Observer
A Running Mans Dream
Future Olympian Track Star Pg 2 Who Does No Shave Nvember Pg 7 Native American Series Part 1 Pg 10 Live Action Get Up Pg 3 Career Making Document Pg 8 Native american Series Part 2 Pg #METOO Pg 9 12 National Adoption Month Pg 5
Future Olympian Track Star By Kira Di Franco-Brown
Four-time medalist Aaron Gilliam has motivated himself to accomplish many goals for his future and continuing his journey as a runner. His future aspiration is to join the Olympics because it’s a dream he would like to pursue and allow him to get sponsored so he can give a product to people who are less fortunate. His motivation to sign with McNeese State UniversityCollege located in Louisiana is because of the school that coach more runners like Aaron, have the experience to make his Olympic dream come true. He admires David Rooney from McNeese State because he holds the record for the 5,000 and the 10,000m, while also finishing in 7th place in the NCAA across the Cross Country Championship. His experience of the past four years has progressed successfully through time. During his first two years of high school, he expresses how difficult it was to maintain the places he earned because of how challenging it would become. But that didn’t stop him from pushing himself to be the best he can be! Aaron Gilliam has earned 60-70 medals at home and 35-40 of the medals are from his high school career. He has won between 3rd place and 2nd place, but mainly 1st place medals from the 3200m.“I feel that if I continue with my training from my junior year, I will adjust and gain a lot of experience and become the runner that I am meant to be”, he says. Gilliam’s furthest run is from 14 to 16 miles. He usually takes the run on Sundays around 4:00 to 5:00 a.m. in the morning and practicing helped him overcome this distance by working to run long mileage during his offseasons. Gilliam has a unique way of pacing himself. He trains his body so he can get used to the race pace and discomfort when he’s running fast. Because of this, he has improved very much with his running and from his experience he will definitely be the one and only Future Olympian Track Star!
Live action get up By Valeria Castillo The fashion industry is the only industry that is constantly changing. Fashion is worldwide and is viewed differently by everyone. Keeping up with all the new trends isn’t as easy as some make it look.Every season is crucial for the fashion industry because clothes has to be made to be able to feel comfortable during this time period while still looking good. Christopher Quintero and Yazmine Hallback two seniors at Irvin High School who never fail to stand out are living proof that a good outfit can make you shine in any crowd. These two together definitely kill fashion throughout the year no matter the season. When interviewed the two agreed that fall is definitely the best season for fashion. Yazmine Hallback gave her opinion on fall fashion from a female’s perspective when interviewed about the matter she responded in the following way to the questions asked. What does fall fashion mean to you? “Fall fashion is about just wearing fall colors and being very comfortable very cozy”. What are your go to colors when it comes to fall? “ i would say burgandy, mustard yellow , olive green,a kind of warm blue and gray”. Do you think fashion changes day by day ? “ yeah there is always new trends that pop up that you know we
try to do i personally try not too “. When people think fall fashion do you want them to think Yazmine or simply be inspired by you? “Yes fall is my favorite season so i show out “.On the other hand Christopher Quintero giving his opinion on fall fashion from a male’s perspective when interviewed he answered the following questions this way. What are your go to colors for fall? “Yes i like to stay with orangey reds , and brown colors , kinda if you think about it autum colors”. What do you fall fashion means ? “ fall fashion is a lot of layers so the more layers is better it’s the go too for fall fashion a lot of colors that compliment each other like a cardigan and a sweater with some boots to match”. When people think fall fashion do you want them to think Chris or be Inspired by you ? “ I would hope so i mean i try my best i throw in some scarf and hope people think of me”.Fall fashion has a wide range of styles and colors but mainly leans a little in the i’d say to the dark side of the colors, also layers are important but also can’t have to many layers to not look so bulky. Fashion is pretty diverse no matter what gender or color nothing matters as long as you feel comfortable and good about your outfit.This fall go out and show how fash-
ionable you can be , bring out the dark colors and a few layers to compliment your outfits, stay on top of the trends find what you like and make it work. Rock every outfit to its fullest this fall season and feel confident.
National Adoption Month By Sonia Becerra
Did you know there are around 107 thousand children currently waiting to be adopted? You could be that person to change a child’s life by giving them a loving, forever home. Another thing available is foster care is a temporary arrangement in which adults provide for the care of a child or children whose birthparent is unable to care for them. Mr. Medina a teacher here in Irvin High School is a licensed foster parent, we talked to him about his experience. “Everyone asked me were you attached?” “Since day one.” His licensing took over a year. We also asked him if he would eventually consider adopting, he responded “Not anytime soon but adopting will be something that we’ll be doing eventually.” Adopting is not for everyone, but it is something that you should consider at some point in your life. Only 35 thousand kids are adopted each year, most of them including babies. If you do not want to adopt you can start with fostering, fostering classes can take anywhere around 3-6 months. Then maybe after fostering adopting may be your thing. You might know someone that wants to adopt but is still doubting it, you can convince them on adopting and giving a child a new home. Adoption is not just an option for those who cannot have kids or choose not to its an option for everyone. If you have any questions or concerns you can call the Texas Adoption Center at (844) 893-7943 or visit their website at www.texasadoptioncenter.org.
Who Does No Shave November? By Aneth Lopez No shave November started by the Hill family back in 2007, when they lost their father due to colon cancer. It is supposed to raise awareness for cancer, it’s goal is to make conversation to raise awareness. In the no shave November website they mention how people do it to “embrace their hair” which many cancer patients lose. Anyone can simply do no shave November the simple rules are to not use razors or wax to remove your body hair for 30 days. All the money that would’ve been used on razors and waxing appointments would be donated to cancer research and education. The people who usually participate are men but it’s not always men who do it women can do it as well. This initiative is mostly aimed for men in this month. The reason it’s aimed mostly towards men is because it mostly brings awareness towards men’s health issues. When men participate in no shave november they have to start of the first day of the month with a clean clear face. Even if they already have a beard you must shave it at the beginning of the month. Mostly men are the ones who participate in no shave november with their beards. The ones who participate even notice the amount of money they have been able to raise for the organization. Women participate as well when women participate they do it for all kinds of cancer. The term “movember” is also used sometimes but it is slightly different from no shave november. Movember is mostly just men growing beards while no shave november is men and women putting all razors down for 30 days. Participants for NSN are encouraged to not shave any part of their body. Movember and NSN are totally different organizations but they both give their proceeds to cancer research.
Career Making document By Rene Marquez A very important document that every person seeking a career is required to know how to make is a resume. What’s a resume? Is the answer that most people who don’t have a job will give you. A resume is a personal summary of your professional history, qualifications, and experience. A resume talks about your career goals, experience, education, and your honors and activities. To those who don’t know how to write resume here’s a brief how-to on writing the document that can change your career and life. Your resume must include your name, your address, your phone, and your email address. The length of your resume should be at least one typed page with times new roman font and 10-12 point font. In your resume, you need to make an objective statement. In the statement, you can take it 2 routes either the brief and to the point or very detailed. Choose whichever suits your style of writing. In the resume put down your education history. Put the highest level you have reached first. Include the school’s contact info and address, the highest level of classes, your GPA, and the time you were there. Always include your prior work history and write down the job’s contact info with the address and include what your job description was. If you have never worked before writing down any activities you are involved and the honors you’ve received. The last thing you want to include is references. Put 4 people who you know that can vouch for you. The purpose of this mini how-to tutorial is based on a survey that 123 people participated. In the surveyed conducted only 46 out of the 123 students that were mixed with every grade level at Irvin High School said that they know how to write a resume. The results were baffling that only one-third of the people surveyed knew how to write a resume because most of them were juniors and seniors and have the chance to get a job and earn but don’t know how to construct the most important document essential for your career.
#METOO By Valeria Castillo #METOO was a hashtag created 10 years ago but was brought up again by actress Alyssa Milano who tweeted as a call out to the victims of the alleged abuse of movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, suggesting that other victims of the same or similar abuse use the hashtag.Weinstein was expelled by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences this after all the allegations of sexual misconduct said against the producer, although Harvey denies such allegations the number of claims make it questionable.Claims against Mr.Weinstein stretch back as far as three decades. Harvey had reached at least eight with women after being confronted with allegations of unwanted physical contact , sexual harassment. All these accusations coming from former employees and associates. Employees of the Weinstein Company have a contract stating that they will not criticize it or its leader in a way that i could harm its business reputation or other employee’s personal reputation, this referred to as the code of silence that Weinstein enforced.The New York Times suggested that the accusations against Harvey seem to be at odds with his public actions like his support for feminist icon Hillary Clinton and his participation in a women’s march in Park City, Utah.Weinstein apologizes for all his actions and says he is working with therapist. Numerous claims against Mr.Weinstein have brought the producer’s career to the floor. It makes you question are all movie producers the same? What does it take to reach a certain level of success in the media.
The Native American Series Part 1- An Introduction By Deborah Hill
No one could have ever anticipated the victory of gaining an entire month set to recognize the significant contributions the first Americans made to the glorious establishment of this great nation when the original fight was a measly day. For centuries, the citizens of America with ancestries tied to the original residents of this land had to live with being ignored, while the white man was much more appreciated. It wasn’t until 1990 that we payed remembrance and appreciation to the lineage of unsung heroes involved in the very foundation of the country we call home. The original prospect of an American Indian Day came from Dr. Arthur C. Parker, a Seneca Indian and the director of the Museum of Arts and Science in Rochester, N.Y. After some persuasion, what begun as an annual day set aside for the “First Americans” by the Boy Scouts of America soon turned into a formal plan by the annual Congress of the American Indian Association in 1915. The president, Rev. Sherman Coolidge, an Arapahoe, called upon the country to participate in the celebration of such a significant day. After a proclamation on September 28th, 1915, the second saturday of each May was declared an American Indian Day and helped guide a step towards the recognition of Indians as citizens. In 1990, president George H. W. Bush approved a joint resolution designating November “National American Indian Heritage Month.” This was the evolutionary step in paying tribute to the original bloodline of the greatest republic on Earth. Every year since 1994, similar proclamations under different names, such as “Native American Heritage Month” and “National American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month” have been issued as an addition to the recognition of this. The declaration of Native American Heritage Month is a noble and just act. Well deserved and long awaited, we can only hope the living generation of this valor ancestry feel appreciated at last. November will always be the month we remember the people that adjusted their land and home to the needs of their guests.
The Native American Series Part 2- Should we really celebrate Thanksgiving? By Deborah Hill Every year, on the fourth Thursday of November, we sit down with our families, have a meal, and celebrate the spirit of being thankful. It’s a long known tradition that thousands of families across the nation participate in. Even in schools, we get to take a break from our studies just to have this one meal. What’s Thanksgiving really about though? And would we still celebrate if we knew? Q. What’s your full name and occupation? A. Emma Weatherly, I’m a social studies teacher at Irvin High School. Q. Can you tell me a little bit about Christopher Columbus? A. Christopher Columbus was an explorer who came over in the name of the Spanish ruler, King Ferdinand. When he first landed, he was in the Caribbean, even though many people believe he was on what is now the East coast of the United States. Q. Did Christopher Columbus try forcing his religion on the Natives? A. In that time, what he was really there for was the spice trade, but everyone was having crusades. So in order to be seen as justified for his actions, everything he did was “in the name of the King and God.” Q. How did Christopher Columbus and his men treat the natives they came across? A. They were really brutal. Back then, they were pillaging villages and committing rape and murder almost everywhere they traveled. Q. In a brief summary, describe the events that took place during the first Thanksgiving. A. During the first Thanksgiving, there was a small battle taking place. It wasn’t what we think it was. It wasn’t a big feast of people truly celebrating anything. It was basically just a bunch of people who happened to meet just outside of a dinner. Q. Why do you think they used to celebrate Thanksgiving? A. It definitely wasn’t what it is now. Back then Thanksgiving was just a celebration of a successful crop year. It was traditional in those times to have a feast within the family. Q. Why do you think we celebrate Thanksgiving now? A. Now, it’s mostly an excuse to eat and take time to sit down with our families and appreciate their company. Q. Do you think we should celebrate the events that took place on the first Thanksgiving? A. No, I don’t think that we as a society should or do celebrate it as a successful take down of the “brown man”. The events that took place were tragic, and I would hope people have grown enough to know that it isn’t a joyous history. Q. Is there anything you’d like to add? A. Thanksgiving is just a day to sit down and have a big meal with the people you care about. I don’t think that it’s about what happened all those years ago, and I don’t think it should be.