December 2014

the

Precedent

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DECEMBER 2014 || VOL. VIII ISSUE IV

PERRY HIGH SCHOOL || GILBERT, AZ

Arizona’s new standardized tests

New standardized tests will count for a grade, not graduation

By Molly Ogden the precedent

photo by Damien Tippett

Junior Justin Vredevoogd and sophomore Jaron Barnes work on a project in their honors brief calculus class. With the exception of seniors, all students will take the AzMERIT math test this spring.

AP Java students promote Hour Of Code event

By Kacee Perry the precedent

In this new day and age, computers are widely used, making computer science an inevitable necessity for society. From last year, a world-wide event called the Hour of Code brought 15 million students to try computer science.

Now, it is Perry’s turn to join the event.

Students Maurice Ajlun and Tanner Lisonbee are part of Perry’s Computer Programmers United Club (CPU)/ Java Club, who came into classes during conference, in order to promote the hour Lisonbee of code. These CPU members then later, held a session after school on Dec. 11-12 from 2:30-4:30 in room F407, to teach students basic coding information.

Ajlun and Lisonbee gave a brief preview of their presentation, describing the overall dynamics of the hour of code.

“A lot of it is about trying to get people into the field of computer science,” Ajlun stated. “Of math and science students, only two percent of those are computer builders, but by 2020 60 percent of math based jobs are in use computer science.”

Lisonbee continued with, “So, in other words, there’s going to be so many jobs and only one person to fill all of those jobs. So that’s why we’re here encouraging people to come into this kind of field because it is a currently growing field right now...Computer science is reaching out to many, many different fields and is becoming a big part of how our society works. So that’s why with people in other fields we need them to know at least the basics of computer science.”

AP Computer Science teacher, Lindsey Tillman described the after school function saying, “There’s going to be a number of different languages offered to each team member.” She continued, “We are going to have a guest speaker who is going to give a little information about him, his job, the profession, what he is currently developing, and then is going to stay after and kind of answer any questions or if people are interested, pick his brain about what he does.”

Those interested will enter the site Code.org, in which students will be able to create an assortment of codes that include apps, websites, and online games.

Lisonbee commented on the desire of the event explaining, “We’re trying to show people, it’s not hard and anyone could do it.

After nearly a year of uncertainty, students and teachers across the state now have some idea of what is in store for standardized testing in 2014-15. Beginning in March, new state testing known as AzMERIT will make its way into math and English classes across Arizona.

The new test is called the Arizona’s Measurement of Educational Readiness to Inform Teaching – or AzMERIT. The exams will be designed after the state’s version of Common Core Standards known as the Arizona Career and College Readiness Standards.

According to the state department of education, testing may begin in March for freshmen, sophomores and juniors; seniors will not take the exams. Testing could drag out all the way through late April, according to the state’s schedule, and exams will evaluate student’s understanding of Arizona standards of education.

“The test is going to be extremely harder than the AIMS,” math department chair Tom Rothery said, “because it is going to be open-ended and not multiple

choice. But I believe that we have prepared for it through practice tests.”

A sample algebra 1 test question provided by the Arizona Department of Education states “Given k(x) = 2x2– 23x – 12, one factor of k(x) is (x – 12). What is the other factor, and what is the zero determined by the factor?”

The practice test rationale says the other factor is (2x+1), and the zero is -.5.

When the state implemented the AIMS exams in 1998, the tests in English and math were piloted (they did not count against the students and were very difficult to pass) before becoming a requirement to graduate in 2006.

The AzMERIT exams, however, will be counted differently than the AIMS, principal Dan Serrano said.

“Eventually, [the tests] will be a part of your grade,” he said. The tests will count for credit in the student’s math and English class.

If a student fails the AzMERIT but passes their class, they receive credit for the class and do not have to re-test; but if a student fails a class, they must retake the test when they retake the class, even if they passed the exam the first time.

Unlike AIMS, the ADE testing schedule states that all tests will be timed, which might put more pressure on students.

To view sample exams, go to our website at phsprecedent.com.

Two homeschooled students adjust to society of high school

By Amanda Lee the precedent

Waxed floors and rambunctious teenagers are commonplace for those attending public school, but homeschooled students are more comfortable at a kitchen table.

Perrin Ehler, counselor for the sophomore class, says “there are only a handful of students attending Perry who have been homeschooled.”

After eight years of homeschool, sophomore Breeyanne Wade began attending public school. Her parents made the decision for her.

Ehler says there are two main reasons a parent will homeschool their children.

“Usually, they don’t like the environment they see for their children [in public school] and/ or they want a small learning environment,” she says.

However, sophomore Randi Chatelain made the decision herself.

“I was having a rough time in sixth grade because I was getting bullied,” Chatelain says, so she chose to be homeschooled.

Wade finds homeschool more distracting than a public classroom.

“The biggest challenge was focus,” she says. “I was at home and had a

photo by Natalie Eberhard

Sophomore Randi Chatelain spends her lunch sitting with friends in the breezeway between the C and F buildings.

lot of distractions.”

Although Wade enjoyed being so close to her siblings, she expresses some restraints of home school. “I missed out a little socially,” she

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says.

“I didn’t have many friends while doing homeschool,” Chatelain agreed. “There weren’t

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2|| news NEWS BRIEFS

CUSD named number one district in state of Ariz.

By Mia Irvin, Natalie Eberhard and Casey Perry the precedent

Recently, the Chandler School District received the honor of being named the “Best School District in Arizona” by the Niche organization.

The Niche rating focusses on the academics, administration, educational outcomes, extracurriculars, food, health and safety, resources, and facilities, student culture and diversity and teachers in one particular district.

Chandler was founded more than a century ago, with high expectations, and those expectations have been maintained and heightened as the years have progressed. From the campuses of the elementary schools, to the halls of high school, excellence is expected and achieved on a daily basis.

This honor was not only attainable through the 40,000 students that attend the school here in Chandler, but also the administrators, teachers, and volunteers that help lift Chandler up over the other 250 other districts in Arizona.

NHS holiday drive

Although most students are accustomed to receiving gifts every year during the holidays, many families are less fortunate than this.

Even for families who celebrate other holidays at this season, there are several who cannot afford gifts or necessities for family members.

The National Honor Society noticed this and began their tradition to hold a toy drive every year. Throughout the holiday season, the toy drive collects toys and gift cards for those in need.

The NHS conducted their toy drive this year, ending on November 11th, just as in years past. Starting in November, students and staff were encouraged to bring in toys and gift cards to drop them off in the bins of their first hour.

“We’re collecting toys that are getting sent to kids that aren’t getting anything for Christmas,” NHS President Mason Welch.

A huge thank you to all those who donated to the drive. Their gifts are greatly appreciated and the NHS looks forward to doing it again next year.

Culinary & fashion fund raiser

Culinary Arts teacher, Angela Stutz, along with her students, baked over 50 pies for teachers, faculty members, students, and their families. The options included: apple, pumpkin, chocolate, and banana cream pie.

The price per pie was $8, in which Culinary made $370.

Stutz gave a brief reflection of pie sales, commenting, “I am not personally making the pies and I am relying on my students to make the most amazing pies for teachers, students, administrators and members of the governing board.

Having worked at The Phoenician Resort for 10 years, it was embedded in me to give the best quality food possible and always have impeccable customer service.”

In addition to the pie sales, the Fashion Club students are designing and selling aprons.

Fashion Club student, Nalani Riddle added, “The money we make will go towards our fashion club and this will help us continue to expand our education.”

With that, Fashion Club and Culinary Club have and are working in order to expand their knowledge and will continue with using their skills for many more events to come.

december || 2014

the precedent || phsprecedent.com TEACHER FEATURE

History teacher challenges students and himself

By Anglilee Nibblett the precedent

Just over 13 hours of fierce activity, including running, biking, and swimming, is more than overwhelming to anyone attempting it. Such a challenge proved to be no big deal to American/Arizona history teacher Jeff Gurecki as he finished the Ironman triathlon with a time of 13:32:07. He talks about his experience saying, “The Iron Man taught me what I can do.”

About a year and a half ago, Gurecki started his training for the triathlon totaling 15 hours a week.

In the fall of 2013, he finished an Olympic, about of quarter of the Ironman distance, and soon moved on to completing a half. Gurecki knew it was all worth it when he decided, “Any endeavor is going to take time and going to take hard work.”

Looking ahead to the future, he was confident he was ready, but the most rigorous training didn’t start until right before the school year, where some swimming sessions reached 4000 meters and even hitting a few 100-mile bike rides. “I know what it takes to be successful really at any sport,” Gurecki states about his discipline to face the 45 mph headwinds, the windiest day on record for the Ironman Arizona during the bike.

Gurecki wasn’t the only one in need of support during the long hours of competing, Jenny Gurecki had her own dedication tested while she stayed at home with the couple’s 15-month-old twins and four-year-old daughter. The long hours of training were taxing on the family, but it all paid off when Jenny saw her husband cross the finish line after spending the entire day in support.

Not only has the Ironman

changed his own life, but it has also come into play with his coaching style. After training 15 hours a week with extensive workouts, Gurecki doesn’t take notice to his players’ complaints anymore and continues to push his team to their limits, just as he has. Conditioning for a short time hasn’t begun to compare to the intense training he remembers. “It’s falling on deaf ears,” he says.

As next year’s head girls’ crosscountry coach, Gurecki intends to use his time wisely for other competitions as well as his team’s own endeavors. “The coaching and competing, they always go hand in hand,” he says. Gurecki’s five hour triathlon run will be put to good use for motivation as he continues to workout with the group.

Inspiring others as well as family and friends, Gurecki will serve as a model for hopefuls pursuing any efforts, athletic or otherwise.

He aspires to compete in other triathlons saying, “It’s just one foot in front of the other, you know you’re almost done, so you just have to keep going.”

Central Kitchen standards to be increasingly more nutritious

By Michelle Bolden the precedent

Mention “school food” and most people probably think of the scary lunch lady dumping a scoop of slop on an innocent child’s tray.

The Chandler Unified School District has made it a goal to change that stereotype. The CUSD Central Kitchen in responsible for all of the food and beverage items served at the 49 Chandler schools.

According to spokesperson Wesley Delbridge, Central Kitchen was voted one of the top five nutrition departments in the nation, receiving perfect scores in health inspections and customer service, and has even been recognized

by First Lady Michelle Obama.

Moreover, out of their 300 staff

HOMESCHOOL from page 1

many activities – the ones they did have were for little kids.”

“The biggest challenge for [homeschooled students] is social because Perry is a large school and it can be overwhelming,” Ehler says.

“The size and the combination of the work can be challenging.”

Wade’s mother made the effort to get her children involved. “She went out of her way to put us in homeschool groups with other homeschooled students. It’s like school for homeschooled kids,” Wade says.

Her freshman year of high school - a landmark year for any teen - would double as her first year of public school.

Despite being social with other homeschooled friends, attending public school was a difficult transition for her at first.

members, four are certified dietitians, which is the best the state.

Delbridge has also stated that Central Kitchen was the first in the country to create a school nutrition app (CUSD Food) which provides nutrition and allergen information, lunch money tracking, and other school food news.

“Our thought is to... revolutionize school nutrition,” he said. The app also provides an electronic school menu to replace printed menus. This along with environmentally sound packaging are steps they are taking to become more eco-friendly.

Central Kitchen is a non-profit organization, serving over 5 million meals a year for the same price it takes to prepare them. Even select

“The amount of people was difficult,” she says. “I’m not very social. I was a little surprised at the way some kids act at school. It’s ridiculous.”

Ehler believes a homeschooled student can be as academically successful as one who attends public school. “Just because a student was homeschooled doesn’t mean that they don’t have the same strengths as a student who has gone to public school,” Ehler says.

Wade made no hesitation in answering “high school”. “I was young,” she reflects. “I didn’t know what I was missing!”

“There are different people everyday in all your classes,” she says. “I prefer [public] school because I have the ability to talk to people everyday.”

Chatelain made the decision to return to public school after a year and a half. “I missed all my friends and I needed to face teachers again.

It’s been good,” she says.

photo by Ethan Barnes Before competing in the Ironman and coaching cross country, Jeff Gurecki teaches American/Arizona History. (above) Gurecki completed the fall 2013 Ironman in under 14 hours. (below) photo courtesy of Jeff Gurecki

vendors like Church’s Chicken and Chick-Fil-A are not big money makers for the program. They are, however, local Chandler franchises.

“We’re all about supporting the local economy,” Delbridge said, adding, “[They’re] just there to kind of improve the lunch environment.”

The food has met nutritional guidelines and therefore, Central Kitchen has had no problem giving the businesses exposure thus far.

Delbridge However, the Smart Snacks in Schools guidelines have been released, which means slight change for CUSD’s menu.

“You’re going to see over this time this year a transition from the traditional Chik-Fil-A [and] Church’s that you’ve always seen into a healthier product,” Delbridge

said. This act calls for food to be replaced with more nutritional options, but rather than getting rid of all the food that doesn’t meet the new standards in one clean swipe, Central Kitchen is opting to slowly transform the menu.

This won’t be a difficult process, seeing as the menu is already fairly healthy. The balancing act of creating foods that are satisfactory for the students and nutritionally up to par is nothing new for Central Kitchen.

“All the studies have show that...a student who is eating well and has the nutrition that they need will perform better on their tests, will feel better with their moods, have less behavior problems, have less attendance problems, less instances of them getting sick,” Delbridge reasoned. It’s all about eating healthier to in turn, do better.

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december || 2014

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Teachers and 101.5 play basketball to fundraise in the spirit of giving

By August Bowers and Sarah Campbell the precedent

In the season of giving, Student Government (StuGo) and deejays from Live 101.5 FM teamed up for the second annual “Give Back Game” that took place on December 8.

The basketball game selects a team of deejays that play against a team of Perry staff members. Live 101.5 created the fund raiser for local high schools, in which 100 percent of the proceeds go directly towards helping the school and its students.

Last winter was the first time PHS participated in the event, raising over $370 from students who came to watch the teachers beat the deejays in a close game.

A substantial about of money was raised in this years game, though it was unfortunately less than the previous year.

StuGo adviser Brandon Keeling is pleased the game has become an annual event and was hoping for a larger outcome in this year’s ticket sales.

“We’re really hoping to have a much larger turnout for this game,” he said. “101.5 is coming out again; they’ll be having deejays playing music during the game and stuff too which is always fun.”

The deejays from 101.5 came to PHS to compete in the basketball game and play music, which made for an exciting and enjoyable night for students and staff. Several staff members returned to compete in this year’s game, though they sadly lost to the 101.5 deejays with the final score of 71-53.

Several teachers participated, including Spanish teacher Adrian Gomez, who was one of the star players in last year’s game. This year, he made at least several 3-point shots that helped the Perry

photo by Ethan Barnes During the basketball game on December 8, teachers Anthony Chavez and Brian Butson fight to take the ball from a deejay on 101.5’s team.

The annual game held by StuGo raised over $200.

team score a substantial amount of points. Gomez also expected to raise more money than last years game and believed more students would attend.

“It’s fun and the on site deejay will be playing great music while the competition is going,” he said.

Principal Dan Serrano was pleased to have the event returning to Perry. “It’s for a good cause, so hopefully we do make a lot of money.” He also believes the game is not only enjoyable for the students, but for the staff as well. “I think it’s a good way for faculty to

get out there and have some fun,” he adds.

Gomez agrees and enjoyed playing with his colleagues. “I look forward to playing in the game because its a great way to get closer as a staff; competing together for one cause,” he said.

Honors class prepares for legal careers Student scholars recieve academic recognition through scholarships

By Valerie Burgess the precedent

It is easy to get lost in the daily monotony of high school, and when a class can find a way to extend beyond the classroom, the concepts of the class are genuinely treasured.

The ‘We the People’ class consists of students who wish to explore the ins and outs of the Constitution. Principal Dan Serrano sees the evolution of the class as positive growth.

“When we first opened eight years ago, that [class] was something...we didn’t cultivate, but it is being cultivated now,” he said.

“Now we have a teacher [that] is really into it and the students are into it.”

What makes this class unique is the competitions in mock trial throughout school year. Most recently, students competed at Gilbert High School on Dec. 6.

The competition included rounds of questions mocking a congressional hearing as well as the content of the Constitution. Many of these questions are prepared by the students, but most are asked unexpected follow-up questions by judges.

“There are six units, or six teams and they have a special emphasis or specialty about the Constitution and they prepare for three questions,” teacher Tana Berrelleza explains.

She continues, “They are four

take the PSAT. She states, “It’s the only way that you can get enrolled the precedent to battle for the National Merit During the scramble for scholarship.”

The finalists will be announced seniors to complete their college applications, students in January.

However, Career Center often simultaneously apply for scholarships to help them pay for specialist Pat Phillips explains that their education. Select seniors becoming a National Merit finalist across campus are being recognized is an honor in itself. ”There are

by National Merit Scholarship, many schools that will give them possibilities and Questbridge scholarship money because they are scholars finding ways to distinguish a National Merit finalist,” she says. themselves as valuable in the college ”They get to add it to their resume and that is a distinguished honor.” education world.

If O’Brien and Merrell advance, These students are seniors Austin though, they Garrett, recipient could receive of the Questbridge “It’s like having many more scholarship to Yale someone hand you benefits such University, as well a $250 thousand as merit-based as National Merit check. financial aid semi-finalists Austin Garrett from outside Colston Merrell Questbridge Scholar parties. and Ellen O’Brien.

Te a c h e r s Garrett, the Duering and current-running valedictorian, was notified on Karen Hutchinson were National Monday, December 1 that he Merit scholars themselves. Duering explains that the perks of the received the scholarship “I was really happy when I scholarship extend beyond the found out, [and was in] a little bit title. “My very first year of college I didn’t pay for anything,” she said. of shock,” he said.

“It’s like somebody handing “Not books, not food, not room, you a $250 thousand check.” He not board, not anything! It was continued, “It’s dumbfounding awesome!”

As a teacher of all three finalists, [to] sit there and think someone [is] willing to hand me that much she describes that what sets them money just for my own education.” apart is their curiosity. “They like In Garrett’s words, the program learning,” Duering said. “They try consists of about 500 scholarships to develop their own ideas about to one of their 30 partner colleges, things.” “ One hundred percent of the “offering very generous financial aid to students with low-income students [at Perry] that are being backgrounds who are high- awarded these scholarships, at achieving,” paying for essentially all least the ones I know, are really deserving.” college expenses.

Principal Dan Serrano Unlike Garrett, semi-finalists O’Brien and Merrell have no acknowledges that the increase in security unless they advance to merit-based financial aid is an effect finalist and continue on to achieve of the school’s growth.

“What you’re seeing with our the actual ranking of National school as we’re getting bigger is Merit Scholar.

AP Literature and AP that we’re getting more and more Humanities teacher Rhonda students across the board that Duering says that in order to are achieving awards,” he said. allow yourself the opportunity to Serrano sees the school’s improving compete for financial aid offered academic reputation as a huge pullthrough academic organizations factor for students searching for a like the National Merit, one must high school of choice.

By Sarah Chapple

photo by Dequota Wilson During the competition on Dec. 6 , senior Kelsey O’Brien gives a speech in front of judges and peers. Students prepared for an entire semester.

minutes long and the judges at the competition ask six minutes of follow up questions.”

Students such as Senior Dequota Wilson expected the most out of the competition this year.“We have been working and learning about the Constitution for a long time [and] working on these questions

for a while,” she said.

Answering rapid fire questions required an accumulation of months of hard work for Berrelleza’s students. Although the two teams from the school did not place in the top three teams, their efforts and determination was challenged when they entered the competition.

”

4 || opinions

december || 2014

the precedent || phsprecedent.com

Staff Editorial

Boo’s and hooray’s for semester one Perry drama “The Addams Family” a hit with audiences; student spirit trending downward.

Added work of science fair is worth the effort NATALIE EBERHARD the precedent

BOO: Our incoming freshman class is almost the size of the juniors and seniors combined. The halls aren’t big enough to sustain this big of a school, especially with kids who think in-between classes is recess time.

HOORAY: Numerous students returned from humanitarian trips across the world after summer break, sharing their philanthropic adventures with the rest of the school.

BOO: Students continue to complain about Perry’s lack of school spirit, yet the majority of them do not attend school events, games, or participate in spirit week.

HOORAY: Congrats to Perry’s fall sports. Badminton, volleyball, swim, cross country and football all made it to state playoffs this year giving Perry successful first season.

BOO: All throughout this year, it seems that violence and tragedy were headlining stories every day.

Things like ISIS, Ebola, school shootings, and Ferguson have been the evening news content since January; hopefully next year will bring some healing.

HOORAY: The Drama Department made “The Addams Family,” one of the greatest productions at Perry High School.

It was well directed, the set was beautiful, and there was such a large amount of student talent in the production.

BONUS HOORAY: We finally have a a home for our CTE and science labs, and what a home it is!

The new F-building is cutting-edge and next month the student store opens!

T

he horrifying sight of science equipment and the idea of repeated trials would scare any student…especially an honors science student.

The science fair: an educational project that has been practiced since elementary school and has carried on to selected high school classes. Even though the assignment can be helpful or educational, it appears that many honors students complain and do not care for the work. Is a science fair even worth students’ time and energy? Are students complaining over nothing? What is the purpose?

If the students truly understood what the head of the Science Department, Jerry Bell, sees, perhaps they would appreciate the science fair more. “[The science fair] gives [students] practice

take an on level science but chose the science fair instead.

There are already enough topics to complain about in the world and the science fair does need to be added in that pool of negativity. If students feel like it is too time consuming or difficult, then they should rethink their classes.

Students cannot complain about it being too soon, they have a solid few months from October to January to think of an idea, conduct experiments, and come up with conclusions.

“I know students get frustrated with the process,” Bell said. “We expect that they are able to do projects at a high school level and not at [an] elementary level at this point.

So we try to guide the students through the process as much as possible without doing it for them.”

It is up to the students to choose if they want more knowledgeable experience for the honors credit.

The science fair seems to be pointless, but it can be helpful for students hoping to achieve more knowledge and understanding of science. If honors students are complaining about the extra work then are they really honors students?

In-school suspension a giant waste of time

A

dull ring pierces the silence of the classroom, and when the teacher answers the call, monotonous mumbles can be heard from the phone’s speaker. She hangs up the phone and calls out a name to be sent to the office as every student looks on, snickering and teasingly asking what they had done. The fear of disciplinary action looms over him as he trudges through the halls toward the office dreading whether or not he will be slumped in an in-school suspension chair the next day.

However, what many do not realize is that this is a very rational fear, as the punishment of in-school suspension is widely used, even for minor infractions. Skipping class, or even failing to properly fill out or turn in a student contract are considered grounds to be punished via in-school suspension.

Administrators have always stressed the importance of students being punctual and attending their classes diligently, but

ANGIELEE NIBLETT the precedent

the punishment for many transgressions can be just as harmful as the fault. School administrators have not taken into consideration how their actions can affect the educational environment they have been so adamant to protect.

Some who have experienced this form of disciplinary action firsthand have had to catch up in their classes afterwards. They are pushed behind in their missed classes and often have to scramble to make up the work or even come in after school for tutoring in certain subjects. Even though they receive all of the work done in their classes during

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the

HOORAY: Chandler Unified School District was named the number one district in Arizona

by Niche. The organization ranks 8,783 school districts across the nation with different key criteria.

Being announced as the number one district only affirms the hard work students and administration do everyday.

using the scientific process. It’s about taking an idea and then figuring how to make an experiment to test that idea to come up with answers.”

The science fair allows students the opportunity to apply what they learn from textbooks and actually experiment. However, some students feel that it is too much work.

Honors science classes are for students who can handle the extra work and want to achieve more from the subject. The science fair is doing just that: allowing students to apply what they learn and take on more work.

Science fair is for honors students because they chose to take honors and accept the extra work when choosing the class before school starts. Students that understand the workload but do not have the time for it, should choose prior before the school year to not take honors.

“Honors is a weighted credit and we have to do extra to get the weighted credit.

It’s more rigorous, plus the science fair is required to earn the credit,” Bell stated.

To be honest, the science fair is not actually required. Students had a choice before the school year about what classes they wanted to take. They could have chosen to

Perry High School 1919 E. Queen Creek Rd. Gilbert, AZ 85297 480-224-2800 480-224-2820 fax

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that day, they do not get the full learning experience and at times cannot fully understand the content of the lessons.

Falling behind on daily classwork is not just an unfortunate consequence for suspended teenagers, this is an underlying goal for administrators. Principal Dan Serrano explains his method saying, “It is supposed to be a deterrent for students to act appropriately.”

In-school suspension has been used as an improper punishment for far too long.

The fear of this disciplinary action that is so often thrown around, paired with the loss of valuable class time and the lack of effect on some students combines to create an overall ineffective, futile, and educationally damaging consequence for students. It seems to be a fruitless consequence when looking at the true experience.

Aja Diffin

contributed to this story

staff information || Photo Editor || Jordan Williams

|| Social Media Editors || Mackenzie Ness August Bowers || Web Editor || Erik Yates || Staff Reporters || Michelle Bolden Valerie Burgess Sarah Campbell Devlin Clark

Aja Diffin Natalie Eberhard Rebecca Hoffmann Mia Irvin Kathryn McFaul Madison Montoya Angielee Niblett Cassie Nielsen Molly Ogden Kacee Perry Alice Tran Eliauna Wendt Dequota Wilson Erik Yates Ryan Zolin

The Precedent is published by the newspaper staff at Perry High School, and is published as an open student forum eight times per school year. The Precedent welcomes comments and criticism from its readers. Please e-mail all questions, comments, guest articles, or letters to the editor to phsprecedent@gmail.com. Submissions may not be anonymous; however, requests for anonymity may be honored. Letters may also be delivered to room C-116.

the precedent || phsprecedent.com

december || 2014

point | counterpoint:

Embrace it M

ath is one of the leastliked subjects on campus, but it’s one of the most practical classes offered.

Math skills are needed to create computers and programs and even video games. Those who say math is useless have clearly never set foot out from under their rock that they call a home.

Studies show that math classes teach valuable skills that are applicable to other subjects and real life. Math teaches students how to analyze and synthesize data, and how to draw conclusions.

Math is everywhere. The Fibonacci sequence and fractals are seen in nature and are used for artistic effect. The study of 3D images gave way to perspective in paintings; the rule of thirds is big in photography; math and other sciences heavily ground in mathematics help sculptors to defy gravity in their work.

Without math, humanity could not progress. Steve Jobs didn’t magically become the co-founder of Apple without a little effort. He studied code and programing and creating algorithms, and they all have a basis in mathematics. Now, the cellphone business is booming, along with other electronics like

Lets talk about math

Erase it

DAYNA MILLER

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I

’ve got 99 problems and all of them are math.

A final is on the way, test corrections turned in, the problems on the review sheet reach up to heaven. The sheer amount of arithmetic is astounding. Still, students are told that all this has a greater purpose, some “real world application.”

The truth is, I’ve used high school math outside of class exactly never.

Addition, subtraction, multiplication--sure. If things get really wild, maybe a little division.

But my knowledge of polynomials, parabolas, and pi has simply NATHAN TUCKER the precedent

touch screen computers, Google Glass, and body-recognition gaming.

Studying mathematics should be considered an honor. The great mathematicians before us, Pythagoras, Euclid, and Archimedes laid the foundation for all electronics we have now.

Next time you decide to leave your math class with a frown, think of how much hard work went into setting up the field of study, and leave in awe instead.

gathered dust on the mental tool shelf.

Any math class beyond sixth grade is teaching you how to do a computer’s work for it. Machines can solve harder problems, with better solutions, at lightning speeds.

In the unlikely instance that you encounter the mythic “real world problem,” Google can spit the answer back out at you. In the light of these advances, requiring four years of higher level math feels a little ridiculous.

To be fair, we wouldn’t have those computers without mathematicians. Any extremist push to drop all math from schools could rob the world of future genius. Some may find a career, a talent, or a kind of beauty in advanced mathematics. But that’s no reason for the rest of us to suffer.

The mental gymnastics offered by high school math courses are not without value. However, the priority placed on them, the hours at class and home sacrificed to complete them, are out of proportion to their benefit. A de-emphasis on algebra, trig, and calculus in favor of courses on practical math and the sciences would have a real benefit for students who aren’t the next Stephen Hawking.

Now, if you’ll excuse me--I still have four hours of math to finish.

Why Chandler district deserves gold CASSIE NIELSON

the precedent

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here are many great honors a school can receive and being rated number one in the state is one of them. Chandler Unified School District has been ranked number one in Arizona.

What qualifications did CUSD meet to have this great honor and how did Perry effect that ranking?

District wide we received an A in Academics, A in Administrations and Policies, B- in Extracurriculars,

B+ in Health and Safety, B in Resources and Facilities, B+ in Sports and Fitness, and A in Teachers. Perry High School received their own ranking and was ranked 23rd in the state. Here is what we got in each of the above categories: A- in Academics, Ain Administration and Policies, B Extracurriculars, A- in Health and Fitness, B in Resources and Facilities, B in Sports and Fitness, and a B+ in Teachers. Perry’s scores are overall close to that of the districts.

Senior Shannon Strohlein was asked what she thought contributed most of how and why Perry got the scores we did and says, “ I think [its] our teachers. They are [more interactive] with our students in

asking if we need help and how they can help us. We need to thank teachers a lot more than what we [already] do.”

Each school in the district is held responsible for making CUSD best in the state. Perry is known for their excellent fine arts department and STEM program; Basha for their agriculture department; Hamilton for sports; Chandler for International Baccalaureate. All schools in the district, including elementary schools and junior highs build our districts positive reputation.

Our district provides students with teachers that care and do all that they can to help CUSD by providing a positive learning environment and receiving

the best education possible; as well having a diverse variety of extracurricular activities. Between the administration, teachers and students CUSD and Perry should be proud of the ratings that were earned. Perry might be only one school of 43 in the district, but we do matter and make a difference.

Senior Quinnton MacDonald states, “We’re a strong school and we’re building everyday and I think we can move up that chart and push forward and break that barrier and get to the top tens.”

Don’t let this great honor go to our heads pumas lets work together to build the school up and become one of the top schools in the state and hopefully stay part of the number one district in the state.

Yates Hates: Discrimination ERIK YATES

the precedent

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iots break out, police attempt to hold their guard against chaos that is ravaging the small town of Ferguson, Mo. A large portion of the town’s population is outraged about death of an African American by a police officer’s hands.

In this all-too sensitive age, there is a silent fear of being accused of racism. Many people are quick to jump to conclusions about anything where race is a factor, like police brutality. People seem to get so emotionally involved with the case, it causes them to neglect the facts. The turmoil caused in Ferguson was due to the perspective that this was a hate crime.

A hate crime is defined as, by

the Federal Bureau of Investigation on their website, “criminal offense against a person or property motivated in whole or in part by an offender’s bias against a race, religion, disability, ethnic origin or sexual orientation.” For some, the shooting of an African American man by a white cop is seen as a hate crime.

Protesters seem to be fixated on the races of both participants, allowing their emotions to dictate their actions.

After the the ordeal between Wilson and Brown, people on the Internet voiced their raciallybiased opinions about police. Social media websites such as Tumblr and Twitter have been the centers of negative sayings, pictures, and blatantly ridiculous depictions of caucasian cops.

This is one of the cases where people are trying to make this a

opinions || 5

s u p m OnCa How important do you think it is to learn math in high school?

Cooper White junior

“I would say math is one of the driving forces of the universe. Everything revolves around math.

I would say it’s very important.”

Megan Fraser senior

“ [It’s] good to have different levels of understanding [because] you can understand literature but understanding math is a whole other level. It’s important to have that.”

Joelle Cayer senior

“For people in general it is important to be able to think logistically and math is something that helps expand people’s abilities to think.”

photo by Armando Sanchez/Chicago Tribune/TNS

People rally at the corner of State Street and Jackson Boulevard on Friday Dec. 5, 2014, in response to the Eric Garner chokehold decision in New York.

racial issue. Anything can be a racial issue to this generation if people try hard enough, and sadly, it does not require much energy to instigate a racial flame.

I live in Arizona where I just do not see this type of racial tension and I cannot wrap my mind around it. Why does the color of one person’s skin spark so much

controversy? Why does the media go and shift stories to make them seem like it’s completely based on racism? Is it? I can’t believe this is a case about race; in a country that has been deemed “the melting pot” where men and women of all races and creeds converge to live together, there sure is a lot of prejudice from every side.

Ellen O’Brien senior

“I think it’s a good skill to have. It’s important to know logically how to think and math helps a lot with that.”

6 || features

the precedent || phsprecedent.com

december || 2014

december || 2014

Is race still a factor?

MARJAN TARIN

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photo by J.B. Forbes/St. Louis Post-Dispatch/MCT

Protesters in Kiener Plaza prepare to march in downtown St. Louis on Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2014, in the wake of the grand jury decision not to indict officer Darren Wilson in the shooting death of Ferguson, Mo., teen Michael Brown.

Racial inequality nationwide

By Ellie Wendt the precedent

Millions of Americans are familiar with the famous words written in our own Declaration of Independence stating that all Americans are “created equal.” However, many citizens still deal with harassment, jobs refusals, and perceived inequality. This is no new concept: America continues to fight for racial equality.

The news of Michael Brown’s death in Ferguson, Missouri, spread like wildfire across the nation, quickly turning into a heated racial debate. The question has to be asked: is race still an issue in 2014?

“Its a trend. I think racism plays a role in it because whether you like it or not, there is still going to be racist comments...people make it a racist issue just by bringing it up...its about the connection of racism and justice,” sophomore Oscar Veloria said.

Brown, an 18-year-old African American, was fatally shot by police officer Darren Wilson, a white police officeron Aug. 9.

Wilson, responding to a robbery call, had a confrontation with Brown which ultimately ended Brown’s life.

Brown was one of ten unarmed African Americans killed in 2014 by police, according to Vibe magazine, which included the case of Eric Garner.

Garner was New Yorker man who was put into an apparent chokehold by police after being stoped by police for selling cigarettes

illegally in July. He allegedly resisted arrest and officer Daniel Pantaleo was accused of placing him in the chokehold which killed Garner. The grand jury’s decision not to indict the officer raised high public protest across the country.

Principal Dan Serrano thinks that students - even at PHS - need to discuss racial equality and the Brown case.

“We should talk about it,” he said. “Just because [there is not an] effect on this school does not mean there is not one.”

Racial tension has been around since the arrival of the first immigrants. Many presidents have attempted to resolve the question of inequality, but the issue still remains.

Recently, president Barack Obama stirred debate by issuing an executive order that would grant a path to citizenship to nearly five million undocumented immigrants.

His proposal would provide a quicker path to citizenship to the parents of those who were born in this country circumventing the process by which law abiding migrants are following to gain citizenship.

“I think [racial equality] will always get uglier before it gets better, that is just what history has taught us,” Spanish teacher Carina De La Torre said.

“I think if we just promote it…with kindness, fairness and trying to look at people beyond color…that will definitely help.”

features || 7

Q & A: with Chandler Police Chief Sean Duggan

By Kathryn McFaul the precedent

JORDAN WILLIAMS

special for the precedent

iving in America as a Muslim American is not as difficult as some people might think, but also is not as easy as others may believe. Because I wear a hijab, a scarf that covers my head, I can easily be identified and classified as well; towelhead, terrorist, I have heard it all. You would think that in a place where education is spread and focused on, students should be very open-minded and not judge those who believe to follow the religion of their choice. Wrong. I, unfortunately, have had multiple encounters where a peer has judged me because of my choice to express my religion (which is Islam).

While walking in the hallway and minding my own business, a young woman who was trying to understand my appearance stopped me.

“Why are you wearing that?” she asked in a rude manner. But me being the innocent girl I am did not take this in a rude way. “My scarf? I wear it because my religion commands me to and in order to be modest.” I still did not understand that this whole conversation was supposed to be a joke. “Oh, well it looks nice,” she said while quietly snickering and winking at her friend. Later on that day, one of my classmates mentioned that a girl was laughing at my outfit and how I looked like a nun. I wondered, “Since when are nuns so fashionable?” He also told me that he, in my defense, stopped her and told her how rude she was being.

Even though we may live in a world where discrimination and prejudice is like second nature to some, we also live in a world with humane individuals who do not judge based off your decision to cover. This is an example that should trigger you to stand up to those who choose to discriminate against minorities of any kind. I encourage you to do this in a manner that displays your knowledge and humanity. We can change the world and make it a better place, but the change starts in one place. You.

the precedent || phsprecedent.com

the precedent

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s an African-American, its not easy.

There are many issues associated African-Americans, i.e. where we live and our income. Even what we eat has been a point of stereotyping. I never thought that I would learn at a young age that racism is still out there, especially on vacation.

When I was younger, I went on a vacation to Chicago with my mom, grandmother, and sister. The whole idea was to visit family on my mom’s side. We stayed at this hotel. My sister and I went to the pool, and these two boys started splashing water at us and harassing us, for no reason; it wasn’t fun.

Their two older sisters were yelling at them to stop , but they kept doing it anyway and laughing. To make matters worse, the boys’ mother encouraged them to keep splashing at us.

Our cousin who was with us asked the mother to quit encouraging the boys. There was an argument. The lady told my cousin, “Why don’t you leave, and stop using your welfare check to come here.” My cousin was mad, my mother was mad too. I’m positive that my grandmother was angry, but since I was so young, how was I supposed to feel?

Now that I’m older, I know how to feel. It doesn’t hurt me anymore, but it actually helped me.

My heart goes out to every AfricanAmerican who has been racially profiled, that’s not an easy thing to put up with. It’s a blessing to know that I’m not the only one who’s been racially profiled in public. I’ve understood that fact that you can’t change everyone’s mind, but you also can’t change how you were born. And lastly, I’m happy that the Chicago incident happened when it did because I would’ve never been who I am today without it.

KATHRYN McFAUL: Concerning recent cases, are there any changes happening to the police departments?

SEAN DUGGAN: We are constantly looking at ways to improve and bring forth the best practices in modern policing. Our officers are highly trained professionals that are provided with the most current tools, information and practices in the U.S. law enforcement. We are committed to ensuring Chandler remains a safe community where people want to live and work by providing the most highly equipped, best trained and committed officers to help meet the needs of the community.

KM: Why are officers allowed to use force on nonviolent protesters?

SD: To adequately answer this question, the term “force” must be defined. Generally speaking, officers do not use force on nonviolent protesters. Uniformed police officers that are working in an enforcement capacity use some type of level-of-force in their jobs every day. The most common type of force used by an officer is verbal force; simply telling somebody to do something, or not to do something.

All force, from verbal commands to the application of lethal force, is coercion. But, police officers cannot use force on anybody they choose. In order for a police officer to legally apply force on an individual, he or she must be at a reasonable suspicion, or probable cause encounter with that individual.

Probable cause is written in the fourth Amendment, which defines the threshold in which government agent may search or seize a person, place, or thing. When a police officer reaches probable cause on an individual, the person is under arrest.

Reasonable suspicion is based off of a United States Supreme Court case law (Terry V. Ohio, 1968) and allows a police officer to temporarily detain an individual, and frisk his or her body for weapons or contraband, if a certain level of suspicion based on many circumstances to include the time and place of the encounter, and the officer’s experience, training, and fear of a violent encounter with the assailant.

Reasonable suspicion and probable cause give a police officer the legal right to stop and detain the individual, or individuals, involved in the encounter. The police officer may use force in order to enforce his or her lawful commands to the assailant.

By law, a police officer may not use more force than is reasonably necessary to accomplish his or her lawful purpose. The foundation for this law is derived from the eighth Amendment and is more specifically addressed in two important Supreme Court cases, Tennessee V. Garner (1985) and Graham V. Connor (1989). While a protester may be non-violent, he or she may be in violation of the law (sitting in the roadway blocking traffic.) If this individual does not comply with the officers commands, the officer can lawfully use force on that person such as wrist locks or pressure point Duggan control tactics to remove them from the roadway.

KM: Lastly, when an officer draws their gun, do they have to shoot to kill?

SD: When it comes to the application of lethal force for a police officer, in most cases it involves a firearm. Police officers are trained quite extensively with the use of his or her firearm. We are trained to shoot at the largest area on a human being, which is the torso.

This part of the body also happens to hold most vital organs in the human body. This is done for a number of reasons. Pointing a gun at another human being is extremely stressful for anybody, including a police officer. When a police officer does so, he or she is at the highest level of force, and the result could affect many lives, permanently.

This type of encounter is also usually very dynamic, fast moving and requires splitsecond decision making. Police officers are taught to shoot to stop the threat in response to a deadly force encounter. Once the shooting has stopped, if the officer is able to, he or she is required to request medical staff to the scene for treatment on the assailant and, apply whatever level of medical care the officer can on that individual.

Police shootings unfortunate, but not about race

A

infographic by Kathryn McFaul; SOURCES Arizona Republic and blacklivesmatter.com

fter the so-called police brutalities that have plagued the headlines over the past few months, many people have blatantly jumped on the racial discrimination bandwagon.

The recent cases of unarmed African Americans being killed by white police officers has parts of the nation steering toward the idea of racial discrimination, and protests – some violent and some nonviolent – have escalated throughout the country.

On the surface, protesters are validated because nobody can dispute the result of the Eric Garner, Michael Brown, and Rumain Brisbon cases: unarmed black men killed by white authorities.

However, look into the circumstance and many are simply emotional overreactions. Men breaking the law, disobeying authority and acting in a way in which officers felt they needed to use brute force to contain a dangerous situation.

But words and phrases such as “racist,” “the white officer,” and “the black kid” are being thrown around the media in effort to depict the situations as racially motivated murders. In reality, the police officers were protecting themselves as allowed within the law, and race or ethnicity has had nothing to do with these unfortunate incidents.

Citizens are expected to respect and obey the law regardless of their skin color.

In these cases, the young men made decisions that resulted in consequences

AUGUST BOWERS

the precedent

which were unfortunate for everyone. What led to Garner, Brown, and Brisbon’s deaths was a series of poor decisions made by those victims, and perhaps a quick trigger from police.

According to police advocacy website Police One: “A cop may use lethal force when he or she reasonably believes the action is in defense of human life, including the officer’s own life,” and in those cases, officers Daniel Pantaleo and Darren Wilson were not indicted of any criminal wrongdoing.

News agencies such as USA Today, CNN, and the Arizona Republic racially profile the members involved in these cases. In certain situations, such as a white officer killing a white man, or an African American officer killing an African American man, race is not specified. When the media includes the race of the victims, however, it sparks conflict in the country.

Society tags these incidents as racism.

One definition of racism is prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race

photo by Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times/MCT

Protesters plead with officers to let them go during mass arrest by LAPD officers at 6th and Hope Streets in Los Angeles on Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2014.

is superior. Why can’t these incidents simply be an individual who made a series of bad decisions, running up against a law enforcement officer trained to hold people who make these types of decisions, accountable for their actions?

Society constantly strives for equality, but contradicts itself when issues of race blur

the line of morality.

Race is what seems to be what drives most of what we see and hear from the streets of New York, Missouri, and now Phoenix, and if society can take a step back from its emotions, it will realize this is an issue of police upholding the law, not judging race.

8 || arts and entertainment

Seasonal Sweetooth

the precedent || phsprecedent.com

All Together Now

december|| 2014

Fine Arts joins forces for annual WinterFest

By Cassie Nielsen the precedent

The holiday season is in session and with it comes lots of good treats. Some of the best kind of treats are homemade. Try one of these recipes to shake up your holiday season with something new or better. All recipes come from the homes of Perry students who were willing to share them with you and your families. Happy holidays! Enjoy!

Wassail A traditional English apple drink (the name is Old English for “be you healthy”). A hot mug of wassail is the perfect beverage for a cold winter night. Try this recipe to get a break from the familiar hot chocolate or cider.

Recipe used by Junior Nathan Tucker and his family.

2 quarts apple juice 2 cups orange juice ½ cup honey (can substitute 1 cup sugar) 1 can pineapple juice 2-3 cinnamon sticks 1 tablespoon cloves 4 whole allspice Combine apple, orange, and pineapple juices in crock pot with honey and cinnamon sticks. Place cloves and allspice in cheesecloth and add to crock pot. Keep in crock pot on warm for 1 hour. Keep hot to serve. Recipe makes approximately 15 servings.

Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies Sure everyone can make chocolate chip cookies, but no recipe is closer to giving you the perfect chocolate chip cookie as this one.

A classic dessert has been perfected. You can decide whether you agree by trying it out yourself. Recipe used by Junior Cassie Nielsen and her family.

3/4 cup butter-flavor Crisco shortening 1 1/4 cups firmly packed light brown sugar 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour 3/4 tsp. baking soda 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips 2 Tbsp. milk 1 egg 1 Tbsp. vanilla 1 tsp. salt Heat oven to 375 degrees. Combine Crisco, brown sugar, milk and vanilla in large bowl. Beat until well blended. Beat egg into creamed mixture. Combine flour, salt and baking soda. Mix into creamed mixture just until blended. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop rounded spoonfuls of dough 3-inches apart onto greased cookie sheet. Bake for 9-12 minutes. Makes 3 dozen cookies.

photo by Cassie Nielsen

The Perry Winkles improv team entertain the audience as the combined Band and Orchestra prepare for their next piece.

By Rebecca Hoffman the precedent

As the temperature drops, and the holiday music begins to play, people everywhere are preparing for this holiday season. This year will be the fourth time Perry hosts the annual event, Winterfest. This performance is a collaborative project prepared by the fine arts department.

“All the performing arts coordinate a winter themed show,” department chair Sharon Biemond says. “Then, the visual artists collaborate in decorating the lobby and displaying artwork.”

The night begins and comes to a close with several musical numbers.

The participating fine arts classes prepare separately at different times. “The preparation begins first quarter, really,” says guitar and

choir teacher Joseph Little.

Choir itself makes up a portion of the event through their several performances during the event. “One little thing that we add to it, is as people are coming in to the Winterfest and being seated,” Little says. “We’ll have small groups from the choirs singing little carols in the auditorium to make it sort of festive.”

Tremendous effort is put forth by both the participating faculty members and performers.

“All of us work together,” Little comments.

“The choir is just one of the integral parts.”

“Its a two hour performance; it starts with choir and dance and they each do several numbers,” Biemond explains. “Then, we have an intermission, and then we have the orchestra and band, and then the finale is a combination of all of them.”

One of the most prominent aspects of Winterfest is the finale piece. During the finale,

photo by Jordan Williams

all the fine arts groups come together and perform a musical piece all together. Dancers, Band and Orchestra and choir members all come together to put on a performance to celebrate the holidays in a musical way. “I would say that most of the groups probably are really stressed out about performing,” says Sadler. “But when you put it all together, it ends up being just a really cool collaboration.”

This finale piece is tradition of preparation amongst the faculty and performers. “I think our only real tradition in the whole thing, besides it obviously being holiday theme, is that we always do a finale piece which includes every single performer,” Sadler says. “Because its a new event, we’re still formulating the traditions.”

Winterfest provides an opportunity to unify the fine arts department in a festive and celebratory manner.

Gilbert Farmers Market combines local flavor with organic produce

By MacKenzie Ness the precedent

The Gilbert Farmers Market is the ideal location for those who love to eat healthily, promote local farms, or simply enjoy discovering new foods.

When you enter the pavillion you are greeted by rows of smiling vendors, selling anything from fresh produce and homemade chocolate to handcrafted, natural toothpaste.

Everything sold is local, organic, and chemical-free; additionally, the market’s goal is to promote local sustainability, a friendly environment, and healthy food for a better life Many of these vendors value fair trade, which helps fuel the growth of developing countries by paying fair prices to the producers in those locations. The primary goal of fair trade is to improve the economy and living conditions in developing countries that export products.

The farmers market is located in Downtown Gilbert, just past the iconic water tower, and is open every Saturday from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.. Popular vendors include Bergies Coffee, Double Check Ranch, and Seize the Fork.

Bergies Coffee is a family-owned coffee shop just a hop, skip, and a jump away from the market; however, they also have a stand there, selling coffee, tea, and a handful of breakfast foods. Their coffee is fair trade and freshly brewed.

Seize the Fork is a vendor that sells specialty granola bars, biodegradable toothbrushes, and Drink to your {Health} powder additives, along with many other natural products.

They also focus on fair trade, bettering the environment through recycling, and promoting a plant based diet by making only vegan products. Seize the Fork uses 85% raw ingredients and avoids high fructose corn syrup, which is often used as a sweetener, and instead sweetens everything with honey.

A person can even buy meat at the

photo by Mackenzie Ness The Gilbert Farmers Market sets up every Saturday in the shadow of the town watertower, with vendors from every corner of the community setting up booths.

farmers market, the most prominent vendor being Double Check Ranch. They sell grass-fed, natural beef and raise their cows in Winkelman, Arizona. They find that it is important to grass feed their cattle because it helps restore the land, keep the cows healthy, and create a connection between the consumer, the producer, and the produce.

However, a farmers market cannot be complete without organic produce. The Farm at Agritopia is one of the many vendors that sells vegetables and fruit, including tomatoes, carrots, and tangerines, all GMO free.

Food on wheels? Yes, please! The farmers

market features Waffle Crush, Luncha Libre, Uprooted Kitchen, and Mustache Pretzels, along with a variety of other food trucks, in order to appease a range of different cravings.

The most amazing part about this weekly event is how endearing the vendors are-eager to share their insight on their products, promoting a healthy life, and giving back to the earth. Many of these vendors take pride in fair trade, natural ingredients, and local businesses.

So come grab a coffee, a fresh muffin, and your organic groceries at the Gilbert Farmers Market.

december|| 2014

the precedent || phsprecedent.com

‘Theory of Everything’ has everything but theory the precedent

photo courtesy of GoMoxie

By Madi Montoya the precedent

For the past eight years, country-crossover artist Taylor Swift has fearlessly been taking over the music world. From her debut selftitled album to the most recent 1989, Swift has been a prominent pop culture figurehead.

With her newest album 1989, Swift

Wear Wilson

What to wear when the trees are bare

By Dequota Wilson photo by Liam Daniel/Focus Features

Felicity Jones stars as Jane Widle and Eddie Redmayne stars as her suitor Stephen Hawking in Academy Award-winning director James Marsh’s “The Theory of Everything.”

visited several motor neuron disease patients and their families to get a feel for what it was like. This intensive research shows in a realistic performance. He moves like a diseased patient, he shakes like one, he is practically one with the disease.

The road to success is controlled by a drive. Whether that drive is a force or an inner passion, is completely depending on the person. Hawking certainly had this passion throughout the movie but it was only at the

very end when inspiration was felt.

Hawking’s brilliance, although conveyed in the film, should have been emphasized rather than hidden behind the story of his wife. The troubling part of the journey was watching the wife in pain. For a man who possessed such genius and overcame so much, he deserved more attention. In fact, today he is 72 and still continues his research in science; forever searching for the true theory of everything.

redefines her music style from the down-home country girl that we all came to love from her trademark songs of heartbreak. When the hit single “Shake it Off” came out earlier this year, the world was caught by surprise with its upbeat and catchy tune. The accompanying sudden release of 1989 was no different; Taylor was definitely a more diverse musician than she once was. Country and Swift fans alike have complained about the new album’s sound being too ‘poppy’ for the crossover star, but Swift encourages everyone to embrace the change of genre, just as she has.

In a letter enclosed with every copy of 1989, Swift indulges in her controversial transition.

“For the last few years, I’ve woken up every day not wanting, but needing to write a new style of music,” Swift writes, subtly hinting at the criticism surrounding the new album.

In some cases, writing and producing a completely different style of music can be an artist’s downfall in the music world, and some expected 1989 to be no different. Some critics said the same about her previous album, Red, but Swift has proven any change for her music to be successful, truly adapting with her growing worldwide audience. Along with topping charts all over the world, and talk of her approaching 1989 world tour, this album can hardly be described as a “bad decision.”

Although it is strange to hear the popcountry star singing the repetitive chorus of her introductory song “Welcome to New

York,” 1989 is a good ‘transition’ album, allowing her fans to get used to the new sound. Swift has mastered the art of mixing tunes with a more mainstream pop sound like “Blank Space” and more heartfelt songs like “This Love” throughout the tracklist, a simple way to balance the sound of her album.

Yet, while Swift’s sound may be completely foreign to a long-time fan, it will be hard for anyone to not find themselves singing or humming along to the songs on 1989.

But not to worry: we see the same old Swift in the way she sings about past love and the hidden messages in her lyrics, something fans have adored since the beginning. Swift has also written or co-written every song on her album, bringing in pop stars like Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic to help her along with both the music and the flow of the album.

“You are the only one who gets to decide what you will be remembered for,” Swift finishes her letter with a final lasting statement to ‘shake off’ those who have a hard time adjusting to the new Taylor Swift.

Swift swaps country for pop on 1989

A Polaroid portrait of Swift packaged with 1989. The album has sold over a million copies and spawned two chart-topping singles

What to with

By Natalie Eberhard

The question of how the universe came to be has interested the human race since its own beginning. It especially caught the interest of Stephen Hawking. Hawking’s knowledge was vast and growing which mirrored a bright future ahead, beginning with his doctoral work on the theory of time. During his research he was unexpectedly diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis disease (ALS). Although sick, Hawking retained his intelligence. He made great scientific discoveries, wrote best-selling books, and searched for a grand universal theory. He accomplished all this with an ill body and no voice.

Based on this true story, The Theory of Everything tells how Hawking inspired the world despite his crippling disease. The film is clearly meant to be inspirational, yet often lacks that tone. Although it shows the constant struggle Hawking went through, too much focus is placed on his wife, Jane. The ending was the only truly inspirational scene, leaving the audience with a pleasant feeling.

The previews paint the film as a romance for the ages. While that image isn’t inaccurate, Theory is not exactly a Nicholas Sparks film.

The movie sets itself up introducing the two characters, Stephen (Eddie Redmayne) and Jane (Felicity Jones) and how they meet and fell in love. Soon afterward, Stephen receives the news of his disease. As the whole movie plays out, its center is the relationship between Jane and Stephen and how they handle each new situation.

Redmayne gives a genius performance as Hawking, perfectly portraying the ravages of his character’s disease. In the movie, he acts out just like any person with the disease would. In fact, before filming, Redmayne

arts and entertainment || 9

the precedent

As we are layering up for winter, putting a cute outfit together starts to become more of a hassle. It is easy for girls to throw on their cliché Victoria Secret Pink hoodies and matching yoga pants, and for guys to throw on a sweatshirt and jeans.

Maybe half of you are lazy and don’t really care about your appearance; maybe the other half of you are confused and need a little help.

Just because the temperature drops, does not mean your fashion standards have to drop as well.

An emerging trend that I have seen around campus that I actually appreciate are joggers.

Joggers are sweatpants that are cropped at the ankles. These can be worn by both guys and girls, causally or to make a statement. Joggers are a universal piece of clothing; they pair well with sneakers or boots and look good with fitted hoodies or a regular t shirt.

The next trend is flannels, which are very in this season. They are perfect for layering and can be worn by both sexes. Very versatile article of clothing - can be buttoned up, worn around the waist, used as a cover up (comes in handy when getting dress-coded): the possibilities are endless!

Knee high and thigh high socks have made a popular comeback. Knee highs are long socks that cover the feet and legs up to the knee, thigh highs extend to the mid thigh.

They are a fashion accessory for a casual and classic warm weather apparel. Goes great with skater skirts and skater dresses. These socks are a great alternative to wearing tights or stockings, plus they add a little edge to any outfit.

Last but not least, boots. Combat boots, ankle boots, knee high boots, Doc Martens; these boots were made for walking. My favorite part about winter fashion are the boots. Boots tie most outfits together; they can make a bold, brash statement, or send a haute sophisticated message. Boots are a timeless trend.

These are a few of my favorite trends for this winter season. Stay cute, fashionable, and warm, Puma Nation.

10 || sports

december || 2014

the precedent || phsprecedent.com

Our Take Soccer team Student athletes know that it takes sacrifice in order to a competitor in their sport, but wrestlers bear that cross like no other. Their performance depends heavily on how much DEQUOTA WILSON they weigh due the precedent to weight class restrictions. To stay in shape or to cut weight, some wrestlers have to take very drastic measures.

Former varsity wrestler, senior, Connor Cook, gives some insight on the crazy things he’d have to do to cut weight.

“I wouldn’t eat like 2 days before a weigh in, I’d have to run a lot and wear a big jacket so I could sweat a lot. Losing all the weight was a little extreme. To be on varsity it was worth it, but otherwise it wasn’t really worth it; it was dangerous.”

Former junior varsity wrestler, senior, Gavin Stewart, reveals how he once took laxatives in order to make weight.

“I was on the toilet for like three days,” mentions Stewart.

Although some of the things wrestlers go through are seen as extreme, I think that it is a choice that wrestlers make. All sports require discipline and sacrifice, for instance, cross country runners have to forfeit sleep in order to make it to practice at 5AM every morning, while football players basically give up their social lives in order to be in zero hour weights and practice after school. Its the little sacrifices that student athletes make that build their character and set them up for the challenges of life.

uses talent to build off of last year

By Cassie Nielsen the precedent

They went to state and lost and now their back ready to fight their way to the top. Varsity Girls Soccer is off to a good start for the season and their hopes continue to be high on making it to state. On 19 November girls soccer had a scrimmage against Peoria and won 13-0.

Junior main center Gina Bracamonte says, “ Our team is pretty well put together. There was times we were shaky because it was the very beginning, but since then we’ve done a lot better and it was a good start for us.”

On December sixth the puma girls played against Campo Verde, a team they have never played against before according to Bracamonte.

photo by Rebecca Hoffmann Senior, Ashley Dahl, looks to pass the ball back to her team at a game on Dec. 11, 2014 against Corona.

They came out on top winning 2-0. The two goals were made by Ashley Dahl and Peighton Gumm with help from Emily Romer and Kelly Canistra.

Romer kicked the ball in and the Campo goalie got a touch on it.

The ball came out to Dahl who was then able to make the goal.

“The first game is always

By Rebecca Hoffmann the precedent

Wrestling

1/7 V. Desert Vista 6:30

Boys Basketball

1/5 V. Mesquite 7:00

Girls Basketball

1/6 V. Chandler 7:00 12/19 V. Gilbert 6:00

Girls Soccer

12/19 @ Gilbert 6:00

Sports Briefs Shop with a jock It is that time of year again; the weather is cooling off, Christmas music is playing on the radio, and stores are having sales. In the chaos of the season, we forget those who are less fortunate. However sports teams are taking strides to give back this holiday season.

Student-Athletes such as Whittney and Brock Purdy, Case Hatch, some softball players, and some football players all participated in Shop With a Jock this past weekend. Shop with a Jock gave underprivileged children from Apache Junction the chance to go to the mall with a jock and some money, and shop this holiday season. It is important to look past our own lives this holiday season and give back to our community.

“I expect us to do well because we all work really hard but i think we still have a lot to improve upon until the end of the season,” says Gumm.

The Peoria scrimmage was successful along with the first game of the season against Campo. You couldn’t ask for a better start to a much anticipated season.

Johnson hopes to lead boy’s soccer to a more than “mediocre” season

Upcoming Events

Boys Soccer

rough and you always have stuff to work on and I feel like it will be a good year and we’ll make it to state again this year because we have a lot of talent,” says Dahl.

Canistra was dribbling down to the left side and made it to the in line and crossed it where Gumm was then able to make a one time hit into the goal.

photo by Sharon Cooper BOY practices dribbling the ball down the field at soccer practice.

“[Zach Johnson is] pretty much the heart of our team. We’ll go as far as he takes us.

Senior midfielder Zach Johnson is beginning his fourth season on the Varsity team at Perry, leading his team as captain. Boys varsity soccer coach John Roberts expresses his enthusiasm towards having Johnson lead them this year. “He’s pretty much the heart of our team,” says Roberts, “We’ll go as far as he takes us.”

According to Roberts and the varsity captain’s teammates, Johnson contributes to his team through leadership, skill, and example. “He brings a positive environment to practice and to games,” senior forward Cole Warner says.

“He’s a leader on the field,” Warner says. “He’s one of our best players.”

Johnson has been playing soccer since the young stages of his life, going on 13 years of experience this year. Roberts expresses Johnson’s contribution to the team as a skilled and experienced player. “By his play, he pushes everyone else to push themselves harder,” says

Roberts. “He just makes everybody better and everybody loves playing with him.”

Likewise, Johnson has grown and continues to do so by the inspiration from his teammates, “[My teammates] motivate me to be a better leader, better person, and a better player,” he says.

Johnson is anticipating to complete a successful season this year, rising from the preceding 2013-14 season. “Last season was definitely mediocre. We didn’t do too well and we didn’t do too bad,” says Johnson. “This season we’re definitely going to up that a bit.”

The boys have their expectations set high for a successful 2014-15 season. Come support the Pumas in their next home game December 19 at 6 P.M. against Gilbert.

wins and everybody gets a trophy.

The kids of our generation do not understand that you will not win every game because they are told as long as they try thats good enough.

“Failure is okay” is misinterpreted as a time to make excuses. No one cares if you succeed or not, as long you try your best. We teach kids if they strike out swinging its better than striking out looking and its okay that they did not make any shots, at least they tried. Our society does not accept failure so we say we “tried” and call it good enough.

But, every game has a winner and a loser and it’s okay to be the loser, because sometimes the other team is better. However, this is not an opportunity to makes excuses,

failure should be used as fuel and make one determined to try harder and win the next time.

Instead, we teach kids that if they fail they should make excuses.

This warped philosophy of follows them throughout their career.

Instead of trying hard they let their work go and make excuses for why it’s “good enough.”

We need to teach kids from the time that they are young, that failure is okay. We need to teach them to deal with failure by trying again and working harder instead of giving up and making excuses. Life is hard enough without learning how to fail and if the first time a kid fails is on the t-ball field life will be a lot easier than if their first failure is at a big corporate meeting.

John Roberts Boy’s Soccer Coach

”

Failure is not an option Instead of making excuses for failure we need to teach kids how to come back from failures EMMA FERNANDEZ the precedent

Thomas Edison made 1,000 useless light bulbs before making light. Henry Ford failed and went broke five times before inventing the Model T. Jerry Seinfeld was booed off stage his first time at a comedy club. Twelve publishers

rejected J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.

Failure is not optional; it happens to everyone. Samuel Beckett said, “Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter.

Try again. Fail again. Fail better.”

But this does not only apply to life.

Michael Jordan missed over 9,000 shots in his career (26 of them were to win the game). Babe Ruth led the Major League in strikeouts way before he led it in homeruns. Troy Aikman threw twice as many interceptions as he threw touchdowns and did not win a single game his first season. Hank Aaron went 0-5 in his first Major League game.

And yet our society teaches our youth that no one fails. Everybody

december || 2014

sports || 11

the precedent || phsprecedent.com

Van Haren’s “high energy” helps earn boy’s basketball their “deserved credit”

By Ryan Zolin the precedent

photo by Ethan Barnes Kyle Van Haren dribbles the ball down the court at a scrimmage. Van Haren won the MVP at the Paradise Valley Invitational.

The Perry Pumas’ basketball team made it to the semifinals last year and lost a heartbreaker to Corona del Sol 78-66.

This year the team went 4-0 in the Paradise Valley Invitational. Kyle Van Haren won the All-Tournament Player award and Markus Howard won MVP. Kyle Van Haren had a big impact and was an all around great player in the tournament.

He averaged 9.8 points per game, and 2.8 assists per game in the Paradise Valley Invitational Tournament.

“The whole tournament brought the team closer together,” said Van Haren.

New kids have joined the varsity team this year and Van Haren said he did everything in his ability to make them feel as if they are welcomed into the family. Van Haren has been playing since third grade, which shows how passionate he is for what he does.

During the season last year Van Haren and Markus Howard, Sophomore Varsity Basketball player, were close, and now they’ve gotten closer. “It’s fun to play with Kyle, he’s my best friend off the court. He brings high energy to the court” said Howard.

Van Haren said that the Pumas plan to keep up the intensity and win state this year.

“We want to have the same mentality this year…people don’t give us the credit we feel we deserve,” said Howard when asked about how the team wants to do this season.

The Pumas are currently 6-0 overall

this season (including the Paradise Valley Invitational). The team is averaging 72.7 points per game, 31.8 rebounds per game, and 12.5 assists per game. Howard is currently number one in the state in points per game with an average of 28.6 points.

John Schlangen is currently number nine in the state in rebounds with 48 rebounds on the season. That isn’t too hard for Schlangen as he is 6’5” 200 lbs. The team is well balanced all around. The offense scores, the defense doesn’t give up easy points, and all around they play to the best of their ability, which proves to have worked so far.

The Pumas were the number four seed heading into the playoffs last year. However, this year the team hopes to go into the playoffs and beat other teams just as they are capable to do so.

Van Haren is leading the steam in assists and steals per game. That shows the selflessness in his gameplay and how he plays for the team, and not for himself. Markus Howard was ranked number one overall in the preseason rankings by azcentral sports.

The Pumas are now 6-0 and are currently ranked number one in Division 1. During the season the Pumas try their best to always remain calm but it can get pretty stressful, according to Van Haren. The team keeps up the same mentality every game and that’s how they become successful.

The beginning of the season has been wellplayed for the boys thus far and if they keep it up they’ll maintain the number one seed heading into the playoffs.

Cawood looks to dominate this year after last season’s injury

By Devlin Clark the precedent

Up to this point in the season the varsity men’s wrestling team has had a successful season.

On December third they wrestled at a freedom event at Chandler High School.

They won 49-24 in this 4-way event.

Wrestling is looking to for big wins like this all season long to hopefully recoup from last season.

The top two wrestlers to keep an eye on are junior Justin Nelson who is wrestling in the 182-pound weight class and Senior heavyweight Chase Cawood who is looking

to capitalize on his last year wrestling. Last season Cawood was the number one seed going into the sectional competition and sadly had to lose his spot as a state title contender last year with an Cawood out of the blue ankle injury.

Head coach Darren Johnson said to expect great things out of the 132-pound Senior Tucker Matsen.

All of these wrestlers contributed to wrestlings recent win at Chandler High School. All three wrestlers had varsity mat time last season and put in more than their

fair share of work in the offseason to prepare for this years much anticipated season.

On November 25th the Perry men’s wrestling team as a whole competed at Basha in an unscored freedom dual. Since this meet was unscored, the wrestlers viewed the dual as just another practice.

The varsity squad also competed at the 42nd Jerry Benson Invitational tournament.

Most of us see the team walking around with their iconic shirts they can buy at this tournament.

Among the most significant wrestlers on the team are Seniors Tucker Matsen and Chase Cawood.

Another wrestler to keep an eye on is Junior wrestler Justin Nelson. Coach Johnson made a big point about all the wrestlers he saw going to events outside of the school during the offseason to earn mat time and practice so they will be better in the long run.

Many of the returning wrestlers are looking to capitalize after last years average season.

Those wrestlers who were sophomores and juniors during the 2013-2014 season who wrestled varsity are all members of the team to watch and see how they grow in the current season as they progress to the state tournament.

Girl’s basketball focuses on playing as a team this season

By Michelle Bolden the precedent

This year, the Lady Pumas are as fresh as the season. Although they lost key players who have recently graduated, they have added six eager players to the varsity roster.

In the past, the team was mostly comprised of upperclassmen and the team was faced with filling the positions of players who graduated last year. With the additions of underclassmen players, last season’s Lady Pumas were summed up as a “young” team with a skill set to match their title. However, this season the team is showing more experience and a stronger roster.

The majority of the varsity team are returning players, but six players have recently been added to the team. Among the list are freshman Taylor Jobe, sophomores

Jade Verbane, Emily Soloman and Elyse Dunn, junior Emily Wilhem, and senior Yemisi Serrano, who have brought a new energy to the team.

In terms of replacing their graduated players, head coach Brock Kearsley stated, “They had some big shoes to fill but they did a good job.”

Kearsley also says that it was difficult to practically start over last season with all the new players and lack of experience, but now that the team has gotten the hang of things, practices are running more smoothly.“They’ve gotten a lot better,” he added.

As far as team stats go, sophomore Olivia Vernon is leading scorer averaging 18.8 points a game. Right behind her are seniors Jenna Reynolds, who averages who 11.1 points a game, and Cassidee Brumby, who scores 9.8 points a game. Senior Melanie McBride is the Lady Pumas’ leading

photo by Ethan Barnes Brittany Karlik dribbles the ball at a recent, home basketball game.

re-bounder averaging 4 a game.

Even though things are looking up, just like any other team, the Lady Pumas still have their struggles.“We have a lot of players that are really good defensively but need a little work offensively [and visa versa].”

Everybody has their strong suits and the team has been doing a good job of working together and helping each other. After all, they’ve been playing together for three or four months now. Nonetheless, the Lady Pumas are ready to play hard and make their mark.

12 || sports

december || 2014

the precedent || phsprecedent.com

Sports Superstitions The staple of

sports: rituals

S

By Paige Coakley the precedent

uperstitions-everybody has them. Don’t walk under a ladder or don’t break a mirror because you will have bad luck for seven years and forget about the number 13-take Alex Rodriguez for example, whose career has taken a nose dive since switching to #13.

The most superstitious people on the planet are not wackos who run around with tinfoil on their heads.

No, they just wear jerseys and nine pairs of socks for good luck.

The most superstitious breed are athletes.

With the repetitive motion of a game, players come up with the wackiest and quirkiest routines to put them in “the zone.”

Hall of Fame Third baseman Wade Boggs, is the proud owner of the weirdest superstitions. Boggs partook in some weird rituals.

Between eating chicken every night before a game and writing “Chia,” the Hebrew word for “life,” in the dirt before batting, and starting batting practice at exactly 5:17 a.m.

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher R.A. Dickey, gets personal with his bats; he gives them nicknames One bat is called Orcrist the Goblin Cleaver and the other is

Hrunting. Dickey, an avid reader, named Orcrist from The Hobbit and Hrunting from the tale of Beowulf.

However, baseball players are not the only ones with weird pregame rituals.

Basketball player Michael Jordan used to wear his old University of North Carolina shorts under his Chicago Bulls

uniform. He claimed it was for good luck.

On the weirder side, Bruce Gardiner, an NHL forward for the Ottawa Senators, used to dip his hockey stick in the locker room toilets before each game.

Gardiner’s reasoning was because he treated his stick too nicely, and he needed to teach his stick to respect him on the ice.

It’s known to most people that athletes are a different type of people- they are driven and focused.

But one thing that sets them apart from the rest of the world is their unfailing ability to believe in “the beyond” and their funny rituals to give them a winning edge. photo illustration by Sharon Cooper and Kaitlyn Nicol

Perry teams participate in pre-game traditions

By Ryan Zolin and Paige Coakley the precedent

Many teams adopt a ritual or an action that they perform before every game, match or set. Perry High’s own sports teams are no exception.

To start, the Puma Baseball Team has a not-so-common tradition -when heading out to

away games, the boys listen to High School Musical’s “ Bet On It” to get them pumped up and ready to play.

Common in most sports teams, Puma Cross Country surrounds each other in a massive group huddle and they pray together before every track meet.

“It gets us prepared and motivated for the race” Senior

Gabby Ybarra, cross country runner, states.

In league with the Cross Country team, Perry Football also prays before every game. The prayer is led by head coach Preston Jones, followed by all football players.

The Pumas’ basketball team has one of the most peculiar superstitions. They always eat sunflower seeds when heading to

an away game. It helps the team get focused for the game in the other team’s home court.

However one staple is becoming a sport wide tradition- the Athlete Bleach. Where (mostly) male athletes are bleaching sections or all of their locks for a show of support.

It’s becoming a ritual around the country, as it brings the teams together and makes them feel as if

they are all a family. When asked how he feels about bleaching his hair for playoffs, Dillon McCabe says, “It makes us feel united”.

Every team has their own ritual and tradition that spans years.

These traditions shows how teams can be unique together.

The team that preys, eats, and bleaches hair together, stays and plays together.

Puma Athletes’ Superstitions

Brandon Bidese Age: 18

Sport: Basketball Position: Center Superstition: I wear my underwear backwards for games.

Why: It’s comfortable.

How’s it Start: First time was and accident, before a game, and I thought I played better that game.

Mahea Rubin

Age: 18

Sport: Volleyball Position: Libero Superstition: After school I have to get jamba juice, and get the same drink. Then the team has to line up in the same order to do team high fives before a game, and I have to get a piece of gum from Ryann (Davis).

Why: It’s just natural.

How’d it Start: I had never had Jamba Juice before, so the first game (the team) said ‘hey let’s get Jamba’ so I went and did really well.

Tyler Watson

Sport: Baseball Position: First Base Age: 18 and Pitcher Superstition: I have to shake my pants before stepping into the batters box, and I have to put my right batting glove on first.

Why: Because I’m tall, I have to buy big pants to fit me length wise, but it’s to big in the waist. And I get really weird about my batting gloves.

How’s it Start: I’ve just always had to do it.