Livewire Vol 4 Issue 4 April 2014

SILENT

SHOUTOUTS

tHE PUSH TO BE

SPRING

PERFECT sports

UNDER THE RADAR

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CONTENTS VOLUME 4, ISSUE 4

Student Life

3-4 | Ask Page Students ask administrators pressing questions concerning the Charger Nation.

5 | Models An exploration into the lives of a few of East’s models.

6 l UFE Video A look at the video that unified East.

Academics 8 | GSP A staffer discusses dealing with GSP rejection.

7 l Movie Productions Media talks about the work of their class.

On the Cover: The Livewire explores certain aspects of Bullitt East that fly under the radar.

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7

Sports

Behind the Scenes 9 | Silent Shoutouts A glimpse of the random acts of kindness that go on in the Charger Nation.

10 l Everyone Has a Story A look into how Elynn Mullaney has changed this year.

11-12 l The Push to be Perfect: Looks, Academics, and Athletics How expectations affect students’ lives

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19-20 | Sport History/ Spring Preview A look at the journey of our sports teams through time and spring sports are discussed.

21 l Archery A feature on the Archery team’s success.

22 l Sore Season An inside look at two seniors whose high school sports careers were cut short.

Opinion

13 l The Elephant in the Room Common questions about East are tackled and answered.

15-18 l Investigations The use of drugs among the student body is explored as well as the security and the fight to get the recycling program back at East.

23-24 | Head To Head High school students’ stress level is discussed.

25 l SAT vs. ACT Should we have the choice between taking the SAT or ACT? 26 | Editoral Board Is there really such a thing as selflessness?

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advisor editor-in-chief executive editor creative editor graphics editor business editor advertising editor photo editor designated grader copy editor copy editor copy editor copy editor

Larry Steinmetz Kendall Mayfield Cassidy Grom Kim Flaherty Mackenzie Perdue Jennifer Cischke Allsion Drake Nick Kinser Sal Lanci Layne Cutler Hannah Deaton Hannah Perdew Sammy Ewing

staff writers

The legacy of our generation

by Hannah Deaton

hannah.deaton14@gmail.com @hannahashlyn14

Our generation is narcissistic and feels entitled to everything, myself included. News flash: no one cares what you’re wearing today or if you posted a cute selfie this weekend and everything is not going to be given to you on a silver platter. It takes work, dedication and motivation. No matter what your goal is, whether it’s getting good grades this semester, acing your next math test, getting into college, enlisting in the military, getting fit or getting the money for a car, you have to do something to make it happen.

William Strauss and Neil Howe wrote a book called Generations: The History of America’s Future, 1584 to 2069. In it they talk about our generation, the Millennials or Generation Y. According to their theory, our generation will be “civic-minded,” meaning we will develop a strong sense of community. However, studies show that our generation is just what I mentioned earlier: narcissistic and feel entitled.

We are selfish and way too concerned with what others think about us. We aren’t willing to work for what we want. We are all about doing what we want, when we want and how we want. We seldom consider how our actions will make others feel or how it will affect them. We have things like “Selfie Sunday”… one of the most self-centered things I have ever seen.

In the course of being self-centered we are way too critical of other people. We turn our backs on friends and go about our lives not caring how what we did or said may have hurt someone. We degrade others without giving thought to their situation and feelings. We need to learn to put others before ourselves.

Don’t talk bad about people, and don’t do things to make people uncomfortable. Be Layout: Lauryn Waldridge newsmagazinebEhsspring2014issue4.indd 3

Tiffany Prell Lauryn Waldridge Haley Steinmetz Eliza Love Isaac Shelton Jessica Hanna Haley Simpson

Peyton Maki Sarah Link Austin Jewell TJ Rayhill Michael Murphy Samantha Gentry Janna Klinglesmith

kind, think of what is best for the person next to you. Think about what is best for your friends, your siblings and even your parents.

If we want something, we usually don’t want to work for it. We complain about our jobs when in reality, we should just be thankful that we have the ability to work and make money.

I am just as guilty as anyone else when it comes to these things. I like to think that at times I am very considerate of others and I try to look out for them, but there are plenty of times when I am extremely and inexcusably selfish. I feel entitled to things, even if it’s not always consciously. I get lazy, I don’t want to go to work some days and I really just want my college to be paid for without me having to work to get scholarships or get up and make the money. But that is the worst attitude I could have. I recently found motivation to get these things done. It’s going to take effort and it won’t always be fun, but it has to be done if I want to go to college and then law school.

This is a problem for our entire generation. If we don’t change, we are going to do nothing to help this country or the world. We have to work hard now so that we can give our children and future generations a good life in America. The key is to stay focused on what matters in life and forget what does not.

Each individual has to decide whether or not they want to be a productive member of this generation.

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. The staff remains comitted 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 ww2.bullittschools.org/ behslivewire.

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 witheld 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.

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STUDENT LIFE

Students ask Why can’t sweatpants be a part of the dress codes?

What classes do you actually think apply to real life?

Why are phones such a big deal?

Administrators: It’s not that you shouldn’t use them; I just think you should use them appropriately. The only problem is there is so many avenues to be distracted on phones such as social media and texting which is when it becomes a distraction.

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How are we going to fix the parking problem?

A: The parking problem this year is solely because of construction.

We don’t own the field across the street so we cannot do anything with it.

A: I would hope they all, in some way, apply to real life. Math, writing, English: they will all be used in whatever job you choose. Electives all apply to real world; that’s why they’re called electives.

A: Right now, as it’s written, the policy says it’s against dress code. It was originally written so students would come to school “dressed to impress,” if you will.

I think research would show you that when you come to school dressed nicer, you perform better.

The bottom line is: it’s policy, so we have to enforce it.

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Administrators If you could ask your principals one question, what would it be?

By Hannah Perdew

BEcheerleader96@gmail.com l @hannnah23_

How often do you actually use your phone during school?

S: I use my phone during my study hall and during my lunch.

Certain teachers will allow me to depending on what we are doing that day but I’m not on it as much as some people in our school.

Most favorite thing about Bullitt East?

S: Definitely the school spirit. Everyone acts like they hate Bullitt East, but when it comes down to it, we pull together when it really matters.

Least favorite thing about Bullitt East?

S: My least favorite thing is probably 25 minute lunches. We’re in class for 7 hours or so a day so 25 minutes isn’t really a fair deal to us.

Why do you wear leggings as pants when they are clearly undergarments?

Students: Leggings are comfortable and if I have to wear pants then I don’t want to wear jeans because they are the most uncomfortable things in the world.

Layout: Hannah Perdew newsmagazinebEhsspring2014issue4.indd 5

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Ready for my Close up by peyton maki

peyton.maki@gmail.com | @makipeyton

Bullitt East might have a next top model.

Most people have seen the show America’s Next Top Model, but not many students know that Bullitt East has some models of their own.

Sophomore Keyla Brown has a lot of experience when it comes to modeling and is confident in her own skin. Bailey Marzian has just recently started and loves all the experiences she has had. Sara Popplewell, Reilee Hobbs mom, has always loved vintage clothing and finally made it a career.

Brown has been modeling since she was seven years old. “I think that it is an expressive form of art, and I want to show girls my age that they don’t have to be a size zero to be confident about their body,” said Brown.

She models for Alix Adams modeling school and Beautiful Advertising Enterprise. Brown can be found modeling in fashion runways, commercial modeling and glamour, which is a type of modeling using techniques of airbrushing, lighting, and cosmetics to make the photos more appealing.

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Brown said modeling is more than just a pretty face; it is tough competing to be the most talented. “It is also fun because you meet new people that have done things you never imagined would do,” Brown explained.

It has a positive effect on the girls, teaching them better posture, poise, and confidence.

Brown and many other girls would love to have a career as a model, but it is very unstable. The girls never know if they are what the employer is looking for. Some days a girl will get a job and another day she might not.

“I think that it is an expressive form of art, and I want to show girls my age that they don’t have to be a size zero to be confident about their body.”

-Keyla Brown

mo made her feel special and she decided to commit to it. “I like feeling like someone thinks I’m pretty enough to put me in a magazine,” said Marzian. She has modeled clothing for stores like American Eagle and in advertisements for Norton Hospital.

“Being able to model means that you have to be comfortable getting your picture taken, taking directions well, and simply just enjoying it,” said Sara Popplewell, an owner of an online vintage clothing store. She has students at BE model for her and also her own daughter, Reilee Hobbs. Popplewell has been in the vintage clothing business for eight years now, selling clothes from the 1920s to the 1990s.

Popplewell said that it’s a little bit more difficult to find girls to model this era of clothing because the girls back then wore corsets, making their waists smaller. In this situation Popplewell has to be more picky about the girls she picks.

Bailey Marzian, senior, has also recently taken on modeling jobs. Marzian said that her parents were against it, but the agents at Cos-

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East takes a stand b y H a l e y S i m ps o n

haley.simpson7@gmail.com | @haleysimp7

We’re all in this together, or nah?

On Wednesday, March 19th, the United for East (UFE) leadership group attempted to bring the entire school together by doing a music video promoting anti-bullying, but it may have just divided the school even more.

On filming day, students were divided up into their respective clubs and sports around the school and created a path for the camera to come through to film the music video. The purpose of the video was to unite the school and stand up against bullying. While some students felt that the video was uniting the school, others felt as if it was just separating the students.

As many would expect, getting the entire school to cooperate was a daunting task. The UFE’s had to verify which clubs and sports would be participating, where they would stand, who would be the singers, and made sure that everyone knew what they were supposed to wear that day. Of course, there were the few who thought the video was pointless and stayed home, but most of the school came prepared that day representing their club or sport.

Once school counselor and UFE sponsor, Tammi Terry got everyone situated in the hallways, cameraman Tate Hatfield went through on a practice run pretending to film the students in the hallway. They made sure all the singers knew which way they were going, what they were doing, and that the kids in the hallways knew what was going on. Most of the clubs and sports dressed up in their club shirts or uniforms and brought equipment to clarify what group they were. After that, they went through two more times to make sure Layout: Kim Flaherty newsmagazinebEhsspring2014issue4.indd 7

they had the perfect take.

Over the past several years, there have been many attempts to stop bullying in the halls of Bullitt East. Numerous assemblies have been organized, a variety of videos have been shown on the effects of bullying, and the counselors implemented the Shout-Out box, so students can get people help anonymously. Senior UFE Katelyn Alcorn believes that the video will work to promote anti-bullying.

“The video shows bullies and people who have all been bullied that we all belong and have a place together as friends,” said Alcorn.

“It’s a great thing. Everyone is having fun and it’s bringing everyone together so no one feels left out.”

-Jared Farris The UFEs are also using this video to unite the school and it’s one of the largest attempts to bring the school together. “This is the first time that we’ve done anything like this and it could be one of the most significant things we’ve done as a school to unify the school and as far as saying we won’t tolerate disrespect towards others,” said Terry. The UFEs got local news crews to come to BE for the event. A staff member from the Courier Journal showed up that day and ran a story on the video on their website.

Rowdie leader Cambron Stewart.

Like Stewart, most of the students felt as if the video was really bringing the student body together. Most of the people cheered for their school and supported the UFE’s video. “It’s a great thing. Everyone is having fun and it’s bringing everyone together so no one feels left out,” said sophomore basketball player Jared Farris. However, there was a minority of students who didn’t think that the video was doing what it was originally meant to do.

Freshman Cameron Brooks was standing away from the majority of the crowd because he didn’t know really where to stand. He is a member of both the football team and Red Zone Rowdies, and when he went to stand with the rowdies, he didn’t really feel like he was in the right place. “I don’t really like it (the video), it’s not really about unity. It’s about, ‘Hey you’re in that and you’re in that,’ and showing off what club you’re in,” said Brooks.

According to the UFE’s, bullying has been prevalent at Bullitt East for years. However, some kids don’t feel that way. “It’s really cool that we can all get together to prevent it, but I feel like we’re a bully-free school as it is.

Everyone gets along,” said senior Red Zone 6 4/8/2014 8:14:52 PM

ACADEMICS

by Jennifer Cischke

jennifer.cischke@gmail.com | @JenniferCischke

cut.

For me, my older brother Keenan Cischke getting GSP gave me some confidence when I applied. The GSP alumni, teachers, and counselors who revised, edited, and said they were impressed with my application definitely gave me confidence.

news of a relative or friend passing away.

Completely shameless, ugly crying. An hour or so of that, a four hour long nap, and two pints of ice cream later, the meltdown was over. Reality set in, and panic followed.

Whose parents save up college money for their child when they’re earning a spot in GSP?

Think of the Governor’s Scholar Program as the academic version of the Hunger Games.

The differences are that we don’t actually fight to the death and more than one person is crowned victor each year. Oh yeah, and not to mention everyone is a career - as in preparing for this almost their whole lives.

That’s right, no one’s. So now, I was too poor to afford college, too rich for financial aid, and without a college fund. My first thought?

“Well, I guess I can’t go to college now.” And thus began the domino effect. No college, no successful career, no career equals no money, no money equals no nothing, really, and no nothing is just pitiful.

The Governor's Scholar Program (GSP) isn’t just some overrated summer camp for exceptionally smart students - it’s virtually free tuition to almost any college in Kentucky. So, as you can probably imagine, the application process is tedious and dreadful.

However, long hours, late nights, and absurd amounts of coffee actually mark the light at the end of the tunnel. When I said everyone competing for the scholarship was a career, I wasn’t joking.

How completely ludicrous is that thought process, though? I was scared, devastated, and lost which made me unreasonable.

Usually, a little less than a dozen out of 350 Bullitt East juniors attend GSP each year. So what does everyone else do? They graduate and go to college and earn a job and make money and have things and they aren’t pitiful.

Preparation for applying for GSP starts as early as middle school. You have to get ahead academically, get involved, and build relationships with teachers and community members, and that takes a lot of time. So, the overwhelming stress and caffeine high I was on for weeks while meticulously building my application was over five years in the making.

An Academic backslide

So, let’s talk applicants. The ideal GSP worthy student stands out. They’re smart, involved, personable, well rounded, creative, and display leadership qualities or capabilities. But here’s the catch - a person who embodies the exact image of those attributes could still get rejected by the judges.

Every year, from the informational fall meeting to the spring letters announcing who will or will not be spending the summer with the best and brightest of the Bluegrass State, students are told “no one really knows what the judges are looking for".

Think of the aforementioned qualities, and I’m sure you have a few people in mind who really fit the bill. Like seniors TJ Rayhill or Katelyn Alcorn? What about alumnus Connor Brown? And me? Yeah, we all didn’t make the April 2014 newsmagazinebEhsspring2014issue4.indd 8

All the “don’t worry”s and “we’re in an easy district” and “well you’ll be at GSP this summer so...” - if those didn’t make me feel like I had already gotten accepted, I don’t know what did. It sounds conceited or cliche, but I genuinely thought I had it in the bag.

Then I didn’t even make it past districts.

I got the letter and skimmed it. At first I didn’t even realize it was about GSP. I actually made my parents read it and explain it to me.

It felt like my future had been torn from my body and my chances at success had been gouged out through my eyeballs.

Not getting GSP meant stepping back. Scratching out any plans for the future and thinking like the average student. Thinking about what’s affordable, what scholarships are still out there, modifying goals, student loans, and above all, just thinking of moving forward and staying positive.

I have an entirely free summer now. No complaints there.

So I actually started making big plans for the summer, talking the parents in to a vacation, finding alternative programs or “camps”.

I gave myself one day with puffy eyes and no dietary restrictions to dwell about not getting GSP. Because I didn’t have it the day before I got the letter. I didn’t have it the day before that either. And I didn’t have it when I handed my application over to Mrs. Terry. So what changed? I just stopped anticipating the supposed “best five weeks of my life” and started seriously planning my future.

So I cried. I cried as hard as I cry when I get ww2.bullittschools.org/BEHSLivewire/ 4/8/2014 8:14:56 PM

Behind the Scenes of movie Production

BY Kendall Mayfield

kendallmayfield@gmail.com l @kendallbugg

Students in the Charger Nation are rolling out the red carpet.

The movie production class is working to enhance their talents by taking student’s recordings to new heights.

A vast amount of procedures and hard work go into the making of a suitable movie; therefore, students gain an assortment of skills through their time in the class. With the extra training and growing talent, the class has high hopes for their future productions.

When watching a movie, most don’t fathom how much work goes on behind the scenes; however, one elective has changed that realization for many. Many of the groups spend long nights and weekends recording scenes to their highest abilities. Most class time is spent developing commercials for the Bullitt East Charger Network (BECN); therefore, time outside of class is crucial.

The process of filming a movie is lengthy.

Students begin by receiving a chosen theme such as “Sci-Fi” and have to brainstorm ideas Layout: Jennifer Cischke and Kendall Mayfield newsmagazinebEhsspring2014issue4.indd 9

to fit the overall concept. After choosing the best idea, groups create their storyboard and scripts and choose what angles they want their production to be shot. “We plan out a lot of ideas, but we usually end up doing our own thing. It’s really just our group being normal with a camera on,” said senior Collin Barnes.

They proceed in filming the production and then editing it using Adobe software. After approval and final edit by media teacher, Nathan Tackett, the rest of the class gets to view the movies.

“It takes hours and hours to film all of the right clips,” senior Camron Creager emphasized, “honestly, I’ve put more work into this class than any other in my high school career.” The group spends many sleepless nights recording until roughly four in the morning. In the most current movie, many groups offered several hours to the completion outside of class.

The time seems to be paying off, though. The class got recognized for their endearing Red Ribbon Week movie in the fall by winning the “Red Ribbon Week Video Contest” but

recognition isn’t of utmost importance to the students. Junior Daria Reynolds stated, “Receiving Tackett’s praise and approval makes it all worth it. It’s rewarding to see him proud.”

Members of the class feel that the rewards from this course are endless. Students claimed to have gained teamwork, dedication, and creativity. In fact, the elective has sparked many student’s interest in media enough to convince them to pursue a degree in the field. “It just depends on how seriously you take the class,” senior, Chandler O’Bryan said, “The more serious you take it, the more rewarding it is.”

Not only do students get the opportunity to expand their multimedia capabilities, but they also gain the experience of an honorable advisor. Senior Lucas Alcorn stated, “Tackett is not only a teacher, but a mentor. He motivates us and guides us. I hope to grow up and be just like him.”

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UNDER THE RADAR

by Sammy Ewing

sewing600@gmail.com @sammy_ewing_

Changing the world, one small step at a time.

Silent Shout outs

Compassion is defined in Webster’s dictionary as,“the sympathetic of others’ distress together with a desire to alleviate it.” Also, something highly overlooked amongst the students at Bullitt East.

Being compassionate and helping one another is an idea that we have been taught since childhood. Being kind has just become a second nature that it happens to be unappreciated by those around us. Gestures such as holding the door open or picking up someone’s dropped items has evolved into the “ little things”, that end up getting neglected because they seem insignificant to others . Although these occurrences should not be glorified, it wouldn’t do any harm for it to be recognized, because they do count.

“The little things count because it’s those moments that you could cherish forever. Some of the littlest things that happen could have the greatest and best impact in you. To not only cherish the big things that happen. But also the small things because in the end those could be the biggest moments of your life even if it was just something small,” stated freshman, Brooke White.

Tony Ryan the janitor talks to students who sit alone before school and during lunch.

Logan Stone stayed after school to aid students who felt faint after donating blood.

Allie Jenson made the decision to donate blood when more volunteers were needed.

Josh Lane helped Mr.Steinmetz clean out the textbook closet.

Trase Milburn takes all the

Jennifer Cischke helped

Lucas Alcorn returned a

Jacob Ruth passed out bal-

trash from his lunch table everyday.

the drama department set up for their in school play.

lost check to the office.

loons to children after the boys basketball senior night.

Shelby Graham helped

Abby Shelton pick up her supplies when they fell off her desk.

Sydney Wiseheart found Hannah Perdew’s keys in the parking lot and gave them back to her.

Garrett Ezell picked up trash in Mr. Ryan’s room.

Blake Allen gave his district champion medal away to former announcer Jeff Carver.

Gavin Blain loaned his extra clothes to a fellow teammate for a track meet.

Brandon Rogers helped Jake Rush with his senior project last minute when his underclassman didn’t show up.

Math Department sets

aside free period for students struggling in math.

Abbie Thomas gives money to students who can not afford lunch everyday.

Jared Osborne allowed

autistic senior from Woodford County to play on senior night and score nine points.

Jared Farris sat with a lonely 8th grader at lunch and made him feel welcomed.

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Garrett Tingle held open the door for students going to class.

Jordan Weldon took up abandoned trash from the lunch tables.

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NOT WHAT I ONCE WAS BY: NICK KINSER

BY: ALLISON DRAKE

professional.nicholas.kinser@gmail.com | @nicholaskinser

Allison.drake14@gmail.com l @allisondrakee

She treads on different ground.

Surrounded in the four walls of an especially religious community, senior Elynn Mullaney has taken a personal religious stance that goes against the current of the stereotypical Mt. Washington statistic.

With the fifteen plus churches that are scattered throughout Bullitt County, it’s no secret that the community surrounding Bullitt East is more than accustomed to Sunday service. But what about those who don’t exactly have a seat at the pew? In a recent change of heart, senior Elynn Mullaney has veered away from her longtime Christian beliefs.

Mullaney stated, “It all started while I was looking at why I just couldn’t fully believe.” Mullaney continued , “I’d always kind of thought to myself, maybe there’s not a God. Finally I said, what’s so bad about saying I don’t believe? What’s really keeping me from it?”

Much of Mullaney’s newfound non-belief in God has been sparked through personal thought and through the famous pieces of historic writers and philosophers. “After thinking it over for a while, I thought, okay, let’s look at this in the view of an atheist and see where it leads me.” Mullaney affirmed, “As I started to detach myself from God I began reading stuff from Christopher Hitchens and all these other writers and philosophers and they all seemed to be atheist. The more I read what they had wrote, the harder it seemed to look at something completely outside of this world while believing in God.” As Mullaney continued through high school she found that she wasn’t fully herself when it came to her own religious views. “I finally realized that to understand what I believed in, I had to erase everything I had been told and programmed to believe in, that included God.” Mullaney’s newfound faith, or lack thereof, really begs the question, is it better to believe in something based on the belief systems of others around you or to construct your own beliefs through your own experiences? “When I started building my own beliefs, I realized God wasn’t a part of them, and the strangest part was I felt fine about it.” She went on to say, “I felt relieved because for the first time I was going outside of what’s expected and I was being real.”

Still, Mullaney holds a humbleness in her recent change in religion. She exclaimed. “You have to get out of the belief that The Bible states everything that’s ever happened so that you can really take all of life in.”

Mullaney implores, “I still have principles and I still think The Bible is an amazing work of art. Everything in it is so powerful and inspiring and just, crazy, but I don’t believe that it’s real.” Mullaney concludes, “I think The Bible is a great book to live by, but I don’t live by its principles because I believe if I don’t I’m going to Hell. I live by those principles because I think it’s the right thing to do.”

Layout: Sammy Ewing, Allison Drake, and Nick Kinser newsmagazinebEhsspring2014issue4.indd 11

MY BROTHER AND I - ELYNN MULLANEY Scott Anthony was my brother, he is my brother; I can try to explain Scott, the love he shared and the presence he made, how he would completely fill a room with his big personality. But the problem is, you will never be able to fully and completely understand how much life my brother had. I was asked to talk about how my brother’s passing away affected me, and though that sounds as if it would have a negative connotation to it, I would feel more comfortable expressing how much it saved me.

I was young when my brother died, old enough to understand death, but too young to understand life. I was forced to grow up, to be strong for my mom, and although I wasn’t asked to, I hid my tears to in return wipe away hers. Through Scott passing away I learned selflessness, a trait that continues to aid me through my life, a trait that most people aren’t lucky enough to develop. Scott was selfless; he always gave 100% without even thinking if he would get the same effort back. His death taught me values, not in things, but in people. Thanks to my brother I will never have to wonder “what if I spent more time with my family. What if I told my mom that I loved her more or spent more memories with my brothers?” Scott passing away made me see how dangerously short life can be. Lastly, his death showed me how much you can affect other people. I envy Scott’s shine, his virtue, and the way you had no choice but to fall in love with him. When you are gone, the only thing left is what other people say about you. That’s the way your kids, grandkids, and friends will remember you, by your stories.

Scott’s death taught me the value of our words to other people and how enormous an action that seems so premature can become. Because of that, I treat people with respect and dignity as well as myself and hope people will do the same.

My brother’s death was dark and difficult, it still is, but I prefer to look at the bright side because that’s who Scott was, the bright side. I would give back every lesson I learned, though, if it meant having my brother back at every Christmas, back into my mom’s arms, and back into our lives. I can’t, though. He will never be back, but I refuse to make his death a negative thought because Scott was not a negative person, and his life was not something that should be whispered about or saddened about- it was beautiful. I can’t tell you exactly how I coped with my brother’s death, or how it made me feel, because I’m not sure yet.

I’m still learning and feeling, and I don’t think I will, nor do I want to, be able to answer those questions because if I do then that means I have stopped learning, and stopped feeling, and that would mean my brother’s life is final; and that’s something that I will never allow to happen. Scott was my brother, is my brother, but more importantly Scott is the reason I am who I am, and for that I will forever be thankful that I was granted with the time I had with him.

10 4/8/2014 8:15:10 PM

THE PUSH TO BE PERFECT

by Layne Cutler laynec17@gmail.com

2 Extracurricular

5’9

440 service hours 40Club meeting tomorrow

4.0 gy

iolo

newsmagazinebEhsspring2014issue4.indd 12

AP B

April 2014

Every teenager feels the push to be their idea of perfect at something. Maybe they’re looking for approval from peers based on their looks. Some may find themselves striving towards academic excellence. Others may want to be the elite athlete. No matter where the pressure is coming from, it’s there, and it affects many students in a very stressful manner.

Over the years, society has built the ideal human. Good style, perfect hair, and smooth, tan skin all play a role in that “perfect” girl or guy. This vision has taken criticism, though.

“Looks aren’t everything,” one might say.

Some of BE’s own beg to differ.

AP Calculus

“I feel the most pressure trying to get all of my homework done.”Colin Vincent

Everyone’s definition of “perfect” is different, even dictionary.com acknowledges that. The web site doesn’t define exactly what “ideal” is; that’s up to the individual to decide.

The Push to Look Good

24’

2 Sports

The definition of perfect is “conforming absolutely to the description or definition of an ideal type.”

Junior Samantha Roman is a model who fully accepts the pressure to look good. “Presentation is everything,” Roman said. Roman also says that she puts the pressure on herself, and it’s not about looking a certain way for anyone else. “People are so judgmental, you wear the wrong shoes one day and you’re through. I try to look good for myself, nobody else,” Roman explained. Perfect, to Roman, is having a good personality along with looks.

“You can’t be a pretty face and be mean to be considered ‘perfect’,” Roman said.

While girls are notoriously known to feel pressured to look good, boys feel that pressure, too. In a survey conducted by the University of the West of England*, 54.1% of adolescent girls believe that girls at their school struggle with body image issues. In the same study, 23.7% of adolescent boys believe that boys

“I feel like my 4.0 GPA identifies me.”- Alnee Tutson

ww2.bullittschools.org/BEHSLivewire/ 4/8/2014 8:15:23 PM

at their school struggle with body image issues. The pressure seems to be real for both genders.

Junior Joe Watts claims he feels the most pressure from looks, not academics or athletics. “I don’t want to look bad,” Watts said. To ensure Watts looks presentable for school, he takes a shower every morning and takes extra time to look good. “If I didn’t look good, I wouldn’t come to school. You don’t want others to make fun of you,” Watts said.

The Push to Be Smart Physical appearance is a major source of pressure for teens, but so is academics. Students attend school for about 32.5 hours each week, plus additional time for homework. Until one is finished with high school or college, students feel the pressure to reach academic excellence. Select students at BE take that push to academic perfection to the extreme, doing everything possible to excel.

Pressure at BE The Livewire surveyed 50 BE boys and girls of all grades to see where their pressure to be perfect originates from- acdemics, looks, or athletics.

FEMALES Academics Looks

Academics

Not all successful students feel pressure, however. Senior Kyle Starkey takes six AP classes and says he feels very little pressure.

“I just want to prepare myself for college best I can,” Starkey said. Starkey claims what pressure there is comes from himself. “I wish I would’ve taken seven AP classes, I didn’t know how easy they were,” Starkey said.

Sophomore Bailey Rakes feels very pressured by athletics. Rakes claims to feel the most pressure on the basketball court during tight games. “I try to handle the pressure by preparing for it,” Rakes said. He tries to practice as much as he can to live up to the pressure brought on by others. “People look up to us,” Rakes said.

Looks Athletics

Christian Foster is a freshman that experiences pressure in soccer. “I feel pressured to always play to everyone’s expectations because if I don’t, I feel like I’m letting the team down,” Foster said. Foster also claims

“When I’m not wearing the bowtie, people wonder where it is. So I guess I do feel that pressure to look good.”- Cole Green Layout: Layne Cutler and Cassidy Grom newsmagazinebEhsspring2014issue4.indd 13

40%

MALES

society, and not only on the professional level.

High school sports are becoming more and more serious. In fact, some students at BE claim that athletics is where they feel the most pressure to succeed in.

Starkey is not only occupied with school, but also with baseball. Athletics are a huge part of

39%

Athletics

Sophomore Maria Long claims nothing else compares to the pressure she feels to excel in academics. “I have to keep outdoing myself and raising my standards,” Long said. The pressure in Long’s life originally came from a sibling rivalry. “I still compare myself to him [Bobby Long, brother],” Long said. Now, though, Long feels as if she has a reputation to uphold. “I definitely put the most pressure on myself to succeed,” Long said. Long’s pressure grew enormously as she tried to get accepted into Carol Martin Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science in Western Kentucky University. “‘Perfect’ is being the best you can possibly be in your class,” Long said.

The Push to Be Athletic

21%

37%

35%

28% to be hard on herself. “I put the most pressure on myself. I always think I’m not playing my best, even though everyone tells me I am,” Foster explained. “Perfect” to Foster is being able to play to your full ability, start to finish, every game.

The Pressure is Real Students at BE were surveyed by the Livewire to record the pressure they feel. Males and females of all grades reveal where their pressure comes from and how much pressure they feel. For a closer look at the numbers, the pie graphs at the top of the page reveal all of the information.

“I have something to live up to (in softball).”

- Brooke Ryan

12 4/8/2014 8:15:25 PM

The Elephant in the Room BY isaac shelton

JIShelton362@gmail.com l @Isaacshelton1

13

Here in Charger Nation, there are some unanswered questions. Ever wondered about the crazy parking lot, the mysterious rest rooms, or the situation with the AP tests? Check out the exclusive blurbs for the answers.

Parking Lot

14

I came in like a wrecking car.

BULLITT EAST HIGH SCHOOL S T U D E N T

324

P A R K I N G

Bullitt East has had a wild experience in the parking lot, but things are changing.

The Bullitt East parking lot has been disorderly in the past but has a safer future. At the beginning of the year Emily Carpenter was in an accident. “I was backing out of my parking spot to go to JCTC [Jefferson Community and Technical College] and the girl behind me wasn’t looking and she backed straight into my car. Luckily, nobody was hurt,” stated Carpenter. Carpenter feels like more people should pay attention in the parking lot in order for it to be a safer place. “The thing people need to realize is that when you don’t pay attention or when you’re trying to show off that’s when things [accidents] happen,” stated Carpenter. After a few months of routinely parking in the same place, the lot is now a safer environment.

Restrooms The girls main hall restroom stalls don’t have doors.

According to Tony Ryan, Head Custodian, the school removed the doors years ago because girls were caught smoking. “The doors were taken down 5 or 6 years ago and we [the school] have no intentions in putting them [the doors] back up,” stated Ryan.

Sarah Thompson, a visitor of the girls main hall bathroom, thinks it is unfair and embarrassing for girls to use the restroom in that bathroom.

“Taking the doors down is taking away our privacy and basically our rights if you think about it. Every other bathroom has all the stalls but just that one. I don’t see how that would stop girls from smoking,” stated Thompson.

Education

5 STEPS TO A

5

School

AP TEST Some tests are worth cramming for.

You can say Bullitt County got “Frozen” this past winter, and the conditions are affecting the AP students. All of the AP tests have predetermined dates. Those test dates don’t change, even if school is cancelled. Bullitt County encountered 15 snow days.

These snow days have delayed the learning process in the AP courses. “I see it as losing three weeks of class time. It’s a hard test and the test [material] won’t change.

They [the students] have to do the work and especially the reading,” stated Sue Wimsatt, who teaches AP US History and AP Government at East

Monday, May 5th- Friday, May 16th

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Please Support Our Sponsors 240 High Point Mt. Washington KY, 40047 Our students and parents want you!

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14 4/8/2014 8:15:28 PM

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ww2.bullittschools.org/BEHSLivewire/ 4/8/2014 8:15:33 PM

high priorities

Drug usage is a national epidemic. Though it may not be a widespread issue at East, some individuals make it their mission to fly under the radar. What do you do when you cross paths at that unfortunate time? b y M i c ha e l M u r p hy

mmichaelmurphyy@gmail.com | @murphymichael25

You want it? I got it.

Drugs are becoming more common at Bullitt East whether it be in the form of using, selling, or witnessing their sale.

An anonymous student of Bullitt East said that they have been involved with drugs since coming to high school. When asked what types of drugs they have used the response was baffling, “Molly, Ecstasy, Acid, medicine, Cocaine, Heroin, Xanax, Ativan, Marijuana, and Codeine.” The student explained that not all of these substances were used multiple times - they used many only once or twice.

The number of drugs used by this student was shocking, but the reasons why are possibly even more alarming. “I just wanted to adventure into drugs to see what all the hype was about. I wanted to see if they were really better than [marijuana]. I also was using it as an escape from this town and because I couldn’t literally move locations, it gave me temporary relief.”

The fact that journeying down the dark road of drugs was considered as an “adventure” to this student is eye-opening to the perception that some kids have of drugs. When entering into a world of drugs and drug use, it does not become an adventure, it becomes a lifestyle that consumes you and is nearly impossible to escape. Most illegal drugs have a high tolerance level. This means that one must use more of the drug each time to achieve the same effect. As we venture further into the alarming comment, we come to the word “hype”.

The anonymous student got all of these drugs from different providers. They simply stated, “I have many connections,” which implies that there are others in the Mt. Washington community who are exposed to the same drugs.

It is not uncommon to come across a student at Bullitt East who has witnessed a drug deal. After seeing a drug deal, the witness must make a difficult decision: tell a responsible adult, or don’t. Seth Thompson (12) says he has witnessed multiple drug deals in the bathrooms around the school. “It really made me feel insecure because I didn’t know what I was going to do.” Thompson did not tell anyone because, “I didn’t even know their names so what would be the point?”

Illegal drugs are not the only things that have many people concerned around East. According to the student handbook, “The use of any tobacco product by students is prohibited in any building owned or operated by the Board of Education”.This includes but is not limited to classrooms, buses, or even in your car before school. A tobacco violation at school is dealt with depending on how many violations the offender has received. Punishments vary from confiscation of the product and one day in ISAP all the way to a parent conference, and a 1-3 day suspension.

Keith Brinsfield, whose classroom is near the 3rd hall bathrooms, said, “It is rare for me to go one week without smelling smoke in the bathroom. Kids usually smoke during the class period so it is hard to catch them.” By positioning teachers outside the bathrooms during class change, the administration is doing as much as they can to prevent school smokers that try to light one up in the bathroom.

Whether it is the use or sale of drugs and tobacco, the fact is clear that there is a problem - it is against school policy. Will this issue ever be completely resolved? Probably not. But there is a way that we can shrink the number of drug uses at school and we are reminded of it every morning.

Do it… the Charger Way.

16 newsmagazinebEhsspring2014issue4.indd 17

4/8/2014 8:15:38 PM

We I.D.

Security is one aspect of East that often goes unnoticed.

By eliza love

eliza.love29@gmail.com | @liiza24

Somebody call 911, somebody’s walking through the front door.

Students, teachers, and parents are beginning to see security at East as an issue.

While a lot of students don’t even think about it, security is a big deal. No matter what the steps are to keep students safe, teachers and administrators are always looking for ways to improve the system. There have been many actions taken to make sure that East is safe.

While some students think that the security at East is fine, many think that it could be better.

However, one of the factors that parents and students have to take into consideration is the size of the school and community. Larger schools tend to have safety precautions such as metal detectors, and smaller ones usually don’t.

“We have secured the entrance to every school with controlled door access and people access. We are giving police access to camera and doors. We are working with police in each area of the county. We have SROs that are at some schools and SROs that visit schools daily. To help protect the students and staff,” stated Troy Cischke, Network Administrator.

To get into the school, after 7:20 AM, people must walk through the front doors and then April 2014 newsmagazinebEhsspring2014issue4.indd 18

ring the bell. The ladies in the front office ask what they need, and then they buzz them in. The door is always locked during school hours, and the front office has control on when to unlock it.

It’s just a security thing, and we make sure that kids can’t go in and out [of the school],” said Ms. Harrod, Chemistry teacher, who monitors the third hall doors during class changes.

For example, if a man walked through the door, one of the ladies would ask a question like,”May I help you?” The man says something such as, “I need to check my daughter out.” After this, they buzz the person in and the door is unlocked. This system is a good fit for East, a school filled with around 1,400 students. Identification has to be shown when adults try to do something, such as check a student out, but not when they ring the buzzer.

Another form of security at East is the Student IDs. In the beginning of the year, students were pushed to wear them during school.

While that hasn’t really been the case all year, a number of teachers still have students leave their ID, and have them take a hall pass if they are leaving the room.

One way that East takes security precautions is by having teachers designated to halls during class changes. The assigned teachers make sure that no one is trying to get in the doors, and no students are trying to leave the building.

In the past five years, Bullitt County has, “installed over 300 security HD cameras and 30 days of recorded access,” said Cischke.

“I think we [students] should be promoted to wear them, as should the teachers wear them [IDs] too. It makes the school and students look more uniform and it’s also a safety thing,” said sophomore, Maddie Smith.

The IDs can be used for a number of things.

The plan was to have used them attendance purposes, paying for lunch rather than typing in a number, and checking out books at the library.

East alone will be getting more cameras and doors on the access control system. The reason or this system is to have monitored access to the school and take back keys that do not show who came in. ww2.bullittschools.org/BEHSLivewire/ 4/8/2014 8:15:42 PM

we want it back

Security is one aspect of East that often goes unnoticed.

By haley steinmetz

haley.steinmetz72@gmail.com | @haley_steinmetz

Reduce, reuse, recycle...unless there’s no money in the budget.

Recently, Bullitt East has put an end to their recycling program due to a raise in the cost.

East is no longer recycling because the company they use to recycle will no longer be providing their services for free. Angela Herrlein’s class is now filling the time they used to spend gathering the recycling by delivering lunches for the lunch RTI (Response To Intervention.) The staff at East and the energy manager at the board of education, Kimberly Joseph, are working toward trying to get recycling back.

Before about two weeks ago, Blue Skies was picking up East’s recycling for free. They were also supplying the recycling containers for free. However, they recently decided to begin charging for these services, and at this point East and the Board just doesn’t have the additional money to afford it. “As long as the school has to pay for it, we can’t do it,” stated Heirrlein, ECE (Exceptional Childhood Educator) teacher at East.

Herrlein’s students used to go around the school twice a week to gather the recycling from each classroom. Now they are delivering lunches for the lunch RTI (a program that allows teachers to have students complete unfinished work during their lunch time) in Layout: Kim Flaherty and Kendall Mayfield newsmagazinebEhsspring2014issue4.indd 19

order to fill that time. The students were very let down when they heard that they would no longer be going around to collect the recycling. “I was very disappointed,” said Matthew Wheeler, while all of his classmates nodded in agreement. Herrlein added that the students enjoyed that time. Clearly, the class wants the recycling back.

students in Herrlein’s class will be presenting.

As of now, East’s recycling containers continue to overflow and staff and students alike miss the smiling faces of Herrlein’s class.

There are, however, a group of people working to get the recycling back. At first, Herrlein tried to handle the recycling herself. She had planned to continue to have her students pick up the paper and other recyclables and then go deposit it on her own. When she tried this however, it didn’t go quite as she planned, simply because East just has too much recycling for one person to manage. It was then that she realized it wouldn’t work and she needed another solution. After that, she knew that she had to reach out to someone beyond Bullitt East to fix the problem. At this point, Joseph is attempting to help East get the program back. She, Lee Barger (assistant principal), Herrlein, and a team of five students had a meeting March 20th to discuss and plan where to go next. It was decided at the meeting that Herrlein and the same group of students will be presenting their case at the next board meeting. They are planning to talk about the benefits of recycling and why they want it back. They are already prepared with a powerpoint and some research that Tyler Kahl, Clayton Harris, and possibly some other 18 4/8/2014 8:15:46 PM

Connecting the Past

by TJ Rayhill

tjrayhill56@gmail.com | @tjrayhill

Bullitt East- It’s a matter of pride!

Sports bring pride to Charger nation, but it hasn’t always been that way.

Since Bullitt East was established in 1980, a lot has happened. Sports have been added, rules have changed, and school spirit has fluctuated. Throughout the years there have been many moments in sports that have brought a lot of pride to Charger Nation.

“One huge change for Bullitt East is the enrollment. In the 80s we were class AA with only 700 kids,” said Rob Williams, former Bullitt East baseball and basketball coach and father of senior baseball player Chase Williams.

Enrollment is one of the largest things that has changed. As school numbers increase, a team not only has more students to choose from to fill a roster but they also start playing larger teams like Male, John Hardin, and Pleasure Ridge. Playing bigger teams will make them better as a team.

In the early years, if you were a girl playing a sport, East was the place to be. “Before the 90’s people will say the girls sports dominated… and they did,” Williams said. Although lady basketball coaches like Steve Small and Jerry Troutman were kept from going to the state tournament because of Oldham County school they still built a dynasty that continues today with Chris Stallings at helm. Today, the girls basketball team is in constant battle with April 2014 newsmagazinebEhsspring2014issue4.indd 20

the top Louisville teams to get ranked higher in the state. Current freshman Lindsey Duvall and former players like Alison Bass and Kayla Thacker, t have helped the Lady Chargers build a state-wide appreciation of Charger Athletics.

When softball was first added as slow pitch, it helped reinforce the perception of dominance. Williams added, “Softball always has been strong as Coach Drake McCarthy lead the girls the state tournament three years in a row.”

The boys basketball team began making a name for themselves in the late 80s. Making it into regionals but not being able to win the big game was something East struggled with for a while. Recently, East is known statewide for basketball averaging 27 games won out of around 35 per year over the last five years.

They were also district champions all five of the years and had two sweet-sixteen bids.

Individual accomplishments, like Tyler Sharpe frequently coming close to having recordbreaking games, Trey Rakes’ buzzer shot during the PRP regional championship further and Derek Willis being a scholarship player at the University of Kentucky, one of the best basketball programs in the nation, has solidified the pride Charger nation has.

After four years of losing, the Charger football team hit it big this year. The senior class was determined to build back the tradition of winning, and that’s what they did. They were the

sixth team in BE’s history to post a record of 11 plus wins. While the Mt. Washington community expects excellency out of the football team, some community members will also tell you what it was like prior to Coach Mike Egan. Before Egan, the team wasn’t taken seriously by anyone. Former player Nathan Owen said, “The teams before Egan were like crap, he (Egan) brought a new face to East football. We went 4-6 his first year, the best we had done yet. We also scored on then rival Fort Knox for the first time.” Egan built the tradition, and pride East football continues with now.

Being accustomed to winning has to start from somewhere, and that somewhere is at home. “The one thing that makes East so strong is the support of not only the parents but the entire community,” stated Coach David Burns, Athletic Director of Southern High School. As an opponent of East athletics he has noticed how parent involvement has benefited the young athletes of East.

Owen said that, “Our community and families are full of good, hard working people. That makes our kids work hard and take pride in their endevors. Bullitt East sports are a rush of excitement and tradition.”

Williams noted that kids seem to start at a younger age in more challenging leagues such as AAU and travel teams. “This helps the athletes when they get to high school, as a coach you no longer have to coach the ww2.bullittschools.org/BEHSLivewire/ 4/8/2014 8:15:50 PM

to the Present

basics, they’ve played so many games they don’t look like ‘freshman’,”said Williams.

Former Bullitt East softball and golf standout Amanda Lucas added that the athletes and coaches at East are more committed to sports than those at other schools. “Many athletes are committed to their sport that they would play year round. This sets us apart from many other schools including North and Bullitt Central.”

East is not only known for its sports but also the student section. Jason Frakes, sports writer for the Courier Journal, tweeted, “Bullitt East has one of the best student sections I’ve seen.” When sports do well, the student section seems to be impressive too. It was noticed this year that in the beginning of basketball and football, the Red Zone did not show up in full force, but by the postseason multiple fan busses were needed to take to students to the game. Troy Barr added that this year’s Red Zone is the best red zone in school history.

Everyone wants to beat the Chargers. East sets the bar high as an academic, and athletic school. “Bullitt East Athletics and members of Charger Nation are committed to excellence,” said Amanda Lucas.

Layout: TJ Rayhill newsmagazinebEhsspring2014issue4.indd 21

Spring Sport’s Preview

points.” says Raley.

b y J e ss i c a H a n n a

Boys Tennis

jessicahanna@gmail.com l @JessNicole8

Softball

Coach: Ricky Hoffman Record Last Year: 34-5 Key Players: Lindsey Renneisen, Emily Sayler, and all seniors: Bri Hare, Kayla Raymer, Kelsey Gravens, Morgan Raymer, Shelby Harris, Molly Lucas, and Jeri Bogard.

“Expectations are very high with goals of beating Mercy and taking the District and Region back,” says Hoffman.

Baseball

Coach: Jeff Bowles Record Last Year: 33-4 Key Players: Chase Patton, Zac Ching, and Alex Ralph “We expect to win the district, region, and advance to Lexington to compete in the state tournament. We’ve been working out since the middle of October and are anxiously waiting on the weather to break so we can get the season started,” says Bowles.

Boys Track

Coach: Lenny Raley Record Last Year: Trase Milburn is currently ranked #1 in state in High Jump Key Players: Trase Milburn, Michael Montgomery, Zach Napier, Isaac Shelton “The team doesn’t have much depth as I would like. The distance group will score most

Coach: Dustin Armstrong Record Last Year: 11-4 Key Players: Hunter Norris and Jacob Staples “Our goal is to finish top 3 in the region again for the 5th straight year. We are practicing and condition inside because we have no courts,” says Armstrong.

Girls Tennis

Coach: Dan Barrett Record Last Year: 5-6 Key Players: Savannah Kruse and seniors, Masi Sanders and Kylar Ware “We always improve. This year I want to develop younger players because we are graduating 7 or 8 seniors. The goal is to advance at regionals. We condition every day in the hallways,” says Barrett.

Girls Track

Coach: Lenny Raley Record Last Year: Top 2 team in region, top 5 team in state, Meghan Roby finished 2nd in state, and Teekay Brown and Sierra Poppell are top 10 in state.

Key Players: Meghan Roby, Daria Reynolds, Shelby Holt, Teekay Brown, Sierra Poppell, and Julia Poole “I expect us to be improved as a team. We’ve been working out since December and participated in 3 indoor meets and the indoor state championship,” says Raley.

20 4/8/2014 8:16:02 PM

Archery Shooting Their Way to the Top

by Tiffany Prell

tiffany.prell23@gmail.com @TiffffMPrell23

Confident, not cocky.

assistant coach Brian Eschman.

East’s archery team may come off as having big heads, but with all their major achievements, it’s not hard to see why.

The state tournament, held at the Kentucky International Convention Center, is the main event for the team every year. Last year the team scored a 3,318, which made them 16th overall in the state. Hands down the main goal this year for the Chargers was to come in top five at the state tournament on March 17th and 18th, but they fell a little short coming in at 8th in the state with a 3364. “Our biggest rival in the state is definitely Meade County,” informed senior Wesley Taylor, “They’ve been good for years and have always been our team’s top competition.”

Every year since 2010 the archery team has been coming in first place in their region.

They are determined to make it to the top five in the state. The coaches are equipped with a well-rounded team.

This is the first year Bullitt East competed in a new region. They’ve always been in region six, but recently changed to region five.

However, this change did not affect them, as they still came in first place. “I think changing regions was good for the kids. It showed them that they could compete no matter where they’re put,” expressed head coach Jason Waddle.

A perfect team score in archery competitions is a 3,600 and a perfect score for an individual shooter is a 300; no one in the world has ever shot a perfect score. Each team in the competition takes the top twelve shooter’s scores and puts them together to make the total team score. The Chargers best score so far was a 3,397 at the Moore tournament.

“We’ve scored higher this year than we’ve ever scored at any tournaments,” exclaimed April 2014 newsmagazinebEhsspring2014issue4.indd 22

After state, the Chargers will prepare for the national tournament. Last year the team came in 31st scoring a 3,310. This year the national tournament is held on May 9th and 10th at the Kentucky Fair & Exposition Center. “Coming in top five this year would be a huge jump,” reported Eschman, “We’ve never finished higher than the mid 30’s nationally.”

Another change for the team this year was the coaching staff. The head coach had been Cindy Allen since the team changed from coach Holly LaBar, but she stepped down after her daughter graduated. This year Jason Waddle took over as head coach and Terry Lanham, Brian Eschman and Eric Smith as assistant coaches. “Cindy really impacted

the team. She sure set the bar high for us,” Waddle explained, “Myself and this coaching staff has some pretty big shoes to fill.” Waddle was the first coach to get a loss pinned on him at the Bardstown tournament. East had never come in anything but first place at a tournament other than state and nationals.

The team as a whole is getting a lot more competitive as the years go on. “We used to have 10 kids that would always be in top 10, now we’ve got a selection of 30 that can do it.

We have 20 that we know that could shoot a 280 anytime. We never had that in the past,” voiced Eschman.

The team mates really pick each other up as well. In past if some kids had a bad night, it might kill the team score, but now there is so much talent, there are kids to pick up the slack. “They have major impacts on each other. They drive and push each other,” commented Waddle.

Next year the team will only be losing two seniors, Wesley Taylor and Justin Hardin, but the coaches aren’t worried since the shooters at Eastside Middle are said to be good by many students and coaches.

The team hopes their success will continue to grow even more in the future. ww2.bullittschools.org/BEHSLivewire/ 4/8/2014 8:16:05 PM

sore season

if it wasn’t for basketball. It means more to me than anyone will ever know.

All in all, these four years have ultimately shaped who I am. I don’t regret one thing from playing basketball and I can’t put into words how thankful I am. This injury is just another obstacle I have to overcome and it’s not the end of the world. I will be forever grateful to my team and my coaches.”

Life changing injuries such as Ezra’s are not uncommon. Alicia Schwenker was plagued by a torn ACL just before the start of her senior season. Luckily, with the support of her team, family, and coaches, she has made a lot of progress and is also looking into her future with a bright outlook.

“Soccer is the one thing that has always been there for me no matter what. It’s kept me on the right path and has influenced me to be a better person. My injury occurred at the Fern Creek Optimist fields during a scrimmage game with some friends on a Sunday night after work. I had the ball and went to fake someone out on the other team and when I planted my foot, my knee made a popping sound and I immediately knew something was wrong.

by Tiffany Prell

tiffany.prell23@gmail.com @TiffffMPrell23

Ezra Troutman and Alicia Schwenker, East seniors and athletes, have recently suffered devastating injuries. These setbacks have affected them in many ways, from sports careers to their outlooks on life in general.

Troutman himself tells his story and how he plans to look towards the future.

“Well, I was running down the court and I was trying to save the ball from going out of bounds. I tried to stop myself from falling and my hip popped out of place. Then it popped back in, fracturing my pelvis. At that moment, I thought I had just pulled something, but it was the worst pain I had ever felt. The first thing to run through my mind was, obviously, not being able to play basketball, and I was devastated.

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The doctor told me that I would be done for the year. I was down on the fact that I wouldn’t be able to help my team succeed, but luckily I wasn’t planning on playing in college, so it didn’t affect my future. My plans for the future are to get a swell job, go to school, and spend time with my friends and my beautiful girlfriend.

Basketball has had a huge impact on my life. It made me the man I am today and I can’t thank my coaches, teammates, friends, family, and community enough. Being around these people for the last four years has taught me so many life lessons. I have the best relationship with my team and it’s really the best bond ever. Finishing the year alongside my cousin Rhett has been amazing. Even though he is younger than me, he was always my best friend through this ride and has always been my role model. I don’t know where I’d be

The result was a complete tear to the ACL in my right knee. I visited two doctors and was given the choice between no surgery and a chance of never playing soccer again, or immediate surgery and missing my senior season. So, I took the surgery and began my six month recovery process.

I was completely heartbroken. I cried for days before I realized that I had to do the hardest thing I would ever have to do in my life, and that was to tell my team that I wouldn’t be joining them on the field this year. Everyone huddled around me as I tried to hold myself together but I couldn’t help but break down with my team around me. Every game I went to ended with me crying on the way home, wishing that I could play out there with my team.

After six months of therapy, the support of my loved ones, and my bionic knee brace, I have started to bounce back from my injury. I plan on attending Eastern Kentucky University in the fall and majoring in athletic training. I also hope to be a part of their club soccer team so I can still travel around and do what I love.

I have gained a greater appreciation for the game and also learned that no matter what happens, I’ll always have the love and support of the people in my life.”

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OPINION

December 2013

By Sal Lanci

salvatore.lanci@gmail.com

It’s just another teenage drama.

Teenagers have a tendency to exaggerate the stress they have without understanding how good they have it.

Students generally think that they have the busiest schedules and the least amount of time to do all of the work they have to do.

Also, students think they’re stressed out with too much work to do, which just causes them to be more stressed out and less likely to complete the tasks they were intent on doing. However, one reason students might feel stressed out is because they actually are trying to do too much.

Everybody has different lives, all completed with their own multitude of troubles. Senior Danielle Poole is a member of the marching band, a section leader of the color guard, a member of the National Honor

Society, a volunteer at Pleasant Grove become more stressed, which begins the Elementary School, a member of the prom cycle again. However, social studies teacher committee, the secretary of Beta Club, and Sue Wimsatt reasoned that the feelings of an employee at Valu Market. She also has a stress are a good thing. She stated, “I think long-term boyfriend and takes JCC [Jefferson it’s a badge of honor to have too many things Community College] classes. However, she on your plate and that therefore maybe stress doesn’t really feel too stressed out. Poole gets exaggerated. I think our society is the stated, “Everyone is involved in a lot of stuff, more you can juggle at one time, the better everyone has their own stuff to do, so it’s you’re supposed to look.” Since Wimsatt, as a not really fair for one person to teacher, only gets to see the academic life of say, ‘I’m so stressed her students, all the time! I’m in so she explained much stuff!’ because that “I don’t everyone is.” Since know what’s everyone has such going on in ...it’s not really fair for a different burden their lives” but one person to say, ‘I’m of responsibilities, “I don’t think as it is inconsiderate for a society we so stressed all the time! students to feel so value having I’m in so much stuff’ stressed out. rest or down time.” The lack because everyone is.” of rest students Part of the reason may feel now is for such constant -Danielle Poole preparing them complaining is the for whatever increased access occupation to social media.

Rather than focusing their attention on they will have in the future along with all of its getting their work done, social media responsibilities. has provided a quick outlet for students to vent their problems and Sometimes, people do try to do too much. If a have people sympathize for them. student is truly overwhelmingly stressed out, Their tweets or status updates are then rather than futilely complaining about pointless. Senior Alex Heimer said, it, he/she needs to become manageably “I admit I’ll do it too, but most of the stressed out by cutting back on a job or two. time it’s just stupid stuff that nobody really cares about. I think that this instant-gratification society we live in today has caused it [social media] to be more of an outlet for expressing the problems you have with what’s going on right now.” Because of our apparent need to electronically communicate whatever is on our mind, the belief that feeling overwhelmingly stressed out is exponentially increased, which causes us to eventually feel that we can’t get everything done just like everyone else can’t get everything done.

“

With tasks that students deem impossible, they worry about not being able to get everything done. By worrying about not getting stuff done, they feel overwhelmed and less intent on doing work , which makes them not get the stuff done. After not getting done what they wanted to get done, they

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How stressed can you really be?

BY haley steinmetz haley.steinmetz72@gmail.com | @haley_steinmetz

Taking a deep breath and counting to ten can’t fix everything.

Many high schoolers are under a lot of pressure and struggle with high stress levels every day.

Stress in high school can be caused by many different things. Many students struggle with finding an effective way to manage and handle that stress, which causes even more problems for them. Often, students, staff, and adults tend to underestimate the stress that high school really causes.

There are many things to be stressed out about over the four years of high school. There are students at East trying to find a way to balance hard classes, homework, clubs, sports, friends, family, and a job. Abby Shelton is one of these students. Shelton is the yearbook editor, co-founder of the Main Street Youth Chamber Of Preservationists, president of Beta Club, and is a member of the track and cross country team. Outside of school, she previously volunteered at the Louisville Science Center and at Old Mill Elementary School. Being the yearbook editor includes a lot of responsibilities, such as assigning pages, making sure everyone is doing what they’re supposed to do, keeping everything on schedule, designing layouts, and teaching students to use software and cameras. In addition to all of these things, Shelton still takes difficult college level classes and finds time to complete her homework and projects, and maintain a GPA over a 4.0. “I stress myself out too much. I need to work on managing my stress better,” she said.

Managing college level courses, after school activities, and up to 40 hours at a job is obviously a lot for anyone to handle, and after a while, it definitely starts to take a toll on students. The actual definition for stress is mental, emotional, or physical strain or tension. According to a recent study by USA Today, 51% of teens reported having a moderate stress level (4-7 on a scale of one to ten) and 13% reported having

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an extreme stress level (8-10 on the same scale). However, school-related issues are not the only thing stressing teens out. The same USA Today survey proved that 68% of girls stress about their appearance. With so many possible causes of stress, it would be hard to find a student at East that isn’t at least a little bit stressed out.

Dana Steinmetz, counselor, commented, “Teenagers think they have to be perfect at everything, and they try to balance hard classes, with a job, with clubs and sports. It’s too much. You can’t be perfect at all of it.”

To help students handle stress, she said, “I usually help them make a to do list, because they’ve usually let things snowball, so I help them break it into manageable tasks.

I also help them think about the things they can’t control and things they can, because oftentimes they’re stressed about things that are beyond their control.”

like, “How stressed can you really be? You’re just a teenager.” However, USA Today proved that 27% of teens experience “extreme stress” during the year, while only 21% of adults do.

This shows that, in fact, teens struggle with more stress than adults do.

Even other high schoolers tend to get annoyed when their peers talk about being stressed. Those kids don’t realize that some other teens have a lot more on their plate than they do. Furthermore, you never know what someone is going through at home that’s acting as a major stressor in their life. Senior Jordan Weldon said, “I think that high school is really portrayed as a ‘party’ time in your life and people don’t realize that the classes you take and how much effort you put into them actually affect the rest of your life and how much you’ll succeed.”

Being stressed is clearly not good, but what’s worse is that students don’t know how to effectively cope with it. Many turn to the Internet to relieve that tension and stress instead of sports or physical activity, which is more beneficial. The USA Today study mentioned before also showed that 48% of teens handle stress by playing video games and 43% by getting on the internet, while only 28% cope by playing sports.

It doesn’t take a genius to know that staying inside with no exercise all day every day isn’t good for you. Stress can also cause a change in sleeping patterns, most of the time a lack of sleep, which will eventually make an individual irritable. Not to mention, it can cause very poor eating habits which can eventually lead to other health problems, such as obesity.

The fact is, stress leads to all kinds of issues, including depression and chronic illness.

Even though stress is a big deal for teenagers and can cause all of these problems, people still tend to underestimate how much of a problem it is. Adults and parents seem to sometimes wave off the issue, saying things

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E

Choose Your Number B Y C a ss i d y G r o m

@CassidyGrom l cassidy.grom@gmail.com

Recently, there has been a movement of students who proclaim “Test scores don’t define me!”

Sadly, they do.

The scores that Bullitt East juniors earn on their ACT will haunt them throughout the rest of their lives. The scores will determine if they are placed in remedial courses their senior year, if they get into college, and if they get any scholarships. However, students should have a choice on which test to take and, in turn, which scores define them. I would like to tell you about my experiences of taking both the ACT and SAT. It took me six years and eight attempts to get the ACT score I wanted. I had a ton of problems with the math and science sections.

My brain would be jumbled and confused by all the symbols and formulas and I always ran out of time. In seventh grade, I took the test as part of the Duke Talent Identification program. I received a composite score of 22.

Since then, it has been an uphill battle to get the score that would give me the big money at the college I was considering: a 29. I took the standardized test intermittently throughout my high school years, waking up for more early Saturday mornings than I would have liked, but I was never satisfied. I studied extremely hard the fall semester of my senior year. I memorized the math formulas and tried to understand the science graphs in my ACT April 2014 newsmagazinebEhsspring2014issue4.indd 26

review book. Finally, in September of 2013, I did it. I scored a 29! Yet still, I wasn’t satisfied.

The score I thought would make me happy and make all my honors-kid dreams come true didn’t bring fulfillment. I decided to try the SAT. In February, I walked into Waggener High School on an early Saturday morning. Once I located my name on the registration papers, I found my seat in an upstairs classroom. I casually asked the girls in front of me which test came first. They looked at me like I was an alien. The test began but I didn’t feel like an alien. I was at home. I nailed the essay and felt confident about the following sections.

The cool part about the SAT is that the sections are shorter but there are more of them covering reading, writing, and math. Each section’s time limit ranged from 10 minutes to 25 minutes, and gave me more time per question. We had three breaks throughout the ten sections and we never knew which section would be next. Before each section, we would pull out our calculators, and then quickly put them under our desk if it was a reading or writing portion. This sense of surprise definitely kept me awake whereas I often dozed off during the ACT’s long sections.

Another big difference between the SAT and ACT is that you don’t have to answer every question, which admittedly was hard to remember but ended up being a good thing when it came to the math test. I earned a

point for each question I got right, nothing for the ones I left blank, and negative one fourth of a point for the questions I got wrong.

By far, the best thing was that there is no science test in the SAT. No more stupid graphs that have squiggly lines that supposedly mean something. Although East doesn’t have a “college ready” bench mark for science, those scores are still factored into the composite score which college admission counselors examine. So if you stink at science, I would recommend trying the SAT. Anxiously, I waited for my SAT scores to come in. Finally, they did. I received a combined reading and math score of 1320 out of 1600.

I found a chart online and figured out that it translated to a high 29 in the ACT language.

At first I was disappointed in this score, but upon further thought I realized that this was a pretty great achievement. It took me eight attempts to get a high score on the ACT but I did really well on the SAT on my first try. The SAT was definitely a better fit for my academic strengths and my short attention span.

Every college that I have looked into accepts both ACT and SAT scores. I believe that the state of Kentucky and Bullitt East High school should offer both tests free of charge to the junior class. While a test can’t show a student’s personality, it still heavily impacts their academic future. Scores do define students, but they should have a choice which test to take. ww2.bullittschools.org/BEHSLivewire/ 4/8/2014 8:16:34 PM

EDITORIAL BOARD

More than a Selfless Act

BY Janna Klinglesmith

@jannamichelle97 l jannamichelle097@gmail.com

You walk down the hall and see an underclassmen rushing to his class. You can’t help but notice him, with the way he is waddling by struggling to carry all of his stuff in his arms.

As he swerves around the corner, a binder, two notebooks, and a calculator fall through his grip and across the tile floor. The poor kid looks helpless as he begins to reach for his things, but before you know it, a girl in your grade goes to lend him a hand. After getting all his possessions together, the boy stands and says, “Thanks.” A teacher interrupts before the girl can reply. The teacher, who was watching the scene from her class, hands the girl a Charger Buck for her “selfless deed.” The girl runs to her friends as she says, “Hey! Maybe this will be the one that’ll finally win me a gift card this week!” So much for “selfless”, right?

Since preschool, we get it pressed into our mind to be kind and help other people. As we grow older, we find ourselves helping and volunteering, but only to build college applications and fulfill club requirements. National Honor Society and Beta Club each ask their members to complete mandatory assignments in order to get credit for the year. Eventually, these voluntary acts are what will make the students eligible to walk with stoles and cords at graduation. However, having to ask for a signature to receive these volunteer hours at the end of the day is kind of awkward when the whole point of volunteering is to put others first.

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Others take these opportunities to make themselves look better. There may be someone that you know who is constantly bragging about all the good things they accomplished that week. Whether they put themselves in charge of your best friends surprise party, or spent last summer helping out at your local church’s kid’s camp, they never let it go unnoticed. Some even use acts of kindness as a way to get on someone’s good side. Employees take on extra tasks to get that raise they have been asking about for three months.

Students do little jobs like taking papers to the office in hopes of getting their teacher to like them more. Maybe they will even score another Charger buck.

you feel good about yourself. Spending a little of your own time on the less fortunate could warm anybody’s heart. There is nothing wrong with that.

According to psychology, anything we do is pursued through extrinsic or intrinsic motivation. This means that our actions are done with either a reward or self-satisfaction in mind. In this case, whatever reason we choose to help people, it will always benefit us in some way. It is all a part of helping us grow as people. Selfless deeds may not exist, but by no means is that a bad thing. In fact, if kindness was selfless, it probably would not exist.

Now, I know what you are thinking. “This is not always the case. There actually are some true genuine people out there in this world.”

Well, you would be right. Let’s think about all those people you know who have been on a mission trip. They travel around the world feeding the homeless and clothe orphan children to better the lives of those who are struggling. This sort of thing also happens in your own neighborhood. You see the granddaughter who visits her sick grandmother on the weekend to keep her company. You see the friendly stranger who helps the family move into their new home. To say that these deeds are selfish would be wrong, but are they “selfless?” Of course not! Lending a hand when it is needed is the best way to make 26 4/8/2014 8:16:37 PM

Member

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