KEQ - The Untold Stories Issue - Winter 2018

Volume 5 Issue 2

the student publication of benilde-st. margaret’s high school

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KEQ: Untold Stories Letter From the Editor Hi Friends!

The goal of this issue was to go beyond the surface of what we know as members of Benilde-St. Margaret’s. Senior Tenley Gage is beautifully captured on the front cover to represent the idea of untold truths here at BSM. Michael Koch’s design skills and Gage’s lipstick embrace BSM’s ongoing red pride.

I am very proud of various photography and design within this issue. The art team has worked and collaborated to create an artistic approach for various stories. The Knight Errant editing team was invested in these stories. For this issue, writers courageously sought out personal testimonies.

One of my favorite stories is “No Laughing Matter,” written by Noah Lay-

ton, captured by Emma Paquette, and designed by Flynn Skahan. Bullying has been and unfortunately will continue to be an ongoing issue for students. Layton has highlighted innocent intentions of “joking” as a form of bullying when the recipient’s feelings are not considered. Even if a friend bluntly spoke a comment that was supposed to be humorous, that is a form of bullying.

Topics within this issue have been chosen for readers to think twice about their actions.

“Found in Translation” is an extraordinary story written by Kayla Farrey, translated by Olivia Pohlen, and designed

by Johnny Byrnes. Within BSM, there are different family structures and dynamics.

Some of our families experience language as a barrier in their everyday lives. The

Publication Policy KEQ is written and produced by journalism students at Benilde-St. Margaret’s School. The views expressed in this magazine are the opinions of the writers and not necessarily those of the Knight Errant staff, advisers, or BSM administrators. It is distributed for free to all BSM high school students.

Benilde-St. Margaret’s School 2501 Highway 100 South St. Louis Park, Minnesota, 55416 Contact knighterrant@bsmschool.org

United States is filled with different cultures and languages and at BSM––some of our students act as translators for their parents.

Overall, I want to thank every designer, photographer, editor, writer and adviser on their work on this issue. It is very important for unfamiliar stories to be told.

Until next time,

Ashley Ortizcazarin

Staff Editor-in-Chief: Abby Letscher KEQ Managing Editor: Ashley Ortizcazarin Photography Editor: Ginny Lyons, Lauren Beh Design Editor: Andrew Cadle Editors: Henry Bird, Mary Youngblut, Kailyn Pedersen, Henry Witterschein, Vivian Shinall, Andrew Plouff, Michael Hunter Writers: Taylor Anderson, Spencer Sweeney, Breah Banks, Megan Olk, Estelle Buetz, Freida Fortier, Kailyn Pedersen, Payton Schuldt, Brady Solomon, Kaitlyn McTigue, Kylie Nevells, Olivia Pohlen, Allie Brooks, Quinn Ehlen, Kayla Farrey, Ben Larson, Noah Layton, Erin Long, Stella Fortier Photographers: Maddie Kurtovich, Muriel Ruppert, Jessie Willie, Emma Paquette, Morgan Williams, Lauren Beh, Ashley Ortizcazarin Designers: Jack Williams, Jack Feld, Luke Tift, Michael Koch, Johnny Byrnes, Flynn Skahan, Mark Kincs

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Contents

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excitement of hearing an untold story.�

John Hope

One feels the

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Becca Meagher

Jerry Pettinger

As Campus Minister, Becca Meagher conducts the religious events at BSM such as the retreats, labyrinth, and Catholic Schools Week. Meagher helps students link their faith to their education and introduces the community to different spiritual experiences.

Teaching a senior religion class, advising the speech team, directing Red Knight Volunteer Corps and Link Crew, Meagher is woven into the school’s fabric more tightly than her job description requires. “It’s really important to me that every student at BSM feels safe and respected spiritually,” Meagher said.

Starting at BSM in early 2000, Meagher has been involved with many extracurriculars and the theology department since the beginning. Since then she has always been seen showing her support, inside and out of the school day. “The idea of forming a community is really indicative of what my job is,” Meagher said.

Having worked at BSM for over 22 years now, students may recognize Athletic Director Jerry Pettinger walking through the halls, yet students may not know all that he truly does here. “I oversee the extracurricular activities and athletics here at BSM,” Pettinger said.

Being involved with every sport as well as fine arts activities like debate, mock trial, and speech, his influence expands further than his desk. Before coming to BSM, Pettinger had many different jobs, from coaching basketball to being an admissions director for another Catholic school, and everything in-between.

His move from Chicago to the Twin Cities landed him the opportunity to be either Athletic Director of BSM or the Dean of Students at Blake. “AD sounded a lot more fun than being a Dean of Students,” Pettinger said.

Unsung Heroes

Students encounter Benilde-St. Margaret’s staff every day but sometimes forget their importance to the school’s functionality.

Between running campus ministry to keeping the school’s athletics running smoothly, every student, teacher, and alum could be recognized as a piece of BSM’s lifeline. These four figures are just a few of the people who committedly work behind the scenes to benefit the overall well-being of BSM.

Writer: Taylor Anderson Photographer: Lauren Beh Designer: Jack Williams

Anne Moen

Shane Sisco

Although students see maintenance staff member Anne Moen throughout their day, they may not know what her title entails.

Helping coordinate the setup and takedown of events held here at BSM, Moen is in the middle of it all. Spending close to 25 years here, Moen knows the school inside and out and can help with almost anything asked of her. “I like it here because we are a close knit group, much like a family,” Moen said.

After her eldest child became a senior here at BSM, Moen took the job. Having her five children graduating from Benilde-St. Margaret’s, she loves the atmosphere of the school. “Someone is always there to lend a hand or listen to a problem,” Moen said.

Taking her work a step further, Moen helps with the work study program, which allows students to help with the daily upkeep of BSM in exchange for tuition assistance.

There’s a variety of students at BSM who need financial help in order to attend school. As head of Student Billing and Financial Aid, Shane Sisco helps create affordable financial plans to make BSM accessible to all. “I enjoy my job. While it can be difficult at times, it is very fulfilling. I enjoy helping our families and supporting the students in achieving their goals both while at BSM and beyond,” Sisco said.

Not only does she help all students with finances, Sisco also makes sure Benilde-St. Margaret’s diverse students feel welcomed.

“I requested to mentor a few students. That developed into my role as a student advocate and member of the Equity and Inclusion Team,” Sisco said.

Sisco’s line of work demands an organized mindset, but she’s hoping to venture into music as well. “I love music, and I love to sing. I am waiting for my special invitation from the Music Department,” Sisco said.

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Donations Welcome

Writer: Spencer Sweeney Photographer: Maddie Kurtovich Designer: Michael Koch

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s a private, Catholic school, BSM can not rely on government funding; it must support itself. Tuition makes up a large part of the yearly intake; however, what students pay to attend BSM does not cover all of the costs of the school. The rest of needed money must be made up in donations, both small and large. Currently BSM is starting a new capital campaign and working to garner gifts for the Annual Fund. As a part of this mission, the school has recently received multiple donations including one anonymous donation of one million dollars, which begs the question: how are these large donations procured?

Within BSM’s Advancement Department, there is a group of people working specifically on getting such donations to fund large projects for the school. As the Chief Advancement Officer, Rebecca Kolis coordinates all gifts, large and small, and she is often the first contact with donors and continues the relationship throughout the process. President Dr. Adam Ehrmantraut also is involved, mostly with the large donations, speaking with potential donors about the school. Michael Charles, the Advancement Director, as well as a team of volunteers who comprise the Steering Committee and the Board of Directors are also involved with the donations. Though they are behind the scenes, they work diligently to guide how BSM uses donations as well as contact, keep in touch with and thank donors. “It’s important to...always be talking to people,”

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Kolis said.

Not every donation is a million dollars.

There are many smaller donations that do not get as much press. From monthly donations to donations of tens of thousands of dollars or more, BSM receives regular support from its community. “Some families have done more than we thought, some...couldn’t do as much, but they want to be involved….It doesn’t matter if it’s 20 dollars or a million dollars; it definitely helps,” Kolis said.

Most of the time, large donations–– such as the million dollar one–– come from a person or family already donating to the school regularly who is then asked to donate more for the purpose of a large project or school addition. For this to happen, someone must first make contact with the person or family in question to see if they would like to donate. It can take just one conversation to convince them that BSM is a worthy recipient of their assets, but more often, it takes a series of conversations, visits, and tours to show them the school’s finer points. “There is kind of a science to it,” Kolis said.

The Advancement Department conducts meetings with potential donors, schedules tours, and organizes group presentations, but to get maximum donations for capital campaigns the participation of administration, teachers, parents, and students is required. There are brochures made with pictures of students and videos with footage of classrooms and testimonials. These types of materials

create a sense of community within the donors. “With this campaign, we did events where we showed a video, and we talked about how it will change the school,” Kolis said.

Ehrmantraut is also involved in getting donors to give money to the school. He talks extensively with families who are seriously considering a donation to express what the money could mean to BSM. “Any time we sit down with someone who is considering making...a significant gift to BSM, I’m always telling the story of how that impacts our students and how that plays out over the course of the future,” Ehrmantraut said.

Once a donor is committed to donating, they must fill out the accompanying paperwork. Part of this includes documenting how they would like the money to be used and over what period of time. During this process, and even after the donation is made, the donors are in frequent contact with the school. “No matter how much you’re asking for...it can feel a little nerve-racking, but you also feel good about what you’re asking for,” Kolis said.

The use of the current million dollar gift, and others involved with the most recent campaign, has already been outlined.

The donations will go a long way towards improvements and upgrades to the facility, training for the teachers and employees, and the school’s endowment. “In the end, every dollar is designed to improve the student experience,” Ehrmantraut said.

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,

I n g l e s

como

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segundo

hen one starts to learn a new language, it comes with challenges, difficulties, and a new sense of discovery. Here at BSM, several students and teachers originally spoke a different language, and through years of hard work and determination they have become fluent in the English language.

Along with the 171,476 words in the Oxford English dictionary, American culture also comes with its own slang that most English classes wouldn’t cover. Many in the process of learning English struggle to grasp words such as sports terms that may not come up as often in daily conversation.

“References to sports like home run, and touchdown I didn’t understand,” French teacher Madame Frederique Toft, whose first language is French, said.

Despite practice and simply using the English language every day, those who have learned English as a second language can still sometimes struggle with some pronunciations. “It’s still now difficult for me to pronounce some words,” sophomore Jimena McMerty-Brummer, whose native language is Spanish, said.

When learning English from any language, not just Spanish, pronunciation proves to be a key hurdle to fluency.

Some languages pronounce different letter combinations differently, and some don’t even use all of the sounds involved in the English language. It takes practice and experience to become accustomed to English pronunciations. “I couldn’t

pronounce the (th) sound. I would say tree instead of three,” Toft said.

While learning English, complications are sure to rise. Sometimes incorrect pronunciation or phrasing can confuse native English speakers. While those who grew up speaking English may get frustrated by incorrect pronunciation of seemingly easy words, it is easy to forget that learning a new language involves much more than memorizing the English dictionary. Grammar, pronunciation, and syntax all vary from language to language and can take years to master. Toft came across a prominent pronunciation problem while working at 3M: a Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company. “I used to work for 3M, as an intern, and I remember having to do market research, I

idioma

would have to introduce myself while calling, and I would say my name is Frederique. I’m with free M, instead of three M, and they’d be so confused!” Toft, who began to learn English at age 12, said.

However, time and effort helps reduce the confusion. After learning a new language, it is necessary to practice and put effort into avoiding mispronunciations.

Toft still finds it necessary to focus on pronunciation to ensure native English speakers understand all she says. “I have to avoid it; I don’t want to be caught saying something different,” Toft said, referring to her mispronunciations.

Through attending school, speaking English becomes easier. McMertyBrummer attended an English Immersion school in Mazapan, Honduras. Toft attended a public school through elementary through high school, located in France, and English simply happened to be one of her multiple classes. “ I think what really works and helps to be able to retain the information is when the culture and the language are connected,” Toft said.

Overall, learning a new language comes with hardships, and new found opportunities. It is a years-long process that continues far beyond learning vocabulary. The hard work of learning a foreign language takes perseverance and dedication, but many find that the knowledge is worth the effort. “Learning is trying, then falling, then trying again,” Toft said.

Writer: Breah Banks and Abby Letscher Photographer: Maddie Kurtovich Designer: Michael Koch

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Then Now

and

Writer: Kailyn Pedersen Photographer: Ginny Lyons Designer: Jack Williams

I

n schools across America, teachers pave the way to help students reach success, and the relationship between a student and teacher is unique and impactful. However, this dynamic can quickly be shifted if the student, later in life, comes to teach alongside their former teacher. This is a common theme within the BSM community, as there are many teachers that have taught their current coworkers in past years.

Mr. Mark Peterson taught math teacher Ms. Joanie Sauer throughout her sophomore year in biology and as a homeroom teacher. “We had this period of time in our lives where we knew each other as teacher and student and now we know each other as coworkers,” Peterson said.

However, Peterson still remembers Sauer as a student, even details down to conferences with her parents and her demeanor in the classroom. “Other than being just a goofy sophomore, I think Ms. Sauer was a pretty solid student,” Peterson said.

Similarly, Sauer also remembers having Peterson has a teacher.“I was really

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excited when I found out that Mark Peterson was coming back to work here at BSM because I’d been here for a couple years teaching before he came back,” Sauer said.

Sauer still has many little memories of Peterson in the classroom while she was a student, but he is not the only teacher that she has worked with during her time as a teacher at BSM. “I had Mr. Backen as a teacher, and I had Mr. Effertz as a teacher… and I also had Mr. Wander who still is a coach here,” Sauer said.

While the shift to becoming coworkers may be atypical, it is a familiar occurrence for faculty of BSM. English teacher Ms. Kari Koshiol had formerly taught Ms. Claire Shea, principal of the BSM Junior High. Koshiol has known Shea for the majority of her life—first as a nanny and again as a teacher and speech coach at BSM. “I know her family; I know she gets really excited when she can use the semicolon correctly…she knows me really well too. She knows my values and understands me as a person,” Koshiol said.

As Shea’s former nanny, Koshiol has many fond memories of Shea as a middle

schooler. One that especially stands out is when Shea was was forced by her father to prepare for her middle school swim team over the summer. Koshiol took Shea to the pool to swim laps every morning. “We spent every day in August counting her laps in the pool, so she would have to swim them and I would [count]... and after two she would be like, ‘I don’t want to do this anymore!’ [and I would tell her] ‘You have to!” Koshiol said.

This already strong relationship lent itself well to the newfound coworker dynamic when Shea applied for a job at BSM. “You can have a connection that goes beyond just being coworker and being coworkers, makes it also very friendly,” Shea said.

Shea elaborated on the extent of her strong relationship and history with Koshiol. “She really knew me at a point in my life that was formative…so now to have her as a friend and colleague and peer at work, it’s just so much more multidimensional because she knows me more on such a deeper level,” Shea said.

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Hittin’ the

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Books

For students, the combination of homework and tests in every class can result in an abundance of stress; sometimes this stress results in cheating.

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ith advancing technology and desperate minds, cheating is at a high in our society. Students have an inside look on how cheating occurs, but parents and teachers are only left with the discipline aspect and questions of why.

The majority of people agree that cheating is wrong, but everyone agrees it happens nonetheless. “I think cheating is completely unacceptable on tests and homework that aren’t group projects. I think kids do it because they are feeling an enormous amount of pressure to succeed or they run out of time to study or have other learning or home factors that keep them from being able to prepare and study,” BSM parent Jane Steck said.

Cheating is known to enhance the domino effect, meaning if Student X cheats then it is more likely Student Y will cheat as well. This has become more evident in society today, due to students’ easy accessibility to snap a photo with an iPhone, or text on a group chat, or take a screenshot online and forward to classmates. “I think it is immoral. If one person is [cheating], then other people might be tempted to because they see that as an advantage,” junior Meagan Steck said.

Cheating in high school today differs from cheating in the past generations for several reasons, but the biggest difference is advanced technology. Many tests are given on laptops, which means all the answers are a click away. “I think it is easier to cheat now, just because you have information at your fingertips. Back in the day before we had the technology, cheating still occurred but it was a bit more challenging to do. To find information if you were going to claim another piece of work as your own, for example, then you would have to go into a library to find a source. Nowadays you can open up your laptop and have Google,” social studies teacher Cherie Vroman said.

Teachers and students may differ in their opinions regarding the definition of cheating. Especially in this day and age, the majority of school worksheets or packets have an answer key somewhere online, not to mention the various websites with exact answers to math and science textbooks, as well as full chapter-by-chapter summaries for English or literature classes. “I think there are some gray areas of what is cheating such as sharing Google Docs for more busy work assignments or study guides, and then I guess it would depend on the teacher’s expectations for that class,” Jane Steck said.

While some teachers despise the idea of sites filled with quick and painless answers, other teachers see the possible benefits. So, is this cheating? “If a student is using only Sparknotes or Shmoop, absolutely.

If they are using Sparknotes and Shmoop to generate ideas, which then they can back up with reference to the text, then no, you can get ideas from anywhere. If they are using words and paragraphs from Shmoop or Sparknotes and trying to put it off as their own ideas, then that absolutely is plagiarism,” English teacher Maura Brew said.

BSM’s policy for academic misconduct includes cheating, sharing answers with another student, plagiarism, the use of unauthorized materials, and any advance notices relating to material on a test or quiz. “By and large it can vary a bit by teacher, which in a way is nice so teachers can set their own policies. What happens with a cheating situation: a teacher fills out an academic misconduct form, they deal with their own policy; I set mine in my syllabus. And that goes into Mr. Yancy, and he will deal with it as he deems necessary,” Vroman said.

Writer: Kayla Farrey Designer: Andrew Cadle Graphics Courtesy of Thinkstock

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g n i n a Cle d n i h Be the s e n e c S

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t BSM, one of the many groups of people that works hard everyday to keep the school going is the maintenance crew, which is valuable and necessary for BSM not only to survive, but also to thrive. Whether it’s setting up for an event or cleaning the classrooms, without the maintenance crew, BSM would not be able to function. They arrive first in the morning and are the last ones out at night, making sure the entire building is clean and in order.

The maintenance crew works extremely hard every day to ensure that the BSM experience is a good one for teachers, students, and all other members of the community who walk through the building. Whether it’s putting salt on an icy sidewalk to make sure students don’t slip or fixing the many problems that can occur throughout a school day, the maintenance crew affects every person that enters the building.

Learning support specialist Ms. Sandra Barry believes that without the crew, BSM would not be able to open its doors.

“I think that so much of what the maintenance crew here does is behind the scenes, and you just take for granted that you come to school in the morning, and you’re in a clean and healthy atmosphere and that they attend to all the details that we don’t. I worked in alumni for five years and did events and the amount of work that goes in to setting up for Mass, which you don’t even think about you just come in and come out. They literally make the school a welcoming, comfortable place to be,” Barry said.

For Barry and all teachers at BSM, the maintenance crew greatly affects their jobs. “I’m grateful for how thoughtful they are, the attention to detail, the way that it’s a team effort, and everybody does their part and together we’re able to try and support all the BSM students that way,” Spanish

teacher Mr. Matthew McMerty-Brummer said.

The maintenance crew not only does the physical work to keep the school clean and running, but they are also very present and important members of our community here at BSM. “I just think they’re great. They’re all wonderful.

They’re all always smiling and saying good morning and hello, and they’re the ones you call when someone pukes in the hallway, and they still have a sense of humor about it. I just think we’re really lucky to have people who care so much about this school and the building to be here,” Barry said.

Another great quality about the maintenance crew is that they are dependable. Faculty, staff, and students can rely on them to show up if there is ever a problem. “[BSM] couldn’t do anything without the maintenance crew. They are so integral and valuable to our community. The way they set up and take down for events, the way they show up and fix things in our classrooms, the way I can email or call them, and they’ll turn up the heat in my room. They’re indispensable, and I’m really glad that they’re here,” English teacher Ms. Kaia Preus said.

Without the maintenance crew, many can agree that the school would not be able to function. “In student council, we’re constantly tabling and setting things up, and they’re always there to help. The school would fall apart. It would actually crumble physically and fall apart without them. I’m very happy that they work so hard for all of us so that we can do our jobs, and we can learn and grow. Without them, we wouldn’t be able to do that. I’m very thankful for them and I don’t think they get enough credit. I wish that all of the students, every time they saw them doing anything, that they would thank them,” Preus said.

Writer: Allie Brooks Photographer: Muriel Ruppert Designer: Johnny Byrnes

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Why 2

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veryone knows that BSM is located east of Highway 100 in the swampland, but many do not know why the school resides where it does. When Benilde High School and St. Margaret’s Academy combined to form Benilde-St. Margaret’s, what caused the swampy Benilde campus to be chosen as the site for the upcoming school?

Until the mid-1970’s, the two separate Catholic schools operated independently of each other. In 1974, the Sisters of St. Joseph joined the Benedictines on the Benilde High School campus after selling St. Margaret’s Academy to the Minneapolis school system.

Hence, the beginning of Benilde-St. Margaret’s.

St. Margaret’s Academy was located off the north side of 394 and can still be seen from the freeway. Currently, the building takes the form of Anwatin Middle School, which is a Minneapolis public school for grades 6-8. However, a large St. Margaret of Scotland mosaic can still be seen on the side of the school.

That building was not chosen as the site for BSM for two reasons. “Their campus did not have much land, so there could

be no athletic fields built on the campus.

Also, the building was in the Minneapolis School District, and selling it to that district yielded a higher price than selling Benilde High School. Their building was much nicer, but this is the spot we took,” Alumni Relations Director & Community Events Ms. Mary Fran O’Keefe said.

As for Benilde High School, the plan for the merger was to expand the campus.

What now serves as a parking lot shared with BSM by Beth El Synagogue for all sophomores and juniors could have been more classrooms, gyms, or fields. “When this school was built, the thought was that we would expand and build on the synagogue area, but that land was obviously sold to the Beth El Jewish community,”

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y 2501 Hwy 100 South?

O’Keefe said.

Even though Beth El moved into the land south of BSM’s building, the east side of the building had the desired space to build the athletic fields. Due to the topography and nature surrounding BSM’s building, constructing athletic fields proved to be difficult. BSM has a large amount of wetlands and low land on the east side of the school. In fact, BSM and DeLaSalle used to have different nicknames for their locations. “[DeLaSalle] was affectionately referred to as ‘river rats’ while we were affectionately referred to as ‘swamp rats,’” BSM alum and Boys’ Basketball Head Coach Mr. John Moore said.

In order to build athletic fields, BSM had to remove some of this land, but it isn’t that simple. “Based on the ruling of Minnehaha Creek Watershed District, we had

to replace double the amount of wetlands that we removed,” O’Keefe said.

BSM improved the environment by adding these fields. In addition to adding more wetlands, construction workers also dug up much concrete and trash that were left buried from construction on Highway 100. Other weird things were found like dead fish from the swampland. “I thought that the project actually helped the environment more than hurting it,” O’Keefe said.

Thinking about why BSM looks the way it does today inevitably causes one to think about how it will look in the future.

“When looking at a ten to twenty year plan of what we want BSM to look like, the outside might not look too different, except for maybe the fields. But, there are several things that we want to change, including dining and kitchen areas, training facilities, the north building, music facilities, and the spaces where students can socialize and collaborate,” BSM President Dr. Adam Ehrmantraut said.

Writer: Quinn Ehlen Photographer: Muriel Ruppert Designer: Mark Kincs

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In English

T

he most commonly used language in the U.S. is English, yet there are over 500 languages spoken here.

When people do not know the English language, it can be a severe challenge, known as a language barrier. To overcome this in conversations, people may use hand signals, a bilingual dictionary, or possibly Google Translate. BSM is home to a few students who are human translators for their parents. This job holds much responsibility for BSM’s young students.

Many teenagers would probably find it a burden to constantly translate for their parents, yet that is not the case for three junior students at BSM; Karen Martinez-Beltran, Myrka Zambrano, and Julio Maren-Beltran.

Martinez-Beltran helps translate from Spanish to English or vice versa for her parents, and even grandparents. She explained that her mother can understand English fairly well, though she cannot speak it. Her mother becomes insecure about her accent, so Martinez-Beltran takes over and translates for the family. “They definitely rely on me for everything. If my mom has a dentist appointment or a doctor’s appointment––actually anyone in my family like my grandparents ––I always go with them especially in the summer. They try to schedule them on the weekends, so I don’t have to miss any school, and we try to make it work with my schedule because of school and work,” Martinez-Beltran said.

Martinez-Beltran genuinely want to help make her parents’ lives as simple as possible, and she maintains a great relationship with her entire family. “I don’t really mind translating for them at all; I under-

stand learning a new language isn’t very easy, and there are a lot of kids who would be embarrassed by that, but I’m not embarrassed at all. If my mom doesn’t understand something, I am going to explain it to her. I love my mom. I will help them with anything. I have a strong relationship with my parents and my whole family,” Martinez-Beltran said.

Learning a second language at any age is challenging, let alone learning it at an older age, when the first language is completely set in stone in the brain. Maren-Beltran learned English as his second language, which came along through school. Now he can communicate better in his second language, English, than his language of origin, Spanish.

Though Maren-Beltran’s parents are still learning all the tricks of the English language, he is happy to help. “I realize that it is their second language and they

Found In Tr L

En Español

a idioma más común en los Estados Unidos es Inglés, pero hay más de 500 otras idiomas hablados aquí. Cuando personas no saben Inglés, puede ser un gran desafío, conocido como una barrera de lenguaje. Para vencer esto en conversaciones, personas pueden usar señales con sus manos, un diccionario bilingue, o posible un traslador del internet. BSM es casa a algunos estudiantes quienes son trasladores humanos para sus padres.

Este rol toma mucho responsabilidad para los estudiantes de BSM. Muchos adolescentes probablemente le consideran siendo un traslador para sus padres una carga pero para tres estudiantes en BSM, Karen Martinez-Beltran, Myrka Zambrano, y Julio Marin-Beltran, esto no es el caso.

Martinez-Beltran ayuda a trasladar de Español a Inglés o vice versa para sus padres y también sus abuelos. Ella explicó que su mamá puede entender Inglés bastante bien aunque no puede hablarlo. Su mamá está inseguro por su acento entonces por esto Martinez-Beltran traslade para la familia. “Ellos definitivamente cuenten en mi para todo. Si mi mamá tiene una cita de dentista o doctor-realmente cualquier persona en mi familia como mis abuelos-yo voy con ellos especialmente en el verano. Ellos tratan de tenerlos por los fines de semana para que yo no necesito perder tiempo en la escuela y nosotros nos tratamos de hacerlo para que funciona con mi horario a causa de la escuela y trabajo,” Martinez-Beltran dijo.

Martinez-Beltran sinceramente quiere ayudar a hacer que la vida de sus padres es lo mas simple posible y ella mantiene buenas relaciones con todo su familia. “A

mi no me importa mucho trasladar para ellos; entiendo que aprender una idioma nueva no es muy fácil y hay muchos niños que serían avergonzados por esto pero no me da verguenza. Si mi mamá no entiende algo, yo le voy a explicarlo a ella. Me amo a mi mamá. Me voy a ayudarles con cualquier cosa. Tengo una relación muy fuerte con mis padres y toda mi familia,” Martinez-Beltran dijo.

Aprendiendo una segunda idioma a cualquier edad es un desafío sino que aprendiendo una idioma a un edad mayor cuando la idioma primaria está fijo en la mente. Marin-Beltran aprendió Inglés como su segunda idioma, que pasó durante la escuela. Ahora él puede comunicar mejor en su segunda idioma, Inglés, en vez de su primera idioma, Español.

Aunque los padres de Marin-Beltran todavía están aprendiendo los trucos de Inglés, el es muy feliz a ayudar. “Yo me doy

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are learning it at an older age than I did, so it is harder for them than it was for me.

My mom is pretty fluent; my dad is a little less, but they can communicate pretty well.

Sometimes, it is a little more complicated, say a doctor’s visit with more complex language,” Maren-Beltran said.

Zambrano’s language of origin is Spanish, and she started acquiring her second language when she was five. Though learning it proved to be difficult, it clearly paid off, as Zambrano is a member of BSM’s speech and mock trial teams. “I basically just went to school; it was hard at first because I didn’t really understand what the teachers were saying, but I was blessed enough that my teacher was actually bilingual in preschool and kindergarten, so they would translate things I didn’t understand which made it a lot easier for me, but it was pretty hard,” Zambrano said.

Zambrano has created a routine for

translating to her family. She understands that her grandfather has stronger communications skills in English than her grandmother. Zambrano’s grandma has made improvements, though it is still very hard for her to speak this second language. “Usually I mediate I guess. I grew accustomed to it whenever they need help. I am there for them; they don’t even have to ask––I already know. It is something I have really gotten used to. Sometimes I get annoyed by it, but I have to do it. I get kind of stressed, but I understand it is something that is hard for them,” Zambrano said.

The future can be a frightening thing when a family is relying on constant help from a student. Though Martinez-Beltran willingly offers her weekends to her parents and grandparents whether it’s for appointments or picking up medicine at the local drugstore, she worries about what is going to happen when she goes to college or

moves out of her family house. “My sister is nine right now; she struggles a little with her Spanish––she goes to Spanish immersion school, so she does know both languages.

[My cousin] would probably have to start translating for her. My mom would have to rely on her or my cousin, who also speaks Spanish and English,” Martinez-Beltran said.

Translating for a parent or family member can also prove to be rewarding.

Students feel comfortable knowing that their family members are improving with the English language. “My mom’s English knowledge is growing, I can tell, and in the summer she tries to go to classes in Minneapolis to speak English,” Martinez-Beltran.

ranslation cuenta que es su idioma seguna y ellos están aprendiendo a un edad mayor que yo entonces es más difícil para ellos que fue para yo. Mi mamá es bastante fluente y mi papá es un poco menos pero ellos pueden comunicar bastante bien. Algunas veces es un poco más complicado como un visito del doctor donde la lengua en un poco más complexo,” Marin-Beltran dijo.

La idioma de origen para Zambrano es Español y ella empezó a aprender su seguna idioma cuando tuvo cinco años. Aunque aprendiendo fue dificil, claramente lo ha pagado viendo que ahora Zambrano es un miembro de los equipos de discurso y mock trial en BSM. “Yo solo iba a la escuela y ella difícil al principio porque no entendí lo que estaban diciendo los maestros pero i was blessed con una maestra que era bilingue en preschool y kinder entonces traslado lo que no entendí que lo hizo más facil para mi, pero fue bastante difícil,” Writter: Kayla Farrey

KEQ_issue2_page14.indd 3

Zambrano dijo.

Zambrano ha creado una rutina para trasladar para su familia. Ella entiende que su abuelo tiene habilidades mejores en Inglés que su abuela. La abuela de Zambrano ha mejorado pero todavía es muy difícil para ella hablar esta segunda idioma.

“Muchas veces y necesito mediar. A mi se me convirtió acostumbrado a esto cuando necesitan ayuda. Yo estoy allí para ellos; no necesitan preguntar-yo ya se. Es algo que ya soy acostumbrado a. Algunas veces me molesta pero es algo que necesito hacer. Me da estrés, pero entiendo que es algo que es difícil para ellos,” Zambrano dijo.

El futuro puede ser una cosa espantosa cuando una familia está contando en ayuda de un estudiante. Aunque Martinez-Beltran ofrece sus fines de semana con gusto a sus padres y abuelos si es para citas o agarrando medicina de la tienda, ella preocupa de lo que va a pasar cuando va al

Designer: Johnny Byrnes Translator: Olivia Pohlen

colegio o mueve de su casa. “Mi hermana tiene nueve años ahora y ella tiene algunas problemas con su Español-ella va a una escuela de inmersión entonces si sabe los dos idiomas. [Mi prima] probablemente necesitaría empezar a trasladar para ella.

Mi mama necesitaria contar en mi prima quien también habla Español y Inglés,” Martinez-Beltran dijo.

Trasladando para un padre o pariente también puede ser gratificante. Los estudiantes sienten comodidad sabiendo que los miembros de su familia están aprendiendo la idioma de Inglés. “El conocimiento de Inglés para mi mamá esta creciendo, yo puedo ver, y en el verano ella trata de ir a clases en Minneapolis para hablar Inglés,” Martinez-Beltran dijo.

Untold Stories 15 1/12/18 7:34 PM

After Dark 2:40 pm

– The final bell rings, and most students, along with some teachers, flood out of the building. No one wants to be caught in the main lot traffic.

3:00 pm

– The flood calms, and the chaos of the hallways dies down. Mr. Matt McMerty-Brummer walks the perimeter of the school, making sure no stragglers are left in an unsupervised area. The library fills, and students begin their various afternoon activities.

4:00-5:00 pm

– Some practices end, while others begin. Sports games are played, and the evening janitors work hard to ensure that the building is looking clean and pristine. Almost all students are out of the building except for those participating in athletic activities in the Great Hall and Haben or those studying profusely in the commons.

5:00 pm

– The library closes, and the building goes 75% dark––the lights in most areas are dimmed or turned off altogether. But, depending on the day of the week, lights are turned on in various classrooms or other parts of the building.

The board convenes in the library, the University of St. Thomas teacher cohort fills rooms from the math to the religion departments, and the Knight Errant editors work hard to finish their publications in the English classrooms.

7:00 pm

– The big draws to BSM finally begin: varsity sport games. Soccer, football, lacrosse, and more teams occupy the turf during their respective seasons while the basketball and volleyball programs take up residence in the Haben. Students, faculty, parents, and other assorted fans arrive in a vigor to cheer the Red Knights on to victory.

9:00 pm

– Silence begins to settle throughout the Benilde-St. Margaret’s High School campus, and the building gets to take a short rest before another busy and exciting day begins in just a few hours.

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For many students, the only time they experience life at BSM is from 7:50 am to 2:41pm each day; however, the school teems with life outside the school day.

6:00 am

– The early birds start to arrive, and the campus awakens. The building remains largely quiet and undisturbed, but it prepares for the coming influx of students and faculty.

7:00 am

– The library opens once again, and the first students show their faces on campus. The school slowly fills in and picks up the pace with each coming minute.

7:15-7:45 am

– Prime student arrival time ensues, and the best parking spaces in each lot are quickly snatched up. Students and teachers come from near and far to begin their next academic adventures.

8:00 am

– The bell tolls, and the school day officially commences. All but the stragglers settle into their respective classrooms, and a giant deep breath is heard throughout the building.

Writer: Ben Larson Photographer: Maddie Kurtovich Designer: Luke Tift

Before Sunrise

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Writer: Noah Layton Photographer: Emma Paquette Designer: Flynn Skahan

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For bullying help, call or text the BSM Senior High Hotline

952-679-8072

1/11/18 1:00 PM

S

ticks and stones may break my bones but words can never hurt me.” Everyone knows this saying, but the truth is, words hurt the most.

According to the National Voices for Equality, Equality, and enlightenment, Every day, 160,000 students miss school for fear of being bullied. Bullying has become a problem in schools across the country, including BSM. It can threaten students’ physical and emotional safety at school and negatively impact their ability to learn.

There are many reasons why some feel they need to hurt someone else: they’ve been bullied before, have difficult home lives, suffer from insecurities, and so on.

“Part of it is a lack of understanding; it’s easier to attack the unknown and try to understand it. Another part is insecurity. If I make fun of you first then I control the situation,” English teacher Ms. Calli Olson said.

Even if that is not the case, bullying can still happen. High school is a place where students find themselves and what they believe in. “I think that you have a lot of student with different beliefs and different backgrounds and you bring them all together in one place. And also a big part it is a maturity factor,” assistant principal Mr. Seborn Yancy said.

Another problem is when students interpret their behavior as joking around or teasing when in fact they are bullying.

Yancy explains this through an example of a sweater. If a student jokingly makes fun of another’s sweater, maybe saying it is ugly or weird. If that student is hurt or offended, then it is bullying––even if the first student may have been joking. “[The difference between bullying and teasing] is a very thin line. Perception is reality,” Yancy said.

On the other hand, some people believe that teasing, as long as it does not come from a place of cruelty, can actually be helpful.

“Actual bullying is bullying. But

sometimes teasing, the kind that helps to shape each other into productive human beings, can be lumped into this distinction. For example, hearing it from your teammates in the locker room upon a mistake can help you learn and grow as an athlete,” science teacher John Porish said.

Bullying can happen anywhere in school. Usually in areas where there is not much adult supervision. “I think bullying happens in the hallways and the lunchroom,” sophomore Ryan Gregerson said.

Even if it does not directly affect them, many students know that bullying is a big issue. “Its a problem because it lowers people’s self esteem. It can lead to depression and thoughts of suicide,” Gregerson said.

In recent years, cyberbullying has become a huge issue in schools. Because over 80% of teens use a cell phone regularly, the internet has become an easy way for people to bully others. The internet has given people the opportunity to lash out at others from behind a screen. “You don’t have to face the person and see their reaction to what you are saying,” Olson said.

If anyone at BSM is being bullied, there are many people who can help. Any teacher, dean, or counselor will make sure the problem is resolved in the best way possible. The administration will deal with the situation with the student in mind.

“Every situation is different but we take it very seriously. I think we could have more people report bullying,” Yancy said.

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topping THE

Stigma M

ental illness impacts a whole spectrum of people, including students at BSM. And though every person who struggles with mental illness experiences it differently, junior Ellie Krueger describes her experience with depression and anxiety like dancing without the music.

“You watch other people and try to go along with the motions, and hope you get it right. Everyone else can hear the music but you. And you wonder if something is wrong with you, but you can’t ask anyone because they’re too busy dancing and you’re too busy trying to fit in. And every time you stumble or miss a beat, you get scared that people will notice and kick you out,” Krueger said.

Krueger deals with depression and anxiety on a daily basis. Symptoms for both depression and anxiety can show up at different times in a person’s life. For some, it’s a chemical imbalance that’s always present, but for others, it can come later. “I think I was aware of the anxiety first. According to my psychiatrist, anxiety usually predates depression by a few years. I’m not really sure of when it happened exactly. It wasn’t really a sudden shift, more of a thing that happened piece by piece over a long time.

My depression is clinical, meaning that it’s caused by chemicals in my brain. I’m not sure if they developed over time or if I was born that way,” Krueger said.

Krueger’s mental health fluctuates with her stress-levels. When she feels more stressed, she notices her mental illness more pronounced in her daily life. “I definitely

experience more SI and SIB (suicidal-ideation and self-injurious behavior) when I’m more stressed. In that way, I think that my depression really does work together with my anxiety. But I think the strongest correlation between events, and my mental health is definitely when I fight with my family or close friends,” Krueger said.

Even amidst the stress and day-to-day battles with her mental illnesses, Krueger tries to cope. There are many resources for people currently struggling with mental health, and for Krueger, that is a support group, some of her friends at school, her family, medication and writing. “I’m currently taking antidepressants. I’m also in an intensive outpatient system. That means that I go to group therapy twice a week and individual therapy once a week. I also have a strong support system, made up of some close friends and my family, especially my sister. Most of all, though, I write. Writing’s definitely gotten me through a lot of tough situations. I especially love poetry because the rules of prose really mean nothing there, and I can take out all of the unnecessary words, and just get the thoughts out of my head,” Krueger said.

Even with the support, mental health is still an internal conflict, and many times, Krueger struggles with the reality of her depression and anxiety. “There’s sometimes been a sense of pride, as if surviving my mental illness is a badge of honor, like a bronze star medal. At the same time, there’s also been times when I’ve felt ashamed.

There have been times when I felt like my feelings aren’t validated, and there have

been those who have told me that I don’t deserve to be depressed because my life is actually pretty good,” Krueger said.

Krueger’s mental health varies everyday, and as a result, it can be hard to see who she truly is. “It’s affected me differently because some days I feel like I can’t imagine who I am without it. I don’t know who I am. There’s part of me that’s depression, and there’s part of me that’s all sarcastic humor, and there’s part of me that’s anger at all the injustice I can see that constantly surrounds us, but I can’t seem to find me under all of that,” Krueger said.

Krueger strives to de-stigmatize depression through communication and awareness. Her mental illness doesn’t define her, but has a impact on her everyday life. “Honestly, I probably wouldn’t be the person that I am today if I didn’t have to struggle with the mental health things that I’ve had to struggle with. I’m dealing with it, and I’m learning to want to let it go. It’s not a matter of choosing to be happy; for me, it’s a matter of getting myself to a place where I can choose to try,” Krueger said.

Writer: Erin Long Photographer: Em Paquette Designer: Andrew Cadle

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Call 1-800-273-8255 if you or someone you know is considering suicide. If you are a student at BSM, you can seek help through our registered psychologist Dr. Jeff Steffenson.

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g n i s n e r c a e n L ffer e i D

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A

single thought is made up of many different messages within the brain and body. In order to simply pick up a pencil, a plan must be made in one part of the brain. Those instructions are then sent to another part of the brain, which in turn transfers the message through two different types of nerve cells down the spinal cord to tell the hand muscles to move. The dexterity of the hand to grasp the pencil is coordinated by a whole other part of the brain. No single person is aware of this process, and it happens in a fraction of a second. Processing words, solving math equations, and memorization have significantly more complicated neural pathways than a simple hand motion, with many more possible places for interruption.

Often, a clinically diagnosed learning difference is just an interruption. Somewhere along the neural pathway, the signal is broken, making the processing longer, more difficult, or almost nonexistent.

Take dyslexia for example. This fairly common label is often used as an umbrella term for a variety of different reading disabilities. In short, there can be many different effects of dyslexia, and it goes far beyond just seeing letters backwards. It is more of a disconnect between letters being letters and letters making words. “When you’re learning how to read, that’s what’s really difficult about it...Once you have everything memorized, it’s relatively easy, but there are still words that will get you sometimes. That’s where the letter switching comes in,” senior Tenley Gage, who has dyslexia, said.

Dyslexia applies to more than just reading though. Numbers are like letters: separate entities that don’t fit together.

They are especially hard to put into equa-

tions for that reason. “It’s so much harder for math with me because they’re numbers, and they don’t say anything other than numbers,” Gage said.

ADHD, or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, is another common cognitive diversity that affects many students’ abilities to learn. “ADHD can look really different in different kids, but typically it’s an inability to focus on what you’re supposed to focus on. Sometimes you can hyper focus one thing, but it’s not the right thing. Kind of like someone has a remote control to your brain, and they’re changing the channels without your permission,” Ms. Kristin Gilbertson, the Director of Learning Support, said.

Dyslexia and ADHD are just two of many learning differences that can have large ramifications on a person’s work in school. Due to the way the brain processes information for people with learning differences, testing is a particular challenge when it comes to focusing, remembering the material, and working within time limits.

“When you’re in the middle of a test and your mind just goes blank for no reason... it’s infuriating knowing that you know this stuff and you’re handing in the test blank because you just can’t remember...or, for some reason, your head isn’t in the right place,” Gage said.

For students who have learning differences, BSM’s Learning Support Team works with them individually and creates accommodation plans based on their neurological assessments. “[The accommodation plan] doesn’t change the curriculum at all; it just...levels the playing field. Kind of like glasses would for someone with a vision impairment,” Gilbertson said.

BSM is progressing in the field of

Learning Support. Just within the past two years, another learning support specialist has been hired, and the school has expanded its policies to teach teachers how to teach people with learning differences in a way that utilizes their skills and promotes their success.“I think that teachers are the professionals, and they’re the ones that need to adjust,” Gilbertson said.

While not always the case, teachers generally do pretty well and most of the disagreements between students and teachers come from miscommunication. “Having teachers with empathy is more important than having teachers who are strict,” Gage said.

Some of the most debilitating effects of having a learning difference are psychological. To keep up with the class in learning and remembering course material takes a lot of time and work. It can be extremely frustrating when those efforts don’t pay off.

“I work so much harder than some of my classmates, and they still have better GPAs ,and they are still going to get into better colleges than me, and, therefore, that means they’re smarter than me,” Gage said.

Despite these difficulties, learning in a different way doesn’t have to negatively affect a student’s ability to succeed. “I tell them all the time that they’re not stupid; they’re just a different type of learner and schools are set up for the majority of types of cognitive profiles,” Gilbertson said.

Writer: Spencer Sweeney Photographer: Em Paquette Designer: Andrew Cadle

Untold Stories 23 KEQ_issue2_learning differences.indd 3

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Fly

T

he Flyers, St. Louis Park’s Junior Gold hockey team, is a well known part of BSM’s community and is important to the Red Knight culture.The Flyers hockey team has a reputation for a rowdy crowd section, comical tweets, and impressive hockey hair. However, the tale of how the Flyers came to be is not widely known among the BSM population.

The idea of the Flyers was started in the summer of 2009 by a group of hockey-playing students who had just been cut from the BSM hockey team. “Many of these guys played Junior Gold the previous year on a different team, but really wanted a team comprised of students from BSM, so they could all play together,” Flyers coach Ryan Anderson said.

The boys also wanted to provide an option to student athletes who no longer wished to dedicate so much of their time to playing high school hockey. “Cutting people is one of the hardest things to have to do as a coach, but it’s life. Everyone gets cut from something. Some take it harder than others, but once they get over the initial disappointment, they can rediscover their love for the game,” BSM varsity hockey coach Ken Pauly said.

Once the students brought their idea to Anderson, he helped bring this idea to reality; Anderson has been the coach of the Flyers for nine years. “It took the help of many people to start the Flyers team; I just pulled it together,” Anderson said.

Starting the Flyers also took cooperation between the St. Louis Park Hockey Association; the Metro Hockey League, who manages the Junior Gold League; District 3 Representatives of Minnesota Hockey; Jerry Pettinger, BSM’s Athletic Director; and Coach Pauly. “[I] assisted Coach Ryan in forming the club. I was the support system [and] provided equipment,” Pauly said.

The first Flyers team had 16 players, 15 from BSM and one from Hopkins High School, and finished with a little below a .500 record in the regular season. After winning a consecutive three games in the Junior Gold Regional Tournament, the Cinderella team was one game short to qualifying for the State Tournament.

The team wasn’t actually called the Flyers until the second season. In 2010-2011, the Junior Gold team created the team name and logo inspired by the NHL Philadelphia Flyers team.

“That team came up with idea for the team name and team logo that we still

or

use today,” Anderson said.

Today the Flyers still play for the love of the game and for less of a time commitment. However the recognition gained by the present team differs from the first few Flyers teams. “The biggest difference now is the following the team has from the BSM students and community,” Anderson said.

The Flyer program has built a community that some families have been involved with for many years. Multiple generations of siblings have played on the Flyers team and have built traditions and history. The time spent on the team stands out as an iconic high school memory for most Flyer alums. Some players, like 2011 graduate Alex Brask, continued his Flyers legacy by becoming an assistant coach for the team.

The history of the infamous Flyers reveals the true purpose of the team’s creation. The Flyers allow a laid back, fun environment for male hockey players to enjoy the game they love.

Writer: Estelle Beutz and Stella Fortier Pauly Interviewer: Kenzie Staples Photographer: Em Paquette Designer: Jack Feld

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g n i n i w t r e t n

I

Faiths

Junior High Principal Ms. Claire Shea discusses what it means to have a household that celebrates two different faiths.

A

Qur’an

s a Catholic school, BSM is dedicated to the Catholic In the recognition that both Muslims and Christians alike can mission and the Catholic faith. But despite its dedica- do things that are Christlike, Shea and her husband have found it tion to Catholicism, BSM is an environment in which easy to intersect their faiths, especially in something like marriage. many different faiths interact. To explore this idea further, Junior “You are coming from two different places, you’re two different High Principal Ms. Claire Shea talked about her experience in be- people, you’re trying to recognize each other in your relationship ing married to a man who is Muslim and how both Catholicism and recognize God in who you are … all of that still exists within and Islam are present throughout her and her family’s life. an interreligious marriage. I find there’s not a lot of conflict,” Shea Shea studied theology in college, and moved to Memphis said. where she met her husband. As she and her husband got to know Both Shea and her husband are extremely family-oriented, each other, religion was a talking point in all of their conversations, and both of their families are very religious. “To choose one faith even before they started dating. Shea says that the topic of religion over the other would somehow be making a declaration to our has been an ongoing conversation throughout she and her hus- families that one is more important than the other,” Shea said. band’s entire relationship. “I feels like religion has always been at “We have made an agreement that we are going to live our lives the epicenter of our relationship,” Shea said. in recognizing both faiths in our household and in our marriage.”

Their continuous conversation about religion is very importShea and her husband have made efforts to always include ant to their marriage because they both feel very strongly in their both faiths in their lives along the way through their relationship. faiths. “We have found so much intersection in our faiths because When they got married, they had three different wedding cerethere is so much commonality between the monotheistic faiths … monies. One was a Catholic wedding ceremony, one was a nikah, especially for Islam and Christianity,” Shea said. which is a Muslim wedding ceremony, and one was a legal cereLike Christians, Muslims recognize Jesus as a savior and be- mony that came with the nikah. These ceremonies all took place lieve that he will come again to save the world. According to the seven days apart, which is a well-known number within theology, Islamic belief, Muhammad is the Last Prophet, and is a man who as it serves as a symbol of completion. For example, the story of was sent as the last messenger of God. “People have this misun- Genesis takes place over a period of seven days in the Bible. derstanding that somehow Muslims believe that Muhammad is the Shea and her husband make conscious efforts to make sure ‘next Jesus’, but that’s not true,” Shea said. that both faiths are included and recognized in their children’s Muslims believe in the miracles of Christ and participate in lives. Shea’s family celebrates Eid and Christmas; they fast for the Islamic shahada, or declaration of faith that Muslims make at Ramadan; they celebrate Easter and participate in each religious the beginning of their journey into Islam. “After the coming of holiday in both religions. “Our daughters were baptized in the Jesus, who Muslims recognize as holy, there was a last prophet, and Catholic faith, they go to Muslim sunday school to learn about the that was Muhammed. Muhammed is not Jesus, he’s not godly … Islamic faith, and that’s where we’re at—and we’re happy with he is just a prophet who is a man,” Shea said. that,” Shea said.

There are many overlaps between Islam and Christianity.

Shea and her husband, despite being of two different reliAdditionally, there are very specific beliefs of Catholicism, gions, have been able to find so much overlap within their respecsuch as the importance of Jesus Christ. But despite being tive faiths, and this has made their relationship strong. They have different religions, the importance of Christ as the Savior a strong appreciation for both faiths and have integrated aspects is not ignored in Islam. “This all feels very detail-oriented, and practices from both religions into theirs and their children’s y Hol but it’s important because so much of our faith, especially lives. “When you have mutual respect for the other person, that e Bibl as Catholics, surrounds the figure of Christ and who Christ comes naturally,” Shea said. is. If you look at who Christ is as a person, all of that is still recognized in Islam,” Shea said.

Writer: Peyton Schuldt Designer: Jack Feld

Untold Stories 25

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P e a h th t T

o

Mr. Sabol Mr. John Sabol is one of the two business teachers in the senior high at BSM. Sabol worked in finance for five years before becoming a teacher. He worked for a hedge fund called Black River Asset Management which was a part of Cargill at the time. Sabol had two different positions during his time at Cargill. For a portion of the time, Sabol worked with moving bonds and money around, and for the other portion, he worked on the trading floor, buying and selling bonds.

This job was completely different from Sabol’s current job as a teacher. “My entire professional existence was focused on driving the profit up, but here the purpose of my job now is to help students succeed and learn,” Sabol said.

Sabol used the financial collapse to change career paths. During the financial collapse, everyone was losing their jobs and his group ceased to exist. Instead of going to find another job in finance, Sabol decided to go back to school and get his teaching license. “I had a lot of conversations with a lot of my friends who were teachers, and a lot of my friends and family told me I should be a teacher and when the opportunity was there I took it,” Sabol said.

Ms. Bargas

Ms. Lisa Bargas is one of BSM’s senior high science teachers. Bargas graduated college with her master’s degree in physical organic chemistry. She decided to combine her major with law by practicing environmental law with a nonprofit in St. Paul called Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy. “I drafted environmental regulations and visited the state capitol to lobby for their passage,” Bargas said.

Bargas dealt primarily with clean water issues. She worked by attempting to educate lawmakers about both the science behind the legislation and why the regulations would be overall beneficial.

Bargas had wanted to be a teacher, but she was turned away from it due to a comment her dad made saying that she needed to have a “real” profession. This comment was one of the main reasons Bargas got into law. “I thought I needed to get a ‘real’ profession and combining law and science seemed to be a way to do that,” Bargas said.

Bargas, however, didn’t enjoy her time practicing law and decided to quit that profession after five years.

While trying to figure out what she was going to do next, the Blake School called in need of a ninth grade math and science teacher. Because the Blake School is a private school, teachers are not required to have teaching licenses, so Bargas interviewed for the position and was given the job. Bargas worked at Blake until she had her first son.

Once her kids were in high school, Bargas went back to school to receive her teaching license. She was taking one or two classes at a time, and then when her son William was a senior in high school, Bargas started working at BSM. “I don’t miss law in the least. I do miss my boys though,” Bargas said.

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g n i o Teach

Writer: Megan Olk Photographer: Lauren Beh Designer: Flynn Skahan

Mr. Walton Mr. Alex Walton is currently one of BSM’s art teachers. Before becoming a teacher, Walton worked as an exhibit fabricator for the Science and Children’s Museums of Minnesota, where he spent his days in a large shop in the Science Museum creating exhibits. He put technology together, carved whatever the exhibit needed in order to be made, and put frames in. The group that he worked with was in charge of making the different things that the kids interacted with for each exhibit the museum displayed.

Walton studied teaching in school, but he wanted to know what the professional art life felt like, so Walton went away from teaching to work with adults in the art making industry, and when he felt like he had had enough practice of that, he returned to teaching. “I decided to go back to what I love doing, which is working and designing with youth,” Walton said.

Whether it be in the museum or in the classroom, Walton has always had a passion for working with kids. In the classroom, there aren’t quite as many large noises or tools, and Walton is now the one assigning tasks versus having ideas and tasks assigned to him. The shop and the classroom are very different experiences, but they share one common theme for Walton: designing for kids.

Ms. Belanger

Ms. Katie Belanger works in BSM’s senior high English department. Right out of college, Belanger worked in New York City in book publishing as a Publicity Assistant at Penguin Putnam, Incorporated. Belanger’s role was to work on different author’s campaigns as their new titles were being released. “I wrote press releases and mailed them to newspapers and magazines; I coordinated author book tours; I participated in mass mailings of new releases and attended publicity events around the city to promote new authors,” Belanger, who also dealt with the authors’ fan mail and personal requests, said.

Before becoming a teacher, Belanger also worked as an editorial assistant at the University of Minnesota Press in Minneapolis. As an editorial assistant, Belanger line-edited manuscripts to make sure everything had proper grammar and made sense. Belanger also tried to recruit authors.

“I attended academic conferences around the nation with our acquisitions editors to recruit potential authors,” Belanger said.

In 2006, Belanger decided to go to grad school at the U of M and get her teaching license and her Masters of Education degree. Now, as a teacher, Belanger continues to edit papers, but she is working with students instead of adults. Although teaching can be more stressful than the other jobs that Belanger had, she says it is incredibly rewarding and invaluable. “I’m never bored; I love the energy of our school and appreciate the wisdom of my students and my colleagues,” Belanger said.

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e C h t a d f e t er on y ia Be BSM students form different groups throughout the school during lunch eating their food in the lunchroom, Great Hall, and as well as places like the Campus Ministry Office.

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or students throughout BSM, the lunch period is one of the best times of the day. Providing students a welcome break from the stresses of the school day, lunch is a time to rest, socialize, and of course, eat. At BSM, students are not restricted to the cafeteria for lunch; they eat in the Great Hall or any of several other locations, including the Campus Ministry Office and even one of the Knight Errant classrooms.

The vast majority of students spend lunch in the commons and cafeteria, where tables are set up every day for large groups to eat together. Often, students will form small communities at their tables where they will eat with the same group of people every day. “All my friends sit [at our table].

We’ve sat there since freshman year,” senior Lauren Copland said. Although general groups are usually established near the start of the year, most students are more than happy to welcome newcomers to their table.

Most students not eating in the com-

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mons will go to the Great Hall, where they often eat alone or in smaller groups. The Great Hall provides more space for students to spread out and eat in a calmer environment than the lively commons. “I don’t like the atmosphere of the lunchroom,” senior Riley Burns-Goetzmann, who eats in the Great Hall everyday, said.

Students looking for a quiet spot to eat and socialize often find themselves in the Campus Ministry Office during lunch.

There are a handful of regulars who eat in this office every day, but there are also students who only show up every so often, providing a good source of variety to the group. “It’s really a small area to go to, so it’s not really loud, and you can just find new people and have some nice conversations with them,” freshman Ernesto Rios Diaz said.

Students eating during C Lunch also have the option to eat in one of the Knight Errant rooms. Most of the students eating in the room at any given time are Knight Errant staff members. However, anybody

can eat there if they want. “It’s a good, studious environment,” senior Jordan Frantz said.

For some students, the lunch period is more than a time to eat. Every Tuesday, BSM’s high school affinity group meets for lunch and discussion. Spanish teacher Matthew McMerty-Brummer and Student Tuition and Financial Aid Specialist Shané Sisco have been in charge of the group since its creation in the fall of 2015. Lunch provides an excellent opportunity for the affinity groups to meet without taking time that would otherwise be spent on academics. “Our affinity groups empower students of color to come together in a safe environment to build community across grade levels, discuss issues and support each other,” McMerty-Brummer said.

For students throughout BSM, the lunch period provides a break from schoolwork, whether it’s to relax alone or spend some time with friends. With so many different places for students to spend this time, there’s somewhere for everyone.

Writer: Brady Solomon Photographer: Morgan Williams Designer: Flynn Skahan

1/11/18 1:02 PM

Writer: Spencer Sweeney Designer: Luke Tift

T

hey are seen every day of the week in our school but not much is known about the people behind the big blue bins.

Our recyclers are adults who have lived with previously diagnosed cognitive disabilities. They come to our school as a part of Partnership Resources Inc. (PRI), a nonprofit dedicated to creating partnerships between adults with developmental disabilities and the community. A large portion of their work is focused on finding their clients employment in businesses that utilize their abilities but there are also other opportunities available to clients for recreation, such as art classes, aerobics, and books. For every job, PRI supplies training for their clients and a job coach to assist them if they encounter difficulties while working.

The topic of cognitive disabilities can be a difficult one to broach. For me, there has always been a certain degree of uncertainty surrounding the issue. I have talked to people with cognitive disabilities on occasion but, due to lack of exposure, I have always been doubtful about how I should act. Nonetheless, I always tried to give a smile or a wave to our recyclers when I passed them in the hallway because I never liked the attitude of ignorance that people took around them. It wasn’t until recently that I realized I had never given thought to whether these people had names.

At BSM, we employ seven workers from PRI. My first interaction with any of these people was Lori. Like all of the workers, she was shy, but she said that enjoyed talking to people. She is one of the recyclers who comes around to classrooms and takes our recycling bins while we are in class.

Because I’m not used to getting completely honest answers from interviewees, Lori surprised me when she revealed that she didn’t really like her job. The job is long, and Lori doesn’t like leaving PRI. I can certainly understand that. Despite the amount of time she has to be at work, Lori said that she liked the people at BSM. The coalition between PRI and BSM started more than a decade ago when the president at the time, Dr. Bob Tift, contacted PRI. Originally, the PRI workers were hired mostly for sorting papers. Back then, papers had to be sorted by color in order to be recycled, and the school was having trouble keeping up with the demand. It made sense to have people dedicated to the recycling, and working with PRI was seen as the perfect opportunity. “[Dr. Tift] was so socially conscious...It worked out well,” Ms. Anne Moen, our current liaison for PRI, said.

I met the majority of our recyclers on a Monday. Brett was wearing a blue knitted cap when he came in. He was the most interactive and, despite being nervous, nodded and tried to answer my questions as best he could. Brett enjoys working here

and sorting bottles and cans. What makes him really happy though is his friend Chris, who also works here. Chris has dark brown hair and wears glasses.

He likes his job because he likes putting things away and cleaning. Neither Brett nor Chris disliked anything about working at BSM. Maureen was very nervous, but after a bit of coaxing, she began to talk a little bit. She also likes working here.

Mostly she sorts bottles, but she likes sorting papers. Not only did she not dislike anything, she said specifically that she liked her work.

There are two other workers are named Annie and Karanja, or K-man.

Though all of the workers often said the same sorts of things, all of the workers from PRI had individual differences between the things they liked to do and the things that made them happy.

They have many things that make them different from other people in the school; one of the least visible, but most important, things I experienced in my very first interview with Lori. We had just finished our interview, but before she left, she put a hand on my shoulder and held it there for a few seconds. It was a small gesture, but one that most people I know, even some people that I am close to, wouldn’t give a few seconds of their time to do.

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Plains, Trains, and Automobiles

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or current BSM students, getting to school usually isn’t a big deal; however, for parents, administration, and incoming families, the situation can quickly become stressful.

Most current BSM students drive or carpool. Around 380 parking permits are registered, around 225 students are scheduled for bus routes, and about a half a dozen students are consistent bikers. But for a new family knowing which mode of transportation will work for them can be tricky.

BSM is a non-neighborhood school, meaning students live all over in different towns, and for some incoming parents, coming to BSM is their first time dealing with a non-neighborhood school. Many parents are used to having their kids get picked up in their neighborhood by bus, but BSM has a different format. Consequently, transportation becomes one of their top concerns because families don’t know what to do or what BSM has to offer. “Their biggest concern is that they just don’t know how to get to school and what options BSM has,” Assistant Athletics and Activities/Transportation Director Ms. Judy Koski said.

Informing BSM is the first step to resolve their concerns. Usually these incoming families email or call Koski directly or are directed to her through Admissions.

Koski helps them through the process of finding the best option of transportation for them. “It’s very unlikely that something doesn’t seem to work out,” Koski said.

Even though the majority of students drive themselves or carpool to school, busing is a significant means of transportation for many students and is seen as the most usual way of getting to school. Koski, who is in charge of ordering the buses, conducting the routes, lining up the buses and driving the buses, puts out the form on the BSM website in March and also sends it to former riders and new families, so they can sign up and send it back by the end of June.

Once all the forms are in, the bus company that BSM hires starts creating the routes.

The bus routes stay the same for the most part every year since there are group stops rather than house-to-house stops.

Writer: Kaitlyn McTigue Photographer: Lauren Beh Designer: Mark Kincs

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Fostering Affinity I

n attending a school with a student body consisting of 80% white students, it is essential that students of color are provided with a community that allows them to be completely themselves. Generally speaking, an affinity group is made up of people who share commonalities. BSM’s affinity group provide these students with a safe environment where they can share and discuss relatable topics.

In the fall of 2015, a group of students approached Spanish teacher Matthew McMerty-Brummer and Student Tuition and Financial Aid Specialist Shané Sisco in hopes of creating an affinity group. These students believed that having an outlet to express their thoughts and feelings about life as people of color at BSM would be beneficial and even crucial. Now, every Tuesday these students sit down to eat lunch together and build community through conversations, support, sharing, and learning.

The affinity group also provides students with an opportunity to meet other classmates, brainstorm strategies for overcoming challenges, figure out solutions, and learn from the group’s collective wisdom. “The student affinity group began three years ago based on the request from the students to have a space where they could share experiences, to learn from one another, and build community.

[They believed] that sometimes there had been the perception that students automatically knew each other, but it’s not always the case that a freshman is going to have the opportunity to meet a senior, and so the students wanted to be able to meet each other, to learn from each other, and to support each other as fellow Red Knights,” McMerty-Brummer said.

Becoming a part of the affinity group can happen in various ways. Some students have received an invitation, some students’ parents strongly encourage them to participate, and others are invited by their friends.

There isn’t much of a formality in joining the group; all are welcome.

In the three years that BSM has had affinity groups, it has proven beneficial for the students. They have expressed their satisfaction with the groups to McMerty-Brummer as they have shared many ways in which having this community helps them, whether they are freshmen just starting at the school or seniors getting ready to end their time at BSM. For the upperclassmen, just having a supportive community where they can share their thoughts is beneficial. The freshmen and sophomores appreciate that there are older students in the group because they can be more open to sharing their experiences. “It’s been beneficial to learn from others and to meet new people...the underclassmen look up to the upperclassmen as mentors both...socially as well as academically,” one student told Mc-

Merty-Brummer.

Most group sessions include enjoying lunch together and engaging in discussions, but three times every semester, the leaders bring in a guest speaker for all of sixth hour. “We have what we call fun lunches, and what we call pass lunches.

So most weeks it’s just a fun lunch where students are able to come during their 20-minute lunch period, or if they have wellness they could be here for the entire hour, and then three times a semester, we’ll try to bring in a guest speaker and for that meeting we’ll write a pass so the students are able to miss whatever class they have sixth period in order to be present for the entire conversation with the guest speaker,” McMerty-Brummer said.

While the affinity group has been a success for students, it has also benefited the adults in their lives. Students feel it has helped faculty and staff to understand and respect them, and to acknowledge and validate their experiences here. In addition, the parents of students of color also have their own affinity group in which they meet and discuss topics relevant to themselves and their students, strengthening the community as a whole.

Writers: Olivia Pohlen, and Kylie Nevells Photographer: Muriel Ruppert Designer: Jack Williams

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