Lakota East Spark 2011-2012 Issue 2 by Lakota East Spark

Spark

LEVY FAILS FOR THIRD STRAIGHT TIME

Lakota East High School November 17, 2011 $4 Newsstand lakotaeastspark.com

DEFENDING

THE MAJORITY THE OCCUPY MOVEMENT SWEEPS THE NATION AND HITS THE STREETS OF CINCINNATI

SPARK INTERVIEWS THE MAINE

THUNDERHAWKS TAKING OVER GMC

EAST CUSTODIAN MAKES MIRACULOUS RECOVERY

EVERY MONDAY AND WEDNESDAY ALL Lakota students receive a 20% discount on bowls, burritos and quesadillas

6862 Liberty Pz. Dr. Liberty Township, OH 45044 Phone: 755-2900 Fax: 755-2720

Not valid with any other offer. Limit one. Expires 12/31/11.

3585 S. Dixie Highway Middletown, OH 45005 Phone: 217-7242 Fax: 217-7245

Not valid with any other offer. Limit one. Expires 12/31/11.

Spark

Contents

Volume XX Issue CXXXIX HEAD-TO-HEAD: Irfan Ibrahim and Natasha Rausch weigh the pros and cons of the Occupy Wall Street movement.

SPECIAL REPORT: OCCUPY CINCINNATI

RETURNING REVITALIZED

East Head Custodian Wayne Fornash survived a motorcycle accident in 2010. After a miraculous recovery, Fornash has a positive outlook on life and safety.

Spark

BURIED TREASURES

Shoveling through the overwhelming aisles of clothing at thrift stores can be time consuming, but with patience and a little luck, any shopper can discover buried treasures.

OCCUPY THE COURTS

With the Occupy movement now in Cincinnati, many avoid jail by following the rules of protest protected by the U.S. constitution.

THE MAINE INTERVIEW

Spark sits down with members of The Maine to discuss their experiences signing with Warner Brothers Records.

TRACING ATHLETIC TRANSFERS

Athletes work through the transfer rules and the 12 exceptions in order to attend a new school and continue playing a school provided sport.

LEVY FAILS FOR THIRD STRAIGHT TIME

Lakota East High School $4 Newsstand lakotaeastspark.com

ON THE COVER: design devin casey The depreciation of the American economy has led to an uprisal of a group of people standing up for the 99 percent.

DEFENDING

THE MAJORITY THE OCCUPY MOVEMENT SWEEPS THE NATION AND HITS THE STREETS OF CINCINNATI

SPARK INTERVIEWS MEMBERS OF THE MAINE

THUNDERHAWKS TAKING OVER GMC

EAST CUSTODIAN MAKES MIRACULOUS RECOVERY

lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 3

opinion | letter to the editor

Dear Spark, After reading Jeff Back’s sports column “Vacillating Virtue,” I realized what sportsmanship in contemporary athletics is becoming. Having played soccer for 12 years, the blatant act of the Fairfield women’s soccer team is inexcusable, and the fact that the Fairfield coach “defended his players” and said that “East should have been paying attention” is ludicrous. Even in the World Cup, when players are injured on national teams from the U.S. to Sierra Leone, the ball is kicked out of bounds and the ball is returned to the team that kicked it out. This simple act of sportsmanship--a tradition that hasn’t changed since the game’s conception--is even demonstrated with a world title on the line. I look forward to reading more of Mr. Back’s columns as the year continues and hope he continues to bring more insight on various issues. –Mason Hood, Oxford, OH Dear Spark, I just wanted to take the time to say how impressed I have been with your online coverage of different local and national events. After I saw on Facebook that East banned yoga pants I was curious to find out the reasons why and how everyone was reacting to Dr. Kline’s decision. I enjoyed the fact that there was an article online so quickly after the announcement and it answered all of the questions that I had. Also, I just wanted to say how wonderful I thought the overall coverage of different topics was in first issue. I was unable to attend Meet the Candidate night and the story that had the facts about all of the school board members and the different issues was helpful

Spark

IEW

OF AS TH T V E .W GA E M ST E OF TH

Lakota East High School October 26, 2011 $4 Newsstand lakotaeastspark.com

CHANGE. FROM QUIET COUNTRY LIFE TO BURSTING SUBURBAN PROSPERITY

since I don’t have as much time to look it all up. I can’t wait to see the next six issues! –Emily Henderson, Havighurst, OH Dear Spark, With yet another Lakota levy rejected, it has struck me how much information is circulating and how much of it is inaccurate. Pertinent, correct facts about Lakota’s financial state have become few and far between. A huge part of the problem is that many do not understand where the financial hardship began. As our district grows and grows, now with over 18,000 students, our state funding has not increased, but decreased! Despite Lakota’s relatively low per-student expenditure (Lakota spends $1,184 less per pupil than the state average) it could not keep

up with more students and less money, making passing a new levy completely necessary. Furthermore, Lakota’s reputation of excellence is spiraling downward as the levies continue to fail. My mother’s coworker recently asked my mother her opinion on where to move in order to have her children attend the best school possible: Fairfield or Mason. My mother, surprised, asked the woman why she was not considering Lakota. The response was that with Lakota’s levies continually failing, its outlook was bleak, and she did not feel comfortable moving into the school district. Regrettably, this may become a common occurrence if the levies continue to fail. I have heard the objection that people are unable to afford the extra tax, and I understand the trepidation. However, it causes me to wonder: What will these people, who cannot afford the few hundred dollars more a year, do when their homes are tens of thousands of dollars less valuable? The bottom line is that countless people move into an area for the school system, and without an excellent, well-funded one, the homes in the district will actually begin losing value. By paying now, citizens are investing in the future not only of students but actually of their own financial state. While I realize it is too late to change the outcome of this past levy, I think it is vitally important that correct, pertinent information be spread and acknowledged. By spreading accurate information now, a decision can be reached by each voter that is based not upon misconceptions or frustration but upon the facts before them and the knowledge that Lakota will do its best to maintain the standard of excellence that it has always been known for. –Katherine Barlow, East junior

Website Commentary www.lakotaeastspark.com

GOT SOMETHING

TO SAY?

Alex Griffin’s “Dress Code Spurs Student Protest over Yoga Pants” I go to school in southern North Dakota and our administration has already banned yoga pants. I admire the spirit of you East students almost as much as I admire the tight-fitting yoga pants themselves! —Ally McGraw, Jamestown, North Dakota I don’t see why yoga pants would be banned. I know that some girls go too far by wearing extremely tight pants or leggings, but most of them wear yoga pants that aren’t that tight. —Candace Dennis, East junior

4 | Spark | November 17, 2011

WEB RESULTS: Do you think that yoga pants are appropriate attire for school? NO

28% YES

72%

The Spark, which provides an open forum for students, faculty, subscribers and community members, encourages letters to the editor. Letters can be sent to the publication at the address on the following page, dropped off in the journalism classroom (room 118), comments on our online stories and tweets to our account listed below. Letters must be signed, and the staff reserves the right to edit letters for length, grammar, invasion or privacy, obscenity or potential libel. The opinion editors will contact letter writers for conformation. twitter | @LakotaEastSpark website | www.lakotaeastspark.com e-mail | lehs.spark@gmail.com

opinion | letter from the editor

from the editor

TWO STEPS BACK I was driving home from Spark deadline the day before election day when I saw something that surprised me. Five elementary school-aged children were standing outside in the chilly November weather by a “Let’s Move Forward” Lakota levy sign in someone’s yard. As my ‘97 Ford Taurus approached them, I slowed down to take it in. They went wild. The kids started jumping up and down and waving their hands in every direction. They pointed to the pro-Lakota levy sign in the yard. I imagine they were yelling too, but I couldn’t hear them past my radio. I didn’t need to. I got their message. Those elementary-aged kids knew how important this levy was for Lakota. They knew that passing levy meant more opportunities. They might not know what

Spark

exactly those opportunities are, but they realize the last time this thing failed their school busses were taken away. They may not realize that when this levy failed, some of their teachers went to school the next day wondering if they would have a job next year. But they do realize that their reading specialists and gifted programs are starting to deteriorate. Lakota needed the levy to pass to move forward and continue to tradition of excellence in this district. This year, Lakota received an excellent rating from the Ohio Department of Education for the tenth consecutive year. The last four of those have been “excellent with distinction,” a category that has only been around for four years. Out of the top 10 largest school districts in Ohio, Lakota was the only district to achieve this “excellent with distinction” rating this year. On top of that, a few weeks ago Lakota was named the top Ohio school district for academic growth by Battelle for kids, a non-profit consulting company. It’s clear Lakota has been heading in the right direction. Passing the levy would have allowed Lakota to remain in the black until at least 2014. Without the money that would be generated from the passage of a levy, Lakota will not be able to move forward any longer. If this community does not pass a levy soon, this district will be in danger. Lakota could begin to move backwards. Nobody wants that. But nobody wants to pay more taxes either. It’s this constant struggle between the district and taxpayers, and it’s because of the way

c/o Lakota East High School 6840 Lakota Lane Liberty Township, OH 45044 Phone: (513) 759-8615 ext 15118 Email: lehs.spark@gmail.com

Devin Casey, Rachel Podnar, Christian Roehm Editor-in-Chief Victoria Reick-Mitrisin Broadcast Manager Devon Lakes Business Manager Shivang Patel Graphics Manager Megan Fogel, Sean Lewis Managing Editor Sierra Whitlock Photo Manager Tommy Behan Webmaster Zach Armstrong, Christina Wilkerson Copy Director Rachel Knock Public Relations Director Zach Fulciniti, Dillon Mitchell Entertainment Editor Michael Tedesco, Jasmine Tuazon Feature Editor Tabbatha Hall, Bridget Lally Lifestyle Editor Alex Griffin, Kaitlin Lange, Mohinee Mukherjee News Editor

Raika Casey, Emily Chao Opinion Editor Nugeen Aftab, Rachel King, Sophia Li, Drew Souders Package Editor Jeff Back, Hannah Lee, Natasha Rausch Sports Editor Lauren Barker, Lisa Cai, Ian Castro, Irfan Ibrahim, Arvind Madhavan Art Editor Ellen Fleetwood, Kali Martin Photo Editor Amber Jagpal, Maddie McGarvey Business Associate Jill Stelletell Public Relations Associate Cheyenne Blanchette, Samantha Hauck Survey Coordinator Hannah Berling Multimedia Associate Brett Colburn, John Grasty, Ian Smith Multimedia Editor

the state education finance system works. Even though the Ohio Supreme Court has ruled this system unconstitutional four times, the system is still in place and school districts are forced to rely on voter-approved property tax increases to keep up with growing populations. As Lakota Board of Education Vice President Ben Dibble puts it, Lakota has run out of “fat” to cut. Lakota is now being forced to cut into the bone that is the structure of the district. This means fewer opportunities for students to learn. In this issue, Spark features the first piece of an ongoing series of post-levy coverage. Spark looks at the difficult decisions and challenges Lakota will face in the future as well as reactions from both the pro-levy and No Lakota groups. Spark will continue to cover Lakota’s budgetary situation in upcoming issues as Lakota makes more decisions about when to put another levy on the ballot or what to cut next. Also in this issue, Spark takes a look at the Occupy Cincinnati protests that are gaining attention in the area. What started off as Occupy Wall Street is now turning into “Occupy All Streets.” In this special report, Spark reports on the growing local trend and examines the stories of eight “Occupy Cincinnati” protesters. From a Lakota West graduate to a former member of the 90’s band “98 degrees,” each of the eight people have their own unique reason for “occupying.” There’s even an anti-protester. From homeless protesters on Wall Street to elementary kids supporting the levy, everyone wants their voice to be heard. n

Spark is a publication that is produced at Lakota East High School. The magazine is completely studentgenerated through the efforts of the Journalism I, Journalism II and Journalism III-Honors classes. The publication material may not always reflect the views of the Lakota Local School District or the publication as a whole. Content is controlled and edited by the staff editors. The staff will publish only legally protected speech adhering to the legal definitions of libel, obscenity and invasions of privacy. The publication is produced every five weeks on recycled paper. Production costs are covered through advertising, subscription sales and fundraisers. Advertising information is available by writing to the address below or at sparkbusiness@gmail.com. The purpose of Spark is to inform the students, faculty, subscribers and community members of news, information and issues that may influence or affect them. Spark accepts news releases, guest columns and sports information releases. Spark, a Gold Crown, Pacemaker and Gallup winner, is a member of the Ohio Scholastic Media Association, the Columbia Scholastic Press Association, the Journalism Education Association, Quill and Scroll and a Hall-of-Fame member of the National Scholastic Press Association.

lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 5

news | stay connected

Stay Connected www.lakotaeastspark.com @LakotaEastSpark Lakota East Spark

East teacher Kristen Statt finishes her six-mile journey from the Main Campus to the West Chester Clock tower with her son.

n District News

Lakota Hosts Levy Rally story natasha rausch | photo ellen fleetwood

Lakota employees ran from one of 23 Lakota buildings to the Union Centre clock tower for the Lakota levy Vote Yes campaign’s Run Forward Lakota on Saturday Oct. 29.

n School News

Dress Code Spurs Student Reaction over Yoga Pants story alex griffin | photo ellen fleetwood

East junior Andrea Horn sports a pair of yoga pants to join several hundred East students partaking in dress code protests.

6 | Spark | November 17, 2011

Governor John Kasich address local citizens at a rally regarding Issues 2 and 3.

n Community News

Kasich Visits Issues 2 & 3 Rally

story tabby hall | photo used with permission from john kasich

Ohio Governor John Kasich and local politicans attended a rally, hosted by the West Chester TEA Party, at the Carriage Hill Barn in Liberty Township to promote Issues 2 and 3.

East principal Dr. Keith Kline’s Wednesday morning announcement regarding yoga pants and other form fitting pants sparked rebellion among the student population on Thursday, Nov. 3. On Wednesday night, East students attempted to spread the word about the “yoga pants revolution” via social networks such as Facebook and Twitter. East junior Mallory Webb (malwebb16) tweeted “tomorrow is the day I wear pants… yoga pants. #TEAMYOGAPANTS” along with East junior Tyler Ference (ferencetyler) saying “If I had yoga pants I would wear them for #TeamYogaPants.” The Lakota Dress Code, Board policy 6203, states that “no formfitting shorts of any kind may be worn unless worn completely under a shirt/dress. Examples include biking spandex and lycra-type shorts.” The code does not specify yoga pants directly, but Kline stated that yoga pants fall under this dress code clause. “I have announced that board policy, which is included in the handbook, indicates no form fitting clothing is permitted. I would consider tights, yoga pants, etc. to be form-fitting and my intent was to remind folks of that policy,” Kline said. “We will continue to work to enforce the policies that have been approved by the Board of Education—that is my job.” According to Kline, the warning to the school was just meant as a reminder to students about the dress code regulations.

story continued on lakotaeastspark.com

Westboro Protests at Miami

Students at Miami University held counter-protests to combat those held by the Westboro Baptist Church. story raika casey | photo mandi ellsworth

Miami Students gather to counter the Westboro protests.

undreds of people stood witnessing the Westboro Baptist Church (WBC) in action on Spring Street at Miami University on Oct. 25. The WBC’s four protestors held up signs that said “Thank God for Dead Soldiers,” “Fags Boom Nations,” and “Fags are beasts,” as hundreds of Miami students vocally battled the church members. According to Miami University President David Hodge, one of the members of the church was originally scheduled to visit Miami in order to answer questions from a class on religious extremism, not in order to address the entire university. “Once the visit was inaccurately portrayed as an invitation to speak, it was no longer possible to accomplish the academic goals that had been established,” Hodge said. “They were never actually invited to speak. ” In protest, the WBC announced that they would still protest on Spring Street and Maple Street after the opportunity to answer questions from the class was retracted. Hodge told his students via Twitter not to speak with or pay any attention to the protestors, or even attend the protests. He tweeted, “ @preshodge: Please ignore the WBC demonstration today. Join the unite white out rally in front of McCracken 4-5 to show the true Miami spirit. #miamiu” Unite Miami preached tolerance and love, conflicting with the WBC’s mission to preach intolerance and hate according to Miami student Natalie Lyrey. Some Miami students followed Hodge’s orders and went the white

out rally during the WBC’s protest. “We hoped that any negative angry feelings they had could be counter acted by the rally.” Lyrey said. “[Unite Miami] brings everyone together rather than forcing them apart like the WBC. We’re one diverse school that’s showing people we don’t care what they think as long as we stick together.” The spirit of protesting was present

Quick Facts about Westboro Baptist Church: n Located in Topeka, Kansas n Founder: Fred Phelps n 71 Members n Sued city of Topeka, Kansas and won $200,000 on both sides, as the Miami students had demonstrated by their actions against the WBC’s. Men in Speedos and flamboyant outfits dance around in opposition to one of WBC’s most known idea, that “God Hates Fags.” Two girls approached the protestors and proceeded to engage in a passionate kiss, displaying their tolerance for homosexuals. A Ford F150 pulled up in front of the protestors, with two men in the bed of the truck. The two men were wearing cowboy hats and shouted profanities at the WBC protestors and told them to get out of America as they waved an enormous American flag. Despite all the opposition, the WBC

protestors sang their song parodies to the songs “Pumped up Kicks” by Foster the People and “Need you now” by Lady Antebellum and shouted their message with a smile on their faces. Members of the church could not be reached for comment. Some students argued that going to the protests fed the WBC’s overall goal. One Miami student declined the opportunity of watching the protest. “Going to the protest would have given the group exactly what they were looking for—attention.” East graduate and Miami student Christina Yamada said. “Attending [the protest] would empower the group more.” Although that the WBC protests conflicts with the ideals of many, 57 percent of students argued that their First Amendment right is protected here, no matter how offensive their speech was “They have a legal right to be here and protest. We may despise what they stand for, but they do have First Amendment rights.” Hodge said. Students whose personal ideals conflict with nearly every value that the WBC enforces still argued that they have the right to protest and say what they feel. “I’ve seen the WBC church and as a liberal Jewish ally of the gay community, I don’t have anything in common with the WBC, but they have the right to protest.” said Lyrey. “That is their right as citizens of the United States and it’s all right to have a counter protest, were just about love, rather than hate.” n

lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 7

news | levy

Levy Failure Brings Lakota

More Challenges

For the third time in a row, the Lakota levy was struck down by voters, this time 54-46 percent. Potentially facing a $17.6 million spending deficit by 2016, Lakota will be forced to re-evaluate and make “painful cuts.” story rachel podnar | photo ellen fleetwood | infographic irfan ibrahim

olitical climate. Taxes. Board indecision. Budgetary concerns. Poor economy. Misinformation. Transparency. Whatever the factors were that contributed to the community’s decision, the Nov. 8 election left the Lakota Local School District at a loss for funding. The third since 2005, the failure of the operating levy means the continuation of Lakota’s long struggle for funding and the beginning of a new series of tough decisions and cuts to be made by the Lakota Board of Education. Based on the Oct. 2011 Five-Year Forecast, a “snapshot” of the district’s projected finances, at current spending levels, Lakota will have a spending deficit of $17.6 million in 2016, up from the current spending deficit of $9 million. If the levy would have passed, it would have kept Lakota out of deficit spending until at least 2014. According to Lakota Treasurer Jenni

Logan, the 4.75 mill levy would have garnerd approximately $12 million per year and would have filled a hole created by loss of state funding. The decrease in Lakota’s state funding will amount to about $12 million per year by 2014. $3 million of that amount is due to the end of the stimulus funds that Lakota has recieved and the state deciding not to replace those dollars. The other $9 million comes from the loss of funds from a commercial activity tax. Logan said the state discontinued a source of funding for local govenments–the tangible personal property tax–in order to attract businesses to Ohio. To compensate for the loss of revenue, the state replaced the tax with the commercial activity tax, which is to be phased out by 2018. The tax, however, is being phased out early and will be completely phased out by 2014, resulting in a $9 million loss for Lakota. With the levy failure, it is time to reasses the budget and compensate for the $12

million revenue loss, according to Logan. “A need still exists. Without the needed revenue we are forced to make more drastic reductions,” Logan said. “That is never fun. It is not something that we look forward to and it is a job that we have to do. We are beginning on it immediately.” The timeframe for decision-making is short—if the Board chooses to place a levy on the ballot in Mar. they will need to take action by Dec. 7 in order to secure the necessary resolutions and certification, according to Logan. In the coming weeks, the Board must decide whether it will request another levy and if it will be on the ballot in Mar., Jun. or Nov. This decision will work in tandem with what cuts are made and where, and under what time frame they will be made. “One of the first steps is [to decide whether or not to] go back to the ballot,” Logan said. “If [we choose to put another levy on the ballot] do we want to keep it at 4.75 mills? With this defeat we have now lost

Millage Matters The Lakota District has had 16 levys concerning either current expenses, redution of current expenses, or emergency, six of which have passed. The most recent levy asked for $12.6 million. One mill is equal to a tenth of a percent in property tax. So, if the millage is 4 mills, the percent taxed to a $100,000 is .04 percent, or $400 in tax dollars per year. Due to property values fluctuating over the past seven years, the millage has done likewise.

11.8 Mills

9.3 Mills

7.1 Mills

5.5 Mills

5.6Mills

5.5 Mills

4.75 Mills D FA IL E

Nov. 2005

May 2010

Nov. 2010

Nov. 2011

Years Levy has Passed in the Past Seven Years 8 | Spark | November 17, 2011

LE D FA I

LE D

FA I

Feb. 2005

LE D

LE D Nov. 2004

PA S

Mar. 2004

FA I

FA IL

Property Taxes in Millage

revenue because we won’t be able to collect in 2012, we have lost ayear of collection.” Lakota Superintendent Karen Mantia said that the decision of whether or not to go back on the ballot is part of many decisions on the horizon. “The Board will have to ask where will we go from here,” she said. “If we do go back, how much do we go back for? Will it be with the same services or wills services have to change here in Lakota? We’re evaluating all of that.” Unlike in the Nov. 2010 levy, the Board did not release a list of objectives to be cut in the event of the levy’s failure. As of press time, details regarding specific cuts have not been released. According to Logan, there is no set number for how much cuts must amount to, because future levies could affect the how much needs to be cut. Board vice president Ben Dibble spoke to the fact that where the inevitable cuts will come from is largely up in the air at this point. “We haven’t said exactly what [those cuts] will be,” Dibble said. “We can’t at this point. The obvious things are already cut. Things like busing—already cut. It will be more of cutting into what we are actually offering. You keep hearing analogies of cutting into the muscle and into the bone because there is no fat. We cut into the muscle so I guess it’s back into the bone where we’re cutting into the structure of the thing.” According to Dibble, one of the reasons the Board did not release a list of specific

This issue is the first piece in Spark’s series of post-levy budget coverage cuts to be made was because of the arrival of Mantia as the new superintendent. Mantia was new to the district and she was deciding where her priorities for the district were and thus she could not outline specific cuts to be made. To approach the task ahead of making cuts in the schools, Mantia is relying on a data-based decision making model, one that analyzes costs and benefits to all programs. Dibble said that she has gone through a process already to determine where Lakota’s costs are and she will use that when making her decisions. Mantia said, “We’ll match the cost to the service as provided. We want to ask the question of the value that it brings to students and what students need.” While the areas from which cuts will be made have not yet been announced, it is the clear message of the NoLakota group that the district should start with a conversation with the teachers. Rich Hoffman, spokesman for NoLakota, said that Lakota should come up with 5

Lakota levy supporters gathered at Champs on Nov. 8 to watch the election returns.

percent savings out of the teacher’s contract. “I’d like to see the superintendent sit down with the LEA [Lakota Educator’s Association] and ask them if they would be willing to work within the budget and come up with five percent savings,” Hoffman said. “That way nobody has to lose a job, no electives need to be cut. They need to figure out how to work in the budget that the community set the constraints for [on Nov. 8].” After the last levy failure, cuts were felt in all grade levels, across all areas: transportation, class offerings and sizes and athletics. While the Board does not know what exactly the next round of cuts will look like, they will most likely come from personnel expenditures, where approximately 77 percent of the general fund is spent on wages and benefits. “There isn’t much else to cut other than personnel,” Logan said. “Not in a budget of $1.55 million when 77 percent of the expenditures are in personnel. But that doesn’t mean we won’t look at everyting. We renegotiate negotiate contracts. We try to save dollars with anything and everytjing we can look at but that is not going to fix our probems. The spending deficit is $9 million and there’s not enough of those expenditures to solve $9 million.” Community outreach coordinator for the Lakota Levy Committee Kelly Casper reiterates that while it is painful, cuts will likely come in the form of personnel reductions. “Unfortunately, the biggest place that we can cut is personnel and I hate to see that happen,” Casper said. “I hate to see teachers loosing their robs but I have tremendous, tremendous faith in Dr. Mantia. She is trying to get Lakota back on track.” With the failure of the levy and the certainty of cuts, Manita said that district will use the failure as an opportunity to reevaluatethe the district’s situation. Her plan

was to make cuts regardless of a levy passage or failure and she said this failure is a chance to take a deeper look at Lakota. “[After talking to the community], the second step is to step back and reprioritize,” Mantia said. “We’ll have to answer a lot of questions. Will we go back on the ballot, what will we do with the shortage of money? I don’t have answers for [those questions]. But there are a lot of questions circling around. We’re regrouping.” With all of the factors that go into how voters make decisions, there are any number of causes that lead to the mandate for Lakota to regroup. Dibble expressed his concern that the other issues on the ballot might have taken away from the levy. He said that levies do not commonly go on the ballot at the same time as board elections and that may have contributed to the failure, while Casper thinks it is a sign of a lack of concern for good schools in the community. Hoffman disagrees with both of these points and argues that this levy was voted down because people feel that they are taxed too much “[The levy failed] because the taxes are too high and [the community] is frustrated and there isn’t any plan to bring the budget together, even though it might not sound that way in the school system,” Hoffman said. Mantia said that the issue is not about why the levy failed but rather that a new dialogue must begin in Lakota between the school district and the community in order to move forward. Mantia said, “We need to find out what the community wants from us. This is their failure and we need to ask the questions and develop an understanding of where our community is. I don’t think it’s about liking kids or not liking kids, it’s about the climate. We need to understand the community better.” n

lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 9

news | hall monitoring

Check the Halls story john grasty | infographic ian castro | photos ellen fleetwood The hallway leading to band and choir rooms is shown to be a popular hang out spot both in the mornings and afternoons for the multitude of band and choir members.

Upper Level

Lower Level

Traffic Signals Not crowded (0-9) Crowded (10-29) Very Crowded (30+) Very Crowded in the morning as welll

Main street is the largest and most obvious point of crowding before and after school. Intersections of side doors and locker bays throughout the school serve as student hang out points both before and after school.

The absense of busing has left students milling around building

hen the Lakota teacher contract was enacted with a seven period schedule at the end of the last school year, teachers knew of some obvious consequences—increased class size and fewer duty periods. The contract also has consequences that were not so evident, such as the absence of after-school teacher patrols. According to East Principal Dr.Keith Kline, the cut came as a direct result of the loss of the duty periods. “Last year every teacher had a duty period,” Kline said. “This year there are some who have a duty period, but primarily most of the staff does not, so that is not something we would like to expend a duty period on.” But according to former patroller, English teacher and yearbook advisor Melissa Wipperman, this could put student safety in jeopardy. “The purpose of the after school supervision was to monitor the hallways before 3:30 when the building was closed,” said Wipperman. “Because there was no busing, kids were staying after later.” According to former patroller and social

10 | Spark | November 17, 2011

studies teacher Amy Florence, there were still a limited number of incidents last year. But now Kline said the job of keeping incidents from happening this year has fallen to administration. “Typically you will find an administrator [around after school],” he said “We have spread ourselves out.” This, however, differs from a recent survey of 36 East teachers which showed 28 percent saw a negative impact in the loss of after school monitoring. On the survey, an anonymous teacher said “administration is nowhere to be seen.” In addition to administrative monitoring, Kline also believes the integrity of the student body will help keep the school safe. “I have tremendous faith in our student body,” Kline said. “I have said many times that I would put our student body up against anyone. Our students are well-behaved. Knowing that helps us.” This change has also led to a significant spike in after-school hallway traffic. “After school I feel as if I have to run to my locker in order to avoid getting caught in

a large group of people walking to wherever they are going,” East sophomore Rachel Chestnut said. “It is even worse when people stand in the middle of the hallway or in front of your locker. The after school hallway is never fun to be stuck in.” Part of this problem is could be how late students leave school. According to a survey of 364 East students, nine percent leave school after 3:30 without extracurricular activities. One such student is junior Merrick Morgan, who said he typically leaves school between 3:40 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. to avoid after school parking lot traffic. Morgan can often be heard on the opposite end of the school courtesy of the smooth jazz flowing from his saxophone. Kline acknowledges that there is a possibility of more significant problems occurring with more students staying after school. “I always get concerned about safety for everyone,” Kline said. “When a system is stretched there is a chance for things to happen that I do not like.” n

news | community foundation

Community Foundation Brings New Hope for Lakota Athletes An anonymous donor and the Community Foundation of West Chester/Liberty are providing funds for Lakota athletic scholarships, which cut athletic fees in half. story laura shrake | infographic emily chao

n response to this year’s increase in athletic pay to participate fees, the Community Foundation of West Chester/Liberty has taken the initiative to help off-set the cost for junior high and high school student athletes within Lakota. The Community Foundation, in association with an anonymous donor, is now home to the Lakota Athletic Participation Fee Fund. This fund will be able to provide up to 40 scholarships this year, roughly 20 per each remaining season of sports, to multiple junior high and high school student athletes in Lakota. The Community Foundation has received 28 applications for winter sports. Each applicant is asked to detail the family’s hardship and the students’ passion for the sport and any other criteria that they feel makes them eligible for a scholarship. “A private donor came to us with [concerns about Lakota’s turmoil,”] said Melissa Benedict, who is the vice president of donor relations at the Community Foundation. “[He] saw the value that athletics play in becoming a well-rounded student and really wanted to do something to help the families that would not be able to afford the increase in fee.” To play a sport at the high school level this year, a family must pay $550 per athlete, an increase of $250 from last year, prior to the levy failure. Similarly, a family with an athlete at the junior high level must pay $350 per

student, an increase of $150 from the previous year. The Lakota Athletic Participation Fee Fund will pay for half of the cost to play a sport. According to the athletic directors at East and Hopewell Junior Richard Bryant and Tom Howard respectively, this increased cost in tandem with the removal of the family cap has already affected the demographics of high school and junior high athletics. “We are down [approximately] 15 to 20 percent in football,” Bryant said, “and I would expect the same in wrestling [and other

and loss of the family cap has taken a toll. Between two student athletes at East, the Smith* family must bear the $2,200 cost of three sports as well as a marching band participation fee, which is the same price as an athletic sport. A total of four participation fees forced the Smiths to adjust to the new price tag of this school year. “We have to manage, budget, and set money aside,” Patricia Smith said. “We have to [plan on using] the Kroger Card program, which helps some, but it’s still a lot of money.” Smith acknowledged that the participation fee is not the only cost involved in playing a of 364 East students sport, stating that added costs make paying for surveyed play more a sport all the more difficult. than one pay-to-play “There’s always [extra costs,]” Smith said. PERCENT sport during the year “[Between] things like spirit wear and new shoes, the true cost is above $550 by far.” mass participation sports] like track, [who’s With less transportation available to the numbers,] I would guess, could be cut in half.” district since the failure of the 2010 Lakota At Hopewell Junior, Howard was forced Operating Levy, the cost of a tank of gas must to combine multiple football teams into one, be factored into a family’s fee for the year. cut the girls’ golf team completely, hire only According to Bryant, the smaller teams are one cross country coach, and accept every not receiving any transportation this year, and student who tried out for girls’ volleyball and the bigger teams do not receive transportation cheerleading. to neighboring high schools, such as Lakota “Our numbers are down in pretty much West, nor to neighboring districts such as everything,” Howard said, “and the number Mason and, in many cases, Fairfield. As a of students who play multiple sports in a year parent of two East athletes, Smith is flustered seems to be getting smaller.” with the lack of transportation. For at least one family at East, the price “One of the most frustrating things is that after you’ve paid that much money [for a sport], we still don’t get busing, or moreover that we don’t know where that money is going,” Smith said. The recent increased pay-to-participate fees contribute to a variety of Through all the finances and frustrations, costs needed to keep various facets of the athletic program running. Benedict is hopeful that the Lakota Athletic Participation Fee Fund will fulfill its purpose, Purchased Services– ticket Overhead– athletic dept. Transportation– budget handling, officials, concessions salaries, maintenance was reduced to $30,000 and continue to gain publicity and thus more contributions to the funds. “We’ll continue to maximize exposure for the fund in hopes that there are donors out there who will see the value that is placed on athletics and the need with the students who aren’t able to participate,” Benedict says. “The last thing you want is for students not to be able to partake in an activity [because their famil––y cannot afford it.”] Benedict is hopeful that the Lakota Athletic Participation Fee Fund will “reach Operating Referees The turf needs According Smaller teams, Teams with new heights and continue to grow its funds and officials the score to be groomed to Bryant, like Academic postseason and outreach” as the news of the generous board takes are “very and cleaned. The coaches still Quiz Team and games need contributions donated to start this fund is hired help. expensive” baseball fields also earn less than golf, have no additional to hire for need to be mowed. one dollar per transportation transportation. spread throughout the community. n

LAKOTA EAST

sporting events.

LAKOTA EAST

information provided by athletic director richard bryant

Costs Covered by Pay-to-Play Fees

hour.

in order to cut costs.

This can be unpredictable.

*family name has been changed for confidentiality

lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 11

news | technology

The current technology situation at East frustrates many teachers, but instructors are making do with what they have.

East physics teacher Sandee Coats-Haan uses her Smart Board to teach her class.

ith a new superintendent comes a new vision. Lakota Superintendent Dr. Karen Mantia brings 21st century learning to Lakota and as a result, she wants students to use more technology in their every day education, in order to make sure they are ready for the working world. Although East already has computers and interactive learning boards such as the Smart Board and 3M machines, a large amount of the technology students need to use is not current with technology in the consumer market. Lakota’s Director of Technology Todd Wesley said that because Lakota does not have a permanent improvement funding source, technology planning is tied directly to the operating budget. Correspondingly, declining

12 | Spark | November 17, 2011

Technology Stretched Thin

story shivang patel | photos ellen fleetwood | infographic irfan ibrahim

financial support in the general fund causes requests are then submitted to the senior technology refreshes or new projects on the management team, which prioritizes and same consideration list as all other district allocates budgets based on current funding. expenses. The decreasing funds for technology “It is a problem [that we cannot update contribute to the lack of technology technology often],” Mantia said. “I think this refreshments. is one of the reasons we are looking at a levy “While a refresh was submitted as a part request, not only to stabilize our operations of the 2011-12 but to see where we can of 364 East students place our resources.” budget [for East], these funds were “Knowing how often surveyed have not available and to update technology been frustrated with were not approved,” in Lakota can be a PERCENT technology Wesley said. challenge because According to technology updates so Wesley, every year the technology department frequently,” Lakota Board of Education Vice develops a list of budgetary needs that are President Ben Dibble said. “Lakota needs to directly tied to requested department and reassess where it wants to go with technology district initiatives involving technology. The and how students use technology.”

East Goes Wireless

To access the wireless internet, connect to “LLSD-Guest.”

This past summer, 43 access points were installed in the ceiling at East enabling students and staff to access Wi-Fi anywhere in the school.

Extreme Networks Altitude 4260 Acess Point

Range: 150 feet radius, so internet is also available near parking lots and football field Cost: $403 per access point Antenna that transmits Wi-Fi Indicator light

Mantia said that she wants students to be technologically advanced, even though they have limited resources [at school]. These limited resources have caused frustration among East students. In a recent Spark survey 68 percent of 346 East students have been frustrated with the technology in Lakota. “[Lakota’s technology frustrates me], but I realize the district is on an increasingly small budget and it has to pick and choose where it puts money,” East senior John Nelson said. Currently, East’s policy states that any electronic communication devices such as cell phones and/or pagers “are not to be used during school.” Kline said the any new policy regarding technology will include information regarding security, not only to protect students’ electronics but also East’s network and servers. This frustration is not only felt by students, but also by teachers. “I teach six periods per day, so I would say I have difficulties [with technology] six times per day” East physics teacher Sandee CoatsHaan said. “Things constantly fail.” Coats-Haan said that she thinks technology would run more smoothly if East had a technology associate who was at East full-time. Despite teachers incorporating technology into the curriculum by using PowerPoint presentations, videos via document camera and other devices, 94 percent of teachers surveyed have experienced

I teach six periods per day, so I would say I have difficulties six times per day

complications with the current technology. “I graded and recorded 130 tests during first period, but during second period, those 130 items were erased,” said Coats-Haan. “Fortunately the items were still in the folder, but I don’t have time to do things twice.” Although computers and software have not been updated at East in a few years, two routers and 43 access points, which supply wireless internet, were installed throughout the school this past summer. The routers provide a one gigabyte network connection each that are shared by the access points. Each access point, which has a range of 150 feet, cost $403, totaling $17,329 for all the access points. Before the Wi-Fi was set up, there was limited wireless internet in areas used by the administration. Now wireless internet access is available to everyone. According to Wesley, the installation of a Wi-Fi network was part of a capital improvement project designed to expand the technology offering both instruction and operations. “This long term project started at the secondary buildings,” Wesley said. “We hope to expand it to the elementary buildings pending funding.” As the building becomes more wireless, East will incorporate a teaching model that will allow students to bring their computers, according to East principal Dr. Keith Kline. “We have a team of teachers [and administrators] working on a model [to use technology more in the school],” Kline said. “Over the course of the next six months to a year, there is going to be a change on how we access technology, what we use it for and the kinds of things the student is going to work with, in order to prepare them for their future.” n

Looking at Other School Districts: Fairfield Fairfield City School District has 10,177 students and nine buildings, making technology and technology support easier to manage and finance than Lakota, which has 18,426 students and 22 buildings. Fairfield receives funding for technology from the general fund, like Lakota, however, Fairfield receives money for technology from other sources too. “Our funding comings from a variety of sources which include some general fund monies along with funds from the Curriculum Department, government subsidies and various grants,” Technology & Data Coordinator Dan Jeffers said. “Our Parent/ Teacher group also donates a generous amount to buildings for the use of technology purchases.” Lakota’s technology purchases have been very minimal for the past few years, as have Fairfield’s technology purchases. According to Jeffers, Fairfield’s technology replacement plan has been suspended since 2008 due to a permanent levy’s failure. Regardless of decreased funding in technology, both schools try to incorporate technology into their students’ curriculum by using 3M learning machines and Smart Boards.

lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 13

news | new administrator

New Administrator Broadens Student Programs at East story elaine laux | photos sierra whitlock infographic jill monson, dan turner

East assisstant principal Mike Broadwater poses with his student i.d. scanner.

ith a point and click of the trigger, many East students are getting to know the repercussions of this tiny machine. Behind it stands a tall, brunette man with glasses who seems to always be sporting the latest Ohio State gear. He asks to see a student’s ID so he can tally his or her latest total activity points. This man is Mike Broadwater, East’s new assistant principal for last names Md-Z, and this tiny machine is his East student ID scanner. He usually stands in the halls during class changes or in the lunch room during A and B, but he will never be found without his student ID scanner in hand. Broadwater uses this scanner to help get students involved in extracurricular activities. With each scan, he can see on his laptop who is or is not participating and who is not and hopes to eventually get every single student at East involved in extracurricular activities. Besides working to get students involved for 24 years at North Royalton High School in Cleveland, Broadwater was named Assistant Principal of the Year in 2006 by the National Association of Secondary School Principals. Broadwater, who is relishing every moment in his first year at East, took the assistant principal position for professional growth. “From day one it has never felt like a job here,” Broadwater said. “If I’m not enjoying it, how can the kids?” Broadwater started out teaching math and computer science at North Royalton High School. Outside of the classroom, Broadwater coached football and basketball for 15 years. “North Royalton is very similar to East as far as the suburban area around it,” Broadwater said. “One of the major differences, though, is the course offerings. East has so many more class options, especially with Advanced Placement (AP) and honors classes.” Broadwater was in charge of the six AP at North Royalton High School and worked with the teachers of those classes to help students succeed. He believes that East has a top of

the line program of studies with its various options for students. “I hope to have as many kids as possible take at least one AP [class] throughout their four years in high school,” Broadwater said. “I hope the kids choose a science because of the tremendous labs here. AP classes are worth it. Not only do they save money, but also the amount you learn is incredible.” Broadwater also worked closely with the other administrators at his former school, and hopes to bring that same relationship to East. North Royalton Assistant Principal Michael McGinnis believes that Broadwater is an admirable man because of his ability to connect with the school’s staff and students. “Whether it is coaching kids, performing with them in the school musical, mentoring them as leaders or disciplining them through their poor choices, Mr. Broadwater always wanted what was best for the students and teachers of [North Royalton] as a group and individually,” McGinnis said. Broadwater is very impressed by the students at East who, he believes, are more academically focused than at North Royalton High School. Besides the educational appreciation in students, he also believes that East has more school spirit, leading to the decision to start his student ID scanner program. His goal is to get every student involved in an extracurricular at school. He is starting this program with hopes of boosting involvement through recognition. Spirit days and basketball games will be the first to tackle in his scanner system. “I want pull up the entire school year

Broadwater scans students information into a computer in order to see the number of activities in which students are participating

11-

Broadwater Scanned

of scans on my computer in May to see the whole school involvement,” Broadwater said. “I then plan to pinpoint which students are not contributing and fix it so they become involved the next year.” Broadwater is currently implementing a new tutoring program through National Honor Society (NHS) and Mu Alpha Theta. The students in Mu Alpha Theta will tutor others who seem to be struggling in math, and NHS will tutor students in the other core subjects, as well as foreign languages. East senior and NHS secretary Francesca Reynaert is in charge of organizing the NHS tutoring program and believes that it a great idea for all East students. She believes that the effectiveness of this program will be determined by the number of students take advantage of it. “I think it is an excellent opportunity,” Reynaert said. “If students show the need for help in a subject, [the program] will continue throughout the rest of the school year.” East senior and NHS vice president Billy Barren agrees. “I think this new tutoring program will be very effective,” Barren said. “I’m personally excited for it because I love helping people.” Along with tutoring, Broadwater has other ideas for new programs that he is trying to start at East. He is currently working with The Boomerang Project to help develop a Link Crew program at East. The Boomerang Project is an organization that helps students succeed through training educators to enable peer mentorship at their schools through leadership and group development methods.

2011-12

MIKE BROADWATER ID#772751

Education: Bachelor of Science in Mathematics Education at The Ohio State University, and Master’s Degree in Secondary Education at Kent State University Previous Experiences: North Royalton HS assistant principal, and math and computer science teacher

MIKE BROADWATER ID#772751

Assistant Principal for Md-Z

Free Time: Watching and playing sports, golfing, spending time with family

Assistant Principal for Md-Z

Link crew is similar to the mentoring program East has now. Broadwater plans to have Link Crew merge larger school organizations, such as SALT, SACA and mentoring together. “We are not only looking for the ‘straight-A’ students who are involved in everything, but also leaders from all different groups [for Link Crew],” Broadwater said. “We want someone who is easy to connect with.” My goal is to Besides Link Crew, Broadwater is also get to know working on an Ohio as many Educators Association project called Response to students as Intervention, which will possible by aid struggling students. He is planning to meet the end of this with the other East school year administrators weekly to discuss students’ needs and behaviors, such as students who are failing a class or might need help with problems outside of the classroom. “[Through Response to Intervention] I want to work more on developing new curriculum and less on disciplining students [at East].” Broadwater said. Broadwater likes the fact that he came into East with his 24 years of experience. Both Broadwater and East principal Dr. Keith Kline feel that Broadwater can bring new insight into programs. “He came here with fresh ideas, which is a great opportunity for us to see what he had previous success with at his old school,” Kline said. “We can take from [his previous success] and bring what we want to East.” Broadwater enjoys working with Kline and the rest of East’s administration. Although the East administration meets once a week, they come in contact with each other daily. “I honestly think that Dr. Kline bleeds black and silver,” Broadwater said. “He is a great leader. Along with [East Dean of Students] Rick Haynes and the rest of the administration, we make a great team.” Interacting with students is a very important part of Broadwater’s day. He enjoys standing out in the halls during class changes and sitting in the lunchroom during 5A and 5 B periods on a daily basis. “I come in contact with about 250 students per day,” Broadwater said. “My goal is to get to know as many students as possible by the end of this school year.” Kline and the rest of the administration are very pleased with Broadwater, and hope that he stays at East for many more years. “Broadwater is a great addition to the East family,” Kline said. “We are very fortunate to have him.” n

NEXT ISSUE: Spark interviews East assistant principal Dr. Stacy Millburg. lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 15

news | butler tech

This year, East hosts Butler Tech classes in Digital Media Arts, and in Sports Medicine, thus maintaining opportunities for students without the cost to Lakota.

Sports medicine students practice ankle wrapping.

story and infographic ameera khalid photo ellen fleetwood

Butler Tech Brings Opportunity W ith the failure of the Nov. 2010 levy, the Lakota Local School District had to make some tough cuts, resulting in the loss of elective courses, extracurricular and sports programs. The loss of courses, however, was mitigated through Lakota’s membership in the Butler Technology and Career Development Schools, better known as Butler Tech. Butler Tech is a Career Technical Planning District (CTPD), instituted by the Ohio Department of Education. Butler Tech, while having its own facilities and courses, also services 10 other school districts: nine of which, including Lakota, are in Butler County and one in Hamilton County. The school districts provide the classrooms and the students, while Butler Tech provides all the funding, including teachers’ salaries, operating costs and funds for equipment and materials. Over the years, Butler Tech has funded several courses at East and Lakota West. This year, including the courses they just began funding, they run 15 courses at East and several more at Lakota West. This year at East, Sports Medicine, Intro to Digital Media Arts and Digital Media Arts are completely funded by Butler Tech. At Lakota West, Introduction to International Business, International Business Academy and Work and Family Life are being offered through Butler Tech, which also runs the Career Based Intervention Program at both East and Lakota West. According to Butler Tech Interim Executive Director of Secondary Education Michael Parry, the CTPD is completely funded by Butler County taxes and the state, requiring

16 | Spark | November 17, 2011

no fees from Lakota or any other district it serves. Parry said that while Butler Tech receives approximately 60 percent of its $50 million operating budget from the state, it is not run by the state. “We are governed by a board of education comprised of representatives from our associate school boards,” Parry said. Lakota Board member Lynda O’Connor represents Lakota on the Butler Tech Board of Education. Each Butler Tech board member serves two years, except for one revolving member that serves a single year, so that any school district may have two representatives during any given year. When Butler Tech was established in 1975, Lakota was one of its founding members. Though similar to Lakota in its funding, Butler Tech is structured very different from Lakota. Although its stand-alone campuses serve both teenagers and adults, Butler Tech offers job retraining—it also offers classes at other schools for just high school students. This is called the satellite program, which is how Lakota is able to offer some courses, such as Digital Media and Sports Medicine. When Lakota made cuts during the summer, several popular non-core classes were on the list to be cut. However, Butler Tech asked Lakota what classes students were most interested in taking and offered to provide those classes. Students even leave campus to attend Butler Tech courses. 50 students at East are taking Digital Media arts and 14 more are taking Introduction to Digital Media Arts. 125 students are taking Sports Medicine. “Sports Medicine is a very popular course,

but it’s not a requirement for graduation,” East principal Dr. Keith Kline said. “As we’re making reductions, we have to look at a variety of things. Whether it’s a requirement for graduation or not is a big factor. In all these cases [where courses are offered through Butler Tech], these are elective courses that do not [fulfill] graduation requirements. We would have had to have gotten rid of them, had it not been for our partnership with Butler Tech.” In addition to being funded by Butler Tech, these classes are taught according to Butler Tech curriculum. The curriculum for these classes is formed in collaboration between the counselors and administrators, the course’s teacher and the curriculum specialist at Butler Tech. Nikki Drew, Sports Medicine teacher for East, said that she met with Butler Tech curriculum specialist Christina Terrill during the summer to create the curriculum for her class. “We put in five full days during the summer,” Drew said. “We had to do a lot of research, but I get to decide what to teach.” According to Terrill, curriculum specialists research the standards set by state and national educational organizations as well as what businesses expect new employees to know. After this step, curriculum specialists and teachers can begin forming the curriculum. “Once standards are chosen or created, a curriculum specialist will sit down with content experts in the field, certified teachers, to begin the first part of the process which is to decide how to group the standards into units and figure out a recommended amount of time to spend on each unit,” Terrill said.

After the units are decided, teachers need to decide how to assess the students’ retention and comprehension of what they were taught. Curriculum specialists advise the teachers and develop ways to test the students if a standard test does not prove effective. Curriculum specialists also have to find or create “instructional resources,” including text books, computer programs, and online resources. “The one thing about curriculum development and teaching is that it really is never finished,” Terrill said. “Every year we go back to the curriculum to look for ways that it can be improved not only for the teacher but [also] for the students.” Although the primary job for curriculum specialists is to help the teachers, they also assess curriculum, review recommended course materials (texts, computer programs, and other equipment) to assure that they meet the requirements of the course, innovate new projects to further enhance education or help the school meet state guidelines, as well as make sure that the course is up-to-date with the changing demands and global economy. Having taught Sports Medicine for four years now, Drew thinks that one of the major advantages of teaching a class through Butler Tech is that she gets to teach what she values and believes students should be learning. She feels that she can specifically tailor the class to what students at East would want and need.

Terrill, while being there as a resource for an expert opinion, was able to help Drew find out how to teach what she wanted to teach. Drew believes the best way to teach the course is by hands-on activities, due to the nature of the course. She points out that students are taking the course because it is the field in which they are planning to work. There are students wanting to be, sports nutritionists, physical therapist, trainers, etc. These students are provided with a unique opportunity. Because Butler Tech is focused on job training, the students are required to

It’s giving me “opportunities to meet all kinds of new people. ” do internships that relate to the field. Because the course is a two-year program, juniors must get 450 hours of work for the class. Half of this is fulfilled in the classroom and the rest is fulfilled outside of the classroom. “When deciding whether or not a class requires an internship we look at the national or state standards for the program, how other schools run their programs, any additional certifications or credits that students could obtain, and the opinion of the content

2 This step can take days

Research

Meet

Standards set by state and national education organizations, as well as what businesses expect in new workers are researched

Teachers and Curriculum Specialists discuss matieral and what is to be taught. Curriculm Specialists and Teachers

Steps to Curriculum

Who?

Butler Tech courses don’t follow Lakota curriculum. Instead, Butler Tech teachers and curriculum specialists meet and create a curriculum. Curriculm specialists write out the material.

Curriculum Specialists

4 Review

The curriculum is reviewed to imporove it for both students and teachers.

3 June July August

This step can take a several weeks to a year

This step is on-going, occuring year after year.

Write

The material is written out in the form of units. The time allocated for each unit is decided upon. Then, a method of assessment is established.

experts—the teachers,” said Terrill, who added that another big factor is the amount of experience the businesses are looking for Although not all Butler Tech courses require Internships, and even fewer are twoyear programs, they still can offer experiences beyond the classroom. East senior Abigail Carr, who is taking International Business and Management at Lakota West, said that her Butler Tech course offers much more than just academic education. Her class connected her with Business Professionals of America (BPA), a co-curricular organization that supports students pursuing a career in business management, office administration, information technology and other related careers. BPA provides support for educators through means of online resources and supplementary curriculum. “Thanks to BPA through my Butler Tech class, I am now the Lakota chapter president and region 17 treasurer,” Carr said. “It’s giving me opportunities to meet all kinds of people.” Carr feels that she learns a lot in her Butler Tech courses and that they are not lacking in quality. However, she finds it difficult to compare to her other classes because the structure is very different. “Almost all the tests are set up differently. For example, I do everything on the computer,” Carr said. She also perceived that many students did not capitalize on what Butler Tech had to offer. “I feel like other students don’t take it seriously specifically because it is a Butler Tech class,” she said. “There are many assumptions that come with ‘Butler Tech,’ such as it’s very easy, it’s for drop outs or it’s more the vocational route.” However, Butler Tech has a lot to offer to a class, including funding. Drew also enjoys increased funds from previous years, when Lakota ran the class. While funds were tight in Lakota, Butler Tech was able to give generous support to design the class. This includes money for a lab and the equipment that comes with it. Ideally, the class should have various materials, including but not limited to laptops, a treatment table, a treadmill, weights, Plyo boxes, medicine balls, a joint alignment tester and space for functional therapy and workout sessions. “When I taught this class a year ago we made do with what we had, which was a regular classroom set up and none of [this equipment],” Drew said. However, now her lab has most of these materials, because of funding from Butler Tech. “There was really no lab then, so we weren’t able to apply a lot of what we were talking about. I did a lot more lecturing and discussing about what we could be doing, and now the kids can actually put their work and thoughts into action.” n

lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 17

feature | miraculous return

“

I’m home again. I’m a happy man.

”

Wayne Fornash holds the helmet he wore after his accident. Since the accident, Fornash has never ridden a motorcycle.

returning REVITALIZED story jasmine tuazon | photo sierra whitlock

East head custodian Wayne Fornash survived a motorcycle accident in 2010 that ended his ability to ride again. After a miraculous recovery, Fornash has a positive outlook on life and safety.

ast head custodian Wayne Fornash did not expect his Sunday motorcycle ride to be the beginning of one of the most challenging yearlong journeys of his life. Wayne, currently 62-years-old, and his wife Diane Fornash were riding down State Route 252 on Oct. 10, 2010 in Brookville, Indiana. Just five minutes after they began their journey, Wayne maneuvered his motorcycle around a curve, littered with a layer of gravel that rocked the 2002 custom-made Road King HarleyDavidson motorcycle out of control. “My first instinct was to stick with the motorcycle when it went down,” Wayne says. “Diane was thrown off going 30 miles an hour.” His wife, who landed along the top of a hill, recalls vividly how she assessed their situation just moments after the crash. “I knew what was wrong with me the moment I got up,” Diane, who worked on the Liberty Township Fire Department life squad for 20 years, says. “My arm looked like a Z. Wayne was on the road laying on his left side, bleeding from the head, saying, ‘Oh my foot! Oh my foot!’ I knew my husband would need air support.” A volunteer firefighter arrived at the site and dispatched a helicopter, which landed at the bottom of the hill. The two were transported from the scene to University Hospital in Cincinnati. “Wayne was going in and out of consciousness while he was in the helicopter,” Diane says. “There was no medication for the pain, so he just moaned and groaned the whole way.” Because Wayne failed to wear a helmet on the day of the accident, he sustained a more severe head injury than he would have if he had wore proper safety gear. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, only 54 percent of motorcyclists in 2010 wore helmets, which are 67 percent effective in preventing brain injuries, and those who did not wear a helmet were three times as likely to sustain a serious head injury. “I didn’t have a helmet on during the accident, even though I usually wore one,” Wayne says. “It’s ironic because Spark wrote a story [in 2001] about motorcycles with me as a source, and I had said it was important to always wear a helmet. Everyone was surprised that I didn’t wear one the day of the crash.” After the doctors assessed Wayne’s condition, neurosurgeon Dr. Bradford Curt told Diane about the swelling in her husband’s brain caused by a hematoma, a large blood clot in the brain. Wayne would need surgery immediately. “They had to remove a bone flap, which is a section of the skull, to take out the blood clot,” Diane says. “They put the bone flap in a freezer so they could put it back later. Three days later, they also operated on his right foot, which had got caught in the motorcycle when he fell and had bones popping out of the top of it.” The surgeries to remove the hematoma and fix the bones in Wayne’s foot were a success. He also went through other procedures to address his knocked-out teeth, broken jaw, out-of-place orbital bone

and disfigured face. Because of the extent of Wayne’s brain injuries however, the doctors did not know when or if he would awaken. According to the Family Caregiver Alliance, an organization that uses education, services, research and advocacy programs to support caregivers throughout the nation, 99,000 of 300,000 Americans hospitalized for brain trauma fall into coma, and 56,000 of those hospitalized for traumatic brain injury die. “They told my family I wouldn’t be able to walk, talk or respond for six months,” Wayne says. “On the second day, the doctors called my son and told him I had woken up on my own. On day four, I was talking to Dr. Kline.” East athletic director Richard Bryant, East Principal Dr. Keith Kline and the East custodial staff visited Wayne at University Hospital, and saw the enormity of the head custodian’s injuries. “When I went to the ICU, he was kind of out of it,” Kline says. “He didn’t seem to realize where he was or what had happened to him. Honestly, I didn’t think I’d ever see him alive again––that’s how bad of a shape he was in.” As Kline and the other East faculty members took turns going into the head custodian’s ICU room, Wayne, who was half-conscious after coming out of a medically-induced coma, was asking why people were tampering with things in his office at East. “I’m always thinking about the school, but it’s interesting that [I had a dream about it] and said all those things to Dr. Kline,” Wayne says. “I guess it tells you that my heart is in my job.” As Wayne was treated for his head injury, Diane went through surgery the day after the accident for her splintered arm and had two plates and 12 screws put in to repair it. She was able to go home after two days, yet Wayne had to remain in the hospital because he required further operations and because he would not be able to function without the assistance of medical professionals. “We’d been married for 25 years,” Diane says. “Sometimes when [I visited him at the hospital] and asked him if he knew who I was, he’d look at me and say, ‘No, I don’t know who you are.’” Two weeks after the accident, Wayne was moved from the University Hospital’s ICU to the Drake Rehabilitation Center and was given medication meant to prevent any future seizures that may be triggered by his brain injury. “It was around then that he started to come around,” Diane says. “My son was sitting next to Wayne in the room, and Wayne started saying some numbers out loud, and my son said, ‘Mom, Dad’s trying to call home.’” This was one of the first signs that Wayne’s memory was gradually coming back. After two and a half weeks of rehabilitation, everything seemed to be on the right track, and Wayne was able to return home in a wheelchair on Nov. 14, 2010, about two months after the accident. His difficulties, however, were still a long way from over. “I had slight depression because I still could not do much by

lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 19

feature | miraculous return myself,” Wayne says. “People were always waiting on me. My wife had to give me sponge baths and clean my foot wound, and I couldn’t drive myself anywhere.” While she supported Wayne as much as possible, Diane often felt helpless knowing that her once extremely active husband was so disheartened about not being able to return to his normal routine. “I cried at times because I felt like I couldn’t get through to him,” Diane says. “He was in so much mental anguish. Once he even said to me, ‘You don’t understand what it’s like when you can’t do anything.’” The part of Wayne’s skull that was removed during the first operation had to remain out for a minimum of six weeks. During this time, Wayne was required to wear a helmet to protect his broken skull. When they went back to the hospital in December to see if they would be able to put the piece of skull back, the doctors found an infection at the top of Wayne’s head. They had to cut more out of Wayne’s skull to reduce the infection and decided to replace the bone flap from the original surgery at another time. To further fight the infection, Wayne was given intravenous antibiotics, which were administered by Diane and an in-house nurse for about four weeks from mid-December to early January. In February, the doctors were finally able to replace the bone flap. “I’ve been very blessed because by this time my head injuries were pretty much healed,” Wayne says. “The thing that’s really prevented me from [going back to work and being able to care for myself] earlier was my foot.” After about eight months of being immobile, Wayne was able to walk for three weeks in May 2011. When they returned to the surgeon later that month, the doctors decided to remove a piece of skin on his foot that was held on by only a couple stitches. That part of his foot, however, had not mended as much as they expected, and the removal exposed two tendons. These tendons and a few plates that were placed in his foot during an earlier operation were removed on June 14. As Wayne’s foot recovered from this operation, he began walking again permanently in August. Other than a slight limp, the most noticeable difference in him now is his new perspective on life. “One of the biggest changes in me is that I tend to let people know they are important and that I appreciate them,” Wayne says. “In an elevator during one of my routine hospital visits with my wife, there was a custodian next to us. I said to her, ‘Thanks for all you do. This hospital looks really great.’ I’ve found myself doing that a lot–– recognizing people’s efforts no matter what they’re doing. Maybe that’s why I’m still around.” Wayne’s new perspective also developed as a result of seeing how others supported him and his family during their difficult time. While the head custodian was still in the hospital, jazz director Todd Hartman coordinated with Diane and brought over 20 jazz band students and their parents together on a Saturday to mow and rake Wayne’s two-acre wooded lot. “My wife told me that the neighbors came down and were crying when they saw everyone working on my yard,” Wayne says. “I cried myself when I saw the pictures that my wife and sister took of the band kids.” Hartman, who discussed Wayne’s accident with his jazz band students, says he was simply looking for a way to help the respected East faculty member. “Mr. Fornash is very serious about taking care of the building so that students and faculty can do their best possible work,” Hartman says. “We [in the jazz band] wanted to help him with his situation.” Events like this, as well as the various cards, gifts and foods from others, made Diane and her husband very thankful for everyone who kept them in their thoughts. “There was so much support from the staff at Lakota,” Diane says. “You can’t put a measure on when a person puts their life on hold to help you.” This community support made Wayne’s difficult year of surgeries,

20 | Spark | November 17, 2011

Wayne Fornash poses with his wife, Diane, near his 2002 custom-made Road King Harley-Davidson motorcycle just minutes before the crash that altered his life forever.

rehabilitation and waiting to heal easier, and he was able to return as East’s head custodian on Oct. 3, 2011. “When he came back, it was surreal,” East custodian Kathy Arbaugh says. “Before, no one knew what would happen or if he would even come back, and now our [custodial] family is together again.” Arbaugh says that everyone has always had great respect for Wayne because he tried to make everyone feel important, and it was hard to lose him for such a long time. “Wayne would keep us in the loop and do special things to let us know he appreciated us,” Arbaugh says. “Whenever anyone has a problem, they can talk to him. After the accident, a piece of the puzzle was missing, and we felt that the whole year without Wayne.” East custodian Debbie Short observed several changes in the head custodian, saying that Wayne “has a peace about him that he didn’t have

before.” “He’s a much better person now––more thoughtful, more considerate,” Short says. “I really admire him for his strength [by going] through all that rehabilitation. People don’t realize how much he’s had to work to get back. He’s a stubborn individual, though, and it has all paid off.” After their recoveries, Wayne and Diane decided that they would probably never ride motorcycles again. “It’s been a long haul for both of us,” Diane says. “We’ve been each other’s rock, listening to each other’s complaints and grievances. I would always tell him, ‘Little man, we’re going to make it together.’” Looking back on the accident and reflecting on how fortunate he is, Wayne says he is thankful for the way things turned out and does not take anything for granted.

“I find myself looking at life differently––that life is a blessing given to me by God,” Wayne says. “I saw a lot of sick and injured people at the hospital who were worse off than me, even though my injuries were serious. In addition, four hours after our accident, a man went down on his Harley-Davidson motorcycle 50 feet from where we went down, and he died. It makes me think, ‘Wayne, that could have been you.’” According to Wayne, the hardest part of his long recovery was not the accident, the surgeries or the constant hospital visits. It was his inability to return to work. “I don’t want pity because I really didn’t suffer in terms of pain,” Wayne says. “My true suffering throughout this whole ordeal was not being able to come back here at East and do what I love to do. Now I’m home again. I’m a happy man.” n

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VERBAL RESPONSE

EYE OPENING

HEADING RECOVERY In the United States approximately 100,000 people suffer from severe traumatic brain injury each year. Nearly 20,000 of these injuries are followed by a coma lasting three weeks or longer, but scientists are adamant in the effectiveness of wearing a helmet. While Fornashâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Glasgow Coma Scale score was never calculated due to the brevity of his coma, a score of 15 indicates full health and a score of 3 indicates death. infographic devin casey | information provided by nhtsa.gov, caregiver. org and braininjury.com

MOTOR RESPONSE

FOR

GLASGOW COMA SCALE SPONTANEOUS TO VOICE TO PAIN NONE ORIENTED CONFUSED INAPPROPRIATE WORDS INCOMPREHENSIVE WORDS NONE OBEYS COMMANDS LOCALIZES PAIN WITHDRAWS (PAIN) FLEXION (PAIN) EXTENSION (PAIN) NONE

11-15:

3-4:

4 3 2 1 5 4 3 2 1 6 5 4 3 2 1

Seven percent will be expected to die or remain in a coma 87 percent would expect to have at least a moderate disability and/or good recovery. 53 percent will be expected to die or remain in a coma 34 percent would expect to have at least a moderate disability and/or good recovery.

CAPPING OFF THE Motorcycle helmets provide protection for motorcycle drivers for all types and locations of head injuries and are not associated with increased neck injuries.

Helmets that fit tightly around the head often minimize the shock waves caused by impact into a stationary object.

FRONT IMPACT WITH HELMET

The outer shell of motorcycle helmets incorporates a structural net reinforcing material. The bottom layer giving multiple different densities to the liner as a single component.

HELMETS ACROSS THE NATION STATES WITH HELMET LAWS FOR ALL AGES STATES WITH HELMET LAWS FOR SOME AGES STATES WITHOUT HELMET LAWS 300,000 AMERICANS ARE HOSPITALIZED FOR BRAIN TRAUMA YEARLY

PERCENTAGE OF MOTORCYCLISTS WHO WEAR HELMETS

71%

54%

2000

2010

99,000 OF THE 300,000 FALL INTO A COMA

56,000 OF THE 300,000 DIE

BRAIN INJURIES When a moving object strikes a stationary object, shock waves are sent through the skull and brain. resulting in tissue damage.

Contrecoup injuries occur in a particular spot in the brain and often lead to bruising of the brain.

A contrecoup injury occurs on the side opposite the area that was impacted.

FRONT IMPACT WITHOUT HELMET

feature | cool places

MELT

THE OFF-BEAT DINING OPTION

Cincinnati’s Melt, with its Christmas lights and photo collage, provides unsuspecting patrons with a unique atmosphere.

COOLPLACES Spark takes a sample from an interesting, eclectic place each issue.

story and photos ellen fleetwood

pon entering Melt for the first time, I was encountered by lilting Indie music from a band that I’ve never heard of, mismatched chairs, bronze fleur de lys crown molding, and a hand-drawn “Please Tell Us If You Are Vegan” sign. On the left, rearrangeable word magnets have been sifted through and shuffled into sentences like “After a better look, please ride away fast.” On the right, colorful graphic designs hang in slightly crooked assemblages. A man with a nice smile and only slightly unruly hair takes my order. His name is Brodie Johnson. He’s 24, and he recently graduated from the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music with a major in Cello Performance. He’s a cellist and a singer in a few bands, and he may want to be a famous musician someday, but for now, he seems perfectly content with his current job at Melt. “It’s just nice to be in a really casual

“I love all of it. Everything. It’s just different. There are other places like it, but [Melt] just does it really well.”

environment that has integrity,” he says. “A lot of people who work here tend to be artists or musicians, and they have been here for a long time, which is a good sign for their business. And it is designed so that everyone who works here can make enough money to live off of, which is really awesome. It is really a rare thing.” Johnson estimates that on a busy day, (like during their “killer brunch”) Melt sees about 250 to 300 people just between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. But ask him what his favorite part about Melt is, and he putters Melt server Brodie Johnson around for a bit, tapping on loves the deli’s atmosphere. the desk as he tries to think, having a hard time trying to come up with the words. This, however, seems to be a completely normal reaction to a seemingly easy question for those who are familiar with Melt. East senior Rachel Incerpi is “in love” with Melt and frequently makes the halfhour drive to Northside for their many delicious options. But if you ask her what she loves most about it, she can’t come up with a specific answer either. “I just love it,” the vegetarian says. “I love all of it. Everything. The environment--it’s just different. There are other

24 | Spark | November 17, 2011

places like it, but [Melt] just does it really well.” Melt’s unique, 43-item menu caters almost specifically to vegans and vegetarians, and they even have homemade Vegan brownies and other goodies next to the register: baked goods from Picnic and Pantry, the micro market two doors down. But carnivores need not avoid this vegan-laden deli like the plague, because although Melt’s specialties may include ingredients like pepitas (they taste like sunflower seeds) and tempeh (a traditional Indonesian food) the menu is thoroughly delicious. Lakota substitute teacher Julie Shaw loves Melt’s “unique sandwiches and fresh food.” Such specialty sandwiches include the East Village, Sweet Savage, and Avocado Bliss. And not only that, but the several different eating areas are charming in their own right. The front room is headed by a long wall of windows that gaze onto bustling Hamilton Avenue. Follow a narrow hallway past the kitchen and find the back dining room, complete with bright green chairs and trendy patterns painted on the walls. Or, if it’s nice out, retreat to the back patio, a quirky outdoor haven that glows with golden Christmas lights strung overhead. “I like that there’s a little back patio,” Shaw says. “It’s a cute little quaint place to eat your lunch.” Melt is a quintessential piece of the Northside community. Desserts are purchased and put on display from local bakeries like Take the Cake and Naturally Yours. Local artists display their pieces on Melt’s walls, and on occasion the pieces are sold to Melt customers. Johnson even expresses that Melt is “in the same realm as Shake It Records” as far as importance in the community. And though its menu may seem a tad unorthodox, Incerpi said it best when she was asked for closing thoughts on her favorite restaurant: “I was in love. I am in love.” n

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5900 West Chester Road, Suite K West Chester, OH 45069 (513) 754-8652 with this

For class schedules and Registration Visit: www.Jacksdrivingschool.com Students must begin by 12/21/2011. Students must complete the entire course in 60 days.

lifestyle | overachiever

A Day in the Life of an Overachiever Valedictorian of East’s sophomore class, Jay Rugg shares about his life as an involved, overachieving student. story bridget lally | photos mandi ellsworth and sierra whitlock Rugg holds his saxophone after a marching band concert.

t’s 6 a.m. The alarm clock rings and he fights his way to wake up, eventually getting up by 6:15. School starts at 7:30 with Jazz Band. He then advances through Advanced Placement U.S. History, Honors English 10, Spanish II, Symphonic Winds, Honors Chemistry and finally Honors Algebra II. School is out at 2:39 but the day has only just begun. After school comes marching band followed by five hours of homework, completed by 1:30 a.m. On Mondays he has private saxophone lessons for two hours with Herb Aronoff, the saxophone teacher who first challenged and taught him how to play. Tuesdays and Thursdays he has marching band practice from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. and from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Wednesdays. On Fridays of home football games, he never leaves school because the marching band stays after to prepare for the games. Saturdays are typically filled with marching band competitions; starting the day by going out for breakfast with his fellow alto saxophone section members and coming home at midnight. This is Jay Rugg, the current

number one student in the Lakota East sophomore class and first chair saxophone player for East Symphonic Winds band. His biggest motivator? Himself. Rugg’s intrinsic motivation pushes him to lead this overachieving lifestyle. He sets goals and surpasses them. Rugg understands delayed gratification and that learning is long-term. “[His motivation] is internal. Something in him just wants to excel,” Jay’s father John Rugg says. “God gave him a good mind. Add that to his work ethic, environment and a supportive family and you get the humble Jay.” Jay’s mother Neeta Rugg, a research associate and clinical investigator at Hoxworth Blood Center at the University of Cincinnati, and John, a systems administrator of surgery at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, give him the tools to succeed. “Jay sees how hard we work and what we have achieved. We don’t talk the talk, we walk the walk. We lead by example,” John says. “We don’t force him to work hard. He does it for himself, not for us. We actually tell him to stop studying and take a break. Jay just likes challenges.”

Jay says that his parents give him a wide variety of experiences and a nurturing environment. He has been exposed to two different cultures: Christianity through his father and Hinduism through his mother. His parents establish strong family connections by taking vacations twice a year. They never travel to the same place more than once, exposing him and his sisters to different cultures and experiences. A few of Jay’s favorite places include: the Bahamas, Niagara Falls, San Francisco, Orlando and Washington D.C. The Ruggs have developed a system that works for the family. Neeta has a master calendar on the refrigerator that keeps track of where the family is supposed to be and when. Providing Jay with a secluded place to study, Jay’s parents allow him to live in the basement, also known by Jay’s friends as “the man cave.” “My family is very loud. I had to move to the basement where I could have no distractions. It’s awesome; I can’t hear anything from upstairs,” Jay says. “I lay [my books] out across my bed in the order that I do my homework. I do it in the same order

lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 27

lifestyle | overachiever each day. I can’t do my English before I do my math.” Jay’s success in school has had a positive effect on his family. “He motivates our daughters to work hard. They see what the outcomes are. He’s a good model for others to work hard and try in life,” John says. “He’s a good human being; he treats others with respect and dignity. He inspires others.” Jay’s outgoing personality, sense of humility and well roundedness is what draws people to him. He values his friends and balances work with play. “I’d probably go crazy without [my friends],” Jay says. His true friends know the real Jay. “If you think he’s just the number one student, then you don’t know Jay,” sophomore friend Kyle Culp says. “He’s not what everyone associates with being the number one student in the class. His interests: soccer, music and his friends keep him well-rounded and balanced. Getting good grades is not the only thing that matters in school. That’s not the model you want to set. He’s a lot more interesting outside of school.” While growing up Jay played Select Soccer for Cincinnati United through the eighth grade, stopping his soccer career to allow time for marching band. Now Jay is also a member of Mu Alpha Theta, Spanish Club and

intends to join Academic Quiz Team. With all these activities, it is inevitable that stress would be present in his life. “I do feel stressed out quite a bit. There is a lot of pressure to maintain my grades and ranking,” Jay says. “I get stressed out when people are constantly asking me what grade I got on a test or paper. There’s also a difference between nosy and competitive people. But if people would just stop asking and worry about their own grades, I would feel a

schoolwork. One of the reasons Jay has continued with music is because of East band director Bill Thomas. “Jay adores and respects Mr. Thomas. He’s the reason why Jay does what he does,” Neeta says. “He is Jay’s inspiration.” Thomas has observed Jay’s development as a person and musician. “He just has an air about him that has that confidence. He plays the music well so that adds to the confidence, which builds his musicianship,” Thomas says. “He doesn’t try hard to be a leader. He just has that persona about him. And people will follow him and listen to him and say ‘Hey he knows what he’s doing.’” Even if Jay does not pursue music in the future, he still plans on fulfilling his high expectations for himself. And for now, Jay is planning on going into law or business law. Any Ivy League school would be “amazing” for Jay, especially Yale. Thomas can see Jay achieving any of these goals. “He could do whatever he decides to do. He’s headstrong enough, has that mindset, so whatever he wants to achieve he’s going to go for it,” Thomas says. “No matter how much he has to study or how much time he has to put into it. If there’s a goal, he’ll achieve it.” n

“If you think Jay is just a number one student, then you don’t know Jay”

Jay where spends a large portion of his time: in his man-cave, doing homework.

28 | Spark | November 17, 2011

lot less stressed.” Despite the pressure from his classmates, Jay has found a source for stress relief and true joy in music. Jay, who played piano from first to sixth grade, says that the artist Ben Folds is who influenced him to play piano. Aronoff, a descendent of the Cincinnati Aronoff Center for the Arts family, began teaching Jay how to play the saxophone at age 12 and serves as a mentor and musical role model in Jay’s life. Playing saxophone for the Lakota East Jazz Band, Symphonic Winds and Marching Band keeps Jay busy but fulfilled. Music keeps his life in balance and provides him an outlet, a sense of satisfaction he does not get from his

lifestyle | photoshoot

Shoveling through the overwhelming aisles of clothing at thrift stores can be time consuming, but with patience and a little luck, any shopper can discover

Buried Treasures story tabby hall | photo ellen fleetwood | models hayley conoway, adam lewandowicz

trolling through the aisles at Mason’s Society of St. Vincent de Paul thrift store, East senior Adam Lewandowicz listens to his iPod while looking through each and every one of the shirts, sweaters and polos in the store. St. Vincent de Paul is one of many local thrift stores that have become more popular due to economic trouble. They sell items such as used furniture, toys and clothes. Such clothing comes from the anonymous donations that are given to St. Vincent de Paul. According to a Spark survey, 25 percent of East students surveyed have donated clothes to thrift stores. “We get a lot of donations at drop off zones, at our seven stores and at collections at churches, synagogues etc.,” St. Vincent de Paul Community Relations Manager Eric Young says. “It helps us make a significant impact on the community by helping families in need.” Some of the things that St. Vincent de Paul volunteers do are help with financial support, pharmaceutical requirements and electrical utilities for people in need. They do this and run the seven stores and food pantries the area. “We have a network of food pantries that

supply food to those in need throughout the winter months,” Young says. “We also have a voucher program for receiving furniture [for those who have very little].” Shoppers like Lewandowicz are attracted to thrift stores because not only do they contribute to a good cause but they also are a good bargain. “Everything there is really [inexpensive],” Lewandowicz who began thrifting in eighth grade says. “That is definitely my favorite thing about [the store]. I started wearing sweaters in eighth grade and I didn’t want to make my mom go out and buy me 20 dollar shirts so I walked to [St. Vincent de Paul] with my friend and got sweaters for four dollars each.” On each item of clothing is a colored tag. Every day, colors are chosen to be on sale for the day. Sometimes the prices are as low as fifty cents. This makes shopping for clothes very affordable for customers of the store. Sometimes Lewandowicz believes that just going to browse through the plethora of options is the most fun part of thrifting. “I like to look at what people wore [a

lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 29

long time ago],” Lewandowicz says. “I don’t necessarily buy anything, but it’s fun to look.” East junior Hayley Conaway, however, prefers the Valley Thrift Store over other area thrift stores, one of which is located in Sharonville. “I like the selection, it’s very organized,” Conaway says. “That is generally very hard for a thrift store to do.” Conaway believes that when thrifting, one cannot go into the store with something very particular in mind. “Typically it’s kind of like a hit and miss,” Conaway says. “It’s not like going to the mall. You can’t be like I have to have this shirt.” But when she uncovers that extraordinary shirt, she notes, the feeling is great because the clothes at Valley Thrift are usually priced fewer than five dollars. Lewandowicz agrees with Conaway’s belief that one cannot go into a thrift store with a “set in stone” idea that one will get exactly what he or she wants.

30 | Spark | November 17, 2011

“I look at everything,” Lewandowicz says. “I don’t necessarily go with anything particular in mind.” Shoppers like Lewandowicz and Conaway help supply revenue for their favorite thrift stores because of the reasonable prices and the surprise of finding wonderful clothing in these secondhand wonderlands. Whether or not one goes into a thrift store to donate clothes, contribute time or just to shop, going thrifting can save a lot of money for those who are looking to. For those people looking to find vintage clothing, thrift stores are often the best bet. And for those looking just to find an interesting T-shirt, going thrifting can save a lot of money that would otherwise be spent at the mall. “I still prefer going to [the thrift store] to get sweaters and flannel shirts; I like that they’re rugged looking,” Lewandowicz says. “[It’s fun because] I sometimes find things like wedding dresses and stuff from the 70’s when I look around.” n

Thrifting in the Area Knowing where the local thrift stores are is essential to having a successful spree. Goodwill

New 2 You

4605 Dixie Highway Fairfield, OH 45014 513- 939- 0020

408 4th Avenue Mason, OH 45040 513- 700- 0350

Plato’s Closet

Snooty Fox

8140 Princeton Glendale Rd West Chester, OH 45069 513- 860- 3090

7745 Tylers Place Blvd West Chester, OH 45069 513- 759- 2260

St. Vincent de Paul

Valley Thrift Store

1065 Reading Rd Mason, OH 45040 513- 492- 7940

9840 Reading Rd Cincinnati, OH 45241 (no phone number)

lifestyle | photoshoot

On Hayley: blue pull over sweater: $2.99 faux denim vest: $2.50 white blouse: $1.99 light pink sweater: $2.50 wool cardigan: $3.95 On Adam: red t-shirt: $0.99 purple sweater: $1.50 black t-shirt: $0.09 light blue button-down: $1.65 featured items purchased at Valley Thrift Store

lifestyle | water

When it comes to drinking safe water, East students have the option of bottled, tap or both bottled and tap water making it a

Drink of Choice

story, infographic and photo illustration tommy behan | photos tommy behan and sierra whitlock

ainted scenes depicting imagery of pure and fresh mountain water attract potential costumers to bottled water. The slight sweating of the bottle makes the choice tantalizing for thirsty bystanders. Consumers see it everyday—stacked in rows in aisles of stores, littered on the ground, organized neatly in the refrigerator: bottled water. More than 36 billion bottles of water are sold annually, according to healthcomments.info. Conversely, a glass of water tempts people with its easy access. Consumers see it everyday—in homes, restaurants and nearly every public facility: tap water. More than 3.46 billion gallons of it are used every day in the United States, according to allaboutwater.org. Americans do not have to trek miles to collect the day’s supply of drinkable water. We have it easy when it comes to the availability of clean, fresh water. Americans can drink bottled water, tap water, or both. The bottled water industry in particular has grown exponentially in the last decade. United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Spokesperson Peter Cassell says that the bottled water industry is quickly expanding in America. “Bottled water is a growing drink choice among Americans, who spend billions of dollars every year on water,” Cassell says. “It’s hard to say exactly what makes people choose buying bottled water over drinking water from their faucets. Some people choose bottled water because of taste, others because they are trying to take precautions against water that they drink.” Lakota has also expanded water bottles throughout the district, recently distributing bottled water specialized for the district with its Lakota label and sports cap. The premium spring water is better than regular bottled water, according to Lakota Nutritionist Chris Burkhardt.

32 | Spark | November 17, 2011

“We’re trying to encourage students to drink water and we found that something as simple as putting a Lakota label on it increases water consumption,” Burkhardt says. “We saw the idea a couple years ago and it has taken us a year to get everything finalized. This is just the prototype for the first label; what we want to do is going to be student driven. Students are going to draw and we are going to have and then we will figure out what the next label is going to look like.” Speaking for the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA) and representing the interests of the bottled water industry, Vice President of Communication Chris Hogan cites advantages to bottled water and the disadvantages of tap water. “Accuracy and honesty are issues with tap water,” Hogan says. “The EPA regulates tap water while the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates bottled water. The FDA’s regulations are equal if not more strict than EPA health standards on tap water.” He continues. “In 2009 the FDA testified before Congress about the previous five years, 2004-2009, reporting that no single illness had been attributed to bottled water. The EPA testified in that same hearing reporting that nearly 16 million cases of intense gastroenteritis (vomiting and diarrhea) were attributed to tap water.” Big bottling businesses like Dasani from the Coca-Cola Company promise purified water “enhanced with minerals for a pure, fresh taste.” This distinctive taste is a key reason why East senior Joey Felix prefers bottled water over tap water. “Bottled water is more convenient when you need to bring it somewhere such as a sporting event, it tastes better because it is specifically designed for drinking,” Felix says. “Because it tastes better it is more refreshing than plain tap water. I would pick up a bottle of water that had a cooler scene on it before one that didn’t have such a nice picture.” The quality assured by the bottlers still holds power over a consumer. A main point assured by bottlers is the consistency in each

BY THE

bottle of water because of regulatory oversight. “When bottled water is produced, the process ends with the water in a sealed container with a date stating when it is best sold by, but this is mainly used for stocking purposes. There is no expiration date on bottled water,” Hogan says. “Tap water is also filtered, processed and tested, but when it is produced the process ends with the water going into a system of pipes where some infrastructure is great and others may be very old which brings up the problem of consistency.” The Environmental Working Group, a non-profit research group focused on environmental and public issues (specifically agriculture, water quality and natural resources), however, disagrees that bottled water is more beneficial. Press Secretary Leeann Brown thinks that the cons of bottled water outweigh its pros. “In short we found there was not enough transparency in the water bottle industry,” Brown says. “[In our 2011 scorecard] we tested 173 forms of water: 18 percent of the bottlers failed to give the location of source water and 32 percent of the bottlers did not disclose information on the purity of water. Filtering tap water is the best way to get a bang for your buck.” While cost is a driving factor for people when deciding between tap and bottled water, of the 750 East students surveyed, 61 percent do not think bottled water is a waste of money. According to the EWG, a typical gallon of bottled water costs $3.79. A gallon of tap water costs $.002. Consequently, a consumer can buy 1900 gallons of tap water for every gallon of bottled water they buy. This cost difference is a main reason why East Senior Dwight Hu drinks primarily tap water. “Tap water is just as good as bottled water and bottled water costs more so it is more efficient for me to drink tap water,” Hu says. “At its core of ingredients, water has minerals so it may be better for you and I think it is just easier to turn on a faucet and fill a bottle.” According to the EWG, the purity of bottled water cannot be trusted. Bottled water from some store brands, like Walmart, is chemically identical to tap water: it is merely bottled tap water. “You do not know what is in that bottle and it is hard to know how it was treated,” Brown says. “And to top it off, bottled water is environmentally damaging. The transparency in tap water, though, is really fantastic.” Both bottled and tap water must follow EPA and the FDA to meet water quality. To make sure that all water is safe to drink, EPA works with the FDA to set drinking water standards. EPA sets standards that all tap water must meet, or water provided through public suppliers must meet, and the FDA sets standards for bottled water based on EPA drinking water rules. These regulations include limits on the number of trihalomethanes (environmental pollutants), total dissolved solids (combined content of all organic and inorganic substances contained in a liquid) and perchlorate (ingredient used in rocket fuel), as well as hundreds of other chemicals. The bottled water industry has grown “Some people may take extra precautions by buying high exponentially over the course of the past decade. quality bottled water or treating their water at home with filters or other methods,” says Cassell. Others like East senior Nikki Kaine drink both tap and bottled water. Kaine says that when she is in a hurry it is easier to grab water out of the refrigerator where it is already cold. Bottled water, however, is not always ideal for her. She chooses tap water over bottled water when her opened bottle of water is left out in the sun. Customers, like Kaine, do not have to make an “either-or” choice between bottled water and tap water. The decision varies from consumer to consumer. People must weigh the pros and cons of drinking safe water by points of each: convenience, regulations, taste and cost. Armed with information, consumers will make a healthier decision for themselves. n

BOTTLES

50 57

of 186 East students regularly drink PERCENT bottled water. of 186 East students prefer bottled water PERCENT to tap water.

of 186 East students think bottled water is a PERCENT waste of money. lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 33

Key information provided by coca-cola company, pepsi-cola company, ice mountain and the environmental working group

Dasani

Aquafina Cincinnati Drinking System

Watered Down

Ice Mountain

One gallon of tap water: $0.002

ND = not detected National Average

One gallon of bottled water: $3.79

= 10 gallons of tap water

Cincinnatiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Tap Water

Total Trihalomethanes

Exceeds health guidelines (chemicals)

legal limit: 80 ppb (parts per billion)

Pollutants (chemicals)

ND to .0125 ppb

Rankings of tap water systems:

Cincinnati tap water: 33 ppb

health limit: 9.8 ppb

Cincinnati:16

Total Dissolved Solids 2,450 ppb

Max contaminant level: 500 mg/L

Cleveland:72 Columbus:75 36 mg/L 34 | Spark | November 17, 2011

40230 mg/L 40.44 ppb

A CALL FOR

CHANGE The Occupy Wall Street movement has branched off in Cincinnati as a large group of unique individuals come together to protest as â&#x20AC;&#x153;the 99 percent.â&#x20AC;?

story kaitlin lange | photo used with written permission from josh engel

Y CINCINNATI

OCCUP

Signaling Change infographic lisa cai

The Occupy Cincinnati protesters use a variety of hand signals to communicate different ideas during their general assemblies.

I agree

I’m on the fence

n the cold November air, about 50 people huddle around the steps encircling President Garfield’s Statue at Piatt Park in Cincinnati. At first glance, it appears that these people are the stereotypical city crowd. Tattoos are seen peeking out of jackets, nose rings are not a rare sight and smoke permeates the air so that even non-smokers in the crowd will feel its effect. Upon closer examination, however, pedestrians can see what most consider average people. There are girls who look as though they spend time in front of the mirror and others who are simply trying to stay warm with layerupon-layer of clothing. Despite the differences, the group is focused on the congregating assembly. Everyone believes strongly in the common goal and will do almost anything to achieve it. Having heard about the Occupy Wall Street movement which started on Sept. 17, these Cincinnati residents decided to start an offshoot of the movement located in their own city. On Oct. 8, Occupy Cincinnati was born. Although the exact goals of each individual are as diverse as the people themselves, the main focus of the group is to gain a voice in the government. Claiming they represent “99 percent” of America’s population, Occupy Cincinnati protesters hope to reduce the amount of influence corporations have on government and return to the idea of “one person, one vote”. The movement’s website, Occupycincy. org states the wishes of the group by saying “All we want is our chance to earn a decent home, a decent life, a decent retirement and the

chance for our children to build a better life for themselves than what we had.” Occupy Cincinnati’s website also contains more specific complaints about the government, including frustration over high unemployment, outsourcing, foreclosures, pollution and climate changes caused by corporations. Apart from simply protesting issues at Piatt Park, the protesters have also participated in numerous demonstrations across Cincinnati, including marches to the Cincinnati City Hall on Oct. 19 and to Fountain Square on Oct. 22. While Occupy Cincinnati is a leaderless movement, it has separate divisions including legal and action committees to help make decisions for the whole movement. The committees communicate with the group during the movement’s general assemblies, which happen every day at 6 p.m. in Piatt Park. Despite having a semblance of organization, the group still feels the effects of not having a leader. “It’s always chaotic,” says protester Tony Nelle, who is on the legal committee. “[In] every picture they have taken of me I have had some expression of consternation on my face.” Cincinnati Councilman Chris Bortz, who is criticized on the Occupy website for siding with “the one percent,” says he has not heard clear demands from the group. “I am not sure what they want,” Bortz says. “So far the only thing I have heard them demand is the right to utilize Piatt Park [after] hours.” The protesters’ focus has shifted recently from their original purpose of decreasing the

I disagree

Block (morally opposed) 38 | Spark | November 17, 2011

Protesters in Piatt Park gather for a general assembly as part of the Occupy Cincinnati movement.

power of corporations in the government to attempting to gain the freedom to stay somewhere downtown over night, thus losing the continuity of the protest. On the first night of the Occupy movement, several protesters stayed at Fountain Square past their 1 a.m. permit and the square’s closing time of 3 a.m., yet received no citations or arrests. The next day, the protesters moved to Piatt Park and some stayed past the park’s 10 p.m. closing time and received citations for violating “park rule 21”, which states that people cannot be on the park grounds after restricted hours. Every night until Oct. 20, protesters were cited. On Oct. 20, police action temporarily halted due to the placement of the protesters’ federal law suit. The next day police began making arrests after Director of Cincinnati Parks Willie Carden Jr. asked protesters to leave. Because the director had directly ordered protesters to exit the park, those who did not leave were charged with criminal trespassing. From Oct. 9 to Oct. 23, the Cincinnati police gave 253 citations and made 45 arrests, which totaled $37,815 in fines for the group. Since Oct. 23, these large fines have forced the occupiers to stop staying after park closing hours. Several protesters, like 48-year-old social worker Suhith Wickrema, recall positive experiences with the officers. “[When I was arrested] the police officer was pushing [my wheelchair] and patting my back,” Wickrema says. “I took that as ‘thank you for doing what you were doing.’” Cincinnati police captain and District One commander Doug Wiesman agrees with Wickrema, and attributes the peaceful interactions to the constant communication he had from the start with the protesters. “[The protesters] laid out their plans of what they wanted to do. We were like, ‘Great, we want you to be able to protest,’” Wiesman says. “It’s your First Amendment right; we want you to be lawful and peaceful. We don’t want to have a bunch of arrests and we want you to be able to get your message out.” For protesters like Wickrema, his arrest was worthwhile and necessary for the movement. “I have been active in [other] social movements but [this was the] first time that I decided it was too important for us not to risk civil disobedience,” says Wickrema, who feels that not having a park open to the public all day long is just another way the people’s rights have been reduced. Protester Paul O’Moore agrees that the arrests have helped the movement in some ways, but does not wish to be arrested himself. “[The arrests] are generating media steam,” O’Moore says. “They are creating awareness because when people see that [others] are

willing to be arrested or ticketed, that shows a vindication behind what they believe.” Although the arrests have now stopped, the protesters’ lawyers, Jennifer Kinsley and J. Robert Linneman, are currently working towards a federal lawsuit to stop all citations and arrests occurring at Piatt Park. They claim that the park is a public place so the occupiers should be able to stay there for all hours. “We are arguing that the Occupy protesters have a First Amendment right to be in the park to express themselves 24 hours a day,” Kinsley says. Some people, like Bortz, feel differently, saying that the First Amendment does not apply in the protesters’ situation. “Government is allowed to put basic restrictions on those rights,” says Bortz, who has also received complaints about the protesters from local businesses and residents. “There are certain issues with sanitation and cleanliness.” Having no place to consistently protest is one of the many differences between the local and national movement. The Wall Street protesters are allowed to occupy Zuccotti Park at all hours of the day. Because they do not need to worry about

“[The arrests] are generating media steam,” O’Moore says. “They are creating awareness because when people see that [others] are willing to be arrested or ticketed, that shows a vindication behind what they believe.” being given citations, they can focus on their initial goal. Occupy Cincinnati protesters, however, have to worry about where they will be protesting every night. O’Moore, who had also been involved in the national Occupy Wall Street movement, criticizes people in the group for being too focused on physical occupation. “Rather than talking about the issues at large a lot of people talk about how they can sustain civil disobedience,” O’Moore says. For now, the group will continue protesting before park closing time. Although some people like Bortz say the movement has “faded out already,” many protesters say they are not going anywhere. According to the website, this diverse group will not stop protesting “until the system has been fixed so that the 99 percent are again represented.” To the protesters, their goal is far too important. “I want an economic system where we use [economic resources] to first meet the needs of the many,” Wickrema says. “Not the greed of the few.” n

I can’t hear you

Get back on topic

Wrap it up

I have a supporting fact

I have a clarifying question lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 39

OCCUPY WALL

infographic shivang patel

On Sept. 17, the Occupy Wall Street movement began in New York City before spreading all across the nation and the world via social networking sites. Diverse groups of protesters are voicing their frustrations and dissatisfaction with the disproportionate distribution of wealth in the United States, and the strong influence on Congress. 31.0% 15.7%

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The Six Wealthiest CEOs in Cincinnati

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Occupations of the Top One Percent

le 61

The median household income in Cincinnati is $33,855, which is 0.25 percent of the income of the richest CEO in Cincinnati.

2. Terry J. Lundgren Macy’s Inc. $11,782,865

5. James J. O’Brien Ashland Inc. $7,049,020

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information usatoday, abcnews | photos paid permission from mctcampus.com

information forbes | photos permission from american financial group, inc., ashland inc., macy’s inc., cincinnati bell, inc., media kit from proctor & gamble

July 13 September 17 Canadian Magazine Nearly 1,000 people Adbusters makes gather to protest in a call to occupy the financial district Wall St. in New York City. August 30 The hacktivist group known as Anonymous releases a video answering the call, encouraging others to follow.

September 24 80 protesters are arrested during a peaceful march

October 1 About 700 are arrested for marching across the Brooklyn Bridge and blocking traffic.

September 20 The New York Police Department starts arresting protesters for wearing masks, citing a law that prohibits masked gatherings of two or more people.

October 8 The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum shuts down in Washington DC after protesters clash with security.

September 30 More than 1,000 march on NYPD headquarters, protesting the police response

October 11 Occupy Cincinnati demonstrations start in Piatt Park

October 10 Boston police arrest more than 100 protesters in Dewey Square in a latenight protest.

Average Income per Family in America A large portion of the U.S.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s economic growth over the past 30 years has gone to the top one-hundredth of one percent, who now make an average of $27 million per household, while the average income of the bottom 90 percent is $31,244. Top 0.01 percent

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information university of california-berkeley

Major Cities with Occupy Movements North America: New York City Washington D.C. Oakland Boston Toronto

October 15 Protesters in New York are removed from a Citibank branch; 20 arrests. Riots break out in Rome and Londoners try to occupy the London Stock Exchange. 80 counties now have demonstrations. October 12 At 7 a.m., people in San Francisco protest in front of Wells Fargo headquarters. Afters entrances were blocked for more than five hours, the office decided to shut down for the day. Police arrest 11.

Europe: London Madrid Rome Berlin Moscow

October 21 Riot squads pepper-sprayed, dragged and punched 100 demonstrators to remove them from City Square in Melbourne, Australia.

October 17 Adbusters calls for a global protests on Oct. 29

October 25 Oakland, California police use rubber bullets, flash band grenades and tear gas on protesters, arresting 97.

Africa and Asia: Tokyo Seoul Taipei City Cairo

October 26 Atlanta police arrest 53 protesters and clear Woodruff Park by 2 a.m.

Australia and New Zealand: Sydney Melbourne Brisbane Wellington

November 1 In France, G20 protests started, having similar goals to Occupy Wall Street protests.

October 29 NYPD confiscated six generators and fuel, which protesters used to stay warm during snow storm.

information usatoday, abcnews

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Y CINCINNATI

OCCUP

dana white

age: 22 occupation: northern kentucky university student education: 2008 lakota west graduate

rebecca johnson

age: 29 occupation: hughes high school teacher education: oberlin college graduate

During the anti-free-trade protests in the early 2000’s, Rebecca A student at Northern Kentucky University majoring in social work, Johnson remembers “making a real difference and bringing about 22-year-old Dana White believes that it is her obligation to actively social change” by supporting the cause when she was a student at participate in the Occupy Cincinnati movement. Oberlin College. When the “movement for justice” fizzled, she felt “As a social worker, it is my responsibility to advocate for people who “lost without it.” don’t have a voice, for people who are oppressed––for anyone,” White The Occupy movement was her chance to take a stand again. says. “I’m here because I want to bring more compassion into our legal and The 2008 Lakota West graduate has been involved in the protests since legislative systems,” Johnson the first march to Fountain Square on Oct. 8. Whenever her busy school says. “It’s not fair to give more schedule permits, White participates in the movement, attending Occupy I want to bring more voice to organizations that do Cincinnati’s general assemblies two or three times per week. White would not exist as compassionate like to see specific constitutional changes that address the influence of compassion into our legal and legislative systems. beings. This is about the people money in government, specifically regarding campaign finance reform. here and now.” “[Our] government needs to be by the people, for the people, not by Johnson, a science teacher at Hughes Science Technology the dollar,” White says. “The loudness of your voice in our government Engineering and Mathematics High School, protests corporate America shouldn’t depend on how much money you have.” at Piatt Park during her free time. White believes the winner of any political election is dependent on the Like many of her fellow demonstrators, Johnson believes there are amount of money received. The corporations, White explains, greatly simple steps to improve the community, beginning with taking back the influence the candidate’s choices as policy makers and legislators. public parks. White is one of many Cincinnati protesters who chose to be arrested “The fact that we have privatized all of our parks makes it illegal for in order to stand up for their a homeless person to spend the night there,” Johnson says. beliefs. Although she wants [Our] government needs Due to government regulations, all parks must close before 10 p.m. to attend graduate school to be by the people for the But that does not stop the protesters. and become a leader in the people, not by the dollar. While there have been 110 arrests for trespassing, Johnson cannot social work field, she is not afford to protest after hours if it means tangling with the local police. concerned about having two Still, she feels that the parks close too early, especially Piatt Park, first degree misdemeanors on her criminal record. which is “practically a sidewalk” that rests underneath a lighted archway “It was really important for me to think through what kind of between two streets. consequences would result from [my arrest],” White says. “As someone In addition to de-privatizing the parks, Johnson expects the protests who is pursuing a career in which ethics matter, I want to be able to yield an increase in urban gentrification. to say that I stood for what was right, knowing that there would be “Developing a mixed-income community with affordable housing consequences.” next to the fancy lofts and clothing stores should happen without According to White, one of the biggest misconceptions about the having to push out the homeless shelters,” she says. Occupy movement is the idea that protestors want “some kind of Johnson who has been involved with Occupy Cincinnati since the handout.” Oct. 8 launch does not expect the movement to dwindle, despite the “[Some people think that] we’re all jobless and free loaders. I’m sure onset of winter. there are some [protesters] like that,” White says. “I for one am not. I “We’re not going anywhere,” Johnson says. “These folks are here for do not want anyone to give me anything. I want to give other people the long haul and I am, too.” —Rachel King something. I want other people to have a voice.” —Michael Tedesco

42 | Spark | November 17, 2011

justin jeffre

age: 38 occupation: singer, journalist and activist education: UC graduate He sang with Nick Lachey. His arrest made national news. Yet he wears a “Will Work for Homeless Children” t-shirt and blends into the mass of protesters in downtown Cincinnati. 38-year-old Justin Jeffre has come a long way from singing in the late 1990’s boy band 98 degrees. From being a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to working as a journalist for the Cincinnati Beacon, Jeffre is taking an active role in politics. Jeffre, who is one of the 11 individuals arrested for criminal trespassing at Fountain Square at 3 a.m. on Oct. 23, went with the police in order to bring attention to the Occupy Cincinnati movement. “I anticipated that when I got arrested, Cincinnati would make headlines on the Associated Press,” Jeffre says. “I told [the police] I was an embedded journalist with the occupation and if they were going to take the occupation in the bandwagon to jail, the only way for me to cover the story was to go with them.” Since he attended the organizational meeting before the first Occupy Cincinnati march, Jeffre comes to Piatt Park almost every day to protest and reach out to other organizations such as the NAACP. “I’m always trying to bring more people to the movement,” Jeffre says. “It’s exciting to watch this movement expand.” Jeffre believes that he and the other protesters are part of the “99 percent,” who deserve a government “of, for and by The city has declared war the people, not of, for and by on people experiencing the corporations.” According poverty. to Jeffre, extreme poverty is still an issue that has not been addressed, despite the number of Fortune 500 corporations in Cincinnati. “We came to Piatt Park and occupied it but truth is, there is already an occupation going on,” Jeffre says. “[The homeless] don’t have places to go because the city has declared war on people experiencing poverty.” Following the principles of previous civil rights leaders, Jeffre will continue to demonstrate until corporate influence is reduced. “We’re standing on the moral high ground and we are exercising our [First Amendment] rights and challenging laws that are really unlawful and unjust,” Jeffre says. “[The current laws] need to be challenged and changed.” —Mohinee Mukherjee

antonio anaya

age: 47 occupation: lawyer education: UC college of law graduate He holds a sign reading, “Corporate America has taken my First Amendment [right] and I want it back.” Despite protesting the same issue, he stands out from the other demonstrators, not only with his presence, but also with his profession. Antonio Anaya is a lawyer. Although he has a steady source of income from his law firm, Anaya recognizes the unequal distribution of wealth in the United States. “Median income [in America] has not changed since 1973,” Anaya says. “The expansion of the middle class that began after Corporate America WWII ended in the early 1970s has taken my First and has been stagnant. The Amendment [right] and I amount of wealth, however, want it back. has increased significantly.” Anaya has been a part of Occupy Cincinnati since Oct. 12, and has made visits to Piatt Park an after-work routine. Although the movement has been called a protest, Anaya does not see himself as a protester. “Some people perceive it as a protest or a resistance, but I would call it demonstrating,” Anaya says. “I don’t consider myself a resistor; I consider myself as someone who comes down here to exercise his First Amendment right and say, ‘I disagree with how the system works.’” Anaya hopes that the Occupy movements will bring significant social change soon, without complete dissolution of the economic system. His biggest concern, however, is the decision made by the United States Supreme Court in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. In this decision now allows corporations and unions to fund elections as they please, and prohibits the government from censoring political broadcasts if they are funded by corporations or unions. Anaya believes that corporations should not be entitled to full citizenship because they’re not people. He also thinks that this Court decision is similar to the decision the Court made in 1857 which ruled that African slaves and their descendents were not protected by the United States Constitution and could not attain citizenship. “As an attorney, I would say that [the Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission case] is as bad as the decision in the Dred Scott v. Sanford case,” Anaya says. “My sincere hope is that, like the Dred Scott decision, [the decision of Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission] will be overturned eventually.” —Shivang Patel

lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 43

Y CINCINNATI

OCCUP

sonnet gabbard age: 29 occupation: graduate student education: UC student

Born in a town in rural Indiana whose livelihood was based on four factories, 28-year-old Sonnet Gabbard has always been aware of the effects of industry on the 99 percent. When Gabbard was a teenager, kids in her hometown graduated high school and went to work in the town’s factories. According to Gabbard, some of those same people are now faced with economic hardships because of industries taking those jobs, without penalties from the government. “The town I grew up in now has an astronomically high poverty rate, and it used to be a [functional] city,” Gabbard says. “I have always been aware of the way [society] is forgiving of industry because I’ve watched my town die and the government not do anything about it.” Gabbard, who has been involved in the Occupy Cincinnati movement since its planning stages, found other people interested in spreading the protests to Cincinnati through the internet. After communicating with each other online, Gabbard and other initiators of the Cincinnati uprising began exchanging phone calls. Then, they started planning meetings, which have become Occupy Cincinnati’s daily general assemblies. “We wanted to do solidarity action,” Gabbard says. “We did not realize that it was going to develop into this fantastic I’ve watched my town die movement that is strengthening and the government not Cincinnati’s democracy.” do anything about it. A graduate assistant and full-time graduate student at the University of Cincinnati, Gabbard, who is pursuing a Master’s in Women’s Gender and Sexuality Studies, acknowledges that almost all of the protesters have jobs with 40-hour work weeks. “Everybody here works,” Gabbard emphasizes. “We just care passionately about the fact that we are losing our government. We are losing our democracy to corporations, and that is why we are here.” Gabbard says she hopes to see the movement continue indefinitely as the protesters have “hard conversations about economic justice.” “People look at the Occupy movement and say ‘You have no goal. You have no drive, no direction’ but the truth is, people are talking about us and thinking about our message of the 99 percent,” Gabbard says. “Until corporate America stops buying our government, we’ll keep doing this.” —Sophia Li

44 | Spark | November 17, 2011

andrew cornuelle

age: 21 occupation: video productions education: university of toledo graduate

He is a 21-year-old with a full-time job at a video production company. After attending the University of Toledo for three years with a major in International Relations, he was forced to leave due to financial reasons. But Andrew Cornuelle is not the type of employee who reads online stories just to pass time during a painstaking day at work. Rather, he pores news articles that relate to the protests against corporations in the United States. “I was raised to think that, in America, if you want something to change and you have enough people who agree, it can [I want] America to be a happen,” Cornuelle says. “As I place where the people’s grow older, I am realizing that is voice matters. not so true.” Cornuelle spends as much time as he can “occupying Cincinnati” in Piatt Park. While cardboard signs and shouts from protestors reveal their intentions, many still misconstrue their purpose. “The biggest misconception is that we are asking for a handout,” Cornuelle says. “But that’s not what this movement is all about. We are asking for [the people’s] voice.” Cornuelle has been neither arrested nor cited. He does not plan to do anything that will warrant handcuffs or a fee, out of concern that being arrested for trespassing will cause him to lose his job, car or apartment. As a result of the protests, Cornuelle hopes that banks will be separated just as they were following the Great Depression. Under Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Glass-Steagall Act of 1932, banks were seperated, providing a safer and more effective use of the bank assets. The repeal of this act in 1999 removed the division that previously existed between investment banks and commercial banks. “[We need to] keep the banks from becoming too big to fail,” Cornuelle says. “Because when they do, everybody is screwed.” Cornuelle, who has been involved with the Occupy Cincinnati movement since Oct. 13, plans to keep protesting until major changes are made in big business. “What we are doing here is a small part of what we all are trying to accomplish in the long run,” says Cornuelle, who specializes in video productions. “[I want] America to be a place where the people’s voice matters.” —Laura Shrake

paul o’moore

age: 22 occupation: music venue owner education: new york university graduate Unlike most Occupy Cincinnati protesters, self-employed music venue owner Paul O’Moore was in New York as a part of Occupy Wall Street before becoming involved in the local movement. During his one-week stay in New York, O’Moore was present for the Oct. 14 eviction day at Zuccotti Park when the owners of the park, Brookfield Office Properties, called for the protesters to move out at 7 a.m. Friday morning for a park cleaning, after which the protesters could come back if they were without sleeping bags or tents. Thousands of protesters cheered after Brookfield withdrew its eviction notice. “It was one of the first times in history that a protest, without rising to a mob mentality, remained peaceful in the eyes of adversity and got the government to retract a cease-and-desist order,” O’Moore says. After his involvement with the New York and Cincinnati Occupy movements, O’Moore feels that Occupy Cincinnati should stop its occupation because a literal sit-in is not best for Cincinnati. “We should occupy the minds and media of Cincinnati and think of [occupation] more figuratively than literally,” O’Moore says. “We live in an area where it’s difficult to occupy because there are so many laws that say we can’t be in the public parks past ten at night.” O’Moore is also frustrated by misconceptions about the movement and how media has portrayed the Occupy uprising. “The media is portraying [the protesters] as just a bunch of drunk, partying hippies and homeless people that aren’t doing We should occupy the anything with their jobs or minds and media of lives,” O’Moore says. “In reality, Cincinnati. there are a lot of educated people here. There are people from all walks of life.” Disagreeing with claims that the Occupy movement is the liberal counterpart to the Tea Party, O’Moore thinks the movement is free of party lines and has met numerous “hard-line” Republicans while protesting. “[Some] people call [the Occupy movement] a left form of the Tea Party movement—this isn’t about left or right,” O’Moore says. “This is about issues that all Americans should be able to rally behind because we can all agree there are a lot of economic injustices going on in this country.” —Sophia Li

mark grome

age: unknown occupation: truck loader education: unknown

In the midst of the protests in Piatt Park, Mark Grome holds a sign that reads “You are the minority. More people would be with me but they had to go to work!” Wearing a navy windbreaker and a faded red University of Cincinnati hat, Grome is just an average Joe taking a stand against the Occupy Cincinnati protest. He disagrees with the protestors’ statement “We are the 99 percent” in regards to the representation of the population. “If that statement were true,” Grome says, “then there would be more than 50 people standing I represent the 80 percent out there.” The disorganization and who are happy with a cloudy ambitions are the having a job. reasons Grome believes the protest is going to fail. “They haven’t proclaimed a goal,” Grome says. “I’ve heard six different people talking about six different things.” While Grome agrees that it is tragic when some people work two or three jobs but are still unable to make ends meet, he does not consider that demographic to make up a large portion of the protesters. According to Grome, most of the protesters are rebelling just for the sake of rebelling. “Eighty-some percent are employed,” Grome says. “[The demonstrators] don’t have anything to complain about or protest against; they’re happy.” Grome has trouble sympathizing for the protestors. Despite not having a college degree, he found a way to stay on his feet through the tough economic times. “After I lost my job, it took me less than a week to find [a different] job that pays well,” says Grome, who is a new employee at Total Quality Logistics. “I represent the 80 percent of people [who are] happy with [having a] job.” Although Grome recognizes the hardships that are occurring in the Cincinnati area, he refuses to support the protest. Unless the protesters come up with a definitive point or goal, he feels that the Occupy movements will fail. “The protest will continue until people realize that this is not the way to make any change,” Grome says. “This protest is for people who have nothing to do.” —Maddie McGarvey

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Y CINCINNATI

OCCUP

Occupy the Courts With the Occupy movement now in Cincinnati, many avoid jail by following the rules of protest protected by the U.S. constitution. story elaine laux | photo sierra whitlock

efore coming to an agreement to leave at 10 p.m., many Occupy Cincinnati protesters received citations or were arrested for staying at Piatt Park after its closing. 110 protesters have been charged with criminal trespassing and other unlawful activities such as improper use of Fountain Square. Jennifer Kinsley, a 12-year Cincinnati attorney and founder of Sirkin & Kinsley law firm, represents the demonstrators. Kinsley says she dedicates her practice to fighting government abuse of civil and constitutional rights. Kinsley’s involvement started when she advised the protesters on how to obtain permits for occupations at Lytle Park and Fountain Square. Both of these events were legally permitted because they were held within appropriate time restrictions of 6 a.m. until 10 p.m. and were public forums. As the movement grew, Kinsley stepped in to represent the occupiers that were issued citations in the park and who were later arrested. All charges were filed as criminal trespassing, which is a fourthdegree misdemeanor that is tried in Ohio’s state court system. According to Kinsley, the protesters received different consequences for continuing the same actions. The protesters violated Cincinnati ordinance codes because they were in the park after 10 p.m. For days, the Cincinnati police decided to only issue citations for violating park rule 21 which states that no one can be on park grounds after closing. After many citations were issued and the behavior did not stop, Cincinnati police began arresting the Occupiers for criminal trespassing. Whereas citations carry only a fine, misdemeanors yield actual jail time. Occupier Sonnet Gabbard says that to avoid consequences, the protesters have tried to cut down on the citations they receive. “We’ve decided to hold back from getting citations and arrests,” Gabbard says. “Mainly because we have almost 300 cases that our lawyers are processing, so that’s a lot of manpower, a lot of woman power and a lot of money. In addition to deciding to cut down on receiving citations, the

This sign located in Piatt Park is an attempt to let Occupy Cincinnati protestors know the times they are allowed to protest before arrests begin.

Occupy group filed a federal lawsuit to stop citations and arrest claiming abuse of their First Amendment rights. Kinsley argued that because Piatt Park is a public forum, it is owned by the public and therefore has no free speech restrictions. “I am arguing that protesters have a First Amendment right to be in the park and express themselves,” Kinsley said. “They are allowed to gather together, have meetings to talk about political ideas, hold signs, chant and sing to spread their message.” Piatt Park is a public gathering spot similar to Zuccotti Park in New York City, which is the sight of the Occupy Wall Street protests. Both Piatt Park and Zuccotti Park officials are facing the same problem– preventing protesters from using a space that is for the public. “[The parks are meant for] eating a sandwich, taking a nap and

ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT

110 protesters

46 | Spark | November 17, 2011

253 citations

45 arrests

SCAN THE QR CODE FOR MORE OCCUPY CINCINNATI PROFILES: people-watching,” Harvard University professor and coauthor of “Privately Owned Public Space: The New York City Experience” Jerold S. Kayden said in an interview with the Atlanta Journal. “They are not thought of as places to accommodate debates.” 253 citations and 45 arrests have been issued by the Cincinnati police to the protesters at Occupy Cincinnati. Each citation costs $105 and the arrests can carry $250 in fines with up to 30 days in jail. Kinsley is suing the city of Cincinnati for $37,815, the sum of the charges issued to her clients. The official trials will begin on Nov. 14 with Kinsley representing the 110 Occupiers who plan to plead not guilty to all charges brought against them.

Kinsley is a pro bono lawyer, therefore, she will not receive any compensation for representing the Occupiers. If the federal case is a success, there is a possibility that the city of Cincinnati will have to pay her attorney’s fees. According to Kinsley, a verdict is not expected until late 2012 or early 2013. “I believe in the Constitution,” Kinsley says. “I believe in the First Amendment rights of everybody. If lawyers do not stand up and help people through the legal system, their rights will be abused. That is why this suit is so important.” n

The Online Percent

The Occupy Cincinnati protest movement has reached new levels by branching off into the interactive world of cyber space through twitter, facebook and other forms of social media. story alex griffin | photo sierra whitlock

ith the help of social media, the Occupy movements have spread to more than 100 American cities and 1,500 others in more than 80 countries across the world. The Occupy movement began with a single tweet from Adbusters, an ad-free international magazine for activists. Occupywallstreet.com and occupywallstreet.org are both owned by Adbusters, which first proposed the occupation of Zuccotti Park in Lower Manhattan, New York City. The protests have grown to more than 550,000 Twitter posts from 130 countries and 465 locations in a matter of weeks. Twitter announced on Monday, Oct. 31 that the Occupy protesters have created approximately 100,000 different hashtags related to the movement, using more than 1,700 different hashtags each day. Roughly one in every 500 hashtags used on Twitter on Monday, all around the world, was the Movement’s own #OWS. The Twitter account for the Occupy Cincinnati movement has 4,200 followers who receive constant updates regarding the marches

Protestors access social media to spread their message to a wider audience.

and protests occurring in Piatt Park. The protesters also utilizes their Facebook page to plan carpooling, share ideas, post pictures and create events for big marches and other functions. The Cincinnati movement has a website, occupycincy.org, which posts press releases every couple of days along with video footage from the streets in downtown Cincinnati and live feed of general assemblies. According to Daniel Mclellan, an Occupy Cincinnati, protester the live stream website for the first 10 to 12 days of the movement had approximately 50 viewers. The night protesters were arrested, the number of viewers surged to 500. When the footage went up on the global revolution website the numbers of viewers went up to 1,700. “I think [social media] is so important because the people who aren’t here can watch it like it’s on television,” Mclellan says. “They can feel like they’re here and a part of the protest." n

$105 $250 $37,815 per citation

and up to 30 days in jail

total amount of fines issued to protesters

lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 47

entertainment | book review

ALNEUHARTH

CONFESSIONS OF AN S.O.B. review rachel podnar

publisher doubleday business cost: $5.99 (paperback) pages: 372

t 87-years-old, Al Neuharth is still a conniving, my-way-or-thehighway S.O.B. It was evident to me from the first time I met him this summer, as a participant in his Free Spirit Scholars program in Washington, D.C. His red gym shoes, red suit and American flag tie gave it away. He was older than I anticipated, having just read his best-selling autobiography Confessions of an S.O.B. When he wrote it at 67, he was lively and full of spunk. That spunk has not disappeared (he did have red gym shoes on), but the Al that I saw on the second night of my trip seemed frailer than his persona in the book. That is to be expected considering the book was written twenty years ago. Confessions of an S.O.B., is Neuharth’s candid autobiography, leading even a reluctant reader through his extraordinary life; from small beginnings in South Dakota, to his rise in the Gannet corporation, to the founding of USA Today and beyond. His rags-to-riches story is undeniably inspirational. As he says in the beginning, Confessions of an S.O.B. truly is a window into the board rooms and the bedrooms of Neuharth’s life. He is not shy about revealing key insight into past media moguls’ psyches and the sometimes dirty secrets that helped him cinch corporate mergers. The autobiography is structured chronologically, starting with his humble beginnings on the wrong side of the tracks in South Dakota, and ending on his retirement with 4.5 million dollars. Divided into time period chapters, each chapter is titled after a lesson he learned during that time, like “Mixing Money, Muscle and Charm.” Each chapter comes with an introduction page containing a quote about Neuharth, some witty comments about the experiences to be discussed and another quote pertaining to the chapter. This structure, along with the bullet points and “Plain Talk” sections inserted into the text keep the autobiography easy to navigate. In the text, Neuharth delves into the intimate details of his experiences, from specific conversations to what he drank at a particular dinner. He recounts his stories thoroughly and eloquently and it seems like the reader is actually present in his memories. At times, it makes the reader wonder how he managed to remember so much about his life but then again, the mark of a good journalist is in the details. He spends the majority of the book chronicling his rise to CEO of the Gannet Corporation, where he started out as a general manager and

operating head of two small papers in New York. Neuharth spares no detail as he delves into every corporate promotion, relishing the reliving of his wildly successful past. It starts to seem as if he savors the retelling a bit too much and the autobiography is just his personal ode to his personal achievements. The book finally returns to earth after descriptions of champagne celebrations and glitzy launch parties with the chapter called “Marriage and the Family.” Here, Neuharth solicited open and honest comments from his two ex-wives and two children about their ex-husband and father. This chapter may be the most meaningful of the book because it gives outside perspective on Al’s all-too-apparent ego, perspective from ex-wives who were left in the dust, and children who were swept away in Neuharth’s corporate climb. But that’s the lesson in the book. Neuharth defines an S.O.B. as “someone who uses whatever tactics it takes to get the job done—to rise the top. As nicely as possible. A little nastiness when necessary.” In order to achieve one’s dreams, questionable tactics might be necessary here and there. At the book’s conclusion, Neuharth lays out his “S.O.B’s Ten Secrets to Success,” the two most notable being “Scramble to the top and don’t tiptoe while you’re there” and “Life’s a game. Play it to win. And to enjoy.” These “secrets” are valuable and real tips to success, the kind that would be well-used hanging in a locker. They show that Neuharth wants others to realize their goals and he is providing the tools for his readers to do just that. As he sat in front of me last July, imprinting his S.O.B. wisdom into the minds of 50 high school seniors that he was an unforgettable experience and a substantial amount of money, it was obvious that Neuharth has won the game and enjoyed the ride. At 87, he has made an undeniable mark on society and left center stage with the respect of many, along with a cushy retirement. Whether or not one agrees with Neuharth’s usually sweet-with-aside-of-vicious tactics, his achievement of successfully starting the first national newspaper is undeniable. Confessions of an S.O.B. is an entertaining and inspiring look back into his life, sharing his mentality behind the wild success story and encouraging dreamers of all ages to never hold back on the quest to achieve. n

“Neuharth spares no detail as he delves into every corporate promotion, relishing the reliving of his wildly successful past.”

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entertainment | indepth album review

COLDPLAY

MYLO XYLOTO indepth review zach fulciniti art daham marapane

or Coldplay, it really doesn't make sense to make an album like Waterfall,” a Celtic-tinged, foot-stomping groove, is probably one of Mylo Xyloto. At this point, they're essentially a musical punch- the best things the band has ever done. The ambiguously titled “Charlie line. They're lampooned, by those bearded individuals who see Brown” is delightful as well. But starting with the strangely hip-hop themselves as the overlords of pop culture, for making tender piano- infused “Paradise,” the record’s true colors begin to show. ballads, catchy pop tunes, and, of course, the occasional arena-rock The album is probably intended as a message. That yes, they’re the anthem. "Do you know how I know you're gay? You like Coldplay." band that makes tender acoustic ballads and pop-rock anthems, and if Yeah, they're that band. anyone disagrees with their chosen path, they can kindly shove it. And it But rather than letting it go to their heads, rather than making a is a noble gesture. But it’s completely missed the point. record comprised of plaintive folk tunes or some type of a cappella acid Anyone who has ever really bothered to listen to Coldplay knows funk, or whatever convoluted genre they could concoct in an attempt to that the band, and their music, is much more than what the overlords of silence those who disapprove of their particular brand of bouncy pop pop-culture portray it to be. Yes, they make tender acoustic ballads and grandeur, they've infused it with cheerful swagger, doused it in color like indulgent arena-pop. They do so quite well. But that is far from what a Jackson Pollock and turned the volume up to 11. makes them a musical powerhouse. No, listening to 2002’s A Rush of And that’s Mylo Xyloto: their coming-out party as a band that doesn’t Blood to the Head, by far their strongest effort, makes this apparent. What give a shit. made them great was their penchant for moodiness. But this time around it’s a concept album, and It was, of course, interspersed with the the title is, actually, more than just gibberish. Mylo ANYONE WHO HAS EVER REALLY dainty pop-rock that’s made them so popular. is an individual, as is Xyloto. Why their parents BOTHERED TO LISTEN TO COLDPLAY It wouldn’t have been Coldplay without it. But gave them such atrocious names is unclear. KNOWS THAT THE BAND IS MUCH that’s not why it was brilliant. A Rush of Blood Nonetheless, Mylo and Xyloto meet through a MORE THAN WHAT THE OVERLORDS was the fury of a woman scorned, the bitter gang called “The Lost Boys,” the product of some OF POP-CULTURE PORTRAY IT TO BE. last words of a man awaiting his own demise. unspecified dystopia, and supposedly inspired by It was death and darkness and unicorns and the White Rose Movement. The only apparent difference between the rainbows and it was glorious. It wasn’t “Clocks” and “The Scientist,” it two groups, however, is that where the White Rose movement protested was “Politik” and “God Put a Smile upon Your Face.” That’s the point the Third Reich and died for their cause, the Lost Boys just deface public they’ve missed, and instead of these kinds of songs, Mylo Xyloto is laden property and make sprightly pop songs. with hip-hop melodies. For evidence of the treachery, see “Princess of But so it goes, and the album hits the ground flaming with “Hurts China,” an ill-advised collaboration with Rihanna, or the abysmal “Up in like Heaven.” It’s a tornado, a resonant clash of synth fills, frantic drums Flames.” The only song that even comes close to the moody brilliance and the occasional guitar riff. But frankly, the aforementioned guitar of their past albums is “Major Minus,” but even that sounds like a failed riffs feel like little more than a vain attempt to inject some masculinity attempt to recapture U2’s pre-apocalyptic glory. (as guitar riffs, if executed properly are generally seen as masculine; for So yes, Mylo Xyloto is an effort to dispel their critics, to shout from the reference see anything Led Zeppelin ever did) into a largely effeminate rooftops their intention to boldly defy them, to paint with all the colors piece of music. of the rainbow. But in doing so, they’ve been blinded to the fact that Not long after that track ends, however, an unfamiliar pattern they are much, much more than all those things they’ve been striving emerges. There are, of course, acoustic ballads, like the sweet, benign to prove they’re not afraid to be. In other words, instead of making a “Us against the World,” placed sporadically throughout the album. It’s Coldplay album, they’ve made a “Coldplay” album. Yes, it is confusing, also not without rousing arena-ready anthems. “Every Teardrop is a but it couldn't be spoken more plainly. n

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entertainment | album reviews

Album Reviews Florence + The Machine · Ceremonials · Universal Island Records photos labeled for commercial reuse

Editors’ Choice

Florence Welsh performing live at the Sound Academy, Toronto in 2010.

lorence Welch is a wonderful drunk. Pump a few Bloody Marys into her, and she’ll have more kick than the drink itself. She’s rumored to have once gotten so drunk, she woke up in the morning on the roof of a pub wearing nothing more than a dirty Captain America costume. If there’s anyone who knows how to get wild, it’s Florence Welch. But no one would know it listening to Ceremonials, a tame, almost regal summation of Florence’s personality compared to Welch’s debut album Lungs, which reflected more of her wild side. Ceremonials lacks the sassy, kiss-my-ass attitude of Lungs. And while Welch can rock a

more elegant, majestic style, the album would have been better if it had more attitudeinfused songs like “Kiss with a Fist,” to give listeners a break from the constant four-and-ahalf minute anthems. The only song on Ceremonials that even comes close to being cute is “Breaking Down,” a decent attempt at charm that just never quite makes it. Welch plays it too safe by only doing what she knows, sticking to huge productions that are stunning when they’re done right but god awful when they’re done wrong. If the rest of the album was exactly like the first four, the album would be perfect. That must have been what Welch was

thinking, anyway, because parts of the rest of the album sound like repeats of the first four songs. Unfortunately, those copycats are never quite as good as the fantastic four. They lack the pure, glorious, angst-filled defiance that is bursting throughout “Only If for a Night.” Absent is the soulful longing of “Never Let Me Go.” Sometimes Welch is being loud just to be loud. Her voice swells at the chorus, but only the volume grows; there’s no emotion, no passion and no point. Trying to listen to the entire album in one sitting is challenging because it’s too heavy and weighed down by unnecessary filler. The closing song almost serves as an award for making it through. “Leave My Body” reveals Welch’s fearlessness with the opening lyrics, “I’m gonna be released from behind these lies/And I don’t care whether I live or die.” It’s like a reminder to the listener of how amazing Welch can be after hearing her at her worst. But to be fair, Welch at her worst is still infinitely better than 99 percent of what is played on the radio. What Ceremonials lacks in substance, it tries to make up for in sparkly harp flourishes and cheap drum beats, but those elements only carry the album for so long. Ceremonials leaves the listener wanting more—more joy, more anger, more sadness, more everything. If only Welch had recorded the album dirty Captain America drunk, then maybe it would have the heart it’s missing.—Sophia Li

The Decemberists · Long Live the King - EP · Capitol Records When bands are labeled as an “indie” band, it usually means they’re pretty different. They do anything as long as it’s not mainstream, and because of this, they usually don’t get mainstream attention like Lady Gaga or Bruno Mars. They don’t get air time on the Top 40 radio stations and they don’t appear on the cover of magazines. But that’s all right, because that’s not what they want, and it’s not really what most people want either.

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The Decemberists are an indie-folk-rock band. Most people don’t know what that means, and most people would rather not find out. The “folk” part basically means they’re mostly acoustic with an Americana style. And then there are the accordions, organs and cellos in addition to the traditional rock instruments. It’s like country music gone bad. Sometimes singer Colin Meloy hits notes with his shaky voice that makes it seem like he’s off-key, but really those are just notes that should have never been sung by Meloy in the first place. Long Live the King is a six song EP follow up to their 2011 album The King is Dead. It’s basically a collection of songs that weren’t good enough to make the cut on their last

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album. But they released it anyway, because some people might buy it. Just most people won’t. The EP starts with “E. Watson,” which is just awful. The pitch is all over the place and it’s a song about laying someone in their grave. Which is apparently different from “Bury Davy,” which is a song about burying Davy.” And on top of that, the “mother wept no tears.” Most people won’t enjoy listening to that for fun. But that’s fine. Most people don’t like Nickelback either, but they seem to be doing all right. The Decemberists know their accordions and indie-folk-rock style isn’t for everyone. That’s why they’re an indie band. —Christian Roehm

Deer Tick Divine Providence Partisan Records

Deer Tick is a poor man’s Wilco. They both have that country-indierock style where no one can really determine if they’re country, or indie, or rock. Or maybe even folk. Deer Tick frontman John McCauley and Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy both share that sort of voice that has enough ambiguity to keep the listener guessing as to just what kind of band they’re trying to be. And the music in general switches too much to determine one specific genre. Unlike Wilco, however, Deer Tick is less about the art school freshness and more centered around a garage, or a barn, or wherever indie bands in Providence, RI perform. In short, don’t expect anything like Wilco’s seven-minute “Art of Almost.” Instead, there are songs like “Let’s All Go to the Bar,” McCauley’s messy and obnoxious declaration that nothing will stop him from getting to his favorite watering hole. See, Deer Tick doesn’t seem to care about what people think. The five members just do what they want, especially McCauley, who starts “Funny Word” by calling one his fellow band members a “f---ing douche bag.” And then there’s “Clownin’ Around,” a beautiful folk song up until the last 30 seconds when the band just starts smashing things together and yelling mumbo-jumbo into the microphone. But even with all their resistance to having some sort of depth, an artsy track or two pops up on Divine Providence, particularly “Electric,” a song that sounds a little too Wilco-y for its own good, with its quiet vocals and underlying keyboard-synthesizer collaboration. So really, Divine Providence is the product of five guys just having fun with instruments. But it’s great, in that messy garage-band sort of way. It’s great because the songs are catchy, and it’s great because McCauley’s eclectic, yet charming personality is oozing out of every track. The best part of the album, however, is that people who are dying to be fans of Wilco, but can’t understand Tweedy’s artistic mumbling, have a new home. As long as they don’t mind concerts in barns. Or maybe fisheries.—Dillon Mitchell

Miranda Lambert · Four the Record·  dBpm Records

In the past, Miranda Lambert sang “I’m given up on love cause love’s given up on me.” Now, Lambert is singing to a more romantic tune since she swapped vows with country super-star Blake Shelton. The tone of Lambert’s new album Four The Record reflects a softer Miranda who no longer wishes to soak everything in kerosene. But she is still made of gunpowder and lead. After placing third in the 2003 season of Nashville Star, Lambert signed with Epic Records to begin a more than epic career. With three successful albums under her belt, and a rather large belt buckle, Lambert’s fourth is sure to go over well with fans. The album starts off with “All Kinds of Kinds,” which teaches listeners that “To keep the world spinning, it takes all kinds of kinds.” The mellow ballad represents the idea that it takes all types of people to maintain stability. The lead single, “Baggage Claim,” reminds fans that Lambert is still sticking to her

guns—but not literally. The song reflects Lambert’s independent flare through a catchy country chorus that will make anyone want to forget about that crazy ex-lover. As an acoustic ode to her new home and new husband, “Oklahoma Sky” tells the tale of how she got there. Originally from Texas, Lambert now lives in Oklahoma with her hubby, but claims she will always be a true Texan. In the final track she tells him that, “There ain’t no goodbye/with your hand in mine/Meet me under the Oklahoma Sky.” Showing off her wild side, “Fastest Girl in Town” reminds fans that even though she is married, she can still be herself. Lambert’s claim to fame was her ‘don’t mess with me’ attitude and edgy music categorizing her as a bad girl. This rock hit goes to show that things haven’t really changed. Lambert belts to a powerful melody, “Let’s go to town for a little while/I’ll be wearing nothing but a tattoo and a smile.” A new husband and a new album have yet to hold Lambert back from creating empowering and uplifting music. So if the critics try to bring her down, she’s sure to tell them, “Ain’t no use in trying to slow me down/cause you’re running with the fastest girl in town.”—Maddie McGarvey

Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds · Sour Mash Records Sibling disputes hardly end well, especially when the siblings are as stubborn as Noel and Liam Gallagher. In 2009, after a messy dispute involving a smashed guitar, Noel decided to leave the band Oasis. Although Liam was the well-known frontman of Oasis, Noel wrote the majority of the lyrics, a useful trait he carried over to his solo debut, Noel Gallaher’s High Flying Birds. Now, High Flying Birds is no “Wonderwall” in terms of popularity, but with psychedelic undertones and a playful bass, it doesn’t matter. Noel is a man in his forties, but he’s still got it. His self-titled album is enough proof. Overall, the album is energetic with compelling lyrics—a good representation of British rock. “AKA…What a Life” is easily the best song off the album, using smooth guitar riffs and distinctive yet complimentary sounds of the keyboard. “Solider Boys and Jesus Freaks” is another solid song on High Flying Birds. It’s upbeat guitar paired with Noel’s

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stong voice will make even the most stoic person tap their toes to the beat. Noel’s voice isn’t quite as unique as his brother’s, but his vocals work perfectly with the touch of trippy ambience featured on High Flying Birds. Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds is exceptional as a whole, but some parts of the album fall short. “Stop the Clock” and “(I Wanna Live in a Dream in my) Record Machine” are just boring. They don’t seem to belong with the rest of the tracks. Noel doesn’t use his voice to the full extent in an attempt to make the songs more “relaxed,” and even though they are relaxing, they are dull. The songs should have been thrown onto a B-side compilation. They are out-ofstep with the rest of the album, sounding like a completely different genre—unfocused and lazy, like Noel didn’t even bother to try. Luckily, the rest of the album is filled with enough trumpet blaring and banjo scratching to make up for the two uninteresting songs. Many Oasis fans are still bitter over the harsh death of such an iconic band, but there is still hope. Noel Gallagher has created something that is new and fresh, but will still appeal to Oasis fans. Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds is a mouthful to say, but it will leave listeners speechless.—Lisa Cai

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entertainment | film reviews

Film Reviews The Rum Diary · GK Films · 120 minutes · R photos labeled for commercial reuse

Edward Lotterman (Richard Jenkins) and Paul Kemp (Johnny Depp) in The Rum DIary.

newsroom is a hectic place. It’s always loud, crowded and crazy. It’s a challenge to have everyone come together to put a paper out every day. It’s even harder when all but four reporters are drunk. That’s the type of environment Paul Kemp (Johnny Depp) lands himself in when he moves from New York to Puerto Rico in The Rum Diary. But Kemp fits right in. He even shows up with a hangover for his interview with the San Juan Star. While working his way up the paper and only staying sober long enough to meet his deadline, Kemp meets businessman Hal Sanderson (Aaron Eckhart) at the office. Sanderson soon recognizes

Editors’ Choice Kemp’s talent with words and offers to help make him rich by having him write favorably about the development of a private Puerto Rican island. As Sanderson tries to lure him in, Kemp becomes obsessed with Sanderson’s girlfriend, Chenault (Amber Heard). Kemp must decide whether to get rich and help Sanderson with the development of the island or stick to his principles and cover the scandal in the failing paper he writes for. The Rum Diary is based on the Hunter S. Thompson novel that was written in the 1960s but remained unpublished until 1998. Not surprisingly, Depp and former journalist Thompson met in a bar and became good friends. Depp later discovered the long lost

In Time · Regency Enterprises · 109 Minutes · PG-13 Slipping a political agenda into a movie without turning away the typical movie crowd is a delicate art. While director Andrew Niccol may not be the Picasso of science fiction, it becomes obvious that there is much more he wants to show than fast-paced car chases and a half-naked boy-band heartthrob. Niccol’s aptly named In Time depicts a world far in the future where no one ages past 25. After that, everyone is given one year

52 | Spark | November 17, 2011

and time becomes the currency. People must trade, work or steal in order to add more time to their biological clocks. Will Salas (Justin Timberlake) is born into complete poverty, forced to sprint from place to place and to work horrible hours in order to provide enough time for himself and his mother. But when a complete stranger (Matt Bomer) gives Salas hundreds of years with the simple instructions “don’t waste my time,” the young man plunges himself into a world of corporate greed that allows the elite to live forever while thousands are “timed out” in the slums every day. While the film’s never-ending chase scenes and the comical banter between Salas and a millionyear’s daughter Sylvia (Amanda

manuscript for the novel in a cardboard box in Thompson’s basement. Thompson hadn’t seen it since shortly after he wrote it in the 60s. Depp’s discovery led to the publication of the novel decades after it was written. The film serves as Depp’s tribute to his old friend, but he’s also the perfect man for the role. Everyone knows Johnny Depp plays a good drunk. Not only because of his talent for acting, but also because he really is a drinker. In a movie in which one character offers the advice, “You’re high you fool, drink some rum,” the film is sure to be entertaining. It’s amusing to watch a few idiots that pride themselves on being journalists not really being journalists at all. The journalistic integrity just isn’t there, but the booze is. That’s why reporters show up to work trashed. That’s why the paper is failing. But the storyline itself isn’t what makes this a good film. In fact, the plot about illegal development of a private Puerto Rican island isn’t all that interesting. The film is interesting because of the little things. The fighting cocks and the bedazzled turtle. Kemp drinking 161 miniatures at his hotel. A reporter that only ever steps into the newsroom to collect his paycheck, and even on payday is too drunk to function. There’s a line in the film where the Editorin-Chief tells Kemp, “This is journalism.” But it’s not even close.—Christian Roehm

 Seyfried) will keep the audience entertained, In Time is not shy about making a connection to life in the modern world. The theme seems to perfectly mirror the beliefs of the Occupy Wall Street protestors, who oppose the unequal distribution of wealth like that in Niccol’s futuristic Earth. Though puns on the word “time” may elicit a few groans throughout, In Time seems to find the perfect balance between sci-fi thriller and allegorical commentary. The film puts a completely new twist on the classic Robin Hood story, keeping the audience glued to their seats. Decent acting and a couple of plot twists come together to make this one of the most creative, riveting movies that has come out in years.—Drew Souders

Puss in Boots

Paranormal Activity 3 · Blumhouse Productions

DreamWorks Animation 90 Minutes · PG

Paranormal Activity 3 has everything essential for a great horror movie. It has little girls doing creepy little girl things. It has old ladies doing creepy old lady things. It has a creepy ghost or demon or spirit (it never really specifies) doing creepy ghost/ demon/spirit things. It even has the 80’s. In short, Paranormal Activity 3 should be the most terrifying film of all time. Like the last two films, the found footage focuses on the two sisters, Katie (Chloe Csengery) and Kristi (Jessica Tyler Brown). This time around though, the girls are just children instead of full-grown adults. Kristi begins talking to a new “imaginary friend,” and the series’ typical disturbing happenings soon follow. Naturally, their mother’s boyfriend is a wedding photographer, easily explaining why there are cameras just lying around their house, even back in 1988. On the horror side of things, it’s the scariest of the three films. Directors Henry

 The beloved character from the Shrek movies returns in his own spinoff about his past before he embarked on his adventures with Shrek. Known as a triumphant swordsman and “lover of women,” Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas) begins as an orphan in a small town where he grows up alongside Humpty Dumpty (Zach Galifianakis), the brains in most of the mischief the friends get into. But when Puss becomes a hero in the town for saving an elderly woman, he is awarded the boots, a symbol of pride for Puss, and he feels he has outgrown Humpty’s games. Puss stops participating in Humpty’s schemes, until the clever egg tricks him into a scandal that forces Puss to flee the town he grew to love. Now an outlaw and trying to repay his debt to the town, Puss hears that Jack (Billy Bob Thornton) and Jill (Amy Sedaris) are in possession of the magic beans that Humpy and Puss dreamt about when they were young. In order to attain these beans and get the golden eggs, however, Puss hesitantly rejoins Humpty alongside a new character, Kitty Softpaws (Salma Hayek), so Puss can finally return to the town and make his “mama” proud. Full of old fairytales and nursery rhyme references with humor even adults can enjoy, Puss in Boots has similar characteristics to the Shrek series, but with its own twists. Parts of the plot are predictable, especially because areas are based on previous storylines, but it is still entertaining throughout. Puss’ personality keeps the attention of the audience. The flashback scenes could have been shorter, however, because like Kitty, the audience may lose focus. Despite being a spin-off, the film has an interesting plot and is independent of the Shrek films with no hints toward Puss’ future with the green ogre. The movie is cute, just like Puss with his wide-eyed look when first introduced in Shrek 2 and in Puss in Boots. Teens may not be as interested in the movie as younger kids, but there are enough mature jokes that parents will approve. Overall, Puss in Boots is a fun family film, purr-fect for parents and kids to enjoy together.—Jenn Shafer

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84 Minutes · R

Joost and Ariel Schulman (Catfish) stick to the formula of the previous installments, using subtle disturbances for the first half of the film before progressing into more malicious and grandiose scares. What sets Paranormal Activity 3 apart is the sheer magnitude of the attacks, in which furniture is thrown across rooms and kitchen sets are destroyed right before the mother’s eyes. The entity of the three films is really angry, and it has no problem showing it. What started as bumps in the night back in 2007 has progressed to beds being thrown across a room. But story-wise, it’s a convoluted mess. Its plot holes are gaping. And the script is, well, bad. The scripts have always been bad. None of the writers that have been hired onto these films seem to have any idea how actual human beings talk when they’re alone in their homes. Yeah, Paranormal Activity 3 is terrifying. Like, pee-your-pants, vomit everywhere terrifying. That’s why people see these things. They don’t want another pottery-making session with the late Patrick Swayze, they just want to be too scared to go home alone. These films know how to tap into people’s primal fears of the dark and unknown. That’s what Paranormal Activity 3 promises, and that’s what it delivers.—Dillon Mitchell

A Very Harold and Kumar Christmas 3D Kingsgate Films · 90 Minutes · R

If A Very Harold and Kumar 3D Christmas were instead 4D, it would be illegal in just about every way. The one night epic tale is, like the previous two films in the series, set in modern day New York. Harold Lee (John Cho) and Kumar Patel (Kal Penn) have matured to their societal roles as a Wall Street investment analyst and a bum, respectively. Six years have passed, Harold has married and moved out, the Asian-Indian duo no longer speak and the two glorious, back-toback nights that made up Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle and Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay seem far gone. But fate (and the gift of a huge doobie from Santa Claus) work to bring the pair back together on a new adventure, this time in search of the perfect Christmas tree. In following with the good old formula that put directors Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg on the map, this third movie utilizes its expected raunchy humor and mixes

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in a good share of witty social commentary. For example, as Harold runs from his office, he slow-motion dodges 3D eggs being chucked by Occupy Wall Street protestors. However, one thing seems to be missing from this formula: the part of the horribly grotesque character that helps to move the plot along while burning the eyes of the viewer. Thankfully not left out, Neil Patrick Harris (once again portraying himself) is back from the dead and busy as ever. In commentary of both society and his own life, NPH has his very own gay Christmas special, mocking his and Clay Aiken’s coming out as just a clever way to get girls and publicity. We catch up with Rosenburg and Goldstein, meet H&K’s replacements for each other ( Todd and Adrian), experience a claymation hallucination in the streets of the big apple and watch as our beloved Roldy and Kumar make fools of themselves, all for the sake of love and friendship. The movie has such a feel-good theme reminiscent of Tiny Tim’s “God bless us every one,” that fans of the high-flying series may fear that it is coming to a close. But all is well as NPH shouts, “see you guys in the fourth one!”—Megan Fogel

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entertainment | transcript interview

THE MAINE

interview nugeen aftab | photo sierra whitlock

Spark sits down with John O’Callaghan and Garrett Nickelson of The Maine, a band in its fourth year.

What were your experiences on Warner Brothers Records? John: Our experience with Warner Bros was… We were new to the whole thing. We were new to the idea of being on a major record label so I would say we had very little reservations at the start. We complied with a lot of things that they were telling us to do because we didn’t want to come off as “the brats.” I think we’re really easy to work with. What happened was that they had me and Jared sometimes go write with people. So basically you go to a house in Hollywood that’s like bigger than this whole street and the people tell you they wrote “Genie In A Bottle” by Christina Aguilera and stuff like that and basically, you write a song with these people who you just met, who don’t care about your band, who don’t know about your band. They’re just trying to make money. Then you go into a gazillion dollar studio and

you record with Howard Benson. I mean, the process was cool. I think we learned a lot. I think we learned a lot about what we don’t want to do again, *laughs* but it was definitely unique. It was definitely cool to experience that. On the other end, we recorded everything by ourselves, with the help of our buddy from Sacramento. Garrett: You didn’t have to worry. [In] big studios, you have six-hour, eight-hour days and then you have to stop because this guy is like, “I need to go to my big house” so they’re not spending crazy days working on your record. They have a million other things to do and this time around we didn’t want anyone to have to focus on anything else. We wanted us to be able to make whatever we want. We were working 15-hour days and we made 28 songs or something in the studio and so we just wanted to work and wanted to work quickly. We had tons of ideas and everything was like,

“Hey, let’s just try that,” and when you’re in a big studio, you’re kind of afraid to say that because there’s this guy sitting behind this big computer saying, “Alright, let’s go!” J: And you’re paying him to be there every day so it’s kind of like his way or the highway. G: We just didn’t want to feel that again. We needed to do something else or it wouldn’t have been fun. J: Yea, I really don’t know what would have come out [of this] had we not done this. I really have no idea. G: I don’t think I would’ve liked it. What is your new album going to be called? J: It’s going to be called Pioneer. The meaning behind it is that we got sick and tired of hearing that things happen for a reason. I don’t think there’s such a thing as fate and if you want to make something happen, you do it on your own. We only get able hands.

DISCOGRAPHY Stay Up, Get Down EP 2007

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Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop Fearless Records 2008

G: For me it’s like you can be given a path to go down and everyone can say that that’s what you need to do, but at the end of the day you need to do what you feel is right, what makes you feel comfortable. I think with this record, we compromised [on] nothing and when they told us, “no,” we said, “screw you” and we just kept doing what we wanted. How have the troubles throughout the last year affected the development of the album? J: I’d be lying if I said it didn’t hinder the process. The thing is that we signed a contract. We signed a contract after Fearless Records and so we were bound by that contract obviously. But now that we’re actually able to put it out, I think it gets [relieves] a lot of the frustration and as cliché as it sounds, it really makes sense to me that if you try something, if you really put a lot of effort into making something happen, it can happen. It definitely affected the writing. It definitely affected the lyrics. It definitely affected our overall wellbeing. Like I said, it’s a big, big breath of fresh air to be able to say that we did it on our own. Are there any songs that you’ve written or performed that you hate now? G: I mean, there are a whole lot of songs that I will probably not ever listen to. J: I don’t think I hate any of them. I think the reason all this happened is because of that, ya’ know? I told my dad that I hated one of our songs and he kind of enlightened me and told me, “You don’t hate it. That was just a moment in time. That was a period in time.” I’m sure when I’m 65, I’m going to look at the tattoos on my body and there might be some regrets but that’s who I was at that point. I think that’s the beauty of it. We get to make more records, at least at this point, and more songs that we’re going to hate. *laughs* Recently, you released an EP, In Darkness and In Light. Why did you choose releasing an EP over another album? G: Most of the songs on there were songs that didn’t make the album, so it’s not really… J: What really happened was that we had the idea to make a short film and we felt like we needed to put more out there than just two albums. They were just clips and stuff so we just decided to package it with songs that didn’t make the cut. G: We recorded some at the back of our tour

Black and White Warner Bros. Records 2010

bus or at random houses, like our sound guy, Gary, his house. It was just kind of thrown together quick. What complications have you had as a band? Has there ever been a time where you just wanted to give up? J: Many times. G: Yeah, we’re putting our new record out by ourselves, without a label or anything. It’s been a pretty big struggle to make this thing happen, yeah. J: I’d say this past year has been the worst as far as emotions go. There have definitely been times when I just don’t want to do it. It’s uh, *smiles* corporations, man. There have definitely been experiences where we’ve been on the road and something terrible happened. If we didn’t love it so much, we would have been done a long, long time ago. G: I think everything has its hard moments, but we get to play music. It can’t get any better than that. It’s pretty awesome. What exactly is your creative process when writing songs? Do you write the lyrics first or the song? J: What I usually do is I just go [on my iPhone], and it’s usually when I’m at home,

“

If we didn’t love it so much, we would have been done a long, long time ago.

but I just record notes and takes those notes… they’re usually gibberish, with no words, and then I go write words, write lyrics. I take it to them and we either work on it or it gets lost in translation. G: Some of the songs on the new record, they were kind of interesting, something we’ve never really done before, where we were all living on this farm for a little while and we would just practice all day and write music all day. There were a couple night sessions when there was like, me on drums, Kennedy playing guitar, John on piano or whatever and we all just switched around and came up with random songs that ended up on the record.

They all started as random jams. It can vary. How did you guys get your start as a band? J: I’d say the internet. We used a lot of social networking sites. MySpace was big back then. It was really big. We tried to use that to best of our advantage. These guys, Pat and Garrett, Pat’s the drummer, when he was in high school, you guys both were in high school, We couldn’t tour so we needed a way to spread the word about our music. That was kind of cool, that’s how it all started. Your style of your recent album, Black and White, is different from your previous music. Why did you change the style of your music? Do you think that it’s just because of the growing band? J: Yea, I think it’s just uh, I hate when people, especially bands, use the word “mature.” It’s just a different style. I think it’s just a more focused sound. We definitely put more thought into writing the songs. I think when we first started out… I do most of the writing and it’s been a learning process trying to figure out how to write songs. That’s the one thing that this band has been: a learning process. To answer your question, we just felt like a change in style was needed and I think our influences definitely came out a little more. Have you enjoyed your tour with Taking Back Sunday? G: Yea, it is almost like a… it is kind of a dream come true. They’re one of the bands I’ve listened to since I was like, 12 years old. I’ve enjoyed every single one of their records. Going on tour with them, it’s been really cool. J: They’re really awesome. We’ve been hanging out a lot. It’s fun but you can’t really ask for anything more. We’re on tour. We’re just fortunate that they took us on tour. What advice do you have for aspiring high school musicians? J: I think if you want it, you can have it. I think that just goes for life. G: If you actually work hard at something, focus on something, you can at least get somewhere. Maybe it’s not at the top of the top, but you can at least be doing something you enjoy. J: Yea, I think it’s really easy to get discouraged and it’s very easy to buy into a whole lot of stuff. But if you can somehow hold off and not buy into it, I think you’ll be way better off. Plus, you’ll have more fun.

Upcoming Album Fearless 2011

entertainment | columns

Dillon Mitchell ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

DEPRECIATING TV contact dillon at dillonpmitchell@gmail.com

he state of television is decrepit. A better way to put it: the state of television is the unicorn, and society is Lord Voldemort, slowly drinking the blood from television’s dying body. Jersey Shore is trash, and shows like Ice Loves Coco will bring about the collapse of America’s beautiful system of democracy and the rise of a less-appealing Marxist government. But that’s not the point. Neither is the fact that the truly original and clever shows on networks are often cancelled in their first or second seasons. The Pushing Daisies’s and Veronica Mars’s of the world have been pushed aside by the likes of America’s Got Talent and Two and a Half Men. Instead of an intelligent, politically-aware program, we’re served 12-year-olds juggling and phallic jokes. It’s a wonder that a show as offbeat as Chuck has made it as far as it has. Society has fallen into a pattern of watching and supporting mainly guilty-pleasure, or terrible, shows. Yes, this is another shot at Jersey Shore. But no, this is not the point. The point is that television’s very own savior is coming back. It’s rising from the dead, or, more appropriately, TV’s developmental hell. Gone are the rumors of a movie, or a revival, and in comes a full-fledged announcement. Well, more like a full-fledged tweet from the New Yorker. Arrested Development is coming back. The story of a wealthy family who lost everything, and the one son who had no choice but to keep them all together is finally coming back to grace the surfaces of our HD, LCD, DLP, LSD, and even analog television sets. And anyone who isn’t excited better start jumping up like a rabid fan girl soon, because creator Mitchell Hurwitz and the merry band of misfits he leads on Arrested Development were the greatest things to hit television back in 2003, and they’re well beyond anything that will hit television this year, or next. Maybe it’s the characters. The Bluth family was a machine, disjointed, with no comprehension of how a chicken acts. There’s George Bluth Sr., a believer in not-so-legal “creative accounting, and his wife Lucille, who doesn’t seem to understand why embezzling is wrong. Their four children, Gob (a failed magician), Lindsay (a failed activist), Buster (a failed human being), and Michael, the prodigal son who had no choice but to keep them all together, are broken people. But they’re hilarious. The actors, ranging from veterans like Jeffrey Tambor to Michael Cera in his first on-screen role, were, and still are to this day, the most convincing family on television. It’s hard to have a show that’s consistently funny, but Hurwitz and his crack team of writers were always on top of things, scripting 53 devilishly hilarious episodes. They had a keen political eye, focusing on controversial issues like dodgy CEOs and even a story arch in which it is discovered that George Bluth Sr. has sold Bluth company homes to

Saddam Hussein. It was daring back in 2005, and even now it’s just as wickedly funny. What set Arrested Development apart from every other show on television was just how intelligent it was. It’s not as if the best shows need to have Pulitzer worthy scripts; one of the funniest shows currently on TV, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, has some of the dumbest, most convoluted story ideas of all time. Arrested Development just worked so cohesively. Everything is woven so tightly, with episodes cross-referencing each other, sometimes even going into other seasons. Nowadays, we have reality programming on a variety of enlightening topics, such as mall cops. Or those who suffer from dwarfism. There are three shows about dwarfism. All on the same channel. So maybe the point is that shows like Jersey Shore will bring about our inevitable doom. It’s an indirect point though. The real point is that Arrested Development is good. So good that it puts every other show to shame. But there’s another point. See, Arrested Development was originally cancelled back in 2006 due to low ratings. And as time has gone by, the most original and clever shows have fallen victim to the same disease. Pushing Daisies barely lasted to the end of its second season. And then there was Lone Star, a show lauded as the best network pilot in years. But it only made it through two episodes before Fox gave it the axe. The major problem in America right now is that we are Lord Voldemort. We have devoted ourselves to the likes of Jersey, and most of the good shows have fallen by the wayside. It’s sad. Our society can’t keep a dark comedy around for more than a few years, yet we have multiple programs focused around the various Kardashian clan members. Sure, there are still some intelligent shows like Parks & Recreation and Mad Men, but they’re far outnumbered, like a handful of humans in a brain-dead zombie-infested world. It would be ridiculous to claim that Arrested Development will be television’s own Christ figure. In reality, it probably won’t spark a revolution. People will remain ignorant of the truly great television shows, and under-appreciated gems will be cancelled every year. But, hopefully, when Arrested Development comes back on for one more season, people will be watching. And people will have epiphanies about the trash they watch. And then they’ll set out in flocks to see the Arrested Development film when it eventually comes out. And then sequels and spin-offs will continue into the subsequent years. Baby steps. n

THE MAJOR PROBLEM IN AMERICA RIGHT NOW IS THAT WE ARE LORD VOLDEMORT. WE HAVE DEVOTED OURSELVES TO THE LIKES OF JERSEY [SHORE], AND MOST OF THE GOOD SHOWS HAVE FALLEN BY THE WAYSIDE. IT’S SAD.

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Jeff Back SPORTS EDITOR LOST DIMENSION contact jeff at j.a.back2@gmail.com

hen I was eight, I saw my first 3-D film. Walking into the newly in clear, crisp 1080p resolution. So when a flying fist thrusts itself off the opened Rave Motion Pictures on a hot August afternoon, screen in a blurry holographic mass at my face, I’m less than convinced. my eyes opened from dimes to silver dollars at the sight of The rationale behind 3-D technology not looking authentic is that it’s this futuristic theater. I gawked at the gargantuan neon nameplate and simply a theatrical effect. That’s why, while 3-D films intend to make a stainless steel framework that the building sported. As I stepped into the movie seem “realistic,” they are not realistic at all. The most successful ticket office and subsequently the main lobby, my amazement continued effects used in movies are the ones that are not noticed. When a semito grow as I gaped at the sight of the gleaming concession stands. truck flips 180 degrees on its nose in The Dark Knight, no one can tell Armed with a box of Mike and Ikes, a cherry Frozen Motion and a that a rocketing metal piston is the reason the gas-guzzler suddenly finds month’s supply of buttery popcorn, I shuffled my way into the theater flight. where Spy Kids 3D: Game Over was showing. Settling into my seat, I And I don’t need a little black pair of RealD specs to show me just looked up to the screen, which was telling me to silence my cell phone. how badass that is. Being eight, I didn’t have one, so I went back to my popcorn. There’s a reason that RealD frames are more useful as a Halloween As I sat through the movie, I took cover from moon rocks flying accessory than a movie enhancer. 3-D turns a movie into something that out of the screen at me. I dodged the occasional boxing glove and I is hardly a movie itself. By throwing an assortment of jumbled artillery winced in preparation for a hit from Carmen Cortez’s robotic arm. I and arms out of the movie screen in a hazy mess of stereoscopic pixels, left the theater in awe, dumbfounded by this unbelievable presentation the film is hardly a “moving picture on a screen” anymore. It would be of cinematic genius. Never before had I witnessed the mind-blowing like throwing a clay nose on top of Da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa.” innovation of 3-D technology, and I eagerly awaited more 3-D feature Lisa’s new schnoz keeps her from being called a painting anymore. film releases. She’s a sculpture. I was a dumb child. But aside from technicalities, 3-D movies are actually harmful for Not only did I pay for over-priced movie snacks, but I paid extra to some. Consumer Reports states that roughly 15 percent of moviegoers see a movie in 3-D. Not only did I choose to see a movie in 3-D, but I experience headaches and eyestrain during 3-D movies. thought 3-D was going to be the new standard for movie excellence. According to Dr. Michael Rosenberg, an ophthalmology professor Roger Ebert would be disappointed. at Northwestern University Since then I’ve wised up and joined Ebert Feinberg School of Medicine in on the anti-3-D bandwagon, but Hollywood still Chicago, many people have very MOVIES LOOK PERFECTLY LIFE- minor eye problems that the seems to be running with a pair of horse blinders. LIKE IN 2-D ALREADY. WITHOUT THE brain deals with naturally. But in a The year 2003 saw the release of Spy Kids 3 and four other 3-D films worldwide. This November CHEAP CARDBOARD SPECTACLES 3-D movie, a whole new sensory alone, six 3-D films will be released. tackles viewers. “That AND FANCY FILMING, MOVIES LOOK experience Worse than that, roughly three dozen 3-D translates into greater mental COMPLETELY REALISTIC IN CLEAR, effort, making it easier to get a pictures are already scheduled to hit theaters in the next two years. Hollywood has become far too headache,” said Rosenberg in a CRISP 1080P RESOLUTION. obsessed with the surcharges piggybacked onto technology review published by 3-D movies to realize that 3-D itself is simply bad. the Massachusetts Institute of Now, the idea behind 3-D is okay. At least the intention is. The Technology. fact that filmmakers are looking to make the experience as realistic as The most obvious and convincing argument as to why 3-D movies possible for moviegoers is admirable and even shows as much promise are a trend that doesn’t deserve the attention of one more pair of eyes is as the first money-generating 3-D film, The Power of Love, did back in that 3-D does not add anything to the movie experience. 1922. However, the idea holds only slightly more clout than the Segway. Think about it. Nothing would be gained from bullets flying off the 3-D was promoted as the technology to change the movie industry, but screen in the first 30 minutes of Saving Private Ryan. I have no desire to it hasn’t shown enough promise to earn that title. see Khartoum’s bloody head popping off the screen in The Godfather. People tend to believe that they need boulders and bombs and body And I wouldn’t say that King Kong’s arm needs to come flying at me while parts flying at them at all times for a 3-D movie to be worth the extra he’s standing on top of the Empire State Building. A truly great movie $3-$5. But they don’t. That is the gross perversion with which 3-D does it without 3-D. technology has flooded the minds of the public. And don’t get me started with 4-D films, using chair movements, Yes, it is true that life is perceived in three dimensions. However, wind, rain, smoke, lightning, bubbles and special smells to “enhance” movies look perfectly life-like in 2-D already. Without the cheap the movie experience. cardboard spectacles and fancy filming, movies look completely realistic That’s called life. n

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sports | player spotlight

From Key West to San Francisco, East basketball players Stedman and Dylan Lowry have traveled in their family’s RV to participate in the most prestigious camps and tournaments the nation has to offer and are

EnjoyingRide the

story and photo illustrations jeff back | photos kali martin and lowry family

avid and R.J. Lowry stand on the lot. They listen to the salesman’s spiel, but tune out his patter because they already know what they want. As a new, glistening alabaster silver 2007 Honda Civic jets past a weathered and beaten aqua 1997 Mercedes Lacosta sputtering down the roadway, David and R.J. Lowry do not bat an eye. Their purpose is larger than a Civic, a Lacosta or even an Escalade. They want an RV. “We were sitting around talking about how staying in hotels didn’t make much sense,” David says. “So we said ‘Let’s get [an RV,]’ and since then we use it for weekend basketball tournaments, training camps and vacationing.” David and R.J., who own their own business, travel most frequently with their two sons, East junior boys’ basketball player Stedman Lowry and freshman boys’ basketball player Dylan Lowry. Whether for basketball or not, all of their traveling has brought the Lowrys closer than the living quarters of their RV. Stedman and Dylan do not mind traveling in the RV, though. At least most of the time. “There have been times when I’ve wanted to kill my parents because we had no [phone or internet] service and we were staying out in the mountains all alone,” Stedman says. Sitting next to her husband, R.J. laughs and admits some of these trips were intentionally designed that way. According to her, they are all “kind of stuck together” and Stedman and Dylan cannot get away. “On the way back from [The College of] William and Mary [in Virginia], we stayed at a National park where we knew there was no Internet or phone service,” she says. “And I think [Stedman and Dylan] seriously thought

58 | Spark | November 17, 2011

they were going to die.” Although Stedman and Dylan have been known to stand on top of the RV to get reception, none was to be found. “They switched bunk beds that night and the next morning Dylan leaned down over his bunk and said, ‘Stedman, we did it. It’s morning. It’s over. We’re headed home,’” R.J. says. David, who has a lengthy basketball history that includes two years on an athletic scholarship to Murray State University and two more as a Transylvania University Pioneer, says the boys sometimes think they are being punished, but really they will look back on it and think it was great. “The RV has definitely helped Dylan and I become closer,” says Stedman, who is beginning his second year on the varsity basketball team at East. “We’re about as close as brothers can be because we were always together when we were homeschooled for three years.” Stedman and Dylan stayed back a year in fourth and second grades, respectively. According to the entire family, it was a decision intended to help their basketball careers. “We were out in the driveway shooting [baskets] and I said to Dylan, ‘we have a chance to have a really good second grade team if you want to stay back,’ because he was a little younger and a late grower,” David says. “Then Stedman said, ‘shoot, I want to stay back, too.” R.J. says at first she thought the three of them were “insane.” She went and talked to the administrators at Woodland Elementary, who said that the boys were too smart, would get bored and get into trouble if they stayed back. But after discussing the decision with a gifted services teacher at the school, David and R.J.

LOCATINGLOWRYS THE

infographic jack dombrowski

Brothers Stedman and Dylan Lowry have trekked across 14 states, played in over 20 tournaments collectively, including countless in Ohio, and been noticed by many colleges and universities across the country.

decided to homeschool Stedman and Dylan for one year so that they would not have to take the same grade again in school. “We had so much fun that first year that we decided to [homeschool] again,” R.J. says. “Then we decided that we’d do it until Stedman started playing on a school sponsored basketball team in the seventh grade [at Liberty Junior School].” David contends that the process of homeschooling was easy and “there was nothing to it.” It simply required David and R.J. to send a letter to the district and have the boys’ work evaluated at the end of the first year. R.J. says the boys stayed in a “Bible-based” homeschooling program for three years until Stedman entered seventh grade and Dylan fifth. When they went back to public schools, R.J. says they transitioned extremely well and had hardly any trouble with the move. Deciding to homeschool paid off because in 2005, Dylan’s second grade AAU team, the Cincinnati Knights, blasted the Mitchellville Trailblazers 33-19 to win the AAU National Championship in Memphis, Tennessee. “Most people say ‘it’s only second grade; it doesn’t matter,’ but a national championship is a national championship,” says Dylan, who is in his first year of high school basketball.

3rd Grade National AAU Championships The Cincy Knights overcame the Texas Titans 40-34 for the National Championship First College Recruiting Letter Dylan received a letter from the University of Toledo before even playing a single game of high school basketball

Academic All-American High School Boys Showcase Stedman hyperextended his knee 2.Waltham, MA Hoop Mountain All Academic Camp Stedman would have attended this camp had he not been injured in Chicago 3.San Diego, CA Adidas Junior Phenom Camp Stedman ranked 10th overall at the camp

1.Central Michigan University 2.American University 3.Albany State University 4.Cornell University 5.The College of William and Mary 6.University of Akron 7.West Point Military Academy 8. Miami University 9.Valpraiso University

2 5

1.Chicago, IL

20 16

2 7

6 13

6 7 8 10 9 14 1

1 9

33-19 for the National Championship

STEDMAN’SSTOPPING POINTS

INTERESTED COLLEGES / UNIVERSITIES

1.Memphis, TN 2nd Grade National AAU Championships The Cincy Knights beat the Mitchellville Trailblazers

3.Toledo, OH

1.Birmingham, AL Junior All-American Camp 2.Orlando, FL 8th Grade AAU Nationals 3.Cocoa Beach, FL 5th Grade AAU Nationals 4.Atlanta, GA Adidas Phenom Regional Camp 5.Fort Wayne, IN Various AAU Tournaments 6.Bloomington, IN Spring AAU Tournament 7.Columbus, IN AAU Super Regional Tournament 8.Indianapolis, IN Various AAU Tournaments 9.Lexington, KY AAU State Tournament 10.Louisville, KY John Lucas Elite Showcase 11.Greensboro, NC 4th Grade AAU Nationals 12.Duke University, Durham, NC Duke Camp 13.Pittsburgh, PA Pittsburgh Jam Fest Tourney 14.Knoxville, TN AAU Tournament 15.Dallas, TX Texas Elite Camp 16.TCU, Fort Worth, TX TCU Elite Camp 17.Baylor University, Waco, TX Baylor Camp 18.Virginia Beach, VA 6th Grade AAU Nationals 19.Milwaukee, WI NY2LA Elite Camp 20.Hilton Head, SC Hilton Head Holiday Classic 21.Huntington, WV 6th Grade AAU Tournament

2 3

information David Lowry, www.Hoopscooponline.com, and AAUboysbasketball.org

DYLAN’S DESTINATIONS 2.Lake Buena Vista, FL

TOURNAMENT / CAMP LOCATIONS

Head varsity boys’ basketball coach Wally Vickers, who remembers Dylan being in elementary school and doing full-court dribbling and shooting drills at halftime of junior varsity games, expects Dylan to be “a key member of the JV team, who will possibly dress for varsity.” The Cincinnati Knights rocketed their way to another AAU National Championship, defeating the Texas Titans in a 40-34 victory in Lake Buena Vista, Florida the following year. Dylan says staying back a grade for basketball was the best decision of his life. “[David]’s from Kentucky and I’m from Indiana and that’s what people do there for basketball,” R.J. says. “My own brother stayed back in eighth grade. It’s really big in those two states and it’s getting bigger here now. A lot of people have done it since we have.” But even though they stayed back a year and were homeschooled, the boys still worked on their basketball games with the type of hunger for success that only a champion can explain. R.J. says that everyday when she played tennis at Queen City Racquet and Fitness Club, she brought the boys. They did their schoolwork as quickly as possible so that they could practice their game in the gym. It was the same for vacations.

lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 59

Far Left: Stedman Lowry (5) at Adidas Phenom Camp in 2007, where he made the all-star team. Left: The Lowry family RV at a campsite near Virginia Beach following a campus visit to The College of William and Mary.

“When we went to Key West we were homeschooling them,” R.J. says. “When David wasn’t there, he’d go home to work and I’d stay with [Stedman and Dylan.] They’d have a training program and I’d videotape them. They had a certain number of shots they’d have to take and little routines they had to do on the court everyday. And they were in second and fourth grade.” But the RV means so much more to the Lowry family than just vacations here and there. Because Stedman and Dylan both play vigorous AAU schedules, David and R.J. decided that buying an RV was the best idea. Stedman insists that his family is original; no one arrives at tournaments and camps with as much style as the Lowrys. “We travel so much, all over the country,” Stedman says. “I have never seen a family or team use an RV like us. One time we took the entire team, coaches, and parents down to a tournament in the RV. We were a little bit late to the game and it was really cool when the whole team and everyone affiliated with the team walked into the gym together.” Playing basketball in over a dozen states, Stedman and Dylan have shared the court with some of the best high school talent in the

in the top 50 in the nation in the high school [class] of 2013,” David says. “Stedman has probably played against at least 60 of the 2013 ESPN top 100. Those camps and tournaments this year playing for Martin’s Wolverines are where he saw the best players.” According to David, the Wolverines boast seven or eight boys who could play Division I basketball. The team has given Stedman increased exposure to college coaches due to its more rigorous and competitive schedule. “He hit six [three-point shots] in a row in a game for the Wolverines this summer against the Michigan Mustangs,” David says. “Tom Izzo and coaches from Virginia Tech, Ohio State, Miami, Ohio University, William and Mary, Fordham, Xavier and Notre Dame were all watching. It was amazing how [Stedman] shot [the Mustangs] right out of the game. The Mustangs were supposed to win the whole tournament and we beat them by 25 points.” Jaylon Brown, a long time friend and teammate on the Wolverines who is being recruited by schools such as Indiana University, the University of Cincinnati and 2010 NCAA Tournament runner-up Butler University, says that Stedman’s shooting ability, serious attitude on the court and work ethic could land him a

And that’s what it’s always been about; playing hard and competing with a great attitude. When [Stedman and Dylan] learned to do that they became players. country. At the prestigious John Lucas camp, where Stedman and Dylan are both two-year veterans, Stedman played with Jabari Parker, the number one recruit in the high school class of 2013, for almost the entire first day. Stedman also played at the Adidas Jr. Phenom Camp in California three years in a row. The camp, which is run by former Air Force Academy coach Dave Taylor, hosts 360 of the best incoming seventh, eighth and ninth grade players from across the country. Stedman was named to the camp’s top 30 players twice and its top 10 once. “Of the kids that were on his team in that All-Star game, you probably have 10 to 15 guys

60 | Spark | November 17, 2011

spot on a Division I roster after he graduates. Stedman insists that William and Mary was the only school there to watch him play. Receiving two or three pieces of mail from the school a week, both Stedman and his parents can see Stedman playing for head men’s basketball coach Tony Shaver in a couple years. “Coach Shaver came up to me during my visit [to William and Mary] and said, ‘Stedman, you’ll never take a bad three [point shot] here,’” Stedman says. “It was music to my ears.” For Dylan, college is not quite on the horizon. But he did receive his first recruiting letter from Toledo on Nov. 3. He came home in jubilation after Stedman received Dylan’s letter

from Vickers. Playing in numerous high-profile camps and against much older competition has definitely helped put Dylan’s name on the map. Dylan has sized up against both Aquille Carr, who is the number 59 recruit in the class of 2013, and Rodney Purvis, the number 16 recruit in the class of 2012. Dylan remembers hitting a deep threepointer in a three-on-three game at a camp in sixth grade against a team on which Purvis played. Purvis got a fast break and bee-lined directly towards the hoop and threw it down over Dylan. But Dylan was not ashamed. He took his posterization with pride. David says the most defining moment of Dylan’s career was at an elite camp at Texas Christian University. Dylan spent the whole weekend guarding Allonzo Trier, the top eighth grade player in the nation who stayed back and is now in the class of 2015 with Dylan. “The whole weekend Dylan went up against him and from that moment on I’ve just been able to sit back and watch him compete his butt off,” David says. “He learned to compete that weekend. And that’s what it’s always been about; playing hard and competing with a great attitude. When [Stedman and Dylan] learned to do that they became players.” As Stedman prepares to live up to Vickers’ expectations as a “veteran with leadership skills” on the 2011-12 East boys’ varsity basketball team, Dylan trains for what looks to be a contributing season on junior varsity. They both anticipate the Beach Ball Classic that East is scheduled to play in this December in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The number one ranked senior in the country, Shabazz Muhammad of Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas, Nevada, is set to compete. If Stedman has it his way, he’ll get to add Muhammad to his who’s-who list of big-league competitors. And David trusts Vickers to get the team ready for the Beach Ball Classic, the season and his boys ready for college. “He’s a tough S.O.B. but he does a great job,” David says. “He’ll prepare them.” When the East varsity boys’ team takes the floor for its first game at home this season against Archbishop Moeller, David and R.J. Lowry will be looking for one son on the floor and another on the bench. But since East is only two and a half miles from home, maybe this time they will leave the RV behind. n

sports | athletic in-depth

SHIFTING PLATES Since the district split and the lines were redrawn in 2002, Lakota West has been the athletically superior school. Last year East earned twice the amount of GMC trophies that its sister school earned, indicating a shift in the athletic climate across the district. story devin casey | photos used with written permission from trimble photography

n Oct. 17, 1989, a small shift occurred in northern California. This small slip killed 63 and injured 3,757 in the San Francisco Bay Area. The San Andreas Fault shifted for only 10 seconds, yet California residents’ lives changed forever and San Francisco’s earthquake protection system was reevaluated. The plates of Lakota athletics have remained stagnant for six years. In 2009, Lakota West earned seven Greater Miami Conference (GMC) titles, more than East had earned the past four years combined. Over the same time period, Lakota West racked up three state titles while East did not hang a single new banner on Main Street. The root of the imbalance among the plates can be traced back to 2002, when the district lines for individuals that go to East and Lakota West in the area were redrawn by district officials. According to former athletic director Stu Eversole, the redrawing, which was subject to total number of students only, would put 65 percent of Lakota athletes at Lakota West and the remaining 35 percent at East. “Initially there was a pretty big imbalance that took years to correct itself but I think that

our junior highs, freshman, junior varsity and varsity programs are solid,” third-year East athletic director Richard Bryant said. The correcting of the imbalance has led to a new leader in the cross-district rivalry. Last year, East finished second in the GMC AllSports Trophy standings while Lakota West finished fourth, its worst finish in the history of the standings. East also earned its first state title in baseball and sent boys’ basketball to the regional semi-finals and girls’ basketball and softball far to the regional finals in the state tournament. In 2010, East earned four GMC titles, the most in school history, and has already racked up three titles this fall season. Lakota West earned two GMC titles, leaving the school’s trophy case nearly barren for the first time since 2004. This shift is not minor, and according to Bryant the plates are going to stay this way. “Currently we have and will continue to have strong student athletes across every sport,” Bryant said. “I would put our coaches that we currently have in our building against anyone in the state. When you have good student athletes and good coaches—that’s a recipe for success.” One of the possible causes for the strong

student athletes across every sport at East is athletes no longer transferring, but staying Thunderhawks. In 2005, East junior Devin Favors carried the East football to a 7-3 season as the starting running back. The following season Favors transferred to Lakota West for his senior year and takes the Firebirds to the playoffs as East finishes 4-6. Since 2005, East has not finished .500 or better. While it is not allowed to transfer for athletic reasons, Favors started a trend of student athletes seeking greener pastures across the district or across the GMC. Recently, however, Bryant said that while athletes are not necessarily transferring into East, there has been a significant decrease in the athletes transferring out of East. Bryant also stated that on the opposite end, the financial situation of the district has affected the athletics programs at both schools. While East and Lakota West receive the same funding from the district for athletics, the failures of the levies have impacted both schools’ abilities to succeed. “East and Lakota West [athletic departments] have been absolutely decimated financially,” Bryant said. “It is a testament to our coaches and out kids that we are able to

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CHALK CHANGE IT UP TO

East GMC title West GMC title

While the change is recent, the cross-town rivals have flip-flopped athletic prowess over the past few years. The head-to-head and overall data show not only a change in the current athletic climate across the district, but an indication of what is to come. infographic devin casey | information provided by lara kursman, sue tyburski, lakotaonline. com, eastthunderhawks.com and gmcsports.com

2008

2009

2010

2011

(through fall)

West All-Sports Trophy Points

East All-Sports Trophy Points 2007-08

2010-11

2007-08

2010-11

sixth

second

fourth

200

160

120

Winning Percentages by Sport East West

1.000

Baseball Girlsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Tennis Boysâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Basketball

.750 .500 .250 .000 2005

2007

2009

2011

sports | athletic in-depth perform to the level that we have. [Cuts have been made to] budgets and transportation budgets. Every single sport has lost at least one coach. Our financial situation works against us. We can focus on the negatives, but we have bought into controlling what we can control and working very, very hard to work with what we have.” While the athletic departments at either school have not been receiving much funding from the district, Bryant said that the funding received from booster programs is also similar across the district. According to Bryant, East receives $10,000 to $15,000 annually from booster programs for all sports, and said that Lakota West receives a similar amount and that this number has not changed significantly with the recent levy failures. Lakota West’s athletic director did not comment on this story. Financial status, however, has impacted the success and the existence of sports at the junior high level. With the new athletic funding plan for junior highs in Lakota being based off of the number of athletes that sign up and pay for a spot on the team, participation has decreased in some high school feeder schools. The current fee is $350 with no family cap, which gives less athletes the opportunity to get involved at the junior high level and continue at the high school level.

“

According to Hamilton, the unique athletic commitment at Liberty Junior School is what has led to success across the board in this East feeder school. Currently, there is a group of football players walking the halls of Liberty Junior School that have not lost a game in a Thunderbird uniform and are two-time GMC champions. Alongside these athletes are girls’ volleyball players and boys’ basketball players that live atop the GMC standings as repeat winners in their respective sports. “These incoming freshmen are very talented and possibly the best freshmen class ever,” said East varsity boys’ basketball coach Wally Vickers, who’s boys’ basketball team has gone from 2-18 to 29-2 in three seasons. “A couple classes are not good athletically; public schools have those times. But our [current] sophomore class is very good and we’ll see how these incoming freshmen achieve and if we can develop their talent.” According to Vickers, in addition to new, talented classes of student athletes coming into East, the mentality of coaches and athletes has changed over the recent years and attributed to the tectonic shift. With sports such as girls’ tennis repeating GMC titles for East, other sports walk down Main Street, observe the change and try to emulate it. Hamilton says that this new winning mentality has carried over to

year and minimal success the next. “Liberty had an amazing year this year with a very talented team. Our school had the same type of situation last year where we were undefeated as eighth graders,” Nicol said. “That is hit or miss every year with what you are going to get athlete wise. In the junior high level the kids grow at different times and as coaches it is hard when you could have one kid that is a huge 200 pounder and another that is 100 pounds.” One thing all coaches and athletic directors agree upon is that Lakota is experiencing new levels of success in GMC play. East girls’ volleyball went undefeated in conference play this season and the girls’ tennis team has not lost to a conference opponent since Sept. 10, 2009. East had its highest finish in the All-Sports Trophy standing and currently trails Mason by 8.5 points this year with its best fall finish of 72.5 points. Since Mason moved to the GMC from the Fort Ancient Valley Conference in 2007, the Comets have finished far ahead of any school in the All-Sports Trophy standings each year. We have a very large group of committed young men and women that love Mason athletics,” Mason head varsity football coach Brian Castner said. “Our facilities are huge and some of the best around.”

I WOULD PUT OUR COACHES THAT WE HAVE IN OUR BUILDING AGAINST ANYONE IN THE STATE. WHEN YOU HAVE GOOD STUDENT ATHLETES AND GOOD COACHES—THAT’S A RECIPE FOR SUCCESS.

“The changes to our [junior high] athletic department have been drastic,” said Tom Thompson, who is the cross country, basketball and track and field coach at Plains Junior School. “Only the athletes who have parents with the financial means are able to participate. In the past we’ve had junior high students come in and give a sport a try. [This] gave students a chance to fall in love with a sport. The difference is now that athletes have to choose if the sport will be worthwhile and gambling [with the] $350. Extremely good athletes that play select soccer, select baseball or summer basketball are not able to ‘try’ a new sport.” Without the ability to give athletes the chance to familiarize themselves with new sports, Thompson said that participation has decreased at Plains Junior School. At Liberty Junior School, however, girls’ basketball coach Randy Hamilton said that he has not seen an impact in participation and that athletes are committing to one sport for success. “Our athletes are focused and more willing to come in and put in extra time—more than our opponents,” said Hamilton, who has been coaching eighth grade girls’ basketball for seven years. “Athletes are paying [the payto-play fee] to stay and want to stay and win championships.”

—EAST ATHLETIC DIRECTOR RICHARD BRYANT

the junior high schools. He says that there is no longer the expectation to compete or even win, but to win championships and hang banners. “I think that success is contagious. I also think that there is an increase emphasis across every single sport. There is an increased emphasis on winning league, city and state titles. There is a push from my office to work our kids as hard as we can and be as successful as we can. When you have the ingredients and the coaches, we have you can’t help but be successful.” While some coaches see the shift as monumental, others find the change in athletic dominance to be arbitrary and based on the class of athletes given to schools. “Yes, there is a current upswing in the past two to three years in the overall success of the East athletic programs versus Lakota West based on All Sports Trophy rankings,” sports information director Dan Hilen said. “But, each school has an attendance zone and as long as we keep graduating students you can expect shifts in each school and teams performance based on the talent pool available to them.” In addition to the shift and talent pools over the recent years, Plains Junior School athletic director John Nicol said that the size differences that occur at the junior high level can lead to one school having large success one

The large group of athletes that Mason has consists of 1,100 athletes that fill 1,500 roster spots. In sports such as swimming, in which Mason has six GMC titles in four years, 101 athletes swim as Comets while 49 swim as Thunderhawks and 51 swim as Firebirds. Also on the rise in the GMC standings is Fairfield. The Indians have risen from an eighth place finish in the All-Sports Trophy standings in 2008 to a fifth place finish last season. East, however, has bested Fairfield in girls’ tennis, girls’ volleyball, girls’ golf and football this season. In head-to-head competition with Lakota West, East won in girls’ volleyball for the first time since 2008, bringing the girls’ volleyball GMC title back to East from Lakota West, where it has been for the past two seasons. While East may not be able to best Mason in certain sports, Bryant believes that a change has occurred in the three years he has been athletic director of East. Unlike the slip of the San Andreas Fault 22 years ago that lasted 10 seconds, Bryant is certain that this winning atmosphere is here to stay. “We’ve put more banners up in the last two years than in the past 13 years combined,” Bryant said. “Our expectations of coaches and athletes are developing. We’ve started winning and we won’t stop.” n

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sports | transfer in-depth

TRACING ATHLETIC TRANSFERS Athletes work through the transfer rules and the 12 exceptions in order to attend a new school and to continue playing a school provided sport. story jenn shafer | photos sierra whitlock infographic natasha rausch

Senior Tazzie Shaw transferred across the district to pursue a basketball career at East under head coach Nikki Drew. She signed to play college ball at Marshall University.

he onslaught of heavy student traffic is overwhelming, with still more kids trying to push their way through the crowd. The unfamiliar faces are distracted with their own paths, yet it feels like everyone is staring. Blindly fighting the crowd and still unsure of where the classroom is located, the student walks aimlessly until finally managing to find her room. New school, new people, new routine. Being the new kid is not easy. Unless it was one’s decision. People transfer to another school for multiple reasons, whether it is moving to a new home, trying to receive a better education or even seeking better athletic training. Transfer laws, however, have become stricter over time because of students trying to change schools only because of athletics. According to the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) regulations, after the first five days of a student’s freshman year of high school, or after playing a game or scrimmage, they are locked into that high school athletically. If the student decides to transfer, they are ineligible for a year unless they meet one of the 12 exceptions outlined by the OHSAA in Article four Section seven Clause two which grants automatic eligibility. “Someone has done every single one of these and that is why it is a rule. This is a work in progress,” East athletic director Richard Bryant says. “The basic idea is that they want the students to stay in the high school they started the ninth grade in.” Trying to get around these rules solely for an athletic purpose is discouraged by the OHSAA. For this reason, it has outlined appropriate grounds for transferring. Because students are not allowed to transfer only for athletics, there is no record of students who transferred for this reason. “If a student transfers to another school, it should be due to the family needing to physically move their residence or a similar circumstance,” OHSAA director of information services Tim Stried says. “Athletic participation is a privilege and is just one part of the

EAST TO COLERAIN. Senior Allante Foster travels to his third high school and third basketball team in his high school career.

ST. URSULA TO EAST. Sophomore Brooke Mauro transferred back to the Lakota district to continue her girls’ soccer career.

educational process. Too often students attend school, or transfer to another school, just for athletics. That is not the way it is supposed to be and goes against the mission and philosophy of the OHSAA. But the OHSAA is not the only one against transferring merely for athletics. Other school officials discourage this act as well. “It’s disappointing when a student chooses to leave a school and attend another purely to play on a better team,” Lakota sports information director Dan Hilen says. “I’ve seen very few situations where this benefited an athlete in getting more playing time or a scholarship. It’s a selfish issue of ‘What’s best for me’ and very unfair to teammates who commit to a program at the original school.” In an effort to discourage the actions discussed by Hilen, the OHSAA has tightened its standards on high school transfers. The laws on high school transfers have become very detailed and complicated to prevent unfair athletic advantages. Forfeiting one year of eligibility deters

WEST TO EAST. Senior Tazzie Shaw transferred to East for her junior and senior years as a girls’ basketball player.

many athletes from transferring to different schools just for athletics. “Any student that transfers is automatically ineligible for one year unless they meet one of several exceptions,” Bryant says. “It’s incredibly difficult to be eligible without moving residence.” Legally changing residence is the first and most common way to transfer, but even this exception has rules. The move must first be verified by completing an Affidavit of Bona Fide Change of Legal Residence and then must be signed by a notary. The OHSAA Commissioner’s office must also be content that the change in residence was not made to get around the bylaws, but that the move caused the need to transfer eligibility. Falsifying information would lead to the revocation of eligibility for up to a year. Former East varsity basketball player Allante Foster has moved for the second time in his high school career, currently attending Colerain High School as a senior. Despite the belief that Foster is attending his third high

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12 EXCEPTIONS ATHLETIC TRANSFER

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.

Athlete legally moves houses to a new district.

W D NEHIL C

A new guardian has custody of the athlete. This exception also includes the athlete being temporarily removed from his or her home. The parents of the athlete separate. One of the parents changes residences.

The school discontinues the program and/or the school has permanently closed.

The school is annexed, one school has been added to another.

The athlete transfers from a private to a public school.

The athlete transfers from a public to a private school.

McDonald’s

The athlete is a self-supporting student. The board will check up on them periodicaly.

The athlete has physical disabilities such as being deaf or blind. This exception allows the athlete to make an easy transfer to schools to accommodate them. CO

The athlete is preparing to move but has not yet changed residences. The commissioner must approve athletic participation.

The school has canceled all athletic programs causing the student to transfer schools.

The athlete is a foreign exchange student.

school because of basketball, he says it is only due to the constant moving of his family “Most people think [I moved for basketball], but that’s not the case. My family just moves a lot,” Foster says. “I can understand the confusion, but I love basketball and I’ll play anywhere with anybody on any team in any uniform. A certain team or coach makes no difference to me. I just love playing.” The continual changes could make transferring and eligibility complicated, but Foster’s parents own a law firm together and take care of the paperwork. Nevertheless, college recruiters do not overlook the switches and it is recorded on the student’s transcript. “Most [colleges] don’t see how my moves weren’t basketball related,” Foster says. “Then they think you’re a problem or a team cancer.” Bryant admits that colleges are skeptical when they see multiple transfers because it calls the student’s commitment into question. College recruiters, however, usually turn more towards club teams for athletic recruitment and not as much of high school athletics. After attending St. Ursula Academy her freshman year of high school, sophomore Brooke Mauro transferred back to the Lakota district in order to attend East this year. “I think I went [to Ursula] mostly for soccer and high school soccer isn’t really a big deal,” Mauro says. “You get college looks from club so I went there for the wrong reasons.” Though she hoped that attending a private school would further her soccer career, Mauro says that the talent level is essentially the same but weaker links at East are more prominent than at St. Ursula. She decided to transfer back to East because she did not like St. Ursula, but she has found the athletics and academics to be very comparable. “Everyone thinks private schools are better and the soccer team was ranked number one in the country for a few years so high school soccer seemed like such a big deal,” Mauro says. “But I didn’t like the people there; there was a feeling of superiority because they go to a private school. And the academics really weren’t that different. I think academics [at East] are a lot harder surprisingly.” After enrolling at East, Mauro came to the school over the summer to sign a paper that allowed her to play for the school without forfeiting a year of eligibility. Outlined in exception six, “A student shall be entitled to one transfer into a public high school located in the public school district within which the student’s parent residence is located.” They cannot choose which public school they go into, it must be within the district they live in. Mauro attended Lakota schools before St. Ursula and was happy to return. “I grew up here, this was my community,” Mauro says. “I honestly just felt like I took a vacation for a year and came back.” Not all of Mauro’s family, however, was happy with her decision to return to Lakota. According to Mauro, her father, John Mauro, “did not approve” of the choice to return to Lakota. Brooke’s parents are divorced and her mom, Melinda Keto, disenrolled Brooke from St. Ursula to enroll her at East. Separated parents are also recognized by the transfer bylaws involving shared custody. The OHSAA does not want kids switching between parents in order to play

sports | transfer in-depth different sports at different high schools. Exception two discusses non-traditional families, such as court appointed guardians, parents who never married, parents who are divorced and custody changes or if a student is temporarily or permanently removed from the home. Student athletes are not punished for these circumstances and are granted immediate eligibility. The student is supposed to, however, stay in the new arrangement for a year to prevent the always changing custody. Exception three is about a divorced parent who legally changes residence. Not only do the bylaws cover transfers between different districts, but also within the same district. Many athletes have switched between East and Lakota West but it has become more difficult to make that change. Students can change within their system for some of the same reasons as transferring out of the district such as a bona fide legal change of residence, a change in custody or the school closes. Students can also change if they have an individualized education plan like in the case of disabilities and their program has been changed to another school. Tazzie Shaw transferred from Lakota West to East last year as a junior and plays for the East girls’ basketball team. She did not need to forfeit a year of eligibility because she legally changed residence within the district. “We moved to make our situation better,” East senior Shaw says. “I still had to try out for the team and earn a spot like but overall things worked out really well. I fit in with the team and am very fortunate to be here.” The girls’ basketball team has a successful season last year, finishing 19-6 as regional runner-ups, losing to Pickerington North in the regional final. Transferring to East gave Shaw the opportunity to work with East girls’ basketball coach Nikki Drew, “the greatest coach on the world” according to Shaw. She feels she has grown as a person and a player, but it was hard leaving her West friends. “As a person I’ve become more mature and I have better work ethic,” says Shaw, who has verbally committed to Marshall University. “In general I’m a happier person because I’m enjoying what I’m doing, although of course I still miss my old friends and teammates across the road.” Changing schools within a district can be justified in other ways as well. Eligibility may also be restored by the commissioner’s office if the transfer takes place because of a specific change of program, before the start of the school year and the district petitions to the commissioner’s office for eligibility before 15 days after the start of school. All of these requirements must be met before the commissioner’s office grants eligibility. Former Lakota West girls’ basketball player Olivia Wrencher transferred this year to East before her senior year in the hopes of playing basketball at East, however, that was not her only reason for transferring. “When it came down to it, Lakota West didn’t help me for athletic purposes,” Wrencher says. “They didn’t help me develop as a player or a person.” According to Wrencher, she transferred for academic reasons and personal reasons. Wrencher says she wanted to play for Drew. “It’s not just about being an athlete; it’s about being a student athlete, but you are also a person,” Wrencher says. “There’s a person behind who you see on the court.” Academically, she felt she was not getting sufficient time to dedicate to school work due to long practices

The East girls’ soccer team holds hands as they sing the National Anthem with its newest member sophomore Brooke Mauro (orange).

and having to stay after practice. Her grades noticeably depreciated as the years went on because she was devoting more time to basketball and less to academics. After transferring to East, Wrencher had to appeal to the commissioner’s office in order to gain eligibility. “Right off the bat they said no without looking at it because they just heard what was going on,” Wrencher says. “When they get an appeal that requires them to go back and look at it so that second time it went through and as a group they decided yes we are going to do this.” After the third appeal it got to the commissioner and it took him a while to review it. He gave them a split answer by saying he was willing to give eligibility but he needed information from the district. By the fourth time it was a yes from both the commissioner and the district. The latest decision was made on Oct. 23 and the final answer was no. The district did not want to promote other student transfers between the high schools. Although Wrencher will not be playing her senior year of high school, she has committed to Butler University through her Amateur Athletics Union basketball team. Sometimes parents or girls will contact Drew about transferring, but she does not work with them until after the transfer and they are eligible to play. “If someone contacts me wanting to play for East I direct them to the athletic department because that’s the rule,” Drew says. “Once they transfer then I can give them the practice schedule with open gym times.” But even Drew admits that transferring can be a difficult situation, especially when she can see both sides of the argument as a coach and a parent. “It’s making high school athletics less fair and it’s getting out of control. The top ten teams in the state are loaded with talent and all of them did not come from the same district,” Drew says. “As a parent it’s hard because when my daughter is that age I want her to have the best athletic and coaching experience but I hope that we can be loyal to the school district.” The balance between valid transfers and athletic transfers is difficult to maintain, especially when it is hard to determine the legitimacy between the two. The OHSAA tries to keep competition fair between high school teams by limiting transfers, but it cannot prevent all of them. On top of dedicating extra time to sports, some athletes are willing to go through the complicated process of transferring their eligibility to avoid sitting out for a year. For some students, playing sports is worth being the new kid in school. n

“

WE MOVED TO MAKE OUR SITUATION BETTER. I STILL HAD TO TRY OUT FOR THE TEAM AND EARN A SPOT LIKE EVERYONE ELSE. BUT OVERALL THINGS WORKED OUT REALLY WELL. I FIT IN WITH THE TEAM AND AM VERY FORTUNATE TO BE HERE.

lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 67

sports | hawk culture

JIPPING THE

JUNIOR HIGHS

Recent cuts to athletic funding across the district have led to an increase in pay-to-play fees and a decrease in athletic participation in junior highs. Junior highs are combining teams in order to compete. story kaitlin lange | infographic hannah lee | photo eric muenchen

ue to the athletic participation fee increase and the new player per team requirement at Lakota Junior Schools, the Hopewell Junior School football program was forced to combine its seventh and eighth grade football teams. As a result of the Nov. 2010 Lakota levy failure, junior high sports have become self funded, causing the participation fee to increase from $200 last year to $350 this year. This led to the decrease in participation for most junior high sports. In an effort to keep the athletic budget balanced, the Lakota board imposed a required amount of athletes per team. For the 2011 football season, 34 kids were required for each team. By the July 16 registration deadline for the Hopewell seventh and eighth grade football teams, 24 and 17 players had signed up, respectively. Neither amount was enough to create a team for each grade level. The Hopewell athletic department considered several solutions to fix the problem. One possibility was to combine the Hopewell and Liberty Junior football teams. Another possible solution was to combine the Hopewell seventh and eighth grade teams. After much consideration, Hopewell athletic director Tom Howard

decided the latter would be a better fit due to reasons including transportation barriers and unequal play time for the Hopewell eighth graders who previously experienced very little success their seventh grade year. “Our seventh grade team last year really, really struggled to be competitive,” Howard said. “They weren’t very big and they weren’t very fast.” The 2011 eighth graders’ limited success as seventh graders, a 1-6 record, also helped in the decision of whether the combined Hopewell team would play eighth grade teams or seventh grade teams. Howard explained his situation to the Greater Miami Conference officials who agreed with Howard. Thus the Hopewell football team played a seventh grade schedule and ended the season with a 6-2 record. Both Howard and head football coach Joe Schorr thought the combination of grades ended with a positive affect on the football players. “Normally in football we have our seventh grade on one side and our eighth grade on the other and they don’t really do a lot of interaction,”

Plummeting Participation Participation in football and cross country at Hopewell and Liberty Junior School has decreased due to pay-to-play.

participation in 2011

100

participation in 2010

Number of participants

80 70 60 50 40 30 30 20 10 Hopewell

GMC TICKER:

Liberty l

Cody Shaul – third in fumbles recovered

Lauren Beitel – fifth in kills per game

“

I DON’T LIKE THE IDEA THAT BECAUSE IF YOU DON’T HAVE ENOUGH MONEY, YOU CAN’T PARTICIPATE,” HOWARD SAID. “I JUST CAN’T HELP THINK HOW MANY KIDS SHOULD BE PARTICIPATING AND THEY ARE NOT. —HOPEWELL ATHLETIC DIRECTOR TOM HOWARD

Schorr said. “Now they were able to come together and the seventh philosophy and team rules because of their financial investment,” Riffle graders were able to learn from the 8th graders. [The 8th graders] said. were able to get some success which Like the football teams, football will hopefully lead them into wanting to cheerleading also combined its seventh continue up at the high school.” and eighth grade teams. Despite the benefits that resulted The girls’ golf team was also cut. One from the combination, it also had a girls’ golf coach, three football coaches few drawbacks. The athletes received and one cross country coach were also less playing time because of the teams let go. unusually large size. After an additional Liberty saw fewer athletic cuts with player moved into the district, the team only the girls’ golf coaching position and consisted of 41 players. one cross country coach being cut. The According to Schorr, feedback from only sport Liberty combined for the fall parents was mostly positive, but some season was girls’ and boys’ golf. did complain about less playing time. “We are one of the larger middle Although Schorr said this happens every schools so we do have a lot of numbers year, there were more complaints than to pull from,” Liberty athletic director normal. Joshua Drouhard said. “[Hopewell] may “As a coach you kind of realize you’re have been hit a little bit harder because not always going to make everybody they don’t have the larger numbers happy,” Schorr said. “So we’ve got to be pouring into their athletic department.” fair about our situation. It provided the The large participation fee for junior most amount of challenges as a coach off high athletics at both schools causes less Hunter Burdno played for Liberty Junior and was forced to give athletic participation. Most people in the the field this year that I’ve ever had.” Across every junior high sport, parents up football because of the increased pay-to-play fee. athletic department see this as a problem. seemed to complain more than usual this year according to numerous “I don’t like the idea that because if you don’t have enough money, coaches including Hopewell cheer coach Angela Riffle. you can’t participate,” Howard said. “I just can’t help think how many “Many parents felt that they had the right to establish coaching kids should be participating and they are not.” n

Spark

High Schoo Lakota East Online Edition

Want more sports? Go online to see photos from the East v. Lakota West football game, .com lakotaeastspark.com coverage of Zumba for the Cure and girls’ volleyball updates at lakotaeastspark

HAWK CULTURE A look into the lives of East athletes and coaches infographic dillon mitchell

Alyssa Greevenkamp GIRLS’ BASKETBALL

Keith Brady BOYS’ BASKETBALL

Hannah Downs GYMNASTICS

Matthew Kaltman BOYS’ SWIMMING

Orange Leaf is...?

AMAZING

FROZEN CUSTARD

NEVER BEEN

SCRUMPTIOUS

DELICIOUS

ONE OF LIFE’S GREAT PLEASURES

Do you Support Occupy Wall Street?

DON’T KNOW

ABSOLUTELY

DON’T KNOW

YES

American Idol or X Factor?

AMERICAN IDOL

TALENT SHOWS WERE FUN IN 2004

AMERICAN IDOL

X FACTOR

Halloween Costume?

NERD

EXOTIC ORANGE GUY

FOOTBALL PLAYER

TARZAN

ARMY GIRL

VOODOO WITCH

Facebook or Twitter?

FACEBOOK

NEITHER

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

FACEBOOK

I HAVE A LIFE

UNSURE

Girls’ Golf – fourth in average score

Carlie Haddad GIRL’S VOLLEYBALL

Heather Schoell-Schroeder ACADEMIC QUIZ TEAM COACH

Abbie VanFossen – second in girls’ cross country

sports | eight things

Visualize your Routine “If I am competing, I do my routine on the floor to warm up and make sure I don’t forget anything.”

Be Neat “Try to get your skills such as tucks and jumps to look neat with nice landings and flow.”

Be Clean “A clean mount is what you want. Clean means not having any mistakes with [adds to] a clean routine.”

Maintain a Good Balance “I make sure that I am straight and have good posture. I try to stay even so I don’t fall.”

Have a Pretty Form “I make sure my toes are pointed and my hands are ‘pretty,’ flared and together. I also keep good posture.”

Breathe “I make sure that before I do my big skills, like my dismount, I breathe before I perform and put a lot of power into it.”

Land Perfectly “The perfect landing is sticking it, which means having your chest up and hands up without taking a step or wobbling.”

Flow in the Routine “I make sure you don’t stop, even if you mess up. Keep going and make your routine flow together from move to move.”

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT BALANCE BEAM

story natalie potts east gymnastics (as told to hannah lee) photo sierra whitlock

sports | opinion

Brett Colburn MULTIMEDIA EDITOR

COACHING CONTROVERSY

“T

contact brett at bcolburn@fuse.net

hat’s like training all summer for a spear fight, and then the day of principles such as responsibility and discipline. I doubt any chapters were the fight, showing up without your spear.” titled, “How To Break the NCAA’s Rules…And Get Away With It.” I’ve always loved a good analogy. I’ve never found myself in a Tressel, who eventually resigned after receiving extensive media situation where a good analogy was inappropriate. And as I sat in my scrutiny, is not the only coach to exhibit a lackluster emphasis on fourth period Honors Pre-Calculus class on the first day of school, integrity. Professional coaches do, too. listening to my teacher talk for the first time, I reveled at the thought of The feel good story of this NFL season has been the Detroit Lions. all the great analogies to come. After hearing such a bizarre comparison Because of their remarkable start to this season, the Lions’ impressive on the first day of class, I hardly expected to hear one more outlandish turnaround has been all over the media. Recently, however, the Lions’ than that. Rick Pitino shattered my expectations. coaching staff and defensive line have been the apple of the media’s eye. In a recent interview, USA Today reporter Kelly Whiteside asked Led by Jim Schwartz, the Lions were knocked off the ranks of Pitino about his thoughts on Syracuse and Pittsburgh leaving the Big the unbeaten following a nail-biting loss to the rookie head coach East Conference for the esteemed basketball powerhouse the Atlantic Jim Harbaugh-led San Francisco 49ers. During the routine postgame Coast Conference (ACC). The 10-year veteran Louisville mens’ head coaches’ handshake, an ecstatic Harbaugh emphatically shook Schwartz’s basketball coach responded with an analogy of his own that criticized hand and gave him a vigorous pat on the back to boot. Schwartz then the actions of the two elite National Collegiate Athletic Association proceeded to shout profanities and dared Harbaugh to fight him, (NCAA) basketball programs. resembling two boys on a school playground fighting over first pick in “My problem is not them leaving,” Pitino said. “My problem is [they] recess basketball. did it in 48 hours. Don’t run away with a girl after one date when you’ve Ever since this clash, the Lions have been accused of heinous actions been dating someone else for three or four years. You’ve been dating this from taunting injured Falcon quarterback Matt Ryan while he was woman for 30 years, show a little respect.” on the turf to even mocking the great Tim Tebow by “Tebowing”, a Pitino’s right. You shouldn’t run away from a girl that you’ve dated phenomenon that has swept the nation after Tebow knelt down in prayer for three or four years. Syracuse and Pittsburgh shouldn’t have run away following his comeback victory against the hapless Miami Dolphins. The from the conference that they had competed in for 32 and 29 years, Lions’ were simply following the lead of their head coach. respectively. But Pitino shouldn’t have run away from his Coaches are the people wife of 35 years, either. who interact with their players In July 2010, Pitino’s 2003 “extracurricular activities” on a daily basis. Players look up IN AN ERA WHERE SCANDALS AND with Karen Cunigan in a closed, Italian restaurant were to their coaches like a young CONTROVERSIES PLAGUE ALL LEVELS exposed to the public. Pitino received great backlash from child looks up to his parents. OF ATHLETIC COMPETITION, THE REAL the media. Following a Pitino-financed abortion, Cunigan But as coaches become more PROBLEM CAN OFTEN BE TRACED asked Pitino for even more money so that she would and more focused on winning BACK TO THE COACHES keep the news of their one-night stand concealed. Pitino rings, they become less and subsequently filed an extortion case against Cunigan, less worried with the character requiring that he admit to the tryst. of the players that they mold. Perhaps Pitino should be more concerned with his own actions, John Wooden once said, “Self-control is essential for discipline rather than that of Syracuse and Pittsburgh. and mastery of emotions. One cannot function effectively unless ones In an era where scandals and controversies plague all levels of athletic emotions are under control. [Without self-control] careless mistakes are competition, the real problem can often be traced back to the coaches likely to occur.” that have been appointed to lead the young men and women on their And boy, have they ever. The idea that the grown men leading these teams. From Pitino’s Italian restaurant rendezvous to the New England young, talented athletes cannot keep a quasi-clean record themselves Patriots’ “Spygate,” coaches continue to be found at the center of is baffling. Wooden once constructed a “pyramid of success” for his athletic wrongdoings. Collegiate and professional coaches continue to players that emphasized self-control and discipline. But today, that hide the skeletons of their scandals in former Texas Tech head football pyramid would better serve the coaches who continue to show a lack of coach Mike Leach’s closet. each. Because of the people who mold young girls and boys into men Take Jim Tressel and Ohio State’s eligibility violations, for example. and women, coaches are the foundation. Tressel received information that many of his players had received Although the actions that Pitino, Tressel, Schwartz and others have free tattoos and discounted BMW’s. Instead of reporting this news to committed are extremely out of line, the NCAA and National Football the NCAA, he decided to keep quiet, win a Sugar Bowl, and sell his League have not given the coaches hardly more than a slap on the hand. game-worn sweater vest to the highest bidder. “The Vest” wrote books Coaches have been involved with sports for a much longer than 30 explaining how he took pride in developing his student athletes on years. Maybe it’s time to show a little respect. n

lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 71

opinion | columns

Emily Chao OPINION EDITOR

FREE TIME AT WESTBORO contact emily at elchao96@yahoo.com

inding free time is difficult. Most would rather watch the latest episode of Glee or read or update a Facebook status. But for the Westboro Baptist Church (WBC), spare time means bringing along smiling advocates of homophobia, changing popular song lyrics to reflect their beliefs and picketing anywhere deemed appropriate (or not so appropriate). Westboro is controversial. . Even crazy. The extreme case of American disillusion in society. And its influence is slowly swelling for all Americans to see. Located in Topeka, KS, the WBC did not spring into major action until a few years ago, when they picketed a dead soldier’s funeral to promote their anti-homosexual theology. Stirring up controversy, the tiny church, with its bright signs and vigilant attendees, overstepped ethical and moral boundaries and protested outside the funeral service of fallen soldier Lance Cpl. Matthew A. Snyder, holding signs such as “You’re Going To Hell” and “God Hates the USA” as reported by The New York Times. Sheer willpower has kept them going, leading them to protest at schools such as Oak Hills High School and The Ohio State University. They even threatened to picket funerals of Steve Jobs and Ryan Dunn. An elaborate picket list on their website details which places they will go to next. So on Oct. 25, Westboro picked Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, the quintessential college for those Ohioans who wish to escape the traffic going to University of Cincinnati and for those parents who worry about their young adult partying too much at Ohio University. Better yet, here’s what they had to say about their picket on their website: “Miami University, the home of the First Amendment–hating–cowards who have no courage of [sic] their convictions regarding academic freedom and worse and more, you hate God and you turned that University, lock, stock and stiletto over to the fags!” The message doesn’t end there. Readers on their website are called “craven friends,” then “foolish friends,” afterwards addressed as “rebel friends” before being called “filthy friends.” “Fags” are the reasons, they say, that soldiers come home dead, that our nation’s jobs “literally fly, fly away,” and that Maria Lauterbach and her eight-month-old fetus were cruelly murdered by a Marine. They plead with the populace, they yearn for Jesus to save our nation and they want the nation’s children to stop believing that God loves everybody. Westboro seeks a quick solution to our nation’s current political, moral and socioeconomic woes: Judgment Day. In a way, Westboro has a point. Our nation is on the verge of a downward spiral in terms of our economy and the quality of our

education. The unemployment rate as of August 2011 is 9.1 percent according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Three years after the 2008 housing bubble burst, the United States is still clinging to Uncle Sam’s coattails for any possible assistance. But in numerous other ways, Westboro is radical, extreme and bigoted. Only one-sixth of the seven billion people in the world call themselves Christian. Athough they are a sizeable influence, Christian beliefs are not absolute for the rest of the world. Buddhists, Hindus and Jews can lead a peaceful life with good morals just like Westboro Baptists. Of all the different demographic groups throughout history, religious groups tend to be the most intolerant. The Puritans exiled anyone who didn’t believe in God’s supreme will. The Crusades’ outright purpose was to reclaim Jerusalem–the Holy Land–but they also inadvertently served as a reminder to the 12th century world that Christianity was supreme. The Church burned many people at the stake for supposed heresy. Poor Galileo could not advance the world’s scientific knowledge because the Church forced him to recant. Westboro lives up to its predecessors. Westboro’s prejudice is seeping through small cracks of America’s patriotism, stirring up controversy for the sake of stirring up controversy, Soldiers are willing to die for our freedom, yet their funerals yield more emotional distress as Westboro proudly states that they are going to Hell. In fact, soldiers died to preserve our First Amendment rights, yet Westboro abuses the privileges that come with these rights. Conformity was a failure in the 1950’s, and it is still a failure, today. We, as a nation, despite being the forerunner of a free democracy, are witnessing the oozing influence of xenophobic, hateful people. Tolerance exists for a reason. Our nation has been faithfully dubbed “the melting pot” and it’s true. People of all cultures and backgrounds, by their own will, can get along and respect each other. In due time, the minorities will see themselves come to be the majority. Just like people do not just drink Pepsi or Coke, not all people are just Christian or Muslim. We can still be ethically and morally okay to live in society even without holding a brightly colored sign and screaming at a soldier’s funeral. But apparently some people don’t get that. Instead, they’re spending their spare time changing the recipe to the melting pot. n

“WE AS A NATION, DESPITE BEING THE FORERUNNER OF A FREE DEMOCRACY, ARE WITNESSING THE OOZING INFLUENCE OF XENOPHOBIC, HATEFUL PEOPLE.”

72 | Spark | November 17, 2011

Spark

High Schoo Lakota East Online Edition

Want more Westboro Baptist Church? Go online to see an .com lakotaeastspark.com editorial cartoon and read stories at lakotaeastspark

Arvind Madhavan ART EDITOR

SCOTT PIRATE V. THE WORLD

contact arvind at amadhavan@cinci.rr.com

new trend in video game marketing has surfaced: marketing to or due dates apply. “as broad an audience as possible.” With its large user base, the No matter what sort of convoluted rationalization can be conceived best choice would be to make a game for Microsoft’s Windows to justify pirating, it’s still illegal. On any DVD sold in the United platform. Making games for PC is a dead business, however, thanks to States, that blue screen with the FBI warning on it confirms the fact rampant digital piracy. Games with even the most advanced protection that distributing that material online is a crime. The industries that are are “cracked”—an exploit is found and utilized to get past any copy most affected by this criminal action, however, may not even understand protection—within a few days, or even a couple hours after release. what the problem is. According to the Recording Industry Association Video games aren’t the only medium affected by piracy—no movie, TV of America (RIAA), digital music piracy has cost the industry billions of show, music track or even piece of software is immune to the scourge dollars and countless positions. But according to the RIAA, digital piracy of the digital sea. All it takes is one person with a copy of the item. It’s can simply be “you have a computer with a CD burner, which you use so simple and accessible; it’s no wonder 41 percent of East students can to burn copies of music you have downloaded onto writable CDs for all attest to downloading music illegally. But just what is it about piracy that of your friends.” draws so many to it like moths to a flame? After all, it is illegal and is So, according to the RIAA, even something as basic as burning a copy punishable by law. of the music you bought for a friend (or friends) is illegal and punishable Perhaps it relates back to the old saying “why pay for what you can get by law, for the act of music piracy is labeled as “theft.” However, theft for free?” For instance, almost 1,000 people didn’t pay for the Radiohead implies that an item has illegally transferred ownership. If it’s a synonym album In Rainbows when given a choice to pay any amount they desired. they’re looking for, “sharing” would be more appropriate. When a track Similarly, out of all the people who downloaded the “pay what you is distributed on the internet, it doesn’t change ownership. A copy of it want” Humble Indie Bundle, 25 percent pirated the set of games. It’s is distributed to all who choose to download it. The RIAA may have to common sense, really. Wasting money on a sequence of 0s and 1s seems pay for the effects of piracy, but they must have some spare cash to buy downright ridiculous, but that’s how the a dictionary. computer software market works. The RIAA is only one member of the American Perhaps it’s because of a lack of an media kleptocracy; the Movie Pictures Association “WASTING MONEY ON alternative. High quality music is hard to of America (MPAA) is also involved in anticome by nowadays. The top three digital A SEQUENCE OF 0S AND piracy campaigns. In fact, the MPAA describes music distributors, iTunes, Rhapsody, and that “approximately 90 percent of newly released 1S SEEMS DOWNRIGHT Amazon MP3, only offer MP3 format movies that are pirated can be traced to thieves who downloads—most of which are riddled RIDICULOUS, BUT THAT’S HOW use a digital recording device in a movie theater with Digital Rights Management, which to literally steal the image and/or sound off the restricts use of the tracks outside of the THE COMPUTER SOFTWARE screen.” application or portable music player. The MARKET WORKS.” Literally steal the image off the screen. If they MP3 format consumes less memory than were really stealing images and sounds, no one else alternative formats, but after 100 plays, the would be able to see or hear the movie. “Camcorder audio quality suffers, much like an worn-out record. For the average user, theft is one of the biggest problems facing the film industry,” the MPAA these MP3 format tracks satisfy the quality needs, but for audiophiles, it’s website claims. So the biggest problem is neither the rising prices of like looking at a sharp picture through a blurry lens. Because of the lack production nor the technical limitations, but the blurry camera footage of high quality music vendors, many are left with no other option than to of a movie being put on the internet. The suits at the MPAA may know resort to less savory methods of acquiring their precious tunes. every intricacy of filmmaking, but the quality of camera footage of a Perhaps it’s an item that isn’t available yet or has fallen out of recording of a projection of a recording in a dark room is somehow still production. Plenty of movies are released to the internet sometimes as a mystery to them. much as a week before reaching DVD—in high-definition, no less. Many The media industry may need to check some facts, but they’re right. movies that haven’t been released since the 80s are also easy to find and Any form of piracy is copyright infringement and is still punishable by download. Not to mention all the movies and comic books that have law. Piracy may be great for a multitude of purposes, but at the end of fallen out of production, like the original Asterix comics or the Disney the day, it’s the law that matters. movies that have moved into the vault. The internet serves as not only And right now, intellectual properties take precedence over enda graveyard but also a delivery room. Old classics can be rediscovered user satisfaction. But that system has been working since the dawn of at any time in perfect mint condition—no scratched library movies or business, so who am I to question its effectiveness? At the end of the filthy books. The internet gives any user the power to browse the biggest day, it all comes down to the fact that piracy, no matter how beneficial it library ever and check out any item for as long as they wish—no late fees can be, is still a crime. And that’s the way it’ll stay for now. n

lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 73

opinion | head-to-head

The Occupy irfan ibrahim

“ “

art lisa cai

Upper class citizens should hear what these hardworking individuals have to say. 74 | Spark | November 17, 2011

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ven the New York Police Department can agree that America’s top one percent is making more money and the middle class has lost its place in the economy. It’s time for a call to action. In hopes of change, employed and unemployed New Yorkers banded together to stop corruption—the essence of the movement. And their influence is increasing. Protesters demand that the U.S. government take a larger role in reducing as much political corruption that exists among corporate lobbyists, endeavors and think-tanks. Already, many people believe that the protesters have an agenda of supporting Marxism and playing “the victim.” One of the dissenters, Republican presidential hopeful Herman Cain, took a stand against Wall Street protesters. “To protest Wall Street and the bankers is basically saying you’re anti-capitalism,” Cain said as reported by the Los Angeles Times. On the contrary, Mr. Cain, government regulations have not done the middle class any justice, as the form of capitalism spoken of here is reminiscent of James D. Rockefeller’s oil monopoly. This kind of capitalism can eventually lead to a chateaus economy. A division between the peasantry and American nobility. Howard Buffet, the son of Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffet, says that many people have been “screwed by big corporations” over the years, so he supports the protesters. As a farmer, philanthropist and director for Berkshire Hathaway, Howard can examine both sides of the argument from his experience. A CNN Money poll that shows the sharp decrease in the average middle class salary proves Buffet’s point. The average white collar worker made about $51,000 in 2000, but that value decreased to about $47,000 a decade later. The top one percent in the country, however, have seen a 362 percent increase in earnings. The middle class got shafted. Government regulations that are biased towards the largest corporations and upper class tycoons and destructive to laborers and small mom-and-pop businesses are exactly why protesters rallied together. If the system does not work, then the people must unite to see a change. In fact, that is one of the core principles on which this country was raised. By no means does the 99 percent not want to be in the top tier. Everyone can’t be rich. The harsh reality facing the top tier is the fact that the protestors can’t all create jobs through their ingenuity. So, they’re doing the next best thing. Through solidarity and civil disobedience, the protestors push for an unbiased government

that functions to promote the public welfare while they work to fulfill basic needs of their families. When people cannot even get by with the most basic of needs, action must be taken. The 99 percent’s needs and demands are not solely based on a lack of empathy, but rather the same rights the top tier has. Instead of just ignoring the protesters and hoarding their money, upper class citizens should hear what these hardworking individuals have to say. Again, they do not necessarily need to have higher taxes. By not addressing the problem at hand and recognizing the truth in the protest, the upper class is only setting up a possible revolution. If the only reason that the upper class feels as though they should not help contribute to the cause is because they feel like they have worked hard to come so far, then the values of our nation should be revised. Everyone should be involved in a solution to this unbalanced system. It isn’t just the poor sect of society that has cried out against how unbalanced the idea of equal opportunity is in this country. Despite the fact that a majority of the protesters are in the lower class, many are also privileged and high-income individuals, such as filmmaker and director Michael Moore. “I do very well,” says Moore. “Because I do well, I want taxes raised on people who do well, including mine.” So, Cain, the protesters are not destroying capitalism. They’re just making it functional. Equal opportunity for everyone is the standard the United States has set for the world, and if it can’t meet that standard, everything the country has stood for economically is meaningless. The middle class feels threatened, and because it makes up the majority of both the U.S. population and the consumer base for large corporations, it must be heard in order for the economy to get past the crisis it faces. Not only are government regulations detrimental to the middle class salary-wise, they are also interfering with the laborers wages and school fees. Quite simply, the money doesn’t do the educators, firefighters and police officers any good in the pockets of the upper class. Rather than just start a riot and set fire to the streets, the people of the Occupy Wall Street protests are united against injustice in an organized and civil fashion. Unification is what this nation has always done in order to reach consensus. The voices of the protest will not be silenced by the shrugs of the upper class and the U.S. government. Because they never have before. Not without the solution for which the protesters fight. n

Movement W

hen pondering the successes of America as a whole, one word comes to mind:freedom. But for individuals looking to start anew, another phrase has been the backbone of success since the dawn of America. It has given them a chance to find their rags-to-riches moment. A chance to achieve greatness, a chance to illuminate their diligence, patience and hard work: the American Dream. Older generations saw it as an attainable challenge. Newer generations see the American Dream as an overwhelming burden, a weight too heavy to lift. It has sat on the overshadowed shelf in the corner of the American family room, only to be dusted off every so often by people like Oprah Winfrey and the late Steve Jobs. Now, an increasing number of people want the American Dream to be split like a pie into equal portions and rationed to those too lazy to achieve their own success. Instead of fighting to accomplish success, the newer generation expects someone to carry them there. Talent and time are no longer used to reach a person’s full potential. Starting with a dozen people in August and growing to a thousand in the past six weeks on Wall Street alone, more people are choosing to spend their time protesting and voicing their right to someone else’s money through “Occupy Wall Street.” The people of “Occupy Wall Street” say it is time to take a stand against the “greed and corruption of the top one percent” of income earners in America. With no holding in the hearts of the people, the American Dream is now just another vocabulary word to underline and memorize for the next unit test in U.S. History class. Instead of actually remembering the American ragsto-riches stories, students will simply add the phrase to their list of things to forget after taking the test. Protestors have forgotten the American Dream. They breed a new generation of discombobulated people that think to achieve the American Dream is to sleep on the streets of Wall Street with dirt-smeared vagabonds. And all the while the Founding Fathers roll over in their graves because the country they built in opposition to towering taxes and tyranny begs to see the wealth divided evenly. The underlying measurement of substantial tax increases from the government blatantly ignores the Founding Fathers’ original thought to decrease American taxation. The protestors have thrown the Constitution aside along with the American Dream and have utilized socialism and unfair taxing as their

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substitutes. According to the 14th Amendment, equal opportunity is guaranteed to every American. Not an equal distribution of wealth. Although protestors see the top one percent as greed-ridden money hogs, they do not realize the substantial amount of charitable measures that many of these people take. Coming from a poor childhood, Oprah Winfrey has become one of America’s richest women and now donates millions of dollars each year to a variety of world-wide organizations. She even started several organizations such as The Angel Network and The Oprah Winfrey Foundation. Protestors also do not realize the contribution of the top one percent of income earners. Steve Jobs, the epitome of the American Dream, launched his ingenuity in a garage and created a 35 billion dollar firm with millions of jobs. He put money in the pockets of stockholders, while sticking innovation in the hands of the world. The Apple products have made the technological world go ‘round, while stockholders and employees hold their heads high. Making the best of a bad situation, Jobs and Winfrey have shed a glimmer of light on the American Dream once again. They have proven the American Dream to be fact, not fiction. Many Occupy Wall Street protestors face rough situations just like Jobs and Winfrey did in their lives. Instead of looking to these two for inspiration, however, the protestors look to them for the hard earned money that puts them in the top one percent of income earners. The protestors would rather see the government give a slice of the American Dream to everybody than chase after success by themselves. With the ideals of the protestors, economic growth washes away with the Constitution and American Dream, while recession steps to the plate. According to history, each time Americans have a tax break the economy grows substantially and the unemployment rate decreases. When Reaganomics began, the unemployment rate dropped from 11 percent to 6.5 percent. Because of the 25 percent tax break given to all Americans, the government decreased its social spending and deregulated private sectors, leading to a stronger economy. Adversely, each time taxes are raised, less money lines Americans’ pockets, causing the economy to suffer. Occupy Wall Street wants to change the way in which the American Dream is achieved. The real solution, however, lies in the ideals that were established over 200 years ago. Not in the taxation of the top one percent. n

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Protestors breed a new generation of discombobulated persons.

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lakotaeastspark.com | Spark | 75

opinion | east speaks out

Rahul Mukherjee

STAFF WRITER

HOLLYWOOD REDUX contact rahul at rahuldev96@yahoo.com

he Star Wars movie was going fine until in the pinnacle scene Darth Art that is presented to the public should belong to the public. We Vader finally shows a glimmer of kindness as he saves his son, bought the books, music, and movies that impacted our childhoods. Luke, from Emperor Palpatine. Sending the Emperor flying over a Preserving art in its original form will show future generations how it ledge, Vader lets out a pitiless scream. One of the most iconic moments affected people before and how art can affect them now. in Star Wars, and maybe even in film history, this would have been perfect, Most companies’ purpose for remaking movies is to reach a new, but there is one problem: Darth Vader wasn’t supposed to say anything. younger audience and to give back to the fans. Our generation, however, In addition to other distortions, The Star Wars Blu-ray bundle that was is smart enough to tell that this “better” version is a sham. However, not released on Sept. 16 included changes from the original movie such all producers are as ignorant. For example, when executive producer as a computer-generated (CG) Yoda that replaced the original puppet Steven Spielberg re-released Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, he version. Characters like Obi-Wan Kenobi also had their voices changed proudly stated, “We haven’t removed anything…we haven’t added CGI,” in certain parts, such as when Obi-Wan scares off the Sand People. Due which led to a roar of applause. to the modifications, the Star Wars community is outraged, and some The young audience, however, is now haunted by the new, bloated fans are boycotting the new versions. version of Footloose. The original 1984 film had talented actors such But that’s not all. The edited version of The Adventures of Huckleberry as Kevin Bacon and John Lithgow. Bacon starred as Ren McCormack, Finn released last year has words like the n-word and “injun” replaced a troubled youth who drank and smoked, trying to fit into a small town, over 200 times for political correctness. In the words of Mark Twain, while Lithgow played the role of the likeable but unreasonable Reverend “The difference between the almost right word and the right word is Shaw Moore. The preacher tried to save his community, but in the end, really a large matter—it’s the difference between the lightning bug and he realized that his deeds had bad consequences. The movie industry the lightning.” applauded these artists who had proved they have raw talent. But the Many of the world’s beloved movies and books are being edited and new, inadequate version has a sensitive, emotional lead that replaced re-released with unnecessary added effects or deleted scenes for their Kevin Bacon. “supposed improvement.” Star Wars and The Adventures of Huckleberry John Lithgow’s character is now a villainous priest, whose only Finn are two wonderful pieces of art. They should be passed down purpose is to bring hell to the town by banning everything that risked through generations so that they continue to dangerous behavior such as explicit dancing spread their magic like they were meant to. and expressive songs. Not only were some of If Leonardo da Vinci changed or added to “THE DESTRUCTION OF the main characters defaced, but scenes from the “Mona Lisa” every year or if the Beatles OUR FILM HERITAGE, the classic were diminished in the new film. kept editing The White Album and re-releasing it, For example, the new film includes an opening WHICH IS THE FOCUS OF these works simply wouldn’t be the remarkable scene in which intoxicated teenagers die in a car classics they are today. Masterpieces like these CONCERN TODAY, IS ONLY crash. The town uses this as motivation to ban have stood for generations and have influenced THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG.” music in the town. This has altered from the the way society thinks about art. For example, original film that uses religion as the key factor. the Sex Pistols’ first and only album, Never Mind This movie is an example of how producers the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols, has positively impacted our culture by devastated children of the 80’s by remaking this movie, and how this can creating the Grunge movement during the early 1990’s. Kurt Cobain, foreshadow what movies in our generations will look like when it is too considered the spokesman of the movement, was greatly impacted by the late to change anything. album during his teens. The album also helped in establishing a punk style Before E.T. adds laser guns, or Red Dawn uses spaceships to attack from Johnny Rotten’s green hair to Sid Vicious’ drug influenced lifestyle. the U.S., remember a few words from our good friend George Lucas: Their choppy songs filled with anger helped start a movement with the “The destruction of our film heritage, which is the focus of concern working class, which led to left wing politics in capitalist countries, with today, is only the tip of the iceberg.” If we let this happen to the film songs such as “Anarchy In The U.K.” and lyrics such as “God save the industry, other industries will be tarnished. Queen, the fascist regime”. Those anthems united the working class and If movies such as Avatar and those of the Harry Potter series are a young, angered population to embrace taboo ideals such as socialism, remade by actors who can barely connect to the characters, justice isn’t and to challenge traditional values of conservative countries. The album delivered to the original film. Our childhood is at stake here if we don’t was also the inspiration for creating Heath Ledger’s character, the Joker, urge these corporations to stop remaking films. Generations that come in the 2008 film, The Dark Knight by creating a mischievous character after ours will see movies from our time that have been mutilated. Those modeled after the front man of the Sex Pistols, Johnny Rotten. films will have no purpose except to reach a “new audience” and to scam Opponents of unedited art claim that artwork belongs to the artist, the public by taking their hard earned money. What we really need to do and he or she can do what he or she wants with it. is to preserve our rich culture and conserve it for the future. Wrong. We need to make sure that the empire doesn’t strike back. n

76 | Spark | November 17, 2011

editorial cartoon emily chao

Big Brother told me this would be a money spinner. Just go with it

Justin Smith, junior

I think that it degrades the quality of the movie. When the [new] director comes and tries to make it their own, it’s kind of like cheating. You’re making your success through the work of others.

Cheyenne Brown, sophomore

Chip Jenkins, senior

It helps the economy a lot instead of people going to buy DVD’s, the mass produced DVD’s. It would also give people something to do on the weekend.

If movies are good the first time, they should not be remade. But if they are horrible, they still should not be remade. If they are bad the first time, they are going to be bad the second time.

Josh Futch, junior Wing Chow, sophomore It’s stupid. Why would we remake a movie that’s already good?

No, because it perverts the original meaning that the original movie meant to convey.

East Speaks Out Should movie industries remake movies?

opinion | finishing touch

rachelPODNAR

RED BULL AND POP-TARTS

sit in the back of my third period Advanced Placement United States History class. The very back corner. Most days, I feel more like an observer than a student, and I see things. Things I wish I didn’t see. I see sleepy-eyed sophomores coming in with pages upon pages of notes for the short chapters in our US book, comparing stories of how they cannot decide what is important to take notes on, so they spent hours the night before, writing down everything. I wonder if I should warn them that when they come in to AP US with five pages of scrunched, single-space chapter notes for a ten page chapter, they might asphyxiate next year when in Advanced Placement Government they have to fit a 45 page chapter onto a single notecard. Last week, Mr. Adkins asked the class who among us is sleep deprived. Of course, the entire class raised their hands. No surprise, we all wish we could sleep past six a.m. Then he said something to the effect that we should all be going to sleep before midnight at the latest, getting at least six hours a night. Sounds reasonable enough to me, but I saw heads shake and eyes roll across the room. Then he counted down the hours, asking us to raise our hand for how many hours of sleep we get per night. Few had their hands up for eight or more, most for six or seven. What caught me off guard were the hands that hadn’t been raised all the way through four and five hours of sleep. Then, Mr. Adkins asked who gets less than three hours a night, multiple nights a week and to my shock and horror, a few hands went up. Sophomore hands. A week later, I’m still thinking about those hands. In fact, I’m losing sleep over them. If sophomores are already sleeping less than three hours a few nights a week, they’ll fuel themselves on Red Bull and Poptarts straight into an early grave by the end of high school. Something’s gotta give and hopefully they realize it before they have gray hair at graduation. But this problem is not contained to just sophomores—it runs rampant throughout upper-level classes. These overachievers stay up to all hours not because they are wasting time playing videogames and Skyping, but because they are doing schoolwork. Pushing for lofty goals and being an overachiever is great. There is no reason, however, why we cannot achieve those goals with the eight hours between three to 11 p.m. by using time-management and knowing when to stop. Sometimes we over-estimate our abilities and cannot decide when to tap out. Like last year, it made sense to me to originally sign up for seven classes—six of which were Honors or Advanced Placement. I realized soon after registration that the seventh period, Advanced Placement Psychology, would be better traded in for early leave. Then, as senior year started, I found myself struggling between Advanced Placement Calculus and Advanced Placement Spanish. Instead of subtracting an hour from my sleep schedule to manage Español, I subtracted Español from my schedule and I have never once looked back. It was the first time I ever dropped a class and a learning lesson in knowing my limits (I stayed in Calculus so I could understand limits, and now I do). I would never argue against setting goals and striving to achieve them, I can only argue that we must maintain ourselves and our sanity in the process. n

78 | Spark | November 17, 2011