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common applications NEWS
A guide to college admissions
Many seniors left with questions about finding the perfect school
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By Annaliese Harper
With the start of the school year comes the start of a new school year’s application season. Many juniors and seniors feel lost in the process, but there is a simple method to do everything on time. The first part of the application process is knowing where to apply. What colleges should you look at? What things should you consider? “Don’t pay attention to U.S. News and World reports on college rankings,” said Laura Martens, Huntley’s college and careers counselor. While a school may be considered a “top school,” they might score poorly in the specific area of study you want to pursue. In addition, higher-ranked schools typically come with higher pressure and expectations. It might be better to go to a college in a city or a small town, a religious institution, or a secular school. All these things may vary based on career options, study methods, and personal values. “College fit is the most important. You look at what the college wants out of a student, but you also look at what a student wants out of a college,” Martens said. College visits can help you decide what kind of environment and focus would be best. Huntley High School allows two college visits per semester. “In order to get it excused from [class as] ‘excused by parent’ to ‘college visit’ on powerschool, they’ll just need to take the form with them and have someone at that college sign it,” Martens said. The form needed for this can be found on the college and careers webpage as well as within the office itself. Once the colleges are picked, it is important to consider their requirements and when their window of opportunity is. “I organized it by the colleges I need to apply to for early decision and regular decision,” senior Ellie Pahl said. This is the best way to go about applying, however, the window for early application is closing Nov. 1, so some seniors might be out of luck. But knowing when to start can help the juniors, who will be applying next year. “I like the window of September first to November first,” Martens said. “Just because you apply on August first doesn’t mean you will beat someone who applied in September.” In addition, admission representatives would also be back in school in September, as well as teachers you can ask for letters of recommendation from. “A lot of students will ask the English teachers because [they] are such good writers. They want a well written one, but that’s not really the thing that you should use,” Martens said. “Just the teacher that knows you the best.” Common App is one of the most popular ways to compile this information, and it works well because you can save as you go. Overlapping with the end of the early application process is the beginning of the process of student aid. This month, FAFSA opened, and many students were left confused on what to do, what school year to pick, and why they should fill it out at all. Aside from the fact that it is now required for graduation in the state of Illinois, FAFSA has many benefits. “You can get up to between $100 and $6,000 in grant money, money that you won’t have to pay back,” Martens said. “FAFSA is basically just an application for grant money and for student loan money. The state of Illinois uses it [and] sometimes the college requires it.” According to Martens, if a student is currently on free and reduced lunch, or is able to get a waiver for an outside SAT test that they took because of family income, then they likely also qualify for a waiver for application fees. FAFSA should be filled out for the year the student will be attending college. For example, this year’s seniors will be filling out the form for the 20222023 school year. The process may seem like a lot, but it is important to go through it if a student plans on pursuing higher education.
Seniors Ava Nielsen (right) committed to Univeristy of Kentucky on Oct. 16 while senior Nikki Darnall accepted to Univesity of Wisconsin-Whitewater on Sept. 3, her 18th birthday, and committed weeks later.
Specialized classes lacking in student interest are at risk
Classes removed from course catalog due to low enrollment
By Fiona Brady
Once a year, Huntley High School students log into their PowerSchool accounts to complete a required task; requesting the courses they plan to take the following year of school.
Students are faced with a plethora of options to choose from for their core classes and electives, and the choices they make will determine their schedule for next year.
On the first day of school, most students are used to walking into a classroom with nearly every seat filled, the desks inhabited and the floor littered with backpacks.
However, this was not the case for math teacher Stephen Styers’ Multivariable Calculus and Linear Algebra class, where only four students occupied the classroom.
Multivariable Calculus is an advanced course and has a prerequisite of taking AP Calculus BC. Passing the AP exam with a score of either 4 or 5 is mandatory prior to taking the course. The students enrolled in this course are coming directly from an advanced calculus course and must be on an accelerated math track early on. As a result, the number of students in the class are often lower than seen in a more traditional math course.
Despite having a low number of enrolled students, Styers does not let a small class deter his rigorous teaching style and high level of discipline.
“My whole goal is to teach as rigorous a class as possible because otherwise, why are you taking an AP course?” Styers said. “I promised myself that when I was teaching at this level, because my students are very smart and they’re used to getting things right away, I would push them as hard as possible so that they would become disciplined and focused… so that when they go to college, they know what discipline is.”
To Styers, a small class by no means translates to a poor level of education. According to Styers, his courses are as rigorous as you would expect to find at a university level. He is extremely dedicated to teaching his students to the best of his ability and ensuring that they are prepared for what awaits them in the future.
“I will never compromise the quality of my education. I don’t care how many people are in my classroom. I will do whatever it takes,” Styers said.
However, Multivariable Calculus is not the only course that is beginning to enroll fewer students. According to senior Brooke Lynn Phetthongsy, there are only nine students in her Zoology class this year.
Phetthongsy believes that a small number of students in the classroom has a negative impact on the collaborative environment of the class.
“It makes for a super quiet class,” Phetthongsy said. “When a class is that small, there’s less communication in the class, and no one really talks while doing work except for the teacher.”
Though different class sizes can definitely have different outcomes, the issue of classes dying out has been prevalent in the past as well. According to associate principal Shelly Kish, a few courses that have not been offered recently due to lack of student interest and involvement are Medical Spanish, AP European History, and Multicultural Literature. These classes, which have garnered less interest than others, are not completely obsolete but are not currently being taught.
“We left [Medical Spanish] on [the course catalog] for so long, but we could never get the numbers that we needed,” Kish said. “So again, if we ever thought that we wanted to try to bring something like that back, we still have it. It’s not like the course is gone, it’s just we haven’t found interest in it at all.”
According to Kish, even if a class is not offered for a year, it is still kept as an option. Classes are usually not taken off the course catalog until the class has not been consistently running for three to four years.
Another issue that can come into play while taking enrollment for classes is prerequisites. Students may find a course they are interested in, but it could require a few classes needed to be completed before becoming available for students to take.
“For some of the courses, even though it may be a really strong course, if you have to take one or two prerequisite courses to be able to get into that course, sometimes people may not want to have that commitment level,” Kish said.
Even with the decreased level of enrollment in some classes this year, there is no doubt that the level of education being given is as high-quality as ever, if not better. Students are encouraged to push themselves and take classes that both interest and challenge them.
“If you plan to take these courses you’re going to be pushed, you’re going to be challenged,” Styers said. “But you will learn, and you will get better.”
A student sits alone in a class with extremely low enrollment.
S. Hashmi
Eco-friendly buses introduced
New transportation brings District 158 one step closer to a greener future
By Ava Peters
Propane buses create less emissions than diesel buses and are quieter.
It is no secret that eco-friendly products and fuel efficient cars have been on the rise in recent years. But, a fairly new idea has been added to the mix, eco-friendly school buses.
When most people think of school buses, they think of loud, smelly vehicles that emit black smoke when they run, and it is a given that they are not helping the environment. These new buses, however, run with propane, and as a result run much quieter and create less emissions.
There are currently 25 propane buses in the district, first arriving in July. In the next five years it is expected that 100% of District 158’s school bus fleet will be propane. According to CFO Mark Altmayer, District 158 is the greenest district in Illinois, considering the solar panels combined with the total energy savings.
“I think the impact comes with just the positivity of what it can do for our environment long term. Whether somebody recognizes it or not, it’s still a benefit,” principal Marcus Belin said.
The director of operations and maintenance, Doug Renkosik, was inspired to get propane buses after seeing another district in Cook Country use them successfully. After talking with the CFO and director of transportation, they unanimously decided to get propane buses for District 158.
The propane buses, which are around $6-7 thousand more than diesel buses, which in total equate to $95 thousand for one, will save money in the long run.
“Even though a bus gets less mileage per gallon of propane as opposed to diesel, we’re getting it cheaper. But it’s in the long run, and the other equipment on that diesel bus to make the emissions clean air work that costs us more money,” mechanic Brian Schroeder said. “The overall idea is cost savings, the cost of maintenance, and the cost of the fuel. And as people think diesels are dirty, well they’re not all dirty, but they’re not as clean as propane or gasoline [buses].”
“They get really expensive to repair. Especially with the world we live in today, parts for diesel are becoming scarce and it’s getting harder to find places where you can order them,” director of transportation Laura Hooper said.
In addition to the overall cost savings of the propane buses, they are also much better for the environment than diesel buses.
“If you were to follow one [propane bus], and they were to take off from a stop sign or a stop light, you’re going to see water come out of the tailpipe. That’s the difference. We’re putting cleaner out than what the diesel was. Propane is a byproduct of the oil and gas industry. This is really just a waste product that they have refined,” Schroeder said.
With the addition of new vehicles, there is bound to be some hesitation of the unknown.
“Our maintenance and transportation departments would probably say they’re a little apprehensive about learning a new, different kind of engine. As they get experience, I think they’ll find that it’s not such a bad deal,” Renkosik said. “They did interview the people down in Cook County to understand their experience and they were fine with it after they learned about them, it’s just something new. Some people are apprehensive about something they’re not familiar with.”
The introduction of propane buses has been successful so far, but no one will really know how they will impact the district until around five years, according to Schroeder.
The next generations to come will certainly appreciate the money being used for these propane buses that are helping the overall air quality. There are still a lot of changes that need to be made in order to make the earth more green, but this is definitely a big step. S. Hashmi
NEWS | feminism Empowered women empower everyone
Senior Angie Favila creates first women empowerment club at Huntley
By Mira Terranova
As the 70+ members of the WELL Club gather in room W1207, they all have the same goal in mind: spreading and sharing their knowledge on the misconceptions of women empowerment.
Women empowerment has been a wide-spread topic on all social media platforms over the past few years. Senior Angie Favila has developed a huge passion on this topic and decided it was time Huntley High School opened up a platform for others to speak up.
She officially decided to put her interest out there by starting Huntley’s very own WELL Club. WELL stands for Women Empowerment and Leadership League, and was featured in the documentary “Girl Rising.” Favila’s passion for empowering women in our society skyrocketed after seeing this film in her Global Capstone course at HHS, so she took a leap of faith and started the club.
When Favila was asked about making a club to show her passion and advocacy for women empowerment, it clicked with her that this is something she really wanted to pursue.
“It was kind of a ‘duh’ moment to me, like why haven’t I thought of this before?” Favila said. “I thought it was a good idea to create this club, and I knew a lot of people in this community, through social media, really had the same ideas and beliefs.”
Although this club is fairly new, it has already become an outlet to many people in our school community. The WELL Club offers a safe space for anyone to open up about their past experiences and share their opinions and values. Anyone is welcome to join the club no matter what gender, race, ethnicity, or sexuality.
Senior Holly Holterhaus is an active member of the club, where she feels she can truly be herself and help her peers with any support they may need. The WELL Club has given her a unique opportunity.
“I wanted to help support other women around the world and offer help to anyone I could,” Holterhaus said. “I feel it’s important that people are finally discussing the disadvantages women have in a lot of places and situations around the world, so we can recognize the issues at hand and address them.”
This club is not only an outlet for women, but is an outlet for all. The WELL Club currently has multiple men enrolled in the club and regularly attending the meetings. Senior Ben Keaty is an involved advocate for women empowerment and is an avid member of the club.
“There’s a lot of people that are… really important in my life that are activists and feminists,” Keaty said. “So when Angie asked me last year to join, I was like, ‘of course!’”
Some plans that the club has for the future include helping out with the Spooky Buddies event, as well as hopefully dedicating time to service projects. The club hopes to hold events relating to the Girl Rising platform.
“With Ms. Sharkey being a Girl Rising educator, [she] actually talks to schools around us, so I really want that to be a future plan of interacting with different schools,” Favila said. “If we can grow it into a bigger community, that would be great.”
If any student is interested in becoming an activist for women empowerment but unsure of where to start, the WELL Club is always welcoming new members. Meetings are every other late start, starting at 7:20 a.m.
“I think people should go check it out… you can always just show up and sit in on a meeting,” Keaty said. “You can get some basic information to see if it’s something you’re interested in.”
It is not too late to start getting more involved at Huntley High School. Favila, along with the other club members, cannot wait to welcome some new members.
This is an opportunity for Red Raiders to join and help make a difference in our school and community. Senior Angie Favila, the founder of WELL Club, creates a safe space for HHS students to express themselves.
E. Armstrong
Photo by US Embassy Madrid, CC BY 2.0
“Girl Rising” was the film that inspired Favila to create the WELL Club after seeing it during her Global Capstone course.
Join the party with Super Smash Bros
Video game enthusiasts bond while competing
By Sara Gebka
The projector hums softly as it slowly comes to life; a harsh light escapes from it and projects onto the whiteboard in front of it. Excitement buzzes across the science room as the boring white board transforms into the memorable title screen that so many members have seen: Smash Club is ready for battle.
Every week club members gather in Kayla Forsythe’s classroom (W1011) on Mondays and John Nichols’ classroom (W1014) on Thursdays to “duke it out” with each other from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m.
Smash Club was created by seniors Adam Cramer and Bryan Wirth during their sophomore year; the club was originally called Blast from the Past Gaming Club.
According to Wirth, the club took inspiration from a previous video game club that was created by Huntley High School graduate Dante Fiandaca.
“I would bring in random consoles every day, and I would also bring random games with [the consoles] and ask what people wanted to play. One day, I brought in my [Nintendo] Switch and we played ‘Smash’,” Cramer said.
According to Cramer, whenever he would bring in consoles other than his Switch, members of Blast from the Past Gaming Club would complain to Cramer when they wanted to continue playing “Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.” In the end, Cramer decided to bring in his Switch during the club meetings, which in turn changed Blast from the Past Gaming Club to Super Smash Bros Club.
“I decided to just boil it all down to Smash Bros so I could carry less to school,” Cramer said.
Club members would meet in either W1011 or W1014 and set up the controllers and Switch. It would be connected to a projector which would project the Switch’s screen, making it easier to see what’s happening during each game rather than having everyone squished together next to a small screen.
Additionally, controllers are provided by the club, so students who want to join the club don’t need to worry about that.
Blast from the Past Gaming Club originally had seven memberws in its club, but once the club transformed into Smash Bros Club, in addition to an in person school year, the number of members doubled.
“There’ve been a couple of new people this year,” Cramer said. “But other than that, it’s just been the same people I remember back in sophomore year.”
Freshman Ahyan Yeasin is one of the club’s newest members who recently joined Smash Club.
“School’s stressful as it is and it’s nice to hang out with friends once in a while [during the meetings],” Yeasin said.
Sophomore James Lim is also a new member of the club who just recently started joining in.
“For the first time in forever, I actually really enjoyed being in a club here [at school] and staying after school for once,” Lim said. “Everybody else here [in the club] is super nice.”
Even though the fliers around HHS mention that the new “Nickelodeon All Star Brawl” will be offered during the meetings, it is yet to be played.
“Personally, I don’t want to put it into the club, but Bryan’s been really, really persistent on adding it into the club,” Cramer said. “I’m not a fan of the game and I don’t want to add it into the club.”
Originally, Cramer believed that Smash Club would die out once he and Wirth would graduate; however, junior Joseph Music, one of the original seven members of Blast from the Past Gaming club, volunteered to take over the club once the two seniors graduated.
“I’d keep the Smash [game] but S. Hashmi
Members of Smash Club compete against one another in a tournament.
also branch out into other games that could be played competitively like ‘Skullsgirls’, ‘Nickelodeon All Stars [Brawl]’, and ‘Dead by Daylight’,” Music said.
According to Music, he is thinking about the future of Smash Club; he wants to try bringing in multiple TVs and consoles.
“I could also bring in one of those fighting game boards with six buttons since most fighting games use six buttons,” Music said.
Whatever the future holds for Smash Club, one thing is for sure, there is promise for growth and expansion; more opportunities for more games to be played; for more competitions to be waged; and for the club to grow closer together over their shared interest in gaming.
“It feels really safe, like some people are doing their own thing while others are talking to each other,” Lim said. “Everyone is here for a different reason, but we’re all here to play the same game.”
From fostered to forever home
Sophomore Kenneth Twedt’s journey through adoption
By Lindsay Schaffter
At 11 a.m., with the sun shining bright, the sound of a phone ringing broke the silence in the Twedt
Kenneth continues hoping he will have the opportunity to see him again one day and misses him terribly.
“I know I just want to find him. He’s my brother, one of my other halves,” Kenneth said.
When Kenneth was around 7 years old, he had been in the car with his parents. He had finally asked the nagging question of why he looked different than them. It was then that his parents had decided that it was time to tell him the truth.
“I was asking them why they’re white and I’m not,” Kenneth said.
It was not that Kenneth’s parents kept it from him on purpose, but it just was not a question that had come up until then.
The first time Robert saw Kenneth was at a park. The brothers had all been getting together to see each other after not being able to for a couple months.
“My first thought was how little he was. He was just about one year old at the time,” Robert said.
Kenneth had originally been born in Aurora, Illinois. He had been given to the Twedts through DCFS and adopted through Lutheran Social Services.
Now, Kenneth plays football and track at Huntley High School and, as he said, has a life just like any other kid.
He tries his best and gets average to above average grades, hangs out with his friends whenever he can, and goes to school almost every day.
“It is nice to feel involved with the community,” Kenneth said.
Luckily, he has great friends and family surrounding and supporting him through his everyday life, making it a lot easier.
For Kenneth, telling his friends about things like his adoption and the background behind it can be annoying because of how much there is to explain. It still makes him happy that he has understanding friends who do not look at him any differently.
As for Kenneth’s biological parents, their whereabouts are currently unknown.
Although this does make it harder for Kenneth to see his biological mother in person, he will not stop trying when he is older. It would mean a lot for him to meet her.
“I know that my other parents are still out there somewhere, and that makes me kinda want to find them sometime in the future,” Kenneth said.
As foster parents Robert and Amilyn have touched the lives of three boys, previously strangers to them. Throughout the struggle, they continued to put all their love and hard work into these children they were gifted with.
“We wanted these kids to be forever, not just for a little while,” Robert said.
household. As foster parents Amilyn and Robert Twedt answered the phone, the start of something new for this couple began.
Sophomore Kenneth Twedt started off as a foster child to the couple just like his older brother, Kevin, and his half-brother, Adolfo.
As 2 a.m. hit the clock on that same day, Amilyn entered her house but with 4-year-old Kevin and 3-year-old Adolfo, tagging along.
Kenneth was not brought into the picture until a few months after they were. The social worker did not want to overwhelm them with three kids all at once, so Kenneth was put into a temporary placement home.
After 3 years of fostering, Kenneth and Kevin were finally adopted in May of 2010. Kenneth had been 4, and Kevin was 7.
The couple fell in love with these two children that they had been with for a few years. They constantly feared that they would be taken from them, as they encountered custody difficulties.
“One of the hardest struggles we faced when adopting was not knowing if anyone in their biological family was going to take them from us,” Amilyn said.
It took three years for the parental rights of Kenneth and his brother Kevin to be terminated which had been very tough for the couple.
Adolfo was adopted by his biological father, and it is unknown where he is today. He had been with the Twedt family for a total of four years, leaving at the age of 7. Kenneth Twedt on the left and his older brother, Kevin, on the right.
Courtesy of Amilyn Twedt
