Lakota East Spark 2018-2019 Issue #3

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

TAKE WHAT YOU NEED The Science of Happiness

Lakota East Class of 2020 Why you should be a member of the

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CONTENTS INSIDE-THE-ISSUE #185 News Safety Measures After an email was sent out to East parents and guardians, the district followed policy. page 8

Culture To the Pointe The annual production of the Nutcracker is an important part of every ballerina’s career. page 22

Package The Science of Happiness Spark explores the science of happiness and how various activities affects a person’s mood. page 29

Entertainment Spark Awards Staffers break down the best movies and albums of the year. page 48

Sports The Comeback Kid Returning from a serious injury, Maddy Bley looks to make a positive impact on the women’s varsity basketball team. page 53

Opinion My Letter to an Addict Spark staffer pens an open letter to her aunt who suffers from an addiction. page 62

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 3

Spark 2018-2019 STAFF

Editor-in-Chiefs Business Manager Assistant Manager News Editors Culture Managing Editor Section Editor Package Managing Editor Package Section Editor Entertainment Editor Sports Editors Opinion Managing Editor Opinion Section Editor Photography Editors

Art Managing Editor Art Section Editor

Katey Kruback Lauren Maier Landon Meador Jack McFarland Bea Amsalu Alex Fernholz Caroline Bumgarner Anna Mullins Isis Summerlin Abby Bammerlin Rebecca Breland Bryce Forren Stephen McKay Broc Nordmark Jessica Jones Alex Hood Abby Bammerlin Meredith Niemann Joe Phelan McKenna Lewis Leo Rolfert

Graphics Coordinators

Caroline Bumgarner Lauren Maier

Design Coordinators

Caroline Bumgarner Landon Meador

Communications Director

Landon Meador

Webmaster

Katey Kruback

Copyeditor

Katey Kruback

Advisor

Dean Hume

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Dear Spark, The old adage is “build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door.” Better “mousetraps” contribute to the advancement of society. In a free market, what constitutes “better” is typically determined by consumer preference. Consumers preferred the electric light to candles. That led to the demise of Procter & Gamble’s candle business. Similarly, consumers preferred massproduced automobiles and that led to the demise of the hardwood carriage trade.

Often those with an invested interest in the current way of doing things will seek to obstruct the new innovations. For example, taxi companies have sought to keep UBER and Lyft from being able to pick up passengers at airports. All sorts of reasons are cited, most claiming that the consumer will be harmed by not having such services regulated by some governmental agency.

Similarly, auto dealers have fought the business model of Tesla.

Tesla doesn’t have large showrooms nor does it have a repair infrastructure. Auto dealers have put forth the argument that the consumers will be harmed by not having Tesla use the same business model that the auto dealers themselves have used. In many states, the dealers have persuaded state legislatures to restrict or even ban Tesla from operating in the state. For the most part, Tesla has been successful in overturning such restrictive legislation in the courts. In Ohio, Tesla agreed to a compromise to avoid the cost of litigation and is restricted to only three locations in the entire state.

Shouldn’t the consumer be the judge of whether Tesla is a better mousetrap? If Tesla is not of value to the consumers, then the auto dealers have nothing to fear. The converse is equally true.

—George Farley, community member The Spark encourages letters to the editor. Letters can be sent to the publication at lakotaspark@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 editors will contact writers for confirmation.

ON THE COVER designed by mckenna lewis

Spark TAKE WHAT YOU NEED The Science of Happiness

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This issue Spark takes a look at what can improve people’s happiness. The cover is a flyer placed on a school bulletin board, offering many remedies to improve students’ overall happiness. It portrays the idea that one size does not fit all when it comes to happiness.

RUN TO HAPPINESS LAUREN MAIER

photography katey kruback

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remember my first week of conditioning for cross country my freshman year. It was at 7 a.m. and the the humidity was thicker than molasses. The runs that week were horrible. I felt like I was going to throw up and pass out all at once. After a week of what felt like torture, I wanted to quit. I’ve never quit anything, especially a sport. I told my dad about this and he told me to stick with it for at least another week; so I did. Not to my suprise, I hated that week, too. I hated every part of it. I was happy it was over, but at the same time, I had a euphoric feeling of happiness and accomplishment.

That feeling was my constant companion throughout each day that I ran. I would get a lot accomplished. These other words included making a healthy breakfast, cleaning my room and the biggest accomplishment of all, starting my summer work not on the last day of summer.

In the moment, cross country was horrible and everything in me hated it, but by the end of summer conditioning, I looked forward to my morning run with my teammates. Running became one of the joys in my life, an experience that nothing could ever replace.

Overall, my first year of cross country wasn’t anything special, timewise. The fastest I ran was a 24:37 5K which is far from fast. However, I was determined to come back the next season with more training under my belt so I could out-perform myself.

With a little self-persuasion, I did just that. On the first day of practice, my sophomore year, I was running with the fastest girls on the team. I remember thinking to myself, they aren’t running hard, they are just going easy because it’s the first day of practice.

As the season progressed, my ability to stay up in the front was constant which lead me to become a better and runner and a varsity runner.

The last two races of the season, I was demoted to the Junior Varsity team because I wasn’t improving like the rest of the girls. The season ended and all I had left was goals and aspirations for the next season.

My junior year came around and I was expecting to make it onto the postseason team, the top seven. However, I started to get a numb feeling in my foot. It was foreign to me, but it didn’t hurt so I didn’t say anything throughout my two months of conditioning and the first month of practice.

As my season progressed, the numbness grew up my leg until eventually, it affected my running style and overall performance. I went to the doctor to see what was wrong. It turned out that I had and still have compartment syndrome. My condition is when the fascia constricts around my muscles that need to expand while I’m running. Instead, pressure builds up and presses on a central nerve in my leg which causes me to lose sensation in my foot and leg.

This made my junior season filled with doctors appointments, special shots for my muscles, and disappointing times. My season was bleak and underwhelming. I decided to run my senior year as well, just to finish off my high school career right.

Through the entirety of my last season, I didn’t make it close to my personal record, but I did learn how to have fun with running even when I wasn’t as good as I used to be. I ran with the purpose of clearing my head, blowing off steam, and to ultimately make my day better. Running is my haven and I am happy that I have it in my life. •

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 5

news | photo captions

EAST IN PICTURES photography alex fernholz

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rom left to right junior Lauren Rader, junior Lindsay Tripp, senior Karen Carpenter, junior Jillian Harris, and junior Eden Michelson have their hair measured and put into eight inch pony tails so they can be cut and donated to The Dragonfly Foundation. Nine students and community members volunteered to donate their hair in between the East vs. West junior varsity and varsity basketball games on Dec. 14. East junior Lauren Rader is one of the Dragonfly ambassadors that helped bring the event to East. “I donated my hair once, two years ago,” Rader said. “I just really liked it. I was looking to do it again, and this opportunity came up. So I decided to jump on it and do it again.” —Anna Mullins

rom new computers to 3D printers, the East library is being transformed into a new Innovation Hub. Painters worked throughout winter break to finish the hub before students return in early January. “The innovation of ideas is interesting to me,” Lakota Superintendent Matt Miller said. “It’s not just a school thing; there are businesses and communities tied to the innovation hubs.”

—Gracie Estep

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ast senior Dominic Satullo, works on his newest project in Advanced Placement (AP) 3D art.

Established just this year by East metals teacher, Jesse Dornan, the class holds 13 students during one period each day. AP 3D Art allows for students to be able to use any material around them to be able to create an art portfolio to be judged and graded by the end of the year for the AP test. “I have the freedom to do what I enjoy,” Satullo said. “It’s one of the reasons I love the class.” —Mike Patterson

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ast Spanish teacher Michael Leal instructs East sophomore Morgan Bachman on different tenses of Spanish verbs. Leal filled in Annie Cantrell’s position as a long-term substitute in November to teach the Spanish II and Advanced Placement (AP) Spanish classes at the school, due to Cantrell’s recent birth. “It always brings me happiness along with the hard work that it includes,” Leal said. “The fact that I can make a difference in what the students are doing in the classroom really makes me remember how much I love this job.”

—Joe Phelan

briefs | news

LAKOTA RECAPS

BOOKIN’ IT

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he Midpointe Library Center debuted its Liberty Township branch at the Liberty Center Mall.

The branch is a full-service library that is located on the second floor of the indoor mall, The Foundry, near the Children’s Discovery Zone, the play area for kids who visit the mall.

“We expect that there will be lots of families with young children becauses of our proximity to the Discovery Center that’s right next door,” Liberty Branch Manager Allison Knight said.

“But we have materials for all ages.”

According to Knight, one of the outreach children’s librarians has been doing storytime at Liberty Center since it opened in 2015.

“The partnership kind of developed from there,” Knight told Spark. “It got to the point where they were willing to offer us space and it seemed like a great idea [to get] more involved in the Liberty Township community.”

According to Midpointe Library Director Travis Bautz, the outreach program generated 50 to 65 people weekly fueling the decision to

photography joe phelan

add a satellite location in Liberty Center.

“Two-thirds of the library would be youthoriented and that would include teenagers and school-aged kids,” Bautz said. “About onethird of the library would be considered adult.”

The opening of the branch is a new experience to the inhabitants of Liberty Township. Previously, the closest Midpointe branches were located in Union Centre and

NOW YOU SEE ME photography abby bammerlin

F NOW YOU SEE ME

New security cameras are installed on main street by the theater.

or the past month, students may have noticed a large amount of new security cameras popping up around campus.

These cameras, despite what the student body thinks, are not to keep an eye on deviant teenagers, but to keep said teenagers safe.

Recently, the district has stepped up its measures to protect students, due to the large amount of security threats both at the school and around the country. The new initiative is not backed by the 10 year, 1.5 million-dollar School Security Tax that was on the ballot this fall, but rather permanent improvement funds.

These funds have provided for the installment of the 100 new security cameras, as well as other security measures, such as Raptor and mental health services. The Sony and Axis cameras were chosen due to cost, functionality and compatibility with the old system. East student resource officer Deputy Doug Hale hopes the Sony and Axis cameras will provide more “safety and security” for students and teachers.

Though the cameras are meant to make students and teachers feel safe, it’s not always the case. East sophomore Hal Durman said they understand the need for increased security but does not think adding cameras will help.

Monroe.

According to East sophomore Robert Viox, the library has proven to be a positive addition.

“I honestly think it’s a great [idea], especially because I have younger siblings who use the library on a daily basis,” Viox said. “It shortens the travel time and it’s just a really nice thing to have close by.

So far, the library has had a significant impact on the community, driving many new people to apply for library cards. Knight hopes to attract all book-lovers to the center, while reaching those who may not be traditional library users.

“We are still looking at ways that we can impact Liberty Center, but we are really hoping to bring in more people in general, especially teenagers, so that we can give people who are hanging out here something exciting, interesting and productive to do while they’re in the space,” Knight said. “We’re working on making an impact on the environment here.”

—Shiloh Wolfork

“I doubt that an abundance of cameras would stop someone from doing something bad if they really wanted to,” Durman said.

East history teacher Katherine Joseph agreed with Durman about the cameras not being able to prevent anything from happening.

“I think cameras are always beneficial,” Joseph said. “But I am not sure it can prevent things from happening.”

Both Durman and Joseph noted the importance of the cameras being able to see from multiple angles and allow the police to follow the activity. For example at the intersection of Sleepy Hollow and Thunder Hawk Place on the second floor of the building, cameras are placed very close together.

If the situation of an active shooter ever arose, Hale, who can watch the feed from all 135 cameras from his office, said the cameras allow him to get a better picture.

“The multiple cameras allow me to see all available angles,” Hale said. “In any situation.”

Even with the total count of cameras coming to 135, there are even more coming in. Lakota Superintendent, Matt Miller, held a press conference recently in which the topic of the security cameras came up.

“When they’re finished, there will be more cameras then there are now,” he said. “But I don’t think that’s a bad thing. I think that’s a really good thing.” —Anna Biddle

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 7

news | school threat

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On Nov. 30, an email was sent out to East parents and guardians concerning an alleged verbal threat made against the school by an East student. The email stated that the Butler County Sheriff ’s Office detained the student, who will be facing disciplinary action.

The anonymous student’s peers reported their concerns about the comments made by the student in class. The administration and Lakota school resource officer Butler County Deputy Doug Hale began their investigation immediately.

“There was some information received throughout the week that there was a young man that had made some comments,” Hale said. “We looked into it for four or five days. We could prove nothing that he said that was a direct threat.”

According to Hale, on Nov. 25 around 11 p.m, a call was made to the Ohio SaferSchools tip-line informing them of the student’s comments.

The call was then forwarded to the sheriff ’s office. The sheriff ’s department found the student’s information and went to his home.

“When they talked to him at his home, he did admit that he made a certain comment,” Hale said.

East Principal Suzanna Davis explained that there is a protocol in place to manage threats made against the school.

“During school hours, if there is a report of a threat made, an investigation is going to start,” Davis said. “Whether it be on behalf of the law enforcement or the school, often times, it’s in tandem.”

East has received threats over social media in the past, Davis says.

“We had a couple situations last year whereby a threat was made on social media and it was in the evening hours,” Davis said. “[The threat] was reported to the police, [who] responded to the house [of the student] and handled it that way.”

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SAFETY MEASURES Upon receiving a possible threat, the district followed protocol and removed the student from the school, pending an investigation and eventually pressing charges. story abby bammerlin photography alexandra fernholz

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ince Lakota Superintendent Matt Miller has come into the district, Lakota has implemented the use of Raptor Technologies, a security system used to check visitors into any Lakota building.

“When parents or adults come now, they have to get scanned in [using] their drivers license or other state identification (ID),” Miller said. “[The security system] runs a quick background check on them, something that the state uses, and then it turns out a badge that has [the visitor’s] picture on it and why they’re here.”

Miller said he was “stunned” when he came to Lakota and discovered the district did not have a consistent program for checking visitors in and out of Lakota buildings.

“We’ve had hits on [the Raptor security system],” Miller said. “If that happens, the principal will get a notification on their phone, so do I [and] some other key people, and then we triage.”

After receiving the notification, the administrators come up with a procedure for how to proceed with the person in question. Miller said that he also received notifications about tips from the SaferSchools tip line when they are made.

“We’ve had an increase in the tip notification system,” Miller said, “Most of those weren’t traumatic events.”

To Hale’s knowledge, the anonymous student who made the alleged threats has begun to go through the court proceedings.

Hale said the student could face a felony to the third degree, which could result in up to five years in prison, and could also face a $10,000 fine, according to Nolo, a legal publisher. The courts will have the student undergo a psychological evaluation.

“I’ve charged several [students] over the years for making terrorist threats,” Hale said.

After a juvenile turns 18, any records are sealed. However, felonies are still available if someone ever “needs to look into it.” According to the Ohio Justice and Policy Center, a sealed file can be seen during background checks for jobs in hospitals, schools, daycares, and security. “[Students] need to quit making these comments,” Hale said. “They know that it could really impact their lives.” •

TAKING THE PULSE

Superintendent Matt Miller and Board members communicate with the community on LGBTQ issues. story and photography shelby alderman

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akota’s hosted a community conversation concerning the school experience for LGBT students. Popular ideas discussed at the conversation include bringing East and West’s gender sexuality alliances (GSA) down to the middle school level and offering training to teachers to make classrooms safer and more comfortable to LGBT students.

Lakota school psychologist Lora LeMay proposed the idea of the GSA expansion during the conversation. LeMay is hoping that the board members will take her suggestion to heart and consider putting it into action.

“It really was a great feeling that I was able to bring it up in this conversation,” said LeMay, who is also a Lakota mom. “I saw several head nods from not only parents, but also from some of the older students who see the value in the GSA and who have spearheaded the GSA in our high schools.”

Around 50 people attended the conversation, several of whom were also at the CommUnity University: Understanding Gender-Expansive Youth program. The program consisted of three parts, including a panel discussion with parents, students, and medical professionals in hopes of training and educating the public on struggles faced by non-conforming students.

East Principal Suzanna Davis has attended many of these conversations since they started in the 2012-2013 school year. According to Davis, community conversations are important to integrate community voice into the Board of Education.

“That’s a critical part of the way we do our business in this district, that we don’t want any decisions to be made in a vacuum,” Davis

Lakota district psychologist Lora LeMay speaks out about the importance of the GSA in the district at the community conversation. said. “ We don’t want decisions to be made in isolation. We don’t want decisions to be made strictly from the people that are internal within the district.”

According to Lakota administrators, no changes in the district to come from community conversations alone. “It allows us to get a variety of voices around a topic,” Davis said. “Which we then utilize when we’re talking about changes on an ongoing basis.”

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his is the seventh year that Lakota has been holding community conversations. These gatherings are open to the public and are used as an opportunity for voices within the community to be heard by the school board and deepen the relationship between Lakota and its residents.Lakota Board of Education Vice President Brad Lovell has attended many of these conversations over the past seven years, including before he was a member of the board and was still the principal at Creekside Early Childhood School (ECS).

“I believe that [people’s] thinking changes and their fear breaks down when you [form] relationships with people that think a little bit differently and act a little bit differently than you,” Lovell said. “That’s the fun part about these conversations. I learn something new at every one we do.”

Upcoming conversations include the Effect of Adverse Childhood Experiences on Students, the Role of Band, Instrumental Music in the K-12 Education Experience These conversations are facilitated by the Citizens for Civic Renewal Executive Director Jeff Stec, whom the district consulted by the

district and has facilitated every community conversation for the past seven years. The conversation consists of the room dividing into small groups of three or four people, in hopes of each group having at least one board member and at least one student.

Stec then poses a question for the groups to answer. The groups take ten to fifteen minutes to discuss and then the group reconfers and Stec guides the discussion and takes notes on a whiteboard at the front of the room.

Stec has worked with many different organizations to facilitate conversations across Cincinnati. According to Stec, the success of the conversations is greater when more people are in the room, and the district is always looking to have more people attend.

“We get the information through surveys, websites, Facebook, social media,” Stec said.

“But there’s a real value in getting people to talk to each other. The more people are there, the more people feel like they’re part of a community that is co-creating the education that the district delivers to the students.”

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ovell also hopes to have higher attendance rates for these meetings. He says that the board members would rather “have a line down the steps and have to turn people away” than be always looking for more people to come to the engagement sessions.

“We would love thousands of people to come,” Lovell said. “We put it out there as many different ways as we can on social media.

It goes home to every student on the district mailer, the Peach Jar, all those different things, it gets out there.” •

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 9

LEARNING FOR LIFE Lakota offers new media classes for elementary and middle school students. story amy bohorfoush | photography caroline bumgarner and fair use

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n front of the green screen, the anchor checks his notes. Liberty Junior (LJS) seventh grader Ethan Sheldon was ready. He was filming his passion project, a presentation on ways to solve a problem in society. Technology and media skills run in his blood.

“My family’s really tech savvy,” Sheldon said. “My dad likes to take computers apart

TECH FACT: LJS has 15, 3D printers.

Union Elementary has four 3D printers Average 3D printer cost: $700

and put them back together, and I like to take pictures and film things.”

Sheldon’s fellow seventh grader Emily Fuller helped him film his project. Her experiences in the media are also influenced by her family.

“My mom’s job is basically in the media and communication, so I hear about it a lot and I was super excited to try it,” Fuller said.

Just down the hall is the lab where students create their designs.

Passerbys at Lakota’s junior schools can hear the hum of the 3D printer, the shriek of the band saw, and smell the strong scent of hot glue.

The Lakota

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district added an English and technology elective called Media Design and Communication to the course options for all the junior schools, and Union added a journalism enrichment class for fourth graders this year. Lakota’s Director of Curriculum and Instruction for grades seven-12 Andrew Wheatley explains the importance of the new course offerings for the students.

“We’re trying to provide educational opportunities that are rooted in more authentic learning by doing more hands-on activities and applying the knowledge [the students] know,” Wheatley said.

As part of the required Social Media Unit, 11 of the Media Design and Communication students applied their knowledge by becoming the first junior high students to host a #LakotaEdChat on Oct.10, during which they discussed possible methods of reducing stress for teachers and students.

LJS Media Design and Communication

journalism | news

“[They realize that] this is the real deal; you’re doing what real people do in this career.” —Ginger Worley, Union journalism teacher teacher Moriah Walker knows how personal the topic was to the students.

“They chose the topic because they struggle with anxiety,” Walker said. “They wanted teachers to understand that they weren’t just trying to get out of class when they need help or a break.”

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graders cycle between culinary arts, Spanish, yoga, STEM robotics, and genius hour, a period in which the students research a topic they’re passionate about and present their findings.

Union Principal Kyle Lichey hopes the new course offerings make the students’ learning more memorable by changing their attitude toward school.

“It’s about creating opportunities for students’ [creativity] and making them excited to come here,” Lichey said.

In order to enhance student creativity, the district invested in equipment such as green screens and cameras for all the budding journalism programs at the four junior schools and Union. This is all part of the one-to-one tech initiative rolled out earlier this year at the Elementary and Junior levels, and added to the high schools in January.

Union students also have the opportunity to gain experience in STEM through STEM/ Robotics studio, which has been in place for eight years. The projects vary based on their grade level. Union science teacher William Vincent has observed how the studio has changed to enhance the students’ innovations.

“I think we have added more options for our students,” Vincent said. “Teachers have

been able to specialize in a certain area of the studio and teach with more detail.”

Vincent is currently working with Union sixth graders to produce a jet engine. The students have already made blades for the engine from paper mache and foam. During the next semester, the students will test the strength of their blades, attach them to an axle created with one of Union’s four 3D printers, and design a circuit that will power the engine.

hether they participated in the #LakotaEdChat, all Media Design and Communication students learn the heatley hopes all the new opportunities basics of photography, website design, students experience will be more likely and videography through projects such as to stay with them throughout their lives. creating documentaries and ads on topics of “Since the kids are moving up, we their choice. want to start here, so we can kind of move The class also endowed the students with up with them,” Wheatley said. “Because if skills that they’d be able to apply in any field, you start there and move down, it just doesn’t even if it’s not related to the media. LJS eighth logistically make quite as much sense.” grader Harrison Klude and seventh grader Walker agrees, having observed significant Julianna Hartman worked in the same group to growth in her Media Design and Communication create their documentary on Coach Jack Stern’s students over the last five months. transistion from FC Cincinnati to major league “[The kids] were intimidated at first, soccer, and both observed the challenges of knowing that their work is made public, but I working on a project in a group. gave them a lot of freedom and they embraced “It’s difficult to get everyone in the same place that freedom,” Walker said. “They realized that at the same time and get it done,” Klude said. even though they were in seventh -and eighthFor Hartman, the group work was still part grade, they can make their voices heard.” • of the reason she signed up for the elective.

“I’ve always enjoyed working with technology and people, so I thought it would be a good idea,” Hartman said.

In addition to adding new course options, Lakota is updating some courses to foster more independence in the students. There are 15 3D printers and other tools available for Liberty Junior seventh graders to use for projects. LJS Design and Modeling teacher Doug Noxsel has released equipment control over the years.

“As long as it’s school appropriate, [the students] can just make it,” Noxsel said. “I want them to go from thinking, ‘Gee whiz, that’s an interesting thing on the teacher’s desk’ to being comfortable with the tools.”

The opportunity to gain experience in media and engineering isn’t limited to the junior schools. At Union Elementary, journalism is one of six enrichment classes fourth-graders work on for 45 minutes per day. Over the school year, they spend 17 days in each class.

Union journalism teacher Ginger Worley is elated about how the class is opening up students to discovering work that they may not have thought about before. “[They realize that] this is the real deal; you’re doing what real people do in this career,” Worley said.

Top left: LJS seventh-grader Ethan Sheldon adjusts the camera for his passion project.

In addition to journalism, the fourth- Bottom right: LJS seventh-grader Alex Bellomo saws material for Design and Modeling.

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January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 11

Independence student Haider Ali gets his hair cut

by Xquisite Cutz owner Rodriguis Hampton during the Fellas and Fiction Program.

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fellas and fiction | news

FELLAS AND FICTION Xquisite Cutz offers free haircuts to young boys through the Fellas and Fiction Program. story regan denham | photography alexandra fernholz

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t’s a beautiful Tuesday night, and the sun is just beginning to set. He opens his drawer and pulls out his best scissors. He looks at the clock—5:57 p.m—to see that it’s almost time to start. The doorbell chimes as a family walks in and he hurries over to welcome them and help the children pick out their favorite books from the Lakota-donated selection. He always enjoys this first Tuesday evening of the month, when he can do his part to help the community.

From October to May, Xquisite Cutz Owner Rodriguis Hampton offers the Fellas and Fiction program, giving free haircuts to young boys as an initiative to get them to read.

The boys get to pick from a wide variety of books that have been donated by Lakota. They then attempt to read the books to their parents and the barber, who help them as they go.

Afterwards they get to take their favorite book home to continue practicing.

The program was created as a collaborative effort between Hampton and Angie Brown, a member of the Lakota Outreach Diversity and Inclusion Department (LODI). The department’s mission is to promote a welcoming and equitable experience and a culture that values all its forms.

“All students should have exposure to literacy wherever their day would take them,” Brown said. “The barbershop offers a place where younger people can learn everyday life from elders outside the four walls of a school.”

While Lakota isn’t considered a high poverty district, with only 15 percent of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch, according to United States (US) News and World Report, the district encompasses a variation of incomes.

East and Liberty Junior (LJS) are located in zip code 45044, which according to the US Census Bureau, has a poverty rate of 20.4 percent and a median income of $46,000.

In contrast, zip code 45069, which contains schools such as West and Ridge Junior, the poverty rate is 6.2 percent and the median income is $85,000.

The Fellas and Fiction Program first began in 2014 as a way to combat those income disparities and bring the district together.

“We [were] talking one day about how we could be more involved in the community,” Hampton said. “[Brown] presented our idea to the Lakota District and they thought it was a great idea, so we just ran with it.”

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he Fellas and Fiction program focuses on improving the literacy rates among young boys in the community by giving a supportive atmosphere to encourage them.

“While we understand that academics are of the utmost importance,” Brown told Spark. “We must look at every factor to make sure the student can accomplish the goals to be successful at life. This program builds confidence, facilitates communication skills, promotes family engagement, and most of all develops a love for reading.”

“This program builds confidence, facilitates communication skills, promotes family engagement, and most of all develops a love for reading.” —Angie Brown, LODI According to a 2009 Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) on Elementary school children, girls outperform boys in reading by an average of 39 points.

Put in perspective, this means the average boy is a year-and-a-half behind the average girl in reading skills.

Part of this is related to differences in body chemistry, as boys have a higher need for activity and movement fed by their body’s testosterone, making reading, which requires longer periods of concentration, difficult to master.

“Literacy is a major problem with young boys, so getting them to come and sit in the chair and to read out loud is a huge part of reading success,” Hampton said. “It gets them

motivated, and they’re around other kids who are also reading.”

The program has been running smoothly with only a few slow months. Hampton and Brown have been focusing on getting the word out to families in the area. According to Brown, the number of participating students has been increasing every year.

“We have seen community engagement through the donation of a beautiful bookshelf and many books,” Brown said. “We’ve had West Chester Police attend to help read, as well as retired educators.”

Many of the families learned about the program through their school’s weekly newsletter, like the Heitz family.

“We thought it’d be a great way to improve [our son’s] literacy,” said Lakota mom Stephanie Heitz, who has a son at Independence.

“Reading is a important life skill.”

The program is funded by both the district and Xquisite Cutz. Elementary schools in the district provide information about the program to families and supply the books; Xquisite Cutz offers the haircuts for free.

“We don’t focus on the money part, seeing the kids happy is what matters most,” said Jeff Craft, an employee at Xquisite Cutz. “I’ve only been here since April and I’ve already seen the impact the program has.”

A

s the leader of the program, Hampton cuts the childrens’ hair most of the time, but other barbers happily step in to help when the shop gets too crowded. “[Hampton] loves doing it, he manages everything,” Craft said. “I’ve cut [their hair] a few times and really enjoyed it, but he’s the master at it; a whole other side of him comes out. It’s really cool to watch.”

Hampton noted that every experience he has with a child has been unique and different.

His favorite memory was at the very beginning of the program when child a told him “no more Great Clips for me, I only go to Xquisite Cutz now.”

“From then on, I knew that this program would be special and impactful,” Hampton said. “It has been two years, and it still is.” •

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 13

news | cyber academy

Lakota’s new cyber security class will allow students, like East junior Ali Lewis and junior Grace Honigford to work collaboratively and graduate with up to eight field certificates.

CYBER SAFETY 101 A new Cybersecurity class sponsored by Belcan is set to be added to Lakota’s program of studies next year. story rachel anderson | photography and art alexandra fernholz | infographic gracie estep

L

akota has been focusing on students’ futures by providing programs that better prepare students for the “4 E’s:” enrollment, enlistment, employment, and entrepreneurship. The district is offering many new courses in the upcoming 2019-2020 school year that will appeal to different types of interests.

One of the new classes that will be offered is the Lakota Cyber Academy, where students will learn the cybersecurity and information technology (IT) skills needed to go straight into the workforce after graduation. In this program, they will have the chance to earn up to eight industry certifications.

Cybersecurity is “not just about keeping the bad guys out,” according to Jason Skidmore, CEO of Vernovis, a boutique consulting firm.

Companies are building and staffing their cyber defenses and investigation capabilities to defend against the various kinds of attacks they see on a daily basis. Hacking is a big business, making the need for security even larger.

According to Skidmore, there is a zero percent unemployment rate in cybersecurity.

Everyone is working. The demand is high, but the supply is low. Skidmore told Spark there is

an extreme shortage of talented professionals that understand cybersecurity and know how to do it well. Right now, there are one million jobs available and it is estimated that by 2021, there will be 3.5 million jobs that will go unfilled.

“We want our kids to have the best shot at filling those jobs,” Lakota Superintendent Matt Miller said. “This is the start of something big.”

Lakota is partnering with the Cincinnatibased company, Belcan LLC, who provides engineering consultancy and technical recruiting services to a wide variety of organizations, including those involved in the field of cybersecurity.

Belcan developed the Academy idea and brought it to Lakota after piloting a similar program at Cincinnati Taft High School. Spark contacted Taft, but received no response.

“After developing this program, we needed a school district [to implement it],” Beclan Vice President of Cybersecurity said. “We were looking for schools that have a progressive way of looking at this.”

Lakota has been implementing new ways to incorporate digital learning into the classroom and new ways to meet the needs of students.

Lakota’s Director of Curriculum for grades 7

14 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

through 12 Andrew Wheatley said Belcan “saw us as an obvious partner.” “[Belcan] was looking to expand out because they have all these jobs to fill,” Wheatley said.

“We have a lot of great students and have a lot of great teachers, and it just made sense for them to partner with us.”

The Academy will include the courses Cyber 1, Cyber 2 and Cyber 3. Only the first two are required, though Cyber 3 is offered for the students who want a higher level program with more options.

The students in the program will be able to work at their own pace. As they progress through the program, the classes will become more advanced. By the end of the course, the student will be expected to have had participated in a 12- to 18-month internship.

Each class offers new professional certification opportunities. The students can earn two certifications in both Cyber 1 and 2, and they can earn up to four more if they choose to take Cyber 3. These include being trained as a Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH) and a Certified Secure Software Lifecycle Professional (CSSLP).

The certification will allow students the opportunity to go straight into employment

cyber academy | news

*With Lakota Belcan class

$8.31 Per Hour

$10.32 Per Hour

No College Degree

$24 Per Hour

Retail worker Fast food worker

No College Degree

$56 Per Hour

4 Years Of College

Social worker

No College Degree

Cyber security

source payscale *average pay around US

instead of having to attend college. The starting pay for a high school graduate with an industry certification can be as high as $65,000 a year.

“Many [CEOs and CIOs] are interested and willing to hire people that don’t necessarily need a four-year degree but have the skills required to perform those roles,” Skidmore said. “Then they’re willing to help fund those people’s ability to go back and get a four-year degree.”

The classes will include a lot of hands-on learning. Belcan and several other companies reached out to Lakota wanting to send experts into the schools where they will help the students with activities and labs.

“It’s one thing just to gain a lot of content knowledge about cyber security,” Wheatley said. “But it’s another thing to take that content knowledge and be able to apply it.”

The content the students learn will be completed online, as homework, through the Belcan Cyber Academy. A digital library will be available with resources valued at more than $25,000. The goal is not for students to come to class and sit on a computer all period. Students will be able to get their hands dirty.

Even though the Lakota Cyber Academy will be a two-year course, the seniors graduating in 2020 will not be left out. They will have the opportunity to enroll in Cyber Sprint, which will be both courses combined into one. Seniors will have to go through an application and interview

process to make sure they are motivated enough to push through difficult content in a short amount of time.

The seniors involved in the Sprint course will still be expected to have an internship, so some of the work will have to start in the summer. Lakota will offer support throughout the break, but it will not be as much as if the students were in class everyday.

A

fter the 2019-2020 school year, the Cyber Sprint program will no longer be available and the two year course of study will be required.

The Cyber Academy will be taught by Lakota teachers in Lakota classrooms at both East and West and the classes will last one period a day like any other class.

The specific teacher for these classes has not yet been determined because the intricate details of the program still need to be worked out - details such as how many students will take the class. More than 200 people were in attendance at the informational meeting held on Dec. 12, which to Wheatley, means the class is desirable.

“You don’t normally get this many people in a room about a new program,” Wheatley said.

“And not only that, the CEO of a multinational corporation doesn’t normally fly out for a parent and student information night.”

While administration and business leaders are looking forward to the Cyber Academy, it seems as if the real excitement is coming from the Lakota students and parents.

East junior Alec Barr, who plans on taking the Cyber Sprint next year, is excited for this new opportunity because it will allow him to see if this is what he wants to do in the future.

“I’ve been interested in this type of work for a couple months now,” Barr said. “I thought the course would be fun and it will help me decide if I should pursue this in college.”

Alec’s father wasn’t surprised that he had expressed interest in this class. His father works in cyber security and knows how security workers think.

“A good security guy likes to know how things work and takes things apart and understands how things are put back together,” Alec’s dad Steve Barr said. “That fits pretty well with [Alec’s] personality.”

The Lakota Cyber Academy is a way for students to see if they like this type of work and it will provide immediate pathways into the workforce.

“We are continually trying to give opportunities to students that essentially set them up for success,” Wheatley said. “It’s not about just getting kids graduated from high school; it’s about setting them up for the future.” •

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 15

news | tech day

A FUTURE IN TECH

East physics teacher John Severns organized a 21st century version of career day for East’s science and engineering classes students. l story and art alexandra fernholz

U

sually, East’s upper gym is reserved for baseball nets and scrimmages. But one morning in November, there were robots zooming across the floor and throwing balls to students. This year, Lakota upgraded the old high school staple known as Career Day into Tech Day. East students took time from their science and engineering classes to visit the upper gym, where representatives from different professions awaited them. However, unlike the career day of old, Tech Day was all about science and engineering.

“It’s important for kids to talk to people who do engineering and technology every day to see if that’s really their interest,” said Ed Matlack, a Project Lead the Way (PLTW) teacher at East.

“I see it as giving those kids an opportunity to talk to people who do it everyday, because it’s different than talking to a science teacher [or an] engineering teacher.”

Tech Day, the first of its kind to be held in the Lakota district, was piloted at East by physics teacher John Severns as his passion project for the teacher group Lakota Next. “[Lakota Next teachers] were asked to come up with passion projects in several areas,” Severns said. “One of those areas is community involvement. So I decided that I wanted my passion project to be something with bringing community members in to talk with students.”

According to Rich Schmaltz, East English teacher and Lakota Next member, passion projects are undertakings by members of Lakota Next designed to “reinvent high school.”

“Right now, we’re doing a lot of information gathering,” Schmaltz said. “It takes a while to kind of figure out what [reinventing high school] means because it doesn’t exist at all.”

But on that November morning, for East students, a new kind of high school did exist.

Representatives were brought in to speak with students from a diverse array of companies, colleges, and corporations. Guests included the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Procter & Gamble (P&G), Miami University, and Jacobs Engineering.

Architect Kelly Robinson was excited for the opportunity to learn from students.

“Any discipline of engineering is always evolving,” said Robinson, who has worked with Jacobs Engineering for 12 years. “Technology for young students is great because they have fresh minds, and see things differently than

people that have been in the industry.”

However, the only cost to the district and those who attended was time.

“They have graciously given us their time.

And that is huge,” Severns said. “It’s really the community members that are here that have really stepped up.”

Severns, who previously worked at P&G as a research scientist and became a teacher in 2001, wanted to open students’ minds to the possibilities that await after graduation.

23 percent of East students surveyed attended Tech Day.

“There’s a misperception among students that you have to be really smart and you have to go to school for a long time to have a job in science and technology and engineering, and that’s simply not true,” said Severns, who has taught at East for 16 years. “[I want] to give students a vision for things they might be able to do.”

But for East senior and Engineering Club President Emma Krabbe, Tech Day wasn’t just about her future.

“A lot of kids feel disconnected from the real world and the school world,” Krabbe said. “I think that [Tech Day] gives school purpose. It gives me somebody to talk to and something to talk about and pursue, and have some sort of role model that I can go off of.”

For East sophomore and member of

16 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

the Lakota Robotics Club Mason Becker, Tech Day was an important opportunity for him to demonstrate his passion for fellow students.

“I really like going to events like this in general, getting to demo my robots and getting to teach people about what I like to do,” Becker said.

“Just getting to see the looks on their faces… it’s the coolest thing ever.”

L

akota’s Director of Curriculum and Instruction for grades seven-12 Andrew Wheatley knows that Tech Day is not only beneficial for the students’ understanding of school, but also essential to the district.

“It’s really easy to become isolated inside of a school building,” Wheatley said. “[Tech Day] just helps us better understand the need for courses. We don’t want to prepare students really well for for jobs that don’t exist. It’s as simple as that.”

Whether Tech Day will be held at West remains to be seen.

“This is kind of our pilot program,” Lakota Strategic Partnerships Coordinator Katie Bauer told Spark. “We wanted to do one, see what it took, and then maybe replicate [it again].

Hopefully, we’ll have one over on the west side, either [in the] springtime or maybe next year.”

But Bauer too is looking forward, and she knows that school will always come to an end.

“There’s going to be a career at the end of every educational path, however long that is,” Bauer said. “There’s still going to be a job out there, and anything we can do to help peel back the layers and kind of let you know what that passion may be for [students] based on [their] interests, the more we do that the better.” •

The Robin Hood robot was a popular attraction at the event. Designed and manufactured by the Lakota Robotics Team, Robin Hood is able to throw a ball up to 10 feet and climb using telescopic arms attached to the front.

briefs | news

LEADERS IN TRAINING story emma lacalameto

S

TOYS FOR CHANGE story karaline abney | photography abby bammerlin

T

hroughout December, East’s Student Athlete Leadership Team (SALT) sponsored a Toys for Tots fundraiser that gave students and parents in the community an opportunity to help those who may not be fortunate enough to receive toys during this holiday season.

The toys and spare change were collected in the Main Office at the Main Campus, as well as during the East versus West boys and girls basketball games. Upon donating a gift at the games, donors filled out a slip of paper with their name and phone number to be entered in a raffle.

About $3,000 was raised from t-shirt sales, 312 toys were collected, and $700 from donated change will be given to Toys for Tots.

“This can help break down the barriers of our rivalry and unite us as a district, rather than ‘We hate West’ or ‘We hate East.’”

— Mark Krajewski, East junior “It’s a great cause,” said East parent Susan Senger, who also expressed her willingness to donate next year as well.

Students were also involved in the donation process.

“My parents set aside money every year for a different organization,” East sophomore Emma Ficorilli said. “This year they decided to do Toys for Tots. We went to Target and bought a bunch of presents. I think that we’ll probably do it next year because it’s such a good cause.”

Toys for Tots is more than just donating gifts for the less fortunate children in the community; for East junior Mark Krajewski,

a member of SALT, it is also seen as an opportunity to bring the Lakota community together.

“With the new catch phrase this year being ‘We are Lakota,’ [SALT] saw this as ‘Why make this a competition, when this can bring our community together?’” Krajewski said.

The Toys for Tots collection also helped students develop their leadership skills, as well as learn the important traits of responsibility.

“The fact that it’s run by us, by the student voice, rather than a teacher saying we have to do this, makes Toys for Tots unique,” Krajewski said. “We made all of the t-shirt designs and we’ve been doing all of the meetings and emails. I think it’s very unique that us, as students, are taking on the responsibility of being the leaders of Toys for Tots.”

East senior Grace Silverberg, a leader in SALT, felt that most people had misconceptions about the Toys for Tots fundraiser, due to the fact it is a Marine-ran organization and, therefore, the toys collected would be distributed across the country. Silverberg addressed this misconception quickly.

“It’s just given to the people in the Butler County area,” Silverberg said. “It’s not like people in Florida are getting the toys, it’s people in our area that are getting directly impacted by our fundraiser.”

Credits to the inspiration of Toys for Tots at East are given to the Anthony Munoz Foundation, an organization that strives to engage the youth in the Tri-State Area.

“The whole reason we started this was because of the Foundation and the conference we went to through SALT,” Silverberg said.

“They challenged us to do something to give back to the community and we decided that this would be the biggest thing we could do around the holiday season.” •

tarting in the second quarter of the 20182019 school year, students at East Freshman (LEFC) voluntarily signed up to be a part of the LEFC Leadership Program.

East Freshman Associate Principal Robert Burnside wanted freshmen to “hit the ground running” next year as they enter their first year at main campus. He created the Leadership Program to do just that.

Burnside created this program to help freshmen develop strong leadership skills and help drive the students to get involved in larger opportunities once they reach the main high school.

Burnside encouraged all freshmen to join and attend the weekly meetings. A few students were recognized as strong leaders and were recommended to be a part of this program, but attendance is mainly voluntary.

The weekly meetings are on Thursdays during the extra study hall period and lasted for a four-week period. The final meeting of this semester was Dec. 13.

“The problem with [students] being only one year in this building is that [they] don’t have a student council, and [they] don’t have a group of older students who can teach the younger students how to immerse themselves in [the school] and take charge of different things,” Burnside said. “I thought we should be doing something, but I didn’t know where to go.”

One idea freshman students had was to make the building more “flavorful.” Burnside pulled a few students aside and talked to them about some changes they could make to make the new Innovation Hubs more appealing than the media center is currently.

“I think this program will be very beneficial,” East Freshman Jadon Coles said. “We’re going to be connected more as a group.”

“I’m really looking forward to seeing what these improvements will be doing for the school.” East Freshman LeAnn Neiderman said. Future plans of this program include painting the media center and adding more decorations to the school.

The LEFC Leadership Program is slowly growing to create a better environment for current and future East Freshmen.

“I want them to help us drive the culture.

When they move to main campus, I want them to be able to go over there and be plugged into the leadership programs and structures there,” Burnside said. “I want them to truly know how to lead.” •

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 17

PIC SIX

culture | pic six

Third Issue Features:

Spark chose six bakeries to vist and review. Spark staffer Bea Amsalu ordered the store’s most popular cookie and pastry. Here are her rankings. reviews and photography bea amsalu infographics and art caroline bumgarner

6

Sweet Zone Bakery 7727 Tylers Pl Blvd, West Chester Township, OH 45069 Hours: Mon. - Sat. 10a.m. - 8p.m.

Sun. 12p.m. - 6p.m.

5

Jansen Sweet Sinsations Warren County

Butler County

Hamilton

3

1

Hours: Mon. - Fri. 6a.m. - 6p.m.

Sat. 6:30a.m. - 4p.m.

Sun. Closed

Liberty Center 6

6221 Snider Rd, Mason, OH 45040

Mason 5

Springdale 4

4

Busken

2

365 W Kemper Rd, Cincinnati, OH 45246 Hours: Mon. - Sat. 6a.m. - 6p.m.

Sun. Closed

Hamilton County

1 The Almond Sisters

224 High St, Hamilton, OH 45011 Hours: Everyday 8a.m. - 6p.m.

2

Bluebird Bakery 29 Village Square, Cincinnati, OH 45246 Hours: Mon.-Sat. 6:30a.m. - 6:00p.m.

Sun. Closed

18 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

3

Kelly’s Bakery 1335 Main St, Hamilton, OH 45013 Hours: Mon. Closed Tue. - Fri. 5a.m. - 12:30p.m.

Sat. - Sun. 6a.m. - 12p.m.

pic six | culture

1st

3rd

2nd

The Almond Sisters

Kelly’s Bakery

Bluebird Bakery

$2 for geode $3 for cinnamon roll

$0.75 for cookies $2.25 for macaron

$0.50 For cookie $1.50 for Kelly’s Bread

Almond Sisters is a little bakery in the heart of downtown Hamilton. Their most popular cookie is their “geode,” which is a fudgy brownie inside a chocolate chip cookie. The two worked so well together, a great way to make a “brookie.” Their most popular pastry is the “almond twist,” but since they struggle to keep those in stock for very long, I got the cinnamon roll per recommendation of the worker. It’s made out of puff pastry rather than a normal pastry dough, so the outside was flaky but got more fluffy as I worked my way towards the center. The worker was super kind and friendly as well, and gave me all sorts of tips and suggestions for the next time I come in to visit the bakery.

Bluebird is a bakery and cafe in the Village Square area in Glendale, not far from the I-75 exit. I ordered a gingersnap cookie and a sugar cookie with sprinkles baked into it. The gingersnap was awesome and the sugar cookie had a great taste, but it was a little crumbly. I also had a macaron, and while I’m usually not a fan of macarons, I was definitely a fan of this one. The pastry is kept refrigerated, the workers told me for the best taste, to let it thaw out a little and I was not disappointed. There was a lot of chocolate filling in the middle, and the outside had a better texture than other macarons I’ve had. The workers were super kind to me and the store itself is a homey place with lots of tables and chairs.

Kelly’s bakery is a little donut shop in Hamilton. As a spot on the Butler County Donut Trail, of course their most popular pastry is a donut. The “Kelly Bread” is a long yeast donut with a super good cinnamon frosting. It tastes like someone melted a cinnamon roll and spread it on a glazed donut.

According to the workers, it was inspired by the pastry “monkey bread,” and I definitely got a very similar vibe eating it. They also had an array of house baked cookies as well, the most popular being the frosted sugar cookie. The cookie was pretty standard for a sugar cookie, but I did really like the frosting.

5th

6th

4th

Busken

Jansen Sweet Sinsations

Sweet Zone Bakery

$0.90 for cookie $1.50 for kettle danish

$0.35 per cookie $1.15 for donut

$10 per pound of pastrys

Busken is a chain based in Cincinnati, with a main bakery on Madison Rd. that supplies the other stores. They also sell their pastries at United Dairy Farmers (UDF) convenience stores. For my cookie, I had to have the iconic smiley face. While not necessarily their best cookie (which would have to be the tea cookie), I couldn’t pass up that classic yellow icing that everyone from the area recognizes. I also had a kettle danish, which is half donut dough and half danish dough fried like a donut. The fluffy pastry melts in your mouth and the glaze is sticky and delicious. The chain definitely feels local, with cookies adorned with the Bengals’ and the Reds’ logos and cakes decorated with the Cincinnati Zoo’s precious hippo, Fiona.

Sweet Sinsations is a bakery at the edge of Mason closest to West Chester. They offer an array of all sorts of pastries, from custom decorated cakes to danishes. Of their many cookies, I chose the “bird’s nest” variety, which are shortbread cookies with an indentation in the middle for colored icing. They were a fun little variation on generic tea cookies. I had a vanilla iced cake donut too. There was nothing super exceptional about the pastry, but it did have a surprisingly light texture for a cake donut, which was a nice deviation from the very dense texture you usually think of when picturing a cake donut. The bakery space itself is really spacious with lots of seating, and all their workers were super kind.

Sweet Zone Bakery is a small bakery in the Wetherington area of West Chester. While they specialize in custom cakes, the bakery has a huge selection of various cookies that they sell by weight rather than by individual cookie.

One of the cookies I chose was a shortbread sandwich cookie with a chocolate filling. The cookie was a little dry, but the smooth filling countered it well. Another cookie I choose had chocolate sprinkles on half. It was an awkward size to try to eat and was also a sort of sandwich cookie with a honey-like filling. The bakery didn’t have very much seating, giving me the impression that the intent of the bakery is to pick up orders and leave.

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 19

culture | foreign exchange

Greetings from

OHIO East junor and foreign exchange student Léo spends his break on the sandy beaches of Florida.

French foreign-exchange student Léo Philippo spreads his culture and learns America’s while spending his junior year at East. story abbie westendorf | photography used with permission | art sinju cho

W

hile an everyday teenager dreads waking up at the break of dawn and going to school, East foreign-exchange student Léo Philippo does it with a smile.

Philippo has embraced the American way of life while spending his junior year at East by being involved with various clubs.

Philippo and his family have hosted three foreign-exchange students in the past, a Canadian girl, an American boy, and an Austrian girl. Having this first-hand experience sparked his interests in being a foreign-exchange student himself.

“I liked the idea of discovering a new culture, having a family in another continent, and going to a new school,” Philippo says. “It’s all very exciting.”

Traveling is a very big part of Philippo’s life. Living in France allows him to travel to a multitude of different countries. He travels mostly in Europe, London being his favorite destination so far, and dreams of working in tourism. His love of travel is another reason he

Foreign Exchange Students Part 3 wanted to become a foreign-exchange student.

To live out his dream, Philippo went through the organization American Field Service (AFS).

This organization is a non-profit program that “develops active global citizens and fosters intercultural understandings.” He will be in the United States (US) for 10 months.

“I am very proud to be in this country, a lot of people dream about being an exchange student in the US,” Philippo says. “With my association you can choose many different countries like China, Brazil, Germany, South

20 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

Africa, and more.”

Jeff and Lisa Phair realized Philippo would be a good fit with their family. Their three children Grace, 18, Leo, 10, and Keira, 9, agreed.

“I started to read [Léo’s] bio and by the end, I was so moved that I showed it to my husband.

He read it and then we shared it with our three [kids],” Lisa says. “Unanimously, everyone agreed that we should fill out an application right away and try to become Léo’s host family.”

In order to welcome Philippo into their home, the Phair family had to make some changes.

Grace, a senior at East, is responsible for driving Léo to school, giving up some of the freedom that goes along with her last year of high school. One of the kids had to give up their room, and share a room and closet with a sibling. But it was a challenge the family took on gracefully.

“The decision to host Léo was a family decision,” Lisa says. “We could not have done

foreign exchange | culture this if everyone hadn’t carefully considered how life for them would change and still be excited to welcome Léo into our home.”

Life in America has been an adjustment for Philippo, but he fits right into the Phair family.

He has bonded with each member in different ways. He and Grace, watch the Netflix Original Orange is the New Black together and he enjoys cracking jokes with Jeff.

“My kids have enjoyed having him around, playing games and hanging out. My husband and I have enjoyed learning about his life back at home and watching our family interact with him,” Lisa says. “I hope that Léo will remember his time here fondly, knowing that he is loved and that he will always have a family in Ohio”

I

n France, Léo lives with his mother Betty Philippo and his 20-year-old-sister, Elise.

This year, both of the Philippo children are participating in a foreign-exchange program, Léo in America and Elise in Paris. Betty says it is hard to be so far away from each other, but they keep in touch through social media.

“Since he left, I started hiking because I live on a beautiful island that offers many incredible landscapes,” Betty says. “This separation is an opportunity for experiencing new things that we will share with each other when we are reunited.”

Léo’s mother is very proud of him, and is impressed by his courage of being a foreignexchange student in America. She thinks that

“I am very proud to be in this country, a lot of people dream about being an exchange student in the USA.”

—Léo Philippo, East foreign-exchange student

by learning about other cultures and sharing his own he will have a better future.

“I hope when he comes home he can cook the best cookies ever,” Betty says. “I cannot wait to discover him, and the new American traditions he learned.”

School is very enjoyable to Léo. He says school is much shorter in the US, and he has more opportunities and choices involving school than he does in France. Léo is a member of Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) and French club. He is very happy with East’s GSA club and how the LGBTQ flag is presented in the hallways.

“I am in GSA because I’m a transgender boy and a pansexual,” Lèo says. “I am lucky to have a safe space here, I feel more comfortable to be myself at East than I did in France.”

His family is very supportive of his sexuality. Betty says after he came out to her,

nothing changed, and she still loves him more than anything in this world.

E

ast French teacher Tiffany Ashley has Léo in her Advanced Placement (AP) French class. She believes her other students use the opportunity of having a native speaker in the class to their advantages.

“I enjoy learning from him,” Ashley says.

“He provides the class opportunities to delve into discussions and concepts that are not otherwise generated.”

By contributing different cultural insights to others, and learning theirs when Léo believes life will be very different, upon returning home.

He says he has benefited greatly from his time in America so far.

“I am now more open minded about how I do things,” Léo says. “[All] because I know a different culture.” •

Réunion Island

Overseas region and department of France Became a department of France: March 1946 Capital: Saint-Denis Population: 865,826 people Distance from Cincinnati OH: 9,755 miles Size: 970 square miles Predominate religion: Roman Catholic Languages: French and Réunion Creole Currency: Euros Volcanos: The Piton de la Fournaise on the eastern end of Réunion Island, rises more than 8,632 feet above sea level. The volanco has erupted more than 100 times since 1640, and is under constant monitoring. The Piton de la Fournaise most recently erupting on July 14, 2017. The Piton des Neiges is inactive, it is larger than The Piton de la Fournaise. source wikipedia.org January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 21

culture | the nutcracker

TO THE POINTE

The annual production of “The Nutcracker” is an important part of every ballerina’s career.

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incinnati Ballet dancer or not, when people hear “The Nutcracker,” something comes to mind. Whether they recognize the music, the story, the choreography, or story isis summerlin | photography abby bammerlin and the ballet, people around the world join together to used with permission | infographic caroline bumgarner experience it again and again.

“It’s such a classic. If you ask [anyone to name] one ballet, they’ll say ‘The Nutcracker.’ Everyone knows it,” Cincinnati Ballet dancer Emma Krusling says. “It’s heartwarming [and] it’s festive. It brings a lot of people to the ballet.”

Now 17, this will be Krusling’s twelfth year performing “The Nutcracker.” This performance gives her the opportunity to do her favorite type of dance—ballet. “[With] ballet, you have to fit into someone else’s idea— you have to match that image,” the Cincinnati Ballet dancer says.

The first performance of The Nutcracker was presented by the Russian Imperial Ballet in St. Petersburg, Russia in 1892. The music was conducted by Pyotr Illyich Tchaikovsky, who also conducted “The Sleeping Beauty” and “Swan Lake.”

“The Russian Court loved dance, and a story like this one had so much appeal,” says Patricia Beaman, a dance E.T.A historian at New York University. “There’s magical Hoffmann characters, transformation, people from exotic lands, and writes The love.”

Nutcracker and the SDA studios, a dance school in Butler County, OH, has Mouse King been performing “The Nutcracker” for 17 years. East junior Lauryn Dixon, a dancer and student teacher at SDA, recounts her favorite part of being on stage.

“What I love [most] is the end Alexandre product,” Dixon says. “I Dumas Père’s love being onstage in adapts the those costumes. I love story by E.T.A. performing, and I Hoffmann love giving people The ballet is something to commissioned by the watch.” director of Moscow’s Since the Imperial Theatres, Ivan ballet doesn’t Vsevolozhsky include words,

1816

1845

1891

1892

The Nutcracker was first performed at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia

1934 The ballet was first performed outside Russia in England. It was staged

by Nicholas Sergeyev at the Vic-Wells Ballet

sources kathleen mcguire, simple.wikipedia.org and nutcracker.com 22 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

the nutcracker | culture

Emma Krusling performs as a flower in the Cincinnati Ballet show of The Nutcracker. dancers have to portray a story with their body movements and facial expressions, which is especially crucial in “The Nutcracker.”

“Some parts use pantomime which is miming with dance. We really work on our emotions and our facial expressions,” Dixon says. “You have to work on your makeup, your costume, and your whole presence to be in that character and be playing that role.”

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he piece was adapted from German author E.T.A. Hoffman’s book, “The Nutcracker and the Mouse King.” The original story was about a little girl named Marie whose Christmas present, a nutcracker, comes to life.

The nutcracker defeats the Mouse King, and takes Marie to a magical land. Marie’s dreams in the original story are chastised by her strict, mundane family and cast off as childish delusions.

“Many different choreographers have done their own versions,” Patricia Beaman says.

“Two that stand out are George Balanchine’s for New York Ballet and Donald Byrd did the Harlem Nutcracker, which was excellent.”

The original ballet was choreographed by Marius Petipa, but when he fell sick a dancer, Lev Ivanov, took his place as choreographer.

Regardless of what variation they use, dance studios around the world have been performing “The Nutcracker” during the holidays for over

1944

Its first United States performance was by the San Francisco Ballet, staged by its artistic director and Balanchine student Willam Christensen

Lauryn Dixon practices the part of snow drop fairy for her performance in SDA’s Nutcracker.

one hundred years.

“It’s been around forever,” Krusling says.

“It’s a tradition, and a lot of dancers perform it all the way until they retire.”

Although the first ballet was based off of Hoffman’s tale, it is somewhat different than the original storyline. The Russian ballet references Alexandre Dumas’ version of the story that uses Clara as the main character and the storyline is more lighthearted.

“A girl named Clara gets a nutcracker for Christmas that transforms into a handsome prince,” Beaman says. “She goes through a long journey that is represented by dancers from many lands.”

Despite “The Nutcracker’s” many renowned characters, it has recently come under some scrutiny for its portrayal of people from different cultures.

“There has been a change in the dance world, and presenting stereotypes of cultures is politically incorrect to many people,” Patricia Beaman says.

This stems from the fact that some dance studios still cast white men and women to play roles of sweets from different cultures such as chocolate (Spain), tea (China), and coffee (Arabian Peninsula). Potentially offensive costumes may include black wigs with chopsticks, belly shirts, and harem pants.

Because of this, most dance schools have

1954

The New York City Ballet first performed George Balanchine’s Nutcracker

1957

shied away from those representations and focused in on the tradition and holiday aspect of “The Nutcracker.”

“We have kids who grow up in [SDA] and they learned that when they’re six, they can be in ‘The Nutcracker,’” says Mary St. Romain, the owner of SDA studios. “They look forward to the day when they can do their first Nutcracker.”

A

longside its tradition and holiday themes, another element that has made “The Nutcracker” a timeless ballet is its musical score. St. Romain says that if she didn’t have such a great love for the score, she “wouldn’t be doing it every year in a row for [her] whole life.”

Patricia Beaman agrees that Tchaikovsky’s classical arrangement of the ballet is one of her favorite parts about “The Nutcracker.”

“I love the score,” Beaman says. “There are so many magical moments, especially the grand pas at the end between Clara and the prince.”

No matter the reason, dance schools everywhere unite to tell the story of “The Nutcracker” for families to enjoy during the holiday season.

“My favorite thing is performing and touching someone else with what your body does without words,” Krusling says. “I think it’s beautiful to be able to do that.” •

1996

The ballet was first aired on national television (CBS)

Donald Byrd premieres The Harlem Nutcracker, featuring Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn’s jazzy arrangement of Tchaikovsky’s score

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 23

MARCHING TO NATIONALS

East’s marching band attended the Bands of America Grand Nationals for the first time, making it all the way to the semi final round. personal narrative anna mullins | photography used with permission

S

tanding in the bleachers at Mason High School, the playoff football game against Elder High School commenced in front of us. The band tried to stay warm, while listening to the drumline play. Wrapped up in a blanket and cradling a lukewarm hot chocolate in my hand, I waited with baited breath alongside the rest of the band for the results of Grand National Prelims to be broadcasted from Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

East had never before performed at the highest level of BOA competition, Grand Nationals. This competition has three levels, prelims, semifinals, and finals. To get to the next level you have to rank high enough in the previous level. West competed last year and only performed in prelims. As a band we were determined to work as hard as we possibly could on our show “Line, Shape, and Color”, so that we could be the first band in Lakota history to make it to Grand Nationals Semifinals.

Our prelims performance was scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 8. The results would be broadcasted the following Friday night during the football game, and then semi finals performances would start on Saturday. On Thursday morning we boarded charter buses at 4:30am and headed to Indianapolis (Indy).

On our way we stopped in a Walmart parking lot so that we could all get changed into our uniforms. When we arrived in Indy, we all got off the buses and walked to the semi and box truck, known to the pit crew as “Bessie”, that contained all of our equipment.

We followed the same path into the tunnel

that we had taken earlier in the season for BOA Super Regionals at Lucas Oil and went through warmup. We then went into the tunnel that leads out onto the field feeling the same nervousness that fills us before stepping onto this field everytime.

As we stood there one of the three guard section leaders, Shelby Spaulding, turned to the guard and said to us, “Let’s leave it all on the field today so that we can come back and pick it up on saturday.” I repeated that saying in my head over a hundred times because I feel that it encompassed what we do as a band. We work hard each day so that we can continue our journey as far as possible.

I have walked onto that field a total of four times over the course of my marching band career. It never feels real. Looking up into the stands and hearing the band parents scream out cheers that could normally be heard from the student section of a football game it makes me remember why I am on that field and why you worked hard all season to be here.

I don’t remember how the show went; I can only remember how much everyone was smiling. When we got back to the buses we changed into our street clothes and walked together to the Circle Centre Mall in Indianapolis to eat and shop until it was time to get back on the buses to go home. We were all anxious, at least in the back of our minds, about whether or not we were going to make semi finals. We thought about it the whole 127 miles it took to get back home.

We continued to think about it while supporting the football team at the playoff

24 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

game against Elder High School. We performed our show during half-time but it was so cold we could not feel our hands. The only saving grace for the band was that they had gloves. The guard, not having that luxury, had to take all of the tosses out of our work so no one would get hurt. All the while wondering would this be our last performance.

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s the scoreboard counted down the last two minutes of the game we set up a large speaker as we all crammed down to the bottom of the bleachers to make sure we would be able to hear the names exactly when they were called. In the background East was fighting to make up the 34-6 lead that Elder High School had gained. All of our attention was drawn to the speakers though, as the names of bands started being announced. The entire band section of the bleachers went silent right up until “Lakota...” was called and we shook the bleachers with our cheers.

It was at this moment that I knew we had become a different band than the one that started off the season. We were pushing limits that had never been tried before and we were crashing right through them. The marching band was continuing its journey for another day and we were starting at 8 a.m in the parking lot of Independence Elementary School. As we were pulling out of the parking lot in yellow school buses our parents, Principal Suzanna Davis, and a few community members stood along the road and cheered as we headed off to Indy for the last time this year.

We once again changed in the same Walmart

personal narrative | culture parking lot and headed to the Indianapolis Convention Center to eat and to warm up. We all sat on the floor eating our packed lunches, and getting in the mindset for the performance of a lifetime. After eating we had to unload our equipment off of “Bessie” that was parked at the loading dock of the building. As we walked there we passed other bands who had also made it to semi finals. The other bands had huge props, extremely detailed uniforms, and almost 100 more members than we have; and we were good enough to perform with them.

W

e walked into one of the rooms in the convention center to warm up. The ground was concrete, the ceiling had exposed pipes, and the floor had outlets every few yards. The guard warmed up by doing across the floors, which included sit rolls.

We all had a few bruises afterwards, but with the adrenaline rush, we didn’t care.

After the quick rehearsal we walked over to the stadium. We then headed down into the tunnel again to warm up just as we have every time we performed. There are two parts of warm-up and a velvet divider between the two.

Left: At a home football game band members sit in the bleachers wearing their parkas to protect the uniform from the rain. Right: East marching band performs for semi-finals at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

The first one is the physical warm-up and the second is the music warm-up.

While we are in the first room another band is only a divider away. The fabric is not solid and is made up of several different pieces so we could see the other band and guard warming up. It is both motivational and intimidating.

It is motivating because we earned our place to perform with the band next to us and also intimidating because they are so good.

After warm-up and drinking a quick cup of water, we lined up to go out onto the field to perform the show that we had worked for the entire year. We went out on the field while a large screen played Music for All ads and crowds from all over the country watched us.

Some of the people watching were actually

in the stands while some were watching from home as Flo Marching broadcasted our show on their website. It was the largest crowd we had ever performed in front of.

This performance was truly our performance. It didn’t matter how well or how poorly we did because we had already reached our goal. We had already made our parents proud, our directors proud, and represented our school to the fullest. The only thing left to do was to make ourselves proud.

And in that moment we did make ourselves proud as we performed our show for the last time. We showed the true spirit of band as we faced the challenges, created a marching band show and never gave up. • ... read part one at lakotaeastsparkonline.com

m fresh an

CHEYENNE HARDIMAN What do you do when you’re feeling stressed?

I listen to loud music until I’m not stressed anymore.

How does this help you?

It calms me down and makes me think about the music and not what I’m stressing about.

HAWKS ON: HAPPINESS

culture | hawks on

What do you do to cheer yourself up when you’re sad?

I distract myself with other things I’ll obsess over or make me forget about what I’m sad about.

What makes you happy while you’re at school?

Going to lunch and my art class.

interviews kara harris and caroline bumgarner photography shelby alderman and meredith niemann

26 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

homore sop

CAROLINE MCGAHA

What do you do when you are feeling stressed?

Listen to music or just try to take a few minutes to calm down and know that everything is gonna be all good.

What do you do to cheer yourself up when you’re sad?

Again, I listen to music or I talk to some of my friends as a distraction.

What makes you happy while you’re at school?

Seeing my friends or talking to my friends during lunch or class changes, or when teachers involve things that aren’t strictly note taking and other things like that, things that are kinda like application and show how much you have learned and how much you’re learning.

hawks on | culture

BEN DOMINA What do you do when you’re feeling stressed?

The two main things I do when I am feeling stressed are taking pictures and playing lacrosse.

How does this help you?

HAWKS ON: HAPPINESS

junior

Taking pictures helps with my stress because it usually distracts me from the thing that I am stressed about. Lacrosse helps me out in another way by actively using all my adrenaline to calm me down.

What do you do to cheer yourself up when you’re sad?

When I’m feeling down my friends talk to me and try to cheer me up.

What makes you happy while you’re at school?

My friends, lunch, and of course not having homework.

senior

IDRIS MALIK

What do you do when you’re feeling stressed?

I like to play my clarinet because that’s my hobby, and I’m in the band program. I go on group chats with my friends and talk about random stuff to try and get my mind off things. I also like to read for fun and play video games, that’s how I like to de-stress.

What makes you happy while you’re at school?

I really enjoy hanging out with my friends, and just making what we’re doing fun and enjoyable, because I’m with people that enjoy. I like class breaks, such as lunch, where I can ignore school stuff and just talk about other things. I like working with people that are my friends which makes doing school work bearable.

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 27

Q&A

culture | dart

MASON BECKER

East sophomore Mason Becker uses knowledge gained from art classes to help with graphic design and digital drawing commissions from his robotics team. interview rebecca holst photography abby bammerlin

sophomore

Q: What art class are you currently taking?

MB: Drawing and Painting II. Q: Do you plan on taking more art classes next year?

MB: I’m going to Butler Tech next year, so I’ll just be taking the robotics classes Q: One of your main interests is drawing, do you do any other forms as well?

MB: I do digital media, graphic designs like logos and I draw my own stuff. I will work with whatever I need to in order to achieve what I am going for.

Q: What is your favorite piece that you’ve ever done?

MB: What a tough question. I like one [digital piece] I did of myself, except it had ramen instead of guts.

Q: What is your favorite style of art?

MB: I like generally proportioned people, but I like some exaggerated parts with large movements and being able to tell a whole story with a pose or a character using colors and shapes.

I like drawing big chunky hands because I think that’s fun. I like big angular shapes that are still smooth at the same time, so a lot of contrasting pieces that go together and still flow. My work is cartoony. Drawing realistically is hard, I give all the credit to people that can do it.

Q: What do you think about the comments and criticisms others make on your art?

MB: There definitely are people who humor me and say everything that I do is perfect. But there are some who just don’t like it.

Above: Becker works on his in-class art assignment after school in Jesse Dornan’s classroom.

Q: When you first started digital drawing, what made you want to continue this type of art?

MB: I was emotional that my work wasn’t up to par with what I actually wanted it to be.

Q: What is your motivation to create art?

MB: [That competitive aspect of] being better than the others, because everyone says they’re better than me. I hope my art inspires others so they have someone to compare it to and be able to inspire others in a sense that they get to learn what I have done and they don’t make the same mistakes I do.

Q: Where do you get commissions?

MB: Tumblr a few years ago, friends, but mainly Instagram.

Q: I know you do robotics as well, is there any connection between your art and robotics?

Do you ever draw pictures of your robots or anything like that?

MB: I do graphic design nd logos for the team Q: When did you join the robotics team?

MB: I joined the team summer of 2017, and my sister was the team captain my first year, so I joined because I knew about the team and I knew a lot of the kids on the team already.

Q: What really got you interested in joining the team?

MB: I really like getting to work with the students and meeting more people outside of school and traveling to events and getting to

28 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

volunteer and stuff. It’s really an experience outside of anything else I could be able to do.

Q: What sort of places did you go for events?

MB: We do a lot of events about STEAM, we’ve gone to events at General Electric (GE) and Procter & Gamble (P&G), as well as fairs and festivals. We give demomonstrates for robots and reach out to kids and teach them about our robots.

Q: When you say “reach out to kids,” would that be younger kids who aren’t yet in high school?

MB: Yeah! There’s kids who are younger who might want to be on an First Lego League (FLL) team, or kids who are old enough to be on our team.

Q: What is FLL? MB: It’s the same style of robotics, but they use Lego robots and minestorm brains to program them. So it’s tinier for younger students. But I really, really enjoy getting to work with the younger kids and teach them about our program. It’s one of my favorite parts of being on the team.

Q: What is your proudest moment on the robotics team?

MB: My proudest moment on the team so far is that I got to design the robots logo. It goes onto the robot itself, and it’s also on the back of our team tees. The day that the tees came in last year, I actually started tearing up when I saw them. I was so excited and everyone was excited for me. It’s really an honor. I plan on making the robot logo for the next few years I’m on the team. •

THE SCIENCE OF HAPPINESS

package | umbrella

THE HAPPINESS MINDSET

After East partners with Cincinnati Children’s hospital to provide more therapists in school, many wonder what contributes to a person’s happiness.

East sophomores Rachel Moore and Becca Strack embrace.

story and photo illustration abby bammerlin | art mckenna lewis

B

eginning in the fall of 2017, the Lakota District piloted its partnership with MindPeace, an organization established in 2002 that facilitates partnerships with mental health-based organizations, at West.

The program was expanded to East beginning this year.

“MindPeace is a resource that helps link counseling to schools and families,” East Counselor Andrea Bryant says. “They help facilitate bringing in mental health counselors to schools and local partners through Cincinnati.”

East Principal Suzanna Davis says that, through MindPeace, proposals were sent out

to various mental health organizations. The potential organizations were then interviewed, and East selected Cincinnati Children’s Hospital to be its partner. According to Davis, the therapists provided by Cincinnati Children’s Hospital are medical therapists. “[Student’s don’t] just walk in and have a conversation with [the therapists],” says Davis, comparing them to East counselors. “There are insurances pieces. It’s a family commitment. It’s a formal therapy program.”

Before the therapists are placed in at East, MindPeace does a needs assessment to determine what East needs from potential

30 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

therapists.

“MindPeace came and met with us and did a needs assessment with a team of individuals, staff, teachers, administrators, and support staff,” Davis says. “Based on that needs assessments, [we] put forth a request for individuals and sent that out to organizations.”

Executive director of MindPeace Susan Shelton says that during a needs assessment, MindPeace looks into data collected about the student body, the climate of the school, and surveys on social-emotional health. Shelton says sometimes there is data collected around bullying and attendance data, which she explains

umbrella | package

“We need training on the adult side. It’s just staggering, even at early childhood schools, how many kids are going through some things right now.”— Matt Miller, Lakota Superintendent can be related to anxiety and depression rates.

“In Lakota when we did the needs assessment for both high schools, there’s a lot of anxiety and depression,” Shelton says. “It’s really important for the [mental health] partner to understand that and be able to have staff and respond with the right services.”

Along with East, MindPeace has partnered with about 150 other schools in the greater Cincinnati area.

Davis says that East has been responsive to the need for mental health services to be more accessible and embedded within schools and that it was heard through the community conversations, facilitated by the district.

According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), 21.4 percent of youth, defined as adolescents aged 13-18, suffer from a severe mental illness.

“We’re very mindful of the mental health challenges that many of our students face,” Davis says. “We don’t have the capacity within current structure nor do we have individuals trained to be clinical therapists within our current structure.”

According to the Association for Children’s Mental Health, one in ten young people have a mental health challenge that is severe enough to impair how they function at home, school or in the community.

L

akota Superintendent Matt Miller says that expanding the MindPeace program to the lower grade levels is a goal of his.

“We’re seeing a lot of kids with severe social-emotional needs at the lower grade levels than we ever have before,” Miller says. “We don’t want to pull resources away from the high school, but we’re trying to ramp up to the lower grades.”

The therapists at East are not full-time employees. Davis says that in the mental health field, therapist are very difficult to come by.

Currently, East is in the process of interviewing another school-based therapist. “[East] hopes to have a full-time schoolbased counselor from Cincinnati Children’s Hospital working with us at East soon,” Bryant says.

The counseling department, according to Bryant, takes an active role in promoting healthy, positive behaviors for students.

“As a counseling department, we made a plan for Monthly Programming to highlight various topics to help the students of East, and we call this program MindCheck,” Bryant

says. “Our goal is to be proactive in providing information on a monthly topic to give students tools and resources to help them through school and their life.”

Bryant says that the counseling department includes programming on mindfulness, selfcare/stress relief, and healthy relationships. All these factors can play into the overall happiness of students.

Amherst College life science professor Catherine Sanderson has done extensive research into the Science of Happiness. She says that 40 percent of happiness is influenced by genes.

“There are particular genes that seem to

91.8%

compare their lives to those online.

“I gave a talk and a woman emailed me afterward and said ‘I just wanted you to know that after your talk, I deleted my Facebook,’” Sanderson says. “She realized she was spending a lot of time getting on Facebook. It was really making her miserable.”

Shelton says that while the stigma of mental health has decreased, social media usage might be affecting students.

“Technology is playing a role because younger and younger children are using technology,” Shelton says. “We still don’t know the complete effects of that.”

An article published by the University of

of East students surveyed have participated in a program facillitated by the counseling department

enable people to find happiness easier,” says Sanderson, who has worked at Amherst for 21 years. “Having these genes doesn’t guarantee happiness, obviously bad events happen to people and influence our well being.”

These genes, Sanderson told Spark, help people have greater levels of optimism or self-esteem. There’s some evidence that the genes may make it easier to have satisfying relationships or to buffer negative experiences.

However, Sanderson explains that 50 percent of happiness is determined by personal outlook, and 10 percent comes from life circumstances.

Out of 61 students surveyed, 21.3 percent of students say they have gone to a counselor for a counselor for a personal issue, not pertaining to grades, classes and/or college.

A 2017 study published by the University of Warwick found that college-educated people have decreased in overall happiness since 1972.

Miller says that teachers around his age bracket did not have social-emotional training as part of their teacher prep course work.

“We need to have training on the adult side of why things happen,” Miller says. “We have a lot of kids that have gone through trauma in a lot of different areas. It’s staggering, even at early childhood schools, how many kids are going through things right now.”

There are outside factors that can impact a person’s happiness. Social media, according to Sanderson, make people feel bad because users

Pennsylvania found that “limiting social media use to approximately 30 minutes per day may lead to significant improvement in well being.”

They also found that during the experiment, subjects who limited their time on social media showed a decrease in anxiety and fear of missing out.

“With the increased use of technology and social media, the rates of depression have also increased for kids and the rates of anxiety have increased, while things like isolation and social connectedness have decreased at the same time,” Shelton says.

However, Sanderson says there are things people can do to improve their happiness. As someone who is not genetically predisposed to happiness, Sanderson explains there are outside factors that affect a person’s happiness.

“The single strongest predictor [of happiness] is the quality of your relationships,” Sanderson says. “Having good meaningful relationships, whether that’s romantic partners, friendships, family members, etcetera, are very strong predictors of happiness.”

Out of 60 East students surveyed, 86.9 percent of students say they have a close personal friend at school.

Along with relationships, Sanderson has found that there are ten things that people can do to improve their happiness such as reading a book, keeping a gratitude journal, and smiling.

“Happiness is about our circumstances,” Sanderson says. “But actually we have a huge amount of control of our happiness.” •

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 31

package | social media

PLUGGED

IN

East junior Kaya West explains the impact that social media use has on her life, and on her overall happiness. story shiloh wolfork | infographic lauren maier photo illustration abby bammerlin | art mckenna lewis

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he has just arrived at home. While eating an after-school snack, she browses Twitter, searching for the latest updates in news.

After skimming articles featuring the Trump Administration, disastrous wildfires and disease outbreak, she exits the application (app), venturing to Instagram. She clicks the icon, scrolling through the latest posts of her favorite follows and watching the stories of her closest friends. She appreciates this time,, and enjoys the feeling of connection until she glances up and asks herself, “What am I doing?”

East junior Kaya West has been using social media for going on four years. Ever since she opened her first Tumblr account in seventh grade, the presence of social-networking sites has impacted her.

“I use Facebook and Instagram to keep up with friends. I mainly use Twitter to follow politics and news. I definitely use social media everyday,” West told Spark. “I spend more time on the Internet than I did in the past and I’m

really annoyed by it. But think it really depends on how you use social media because it can be helpful to have connections with others, but it can also be incredibly draining on the mind.”

In recent years, the amount of social media users has steadily increased.

According to the Pew Research Center in a 2015 study of teens, social media and technology, 24 percent of teenagers went online almost constantly. In May 2018, the same study was done and 45 percent of teenagers were reported as going online almost constantly.

“One of the reasons why social media is so popular is that it offers us ready access in order to attempt to fulfill the basic human needs that we feel,” Miami University Professor in psychology and anxiety-related studies Joshua Magee says. “We all like to connect with other people. We’re human. Social media gives us this new mode where we could be pursuing these motivations every minute if we wanted to.”

West explains how the communication and connections that social media provides allow

58.3 percent of East students surveyed believe social media is bad for your mental health.

32 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

her to reinforce important relationships.

“I have a family friend who lives in Turkey.

The political climate there is not great so she can’t really leave and I can’t go see her. But she likes to watch my Instagram story which is really awesome,” West says. “I get to have a connection with a person who I otherwise wouldn’t talk to.”

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ccording to psychologist and Director of training Matthew Heiner, the impacts of social media are determined by how the platforms are used.

“When people are using social media as a tool to connect with others or gain social support and satisfaction, that’s really great,” Heiner says. “When it becomes an obligation, problems arise.”

As shown by the Pew Research Center, Facebook and Youtube are the major platforms that appeal toward the majority of American adults.

According to a TechCrunch article, younger Americans between ages 18-24 are more drawn toward Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter because of the easier accessibility and newer visuals that the apps possess.

“The reason social media is such a big part of my life is because it helps me connect with people faster and to a greater degree,” East

social media | package junior Tanya Kukreja says. “I can communicate in the blink of an eye, whether I want to share a funny meme or ask a serious question.”

As of March 2018, 71 percent of teenagers were reported to have multiple social media platforms. Between ages 18-24, 78 percent are Snapchat users. Within this demographic, 71 percent are Instagram users and 45 percent use Twitter.

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ssociate professor in Miami University Department of Psychology Elizabeth Kiel says that there is a connection between social media use and social environment.

“There is research that increased social media use can lead to feelings of inclusion and connection,” Kiel says. “But [social media] can also lead to an increased negative mood and feelings of loneliness which depends on one’s perception of their social standing already.”

West believes a dependence on social media is more likely to develop when deeply personal relationships are lacking in reality.

“If you’re not getting strong connections in your real life, it’s easier to get attracted to social media because of the connections that it provides. And even though the internet has been good for making friends,” West says. “It can’t replace real human connection.”

A study conducted by the Pew Research Center reports 94 percent of United States (US) teenagers are social media users, as opposed to 69 percent of adults.

“I think [social media use] is probably more for teenagers because of how it concerns what peers are doing,” Kiel told Spark. “Fitting in with peers seems to be heightened during adolescence.”

According to a study done by Common Sense Media, a non-profit organization based in San Francisco that advocates for safe technology use for children, the average teenager spends approximately nine hours of their daily life online. This compared to six hours spent for ages eight to 12 and 50 minutes for kids between zero and eight. Of the teenagers aged 13 to 17, 60 percent consider their time spent online a major problem and 41 percent say that they overuse social media.

Although social media is not formally recognized as an addiction, Joshua Magee explains how the presence of social media can consume time and decrease productivity in one’s life.

“Many people colloquially find it very difficult to disengage from social media, finding it to disrupt their engagement in other activities,” Magee told Spark. “They found themselves using social media instead of doing work.”

West describes how social media, because of its captivating qualities, makes her less likely to accomplish daily tasks.

“I’ll be on Twitter when I have so much to do and it’s frustrating because I’m not stopping when I know I should,” West says. “Whenever I’m not on social media, I feel like I’m missing something.”

As reported by Centered Health, a rehabilitation center for teenagers located in Malibu, California, teenage happiness is negatively affected by social media. The center reports that using social media for one hour a day reduces overall happiness by 14 percent.

Centered Health explains that because of the rapid communication that social media provides, teens have easy access to the comments that may trigger their sadness and fuel the constant comparisons amongst peers.

“It’s creating this false expectation for life and how one should live,” East sophomore Leighton Heiner says. “It sets that standard for comparing yourself to others and feeling inadequate.”

According to a 2018 study done by Pew Research Center, social media has a large impact on teenage bullying. 59 percent of US teens have experienced some type of abusive behavior online. 42 percent of teens said they have been called offensive names online. 32 percent have had false rumors spread about them on the internet and 16 percent were the target of physical threats.

Magee says that increased social media use has created a strengthened platform for cyberbullying.

“Social media permits anonymity,” Magee says. “It allows a large number of people to pile on an individual and really intensify the experience for the victim.”

In recent studies by Child Mind Institute, teenagers and young adult social media users who spend a larger amount of time on Instagram, Facebook and other social media sites have seen an increase in cases of depression from its users. The reported depression rate went from 13 percent to 66 percent, demonstrating a correlation between social media use and depression.

According to an article from Harvard University, the constant communication, comparisons, pressures and aesthetics of social media also connect to mental health concerns like anxiety.

F

or West, who is diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), social media platforms like lnstagram and Pinterest give her a lot of anxiety.

“When I look at them, I want them to look really nice and perfect,” West says. “It has to represent exactly who I want to be and I think it’s a combination of me having OCD and also just a general anxiety of wanting the person I present to the world to be an ideal version of myself. It’s stressful.”

West believes that it is necessary to recognize the impacts of social media on society in order to evolve as a society.

“It would be silly to ignore the effects that social media has. There are two camps of people who have thoughts about social media,” West says. “One group thinks social media is fantastic and the other claims that everyone is addicted to it. Instead of being lumped into one of the two, it’s important to have more complex discussion to generate opinions.” •

Favorite social media platforms According to East students surveyed

46% 37%

10% instagram

twitter

4% youtube

4% snapchat

other

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 33

package | sleep

A STUDY IN SLEEP The number of teenagers not getting enough sleep has been rising in recent years.

story anna mullins | photography abby bammerlin | infographic isis summerlin | art mckenna lewis

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student sits in her rumpled bed reading a well-worn book. All the lights have been turned off except for the reading lamp next to her bed and her bedroom door is closed to keep out her playful cat, Leroy. It is 4 a.m. and sleep is eluding her. She stays in her room so that she doesn’t disturb the rest of the people in her house who are lucky enough to have found the rest they need.

East junior Phoebe Brown consistently has trouble sleeping and often finds herself spending sleepless nights reading books, doing extra credit school work and watching Netflix.

She often finds herself tired but not able to find a way to fall asleep.

“I think the last time I got the recommended eight hours of sleep was probably seventh grade,” Brown says. “It started getting really bad freshman year.”

When someone is asleep, their brain is

still active. Physician Frederick Zeller is a sleep medicine specialist who has pulmonary training, as well as intensive care medicine.

“Sleep is a recharging, nightly housekeeping brain hard drive defragmentation process that has to happen,” Zeller told Spark. “The body absolutely requires sleep and will die if it doesn’t get it, and the brain requires sleep in order to function properly. It is quite analogous to a battery recharge process.”

When someone doesn’t get enough sleep, they become impaired. The immune system is actually dependent upon getting enough sleep. Students can be affected in how they emotionally react to situations and their physical reaction times can be slowed or affected. Brian Carlisi is an East school psychologist and works with students on a daily basis.

“When you are sleeping and you get the proper amount of sleep, your brain has time to process everything that you learned or experienced the day before,” Carlisi says. “If you don’t take the proper time to let your brain process all the information then it has less time to be able to process positive moments but there’s a higher chance that negative moments could be more solidified in the memory.”

Other facets can also be affected by a lack of sleep such as creativity and learning.

People who are sleep deprived find themselves not being able to perform as well at work, school, when driving, and during social interactions. They also find themselves having trouble judging other people’s emotions and reactions. When sleep deprived, the reaction time can be slowed by 2.4 percent and when well rested can be improved by 4.9 percent, according to a study by the National Sleep Foundation.

“I don’t think I process things the way I used to,” Brown says. “I East junior Phoebe Brown reads when she can’t sleep. tend to read too much into things

34 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

or not enough into others. I also have lower lows and my highs don’t quite get as high. It depends on what it is.”

Brown is not the only teenager who doesn’t

75.4

percent of East students surveyed believe they work more efficiently when they sleep longer. get enough sleep. Dean Beebe is a professor of pediatrics and directs the neuropsychology program at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital.

“By the time students get to high school, upwards of about 80 percent of high school seniors are not getting the recommended amount of sleep on school nights,” Beebe told Spark. “What we’re talking about is something that’s not an epidemic, but is endemic. Meaning that it’s happening so frequently that the exception is to not have it.”

S

ome of the factors that play into this rampant trend is biological. People have an internal clock which tells them when to fall asleep and when to get up. This clock follows a rhythm called a circadian rhythm and is a 24-hour cycle that can be detected using body temperature.

“Imagine the brain having a clock,” Zeller says. “It’s not a mechanical clock. It’s not a digital clock, it’s a molecular clock. And that clock allows the brain to synchronize going to bed and getting up in that diurnal schedule. It synchronizes based on sunlight or bright light and it does not like irregularities.”

As students get older, the clock adjusts to a different schedule. Young children’s clocks allow them to go to sleep and get up earlier.

Older kids feel the need to go to sleep later and do not want to get up until later.

“Across middle school and into high school the body clock developmentally shifts later, where one’s body wants to fall asleep later and wake up later,” Beebe says. “There’s some data to suggest that late adolescence is around the latest that our body clocks normatively are set in the entire lifespan.”

sleep | package With these changes where students go to sleep and wake up later, school start times are often questioned. Physician Ann Ronmaker works with the American Academy of sleep medicine and specializes in sleep and pulmonary medicine.

“It’s a huge issue,” Ronmaker told Spark.

“We’ve worked very hard to move school start times. We would prefer that school not start before 9 a.m because of the problems. But it’s a big deal because your biological clocks all move later. That’s a normal part of being an adolescent and trying to have everybody wake up and function when their brain really wants to be turned off is a difficult process.”

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his is difficult for schools to achieve because of several factors. If school were to start at a later time, many parents would have trouble getting their students to school and get to work on time. Also, a later start time means there would be a later dismissal time, interfering with after-school activities.

“There are lots of moving parts to starting school later because it changes the end time,” Lakota superintendent Matt Miller says. “While sometimes it’s difficult to get up early and come to school, you’re getting out at a pretty decent time and you can do work, homework, club sports, etc. So if you move the start time back a little bit, that may have an impact on other things that you’re doing in your life.”

Brown is involved with East’s marching band and is taking Advanced Placement (AP) classes. To keep up with all of her activities, she drinks coffee with three times the amount of caffeine in it.

“There are some classes that assign so much work,” says Brown, who has to order her coffee special online. “If you can’t get it done in class, you’re required to do it outside of class. In psychology, I have to read anywhere from five to 25 pages a night and take notes. And that is on top of other honors classes, band, and sports. There’s not always enough time in the day.”

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lectronic media can play a large factor in disrupting sleep. If someone is already asleep and their phone makes a sound, their brain registers it and brings them into a lighter sleep.

“It’s important to turn the phone off at night,” Ronmaker says. “Having the phone dinging during the night, even if you don’t respond to it, still causes a response to your brain. You can still hear it, the brainwaves still speed up and it interferes with sleep. Also checking email, or text messages within an hour of bedtime shortens your sleep by an extra hour.”

Some of the methods used to compensate for the lack of sleep cause problems of their

“Sleep is a recharging, brain defragmentation process that has to happen.

The body absolutely requires sleep and will die if it doesn’t get it, and the brain requires sleep in order to function properly. — Frederick Zellerm, physician own. Students have been known to turn to excessive amounts of coffee and energy drinks with caffeine to keep them alert and active.

“I would suggest that one thing you don’t do is use caffeine,” Beebe says. “I would actually avoid caffeine after lunchtime because it will help keep you awake. The half-life of caffeine varies from five or six hours, meaning that the Red Bull you drink at dinner time is still half with you at midnight. Having two Red Bulls at dinner is like having one at midnight.

That’s a lot of caffeine.”

There are healthy ways for people to fall asleep at a good time and feel rested when they wake up. Brown uses teas and face masks to try to help her fall asleep.

“Make time for sleep. Make it a priority. You do better at [everything] with sleep,” Beebe says. “If you want to look good, there’s been research to suggest that lousy sleep makes you look bad. The number one thing that teenagers could do aside from advocating for making sure there’s a healthy start time at school is to preserve that sleep.” •

87 percent of high school students don’t get the recommended amount of sleep (8-10 hours)

43 percent of public high schools start classes before eight a.m.

55 percent of car accidents resulting from someone falling asleep happen to people under 25

Sleep Tips 1. Avoid screens an hour before bed 2. Choose a relaxing bedtime routine 3. Avoid stimulants such as caffeine 4. Be active during the day 5. Keep your bedroom dark 6. Set up a comfy sleeping area sources happonomy.org, betterhealth.vic.gov and childmind.org

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 35

package | environment

ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY East senior Tiyanna Woodruff studies at work during her shift break.

A student’s atmosphere has an impact on student’s mood and focus. story alexandra fernholz | photography shelby alderman | art mckenna lewis

T

he early morning sky outside is still dark, but the strands of light lining the ceiling of room 204 twinkle a cheery welcome to the students of David Vogt’s first period psychology class.

East senior Tiyanna Woodruff has always loved these bright additions to her morning.

Their bright sparkle adds an atmosphere of friendliness to the classroom, an atmosphere she looks forward to each morning.

“I think when teachers have these accommodations in their classrooms, it allows students to let down their student-teacher wall and actually enjoy the teacher,” Woodruff told Spark. “It’s important [students] find something to look forward to going into class, allowing them to have a more positive outlook.”

However, an environment is about more than allowing students to have fun. University of Minnesota Marketing Professor Joan MyersLevy, who has done extensive research on how consumers’ environments affect their attitudes, knows first hand the impact a positive outlook can have on a person.

“Abundant evidence suggests that feelings of contentment, calm, and restfulness can benefit people in multiple ways,” Myers-Levy told Spark. “Such feelings have been shown

78.3%

to alleviate stress, anxiety and various mood disorders, promote pain reduction and healing, and reduce attention-based problems.”

But more than just affecting the psyche of students and teachers, research by the University of Minnesota points to a beneficial impact at school.

“Researchers [have] found that putting people in a positive mood increases their learning of information,” Myers-Levy says.

Putting students in a positive mood was exactly what East psychology and economics teacher Vogt was aiming for when he installed string lights, lamps, a coffee maker, and a large sofa in his classroom last year.

“It’s not magic,” says Vogt, who has taught psychology for 19 years. “Maybe it sparks something in someone’s mind. It’s just to be fun; that’s the goal. If it was tormenting I think I would throw [the lights] out the door.”

It’s not only Vogt who is working to create a positive classroom environment. According to Lakota Superintendent Matt Miller, it’s a agenda is taking place on a district-wide basis with the addition of Hope Squad at East and West high schools. Hope Squad is a nationwide program that trains high school students on how to help their peers struggling with mental health.

of East students surveyed have noticed that they study better in environments different from their usual routine

36 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

“We have a lot of students, [who] have other needs outside of school,” Miller says.

“We’re seeing a lot of kids with severe social emotional needs at the lower grade-level than we ever have before.”

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2015 study published by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) found that 18 percent of high school students had seriously considered committing suicide in the past year, and nine percent of students had one or more suicide attempts.

“Students respond to acknowledgment and that’s what we have to do: keep building,” Jennifer Wright-Berryman, Hope Squad lead researcher, told Spark. “We have to build healthy social networks. The key to emotional health is connecting with each other and telling each other that no matter what, I’m here to listen and I’m here to support [you].”

Strong emotional support networks play a crucial role in a person’s life from infancy to old age.

Children who did not grow up in a stable and nurturing environment are more likely to be ill-equipped to cope with emotional pain later in life, according to Berryman. This idea is supported by Program Manager for Behavioral Health at the Beech Acres Parenting Center in Greater Cincinnati Ohio Kimberly Porter.

“We don’t have the same coping skills when we’re kids that we do as adults. If you’re surrounded by an environment that nurtures you and helps you to be calm, to feel safe, it

can make a difference in your mental health,” Porter told Spark. “Whereas if you’re in an environment that’s chaotic, or where you feel threatened or unsure, it puts stress on the person which in turn impacts their mental health.”

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ssociate Professor at the University of Cincinnati Stacie Furst-Holloway also enumerates the importance of meaningful social and emotional connections.

“Having [social] connections is important, even for people who think that they may not need them,” Furst-Holloway told Spark. “It exercises our brains. Having those connections gets us out and moving, [makes us] part of the world. And when you’re by yourself, you’re closed off from those opportunities.”

Closing one’s self off from expressing emotion can be just as damaging as closing off from friends and family. Bottling emotions up inside, says Wright-Berryman, is akin to bottling up a volatile volcano. “[Keeping emotions inside] is poison to a person’s heart,” Wright-Berryman says. “We treat emotional health like it’s this thing that we just need to address whenever something bad happens and how awful is that? We need a better prevention model. And part of that is changing the culture.”

Part of these changes can include the way teachers interact with their students. According to Miller, many of the issues Lakota’s administrative team work with have to deal with students’ behaviors.

“We need to have a little bit of training on the adults’ side [of things],” Miller says. “When I went through my teacher prep course work and classes, social emotional [training] was not a thing.”

But on a much smaller scale, there are some small changes educators like East English teacher Rich Schmaltz can implement. Schmaltz finds that turning off the bright fluorescent lights in his classroom gives the room a more relaxed, comfortable environment for students to learn in.

“I know from experience that physiologically and psychologically these kind of lights are just bad for you, especially prolonged exposure to them,” says Schmaltz, who has taught at East for 20 years. “[By doing this,] I can mitigate [stress in] some way, and teach [students] how to deal with stress.”

Wright-Berryman says that the orientation

“If you’re surrounded by an environment that nurtures you and helps you to be calm, to feel safe, it can make a difference in your mental health.”

— Kimberly Porter, Program Manager at Beech Acres Parenting Center of the room can increase interest and investment in class.

“When you’re sitting in a circle and you have to look at somebody, you are less inclined to disconnect from what’s happening in that setting,” Wright-Berryman told Spark.

“It’s about creating spaces that support connection.”

More than just the shape of desks or the amount of light in a room, the color of the classroom’s walls can also impact a person’s psyche.

“Red is often associated with danger and mistakes,” Myers-Levy says. “This association is learned because, for example, warning and stop signs are red, and teachers often mark students’ errors in the same color. On the other hand, blue is associated with peace, tranquility, and openness, as exemplified by tranquil skies and oceans that seem to go on forever.”

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ven just getting students interested in a class can have a significant impact on their memory and retention. Boosting interest in a class can be something as small as putting posters on the walls to help get students in the right mindset. East senior Abigail Yi had such an experience in her junior year.

“When I took the ACT, I took it in a history classroom and so it was decked out with tons of history stuff on the walls,” Yi told Spark.

“Honestly, I think that helped me [to have a good] mentality while I was taking the ACT.” Our interactions with others around us, whether at home, school, or work, can also be impacted by associations with money and ideas of self-reliance.

“Symbols of money in an environment can prime people’s motivation to be selfreliant and thus refrain from cooperative or

prosocial interaction,” Myers-Levy says. “[This is] because money reminders appear to shift people into a professional business mentality where behavior is often competitive rather than cooperative.”

Therefore, in environments where teamwork is of prime importance, such as in the workplace, reminders of money should be avoided if employers wish to promote productivity.

A 2011 study by the Routledge Handbook of Urban Ecology found that people who had regular contact with urban nature such as parks, walking trails, and even trees on the sidewalk had an increased attention span, a greater ability to cope with stress, and experienced a higher level of satisfaction in their day-to-day lives.

“Natural environments afford people an opportunity to restore their energy and replenish their attentional resources,” MyersLevy says. “Such restoration and replenishment presumably strengthen people’s physiological and mental capacities.”

Even at home, adults can help their children navigate their emotions simply by giving them a space to express them.

“If they have at least one adult who’s in their corner and has their back, that has a positive impact. It helps [children] to have the coping skills to navigate [their emotions] and also increases positive interactions and relationships,” Porter says. “If they have what they need to support their mental health, they can then [extend] that [to] others as well, so that it has a ripple effect.”

According to Schmaltz, turning the lights off in the classroom started as a joke, but soon found his students more relaxed and engaged.

“Environment is everything,” Schmaltz says. “That’s not me, that’s science.” •

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 37

package | food

MOOD FOOD Food has a greater impact on happiness than many may think, and the food a teenager is offered throughout the day has the potential to impact happiness in a positive way. story eliza bush | photography abby bammerlin infographic lauren maier | art mckenna lewis

I

t’s fourth bell Economics and she’s waiting anxiously for the bell to ring. Her teacher flips through slide after slide of that day’s PowerPoint presentation, as she struggles to focus on her note-taking. Her stomach growls ferociously and she looks around to make sure no one heard it. Finally, the bell rings. It’s every student’s favorite time of the day: lunch.

East junior Eliana Bujwalo-Nowak ate the school lunch, provided in the cafeteria up until sixth-grade. She decided to bring lunch from home because she didn’t enjoy the taste of the food and her parents figured that they could pack healthier options for Eliana at a fraction of the cost.

“Eliana takes a packed lunch to school most days to ensure that she has a well-balanced meal,” says Halina Bujwalo-Cruz, Eliana’s mom. “It is also cost-effective for us to pack rather than buy lunch all the time.”

On average, Eliana was paying $4.50 for a school lunch before she decided to pack her lunch.

“It wasn’t worth the money to buy school lunch anymore because I could get healthier foods that I liked for less than the amount I was paying at school,” Eliana says.

East’s cafeteria offers a wide variety of foods for students. Eliana applauds the amount and variety of food the cafeteria provides.

“However,” Eliana adds, “I think the school could maybe specialize on better and healthier food.”

East junior Kaitlyn Patton also recently made the decision to pack lunch rather than eat the lunch provided in the school cafeteria. For Patton, much of her decision was based on the way school lunch made her feel.

“I felt gross on the days that I bought [school lunch] going back to class,” Patton says.

Upon receiving East’s lunch menu from Spark, Tina Stevens, a clinical nutritionist in Long Island, New York, concluded that many of the foods East serves to students on a daily basis, such as hamburgers, french fries, and potato chips, are not healthy and may be impacting the students’ mood.

Food plays a substantial role in happiness, as the human body is sustained by food and transforms it into usable energy to complete daily tasks. The types of food supplying this energy can produce drastic differences in mood.

Lakota nutritionist Lynn Gilkey says when deciding which foods to include on the menu, how each item would affect the mental disposition of each student was put into consideration.

“Nutritional psychiatry is becoming more and more popular; it’s fairly new,” Gilkey says.

“More and more studies are being done that nutrition and food are definitely linked. So that’s where the fresh fruits and vegetables come in and trying to limit the refined sugar.”

Registered dietician Karolin Saweres

vegetables green beans and salad

believes the human body behaves like a car.

“Your body is like a car. It runs better when you fuel it with the right fuel,” says Saweres, the founder of My Nutrition & Me, a company based upon personalized nutrition. “Your body runs better when you feed it with the right nutrients, which makes you feel better.”

P

17 percent

eople often use foods high in sugar and fat, such as doughnuts, soda, and french fries for a quick energy boost. When these types of foods are consumed, there is a sudden, yet momentary spike of activity in the brain, but leaves them in a sugar crash, after the initial satisfaction has worn off.

Stevens believes highly-processed foods, such as breakfast cereal, lunch meat, and soft drinks, have negative effects on the body.

19 percent protien meat and beans protiens

fruit berries and rice

17 percent

grains bread and rice

carbohydrates

12-20 percent

50-60 percent

30 percent

17 percent

30 percent

fats oils / fats olive oil and avocado

sources health.gov kaiserpermanente.org

inner circle = recommended daily nutrition outer circle = mandatory public school lunch nutrition

38 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

food | package “[Processed foods] have a bad effect on the brain,” says Stevens, who became a nutritionist in 2004 when her son was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). “They overstimulate certain receptors in the brain and you end up actually getting addicted to these junk foods or processed foods.”

East junior Eliana BujwaloNowak eats her packed lunch.

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rocessed food and fast food have been shown to cause depression. According to a study from the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and the University of Granada in Spain, those who frequently eat fast food are 51 percent more likely to develop depression.

Despite the negative effects of junk foods, many schools continue to sell highly processed foods to their students.

According to a study conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), 93 percent of high schools in the United States (US) sell “competitive foods.”

This refers to any food product which is brought in for resale by the school, such as candy bars, chips, or pizza. These “competitive foods” are not subject to federal regulation and are a major source of income for school cafeterias.

While Stevens believes East could provide healthier options for their students, she would not classify much of the food served in East’s cafeteria as “junk food.”

“Based on the lunch menu, I am not saying that they are serving junk food at East,” Stevens says. “Some of the choices are processed foods that are easy to prepare and cost-efficient for the school, but that does not necessarily make them “junk” food.”

In March or April of each year, Lakota’s nutrition team plans out the menu for the upcoming school year. Lakota’s Nutrition Field Supervisor Laurie Straub says planning the menu is a complex process that pulls from several different areas.

“When we look at the actual menu, it’s done not just on a daily basis, but on a weekly basis,” Straub says. “There are certain calorie and vegetable requirements and certain types of vegetables that you have to fit into the week.

It’s like a puzzle.”

W

hen Stevens’ son Robert was diagnosed with ADHD, several doctors prescribed medications to calm his hyperactive behavior. The medications, however, worsened his behavioral issues, so Stevens brought him to a nutritionist who put him on an elimination diet.

The nutritionist recommended that Robert remove all foods from his diet that could be causing his behavioral issues, such as gluten, dairy, corn, or soy, and gradually add them back in to determine if a food sensitivity was the root of his attitude. For Robert, corn was the cause

of his behavioral issues and Stevens began to see results within a few days of removing it. “[With the diet,] kids get calmer, and are able to focus a little better, and the behavior is better,” says Stevens, who got her masters in clinical nutrition from the New York Institute of Technology following this experience.

Stevens, alongside her husband, wrote a book titled Finding Robert about their experience with the nutritionist and are now planning on opening B-CAUS Fitness, which will promote healthy lifestyles through diet and exercise for patients.

According to the Center for Discovery, depression affects 20 percent of teens before they become adults. Furthermore, 25 percent of teens have an anxiety disorder.

Hatfield says mental health concerns play a role in deciding which foods to offer to students in the district.

“Our goal in the Child Nutrition department is to offer as many options and healthy choices so that those students with disorders have the flexibility to decide each day what they would like to purchase,” Hatfield says.

East’s cafeteria offers approximately 17 different lunch specials each month, along with seven daily meal choices that are served every day. The cafeteria also provides a plethora of snack and drink options to their students.

Stevens, however, thinks it may be challenging for students to get “happy foods” from any school cafeteria.

“Sadly,” Stevens says, “it would probably be hard to get enough of the vitamins, minerals and other nutrients needed for happiness, from a school-provided lunch.”

Bujwalo-Nowak has noticed a change in her mood since she switched to packing her lunch from home.

“I feel more full and energized [after eating a packed lunch],” Bujwalo-Nowak says. “I enjoy my lunch more because it’s the foods I like to eat. It puts me in a better mood.”

According to Stevens, there are three neurotransmitters that are key for happiness: serotonin, dopamine, and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). When serotonin is released into the brain, it provides the body with a sense of relaxation and positivity. Dopamine provides motivation and concentration, while GABA is a calming neurotransmitter.

Foods that help increase serotonin levels include egg yolks, tofu, apples, nuts and seeds, turkey, and chicken. Dopamine levels can be increased by egg whites, cottage cheese, salmon, lean beef, whole grains, and seaweed.

Fish and whole grains can raise GABA levels.

73.8%

of East students surveyed pack their lunches daily.

Hatfield says the district works hard to make sure students are offered with the healthiest options possible.

“We continue to explore nutritional choices for our students,” Hatfield says. “Schools have improved their choices and all vendors continue to provide nutritional options for schools to offer students.”

When it comes down to it, Patton believes the issue extends further than the differences between cafeteria food and non-cafeteria food.

“When you eat healthier, you feel better about yourself. And when you feel better about yourself, feel better overall,” Patton says. “So it’s not necessarily about not eating school food, but eating healthier in general.” •

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 39

package | exercise

East senior Chloe Huggins runs at Voice of America in the snow to help her training.

IN THE LONG RUN East senior Chloe Huggins takes time out of her schedule to run as a coping mechanism for the anxieties of her day-to-day life. story and photography and infographic lauren maier art mckenna lewis

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ast senior Chloe Huggins starts six of seven days of her week with a run. Her runs are more important than the rain or the snow.

Since last summer, running has been the most important thing in her life.

Huggins was not running for a team, but training for The Queen Bee half-marathon that was 13 miles of hilly pavement. Huggins’ accomplishment of finishing the Queen Bee is only part of the reason why she runs.

“I have been running since a very young age,” Huggins says. “My aunt has always been into it. She does a lot of 5K and 10K races, so she always just brought me along. I did cross country and track throughout middle school.

Running really has been a big part of my life.”

1

Throughout the run, muscles become fatuged and in pain.

pain level

Over the past two years, Huggins has ran periodically to prepare for races and to simply stay in shape. “I like the routine and structure.

I’m the type [of person] who needs a fixed schedule,” Huggins says. “I like to set a regimen for myself. If I don’t have anything set, then I am not going to do it.”

What Huggins experiences’ isn’t uncommon. According to psychotherapist Steven Ingram, running and exercise have different effects on each person pertaining to what they think about.

“Exercising and keeping your body moving is something that gives someone the space to think through some things,” Ingram told spark.

“People can be exercising, but still have a very

2 Produced in the pituitary gland, endorphins are released when doing continuous exercise for around 30 minutes. The endorphins are released when the body is in a high stressed environment.

40 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

3

active mind, and it can work in the opposite direction and they can think of even more things that they can be concerned about.”

For Huggins, the stress-relieving side of running is one of the biggest reasons why she runs. According to a poll that Spark conducted, of the 79 percent of students that endure physical activity, their stress level is lowered.

What causes the feeling of stress relief is the release of Endorphins, which are opioid neuropeptides which are naturally produced in the body that serve a primary function as an agent blocking the perception of pain and additionally causing pleasure.

This pleasure can last for around 12 hours depending on how long a given workout last.

When endorphins are released when running, the runner experiences a runners high. This reduces pain by pain stopping the pain level signals leading the athlete to continue their run even after they hit their threshold.

4

Exercise helps the heart become more efficient by pumping blood throughout the body more with a slower beat.

Someone who exercise normally, tends to have a lower heart rate.

exercise | package This is why exercise is can be used for t normal mood boosting.

Physical Therapist and exercise physiologist Alicia Bonney says that exercise is more than physical fitness, but also a medicine for the mind and body. Bonney’s patients tend to have critical conditions like parkinson’s, scoliosis, and multiple sclerosis.

“I’m able to see people who are in pain,” Bonney says. “I rehabilitate them and slowly get them out of the pain they are in.”

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long with the pain that Bonney’s patients are in they also may have depression, since the pain that they endure debilitates them, causing them to lose their sense of independence and freedom.

“If you don’t have your physical health, then you really don’t have much,” Bonney says.

“You could have all the money in the world, but if you can’t enjoy it, it’s not really worth much.”

East’s Exercise Science and Sports Medicine Instructor Nikki Drew says there is a direct physiological, psychological, and psychosocial relationship with exercise and mood. “[Exercise] helps someone mentally feel better and manage stress. It helps the body generally move better and metabolize food more efficiently,” Drew says. “Chronically, overtime it can change body composition,

which can make simple daily life activity easier.

It has been proven to regulate sleep pattern and help stabilize mood. Those who are able to maintain some simple exercise even as low as 3 days a week can help someone physically and mentally feel better.”

While exercise improves mood it also impacts overall health. The health of someone who is active compared to someone who is inactive is greatly diverse. Inactive people tend to be more prone to illness and injury.

78.7%

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of East students surveyed find their stress levels lowered after participating in a form of exercise

“Physically, sedentary people will have more susceptibility to illness and injury,” Drew says.

“More time off school, work or constant joint pain as you age can happen. Psychologically, you may see an increase in depression, anxiety, and poor self-care [with lack of exercise].”

Two years ago, Huggins came down with mononucleosis (mono) which caused her to miss two weeks of school and a month of running.

Her physical fitness declined leading her to only run the 5K in The Flying Pig rather than running the full 5K and 10K that was originally

Columbia

planned.

“Even though I didn’t do what I originally planned, I still felt proud of what I did and accomplish,” Huggins says.

For Huggins, mono wasn’t her biggest challenge when it came to her health and overall well being. Huggins has been diagnosed with anxiety and one of her biggest ways of coping is to run; however, she does see a therapist to talk through current events in her life.

“My therapist helps a lot, and has seen how

much better I feel when I’m running,” Huggins says. “She knows how I was at the beginning of the summer, and she has really seen a positive change when I’m running.”

Overall, Huggins runs because it makes her happy. She says she likes to be able to schedule a time to run so it’s a moment in her day specifically for her.

“I’ll get anxious from a stupid little thing that happened in my day and I can’t really clear my mood until I run.” Huggins says. “Running helps me get rid of that and ultimately puts me in a better mood.” •

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Jon McFarland Jack McFarland 10981 Montgomery Road • Cincinnati, Ohio 45249 Main (513) 489-2000 • Fax (513) 489-7377 Visit us at our website www.columbiahyundai.com • www.columbiagenesis.net

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 41

package | therapies East senior Regan Ladle sprays her Stress Relief Pillow Spray before bed.

GETTING BACK TO HAPPY East students use various self-care and natural therapies to manage the everyday stress and anxiety of high school. story katey kruback | art mckenna lewis photography meredith niemann

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he could feel the pounding ache coming on, the pain shooting from her temples to just behind her eyes signaling a stressheadache, something she was wellacquainted with. She stifled a groan, covering her face with her hands as she helplessly tried to rub the ache away to no avail. She knew she was stressed, and she should have probably gone to bed hours ago, but better late than never, right?

East senior Regan Ladle shut down her laptop, stumbled up the stairs, sprayed her Bath and Body Works “Stress Relief ” over her pillow, and hit the sack. “[The Stress Relief pillow spray] helps me switch my brain off,” Ladle says. “My brain is always hyperactive before bed, so it helps to signal me to slow down.”

Aromatherapy is only one among many methods of self-care that students can use to preserve and maintain their physical and emotional health. According to a 2015 Pew Research Study, more teenagers and millennials were reported to have made more personal improvement commitments and to have spent twice as much on self-care essentials in the $10 million industry than any

generation prior.

Clinical Aromatherapist and owner of Rosy Glow Wellness Therapies Margo Hertzfeld sees that every day. Clients come to her with a variety of needs, whether it be pain, anxiety, hormonal issues, a lack of sleep, or injury recovery, seeking her specialized assistance in creating individualized blends to help them with their ailment.

She does this without the use of modern medicine and the addictive properties and side effects attached to chemical-based medications.

“Aromatherapy is a natural therapy that uses essential oils to achieve wellness, and I work with clients to develop a natural blend to help them in some way with their wellness,” Hertzfeld says. “After we go through their their past and present health and medical history, the two of us come together to an agreement on a blend. I’m helping them decide what the best course is to help

74.4%

42 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

themselves, based on their needs.”

According to Hertzfeld, whenever a scent is inhaled, the molecules do directly to the limbic system, the part of the brain that controls emotions and perceptions.

“What we smell can have a great impact on our mood,” Hertzfeld says. “We can attach a smell to a memory, changing our perceptions of the moment. It’s not a forceful change, because it’s allowing our body to get back to that healthy balance and relaxed state, which is where it wants to be.”

Anytime essential oils are “working on the body,” the oils aren’t doing the work, but supporting the body’s desire to heal or repair itself to get back to a healthy state.

“Essential oils are very bio-compatible, our bodies know what to do with them,” Hertzfeld says. “They’re not trying to interfere with what the body is trying to do, like with medication. The body has an amazing capacity to heal, and they just support that.”

of East students surveyed participate in some form of self-care or stress-relieving activity

therapies | package Hertzfeld’s main focus is aromatherapy, but she maintains that it’s not a solution for everyone.

“If you’re really looking to take your health, well-being, and happiness back, you need to look at as many options as you can,” Hertzfeld says. “Doing the therapy work or practice itself should bring you happiness, look for things that fit into your life and bring you happiness just by doing them.”

East senior and varsity golfer Bree Wilson finds that, though she golfs an average of six days a week, she still finds the sport therapeutic.

“Golf is a great way for me to escape,” Wilson says. “When I’m sad, stressed or angry, it’s nice to go out on the course by myself.

There is nothing else to worry about at that moment except for playing the game, because it’s just me, my thoughts and the course.”

The University of Toronto ran a study analyzing over 26 years of data and research to find that that physical activity is an effective tool for treating depression. According to the 2012 study, moderate exercise can go further than just treating depression and can prevent it entirely.

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ertified yoga instructor Carla Faletti went through a very dark time in college as she struggled with depression, anxiety, and eating disorders.

She says that exercise and yoga was the catalyst to her feeling happy again, and was a tool she used to heal herself.

“I was very resistant the first time I went to yoga,” Faletti says. “I thought that it wasn’t going to work, and that it was silly.”

But Faletti wanted to find that calm, meditative state, and to finally get a break from her “unmanageable” life. So she kept trying until she finally found it.

“I remember driving home after class, and I felt something I hadn’t felt before. It was joy; just pure joy, for no reason at all,” Farletti says. “I was driving home, my life was a mess.

But I’d gone to this yoga class, and I wanted to put my hands up in the air for no reason at all, Eexcept I felt fantastic. So I thought, ‘hey, there must be something to this.’”

Farletti’s favorite part of yoga was the meditation, which gave her time to be quiet, and not get caught up in her thoughts.

“My mind generates lots of thoughts, but they don’t always define me. Some of my thoughts are very beneficial to me, and others are not helping me in at all,” Farletti says.

“Through meditation, I can learn to just watch my thoughts and distance myself from them.

It makes me more stable, more grounded, and not as reactionary.”

The healthiest way is to express your negative feelings in a non-aggressive, assertive manner.

“Just talking to people and telling them how I feel and unloading some of my stress

helps,” Ladle says. “I’m not always looking for help. Sometimes it’s just therapeutic to talk to people when stressed, whether it’s my boyfriend, my sister, my voice teacher or my friends.”

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henever Ladle is feeling stressed, anxious or upset, she admits that she finds herself reaching out to a trusted individual in her life.

“Being with someone who you love and loves you [is helpful],” Ladle says. “Perks of having a boyfriend: instant snuggle buddy. I can just be around him and all my stress is gone.”

Ladle has an older sister who just finished her first semester of college, and Ladle says that she turned into “a bit of a koala” when her sister returned home for Christmas break.

“There’s this couch in our front room we always sit on together,” Ladle says. “We don’t even need to talk to each other. We can be sitting there doing whatever, and it just feels

one of the world’s most touch-averse cultures, contributing to the success of the professional cuddling profession.

According to Siemon, there is no itinerary for client sessions—it is purely individualized.

Although she starts with meditation, the rest of the session is up to the client’s discretion.

“There’s no predicting how a session will go. Sometimes there is no cuddling, and lots of discussion about anxieties, stresses or PTSD’s,” Siemon says. “I have one client who has Parkinson’s and what we’ve found is that if I hold his hand and press, his tremors go away. So we sit there and talk while I hold his hand and he feels peace.”

That particular client works with Siemon through a process known as a triage. Using this approach, the anonymous client sees a physical therapist, professional cuddler and therapist, who all work together.

A different anonymous client of Siemon’s was severely abused by his father, from which he developed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

“Look at as many types of alternative therapies you can that are appealing and can fit in your life,” —Margo Hertzfeld, aromatherapist nice to be close again.”

Online magazine Happiness Weekly says a full-body hug decreases feelings of loneliness, combating fear, increasing self-esteem, defusing tension and showing appreciation while stimulating the nervous system. A fact that is the basis of cuddle therapy, a form of holistic healing with elements of massage therapy and psychological counseling.

Jasmine Siemon is a certified therapeutic cuddler, depending on who she’s talking to. Sometimes, she admits, it’s easier to call herself a certified touch practitioner rather than having to constantly defend her profession.

“As a professional cuddler, I provide affection for my clients,” says Siemon.

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uddlist, an online website company where professional cuddlers like Siemon freelance through, trains their professional cuddlers in non-sexual therapeutic touch and communicating consent. Through April 2017, the site logged over 10,000 requests since their start in November 2016, a little under six months.

According to a 2017 Pew Research study, the percent of adults living without a spouse or partner in the United States (US) has risen from 39 to 42 percent in the past 10 years.

With the rise of on-screen interaction in the US, more socializing takes place without the possibility of touch, making the US among

(PTSD). His therapist suggested that he see a professional cuddler to help him connect with people, leave his house, and trust people.

“Leading up to our initial contact, he was very scared and worried, because he didn’t connect to people well,” Siemon says. “I go to his apartment and we are able to apply what he learns from his therapist. We take walks outside his apartment and down the street, where he can still feel safe, but do so outside his comfort zone. That’s the missing part of normal therapy that professional cuddlers are able to fill in.”

For Wilson, physical touch doesn’t help her when she is feeling stressed or upset. She much prefers talking things out with a trusted friend or family member.

“Talking things out with my brother or calling a friend to take my mind off things helps,” Wilson says. “It shifts my focus from everything I have on my plate to something fun and totally unrelated. By shifting my focus, I notice that my stress level is nowhere near as high.”

While Ladle and Wilson both deal with their emotions differently, they both represent a generation of keen “emotional intelligence.”

“Everyone deals with stress in a different way. The key to managing stress is figuring out how best you cope with it, there’s no ‘one-size fits all’ solution,” Ladle says. “My advise is to find something that always makes you laugh, and use it when you need it.” •

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 43

package | strategies to happiness

TOP 10 STRATEGIES FOR HAPPINESS infographic caroline bumgarner

1

Change Your Behavior

If you don’t already, try to get enough sleep, exercise, spend time outside, or meditate.

3

Read a Book You Love

Spend a little time everyday reading a book you love.

5

Make a Gratitude Visit

Visit someone who shaped who you became. Write them a letter, travel to them and read it to them out loud.

7

Perform Random Acts of Kindness

Volunteer at a local facillity or donate to a local charity.

9

Avoid Comparisons

We can chose the comparisons we make. Try to avoid making comparisons throughout the day.

44 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

source catherine sanderson

2

Find Your Match

It can be a personal match, such as a significant other, or a professional match, such as a good working environment.

4

Keep a Gratitude Journal

Everyday write down two or three things you are grateful for in life that day

6

Smile

Even if you are not happy, smile.

It can change how you feel and respond to pain.

8

Spend Money on the Right Things

Spend money on experiences, not material goods. You will remember the moments, not the objects.

10

Build and Maintain Close Relationships

Strong relationships take time, compromise, energy and effort.

meditation | package

JUST BREATHE

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East senior Creed Davisson takes time out of his day to rekindle his inner self. He strives to find peace and comfort after a busy day by meditating.

story megan finke | infographic gracie estep | art cassandra mueller

B

reathing in and breathing out. He keeps a steady motion that represents nothing but serenity. Soothing voices come through the speakers of his cell phone while the bedroom lights lie dim. He strives to get a better grip on life itself and the bedroom is a welcoming environment for this.

East senior Creed Davisson is one of many students who partake in meditation. Starting as a method to release stress, his once sporadic activity soon turned into an everyday regimen.

“I’ve been meditating for about six months now. At first, I was only meditating about once a week when I really felt stressed or unhappy [from school, work, and social life],” Davisson says. “For the past three months, I’ve been meditating every night.”

With the common idea that meditation is used to relax the mind, soul, and body, it can be used by anyone in many different ways.

In Davisson’s case, meditation allows him to reconnect with himself and find peace before hitting the pillow and through the night.

“I struggle with getting enough sleep with homework and other things of that matter,” Davisson says. “So meditating before I go to bed helps me calm my mind. With this, I wake up feeling good instead of feeling like I only slept for a [few] hours.”

Manager and creative director of Grace Tree Yoga and Growth Studio Jen HowardDunn explains that her journey with yoga and meditation led her to this kind of lifestyle.

Although every person has some kind of obstacles that they go through during life, Howard-Dunn believes that every person has some kind of obstacle in life, but meditation and yoga got her through hers. “[There is] something very calming about connecting to my body and my breath and that meditative activity took my mind away from what was going on,” Howard-Dunn says.

While yoga and meditation took a larger role in her life, she explains that she understood what these things truly meant. “[Yoga] ended up being more of an entire transformation for body, mind, and soul,” Howard-Dunn says. “Through my yoga teacher training, I actually found out what it means.”

University of Dayton psychology professor Jack Bauer notes how rewarding a continuous act of any sort is and how it is meant to soothe and promote peace within oneself.

“The difficulty with doing stimulating activities [like exercise] is that, when we’re tired or feeling down, it’s often tough to muster the energy to do such things, because they take initial effort,” Bauer says. “But once it becomes

a habit, what seemed effortful before doesn’t seem so effortful.”

With a heavy school workload, as well as taking time to support the family outside of school, a short time to escape is something Davisson looks forward to.

Explaining how there are many different types of meditation, Bauer distinguishes the differences for different things, such as mindfulness: transcendental and guided.

“Mindfulness meditation is a popular [type of meditation] in the past decade or so,” Bauer says. “Studies show that it has effects on wellbeing and on capacities for concentration. But there are many other kinds of meditation.” ... read the rest on page 71

Mindfulness Meditation Mindfulness is a form of meditation that urges practitioners to remain aware and present in the moment. Rather than dwelling on the past or dreading the future, mindfulness encourages awareness of a person’s existing surroundings.

Transcendental Meditation Progressive Relaxation

A spiritual form of meditation where practitioners remain seated and breathe slowly. The goal is to transcend or rise above the person’s current state of being.

Loving Kindness Meditation While breathing deeply, anger and hate are released. Opening your mind to recieving and giving love and kindness.

universal symbol of meditation

Encourages people to scan their bodies for areas of tension. The goal is to notice tension and to allow it to release. Typically starting at the feet and going up.

Kundalini Yoga A physically active form of meditation that blends movements with deep breathing and mantras.

Can improve physical strength and reduce pain. source medical news today

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 45

package | infographic

SCIENCE OF HAPPINESS infographic caroline bumgarner

Top 10 Happiest Countries

Optimists ages 65+ are 48 percent less likely to develop health failure.

85% 85 percent of parents believe thier kids give them the most happiness of any relationship in their lives.

Where Does Happiness Come From? = genetically predetermined = due to life circumstances

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Finland Norway Denmark Iceland Switzerland The Netherlands Canada New Zealand Sweden Australia

The United States is ranked...

18th

= the result of personal outlook

Married people are 10 percent happier than non-married people.

Yearly salaries of over $75,000 will not greatly effect your day to day happiness.

$75,000

sources world happiness report, happify.com, ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, psychcentral.com and dailyinfographic.com 46 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

The World Happiness Report looked at...

—GDP per capita —social support —healthy life expectancy —generocity —freedom to make life choices —corruption levels

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entertainment | movie reviews

THE SPARK AWARDS: MOVIES

photography fair use

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Released: Nov. 2, 2018 Starring: Rami Malek Spark

Best Biopic of the Year

movie that has been hyped for many months is finally out, but due to the controversies that surrounded “Bohemian Rhapsody”, including a switch from director Brian Singer to Dexter Fletcher, the biopic about 1970’s band Queen is less than adequate.

Other than an amazing job by Rami Malek as frontman Freddie Mercury and a few exciting musical performances, the film is mostly a behind-the-scenes timeline of the ups and downs the British band faced throughout their reign.

The movie maps Queen’s story from the group’s beginnings in the early 1970s all the way to its set at 1985’s Live Aid music festival.

“Bohemian Rhapsody” opens with Mercury working as an airport baggage handler. He meets guitarist Brian May (Gwilym Lee) and drummer Roger Taylor (Ben Hardy) the same night their lead singer quits, a classic example of right place, right time. He later joins the band as their lead singer.

The strong stage presence and stellar singing wins over the crowd in their first performance, including fashionista Mary Austin (Lucy Boynton), who becomes Mercury’s best friend and lover.

This serves as a high point in the storyline, until the focus shifts to Mercury’s home life, where he’s just Parsi immigrant Farrokh Bulsara, who is questioned by his family. This brings some tension to the movie, as the rockstar persona doesn’t go over as well with his very traditionalist father (Ace Bhatti).

But soon after, the movie is back on track with non-stop highs, including the addition of bass player John Deacon (Joe Mazzello). The movie shifts gears showing the audience how Queen captured the hearts of millions with songs like “Keep Yourself Alive” and “Killer Queen.”

When the operatic “Bohemian Rhapsody” from which the movie is named comes around in 1975, Queen’s musicianship and brotherhood are tested.

This marks the film’s best sequence, where they experiment and struggle to

create their biggest hit. When they think it’s all over, the viewers see them struggle to sell their record label’s executive (Mike Myers) on the lengthy hit.

“Bohemian Rhapsody” makes some puzzling storytelling decisions, chiefly on how it deals with Mercury’s sexuality.

There’s no indication he’s gay until well into the film, leaving some fans confused as they look at his disproportionately displayed relationship with Mary. Even after the two break up and he comes out to her, she remains an object of his affections throughout the film.

With the now-open sexuality of Mercury, Queen’s personal manager Paul Prenter (Allen Leech) gets close to him, something Mercury at the time thinks is good, but is actually a poison within the band. This romance comes with some factual inaccuracies. In the movie the band faces major hardship from Prenter convincing Mercury to take a solo deal, whereas in real life, Mercury wasn’t the only and surely wasn’t the first band member to take a solo deal.

Along with that, the movie portrays Mercury’s AIDs diagnosis, a disease from which he died in 1991, as the reason the band got back together for the Live Aid music festival. According to the movie, he didn’t know how long he would be able to perform, when all accounts report Mercury being diagnosed in 1987, two years after the Live Aid music festival.

Aside from the factual inaccuracies, “Bohemian Rhapsody” digs into Queen’s greatest hits and has an absolutely killer soundtrack. The actors do their best to replicate the musical asides, which is seen in the lengthy set on the Live Aid stage.

“Bohemian Rhapsody” the song changed the world forever, but “Bohemian Rhapsody” the movie turns out to be a basic timeline showing how the band came to be, and fails to hold up the memory many have of the extraordinary band that faced so much through their reign.

—Rebecca Breland

BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY dir. Bryan Singer Nov. 2, 2018 48 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

movie reviews | entertainment

JULY-DECEMBER 2018 the movie, the real trepidation stems from the slowly-building deterioration of the characters’ mental state until the explosive conclusion. This could only be achieved with seasoned actors.

Peter Graham’s (Alex Wolff) descent into madness after a cataclysmic happening leaves him wracked with guilt is truly a noteworthy performance.

I watched this movie with a friend around midnight. We went in planning on seeing an entirely different film that didn’t work in our favor, so we chose “Hereditary” last minute. But from beginning to end this movie left me on the edge of my seat with my heart beating out of my chest. Every tragic or strange or confusing moment added up to the dreadful, definite end. I saw this movie months ago but I still to this day remember the fear I felt sitting in that theater. My friend remembers too, she refuses to watch it again.

—Isis Summerlin

n the newest edition of the “Fantastic Beasts” series, written by esteemed author J.K. Rowling, creator of the Harry Potter universe, and directed by David Yates, the international wizarding world is further examined and created as Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) enters the battle against Grindelwald (Johnny Depp).

Recruited by Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law), Scamander sets out on a journey to sway the sensitive, ambiguous mind of Credence (Ezra Miller) against the ideals of a pure-blood wizarding society. Accidentally joined by the newlyappointed American Auror Propentina Goldstein (Katherine Waterson), Scamander and Goldstein go an exciting adventure to discover the truth of Credence’s past.

Spark

Best Horror Movie of the Year

dir. Ari Aster June 8, 2018

However, despite this excitement, the plot drags on as the movie atmosphere parallels with the Harry Potter series, more specifically the last 3 books. A lack of new ideas regarding the differences and ideals between “good” and “bad” and the concepts of cliche archetype characters all weaken the new plot idea. It seems that “The Crimes of Grindelwald” was a poor attempt to continue the everloved Wizarding World.

—Karaline Abney

Spark

photography fair use

HEREDITARY I

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he opening credits shot of “Hereditary” focuses in on a creepy dollhouse with life-like figurines and continues to zoom to reveal that these figures are real people metaphorically trapped in a real house.

Director Ari Aster continues to switch between this dollhouse and the home of the main characters so that fantasy and reality blend together. This idea sets the stage for most of the film’s nightmarish plot.

The graphic dollhouse was created by Annie Graham (Toni Collette), possibly to enable her to feel that she has some control over her chaotic family. Her father has died from self-starvation due to mental illness, her brother killed himself and blamed their mother for it, and at the premise of the movie, her mother has died. The Graham family experiences an increasingly dark series of events as they begin to unearth secrets about their lineage.

Although there are jump scares in

Best Sequel of the Year

THE CRIMES OF GRINDELWALD dir. David Yates Nov. 16, 2018 January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 49

entertainment | music reviews

THE SPARK AWARDS: MUSIC photography fair use

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Spark

Best Emo Album of the Year

TRENCH

riginating in Ohio, Twenty One Pilots has graced their fans with a new album after a three-year hiatus.

Their newest album, “Trench,” was released on October 5 after three of their songs were released earlier in the year. Songs like “Jumpsuit” and “Nico and the Niners” grabbed attention from their fans and had them begging for more.

For some, the hopes for this album weren’t high at all. The pre-released songs were okay but not as good as the songs that the band is known for such as “Stressed Out.” Yet of course, once the album dropped, listeners were pleasantly surprised.

The twelfth track on the album, “Pet Cheetah,” has attracted a lot of attention. The reversed track synthesizer starts the song off to a strong steady beat that entices the listener. The song tells a story about having a pet cheetah yet, as fans know, there of course is a deeper meaning. Using a pet cheetah as a metaphor, the band’s singer, Tyler Joseph, uses it to describe the writer’s block that

he had when writing the album. He talks about having this metaphorical pet cheetah and raising it and taking care of it, turning it into what it currently is now.

What really sets this album apart is that the music doesn’t always end.

Meaning that between some songs there’s a transition so the party never stops.

For example, the gap between the first two songs of the track, “Jumpsuit” and “Levitate,” there isn’t a fade out of the song. The upbeat headbanging sounds from the grand finale of “Jumpsuit” mellow out to show a calm underlying melody to the song that continues into the start of “Levitate,” creating a seamless transition between two very different tracks.

This album as a whole is interesting and groundbreaking for the band. Most of their songs have been listed on the Billboard Top 100 and are played and played for months on end, although this album has not reached that point (yet) it has shown exactly how well the band executes their music.

—Rebecca Holst

Twenty One Pilots October 5, 2018

T photography fair use

hroughout the year one album has been my go-to for when things get gloomy, and that album is “By the Way, I Forgive You” by Brandi Carlile. The veteran singer-songwriter has teamed up with Shooter Jennings and Dave Cobb to produce her sixth LP. The album pulls on Carlile’s country roots while also infusing hints of pop.

The folk singer offers up a nostalgic sense of forgiveness with the opener “Everytime I Hear That Song,” which

Spark

Best Folk Album of the Year

BY THE WAY I FORGIVE YOU 50 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

continues into “Fulton County Jane Doe.” Towards the end of the album Carlile switches gears to shift into a bouncy pop chord for “Harder to Forgive.”

Which creates a powerful finish when paired with the last song, “Party of One”. Altogether,the entire album is a tour-de-force, filled with affectionate sadness and forlorn wanting that seems to pull on the heartstrings every time.

—Anna Biddle

Brandi Carlile Feb. 16, 2018

music reviews | entertainment

JULY-NOVEMBER 2018 enlightened. The more upbeat songs on this album become ones that feel uplifting and inspiring. They shine and become instant smiles on a listener’s face.

The production couldn’t be done by any other artist either. JOJI has production experience on more than 2 EP’s and 2 albums.

Though all of these may not be released under the same names, or even be available on most popular music streaming services, they all lend to his creativity as a lo-fi producer.

This mash of genres becomes a pure and somber sound filled with an inviting lonely energy. Every song flows on its own beat creating a slightly different, but similar, feeling throughout each song.

—Michael Patterson

Spark

photography fair use

G

eorge Miller, known previously as Filthy Frank or Pink guy, released his newest album under the moniker, JOJI, and it introduces his newest sound in the most comprehensive way possible.

“Ballads1” is an album filled with comprehensive and defining sounds.

Every song off of this albums screams R&B to its core. All of the tracks are about love and the different feelings from falling in love to being comfortable with love to brutally hating the person that they’re with. No feeling is left untouched.

R&B has always had a more upbeat and happy feeling, but with this album, JOJI decided to use some of his prior experience with producing to introduce a more lo-fi, indie, focused sound.

This shifts the main focus of usual R&B listening. Using this lo-fi, somber atmosphere JOJI makes his lyrics focused on the sadder parts of relationships.

However, not every song on this albums follows this trope the ones that don’t stand out and become more

Best R&B Album of the Year

BALLADS 1 JOJI October 26, 2018 PLAYLIST: “LEGENDARY” W ith an increase in popularity of reflecting on the glory days of rock and roll in an age where rap and R&B music are the indisputable champions, Spotify’s “Legendary” playlist hits the ground running in its offerings of classic songs from the reign of the genre.

Even from artists that are more obscure than the Beatles, who brace the playlist’s cover over a monochromatic background, the song selections are ones that define much of the 20th century.

Spark

Second to none, the Fab Four’s 1967 classic “A Day in the Life” is paired with songs like Siouxsie and the Banshee’s “Hong Kong Garden,” reinforcing the idea that the classic sounds from the rock genre came in many unique forms and genres across a number of decades.

“Legendary” promises to be not only an enjoyable listen, but also a study into the progression of the rock, punk and alternative genres throughout the latter half of the 20th century.

—Bryce Forren

FOLLOWERS: 1,126,457 CREATED BY: SPOTIFY DECEMBER 13, 2018

Best R&B Playlist of the Year

SPOTIFY PLAYLIST FEATURE January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 51

entertainment | car review

CHALLENGING THE PACK photography fair use

A

cura, Lexus, Infiniti, and Genesis all have something in common: they are all luxury brands that originated from nonluxury car makers. Hyundai decided to take a leap of faith and start its own luxury brand. Hyundai’s luxury options, the Equus and Genesis sedans, seemed to be making owners quite satisfied, showing the world that Hyundai was serious about getting into the luxury segment. So, in 2015 they announced Genesis as a stand alone luxury brand.

The Genesis G90 was the first car that was designed for the brand. The first Genesis was the G80, but it was simply a rebadged version of the Hyundai Genesis sedan. The G90 was released to the world in 2016 with a mission to create a name for the new luxury brand.

Looks: The Genesis G90 is a good-looking sedan. However, its design is very nonoffensive and could use some more pizzazz.

Up front, the car looks good. Genesis’ signature grill presents the car with class.

Headlights come as full LED and are very good at leading the way at night, especially with their auto follow technology.

The side profile on the G90 shows off a fastback(ish) design that isn’t offensive by any means. The G90 has a high belt line and a lower character line that add some style to the side.

There are also nice chrome elements around the windows, on the door handles and down by the bottom of the doors that add a nice touch to the car.

The G90 comes with one wheel option, the dark brushed alloy 19-inch turbine wheels. I feel that my Ultimate package tester could use a larger wheel, but Genesis claims that the rims were specially designed to keep the cabin noise level down.

Interior: Step inside the G90 and you can see that Genesis did a lot of research when developing the car. The G90 has a 22-way power adjustable driver’s seat that is extraordinarily soft and allows you to find the most comfortable position. The front passenger’s seat is just as soft but only 16-way power adjustable. The rear

seats also provide extreme comfort and allow for 14-way power adjusting. All nappa leather seats are heated and ventilated in the G90 to make your ride even more comfortable.

The G90 dash layout is also very luxurious and also extremely user friendly. The dash is finished with a dark-colored wood trim with added aluminum trim. At night the dash is illuminated with mood lighting which you can alter to your liking. In the center of the dash Genesis has mounted an analog clock to add an old fashioned class to the interior of the car.

At the top of the dash, Genesis has placed a very clear HD 12.3-inch infotainment screen that is just as easy to use as all of Hyundai’s infotainment screens.

One downside to the infotainment screen is how the graphics look similar to all Hyundai products. Genesis needs to develop a program to run on its screens to further separate itself from Hyundai.

Step into the rear seats and each passenger is greeted with a 10-inch display mounted to the back of each of the front seats and an armrest full of all the controls you could ever dream of in a car. The rear seat occupants of the G90 also get side and rear sunshades to block the sun from over-invading the rear of the cabin.

Love music? Then you’ll love the G90’s 17-speaker Lexicon sound system.

The music comes out perfectly clear and the system provides plenty of bass.

Lexicon is only specific to Genesis cars and is committed to making your music listening experience the best you ever heard.

Driving Impressions: Buttery-smooth describes the way the G90 drives. The power from the 5.0L V8 is effortless and can move the 4,900lb vehicle to 60 MPH in 5.1 seconds. Shifts feel nonexistent when you drive. The G90 also comes equipped with paddle shifters, but you may never use them because this car wasn’t designed with the word “sporty” in mind.

Cabin noise is extremely low while driving the G90 and adds to the luxurious character that the car is trying to live by.

Under hard acceleration is about the only time you will hear the ear-pleasing rumble from the 5.0L V8. Other than that, however, you’d never know the engine was there.

The luxurious ride is added to even more with the G90’s very full list of driver assistance features which include lane keep assist and smart cruise control. These features make driving the big sedan an effortless and pleasing experience.

Final Impressions: Overall, the Genesis G90 is an unbelievable car. For $75,345 the amount of features and attention to detail you get are unmatched. The G90 is a great first build and a huge step in the right direction for Genesis. I can’t wait to see how the updated 2020 G90 will be. However, I gave the car a 4.5/5 because I believe that Genesis could design the car to be morexciting.

The exterior design just isn’t the most exciting and Genesis needs a more extravagant design to fully give their brand a strong name.

GENESIS G90 5.0 ULTIMATE 52 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

—Jack McFarland

coach feature | sports Vanderhorst says that Staley has been on their radar for quite some time before joining the Thunderhawks. Praising his incredibly strong work ethic and basketball knowledge, Vanderhorst says, “We knew he would be such an asset to the program, we had to get him on.”

More than that, Staley’s positive attitude and fun personality have strongly impacted those around him. His coworkers call him a “funny”, “easy-to-talk-to,” and a “goofball” who knows when it’s time to be serious.

“Kids like him; they want to be around him,” admires Adkins. “If you’re going to be a coach you have to be able to build relationships and I think he does that very well.”

S East basketball coach John Staley and East junior Alex Mangold battle for a rebound at practice.

COACH ON THE COURT East basketball coach and economics teacher John Staley has been a large part of the team’s success this year. story kate harvey | photography lauren maier

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alking off the Bradley Center court in Milwaukee, WI after a first round loss in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) March Madness tournament as an assistant coach for Winthrop University, he wasn’t sure where his next move would take him.

Little did he know, he would end up in West Chester, Ohio as East’s Men’s Basketball Varsity Assistant Coach, just in time for the 2018-2019 season. The Thunderhawks’ newest addition to the coaching roster as well as the teaching staff is 6’5 University of Findlay graduate, John Staley.

Staley has been playing basketball since he was six years old, and both his older brother and father coach high school basketball. East’s head varsity coach Clint Adkins says that he opened the position exclusively for Staley, knowing he’s a perfect fit for East basketball.

“Basketball is in his blood,” says five-year head coach Adkins. “I went to go watch [Alex White, a former East basketball player at University of Findlay] play and saw how hard Staley played as a senior and I said to myself ‘I like that guy.’”

In high school, Staley played in his hometown of Dayton for Chaminade Julienne, where his father has been coaching for over forty years. In college, Staley played for Northern Kentucky University (NKU) his freshman year, then transferred to the University of Findlay for his last three years.

During Staley’s sophomore year at Findlay, his team went on to win the Division II national championship. After college, Staley spent a short tenure as assistant coach at Winthrop University in North Carolina, before finding a new home at East.

Fellow varsity assistant coach Kyle

taley’s tendency toward effort-based players is mirrored in his own work. Not only does he coach, teach, scout, sub, and tutor; Staley also does all the graphic design for the East basketball program.

“I tend to just root for the guys who play really hard; the hard-nosed ones over the more talented athletic players, because that’s what I was when I played,” Staley says. “I wasn’t really out jumping anybody or anything like that, but I felt like I could outwork them.”

His father, Joe Staley, says he approves of East’s program because, “John couldn’t coach at a school that didn’t value hard work and commitment.” Joe is well known locally for his very successful coaching career, achieving over 400 wins as head coach at Chaminade Julienne, with more to come.

“The most enjoyable part of coaching for me, was coaching my two sons. Having them both coach is sort of an extension of that.”

Joe says. “I wish every parent could have the experience of sharing something they’re passionate about with their kids.”

The legacy is living on strong, not just through coaching, but teaching as well. John spends the first three periods of the day teaching Economics in room 216. The next three periods he travels around main campus, subbing and tutoring wherever he is needed most.

“It’s always classroom first, over anything else,” Staley says. “Because no matter how good you are at your sport, if you can’t get the grades, you can’t go onto the next level anyway.”

“I think the fact that he is closer to our age and just a really funny guy is part of why we love him so much,” says East junior Mark Krajewski, who both plays for the team and takes Staley’s class.

Adkins is exceptionally excited about his addition to the team and says this years’ team has potential for greatness.

“He really cares about kids, that’s the most important thing,” Vanderhorst says. “ He cares about kids and really wants what’s best for them, whether it’s on the court or in the classroom.” •

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 53

sports | student feature

BASH’S BUCKETS East senior Bash Wieland looks to become the next Thunderhawk to lead the team to a deep tournament run this season before continuing his basketball career at Bellarmine University. story jack parr photography kate harvey

W

hen the final buzzer sounded at the University of Dayton Arena, the East Men’s Basketball team was in a state of stunned silence. After coughing up a late lead, the Thunderhawks watched as Princeton celebrated on the court, having just punched their ticket to the state sweet sixteen.

In the locker room, the seniors were upset after having played their final high school game together.

While the bus rolled along the highway after that heartbreaking loss in March, East senior forward Bash Wieland’s thoughts had already turned towards next season. After transferring from West prior to his junior season in order to play in the East program and give himself the best chance to succeed, Wieland helped the team advance to the round of 32 last season and is excited for the opportunity to lead the team even further this year after recently committing to play collegiately at Bellarmine University in Louisville, KY. “I’m thrilled to be committed. It’s going to be a challenge, but I’m excited for it,” Wieland says. “It’s something that’s off my plate so I can just focus on this season.”

At Bellarmine, Wieland will join an

impressive list of former Thunderhawks currently playing at the next level after graduating from the East program. Among these former Thunderhawks is Fairmont State University Freshman Jarrett Cox, who led the Greater Miami Conference (GMC) with 18.2 points per game as a senior last season.

“It’s always tough to lose a player as talented as Jarrett Cox,” Adkins says. “But I’m confident Bash will step up. He’s grown a tremendous amount since he transferred into the program, and he’s turned into the leader we all thought he would become. I can’t wait to see him make even more strides this season” While Cox’s impact will certainly be missed, the team is confident that they can recover from the loss of Cox and the rest of the seniors under the leadership of Wieland, who

54 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

is expected to carry the load on the court this season.

“It means a lot to see Bash commit to a program like Bellarmine,” East varsity coach Clinton Adkins says. “He will join a great group of young men as former players having success in college, which is something I love to see for these terrific individuals I’ve had the pleasure of coaching over the years.”

Wieland’s work ethic and team-first mentality, along with his versatile skill set, has made an impression with his teammates as well as his coach. East senior and team captain Grant Spicer loves playing with Wieland and is also confident in his teammate’s ability to step up as the number one option on the court this season.

“Bash is a great leader for us on and off the

student feature | sports

Left: East senior Bash Wieland rises up for a shot against Oak Hills. Final score: 42-41. Below: Wieland looks to hit an open teammate against rival West. Final score: 66-35.

Mangold as he takes on an increased role this season.

“Bash is a good leader because of how much he cares about the success of the team, his willingness to learn, and his mature playing style,” Mangold says. “He’s taught me to have more confidence in my game.”

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court. He sets a great example and you never have to worry about his attitude or effort,” Spicer says. “He’s one of those guys that you know is going to give you everything he’s got every time he steps on the court.”

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lthough Wieland has only been a member of the East program for one full season, he and Spicer are part of a group of eight seniors that have been through a lot of workouts, practices, and games together, and are looking for one last successful season as they prepare to move on from the program to the next stages of their lives.

“I’ll miss Bash and the rest of the senior class immensely,” Adkins says. “I’ve rarely had a group that’s been so coachable and willing to learn, as well as together. They truly care about

one another and are invested in the success of the team.”

Spicer and the rest of the seniors understand the value of playing as a team and feel that their chemistry and unselfishness separate them from past East teams and will help put them in a position to make a deep run this year.

“We’re all just one big family, and I think it shows when we play,” Spicer says. “Guys are constantly pushing and encouraging one another, which definitely helps us on the court.”

While the senior class will certainly play a significant role this season, they aren’t the only players who are expected to contribute to the success of the team. Other key pieces include East sophomore Nate Johnson and junior Alex Mangold, who have learned about leadership and confidence from Wieland, which will help

ecently, the coaching staff has adopted the EAST way philosophy, which is an acronym for exertion, attitude, selflessness, and toughness. Wieland strives to always live his life by this mentality, and credits Adkins for helping him believe in himself and reach his fullest potential. “[The EAST way] is just a way of life,” Wieland says. “Coach Adkins taught me that if I wanted to be a scholarship athlete, I would have to put in the work, and he’s a big reason I’ve decided to make that investment.”

After advancing to the round of 32 last year, the Thunderhawks are motivated and eager to avenge that loss to Princeton and make it further in the tournament, which they believe they have the talent and potential to do so.

“Our goal is to at least win districts this year, after a heartbreaking loss last year in Dayton,” Mangold says. “I personally feel like this team has the most potential in the last decade to be great.”

Having set very high expectations for themselves this season, the team realizes that it won’t be easy to achieve their goal of making it further than last season, as well as competing for a state championship. Spicer stressed the importance of not getting ahead of themselves and staying focused on each game.

“We have all the pieces to compete with anyone in the state, but in order for that to happen, we have to come to play every day. We can’t afford to just show up and expect to win,” Spicer says. “We have a lot of work to do to get where we want to be, but with this group of guys, I know we’re going to bring it every day and push ourselves to get there.”

After officially signing with Bellarmine, Wieland’s future is looking bright. But, before he turns his attention to college, he is focused on making his senior season one to remember, something that he’s been looking forward to since stepping off the court last March.

“This is my senior year, it’s my last ride.”

Wieland says. “I want to make sure it’s special and get as far as we possibly can.” •

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 55

sports opinion | stephen mckay

SHOULD COLLEGE ATHLETES BE PAID? E

verybody can see that athletes get special treatment from schools. Athletes can get away with more than any other student at college, and are adored by universities. They take advantage of benefits varying with each university.

These benefits can be as small as more lenient treatment from professors, or as big as full ride scholarships based solely on athletic talent. In some cases, they also receive illegal payment due to their athletic abilities.

Some students study every night and work two jobs through high school to prepare for the college costs. They lose many hours of sleep to try to get into a good college, and many of those students still have a hard time receiving significant scholarships. Many athletes get scholarships for just their athletic ability, have

their entire college paid for, and still have the audacity to complain about not being paid like a professional.

Many athletes fantasize about scoring the winning touchdown in the College Football National Championship. Getting the opportunity to simply play college football, let alone receive scholarships, is a blessing for the athletes.

“I don’t think athletes are being exploited.

I think there’s a symbiotic relationship there.

Without the university platform for them to compete, there is no exposure for them.

None,” says Judy Rose, the athletic director for the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

So why should they need to receive more money? Many athletes are already being paid by the colleges to follow this dream. Playing college sports is a privilege, with only two percent of high school athletes receiving any form of athletic scholarship to play in college.

College athletes should not be paid to play college sports.

There are so many negatives to paying these athletes that it simply doesn’t make sense to pump in more money to athletes.

Financially, it doesn’t make sense for universities to give college athletes a salary. Not only does it take money out of the university’s pocket, but the money being used to make athletes happier could be used on more important things like renovated classrooms and facilities around campus, as well as more money for academic scholarships.

Reggie Bush was a Heismanwinning running back for the University of Southern California (USC). Bush was later drafted by the New Orleans Saints and had a prolific NFL career before retiring in 2017.

However, Bush’s legacy is tainted by the scandal that forced him to forfeit his Heisman trophy.

This scandal involved around

NO WAY

$280,000 in payments to Bush’’s family from USC as well as a house for the family to stay in.

Imagine what the University could do with the $280,000 they gave to Bush’s family. They could provide some of the top high school academic prospects who may need financial aid with scholarships. Instead, they blew hundreds of thousands of dollars on Bush’s family on top of his full ride scholarships.

There are many cases of colleges paying players money on top of a full-ride scholarship.

It’s baffling how universities would risk their reputation and spend hundreds of thousands of dollars of extra money just so that an athlete will play football for them.

When colleges start paying some athletes, they’ll have to pay all of them. The university wouldn’t just be able to pay football players and basketball players; they would have to pay all athletes from all sports.

Paying all these athletes would put many universities way over budget. Tulane University has 377 student athletes, which is a large number of students to pay to play college sports

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ulane University gave out the highest average athletic scholarship in 2017.

Tulane gave out an average of a $48,849 scholarship to their athletes. Adding a salary on top of that would force them to have to make monetary cuts from other hard working students and staff.

College athletes shouldn’t be paid to play college sports. The University’s main focus should be on improving the quality of education of their students as well as maximizing their revenue. If Universities pay college athletes, they will wasting money for an unneccesary and avoidable reason.

“There’s no more money. Everybody is working as hard as they can to generate as much revenue as humanly possible and all, but a handful of schools operate in the red.” says Steve Patterson, the athletics director at the University of Texas. •

broc nordmark | sports opinion

Broc Nordmark and Stephen McKay debate what colleges should do about the ongoing issue of the legality of payments to their athletes. columns stephen mckay and broc nordmark | art caroline bumgarner

FOR SURE T

he National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) currently makes about 11 billion dollars annually from college athletics. This is more than what the total estimated revenues for the National Basketball Association (NBA) and National Hockey League (NHL) make per year.

This statistic would not be possible without the high levels of skill and dedication shown by all college athletes over the country. The NCAA and many colleges and universities make millions of dollars because of the efforts of these players. Coaches such as the new head football coach at Ohio State are making up to 4.5 million dollars per year just to be a coach.

It is time that these athletes get what they are owed: a paycheck.

“If you go to Chapel Hill and try to go to a Carolina-Duke game, good luck trying to find a ticket. It’s nationally televised. There’s so much money that goes behind just one basketball game,” former University of North Carolina and current NBA basketball player Marvin Williams says. “I do think the players from both sides should definitely see some type of benefit.”

The typical Division I college football player devotes 43.3 hours per week at practice, watching film, and at meetings for football. This is 3.3 hours more than the average American spends per week at work, but these athletes are doing it for free. They do not have time for a job throughout the week.

While the NCAA and many people are opposed to these athletes getting paid because they are students, many of these athletes are required to miss their classes because of their sport. For some college basketball players, their path through the annual March Madness basketball tournament requires them to miss up to one-quarter of their classes during the spring semester.

The time that these athletes spend participating in their athletic programs is deserving of pay. These athletes have to miss too much class time and are on the road too

much to say that they are getting paid is their education.

The positive effects of successful college athletes and teams is also very obvious based on student scores at these universities. The year after former Boston College quarterback Doug Flutie won the Heisman trophy, Boston College’s undergraduate admissions increased by 25 points and the average SAT score of their freshmen increased by 110 points. The schools are able to market the success of their athletic teams to high school students and it makes the universities look more attractive to students.

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hile these universities do give food and other forms of payment to their players, it is not nearly enough for them to get by on a daily basis. However, these athletes are not allowed to make any extra money because of the NCAA restrictions on the jobs these athletes can have, and how they can make money.

“When you’re on a football scholarship, you get a stipend that’s supposed to cover your rent and a few incidentals,” former Brigham Young University kicker Jason Chaffetz says. “It was $360 a month. This was the late 1980s, and the NCAA has a very interesting rule where you’re not allowed to supplement your income with a part-time job.”

Boise State University is known for their blue field and strong football program. If not for this, Boise State would have a hard time attracting students to attend their college. Students consider the athletic programs of universities before making a decision on where to study in college, so having a strong athletic program that has had recent success can make millions of dollars for a university like Boise State.

The athletic departments of these universities and the NCAA also treat college athletes as if they aretypical

employee. Their social media accounts are constantly being monitored and regulated by the university and the NCAA as if they are employees, and they are used as marketing tools in advertisements to generate even more money.

Jerseys, autographs, hats and other merchandise are constantly being bought and sold because of the performances of these players, and the athletes get no royalties from these profits; the NCAA gets to keep all the money for themselves, which is extremely unfiar.

“The NCAA makes so much money off of their kids,” former University of California and current Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers says. “And they put ridiculous - absolutely ridiculous - restrictions on everything that they can do.” •

“It’s more difficult from a confidence standpoint,” Bley says. “It’s harder to tell yourself that you’re still good at these things and that you still know how to do them.”

Mentally, Bley says she is still finding her way back into things and regaining the confidence she used to have. She remains worrisome while playing about getting reinjured.

“I’m more cautious of how I’m playing,” Bley says. “Mentally I feel like I’m not quite there yet as that I’m still worried that I’m going to get injured.”

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Bley drives to the basket in a showdown against GMC rival Middletown. The sophomre guard had four points in the 50-45 East victory.

THE COMEBACK KID

Returning from a serious injury, Maddy Bley looks to make a positive impact on the women’s varsity basketball team. story drew bachman | photography andrew marshall

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verything was going as planned, she made varsity as a freshman, and the season was just getting underway. . But in a blink of an eye, everything changed.

In the third game of the year versus Oak Hills, Maddy Bley, who is now a sophomore, went for a rebound and was elbowed in the neck by an opposing player, Bley sensed that something wasn’t right in her neck.

“They put me in a neck brace,” Bley says.

“After three weeks they concluded that it was a ligament issue.”

Prior to the injury, Bley says she was in a really good place basketball-wise. She made

varsity as a freshman, a rare occurrence in the girls basketball program. But this setback would take nearly a year to overcome.

The ligament issue in her neck put into place many obstacles that Bley did not plan on having to maneuver.

“Now it’s a lot harder to do the things I thought I was usually good at,” Bley says.

Bley had been one of the team’s premier rebounders as a freshman last year, averaging four rebounds per game.

Despite the physical challenges, Bley says that the mental aspect of the injury is also a tough task.

58 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

hysically, Bley faces challenges as well.

Extensive physical therapy with Beacon Orthopedics, twice a week for seven months, was required to get her back to where she was prior.

“It was a lot of work just with my doctors and with my therapist trying to get it to rehabilitate back to how it was before,” Bley says.

Teammates of Bley are also high on her athletic capabilities. Fellow East sophomore Jazmine Yun says that her length helps the team out a lot, especially defensively. Yun also complimented Bley on her shooting skills.

“Her shot has improved a lot,” Yun says.

“When she shoots we know it’s gonna go in.”

Newly hired East Coach Daniel Wallace, coming from McCauley high school, was very impressed with her determination coming back from her injury. Although he wasn’t in the program during the injury, Wallace was still impressed with her attitude coming back.

“Maddy has shown her passion for the game and for her teammates through her continued focus and effort toward recovery,” Wallace says.

“Maddy has handled all of this with poise and has remained positive as she has worked her way back on the court.”

Wallace highlighted her impact on the defensive side of the ball with her combination of athleticism and length. Standing at 5’11, she’s provides a lengthy presence for the team.

“She has a unique ability to guard multiple positions by using her height and length to guard post players,” Wallace says. “But is athletic enough to get out on the guards as well.”

Teammates of Bley have been impressive from an encouragement perspective as well as the patience they have given Bley and her journey back, according to Wallace.

“It has also been impressive the patience, understanding and support that her teammates have given Maddy with her recovery process,” Wallace says. “How excited they are to have her playing again show the character and sense of community we have within our locker room.”

It’s clear that the team and Wallace are very optimistic about getting Bley back and the impact she will have on the team.

“We are excited for the continued success and production Maddy will bring to our team and program,” Wallace says. •

east vs. west | sports

BIG CROWD, BIG PROBLEM story karaline abney

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JV TEAM MAKES HISTORY story jake ratliff | photography kate harvey

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he East Thunderhawks Boys Junior Varsity (JV) basketball team faced off in an intense game against the West Firebirds at home Dec. 14 and won 69-63 after a historic four overtimes.

The JV team, that consists of only six returning JV players, two of whom are hurt, held a 1-2 record before this game. Being a very young team consisting of five freshmen, and going up against West’s roster of mainly sophomores proved difficult.

“We were very nervous, our team is very young, and none of us have ever played a game like that,” East sophomore Adam Murphy says. “Not a lot of our team knew what [the pressure] was going to be like.”

The game started off quiet, with some back-and-forth scoring in quarters one and two, and not much action. East freshman Nate Adkins led in scoring at halftime, and East held onto their lead by a sliver at the end of the first half.

“It was almost like tug-of-war,” says East sophomore Ayman Elayyadi, who was in the crowd during the game. “Every time East seemed to pull away, West would pull right back and keep the score close.”

The “Tug-of-war” between the rivals continued into the second half, keeping the score very close. “[The team] didn’t get the shots we wanted and didn’t have good possession,” says Murphy, regarding the outcome up to the end of the fourth quarter However, in the last few possessions of the fourth, West led by two points, and East needed a comeback.

East freshman T.J. Kathman was fouled in the last minute and shot and scored two free throws, tying up the game and forcing the game into overtime. Kathman, Adkins, and third player East freshman Jadon Coles led the hawks in scoring in overtime.

A foul on East’s behalf in the first overtime caused West to pull back and tie the game again, heading into a second overtime.

Stakes were high as West pulled ahead by five in the first couple of possessions of the second overtime. To tie the game again, East gained two points from a layup and East junior Trevor Howard drained a three-pointer from at least four feet away from the three-point-line.

The third overtime saw the West Firebirds take the lead again by two. Tying the game for the fourth time was Kathman, scoring two free throws after a foul. The game was tied 63-63.

East finally pulled ahead of West going into the fourth and final overtime of the game.

With the game ending, the Hawks defense held their ground and kept up an aggressive offense against West, scoring six points and winning the game at 69-63.

“I wasn’t happy that we lost, but it was just an entertaining and suspenseful game to watch,” West sophomore Kyle Bonk said.

“Both sides fought very hard.”

West boys JV Coach John Daggett called the game “symbolic of a tremendous rivalry” between the two high schools.

“Both teams played with great energy, supported by the huge crowd,” Daggett said.

This victory will put East’s Boys JV record at 2-2. The Thunderhawks will play the Firebirds again in West territory on Feb. 8. •

perfect storm of events on Dec. 14’s various East versus West basketball games led to one of the busiest nights of the year in the East gymnasium, and with that, an eminent risk to reach maximum capacity.

Before varsity had a chance to play, seven overtimes had been used between the freshman and junior varsity (JV) games. This unlikely situation added a 2.5 hour delay to the night’s timetable, with the tip-off for varsity occurring at an estimated 9:10 p.m rather than the scheduled 7:30 p.m.

Due to the heavily-anticipated rivalry game, the 2,400-person maximum occupancy gymnasium quickly filled with spectators.

“The most people we had in the gym was at the JV game,” East Athletic Director Richard Bryant said. “At some point Deputy Hale and I said that we probably need to stop accepting people. So we didn’t accept anyone who’s walking up and paying.”

An estimated 1,300 tickets were sold the night of the game and 1,000 passes were configured into calculations.

“When we start to get to capacity is when you start to have kids sitting on steps, and that’s a big no-no,” said Bryant, with 10 years of experience on the job. “I knew when we’re about ready to burst, even if I’ve never counted a thing.”

Those who were not able to get into the game felt it was unfair that people were leaving, yet they were not allowed into the game.

“I don’t think it’s fair,” East Alum and University of Cincinnati student Lovely Mutheu said. “They don’t really know it’s over-capacity because there’s so many people walking out.”

Mutheu wasn’t alone; West senior Trey, who wished to keep his last name anonymous, also felt that turning them away was unfair.

“People are leaving and they should let that same number of people into the gym, or something like that,” Trey said. “I had money to pay, so that’s not an issue.”

Some were upset that they couldn’t get back into the game.

“I was in the student section, and have a ticket [with] a stamp and they won’t let me back in,” West junior Jessica Pytlinski said.

Bryant stood by his decision despite the spectators.

“Most of those people showed up after the original start time of the varsity game,” Bryant said. “I don’t know how sympathetic I am, games like that, you got to here early.”

As for those who where upset that they weren’t allowed to reenter the game, Bryant admitted that “with a game like Friday night, there is no flexibility.” •

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 59

sports | chess feature

CHECKMATE East’s young chess team is finding ways to succeed both through winning and through the fun of the game. story lucas fields | photography abby bammerlin infographic lauren maier

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hispers fill the library as the chess team talks about the jokes that Coach Kreider told in class that day. Their chess match is all fun and games, until the hourglass flips. The room goes silent, and the match begins.

Last season, East’s chess team went 12-4 and knocked off Mason in the Greater Miami Conference (GMC) tournament. They were led by seniors Weston Linder, Adam Johantges, Kyle Oliver, and Dylan Stenski, who have all since graduated.

Math teacher and chess coach Pat Kreider realizes they’ve lost a lot of talent from last season, and they are changing the culture of their team to fit the new variety of skill sets they have this year.

“Those four seniors were all tremendously talented,” Kreider says. “We had a East senior Brayden Reichelderfer tremendous year last year, but strategically moves a knight in this is kind of a rebuilding hopes to better advance himself in year.” his chess match.

Leading this year’s squad is East senior Brayden Reichelderfer. He’s in his to have a strong team, and make sure that in third season on the chess future years, we’ll continue to have a strong team, taking Linder’s spot as team captain. “[Reichelderfer’s] also very talented,” team.”

Kreider says. “He was on our varsity squad last his season, East hasn’t seen the same year.” success on the team as in previous years.

With so many seniors graduating, the They started the season 1-4, but have since team naturally became younger this season. progressed to a 8-10 record.

Reichelderfer has willingly taken on his captain “It’d be nice if we can get up to fourth or role, and takes pride in helping the young team fifth place [in the GMC] by the end of the progress.

“I try to be a leader for the new freshman season,” Kreider says. “That’s kind of our team and sophomores that join the team, so goal.”

For the players, the best way to be successful eventually they can rise up and take those same roles,” Reichelderfer says. “We can continue is to have fun while playing.

T

60 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

“I’ve never really thought of it as competitive, because I’ve always thought to just go out there and do the best moves that I can do, while having fun doing it,” Reichelderfer says. “It’s kind of that reward of, ‘Hey, I can have fun, but if I’m beating this opponent, I’m just gonna have more fun.”

East senior Francesco Costanzo is also in his third year on the team. His love of the game of chess keeps him competitive through the whole match.

“I love the thrill of the battle. I know that sounds ironic, given that it’s just you sitting there, but it’s more than that,” Costanzo says.

chess feature | sports

PLAYER STATS

CHESS SCORE

EAST GMC HOW TO AND RECORDS: SCORE WIN: 2016:

9-7 RECORD 4 TH IN GMC

6

the top 5/7 matches are scored.

W L

2017:

12-4 RECORD 3 RD IN GMC

WIN = 1 pt LOSS = 0 pt TIE = 0.5 pt

2018:

IF...

THEN...

8-10 RECORD 7 TH IN GMC

7

W

The 6/7 6 match is scored.

focus is required. Since games can last upwards of 90 minutes, it can be hard to keep that focus for so long.

“I know for me, it can be easy to get stressed out,” Costanzo says. “Usually just little distractions in the room, like people walking, will distract me.”

“You’ve put time and effort into crafting a skill, and you’re finally putting it to the test.”

Even in defeat, the team still has a good time. While they go out and play their best games, it’s impossible to win every time.

“It’s always great to win, but I think what’s more important is to have fun,” Reichelderfer says. “It doesn’t really matter where you place as long as you had fun getting there.”

While some players naturally compete while they play, Kreider knows sometimes he needs to get everybody back on track.

“We had a practice a few weeks ago, where I just said ‘Okay, no noise,’ and put them in

a place where they pretend it’s a real match,” Kreider says. “But at times I don’t want it to be too serious. It’s supposed to be fun.”

Before a home match, the team gets ready and sets up for the upcoming game in the library. While waiting for their opponent, Kreider often embraces his love of chess by playing practice rounds with the team.

“I just love the game of chess and I love sitting down and playing with them,” Kreider says. “Usually they beat me, and I get all frustrated, but chess is a really fun sport, so it’s fun to just sit down and play.”

In the middle of the match, a high level of

D

istractions can be detrimental in a player’s performance, but only if the player allows it. Reichelderfer has his own unique strategy when he needs to stay focused.

“Sometimes I’ll go check out the other games to serve as a distraction to my current game,” Reichelderfer says. “I’m still thinking about chess, even if it’s not on my current game, so that when I come back to my current game, I’m still aware of what’s going on.”

Like other sports, people play chess because of their love for the game. When people have fun doing a sport or activity, the success will come.

“When it’s time for the match, I have a big grin on my face,” Costanzo says. “It’s an exhilarating experience.” •

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 61

opinion | column

MY LETTER TO AN ADDICT column gracie estep | art mckenna lewis

62 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

column | opinion

•This is a personal open letter from the writer addressing her aunt.

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he white tile and flashing police lights mix together making the room spin. Seeing your sister lay there, unconscious and unaware of your actions. Not knowing that, in a few short weeks, we would be mourning over her for real this time. The paddles charge, feeling like a dream bringing her back to life, but my memories are still flooded with her lifeless body.

Addiction is the compulsive need for and use of a habit-forming substance. No one ever wants to talk about it. It’s the elephant in the room, everyone knows about it, but doesn’t say anything. It tears families apart and ruins everything in sight, taking down everything in the path of its winding road to destruction.

The first time is a choice, but each time after is a compulsive action.

Watching from the outside is a blessing and a curse, hearing the horror stories from others around until it becomes a reality. The cold sweats, relapses, and withdrawals become a second nature. Seeing the effect on myself and my family makes me wonder why you did this, but we will never know. This is not about us, it is about helping you.

I want to see you succeed, we all do. It wasn’t meant to be like this. It could’ve been a one-time thing at a party that turned into an addictive habit or even a prescription; either way we are here now.

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he first step would be to stop pushing your loved ones away. We only want the best for you, even if it doesn’t seem like it at first. Dropping you off at the same rehab doors multiple times a year affects all of our actions. The “I’ll get betters” start to go in one ear and out the other. Answering any and every unknown number knowing it could be the worst news: the drugs won.

I want you to realize what you are doing.

Everyone around you loves you and it is hurting us almost more than it’s hurting you.

You have a family, kids, nieces, and parents.

Having to grow up too fast because we now have to take care of you, when it should be the other way around. The 911 operator already

“Stay away from the devil on your shoulder trying to lead you into the dark again. Show your kids that beating addiction is possible, they need their mom back.” knowing the reason for the call and the whole street knowing the reason for the sirens is embarrassing, not for me but for you.

Do you know how many times you have flatlined? Imagine if I wouldn’t have found you. Laying on the freezing bathroom floor not knowing what is next has to be scary. Trying to escape the reality that is called life. Stop numbing the pain, get up and be there for your kids, not your useless belt and needles.

Set boundaries, walk out of rehab knowing it’s your last time. The repetitive trips to get clean have to be annoying. When you watched your sister die, did it even affect the way you look at drugs and dealers? Going through this over and over should be making you stronger.

It will be hard, but everyone is with you every step of the way. Watching you do this time and time again defeats the purpose.

Stay away from the temptations and the devil on your shoulder trying to lead you in to the dark again. Show your kids that beating this addiction is possible, they need their mom back. Your parents, sisters and nieces need you; we are tired of picking up your broken pieces and the glue running out. Stop lying to yourself and others because it is making everything harder. Find new friends because we do not want to see you down again. Always ask for help, asking does not make you weak, it makes

you strong. The scars may take time to heal, but it is better for everyone.

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ou don’t have to tell me the what or why, just please listen to where I am coming from. I can’t watch you do this to yourself anymore. It is tearing us apart. I miss the old days when we could hangout without having to guess what I am walking into. Please take into consideration the feelings around you, I only want the best for you, along with so many others. Thank you for all of the lessons of what not to do, but now is the time to stop.

Recovery can happen and you need to know you are much stronger than you realize.

You aren’t alone. •

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 63

opinion | head to head

HEAD TO HEAD

IS SOCIAL MEDIA BAD FOR MENTAL HEALTH?

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media realm they have created for themselves, causing isolation, but they start to lose track of who they truly are and, through anxiety, start to dislike themselves.

s I lay my head down to sleep, all is well until that thing I keep beside my bed brightens the room, filling the space with white light. Suddenly before I even know it, I’m mindlessly scrolling, through Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and all the Youtube videos that catch my eye.It’s not just a problem of scrolling all through the night, slowly losing hours of sleep on end. Social media is an addiction, and it has detrimental effects on the mental health of me and the countless others those who use it. The effects of social media branch far beyond what most see.

If the large amounts of social media use causes measurable physiological and psychological effects within a person, it is detrimental to their mental health and overall wellbeing. Many people think that social

media is something fun that they partake in occasionally, but the amount of time consumed has come as far as to call some of the more extreme cases addictions.

Researchers from Swansea University conducted a study that found that people experienced the psychological symptoms of withdrawal when they stopped using the internet, social media included. Their recent follow-up study found that when people stop using it, they also undergo small but measurable physiological effects.

If people can’t put their phone down for more than two minutes without wanting to use it again, there is obviously a problem of addiction. It takes over the minds of adults, teens, and children, virtually brainwashes them.

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es, of course people using social media should be old enough to understand what they are doing and be able to control their time, but the effects of social media and addiction are unceasing and sometimes even uncontrollable. Addiction is a mental health issue, and cannot be fixed through simply just “taking time off.”

This addiction leads to a plethora of mental health issues all with proven roots back to social media. Studies show the more time young adults spend on different platforms, the more likely they were to have problems sleeping and report symptoms of depression and social isolation.

Those addicted to social media know its bad, but don’t know where to start to fix the problem. Companies behind these platforms obviously want their products to be used, so they create communities that people love being a part of. This makes people who are not on social media feel left out, so much that they join just to feel included. But what no one sees is this time now spent on social media takes them away from real life interactions and creates a major sense of real life isolation for the person.

If this isolation continues long enough, it lowers social trust, causing an enormous amount of anxiety within a person. This anxiety leads to serious effects on the user’s wellbeing. Not only do people start to get absorbed into the social

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his is seen in multiple aspects of the user’s lives. What people post on social media is different from their real life, as they always try to put the best aspects of their lives out there. When people see those posts, and then look at their own lives from which they see the good as well as the bad, they tend not to like themselves or their lives as much.

One study out of the University of Pittsburgh, for example, found a correlation between time spent scrolling through social media apps and negative body image feedback.

Those who had spent more time on social media had 2.2 times the risk of reporting eating and body image concerns, compared to their peers who spent less time on social media. The participants who spent the most time on social media had 2.6 times the risk.

So not only does social media cause addiction in us, and cause physiological effects that could last a lifetime, it causes us to turn on someone who is always and has always been there for us—ourselves.

Social media’s original purpose was to initiate conversation and open up branches of communication around the world, and that is what users hoped to get out of it. But as many studies show, those who use social media almost always feel worse after using it. People generally believed that they would feel better after using, not worse. This turns out to be like the pattern in other types of addiction.

Though social media does allow us a quick line of communication, it takes away all the aspects of human connection, something we need. If we continue along this path, we are bound to become a society that is incapable of real connection. •

Check out more columns on the Spark website: lakotaeastsparkonline.com

head to head | opinion

Spark staffers Rebecca Breland and Alex Hood take on the heated debate of whether social media is bad for teenage mental health. columns rebecca breland and alex hood art lauren maier

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t’s created problems for teachers trying to make their students focus. Teens themselves have found that they are almost consumed by it. Studies call it addicting and detrimental to mental health and happiness. Though social media has been under consistent bombardment and criticism for years, it seems the many positives coming from these platforms are often ignored or taken for granted.

The mere presence of social media today is undeniably massive. Networking apps have become the quickest route to access friends and everyone around us, and to keep up with what’s going on in their lives, or to communicate with them. A platform like this alone seems great, though the potential to be misused or abused by many people is a reality.

Though it can be abused, social media’s core concept is ingenious, in the sense that it provides all people an equal voice to use, as, for example, the tweets of a famous actor are displayed alongside the tweets of a local politician. This allows for regular and everyday people to express themselves on an equal platform as the biggest celebrities, creating a place where everyone can share their thoughts and have them spread to other people.

A platform like Twitter can also serve as a means of facilitating political change, or driving political participation. Multiple large platforms and movements have risen due to the power of social sharing, as the “March For Our Lives” movement rose to prominence on Twitter. Even major political events like the Arab Spring sprung from these platforms, as Egyptian protesters organized, planned, and spread their message through this medium.

Perhaps the greatest benefit of social media is that it organizes everything someone is interested in and connected to in a singular spot. This means that people are connected to their friends, hobbies, government, influential figures, and more, all in one place.

The combination of everything someone is connected to can lead to new connections being formed between users, even resulting in people making new friends because they were connected through their interests.

Though it has the potential to be misused or to be rebranded in a negative light, social media can also be used effectively at a school level, as it allows administrators, teachers, and students to communicate on a common platform.

This connection is unique in a sense that it

couldn’t be formed just over a decade ago.

This connecting of students to their school can massively increase student engagement, as it gives schools a median in which they can connect with the student body as a whole, or even down to an individual student.

As many would expect, social platforms are often criticized for addicting children and teens to their app or website. By setting an age limit, these companies can’t be held responsible when sixth- and seventh-graders are unsurprisingly glued to refreshing their Twitter feed.

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n this sense, social media is almost like coffee. It has multiple benefits that have been shown to have positive effects, but when left unchecked, it can turn into an addiction or dependence instead of a healthy intake. To be used effectively and without abuse, people must practice an extent of self-control to prevent an addiction or obsession with these apps.

Social media itself is simply an improvement on what already existed before these platforms were created.

These platforms simply speed up processes that used to take longer, increasing overall efficiency while also managing to increase convenience of access. Simply put, social media has the potential to put every facet of someone’s life in one place.

Though this ease of access to people can lead to things like bullying or harassment, these things can already occur in real life, or through other communication methods like texting. Social media even helps to weed out these sorts of things from happening, as specific terms of service agreements and general rules can protect users from harassment or threats, and punishes users who instigate these same offenses.

A platform that lets users see what their friends are up to, communicate

with them, “like” their posts, or even publish one’s individual content isn’t inherently bad.

The base idea for social media can be used to connect a wide variety of people to different extents. It can link people that have similar interests, or even inspire movements that create large political change.

Though the negative behaviors can become a problem, the good of social media far outweighs the potential downsides. As the world’s people become increasingly interlinked, social media will only continue to gain in popularity. Platforms like Twitter and Facebook have revolutionized how people keep up with the world around them, making everything easier to access. Though it may not seem like it due to criticism these platforms get, the good social media can do outweighs its drawbacks. •

opinion | column

FORGET THE RESOLUTIONS ANNA BIDDLE art mckenna lewis

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esolutions for 2019: Do Homework, No more Diet Coke, No more Crunch Bars... nevermind At the end of each year people tend to make resolutions in preparation for the new year that has yet to be touched by human error. Let’s be honest though, there must be something seriously wrong with someone who would willing give up chocolate. In the long run how does a person figure that is going to make their year better? If anything, it’s going to make it worse; imagine a year without Crunch Bars— sounds like hell.

us stop and notice them—such as the 10 boys who were trapped in the cave, or the mass forest fires that have ripped through California time and time again—I have noticed small moments that may have flown under most people’s radar.

These moments collectively show what was left behind this year, whether we set out to do so or not.

After a severe thunderstorm I found an abandoned birds nest in my front yard.

Sometimes a storm will come bursting into your life and knock your home out of its tree and scatter your children all over a random

“Since most of the events we would like to leave behind tend to be negative, it’s important to remember that we are entering a new year.”

So, this year throw resolutions of actually using a gym membership, and going to bed early out the window, and I mean that literally. Write down all the simple stuff that will never last through the year and throw it out the window.

Actually, don’t throw it out the window. That’s called littering and we’re trying to save the planet, at least most of us are. Maybe burn the list or write it on your phone and then delete it.

This year, we’re going to do something different, we’re going to celebrate the things that we left behind or moved on from without even noticing it. Since most of the events we would like to leave behind tend to be negative, it’s important to remember that we are entering a new year. A new year that comes with abundant possibilities, and moments that carry the chance of happiness.

Besides the large moments that have made

person’s yard. The good news is you can always make more, or maybe you were waiting for the storm to finally force them out of your house and start paying for their own food. Now I’m not sure what happened to the actual bird that called this nest home, but it probably moved to Florida now that the nest is empty.

One time while at the store minding my own business in the chip aisle, the lady in front of me decided that moment was the best time to dump the guy who brought his friend to the first date. I’m not sure why a grocery store was the choice to do the actual breaking up, but everybody has their reasons. Just like the guy who, after hearing the entire conversation as he picked out several bags of salt and vinegar chips, turned to ask the newly single woman out. I have since seen them both shopping for chips at least five times. Maybe guys who

66 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

enjoy vast amounts of salt and vinegar chips are keepers.

O

n an ordinary Wednesday night in the middle of summer the three-year-old boy who I babysit decided to no longer be afraid of the dark. I tried to advise him of the mistake he was making to run into the darkness of the backyard unequipped without any guidance. He in turn laughed and told me I was stupid because he had superpowers that would protect him from the monsters. Of course, this didn’t last very long, and he was soon back asking if I had a flashlight. But there is something to be gained from the drive to face our fears head on in the dark. I can’t promise 2019 won’t have its dark moments, but I can quote Dumbledore: “Happiness can be found in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.”

So goodbye 2018, our time together was not sweet nor was it short, but it happened.

The events that took place will forever be remembered and some will be forgotten. The sun will rise. A new year will come. Maybe you will meet your soulmate in the chip aisle or be called stupid by a three-year-old with superpowers. I just hope that whatever happens, we won’t forget what we’ve learned.

So, let’s raise our Diet Cokes and our Crunch Bars in a toast to history, and the chance that it won’t repeat itself. Fingers crossed. •

column | opinion

SO LONG, NEWSPAPER MEGAN FINKE art mckenna lewis

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creams blare, from what some would call a toy, as it races through the dirt paths of a Los Angeles backyard. For many, seeing long time YouTuber Shane Dawson in this sort of situation was very out of the ordinary, but for new YouTuber Jake Paul, it was just another day.

This, and many other situations, is just a simple summary of the investigation of a sociopath. With two worlds colliding and a sum of over 140 million views, Dawson has developed a internet-breaking docu-series that has not only given him a new investigation, but also a new process and style of journalism.

Going on three years now, I have been writing for my school newsmagazine. The endless types of exposure I have had over the past years establishes a more credible way of looking at journalism. Newspapers, magazines, online reports and even television broadcasts have grown my interest in the ever changing topic so much, that I have decided to major in it for college.

I always fall back into journalism, but have recently realized that it is something I love and I am ready to change with it. With the basic knowledge of comparing the amount of views Dawson got in his series to the amount of newspapers read a day, the idea of what is to come next is only growing.

The award-winning investigative docuseries, titled “The Mind of Jake Paul” tested the waters for journalism. By filming his indepth interviews with people who have been in and out of Paul’s life, as well as a therapist.

Backlash came his way like no other. Some for the face for his newest series, some for the idea that Dawson was trying to diagnose Paul with a mental illness, and some for his claims that he was being an investigative reporter.

The efforts by Dawson seemed strenuous and unconventional, but the overall content proved that the said hours, blood, sweat and

tears put into it was opposite of what the critics said. To help evaluate the mental side of the investigation, Dawson reached out to fellow Youtuber and licensed therapist Kati Morton, striving to get a professional standpoint on the topic.

The two first met up in the second episode of the series where he wanted to discuss the details of sociopathology, as well as other mental health topics. As some viewers saw Dawson’s technique as just having a conversation, from a journalistic standpoint, he was doing one of the first steps of getting his story: interviewing.

Through the series he talked to many

has seemed to draw more and more viewers in as the topics got deeper and deeper.

When talking about a compelling story like the heroin epidemic or a terrorist attack, more and more people pay attention to what journalism truly is, when the topic causes interest that is. Therefore, comparing Dawson’s reporting to actual journalistic-reporting, similarities arise.

The idea of classifying his work as “journalistic,” scares some. Given that what he is doing is being uploaded onto YouTube, with no degree needed, but there is still a substantial amount of work put into the project, like there would be for any other story.

“Knowing that journalism is changing by the day, nerves have arose that maybe I will never be able to write for an actual newsmagazine.” people who had or has some sort of significant role in Paul’s life. The three main people he interviewed and got a whole episode dedicated to them was ex-Manager Nick Crompton, exgirlfriend Erika Costell and ex-girlfriend Alissa Violet. All three of these people grew the viewings because of the amount of drama and interest correlating them with Paul.

Within the videos, he put himself in the shoes of who he was talking to. This technique is always something my high school journalism teacher told my fellow classmates and I to do. If we didn’t, then our story wasn’t good enough.

Comparing what I have learned over the past three years to what Dawson has recently done with this video series and many others, it

Knowing that journalism is changing by the day, nerves have arose that maybe I will never be able to write for an actual newsmagazine, or maybe I will never be able to move to a big city full of big stories. This is a fear I have withheld for quite some time, knowing that whenever I tell myself I will major in something else, my gut tells me otherwise.

Dawson’s work taught me that the demographic is changing. The story is changing.

Times are changing, but most importantly, journalism is changing. •

January 2019 lakotaeastsparkonline.com 67

opinion | ed-cartoon/east speaks out

“Subverting Democracy” - Alexandra Fernholz

EAST SPEAKS OUT Is social media bad for mental health? interviews jessica jones | photography meredith niemann

,

YES People put some pretty bad things on there and it hurts others and they take that to their heart and mind. It shouldn’t be something that people are afraid to use. They want to have a good time on [social media], but they can’t because of the bullying that happens.

Isabella Matherly, freshman

DEPENDS

YES

DEPENDS

Whether or not it is bad is based off of how it is used. If someone is staying healthy and not posting bad stuff talking smack about other people then it is fine.

Social media can make people look at themselves differently because they compare themselves to other people. A lot of people make it seem like their lives are perfect when they’re actually not and then people feel bad comparing their life to that fake image.

It depends on who is using it and how. There are people who use it strictly for pictures of cats in order to make them feel better and that’s it and they’re on there for half an hour. There are also people who tumble down into deep depressive states because they’re hyper obsessed with their looks and validation.

Kaleb Nymberg, sophomore

68 lakotaeastsparkonline.com January 2019

Ashton Gibbs, freshman

Rachael Baumann, senior

guest column | opinion

THE PRICE OF FREEDOM ANNE MATHEW art mckenna lewis

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fter a month-long 2500 mile journey, a migrant woman with her three children reach the United States (US) border with Mexico. Their expedition consisted of jumping from train to train and walking over treacherous ground. At any moment they could have come across gangs threatening to kidnap her children for money. Their feet are bleeding, they are ill, and they are experiencing unimaginable pain. The woman leads her children to the border for just a glimmer of hope that her family could escape the gang persecution and food crisis of Central America.

On their journey to the border, kidnapping would not even be the only risk. A Fusion Investigation found that as many as eight in ten migrant women and girls are raped on the way, making them even more vulnerable to human and sex trafficking. Migrants are risking death

GUEST COLUMN due to race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinions.

They have the right to claim asylum in any country they choose that offers asylum such as the US, Australia, Canada, Switzerland and many others. They also have the right to a fair process within that country. The possibility of being granted asylum is what keeps many of these migrants hopeful.

After holding onto hope for so long, they finally reach the border and are met with barbed wire, armed forces, and tear gas. All of this causing long-term psychological and

“After holding onto hope for so long, they finally reach the border and are met with barbed wire, armed forces, and tear gas.” trying to get across the border, which they would not be doing unless it was necessary.

This woman’s experience is not an uncommon one among the migrants traveling from Central America in seek of asylum. Spikes in gang violence and insufficient harvest from droughts are making the lives of these people incredibly painful. The thousands of migrants in the caravan that arrived at the US-Mexico border say they are fleeing this persecution and poverty, and are now remaining in temporary shelters in the border cities of Tijuana and Mexicali. The city mayor has warned that they will not be able to provide for long.

Under the 1951 Geneva Convention relating to the status of refugees, seeking asylum in the US requires the seeker to prove they faced persecution in their home country

physical effects. According to the National Institute of Health (NIH), tear gas can cause life-threatening or irreversible toxic effects such as itching and burning sensations, chest tightness, loss of vision, and much more.

They are also shot with rubber bullets which can fracture, bruise, and at times even kill if in short range, according to the NIH. President Donald Trump is not helping the situation they are in either, especially when speaking about undocumented immigrants he says “These aren’t people. These are animals.” It is nearly impossible trying to begin to imagine what these migrants have gone through. Many of them come from Honduras, which is the second-poorest country in Central America with 60.9 percent of the population living in poverty and surrounded by gangs.

And after finally reaching a place that promises freedom and happiness, they are dehumanized by the “leader of the free world” that should be offering refuge for those legally seeking asylum.

The number of those who can claim asylum depends on how many people apply, and how many are successful with their asylum application, along with the government and their choosing. In 2018, US immigration laws had set a 45,000 refugee limit which is one of the lowest totals in United States history. According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) told families including mothers carrying toddlers, “You cannot pass, there is no room,” and after the mothers pleaded with the agents, they were told once more “I don’t care about your child, many younger kids have come and we don’t let them pass.”

Recently, the conversation of building “The Wall” has been more prevalent than ever with the President trying to keep his election promises. But why spend billions keeping immigrants out when we could spend the money improving their conditions and giving them no reason to have to illegally come in.

That way we are helping their situation and ours.

The lengths migrants go to trying to alleviate their poor conditions is completely unfathomable. All for them to be met with what they are trying to leave. Not everyone has the opportunity to live in the US, and they are willing to do what it takes to achieve a life that is not ridden with daily threats and severe poverty. This issue is not a political one, rather a moral one where the situation is not black or white. This violence at the border is nothing less than criminal, how can we be okay with degrading these people who are no different from you and I? •

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opinion | chief column

BULLET JOURNALING KATEY KRUBACK photography lauren maier

I

t was July 2016 that I first encountered the cult productivity system known as the “bullet journal” on Pinterest, and I was mesmerized by the gorgeous planning spreads. After an hour of light Pinterest-research, I drove to the nearest Meijer and purchased my first bullet journal in the form of a leatherbound Moleskine notebook.

I hurried home, excited to start on my new journey of being super organized and a good artist (which I am not). I did some more light research on Pinterest, and I found spreads that I really liked and wanted to incorporate into my bullet journal.

An hour later, and I’d torn out more than ten pages from the front of the black Moleskine. Defeated, I shoved the ripped notebook in the back of my desk and forgot about it.

I am not artistically inclined—at all. I can do stick figures, and that’s about it.

But I got stuck in my head about making my bullet journal aesthetically pleasing, instead of making it productive. A bullet journal is, by its nature, whatever the owner wants it to be. It’s a planner, a diary, a to-do list, and a habit tracker. It’s all of those things in one place and for every aspect of your life: work, school, hobbies, relationships, and home.

So in January of 2017, I bought an emerald-colored Leuchtturm1917 dot journal to try again. I was tired of everything being in five different places; I had post-it notes littering my desk with all my daily to-do’s, movies to watch on my notes app, books to read on my Goodreads app, and events on a mix of my Google Calendar, school planner and random post-it notes.

This time around, I made a list (ironically) of everything I wanted my bullet journal to track: events on a monthly and weekly basis, books read, readathons, memories, and homework, along with all of my to-do lists. Then I thought about how I productively (key word!) wanted to incorporate those things into my bullet journal. “[The bullet journal] asks people to think about how they are spending their time and energy on a daily basis, and that can be a big shift for people who live in a very reactive world that is constantly looking to distract you,” Bullet Journal Method Creator Ryder Carroll said. “It’s easy to just react. The bullet journal is there to tell you: ‘You can stop and think about what you’re going to do next.

And you might learn something about yourself when you do.’”

The bullet journal itself is flexible and easy. It’s a blank notebook, marked with unobtrusive dots to guide but not dominate page design. It can make a blank page intimidating, but ultimately it was my own preconceived notions that caused me to stop in the first place. Now, two years and two journals in, I’m very surprised by how well this system has kept me on task, and have retired my other organizing apps, besides Google Calendar for Spark deadlines.

The physicality of the journal stops me from getting distracted while planning my day and, even more crucially, I’m even more productive and not running around trying to find a particular sticky-note.

Once I was able to get out of my head and stop worrying about what the thing looked like (hint: stop looking at the Pinterest Professionals), I was able to make the system work practically, functionally and be happy with the design.

My bullet journal has become one of my most treasured possessions, a personal keepsake of my entire year between two covers, and makes finding out past information easy by just pulling out an old notebook. It’s a running joke between my family and friends, asking where I find the time to plan out and draw my spreads in advance. They don’t believe me when I talk about the catharsis of drawing new spread, but slowly, they’re coming around. I just hope I don’t lose the thing. •

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JUST BREATHE ... continued from page 34 Davisson uses an app called “Headspace,” where he listens to what the voice is telling him to do and focuses on breathing.

“It’s like the world takes a chill-pill for a bit,” Davisson says. “It’s really peaceful.”

Bauer explained that the variety is very wide in which not all types of meditation are meant to promote one’s mood.

“Several forms of meditation are designed to help us in our relationships, to help us help others, to experience and express gratitude or forgiveness, to not get as flustered, to be truer to ourselves or live more authentically, and to better understand our place in a world of others and the universe,” Bauer says.

Aside from boosting one’s mood, East’s College Prep (CP) Pre-Calculus and Advanced Placement (AP) BC Calculus teacher Pat Kreider uses meditation and check-ins to soothe his students’ anxiety and make them

“Sleep is a recharging, brain defragmentation process that has to happen.

The body absolutely requires sleep and will die if it doesn’t get it, and the brain requires sleep in order to function properly. — Frederick Zellerm, physician feel more comfortable.

“Many of my AP students battle through anxiety all the time, almost all students do,” Kreider says. “To reduce that anxiety, I have my students meditate. I wish we had the time to do more of it, but I feel like doing five minutes every day would just cut too much out of the curriculum.”

Outside of meditation, Kreider uses other methods to establish a relaxing classroom environment. A weekly practice that the classes do is called check-ins. During this, the students will go around the room and share something about themselves or life.

“I think it’s important to create something as close to a family-like atmosphere as you can, that’s what the check-ins are for,” Kreider says.

Having a strong appreciation for meditation, Kreider thinks of it as a time for someone’s

brain to take a break, wherever they are and whatever they are doing.

“When I think of meditation, I think of working at your brain a little bit. You’re giving your brain a break,” Kreider says. “By doing that, you’re able to let it rejuvenate, destress and take care of other items.”

The stereotypical thought process for some is that meditation is a sport for hippies, but really anyone can do it. All that is needed is a peaceful headspace. With this idea, Davisson has had trouble getting close friends involved in the action.

“I feel like a lot of people are very closed minded about meditation,” Davisson says.

“They think it’s weird or for hippies which are really unfortunate because it is such a good way to relax and get some of that heavy weight off of your shoulders.” •

MR. LAKOTA EAST Where: Lakota East High School When: February 7, 7:15 P.M. What: Mr. Lakota East is a male beauty pageant that has been happening for a near decade. In that time, there has been rappers to dancers, magicians to bands and Sophomores to Seniors. This year, Mr. Lakota East will be hosted by Steven Voss and Quinton Moss.

Scan the link below to lock in REDUCED ticket prices, these are the CHEAPEST you will find!

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