Issue 7

THE

PROSPECTOR

801 WEST KENSINGTON ROAD, MOUNT PROSPECT, ILLINOIS 60056

THE VOICE OF PROSPECT HIGH SCHOOL SINCE 1959

VOLUME 56, ISSUE 7

FRIDAY, MARCH 3, 2017

Turkish students escape fear, injustice

BY AYSE ELDES Executive Opinion Editor *Name changed for confidentiality

O

ne day in the spring of 2016, Turkish sophomore Duru Kaya* was out shopping in Tblisi, Georgia, where she had been attending an international school in the country for a year. After not being able to reach her father for four months, Kaya finally received a call from him. Before that call, Kaya even had given thought to whether her dad was dead.

“My dad said to me, ‘You have three days. You are coming here. Three days.

Get ready.’” Kaya said. “Then he closed the phone. I was so mad; I was shocked at first.

Then I started crying.”

She didn’t know it at the time, but her family had just lost everything. Her father’s international shipping company had been try, civilians began taken over and shut down by the Turkish calling the police government. Kaya’s life had changed a lot on each other. For Aydin, already, but the worst was yet to come.

This school year, Prospect has welcomed life began to change after police raided her two students who fled from the political un- family’s house in March of 2016 in search of secret anti-government files that her father rest caused by government corruption in was allegedly hiding.

Turkey (see “CrackAfter being interdown”). Kaya and juCrackdown rogated by the police nior Deniz Aydin* both The Turkish government cracked about his affiliation came to the United down on civilians following a with the Gulen MoveStates in the summer failed coup in July. Since then: ment, Aydin’s dad faced of 2016 after enduring possible imprisonment. hardships, persecupeople have been He left the country the tion and human rights 92,554 detained very next day. violations at the hand “There was a risk of the Turkish governschools, dormitories of living,” Aydin said. ment. and universities have 2,099 “Freedom?

Freedom Kaya and Aydin’s been forced to close had left a year earlier. families were both asjudges and Now, living was a risk sociated with the Gu4,070 prosecutors have been in Turkey.” len Movement, a civic Aydin says that unmovement that spoke dismissed til the police raid, she up against the corrupmedia outlets have had been oblivious to tion going on in the 149 been shut down the arrests and the new country. Kaya’s parinformation courtesy of TurkeyPurge.com political agenda in Turents were volunteers key. Around the same for the movement and had previously stated their support for it to time Kaya received the shocking call from her father in April, Aydin had already said the people around them. Aydin’s taught at goodbye to her dad in Turkey. schools that worked with the movement.

“That’s when I became afraid in the full Unlike Kaya, Aydin had been in Istanbul throughout the developments. She was at- sense of the word,” Aydin said. tending an all-girls high school in Istanbul, where her mother was also a teacher at the A dad’s disappearance time. Because of mass paranoia in the counKaya had never attended a public school

SAYING GOODBYE: This school year, Prospect welcomed two students who fled from the political conflict in Turkey. An anonymous junior and her family managed to escape five days before the attempted coup.

“There was a risk of living. Freedom? Freedom had left a year earlier; now, living was a risk in Turkey,” she said. (photo illustration

by Elisabeth Rohde)

“If I had come here straight from Turkey, I would’ve gone through hysteria,” K a y a said.

It was the end of her first year in Georin her life. Her family’s affluence allowed her attend private schools even for kinder- gia, and Kaya hadn’t contacted her dad since garten. Before leaving Turkey, Kaya’s mom January 2016. When she asked about him, her mom was evasive about was the head of a women’s his whereabouts. She startinstitution in Trabzon, “My dad said to me, ‘You ed to realize something had Turkey. changed in her home coun“Whatever I wanted, have three days. You’re I would get it. ... I mean coming here. Three days. try.

It wasn’t until her cousanything — shoes, purses,” Get ready.’ … Then he in later told her that she Kaya said. “That’s how I was.” closed the phone. I was learned the family’s instiand company were Kaya’s older brother so mad; I was shocked at tutions being taken over. The Turkwas attending a private first. Then I started crying.” ish government dismissed school in New Jersey, and her parents from their jobs she planned on going to anonymous sophomore because they were volunLondon for high school. teers for and outspoken However, in pursuit of supporters of the Gulen Movement. When gaining experience in a poverty-stricken country, Kaya had went to Georgia in 2015 af- Kaya went to visit her mom in Turkey over a short school break in March 2016, she found ter eighth grade, where the rubble of World that her mom had already been emptying the War II still remains. house. Things had changed since she went to When looking back, Georgia’s poor living Georgia. conditions are what Kaya says prepared her for coming to the U.S. with a bad financial SEE GOODBYE, page 2 status.

Speech storms state tournament

BY LEO GARKISCH Copy Editor

STATELY SPEAKING: Sophomore Katherine Jordan and senior Ben Marshall perform their Humorous Duet Acting piece that took fourth place in the state. Their finish was one of six top five finishes, leading to a third-place team trophy. (photo by Elisabeth Rohde)

STIGMA Stoppers

Mental Health Awareness Club began last year at Prospect and has worked towards expanding the conversation about mental health.

To learn more, turn to ...

pages 6-7

The speech team placed third at the Illinois High School Association state tournament, which was held in Peoria and concluded on Feb. 18. Senior Jimmy McDermott took home first place in Prose Reading, and senior Ben Marshall and sophomore Molly McDermott placed first in Dramatic Duet Acting.

The results culminated a season marked by consistent success, constant readjustment, team-wide assumption of leadership and new faces embracing the spotlight on a team looking to follow up on the success of last year’s state championship.

Head coach Jonathan Kaminsky believes the team accom-

plished that goal — even if they didn’t achieve the same overall rank. Going into the year, he made it clear to the team that the success of last year’s team would not translate to this season without maintaining a high level of drive and commitment.

“It’s a different year. It’s a different process,” Kaminsky said.

“They also have different scripts.

Some of them have different events, so I think a lot of it was reinforcing to them, reinforcing to us that it’s an incredibly new experience. You start as nothing as an individual competitor, and then you build it all up.”

Kaminsky, who assumed the head coaching role after Fine Arts Director Jeremy Morton stepped down from the position last year,

credits the team’s continued success largely to the support team members provide one another.

“I see really that peer coaching is one of the most important things, where the senior leaders really take ownership of the team,” Kaminsky said. “We don’t have captains. We don’t have anything formal like that because we’re really dealing with five, six, 10 amazing kids to where they’re all captains in their own right.”

While several team members were returning state qualifiers, Kaminsky says one thing that makes this year’s team unique is its depth in terms of fully committed, high-achieving team members in combination with their willingness to push one another.

SEE SPEECH, page 3

nerd is the word

ALL I DO IS WIN

Nerd culture has become mainstream, and in the eyes of proud nerd junior Cole Altmayer, this cheapens the meaning of the word. For his full thoughts, flip to ...

With strong senior leadership and consistent wins, the Knights’ boys’ basketball has grabbed another MSL East Title. To find out what fuels their success, turn to...

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News

March 3, 2017

prospectornow.com

GOODBYE: Students adapt after escaping Turkish purge “I’d look if anyone was snooping around our home,” Ela said. “Because when a person is exposed to House searches had become common in the country. Police so much anxiety, they go through a would raid houses of any alleged lot of suspicions. There were many government critics and arrest peo- instances when I cried, but I tried ple even at the discovery of a “sus- not to let the kids notice.”

Deniz, her mom and her two picious” book. Kaya by now was younger brothers left Turkey on now well aware of what was going on. Since her parents didn’t deny July 10, five days before the atsupporting the Gulen Movement, tempted coup. Deniz knew they could have easily been arrested at they expected to be arrested soon.

Kaya learned that this was the rea- the airport; many others had been son her father had immediately left stopped at airport gates and detained. She had Turkey withno personal out telling her.

“The voyage [here], a 10possessions to Kaya’s parents hour flight, allows you a lot bring with her agreed that the other than her less she knew, of time to think. I looked Deniz the less danger outside the window. I mean guitar. and Kaya both she would be you’re leaving your nation. left for the in.

United States “ T h r e e No matter how nasty in July. Kaya’s years ago, the people get, it’s your own soil. family had only problem already gone There, flying over that soil, in my life was to America, probably that gave a lot of pain.” and she was to I couldn’t find leave Georgia the right shoe anonymous junior to meet them size.

That’s there. what made Kaya had no personal possesme sad. … Silly,” Kaya said. “The things that I’ve experienced in the sions left either since she was staying alone in Tbilisi; she found conlast three years — I mean — I’ve solation in herself. grown up.”

“I talked to myself. I’d say, ‘Hey, According to Turkish Purge, this and this have happened. I have a website put together after many to do something,’” Kaya said. “The reliable news sources were shut down by the government, over night before I came here, I did that again and just said, ‘Calm down,’ to 100,000 people had been dismissed from their jobs by government de- myself.”

While Kaya was nervous about cree. Each day, Aydin heard news of relatives being fired or arrested. traveling alone and everything going on, Deniz contemplated leaving Those who were dismissed from their jobs have had no options for on the plane. She was fortunate to the future. Many of Aydin’s close make it through the airport, but all family members, who are still in of her relatives were left behind.

She had not even notified any Turkey, were teachers like her parents. Aydin’s uncle is one of friends that she was leaving.

“The voyage there, a 10-hour the 93,248 people detained since the flight, allows you a lot of time to coup. “[Those who are detained] all think. I looked outside the window.

I mean, you’re leaving your nahave families. Everyone had to start from zero. All of their in- tion,” Deniz said. “No matter how comes had been cut off. How were nasty people can get, it’s your own these people supposed to main- soil. There, flying over that soil, gave a lot of pain.” tain their families?” Deniz said. “I Deniz’s youngest brother, sevthink this is a crime of humanity. en-year-old Ali*, had been oblivIt’s not about a country.”

When her dad left the country ious to the surrounding events. in March, Aydin’s mom, Ela, im- Still asking where his dad was, it mediately began preparing to leave wasn’t until the flight was almost over that they told him they were the country. They needed to get passports and visas before a tem- going to America.

After they landed in New York, porary travel ban was enforced in Deniz and her siblings were surthe country. Deniz’s mom had never done such paperwork before; the prised at the sight of their father afresponsibility was on her shoul- ter being separate for four months. ders. She would leave the house Deniz’s brother was too confused to react. every day before the kids woke up “When we stepped off the plane, and come home after midnight to the way Ali looked at his dad — get all the necessary paperwork that scene was a truly film-esque done so they could leave.

CONTINUED from front page

scene,” Ela said. “The kid froze there. When Ali stepped out, he saw his dad, he froze. He didn’t even hug him. He just stared.”

When she saw her dad, Deniz couldn’t control her emotions. She forgot about the suitcases and ran to her dad.

“Even now, just remembering it makes my eyes water, that moment,” Deniz said. “I can see it play out right in front of my eyes.

That moment, we didn’t care about anything. We hugged my dad. Our family was together. … I can never pour that into words. I made the best of that moment. My eyes kept filling up from laughing.”

A new life RECOLLECTING: To escape the stresses of living as a refugee in For the first time in 5 years, the U.S., anonymous sophomore frequently spends time walking Kaya’s family members would around downtown Chicago. It has been seven months since she be together. However, this would arrived in the U.S. “My adapting took a long time. Maybe I’m still not come at the cost of everything im- used to it,” she said. (photo courtesy of anonymous sophomore) portant to them.

“When I came here. . .I hated find a minimum wage job because here in the Chicago suburbs. With this place,” Kaya said. “There was the help of their “sister families” of his poor English. Her mom lost disappointment and a feeling of deand new friends from the Turkher job as a high school teacher to feat, to be honest.” ish-American community, it bethe same situation.

Although coming to America came easier to connect with others.

This change was even rougher was full of hardships for both stu“You’re ripped from your suron Kaya’s family members. Leyla, dents, adapting to their new lives Duru’s mother, was psychologicalroundings that you’re used to,” would take more effort. The family worn because she left a presti- Ela, Deniz’s mom, said. “Here, lies of both students received help adapting takes time.” gious career as the head of a womfrom the Huddled Masses organi- en’s social institution. She was not Both students have pending zation, a nonprofit started to help only rattled because loved ones asylum applications and have been those who have left Turkey as refuwere left behind, but also because living in the U.S. for nine months. gees (see “Taking Action”).

It’s unknown what the future holds of a rough arrival.

Both Deniz and Kaya were for them. Deniz’s parents are conBecause of an address discrephoused by the organization be- ancy, Leyla was held at the airport cerned about a future executive orfore finding homes in Arlington for 11 hours. After a year of hiding der ruling against them. Although Heights, where like a fugitive Turkey was not one of the seven a large Turkish countries named in the new travel in Turkey, Helping Hands community exban, Deniz’s father questioned the paranoia had Prospect’s Service Club ists. Kaya found potential risk of having to leave taken over. Duwill be having a fundraiser it hard to adjust once again. ru’s mom was because it was far for Huddled Masses, a “I told him ‘No.’ If something interrogated different from her nonprofit helping Turkish happens, then we’ll think about it by a hostile life three years then. We came here together; we’ll policeman at refugees. More info and ago. leave together,” Ela said. “This O’Hare Airport details will follow in the “My adapting country was built by foreigners. who threw her upcoming weeks. took a long time.

The structure of this country expassport at Maybe I’m still not ists because of immigrants. This is her face. It was used to it,” Kaya hard to adapt after this bad first a country open to freedoms.” said. “I was confused. Should I be After a year of hardships and impression. excited to be in America or sad? I changes in 2015, the two students “I had never seen my mom like didn’t know what I was supposed that,” Duru said. “Psychologically arrived at Prospect for the 2016-17 to do, … and as the days went by, I my mom was very paranoid when school year. Each one has used difcaved in. I became suffocated.” she first came. She didn’t want to ferent things to help them adapt.

The uncertainty of the future even see the sight of a police car. Both give credit to their Turkwas hard to handle. Kaya’s and ish-American friends that have She didn’t want to see people. It Deniz’s parents were unemployed. was like she wanted to stay home accompanied them at Prospect for Kaya’s dad now runs a mall kiosk and hide under a blanket all day.” helping them learn about Ameriat Woodfield mall; he is currently can culture and norms.

After their arrival in July 2016, the only one out of the four with time was the only thing that helped For Deniz, the key to getting a stable income. Especially when ease the emotional tensions and through everything was with muthey first arrived, not knowing psychological wear on the girls sic. Playing guitar has been a way where they were going to live, and their families. They would for her to recollect herself and exwhat they were going to do or soon meet each other in August at press her emotions. As for Duru, where she’d go to school made a community event organized by she spends time visiting downKaya feel bitter. Deniz’s dad went Huddled Masses. The organization town Chicago to reconnect with from being a respected assistant paired families of the students with the once-relaxed life she had. professor to someone who can’t a family in the Turkish community Deniz plans on studying law in

Taking Action Both families of the students that came to Prospect received help from the Huddled Masses organization, a nonprofit started to help those who have left Turkey as refugees. The organization was started when the number of refugees began exponentially increasing. Dr. Enes Yilmaz, secretary of the organization, is also one of the victims of the purge. While working as a visiting professor at Princeton University, Yilmaz found out he had been dismissed from his job in Turkey.

Some of the people Yilmaz has encountered have lost millions of dollars to the Turkish government.

“The people here may not know what’s going on in Turkey; maybe they don’t even know where that is,” Yilmaz said. “But the people who have come here, they are highly intellectual people. These things can happen to

anyone. The love of living together, the necessity of being together, this is what we’re trying to convey to people.”

Other than housing for those who come here, the organization gives financial aid during the 180-day waiting period before asylum applicants may receive a work permit. Huddled Masses’ biggest project is the “sister families” project, where a newly arrived family or individual is assigned a family here in the U.S. Those who come are paired with members of the Turkish American Society of Chicago (TASC). TASC also provides temporary free stays at their culture center in Mt. Prospect to those who have no financial status.

Huddled Masses is under the umbrella of the Gulen Movement, the global civic movement that the students coming to Prospect were associated

with. According to BBC News, the Gulen Movement is an non-political organized group of people named after the U.S. based Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen.

After Gulen spoke out again against the human rights violations taking place in the country, many civilians associated with the movement became victims of what is now called the Turkish government’s “purge.” Arrests, detainments, faulty trials, and tempered laws are common occurrences in the country now. Any government opposer is labeled as a “terrorist” of the Gulen Movement, and incriminated.

“We’re not afraid. Our values are known, our beliefs are evident,” Yilmaz said. “If something happens, we believe it is a test of our values. However much we can be patient, that’s how well we pass the test.”

the U.S. to one day go back to help her country while Duru is uncertain what the next years of her life will look like.

Ela hopes that stories like her daughter’s will be useful in making America’s youth more aware. Currently, she and her husband are attending English courses at Harper College, and they’ve begun rebuilding the life they’ve lost. They hope sharing their experiences will help change viewpoints of the young generation.

“This is a note for the future — not for the past, for the future,” Ela said. “This world is a big world.

There are so many riches here. Allah has spread that over his mountains, valleys, plains, oceans. The future is entrusted upon the youth.

If our young generation is aware of this, if they realize this, then the world will become a just place. I am of that opinion.”

All interviews are conducted in Turkish and later translated to English

prospectornow.com

March 3, 2017

News

3

SPEECH: Team triumphs at state meet CONTINUED from front page Senior Abby Grott had not qualified for the state competition in any of her first three years on the team, yet she managed to place first at regionals and second at sectionals and state in Oratorical Declamation. Kaminsky credited her as one of the students whose leadership helped fill the void left by last year’s graduating seniors, including state champions Andrew Pittman and Kit Fitzgerald.

Grott says she is just one of the many capable critics and teachers on the team.

“Pretty much anyone on the team, if you go to them and say, ‘I need help with something,’ even if they’ve never been in the event before, they’ll sit, watch your speech and tell you what they know,” Grott said. “I think that shows leadership in literally anybody. I could name anybody on the team, and I’d feel like, ‘Yeah, they’re a good leader.’”

BRAIN POWER: Science Olympiad received 11 single medals at their Huntley Invite on Feb. 4.

FOR the full story on Science Olympiad head to Prospectornow.com

Peer coaching is just one of the ways team members feed off of one another’s expertise.

Jimmy, who has been a state qualifier in each of his four years at Prospect, agreed that the team’s closeness is a primary component in its continued success.

“There’s just been this undeniable bond,” Jimmy said. “I don’t know what it is without sounding too sappy, but kids just get each other on [the regional] team. They get each other’s struggles and their successes, and they celebrate together.”

Grott agreed.

“There was a lot of camaraderie amongst the individual events just because we so wanted to see each other succeed,” Grott said. “It was less individualism than I think is presented. So instead of only focusing on how you’re going to perform, even though that’s important, you wanted to see other people do really well you were excited to see people make finals or to place in the places that they did.”

That bond served the team well, for instance, in retaining Molly, Jimmy’s sister, as a key member. In the fall of this school year — towards the beginning of the season — frustrated and overwhelmed, Molly considered moving on from speech altogether.

“I was really stressed, and I had a lot going on with school,” Molly said. “Then once we got into it, I realized speech is like my outlet. So when I go there, I’m completely stress-free and that it’s where I go to relieve my stress. So I think it’s good that I didn’t quit.”

She attributes the closeness to her friend and frequent performance partner Marshall as a determining factor in her decision to stay with the team.

When Jimmy faced unforeseen difficulties reaching a final round in his signature Original Oratory — an event in which was state champion as a junior — early on in the season, failing to qualify in three consecutive competitions, he felt that the support structure Kaminsky and the rest of the team had built served him well. Rather than focusing on rankings or final placement, Kaminsky stressed the importance of getting a

last year,” Molly said. “We tried not to overmessage across to the audience. do practice. I think what really helped Ben “I don’t really tend to justify it in terms of how many things I’ve won or anything like and I was we hadn’t been doing [Dramatic Duet Acting] the whole season. It still felt that,” Jimmy said. “But rather just on the new, so it wasn’t like we were bored with it number of people I’ve been able to share a or anything like that.” story with and speak to.”

Seeing as Marshall felt Kaminsky says he nevState Finalists it worked well at state, the er doubted that Jimmy’s Knights will take a simiscores would return to Jimmy McDermott lar approach in preparing where they had been the for “districts” — the qualprevious year.

Prose Reading (1st) and ifying tournament for “If you judge a speech Original Oratory (2nd) the National Speech and only by the ranks it reDebate Association naceives, it’s going to be Ben Marshall and Moltional tournament, which trouble because then ly McDermott - Dramatic will be held in Birmingyou’re just out there to Duet Acting (1st) ham in June — in which please other people, and Kaminsky says the team it’s never going to work,” has expressed an unusual Kaminsky said. “I would Abby Grott - Oratorical amount of interest. never say he had trouDeclamation (2nd) While Jimmy prepares ble in the beginning of for the end of his time as the year. Even though John Zach - Poetry Readsomeone widely seen as a his speech wasn’t being ing (3rd) key member of the speech as well-received as last team, he can’t help but year, where he never lost Katherine Jordan and to look back and see this a competition, the process year’s state competition was the exact same. … So Ben Marshall - Humoras having ended on a biteven though the results at ous Duet Acting (4th) tersweet note. His father the beginning of the year and unofficial coach of weren’t there, the conRiley Langefeld - Extemthe team, Associate Princern was always how to poraneous Speaking (7th) cipal Scott McDermott, make this better for the has been involved in the next week.” speech community for Instilling this philosodecades, and this year phy was not a task too tall marked the eighth time Jimmy had traveled for Kaminsky, as it has been one held by the speech team for years. Jimmy says Kamin- to the IHSA tournament.

Now, Jimmy says he is focused the most sky’s unique, laid-back approach has served on leaving his mark. the team well.

“For me it’s always been about passing “Morton really understood how to take a down the legacy,” Jimmy said. “We’ve got group of kids who weren’t focused and put them on the right track,” Jimmy said. “Ka- this great thing that [started] four years ago … when we really started to get good. And minsky gets that, too, but they do it in very so it’s really been about passing it down. different ways.”

Rather than riling up the team or putting My whole thing this year when a kid kind of gets off-track and focuses on the wrong thing pressure on them to follow up on last year’s state championship, Kaminsky had the team is [focusing] on that legacy and on passing down something that can be continued for a approach the state meet just as any other few years.” competition.

“It wasn’t as time-consuming as it was

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4

Opinion

March 3, 2017

prospectornow.com

Not impressed by Trump press policy O

“Any negative polls are fake news, just like House press briefing. Reporters from the the CNN, ABC, NBC polls in the election,” Associated Press and Time magazine volTrump tweeted on Feb. 6. This kind of thin- untarily stayed out to show support for the repressed organizations. skinned and narrow-minded rhetoric is This treatment of the American press is dangerous and normalizes the rejection of objective facts in favor of lies. As noted by entirely unprecedented. No president has gone to such lengths to restrict free speech Arizona Senator John McCain, this metasince John Adams signed into law the Sediphorical territory is where dictators find tion Act in 1798, which was specifically detheir roots. signed to silence political But Trump has not opposition. stopped there. Beyond Many of Trump’s his repeated lies, he supporters point to the described journalists, rise of “fake news” and in a sweeping generalinaccurate reporting in ization, as “among the the age of the Internet most dishonest human as justification for his beings on Earth.” White actions. However, this House Chief Strateexplanation does not gist Steve Bannon has apply to reputable news called the media the organizations such as “opposition party,” a Voting results of the CNN, ABC, the BBC characterization restatProspector staff in regards and Politico. Although ed verbatim by Trump to this editorial. it is possible to perceive on several occasions. bias in some of the writTrump has additionally said that the media is “the enemy of the ing and reporting released by these outlets, they can certainly be counted upon to reAmerican people.”

Perhaps most disturbing is a statement port accurate information, and this is a key from Presidential Counselor Kellyanne fact Trump chooses to overlook.

Conway, who described Spicer’s stateWe, the Prospector, believe that the ments about the inauguration crowd as rising hostility directed toward the free “alternative facts” to the correct ones re- press is harmful to the general public. A ported by the news media. restricted press leads to misinformation And on Feb. 24, Spicer barred several and, eventually, vitriolic and self-defeating prominent news organizations — includ- discourse. Although inaccurate reporting ing the New York Times, Politico, CNN may be a problem, Americans cannot allow and the BBC — from attending a White this problem to become a reason to reject

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Against

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For

clear facts and logical reasoning.

The president holds the most powerful office in the country. He answers directly to the people who elected him and those who didn’t. Trump’s blatant lies and efforts to restrict free speech show a complete lack of respect for the American people and their well-being.

Trump is attempting to forcefully control the national narrative surrounding his presidency. This is not a right of the president, and there is good reason for this standard.

The dutiful investigative reporting of Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein after the Watergate scandal in 1972 exposed Americans to ugly truths about their government. It was the press that showed the effects of the Vietnam War and started a political movement in America. It was the press that revealed president Clinton’s lies to the people. And it was the press that revealed Trump’s boasts of sexual assault during his campaign.

Past presidents, despite their numerous disagreements with the press, have largely acknowledged the media’s legitimacy and importance in a free, democratic society.

Trump must make this same acknowledgment and protect the First Amendment.

In the words of president James Madison, “To the press alone, checkered as it is with abuses, the world is indebted for all the triumphs which have been gained by reason and humanity over error and oppression.”

Staff Editorial

n Jan. 21, a mere day after his inauguration, President Donald Trump began a series of lies that has streamed virtually non-stop from our country’s highest office for the last month.

Trump and White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer adamantly contended that the inauguration drew the biggest crowd in American history. These claims were false, and Trump and Spicer knew they were.

This instance is just one example plucked from an lengthy list of falsehoods issued from Trump during his campaign and the first month of his presidency. The new administration has proven to be unorthodox in a number of ways, but that which is certainly the most concerning is its treatment of the free press. It is imperative that, regardless of their political opinions, Americans stand in defense of the free press in the face of this unprecedented opposition.

Throughout Trump’s presidential campaign, he and his strongest supporters lambasted the press for perceived negative treatment in the news. However, these criticisms of the media were almost always unsubstantiated. Trump frequently criticized fact-checks of his claims during campaign speeches and presidential press releases.

Whenever their blatant falsehoods are challenged by the public, the Trump administration resorts to the convenient excuse of media bias.

Furthermore, Trump has entirely rebuffed news that doesn’t fit his carefully constructed narrative of his own success.

Twitter imperils political discourse Twitter for this purpose.

When then-President-Elect This concept is evident in one Donald Trump delivered his vicof the earliest political arguments tory speech in the early hours of to the American people, the FedNov. 9, 75 million election-related eralist papers, which were writTweets had been sent since polls ten anonymously by three of the opened. It would seem that the founding fathers to sell sheer amount of pothe country on the Conlitical expression that stitution. To accurately day was a victory for convey the subtleties of Americans regardthe four page document, less of whether their the authors decided that candidate won. After 85 essays were necesall, in the words of sary. For comparison’s Benjamin Franklin, “Freedom of speech is BY MIKE STANFORD sake, that’s 1,144,350 characters. a principal pillar of a Editor-in-Chief The Constitution free government.” was and remains the However, Twitter most important document ever ratis hardly what Franklin had in ified in this country, so it makes mind. While it enables free expressense that the Federalist Papers sion, its 140-character limit stifles needed to be long. Nonetheless, 140 political discourse, and its democharacters could never adequately graphically unbalanced makeup give comment on matters like who creates a type of groupthink that should lead the free world. misrepresents political realities.

The manifestation of this There is no doubt that the over-simplification is clear to any 140-character limit has fueled Twitter user. In the days following Twitter’s success. It makes feeds the election, hashtags like #Notreadable and easy to digest. The MyPresident and memes about problem is that nuanced policy then-Vice President Joe Biden beideas are not supposed to be easy gan trending on Twitter. to digest, so people should not use

Hashtag History Twitter has become a key component of politics. Here is Donald Trump’s presidency as told by hashtags:

#WomensMarch

Editor-in-Chief Mike Stanford Managing Editors Grace Berry Diana Leane Copy Editors Leo Garkisch Riley Langefeld

Social media Editor Jack Ryan Online Sports Editor Wyatt Dojutrek Broadcast Editor Claire Strother Opinion Editors Ayse Eldes Katie Hamilton

However, at a school that voted for former Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton by a 21 percent margin, students are far more likely to encounter an overabundance of liberal positions.

Twitter’s usefulness is far greater for light-hearted matters or straight facts. Just as Instagram is for pictures about users’ lives, Twitter should be about witty thoughts and unbiased updates.

It is when Tweets become unsupported opinions that the platform becomes dangerous.

Nonetheless, Twitter is not going to erode democracy altogether. But it does represent an oversimplification of important ideas.

Socrates had concerns to the same

Trump aide Kellyanne Conway started a firestorm by responding to “Meet the Press” anchor Chuck Todd’s inquiry about inauguration crowd size with “alternative facts.”

February 7 Trump’s Cabinet picks have faced strong resistance from Democrats, reaching a crescendo when Senator Elizabeth Warren was censored for personal attacks on her then-colleague Jeff Sessions.

Features Editor Amanda Stickels

Adviser Jason Block

Entertainment Editors Cassidy Delahunty Cole Altmayer

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. The Prospector is published by students in Journalistic Writing courses. Some visual material is courtesy of MCT Campus High School Newspaper Service.

Sports Editors Jack Ankony Paul Evers Staff Writer David Fang Mandi Hall Visuals Editor Elisabeth Rohde

effect about widespread literacy.

He thought people would mistake reading for understanding. That seems foolish now given the way literacy has improved quality of life for billions around the world, but the ideas behind his concern are more relevant now.

What Socrates was really worried about was the simplification of ideas at the expense of intellectual thought. Twitter explicitly enables this, and it does so within a relatively ideologically homogeneous community. It is for this reason that Twitter is a sub-optimal platform to express political viewpoints. Trying to use it to do so is at odds with our democratic tradition.

#LetLizSpeak

January 22

The day following Trump’s inauguration, 3.2 million people worldwide took to the streets in response to his comments on women.

Online Copy Editor Erin Schultz

illustration by Katie Hamilton

#AlternativeFacts

January 21

Associate Editors-in-Chief Flynn Geraghty Caley Griebenow

staff

Because these Tweets only state opinions, the type of persuasion they offer is brute force. They cannot explain the underlying issues and policy ideas in play, so they are essentially an aggressive form of peer pressure targeting users.

Such pressure is especially potent because Twitter tends to over represent liberal arguments. For instance, according to a Pew Research study, events that draw a high volume of American Twitter reaction like presidential debates and elections usually draw a reaction that is 20 to 40 percent more liberal than the country as a whole.

A liberal bias is unavoidable since young people adapt to new technology faster than their elders, and young people tend to be more liberal. However, lacking diversity of thought is terrifying. It leads people to assume political positions without fully considering alternatives.

None of this is to say that users could not encounter a conservative bias on Twitter. A small group of Trump supporters did use the platform to spread the infamous “fake news” during the election season.

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March 3, 2017

5

Features

Fortuna wraps up illustrious career would eventually receive a master’s degree at Roosevelt UniverStaff Writer sity.

Fortuna especially loves her hen business teacher college accounting class, which is a Cathy Fortuna opened course where students can receive her email one morndual credit through National Louis ing, she was curious about one University. She enjoys the fact that email in particular that caught her the class is entirely new material eye. The subject line said, “catchfor all her students. ing up.” The sender wasn’t the first “Everything [they’ve] learned of her former Prospect students to is new, and everything [they’ve] email her from college, but he was learned is from me,” Fortuna said. certainly one she remembered.

“That is so cool when I see how “I never knew what I wanted to much they’ve learned at the end of do when I started [at] Prospect,” he the year.” wrote, “And then I started your acFortuna also enjoys teaching counting class. And now look: I’m her students skills that have real an accountant.” world applications. From filling Fortuna is retiring this year out an income tax return after teaching at Pros“She’s a very hard form to teaching the bapect for the last 18 years. sics of running a business, worker, and she does Though she has taught wants to make a variety of classes in not work hard for herself. Fortuna sure that her students are the business department She works hard for her ready for life. throughout her teach“I will haunt you for students.” ing career, this year she the rest of your life behas been teaching Intro Lance Burmeister, cause everything we talk to Business, Personal about, you’re going to exteacher Finance and College Acperience,” Fortuna said. counting.

On top of her busy Fortuna’s desire to life at Prospect, Fortuna teach blossomed when “She’s very funny, still makes it a priority to she met her high school spend time with her husvery outgoing, and typing teacher, Mrs. band of 35 years, Jay, and Brummett, whose teachshe genuinely cares her four sons, Tony, Joe, ing sparked Fortuna’s about what the J.B. and Ross. All of them own interest in both work for Jay’s restaurant business and teaching. right thing to do is.” chain, Jay’s Beef, which Fortuna says she liked he started when he was Brummett because she Grace Piotrowski, only 19 and has run for 41 inspired her students senior years. Though she doesn’t by introducing them work at the business herself, Cathy minor marketing, Fortuna worked to career options that they will often use actual events that for six months at an electric comhadn’t previously thought of. happened in the restaurant to pany whose name she doesn’t even It was then that Fortuna realhelp her students understand real remember. Not feeling satisfied ized that she wanted to spend the world applications to the concepts with her job, she went back to rest of her life helping teenagers she’s teaching them. school and earned a teaching cerexplore new and different career “Sometimes people kind of get tificate at Loyola University. She into the work and lose being people,” said Fortuna’s coworker of 17 years Lance Burmeister, “That’s something Cathy Fortuna’s always been. She’s always been a real person.”

Having taken some time off teaching to raise her sons, Fortuna began subbing at Prospect. She subbed in particular for an older male teacher who taught a business class, and she thought little of it when the division head came in her room semi-regularly to watch her lectures.

At the time, she didn’t know that the teacher she was currently subbing for was retiring that year, and administration was eyeing her for a replacement. She was offered a full-time teaching job when her HOW FAR WE’VE COME: Business teacher Cathy Fortuna sits at youngest son was in third grade a desk during her first year of teaching. Fortuna is retiring after 18 and gladly accepted it. years at Prospect. (photo courtesy of Cathy Fortuna) Fortuna also inspires her stu-

BY MANDI HALL

K

W

o h Wws no

paths. However, because of some logistics of the time, she didn’t start college with that mindset.

Though she always wanted to teach, Fortuna knew there were few teaching jobs around the time she went to college, so she initially took a different route. Fortuna was also interested in business, even working two jobs in high school, (see “Tuna timeline”) but it wasn’t until after her first real business job that she finally realized she wanted to use her newfound skills for a different purpose — the one she had originally wanted.

After graduating from DePaul University with her bachelor’s degree in business management and

Special Education Teacher Lauren Collins The Wife

Social Science Teacher Brock Collins The Subject

B

Y et to u er?

Social Science Teacher Tim Beishir The Best Friend

Open

Tuna timeline Fortuna has been involved in numerous different activities and jobs throughout her life. Here are just a few:

dents to explore new areas of life they hadn’t previously thought of.

One of her current students, Grace Piotrowski, who has had her as a teacher for both Intro to Business as well as College Accounting, has even decided to pursue accounting in college due to Fortuna’s teaching and influence. “[Fortuna] really inspired me to work hard at [accounting] and take it as something like, ‘I want to do that’,” Piotrowski said.

Fortuna is also involved in a significant number of the clubs and programs at Prospect, spending significant time and energy on her students even in her off-hours.

“The coolest thing about it is making connections with students on a different level besides teach-

Swimming

6’ 3/4”

P

er, ” Fortuna said.

She coaches the freshman and sophomore girls’ tennis teams.

The coach recalled that she had coached tennis at one of her old schools, prompting the proposal. She cheers on her girls on the court, often telling them, “It’s not how you start. It’s how you finish.”

Fortuna’s retirement will cause a big change in the business department at Prospect due to the vacancy she will leave in the accounting class. Though she plans to return to sub occasionally, her colleagues will miss her presence.

“She always tries to leave a little bit of herself with everybody,” Burmeister said, “And I think that’s what students really appreciate about her.”

Blue

P

Students who call him by his first name

Third period class?

Fears?

Height?

Favorite color?

Pet peeve?

Open

Death

6’ 1”

Blue

People who call plaid “flannel”

Open

P

Fearless

6’ 1”

Blue

P

P

Poorly thought-out playlists

X W I N N E R

6

In-Depth

March 3, 2017

Hospitalization for mental illness provides needed aid

BY FLYNN GERAGHTY Associate Editor-in-Chief *Name changed for confidentiality

S

enior Meg Spencer had been in the hospital for six days for anorexia nervosa and was starting to believe she would never go home. Even though the nurses told her she would be able to leave soon, she didn’t believe them since “they had been saying [that] for forever.”

It wasn’t until the next day when she was playing cards with some friends and a nurse told her that she could meet her mother outside that she truly felt that freedom was within reach.

“It was just like, ‘Oh, my God. I get to go home,’” Spencer said. “It was summer, [but] we weren’t even allowed to go outside, so [to] just go outside and smell the air [was amazing]. And it almost sounds like I was leaving prison, but, for me, that’s kind of how it felt.

You were staying in this one little place and focusing on the hardest part of your life.”

Spencer’s anorexia stemmed from several mental illnesses, which include Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), anxiety and depression. According to the Center for Disease Prevention and Control, from 2009 to 2010, over 63 million people were hospitalized with a mental illness. Prospect is not immune to this, as several students have gone to a hospital for treatment.

Senior Samantha Green* is an example of this. She was diagnosed with depression and anxiety. Although Green has had symptoms for a long time, they began to manifest during her freshman year. She found herself swarmed by negative thoughts, which caused her to attempt suicide on multiple occasions. During this time, Green believed that she deserved to die and that she wasn’t worth helping.

“It was hard to for [me] to realize that I should want help, I should get better, because I felt like I didn’t deserve to,” Green said. “There was a collection of these thoughts … ‘I don’t deserve to live. I’m a terrible person.’ I thought I wasn’t good enough. … I didn’t feel like I deserved anything.”

Before Spencer was hospitalized in August 2015, she also displayed several unhealthy behaviors, mainly because was not comfortable with her body. She would not eat very much –– or even not at all –– for days on end while also running several miles a day.

“I just thought this was what I needed to do to be the person that I want to be,” Spencer said.

She had an excuse for everything she did to keep her parents from getting suspicious.

However, these activities took a toll on Spencer’s physical health. She began fainting and experiencing chest pains. It was during this point when Spencer’s parents took her to the hospital for an assessment. Spencer assumed this would be a quick trip, but it was actually hours of tests leading to her being checked into inpatient care at Alexian Brothers Behavioral Health Clinic.

“What’s crazy about talking about it now is that I didn’t think I was doing anything wrong,” Spencer said. “I didn’t feel sick, but looking back I really was.”

It was at this point Spencer was asked to say goodbye to her parents, not knowing when she would be able to go home with them.

“They don’t tell you how long you’re going to stay [in inpatient], so it was very indefinite and scary,” Spencer said. “It’s nothing I’d ever done before. I didn’t know when I would see them again.”

While in the inpatient program, most of Spencer’s time was spent trying to eat normally again. The patients there were given over an hour to eat each meal, with the expectation that they would eat all of it. Spencer even remembers some of her friends being hooked up to feeding tubes in order to stabilize them.

During Green’s hospital stay, she wasn’t allowed to have sweaters, spiral notebooks or shoelaces as each could be used for self-harm. Even pencils and markers were banned, leaving Green writing with crayons.

During their treatment, both Spencer and Green spent a lot of time in therapy groups, along with some recreational activities, like painting and watching non-triggering movies.

Throughout her week in the program, Spencer formed strong bonds with the other patients despite not being able to touch them, as even something as simple as a high five would result in nurses separating them.

“I was one of the older ones in the adolescent group,” Spencer said. “Almost all the girls were younger than me, and so … I kind of formed this big-sister relationship [with them]. I made some of my best friends there. I haven’t [been able to] see them since then or talk to Meg Spencer, senior them since then, but I still consider them some of my best friends because I think we went through in just that week was some of the hardest things we’ve ever had to do.”

Green also became close with many of the other patients. She was even asked by another patient to exchange contact information, which was strictly against the rules. The two traded information, but after getting a message from her outside the hospital, Green decided to not respond.

“I knew that I was not in a good condition,” Green said. “I just didn’t want to put [my issues] on her. … I wish I could talk to [my friends] again, but it’s kind of difficult when it comes to that because you want to be friends with those people, but you also don’t want to be a cause for their relapse. It’s kind of sad, but it’s for the better.”

Despite forming friendships, Spencer still felt frustrated about her situation.

“It was a little bit maddening,” Spencer said. “I didn’t know what they wanted from me. I didn’t know if they wanted me to get stable, get healthy or start eating, and I didn’t even want to do those things anyway. It was incredibly frustrating. … The third night I

was there, I remember thinking, ‘I’m never goin It started to feel that way. So, I talked to one of t she said, ‘Well, it’s all up to you.’”

Despite Spencer’s belief that she would neve leased after one week. However, Spencer’s trea begun. After her week in the hospital, Spencer Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP) at Alex for Mental Health. According to Spencer, this about getting you stable and healthy and more a yourself stable and healthy.”

The program runs from 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m It was less intense since she was able to go ho day, but she was out of school until October. to Spencer, this was not that big of a problem b friendships had been ended due to her depress feel ready to form new ones.

“At school, nobody really knew [about m said. “It was almost better because then I didn it. … I remember being so embarrassed. I thou I didn’t work on having friends junior year at want anyone to notice that I was gone.”

However, as Spencer looks back on her tre how beneficial it was.

“The treatment that I did has given me everything that I was trying to gain … out of all the behaviors I was acting on, whether that be a better relationship with my parents, better friendships, maybe a boyfriend,” Spencer said. “I was still able to get all of the things that I really, really desired, which are all healthy things to want, but in a healthy way.”

Spencer’s believes that her initial hesitation was due to the stigma surrounding mental illness. Green faced this stigma headon with people telling her that her illness wasn’t real.

“I had someone tell me when I was hospitalized that it was ‘all in my head.’” Green said.

“I’ve been told that I ‘tricked myself’ into thinking that way. … It’s hard to deal with that, because I feel like [these people] didn’t understand it. I feel like that goes for a lot of people, and I just had to keep that in mind.”

Green feels that the stigma can go as far as treating those with mental illnesses like they are below average.

“People treat people with anxiety and depression disorders like they’re not capable, like they’re completely helpless and not the same,” Green said. “The reason why I feel so ashamed sometimes is because I feel so useless. I feel like I can’t go into the world like this. … I want to be seen the same way as other people. I don’t to be seen as a person with this many things wrong with her; I just want to be seen as [Samantha].”

Mental health by the numbers

American adults have experienced a mental health issue.

1 in 5

Americans have lived with a serious mental illness, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or major depression.

1 in 25

1 in 5

youth aged 13-18 have experienced a severe mental disorder.

Information courtesy of mentalhealth.gov

March 3, 2017

ng to get out of here.’ the nurses there, and

er get out, she was reatment had only just r was involved in the xian Brothers Center s program was “less about getting to keep

m. on every weekday. ome at the end of the However, according because many of her sion, and she did not

my illness],” Spencer n’t have to talk about ught, ‘I’m a freak.’ … t all because I didn’t

eatment, she realizes

-

Maxine Goldstein, Manager of Community Relations at Alexian Brothers, says that this stigma is extremely common and is a large problem that Alexian Brothers faces.

“The biggest challenge we have [is that] people don’t want to come in because if they come in, that’s saying they’re ‘crazy,’” Goldstein said. “It’s a shame, because these illnesses are so treatable.

And if they would come in more frequently, or at all, they would understand that it’s just like any physical illness. You have diabetes or heart conditions and you take medications, and you take medications for being depressed.”

Green encourages her peers to recognize mental illnesses and see them as viable.

“Know that it’s just as important [as a physical illness] and just as important to get help for it,” Green said. “It’s not a made-up disorder.”

A large part of Goldstein’s job is doing just that. She is involved in the School Mental Health program at Alexian Brothers. In the program, counselors visit various high schools in the district to raise awareness on mental health and erase the stigma surrounding it.

“We have these counselors that go to these schools to educate students, parents, teachers on mental health issues because there’s not a lot being done in schools, or there’s not probably enough being done,” Goldstein said. “[Schools] will talk about physical health but not talk much about mental health. So the counselors go there and do whatever they need to do to help the students who [might] have a mental health issue. … They might not even realize … that we can help them feel better.”

School psychologist Dr. Jay Kyp-Johnson disagrees and believes that Prospect is generating conversations and educating the student body about mental illness and through student-run organizations.

“I think right now we’re doing [good work],” Kyp-Johnson said. “We have a Mental Health Awareness Club. …

Knights’ Way [has done] a topic on erasing the stigma. … The fact that students have brought it up and created a topic and created a club — somehow we’re starting to develop these independent [organizations].

It’s like all these things have been happening separately, but they’re all magically happening at the same time, creating awareness that really smart, really great, really wonderful people sometimes have mental problems.”

Though Spencer would never want to be in an inpatient care program again, she does see the benefits and admits that she misses the “intimacy of struggle” that came with it.

“I still have really strong memories of the week I was there and the people that I met,” Spencer said. “I remember all their names. But you just have to realize that since they [are out of the hospital], that means they’re doing really well, and that since I left, that means that I’m doing really well.”

Goldstein believes there has been an influx in students like Green and Spencer who have acknowledged that they have a mental illness and gone into Partial Hospitalization Program.

She sees this as a step in the right direction.

“I think it’s much better than it was 10 years ago, but we still have a ways to go,” Goldstein said. “But the more people like me who do what I do and centers like ours that can get out and talk to people, the better it is. You don’t want it to build up and then, boom, they’re in the hospital. … The earlier they come in for treatment, the better it is.”

If you or a loved one are going through a tough time and need someone to talk to, Alexian Brothers encourages you to call them at:

847-952-7460

In-Depth

SERVING UP SMILES: (Top) A few members of Mental Health Awareness Club proudly model their shirts for the club. (Left) This is one of many posters the club made to promote mental health awareness. (Right) This sign welcomed students to take free treats during lunch hours. (photos courtesy of Sarah Ellstrand)

Mental Health Awareness Club fights for its cause, strives to erase stigma

BY GRACE BERRY Print Managing Editor Senior Toni DiPrima wrote her junior-year research paper about mental health and the stigma surrounding it. She shared her struggles with mental illness to the entire class while presenting the project.

“I got some comments from people about how they really appreciated me sharing my story,” DiPrima said. “So I was like, ‘I feel like we can do something with this.’ [Senior] Sarah [Ellstrand] heard me talking about it and said, ‘What if we had some sort of club?’”

Ellstrand was excited to start that club, so she talked to physics teacher Michelle Tantillo, asking her to be the club’s sponsor. Tantillo was adamant about helping DiPrima and Ellstrand start the club because she herself has suffered from depression and has lost friends to suicide.

“It matters a lot to me about the mental health of myself and the mental health of my students,” Tantillo said. “That’s why we started the club.”

Ellstrand wanted to make Mental Health Awareness Club, so students could openly talk about mental health and increase awareness of the large impact mental health has on so many.

“I really wanted to start Mental Health Awareness Club because I myself have struggled with a mental illness, and a lot of my loved ones have,” Ellstrand said.

“It’s something that we’re not that well-educated on how to handle, so I wanted to create a club that would reduce the stigma of mental illness.”

Last year, Mental Health Awareness club held an inaugural meeting where members watched the Pixar film “Inside Out” and did coloring pages.

This year the club meets every other Friday in Room 300. The club created a mental health awareness week at Prospect that coincided with the Knights’ Way topic on mental health. They created posters to put up around the school, put positive messages on the mirrors in the bathrooms, gave out free baked goods at lunch and created green ribbons to promote the effort.

In the future, Mental Health Awareness club wants to create videos about Prospect’s resources available to students struggling with mental illness.

“People know there is a counseling dog, but maybe people don’t understand that everyone can go see Junie, or [that their] guidance counselor is not just to help schedule your classes,” Tantillo said. “But if you’re having a hard day or you need to talk because something is happening, … we want to bring some awareness about what resources we have here.”

DiPrima never wants anyone with a mental illness to feel like they can’t receive help.

“I realized if anyone is thinking that what they’re feeling is normal, but they’re feeling awful, it breaks my heart because you can get help,” DiPrima said. “It’s terrible that people don’t realize that they can.”

DiPrima wants to encourage students to talk about their mental health in order to help erase the stigma associated with doing so. “[Mental Health Awareness Club’s] goal is to make people understand that it’s OK to talk about [your mental health],” DiPrima said. “It’s normal. It’s not something anyone should feel ashamed of. It’s just a regular kind of thing. That’s the most important thing we’re trying to let people know.”

7

8

Features

March 3, 2017

prospectornow.com

Birth control stigma silences students

BY DIANA LEANE Online Managing Editor *Names changed for confidentiality

S

itting amongst peers at her Catholic church group’s meeting, senior Alyssa Jones* heard her 8:30 p.m. timer sound. Passing it off as an incoming phone call, Jones used the opportunity to sneak away from the group to take a pill.

The nightly alarm reminded Jones to take her birth control. She concealed the timer’s true purpose from her peers because she suspected some of them opposed the contraceptive. Jones worried others might label her a slut and a bad Catholic if they found out she was on the pill.

Jones understands their potential reservations about it because growing up, her religious beliefs led her to reject the pill. According to Jones, some Christians are against birth control because they believe influencing pregnancy is like playing God. Jones’ view changed when she developed painful acne. Her dermatologist recognized she had a hormone imbalance and recommended birth control to rebalance her system.

Jones feels birth control carries a stigma of promiscuity which overlooks the pill’s medicinal properties and deters her and other women from openly discussing and fighting this reputation. Gynecologist Jane Oh from Gynecological & Obstetric Associates in Arlington Heights observes this stigma daily through her job.

Oh believes this stigma exists because the pill was initially created during the progressive sexual revolution as a contraceptive, and it’s never lost the radical reputation. Additionally, because women stay private about their use of the

pill, uneducated people can easily olic, and I’m not judgemental,” Jones said. “There’s a stereotype make assumptions.

Oh worries this reputation is that Catholics will be judgemental about it, and now that some people harmful since it gives false secuknow I take it, … they’re more willrity that the birth control pill ensures safe sex. Although the pill ing to talk to me about it.”

Senior Julie Whitman* began prevents pregnancy, it offers no taking birth control last Februprotection from sexually transmitary for a non-sexual purpose, too. ted diseases and infections.

Whitman always had irregular peShe thinks the best way to corriods, so her mother recommended rect the pill’s reputation is through she consider the pill. education. Oh cited smoking as the Whitman visited a gynecoloperfect example. gist, who prescribed her with the “People used to think smoking was cool, and now it’s gross,” Oh birth control Lo Loestrin Fe. Whitman is an athlete, so her doctor said. recommended If the stigma this specific pill is challenged, “There’s a stereotype for her because Oh hopes more that Catholics will be when it works, it people would judgemental about it, and completely stops use the pill for periods and this its lesser-known now that some people benefits women properties. For know I take it, … they’re who are active. example, acAlthough it more willing to talk to me cording to Oh, it worked at first, helps with menabout it.”

Whitman soon strual cramps, found herself period irreguanonymous senior girl experiences a larities, anemia strange side efand acne and fect where she had her period evprevents ovarian cysts and cancer. ery two weeks.

“So many people use it as a medShe then switched to a pill with icine — just a normal prescription more hormones, Minastrin, and drug,” Jones said. “I think people don’t realize how helpful it can be the transition caused headaches for some people, … whatever their and painful cramps. However, Whitman was willing to suffer ailment is.” side effects if she could reap the Jones recently stopped taking the pill because it had effectively rewards.

Yet Whitman experiences the cleared up most of her acne. She is non-physical side effect Jones also more willing to talk about the pill feels: the social stigma associated now but felt self-conscious at first.

“If [others] don’t know the rea- with taking it. Whitman formerly set a timer for 10 p.m. to remind son I’m taking it, then they’re like, ‘Why is that Catholic taking birth her to take her pill, but she stopped control? She shouldn’t be,’” Jones after it kept going off while she was hanging out with friends. said.

“You don’t want people to judge Yet because Jones is Catholic you,” Whitman said. “You don’t and supports birth control, others are more willing to discuss it with want people to think, ‘Oh my god, she’s just having sex with a bunch her. of people.’ You just go on it for dif“People are more willing to talk ferent reasons, and you’re afraid about it with me because I’m Cath-

Assembly recognizes speech, wrestling

Senior Matt Wroblewski placed first at state for wrestling and speech took third with many individuals placing. They were recognized at an assembly Friday.

Check out prospectornow.com to see more pictures from the assembly!

STIGMATIZED: Birth control carries a stigma of promiscuity, which prevents students from feeling open to discussing it. “You go on it for different reasons, and you’re afraid that people will judge you,” an anonymous senior said. (photo illustration by Elisabeth Rohde) that people will judge you. But then you get used to it. I’m on it for myself.”

Although Whitman finds the friends who knows she takes the pill to be accepting, she doesn’t trust that others will view her in the same light.

Health teacher Krystina Leazer hopes the sex education unit in health class changes the stigma.

Leazer says she spends an entire day talking about various contraceptives, including birth control.

Oh believes this is the perfect place to address the stigma and educate

teenagers about the other benefits of birth control.

She hopes that spreading awareness for birth control will help her students make good decisions and take advantage of their resources.

“It helps in general when people are more educated about [birth control] and understand how it’s affecting the body [and] why someone would want to use it,” Leazer said. “I want [my students] to be able to make educated decisions in their lives, and I don’t want them to ever make a decision and be unaware of the consequences.”

Student teachers take over classrooms

BY NICHOLAS EGEA Staff Writer In the past, social studies teacher Qiana Drye has left her classroom for prolonged periods of time. In many cases, her students were left wondering why she was gone. She left them not by choice but because an unpaid college student needs experience.

Student teachers go through a long training process to become an educator.

Alex Diesbergen, Drye’s student teacher, has been preparing for his opportunity to student teach since his freshman year of college.

They go through a series of trials, including projects, that gradually increase in difficulty. One example is the Education Teacher Performance Assessment (ETPA), a major project. After the long training process, they implement what they have learned into their teaching.

The process of becoming a teacher starts with the pre-requisites in college. At university, students studying to become teachers have a full schedule with no elective-type classes. One of the biggest assignments within college is student teaching.

Prospective teachers are able to apply to different schools to do this.

“It’s an interesting process,” Diesbergen

said. “[It’s] very general, submitting a resume and a cover letter.”

Once resumes and cover letters are submitted, the students can usually only patiently wait to hear where they’re accepted.

But when applying within District 214, it’s mandatory to go through another round of applications.

After acceptance, the students can start the job. Current teachers who taught a while ago believe the student teacher application process is much longer and more complicated today.

“I think there’s a benefit to that, but it’s a lot,” Drye said. “Student teaching, in my opinion, is a ton of work.”

Drye says that some of the challenges include planning activities, teaching lessons and grading papers. Besides these challenges, student teachers now must complete ETPA. ETPA is a three-stage process that is very time-consuming and was introduced within the last several years. In the end, most people put about 40 hours of time into the project.

The project forces student teachers to create a several-day lesson. It’s mandatory to discuss what adjustments they are making for the class, record the lesson and reflect on how they did. Finally, they assess the class based on an assignment to make

sure they are understanding everything.

Drye had to go through the same process when becoming a board-certified teacher, but these positions are very different, according to her. Student teachers have to do the same amount of work with no income and no job security.

Once the teachers begin to teach in the classroom, the experience is unlike any other, according to Diesbergen. He sees the experience as very enjoyable, although sometimes he does struggle with planning lessons and leading the class.

“When you’re stepping into someone’s classroom, they have set procedures,” Diesbergen said. “So you try to not confuse the kids.”

Diesbergen specifically finds following these procedures hard when he has to take over the classroom. He believes it’s hard to replicate a teacher’s style, so his teaching methods are nothing like Drye’s.

This forces student teachers to form their own style of teaching from the lessons that they learn.

Drye says that this experience has even changed the way that she teaches.

“Because I was able to check out some of the stuff he did and how he interacted with the kids, that really impacts how I interact with my students,” Drye said.

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prospectornow.com

March 3, 2017

“Fake nerds” reign supreme

Entertainment

9

The biggest nerd of them all: a Prospect teacher Social science teacher David Schnell in his senior year at Prospect, 1992.

Even with greater acceptance of nerds in modern culture, old-school nerds are feeling no love

(photo courtesy of The Crest)

D

espite my love for all things fantasy and science fiction, I would not be caught dead calling myself a nerd in this day and age.

I used to do so proudly. Back in my elementary-school days, I wore my nerd status as a badge of honor: I had a Spider-Man backpack and wore an oversized “Ren and Stimpy” T-shirt every day. I made references to obgeeky scientists who get into scure internet memes and comic all sorts of wacky hijinks. But books that were totally over the when viewed through a more head of your average kid. The critical eye, one realizes that the fact that no one understood the whole nerd angle of the show is joke made it all the funnier to merely window dressing for a me, a sense of smug satisfaction bigger formula. that is the heart of nerd culture.

Every joke in the show is baBut ever since a little sitcom sically a nerdy reference that an called “The Big Bang Theory” average TV viewer can comprehit the scene, everyone and hend. There are no risks taken their mother thinks they can and no subtlety. It is stereotypes take on the title of “nerd.” Then beaten into your brain until it’s Marvel Studios started pumpan oh-so-nerdy pulp. ing out “Avengers” The show would flicks every other be just as successful month, and suddenly if it was about goths everyone became the instead of nerds: resident comic book swap out eyeglasses expert. for eyeshadow and It’s not the fact they’d have just as that nerdom has bestrong of a TV show. come more accessible If it really is a show nowadays that bothfor nerds by nerds, ers me. What really why does the nerdifrightens is me is that

BY COLE ALTMAYER ness feel so tacked on these new “nerds” Entertainment Editor and stereotypical? are seen as hip and But “Big Bang cool. “Hip” and “cool” Theory” is inexpliare two words that cably a mainstream should never be in the same senhit, and it has been successful in tence as nerd. presenting a watered-down verThe most substantial culprit sion of nerd culture to the massof this change of perspective, es. Apparently, enough people in my eyes, is the aforemenfound it palatable that geek betioned “Big Bang Theory.” At its came the new chic. surface, it’s a show about four

What kind of nerd are you?

BOOZINGA: The cast of “The Big Bang Theory” is lined up under the suspicion of being “fake nerds.” The sitcom, which airs on CBS, has stirred some controversy regarding its representation of nerd culture. (cartoon by Katie Hamilton) These new “nerds,” however, stick out like a sore thumb against the masses of the oldschool nerds mimicked in things like “Big Bang Theory.” Classic nerdom is very much a culture based on proving your “nerd cred.” Among us, playing 8,000 hours of “Starcraft” isn’t a problem. It’s an achievement.

I never really viewed the smugness and judgmental nature of your average old-school nerd to be a bad thing. Honestly, it’s just a sign of someone who is super passionate about something that’s a little off-thebeaten-path from the popular zeitgeist.

However, this is where the new nerds and the old nerds are different, and ultimately why old-schoolers feel alienated. The old-school nerds are now in a world that constantly half-heartedly panders to their tastes, all while cooler, sexier and more mainstream versions of themselves are proclaiming themselves “nerds” when, to us, they clearly aren’t.

It’s funny to consider that “nerd” used to be a common schoolyard insult, while now it’s merely the name of a hipster-es-

que aesthetic. I have to admit, I owe a bit of gratitude to things like “Big Bang Theory” for opening up nerdom for more people to enjoy, but this cool new status of nerdom doesn’t mean that society has changed its perspective on nerds. It just gave “nerd” a new meaning.

Under this new definition, the middle-aged guys who play Dungeons & Dragons at Games Plus aren’t nerds. They’d probably be called something more derogatory and hurtful. And as someone who has played Dungeons & Dragons with those guys, I can safely say that they’re extremely polite and knowledgeable about their craft — all things that a nerd should rightly be.

But I suppose there’s a glimmer of hope left for nerdom. According to the Times Free Press, tabletop role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons have risen in popularity despite the growth of their video game competition.

Maybe these new-fangled nerdy types are a lot less cool than I give them credit for, and I mean that in the most appreciative way I possibly can.

“I would argue I’m not really fully meshed into nerdom. … I would push myself to say I [enjoy] comic books and sci-fi. I like ‘Star Wars,’ but I don’t dress up like ‘Star Wars.’

I like ‘Star Trek,’ but I don’t dress up like ‘Star Trek.’ I dabble on the outside edge [of everything].”

How do you think the definition of “nerd” has changed?

“The definition so much hasn’t changed, it’s the ownership that’s changed. Nerd used to be a title that was given to you as a pejorative, and now it’s become something you can embrace as an identity.”

Is there anything you consider ‘too nerdy’?

“Cosplay. I do not want to negate that experience for those who enjoy it, but I think cosplay is just too far.”

How did you get into nerdy things growing up?

“My dad didn’t play sports, watch sports, or care about sports. …

There was never any sports in my house, but my dad was a huge ‘Star Trek’ fan. So as a kid, if you wanted to bond with Dad, you watched ‘Star Trek.’ So that was kind of my gateway drug to nerdom.”

“Big Fish” to make a splash with emotional, artistic value

BY CASSIDY DELAHUNTY Executive Entertainment Editor When senior Ben Marshall was performing in this school year’s fall play, “Trail to Oregon,” at the Illinois High School Theater Festival, he messed up a line onstage without realizing it. Never having taken a show to the state level before, this could have been a once-in-a-lifetime mistake, but Marshall credits the fact that the show continued smoothly to his co-star, senior Abby Grott.

“She covered for me, and I didn’t even realize it until she said something [afterwards],” Marshall said. “She helped me out so much.”

It’s this kind of teamwork and camaraderie that has made Marshall’s time in the theater department so memorable. It is also the reason he and the rest of the cast of this year’s spring musical, “Big Fish,” are so excited to start rehearsing for the final show of the year.

Revolving around a father-son duo, “Big Fish,” which opens April 26, tells the story of a man trying to Daffodils are an ensure that his son important motif believes the fantasthroughout tical stories of “Big Fish.” his youth before the father passes away sometime in the near future. With themes of heroism, fatherhood and family, the production staff is confident the show

face in.” will be universally liked.

However, children are just one part of the Even though the show jumps in charm “Big Fish” will bring to the Prospect between different years in the stage. Morton says the set will also play a characters’ lives and has the pohuge part in the storytelling of the show detential to be rather confusing, Marspite its minimalist design. shall is confident that the cast will “The story is strong enough that it could be able to clearly portray their intentions project the emotion [without a complicated through a combination of costume changset],” Morton said. “I didn’t want a spectacle, es and double casting. but I also love the fact that, just like a paintTwo of the characters in the show, Will er with a paintbrush, a white canvas can Bloom and his son, have separate points turn something into onstage when each this beautiful, cool, of their characters “It’s been a long time since we’ve different thing. I are about seven had a musical at Prospect that want [the main years old. Marshall character] Edward says their roles at really meant something. They’ve Bloom to do the these times will be always been fun, but this one same thing to our filled by younger space. … He starts children. Fine Arts has the biggest message and it’s Director Jeremy probably the one you take the most telling the story and everything comes Morton, who is dihome with you.” alive. And then you recting the show, question, ‘Was it says there is also real or is it just a a possibility more Ben Marshall, senior painting?’” children will be Marshall says the brought in to play a group of Boy Scouts. show is unlike other Only the boy who will play young Will has musicals the theater been cast so far. department has done in The last time a Prospect show utilized the past because it makes younger children as part of its cast was three one reflect upon his or her own years ago for “Shrek,” when an entire ensemlife. When Marshall saw the show originally, ble of middle- and elementary-school-aged Will’s father’s death affected him the most children was brought in. While Marshall because he had been relating the character recalls his interactions with the children to his own father the entire show. as somewhat tiring at times, he is excited to “It’s been a long time since we’ve had a bring in new people to the department. musical at Prospect that really meant some“[The kids] totally look up to the people thing,” Marshall said. “They’ve always been in the shows, and they get really excited,” fun, but this one has the biggest message, Marshall said. “It’s exciting to bring a new

and it’s probably the one you take the most home with you. It reminds you of yourself, and there’s a lot of reflecting that happens.

The show goes on for more than just those two hours that you’re sitting in the audience.”

According to Grott, the opportunity to evoke real emotion through theater is always an exciting one.

“It’s always fun to make an audience laugh, but it’s really cool to come out of a show, and someone comes up to you and says, ‘Oh my gosh, you made me cry my eyes out.’” Grott said.

For Morton, the connection to the show was so strong because he himself is a father, so he related to the struggles and emotions of the characters throughout the musical.

Nonetheless, he believes that the story of the show is universally relatable.

“It’s just a really gorgeous tale, [so] if we tell it well, everyone will be really engaged the entire moment, even until the end,” Morton said. “We know the outcome, because we know that … there is an end to all life. We know from the beginning of the show that there’s going to be an ending, but it should be a moment where people won’t forget. Most musicals leave us happy, [but] this show is a very different feeling in the heart.”

Grott says it is exactly this feeling that will make “Big Fish” such a unique show.

“The ability to move people is very important. As a person who acts, that’s one of your main goals,” Grott said. “You want someone to say, ‘You made me feel something real by doing something that wasn’t real.’”

10

Sports

March 3, 2017

prospectornow.com

Boys’ basketball rolls to 22-5 season this team [has] done. We haven’t really had a dip all season, and it’s the only team [I’ve] coached that has gone through a regular seaith three seconds to go in the son without one.” game, the ball was right in front To avoid those dips during the season, of their bench. The Knights Camardella credits the makeup of the team. were down two points on Feb. 22 against Fre“They’re champions. That’s what it realmd. They had a shot to win an MSL title for ly comes down to,” Camardella said. “They the first time since 2011. approach each game with that tenacity and As the team inbounded the ball, a Fremd that mental toughness, and they don’t let Viking was able to tip the ball away and efeach other relax. The leadership on this fectively end the game. The Knights came team, in particular, is very strong.” away dejected from the 57-55 loss.

According to senior Frankie Mack, who Varsity head coach John Camardella is a part of the leadership along with seniors would expect a reaction such as that, as Matt Szuba and Antonio Gardner, the team his team is only conhas been led the most cerned with one

by Gardner.

“M-V-P, M-V-P” thing.

“He pushes all The boys’ varsity basketball team “I’ve never been of us to work hard,” around a team like has had a lot of impressive individMack said. “If you’ve this — that’s so foual performances this year. Here ever come to any of cused on winning are the players who were named our practices, he’s aland can just put ways the one yelling as one of The Daily Herald’s local all the other things at guys, constructing most valuable players of the week aside,” Camardella other guys, especialduring this season. said. ly the younger guys The boys varsity who were new to this. basketball team has He’s showing them gone 22-5 and won the where to go. He’s just MSL East Division loud. He gets everytitle for the second one engaged in the straight season. game and brings a lot The team’s four losses is the lowest total of energy to the team.” in Camardella’s tenure at Prospect. CamarThe players and coaches agree the team della says it’s very impressive for the team has built a great chemistry, starting with to consistently win this year. their years in the feeder program before “A lot of teams will go through lapses. A high school. lot of teams will lose a few games in a row,” The team also returned four starters from Camardella said. “It’s just normal. It takes last year. Szuba thinks this camaraderie is a really special team that can lock into the vital to the team’s success. moment and realize from game to game …

“Mentally, it’s probably one of the most that you can come together and still figure important things knowing that we always out ways to win every night. That’s what

BY PAUL EVERS Sports Editor

W

Taking charge The boys’ varsity basketball team went 22-5 in the regular season. Here are the leaders in key statistics:

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BRING IT IN:

varsity basketball. I never really thought have each others’ backs,” Szuba said.

Camardella backed the notion that the I would have gotten that milestone ever,” Mack said. “After my junior year, that goal team’s chemistry is key to their success. actually came into mind.

“It’s vital. There’s It just felt good to get it nothing like it,” CamarLocal All-Stars and especially to get it at della said. “As I always The boys’ varsity basketball home.” say, ‘You don’t have to team had a few players who Even with some of the be best friends off the individual achievecourt, but you have to be ments that as close as it comes when occurred, it’s on the court.’”

Team. the team This chemistry has is always made it possible for some honed in players to put up impreson their sive numbers and reach collective historic milestones. goals, acSzuba broke the recording to cord for most career Camardella. rebounds (596 career re“There are a lot bounds at the end of the of teams — basketball, regular season), previfootball, baseball, any ously held by 2009 gradteam sport — where peouate Kevin Reed ple are focused on other who grabbed 573 things other than what it rebounds. takes to win,” Camardel“Reboundla said. “They’re wondering is just an attributed his ing about the individual individual stat. award to his achievement, the newsIt’s a mentality,” players’ performance. paper recognition, how Szuba said. “Evgood their uniforms look, eryone is able to do it: the warm-up music that’s I just take pride in it more on when they come out — all that extra stuff. than others.”

Mack also hit a milestone when he Our guys just want to know, ‘What’s [the opeclipsed 1,000 career points this season, a ponent] going to do on this? Good. We need to stop that to win.’ I think that’s the thing. rare feat to accomplish.

They’re winners, and they’re just focused on “It’s crazy to think all the way back to winning.” sophomore year when I started playing

From the Virgin Islands to Mount Prospect Senior Mark Grey shares story of his journey to Prospect Q: When did you move to Mount Prospect from the Virgin Islands?

A: It was the summer going into junior year in July after the basketball camp. Though it was later, a big thing was [2016 graduate] Micah [Stewart helping] me a lot during open gyms just with the way everyone moved and things like that.

Q: Why did you make the decision to move to Mount Prospect?

A: I moved here just for different opportunities for college because I knew I was going to go to college in the States, so I wanted to get that experience earlier. Right now I am looking at a few colleges in New York and Boston.

IN TRANSITION: Senior Mark Grey warms up before

United States in the summer going into his junior year.

Q: What has the transition been like switching schools?

A: The transition has been okay; the school is a lot bigger. My graduating class back home is going to be like 20 or 30 people at best, so it’s a big adjustment here.

Q: What is the biggest difference between the Virgin Islands and Mount Prospect?

A: The demographics are definitely different. My everyday routine is definitely different; the weather obviously here is different. Just the overall speed of life here is a lot faster.

Q: How is basketball different in the Virgin Islands and Mount Prospect?

A: Up here it is a lot more passing around, cutting and shooting. Down there it is a bit less structured. My teammates here have held that standard of excellence that you just got to live up to.

Q: What is it like to be part of such a successful team this year at Prospect?

A: It’s actually really special to be able to be a part of a season like this and trying to make a run in the playoffs starting this week.

Q: What will it take for the team to make a deep run in the playoffs?

A: We just have to stay solid on defense and do all the little things and don’t make mistakes down the stretch.

Q: How does the team feel heading into the playoffs?

A: We are going to scout [other teams], and we are just going to try to do our best to limit what they want to do and get the good looks we want.

HAND S’MACK’: Seniors shake before the Knights game starters are announced each

prospectornow.com

March 3, 2017

Sports

11

Wroblewski wins state wrestling title

BY WYATT DOJUTREK Online Sports Editor

“We knew as a coaching staff that if things go our way, Matt had a chance at winning a state championship. He just needed to execute to the best of his ability.

I just think as a staff we knew he would win it.”

A

s Senior Matt Wroblewski prepared to face his first opponent in the 2016 IHSA state tournament, he thought he could easily defeated him in the regular season.

With a full house on hand at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Wroblewski lost the match and was eliminated from the playoffs that year.

“I really think that I could have beaten him last year,” Wroblewski said. “I destroyed him during the regular season, and I just went out there and thought that I was going to destroy him again, and I didn’t.”

Wroblewski was very disappointed after losing to the opponent that he would usually feast on during the regular season.

“I was extremely upset because of the amount of work I put in during the season,” Wroblewski said. “I just lost to people that I would almost never lose to in any other match.”

Wroblewski says that he will never allow himself to underestimate an opponent again.

“I learned a lot from that match last year,” Wroblewski said. “During the summer, I began to take every match and every opponent way more seriously than I did in the past. I believe that it really helped me during the season.”

When the 2015-16 school year ended, Wroblewski took a plane to his native country, Poland, where he trained with the Polish national team throughout the offseason.

Wroblewski trained three times a day with the team doing various wrestling activities with the other members on the team.

He believes that the training in Poland helped him get ready for matches during the season.

Wroblewski took his health, nutrition and sleep more seriously as well. He gained 30 pounds of muscle and believes that this

Tom Whalen, head coach

STANDING IN THE HALL OF FAME Senior Matt Wroblewski stands on the championship podium after winning the IHSA state wrestling championship in the 220 pound weight class. “I think I just needed to do the little things to make me a better wrestler,” Wroblewski said. “I went to bed earlier. I think that is something like that helped me get to the best shape of my life.” (photo courtesy of Nicole Stoltz) really helped him wrestle larger opponents.

“I think that I just needed to do the little things to make me a better wrestler,” Wroblewski said. “I went to bed earlier. I think that something like that helped me get to the best shape of my life.”

Prospect head coach Tom Whalen saw the dedication Wroblewski was exhibiting during the preseason, regular season and postseason.

“He has done a lot of training,” Whalen

said. “I think that anything Matt does in the weight room and out of school is always helpful for not only himself but his team as well.”

While the team did not make the state meet, Wroblewski qualified individually for the third consecutive year.

However, this time, Whalen and Wroblewski knew that he could become the second Prospect wrestler in program history to win a state championship.

“We knew as a coaching staff that if things go our way, Matt had a chance at winning a state championship,” Whalen said. “He just needed to execute to the best of his ability.

I just think we as a staff knew he would win it.”

Wroblewski believes that a lot of the praise should go to Whalen and his coaching staff for giving him a great idea on how to beat his final opponent.

“They deserve a huge amount of the credit,” Wroblewski said. “I felt really great heading into that final match because of the strategy that Whalen laid out, and I felt great physically heading onto the mat.”

Whalen thinks his assistant coaches such as first year assistant Jeff Koepke for allowing Wroblewski to have a simulated match during practices.

“I think that a lot of the credit for Matt’s development this season should go to coach Koepke,” Whalen said. “I think bringing him in the room brought a whole new level of intensity having a younger coach helping him by wrestling with him.”

Whalen believes that Wroblewski’s win has a special place in his heart.

“I think that [Wroblewski] winning the state championship is one of my proudest moments as a head coach,” Whalen said. “I think that for all he has done for this program, and for him to make [his mark] like that, is just great.”

Boys’ swimming builds off MSL East championship “Lopez is just an amazing coach,” Liva and at Glenbrook North. (See “Sectional success”). Even though the none of the Knights said. “He has strategies that put in the best chance to succeed, and he is a great motivaThe varsity boys’ swim and dive team relay teams qualified for the state meet, head tor; if we are off our game, he can get us back coach Alfonso Lopez believed that the teams jumped into the Elk Grove High School pool going.” always knew how to improve from previous on Jan. 28 and came out with both a 136-43 However, Lopez thinks that the credit demeets. victory over the Grenadiers. serves to be shared by the players.

“I have and will always have very high This was the team’s second straight MSL “I don’t like to take expectations for the reEast title and their third in four years. Secredit at all for how well Sectional Success nior Anthony Liva thinks that the program lay teams,” Lopez said. this team is playing,” Lo“These guys will tell you • Second Place: sr. Anthony Liva is one of the best in the conference pez said. “I think that all that even if they did some“I think we feel pretty accomplished as a (diving) of the credit goes to the thing great, I think there program,” Liva said. “It has been a difficult • Third Place: jr. Jacob Kosinski kids; these kids earned is always something they journey to get to this point of winning three (100-yard breaststroke) their division title. DiMSL East titles in the last four years, but could have done even bet• Fourth Place: Medley Team, vision titles come from ter than they did before.” that is how good this team is.”

Kosinski, sr. Matt Inserra, sr. seniors realizing what Lopez liked what he Senior Nick Partipillo was victorious Nick Partipillo, sr. Asher Ginneeds to get done. I try saw from the team at secin both the 200-yard individual medley nodo. to be a catalyst for this tionals, even though they (2:09.53) and the 100-yard butterfly (57.93).

• Fifth Place: sr. Matt Inserra team’s success, not try to Senior Matt Inserra won in the 500 freestyle did not make it to the (50-yard front crawl) take all of the credit.” state meet.

(5:23.38). Liva came out on top in diving fin• Fifth Place: Ginnodo (50-yard Lopez thinks that this “I thought we did realishing with a score of 272.15. Junior Jacob back crawl) season’s group of seniors ly well at the sectional,” Kosinski also took home the 100-yard breast• Sixth Place: sr. Ethan Rodrihelped the team win anLopez said. “We really stroke. guez (50-yard back crawl) other MSL East champihad lofty expectations The underclassmen also stepped up to • Eighth Place: so. Aidan Busiel onship. help the Knights win. Freshman Aidan Ro- for this group, but they (diving) “These seniors led by thought they fell a little driguez won the 100-yard backstroke. These example perfectly,” Loperformances by both the seniors and un- bit short of what they pez said. “Some of these wanted to do. It wasn’t derclassmen were more than enough for the guys are very quiet and not too vocal, but like they were bad swims by any stretch.

I Knights to clinch the division crown for the when they hit the water, the guys get really think that it was a really tough sectional.” second straight year. pumped up because they are doing so well.”

Liva and Kosinski represented the The Knights then competed in the GlenLopez thinks that throughout the postseaKnights at the IHSA state tournament on brook North sectional on Feb. 18. Where son, that this year’s group of seniors were Feb. 24. Both Kosinski and Liva placed at the the team placed fourth. Liva qualified for trying to create a legacy as members of the the state meet for the second consecutive state meet, with Kosinski breaking his own program. year with a score of 482.50, which broke the school record for the 100-yard breaststroke “These guys were not trying to chase hiswith a time of 59.00, school record for the tory,” Lopez said. “These guys were trying to which was good enough “I don’t like to take credit at highest diving score in create their own history in these postseason for 21st. Liva ended his program history. all for how well this team is meets.

Prospect career by placKosinski also qualiplaying.

I think all of the credit Even though the whole team did not ing 21st in diving. fied for state for the secLopez thought that make it to state, Lopez thinks that it was should go to the kids; these ond consecutive year in great to win the East title and see the swimthe state meet is one of breast stroke, as he also kids earned the division title.” the toughest state meets mers show off their full potential. broke the school record “I think that winning the East title is to place in the entire for fastest breaststroke Alfonso Lopez, head coach great,” Lopez said. “I think, more imporcountry. time in school history, “The state meet was tantly, it was great to see the kids achieve with a time of 59.46. pretty interesting,” Lopez said. “Last year goals that they put out for themselves at the Senior Asher Ginnodo and senior Ethan beginning of the season. [Senior] Ethan Roit was kind of a dry run – experience it, and Rodriguez place fifth and sixth respectively driguez had an unbelievable season. Ginnoin the back crawl. Inserra placed fifth in the just know that it is one of the fastest meets do had a great season. [Junior] Dan Macina in the nation.

It really takes a lot of work to 50-yard front crawl. did a great job in the sectionals coming out The relay teams also placed at the sec- place at New Trier.” of nowhere; it was just great to see the kids Liva believes that the strategies of Lopez tional, with the freestyle relay placing accomplish their goals.” helped him placed 21st at the state meet. fourth, the medley team also placed fourth,

BY WYATT DOJUTREK Online Sports Editor

DIVE LIKE NOBODY’S WATCHING: Senior Anthony Liva prepares to dive into the Prospect pool during a practice. Liva placed second in the Glenbrook North sectional on Feb. 18, and placed 21st at the IHSA state meet at New Trier High School on Feb. 24. “ I think we feel pretty accomplished as a program,” Liva said.

“It has been a difficult journey to get to this point of winning three MSL East titles in the last four years, but that’s how good this team is.” (photo courtesy of Anthony Liva)

SPORTS

FRIDAY, MARCH 3, 2017

Playoff Push

State Champ

As the boys’ basketball team prepares for the playoffs, read full previews and game recaps of every game in the IHSA state playoffs here:

Senior Matt Wroblewski won the IHSA state wrestling championship for the 220 pound weight class. For full coverage visit: prospectornow.com

prospectornow.com

ALL-Time Prospect Team

A panel of Prospect basketball historians came together to compile Prospect High School’s All-Time best basketball team. Mike Korcek, a 1966 Prospect graduate and member of the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame media wing; Fred Lussow, a former Prospect three-sport star in the early 1960s who played football at Indiana and coached in District 214 ever since; Tom Abrams, who has been around Prospect basketball for 30 years; Bob Frisk, former assistant managing editor of sports for the Daily Herald who has covered Prospect sports for over 50 years; and Marty Maciaszek, former sports writer and editor for the Daily Herald who frequently covered Prospect and Mid-Suburban basketball in the 1980s and 1990s, all voted on this team. The panelists agreed to create two separate teams, post-three-point shot and pre-three-point shot, because of how much basketball has changed through the years.

1959-86 Pre-three-point shot

BY JACK ANKONY Executive Sports Editor

George Pomey Forward 6’4” 1959-61

Tom Lundstedt Forward 6’3” 1964-67 According to Frisk, Lundstedt is the best Prospect player of all time. In eight tournament games in 1965-66 (four in the Pontiac Holiday Tournament and four in the IHSA playoffs), Lundstedt averaged 28 ppg and was named to the All-State basketball team. Korcek believes Lundstedt is the best 6’3” post player he has ever seen. “To me, men score points in the paint,” Korcek said. “Steph Curry can stand out there all day if he wants.”

Lundstedt also played in the MLB for the Chicago Cubs and Minnesota Twins.

Pomey starred on Prospect teams that finished 22-2 (1959-60) and 25-2 (196061). He was also Prospect’s first NBA draft pick when the Saint Louis Hawks selected him with the third pick in the 15th round of the 1965 NBA draft. Pomey transferred from Grant as a junior, and Frisk said that Pomey really blossomed his senior season because of his all-around talent. Pomey went on to start for the University of Michigan basketball team that lost to UCLA in the 1965 NCAA Championship game.

Mike Quade Guard 5’10” 1973-75

Al Black Guard 6’2” 1973-75 Al Black was an excellent ball-handler and shooter, according to Frisk. He was named an all-area player for Prospect in the 1974-75 season. Black helped lead the Knights to sectionals as an “above average perimeter shooter,” according to Korcek.

He went on to score 1,230 points at Illinois Wesleyan, shoot .513 for his college career. Off the court, Black received College Academic All-American status in 1979.

Quade was the “spark plug” point guard for the division, conference and regional championship team as a senior. Quade was named the honorary captain of the Daily Herald’s All-Area basketball team in 1975. “He was the epitome of enthusiasm and an amazing team captain,” Lussow said. “It was also his assists that were outstanding. He was an outstanding floor leader.

He was like Magic Johnson in the way that he ran the show. He wasn’t concerned about his stats, he got others involved.”

Quade was also the manager of the Chicago Cubs from 2010-11.

Mack scored his 1000th point as a Knight vs. Rolling Meadows on Jan. 28. Maciaszek thinks that Mack’s clutch shots like his game-winning buzzer beater against Stevenson on Dec. 16 have established him as a Prospect great and an outstanding leader. Frisk says Mack can do it all and has taken his game to another level this year, adding that he considers Mack one of the best shooters to ever play for Prospect. Mack’s competitiveness and hard-nosed attitude is how he separates himself from other guys who score similarly to him.

Mack is currently averaging 17.8 ppg for the Knights.

Matt Szuba Forward 6’6” 2013-17 Szuba became Prospect’s all-time leading rebounder after he broke Kevin Reed’s record of 573 total rebounds.

This season alone, Szuba has 255 rebounds and counting.

Frisk enjoys watching Szuba play because of his ability to shoot three pointers and be a fierce rebounder inside. Szuba was named the MSL East Player of the Year for the 20162017 season.

• Tom Bergen 6’8” Center 1972-74 •Ron Moehling 6’1” Guard 1962-64

• Kevin Reed 6’5” Forward 2008-09

Dave White Guard 5’10 1961-64

White was a threeyear varsity player for the Knights. After his career at Prospect, he walked on to play basketball at the University of Iowa. White was named to the 1963-64 Paddock All-Area team as a senior. He scored 619 total points as a Knight and is referred to as a “field general” by the Daily Herald.

White was also named to the All Mid-Suburban League team for his accomplisments in the 1963-64 season.

• Bobby Frasco 6’4” Forward 2010-12

Honorable Mentions • Fred Lussow 1961-62 • Jeff Fuerst 1982-84 • Dan Raupp 1984-85 • Dave Kingman 1965-67

• Jeff Heiden 2008-09 • Joe LaTulip 2008-10 • Danny Thomas 2010-12 • Steve Johnson 2004-05 • Bob Blackwood 1984-86 • Erik Faust 1996-98

Craig Anderson Guard 6’6” 2001-03 Anderson defined his career as a Knight when he scored 49 points vs. Saint Viator in his senior season.

According to Korcek, at 6’6”, Anderson could play any position and knew court management very well. Anderson is another Knight in the 1,000 point club. “He was a fantastic player who always knew where to be and where everyone else should be,” Abrams said. Maciaszek thinks Anderson’s leadership abilities were key for the Knights’ success as a team. The Knights won the regional championship in the 2001-02 season.

• Jason Leblebijian 6’2” Guard 2008-09

• Justin Gray 2001-02

LaTulip is Prospect’s all-time leading scorer with 1,484 points. Korcek says LaTulip is the “Steph Curry of Prospect.” “LaTulip is one of the best shooters to come around,” Maciaszek said. “He was targeted by so many defenses, which made it amazing that he was still able to get off shots.” Frisk says that LaTulip’s quickness added versatility to his game and gave him the ability to score in many ways. LaTulip also holds the school record for best free throw percentage in a season at 91 percent.

Ecker led the Knights down low on the only Prospect team to make it to super sectionals. Frisk explains Ecker could also hit mid-range jump shots, and not many opponents were stronger inside than Ecker. He went on to play college basketball at North Park, a school in one of the best Division III conferences at the time. Ecker scored 54 points versus Carthage on Feb. 23, 1995. “He was a very forceful low-post presence who had a very complete game,” Maciaszek said. “He could score, rebound, defend, and he was very knowledgeable.”

• Todd Wolfe 6’6” Center 1983-86

• Keith Dunn (right) 6’1” Guard 1989-91

Mike LaTulip Guard 5’10” 2010-12

Jack Ecker Center 6’7” 1988-91

• Bill Zadel (right) 6’5” Forward 1959-61

1987-2017 Bench Players

1987-2017 Post-three-Point shot Frankie Mack Guard 6’3” 2013-17

1959-86 Bench Players

• Aaron Adams 1997-98 • Taki Mullins 1998-99 • Bobby Smith 2004-05 • Andrew Schwarz 2005-06 • Paul Withey 1974-75 • Jeff Moehling 1985-86 • Scott Quade 1988-89 • Justin Bentley 2000-01 (photos courtesy of Elisabeth Rohde, Crest Yearbook and Prospect TouchPros.com)