Livewire Vol 8 Issue 3 February 2017 by Livewire

GROWING PAINS

Part 4 in a series

Contents

December 2016 Volume 8, Issue 2

STUDENT LIFE

4 8 10 14

It’s A New Year | See what students from all grades have chosen their new year’s resolutions to be.

Love And Death | One staffer shares the truth behind the history of Valentine’s Day.

The Heart Of Bullitt East | A look into a day in the life of senior Brooke Stivers.

Uber Vs Lyft | A look into the differences and similarities of two taxi services.

SPORTS

16 18 20

Nationals 2K17 | A preview of the cheerleading national tournament in Orlando, Florida.

From The 404 To The 502: Derrick Donigan | A feature on the basketball team’s newest addition, Derrick Donigan. Baseball’s Road Back To State | The baseall team is working to make it back to the state tournament this year.

ACADEMICS

28 30

The Super Saver: UPS Metropolitan College |

See a different way for students to get their college education paid for.

Mastering The ACT | A few ACT pros share their tips on how to conquer the test.

Charter Schools Vs Public Schools | Staffer Grant Skaggs discusses the differences on two different types of schooling,

THEME

GROWING PAINS

Part 4 in a series

Scholarships at the Hands of Seniors | Scholarship opportunities are already being handed out to BE seniors.

POLITICAL

OPINION

A Love Hate Relationship | Exploring the opposing views on Valentine’s Day.

Science Vs Nonsense | Staffer Taylor Hollifield shares her opinion on horoscopes.

Conspiracy? | A look into some of the most interesting conspiracy theories.

Misplaced Trust In Trump | Kim

Can Kentucky Afford Trump? |

Houchin talks about President Trump going back on his campaign promises.

With Donald Trump now in office, staffer Luke Young explains why Kentucky might be in danger.

Editorial Board | The Editorial Board’s view on being able to fit in to a group in high school.

adviser editor-in-chief executive editor website editor co-website editor business & advertising special events manager copy editor copy editor copy editor copy editor copy editor sports editor creative editor creative editor photo editor social media editor

Larry Steinmetz Lindsay Renneisen Jessica Mattingly Taylor Hollifield Abbie Alstatt Zach Combest Sydney Riley Ainsley Gordon Derek Rogers Kim Houchin Bethany White Abbie Alstatt Grant Skaggs Haylie Jenkins Haley Snyder Sarah Allen Kelsi Sego

staff writers Jeremy Antle Erika Bolton Matthew Childress Dustin Douglas Haley Grether Brandon Hall Nick Jackson Owen Jagielo Jaydrien Jarrett

Ashlyn Kouri Jasmine Meeks Ethan Neutz Jeremy Riggs Lauryn Smith Tyler Steinmetz Jaeden Yarbrough Luke Young

Livewire was re-founded in 2001 by journalism teacher, Larry Steinmetz. In the past, the Livewire has been a weekly newspaper, but moved to a newsmagazine published five times a year in 2011, and increased to six in the 2016-17 school year. The staff remains committed to bringing the Bullitt East community the most up to date news in a quality format and timely manner. To get breaking news, sports updates, and more go online to belivewire.com. The staff appreciates your patronage and, as a public forum, encourages any feedback you care to offer. Letters to the editor must be typed and submitted via e-mail, to Mr. Steinmetz’s mailbox, or directly to room 324 within one week of the publication to which you are responding. Letters will not be censored, but must be deemed appropriate by the editor and advisor in order to be published. In order to be eligible to appear in the paper, all letters must be signed and verifiable. Names can be withheld upon request, but must be submitted with the original letter. Livewire is published by the students and for the students of Bullitt East High School, E-mailing Mr. Steinmetz directly is the best way to reach the staff. His address is larry. steinmetz@bullitt.kyschools.us. The Livewire is printed by Publishers Printing Company. Bullitt East High School 11450 Highway 44 East, Mount Washington, Kentucky, 40047. (502) 869-6400.

IT’S A NEW YEAR BY HALEY GRETHER

Freshmen:

Staff Writer

Luke Reynolds

Aubrey Allen

Q. Did you have a New

Year’s resolution for 2016? What was it? How did it go? A. Yes, it was to get better at football and I did in fact get way better.

Q. What’s your resolution for 2017?

A. My 2017 resolution is to just be a better person overall.

Q. What are some New Year’s resolutions that you’ve made in the past? A. In the past I haven’t made too many resolutions but a few were to care more about friends and family, save up more money, and get better grades.

Lauren Jones Q. What are some New

Year’s resolutions that you’ve made in the past? A. Usually I make cheesy New Year’s Revolutions like keeping myself organized, staying focused, trying to keep up with a daily bible devotional, stop drinking soda and keeping a clean room. The First of the year is just an easy starting point, like a good time to refresh and restart.

Q. How can New Year’s resolutions be a good

opportunity for change? A. I have never been able to keep my room clean for any longer than a week at most. I’ve given up trying to make that one work every year. On the other hand I have gotten much better at keeping myself organized, I didnt succeed with that one but I didn’t completely fail either, same goes for the daily devotionals. I have kept up with not drinking soda though, that may be the only one I’ve done successfully without having to “restart”.

Q. Are you ready for change? And keeping up

with your New Year’s resolution? A. I am always looking forward to change. I’ve realized that although change may be difficult or hard, you can end up with a better outcome if you just stick to it until the end. I would like to change my attitude about things, being more positive, and self have discipline.

page by Haley Grether February 2017

Class of 2020

Year’s resolution for 2016? What was it? How did it go? A. Yes I did, I told myself to join at least one activity for school. I actually joined three after school activities.

Q. What’s your resolution for 2017? A. My goal is to save any money that I receive. Q. What is the point of a New Year’s resolu-

tion? A. A New Year’s resolution is supposed to help you throughout the whole year with your own goal.

Q. What are some New Year’s resolutions that

you’ve made in the past? A. To be more interactive, to go on a diet, and to spend more time with my family .

Q. What are some resolutions that you’ve

0 2

broken quickly? A. I’ve only broken one, which is interacting more. I’m honestly too shy of a person.

Martess Bethel

Q. How can New Year’s resolutions be a good

Q. What’s your resolution

opportunity for change? A. You could learn from mistakes.

Q. Are you ready for change? And keeping up with your New Year’s resolution? A. I want to be known as a really good money saver. Many people struggle with it but once I’m older and have more freedom I will have that extra cash for whatever I need.

Q. Have you ever made a successful New

Year’s Resolution? A. Yes, I met my goal of getting more involved in school by joinging some after school activities.

Q. How and why would you like to change? A. I am still trying to spend more time with

my family and interacting. Evey time I actually get to talk to my parents I have to tell them so much because I only have the time to sit down with them every few weeks.

for 2017? A. A resolution for 2017 would be to make sure to get good grades in school and complete all my homework.

Q. How can New Year’s resolutions be a good opportunity for change? A. A resolution can be good for a change because you challenge yourself to to things your not use to.

Q. Why do you want to change? A. The reason I would want to change is

because there is a lot of things that I could do better that would make me a better person. I want to change me not turning work in on time and paying attention in class.

>> student life

Kayla Nutgrass

Chaeli Dossey

Year’s resolution for 2016? What was it? How did it go? A. My new year’s resolution was always to lose weight. It’s the most basic new year’s resolution, but it was something i wanted to complete. My goal was always to get to the weight that satisfied me. It never really hit me until a couple months ago how close I was to my goal. I focused this whole year on my weight, and I can now successfully say that I met my New Year’s resolution.

Q. What’s your resolution

Q. Did you have a New

Sophomores: class of 2019

7 1 Emmit Johnson Q. Did you have a New

Year’s resolution for 2016? What was it? How did it go? A. My goals in 2016 was to get more fit. I did complete this, losing 30 pounds and gaining more muscle.

Q. What are some New Year’s resolutions that you’ve made in the past? A. Some that i’ve made in the past were making good grades, getting fit, and passing middle school.

Q. What’s your resolution for 2017? A. My resolution for 2017 is to get more fit, and pass the 10th grade.

Q. What is the point of a New Year’s resolu-

tion? A. In my opinion a New Year’s resolution is just a goal we personally set, but many never complete. I feel like people set them to just give themselves some hope for change. With the new year coming along, many people have made mistakes they do not want to make again. So setting a goal to not make that mistake once again gives them hope to change.

Q. How can New Year’s resolutions be a good

opportunity for change? A. New Year’s resolutions are an opportunity for change because we are so immune to the fact that people cannot wait to change in the new year. It is a good opportunity in your life, because 2017 is a new year so why not bring something new to your life.

Q. How would you like to change? A. Personally I would love to change my

attitude towards people. I feel like I can be more kind to people, I give off a negative attitude towards many, and I would truly like to change that.

Q. What’s your resolution for 2017? A. I personally do not have a 2017 New Year’s resolution, but I have goals I would like to continue. It’s a long term goal of maintaining straight A’s.

Noah VanDolah Q. What is the point of a

New Year’s resolution? A. I myself don’t see a point in New Year’s resolutions because most people don’t follow through with them anyways. I know I wouldn’t so I don’t bother making them.

Q. How can New Year’s resolutions help you

in the coming year? A. I guess New Year’s resolutions can help you by giving you something to strive for that you didn’t do in the past year or decided you wanted to do in the upcoming year.

for 2017? A. My resolution for 2017 is to lose weight and eat healthier.

Q. What is the point of a New Year’s resolu-

tion? A. In my opinion, the point of a New Year’s resolution is to detoxify/Cleanse yourself from all of the bad and that came from the previous year. It also gives you the motivation to better yourself as a person whether it’s for yourself or for someone else.

Q. What are some New Year’s resolutions that you’ve made in the past? A. I remember in a 2014 I made a New Year’s resolution to stop biting my fingernails. For the record, I actually accomplished it!

Q. What are some resolutions that you’ve

broken quickly? A. Some resolutions that I’ve broken quickly is trying to be nice to people even when they don’t deserve it. The only reason I broke that resolution is because, I mean come on, if they don’t deserve it I’m not gonna give them my kindness.

Q. Are you ready for change? And keeping up with your New Year’s resolution? A. Yes, I am ready for change. I look forward to trying to stick with my resolution and no matter how difficult it may become.

Michael Page

Q. What’s your resolution

for 2017? A. To get all A’s and B’s for the rest of the year, and to see how smart I am if I try.

Q. What are some New Year’s resolutions that you’ve made in the past? A. Mostly sports, like winning a championship or rushing for 1,000 yards.

Victoria Augustine Q. What’s your resolution for 2017? A. Try and make it through the new year.

Q. What would make you

happier? Why not go for it in 2017. A. Making better grades, I am really going to try to.

page by Haley Grether

C.J Bynum Q. Did you have a New Year’s resolution for

2016? What was it? How did it go? A. My new year resolution for 2016 was to gain at least 15 more pounds of muscle, and that was successful I gained about 23 pounds of muscle.

Q. What’s your resolution for 2017? A. My new year resolution for 2017 is to eat more healthier and to gain 15 more pounds of muscle.

Q. What are some New

Year’s resolutions that you’ve made in the past? A. I had successfully completed my new year’s resolution of gaining muscle weight every year that I tried. And that changed my life so much because I used to be overweight when I was in the 6th grade.

Q. How can New Year’s resolutions help you

in the coming year? A. The reason I wanted to do the new year resolution is because I wanted to change my life, I wasn’t happy with my body and I wanted to be more attractive. I would say that’s a huge success because I am with the girl of my dreams and that’s Taylor Starr.

Burgundy Maloney Q. What’s your resolution

for 2017? A. My resolution for 2017 is to meet new people and come out of my comfort zone more.

Q. What are some resolutions that you’ve

broken quickly? A. Some resolutions i’ve broken quickly were diets and exercising.

Looking Into a New Year’s Resolution A resolution is a promise to oneself or another to inflict change. As the new year is beginning people make these promises to themselves in hopes to change for the better. Weather it be being more nice to people, losing weight, or becoming a better person, the point is to change oneself. It’s all about decisions, decisions to improve one’s life in as many ways as possible. But as far as promises go not all are always kept but that’s okay because there is always next year.

page by Haley Grether February 2017

Juniors: Brianna Perkins

Class of 2018

Q. What is the point of a

New Year’s resolution? A. The Point in my opinion is to better yourself for the New Year.

Q. How can New Year’s resolutions help you

in the coming year? A. A resolution helps you to set goals for the future and to helps motivate you achieve them.

Q. How can New Year’s resolutions be a good

opportunity for change? A. Because like the saying goes “new year new me” and it’s easier to change something about yourself when everything else is changing to.

Q. Have you ever made a successful New Year’s resolution? A. No I always lose track of them around February.

Clay Williams Q. Did you have a New

Year’s resolution for 2016? What was it? How did it go? A. My resolution for 2016 was to get as strong as I possibly can for the next football season. It went really well and I got what I wanted.

Q. What’s your resolution for 2017? A. My resolution for 2017 is to get healed

from previous injuries during the past season and get back to where I was.

Q. What is the point of a New Year’s resolu-

tion? A. The point of a new years resolution is to do something different the next year that can change your life in a positive way.

Q. What are some New Year’s resolutions that you’ve made in the past? A. Some new years resolutions ive made in the past was stuff like lose weight, be more positive, and hit the gym more

0 2 Adam Yokely Q. What’s your resolution

for 2017? A. To get better and better at everything I do, to never give up and to always have hope for a better year. Oh and to be a good varsity player

Q. What is the point of a New Year’s resolu-

tion? A. To show there is always a second chance for those who need it and those who need a push to add a little pep to their step to get going on what they really want to accomplish.

Q. Are you ready for change? And keeping

up with your New Year’s resolution? A. Yes always ready. Anythings possible, and I think if you keep up with it you can get it done.

>> student life

Eleanor Upton

Will Rucker

Q. Did you have a New

Year’s resolution for 2016? What was it? How did it go? A. Yes! It was to be more of myself, and to live life to the fullest. I struggled a little bit with it in the beginning, but other than the start, it’s gone very well!

Seniors:

Class of 2017

Q. What’s your resolution for 2017?

A. To make it one of the best years of my life!

I get to graduate high school, and start fresh with college, so I’m hoping I’ll be able to stick with it.

Q. What is the point of a New Year’s resolu-

7 1 Madison Shannon Q. What’s your resolution for 2017? A. My new years resolution for 2017 is to spend less time on social media and to be healthier.

Q. How can New Year’s resolutions be a good

opportunity for change? A. New years can be a good opportunity to change because people often see that as a new start to better themselves.

Q. What would make you happier? Why not

go for it in 2017. A. I feel like nobody is completely happy with themselves. There may be things you aren’t content with or things that you want to change. But for myself to be considerably happier, I believe I should stop comparing myself and my life to others and remind myself that there is still plenty of time to do things that I would like to do.

tion? A. To do sort of a refresh on your life, and better yourself for the new year. They allow you to leave things in the past, as well as start new things without fear of judgement or anything like that.

Q. What are some New Year’s resolutions that you’ve made in the past? A. The “classic” ones, like eating healthy, working out, and getting better grades.

Q. What are some resolutions that you’ve

broken quickly? A. Working out and eating healthy. Everyone says they’re gonna do it, and then they dive headfirst into it. Then, about mid-February all the gyms clear out and the health food goes on sale. I’m one of those people.

Q. How can New Year’s resolutions be a good

opportunity for change? A. It’s a fun, but meaningful way to allow yourself to make a change with your life if you’re not happy. You can change at any time, but it feels official once the calendar changes.

Q. Are you ready for change? And keeping up with your New Year’s resolution? A. I’d like to think I’m ready, but I think when the time comes to actually do it, I probably won’t.

Year’s resolution for 2016? What was it? How did it go? A. Yes I had a resolution this year but unfortunately I failed. I wanted to stop eating so unhealthily so I was trying to cut out all junk food but I failed almost immediately because I’m broke.

Q. What’s your resolution for 2017?

A. My New Year’s resolutions for 2017 are

to stop procrastinating, go to the gym more often, and to save as much as I can for college.

Q. What are some resolutions that you’ve broken quickly?

A. A resolution I broke early was this years’ of not eating healthy.

Q. Have you ever made a successful New

Year’s resolution? A. Yeah I’ve had successful resolutions, my last two were to work out more and so I did, and I’ve gotten bigger and stronger since then.

Q. Why do you want to change? A. I want a better future for myself and my family so I want to change.

Q. What would make you happier? Why not

go for it in 2017. A. Something that would make me happier would be to put on a couple of healthy pounds and get ahold of my grades.

Shane Brown Q. What is the point of a

New Year’s resolution? A. I guess to give people goals for themselfs to accomplish so that they can better themselfs more than they did the year before.

Sticking With a Resolution The first step in the year long journey to stay true to a resolution is to find modivation. The next step is to find support from anyone important in ones life. Then dont let the little things knock you down and keep you from acheving your goal. you can do anything if you try.

page by Haley Grether

LOVE AND DEATH Get to know the not-so-sweet history of Valentine’s Day.

BY SARAH ALLEN Photo Editor

It’s time to celebrate… a beheading? Many people see Valentine’s Day as a day to give out roses, cards and candy, but the meaning behind the holiday is much more than just romantic gifts. Most people associate Valentines with Saint Valentine but the Catholic church recognizes two other saints as well. This isn’t the only hidden history when it comes to this holiday. There are many theories when it comes to where this holiday started and what century it was in. Valentine was known as kind-hearted. He was the Saint Valentine of Terni. He was well known for his support of “courtly love” because he would marry young couples. Helping Christian couples wed is what got him killed on February 14. The emperor at the time, Emperor Claudius, disagreed with what he was doing. Claudius was known as “Claudius the Cruel” because of his law against marriage so men wouldn’t have a reason to not join the army. At this time, Rome was a part of many battles. There was a lack of participation when it came to men joining the army. To fix this problem, Claudius banned all engagements and marriages in Rome. Young lovers were in favor of Valentine at this time because he would secretly marry couples. Valentine was a strong believer in love so he decided to defy Claudius. Claudius soon found out what Valentine was up to and decided to order for him to be put to death. Before his beheading, Valentine was sent to the Prefect of Rome who said he should be beaten to death with clubs followed by his beheading. While in jail, it is said that Valentine became friends with the jailer’s daughter. The legend says that when he was taken to be killed, Valentine left a note for her signed “From Your Valentine.” This note is the drive behind Valentine’s Day

page by Sarah Allen

cards today. Everyone from small children to elderly people give/receive` cards reading “From Your Valentine.” Is the holiday is in December due to the death of Valentine or to “Christianize” the celebration of Lupercalia? Lupercalia is to honor the God of Agriculture (Faunus). It was a fertility festival on February 15. It’s close proximity to Valentine’s day is one reason why this came about. Pope Gelasius is the person behind Valentine’s day. He appointed one of the Saints (which one remains a mystery). Around the year of 496, Gelasius declared February 14 Valentine’s Day. Valentine’s Day is full of history. The death of Valentine isn’t the only historic event that happened on this day. Oregon became a state, the bombing of Dresden, and Arizona became a state all happened on February 14. The feast that mainly focused on Christianity became focused on love during the 14th century. Anne of Bohemia and England’s Richard II were presented a poem as a congratulations on their engagement on the day of the soon to be day of love. This was the start to connecting this day with romance. Today Valentine’s Day is all about love and many people forget about the start of it. Now the day is full of dozens of roses and edible arrangements. One of the more popular gifts for this day has been cards for years. Each year over 140 million cards are exchanged (history. com). Valentine’s Day is celebrated in many other countries including Japan and France. In the United states alone, there are over 6,000 marriages a day when you break down the 2.2 marriages that happen annually (history.com). The high number of marriages go hand in hand with the large number of commercial items sold on Valentine’s Day. According to mashable.com, in 2014 the top Valentine’s Day gifts were greeting cards, candy, flowers, an evening out, jewelry, clothing and gift cards. The top number is different

for men and women putting greeting cards at the top for women and flowers at the top for men. Over 198 million flowers are sold each year on Valentine’s day and Americans spend over 277 million dollars on cards on this day each year. A day of a massacre is now known as a day full of love and presents. With the history of the day in mind, Valentine’s Day is based off of a day of death, Christian feasts, and a poem. The symbols slowly went away and the most memorable ones today are a heart and Cupid. The son of the goddess of love soon took over the spot that was held by the god of agriculture. Greek mythology has allowed this day to be associated with Cupid. Even though Cupid wasn’t associated with Valentine’s Day until later years, Cupid was known before Christianity even started. The roman god of love represents desire, attraction and affection. Along with Cupid, a heart is another main symbol of Valentine’s Day. The heart is the center of emotion. A broken heart is associated with the the loss of a loved one or a breakup, fitting in with the theme of love for the day. Most hearts scattered throughout shops are mostly red with the exception of a few pink. The color red shows up in the many flowers sold that day as well. Red roses and hearts are a Valentine’s Day essential for a reason. The color red is usually associated with anger but that is put to the side on this day. A red heart is associated strength and power. Red is a color that is easily noticeable and draws the eye to something. Along with the color red, pink is commonly seen on February 14. Pink is associated with femininity. This February will be another month full of red, pink, flowers, cards, and Cupid.

>> student life

LOVE IN NUMBERS

According to 2015 studies done by glaad.org and linkdex.com

BY SARAH ALLEN Photo Editor

Around 53.2 percent of consumers choose between something sweet to give as a gift.

On average, 37 percent of couples go out on this night. On average women spend $96.58 on their significant other while men tend to spend around $190.53.

This year, the number of people who celebrate Valentine’s Day went down from 60 percent in 2013 to 54 percent.

People will spend $6.30 on teachers and classmates.

Pet owners tend to spend around $5 on their pets on Valentine’s Day. That’s a total of $703 million on pets alone. 21.1 percent of consumers on Valentine’s Day will spend their money on jewelry.

Over $2 billion annually goes to clothing gifts.

About 30 percent of males use their phones to help with gifts.

One third of Valentine’s Day purchases come from a tablet.

Valentine’s Day shoppers start up to three weeks ahead.

Around 5 percent of conversations on Twitter around Valentine’s Day happen between singles. Around 72 percent of news sources recognize same sex marriage when it comes to Valentine’s Day.

page by Sarah Allen

THE HEART OF BULLITT EAST BY LAURYN SMITH Staff Writer

rooke Stivers’ bubbly personality brings the best to Bullitt East.

Senior, Brooke Stivers maintains to keep good grades while taking challenging classes. She is a dedicated and encouring cheerleader to her teammates on the Bullitt East cheerleading team. She also works three days a week at a clothing boutique. Stivers is a member of the National Honors society, United for East, the prom committee, the vice president of the Beta Club, president of student congress, vice president of marketing at the Charger Bank, the cheerleading team, and has a job. For her senior year, Stivers is taking business management, financial services, pre-cal, and financial literacy. She is also taking two JCTC, Jefferson County classes at Bullitt East, public speaking and English. “Financial literacy is not really easy for me, but it’s such a good class. It’s taught me more about my future, money and savings wisely, and I really do feel like it will prepare me for my future when I’m living on my own,” said Stivers. She is mostly excited for college in the future. She is very excited to go and experience new things and meet a lot of new people. Throughout the past four years, Stivers has been a positive person and looks at the bright side of things. She does not like to be negative toward other people. “I’ve been that way for a long time,” said Stivers. Winning the “Heart of Bullitt East” award was one of the most amazing things that had happened to her. To her, it was always awesome winning a sports or academic award, but winning award based on her character was a big deal. “I am a lot more social and outgoing. I have cheerleading to thank for that. Even through middle school, I wasn’t involved as much or into it as much. I wasn’t as outgoing or I didn’t talk to people as much, but definitely now that I’m a senior, I love talking to new people and I love being involved in things, which is definitely something that has changed about me,” said Stivers.

page by Lauryn Smith February 2017

Cheerleading impacted Stivers life because it had got her out of her comfort zone when she was younger. It allowed her to speak up, learn how to be a good leader, taught her to teamwork and allowed her to be an outgoing and positive person. She motivates her cheerleading team by being positive. She reminds others to keep good spirits and makes sure that everyone on the team has the same goal in mind. “A positive attitude is contagious and if I come in positive and ready to work, everyone else will too,” said Stivers. A national championship and a white jacket keeps herself motivated. Also, that she only has a few more months until high school cheerleading is over. For her, winning a white jacket is a dream and she keeps that in mind every time she practices.

“Balancing work, school, and cheer is difficult, but I like it. I like busy and not having much down time. It keeps from putting things off and also teaches me time management skills. Of course at times, it’s super stressful, balancing all three, but especially with being a senior I don’t have a ton of homework so it’s been a lot easier.” - Brooke Stivers The most memorable moment was winning state for the first time her sophomore year. “It was awesome making history with 11 other girls on my team. We are in the history books of Bullitt East and I and others will remember that forever,” said Stivers. She is planning on trying out for cheerleading at Western Kentucky University. Stivers said, “I cheer because it’s what I’m good at. I like being on a team that incorporates everyone. It involves all of us to do our jobs to make the routine happen. I cheer because

when I was younger, I was never good and never tried anything else. It’s what I have a passion for. Competing, the excitement of winning, the heartbreak from losing and the adrenaline from performing is why I cheer.” Stivers enjoys supporting other Bullitt East sports teams. She mainly goes to basketball and football games because she cheers at the games. Besides cheerleading, Stivers likes baseball. She has several super close guy friends on the baseball team and loves going to support them. Stivers works at a clothing boutique called Gameday Graphics. Her job has taught her better people skills. She now is more confident when talking to people on the phone or talk to customers who shop at Gameday Graphics. “A lot of kids my age struggle to communicate through a phone or even in person to people and my job involves a lot of that. It’s a good lesson I’ve learned,” said Stivers. For Stivers, balancing cheerleading, work and school is difficult but she likes it. She likes to be busy and not have much down time, it keeps her from putting things off. It also teaches her time management skills. At times, it is very stressful balancing all three, but especially being a senior, she does not have much homework so it has been a lot easier for her than in the past years. On her free time, she likes to hangout with friend and watch Netflix. She likes to go to Sonic, Chick-Fil-A, the movies, the mall, and Westport Village. “‘Do Work’ has always impacted me. It’s a saying I came to Bullitt East knowing. Nate Fulghum, my cheer coach, started it as a cheer thing before I got here. It’s a motivating, positive saying that really just gets you pumped up to do something. Whether it be a cheerleading routine, a test, or trying to squat a new max, it’s a quick, short reminder to do work in whatever you may be doing,” said Stivers. Some of her biggest dreams and goals are to win nationals, to graduate, to cheer in college, Get married to a guy as awesome as her dad, buy her own house and raise kids the same way she was raised.Stivers recieving the heart of Bullit East award.

>> student life

Photo credits to Endeavor staff

Photo credits to Endeavor staff page by Lauryn Smith

ACTING PROFESSIONAL: Jordan Maloyed has script accepted by Actor’s Theatre BY KIM HOUCHIN Copy Editor

he went from a regular actor to scriptwriter and play producer.

Senior Jordan Maloyed was one of eight out of 876 applicants chosen to have her script be published and made into a play at the Actors Theatre. Maloyed moved from Spencer County to Bullitt East due to her parents want for a farmhouse. She has been acting for about five years. For those who want to apply, Maloyed encourages them to go for it. Just this year, Maloyed transferred to BE. Her parents had wanted to live in a farmhouse and, with four big dogs, they needed more space than what they had in Spencer County. A difference between the two schools’ theater programs are that Spencer County had a large stage and BE is more welcoming and involving within their play roles. She also enjoys the friendliness of Bullitt County. “As soon as I walked in, everybody was so friendly,” said Maloyed. She states that she has no problems with anyone in the school. “Everyone was just so accepting,” said Maloyed. She has been in theater for five years now and plans to make a career out of it. “I think there is something amazing about doing what you love... If you love what you do, then everything will flow from that,” said Maloyed. When Maloyed signed up to be an aid for an art teacher, the two clashed and argued every which way. She went to her counselor and requested a class change. After going through an interview with the theater teacher, she aided for them and fell in love with the class. Her biggest inspiration for acting has been her teacher, Dan Barrett, and her English and theater teacher at Spencer County. Barrett believes Maloyed’s playwriting falls down to two things. “She’s willing to dare the producers to present a world that most people would think you can’t do,” said Barrett. Her longtime friend, Chloe Britt, states that Maloyed has an amazing work ethic and that she loves having Maloyed in class with her.

page by Kim Houchin February 2017

He believes that if all students had the drive and conviction of Maloyed that more of their scripts would have gotten picked in the Actor’s Theatre. Barrett also believes that Maloyed is a natural playwright. She took the instructions he gave her to the fullest and ran with it. “She [Maloyed] really grasped what makes a play stand out from general creative writing and what makes a theater experience truly memorable,” said Barrett. Barrett states that Maloyed is phenomenal actress and puts her heart and soul into each character she plays. Maloyed fell in love with theater because of all of the different characters that she can play. “When you get to play a character, you get to step into a different frame of mind,” said Maloyed. She believes that it is fun to figure things out in people and to experience another person’s life. When Maloyed was chosen to have her script published, she was overjoyed and began crying. “There’s this wonderful feeling of passion that you have when you’re validated in something you love to do,” said Maloyed. She believes that she was chosen because of the theme of her play. “I believe that when you write something, you have something to say,” said Maloyed. When Barrett found out about Maloyed’s script being accepted, he was proud, but not shocked. “I felt like it affirmed our offering of the course that this is something that is applicable to real world skills,” said Barrett. When Maloyed was planning to apply, she was slightly hesitant due to her insecurities on her writing. She states that everyone has insecurities, but that those should not hold her back. Her play is about an author who is looking to write a book based on a real character in his life. The author wants to find the women, the main character, a love interest for his book, but she refuses to comply. Maloyed believes that the way society portrays love is completely wrong. “I think that

romance is portrayed that you need romance to be happy, however I think you can be an awesome person without that,” said Maloyed. Maloyed hopes to star in her own play, but is excited to see how the actors approach the roles she has written. She states that she does not have a favorite character within the play. “When you write a character, you give in to that character and you attach yourself emotionally,” said Maloyed. The process that Maloyed underwent was a long one. “Around 876 people submitted a script and only eight people get chosen to have it produced,” said Maloyed. She will be working with directors and her script will also be published in a director’s book. The first meeting Maloyed has will involve her speaking to a group of directors and the three actors who will star in her play. There are many things that Maloyed is excited for when it comes to working with the Actor’s Theatre. She is the most excited about working through the process of bringing her play to life. “Seeing my show be produced is just going to be so fantastic,” said Maloyed. Barrett believes that Maloyed will successful with anything that she does. “She is determined and she takes good advice,” said Barrett. Maloyed does not plan to be in the upcoming school musical ‘Into The Woods’, but she did appear in ‘Caged Birds’ where she took on the role of Twitting. She will also be in ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ as she takes the role of ‘Willy Wonka’. Barrett’s favorite thing abot Maloyed is her appreciation of people. He believes it feeds into her acting and her writing. “Anyone that watches performances wants to see something that will uplift them,” said Barrett. She wants everyone who is hesitant applying to go ahead and go for it. “Definitely shoot for the stars,” said Maloyed.

>> student life

page by Kim Houchin

UBER VS. LYFT BY BETHANY WHITE Copy Editor

APPS:

ber everywhere? Or should you just lyft.

You can find the Apps in the App Store, Google Play, and the Windows store as both apps tend to be user friendly on all types of phones.

STARTUP:

UBER: On a snowy evening in Paris in 2008, Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp had trouble catching a cab to a conference. They came up with a simple idea—tap a button, get a ride. LYFT: John Zimmer and Logan Green launched a company in 2007 called Zimride which used ridesharing for long distance trips. It worked until 2012 when they launched Lyft for short distance rides.

COSTS: Prices of rides vary depending on the company and which type you select. Estimates of the rides can be found on both apps.

CUSTOMER SERVICE: Neither companies have a way for customers to contact the service and make complaints other than the app.

TYPES:

UBER: In Louisville there are three options: uberX, uberXL, and UberSELECT. uberX: sends an everyday car to your location with seating for up to four people. uberXL: everyday rides that seat up to six people UberSELECT: A luxury sedan that seats up to 4 riders. Expect a BMW, Mercedes, etc with a leather interior. LYFT: In Louisville there are two options: Lyft and Lyft Plus. Lyft: A sedan that can fit up to three people. Lyft Plus: Ride with six people in this supersized ride.

page by Bethany White February 2017

RIDES: UBER: If the consumer is looking for a few minutes to sit in peace while riding from point A to point B, then Uber is usually the company for him/her. The Uber driver is going to be dressed a bit more professional. The Uber driver is going to get out and open the door for the rider, and is overall going to give a more professional ride to his/her destination. LYFT: If the rider is looking for a friendly ride with social interaction, then Lyft is the company to choose. Lyft riders are encouraged to sit in the front seat, interact with the driver, and basically have a very friendly visit while on route to his/her destination. Lyft drivers occasionally also do something really fun for the rider – they participate in a themed ride such as a sports theme or karaoke theme. Also, you don’t have to only make one stop, Lyft can make multiple stops throughout the ride. The whole experience is intended to be a lot of fun with social interaction.

>> sports

MARCH MADNESS PREVIEW BY DEREK ROGERS Copy Editor

ear of the blue bloods.

Devil thus far.

The traditional powers of college basketball are all playing at the top of their game during the same season.

The old preconceived notion that freshman dominated teams can only compete or not win is still in many fan’s heads.

In the new age of college basketball, freshman contribute more than ever. This trend has now made its way to traditional powers and we’re seeing its effect. With some of basketball’s most popular teams competing for a championship, this college basketball season looks to be one of the best in the past decade.

When this trend started, few powerhouse programs recruited top players who would have an immediate impact on their team. That’s because many of these schools have highly respected coaches who are very experienced. The way they think is more focused towards improving a player over period of time and molding him to fit with the team’s style versus using his raw skills imme-

The one and done system refers to any player who comes to college for one year and then leaves and goes to the NBA. Many may know basketball greats such as Lebron James and Kobe Bryant who went to the NBA straight from high school. However the NBA’s 2005 collective bargaining agreement (CBA), stated that a player must be 19 years of age to be drafted, taking away the chance for high school seniors to go straight to the league. This has lead to top recruits going to schools for just one year and then leaving to go to the next level. When players only stay for one year it often becomes hard for them to fit the system they play in because they do not stay long enough gain a great understanding of it. This leads to a lower quality of basketball compared to times when all players, even guys who were good enough to play in the league, stayed at least three years and often four. It is something that has turned some college basketball fans away from the game. Something many basketball historians believe is killing the game, is making for one of the best seasons in recent memory. UCLA lead by freshman point guard Lonzo Ball is having one of its best seasons in the past decade. Kentucky’s Malik Monk is one of the best scorers in college basketball and is only a freshman. North Carolina still has two starters from last year’s runners-up team and remain very skilled. Duke’s mixture of experience and young talent puts them as a frontrunner to win it all but injuries have plagued the Blue

points. The game received a 2.4 rating which was 50% more than the game that had previously held the top spot. With all of this year’s top teams being historic programs lead by young players; many of which will likely enter the NBA draft, college basketball looks to be adjusting to the change just fine.

diately which may not fit your system. However after blue blood teams like Kentucky and Kansas began recruiting these players and competing for championships; other elite schools began adjusting to college basketball’s new look. The highest rated regular season college basketball game of 2016 was this season when Kentucky edged out North Carolina in the Champions Classic behind Malik Monk’s 47 page by Derek Rogers

NATIONALS 2K17 BY JASMINE MEEKS Staff Writer

n the road again.

The cheerleaders will attend the UCA National High School Cheerleading Championship in February. Leading up to Nationals, the cheerleaders have been working hard to perfect their routine with new additions. Not only is the cheer team focusing on their competitions, they have also took time to build their team into a family. The cheer coaches and cheerleaders themselves believe they have a good chance at taking home first place. The cheer team received first place at their State Competition in Lexington, KY earlier this year. With that being said, a bit has been changed to their state routine. At the state competition, only 24 girls were allowed to compete, however, at Nationals 30 girls are al-

page by Jasmine Meeks February 2017

lowed to compete. So, the cheer team has been working hard to restructure and coordinate six more girls into their routine for Nationals. “Recently, we’ve been practicing, practicing, practicing, practicing... Right now we’re practicing four days a week,” said Nate Fulghum, cheer coach.

perienced her first State Competition this year as well. “I’m very very excited for Nationals but also nervous because I’ve never been,” said Williams. This year the cheer team has had a set focus on working on becoming more of a family rather than just any team. This has helped the cheer team tremendously, espeHeun cially after losing one of their seniors from the team. “The focus has been staying positive, encouraging one another, and working through difficult times together; they’ve really done a good job with team bonding this year it’s definitely paid off, and I hope it works the same next year,” said

“BE Cheer is having a second family that I can always count on.”

The atmosphere at - Alyssa the National Competition is much like any other competition. The cheerleaders get to go over their routine just like how they would regularly, except with many more teams surrounding. Although this would be new to cheerleader Dani Williams (10), who has never been to Nationals and ex-

>> sports Photo Credits: Kemper Barr

Alyssa Huen at the KHSAA State Competition on December 10, 2016.

Photo Credits: Kemper Barr

Fulghum.

competitors.

The coaches aren’t the only ones who can see the payoff of focusing on team bonding, the cheerleaders can see it too. Over the years cheerleader Alyssa Heun (12) has had a great experience as a BE cheerleader “The coaches have made a lasting impact on my life. They’ve taught me so many things over the past four years. They taught me how to be a better cheerleader and have prepared me ultimately for college cheer… The best part of BE Cheer is having a second family that I can always count on,” said Heun.

Fulghum has high hopes for the cheerleaders always, but this year would be the icing on the cake to win Nationals after winning State for the third time in a row as it’s always been one of his goals to win both in one year. “The odds are always really high for us.

Bullitt East Cheer usually has pretty high odds of winning Nationals or at least getting close to the top. Normally, the scores are halves of points away from the first place winners to the third place. Nationals is an intense competition with an abundance of attendees and

When you’re talking about competing at Nationals you’re talking about the best teams in the nation. There’s always at least three or four teams that are equal in skill and ability and it all comes down to who can show up that day in that moment and have their best performance, and who does that will take home first,” said Fulghum.

Dani Williams at the KHSAA State Competition on December 10, 2016. page by Jasmine Meeks

>> sports

FROM THE 404 TO THE 502: DERRICK DONIGAN BY ZACH COMBEST Business Editor

unning in transition as he transitions to a new school.

sees great potential in Donigan and described him as a charismatic kid who has a good heart.

Senior Derrick Donigan is the newest member of the Charger basketball team and continues to work hard as he gets used to Charger Nation and his team.

He has been welcomed by the team with open arms.

Donigan traveled 410 miles from Atlanta, Georgia to the small town of Mount Washington for his last year of high school. Joining the basketball team introduced him to major differences compared to his team back home. Though the differences between schools, he has made a smooth transition. Donigan transferred from North Atlanta High School. “My old high school was huge! It was 11 stories and had elevators. It was on a lake so it was really big and a lot of student went there. You would meet a new person everyday, but here it’s smaller but it’s still nice,” said Donigan. He grew up with his brother being his role model and his father being his biggest supporter in his basketball and academic career. The academics at the two high schools are polar opposites. “My old school was more laid back on academic they didn’t really force you to do anything, which isn’t good, but at Bullitt East the teachers are really on you about your school work, so that’s gonna help me a lot,” said Donigan. He hopes to graduate and get good grades so he can continue to play basketball. Moving to a new school and community can be a hard transition for many students. Academics have been the hardest part about his transition. “School work, school work, we work a lot harder on education here at Bullitt East than they did at my old school,” said Donigan. Basketball has been his life for since he could remember. “I’ve played basketball since forever,” said Donigan. He first picked up a basketball in fourth grade and has been playing ever since. He scored 103 points in his high school basketball career at North Atlanta High School. Head Coach of the Chargers, Jason Couch is in his first year coaching and

“They took it better than I thought they would, because most schools would be like he’s just here for one thing, but they took it really good. I’m cool with everybody on the team and we are pretty close to each other,” -Derrick Donigan, senior This year’s basketball team has seven seniors. Donigan hit the hardwood against Pleasure Ridge Park in his first game back from academic suspension and the Chargers picked up the win over the Panthers on December 13. Donigan came off the bench to help his team pick up the win. Donigan and the Chargers had a once in a lifetime chance to play against the Kings School from Australia and Donigan played some key minutes and showed the Australia’s how American basketball players play. The Chargers defeated the traveling Aussie team. “Derrick really has a motor. He plays with a real passion. He has a tendency to get down on himself if he makes a bad play… we are trying to get him to just focus on the next play,” said Couch. He believes his skills around the basket and his ability to finish and block shots is the best part about Donigan’s game. He has played in 12 games and is averaging eight points and four rebounds a game. His teammates are excited about him being on the team. “Everyone was excited to have him join the team,” said senior guard Connor Green. He believes that Donigan brings great energy to the team.

Green and Donigan have a close friendship. “Me and Derrick are very close on and off the basketball court,” said Green. Donigan wants everyone to look out for Green and junior guard Luke Ezell as they are players to watch this season. The close bond and team chemistry the Chargers have in this young season have helped their performance on the court. They hold a 11 and five record as of January 10. The Chargers and Donigan have one goal, make it to the state tournament and bring the state trophy to Charger Nation. “The team has really accepted Derrick. He has definitely become close to many of the players,” said Couch. Donigan likes how Couch takes more time getting to know the players and how nice he is. Many may wonder why Donigan moved here. “New scenery, I got family that stays out here,” said Donigan. His parents and most of his family lives in Georgia, but his aunt and uncle lives in Mount Washington. His cousin Shawlon Donigan is a junior and was happy that her cousin moved to Mount Washington. The transition was made easier for Donigan with family, new friends and teammates. “The basketball team and the coaches will benefit him,” said Shawnlon. She believes he will do good in basketball this season and he will have a successful senior year. Donigan and Shawnlon are close and he tells her everything. Donigan would like to call Mount Washington home after high school. He likes the atmosphere and people in this area. “It’s different from where I came from, cause it’s kinda small. Everyone knows each other and I like that, it feels comfortable. I would live here,” said Donigan. Thanks to the open arms of Bullitt East, Donigan has felt welcomed and at home. He hopes to continue his basketball career and have a fun and memorable senior year.

page by Zach Combest

KNEE INJURIES IN STUDENT ATHLETES BY OWEN JAGIELO Staff Writer

hese are not just an(knee) types of injuries.

High school students who play sports face risks of getting injured every time they step out to play; and these players’ knees are what ended up getting hurt. Senior Lindsey Duvall’s injury was a noncancerous tumor in her knee, while Senior Abby Rodgers’ injury was ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament) related. Both of their recovery processes were long and challenging. The injuries tested these basketball players and the rest of the teams’ abilities to win without key members.

The recovery process for Duvall took a total of four months for her to get better. “It was good [recovery], sort of tough because I couldn't walk for awhile, ‘til three months I was on crutches,” said Duvall. Reagan Williams is another player who was injured on the girls basketball team also due to an ACL tear. With the absence of three players, the team was forced to adapt to the changes. Williams and Rodgers are the team's front court, so they [the rest of the team] had to play without dominant post players.

“Recovery takes a lot out of you and really find out how strong willed you are. If you complain the whole time and don't push yourself past the limits your body sets for you, then you will never get any better.” -Abby Rodgers

Duvall’s injury was a random occurrence. A tumor found its place in her knee, causing her to be in pain when she participated in physical activities. In order for her to play basketball again, Duvall had to get surgery on her knee. “It was good [the surgery]. They [the surgeons] just inserted a bone graft in after they scraped the tumor out,” said senior Duvall.

Rodgers’ first injury was when she tore her ACL in her freshman year of high school. Now, as a senior, she got injured again in the end of July playing in a basketball game. She did not realize she tore her ACL again until late October when she stepped on it wrong in

Duvall originally chose to commit to the University of Kentucky to play. She changed her mind and picked the University of Louisville because of conflict with UK’s program that came about. Her injury did not change the minds of scouts and she still has a fullride scholarship to the University of Louisville under her belt.

Even though injuries can be pretty hard on these players, they still can't stop them from doing what they love. “At first I didn't have much muscle, so that affected me [with the injury], but now not really at all,” said Duvall.

Reagan Williams shooting a free throw in a home game against Male. photo credits to Bryce Stewart

Lindsey Duvall dribbling the ball up the court in an away game at Male. photo credits to Claire Feldhaus

practice. A MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) was taken on her knee and it showed that her ACL had been torn that whole time. The first time Rodgers went in for surgery, she was really nervous. The recovery for it was an eight month long process. “I was much calmer the second time around because I knew what to expect. Surgery wasn't the bad part, it was when I got home and my medicine had worn off, that was the worst,” said Rodgers.

page by Owen Jagielo February 2017

Abby Rodgers shooting a free throw in a home game against Mercy. photo credits to Taylor Mckenna

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MOVING TOWARDS STATE BY SYDNEY RILEY Website Editor

Photo Credits to Endeavor Staff

ullitt East swings for a double.

The baseball team hopes to make it to the state tournament for the second straight year. In order to reach the state tournament, the BE baseball team has been working hard in the off season. The team is ready to take on the pressure of making it to state. Many individuals will be stepping up to fill important positions this season. In the off-season, the team has been working hard in order to stay fit and prepare for the season. Some of their workout include physical fitness testing, throwing in bullpens, and batting cages.

team to state. This year, much like last year, the seniors will be the driving force of the team since the roster is so young. “We’re going to have a younger team and we have to show them the ropes,” said Lobred. The seniors that graduated last year played a big role in the team. Senior outfielder Mitchell Langley said, “We need to fill the shoes of the seniors that led us last year.” BE has a tough season schedule, including North Oldham High School, who has a pitcher who can throw over 90 mph and multiple triple division players. But, the Chargers don’t let that phase them. “Coach always gives us a tough schedule, which helps us for postseason play. Every game is a big game to us,” said Bryant.

With last years team making it to the final four in the state tourna“I know we have a lot of talment, there can be some pressure from ent, but it all comes down to coaches and fans for our work ethic and desire. We this years team to do the same. Although no may be a little inexperienced, major changes have been made in their but we just have to be the offseason workout, better team on the field every they have been slightly tweaked to help make day,” this year’s team men-Matthew Bryant tally tough. “We condition on Monday’s, Wednesday’s, and Friday’s, and we still do most of the same workouts. However, we have implemented some new workouts into our routine to help us become more conditioned and mentally tough. The coaches have stressed pushing through things when we’re tired because we will need to do that if we want to get back to state and go one game further,” said senior infielder Matthew Bryant. The coaches have also been stressing taking every practice seriously and working hard. With that in mind, they have been looking to see who will step up and replace seniors who played important roles last season. “One guy that I think is going to help us that didn’t have a big role last year is Peyton Meredith and I don’t have a doubt that he’ll succeed,” said Michael Lobred, senior third baseman.

“Regions will be tougher but I like our chances. We have so much pitching and that will make our defense the best in the state,” said Langley. East will have to win the regional tournament to go to state, with their toughest opponent being PRP.

With the good work ethic of the team during the off-season, there are high hopes that they will return to state and have a successful season. “I know we have a lot of talent, but it all comes down to our work ethic and desire. We may be a little inexperienced, but we just have to be the better team on the field every day,” said Bryant.

Class of 2017 Matthew Bryant Layne Davis

Sen

Zach Jones Mitchell Langley Michael Lobred Alex Lucas Zak Kessler

Sen

Jake Reece Jared Riordan SENIORS

In the 2016 season, BE had eight seniors who all played big positions and helped drive the

page by Sydney Riley February 2017

Sen

>> sports

Senior Jared Riordan

Senior Mitchell Langley

Senior Michael Lobred

Mitchell Langley, Sean Jonson, Garrett Simpson

Senior Jake Reece

Senior Michael Lobred

page by Sydney Riley

DIVIDED WE STAND

There are many different groups at Bullitt East giving people places to fit in. BY SARAH ALLEN Photo Editor

igh school comes and goes but the friends you make can last forever. Bullitt East is full of diversity and celebrates the different groups it provides for incoming students trying to find where they belong. The different groups at Bullitt East allow incoming students to feel more welcome. It also provides a sense of community for the school. On top of allowing current students to fit in, new groups continue to form making room for all incoming students and current ones who haven’t figured out where they belong yet.

high school is a student not fitting in. Since Bullitt East is so diverse, no one seems to be without a “group”. Clubs at Bullitt East allow some of these groups to form. The band kids sometimes stick together, making that group form off of the similar love for music that they have. Other groups like Drama club create a com-

you are not playing a sport or in a club. One of the main goals at Bullitt East is to get everyone involved. This rule helps aid students in being able to find where they fit in in high school. Each person has 4 years to try out new clubs or explore different sports. New clubs are continuing to form. This year alone many clubs were introduced to Bullitt East like the Meme Club and the Pokemon club. Sports groups show a sense of community in the school along side of the groups created by other aspects like personality or even fashion choice. A lot of the time spending so much time with each other at long practices or during car rides creates friendships.

High school is normally associated with teenagers finding their place and trying to fit in. At Bullitt East, there are many different groups of people. Different groups from the ones who wear camouflage commonly referred to as “Bo’s” to the alternative students.

These groups mix in many different ways such as being partners for a project. One club, the Red Zone Rowdies has the purpose of Around 83 percent of high school students say that their best memories while in school revolve around their friends (stageoflife.com). Students aren’t limited cheering on all sports. to just these groups. They also try to get the These groups commonly munity for the students who have a common student body excited to be a part of the school mix and some don’t seem to fit into a category interest. during pep rallies and assemblies. at all. There seems to be a group for everyone which is not always the case in high schools. When entering the school students are given Many teens struggle with popularity during While groups are celebrated at East, individuality is still kept. The staff works with a lot of individuals to make sure no one gets lost in the crowd. The groups give the option to belong to a group while still maintaining the qualities that make an individual who they are. The groups do not promote students being carbon copies of one another, just a sense of belonging. When people think of a teenager being bullied it is commonly associated with high schoolers. One main reasons for bullying in

page by Sarah Allen February 2017

the opportunity to pick a house. The school is divided up into a number of houses. Their purpose is to get the school involved and to allow students who wouldn’t normally mix get to talk.

high school. With things like prom queen/ king and homecoming court, popularity is a common thought, especially for young impressionable freshman walking into something they haven’t seen in middle school.

Houses advocate community service and community within the school. Pep rallies and assemblies as well as things like coat drives are what helps to make the houses involved in the community outside of Bullitt East. To graduate, a student must have either proof of being in a club all 4 years, proof of playing a sport, or 10 service hours for each year that

In many movies with high school bullies, the bully ends up being popular while picking on another individual who seems to be less popular. At Bullitt East, the students as well as the staff bring in the idea of self worth and belonging. The “popular kids” at Bullitt East tend to try and include everyone in what they do. The Red Zone Rowdies allow upperclassmen

>> opinion

>> theme to ask underclassmen to games to get them to cheer on sports teams beside them. Popularity in Bullitt East is less likely to be a major issue with all of the groups. The school is divided into these social classifications so it is less likely to be an issue. While there are still groups that are considered popular at East, it doesn’t allow the people who are not a part of this group to be isolated without a friend group of their own. Bullitt East promotes community and friendship during the short four years a person is here. While finding your place in the school is encourages, mixing is still pushed through activities like assemblies. If there is not a place for a student in the friend groups that seem to be formed from the first day of school, they will be welcomed into their class group. During assemblies students may sit with their house, their class, or sometimes wherever they want. This allows the students to explore other groups in the school. Houses promote the mixing of both classes and friend groups to create a sense of community for every student. While the students often complain because of the tightly packed bleachers and the hushed whispering of all of the students in the gym, many friendships are made during this time. Between asking a stranger for a piece of gum or asking someone if the spot next to them is open, the groups of friends gain more members and the groups continue to mix. The friend groups can be easily seen walking through the lunchroom. Tables are filled with people with the same interests. Very rarely is there someone sitting alone at a table. The groups are usually welcoming to new people as they were once trying to find where they belonged as well. There is always the chance of switching groups as well. A student may love drama one day but discover their love for something else the next. This could also permit the mixing of

the two groups. Teenagers have a natural need to find friendships. For many it is an instinct to start to find friends on the very first day they are here. Each person can be driven to do so because of a multitude of reasons, but the end result is the same. More groups are formed, and the community grows. For most, the first question being asked when getting out of the first day of school is if they have made any friends. While some schools wouldn’t help in making that answer a yes, Bullitt East does. The first couple of days of school are dedicated to students getting to know each other. Activities like talking to a stranger and telling them about yourself and going around and giving an interesting fact about yourself allows students to get to know each other from the very start. While there will still be some judgement like there will be in every high school, but allowing students to get to know some things about eachother, judgement goes down and friendships form.

teachers. Using what they teach as a common like brings these teachers together and creates friendships. With the teachers seeming to be so open about letting the borders of these groups tremble, even substitute teachers seem to find their way at this school. There is even a group for people who don’t identify as being in a particular friend group. There are those people that seem to be friends with everyone, jumping from group to group. This can also be the case for people who are involved in an abundance of school activities. At Bullitt East there are a lot of opportunities for school involvement. It is easy for one person to be involved with so much that it seems they are a part of a lot of groups. While groups line the hallways before, during, and after school, there are still gaps to fill. More groups are forming each year to allow a spot for everyone. Community will continue to be promoted allowing more and more people to find their spots at East.

Having a friend group advocates more than just a sense of belonging. Isolation in high school can decrease test scores and encourage things like depression. The groups allow this to be prevented by allowing students to gain friends early on. The idea is that if students start out with friends when they first come here, then it will be harder to fall into the negative effects of isolation later on when they have a personal problem. It doesn’t matter if the reason for needing to be surrounded by people is purely for fun or if there is a bigger need. Many teenagers rely on their friends for support when they need it. Having so many groups at Bullitt East allows for the school to be full of support and recognition when it is needed. There is even a community between the

page by Sarah Allen

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THE SUPER SAVER: UPS METROPOLITAN COLLEGE Students in the Louisville Metro area are taking advantage of the UPS Metropolitan College Program, and graduating college with no student loan debt. BY HALEY SNYDER Creative Editor

he metropolitan college program at UPS is a great way for Louisville students to pay for college, without the dreaded student loan debt. For many students, going to college doesn’t feel like much of an option, but more of a requirement. This was the case for Megan Daniel, an Eastern High School graduate and pre-med student. “It took me 2 1/2 years to finish my nursing degree, I participated in an accelerated program.” said Megan. “I went to two of the top colleges in Kentucky. Bellarmine University and University of Louisville, which is why I’ve accumulated so much debt.” While Daniel was able to complete her degree and go on to become a successful ER nurse and NIC-U staff member, not all college students are so lucky. “The debt I’m in is going to follow me for years and years of my life, but when I got out of high school, my parents didn’t have the money or the resources to send me to college, so student loans were the only path for me, or so I thought.” “Now that I have a family, it’s important to me that I stay responsible about paying off my student loans. I currently teach classes at Bellarmine, and in exchange they forgive bits of my loan. It’s a great opportunity, but the amount I still owe is massive.” Daniel continues to work to pay off her loans as an RN, and recommended that if there was a way to avoid student loans, to take advantage. That’s where UPS comes in. Metropolitan College is a Kentucky partnership between UPS, The University of Louisville and Jefferson Community and Technical College. Students participating in the program get their full-time undergraduate tuition paid for, attending The University of Louisville or Jefferson Community & Technical College as well as book reimbursement money, and other benefits. As a member of the program,employees work third shift (night shift) as a part-time package handler at UPS Worldport in Louisville. You get a regular paycheck from UPS, along with the tuition reimbursement, up to full time

page by Haley Snyder February 2017

undergraduate, at either the University of Louisville or Jefferson Community & Technical College (JCTC) each semester. In the program, employees are also eligible for bonuses based on their academic progress ranging from $350 to $1400. There are three different types of bonuses; One, you can earn a bonus each fall and spring semester if you successfully complete six or more credit hours. Successful completion of six or more hours with no withdrawals, incompletes, failures or grades of D will earn a $850.00, each semester (not including summer semesters.) Two, employees can earn a bonus when you earn 30, 60 and 90 credits as a Metropolitan College

“The debt I’m in is going to follow me for years and years of my life, but when I got out of high school, my parents didn’t have the money or the resources to send me to college, so student loans were the only path for me, or so I thought.” -Megan Daniel, RN student. These are called “milestone bonuses”. The milestone bonus is based on your accumulation of credit hours in the MC program. After you accumulate 30, 60, and 90 credit hours as a MC student, you are awarded a $1,000.00 bonus. Three, you can earn a bonus if you earn an associate degree or diploma, and when you earn a bachelor’s degree. You can also get book reimbursement money each semester to help offset the cost of books and software. Many Bullitt East students find themselves in the same position as Daniel. They want to attend college, but don’t have the financial means to do so, (without students loans at least). Applying for scholarships and filling out your FAFSA will only get you so far. This was

the case for BE Alumni Abby Tucker. Currently a Freshman at Univerity of Louisville, Tucker understands first hand how important the Metropolitan College program really is. “The work isn’t always fun, but it pays for my school and then some, and that’s what is most important.” “I work from midnight to three or four in the morning, 5-6 nights a week. It is exhausting sometimes, but I know that it is necessary to get my education paid for.” said Tucker. Essentially, UPS will pay you to go to college. Across the U.S, there is more than 1.2 trillion dollars in unpaid student loan debt. The average Class of 2016 graduate has $37,172 in student loan debt. On average, it takes a graduate about 20 years to pay off their accumulated debt. By participating in the UPS Metro College Program, students can begin to save for the future, instead of paying for the future.

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$37,172.00 The average amount of student loan debt accumulated by a 2016 graduate

$1200.00 average cost of books for classes

$1600.00 average meal plan cost per semester

$10,089.00

Average yearly expenses for a Four Year public college student

Average amount of time it takes to pay off ones student loans

$23,840.00

$1.2 Trillion

Amount of Unpaid student loan debt in the U.s

20 Years

average cost of Housing on Campus annualy for freshman students https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/pay-for-college/college-costs/college-costs-faqs page by Haley Snyder

MASTERING THE ACT BY AINSLEY GORDON Copy Editor

he winter ACT results are coming.

Justin Delfer (12)

Zach Taylor (12)

Composite: 30 Took the ACT six times.

Composite: 32 Took the ACT three times.

2. “For the first time, answer all of the questions. A lot of people don’t answer all of the questions. Make sure you answer all of them and work quickly. Don’t get hung up on one question.” 3. “Work. For the math, work on the stuff that you know that you won’t get and do the problems that you think are hard, work on those to raise your score” 4. “I would say that the ACT can bring you a lot of money when trying to get into college and get scholarships, it’s a good tool to have.” 6. “The ACT is important to me because if I received a high enough score I would get full tuition at U.K., where I want to go to college.”

1. “I’d look at a couple ACT practice things the night before.” 2. “Don’t be scared of it, don’t be nervous.” 4. “Apply yourself in school. If you do that the rest will follow.” 5. Zach’s best scores were in reading and science. “I applied myself in school and took harder classes like AP [Advanced Placement] and college credit. Take [Leo] Craven’s AP English 3. It will destroy your grade, but it won’t destroy your mind.” 6. “The ACT is an important tool to get scholarship money and accepted into prestigious [honors] programs at colleges; more opportunities.”

Claire Feldhaus (12)

Sean Woods (11)

The upcoming ACTs results are coming in and the next test is upon eager students. The students of Bullitt East with the some of the highest ACT scores gave their best advice to how they achieved their success. 1. Did you study for the test? If so how? 2. What advice do you have for people taking their first ACT? 3. What advice do you have for someone who is trying to increase their scores ? 4. What would you say to encourage students to be motivated about the test? 5. What subject do you score highest on? How did you do so well? 6. Why is the ACT important to you?

Emma Pressley (12) Composite: 32 Took the ACT six times.

1. “I wanted to get my science score up because it was low, so I took a practice science test the week before. And when we took the ACT as juniors, I would practice in my English class for the reading and the English.” 3. “Watch the time because it will get you, it will catch you off guard. At first, it’s hard if you’ve never taken the ACT before to finish all of the problems in the time they’ve given. Cause even on my last ACT I took, I didn’t get to finish all of the problems and I had to guess… Take practice tests on the areas that you’re the weakest in and work on that because those help. All of the problems are similar, they are all the same type, they’re just different.” 4. “I would say that as much as taking the ACT is stressful and feels like a test score is determining everything, you should study and take it seriously because the benefits are great.” 5. Emma’s best score was in reading with a 35. “Reading books actually does help with the test... And then when you get into high school, you kind of get out of reading. But in my english class, it’s a literature class, so I’ve been reading more and so I’ve been reading more books and it’s been helping my score go up.”

page by Ainsley Gordon February 2017

Composite: 32 Took the ACT three times.

Composite: 34 Took the ACT three times.

2. “I think a lot of people really bad anxiety when they take it for the first time, so I would just say to calm down, you can take it as many times as you need to and just do your best. You can prepare, but you can’t really study for it.” 3. “There’s tons of online classes or online courses you can take. I know some people come here to take classes. So get tutors maybe, or anything you can do really.” 4. “I would tell kids to stay motivated to get a good score because it pays off in the long run. The higher your score, the more money and scholarships you will be able to earn in the long run.” 6. “The ACT is important to me because it allowed me to have part of my college paid for. I don’t think the cost of college should be solely based on ACT scores, but that’s how it is and I’m blessed that I got a high enough score to cut back from paying full tuition.”

2. “Know how to use your time wisely, budget your time. Don’t get super worked up on the test if you seem like you’re short on time. Just be comfortable.” 3. “Get comfortable with it, take some more practice tests, look over the types of questions that you struggle with and then keep reviewing them.” 4. “Just do your best and don’t stress it. It’s important, so take it seriously, but not too seriously. If you’ve applied yourself in school, you’ll be fine.” 5. All of his scores were around the 33-34, but he believes, “as long as timing is good, reading is probably the hardest for me.” 6. “The ACT is important to me for college scholarships. Getting a good score on the ACT can really help set you apart from other students and get more scholarship money.”

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STUDENTS SWITCHING TO JCTC BY ERIKA BOLTON Staff Writer

witch it, change it, rearrange it.

Bullitt East overs many different programs to prepare seniors to be college ready, but there is no better way to become college ready than to experience college classes first hand. The program of JCTC offers students the same college classes that are presented on campus with a chance to earn credit for the classes taken at the college they choose to attend. For some students, JCTC was a program they chose to do during the first semester of the school year. JCTC is provided all year, so students can decide whether they would like to take the provided classes for the entire school year or switch over to the program during the second semester. ¨All classes that JCTC offer are available to the 12x12 students. We are considered students at JCTC and get the same options as a regular college student.¨ says Katie Jackson, senior taking the program this semester. Although the college of JCTC are provided right here at East, students have the choice to leave to attend the classes they want credit for at JCTC as well. ¨I have all of my credits at East, I picked out my classes at orientation that i want college credit for. I leave everyday at 10:05 and on Thursdays i have my two classes back to back starting at 11 and i get out of my last class at

1:45¨ says senior Christina Brimm. Another student, Makayla O´Brien, stays at Bullitt East to take her JCTC classes. ¨i am taking English 101 and i stay at school for it.¨ says O´Brien. Many students at East take different classes to try to gain college credit, but must pass a test in order to earn it. These classes are called AP classes. The credits for JCTC are very similar to these classes, but AP classes are strictly provided at Bullitt East, and JCTC is shaped like a regular college class with no AP final. ¨I am going to the University of Louisville but (they) will stay take your credits. Its kind of like how your AP classes work, except you don´t have to take the hard exam to earn it, you just have to pass the class.¨ says Brimm.

Katie Jackson

Students don´t have to be attending the college of JCTC after graduation in order to receive their credit for the classes, credit is provided for any choice college of the student, if that college accepts it. ¨My credits will directly transfer over to Louisville, but most colleges like Western Kentucky University or the University of Kentucky will accept them also.¨ says Jackson. Some of the available classes offered with JCTC are English 101 and 102, Math 150 and 152, Biology 124, and Psychology 110. Certin classes are only available on ce4rtain days, so JCTC students can take their regular classes at East without mssing out on anything, as well as the courses they are taking with JCTC.

Christina Brimm

Makayla O’Brien

page by Erika Bolton

OUT WITH THE OLD AND IN WITH THE NEW BY GRANT SKAGGS Sports Editor

reaking through barriers.

A new reform in education has impacted our country’s thinking when it comes to the differences between the public school system and the charter school system. The topic of charter schools has been of growing discussion and several states have taken action already to help defy charter schools of affecting public schools. There are a variety of differences between both forms of education. With both systems present in a certain area, it can lead to collateral damage to students, school, and communities.

though the purpose of charter schools is to offer families another component to education and to help provide change to the public education system. Also, since they don’t have to follow the same rules as public schools, they don’t have to follow class-size regulations nor have to follow a traditional school calendar. Throughout the country, 43 states, as well as the District of Columbia, have made

Throughout the last several years, charter schools have emerged in discussions all across the country. First off, a charter school is a term for a school in which receives government funding, but operates independently of the other established public schools, and in some cases is just privately owned. This separation from regulation causes a system of greater accountability in the schools system and staff.

be allowed to teach within the schools. Within our own state, the topic of these schools is growing and spreading with the presence of a new governor and a republican house. For years, charter schools have been struggling to gain support within this state, but this state now has its greatest chances of being one of the last states to adopt a charter school law. Now Governor Bevin has said that the upcoming legislation will be focused on the budget, but the issue is still possible to discuss. Those who support charter schools offer that these schools encourage innovative teaching methods. This potential reaches out to kids who don’t thrive in a traditional public school setting. Those who oppose argue that these schools are just in it for taxpayer dollars, and instead offer mismanagement incompetence.

If one takes a step back, the success of and information of charter schools is very scattered and different from region to region, and even from state to state. Studies done from a report Charter schools operate based off a from Stanford University’s Center contract that consist of how they will for Research on Education Outcomes manage and operate within the school, found that charter schools performed and what students will be expected to better than public schools in math achieve, and how success is measured. and science. Although they found this As charter schools begin to make their push into the education system of Kentucky, students will have to begin to make decisions on whether public schools or Another main component of charter information in some places, other charter schools best fits their desires within education. schools that starts conversation is how regions saw the exact opposite. The truth they get students. charter school laws. Laws that include who is is, on a national level, it’s too difficult to have able to authorize charter schools, and how are this discussion. It’s up to states to give their They are able to get students by trying to they held accountable to student outcomes. own policies so that the children can decide recruit the best of each class and of each These states also have been debating on the which system of education is better for their neighborhood in surrounding areas. Even topic of teacher certification, and who should potential.

Charter Schools Around U Xavier School of Excellence South bend, Indiana 30

page by Grant Skaggs February 2017

Seven Oaks Classical School Andrew J. Br Ellettsville, Indiana

Indianaop

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BEHIND THE

BULLITT BY DUSTIN DOUGLAS Staff Writer

T With the presence of charter schools, public schools may suffer in several ways. Ways that revolve the idea of recruiting the best (regarding test scores and academics) from local areas. This process leads to public schools possibly losing out on technically high-level students. Which could lead to said school looking worse in comparison to other schools in terms of test scores, grades, etc.

changing educational structures, implementing new programs, and even as far as going to create new schools that offer new or similar programs to that of local charter schools. Competition has always been great for the american consumer in our nation’s history by forcing organizations to create the best possible product for the people. The same goes for education in this case.

Also, it helps construe statistics towards charter schools within test scores and the school’s overall effectiveness and teaching ability. If they have some of the area’s best minds, one can be hesitant to look at the scores and see it as the schools doing it’s job or just the students intelligence being the driving force.

With state legislation in Frankfort changing towards a more conservative and republican mindset, the people of the commonwealth may need to be informed of the effects and aspects of charter schools.

here are a lot of actresses, athletes, and other important people that made a name for themselves in Kentucky. Bullitt county has been the home for some very talented and famous people. From NASCAR drivers to politicians, our town is the home for a few celebrities. For instance, Alexandria Mills was born in Shepherdsville and crowned Miss World in 2010 at the age of 18. Some of the people listed below are deceased, but they left a legacy behind them that is worth a mention. Bill Gaither was a Blues singer born in Belmont, Kentucky that recorded over 100 songs.

Bill Gaither

Belmont Blues singer (1910 - 1970)

Alexandria Mills Shepherdsville Miss World 2010

A study was done by the U.S Department of Education in 49 districts over 5 states (Arizona, California, Colorado, Massachusetts, and Michigan). The study was done to help document and report the impacts of charter schools on school districts. Half of these districts reported that charter schools had and have been negatively affecting their budget because of reduced revenue from students transferring between the systems. They also lost revenue from becoming more concerned with public relations, and improving and increasing their communications with parents and the community. Although charter schools have brought some negativity, it has done parents and families a favor by creating competition within the education system. With charter schools affecting public schools in such a large margin, many school districts have looked to improve their foundations. Improvements that involve

aoplis, Indiana

NASCAR driver.

Darlene Hunt

Actress, writer, producer.

Charles Kurtsinger

Jockey, Triple Crown win. (1906-1946)

d Us Brown Academy

Wayne Edwards

Rick Bolus

Apex Academy Cleveland, Ohio

Basketball scout and analyst.

Russell Webber

House of Representitives

page by Grant Skaggs

MISPLACED TRUST IN TRUMP:

The false promises made by Donald Trump have already impacted this country greatly. BY KIM HOUCHIN Copy Editor

oters have had the wool thrown over their eyes once again.

President Donald Trump has started to go back on his promises made to his supporters. An entire year, five months and ten days have been spent on dealing with all different types of candidates as the potential next President of the United States. With over six candidates on the Republican side and over three candidates for the Democratic side, this was one of the most wild elections in a long time. The winner of the 2016 election was none other than Republican candidate Donald Trump. Trump made many radical promises during his campaign, such as building a wall across the border that separates Mexico and the United States and putting Hillary Clinton in jail for her deceit and “crimes.” Unfortunately for his supporters, most of his key promises will not be fulfilled. On November 22, Trump’s aide, Kellyanne Conway, announced that Trump will not investigate into the Hillary Clinton campaign, something that many supporters wanted. “It’s [the investigation into Clinton] just not something I feel very strongly about,” said Trump who held a meeting between him and the reporters and editors at New York Times and various other papers. This is coming from the same man who ran a campaign based on the chant “lock her up!” This is one of the major promises that Trump made. This is what propelled most of his voters in the first place. Even in one of the first debates between him and Clinton, Trump stated to her that if he were President, “you’d be in jail.” These little statements and comments are what fueled his campaign altogether. After his election, during his ‘Thank You Tour’, when supporters began chanting the infamous phrase “lock her up”, Trump shut them down. He even went as far as to say, “that was a nice play during the campaign.” He even had a plan to hire a special prosecutor to convict Clinton of leaking crucial information. This plan was quickly thrown out the window as soon as Trump was elected into office.

page by Kim Houchin February 2017

Republican junior Emma Stanley thinks that it was “dirty” of Trump to go back on the big promises that he made during the campaign. “It’s going to cause people to be very distrusting of him quite a bit,” said Stanley. Supporters and opposers have felt very different emotions towards the change in promises. “I think that his supporters are either pissed or just don’t care,” said Stanley. Republican junior Allie Siegel believes that Trump lying about his promises was intentional and premeditated. “I feel like he had to bring up these things out of the blue and kind of randomly and he wasn’t going to stick to them originally,” said Siegel. Throughout history, presidential candidates have made false promises to their voters. They can promise the moon and once they are in office, they do not have to deliver on said promises. “They [Presidents] have said things in an election in order to win the demographic and then, when they’re President, not follow through,” said junior Trump supporter Noah Valdez. One of the biggest issues in politics is that there is so much deceit within it. Nobody truly gets what they ordered when voting for a candidate. The political world is a throw of the dice, voters either win or they lose and half of them are never happy with the outcome. While one of Trump’s biggest false promises relates to the Clinton email scandal, he has made several other promises and has decided to go back on them. During his campaign, Trump promised to “drain the swamp” in Washington. After his election, Trump went back on his word to “drain the swamp” and nominated many high-profile Republicans such as Reince Priebus, Tom Price and Betsy DeVos. Another very large promise he made was the infamous wall that would separate Mexico and United States. This, along with the Clinton investigation, is one of his key promises that sparked the passion in his voters. In an interview with the show “60 Minutes”, Trump stated that “for certain areas, I would” build a wall. He also added that for other

areas, “it’s not appropriate.” A famous Trump ally Newt Gingrich said that the idea was a “great campaign device.” What sold Americans on the idea of the wall was that Mexico would pay for the building of it. Now that Trump is in office, he will be asking Congress to pay for the wall, ultimately sticking taxpayers with the bill. During one of the debates between Trump and Clinton, Clinton mentioned that he had tweeted about climate change being a “hoax” by the Chinese. Trump immediately shut down Clinton from speaking, stating that her accusation was wrong. Only minutes after he shut down the accusation, Twitter accounts were posting screencaps of the tweet Trump had made stating, “The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive.” Another big hitter was Obamacare. This was something that a lot of Trump supporters despised and according to Trump, he himself hated it. He even told voters “I will repeal and replace the big lie, Obamacare.” After a year of berating former President Barack Obama, after meeting him face to face after his election, Trump stated that he was a “very good man.” Trump also stated that he may keep some parts of the Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as Obamacare. No doubt, the First Amendment is such an important thing to Americans. The idea that we can say anything we want about our nation’s government without the fear of being assassinated later that night. Along with freedom of speech, there is also freedom of press. It’s no secret that Trump has had a bad reputation with the press. He often promised to go after the “lying” and “biased” news sources and shut them down. “I’m going to open up our libel laws so when they write purposely negative and horrible and false articles, we can sue them and win lots of money,” said Trump. There are many big problems that most Americans know about, but they’re only taken at face value. There is a much bigger picture going on behind the curtain.

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An example of this is the idea to renegotiate the plans with the National American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Many might not know what NAFTA is. NAFTA is a trade agreement between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. This was signed into law by former President Bill Clinton in 1994. This operation makes it easy for businesses to move back and forth between the U.S. and Mexico. Trump’s biggest problem with NAFTA is the loss of jobs from the U.S. to Mexico. Yes, jobs have been lost to Mexico through NAFTA, but, unfortunately, it’s never that black and white. It is a fact that more jobs in the U.S. are being lost to machines and automations rather than Mexico. In fact, millions of jobs rely on NAFTA, and those millions of jobs would be lost if Trump pulls the U.S. away from NAFTA. The Economic Policy Institute estimated that 800,000 jobs were lost to Mexico within the years 1997 and 2013. Comparing those 800,000 jobs lost to Mexico to the millions connected to NAFTA, the price of pulling away from NAFTA does not seem worth all of the jobs that will be lost.

In somewhat recent news, the situation with North Korea has slowly escalated. China warned Trump not to escalate the situation even more with his “erratic” tweets. “China has been taking out massive amounts of money & wealth from the U.S. in totally one-sided trade, but won’t help with North Korea. Nice!” Tweets like those can be seen as “escalating” the already tense situation amongst the Korean Peninsula. Something that is still going on today is the civil war in Aleppo, Syria. Thousands of refugees fled from the war-torn country, ultimately seeking safety in the large countries like Canada and the U.S. Many Americans have not enjoyed Obama welcoming in the Syrian refugees. Trump’s Muslim ban has earned the favor of said Americans who dislike the idea of allowing refugees into the country, especially with terrorist attacks such as the shooting in San Bernadino, California. The statement about the Muslim ban disappeared from Trump’s political website. It was restored on Nov. 10, 2016.

Something of controversy is the idea of waterboarding. Waterboarding is a torture method used on criminals to get information out of them. It comprises of the criminal having a cloth placed over their mouth and nose as the interrogator pours water onto the criminal’s face.

Now the big question: why did Trump lie about these things? There’s a lot of speculation over why Trump chose these certain things to say and then decided to go back. “It was all kind of free publicity... he said these crazy things that got attention towards him,” said Stanley.

The purpose is to simulate the sensation of drowning, therefore coercing the criminal to admit to their crimes or give away an accomplices.

Siegel does not think very differently. “There’s no way to say whether he will do them or he will not, but the ones that he has really obviously backed out from. I just feel like it’s the same thing,” said Siegel.

At the beginning of Trump’s campaign, he stated that he would bring waterboarding back. After he was elected into office, Trump publicly admitted that he was impressed by the answer Gen. James Mattis, his pick for Secretary of Defense, stated, “I’ve never found it to be useful.” A source of many jokes on the internet would be Trump’s beliefs and accusations towards China. In a campaign rally, Trump stated that he would label China as a “currency manipulator.”

How do his supporters feel? They should feel cheated. They should feel as if their parents had talked up a Christmas gift for a year only for it to be only an empty box. They should feel lied to and made a mockery of. “It’s like false hope for his supporters,” said Siegel.

porters may be angry over the change of word. “There are some who are just going to follow whatever he says,” said Weakly. Now the question every teenager has when politics are brought up: “how does this pertain to me?” The answer is that politics and what goes on in the political world affects every single person in the United States. Whether they are Hispanic, Caucasian, African American, gay, straight, transgender, young, old or anything else, what goes on in Congress impacts everyone. Kentucky may seem like a small, insignificant state that nothing really happens to. The fact of the matter is, Kentucky is affected just as much as any other state in the U.S. This being said, every single decision Trump makes, every decision Senators and Congressman make affects this state as much as it does California, Texas, or New Jersey. Stanley believes that these recent miscommunications will cause a wave of uncertainty amongst Trump’s bulk of supporters that reside in Kentucky. “I do believe that most of his supporters won’t change their views, just to be cautious,” said Stanley. Around 63 percent of voters in Kentucky voted for Trump over Clinton; that’s over half of the population. The result of these lies causes majority of his supporters to lose trust in the candidate that they put in office. How can someone not trust the person yet put them in one of the most powerful seats in the United States? They need to know that they won’t be told one thing while the man does the opposite. Trust in the candidate of their choosing is one of utmost importance. Citizens everywhere will be impacted by the decisions that Trump makes in his years in office. They need to know whether they can trust the man they put in the Oval Office.

According to a CNN poll, over 53 percent of Americans have lost confidence in Trump because of his actions since the election. Weakly believes that some of Trump’s sup page by Kim Houchin

CAN KENTUCKY AFFORD TRUMP? BY LUKE YOUNG Staff Writer

ill the new President “trump” Kentucky?

People are divided on whether President Elect Trump’s policies will help or hinder Kentucky

President Donald Trump claims to have helped Kentucky tremendously. However many claim that his efforts don’t matter or hurt the world. Trump takes credit for saving several Ford plant jobs from being moved overseas. The jobs he claims to have saved from the Ford factory in Louisville have preserved the economy. The loss of that many jobs to an overseas plant would devastate the entire area’s economy. Trump stated, “I worked hard with Bill Ford to keep the Lincoln plant in Kentucky. I owed it to the great State of Kentucky for their confidence in me!”

page by Luke Young February 2017

Trump also claimed to have kept the General Motors (GM) plant in Ohio from outsourcing. Ford employs thousands of workers in the Louisville plant. Many of these workers come from Bullitt and other surrounding counties. The assembly jobs pay anywhere from $18-$27 per hour. This is more than double the minimum wage of Bullitt County ($7.75). Despite trump’s claims, many say that he isn’t to thank for the Ford plant staying in Kentucky. Out of all 120 counties in Kentucky, only two voted in favor of Hillary Clinton. The two counties, Jefferson and Fayette, are home to the two largest cities in Kentucky. Typical the larger cities tend to vote more democratic, and rural areas tend to vote more conservative.

Trump also supports the use and mining of coal. The Democratic party believes that coal is very harmful to the environment and there are cleaner and more viable options for energy. Liberals think that the support of coal is bad for Kentucky and would like to stop the mining of coal. The coal mines in Kentucky bring a lot of revenue to many poor families around the state. The loss of that market would devastate the economy, but is the trade off of how harmful the coal is on the economy worth it. Current President, Barack Obama takes quite the opposite stance on coal, and took measures during his eight years to try and stop the mining of coal in Kentucky.

>> politcal

#1 on iTunes Shape Of You - Ed Sheeran *as of 2/14/17

BY JAEDEN YARBROUGH The President elect during his campaign made many people feel threatened with some of the more extreme things he said. According to Census.gov the Latino population of Kentucky makes up 3.4% the total population of the state. Trump’s comments regarding illegal immigrants came off sounding racist to some.

it won’t let people that are fleeing from their homes in fear for their life in?

Trump also made degrading comments towards Muslim people. Census.gov claims that there are 323 million Muslim people living in the United States. Many of the comments trump made about Muslim people were viewed as islamophobic.

Trump has also put an exuctive order in place to start the process of repealing Obamacare. Currently there is no replacemet plan. This will leave many Americans without heakthcare untill President Trump finds a solution. Many consertives belive

Now with the executive order that Trump passed, people from countries tied to islamic terrorism are being stopped from coming into America. This caused a major uproar across the country. Many protests have occurred across the country.

Donald Trump is a controversial president to say the least, and the effect he will have on Kentucky, and America as a whole is a toss up.

One of the most common points brought up is that “America is a country of immigrants, by immigrants, for immigrants.” Can America really be the great country it claims to be if

Staff Writer

Another major protest that went on recently was the women’s march. Thousands of women marched shortly after the inauguration, protesting for women’s rights.

Ed Sheeran, an English R&B song writer, released two hit songs on January 6th for his new album “Divide” which is to be released March 3rd. “Shape of You” holds a number one spot over his other song, “Castle on the Hill”. The song has a jamaican-tropical sound to it as he sings about meeting a girl in a bar. Sheeran sings about falling in love with this girl and her body. Prior to the release, Sheeran teased the song through social media. Sheeran tweeted a video of a colon that would merge into a human figure. Sheeran also teased his song through a thirty second preview using a snapchat filter. Sheeran released his first album “+” in 2011 although his popularity did not happen for another year after he collabed with Taylor Swift. To add on, his fame didn’t become mainstream until his second album “X’ debuted on June 20, 2014.

page by Luke Young

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page by Zach Combest February 2017

Dawn Daugherty Felizia Rosales Nicole White 268 N Bardstown Rd, Mt Washington, KY 40047

>> opinion

PEOPLE WHO MADE IT POSSIBLE BY JEREMY ANTLE Staff Writer

ebruary is a month set aside to honor the history of African Americans.

Over hundreds of years, the role of African Americans in the United States has changed tremendously. In 1619, African Americans were thought of as slaves and were used to farm tobacco and cotton. The idea of slavery was introduced to the American culture in Jamestown, Virginia. For 244 grueling years, slavery plagued America until it was abolished in 1863. However in 1820, a young slave girl, named Harriet Tubman, was born in Dorchester County, Maryland. Little did she know, Tubman would be known as one of the most heroic figures of slavery the world would ever know. In 1850, Tubman created an escape route called the “Underground Railroad”. The “Underground Railroad” was an escape route that began in Maryland, cut up through Pennsylvania and Delaware, then scraped through the corner of New Jersey, then passed through New York into Canada. Not only did this escape route save Tubman, it saved thousands of other slaves. Sadly, Tubman’s life came to an end in March of 1913. Yet, 16 years later, in 1929, another legendary hero in African American history was born. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was born into a ministerial family in Atlanta, Georgia. At this point, slavery had already been abolished. However, segregation was in full swing in 1929 and showed no signs of getting better.

Dr. King. knew he needed to do something and he needed to do it fast. So at a young age, Dr. King decided to start a movement. The purpose of this movement was to promote equality for blacks and whites. After many years of protests, Dr. King got his wish. However, there were still people that did not support equality and Dr. King was assassinated in April of 1968. Without heroes like these two, the world wouldn’t be where it is today. Black History Month is not only set as a time to honor what African Americans have done for this country, but for what they’re doing now. If it weren’t for African American culture, the United States and even the world would not be the same place.

Doctor Martin Luther King Jr. gave a breakthrough speech that ended segregation laws. The speech is a source of inspiration for African Americans everywhere.

Now, in 2017, the role of African Americans has changed tremendously. There is no more slavery and no more segregation. Today, African Americans are just like everyone else. They are free to live a normal life and work a normal job. Sadly, there has been outrage in the recent few years. Some seem to think racism is creeping back into our everyday lives. Looking at the evidence, it’s hard to argue that there is a problem. There have been protests all over America about police brutality.

Harriet Tubman was an iconic figure for abolition. Her story is still told in schools nationwide

Black Lives Matter protest in Minnesota over the summer of 2016. The movement has gained worldwide attention for crimes commited against the African American community. page by Jeremy Antle

VALENTINE’S DAY: A LOVE HATE RELA BY JESSICA MATTINGLY Executive Editor

DEVYN SHANNON

Q: What does Valentines Day mean to you?

A: “Valentines Day to me means it’s that special day that you show all your love for the person that you love.”

Q: Why do you enjoy Valentines Day? A: “I enjoy Valentines Day because it’s that one

special day a year just for love and I get to show it all to the love of my life.”

Q: How do you celebrate? A: “We will probably go out to dinner and just spend one on one time together.”

Q: What is the difference between Valentines Day and a normal day?

A: “Well to me there isn’t much of a difference.

I try my best to show my girl as much love as I can every day.”

Q: Why do you think people dislike Valentines Day?

A: “I think people dislike Valentines Day because they haven’t met that special person yet.”

page by Jessica Mattingly February 2017

We L

>> opinion

LATIONSHIP

Love It

KELSEY COKE

Q: What does Valentines Day mean to you?

A: “I think Valentines Day is a day where you

give your full love and attention to that one special person. I think it’s a day where you should truly appreciate that special person in your life.”

Q: Why do you enjoy Valentines Day? A: “I enjoy Valentines Day because it’s a spe-

cial day to show off your love to the person you love. I also think it makes your love a lot stronger.”

Q: How do you celebrate? A: “I celebrate by buying gifts, going out to

eat, and most importantly giving them my full attention and full love to them all day. I also plan on spending one on one time together.”

Q: What is the difference between Valentines Day and a normal day?

A: “Valentines Day isn’t much different to me

because I try to give my full love and attention every day to him. I think the difference is that it’s a day where it reminds you how lucky you truly are.”

Q: Why do you think people dislike Valentines Day?

A: “Some people may not like it because they haven’t found that special person yet.”

page by Jessica Mattingly

GABBY LAWSON

Q: What does Valentines Day mean to you?

A: “Valentines Day to me personally doesn’t

mean anything, but I know it means a lot to others.”

Q: Why do you dislike Valentines Day? A: “I just believe that there shouldn’t be one

day to spoil your signifigant other, it should happen throughout the whole relationship.”

Q: How do you celebrate? A: “I usually don’t do anything, but maybe go out to eat.”

Q: What is the difference between Valentines Day and a normal day?

A: “I personally don’t believe there’s a difference besides the amount of money spent and chocolate ate.”

Q: Why do you think people like Valentines Day?

A: “They like it because it’s a day to spoil each other and get gifts.”

page by Jessica Mattingly February 2017

We H

Hate It

>> opinion

ALEX LUCAS

Q: What does Valentines Day mean to you?

A: “Nothing really, it’s a normal day.” Q: Why do you dislike Valentines Day? A: “People have it in their head that you have

to spend hundreds of dollars to make Valentines Day the best day ever when you could spend only a couple dollars and make it equally as unique.”

Q: How do you celebrate? A: “I celebrate by acting as if it isn’t even a holiday, which it shouldn’t be.”

Q: What is the difference between Valentines Day and a normal day?

A: “Nothing at all.” Q: Why do you think people like Valentines Day?

A: “Because social media has brushed the true meaning of the holiday under the rug and now poeple only care about matrial and not their signifigant other. So, in short, people are happy when they get things.”

page by Jessica Mattingly

SCIENCE VS BY TAYLOR HOLLIFIELD Website Editor Creatve Commons

Aquarius January 20 - February 19

Leo July 23 - August 22

elcome to the nonsense squad.

There are two types of people when it comes to astrology: those who believe and those who don’t.

Pisces February 19 - March 20

Virgo August 23 - September 22

Aries March 21 - April 19

Libra September 23 - October 22

Taurus April 20 - May 20

Scorpio October 23 - November 21

Gemini May 21 - June 20

Sagittarius November 21 - December 21

Cancer June 21 - July 22

page by Taylor Hollifield February 2017

Capricorn December 22 - January 19

Astrology is the study of a signs movements, while horoscopes are supposed to be a forecast of a person’s future based on their zodiac sign. Personally, I am not a believer in horoscopes but I do believe astrology is accurate. Others seem to find an interest in reading their signs future and movement even though they don’t trust them. Scientist believe astrology is the influence that distant cosmic objects have on a human’s life. According to howstuffworks.com, the earliest humans believed the position of the stars and planets at a person’s birth is to determine their personality, relationships, and financial stability. There are different forms of astrology, for example sun-sign astrology is what newspapers use to determine one’s horoscope. Based on howstuffworks.com sun-sign is the simpliest form of astrology because it only requires the date of one’s brith in order to predict a horoscope. Many astrologers consider this to be the most simplistic form of astrology that only provides limited results. There is no specific way to practice astrology. Each culture practices their own form of astrology. Some other forms of astrology would be Mundane, Interrogatory, and Natal. Mundane is used to study world events and make predictions about national affairs. Interrogatory is used to make specific predictions and analyses based on the subject’s objectives and events in the subject’s life. Last but not least, Natal astrology is considered to be the most known form of astrology because it is used to make predictions based on one’s date of birth. All of this information and more can be found on howstuffworks.com. If someone were to ask me whether I believed in horoscopes or not, my answer would be no, and here’s why. I don’t believe a scientist can determine everyone’s future based on the position of the stars and planets. I don’t believe that a scientist can predict out of all the pisces in the world that we could possibly have the same future. Horoscopes are written for one’s entertainment, not because they’re considered science. Personally, I believe humans read their horoscope for one of two reasons. One being for their entertainment and two being because they want to believe a scientist can

>> opinion

S NONSENSE predict how their day, week, or year is going to go. I think society knows horoscopes are inaccurate, but it is nice to have a sense of hope for the future. While I may not believe in horoscopes, I do believe in astrology. Based on everything astrology say about a pisces personality has been exact with my personality, and based on what astrology says about my friends and family members personalities has been extremely accurate. For example, astrology says a pisces is one of the most indecisive signs out of the other 11. Pisces are most popularly known for their imagination and sensitivity. For anyone who knows me knows these things are completely true. Now this might not be for all pisces, but it happens to be for me. Another reason I believe in astrology is because of my family and friends personality and what astrology says about them. For example, my brother is a Gemini and Gemini’s are meant to be really independent. They hate to follow rules and they want freedom. If that doesn’t explain my brother I don’t know what does. I could continue on with every family member and friend and how their sign represents their personality, but again I don’t believe this happens to be accurate for everyone just for some of us. As for others, senior Grace Jackson said, “I’m not as into the horoscopes because they talk about the science of it and the movements of the planets and stuff, so I don’t pay as much attention to it. I don’t think they can accurately predict my future though. As for astrology I am not sure if they’re real for say, but things about my sign are pretty much always accurate for me.” Jackson doesn’t believe that every person born in September can be like her. She believes everyone is different and that it was just coincidental that it works out that way for her. Former student Makenna Lutz believes horoscopes are fun to read and laugh at, but they’re all generic answers that anyone can apply to themselves. She doesn’t believe that giant balls of burning gas millions of light years away have any affect on one’s personality or future. “On some occasions I believe astrology is accurate. I’m a pisces, so a lot of the posts are about me being clumsy and emotional, but most of the time they only focus on pisces being sleepy and dreamy, which isn’t a very good descriptor of me,” said Lutz. Astrology to some people is perceived as science or nonsense. Everyone has their own opinions based on whether they believe cosmic objects can determine one personality or

Aquarius Water Bearer

Pisces

Aries

Leo Lion

Fish

Ram

Virgo en

Maid-

Libra Scale

Taurus Bull

Scorpio Scorpion

Gemini Twins

Sagittarius Archer

Cancer Crab

Capricorn Goat

predict one’s future. page by Taylor Hollifield

CONSPIRACY? BY ABBIE ALSTATT Copy/Website Editor

verything may not be what it seems.

Conspiracies are all around us, we just have to look. There are countless conspiracy theories out there; some old, some very new. You may find some to be extremely unlikely and yet others may seem as though they could be true. *Disclaimer: these are not fact or opinion, just theories*

ONE SMALL STEP FOR MAN, OR WAS IT? A popular, yet controversial conspiracy theory, is that the Apollo 11 moon landing, and some or all of the manned moon landings to follow, were faked.

just hairs. And that the original film doesn’t contain these markings; they were just a printing defect.

NASA’s Apollo program’s goal was not only to get humans to land on the moon, but to return them to Earth. Six of those Apollo missions are known to be “successful”, but were they?

More conspiracists’ proof lies in the shadows of some pictures, which appear to be going in different directions and aren’t consistent with each other. It’s believed that this shows the use of several stage lights.

Some believe otherwise. The theory is that the 12 men who have walked on the moon, actually have not. And that it was all a hoax.

Freshman Cassidy Cardwell said, “I completely believe the moon landing was fake. The proof behind it makes so much sense, like

The general reason many think this was faked is because of the space race; the competition between the Soviet Union and the United States to be the most successful, as far as space flights went.

A rebuttal to why the United States hasn’t sent man to the moon since the Apollo missions is based around winning the space race. Since they won, supposedly there wasn’t much of a point in going to the moon again. Also, tons of money was put towards the Apollo missions, leaving minimal funds for other missions.

So, do you believe the moon landing was fake or real?

The most interesting theory of what really happened is that there was a studio, made to look like outer space and the moon so that there could be picture and video proof of the landing. Those who believe in this theory have plenty of evidence to back their claim up. A lot of their proof lies in photos from the manned missions. One being a noticeable “C” on a rock placed over a spot on the moon that also seems to be labeled as “C”. Conspiracists believe this to be confirmation that there was a studio set up and the rock was a prop.

the shadows in the film that make it seem like it was shot on a stage. I also think that if we had the technology way back then to go to the moon, why haven’t we gone back considering technology has been so developed since then?”

Counter arguments include that the “C’s” are

And though many people think this way, there

page by Abbie Alstatt February 2017

Concerning the different shadows, it’s said that there were multiple sources of light present, including the sun and the Earth, which cause the many directions of shadows. On top of that, shadows that end up in craters on the moon’s surface may look warped, or unlike how you would imagine them to be.

Senior Chase Parker said, “I think that the Apollo 11 landing was not faked, because based on our advances in space exploration before and after the landings, they kind of fit right where they should be.”

Both sides obviously wanted to be the first to land a human on the moon, so it’s assumed that the first manned moon landing by the United States, Apollo 11, was forged in order to achieve that goal. And of course, all the moon landings that followed may have also been hoaxes. But, they could also be real.

are some who say that the moon landing was without a doubt real for the following reasons.

>> opinion

TWISTED HISTORY As of recently, the Mandela Effect is one conspiracy theory that has blown up, on the Internet in particular. Basically, the Mandela Effect is when a large group of people remember something (a famous saying, book title, brand name, etc.) differently than history has recorded it as. Before going further, it’s important to understand how this conspiracy acquired it’s name. The Mandela Effect began when more than one person remembered Nelson Mandela, a revolutionary against apartheid and former President of South Africa, dying in a South African prison. What was significant about this clear memory that all of these individuals shared was that it never happened. Mandela was released from prison in 1990, but his death is recorded as happening in December of 2013. While some completely agree or completely disagree with the Mandela Effect, Cardwell seems to be in the middle of that spectrum. “I can’t tell you if I 100 percent believe in the Mandela Effect because it sounds so extreme, yet so much ‘evidence’ that backs it up seems legit. It’s hard to say when it sounds so insane but also makes sense,” said Cardwell.

But in fact, the line in the movie is, “No, I am your father.” What’s even more strange is there is a video interview of James Earl Jones, the actor who voiced Darth Vader in the original “Star Wars”, talking about the movie and referencing the line as “Luke, I am your father.” One effect that many will be able to take a stance on is the spelling of the popular fastfood chain, Chick-fil-A. Some remember it as Chic-fil-A, while others recall it as Chik-fil-A, but neither is correct. Cardwell’s favorite effect is the famous line in the movie “Snow White”. A fair amount of individuals remember the line being, “Mirror mirror on the wall…”, but it’s actually, “Magic mirror on the wall…” She said, “I had never heard ‘magic mirror’ and could have swore it was ‘mirror mirror’ but any video on the internet you watch clearly says ‘magic mirror’.”

Another popular Mandela Effect is a quote from a movie that most everyone knows, “Star Wars”. Countless individuals remember the famous line when Darth Vader reveals to Luke that he’s his father as, “Luke, I am your father.”

Though, the only real ‘proof ’ to most of these Mandela Effects is the mutual memories between large groups of people. Parker said, “I don’t believe in it, just because if it happened, there’s no way we could tell.” As stated on the official Mandela Effect website, ran by Fiona Broome, a founder of the term and central idea of this effect, “Since our memories happened in another reality, I’m not sure we’ll find good, credible supporting evidence in this reality.” That brings us to wrapping up the Mandela Effect, why? There are a few speculations of why Mandela Effects are occurring and what is causing them. One theory is that we have shifted into another reality or a parallel universe where little things have changed. The second theory relates to time travel. It’s believed that someone travelled back in time and did one thing differently, so in turn, many things are different in our present day. Those who oppose the Mandela Effect simply believe that the human memory is not perfect, so these memories are just false. It’s also thought that people may go along with it more easily after witnessing that big groups of people are “misremembering” the same things, and that reinforces the memory in their mind as well.

To see where you fall on the spectrum of believing, take a look at the following examples. Remember that book series and television show about a family of bears from when you were little; you’re probably thinking of the name right now, “The Berenstein Bears”. But it’s actually documented as “The Berenstain Bears” in history. The couple who created the series even have the last name “Berenstain”, but many, many people have strong memory of the series being spelled as “Berenstein”. Although it can’t be taken as 100 percent proof, there was an individual on Reddit who found an old VHS tape with “Berenstain” on the front and “Berenstein” on the spine.

present in the song. To hear it for yourself, go listen to the song right now and it may sound odd when the song is over.

So, do you believe in the Mandela Effect?

Yet another popular Mandela Effect is the lyrics of “We are the Champions” by the band Queen. At the very end of the song, something seems off to some people; it ends as, “No time for losers ‘cause we are the champions.” The familiar ending, “of the world” is no longer

page by Abbie Alstatt

TRADITION STIFLES CREATIVITY BY KELSI SEGO Social Media Editor

ll plain no paint makes Bullitt East a dull school.

Bullitt East is one school who does not allow their students to decorate their parking spots or graduation caps. Money and district approval are the main reasons why students aren’t allowed to do these things. Many students that wish that they could do these things. It would take a lot of work to change these policies BE students are not currently allowed to decorate their parking spots and graduation caps. There are different reasons for this. The policy for the graduation ceremony is uniform through the district. The ceremony is meant to be formal, decorating graduation caps could distort the formality if the ceremony.

be able to paint their parking spots and decorate their graduation caps. Students believe restricting these things puts a limit on their ability to be creative and express themselves. Junior Megan Baer and senior Liz Colvin believe that students should be allowed to do these things. Colvin said “It would be fun and give everyone a chance to show everyone a piece of themselves” Senior Maria Fitts shares this viewpoint. Fitts said “It’s a cool way to end school. Show our individuality. Some people are shy all through-

“Some people are shy all throughout high school and don’t really know how to express themselves. Decorating graduation caps could be the one time they come out of their shell” -

Painting parking spots was just not something that has been brought up in the past. Students have not been allowed to do it. The biggest problem with this would be finding money to repave the parking lot every year according the Jo Perkins, Administrative Assistant. Perkins said “Personally I love the idea… but the cost to repave it [the parking lot] is phenomenal.”

out high school and don’t really know how to express themselves. Decorating graduation caps could be the one time they come out of their shell”

There are a large number of students who wish they could do these things. In an Twitter poll conducted by the Livewire it was found that 90 percent of students surveyed want to

Baer believes that having the opportunity to do these things would be enhance student’s senior year. “Seniors could decorate since it’s their last year, it could make their end of high

page by Kelsi Sego February 2017

Maria Fitts.

school more exciting and memorable” said Baer. Being a senior, Colvin feels she somewhat missed out on the experience. However Fitts does not feel that she has missed out on the experience. “It would be really cool & fun to able to do those things but I personally don’t feel I’m missing out on anything” said Fitts. It is not likely that a foreseeable change will be made to the graduation cap policy. The district wants the ceremonies to be uniform and formal. Decorating graduation caps makes the ceremony appear less formal. As for parking spots the issue is in the budget. There simply isn’t room to pay to repave the parking lot every year. If BE were to allow students to paint their parking spots it would be possible that the price of parking spots would have to increase. Perkins has suggested having the students decorate their parking spots with chalk in the spring instead. This alternative would be much cheaper. However with the behavior of rain in mind it would be likely that students would have to redecorate their spots whenever it rains.

>> opinion

A CLIQUE FOR EVERYONE STAFF EDITORIAL

nough pieces to fit in the puzzle.

Many different and diverse groups have started to form at East so everyone is able to find somewhere to fit in. Just like a puzzle needs all it pieces to complete it every student is needed to complete the school. With the amount of students in Bullitt East there are many opportunities for students to find a group of their own. Though East is not as diverse as in backgrounds, there are still an abundance of options for everyone to choose from. Bullitt East’s population has significantly grown over the years. With this growth the school has given many of the students an opportunity to fit in. With different clubs and groups that have formed over the years such as the meme club, cryptozoology, band, the bo’s and much more. Junior Ashley Seigle is very opinionated about the diversity of BE. “Anyone who is white I would say it’s easier to fit in but it’s not necessarily ‘hard’ for those who aren’t to fit in either,but everyone at BE has a friend who they relate to in some way,” said Seigle. Freshmen are often thrown into a situation where they have to make new friends and find new groups. Freshman Zack Jenkins lost most of his friends when they were seperated to go to different schools and was forced to find new ones. Jenkins found his group of friends by sitting by someone who rode the same bus as him and realizing that they had the same tast in music and later they found more people who enjoyed the same things and formed their own group. “Since I have been in high school there have been alot more friend groups that I didn’t hae in middle school,” said Jenkins. Few students think that East is not as diverse as it should be. Senior Maria Fitts thinks that our school doesn’t differ very much in personality. “Everyone is the same here,” said Fitts. Though many people observe East as not being very diverse in the sense of different backgrounds, there is no denying that everyone in the school has their own place with their own group.

page by Haylie Jenkins