Issue 6 — Feb. 12, 2010

Lazarevic to head division combo

The Juno effect With students getting different opinions and ideas of teen pregnancy from the the media, the Prospector investigates issues surrounding teen pregnancy. For more information about: • What Prospect has to say about contraceptives in school • TV’s obsession with teen pregnancy • A Q&A with a teen mom (now grown up) • Ways to get pregnancy testing

By Alex Cannella

teachers from the CTE and PE departments. Finally, there is one last interview with the Principal Board When Math/Science Division before Prospect’s suggestions get Head Jovan Lazarevic was going to sent to the District Board for final bed after a Blackhawks game, he reapproval. ceived a phone call from Principal Current PE Division Head Ross Kurt Laakso.

Giusti believes that the upcoming That night, Lazarevic learned change has potential, but will have that he had been chosen for a new some roadblocks to get past. job forming at Prospect.

“It should be an interesting sce“He just said, ‘Congratulations, nario,” Giusti said. “I’m very conyou’re in,’” fident that Lazarevic this scesaid.

“If nario will I got the work over phone call time. Howthat night, it ever, when meant I got you make the job. If I these types got the call of drastic ~ new Assistant Principal the next day, changes to Jovan Lazarevic it means I a system didn’t.” that we’ve A f t e r had in three years as the Math/Science diplace for some time, there are govision head, Lazarevic is to take on ing to be some speed bumps along a newly formed job at Prospect. the way, but nothing that can’t be First, he will be division head overcome. We’re all in a transition, of the Career Technical Education [but] we’re all just looking forward (CTE) and Physical Education (PE) to the future.” departments as the two merge to beGiusti believes that the change, come one division. though ruffling some feathers, will Second, he will also fill the role leave the PE division staff mostly of assistant principal, which is still intact, as only one staff member an undefined role, according to Lazdoes not have tenure. However, he arevic. The change is due to happen himself will be also seeing a job over the summer. change. He will be bumped down Lazarevic was chosen through a to a full-time teaching job. long process that started during “It is what it is,” Giusti winter break. The process insaid. “You have to adapt. cluded an online application I’m looking forward to gofollowed by getting letters ing back into the classof recommendation from room full time.” teachers (see Letters of Recommendation on See LAZAREVIC page 2). page 2 The last few standing then have interviews with the principal board a n d News Editor

“ This is a big

Turn to In-Depth pages 8 and 9

Inside this issue

opportunity and I get to stay at Prospect.”

Student Council to change election process, positions

By Megan Maughan News Editor

Associate Principal Greg Minter feels that an important part of a high quality and successful high school is to have a strong student government to represent their classes and make a difference in the school.

However, Minter has noticed that a lot of students don’t know much about the student class boards, what they do or how to get involved.

The lack of publicity for the student class boards prompted the need for change in Prospect’s student government and the election process. The new process is not clearly defined yet, but according to Minter, now there will be some executive positions in the individual class boards and an overall executive government for the entire school.

Minter said that someone who wants to apply for an executive board position will have to go through a process that will involve some sort of application, maybe an essay, have a couple teacher recommendations and then be interviewed.

If the students can pass the application process, then they will be able to present to the school and then the student body will be able to vote who will get the positions.

Minter feels that by letting the students

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Sports page 14

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elect who they want to represent them, students will be able to play a more active role in the student government. He hopes that by publicizing student government more, a larger number of students will have the opportunity to become involved and make decisions for their class.

Another reason why Prospect’s student government is changing is because there previously weren’t defined positions in each class board, which would sometimes lead to confusion on the amount of responsibility each person on the board held.

“Since people don’t necessarily have positions, they don’t really feel compelled to follow through,” Minter said. “We want to make them feel important and responsible enough to be able to follow through on what they have to do and to care about their job.”

According to Minter, the final decision on the changes of the student government will be made in a few weeks, and elections will most likely be held in April so that the new positions can start planning for next year. The elections will be for positions for next year, and Minter is optimistic about the effects of the upcoming change. “[Being on the class boards is] something students can feel really proud of, and now they can really make an impact at the school,” Minter said. “It’s a chance for everyone to get a voice.”

Jersey Shore showdown Two Prospector staff writers take a stance on one of the most influential and important aspects of today’s American culture: Jersey Shore. To read the dueling columns, see...

Opinion page 5

2

NEWS

Friday, February 12, 2010

Math department writes new equation for math track kid that comes through the honors program in mathematics at least has the opportunity to get to BC The Math and Science Department Calculus,” Lazarevic said.

Based on research conducted is familiar with incoming freshmen before they ever enter Prospect. Current- through the University of Texas ly, each student is placed, based on the as well as other local high-achieving results of their placement exams and school districts, Lazarevic found that algebra placement tests, into Algebra restructuring the sequence of math 470, Honors Advanced Algebra 480 or courses could not only promote more success in math, but is also associated 490 or Geometry 472.

However, the middle ground of Ge- with stronger ACT scores. “[The research] told us that students ometry 472 will not be offered next year, as the sequence of math courses will who took geometry earlier in their cachange for the class of 2014. Instead reer did better on standardized tests of being divided into several different later,” Lazarevic said.

Most importantly though, Lazarevic courses as freshmen, students will either take Honors Geometry or Algebra feels that it is important for students to appro470. priately For sophochalleng e The new math track mores, the t h e m honors math selves. track will Freshmen: Algebra I or Honors Geometry “These consist of are honors Honors Ad- Sophomores: Geometry or Honors Advanced kids that vanced Alge- Algebra are going bra followed to do very by placement Juniors: Algebra II, Honors Pre-Calculus 80s or 90s well on the — either by a s t a n d a rd test, teacher ized tests recommenda- Seniors: Math electives including AP Calculus AB a n y w a y, ” tion or a comLazarevic bination of the two — into Honors Presaid. “I’m more concerned about getCalculus at either the 80s or 90s level.

According to Math and Science Divi- ting them more college credit at the sion Head Jovan Lazarevic, streamlin- end, or at least giving them the rigor of ing the progression of math classes is a college course.”

Another factor contributing to the a way to challenge students and introduce as many as possible to the rigors restructured math sequence is the fact that many students move between the of a college-level math class.

“I wanted to make sure that every levels throughout the first two years in

By Katie Ritchie Editor-in-Chief

LAZAREVIC: new job’s pros and cons explained CONTINUED from front page Prospect is not the first school to see this change. Wheeling merged its CTE and PE departments three years ago, but unlike Prospect, the assistant principal and division head roles that Lazarevic will be filling were divided between the heads of the two divisions.

Kevin Muck, Wheeling’s current CTE and PE division head, has seen both pros and cons to the switch.

On the positive side, bringing the two divisions together has allowed for a significant amount of exchanged ideas and integrated curriculum.

According to Muck, the situation did have its rough patches at first, but they were eventually smoothed over. In the

Letters of Recommendation The application process for Lazarevic’s new position included candidates getting letters of recommendation. Both social science division head Gary Judson and English and Fine Arts Division Head Erin DeLuga wrote Lazarevic recommendation letters.

The letters themselves are much like college recommendation letters.

According to Judson, the letters focus on looking at the candidate’s past experience and strengths as a leader.

“He’s been very effective in the math/science room, and he has experience in both divisions so he has the credentials,” DeLuga said.

Judson and DeLuga also gave examples of personal experience

end, he’s happy with his current job.

“At the end of the day ... I’ve broadened my perspective and dealt with more issues,” Muck said. “I’ve become a better administrator.”

Despite the hurdles to overcome, Lazarevic is looking forward to his upcoming job as the new CTE and PE division head. He remembers being “excited and happy” when he learned that he was the one picked for the job.

“This is a big opportunity, and I get to stay at Prospect,” Lazarevic said. “That was the big piece for me. The staff is fantastic and professional. There’s been a lot of support from above and that’s fantastic…2000 great kids. When you’re in an environment like that, you don’t want to give that up. It’s pretty easy to want to stay someplace like that.” working alongside Lazarevic. DeLuga believes that Lazarevic is “an advocate of the direction our school is moving in.” She thinks that as the school begins to adopt an emphasis on literacy in all classes, Lazarevic “is going to be really good about advocating that.”

Judson believes that one of Lazarevic’s biggest strengths is how he is a team player and thus the man for the job.

“We’ve been working with [Lazarevic] for the past two years,” Judson said. “We’ve worked pretty closely with curriculum ideas. He’s always been the kind of person you can bounce ideas off of and make things better. I think that’s his goal: how can he make things better for not just the teachers, but also the students?”

h i g h school, so having one uniform class allows everyone to learn together before breaking off into the more definitive Pre-Calculus classes.

Though students will ultimately be learning the same material as they would have before, 80s and 90s classes typically move at a different pace, so the curriculum of Honors Geometry for freshmen will be somewhat unique to the class.

According to Lazarevic, the class will focus on reviewing algebra skills, learning the fundamentals of geometry and learning how to think critically. In some respects, it could be more challenging for kids who would have traditionally been placed in 80s.

“It’s similar to an Honors Lit or an AP Human Geography,” Lazarevic said.

“There are kids who are going to excel.

How do you challenge those kids appropriately and how do you challenge the kid that might be toward the bottombased on data points?

“I think we’re going to challenge the students that you would consider a 90s kid to the appropriate level and

GRAPHIC BY KATIE RITCHIE

we’re definitely going to try and raise the rigor for kids that would be in 80s,” Lazarevic said.

The range of students’ math skills will admittedly pose an obstacle for teachers, but Lazarevic is confident that the teachers who are chosen to teach the class will rise to the challenge.

“It’s going to be a teacher struggle for some things,” Lazarevic said, “but the teachers who have volunteered for it are motivated and truly believe in this philosophy and see the benefit of it for kids.”

Though the new math sequence will take some adjustments for both students and teachers, Lazarevic believes that the change will undoubtedly benefit students.

“We as a group are constantly looking and re-looking at curriculum and making sure that we can challenge kids, and that we can move kids who need that appropriate challenge.”

NEWS

3

Friday, February 12, 2010

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Wha t ma “bac de n k in ews day? the ”

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Putting pieces together Entrepreneurship class wins first place GRAPHIC BY KAROLINA CHWALA

PROS

PECT OR SA FE

49 Year

s Ago

The Prospect Boosters acquired a miniature Knight statue to present to the school as a mascot. The new Knight had no name, so the Boosters announced a Knight-naming contest with a cash prize of $25 for the student who submitted the winning entry.

37 Year

s Ago

Then Prospect Spanish teacher, Dr. Daniel Moore, was always known as an enthusiastic scuba diver by his students.

But Moore surprised them when he went from teacher to sky-diving student.

“I had seen the bottom of the ocean, so I wanted to view earth from a different angle,” Moore said.

18 Year

s Ago

Executive News Editor

For the past two years, Prospect’s entrepreneurship class has traveled to DePaul University to present their business plans to a panel of judges, including the founder of the entrepreneurship program at DePaul. Competing with Rolling Meadows High School on both occasions, for the first time Prospect brought home first place (see Winners).

According to senior Allison Malewig, from the beginning the class has been working on their business ideas for presentation at Depaul University. The competition consisted of “basically a standard presentation” contrary to the beliefs of fellow students when they saw the entrepreneurship students dressedup for the event. Everyone was shuffled into a small lecture hall where each business team provided a five-minute presentation discussing their business idea (see The ideas).

Afterwards, about two minutes were allotted for judges to ask questions such as, “Is there a need for this business?” and, “How will your team go about running the business?” and to assess the faith and potential success of the students’ ideas.

According to entrepreneurship teacher Paul Hennig, the win was exciting, but not unexpected, because he believes his students were “prepared, successful in presenting their ideas and really displayed their confidence in those ideas.”

Hennig thinks that some of the victory is attributed to the warm-ups they had in class where students presented their ideas to Principal Kurt Laakso, Associate Principal Michelle Dowling, and other faculty.

“It’s hard to say [the reason Prospect won]; I don’t think we knew we’d blow [the competition] out that badly, but we were confident and had good ideas,” senior Kenny Halloran said.

Winners - Overall Champions: Seniors Brock Galyon and Kenny Halloran for Hop_On - First Place runner up: Seniors Artur Pajolek and Fil Blaszczyk for i-Phixx - Second place runner up: Seniors Alison Malewig and Katie Nopar for weAREable hope (pronounced wearable hope)

The ideas

According to senior Allison Malewig, near the end of October, she and her partner, senior Katie Nopar, were thinking of a name for their business.

Accidentally spelling the business wrong, they came upon weAREable hope (pronounced wearable hope).

Their business consists of selling “I’m colorblind“ t-shirts, and half of the profit they make will go to the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) which works to empower women, eliminate racism, and help low income families.

Seniors Kenny Halloran and Brock Galyon who were the overall champions of the competition came up with the idea Hop_On, as in “hop on board with it”.

According to Galyon, they had noticed that eco-friendly grocery bags were becoming more popular, which is why they chose to create them with school logos to distribute to schools in the district.

For Malewig, the hardest part is going to be what is ahead and trying to generate a profit.

“It’s a fun class, but [the class] really requires a lot of mind-work and just having faith in what you’re doing,” Malewig said.

The wei It’s weird, it’s wacky...

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READ ALL ABOUT IT!

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Prospect offered AP Physical Education (AP PE) for the first time at Prospect.

It was an every day gym class that put special emphasis on personal fitness, and taught students the proper way to condition.

Each week, students lifted weights on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, leaving Tuesdays for cardiovascular conditioning and Fridays for classroom discussions. Once a month, the class would run the hills at Melas Park, and once the class took a field trip to Busse Woods, where students were responsible for running 10 miles.

By Karolina Chwala

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The junior leaders gym class organized a fundraiser during Rock-O-Gym to raise money for Enterprise High School, a school in Enterprise, Ala., that in a matter of 30 seconds was destructed by a two-yard wide tornado. Throughout all eight periods of the day, donations were collected and t-shirts sold.

For the next month a few Holiday Inn Hotels will be offering a “human bed-warming” service.

Before you go to bed, you can call the front desk and ask them to send up a “human bedwarmer”. This person then will arrive at your door, completely dressed in a fleece suit, and lay in your bed for five minutes before you go to sleep.

Studies assessed by the Edinburgh Sleep Center have shown that a warm bed will help you fall asleep faster.

Due to the winter being particularly cold this year, Holiday Inn wanted to find some way to help their costumers sleep. This was their solution.

nd

When t h freshm e seniors we r en thre e years e ago

Paperboy’s Verdict: I honestly hope the employees allowed into your room have had an extra background check done. I’d hate to get the maniac.

Even if they did turn out to be normal, should you talk to them or just sit around staring at the wall while you wait for your bed to be warm enough? If you have a king-sized bed or you are a couple, do you think they send up two “bedwarmers” and do they charge for one or two? I almost feel as bad for the “bed-warmer” as I do for the costumer. I can’t think of a more awkward job. What if you were the bed warmer and the customer asked you to stay five more minutes – would you charge them extra?

OPINION

4

Friday, February 12, 2010

“To write love” breaks silence on depression

The Staff MANAGING EDITOR Kate Schroeder COPY EDITOR Mike Hammersley ASSOCIATE EDITORS-IN-CHIEF Kelly Rose McAleer Neel Thakkar NEWS EDITORS Karolina Chwala Alex Cannella Megan Maughan OPINION EDITORS Gina O’Neill Emmy Lindfors FEATURES EDITORS Sharon Lee Beth Rowe IN-DEPTH EDITORS Keelan Murphy Deanna Shilkus ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Marlo Koch SPORTS EDITORS P.J. Kennedy Riley Simpson Brian Thomas PHOTO EDITORS Mika Evans Jen Bielat Danny Cubberly Ian Magnuson Amanda Mlikan CARTOONISTS Quinn Blackshere Nicolette Fudala ADVISER Jason Block Some material is courtesy of the American Society of Newspaper Editors/MCT Campus High School Newspaper Service.

Published by students in Journalistic Writing courses, the Prospector has won, most notably, the 2004-05 and 2006-07 National Scholastic Press Association Pacemaker and the Gold Crown from Columbia Scholastic Press Association in 2006.

Mission Statement The primary purpose of the Prospect High School Prospector is to report news as well as explain its meaning and significance to our readers and the community. We, the Prospector, hope to inform, entertain and provide a school forum for the unrestricted exchange of ideas and opinions.

Advertising For ad rates, call (847) 7185376 (ask for Kate Schroeder), fax (847) 718-5306 e-mail or write the Prospector, 801 West Kensington Rd., Mount Prospect, IL 60056, prospectornow@ gmail.com.

Letters to the Editor Drop off letters to the Prospector in the box in the library, in Rm. 216 or email letters to prospectornow@gmail.com. All letters must be signed. Please limit letters to 400 words. The Prospector reserves the rights to edit letters for style and length.

Staff Editorial

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Katie Ritchie

In the spring of 2006, Jamie Tworkowski posted a blog on MySpace. The twopage-long story, entitled “To Write Love on Her Arms,” detailed his friend Renee’s struggles with depression and substance abuse.

“Renee is 19,” Tworkowski wrote in his story. “When I meet her, cocaine is fresh in her system. She hasn’t slept in 36 hours and she won’t for another 24. It is a familiar blur of coke, pot, pills and alcohol. She has agreed to meet us, to listen and to let us pray.”

Renee was on the verge of death after attempting suicide and self-mutilation.

When Tworkowski finally convinced Renee to check into rehab, every treatment center denied her, believing that she wouldn’t even be able to make it through a detox program.

Despite the denial, Tworkowski and his friends remained steadfast; if a formalized program wouldn’t take in Renee, they would.

For the next five days, Tworkowski and his friends took care of Renee, keeping her safe, sober and positive.

Eventually, they helped Re-

nee find a rehab program vest directly into treatment and turn her life around. and recovery,” the Facebook In order to fund Renee’s page says. treatment, Tworkowski In the past, depression printed the title of his sto- has been a taboo topic. Too ry, “To Write Love on Her often, it’s confused with Arms,” on T-shirts and sold simply being sad or emothem, publicizing his efforts tional. But according to the on MySpace.

World Health Organization After awhile, thousands (WHO), one person dies of posted stories of their own suicide every 40 seconds. By struggles with depression the year 2020, it is estimated and suicide, forming a net- that this rate will increase work of support. Thus, the to one suicide every 20 secorganization “To onds.

Write Love on Because of Her Arms” was the alarming born. rise in suicide Since 2006, the rates, we, the blog post evolved Prospector, beto a nonprofit orlieve that suiganization with cide is a subject For Against that a Facebook page should boasting over not be tiptoed Voting results of the 140,000 fans. On Prospector staff in regards around.

Feb. 12, the group Though it to this editorial. is hosting the can be emosecond “To Write tionally touchy Love On Her Arms” Day for some, addressing suisince November, encourag- cide openly is the only way ing people to literally write to spread awareness, our the word “love” on their strongest weapon against arms to spread solidarity one of the most common and awareness against sui- killers of young adults in cide. the U.S. “To Write Love on Her In light of spreading Arms” exists to encourage, awareness, we applaud inform, inspire and also in- Prospect for informing

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teachers, students and administrators about the risk of depression through the Erika’s Lighthouse initiative. This program was presented to teachers at an institute day to inform them about depression and how to spot at risk students in a school setting.

To inform students, a representative from Erika’s Lighthouse will speak to them during lunch hours at the end of February. Furthermore, the Prospector will run a story about the epidemic of depression in next issue.

High school tends to be all about appearances. Not only do girls flock to the the bathroom mirrors during passing periods to perfect their eyeliner, but they cover up their emotions with fake smiles, trying live up to the expectation that high school is “the best time of your life.”

We urge students to let down their guards and talk to others. As Tworkowski’s story shows, sometimes all it takes is simply caring for someone in need to turn someone’s life around.

Haiti: Why did we wait?

COURTESY OF ASSOCIATED PRESS

Families were torn apart, children separated from their mothers and people anxiously awaited the news about lost family and friends. As the 7.0 magnitude earthquake s t r u c k Haiti Jan. 12, 200,000 people were buried alive in rubble.

Help Maggie Devereux w a s n ’ t there fast Staff Writer enough as a lack of doctors and food rose about the city of Port-au-Prince. People frantically tried to help, but for the injured Haitians and those trapped beneath the remains of their homes, time was of the essence.

In response to the massive quake, President Barack Obama and former Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton all came together for Haiti relief efforts. It showed that together, they unite to help a country that has faced disaster. It promoted others to act to support a country in need.

George Clooney organized a national telethon that included Alicia Keys, Bruce Springsteen, Jay-Z, Beyonce, Rihanna, Keith Urban and Halle Berry, who all sang to raise awareness and show how even celebrities are teaming up to donate for the relief (see “Hope for Haiti”). The telethon, titled “Hope For Haiti Now,” showed that the Haitian people were not alone.

Both these events made people realize just how much Haiti needed our help. The photos of destructed buildings, injured people and scared chil-

dren drove people to care. The realization that was lacking, however, was that the Haitian people actually needed our help long before the earth began to shake.

Help isn’t supposed to be offered with exceptions or when the benefits work both ways.

Yet that seems to be the way that help is working when it takes an earthquake to bring in donations from the government as well as private organizations and telethons. If people want to help, it needs to be all the time, not when things turn “worst-case-scenario.”

From the Obama administration’s texting program, where participants could text ‘Haiti’ to 9099 to donate $10, over $5 million was donated to the Red Cross Haiti Relief Fund. “Hope For Haiti Now” brought in more than $66 million, and companies such as Google, PepsiCo, Walmart and Comcast have been giving a thousand to a million a piece.

With all that money being raised for Haiti, I ask the question: why now?

For many years, Haiti has dealt with government instability. Beginning as a colony of Europe, Haiti was wealthy.

Once they gained their indeHaiti has countless other pendence, though, the econo- problems plaguing the counmy never developed again. try. Their education standards Since then, Haiti has strug- are well below average with gled to find stable governmen- nearly half the population iltal leaders; various presidents literate. With low education have been standards, the overthrown On Prospectornow.com... country lacks the or are inability to create For more on how to help capable of new innovations out Haiti in the long run, directing a that will encourcountry. age economic recheck out the “ Y o u covery. most recent throw that According to edition of [governtravelhaiti.com, “Raising ment instaonly 20 percent the bility] on of the populaBarr.” top of the tion has access earthquake to adequate sanielements, tation facilities, and you have a poor nation and about half the population with a poor governmental has access to improved water structure,” AP Government sources. teacher Michael Sebestyen Without proper living consaid. “And now you have just ditions and the fact that only 24 added more chaos.” percent of births are attended Sure, we never had that by a skilled professional, Haiti much to gain by helping Hai- has an infant mortality rate of ti, but that shouldn’t matter. 79 children dying per 1,000.

There were poor, sick and hunPoverty has always been gry people in Haiti, but no one part of Haiti; the earthquake seemed to care. They didn’t didn’t bestow it upon them. have oil or another natural re- Texting a number to donate source to offer us, but they did $10 is truly going to help the offer the satisfaction of know- Haitian people. These results ing that by giving, you were are short term; sure, they will changing someone’s life. provide food for now, but when it comes to rebuilding their homes and lives, the Haitians “Hope for Haiti” album best-selling tracks: need stability on which they can depend.

1. “A Message 2010” by Coldplay If organizations really 2. “I’ll Stand by You (with The Roots)” by Shakira cared about Haiti, they would 3. “Breathless” by Taylor Swift have been helping long before 4. “Lift Me Up” by Christina Aguilera Jan. 12. Destruction can open 5. “Halo” by Beyoncé our eyes, but that does nothing 6. “Lean on Me (with Keith Urban & Kid Rock)” by Sheryl Crow for poor countries like Haiti 7. “Hallelujah (with Charlie Sexton)” by Justin Timberlake that are struggling right now.

8. “Let It Be (The Roots)” by Jennifer Hudson If it means that an earthquake 9. “Alone and Forsaken (with Dave Mathews)” by Neil Young must occur to make people 10. “Stranded (with Rihanna, Bono & The Edge)” by Jay-Z give, then they don’t really care about caring.

INFO COURTESY OF ITUNES

OPINION

5

Friday, February 12, 2010

Showdown at the ‘Shore’ ‘Jersey Shore’ full of fun and fist pumps

By Gina O’Neill

Executive Opinion Editor

Pizza, pasta, a little sauce and the “Jersey Shore.” All create a combo that electrifies the sky, singing, “THAT’S AMORE!” “The Jersey Shore” is the highest-rated reality TV show in MTV history, raking in 4.8 million viewers by the end of the season. The quest for booze, boys, broads and bruschetta not only entertains millions of Americans, but it also brings our school and fellow youth closer with an important common theme: the desire to party.

When I say “party,” I don’t mean going out and getting wasted, but the idea that we could be plunked in a house in the heart of Seaside Heights, N.J., do nothing but have fun for months and get paid for it is idealistic and savory to anyone with an appetite for adventure.

High schoolers and college students have this grand appetite, and for a channel mostly viewed by young people, MTV makes an even grander profit off the adolescent hunger.

Cast members Snooki, Pauly D, Mike “The Situation,” Vinny, Sammie, Jenn

(Jwoww) and Ronnie brightened our lives with their typical 20s antics and fun a c cents.

“Jersey Shore” is relatable — and that’s key. Who doesn’t want to parade through town and come home when the day breaks during their 20s? Youth and rebellion are as inseparable as Welter and Bellof, and “Jersey Shore” displays that magnificently.

Yet it’s still not my goal in life to spend it partying.

The show is not proliferating the lives of adolescents in a negative way or turning the brains of America into jello shots.

It’s amusing to watch people live vibrantly, and it’s reassuring to see t h a t t h e y get into fights and have drama just like the rest of us.

Sophomore Nick Wendling, a self-described “Jersey Shore” super fan, says that he

initially watched the show because he thought it would be pathetic and something to laugh at. As he saw the drama and the amusement unfurl, he found that he could “identify with these people.”

“Every person in the cast relates to your group of friends,” Wendling said. “It’s entertaining, and I can relate to it. I see myself in the same situations.”

Wendling always likes going out and dancing, and he performs the infamous “fist pump” dance move every day in his World History class whenever his teacher, Tim Beisher, turns around (see How to fist pump).

“I pump my fists better than anyone else I hang out with,” Wendling said.

“I get excited, and I fist pump. I started doing it at Club Sky, and everyone started around me.”

“Jersey Shore” has also changed Wendling’s life physically due to the “juiced-up” bods gracing the shore.

“I started working out religiously after the first episode,” Wendling said. “Moobs to pecs in three weeks, sweetheart!”

“Jersey Shore” inspires fun and happiness, which is something all teenagers NEED in their life. Sure, the ACT is coming up, the college question is looming and we have more homework than Snooki does hair spray.

H o w e v e r, in order to push through all the stress, w e need ways to amuse ourselves. So, not only

can watching “Jersey Shore” be one of them, but spontaneous fist pumping works well, too!

Because of how popular Jersey Shore is, it’s brought people closer together. Now, if there’s an awkward silence, people can pull “The Jersey Shore card” and the awkwardness slips away; the silence is filled with character discussions and laughs. It’s a conversation starter, an ice breaker — much more amusing than, “Is it supposed to rain tonight?”

The more the cast members are judged, the more popular they become.

The cast is paid to go out and “pump” up the crowd — literally — with the whole group making up to $30,000 at a venue.

Taking the top spot, Snooki is shelled $7500 for each gig with each other member following suit, such as Ronnie and Sammie’s package deal of $3,000, according to aceshowbiz.com.

Concerning the second season for “Jersey Shore,” the location is still being debated, but MTV reports that it will definitely be somewhere warm and air in the summer.

With all the popularity of the show comes outrage from Italian-American groups all over the country. According to Us Weekly, the New Jersey Italian American Caucus wanted MTV to strip the network of the show because of its “derogatory ethnic stereotypes” and “wildy offensive nature.”

The National Italian American Foundation thought the show was reflecting ItalianAmericans in a negative light,

and President Joseph V. Del Raso believes that the characters have “more in common with the adolescent residents of Animal House than with Italian-Americans.”

But isn’t that the point? The people on Jersey Shore aren’t meant to be a representation of Italian-Americans, just young people having fun. Yes, they are proud of their Italian heritage, but everyone should be proud of their background.

If people let every racial stereotype represent the whole, most TV shows wouldn’t be on the air. People are angry because they feel “Jersey Shore” shows Italian-Americans as juiced-up, orange-tanned idiots, but that’s the same as saying that “The Sopranos” shows every Italian as a member of the mob, which is an undoubtedly false idea.

Reality TV can’t survive without colorful personalities, and even though the people on “Jersey Shore” are ItalianAmerican, their personalities and ethnic backgrounds aren’t mutually inclusive or exclusive.

As an Italian-American, I can honestly say that I am not offended by “guidette” or the other actions of “Jersey Shore” cast members. I don’t compare myself to them just because we share a background, either.

Also, some of the qualities of Italian-Americans seen on the show aren’t necessarily negative, especially the need for a good family structure.

Therefore, I say pass the mostaccioli and cheese — I’m hungry for a second season.

3. Eventually, you raise your arm in the air until you can’t raise it anymore while pumping your fist.

“You’re trying to do it better than anyone else,” Wendling said. “Not violent, but fighting the beat. It’s to show off any arm muscle you have.

“It gives you something to do with your hands because most guys don’t know what to do with their hands.”

How to fist pump 1. According to sophomore Nick Wendling, start with pounding the floor when the “beat starts going,” which represents fighting the beat.

2. Next, start to rise and pound your fist in the air.

To pound your fist, make a “V” with your arm, move your upper arm in a “circular motion but up and down at the same time.”

Just when you thought New Jersey couldn’t get any worse...

By Andy Barr Staff Writer

To deny that “Jersey Shore” is anything more than trash TV is complete and utter lunacy.

The show’s primary purpose is seemingly nothing more than the herding of an extraordinarily stupid, extremely impassioned group of people into a bordello-esque setting while emotional turmoil and major character flaws slowly destroy what minute capacity for rational thought remains in them.

The show has gained popularity not because of brilliant casting efforts or even basic acting ability.

The reason that so many Americans find themselves drawn to such a program is the same reason why scientists are drawn to study rats in a cage: varied responses and adaptations to changes in environment and emotional state have fascinated humanity since the dawn of science.

“Jersey Shore” was intended as a magnification of particular behavioral tendencies exhibited by certain members of a specific demographic group.

Indeed, from “Leave it to Beaver” to “16 and Pregnant,” Americans have always sought television subjects to both admire and disdain.

“The situation” with “Jersey Shore” is that it brings to light a subset of the population best left far from the public eye, for after too long, the highly-stereotyped figures of the self-proclaimed

“guidos” and “guidettes” will become ingrained in the eyes of viewers, and the violence, promiscuity and utter contemptibility exhibited by members of the cast will become associated with Italian-Americans, denizens of New Jersey and those who “spray-tan.”

The primary objection to a show like “Jersey Shore” is simply that ethnicity is so predominant, and the behavior of those flaunting that ethnicity is abhorrent.

As a result of the inevitable false attitudes towards Italian-Americans as a result of “Jersey Shore,” hate crimes and racially motivated violence akin to the riots of 1967 may again become a sad reality.

What now seems like inconsequential interracial ribaldry may manifest itself in a bolder form if “Jersey Shore” continues. One can only imagine the reaction of the public to shows highlighting other unrepresentative racial groups behaving reprehensibly.

Certainly, the media has used the racial strategy to its advantage before, in shows like “Welcome back, Kotter,” “The Jeffersons” and “George Lopez,” but seldom has it portrayed ethnic

groups negatively, as MTV has done.

It’s a slippery slope; today, it’s the unflattering and utterly unrepresentative focus on greased-up, fist pumping, mentally impoverished Italians, and tomorrow it’s the mass portrayal of southern whites as Simon Legree-like taskmasters imprisoning an impecunious workforce.

It is the wonderful diversity of the United States that has created conditions fostering the development of so many advancements in science, medicine and the arts, a diversity upon which our nation was founded.

Indeed, diversity of ideology and variety of interaction are integral parts of our education.

Since our school sadly lacks in significant demographic heterogeneity, we must look elsewhere for instruction.

Let us embrace true diversity, through music, literature and other means, instead of turning to the misleading antics of those on “Jersey Shore” whose behavior does nothing for society but shake the powder keg of relative interracial equanimity.

For those who watch “Jersey Shore” simply for the laughs, and not for a cultural learning experience, take heed. It is easy to laugh as others are ostracized,

Hate crimes and racially motivated violence akin to the race riots of 1967 may again become reality.

while we sit comfortably detached.

To paraphrase the words of German theologian Martin Niemöller in 1946,“First they came for the guidos, and I did not speak out — because I was not a guido; then they came for the Mathletes, and I did not speak out — because I was not a Mathlete; then they came for me — and there was no one left to speak out for me.”

OPINION

6

Friday, February 12, 2010

Uncovering Nancy Drew There’s a girl living among you and I. She lives in libraries and travels across the globe. She meets people who she uncovers to be murderers and hunts down acquaintances who turn out to be thieves. Out of all her cases, only one criminal has escaped. She does it all alone with no help, unlike her fellow mystery solving friends, the Hardy Boys.

She’s Nancy Drew, the girl detective that has been solving mysteries for 80 years now (not aging a bit), traveling across the Emmy Lindfors globe, meeting Opinion Editor different people and learning new skills and even languages. She’s a cultural icon and a legend that people all over the world will know for another 80 years.

When I was younger, I read all of the Nancy Drew books in the library.

As I read them, Nancy constantly made me jealous, even as a fictional character written by many authors under the pseudonym Carolyn Keene. I loved how Nancy was fearless to confront villains as well as being a well-rounded person. It was a dream that I wanted to live.

The only aspect that isn’t a part of that dream is constantly getting knocked unconscious, being locked in a confined space with limited air, tied to a chair, having a habit of being around fire and having people all over the world want to hurt or, in some cases, kill you. There’s also the possibility that you’re friends and/ or family will get kidnapped.

Nancy Drew is amazing in multiple ways. She’s a 18-year-old girl who can solve mysteries and while doing so, meets new people, learns new skills (like flying a plane) and gets to see the many sights that the world offers.

Also, Nancy can easily get out of sticky situations that she finds herself in.

If her hands are tied to a chair, no problem — the culprit left a sharp object nearby.

If there’s a fire around her, there just happens to be a fire extinguisher around. Of course, that’s just pure Nancy Drew luck, and it happens in every situation she’s in.

Nancy knows that she can get out of situations without anyone’s help, which is good for a detective. You

Arglefumph­: The trusty sidekick The Nancy Drew computer games, created by HerInteractive, have become my best friend.

My friend, Maddy, and I have both played the games and “enjoyed” the difficult, frustrating puzzles. We both have our ways of completing them, Maddy works her way through them, occasionally checking online, while I go to YouTube and visit my friend, arglefumph, a.k.a Michael Gray, who does video walk-throughs for all of the Nancy Drew computer games, where he plays the game and shows viewers how to beat each section.

“I saw somebody else making video walkthroughs, so I decided to try it myself,” Gray said. “I had no idea the Nancy Drew videos would be popular.”

I discovered Gray over last winter break, where I received the newest Nancy Drew mystery computer game, “Nancy Drew: Warnings at Waverly Academy.” I was determined to finish the game.

I hadn’t ever beat/finished a Nancy Drew game, due to the frustrating puzzles.

HerInteractive makes game guides for the Nancy Drew games, but I found them to be hardly helpful. They don’t give much away, thus not helping me much. So I went on YouTube and found Gray’s channel. He helped me immensely and I was able to finally beat a Nancy Drew game. I felt like with the help of Gray he could help me beat the other games I had.

Gray’s walk throughs are not only helpful but they are hilarious. I started watching Gray’s videos during winter break and I haven’t stopped since. He makes quirky comments and tends to think out loud, adding humor to the walk throughs.

One of Gray’s best commentary is while he is playing mini-golf in “Nancy Drew: Secret of the Old Clock,” based off of the first Nancy Drew novel by the original Carolyn Keene.

“I guess [Secret of the Old Clock] was an okay game.

don’t want to trust anyone you have as a suspect because they could easily pull a fast one, not pulling Nancy out of a ditch and running away with the treasure.

A fun part of Nancy is hearing about these lunatics with their “perfect” plans to kill someone then get away with it.

They tell her their wacky plan and think that once they lock her inside the burning building, she won’t be able to get out; thus, their insane plan will never be uncovered, but they are later fooled when they’re in handcuffs riding in the back of a squad car thanks to Nancy Drew.

Beside the Nancy Drew mystery novels, there are 21 Nancy Drew computer games (see Arglefumph)

GRAPHICS BY EMMY LINDFORS

I was just really, really... bad at it so I didn’t like it very much,” Gray said. “It took me a half hour to beat the golfing section of the game and I wasn’t good at the sewing section of the game either. Apart from those challenges, which took me forever to do, it was an okay game.”

Gray gets frustrated by having to make par on the course, something you must do in order to move forward in the game. Gay says over and over, “”I’ve made par for the course, but unfortunately there’s two more holes,” and talks back to Nancy saying, “I’ll hit you too hard, Nancy” and “Oh! Shut up, Nancy!”

But Gray is most known for his Nancy Drew walk through for “Nancy Drew: Message in the Haunted Mansion.”

During the game, Nancy, not surprisingly, encounters a fire. Unfortunately, Gray gets mad at the game because it moves Nancy toward the fire, with her saying, “Fire!” over and over again. Nancy then dies and Gray complains that the game wouldn’t let him back away. He tries once again, grabbing the fire extinguisher nearby and put out the fire.

The best part of the entire walkthrough is when Nancy wakes up and goes to her door, where a letter was just slipped under. She picks it up and the letter reads “LEAVE THE MANSION NOW!” As Gray said, he “gets overly scared by the message.”

Overly scared doesn’t even begin to cover it. Gray screams louder than the music at a school dance and yelling, “Leave the Mansion now! Oh! I’m afraid!”

Thankfully I didn’t have head phones in otherwise I’m pretty sure my ear drums would have been blown out.

Gray entertains me over and over. I have watched all of his Nancy Drew walk throughs and have enjoyed each one. When I play the Nancy Drew computer games, he’s my trusty sidekick, helping me get through the challenging puzzles the games have to offer.

that have me living the Nancy Drew goes solves a case that has been preadventure, even though the people sented with.

I meet are animated and the places She also never freaks out and look too much like keeps a straight, a fantasy, like a calm face with a beach with pink touch of disgust sand. due to what the The games culprit did. In have somewhat Nancy’s novels, trained me for I can read what detective work. she’s thinking, They let me think and she’s not conout situations and cerned that she figure out that becould possibly die, ing Nancy Drew she’s focused on would be perfect. Nancy and I both looking for a way to get out of the have great memories and are very situation. Her mind is clear of the observant. We note everything we level of danger. I’m pretty sure that see, including the little things, like I wouldn’t have a straight mind if I if someone got a had someone hair trim or they threatening Greetings from... got new shoes. me at gunIn other point. words, I would N a n c y love to be a deis fearless tective like Nanwhen it cy Drew. Nancy comes to is independent ghosts. She and knowledgalways enable on various counters subjects. She is “ghosts.” a good role modThe only el to everyone, ghosts I even if she is a fictional character. could handle are the friendly ones is Nancy doesn’t need the help of the Haunted Mansion at the Disney her boyfriend for 78 years, Ned, theme parks. when it comes to solving cases.

Even though I may not live in liShe’s the one in the braries and shining armor and I don’t have doesn’t go mushy friends that gushy around him, are detective unlike boyfriends solving brothand girlfriends in ers, I know other novels where that I will althey are loveyways idolize dovey, which is a the girl detecgiant puke-fest. tive and her She sets her mind sixth sense on doing somefor solving thing, leaving Ned mysteries. in the dust, as she

Icicle Creek

FEATURES They all say....

7

Friday, February 12, 2010

“We want you to vote!” ...so why don’t we?

Alexi Giannoulias Democrat for Senate

Mark Kirk Republican for Senate

In a survey of 85 seniors...

-34 were eligible to vote -26 chose not to vote -13 claimed not to have access to information about the election

PHOTO COURTESY OF MARK KIRK FOR SENATE PHOTO COURTESY OFALEXI GIANNOULIAS FOR SENATE PHOTO BY BETH ROWE

Eligible senior students lack political know-how, motivation and time to vote

By Beth Rowe Features Editor

The topic of the Illinois Primary Elections brings up a multitude of different questions. Voters wonder who they’re going to vote for, in which primary they’ll vote and who is going to win. Prospect students, however, have a different question on their minds:

what’s the point?

A survey sent out to 85 seniors included questions on their voting status, such as whether they had access to election information and if they were voting. The response, from those both 18 and underage, was a resounding “no.”

Their reasons were typical. Some had no time; some simply forgot to register. But most prominent were the sen-

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timents expressed by one senior when so I am prepared to vote. Your responsiasked why students were not voting: bility as a citizen is to educate yourself “don’t want to, don’t care.” and discern the facts,” Hodges said.

“Most students feel like politics However, Hodges also feels that some doesn’t have anything to do with them,” students may be better prepared to vote senior Ivaylo Valchev, the student coun- than they think simply because of the cil president, said. “They don’t believe curriculum of select Prospect courses. they find any issues that concern them “I think it’s unrealistic to know personally.” where everyone stands on every issue,” Several students who responded to Hodges said. “Do I think we should eduthe survey echoed his sentiments. It cate ourselves to be prepared? Yes. One wasn’t that they didn’t have time to of the original aims of education is to properly research the election; it was produce engaged citizens.” that they simply did not want to.

And while one vote will not swing Valchev, however, an election, Valchev points out sevstill feels that votHow to register eral important ing is an important outcomes of duty.

1. Mail-in application: Go to the state elections. Cook County clerk's website to “Voting lets me Schools are influence the direcdownload an application form gover nmenttion of this country, funded.

Not or call the office to request one. and I believe that only will choos- After filling out and signing the my one vote does ing an effective application, mail it to David Orr, the count,” Valchev E d u c a t i o n a l Cook County clerk, at his office. said. “If you think Board President You can find the address on his about 1 million affect the qual- website: www.cookcountyclerk. people who didn’t ity of your high com think their vote school educawould count but did tion, but the 2. In person: Go to... vote, that’s 1 million government can a). One of the Cook County clerk's votes that can influalso influence six locations ence an election in grants, FAFSA b). A village, city, or township clerk any direction.” and loans for Some seniors c). An Illinois drivers license facility university-level simply don’t feel up education. The (The two closest to us are in Niles to the task because elections can and Schaumburg) they don’t have the determine your facts. 15 percent school, your debt and your future. of seniors polled claimed that they Social Studies teacher Erik had virtually no access to information Hodges points to lack of voter ef- about the upcoming election. ficacy — the belief that one vote For those who are interested in eduwould have an impact. Whether or cating themselves before the next elecnot the electoral system is effective tion rolls around, there are a variety in allowing citizens’ voices to be of sources easily available for students heard is an entirely different issue; who are looking to be informed citizens the information required to be a [See “Election Information”]. productive voting citizen, however, “You have to make sure to find the isis one over which the senior class sue that’s important for you and make does have control. sure your voice is heard,” Valchev said.

“I will purposely seek out info

Election information If you would like to vote but are unsure of where to find information, The Prospector has compiled a list of sources recommended by Prospect social studies teachers Erik Hodges and Mike Sebestyen.

School.com : ichaelsDriving M heck

C out our schedules online

Chicago Newspapers such as the Daily Herald, the Chicago Tribune, and the Chicago Sun Times are usually your best bet. Around election time, most papers will publish profiles of each of the candidates including their stance on a particular issue. If you’re really lost, some of the papers will endorse a candidate they think is best for the job; if you in general agree with that newspaper, this candidate is probably the one you’ll like.

The Party Websites will provide you with a pretty picture of their side of the issues, and blast the other side’s stances. Although they will tell you a great deal about what each party stands for, it’s important to check the other party’s site to get both sides of the story.

IN-DEPTH

8

Friday, February 12, 2010

Teen pregnancy: TV obsession When I first saw the movie Juno, it seemed kind of shocking. I couldn’t believe that for the first time -in my world- a movie was exploiting the story of a pregnant teenage girl, and the choices she makes for her baby when it’s born.

It seemed immoral that any director/ screenwriter would write such a thing and make it into a movie. The stories of girls dealing with pregnancy as a teen were what I considered a private matter. This particular topic was something so out of the ordinary, something so huge in the theaters, something that people around town haven’t seen for a while.

So after I secretly snagged the DVD rental and went in my basement alone to watch the movie, avoiding the awkwardness of the movie’s content with my parents.

I sort of got over the idea that something that seemed so strange to me, a girl getting pregnant at 16, was in fact a real story.

Well, as they tell it.

Almost a year ago, as I was searching through the menu guide on TV, I saw at least five titles Deanna Shilkus of shows with the word Executive “pregnant” in them, alIn-Depth Editor most all of them dealing with teens. Just curious, I decided to turn on “16 and Pregnant.”

As I started watching it, I realized that it told the story of real-life pregnant 16-year-old girls, their boyfriends and their life when the baby is born.

Most of the girls were already a few months pregnant, and in each episode they talked about relationship problems and drama between them and their boyfriends and their future plans for themselves and the baby..

I noticed that even though they were on this show, unleashing their personal story to the world, they still seemed like girls I could relate to. Before their pregnancy ever happened, the girls were involved in school, either in sports or clubs, or they just wanted to hang out with their friends.

Because of what happened to them, they were forced to grow up, leave what they knew as their childhood and move on to find a better life for themselves and their baby. As a 16-yearold girl watching this, it immediately hit me that these girls, who were so normal and down to earth, could be the girls that I see in the hallway everyday, my friends or even me. As cliche` as that may sound, it was a complete reality check.

In the hit series, “The Secret Life of the American Teenager,” the story begins with Amy, a good girl, who lingered into intimacy with Ricky, a boy known for his reputation for using girls, and becomes pregnant.

So why does TV keep painting this picture in a teenager’s head that if you (or your girlfriend) get pregnant, the only options are to look to the future and hope that whatever you decide to do works out, or the rest of your life is miserable?

According to a study on MSNBC.com, there is a definite link between teenager’s exposure to sexual content on TV and teen pregnancies.

The study, published in the journal Pediatrics, found that exposure of high levels of

THe Ju

Since Juno’s release in 2007, teenage pre phenomenon sweeping the nation. Not on pregnancy rate at its highest in three years, pregnancy coverage on television

sexual content on television to teens means they are twice as likely to be involved in a pregnancy in the following years as teens with limited exposure.

The issue is that with too many shows on TV in recent months involving teen pregnancy, the obsession of it is growing, along with the rate of pregnancy. The Centers for Disease Control reports that in 2006, the latest study in teen pregnancy, the teenage birth rate increased 3 percent, putting an end to the 14year decline from 1991-2005.

So therefore, there is a high chance that pregnancy has increased due to all of the sudden pop-ups on TV. TV show producers and directors are too obsessed with showing the life of a pregnant 16-year-old girl and the struggles she faces.

TV shows tend to show the painful side of pregnancy, but what happened before the pregnancy? What led to the pregnancy? Before we look at the drama of mood swings and unusual food cravings, TV should focus on fixing the problem of too many unplanned pregnancies rather than getting caught up in the same old relationships conflict deal on TV. Prevention is a place to start.

According to tvbythenumbers.com, there are approximately 4.7 million viewers of “The Secret Life of the American Teenager,” 31 million viewers of “16 and pregnant” and approximately $230 million made on Juno. The womenshealthchannel.com says that about 13 percent of U.S. births involve teen mothers and about 25 percent of teenage girls who give birth have another baby within two years.

So whether you are a 16-year-old girl, a mother, or someone with a young mother reading this right now, it’s not a good thing to be watching TV shows that deal with pregnancy, although I admit that every Monday at 7 p.m., I’m tuned into the Secret Life. I still feel like this serious issue is just being laughed off, swept aside as something that’s not a big deal, or even portrayed to be fun or easy. Not enough people are concerned about what has been the result of these new pregnancy shows popping up everywhere.

We should be focusing on the story of what happened before the pregnancy and realize that what’s on TV has become obsessive and unstoppable, and made for entertainment.

Purely entertainment.

If it happens to you...

­­ —Arlington Heights residents, the nearest clinic is th located at the Rolling Meadows Courthouse.

—Services offered to teens include free family planni If the test results are positive, the clinic will help the t does not have adequate coverage, connect her to a d to the teen in order to decide whether she will keep t baby up for adoption.

—If the teen decides to give the baby up for adoption adoption agencies; if she decides to have an abortio line number, as the clinic does not perform abortions

—Services are by appointment, and all information is the teen is encouraged to tell her parents if she is pre by calling (708) 492-2000; the clinic is open from 8:30 Friday.

ALL INFORMATION COURTESY OF REGINA SOVCIK, NORTH D COOK COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH

A word from the wise

Michele Grassano, now 37, became a teenage mother when she ha Ashton Wagner at age 19. Now, 17 years later, she is married, has sons and is stepmother to junior Taylor Grassano.

Q: How did having a child so early effect your education?

A: I decided to drop out of college during the first sem

of my second year and after Ashton was born. I babys neighbors and family members so I could pay for her formula, etc. Over the next few years, I had a variety o including waitressing full-time, until I found a job as a receptionist at a brokerage firm where I was able to w my way up to an account manager. I was able to stud through the company. I’ve been very fortunate; I’m no saying everyone will be.

Q: What do you think about the media’s portrayal of Pregnanc

A: Well, I watch “Teen Mom” with Taylor every week an

After I had Ashton, I took full responsibility. These g have babies and then don’ t take responsibility. I kno

school. Avoid having a baby at a young age bec position to give your baby the things you want

Evolution of teenage pregnancy shows a

“16 and Pregnant” Jun

“Juno” 2007 “Secret Life of the American Teenager” 2008

“Teen Mom” De

IN-DEPTH

9

Friday, February 12, 2010

uno Effect

egnancy has become a nly is the national teenage , but there is more teenage than ever before.

Contraception controversy

By Keelan Murphy Executive In-Depth Editor

As Valentine’s Day approaches, love is in the air.

The hallways are abuzz with young couples, oblivious to other students as they lean against lockers, whispering thank-yous for their “treat for my sweet” Valentine cookies and grasping one another’s hands as though they were glued together.

Each y e As much as teachers and parents alike young ar, 750,000 w would like to believe the goodbye kiss at betwee omen he North District Clinic, which is n the end of each day is as much contact as a g e s o th e f 15 an students have, a January 2010 study by Guttd 19 be com e macher Institute shows that 46 percent of all unexpe pregnant ing services and free pregnancy tests. ctedly, 15-19 year olds in the United States have had ac c o rd teenager apply for Medicaid if she ing to a sex at least once. c s o tu n du c dy doctor and offer options counseling With nearly half of all students sexually Guttma ted by the the baby, have an abortion or give the cher In active by high school graduation, the question stitute. becomes whether or not contraceptives should be available to students at school. n, the clinic will connect her to Sex education is only vaguely referenced in n, the clinic will connect her with a hot the Board of Education Policy Manual for Towns. ship High School District 214, meaning there is no official policy pertaining to the matter. At Prospect, a grads guaranteed confidential, although uation requirement is to pass health education, where egnant. Appointments can be made students learn an approach called “abstinence-plus.”

0 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through “We stress that abstinence is the safest, healthiest lifestyle,” health teacher Michele Burnett explained. “But we know not everybody follows that so we also DISTRICT NURSING SUPERVISOR FOR THE ack show them birth control methods and their relir a B t ide n ability.”

Pres a has m Although this guarantees that all students a 4 1 b 1 O $ ge d ress are familiar with the different birth control pled n to add y, options available, it does not guarantee the m illi o p r e g n a n c teen ut $170 ng students will use them during sexual interi course. but c n in fun d e o i l c A mere 77 miles north of Prospect, high l i n e m n i t bs n schools in Milwaukee will add another fo r a d u c a t i o e layer of depth to their students’ sex eduonly ear af ter ies ad senior y t tu d s cation by making condoms available at s a l f o two young es school in the 2010-2011 school year, res c o r e d su ch e ported boulderweekly.com. show ams to b r “We had vigorous and robust prog ctive. m e o debate in the community,” inef f lnews.c -ao Kathleen Murphy, health mester services coordinator for Milwaukee sat for Public Schools, said. diapers, Many controversial details in the proposal of jobs, have yet to be decided, for instance whetha er parents be notified if their children work request birth control, how often stuPHOTO COURTESY OF MICHELE GRASSANO dy dents will be granted protection and ot where the funding will come from since taxpayers’ money will not be used for this. cy?

Yet, according to Murphy, there are federal laws that nd I find the girls very irritating. protect minors’ rights to acgirls who want to go out and party cess reproductive health ow it’s the cliche, but stay in care. cause it puts you in a difficult According to the Federal t them to have.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 4.5 percent of high schools in the country make condoms available to students. Prospect, however, is part of the 95.5 percent that does not.

Yet some, like social worker Phil Koehl, believe that Prospect should provide contraceptives, namely condoms, for students who need them. ne 11, 2009 “Ultimately, I think it would be great if students were not having sex,” Koehl said. “But given stu-

and movies

ec. 8, 2009

dents are going to be having sex, I would prefer them having protection available rather than not.”

In fact, at one point during Principal Michael P. Steven’s tenure from 1994 to 2002, Koehl received permission and actually secured condoms for distribution.

Eventually he stopped pursuing it, so it’s been a long time since condoms were even discreetly available at Prospect, according to Dean of Students Patricia Tedaldi-Monti, who believes students should be informed and prepared before engaging in sexual activity.

“We educate kids about so many other things ... I think we do kids a disservice by not making lots of things available to kids,” Tedaldi-Monti said.

School nurse Cheryl Novak, feels contraceptives should not be distributed, or even available, at school.

“I believe it’s something that parents have to take care of and help educate their children and talk to their children about,” Novak said. “I believe it’s nothing that Prospect needs to take control of.”

Similarly, Burnett does not feel comfortable handing out contraceptives, namely because there is no contraceptive that is 100 percent effective, with the exception of abstinence.

“If I were to pass out condoms, for instance, those are not 100 percent, so if I pass those out and say, ‘Here, use these,’ and [someone got pregnant], anyone can come back and say, ‘Well it’s your fault,’” Burnett said.

It comes down to the age-old question: if students are going to be “doing it,” would it be better to provide contraception for them rather than risk them having unprotected sex?

Senior Albert Ciolek believes that if contraception were to be provided by the school, for instance if free condoms were available in the nurse’s office, more students would engage in sexual activity.

In a Prospector survey, 55 percent of students agree with Ciolek, but others, like senior Bianca Vitale, reason that “kids’ll be kids,” despite what parents and other adults want to believe.

“They’re going to do it or not; if safe sex is an option I think no questions asked they can just go in [the nurse’s office], take a couple [condoms] and walk out. I think it would be easier access for them, whereas someone who is having unprotected sex might just be like, ‘Oh I’m not walking into a store and buying them,’” Vitale argued.

Although eliminating the embarrassment of purchasing protection may provide students with a more readily available, safer alternative to unprotected sex, it may also promote sexual activity. “[Condoms] are readily available anywhere; anyone can go out and buy them,“ Burnett said. “If students are wanting to do that, they should be responsible and go out and buy them.”

Responsibility seems to be a recurring theme when it comes to the contraception controversy. Ultimately, who is responsible for teenage pregnancies?

Principal Kurt Laakso believes the school is obliged to educate students and provide both the information and resources needed to make wise, informed decisions before engaging in sexual activity.

The

Belly

Project GRAPHIC BY KEELAN MURPHY

“The Pregnancy Pact” Jan. 23, 2010

“The Belly Project” has been assigned to all students taking Human Growth and Child Development, including senior Emily Schwarz (above, left) and junior Marissa Petenuzzo (above, right). Each student is required to wear a pregnancy suit for four periods and experience the social aspect of teenage pregnancy. The suit also provides students with an inside look at the physical changes of pregnancy. The suit weighs about 25 pounds — thanks to the water it is filled with as well as the weight inside. A bag of sand purposely presses against students’ bladders, making them feel as though they need to go to the bathroom, just like a real pregnant woman.

FEATURES

10

Friday, February 12, 2010

My day at Barrington As a social experiment, The Prospector decided to exchange reporters with the Barrington High School newspaper to find out how different our schools are. I wanted to know what made them so successful, why they were so special and how they maintained such a high level of success. With absolutely no idea what to expect from this storied school, what I found was...

ALL PHOTOS BY MIKE HAMMERSLEY

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ing tiles with pictures on them. And it’s all amazing. I can barely describe how floored I was by the artwork.

In their athletic wing, they had a Right when I walked into Barrington, I saw the shiny plaque that read, “School wooden carving of a bucking bronco, of Excellence.” That’s exactly how I their mascot, and it was quite possibly would describe Barrington: flashy and the most amazing statue I have EVER good at what they do. You’d be hard- seen (Photo 2). The same goes for their pressed to find a worn-down part of the main foyer, only this time the bronco was weaved with metal strips. Their theschool or an award they haven’t won.

As my escort, Tanya, took me to her ater wing is comparable only to the Sisfirst period Spanish class, I was dumb- tine Chapel (Photo 3). The sheer amount founded. Barrington is a labyrinth. of artwork in there boggles the mind, as Had she left me alone, I think my only there is almost no space that isn’t filled two options would have been to curl up with amazing artwork.

No. 2 on the jaw-dropping list was in the fetal position or do what they told me in laser tag: stand straight up and just as awe-inspiring. As I walked down scream, “Marshall, Marshall!” until a random hallway, I looked to my right and saw a playground in one of their someone named Marshall helped me.

Since they had no maps of the school, four or so courtyards (Photo 4). A playground! Apparently it’s for Physics, I followed Tanya like a lemming all day.

Right before Spanish, we stopped by where they get to go demonstrate basic the senior lockers. Yes, they have a lock- concepts of momentum and other units er section for each class, not just a floor on the equipment, which explains why like we do, but a separate locker base for there was a giant mosaic of Albert Eineach year of school. Having a base for stein in the background. There’s that all seniors just to hang out must be nice. art obsession again. At this point, my As we got into Spanish, the announce- amazement was almost a running joke ments came on. They have no video an- in my head; what could I possibly see nouncements—score one for Prospect! next?

Just as I was asking myself that, it They only have them on Fridays, and they also ask you if you want say the was time for gym. They have an endPledge of Allegiance, which I found re- less line of championships, awnings over their concession stand and ticket freshingly polite.

As if being at an entirely new school stand, an overwhelmingly massive gymwasn’t bad enough, I sat for 49 — yes, nasium and a scoreboard that faces four they have 49-minute periods just to an- ways (Photo 5). But what I was about to see dwarfed even that. noy those with OCD — minutes of I gazed at it in wonder. A rockspeaking in a completely different lanclimbing wall and a spiderweb of ropes guage, since I took Italian.

After the class after Spanish, it was for climbing (Photo 6)! How awesome.

But Barrington wasn’t to the caf for some food; Tanya doesn’t get to eat On Prospectornow.com... done. I heard noises come from above, and until seventh period, Check out Barrington they had not one, not which is God-knowssenior Emily Kelly’s view two, but three high rope when — damn those courses on the top of on her day at Prospect on 49-minute periods. They their gym. They were the exchange. have the similar motivaglorious, to say the tional eating posters in Find out what least (See “Adventure their cafeteria, parallel she thought Gym” for more inforto our “Got Milk?” ones. our best mation).

What they don’t have is qualities After gym, it was on candy. No sticker syswere. to Econ. Unfortunatetem to tell you what’s ly, I was not allowed unhealthy; Barrington in there — obviously, doesn’t want you eating that at all. Tanya showed me, along Barrington doesn’t want me learning with the cool cereal dispensers, the un- their economic secrets, so I decided to research them myself. Barrington has healthiest snack in there: Pop-tarts.

On our way to math, I glanced down a median income of $83,085 but a mean and realized that I could see other stu- income of $116,631 according to the 2000 dents walking beneath me. Seeing other Census. Let me crunch those numbers teens walking on floors underneath me, for you: Half of Barrington is below the hallway to the math room was al- $83,085 and half is above, but the half most like a bridge, and I got the feeling I that’s above has so much more money was at the mall, not a school. Suddenly that they pull that median number up Barrington felt huge. I can touch the by $33,546.

On the other hand, Arlington Heights ceilings in most Prospect hallways; here I think you’d need a crane. You could fit has a median of $67,807 and mean of one in the school, though, don’t worry; $81,693. This means that the average Barrington resident is $34,938 richer that’s how big it is.

By the time math was over, I had as- than the average resident of Arlington sembled a pretty good list in my mind Heights. The difference with Mount of things that made my jaw snake-like Prospect is even worse, as Barrington’s as it unhinged and dropped. First off, mean is $47,597 higher than Mount Prosthe sheer amount of art in that school pect’s mean of $69,034.

Next up was Physics, and guess is ridiculous (See Photo 1). I began to wonder whether they had more blank what? Not allowed in there either; they wall or art; these people drew on liter- were probably cooking up some way to ally everything — I tilted my head up defy gravity, knowing Barrington. So I during math and saw two or three ceil- headed to the library. Just one problem:

By Mike Hammersley Copy Editor

Adventure gym High-rope courses and rockclimbing walls aren’t what you usually think of when the word “gym class” comes to mind. Unless you go to Barrington.

Adventure Ed is a physical education class there that focuses on outdoor education and teambuilding, according to its teacher, Kevin Art. Those in Adventure Ed must either have an IEP or 504 plan or be a randomly selected senior, and that gets pretty competitive — they only take around 20-25 students in the two periods that it’s taught.

The first quarter of the class, according to Art, is “about developing that trust, getting to know each other and building that camaraderie; you can tell these guys really do trust each other.”

After a whole quarter of trustbuilding activities, the second quarter is where they get to the high ropes and rock climbing. They spend roughly two weeks on each separate course. They start with the rock climbing wall and spider-web ropes, then move on to the two courses up near the ceiling.

According to Art, the equipment for it has been here for about 10 years and was built a year after the gym was redone in 1999. To pay for the massive expenses of this endeavor, Barrington received a donation from T.R. Youngstrom, a graduate who was interested in photography and outdoor education.

He combined his passions and became an extreme photographer but unfortunately perished while on the job. So much of his nest egg was donated to Barrington, and they built these facilities in his honor.

I still didn’t know how to get around. So walking practically aimlessly towards my target, I crept along like that kid who couldn’t skate at the roller skating rink and had to hold on to the sides.

Luckily, I got there fairly quickly since the Physics room was close to the library, which is conveniently located right by the main entrance. At the entrance, they have sensors like the ones at the end of a department store to ensure that you don’t steal books. This came as a surprise to me, but their librarians were just as surprised that we don’t have an issue with kids stealing books. If a child gets caught leaving with an unchecked book, there is a $10 fine; this rule stems from past students often sneaking books into each other’s backpacks and setting off the alarm.

Continuing with the restrictions, students are required to provide an ID to use an open computer in the lab so that teachers can track whether students are using computer time wisely. Also, their

See BARRINGTON, page 11

FEATURES

11

Friday, February 12, 2010

Students come face-to-face(book) Technology gives way to blurred student-teacher relationships

By Sharon Lee

Executive Features Editor

It has been almost five years since former choirteacherJasonKrigaswasarrestedand charged with “two counts of aggravated criminal sexual assault” of a student.

As part of the investigation, police reviewed records from different pieces of technology. They uncovered 1,600 text messages that were exchanged between Krigas and the student.

“There has been a heightened awareness since that particular incident of how things can occur either innocently or not so innocently,” Dean Patricia Tedaldi-Monti said. “There is a way to use technology to the best advantage, but you take it to the next level when you start having a relationship.”

Because of the problems that could arise with using communication technology, including e-mails, text messages and social networking sites, Tedaldi-Monti advises teachers not to have social relationships with students, whether on Facebook, on the phone or through e-mail.

Tedaldi-Monti said that things can get tricky when communicating through these means because people can misinterpret things.

“You don’t know what the inflection or intonation was, and it can be taken out of context,” she said. “Something you say, depending on how you say [it], means the world. I would caution people about putting something in print that could be misinterpreted.”

However, Tedaldi-Monti understands students who look up their teachers on Facebook because in grade school, she and her friends would look up their teachers in the phone book for fun.

“Kids are curious,” she said. “I don’t think it’s any different 20 or 30 years later.”

Social studies teacher Daria Schaffeld said she knows students look

GRAPHIC BY MIKA EVANS

for her on Facebook and has often had students try to friend her, and she ends up telling them during class she doesn’t accept friend requests from current students because “it’s just not necessary.”

“I don’t friend current students, whether they are in my class or on my volleyball team,” she said.

However, Schaffeld does accept friend requests from graduate students because “once students graduate, the conversations you can hold with them face-to-face is different.”

Tedaldi-Monti said that teachers should be careful on Facebook, making sure to use the privacy settings.

Schaffeld takes advantage of the privacy settings when adding graduates on Facebook by setting up her page so that every student she accepts goes into a graduate folder. These students have limited access to her page.

“It’s not because I have anything to hide,” Schaffeld said. “I just think it’s important that my social life is kept separate from my true friends versus graduates.”

Social studies teacher Mike Sebestyen said that it is better for teachers to not have any type of student interaction with a personal page. The reason why he doesn’t add students on Face-

book is because it creates a situation where he’s no longer the authority in the teacher-student relationship.

“It’s important to keep the teacherstudent relationship just that — teacher-student — and I think it would be very easy for lines to become blurred on

“ It’s important to keep the teacher-student relationship just that — teacher-student. ” ~ Mike Sebestyen

a social networking site, which is what Facebook is,” Schaffeld said.

Tedaldi-Monti said there might be reasons why a student needs to communicate with a teacher outside of school, but the relationship should be kept professional and focus on communication.

At the beginning of each school year, Schaffeld asks her AP Psych students to e-mail her so she can put together an AP Psych e-mail list so they could communicate as a class.

“I just see that as an extension of

natural communication that happens in the classroom,” she said. “However, they are given my work e-mail, not my personal e-mail. I have no problem communicating via e-mail with students.”

To enable further communication between her and her students, Schaffeld has her own website that she has built over the past six years. However, next year, her website will be gone as part of district requirements and she will be asked to change over to Moodle.

Moodle, hosted by the district, is used by students to communicate with teachers about educational matters. Many teachers have Moodle set up for their classes, and this allows teachers and students to communicate without the need for social networking sites.

‘09 graduate Fran Hoepfner said most of her high school teachers used Moodle, and she still uses Moodle in college, which is better than having a Facebook group for that class.

“Moodle will enable us to communicate, and that will replace the point of ever having a Facebook page for our class,” Schaffeld said.

“Again, this keeps the line between teachers and students,” Tedaldi-Monti said.

BARRINGTON: Reporter amazed by facilities, programs CONTINUED from page 7

library gave me a very 80s, Ferris Bueller-type feel with all the dark wood and blocky signs in there; it’s not as modern-looking as ours. Although they did have a fireplace — with a TV showing a constant stream of a fire, of course.

Bored with the library, I made my way down to the art wing to find out more about this legendary art program. They have a separate room for

every art form you could imagine and they are planning on building a foundry. Clearly, since a foundry is a place where you melt down metals into molds to make statues, Barrington quite literally has money to melt.

Their fine arts division, according to Division Head Julie Salk, gets so much money in result of all the grants that she writes as well as a great parent booster program. They are also very well-connected, as they have pro-

fessionals come into their classes and do presentations. This year, Salk was interested in Mexican pottery, so she brought in an expert from Mata Ortiz, Mexico, to present in her art class.

Not to mention the places they’ve been. Their Madrigal Choir has sung at the UN and the White House, won an international college and high school competition in Italy and is trying to get a trip to Cuba. They’re basically professionals.

Who Knows You Better?

The subject Anna Anderson

What is Mike’s favorite food?

Chipotle

The Girlfriend

Mike Geweniger

Steak

Tom Whalen

Pizza

The Wrestling Coach

What is Mike’s favorite color?

Who is Mike’s favorite musician?

Blue

Lil’ Wayne

4 Blue

Blue

4

4

What is Mike’s favorite movie?

Friday Night Lights

Lil’ The Blind Wayne Side Doesn’t Know

Who is Mike’s best friend?

What is Mike’s favorite subject?

David Suarez

History

4 David Suarez

RememTerry ber The Thomas Titans

4 History

P.E.

The Result

WINNER!!

I got a little carried away in the art hallway, and I was almost late to lunch. Tanya and I went to the cafeteria, which is a huge room with random pillars everywhere — nothing special. Except I was led to the senior lounge: a room with a foosball table, a TV constantly streaming whatever the students wanted, comfy couches and, of course, boatloads of art. The place just had a great atmosphere for seniors to sit and talk without the noise of the lunchroom.

As the day wound to a close and I sat in the lounge, I started talking with the seniors there. It’s no secret; money does affect their social lives. India Watts told me that everyone’s parents are “either a lawyer or a doctor,” so she “doesn’t know anyone who doesn’t have their own car”; as a result, people at Barrington are “used to having things handed to them.”

So, going to Barrington made me realize that there’s always a bigger fish.

Barrington is ridiculous in all of their activities and facilities; I doubt I will find many fish bigger than that. But all in all, I’d much rather go to Prospect.

We have such a unity and such a school pride that I just didn’t feel right at Barrington. They have nothing that even rivals our Underground or the atmosphere you get here. Watts described Barrington as a “weird parallel universe” to many other schools; Prospect feels just like home.

12

ENTERTAINMENT Friday, February 12, 2010

The Nutella of movies

Foreign films prove different, yet similar to American movies

By Marlo Koch

Entertainment Editor

Foreign films are like Nutella. Nutella — you know, that weird spread that other parts of the world use as peanut butter. And much like Nutella, foreign films are just a little bit different.

They are in a different languages, obviously, but they also have different flavors, different ways of being made and different budgets.

And although we have our Jiff, the world past our borders has foreign films and Nutella.

Foreign films have something to bring to the table, just like Nutella.

One of the main differences between French and American films, French teacher Kathryn Wilkens said, is budget.

“Traditionally, French filmmakers have not had the same budgets to develop special effects,” Wilkens noted. “They choose instead to develop dif-

ferent aspects of human relationships.”

Wilkens noted that French cinema focuses on “beauty, aesthetics and an appreciation of life” and that the films reflect French tradition and their way of life.

She said that “we [Americans] race through our everyday lives” and that the flow of ideas and the harmony of scenes are more relaxed in French films because that is their way of life.

According to the-numbers. com, a successful French movie that came out 2008, “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly,” had a budget of $14 million and, in comparison, the average American film budget hovers around $35 million.

Additionally, budgets restraints also affect the amount of violence in a movie. Wilkens said that French filmmakers have not traditionally focused on violence as a central theme because it requires more ex-

GRAPHICS BY MARLO KOCH

From left to right: “Volver”, “Al Final del Camino” (Spanish),“The Diving Bell and the Butterfly” and “Amelie” (French).

pensive film-making. However, she said that French filmmakers are beginning to use violence as a vehicle to discuss another topic, as violence becomes more of a trend.

“They use violence especially to develop the issues, like racism,” Wilkens said.

Spanish teacher Faye Prather said that Spanish movies “all have a different flavor; they are all diverse.” She said Spanish movies all have ideas and influences coming from all Spanish-speaking countries, like Spain, Mexico and parts of South America. The different cultures from each area Want to study abroad? seep into Spanish movies.

According to guidance counsler Colleen Carroll, there are two steps in order Wilkens said that French to study abroad at Prospect: movies have the Step 1- Meet with your counsler so you can determine if it’s possible for you to “stereotypical study abroad. You can your counsler should discuss what classes you still need baguette and bito order to graduate and if you could take classes to satisfy requirements while cycles,” but they you are studying abroad. also “have subtle Step 2- Look for a program to study abroad through. Carroll said that she helped Ellen Kee choose CCI because they “had good contacts there already.” She warned that there is a lot of paper work involved and studying abroad is not cheap.

Carroll noted that studying abroad can really improve languagespeaking ability and that students can earn a global perspective, before they go to college.

“Your language is so much more improved,” Carroll said.

However, Carroll said that in college, students are used to being alone already, but in high school, students aren’t away from their parents for very long.

She said that anyone who is considering studying abroad must be comfortable with being on their own, be open to making friends and be comfortable in whatever language they want to study.

By Dan Hindmand Staff Writer

The man’s face is pale and covered with sweat as he looks upon the crowd 20 stories beneath him. His eyes are wide behind orange lenses, filled with mortal fear and hardened resolve, as his stiff arms clutch firmly to the parapets behind him.

They’d snap like boards before they bent.

The only sounds are the anxious murmurs of the crowd and the cars far below.

Then a humming noise joins them as Inspector Harry Callahan ascends in a cherrypicker.

“Don’t you try to get me!” the jumper says, moving back a little.

“Not me, no. You’re the one who wants to get yourself killed, not me. Always happens with you, here

and now. At the last minute you always want to grab on to someone and take somebody with you. Spfft down you go,” Harry replies.

They continue to trade words for a few moments before the jumper’s eyes light up with an animal rage. He leaps at the cherry-picker, but Harry punches him in the face and pulls his still form into the basket.

Callahan descends to the San Francisco streets, as the crowd mutters angrily.

That’s how Callahan rolls.

“Dirty Harry” is a 1971 thriller set in San Francisco and is the first of the “Dirty Harry” series. It follows homicide detective “dirty” Harry Callahan as he tracks down the psychopathic Scorpio.

Packing a .44 Magnum, “the most powerful handgun in the world,” Callahan is the one cop on the

differences that I encourage view of the world. You can’t my students to find.” have an opinion on something “It’s not racing through the until you’ve experienced it,” story. It’s looking at humans Kee said. and what we deal with as dayKee said that she regularly to-day trouble ... the theme watches Spanish movies and of love is very books in order prevalent as well.” to keep up with Wilkens said. her Spanish.

Mount Prospect Additionally, She said that Wilkens noted that Public Library’s she is reading “Many people beThe Good Luck lieve that French International Club in Spanmovies are slow- Offering ish right now moving, but films and recently like “Au Revoir Les -There are currently watched a funny Enfantsz” prove 1,562 foreign-language romantic comethat they can do DVDs and 209 VHS’s. dy called “Al fisuspense and the nal del camino” -The library owns 5,613 element of sur[see “Recomforeign language books. prise very well.” mended Foreign “By watching -Every October, the Films”]. the films, you get Library does a month Wilkens said good insight into of “Cultural Heritage” that when the other cultures,” programs, spotlighting Prospect French Prather said. students go different cultures from “Their humor around the world. on the French is a lot different -The MPPL has 564 CDs exchange in (in Spanish films). in their International Sevres, France, Our humor is wit- music category and 223 the exchange ty, but their humor in their Latin American partners think is more crude and that Americans category. slapstick,” senior watch and lisEllen Kee said. ten to as much She said that drama trans- French culture as they do with lates much better than comedy English. when Spanish filmmakers try “It really isn’t an even exto adapt American films. change. The French cinema Kee actually spent her en- has something rich to offer,” tire sophomore year in Spain Wilkens said. “I think that inthrough a program called CCI ternational films give the view[see “Want to study abroad”]. er a glimpse of other cultures “I wanted to expand to my and other ways of living.”

force you don’t want to mess with. He’s In some ways, the movie is a lot like dirty, openly racist and drives the city “The Dark Knight.” However, Callahan crazy, but Harry is a man of contradic- isn’t some kind of high-tech ninja; he’s tions, caring more about the victims the average Joe forced to turn towards than the law, and is Clint Eastwood’s stomach-churning methods to stop a signature role. murderer.

Based off of the real-life Zodiac Indeed, the movie itself was harshly Killer, Scorpio is extorting the city for controversial, spawning debate on po$100,000 — about $500,000 today — and lice brutality and victim’s rights. When threatening to kill someone every day Scorpio is cornered by Harry and asks before he’s paid. Played by Andy Rob- for a lawyer after he’s raped and buried inson, he manages alive a teenage one of the eeriest, girl, the viewer psychotic portrayfeels such a powBehind the camera als ever seen in -The part of Dirty Harry was originally erful sense of recinema. He’s got a offered to Frank Sinatra, who declined vulsion as they choir-boy face, and because of the awkward .44 Magnum imagine that he’s as ruthless monster hiding and his wrist, which was injured in as the Joker. Robbehind the U.S. the past. Steve McQueen and Paul inson’s portrayal Constitution. was so sinister that Newman also gave it a pass, but then Eastwood’s he even received Eastwood took it. performance as death threats after Harry Callahan the film’s release -Audie Murphy was offered the part of is memorable, and had to get an Scorpio, but before he could respond, and the movie’s unlisted number. perfect balance he died in a plane crash.

Scorpio’s perof peace, humor formance seems to and violence eclipse even Eastwood’s at times, filling makes one understand how this movie the audience with such revulsion that created a new genre of cop films and TV they feel like they’re being force-fed a shows. bucket of rotten fish. But, despite his Harry’s grim determination versus unpleasant traits at times, Callahan Scorpio’s utter insanity may make this touches a chord with the audience as film the best of the entire series, somethe one man willing to go above the law thing one can enjoy even after 39 years. to stop Scorpio.

ENTERTAINMENT

13

Friday, February 12, 2010

Mischief, magic and monsters Common themes defined our generation’s literature

By Katie Best Staff Writer

All I wanted for my 11th birthday was a Hogwart’s acceptance letter and my very first wand.

Now, I realize that as an 11-year-old, believing in magic and wizardry was a bit immature.

But as cliché as it sounds, I grew up reading about Harry Potter and his friends at Hogwart’s School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. And to be honest, I couldn’t help but wish that I was able to do the same things that Mr. Harry Potter could do, minus the whole fighting “He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named” part of the deal.

As you can tell, I, like the majority of the world population, have read “Harry Potter.” Be it “The Deathly Hallows” or “The Prisoner of Azkaban,” “Harry Potter” defined our generation of kids through a whole different perspective.

“Harry Potter” brought magic and fantasy back in style, letting children’s

minds become imaginative once more.

Suddenly, having an imaginary friend or believing in the monster under the bed was cool again.

The series led to an entirely new fad of fantasy books revolving around magic, vampires, werewolves and even Greek Gods, like the “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” series.

Maybe there is hope for this dreadful decade after all; the result of children actually reading again and not spending their time on Facebook or Twitter restoring faith in America.

From the earlier 2000s until now, different styles of books have been hitting the best-seller list.

Now, instead of reading about Dracula, we read about Edward Cullen and his love for Bella Swan. Instead of reading about Huckleberry Finn, we read about Harry Potter.

And instead of reading about Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy, we read about Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy... fighting zombies, like in “Pride, Prejudice and Zombies.”

“Harry Potter” has been on the bestseller list since the early 2000s, selling more than 400 million copies throughout the series.

The “Harry Potter” series has affected millions of kids and teenagers alike.

The idea of magic and escaping reality is a common trend within all of the “Harry Potter” books; whether it be “The Sorcerer’s Stone” or “The Deathly Hallows,” the Potter gang knows how to

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Top books that defined our generation 1. The “Harry Potter” Series

by J.K Rowling 2. The “Twilight” Saga by Stephenie Meyer 3. “The Lovely Bones” by Alice Sebold 4. “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” by Stephen Chbosky 5. “Where the Wild Things Are” by Maurice Sendak

6. “The Da Vinci Code” by Dan Brown 7. “My Sister’s Keeper” by Jodi Picoult 8. “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants” by Ann Brashares 9. Nicholas Sparks’ novels such as “A Walk to Remember” and “The Notebook” 10. “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” series by Rick Riordan

ART BY KATIE BEST AND KELLY ROSE MCALEER

let kids escape from their dull, dreary, I mean, I want equal rights just as “muggle” lives for a brief amount of much as the next man-loathing, bratime. burning feminist, but being treated like But this goes without mentioning a princess isn’t that bad of an idea, eithe millions of fan clubs, web sites and ther.

YouTube videos dedicated to Potter and But in Edward Cullen’s case, watchfriends. ing me sleep through my window isn’t For years now, the Internet has been my idea of chivalry. Please, Cullen, in Potter’s hands with websites dedicat- stick to stalking the living dead, not hued to the books such as averagewizard. man girls. com (like mylifeisaverage.com, only We need to understand that “Twithink magical) mugglenet.com and the- light” has given both males and females -leaky-cauldron.org. Not to mention the unrealistic ideas about relationships, fan-made musical, “A Very Potter Mu- love ... and vampires. sical,” which “The Perks includes muof Being a sical numbers Wa l l f l o w e r ” Best-sellers make movies performed by Stephen by Harry, Chbosky is Ron, Hermanother book Many of the top books of our generation ione and even with a unique and books on the best-seller list are now Vo l d e m o r t way of telling hitting the tops of box offices world-wide. and Professor a teenager’s Here’s how they did in the box office: Quirrell. story. The novBut “Harry el consists of “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Potter” isn’t a number of the only book letters written Prince”—$301,959,771 that has webby Charlie, a sites and fan freshman in “The Twilight Saga: New Moon”— clubs; “Twihigh school. $294,283,741 light” is the The letters new series are addressed “My Sister’s Keeper”— $94,680,763 that seems to “Dear Friend” be sweeping and then go on “Where the Wild Things Are” —$77,225,047 the nation. to tell Charlie’s With the high school ex“The Lovely Bones”-- $55,155,868 love triangle perience. between a From his sparkly, chivfirst encouninformation courtesy of imdb.com alrous vamter with drugs pire, a clumsy, and cigarettes pale girl and to sex and hoa hot, hairy werewolf, “The Twilight mosexual relationships, Charlie brings Saga” sold more than 85 million cop- a fresh perspective from a teenager’s ies since it was first published. Teens point of view. everywhere — yes, guys included — Instead of having a typically cliché have been reading about this odd, oth- teen book filled with sexual tension, erworldly couple. angst and back-stabbing drama, “The The love story about the sparkly Perks of Being a Wallflower” shows the vamp and human girl has defined our awkward transition from a naive boy generation by giving girls today unre- into a young man. alistic ideas about love and relationCharlie’s story of firsts shows the ships. ups and downs of being a teenager, but Ladies, we need to lower our stan- also shows what it means to be a good dards and finally get it through our friend. Charlie, although socially inheads that we do not need a sparkly, ept and funny, can teach us that being “vegetarian” vampire to complete us. a gawky teenager isn’t really that bad.

And guys, try being a little more chivCharlie, like Harry Potter, is a newalrous once in a while; forget femi- age teen hero. They both can show us nism for a brief moment. what reality as a teenager is like, except for in our case, Voldy isn’t trying to “Avada Kadavra” us, and to my dismay, magic doesn’t really exist (for more of a reality check, read Charlie’s story “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”.)

As you can probably guess, I never got my acceptance letter to Hogwarts.

And at 11, that was disappointing. But now I realize that the lessons that might have been taught at Hogwarts can easily be found right in our very own library.

14

SPORT

Friday, February 12, 2010

Coaches struggle to balance coaching with family, teaching, life

A young coach’s perspective

Pearlman said. “I just knew it.”

Doing things “the way we do them,” is harder than it seems. Few people, Less than a week before his team was Pearlman believes, realize how much set to play in the Sugar Bowl, Florida time and effort goes into coaching.

“Let’s take an in-season thing,” Gators coach Urban Meyer abruptly announced his retirement. He had “dedi- he said. “A game plan takes 22 hours. cated most of [his] waking moments That’s 22 hours in a weekend ... That’s to the Gator football program,” but he not including all the stuff you’re gocouldn’t continue, largely due to health ing to do Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, scares and family priorities. Despite Thursday; it’s not inhis success — two national champion- cluding what you’re ships in five years — Meyer needed a doing on Thursday break from the pressure cooker that he night to prepare for that game ... if lived in.

There are few spotlights brighter you’re a coordinathan the one Meyer worked under. But tor or head coach in even at the high school level, where our program, you’re coaches work in relative obscurity, the going to spend litchallenges and pressures are still there erally your whole — perhaps even magnified, considering weekend working on Brent Pearlman football. Then you the added teaching duties.

Take the story of Prospect’s football practice every day, coach, Brent Pearlman, who recently then you’re going made public his decision to retire as to watch film after coach after next season, after a 12- practice with the year run (11 so far) that began in 1999. kids and by yourself, Though he has “absolutely zero plans” then you’re going to for what he might do after his retire- deal with any probment from Prospect football, he has said lem: if a kid is havhe would be open to a coaching job else- ing a problem ... a where, a different role in education or football problem or Dave Wurster an academic probany other opportunities.

In the beginning, Pearlman, then lem, a family prob31 and now 42, entertained notions — lem, you’re going to deal with that ... the admittedly short-lived — of finishing amount of hours is incredible.”

While he isn’t complaining — “I can out his career at Prospect, in the footsteps of people like Jean Walker, who honestly say I don’t regret one second,” coached the girls’ basketball team for 24 he says — the hours take their toll, and years, George Bork, who coached boys’ not just in high-attention sports like golf for 31 or Larry Pohlman, a 29-year football.

For Dave Wurster, baseball coach. coach of girls’ cross Quickly, those On Prospectornow.com... country and track at ideas disappeared.

Prospect for 26 years, Look for more “Once I got into those hours have kept it, [once I] started on head football him too busy even to doing things the coach Brent schedule a physical. way we do them, I Pearlman’s His last doctor’s apknew that I would retirement. pointment was in 1983. not [have] one of There have been oththose 30-year caer costs, too. reers in one place,”

John Camardella is in his third year as head coach of the boys’ basketball team. A young, successful coach of a high-profile sport, Camardella could plausibly coach for another 20 or 30 years.

He has seen other coaches — like Palatine’s, who’s coached for 34 years — who began before he was born.

Camardella doesn’t think he will follow the same path, though.

“It’s something I [don’t] see myself doing for 30 years,” he said. “I knew it was a grind [when I took the job].”

As long as he enjoys it, he said, he’ll keep at coaching. The future is uncertain; the present isn’t.

“I love it, still,” he said.

By Neel Thakkar

Associate Editor-in-Chief

In effect, Wurster says, the additional responsibilities amount to a second full-time job, taking up 60 hours a week during the season, and 30 hours a week out of season. “[Coaching] affects [the other parts of my life] a lot, in the sense that I’ve never gotten married. I have a very difficult time keeping serious relationships,” Wurster said. “A few times I’ve had girlfriends and I’ve brought them here and we go to a play or something at Prospect, because a kid in my class or team was in the play, and then I see them afterwards, and the girl gets jealous. My John Camardella girlfriend gets jealous because [she] can see the bond that I have with this kid, and they feel like they’re second-best.

“I can’t help that,” he added. “In that sense, [coaching] has affected my life tremendously. But ... it’s what I’ve chosen.”

Mike Stokes Though telling, Wurster’s story is one of many approaches Prospect coaches take in balancing their commitments. For example, Pearlman, boys’ cross country and track coach Mike Stokes and boys’ basketball coach John Camardella are all married with children — Stokes has four, and Camardella and Pearlman have one each.

Stokes has coached for 24 years — 19 at Prospect — and early in his career, he said, he used to “over-coach” — it “would not be unusual” to find him in the building at 1 a.m. The others echoed that sentiment, and have adapted similarly; for example, in his first three years coaching, Camardella said the necessity of delegating responsibility was one of his chief lessons.

“The assistants are the foundation of the program,” he said.

Both Camardella and Stokes have made deals with their wives to continue coaching. Camardella asked his thenfiancee to “give me four years,” when he took the head coaching job three years, at which time (next year) they would reevaluate the decision together. Stokes’ wife, on the other hand, no longer permits him to stay quite as late, and so he comes home at 6:30 p.m. for dinner with his family. If he still has work to do, he has to go back to school afterwards. For each coach, it seems, there is some slightly different method, though all involve some sacrifices and trade-offs.

And yet, for all there is a magic in the job that makes it worthwhile.

All the coaches interviewed — unique in their approaches and time commitments — agreed easily on one point: the appeal of coaching is not in the prizes won but, in Pearlman’s words, is in “the chance to have an impact on someone’s life that has nothing to do with football.”

Even Meyer, the Florida coach, hasn’t been able to stay away. He plans to be in Gainesville for spring practice.

SPORTS

15

Friday, Febuary 12, 2010

Let Mark’s Madness begin Brian Thomas Sports Editor

The St. Mark’s basketball league regular season has come to a close after a competitive year. The teams are now looking forward to the much-anticipated double-elimination tournament to determine who has the best team in the league.

The team that finished the regular season with the best record is St. Raymond’s (Szeliga) at 7-1, with a threeway tie for second place between St. Mark’s (Molini), St. Mark’s (Sullivan) and Young Life, all at 5-3.

Jay Gipson, who runs the St. Mark’s league, says that the tie is a good example of just how competitive the league is.

“Across the line, the league is really even,” Gibson said. “There are a couple of weak teams, but most of the teams are really competitive. Every team is out to do their best and they

Winner’s Bracket

are all pretty serious about winning.”

Senior Dan Smith, who plays in St. Mark’s, agrees with Gipson.

“It was really competitive this year,” Smith said. “Usually there are more dominant teams, but this year they were very well balanced. There are a lot of talented kids in the league; some of them used to play high school basketball. This makes for some really good basketball games.”

However, the team with the best record is not guaranteed to win it all.

“I think anyone will be able to win it all this year,” Gipson said. “The league is way too balanced and it is unpredictable. You never know who is going to win it.”

There has been a fair share of upsets in St. Mark’s this year, as well as three overtime games.

One went into triple overtime between St. Mark’s (Molini) and St. Raymond’s (Szeliga). In that game, St. Raymond’s (Szeliga) hit two shots at the buzzer. One was to tie the game

(1) St. Raymond’s (Szeliga)

(4) Young Life

(3) St. Mark’s (Molini)

* P.J. Kennedy and Brian Thomas’ predictions of the St. Mark’s playoffs (1) St. Raymond’s (Szeliga)

(4) Young Life

(5) St. Raymond’s (Olsen)

and send it into overtime and another to send the game into a second overtime.

This year, there have been some big upsets. St. Mark’s (Sullivan) beat the No. 1 seed in the league, St. Raymond’s (Szeliga), by one point to give St. Raymond’s (Szeliga) their only loss of the season.

Another big upset this year, was when South Church beat St. Mark’s (Sullivan). South Church won the game due in large part to senior Jimmy Gavin’s 33 points.

Smith thinks that the senior teams will have the edge in the playoffs, but he is ready for anything.

“St. Mark’s (Sullivan), St. Raymond’s (Szeliga)- and South Church are big contenders for the title this year.” Smith said.

“But due to all of the upsets this year, I’ve learned that anyone can win on any given night. Anything can happen.”

(1) St. Raymond’s (Szeliga)

(6) South Church

(6) South Church (2) St. Mark’s (Sullivan)

(2) St. Mark’s (Sullivan)

(2) St. Mark (Sullivan)

Champion (2) St. Mark’s (Sullivan)

(7) First Pres

Loser’s Bracket (3) St. Mark’s (Molini)

(7) First Pres.

(2) St. Mark’s (Sullivan)

(4) Young Life (3) St. Mark’s (Molini) (3) St. Mark’s (Molini)

(2) St. Mark’s (Sullivan) (3) St. Mark’s (Molini)

(5) St. Raymond’s (Olsen)

PHOTO BY MIKA EVANS

(6) South Church

(6) South Church

* The names of the coaches are in parentheses to clarify each team

St. Mark’s Team Strengths (1) St. Raymond’s (Szeliga) - Organized, well-coached - Good shooting team

(3) St. Mark’s (Molini) - Organized, well-coached - Good defensive team

(5) St. Raymond’s (Olsen) - Good rebounding team - Aggressive

(7) First Pres.

- Good shooting - A lot of heart

(2) St. Mark’s (Sullivan) - Good rebounding - Good shooting team

(4) Young Life - Organized, well-coached - Good shooting

(6) South Church - Good shooting team - Good rebounding team

All strengths were evaluated by P.J. Kennedy and Brian Thomas

St. Mark’s or PHS: The one and only question P.J. Kennedy Sports Editor

While the Prospect boys’ basketball team is playing on Tuesday nights, there might be a lack of fans. It turns out that many of those fans are spending their Tuesday night at their St. Mark’s game.

Every Tuesday for the past seven weeks, seven teams consisting of juniors and seniors have assembled at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church to play very competitive games of basketball.

The league is mostly made up of students from Prospect.

Senior Nsenzi Salasini, a starter on Prospect’s boys basketball team, has been to some St. Mark’s games.

“The games are competitive and fun to watch,” he said. “It’s fun watching my friends play with and against each other.”

Competitive is right. So far this

year, four games have gone into overtime and another four games have been won by two points or fewer out of all 56 games.

The games have been so competitive this year that six technical fouls have been given out and two players and the coach from the South Church team have been kicked out of the league for arguing a call, using profanity and not leaving the gym when asked.

The big question in the league is whether some St. Mark’s players could play for their high school teams. Senior Dan Smith, who played Prospect basketball freshmen year and is now a starting center for South Church, believes so.

“There are a lot of athletic kids that I think could play for the team; I just think they have other priorities first. If they were to put more emphasis on basketball, I believe they could play,” he said.

Most of the athletes that play St. Mark’s either were cut or decided not to play Prospect basketball. Their reasons include wanting to concentrate on one sport, having to work after school and just not wanting go through what the Prospect team does — watching film and having late practices. St. Mark’s usually consists of one practice, if the players are feeling up to it, and one game a week, whereas Prospect basketball consists of practice every day and games throughout the week.

Salasini said that he believes a “selected few” could contribute to the Prospect team.

“I believe that there are good enough athletes that play St. Mark’s that could possibly contribute to the team,” Salasini said, “I just don’t think they want that commitment — it has nothing to do with work ethic.”

BETWEEN THE LINES

By Neel Thakkar Bears’ approach to improvement misguided It used to be that once the Bears’ season ended, they could safely be shelved away until the end of August, around the time baseball season ends in Chicago. Besides Tank Johnson’s inability to part with his firearms, winters and springs at Halas Hall passed quietly, with the silence giving way only occasionally: perhaps for the team’s newest third-round draft pick (last year, it was San Jose State’s Jarron Gilbert) or Lovie Smith’s latest fix for the defense (former defensive coordinator Bob Babich being the most obvious example).

As the team has aged, though, it seems to have acquired a greater flair for the dramatic — if only to make up for the bores that have been the past couple seasons. Last year, of course, they traded for Jay Cutler. However, with little cash and even fewer draft picks to spend, 2010’s off-season seemed destined for a return to the usual monotony.

True to form, the Bears, in an announcement fueling speculation about Smith’s possible firing, promised a much-anticipated press conference in the beginning of January — only to tell the deflated crowd that they were shuffling the deck of coordinators and specialty coaches. Of course, everyone was glad that Ron Turner’s card somehow got lost in the whole affair (he was fired), but the fundamental leadership of the team, it appeared, wouldn’t change. That wasn’t necessarily a bad thing — I think Lovie has led the team better than most (he is the the second coach after George Halas—the other being Mike Ditka—to compile a winning overall record) — but it meant for a slow, building-from-the-ground-up sort of recovery.

Instead, the team has spent the last month calling the rest of the NFC North, asking if they could please give the Bears the phone numbers of their former head coaches and coordinators.

The result has been a collection of four head coaches under one roof: Smith as the head coach, Mike Tice of the Vikings as the offensive line coach, Martz of the Rams (more recently of the 49ers and Lions) as the offensive coordinator and Rod Marinelli of the Lions as the defensive coordinator.

Putting together an all-star team of coaches, unfortunately, doesn’t strike me as the same as putting together an all-star group of players. Keeping four large egos on the sideline, with all accustomed to being, as George Bush would say, the “decider,” seems more of a recipe for disaster, especially considering that coaches like Martz are much more accomplished than Smith.

Indeed, looking around the league’s best teams, a different formula emerges.

The Saints (13-3 in 2009), for example, have only one coach — besides head coach Sean Payton — with previous head coaching experience. The rest of the staff, while talented, is not as illustrious, keeping the leadership hierarchy clear. The same is true for the Patriots (10-6), who have no former head coaches among their ranks, and for the Colts (142). On the other hand, the Lions (2-14) have two former head coaches, as do the Dolphins (7-9).

The better combination, then, is a strong head coach, surrounded by capable — but inconspicuous —assistants. As potential head coaches, I think Martz, for example, might be a good choice. As an assistant, he, Tice and Marinelli will likely fall flat.

It’s heartening, at least, that the Bears have become serious about finding talent. They’d be much better off, though, looking for it on the field instead of the sidelines.

They Said It

Friday, February 12, 2010

Sports

“It was either [coaching] or pipe-fitting. And I’m glad I’m not a pipe-fitter.

My dad was a pipe-fitter ... I was in the [pipe-fitting] union; I was ready to go.”

-Boys’ cross-country and track coach Mike Stokes on choosing the path of coaching

Fights fuel friendship Hockey players from different high schools find common (ice-covered) ground on PREP you out of the game. So there are not a lot of fights ... they really try to control in at the high school-level.”

Penalties are a similar story: just arIn the waning moments of the game, the PREP hockey team was hand- guing with a referee can land a player ily beating Huntley 10-3. Frustrated, a in the penalty box.

According to Dave, his team frowns Huntley player started to provoke Ryan Morgan, Rolling Meadows senior and upon fighting. He said that, “You’re going to have it PREP center. now and then, Within moSteps toward high school hockey but we defiments the two nitely don’t began brawlAt the moment, the IHSA doesn’t encourage ing, with sanction high school-affiliated hockey. PREP it. [Hockey] Ryan’s oppohockey is categorized as club hockey. is a fast game nent throw“They say it’s insurance, but it hasn’t been and it’s an ining the first too popular of a sport over the years, but tense game, punch. Soon it’s growing now,” PREP hockey head coach so sometimes enough, PalaDave Morgan said. “Kids are really into it those things tine senior Ben happen. [But] now, so it’s changing. Maybe down the road, Schulte joined ... we try and high schools will start sponsoring hockey.” the fight to prostay away tect his teamEarlier this year, Morgan and his team from that.” mate Ryan. went to the Rolling Meadows Booster Club “ T h e “[When] one and petitioned to have them sponsor some three games team’s beatof PREP’s costs. According to Morgan, the I missed we ing the other petition is expected to be a success. If so, lost,” Ryan pretty good, it the Booster Club is going to give the team a said. “Basican get pretdonation to “basically help offset the cost of cally, I felt ty rough out the team.” helpless. [The there,” Dave fight] wasn’t Morgan, PREP worth it.” coach and RyPREP (Palatine, Rolling Meadows, an’s father, said.

All three players were suspended Elk Grove and Prospect) hockey started for three games — much harsher than its playoff season last week on Feb. 3, in the NHL, where they would just get losing closely to Fremd 3-2. Their game against Mundelein could have ended 10-minute timeouts. “[There aren’t] too many fights, be- better: despite leading by three goals, cause hockey has instituted — probably Mundelein tied with seconds left on the not rightfully so, but it’s a good thing — clock.

These two games were part of a zero-tolerance policy,” PREP Manager round-robin play—in which losses do Denise Kirsten said.

“Whether it be among the coaches, not result in elimination—between the top four teams of the Metro Norththe players or the fans in the stands, if [the referees] don’t like your behavior west. Unfortunately, PREP’s first real or what you’re saying, they can kick playoff game versus Champaign was a loss, resulting in elimination. Prospect

By Riley Simpson Sports Editor

PREP hockey traditions PREP executive board: An executive board of parents makes up PREP’s inner-workings.

Comprised of a President, Secretary/ Registrar and a Treasurer, the PREP board equally represents all four schools with a board member.

“We’re kind of like our own country,” Denise Kirsten, the manager and secretary/registrar of PREP, said.

At the end-of-season banquet, the coaches pass out awards, some goofy and some serious, including MVP, Tasmanian devil (the best forechecker — a player who goes after the opposing team when they have the puck), Top Gun (top goal scorer) and Rudy (most consistent player who works hard at being a team player).

senior defender Nick Natola said that “we weren’t mentally ready.”

The team played possibly their last game against Conant on Wednesday (results unknown as of press time).

“It’s not a championship,” Natola said. “We lost that, too. This is more like a crappy re-do [for us].”

Dave said that the players’ relationship is “very interesting because they all get along really well, especially my seniors, some of whom have been playing together for four years. But it’s funny when their schools have a basketball game or something: there’s a lot of good-natured [teasing].”

In fact, Ryan, Natola and junior Anthony Charnota have all found the team’s diversity to be a plus.

“Before we really knew each other its like, ‘Oh, he goes to this school, and they beat us before, so I don’t really like them,’” Charnota said. “Once you like play on a team with them and are forced to bond with them, it ends up being fun.”

Both Natola and Charnota have bonded with their non-Prospect teammates.

Charnota usually just hangs out after games and practices to “get a bite to eat with the guys.”

Natola, on the other hand, has hung out with Kirsten’s son, Rolling Meadows senior Bryan, a few times and just drove around.

“The best part is playing with kids from different schools,” Ryan, the Meadows senior, said. “I get a different view of [Prospect], because [they’re] our rivals and stuff, and that’s all I see sometimes. It’s more fun playing with my Prospect teammates than [rooting] against them.”

On Prospectornow.com...

- A girls’ bowling feature on their conference and sectional play.

- Story on the wrestling team’s individual regionals.

- Coverage of Friday night’s boys’ basketball senior night game against Wheeling.

- Girls’ basketball game coverage of last week’s game against Buffalo Grove.

- Also check in for coverage of boys’ swimming’s conference meet and girls’ gymnastics’ sectional meet.

PREP practices and games PREP hockey practices on Tuesday and Thursday nights from 9:25-10:40, and have night games two or three times a week.

“It’s a pretty big commitment,” coach Dave Morgan said. “This coach gets home way past his bedtime.”

“I like [PREP] because it’s not like all the other high school sports with practice everyday after school,” Ryan Morgan, PREP center and Rolling Meadows senior, said. “It’s two or three times a week, at a little late time, but it’s better than [daily practice].”

Hockey doesn’t come cheap According to head coach Dave Morgan, each player pays north of $2400, a price that includes all of the team’s expenses except the players’ equipment. PREP manager Denise Kirsten said that the cost covers the ice time — which can run up to $400 at some rinks for an hour — the coaches’ fees, Helmet ... tournaments, team banquets and most $25 — $36 of the uniform costs.

“It’s fairly expensive to play hockey,” Morgan said. “Ice time costs a lot. But a lot of the kids work ... some pay for a lot of their own fees.

So, it’s worth it to them. They love hockey.”

Gloves ... $20 — $70

No cuts, no buts, no coconuts: Since PREP is a combined team from players from four different high schools, the coaches cannot cut players.

“Anybody who comes out will be playing for PREP,” manager Denise Kirsten said.

Stick ... $100 — $135

Banquets and events: PREP has a plethora of special occasions for its team and parents.

Last month over Winter Break, PREP hosted Alumni Night for all of its graduated players.

Senior Night was also a prevalent event for PREP where the coaches and executive board honored the seniors and the seniors’ mothers with a rose.

Ice skates ... $300 PHOTO COURTESY OF DENISE KIRSTEN, PRICES COURTESY OF DAVE MORGAN AND SPORTSAUTHORITY.COM PHOTO COURTESY OF PREP HOCKEY WEBSITE

Senior Nick Natola celebrates Senior Night with his parents. Senior Night is one of many PREP hockey traditions and events.

Junior Russell Burgert awaits the puck. The PREP hockey team played in the elimination game Wednesday against Conant in the Founders Cup Tournament.