JagWire | Volume 5 | Issue 7 | May 17, 2005 by JagWire

giving you the low down

The Beat

Big River Moore Theater May 31-June 5 $23-$59

movies movies movies movies movies

One Man Star Wars Trilogy Moore Theater May 20-22 $23.50

Seattle Mariners SafeCo Field May 16-18 vs. NY Yankees $7-$55

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The Beat

Forever Tango 5th Ave. Theatre May 17-22 $20-$55

Grease Paramount May 13-15 $20-$55

The Music Man Issaquah Theater May 13-26 $32-$42

AN OPEN FORUM FOR STUDENT EXPRESSION

Seattle Sonics KeyArena Playoffs vs. San Antonio May 15 $14-$990

The Beat

Endfest 14 feat. Social Distortion, Queens of the Stone Age White River Amphitheatre June 4 $20-$40

sports sports sports sports

Kelly Clarkson Paramount May 26 $39.50

Sleater Kinny Moore Theater May 31 $17.50-$20

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THEATRE

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so un

WWE Wrestlemania â&#x20AC;&#x153;Revengeâ&#x20AC;? Tour Tacoma Dome May 27 $20-$45

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Lenny Kravitz Paramount May 6 $37-$47

Finch and Vendetta Red The Showbox May 30 $15

uth

SPORTS

CONCERTS

Snoop Dogg White River Amphitheatre May 28 $25-$46

e so

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Sasquatch Music Festival feat. Modest Mouse, Kanye West The Gorge May 28 $55

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H T

T A E B E

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Kicking and Screaming Rated: PG Starring: Will Farrell, Robert Duvall Mind Hunters Rated: R Starring: Val Kilmer, Christian Slater Unleashed Rated: R Starring: Jet Li, Morgan Freeman Monster-in-Law Rated: PG-13 Starring: Jane Fonda, Jennifer Lopez

The

Gender Achievement Gap ARE GIRLS SMARTER? EMERALD RIDGE HIGH SCHOOL

12405 184TH ST E SOUTH HILL, WA 98374

VOLUME FIVE ISSUE SEVEN MAY 2005

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5/11/2005 11:00:21 PM

Check out JagWire online at www.getjagwired.com

5.13.05

Marleah Feist

INSIDE

Kristin – Country music always puts me in a good mood and it’s relaxing to listen to. I play it in the car driving to school, on my headphones in the mountains and I listen to it behind the boat when I’m wakeboarding. Amma – Oh gosh, not country. The guy’s twangy voice coupled with that honkytonk or whatever you call it, is really not working for me. You know I think this guy should go down to Compton and play a concert – I think his “Oh poor me” lyrics and alleged “talent” would be well recieved by the community. I mean, could he at least be original!

12 Grades In recent years, a gap has emerged between the grades of males and females.

Amma – I feel like I’m in a really bad 80’s music video with guys with big hair and weird tatoos. It sounds like loud, unappealing, annoying noise. Maybe they should take lip-synching tips from Ashlee Simpson.

James – What a hack. From Garth Brooks to Toby Keith, country music has been peppered with country stars acting like pop stars; reflecting fellow celebrities and the drunken state they were in the night before. Just keep cleaning the mud off the tires.

James – This is very interesting, the first song talked about eagles and rainbows and then evolved into a bang-drumming sensation. Wow. Simply amazing. Its long melodies aren’t worth crap. But hey, it’s one heck of an acid trip.

Marleah – Hmmm ... What can I say about country that they haven’t already sang about in their songs? Hey y’all ... We’re in the country now! The music is pretty heartfelt, and in another life this would be my passion, but here and now, no thank you.

Kristin – First thing that comes to mind is DDR! Crazy, up-beat music with a spunkified beat is pretty cool. It reminds me of some old-school Kiss mixed with Styx.

SOUND Since the advent of the 19th Amendment and Title IX, women have become more prevalent – and more powerful – in society. Now, however, things seem to have come full circle and, in schools at least, girls are outperforming boys by a large margin. JagWire takes a comprehensive look at what has caused this recent overturn, how it has affected Emerald Ridge, and what is being done to change it.

Four People, Four CDs Amma Bofa

Advanced Placement at ER classes traditionally have had a larger number of females than males.

Marleah – What is this? I mean, seriously, what is this? This is lame. I can’t get into it at all. I’m definitely not a fan. The music is different and edgy, but I just don’t like it.

O Brother, Where art Thou? : Soundtrack

15| Track team set for state

Athletes in running and field events, such as senior Curt Lockard, push for personal bests.

AP Studio Art students 21 | like junior J.P. Community Hunnicutt worked with independent member artist Larry works with art Calkins to create classes beeswax art.

James Stanford

08|s English and social studies teacher and Charting multicultural club a course for adviser Cindy Watters will be heading to unexplored Shanghai, China to Watters teach next year.

Beck : Guero

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Amma – It’s like Tupac meets Vanilla Ice, meets “Who let the dogs out.” This kinda like confused garage band rap, and even more confused reggae music combined with Rage Against the Machine. I don’t understand the need to have people screaming in the background.

James – This small white man has something worth listening to. One of his best ever. Yeah, he might sing about stalking a girl he likes or sing about the art of death, but overall his style is new and unique.

Stratovarius : Elements, Pt. 1

Kristin Wellentin

Gender 10 Gap

Marleah – Oh power metal, how I love thee! The guitar riffs, solos, and vocals are truly one of a kind. I live for this music ... there is nothing better.

Brad Paisley : Mud on the Tires

OFF See what happens when they come to the roundtable Marleah – I’m really digging this music. It has a good feel to it and the message in the lyrics is inspiring and thought-provoking. I wouldn’t mind listening to this day in and out – I really like it. Amma – I can appreciate music like this because it’s unique and original. The lyrics are a bit depressing and the rhythm is really simplistic, but, come on, it was the Depression – it’s not like they had private studios and expensive instruments to help them out. Kristin – Coming from the movie, the music goes back to the 30’s. It’s pretty good, and music back then was focused on the voices where music nowadays is about the beats and the background music. James – A great movie and also an energetic soundtrack. This is real country music with clever lyrics acceptable to the ears.

Kristin – It’s got a pretty spunkified beat with some gangsta rap! It’s good and I see someone listening to it driving a lowered, pimped out Caddie. This music does not seem good to listen to doing nothing, but it would be good to snowboard or wakeboard to.

5/11/2005 10:51:20 PM

A&E

NEWS

JagWire

‘Revenge’ is so very sweet ASB almost takes budget hit BY

KAITLYN GOLDEN

REPORTER

The Emerald Ridge ASB narrowly adverted losing nearly a quarter of its funding for next year. The Puyallup School District had considered removing pop and vending machines from schools beginning next year because of a legislative mandate. Revenue from those machines makes up a huge portion of the ASB budget, which supports student clubs, activities and athletics. Instead, the district decided to create the Puyallup School District Ad-Hoc Nutrition and Fitness Policy Review Team, which will review the situation and make a decision for the 2006-2007 school year. This committee will be “evaluating (students) nutrition and fitness policies in light of statistics showing increasing rates of childhood obesity,” according to a letter sent out by Debra Aungst, the assistant superintendent for management services. The review team is made up of eight community members and eight Puyallup School District employees, including ERHS Assistant Principal Dan Hull. The machines being removed would be

What were you saying, Anakin? I’m sorry, I was getting lost in those beautiful yellow eyes of yours. In ‘Revenge of the Sith,” Anakin (Hayden Christensen) gets his own cool set of dark jedi peepers.

‘Revenge of the Sith’ marks the end of the ‘Star Wars’ franchise, leaving the previous two prequels in the dust BY

MATT CLICK

REPORTER

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that he is, in fact, a Sith Lord. Eager to learn of the hidden powers of the Dark Side, Anakin pledges his allegiance to Palpatine in exchange for his knowledge of the Force. Anakin slowly delves deeper and deeper into the Dark Side, shattering his marriage with Padmé Amidala (Natalie Portman) and his friendship with Kenobi. The film’s story blends seamlessly with the originals, creating a smooth transition from the prequels. This is something Episodes I and II, “The Phantom Menace” and “Attack of the Clones,” were in dire need of. They felt like movies separate from the originals, done in a different style, with a different look. But “Revenge of the Sith” just feels like good, old fashioned “Star Wars.” It has several moments that will have die-hard fans going nuts. Sly little references to the original films left me with a warm, almost tear-inducing wave of nostalgia. But “Revenge of the Sith” also contains a feel all its own. It’s a very dark, violent film – in fact it’s the only “Star Wars” film that’s been rated PG-13. It’s almost painful to watch Anakin Skywalker, whom we’ve been with from his childhood all the way to his death on the Death Star in “Return of the Jedi,” make his descent into the Dark Side and leave his old life in tatters behind him. It’s a strangely powerful film, especially for someone who’s been with the series for years. “Revenge of the Sith” begins brilliantly: loud, bright, and action-packed in typical “Star Wars” fashion. The film opens with an enormous space battle between the Republic and the droid armies of Dooku. The battle involves thousands upon thousands of ships, including giant cruisers that eerily resemble the infamous Star Destroyers from the original films. Two fighter ships zoom into the frame, deftly swooping and diving through the tangle of engaged spacecraft. The

so most of their funding comes from the ASB and the district. When ASB budget requests were made this year, the largest requests made by clubs were JagWire, then groups such as choir, band, orchestra, cheerleading, and speech and debate. Some options that may be explored to make up this possible financial shortcoming are raising the prices of ASB cards by a few dollars (this year they were $30 each), having a “pay-to-play” fee for both athletics and special programs within the school, or doing a large-scale, school-wide fundraiser. However, many groups within the ASB already do their own fundraising. “We most likely wouldn’t do a megafundraiser because many individual organizations within the ASB have their own fundraisers so we’d almost be competing against ourselves,” said Rob Dennis, activities coordinator. “Also, we go to the same parents and the same community members every time; we want to keep a balance and make sure we don’t drain our resources.” “The pay-to-play” fee would result in members of athletic teams and maybe even members of clubs or musical classes having to pay a fee to be part of the group.

California schools that have removed pop from vending machines have had “payto-play” fees ranging from $800 to play football to $200 to be a member of choir and band. “I think it’s bogus because we (athletes) are representing the school and I don’t think we should have to pay to do that,” sophomore swimmer Jenn Humphries said. “The reality is, most groups may not get as much funding,” Dennis said. “ERHS runs relatively lean; some schools have huge contingencies sitting around. … It’s a good thing, because the money students now pay is used on them, but the bad thing is when you get hit with a budget cut, you don’t have a cushion.” Some students wouldn’t be happy if they removed the vending machines. “It’d make me angry if they took out the pop machines,” senior Jake Feiring said. “I drink like a pop a day and if they took it away that’d suck because I’d fall asleep in all of my classes.” Mountlake Terrace High School, located north of Seattle, chose to replace all pop machines with healthy options. In the last four years, they have had a total estimated loss of nearly $60,000.

New school year expected to be overcrowded BY

NICOLE SANTOS

REPORTER

Approximately 1,575 students are enrolled at Emerald Ridge for next year, compared to the 1,375 students this year. Due to this, some elective classes will likely get bigger while in the core classes new teachers will have to be hired. Administration has not given the final counts for all the students and how many classes Emerald Ridge will need for each department, so the number of new teachers needed for next year is uncertain.

Photo courtesy of 20th Century Fox

Before you read my review, you need to understand something: I grew up on “Star Wars.” I must have seen the originals 100 or more times. I watched them religiously as a kid. I wanted to grow up to be Han Solo; I wished that my best friend was a giant hairy Wookiee. I can probably whoop anyone at “Star Wars Trivial Pursuit.” I stuck by the series through two mediocre prequels; through the casting of Jake Lloyd as young Anakin Skywalker; through the creation of the worst character in the history of cinema, Jar Jar Binks. Perhaps it was fate that my loyalty, devotion, and extreme geekiness were rewarded. I received a ticket by mail to attend an early press screening of “Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith,” the third and final prequel of the series, a full 10 days before the movie was to be released to the public. Truth be told, I stared blankly at the ticket for a no less than five whole minutes before letting out a girlish shriek upon realizing what it was. “Revenge of the Sith” focuses on Anakin Skywalker’s violent descent into the Dark Side and his transference from eager young Jedi to ruthless lord of the Sith. Three years have passed since “Attack of the Clones,” and ObiWan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) and his apprentice, Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen), have been ceaselessly serving the Galactic Republic in the war against Count Dooku (Christopher Lee) and his separatist armies. Unknown to everyone, the entire war is being orchestrated by Chancellor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid), so that he may gain absolute power over the Republic. As Anakin grows closer to Palpatine, the Chancellor reveals

R E V I E W

pilots are Anakin and Obi-Wan, and they’re on a mission to save the Chancellor from his captors aboard a space station involved in the conflict. The film doesn’t let you relax as the Jedi, accompanied, naturally, by R2-D2, infiltrate the station and engage in a brilliant lightsaber duel with Dooku and his four-armed, lightsaber-wielding death droid, General Grievous. Does it get any cooler? I’m seriously still geeking out about it. In fact, the whole point of the film is to keep you tense, your eyes staring bug-eyed at the screen, mouth agape at the beauty of it all. Sporting no less than six lightsaber duels (including the 20-minute climatic duel between Obi-Wan and Anakin), an enormous space war that rivals the Death Star combat in “Return of the Jedi,” and several immense ground battles, “Revenge of the Sith” doesn’t stop. From the moment the famous yellow letters ascend into the sky, to the last scene as it fades to the black backdrop of stars, your eyes are glued to the screen. Your bladder can wait. However, my experience with “Revenge of the Sith” was bittersweet. As the words “A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away” appeared upon the screen for the very last time, I was overwhelmed with a strange sense of sadness. The series is over. The story has been told. We’ve seen a princess fall for a scoundrel, a farm hand become a warrior, an innocent little boy don a black helmet to become the epitome of evil. And apart from a plan to release the original films in Imax 3-D, “Star Wars” has finally come to a brilliant, dazzling end. For me, your stereotypical “Star Wars” nerd, “Revenge of the Sith” was an incredible end to an incredible series of films. It went out with a giant, fiery, explosive, brilliant bang. It rekindled my faith in Lucas and in film in general. Not since the original “Star Wars” films were re-released into theaters have I left the theater so incredibly excited about movies. This is why we go to the movies. So, thanks George Lucas, for four awesome movies … and two “okay” ones.

a result of a nationwide campaign to both prevent and solve obesity. The district group has a tentative first meeting set for May 16. While this potential change would affect nutritional habits of students, it would also affect the school’s ASB budget. Of the $90,394.68 of revenue made so far at Emerald Ridge this year, $22,423.48 came from vending machines. Other sources of revenue include parking permits, which made $17,207.28 Dennis this school year, ASB cards ($30,026), and gate receipts from sporting events ($20,737.92). This revenue goes into the ASB budget and provides funds for clubs, athletics, and other activities. A loss of revenue could impact students by making it expensive to be a part of clubs or athletic teams. While athletics will most likely take the biggest hit, music programs also will probably take a large cut. Music already gets a limited amount of funding from the school,

Catch Eyes and Smiles! $5 off prom up-do

Principal Brian Lowney wants no more than 32 students in core classes, which include English, social studies, math and science. Currently, there are not enough teachers at ER to teach as many students as will be attending, especially in the core areas. According to Assistant Principal Jeannine Medvedich, the departments that will need to hire more teachers are English (estimated to be four) and math (about two). The school first will take in-district applicants, then look outside the district. For some elective classes, such as ceramics, it’s un-

(upper-level stylists slightly higher)

likely that more staff will be added. Ceramics has 199 students signed up for next year, but according to teacher Jami Malyon, she is not someone that the district will buy out. This means that the district will not try to pay her extra for having six classes instead of the normal five with a planning period. As the only ceramics teacher, Malyon will then have to deal with more students in every class. “I wish that we had smaller classes so I could have more one-on-one time with the students,” Malyon said.

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5/11/2005 10:59:21 PM

NEWS

JagWire

Sunrise Medical Center displays artwork

Day of Silence uneventful Despite the usual attendance issues, Day of Silence ultimately unhindered by its anticipated opposition and conflict BY

TAYZHA FOX

REPORTER

The day was a little quieter; the halls were a little more hushed. More than 90 students participated in the Day of Silence on April 13, as attendance dipped to 74 percent. The attendance decreased from 88 percent the day before. This year’s attendance showed a significant decline from last year. This year, the day held little in the way of controversy and harassment, with the exception of a dispute regarding participation points. Senior Cassandra Billingsley said drama teacher Steve Glass told his class that students not speaking would have participation points taken away that day. “He said that since it is a class requiring speech, we would lose our points for the day,” Billingsley said. According to Principal Brian Lowney, teachers are allowed to take points away for not participating in class. “(The Day of Silence) is a normal school day; it’s a club-sponsored event,” Lowney said. But, according to Billingsley, it was not so much the grade that mattered, but the intent Billingsley felt behind it. “It wasn’t so much the grade, but the very fact that he would say that,” Billingsley said. Assistant Principal Jeannine Medvedich said Glass had the right to take away points. “Teachers do have the right to take participation points away from class, and students have the right not to participate,” Medvedich said. Junior Rachel Owens, who has the same drama class as Billingsley, seemed to understand why students could have their points taken away. “He might have been a little too hard, but I’m sure a lot of teachers may have planned things for Day of Silence,” Owens said, “so I can see why he might take par-

Start a bachelor’s degree ... or career today

Students inspired by artist-in-residence Larry Calkins to create art pieces for Sound Family Medicine at Sunrise Medical Center

ticipation points away. But at the same time, he could have given them an alternative assignments.” Glass has been on vacation and could not be reached for comment before going to press. Besides the issue regarding participation points, there were not any major issues that occurred on this day; however, there were cases of students wearing inappropriate T-shirts with discriminatory messages printed on it. “I did not notice a significant increase or decrease of cases of intimidation, harassment, or bullying regarding Day of Silence, except for a student wearing an inappropriate T-shirt,” Lowney said. Most students were behaved well and respected students who participated in the event. “Everyone was pretty respectful to us who were participating,” said junior Sarah Sanderson, who participated in Day of Silence. Billingsley also agreed that she was not treated any differently by students than on a normal school day. If anything, students were more respectful and patient. Rumor of a “Day of Truth,” purporting to counter the message of the Day of Silence, was spread around the school, but nothing happened. The Bible study at Emerald Ridge came to a consensus not to have a “Day of Truth.” “We decided not to do ‘Day of Truth’ because we feel like we need to be ministering every single day,” said Bible study member Stephani Hawthorne. According to adviser of the GSA (Gay Straight Alliance), Heidi Morton, the goal is to have an increase in attendance and participation for the future, as well as increase the overall consciousness of harassment that exists at Emerald Ridge.

Art teacher Candace Loring’s studio art class is anything but ordinary. Led by artist-in-residence Larry Calkins, their most recent project involved painting with beeswax for the month of March. The students worked to create art made from the odd substance to be displayed at Sound Family Medicine. “It’s an artist that’s paid to come into a school-type environment,” senior Angela Morrill said. “It’s basically like a workshop.” Calkins was handpicked by Loring. “The publicist, Kay Pullen, contacted the director at the Museum of Glass and she e-mailed us a list of candidates,” Loring said. “We (Loring and Pullen) selected someone whose work we liked and it ended up being a great match. He was a really cool guy.” Calkins is a professional artist who creates photography, paintings and sculptures. He works with students regularly, but continues to produce art of his own as well. His art has been sold in galleries since 1996. The artist-in-residence program was set up at the request of Sound Family Medicine, which wanted to dis-

Pride organizes golf tournament

Great food and cheap prices make the Park Bench Caffé & Eatery a home away from home BY

LAKEWOOD (253) 964-6500

P U YA L L U P (253) 840-8400

FORT LEWIS (253) 964-6567

MCCHORD (253) 964-6606

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ROBIN STOYLES

REPORTER

Photo by James Stanford

– Robert Troop

play student art in their new facilities after relocating to Sunrise Medical Center. “We had worked with them before, so they knew the quality of my students’ work,” Loring said. Sound Family Medicine paid for Calkins to work with the students to create art pieces to be displayed in the medical center. Calkins taught the students to develop art with beeswax. “Basically we were just painting with molten beeswax,” Morrill said. “It’s kind of like candle wax. … We painted as if we were painting normally, but if you messed up you could layer it. There was really no way to mess up.” Students could be creative in ways they could not be with other forms of art. “It was really cool because you got to work with a different medium,” Morrill said. “You could do anything from technical to abstract.” Studio art students agreed that it was a fun experience to work with something other than paint and a paint brush. “You could be really adventurous with it,” senior Jessica Buckner said. Not only did students learn how create art with an unusual medium, but learned that making a career out of art may not be as unreasonable as they thought. “I learned that being a professional artist is a possibility,” Morrill said. Students were inspired by the way Calkins was able to make a living by being an artist.

Larry Calkins introduced a new medium to studio art students.

“His artwork looked really cool and it looked like something we could actually do,” Morrill said. “We thought to be an artist you had to be really technical and really educated.” The students were able to relate to Calkins. “He was a regular guy,” Buckner said. “He didn’t go to college. He read about it and started doing it and now he’s making a living.” According to Loring, most of the students in studio art, the class in which Calkins taught, have a desire to continue with art as a career. Additionally, there are fewer students in studio art than other art classes as it is an AP class and limited to junior and senior artists. “The class is slightly smaller,” Loring said. “You really need to be an art geek to be in studio art.”

Park Bench: A better seat to enjoy a tasty meal

As a means of fundraising for PRIDE and the football and wrestling programs and increasing community awareness of Emerald Ridge, the PRIDE Booster Club organized the first Emerald Ridge Classic golf tournament, which took place at the Classic Golf Club in Spanaway on April 23. The fundraiser was a success, collecting more than $1,000 each for PRIDE football and wrestling. “For the first time, it was a good start,” wrestling coach Jim Meyerhoff said. Meyerhoff and football coach Kelly Susee originally planned the tournament for last year, but they couldn’t find the time between teaching and coaching. Emerald Ridge parent Kim Calavan volunteered to chair the event and was assisted by other parents, members of Emerald Ridge staff, and the Classic Golf Club staff. -Drew Scott

JagWire earns recognition nationally, regionally

“I chose Pierce because the smaller campus has a nurturing environment.

ELAINE RAYMOND

REPORTER

NEWS BRIEFS

JagWire took third place nationally in the Best of Show newsmagazine category at the Journalism Education Association/ National Scholastic Press Association High School Journalism Convention in Seattle, April 7-10. Members of JagWire, Facets yearbook and video production won individual awards as well. Ryan Freeborn, Lynn Iversen, T.J. Smith, Scott Perry, Zack Salloum, Amma Bofa, Matt Click, Tayzha Fox, Tyler Quinn, and Jennifer Whitham all were recognized for their work in on-site competitions. Besides the convention, JagWire also received recognition from the Greater Northwest Student Journalism Awards. In the Comprehensive Coverage category the JagWire staff won first place for its work with Race in issue four. JagWire also won second place in the General excellence category, while Elaine Raymond, Matt Click, Anna Bofa, Tayzha Fox, Kassie Green and Katina Mathieson each won individual awards. In the Edward R. Murrow School of Communication high school journalism contest, JagWire took first place in the Best Edition competition. Also, reporters Katina Mathieson and Brittany Gentile received second place in the news story competition for their coverage of the Halloween controversy. -Brittany Gentile

A&E

After practicing at High Cedars, a local golf course just outside of Orting, the other day my dad and I decided to go get lunch. Instead of eating in the clubhouse, where we have eaten before, we both wanted something different. Since we were just a few minutes away from Orting, we chose to head into town to see what we could find. First we passed a McDonalds, and that definitely didn’t satisfy the “different” we were looking for. In the strip mall there was a Subway, a Chinese restaurant, and some other usual suspects that just didn’t catch my eyes or my taste buds. Finally, when I thought all hope was lost, we came across a little restaurant, The Park Bench Caffé & Eatery, and my dad and I knew we had found our “different” restaurant. We parked the car and approached the small bistro that resembled a log cabin. My taste buds were in suspense

to see if it could hold up to my expectations. It sure did. The Park Bench is just across the northwest corner of the downtown park. I grabbed a menu and sat down and tried to choose my lunch, but I couldn’t keep my eyes on the menu. They were darting between the neat knickknacks in the restaurant, which weren’t cluttered like some restaurants. The restaurant had a relaxing traditional feel to it. The chairs were very comfortable but that was just the beginning of it. I continued to admire the old pictures, lamps, and the flowers in a metal watering can sitting on the top of an old wheel barrow. It was like Little House on the Prairie but not near as cheesy. The menu was amusing with all the alliterations such as Park Pleasers, Bench Busters, and Burgers at the Bench. It all sounded delicious. Combine that with my total indecisiveness and it creates a problem. I finally narrowed it down to a Park Pleaser, the Hawaiian Focaccia, and a Turkey Gobbler which happens to be one of my post-Thanksgiving favorites. But because I have had more Turkey Gobblers than I can remember, I ended up settling

on the Hawaiian Focaccia. I would describe a Hawaiian Foccacia as undeniably delicious, but they used a few more words. It was a sandwich made with Focaccia bread, “drizzled with olive oil and layered with three cheeses,” then grilled on their “Panini Machine.” The Hawaiian part of it consisted of ham and pineapple, which added sweet and tangy flavor. Even though it came with a pickle, chips, and fruit – plenty of food to fill me up – I still had to get that peanut butter cookie with M&Ms. I started to snack on it while waiting and it was the best peanut butter cookie I have ever had. It wasn’t overpowering and was soft and crumbly. The food didn’t take long and it was

served hot. It sure was a pleaser with me. There was plenty of food for only $6.50. While we ate, I quizzed my dad with the Trivial Pursuit cards that were at the table. It was entertaining and would make for a great conversation starter and I know that could help on a date. The Park Bench is a great restaurant overall and I couldn’t find much of anything bad. The tea was a little strong, but that’s what sugar is for. I know it is in Orting, but it is definitely worth the 10 to 15 minute drive. I am very glad that I didn’t settle for the usual, because I really found a restaurant that is extraordinary and one I will certainly be returning to.

5/11/2005 10:52:47 PM

JagWire

What are your plans for next year? Attend Spokane Falls Community College on a baseball scholarship.

Water overflow at ER Teacher wins award

What motivates you in playing? The drive to move my game to the next level and help the team the best I can.

Pipeline problems caused several restroom facilities to be closed for the day on May 6, as waste water started flooding the bathrooms by the career and counseling center, as well as in the office, the faculty lounge, and the nurse’s office. Sometime in the middle of the day, the water started leaking from toilets, sinks, and drains in the floor. Nurse Joan Rowe reported having water coming from the drain underneath her counter. “I was signing kids in that came into my office and all of a sudden I noticed I was standing in water,” Rowe said. Although the staff and administrators are still unsure, the suspected cause of the flooding was a pipe blockage brought on by what is thought to be a pop can believed to have been stuck in the outside pipes since the school was built. Either water has been building up since the school was built, or something caused the can to move and block the pipes, causing an overflow. Assistant Principal Dan Hull says that it is unlikely that the can could have been thrown into the pipes recently, if at all. “There’s no way a can could fit down there,” Hull said, “so it’s been in there since the school was developed.” The leaks weren’t considered to be a health hazard, because the areas

What would be the first thing another person would notice about your game? I’m a big, aggressive hitter who doesn’t get cheated at the plate. What is your favorite sport outside of baseball? Golf, because like baseball you can step up to the ball and just whack it. What qualities do you admire in a teammate? Someone who will pick you up when you’re down and always give 100 percent.

affected were “quarantined,” blocked off using chairs. However, in order to prevent possible illness, the areas where the waste water overflowed were sanitized using hospital strength cleaning solutions. “They cleaned all the carpets, cleaned all the floors,” Hull said. “By two o’clock, they had it shut down and cleaned up. They did a nice job of getting here quick.” Employees from the district maintenance department may have found the blockage, but have yet to remove it. “They stuck this snake (camera) down the pipe,” Hull said, “and either they hit (the can), or they could feel it, or something, but they know that something’s still in there.” Hull doesn’t have any idea as to when it could come up again, however, the district is taking measures to evaluate and solve the problem. “They’re trying to get the general contractor to come back up and take a look at it,” Hull said. During sixth period on Friday, an announcement was made informing students that all restrooms were out of order. However, with the exception of one restroom closed due to vandalism, the upstairs restrooms were all in working order. According to District Mechanical/ Electrical Day Shift Foreman Mike Padur, the leaks were not related to, or even similar to, those that have been occurring recently at Pope Elementary.

Teacher Cami Devereux with a $1,000 check donated to ER for her teacher of the year award. BY

MARILYN DIXON

REPORTER

A surprised Cami Devereux, one of ER’s Spanish teachers, was awarded the district-wide, 10th annual Wal-Mart Teacher of the Year Award during a routine staff meeting April 6. Devereux accepted the award with modesty “I was so surprised,” Devereux said. “I was embarrassed to go up there in front of everybody.” The Wal-Mart Teacher of the Year Award consists of a $1,000 check for the school, and an honorary blue Wal-Mart greeter’s vest – complete with the yellow smileyfaced mascot – for Devereux. In order to be eligible for the award, a student has to nominate a teacher by filling out a form about their outstanding teacher at a participating Wal-Mart. “I’ve worked (at Wal-Mart) for three or four years now,” senior Vanessa Perry said. “I just went over and filled out a form with her accomplishments.” Perry described her opinions on why Devereux deserved the award. “I feel she’s a really good teacher,”

Perry said. “She not only helps you with your academics, but she cares about how you think and feel and helps you with your life outside of school.” Devereux is grateful for the award. “It’s such an honor when a student thinks of you,” Devereux said. “(Perry) didn’t even know I had won until I thanked her in class later on.” Thanks to Perry’s nomination, Devereux’s teaching abilities might get more money for the school. “The award then goes statewide,” Devereux said, “then it goes nationwide.” First at the state level she could win $10,000, then go onto the national level. She would then be competing with 51 state-winning teachers (including the District of Columbia) and could win $25,000 for the school, totaling $36,000 overall. Devereux already has voiced her opinions on what the money should be spent on here at school. “I wanted to do something for the school,” Devereux said, “I thought we could have students paint different themes in the bathrooms and it will give the school some personality.”

Mysterious incident baffles Rogers

LOUTRA NDESIGNATED HITTER Baseball

20,05.indd 2-3

KATINA MATHIESON

REPORTER

What professional athlete do you admire? Albert Pujols because of his work ethic and love for the game.

KATINA MATHIESON

PHOTO EDITOR

Photo by Jessica Ritchie

ATHLETE OF THE MONTH

NEWS

Administrators at Rogers High School are still wondering what made students ill on Monday, May 9. At about 10:45 on Monday morning, three students in a chemistry class reported feeling faint, one of them losing consciousness completely. Students and staff members were sent to the gymnasium while chemical level checks were run on the rest of the building by Pierce County chemical specialists. At 12:30, the decision was made to allow students to go home for the day while the three students affected were sent to Good Samaritan hospital for test-

ing. Blood tests that revealed elevated levels of carboxy hemoglobin indicated the possibility of carbon monoxide. However, not a trace of carbon monoxide has been found in the school. “When the fire department got here,” principal Scott Britain said, “their hazardous materials team cleared the building and checked everything and could find no elevated levels of carbon monoxide.” The school was closed the following day to allow more testing, including carbon monoxide monitor checks. When, after the further testing, nothing suspicious was found classes resumed the normal schedule on Wednesday, May 11.

5/11/2005 10:58:27 PM

NEWS

JagWire

New schedule in the works Inconsistency hurts baseball BY

JESSICA RITCHIE

REPORTER

During the five-year existence of Emerald Ridge, the schedule has been changed almost every year to some degree, and the upcoming 2005-2006 school year is no exception. Principal Brian Lowney has decided that more changes are needed, particularly with regards to the current Jag Time, advisory, and lunch schedule. Most of the speculation seems to lie around when Jag will occur within the school day. Jag Time is meant to be used by students for studying and catching up in classes of concern, but many students use it as a second lunch. “We’re thinking about having Jag at the end of the day, or the beginning of the day, or advisory at the beginning of the day,” Lowney said. These proposed changes result from a combination of students not using their Jag Time efficiently and a push to help incoming sophomores who are at risk of failing the WASL. “Jag Time is a great opportunity for students to focus on wherever their needs are most, and whenever it’s set up against lunch, people – regardless of age – will frequently choose lunch over academics,” English teacher Jay Bates said. And so it may be moved. “We might decide to move Jag, or advisory, or lunch to different times of the day.” Lowney said. Jag may also be more structured. Next year, more than 500 sophomores will be coming in, and no less than 300

of them failed to meet standard on at least one section of the seventh-grade WASL. Each of these sophomores has a student learning plan to help them when they take the 10th-grade WASL – which they must pass to graduate – in 2006. “We have Jag for clubs and remediation,” Lowney said. “I don’t like that word (remediation) because it’s just something some kid happens to get into. If they do, that’s great. But there are too many kids that need to that don’t find there way there. “We need intervention. And it’s not just going to be ‘work on your math homework,’ it’s going to be a program.” Other schools also are still working on what to do with incoming sophomores. Puyallup High School is going to try to do things on a case-by-case basis. “There are a lot of opportunities for students for remediation,” Puyallup High School Principal Mike Joyner said. “Some kids may be offered opportunities before or after school, and there may be some tutoring. We’re thinking about changing our advisory from two to four times a week. Advisory may be reformatted to have more of a structured study hall feel. “We’re going to try to meet with every incoming student and make a learning program for each of them. We don’t have any of those answers yet.” Another major change here at ER will involve lunches. There will be three as opposed to the usual two to handle the nearly 1,600 students already registered for next year. “It’s non-negotiable that we’re going to have three

While they demonstrated ability at times, irregularity in performance prevented baseball from living up to their potential

lunches next year,” Lowney said. “We have to have three; we’re too big of a school. It’s a security issue. We’re pushing it as it is this year (with almost 1,400 kids).” Whether these lunches will be separated by grade level, or something else, remains to be decided. Another concern is the current Wednesday schedule, which features all six classes. “I think the assumption is Wednesdays (will remain) one through six. We didn’t get too much opposition. It’s worked for kids, it’s worked for staff, and it’s worked for parents,” Lowney said. Lowney also hopes for some form of “Everyone Reads” (ER) to continue next year, “I’d like to see a form of reading for pleasure in our day. But I’ll need to work that through the teachers and students and the parents,” Lowney said. There are also many teachers that would like to see the recurrence of ER. “I love the concept of ER, I love practicing ER. I think any reading program takes several years to become part of the culture. I am an advocate of ER and would like to see it happen,” Bates said. Despite the fact that the school schedule has undergone numerous changes, Bates feels confident about the decisions that Lowney will make this summer. “He is as conscientious of a principal as I have ever worked for and I believe he takes pride in listening to all perspectives before weighing his decision,” Bates said. Lowney also seems certain that the coming school year will be a success. “I’m confident about everything we do,” Lowney said.

Includes Coat, Shirt, Vest and Tie

Sophomore Kyle Eads pitches to Decatur on May 5. Eads pitched five innings, and had a double and two RBIs. The Jags lost, 5-8.

Even with communication problems, fastpitch looks towards the future

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EDITORIAL BOARD

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At times this year the boy’s baseball team has looked like a solid team with playoff potential, but at other times it has looked like a young, inexperienced team with numerous issues. Unfortunately, the young inexperienced team has been the one that has shown up for the majority of the games this season. This year the Jags have had some inconsistency issues that that have led to a 7-11 league record (8-12 overall), good enough for ninth place in the SPSL. The record and standing is well below what the Jags thought they could achieve this season. “We thought we would have a big season. We have not played to our potential,” junior Josh Takayoshi said. Ultimately, inconsistency has plagued the team this year. There have been moments when the Jags have showed the ability to compete with the SPSL’s elite teams with wins over second-place Curtis, 2001 state champion and 2004 state participant Federal Way, and a blowout victory over rival Rogers High School. In those games the Jags demonstrated both overpowering hitting – they scored 12 runs in the Curtis game, 13 runs against Federal Way, and 12 runs against Rogers – and shut down pitching, as Curtis was held to only five runs

and Rogers only two runs. But outside of those those three games, the team has not had the ability to put it all together. “We have been inconsistent. One game we will have good offense and bad defense and the next game it will be the other way around,” Takayoshi said. One sign of the team’s inconsistency has been the wide discrepancy in their score results. The Jags have lost close games to Puyallup (6-5) and Decatur (8-5). Then they have played the same teams the second time around and gotten blown out: 12-1 by the Vikings and 12-2 by the Gators. “We have had a lot of close games and then blow outs. The season could be a lot different,” Takayoshi said. Despite an overall disappointing season, the team remained positive and hopeful throughout much of it. They ended up sweeping the season series against Spanaway Lake, and in the second to last game of the year got a 6-2 victory over Todd Beamer, which knocked the Titans out of first place. Also, at the halfway point of the year the Jags had a record of 3-6 and were sitting in seventh place, but still had not given up all playoff hope. The top four teams in the league go to the playoffs so mathematically the Jags were still in the hunt. Unfortunately the team ended up losing six of its last 10 games to finish off its playoff hopes. “The second half of the year was disappointing,” senior Lou Tran said. The Jags will be losing three seniors to graduation, so the majority of the team will be returning for next season, once again with new hopes, dreams, and expectations.

Fastpitch maintains positive attitude, despite losses

Newest Styles Fife

NICK KAJCA

REPORTER

Your choice! Over 50 Styles

06,19.indd 2-3

SPORTS

This season has been one of frustration for the girl’s fastpitch team as it approaches the end of the season struggling for wins. “Because we are a new team with new players in new positions, we have had a tough time getting wins,” senior captain Heather Logan said. “Yeah, our record is bad, but (some) of our games have been close, and we have kept good attitudes through most of them.” While a positive attitude has been an asset to the team, little else has come together during a year that has proven to be a strain on both girls and coach. Help to ease the strain came with the girl’s first win late in the season against Spanaway Lake, which is second in the SPSL. According to sophomore first baseman Michelle Rasmussen, a lack of communication and mental focus has played a major

part in the team’s performance. “When we try to get things across to other players, the girls don’t focus in and listen. This causes errors and other problems on the field,” Rasmussen said. As a result of this lack of mental focus, the girls suffered from a breakdown in communication at points during the season. “The communication element has been key, and that is where the mental part plays a role. Physically you can field the ball and throw it, but throw it to the right person at the right spot? That’s where our inexperience shows,” Wardle said. The team has also had difficulties in an area familiar to all high school athletic teams. With girls who play on different teams with different coaches during the summer, it is inevitable that some will end up playing positions they aren’t used to when they come to the high school team. According to Logan, this has had an effect on how the girls play together. “I think that the season has gone badly because we don’t always play together as a team like we should,” Logan said. “It’s tough because sometimes girls don’t know

where they’re going to play, and that made it hard to play solid as a team.” These mental lapses led to errors on the field. The deterioration during the defensive half of the game allowed other teams to gain the upper hand in games that could have gone either way. “We could have done better defensively, and the inexperienced pitching has given us trouble,” Wardle said. “We just didn’t score enough runs. If we give up 10 runs, we have to score 11 to win, and it’s tough to compete in the SPSL when we were giving up an average of 10 runs a game, earned and unearned.” The play of the junior varsity team brings optimism and a hope for success next year. The J.V. team has several key players that will be an asset to the varsity, which will be returning all but three play-

“

ers next season. “The J.V. team is very young, half of them are freshman. So the potential is there for them to be solid varsity players next year. We have youth on both teams, and that bodes well for the future,” J.V. coach Randy Walden said. Despite the lack of wins this year,

I THINK THAT THE SEASON HAS GONE BADLY BECAUSE WE DON’T ALWAYS PLAY TOGETHER LIKE A TEAM SHOULD.

”

— Heather Logan, senior

hopefully more experience and new faces next year will bring a higher rate of success and a chance at the postseason. “I hope the returners come in with renewed attitudes and are ready to play,” Wardle said. “I think we have several pitchers coming up, and we have good players coming back. I’m looking forward to next year.”

5/11/2005 10:53:36 PM

SPORTS

JagWire

Loss of snack foods possible?

Soccer takes on obstacles In a season of new additions, team hopes to end year strong

n two years, junk food may be gone from Emerald Ridge, significantly reducing ASB’s revenue. This could mean a drastic change in every aspect of extracurricular life at Emerald Ridge. The ASB receives almost one-fourth of its funding from school vending machines, and if the Puyallup School District chooses to comply with a recent legislative mandate, those machines – and the money – will be gone for the 2005-2006 school year. Nobody is arguing that healthy food is good. The teen obesity rate is over 15 percent and climbing, and too many empty calories and too little exercise in every

Injuries and academic struggles play a huge part in rough soccer season BY

KAITLYN GOLDEN

REPORTER

18,07.indd 2-3

aspect of teen life only contribute to it. Eliminating at least a part of that can only help – right? Sure, if it doesn’t punish already under-funded schools. The money from vending machines gives clubs and other groups at Emerald Ridge that aren’t strictly academic their funding, and without that base, many groups’ funding could be reduced or even cut completely. It’s a tough choice – do you give students a wellrounded school experience or give them well-rounded bellies? It’s a lose-lose situation, and schools will be blamed no matter what they do. Students’ health is important. Especially in today’s

‘R’-rated movies not kid friendly

mericans rate everything. TV shows, video games, toys, CDs, movies. It’s nice to know that a group of responsible adults, concerned with the state of our youth, has taken the time to create a rating system for absolutely everything. So … who wants to be the one to tell them people don’t pay attention to ratings? It was a beautiful spring day and I decided to enjoy the sunshine by sitting in the dark, chilly confines of the theater. With large Coke and popcorn in hand, I eagerly awaited my second viewing of the ultra-violent film-noir, “Sin City.” I was startled when a small boy filtered into the theater amongst the teens and adults, clutching the hand of his father and carrying a small bag of popcorn. He couldn’t have been more eight years old. I’m no prude when it comes to film. In fact, I despise the censorship of entertainment in general. I Matt Click was firmly opposed to Joseph LiCommentary eberman’s attempted ban on violent video games, as well as many other attempted ideas. Not because I think four-year-old children should play “Grand Theft Auto,” but because decisions like that should be left to a parent’s best judgment and not a government act. But, unfortunately for some children, their parents have no judgment whatsoever. The kid should not have been there. “Sin City” was not only co-directed by Quentin Tarantino (the father of gallons of spurting blood), it also included, but was

THE FINE PRINT

Emerald Ridge High School 12405 184th St. E. South Hill, WA 98374 253-435-6300

Sophomore Peter Hartnett receives a pass in the 8-0 shutout game against Spanaway Lake, while junior Zach Sanders looks on.

score one goal. Senior goalkeeper Xander Knox contributed with the shutout. On May 10, the Jags tied cross-town rivals Rogers. After going down 0-1 in the first half, the Jags came back with a goal in the last 30 seconds of the game to make the final score 1-1. No matter what, the team just wants to keep having a good time. “Our expectation for the rest of the season is to keep having fun,” senior Joel Triplett said.

LETTERS POLICY

Photo by Erica Bosnick

Despite a record of 2-4-2 during league play, the boys soccer team still hopes to finish their season strong. “I expect us to play with the same fire, character, and determination we’ve come to expect from our studentathletes year in and year out. We have some stepping up to do, and I am confident that this group of guys is fully capable of doing just that,” said coach Wayne Farris, whose team’s overall record is 6-8-2. Junior varsity coach Moe Orcutt also expects the team to begin stepping it up. “I’m very hard on the (team) right now,” Orcutt said. “They know how to win; they were very consistent winners at the J.V. level, but the competition bar has been raised and it is taking them a while to reach it.” To reach this new bar, the Jaguars need to believe in themselves, according to junior goalkeeper Robbie Hines. “We (the varsity team) just need to have confidence in ourselves and our team, and play our hearts out,” Hines said. Farris agrees the team needs to begin putting forth more effort. “I expect our team leaders and players to rise to the challenge and begin to push themselves in practice, preparation, and performance,” Farris said. Some situations that may keep the team from performing up to their standards are multiple injuries and academics. “Injuries have been tough,” Farris said. “We are thin enough this season that we need everybody to be healthy and at their best for us to compete. We’ve missed some guys for health and that continues to have an effect, but I am proud of how other guys have stepped up when needed.” Orcutt feels that the team has done a good job of taking care of these difficulties. “We’re pretty proactive; we try and solve problems before they start,” Orcutt said. “We’ve had some issues with academics because we hold higher standards than most teams.” Varsity sophomore captain Jordan Hanson feels that other things have been holding the team back. “Our biggest obstacles have been a lack of communication and hard work,” Hansen said. In their May 3 game, the Jags lost a hard fight to Beamer. Despite several opportunities to score in the second half, they fell to the Titans 2-0. One of the Jaguars two league victories came on May 6 versus Spanaway Lake. The Jaguars defeated the Sentinels by a score of 8-0. Junior Chris Sherman was involved in five of the eight goals, scoring two of his own and assisting Hanson and sophomore Marshall Triplett for one goal each and junior Marcus Freitas on two of the goals in his hat trick. Junior Tommy Ciocca added to the

OP/ ED

JagWire will accept unsolicited copy from students, staff and community members. Only signed and dated letters with address and phone number from community members, or grade level from students, will be accepted. Letters should be limited to 300 words and will be published as space is available. All letters are the sole opinion of the writers, and the staff reserves the right to edit any letter for space and/or clarity. We will not publish material that may substantially disrupt the school process. Letters to the editor may be submitted by mailing them to JagWire c/o Emerald Ridge High School, or by

not limited to, sex, nudity, cannibalism, drug use and addiction, alcohol use, gunplay, torture, genital mutilation, prostitution, blood, gore, child rape, and drowning people in their own urine. Do these things make “Sin City” a bad movie? Absolutely not. It is still a beautiful milestone in storytelling, with some of the best cinematography and character development I’ve seen in a while. I loved it. It’s a wonderfully entertaining film … for adults. The kid began to cry during the trailers, which included “The Amityville Horror,” “House of Wax,” and several other horror and thriller flicks. Now, call me crazy, but when your kid starts crying before the movie even begins, be a parent and get the poor guy out of the theater! I watched the child out of the corner of my eye for most of the film. About halfway through (after Mickey Rourke saws Elijah Wood’s limbs off and feeds him to a wolf), he stopped covering his eyes and gave in to the gritty, violent world of “Sin City.” I know “Sin City” was based on a series of graphic novels, and that the violence is both unrealistic and slightly cartoonish (characters take dozens of bullets without dying), but this film isn’t “Spiderman” or “XMen.” It’s gruesome, bloody content that made even this hardened reviewer a little squeamish. Do I believe that the child will grow up to be a criminal or a fiend of society? No, of course not. However, that kid probably had some questions for his father after the film; not the least of which was, “Dad, why’d that guy saw that other guy’s head off?”

e-mailing them to jdnusser@puyallup.k12.wa.us. EDITORIAL MISSION As JagWire completes its fifth year, our goal is to first and foremost continue to serve as an open public forum for student expression. JagWire strives to remain a quality, hard-hitting, informative, and entertaining communication link between students, faculty, and the Emerald Ridge community. Our publication will tackle issues that impact our readers and raise awareness while maintaining the highest journalistic standards. JagWire will keep the values of an award-winning newsmagazine by creating a viewpoint that is unique to ourselves and our school, while recognizing the accomplishments and events that require our coverage. Our mission is to continue learning, to constantly work

high-speed world, every attempt at helping youth is commendable. But when that runs up against a school’s ability to provide a good education, the line between good idea and bad idea blurs. Maybe schools can find another source of funding – say, the government? It’s a shame that schools are so dependent on commercialized, pop-culture products to survive. After all, shouldn’t it be the other way around? Editorials are composed by, and are the opinion of, the JagWire editorial board.

STAFF EDITORIAL BOARD ....................................CARISSA CARTER ................................................................................... XANDER KNOX ............................................................................ LINDSEY MAXFIELD .......................................................................................TYLER QUINN ................................................................................JAMES STANFORD DESIGN EDITOR ......................................MIKEL ARMSTRONG PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR .................KATINA MATHIESON BUSINESS MANAGER ..........................................LISSY BRYAN CIRCULATION MANAGER ....................... ROBIN STOYLES REPORTERS .............................................................. AMMA BOFA .......................................................................................... ANNA BOFA ...................................................................................ERICA BOSNICK ...........................................................................................LISSY BRYAN .......................................................................................... MATT CLICK ................................................................................. MARILYN DIXON .................................................................................... MARLEAH FEIST ......................................................................................... TAYZHA FOX ............................................................................ BRITTANY GENTILE .............................................................................. KAITLYN GOLDEN .......................................................................................KASSIE GREEN ......................................................................................DARRIN JONES .......................................................................................... NICK KAJCA .............................................................................BRITTANY LAWBER ..............................................................................ELAINE RAYMOND ................................................................................... JESSICA RITCHIE ..................................................................................NICOLE SANTOS ....................................................................................... DREW SCOTT .................................................................................... ROBIN STOYLES .......................................................................... KRISTIN WELLENTIN ...........................................................................JENNIFER WHITHAM .......................................................................... GRANT WOODRUFF ADVISER....................................................................... JEFF NUSSER AFFILIATES

CSPA, JEA, NSPA, SPJ, WJEA, WSJA

on self-improvement, and always bear a reflective eye towards our work. We will make an effort to represent ERHS and the surrounding community, while also providing a publication in which to take pride. ADVERTISING MISSION The JagWire publication staff accepts advertisements for most products and services available to the public. However, the staff reserves the right to reject, edit or cancel any advertisement that the staff deems offensive in light of normal public standards. Ads identifying students as athletes by photo or text (WIAA 18.20.0 and 18.20.1) also will not be accepted. The staff will not accept advertising for products or groups which are racist, sexist or illegal for high school students.

5/11/2005 10:57:08 PM

08 FEATURE

JagWire

Beloved teacher Cindy Watters leaves ERHS to start a new life and use her talents abroad.

LISSY BRYAN AND ANNA BOFA

BRITTANY LAWBER

REPORTER

Every year the Washington Cultural Exchange selects 11 wrestlers and three coaches from Washington to go compete in an international tournament in Japan. This year, Emerald Ridge was honored to have two of its own athletes and a coach selected to participate in the prestigious event. Sophomore Aaron Brown and junior Keith Schlecht were fortunate enough to get picked for the event, and they will be joined by wrestling coach Jim Meyerhoff. The wrestlers will be in Japan from June 26 to July 9. They will be staying with families to see the different culture types and to compete with the different high schools around Tokyo. “I am just very excited to go to a different country to wrestle kids that don’t even speak my language,” Schlecht said.

Brown is the only sophomore from Washington picked to compete in this event. “These wrestlers were picked to attend Japan for their great wrestling skills and great attitude they have on life,” Meyerhoff said.

anybody home with them. “I’m just really excited to go and see all the different types of cultures and meet new people and just to wrestle,” Brown said. Getting chosen for this event wasn’t just on wrestling talent; that was just a good quality to have. One needs to be a quality person and appreciate the learning experience that one will have. “This is exactly what Brown and Schlecht represent – Aaron Brown and Keith Schlecht will have a good experience and learn from this trip,” Meyerhoff said. — Aaron Brown, sophomore The process to get to go Japan was not a difficult one. “The ones that were nominated to go to Japan wrote a letter and got signed up for the This opportunity to wrestle in a different country trip. It really wasn’t that hard, just some time,” Meyand see the different culture is a huge experience many erhoff said. “I hope a lot of our wrestlers start to have people don’t get to have. Although the wrestlers will be this opportunity more; I just want wrestlers to want to going to Japan for an exchange, they will not be bringing do this.”

“

I’M JUST REALLY EXCITED TO GO AND SEE ALL THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF CULTURES AND MEET NEW PEOPLE AND JUST TO WRESTLE

”

Water polo finishes season looking to improve The lady Jags complete season with goal of creating an environment for a young team to develop skills BY

CARISSA CARTER

EDITORIAL BOARD

Photo by Tyler Quinn

08,17.indd 2-3

Taking in new cultures, sophomore Aaron Brown and junior Keith Schlecht are two of 11 students selected to travel

REPORTERS

To get to know Cindy Watters, take a walk around her room. “If you’re not outraged, you’re not paying attention,” and “Fight Prime Time – Read a Book,” are a few of the sayings that Watters has hanging on her walls on the posters and bumper stickers that decorate her room. But one in particular stands out above the rest. “How vain is it to sit down and write when you have not stood up to live?” This is a simple index card which says a lot about Cindy Watters. Watters has never been one to sit still, and she is certainly not unaccustomed to adventure. Her desk, which is decorated with United Nations post-its, basketball memorabilia, and a map to track the presidential race state by state is merely one testament to this. A woman who loves to travel, Watters says the best thing about life is that it’s a journey. Her personal journey is about to take her halfway across the globe. She recently was offered the opportunity to become a teacher in Shanghai, China, and will be leaving Emerald Ridge after this school year to live out her future overseas. “It’s an incredible opportunity to live in a place where you’re not in the majority, to be the minority for once and learn someone else’s language,” Watters said. “It is the right time for me to go. I am very passionate about justice, equity, and having a better place for humans. I feel that this opportunity will allow me to accomplish this.” Moving to and teaching in China will challenge Watters, but she is confident that the skills she has learned from her experiences at Emerald Ridge and at other schools in the district have adequately prepared her to meet this new chapter. Growing up, Watters had the passion and desire to one day become a teacher. She attended Pacific Lutheran University for her undergraduate schooling. After PLU, Watters attended the University of Washington for her masters degree. “Teaching is the best job you can have, I couldn’t imagine doing anything else,” said Watters. “Coming to Emerald Ridge has been great for me. It will be sad to leave.” While departure will be difficult for Watters, it might be even harder for the students and staff who have come to adore and appreciate her passion and commitment to others. Watters’ role at ERHS involves, among many other things, acting as a senior adviser and a social studies teacher. She also organizes the Martin Luther King Jr. assembly and acts as the Multicultural Club adviser. Through these activities Watters has become a big influence and inspiration for her students. Being the motivator and goal-setter that she is, Watters has left an impact on many. The loss of such a great teacher at Emerald Ridge will be devastating for many of Watters’ students, yet the thought of her moving leaves them happy for the opportunity she will experience. “Thinking about Watters moving to China is sad, but I know it will be very beneficial for what she wants to accomplish,” senior and advisee Donnell Calhoun said. “Other students will get to learn and be apart of the great inspiration she always is.” While moving so far away would be daunting to most, it seems almost natural for Watters. Her desire to break away from the norm, to stretch her wings, and to influence through action will be welcome no matter where she goes. The last poster visible when walking out of Watters’ room reads, “Are you doing all you can?” One gets the feeling that the question is not for her.

Wrestlers to compete in Japan

TREADING NEW WATTERS ATTERSs BY

SPORTS

The girls water polo team finished its season positive and having fun, despite a 1-12 record. The team’s only win of the season was against Sumner on April 15, 5-4. “Once we got in the lead, we did fine and held our own,” senior co-captain Sara Condra said. In the team’s losing games, the lady Jags got behind early and never fully caught up. “They always get behind initially,” coach Kenn Fidler said. “No matter what game it’s been, it’s playing catch up.” Although the team realized early in the season that it had problem areas, the players’ goal never was to have a winning overall record. “We’re not as concerned with the score, but being a team. In future years that will make us a stronger team,” senior co-captain Erica Pruitt said. Because this year was a building year, the team focused on keeping a positive attitude and togetherness. “So far, we’ve really come together as a team, which was our goal. We’ve definitely accomplished that,” sophomore

Jenn Humphries said. The reason for this positive attitude with an otherwise negative record is because the team decided to work on improving younger players for future years to come. “We took girls who didn’t know how to hold the ball and swim, to making goals and setting up plays,” Pruitt said. Teaching the younger girls on the team how to play the game is a difficult task, considering the amount of time in one season and the intensity of other more experienced teams in the league. “Our team … is composed of young, basically inexperienced, thoughtful, caring and extremely wonderful teenagers. All our opponent’s rosters are laced with gritty, experienced (year-long club players), and talented swimmers who are coached well,” Fidler said. Despite the obvious difference in skill level in the league, the lady Jags never gave up and never put out less effort because a team had potentially more experienced swimmers. “We never gave up; and we didn’t stop playing as tough as we could. We learned a lot about water polo … the hard way,” Fidler said. This season, only two girls with varsity experience returned (Pruitt and Condra) from last season. Their goals for this season were to improve the girls in hope for better seasons to come.

“We just want to enjoy the season that we’ve had together. We want to know that we made an impact on the JV players for future years,” Condra said. The team values its effort to become a family and not worry about the record. “We are all really close, we love all those girls like sisters, and Fidler is like our dad, and we are going to miss them,” Condra said.

Overall this season has been an anticipation for future years to come, but along the way the girls learned a lot about each other and vital techniques of the game. “These kids experienced what it takes to be part of a team, how important their individual role is, how rewarding it is to do your best, and how fun it is to contribute to a cause,” Fidler said.

5/11/2005 10:54:09 PM

SPORTS

JagWire

Girls complete season first in the SPSL, extending unbeaten streak to 27 matches NICK KAJCA

REPORTER

Sophomore Alyssa Ferry has been key in the team’s 27–match win streak.

The girls tennis team has met all the expectations and challenges thrown at it, and for the second season in a row the Jags have proven that they are the elite team in the SPSL. The team has not experienced defeat since its first match of the 2004 season, a 3-2 loss at the hands of Puyallup High School. Since then, the team has reeled off an astounding 27 consecutive victories. This impressive streak is by far the longest of any kind in Emerald Ridge history, and is fast becoming one of the longest in SPSL girls tennis history. This year the team has coasted to a 14-0 record and has finished the season in first place in the SPSL. To finish the season undefeated has been the team’s goal all year long and the players are pleased to finally have accomplished it. “This season overall has been excellent,” junior Rachel Owens said. The team has won most of its games with relative ease, with the only challenging matches coming against second place Thomas Jefferson. “Thomas Jefferson was a good team; we had some important and tough matches against them,” coach Steve Kubota said. In the teams’ first meeting of the year, ERHS won with a hard fought 4-1 victory; however they still did not look past them in the second meeting.

The girls won the second time around, this time with a 3-2 victory that all but put the finishing touches on their season. All that remained was a match against sixth-place Puyallup High School, which they won by a final of 4-1. A big part of the team’s sucess is in the talent of the girls on the team. The top three singles records in the SPSL belong to Emerald Ridge’s sophomores Alyssa Ferry, 7-0, and Gillian Ball, 6-0, and junior Kylie Marshall, 10-0. Also the tandems of juniors Taryn Wusterbarth/Lynn Iversen, and Owens/Ball rank top in the league in doubles. Despite not facing tough competition every match, the team has still not had any trouble remaining focused on its season goals. “It has been easy to stay focused because this was our goal and this is what we were hoping for and expecting,” Owens said. Now that the regular season is over, the team is starting to prepare for the postseason. The girls are looking to defend their sub-district title from last season. From subs the Jags will then try to qualify as many girls as possible for the West Central District tournament at Sprinker Recreation Center on May 27-28. “If things go well we might send up to seven girls to districts,” Iversen said. The girls still feel that as a whole this season has definitely been a success. “This season has been everything we have hoped for and more,” Owens said.

15 students were given the opportunity of a lifetime to visit another country with their classmates BY

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played a part in her decision. “Down there Tennessee volleyball is huge. They are a nationally recognized program,” Marshall said. Kylie’s travels to Tennessee, however, will not be the only time she travels across the country this year. F o r t he s e c o nd year in a row, she has been one of 18 Marshall has verbally committed to play girls picked for the volleyball at the University of Tennessee U.S. Youth National Team. The team will then cut six girls and send a team of 12 to compete for the world championship in Hong Kong, China. “It’s crazy, you get to play with the best girls and coaches in the country,” Marshall said.

Photo of Marshall by Mikel Armstrong, Tennis courtesy of Facets

Emerald Ridge officially has its first female athlete to commit to a major Division I college athletic program. Junior volleyball player Kylie Marshall gave her verbal commitment on April 27 to attend the University of Tennessee on an athletic scholarship. Marshall is a member of the varsity volleyball team and is considered to be one of the state’s top volleyball recruits for the upcoming 2005-2006 season, and has been an essential part of the undefeated girls tennis team. Marshall had been recruited by numerous schools over the last six months and had narrowed her choices down to a select five: Tennessee, Long Beach State, Arizona, Michigan, and UCLA. Originally, Marshall wanted to go to a school on the West Coast so that she would be closer to home, but once she visited Tennessee in mid–April, that all changed. “Right when I got there I loved it. They have great facilities, great girls, and great coaches. It felt like the right place to go,” Marshall said. Although the school had a good feel right away,

she was still a little hesitant in making Tennessee her school of choice. “The only thing that kept me was that it was on the East Coast, so my parents would not get to see me play as much. If the program was on the West Coast I would have picked it in a second,” Marshall said. The school first caught Marshall’s eye when Tennessee head coach Rob Patrick contacted Marshall’s club coach and gave him information on their volleyball program and offered a scholarship. Despite the location she decided she would still give the school a look. “I didn’t want to regret not visiting,” Marshall said. Once she visited the school she knew that the positives vastly outweighed the lone negative of the location and decided that she would be heading south for college. Marshall, however, did not have to make this tough decision entirely on her own. “My parents and club coaches gave me support and helped me with my decision,” Marshall said. At Tennessee, Kylie will be joining a program that is coming off of a 32-3 season, were co-regular season SEC champions, and won the SEC tournament championship. The school’s success was one of the positives that

Photos by Cami Devereux

NICK KAJCA

REPORTER

KRISTIN WELLENTIN

REPORTER

Marshall decides on commitment to Tennessee BY

Honduras

Tennis finishes undefeated BY

FEATURE

Walking off the plane in Copan, Honduras, with luggage in hand is where 15 students from Cami Devereux’s Spanish classes spent their spring break. Experiencing a new culture taught the students about the language and the way of life in a third world country. “I had a good group of kids and they were all really responsible and polite and they really got into the culture,” Devereux said. Visiting the Mayan ruins, horseback riding and attending a bilingual school were some of their daily activities while experiencing the culture. The sixth graders at the school they visited challenged Devereux’s group to a spelling bee and soccer game where the sixth graders defeated the visiting students. Every student paired up and lived with a host family when in Copan to really get the first-hand experience. Senior Brian House had a great time and encountered one of his most memorable experiences while staying with his host family. “It all started when Brian Devereux, Brandon Myking and me went swimming in a river and found this log that looked like it would be fun to jump off of,” House said. When House jumped off the log, his foot jabbed into

a sharp rock, cutting his foot to the point that it hurt to walk on. His host mother spoke something in Spanish to help House and without completely understanding, House said “yes.” Later, the 16-year-old daughter informed House in English that her mother was about to heat up cloves of garlic and put it to the wound. “I thought no way! But since I was only in Honduras once I went ahead and did it,” House said. “It was the worst pain I have ever felt. She did this for two minutes and when I thought we were done, we were not. She said ‘nueve mas,’ which means nine more. “It was like fire on an open wound.” This cultural way of fixing a wound actually helped and House was able to walk the next day without limping. Myking also had a great experience and had a lot fun staying with his host family. He experienced one his most memorable moments when they were visiting the Mayan ruins. “Me and Brian House were walking and saw an empty trench, burial grave and we wanted a picture of me in it lying down. Hesitant, as I started to lie down in the hole, a bat flew out and hit me in the head,” Myking said. The last two days in Honduras, the students spent

the night at TelaMar, a Carribean hotel to tour another city. They took a boat to a tropical part of a peninsula to enjoy and relax in the sunshine before coming back to the United States. They hiked through a jungle where they saw many animals we normally only see on television. There were Howler Monkeys, spider monkeys swinging through trees, huge spiders and a boa constricter that slithered across the trail. “It was a lot of fun on the peninsula; we snorkeled and ate fresh fish for one of our meals,” Devereux said. After experiencing a new culture, Stacie Lutz, Jennifer Brumbaugh, and Tyler Hobbs also had a great time. Hobbs said it was the “funnest place I’ve ever been to.” Brumbaugh and Lutz learned that the toilet paper is not flushable and is tossed into the garbage. After eating enchiladas, chicken and authentic quesadillas, dodging spider monkeys and developing friendships, their trip finally came to an end that the students will never forget. Visiting Honduras was “a cool learning experience and made students come out of their comfort zones and I am really proud of how the students handled themselves,” Devereux said.

5/11/2005 10:56:28 PM

JagWire

SPORTS

The Gender Achievement Gap The differences between men and women have long been discussed. In this issue, JagWire examines how those differences affect academic achievement, class enrollment, and disciplinary matters. Gender disparities in these areas have combined to become known as the achievement gap. Included stories will deﬁne, explore the history of, and attempt to understand the ramiﬁcations of such a divide.

Senior Payton Foutz breaks his own ERHS record with a jump of 6 feet, 5 inches. The jump could earn him a partial scholarship from Central Washington University in Ellensburg, Washington.

ERHS track team continuing to break records Successes by several individuals cause some athletes to look toward post season competition BY

JENN WHITHAM

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Photo by Mikel Armstrong

REPORTER

As the season progresses, the Jag track team continues to break records. Seniors Rick Bogatay, Curt Lockard, Payton Foutz and Amber Stokes, as well as sophomore Kelsey Swendsen, came away with new school records or tied marks set in years past. Bogatay and Lockard have fought over the 1600m record this season. Lockard set the time to beat at 4 minutes, 29.9 seconds during the meet against Spanaway Lake on March 31. The record was not kept long; Bogatay broke it on April 19, running a time of 4:28 at Curtis. Lockard took back the record on May 7, setting the mark even lower at

4:27 at the Shelton Invitational. Lockard placed fifth in the mile during the meet. Bogatay also set a school record for the 3200-meter run with a time of 9:33 during the Eason Invitational on April 30. “That 9:33 was out of nowhere, I didn’t know what it was like to run that fast,” Bogatay said. Lockard stomped the record previously set at 2:00.3 in the 800-meter run, running a time of 1:59.3 at Curtis, the first time anyone at ER had finished under 2:00. He then broke his own record at the Eason Invitational, with a 1:57.9 finish. “I wanted to get (the record), and I definitely worked a lot more on speed work,” Lockard said. The team’s girls have also broken records from previous years. In the 200-meter dash, with 26.2 seconds, Stokes tied a record that had been held for two years. Swendsen broke the one-year-old shot-put record with a toss of 39 feet 3 ¼ inches at Spanaway Lake.

“It was really exciting because I haven’t done track since the seventh grade; I was shocked to do that well,” Stokes said. Swendsen thought differently about the result of her event. “I was expecting it, because it really wasn’t that high. I want to reach 45 feet,” Swendsen said. Against Jefferson on May 5, Swendsen moved closer to her goal by throwing a distance of 41-2. For senior Payton Foutz, beating his own 6-4 high jump record by one inch at Jefferson was more important than just setting a new school record. “Central (Washington University) told me that if I was to clear 6-4 ½ inches I could receive a partial scholarship,” Foutz said. For a full ride scholarship, the stakes were even higher. “I was told I could receive a full-ride scholarship if I jump 6-10. I think I’ll be able to do 6-8,” Foutz said. “I mean jump-

ing 6-8 is possible, 6-10 doesn’t seem like much taller because it’s only two inches, but that’s a lot with a vertical jump.” Whatever happens, Foutz is proud of what he has accomplished thus far. “I’m really happy about what I did. The whole team was right there by the high jump and cheering me on,” Foutz said. At the Shelton Invitational, Foutz placed first for his high jump of 6-2. Foutz hopes to improve his high jump and eventually reach 6-8. Many members of the team, such as senior Bailey Kuestermeyer, Bogatay and Lockard, are looking forward to the postseason and are working towards state. “I hope to make it to state in the 1600-meter run and also the 3200-meter run. I went for cross country last year,” Bogatay said. Lockard is also hoping he can make it to state this post season. “If I do make it, I’d like to go to the finals,” Lockard said.

5/11/2005 10:54:50 PM

Registration

GRANT WOODRUFF

REPORTER

Female-dominated Advanced Placement classes evening out as AP class registration numbers soar Registration numbers for Advanced Placement classes will experience an enormous change next year, particularly in regards to gender. The number of AP students is expected to grow by more than double, and traditional gender divides are beginning to dissipate. It is unclear exactly what prompted this shift toward AP classes, although theories abound. One explanation is that teachers pushed for kids to enroll in these classes; a different idea is simply the attitude of the 2005 and 2006 classes. Another explanation for the increase of AP students is steadily increasing college entrance requirements. Also, this year was the first year an AP “rally” was held for college-bound kids to better explain how AP classes will better prepare students for a four-year university. Whatever the reason, the administration is making changes to adapt to meet the needs of the new AP students. While certain classes are still very uneven in terms of gender, these divisions are nowhere near as extreme as they were last year. For example, there are only 8 boys out of 38 students in Spanish IV this year, and 25 of the 37 AP Senior English students are girls. Next year, there are expected to be 30 boys out of 57 Spanish IV students and 73 girls of 121 AP Senior English students. Next year is the first time at Emerald Ridge where there will be more boys than girls enrolled in Spanish IV. “I hope the numbers continue to even out,” Devereux said. The largest increase in registration is in the English Department. AP Senior English teacher Donna Carstensen was surprised to hear next year’s registration numbers, specifically the overall number of students and the growing male population in AP classes. In her nine years of teaching AP Senior English, Carstensen only saw one class in which there were more boys than girls. She is pleased to see more boys taking the class and believes it creates greater opportunities for more diverse discussion.

“Boys tend to be more black and white when they analyze a text – often they will assess behavior – whereas girls have a tendency to discuss feelings more,” Carstensen said. AP Senior English student Gregory Henry believes that in his class mostly girls participate in the discussions. “I hear a lot of feminist opinions,” Henry said. Principal Brian Lowney responded to this shift in AP registration by securing funding for all interested English teachers to attend AP training courses this summer. Lowney also plans on hiring new teachers with experience in AP teaching. “These AP interested students will affect hiring,” Lowney said. Devereux is excited about a second Spanish IV class – in the past she has only had one – as numbers have continued to increase since the first year. While Spanish IV is not technically an AP class, it is often grouped with AP classes because it is a more advanced course. Many of Devereux’s Spanish IV students do not take the AP test, however students enrolled in that class will receive college credit. “I think it (the increase in Spanish IV students) has a lot to do with the attitude of the 2005 and 2006 classes, a lot of students realize the importance of foreign languages,” Devereux said. Spanish IV and AP Senior English are not the only classes that are going to be affected; AP Government and AP Junior English classes already have twice as many students enrolled for next year and major changes to the teaching schedule will have to be made to accommodate for these students. AP Government and AP Calculus classes have been pretty balanced in terms of gender since the school’s first year. The one major difference between AP Government and AP Calculus is that any senior can enroll in government, whereas a math student would either had to have been selected for advanced math back in sixth grade, or would have to take a pre-calculus class at Pierce College.

Discipline

Making Music and Defying Gravity BY

ANNA BOFA

Two individually-minded girls ignore the stereotypical gender barriers to follow their dreams

REPORTER

LISSY BRYAN

REPORTER

While discipline trends show that more males tend to be troublemakers, some say the gap is closing

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Walking into the mini-auditorium on a Tuesday afternoon, there are a large amount of boys in Tuesday School. This comes as no surprise, as boys tend to be disciplined more than girls. According to a recent unscientific survey taken by 191 Emerald Ridge students, 6.74 percent more boys than girls reported receiving administrative referrals. Although society and schools give both men and women equal rights, males have a higher tendency to be violent. In a study of television and violence, 45.2 percent of boys who watch more than three hours a day of television display aggressive acts. Only 12.7 percent of girls that watch more than three hours of television a day will act out. With the violence in movies and television that are most often played out by men, high school boys seem to easily pick it up. Assistant Principal Jeannine Medvedich says it is because of society that boys seem to be disciplined more than girls. She also claims that the culture of America gives girls the thought that they need to be respectful and not to get into trouble. Therefore, she says, boys are independent and self-minding, while girls are more eager to please. “I think the reason that more boys get into trouble is because society makes it seem OK to be independent and act superior, which then pressures boys to fight when others step on their territory,” Medvedich said. Although Medvedich believes that society gives girls the idea that they need to be more refined, security guard Rico Tipton said he thinks society has dramatically changed over the past couple of years. “Society used to be a lot different in categorizing the views upon sexes. Nowadays, the views on girls are different,” Tipton said. “They are not as rule followers as they used to be. Girls are viewed equally as boys as far as being disciplined.”

Medvedich said that although the skipping rates are equal between boys and girls at the school, if a fight were to break loose, she would most likely be splitting up boys, and not girls. “Nine out of 10 times the fights in the cafeteria are between boys,” she said. Although the fight toll is higher among boys, some would testify that boys and girls are equal in discipline situations. “I do not agree that boys are disciplined more. There are just as many girls who get into trouble,” Tipton said. “The degree of problems is not as distinct in boys as it is in girls, but there are just as many discipline acts for both.” However, Tipton went on to say that any disproportion in reference to gender discipline might stem from unconscious teacher biases. That is to say, a teacher might be less inclined to punish a student of the same gender because that teacher might have an easier time identifying with that student. Emerald Ridge has a slightly larger number of female teachers. “Woman teachers are more understanding towards girls and their situations. With more female teachers on the sides of the girls, they are less likely to get into trouble,” Tipton said. “The same goes for males, but with the few amount of male teachers to understand male students, boys have more chances to get into trouble.” Though the boys have more fights, Tipton says that girls are in equal problems with drugs, cheating, and attendance. In many cases, Tipton argues that girls might be worse. Also, Medvedich stated that girls are more verbal, and boys are more physical, which often gets the boys into more trouble. Although statistics say that boys are in fact, disciplined more, the perception is that the difference is only slightly different. “The gap has really closed. The look upon the gender of students is not as widespread anymore,” Tipton said.

Faustine Im

This country has come a long way since the days of board room meetings where women serve the coffee. But even though women are breaking into male-dominated fields, it’s still kind of a surprise to hear of a female firefighter or CEO. Junior Lauren McLaren and senior Faustine Im are two women who aren’t being bothered with social stereotypes. They will not be taking the road most traveled, and plan on defying the odds and breaking some stereotypical social barriers in the process. McLaren has been involved with music for as long as she can remember. Even though McLaren is in band, she doesn’t really like the stage; she prefers the process it takes to get there. McLaren is a music composer and has been for quite some time. “It’s my way of expressing myself,” McLaren said. “I really like music but I’m not really a performer.” McLaren has taken her love for composition a step further. For the past two years she has been involved with the Young Composers workshop with the Seattle Symphony. And McLaren is the only girl. “It was odd being the only girl at first, but I don’t mind it,” McLaren said. She is not intimidated by it either. “I think they are more intimidated by me because I’m so vocal,” McLaren said. McLaren works directly with the symphony members to help create her own piece, which is then performed by the orchestra. “It’s very exciting; you definitely get a rewarding feeling from it,” McLaren said. McLaren feels that women in the arts can have a profound impact. “Music is an art – there are some things girls can bring that guys can’t,” McLaren said. Im also is used to being the odd girl out. She has received an appointment to the Air Force Academy and wants to become a pilot. But she, too, does not see what she’s doing as unnatural. “Growing up, I was always around planes; my dad is a machinist for Boeing and my uncle is a pilot,” Im said. She feels that her family has helped to prepare her for what she wants to do. “I’m not nervous about being a girl in the Air Force, my whole life has been spent around guys,” Im said. Im knows that the Air Force is a male dominated organization and she feels that it’s just all the more

reason for her to join. McLaren’s interests are not just limited to music and the arts. One of her biggest passions is computer science. She has her own Web site and helps to run several others. This is also a field where women are lacking. “There’s this stereotype that computer science is a bunch of geeky guys,” McLaren said. She feels that it’s not that women aren’t capable of being involved in these fields; it’s that a lot of times they don’t think about doing it because it’s not the norm. McLaren is not willing to find something else to do. She wants to double major in computer science and music in college. “This is definitely something I will carry into my future and hopefully make into a career,” McLaren said. Im also is excited about what the future holds for her. “What could be better than doing what you love,” Im said. Im and McLaren know that the road they are choosing to take will not be easy. “You are going to have hardships no matter what you do, and being a female is just something you overcome,” said Im. Im and McLaren are clearly not phased by past myths that there are just certain things women aren’t supposed to do. “Women should have the right to be whatever they want to be,” Im said.

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5/11/2005 10:55:50 PM

Falling Behind

AMMA BOFA

REPORTER

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limited to higher education. By the fourth grade, a sizable gap in reading and writing achievement has opened up between boys and girls. The U.S. Department of Education’s annual Condition of Education report concluded that “the gap in reading proficiency [favoring girls] is roughly equivalent to about 1 1/2 years of schooling.” Over the years there has been a quiet transformation, and a rapid change in the academic performance of boys and girls. Consequently, the achievement gap is showing up in grades, standardized-test scores, course selection, dropout rates, and college-completion rates. Why is there an achievement gap? While some scholars and researchers point to schools and teachers as the cause of the achievement gap, others say it’s the parents’ fault and blame institutional practices that favor females over males. Though there continues to be much speculation and discussion, everyone seems to agree that as a whole, boys are being eclipsed academically by girls in almost every subject and grade level. While males are falling behind academically, they are way ahead of females in areas such as dropout rates, discipline problems, special education referrals and alternative school placement. “Boys as a group are in trouble and it’s time to do something about it,” said Cornelius Riodan a commentator for Education Weekly. ‘’Boys learn differently than girls. We know that, but we don’t treat them that way in the classroom.” According to Paul Slocumb, an author and former educator, boys tend to be literal and objective, while

MARILYN DIXON

REPORTER

Administrators agree there is a problem and are progressing towards a solution to help students of both genders graduate

Females pull ahead in overall academic performance as achievement gap widens In the not-too-distant past, high school classrooms and college campuses were dominated by the presence of males, while females were on the bottom end of educational opportunity and success. However, over time, a slow revolution in the dynamics of classroom achievement has occurred. Today, boys are more likely to drop out of school, obtain lower grades than girls, and are less likely to attend college. As a whole, boys are not doing well in school. And the title given to this current phenomenon in education is the gender achievement gap. “The gender achievement gap is the name given to describe the growing and widespread decline in males’ academic performance,” Building Learning Specialist Nancy Drew said. In addition, she noted that this is not just a local issue, but a national issue. Twenty-five years ago, educators and experts first noted that girls lagged behind boys on science and math tests. Today studies show that girls have virtually caught up in those subjects. While girls continue to improve, males are falling behind. For example, enrollments in institutions of higher education in 1970 favored males by a ratio of nearly 3-to-2. Today, the ratio actually favors females, 1.17to-1. In addition, in 1997, 56 percent of the college degrees nationwide were awarded to women, an almost complete reversal from 1970, when men were awarded 57 percent of degrees. These figures are projected to approach a 60 percent/40 percent split by the end of the decade meaning that the ratio will have come full circle to three girls for every two boys. Furthermore, the gap in achievement is not simply

Closing the Gap

girls are more intuitive and subjective. A boy may read a story and see a set of problems to be solved, while a girl might see the same story as a series of individual experiences to be understood. Furthermore, Slocumb notes that the male brain works differently. Boys need more processing time whereas girls process language much more quickly. This may help explain why girls excel in reading and writing while boys often struggle. Students are also noticing the gap as well. In a recent JagWire survey of 191 students in all three grade levels, 92 percent of students said girls are more academically motivated. ‘’I learn better hands-on,’’ said senior Patrick Somers, who also noted that the classroom setting seems to better suit girls. Many experts admit that classroom rules might favor girls. ‘’Schools are designed more for girls than boys. If you look at the profession of teaching, it is dominated by females,” Riodan said, noting that teachers set the expectations of classroom behavior. ‘’In general, boys have unique needs that need more specialized approaches.’’ Change probably won’t happen overnight. Slocumb said the gender achievement gap wasn’t created over a short time and would not be easily closed. ‘’It’s not a boy versus girl issue,’’ he said. Instead, Slocumb suggests that many of the issues are societal, biological and deeply rooted in the way modern schools operate. ‘’The more we understand this, the more we’re going to be able to meet their needs,’’ Slocumb said. ‘’We just need to keep addressing it.”

The plan to fix the gender achievement gap is still being developed, both on the district and school level. “It’s a problem,” said Principal Brian Lowney. “It disturbs me when we have any group of students at a higher lever than other students … that’s a problem to me.” “There shouldn’t be an achievement gap,” Medvedich said. “It saddens me that the difference in gender relates to a student’s performance.” Since Emerald Ridge administrators agree that the achievement gap is a problem, the next step is deciding on what to do to solve it. “School plans are more focused on reading, writing, and math,” Lowney said, “As a district, we work on it together.” When working together, everyone plays a role in finding out where the differences lie in the achievement between girls and boys. “Administrators, counselors, teachers, and students have met to discuss on how to improve failing grades and increase student performance,” Medvedich said. “Overall, we’re working to make adequate yearly progress.” Adequate yearly progress, or AYP, is measured in different cells. There are cells for gender, ethnicity, drop out rates, disabled students, etc. It’s there to make sure that a school’s standards are in the right place. It allows schools to find out where they need to focus their efforts on improving. Emerald Ridge seems to be handling its AYP progress well since there aren’t any significant gaps in any of the categories, including gender, except for special education. “We’re meeting AYP in every cell except for special education students,” Medvedich said. On a higher level, the district has recently created a new position to specifically handle the achievement gap. The position, assistant director of achievement and equity, was appointed to Johnnie McKinley, assistant director of Teaching and Learning. “(Superintendent Dr. Tony) Apostle believed we needed to do something (about the achievement gap),” McKinley said. “He asked me to take on this position because I had done the research.” Her research included studying other plans and strategies conducted by

other school districts who were able to close the achievement gap. “I’ve been doing the research for 10 years,” McKinley said. McKinley has held this position for two months now, but won’t be working on anything definite until June. “We’re just getting smart about this challenge for now,” McKinley said. “We’ll enlist support from teachers and parents, and based on what is needed here in Puyallup, figure out what’s going on. I’ll be working with the office of Diversity Affairs as well.” McKinley discussed methods on how they will find out what the needs are in the Puyallup School District, specifically for high school students. “Based on the needs from data,” McKinley said, “we’ll create approaches and classroom-based strategies in order to make sure that all children achieve at their highest level.” Parents will be involved in this process as well. “We’ll provide training to help folks out,” McKinley said. “Parents need to understand and know about the effects of the WASL, graduation requirements, things in the community – things that can aid in creating motivation.” Motivation definitely is needed in ensuring that all students, despite gender, graduate. “It’s not okay to see kids not graduate,” Medvedich said. “They’re always used to the stereotypes like girls growing up thinking that guys are good at math. It gets into your psyche. Your perceptions become your reality.” With some plans prepared, the district is still going to have to do some research. “Right now we’re just working on doing the research,” McKinley said. “We’re looking at the data, meeting with parents, teachers, and administrators. Together we’re working on strategies that worked in other districts.” Overall, the gap is being recognized as a challenge that needs to be met. “(The achievement gap) has existed for a long time,” Lowney said. “It’s good that folks are trying to do something about it.”

5/11/2005 10:55:21 PM

Falling Behind

AMMA BOFA

REPORTER

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MARILYN DIXON

REPORTER

Administrators agree there is a problem and are progressing towards a solution to help students of both genders graduate

Closing the Gap

5/11/2005 10:55:21 PM

Registration

GRANT WOODRUFF

REPORTER

Discipline

Making Music and Defying Gravity BY

ANNA BOFA

Two individually-minded girls ignore the stereotypical gender barriers to follow their dreams

REPORTER

LISSY BRYAN

REPORTER

While discipline trends show that more males tend to be troublemakers, some say the gap is closing

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Faustine Im

Lauren McLaren 11

5/11/2005 10:55:50 PM

JagWire

SPORTS

Senior Payton Foutz breaks his own ERHS record with a jump of 6 feet, 5 inches. The jump could earn him a partial scholarship from Central Washington University in Ellensburg, Washington.

ERHS track team continuing to break records Successes by several individuals cause some athletes to look toward post season competition BY

JENN WHITHAM

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Photo by Mikel Armstrong

REPORTER

5/11/2005 10:54:50 PM

SPORTS

JagWire

Girls complete season first in the SPSL, extending unbeaten streak to 27 matches NICK KAJCA

REPORTER

Sophomore Alyssa Ferry has been key in the team’s 27–match win streak.

15 students were given the opportunity of a lifetime to visit another country with their classmates BY

16,09.indd 2-3

Photo of Marshall by Mikel Armstrong, Tennis courtesy of Facets

Photos by Cami Devereux

NICK KAJCA

REPORTER

KRISTIN WELLENTIN

REPORTER

Marshall decides on commitment to Tennessee BY

Honduras

Tennis finishes undefeated BY

FEATURE

5/11/2005 10:56:28 PM

08 FEATURE

JagWire

Beloved teacher Cindy Watters leaves ERHS to start a new life and use her talents abroad.

LISSY BRYAN AND ANNA BOFA

BRITTANY LAWBER

REPORTER

“

I’M JUST REALLY EXCITED TO GO AND SEE ALL THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF CULTURES AND MEET NEW PEOPLE AND JUST TO WRESTLE

”

Water polo finishes season looking to improve The lady Jags complete season with goal of creating an environment for a young team to develop skills BY

CARISSA CARTER

EDITORIAL BOARD

Photo by Tyler Quinn

08,17.indd 2-3

Taking in new cultures, sophomore Aaron Brown and junior Keith Schlecht are two of 11 students selected to travel

REPORTERS

Wrestlers to compete in Japan

TREADING NEW WATTERS ATTERSs BY

SPORTS

5/11/2005 10:54:09 PM

SPORTS

JagWire

Loss of snack foods possible?

Soccer takes on obstacles In a season of new additions, team hopes to end year strong

Injuries and academic struggles play a huge part in rough soccer season BY

KAITLYN GOLDEN

REPORTER

18,07.indd 2-3

‘R’-rated movies not kid friendly

THE FINE PRINT

Emerald Ridge High School 12405 184th St. E. South Hill, WA 98374 253-435-6300

Sophomore Peter Hartnett receives a pass in the 8-0 shutout game against Spanaway Lake, while junior Zach Sanders looks on.

LETTERS POLICY

Photo by Erica Bosnick

OP/ ED

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5/11/2005 10:57:08 PM

NEWS

JagWire

New schedule in the works Inconsistency hurts baseball BY

JESSICA RITCHIE

REPORTER

While they demonstrated ability at times, irregularity in performance prevented baseball from living up to their potential

Includes Coat, Shirt, Vest and Tie

Sophomore Kyle Eads pitches to Decatur on May 5. Eads pitched five innings, and had a double and two RBIs. The Jags lost, 5-8.

Even with communication problems, fastpitch looks towards the future

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Puyallup

Fastpitch maintains positive attitude, despite losses

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NICK KAJCA

REPORTER

Your choice! Over 50 Styles

06,19.indd 2-3

SPORTS

“

I THINK THAT THE SEASON HAS GONE BADLY BECAUSE WE DON’T ALWAYS PLAY TOGETHER LIKE A TEAM SHOULD.

”

— Heather Logan, senior

5/11/2005 10:53:36 PM

JagWire

What are your plans for next year? Attend Spokane Falls Community College on a baseball scholarship.

Water overflow at ER Teacher wins award

What motivates you in playing? The drive to move my game to the next level and help the team the best I can.

Teacher Cami Devereux with a $1,000 check donated to ER for her teacher of the year award. BY

MARILYN DIXON

REPORTER

Mysterious incident baffles Rogers

LOUTRA NDESIGNATED HITTER Baseball

20,05.indd 2-3

KATINA MATHIESON

REPORTER

What professional athlete do you admire? Albert Pujols because of his work ethic and love for the game.

KATINA MATHIESON

PHOTO EDITOR

Photo by Jessica Ritchie

ATHLETE OF THE MONTH

NEWS

5/11/2005 10:58:27 PM

NEWS

JagWire

Sunrise Medical Center displays artwork

Day of Silence uneventful Despite the usual attendance issues, Day of Silence ultimately unhindered by its anticipated opposition and conflict BY

TAYZHA FOX

REPORTER

Start a bachelor’s degree ... or career today

Students inspired by artist-in-residence Larry Calkins to create art pieces for Sound Family Medicine at Sunrise Medical Center

Pride organizes golf tournament

Great food and cheap prices make the Park Bench Caffé & Eatery a home away from home BY

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04,21.indd 2-3

ROBIN STOYLES

REPORTER

Photo by James Stanford

– Robert Troop

Larry Calkins introduced a new medium to studio art students.

Park Bench: A better seat to enjoy a tasty meal

JagWire earns recognition nationally, regionally

“I chose Pierce because the smaller campus has a nurturing environment.

ELAINE RAYMOND

REPORTER

NEWS BRIEFS

A&E

5/11/2005 10:52:47 PM

A&E

NEWS

JagWire

‘Revenge’ is so very sweet ASB almost takes budget hit BY

KAITLYN GOLDEN

REPORTER

‘Revenge of the Sith’ marks the end of the ‘Star Wars’ franchise, leaving the previous two prequels in the dust BY

MATT CLICK

REPORTER

22,03.indd 2-3

New school year expected to be overcrowded BY

NICOLE SANTOS

REPORTER

Photo courtesy of 20th Century Fox

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5/11/2005 10:59:21 PM

Check out JagWire online at www.getjagwired.com

5.13.05

Marleah Feist

INSIDE

12 Grades In recent years, a gap has emerged between the grades of males and females.

Kristin – First thing that comes to mind is DDR! Crazy, up-beat music with a spunkified beat is pretty cool. It reminds me of some old-school Kiss mixed with Styx.

Four People, Four CDs Amma Bofa

Advanced Placement at ER classes traditionally have had a larger number of females than males.

Marleah – What is this? I mean, seriously, what is this? This is lame. I can’t get into it at all. I’m definitely not a fan. The music is different and edgy, but I just don’t like it.

O Brother, Where art Thou? : Soundtrack

15| Track team set for state

Athletes in running and field events, such as senior Curt Lockard, push for personal bests.

AP Studio Art students 21 | like junior J.P. Community Hunnicutt worked with independent member artist Larry works with art Calkins to create classes beeswax art.

James Stanford

08|s English and social studies teacher and Charting multicultural club a course for adviser Cindy Watters will be heading to unexplored Shanghai, China to Watters teach next year.

Beck : Guero

02,23.indd 2-3

Stratovarius : Elements, Pt. 1

Kristin Wellentin

Gender 10 Gap

Marleah – Oh power metal, how I love thee! The guitar riffs, solos, and vocals are truly one of a kind. I live for this music ... there is nothing better.

Brad Paisley : Mud on the Tires

5/11/2005 10:51:20 PM

giving you the low down

The Beat

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One Man Star Wars Trilogy Moore Theater May 20-22 $23.50

Seattle Mariners SafeCo Field May 16-18 vs. NY Yankees $7-$55

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Forever Tango 5th Ave. Theatre May 17-22 $20-$55

Grease Paramount May 13-15 $20-$55

The Music Man Issaquah Theater May 13-26 $32-$42

AN OPEN FORUM FOR STUDENT EXPRESSION

Seattle Sonics KeyArena Playoffs vs. San Antonio May 15 $14-$990

The Beat

Endfest 14 feat. Social Distortion, Queens of the Stone Age White River Amphitheatre June 4 $20-$40

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Kelly Clarkson Paramount May 26 $39.50

Sleater Kinny Moore Theater May 31 $17.50-$20

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Gender Achievement Gap ARE GIRLS SMARTER? EMERALD RIDGE HIGH SCHOOL

12405 184TH ST E SOUTH HILL, WA 98374

VOLUME FIVE ISSUE SEVEN MAY 2005

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5/11/2005 11:00:21 PM