Issue 1 9 22 17

In memoriam: Tony Burkes, 1997-2017

Sudden death of LT transition student saddens community; students, faculty reflect on best parts of life, legacy

L

Page 2: LT alumni and former explorer of the year is trying to save the Boundary Waters. Read all about his progress on Page 2.

Page 3: Did you miss the solar eclipse? It’s ok, we have a picture for you on Page 3.

Photos above show Tony Burkes ‘15 playing basketball and at LT’s 2014 prom (left: Ackerman Suburban Life, top right: Furjanic, bottom right: Hallowel & James Funeral Home)

munity that shows how strong and resilient our student body and faculty is.”

One of those resilient LT students, Hannah Bradbury ‘17, credits Tony as one of the people who saved her life.

“Without Tony’s friendship, I do not know if I would be alive or healthy today,” Bradbury said. “He stood by my side through panic attacks and long absences and would call me to check in on the days I did not show up to school. He modeled authenticity, confidence, and compassion through the way he interacted with others.

Tony led the most perfect example of how to treat others with love and respect.”

Hannah’s sister, Allie Bradbury ‘18, echos this sentiment and agrees that Burkes’ legacy at LT is one of love and inclusion.

“You didn’t have to do anything to deserve Tony’s love,” she said. “When Hannah was struggling with her mental health, he was one of the first people who made her feel worthy of love. He saw nothing wrong with her, but everything great

Continued on page 2

LT alumnus steals spotlight with political activism Graduate makes appearance at Charlottesville, causes dispute

by Spiro Kass @spiro_kass On a warm, sunny morning near Charlottesville, Va., on Aug. 17, hundreds of determined right-wing activists paraded to a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee to protest its removal. Among them stood LT alumnus and former student council president Nick Fuentes ‘16 chanting the rally’s slogan “you will not replace us” in unison with the other protestors.

“I was there to represent concerns of mass immigration, multiculturalism and historical revisionism,” Fuentes said.

“The government of Virginia colluded with armed, leftist thugs to intimidate us and ultimately keep us from exercising our constitutional rights, but we showed up, we had a permit, and we were peaceful.”

Fuentes, who has since been featured in Time Magazine, The Boston Globe, Morning Today on NBC, Fox News, and several other news networks, believes that the outcome of the rally was a success for himself and his right-

wing companions.

“I think the protest put us on the map in terms of our concerns,” Fuentes said. “What you’re seeing in this country is a cultural genocide. When people go and destroy our statues, they’re destroying our heritage and they’re rewriting our history, and seemingly because it’s white people, it’s okay.”

Nick Fuentes ‘16 waves Trump flag (Fuentes)

Throughout his time at LT, Fuentes was always vocal about his political beliefs, and he was never afraid to share his thoughts on any issue, student council advisor and Director of Student Activities Peter Geddeis said.

“We had a lot of political discussions over the four years I have known him,” Geddeis said. “I was always impressed with him, even from his freshman year. He was always very composed, charismatic and well spoken.”

Since his start at LT, Fuentes strengthened his interest in politics through his large involvement in Model UN, his political talk show on WLTL and his creation of “The Nicholas J. Fuentes Show” through LTTV, all which brought his radical opinions to the attention of his classmates, he said.

“It seemed much more civil in high school [than in college], and I think that owed to the fact that I was much more moderate on many issues,” Fuentes said. “Since then, I’ve gone much farther to the right and many more people are upset by that.”

After his high school graduation, his activism in politics only intensified as he continued his education at Boston University, he said.

“I didn’t want to go to a college where everyone would agree with me,” Fuentes said. “For me, college has a lot less to do with the education and more with the experience. I wanted to see how my convictions would stand with professors

Continued on page 4

Unique club gains pilot status at LT, competing in fall Students form cyber security club, high interest in developing field

by Grant Campbell @grantc_3100 On Aug. 30, the pilot club Cyberpatriots hosted its first meeting in the SC Discovery Center. Andy Schramka ’18 formed the new club, that will focus on the process of competing in nationwide competitions in cyber security.

“Competitions are on weekends for six hours,” Roland Rondez ’18 said. “We have the opportunity of competing against schools all across the country. The goal of the competition is to create the most secure computer through a given check list.”

The club uses software called VM Ware.

This software serves as an emulator.

“If I had to describe it, it’s [VM Ware} basically a computer within a computer,” Schramka said. “The great thing about it is any changes you make in the emulated computer won’t affect your actual computer.”

North Campus

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ighlights

Look here for some quick reads on this issue’s features.

by Greta Markey @gretamarkey

T students and faculty joined together on Sept.

1, 2017, by wearing blue to honor the memory of transition student Albert “Tony” Burkes ‘15. Burkes’ death, which occurred on the night of Aug. 24, came as a shock to many LT community members. As an M.V.P. of the LT Special Olympics Basketball team and an active member in Best Buddies, Burkes’ impact on the community has been vast and meaningful.

“Tony’s unwavering enthusiasm and ability to see the bright side in every situation is something I will always remember about him, and I’d venture to say that many others would have that same belief,” Special Olympics Basketball coach Abby Shapland said. “It’s impossible to think of Tony and not smile yourself. That, to me, is his legacy.”

Although many people are able to remember the joy in Burkes’ life, it is common to see people struggling with death, LT Principal Brian Waterman said. A crisis team comprised of counselors and social workers meets after every student death to identify the individuals at LT who would have the most difficult time coping with and recovering from the loss.

“Everyone experiences grief in their own personal way; however, it was extremely heartening to see so many members of LT wearing blue to honor Tony’s memory.” Waterman said. “It creates a sense of com-

P H aper

Schramka has participated in the Cyberpatriots organization, hosted by the Air Force Association, since eighth grade. He eventually left his former team with the goal of starting a competitive club at LT. “I wanted to have a team to compete with while also teaching other students,” he said.

“Hopefully, I can inspire other competitors to continue with the club and become more engaged with cyber security.”

Despite being declined his sophomore year, Schramka was determined to form the club. He submitted a form for organization again his junior year. When it was accepted, he then needed to find a faculty advisor.

“Many of the computer science teachers had already committed to other clubs,” club advisor and director of LT Technology services Ed Tennant said. “Mr. [Michael] Vasich and I have the resources to provide these students with successful technology skills and new security knowledge. It was a natural fit.”

Both Tennant and Vasich are assisting Schramka not only in teaching the material to

interested students, but also inspiring interest in new students.

“We have an opportunity to foster interest and pass along knowledge,” Tennant said.

“We need to build a bond amongst other clubs at LT to strengthen the community. Human networking is crucial for student and school success. The more bridges you can build with people of common interests, the better your network of support will be.”

Competitions begin in late November and continue through January. The first two competitions are preliminary rounds to determine the team’s tier.

“We won’t be the national champions,” Tennant said. “We will give our best effort in the competitions, but we want to learn the process of competing first.”

Given current student interest, the club has enough members to have multiple competitive teams, each consisting of five to six competitors.

Each competitor has varying knowledge, according to Schramka. Some students are well

100 S. Brainard Ave. LaGrange, Ill. 60525 South Campus

Continued on page 2

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Page 4: Don’t miss the school fashion show organized by Isabelle Sistino ‘19. Full coverage on Page 4.

Page 5: Curious what LT did this summer? Turn to Page 5.

Page 6: Don’t forget to add us on snapchat! See what you missed on Page 6.

Page 8: Greg Smith ‘19 and Maddy Cohen ‘18 square off in the first issue’s Point Counterpoint.

Page 10: LION’s own Danny Kilrea ‘18 is one of the top runners in the nation. Read all about it on Page 10.

Page 11: Girls Swim and Dive looks to improve on state performance from last year. Read our season preview on Page 11.

Page 12: Which LT alumni was recently drafted into the NFL? Find out on Page 12.

Page 14: How addictive is sugar? Read our full analysis on Page 14.

Page 16-17: Our first theme page is all about feminism.

Full coverage on Pages 16-17.

Page 18: Did we really land on the moon? Read this and other conspiracy theories on page 18.

Page 19: Have you ever believed that teachers live at school? They don’t, but they are in bands. Check it out on Page 19.

Page 20: Flip to our newest feature: Pet of the Month!

CYBER SECURITY COMPETITION TIMELINE Practice Round: Oct. 6-17

Qualification Round one: Nov. 3-5 Qualification Round two: Dec. 8-10 State Round: Jan. 19-21 Semifinals: Feb. 9-11 National Finals Competition: April 15-19 SOURCE: uscyberpatriot.org

4900 Willow Springs Rd. Western Springs, Ill. 60558

NEWS

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Friday, September 22, 2017

LT alum on mission to save BWCA Dave Freeman raises awareness to environmental threat to national wilderness

was in a gym class where the teacher had an outdoor program consisting of climbing, archery, and cross country skiing in the winter, he said.

“It got me interested in the outdoors,” Dave said. “That’s one of the reason’s why I got into wilderness travel.”

The Freemans have endured many adventures throughout their careers. On top of their year in the BWCA they did a trip dubbed “The North American Odyssey” where they traveled roughly 11,000 miles over three years. They began in Seattle, kayaked to Alaska and dog sledded to the Great Lakes, only to sail across them to get to Lake Champlain in Vermont. They then headed south to get to the Atlantic Ocean, and they finished the expedition in the Florida Keys.

This trek landed them to be selected as one of the recipients of National Geographic’s Adventurers of the year in 2014.

“The news was really exciting,” Amy said. “It was really quite an honor.”

More recently, the couple wrote a book called “A Year In the Wilderness” for which they are currently on a book tour. The book consists of 330 pages which including 150 full color pictures that goes into detail of their year long trip, Dave said. The official release date of the book is Sept. 22, and pre-orders are available online on Amazon. The book tour schedule has not been released; however, they plan to stop around the La Grange area, Amy Freeman said.

It seems like the team is always on the move, yet even they don’t seem to know what the future has in store.

“We are starting now to plan our next adventure,” Dave said. “We know that we want to keep doing extended journeys regarding these environmental issues, but we haven’t decided exactly what we will do next.”

by Hayden Claesson @_wizard_of_soz

In late autumn of 2015, on Vera Lake in northern Minnesota, just over a mile south of the Canadian border, the water was just beginning to freeze for the winter. Dave Freeman ‘95 was cooking in his tent in a campsite, when he heard a rustling in the woods outside of the tent. It was followed by echoing and howling. As timberwolves ran through his campsite, he looked out the small window of his tent to see a pack of wild animals which few are lucky to encounter in their entire lives.

This experience happened during Freeman’s year long trip in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness-or BWCA-a national wilderness area in northern Minnesota. He and his wife, Amy Freeman, embarked on a year long trip from Sept. 23, 2015 to Sept. 23, 2016.

The purpose of the trip was to raise awareness of copper mining in the area that would pollute the water in the boundary waters.

“We did it to shed light about the importance of wilderness and public land and a need to appreciate places like the boundary waters,” Dave said.

The duo then sprang into action. During another trip around North America, they stopped traveling for a winter and began dogsledding trips in northern Minnesota asking people to sign a petition to block the mining rights. They then got in touch with a group, Save the Boundary Waters, which also had the same intention of protecting the BWCA from mines and pollution.

“When we got back home, the campaign was just starting up,” Amy said. “They started this thing called sustainable Ely, which is a house in Ely, [Minnesota], that puts information up so people can visit and learn more about the issue.”

Dave graduated from Lyons Township in 1995. He

Top: Dave and Amy walking on a frozen lake. (Dave Freeman) Bottom: The Freemans Paddling a Canoe. (Nate Ptacek)

New mural to be installed at North Campus Students create mural, poetry brings them together

by Christina Rossetti @c_rossetti6

Last school year, Faith Echeverria ’19 and Kate Hoekstra ‘19 came up with an idea that would take over their summer. They wanted to create a mural that could be displayed at NC that featured poetry and their original art.

“I decided to do this because I want to go to art school and having this in my portfolio would be amazing,” Echeverria said. “Plus, Mr. [Frank] Alletto is a great teacher and he kept pushing me to do it. He knew I had a vision and after that told me that I should pursue this project.”

These two girls, along with Sydney Weber ‘18, Ava McLean ‘19, Hayley Mirabile ‘19, Tegan Murrell ‘17, Francesca Restani ‘19, Alexander Kuptel ‘18, Odin Metzger ‘19, and Heather Munyon ’18, were part of the design and painting team to help construct this mural, Alletto, English teacher and coordinator of the mural process, said.

“I can’t say that students ‘helped’ with it,” Alletto said. “They’ve done it themselves. Without [Hoekstra and Echeverria], there would be nothing but plywood and my books of poetry. They made the project happen.”

The mural will display a wall poem titled “The World is in Pencil” by Todd Boss. Alletto gained inspiration from Sandra Beasley, a former guest poet at LT who spoke about wall poetry in Charlotte, he said.

This unfinished mural will eventually adorn an NC wall. (Frank Alletto)

“The Charlotte poems are on the outside walls of many buildings in the uptown area,” Alletto said. “I love this idea, bringing poetry into public spaces where they can be read casually before people’s anti-poetry

Remembering Tony Burkes Continued from Page 1 about her.”

With a basketball court in the family’s backyard, both sisters were able to bond with Burkes because he was always at their house squeezing in extra practice for Special Olympics Basketball.

Burkes would also show up hours in advance for practice, just waiting for gym space to free up, Shapland said.

His dedication to the team was recognized by everyone he played with.

“Tony’s encouragement and teamwork always meant a lot to me,” teammate Grace Furjanic ‘14 said. “Whenever we lost a game in basketball, Tony was never very upset. Instead, he always said something like ‘we’ll get ‘em next time’ and reminded us to keep passing and shooting the ball.”

More than just basketball, Burkes was also devoted to schoolwork and learning, friend and fellow classmate Kevin Cushing ‘15 said.

“When we went to work experience, he was very good at communicating with the other staff members,” Cushing said. “We learned that Tony had big goals career wise. He wanted to keep playing basketball on the side, but Tony wanted to be a chef.”

Shapland, who also acted as Burkes’ Reading and English teacher for two years, remembers his excitement to learn, she said. The first day in her class, Burkes asked if he could sit in the in the center of the front row-showing an initiative that not every student has.

Cushing attributes Burkes’ positive, enthusiastic outlook on life to his appreciation of friends and adherence to passions, he said.

“I think we can all remember that Tony was doing exactly what he wanted to in the end of his life,” Cushing said. “He always appreciated those around him and what he had in his life. Everyone was family to Tony. He never took it for granted.”

Any student who dies leaves a certain mark on LT, Waterman said. Since Burkes’ death has affected so many students and faculty, it is important to recognize the best parts of his character.

“I never thought this was going to happen,” Allie said. “I always thought I’d see Tony again, running up to me in the hall and giving me a hug. The day I found out, all I could think was, ‘he’s never gonna be up there in the stands at water polo games to cheer me on again.’ I think the lesson we can learn from Tony is to approach everyone and everything with a gracious attitude. You don’t know when they’ll be gone.”

deflector shields go up. That’s what I hope this wall poem can accomplish.”

Construction for the mural began during the summer in Alletto’s room, and is now being finished in an outside location. Organizers planned to mount the mural the week of Sept. 11. Each work session takes about five hours of strenuous work, Echeverria said.

“Hopefully LT lets me do something else like this again because it’s such an honor and no matter how time consuming and heart wrenching it was, I loved every second,” Echeverria said. “When I started, I hadn’t painted a lot and I was scared, but once you start painting you literally don’t want to stop.”

For Echeverria, she plans to sell more of her own artwork after the mural is completed and displayed, she said.

“You catch a rhythm while painting, that if you stop, you know it won’t be the same when you start again,” Echeverria said. “My main strategy that I think helped me the most while painting was just listening to music. Blackbear, UglyGod, Mansionz, and Lilpump really helped me on this one.”

The mural will be located next to the side entrance of the Reber Center, visible as students walk up the stairs at exit 7. The main goal in putting this on display at NC is to raise awareness of poetry, Alletto said.

“Poetry is so misunderstood,” he said. “It frightens people. It frustrates people. I’m hoping that unsuspecting readers will be taken in by the beauty of the painting and the initial ease of the poem. It delivers immediate insight without being cryptic or vague. I think many readers will be surprised by the accessibility of it.”

Cyberpatriots pilot club Continued from Page 1

adapted and ready to compete, while others need to learn more about the competition itself.

“You don’t need programming experience to be successful in our club,” he said. “It may help, but you can do everything without prior experience or knowledge in compuer science.

If you have an interest, you can do it and be successful. It is accessible to everyone.”

Since Schramka graduates this year, the club will be losing its leader and founder. Despite the inevitable, the club is still focused on successfully completing their pilot year.

“I think the Cyberpatriots have great potential as a club here at LT,” Tennant said. “I would like to see the club sustain well beyond Andy’s involvement, while also building off of his legacy.”

One of Schramka’s goals is to inspire underclassmen. He hopes that some will compete all four years, and use the information they learn to benefit LT and the community, Schramka said.

“If we can have vigilance with protections of electronic resources, we make LT, the community and even the nation stronger in terms of our protection,” Tennant said. “We have a group of students concerned about our cyber security, and that’s a promising sign.”

NEWS

Friday, September 22, 2017

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Student runs tennis fundraiser for charity Mattigan Kelly ‘18 raises money for Treasure Chest Foundation

donated instead to the Treasure Chest foundation. The Treasure Chest foundation supplies local hospitals with toys for young cancer paby Mary Devine tients after treatments. @marydwannab “A family friend recommended that I look Mattigan Kelly ‘18 hosted the 12th annual into the Treasure Chest, because the toys that Tennis Fun Fest at the Hinsdale Raquet Club their son got from the chest, while inexpensive, on Aug. 12. The Fun Fest is a tennis event or- made it a lot easier for their whole family to ganized to fundraise money for the Treasure deal with his cancer,” Crofton said.

Now for the past two years, his younger sisChest foundation. With over 125 people in attendance, the annual fundraiser was deemed ter, Mattigan, has taken over the event. This past year though proved to be different. This a success.

“I love to help people and I love to play ten- year $9,200 was raised by the event, which was a record nis so I thought that number, Mattithis was the perfect gan said. This is way to combine partly credited those two passions,” to the newest Mattigan said. improvement of The event initialthe fundraiser: ly started 12 years an online aucago by Mattigan’s tion. From the brother, Crofton online auction, Kelly, who graduover $1,300 was ated from St. Ignaraised. tius in 2015. At the “I sold things time, however, the like four autoproceeds went to graphed blackAmerican Red Cross hawks jerseys, to help with disas- Young participant returns serve at fundraiser. (Mattigan) two signed cubs ter relief.

“The first fundraiser came right after Hur- photos and just other higher end items,” Mattiricane Katrina back in 2005,” Crofton said. “I gan said. “ The reason I did it was I was thinking was only eight, but it was easy to understand of ways to change the event, or to make it more that people in New Orleans needed basic things. my own.”

For Mattigan though, the event is a major re Two years later and every summer after that, the money raised by the event would be sponsibility. Working throughout the summer,

Left: Mattigan Kelly ‘18 leads an auction. Right: Group photo of participants. (Mattigan) she spent hours of her own time organizing the event. Not only would she have to coordinate with Treasure Chest and Hinsdale Raquet club to find a date, tennis pros to control the courts, but also she would have to advertise the event as much as possible.

“The main thing for me to do is get people there,” Mattigan said. “There is no event and no money for the foundation if there aren’t people there.”

As the entrance fee was $20, getting participants to the event makes all of the difference in raising money for Treasure chest. Bridget Shannon ‘18 was one of the many participants of the event as she plays varsity tennis for LT. “There was a huge turnout of all ages, and I saw so many LT kids,” Shannon said.

“That really proved the strength of the community, and just how awesome Mattigan is.”

On top of the fundraising with the auction, raffles and entrance fee, there is more to the event. With all age groups participating at all skill levels, it balances fun with tennis. In fact, things can get a bit competitive during games.

“You would hit and play three points, and if you won you would go to the other side,” Shannon said. “So it was essentially a queen of the courts game.”

Overall, Mattigan and others were very satisfied with the fundraiser and consider it a success. In terms of the future, she hopes to continue running the event and raising money for Treasure Chest. It is an impact on her life amongst so many others.

“She really cares about the cause and has a real talent for bringing people together. I’m so proud of all she’s done to improve the event and give back to Treasure Chest,” Crofton said.

Eclipse traffic puts breaks on return trip Total eclipse increases traffic on Southern Illinois roads

by Lars Lonnroth @larslonnroth

Amid the infatuation with the solar eclipse on Aug. 21, 42 LT students took a first-day-ofschool field trip to downstate Illinois to view the first total eclipse the U.S. has had in 38 years—and then they took the trek back.

“We packed it all up, got on the bus … and we got on the road and almost immediately knew it was going to be a problem because the traffic was crazy,” said Kevin Murphy, an astronomy teacher at LT and organizer of the field trip.

This eclipse garnered so much attention due to its rarity. Total solar eclipses, like the one students went to, occur when the moon’s shadow obscures the sun completely and creates premature darkness, leading to an array of unique natural activities.

Eclipse nearing totality. (Sebastian Valdes)

But the attention marooned students on the road from late afternoon into early morning, with the bumper-to-bumper traffic nearly tripling a normally 4.5 hour trip, Murphy said.

“It was as bad as any movie set shows the evacuation of a city,” Mark Kienzynski, LT teacher and

chaperone, said. “It felt like armodgenenon had struck.”

The trip took LT astronomy students, chaperones and a group of LTTV students and staff down to downstate, where they watched from Goreville, Ill, a town of 1,000 that received an additional 20 seconds of totality but was further downstate than the more-urban Carbondale—the epicenter of the state’s eclipse activities.

But as a result of that location, traffic kept students on the road until 1:20 a.m. with LTTV getting back much later, Murphy said.

“If you were near the top of the path of totality and you left right away, you were ahead of the traffic curve,” Murphy said.

“If you were 35 miles deep [into the path of totality] like we were, then everyone above you—all 35 miles of people—all got on the road before you.”

For LTTV, packing forced a departure 30 minutes later than the astronomy stu-

dents but it had a drastic effect on their trips length. While the main group got back at 1:30 a.m., LTTV didn’t get back until 8:30 a.m.

“It was a hurricane of emotions for all of us,” LTTV advisor Bill Allan said.

“I mean, it was frustrating, it was aggravating and at certain points it was just insanity and we would laugh about how ridiculous it was.”

That day, Allan didn’t get a full night of sleep for 28 hours, he said, although he had to take a 30 minute nap to maintain alertness on the road. The “insanity” made it difficult to justify in the moment, but since then his mind has changed, he said.

“When people were asking me at the time ‘was it worth it?’ I am like, ‘No. No eclipse, no natural event was worth it,”’ Allan said. “But now, you know, I’m rested, we’re all recuperated and I can say, yes, it was worth it; It was an amazing thing to see.”

West End Arts Festival offers publicity for LT students

Local fair gives students opportunity to showcase artwork

by Camilla Breen @cbreen125

On an average school day, AP drawing and painting student Lauren Trail ‘18 can be found spending her class time perfecting a recent drawing or starting a new project. Recently, however, the classroom has been abuzz with talk of their involvement in the West End Arts Festival.

“We’ve been doing this in partnership with the LaGrange Art League for about five years now,” Drawing and painting teacher Patrick Page said. “They promote art in the community, and they sponsor our booth for us so we can come there. They’ve really helped LT over the years.”

The festival itself was Sept. 9 and 10 near the Stone Avenue train station, and included a variety of culinary, musical and fine arts. Lyons Township students had a booth near NC, where 15 AP art students staffed the table themselves, promoting their artwork the entire weekend, Page said.

“The worthwhile thing [about being involved in the festival] is that it gets our students art out into the com-

munity,” Page said, “it’s one thing to draw in your bedroom, but another to have people walk up to you and start a conversation about your art.”

Trail was just one of talented art students involved in the West End Arts Fest, and featured two pieces in the show.

One is a painted self portrait and the other is an architectural drawing of the iconic townhouses in San Francisco.

“I’ve been to the West End Arts Fest before, and as an artist, it’s inspiring to see other artists from the area,” Trail said. “It’s also nice to get critiques from the community and to be able to show everyone your work.”

The 50 other artists at the fest set up their booths with the intent to sell their work during the weekend, but not the students from LT. It is not a thing the students usually do, seeing as it is harder for them to sell, and they need their original works for building portfolios, Page said.

“We don’t have local shows most of the time, so the West End Arts Fest offers a chance to gain exposure from the community,” Trail said. “It’s just a cool experience, and really important for young artists.”

Photos on display at the West End Art Festival: Top left, photo of commuters on a Chicago L-train by Adali Garcia ‘18. Top left, Lauren Trail’s drawing of San Francisco houses. Bottom left, photo

by Aubrey Studwell ‘19 depicting an individual sketching. Bottom right, Autumn Moulder’s ‘18 light streak’s picture above Garcia’s photo of planes midflight. (Breen/LION)

NEWS

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Friday, September 22, 2017

LaGrange library renovates floor Updates, expansion made to youth services area

by Pilar Valdes @pilarvaldes55 The LaGrange library, which was built about 10 years ago, will be renovated this fall. Although the start date is not yet confirmed, construction is expected to last about four months, depending on the construction company chosen, the library’s community engagement coordinator Arcadia McCauley said.

For the past 10 years, the library board of directors has put money in a reserve fund dedicated to facility updates, McCauley said. To plan renovations, the library sent out surveys to the community via mail, phone and email, and held meetings with neighborhood schools and several local businesses. “[We] talked to community members about what was important for them and how they would like to see the library grow,” McCauley said. “Hopefully the public feels like they’ve been asked, and are free to talk to us and give us their input. We are here to listen.”

Additionally, multiple community input sessions were held at the end of August to help the library meet the community’s needs, McCauley said. Expanding the library’s current Youth Services area became a main fo-

Children play with blocks in a section of the existing youth area that will be expanded by renovations. (LION/Valdes)

cus based on that input.

“This community is already actively using the library,” the library’s youth services department head Rachael Dabkey said.

“We need to do better with being a place where [children] can gain the skills that they need, to be ready to read, and our new early learning area will provide more opportunities for this kind of skill development to happen.”

Currently, the library is planning to expand the first floor by

reclaiming the outdoor colonnade area and transforming it into indoor space, McCauley said.

“The lobby will have lots of popular materials so we will have a lot more grab and go, which will be much better suited for all types of library users,” Dabkey said.

The new space will have more room for early learning activity as well as an expanded lobby area, Dabkey said.

The youth services department is trying to put more emphasis on early learning and early literacy programs by adding more space and materials to that area of the library, McCauley said.

“There’s a disparity between some of the lower income families in LaGrange and higher income families in terms of literacy and success in school, and studies had pointed to catching those kids early to help eliminate or mitigate that disparity,” McCauley said. “The library sees that we can be that key partner in the community to help those families and to also work with local schools for how we can help fill some of the gaps that they can’t.”

Danielle Dahill ’19, who volunteers at the library, often found that space was limited while trying to run the library’s summer reading program.

“The library is a really cool place,” Dahill said. “So making it a better place for kids and their parents is important and will help kids stay interested in reading because they’ll associate the library with reading.”

LT plans to host fashion show

Fashion show to raise awareness for domestic violence

by Harper Hill @harpss42 One in four women have experienced a physically abusive romantic relationship in their lifetime, according to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. Over 20,000 calls are made each day to domestic violence hotlines across the country. Oct. 1 marks the beginning of domestic violence awareness month.

In order to raise awareness for the cause, Isabelle Sistino ‘19 is organizing a fashion show at LT on Oct. 15 at 2 p.m. in the Reber Center. Tickets will cost $10 for students and $25 for adults. The show’s main goal is to raise $5,500 for Pillars’ Constance Morris House, a local domestic violence shelter, Sistino said.

“It’s really for a great cause,” she said. “You know where the money is going and you know what the impact is. It’s helping people out in our community, maybe even people that we know.”

The clothes showcased during the show will be provided by the Hope Chest in LaGrange, a nonprofit upscale resale shop that benefits the Constance Morris House. Clothing is donated and then resold by the store to raise money to fund many of the House’s programs, Hope Chest Shop Manager Sally Kurfirst said.

With the money raised at the Hope Chest, The Constance

Morris House, an 18-bed shelter, is able to provide a temporary emergency shelter for women and their children who are trying to escape an abusive relationship, Kurfirst said.

Meals and services such as counseling, legal advocacy and career aid are offered to the victims of domestic violence.

“Through the fashion show, we hope to raise awareness of domestic violence issues as well as our profile in the community to encourage support through donating merchandise and shopping for a great cause,” Kufirst said. “We’ve always wanted to encourage LT students and teachers to shop here since we get in lots of things that would appeal to them.”

LT is completely involved in the fashion show, Sistino said. The models in the fashion show will consist of LT students, alumni and teachers. Many students involved in student council, WLTL and theatre board, as well as fashion/ interior design and digital photo classes will help with several aspects of the show.

The outfits will be selected by volunteers and board members at the Hope Chest, Kurfirst said. The store carries many different types of clothing for their large customer base, including teenagers, high school students, single moms, senior citizens and many others on a fixed income.

“We’ll just try to put together some fun, unique outfits and show people how you can really have a great wardrobe on a budget, and support a good cause,” Kurfirst said.

Local hotline expands program Organization encourages volunteerism

by Grace DeKoker @grace_dekoker

Jackie Gibson stared at the freshly assembled annual report for Pillars, the one all their volunteers, financiers, and community members would see. As the director of marketing and communications, she had known the numbers, but seeing everything typed out, with thank-yous and heartfelt notes written brought forth a surge of pride.

“It was very heartwarming,” Gibson said. “I work there everyday, but it was heartwarming. Knowing we helped 10,000 [people] that year, seeing names and faces and how it was more than just a number was just very powerful.”

Pillars is a community-based program that centers around helping those who have nowhere else to turn, and offers free counseling sessions to those struggling with mental health disorders and survivors of abuse. There are five lines of ser-

vice offered according to Gibson: mental health, addiction, domestic/sexual violence, child/family service and safehaven shelter. There are hotlines for both domestic abuse and sexual violence, but what stands out about Pillars is the communal aspect workers strive to achieve.

The hotlines are manned by volunteers, and without their involvement, neither program would have been able to get off the ground, Gibson said.

The sexual abuse hotline is a 24/7, 365 phone number that is available for anyone in the state. Despite locations in Berwyn, LaGrange, Western Springs and Hickory Hills, there are volunteers all around the Chicagoland area and throughout Ill. Those who are dispatchers for hotline services take a maximum of 15 minutes to provide information, referral, crisis intervention and other services, and if needed, Advocacy and Prevention Education Directory Patricia Murphy said. They must undergo training first and be 18 years old.

“We want to engage our communities to take a stand,” Mur-

Fuentes’ political activism Continued from Page 1

and students in Boston, and I had a lot of fun.”

Due to the city’s overwhelming liberal influence, Fuentes found it entertaining to engage with people on campus over political topics, he said.

“The biggest reason [behind my activism] is that it’s hilarious to me,” he said. “I’m not going to pretend that I put on my ‘Make America Great Again’ hat and get the Trump flag out because of some political crusade. It’s just fun for me to go and engage with people.”

For the majority, verbal confrontations between Fuentes and students on campus tended to escalate quickly, Boston University student Will Chang said.

“He is definitely not shy or subtle,” Chang said. “His activism on campus is inflammatory on purpose and very in your face. Often times, it doesn’t seem like he is trying to have a productive discussion, for he’s usually yelling.”

In response to Fuentes’s appearance at Charlottesville, Chang regards the situation in a similar way to what he believes most students at Boston University think.

“It means more to me how he reacted after [the Charlottesville protests], because I do think some people went there thinking that it was going to be a normal conservative rally,” he said. “Afterwards, he went full Nazi and posted state-

Hope Chest volunteer, Abbey Stephens, models two of the pieces sold at the shop. (Isabelle Sistino) The Hope Chest is hoping to get many LT students, mothers and community members to attend the event, Kurfirst said. This is the first year the Hope Chest is organizing a fashion show at LT. It will be their biggest event so far.

“I know it’s going to be great,” Kurfirst said. “I have the utmost confidence that LT is offering its full support and we are very grateful that they are willing to let us do this. I know that LT students and faculty are really strong supporters of efforts to benefit the community and I anticipate this will be a great community event.”

phy said. “Community effort- once everyone pitches in, then we can see positive change.”

Murphy focuses on prevention education and speaks with middle school and high school adolescents about the importance of consent, safe sex and identifying when a situation veers into dangerous territory, she said.

Legal and medical advocacy also fall into Pillars’ realm of programs, and the workers ensure that their clients receive as much help as they want or need. Pillars has connections with seven area hospitals and 34 local law enforcement programs, so that if a worker needs to be dispatched to any scene for any reason, they are in a position to do so within the hour, Murphy said.

Pillars is one of the the largest nonprofit provider for social services in the Chicagoland area, as well as the state of Ill., according to Gibson. Her advice for students who want to volunteer is to look for fundraising options. For those who seek services, she reccomends simply calling. “You think of people who need mental or social services as others, it’s surprising, it’s ordinary people you see daily,” she said. “The best thing to do is call, whether for help or to volunteer, and we can route you wherever you need to go.” ments [on Facebook] about how ‘the fire will rise’ and other provocative comments. It’s kind of disappointing but I guess he’s just finding his own way.”

Since his Charlottesville appearance, Fuentes made the decision to leave Boston University and will most likely attend Auburn University in the spring, he said. For now, he is continuing his residence in the LT area.

“It’s not safe to be a Trump supporter in Boston, especially a well-known one,” he said. “I’ve gotten many death threats that were not addressed by the police or the administration, and it came to a point where I could not comfortably live on [Boston] campus.”

Although there has been much confusion over which political group Fuentes aligns with, he has made it clear that he is no more than a traditionalist conservative, a follower of Pat Buchanan and says he is not affiliated with the Alternative Right or Neo Nazi groups. When ultimately explaining the foundation of his ideals, Fuentes believes it comes down to one major idea.

“I am a Christian, and I think that if anybody is a Christian, they have to believe in the Devil,” he said. “What we’ve seen in the past 20 years are very evil, sinister forces taking control over our government. And if you don’t stand for what’s right, and are complicit in this hostile takeover of our country by very evil, horrible people, I think you’re just as guilty as they are. And that’s why I’m doing this.”

Friday, September 22, 2017

Impact

Page 5

New AP, eight others join LT staff

LT’s recent renovations

by Taylor Schmitt

A combination of decreased student enrollment and retiring teachers prompted the LT administrative team to hire nine new faculty members. Among the new hires is Shanna Lewis, the new Assistant Principal for just over 1,000 studentsLT’s Class of 2018.

“LT has a very good reputation as far as the services and support and opportunities that they have for students,” Lewis said. “I know the community is very supportive, and I think that you’re only going to be successful when you have the support of the community. I’ve always heard great things about the kids here.”

In addition to Lewis, eight other teachers joined LT’s faculty, LT’s Director of Human Resources, Ed Piotrowski, said. The new staff will work in the Special Education, Family and Consumer Sciences, Mathematics, Language Arts and World Language departments.

LT employs about 280 teachers between the two campuses, Piotrowski said.

“We leave it up for about a month so that we don’t miss any qualified applicants who might’ve missed it if we’d only had it up for a week or so,” Piotrowski said.

After the information goes up, division chairs start screening applications. They pick eight to 10 applicants to interview on the division level. From those candidates, two to three finalists are selected to interview with an administrative team that includes Piotrowski and Principal Dr. Brian Waterman. “[Good teachers] are everything to the learning process,” Waterman said. “It’s cliché that the most important thing in a classroom is the student, but the teacher creates the environment that is centered around the student.”

by Isabel Tuisl This summer at NC, many small projects were done, LT Business Manager Brian Stachacz said. The roof on the study hall room was replaced with new clay tile, or terracotta.

“The study hall roof was leaking last summer,” Superintendent Tim Kilrea said. “The water caused some of the old lathwork under the plaster to come loose, and it hit some of the drop ceiling, which then fell down, so we knew we needed to replace the roof.”

The contract amount for the construction of the roof was $299,000. Those costs can be reduced or increased depending on how the project progresses, Stachacz said.

Additionally, air conditioning was added to NC in response to student complaints.

“Many students complain about the lack of it, especially in the hotter months of the school year,” Jane Stockbridge ‘19 said.

“The system that is used for air conditioning at NC is a machine called a chiller,” Stachacz said. “[It] was added [to NC] in 2014 as part of renovations [to] the cafeteria.”

When the chiller was installed, 85-90 percent of its capacity was used up, Stachacz said. LT used the rest of the chiller’s capacity in the summer of 2016, and air conditioned the rooms on the second and third floors of the building. The chiller is completely tapped out now, so if LT was to add more air conditioning to NC, an additional chiller would have to be installed.

LT replaces sound systems

New turf installed for fall sports

After lower student enrollment, LT staff gains nine members

Administrators, faculty provide insight on recent NC renovations

LT NC Field House sound system, Bennett Field speakers improved

Turf outlives life expectancy, improves player safety

by Grant Campbell

by Brandt Siegfried

A new sound system was installed in the NC Field House. The project occurred over the summer lasting from June and was finalized in the first week of August.

The new sound system will accommodate both day to day usage in gym class, as well as large events such as the all-school assembly. “[LT] hasn’t upgraded the sound system in a long time,” Athletic Director John Grundke said. “We have noticed that the sound quality wasn’t great, and it effected large events LT hosted. It gets difficult to hear when you have 4,000 students during the all-school assembly.”

In addition to replacing the NC Field House sound system, LT also found problems with the sound system on Bennett Field. As a result, they fixed both sound systems over the summer.

“We packaged the sound system improvements together and got a cheaper deal,” Grundke said. “The improvements to Bennett field will allow performance groups to utilize their practices better with the new speakers.”

In total, the cost of replacing both sound systems was $193,996, Grundke said.

In addition to saving money by packaging the improvements, the new sound system at NC will save the school additional money. In the past, LT has rented additional speakers for large events. With the new sound system, additional speakers will not have to be rented.

In addition to financial benefit, the new sound system will be utilized in new ways, particularly in sports.

“One upgrade we are trying to implement is to have music playing during breaks and stoppages in sports events,” Grundke said.

“I don’t think the average person understands that the speakers are used 12 hours a day,” Grundke said. “Gym classes use it every period as well as sports after school. Even when we don’t have events, it’s still being used. I think that people undervalue the sound system at times.”

While the new logos on Bennett Field appear to be the only changes to the venue, the entire turf was replaced this summer. The field’s foundation was repaired, the green fibers were replaced and the field was refilled with a mix of recycled and new rubber pellets.

The month-long project was approved unanimously by the Board of Education at the May 2017 meeting for approximately $600,000. The old Bennett Field turf was projected to last eight to 10 years, but it actually lasted for 13 years, Athletics Director John Grundke said. The field was deemed unfit for further use after school officials determined there was a sufficient concussion hazard, and that some uneven pieces of the field created a tripping hazard.

“One of our fears was to make sure [the field was] still soft enough,” Grundke said. “The other fear is that some pieces started to rise and fall.”

LT athletes have noticeably benefited from the replacement of the turf.

“It doesn’t hurt as much when you dive or get tackled on it,” LT varsity football kicker and former soccer player Max Abrahamson ’18 said. “Personally, I feel a difference in my knees. Having my soccer background [I would] regularly go to Bennett and my knees would ache after my workout. This year, my knees haven’t hurt after practice the entire season.”

Beyond safety improvements, the new field has key aesthetic features.

“It looks much better,” Grundke said. “We [designed] the logo in the middle and the ‘LTs’ at the 25 yard lines. The end zones are real nice as well. We [have] the corners of the field painted for lacrosse, and for soccer we [installed] a little notch where the goals sit.”

The players also enjoy the new features.

“The design on the field is unbelievable,” Abrahamson said. “I can confidently say that we have one of the best fields in the state. We can’t wait to make memories on the turf.”

Operation Snowball forms are officially out!

What is OSB?

• An eye-opening weekend retreat, Nov. 3-5 • A great way to focus on positive decision making • A fun opportunity to meet new people All forms due Wednesday 9/27! *contact apatel@lths.net for more details*

NEWS

Page 6

Thursday, September 22, 2017

Whenever an important event happens at LT, the LION Snapchat has it covered. Here are some featured snaps that highlight major events of the Homecoming pep rally:

Our two MCs rallying up the crowd

Noil and Nessie showin off their new costumes!

Varsity soccer seniors step up and tug against junior class board

Steppers killing the game as usual

Make sure to follow LION on Snapchat to keep up to date on what’s happening around the LT community!

@lionnewspaper

All hail the Queen!!

If a student would like to promote an LT-related event through the LION’s snapchat and to be potentionally featured in our next issue, please contact Kas503525@student.lths.net for more information.

Compiled by Spiro Kass and Greta Markey

Want one of your tweets featured in the next issue? Follow us on twitter @LTLionNewspaper. To be eligible to have your tweets in our paper you have to follow us. So if you think you are funny, clever or witty enough to have your tweets in here, follow us and keep the tweets coming!

72

26

Michael Ahrens ‘18 @moahrens

4

Are your teens posting about plant life?

Wtf- wow that fern

Gtg- going to garden

Lol- lots of leaves

Idc- I dig chlorophyll

Kate Beumer ‘18 @KateBeumer

Mattigan Kelly ‘18 @MattiganKelly

1

so tonight during my soccer game instead of calling for the ball I accidentally called Shotgun

6

38

Boutta lay straight bars over some kahoot music

6

Ryan Dow ‘18 @ryantdow

0

why 12 year olds shouldn’t have a Facebook

0

Allison Keeley ‘19 @AlliKeeley

Claire Garvin ‘19 @notclairegarvin

1

Someone: stop being so extra Me: yes master

website

online ad

13

3 #notmymagicschoolbus

Friday, September 22, 2017

opiniOns PageSevenGrid

Page 7

GuestColumn

Embrace your culture

Welcome to the Page Seven Grid, which some of you know as the only page in the paper. This is where we can watch people (try to) be funny. Your classmates are asked a series of questions, to which they respond with the most humorous answers! If you have a funny question, bring it to Room 220 and maybe you’ll see it in here next issue!

What would you throw at freshmen besides pennies?

Name the next hurricane.

Meatballs

Hurricane Tortilla

Animals

Hurricane Wet Man

Eggs

Hurricane Katherine

Kate Beumer ‘18

Ricky Horan ‘19

Luchi Ligammari ‘20

Bricks

Hurricane Sharkeisha

Michael Dahill ‘21

Advice. I would throw advice at them.

Hurricane Noil

Dr. Waterman, Principal * “Arby’s mode:” On the grind, hustling, nothing in your way, etc.

Lion’sMissionStatement

LION is a newsroom for journalism students designed to serve the community of Lyons Township.

LION is a newsroom for journalism students designed to serve the community of Lyons Township.

It is LION’s responsibility to cover the events and issues that may have relevance to the readership in the community.

LION will attempt to cover all aspects of the school; however, coverage will greatly depend on the item’s news value. News value is determined by timeliness and how relevant the item is to the majority of the newspaper’s readership. LION editors reserve the right to determine the news value of content.

LION will clearly identify sources of news, except in cases when it is clearly necessary to protect the source’s identity.

LION will avoid sensationalizing the news. LION does not invade the personal privacy of sources.

Each issue of the paper will feature staff editorials. Although they are written by individuals, they reflect the viewpoints of the student staff.

The LION staff strongly supports the First Amendment rights to freedom of press and opposes censorship in any form.

LION is written primarily for LT students and faculty.

LION makes every possible effort to correctly spell the names of sources.

All facts must be checked for accuracy by the writer. Any unverified information will not be printed in LION. Most of what is published is the work of individuals. The writer’s name will be printed by every story, except for the editorials. The entire staff is responsible for all content that is published. Administrators have a non-review role and do not control the content prior to publication.

LION strives for the highest standards of accuracy in its presentation of material that time allows. The staff accepts responsibility for the accuracy of these facts.

Rumor, gossip and innuendo are not included in a story appearing in LION. Sources interviewed for a story will be given the opportunity to look through their interview notes and verify their quotes prior to the printer’s deadlines.

Every reporter and other member of the staff will face the ramifications for any inaccuracies presented in his or her story.

WriteUsALetter!

Have an opinion on a story? Are you passionate about something in the world or school? Any news? Opinions? Want to clarify something? Anything you want to tell us?

Write us a letter! Simply bring a letter, of any length, to NC Room 220, put it in Mr. Scales’s mailbox, or email the letter to Sydney Kaehler at kae503519@ student.lths.net and you may see it in the next issue!

Make sure the content of the letter is appropriate, sign your letter with your name and make sure to put down your email!

LION reserves the right to edit all submitted letters, and sadly not all letters will be published.

Whether it was the turquoise-blue ocean illuminated by the bright sun, the tall, evergreen mountains that outlined the horizon, or simply the overwhelmWhich teacher is most ing sense of being Spiro Kass likely to have a Finsta, and When have you been neckat home, my trip to deep in Arby’s mode? * what is it called?

Greece this past summer was filled with experiences and emotions that allowed me to have the time of my life.

For three weeks, I was given the opWhen my grid picture portunity to experience fascinating excursions across Greece with Ionian Village, Coach Taylor, was taken against my a summer camp mandated through the @littlerunnerboy will after cross counGreek Orthodox Archdiocese of America try practice that allows Greek-American high school students to tour through the country and learn about their culture and religion. Although the striking beauty of the When I want the meat country absorbed most of my attention, Mrs. Harbin, (ed. note: this is in fact the thought occasionally crossed my mind that not everyone is as passionate and @yung_harbz Arby’s catchphrase, not interested in their nationality as I am. innuendo) The thought that some people are not engaged in their culture disturbed me, mainly due to the importance my culture bestows upon my life. When people know who I am, they are usually aware of my Greek heritage; it is an essential part of Mr. Stormont, Rapping the whole my identity, and I would be a completely @theres_a_big_storm_ Waka Flocka Flame different person without it. Yet it pains coming song “No Hands” me to think that some people do not realize how the knowledge and involvement with their heritage can reveal a whole new, fascinating side to their lives.

As Americans, we live in a melting pot of cultures, identities and ethnicities. We When I’m with the Coach Rigo, would not be the same country we are babes @rigo_in_ur_DMs today if it weren’t for our acceptance of people of all different races. It is easy to take pride in being American, but in order to do so, it’s important to understand what being an American truly means.

Everyone, no matter their ethnic group or background, should take pride and August. Preparing for Mr. Bailey, engage in their own cultural heritage. It’s a new school year! an essential part of what makes the United @LTGrandMarshal States the country that it is.

Learning about the cultural aspects of your ethnicity allows you to express yourcompiled by Sydney Kaehler self in an extraordinary way. Whether it be learning about traditions or trying new food, engaging in different parts of your culture unfolds another piece of yourself and adds another layer of perspective to your life.

“The coolest natural disaster by far As for me, my interest in my Greek in the recent past was sharknado.” origin has allowed me to cross paths with people who can relate to my life in deeper -Caroline Anscombe ‘19 ways than others, simply based on our cultural similarities. Exploring your heritage can reveal a new side of you, and can potentially lead to friendships that will “It’s okay to talk about murdering last a lifetime. people if you say ‘lol’ after.”

Nevertheless, it angers me that multi-Abby Sheehan ‘18 culturalism has made its way to become a widely discussed topic. People of all different ideological beliefs continually debate whether or not we should incor“Not to be dramatic, but I’d rathporate the values of multiculturalism into our society. But it’s not something to er drop out of college than join a attack or to defend; it’s simply something sorority.” to embrace. For no matter what the argu-Heather Vogt ‘18 ment is, we live in a multicultural society where each and every citizen represents a cultural background.

Also, I understand that not everyone “Will, are you sure radio isn’t is able to travel to their origin country against Sharia law?” and truly experience the culture like I -Alexander Kuptel ‘18 was able to do. However, there are many different ways a person can learn and embrace his or her ethnic background.

Chicago is a gateway of multiculturalism, “I wore slides today and I keep tripwith a countless number of museums and ethnic cuisines that are available for ping over my own feet.” anyone to explore and try out. Let’s also -Natasha Vassek ‘18 not forget about the internet, where anyone could research anything about their culture and nationality.

Just remember, there is more to each and every one of us than being simply “I hate the shape of the Bible.”

American. You are not just Asian, African -Jordan Gatsos ‘19 American, Latino, Caucasian or any other superficial label that you are given. You’re Japanese, or Ugandan, or Chilean, or Swedish, or anything else that describes “We’re playing celebrity noses the importance of your culture and who you truly are. As for me, I’m not just Kahoot...” white. I’m Greek, and I would not be the same person if I was otherwise.

-Allison Fischer ‘18

RandomChatter

Write in and make your voice heard.  100 S. Brainard Ave., La Grange, Ill. 60525  LION reserves the right to edit all letters.

Opinions

Page 8

Friday, September 22, 2017

Should teachers share their political views in class?

PawsUp

n To Earth, Wind & Firenot entirely sure what the 21st night of September signifies, but thanks for making yesterday’s anthem. n To “unsafely” ejecting flashdrives- it wasn’t ready, but I was! n To missing English for group guidance - I’d rather stress about college than about a book I didn’t read. n To @WeRateDogs- the highlight of my day is reading about why Bubba is a 12/10. n To Operation Snowball- grab a form at the bookstore, it’s not a cult! n To the kid who actually returned my mechanical pencil- congrats, you’ve beaten the odds. n To the new black P.E. shorts- making swass unnoticable since 2017. n To dogs at parties- my social anxiety has been cured for the time being. n To friending teachers on Facebook after graduation- only 9 months until we’re equals! n To the Sprouse twinsway to keep it “suite” on Twitter with the constant roasts. n To cookie warmers in the cafeteria- warming my heart and my cookies during lunch. Also, where can I purchase one?

PawsDown

n To DiNico’s pizza being $6.49 now- totally NOT a LaGrange Move. n To 32-person Snapchat groups- I don’t have the time or data for this. n To music festival season being over- we’ll miss the music, not the Snap stories of you “moshing.” n To the Mandela Effectmy childhood was not a lie...was it? n To hurricanes- flooding homes is enough, please leave the animals alone. n To icebreakers- I’ve gone to school with “Chad” since we were six, I don’t need to know his favorite ice cream flavor. n To yellow tinted sunglasses- do you have an eye disease or are you just trying to be edgy? n To Spotify ads- not only are they annoying, but it’s terrifying to hear people chanting while I’m showering. n To the presence at the bottom of your stairs after turning off the lights- you’ll NEVER catch me. n To the new Taylor Swift- we didn’t like the old one either, but she’s dead now so we can’t do a Paws down to her.

LION interviewed 286 students about their opinions on politics in the classroom.

Should teachers share their political views in class?

No 51%

Yes 49%

Depends on context/ undecided 44%

Yes 42% No 14%

Have you ever felt that a teacher was pressing their political view on you in class?

No 57%

Yes 43%

No 36% Yes 54%

Are you comfortable respectfully challengling a teacher’s expressed political view in class?

Do your social studies and/or English teachers ever facilitate political discussion in class?

Private is professional We learn a great deal from our teachers.

Beyond rote knowledge, a good teacher can teach how to process information, how to reason and how to arrive at logical conclusions. Good teachers can teach their students how to think. But a teacher Greg Smith does a disservice when he or she tries to teach what to think.

High school students are in the midst of a formative period. Many students are just becoming aware of issues affecting their world, and their beliefs are not entirely defined. Consequently, they can be easily influenced by others, particularly those who hold positions of authority. In a classroom context, students provide a captive audience. Willing teachers have nearly an hour each day to impart their views on over a hundred young people.

Through this influence, teachers wield enormous power.

That power is amplified by the fact that a teacher typically has significant discretion over a student’s academic experience and grade. A student can experience substantial pressure to conform political expression to the plainly articulated views of a teacher. Even in the absence of retaliatory behavior, the pressure to conform can influence students’ expression or maybe convince students to keep quiet altogether.

Here at Lyons Township, Global Studies division chair Paul Houston lays out an ethical and professional policy for his teachers. In the classroom, social studies teachers are instructed to facilitate discussion about political issues, but not to influence students by revealing what they think or telling the students what they should think.

“A good social studies teacher is a professional devil’s advocate,” Houston said.

A student’s beliefs should be formed and influenced primarily by personal experience, in addition to those people

that the student chooses to surround him or herself with and what he or she chooses to read. But it is unfair for a public employee randomly assigned to the task of their instruction to tell teenagers what they ought to think.

The best solution and the most professional approach is for teachers to keep private their views on politics, religion and controversial topics. But that is not to say that teachers should ignore a student’s views or leave them unchallenged.

“I don’t try to impart my individual views to students.

I don’t even share my views with my students, though I do see it as my job to challenge a strongly held view, regardless of whether I might agree or disagree with that view,” AP United States History teacher Andrew Newcomb said.

Every department at LT should follow Houston’s lead. There is more opportunity for political discussion in social studies and English classes than in math and science, and it is important that students feel able to share their opinions.

Language Arts division chair Karen Raino agrees with Houston that the professional approach is facilitate political discussion in the classroom without influencing it directly.

“I don’t believe teachers should share their political beliefs,” Raino said. “There’s just a professional way to approach the classroom.”

Although the Language Arts division does not have specific guidelines for the issue, the framework does exist to easily implement in the Language Arts division the policy already in place in the Global Studies division.

The approach that both Raino and Houston support gives students the opportunity to form well-considered views. Teaching how to think, not what to think, should be the aim of an education in the humanities.

Let’s talk about it

There are three things you should never talk about in polite company: money, religion and politics. Luckily, I’m not polite.

It has always been a principle for teachers to conceal their political views in the Maddy Cohen classroom. While this has made the school environment much more tepid, not discussing these issues has also created a serious consequence: talking about politics makes us uncomfortable.

Teachers should be allowed to openly discuss their political views because incorporating politics into conversation in a constructive way is vital to ensure that students are politically active and aware once they leave LT. The absence of political discussion from the classroom has led these conversations to be taboo. From personal experience, it seems that a majority of high school students prefer to ignore politics and even look down upon those who care about politics at our age.

The forbidden discussion of these important matters discourages kids in high school to care about politics, which results in students leaving LT with little desire to be politically active as adults. The high level of politically-detached youth in U.S. was shown after last year’s election. According to The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagements, youth voter turnout was only 50 percent in 2016.

As American citizens, it is our job to fulfill our social responsibility and be active members of the American government. If hundreds of students are leaving LT without a strong grasp of their political ideology and what they believe the government should accomplish, then it is impossible to fill that duty.

In order to be politically sound, one must have an understanding of various issues from multiple perspectives, not just his or her own. If teachers don’t discuss politics in the classroom, leading students to not talk about politics at all, the

only perspective one gets from a political issue is often his or her own. If teachers were more willing to express their thoughts and opinions on certain topics, then students could see the issue through a different lens and have a better understanding of the problem overall. Whether or not the opinion of the student changes is irrelevant; what is important is that students are able to see multiple sides of a political dispute and can create a thorough and complete belief on how to fix it.

In today’s political climate, it seems that one can only identify as a liberal or a conservative. This strict, two party system has resulted in immense closemindedness on both sides of the spectrum. Allowing teachers to disclose their political ideology and encourage political discussion in the classroom could be the remedy to this intensifying issue. If teachers were able to discuss these controversial issues during school in a constructive and controlled fashion, it could result in students being more open-minded about these issues.

Obviously, teachers telling students who to vote for and what to believe in is wrong for many reasons (one of them being that it’s illegal). Teachers have no right to push their political opinions on their students; however, that does not mean that participating in political conversation should be banned entirely. Simply knowing what political party or ideology your teacher belongs to is not detrimental to your learning environment, but can in fact spark further conversation.

Believe it or not, we will one day be affected by what happens in the political sphere of the country. While it is nice to stay in a sheltered bubble unaware of the political dilemmas this country faces, the time for us to take control of our political responsibility as Americans is not as far away as we think. If teachers were willing to express their political beliefs, it would guarantee that students leave LT with a solid understanding of their own political beliefs as well as the beliefs of others.

NoPeaking High school is the only thing that’s on most of our minds, because it’s happening Sydney Kaehler right now.

Only seniors are worrying about what is to come next. No matter what everyone is thinking about, by senior year most of us have found our nichethe place you fit in. Everyone knows where everyone else stands, who your clique is and what you do for fun.

As a senior, I know who I like to hang out with and what I enjoy doing. As much fun as high school has been so far, I still always have one question burning in the back of my mind: “Will I peak in high school?” It’s what I have heard when my parents come back from high school reunions or even from people referring to themselves after they have graduated. What exactly does that mean, to “peak in high school?” The basic thought of this concept is how the so-called “nerds and geeks” end up being super successful and then the “jocks and athletes” usually end up worse than the people they felt superior to. It pretty much means that someone was living their best life when they were in high school.

But usually, we only see that sort of thing in predictable teen movies.

Everyone has a chance to turn their life around. Just going from freshman to senior year, I’ve seen people that used to run with a bad crowd who now focus more on a sport or passion. There are people that used to fly under the radar and then end up making a difference in the school or in another person come senior year. I suppose that right now, everyone is only concerned with who and where they are in the moment.

That’s fine, but what happens after we all graduate?

No one cares who you were in high school once you’ve thrown your cap into the air.

So, it makes me confused as to why people say that others “peaked” when they were somewhere between the ages of 14 and 18. You still have roughly 70 years left in life, and it’s all expected to be downhill?

“Peaking” to me seems like a sorry excuse to make if your life isn’t going how it’s supposed to. Don’t blame your failures or other’s success on who they once were, because everyone has a chance to change.

I’m not writing from a certain perspective either. Your past doesn’t determine your future. It’s what you’re doing in this moment that will shape who you are later. If you didn’t talk that much and wished you were more social, there’s still time in the rest of your life.

Everyone seems to watch these missed opportunities as they go along in life, and they feel like who they are is the track that they’ll always be stuck on.

Every single person has the ability to make choices. It doesn’t matter how old you are or what decisions you made when you were young. Do not sit and sulk as your days drag on, unhappy with your image or who you once were, because there is so much ahead of all of us. You didn’t peak. There’s no “mountaintop moment” of life. Rather than peaking, live with your highs and lows, and maybe even take a new route.

And remember, there is always time to be better.

Opinions

Friday, September 22, 2017

Page 9

StaffEditorials

ComicStrips

Activity restrictions

more of these experiences, not fewer. No one At school, students are encouraged to get involved in activities. Participating in and con- should tell them that they need to give up one tributing to a variety of clubs and teams makes activity to pursue another.

Students also learn to efficiently manage limfor well-rounded students, creates larger networks of friends and provides an overall healthy ited time when involved in sports and clubs.

Wasting valuable time that could be used for and positive experience. sleep or study on one’s phone is simply not an It does not make sense, then, that students option for those who are busily hustling from one are punished for doing what they are told and activity to the next. what is good for them. But Our position: Student athTeachers and parents this is frequently the case letes should not be punconstantly try – frequently with student athletes whose ished by coaches for being to no avail – to persuade commitments to sports conflict with their commitments involved in other clubs and students to spend less time staring at a screen and more to other activities. When a activities, even if committime staring at their books, student misses practice or a ments to their activities when an easy remedy is to competition for a club meeting sometimes conflict with get involved in activities or event, they are often punished by having the privilege commitments to their sport. outside of school and learn important time management to compete taken away.

High school is and should be a smorgasbord skills. Yes, athletic coaches want to win. And yes, winning is important. But it’s actually less of positive experiences that help us become healthy, mature and happy adults. Those expe- important than becoming a well-rounded and happy person. riences include both athletic and non-athletic Students shouldn’t recieve a penalty for wantactivities – soccer, band, math team, tennis, theater, etc. – which teach us about teamwork, ing to try new things during their four years at LT. While we certainly appreciate our coaches friendship and personal excellence while providing a stress-relieving outlet that’s also enjoy- and the work they do, isn’t this really about the students? Shouldn’t it be? We think so. able. Students should be encouraged to have

Staff vote: 24-0

Illustration by Anonymous Artist

Fake digital image

AnotherView

Staff vote: 23-1

LION

When scrolling through Instagram or the two. Followers on Instagram should be real watching Snapchat stories, it’s rare that the friends and kids should post about their real pictures aren’t posed or that the videos aren’t selves on all of their social media platforms. staged. Everyone knows that the person on In addition, when all someone sees on their social media is never the same person walking feed are perfect pictures, it puts increased presthrough the halls. If everyone understands this sure on them to do the same. truth, why does anyone keep up the act?

Teenagers are already at an increased risk of Teens edit their photos and make sure they anxiety and depression, and reports show that only post pictures from fun events or parties the pressure of social media only adds to that. that they went to. They add a witty caption in According to a report from Common Sense an attempt to seem funnier.

Media, teens aged 13-18 spend Our position: Teenag- an average of nine hours online Thousands of photo editing apps exist to ensure that one can ers should ditch the every day. Nine hours. That’s present the best physical appear- act on social media almost 40 percent of their day. and stop trying to ance in every photo. In reality Compare this to the seven hours present themselves as teens normally spend at school, there’s no point, considering someone they’re not. which only consumes almost 30 everyone knows that the photo was edited. People in real life percent of their day. If a teenager know what each. spends that much time online seeing the best Still, most teenagers have a “finsta” or fake version of all of his or her classmates, they will Instagram, where most people, ironically, post feel the need to present the best version of their most honest or real pictures and stories. themself. Nobody’s perfect. That’s a fact. LookIn most cases, people make this account private ing at social media, it’s easy to think that everyand only let their closest friends follow them. one else has their life put together. Instead of But most people’s “rinsta,” or real Instagram, trying to obtain that level of perfection, realize is public and where teens post their best, most that what is on social media is most often a fake, pictures. blurred image of who someone really is. Stop There should not be a discrepancy between trying to be perfect; start trying to be real.

Limited NC parking next to the Vaughan building and expanding Alongside a new campus and the status of the lot is an option, though before the idea upperclassmen, NC brings the sweet bliss of could grow, it was shot down due to interfernot having to ride the bus anymore and of not ence with physical education curriculum. needing to arrive to school hot and sweaty It has resurfaced over the years, and adminfrom a lengthy walk. Whether carpooling with istrators hold out hope that it may still be a friends or driving solo, the luxury of being viable option in the future. able to get oneself to and from school cannot Even though it wouldn’t open up enough be overstated. availability for everyone; the only way to do Unfortunately, the parking situation at that would be a full blown parking garage, paid LT is abysmal. The furthest section of stufor with bonds and/or future parking fees. But dent parking is a mile away, a 12-minute a parking garage in the middle of a suburban walk. Paying $200 for a parking spot seems neighborhood is not only unaesthetic, but a like a poor investment, considering you may hassle for students and residents need to walk from Willow Our position: LT needs as construction would be a multiSprings Road and cross the month process. train tracks. When students to make a stronger Everyone has a reason they have attempted to park on effort to provide closer deserve the best spot: they live the side streets, but neighbors parking for their stufarthest, they work after school, call police to have their cars dents and staff. they have to rush to SC for a club towed. The issue has elevated or sport. For this reason, very little to the point that LT students factors into receiving a parking pass. The only have contacted families who live near NC advantage there is applies to seniors, who are to pay to park in their driveway during the allowed to enter a lottery of 30 spots in the school day. parking lot. While this is a definite senior perk, The entire problem stems from the fact that it doesn’t help the students who still have to LT was built in 1888, when the first automowalk a mile to their car. bile had just been produced three years earlier.

There isn’t an easy or quick solution to the Cars were the last thing on anyone’s mind, but problem at hand. More space won’t magically ever since the late 1980s, LT administration has appear in suburban LaGrange. received flack on the lack of availability.

We’re already hoping the administration Renting out spaces at St. John’s Lutheran takes action. In the meantime, we have nothing Church is a potential solution. They could left to do but bundle up; cold winter treks are make a profit off of their proximity to LT North right around the corner.

Campus. Taking the grassy area behind the lot

Illustration by Sydney Kaehler The Voice of Lyons Township Students Since 1910

Open Forum The opinion section of Lion is a public forum. Opinions expressed in columns and letters to the editor are the opinions of individuals. Letters to the editor must be signed and represent only the views of the signed writer.

Editorials Editorials represent the collective opinion of the entire Lion staff. The idea for the staff editorial will come from the Opinions Editor or suggestions of the other editors and staff members. One writer will compose each editorial.

Advertising Display advertising rates begin at $30 with optional discounts available. Call (708) 5796403 between 2:10 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. for further information.

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Lion 2017-18 Staff Spiro Kass, Editor-in-Chief Greta Markey, Managing Editor of Print Content Brandt Siegfried Managing Editor of Online/Social Media Content Maddy Cohen, Art Director/Design Chief Grant Campbell, News Editor Lars Lonnroth, Assistant News Editor Sydney Kaehler, Opinions Editor Greg Smith, Assistant Opinions Editor Mikaela Larson, Luke Lusson, Sports Editors Sarah Grier, Lindsey Hauch Pulse Editors Christina Rossetti, Photo Editor Camilla Breen, Assistant Photo Editor Spencer Levinson, Grace Dekoker, Copy Editors Mary Devine, Georgia Dougherty, Harper Hill, Pilar Valdes, Taylor Schmitt, Mary Okkema, Isabel Tuisl, Hayden Clasesson, Reporters Danny Kilrea, Online Editor and Freelance Reporter Travis Morales, Freelance Reporter Jason Scales, Advisor Ryan Darrah, Faculty Assistant

Staff vote: 23-1 C ontact

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Page 10

sports

Kilrea runs at national level Attends highly selective camp, prepares for senior season

Important Upcoming Meets

West Suburban Conference meet IHSA State Final meet

by Mary Devine @marydwannab

Oct. 14 Nov. 4

As Danny Kilrea ‘18 woke up to the Kilrea’s attitude towards running sound of his alarm one morning before has impacted others as well. Teammate practice, he noticed a unique email notiCharles Harders ‘18 feels that Kilrea fication on his phone. As he checked his properly fills his role as captain. inbox, there it was: an offer from Nike, “He’s a good teammate and he pushes asking if he wanted to attend the Nike everyone to try to run their best,” HardElite Distance Camp over the summer ers said. “He definetly motivates us to from July 19 to 23. be better. A lot of guys have improved “[It] was an unreal experience for because of Danny pushing them.” me,” Kilrea said. “It was an honor to be From the experience he gained at the selected and training with nine of the camp, Kilrea hopes to use his knowledge most elite high school runners in the to train in the healthiest way, he said. country.”

For now, he is focusing on his final LT The Nike Elite Camp has been selectcross country season. So far, he has ing 18 of the best high school cross counalready run a time of 14 minutes and 10 try runners, nine male and nine females, seconds, similar to last year’s pace. since 2010. It focuses on building up “My training has been consistent the nation’s best runners to keep the US and I have increased my work outside competition up to high standards. Jake Danny Kilrea ‘18 passes a runner at the LT invitational of running by doing new forms of cross Discipio, the assistant coach for LT var- on Sept. 2 on his way to finishing first. (Devine/LION) training,” Kilrea said. sity cross country, felt the experience was well worth it for Kilrea.

Harders also believes that Kilrea will run to a higher level, “Danny was exposed to some of the best facilities, coaches he said. and athletes in the country on his trip to Oregon,” Discipio said.

“Last year he ran really well but this year he has been doing “This probably helped solidify Danny’s understanding of what he way more,” Harders said. “He’s been running at a much higher is capable of and where he belongs in terms of competition and standard. If he had the success he had last year, I think he is going ability.” to do very well.”

Finishing second in the state meet last year as a junior, Kilrea Kilrea’s running career is nowhere close to being finished. ran his three mile race in 14 minutes and eight seconds, Kilrea After this year, he plans to continue doing what he loves in colsaid. That would be finishing each mile in about four minutes and lege, he said.

42 seconds.

“I’m glad that when I run in college I will already have aware“The camp has helped me realize that there are people around ness of who other good runners in the country are in case they end the country working just as hard as I am so I know I can’t settle,” up being my teammates,” Kilrea said. he said.

Kilrea runs next at Culver Academy in Culver, Ind., Sept. 23.

State champion elects not to return Low tennis tryout numbers worry some

by Harper Hill @harpss42

A

fter a perfect season in 2016, in which she remained undefeated for 23 matches, Lahari Yelamanchili ‘19 claimed the 2A singles title in the state tournament. However, Yelamanchili has not committed to play LT tennis this year, and may only return if needed near the end of the season.

“This year I am trying to focus on my game with my regular coaches,” Yelamanchili said. “I need to be more aggressive with my game. I’m just working on moving forward.”

Yelamanchili is playing individual tennis tournaments against different people around the country through the United States Tennis Association (USTA), she said.

She is trying to build upon her skills so she can compete in international tournaments and improve her national ranking in hopes of receiving a college scholarship, LT girls varsity head coach Bill Wham said.

“Last year when we walked out there, we had the two best singles players in the state, Jelly Bozovic ‘17 and Lahari, so we were set,” Wham said. “This year we don’t have the strength at the top to do that. We just don’t.”

Wham currently has his players focusing solely on singles matches because that is where they lack strength, mainly due to the loss of Yelamanchili, he said.

“I don’t have one singles player out here, not one, that can play with [Yelamanchili],” Wham said. “I only have one really strong singles player and that’s Joie Reisch ‘18. She’s given it a lot of effort, and now hopefully it will come through.”

Co-captain Reisch is expected to score well for the team over the course of the season in hopes to fill Yelamanchili’s shoes, Wham said. She has been constantly improving, and is now looking for a scholarship to play in college.

“I think we have some strong players who were working hard this summer, and some players that made a huge jump in improving their game,” Reisch said. “Everyone is really energetic and excited to be playing.”

This year, tryout numbers were low compared to past years.

While the varsity team has full numbers with 14 players, the JV team only has 10 players, whereas in previous years it has had 16-18 players, Wham said.

“A lot of it probably has to do with team sports,” Wham said.

“That’s taking some kids from us because [tennis] is set up as a team by position, but when they go on the court they’re individuals and some kids don’t want to put the time in and the effort to succeed at that level.”

Tennis is a cut sport at LT, however no cuts were made this season, Wham said. It’s the feeder programs and other activities that are hurting LT’s program. The numbers this year won’t be a problem, but if they continue to decrease, it will become concerning.

“Overall, the level is pretty high,” co-captain Mattigan Kelly ‘18 said. “We are still going to be pretty good this year, but we definitely will have a long way to go.”

Last year, LT’s girls tennis team finished second in the IHSA state tournament. This year, the team is working hard to get one singles player and one doubles team to qualify for state, Wham said.

“I think we have a good chance of getting all our players to qualify [for state] if we keep it up with the solid effort and enthusiasm,” Reisch said.

The team’s next away meet is against Lake Forest on Sept. 23.

The next home meet is on Sept. 26 against their biggest competitors, Hinsdale Central.

Charlie Clarke ‘18 beats a Glenbrook North defender. (Devine/LION)

Soccer strives for deep playoff run

Early challenges tests senior driven team

by Georgia Dougherty @georgiadoc6

After playing the first, second, fifth and eighth best teams in state, the varsity boys soccer team is off to a challenging start. As of Sept. 19, the team’s record stands at 8-3-1.

“LT is always a top program so we always have high expectations,” third year midfielder and captain Charlie Hall ‘18 said.

“First of all, we want to win conference for sure; we did that last year and we think we can do it again.”

This season’s captains are Hall, fourth year goalkeeper Matt Vear ‘18 and second year defender and forward Eric Gradilla ‘18. “[They are] fantastic captains, they’re motivational, they work hard, they do all the right things,” varsity Head Coach Paul Labbato said.

Despite losing their top four goal scorers, the team has 15 returning seniors that have been playing together for awhile, so several players are good friends, Hall said.

“This year for sure we have more of a defensive dynamic,” he said. “Last year was probably more attacking. We’ve kept our defense pretty much, so we’re going to have to figure out how to score. That’s the focus this year.”

Most of the starting lineup was on the same club team over the summer, Lyons Township Soccer Club, where they competed at nationals in Texas. Their club success is one of the reasons they have such high expectations for the high school season and have gotten along well as a team, Hall said.

“We all have good chemistry and we get along,” Vear said.

“There’s no person that doesn’t fit in. We all work together.”

The team is preparing excitedly for the game against Hinsdale Central tonight, Sept. 22 on Bennett field. Last year the team won the silver brick back after three years of losing it and should try to keep it again, Labbato said.

“We’re just a really good unit,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of big, strong athletes that are good soccer players and they’ve gelled early. I think this team has a potential of winning conference, and I think they’ll make a decent run at the end of the year into the playoffs.”

So far the leading goal scorer is Charlie Clarke ‘18, who usually plays defensive center mid, but has switched to a center forward this season. Additionally, Jonathan Gray ‘19 has filled in

Continued on page 11

Friday, September 22, 2017

PlayoffPush It hasn’t even been a year since the Chicago Cubs made history and broke their 107-year World Series drought. Yet, here we are, Cub fans, feeling a bit frusLuke Lusson trated over this year’s team.

Some may find it crazy that there are unhappy fans of a team who just won their first title in over a century, but if we pick through the big names on the Cubs roster, it’s understandable. With loads of talent comes loads of expectations.

It’s natural for fans of the defending champions to not only hope for a repeat of what they saw last year, but also to expect something similar. Therefore, Cub fans get worried when they see their ball club fighting to win their own division while the Indians are busy winning 22 straight games.

However, it must be noted how difficult it is to repeat as champions in any sport, especially the MLB, where each team plays a whopping 162 regular season games. A plethora of things can go wrong for any team, regardless of how well they played last year. In fact, no MLB team has repeated as world champions since the New York Yankees won their second of three straight titles back in 1999.

Let’s not pretend that this Cubs team has it easy. They may have loads of talent at just about every position, but there are other teams that do as well, along with an added determination to dethrone the Cubs and bring a title back to their home city.

With that being said, it’s fair to say that the Cubs have underperformed this season thus far. Oddly enough, the struggles began before the first pitch of the season was even thrown.

Dexter Fowler leaving to play for the NL Central rival St. Louis Cardinals left the Cubs without a true leadoff hitter. This led to Joe Maddon’s experiment with Kyle Schwarber as Fowler’s replacement in the leadoff spot, which completely backfired. Schwarber is batting a meager .207 average this season and even had a brief stint in the minor leagues from late June to early July.

As a team, the hitting numbers aren’t too impressive. The Cubs currently rank 16th in batting average (.256) and have the 10th most total strikeouts in the MLB (1,290).

The numbers are a bit better in regards to pitching. The Cubs have a 4.08 team ERA and hold their opponents to a .239 batting average. Also, it looks like the Cubs have one of the game’s best closers in Wade Davis, who has yet to blow a save. That type of consistency in the ninth inning will be key come October.

Although the Cubs have had their fair share of struggles so far this season, I still think this team has as good a chance as any team at winning the World Series. Actually, their early struggles are one of the main reasons why I say this. I believe that the Cubs have seen their hardest days of the season already. With baseball having such a long season, each team is going to have their ups and downs. What really matters is how your team is playing when October rolls along and the Cubs have shown steady improvement since the All-Star break, where they held an unimpressive 43-45 record. Now, they stand at 75-61 and look to be playing their best baseball of the year.

And let’s not forget all the dangerous players the Cubs have in their lineup. Nine Cubs batters have hit at least 10 home runs and one of their best young hitters, Willson Contreras, is now back in the lineup after missing extended time due to a hamstring injury. His leadership and grit behind the plate is a crucial for this team.

The last reason I think this Cubs squad is suited for another World Series run is based on their gained experience from last year’s postseason. Now that all the “curse” talk is gone, I expect the bats to be swung more freely in October. For example, I don’t see Anthony Rizzo starting off this year’s postseason in a slump like we saw last year. Those nerves should be gone by now and if the bats are hot like they have been in the second half of this season, the sky is the limit for this caliber of a team.

Cub fans, and all baseball fans for that matter, don’t let the regular season fool you.

The World Series Champion often doesn’t end up being the team who comes into the playoffs with the best record. October baseball is, in a way, a whole new season where any team can get hot abd make a run. The bottom line is the Cubs have both the talent and experience that it takes to pull off what they did last year. It’s because of this that I still see another run at the World Series trophy a real possibility for the Chicago Cubs.

All stats are correct as of Sept. 18.

Friday, September 22, 2017

sports

Football off to hot start Team sets high expectations after opening with four staight wins

Page 11

Remaining Schedule @ Leyden vs. Glenbard West @ Downers Grove North @ Hinsdale Central vs. Oak Park River Forest

9/22 9/29 10/6 10/13 10/20

GirlsGotGame

Yes, I can drop a fact on why it made sense Mayweather would beat McGregor. Yes, I can ast year was a break“We have all the tools we started to click,” cornerback touchdown in the third quarter explain to you why the through season for LT need to score points on any JJ Dutton ‘19 said. “We did lose against Hinsdale South.

Oilers will win the Stanley football. Not only did opponent,” Bryant said. a ton of seniors on defense, but “Playing quarterback has Cup in the next five years. they hand Glenbard West their On defense, however, LT the newcomers have been so helped me at cornerback Mikaela Larson Yes, I can debate for hours first conference loss in six years, graduated numerous key play- hungry for the opportunity to because of the ways I can read on why Jake Arrieta is not but they seized their first play- ers from last year’s squad and play. We’re all playing smart, the quarterback’s eyes and scan worth the money. And yes, I realize it’s rare off win since 2012 by defeat- has needed younger players to fast, free and physical.” where he would go,” Dutton for a girl to have this much sports knowling a formidable Naperville fill the holes. After giving up Dutton, a quarterback who said. edge, but I am fed up and tired of people North opponent on the road.

22 points in game one, the new switched over to play cornerLT currently stands at 4-0 on finding the need to tell me that.

Their playoff run ended look defensive unit bounced back this season, is one of the the season, including a 31-7 vicFor as long as I can remember sports have the next week, however, by back with a dominant perfor- players who has stepped in to tory over Hinsdale South at had a hold on me. Whether that be waking way of an overtime loss mance in week two, where replace LT’s defense from last home and commanding 33-8 up every morning to watch Stuart Scott on to Palatine. This season, they held Hinsdale South to season. He has found early suc- road win over York. Next Sportscenter before school or balancing two the teams looks to build on last only one touchdown. cess at his new position, as he Friday, Sept. 29, LT will look of my own travel sports, it has been my life, year’s success and go further in “This defense has really returned an interception for a to make it back-to-back wins to say the least. From an early age, I recthe playoffs. over Glenbard West as they ognized that I was not going to be the best “Playoff experience is always host the Hilltoppers at 7:30 p.m. female athlete to ever exist. While I dreamt great to have on a team,” quaron the newly renovated Ben- of playing college hockey for the four-time terback Ben Bryant ‘18 said. nett Field turf.

NCAA Champion Wisconsin Badgers, I more “I think we will have a much In the long run, the team or less realized that I had a better chance of better outcome in the playoffs hopes to capture both the West being struck by lightning. this year because we know how Suburban Silver Conference That’s when my next plan came to fruto handle the situations that we and Class 8A state titles, head ition: I would be the next Hannah Storm. were in.” coach Kurt Weinburg said. She can pull stats out of thin air and tell you Offensively, LT brings Although this is a tall task to more about your favorite team than you back an abundance of playaccomplish, the coaching staff know. She busted down barriers left and makers from last year’s team, and players all believe these right, finding the formula to make it in a cutincluding Bryant, Brandon goals are achievable. throat, male dominated industry like sports Fischer ‘18 and Nate Rusk ‘18.

“We have all the parts of a journalism.

Also, the team has an experigood group,” Weinburg said. “I Upon googling “ESPN female anchors” to enced and talented offensive hope we can fulfill our poten- simply find the ratio of men to women at the line to throw and to run behind. LT offense huddles during the Salute to Service game. (Breen/LION) tial.” network, I instead discovered the first thing to pop up on suggested searches was “ESPN female anchors legs.” How can a woman ever be taken seriously if there are a multitude of YouTube videos dedicated to their calves?

Yes, they may be larger than the average Early success and young talent creates opportunities for podium position female, but that is also because they were DI

by Mary Okkema athletes! Strength in women, either physi@maryokkema cally or mentally carries a stigma of being a The pressure is on. It is the 400-yard in state, and the team has potential to place “I think it is going to help us, because it cold bitch and the sports industry has been freestyle relay, the last event of the Aug. 30 higher this season. is hard to coach girls on JV 2 and varsity at the slowest to modify their views on women meet at LT SC pool. Madison Wanless ‘18, “We lost some seniors that were a really the same time because they are very differ- and power. the second swimmer in the relay, feels the big part of the team, both from a perfor- ent type of swimmers,” Gannon said. “They The largest offender comes from the frat energy coming from everyone in the crowd. mance standpoint, but also their attitude have different weaknesses and strengths, so house favorite: Barstool Sports. With posts The meet is neck and neck, and every point and the way they carried themselves,” Head I think it is going to make the team a lot on their instagram titled “Daily Smokeshow” matters. This event would decide if girls’ Girl’s Swim and Dive coach Kurt Johns stronger.” they are constantly degrading women by swim and dive defeats New Trier. said. “At the same time, we were fortunate On a week without meets, the girls objectifying their bodies with the most “They placed fifth at have morning practice obscene and offensive comments imaginable. state last year, so to know from 5:30 a.m. to 7 a.m. They are not helping their cause when the that we have the potenon Monday and Friday, only time they ever have women featured is tial to be competing with Callahan Dunn ‘20 said. with their vlog segment titled “Chicks in the them, and to be better than On Tuesday and Thursday Office” where women can be seen discussing them is an amazing feelmornings from 6 a.m. to 7 hickies and Justin Bieber, the least hard-hiting,” Mary Kate Gannon a.m., they have dryland, ting sports journalism I’ve ever heard of.

‘19 said. athletic training done by Some female anchors have come out and The two LT relay swimmers on land that said they feel the need to be sexy and dress groups ultimately placed improves performance provocatively on camera in order to be consecond and third in the in the water. Regardless sidered credible. In an interview with HBO’s 400-yard freestyle relays, of morning prctices, the show Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, Chawhich allowed the team to entire team has a two and rissa Thompson explained how at first she beat New Trier on all three a half hour practice after dyed her hair black for credibility in order levels. This meet was the school. If there is a meet, to rid herself of the blonde girl, “Barbie first time any IHSA girls’ it takes the place of one of image.” But instead of getting attention for swim team had beaten the afternoon practices or her reporting, websites such as DeadSpin New Trier in a dual meet the Saturday practice from commented on her transition to ugliness in since 2006. The scores 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. an article titled “Charissa Thompson Conwere varsity 99-87; JV 1 “I think some of our tinues Down Suicidal Path to Frumpyville.”

100-86; and JV 2 102-84, strengths include being Upset with the unexpected negative backaccording to IHSA.org. super energetic and feed- lash, Thompson went back to her iconic “I was so thrilled that Mary Kate Gannon ‘19 swims butterfly against New Trier. (Claesson/LION) ing off of each other’s cra- blonde locks which prompted DeadSpin to we beat them,” Wanless said. “It was a little enough that we have so much depth and so ziness which makes practice really fun,” post a new article on her: “Charissa Thompreminder that everything we were doing in much talent on our team. It looks like we Wanless said. “We also push each other son Returns to Bonerville.” After seeing this, practice so far had been paying off, and we will be able to fill those voids pretty easily.” every day, whether it be swimming or dry- I honestly did not know where to begin. just had to keep doing what we were doing In order to improve, practice style has land. We’ve got a great group of girls who How can any decent human being write that to see results like this in the future.” changed up this season, said Gannon. Instead are always so encouraging.” about someone else and how can any news This is just one victory for the girls’ swim of all the swimmers practicing together, the The girls will be swimming next on Sept. outlet have the AUDACITY to publish that. and dive team on its journey towards state, girls are split up into three separate training 23 at the Rosary Invitational and the LT Thompson is trying to make a living Gannon said. Last year, they placed 10th groups: varsity, JV 1 and JV 2.

Frosh/Soph Invitational. doing something she is truly passionate about, and instead of being recognized for her sideline reporting and ability to quickly turn a story, DeadSpin responded to her proContinued from page 10 fessionalism in the most mysogonistic and defensively because of injuries and has stood out, Labbato said. unprofessional way by saying “If this is an “There’s definitely been some going from up and down each seaattempt for Thompson to be taken more serison, it depends on the year,” Vear said. “We can either start well or ously as a sideline reporter, somebody should Nov. 17-18 shake her before this goes too far.” Before finish well. I think we have a lot more experience this year, especialSept. 14 Aug. 26 Aug. 30 what goes too far? Her caring about her ly with the defense.” career more than her cleavage? Her deciding The team lost their first game of the PepsiCo Showdown on Sept. that professionalism is more important than 9 to Streamwood by a score of 2-1, eliminating them from the tourappearing sexy on camera? nament.

Women in sports is nothing new, yet State meet “We will look at that game as a lesson learned and use it as a people still find the need to critque any girl feeling that we do not want to feel again,” Vear said. “We will strive who can hold a conversation with intellito be better so we don’t have to be in that situation of defeat again.” gence. Women are watching sports more 130-55 win vs.

99-87 win 126-44 win vs.

While venturing toward playoffs, the team is working on solidithan ever before so obviously it makes sense fying their team dynamic.

Naperville North vs. New Trier Glenbard West they would also have an understanding and “I like not only hanging around and meeting all the players, getreputable analysis of the game. Yes, I am ting to know them, but certainly, trying to build a team for a short a sports editor for one of the nation’s best season and seeing how good we can make them,” Labbato said. “I high school newspapers, why are you so surCompiled by Hayden Claesson prised?

Source: lths.net think that’s the fun part about high school coaching.”

by Luke Lusson @LukeLusson

L

Girls swim and dive ready for state

Boys soccer faces difficulties

Page 12

sporTs

Friday, September 22, 2017

From Bennett Field to the NFL

LT alumnus Jake Elliott ‘13 selected by Cincinnati Bengals in fifth round, 153rd overall in 2017 NFL draft

S

ept. 17 was a day to be remembered forever as Jake Elliott ‘13 stepped onto the field in Arrowhead Stadium against the Kansas City Chiefs and made his NFL debut for the Philadelphia Eagles. He went two-for-three on field Jake Elliott’s career may only be six years old, goals, knocking one in from 40 yards out, but he has accomplished quite a bit in that short and two-for-two on extra points. time. Listed below are some of the highlights for If you asked Elliott freshman year what what he has done thus far. sport he’d be playing in college, you might have heard tennis or basketball, as football wasn’t even a thought in his mind until a random contest drawing put him in a field goal kicking competition.

“The backstory of how I got involved Finished high school in football is pretty bizarre,” Elliott said. “I with full ride scholargot picked out of the crowd at the pep rally ship offers to Memphis before the homecoming game to participate in a field goal kicking contest. I knocked a University and North few through and Coach [Kurt] Weinberg Dakota University came up to me and told me I should consider going out for the team. I kind of brushed it off and stuck to the sports I knew.”

Named a first team At the time of the contest, tennis was a All-American by USA year round commitment between club and Today following his high school, varsity football coach Jason Brauer said. It was not until Elliott’s junior junior season year that he began playing football for LT. “That next summer before his junior year we were practicing on the turf and were First team Academic really having a hard time even making an extra point,” Brauer said. “Coach [Mark] All American following Kropke came up to me in the middle of his senior season the practice and said ‘Jake is over practicing tennis right now. Why don’t you go give it one more shot to get him out here?’ ” Since tennis was a high school spring Four-time first team All sport, varsity tennis coach Bill Wham had no problem with Elliott electing to play Conference football in the fall.

“Early in the year he would bring a bag of [footballs] to practice and we would have Two-time special teams tennis guys shag them,” Wham said. “So I knew he could kick but I didn’t know he player of the year, was serious about it until they asked him to American conference come over and actually try it.”

In his short, two season high school career, Elliott quickly rose to become one of Two-time Scholar the best kickers in the state as well as the Athlete Sport Excelcountry, being named National Underclasslence Award, American man of the Year at the kicking position at the end of his junior season, Brauer said.

Conference “[Elliott] spent most practices working by himself perfecting his craft,” he said.

Compiled by Mikaela Larson “He made back to back field goals at the Sources : Jake Elliott, Gotigersgo.com buzzer to win us two football games.

by Mikaela Larson @mikaela_larson

Jake Elliott ‘13 kicks a field goal against the Kansas City Chiefs in his NFL debut. (Martin/Eagles)

The first was our Homecoming game of the 2011 season when Matthew Harris ‘13 was able to block a punt and recover the ball at the 35 yard line with a two or three seconds left in the game. Coach Weinberg opted to give Jake a shot and he went out and nailed a 52-yard field goal at the buzzer to win the game. Jake followed this up the next week with a 47-yard field goal at the buzzer to beat York and without either of these made field goals we would have missed the playoffs.”

On his birthday, Elliott got the offer to kick at the University of Memphis and accepted that same day. His time as a Tiger led to national recognition, receiving a variety of awards including USA Today First Team All-American and four-time First Team All-Conference for the American Conference.

“I realized pro football was a possibility after my junior season at Memphis when I was selected as a finalist for the Lou Groza Award and got a chance to go down and get honored at the College Football Hall of Fame,” Elliott said. “Standing around all the stars of college football was the moment I realized I could have a special opportunity.”

Draft day rolled around and there was a feeling of excitement, stress and nerves as Elliott was surrounded by friends and family, waiting for the elusive call.

“When I got that call my heart

sank,” Elliott said. “[It was] probably the best feeling I’ve ever had in my life. Not knowing your fate and what life has in store going forward [but then to hear the] phone ringing was incredible.”

On April 30, 2017, Elliott was officially a Cincinnati Bengal, though the challenge was just beginning. There were two kickers throughout the preseason fighting for one spot of the 53-man roster and Elliott failed to beat out veteran Randy Bullock.

“I talked to Jake throughout camp and every time he said the competition between him and Bullock was very intense,” Brauer said. “Everything was charted and evaluated throughout practice and games. He was obviously disappointed to be assigned to the practice squad but felt confident he would get his shot in the NFL sooner rather than later.”

Soon came quite quickly as on Sept. 12 Elliott was picked up by the Philadelphia Eagles after their kicker, Caleb Sturgis, was put on the injury reserve.

“He knew he would either stay or go quickly and that is exactly what happened,” Wham said. “He was gone in basically two days and now is a starting kicker for the Eagles. I knew and he knew he’d be able to make it because he is extremely competitive in everything he does. Jake is focused 99-percent of the time and he has the mental aptitude and ability to embrace the moment and win a game if it depends on him.”

by Hayden Claesson @_wizard_of_soz

On a typical early Monday morning practice for the girls swim team, Callahan Dunn ’20 walked up onto the starting blocks as varsity swim coach Kurt Johns said “Take your marks.” Dunn heard the blast of the whistle and dived in for a 200 freestyle.

She swam the eight lengths of the pool that make up the race. She pulled ahead of her teammates as the practice race progressed. She quickly touched the wall and pulled her head up to hear Johns say her time of 1 minute and 56 seconds.

“I just turned to Allison Credit and said ‘who does that?” Johns said. “It’s 5:45 on a Monday morning and we’ve warmed up 400 yards and she went faster than a lot of kids go suited up in a meet.”

The mix of incredible work ethic and athleticism has showed off in the pool. Last year at the sectionals meet as a freshman, Dunn won the 200 individual medley with an impressive time of 2:08.30 which sent her to the IHSA state finals. Only to swim a personal best time of 2:04.09 in the IM to place ninth at the state meet and set a new school record. She also participated in three relays and broke a total of four school records during the 2016 season, all during her first high school season.

“Last year going into sectionals I didn’t really know what to expect,” Dunn said. “I wasn’t really tapered but I felt the hype of sectionals.”

This year, Dunn has posted the top times in season in the 500 freestyle and the 200 IM. Dunn may swim the 500 free along with the 200 IM this year at sectionals due to the lack of depth in the state in the event, Johns said. In a meet against Naperville North on Aug. 26, Dunn put up a winning 200 free time of 1:54.98, which placed her as the second fastest time in the state of Illinois.

In the 2017 season Dunn is a standout on a team loaded with underclassmen talent.

Eleven out of the 15 swimmers and divers on last years sectionals team are returning this year. Of those 11, seven of them were freshmen and sophomores. Among the returning swimmers this year, Dunn has established herself as a leader and an inspiration to her other teammates.

“She really motivates us to work harder and when we need to work harder she picks up the slack,” Team Captain Madison Wanless ’18 said. “She also helps with the underclassmen and has really taken a role that the upperclassmen can’t always take on.”

Dunn’s impact on her team is not just the leadership shown by taking the ropes of the upperclassmen, but also through hard work at practice.

“She is a leader by example,” Margaret Meehan ‘21 said. “We see her putting in the work day in and day out in dryland and swimming. When we see her swim crazy fast times at the meet we see that putting in work along the way is important to our swimming journey.”

Dunn has been swimming with Meehan for years outside of school in Lyons Swim Club, allowing for her to train year round, her training includes swimming this past summer at many national level swim meets. These meets are in Orlando, Fla., in the spring of 2017, and USA Swimming’s Futures Championships in Lewisville, Texas last August. Swimming personal bests in the 200 freestyle and 400 freestyle, Dunn said.

“She’s one of those girls that came in with a strong background and a good stroke technique,” Johns said. “Obviously well accomplished but what really impressed me last year was the work ethic.”

With the excitement of a new season comes expectations. Last year the LT girls swim and dive team finished 10th in the state meet. This year they are expected to place sixth, according to prepaquatics.com, a website that follows IHSA swimming. The team’s expectations are to build off of last years finish, Johns said. However for Dunn, the goal is simple.

“Just keep on improving I guess,” Dunn said. “I have time goals but other than that I want the team to do better at state.”

Dunn swims next at the Rosary Invitational Sept. 23.

Turn to pages 16-17 for full coverage

Health

Page 14

Thursday, April 13, 2017

Just as bad as cocaine LION took a look at the nutritional information in popular LT cafeteria items and here’s what we found.

Calories: 518 Fat: 11.5 grams Sugar: 5 grams

Calories: 170 Fat: 8 grams Sugar: 16 grams

Calories: 265 Fat: 5 grams

by Danny Kilrea @dannykilrea

There seems to be a nationwide effort to make America’s obesity rate go down. There was once a time when nutritionists thought fat was the leading cause of the obesity epidemic. Thus, labels are slapped on food packages with the convincing words of “0-percent fat.” If all of our food is becoming low-fat, then shouldn’t our population be getting thinner?

According to Dr Robert Lustig, author of “Fat Chance: The Bitter Truth About Sugar,” 38 percent of adults in our country are obese. So, what is the issue? Why is our population getting fatter is we are cutting down on fat? The answer lies in one sweet villain: sugar, or more commonly seen as high-fructose corn syrup or disguised as dextrose, glucose or diastatic malt.

Sugar has a sneaky way of creeping up on its consumer. It is a carbohydrate which will transfer into fat in the body. It contains empty calories that will ultimately fatten up the body while increasing insulin resistance, in turn causing a spike of hunger that makes the consumer want more sugary foods. As fat levels have been decreasing in food, sugar levels have been going up, according to nutritionist Dr. Michael Greger.

The food industry has even hooked the consumer on buying more and more sugar because it is just as addic-

tive as cocaine and heroin, according to researchers from Queensland University of Technology. Sugar is in virtually every food, such as breakfast cereals, soda, chips, bread, cookies, pastries, jams, pasta, etc, becoming a staple ingredient in most people’s diet. Foods that are advertised as a healthy option could be loaded with sugar, thus consumers think they are eating well but are in reality getting hooked on a tasty treat.

Cutting calories and not eating has been a common method for many obese people to cut down on their weight, which most likely caused by high sugar diets in the first place. However, this is not necessarily the way to go. One calorie of sugar can have more fattening effects on your body than one calorie of fat. This dangerous truth can dig a ditch for overweight people because lowfat foods that are loaded with sugar are cheap, making it more appealing to the consumer.

The best way to combat eating sugary foods is to eat all of your sugars from fruits, or make sure they are natural if added into food. Currently, the food industry refutes all claims of boosting sugar in their food, so change to this issue will most likely come slow. In the meantime, obesity will only increase if the food industry keeps poisoning foods with excess sugar.

Not so sweet statistics

Sugar: 4 grams

Calories: 210 Fat: 9 grams Sugar: 1 gram

Americans consume about 130 pounds of sugar every year.

Over 1/3 of American adults are obese, often due to sugar intake.

The average American drinks 53 gallons of soft drink per year.

Source: forbes.com

Sugar tax causes change at cafeterias, impacts prices

With a base price of $4, a 12-pack of 12-once soda cans ends up costing $5.97 due to the new sugar tax and other suppliment sales tax.

Prices increase in all beverages with added sugar, sweeteners

by Lars Lonnroth @larslonnroth

Even as the Cook County beverage tax remains mired in legal limbo—with a lawsuit by the Illinois Retail Merchants Association claiming it violates Illinois’ constitution—the tax is still in effect. Now that school is in session, LT and other schools have had to decide how to approach the highly-controversial tax on drinks sweetened with sugar or artificial sweeteners.

“We have looked at the beverages we serve at the cafeteria and we raised some of those prices to kind-of offset some of the cost related to that tax,” Brian Stachacz, director of business service at LT, said.

The tax, which went first into effect on Aug. 1 after legal challenges delayed its implementation by one month, adds a penny-per-ounce to applicable drinks in hopes of raising funds needed to operate, Cook County officials claim.

At LT, soda is sold mainly in the cafeteria and in vending machines that are strewn across both campuses. As a result of the tax, prices for drinks taxed increased at the cafeteria; however, the district decided to maintain the prices at vending machines until they have a better idea of how it will impact sales, Stachacz said.

“We really don’t have a good gauge on [whether the increase will impact sales],” he said. “As we get through the first month ... we will have a better idea at the point.”

While the school still doesn’t know if there has been an impact, down at the cafeteria, staffers say that they have

seen the speed at which soda is sold decreasing.

Marcy Lingo, manager at the LT cafeteria said that they have seen consumers make substantial adjustments as a result of the tax hike. Lingo is not employed by LT, but is employed by the company contracted to operate the cafeteria on behalf to the district, Sodexo.

“Lots of water going out now. Lots, and lots and lots of water going out,” Lingo said. “The soda is still going, but just not as fast. But the water is going like crazy.”

LT sells around $78,000 worth of soda each year, according to Statchez, and the penny-per-ounce tax will increases the price for the district quite substantially.

When the soda is purchased, the tax is paid when buying the applicable drinks from the distributor and then it is the purchaser’s prerogative regarding whether they want to increase prices, Stachacz said.

As the school year continues, they will be deciding whether or not the prices will need to be adjusted in vending machines as a result of the tax. In the deliberations, Stachacz emphasized that their behind-the-scenes calculus is different than that of a restaurant because the goal isn’t profit.

“A school food service is not designed to be a profit machine—it is designed to provide lunch and meals for students at an extremely, we hope, reasonable cost,” Statchez said. “We’re simply trying to offset the cost of our food service.”

Cook County sugary drink tax

$1.44

Chicago sales tax

$0.41 Chicago soft drink sales tax

$0.12 Source: Illinois Policy

PRofiles

Friday, September 22, 2017

Page 15

Student creates football documentary

LTTV student expands interests through full length program

by Mary Okkema @maryokkema

It is 5 a.m. on a summer morning when Max Abrahamson ‘18 wakes up to start his long day. He makes it to LT SC campus by 5:30 a.m. to shoot footage of the varsity football players arriving. He shoots the entire practice, following the football players from the field to the weight room to meetings then back again.

When practice ends at 9 a.m., Abrahamson’s day is far from over. He goes home and uploads the footage from the day onto his computer before heading off to work, only to come home that night and cut down three hours of footage into about 10 minutes of useful footage for his documentary. “[The documentary] tells the story of not only the team as a whole, but it dives into five player’s stories,” Abrahamson said. “You are really going to get to know the players off the field, and what they went through, and what they are going through.”

The documentary is called “Earn It,” and it will be a long-form documentary, Abrahamson said. A long-form documentary is 60 to 90 minutes long. He recorded 45 hours of footage, and has spent 150 hours editing so far. He expects to have about 150 more hours of editing left.

“It is very mentally draining when you work with something for such a long period of time,” Abrahamson said.

“You might get sick of it, but you try to keep your mind

focused on the end result.”

“Earn It” is Abrahamson’s biggest project yet, he said.

Some of his smaller projects include a short-form documentary about LT volleyball player Sean Ryan ’18, and a commitment video for TJ Ivy, a football player at Marist, who committed to West Virginia University.

“The documentary was really just to challenge myself to do something not a whole lot of people, even in the professional industry could say, is that they produced an entire documentary by themselves,” Abrahamson said.

Despite being a part of LTTV since freshman year, Abrahamson first picked up a camera junior year. “[Abrahamson] had the desire to learn, and part of that is because I told him people who have one skill set in the broadcast industry often end up finding themselves down the road not having jobs,” station manager of LTTV Bill Allan said. “So, I suggested to him the best way to get a job in broadcasting is to do everything, to be good in front of the camera, to be good behind the camera.”

Abrahamson started out in LTTV his freshman year as an announcer, Allan said.

“I was an athlete when I was younger, and I wanted to stay in the game, and I thought it would be a very cool job,” Abrahamson said. “I liked that I could [announce] the game how I saw it play out.”

Abrahamson plans on majoring in sports media in college. He hopes to be a producer at a college athletic department, ultimately making hype videos and running the social media.

“I realized the power of visual storytelling and how

Max Abrahamson ‘18 adjusts shot while working on film.

(Okkema/LION).

much it can impact people,” Abrahamson said. “I thought that was a very cool thing to be able to tell someone’s story with the camera, music, and just different metaphorical shots.”

The release date of “Earn It” has yet to be determined, but there will be a public viewing hosted by LTTV. In the meantime, watch Abrahamson’s other projects on his youtube channel, Max Abrahamson.

Senior reworks denim for new business Senior designs denim skirts out of old jeans

by Georgia Dougherty @georgiadoc6 Rose Peters ‘18 suddenly picked up her cell phone and texted her mom an idea she just thought of: a denim skirt clothing line.

“I got the idea while I was studying abroad in France,” Peters said. “A lot of girls were wearing them, but I didn’t really know where to get them, and I was like, ‘I could totally just make this.’”

Peters was living in France last year through an association for 10 months with a host family, as well as with her best friend Miranda Vickery ‘18, when she got her inspiration for her business.

“I remember when she first told me about it,” Vickery said. “I was surprised because obviously I had no idea; it’s not

very normal for someone our age to be starting a business.”

Peters buys vintage Levi jeans on Craigslist and sews them into skirts that she sells on her website and promotes on her Instagram, both which are named “Knavishlad,” Peters said. “[Knavishlad] is from a quote in ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream,’ that is about how love makes people crazy,” Peters said. “I liked the way it sounded.

That’s where I got the cupid from for my logo, too.”

Each skirt sells for $50 and she takes about 30 minutes to make one skirt by hand. The jeans she buys are $8 per pair. Since she began in July, she has sold about six skirts, Peters said.

“I like that she chooses different washes of jeans,” Vickery said. “She uses dark wash, black, light wash, she’ll do more fringing at the bottom or less.”

Peters plans to study business in

Rose Peters ‘18 models one of her unique, hand made skirts. (Rose Peters)

college and receives most of her help for her business from her mother, who owns a photography business, so she was able to help Peters with the website and promotion factor, she said.

“I’ve been thinking about that, [selling them in stores],” Peters said.

“It would be hard to mass produce for several stores, but maybe local places or somewhere downtown that’s just one store. That would be really cool.”

Both Peters and Vickery have always been interested in fashion, Vickery said. Peters learned how to sew from her grandmother and now she gets her inspiration from her favorite style icons, Bella Hadid and Kendall Jenner.

“Right now they’re all pretty basic and simple,” Peters said. “I do some distressing, such as holes and stuff. They’re all the same, but I would love to expand and do some different designs, too. I

think for the most part I want to focus on [jean skirts] and see where it goes.”

The skirts are mostly directed toward teenage girls, Peters said. Many of her friends wear them as advertisement because the biggest challenge right now is promotion.

“It’s definitely boosted her confidence and affected her thoughts on what she wants to do when she’s older,” Vickery said. “Now she’s looking at fashion schools in New York and big schools in England.”

Peters is unsure of how long Knavishlad will last, but hopes that more students will buy them at LT. “I watched it grow from just an idea to her having her own business and instagram and seeing people in the hall wearing her skirts,” Vickery said. “I have one of her skirts and everytime I wear it I get compliments on it. I’m really proud of her, I think it’s great.”

Nintendo gives sponsorship to LT senior LT student reviews Nintendo games on website

by Isabel Tuisl @isabeltuisl Every night, Cole Flott ‘18 sits down at his computer and writes for his website, mtwildwood.net, in which he reviews a Nintendo game series titled “Yo-kai Watch”. The website that he coded from scratch has accumulated to a community of a few thousand people over the span of a year and a half.

Flott is a Nintendo Brand Ambassador and uses his YouTube channel, 101leafy, and his website as platforms to advertise the company’s games, he said. Up until last October when he landed the position, he had been working towards his current job since he was in seventh grade.

“What game development companies do is they send out early copies of their games to people that write about them, so they can cover the games, [and] when the game is released, there is already information out about it,” Flott

@LTLionNewspaper

said. “Since [I’d] been covering [‘Yo-kai Watch’] for [Nintendo], I asked them [if I could] get a review copy of a game that [they’re] going to be coming out with in a few weeks, so that I can cover it for my website.”

When Flott sent in this request to Nintendo, the company said they could not just send him one game, but they also made him a brand ambassador, and he now receives several games.

“I have not been working on my website lately because there has [not been much activity] for ‘Yo-Kai Watch’, but the series’ new game titled ‘Yo-kai Watch 2: Psychic Specters’, comes out on Sept. 29,” he said.

Currently, he is working on the review for the new game and will post it to his website.

Matt Burns ‘18, a friend of Flott, shows his support for Flott’s sponsorship.

“There are people who are a lot older than Cole, and more experienced than [him], and don’t get free games and deals with Nintendo,” Burns said. “I knew from the start that getting paid to play video games was Cole’s dream.”

Top: The logo of Nintendo, the company sponsoring Cole Flott ‘18. (nintendo.com) Right: Cole Flott ‘18’s personal youtube profile picture. (youtube. com)

Don’t forget to visit our website for additional stories at

www.lionnewspaper.com

facebook.com/Lionnewspaper

and follow us on social media

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@ltlionnewspaper

Page 16

The truth about feminism

FEMINISM

Friday, September 22, 2017

Volume 107, Issue 6

Page 17

Continue watching strong females: Compiled by Sarah Grier

What is the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word feminist? You probably stop at the prefix: fem-. That prefix directly translates to female, and that’s all people need to hear to start drawing Sydney Kaehler conclusions.

“Feminism is for crazy chicks who want more rights than men.” That mindset birthed two of the ugliest words I’ve heard: “feminazi” and “menin- Feminism is not limited to females. Here are some of LT males perspectives on the issue. ist”--two words that were conjured up by people who are scared of and unsettled by powerful women.

Complied by Maddy Cohen I’ll do something right now that’s never been done in the LION before: quote Urban Dictionary. A “meninist,” according to Urban Dictionary, is a (satirical) belief “At its core feminism is a showing the hypocrisy of first world feminism by flipreally simple idea and people ping the sexes and complaining about men’s rights in a shy away from it because of a similar way to what feminists do. Someone felt uncomstigma. Most rational people fortable with women having the same exact rights as shouldn’t have any issues with them, so they had to make up a word to mock it? it.” Michael Ahrens ‘18 I’m not even going to quote the U.D. definition of “feminazi,” since the definition starts with “a crazy girl who supports women’s rights.” If she’s too into feminism, she’s too into herself, and therefore crazy, making her a feminazi? First of all, no one should compare people to a Nazi unless they actually believe in or are affiliate with the Nazi party.

Anyways, I’m a crazy girl who supports women’s rights, but I am a feminist—not a feminazi. Women should not be getting ridiculed, mocked and compared to doctoral supremacists for believing in equal rights!

To put it in a simpler definition, the Beyoncé song “Mistreating 50 percent of the “**Flawless” features an excerpt of a speech titled “We population and telling them that Should All Be Feminists” performed by Chimamanda they deserve less than equal is Ngozi Adichie, a Nigerian activist and writer. The title ridiculous; it’s keeping us all itself is enough. Everyone should be a feminist. Men, back.” Miles Hession ‘18 women and children should be feminists, because it was never only restricted to women; it’s about equality. It’s about women having the same rights as men, and you don’t have to be a certain gender to believe that. The end of the excerpt is the most important: “Feminist: the person who believes in the social, political, and economic equality of the sexes.” I’ll say it a little louder for the people in the back: feminism is not just women “It’s important for men to be being granted things that men are not, it’s just fighting feminists because throughout for equal rights- the same fight that we’ve been having history it has been accepted that male is superior is the idea for years now. of equal. That is simply wrong.

There are multiple stereotypes behind being a femEqual is equal.” Mac Most ‘18 inist, but one of them is that you’re set to a certain political party or mindset, like if you’re a feminist you have to be pro-choice. Feminism is broad. For the 100th time, it is about equality. It isn’t that specific. Whatever political views you have, if you believe women and men should have the same rights as men, you’re a feminist.

Simple as that.

“Feminism is not some Like Adichie said, we should all be feminists. Every crazy radical movement, it’s single person should believe that women deserve the really just ackowledging that same rights that men do, that we should all be equal, women are equal to men.” that gender should not be a barrier for education and Bobby Montesano ‘18 that women shouldn’t be stopped from doing something just for the reason that they’re women.

People scared of the word shouldn’t be threatened by women, as if we’re a large force that’s come to overpower the male population. This concept and cause has been thriving through history, and “If everyone in the world who it will be alive and kicking believes, openly or not, in femieven after men and nism stands up, there would cerwomen are considtainly be a positive effect in the ered equal. future.” Teddy Atseff ‘19

From a male’s point of view

The effects of Women’s March Almost nine months after, adjustments in place to continue fight

by Lindsey Hauch @lhauch20 On Jan. 21, 2017, 5 million people across all seven continents embraced their views as a feminist. Men, women and children of all ages, nationalities and religions took a stand for something that has been deliberately withheld throughout history: equality. Whether it be for an end of violence, reproductive rights, civil rights, or so many more, the people participating in more than 673 marches across the globe made it clear their desire for social change.

But after protestors hung up their pink hats and silenced their chants, it has left many wondering, what comes next?

Can one day really have that much effect?

However, even nine months after, their pink hats were never taken off, their chants never silenced. Even before the Women’s March became the largest coordinated protest in U.S. history, feminists have long been pursuing equality, and will certainly continue that pursuit going forward.

The fear now turns to the absence of a central issue. The march brought protests of women’s rights, immigration, climate control, racism, etc., which are all valid and important topics, but more broadly stated, a “resistance movement.” If people want to enact change on a social issue, it can be more successful to choose a topic they feel strongly about and fight for that to the strongest of their ability. That is not to say a person cannot feel strongly about all those topics; in fact most feminists do. But with Republican control in the Presidency, House and Senate, it is hard for liberal views to be embraced in Washington. Therefore, Women’s March participants cannot expect immediate change in agenda for all that they are fighting for. The movement itself is broad; a centralized issue can have more of an impact.

Feminism is the concept of social, political and economic equality of the sexes. How can all these categories be included in change?

A wide range of groups promoting women’s rights capitalized on the momentum of the event in search for long-term progression. March organizers recognized this division, and encouraged voters to sign up for organizations that most appealed to them. In order to be a full-service fight moving forward, the collation of feminism has to have people focused on issues they are interested in, people who will continually fight for what they feel passionate about under the large scope of feminism.

This development will help build a relationship between protestors and voters to insure a continuous fight for rights, not only during election season.

After marching, organizers quickly turned to channel that energy into something called H.E.R.S, or women’s health, economic security, representation, and safety. Throughout the coming years, this will be the center of the fight, as it is seen as the most pressing issues in a woman’s fight for equality. Here, we have the centralized issue.

In addition to H.E.R.S, the Women’s March inspired the 10 collective global actions intended to keep the movement ongoing, not just for the fight for women’s rights in the U.S., but more internationally the fight for human rights all together. These global actions are in collaboration with 10 Actions in 100 days, a program looking towards more political presence from participants in order to further push their agenda after the march.

With mid-term elections more than a year away, and primary elections close to three and a half, the most important thing to do now is to keep the energy and enthusiasm up. Having said so, many protestors who turned up on Jan. 21 were simply riding the wave and adrenaline from the inauguration. Although their presence was meaningful, march organizers are now counting on, more than ever before, the protesters who are going to make a difference now, even nine months after the march.

Whether that be through constant communication with elected officials, establishment of more community based units and protests, or by engaging online with Global Organizers.

“The extensiveness of support for the feminist cause helps to get our word out and spread our message,” Caroline Higney ‘18, attendee of the Chicago Women’s March, said.

“I continue fighting through change by making my voice heard, and I plan on participating in more marches in the future.”

The Women’s March also became a stepping stone to other impactful protests such as the March for Science on Earth Day 2017, or the “day without women” demonstration on International Women’s Day 2017. With a clear cross section between other movements such as Black Lives Matter, the feminist movement has been effective in creating unity in the goal of equality for all, whether it be sex, race, or religion.

Although the Women’s March had no direct and substantial effect on the fight for equality, its impact can be seen throughout the nation. The march alone has inspired a more unified fight for feminism. It has achieved the goal of bringing together a nation that was so obviously divided following the 2016 election. The fight for feminism did not start on Jan. 21, but it did not end there either. This is the next great social movement; a movement that, by itself, has the power to someday win political office. We, as Americans, have the power to do that.

The evolution of the movement

Written by Tina Fey, this Netflix original portrays the importance of being an independent woman in the 21st century. Kimmy Schmidt, played by Ellie Kemper, shows how “females are strong as hell,” as put in the theme song, after escaping 15 years in captivity. At times this show points out the extremes that this movement has taken. This light-hearted comedy brings the message of Feminism in an approachable, laughable way.

The dynamic character Christina Yang, played by Sandra Oh, demonstrates the importance of being a strong woman in the workforce. Often given initial prejudice from her male counterparts, Yang rises above through her intellect and work ethic to create an equal playing field. Grey’s Anatomy sheds light on the issue of women and mothers in the workplace to its 4.04 million viewers.

In a time when only 23 percent of publically elected positions are held by women, Amy Pohler plays a strong female in the Pawnee, Indiana government—Leslie Knope. Battling sexist coworkers, Knope rises above through her dedication and attentiveness to the Parks and Recreation Department. Knope also brings more women into the political machine; this conveys the importance of higher females in jobs to help low-level female recruitments in order to help close the gap between men and women. Originally aired on NBC, and now available to stream all eight seasons Netflix, approximately 4.2 million people have viewed the show.

Although criticized for its focus on being feminine, Supergirl is another example of how a female can be both feminine and tough.

Battling galactic enemies, Supergirl is a tough and strong image for the impressionable young female target audience. Similar to the hit movie Wonder Woman, Supergirl brings emphasis to the girl superheroes of Marvel and DC comics. By doing this, it helps break the stereotype that little girls are princesses and raises the importance of being a tough female.

Compiled by Sarah Grier

The feminist movement has taken on many different forms throughout the span of American history. Today, historians catergorize the movement in three waves.

The first wave started in the late 19th century and fought for sufferage, the right to property and the right to gain an education until the early 20th century. The second wave fought for equal wages and abortiona rights from 1960-1990. The third wave was started by African American women aiming to continue the fighting for equality for all women regardless of race.

May 15, 1869

The National Woman Suffrage Association is formed to get voting rights for women through an amendment.

Aug. 26, 1920

The 19th admendment is added to the constitution, granting women the right to vote across the nation.

June 10, 1963

Congress passes the Equal Pay Act, making it illegal to pay a woman less than a man for the same job.

Oct. 31, 1978 The Pregnancy Discrimination act bans employment discrimination against applicants that are expecting mothers.

July 7, 1981

The first female supreme court justice, Sandra Day O’Connor, is appointed by Ronald Regan.

April 7, 1993 The last marital rape law is passed, making it illegal for a husband to rape his wife in all 50 states.

Jan. 2, 2016 Women are allowed to serve in a job in the armed services, opening approximetly 220,000 jobs to females.

Source: National Women’s History Project

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Conspiracies

Friday, September 22, 2017

Below are several well known conspiracy theories complied by Mary Devine, Brandt Siegfried and Pilar Valdes.

Are they true? That’s up for you to decide.

A heartthrob, a celebrity, but most importantly an English monarch member: Princess Diana. One of the most idolized political figures, Princess Diana was considered the world’s princess. But, on Aug. 31, 1997, she was killed in a fatal car crash in France. Soon declared an accident from the French and British authorities, other people continue to question if the crash was really an accident. Princess Diana had taken a vacation with her boyfriend Dodi Fayed at the time. His father, Al Fayed believed that the British Royal family felt threatened by the couple. In fact, Dodi had visited a jeweler the morning of Aug. 31 in search for a ring he custom ordered for Diana. Al Fayed was sure they were going to soon announce an engagement. However, Al Fayed felt that British authorities would not want the future King William to have a Muslim stepfather. Later, an old British intelligence agent confessed to Al Fayed that the crash similarly matched an assassination plan of Serbian leader Slohan Milosevic. Additionally, the driver’s supposed blood sample showed him to have 20 percent carbon monoxide in it. Mercedes Benz (the car being driven) claimed the model would not release that gas, and the driver died instantly and would not have breathed it in. Thus, the same sample that claimed the driver had three times the legal blood alcohol limit was possibly tampered with.

With that being said: what really happened the night of the crash and was it truly an accident?

It was a pleasant, Friday morning in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963. Yet, history would soon be changed. At 12:30 p.m. three bullets were fired in about six seconds, killing President John F. Kennedy. Lee Harvey Oswald was soon arrested and blamed for the assasination of the president. Two days later, Oswald was murdered before ever going to trial. So, did Oswald really kill JFK? Dr. Malcolm Perry noted that the head bullet came from the front, though the Warren Commision had stated that the shot came from the back. Film would later suggest that the shot came from the front, sparking conspiracy theories. This particular shot would be more consistent with a high velocity rifle rather than the supposed murder weapon, a 6.5mm Carcano rifle. In addition, the 6.5mm Carcano rifle is known to be highly inaccurate with a massive recoil. Shooting three bullets in less than six seconds is nearly impossible. Oswald was a radar technician in the military, and was never drafted into an infantry troop. Thus, he would not have had experience with guns and proper target shooting. Finally, Oswald had been interrogated for 10 hours on Nov. 22, but it had never been recorded, a lawyer was not present and the notes were later burned. So, did Lee Harvey Oswald truly kill JFK?

A tragic accident? Or a more sinister plot? These questions surround the disappearance of MH 370, a Malaysian Airlines flight that vanished trace on March 8, 2014. Officially, the plane crashed in the Indian Ocean and the debris is too deep to procure. Flight MH 370 disappeared after flying in the opposite direction from its destination with its tracking software turned off. Twenty employees of the Freescale Semiconductor company were aboard the plane, on their way to sell company chips with radar cloaking technology to the Chinese government.

The secret of the conspiracy lies with the U.S. military base operated by the CIA in the Indian Ocean, Diego Garcia.

Presumably, the CIA planted agents aboard the flight, who then hijacked the plane and landed it at Diego Garcia to prevent the sale of the chips to the Chinese.

Is this a hoax? Perhaps. Could it be true? Absolutely.

The Bermuda Triangle is a span of ocean in the Atlantic Ocean bounded by Miami, Puerto Rico and Bermuda, whose waters are famed to make ships and airplanes disappear. Multiple incidents of sunken ships and fallen airplanes exist, many without any evidence of the vessel ever resurfacing. The answer to what causes these strange disappearances is still unknown. Some believe that the Bermuda Triangle is home to time warps, which include portals to alternate dimensions, explaining where these ships and planes have disappeared to. Other theorists say that the disappearances are due to alien abductions, which would explain why there is no evidence of fallen planes or sunken ships. Although all of the disappearances could theoretically be explained by some simple human error, some of the strange details make it easy to believe otherwise.

On July 20, 1969, America successfully won the space race and landed men on the moon; though some conspiracy theorists believe otherwise. Those who believe that Neil Armstrong never actually took his historic “giant leap for mankind” are convinced that the US government, willing to do anything to beat the Soviet Union in the space race, faked the moon landing on a Hollywood set. The only photos and evidence that exist from the lunar landings are produced by NASA, causing theorists to speculate that the pictures are all fake. Conspiracy theorists also cite the moving flag as a flaw in the faking, as Buzz Aldrin plants the American flag on the moon, it moves as if there is wind, which would not possible in space due to the vacuum that exists.

Additionally, conspiracy theorists buy into the idea that the three NASA astronauts who died during equipment testing for the first lunar mission were actually killed by the government because they were found to be planning to uncover news of the fake moon mission. Perhaps the man in the moon is the only one who really knows the truth.

1978: the Year of Three Popes. When Pope Paul VI passed away on Aug. 6 of that year, the College of Cardinals gathered in Rome to elect a new leader of the Roman Catholic Church, John Paul I. His body was discovered in the Papal apartments just 33 days after assuming the papacy. While his death is no short of tragic, a cloud of uncertainty surrounds his death. Powerful officials in the Vatican allegedly had connections to the Italian mafia, who were involved in the collapse of Italy’s largest bank, Banco Ambrosiano. Archbishop Paul Marcinkus, a native of Cicero, Ill., orchestrated the purchase of a majority of the shares of the bank by the church through his position as President of the Vatican Bank. The collapse brought profit to his organization, as well as Marcinkus’ associates in the financial industry, mob boss Michele Sindona and the P2 freemason lodge. The P2 lodge was also accused of infiltrating the Vatican. Allegedly, John Paul knew of these connections to the church and wanted to eliminate them from positions of power, but they got to him before he could clean house. This theory is the subject of investigative journalist David Yallop’s book “In God’s Name.” While the validity of this theory is unlikely, who knows how far some are willing to go to protect their interests.

Which conspiracy do you think is the most convincing? Vote on the Lion newspaper website www.lionnewspaper.com

BANDS

Friday, September 22, 2017

Drumming up success

by Lindsey Hauch @lhauch20

Playing the drums for one band is impressive, but for two is pure talent, especially while juggling duties as a high school English teacher and cross-country coach. Tom Stukel makes it his goal to incorporate drumming and music into his life, however hectic it may be.

“I started when I was really young. My sister’s boyfriend played the drums and I saw him playing, and thought it was really great,” Stukel said. “I was 12 years old then. I’ve been drumming ever since. I never want to let it go. It’s my passion.”

After searching for bands on Craigslist, Stukel began playing drums for Sadie and the Stark, an original band in Chicago, as well as Hollywood Bitch, a Stone Temple Pilots tribute band. Stukel usually finds himself practicing twice a week, once with each band, but it is something he is willing to sacrifice his time for.

“It allows me to escape the chaos of reality and to do something that I can be totally immersed in and not have to concern myself with the craziness of the day-to-day life,” Stukel said. “It’s a great outlet for me.”

In addition to practice, each band books gigs. The Stone Temple Pilot tribute band has more popularity, and gets hired for more weekend gigs, while Sadie and the Stark finds

Page 19

Along with their love of teaching, many teachers at LT have hobbies beyond the classroom that their students may not even know about. From rock to jazz, teachers at LT share their talent and passion for music inside and outside of the classroom.

itself in more trouble.

“With an original band in the city, it’s difficult to get weekend gigs so usually I’m doing week night gigs, which is difficult when I’m a teacher and coaching cross country,” Stukel said. “We usually play at bars in the city, but with Hollywood Bitch we’re trying to get into more festivals. We are traveling more and going to Milwaukee in November, and we’ve played in Michigan before. But the original band is more Chicago based.”

Along with his two bands, incorporating music into his classroom is very important to him, Stukel said.

“Mr. Stukel shows us new bands and their songs every morning before we start our lesson,” Lillian Walker ‘18 said. “It’s really cool to listen to a lot of bands I’ve never heard before and since I have his class first it really helps start the day off in a positive way.”

By playing music throughout class and encouraging involvement in the arts at LT, Stukel hopes to inspire students to find what they love to do, just as he has with drumming.

“The biggest thing that I talk about in my classroom is trying to find a passion and holding on to it,” Stukel said. “That’s what I try to do with my music and my drumming: never let it go regardless of how old I am or whatevTom Stukel drums for his band, Sadie and the Stark. (Sadie and the Stark) er else I’m doing in my life.”

Sound the trumpets

by Sarah Grier @smgrier0

Sam Robinson plays his trumpet at last year’s Brownstock. (Rossetti/LION)

Swinging singer

by Danny Kilrea @dannykilrea In freshmen year Latin class, teacher Laurie Jolicoeur had her students sing a song to learn about the seven kings of Rome.

When everyone started singing, they were immediately amazed by Jolicoeur’s singing, because it was so good, Piper Turckes ‘18 recalled. At that time, Jolicoeur revealed she is the lead singer of a band called Swingset, performing swing and jazz music at fundraisers, block parties, birthday parties, or wherever they are asked to or see an opportunity.

“Seeing Magistra’s [Latin word for teacher] band is awesome,” Turckes said.

“Her band was the entertainment for my Grandpa’s birthday party last year. They play really well together, and Magistra’s voice in particular is extraordinary.”

Starting out in high school, Jolicoeur performed in musical theatre which allowed her to sing, she said. Music remained in her life as a form of relaxation and pleasure, as she finds herself humming in the car, playing the piano and interpreting songs. It was only four years ago when one of her friends inquired her becoming the lead singer in a band, and she immediately jumped at the offer, at that time already seeking a way to begin singing again.

“Singing is really enjoyable for me,” Jol-

icoeur said. “Interpreting a song is another level of enjoyment. Since I’m the singer, I have to figure out what the song means to me, so I can convey it well with my voice. A lot of what I do is what we do in Latin class with poetry.”

Jolicoeur has had an increased appreciation for creative collaboration, she said.

Knowing how hard it is to communicate how she thinks a song should be performed and how tough it is to come up with ideas has only made the band closer.

“I really love when I look look into the audience and see people enjoying our music,” Jolicoeur said. “It is enjoyable for me to see how people are interpreting the music that I worked so hard to convey in a certain way. Whether that is sitting and smiling or stopping in their tracks to sing along, I find it very fun that people take the time to listen.”

People in the crowd really enjoy hearing Swingset’s creative outlet, Turckes said.

It adds liveliness to the environment in a unique way.

“People are always pleased after hearing Magistra and her band,” Turckes said.

“The crowd is always very lively and happy.

People really enjoy listening to her and always want to go to more shows of hers.”

French teacher Sam Robinson has been playing the trumpet ever since the mere age of 12, and fter receiving his first full-time teaching job 14 years ago at LT, he has found an excellent community of musically involved teachers. These teachers are brought together each year for Brownstock, an annual in-school concert featuring a teacher band and student acts.

“I love getting to hangout with the other teachers because I don’t get to see them a lot,” Robinson said. “Brownstock is a great time for us all to get together, talk and have fun.”

Robinson started by learning the trumpet through classical music. Through it, he began playing in marching bands, wind ensembles, big bands, quartets and quintets. After he gained the fundamental skills, he transitioned to lively jazz music.

“I have always loved playing the jazz trumpet,” he said. “It has been a way for me to express myself artistically. It’s been an outlet, something to do after work, something to do to relieve stress and it’s

always been another part of me that I’ve enjoyed pursuing.”

After attending several jam sessions in the local area, Robinson became affiliated with two local bands. The Four and Afters play once a month in Bucktown. His other band, Jazz Workshop plays every Tuesday in Lincoln Square, in Chicago.

Robinson has worked on incorporating his outside interest into his French classroom lessons.

“Music is about improvisation and sometimes in class I don’t know where the lesson will go,” he said. “You try and plan it out, but sometimes the students take it in a different direction, sometimes it’s fun to go in that direction.”

In addition, Robinson plays for his NC classes once or twice a year, a highlight that all students enjoy in the dynamic class, Natalie Metsch ‘18 said. “[Robinson] often talks about playing trumpet in jazz clubs,” Metsch said. “It was pretty awesome to hear him finally play in person and share his passion with us.”

Laurie Jolicoeur sings in her band, Swingset. (Jolicoeur)

GET OUT

Page 20

Friday, September 23, 2016  Page 20

Cheesie’s too cheesy for grate experience

Friday, September 22, 2017

MODern look at pizza MOD pizza creates unique twist to old flavors, comfortable environment, interesting service

by Brandt Siegfried @brandto13

by Christina Rossetti @c_rossetti6

Perhaps the hottest new La Grange the inside. Each meal also comes with recrestaurant of last summer, Cheesie’s Pub ommended sauce for your sandwich, tomato & Grub at 46 S. La Grange Road, is hard to soup and sour cream, respectively. miss with its’ giant orange sign.

While the food is definitely unique, it is The large orange sign and garage door food I only want to eat once. The vast plustorefront between DiNico’s and a home rality of the Cheesie’s menu is fried food. good store is unique. Upon entry, Chees- While I’m sure there are plenty of customers ie’s is a uncommon restaurant. Orders and wanting only fried food, I do not, and it was payment are taken at the counter, and you not an enjoyable meal, especially after the receive a number for your table. It has bar fried-food-energy-slump. seating, high tops, To me, Cheesand regular tables, ie’s is just anothand each seating er option on La arrangement has Grange Road. a basket of chalk.

I will eat here The tabletops are again, but only if actually a black my other options board, and you are exhausted. It can doodle on is a cool one-time them at your leiexperience, howsure, which is ever, I personally pretty cool! did not fully enjoy Additionally, it. The messaging there is outdoor of the restaurant seating, an arcade also confused me. area in the back A huge element of the restaurant, in Cheesie’s marand 10 flat screens keting is the bar, able to accommoand they pursue date a variety of the 20 to 40-yearsports fans. A mix old couple demoof contemporary graphic. pop music flows On the other from the ceiling hand, the arcade speakers, creating Open seating at new Cheesie’s. (Siegfried/Lion) and nature of the a lively environmenu seems to ment. Between the ambience and a menu of attract teenagers and families. Cheesie’s aponly dishes with cheese, Cheesie’s is a novel pears to be a fusion of sports bar and family and whimsical restaurant option. restaurant, and the only word I could place I ordered the Original and the Frenchie, was chaos. I wish all the best to Cheesies’ with seasoned fries and tater tots as my Pub & Grub, but the less-than-stellar food sides. The original is a salty grilled cheese and the missed mark on messaging earns with an overwheliming amount of near liq- Chessie’s a 2 out of 5 paws. uid cheese.

The Frenchie was more complex, containing cheese, bacon, and a variety of other meats also cooked in grilled cheese style.

The seasoned fries were actually tasty because they’re a different fry than you can get anywhere else. The tater tots were consistently crunchy on the outside and soft on

2/5

One of the best parts of my weekend is $4.87 for a six inch. It was a classic taste with a being able to go out, grab lunch with the twist. The crust was a perfect blend of charred, friends I am not able to see during the week, wood fired crunch and a crisp bite to hold the and just catch up on life. Our favorite thing pizza firmly flat. The salty cheese mixed with to do is try a new place and experience new the sweet tomato sauce helped balance each food together. I was able to go out and try a other out for a perfect collaboration. new place with one of my friends, and boy The next pizza I tried was named the “Triswas it worth it. tian”, again ordering a mini six inch pizza, The new place I tried this weekend was which had mozzarella, asiago, mushrooms, MOD Pizza, located at 7135 S. Kingery roasted red peppers and a pesto finish. It was the Hwy, Willowbrook. I have had food from oddest pizza I have ever eaten, but my favorite. this place in The blend of the the past, but salty mushrooms never in Illiand the sweet and nois When my juicy red peppers family and I created a savory visit relatives blend mixed with in Washington, the perfect blend we eat there all of chesses for this the time, and pizza. The pesto, I was excited which I thought to learn they was going to be would be adddifferent on a pizing one here. za, was the perfect Walking in, addition because it immediately The “Tristian” from MOD. (Rossetti/Lion) it created a nutty felt comfortable. The servers behind the flavor that brought the whole pizza together. counter exchanged “hellos” to me and my The last pizza I ate was called the “Domifriend as we looked at the menu, which was nic”, containing a white sauce, topped with easily displayed in the front of the assembly mild sausage, chopped fresh basil, red onion, line. asiago cheese and tomatoes. I chose to order As I ordered, I worked my way through the mini again at $4.87. It was a new twist on the line, picking three different pizzas to a margarita pizza. All the same flavors were try. Although the line of ingredients may there; the fresh ripe tomatoes, the aromatic look intimidating, being able to pick just basil, but this pizza added a salty sausage that exactly what you want on your pizza makes blended the whole pizza together to give it a this place unique; you know everything modern twist on an old recipe. you’re getting. I was pleased to see that they Although MOD is new and is still working also provided gluten free options. out their kinks, they seem to have a prospering The first pizza I tasted was a clas- future with their modern takes on old recipes, sic:chesse pizza, but here it is titled “Mad- and their bold new combinations that I am exdy”. I ordered their mini pizza which was cited to try in the future, which is why I would give it a 4 out of 5 paws.

4/5

Online Poll Results: Are hotdogs a sandwich?

Yes: 6%

Type of Pet: Teacup Poodle Age: 2 years old (14 in dog years) Weight: 5 pounds Owner: Ellie Condotti ‘18 Hobbies: Long walks in the park, chasing toys, sticks, etc.

Fun Fact: Oakley is a ginger, but she has a soul.

Editors Rate: 12/10. Stop submitting toys please, only pets.

W Se ant co nd yo st h5 a ur ud 0 ph p en 37 ot et t.l 30 o o to th @ f be s. st yo f ne ud u ea t f en r p tu or t. et re a lth wi d i ch s.n th n an et a the ce o sh L to r k ort ION wi ae5 bi ? n. 0 o 35 to 19 @

No: 94%

Compiled by Sydney Kaehler and Maddy Cohen

North Campus

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100 S. Brainard Ave. LaGrange, Ill. 60525

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South Campus

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4900 Willow Springs Rd. Western Springs, Ill. 60558