Munster High School | 8808 Columbia Ave, Munster, IN 46321
Crier
Issue 4 volume 52 | Oct. 25, 2017
INSIDE LOOK Crier staffers recommend things to do over fall break | page 5 Fall sports season recaps | page 7
UPCOMING Tech Club Console LAN party | Near door J, Nov. 11 at 12 p.m. Fall break | Oct. 26th-27th
Figuring their fate STM undergoes teacher negotiations photo by Easan Venkat
Story by Mimi Brody Managing Editor On Sept. 15, negotiations regarding teachers’ contracts opened as administration and teachers try to finalize a deal. The negotiations focus on fixing language and deciding teacher pay. The Munster Teachers Association negotiates on behalf of MHS teachers, but due to state laws, the material that they are permitted to argue has been reduced. “Teachers are getting used to the fact there is less that we can negotiate, but there is still a concern about what the future holds with pay increases, and we want to know we can earn a raise from year to year,” said Mr. Thomas Barnes, English teacher and Vice President of the Munster teacher’s association. Along with regular raises, teachers hope for less expensive benefits.
Mr. Barnes remains hopeful that teacher compensation will improve, despite setbacks the last few years. Teachers completed an anonymous survey; changes “I know what the administration teachers want to see to their contracts, school climate is doing now is tough, they are having to make some hard decisions to right the ship financially,” Mr. Barnes said. “At some “At minimum, a cost of living increase that isn’t a ‘charity point it has to turn around for stipend’ is only fair.” the teachers since we repre“Contracts need to record years teaching and also sent such a large part of the reward teachers getting advanced degrees such as a school budget. I would hope that with the debt being paid masters degree.” off and so forth, in the next year, things would be improv- “A salary increase and either a monetary-based accounting ing and there would be more for time spent working beyond contracted days, or a reducreal money for teachers, not tion in expectations to fit only time we are contracted for.” something on the small side, but something that can help “Greater input in school policy decisions.” make up for all the years that “Teachers jump through too many unnecessary hoops we haven’t been getting raises or have made sacrifices for when we should be focusing on teaching and doing the school district.” what is best for the students.”
Problems Munster teachers are experiencing are not unique. Teachers all over The district’s ability The mantra in business Indiana are experito meet these conencing similar probcerns with a real mon- is that you get what lems. According to etary solution has you pay for. Devalue Mrs. Brenda L. Yodbeen hampered by teachers by devaluing er, Licensed Indiana its’ negative balance. what they do, then School Counselor, In order to solve the whose Facebook post expect them to accept problem, the district about the subject was passed a referendum, it and do more work to featured in the Washfrom which they will prove they’re “highly ington Post, this legstart to see money in effective.” It’s a slap in islation is leading to a June of 2018. teacher shortage. the face to educators. “That (the referen- - Mrs. Brenda Yoder, “It (teacher pay) is dum) will sustain, but barely sustainable on Licensed Indiana School in that referendum, which to raise a famCounselor $1.4 million is set ily, starting out anyaside for new staff or additional staff where from $32,000 to $37,000,” Mrs. to bring back a lot of the cuts that we Yoder said in an interview with Crimade,” said Mr. Steven Tripenfeldas, er. “Potential high school graduates Assistant Superintendent of Human considering going into teaching are Resources. “Umbaugh and Associ- discouraged because they incur the ates, our third party, had projected costs of a college education for little a consistent two percent growth in pay off. Fewer young adults are goexpenses every year, so that is what ing into teaching, fewer new teachwe are assuming we could maintain. ers are staying, and many teachers With that, we took into account in- are retiring earlier. “ creases in all things, so that would be Mrs. Yoder is also concerned with salary, benefits and things like that. where the state places emphasis in We are very confident that with the terms of education. new referendum there will be dollars “They devalue public education,” to support that.” Mrs. Yoder said. “They have deval-
“
What do teachers want to see?
Do you feel teachers are valued in U.S. Society?
35% 60% No
Yes
Do you feel teachers are valued at MHS?
Do you think your compensation reflects your value?
If MHS teacher salaries do not increase or are not planned to increase, will you feel compelled to seek work elsewhere?
35%
35%
95%
55% No Response
60%
Maybe
source: Crier random survey of 20 teachers
ued the profession by saying anyone can teach, all they need to do is take a test for competency. Teaching is an art. Working with kids in an art. It is heart and soul. The mantra in business is that you get what you pay for. Devalue teachers by devaluing what they do, then expect them to accept it and do more work to prove they’re “highly effective.” It’s a slap in the face to educators.“
science education programs. In fact, Purdue Northwest told me that math and science together, they have two kids in all of Purdue Northwest enrolled in those.” Now many current and future teachers find themselves echoing concerns of Mr. Barnes. ‘It is very difficult to know what the future is going to be as far as where I am going to grow financially from doing this,” Mr. Barnes said. “Will I make more money than I did now two years from now? Or ten years from now? I think anyone in any job wants to know that there is a future in what they do and that they are going to grow and improve financially, but it is hard to see that as a teacher now with the way the climate is and financial aspects of this career.”
Effects of the shortage are beginning to be felt locally. “This year, I would say that we have been affected a little bit. We are a little different though. Because of our reputation, we still attract a lot of people,” Mr. Tripenfeldas said. “If you talk to the universities, very few kids enrolled in their math education or
02 news oct. 25, 2017
The scarecrow
advances
Band heads into Semistate with show titled, “The Return of the Scarecrow” Story by Alyssa Bass Page Editor Late nights and long practices started to pay off last Saturday when Marching Band competed in their State Regionals. Band members expected to do well this year and will be moving on to Semi-state this Saturday. “It’s a toss-up with how this year has been going, but I’m hoping we do really well, but it could go either way,” Lauren Morris, sophomore, said. From spot checking troubled sections to focusing better, the band has been practicing hard to correct and fix things. This includes cleaning up any major timing issues. Judges tend to look at the timing and how clean the band is overall. “Focusing on practices and getting what needs to be done accomplished is important, because overall being more focused during rehearsals leads to better results in the end,” Lauren said. “I prepare
by making sure I know my music and making sure I’m prepared to do the best of my ability” In previous years band has normally gone to regionals. Chances of placing in the top ten are high because only 14 bands usually attend. “Regionals is less about advancing for us and more about showing how good we really are,” Riley McKeever, senior, said. “All the judges in the state will know how everyone places, so we might see them in future competitions.” Like every other competition, lots of practice and confidence go into each moment. “During practice, we focus mostly on sections of the show, but it’s important to dedicate some time to putting everything together.” Riley said. “I feel that working on these sections of the show will help us during competitions when it comes to scoring. Ironing out our program should help us make it to the top ten.” Many members of band are excited and look forward to the upcoming season. Riley believes that the show will be amazing, with practice and fixing the little things. “Our show design this year is phenomenal, and it could win state for us in the end. Right now we’re ea little behind where we should be, but if we can fix a few issues, we’ll have a very good chance of doing amazing,” Riley said. “Hopefully we can push to the end of the season and top anything this band has ever done before.”
RIGHT DIRECTION Practicing for an upcoming competition, Chloe Moffett, senior, Henry Sklar, sophomore, Jack Foster, senior (left to right) play with the drum line in movement two of their performance.
Sidenote
Tech Club
What: Tech Club Fall Season When: Oct. 15 - Dec. 3 Tech Club’s fall competition is approaching, the season lasts throughout fall and spring while they play against schools. Since this is their first season since the creation of the club, many members of Esports teams are excited. “I feel excited for it since we have waited such a long time for this club to get going, so I’m just really excited,” Braedin Moore, senior, said. Braedin hopes that all of their teams will be able to compete efficiently and win every game they compete in. “I think everyone is going to do very well on our teams,” Braedin said.
Project Bio What: Project Bio Recap When: October 6 With Project Bio’s fundraiser for Big Pine Key Fishing Lodge and Strike Zone coming to a close Oct. 6, Larry Hautzinger, science teacher is proud of the results. “We raised a total of $2,820, and a total of 54 students participated, by selling Butter Braids,” Mr. Hautzinger said. The fund will be split between the two companies that were hit by the past hurricanes. Big Pine Key Fishing Lodge was where Project Bio stayed on a trip to the Florida Keys over Spring Break. Strikezone is a company Project Bio used for scuba diving in the ocean. “I’m really happy with the outcome of this fundraiser, that is a lot of money to be able to send out to Florida. Each company will get half,” Mr. Hautzinger said. The Butter Braids will be available for pickup on Oct. 23, at 3:00 pm, in room N134.
Food Drive
New beginnings Story by Mercedez Williams
Photo by Kess Vaitkus
Speech and Debate novices begin competition season after much preparation
practice, students are prepared.” Working with the Speech and Debate coaches, PatriThis past quarter has been very eventful for the nov- cia Castro, sophomore, feels more confident now, than ices on the Speech and Debate team. This month has when she began competing. “When I first competed, it felt scary because I did not been filled with preparation and practice for the novice know what it would be like and how I was going to do, tournament. “The novice tournament allows students to prac- but I feel confident in my skills with being coached by tice a competition as a beginner in a low pressure, low people who have done Speech and Debate before and know what the judges look for.” Patricia stakes environment. The whole pursaid. pose of the event is to learn, our theme Active Association The Debate novice tournament was for this weekend’s practice is prog- Important dates for Speech on Oct. 7, and the Varsity and Novice ress,” Mr. Jordan Mayer, speech & de- and Debate division of Speech will compete on bate director and English teacher said. Oct. 21, Bishop Noll Nov. 4. The Speech and Debate coaches tournament - 8 am-3 pm “For the Oct. 7 debate novice tournaprepare the novices extensively so Oct. 24, Hayride, Elzinga ment, Munster had a really good run.” that they feel more confident when Farm Market - 4 pm - 6 pm Mr. Mayer said. “There was a tremencompeting. Oct. 28, Munster Debate dous showing of beginners. Numerous “Beginners are full of fear, exciteteam meet schools came, even from Indianapolis. ment and full of question.” Mr. Mayer Students walked away as champions said. “Whenever there is a new begin- Nov. 4, Munster Speech and we won many ribbons.” ning, students will have uncertainty. team meet Mayer believes that the awards are We prepare them so much that the students feel more confident after their first tourna- not exactly the goals of the Speech and Debate team. ment. They continue to get better throughout the sea- He believes that what students take away from every son. Students have been coming to rehearsal since victory, or defeat is more important than any trophy, August on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Students have ribbon or award. “The purpose is to not collect ribbons or awards, it is been working with their peers, in addition to working with adult coaches. So with all these opportunities for to learn” said Mayer.
Page Editor
What: Student Government Food Drive Where: MRT When: Oct. 31 - Nov. 12 This year, the annual Student Government food drive will support the Greater Hammond Food Pantry. This fundraiser does not profit Student Government. “Our efforts make a positive impact on not just the school but the community,” Tara Layous, Student Government President, said. Students are asked to consider donating canned foods and other non-perishables during the Student Government Annual Food Drive from Oct. 31-Nov. 12.
Corrections In Issue 3 of Crier, on page 3, in “Stage ready,” Kim Giannini’s quote should have read: “There are so many things that people are looking for between tech crew, the actors, Mr. Palasz himself, things that they need from us and there are things that somebody out of the three of us need to provide.” On page 12 in “Backtalk,” Ethan Roe’s quote should have read: “Caramel Latte. The caramel tastes smooth and sweet.” Crier regrets these errors.
infocus 03 oct. 25, 2017
Students, staff particpate in Inktober, challenge to draw everyday
With both International Artist day and Inktober happening this month, Crier discusses with artists and learns about their favorite mediums
Story by Mercedez Williams
Rachel Lyons, junior
Page editor
O
ctober starts the internet trend of Inktober, where one creates a picture for a theme everyday in ink. Students, such as Olivia Truett, senior, Rachel Lyons, junior and even Mrs. Elena Lopez, art teacher, participate in the activity. “One would most likely think I would always participate in Inktober because my favorite medium is Ink, however, my participation in it varies,” Rachael said, “I’ve known about Inktober since around 2013? Maybe 2012?” “Yet, I really do not like prompts when it comes to making work. Since Inktober is a prompt based challenge, I tend to start out strong and stray from the official topics more and more. Therefore, I like to say I technically participate in Inktober. I draw every day, with primarily ink, in October, but my sketches are only adhering to the theme a little under half the time.” Inktober appeals to all ages and different types of artists. “Basically (Inktober) is a daily challenge to draw in ink, so, when I do the daily prompts, I don’t draw it out in pencil first, I just go straight to ink.” Mrs. Lopez said, “Some people take a long time perfecting it. I did it once, but to me it is extremely limiting. The idea is to force yourself to draw every day.” Lopez said. Artists sometimes use ink to represent their favorite mediums, such as painting. “I manipulate ink to look like watercolor.” Olivia said. “I use ink and an alcohol dropper. And it makes the ink look like watercolor.” With October being the month of Inktober, and International Artist day, it is eventful for some artists. Inktober is a method of showing creativity among artists and the art community, and even to the art community of MHS.
drawing by Rachel Lyons photo by Kess Vaitkus
Q. What does art mean to you?
Q. What is your favorite type/ style of art?
A. “Visual art is a creative medium that adds visual, relevant(and sometimes emotional) representation to an idea. I think the significance of art pieces when they’re done is the most important part of the process for me. Art can improve communities, mental health, as well simply providing a brighter appeal to everyday life.”
A. “My favorite type of medium is in ink. In fact, it is a frequently known in the art room. One time, Mrs. Lopez asked me which medium I was using for an art piece and half the class responded with ‘ink’ knowing what I would do before I even put any medium down on my canvas.”
Elena Lopez, art teacher Q. What does art mean to you?
drawing by Elena Lopez courtesy of Elena Lopez
A. “To me, art is everything. It’s life, it’s the way that I express myself verbally, in writing and visually. It’s all encompassing, it all has to do with every step I take, every person I speak to. It’s all controlled by the fact that I am an artist. When I get dressed in the morning,
when I send an email to someone, I think about the composition. So I am entrusting in it.”
Q. What is your favorite type/ style of art? A. “My favorite used to be drawing, but now it’s painting.”
Olivia Truett, senior Q. What does art mean to A. “I like watercolor best.” you?
Whether you are just now learning about Inktober, or have participated the whole month, below are the remaining themes for Inktober
Oct. 25: Ship Oct. 29: United Oct. 26: Squeak Oct. 30: Found Oct. 27: Climb Oct. 31: Mask Oct. 28: Fall source: http://mrjakeparker.com/inktober
Illustrations by Gavin Hamilton
8636 4th St. Highland, IN 46322
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painting by Olivia Truett photo by Kess Vaitkus
A. “Art means everything to Q. Do you plan on me. My dad is a tattoo artist, pursuing art in your I grew up around art. I was future career(s)? always making art.” A. “Yeah, I plan on going Q. What is your favorite to Columbia or Ball State if their art program gets type of art? any better.”
LYNWOOD BOWL 2581 Glenwood Lansing Rd. Lynwood, IL 60411
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Bring in Ad and Get One Free Game
04 speakout oct. 25, 2017
No longer
safe
Column by Erianna Sims Page Editor
cartoon by Gavin Hamilton
NOT NEARLY ENOUGH Changes need to happen, but it seems like the state is not listening to it’s teachers. Who knows whether they are getting enough better than the teachers themselves?
Editorial
Lack of support Students: think about school. What do you think of? You might think of your friends, or your classes, but you most likely will think of your teachers. Teachers are an indispensable part of school. Without teachers, there is no school. Munster prides itself on being the best it can be: the Teachers are best students, the best edtoo important ucators, the best administo education to tration, all working toward the betterment of students. be as neglected But we cannot have any as they are. one of those things without the others. Administrators need to support teachers so that teachers can support students so students can perform well on the standardized test that matter so much to the state. Administration should not have to sacrifice teacher pay for other expenses, meaning the state must provide more money so schools can adequately pay their employees.
Our take
Letters to the Editor
Dear Crier Staff, I feel the articles “They is here” and “Respect They” were heavily biased, as my friend Ilija was interviewed and gave an opinion from a different side, but his interview was excluded. This is an opinion-based article and it only presented one side to a topic with multiple voiced opinions. I feel
Crier
Crier, Munster High School’s official student newspaper, may be reached at 8808 Columbia Ave, Munster, IN 46321, phone 219836-3200, Ext. 3443; Fax: 219-836-3202. Crier is published through the Honors Newspaper Advanced Writing and Editing classes and extra-curricular involvement. •The newspaper serves as a public forum and two-way communication for the school and community. •Crier is a source of information, entertainment, advertising and opinion for the student body, faculty, administration and community •Published material will stress objective reporting except on the editorial page where opinion writing will be featured. All published material will stress accuracy, integrity, honesty, responsibility, objectivity, fairness and independence. Corrections, when necessary, will be published on page 2. Opinions expressed in the newspaper do not necessarily reflect those of the School Town of Munster, faculty or administration. Letters to the editor and reader suggestions are welcomed, but should be limited to 250 words. All letters must be signed and should be given directly to any staff member or delivered to the
The state give teachers hoop after hoop to jump through, and they graciously take it because they love doing their job. But that love won’t last forever. Crier administered an anonymous survey to grasp teachers real opinions about their treatment. The fact that this had to be anonymous to protect teachers livelihoods demonstrates that teachers aren’t given a platform to speak their minds, even though they are the most important voice of all when it comes to educational reform. We, as a society, but more importantly, we in Munster, need to give our teachers more respect, and one way to do that is to pay them the amount the deserve. They need to be treated as a priority because they are so essential to the education system. Education is the great equalizer. If we cannot or do not support our teachers, we are losing the power that education has to make the world a better place.
as if my shared opinion, as voiced by Ilija, was neglected and I am quite frankly offended. This newspaper is supposed to be unbiased, and yet it ignored many people’s shared opinion. This imposes one views upon those with varying ones, which is unfair to the neglected majority. —Tim Kaufman, sophomore
Publications room, N155, one week prior to publication. Letters must not contain personal attacks against an individual. Editors reserve the right to edit for length, clarity, and grammatical errors. Crier will accept letters from anyone, provided that the content pertains to school or school issues. Feedback may also be submitted on Twitter @munstermedia. Mailed subscriptions cost $25 per year. Ad rates and policies are available to anyone upon request. Crier is published 13 times a school year.
“The shots kept going, and I thought he was going to kill everybody.” Never would you expect to hear such troubling words from a leader of a church. Joey Spann, minister of the Burnette Chapel Church of Christ in Davidson County, Tennessee, thought he was going to die after being shot in the chest, and losing one finger. Since our very first time watching the news, local or worldwide, we were exposed to the violence that occurred every single day. Murders, homicides, suicides, bombings and mass shootings are sadly just a few of the vicious crimes that take place. Though people constantly perish or live in fear of their lives due to these 24/7 outbreaks in crime, violence of any kind should never take place in or near the house of God. The South Carolina church shooting on June 17, 2015 is one that impacted many, and is the story of one of the biggest church shootings recorded. Sept. 24 in Davidson County, Tennessee, the Burnette Chapel Church of Christ was ending their prayer service, when gunshots were heard from outside of the church building. One life was taken, and seven other innocent people suffered injuries. This church and others are now making plans to have some source of security due to violence in religious buildings, and the targeting of people based on their religious preference growing more and more prevalent. Violence will take centuries to demolish, but its existence within religious buildings is harmful because these were once safe havens. Churches have kept their doors open to the public in times of need. Unfortunately, these cruel events are happening more often, causing churches to join the ever-growing list of places to feel unsafe at when attending.
Dear Crier Staff, Ian’s feature article “They is here” was excellent! Good interviews with August and Kayla. This bold piece of awareness should be available to students and adults! Congratulations! —Dr. Faith Paich, Illinois school system educator and administrator, retired
Visual Chief Gavin Hamilton People Editor Carey Scott Page Editors Alyssa Bass, Alex Kojich, Erianna Sims, Mercedez Williams Social Media Editor Melanie Powers Business Manager Micala Boyd Head Photographer Kess Vaitkus
The Staff
Chief Photographer Easan Venkat
Editor-in-Chief Ian S. Brundige Managing Editor Mimi Brody
Photographers Moira Glowacki, Szymanski, Robert Young
Section Chief Joseph Bermudez
Adviser Ms. Sarah-Anne Lanman
Lauren
Kozy,
Megan
spotlight 05 oct. 25, 2017
Falling into
fall break Reviews by Ian S. Brundige, Gavin Hamilton, Carey Scott, Alyssa Bass Editor-in-Chief, Visual Chief, People Editor, Page Editor Photos by: Kess Vaitkus and Megan Szymanski
Thursday
Start your fall break off right with a trip to a pumpkin patch. Finish off the night by doing a fun pumpkin DIY or curl up and watch a Halloween classic.
Visit a Pumpkin Patch
Like County Line Orchard, or another pumpkin patch, can really make or break your fall experience. I go every year and it is guaranteed to put me in the fall spirit. Going home with a pumpkin or two is a necessary start to a number of creative fall crafts.
County Line Orchard
ounting down the hours until C fall break, but still don’t have a schedule to fill the next four days
(other than laying in bed). The Crier staff has your Fall guide to...
Now that you have your pumpkin get to carving for your personal movie night
Pumpkin phone holder NEED: One mini pumpkin and a phone to hold in it, that’s it Step 1: Mark size of phone on pumpkin and height that you want pumpkin to sit Step 2: Carve a flat surface out of the pumpkin at the angle you want you phone to sit at
‘Hocus Pocus’
From some of the great one-liners to the stereotypical 90’s bullies, Jay and Ernie, “Hocus Pocus” is a classic that most have seen. It’s a light-hearted movie with some of the best scenes from the Sanderson Sisters, witches who suck the life out of children to stay young and pretty. Overall, “Hocus Pocus” is a great movie that you could watch with your family and friends that would get you into the Halloween spirit.
What is a movie without a snack? The quality of the movie will make up for the lack in flavor of these Mocha M&M’s.
Mocha M&M’s Although they are not technically a fall special, these M&Ms are sure to help you get ready for a season full of coffee and pumpkin spice. I went into this expecting a strong coffee flavor, as seen in the Oreos (under Sunday); However, the product seemed to fall on the other end of the spectrum, not tasting much like coffee. The taste of chocolate overpowered the candy, but when you could taste coffee, you wish you‘d bought normal M&M’s.
Friday
‘Stranger Things’
Pumpkin Spice Latte
At first I didn’t like this show, but the further I watched the series the more I liked it. There are only eight episodes in this Netflix original series. On Friday, season two of this thrilling show comes out. This is a show that you can and should fit into a single day of binge watching.
Thrift Store
One of the best parts of fall is the clothing, warm sweaters and comfy scarves. One of the best places to find fall clothing is a thrift store, where there’s always a variety of unique clothing pieces at an affordable price. Thrift stores are also a great place to find costumes.
As someone who has never had anything pumpkin spice, I was finally ready to try a pumpkin spice latte this fall. I was not expecting much, but was happily surprised by the drink. The latte was good, but compared to other drinks at Starbucks, it was not too much to get excited over. Will I be sad when I can no longer get a pumpkin spice latte at Starbucks? Not really.
The top three are
Recently Google released a list anticipating the most popular costumes of the year.
Watch
Today is a prep for Sunday, watch a movie that is not scary and build up to the horrific fall break finale Don’t worry about flinging your snack, the movie has no jump scares
‘The Babadook’
This thriller starts with a boy who still believes in the monsters lurking in his home. He starts making weapons and his mother thinks he’s crazy. The beginning was slow as they waited an hour to show the Babadook. It wasn’t too scary, there weren’t any jump scares, but there was building suspense or times you were frustrated with some of the characters. It wasn’t the best movie I’ve seen, but it is a movie I would watch again.
Sunday
Essential items are
Wonderwoman 1 Red and gold bodysuit Harley Quinn 2 Duo-toned wig Clown 3 Face paint
Get the Halloween Costume
Bag o’ Bones Cheetos
As a fan of cheetos, I was quick to grab these off the shelve. I was excited to see how cheetos would taste in white cheddar. Unfortunately, the excitement wore off when I realized that they tasted identical to original cheetos. In my opinion, they were good, but there is no real reason to purchase these over normal cheeto puffs besides the “skeleton shapes” that the puffs came in.
Use today to unwind before school but don’t hold back on the fall traditions. It’s your last day of freedom before Halloween on Tuesday
Chill at a Coffee Shop
Pumpkin toilet paper holder
For whatever reason, fall seems to be prime time for interesting seasonal drinks. Places like Grindhouse in Griffith, and Sip Coffee House in Highland are perfect places to lounge around with a book to read, or go with some friends to talk to and grab a nice warm drink like a pumpkin spice latte... again.
The pumpkin is the perfect canvas to carve anything. Yet every year pumpkins are left to rot with basic smiley faces cut in them. Luckily they can be turned into more useful things.
‘American Horror Story: Cult’
NEED: Large pumpkin, dowel rod, a roll of toilet paper Step 1: Cut a large rectangle out of the back of the pumpkin, large enough to fit toilet paper through Step 2: Determine where holes for dowel rod need to be Step 3: Place dowel rod through holes with toilet paper Step 4: Enjoy your seasonal bathroom decoration
“American Horror Story: Cult” drew me in with the portrayal of all the current events. The first scene opens with a shot of two different households watching the 2016 election turn out. One of them is happy how about Donald Trump getting elected, while the other families are angry and scared. It is a representation of how people really felt when Trump got elected with a dark and twisted spin.
Dunkin Donuts Mocha Oreos
Although these released earlier this year, coffee is a big theme in fall. The mocha Oreo ended up tasting close to a normal Oreo, with a coffee aftertaste. As is tradition with Oreos, I also got milk to dip them in. This made the mocha less strong and the cookie overall better. I was pleasantly surprised that these were pretty good.
Johanna K. Manous, DDS 9305 Calumet Ave., Suite D1 Munster, IN 46321
Children and New Patients are Welcome!
Enjoy basic fall staples like chunky knit sweaters, pumpkin spice lattes and a spooky Netflix original series
Saturday
200 S County Line Road, Hobart IN 8 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon-Sun until Oct. 29
what to eat, what to watch, where to go and what to do
219-836-2041 Fax: 219-836-2410 Email: manousdds@gmail.com Website: manousdds.com
This is a ridiculous DIY you can put in your bathroom to remind of Halloween for the rest of the season
BUY A YEARBOOK and SAVE $20! Get your yearbook for $60!
http://yearbookordercenter.com/ using code 3357 Quickly! Offer ends December 31
06 sports oct. 25, 2017
Now or never
Scoreboard Girls’ Basketball
Hockey hosts Culver B, looking to shake bad habits Story by Joe Bermudez Section Chief In their quest for a state championship, Hockey will host Culver High School B Team this Saturday at the Midwest Training and Ice Center in Dyer. “We’re more aggressive (than Culver B),” James Bugajski, senior, said. “Because of our size and the aggression and they are less experienced and a smaller team in general, we should win that game. However we can’t go into it thinking it’s an easy win. Even though we do have that size advantage on them, we still need to be careful on overlooking them.” The team plans to use their experience and chemistry as an advantage, according to Matt Armour, senior. “We have a lot of big guys and experience with that, along with 12 seniors,” Armour said. “That along with our good team chemistry has been a key factor to our pretty good start. We’ve been playing together since we were all freshman basically. Because we’re all good friends and our lines have basically been the same the past two years, we should have a lot of success.” Predicting success with the combination of experience and chemistry, Bugajski recognizes the importance of not overlooking any of their opponents in order to keep up their recent success.
To stand or not to stand Story by Alex Kojich Page Editor At the beginning of the 2016 NFL preseason, Colin Kaepernick, former San Francisco 49ers quarterback, began to sit on the sideline bench during the national anthem. After a preseason game against the Green Bay Packers on Aug. 26, 2016, he told the media that he sat because of the oppression that people of color endure. The situation deescalated, but recently resurfaced as the NFL season began. So far, an estimated 200 players have either knelt, sat, or waited in the entrance tunnel during the national anthem. President Donald Trump has been notably displeased with the acts of these players, at one point stating to “Get those sons of b*tches off the field.” President Trump’s remarks have sparked an uproar from consumers of
photo by Melanie Powers
PROTECT THE NET During last Thursday’s practice, Zac Kopp, junior, took position for the L.A Kings drill. The drill is based off of the Los Angeles Kings, a popular team in the NHL, where players take turns shooting on the goal. “Being a goalie is exciting,” Kopp said, “I’m really in the zone and I try my best to play my position.”
“A lot of times we’ll take a team for granted and not think they’re as good as they might be and they’ll come out and surprise us,” Bugajski said. “We go into a tournament and hear some stuff about how a team did last year and we think it’s going to be an easy win, but it’s not. For example, earlier this year we played a team and beat them, so we didn’t really think much of the second match up and it was a close game, but they ended up beating us. You can’t really judge how a team is based on prior records or match ups, you have to take every game as a totally different team.” Now that they are aware of the problem of underestimating their opponents, the team is making efforts to eliminate this to avoid any further unnecessary disadvantages so their advantages are not out-weighed, according to Bugajski. “It’s a hard thing to (get rid of), to get that idea that it’s an easy win out of your mind once it’s already there,” Bugajski said. “Everybody is aware of that problem we’ve been having, but when it comes down to game time and they’re up early, we just have to hope it’s not too late. That particular scenario we’ve been trying to avoid.”
Hit the ice Hockey practices every other Monday, every Wednesday with JV, and every Thursday Schedule below is Monday practice 8:20 p.m. team lines up, prepares to begin warm-ups, stretch center ice
8:30 p.m. warm-ups begin, laps around the ice, meet with coach after laps at center ice
8:50 p.m. sprints; squats while holding tires; flow and passing drills; run breakouts and power play drills
9:50 p.m. off-ice stretching, end of practice source: James Bugaiski, senior
What: Scrimmage against Merrillville When: Saturday at 11 A.M. Where: Home Girls’ Basketball begins their season this Saturday with their yearly scrimmage against Merrillville. The games gives the new players a chance to see the level of competition on the court and gives the seniors and coaches a chance to see how the new girls respond to that challenge, according to Taneigh Boyd, senior. While the scrimmage happens every year, this year the team trained differently focusing on stamina. “When you play during a game usually you feel gassed (exhausted) within the first three to four minutes of the quarter, so it’s better if you have a player whose body is conditioned to going up and down the court,” Boyd said. Going into her last season at Munster, Boyd has some goals of her own. “Last year I made second team all conference so my goal is to make first team all conference and hopefully (we) get past the second round of sectionals,” Boyd said.
Cheerleading What: State qualifiers When: Saturday Where: Greenfield High School On Saturday, Cheer will compete at Greenfield High School where they hope to qualify for the State competition. “I have high hopes that we will (qualify),” Nicole Tsoukalas, junior, said. “We have all been working extremely hard and putting in a lot of effort to qualify for State.” The team is coming fresh out of wins at competitions at Lake Central and Purdue, and attribute their recent successes to a rigorous practice schedule. “We all really push each other to do our best and put all our effort into practice to get better and look our best for competition. Our coach (Ms. Latoya Tyson), also pushes us a lot and there have been many people really pushing through their injuries,” Tsoukalas said.
Students share views on controversy of kneeling for national anthem media and NFL personnel alike. Tim Kaufman, sophomore, has been very public with his displeasure towards those who protest the national anthem, but strongly disagrees with President Trump’s remarks. “I believe that what President Trump said was uncalled for,” Kaufman said. “I find it appalling. I mean, he has a right to his own opinion, but the way he worded it only made the issue worse.” Despite hoping to come to a consensus with his peers who disagree with him, Kaufman still stands whenever the time calls. “I choose to stand,” Kaufman said. “I support my country, and I always will. People have lost their lives for this country. The least we can do is support them.” Not every student has picked a side, however. Krishna Lakshmanamurthy, sophomore, says that both sides have compelling arguments.
“I can see both sides,” Lakshmanamurthy said. “When people are injured, they kneel, so it’s kind of symbolic. People stand to respect the country, and the rights they have. I stand because I appreciate the rights I get as an American. But I truly do feel for those who don’t.” In September, Zoe Short, junior, attended an HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) football classic at Soldier Field between Clark Atlanta University and Grambling State University. A handful of players from both teams knelt during the national anthem, in which Short recorded. Short strongly supports Kaepernick, and stands by his way of protest and belief in what he’s doing. “Colin has given up his job for this,” Short said. “He’s taking it seriously, he’s not disrespecting anyone intentionally but he is trying to bring awareness to a very important issue.”
photo by Kess Vaitkus
WAVING IN THE WIND The flag in front of the school billows in the wind.
sports 07 oct. 25, 2017
Keeping the pace
which by Dylan Bullock, senior. “I really got to give it to the linemen,” Bullock said. “I wouldn’t be able to do anything if they weren’t doing their job.” This year’s linemen have been able to hold back their assignment, Story by Alex Koijch but not without some error. So far, Page Editor the team has fumbled the ball 20 With Sectionals underway, Foot- times, losing the ball to the opponent ball trains to defend their home on 14 occasions. Lineman Andrew Rapata, senior, turf against Michigan City in their first round this Friday. The team’s believes the turnovers had a major record is 4-5, most recently pick- factor in the team’s placing. “If turnovers ing up a 28-21 victoweren’t as big of ry at Kankakee Val- Know the score a factor in our ley Oct. 13. “This year’s Team’s average in particular games, I think our record would been kind of up stats going into Sectionals be exponentialand down for 4.8yards per rush attempt ly better,” Rapata the team,” An13.2 yards per reception said. “Penalties, drew Synko, too. Penalties kill s o p h o m o r e , 0.8 sacks per game drives, I mean said. 46 tackles per game there aren’t a lot of Synko, who plays we can call plays corner- 3.4 touchdowns per game on third (down)and back, leads the 20 (yards to go).” team with two intercep- source: Coach Matt Kalwasinski, The team has tions, picking up both of social studies teacher been able to break them in the win against away from opponent’s defense, East Chicago Sept. 1. “Both picks have come off of great which Rapata credits to the size of communication among the defen- the offensive line. “We have incredible team speed, sive captains,” Synko said. “They weren’t long gains, but they gave us and nobody can match up with our offensive line, we are just too big and the ball.” The team has scored a total of 19 strong for teams to match up with us rushing touchdowns thus far, six of up front,” Rapata said.
Football hosts Michigan City Friday, focus on improving fundamentals for playoffs
photo by Kess Vaitkus
MAKE A MOVE In the 28-21 win over Kankakee Valley, Raheem Butler, senior (38), takes advantage of a well-performed block against the defense and rushes foreword in an attempt to reach the end zone for a touchdown. “I was just trying to find my way out of the backfield, trying to get more yards,” Butler said.
All
Boys’ Cross Country
wrapped
up
October brings end of fall sports’ seasons Story by Joseph Bermudez, Ian Brundige, Gavin Hamilton, Mercedez Williams Section Chief, Editor-in-Chief, Visual Chief, Page Editor
Girls’ Soccer
Girls’ Cross Country
After the Regional competition Oct. 14, the Boys’ Cross Country season came to an end. Through the highlights of the season, the team ran into some unfortunate obstacles, according to Nick Szala, senior. “Injuries were one of the biggest problems we had this season,” Szala said. “We’ve just hung on (during the season) until everyone on the team who were hurt got healthy again, but it’s a bit too late for us.” Despite Saturday being his final race, Szala does not feel remorse as he has high hopes for the team in the years to come. “I’m really going to miss the team, but I’m confident in how I’m leaving them,” Szala said. “I showed them how they should be working in practice and how to act when they are seniors and in charge. I feel like us as seniors have carried that out.”
Despite the Girls’ Cross Country season ending in at Semi-state, Elise Garcia, senior, will recall that race as the most memorable for her. “I knew it would be my last opportunity to run with my teammates, who I’ve been able to grow extremely close to over my last three years,” Garcia said. “I also knew it would be my last chance to experience that type of atmosphere with Coach (Richard) Sluder, (social studies teacher), who has been a mentor to me and somebody that I could look to for advice and a good laugh.” As a senior, Garcia is confident the team will continue to perform well next season. “The girls have all the tools to excel and do even better than how we’re leaving them,” Garcia said. “They always have been willing to try new training strategies and they’re also comfortable speaking up as far as what they think is the best route to achieve a strong performance.”
Finished: 7th at Regionals
Finished: Record 10th at Semi-state
Boys’ Tennis
Volleyball
Girls’ Soccer’s post-season run ended with a 2-1 loss to nationally ranked Penn High School in the final round of Regionals. The team is proud to be able go as deep in the postseason as they did. “The soccer season actually went really well, everyone saw us as the underdog,” Jaycee Helmer, senior, said. “No one thought we would go that far this year because we lost eight or seven starters, so in the beginning everyone thought of us as kind of a joke.” Helmer believes the team put up a good fight in their last game against Penn, even though they could not pull out a win. “Our mindset was, if we push ourselves the hardest we can, then we can compete with (Penn), and we did,” Helmer said. “At halftime the game was 1-1, I was so proud of all my teammates. They had the mindset that they really wanted it, and they gave it their all.”
The Boys’ Tennis season ended after a loss to at Semi-state on Oct. 7 to Carmel, the top team in the state. The team was young, losing over half of their varsity team from last year. “Overall, I think we had a really successful year, especially considering last year we lost seven out of our ten varsity players,” Frank Wolf, junior, said. “With only three returners, we had a really young team; a lot of them did not have varsity experience. Before the season we were a little nervous, but the only losses we really had were to top ten teams.” This year, the team won both Regionals and Semi-state. The team was not expecting to do as well as they did due to having a young team. “Especially with such a young team we weren’t expecting that, so we were happy to do that,” Wolf said. “We also beat the number eight team in the state (Brownsburg), which was a big one for us.”
After receiving a new coach and coaching staff, Volleyball finished their season 10-8. Their success of the past season is due to many factors, especially following their values. “Our values are that everyone has a role, your skills are not defined by your grade, that both varsity and junior varsity are all in the same program, and that we are playing for each other,” Hazel Wolf, sophomore, said. “We have built up a lot of strength. Also, one of our players, Maddie Horin, (junior,) was the captain of the junior Olympic team,” Laila Wallace, sophomore, said. Although they had a successful season, the team had a share of difficulties and has plans to overcome them together. “At first we had trouble working as a team, we worked as individuals, but in the next season we will work on our teamwork skills,” Wolf said.
Finished: 14-3-2
Finished: 16-5
Finished: 10-8
08 infocus oct. 25, 2017
Up in arms Students discuss their opinions on gun laws and gun control Story by Alyssa Bass Page editor Every day on the news, reporters talk about shootings in Chicago, but then there are times where they report about the devastating mass shootings like San Bernardino, Columbine, Sandy Hook Elementary, Virginia Tech and Pulse Nightclub. People were shaken and scared when just last year a mass shooting unraveled at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, Florida, killing 49 people. Only on the night of Oct. 1, people all across the U.S. woke up to see that the deadliest mass shooting in all of U S. history took place. Fifty-eight people were killed and over 480 people were injured in Las Vegas, Nevada at the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival. “People are dying, and I don’t feel like it’s okay for people who are mentally insane to have access to guns,” Zoe O’Shaughnessy, sophomore, said. “The founding fathers put the Second Amendment in because England was taking away their guns, but I think they would understand with all the mass shootings that we should take away the guns.” All these issues bring up the controversial talk about gun control and gun laws. On one side, there are people who agree that second amendment rights should not be something someone can limit or change. “I believe completely in the second amendment, I think it was established for the case that a tyrannical government or a usurpation type government can form out of a democracy,” Joey Yoniles, senior, said. “I think that’s fundamentally what people who are anti-gun control believe.” Other people believe that the buying and selling of guns should be regulated by the government, and stricter
29 other states recognize Indiana’s concealed carry permit
gun laws should be put into place. “I agree with gun control. I think guns should not be in people’s hands and should be controlled by the government more,” Zoe said. Mass shootings are defined as a single shooting event which kills and/or injures four or more people, including the shooter(s). In 2015 there were 372 mass shootings in the U.S. alone, wounding 1,870 people and killing over 470 others. This year, the total number of shooting incidents are about 48,025, killing over 12,000 people and injuring 24,453 more. 563 of which were children who were killed or injured and over 2,000 teens have been killed or injured according to the Gun Violence Archive (GVA). GVA is a non-profit organization formed in 2013 to provide information about gun related violence to the public. “I believe in stricter regulations, as in licensing or better restrictions on sales, but you can’t take away guns,” Benjamin Shelton, senior, said. “The people shall have a right to bear arms, for the defense of themselves and the state,” reads Article 1 Section 32 of Indiana’s Constitution. Indiana’s gun laws say you do not have to have a permit, registration of firearms, licensing of owners, or a permit to carry to purchase rifles and shotguns. This applies to hand g u n s
31.7% 68.3%
Yes
BACKTALK NW Indiana has submitted a bid to be the new Amazon headquarters. If you could have any business moved locally what would it be?
ms or of firear ition ammun
From what you hear on the news, mental illness is a component of these shooters. The Columbine and Sandy Hook shooters were diagnosed with mental illnesses days after they committed these acts of violence. “My views towards gun control hasn’t changed, (Las Vegas) more opened my eyes to the issue in a sense that I see how people react to it rather than the gun problem itself,” Joey said. “We may have more of a mental health problem than a gun problem.” President Donald Trump described the Las Vegas shooting as an act of pure evil and then went on to urge Americans to pray for a day where evil is banished. “The biggest issue to address was the loss and the tragedy, but I believe the President should defend our rights,” Benjamin said. Some news organizations said that they should not talk about gun laws so close to the shooting and that we should just grieve about all the terrible things that are going on. “The president needs to take into consideration everybody and not just the people who want to keep the Second Amendment,” Zoe said. “It’s everybody being affected not just a group of people.”
State limitations Laws for owning guns in the state of Indiana; students respond to survey Yes
“I would like an Ikea to open up here because I like to walk though Ikea with my family it’s a great time.”
Genevieve Mrvan, freshman
Noel Fary, sophomore
“Bass Pro Shop. There isn’t one in Munster. It’s not close enough.”
“Probably Sephora because they have really good products and its a long way to go if you need something and I need a lot of stuff,”
Cayleb Medoza, freshman
Maddie Kozy, sophomore
No
Do you think the USA should have 70.3% stricter gun laws?
43.1% 56.9%
29.7%
Do you think having stricter gun laws would reduce shootings?
15.3%
Do you think a person with a felony should be able to buy a gun?
sources: nraila.org
“Chacha Matcha, because it’s a very cool and chill cafe. Us high schoolers need more of them to hang out in.”
No
too, except you must have a permit to carry a concealed handgun.
wful It is unla rson pe for any r give o to sell to any a firearm o has wh person nvicted been co , or is ny of a felo abuser u a dr g r the or unde rug, e of a d c n e u fl in lcohol Indiana’s r is an a e o in a stat ith user or laws w b a is ns tion, or hand gu ply intoxica nt f o t e omp e ap c ’t in n Local s y e ll o a d ent ment t have governm gulate uns tha g , o n t io re it t mmun may no ship, a fixed a cartridge er n w o it e th he perm n, which t rmanently No state for the ssessio o p d e r ir o pe u r, fe fle, is req case is un. le, trans n n of a ri a io s s s e to the g s s n d o u ti e po g h d ta r c n a o a att or h transp hotgun, s
Have your views towards gun control changed at all due to the recent mass shooting in Las Vegas?
84.7%
Illustration by Gavin Hamilton sources: Crier survey of 515 students on Google Forms from Oct 16-18
“Brandy Melville because they have really cute clothes that are for decent prices and I would like it to be more accessible,”
“I would have a Forever 21 move by me so when I need clothes I could just drive a couple minutes away.”
“Chik-Fil-A because it’s too far right now and they need to be open on Sundays and eat more chicken,”
“I would like Potbelly’s headquarters to be right next to my house. so I could get Potbelly’s whenever I want.”
Chyan Rangel, junior
Deven Burse, junior
Gabie Ingoglia, senior
George Babus, senior