Monday, February 1, 2016
The Student Newspaper of Jones College Preperatory High School
Francisco’s fight CRISTIAN ESPINOZA ‘16 Lifestyles Staff When students were ready to rush the doors to begin their winter break, a major force generally holding them back, security officer Francisco Perez, was noticeably missing. A man known around Jones for his grit, tough persona, and past life as a boxer, was about to face his toughest opponent yet: cancer. On Dec. 5, Perez went to the emergency room at Norwegian American Hospital, where doctors found a tumor the size of a baseball in his small intestine. When they tested pieces of the tumor for cancer, the results came back positive. He has been absent from work since the diagnosis. “I didn’t want to miss work, but the stomach pain was rough,” said Perez. “I have been having this pain for about seven months,
Security officer goes from boxer to cancer patient
but it got so severe diagnosed with intestinal cancer. that I had to tell “My initial reaction was my doctor.” shock. I wasn’t expecting In the [cancer], but it was a wake up past three call. I immediately prayed years, the and talked to the Lord, doctors and I was asking Him to had not do His will,” said Perez. seen any Perez had emergensigns that cy surgery a few days would impact after being diagnosed, Perez severely, and doctors were amazed but as soon as by his recovery. They the pain became “thought it was a miracle.” unbearable, he Perez strictly believes that notified his perGod is taking each step with sonal doctor. The him, as he is currently in the doctor originally process of chemotherapy. scheduled an ap“I receive one full week pointment for him of chemo[therapy] from sevto see a specialist en in the morning until six on Dec. 10, but in the afternoon, and then by then Perez I check in with my dochad altor twice the next week,” ready been Photo by Cristian Espinoza ‘16 said Perez. “They check BATTLING BACK Francisco Perez visits Jones on Jan. 21, the first time since his diagnosis.
Pushing the limits with “Cabaret”
Musical to turn heads with Nazi characters, scandalous references KEVIN SHANNON ‘16 Associate Editor, Photo
a little out there for the time [1966], I don’t see there to be any concern about the level of controversy.” With creative control over the production of “Cabaret,” Lyons is trying to keep the musical true to the time period of the end of the “Roaring 20s” and the start of the 1930s. “It was the high point of conservatism, Nazism, and fascism,” said Lyons. “So the height of [all] that and it’s breakdown.” Conceptually, Lyons will include the symbol of the Nazis into the production: the swastika. “You have to bring it in. This is before the rise of Hitler taking power, this [is] 1931, but the Nazism had started.” The president of Drama Club, Rachel Levin ‘16, concurs with Lyons’ conceptual decision to utilize the symbol in the production. “Not only does it help make our production more historically accurate, it is also a great opportunity to hinder our seemingly inherent forgetfulness as a society.” According to Lyons, each show is unique in the dialogue the audience has while leaving the show. “Every show has a different educational value,” said Lyons. “A lot of this [‘Cabaret’] is about people being apathetic, and with what’s going on today, it’s like if you sit here and do nothing, then this can happen. You’ll see the characters in the play being all apathetic, and they figure it’ll all blow over, not getting involved, and in the end it pushes forward and shows what they got for their apathy. The consensus on “Cabaret’s” overall meaning seems to be unanimous. Levin, who agrees with Lyons about the message of apathy, also finds that society is complacent. “We can’t allow ourselves to forget Photo by Kevin Shannon ‘16 the atrocities committed and allow others PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT Jessia Maciuch ‘16 and to occur due to our forgetfulness. We have Michael Lee ‘16 read through this year’s musical with Director Brad to work to keep these atrocities from all Lyons. people and ethnicities, not just Jews. And more shocking, but it’s meant to shock,” said Lyons. I think ‘Cabaret’ provides a great venue to do so. “ Principal P. Joseph Powers said the school proUnlike past spring musicals, “Cabaret” will ductions in the past have been edgier. “We’ve had run in March instead of the former May timeslot ‘Hair,’ we’ve had several other things that were maybe due to scheduling conflicts with student performout on the edge a little bit, and while ‘Cabaret’ is edgy, ers in the musical’s rehearsal and AP exams. it has been around for 50 years. As [it] may have been The Theater Department presents a new venue for the stage this spring: the Nazi-filled, controversial, risque, Kit-Kat Club of “Cabaret.” After multiple adaptations, the musical [50th Anniversary] is adapted once again this spring for the stage under Jones theater director Brad Lyons, who selected the musical with the Theater Department. “I wanted to do something more powerful this year,” Lyons said. “Something more meaningful, like ‘Hair’ was two years ago.” “Hair,” another time period musical as is “Cabaret,” was controversial for a school setting, as it dealt with the Vietnam War, drug use, and sexual themes. “Cabaret,” in the same vein, is set in 1930s Germany, a time where Adolf Hitler’s Nazism was just starting off. The venue of a cabaret club, which showcases risque performances of comedy and dancing, could yield valid questions for a school production. “The show is provocative, but it’s no worse [than anything] anyone sees in the hallway every single day. When you see it on stage, it may be a little
Volume 1, Issue 2
my bloodstreams and my organs and then I take [a week of] rest.” Perez started chemotherapy on Jan. 11 and will continue to repeat the process until the treatment repairs the cancer cells in his body. As for Perez’s role as a security guard at Jones, Principal P. Joseph Powers is in search of a “temporary person” for the job. “We’ve staggered schedules a little bit for now,” said Powers. “We’ve had some interviews so far, and we will have a few more coming up, but the job will be temporary until Mr. Perez confirms that he can come back.” The position was advertised, and Powers received 25 applicants thus far. He is reviewing their resumés and in the meantime is relying on “two-day substitute teachers”. “We miss him being here, but we are all positive that he will be
back sooner than later,” said Powers. Some students miss interacting with Perez in the hallways. Gabriela Pantoja ‘16 said, “Francisco is someone who you are always happy to run into in the hallway, whether he’s kicking you out of the link when it gets late, cracking a joke, or telling you about his enthusiasm for boxing. He does it with a smile on his face, and it was always nice to see him having a good time, regardless of what he was doing.” In the midst of Perez’s cancer notice, his wife, Maria Roman, created a GoFundMe page that has raised almost $3,000 in just one month. Roman is really appreciative of all the funds and the Perez family is ready to “give [their] all and fight the cancer.”
Debate team returns with new coach, attitude
“Debate is definitely the number one activity to participate [in] Jones’ debate team was resur- to get you ready for college.” rected last year when Natia Weath- Miller’s debaters practice by perers ‘15 and Amirah Loury ‘15 forming various speaking drills, encouraged Assistant Principal debate terminology, and differTherese Plunkett to bring it back. ent types of arguments. “They’ll The team is coached by En- do mini-debates, group research, or group reads, breaking down some of the information,” said Miller. During a tournament, Maxine Aguilar ‘18 said that she and her partner, Siena Pieruccini ‘18, normally create speech documents and encourage Photo by Jacob Nazke ‘17 each other in ORAL ARGUMENTS Students cite sources while they addition to the practice debating after school. actual debating. “I’d say the tournaments are where glish teacher Caitlin Miller, who I learn the most from judges and was a Lincoln-Douglas debatopposing teams alike,” she said. er in high school and coached Miller advertised the team a team at her previous school. through “old-fashioned flyers,” The administration looked speas well as word-of-mouth and ancifically for teachers with denouncements on the homework bate experience while hiring website. She also asked humanfor this school year, and Miller ities teachers to advertise the was hired with the expectation team to their talented students. that she would coach debate. Aguilar said she heard about Miller is impressed with the team through her English teachhow her team has been performing. “We’ve been rock- er’s announcements and joined ing all of the tournaments that debate with her friends. “When we’ve been going to,” she said. I told my friends that I planned According to Miller, the on attending the first meeting, skills learned from debate have they wanted to join with me,” she many real-life applications and said. “I would’ve joined debate benefits. “[Debate] directly leads either way, but when I found out to better grades and better ACT my friends would do it with me, scores, SAT scores,” she said. it was much more motivating.”
JOSH ODUM ‘16 Deputy Editor, Opinion
PAGE 2 STAYING PUT
The LSC renewed Principal P. Joseph Powers’ contract for another four years on Jan. 12.
JONESBLUEPRINT.COM @JONESBLUEPRINT FEBRUARY 1, 2016
Theater productions should stay edgy
Photo by Kevin Shannon ‘16
CLASSY Choir Director Whitney Covalle directs the Madrigal Dessert, one of many productions thoughout the year. Gunshot wounds, binge drinking, drug use, and scene. At the helm is theater director Brad Lyons, who has built a reputation for selecting plays and musicals that wouldn’t normally be seen in a typical high school setting. Productions such as “Hair,” “Dog Sees God,” “The Elephant Man,” and “The Putnam County Spelling Bee” continue to push the limits on what is acceptable for school productions. Although not all of the performances revolve around provocative topics, all of them did push the limits in terms of contentious language, violence, and sexual content. Having a consistent flow of plays that enable the student body to have discussions about world issues gives Jones a sense of identity. While other CPS schools go through the motions of “The Sound of
Music,” “Grease,” “Into the Woods,” and “The Wizard of Oz,” our school charts its own course, with Lyons at the wheel. By separating ourselves from other schools, we create an environment where theatrical productions are expected to be of professional quality. The editorial board commends the hard work of the Theater Department for its continued belief on the maturity of students and the openness of administration and parents. The work of Lyons, behind-the-scenes technical guru Charlie Mills, as well as musical maestros Frank Menzies and Whitney Covalle are constantly put into the spotlight and praise is warranted We believe that these plays are critical to the Jones experience and provide a jumping off point for discussion in the classroom.
“We believe that these plays are a critical part of the Jones experience.”
Chicken, pizza, burger. Repeat.
After a year with new CPS-wide vendor, Aramark, students struggle to adjust to new cafeteria food MAX SEGAL-WOLK ‘16 Every other day during English at twelve o’clock, my friend Will Macellaio ‘16 turns to me and asks whether or not we’re running to the cafeteria. While this might seem humorous, he says this with the most solemn expression possible, considering that the time we arrive to the lunch line determines whether or not we’ll be eating semi-mediocre food or semi-mediocre scraps. Even if we arrive to the line early, it’s hard to differentiate between the quality of the food and the satisfaction of getting anything edible into our systems. When we sit down at the table we find ourselves making trades, almost like prison: milk for a fifty cent bag of Fritos, half of a cheeseburger for a handful of fries (might as well be the whole serving). The reason these transactions are made is because the portions they give us are so small. You would expect them to consider the fact that we’re all hungry, tired, high schoolers, but that seems to not affect the amount of food we get.
MONDAY
TUESDAY
Undocumented, unaided, unafraid JUAN CUECHA ‘16 Senior year: a period of your life that people describe as the best. It’s a time where you reflect on your childhood and experiences that shaped who you are, as well as time to appreciate the family that helped raise you. I understand that it’s not unusual to have parents who expect incredible things from their children, but most children do not have the internal pressure that resides within me. As an undocumented student, I’ve come to realize that throughout my life my parents have sacrificed a lot to get me to the place I am today with the opportunities that I have been blessed to have. Having realized this, all I want to do is make their hard work pay off. Not only will I want to reach success for myself, but it’s extremely important to me that I do it for them as well, given that in today’s society the highest chance you have at success is through a college education. It’s deeply saddening to see the restraints that undocumented students must bear in the college application process. This pressure to succeed can be overwhelming at times because of the disadvantages that are placed before us. It seems that we’re constantly trying to overcome barriers in the path to success. Although the government’s financial aid is intended for students who were born in the United States, it’s completely ridiculous that undocumented students are not provided with financial aid based on the location they were born; something they had no control over. With college tuition rates at all-time highs today, everyone must have an equal chance to receive help from the institution that governs them in order to be able to finance an expensive education. Many people could argue that there’s a huge variety of outside scholarships that will provide the sufficient help needed. While true, there’s still a huge variety that are not open to undocumented students. This unavailability of specific scholarships creates a divide between students who are citizens and those that are not. When I see these restrictions, I can’t help but feel like college might not be attainable for me.
It seems that almost every day someone who sits at my table complains about the pile of mystery meat and rice present before them (the rice is interchangeable with tortilla chips). Of course, this meal isn’t the only option to choose from. Some other regulars include cheeseburgers that seem to lack a considerable amount of moisture, pasta with the choice of three questionable sauces, and pizza that’s topped with whatever’s leftover from yesterday. And if you’re lucky, you’ll grab a milk that isn’t broken up into frozen chunks. To be honest, from third grade to my senior year in high school, I’ve witnessed the decline of the quality of food. The portions have always been relatively small, but I feel as if they’ve instituted a certain lack of effort into the program. In elementary school we used to receive meal tickets, not the fanciest of sorts but good enough to keep the lunch situation controlled. The thing that annoys fellow students
WEDNESDAY
The possibility of not being able to go to college because I can’t afford it is a terrible feeling, one that no one should ever go through. Once you start having doubts about what you can accomplish in life, it’s difficult to prevent oneself from getting absorbed by negative thoughts. Even with something as simple as searching for our perfect college, our search is restricted to some extent. Our counselor reminds us that we need to apply to colleges that are known to help people like us. That is small, private, liberal art colleges that tend to provide some sort of financial aid. It is a good sign that there are colleges that are out there willing to help, but what if a small liberal arts school is not the type of school for me? When I think of my dream school, I picture a university that has a big student population, because I want to have the opportunity to meet new people everyday. I want to feel like I’m out in the world and be in a situation where I have to interact with many different people in order to grow as a person. I’m proud that I’m undocumented. It represents the struggle that my family has gone through and the influence that those hardships have had in shaping the person I am today. Although I’ve lived all but ten months of my life in this country and inside its education system, it’s hard to accept that just because of my immigration status I’m considered different in the eyes of universities and the government. When people realize that I might not be able to go to my dream university because of my immigration status and not because of my academic achievements, society will begin to recognize the injustice that is being served.
and me isn’t the cramped and competitive line we have to stand in or the challenge of having to scan your ID every time through the line (it’s harder than you think), but rather the clear lack of care and funding CPS puts toward its school lunch. On social media, images of school lunches in foreign countries have circulated. The trays tend to look much more elegant, with healthier and well-prepared food. I’ve had several friends who’ve attended Catholic school in Chicago tell me that the quality of their lunches were considerably better than ours. Even though the CPS wide lunch is free, it is still unexcusable for the school to be serving lunch of this caliber. So personally, I feel that CPS could do a lot more to improve our food. On the other hand, I do think that there are other much more important issues regarding funding within CPS, such as equally and fairly dividing money so that schools who actually need it can improve.
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
Editor-in-Chief Alex Behle ‘16 Associate Editor, Design Nikolas Merten ‘16 Associate Editor, Copy Alicia Wala ‘16 Associate Editor, Photo Kevin Shannon ‘16 Deputy Editor, Opinion Josh Odum ‘16 Managing Editor, School Orla Levens ‘18 Deputy Editor, School Maggie Bedore ‘17 School Staff Jessica Jamaica ‘16 School Staff Dawen Mei ‘16 School Staff Ethan Phipps ‘16 School Staff Vanessa Gonzalez ‘17 School Staff Maeve Harvey ‘17 School Staff Mia Prekop ‘17 Managing Editor, Lifestyles Colleen Mitchell ‘16 Deputy Editor, Lifestyles Nia Curtis ‘16 Lifestyles Staff Kayla Candos ‘16 Lifestyles Staff Cristian Espinoza ‘16 Lifestyles Staff Genna Greblo ‘16 Lifestyles Staff Jacob Montalvo ‘16 Lifestyles Staff Gabby Torres ‘16 Lifestyles Staff Jacob Naszke ‘17 Lifestyles Staff Ivy Rejman ‘17 Elizabeth Goldblatt ‘18 Lifestyles Staff Managing Editor, Sports Mikaela Uddfolk ‘17 Julia Gaworski ‘17 Deputy Editor, Sports Juan Cuecha ‘16 Sports Staff Henry Michaels ‘16 Sports Staff Nico Moreno ‘16 Sports Staff Jonathan Nunez ‘16 Sports Staff Ulisses Regalado ‘17 Sports Staff Max Segal-Wolk ‘16 Digital Artist Ciara Greene ‘17 Cartoonist Advisor John Lund Letters Letters to the Editor are encouraged and will be screened for libel, irresponsiblity, and obscenity. The Editorial Board may edit or shorten letters as long as the meaning is unchanged. All letters must be signed and include your email for verification. Requests to withold the writer’s name from publication will be considered. Letters can be sent to jonesblueprint@gmail.com or dropped off in Room 201. Corrections In the previous issue, Lena Buescher ‘16 was misspelled in the article “Bloodsplatter, Fingerprints, and Crime Scenes, All In One.”
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EAGLE EATS Students feel less appetized by the current choices when it comes to food selection. Above, a typical week in the life of Max Segal-Wolk’s ’16 Jones cafeteria lunches.
Photos by Max Segal-Wolk ‘16
PAGE 3 CABARET Performances of the Jones musical will be on March 31, April 1, and April 2
JONESBLUEPRINT.COM @JONESBLUEPRINT FEBRUARY 1, 2016
A new generation of voters
Seniors prepare to take part in their first voting experience COLLEEN MITCHELL ‘16 Managing Editor, Lifestyles
Hillary. Donald. Bernie. Marco. Jeb! Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past six to nine months, you’re probably familiar, and maybe even too familiar, with the preceding names. On March 15, some students will exercise their right to vote for the very first time in the presidential primary election. In recent months, there have been several voter registration efforts at Jones. This year, the drive to register voters was aided by social studies teacher Dan Kovacs. “We had around a dozen students help register students to vote, and there were about 70 Jones students who registered,” Kovacs said. He also is a sponsor of the Democracy in Action club, whose members volunteered during Academic Lab from Jan. 11 through 15 to register more eligible students. They successfully registered 30 students and are planning on organizing another voter registration drive. “It’s important for students to get in-
volved early on. If you get students motivated to vote when they are first eligible, then they’ll probably continue to make it a habit over the long term,” says Kovacs. This is the first presidential primary in which young voters can take advantage of the law passed in 2014, which declares that 17-year-olds who will be 18 by the Nov. 8 general election can vote in the presidential primary election. Bobby Musker ‘16 is one of the students taking advantage of this law. “I don’t know if many kids will be voting, but the fact that some are will make a difference,” he said. Another way students can get actively involved is to volunteer as an election judge. Students over 17 years old can help out at their local voting facility. Cynthia Rodriguez ‘16, one of the leaders of Democracy in Action, is one of the Jones students volunteering as an election judge. “Being an election judge is a great way for students to get to know the voting pro-
cess and also be a helpful figure in the community,” says Rodriguez. Her job will consist of working from 5 a.m. to 7 p.m. while helping answer voters’ questions. As a bilingual volunteer, Rodriguez’s job is especially important because she can help translate for non-English speaking voters. Despite efforts to motivate students to vote, many do not plan on participating in the primary or the general election, because they feel as if their vote won’t matter, they have not found a candidate worthy of their support, or they’re simply disinterested. Many other Chicagoans of all ages have had similar attitudes in the past. In the 2012 presidential primary election for incumbent Obama, the Chicago Board of Election numbers show only 24.1 percent of Chicago’s 1.29 million registered voters (311,000 people) cast their ballot. This is a significantly lower turnout than in the 2008 primary, which had a 52.7 percent turnout. On the other end of the spectrum, Ro-
From left to right, seniors share their favorite presidential candidates
Raven Blancas ‘16 for BERNIE SANDERS (D) “He cares more about the people than making money.”
Ioana Merchea ‘16 for HILLARY CLINTON (D) “It’s about time a woman is president, and I agree with her pro-choice policy.”
Stephen Kruto ‘16 for JEB BUSH (R) “He’s economically conservative and socially liberal.”
Matt Byun ‘16 for CHRIS CHRISTIE (R) “He’s a good communicator and seems very in touch with the issues of today.”
Juniors to spend second semester outside ALICIA WALA ‘16 Associate Editor, Copy After first semester finals, most students prepare themselves for the final semester of the year. However, for Amelia Curry and Katie Treskow, both ‘17, who are attending Conserve School for their second semester of junior year, they get to live in the woods for four months. “Conserve School is a semester school where you learn about conservation, environmental stewardship, how to be kind to nature, [and] survival” said Treskow. “and you get to live in the woods.” From first impressions, Conserve School is not always perceived to be a school whose focus is solely on the environment.. “Conserve School sounds like it would teach conservatives, or something religious,” said Mike Tobias ‘16. Others guessed a little closer to the real definition. “I think Conserve School would teach something with farming, or maybe math,” said Isabella Rios ‘16. Located on Conserve School’s website, the school’s goal is that it “inspires young people to environmental stewardship through academics and engagement with the forests, lakes, and wildlife…” After a fairly straightforward application requiring some personal information, two letters of recommendation, and a phone interview, Curry was accepted into Conserve School. “I’m most excited about getting to live somewhere else for a long time, learning environmental stewardship, and conservation,” said Curry. “I really can’t want to go on backpacking trips, and I think they let us camp in the woods by ourselves at least once.”
To achieve the goal of Conserve School, the students have to spend four months in the woods located near Land O’ Lakes, Wisconsin. “I have to bring a lot of stuff,” said Treskow. “like all of the things you would bring for being in a dorm, but since we’re
Raul Cancino ‘16 for Paige Walken ‘16 for DONALD TRUMP (R) MARCO RUBIO (R) “He belives [that] if he is Pres-“He brings attention to mulident, he can get Congress to tiple issues, like terrorism.” work with him.” Briefs compiled by Nikolas Mer-
ten’16, Colleen Mitchell ‘16, and Kevin Shannon ‘16
semester school, so the cost is worth it.” Designed primarily for juniors, the Conserve School website also states that it will “accommodate advanced sophomores.” In regards to schoolwork, Curry and Treskow have to transfer out of Jones for the second semester of the school year
Artwork by Ciara Greene ‘17
also going to be there during the winter, I have to bring heavy-duty outdoor camping equipment. A sleeping bag they want me to bring costs $400, but it would be provided if I didn’t have one, and it’s a free
driguez believes voting is extremely important, especially for minorities. “I feel like we’ve struggled so hard to earn these rights, and for us now to neglect them and not use them it would be like self-applying self-oppression,” she said. This belief is what drives her to inspire fellow classmates to get registered and cast their vote. Kovacs agrees with the importance of student voting. “They always say every vote counts, but when it comes down to some of these local elections, especially people who have power to make decisions about how money is spent at the city or state level, many of those positions are voted upon with a very small sample size of the eligible voting population,” he said. For students who have missed the opportunity to register at school, there is still time. The last day for new voters to register is Feb. 16. Registration is open until that date online at https:// ova.elections.il.gov or at any DMV.
and then transfer back for their senior year. They leave for Conserve School on Jan 29, forcing them to take all of their finals before then. The only class Treskow definitely will have to make up is biolo-
gy, which she will take over the summer. “I’m kind of worried that I won’t be on the same page with the other students in math,” said Treskow. “and I can’t take the AP tests for AP Gov or AP Lang.” Despite her worries, Treskow is really looking forward to the next four months. “I’m looking forward to being in the woods, having no people for miles, seeing the stars, and being away from the city,” she said. “since I’ve never had the opportunity to be out of the city.” In the beginning, she was a little onthe fence about Conserve School, but Treskow decided she wanted to go because she really liked nature, wanted an adventure, and was persuaded by Curry. “My mom found it [Conserve School] somehow, and it seemed really cool,” said Curry. “I usually go camping every year, so I applied.” Conserve school, while relatively unheard of at Jones, is something Treskow suggests people look into. “Anyone who’s outdoorsy and appreciates the environment should look into Conserve School,” said Treskow. “Also, anyone that just wants to learn more [about the environment].” Curry and Treskow are ready for their next few months at Conserve School, and they know they have many experiences awaiting them near Land O’ Lakes, Wisconsin. “I’ve heard that this becomes a really tight-knit community,” said Curry. “I’ve heard lots of good stuff from the alumni, and it’s gorgeous there.”
PAGE 4
ROAD TO 2016
The first caucus for the Democratic and Republican Presidential Nomination will be cast in Iowa tonight.
JONESBLUEPRINT.COM @JONESBLUEPRINT FEBRUARY 1, 2016
The Gen
Girls outnumber boys at Jones 977 to 693, students see divide in enrollm
Where are all the girls?
Boys dominate Jones’ only computer science class MAGGIE BEDORE ‘17 Deputy Editor, School
class is not obscure, but is quite common in the United States. The New York Times reports that just 0.4 percent of all female colSeven-that is how many girls one would lege freshmen state that they intend to major find in Exploring Computer Science, a class in computer science, while a 2014 National of twenty-seven. Science Foundation study shows how women Taught by Justin Huang and Jordan make up only 18 percent of computer science Pasqualin, Exploring Computer Science cov- majors today. ers a wide range of topics, including website “The underrepresentation of women in design, data analysis, programming, and ro- the industry makes it seem like a field that botics. girls would not be interested in because they “There is definitely [a] science and math don’t see many people like them in the field,” aspect of it. You have to focus a lot and look said Huang. for tiny mistakes, it’s very detail orientated. The idea that computer science is not for You’re learning something important for the girls is another possible reason as to why so future,” said Olivia Landgraff ‘18. few girls are enrolled in the class. A ratio of boys outnumbering girls “Girls are told that they can’t [be] in a high school computer science or they’re not supposed to be computer scientists because it’s like a boy’s job,” said Luisa Bryan ‘17. Many students have not been exposed to computer science, which might be a reason for why there are few girls taking the class. “There might be a miscommunication about what computer science is. The message that computer science being something only for men, or for certain people, [could] be communicated and so a person might not even think to approach that field,” said Huang. If the class is offered next year, students hope to see more girls behind the computer screens. “There is no reason why it shouldn’t be equal for gender. The fact the many boys take it shouldn’t be a roadblock,” said Jack Quinn ‘17. Girls currently taking the class want to end the belief that computer science is only for boys. “Defeat the stereotype!” said Landgraff. POWERFUL Patricia Guerrero ‘17 codes in Computer Science.
Lord of the dance
Gender stereotypes infiltrate the dance atmosphere
VANESSA GONZALEZ ‘17 Girls who take the course promote the School Staff inclusivity of boys in the dance classes, This school year, Dance, taught by Eli- since they’re aware of the fact that it can be sa Foshay, is offered to students for the first intimidating to be in a class where ninety time. The course fills up Foshay’s five class percent of it is the opposite sex. periods; however, there seems to be an issue Jessica Li ‘17 said she’s “impressed of gender diversity due to low male enroll- with the guys who had the courage to take ment. [Dance]. It definitely is inclusive regardless Joey Bergren ‘17 signed up to take of gender.” She also dance solely for the credit. However, at the believes that having time he signed up, he didn’t realize that boys in her class there would only be a handful of males in creates awareness his class. for a well-roundAccording to Foshay, low interest ed curriculum in in dance from boys class impressed awhere stems from a line of “[I’m] boys reasoning engraved with the guys who aren’t the main into the minds of chilhad the courage participants. dren. “It’s important Overall, the to me that we are get- to take [Dance]. It turnout for this ting as many boys in definitely is inclu- class has been [dance] as possible, positive, since it but ballet has affected sive regardless of is one of the classthe way dance is per- gender.” es added this year ceived in a contemwith the most class Jessica Li ‘17 porary culture. Many periods. Foshay people still believe that ballet is for girls, hopes that her efforts to make [and] ballet is the foundation for all dance- the class unisex will inspire therefore, dance is for girls,” said Foshay. more students, espeThat kind of mentality has slowly been cially boys, to enroll fading away in recent years with the in- for next year. crease of hip-hop and pop culture, but it has not done enough to get more people interested in taking performing arts. Julian Gonzalez ‘17 said that as a transfer student, he was placed into the physical education class with the most vacancy. This differs from Bergren, Alex Lawson ‘17, and Joshua Gerenraich ‘17, who all admittedly took the class for the credits.
Photo courtesy of Olivia Landgraff ‘18
Photo by Kevin Shannon ‘16 MEN IN BLACK Joey Bergren ‘17 shows off his dance moves.
Societal expectations of women in Jones community IVY REJMAN ‘17 All throughout my childhood and to this day, I never felt myself to be a strong math or science student. I could never keep a high grade in those subjects, and it was consistently my lowest scoring area on tests. This is certainly not the case for all women, but when you look at the gender diversity in the U.S workforce, women comprise just 24 percent of workers in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) fields, according to the Census Bureau’s 2009 American Community Survey. Within the Jones community you can see this same gap appearing in classes such as computer science, where boys outnumber girls twenty to seven. This left me wondering, “what is turning the majority of women off towards mathematics and science?” In my elementary school math and science teachers had almost always been men, whereas my social science and English teachers were women. Even in my experience at Jones, two out of my three math teachers were men. Starting even earlier than this was the influence of my mother and father. My mom always said she was terrible at math, however my dad went to school for architecture and recalled spending most of his time working with mathematics in college. Whenever I was stuck on a particularly difficult math problem, it never
even crossed my mind to ask my mom for help, I would go straight to my father. With television shows children watch today, it’s “Sid the Science Kid,” a young boy who spends his time exploring the wonders of science, and “Word Girl,” who knows how to spell and read well. Messages seem to be passed down to young girls about where they should be investing their time before they even begin attending school. If young girls were more encouraged to explore investigation of mathematics and science and saw more women in STEM fields, I believe there would be a dramatic decrease in the gender gap which currently exists. There are programs which have recently come into existence to encourage this change, such as the “Girls Coding” club, where Jones girls are welcomed to come and learn how to computer code. This type of encouragement is also happening on a national level, through programs like the National Girls Collaborative Project, whose vision is to bring together organizations throughout the United States that are committed to informing and encouraging girls to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. There was even a show created called “SciGirls” in 2010 that tried to get tween girls, ages 8 to 12, interested in STEM. Each episode followed a group of middle school
girls who were eager to find answers to their questions while inspiring kids to explore the world around them and discover that science and technology are everywhere. However, this program aired its last episode in 2015, taking away strong female role models to inspire girls. The push for young girls to be inspired by math and science would be a great step forward, and if we continue to provide girls with support in exploring their passions in science and math, the number of women working in these fields will steadily grow. However, the wage difference between men and women in these fields is very discouraging. For every dollar that men earn in STEM fields, women earn 86 cents, according to the U.S Department of Commerce. That’s a 14 percent gap steering women away from pursuing a career in STEM. There is no real reason as to why women make up dramatically less of the STEM workforce or why such a small portion of the Computer Science class at Jones consists of girls. As a society, we need to continue to push girls towards feeling comfortable working with math and science, and we need to create a greater awareness of the “Girls Coding” club at Jones for the better of our future.
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nder Gap
ment in classes such as computer science, law, engineering, and dance
CTE: Culture and stigmas influence class enrollment ORLA LEVENS ‘18 Managing Editor, School Thousands of eighth-graders across the city apply to Jones via the Career and Technical Education (CTE) academies, offering Honors pre-Law and pre-Engineering programs that are also available to all Jones students as electives. However, class enrollment data shows peculiar patterns regarding each gender’s preference between two: introductory level (elective) classes tend to be more evenly split, while higher-level classes of Law and Engineering tend to be dominated by one gender. According to engineering teacher Charles Trott, firstyear Engineering classes have “a few more boys than girls.” However, Trott said that second-year and beyond Engineering classes become “more male gender-centric.” According to the National Science Foundation, 15.6% of chemical engineers are women; 12.1% of civil engineers are women; 8.3% of electrical and electronics engineers are women; 17.2% of industrial engineers are women; and 7.2% of mechanical engineers are women. Kate Berg ‘18 is in her second year of the CTE Engineering program. She believes that there is a lack of girls taking engineering and STEM programs in general due to societal perception. “I feel like there is this stigma that girls ar-
en’t really good at math, and that’s been seen in the past, but now I feel like there are more opportunities for engineering courses and girls are taking them more,” said Berg. “There is this realization that we are good at math and science, so people are looking to pursue those as careers more, especially women.” Trott thinks that lack of representation of women engineers also contributes to this problem. “I think a lot of it is because maybe [we don’t] see women who do that or [we see] more men pursue those things. It’s a self-perpetuating system where you [see] only men do engineering and math, even though there are women who do it,” said Trott. Berg takes engineering not only because of her family’s experience in the field but because of her passion for math and science. “I take engineering because my family have all been engineers, and I just wanted to try it and see if I like it at all. I’ve always been interested in math and science and I’ve always been good at it, so I wanted to see if I’d be good at engineering at all,” said Berg. Law teacher Laura Blackburn thinks that more females take the CTE Law Program (not including those who take law as an elective) due to young girls being encouraged to explore the humanities as compared to STEM curriculum. “I think that there’s an undercurrent of encourag-
ing young women to explore language arts maybe more than math and science,” said Blackburn. “It’s encouraged by the outer world, or it is actively encouraged growing up, even subconsciously by your parents and teachers. “ Blackburn also noticed similar patterns to Trott in regards to the Law program. In her introductory Law I class, where it is more likely for students to take it as an elective versus as a CTE program requirement, the law scales are relatively balanced 32 females to 28 males. However, compared to her Law II class where students enrolled are mostly CTE students instead of elective-seekers, females strongly overpopulate males 46 to 22. Although females overpopulate males in the higher-level Law classes, females also have to deal with cultural stigma against female lawyers. Blackburn thinks that although these cultural portrayals and roadblocks exist, women are rewriting history. “There’s been a greater representation of men as attorneys in popular media than women... In the active practice of law, there are more men who practice in law firm settings and classic legal positions. Though, there are more women currently graduating from law school annually [and] over the years, law school classes have been slightly more female than male,” said Blackburn. “I think we’re doing a lot to change them and we’re evolving as a society, but it’s a long history to reverse over time.”
Graphic by Orla Levens ‘18
Eagles vs. Lady Eagles: Gender discrimination or harmonious coexistence?
JULIA GAWORSKI ‘17 Deputy Editor, Sports Lady. A single word jam-packed with connotations and history. For years, students and staff alike have wondered, yet not been extremely concerned with the gender labeling of sports teams via the terms Eagles for the male teams and Lady Eagles for the female teams. At the surface, these terms are used to separate two teams that play the same sport, yet, when you move more in depth, specifying gender for teams representing the same school may be seen as gender discrimination. On the other hand, it may be seen as a possibility to take pride in one’s gender or identity as a whole. According to the Athletic Director Frank Griseto there are no rules that force a team to be called the Lady Eagles. Girls basketball, for example, calls themselves the Eagles, while the girls volleyball teams call themselves the Lady Eagles. The indi-
vidual coach’s preference ultimately decides the fate of the team label, not the school. “Some of the teams when they ordered uniforms and stuff said ‘Lady Eagles’,” Griseto said. “We really don’t have a policy on it one way or the other.” Olivia Ottenfeld ’16, varsity softball player, believes that calling the female athletes “Lady Eagles” in a way glamorizes their experience in comparison to the male athlete’s, thus, making young-women seem less-competitive. “I think it’s pretty unfair to use the term ‘Lady Eagles’ because I feel that everyone’s equal,” said Ottenfeld. “Especially in a school like Jones. I feel like it would be better if everyone was just addressed as the Eagles.” “I don’t think that by any
means it makes the girls sound weaker by calling them the Lady Eagles,” said Aidan Garton ’18, “but they shouldn’t be referred to by their gender.” Similarly, Rosie Ryan ‘16, president of the newly formed JCP Feminism Club, acknowledged that the use of the word ‘lady’ in an athletic context is belittling, however, gender is something to take pride in. In this case, perhaps, pride could be shown in a different way. “I definitely think it’s a diminishing name.” said Ryan. “It’s very lady-like, you think dainty, you think delicate, you think fragile and I think those are the traditional associations, but I also think it’s kind of hard to reclaim things and I think if the women’s teams at Jones could re-claim their gender, they’d have to use a word that isn’t lady because it’s got such diminished associations with it.” All in all, both male and female athletes belong in the same “Eagles’ nest.” “I think that no matter what, you’re an Eagle,” said
Artwork by Nicole Zapotoczny ‘17
PAGE 6
NO SCHOOL
The next day off of school is Presidents’ Day on Mon., Feb. 15.
Beards, buns, and brows JONESBLUEPRINT.COM @JONESBLUEPRINT FEBRUARY 1,2016
Jones men going to different extremes to meet new grooming standard JONATHAN NUNEZ ‘16 Sports Staff The smell of cheap nail and hair products fill the tight spaces in the beauty salon. In the back of the salon, a person can be heard grunting in pain every time an eyebrow hair is plucked. You would think that the person getting their brows done is a woman, but as you get closer to the figure, you realize it is a man. There are different types of men when it comes to their grooming. While some men are into grooming themselves, others can care less and are more simplistic. The most popular form of men’s grooming is a haircut. Some men are loyal and will go to the same barber to wait hours on any given day for their personal barber to cut their hair. “I have two barbers that I always go to. If I can’t schedule an appointment, then I’m not getting a haircut,” said Miguel Morales ‘16. Some men believe that their barber is more than someone that cuts hair and develop a relationship with them. “It’s about respect. I wouldn’t go to another barber because I don’t know that person. A lot of barbers can give a
good haircut, but I would rather give my money to someone that’s a friend and I know will look out for me,” said Morales. While there are many men who are very selective as to who can cut their hair, there are also many men that care less who cuts their hair. “I really do not care who cuts my hair,” said Leo Weldon ‘18. “To me, it’s all the same. I don’t see the point in going through all the trouble to have a specific person cut my hair. As long as the haircut is decent, I’m happy.” Although haircuts are a huge part of men’s grooming, it is not the only aspect of it. Many men also grow a beard out, get their eyebrows done, or even get unconventional haircuts like a man bun. “I just started growing my hair out and keeping the sides short,” said Nicholas Mosqueda ‘16. “As my hair grew, I was able to put [it into] a bun. I don’t put it in a bun everyday, but I thought it was pretty cool and something I could never do in the past.” Another popular trend has been growing a beard. More and
more athletes and celebrities have been seen with a beard. “For me, it has not really been a trend. Getting a beard has been something that I have always wanted and thought looked good,” said Isaac Silver ‘16. Recent trends have seemed to grow in popularity because they are very easy to style, have been worn by celebrities and athletes, and allow for a “unique and edgy hairstyle that many people can’t pull off,” said Morales. One trend that has become more common is men getting their eyebrows done. Unlike most of the other trends in men’s’ grooming, getting your eyebrows done has become more of a norm rather than a trend. “I do my eyebrows because I feel they should be well kept, especially when people have thick ones. They define who I am. Usually when people look at me, they recognize me for my eyebrows,” said Anthony Wagner ‘17. There are multiple ways to get your eyebrows done, and the most common way for men is getting them plucked; however, another popular way is to get them threaded. “Occasionally, when I go in for a
haircut, I’ll have my barber thread them. I have gotten them waxed, but threading is easier and faster for me,” said Wagner. Some of the pros of hopping on some of the newer trends in men’s grooming is that you have a unique look. Unlike most trends, you actually have a unique aesthetic that not everyone has. Not everyone can grow a beard or have to go to the barber. “Even though the man bun is considered a trend, it is still an anomaly. The person still has to have the character to be different and go through with it,” said Mosqueda. “In the end, men and women groom themselves because they want to look better. It’s all about self confidence and looking your best. Grooming myself is not a hassle for me. I see it as an investment in myself,” said Morales.
Photos by Jonathan Nunez ‘16 From left to right: Nicholas Mosqueda ‘16, Isaac Silver ‘16, and Anthony Wagner ‘17.
Trend Cemetery
Students sound off on trends they think would be better put to rest
GENNA GREBLO ‘16 Lifestyles Staff Man buns. This trend will be missed dearly. Every boy has spent the whole year growing their hair out so they can look like a man. It will take a lot of adjustments to not see these little buns every three seconds now that it has departed with us. “Only an elite group of people can rock man buns,” said Ben Phalen ‘16, prior to the trend dying. It’s sad to see an elite group of men leave us all at once. Colored Hair. Women everywhere have been trying for years to break free from normal hair colors; it’s clear now that it shouldn’t be a thing. “Kids should stop with the rainbow colored hair. Your hair isn’t skittles,” said Kelsey Peterson ‘16. It’s sad that the trend lived a short life and it’s sad to see it go so soon. Rest in peace. American Apparel. It’s hard to let go of things that don’t only last a year but last for decades. The 80s will always be in our hearts, even if it’s not in our fashion anymore. “American Apparel is
the epitome of basic. I’m so sick for seeing the same crop tops and high waisted jeans in different shades of colors. This isn’t the 80s,” said Victoria Gnat ‘17. Dr. Martens. These boots had a tremendous life, trending in the 70s, 90s, and even in 2015. Every generation has had an experiance with them. Sadly, the time has come to put them back in the box and wait for children of the next generation to open them in twenty years. “Docs were everywhere; our generation looked like an army,” said Holly Beith-Mangrum ‘18. This isn’t goodbye. Adidas Superstar. These white sneakers were found hanging on a telephone wire: a tragic and horrific sight. “Superstars are trash, they have ugly toe boxes and anyone who wears them browses Tumblr religiously,” said Wan Ruan ‘16, who witnessed the homicide. All the other shoes have gone into hiding
and, unfortunately ,will not be seen anymore. Nae Nae. After becoming the dance of 2015, the Nae Nae decided to retire in the middle of last year. Unfortunately, people didn’t get the message and started over using the dance in various songs and choreography. “The Nae Nae makes people look constipated, so it should stop because I don’t know anyone who wants to actually look like that,” said Niki Bletnitsky ‘17.
Artwork by Ciara Greene ‘17
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PAGE 7
BOYS SWIMMING
CPS Sophomore meet to be held at Northside Prep from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m on Feb. 6.
JONESBLUEPRINT.COM @JONESBLUEPRINT FEBRUARY 1, 2016
Random rivals
One school, many rivals
ULISSES REGLADO ‘17 From Michigan versus Ohio the court, as long as the fans re- soon-to-be high schoolers in Chito Boston College versus Notre spond appropriately. cago. It really is a spot to envy, and Dame, most schools have their Over the years, the school envy is good. High schools like own intense rivalry, but not Jones. known as “weak and sucky” in Lane Tech and Whitney Young, The school has grown rap- sports has been going up and has who have fallen in that state rankidly in all aspects but has yet to brought different titles home. ing, will absolutely love a top three produce a concrete rivalry spot. They envy with a school. When asked Jones for being who the school’s rival is, there, and that’s the student body will give when competiyou many names, but that tion starts. Jones doesn’t mean there is an students will actual rivalry. Jones has make sure their shown a lack of solidarschool is above ity when it comes to riothers, because valries, since it varies so it gives bragging much through different rights. Therefore, factors. The school is gotension is creating in the right direction ed between the and is already receiving a student bodies, lot of attention from the and with tension, city but is missing the you create imlast push. A true rivalry Photo courtesy of Ulisses Reglado ‘17 portant rivalries. comes with dedication, EAGLE SCREAM Boys Varsity Soccer huddles up for a pre-game Due to its meaning strong school chant. The boys team went on to play their rival, Latin, where they proximity with lost 4-1. spirit and a common enelocation and them my throughout the whole student Jones has proven a lot of people being fourth in the state ranking, body. Thus, a concrete hatred wrong but, again, lacks solidari- Whitney Young is the team to hate in one school leads to a mutu- ty. The problem starts when you for Jones. Young students despise al hatred between two schools. have sports where you share a how Jones is above them in the Before a rival is chosen, there team with another school. Jones ranking and how Jones is slowis no doubt that the Jones commu- has the “Payton-Jones” team or ly taking the attention away from nity has to solidify into one com- the “Latin-Jones” team. A strong them. Although Jones is still far munity. Throughout the sports school sticks with their students from the success of Young’s sports seasons, there have been weak and does not share teams, because programs, it is slowly getting and, at most, average turnouts for you just cannot show pride for two there. Jones has changed drastithe games. For Jones to be among high schools. The failures and suc- cally, and maybe in a few years it the elite and outstanding schools, cesses of Jones should be of Jones will be at Young’s level. For now, the whole student body has to only, because that shows strong the student body should begin to show school spirit. They have to signs of pride and solidarity. solidify its school spirit and bebe proud of their school, and a Jones has achieved a lot of gin the Young trash talk. A strong, first step for this is to actually sup- academic success recently as well. friendly rivalry does not hurt port the athletes. Many rivalries Ranked third in the state, Jones anyone. In fact, it is pretty fun. start on the field, the diamond, or is now a popular destination for
Is the ball really in our court?
A breakdown of individual team rivals
WHITNEY YOUNG DOLPHINS
pected and then go out of bounds or when a player tries to drive the lane despite the fact that he’s double-teamed and has a man open in the corner, are frustrating to witness repeatedly as a spectator. My suggestion is that the boys try not to hang onto the ball and pass it off to prevent steals, create rhythm on the court, and alleviate some of the pressure from the opposing defense. Also, more communication between the players, whether that communication be nonverbal or verbal, so that the boys can have a better understanding of one another’s location on the court. A pattern that I’ve noticed in the past couple of games is that the teams will be neck and neck for the first three and a half quarters, but in the latter half of the fourth, the other team gains momentum and ends up taking the W. The first things that come to mind in the case of this event are the attitude of the players and the substitutions in the last couple of minutes. Part of what makes basketball exciting is how fast the energy can shift from one team to the other after only
one play; something as simple as a foul called at the right time can restore the hope back into a losing team. For the future, our boys need to maintain their hustle on every play and exploit the mistakes of their opponents to an even further extent than they already do. Griseto keeps the rotation of players very tight, which is not necessarily a bad thing, however, one can’t help but wonder what’s going to happen to the team next year, considering three out of the usual five starters are seniors. As far as conference goes, the boys would need to win practically all of their upcoming games to come in first, which isn’t out of the question yet. Sometimes, after a team has seen its opponent once already, both coaches and players know what to expect and how to best approach that game. It’ll be interesting to see how the next few months play out and whether or not the varsity team will rise up or face a potential drop back down a conference.
“Their times are usually the same. They’re competetively very similar to our team” - Isabel Leadbeater ‘17 Girls Cross Country and Track
Baseball Boys Cross Country & Track Girls Cross Country & Track Golf Swimming
Water Polo
Boys Soccer Girls Soccer Girls Volleyball “They play very aggressive and talk a lot of smack on the field” - Miles Littleton ‘16 Boys Soccer
WALTER PAYTON GRIZZLIES Boys Basketball Girls Tennis “We tend to not really like them that much. They have bad sportsmanship” -Luisa Bryan ‘17 Girls Tennis
TAFT EAGLES
PHILLIPS WILDCATS Girls Basketball “Our past two games against them have gone to overtime” -Nicole Katzin ‘17 Girls Basketball
Softball “We always go back and forth with them for first place in our conference” -Olivia Ottenfeld ‘16 Softball
JULIA GAWORSKI ‘17 With roughly two months left in the varsity boys basketball season, the excitement of conference and anticipation of playoff games to come is well underway. As of Jan. 12, the boys hold an overall record of 8 wins, 6 losses, with 1 win, 5 losses in their conference. While one for five may seem fairly discouraging, it’s important to keep into consideration that the team moved up to the South Side blue division, the second best division in the conference, and are competing against more skilled teams: Phillips, Harper, Robeson, TEAM Englewood, and Lindbloom. Nevertheless, if no changes are made, it could be a rough couple of weeks for the Eagles. The first thing that needs to be improved is the strategy on offense. Starters Adrian Huerta ‘16, Will LaGrone ‘16, Keith Ferguson, all ‘16, and Bryson Phillips ‘17, take plenty of shots, however, too often they seem rushed and forced. There’s not a lot of fluidity amongst the players on the team, especially on offense; things like passes that are not ex-
“I feel like naturally they’re our rivals, and we usually have our most intense games against them” - Eric Robledo ‘16 Baseball
WASHINGTON PATRIOTS
Briefs Compiled by Nikolas Merten ‘16, Kevin Shannon’16, and Max Segal-Wolk ‘16
Girls basketball team bounces back GABBY TORRES ‘16 Lifestyles Staff With the 2015-2016 season nearing the playoffs, the Jones girls basketball team has had interesting encounters with Phillips High School along the way to their 13-7 overall record with 3-5 conference standings. In a home game versus Phillips, starter Kelsey Peterson ‘16 got injured. She was going in for a rebound when a girl from the opposing team pulled her left shoulder back. Peterson fell to the ground in pain calling out for her coach, Michael Strok ‘05, and he ran onto the court. “The girl was about two people taller than me,” said Peterson. The game resulted in a loss, 61-48, leaving Peterson with a strained rotator cuff and sitting
her out for four weeks. Now, Peterson is fully recuperated. “I’m really impressed and happy at how supportive the team was through the whole thing,” said Peterson. “Everyone stepped up to help.” In a more recent confrontation with Phillips, things went a little differently, resulting in a win with a score of 56-54. The day before the game, a girl from the Phillips team was shot in a drive-by incident, and she died. The Phillips gym was full of people holding up posters and pictures of the deceased girl. Before the game, there was a moment of silence as people held up number one, the girl’s number.
PAGE 8
BASKETBALL SENIOR NIGHTS
The Girls Basketball Senior Night is on Feb. 8 and the Boys Basketball Senior Night is on Feb. 17.
JONESBLUEPRINT.COM @JONESBLUEPRINT FEBRUARY 1, 2016
Junior verbally commits to Harvard Sydney Sorkin ‘17 gets Div. 1 college commitment without a school hockey team MAGGIE BEDORE ‘17 Deputy Editor, School Learning to skate at age five, Sydney Sorkin’s hockey career has skyrocketed from there; she has won several state championships as well as a national championship, and she has verbally committed to Harvard University. “I started playing hockey because my dad was playing before me, [and] I guess he just put me on skates and threw me out there. He just wanted to pass [hockey] on,” said Sorkin. Sorkin, who plays defense, currently plays for the Latin High School hockey team and the Chicago Young Americans (CYA), a club hockey team. “She’s a very skilled defenseman and she can play really well with offense. She’s a team player, she always passes and generally she makes everyone
better,” said Sorkin’s Latin teammate Audrey McMahon ‘18. Sorkin practices for an hour and a half two to three times a week with games or more practice on weekends. “She has had to miss school constantly for out-of-town tournaments, and [she] devotes lots of time after school for games and practices,” said Ryan Sorkin ‘19, Sydney’s younger brother, who also plays hockey. Both teams have been successful. CYA has won three Illinois state championships, two central district championships, and a national championship when Sorkin was in 8th grade. Last year, Sorkin’s Latin team won the state championship at the United Center. “Syd’s been amazing to work with both on and off the ice. There can be a lot of distractions within a hockey team, but Syd has not let
herself get caught up in anything outside of this team’s quest for a trip to the National Championship,” said Sorkin’s CYA coach John Cimba. For Sorkin, the recruitment process started early, about one year ago. “Colleges will come watch at big tournaments, but other ways to get colleges to notice you specifically is to email them. Before we went to the national championship last year, I emailed a bunch of colleges to come watch my games. So from there, if you are not a junior, they can’t contact you so they had to go through my coach to set up a phone call. I had a bunch of phone calls with colleges and eventually we set up visits,” said Sorkin. Sorkin visited Brown, Dartmouth, Princeton, and Harvard. This past summer she verbally
committed to Harvard, which is Division 1 for women’s hockey and a member of the Eastern College Athletic Conference. “I loved the school when I visited and I really liked the coaches and the girls that I met that are on the team currently, and I guess you don’t say no to Harvard,” said Sorkin.
GOALS Sydney Sorkin ‘17 who has played hockey for six years thinks her personality fits in well with the Harvard team. Photo Courtesy of Sydney Sorkin ‘17
SPLASH Hector Salazar ‘16 breastrokes into the post-season.
Boys swim team gets on blocks for post-season
Photo by Kevin Shannon ‘16
MAX SEGAL WOLK ‘16 Digital Artist
With the 2016 CPS swimming season in full swing, Jones College Prep finds themselves in the hunt for a city trophy. “We’ve had our best season ever so far,” said team
captain Will Macellaio ‘16. “Lately, we’ve been really working hard in preparation for city, which is only three weeks away, and we’ve been practicing eight times a week.”
The team practices during both the morning and afternoon on any given day, and their workouts consist of tough dryland and in-water conditioning.
Bowlers strike again
Opportunity for bowlers to score scholarships in collegiate bowling MIKAELA UDDFOLK ‘17 Managing Editor, Sports
Living in traditional sports’ shadow, the bowling team is the hidden treasure in Jones athletics. Although often overlooked by the school, it is clear the bowling team does not let this hamper their victories. The program not only is delivering athletes to the high school bowling championships, but Jones has been successful in acquiring several athletic scholarships to play in the big leagues of collegiate bowling. After graduating last year, Julie Lohman ‘15 accepted a scholarship to the University of Nebraska, the top bowling school for women in the nation. Though the level of intensity is new to Lohman (her team practices every day from 2-5 p.m. and every other morning), her love of bowling persists. “I have loved bowling since fifth grade and I knew I couldn’t just stop once high school was over,” Lohman said. “I knew I would miss it too much and I really want to win a national championship for bowling. I want to be the best bowler that I can and I knew I hadn’t reached that yet. I want-
ed to be pushed to become better and better and I am doing that here [at the University of Nebraska].” Besides the love of the sport, there are plenty of other incentives driving high school athletes to pursue a collegiate bowling career, the most common of which is money. Cyan Simmons ‘17, a bowler on the girls varsity team, is not sure what’s in store for her in her bowling future. “If I get scholarship money to continue bowling in college I will play, but if not I probably won’t continue bowling besides for fun,” Simmons said. Yet Frank Menzies, the head of the Jones bowling program, did not express a worry regarding the allocation of scholarships for aspiring bowlers. “There are more bowling scholarships than there are bowlers,” Menzies said. “It will pay your way through college.” However, alumni that now play in college are not the only Jones bowlers enjoying successes. The Jones bowling NUMBER ONE Julie Lohman ‘15 competing on the top ranked women’s bowling program in the nation, the Univ. of Nebraska.
program has brought many victories to the school over the years, and continues to do so this season. Last year, the girls team made it to City Finals and Sectionals. Currently, the Jones team holds fifth place in their conference, the Gold North Conference. The team is fighting to move up at least one spot, since the top four teams in the conference go to the city finals. Menzies began team bowling in college while looking for something new. Realizing his passion for the sport, Menzies jumped at the chance to start a team at Jones. “The school didn’t have a bowling team before I got here,” he said. “We started with four boys and one girl.” Menzies, a third tier certified bowling coach, which is one tier under collegiate level coaching, led the team to many early successes. “We were actually the first team in the history of Jones to take a team to the state finals,” he said. For many bowlers who have graduated in the past, the Jones bowling program instilled a lifelong appreciation for the sport. “I couldn’t imagine school without bowling,” Lohman said.
Photo Courtesy of Julie Lohman ‘15
New coach, same dad Father-daughter duo prepare for the upcoming bowling season after father agrees to coach bowling team NIA CURTIS ‘16 Deputy Editor, Lifestyles
“So, what you are saying is you go easy on me,” said Lisa Wetzel ‘16 as she began another practice at UIC’s bowling lanes. Lisa is a player on the Jones girls bowling team, and is also the daughter of bowling coach Darryl Wetzel, Sr. Darryl, who simply enjoys bowling with his family, is now the new coach of the growing bowling team at Jones. His experience goes back to his own high school bowling team at Dunbar High School, where he graduated in 1990. Even before then, Darryl had always participated in the sport. “I’ve been bowling since the youth bowling league,” said Darryl. Darryl watched his daughter’s form closely. “See, Lisa, she has good form. When she is focused, she can do good,” said Darryl. Lisa has been bowling since she was 10. However, for Lisa, bowling was a sport specifically for fun. “The only reason I do it is because I get a ride home and food during the games,” said Lisa. Before Lisa’s bowling career at Jones, she often spent late nights watching her dad play because he was a part of an adult league. “He had to take his kids to sit around and watch people bowl at night,” said Lisa.
While practicing her rolls with her ball named “Narnia,” after her favorite movie, Lisa said, “It was fun as a kid- it’s nothing like watching bowling. It gets interesting.” Despite the late nights, Darryl shared something he learned from his own children. Darryl’s dad was a bowler too, and soon the family tradition was passed down when his dad introduced him. Darryl said, “I don’t pressure them to do this, I just wanted them to have fun. My dad pressured me, but they like to do it.” For Darryl, he values a balance of fun and games. “[The] main thing about bowling is it’s a mental sport. It’s 90 percent mental,” said Darryl. However, Lisa didn’t agree. “How is it 90 percent mental, Dad? Being able to actually do it is physical,” said Lisa. “Lisa sees things logically. I have to force her to listen when I tell her to do something better,” said Darryl. He is concerned on making her better for State. “Other coaches aren’t as caring as my Dad...they yell and scream, but my dad is pretty chill,” said Lisa. Darryl has other plans and encourages his daughter to go to State this year. “I’m not trying to be hard on her. I just want her to do her best,” said Darryl.