ‘70s, and early 2000s, are eras of fashion that are incorporated into styles today. For Adkins, her passion for old Hollywood has influenced her personal style in major ways.
Many accessories that people add to spice up plain outfits are actually classic pieces of history. A simple bracelet or necklace passed down from a grandparent could be something that was rocked in the ‘40s, adding a vintage flare. For Adkins, that flare comes from an opal bracelet she has that was given to her by her grandmother.
“It’s my favorite piece. It reminds me of something my favorite actress, Doris Day, would wear,” Adkins said. “I love my style because I can add little things into my outfits each day that some people wouldn’t consider to be vintage.”
In the ‘20s and ‘40s, old Hollywood stars like Lauren Bacall and Judy Garland were all the rage. When it came to fashion, glamor and elegance were the main goals behind the outfits that were rocked by classic old Hollywood figures. As this time was so loved, many of the trends have made a comeback.
While the ‘20s and ‘40s were glitz and glamor, the ‘60s and ‘70s were flare pants sold out in stores and ‘hippie’ being the title everyone wanted to carry. This was a time of eclectic styles in their own colorful way, evolving from the teen rebellions over the strict values of decades past. It takes on a very laid-back yet chic vibe borrowing from celebrities such as Cher, The Beatles and Jimi Hendrix.
Junior Aubry Bogdany takes inspiration from iconic ‘70s musician, Stevie Nicks, who used velvet and layering to create that ‘whimsy-goth’ style, influencing Bogdany’s fashion choices today.
“My style [is] hippie and a little bit of grunge. I love pairing different pieces together and layering. It creates a very flowy look,” Bogdany said.
More recently, the early 2000s featured Lizzie McGuire, butterfly clips and frosted lip gloss. People began to view their style as an extension of their identity and who they wanted to be. Rhinestones were one of the biggest trends, found on pants, shirts, hats and jewelry. Junior Cherokee Penn loves this trend.
“The rhinestone cross shirts, necklaces and skull patterns are my favorite,” Penn said. “I see people who emulate the style I want and get the motivation to try to create outfits inspired by them,” Penn said.
Penn often takes inspiration from those around her, whether that be a friend or just someone passing by.
Alongside Penn, junior Misa Gibbs also loves experimental fashion of the early 2000s. According to Gibbs, she likes to keep people guessing, straying away from predictability and consistency, often getting inspiration from different cultures in the early 2000s trends.
“I’m inspired by black women on social media and in person who have outfits that other black people may be scared to try. They inspire me to make a change with the stereotypes,” Gibbs said. “Harajuku and Gyaru fashion have also had a big impact on me and a lot of my outfits this year”
Fashion has the power to motivate creativity and confidence, as well as motivates people to go to school. By taking advantage of the freedoms of different dress codes over the years, many people, such as Gibbs, find comfort in adding unique pieces to their fashion and expressing themselves through their style.
“In elementary school, I used to wear different tiaras everyday to make my outfit unique. As I got older, I had realized that I have more freedom in school to wear what makes me happy,” Gibbs said.
One of the many things that fashion has had in common throughout history, is its bold nature. Fashion begs for freedom, creativity, and expression. Colors, funky pieces and jewelry are all ways that the classic early 2000’s trend is achieved. “What I like about 2000s fashion was how it was so free; no one really cared what you wore. And almost every trend at the time had such a bold statement, especially for POC women like Rihanna and Beyonce,” Gibbs said.
Sophomore Angelina Aragón -González is
used to moving around, first from the U.S. to Colombia and then back again. However, moving around is not something unique in Colombia, but rather, an unfortunate fact of life.
“Specifically in Colombia, you never stay in one place,” Aragón-González said. “It’s really hard to live your entire life in one place because there’s usually always something going on with the government. So they make you move out and it impacts everyone because you have to get a new house. It sucks emotionally because every three to four years, you can’t be in the same house.”
According to Aragón-González, the Colombian government constantly tries to renovate and build new malls and stores to replicate the U.S. However, this process often involves destroying the land and the houses that people live in, including Aragón-González’s family.
“My mom loves nature. So she’ll usually have a house where there’s no other houses around,” Aragón-González said. “But the [government] would come like twice a year to tell us to resell the house. They’ll give us money so that they can stick something else there. And my mom was always mad about it but she had to go because she was the only house around and nobody was going to fight with her.”
Although Aragón-González was born in the U.S., her mother took her back to Colombia when she was a toddler. Aragón-González spent nine years in Cali, Colombia, where she recalls running across Colombia’s mountainous landscape.
“There’s a lot of nature in Colombia, so I’d always be running up and down the hills all day,” Aragón-González said.
Her mother returned to Colombia for that exact reason: she preferred Colombia’s open spaces and nature compared to the urban landscape in America. Aragón-González eventually moved back to the US, staying with her father in Florida, because of better educational opportunities.
However, she still has fond memories of Colombia, whether it was celebrating a family tradition or a nation-wide celebration.
DRESS UP Senior Abby Adkins shops for her favorite 1920’s trend, faux fur coats. Photo | Madi DenizardFora state known for its lakefront houses, clear springs and shining seas, Florida harbors a surprising amount of water management issues–80% of the state’s lakes and springs are currently unswimmable. The culprit? Algal bloom.
As Gov. Ron DeSantis and Charlie Crist prepare to face off for the title of Florida governor in November, stagnant lakes and contaminated springs have gotten more attention as the state gradually falls victim to polluted runoff, a phenomenon that adds excess nitrogen and phosphorous into bodies of water, causing algae to grow at abnormal rates. Though DeSantis has made efforts to target harmful, blue-green algae, red tide, an annual algal bloom that plagues Florida’s west coast, still runs rampant. One of Florida’s largest sources of water supply, Lake Okeechobee, has faced strenuous pollution as a result of agricultural malpractice, causing red tide along its watershed and costing the state $23 billion in restoration efforts.
While algal bloom continues to pose a threat to local communities, students rise to the occasion, volunteering with environmental organizations to restore lakes, rivers and streams. According to Seminole Education and Restoration program
coordinator Elizabeth Pearson, she sees hundreds of high school students at lake restoration events every year.
“It seems things are heading in the right direction, and that it’s a relatively current trend to be aware of the environment and want to protect it, but seeing [students], meeting them and finding out how passionate they are makes me very optimistic.”
Senior Andy Chan initially joined SERV to rack up volunteer hours for the Bright Futures scholarship, but after attending multiple lake restoration events, he realized how important his efforts actually were. He most recently visited Grace Lake, a shoreline that SERV had to revisit, as much of the living shoreline had been washed away.
“Seeing the lake region become greener and knowing that many other people were working towards the same goal made the project feel bigger,” Chan said. “It was a reminder that the events were not one-time things, and that it takes continuous efforts by groups of people to make a difference for the environment.”
To senior Connor McLaughlin, water quality is more than just a campaign prong. An avid fisher, he is painfully aware that algal blooms pose a substantial threat to his community. As Seminole County
lays claim to the Econlockhatchee River, Lake Mills and Lake Pickett, its residents find themselves knee deep in scummy water.
“Fishing in Florida is like no other state because of the variety. You can go outside in your backyard and catch little bass and bluegill then drive 30 minutes to the coast and go catch redfish and snook all in a single morning,” McLaughlin said.
“The places and things we get to see won’t be here forever if they keep getting treated like they do.”
slowly killing the marine ecosystem,” McLaughlin said. “I hope that [future] generations can grow up fishing in Florida the same way I did.”
The pollution is really bad and it’s slowly killing the marine ecosystem. I hope that [future] generations can grow up fishing in Florida the same way I did.”
Biodiversity is exactly what Florida stands to lose; as excess algae infiltrate bodies of water, their oxygen levels quickly deplete, leaving other organisms like fish, bugs and sea grass struggling to compete for space and sustenance. This often results in eutrophication, where algae coats the surface of a lake or river, preventing organisms below it from receiving any sunlight. When searching for a spot to fish, McLaughlin looks for clear, healthy water, something that will continue to grow scarce if algal blooms are left unchecked.
- Connor McLaughlin, 12As part of the Florida Watershed Management division, the SERV program specializes in preserving freshwater systems within Seminole County through shoreline restoration, during which volunteers will place native plants along the shores of vulnerable bodies of water to create a buffer against polluted runoff, improving its water quality and preventing potential algal blooms. These lakes are often surrounded by homeowners that use fertilizer, the most common runoff pollutant, to maintain their lawns. Pearson stresses that by educating homeowners on safe lawn maintenance practices and getting involved in organizations like SERV, lakeside communities could work together to preserve freshwater quality inland while indirectly reducing pollution along the coast.
The pollution is really bad and it’s
“In just a few hours, you can see how many invasive species you’ve removed or how much litter you’ve cleaned up,” Pearson said.
WASHED AWAY Senior Andy Chan embeds a native plant along the shoreline of Lake Mills while volunteering with SERV to restore its shoreline. As part of Florida’s watershed management division, SERV recommends that lakeside homeowners create “living shorelines” to prevent fertilizer pollution and algae bloom. Photo | Sarah Hinnantget an opportunity to train on a proper facility.”
canceled by rain, injured athletes, and the inability to host top sporting events are struggles that Sam Momary Stadium is used to. To counter this and provide new life to the stadi um, the school unveiled a plan last year to renovate the track and the football field.
The renovated stadium will include a new turf field along with a rubber track and scoreboard. The target date for the end of the project is Jan. 22, 2023. The school is hoping to raise $1.2 million for the project and is currently at around $300k; if you wish to donate visit hagertystadiumproject.org.
Jeff Driskel, graduating class of 2011 and current NFL quarterback for the last six years, re corded a video in support of the project and talked about how important it is for student athletes to have the best surfaces to play on.
The introduction of a turf field for the football program changes a lot of how they will approach practices and games.
“It’s [going to] give us a consistent practice and playing surface that we can use, not just on Friday nights but all during the week [too],” varsity foot ball coach Steven Mikles said. “All of our practices will be held on the turf, which would also allow us to easily film all of our practices.”
The difference between a turf field and a nat ural grass field at first glance does not seem that apparent, but there are plenty of benefits with a turf field. Turf fields take less money to care for and for players, it allows for a more stable playing ground compared to natural grass, which has the chance of having holes.
The cancellation of games due to flooding would also become a thing of the past with the new field. This would not only benefit the football team, but also the band, color and winter guard, impact ing more than just sports.
“The turf field would hold water, but in the worst case, it would probably drain in 30 minutes,” Mikles said. “It would get rid of cancellations; it may be delayed a little bit, but cancellations won’t happen.”
The other half of the project, the rubber track, is going to be a massive upgrade for the school. Since the school’s opening, there has only been a con crete track which was the best option for the time. This would quickly become outdated with rubber tracks becoming the standard through the nation.
“I’m surprised at this community. You know, I come from a small town of 6000. In the last 18 years they’ve got three new surfaces, and it’s a school of 600. So I’m kind of puzzled,” track coach Matthew Malkovich said. “It’s unfortunate how many great athletes are going to go to the school that didn’t
A concrete track puts more force on the joints of runners, which ends up causing more injuries. The rubber track will not only provide a softer surface for runners, but allow runners to wear spikes instead of flats, their preferred type of shoe.
“We can’t get in blocks because we can’t set blocks up here without them sliding through the concrete,” junior David Erdmann-Dunlapp said. “We can’t do anything really right now. It’s an odd sce nario.”
Runners have not been able to properly train on a rubber track, which has put them at a disadvan tage at every meet in previous years.
“Training for track season, you can’t get the same experience on anything but on a rubber track. We train spikes on grass and that still doesn’t get
the same effect because you can’t get the same grip, the same stance, the same anything.” Dunlap said.
A rubber track would also allow the school to host track meets, which is impossible with an asphalt track. Home crowds can be a huge factor in running, like any sport, and an upgraded track would help that.
The renovation is a big step forward for both programs and for the school to start modernizing itself.
“You wouldn’t ask a football team to practice tackling on a road. You wouldn’t ask a baseball team to practice on gravel. That’s the equivalent to this,” Malkovich said. “We’ve been an afterthought for 18 years and finally got a principal and an ath letic director leading the charge.
UPGRADE Sophomore Katherine Smith, junior Kerry Keegan and senior Alexa Sommerfield finish their warm-up lap before practice begins. All of the runners can only wear flats on the current track, making it hard to prepare for meets. Photo | Michael Tomeo
Newgirls bowling coach, culinary teacher Matthew Thompson, thought that the girls and boys bowling teams were not very close. So instead of a normal practice, Thompson held a Master Chef competition in the culinary room. Thompson and boys’ head coach Jacob Colquhoun were the judges. The teams were split into groups where they made an appetizer, entree and dessert.
“It was so cool for them to spend time together outside the bowling alley,” Thompson said. “Those two hours we spent in [the culinary] room I think made a world of difference in our season. The whole vibe has changed, the communication has changed, the fun level has changed.”
Both the boys and girls bowling teams have made a strong run through the first half of their season. The boys are 7-2 with both losses to Lyman on Aug. 31, 2469-2461 and on Oct. 3, 2608-2491. The girls are also 7-2 with losses to Oviedo on Sept. 7, 1714-1693 and Lake Mary on Sept. 19, 1797 - 1609. So far, the girls found their biggest success against Lake Howell on Sept. 14, winning 1716-1154, and against Lyman on Aug. 31, 1649-1168.
Both freshman Cami Sanguinetti and senior
Caidyn Slawinski admitted Lake Mary was the girls’ toughest match. Lake Mary won by almost 200 pins and their teamwork seemed to set them apart.
“I think the girls were really good and they were also really loud and encouraged their teammates,” Sanguinetti said.
Until the halfway point in the season, all eight of the girls have had a chance to bowl in every match. But from now on, only the top two bowlers, Sanguinetti and Slawinski, will bowl in every game, as well as the three girls who perform the best behind them. All of the girls besides Sanguinetti and Slawinski have about a 10-15 pin difference in their averages, which is the reason they were all able to bowl for the first half of the season. Slawinski averages about 150, while Sanguinetti averages about 180 and is ranked number two in the county. But Sanguinetti feels the pressure of being the team leader.
“I feel like whenever I don’t do well, it’s probably my biggest failure because I’m [the] anchor, so it’s a lot of pressure,” Sanguinetti said.
If the team wants to make it to states, other teammates have to “step up” and average about 130-135, according to Thompson. Only two teams go to states from each district, and with Winter
Springs currently undefeated, the girls will face them later on in the season.
“The best way to dictate where you’re going to go is where you were, where you are, and where you want to be and that was the topic of our meeting at the midpoint last week,” Thompson said.
The biggest improvement that both teams will have to make moving forward is their focus during practice. Thompson feels that practice is a place to get better, even if it is a place they “lighten up” on their players. During matches, bowlers are not allowed to have their phones or eat. During practice, the teams have a two hour window to bowl as many games as they can fit in.
From new personal records to winning states, all bowlers on both teams have goals they hope to achieve by the end of the season. With a positive environment and good communication, the teams have the second half of their season to make it through before districts.
“The biggest thing I think we do this year is to try to build a culture,” Thompson said. “It’s not just all about winning, it’s about being there for each other.”
The next match for both teams will be Monday, Oct. 17 at Oviedo bowling alley at 3:30 against Lake Howell. Tickets can be bought on gofan.co.
ALL IN Left to right, junior Amber O’Berry, seniors Caidyn Slawinski, Annabella Musumeci, Payton O’Berry, and freshman Cami Sanguinetti cheer on their teammate at their match against Oviedo on Sept. 8. The girls lost to Oviedo, making it one of their only two losses this season. Photo | Levi Cal-Rivera STRETCH Senior Caidyn Slawinski bowls in a match against Lyman on Oct. 3. Slawinski is the team’s number two bowler. Photo | Brayden Bohren SWEET SWEEP Sophomore Ember Disorbo bowls against Oviedo on Sept. 8. The team beat Oviedo in both meetings this season. Photo | Levi Cal-Rivera Julia Sumpter | Print EditorLake Brantley took the final set 15-9 winning the game.
Thegirls’ varsity volleyball team lost to Lake Brantley 3-2 on Oct. 3rd in a non-conference game. Lake Brantley was ranked number five in that state while the girls were ranked number 6.
“We did not perform to the best of our abilities and we had no energy throughout the game,” outside hitter Brooke Stephens said.
The girls took the first set with a score of 25-19, but Lake Brantley fired back winning the second set 2624. The team won the third set with a score of 25-18 then Lake Brantley won the fourth set 26-24 again.
“Our hitting efficiency needs to be better and we need to work on finishing. We were up in games two and four and lost the lead,” head coach Juanitta Hitt said.
Stephens had 21 kills and 19 digs throughout the game and Libero Mayte Camacho had 25 digs.
“It was not our best game and our chemistry was not there,” Camacho said. “Next time we see them we have to play up to our own potential and take care of business,”
The girls now have a record of 14-7 after this loss. The district playoffs for the girls will start Oct. 18.
Only one team has beaten the six to two boys bowling team this season, and on Oct. 3, Lyman beat them a second time, 2608-2491. The boys said at the halfway mark of their season Lyman was going to be the toughest team they would face be cause Lyman was the only loss they had in their first seven matches. Junior Jason Sanguinetti had a perfect game going into the 10th frame but missed one strike to end with a 288.
The next time the boys will see Lyman will be in Districts where they will play Baker matches. Baker matches are made up of five bowlers who bowl in the same game together and rotate in and out. The county average is 175 and the boys team averages about 225 for Baker games, so they are confident heading into the district tournament.
The next match for the boys bowling team will be Monday, Oct. 17 at the Oviedo Bowling Alley at 3:30 against Lake Howell.
The
varsity cross country teams competed in the Florida State University Invitational on Saturday, Oct. 8. The boys’ team placed 11th in the Elite division while the girls’ team placed 23rd in Select.
Top finisher, junior Johnathan Leon not only came in 11th individually, but also broke 5K records for the school and city.
Both Leon and senior Miguel Pantojas placed within the top 60, with times of 15:28 and 16:05 respectively. Seven out of the ten boys set personal records.
The girls’ team was led by junior Alena Pezzoli, who placed 23rd with a time of 20:11, junior Kailyn David (21:32), and freshman Ava Howell (21:57). Pezzoli and Howell set personal records.
“I am proud of [my place], because I’m generally still getting used to being in the top of the races, as weird as it sounds,” Pezzoli said.
The course had many hills, the tallest of which is nicknamed “the wall” due to its extreme steepness. Getty, along with coach Tracy Lager, encouraged the runners to save their oxygen while going uphill, and instead speed up on the downhills to put more
distance between themselves and tired competitors.
Getty said that the trip is something of a “trial run” for state finals, which will be held on the same course.
The team and coaches traveled to Tallahassee the day before the race, and spent the afternoon practicing the course and the evening bonding together.
Teamwork was a large focus for this meet, from the bus rides, to the afternoon and evening before, to cheering for each other at the meet.
“Confidence breeds confidence in both yourself and your teammates,” Getty said.
On Oct. 6, the boys and girls swim teams competed in the SAC championship and both the boys and girls took home fifth place finishes totaling 667 points.
Top finishers of the meet included junior Andrew Lindsey and freshman Elle Kushner. Lindsey placed third in both the 200 and 500 freestyle, scoring a total of 56 individual points. Kushner swam the 100 freestyle and backstroke, scoring 43 individual points for the girls.
“We were nervous considering hurricane Ian canceled our swimming practices for a week, but I think we did very well as a team,” Lindsey said.
Both teams will compete in the district championship on Oct. 22.
Ava West | Sports Editor Julia Sumpter | Print Editor Abigail Neal | Staff Reporter Senior Samantha Galiano Photo | Shannon Hahn Junior Madelyn Schwartz Photo | Shannon Hahn Varsity runners at the FSU invitational Photo | Lia Miller
Karson Cuozzo | Sports Editor
Thevarsity football team was up 10-0 against Timber Creek, a team they lost to last year 41-7, with two minutes remaining. A fumble had given Timber Creek possession at the 30 yardline, and it looked like the team’s undefeated streak would come to an end. But the defense stayed solid, and stopped Timber Creek four times in a row, holding on for the win, and the student section rushed the field to celebrate.
As the team transitions into the middle of their season, they are sitting 5-0 with wins against University (28-7), Winter Springs (48-0), Timber Creek (10-7), East River (45-7) and Harmony (24-3). Starting the season undefeated is a first for the program. The team is feeling confident as ever right now.
Mentally the team feels that they are more locked in and focused than they have in the previous years.
“The mindset of everyone is different this year— we all want to win, and everyone is willing to do what it takes to win. We are more hungry. It is our goal to make it to the postseason,” corner Michael Byers said.
The defense has been exceptional, limiting teams to seven points or less every game. Although the defense is stronger than last year, there are still improvements to be made, according to corner Isaac Konz.
“The coach provides us with great defensive formations and plays, but we still have room to improve and with time, we all will improve and keep executing the plays better than we did the day before,” Konz said.
On the other side, the offense has been performing well. Quarterback Anthony Benzija has been consistent with his throws so far this season. Through four games he had seven touchdown passes and a total of 514 yards.
“Our throwing game, and especially our running plays have been really good. If we keep playing like this we will for sure make it to the playoffs this year,” wide receiver Chance Bennett said.
In the game against East River, wide receiver Zamien Oden had 20 recieving yards, one fumble recovery, one touchdown and was selected as the defensive player of the game.
Wide receiver Caleb Barber averages 23 receiving yards per game, and Bennett has an
average of 47.2 receiving yards per game. Bennett is ranked third overall for receiving in the district.
The team’s latest game was a 24-3 win against Harmony High School. They secured their fi fth win of the season, adding on to their undefeated streak. Although there were weather complications due to Hurricane Ian the week before, the team still felt prepared going into the game Friday and the rest of the season.
Despite the lopsided score, it was not an easy win for the team, the defense was fighting all game and supported the offense when it struggled.
“I thought we played well, our defense did a great job against Harmony,” Benzija said. “It was their homecoming game, so it was very loud and the tension was high, but we still pushed through.”
The offense did not play their best game, especially in the first half, but Benzija threw a touchdown pass to wide receiver Ian Miller, which put them ahead 13-3 at halftime. Running back Jeremiah Williams scored on an eight-yard run in the second half, and wide receiver Vaughn Poorman added with a two-point conversion.
The team’s record is 5-0, but they are aware that the second half of their season is going to be tough. They still have to play Winter Park, who beat them last year 41-28, and Oviedo, who also beat them last year 43-14. The team is looking ahead to their game against Colonial on Friday. Hagerty beat them last year 35-7 and hopes to do so again, especially before playing state-ranked Winter Park three days after.
Playing two games within three days is going to be tough for the team, especially since Winter Park will have had a week and a half of rest.
focused
“Winter Park is going to be a tough game—they usually always are. As long as we stay focused and ignore the outside noise, I think it will be a good game,” Byers said.
However, as they have all season, the team will rely on a heavy core of returners. Chemistry has been one of the team’s biggest attributes this season.
“Being a senior-heavy team provides us with lots of experience, which has been one of our strengths this season,” head coach Steven Mikles said. “When you have players that have been around each other for a long time, it can lead to having really good chemistry, which leads to believing in the coaches and each other.”
The mindset of everyone is different this year, we all want to win, and everyone is willing to do what it takes to win.
- Michael Byers, cornerback
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Anthony Benzija, quarterbackKameron Lujan, Jalon Lewis, cornerback Anthony White, running back