December 2015 by jcredblack

Red & Black Newspaper 12.08.15 • Volume 85 • Issue 3 Jefferson City High School Jefferson City, MO

APR How a three-letter acronym became a four-letter word in Jefferson City

p. 18-19

CONTENTS 12.08.15

NEWS 3

How credits work with the new schedule

SPORTS 12

Photos of the cross country state meet

Show choir is our very own glee club

Pick ‘em

What does it take to play basketball?

The atheltes on the sidelines: cheerleaders

International Thespian Society hosts JC’s Got Talent

Clubs raise money with fundraising nights

Recap of Mizzou Football

Medical Club hosts annual blood drive

A new sport at JCHS: archery

Students donate cans for food drive

Featured Athlete: Megan Foster

Students honor those who served in the armed forces

SPOTLIGHT

The holidays are a time for good food -- see some of our favorite recipes

IN-DEPTH

APR: What it means and why you should care

OPINION 24

Editorial: Recent events in the news call us to action

Head to Head: Do you like Christmas music?

Online music options: Spotify or Apple Music?

Test anxiety increases as finals approach

Project Based Learning can be an effective tool

A&E 28

Celebrate the holidays with festive drinks

FEATURES

Amazing art around Jefferson City

Get to know the mayor of Jefferson City

Billboard top 5 vs. JCHS top 5

Duties of a drum major

Our favorite holiday movies

A “merry beary” Christmas

Black Friday: An American Institution

Reviews: Logic, Adele, The Hunger Games Holiday Writing Contest Winner

Bellringers bring holiday cheer

12.08.15//CONTENTS

31 31

Instagram Contest: Things to be thankful for

Duncan and Claire Shipley all liven up the newspaper room with their sass and we could not operate without it. Also, Brandon is pretty much resposible for all of our creative headlines. Dalton Wheeler is an expert with design and helps out a lot with ads, all while providing his entertaining commentary on world/school events. Maddy Bergstrom is anything but basic, and adds a little hipster to room 141. Our Megans, Megan Cassels and Megan Newton, are quiet but powerful forces when it comes to their writing abilities. Our newspaper BFFs, Taylor Johnson and Madeline Moats, make everyone feel like their friend. Veronica Townsend is a hard worker and is extremely passionate about journalism. Ainsley Grey is our resident artist and amazes us with her talents. Mr. Maylander, our charismatic leader, motivates us to continue. I am so thankful for all of these wonderful people and cannot wait for the rest of the year.

FROM THE EDITOR

Hey. What’s up. Hello. Welcome to the third issue of the Red & Black newspaper, our December issue. Since this is the time of year where people think about all the things they have to be thankful for, I wanted to use the “From the Editor” this month to write about the staff members on Red & Black and what they do for the paper. First of all, we have the editors: Madi Baughman, Erica Overfelt and Mackenzie Allen. Without their hard work and creativity the paper would be 32 blank pages. They are responsible for putting everything on page and designing it the way it is. This is a tough job but is something they do great with, and I could not be more thankful for the three of them. The manager of our website (which is currently under construction and not avaliable to the public) is Brooklynne Propes, the nicest person you will ever meet. Brandon Eigenman, Brenna

December 8, 2015 Volume 85, Issue 3 Red & Black is a student led newspaper that serves as a public forum for the school and the community. Opinions expressed in the paper are not necessarily those of JCHS nor the faculty, staff or administration.

Editors: Jacob Worsham Madi Baughman Erica Overfelt Mackenzie Allen

Website Manager: Brooklynne Propes

-Jacob Worsham

How credits work with the new schedule Dalton Wheeler

ith the new 10 block schedule and A and B days, the way the end of terms and semesters works is slightly different and can be quite confusing to think about. With all of this change, students may be concerned with how their credits will be affected. The way credits work, though, has not been changed. “Credit wise, the only difference this year is that there are more classes that earn .50 credits at semester,” Carrie Welch said. Although there are more half-credit classes, the majority of students will

not be switching rooms come January. Last year, a nine week class ended at term but most of the old nine week classes have moved to 18 week classes that now end at semester. It also goes hand-in-hand with the old semester long classes; they are now year long. There are minor exceptions to these classes, most of which being math classes that still meet everyday and end at semester. “Credits can now be issued at both term and semester,” Welch said. “Last year, we had less classes that met every day all year long.”

Staff Reporters: Ainsley Grey Brandon Eigenman Brenna Duncan Claire Shipley Dalton Wheeler Maddy Bergstrom Madeline Moats Megan Cassels Megan Newton Taylor Johnson Veronica Townsend Advisor: Timothy Maylander Jefferson City High School 609 Union Street Jefferson City, MO 65101 (573)659-3193 redblack.jchs@gmail.com

@jcredblack 12.08.15//NEWS 3

NEWS

[photo by Erica Overfelt]

[photo by Erica Overfelt] Top: Talent show winner Christa Kiesling poses with her hula hoop at the end of her dance routine. Left: Junior Anna-Marie Mullins demonstrates her talent with a cello. Right Top: Freshman Marcel John plays his guitar as his talent for the show. Right Bottom: Audience members applaud the performers in the Little Theater.

12.08.15//NEWS

[photo by Erica Overfelt]

[photo by Erica Overfelt] Students line up as they wait to hear the results of the talent show. This year, the winner was sophomore Christa Kiesling, who showed off her talent with hula hoop dancing.

Showing off the talent in JCHS Brandon Eigenman

ome wonder where the next big act will come from, whether it be a musician that pulls at the heartstrings or a dancer who leaves the audience in awe of the choreography performed. Sometimes, though, people neglect to look for that type of talent when it may very well be sitting right next to you. To bring this talent into the limelight, on November 17th the International Thespian Society hosted a talent show in the Little Theater to give those who were worthy a chance to shine. “I’ve been playing the cello for seven years,” junior Anna-Marie Mullins said, “I heard they were asking for a variety of talents, so I gave my talent.” Try-outs were held on November 10th in the Little Theater. Each act

was judged in four different categories: stage presence, facial expressions, talent, and projection. The judges of these categories were members of the International Thespian Society, and they were the ones who decided which acts would go on to the actual talent show in the end. When it came around to the actual talent show, there was a contest for who had the best performance. Each contestant was asked to bring in a modified box, which the audience would then put a ticket in, and whoever got the most tickets won. The winner this year was the sophomore Christa Kiesling with her hula hoop dancing. “It was just a little bit nerve racking,” Kiesling said, “I know there were a lot of people there who were really talented. I didn’t go in expecting to win, I just went in ready to do my best.”

While there were a vast number of both singers and instrumentalists, some performances were truly perplexing yet interesting. Whether it be a cellist playing along to a heavy metal track, a magician’s hilarious tricks, or even dancing with hula hoops that glow in the dark, all of the performers really showed another side to JCHS. No matter what the talent was, everyone who came on the stage had a nice time and ended up sharing a selfie at the end. For some, it also turned out to be a great way to reflect on their talents and refine them. “It’s the only way you’re going to get better,” freshman performer Alex Arand said, “The feedback from talent show might be the only time they get the chance to really have a stage and audience and get that opportunity.”

12.08.15//NEWS

School clubs hold fundraising nights Brenna Duncan

ince the school year started it’s not uncommon to see various students carrying around boxes filled with goodies to sell to fellow students and some teachers. Both Jay Band and Jay Debate sold chocolate bars to raise money for their organizations. The money they raised was used toward their various competitions throughout the year. The Jay Band students were also allowed to keep half of the money they raised for themselves. The debate team also sold cookie dough, coupon cards, and twenty dollar gift cards to Coffee Zone.

“The money goes towards tournament costs,” Jay Debate treasurer Lucy Liao said. “We raised $1100 from coupons and $900 from the candy.” Tournament costs include hotel costs, food, transportation, and the tournament itself. The debate team has a very small booster club and relies on its fundraising and the money of its debaters to fund itself. The debate team also had a fundraising night at Panera on Nov. 30. Fundraising nights at local restaurants are also fairly common. There are often posters up in the

hallways to advertise when it is taking place, where it will be at and who the fundraiser is for. On Sept. 23, Student Council had a fundraising night at Buffalo Wild Wings. They were able to raise $275.79. Student Council also received 50% of the proceeds from customers who showed the flyer at Chipotle on Nov. 16. They raised $517.13 at this event. “We get 50% of the proceeds and it goes toward general student council stuff, like decorations for the dances,” fundraising committee member Bailey Patrick said.

Top Left: Hungry students take part in eating Chipotle to raise funds for Student Council. Bottom Left: Workers are excited to serve hungry customers on fundraising night. Below: Many students supported the school by attending Student Council’s fundraising night at Chipotle on Nov. 16.

[photo by Erica Overfelt]

12.08.15//NEWS

[photo by Erica Overfelt]

[photo by Madi Baughman]

Left: During the process of giving blood, students had to stay as still as possible. Above Top: Medical Club sets up their table with t-shirts, snacks, and a sign-in sheet. Above Bottom: Students recover after giving blood by resting and eating snacks provided by Medical Club.

Medical Club hosts annual blood drive Madi Baughman

mong the other events going on during Veterans Day, anxious students waiting on the gym stage to donate blood was a common sight to see. The blood drive, hosted by Medical Club, turned out to be a huge success, with hundreds of students donating. All students 16 and over and able to meet the health requirements were able to sign up for the event, which took place throughout the course of the day. “I decided to donate because I felt like it was something small for me, but a big help to those who need it,” junior Heaven Chavez said. The morning before the drive,

students were advised to stay hydrated and eat a full breakfast before giving blood to make donating as easy as possible. Some students even took iron supplements and vitamin C in the days leading up to the event to help with the iron levels in their blood. Medical Club had snacks and drinks ready so that students could get back to feeling as good as possible after getting their blood drawn. On the actual day of the drive, students had to go through final preparations to make sure everything ran smoothly. Before giving blood, they were required to fill out paperwork to finalize everything before their donation. They would then wait in line

for their turn to donate. The whole process of drawing blood was actually the shortest part, taking about 10 minutes. After donating, they got to rest and eat a snack to help with the nausea before going back to class. Overall, Medical Club was able to donate 94 units of blood, which was a new record for the school. After donating, students have to wait 56 days before giving blood again, though they will still have the opportunity to participate again with a drive in the spring. “I wanted to help,” Chavez said. “I am definitely going to try and donate for the spring drive.”

12.08.15//NEWS

[photo by Madi Baughman] [photo by Madi Baughman]

[photo by Madi Baughman]

Members of Student Council travel around the school to collect cans for the final count. After sorting through all of them, the seniors ended up being the winners with 380 cans. The school raised 1,010 cans as a whole.

Students hungry to create change Jake Worsham

tudents and faculty participated in the food drive from Nov. 9 to Nov. 13. The competition pitted the seniors, juniors, sophomores and the faculty against each other to see who would be able to collect the most cans. Participants brought their cans to their first block teacher, and labeled them with their class. A total of 1,010 cans were collected throughout the week, with the seniors winning the competition for bringing in the most. The sophomores brought in 153 cans, the juniors brought in 133

cans, the seniors brought in 380 cans, and the faculty brought in 344 cans. “I personally was very happy because the senior class represented more than I thought,” fundraising chair Athira Nambiar said. “Overall, I thought the results were comparable to last years.” The cans donated will be brought to the Samaritan Center and will then be distributed throughout the town. “I think that in this time of the year, the families who receive the food then have a small buffer in that they

12.08.15//NEWS

can spend more money on their family and kids on things like toys and gifts,” Nambiar said. The holiday season is a time associated with giving and being thankful, so the food drive results showed how much JCHS cared. “In general, community service is always good because the community has a lot to offer us,” Nambiar said. “It’s good to spend some time in giving back to the community.”

Remembering those who gave it all Brooklynne Propes

n Friday, Nov. 6, JCHS honored our men and women in the armed forces in an early Veterans Day assembly. Parents of a few courageous soldiers, who had a movie based off of their events called Lone Survivor, came to speak at the assembly, along with a man who lost his son during the terrorist attacks on 9/11. During the assembly, the parents told students stories about their loved ones’ lives. They gave memories about moments from their childhood all the

way to them going into the armed forces. They described the courage their children had, and left with inspiring messages for students. After those couple sets of parents were finished, the parent of the man who died on 9/11 stood up and spoke. He told the students about how his son was on the plane headed to Washington D.C., Flight 93, when they realized that something wasn’t right. The people on the plane crashed it in a rural field in Pennsylvania to miss the terrorists’ initial target. All of the civilians on the

plane died, but they also saved the lives of many others. Later on, the speakers received gifts from a few ROTC students, such as a Salute to Service Shirt. The speakers were very touched by this gesture. Every day should be a day to thank those who fight or have fought for us and our country, but on that day those parents and speakers opened their hearts to show students how much it really means to be an American.

[photo by Brooklynne Propes]

Left Top: ROTC students present the speakers with Salute to Service t-shirts as a symbol of thanks for their family’s service. Left Bottom: Audience members listen intently as the parents pass on their inspiring messages. Above: Parents tell students their memories of their children in the armed forces. The stories went all the way from their childhood to their time in service.

12.08.15//NEWS

Treats for the Holidays Oreo Fluff

Ingredients: • Full package of Oreos • One container of whipped topping Directions: 1. Crumple all Oreos in to a mixing bowl. 2. Place all of the whipped topping in the bowl with the Oreos and mix to your liking. 3. For adding something fun, strawberries are good to dip into the Oreo Fluff.

Rice Krispie Treats Ingredients: • Package of marshmallows • Box of cereal (Rice Krispies, Fruity Pebbles, Cocoa Pebbles) • Butter Directions: 1. Melt the butter in a pot with low heat. 2. Add the bag of marshmallows and allow to melt, then add cereal to a consistency of your liking (Use Rice Krispies for traditional treats, but if you are feeling creative you can use or mix any cereals you like). 3. Remove from heat immediately and allow it to harden. 4. You may decorate with candy or eat plain.

12.08.15//SPOTLIGHT

Chocolate Covered Pretzels

Ingredients: • Bag of twisted pretzels • Almond bark (white or chocolate) • Wax paper • Sprinkles (optional) Directions: 1. Melt the almond bark on low on the stove. 2. Drop pretzels in the almond bark until fully covered. 3. Lay the covered pretzels on wax paper until cool. 4. For more fun, add sprinkles on top of the pretzels before fully dry.

Puppy Chow Ingredients: • Crispy Rice cereal (8 cups) • Peanut butter (1/2 cup) • Chocolate chips (1 cup) • Powdered sugar (1.5 cups)

Corn Pudding Ingredients: • 2 sticks margarine • 1 can creamed corn • 1 can kernel corn • 1 box Jiffy cornbread mix • 16 oz. sour cream • 2 eggs Directions: 1. Melt butter in a casserole dish. 2. Mix in the egg and then all other ingredients. 3. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.

Directions: 1. Melt the chocolate over low heat and mix in the peanut butter. 2. Remove from heat, add the cereal, and stir until coated. 3. Put powdered sugar and coated cereal into plastic bag and shake.

12.08.15//SPOTLIGHT 11

SPORTS

Cross Country State Meet [photos by Erica Overfelt]

Hundreds of runners and thousands of spectators gathered at Oak Hill Golf Course in Jefferson City to watch the Cross Country State Meet that took place Saturday Nov. 7. Both the Jays and Lady Jays Cross Country teams raced. The Lady Jays finished 16th and the Jays finished 14th.

Junior Bri Bechtel hugs assistant Coach Amanda Buhr before her Girl’s Class 4 State race.

Lady Jay’s Senior Lindsey Biesemeyer, Kenzie Gourley and Katie Ruth race along the giant pact of runners.

The final stretch is lined up with spectators all cheering on their runners before the finish line.

All the final race times are posted consistently after each race for anyone to see.

12.08.15//SPORTS

Jefferson City High School not only had runners representing them but as well as officials. Senior Joey Hartman eats lunch before the next race. Junior Josh Sabala relaxes in the team tent after his Boy’s Class 4 race. All runners come to this tent after each race to prepare for the cool down run.

The Pitch Perfect Glee Club: JCHS Edition Taylor Johnson

ome students of Jefferson City High School may not realize that we have our own Glee Club or even High School Musical known as Show Choir. What the sport consists of is fusing a list of songs, usually around six, and adding dance to combine a twenty minute show based on one theme. This season’s current theme is Mary Poppins with songs from the Mary Poppins show and other classic songs that include the theme of magic. “This year we are trying something a little different because we actually have characters in the show,” junior Karen Turner said. “People are really going to enjoy it with all the fun songs everyone knows and loves.” Show Choir competes in approximately six competitions all over the state of Missouri. One of

Pick ‘em:

the most difficult competitions they perform in is called Heart of America in Kansas City. Schools from all over the United States come to compete at this event to showcase the routine that they have come up with. “Heart of America is always hard for us because of all the competition from all over,” senior Jamal Stevenson said. “We always seem to give our best performance and connect well there.” A great example of how the students get ready for competitions can be seen in the movie Pitch Perfect. Students spend almost all of their free time practicing the dances, songs, and doing cardio exercises in the morning or afternoon. Due to not having many events in town, not a lot of people really know what Show Choir is all about. “Many people don’t know that we

Each issue a random JCHS student, faculty member and Red & Black staffer is asked who they think will win the sporting event. The record is kept all year to see which group wins overall. Mizzou Basketball VS. University of Illinois

JCHS Student

start practicing in August, and do not truly end until May,” Turner said. “We hire a choreographer from Kansas City to do our whole show. Our first competition isn’t even until January and we already know the whole thing.” All the hard work throughout the season pays off in one way or another. Jefferson City Show Choir is known to perform to the best of their ability in all competitions. Hearing their name being announced during the awards ceremony makes it all worthwhile. “Honestly, it’s more about performing our best at every competition rather than winning trophies,” senior Jason Myers said. “The experience of the competitions with everyone is what really matters.”

Kansas City Chiefs VS. San Diego Chargers

Student Record 2-2

JCHS Staff

Dennis Barnes Staff Record 3-1

Red & Black

Rick Hirst R&B Record 2-2

Brandon Eigenman

12.08.15//SPORTS

What does it take to be a basketball player? Shooting Guard Seth Stegemen Height: 6’5 Weight: 170lbs

Center Caleb Burruss Height: 6’7 Weight: 190 lbs

Small Forward Lexy Haug Height: 6’0 Weight: 120 lbs

Point Guard Alaina Allsbury Height: 5’6 Weight: 127 lbs

Madeline Moats

hen one thinks of a basketball player, they think of a tall, strong player with quick feet. However, the way in which height and weight affect each position may be unknown to you. There are five positions on a court that can vary: power forward, center, shooting guard, small forward, and point guard. Some teams play with an open style of motion and separate the team into “bigs” and “littles”. “We don’t specify positions.” Assistant Varsity Coach Jordan Chapman said. “Certain guys have roles that they are good at. Although we don’t have specific positions, the aspect of “bigs” and “littles” are huge for us.” For a boys high school team a power

Power Forwards Rhylin Spence Height: 6’2 Weight: 200 lbs

forward is normally between 6’2 and 6’6 and is 170- 200 pounds. An average center is 6’5” and is 170- 200 pounds. Shooting guards tend to be between 5’8 and 6’4 and are 150-200 pounds. Small forwards can be anywhere from 5’10” to 6’3” and are 150-180 pounds. Point guards range from 5’8 to 6’1 and weigh about 150-190 pounds. “Size does matter for a few positions especially,” senior center Caleb Burruss said. “If you are a post player you need to be taller and bigger. And be able to block shots, use your length to get rebounds and use your size to push people around.” The average height and weight for each position on a girls’ court is different. Guards 5’3”- 5’8” and are 110-145 pounds and the post players

12.08.15//SPORTS

are roughly between 5’10”- 6’3” and are 130-180 pounds. “Every player offers different skills and sometimes size helps,” junior guard Alaina Alsbury said. “It is hard for someone under 5’7 to guard a 6’ post and it can be hard for a post to play defense on a guard.” Although size does affect where each player is positioned on the court, that is not the only deciding factor. Hand-eye coordination, how they handle the ball, attitude, and sportsmanship are huge components also. “Size matters for each position but there are other things that matter as well like work ethic and team chemistry,” junior small forward Lexy Haug said. “Players can also play many different positions depending on skill.”

A view from the sidelines A

The Jefferson City Cheer team practices one of their Football/ Basketball cheers at their practice gym at Miller Performing Arts Center.

Brandon Eigenman

t Jefferson City High School, there has always been a sense of pride in the athletic department. You can see it at any sporting event you go to, whether the Jays win or lose. Something else you can definitely see at every game? The JCHS Cheer team. “There’s not a lot of kids on the sidelines who’d cheer for the Jays whether they’re winning or losing,” junior cheerleader Katelyn Hackman said. “The cheerleaders are the ones that are always there. I feel like we’re the ones that get the students involved.” The Cheer Team has tryouts in April, and then practice at least two times a week all throughout the summer. When it comes to the football season the Cheer Team is at every home and away game, and they cheer at every Girl’s and Boy’s varsity games during the basketball season. While they cheer for both sports, the actual routines and what things are done for each sport are slightly different. “With basketball we usually do more difficult stuff because we don’t have to worry about weather elements,” Hackman said. “So we do more

[photo by Taylor Johnson]

tumbling and stunting while Football games are a little more watered down.” Coach Shari Allen was put in charge as head coach this year, and has completely rebuilt the perception the community had of the team and has changed up the routines, music, and style of the group. She also created a minimum requirements to be on the team, as well as changing the setup from two teams that would either cheer on football or basketball into one elite varsity squad. “I have always said we strive for excellence on this team,” Allen said. “We have a pretty high bar, but it is never reached because once the bar is reached, we raise the bar.”

Being the face of Jay Pride isn’t always about being at games and cheering though. Jay Pride is all about reaching out to others and trying to be the best citizen one could be, as such, the Cheerleaders do community service projects with both The Boys and Girls Club and the Samaritan center. Alongside this, an elementary camp is held every year for children from 1st to 5th grade on what it’s like to be a Jay Cheerleader, as well as what it means to have Jay Pride and be a good citizen “I think we’re a great set of girls, and we’re there to be servants of the school, we want to represent Jay Pride.” senior Co-Captain Emilie Folz said.

Mizzou Football: An up-and-down season in review Claire Shipley

any people throughout Jefferson City spend Saturdays in the fall cheering on the Mizzou Tigers. This year the team has not had the season they have had in the past. With Quarterback struggles to Head Coach Gary Pinkel retiring after this season, the team has yet to get a grip on the game. Part way through the season junior quarterback Maty Mauk was suspended due to undisclosed reasons, and after a four week suspension Mauk was put back into the game, but was quickly taken back out. The

second string quarterback, freshman Drew Locke, had to step in. The two quarterbacks have two different playing techniques. The average drive for Missouri’s offense led by Lock is 5.3 plays for 34.5 yards and 1.67 points and for Mauk it’s a relatively similar at 5.3 plays for 25.1 yards and 1.59 points. With Mauk suddenly being suspended, Drew Lock was thrown into the game with very little experience. Pinkel held a press conference at Mizzou Arena on Nov. 16 to announce his decision to step down at the end of the season due to recent diagnoses of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Many of his closest supporters gathered around

Pinkel to hear more about his health, his decision to step down, and about what the rest of the season is going to look like. Mizzou will miss him very much as he has won the most games as head coach within the Mizzou football program at 118 wins. This season the Tigers have faced off in the SEC once again. The team has equally had as many wins as losses in the conference. The tough losses from Mississippi State 13-31 to Vanderbilt 3-10 have been harsh, but Mizzou came out a big win against BYU. The Mizzou football team ended their season with a record of 5-7, causing them to not be eligible for a bowl game.

12.08.15//SPORTS

Archery Club head Advisor Brian Ash oversees members practice target shooting during one of their annual Sunday practices.

Archery Club hits the target Megan Newton

ne sport that is not typically thought of as a school sport is archery. Most people tend to believe that the only time you shoot a bow and arrow is when you go hunting, but that is not all that one can do. Archery is a recreational sport, and there are even competitions. Along with the help of parents and teachers, students at Jefferson City High School who had an interest in shooting their bows recently started an archery club. Starting the club and getting it approved was a very long and hard process. Valerie Wilder, mother of JCHS sophomore Joe Wilder, eventually found the people she needed to talk to to get the club started. Along with having to meet with many people to have archery added into the curriculum and to have many things approved in order to actually have to club be allowed, she also had to raise $1,800 dollars along with the $1,500 dollar grant given from the Missouri Department of Conservation. The money raised bought the equipment needed to have the archery program. “It has been a long, tough road, but the program will be a great opportunity for so many JC students,” Valerie Wilder said. “I foresee one of the largest

teams in the state within several years.” The co-captains of the team are sophomores Judy Kinter and Joe Wilder. They both previously attended St.Peters before coming to JCHS, and they were a part of the archery club at that school. The Kinter family and Wilder family both came together to bring an archery club to JCHS. Kinter and Wilder wanted to compete in meets again, which is what made them decide to try to make the club. “One of the main goals I have for this club is to be able to compete in tournaments and hopefully qualify for large scale competitions,” Kinter said. Archery is not as easy as everyone makes it out to be. In order to have an accurate, consistent shot, you must establish correct techniques, and use the same routine for every shot that you take. To be able to join the club you do not have to already have a lot of knowledge of archery. The coaches are there to teach you what you need to know and to help you perfect your shot. With the help of the coaches, the students seem to see improvement from practice to practice. Not only does the coaching help them improve, but the repetitions help as well. “We let the coaches teach the basics, shoot for the majority of the practice, and let the coaches help throughout

12.08.15//SPORTS

[photo by Megan Newton]

our shots, to give us tips to help us get better,” Wilder said. Drivers Ed teacher Brian Ash is the advisor of the club. He hopes to see the club expand and grow as the year goes on. Since the club is in its infancy stages, the only requirements to be a part of the club are to be attending JCHS. Ash plans to take the club to 6-8 tournaments locally. Qualifying at certain tournaments will give students the opportunity to shoot at nationals in Kentucky. “With archery club I would really like to shoot good in meets and qualify to shoot in nationals,” Joe Wilder said. A typical practice for the students consists of them getting instructions from the coaches, then they get to shoot for most of the time after that. While the students shoot, the coaches still watch them and give them tips so that the students can better their shot. The club practices twice a week, on Wednesday and Sunday, from 8:00p.m. to 9:30p.m. The current members encourage other students to come out and get involved with the archery club. To get involved, students should contact Ash by email at brian.ash@ jcschools.us or stop by his room for more information. Students should also listen for announcements and follow the club on Twitter @jchsarcheryclub.

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Real Stories in our Community...

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[photo by Erica Overfelt]

Sport: Basketball Grade: 12 Years on team: 4 Background: “I wanted to be a cheerleader, but my brothers trapped me in a corner and told me that they would never come to watch me if I did cheer. So, I play basketball and soccer.” Favorite part: “Basketball is a long season, and while we start off as teammates at the beginning of the season. We truly come out as a family by the end because we have been around each other so much.” Role model: “My older brother, Kyle, because he played college basketball and could shoot lights out.” Favorite memory: “Last year’s team bonding dinner where Louisa Nylander had all of us rolling over in laughter because of her multitude of childhood stories gone wrong.” Least favorite part: “Conditioning.” Fun fact about the team: “We can dance a little and we can cook a little.” Interesting fact: “I was a Top 10 Finalist in Hot Shot at Nationals when I was younger.” Future: “Play basketball at Lindenwood University and major in chemistry.” Awards: 3 time All-Ditrict, 1 time All-State, scored 1000 points.

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IN-DEPTH

JCHS’ Annual Performance Report: What it means and why you should care Brenna Duncan and Veronica Townsend

n Oct. 2, 2015, the Annual Performance Report for every school district in the state of Missouri was sent out. The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education is in charge of these reports. School districts and individual school buildings were rated on a scale that has five different categories: Academic Achievement, which is based on the district’s MAP scores and EOC scores; Subgroup Achievement, which is how the students who are in the minority or are on free and reduced lunch do on their MAP and EOC tests; College and Career Readiness, which is based on the ACT scores of the students;

What is APR?

APR is an Annual Performance Report of each school and district. The score is measured through an examination of 5 different categories.

Attendance, which is based on what percent of students are in school 90 percent of the time; and the Graduation Rate, which is based on how many students are able to graduate the year they are supposed to. Every five years the standards the schools are graded on are renewed and updated to make Missouri schools more competitive on the national level with other states. “The Annual Performance Report is how we are graded by the state of Missouri as a district and how well we are doing,” Larry Linthacum, superintendent of Jefferson City Public Schools, said. There are different amounts of points possible for each section. In Academic Achievement there are 56 possible points; Jefferson City Public Schools earned 30 points. Subgroup

Jefferson City High School

Jefferson City School District

Academic Achievement: 48/56 85.7% Subgroup Achievement: 12.5/14 89.3% Graduation Rate: 30/30 100%

Academic Achievement: 30/56 53.6% Subgroup Achievement: 8.5/14 60.7% Graduation Rate: 30/30 100%

Attendance: 0/10 0% College/Career Ready: 23/30 76.7%

Attendance: 7.5/10 75% College/Career Ready: 23/30 76.7%

Overall Score 113.5/140 81.1%

Academic Achievement

Based off of standardized test scores and student improvement.

Subgroup Achievement

Based off of improvement of subgroups, such as those with different ethnic backgrounds.

Graduation Rate

Based off of the amount of students who complete graduation requirements.

Attendance Rate

Based off of the amount of students who regularly attend school.

College/Career Readiness

Based off of post-secondary preparation for students.

Achievement earned 8.5 of the 14 points possible. In the CCR category the district earned 23 of the 30 points. In Attendance, JCPS earned 7.5 of the 10 possible points. For Graduation Rate there are 30 points possible and Jefferson City Public Schools earned all 30 points. There are 140 points available to earn in the APR; the district earned 99 of those points. The school districts are then given the percentage of the total points they earned. 70% and below would cause the school district to not have their accreditation. Jefferson City Public Schools earned 70.7% of the points. “There are 521 school districts in the state of Missouri, Jefferson City is ranked eleventh from the bottom,” Robert James, head principal at Jefferson City High School,

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Overall Score 99/140 70.7%

said. “There’s no way JC should be anything less than highly distinctive accreditation.” This year’s APR score saw a significant decrease for Jefferson City Public Schools. In 2013, the district earned 108/140 points which was 77.1% of the points. In 2014, JCPS earned 109/140 points with 77.9%. In Jefferson City Public Schools there are eleven elementary schools. Seven of these schools earned 70% or more of their 70 points. The elementary schools have three categories that go toward their overall score: Academic Achievement (48 points), Subgroup Achievement (12 points), and Attendance (10 points). The elementary schools that were not accredited individually are: Thorpe J. Gordon Elementary with 57.9%, Belair Elementary with 68.6%, East Elementary with 61.4%, and Callaway Hills Elementary with 61.4%. However, North Elementary school earned full points in each category and received a 100%. Out of the remaining elementary schools, three received between 90% and 99% (West Elementary 94.3%, Cedar Hill Elementary 91.4%, and Moreau Heights Elementary 92.9%). Two received between 70% and 79% (Pioneer Trail Elementary 71.4%, South Elementary 75.7%).One received a score earning between 80% and 89% (Clarence Lawson Elementary 84.3%).

The middle schools are also graded on the same scale, allowing them to earn up to 70 points as well. They have a fourth category for College and Career Ready, but it is out of 0 points. Lewis & Clark Middle School and Thomas Jefferson Middle School both earned 57.9% of the 70 points and individually are not accredited. Not only are they identical in building layout, but they seem to be identical in APR scores. They received the exact same score in each category, 27/48 for Academic Achievement, 6/12 for Subgroup Achievement, 0/0 for College and Career Ready, and 7.5/10 for Attendance. Jefferson City High School did earn accreditation individually. The high school received 81.1% of the 140 points. There were five categories for the high school level, Academic Achievement (56 points), Subgroup Achievement (14 points), College and Career Ready (30 points), Attendance (10 points), and Graduation Rate (30 points). JCHS scored 48/56 for Academic Achievement, 12.5/14 in Subgroup Achievement, 23/30 for College and Career Ready, 0/10 in Attendance, and 30/30 for the Graduation Rate. “I believe that this school is so much more than our APR rating,” James said. The attendance score might look surprising, but it is true. Jefferson

City High School earned zero of the ten attendance points. That means that not enough of our students attend school 90% of the time to even earn us one point in that category. Attendance generally goes down as students get older. High schools students usually drive themselves, so they have a greater chance of getting to school late. There’s also the problem of some parents that just do not make their children go to school. Every elementary school and middle school earned at least 6 points for overall attendance. Jefferson City High School teachers, administration and counselors are working together to create incentives for students to come to school. “In the past, we did attendance field trips. I think we are going to move away from that because students did not want to miss school,” head counselor Carrie Welch, said. “We would appreciate good ideas from the students as well.” Although some incentives have been brainstormed, nothing is set in stone yet and attendance is still a major problem at the high school. “You’ve got to be in school to learn. Bottom line, all your research would say is that when attendance rates go up, the student learning goes up,” Linthacum said. “We need to be in school.”

What can you do?

One of the biggest issues in the high school’s APR score is the attendance rate. This is the factor that is under the most direct student control. According to the graph, Jefferson City High School falls below the average attendance rate in the state of Missouri. Chronically absent students cost the school millions of dollars and change the APR score. If students want to help their school, they can do what one is supposed to do as a teenager: go to school. This will set a better example for younger generations. Come to class. *graph by Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education through the Missouri Comprehensive Data System

12.08.15//IN-DEPTH

FEATURES

JCHS alumni, business owner or mayor? Erica Overfelt

tudents may have seen Carrie Tergin helping customers at her business, Carrie’s Hallmark, or at a community event as one of the speakers. However, this former Jefferson City High School graduate added a new title to her repertoire this past April: mayor. Tergin is the second woman to hold this position in Jefferson City history. Throughout high school, Tergin was involved in Future Business Leaders of America and Art Club. She joined FBLA because growing up she was always associated with her family’s business named after her, hence the name Carrie’s Hallmark, which was passed down to her in ownership. After graduating from JCHS, she continued her education at Missouri State University and majored in Business Management. “I went to college knowing I had my career path laid out for me,” Tergin said. “I knew college would give me that extra experience.” Apart from her business downtown, Tergin has been involved in city government directly for over six years. She was in city council for six years until she ran for reelection and lost to her opponent, Glen Costales, by 47 votes. However, this only motivated Tergin to run for mayor. When running she decided to have a different aspect for her campaign, a more positive one. “I ran for mayor and had a different campaign than the others and that brought me to the position I have now,” Tergin said. “Positive leadership, building partnership and bringing growth to Jefferson City.” Being mayor in any community is a large leadership position. The mayor is the head figure of the city and of course, very well-known. Tergin knows she doesn’t always come off as the mayor. However, there have been countless times when she tells someone of her position and they are surprised by the news. Tergin doesn’t take this the wrong way. Instead, it is just her breaking through barriers. When thinking of her everyday job, anyone would agree that it can become stressful or even a bit too professional sometimes, leaving no room for fun. Tergin does indeed have opportunities to participate in fun community events such as canoeing on the Missouri River; however, there are hardships in the job. One challenge anyone can face is standing up for what is right and that is something our mayor strives to do and has learned throughout her experience in the council. “Hardest part is that there are so many groups, and so many people I want to be there for just depending on time,” Tergin said. “I don’t want to turn down opportunities of talking to people.” Tergin has high hopes for the future of Jefferson City. One thing people may not realize is that Jefferson City is the only city in the country that has a river, state capitol and a state

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[photo by Erica Overfelt] Mayor Carrie Tergin poses in front of the city seal which is located behind her seat in the Chamber of Commerce.

penitentiary. The penitentiary is supposed to have over 25,000 visitors this year, which shows great potential for the future of the community. Tergin is working on making the goals for potential in the community a reality with other new leaders in the city. With busy days and hectic schedules, reaching out to the community is something Tergin will never forget to do. Letting the community know what is going on in a city is vital. From updating her social media and her blog, which can be found at mayortergin.blogspot.com. She knows it is important to showcase what is going on in Jefferson City “I think people are genuinely glad to know what is going on in city government,” Tergin said. “I am very active on social media. I am posting things and trying to be in touch.”

Drum majors Max Mollenkamp and Lunden Brent pose pretending that they are conducting in their uniforms.

[photo by Erica Overfelt]

Snaring memories: The JCHS Drum Majors C Claire Shipley

oordinating hundreds of high school students in any situation is a difficult task. Adding large instruments, precision marching and less than ideal weather conditions to the mix doesn’t make the job any easier. Yet there’s one thing that keeps the Jefferson City High School Band on beat and together: the drum majors. This year’s drum majors are seniors Max Mollenkamp and Lunden Brent. It’s the first year for both of them leading the band, and it has been a great one so far. “Lunden and Max are the best drum majors the band has had,” band director Brett Myers said. “They understood the expectations and exactly knew where the staff and students wanted to go.” Over the summer the band faced some difficulties with only one drum major because Mollenkamp was traveling the country performing. Mollenkamp was a part of one of the top seven drum corps in the world called Phantom Regiment. “Max brought that experience back to the kids and it paid in a good way,” Myers said. Drum Corps is similar to marching band but with no woodwind instruments, which are saxophones,

bass clarinets and flutes. The drum corps practiced 15-18 hours a day and performed 3-5 nights a week. “650 people [applied] and only 150 got in,” Mollenkamp said. “I kept getting call back after call back until I finally got the position.” Mollenkamp plays the trombone where he is ranked number one in the state for high school in district band. “Max is a fantastic musician,” Myers said. “It’s something he wanted to work hard at to be good and be the strongest.” At the end of the school year, if drum major spots are open then the band directors hold tryouts to see who has the biggest potential for the position. Trying out for drum major could be a big decision. The player goes from marching and playing on the field to leading the band. “Mrs. McKee really helped me decide if I wanted to try out,” Brent said. “I was backfield conductor last year and she said it would be beneficial to improve my leadership if I took that role.” The members of the band benefit from drum majors. The rhythm of their hands go with the beat of the music which keeps them all on beat. That means that if one of them is off, they can throw off the entire band.

“They are by far the best drum majors we have ever had,” drum line member Grant Clayton said. “They’ve always kept great tempo. It makes our band even better because we all stay on beat.” The band practiced all through summer, which gave Brent good practice as he enjoyed being the one in charge. “It was really fun getting to know all of the freshman coming up,” Brent said. “I also really enjoyed playfully being authoritative to my good friends and the people who already knew me.” The band has had an exceptionally good season, placing very well in all of the competitions. For the people marching on the field it can be a great feeling, but for the senior drum majors they could be missing out. “I feel like I have done a great job leading in all of the competitions, but I honestly really wanted to be out on the field marching,” Brent said. With this being the drum majors senior year, they will be missed, as these two were great leaders, and even better drum majors. “Max and Lunden have a great relationship and are both strong drum majors,” Myers said. “We hope we can get great drum majors like them again.”

12.08.15//FEATURES

Hundreds of bears are lined on top of shelves at Diamond Eye Care for customers to buy. All proceeds are donated to Salvation Army. [photo by Megan Cassels]

Have yourself a Merry Beary Christmas Megan Cassels

eena Eigenman has helped manage the Merry Beary Christmas for twelve years. This is a foundation set to help the less fortunate by collecting money or stuffed animal donations for the Salvation Army’s thrift store and homeless shelters. Every weekend after Thanksgiving at the Diamond Eye Care office in Jefferson City, Eigenman and her family take around five to six hours to set up nearly a thousand stuffed animals all around. She lines the toys on the top of every glasses display throughout the store and nearly every shelf to show the appearance of each

bear. “Someone can come in and see an animal they like and make anywhere from a twenty cent to twenty dollar donation and receive a bear they like,” store optometrist Crystal Lowe said. A Diamond Eye Care customer can come in, see a bear they have their eye on and then donate that bear to the Salvation Army. After they donate and receive their animal, they get their name in a drawing and have the chance to win one of two gift baskets or one movie basket on New Year’s Eve, which is usually stuffed with popcorn and different types of movies. “The most we’ve collected in donations was $700 one year,” Eigenman said. Eigenman had an experience where

a man came in the office to get his glasses fixed and saw a bear on display that looked just like his childhood bear. Soon after, they took it down to find that it had the same name as him, just like his own when he was younger. Just then, they realized that it was his bear from when he was younger. It was given to him as a gift. Eigenman thoroughly emphasizes how thankful she is to Dr. Allen Becvar and Dr. Stacy Becvar for letting her support this family-owned foundation. Merry Beary Christmas ends on New Year’s Eve weekend. After the bears are down they are given to the Salvation Army and nursing homes, Wesbrook Terris and JC Manor.

The few, the brave... the Black Friday shoppers Megan Cassels

n the Friday after Thanksgiving, America participates in Black Friday: a day set out to draw shoppers’ attention to tremendous deals a store might have. On this hectic day, a person could save up to a thousand dollars from jaw dropping deals. Most people appreciate Black Friday. This past year, shoppers spent $4.45 billion dollars just on online shopping. The best five selling electronic items were Samsung 4K televisions, the Apple iPad Mini, the Microsoft Xbox

One, the Apple iPad Air, and the PlayStation 4. Many people though avoid shopping on that day to stay away from the crazy competition between shoppers. For example, some extreme shoppers will take the risks of getting sick or robbed by staying the night outside of a store just to get what they want, and many police cases have been reported due to fights in various stores. “It’s my favorite event of the year,” junior Taylor Tipton said. “I really like participating in Black Friday because there are always great deals, and the fights are pretty funny to watch. Really? Fighting over a toaster? Come

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on.” In 2013, three Black Friday shoppers were arrested, following a brawl at a Kohl’s store in Tustin, California. When officers arrived, three women were in life threatening conditions and the three criminals fled the scene just to be found and taken to jail minutes after. Each party wanted the last “Furby BOOM” toy in the store. “The first thing that comes to my mind on Black Friday is the crazy good sales for everything I want, and crazy people who would do anything in order to get what they want,” junior Jordan Clark said.

Bellringer Stephanie Hutton smiles as she receives a donation outside of Hobby Lobby. Hutton is one of the hundreds of volunteers that stand outside ringing bells for small donations.

[photo by Madeline Moats]

Salvation Army volunteers ring in the holiday season Megan Newton

is the season for giving, which is what those throughout the community are doing. Volunteers give up their time to ring bells to raise money for the Salvation Army, while those who pass by donate their money to help families in need this holiday season. Christopher White is a corps officer with Jefferson City’s Salvation Army chapter. The Christmas Campaign is a critical time for the Salvation Army. “Money raised during the Christmas Campaign is really important,” White said. “It doesn’t just get spent during Christmas, it gets used all year long.” Volunteering to become a bell ringer is open for anyone. The only qualification is that those 16 and under are accompanied by an adult. The Salvation Army loves getting new volunteers, but also loves their

returning faces. For the past 26 years, Elizabeth Long, better known as Mrs. Elizabeth, has been a bell ringer at Schultes. She was introduced to the program in 1990 when her husband was out of work and they applied for a Christmas basket from the Salvation Army. When she applied for her basket, the lady handling the paperwork for her basket told Long that she would make a great bell ringer, and two days later she was at Schultes bell ringing. Long was once in a place of need and knows how great it is to have the community help. “My favorite part of bell ringing is getting to greet the people, and help out the needy families,” Long said. Before coming to Missouri, Donald Johnson rang bells for the Salvation Army in Panama City, Florida. In addition to just ringing a bell, Johnson will also play Christmas songs on his cornet. He began bell ringing by a

simple phone call, which others who are interested should do. Although Johnson enjoyed ringing bells and playing his cornet in the warm Florida weather, he still enjoys playing in Missouri. “It’s such a joy to see the smile on their faces when they hear the cheerful, loving Christmas music,” Johnson said. The Salvation Army’s goal is to raise $262,000 from the Christmas campaign, and they hope to raise $104,000 just from bell ringing. They are always looking for new volunteers and help throughout the community. If you are interested in volunteering for the Salvation Army, you should call them at 573-635-1975 extension 1. White hopes the community can come together this holiday season to help raise money for those in need. “No matter how successful you get in the future, always try to remember those who are less fortunate,” White said.

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Opinion

The Red and Black Editorial: What’s going on with our world?

have been affected by at least one of n many ways, 2015 has been one these events and are trying to figure of the most groundbreaking years out a way to react. in history. Here in America, the Supreme Court legalized samesex marriage, Jurassic World is now the fastest movie to make $1 billion dollars, and Donald Trump announced his candidacy for the Republican party (among other seemingly unthinkable events). However, the most notable changes aren’t gradual ones. They’re the abrupt changes; the ones you never see coming. Close to home, Tim Wolfe and R. Bowen Loftin were removed from their jobs at the University of Missouri because of a protest that went from a minor distraction to national media sensation in just six days. While this change was relatively peaceful, other countries weren’t granted the same luxury. The ISIS suicide bombings in Lebanon, the violence in South Korea, the earthquakes in Japan and Mexico, the bombing of a funeral in Baghdad and most notably the massacre in Paris came at everyone without [Cartoon by Ainsley Grey] warning, causing horrific damage and loss of life. For those who don’t know exactly Without a doubt, this begs the what happened, I’ll provide a short question from not just my mind, but recap of what’s been going on. nearly every mind in the nation: A 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck what is happening in this world we the southern coast of Japan, as well live in? as a 4.3 magnitude earthquake Let me be clear that this is not in Baja California, Mexico. In the article I had originally planned Lebanon, two suicide bombings by to write. This is not the topic that an ISIS militant group occurred in a I was supposed to cover. However, marketplace in the capital, Beirut. I couldn’t ignore the fact that this Similarly, a suicide bombing occurred came of much greater importance to at a memorial service in Baghdad. In the JCHS community. Many - if not South Korea, police used tear gas and all - members of the student body

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water cannons on citizens to break up the biggest anti-government protest the capital has seen in seven years. And in Paris, over 100 people were killed and over 350 were seriously injured after gunmen and suicide bombers attacked throughout the city. All of this hit the news in the span of two days. As we now cope and find a way to react, the last question I pose is possibly the most important one: why do we care? Why should we care? We, as students, belong to a society in which information is available to us in the blink of an eye. We are on the cutting edge of accessibility to the world. Before this decade, it was thought that a normal person couldn’t change the world because they couldn’t reach as many people with their message. But now, through technology, we can connect to thousands of other people with the prominence of social media. That’s why it’s important that we do what we can to get involved and spread awareness of these events. When humanity joins together to show solidarity, amazing things can happen. The world is now connected, so it’s our job to learn what we can from the past and present to improve the future. This generation will be the next to create the future. It’s up to us to shape that future into a place fitting for people of every nation. When we as humans educate ourselves about what’s going on in the world and extend our reach to help others, we make the world a better place for everyone following us.

head TO head Christmas music is overplayed through the holiday season Brenna Duncan

Christmas Music: Festive or just annoying?

Christmas music helps increase holiday spirit Mackenzie Allen

hen it is time for the holidays, whether its early hristmas is said to be one of the most exciting November or late December, it is not uncommon times of the year. The weather begins to get cold, to hear Christmas music on the radio, in the store, snow starts to fall: all of the beautiful Christmas or anywhere else. Who actually wants to hear Christmas trees and the lovely Christmas lights can be seen while music that early? If they started playing the music on the driving at night, and it makes for all the warm-hearted week of Christmas only, then it emotions people feel during wouldn’t be so bad, but there is the holidays. All of this for no reason to play it as early as that one morning where you they do. What’s even worse is wake up and run downstairs that some radio stations start to see all of those presents in October. It’s like they just for you under the Christmas completely skip the holidays tree. No matter how old you in between. In case you didn’t are, this holiday never gets realize, Thanksgiving is in fact old. a holiday, and while there are Since it is one of the most not really any songs about it, highly celebrated holidays it’s still there and should not be of the year, there is always over looked by the over-eager. that one part of December The songs are also extremely that never fails to get repetitive. It seems like every everyone in the holiday singer has a Christmas album spirit: Christmas music. You where they just change the hear these songs everywhere song a little bit, but it’s still the you go, whether it be at same as the original. It seems the store, on the radio, or as though all singers have the on television commercials same Christmas songs. Every they are played everywhere. song is nearly the same, and These songs only come out we’ve heard them all before. once a year, filling everyone’s In the movie Pitch Perfect 2, heads with holiday joy. To they are creating a Christmas me, it is one of the many album for Snoop Dogg and they holiday traditions that my were making a big hoopla about family shares. All December, [photo by Erica Overfelt] making it original and not Christmas music is played as mainstreme and the same around my house when we as every other Christmas CD. There’s really nothing new make cookies, wrap presents, or decorate the Christmas anymore, it’s always some woman singing a sultry “Santa tree. It’s a tradition I will never forget. Baby” or someone singing a classic like “Jingle Bells” or Holiday classics such as Jingle Bell Rock, Oh Holy “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” Every once in a while you Night, and Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer have been can hear Adam Sandler’s song about Hanukkah and “I Want a around for ages. Then there is always an artist who Hippopotamus for Christmas.” Those are the only songs I will creates their own album with all new songs, or remakes tolerate before I’m turning the dial to find a different radio the original songs in their own way. It’s always so nice station. to listen to music that makes you so happy for the Christmas songs are just too over-played. There’s no reason holidays. This is the time of year that you get to spend to start them so early, and there’s no reason for them to still with your whole family celebrating the most exciting be played in the middle of January. It’s okay to play it till the day of the year: Dec. 25. Christmas music is a huge part New Year, but after that it is just unnecessary and wrong. of the holidays, and without it, Christmas just wouldn’t There should be a time limit on when radios are allowed be the same. to play Christmas songs. Call me a Grinch if you want, but not everyone wants to hear Christmas music as soon as the Pumpkin Spice Latte comes out.

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Spotify or Apple Music: The battle of streaming services

Jake Worsham

he way that people listen to music has changed drastically over the past few decades. Vinyls, cassettes, radios and CDs are mostly all things of the past, as most people listen to their music on their mobile devices. Until recently, the most popular way to obtain music was to purchase individual songs or albums on services such as iTunes. However, this trend might be on the decline as music providers, such as Spotify and Apple Music, emerge. For only ten dollars a month, these services provide unlimited access to any song that one could imagine. This is nice for avid music listeners who like to discover new music. With these services, they have a multitude of different tracks at their fingertips. On iTunes, one would almost have to buy the song before they realized whether they liked it or not, which would be $1.29 wasted if they did not. Out of the two leading music

services, Apple Music and Spotify, the latter is my favorite. Apple Music was unleashed only this summer, and still has many glitches that need smoothing out. When it first came out, I used the 3 month free trial. After the trial, however, I decided to stick with Spotify. Apple Music was more confusing and I did not like the process of creating playlists. Spotify has been around for years and is easy to use. Also, Spotify seems to be built for discovering new music, offering many mood and genre based playlists. They even offer a personalized playlist updated weekly based on what you listen to. Spotify overall is a better tool for discovering and sharing music, while Apple Music only offers Taylor Swiftâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s music as their incentive. Now that I have Spotify, I cannot imagine listening to music any other way.

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[photo by Madi Baughman]

Test anxiety increases as semester ends Veronica Townsend

umping off an airplane, singing in front of thousands of people and overtime at a sporting event are all high pressure situations and can give anyone anxiety. But students don’t have to do anything that crazy to raise their stress levels — the end of the semester means our collective anxiety is about to spike. December is the last month of the year, meaning end of course exams and midterm exams are just around the corner. Because finals are only 10 percent of the grade, it is no problem for some students. However, others dread the exams because they have test anxiety. Testing students over everything they learn in a term is ridiculous because test scores usually do not match the student’s ability in the classroom. Teachers should never rush students with test anxiety or move the test date. Tests should not have a time

limit. Teachers sometimes rush students because they have a large amount of curriculum to teach. It is not the students’ problem if a teacher cannot teach the curriculum in the allotted amount of time they have to teach before a test. Students are only programmed in their mind to study a certain topic for a certain amount of time. Many students with test anxiety try to come in for extra help before the test. They will do anything to get an A. If this means they spend hours getting help from all of their teachers, they will do it. Some students even go to academic labs to get a different perspective from another teacher. If other teachers have their own students in the academic lab, then they are not likely to help other students. Most students with test anxiety like to budget their time with all of their teachers, and F.A.S.T is one class they

do not have to worry about. Teachers should cheer on the students with a positive attitude, a smile, and encouragement. They should prepare specific students ahead of time, limit distractions, and not yell out the time. Teachers should make sending a student to quiet place like the guidance office the last resort. Students with test anxiety do not want to leave the room; they want to be able to get a great score on the next test and hopefully overcome their anxiety. Although jumping out of an airplane, singing in front of thousands of people, and overtime at a sporting event are stressful, whenever people overcome their anxiety they are unstoppable. The same is true with testing. After a teacher gives back a test with a favorable grade, the student is likely gain confidence and repeat their test strategies for the next test. Soon the test anxiety will be gone.

Project Based Learning helps students Madi Baughman

cross the nation, schools have been making the switch from traditional methods of teaching to a style of learning debated by students and teachers: project based learning. This type of curriculum incorporates less lecturing and more hands-on activity into the way students are graded. Typically, students are expected to work in groups to construct their projects, which then go toward a huge part of their grade. We’ve all been in a class where we at least wanted to ask the teacher, “why do I need to know this?” With project based learning, students are shown valid ways that the skills they’re learning are applicable in the real world. More and more research is showing that this method of learning is more effective than traditional methods in many subjects. In addition, troubleshooting their own problems naturally engages students in creative ways to resolve complex issues. When students are also able to experience working in a group, they can create new relationships and improve

communication skills. While it’s true that these group dynamics do not always work because of individual dispositions, this too has a way of preparing students for the future. In the real world, people have to deal with many types of personalities on a daily basis. If students with conflicting personalities have to work together to do well on their project, it makes them better suited to communicate with their future peers. Though the benefits have been proven throughout the nation to outweigh the disadvantages, the role of the teacher also plays a major part in the overall turnout of the project. Most problems with this style of learning fall on the part of the group dynamic, so it’s important that the teacher puts in the time to make sure that each student does their part to contribute to the group. If the project is fair to all students and effort is given by both students and teachers alike, PBL is an effective way for students to grasp the point of their classes.

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Arts & Entertainment Drinks to add flavor to your winter

“The Brown Sugar Latte from Dunn Bros Coffee was sweet and relaxing. I would highly recommend it on cold days or even just to give you a little boost to a not so good day.”

“The White Hot Chocolate from Starbucks is a holiday favorite of mine and I love getting it around the holiday season. It is a perfect sweet drink for your cold, winter night.This drink is enjoyable for any mood. ”

“The Peppermint Mocha Frappe from Starbucks was not a drink to keep you warm, but featured a lot of flavors that resonate with the holiday season. If you like chocolate and you like peppermint, this is the drink for you.”

-Taylor Johnson

-Mackenzie Allen

-Jake Worsham

Flowering up talent on Edgewood

[photos by Madi Baughman]

28 12.08.15//ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

jchs Students

#1. Hello- Adele

#1. Sorry- Justin Bieber

#2. Sorry- Justin Bieber

#2. Jumpman- Drake ft.

Future

#3. Hotline Bling- Drake

#3. Hello- Adele

#4. What Do You Mean?-

#4. Stitches- Shawn Mendes

#5.The Hills- The Weeknd

#5. What Do You Mean?-

Justin Bieber

Christmas movie favorites for the holiday season

“Elf brings out your inner child.You will find yourself laughing the whole movie with Will Ferrell strutting around in yellow tights.” -Erica Overfelt

“Home Alone is a funny but heartwarming movie that encourages parents to not forget your child when leaving for Christmas.” -Mackenzie Allen

“The Grinch is an imaginative reinvention of a holiday classic that everyone has known and come to love.” -Brandon Eigenman

12.08.15//ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Did you see a good movie? Read an interesting book? Hear a great song that’s stuck in your head?

reviews

Stop by room 141 with your suggestion.

Megan Cassels

dele’s new album is definitely one to give you chills. When listening to this album, I was not disappointed. It creates a certain mood and emotion that leads the listeners on for more. It took Adele four years to write this album due to her writer’s block: a syndrome that makes it hard to write music. Finally, she was able to pull through with encouragement from her three year old son. The album was a huge hit. When it first came out people were ecstatic.The album received 3.38 million sales just in the first

week of its release. One of the songs on her album, Hello, also her single, is very passionate and emotional. The song isn’t a make up. It’s break up. It goes on to talk about her trying to reconnect with, not her ex boyfriend, but herself. Adele called this album a “make up”. Making up for all her lost time of wishing away the years in her life. Overall,l I loved the album and find myself singing “25” songs throughout the day and can definitely see myself buying the album in the near future.

Claire Shipley

he movie “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2” was the final string to the three book, four movie series. This movie goes out with a bang (literally) and generates a lot of emotion in the viewers from the stressful love between Peeta and Katniss to the death of key team players. In this must-see movie, Katniss teams up with some of her closest friends and allies to storm the Capital after years of oppression. Katniss tries to reconnect with Peeta and is betrayed

by one of her closest friends. You will see tragic deaths and large, surprising turning points. However, this installment was by far the most dull of the movie series, with a slow plotline and boring moments throughout the entire movie. Even if you might be trying to fight sleep, the movie follows the book almost scene for scene so all of you diehard fans will have something to follow along with. “Mockingjay Part Two,” although boring at times, is a must see finale to this thrilling series.

Dalton Wheeler

acial equality, self improvement and environmental conservation are all sung and rapped about in Logic’s sophomore album “The Incredible True Story.” An album filled with good vibes and inspirational raps, this album talks about the main problems in society and the improvement of an individual’s self-being. This album makes me want to bob my head to the music and actually listen to the lyrics. Certain songs like “Young

Jesus” and “City of Stars” make me want to sing along. This new album is great, but it was not what I was expecting. I expected more of a lyrical orientated album rather than focusing on the beat of each song. That being said, I still think this album is “fire” and I am hyped for his next album that has yet to be announced. This is one of the only albums that I actually like all of the songs of rather than just a few songs.

30 12.08.15//ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Writing Contest Winner:

INSTAGRAM CONTEST Just tag @jcredblack and #jcredblack on your photo to enter Theme: Things to be

thankful for [Cartoon by Ainsley Grey]

The girl, the boy and a tree

1st

Ariana Pauley

ella sat on the small perch made up by the roots of her favorite oak tree. Over the years it seemed the tree had molded a seat for her, waiting for the return of the girl with glasses and a bag of books. Bella and the tree had developed an understanding over the years; the mighty oak would shade the girl from the elements and in return Bella would read to the tree. Together they traveled far and wide, continent to continent, into space and back in time. The girl’s interests changed over the years, but the tree simply enjoyed the companionship. One day, the girl brought more than her bag of books, but a boy as well; a boy, as far as the tree could tell, who carried no books. This puzzled the tree and as Bella introduced the boy the tree understood his feelings of apprehension. The boy had a cold stare and laughed cruelly at Bella and her “stupid tree”. When he left, the girl cried, but the seasons continued to change and with them a new boy was introduced. Each seemed kinder than the last

but none stayed for more than a few minutes at a time. This saddened both the girl and her tree. Two seasons passed before Bella brought another boy to her special place, and by now the oaks leaves were beginning to turn auburn. This boy seemed different, for he brought his own stack of books and smiled warmly at the tree in greeting. He sat, offering Bella a place on the bench of roots molded to fit only her. The boy picked a book and read to the girl and the tree, and continued reading as a bitter winter changed into the soft summer months. One day, after many years, Bella returned to her tree without the boy. There were tear stains on her cheeks and the tree prompted no answer as his leaves rustled. The tree was still as Bella took her seat, now molded for two, and began to read the first book the boy had read. Tears fell on the pages and her voice cracked, but she read on because both knew. They knew the boy would not be reading again. Bella read on.

@lindseybiesemeyer

2nd

@blair_michael

3rd

@abbeylamb

Next Issue: Starting the new year

12.08.15//ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

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