Dec 15, 2017 by Lafayette High School

Dec. 15, 2017 | Vol. 49, No. 4

Every day, 315 people are shot in the United States • On average, 93 Americans are killed by guns every day • The gun homicide rate in the U.S. is over 25 times greater than other high-income countries • There have been 1,500 mass shootings since Sandy Hook • For every gun used in self-defense, seven more are used in criminal assaults • There are about 12,000 gun homicides in the U.S. every year • On an average day, seven children are killed by guns in the U.S. • In the Las Vegas shooting, 59 people were killed and 611 were injured, making it the deadliest single-day shooting in U.S. history • 27 were killed & 20 injured in the Sutherland Springs Church shooting • Three of the 10 deadliest shootings occurred in the past 18 months •

it’s time to get real see pages 6-7 to read about gun violence and how you can be prepared

Dec. 15, 2017 |OPINIONS| Recognizing past mistakes helps prepare our generation for its future Clare Mulherin | Reporter

Staff Editorial

Teens need to address issue of sexual misconduct

As the issue of sexual misconduct The staff editorial has been at the forefront of the news represents a majority especially in the areas of entertainment and politics, the Image staff believed it opinion of the was important to look a little closer to Image Editorial Board. home and address sexual harassment within the walls of Lafayette. While lately sexual misconduct is a topic of discussion in the media everyday, it seems that many people are unclear about what constitutes sexual harassment. Sexual harassment is the “uninvited and unwelcome verbal or physical behavior of a sexual nature, especially by a person of authority toward a subordinate.” Many allegations have surfaced recently, primarily against high-profile people such as Sen. Al Franken, entertainment mogul Harvey Weinstein, Today Show host Matt Lauer and, most recently, musician Melanie Martinez. But even with the recent attention and awareness of sexual misconduct ranging from sexual assault to harassment, people are still victimized everyday, even in schools. The only way this major social evil will end is with our generation and that requires more education and making it safe for victims to speak out. It is a difficult task to create an effective way to educate people about the issue because of the belief that it is just “common sense” to know what is acceptable behavior, but we believe it is not common sense and that action to make everyone more aware of what is acceptable and what is not. As a staff, we developed an idea for the administration to educate students. Similar to Challenge Day, we believe it would be effective to have a day where students can join together, have a professional speak about sexual harassment and, finally, have students separated into small groups to talk openly and ask each other questions. We believe open and honest discussion under the guidance of professionals is a great way to educate students about the issue. In addition to being better informed, victims must stand up for themselves immediately after being harassed, letting the perpetrator know their actions or words are not acceptable. That is also part of the education process. When those at fault are not immediately called out, they learn nothing, and will most likely make another person, male or female, fall victim to this seemingly endless train of sexual harassment. The naming of The Silence Breakers (#MeToo) as Time Magazine’s Person of the Year 2017, serves as notice that both women and men who advocate against sexual misconduct are heroes not victims. The culture has shifted and silence is no longer the solution to sexual misconduct. Our generation needs to take strong action to make sure the #MeToo movement stops with us.

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History is a commonly hated subject among students, understandably so. Because of the way some teachers present it to their students, history is often deemed obsolete and dull. It’s a bunch of dates and facts slapped onto monochrome pages of an outdated textbook or an equally boring spiel usually coming from an apathetic teacher. Some think of it as a story fitting any genre. It has romantic aspects, action and is full of lessons to take away. But many view it as just another high school course, and this is perfectly understandable. What’s not okay is the idea that history is useless and unimportant. So many students in our generation wonder what’s the point. The point is that history tells us information, essential facts for bigger ideas. It’s not like that’s detrimental to our future or anything. Many people don’t realize what history means or how it affects the way society is shaped. Understanding our past helps to better understand our present, so we may plan for the future. History is a guideline to follow. It lets us know

Green novel shines new light on mental illness Natalie Karlsson | Reporter Released Oct. 10, Turtles All the Way Down by John Green is another breath-taking teen novel. It puts to light the common, yet hidden, problems teens face, such as acceptance and mental disorders. John Green, while growing up, battled his own case of OCD. He dealt with the constant fear of his food being contaminated, starting just at 6 years old. Sixteen-year-old Aza has a serious case of OCD and anxiety. She has a definite paranoia for infections; this causes her to constantly reopen a never-healing callus on her finger to drain out what she sees as pathogens. This constant paranoia constantly interferes with Aza’s daily life, which causes her to make unintelligent decisions. She lives in Indiana with her mother. Aza and her best friend, Daisy, are working to discover how a local billionaire disappeared. That man is Russell Pickett, father of Aza’s old friend, Davis. The reward for finding where the local billionaire escaped to is $100,000. Aza and Daisy are tempted to find what made Pickett disappear, and they put the mystery on their to-do list. As the story progresses, there are mysterious notes revealed and beautiful poems recited. The mix of drama, romance and comedy is made to flow together into a tear-jerking, yet mysterious, novel. In ways it’s told as a story-within-a-story. Green also uses simple metaphors to describe our existence to others. The title itself is metaphorical, describing the world’s infinite human knowledge and reality. The New York Times said Green’s newest novel is the most “difficult book to read” of all his books, but also “astonishing.” This book deserves to be read, as it mirrors all the perfect parts of understanding mental illnesses.

General Information

The Image is published nine times a year by the News Production class. Subscriptions are $30. Free issues are distributed on campus. The 2015-2016 Image received an All-American rating with four marks of distinction from the National Scholastic Press Association.

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The newspaper’s primary obligation is to inform its readers about events in the school and community and of issues of national or international importance which directly or indirectly affect the school population. The newspaper, while serving as a training ground for future journalists as part of the school curriculum, recognizes all rights and responsibilities under the First Amendment. Operating as a public forum, student editors will apply professional standards and ethics for decision making as they take on the responsibility for content and production of the newspaper. The Rockwood School District Policies and Regulations concerning official student publications and the specific policies and procedures used by student publications can be found at lancerfeed.press under the About Us tab.

where mistakes were made so we don’t repeat them. So many have already forgotten history and it shows. In today’s society, we see legislation and rulings that reflect disastrous mistakes which resemble the past, and these laws aren’t exclusive to outwardly corrupt government. The United States Muslim ban bares resemblance to the singling out of Jewish and minority religions in Pre-World War II Germany. Another example of syncretism is the hole in the Ozone layer discovered in May 1985. The hole was caused by carbon dioxide emissions. This is very similar to the rising sea level now, also an effect of carbon dioxide. The patterns are undeniable; happenings of the past haunt the present because nothing is done to prevent their repetition. Open your eyes: see the connections our time has to the past. Listen to your teachers. Be more aware of what’s out there and the changes in our society that may just be old mistakes. George Santayana, a Spanish philosopher, said those who don’t know history, are doomed to repeat it.

STARS & GRIPES Stars:

• The wait is over! A movie from a galaxy far, far away is coming to theaters today. • It’s the month of overdone holiday cheer and we love it! • We can finally wear our fall clothes. Just in time for winter. • Shout out to students who collected 23, 234 items for the Canned Food Drive. We’re sure it had nothing to do with extra credit or other special bonuses in classes. • Amazon did not show St. Louis any love, but Huffington Post calls us a “hidden cultural gem.” • Scott Beaver may have started a movement. Check out the Real O.G. on lancerfeed.press

Gripes:

• Finals. That is all. • Unfortunately, no, your teacher cannot round your D+ to an A. Maybe next semester.

Image Staff

Digital Media Staff

Digital Media Editor | Jack Weaver Special Projects Editor | Jimmy Bowman Video Package Editor | Kiley Black Aurasma Editor | Emma Grant Staff: Nick Koester, Clay Komor, Jonah Nickerson, Lucas Nickerson, Annika Renganathan, Shwetha Sundarrajan

|OPINIONS|

Dec. 15, 2017

IDENTITY AND ATHLETICISM

The Monthly Strawman by Charlotte Komrosky-Licata

GIVE US A

How does this year’s winter break compare to those in the past and future? 2011-12 11 days

2012-13 2013-14 12 days 13 days

2015-16 2016-17 17 days

2014-15 14 days

2017-18

2018-19

11 days

12 days

11 days

Photo

That’s theTea

tanding in front of the goal, my feet are planted firmly in the turf. I Travis Bodell Opinions Editor give commands and shout defensive plays to my teammates. My voice is noticeably more feminine than other shouts on the field. From the sideline, I hear players from another team taking note of this, referring to me as the ‘queer goalie.’ They snicker, then walk away. I look down at my feet. There are a few things I know for certain about myself. My name is Travis Bodell. I am a junior at Lafayette High School. I am 17 years old. I am the starting goalie for the varsity boys lacrosse team. I am bisexual. For every certainty, there are a dozen more things about myself that remain unknown. Which college will I attend? What will I major in? If I marry, will my spouse be male or female? Do I love my sport? And if so, does my sport love me? Being a high school athlete and a member of the LGBTQ+ community is almost paradoxical in itself. The high school athletic community as a whole is one where straight people make up the vast majority. Queer athletes are the clear outlier. Lack of LGBTQ+ visibility and under-representation in sports has led to an underlying tone of prejudice, so normalized that some may even argue against its existence. Homophobic slurs can be casually thrown around among an exclusively straight group when no queer teammates are present. It’s not like this behavior stems from a mysterious source. Heterosexuality has long been associated with normalcy, and any deviation from the norm is intimidating, even threatening to many. In the context of men’s sports especially, masculinity is embraced while anything that suggests otherwise, whether it be someone’s voice, appearance or general demeanor, is scorned and rejected.

Acting ‘gay’ is a commonplace joke in the athletic world, but legitimate queerness is utterly strange. In this environment, being an LGBTQ+ athlete can be an uncomfortable and sometimes intimidating situation, even for those with the toughest of skin. It can feel as if you are intruding on something you are not invited to; the air is tense, and your welcome to the team almost feels overstayed. Underlying homophobia and wariness of difference is in no way exclusive to the athletic world. Nor is it isolated to the teenage experience. I will live my life as a bisexual man. This will not change, and chances are, others’ attitude toward my sexual orientation will not fluctuate, either. The truth is that the world is straight. Heterosexuality is almost universally accepted as the norm worldwide. Living life in denial of this would be extremely restricting. The world won’t suddenly accept the existence and feelings of gay individuals sanctimoniously, and this is something I have come to terms with. Even then, being the minority in a world of ‘majority rules’ will not define me or hold me back. At some point in my life, I will be competing with my straight piers. Trying out for a lacrosse team. Competing for a position on a college newspaper. In situations like these, my sexuality does not give me an advantage; but it doesn’t have to put me at a disadvantage either. My skills, my mindset, my strengths and weaknesses, my work ethic, my character: these are things that define me. My sexuality is an important part of who I am, but I must work just as hard as the majority if I wish to succeed, if not harder. On the lacrosse field, the game isn’t going to slow down or become easier for me just because of my background. Despite my differences, I can, and must, keep up.

Opinion by Clare Mulherin

Do you think sexual harassment occurs at the high school level? If so, what should be done about it?

| Savannah Kneemueller, 9 |

“I think we are a pretty well protected school, but I think it may still occur. I personally do not know, but if it does happen around the school I think we should just interact with students and teachers more.”

| Gabe Snyder, 10 |

“I think in certain situations it does, but it doesn’t warrant any change until it occurs more.”

| Kat Stofer, 11 |

“I think some of it does occur at the high school level, but not frequently enough for us to do something about it. It doesn’t really happen at Lafayette. It happens more out in the real world.”

| Michael Hui, 12 | “I think sometimes sexual harassment does occur. If someone feels sexually harassed, they should be encouraged to speak up.”

| Melissa Schumacher, Language Arts Teacher | “It does occur at the high school level. We need to continue to encourage kids to report this to administration and counselors.”

|NEWS |

Dec. 15, 2017

Shoppers use new methods to spend holiday cash Studies show teens joining trend of doing more shopping online than in retail stores Jasmin Kim | Reporter Chesterfield Mall has been suffering from a remarkable decline of sales, which becomes more evident year after year. The former most prominent mall in the West County area now bears notoriety for its vacancy. A shopper will pass by a series of empty stores before he or she is able to find an open store. According to the St. Louis Post Dispatch, Chesterfield Mall’s lender had declared foreclosure on the mall this summer, which makes the future of the shopping center even more uncertain. To make up for this loss of physical retail, there has been significant growth in revenue of online shopping stores. According to CNN, this year, Americans spent $6.59 billion shopping online for Cyber Monday. This trend made history as the most online shopping ever done in one day. Even Black Friday, which mostly gives discounts in offline shopping centers, experienced a 16.9 percent increase in online shoppers. Experts agree the trend is clearly indicating that online stores are attracting more shoppers every year, and brick and mortar stores are on a gradual decline. Despite the consistent decline of offline retailers, H&M manager Erin Kennedy at Chesterfield Mall still sees hope for shopping malls. “I’ve worked in retail for the past 13 years, so I have seen a little bit of decline in store. I think that online has definitely contributed to the cannibalization of the sales you see in store. But, we still had a really strong turnout [for Black Friday]. I know that some of the other larger malls had really good sales for Black Friday,” Kennedy said. Kennedy also attributes the sporadic emergence of outlets in the proximity of Chesterfield Mall to its decline. In a period of a few years, new retail outlet malls appeared on the shopping scene of West County, appealing to many customers in the area. “They think strip malls and outlet shopping malls are taking over what used to be one stop shop. They opened two outlets within five miles

Adding it all

nearly

1/4 make no purchases with cash in a typical week

45% of Americans have used cellphones while inside a physical store to look up reviews for a product photo by Jack Weaver photo by Jack Weaver

Many students see online shopping as a more convenient option for shopping. “[Shopping online] is so much easier. I can do it from my room,“ senior Lauren Zhou said. “There are just more options, and most stores are closing anyway.“ of here, so it’s kind of tough,” she said. According to The New York Times, online shopping impacted the employment status of many offline retailers. Over a period of 14 years, department stores lost 448,000 jobs. Many predict this trend will continue as online retailers need fewer employees than the offline retailers. Despite online shopping’s possible detrimental impact to the economy, lots of shoppers have pointed out convenience and easy access as major benefits. Senior Joseph Lu prefers the online platform because of these aspects. “[I prefer] online shopping because it’s so much more convenient. You can search multiple items really quickly and it only takes like five minutes. Whereas, you go to

store and try it on or buy electronics, you have to test every one [of them] out. It’s just easier,” Lu said. Others prefer online shopping for the variety of items the platform offers. Senior Lauren Zhou is satisfied with what online stores offer her and notices the decline of people going to shopping malls. “I prefer online shopping because there are a wide variety of things that I can buy, but if you are going to mall or somewhere, especially Chesterfield Mall, lots of stores are closing,” Zhou said. “You only go there for movies now. Online shopping is lot easier.” Many argue online stores have better quality items than regular stores offer. Sophomore Regan Carpenter said, “I do prefer online shopping. [I prefer] anything that is quality brand. North Face is nice. I would much rather have quality over quantity.

I’ve worked in retail for the past 13 years. I think that online has definitely contributed to the cannibalization of the sales you see in store. | Erin Kennedy, Chesterfield H&M manager|

I like to mostly shop for clothes or other gifts for other people for birthdays. It’s fun.” Many still prefer the in-store shopping over online shopping as it provides opportunity for shoppers to try on what they desire to purchase. Junior Nadia Warren said, “I prefer shopping at the store because sometimes [clothes] become too small or too big. I want to make sure it fits right.” For others, their experience in online shopping was frustrating so they prefer the retail store. Freshman Hayden Somach said, “[I prefer] in person shopping for sure. I’ve ordered things online that aren’t true or don’t come in the size I wanted.” In the burst of online retailers, retail stores are searching for new ways to attract more customers. Kennedy said, “There is definitely marketing online. We have a lot of social media presence. There is heavy advertisement in larger cities. You don’t see so much of that in St. Louis, but I know they still do billboard advertising, magazine campaigns and especially social media, Facebook.” While this shopping trend toward

8 in 10

Americans are online shoppers *Statistics from the Pew Research Center online shopping has persisted for years, some malls such as West County Center has thrived. H&M at West County Center witnessed a strong turnout during Black Friday. “We definitely saw Black Friday affecting the customer turnout. It tripled. We are an established brand and do both online and in person shopping, so we are stable,” manager Mandy Workmann said. But, Chesterfield Mall has a different path from those thriving malls. Despite its service to the community for over 40 years, its decline is quite clear. “It’s funny. I had lots of discussion about retail in general. I feel like the 80s and 90s were the peak of shopping malls especially indoor ones. We are one of the last strongholds,” Kennedy said. Psychology and sociology teacher Krista Silvernail sees the negative impact this shopping trend brings. She warns of detrimental effects online shopping can have. “This is just the next step in the progression of technology. It encourages social isolation and keeps people from interacting,” she said.

Support Lady Lancer Basketball And Get A Lafayette Garden Flag! $20 includes flag/ pole Contact:

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|NEWS |

Dec. 15, 2017

Ain’t nobody got thyme for that

Greenhouse falls short of expectations; neglect by intended classes responsible for vacancy Shwetha Sundarrajan | Reporter It’s a building that’s cluttered with pots, PVC pipes and gardening tools. It’s been two years since its construction, yet most students don’t know anything about it. The greenhouse, a personal project of former principal John Shaughnessy, has not fully bloomed yet. Plans began back in 2015 and the facility was estimated to cost nearly $180,000. Funds came from various school activities accounts, the Lancer Parent Organization and some private donations. Despite Shaughnessy’s vision of having the preschool, Special School District (SSD), Family and Consumer Sciences (FACS), science and the engineering classes use the greenhouse, only two of those groups are actively utilizing the facility. Early Childhood teacher Jennifer Swihart said the preschool classes have never gone inside the greenhouse, despite original intentions to involve early childhood students. SSD is one of the few groups that do visit the greenhouse two or three times a week. However, SSD only started going down to the greenhouse this year due to one student’s avid interest in horticulture: the science and art of growing fruits, vegetables and flowers. “One of our students, Leah Reeves, takes our applied skills students down to the greenhouse where she builds her leadership skills while teaching them how to plan and maintain their plants, what to look for as they grow, how to trim them back, how to transplant them,” special education teacher Terri Warnars said. Reeves, a sophomore, has always had an interest in plants, and it was her idea to take students down to the greenhouse. “For Leah, this is really helping her out since she’s looking into horticulture as a career choice. For the applied skills students, it gives them appreciation to take care and maintain a living thing. They have to plant it, water it, take care of it and make sure that it doesn’t die. Since their understanding of living things is more basic than most people, it teaches them that they have a responsibility if they want to keep it going,” Warnars said. The students chose what to plant, ranging from vegetables to flowers. As of now, students are growing basil, sweet peppers, sunflowers, tomatoes, marigolds, carrots and squash. Reeves helped students choose what to plant, such as cat grass. “Cat grass grows quickly, which keeps them interested. When we go to the greenhouse, I show little pointers about each plant, and they all crowd around me, asking questions,” she said. Through their work in the greenhouse, SSD students gain on-site job training which means they do not have to travel off-campus to gain those skills. “It improves their [the applied skills students’] communication skills. They now have the ability to go home and tell their parents what they’ve done for the day. It gives them a sense of responsibility around the house if their parents decide to have a community garden or

photo by Shwetha Sundarrajan

Special school district teacher Terri Warnars sprays a combination of water and vinegar to combat the aphids that have infested the greenhouse. Her students have been growing basil, sweet peppers, sunflowers, tomatoes, carrots and squash, all from seedlings. plant a couple of plants,” Warnars said. The student involvement doesn’t just end there. Senior James Truong and graduate Raj Kondaveeti constructed a hydroponic system last year to automatically water the plants in the greenhouse as part of their engineering class. “The hydroponic system is called the Nutrient Film Technique or known as NFT, where the nutrient is pumped from a reservoir, and it’s pumped slowly so the plants can absorb the nutrients, but not slow enough where algae grows on the plant’s roots,” Truong said. Truong said last year, FACS teacher Becky Lawrence asked the two to construct a hydroponic system with certain constraints with certain pipes and pipe sizes. “It only took half a semester to organize the materials and lists and build the system, but we had to keep working on it for the rest of the year because of maintenance problems. It kept leaking,” Truong said. But, as of now, the hydroponic system sits broken in the corner. Earlier this year, two students fell into the system, breaking it. “I have to write a instructional guide after I leave, so if it breaks again, any student can use the manual to fix it,” Truong said. Still, despite the original plans for the greenhouse to have widespread usage, not many people have used the greenhouse as intended. FACS used the greenhouse last year, but has not used it this school year in part due to Lawrence’s maternity leave this semester. Principal Karen Calcaterra said, “Since her [Lawrence] classes are semester classes, the first semester classes never get around to harvesting them. By the time the plants produce the vegetables, it’s a whole new set of students.”

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photo by Shwetha Sundarrajan

Science teacher Carrie Hall’s Environmental Science class is growing lettuce, one of the fastest growing plants. “Right now, we’re growing romaine and butter head lettuce. Only 10 plants out of the 27 are thriving,” senior Environmental Science student Amanda Cook said. Currently the FACS classes are growing a small herb garden in the greenhouse to use in their classes but maintaining it over weekends and school holidays is challenging. And, there are other challenges. Those academic areas that regularly utilize the greenhouse face difficulties in implementing it in their class curriculums. This is especially true for science teacher Carrie Hall. As an environmental science teacher, she and fellow science teacher Dana Imler have worked to implement greenhouse projects into their syllabus. “We try to incorporate it into chapters that have anything to do with the greenhouse, like agriculture. But, it’s very difficult because it takes time out of the regular required

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curriculum. We can only use it five weeks first semester and eight weeks second semester,” Hall said. Currently, Hall’s class is growing lettuce because it grows quickly. At the end of the unit, they plan on having a salad party. “We were going to have a salad party with the lettuce that we grew. So everybody was supposed to bring in a condiment.” Hall said. Students in her class enjoy the hands on experience the greenhouse provides. “We’re learning about different biomes and what kinds of plants and animals thrive there, and we’re learning about soil. Going to the greenhouse to see plants grow is helpful because we can see how plants thrive in each environment,” Amanda Cook, senior, said.

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Dec. 15, 2017

|COVER STORY|

Trained, tried, tested

Ty Prozorowski | News Editor Asymmetric Solutions educates civilians about the steps they can take to prepare for and defend themselves against an active shooter. According to their website, “Asymmetric Solutions’ mission is to develop or deploy warriors who are thinkers first and fighters only when thought and strategy deem it to be an efficient tool of achieving mission success.” John Williams is an Operational Staff Member at Asymmetric Solutions. He has worked with a U.S. Federal Agency in support of the Global War on Terror. He has expertise in human intelligence gathering, limited signature/infiltration operations, sabotage, explosive breaching, free fall operations and special operations medicine. He also occasionally volunteers as a police officer.

The statistics on the cover don’t lie. In light of recent mass shootings, Asymmetric Solutions, a facility in Farmington, trains civilians to be prepared for the worst.

Local Vegas shooting survivor recounts experience Ty Prozorowski | News Editor

“The difference between a guy that robs a bank and starts shooting people and an active shooter is the active shooter doesn’t really have an exit plan generally. They’re there to cause as

much carnage as they can and take as many people with them, but the bank robber has an interest in getting away so he can go spend his money,” Williams said. Since active shooters aren’t necessarily counting on making it out alive, they tend to be more dangerous. “You can’t just give them an out and let them escape. They’re there to cause harm no matter what,” Williams said. The best thing people can do to protect their loved ones and themselves is to have a plan. “You ever have someone say something to you that’s insulting and then 10 minutes later you come up with something fantastic to snap back with?” Williams said. This is because the insult is unexpected. “When you’re sitting around in the locker room with all your buddies and you’re sort of jabbing at each other, everybody can always come up with something very quick,” he said. A similar thing happens during an active shooter event. “The thing that usually happens in these active shooter incidents, what makes the active shooter able to do what they’re doing, is people are so far from the idea that [a shooting] is a possibility that they immediately go into the denial stage and don’t think clearly at all about what’s going on,” he explained. “That’s what your brain does. It will tell you that what’s happening is not really happening because it is inconvenient for that thing to be real.”

So, the first step to prepare for a situation like an active shooter event is to get to the acceptance stage before a situation occurs.

“The best way to do that is to come up with the idea of ‘hey, I’m going into a crowded population, or a crowded arena. There is a chance, however remote it may be, that there might be an active shooter,” Williams said. Williams refutes the stigma that preparing for disaster is absurd. “A lot of people think that’s a paranoid thing to do because there’s a very low likelihood of an active shooter event, but there’s a low likelihood of you having a car accident, and you still put your seat belt on,” Williams said.

The second step is to have a plan.

“The absence of a plan is essentially chaos,” he said. “If you can control the chaos, control the timing of a confrontation, you will control the outcome.” Williams explained the necessity for a plan using a mugging as an example. “Let’s say I’m just going to rob you. I will wait for a time when you are unaware, and I will approach you, and because you think, as you’re walking through your day, that everything is fine, my immediate assault of you is going to come as very surprising. You’re not going to be prepared for it. What you’re going to do is essentially just either panic and collapse or be incapable of responding,” he said. The reactions of concert-goers during the Las Vegas shooting showed this. “Most of the people that were there, first of, it took them quite a while to realize the shooting was going on, and then once they realized there was shooting going on, there were one of two responses. People either went into ‘beetle’ and just dropped down on the ground and curled up, or they ran straight toward the exit they’d come in,” Williams said. Both responses lessen the chances of survival. “If I’m that active shooter trying to create the most amount of damage, I’m going to shoot toward that spot or toward that choke point where I know everybody’s going to go,” Williams said. Although a plan isn’t infallible, having one is crucial. Drills are run in school for fires, tornados, earthquakes or intruders to keep everyone calm and ensure the best possibility of survival. “We’re setting up our own personal fire drill, whether we’re rehearsing it in our mind and identifying cover points and exit points,” Williams said. “You

photo by Ty Prozorowski

Civilians work in pairs for a ball-and-dummy drill during a Tactical Carbine 3 class at Asymmetric Solutions. The shooter had no idea whether or not their partner had actually loaded the gun. The drill was designed to correct the tendency to incorrectly recoil the gun with the hand. know what you’re going to do in anticipation of it happening, so now all you have to do is just start cracking things off.”

If shooting begins, there are measures to take to best protect yourself.

“Ideally first thing out of the gate, we want to determine is where the shooting’s coming from. Is it mobile or is it static?” Williams said. The shooting in Vegas came from a static building, the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino. Once that has been determined, it is important to reduce the chance of being a target. A good way to do so is by seeking cover. “Anything that is a solid mass that will actually stop rounds from going through it. Drywall doesn’t work very well, cars don’t work very well. Things like refrigerators or heavily loaded bookshelves or concrete pillars, anything along those lines will work great,” Williams said. A mobile shooter, such as the one in the Sutherland Springs, TX church, requires the situation to be handled differently. “Just moving to cover isn’t going to help you out,” Williams said.

Asymmetric Solutions encourages civilians to exercise their 2nd Amendment right to bear arms. “Our suggestion is arm yourself and be ready to fight and know how to fight. By arming yourself and having good training and a good understanding of how to properly fight with a weapon, you’re putting your safety in your own hands as opposed to relying on other people or hoping that all the evil out there in the world will cooperate and keep themselves away from you,” Williams said. Williams said this was part of the problem in both the Texas church shooting and the Antioch, TN church shooting. “What we saw in both of the recent church shootings was a largely unarmed populace that had no capacity to fight back, and it was someone from the outside that actually came in and solved the problem,” he said. A civilian carrying a gun helped stop both the Tennessee and Texas shootings. “One or two armed folks in that church in San Antonio might’ve made a gigantic difference. It is very difficult to call the police while that sort of thing is happening. Of course it takes the police quite some time to respond and then

discern what is actually happening, and by that time, it is usually way too late,” Williams said. Williams wouldn’t advise an outside civilian to enter an active shooter event and attempt to rescue others. “If I’m in the mall and I’m with my kids and something like that starts up, I’m going to zip to the outside as quick as I can and get them to safety. However, if you’re right in the mix of it and if there were enough thoughtfully armed and trained civilians in the mix when the shooting actually starts, you would see these active shooter incidents mitigated very quickly and it would probably end up being a blip on the radar because not many people would get killed,” he said.

Still, there are measures unarmed civilians can take to protect themselves if they are in a close-quarters area.

The first is running away. “If you go to church with the idea in mind that ‘hey somebody may bust in the door and start shooting, as soon as you hear the shots your brain is not going to go ‘what is that? It can’t be shooting.’ If you had that plan, generally what you would do is jump up for your pre-planned exit and chances are, your survival rate is going to go way up,” Williams said. Hiding is an option if there is not a way to exit. “Although, that doesn’t work out very well,” Williams said. “You saw some of that in Columbine — kids hiding under tables or hiding in broom closets and they got discovered. Even if a civilian doesn’t have a gun, they could try to fight back if absolutely necessary. “Most cleaning closets will have some sort of chemical ammonia, Comet, that sort of thing. You get whacked in the eyes with some ammonia coming from a mop bucket or what have you, your ability to shoot people is going to be severely diminished,” Williams said. Broom handles also make good weapons. “Give yourself a little bit of range, but you have to move to a chokepoint, like a door, and hope the person comes through the door quickly or with the weapon extended well in front of them so you could get a shot at it,” he said. Williams stresses this would be used in the worst-case scenario. “Your average person is going to be probably very reluctant in their aggressiveness to take on somebody wielding some sort of projectile weapon while they’ve got a cup full of Clorox or a broom handle,” he said.

survivor of the Oct. 1, 2017 Las Vegas shooting Chad Remley recalls the night of the deadliest U.S. mass shooting and the way his training and preparation kept him safe. He and his wife were in Las Vegas attending the Route 61 Harvest music festival on the Strip. “We were in the Coca-Cola Suites, the ones closest to stage left. We were on the ground floor when the shooting started,” Remley said. “We went and moved inside, and I had gotten my wife to a place of cover.” Remley got his wife behind a refrigerator that was full of drinks, which he knew would stop bullets. He learned the difference between concealment and cover during a class he took at Asymmetric Solutions. Remley is a 42-year-old resident of St. Charles county. He owns a fitness company called Dynamic Fitness Management which provides personal trainers to all of the Club Fitness locations in the area. “Concealment is something that hides you but won’t stop bullets,” Remley said. “Cover will actually stop bullets. One of the things we learned is a piece of cover is a full refrigerator.” The training he received kicked in automatically. “Really I just felt calm,” Remley said. “I knew what to do, and I just said ‘hey, we’re going to sit right here, we are going to assess the situation.’ I know we’re behind a piece of cover, so we’re safe, and it just all kicked right in.” Remley continued to follow the training he received from Asymmetric Solutions. “Once I got [my wife] there, I wanted to assess the situation, see where people are going and know what direction the fire was coming from,” he said. Remley had already determined where all the exits and alternative exits were the first night when he arrived at the venue, so he had a plan. “I saw what the crowd was doing. A lot of people were panicking, so they were back to the main entrance/exit because that is where they came in, so they were just running by all these other exits,” Remley said. He and his wife used an exit close to them that was also away from the direction of fire. They kept cover between themselves and the shooting as they left. “Once we exited the venue, we said ‘hey we want to stay away from the crowds, stay away from people,’” Remley said. “If there’s other shooters, if there’s an IED (Improvised Explosive Device), anything like that, it’s going to be focused where there’s masses of people, so we went down an alley and just tried to stay away from crowds as much as possible.” After they were about a quarter-mile away, Remley got himself and his wife over a six-foot concrete wall. “I made a call to John [Williams] and just said ‘hey

this is what’s going on, this is where we’re moving, let me know if you can find out if I’m moving in the right direction. If there’s something else happening, I want to stay away from it,’” he said. He and his wife eventually made their way back to their hotel. Remley said, “It wasn’t a straight line or anything, just kinda moving all around, trying to stay to side streets and that sort of thing.” Not being on his phone the entire night was also beneficial. “It is interesting what you see from that event. You see a lot of people who are on their phones. There’s a ton of video of it, and that’s because everyone is always videoing everything and looking through their phone and not paying attention to what’s going on, which I wasn’t doing.” Remley said. He learned not to be on his phone during the class. “If you’re going to be somewhere, be aware of your surroundings and don’t be just staring into a phone or looking through a screen,” he said. Awareness is key. “I do it even when we go out, when we go to restaurants, something like that. I always make sure I’m positioned in a certain place so I can see the door, I can see the exits. I know where the emergency exits are,” Remley said. Taking a class at Asymmetric Solutions appealed to Remley. “When I first heard about them, it was having the opportunity as a civilian to be able to train with special operations guys. Learning from guys that their lives depended on the stuff that they were doing.” I thought it was very unique to have that available to us here in the St. Louis area, and looking at the cadre of who the instructors were just made it really intriguing,” he said. The event has only heightened Remley’s awareness. “I’m a big advocate of concealed carry and 2nd Amendment, and I would carry maybe 50 percent of the time before this event. Ever since then it’s pretty much 100 percent of the time. I don’t care where I’m going, I want to be carrying because that was probably the biggest feeling of helplessness that I had during the event, was I didn’t have a weapon. I had no way to protect us other than just moving, so I’m thinking every time I come around the corner, of course I’m thinking there’s going to be a shooter there and I’ve got no way to protect and to defend against it,” Remley said. He has advice for others if they want to be prepared for any type of active shooter event or emergency. “I would say take a class,” Remley said. “Be aware of your surroundings. Don’t be living through a phone. If you’re going to go to a concert or something like that, don’t get intoxicated. A lot of the people there were in that situation, and that probably made it worse. Know your exits, and just have a plan.”

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Dec. 15, 2017

|FEATURES |

Schedule keeps junior duo on their toes

Dancers must balance school, performing during final exams Chloe Baker | Reporter December is a busy time of year with finals, holiday shopping and traveling. But for two students, the holiday season means they are busier than ever because of their special talent. Juniors Melina Hudak and Kendell Oelschlaeger will perform this month in The St. Louis Ballet’s The Nutcracker. Both girls have danced since they were very young and are students at the St. Louis Ballet School. They perform with the company. “Dance is pretty much all I do. It is where most of my friendships are really rooted, and it’s a nice place to learn who you are and interact with other people who all have the same passion,” Hudak said. Lori Wilson, an instructor and dancer for the company, said there are about 300 students enrolled in the school and 100 student dancers in this season’s cast of The Nutcracker. Hudak and Oelschlaeger face the challenge of balancing school and dance. The company practices everyday except Sunday for at least two hours. “Dancing consumes significant amounts of time in my life. I pretty much go to dance right after school and am there until late at night. You have to learn to cram homework into breaks, and I spend a lot of late nights studying for tests and doing assignments,” Hudak said. As their performance of The Nutcracker draws closer, rehearsals are longer and more frequent. They often leave school early in order to make it to rehearsals.

“Dance is a huge commitment. I think that it takes out more time and energy from your life than any other sport. You have rehearsals and you learn your part, but you’re expected outside of that to go over it on your own time and make sure you know what you are doing when you come back for rehearsal,” Oelschlaeger said. Wilson said the company tries to work around school for its student dancers. They practice scenes that don’t have students while they are at school. “In the past, the date and times of the ballet have fallen well for me. I usually only miss a few finals. It can be challenging, but it hasn’t been too bad. Our studio will set up a study room in the theatre so we can study. It’s kind of hard to study at the studio, but it helps,” Hudak said. While managing school and dance is challenging, the girls believe it helps build dedication. They both had to give up a lot of other sports they used to play and can’t attend many club meetings because of the time commitment. Oelschlaeger was on Escadrille but quit sophomore year for the same reason. The girls have AP Literature together and support one another in the stress of handling dance and the course. Despite the stress, they both find inspiration from other performers and their instructors. Their parents and mentors also push them to do everything to the best of their abilities. “My parents help make sure that I get my work done when I have time instead of messing around, which definitely helps,” Hudak said.

Wilson has danced for 23 years. She worked hard to become a professional dancer and hopes to inspire young dancers. Hudak and Oelschlaeger have studied with Wilson for four years. “It is an absolute joy to teach our students in the school. I feel very privileged and grateful to have such wonderful students. I also feel that I learn from my students and that teaching has improved my dancing and performing abilities immensely. It is an honor to pass on the knowledge of dance that I have gained from my instructors over the years,” Wilson said. Hudak and Oelschlaeger are passionate about dance and willing to make sacrifices for the art. They have watched one another perform and grow as they have become good friends. “I have been able to see [Oelschlaeger] develop. She is an amazing dancer. It’s nice to have a friend that understands the rigorous dance schedules and the fact that free time doesn’t always exist to go to football games or parties,” Hudak said. “I’m super glad to know and hang out with her outside of dance and Kendell is an amazing girl who is so sweet. Often times you don’t dance with people you go to school with.” The girls are very excited to perform. They have been dancing their whole lives and have grown to love it. “Dance has always kind of been my support system because it is a great time to escape from stuff that is going on in my life and just pour those emotions into dancing. It is just this beautiful art form that is absolutely

photo courtesy of Melina Hudak

After months of preparation, Hudak and Oelschlaeger performed together in Le Corsaire earlier this year.

breathtaking to experience or watch, and I am so grateful to have been able to dance this long,” Hudak said. The performance is at the Touhill Performing Arts Center at UMSL from Dec. 1523. Tickets cost between $35 to $69 and can be ordered online at www.touhill.org.

|FEATURE S |

Dec. 15, 2017

Lancers practice variety of holiday traditions Swedish heritage plays vital role in Eklund’s holiday celebrations Abby Karandjeff | Reporter Julia Eklund, junior, has holiday traditions from her native country, Sweden, where the tradition called Lucia celebrates a Swedish legend who was the wife of a martyr. “Every year we dress in white dresses and lots of people are in a Lucia train. The boys wear these big strange looking hats. The head of the Lucia has a big crown with lights, and we all sing songs,” Eklund said. Special food is also a part of the celebration. “We bake a lot of different things, like hard gingerbread cookies called pepparkakor. We also have sweet bread with saffron in it called lussekatter,” Eklund said. The Swedish, like Americans, also put up a Christmas tree and decorate it. “A lot of people light a candle every Sunday to countdown to Christmas. You’re not supposed to decorate before the first Sunday of December when you light the first candle, but a lot of people do it before just because it’s fun and it’s so dark that they need something to light up the tree,” Eklund said.

What interesting holiday traditions do you have with your family ? by Abby Karandjeff

Lamar ends the year by igniting trees

Abby Karandjeff | Reporter

very New Year’s Eve, Nina Lamar’s family and neighbors blow up a live Christmas tree in one of their backyards. They call it “Burning Tree.” “On Christmas we usually just do normal stuff, but New Year’s is different,” Nina said. Like all traditions, “Burning Tree” has a complex backstory. “Nina’s dad had seen something on the internet of people blowing up Christmas trees on New Year’s Eve, and we thought it would be fun. He also had always wanted to go to the Burning Man festival, so when we did it and it was a big fireball, he decided to start calling it ‘Burning Tree,’” Karen Lamar, Nina’s mother, said. First, the Lamar family and their neighbors must find a tree. “Sometimes we have to borrow one because a lot of people don’t ‘undecorate’ their Christmas tree until after New Year’s Eve,” said Lamar. To light up the tree, the Lamars and friends utilize fireworks. “The fireworks shops are open, so we have to get out there and spend a few

| Poul Briginets, 9 |

| Georgia Williams, 11 |

“Me and my entire family are Russian. Sometimes for Christmas we make perogies and American food, but we still eat Russian-designed foods.”

“If I’m with my aunt, who is a religious Jehovah’s Witness, I can’t celebrate any holidays including my birthday. It’s been like this since I was a kid.”

hundred dollars on them,” Lamar said. Next, they need to set up the tree. “We make sure the tree is ready and we set it up in one of our backyards. Then the dads go out and situate fuses and fireworks up in the tree and decorate it,” Nina said. As an extra touch, Lamar created sentimental decorations to hang on the tree. “My friend and I, about eight years ago, decided to make little paper dolls, and anyone at the party can write down things that they want to get rid of or do better, and we put them in the tree. We burn them up and say goodbye to negativity,” said Lamar. The paper dolls help them to ring in the New Year and start anew. After all of the preparations are done, the tree is finally finished, and it’s time to begin. “We light it up at midnight and watch it burn,” Nina said. This tradition of lighting the tree is both fun and symbolic, and Lamar sees herself still practicing it in the future. “It’s definitely something I want to continue. You gotta know what you’re doing, so I would get help,” Nina said.

| Michael Caubre, 11 | “My mom found a pickle ornament at the store and it had the story behind it attached. My sister and I have done the search for about five years.“

photo courtesy of Nina Lamar

Nina Lamar and her friends and family have an unusual tradition of burning their trees on New Year’s Eve. This is the tree from 2008, which was the second time for the neighborhood tradition.

| Kane Carpenter, 12 | “Every year, my family and I donate an animal through Heifer Project International. My grandparents and I have a list of animals we donate.”

| Matt Irvin, Associate Principal |

“My family and I visit South Carolina, where I’m from. We go to the beach on Christmas. The water is cold, but we go.”

“Intelligence plus character — that is the goal of a true education.” Martin L. King, Jr.

The choice of a lawyer is an important decision and should not be based solely upon advertisement.

Dec. 15, 2017

| S P O R T S|

Not Just One of the Guys

Cole begins first year competing as sole female member of Lancer wrestling squad Kayla Carpenter | Sports Editor

One of four girls in her family, sophomore Emma Cole always wanted a brother. Cole’s wish came true this wrestling season as she now has a whole team of brothers. Cole is Lafayette’s Emma Cole first female wrestler since Ashley Hudson, Class of 2007, who had a high school career record of 98 wins and 33 losses and was a three-time AllConference and All-District selection. Hudson went on to wrestle at Oklahoma City University. Cole began wrestling in April after watching her 8th Grade sister, Faith, compete. Emma said Faith has been a big motivation to her and her wrestling career. “[Faith has] shown me to stick with it and be continuously motivated no matter how hard it might be; you just gotta stick with it. Once it’s over, you’re so satisfied with the results,” Cole said. One of Cole’s favorite parts of the sport is being a part of a team that consistently helps her improve. “[Wrestling is] an individual sport and you can compete individually, but you have to use your teammates to get better. Without them, you’d be terrible, so you really are dependent on them,” Cole said. Most high school wrestling teams don’t have female wrestlers, and if they do, they only have a small number. Because there are very few female wrestlers, Cole will be competing primarily against junior varsity boys. Cole knows competing against the boys is a challenge, but she accepts the test and looks for ways to improve so she can be successful. “The boys challenge me more because

photo courtesy of Emma Cole

Competing for her wrestling club, Purler Wrestling Academy, sophomore Emma Cole (right) wrestles against another female wrestler. Cole started wrestling in April, and this winter, she will wrestle for the Lancers. they’re usually faster and stronger. As strong as I am for a girl, my strength isn’t ever going to compete with the boys, so I have to work on my technique more than strength,” Cole said. Cole has also wrestled girls. She said the biggest difference between wrestling girls and boys is how girls wrestle.

“Girls are just flat out meaner,” Cole said. “They know they can fist their hand in your hair and pull it while boys are like, ‘Whoa. That’s not fair.’” Being the only girl on the wrestling team, Cole could have easily been excluded, but that has not been the case at all. The boys

have wholeheartedly welcomed Cole and have become a source of motivation for her. “The boys are amazing and hilarious and accepted me right away,” Cole said. “I feel the need to prove myself because I don’t want to just be ‘the girl’. I want to be just as good as them. By the end of the season, the boys will be like family and I want to be able to make them proud.” Cole has trained throughout spring and summer to achieve her season goal of winning a few matches against the boys and ultimately becoming a stronger wrestler. She said her coaches will be a big part of helping her reach these goals. “I know that I have fantastic coaches to keep pushing me to keep going even when I feel like death after a hard workout,” Cole said. Coach Jon Sumner doesn’t treat Cole any differently than the rest of the team. “She is an outstanding person. She is as tough as anyone, has grit and a strong work ethic. We as coaches will push her each day to be the best that she can be,” he said. “[My expectations for Emma are] just like they are for everyone else on our team: compete each day, work hard in our wrestling room and in the classroom and be the best person she can be on and off the mat.” Cole advises any girl who has even a slight interest in wrestling to not over think it and try the sport. “Just try it, and see if you like it. It’s not an easy thing. I’m not gonna lie and say it’s easy. It’s not. If it was, I’d probably get bored. If you’re scared to try it, don’t think about it, just do it,” she said. To Cole, the Lafayette wrestling program is unique because it gives her a second family. “The program is special because as a team we will make progress and by the end of the season I’ll have the brothers I’ve always wanted,” Cole said.

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Dec. 15, 2017 | Page 12

| E N C O R E |

99%

of students polled own a phone case

46%

have broken their phone at least once since purchasing it

| Addison Fastenau, 9 |

I use a pop socket because I can’t really hold still, and it’s fun to play with, even though I think it’s pretty much useless.

PRICE - $5

Pros - can be used as a

stand, grip or fidget toy Cons - makes phone bulky

POP SOCKET

89 people polled on @thelancerfeed Instagram

FORTIFYING YOUR PHONE

In a world where your cell phone is your best friend, how do we protect our phones from the dangers of every day life? Different students take varying amounts of care to protect their precious devices.

| Sophie Eble, 10 |

It’s not really practical to have no case because I’m known to drop things. My phone is still scratched and cracked, but it’s okay for now.

PRICE - $0

Pros - phone is thinner

and sleeker without case Cons - breaks easily

25%

NO CASE

71%

I got it from Amazon. It does the job of protecting my phone pretty well, but at the same time it’s not too bulky.

of those polled own an Otterbox, with 10% owning a LifeProof

have a phone case for means of protecting their phone

29%

of students own a case that serves purely aesthetic purposes Travis Bodell | Opinions Editor Natalie Karlsson | Reporter Daria Parr | Guest Illustrator

| Jordan Platts, 11 |

PRICE - $40

Pros - thorough protection from dropping and water damage Cons - makes phone bulky

OTTERBOX