Lakota East Spark 2019-2020 Issue #1

Spark

story | section

Lakota East High School lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019 $5 Newsstand

PLUGGED IN With the addition of one-to-one technology at the secondary level and the programs designed to increase students’ access in school, Lakota is actively trying to modernize the classroom.

FIND THE FACTS

On October 21, the Lakota East Spark hosted its biannual Lakota School Board Candidate Night.

CLOSING THE DOOR ON THREATS Lakota implemented new safety procedures and devices for the 2019-2020 school year.

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 1

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SU SI THE IISSUE INSIDE #189

12 NEWS

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FEATURE

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PACKAGE

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CULTURE

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SPORTS

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OPINION 2 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

Closing the Door on Threats Lakota implements new emergency training procedures, practices, and devices into the district safety plan.

Strength News Editor Rachel Anderson recounts her mission trip to Guatemala.

ConnectEDThe district takes steps to further personalize learning for its students.

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First Time Thrifters Culture Editor Ekra Khalid explores the art of thrifting.

For Steve During head coach Steve Castner’s absence, East girls softball earned a spot in the state tournament.

Here’s the Tea Staffer Leah McCain explains her belief that environmental care has become a trend rather than an actual concern.

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October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 3

Spark

2019-2020 STAFF

Editors-in-Chief: Rebecca Breland Alexandra Fernholz Anna Mullins Business Manager: Karaline Abney Asst. Business Manager Rebecca Breland News Editors: Shelby Alderman Rachel Anderson Feature Editors: Alanna Schlaeger Abbie Westendorf Package Editors: Eliza Bush Shiloh Wolfork Culture Editors: Ekra Khalid Isis Summerlin Sports Editors: Hannah Myers Mason Wise Opinion Editor: Regan Denham Photography Editors: Andrew Marshall Cassandra Mueller Anna Mullins Art Editors: Alexandra Fernholz Cassandra Mueller Graphics Coordinator: Alexandra Fernholz PR Director: Karaline Abney Webmaster: Alexandra Fernholz

chief column | opinion

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Dear Spark, Social media is a great thing and its advancements over the last 10 years is astounding. Professionals, retirees, businesses and children (especially young adults) all take advantage of social media and its benefits. However, are we using it too much? According to a May 2018 Pew Research Center study, “YouTube, Instagram and Snapchat are the most popular online platforms among teens. Fully 95 percent of teens have access to a smartphone, and 45 percent say they are online ‘almost constantly’”. The reality is that many teens and young adults (I said many, not all!) reared in the age of social media have difficulty communicating socially, in groups or face-to-face.

As a local government manager, I interact with people on a day-today basis. Relationship building is a crucial requirement of my job and life in general. At some point in their careers, managers in all industries across the country need to communicate with people face-to-face.

For those many aspiring managers and leaders struggling with face-to-face interaction, be it socially, at work or school, the following interpersonal communication tool is a great way to engage a new friend or colleague. Simply remember the acronym F.O.R.D: Family – Where are they from? Where is their family now? Do they have any siblings or pets?

Occupation – What do they want to do for a living? Do you know anyone working in that field? What motivated you to want to do that for a living? As an alternative, ask about their parents’ occupations.

Recreation – What do they do for fun? Hobbies? Passions? Something they always wanted to try or do?

Dreams – What is on their bucket list? What are their dreams? Goals?

Aspirations?

Focus on their answers, ask more questions and most importantly . . . listen.

—West Chester Township Administrator Larry Burks

The Spark encourages letters to the editor. Letters can be sent to the publication at lakotaeastspark2019@gmail.com or delivered to room 118 at the Lakota East High School Main Campus. Letters must be signed, and the staff reserves the right to edit the letters for length, grammar, invasion of privacy, obscenity or potential libel. The opinion editor will contact writers for confirmation.

ON THE COVER designed by alexandra fernholz

Spark Lakota East High School lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019 $5 Newsstand

Broadcast Editors: Brayden Barger Nicco Morello Copyeditors: Rebecca Breland Alexandra Fernholz Anna Mullins Advisor: Dean Hume

PLUGGED IN With the addition of one-to-one technology at the secondary level and the programs designed to increase students’ access in school, Lakota is actively trying to modernize the classroom.

FIND THE FACTS

On October 21, the Lakota East Spark hosted its biannual Lakota School Board Candidate Night.

CLOSING THE DOOR ON THREATS Lakota implemented new safety procedures and devices for the 2019-2020 school year.

4 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

This issue, Spark is covering the effects of technology in the modern world. With the recent addition of oneto-one technology at the secondary level and the many programs designed to increase the presence of technology in schools, Lakota is actively trying to integrate technology into the classroom.

NEVER FORGET ANNA MULLINS

photography andrew marshall

W

hen someone mentions 9/11, most people remember exactly where they were, what time it was, and what they were doing when they found out about the tragic events that took place in New York. They can remember exactly what they were feeling and how they reacted.

But not me. I’m part of the first generation of students that was born after 9/11. I only know about it from what other people have told me, what I’ve read in textbooks, and the live news coverage I’ve seen.

While I may not have faced the initial emotional impact caused by that tragedy, my generation and I have lived through many tragedies.

The events of 9/11 were only the second time a foreign power had attacked Americans on American soil, the first time since Pearl Harbor.

But the tragedies we are facing today are home-grown: Americans attacking each other on their own soil.

This year alone there have been, on average, 1.2 shooting per day, according to the Gun Violence Archive (GVA). It seems, every other day we are faced with either another tragedy or the aftermath of one.

Most recently, there was not even a full 24 hour period between the El Paso and Dayton shootings.

These shootings constantly fill the news with body counts, yet reactions are on hold. In the wake of 9/11, Americans flooded New York with support. Fire fighters, care packages and supplies came from all corners of the United States.

N

ow after tragedies, a few messages of support are sent on social media, but there fails to be any real change. At first, Americans campaigned for gun control, policy changes, and support for survivors and families. After each subsequent tragedy, the movements and support have lost traction.

Politicians, those who have the power to make changes, refuse to do anything for fear that taking a stance on such a controversial topic could lose them votes. They wait until the initial outrage surrounding tragedies blows over so that they don’t have to deal with the problem. When gun control legislation is drafted, it gets shot down by the National Rifle Association (NRA) or its allies. Of the many mass shootings that occur each year very few spark a public call for action. Maybe that means that people are content, but I can’t believe that.

When 9/11 occurred, the Spark staff at the time wrote a staff editorial that called not only for action, but also for tolerance. It asked Americans to support each other and be a united force against those who would have us fall apart. Their words still hold true to our situation even 18 years later.

“We are all Americans. And together, we must declare to the world...That we will never let our way of life perish from this earth. That we are not only a nation comprised of united states but also of a united people— undeterred by terror, undaunted by terror, undaunted by fear, unwilling to surrender.” - Spark Staff 2001-02 •

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 5

briefs | news

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LAKOTA

MOSS NAMED TO ADMIN

photography alexandra fernholz

rine Aide Kathe structional In ast.

E s a ve ot gi ak ) inic at L m (right cl ei sh flu ro e G th e Ann s, cam to during d their spouse (left) a shot an er aff st rg a be ot en ak Guk other L , along with on Oct. 3. h special Gukenberger the morning in y rl ea ey [those wit ge th un h it lo r w k he or ac w tion I East’s te rger said. “I h the popula s,” Gukenbe em st sy ect e “Working wit un imm t only to prot such delicate se so I try no el ng hi yt an needs] have or spread germs in don’t want to eah McCa -L .” em th so al t bu f el mys

photography andrew marshall On Thursday, September 26th, Debbie Bagley from Drishtiq Yoga led a meditation room during XH at Lakota East Main Campus.

Hope Squad was in charge of the event, however, other students were encouraged to attend. Multiple students such as Courtney Henson, Rachel McGarvey, and Lauren Shulock found the mindfulness activities helpful for destressing within themselves. ¨I was really tired and exhausted before it,” McGarvey said. ¨This gave me a lot of new energy.¨ - Wudie Amsalu

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The annual Liberty Center 5k was held on Sunday, Oct. 6, raising in total, 11,000 dollars. Many teams, students, and families alike came to run the three mile race in pursuit of raising money to benefit the Lakota East Athletics. After extensive coordination of packets, shirts, vendors and more coordinator Pam Mcgarvey brought together an important community builder for East.

“The camaraderie it brings [is the best part], especially for the sports teams who usually have such intense competition,” Mcgarvey said.

“This is more just a way to get together with your team to have some fun.” -Megan Miranda

akota’s 2019-2020 curriculum staff has a new look. As of Aug. 1, Deana Moss became the new Assistant Director of Instruction for East’s freshman and main campuses.

Moss joined Lakota after working for Finneytown School District for 24 years, most recently as the district’s K12 Curriculum Coordinator. According to Moss, making the move to East presents her the opportunity to grow, and have some fresh scenery.

“I felt that in my [Curriculum Coordinator] role, I wasn’t able to keep growing,” Moss said.

“I’ve been there and kind of already been to all of the different buildings, different positions, [and] different teaching roles.”

As the new Assistant Director of Instruction, Moss’ role is to act as a conduit between East and Central Office. According to East Principal Suzanna Davis, Moss has made an impact even prior to her Aug. 1 start date.

“She’s jumped right in and become a great part of the team that we’ve got here,” Davis said. “[She’s] really helping us be the conduit to the curriculum department and really helping us

focus on the curricular needs of Lakota East.”

Unlike Moss’ previous role at Finneytown, where she worked with all of K-12, in Lakota she focuses solely on 9-12. Moss says that the specific focus helps her to fine tune her thinking.

“The great thing is that I get to focus,” Moss said. “I get to focus on nine [through] 12 students and what you’re interested in needs are, whereas K-12, I go from one meeting about a kindergarten assessment, and then the next week a meeting about graduation requirements.”

Moss has a counterpart at West in the same position, Justin Wilson. According to Wilson, he and Moss work together quite often, relaying information and updating each other on what’s happening on both sides of Lakota.

“One thing [the administration is] excited about is being able to share all the great things that are happening on both sides of the district and all [under] the great umbrella that Mr. Miller and the central office leadership has brought to us,” Wilson said.

Lakota Executive Director of Instruction

Keith Koehne highlighted the need for the new position within the curriculum staff. Koehne said that as the needs of high school students evolve, the curriculum needs to evolve, and with that comes the need of positions within the staff.

“The jobs that [students] are going into might not be the same kinds of career paths that [their] younger siblings in the district [might be going into]. We always have to be evolving,” Koehne said. “We might sit over in a place at central office and say, ‘we have these great ideas for how instruction might look in the high school environment, [but] what does that need to look like?’ It’s hard to translate that to the individual buildings. That’s why we created [Moss’] position.”

Although Moss has already made an immediate impact behind the scenes, on the surface Moss says nothing has changed just yet.

“My job right now is to listen and learn anybody and everybody,” Moss said. “Then see how I can support, ask questions, and maybe push a little bit if needed and support in other ways.” -Brayden Barger

A DREAM COME TRUE T This year the Hope or Run for student well Jr. PTSO hosted the second an nual Cols. The Color Run consisted of a one with a water and fiv mile course e color stations. Th e event was sponso businesses who prov red by local ided popcorn, food, drinks, and supplie hardware store. Th s e Color Run brou ght the PTSO a gra from the $18,486. nd total of “I love that the wh ole community gets Susanne Page said. involved,” PTSO me “It’s a great way to mber get people together, thing healthy and wh do someolesome with their time, and have a go be connected with od place to their staff.” - Anna Mullins

RECAPS

he telephone rings non-stop as crying parents call Site Manager and Youth Pastor at Cornerstone Church Tym House, thanking him along with many others for finally opening a teen center this school year for Lakota West Freshman. West’s Edge Teen Center can only transport freshmen to the facility, but they hope to expand to the Main Campus by next year. “[Cornerstone] was built 10 years ago...and their vision for the space was that it would be a space for teens to be every day of the week,” House said.

However, due to funding issues, they were unable to open both facilities for East and West “Being a non-profit [organization] and having to fund everything yourself...we just didn’t have the funds to [open a center for West],” Edge Teen Center Operations Director Annie Droege said. “So every year when we open in [August], we’re constantly emailed by West parents saying ‘when are you going to open up a center near us because we’re in the same situation [as East parents].’’”

All Droege could tell parents is that Edge would open a center if they were able to find a space or if someone donated money towards Edge. That’s when Cornerstone Church contacted Edge Teen Center Executive Director

Brenda Yablonsky about donating a room.

“Cornerstone offered to donate the space to us [which] made it possible,” Yablonsky said. “We would not have been able to [open a center for West] unless that gift came to us.”

According to House, the space in the church - now used by West freshman - was built in 2009 as a place for teens to use every day of the week. Cornerstone notified Yablonsky and her team of the expansion in hopes they would be able to use the room.

“It’s super exciting to see something that people dreamed 10 years ago actually coming to fruition,” House said.

House believes high school students are almost never offered after school care like many elementary and middle school students receive, which is why House advocated for the extension at Cornerstone to be used by Edge.

The center offers not only a space designed for high school students, but also a safe place when many after school programs don’t.

According to West freshman Tayla Walker, West’s facility is “really fun.” Walker, alongside other freshman spends their time at Edge doing homework, helping staff, playing games, and relaxing. They also do group activities and games, but no one is pressured to participate.

“We play foursquare, but...in the air, and

[instead of four squares] it’s nine square[s],” Walker said.

Yablonsky’s plans for the future is to implement more job readiness programs at Edge for the teens. At the moment Edge is planning to offer a program called Job Prep.

“There are a lot of programs [involving] workforce readiness for teens who are leaving high school,” Yablonksy said. “There’s no programs that I know of that help kids become ready to enter the workforce for the first time.”

That’s when Droege stopped in and created the Job Prep program. She taught things such as how to get a first job, how to keep that job, and the hard and soft skills needed to be successful in that job. The program was piloted last year and is to be used this year by Edge.

Cornerstone intends to bring West students from the main campus by the next school year.

“I would say...that we’ll start helping him [West Principal Elgin Card] see the impact that our first year has had,” House said.

Edge’s regular attendees have increased from 27 teens to 55 teens.

“There is a need, there are students who do want to come here,” House said. “We’re pretty optimistic that Lakota [West] will see that need.”

- Leah McCain

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 7

candidate night | news

“If you really want to know what your school is doing, the best way is to go into the schools, talk to the principals, talk to the teachers, interact with the students” — Ray Murray SPENDING DEFICIT

The Lakota East Spark hosted its biennial School Board Candidate Night, allowing parents. administrators, and students to

FIND THE FACTS story anna mullins | photography riley higgins

O

n a rainy night in late October, they gathered.

Community members, parents, students, and administrators all came together in the auditorium of the Lakota East Freshman Campus. There was no kicking, no screaming, and no fighting, it was just four people - willing to work for very little money to represent the district - discussing their views on the issues facing Lakota. The public came ready to learn about the four candidates for the upcoming school board election. The candidate night, hosted by the Lakota East Spark, was an opportunity for community members to inform themselves on issues facing the district and candidates’ stances on issues as elections approach. This fall, there are four candidates, two of whom are incumbents, vying for the two open four-year terms on the Lakota Local Schools School Board.

Each candidate was given one minute for opening statements, followed by questions posed by members of the Spark editorial board.

The questions asked all pertained to issues facing the 17,000 student district. Each candidate was then given two minutes to answer. Questions were given in a rotating order to ensure fairness.

“I would say that [the top issues facing

Lakota] are [that] we have some big decisions coming up in terms of facilities, making sure that we are still innovating and making Lakota a destination district, and to support the initiatives that our students are or have been involved with,” Lakota Superintendent Matt Miller told Spark.

SCHOOL REPORT CARD Lakota, which received a “B” overall per the 2019 State Report Card, received a “D” in the ‘Prepared for Success ‘category for the second year in a row, worse than the grade of “C” given in the 2016-2017 school year. In light of this, candidates were asked how they would work to ensure this grade is improved in future years.

Candidate Ray Murray, who has previously served two school board terms and missed reelection in 2017 by 226 votes out of 37,782, took the stance that the “prepared for success” portion of the report card is based on the amount of Advanced Placement (AP) and College CreditPlus (CCP) courses offered by a school. According to Murray, Lakota does not have enough trained teachers (which requires

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having a master’s degree in the area of study and 18 credit hours) to fulfill the demand for such classes, so students are sent to local colleges, such as Miami University. He suggested training more Lakota teachers so additional CCP classes could be taught at Lakota to raise the report card grade.

While Murray suggested that the report card was not the best way to measure how students are doing in the district, Incumbent Lynda O’Connor, who has served 3 terms on the school board, suggested that changes should be made to the report card to make it a more appropriate measurement tool.

She addressed the issue that students who do not take the ACT automatically score as a zero, negatively affecting the report card score. According to O’Connor, she has had conversations with Ohio Representative Mike Duffey, a Republican representative for District 21 who proposed a new grade card system that will allow parents to compare report card data from several different schools.

“As a stakeholder, we have to have an accountability measure, we have to be transparent with what we’re achieving, and we have to have measurable results. For the time

Candidates prepare for their next question. being the State Report Card is what we have,” O’Connor said. “I think we have improvements to do on the state report card. It’s not where it needs to be.”

Incumbent Board President Julie Shaffer, who has served two terms on the board, emphasized that the board is not focused on preparing kids to take a test but rather to expand and focus on the 4E’s of “enlistment,” “enrollment,” “employment,” and “entrepreneurship.” She suggested encouraging more kids to earn an honors diploma or enroll in classes like the Cyber Academy, which currently has 152 students (see story on page 16), in order to earn industry credentials as another tactic to improve the district’s grade.

Newcomer and local business owner James Hahn spoke of bringing the requirements and measurements of the report card to a local level. Hahn also endorsed the idea that Lakota embrace Butler Tech students who learn a trade to prepare themselves for the workforce.

“There are flaws in the system at the state level, and we need to bring the testing back to the local level,” Hahn said. “By doing so we will know where our weaknesses are, and be able to turn those weaknesses into strengths.”

The 2019 district financial forecast, prepared

by Treasurer Jenni Logan predicts that Lakota will hit a spending deficit by 2023. Candidates were asked what they would do to improve Lakota’s financial situation.

O’Connor mentioned that for the past six years Lakota has had no deficit, making it one of the 14 or 15 districts across the state of Ohio that managed to achieve no red in the five-year forecast. According to O’Connor, she voted “No” on the October 2019 five year forecast because it predicted deficit spending.

She suggested that the board look at the budget on a long term basis and at each piece as part of a whole. For instance, she said that more School Resource Officers (SROs) can’t be hired without understanding how it will impact the rest of the budget, since one labor contract will impact all of the other contracts.

While Shaffer echoed that the district must be fiscally responsible, she also pointed out that protocols have been put in place that set aside 15 percent of the district’s revenues towards a rainy day fund, more aggressive than the state policy that only requires the district to keep a fund of 8.5 percent.

“It’s important for all of us on the board to be very fiscally responsible and that’s why we actually were spending less in 2018 than we did back in 2010. We’re continually looking to plan,” said Shaffer. “But at some point, we need to make sure that we invest in our students and give them the opportunities that they need.”

Hahn said that while Lakota can’t spend money on “the flavor of the day,” he is not worried about the five-year forecast. In his opinion it needs to be continually monitored. “[Lakota is] a 190 million dollar company that includes over 1000 employees, 24 facilities and 17,000 students,” Hahn said. “When you talk about a deficit in a five-year forecast, that gives me a little reason to be uneasy.”

In Murray’s opinion the five-year forecast should not be taken too seriously because it is “notoriously conservative” and does not take into account any projected growth. According to Murray, the cash surplus currently on hand would allow the board to spend in a deficit for 38 years.

“What are we missing when we’ve got that kind of money in the bank?” Murray said.

“What kids are not getting the opportunities that they deserve?”

POPULATION GROWTH According to the U.S. Census Bureau, West Chester’s population grew 53.5 percent from 1990 to 2010, and Liberty Township is predicted to grow about 24 percent by 2020 from 2010. Prospective board members were asked how they would plan to accommodate the growing population, with much of the increase due in Liberty Township.

Demographic studies were performed in 2013 and 2019, each with a different outcome for expected growth for the year 2023. In light of this, Shaffer emphasized the importance of preparation for any changes that could happen in the student population and the need to ensure that each of Lakota’s facilities is used to its fullest potential. “[Facility studies] are our greatest asset,” Shaffer said. “We need to look at how we can best use our facilities, and we also want to make sure we plan for the additional students that are projected to come in in our latest demographic study.”

In the case of a decline in the number of students in the district, Hahn said it would be a great time to reduce ‘liabilities,’ by selling off some of the assets within the district. Hahn also emphasized the importance of stability for students and teachers.

“One of the most important things is we can not and will not [do is] allow class sizes to grow,” Hahn said. “I mean we have to maintain. We’re peaking right now in our class sizes and we cannot allow those class sizes to get any larger.”

Murray suggested that instead of looking directly at the number of students who could be entering the district, Lakota should consider their background. According to Murray, Lakota has one of the highest non-English speaking population per capita in the state.

“We have to look behind the numbers to see the kids, and how we’re going to educate those kids,” said Murray, who wanted to ensure students moving from gentrified Cinicinnati to

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 9

candidate night | news

news | candidate night the district are able to receive the same level of attention as current students.

O’Connor believed the demographic study predicted a plateauing growth rate, although she agreed with Murray that even with a flat demographic there is growing diversity across Lakota. These students, she felt, all have a different set of needs when they come into the classroom.

TRANSGENDER POLICY A proposal for a transgender policy was presented to the Board two years ago by then member Murray, but it was rejected 3-2 by the board (O’Connor, Todd Parnell, and Ben Dibble voted to reject; Shaffer and Murray voted to adopt). The policy, which was based off of the policy used by Bexley City Schools, would have extended the hazing and bullying protocol already in place to transgender and gender nonconforming students along with other protections such as record privacy, facility use, athletic participation, program particpation, pronoun adherance, etc. Candidates were asked how they would vote should the policy be brought up again.

Hahn, who was not on the board when the policy was proposed, felt that the policy was rushed and that it wasn’t fiscally responsible.

“If the policy was presented to the board, and I sit on that board, I would absolutely again vote ‘No’,” Hahn said. “Now, if there was a policy that came out that involved the parents, the administration and the teachers, that specific child, and how to handle that situation on a one on one basis. I’m absolutely for it, because there’s no place in our district for bullying.”

Murray admits that he originally made a mistake by not talking to the teachers who were already taking care of their students.

“In three years, I made two trips to Children’s Hospital, to talk to the kids in the transgender unit. They told me their fears; they told me their visions for the future,” Murray said. “Those kids are dear to my heart, and I will be there. Every kid should be safe in this district.”

O’Connor said that the legal counsel for the school board advised them not to put a policy in place. She also said that she opposed

the policy due to the renovations it would require. Instead the board included sexual and gender identity as a part of Lakota’s hazing and bullying policies.

Shaffer admitted that she originally did not know much about the issues facing transgender and LGBTQ students, but after learning more about the subject, voted yes on the 2017 policy.

She said that she worked to be more educated on this issue and learned that upwards of 70 percent of transgender students may have considered suicide at some point.

“It moves you and changes what you want to do to protect our students,” Shaffer said.

GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS Graduation requirements over the past years have been constantly changing for each class.

In the 2019-2020 school year, the current four high school classes are required to meet three different sets of standards by the Ohio Board of Education in order to graduate.

According to Murray, in the past year, Miller has worked at the state level to come up with a plan to accommodate students who don’t meet the state’s requirements and should be allowed to implement this process.

According to O’Connor, in the past the school board had a lot more control over graduation requirements. In her opinion, returning to that mindset would be beneficial.

“I think it should be up to the community and what they believe their students need to know,” O’Connor said. “With the 4E’s, [Lakota is] offering students many options that we feel are perfectly appropriate on all sides, whether it’s enrollment in college, enlisting in the military, entrepreneurship, or employment.”

Shaffer said that she is thankful Superintendent Miller and District Treasurer Logan are investing time with lawmakers in Columbus so that they can have a say in the politics surrounding graduation requirements, “because the target students are aiming for is always moving.” She believes that the state is using “old rubrics” while expecting curriculum and education to evolve and adapt to meet today’s students’ needs.

According to Hahn, the most important thing for the school board to do is advocate for legislation, so that they can have more control

over the restrictions and requirements being put on Lakota students. He believes that the board has to find a way to measure graduation pathways in an effective manner that works for teachers, staff, and students.

SCHOOL SAFETY School safety has become a hot topic in districts all across the country. The Lakota district has invested nearly $50,000 by installing Bearacades™ for each Lakota classroom in the 2019-2020 school year. In 2014 with funding granted by the 2013 levy, the district provided all 18 district SROs a day of in-depth training, constructed new “safe and secure” entrances on 12 Lakota buildings and installed cameras, radios and buzzers.

The steps that have since been taken include installing Raptor, a visitor management system that can quickly ascertain visitors’ background information. The Raptor system works by taking a photo ID and scanning a visitor for any prior records. If there are none, a sticker will be printed for the visitor to wear for the duration of their visit. However, Hahn believes this to be insufficient. ”There’s no school that’s too safe,” Hahn said.

“There’s no pat downs, there’s no additional investigation about [who visitors are] and what [they] have on [their] body. And that makes me nervous. We need to take more steps to ensure the safety of our children, and we have to look at every avenue possible.”

At a Meet the Candidates forum hosted by the Lakota District Parent Council (DPC), both Hahn and O’Connor stated that they would be in favor of arming teachers.

“I will support a concealed carry program.

The alternative, the tragic loss of life, the trauma to students and to staff is unacceptable,” O’Connor at the forum. O’Connor has also attended school safety summits to see what else the district can do.

The district has also installed new cameras into buildings. Shaffer said that the cameras will give administration remote access in the case of a disaster.

As a former police officer and drug enforcement agent from the Chicago area, Murray feels that the best way to keep students

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“There’s no school that’s too safe. There’s no additional investigation about [who visitors are] and what [they] have on [their] body. And that makes me nervous. We need to take more steps to ensure the safety of our children, and we have to look at every avenue possible.” —James Hahn 10 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

CANDIDATES ON...

infographic alexandra fernholz and anna mullins | photography andrew marshall

JAMES HAHN CANDIDATE

James Hahn has lived in West Chester for 15 years. He has served on the West Chester Zoning commission for 10 years and is CEO and president of professional engineering firm IEE. He has a bachelor’s degree in environmental geology from Ohio University.

“I bring a strong business background and a common sense approach,” Hahn said. “We must ensure our students are provided the best possible outcome, because they are the future leaders of our community, our state and our country.”

RAY MURRAY CANDIDATE

Ray Murray is the other non incumbent candidate. He has previously served eight years on the school board and two years on the Butler Tech school board. The past 12 years he has served as a board member of the Community Foundation of West Chester/ Liberty Township.

“I have three kids that all went to Lakota schools,” Murray said. “They all graduated here and had great, wonderful educational experiences.”

LYNDA O’CONNOR INCUMBENT Lynda O’Connor has nearly 12 years of experience on the Lakota school board, and has been a member of the Butler Tech board of education for the past eight years. She also has a masters in special education and a bachelors in speech and language pathology.

“My expertise and history in our district, my legislative knowledge, and the bridges that I built with the community are unmatched,” O’Connor said. “I care tremendously about our students, our staff, our families, our taxpayers, and our district.”

JULIE SHAFFER INCUMBENT Julie Shaffer has nearly eight years of experience on the Lakota school board. She has 21 years of experience in finance and employee benefits and sales. She has also been an active volunteer in Lakota schools for 15 years.

“We’ve accomplished great things over the time that I’ve been on the board and I’d like to continue that work and continue those efforts because there’s still much more work to do for the students of Lakota,” Shaffer said.

STANCES Report card: localize the report card’s requirements and measurements Financial forecast: the board should monitor Lakota’s finances Expansion: stop class sizes from growing Transgender policy: would vote no unless policy included parents, teachers, administrators, and kids Graduation requirements: find a way to measure graduation pathways in an effective manner School security: Raptor is insufficient; supports concealed-carry program

STANCES Report card: train additional teachers to teach advanced classes Financial forecast: skeptical of forecast; it does not account for projected growth Expansion: consider each incoming student’s background Transgender policy: proposed 2017 policy, believes “every kid should be safe” Graduation requirements: allow Miller to work with the state to apply his agenda School security: Lakota’s best bet are their SROs

STANCES

Report card: revise the report card to better reflect Lakota Financial forecast: avoid deficit spending, look at the budget as a long term plan Expansion: acknowledge each student’s individual needs Transgender policy: voted no in 2017 Graduation requirements: allow the school board more control over requirements School security: supports a concealedcarry program in Lakota schools

STANCES

Report card: encourage more students to enroll in advanced classes Financial forecast: invest in programs for the students while remaining fiscally responsible Expansion: ensure the most efficient use of all of Lakota’s pre-existing facilities Transgender policy: voted yes in 2017 Graduation requirements: revise state rubrics for success School security: approves extension of cameras in the buildings

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 11

security | news

news | security

SECURITY PART ONE

CLOSING THE DOOR ON THREATS

Lakota implemented new safety procedures and devices this 2019-2020 school year in order to provide a safer school enironment. • story karaline abney

A

s the 2019-2020 school year begins, the Lakota Local School District is implementing new emergency training procedures, practices, and devices into the district safety plan involving physical and theoretical elements.

Over the summer, Lakota administrators attended a county-wide emergency training simulation at Ross High School. In the hypothetical situation, the Ross School Board was held hostage while a soccer team simultaneously had an event on the soccer field.

The goal of the drill was to test communication skills between the two areas and to effectively and efficiently keep both the soccer players and parents accounted for. “[This event] really tested our communication skills, and some of the things we learned we took to a meeting with all of the schools in Butler County,” Lakota

Chief Operations Officer Chris Passarge told Spark. “For large, after-hour events, [the administrative team] discussed creating an Incident Emergency Plan where the Athletic Directors (AD) from both schools have a meeting before the event.”

In this meeting, the ADs from both schools would meet to notify the visiting team on where to go, rallying points for kids, and how to communicate information should an emergency situation arise, according to Passarge.

Typically the home AD would not communicate this information with the visiting school’s AD; rather, they would communicate the plan, which is not public knowledge, to the visiting head coach.

“Friday night, for example, at a football game, I’ll meet with the visiting head coach, and we will discuss things such as bomb threats,

active shooter situations, and how we would respond to such a thing,” Lakota East Athletic Director and Assistant Principal Richard Bryant told Spark. “Our administrative team takes ownership over the event and the evacuation.”

Turpin Varsity Football Head Coach Kent McCullough, whose team played East on August 30, said Bryant explained where to go to in case of evacuation: locker rooms or the buses. “[Bryant] explained that if anything occurred [during] the game I was responsible for controlling and taking care of my team,” Turpin Varsity football head coach Kent McCullough said. “Clear the field, head for shelter but I have control of my team and their safety.”

In addition to the safety plans regarding large, after-hour events, every Lakota classroom has received or will receive an emergency door

HOW BEARACADES® ARE DEPLOYED infographic kelly johantges

“We don’t want to live in fear, we want to be empowered.” - Bill Cushwa barricade.

The Bearacade®, invented by Bill Cushwa, Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of National School Control Systems, LLC., was inspired to make a safety product after a shooting in Chardon, Ohio in 2012. Later that year, the Sandy Hook shooting enforced Cushwa’s belief in developing his product. “[This product] is something proactive that [people] can actually do before the police arrive. The whole conversation is about buying time [in the event of an emergency],” Cushwa told Spark. “It’s time for [students], it’s time for your peers and your teachers—it’s time for the good guys to get there; we’re trying to delay the bad thing from becoming worse.”

Lakota Superintendent Matt Miller brought this product to Lakota from his previous school district, Mentor Public Schools.

“We want to do everything we can to keep our kids and our staff safe,” Miller told Spark.

“It’s a time-saving device.”

The Bearacades® are also used in military bases, large corporations, all Disney stores in North America, and it is found in eight other countries.

The product is made by injection molded polymer and can withstand 5000 pounds of force, all while weighing two pounds or less. It is sold at a market price of $59 for orders of 25 or less. Lakota purchased 1200 Bearacides® for a price of $39 per unit. Funding for this security measure came from Lakota General Fund, according to Lakota Public Relations Director Betsy Fuller.

I

f a student were to use the device inappropriately, it would not only break Lakota policy, it would also be a violation against the Ohio Revised Code, according to Bryant.

Last year Lakota added background

checking systems to offices in each building to verify visitors’ identities before they enter a school.

“The Raptor system performs an onsite background check by scanning the visitor’s driver’s license or state-issued ID on their first visit to the building,” Fuller said. “There are two other modules that the district uses as well, the volunteer module that runs a more detailed background check and the emergency management module.”

These systems are developed from Raptor technologies and cost $29,900 for all three models.

“We don’t want to live in fear, we want to be empowered. Our hope is that [students] feel empowered, [they] feel good, and feel like [they’re] going to school in a safe environment,” Cushwa said. “We want everybody to feel comfortable and safe so they can focus on just learning and enjoying life.”•

NEVER MISS A

STORY www.lakotaeastsparkonline.com 1. Slide the canal under the door and close the door 12 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

2. Line the opening up with the hole in the ground

3. Put the pin into the hole in the ground

instagram @lakotaspark twitter @lakotaspark facebook Lakota East Spark

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 13

valedictorian | news

news | valedictorian

STATELY RANKING Representative Niraj Antani has proposed a bill that would require all Ohio high schools to have a valedictorian and salutatorian. story shiloh wolfork photography cassandra mueller photo illustration and infographic alexandra fernholz

R

epublican Ohio Representative of the 42nd District Niraj Antani has recently introduced a bill that would require all Ohio schools to recognize a valedictorian and salutatorian following Mason High Schools’ decision to no longer honor these academic titles last spring.

Mason eliminated the valedictorian title, although the school will continue to recognize academic achievements based on the Latin Honor System starting with the class of 2020.

The Latin Honors System presents a more inclusive approach to academic honors by placing students in either magna cum laude, summa cum laude or cum laude based on their grade point averages.

Principal of Mason High School Bobby Dodd told Spark that the unhealthy competitive nature at Mason High School, the third largest public high school in Ohio, led to the removal of the valedictorian honor in an effort to improve student mental health.

“Many people that aren’t members of the community and that haven’t gone to [Mason High School] don’t understand the culture that we have. We’re firm believers in healthy competition,” Dodd said. “But we also believe that there’s unhealthy competition that exists in our society today. Among the number of things

percent of East students surveyed felt defined by their academic ranking

percent of East students surveyed were in favor of continuing to recognize the top 25

percent of East students surveyed were in favor of continuing to recognize the academic ranking system at East

East Senior Tanya Kukreja is the current valedictorian of the 2019-2020 class.

we’re doing to try to lessen that competitive culture, we decided to eliminate valedictorian/ salutatorian recognition.”

In addition, Mason announced its decision to implement a 5.0 GPA cap in order to prevent students from taking higher-level classes with the sole intention of boosting their GPA’s.

Lakota Executive Director of Curriculum and Instruction Keith Koehne understands Mason’s decision. According to Koehne, highranking students are often kept from exploring their personal interests in high school.

“I have heard from some valedictorians that they have felt very stressed out about the competition and I know that some top students may alter their course selections specifically to attain valedictorian/salutatorian status,” Koehne said. “I worry that this focus may keep them from taking some courses that may be of interest to the student.”

The proposal of this bill has contributed to the debate surrounding the importance of high school ranking systems and the recognition of the two students with the highest GPA’s.

When contacted about the bill Antani declined to comment.

According to Lakota Superintendent Matt Miller, politicians should not have jurisdiction over the decisions of local school districts.

14 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

“I have more of an issue with [the bill] in terms of local or state politicians telling school districts what we should be doing. I think it should be a local decision at the school district level,” Miller said. “That’s separate of the issue itself. There’s a lot of good things going on in schools right now that we don’t need someone legislatively to tell us.”

A

ccording to East Principal Suzanna Davis, the decision to alter or remove the valedictorian/salutatorian system is not hers to make.

“Quite honestly, I’m not sure that that’s a conversation that I’m really involved in as a building leader,” Davis said. “Those conversations about what [a change to the academic ranking system] could look like, is really a district level perspective. As the Principal of the building, I really take my lead from folks and being apart of a larger conversation that’s not isolated to any one piece of the puzzle.”

For current valedictorian of the incoming East senior class, Tanya Kukreja, the ranking system is a positive addition to East.

“Personally, I like the ranking system but that’s just because I do well in it. I can see the point of view where people say that no rank is better,” Kukreja said. “But in the Lakota East

environment where everyone is able to be really friendly with each other about rank, it’s a good system to have.”

Out of 292 East students surveyed, only 28 percent believe that academic titles positively impact the student body.

Lakota has not currently made any plans to remove the valedictorian and salutatorian titles at the high schools. However, according to Miller, district officials are discussing possibilities.

“We’re having conversations about whether what we have in place now is a better option or if we should do something different,” Miller said. “We haven’t come to a decision on that yet.”

According to The Columbus Dispatch, the bill is meant to promote academic competition by limiting Ohio districts to only one recipient of each honor. However, the bill would allow districts to set their own criteria for selecting valedictorians and salutatorians.

Kukreja explains what the title of valedictorian means to her.

“The title of valedictorian is just that- a title.

It is a nice title to have,” Kukreja said. “But if anything, it feels a bit superficial. I work hard, but at the same time, I know so many other people who work just as hard and I wish there was some way to commemorate their extremely hard work as well.”

In a survey of 301 East students, 35 percent felt defined by their academic ranking.

A

ccording to Consumer News and Business Channel (CNBC), the traits that lead to higher success in high school, such as self-discipline and conscientiousness, are not the same traits that lead students to become CEOs and world renowned scientists later in life.

“Students who graduate at the top of their class have typically worked very hard in school and challenged themselves with the most academically rigorous coursework available,” Koehne said. “Recognizing this hard work is important but I do worry about students placing too much emphasis on these titles.”

For member of the East class of 2021, Jasmine Washburn, the increased educational competition that this bill would encourage is unnecessary.

“People who want to better themselves, go to college and learn are going to do that whether or not there’s something to achieve,” Washburn said. “I don’t really think something else has to be added on because it doesn’t do anything but allow you to say that you were the valedictorian of your high school.”

Out of 298 East students, 60 percent believe

that all Ohio high schools shouldn’t be required to select a valedictorian and salutatorian.

A 2017 study conducted by Business Insider reported that the students who were not at the top of their class in high school, had a better chance of achieving long time success. Out of 700 millionaires, the average GPA was only 2.9.

According to a recent report by the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC), more than half of all high schools no longer record student rankings. Most public high schools still rank students. However, some now allow students to choose whether or not they report their rank to colleges.

“From the number of experts we’ve spoken to, the ranking for students has a very low if any impact at all on college admissions around the country. More colleges are looking at things other than students grades,” Dodd said.

“They’re looking at the whole student and there are other things that are going to help or hinder their acceptance in college than high school rank.”

For Kukreja, obtaining the title cannot compare to the knowledge that has been gained through her hard work.

“I didn’t work hard for the title,” Kukreja said. “I worked hard because I wanted to learn.

And I have learned so much.” •

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 15

cybersecurity | news

news | cybersecurity

East students (from left to right) Aiden Frank, Jacob Samberg, and Jacob Krabbe work on projects together in David McKain’s Cyber 1 class of the Cyber Academy.

T

he Lakota East Cyber Academy was added to the many electives offered at East this school year for grades 10-12.

The Cyber Academy is composed of three classes that build on one another: Cyber 1, Cyber 2, and Cyber 3. The Cyber Sprint track, a combination of Cyber 1 and Cyber 2 classes, was offered to the class of 2020 in an effort to allow more Lakota East students to graduate with cybersecurity training.

152 students are enrolled in the program: 109 are in Cyber 1, and 43 are taking Cyber Sprint.

East Principal Suzanna Davis wasn’t surprised at the number of students enrolled due to the amount of people in attendance at the introductory parent meeting last December.

“I was amazed by the number of families that showed up to the parent meeting,” Davis said. “I think parents, students, and families are looking for these opportunities. It’s thinking outside the box.”

While the first day of school was Aug. 16, the Cyber Academy was officially launched on Aug. 19 with a ribbon cutting ceremony. While ribbon cuttings are not common, the district

Students enrolled in the district’s new program will be able to earn

eight industry up to six industry

up to

certifications

16 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

saw the increasing interest of the program and decided to bring some attention to it.

State and local officials, including Ohio Lieutenant Governor Jon Husted, and students at East gathered together in the East Innovation Hub for the unveiling of the Cyber Academy.

“The neatest part about the ribbon cutting was to have the Lieutenant Governor look the kids in the eye and say ‘You are our future and we would love to have you leading the charge of cyber security in the country,’” Executive Director of Curriculum and Instruction Keith Koehne said. “That’s a great opportunity [for

The starting pay for a high school graduate with an industry certification can be as high as

$65,000

story rachel anderson | photography alexandra fernholz | infographic anna mullins our students].”

The level of commitment by Lakota East to make Cyber Academy successful was not lost on the students at East. “[The students] were impressed with the level of commitment by not only Lakota administrators but local, state, and government officials as well as representatives from business and industry,” said Cyber 1 and Cyber Sprint teacher David Mckain, who also teaches the computer science classes.

It is expected that by 2021 there will be 3.5 million unfulfilled jobs within the cybersecurity industry. Lakota is partnering with Belcan, a Cincinnati-based, international Information Technology (IT) corporation, to give East students the opportunity to fill those jobs.

According to Belcan Chief Information Officer (CIO) Terry Williams, Belcan created and customized the Lakota curriculum so it is applicable to today’s cyber threats.

Williams said that cyber attacks are becoming more sophisticated. What started as a hobby for some, has turned into a new way to commit crimes. “[Cybersecurity] has really evolved from just hacking to a criminal enterprise,” Williams said. “And it’s transformed from more than a criminal enterprise to a global way to create havoc and warfare.”

Students enrolled in the Cyber Academy have the chance to earn up to eight industry certifications, such as a being a trained Certified Secure Software Lifecycle Professional (CSSLP). The students can then choose to go to college with the certifications, go straight into the workforce, or work while pursuing a college degree.

According to Consumer News and Business Channel (CNBC), the average median

household income in the United States is $56,516. In 2017 the average salary for 20-24 year-olds was $27,000. However, the starting pay for a high school graduate with an industry certification can be as high as $65,000.

Williams believes that gaining real world experience as a high school student is “critical”.

He said that companies will most likely hire well-trained high school graduates rather than spend weeks or months training someone with no experience.

“If [students] get that real world experience now, it will allow them to be more employable and that’s the key,” Williams said.

The classes are set up to train students in the cybersecurity field with hands-on activities.

E

ast junior Aiden Frank, who enrolled in Cyber 1 because of his interest in computer science, believes there is no such thing as a typical day in the Cyber Academy. They seek different ways to apply computer and security knowledge to real-life situations.

“The only thing common about everyday in cybersecurity is that we’ll be using a computer.”

Frank said. “Everyday usually has us exploring something new and applying knowledge to manipulate a computer.”

The current Cyber Sprint students and next year’s Cyber 2 students will all be paired with a mentor in the industry. According to Director of Secondary Curriculum and Instruction Andrew Wheatley, the mentors will come to the school about once a month to help coach students and answer questions.

“One of the really cool things about the program is that we are using an adultprofessional, industry learning system that also has the real world credentials built into it,”

It is expected that by 2021 there will be

3.5 million

unfulfilled jobs within the cybersecurity industry

Wheatley said.

East junior Julie Bohorfoush is taking advantage of gaining real world experience while in high school. She enrolled in the Cyber Academy to see if this it was path she wanted to pursue in college. “[Gaining real-word experience] helps you know how to best handle different experiences in the future because you learn them [in high school],” Bohorfoush said.

Mckain is proud that East and the community are providing multiple paths for the students to find their place in the cybersecurity field.

The district plans to use the success of the academy to build other partnerships in the community. Koehne said that Lakota is using the Cyber Academy as a “model for how we might grow out programs.”

East Principal Suzanna Davis said that community partners are beneficial both to the school and the industry. Students are being trained by a professional knowledgeable in the field and companies now have a trained generation of high school students ready to enter the workforce.

“There’s definitely a desire to continue building out those types of amazing experiences for our students,” Davis said. “Having the industry partner be directly side-by-side with us just opens up a whole different world.”

Williams understands the benefits of training students in the cybersecurity field. He believes that- with the number of available, high-paying jobs increasing- the best way to fill those jobs is to start with high schoolers.

“We have a vested interest in creating cyber talent and we have a responsibility for protecting our customers’ intellectual property.” Williams said. “So it’s in our best interest [for us] and for customers to create a larger pool of talent.”•

109 students are in Cyber 1,

43

and students are taking Cyber Sprint

source Consumer News and Business Channel

CYBERSECURITY TAKES OFF

The Lakota Cyber Academy officially launched on Aug. 19 with a total of 152 students.

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 17

news | macfarlane

Lakota’s Preschool Program

A “PRINCIPLE” JOURNEY

•Established in 1990 •A.M. session runs from 9:10 to 11:55 •P.M. session runs from 1:15 to 4:00 •Sessions run from Monday to Thursday

Assistant Principal Matt MacFarlane joins the East High School staff in the 2019-2020 school year after previously working at West. • story rebecca breland | photography riley higgins

W

ith the beginning of a new school year comes new staff. Joining the East administrative staff for the 2019-2020 school year is Assistant Principal Matt MacFarlane.

MacFarlane grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and attended DePaul University where he obtained his masters in school administration. He worked for many years as a school administrator in Illinois before moving to Ohio five years ago. MacFarlane is married to Christa MacFarlane, a Liberty Early Childhood kindergarten teacher. He is a father of three boys: Patrick, Jack, and Max, all of whom are currently enrolled in Lakota.

After working as an intervention specialist at West in his first year with the district and as an adapted physical education instructor for the next four years, MacFarlane is excited to turn his attention to his new position at East.

“So far, it has been fantastic,” MacFarlane

said. “Teachers have been very welcoming.

I’ve had a bunch of students come up to me introduce themselves. It’s great to have [these] interactions with people.”

MacFarlane knows the he gained in his past jobs will help him in his new position.

“A big part of my job is dealing with the special ed population,” MacFarlane said.

“Being in adaptive physical education for four years and an intervention specialist the year before that, [has helped me when] talking to teachers and trying to figure out the best ways that [the school] can be [helping both students and teachers]. And having that relationship with a lot of the students in that population already has been very helpful.”

T

he application process is the same for all administrative positions across Lakota.

The process included two rounds of interviewing, first with two individuals from the human resource department and one from the curriculum department. The second interview included one individual from the curriculum department, one from the human resource department, two teachers, two students, and East Principal Suzanna Davis.

Lakota decided that MacFarlane would be a good match at East to become the new assistant principal after East’s previous assistant principal, Rick Haynes, stepped down.

One of two students included in the interview process was East senior Nick Parr.

He was able to meet MacFarlane early on and get to know him as he presented a plan for individualized learning. MacFarlane presented this plan to Davis, Director of 7-12 Curriculum Andrew Wheatley, Senior Director of Human Resources Jenifer Lodovico, and East Innovation Specialists Katherine Joseph and Kevin Keen.

“I thought immediately that [MacFarlane] was very approachable,” Parr said. “I felt like when I first saw him he was a little nervous,

which is natural. But then throughout the interview process, he became more confident.”

Parr told Spark he immediately recognized that MacFarlane was making connections with those in the room and that he would be a great fit at East. That original observation still stands as he sees MacFarlane throughout the halls.

“I’m very confident that [MacFarlane] was the right choice,” Parr said. “He fit in from the very beginning. He came to my Spanish class on the first day and took a picture of all of us. He introduced himself to everybody and everybody said hi. He’s very outgoing and very approachable [to] all the students.”

Davis played an integral part in the selection process. She believes that MacFarlane has a deep passion for students. He pushes her daily in a professional realm with the questions he asks and the input he gives. “[His focus on students] is very coveted for [East],” Davis said. “[MacFarlane] understands the importance of the role of the teacher and helps us to learn how to best support our faculty and staff - [to] empower them to [have] relationships with students.”

As the school year has started MacFarlane has enjoyed being able to connect with students on a daily basis. He has been popping in and out of classrooms both to meet students and to see the things teachers are doing in their classes.

“The first thing I was in charge of this year was sophomore orientation,” MacFarlane said.

“I was able to talk to parents and students. I’m trying to support students as much as I can,” MacFarlane is excited to begin his new journey as assistant principal and is ecstatic to see what he can do for East along with the others on the administrative team.

“My kids coming up through [Lakota] means a lot,” Macfarlane said. “Going into Dairy Queen and seeing a bunch of students working there, being able to talk to them, mess around with them when you pop in; it’s [just] great being in the community. [That’s why] I’m very excited about the position and happy to be a part of Lakota East.” •

“So far, it has been fantastic. Teachers have been very welcoming. I’ve had a bunch of students come up to me introduce themselves. It’s great to have [these] interactions with people.”

-Matt MacFarlane 18 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

MOVING IN

Vangorden preschool teacher, Olivia Debevec teaches her class.

Lakota’s preschool program has found a new home at VanGorden Elementary. story isis summerlin | photography kelly johantges

I

n the 2018-19 school year, the district decided to condense the preschool program to one building: VanGorden Elementary.

Maureen Brenner was hired this year as VanGorden’s new Preschool Director.

“There’s a partnership with the Butler County Educational Service Center to run preschool,” Brenner said. “The district hired me to work for Lakota schools to manage the entire special education and typical tuition-paying preschool program.”

According to Brenner, about 25 new housing developments are in the process of being built in the Lakota area.

“There’s more land to build on. The school district has a good reputation for academic performance,” Brenner said. “It’s a safe community. So [there’s] a population increase in one of the best suburbs to live in the Greater Cincinnati Area.”

In reaction to the influx of new housing developments in the area, the district performed an enrollment forecast to determine how many kids would be enrolled and where they would be coming from.

“About 18 months ago, we started saying ‘Okay we’re going to have some buildings that are going to be pretty tight’. The enrollments started to increase [so] we started to make plans in the middle of last year,” Lakota Chief Operations Officer Chris Passarge told Spark.

Passarge believes that having the preschool

program in one building will be more productive.

“We had a preschool program spread out over six buildings. One administrator trying to manage six buildings and getting resources to [those] buildings became an issue,” Passarge said. “So having it at one location will be helpful.”

VanGorden Principal Gail Allshouse said that the elementary school was the best place for the program because of the extra space it provided.

“At VanGorden, our enrollment has been declining the last few years. A study was done last winter at our facilities [to determine] the number of preschool students that would need housing this year,” Allshouse said. “So VanGorden was chosen to accommodate those students.”

P

rior to the 2019-2020 school year, VanGorden did not have a preschool program. To help the new students, faculty came together to ship resources and take safety precautions.

“Some things we had to do to make the rooms safe and ready for younger children [included] taking down pencil sharpeners, making sure that we had step stools to reach the sink for hand washing, [and] putting safety protection on the corners of sharp objects,” Brenner said.

Since the program’s arrival, VanGorden has built a new playground specifically for the preschoolers.

“We installed a beautiful, brand new playground that’s age appropriate. It has a turf bottom [and] it’s handicap accessible,” Brenner said. “Since 50 percent of the enrollment are students with disabilities, we have a wide range of needs.”

T

his year there are about 300 preschoolers in the program. VanGorden also offers 10 classes with morning and afternoon sessions. The preschoolers will also be involved in various events to help them become acclimated to their new environment.

“Since there is a bit of an age difference-its third grade to sixth grade--we are going to partner with [the elementary students] for trunk or treat and the spring carnival,” Brenner said. “Then we have plans and hopes to partner the older students with our preschoolers for story time.”

Brenner believes the new arrangement will create a sense of cohesiveness among faculty and students.

“One of the biggest benefits of having a large preschool center at VanGorden is that the teachers can collaborate with each other,” Brenner said. “[Staff] can share resources, share ideas, talk about ways to help students who struggle. They can do projects together.” •

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 19

banners | news Sixth grader Kiersten Ince works on her new chromebook.

East clubs were invited to parade banners designed by their members at the homecoming football game.

THE SIXTH WAVE Lakota sixth graders were given chromebooks as a part of Lakota’s one-to-one initiative. story, photography, and infographic cassandra mueller

T

his fall, sixth graders at Lakota elementary schools have become one-to-one with technology as they received their new personal Chromebooks at the start of the

year.

One-to-one means that for every student there is one Chromebook or piece of technology, which allows students to have their own device and use it while at school.

The Chromebooks that were placed into the sixth graders’ hands came from the outgoing eighth graders as they turned in their chromebooks to receive new ones at the

September 2018 Students in Lakota Junior High Schools (grades seven and eight) recieved Chromebooks

January 2019 Students at Lakota High Schools (grades nine through 12) recieved Chromebooks

August 2019 Sixth graders in Lakota Elementary Schools recieved in-school Chromebooks

high school level. The sixth graders’ individual Chromebooks allow them to sign onto their Lakota OneLogin account, but they are not permitted to take the laptops home.

According to Innovation Specialist at Union and VanGorden elementary schools Jessica Carrelli, the Chromebooks came to the elementary schools after the teachers requested that the sixth graders become one-to-one.

“One of the biggest things was just that our teachers felt the need, especially with our new strategic plan with all of the personalized learning push that’s here,” Carrelli said.

“Right now the the big focus for our district is personalized learning and if we were going to truly [do that] we need the digital tools to support it.”

As one of the advocates for getting the Chromebooks into the elementary schools, Carrelli took steps to be able to get them.

“In speaking to some people at central office, we had talked about how [the Chromebooks] would be a great transition for our sixth graders,” Carrelli said. “[It would be] one more piece to make it a little bit easier for them.”

One of the ways teachers are incorporating the Chromebooks into their classrooms is through Project Based Learning (PBL) teams.

“So project based learning, singularly is a method of teaching or a framework of teaching,” Director of Curriculum and Instruction Christina French said. “Kids are doing a lot of learning on their individual levels, and creation along the way.”

The teams are made up of a grade level, where the teachers plan the basics of the projects and the students taking part in them.

20 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

All of these projects are different and catered to what that grade level decided to learn about.

“We have one team that’s doing characteristics needed to be a member of a team, so they focus on pillars of teamwork. Each of the team members are researching different parts and then coming together,” French said.

“They’re going to use the research that all of the students bring to the table to determine what the pillars of their grade level team are going to be.”

W

hile there is only one sixth grade PBL team at Cherokee Elementary, many teachers are taking part in PBL in their individual classrooms and are using the new Chromebooks to help them with the research of their projects.

“Every [week] until the end of the quarter... we [do] research and work on a project,” Union Elementary sixth grader Kiersten Ince said. “So this quarter’s project is ‘what is a community?’”

While Ince is not doing PBL in her classroom, she is using the new Chromebooks to help her with school projects.

“I like [the Chromebooks and] how we don’t [have to] bring in our own and [have] the stress of forgetting it,” Ince said. “It’s all right there in the school.”

According to Carrelli, teachers are using the new technology in many different ways, such as ‘Dream Box’, an adaptive math program that moves at the students’ own pace.

“We’re working closely with them on utilizing Canvas courses,” Carrelli said. “More as a kind of hub for much of what [the teachers] are teaching and doing in the classroom.” •

story mia hilkowitz photography riley higgins

A

WE’VE GOT SPIRIT

s the sun starts to set and spectators begin to fill the stands, East sophomore Tiffany Zhu finds herself lined up behind a gate facing the track, a change from her usual spot among the student section for this Friday night game. She grips a 2 by 4 foot fabric banner tightly in her right hand, her classmate holding the other side. The banner, decorated with cartoon Erlenmeyer flasks and test tubes, flashes “Science Olympiad” in large bubble letters.

Zhu, who is president of the East Science Olympiad club, prepared herself to march the banner around the track in front of her peers and fellow community members, there to watch the East vs Middletown Homecoming football game. But she was not alone. Surrounding her were members from 15 other East clubs all ready to do the same.

This year, East held its first-ever Spirit Banner parade at the Homecoming game.

Organized by the Senior Activities Committee, also known as “Vision 2020,” clubs were tasked with decorating fabric signs that represent what their groups have to offer. Then members were to walk their banners around the track before the game in front of other students and parents in order to showcase their groups to the public.

According to teacher advisor Erin Schneider, the idea came when the Senior Activities Committee was brainstorming goals for the year, . “[The Senior Activities Committee] wanted to find the best way to represent and celebrate the most number of kids at our school,” Schneider said. “We wanted as many groups

as possible to participate have representation at our homecoming, which is a celebration of East.”

Schneider said that an email containing all the information on the banners and the parade was sent to every teacher who is aclub advisor.

According to Schneider, students’ reactions were “really positive,” to the banners, despite “delaying issues” in the process. The banners originally planned to arrive at the school to be distributed on Monday, Sept. 16, were not delivered until late in the afternoon on Thursday, Sept. 19, leaving clubs only a few hours before the deadline to design their banners. According to Schneider, only five of the original groups meant to participate decided not to because of the delay.

Lauryn Dixon, who represented the Spanish club at the parade, was excited to participate.

“I was so excited,” Dixon told Spark. “I was like ‘let’s do it’ and was ready to get involved.

Our clubs will gain a lot more interest. We’re advertised over the announcements, but not really in any way other than that. So it’s great to be here in front of the school at the football game to draw some interest to our clubs.”

S

cience Olympiad member Tiffany Nguyen had a different reaction.

“Honestly at first I was excited, but the whole situation with the time limit and the delay [that meant] we only had Thursday afternoon and Friday morning to work on [the banners], threw [the idea] off a bit,” Nguyen said.

Nguyen also believes that the banners will

help to give smaller clubs recognition, which may cause people to join them.

East sophomore Jenna Proffit, who was in the stands during the Spirit Banner parade, had mixed opinions.

“I thought it was really cool,” Proffit said.

“But it would have been a lot cooler if a lot more clubs had been able to do [the parade].

And [the students in the stands] didn’t know about it at all.”

Proffit thinks that there should be a wider “diversity” of clubs participating in the parade, including ones that not many people have heard of.

“I think that to improve [the spirit banners] for next year they need to change how they advertise it,” Proffit said. “[The parade would be]a lot better if more people were involved.”

East parent Tona Thompson has a daughter in the color guard. Although she thinks that the parade wouldn’t have pushed her daughter to join other clubs, she thinks that parents whose kids were involved appreciated the clubs’ acknowledgement “I think it’s nice how all of the clubs were recognized, not only football and band,” Thompson said.

Many people, including Schneider, want the Spirit Banners to become a new East Homecoming tradition for years to come.

“The past couple years have put this emphasis on student voice,” Schneider said.

“The student voice was pretty overwhelming that this was a positive thing. We had lots of people thanking us for the opportunity to have their clubs represented.” •

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 21

personal narrative | feature

section | story

LEHS PTSO

Presents

Lakota East Holiday Arts and Crafts Show

November 9th

General Admission 10 AM - 4 PM Early Bird Admission 9 AM

November 10th General Admission 11 AM - 4 PM

$2 General Admission $5 Early Bird Admission Lakota East High School 6840 Lakota Lane Liberty Township, Ohio

www.lakotaeastcraftshow.com

22 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

STRENGTH News Editor Rachel Anderson reflects back on her mission trip to Guatemala in the summer of 2019 and shares what she learned along the way. This is Rachel’s 5th trip ministering to the people of San Pablo.

story and photography rachel anderson | infographic alanna shlaeger additional photography used with permission

personal narrative | feature

feature | personal narrative

E

very time I leave the country I am reminded of how many things I take for granted. I enter a room and turn the lights on without pausing to be amazed at the convenience of electricity. I complain about my house being too cold instead of being grateful that my house is cool in the summer and warm in the winter. I grumble at filling up my 32-ounce water bottle with the school drinking fountain water because I think it tastes weird without ever being thankful we have pure, clean water at our disposal.

This past summer I traveled to Guatemala for the fifth time and it was a truly humbling experience. I learned more about myself and the beauty of God in a week than anything I had learned in the other 51 weeks spent in the US. It is amazing to see how much hope and happiness the Guatemalan people have even though they materialistically have nothing.

I was nervous the first few times I traveled to Guatemala. Nervous of the unknown and nervous of how I would ever survive without the comforts of home. This time there was no nervousness, just excitement. Excited to see my friends from Guatemala. Excited to watch the other team members build relationships that will last a lifetime. Excited to be part of lifechanging events that were sure to happen again this year.

The first two days of the trip were occupied with traveling. Guatemala City is about a threehour plane ride from Atlanta. The traffic in Guatemala City is bumper-to-bumper with no lanes to separate the cars. The roundabouts have at least 10 exits to turn onto and a fast food restaurant sits on every corner.

Once we landed it was another hour ride to a hostel where we spent the first night. The next day was when the hardest travel occurred. We had to take a four-hour bus ride through the mountains that was almost like riding an old, wooden roller coaster for four hours straight.

With every turn I was certain we were about to hurdle straight off the cliff with no guard rail to catch us.

The last mode of transportation was a 30-minute boat ride to get us to our hostel on Lake Atitlan - the deepest lake in Central America. The Lake Atitlan area has a population of 300,000 people, which is 80,000 less than Butler County alone.

The extensive amount of traveling would be boring if not for the bonding time with the other team members. This year 14 people decided to go. That included my mom, dad, and sister. The team also consisted of two teenagers, three young adults, one newly wed, parents, and grandparents.

When I stepped off the boat onto the rickety, splintered dock, I immediately felt at

source broganproject.org

Population 2019 17.5 million San Pablo (13,000) Lake Atitlan

GUATEMALA In 2015 the percentage of citizens in Guatemala without water was reduced to 50%.

We finally made it to the house we were looking for and walked in without knocking.

The entire house was smaller than my bedroom at home. In the corner of the house, there was a crude sink and a smoking fire pit. Only half of the house was covered by a tin roof that lay unsecured across the three cement walls. There was no furniture except a child-size mattress lying in the middle of the dark, smoke-filled room. The portion of the house that wasn’t under a roof acted as an anchor to hold up a clothesline with baby clothes hanging up to dry. A young girl came out of a tiny, pitch black room and stood in the middle of the dirt floor.

She wasn’t expecting us, but she was happy to share her story.

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he young girl talked for about 5 minutes in a guttural language full of clicks of the tongue and grunts - all sounds no one in the US can even form. Most of the residents of San Pablo are Mayan, which means

she was speaking the Tz’utujil language. A teen from one of the churches we support in San Pablo translated her story into Spanish, which was then translated into English.

By the time the Tz’utujil was translated into English the translators only had a few words to say. A lot of the girls’ story was lost in translation, yet it was still deeply impactful.

Her name was Rosita and she was only 16 years old. Her brother and father were in jail.

No mother was mentioned. She had to take care of a baby and two toddlers all by herself in that dark house with no electricity or plumbing.

The men in the households are the provider of the families. The sons and fathers work in the fields, as fishermen, or own small microbusinesses that are nothing more than a tent selling fruit. With no family to help Rosita, she was running low on strength and asked for our prayers.

Her story stood out to me the most through it was by no means the saddest. Some families

had kids who had died and kids who were running from the police; others had alcoholic dads and babies who may not live to see tomorrow. Yet her story clung to me the most.

The people we visited in the villages taught me a lot. They are utterly dependent on prayer.

They don’t know how they are going to make it through the week with no food in the house, yet they trust in the Lord and He provides all of their needs. This is why they are so willing to talk to strangers. They find comfort in knowing that people are praying that they will get through this difficult time in their life.

Rosita was only 16 years old - the same age as me. She has seen things I can’t imagine and has lived through a thousand more lifetimes than me. I hate staying home alone for extended periods of time or having to babysit for more than three hours. Rosita is taking care of three babies alone and the only thing she asks for is strength. Not money. Not food. Not clothes.

Strength. •

Guatemala City (2.45 million)

home. It wasn’t the familiarity of the port that made me feel that way. It was something in the air. It covered me like a warm blanket and filled me with joy.

T

he first thing that captures your attention in Lake Atitlan is the beauty. The lake is surrounded by three of the 34 dormant volcanoes located in Guatemala and the scene is painted with various shades of blue and white. The mountains and volcanoes are the only way to distinguish between the sky and the water. It is a serene landscape that is a breath of fresh air compared to the chaos of life at home.

Most of the trip involved playing with the kids, helping them with crafts, and telling them Bible stories. It’s easy to think that because these kids have nothing and they live in a different country that they will act differently than the kids in the US. That is not true. Kids will be kids, whether they live in the remote parts of Guatemala or in the suburbs of Cincinnati.

The churches we minister to have nothing of their own, so we bring all of the supplies needed to cross the language barrier and have

fun with the kids. We discovered that matchbox cars and sidewalk chalk are the two things the kids love the most. The parents stand in line to get their kids’ pictures taken and have us print them out. We are usually the first people to ever hand them an actual photograph of their child.

Most of the moms hug the pictures and begin to cry. It is so humbling to know that such a small act to us is so appreciated by them.

We don’t just play with the kids while we are there. The village people struggle with absent fathers, alcoholism, delinquent children, and extreme poverty. They are much more open about their struggles than we are, and appreciate it when we are willing to pray for them.

The most impactful part of the trip were the prayer walks. We split into four teams and walked the streets of San Pablo, and were welcomed into homes to pray for them.

To get to the houses we had to turn off of the main cobblestone road into a three-foot wide dark alleyway. The alleyway only lasted a few steps. Before I knew it, I was walking on a dirt road through a maze of houses made of cement and bamboo all while trying to avoid the stray dogs roaming freely.

Above: A little girl stands outside of her home.

Right: The boat Rachel took to start her journey back home.

Below: Various kinds of fruit lay out on wooden tables in the local market.

“Most of the moms hug the pictures and begin to cry. It is so humbling to know that such small act to us is so appreciated by them.” - Rachel Anderson 24 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 25

internship | feature

PEACE OF MIND

BEYOND THE CLASSROOM

story abigail westendorf photography brayden barger

Therapist Michelle Quarry hands out candy at open house in August

Childrens Hospital therapist joins East. • story eliza bush | photography used with permission

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he held up the nine by eight multiplication card, anxiously awaiting his response. He sat, puzzled, for a moment before his spirits depleted. A few seconds later, his eyes lit up. “72!” he said confidently. She reached her arm around his shoulder and gave him a pat on the back.

Startled, he sprang from his chair and told her to get her hands off of him. It was only her fifth month of teaching and no one had taught her how to react to this kind of situation. This unexpected response inspired her to study psychology and become a school counselor.

East’s school-based therapist Michelle Quarry came to the district after a chance introduction while working as a school counselor at New Miami Elementary in Hamilton.

“I was pretty happy where I was, but Children’s Hospital is a wonderful organization,” Quarry says. “Next thing I know, I’m in the interview process and meeting with five different people [at East]. Luckily, they chose me.”

Quarry is employed by Cincinnati Children’s Hospital as part of an organization called MindPeace that provides mental health services to schools in Greater Cincinnati, according to Quarry’s advisor and fellow school-based therapist Gail Rizzo.

“The agreement came as a part of a MindPeace collaborative to put mental health therapists in local schools as part of the Access

To Mental Health initiative,”Rizzo says.

“East provides an office space and Cincinnati Children’s provides the therapist that then provides outpatient mental health care.”

All East students are allowed access to Quarry’s services, with consent from their parents.Halfway through junior year, East Senior Jenna Briener was going through a tough time and decided to meet with Quarry“There was one day I remember having to leave [school] at lunchtime and I asked to see the nurse,” Breiner says. “She sent me to Mrs. Quarry and after that first meeting, we signed up for sessions and I’ve been meeting with her ever since.”

S

ince starting weekly sessions, Quarry has helped Breiner come to terms with the effect mental health will have on her life. “[Mrs. Quarry] always reminds me that none of my feelings are weird,” Breiner says. “Everybody experiences different levels of depression and anxiety throughout their life. So even though some people might experience it more than others, you have to remember that it’s never going to be permanent.”

East Principal Suzanna Davis has begun to see the effect Quarry is having.

“Families have shared their student is enjoying the flexibility and ease of seeing Mrs. Quarry onsite at East,” Davis says. “The feedback from students and families alike has

26 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

been outstanding.”

As one of these students, Breiner has been able to change the way she views mental health and has gained confidence to share her story because of her experience.

“I’m not really scared to talk about this kind of stuff,” Breiner says. “It’s part of me. We all have negative stuff, we all have things, and I’m not necessarily ashamed that this is one of the things I’ve had to go through.”

Quarry hopes that her position at East will positively impact both individual students and the way mental health is viewed at East overall. “[My goal is] to be able to see as many kids that need to be seen,” Quarry says, with a smile. “ [I want] students to feel comfortable saying, ‘I’m struggling with this and I wonder if I could talk with you.’”

She lifted his face and met his eyes. She knew his reaction was coming from a deeper place of hurt. He told her he didn’t like it when people touched him because his dad had been sexually abusing him at home. From then on, Quarry became deeply involved in his life, getting him away from his situation and finding resources for his trauma. This is how she discovered her passion for mental health and counseling.

“That [moment] was it. I was like, ‘wow,’” Quarry says. “Being able to make a difference in someone’s life, to listen to someone’s story and not be judgmental or freaked out, that’s what got me into counseling.” •

East junior Jordan Lehman volunteers at the Atrium Medical Center, a general hospital in Middletown, Ohio.

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hones ringing, cardiac monitors beeping, babies crying, squeaky urgent footsteps. These are the noises of a hospital that East junior Jordan Lehman experiences on a daily basis while interning at Atrium Medical Center.

East women’s basketball shooting guard and Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) member, Lehman has been interning at the Atrium Medical Center fWor about five months. While interning, she helps with paperwork and interacts with patients as they get from point A to point B. “[I] talked to patients about their experiences and just interacted with them as I got them to where they needed to be or while they were waiting for something like their car,” Lehman says.

Lehman says she has been interested in the medical field for a few years now. This volunteer position has given her a real-world experience that HOSA and Med club couldn’t give her.

“I wouldn’t say HOSA has given me an advantage,” Lehman says. “But, I’ve definitely applied some skills and characteristics instilled [in me] through HOSA [at Atrium].”

While volunteering at Atrium, Lehman has seen the amount of opportunities and paths there are in the medical field and how all of

them play such crucial roles in helping patients.

“I realized I don’t have to just be a doctor to make a difference,” Lehman says. “There are so many avenues I can explore.”

According to Lakota Superintendent Matt Miller, the Lakota district’s goal in providing internships is to give students experiences outside of the high school setting.

“When [students] have something that has more public audience, [students’] level of rigor, attention and interest increases,” Miller says.

“An internship, a job shadow, [or] anything beyond the classroom exposes [students] to that sort of thing.”

Lehman works alongside other high school and adult volunteers, including East junior Emma Ficorilli. Ficorilli says she loves to work alongside Lehman.

“When Jordan is working, she’s very efficient and knows how to manage her time while still making the work enjoyable,” Ficorilli says. “She knows how to turn a monotonous task into something fun.”

While working at Atrium, Ficorilli had a seizure and after waking up, she was terrified.

“The nurses went to find Jordan and she dropped everything to find me,” Ficorilli says.

“She stayed in the hospital with me all day and it made me feel better.”

Helping Ficorilli recover made Lehman come to the realization that the medical field is for her.

“There are so many options within the medical field and so many ways to help,” Lehman says. “Whether it’s a direct influence or something more low key.”

L

ehman has enjoyed her work at Atrium so far and recommends others to apply.

“They’re truly invested in [students’ futures,” Lehman says “They offer scholarship options and even reimburse med school [tuition] for all their volunteers.”

Not only do internships help students determine what they want to do, but they may also help them eliminate what they don’t want to do.

“Sometimes what you want to do is not what you thought,” Miller says. “And we want [students] to be prepared for what comes next.”

Not only do internships help students determine what they want to do, but they may also help them eliminate what they don’t want to do.

“Sometimes what you want to do is not what you thought,” Miller says. “And we want [students] to be prepared for what comes next.”•

“When [students] have something that has more public audience [students’] level of rigor and attention increases. Anything beyond the classroom exposes [students] to that sort of thing.” —Matt Miller

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 27

story | section

CONNECTED

East teachers (from right to left) Heather Davis, Justin Dennis, Kayley Shafner, Nichole Bruce, and Michael Hoch work to reorganize their classrooms on the first Professional Development Day of the year.

PLUGGED IN T

his issue, Spark is covering the effects of technology in the modern world. With the recent addition of one-to-one technology at the secondary level designed to increase students’ access in school, Lakota is actively trying to modernize the classroom.

During the Professional Development (PD) days at the beginning of the school year, teachers were introduced to four new learning styles. Each teacher was required to pick one to implement in their classroom for the new school year.

Lakota East has also given students increased access to technology through

the transformation of the media center into the Innovation Hub. During Extra Help (XH), students are encouraged to make use of the resources offered in the Innovation Hub to work on homework and group projects.

Technology has proven to have a great impact on mental health. With an increased presence of social media in our world, comes a greater impact on the mental state of teens.

Outside of East, technology has had a vast impact on the environment. Increased amounts of technological devices has resulted in higher amounts of “techno trash,” or electronic waste.

Recent studies have shown that people of all ages are showing signs of dependence on technology. While smart phones have the ability to connect people, they also allow users a potentially dangerous amount of exposure to information.

Technology has also shown up in the home through smart devices such as the GoogleHome and the Amazon Alexa.

These smart devices are convenient to consumers, but may pose a security threat.

Technology’s impact in the world around us will only continue to grow. As it’s presence increases, it’s important to be educated on its advantages as well as it’s potential harmful effects. - Eliza Bush

infographic mary barone and mia hilkowitz

The district takes steps to further personalize learning for its students. story and infographic alexandra fernholz | photography cassandra mueller

I

t was late August, curriculum night for the 2018-2019 school year, and Endeavor Elementary math teacher Caitlin Huxel was more nervous than usual as the parents of her sixth grade students filed into the classroom. It wasn’t her first day implementing her flipped classroom, but it was the first time she would be explaining the change in to an unknown audience.

“I was super nervous, sharing a huge methodology change,” Huxel says. “After I was done, the entire room applauded. They just clapped. They were so excited and ready to get started with their kids.”

Huxel’s journey to a flipped classroom took her over three years, but she had a good reason. “[Before] it was very routine. I was meeting constantly with the same kids. That was what really changed it for me was realizing [there were] a lot of kids who [weren’t] getting everything they [needed],” Huxel told Spark.

“[After flipping] it was a more engaging, comfortable classroom because everybody got what they needed.”

East English teacher Heather Davis’ classroom has also changed considerably over the course of her career. After teaching at The Academy of Global Studies at Winton Woods in an entirely Project Based Learning (PBL) classroom, Davis moved to Lakota in 2015. As one of the first teachers to plan and implement the Academy’s entirely PBL style classrooms, her experience there gave her a new way of teaching at East.

“I’m such a champion of PBL. I love it so much so I decided that would be what spearheads my goals this year,” Davis says.

“My kids are always in teams and I don’t put my desks in rows. I always have them turn and talk to each other. I’ll try projects, I’ll try and contracts, but it’s an amended version of what I did before.”

1720- Stephen Gray discovers insulators and conductors.

1775- The first postal system is estabished by the Second Continental Congress.

28 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

While Davis hasn’t been able to completely recreate the PBL classroom she had before, her experience at the Academy still allows her to be more ‘flexible’ with her classes at East.

“A lot of its left up to the students,” Davis told Spark. “And that’s a hard thing to relinquish as a teacher. Sometimes you feel really ineffective. [But now] I love that [students] get to communicate with each other more. And by [me] not talking as much, they learn more, because they have to find these answers for themselves. [If ] there’s one thing I want my kids to leave with it’s knowing how to ask questions.”

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ast’s one-to-one Chromebook rollout in January of 2019 was also helpful for Davis’ goals in the classroom.

“I love how technology has afforded me a lot of opportunities for research,” Davis says. “Also, communication is a lot more fluid

1816- The first partially successful picture is taken

by Nicephore Niepce.

1829- The first patented typewriter is invented by William Austin Burt.

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 29

umbrella | package

package | umbrella

“That’s all this is, an opportunity for teachers to become better at their practice, and in turn benefit students.”

- Christina French, Director of Curriculum and Instruction with technology. If students are having an issue, they can email me. That didn’t happen when I started in 2007.”

Stories like this are the basis for one of the four prongs of Lakota’s Strategic Plan: We Are Personalized. At the end of the 2018-2019 school year, every teacher in the district was encouraged to explore one of four learning options. The four methods include a “Playlist’ classroom, PBL, station rotation, and the flipped classroom.

A playlist classroom provides students with a set number of tasks to complete, while allowing them to complete those tasks in any order they choose. A station-oriented classroom explores an overarching topic in a variety of different ways based on the depth of the students’ knowledge. Each student is able to work at a station with activities that fit their own skill level in that area.

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BL is a method of teaching that poses a large question for students to explore over the course of three to four weeks, allowing them to discover the answer to the question on their own time and in their own way. The flipped classroom reverses the typical order of teaching. Rather than learning a subject in class and completing homework on the content at home, students watch a video or complete an online lesson at home, and work through practice problems at school.

“One of the goals on the Strategic Plan was ‘WE are Personalized,” Director of Curriculum and Instruction Christina French says. “So we had to find a way to really bring that to life, for our administrators and our teachers, because we knew if we brought it to life for them, they could bring it to life for [students].”

65 percent of East students said they preferred to learn by watching a demonstration or completing an activity, according to a Spark survey. 19 percent preferred that their teacher lecture the class while they took notes, and nine percent preferred to learn through a multimedia group project. Just seven percent

said they would like to learn online.

According to Executive Director of Curriculum and Instruction Keith Koehne, these four systems were chosen because of the independence they provide students in the classroom.

“We want to be able to have [students] own [their] learning as much as possible,” Koehne told Spark. “And the strategies that we’re helping foster throughout the course of the year are really strategies that help [to] do that.”

U

sually, teachers present material from the board as students take notes, then either complete an activity or a series of practice problems for homework.

However, according to Dr. of Psychology at Purdue University George Hanshaw, this isn’t how students learn.

“People learn best when there’s a short burst of whatever they’re supposed to do, and they do it. And I don’t mean a lecture,” Hanshaw says. “[It’s best for students to get] small bits and pieces, where [they] can actually perform [the task], and then get immediate feedback from an expert.”

When the new learning systems, or ‘technologies’ are put in place, the part the teacher plays in the classroom is significantly affected.

“A phrase that is used a lot of times is ‘sage on the stage’, versus ‘the guide on the side,’” Instructional Designer Hans Aagard says. “[It’s the idea that the teacher] and the students are teaming up against the content, versus [the teacher against] the students.”

Huxel also went through this transition.

Describing herself as a ‘type “A” personality,’ she says she at first struggled to accept the fact that her classroom was now filled with conversation rather than being silent and orderly.

“The silence doesn’t mean anything,” Huxel says. “If kids are silent listening to me, they could be daydreaming, but it was that engagement piece that I really accepted. [Now] I want the noise. I want the conversations, I

1837- The telegraph is invented by Samuel Morse.

1830- William Henry Fox Talbot creates a method to make and print photgraphs.

30 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

want the chatter and the engagement. It took a lot on my part to accept that that’s what my classroom would sound like.”

The systems the district is encouraging are ‘baby steps’ toward its goal of completely personalized learning, according to Director of Secondary Curriculum and Instruction Andrew Wheatley.

“It’s our initial steps to get everybody, principals, teachers, students, parents, custodial staff, board members, politicians, everybody to start thinking a little bit differently,” Wheatley told Spark. “The goal is to create an environment that maximizes [students’] potential, and tries to find [students’ individual] strengths and build on [them].”

The first of these ‘baby steps’ was the introduction of Chromebooks from seventh to 12th grade in the district last year. This year, new Chromebooks were also brought to Lakota sixth grade students. For teachers, access to this technology is a ‘big deal’ for lesson plans, according to Hanshaw. “[I’ve] noticed a lot of people will use technology like a ‘bolt on’ as opposed to a natural part of the course. That’s a problem,” Hanshaw told Spark. “Those [teachers] who embrace the new digital tools that [they’re] getting sharpen [their] skills and continue to grow and become more relevant.”

A

ccording to a Spark survey of roughly 300 students, 29 percent of East students said they used Canvas in the classroom ‘all the time.’ Five percent reported ‘never’ using the online teaching tool.

For Davis, the Chromebooks mirror the introduction of one-to-one technology at The Academy of Global Studies in 2009.

“Going to the computer lab when I first started teaching was something fun, every once in a while,” Davis told Spark. “[Then] you had to. And if you weren’t doing that you were just disserving your students. You were setting them up for failure.”

Throughout the school year, teachers will be

1876- The telephone is invented by Alexander Graham Bell.

1876- The first microphone is invented

by Emile Berliner.

able to hone their technique in the classroom with the support of additional Innovation Specialists at their buildings. Innovation Specialists are professionals hired by the district to help teachers adjust to their new access to technology, and implement it effectively in their classrooms.

the four learning styles

H

uxel, who became one of the new Innovation Specialists at the end of the 2018-2019 school year, will be working at Adena and Freedom Elementary to help teachers develop in the classroom. She knows the value of a helping hand as teachers begin the process of personalization.

“I’m basically an instructional coach, helping teachers move into things like I was doing last year,” Huxel told Spark. “[Last year], nobody in [Endeavor] was flipping, and so it was hard [for me] to really connect personally with other teachers.”

Teachers will also be able to access additional support through a series of Professional Development (PD) Days throughout the year.

During these PD days, teachers reflect on their experiences throughout the past weeks, and receive input from their peers. Then, they come up with a plan of action to put into play until the next PD day, where the process of discussion and revision will continue. “[In] any job that you have, there is always an expectation that you’ll become better at what you do, that you continue to learn, continue to try new things, and continue to be better,” French says. “That’s all this is, an opportunity for teachers to become better at their practice, and in turn benefit students.”

Davis was able to attend the first PD day of the 2019-2020 year on Sept. 3. “[The PD day] was all about personalized learning,” Davis told Spark. “We did a lot of research about PBL. It was more catered to somebody who didn’t have a PBL backgroundwe’re trying to tell teachers and show teachers what it is.”

Davis’ own experience in a PBL classroom allowed her to help her fellow peers through the planning process. “[I’ve found] a good project is something that [students] start on day one, and they’ve got small steps to get there,” Davis says. “The projects that failed were the ones that were like ‘dessert’ projects at the end, [like making] a

Students explore a topic at a variety of stations which fit their skill in that area.

A problem is posed to students for them to explore via their own methods over a period of three to four weeks.

Students are provided with a number of tasks to complete and complete those tasks in any order they choose.

Students watch a video or complete an online lesson at home, and work through practice problems at school. poster, [or] writing an essay.”

The key to learning in the classroom, according to Hanshaw, is engagement.

“Learning is a verb. And we’ve tried to make learning something that’s passive, just an intake of information and data,” Hanshaw says.

“And that’s not what learning is. [Students and teachers] have to come in, engage and grow.”

And the best way to engage students is by providing variety, Hanshaw says.

“Think of it as neural pathways,” Hanshaw told Spark. “We should utilize every single pathway, visual, auditory, kinesthetic, all of [them, because] the more pathways that the learner can intake, the more likely they are to succeed. ” Huxel’s own experience at Endeavor confirms Hanshaw’s conclusions. “[The flipped classroom] was great for

1877- Eadweard Muybridge invents the first moving photograph.

1880- John Milne invents the modern seismograph.

everybody. Because everybody grew,” Huxel says. “Nobody was able to hide and coast [through]. I was able to meet with every single kid and figure out how they learn.”

N

o matter how Lakota teachers throughout the district pursue their individual goals in the classroom in the coming months, the idea behind personalized learning is the same.

“The technique might be different, but the end goal is the same,” Hanshaw says. “Because what [the teacher is] saying doesn’t really matter. What the learners are able to do is what matters. So that’s where our focus needs to be.

We need to change our classroom from passive to active. [And] technology, whether it’s a face to face classroom, or the online classroom, technology is the key.” •

1885- The first practical metal detector is invented by Carl Benz.

1886- The world’s first kodak camera is put on the market.

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 31

environment | package

section | story

(TECH)NICALLY SUSTAINABLE With the prevalence of technological use in modern society, the impact of technology on the environment cannot be ignored.

story shiloh wolfork infographic alexandra fernholz photography eliza bush

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A landfill inZacapa, Guatemala. Families live in the landfill and collect plastic bottles for money.

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campaign introduced by NHS, Beiting believes that the impact of technological waste is often overlooked.

“In today’s society, phones are so popular, and people don’t realize how many toxic chemicals go into making phones,” Beiting says. “Because today’s society is so materialistic and things can be produced so quickly, a lot of waste is created.”

Technotrash and electronic waste, or e-waste, are newer waste streams that include everything from old computers, printers, CDs, hard drives, zip disks, floppy disks, smartphones, rechargeable batteries and empty printer cartridges. According to Green Citizen, when the waste is warmed up, toxic materials such as hydrocarbons are released into the air.

According to Digital Responsibility, an organization that strives to share with young people the personal and public consequences of technology, the United States produced 3.41 million tons of electronic waste or “technotrash” in 2011. Every year, humans discard 20 to 50 million tons of technotrash worldwide every year, approximately 5 percent of all solid waste.

“The amount of waste that is very difficult to recycle coming from our electronics and the fact that more and more people want and need these electronics is problematic,” Assistant Professor at Miami University Amelie Davis told Spark.

ver since her elementary school science class, her passion for the environment has been overwhelming. She remembers sitting at her desk, concerned, as the teacher taught a lesson on global warming. She began to learn how humans have impacted the environment and what these actions meant for the future. It was at this moment when “I first realized something was not good.”

East senior and secretary for East’s

National Honor Society (NHS) Eve Beiting has continued to display her enthusiasm for environmental activism through the Earth to East campaign launched by NHS. This campaign is designed to get students involved in initiatives in order to increase environmental advocacy and awareness at East and beyond.

As a former member of the Lakota Environmental Advocates Forum (LEAF) Club and a key contributor to the Earth to East

1895- The radio is invented by Guglielmo Marconi.

1901- Guglielmo Marconi reported the first radio transmission received across the Atlantic.

32 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

2017 study from United Nations University founded that 43 million tons of e-waste were generated in 2016, an eight percent increase from 2014 and the fastest growth of any type of waste, double the rate of plastic waste. In 2017, The Telegraph reported that experts predict a 17 percent increase by 2121.

According to Department of Geography Professor at Ohio University Geoffrey Buckley, the lack of education about the damaging impact of technological devices fuels the destructive process. “[People are] often times somewhat passive customers. [They] adopt the latest technologies.

Phones, for instance. [People] walk around with these little computers in our pockets, but they have a cost. Just because [people] can have a rechargeable battery doesn’t mean that it doesn’t have an impact,” Buckley told Spark.

“And people need to be aware of that because

1902- James Mackenzie creates the first polygraph machine.

1903- Orville Wright makes the first airplane flight.

“[People are] often times somewhat passive customers. [They] adopt the latest technologies. Phones, for instance. [People] walk around with these little computers in our pockets, but they have a cost. Just because [people] can have a rechargeable battery doesn’t mean that it doesn’t have an impact.”

-Geoffrey Buckley, Professor of Geography at Ohio University often times, the impact is far removed from where [they] are at any given moment.”

Technological use can also have positive ramifications according to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). Working electronically reduces the amount of printed paper, and using video messaging applications such as FaceTime and Skype to communicate lessens carbon emissions released when commuting.

A

ccording to British Columbia Sustainable Energy Association (BCSEA), a volunteer-based charity that supports sustainable production and distribution of energy, electric cars and wind turbines are other examples of environmentally beneficial technologies.

Despite the environmental effectiveness of certain technologies, Land Manager for the Field Station and Environmental Education at Ball State University John Taylor says that the negative impacts outweigh the positive.

“Everything humans do involves some type of technology. And [people] do a lot for the benefit of the environment but [they] are trying to undo a lot of the negatives that [have been]done to the environment over the years,” Taylor told Spark. “[People are] still doing more damage to the environment than are undoing the damage.”

Many people are unaware of how to properly dispose of the electronics.80 percent of e-waste is not being recycled, according to GreenDisk, a technotrash recycling service that offers convenient resources meant to aid individuals and organizations in reducing the negative environmental impacts of obsolete technology.

Out of 302 East students, 17 percent knew what e-waste was and 43 percent reported properly recycling their used devices by selling or donating them.

According to Eterra Technologies, an electronic waste management company, when electronics containing heavy metals such as lead, barium, and mercury are improperly disposed of, they can seep through the soil to groundwater channels. The contaminated water can cause lead poisoning if it is consumed by land animals or humans. Some of these materials are carcinogenic and linger in the environment for long periods of time, increasing the chances of exposure.

Buckley explains how humans lack of concern towards the impacts of their actions is a key factor in gradual environmental destruction.

“Most people alive today on the planet were born after the 1950s. And ever since that era, consumption of virtually any resource [one]can imagine has skyrocketed,” Buckley says. “As far as waste production, air pollution and water pollution, [people] think of this as normal. But it’s not. And at some point, [people] should return to something that is more sustainable

1906- The first sonar device is invented by Lewis Nixon.

1912- Motorized movie cameras replace hand crancked camera.

for the planet.”

In a survey of 287 East students, 63 percent were interested in taking action against the negative environmental impacts of technology.

Beiting explains how NHS is planning to reduce the negative environmental impacts of technology at East. “[NHS] has a lot of different ideas in the works but our biggest goal is to try and find ways to reduce the environmental impact of Lakota East as a whole,” Beiting says. “So coming up soon, [NHS will] have a carpool karaoke, where kids [will] carpool to school to reduce the emissions from cars.”

When carbon emissions are released into the atmosphere by cars and during combustion of e-waste, thermal energy is trapped, contributing to global warming.

“Humans have total responsibility for [the negative environmental impacts of technology],” Beiting says. “Since we are the causes of it, we have every obligation to stop the damage to the environment.”•

1921- The first robot is built.

1927- Philo Taylor Farnsworth creates a complete electronic TV system.

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 33

dependence | package

package | dependence

ALL IN MODERATION

Experts agree that technological dependency does not hold only negative ramifications.

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story ianni acapulco | infographic anna biddle | art lillian elliot

1932- The Polaroid camera is created by Edwin Herbert Land.

200 150

Negative Negative

Positve

Positive

Negative

0

0

50

0

50

100

100

150

50

Out of 263 of East students surveyed, 220 felt that technology has a positive benefit on their lives.

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Out of100 263 of East150 students surveyed, 220 felt that technology has a positive benefit on their lives.

200

250

1927- Paul Gavin invents the car radio

34 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

250

250

Out of 263 East students surveyed, 220 felt that technology had a positive benefit on their lives

Positve

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ast sophomore Aya Darwiche arrives to school early each morning, long before the hectic rush of the school day’s start. It’s quiet at that time, but she’s not the only one there. She notices that lots of the kids are on their phones, and assumes that they’re listening to music or scrolling through social media. Some, she can see, are using the school’s Chromebooks, perhaps finishing up on last minute homework. Settling into the lounge area to wait for her friend, she easily paints a similar picture.

According to a survey in early 2019 by Pew Research Center, 93 percent of millenials and 90 percent of Gen Xers own smartphones, with nearly 100 percent of millennials saying they use the internet.

“Part of it is just the conveniency; [smartphones are] within hand’s reach,” Darwiche says. “So why not use them?”

A digital report by Data Reporta, a web-based portal that offers hundreds of free reports packed with data, insights, and trends, found that there are currently 4.39 billion active internet users in 2019, a number that has risen by 366 million since last year. According to a survey report by Pew Research Center, of 21 countries, 75 percent of cell phone owners text and an average 50 percent use their phones to take pictures or videos. In the U.S., 73 percent of 18-29 year olds regularly use cell phones to access the internet.

Darwiche, who has relatives in Beirat, Lebanon, uses this internet access to communicate with them regularly. For her, technology plays a key role in connecting her to a family she wouldn’t normally be able to reach.

“We use technology to talk to them, see how they’re doing, and they use it to check on us. I talk to my cousin who lives in Michigan almost every day and I speak to family overseas every weekend,” Darwiche says. “We use WhatsApp to communicate because you can text and do a voice or video call. We’ll share anything from accomplishments [to] pictures and videos.”

Professor of Sociology at The Ohio State University Jeremy Baker, who also teaches classes for the University of New Mexico, feels that this long distance connectivity is a definite plus of modern technology. “[People] can keep in touch with loved ones in a much

more day-to-day way that [they] couldn’t before,” Baker said. “In the 1980s, or even into the 90s, [they] couldn’t communicate with people who were across the country without paying long distance fees, so that’s a really good thing. On the other hand, though, [people] do need to be more aware of how the technology [they] use impacts [them].

In particular, [they] need to think about ways we aren’t necessarily aware of.”

1937- John Atanasoff makes the first working computer.

1939- John Atanasoff and Clifford Berry begin building the AtanasoffBerry Computer (ABC).

imilarly, Professor of Urban Affairs and Planning at Virginia Tech Tom Sanchez told Spark that people have always seen an evolution in technology, but just as today’s technology has allowed new possibilities, it’s important to have caution with technology and to think about it’s possible implications.

According to Founder and CEO of Domo Josh James, in 2017, there were 2.5 quintillion bytes of data generated per day, with 90 percent of that data having been generated from 2015 to 2017. “[Technology is] a positive in the sense that [people] have access to more information, which [it is] assumed will help [them] make better decisions in [their] daily lives,” Sanchez says.

“The flip side of that is [that people] almost have access to too much.

Then, the challenge becomes sorting out what is the appropriate information.”

In 2019, Pew Research Center found that 96 percent of Americans own a cellphone of some kind, with 81 percent using smartphones in particular (an increase from the 35 percent in Pew’s survey from 2011).

According to a media poll in 2016

by Common Sense, the majority of families didn’t feel that devices were hurting their familial relationships, but 66 percent of parents felt their kids spent too much time on their mobile devices, and 52 percent of kids agreed.

The Common Sense poll found that 59 percent of parents felt their kids were “addicted” and that 50 percent of teens

say the same. California State University Psychology professor Larry Rosen agrees that the label is fitting. “[People] exhibit signs of both addiction and obsession, which access two different chemical systems,” Rosen says. “When [they] crave something and need more and more [of it] to feel the same pleasure, that is addiction. When [people] are worried that we are missing out on something and need to check in, that is a symptom tied to obsession. In that way, [people] are both obsessed and addicted.”

Professor of Psychology at Stetson University Chris Ferguson wouldn’t necessarily agree with the sentiment.

Ferguson told Spark that using the word “addiction” would be painting technology use akin to substance abuse, which is not a valid comparison. According to American Society of Addiction Medicine, addiction is defined as a chronic disease of brain reward, motivation, and memory related circuitry.

“People can overdo almost anything fun and technology can be one of those things.

[But] it’s pretty rare to see it become a clinical issue,” Ferguson says. “Of course, physically, the more [people] rely on technology, [they] may experience things like worsening eyesight and reduced physical strength, but that began long before the current technological advances [such as phones, laptops, etc.].”

A study by Paula Hakala revealed that frequent computer-related activities such as the use of computers, the internet, mobile devices, playing digital games, and watching television, has increased the risk of neck, shoulder, and lower back pain in adolescents. According to The Vision Council, a global voice of the optic industry, 60.5 percent of Americans who use digital devices for more than two hours a day have reported eye strain. Darwiche herself has felt the effects first hand.

1947- Bell Labs gives the first demonstration of the transistor.

1951- The first videotape recorder is released by Ampex Coporation.

“My eyes get dry and irritated, and my muscles start to ache,” Darwiche says.

“Sometimes, my vision gets blurry.”

Baker says there can be a lot of criticism when it comes to the use and abundance of technology today According to Baker, much of it may fall onto the younger generation for seemingly always using their mobile devices.

Baker feels that this view is unfair. From his perspective, it’s not the fault of teenagers at all.

“It’s not the fault of any individual that uses [technology],” Baker says. “[People] might have to look at it being the fault of those who are in control of social media itself. Basically, we are being manipulated by companies to act towards [their] benefit in ways we aren’t even aware of.”

B

aker says that Facebook is a good example of this manipulation. According to Pew Research Center, Facebook remains one of the most widely used social media sites among adults in the U.S., but they’ve also found that usage of that particular platform by younger audiences has decreased. To Baker, it is a good thing that they’re recognizing how negative [Facebook] can be and drawing away.

“Facebook has the tendency to exaggerate and magnify passionate feelings. [And] by passionate, I mean both very positive and negative,” Baker says. “They’re interested in making money, and at the same time making people really angry about things or really happy about things and sharing stories makes money for them. That’s really what it comes down to,” Baker says, “I do not think the problem is kids wasting all their time on their phone. I think the problems are bigger and more structural in society in that.”

Pew Research Center finds that about seven in 10 adults reports using some kind of social media platform (not including YouTube), and that teenagers are especially likely to report that social media is important to their friendships and romantic relationships. Darwiche has had social platforms since she was 12 or 13, but says most of her friends had them even earlier. She’s noticed that for some, social applications are a necessity in being connected.

“It’s not like technology is evil,” Darwiche says. “[It’s] good for lots of things: navigation, communication, and just for entertainment.

Life really wouldn’t be the same without it.” •

1957- The Soviet Union accomplishes spaceflight with the launch of Sputnik.

1958- Physicist William Higinbotham creates what is thought of as the first video game.

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 35

workplace | package

section | story

TECH ON THE BRAIN

Zain Choudury (left) and Josh Alonge (right) sit back to back while on their phones.

East senior Sabrin Mohamed discusses the effects technology has on her workplace experience. • story ekra khalid | infographic kelly johantges | photography isis summerlin

S

he puts on her glove and prepares to serve her customers their Chipotle orders. At this point she looks up to see the long line of people, she notices how distracted every person is. They all have their eyes glued to their phones, oblivious to the world around them. She greets the lady in the red hat and asks what she would like. The lady in the red hat doesn’t seem to notice her when she first says “Hello ma’am,” so she speaks up a little louder and the lady looks up to tell her that she would like a chicken bowl. The lady looks back down at her phone occasionally as East senior Sabrin Mohamed makes her food.

This is a typical work day for Mohamed.

Mohamed says that excessive use of technology has negatively impacted the way society communicates with people.

“Slowly, [people] are disconnecting from each other. [I] don’t see strangers talking to each other and interacting like back in the old days when they didn’t have cell phones,” Mohamed says. “There [are] over 100 people in the room.

They’re about less than a foot away and not one

is speaking to each other. I think that’s kind of sad.”

According to a study by Pew Research Center, 45 percent of teens believe social media has neither a positive nor negative effect on people their age. According to the same survey, roughly three in ten teens say social media has had a mostly positive impact, while 24 percent describe its effect as mostly negative.

Clinical Psychologist Miami University Associate Professor of Psychology, Elise Clerkins told Spark a lot of factors can depend on why people think technology is either good or bad for them.

“From what I have seen, it depends on a lot of different factors, including the person using [is] technology,” Clerkins says. “For example, are they using technology to get support from people? Or are they using technology in a way that is problematic? And depending on the answer to that question, then you can think about is technology helping or harming people.”

According to The Samuel Center for Social

36 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

Connectedness (SCSC), an organization that works to generate methods and strategies to build connectedness between communities, in modern society, technology has “tremendously” changed the ways in which people interact with one another on a daily basis.

In an article about social interaction by Phys. org, children are finding it difficult to develop social skills such as holding conversations or looking people in the eye.

“Technology is supposed to connect us, but it actually may actually be causing us to be more disconnected,” says East junior Rama Salem.

According to Pew Research Center, phones are also causing students to lose focus in class.

About 31 percent of teens say they felt they lost focus in class because they were constantly checking their phones.

E

ast sociology teacher Clint Adkins has noticed the psychological impact technology has made on students’ communication skills and attention span.

“Kids seem to not communicate as well as

students that I’ve had in the past. When I first started teaching in 2003, cell phones were still kind of a new thing, ”Adkins says. “And even if [students] had one, it was more for making phone calls, as opposed to texting,social media, and things of that nature. So it’s impacted the way that students interact with one another, and with their teachers as well.”

Adkins recently enforced a new policy in his classroom that requires students to put their phone in a cell phone holder during the class period. This policy is intended to prevent students from becoming distracted in class.

“We all were very busy. And being a dad, a husband, a teacher and a coach, I feel like people are constantly texting me and asking me questions,” Adkins says. “Honestly, I long for the days of going back to the 90s, where I didn’t have a cell phone. And it’s one less thing to worry about.”

Out of 297 East students surveyed, 88 percent felt ‘dependent’ or ‘somewhat dependent’ on technology. Mohamed says she is reliant on technology too.

“I feel as if I can’t even leave my phone. Even when I’m taking a shower, I feel like my phone needs to always be with me. That’s something I try to stay away from,” Mohamed says. “But it’s negatively impacting me, because I feel like I all I do is worry about my phone. And I am also in need of reassurance [by] constantly checking my phone to see what others are doing.”

According to National Public Radio (NPR), Researcher Jew Twenge Twenge noticed that young people who report spending five to seven hours a day on smartphones are twice as likely to report being depressed as those who use their phones for one to two hours a day.

In a survey of 268 East students, 56 percent believe technology can have an impact on mental health.

E

ast Junior Nasma Jarabah shares her views of tech on mental health.

“I think young girls and boys comparing themselves to one another at such a young age could definitely cause people to feel anxiety or depression,” Jarabah says.

According to Pew Research Center, when was the survey done, 42 percent of teens said they felt anxious when they didn’t have their phone. One fourth of the teens surveyed say

they felt lonely or upset in these instances.

Professor of Psychology at Miami University Jennifer Green believes technology allows humans to be constantly entertained.

“Our brains are just sort of craving that constant stimulation of new and interesting information,” Green told Spark. “We’re not in typical social interactions and are not engaging in other things that would be good for our brains.”

Green knows that there are positive and negative aspects to the internet.

“Social media makes [[people] more impatient. [The] expectation is that if [they] text someone, they’re going to get back to [them] right away. People will feel anxious over what [other] people will think,” Green says.“They will question themselves and wonder why the other person isn’t replying.”

According to a study by Pew Research Center, 45 percent of teens believe social media has neither a positive nor negative effect on people their age. Meanwhile, roughly three in 10 teens say social media has had a mostly positive impact, while 24 percent describe its effect as mostly negative.

A

t East eighty-three percent of students surveyed at East believe technology affects them in a positive way.

Mohamed finds that technology can also be beneficial.

“I’m able to virtually interact with my family in Eritrea; it’s always nice to Skype them,” Mohamed says. “So with that technology, it does bring us together.”

According to Pew Research Center, 95 percent of teens have access to a smartphone.

From that statistic, there has been a 22 percent increase from 2014, when only 73 percent of teens had access.

Mohamed believes technology is bringing [people] farther away from each other. As time goes on, she feels she doesn’t really get the connection through technology the way that [she] get from people in person.

“I feel as if [people are] kind of missing out on the part of the world when [they’re] so caught up in technology, looking at a screen, when you have the world in front of you,” Mohamed says.

“Technology is the real world and the outside world is just nothing to people.”•

1964- Phillips releases the first Compact Cassette in the United States.

1973- The first handheld telephone is invented by Martin Cooper.

source childmind.org

“A 2017 study of over half a million eighth through 12th graders found that the number exhibiting high levels of depressive symptoms increased by 33 percent between 2010 and 2015.”

“In the same period [2017 study] the suicide rate for girls in that age group increased by 65 percent.” source childmind.org

56.3% of Lakota East students believe that technology has an affect to your mental health. on

source lakota east student survey

1975- Ed Roberts puts the first personal computer is put on the market.

1976- Steve Jobs founds Apple and starts selling the Apple I computer.

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 37

smart home technology | package

ALEXA, CAN YOU KEEP A SECRET? As more people are buying smart home devices, security concerns are on the rise.

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ost Americans have a morning routine. For some that is getting coffee, showering and going to work.

For others that includes asking their smart home device what the weather is, what traffic looks like, and what they have on their calendar.

For East senior Hannah Wudke, it includes waking up to an alarm coming from her Amazon Alexa and, while she gets ready for school, jazz music plays from the speaker. If she thinks of anything she wants to add to her parents’ grocery list she calls it out to the room.

With the smart home device industry on the rise, security concerns are rising as well.

Younger generations are seeing the biggest increase in smart devices, with 47 percent of millennials owning a smart home system, according to the National Council for Home Safety and Security. By 2020 the global market for smart home systems is expected to reach 40 billion USD.

The Internet of Things (IoT) is a system of computers and devices that connect to the internet. The devices and computers communicate with each other and the human user. Smart home devices are one of the largest vulnerabilities currently in home security.

IoT devices include smart home devices, cameras, doorbells, baby monitors, automatic light switches and entertainment centers. If a device is included in an integrated system with other devices that are human-user controlled, it is part of the IoT. If a hacker gains access to one device, they are able to access all of the devices because they are on a connected system.

While many people own these smart home devices, not all are aware of the security risks that go along with owning them.

“I really didn’t know [the security risks],” Wudke says. “I figured that in the long run, it would be the same as having a phone or something like that. That information is already out there, so anything that would be [a] security issue with the Alexa is probably already an issue with other devices, anyways.”

Pablo Valerio, who works at AspenCore, an electronic information company, told Spark

1983- ARPANET begins the assembly of the internet.

1983- The Global Positioning System (GPS) is used by civillian aircraft.

38 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

of Standards and Technology Jeffery Voas says that people would still purchase devices even if they knew the security risks.

“People want faster and cheaper,” says Voas, who works in the Computer Security Division.

“The old thing we always argue about in technology is, faster, better, cheaper, [people] can only get two out of the three. People want faster systems, and they want cheaper systems.

You give them faster and cheaper. They’re not gonna be worried about better.”

Out of 121 students surveyed at East, 73 students said they purchased smart home devices because it made their life easier. Wudke also got her first device because it made life easier.

“My grandma ended up getting it for all of us because she loved hers. It just made things simpler,” Wudke says. “And then Prime Day came around and they were pretty cheap, so we ended up getting one for the basement.”

story anna mullins photography cassandra mueller graphic kelly johantges

that hackers are trying to find the weakest point and the maximum number of devices they can compromise in an integrated system.

“It is much more likely that [hackers are] going after consumer devices, because the number [of devices] that they can access and the security on those devices is likely to be weaker,” Valerio says.

P

rofessor of software and systems engineering at Penn State University Phillip A. Leplante has been researching the IoT for over five years and working as a visiting computer scientist at the US National Institute of Standards and Technology.

According to Leplante, it is possible for an attacker to penetrate a home security system through its weakest link, whether that be a doorbell, internet connected garage door, or thermostat.

“Make all of those devices as difficult to hack as possible: don’t reuse the same password.

[Don’t] use an internet enabled front door lock, [don’t] attach an internet enabled switch [to a critical device],” Leplante says.

Computer scientist at the National Institute

1990- The World Wide Web is developed by Tim Berners-Lee.

1994- Amazon is founded by Jeff Bezos.

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afe habits, like changing one’s password may not be enough to protect against hackers. Small, low cost counterfeit devices, have increased vulnerabilities in larger devices, making them susceptible to cyber attacks, says Valerio. These devices can be components of bigger devices or can be the larger device themselves. Counterfeit manufacturers make copies of popular devices, such as Alibaba’s Tmall Genie, a copycat of the Amazon Echo, and sell them as their own.

“Bad guys are building these kinds of devices,” Leplante says. “These counterfeit devices can be at the chip level, at the system level, at the device level, at any level.”

The copies of the devices are made cheaper because unlike established manufacturers, neither time nor money is spent to monitor the supply chain. Copycat manufacturers often purchase surplus components and do not ensure their technology is up to standards.

Assistant Professor in the department of electrical engineering and computer science at the University of Cincinnati Boyang Wang says the largest problem with counterfeit and security are the cheap products being sold.

Companies do not make a high profit, so they do not spend the money necessary for device security. “[Companies] don’t invest money in security,” Wang says. “[They] don’t invest

New Smart Speaker Users in 2018

6.6 million new users in 2018

source voicebot smart speaker consumer adoption report jan 2019

34 million users from 2014-2017

Amazon Echo

7.2 million new users in 2018

8.7 million users from 20162017

4.6 5.4 million million users users from 2016from 2017 2018

Google Home

Apple Homepod

New Smart Speaker Users in 2018 source voicebot smart speaker consumer adoption report jan 2019 money in making sure that firmware is up devices face. Hackers also pose a problem for to date, and [they] just try to sell as many as consumers’ private information. possible.”

Wang is currently working with his graduate Established manufacturers, like Google, students on a research project on passive attacks acknowledge that counterfeit products are a against smart home devices. They are seeing if reality, and recommend ways for consumers it is possible for someone to track the traffic to detect counterfeit products through their patterns from a smart home device to find packaging. Knowing consumers might have out what people are asking their smart home a difficult time determining if the device they systems. have purchased is counterfeit or authentic, they “By combining all those information pieces have added an anti-counterfeit label. together, [one] could infer what kind of music “It is really difficult, because if [a customer [a person] has, the basic routine [they] have, is] looking at components, and [they] open what time [they] leave the house and when [the] webcam, [they are] going to find a bunch [they] are going to come back,” Wang says. of electronics there that are going to look “Basically, someone can remotely learn, almost exactly like the original,” Valerio says. “Even every single activity [a person does] at home.” the markings on the chipsets and everything, they’re exactly the same.” ccording to Voas, there are no universal security standards in place because it hile a consumer cannot know for sure would not be fair to expect all companies whether a device is counterfeit, there to be on the same security level. are ways for consumers to be informed “Security is always a moving target, because when purchasing smart home devices. the threat space always changes,” Voas said.

“If [customers are] buying from very “And that’s one of the things that people don’t reputable sources, the chances of obtaining a understand [about] cyber security. They always counterfeit device are much lower,” Leplante wonder, why do these bad things happen? Why said. “A cheap knockoff that [they] think do these companies get hacked? and [how did] [they’re] saving a lot of money [on], could in all this consumers data get put on to the dark fact be a counterfeit.” web? It’s because things occur very, very, very Counterfeits and copycats are only a quickly in internet time. The vulnerabilities portion of the security issues that smart home change almost instantly.” •

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1997- The first working MP3 player is released by Advanced Multimedia Products

1998- Jaap Haartsen patents Bluetooth.

A

2000- The USB Flash Drive is invented by Simon Shmueli.

2001- The digital satellite service is launched, forming Sirius XM Radio, Inc. October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 39

innovation hub | package

package | innovation hub

East Junior, Michael Gary (left), works with Arvinder Singh (right) in the new innovation hub.

INTEGRATED INNOVATION Since the opening of the Innovation Hub in January, many changes were implimented to encourage student collaboration. • story alanna schlaeger | photography andrew marshall

N

oise fills up the Innovation Hub as she walks in to begin her day. She sits down behind the counter, ready for the flow of students, and wonders what they’ll work on that day.

East U.S. History and AP Human Geography teacher Katherine Joseph took on the role of East’s third innovation specialist this year alongside Kevin Keen and Ryan Corris.

The new role provides an opportunity for Joseph, who was formerly a full-time history teacher, to collaborate with students and fellow colleagues.

“It’s nice that I was a teacher [at East] first because it’s allowed me to further enhance my relationships with teachers,” Joseph says. “I also get to meet a broader range of students by going into classrooms where I’m forming relationships with students I would have never met.”

The Innovation Hub, a collection of technology stations, transformed the media center space at East during the 2018-19 school year. The new space allows students to work one-on-one with each other while using their chromebooks, experiment with green screen

2004- Mozilla Firefox is invented

by Blake Ross.

2004- Facebook is founded by Mark Zuckerberg.

40 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

and Virtual Reality (VR) technology, and work collaboratively with other classes.

The goal of the innovation specialists is to make students and teachers more comfortable with the new technology available to them, allowing students to use the innovation hub more frequently during the 2019-2020 school year. With more students using their chromebooks inside and outside the classroom, a new gateway has been opened to collaboration among students.

“The more comfortable you get with things the more you’ll be willing to use them,” Joseph

2005- YouTube is released by founders Chad Hurley, Steve Chen, and Jawed Karim.

2007- Apple releases the first iPhone, revolutionizing communication.

Madison Lequire (right) and Madisyn Potts (left) finish last night’s homework in the innovation hub, which is open throughout the day.

told Spark. “With the chromebooks getting used more, students and teachers are being bold and trying new things.”

East sophomores Madison Lequire and Madisyn Potts often come into the innovation hub during Extra Help (XH) to work on projects for class.

“We have different study halls, so the innovation hub provides a space where we can go and work together,” Lequire says.

East’s innovation hub has become a popular space for students to meet up on block days during XH. During this time, students can work on individual assignments or group projects.

“Kids like to come here to collaborate or hang out,” Joseph says. “Teachers are using the hub [more], so students are coming in to work on these projects.”

East Media Aid Marguerite Doll has witnessed the evolution of the media center

firsthand.Working at East since its opening in 1998, she has seen the gradual introduction of technology over the past 20 years. The new space provides a different environment than a media center. Doll estimates that around 80 students utilize the Innovation Hub during each XH period.

“The dynamic has changed,” Doll says.

“This is no longer a quiet place. It’s not a room where students just come in to check out books; instead, they come in to collaborate with one another.”

T

he new space has given students access to more hands-on equipment, including green screens, white boards, and virtual reality (VR) screens. Lequire often finds herself using the whiteboards to study for tests during XH. “The whiteboards are a great device to use for studying” Lequire says. “I’m able to work

2011- Snapchat is released by Evan Spigel and Bobby Murphy.

2014- The Amazon Alexa is released to the public.

out problems and easily erase my mistakes while also teaching other friends.”

The devices found in the Innovation Hub are commonly found in the world today. These devices allow students to enhance their learning and gain real-world experience. “ I see that in our world these devices are being used more as technology becomes more prominent in everyday lives” Doll says.

“Students have a chance to get hands on with devices they will see again later in their lives.”

The new devices offer a wider range of tools students are able to use. East makes it easy for every student to access devices and learn together.

“It’s important to have these devices offered in the building, since many students may not have access to technology otherwise,” Potts says. “Students learn in different ways, so it is helpful to have different tools to enhance their learning.” •

2017- The first working program using artificial intelligence is created by AlphaGo.

2019- The Apple Watch Series i5 is released.

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 41

pic six | culture

culture | pic six

PIC SIX: CUPCAKE EDITION 2 1Gigi’s 3 2

2 Bites 1 Cocoa 3 1 305 W Loveland Ave. Loveland, OH 45140 Price: $3 Hours: Sunday-Monday: Closed Tuesday-Saturday: 10am-5pm

4

C

5

6 4

ocoa Bites is a small patisserie located in Loveland, OH. The inside of the bakery is both elegant and charming.

Even though I had never been to Cocoa Bites before, I immediately picked up on the chic atmosphere. There was a wide variety of cupcakes among many other pastries and baked goods to choose from.

I selected the Hot Fudge Cupcake, a soft chocolate cake with vanilla frosting that melted in my mouth. The frosting wasn’t too sweet and it was evident that the flavors of each component had been carefully crafted. The presentation of the delicious treat was very polished, complete with rainbow sprinkles and a cherry on top. There was also an abundance of seating despite the limited space. Cocoa Bites is an excellent place for a quick delicacy!

7940 Hosbrook Rd. Cincinnati, OH 45243-1720 Price: $3.25 Hours: Sunday: 12:00am-6:00pm Monday - Thursday: 9:00am8:00pm Friday - Saturday: 9:00am-8:30pm

54 6 5

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igi’s Cupcakes is a lovely little bakery located near Kenwood Mall. The inside of the bakery was incredibly welcoming with bright pink decorations and comfortable cushioned seating. The bakery itself felt very relaxed and old-fashioned. After much debate, I ordered Gigi’s most popular cupcake: Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough.

The cupcake was beautifully decorated, complete with mini chocolate chips and a neat swirl of frosting. The cake tasted identical to a chocolate chip cookie although it was a bit dry.

But what the cake lacked, the frosting certainly made up for. Nothing can quite compare to the creaminess of the rich cookie dough flavored frosting. The cupcake was also topped with a homemade chocolate chip cookie which not only added to the presentation, but helped to introduce a delicious element of crunchy texture.

42 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

31

2 1 3 2

3

3 Abby Girl

4 Firecracker 64 5

5 4Molly’s 6 5

6 Jojo’s

4773 Glendale Milford Rd. Blue Ash, OH 45242 Price: $2.75 Hours: Monday - Friday: 11am-6pm

10965 Reading Rd. Sharonville, OH 45241 Price: $2WW Hours: Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Saturday: Closed Tuesdays and Thursdays: 10am-5pm

6

Sunday: Closed

1

2

Spark chose six cupcake bakeries to visit and review. Shiloh Wolfork ordered each bakeries’ most popular cupcake. Here are her rankings. reviews shiloh wolfork | photography ekra khalid | art kelly johantges

7120 Haskell St. Liberty Township, OH 45069 Price: $3.75 Hours: Monday - Thursday: 10am-9pm Friday - Saturday: 10am-11pm Sunday: 12-8pm

6544 Winford Ave. Hamilton, OH 45011 Price: $2.95 Hours: Monday - Saturday: 9am-3pm Sunday: Closed

Friday: 12pm-5pm

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bby Girl Sweets Cupcakery is a familyrun bakery in Blue Ash that specializes in homemade sweet treats. Customers are initially attracted to the unique cupcake flavors that Abby Girl offers such as coconut, black raspberry chip, carrot spice and banana pudding. However, the interior of the bakery lacks personality and decoration which made the experience lackluster. There also wasn’t much space for seating and the saleswoman appeared uninterested.

Once again I opted for the most popular cupcake which was red velvet. The presentation of the cupcake was quite uninspired and plain.

However, the taste was heavenly. The slight chocolate flavor of the classic cupcake wasn’t overpowering and blended perfectly with the smooth cream cheese frosting.

F

irecracker Bakery, located in Sharonville, OH, is a shop most well-known for its burst cookies, doughy sugar cookies complete with a sugar dollop of icing.

However, cupcakes and custom cookie cakes are also offered. Firecracker is mainly an online bakery, therefore dine-in seating is limited.

In store, the cupcakes can only be purchased in packs of six for 12 dollars which I found frustrating. However, the owner of the shop allowed me to purchase the cupcakes at a discounted rate of six dollars when she learned that I only wanted to purchase one. The amazing customer service made the experience even more positive. The most popular out of the six was the carrot cake. The cupcake was finished with a cute carrot design. I was very impressed with the balance and moistness of the carrot cake. It paired perfectly with the rich cream cheese frosting.

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olly’s Cupcakes is a small, awardwinning Midwestern bakery chain that recently opened at Liberty Center. The bakery is known for winning season one, episode nine of Cupcake Wars on Food Network. Old-fashioned paper cutouts of different baked goods line the walls and board games are provided for customers to play while devouring their delicious delights.

From the center-filled cupcakes to the vegan options and all of the eclairs and cheesecake in between, Molly’s certainly takes each customer into account.

The vanilla confetti cake was very moist although the raw cake batter filling had an unpleasant texture. The bright blue vanilla buttercream topped with mini rainbow sprinkles were adorable additions. However, the frosting did leave a slightly buttery residue despite its light, whipped consistency.

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ojo’s Cupcakes is a locally owned bakery in Hamilton that specializes in homemade cupcakes. It was very welcoming, with plenty of space for parties. Jojo’s allows guests to reserve tables for events and occasionally offers buy one, get one free sales for cupcakes. The cupcakery shares the space with a coffee shop that is run separately, adding a unique flavor to the experience. However, the coffee seemed to take some attention away from the cupcakes.

I was intrigued by the various flavors that were available, including Claire’s Caramel Apple and Ralph’s Reece’s Cup. I opted for the most popular cupcake, Oreo. Aside from the perfectly creamy vanilla frosting, I was underwhelmed with the quality of the treat.

The presentation was bland and the chocolate cake was dry and lacked flavor. In this case, the environment of the bakery outshone the cupcake.

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 43

concert review | culture

section | story

TIGHT AS A KNOT

Learn how to make this “Chinese staircase” friendship bracelet.

d.i.y. abbie westendorf photography andrew marshall

1. Pick three colors of string and cut them about wingspan length.

2. Gather the string together and tie them at the top.

3. Tape to a hard surface.

4. Make a 4 with one of the colors and tuck the string in and over the rest.

5. Pull tight.

6. Repeat and change colors as you please until the bracelet is at the desired length.

recipe cassandra mueller | art rachel anderson

EDIBLE COOKIE DOUGH

INGREDIENTS

•1 tablespoon of brown sugar •1 1/2 tablespoons of softened butter •1-2 tablespoons of chocolate chips •1/4 teaspoons of vanilla extract •1/4 teaspoons of salt •3 tablespoons of flour •2 tablespoons of milk

44 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. While the oven is preheating, pour the flour onto a baking sheet evenly.

3. Once preheated put the baking sheet with the flour into the oven and cook for five minutes (this will pasturize the flour).

4. Soften the butter and wait for it to cool.

5. Take a medium mixing bowl and add regular sugar and butter into it.

6. Add salt, brown sugar, vanilla extract, and milk and mix until smooth.

7. Add the flour and chocolate chips slowly with the mixer on slow speed or mix with a spatula until everything is evenly distributed.

SWEETENER TOUR

Pop sensation Ariana Grande embarks on her fourth world tour performing her albums Sweetener and Thank U, Next. review regan denham | art cassandra mueller

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hen it was announced that Ariana Grande would be bringing her Sweetener World Tour to the Schottenstein Center in Columbus, I was ecstatic. ‘Thank U, Next’ has been my album of the summer and I couldn’t wait to hear it live.

The Sweetener World Tour is pop sensation Ariana Grande’s fourth concert tour, and combines her fourth and fifth studio albums, ‘Sweetener’ and ‘Thank U, Next,’ respectively.

Combining two albums into one tour takes a lot of time and energy, but Grande manages to fit the majority of the two albums into a 90 minute, 30 song setlist while also including some of her hits off of her previous albums.

After the success of her

release date: august 17, 2018 tour date: march 18,2019 through dec 22,2019 number one on U.S. billboard 200 grammy award for best pop vocal album three top-twenty singles

single ‘NASA’, Grande decided to stick with an outer space theme, which included a giant drop-down ball that served as a moon and a background screen with moving stars, giving the feeling of traveling through space.

As ‘NASA’ is my favorite song off of ‘Sweetener,’ seeing a giant moon and shooting stars while hearing the entire audience sing along was the best part. In addition to the celestial aura, bright colors were used for different songs depending on the song’s atmosphere. ‘break up with your girlfriend, i’m bored,’ which has a sultry atmosphere, used different hues of deep red to create the mood, while ‘Be Alright,’ an uplifting pop ballad, used bright pinks and purples.

Last June, I attended Harry Styles’ debut album tour.

Throughout the concert, Harry took time to have conversations with fans, creating a welcoming atmosphere.

Grande was the exact opposite, leaving barely any time between songs to catch her breath, let alone converse.

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ecause Grande carried on song to song without a break, the whole performance felt rushed. In total the concert was only two hours, which is half the amount of time for a concert at Taylor Swift’s Reputation Tour, which I also attended last summer.

But the feeling of wanting to get in and out of a venue is now commonplace for Ariana, due to the deadly incident that took place on her previous tour.

On May 22, 2017, Ariana Grande had just finished a stop on her Dangerous Woman World Tour at the Manchester Arena in the United Kingdom (UK) when a suicide bomber took the lives of 22 people and wounded 139.

After the incident Grande halted the tour and went home to recover from the emotional trauma. She resumed the tour on June 7, 2017.

The after effects of this tragedy are still felt over two years later. Many of her fans wore “One Love Manchester” t-shirts as a tribute, but the effects were most present in the concert’s security standards. Only clear bags were allowed into the venue and it was strictly enforced, denying entry to anyone who did not comply with this policy.

To alleviate some of the difficulties in obtaining a clear bag, Ariana offered for sale some on her official website. This action did invoke backlash from fans as it could be inferred that she was profiting off her own rules. But Ariana insisted that it was solely for safety measures.

All in all, the combined Sweetener and Thank U, Next World Tour was the epitome of a bubble-gum pop concert that was both empowering and an overall fun time.

While the event wasn’t specifically geared towards the fans, Grande still put on a spectacular show with her incredible vocals taking center stage.

Grande has faced incredible hardships so early in her career, she has powered through everything and has remained a role model for millions. Grande’s signature ponytail and impressive four octave vocal range will keep her topping the charts for years to come. •

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 45

culture | album review

DEBUTED AT #1 ON

U.S. BILLBOARD 200 MALONE’S THIRD STUDIO ALBUM

RELEASE DATE: SEPT. 6, 2019

FEATURED ARTISTS: OZZY OSBORNE FUTURE HALSEY TRAVIS SCOTT MEEK MILL SWAE LEE SZA

photography fair use

HOLLYWOOD’S BLEEDING T

he “Stoney” sensation is back at it again with his third studio album, entitled “Hollywood’s Bleeding,” which was released on September 6, 2019. The album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart and comes almost a year and a half after his sophomore project, “beerbongs & bentleys.”

Post Malone brings a variety of sounds to the table with this project, mixing his signature melodic rap style with a bit of new age rock songs, such as “Allergic,” and some pop-rock style tracks, such as “I’m Gonna Be.” The album features a variety of artists, such as DaBaby, Meek Mill, Travis Scott, and more, including long-time rock icon Ozzy Osbourne, whom Malone had long been showing desire to work with.

Malone gave his fans their first taste of the album back in October of 2018 with his first single, “Sunflower,” which features Swae Lee of Rae Sremmurd. The song was released as part of the “Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse” soundtrack.

After “Sunflower” came Post’s second single, “Wow.” The upbeat trap song was released on December 24, 2018, and was met with mixed reviews, but it did earn a platinum certification

by the RIAA in the USA as of earlier this year.

The song eventually was remixed in March of this year with two new verses featuring Roddy Ricch and Tyga.

Malone released two more singles after these on July 5 and August 30, entitled “Goodbyes (feat. Young Thug)” and “Circles” respectively.

These songs set the mood for Malone’s more emotional songs that would appear on the album, especially in “Circles,” with the smooth guitar melody and boom-bap drum pattern.

The first half of the album depicts Post reflecting on his past decisions and how far he has come as a person.

This theme of self-improvement begins with the first track on the album, titled simply, “Hollywood’s Bleeding.” Depicted in this mellow rap song is Malone’s reasoning behind his move out of Los Angeles and into Utah. He begins blatantly with the lyrics “Hollywood’s bleeding, vampires feeding.”

He describes how toxic the environment of Hollywood can be, where clout-chasing “vampires” continuously try to leech off the success of A-list celebrities.

Not only does Malone bring in these themes of his personal journey, he also gives his fans his

46 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

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hirty years ago, on the night of April 19, 1989, five teenage boys of color— Antron McCray, Yusef Salaam, Korey Wise, Raymond Santana, and Kevin Richardson, were arrested and convicted for a wrongful accusation of the rape of a female jogger in New York’s Central Park.

Inside the police station, New York detectives beat, starved, and coerced all five of them into giving false written statements and video testimony for a crime they didn’t commit.

Headlines in newspapers like the Daily News referred to these boys as a “Teen wolfpack that raped Wall Street exec on jogging path.’ These five boys became known as the “Central Park Five.”

The Netflix four part mini-series, ‘When they See Us’ directed by Ava DuVernay is a show based on a true story that delves into the social injustice of these five teenage boys’ case which became known as the Central Park Five.

‘When they See Us’ aims to tell the story

WHEN THEY SEE US of the boys’ wrongful incarcerations from their perspectives, while also tackling the issues of police brutality and racism in the United States.

The heartfelt nature of what the story was portraying was simply powerful. While watching this show, I felt a level of sorrow for the characters that I never felt before. Overall, I really respect Duvernay for creating this well made show and believe this a show that truly depicts how it feels to have your youth truly ripped away from you.

When They See Us is a great series that Netflix represented and has been the mostwatched series on Netflix in the U.S. since it premiered on May 31st.

After the release of the show, the series prosecutors and official have received backlash for sending the Central Park Five to prison.

Former lead prosecutor on the case Elizabeth Lederer was a part-time lecturer at Columbia Law School, but she will not return this fall due to the backlash and protests by the school’s

Black Law Students Association. In an email sto the school’s dean, she says, “Given the nature of the recent publicity generated by the Netflix portrayal of the Central Park case it is best for me not to renew my teaching application,” This story is based on an incident from years ago, but it connects with the present day as both police brutality and racism have been an issue in contemporary society. It shows the hardships of the unfair justice system these kids had to endure and the obstacles they and their families and friends went through. The show only has one season, but the season itself is impactful enough to make a difference and spread the message of racism and police brutality. It shows the truth about how many people of color are lost in the criminal system and wrongfully accused for crimes they didn’t commit.

But more than anything, this mini-series reminds us that what happened to those five boys three decades ago could just as easily happen today. - Ekra Khalid

classic take on dealing with past relationships.

These include songs like “Die For Me (feat.

Future & Halsey),” “Take What You Want (feat. Ozzy Osbourne & Travis Scott),” “A Thousand Bad Times,” and more.

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alone addresses these topics in a somewhat cliché fashion, but his delivery saves the casual wordplay.

“Die For Me” gives a great example of this theme when Malone says, “I remember when you got my a** arrested / At least when I was in jail I got some rest, yeah.”

Malone’s craft in many ways has improved throughout his career, but the pure emotion and passion for greatness that was evoked in his earlier work is difficult to replicate. It seems that now that Post has made his claim to fame, his hunger for success has diminished.

However, Malone hasn’t lost his talent for putting out songs that are sonically pleasing.

He is still able to find material to speak on in his songs without being redundant, and his choices of instrumentals are rarely mirrored.

Malone deserves his spot at the top, and it is safe to assume he will be staying there for a while. —Mason Wise + Jake Ratliff

SCARY STORIES TO TELL IN THE DARK

orror movies have had a hit or miss year in 2019. While films such as “Us” and “Midsommar” are sure to become classics, others such as “The Curse of La Llorona” and the remake of “Child´s Play” have fallen short.

“Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark” is definitely a home run for those who want a nostalgic horror flick with its’ eerie vibe, vibrant characters, and encapsulating storytelling.

Though he can be inconsistent, director André Øvredal really surprised with this adaptation of a childhood favorite of many.

The story begins with Stella, (Zoe Margaret Colletti), and her friends Auggie (Gabriel Rush) and Chuck (Austin Zajur) heading to the Bellows, a supposed haunted house, with their

new companion Rámon (Michael Garcia),on Halloween night.

They encounter the school bully Tommy (Austin Abrams) and Auggie’s sister Ruth (Natalie Ganzhorn) who are there for revenge from an earlier prank. The group eventually escapes, however, Stella decides to take a book of scary stories which ends up driving the plot.

Colletti gives a fantastic performance as Stella, bringing in characteristics of classic girls such as Nancy Thompson and Sidney Prescott while giving a unique spin with her curiosity and timidness.

But characters such as Tommy aren’t exactly sympathetic. The gruesome fate they meet will make anyone feel lucky they aren’t within the movie.

Though the film incorporates a few overused genre staples such as jump scares and a certain death order, it makes up for it with the heart-pounding action and scares. The most memorable beast, dubbed the Jangly Man, moves in such an unsettling, fluid way that’s sure to put anyone off edge.

Apart from the horror, the story stands strong as the characters themselves are intriguing and three-dimensional. Each of the main characters has a reason they absorb themselves in stories, and although the ending is somewhat underwhelming it’s still satisfying.

At heart, this movie is a fun horror flick that will make viewers leave the theater with their hearts beating and minds racing.

—Wudie Amsalu

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 47

thrift shopping | culture

culture | thrift shopping

FIRST TIME THRIFTERS Thrifting is the act of shopping for second-hand used items at a thrift store, flea market, or a garage sale with the intent of finding items at a low price.

story and photography ekra khalid infographic kelly johantges and alexandra fernholz

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lthough thrifting may be viewed as a popular trend among teens, there are still people who still rely on thrifting for their everyday wardrobes.

“I had a young man who didn’t know how to tie a tie. He came in and got one of our two -dollar ties, and he asked me if I could teach him how to tie it. I was more than elated to help him out,” West Chester Goodwill Shift Leader Jeremy Ritz says. “Seeing the confidence in his face when he walked out the door for his job interview, it was just something that I can’t compare to anything else. I think that thrifting and the work that our individual stores and our employees do is a great thing.”

My friends Elsa Khan and Maryam Elkady enjoy thrift shopping and convinced me to go with them one weekend. Before I went, I didn’t know much about thrifting or why it was such a popular trend among those my own age, so I researched the benefits of thrifting. To my surprise, I learned that thrifting is actually quite beneficial to the environment.

“Thrifting is very fun, and also great for the environment in a way because you are reusing clothes and not being wasteful,” Khan says. “It’s a way to lessen the waste in landfills.”

48 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

HOW TO THRIFT LIKE A PR0 Only purchase items that you truly love and will make good use out of

Go with an open mind, you never know what you will find

Look for colors, patterns, and textures that catch your eye

Ask when your store restocks so you can choose the best day to shop

Check for stains and tears

Bring cash, some stores don’t accept all types of credit or debit cards

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he Atlantic says in an article about discarded clothing that Americans now buy five times the amount of clothing they did in the 1980s. Though Americans are buying more clothing, they are also are throwing it away.

For our thrifting adventure, we decided to go to Goodwill Industries, a long standing non-profit chain that sells pre-owned clothing, furniture and housewares.

When I first entered the thrift store, I was overwhelmed by the amount of items in the store. From team hoodies to flowy blouses to endless options of denim jeans, Goodwill had it all.

Medical Assistant and customer at Goodwill Michelle, who declined to give last name for

privacy reasons, has made thrifting a hobby of her own.

“I like to thrift because I can find good quality clothes, sometimes brand new clothes, at a fraction of the cost. I’m on a budget so [when] I come here I can find Nike, I can find Adidas, I can find jackets. I bought my grandson a Columbia coat. For only $8! And they’re regularly $80.”

I had many choices to pick from. When thrifting, it wasn’t easy to find something at first glance. I had to ravage through the racks of clothing, looking through each item until I found what I was looking for. Thrifting was an unplanned journey that felt like an adventure of a lifetime.

According to National Public Radio (NPR), 15.1 million tons of textile waste was generated in 2013, of which 12.8 million tons were discarded. The main source of textile waste is clothing.

There are many options to consider before throwing away clothing, such as donating them to local thrift shops like Goodwill.

Through the reuse of clothing, people can lower their carbon footprint because a lot of energy goes into manufacturing clothing.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that, the amount of clothing already recycled each year is equivalent to taking one million cars off the road.

Elsa Khan and Maryam Elkady shopping at Valley Thrift Store looking for an outfit on a budget.

esale is becoming one of the fastest growing markets in retail. At the same time, thrifting is becoming more popular among teens. With thrifting comes many benefits such as saving money and helping people find their personal style while remaining on budget. Ritz sees a wide range of customers who come to Goodwill.

“I have seen all kinds of people. People who have recently gotten out of the hospital from long stays, and they’ve got next to nothing that fits them anymore, and they need to completely redress themselves,” Ritz says. “Then I see people who have six or seven figure salaries.”

Ritz mentions the benefits of thrifting for people in the community and the company. “[Thrifting] is a great thing, both for the people who benefit from our company, and for the people who work here. I have met some wonderful individuals with disabilities that have been helped by the services that Goodwill provides,” Ritz rold Spark. “And they find that one thing that might not mean anything to me or you, but to them finding that one thing and then taking it home, it really does make my day whenever I get to see it happen.”

After my experience, I can say that thrift stores offer trendy and unique styles to fit a variety of different tastes. My idea of what thrifting is has changed after learning of its benefits and impact to society.

“It’s good for your wallet and the world, so keep on thrifting,” Khan says. •

Beforehand, think of a few items you are mainly looking for and remember to have fun

white knit tee

straight leg jeans

silver hoop earrings

original price

original price

original price

$25

$49.95

$1.50

$3.50

thrifted price

thrifted price

$15

thrifted price $2

featured items purchased at Salvation Army

7900 Tylersville Square Dr., West Chester, OH 45069

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 49

golf | sports

section | story The East girls softball team celebrates their 2-1 Regional victory over GMC rival West, which sent them to the 2019 state finals.

BY THE NUMBERS

25 STROKES -- margin over Mason in the GMC meet; 41 STROKES -- improvement from 2018 at the STATE meet.

FOR STEVE

During head coach Steve Castner’s illness, East girls softball earned a spot in the state tournament. • story isis summerlin | photography fair use

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arlier this year, East varsity softball pitcher Sydney Larson set a precedent for the rest of the team’s season by driving a walk off single to win the game against Greater Miami Conference (GMC) rival Mason.

“Mason is always one of the hardest teams in the GMC for us to beat,” Assistant coach Jess Howard says. “It’s one of those things that just makes you really happy as a coach.”

The victory against Mason set the tone for the rest of the season. In the (GMC), East achieved a 2-1 victory over West in the regional final game. With a GMC record of 302, the varsity team earned a spot in the state tournament, the first time the team was able to go to Akron since 2010.

“There was no one on the team, whether they were [someone] that spent the majority of the time in the dugout, or if they were someone that was starting every game, everyone was over the moon because [we were] truly a team and we had come through so much,” Larson says.

East was not only fighting on the field, but off the field as well. In April, head coach Steve Castner was hospitalized over Easter weekend.

“It was a pretty trying time for me because I’ve never been confined to a bed or a hospital or crutches or anything,” Castner says. “And I still don’t know how I got [sick].”

East senior and third baseman Cassidy Hudson reflects how Castner’s absence affected the team’s gameplay and purpose.

“He gave a purpose to every game. We fought so much harder for him,” Hudson says.

“Our assistant coaches stepped up really wellit was like no one was missing. But a piece of our heart was gone because we were playing for something that we didn’t have there.”

Due to Castner’s unexpected illness, the players, team managers, and assistant coaches worked to keep the team running smoothly.

“I was able to listen [to] the state semis and watch the state finals,” Castner says.

“Everybody did their part and the coaches [Jess Howard and Dan Castner] who took over for me, I can’t ask much more of them. They did a good job.”

On Sept. 7, Castner was named High School Softball Coach of the Year by the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ballpark.

“It was nice to see the girls. Every one of the starters were there watching the game,” Castner says. “My two assistants, Dan and Jess, were there to walk down with me, so it was special.”

West softball coach Keith Castner told Spark about his brother’s unwavering work ethic.

“He doesn’t make it about himself at all.

It means a lot because he was the guy that I looked up to when I got into coaching softball,” Kieth says. “It’s awesome to see that he’s fought through it. [The fact that] he got an award like that was outstanding.”

At Firestone Stadium in Akron, Ohio, East played the Louisville Leopards in the state championship game. Both teams encountered many setbacks during the game.

“The girls had to fight through a lot of adversity in that game,” Howard told Spark.

50 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

“We had lightning delays, so our state final game [was] postponed to the next day. That was something that was a little difficult for us and [the game] ended up going into extra innings.”

The East girls battled against the opposing team with both sides making big hits and exchanging leads. But, ultimately, East lost the game with a final score of 10-14 on June 2.

“We were winning 7-2 and then they started hitting, but we fought back. Both teams played really [well] and fought to the end,” second baseman Abby Beckham told Spark.

East players also gave credit to the team managers for keeping everyone’s spirits up and helping everyone get what they needed.

“We charted pitches that [the umpires] called during games. We played music for the girls in the weight room and during the game.

We were kind of the hype men,” team manager Riana Spiller says.

Outside of the games, the girls developed a strong bond and often hung out off the field.

“We’d sit in the East parking lot and talk.

That is [still] the meeting place,” Hudson says.

Castner said that his favorite part about coaching was creating lasting connections.

“Building a relationship and knowing that you will have that for the rest of your life and [the players] will look back on it and think I learned this or I enjoyed that,” says Castner.

“Saturday night [after receiving his award], a couple players that played for me fifteen years ago were remembering stuff that happened to them and it made it nice.”•

41 STROKES CLOSER

East senior Grace Honigford paced the Girls Golf Team at state with a 70 and 75 two-day total.

After winning the GMC and their first District title, the East Girls Golf team placed third in the OHSAA State meet. story brayden barger | photography with permission of Paragon Yearbook

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s East sophomore Ellie Yeazell lines up her shot during the final round of the OHSAA State Championship, the pressure begins to build. Facing the likes of New Albany, who won the championship in 2018, and GMC rival Mason, who won the GMC Championship in 2018, it was imperative that Yeazell and the rest of the team stayed focused. Countless hours of offseason workouts and practices had prepared her.

Taking her time, paying close attention to her technique, the direction of the wind, and the distance to the hole, she maintains her focus. With one confident swing, she strikes the ball and sends it sailing down the green.

76 and 73 strokes later and placing 15th

overall individually, Ellie and her team placed 3rd in the tournament, the highest they have ever placed. East shot a team score of 619, which is a 41-stroke improvement from last year when they finished sixth at state. They shot nine strokes better than 4th place Mason and were 16 strokes behind the state champs, New Albany. East senior Grace Honigford led the team with rounds of 70 and 75 and finished tied for 7th and received All-Ohio honors.

“Placing third definitely makes me confident,” Yeazell says, who was named the GMC Athlete of the Year. “I proved to myself what I can really do and it makes me want to try even harder.”

Prior to State, the East Varsity Girls Golf

Team were crowned GMC Conference Champions at Walden Ponds Golf Course after two days of competition. They shot a two-day school-record 612, which was 25 strokes better than runner-up Mason, 637.

At Sectionals East finished 3rd with a 315 behind Kings (308) and Mason (293). Grace Honigford and sophomore Samantha Bernardo led the team shooting at 78. Senior Camryn Eddy and Ellie Yeazell weren’t far behind shooting 79 and 80.

East’s place at Sectionals qualified them for Districts, where they won with a 315, beating out Centerville (317) and Mason (317), bringing the program their first District title.

Grace Honigford led the team shooting 76 and finished tied for 2nd individually. Ellie Yeazell trailed by one stroke, shooting 77 and placed 4th individually. The win qualified the team for their third State appeareance in a row.

First Team All-GMC Camryn Eddy recalled last year’s postseason and highlighted the improved mental maturity of the team.

“Our team put a lot of practice into the offseason and played a ton over the summer.

Knowing we lost to Mason last year in the GMC Championship by 2 strokes just made our victory [this year] that much sweeter,” Eddy says, who shot a 162 and 163 at State. “We only graduated one of our top five [players] last year and those top four that have remained are more mature and simply better than last year.”

Coming into the season, the team was already well prepared for success. First year East head coach Ali Green, who received the honor of GMC Coach of the Year, said that prior to the season, the team addressed their weaknesses and worked to build upon their strengths.

“We held optional workouts and practices during the offseason and during the season to help prepare the girls,” Green says. “We also continued workouts during the season and I feel that they are really helping the girls stamina during the rounds.”

Though they didn’t place first in State, Yeazell says that her and her team’s confidence couldn’t be higher, and they are determined to improve and take the state crown for the first time in program history next season.

“We definitely had a shot at winning state, but our biggest competition played in this tournament so we really had to play the best that we could,” Yeazell says. “Our team has matured greatly and we built stronger relationships. That helped us work together during [this] season, along with putting more effort towards our goals [for next season].”•

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 51

hubbard feature | sports

section | story

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H

ustler. That’s one way to describe him.

If one is familiar with the East men’s volleyball team or East Marching Band, then East junior Grant Hubbard is the man who does it all. In addition to playing setter in the Ohio Premier Volleyball Club and East’s varsity volleyball team, Hubbard plays baritone saxophone for East’s marching band.

In the 2019 season, East men’s volleyball had a record of 8-0 in the Greater Miami Conference (GMC). They went on to win their first two rounds of the state tournament versus Middletown High School and Northmont High School. The team eventually fell short in the Elite Eight of the state tournament to Mount Vernon High School, a team with only one loss coming into the game.

“We’ve been undefeated in the GMC for four years straight and this year we are going for [our] 5th, so we all have to work very hard,” Hubbard says. “Since [the team] went to state last year, we want to go there again because going to state was a real honor and we all want to experience that again.”

Grant’s older brother Ethan Hubbard was renowned as the best player on the 2019 volleyball team by several of his teammates.

According to Grant, Ethan is one of the most influential people to him-. He inspires Grant to play volleyball at the collegiate level and Grant constantly looks up to Ethan’s character. Ethan received an academic and a partial athletic scholarship for Lincoln Memorial University (LMU), a Division II college in Harrogate, Tennessee.

“I’ve been playing volleyball for around eight years and I put in so much work. I’ve always been covering my brother outside, always trying to get him better,” Ethan says. “I played with him on varsity last year and I try to set the best part of me [forward] to him and to the team.’’

In the 2019 high school volleyball season, Grant had 57 spikes, 32 blocks, 4 digs, and an impressive spike percentage of 55. Grant is also one of the few returning players from the 2019 season, as most of the roster graduated that spring.

“Grant is a very outgoing person, and you need someone who is very outgoing to be able to communicate with all six players on the court,” East varsity men’s volleyball coach Bryant Kulhman says. “Also [he is] able to lead, [so] I’m hoping [he will] step up into [a] leadership role this year.”

Kulhman believes the 2020 varsity team shows a lot of promise. If the team puts in their utmost work in important practice drills, Kulhman thinks that the team can live up to the expectation set for them by last year’s season, and even do better.

With three returning players from the 2019 season, Grant still is able to find confidence in what he does.

“Going to states gives me a lot of confidence

story | section sports | quaterback

story spencer li | photography jake ratliff

East junior volleyball player Grant Hubbard discusses how he balances athletics, academics and music. because if I’m doing good in something I’ll try to be as good in [it as I am in] another activity, so I’ll put [as much] effort into marching band as I do in volleyball,” Grant says. “Since I’m a setter, I have to live up to a lot of expectations because I’m the person who is setting up all the hits. I’m also having to communicate everything to everybody. I have to be one of the leaders on the team.”

Ethan sees a lot of himself in Grant because they share the same interest in sports. They are an inseparable pair, but Ethan can also see the amount of stress that Grant goes through on a day-to-day basis.

“I think Grant does a good job of balancing the marching band with volleyball. The two are conflicting seasons, although I know he

52 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

has played a pretty big role with the girls’ [volleyball] team [by recording] stats,” says East marching band director Robert Tanis.

Between all of the extracurricular activities that he does, Ethan has a lot of confidence that Grant can make it big time if he keeps doing what he is doing. Balancing his junior year, regarded by many to be the hardest year of high school, plus club and school volleyball as well as being a part of the school marching band, Grant will prove to be ‘the one who does it all’ this 2019-2020 school year.

“I am very confident that I [will be] able to maintain the stress between all the athletics and academics,” says Grant Hubbard. “I do hope that I will achieve success in all areas that I work hard in.” •

hen East sophomore quarterback TJ Kathman, who had led the Hawks to two straight wins, went down with what appeared to be a serious injury against Middletown, feelings of anxiousness and shock were evident among players, shown by the silence throughout the Hawk’s sideline.

After further medical examination and testing at Beacon Orthopedics, the final verdict was a broken collarbone.

Although the injury will not require surgery, Kathman will be unable to take a hit for around three months. Since the season ends in November, this means he will not be able to return to the field for the remainder of the 2019 season.

“Everyone was in shock because no one expects anything like that,” sophomore running back Kenrich told Spark. “[The team] felt really bad for TJ, because no one can imagine what he is [going to] have to go through.”

Kathman’s presence under center will be missed. He threw for 151 yards, completing six of his nine pass attempts in the 2019 season, not to mention making countless reads on each play on who to give the ball to in East’s triple option offense, leading to two straight wins.

Head coach Richard Haynes complimented Kathman’s athleticism “He can throw the ball and run the ball well,” Haynes says. “He’s got some good skills.”

Kathman’s teammates spoke highly of his ability to be a “sponge” when it comes to learning the offense “The ability to run the triple option offense is hard enough,” Kenrich says. “But it’s even harder as a sophomore.”

The now full-time starter, senior Mark Krajewski, has not always been a backup quarterback. Krajewski started the season opener against Turpin, running for 57 yards and a touchdown despite falling short in a 35 to 21 defeat. Kathman and Krajewski split time under center for the first

Senior quarterback Mark Krajewski drives the ball down the field in a 21-9 GMC win over Middletown.

two games of the season before Kathman eventually took over.

“We all know that Mark is more than capable of winning games,” Kathman told Spark. “There is no doubt that [the Hawks] can do as well as we wanted.”

Kathman isn’t the only one who feels confident in Krajewski’s abilities under center. Kenrich also believes in Krajewski, praising both his game management and his leadership skills.

“Mark is one of the best leaders I know.

He is the best vocal leader out there,” Kenrich says. “He knows how to get his guys ready to play and do things right. Krajewski is the type of player to give 100 percent every single play.”

Haynes says. “He really knows how to run the triple [option].”

With Krajewski at the helm, Kenrich feels confident about the Hawk’s chances of making the playoffs for the second straight year.

“Krajewski is a tough guy and plays hard.

There’s nothing better than that,” Kenrich says. “We trust that he can take over and we can still be successful.” •

K

rajewski is confident in his own abilities. His experience as a senior and with the Hawk’s offense has helped his game management and knowledge of the Hawk’s offense and opposing defenses.

“I just see the way (the defense) lines up,” Krajewski says. “For example a three-three defense and I check to get us in the correct plays.”

Haynes also touched on Krajewski’s high football IQ. “[Krajewski] gets us into the right play,”

With QB TJ Kathman out for the season with an injury, senior Mark Krajewski will take the reigns to try to lead the Hawks to the playoffs. story drew bachman photography jake ratliff

NEXT MAN UP

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 53

norcom feature | sports

sports | norcom feature

KILLING

IT story hannah myers infographic kelly johantges photography andrew marshall

East senior captain Sarah Norcom spikes the ball in a match versus Mason. Norcom recently set the school record for most career kills.

East senior Sarah Norcom is ready for her final year playing volleyball at East.

Sarah is going on to continue her career at the University of Cincinnati.

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his court is hyped up by all the fans.

Rival versus rival. East versus West. The outcome of the game has been highly anticipated by everyone there. It all came down to the kills, kills she had. She won the game.

East senior Sarah Norcom is the girl with the kills. The girls’ varsity volleyball outside hitter turns heads whenever she plays. Even heads of those at the University of Cincinnati (UC), where Sarah is committed to continue her volleyball career.

“I am very excited,” says Sarah. “Playing at the collegiate level has always been a dream for me.”

Sarah isn’t the only one that’s excited though. Her dad, John Norcom says he is happy that his daughter will be playing so close to home.

Before commiting to UC, Sarah wanted to attend college somewhere warm. This would mean not only playing far from her family, but it would also be hard for them to see her play in person. To begin her college plan, Sarah had intended to play at Tulane University in

New Orleans, Louisiana. That plan has since changed to playing at UC in order to be closer to home.

“I’m glad because I would have never gotten to see [Sarah] play [in New Orleans],” says John. “It’s going to be fun. We’ll get four more years [to watch her] hopefully.”

But this dream of Sarah’s was not easy to achieve. She has worked hard for it and always has a clear drive to win. When in game, she’s able to help in any rotation, according to East volleyball coach Jana Stephens. “[Sarah] is super athletic. That’s something that you can’t teach,” says Stephens. “I’m sure UC believes they can train her to be an important part of their team.”

The athletic abilities that Sarah has under her belt have allowed her to receive seven Player of the Match awards in the 2018 season alone.

These awards were given for many reasons, including Sarah’s abilities to be a good outside hitter. According to Stephens, Sarah is a great defender and passer. She is a strong leader and a captain figure for the team.

Sarah’s teammates, including varsity

54 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

volleyball player and junior Delaney Senger, also see her as the powerful leader she is. When in tough situations, Sarah comes out on top. “[Sarah] is a leader because she always can pick the team up after we haven’t had the best of games,” Senger told Spark. “She’s been super positive about everything this season.”

Sarah’s skills have allowed her to start on varsity as an outside hitter since her sophomore year, giving her the experience in order to be the strong leader she is.

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ast year Sarah set the single season record for most kills, and she has set the highest record for kills in East’s history at 844.

Sarah was also second in Cincinnati for kills last season.

Sarah’s talents are not only noticed at East, but other Greater Miami Conference (GMC) like West have taken note. According West girls varsity volleyball coach Tracey Kornau, Sarah is a threat to other teams.

“Teams are not able to stop [Sarah]. They try to contain her as best as they can,” says Kornau, who is in her 29th year. “She’s not

afraid to put her team on her back and carry them.”

With all the records and abilities under Sarah’s belt, John said that he’s going to miss watching Sarah play in high school. John and Sarah have both made strong relationships with parents and players.

According to John, he is proud of Sarah’s career at East and the accomplishments were well deserved because Sarah really loves the game.

“Although [volleyball] does take away from other social stuff, when she’s on the court, she loves it,”John says.

Sarah’s love for the game has also helped her commit to club volleyball. Playing for Elevation Volleyball Club since she was nine years old, Sarah has helped bring her team to third and second in the country in back to back years.

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arah’s club coach Adam Goller said that the Elevation team improved heavily and the girls played their best ball to make it so far.

Kill Leaders in Greater Miami Conference (as of October 2019) source gmcsports.com

1

Lakota East Sarah Norcom Kills: 290 Mason Brooklyne Darby Kills: 228

3

2

Lakota West Sydney Hilderbran Kills: 197 Mason Marilyn Popplewell Kills: 172

5

4

Fairfield Emma Miller Kills: 169

According to Goller, Sarah is a go-to outside hitter and is a very significant player to the team. “[Sarah] was terminal in both the front and back row with a great serve,” says Goller. “Her ability to be [ultimate] out of system proved to be a significant part of winning tough matches.”

These matches played by Elevation took place all over the U.S.. Sarah and her team have been able to play in places like Chicago, Dallas, Philadelphia, and Florida.

But Sarah doesn’t have to travel far to feel the excitement of a good match. On Aug. 22, the varsity girls had a hard fought match against Seton High School.

Before the varsity match, Sarah said that it was thrilling to watch the junior varsity (JV) team play.

She said it was fun for her to be able to cheer for East’s own team.

“That gets me excited. I have all this energy to be able to cheer for [the JV team]. Now we get to go out and they get to cheer for us.” says Sarah. “It’s such a great environment to be a part of.”•

MEET THE BOARD ...story continued from page 10 safe are the SROs already in the building. He said that they are the “boots on the ground,” connecting with the students and teaching them how to stay safe.

OPEN QUESTION Finally, the candidates were allowed a period to talk about the topic or policy most important to them.

Shaffer spoke on her belief that schools need to keep up with the changing educational needs of the student body.

“Schools went through a long period of time where they did not evolve very quickly,” Shaffer said. “I think schools now recognize the need to change very quickly to meet our students’ needs. For us, being able to support the work of personalized and individualized learning that’s happening right now in the curriculum department is going to be essential.”

Hahn believes that emphasis should be placed on what students are going to do once they leave high school. He says that there are gaps in what students are learning, making them less employable. His goal is to close these gaps, making students more attractive to the workforce.

“I would help drive a change in culture,” Hahn said. “We need to embrace Butler Tech, and the kids who want to learn a trade.”

According to Murray, Lakota gives students plenty of opportunities to get trade or job skills via the Butler Tech teachers in the district, but that there is a lack of social skills taught.

“We’re seeing kids that have technical skills show up at our [businesses], but they have no interpersonal skills,” Murray said. “The Ohio Board of Education is trying to put social skills on par with reading and mathematics. I think it is something that we should really embrace here.”

Lakota offers the 4E’s of “employment”, “enrollment”, “entrepreneurship”, and “enlistment”. O’Connor said that Lakota shouldn’t push as much for students to go to college but to offer the other three paths as well. She said that the conversation of student opportunities should be brought to the state level.

“Part of increasing the career tech options is changing the conversation from a federal level, to the state level, to the local level about options for students,” O’Connor said. “There’s a tremendous amount of opportunity out there, that we’re not able to help our students take advantage of until we change the conversation and say, every one of those forays works.” •

Candidate Night was broadcast via Instagram Live and recorded by the Spark Broadcast Network (SBN).

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 55

girls soccer | sports

section | story

East senior Parker Crowell dribbles down the field in a GMC matchup versus Sycamore.

SEEKING STATES

With the addition of Columbus Crew Academy player senior Parker Crowell to the men’s soccer team, the sky’s the limit. story drew bachman | photography andrew marshall | infographic nicco morello

I

t was the opening game of the 2019 season, and after a prior record of 9-7-3 in 2018, the team was in desperate need to start the season off on the right note. But something about this year was different.

The 2019 squad includes a former Columbus Crew Academy player, East senior forward Parker Crowell. In the final few minutes of the opening game, the senior went and put the ball through the back of the net to tie the game 1-1 against a talented St. X team.

For Crowell’s first three years in high school, he played for the Columbus Crew Academy team, which is supported by the U.S. National Team and plays some of the top competition in the country. The Columbus Crew Academy team was rated the 14th best academy team in the nation by Topdrawer Soccer in 2017.

“The competition level was a lot higher,” Crowell says. “The style of play is definitely better.”

What drove Crowell to play for East this year was something that didn’t come down to soccer.

With a commitment to the Naval Academy to go and play soccer, he must complete a long academic process. Playing for a team closer to home allowed Crowell to focus more on academics. When asked about Crowell, Navy

could not comment due to NCAA rules prohibiting coaches from commenting on prospective student -athletes.

“When I played with the Crew I was in the car a lot,” Crowell says. “[All the travel] wasn’t giving me a lot of time to focus on academics.”

Using the skills he acquired from one of the top teams in the nation, Crowell has been able to make a dramatic impact on East’s 2019 season so far. As of early October, the team has yet to lose a game with three wins and three ties. Crowell’s teammates have praised the impact that he has on the field.

East junior defender Jack Plennert harped on Crowell’s ability to control the midfield with his ability to connect passes at a high level and

his impact off the field.

“He does so much for the team,” Plennert says. “He gets everyone focused and ready to go before the game.”

East Head Coach Jeremy Hilen also raved about how Crowell’s impact on the field was significant. He highlighted the fact that he draws a lot of attention from the defense, creating the opportunity for other players to be open, as well as his decision-making skills.

“In soccer you are presented with not one but two, or sometimes three choices to pass the ball, Hilen says. “The knowledge to make the best pass and make the right decision can affect the success of the game.”

With one goal and one assist in East’s first six games, Crowell’s abilities may be dismissed on paper. However, Plennert is quick to dispel this notion.

“What he does on the field cannot be measured,” Plennert says. “He does so many things that don’t end up in the stat sheet but have a dramatic effect on the game.”

According to Hilen, Crowell’s leadership skills are also what makes him so special, pointing out that he does many jobs that might be called humbling.

“He’s one of the players that helps pick up the cones after practice,” Hilen says. “Things that some players might dismiss at times, but he sees the value in leading by example.”

Even before East picked up Crowell, Hilen said the team was still going to be very competitive, as many of Easts’ players, now seniors, that started as sophomores. But, when word got out that Crowell would be joining them in June, the expectations from players and fans went to another level.

“We use the term ‘elite’ a lot in our conversations with the players,” Hilen says.

“Meaning that our goal is to be an elite team doing these that are uncommon and not doing things that are considered average.”

Though players are quick to throw around the phrase “state,” referring to a state title, Hilen makes sure that the players do not look too far ahead and instead focus on each game.

With not a single loss in the season thus far, a state run is a definite possibility, something Crowell mentioned as one of his personal goals.

“We would all like to win state, that’s really our main goal,” Crowell says. “We would like to do that on top of winning the GMC.”•

Leading the Pack The East Girls’ Soccer program is led by head coach Tom McEwan.

Filling the Void This year’s team must fill the void of Class of 2019 seniors Madison Hart, Jenna Kralik, and Kate Larbes, who are all currently playing soccer at the collegiate level.

Returing Experience The 2019 Hawks roster features eight returning seniors who bring numerous years of varsity experience to the table, including center back Mackenzie Beerman, pictured.

Impressive Performances So far this season the team has picked up four quality wins against Greater Miami Conference (GMC) opponents Middletown, Princeton, Colerain, and Fairfield.

6

THINGS TO TO KNOW KNOW THINGS ABOUT GIRLS GIRLS ABOUT SOCCER SOCCER

infographic mason wise, drew bachman, and kelly johantges photography andrew marshall

A Brighter Future The future for the East Girls’ Soccer program looks bright, as next year’s team will feature 10 returning seniors and a lot more experience.

Defending Their Championship Their 2018 team was crowned OHSAA Sectional Champions after an upset win over Fairfield.

2019 Season Current Winning Percentage

2016 Season Winning Percentage 2018 Season Winning Percentage 2017 Season Winning Percentage

63.9%

75% 55.3%

Senior Mackenzie Bierman plays against Turpin at Lakota East on August 27th resulting in a tie of 2-2.

38.9%

source gmcsports.com

Winning Percent Calculation Formula: (2 x Wins + Ties) / (2 x Total Games Played) x 100

56 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 57

head to head | sports

sports | head to head

HEAD TO HEAD

Should female athletes be paid the same as male athletes?

I

t is July 7, 2019 in Lyon, France, home of the 2019 Women’s FIFA (International Federation of Association Football) World Cup Final. The United States is looking to win their second consecutive World Cup, while the Netherlands is making their first ever appearance in a World Cup Final.

Consequently, the Americans went on to win the game 2-0 in dominating fashion.

As the final seconds of the game began to wane, a sellout crowd of nearly 60,000 people began chanting “USA,” their shouts echoing throughout the stadium. This win capped off an excellent tournament run for the U.S. Women’s National Team (WNT), as they had successfully represented their country once again.

However, this win represented more than just another World Cup championship. It sparked conversation about the wage gap between male and female professional athletes.

This encouraged a movement among the team to continue fighting for equal pay. And what better time to revive such a crucial debate than after bringing home the World Cup trophy for a second consecutive time?

These women and all other female athletes who are continuing to fight for equal pay need to be heard. They’re fighting for equality, an idea that this country was founded on, and something written in our country’s Constitution for over 200 years.

Many who oppose equal pay among athletes claim that because male sports bring in more annual revenue, that means they should get paid more as a result. While this is true among most major professional sports, it is actually not as common as many people think. In fact, the women’s soccer team has proved otherwise.

The ratings for this year’s Women’s World Cup final were higher than the 2018 Men’s World Cup final, as nearly 14.3 million U.S. viewers tuned in to the final match on television, compared to 11.4 million for the 2018 Men’s World Cup Final, a 22% U.S.

viewership boost. It was also the highest rated soccer game in the U.S. since the 2015 Women’s World Cup final, which was coincidentally also won by the Americans.

Despite the common belief, there has been a growing interest in women’s professional sports.

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any members of the Women’s World Cup team decided to speak for themselves about their opinions on the wage gap in professional sports, including star forward Megan Rapinoe, who said that the World Cup win meant so much more than what was on the field.

“It’s really more about the investment in the game. Is the investment equal? We’re talking marketing dollars and branding, investment in the youth, investment in the players, investment in the coaching staff, says Rapinoe.”I don’t think that that [equality is] there. I don’t think that that’s ever been there.”

And even despite the fact that less money is invested into women’s professional sports, the U.S. women’s soccer team’s games have generated more revenue than the men’s team over the past three years, according to a review by the Wall Street Journal.

This has been an ongoing issue for months before the U.S. Women’s soccer team brought home the FIFA World Cup trophy in July.

It all started back in March 2019, when the team filed a complaint against U.S. soccer that states: “Female WNT players would earn a maximum of $99,000 or $4,950 per game, while similarly situated MNT players would earn an average of $263,320 or $13,166 per game.”

This fact alone shows how backwards the system truly is. The U.S WNT has consistently brought in more money over the past three years, and yet each female player earns just one third of the yearly salary that each male player would receive. The only question is how long will it take for female athletes to finally receive equal pay? •

These women and all other female athletes who are continuing to fight for equal pay need to be heard. column mason wise photography fair use

The U.S. National Women’s Soccer Team (USWNT) stands for the national anthem in September of 2017 at Nippert Stadium against New Zeland. The team won the match 5-0.

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October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 59

head to head | sports

sports | head to head

Sports writers Jake Ratliff and Mason Wise debate one of the hottest topics in professional sports.

T The WNBA simply does not generate the revenue needed to increase salaries to meet the criteria that these female athletes are asking for. column jake ratliff photography fair use

he 2018 NBA Finals Championship kicked off on May 31 of last year, in which the Cleveland Cavaliers faced off against the Golden State Warriors.

Tensions were higher than ever as the two teams fought to settle their long-time rivalry, and fans were excited to see the matchup.

During Game One of the Finals alone, over 19,500 people attended the game live, as well as 17.7 million viewers that tuned in to the broadcast live on ABC Sports.

Flash forward a few months later to game one of the WNBA Finals on Sept. 7, 2018.

The Washington Mystics went head to head with the Seattle Storm.

In comparison to the NBA Finals, Game One only totaled a viewership of around 12,000 live attendees and 226,000 viewers on ESPNews, where the game was aired live.

This drastic difference in viewership directly correlates to the wage gap between female and male basketball players, as well as athletes throughout most other professional sports.

The greater the number of viewers of sports events, or any form of entertainment for that matter, the greater the revenue the organization or company will earn. The WNBA in comparison to the NBA is a great example of market economics in the way that one product can be substituted for another, similar product that satisfies the consumer more, which drives the revenue of the more valued product higher. In this case, the product is the game itself and viewers are more drawn to the NBA over the WNBA, making it the preferred substitute and thus driving its revenue significantly higher than the WNBA. However, the percentage of shared revenue that gets paid to the players is the real issue that is causing so much controversy.

Players in the WNBA receive 20% of shared revenue within their league, while players in the NBA receive 50% of their shared revenue.

From a business perspective, however, the WNBA is not going to want to pay their

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athletes as high a percentage if they do not have money to spare. Sports organizations must have money to pay their athletes, and if they aren’t making as much money, they simply cannot pay as much as another organization that makes more money.

Statistically, the NBA makes 1,000 times more revenue than the WNBA does. The total revenue of the WNBA in 2018 came to be only around $25 million, compared to the total revenue of the NBA in 2018 which came to be around $24 billion.

The NBA is able to pay a higher revenue percentage to their players because the prices for other items that need to be paid for with their shared revenue are often stagnant and easier to pay for with their greater sales. The surplus of money is so great that they can afford to pay their players such a high wage.

“Shark Tank” host and owner of the Dallas Mavericks Mark Cuban commented on the issue in an interview, claiming that the wage gap is not gender based, but based in economics.

“The difference is the total amount of revenue,” Cuban said. “It’s not a gender issue.

It’s just like we paid a lower percentage to the men until the revenues went up. And when our revenues went up, we were able to pay a higher percentage.”

Minnesota Lynx Center Sylvia Fowles looks for an opening as she is guarded

by Dallas Wings Center Liz Cambage.

E

conomic knowledge is all that is necessary to see through the political side of this argument. The demand for the WNBA simply does not generate the revenue needed to increase salaries to meet the criteria that these female athletes are asking for. The percentage of earnings that goes towards wages is based on the percentage surplus available after other costs that are more detrimental to the league and its success.

The skill of female athletes in the WNBA is indisputable, but the league that they play in prohibits them from earning what they deserve. The power to improve their wage will forever lie in the hands of the ones watching them from the sidelines. •

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 61

head to head | opinion

opinion | head to head

G

rowing up, teenagers have always had to listen to stereotypical statements: “Don’t sit too close to the T.V.” or, “Get off your phone.” Family members and teachers have always had unique ways of expressing their concern that technology is corrupting future generations. Despite what people may think, teens can live without looking at their phones every second, not to mention the other forms of technology which are commonly forgotten.

I didn’t receive my first smartphone until I was in eighth grade, and by that time many of my peers already owned their second or third smartphone. Previously, I owned a basic flip phone that was to only be used in emergency situations, as both of my parents were working at the time. I would see my friends on social media or playing mobile games; and although I was jealous, I knew I could survive without all those added programs.

My cell phone, despite its main purpose as an emergency method of contact, was something I could live without. Today, I do own a smartphone but because I started out with something so little, I know I could live without it. Yes, I may need my phone for more important reasons, but losing it would not be the end of the world.

For many people, technology has become an integral part of their daily lives. According to Pew Research Center, in 2011 about 35 percent of adults owned smartphones and 83 percent owned a basic cell phone. As of 2019, about 80 percent of adults own smartphones and 96 percent own a basic cell phone.

HEAD TO HEAD NO column leah mccain art cassandra mueller

With just a phone, one can browse the internet, play games, call, text, and even track the miles they’ve walked that day. For younger generations, this is all we’ve ever been exposed to. Our lives have revolved around the evolution of technology; it’s what we’ve grown up with.

When I moved from California, I lost touch with most of my friends. As I began my life in Ohio, I made new friends, but there was no way I could ever forget those in California.

So when I first created my Instagram account, I immediately started looking for my friends in California, and thanks to the platform I was able to find one of my best friends , allowing us to rekindle our friendship.

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Yes, social media can have provocative content and bad influences, but it is a way for people to connect. Even adults are able to find their old high school friends because sites like Facebook exist.

However for some people, phones aren’t just a way to browse the internet or reconnect with friends. Some forms of technology are benefiting society instead of hindering its growth. For instance, people who are deafblind have had their lives made incredibly easier because of recent technological advances.

Good Vibes, an app made by Samsung, allows people who are deaf-blind to send and receive messages with friends and family through their smartphones. According to Samsung’s website, messages can be sent by tapping on the screen using Morse Code; incoming messages can then be understood as vibrations.

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rosthetics are another form of technology that people can be justifiably dependent on. Artificial hearts, legs, and hands are some of the many examples that have made life easier for handicapped.

Peter Houghton, the longest surviving artificial heart transplant patient in the UK, according to The Seattle Times, was given back a small portion of his life because of prosthetics. Houghton was given a Jarvik 2000 heart pump after a severe heart failure in 2000, which allowed him to live an extra seven years after the transplant.

Even at East, engineering students were able to make life easier for Haniska Hamre, a five

Are we too dependent on technology? year old girl diagnosed with Symbrachydactyly.

This birth defect affected her left hand, leaving only four bones in her right hand and nubs as fingers. The East engineers made the decision to make a prosthetic device to supplement her motor skills in order to make her day to day life as easy and comfortable as possible.

We must recognize the fact that technology is more than just a smartphone.

It is something that is changing the way we, as humans, live and interact. We cannot ignore nor should we hinder the benefits it is providing for our society. Technology is becoming a part of our lives in valuable ways and in order for humans to thrive in the future, and we must accept that change. •

S

itting in first class on a seven hour nonstop flight to Portland, Oregon from Columbus, I was doing everything in my power not to be bored; as a teenager naturally does. Paying $10 for shoddy WiFi so I could use my phone, watching a movie on my laptop, listening to Pandora; doing everything I could to stay connected.

Upon landing, it was all ripped away. I was about to embark on a white water rafting expedition on the Salmon River. One week, zero technology. No cellular service, no air conditioning, not even a functional bathroom.

Strangely enough, as the week went on I began to notice the lack of technology less and less. It was shockingly nice, not worrying about who texted me or how bad the Cincinnati Reds had lost.

Once the trip was over and I sat in an airport in Spokane, Washington, enduring flight delays, I began to notice just how many people were engaged with their personal devices. Whether it be listening to music, reading on a tablet, or scrolling through social media, it seemed as though everyone in the airport was connected in some way Whether it be a smart phone, a tablet, an E-reader, or something of that nature, everyone has one. Roughly 314,112,000 Americans, or 96 percent, own a device, according to Pew Research Center.

Now being connected isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Technology helps people everyday; whether it be on a large scale, like technology in hospitals saving lives and in schools helping to educate, or even on a small scale, like

In a demographic study conducted by Orleans Marketing, it is estimated that eight billion devices will be connected to the internet by 2020. More devices than humans.

It almost seems that the days of reading social cues and perceiving people based on their present appearance is being replaced with that of reading emojis and perceiving people based on their Twitter posts and Instagram photos.

I’m certainly not immune to being overly connected. I spend a lot of my free time playing video games while listening to Spotify music or podcasts. But that’s precisely the problem: everyone is so connected that the majority of the time, people don’t realize just how connected they are. That lack of attention is what disengages us from each other, and instead feeds our focus to our parasitical devices.

There’s no denying that both technology and the internet are a necessity in today’s world. But take into account just how much people have shifted towards technology for social interaction in this decade alone, and imagine how much more society may shift in the coming decade.

There could come a day where social media and the internet is the dominant source of social interaction, while face-to-face contact becomes outdated and obsolete. Though that prediction may seem unrealistic and bears a resemblance to that of the plot of the movie Wall-E, seeing the shift that has occurred in recent times, it might not be hard to believe that life could become that way in the next

As new technology is introduced every year, debate intensifies on whether people are becoming too dependent on their electronic devices. helping to wake people up on time.

However, the downside of technology comes in regards to our social interaction.

E-mailing, text messaging, and especially social media use has drastically changed the way people communicate and exchange information with each other in a shockingly short amount of time.

In 2005, five percent of American adults were registered with some form of social media network. By 2011, that number had risen to nearly half of American adults. Today, that percentage has increased to nearly 72 percent, per a US News report.

In an age of being connected, everyone seems disconnected from each other. Of course, there is still face-to-face interaction and communication; that’s a human necessity.

But in the span of just 10 years, people are more and more engaged with technology and social media than with each other.

hundred years or less.

The only thing preventing people from disconnecting is the fact that they are already so connected. It also doesn’t help when children as young as two years old are given tablets and their parent’s cell phone to play on, teaching them to be connected at a time when their brains are attempting to take in as much information as possible.

To me, the issue of social disconnection has one simple answer: take a break. Take a day away from the phone. Don’t spend so much time on social media and perhaps call someone from time to time. Or even better, talk in person. It seems like such an easy solution, and that’s because it is.

Perhaps it isn’t too late though. Maybe there is a slim chance of us humans collectively realizing our social future depends on our own will to disconnect. Or, possibly people just don’t care enough anymore. •

YES

column brayden barger art cassandra mueller

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 63

column | opinion

opinion | column

A

picture is worth a thousand words. A picture that finds its way to people on their Facebook page or Instagram feed unsolicited can be invaluable. Especially when that picture is a father face down on the banks of the Rio Grande with his arm around his two year old daughter, or images from inside the detention camps being used to hold migrants at the United States-Mexico border. Technology has made pictures like these accessible to a country where ignoring a moment like this is too easy.

Not only did these images appear on America’s social media platforms, it also became the focal point of the 24-hour news channels that have become the center of many households. Since the launch of cable news in 1980, Americans have become increasingly addicted to the constant flow of information.

Especially when they can find shows on Fox or MSNBC that filters the information into something that aligns closer with their belief system, and politicians know this.

After the photo of the deceased father and daughter on the Rio Grande was released, it was quickly used by Kamala Harris, Joe Biden and other candidates as a stepping stone to draw the public in. Americans became invested in the story behind the picture, with it receiving 650 comments only an hour within it being published.

Stories like this pull on heartstrings. They force people to become aware of a situation

LAND OF THE FREE ANNA BIDDLE

photography anna mullins art alexandra fernholz

growing outrage over the camps, he was unable to deny the fact that the conditions fell way below where they needed to be. Even though he would acknowledge the poor conditions of the McAllen camp, in which men were packed into cages and spoke of being unable to take showers; he was able to flip the blame onto Congress. Citing their refusal to approve the administration’s request for $64 billion to fund Border Security and Customs.

This gave a perfect opportunity for finger pointing to manifest on social media and cable news networks.

C

astro and Pence both took a simple platform that was provided to them and used it to talk directly to the American public. Americans have become more involved in the issues with 47 percent of the voting-eligible population casting a ballot in the 2018 midterm elections.This direct connection between issues in America and its citizens has created an environment in which feeling indifferent no longer exists. Though having a concerned and invested public seems good, it can also push us further apart.

A Pew Research Poll on whether the US had a responsibility to accept refugees highlights the divide that has continued to grow, with 49 percent saying the country should not accept them and 51 percent saying the country should. Almost equally divisive opinions in a vital question that is going to rock the 2020

No one can ignore an image like that when it demands for someone’s attention. even if they have been doing their best to ignore it. No one can ignore an image like that when it demands for someone’s attention.

In a country where indecision and indifference marked the last presidential race, events like this have helped to fuel increased interest in the upcoming election.

Increased attention on the migrants and the US Detention camps that are being run by a government contractor prompted various politicians and Vice President Mike Pence to visit the camps for themselves.

Joaquin Castro, who represents Texas’s 20th congressional district, secretly filmed inside El Paso’s Border Station 1. The images which he released on his Twitter account showed the rough conditions in which migrants were being held. Unlike Castro, Pence’s visit was used as a White House PR opportunity to downplay the conditions in the camp that were exposed by the Democratic politicians.

Despite Pence’s desire to dismiss the need for

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campaign trail.

The use of media platforms and social media sources has allowed political figures to talk directly to the public and their supporters by personally selecting the information and polls they shared. Not only was this evident in the 2016 Presidential Race and then Candidate Donald Trump’s Twitter, but increasingly so with 2020 Presidential campaigns that have been launched within the past year. Each Candidate along with the President have been using their social media accounts to address their plan of action as President.

A picture is more than worth a thousand words, especially when that picture is buried beneath the politics and static of a socially connected world. Despite this, Americans were able to push past the buzz from each side and reach a conclusion of their own. America may be divided, but it will always be connected.

Hopefully that will be enough to keep it standing. •

M

etal straws have been popping up everywhere at East. Whether they are attached to students' car keys or already in use, this new fad was spreading like

a virus.

According to Money, a monthly self-funded magazine, searches for metal straws have increased by 205 percent on online retailers like Etsy since the start of 2018. They’ve become an internet craze and a must-have for everyone in these past couple of months. Advertisements for these straws fill up my feed on Instagram, including selfies of people showing them off.

When I see people using their metal straws I always catch myself wondering if people were actually using them to reduce plastic in our oceans or instead as an excuse to use a popular hashtag on social media. Do people actually care about our environment?

During my junior year at East, my peers and I took advantage of a volunteering opportunity since many of us still needed to obtain hours for a government project. The event was sponsored by a thermal processing company, Byron Products.

We were put into groups and given separate jobs, I was tasked with mulching. It was going well at first; we were making solid progress and keeping a good pace. That was until I witnessed people throwing mulch on cars and on each other, leaving the park to get food, and do nothing except play on their phones.

This of course left a few of us to the twice the work than what we should’ve been doing. I was infuriated with their actions, but quite frankly, not surprised.

There is nothing that bothers me more than people that don’t try to help the earth. Even those who are trying to do so may not be well educated about what needs to be done to make

renewable fossil fuels. Nylon can be found in the bristles of toothbrushes. When manufactured, nylon creates nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas 310 times more potent than carbon dioxide.

An alternative to plastic toothbrushes are bamboo toothbrushes. These toothbrush handles usually take around six months to fully decompose, while plastic handles take hundreds of years, according to plastic-free campaigner at Friends Of The Earth, Emma Priestland.

A recent update has been made to bamboo toothbrushes where bristles are now made with 62 percent castor bean oil, making them partially plant based. Despite the fact that the bristles are not biodegradable, they are still certified biobased and contain less petroleum-based plastic than other toothbrushes do.

Another everyday item polluting the oceans are plastic bags. The US alone consumes about 380 billion single-use plastic bags each year, and about one million plastic bags are used every minute, according to Our Daily Green.

One plastic bag can take over 400 years to fully decompose. According to Reuse This Bag, plastic bags aren’t biodegradable and will therefore stay in oceans for a longer time.

According to Greenpeace, a private environmental organization, all plastic is susceptible to being blown away by wind or washed into drainage networks by rain. This creates an additional problem: the plastic begins to infest oceans, causing aquatic life to mistake it as their next meal.

We can reduce the amount of plastic bags in the ocean by using reusable bags at the supermarket. Kroger, an American retailing company, intends to rid all of its supermarkets of single-use plastic bags by 2025 according to USA Today. Places like Aldi, a family-owned discount supermarket, makes their customer’s buy plastic

We can’t have some people putting forth effort; we need everyone’s help in order to make any significant change. any progress. There are many who think that metal straws are going to save the world, when in reality there are many different forms of plastic other than straws that is thrown away every day- grocery bags, toothbrushes, bottles, and packaging.

One of the first things people do when they wake up is brush their teeth with their plastic toothbrush, which will eventually be thrown away after so many uses and end up in our oceans just like plastic straws.

Approximately one billion plastic toothbrushes are thrown away every year, enough to go around the Earth four times, according to Foreo, a Swedish beauty brand. These plastic toothbrushes are made from polypropylene plastic and nylon, which are sourced from non-

HERE’S THE TEA

bags to use for their groceries. This usually results in customer’s bringing in their own bags or using cardboard boxes to carry their groceries.

I never expected that at 17 I’d be worried about our planet slowly dying because people have stopped caring for it. I’ve always thought that our planet’s health was important, however, it has become evident that it’s not everyone’s biggest concern.

According to the United Nations (UN), we have just over a decade to stop the irreversible damage we have caused the Earth. I want to have a future and I know there are many others who would agree. We can’t just have some people putting forth effort; we need everyone's help in order to make any significant change. Don’t just save the turtles, save our planet too.•

LEAH MCCAIN

photography anna mullins art alexandra fernholz

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 65

guest column | opinion

opinion | column

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here’s pressure to stand out, pressure to be unique in a system designed to make students bland. It’s hard to fathom that I am just one of the millions of students in the United States who will be applying to college this fall, but that is my reality.

Yes, I have good grades and ACT test scores, but it seems that academics alone aren’t enough anymore, especially when every other student is also academically strong. Many of the colleges I recently visited, including Butler, Purdue and Wake Forest universities, have said that academics aren’t the forefront of the admissions process anymore. Since there are so many high achieving students, colleges have to tighten their admissions policies.

It would make sense to think that a high grade point average (GPA) and high standardized test scores guarantee entrance into a good college, but with 47 percent of students getting A’s, being able to stand out is getting harder and harder.

In a recent study conducted by a professor at the University of Georgia in collaboration with the College Board, it was found that while the average amount of students receiving A’s had risen from 39 to 47 percent over the past 20 years, the average Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores had fallen from 1,026 to 1,002 on a 1,600 point scale.

Because of the rise in A’s and fall in standardized test scores, the Fordham Institute has concluded that A’s are being given out more

EASY A REGAN DENHAM photography anna mullins art alexandra fernholz

systems. In particular, Lakota utilizes a system that requires teachers to give a minimum of 50 percent in the first and third quarters to students who are failing, promoting an atmosphere that says students don’t have to care about the class to pass.

The idea that a system designed to academically prepare youth for their future is only funneling students through without actually teaching them is frightening. This may be the culprit for the steady decline in Intelligence Quotient (IQ) scores over the past few decades, according to a study conducted by the National Academy of the Sciences.

The study found that the average IQ of Americans has been steadily declining around three percentage points per decade since the 1960s. The average IQ of Americans in 1965 was a 95.68, but by 2000 it was 85.43. It was also concluded that this decrease is mainly caused by environmental factors such as access to education and a stable home atmosphere, rather than inherited genetics.

Both high schools and colleges are meant to help students get to the next level in their career and stand out among their peers. And awarding A’s may seem like the best way to achieve that goal, but when each institution has that mindset, an A+ has less value than it did when only a few students got them, thus inflating the grading system.

Grade inflation is even a problem at top research institutions. For example, at Harvard

If an “A” is the new average grade for students, it is virtually impossible to stand out when solely comparing academics. frequently without an increase in learning. This also translates into college. A Harvard study found that only 56 percent of college students complete a bachelor’s degree within six years of entering, which supports the conclusion that unprepared students are being enticed to attend college.

Multiple seminars are conducted by various colleges throughout the school year informing students about college and the application process, which are successful considering that 80 percent of high school students from both East and West pursue higher education. But roughly five percent of students enter the military and 15 percent attend a trade school, according to Lakota’s quality report.

This large discrepancy between activities pursued post high school is astonishing.

While many students are prepared and will be successful in college, not everyone is meant to take that path.

Grade inflation is not entirely the fault of teachers. District administrations and even the Ohio state government have enforced “no fail”

66 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

University, the most frequently given set of grades are straight A’s, according to the Dean of Undergraduate Education Amanda Claybaugh.

Similar to monetary inflation in that each number loses value overtime; grade inflation requires a system to be in place bring value back to each letter grade. But such a system is currently not present, causing inflation to spiral out of control. A recommended solution

by Harvard professor Harvey Mansfield would be to not cap grades at an A+, but to continue on with either an A++ or to add another letter entirely.

If an A is the new average grade for students, it is virtually impossible to stand out when solely comparing academics. This puts more pressure on students to do extracurricular activities on top of their already stressful workload.

Until grade inflation is recognized as a serious problem, students across America will continue to be funneled through the schooling system without being fully educated; which will be detrimental to society. •

O

n June 26, I tuned in to the first Democratic presidential debate with a mixture of enthusiasm and anxiety. That may seem like too much emotion for two hours of aging politicians arguing about trade policy, but this election cycle is particularly important. It is the first time myself and many of my peers will be able to cast a vote, a responsibility we should not take lightly.

The crowded debate stage revealed a Democratic party torn between two factions, which can be broadly labeled moderate and progressive. As voters in the upcoming primary, we have the power to dictate which direction the party will pursue. For Democrats to succeed in 2020 and beyond, we must nominate a boldly leftist candidate.

A perfect example of why centrist policies are not adequate to address our political climate is Joe Biden’s campaign. While speaking to a room of wealthy Wall Street donors, Biden asserted that if he were elected president, “nothing would fundamentally change.” Americans shouldn’t settle for president who will change nothing. We deserve a leader who is willing to take action to improve our lives.

On the other side of the spectrum, more progressive candidates like Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren are listening to the people, not big money interests. According to Forbes, Joe Biden’s campaign has 13 billionaire donors, whereas Warren has three and Sanders has zero.

The ultra-wealthy avoid left-leaning candidates because when in office these candidates will work to make life better for the 99 percent rather than catering to rich donors.

Billionaire funding may be helpful in the short term, but it can’t beat massive grassroots turnout at the polls.

in the 2016 election, and gaining the support of this demographic could swing the election in 2020.

Nonvoters are on average younger, more racially diverse, and have a lower average income than voters. Those characteristics mean that they would often benefit the from progressive policies like student debt forgiveness and higher minimum wage.

It shows in the numbers; out of the five frontrunners, Pew Research Center found that Sanders and Warren have the largest proportion of supporters age 18-29. Additionally, people of color make up 51 percent of Sanders’ base, the highest proportion of any candidate. These candidates have proven that they are able to energize the groups that will be essential to victory in 2020.

Leftist candidates are able to attract so many dedicated supporters because their policies simply do the most good for the most people.

For instance, Sanders and Warren both support a single-payer healthcare plan guaranteed to cover every American, while Joe Biden’s plan could still leave millions uninsured. Other proposed policies from the left wing of the party include tuition-free public college and a green new deal to address climate change.

As young people, many of these plans would have a tangible effect on our lives. Now is the time to invest in our future by electing politicians who will fight for a just world rather than cling to the status quo.

Centrists often object to leftist ideas by saying they sound good on paper but would be impossibly expensive. It is true that it will take extra tax dollars to fund universal programs for things such as healthcare and college. However, there are many ways of accomplishing this

For Democrats to succeed in 2020 and beyond, they must nominate a boldly leftist candidate.

Evidence of this large progressive constituency is apparent in donation numbers.

Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have the most individual donations by far as reported in August by the New York Times. Joe Biden falls at fifth place.

Despite Biden’s immense name recognition, his moderate ideology doesn’t excite voters.

Sanders and Warren have the ability to not only gain passive approval, but galvanize their supporters to action. This attribute is absolutely and completely necessary to rival Trump’s fervent base.

Another major source of grassroots support is those who previously didn’t vote. About 100 million eligible voters chose not to cast a vote

without hurting middle class Americans.

For example, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy found that a wealth tax on only the top one percent could raise $1.3 trillion over 10 years.

We need to dispel the idea that it’s delusional to work for a better world.

It would be a mistake to treat Trump’s presidency like a freak accident and regress to the same policies Democrats have pursued for decades. The 2016 election was a symptom of extreme unrest and dissatisfaction in our country. When citizens are going bankrupt from medical debt and young adults are drowning in student loans, it’s clear that America needs a change.•

GUEST COLUMN

POLITICAL FUTURE KAYA WEST

photography andrew marshall art alexandra fernholz

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 67

east speaks out | opinion

opinion | east speaks out

EAST SPEAKS OUT

Are we too dependent on technology? interviews rehab jarabah | photography riley higgins and anna mullins

“Yes, [we’re too dependent on technology] because we use it too much and treat it like it’s our whole life. [I think] if we try focusing on things other than technology; it’d be better for the next generation.”

“We’re always doing stuff on technology and never actually interacting with people face-to-face as much.

But at the same time, I think we’re using it well into our advantage because we can do a lot more things on technology than with just pencil and paper.”

FRESHMAN MAYSAM HASAN

FRESHMAN AVERY DAVIS

“I think we are too dependent on technology, because that’s how most of us have been raised, just always having it. So for example, if we were to have a school day without technology, I feel like it would be a lot harder for us to do what we usually do.”

“We’ve gotten to this point where not only are we dependent on social media to interact with people, but we like it. We’ve gotten worse at memorizing information because we can just pull up our phones and Google it, and have the answer right there instead of having to remember everything.”

SOPHOMORE NATALIA MORALEZ

SOPHOMORE TANNER MARTIN

“I think we are because most of my teachers were like all of our assignments are either on our phones or on the Chromebooks on canvas. They just put quizzes on canvas. We have assignments there, mostly. And then there’s only like some paper/pencil stuff we do.”

“I feel like a lot of the times when people need to know something that we go straight to the sources, or we rely on the sources for any information that we get and I feel like sometimes we need to go to people instead of that [our technology].”

JUNIOR URUZ BIDIWALA

JUNIOR AZALIAH WASHINGTON

“I think that [we are too dependent on technology] because we can’t do anything without it. I think it’s a bad thing. And it can’t be fixed. Technology is [already] being given to kids younger, younger and younger. And it’s just going to get worse, worse and worse.”

“Now since we have acknowledged the Chromebooks here at school, everything is based around our Chromebooks, there’s a lot more stuff on Canvas, there’s a lot more all over overall, like everywhere. It just feels like technology is taking over.”

SENIOR BROOKLYNN FRAZIER

SENIOR MELISSA GARCIA

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October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 69

chief column | opinion

opinion | editorial cartoon

A FREE SPIRIT ALEXANDRA FERNHOLZ

photography andrew marshall

T

he longest, and shortest week of my life began at Ronald Reagan International Airport. Trying to fight my way through congested crowds of travelers 40 minutes after my plane first touched down, I was more than a little stressed. Having never truly flown alone before, all I could do was look hopefully around for fellow blue-shirted members of the exclusive club I was about to be a part of.

For one week, as part of the 2019 Al Neuharth Free Spirit and Journalism Conference, I and 50 other privileged student journalists from across the nation sat through panels, talked with experts, toured Washington D.C., and avoided the wax statue of Jackie Kennedy in our hotel lobby in order to become, officially, Free Spirits.

But a few months later, the hours of panels are a blur. The speakers and the things they talked about are more like impressionist paintings in my mind than the high definition photographs they were on the day of. All I really have is my reporters’ notebook, which I took all my notes and spilled coffee and smeared ink in. In the pages of that notebook, I’ll remember the fine points, the advice our speakers gave, and the lessons I learned.

But in my head, I’ll always remember the people I met. I remember the two Freedom Riders we got the chance to speak to- it’s because of them I took the time to revisit my copy of The Death of Innocence, a book that still makes me cry. I remember the serious young reporter for the Washington Post who told us about his start covering homicides as a beat reporter- it’s because of him my bookshelf is one tome thicker.

I remember the District Court Judge who made us all laugh in court- it’s because of him I know what it is to ask truly tough questions.

I remember the tragically wise woman who told us all we’d have to do to protect ourselves- it’s because of her I know the names of Jamal Khashoggi, Wendi Winters, Raed Fares, and Abdullah Hananzai, and the other journalists killed for doing their jobs now memorialized at the Newseum.

B

POLITICAL CARTOON THE HATE YOU PREACH ALEXANDRA FERNHOLZ 70 lakotaeastsparkonline.com October 2019

ut most clearly, I remember my fellow Free Spirits. I remember the gallons of Voss water and coffee we drank while trying to stay awake after 14 hour days. I remember the Tik-Toks we made in all the places we went. I remember how we all compared pens and seriously discussed our favorite brands. I remember the shared animosity we all felt toward a certain news anchor. I remember the trivia questions, the tired head nods, the inside jokes about Florida shorts and the late night talks on Legally Blonde.

A certain amount of it, though, isn’t actually memory.

Because on the second day, someone had the foresight to make a group chat, and my phone has never been still since. Even after the conference ended, there has not been a day I’ve not woken up to messages demanding my attention. The morning after the second democratic debate, I had 723 messages of political commentary, analysis, and socialism jokes waiting for me. And I know my phone will never be silent again.

Because I did learn some pretty important lessons from the professional journalists, the members of the Neuharth family, the analysts, the newscasters, the judges, but the reason I really remember the 2019 Al Neuharth Free Spirit and Journalism conference is also the reason my phone won’t stop buzzing at 1:30 in the morning.

It really was just seven days, but they don’t call it the longest, shortest week of your life for nothing. •

October 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 71

section | story

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