P P
F
FF
O O
O O O
R R
LL
T T
T
O O II L
I O
As I previously stated, I am the most proud of my Quarterback article from the Sports page in the November issue that was titled, “He doesn’t even go here.” I believe I already explained how that article really changed my outlook on the class and helped better myself. Therefore, my second most significant piece of written work for Newspaper would be the Opioid article from the News page in the December issue that was titled, “Nation Addicted.” In this article, I truly went above and beyond. At first, I was only required to write about five hundred words. Instead, I wrote about a thousand since I cared so much about this article. Additionally, this article was very hard to write considering so many students were weird about being interviewed on the topic. I had three different interviewees either never reply back to me or told me they didn’t want to be quoted in the article. Luckily, my good friends came through and helped me with good, lengthy quotes. As you know, this topic hit home for me. At a young age, I’ve been exposed to the dangers of drugs and I’ve watched many people destroy themselves to these medications. Therefore, I was very passionate about the topic. Repeatedly, I found myself wanting to state my opinion, but I withheld. I think I did an excellent job at stating the facts and strayed away from my opinion. This article was one of my first articles I wrote for the news page. I haven’t written for the news page since the first issue which I think is interesting to compare how my writing how grown. In the first issue, you can tell I struggled with writing journalistically. But, in this issue I think I have finally obtained that skill. When writing the article, it was a breeze and my fingers continued to flow. I didn’t need to take breaks to try to think how I wanted to form a journalistic sentence. Instead, it came more easy. Nevertheless, this article needed a lot of fact to show the real crisis the United States was facing against opioids. So, it was a big difficult to find the right research I was looking for. Throughout the article, I had an idea of what quotes I wanted and where I was going to showcase it. So, when researching I knew exactly what I was looking for.
RELECTION RELECTION #1 #1
SELF-ANALYTICAL SELF-ANALYTICAL EVALUATION EVALUATION
Starting out this year, I really struggled with this publication. I was very used to being in a Creative Writing setting where you could write whatever you wanted and there was no set deadlines. Therefore, Newspaper was a new world to me, but I have completely fallen in love with it. Originally, I joined this class for the experience and because I knew that it would look good to colleges. What I didn’t expect to happen was how much I would enjoy this class and consider it as a future for myself. I will admit that the first few issues I was resilient against any superior power against me. I didn’t like being told what to do, doing things I didn’t want to do, and being forced to go out of my comfort zone. Yet, this was one of the most valuable lessons I could have learned this year and I’m grateful for it. With that being said, I would go against deadlines, didn’t show the best teamwork, and had no dedication in the first few issues. Subsequently, I believe that I didn’t truly learn this lesson until I was assigned an article that I had no intention or want to write for. And, that was the quarterback article which I won an award for in the class. Undoubtedly, I hated this article at first. I didn’t want anything to do with football boys and I didn’t want to talk to them. But, I really stepped out of my comfort zone for this one. I left school early, made sure I got the interview, I perfected my article, went on the field in front of everyone and took pictures, and even cried a little over the stress. Nonetheless, it was worth it since I finally had my first piece that I was sincerely proud of. From that point out, I have noticed how great that feeling felt and have strived to be a more productive, dedicated, and a team player to my editors, my staff, and to you. Accordingly, these last few issues have been the best for me. I have learned how to correctly time manage myself and have my articles ready to go for the deadline. I have stopped fighting with others and helped create a less cliquey environment. I have learned to understand the ethics of journalism and how vital they are for a positive work space. Most importantly, I have become truly dedicated to this publication. My best example of each of these skills would be December’s issue. In this issue, I showed that I could get my interviews, articles, and pictures done in time. Additionally, I really did determine my respect my team members and learned to love this publication. Nevertheless, I did have some weaknesses besides my dominant and honest personality. I have always struggled with procrastination and it’s always my biggest fault. I tend to find myself starting each article the day before it was due rather than gradually writing it with the week I am given. I don’t think this trait will ever change. But, I’m always open to trying to fix it and forcing myself to work on my articles even if that means only writing one sentence.
Although, I did also have great strengths throughout the year. I’ve always been a good writer and enjoyed it. I believe Newspaper has really helped me build this skill to its full potential. With the next semester to come and hopefully the next year, I can’t wait to see how much my peers and myself will grow through our writing careers. Next semester, I hope to prove myself to this publication. I want to show how dedicated I can be and the assest I am for the publication’s success. I really want to go far with Newspaper and do great things. I hope this explanation is enough to explain my faults and the stress I experienced. Thus, you can understand how badly I want to be apart of this publication.
C C O O N N TT II N N U U E E D D
R E F L E C T I O N # 2
My first favorite article is my Quarterback article from the November issue. As previously stated, I like this article a lot because it was the first article I really enjoyed and worked hard on. For the first time, I went out my comfort zone and was forced to do an article I would have never written in a million years. Instead, I enjoyed it. With that being said, I still did find the article incredibly stressful considering I hate conversing with football boys and I had to find someone who didn’t go to this school. Yet, this article has helped me a lot with learning how to interview people and be more comfortable with writing for the Newspaper. Additionally, I won an award in Newspaper for this article which helped me with a boost of confidence leading to the next issue. The only thing I was disappointed about with this article was that it was originally supposed to be published in the October issue. But, the editors accidentally forgot about it and it wasn’t published until November. Secondly, I really enjoyed writing the Holiday Makeup for the Style page. I’ve always had a very big hobby with playing around with makeup. It was very interesting to mix my two favorite hobbies together and make a platform for it. I enjoyed every moment of writing it, looking for inspiration, getting interviews, doing the makeup, taking pictures, etc. I really hope to continue writing for this page and doing similar work. I think it would be cool to constantly do something like this through every issue. The only thing that I didn’t enjoy with this article was that it wasn’t published. The next issue will be after the holidays, so it probably won’t be used again. But, I hope I get the chance to do something similar in the semester to come. Lastly, everyone knows I am a very opinionated person. I will tell you my thought on a topic whether you asked for it or not. Plus, I will fight for my belief to the death. Therefore, when presented the chance the write on the opinion page, I was thrilled. Being able to tell the whole school my opinion on a topic without them asking is exactly what I was looking for. So, I really enjoyed writing the Pro part for Pro/ Con about the Transgender Military Ban. I feel like I stated my opinion in a clean, orderly way. Also, each opinion I had was backed up by facts. Hence, I really put the Con part of the article to the test. Previously, I had written for the opinion page a couple of times. But, I had
never written my article as well until this point. However, I wish there wasn’t as much drama when writing for the opinion page. It really divide certain people in the class due to their beliefs. It becomes gossipy and not a positive work environment. With that being said, I do plan to continue writing for this page and can’t wait for what next semester hold for this publication.
Editors Note: The real finished and edited product for the writing portion is in my portfolio binder. I was running out of time to finish indesign at school and figured I would write whatever I could and turn in a portfolio as well. I suggest reading that version instead.
CONTINUED
eed to be certified to teach? The latest bill to hire teachers without a formal degree.
- TEAR SHEETS SEPTEMBER
W
YES - BROOK BOWMAN
ITH the signing of Senate Bill 1042 in May,
Governor Doug Ducey promised to fill up Arizona’s classrooms “by allowing highly-qualified professionals who have significant experience in a subject matter, possess aTHE higher degree, and SE FEATURE SHADOWS PRESS CACTUSeducation have passed a background check to be certified to teach.” This is a mistake that will negatively affect future student learning. This bill is a problem because having a degree or experience in a subject does not mean NEWS 4■ SEPTEMBER 25, 2017 someone knows how to teach. Currently, certified THE CACTUS SHADOWS PRESS teachers are required to take classes on how to make lesson plans, how to deal with classroom management, and how to grade student work. opinion Putting an inexperienced teacher without any certification in front of aschool, and if that We’re an A BROOK BOWMAN class of thirty-something students is asking for trouble. changes, how many people In today’s competitive world, the bar is raised for high school students. Most The teaching profession loses three out of every five new teachers are going to want to go to a twenty-first century students have grown up in a home where Cs, Ds, and during the first three years. This is generally attributedBtoschool the fact that or a C school?FsSo the accepted and college is the only option. Therefore, students are are not the teaching profession is much more challenging thanpublic people expect. reception of a school of their free time studying for a test, finishing homework, or figusing most is Now, what’s going to happen when you take a new based teacher,on throw uring out a way to cheat instead of hanging with friends and family, relaxtheir letter, there’s ing, or just him or her in the classroom with no training? The stategoing is goingto to be loseconsequences tobeing a normal teenager. According to the American Psychological Association, “stress has more new teachers than ever before. The long term consequences for the school,” impacted their performance at home, work, and school.” the teaching profession are dire -- we should be focusing on ways to get Dr. Steve Bebee, Cactus Shadows the recent years, Stanford University stated that, “plagiarism and In Principal. more teachers in the classroom, not scaring them away with no traincheating has become one of the worst problems that their school and many ing. others have faced. Plagiarism and cheating have been proven to be linked to Supporters of the bill argue that there are plenty of bad teachers in the pressures that are put on students through high grades.” By SARA WINDOM editor in chief tests causing grades to drop slightly,” many people are going to want to go the classroom who are fully certified. And this is certainly true. But it Denise Clark Pope, a lecturer at Stanford University, created a study that said Kalia Flannery, a senior. to a B school or a C school? So the pubmost students are starting to spend more time figuring out howon showed is 2016 alsoArizona true that there are bad doctors, lawyers, and school scientists allperception of The Merit scores were However, currently, dis- -- lic of a school is based cheat instead of actually studying. In fact, Denise said that many to conseways recently and theto decline of tricts are not legally Just allowed to their letter, there’s going to be whomreleased, are required go through extensive training. because there the school district’s results are a condemand the passing of Arizona Merit quences to the school,” said Bebee. value high grades over education, creativity, and imagination due students are some bad apples doesn’t mean we should throw away the whole cern for the 2017 school year. as a graduation requirement, nor can Cactus Shadows faced several stress and anxiety they are facing. I ALWAYS to the immense bunch. “For the first time ever, the school it be incorporated into a student’s obstacles during the 2016 testing of schoolwork by the American Psychological Association was conducted of A survey did not meetpast theirdecade, year-long class grade. freezIn the thegoal National Education Association foundperiod, that including computers book, or sit by over a thousand teenagers varying from the ages thirteen to seventeen because of Arizona Merit scores. “I think there are far too many and a city-wide power outage. Arizona has faced problems like low pay, no classroom resources,ing and music.” depressed due to the stress recorded Across the board from third to students around the state who do While the majority of tests werehigh ablelevels of being overwhelmed or too many teaching requirements. fact, is one of the lowest them. school causes twelfth, there were some grades that notIn take the Arizona Arizona Merit seriously to be recovered, some students were Ashley Du didstates better in than others, but for as a whole are nosalary consequences forced to retake the assessment. I, and many others, have been taught from an early age about how importhe union teacher because pay -- athere teacher’s is the equivaa sophomore we did not meet our goal,” said Dr. for you at this point if you don’t do “I did my entire test and wouldn’t is. The problem is that we instill a mind-set that if you do not get tantitschool lent to being a manager at Taco Bell. This makes it very hard to attract Steve Bebee, principal. well,” said Bebee. submit because everyone was taking good grades, you will not get into good college, and then you will not be sucmotivated intelligent people profession. it and the internet went down. Having nowand been in effect young for Out of to 116the Cactus ShadowsTherefore, stuthe test cessful in life. three years, the Arizona Merit serves dents surveyed on Aug. 28, 86 perI had to take it all over again. I gave is understandable why Ducey might sign this law. problems arise when all six student’s classes requires a minimum as the achievement test statewide. cent of students admitted to not it effort the first time, butMore the second But the state must also consider the possible problems that students or studying. By the time a student gets home from an homework This year, 25 percent of juniors, 31 taking the Arizona Merit seriously. time I was so done, it hour tookofme five will face as a resultand of this new bill. In history, no problem ever seconds been to answer A for percent of sophomores 36 perWhile the students face nohas discievery day of school, they have to start their homework. By the time hour sineight cent of freshmen taking the Languageproblem. plinaryOur action, Arizona gle question,” said Michael done, they have to go to bed and repeat it all the next day. At some that isChmura, solved by creating another statetheshould fix Merit the problem Arts portion passed. 34 percent of scores not only measure a teacher’s a senior. point, a student’s mind or body is going to break and give up. This creates at hand, which is that our teachers are not being paid enough. Higher students testing in Algebra II passed, proficiency, but help determine the With the threat of the school’s leteven more anxiety for how this might affect grades and how long it will take salaries wouldofattract more qualified teachers, which is what we really while 25 percent Geometry stuschool’s letter grade. ter grade dropping, an online curto fix it. One bad test grade should not keep a student from having an A in dents did. Instead Overall, this is down 5 peris going to be need. of lowering the bar“Our and school lettinglabel anyone teach, let’s riculum raise used on campus already Cheating seems like the easiest way out at this point. class. the is cent from last year in both categories. partially based on your test scores. within E-Learning classes incorpothe barthat by without raising the salaries. After all, teachers are the future. “I think graduaCactus Shadows, in myteaching entire career, rating free AZMerit test preparation As we start the school year, it is important to develop good coping habits WOLIVIA tion requirement, less haswill beenall anbe excelling school. We’re Without them,students future are generations doomed. courses to allSTICKEL students. in response to stress. Some easy options include writing, meditating, or just \SARA WINDOM
stress free or stressful?
ARIZONA MERIT SCORES HIT RECORD LOW DISTRICT-WIDE
uld be ways to achers sroom, them ith no aining.
HOW DO COPE W STRESS
g
“
likely to put as much effort into the
an A school, and if that changes, how
do something you enjoy.
“
ONE PACK AT A TIME New bill allows schools to hire teachers without certificationI COLOR COORDINATION
= 22%
B = 32%
JUST b
my friends an By assigning each school subject a color, like science green, Juggling school, work, and everything else in the average teenager’s social studies red, math black, students may find it easier to ily. I also study busy life, dealing with it all while still being organized proves to be a crunch. a notebook indepartment, Luis Diaz in the world language locate the correct By BROOK BOWMAN g staff writer degree,challenge have taught relevant course fortoat they hire non-certified teachers. up space, clean clearavailable, the time taking for many.aHowever, about it don’t m two years, and have at least five These teachers are required to take education Lori Kurtz Larkin in the difference. all the can make school supplies and re-sort outpast of spiral. notebooks insteadand composition department, tip: Use Insider A = 4%least the Governor Doug Ducey signed Senate Bill years experience working in a relevant field. courses during the first two Pages yearswill oflast teaching department. while a spiral survive damage lo-nger andenglish 6% bends.the district had an emermetallic frays and In paperthis notebook’s 1042 on May 2. The bill allows all schools in B =“Today’s legislation is a win for schools, and actually become certified through thering past, a sophomor Arizona to hire teachers who have not been certified to instruct. D = 22% The bill was created to help deal with the significant teacher shortage in Arizona. The Learning Policy Institute in Arizona found that over 62 percent of school districts had unfilled teaching positions three months into the school year, and over a 1,000 teachers were on substitute credentials. This is recorded as one of the highest turnover rates of any state in the United States. “We have been losing qualified teachers every year for at least the past five years,” said Scott LaVigne, an English teacher and Department Chair. “Many teachers are simply leaving the profession to work in a higher paying field.” Senate Bill 1042 allows principals to hire applicants who have a higher education
No Phone Zone
teachers, and students,” said Ducey. “No lonC = 4% ger will an outdated process keep qualified, dedicated individuals out of the classroom. Instead, principals will now be empowered to make hiring decisions and attract the best individuals to serve our students.” The new bill is controversial, with opponents concerned about placing unqualified teachers in the classroom instead of addressFAITH HASHER ing the needs of current teachers. “Freshman year, I didn’t have a Spanish teacher first semester. She was a long term sub and didn’t speak Spanish at all,” said Blake Bradshaw. “I didn’t learn anything that semester.” School officials are faced with difficult decisions because of the teacher shortage. The policy in Cave Creek is to fill open positions with certified teachers but, if none are
W
Anthony
process. gency certification policy to hire non-cer“I believe that these teachers will be able to tified teachers when no others were availLABELLING help our school and help our students,” says able. Diane Douglas, State Superintendent of Abby Defelder, a sophomore. If color coordination is not Public Instruction, later opposed this law saylabelling binders an option, help put everything on the spine One of the major concerns is that these ing,can “lowering the standards for new teachand notebooks strip of smallway on a the write athe subject place. into new teachers will not know how toFirst, control ers is not topaper. correct the problem.” with shipping over states on the spine and paper strip Placeaway classroom. This could scare applicants Intape other where the law still exists, from the job due to thetape. immense responsi- the Learning Policy institute says that the bility and stress, just when the state schools consequences are very severe since these need them the most. teachers were never prepared to instruct. KEEP AN AGENDA Sasha Sypkens, a new biology teacher and Therefore, schools were forced to increase all important can write yousizes, single Cactus Shadows alumna,Maintain is one aof theagenda five where class cancel classes, use short-term subwhat from other fields next day, due in class Whether dates. new teachers hired under the new bill. it is what isstitutes, orthe assign teachers Math when weekend, this on going are concerts “She’s really good at explaining the prob- to fill up vacancies.Club is everything in one place will meeting that week, having lems and going into depth on how we will It will be up to districts and schools to aid sort it all in one organized place. use it in the real world,” said Kylie Klein, a these teachers in instructing students, so freshman student in Sypkens biology class. Arizona’s quality of education will prosper Other teachers hired under theHIGHLIGHT bill include beyond its current standards. EVERYTHING I RUN and James Vogt and Adam Hillier in the math
Whether you are reading your new favorite book, understanding directions or writing down homework, highlights can actually maintain focus and help you understand difficult topics while
releases endo notice when I that negative
TEAR SHEETS OCTOBER OCTOBER 20, 2017 ■ 9
A
ow also , have m lies a o those
d in the d were area at
Apache y were
o stray d found
s many by the
med to one or ntains. altz out died 20 ed con-
ne who or to be
er
COUPLE decades ago, residents of Phoenix, Arizona described
a triangular formation of lights in the sky, the PHOENIX which was later characterized as the largest viewing of a UFO in America’s history. Four months after the incident, the Maryland Air National Guard announced that they had conducted a testing exercise known as “Operation Snowbird” where A-10 planes flew in a V-formation across Phoenix and dropped high-intensity flares. Yet, many theorists to this day remain unsatisfied with that explanation and still believe the lights in the sky was something out of this world. Viewers of the lights portrayed the V-formation of lights as a solid object that covered the stars in the sky which quickly debunked the National Guard’s statement. Later, Fife Symington, the governor of Arizona at the time, tried to calm residents by claiming that he was a witness to the incident. Symington explained that it was simply just a military exercise and joked about the possibility of something extraterrestrial by dressing up as an alien. Several years later, he admitted that the lights he saw were similar to a UFO and otherworldly. Today, there has been several sightings of the lights in Arizona since the night of March 13th, 1997.
LIGHTS,
By BROOK BOWMAN g staff writer
M
IAMI, Florida, Bermuda, and San Juan, Puerto Rico are the three corners of the area in the Atlantic Ocean known as the BERMUDA TRIANGLE. Many strange accidents and disappearances have occurred in this area ever since Christopher Columbus traveled through in 1492.
In 1812, the first documented disappearance in this area occurred off the coast of South Carolina. Theodosia Burr Alston, the daughter of
Vice President Aaron Burr, was on board the Patriot, a passenger ship, that disappeared on Dec. 30 and was never heard from again. The long history of disappearances in the Bermuda Triangle continues to this day. In fact, on Oct. 1, 2015, the SS El Faro, a United States flagged cargo ship, was sailing from Jacksonville to
TEAR SHEETS TWO PERSPECTIVES STICKING NOVEMBER T WITH IT Trans in military SPORTS
14 ■ NOVEMBER 17, 2017
8 ■ NOVEMBER 17, 2017
OPINION
THE CACTUS SHADOWS PRESS
By AVIANNA HOPPES g staff writer
HE Cactus Shadows h
Facing bans and blocks, should legislatures allow trending
E
working hard facing a c sions and a loss of playe uation. Focused on improvi challenges such as practice and team. The hockey team has severa this year, with most of the team #MeToo has exploded on Twitter and Facebook, with thousands NO-experiences GRIFFIN GOLDSTEIN classmen and only having three se of women coming forward about their with sexual “Last year we lost a lot of seni misconduct. Hollywood was shocked when over 77 and counttion, so this year we only have th ing actresses and employees accused HarveyECENTLY Weinstein, President Trump announced on Twitter that an American film producer, of either sexual couple juniors, and it's mostly f he harasswould be banning all transgender people from serving ment, assault, or rape. sophomores,” said Brett Cernich, in the military in “any capacity.” As expected, this received maybe get his position. lots of backlash from the LGBTQIA community. Though Alyssa Milano, an American actress and activist, tweeted theoutway President Trump announced the act (which hasThis year is different because th on #MeToo, on Twitter. This movement completely swept theput into legal effect, as it has been blocked on constitugoes to Cactus Shadows, unlike la not actually been nation and reached platforms like Instagram andgrounds) Facebooksounds as well.very harsh and bigoted, there is a good amount of tional some of the players went to other
Hashtag takes on harassment The Falcon hockey
YES-BROOK BOWMAN
ARLIER HITTING PAUSE FOR GOOD ON
this year, President Trump enacted a ban on transgenders from the military. This decision is unfair and not good for the country. The Wall Street Journal reported that in order to implement the ban, the White House would be reversing Barack Obama’s policy, which allowed transgender people to serve openly for the first time in history. The ban would block transgenders from enlisting in the army and remove active-duty service members. Trump’s motive was tweeted out, saying, “Our military must be focused on decisive and overwhelming victory and cannot be burdened with the tremenIt seems all too often Netflix abruptly removes would a dous medical costs and disruption thatthat transgender in the military entail.” television shows its listcosts for what appears to bethen one If the main favorite reason for the ban is thefrom medical on the military, no good With the latest removal of the for annual would expect the costsreason. to be significant. However, thebeing upperone estimate most popular shows they “How I Met of Your transgender medical costs amounts to aired, less than a tenth theMother,” new F-35 fighter taken November 14, it isThis clearrounds that it has nothing to do jet, according to the down Defense Department. up to between $2.4 milwith the show’s ratings. lion to $8.4 million, which is only one thousandth of the Defense Department’s According to the Netflix website itself, shows and movbudget. ies are removed due to an expiration contract between Yet the Military Times Analysis confirmed thatof thea military spends $41.6 miland the producers. Usually, contracts are renewed lion annually Netflix on Viagra, which is also considered unnecessary spending. This and the content will stay on the list, but sometimes it is a medical investing is about five times the estimated cost of transgender-related better decision for Netflix financially to let the contracts expenses. expire andbytake contentDepartment down. A study conducted thethe Defense concluded that there are Netflixin rents and Of movies stream about 1.5 millionEssentially, people enlisted theshows military. that,tothere arebyonly 1,320 negotiating deals with producers of shows and movies for small a to 6,630 openly transgender people in the military, which is a very percertain amount of money andfaces years. They30 aretothen given the treatcentage. Subsequently, the military only about a 140 hormone rightsonly to the for the transition agreed timesurgeries frame, and makeactive serments a year, and 25 content to 130 gender among off monthly subscriptions. vice members money annually.
team moves up to division two.
R
Celebrities such as Lady Gaga, Gabrielle logic Union,behind Viola Davis, and Sarahexplain its necessity. it that could Hyland began tweeting the hashtag. In the military, many service members are held to the responsibility FACING CHALLENGES “I think the more females that come out theirdangerous stories and how of about handling weapons like firearms and explosives. It should beDespite having everyone go you can say ‘no’ is definitely going to helpexpected mentor athat lot ofall younger genof the troops who are given these weapons are healthyschool, the team still faces some ch erations into understanding that you can minded say ‘no,’ and your andthat arewhatever not a potential danger to themselves or others around as moving up a division. The team abuser is doing is not okay,” said Kayla Dobbs, them.a junior. division two this year, but is find The movement has encouraged many women to speak up about alleged With that said, there are already certain rules in place that can disharder than playing division thr sexual misconduct by actors and producers such as Louis C.K., Ben Affleck, qualify people from serving in the military completely. Anyone with any Andy Dick, Kevin Spacey, and David Guillod. type of psychological disorder is prohibited from serving, which can be “We have the potential to “It encourages women to come out and admit that they have been atovictim any disorder from anxiety colorblindness to depression. The American since we moved up a division i of some kind of sexual harassment over the years,” said Lori Kurtz-Larkin, an gender dysphoria, which is a psycholog- tougher” said senior player, M Psychiatric Association considers English teacher. Another challenge the ical disorder in which a person feels that their sex does not match their “I think that’s really a good thing. If wegender could have a moreaopen conversationdisorder, which, according to the militrying to figure a practice identity, psychological about it, it would help so that this kind oftary’s stuff stops,” said Kurtz-Larkin. rules, should prohibit people who have it from serving. buying ice time. The t In 2017, 85 percent of women reported experiencing some sort oforsexual Barring transgenders people with gender dysphoria is not discrimionce a week, every Th harassment, which is significantly more than in previous years. has opened nation because thatThis would mean that the military is also discriminating Ice Den in Scottsdale. F up the topic for more women to speak out. against people with anxiety, colorblindness, and depression, which would practice time can be t “The movement spreads awareness about common sexual assault is, be a how ridiculous accusation. several other schoo and how the victims are often shamed into silence,“ said Abby Kitnick, a senior. It should be noted that 41 percent of transgender or people of unconGLIDING THROUGH “People often remain silent about their assault in fear of the community backhave attempted suicide, according to the American Duringfirmed a gamesexuality at the ice den, lash, and the fact that the majority of predators walk free with no threat to their That number rises to 45 percent after Foundation Suicide Prevention. Ethan Hinnant, afor sophomore, social status or career. The #MeToo movement givesthe a voice to victimssurgery. who are It would be ignorant on the behalf of receiving transexual goes after the puck. fed up with remaining silent about their experience and sends a message to who are not completely mentally stable the US military to allow people 4MIA GILLING predators that they can no longer hide intotheoperate shadows.” weapons and serve with other peopleAwho could potentially be the world are TYPING DRAFT, women around In response to the many allegations, sexual assultTroops’ victimslives staged a march sharing their experiences with sexual assault by using harmed. should beon the biggest concern of the military: their Hollywood to bring more awareness on the twitter. jobtopic. is already dangerous enough, so any#MeToo risk toon their well being should be
“The upper estimate for annual transgender medical costs amounts to less than a tenth of the new F-35 fighter jet.”
“41 percent of transgender or people of uncomfirmed sexuality have attempted suicide, according to Andrew Young, a homeschooler, plays on the varsity Falcon football the American team as the quarterback Foundation for Suicide Prevention.”
The Government Accountability Office states that from 2004 to 2009 the number of transgenders discharged has cost the Pentagon roughly $193.3 milGriffin Goldstein writerto dislion. If the Pentagon was to activate this ban, it would cost themstaff more charge active-duty members than it would to simply pay for their procedures while they protect our country. While it is true that the American Psychiatric Association considers gender Brook Bowman staff writer dysphoria as a psychological disorder, gender dysphoria is also correctly defined removed. 4GRACE HAYCRAFT-MCKEE as a hormonal imbalance and does not make a person psychotic or mentally Another factor in this debate is that the servicemember has to be diagunstable. But the American Psychiatric Association also considers dyslexia, nosed with gender dysphoria, discuss their options with their doctor and is quickly expanding, turned out to becommanding a success,” said fresh- and undergo growingthe up with YouTube, and a lotsurgery, of ADHD, chronic pain, and insomnia as psychological disorders.YouTube These classificaofficer, physical transexual all of creating man Max Reinhart, creator of thefor chanthem areHealthcare getting to experience first- the military tions do not necessarily bar someone from joining the military, which many means new opportuniwhich is paid by the military. benefits that ties from for people, nel Scarulus. offers is meant to be for people handwho the good thingsorabout it. For that being transgender is not enough of a justification to be barred service. including some are sick in need of some care and canbehind-the-scenes jobs. While people, the plus side of YouTube is Transgender suicide rates continue to rise, and it is concerning that the not afford it. Making theCurrently, video the Department something as simple as anotherthe formorganization of United States Department of Veterans Affairs reported that most roughlypeople 22 veter-only pay attenof Veteran’s Affairs, g staff writer By BROOK does plan on attending college and football sinceentertainment, I was eight. This willit is creattion todue thetosubscriber count BOWMAN and YouTube requires more work butof for others, ans die each day due to suicide. Transgenders tend to commit suicide feelresponsible for than overseeing the medical care veterans, is one of the most hopes to play football there. He is befind myit tenth ing year in the ” said the videos, there is actually a some people expect. YouTubers a brand newsport, job market and turning ing alone and being targeted as LGBT. This ban would just increase that feeling underfunded organizations, if not the most, in the government. It is unfair FRIDAY undecided on which school he Young. has huge amount of time and effort NIGHT fun to makeLIGHTS videos and enjoy doing itwho asHeare millennials into self-made and sense of hate that our society reflects on them. to service members in been need ofhomeschooled care for wounds andstill psychological shine across thea hobby, football field wishes since grade andcoverage is the because that goes a YouTube but they alsoathave sacrifice millionaires. With all of this being said, the problem is not actually the medical costsinto of thehaving trauma to beto given athe lessersixth budget for medical sometoofattend. it channel. of theirAndrew time in order tostarting make the quarterback “It creates jobs for team game. Hudnutt for the active-duty transgenders. The real problem is how transphobic the President of the homecomingsome is being spent on transexual surgeries and hormone replacement therapy. believes that the reafinalthe product presentable. I never varsity footteam has been doing so well his sophomore year.thought the United States is. Transgender people should be treated with the same rights Young, a player on The amountsince of money that people. goes towards helping woundedson andthe traumawho make videos of my videos are easy is to edit,been there would aitthing team, prepares “Some to lead his team year since being moved down “He’s under thebe fire for three and respect as anyone else would and the Courts seem to agree. There are YouTubers ball tized veterans already small enough, so should not be this reduced even as a hobby passion ofintheirs. there and but I have spentmore twothe hours just trying to understands called a YouTuber, but going Earlier this month, a U.S. District Judge ruled that the President’s banorwould by funding transexual surgeries and hormone replacement hisBut third final year as to a therapy, division four team is because years and whats are who. Depending the view count, edit a single video,” saidare Reinhart. now that is a real career violate their Fifth Amendment rights and has blocked the policy from going onstarting as they not for health. quarterback. they are finally acting as a team and on.necessities He is very athletic and knows someTrump’s YouTuberstrue have found a way to Some videos take to edit for someshould people,” saidhave to go out of its way into effect. This proves the weakness of the ban, and exposes Thelonger lineand the military With only a few games left inbottom respecting each other. how tois,make plays to keepnot the drive make a career off of posting videos. can be more complicated, while other and changing Matthewrules Scott,and Filmregulations and intentions. policies to accommodate his high school career, he ismaking mak-newalive, “Every year you get a different ” said Mike Hudnutt, coach. types of videos such are easier and yet do not TV teacher. demographic of people. a it small, medically expensive, every moment count. When group. This group is called a team Seven millioning views take up so much time. YouTube is a source of HOMESCHOOLED came down to the last few minutes versus some select individuals we “In 2016, I got paid a dollar per a “Movies can be harder to make, but entertainment, but it is A = 2% D = 7% Young is also one of the few of the fourth quarter of the game, had last year. It’s been exciting to thousand views, and my channel had compilation videos are super easy to also a passion for some A = 8% B = 4% athletes for people, CactusandShadows Cactus was 24-24 work with these guys and know about seven million views, so that'sShadowsdo,” said tied McQuiston. those peoplethat C = 12% C = 14% Based on a poll of 100 Matthew a is homeschooled, following in with Marcos de Niza. that we Scott, are young and have a future about $7,000,” said Ryan McQuiston, a YouTubers tend to learn a lot about put in a lot of effort to A = 62% Film & TVofteacher footstepsDmake professional Youngchan-faced computers a tackle thatsoftware ahead us,” said Hudnutt. students on Nov 2 senior and creator of the YouTube and editing once their videos what athBthe = 33% =of 82% Tim thestart rest of game “He’s a natural born leader who nel Ryan McQ, which hasbenched over 21,000him forthey making videos. It isletes not justsuch the asthey are. Tebow, Serena Avianna Hoppes B = 17% staff writer subscribers. itself, but the whole presentation Williams, and Blake Griffin. leaving himDwith a sprained ankle. is able to bring the team together 49%video Even successful YouTubers of the video matters, like click state of Arizona allows Yet, had he to continued cheering on his when we aren’t playing well. He C =creating 10% The start small and do not hit well on the the bench bait tountil get more to homeschooled athletes to particiteam from the views. gameThey have can communicate to everyone on first try. quickly become tech savvy. pate in any public school interschowas over. what we need to do and what he “I always loved watchingPlaying YouTube vid- football “Thumbnails are important,lastic so youactivity just as a normal stuat Cactus needs to do,” said Jordan Dauche, eos, so I made the decision to try making have to be able to know how to use editdent would. Even though he is not Shadows is not Young’s first rodeo. who played with Young last year. them. I made two different channels but ing software,” said McQuiston. enrolled in public school, Young “I have been playing organized they both failed. I tried once more and it A whole new generation of kids are
He doesn’t even go here
PAID BY THE VIEW$
“It creates jobs for people. I never thought there would be a thing called a YouTuber, but now that is a real career for some people.”
YouTube has become more popular among the younger generation, with THE REPORT CARDvideos as people posting their job.
Fall Play
West Entrance
Senior Splash
BENC
sprain
TEAR SHEETS DECEMBER THE CACTUS SHADOWS PRESS NEWS
DECEMBER 22, 2017 ■ 3
Nation Addicted
Declared a national crisis by President Trump, Governor Doug Ducey calls Arizona’s opiod crisis a public health emergency.
T
By BROOK BOWMAN g staff writer
HE
Arizona Department of Health Services released its latest data on opioid overdoses in Arizona, showing that it has reached the highest number of deaths in ten years due to opioid overdoses. They reported that more than 3,200 suspected opioid overdoses have been reported to state officials since June 15th. According to the NY Times, of each American drug overdose, nearly twothirds of them are from prescription opioids, heroin and synthetic opioids, killing some 64,000 Americans last year, which is over 20 percent more than in 2015. This statistic is more than double the number in 2005, and nearly quadruple the number in 2000, when accidental falls killed more Americans than opioid overdoses.
PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY As a result, Governor Doug Ducey declared Arizona’s opioid crisis as a publichealth emergency in June. This opens the question to what exactly has started the problem and how to fix it. To start off the epidemic, more fingers are being pointed at doctors and highly paid pharmaceutical producers. On October 26, 2017, John Kapoor, the founder of opioid pharmaceutical producer Insys Therapeutics and the sixth richest man in
Arizona, was arrested due to illegal distribution of fentanyl spray and violating antikickback laws. Allegedly, Kapoor was bribing doctors into over-prescribing painkillers intended for cancer patients. But, these patients being prescribed these drugs did not have any trace of cancer.
As one solution, President Donald Trump has directed the Department of Health and Human Services to declare the opioid crisis as an public health emergency. Trump vowed to get rid of drug abuse and addiction that has diseased the United States. “I have lost some friends due to the epidemic and I feel that a common root of the problem is depression in the users. There needs to be more of a focus on fixing this issue and then, maybe we might see a drop in the number of young people who abuse opioids,” said Michael Chmura, a senior. Yet, Trump has not prompted any federal funding to this issue yet, and has not suggested any plans for supporting any sort of medical treatment. However, he does plan to include a requirement that federally employed prescribers are trained in safe practices for opioid prescriptions, and a new federal initiative to develop non addictive painkillers. “I believe that Arizona is being affected by the opioid epidemic because of ignorance and/or mental diseases. People aren’t
taking the time to care about how the illicit substance they are consuming is affecting their body. All they care about is getting high sometimes without regard to what pill they are even taking,” said Matthew Blackert, a senior. “People need to become aware and educated as to how these drugs are going to affect their body and if they are prepared to allow their drug use to take their life away from them.”
PLAN TO ATTACK PROBLEM Consequently, the University of Michigan has devised a plan to address the nation's opioid epidemic. They have decided to start cutting down opioid prescriptions by prescribing half of what they would usually prescribe. Many other hospitals are following in their footsteps. According to National Public Radio, despite getting less medication, patients did not report higher levels of pain, and they were no more likely than the previously studied patients to ask for prescription refills. Additionally, these patients asked for fewer pills. Many celebrities in the past years have been affected by opioids. For example, Heath Ledger, Elvis Presley, Prince Rogers Nelson, Cory Monteith, Chris Farley, Janis Joplin, and most recent a rapper named Gustav Åhr, or more commonly known as Lil Peep each were victims to an opioid overdose. Ironically, Åhr’s death took place in Tucson, Arizona, which continues to
face a serious drug problem, seeing as many as one hundred opioid-related deaths per month. Steven Beebe, the principal, stated, “We have a huge opioid issue in the United States. There have been a lot of incidents, but we currently aren’t finding any at Cactus Shadows. We are dealing with other issues. Nine years ago when I joined Cactus Shadows that wasn’t the case. We have been working really hard on that issue ever since. The last five years for homecoming and the last four years for prom, we haven’t had one drug or alcohol related problem and we are continuing to improve.”
With that being said, the White House is slowly, but surely approaching the issue. Kellyanne Conway, counselor to Trump, has created an “opioid cabinet.” This cabinet consists of experts from the Department of Health and Human Services, the Office of National Drug Control Policy, and other executive branch offices. Conway leads weekly meetings at the White House in order to develop a plan to respond to the opioid crisis.
Nevertheless, Sarah Sanders, the White House press secretary, has declined to discuss funding or addressing the opioid crisis. Now, it is unsure how exactly the United States will fix this major problem.
4 ADAM ROBERTSON
VETERANS HERITAGE PROJECT PRESERVES WAR STORIES By MAJA PEIRCE g staff writer
VETERANS HERITAGE PROJECT (VHP) has been giving students the opportunity to hear first hand stories of veteran’s war experiences. VHP is a club devoted to students interviewing veterans and organizing their sto-
have to be ready to deal with a variety of reactions. Some are more willing to share their stories than others. The memories can be very painful and many veterans have not shared these stories with even their closest family members. Cactus Shadows teacher Barbara J. Hatch founded Veterans Heritage Project over a
to Vietnam this spring break,” said Austin Hagan, a junior. During these field trips, members gain an educational hands on experience exploring places rooted with war history. Veterans Heritage Project brings veterans in to give lectures about their experiences, as well.
Veteran Heritage Project needs differently faceted members. Technology inclined people have a place organizing the interviews and communicating with other schools. Social and curious people have a place interviewing and speaking at events. “My most memorable experience has been laying out the book, specifically the all