Hawk September 2018

THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT Administration increases safety regulations... pages 9-11

theHAWK Hendrickson High School 19201 Colorado Sand Drive Pf lugerville, Texas 78660

Volume 12, Issue 2 September 28, 2018

INSIDE: ACC tax, page 2

Teachers’ previous jobs, page 13

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News Volume 12, Issue 2

stateof the

UNION The Facts

Pflugerville voters to decide on ACC tax district in November

The Dates

Megan Fletcher | Co-Editor

This November, Pf ugerville voters will decide whether or not to become a part of Austin Community College’s (ACC) taxing district. In exchange for increased property taxes, reduced tuition rates will be available to Pf ugerville residents. Currently, ACC tuition per three credit hours is $1,083 for those outside of the taxing district, and if voted for, the new rate would be $255, a decrease of $828.

In addition, ACC’s proposed Pf ugerville service plan would include a “workforce innovation campus/center,” according to the community college. It would also allow Pf ugerville residents to have access to ACC programs such as English-As-A-Second Language (ESL) and re-entry job training programs.

The current ACC-imposed property tax rate, 10.08 cents per $100 of property value, would increase to 10.48 cents. According to ACC’s website, this translates to $196 annually in taxes on a $200,000 home at the current tax rate.

In June, Pf ugerville Pfriends 4 ACC, a local ACC advocate organization, presented a petition to the ACC Board of Trustees to put the possibility of the city joining the tax district on the November ballot. On Aug. 13, the Board decided at a public meeting to put the annexation question on the General Election ballot for Pf ugerville ISD residents. However, according to the Austin-American Statesman, a small part of PfISD is within the Austin city limits and as a result is already a part of the ACC taxing district. Because of this, residents of that area cannot vote in the November election.

In addition to the proposed tax rate increase, the Board will vote on Sept. 10 for an additional tax rate increase to pay off their 2014 bond.

By the Numbers 800

8

600

6

400

4

200

2

0

current

proposed

2018

10

2017

1000

Property Tax Rate, per $100 valuation

2016

12

2015

Tuition Rate

2014

1200

0

Register to Vote If you’re a US citizen and you’ll be 18 by election day (Nov. 6), you can register to vote.

Come by Mr. Lucas’s room at F205 for a mail slip to register or go online to the Texas Secretary of State Rolando Pablos’s website to register.

The deadline to register is Oct. 9.

June

June 4

Petition Service plan presented approved by ACC Board

Nov. 6

Election Day

Your Turn Kaitlin Mackey | Asst. Editor

“I agree with the ACC tax. I personally don’t see the problem with building a campus closer to our district. If some of us decide to do ACC classes, then it would be really beneficial for those people that choose to do ACC classes since it’s a closer location for us to have our classes and if we have to pay more money for that, I think it’s a good idea.”

–Hunter Damstrom (11)

“I’m against the ACC tax because it will put a higher tax for residents in the surrounding citizens, even those who don’t go to ACC. Therefore, it will only benefit the people that decide that they want to go to ACC.” –Emily Parker (11)

“I’m for the ACC tax because it’ll give college students a break so that they won’t have to pay as much for tuition. It would be really nice for them, and seniors interested in going to ACC.” –Jillian Tidwell (10)

“I’m for it because some people don’t have the money to afford the tuition at ACC and just because they don’t have the money for it doesn’t mean that they’re not smart. And it shows them that they should go to college.”

–Alexia Nitkowski (10)

News September 28, 2018

By the Numbers Megan Fletcher | Co-Editor PfISD approved the bond to go on the Nov. 6 ballot on Aug. 16.

At $332 million, the bond is $45 million more than the 2014 bond that built Weiss High School and the Pfield.

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Pflugerville ISD bond election Nov. 6

SAFETY & SECURITY (6%) $8,613,000

TRANSPORTATION (6%) $14,000,000

- Campus fencing (all campuses except Weiss HS) - Pedestrian safety barriers (HHS) - Instrusion detection (HHS) - Exterior door locks (HHS)

- New PfISD-owned school buses - Heating/AC in all buses - Seatbelts and cameras in buses

ATHLETICS (2%) $8,225,000 - Replace weight room equipment (HHS) - Renovate locker room (HHS)

FINE ARTS (6%) $18,543,000

- Includes improved band hall storage (HHS) - Improved dance facilities (HHS) - New lighting and sound on PAC stage (HHS)

GROWTH (49%)

TECHNOLOGY (7%)

$163,145,000

- Two elementary schools - One middle school - Classroom additions at Delco Primary and Dessau Elementary

$24,300,000 - Student devices (PfISD) - Classroom projectors (PfISD)

AGING SYSTEMS $85, 783,000

- New roofs and repairs (PfISD) - Kitchen renovations (PfISD) - Fire alarm systems (PfISD)

CTE (2%) CONTINGENCY (1%)

$5,391,000

- Addition to Agricultural Sciences Building

$4,000,000

Tax Ratification Election also on Nov. 6 In addition to a bond election, the school district also approved a reduced combined tax rate of $1.52 per $100 of property value, down two cents from the previous rate, according to Community Impact. This tax is a separate item on the November election called the tax ratification election (TRE).

According to PfISD, the TRE would raise state funding to the school district by about four million dollars. The overall tax is split into two sections: Maitenance and Operations (M&O) and Interest and Sinking (I&S.) The TRE would raise the M&O rate from $1.04 per $100 to $1.06 per $100. However, the ratification would also lower the I&S rate from 50 cents to 46 cents, making a net decrease of two pennies.

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News Briefs

News Volume 12, Issue 2

Athletes receive Nike sponsorship Angelyna Rosales | Reporter

Players wear and play new Nike uniforms and equipment during game against Westwood. Carolina Yanez | Photographer

Superintendent gives warning to Durham after issues surface Kaitlin Mackey | Asst. Editor

After conflicts with school buses have caused chaos and complaints, superintendent, Doug Killian, has given an ultimatum to the bus company: if they do not provide better service, he will ask that they take “Pf ugerville ISD” off of the side of the buses.

“It’s no secret that we’ve been having some issues with our transportation this year; not being timely, delivery of kids, being able to pick up students that are special needs, those kind of things,” Killian said. “I have this big thing about service and in frustration I’ve been saying that I don’t want people representing us that don’t have that customer service. I really thought if they would continue providing service that I wasn’t satisfied with and wasn’t satisfying to our parents and kids -

Nike and Pf ugerville ISD joined forces this summer in a new sponsorship for all sports equipment and uniforms, in a deal brokered by PfISD athletic director, Todd Raymond.

Weiss was not included because they already signed a contract with Under Armor.

This sponsorship requires all coaches and athletes to only use Nike merchandise, including all uniforms, helmets, balls and other equipment.

“We have to wear only Nike uniforms at the varsity level,” head baseball coach Douglas Pearce said. “And then start to pass those down to sub varsity until eventually everyone is wearing only Nike at all levels.”

Athletic programs such as basketball, volleyball, and football who were already using Nike products, did not have major changes. For programs who use Adidas or other brands, like soccer, need new equipment.

“Volleyball has always worn Nike, so

PfISD cuts Mandarin, Arabic, Latin classes Taylor Hedlund | Reporter

then they don’t need to represent us on the sides of the buses.”

Although removing the school name from the buses does not give the district more of a budget to do things for schools, Killian hopes it will encourage better service, better representation, and better transportation for students. It also fixes the problems that our schools have been encountering since the start of the school year.

“If we were to take them off, I think it would just send a message to the company that we’re really upset about what they’re doing,” Killian said. “That’s what I was trying to communicate when I told the transportation representatives I was considering asking them to do that.”

not much has changed for us,” Volleyball coach, Carrie Sulak said.

The athletic programs also received a 10,000 dollar donation from Water Boy Graphics. Water Boy produces things such as stadium banners and sports murals. The donation will be split between all programs for gear and equipment. The company will also be providing graphics and posters to hang around the school.

“Pretty soon, you will be seeing graphics hanging around in the cafeteria, gym and field house areas,” girls athletic director Norma Sierra said.

With the donation, coaches are able to buy new equipment to add to the weight room and for their specific programs.

“We get great pricing and support from Nike, in addition to having access to the Nike branding feature, seen at the stadiums and on graphics in the buildings,” football coach Chip Killian said.

“Our athletes have been excited about being a Nike team.”

As of this year, the foreign language department has been minimized, as PfISD decided to remove Mandarin Chinese, Arabic and Latin from the department.

The main reason behind the loss of three languages was due to the loss in students signing up for these languages.

“Obviously, having [fewer] opportunities to learn other languages is not positive,” foreign language department head Drew Keller said. “I think it took away the opportunities for those who have wanted to advance to AP or national exam levels.”

Keller claimed that Hendrickson was very

fortunate to have those languages that were lost, as many schools in the local area did not have them. The students who took Mandarin 1 last year continue to take Mandarin 2 online as a means to gain that second foreign language credit. The teacher for Latin moved to CHS to continue teaching Latin there.

“I encourage people to find different languages if it’s not Spanish, French or German,” Keller said. “Our main goal is to always create an air of open mindedness as well as students who are lifelong language-learners, whether it be French, German, or Spanish.”

District finalizes exemption requirements Anabella Galan | Reporter

Durham School Services bus company drives and delivers students to school in the morning. Carolina Yanez | Photographer

The district policy on exemptions for final exams changed in August to require every student to take their finals. Not long after that decision was announced, the district notified campus principals and associate principals that the policy had changed to now only require underclassmen to take their finals, making exemptions possible for juniors and seniors.

Ultimately, the district revised the decision based on the feedback that they received from campuses and members of the community, resulting in only underclassmen being required to take their final exams. The policy was shared among the campus principals then discussed during campus administration meetings.

Underclassmen might argue that the new policy is unfair without taking all of the advantages to this policy into consideration. Taking finals can improve test taking skills and study habits.

“I think by allowing freshmen and sophomores to have that experience of taking that final exam, we prepare our students for those times where final exams are going to have to be taken,“ assistant principal Clarissa Alvarado said. “It’s a good balance of having students take their exams the first two years of high school and getting the opportunity as upperclassmen to possibly be exempt based off the guidelines of grades and attendance.”

Awards & Accolades

News September 28, 2018

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Debate team hosts swing tournament

Athletes compete in Aquatic Special Olympics

Kyla White | Reporter

Brisa Espinoza | Asst. Editor

The Debate team hosted the first tournament of the year on August 30-31. Senior Sydney Stogel won first place in Original Oratory, along with making it to Octo-Finals in Public Forum.

“I was a little stressed because of how early in the year it was,” said Stogel. “We kind of expected the tournament to start so early, just because of the schedule of every year. I think I realized it was my last first tournament, and I worked a bit harder than usual. We had the pros and cons for our topic, and then we talked to our consultant to make sure our arguments are solid.”

“We also did a lot of debates to make sure we knew what we were going to say in our cases, as well as running by what our opponents could say. I guess the worst thing about almost every tournament is that the next day we have to be up really early for our first rounds.”

Overall, the team won 3rd place Sweepstakes, with only 20 competitors.

Public Forum 1st Place - Seniors Bryce Hann & Sofia Valdespino Octos – Seniors Sydney Stogel & Jazmin Gonzalez Octos – Sophomores Monte Diaz & Ian Falkenbury Original Oratory 1st Place – Senior Sydney Stogel Congressional Debate 4th Place – Senior Jenna Dammen Domestic Extemp 3rd Place – Senior Sofia Valdespino 5th Place – Senior Jenna Dammen Semis – Sophomore Alyssa Vargas, Juniors Eliana Galan, and Claire Martinez CX Debate Quarters – Seniors Mahnoor Faheem & Alejandro Casteneda Zuniga

On Sept. 17, special education student athletes competed in the Aquatic Special Olympic competition held for Area 13. Students earned either a gold, silver or bronze medal or recieving a placement award.

Benji Garcia: 50 Meter Freestyle – Bronze 25 Meter Freestyle – 5th 25 Meter Backstroke – 5th 4X25 Meter Relay – Gold Angie Selestino: 50 Meter Freestyle – 6th 25 Meter Freestyle – Gold

25 Meter Backstroke – Silver 4X25 Meter Relay – Gold Connor Weise: 50 Meter Freestyle – Silver 25 Meter Backstroke – Gold 25 Meter Butterfly – Silver 4X25 Meter Relay - Gold Mason Decker: 50 Meter Freestyle – Participation 25 Meter Freestyle – Gold 25 Meter Backstroke – Bronze 4X25 Meter Relay – Gold Daulton Swenson:

50 Meter Freestyle – 7th 25 Meter Freestyle – Bronze 25 Meter Backstroke – Bronze 4X25 Meter Relay – Gold Dalton Anthony: 50 Meter Freestyle – Silver 25 Meter Freestyle – 5th 25 Meter Backstroke – Gold Hiro Jones: 50 Meter Freestyle– Bronze 25 Meter Freestyle – 4th 25 Meter Backstroke – Silver 4X25 Meter Relay – Gold

Debate succeeds at Tournament Brisa Espinoza | Asst. Editor On Sept. 21 - 22, the Debate team traveled to Anderson High School to participate in the Anderson debate tournament. The tournament was the first debate tournament that new members will be able to participate in. The following names are debaters that recieved an award in the competition: PF Debate Novice PF Champs – Sophomore Julian Moreno and junior Nahom Tulu CX Debate CX 2nd place – Seniors Alejandro Castaneda and Mahnoor Faheem CX semifinals – Senior Joseph Yeh and junior David Do Oratory Oratory finals – Seniors Rene Otero and Sydney Stogel Extempt International Extemp finals – Senior Rene Otero Novice Extempt 8th place – Junior Nahom Tulu

Classic TOC Earns Debate Placement Kyla White | Reporter On September 7-9, debate members went to Grapevine Texas for the Classic Tournament of Champions. The following names are those who placed at the tournament: PF Debate Octos – Seniors Bryce Hann and Sofia Valdespino 6th Top Speaker – Senior Bryce Hann CX Debate 2nd Top Speaker – Trey Gutierrez 3rd Top Speaker – Senior Dylan Scott Congress Finals – Senior Jenna Dammen Seniors Trey Guiterrez, Sofia Valdespino, Bryce Hann and Dylan Scott, hold their awards from the Classic Tournament on Sept. 7-9. Photo provided by Kirsten Nash

Angie Selestino, Daulton Swenson, Conner Weise and fellow teammate stand with their gold medal from the 4x25 relay.

Photos provided by Amy Wiesenhutter

Student Connor Weise competes in the 25 meter butterfly stroke, earning him a silver medal in the race.

Senior makes All-State Journalist Maria Torres | Reporter Senior Megan Fletcher has become a member of the 2018 UIL All-State Journalism Staff. In order to qualify for the position, each member has to reach up to 50 points by participating various competitions that are sponsored by the University Interscholastic League (UIL) and in the Interscholastic League Press Conference (ILPC).

“Basically I sent in my resume of the things

I did contest-wise this past year,” Fletcher said. “I was excited.”

After competing in numerous competitions and achieving recognitions from across the state of Texas, Fletcher has been given more opportunities to take on other competitions throughout the year.

“I’m looking forward to compete in more UIL competitions and hopefully do better than I did last year,” Fletcher said.

Newspaper named Pacemaker Finalist Brisa Espinoza | Asst. Editor On Sept. 7, the National Scholastic Press Association named “The Hawk” as one of the top 67 scholastic newspapers and news magazines in the country. With this recognition, The Hawk also became a finalist in the Pacemaker Competition.

The Pacemaker judges look for excellence in coverage, writing, editing, designing and photography. Newspapers also had to have a strong voice for the student body, risk taking, relevant coverage and

topics, appropriate sources and and consistent journalistic style, according to studentpress.org.

28 out of the 67 Pacemaker finalists will be awarded with the Pacemaker award putting those awarded into the top 10%.

Winners are announced at he JEA/NSPA Fall National High School Journalism Convention, in Chicago, Illinois in November.

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Opinion Volume 12, Issue 2

Staff Editorial

What’s your opinion on the new off-campus lunch policy?

New off-campus lunch policy works despite controversy Starting this school year, seniors going off campus for lunch must go through the C-hall breezeway and drop off their student ID. Because this policy is new to the class of 2019, it was met with some backlash. Some say the C-hall entrance isn’t enough, others say it’s a hassle, and some say it’s overkill.

But what many of these people don’t realize is that the “new” rule isn’t very new at all: before the 2015-2016 school year, the policy was the same as this year. The only reason the administration stopped the regulation was because of school overpopulation and too few staff members to control the flow.

In fact, C-hall is the optimal location for ID drop-off. While some seniors’ cars are in the athletic end of the student lot, the majority park in front of E and C-halls, making the breezeway ideal for check-in.

Of course, vocal juniors with cars argue the new policy from leaving campus for lunch (although that hasn’t stopped some.)

Sorry, juniors: off campus lunch was always a senior privilege, not a riteof-passage for a new driver’s license.

One of the main reasons behind the policy is cafeteria congestion. With only two lunch periods, half the student population is in one lunch, and the other half in the second lunch. The 40-minute lunch in August was meant to motivate more seniors to leave campus for lunch in order to relieve this congestion. But what the administration didn’t realize was that going back to the 30-minute lunch prevents many seniors from leaving

due to the quick turnaround to their next class. While senior off campus lunch certainly doesn’t prevent the overcrowded cafeteria, the new policy concerning IDs works.

This way, if a student goes off campus for lunch or even to their car in the student lot, the administration has their ID to identify them. In the past, teachers and students often let people in the building through E and C-halls without checking for identification, creating a free pass for possible intruders.

In the larger context of school security, it was a liability in the past to have students off campus when the administration had no clue where they were and how many people were not at school at any one point in time. For example, if a student went off campus and got in a wreck, the school administration wouldn’t find out until they don’t show up for second or third period. Seniors can’t expect school security and safety if they want to go off campus without any oversight whatsoever, especially when the administration enacts policy specifically to improve those very things.

What students have to understand is that regarding school security, the policy is necessary, and the policy works. Simple as that.

The Hawk, the official student newspaper of Hendrickson High School, is an open forum for the exchange of ideas and opinions.

Hendrickson High School 19201 Colorado Sand Drive Pf lugerville, TX 78660 http://www.pfisd.net/HHS (512) 594-1100 Student Population: 2450 Staff: 230 Adviser: Kari Riemer Principal: Daniel Garcia www.facebook.com/HawkNewspaper

Your Turn

Opinions expressed reflect the beliefs of the student author and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the entire Hawk Staff, the Hawk Adviser, the Hendrickson Faculty and Staff, or the Principal.

Letters to the editor are welcomed, and may be dropped off in E211. Corrections will be printed when brought to the attention of the staff.

The Hawk is printed monthly at Community Impact in Pflugerville, Texas. 1,000 copies are printed each run, and are distributed to the student body for free through an advisory period and on newsstands throughout the building.

Editorial Staff Co-Editors: Megan Fletcher & McKenna Lucas Assistant Editors: Brisa Espinoza, Abigail Hill, Kaitlin Mackey, McKenzie Quiroz, Anna Schulze, Carolina Yanez.

Seth Deaton Anabella Galan Taylor Hedlund Addison Hildebrandt Maya Lewis

Reporters

Ikram Mohamed Angelyna Rosales Bryan Ross Camryn Sadlier Lauren Saenz

Maria Torres Zachary Valdez Kyla White

“If we’re going to have a system where we are trying to avoid kids from coming back late or just skipping, we should have it in more locations than just C hall because people are parked in different places. Personally it’s been kind of a hassle. Sometimes I’ll be back five minutes before passing periods start but by the time that I get there and the crowd is gone I only have three minutes to get to my class because it’s so crowded in that one spot.”

-Marley Smith (12) “I feel like the idea of them controlling who goes in and out seems nice and it helps with safety, because safety is really important right now. They just should’ve planned it out more thoroughly so it makes it less of a hassle for everyone else. I know my friends today went of campus and they came back with three minutes to eat all their food and barely made it in time. Not only is it making it difficult for the students, but it’s also making it difficult for the teachers to have to deal with all the IDs.” -Sole Oren (11) “To filter everyone through one hallway makes it easy for another junior to just ease on through every once in a while. With having to pick up your ID on the way back, sometimes another student comes in that way and they forget to grab it and they’d still get in trouble just because they forgot to grab their ID. If lunches were at least 40 minutes, maybe it would be a little bit better on time management.”

-Elizabeth Keneipp (12)

“I see the policy as fair. I just think we should have administrators in every hallway so that every senior has a chance to go straight from their class to outside instead of having everyone go to C Hall.

Also, even if you’re not a senior, if you have a car, I think you should be able to go off campus. We only have two lunches now, so it’s harder to get your lunch within a timely manner while still having time to be able to sit down and talk to your friends. I think, as long as you can make it back on time, you should be able to go.”

-Leilah Toran (10) Associations Interscholastic Press League Texas Association of Journalism Educators Journalism Educators Association National Scholastic Press Association Columbia Scholastic Press League

Honors ILPC Bronze Star, 2014 & 2015, 2017 Columbia Scholastic Press League, Gold Medalist 2016, 2017 Silver Crown, 2017, 2018 Pacemaker Finalist, 2018

THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT Administration increases safety regulations... pages 9-11

theHAWK Hendrickson High School 19201 Colorado Sand Drive Pf lugerville, Texas 78660

Volume 12, Issue 2 September 28, 2018

INSIDE: ACC tax, page 2

Teachers’ previous jobs, page 13

Design by McKenna Lucas Photo by Abigail Hill

Hit or Miss

My Turn

Opinion September 28, 2018

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Prom ticket sales change to help decrease absences Prom tickets will be sold differently than in previous years.

Instead of prices increasing as prom approaches, ticket prices are set for the year. For those attending prom, prices will be based on absences. For zero absences tickets will cost $30, one to five absences raises the price to $50, six through ten costs $70, and any more than ten absences will cause seniors to pay $85 for the tickets. The price depends on the absences of the senior who will receive the ticket. This method will not only help attendance for the school but it allows seniors the chance to be prepared for the prices making it a hit.

Shorter passing period time causes stress, more tardies

Most students, excluding incoming freshmen, have become used to six minute passing periods to accommodate past over population of the school. This year the passing periods have been reduced to five minutes in response to the enrollment reduction after the opening of Weiss High School.

However, because students have always had longer passing periods in the past they walk slowly to their classes making it difficult to get to class on time. An easy solution is to become more familiar with the back staircases and connecting hallways so that the main stairs are less crowded and more convenient to those that have to travel across the school. The new shorter period time is a miss.

Construction increases risk of car break-ins, theft Recent construction around Hendrickson increases the chance of theft in the student parking lot. New buildings attract lots of people near the school. Costco heavily contributes to the increase in traffic and attracts strangers to the school parking lot. Students are encouraged to lock their doors and shut their windows all the way. Also, if possible, they should keep any valuables in the car out of sight. Unfortunately, the increasing car break-ins are a miss.

Sponsorships allows for more graphics in building A sponsorship from Water Boy Graphics to all PfISD schools excluding Weiss, provided graphics to the schools.

Hendrickson was recently decked out with sponsorship decals that were placed all throughout the field house, cafeteria, doors, and windows to show school spirit and appreciation. The recent placement of graphics from Water Boy Graphics, is a hit.

Students not allowed to stand at rail during home games Because of a rail breaking at a football game last year in the home side student section, PFISD has recently made a rule concerning the student section. Students are no longer allowed to stand at the rail during football games because of the weight the rail can withhold. Students not allowed to stand at the rail during football games is a miss.

Falling into the Cloud Increasing use of Juul products spurs new addiction crisis among teens

Guest Columnist | Our generation has always viewed smoking negatively, so it was never something I worried about in the sense of becoming addicted, or knowing somebody who would become an addict themselves. I never thought that this toxic substance would be able to disguise itself in other products, and leak its way into my life and the lives of my friends so easily. And yet now I found myself watching as my peers become more and more hooked on electronic cigarette products, namely produced by the company Juul.

It is rare for me to get in a car with a large group of people and there not be a vape present, after all that’s how the path to addiction begins for the most part, surrounded by peers. I do not remember when the first Juul was introduced among my close friends and I. I do remember when none of them owned one and were simply taking “hits” from other people. This seemed harmless enough. It was not a regular thing and Juuls after all are less harmful than cigarettes. But the day that I realized this changed was when one of my friends came to own his own.

Vaping was all fun and games until it wasn’t. Until my friends

would go off campus for lunch just to vape, or attempt to discreetly vape in class, risking so much for a buzz that lasts no more than a few seconds. Yet these symptoms happened gradually so I had time to grow accustom to each phase and was able to down play the true nature of what was happening around me. I watched daily as my friend became dependent on a substance that was killing him, and though in some sense he was aware of this, it always came back to the same argument: Juuls aren’t as bad as cigarettes.

And I wish I could say it stopped there, but it didn’t. Within the span of 5 months, towards the end of my junior year, a majority of my friends had come to own their own Juuls, and as most teens know if you own a Juul chances are you’re already an addict. Though I never noticed a change in my friend’s mood or their ability to focus and stay awake, I knew the real change was happening inside of them as they were killing their lungs and putting themselves at a greater risk for heart attacks. The once harmless fun, that started from taking a few hits at a party or in a social setting had turned into a full blown addiction among many of my friends.

I would like to say that all of my

friends came to some revelation and threw out their Juuls, and surprisingly, many of them did walking into senior year, but not all of them. None of them have refused to vape altogether, but have returned to the occasional hit at social settings. However, some have fallen further into the habit and I can only hope that they won’t be forced to face the repercussions of it in the future.

Ironically, something created to help smokers break their addictions had spurred a new one for teens all across the country, and this one being potentially more toxic as teens justify this habit by comparing it to cigarettes.

Though it is true vaping is not as bad for the lungs as cigarettes are, the other negative effects of vapes are surfacing rapidly for a product that has only been around for a few years. I would encourage teens to not vape in any setting, because though at a party or in a car ride it seems harmless, this is where it begins to grow and could potentially transform into a full blown addiction. I watched it happen in more than a few of my friends, and if walking down the hallways is not proof enough of this growing addiction, I suggest looking a little closer.

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Feature Volume 12, Issue 2

Bigger and Better Crew members set new standards for fans during games Anna Schulze | Asst. Editor Leaning up against the rails, bodies pressed on either side of you. The loud chanting and the boom of feet hitting the bleachers as you jump up and down, cheering on the team. Everyone around you dressed to fit the theme of the night only adds to the sense of pride.

Hype Crew has been a traditional aspect of football season for a long time. It encourages not only the football players themselves, but also the students, creating an environment that builds school spirit.

Yet for the past few years’ students have complained that the Hype Crew lacks the hype it is supposed to bring.

“This year is going to be different than previous years,” senior Olivia Draguicevich said. “We have made it a point to include people from all different groups across the school. The participation is up, and because of that, we have larger turnouts, and the more people the louder and better we can cheer on our boys.”

Though Hype Crew is extending its reach by allowing all seniors to participate unlike previous years when only certain seniors were hand selected, it is still only open for senior participation. However, other

grades are still encouraged to come out and cheer along with Hype Crew.

“This is something other grades can look

forward to,” senior Hannah Blair said. “It is our last year of high school and we all want to be down on the rails together cheering.

Leading the pack, senior Tyler Wood and fellow students cheer on the football game against Vandergrift. "They make me want to get out there every Friday night and give it my all," Wood said.

This year we’re setting a new standard for the years to come, and building up school pride along the way.”

Through close work with principal Daniel Garcia, Hype Crew has themes picked out for the whole football season, and has made it possible for confetti and streamers to be brought in with permission first. They have also been meeting before games to create posters to get the word out about upcoming games and themes.

“I think anyone who wants to join should join,” Blair said. “It’s a great opportunity to make new friends, and everyone is brought together for a common goal, to cheer on our team.”

Through several meetings, Hype Crew extended beyond its typical football games and will begin to attend volleyball games as well. This year, they plan to be around the whole year rather than just the fall and attend games from sports all across the school.

“Our goal is to build school spirit,” Draguicevich said. “We are here to make our last year memorable, and to set an example for younger grades to carry that Hawk legacy.”

A New Sound, A New Wave

New band directors bring different expectations to program Seth Deaton | Reporter For the first time in over half a decade, this year’s band show will not be written

by David Duffy or directed by Garth Gundersen.

Two new band directors, Sean Phelan and Weston Scholten, were introduced to the band program and Matt Atkinson was promoted to head band director at the start of this year to replace David Duffy and Garth Gundersen after they left at the conclusion of last year.

Scholten started teaching here at the start of band camp in July and his students and colleagues already have a lasting impression on him.

“A lot of the kids are accountable for themselves and the facility is professional,” Scholten said. “There’s expectation to be great.”

Scholten’s first and only prior teaching experience was at Roy J. Smith Middle School in Killeen, Texas. During his first year he helped the band earn all 1’s at UIL, winning the school UIL sweepstakes

for the first time since 1991. This happened because his goals are not the results of the competition, but the effort put into getting those results. His views haven’t changed since he got here.

“As long as the kids do their best, the results don’t really matter,” Scholten said.

“It’s awesome, the kids are great.”

The band stepped up to his expectation after losing two weeks worth of rehearsal because school started earlier this year.

“We had more to get done in less time,” Scholten said. “We told the kids we had to operate with urgency.”

Phelan, the other new band director, also started teaching at the beginning of this year after hearing about an open position and has been very impressed by what he’s seen so far.

“Even in just this first month I’ve been very impressed by the way in which the students culture here is organized and the way in which in the band understands what their role is and the work that they

can do and how their part contributes to the effort of the whole,” Phelan said.

A band program as large as this one requires a lot of work in order to function and perform well.

“There’s so much here that we, as the directors, don’t have to necessarily do because there are so many students who understand what needs to be done and they take ownership and responsibility of so much for the program.” Phelan said.

“That’s impressive because that’s not something that happens everywhere.”

Phelan spent three years teaching high school band and orchestra in Wisconsin after he graduated from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. He then spent the last two years working with Indiana University as a graduate assistant with their band and is currently a Brass Caption Head of the Madison Scouts Drum and Bugle Corps.

“Where I grew up, most schools don’t have band programs that are 280 students

and don’t have four band directors, so a lot of responsibility falls on each individual teacher.” Phelan said. “There’s just more going on because the marching band is bigger. It’s different from what I’ve done before in the sense that there’s more of everything but that’s true for the support and the opportunities as much as it is for the work.”

The new band directors, and the program as a whole, their first competition is the Bands of America Austin Regional Contest on Sept. 29. The band will be preforming their new show, “Blueprints for Life,” as the new directors hope to open up the season with a bang.

“I want my students to remember that they were challenged,” Phelan said. “I want my students to remember that we asked more of them then they were able to do in the past and that they were encouraged and taught and supported along the way to get to that point.”

THE KIDS ARe ALRIGHT Administration increases safety regulations

Feature September 28, 2018

9

New security personnel hired Megan Fletcher | Co-Editor

PfISD has placed one new security personnel member at each middle school and two at each high school in addition to current School Resource Officers.

School Resource Officers (SROs) Sergeant Adam Boyd and Officer Raymond Hernandez’s roles involve maintaining bonds with students and regularly reporting on crime at Hendrickson.

At all times, each high school has two SROs. Boyd will leave once the new officer completes their training, he said. PfISD police are now separate from the City of Pflugerville Police Department.

“We had two officers here at the end of the year that went to patrol,” Boyd said. “And so we got Hernandez back over here.”

New security personnel Artero Hoggins was previously at Farley Middle School in Hutto for two years.

“I have an understanding of middle school kids,” Hoggins said. “I’m gaining a better understanding of high school kids. High school kids, you can talk to them. Of course, there’s a generational difference. I stay within my boundaries, but I do have some really good conversations.”

It’s important to establish trust in educational security, he said.

“It’s more of a ‘hey you, what are you doing here?’, [so] your understanding of who you’re dealing with is better,” Hoggins said. “We’re telling you, ‘Hey, you’re my friend, and I’m trying to protect you. But, in the meantime, go to class.’”

The security program that’s being set in place is actually a very recent program, Hoggins said. In the face of increased security threats, districts across Texas and the nation have established security positions in their schools.

In fact, Hoggins won’t be alone for long, as the administration is currently in the process of hiring a second unarmed security guard, as middle schools have hiring priority for the new positions.

“It’s the way we introduce security into the education system, that makes it different from security you would see at the mall,” Hoggins said.

“Security [at Hendrickson] isn’t exactly the same as anywhere else. We interact more with everything we do.”

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Feature Volume 12, Issue 2

THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT

Fire alarms moved to prevent chaos

Teens discuss their safety while at school

Kaitlin Mackey | Asst. Editor

McKenna Lucas | Co-Editor

After having incidents such as shootings started by activating the fire alarm and accidental initiation of fire alarms, the Fire Department has recommended removing the wall mounted fire alarms. About 33 campuses in PfISD, including Hendrickson, have either moved the fire alarms up higher, or have removed the wall mounted alarms completely. By moving the fire alarms about 5 feet higher than they were originally, making the alarms harder to reach for most students and teachers.

At Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida experienced a school shooting, with the shooter being a student, Nikolas Cruz. Cruz had killed 17 people and injured 17 more. Prior to the

shooting, he had set off the fire alarms and began firing at both students and teachers afterwards. This caused confusion and chaos to the students and teachers at the school because they had a fire drill that morning.

Nearly three months later, on May 18, there was another school shooting at Santa Fe High School in Houston, Texas.

This shooting is the second deadliest school shooting in the United States in 2018, after the Parkland shooting. The suspect, Dimitrios Pagourtzis, killed 10 people, and injured 14 others. Pagourtzis had reportedly pulled the fire alarm as well before firing.

Ahad Shabbir, 12

District starts using RevTrak for payments

Meadow Reyes, 12

“I feel very safe at this school. I think we are in a very safe area.

I’ve been in areas that have been more unsafe. Just remember to be kind to people, even if they don’t deserve it, because those are the people that become either suicidal or homicidal and want to hurt others and themselves.”

“I do not feel safe at school. When it comes to guns and people coming into the school I feel safe. But I think safety is more than people protecting us from guns or emergencies, it’s about administration caring as well. I feel like they do a pretty good job of keeping certain people in and out, but they also don’t take much of a look inside. There are plenty of kids with signs of doing bad things, but I feel like they don’t pick up on those signs, they just kind of ignore it, they just go about their day fixing minor details.”

Kaitlin Mackey | Asst. Editor

This year, our district has started the PfISD Web Store. This store serves as an efficient and convenient online payment center for parents. So, if a parent needs to make a payment towards a department such as band, theatre, or any sports team, they have a simple way to do so.

The web store is being hosted by RevTrak Inc., who utilizes the current

security techniques to keep the payment information safe and private for users.

In order to use the web store, users must register online by following the link to the registration list on the PfISD Web Store.

When going onto the web store, some payment items cause users to login using their student ID number.

“I feel safe at school because I see a lot of cops around, but I don’t think administration did a good job explaining drills. They only spent one day on it and teachers really didn’t go over it.”

Cooper Nunez, 9

Teachers share thoughts on controversy of arming teachers Camryn Sadlier | Reporter

Pre-calculus teacher Annette Greene “I teach at the end of ‘E’ hall and it is a constant battle with students trying to let in other students. Someone will text their friend to come open the door. Security is breached. I’m over feeling bad about not letting them in. My life and the lives of everyone in that hall is at stake. I believe it is best to be proactive. Although our teaching time is sacred we need to have drills for the ‘what if…’. It is always better to be prepared than wish you would have been. Even though we had increased hall monitoring to where a teacher was stationed at each intersection at the school I was previously working at, every single period we had a student bring in a gun to the cafeteria. But arming teachers? I’m not sure I trust my life to a co-worker with a gun. That is best left to the professionals.”

Biology teacher Jean Chambers “This school year I have had seven students who have either graduated or are no longer enrolled at Hendrickson come to my classroom. None of them have checked in at the front office, yet they have made it to my room. They all claim to have come in through the cafeteria doors.

When it comes to arming teachers, I think that it would help if we ever had an armed shooter. It would be a risk but it would also be another person or persons to help possibly diffuse the threat. Gun owners are responsible for their weapons at all times.

I think that having a loaded weapon in a classroom is like having a loaded gun in a home. It needs to be out of the reach of others. There are safe features on guns and easily accessible safes that would ensure greater safety for small children.”

Geometry teacher Katherine Horn “I believe that the way the school is laid out, with portables and the Ag Building a walk away from the campus, could very well lead to a breach in security. It seems that anyone could drive up, be let into the school by a student during passing periods, and wreak havoc, if they wished.

I see students letting in other kids all the time, even when there are signs on doors that say ‘Do not open for other students’.

I would say that I feel safe at school, as I don’t live in fear. Life is too short to worry about things we cannot control. I vote for stricter gun control laws and I feel like that is a big part of our society’s current problem with mass shootings in general.

Also, mental health is poorly managed in the US.”

73% of teachers oppose guns in the classroom

46% of parents favor arming teachers

63% of teens are worried about school shootings happening at their school

*Statistics from Pew Research Center and Gallup

Feature September 28, 2018

11

Administration explains new emergency regulations, drills McKenna Lucas | Co-Editor

Executive Director of Health & Safety Denise Kablaitis

Principal Daniel Garcia

Associate Principal Michael Grebb

Superintendent Dr. Doug Killian

“If we need to evacuate the building and there is someone that is upstairs in a wheelchair, they should not use the elevator. They should wait at the top of the stairs. There is a transport device for these situations stored in the nurse’s office. Soon, there will be one of these devices stored at the top of every stairwell. A few people can carry the person down the stairs safely and out of the building. If seniors are off campus for lunch and learn of an emergency situation on campus, they should not return to campus. Stay where you are safe. Notify your parents where you are and that you are safe. Notify the school where you are and that you are safe. The school may not answer the phone but you can leave a message. Once the incident has cleared and it is safe to return to school, then you may do so.”

“There are some visible changes we have made this year like keeping the doors closed during lunches and only allowing Seniors to leave through one set of doors, which has really helped to keep the underclassmen on campus and help us to see when people are coming in when they are not students. We also have a new security monitor and he checks doors. I would encourage students to let me know when they have any safety concerns or if they see things that we can do better. Also it would be appreciated if students did not open doors for anyone, even people that they might know. Keep doors locked and help us maintain security.”

“During a lockdown I would get to the safest spot you find based on the situation.

If you’re in the hallway and you hear a noise you would want to get away from the noise. If students are in the bathroom, you can just shelter in place. Just be aware of your surroundings at all times and make a wise decision. There will be administrators in the hall to help students who can’t help find a safe place. Unfortunately, every emergency situation is going to be a little bit different and we’re not going to have a uniform procedure if an emergency was to happen during lunch. As administrators we talk about it, we practice procedures. We don’t want to give away how we will react to certain situations, because someone can plan based on our reactions.”

Q

A

“We take everything really seriously, any kind of report. Last year we had a huge uptick on reports, and what I would say to the student body is that we want to report the incidents, but also for the folks who are making false reports and taking this as a joke, you need to know it’s a felony. In the current environment we can’t tolerate any of that, we are very strict about reports and we have to report the police. For instance, if it’s a gun on campus, that’s an expellable offense on top of all the legal issues that we have with that. Don’t even joke about having a gun on campus, it’s not in good taste right now. It makes people nervous and we have to take things seriously as terroristic threats. Last year, we had police tied up running down what we would call a joke, but we had to make home visits and check if students had access to fire arms. We had to run down every lead and we have a limited amount of officers and resources and you’re tying up resources when you are making those type of jokes. And it makes us less safe.”

&

Administrative Assistant Frances Rendon answers questions on off campus security Abigail Hill | Asst. Editor

Approximately, how many underclassman would you say sneak off during lunch?

“So far, this year I haven’t seen very many, and I don’t know if it’s because of these procedure. I think today we had two that we caught.”

Do you think this enforcement of security will help lower absences?

“We’re hoping it will. And it seems like it has people returning, they want to enjoy their lunch and come back. Seniors are really good about coming back on time.”

Why do you think there is more security this year, as opposed to last year?

“They’re putting an emphasis on all the things that have been happening and I think that’s the main reason.”

How do you feel about the policy, as far as more security?

“I think it’s a good thing. Everybody is wondering, ‘Why are we doing this?’

But we’ve done this before. We actually stopped doing it for about five years because of different leadership. They decided to bring it back with everything going on. It’s a safety issue with people going out many different doors, anybody can walk in, anything can happen.”

Has there ever been a crash on campus?

What is the penalty for underclassmen going off campus?

How do other schools regulate off camous lunch?

Is there anything else you’d like to add?

“We actually have had accidents in the parking lot because of reckless driving.

We’ve had a couple kids injured, not seriously, so we have to keep an eye on that, too.”

“It depends on their assistant principal, they’ll probably get a warning or ISS, but it just depends on what their principal decides to do.”

“I had asked a friend of mine who does security at Elgin High School how they manage their off campus lunches and his reply was: “We don’t have off campus lunch!” So like I said, it’s a privilege that we have for our Seniors, not all high schools have off campus lunch.”

“Like I said, it’s a safety issue. We didn’t monitor them as much and I’m sure you know that several grade levels were going off campus. It’s been a privilege for seniors to do it, but other grade levels were taking advantage of it. I think it should be left for seniors. They’ve earned it.”

12

Feature Volume 12, Issue 2

Words from the Wise PALs write notes to welcome freshman class

Carolina Yanez | Asst. Editor Having her classes write letters of encouragement and motivation to every freshman was not Peer Assistant Leadership (PAL) sponsor Carol Peterson’s idea, but after hearing that the PALs at Weiss High School did it, Peterson knew she could not be outdone.

“Even though this wasn’t my idea, I think it was a great thing for us to do,” Peterson said. “I asked the PALs to send sentiments of welcoming, maybe some positive quotes they liked and just some advice that they wished they had received when they were freshmen.”

The freshman class is composed of around 550 students and there are 79 PALs, leaving each PAL to write letters to their randomly assigned freshman.

“Some of the PALS wrote ‘books’ and others wrote just a few words,” Peterson said.

“They were delivered to the freshmen English teachers after Labor Day weekend.”

Each PAL wrote words of advice to their freshmen in

order to motivate them for their first year in high school and encourage them to focus on grades early on.

“I wish a senior would have told me that freshman year really does matter and that if you start off with good grades it makes the following years a little easier,” junior PAL Cassandra Nguyen said. “Some advice I wrote in the letters was that you should always keep up with your grades, but you also shouldn’t stress so much on a bad grade because it’s not the end of the world.”

Nguyen also included general advice in order to remind freshmen there’s more to high school than grades.

“What I enjoyed about writing to the freshmen was that it was personal and specifically made for a certain person,” Nguyen said. “Every card had different advice in it from a different person and their experiences in high school. I also wrote about how you should still try to have fun throughout high school because you make the best memories during it.”

Seniors give advice to help underclassmen Taylor Hedlund | Reporter “Make sure you get all your work done, because as you go on it’s going to come back and hit you. This is important because you’re only in school for four years and they are the most important four years of your life. Except maybe sophomore and junior year which are the really big ones.”

- Phillip Cruz “Pay attention in all your classes and study for tests. It’s important because you need to get good grades and keep your GPA up.

I found it was helpful by just studying for an hour or so, realized that my test scores are good.”

- Lisa Brown

After writing a letter to freshman Gabriel Torres, junior PAL Cassandra Nguyen puts the letter in an envelope in order to prepare it to be sent to Torres.

“Keep your grades up because it could mess up your whole high school experience if you get a low grade. A lot of colleges want you to have high grades. When I figured this out I realized my grades were more important than I thought.”

- Justin Cobb

Yainara Diaz | Photographer

Freshmen compare high school experience to middle school experience Lauren Saenz | Reporter

Anabella Galan | Reporter

“The biggest change from middle school is probably the amount of people and the way classes are organized. That’s what surprised me the most about high school and was the biggest change, because it’s a whole different system compared to middle school. In middle school, you have the same classes every single day. In high school there’s different classes every other day. I find it more fun and more special than middle school, because middle school is the same routine every day.

“The first few weeks of high school were hard, but once I got in the groove it got easier. I do band and I really enjoy it. We had our first football game and we got back pretty late but band is super fun and it’s somewhere to belong, I’ve made a lot of new friends in band. They’re like my adoptive family.. Band camp was hard because we had to do morning and evening practices and it was difficult to keep up with homework but other than that it was not that bad. The first football game was fun. I’ve been helping the band out for the past two years so it’s fun to finally be on the field and get to perform.”

- Luis Cardoza

- CJ Scarpato

“The most significant change that I’ve personally experienced is how much homework we get. When transferring into middle school, I was told by my elementary teacher that we would get a lot of homework but we didn’t really get that much homework in middle school. I was expecting the same thing going into high school, but I was wrong because I’m taking an AP class, so I’m technically skipping high school and going straight to college.

The homework isn’t hard but there’s a lot of work and I’ve got to procrastinate less.

- Makaya Smith

“I feel like middle school didn’t really prepare us for how much class work and homework we were going to have in high school. Keeping up with homework and not procrastinating is difficult. A big challenge in AP Human Geography is making sure I understand all of the concepts. Some of them are really hard to understand when you’re just reading from a book. I think the AP Human Geography teachers need to kind of explain and teach more in class, instead of just making us read it from a book. It’s hard to grasp concepts when you’re just reading and not actually hearing it from the teachers.”

- Krista ElMurr

Feature September 28, 2018

The Road Ahead

13

Science teacher describes experiences of month long hike Abigail Hill | Asst. Editor

Trekking down a long road in the middle of the Colorado trail, the silence was suddenly broken by the sound of a drone, lowering a can of Coke down to astronomy teacher Cobalt blue.

“It was the best Coke I ever had,” Blue said. “When you don’t do sodas for a couple weeks and suddenly someone gives you one, it’s amazing, All things are like that. If you cut yourself off from something for a long time and then take it back, it’s just great.”

Over the course of 23 days, Blue walked roughly 350 miles, starting in Waterton Canyon, Colorado and ending in Creede, with just a 45-pound pack and one pair of shoes.

“I actually had to mail some stuff home when I got to my first supply town because I thought, ‘This is too heavy, I don’t need this, I’ll just mail it home,’” Blue said.

Every seven days, Blue would stop in a nearby town to resupply on food, water, and other essentials for the hike before starting back on the trail the next morning.

“You get into town and this thing called ‘hiker hunger’ would kick in,” Blue said.

“You would just eat everything in sight, and I’d go get huge pizzas and stuff my

face in it.”

While on the trail, meals consisted of ramen, granola bars, oatmeal and some MREs (Meals Ready to Eat) that ROTC provided for him.

eat anything you want, and I was eating about three candy bars a day, and even then I was still in calorie deficit,” Blue said.

Although there were no close calls during the trip, Blue ran into a deer at some point;

“The great thing about it all is, you’re burning 6,000 calories a day, so you can

however, he did come across sight-seeing destinations.

The adventure continues. . .

Ikram Mohamed | Reporter

Zachary Valdez | Reporter

Bryan Ross | Reporter

“I spent the coolest two weeks ever traveling, by car, throughout Italy with my husband for our 30-year anniversary. I recommend that everybody go abroad as soon as they can.”

-Nicole Stewart, Pre-Calculus and AP Statistics

“I did a lot of travelling, my husband and I went to Portland, Oregon for two weeks camping. We did my first ever outdoor rock climbing adventure on Smith Rock, and then I read a ton of books this summer, all types of genres. Then I went to the Dominican Republic, and ate strange food, and I immersed in new cultures, then I spent a lot of time with puppies.”

-Kathryn Gurganus, English

“There were dozens of absolutely beautiful places and every day you’d see something more beautiful than the day before,” Blue said. “You’d see cool things I’d never thought I’d see, like crazy, high mountains, the birds, and the wild flowers.”

Along with seeing what Colorado had to offer, Blue ran into other people on the trail, including teachers.

“I met people from all over the country,” Blue said. “Sometimes two or three of us would camp together and it was good to share stories or find out what’s up ahead and what’s behind.”

Although reasons might vary for why someone would walk 350 miles in unknown conditions, Blue decided to do the hike to clear his head and temporarily escape reality.

“I wanted to live a life that just consisted of eating, walking, sleeping,” Blue said.

“It’s very nice to strip all the stuff away and see what really matters, and to test myself because you never know your limits until you go to the edge. It turned out the physical part was difficult, but not as hard as feeling isolated and alone, and now that I know that about myself I will probably be different next year if I did it again.”

“This summer I kept two small toddlers from killing themselves and each other.”

-Joseph Ortiz, physics “I took some of my students to Europe for ten days, I took them to Italy, France and Spain. When we returned from Europe, I went back to visit my family in Paris.”

-Liliane Brockington, French “My family and I went to Boston, Massachusetts and we went whale watching. There was a baby whale, and it was trying to show off, because I guess they’re used to people coming there, and he was doing flips. It was the coolest thing ever.”

-Cassandra Jackson, Head Counselor

“This summer I went to Broken Bow, Oklahoma, and some college friends and I went hiking in the mountains and the hills, and it’s beautiful.

We didn’t see Bigfoot; although, he has been known to show up there sometimes.”

-Elizabeth Westbrook, English

“I f lew for the first time in 18 years, since 911 and all the security stuff, to visit my daughter in St. Paul, Minnesota.”

-Sandra Wiles, business

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Feature Volume 12, Issue 2

Before the Road to Teaching

New biology teacher shares insight on his previous job in Army Carolina Yanez | Asst. Editor

Immediately after graduating high school, biology teacher Louis Morales attended U.S. Military Academy West Point, located in New York to gain preparation for the Army. West Point gave Morales the opportunity to attend college with pay, as long as he served in the Army for five years after graduating the academy.

“I was at West Point for four years,” Morales said. “You go there and are basically treated like you’re in the army for the four years you’re there. I went to West Point and then I started my Army career and wound up doing it for 20 years.”

During his time at the academy, he received real first-hand experience on what the branch actually accomplishes.

This preparation helped him decide to enlist in the Army, rather than another branch of service.

“While I was at West Point, I jumped out of airplanes, shot machine guns, drove and shot tanks, just about anything you can do in the Army they let us do while we were at West Point,” Morales said. “I’m a team sports kind of guy. I was a big football and

baseball player and for me it was always my soldiers and the people that I helped about a team. I thought the Army, out of all each time I was deployed is something I’ll the services, was the most team oriented never forget.” service. It just seemed like a good fit. I While in the military, Morales says the wanted to be a hardest part part of something was being away bigger than me.” his family.

"We support our students from Within his 20 Although the years of service, and motivate [them] to separation is what he gained the role ultimately made open [their] minds to try him retire from the of Armor Officer, leading operations something new and trust Army, his children and taking on the got to travel and us." responsibility for see new places in tanks. However, the U.S. his favorite part “I figured out of his former job that I had been was meeting new away from my people and getting daughter at one the chance to help them. point in time for almost 70% of her life, “I got to play around and shoot tanks and she was around 14 at the time,” Morales I had great experiences with the tank and said. “I also missed the birth of my son, what it could do,” Morales said. “But it was I got to see it on Skype, which was great the people that made everything special. but it wasn’t the same as being there and The people, the families, the soldiers I got supporting my wife during those times. In to help, the lives I’ve gotten to touch. Both the end that’s ultimately why I decided

Louis Morales

to retire so that I can have my daughter go to one high school, since she had been to seven different schools before she had even gotten to high school. However, my kids have seen a lot of different things because of where I’ve been stationed and they enjoy it.”

Morales’ previous leadership position made teaching natural. He wanted to continue helping and motivating.

“I’m teaching biology, I’ve just always loved the sciences, so when I got out of the Army I wanted to figure out something to do,” Morales said. “I realized that it was the people that were the most important during my time in the Army and I wanted to continue to give back, so I thought: I love teaching, I enjoy people. Let’s go teach science. Being a leader means I have to motivate people to try different things and do things that they’re uncomfortable with and that’s what teachers do. We support our students and motivate you to open your mind to try something new and trust us.”

Former occupation paves way for career in teaching McKenna Lucas | Co-Editor

I didn’t get out of nursing, I went into teaching,” health science teacher Christine Gilbert said.

Gilbert, recounts her transition from psychiatric nursing into teaching.

“I worked in a lot of different areas in psychiatry. We worked with people who have psychiatric mental health issues,” Gilbert said. “We do what other nurses on other floors do, but we just have the added therapeutic component. I worked psychiatric intensive care for patients who were unstable and needed a controlled environment, an environment safe for themselves and safe for other people.”

As a registered nurse, Gilbert helped pass out medications, take doctor’s orders, met with other nurses, talked about care plans, met with family members and patients, and because she was a charge nurse, delegated tasks to other nurses and technicians.

“When I was a very new nurse, there was a case that really stood out because it was very eye-opening to me,” Gilbert said. “I had a patient that checked herself in. She was a second grade teacher and she was the first patient that I was ever around that I believed she actually had a dissociative identity disorder, what we now call a multiple personality disorder.”

The patient was getting reports on her

behavior at school. She would tear up things and not remember why or when she did that. The patient would lose time and

care setting, that is really compromised emotionally, mentally, psychologically, and you have the ability through empathy

not remember what she did or said.

“To see her and others come from a very fragile and upsetting place, to walking out of there and being really appreciative of our assistance of helping her get her life back, I think those are the most memorable times,” Gilbert said. “When you take somebody in a psychiatric intensive

and support to get them back on the right track.”

The hardest part of Gilbert’s job was working with children, especially after she became a mom. Many of her patients were abused or had tragic family situations.

“I think being a nurse taps into my natural desire to show empathy towards others

and connect with them,” Gilbert said. “You are able to help people through a very difficult time whether it be emotional or physical. That to me seems to be the nicest thing about nursing, it allows me to help other while tapping into my natural and my characteristic traits that I have and value.”

Nursing gave her flexibility with her schedule so she could raise her children and offered a variety of job opportunities.

“I have always been a teacher in my soul and in my spirit,” Gilbert said. “That was actually the first thing I wanted to do, but that’s what both my parents did in high school and they wanted me to go my own path. I didn’t get out of nursing because I didn’t like it. I still loved it when I left it.”

In 2001, Gilbert wanted to become a special education teacher. While she was on the phone about to pay for her teaching courses, the college advisor convinced her to look into health science.

“The advisor said ‘I’ll tell you what, before I take your money why don’t you look into [health science] and see what you can find,” Gilbert said. “I found a job online and within 24 hours, I got a job at Connally High School as a teacher. That story changed my life and I’ve been happy ever since. I truly adore my job teaching and I’ve been teaching ever since.”

Feature September 28, 2018

15

Former occupation paves way for career in teaching Brisa Espinoza | Asst. Editor

After a fumble by Cris Collinsworth, Joe Montana recovers the ball and throws it to Earl Cooper who then scores from a 10-yard pass during the second quarter of Super Bowl XVI. Cooper scores the second touchdown for the San Francisco 49ers, putting the 49ers in a 14-0 lead against the Cincinnati Bengals.

Cooper was drafted during the first round of the 1980 NFL Draft and was the overall 13th pick. He was selected by the San Francisco 49ers upon graduating from Rice University. The Lexington, Texas native was then on his way to San Francisco, California to put his professional football career into gear.

“I enjoyed my time in California, but I never spent an offseason in San Francisco. I was so much of a ‘Texan’, that every year I was the last to arrive to training camp and the first one to leave,” Cooper said. “I always wanted to be back in Texas as soon as I could because that’s where my roots are.”

To pursue a career in the professional football league requires a mental toughness, apart from being skilled in football. Playing for the NFL is a process, a position on the team is never set in stone due to constant changes within the team.

“It was fun, hard, tough but overall it was a job. The mentality you have to have in order to play a game at such a high level is tough. So much is required of you, people believe that once you make the team, you’re on the team.

But you have to form yourself to the winning standard so that you can keep your place on the team,” Cooper said.

“The hardest part of being in the NFL is getting there, you have to go through all of high school playing football and then all of college. I never knew I was going to get drafted.

Every kid and every man, wish to be able to play on a NFL team.”

Like any job, playing for the NFL does not always have its ideal moments, Cooper said.

“When you don’t play as well as you want to you get mad, because of your mistakes you may lose your starting

sport or your playing time might get diminished,” Cooper said. “You also have the whole country watching you make the mistakes during the game.”

Leaving football was something that had gone through Cooper’s mind even before pursuing to play football in the NFL. “I actually tried to stop playing football in high school and college. Football to me is very barbaric and to play you need a very aggressive mindset to be good. I wasn’t always ready to have that attitude,” Cooper said. “You’re in the weight room every day and running all the time. After I put into thought about all the concussions and migraines, I started to think more about life after football I decided it was time to try something different that wasn’t football.”

Soon after deciding to retire from professional football, Cooper returned back to his hometown of Lexington, Texas. 11 years after returning, he became a special education teacher at Lexington High School.

“Once I returned to Lexington, I noticed that my old high school had a job opening so I asked if there was a possibility that I could get the job,” Cooper said. “I had to go through all the formalities but I was able to get my teacher certification through Region 13’s certification program and then I was able to teach special education.”

Cooper calls becoming a teacher “one of the best decisions” he has ever made. Teaching, sharing knowledge and making a difference in young people’s lives, is something that he values with teaching.

“Teaching has benefited me greatly. This is my 15th year at Hendrickson, being somewhere for fifteen years you have to like where you are and like what you do,” Cooper said. “The student body and faculty here

is the best in the state. I’ll never regret becoming a teacher and I’ll never regret coming to Hendrickson.”

Teacher looks back on past jobs in acting, business McKenna Lucas | Co-Editor

As the quiet and sensible man behind the desk, algebra II teacher Johnnie Kaatz’s resume would shock. With jobs ranging from acting to business, he recounts what he’s learned along the way.

“You think it’s a lot of glamour and high pay, but most of the movies were independent and I got a t-shirt for a UT commercial and that was it,” Kaatz said. “The UT commercial took six hours to film, so there was a lot of waiting. But you do meet a lot of very interesting people while working as an extra.”

The most famous person Kaatz has met was Ed McMahon, known for hosting the Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and Star Search, the first televised talent show. He also met country singer Luke Bryan at a concert.

“My biggest advice for getting into acting is be ready for a lot of waiting and trying out for a lot of different parts,” Kaatz said. “Very few people are very successful. The only reason I did this was I just wanted to find out what it was like. I was in line for a Russian mobster in the movie Machete. It was down to two people, me and another guy. I didn’t get the part.

I never actually got to audition for the part, it was all based on pictures. I guess I didn’t look like a Russian mobster, which is a good thing, I guess.”

Kaatz pursued acting to gain more perspective on the movie industry. He never envisioned acting as a full-time job, but as a chance to be on TV.

“I was an extra on a couple of movies, one called Computer Chess, another one was Someone Up There Likes Me the new version, and The Lying Game on ABC family a few years ago,” Kaatz said. “The Lying Game was a teenage soap opera. I was in the episode ‘Not Guilty as Charged,’ I was in the courtroom and at the bottom of the steps of the court house. I was a detective. But you would have to know where I am in the show to know that it’s me.”

Besides acting and teaching, Kaatz was the owner of a construction company for 20 years, was co-owner of an office supply store for two years, carries a real estate license and is the Director of Education for a local Sylvan location, a tutor and test prep learning center.

“Teaching has been my favorite job so far,” Kaatz said. “I like the interaction with the students and I like helping people and seeing people evolve as they mature and grow. I think I have helped some students along the way, made an impact for students I worked with and taught for.”

Kaatz wanted to be a math teacher ever since he had the same math teacher for three years in middle school. His other jobs have given him more insight and experience about working, he said.

“Once you start closing doors, it’s very hard to reopen them,” Kaatz said. “Life is a learning experience, it just goes on and on.”

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Entertainment Volume 12, Issue 2

Is it worth the Cost[co]?

Staff reviews food from newly built warehouse store Abigail Hill | Asst. Editor

Maria Torres | Reporter

Maya Lewis | Reporter

Megan Fletcher | Co-Editor

With the recent opening of a new membershIp-based warehouse store, critism of the food court has risen. Despite the fact that Costo’s food court requires a membership card, students and adults alike can still sneak by. Sometimes.

Costco’s famous hot dogs have stayed at $1.50 for both the hot dog and a soda since 1985. At a quarter pound, the hot dog has surprising bang for its buck. Packed with 100 percent beef, it’s obvious Costco puts effort not only into public relations, but also the quality of the food. When you get the meal, it comes plain, but thankfully Costco provides an extensive condiment bar complete with ketchup, mustard, relish, and onions: everything a hot dog fan could dream of.

Combining twisted dough with cinnamon and sugar, churros are sold with a price of $1, making them one of the best deals at the Costco Food Court. Because of their bulkbuying wholesale reputation, the churros are about 18 inches long. The taste of soft, crispy dough topped with sweet sugar and cinnamon, bringing a positive mood towards every person who buys these amazing churros. Many customers who come and go to shop occasionally stop by the food court to enjoy a bite of their famous churros.

Big on value, the pizza at Cosco comes in either cheese or pepperoni. At just $1.99, the single slice is so large, it’s about the equivalent of two or three slices anywhere else.

There’s one catch: it’s greasy. I had to use at least ten napkins to get most of the oil off of the pepperoni slice. Granted, pepperoni pizza is almost always greasier than cheese, but nevertheless the pie was drenched. It took a while to get through the massive slice, but in the end the crust was just the right amount of crunchy. It may be cheap, but the pizza is only worth it for those of you who enjoy grease, and a lot of it.

The berry smoothie from Costco only comes at 16 oz, and is a quality drink for relaxing after a stressful day. At $1.45, it’s served cold, but take your time or you’ll be getting a few brain freezes along the way. It’s quenching, if you’re thirsty and sweet enough to satisfy your cravings. On first glance, it looks very watery; but it doesn’t taste watered down. The taste is fresh and fruity, just as a smoothie should be. Blended together is a combination of varied berry purees, orange juice and sweetener. However, this smoothie didn’t blow my mind. I was actually underwhelmed by its basic, simple taste. If you’re not a fan of texture, you won’t like the strawberry seeds that come with every sip. But if you’re looking for a sweet, cheap, refreshing drink, then Costco is the place to go.

Change the Channel

Entertainment September 28, 2018

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Staff reviews Netflix Originals shows, movies On My Block To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before Camryn Sadlier | Reporter Lara Jean (Lana Condor) writes love letters to all the boys that she has ever had a crush on. These addressed and unsent letters stay in her hat box and are secret to everyone besides herself, or so she thinks.

One day, every single one of the letters is sent out. One ends up in the hands of school heart-throb and childhood friend, Peter Kavinsky and another in the hands of her sister’s former love, Josh Sanderson (Israel Broussard).

Lara Jean and Peter start a fake love-contract to make Peter’s ex-girlfriend jealous and convince Josh that Lara Jean doesn’t have feelings for him anymore. Throughout the film, the two develop a unique relationship as each day goes on.

This film was produced diversely from the cinematics to the casting choices. As the story goes on, Lara Jean becomes more confident and her character grows. The location selections were enjoyable to watch and a brilliant contribution to the plot. The movie as well as the book show intense appreciation to Asian-American culture and the sequel is greatly anticipated.

Set it Up Kyla White | Reporter The bickering-friends-turned-lovers trope may seem overused, but you can’t help but love it in Set it Up. The new Netflix Original stars Zoey Deutch and Glen Powell as two underpaid assistants, Harper and Charlie, who plot to get their workaholic bosses together.

The whole story may be focused on getting their bosses together for personal gain, but it’s hard to not watch the friendship that forms between the two. Set it Up is sure to be a favorite over time among other Netflix Originals.

The characters have real life problems that showcase the difficulties in trying to secure their goal in life. On top of that, the cast portrays every role amazingly, which makes their development throughout the movie being believable. Besides the fact they produce or co-produce everything they put out, they make it a point to have talented diverse casts that deserve every bit of recognition they receive.

Addison Hildebrandt | Reporter One of Netflix’s newest originals, On My Block follows a group of four bright, street savvy friends who navigate their way through their first year of high school. These lifelong friendships are put to the test as they experience challenges, overcoming them with the help of each other and their families. Teens can relate to the show as the characters deal with drama and the struggles of high school. Despite following a group of teenagers, the show allows people of all ages to connect with the characters. On My Block stands out from shows on cable because it is authentic: it isn’t afraid to show or say whatever it wants which can break boundaries.

On My Block season 2 will be released spring of 2019.

Sierra Burgess is a Loser Lauren Saenz | Reporter Sierra Burgess Is a Loser focuses on unpopular high schooler Sierra Burgess (Shannon Purser) and her attempts to win over Jamey (Noah Centineo), a football jock.

Jamey originally shows interest in mean girl Veronica (Kristine Froseth) and asks for her number, but she gives him Sierra’s number as a joke, leaving Sierra confused when he texts her. Sierra pretends to be Veronica to continue talking to Jamey, but runs into problems when he asks to video chat and take her on a date. Despite Veronica’s bullying and hatred towards Sierra, she decides to help her as long as she gets something in return. Through this mutual agreement, they get to know each other better and become friends.

This film raises red flags. Sierra deliberately catfished Jamey and pretended to have a disability so he would not recognize her voice. Not only is this unsettling, but it failed at trying to be quirky and relatable. There is one odd scene in particular that exhibited nonconsensual kissing and Sierra is very quick to seek vengeance against people who care about her instead of being considerate.

While the concept of an unlikely couple in high school is refreshing, it lacks proper execution of realistic consequences. The movie sheds a light on catfishing, but addresses the problem in the wrong way. Although the message in this movie was clear, a different one was stated more explicitly—you will be rewarded for pretending to be something you’re not.

Queer Eye Ozark Abigail Hill | Asst. Editor The crime-filled, suspenseful series, Ozark, delivers a thrilling performance following a normal man and his family after unexpected events. When Marty Byrde (Jason Bateman) is forced to cover up a money-laundering scheme, he has to do everything he can to protect his family from a Mexican drug lord by moving to the Ozarks. Through violent scenes and dramatic episodes, Ozark stands out from other TV shows with its outstanding acting and thoroughly thought out plot. While the first season focuses on the cartel and business with the Byrdes, the second season follows the FBI trying to catch Marty Byrde while dangerously trying to expand his money laundering. With two seasons of binge worthy episodes, the show is worth the time to watch for those who enjoy dramatic twists and unexpected endings.

Brisa Espinoza | Asst. Editor Queer Eye, a Netflix Original, is a spinoff of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, which first premiered on Bravo. The “Fab Five” is a group of gay men who travel around the U.S, while helping men or women from all different lifestyles or backgrounds become a better version of themselves.

The men give advice on clothing, grooming, food, design and culture. TV shows that want the same impact as Queer Eye builds with the people on their show, don’t see it through like the Netflix Original does.

The men build personal relationships with the nominees on the show and make sure they are comfortable, and willing to change themselves. They listen to their stories, even when they are not able to relate, and go the extra mile in each episode.

When watching Queer Eye, it feels as if the viewer is transforming with the nominees as they are being helped by the Fab Five. The show makes you believe that you’re there going through all the obstacles with them and leaves you wanting more.

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Sports Volume 12, Issue 2

Catching Up with Trinity Sanders

Senior responds to questions asked about volleyball career Anna Schulze | Asst. Editor

At the varsity game against the Round Rock Dragons, senior Trinity Sanders spikes the ball. Erika Suarez | Photographer

Senior Trinity Sanders dives to the ground keep the ball from hitting the floor in an effort to gain a point. Erika Suarez | Photographer

What does a typical Where are you continuing How do you mentor the What has the season looked pre-game session look like? your volleyball career at? underclassmen? like for the team so far?

“Before games, we eat together as a team, and as we eat we come up with expectations for the game like how many blocks and kills we want. Sometimes we just dance.”

How has the team grown as whole over the season?

“It was difficult at first for the team to grow because we were such a new team, to try to get the underclassmen to understand what a high school team is, because it is so different from middle school volleyball, but now they understand and are a complete part of the team.”

“I’m going to continue my volleyball career at Lamar University.”

What position do you play?

“I play outside hitter.”

“All the seniors mentor the underclassman by just telling them how to do technical things they might not have known. We aren’t mean about it, we just slightly correct them and they make those corrections no problem.”

“The season has been pretty tough just because we are such a young team, but we are trying our best and improving every game.”

practice, and Wednesday we practice after school.”

is definitely the team dynamic. It’s such a team sport we all have to work together.”

What is your favorite part How much do you practice? about playing volleyball?

What are your expectations “Monday and Thursday we have morning “My favorite part about playing volleyball for the season?

“I would like to make it to at least first round playoffs, and I think we can do it.”

Committing to Play

Sports September 28, 2018

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Athletes begin to receive offers as college coaches show interest Brisa Espinoza | Asst. Editor Recruitment in a high school athlete’s world is the ideal situation. Every game played gives an athlete the chance to get noticed by college coaches. Once the coaches notice, they contact the athlete to get more information, and soon invite them to visit the school and the program, eventually offering an athletic scholarship and a chance to play for their school.

“During the University of North Texas recruitment process; the coaches contacted me and then it went from there. When I went to go visit the school, I immediately loved the coaches and school,” sophomore and University of North Texas commit Jori Foote said. “The coaches came and watched one of my club games and the next day they sent me an email and said that they loved the way I played and asked me if I was interested in the school. When I called the coach to talk, I told them I was interested, and luckily they were as interested in me as I was in them.”

Every college with a sports team or program takes part in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

Each school is separated into three divisions, Division I, II and III. Division I schools have largest amount of students and budgets. Division 2 schools are considered a “smaller” school compared to Division 1 schools. Division 3 schools sport programs do not receive any extra

money, according to the NCAA website.

“Committing and getting recruited by D1 schools is an accomplishment, senior and University of California at Berkley commit Curley Young said. “I’ve always dreamt of playing football in college since I was younger and for multiple D1 schools wanting me to play for them is a huge blessing.”

Once the athlete decides on the school that they want to further their athletic career at, they commit to the school. Their commitment is usually announced by them or the school they are committing to through social media.

“Twitter is one of the best sources that is used to reach out to coaches or have coaches reaching out to you,” senior football player Cliffton Styles. “I constantly post on social media and keep my “Hudl” information and highlights updated.”

Over the summer, many athletes from Hendrickson announced their commitment to continue to play sports at many colleges throughout Texas and the U.S. The

commitment is soon finalized on National Signing Day on Feb. 6, when athletes sign the National Letter of Intent to play. The NCAA allows for an early signing period as soon as November 2018 and as late as August 2019.

“I announced my commitment to Vanderbilt University, my family and friends all supported and congratulated me for my decision,” basketball commit Dylan Disu said.

“I don’t ever regret committing young because I knew deep down that Vanderbilt was the right spot for me to continue playing.”

Deciding to pursue sports in college benefits the player by allowing them to gain more experience to better their techniques and playing skills. A plus side to many athletes playing college sports is the chance of relieving an athletic scholarship. The division of the school affects the varying amounts promised to an athlete.

“I didn’t want my parents to pay all the expenses for me to go to college,” senior

soccer player Uly Torrez said. “So I knew I had to go to a college that allowed me to play soccer and get a scholarship to fund my schooling.”

The decision to pursue sport in college is a decision that not many people come up with themselves. Certain sports have run throughout generations of a family and with that it brings pressure to continue to play but as well as living out others dreams for yourself.

“My grandpa always wanted me to go to Duke whenever I was younger,” senior soccer player Eric Embry said. “That dream soon became unrealistic, but because of what my grandpa wanted from me, it pushed me to make sure I continued to play soccer even if it wasn’t going to be for Duke.”

Committing to play a sport showcases an athletes love and willingness to continue.

Though some athletes aren’t ready to commitment throughout their high school career, committing to play is taking the next step in their sports career.

“I didn’t always know I wanted to play basketball,” Disu said. “Football was my favorite sport when I was a kid, that’s what I always envisioned myself playing when I got older. At that time, I didn’t know I was going to become 6’8”, playing football just didn’t really work out for me after that. But I grew to love basketball, so it all worked out.”

Senior Cliffton Styles gets in position for a start of a play during the varsity football game against Westwood.

Sophomore Jori Foote, strikes a ball during her club team, Lonestars game against team Colorado Rush.

Senior Curley Young gives words of encouragement to junior Michael Ike before a play during the varsity football game against Westwood

Senior Dylan Dizu passes ball to fellow teammate during varsity basketball district game against Round Rock.

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People Volume 12, Issue 2

In Ink Body art tells personal stories, shows sentimental meanings Carolina Yanez | Asst. Editor

Brisa Espinoza | Asst. Editor

“I got mine my sophomore year at 16. I have a tattoo on my right forearm that says ‘She is Art’ with a rose.

‘She is Art’ means that everybody is different in their own way and everybody is beautiful in their own way, and no matter what, God made you a beautiful piece of artwork and the rose is for my middle name.

The one I have on my ribs is a lotus flower since it’s the only flower that can grow in mud. Despite all the hardships I’ve been through I’ve learned grace and to live life fully through everything. My mom is a firm believer that your body is your own and you have the choice to do whatever you want with it.

She did warn me how tattoos can go wrong and if it did it was on me and it was going be on my body forever. Teachers don’t really say anything they’re just surprised sometimes because they’ve never seen it, but my friends love my tats.”

-Julia Logan, 11

“My tattoo is on my left forearm and I got it about a week and a half after I turned 18. It means to make the most out of the moment and give little thought to the future. I got it because as I kid I was very shy and always passed up opportunities because I was too scared to say anything, but as I got older, I realized closed mouths don’t get fed. You have to speak up and work for what you want. It’s something I live by and it is in my Godfather’s handwriting so it has a lot of meaning behind it.”

-Kiley Martin, 12

“One is on my left forearm and the other is on my right forearm. The dragon on my left is basically my birth animal. I’ve been working hard my whole life, so the dragon resembles my hard work. The compass is for my aunt- she passed away in 2013,-so basically it means I travel the world with her. I went alone to get the dragon one, but for the compass I went with my mom and we got matching tattoos. I was born overseas and my aunt brought my whole family over, so she meant a lot to my mom and me.”

-Hauie Tran, 12

“I got the tattoo done over summer break in California with my two cousins. I was very nervous because I was unsure of how it was going to feel but sure enough it didn’t feel that bad.

My tattoo is a tribute to my dad. He’s my best friend, so I had to get something that resembled him. I decided to get a smiley face that he always puts on my Christmas and birthday cards, not once has he stopped putting it on them. It may look weird and stupid to one’s eye but it hits close to the heart for me. I had told my parents after I got the tattoo done, my mom thought it was fake, so fake that she licked her finger and tried to rub it off and it was only a day old. For my dad, I was way more nervous to tell just because he hated the idea of me getting a tattoo but at some point I had to tell him and he was really happy about it. I’m really glad he likes it because it’s for him and it’s on me forever. My tattoo has a lot of meaning to me and I love looking at it all the time randomly. Just having a reminder of something special on me is great.”

-Julianna Smits, 12