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Longhorn Round up | November 2014
November 2014
Volume 4
Issue 1
Homecoming a success The King and Queen of Basalt High School, Alex Nakagawa and Violet Yanez, appear before their adoring subjects. More about Homecoming, Pages 6-7 Photo By: Kaity Johnson
Yik Yak
Abuse dilemma
The App that lets you Yap but holds trouble
Abuse: Close to home and hitting the nation hard
By Mariemma Uguccioni
Yik Yak is an anonymous Twitterlike app that quickly went from fun to bullying. It has been restricted from schools, but even though it is labeled for “adult use only,” it is accessible to anyone off school grounds.
Earlier this school year, it spread through the Roaring Fork Valley like wildfire, getting to students before administrators were even aware of it.
Basalt High School and school board members had not heard of the app before being contacted for this article even though Aspen families were warned about its use early in the school year.
Yik Yak is a social media site created in 2013 as a platform for students to share thoughts, but it quickly became a way to harass other students. It started as an app for college students and by this school year had reached younger
students across the country. That creates concern among students who might face bullying by anonymous app users. Yik Yak developers have taken steps this fall to prevent the app from being used at schools, meaning if you open the app at school an icon will pop up and tell you, “You appear to be using this too close to school. Yik Yak is for adults only.”
This app is unique because although users remain completely anonymous, when you download and open the app it asks for your location, so comments and posts remain in your secluded area, such as the Roaring Fork Valley. This seclusion causes names to be thrown out and the real bullying happens. Word spread throughout the valley and soon it was at all the high schools. An Aspen High school student explained how Yik Yak came and went at her continued on page 2
By Will Orben and Oriah Clarke
Abuse was one of the hottest topics in the media this fall, with highprofile incidents involving NFL players pushing it to the headlines. Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice was suspended for physical abuse of his fiance (who is now his wife) and Vikings star Adrian Peterson was suspended for abuse of his child. But abuse hits much closer to home, and most of it doesn’t make headlines. Just walking through the halls at school you could see someone who has been or is currently being abused and it would be undetectable.
Verbal and emotional abuse are a threat to teenagers all around the world. After all, 44 percent of abuse victims are under 18 years old. “At an adolescent level it’s hard to understand what a positive relationship is. Sometimes it’s the first time that person has been in a relationship and it’s hard to understand how to be in a relationship,” Josh Mink, a counselor at Basalt High School, explained about abusive
relationships. “This is where we see things like control issues, and verbal abuse.” For example, when a couple is showing signs of affection in the halls, it’s easy to walk by and think they are both happy or that a regular student is safe at home. This is not always the case.
One Basalt High teacher, who asked to remain anonymous because of her experience, had a strong perspective about the subject of abuse as well as giving helpful input and advice on the topic.
Having experienced verbal abuse firsthand, she went through things growing up that were “not so great,” adding that she didn’t get as much help as she wished she would have. She wasn’t though.
completely
alone,
“I did reach out to a teacher when I was in junior high, and so I had a really close confidante, and she helped me out quite a bit, and I ended up seeing a counselor for it through junior high in particular,” continued on page 3
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Longhorn Round up | November 2014
SEEN & HEARD Freshmen can no longer leave campus for lunch. As of this year, freshmen at Basalt High School are not allowed to leave campus for lunch break to avoid being late to the following class. Because the majority of freshmen do not have cars, they have a tendency to walk down to Basalt to get lunch. This causes them to be late to their next class. So the school has decided that freshmen can no longer go down to lunch. Even if they have a ride, these
Yik Yak
underclassmen may not leave the campus for break. Coffee now being sold in the library. The Coffee Trough is now open! The Trough is run by students from the school and is open only during class times. Students can now go into the library and grab a coffee or other warm drink for a very low price. Soon to come there will be a variety of pastries that students can buy so they could have something to snack on while they work. In
order to buy coffee you have to have a coffee card, which can be bought from Ralph Smalley for $10. Aspen college fair helps many upperclassmen. The college fair in Aspen on Oct. 5 was a huge success for juniors and seniors who attended. Students came from all across the valley to do research on colleges they would like to attend and how to get into those colleges. The college fair was filled with universities and community colleges from all around the
U.S. and offered a great opportunity to talk to people from those schools. Along with quite a few in-state schools, a wide variety of out-of-state colleges were represented. Like us on Facebook! Didn’t see your picture in the newspaper? Make sure to like the Basalt Longhorn Roundup on Facebook! There will be posts of an overview of the Roundup as well as some pictures that weren’t in the paper. Like us on Facebook!
sequences, then no lessons will be learned, and it won’t stop. It has caused controversy around the country and has been banned from several high schools. Even some colleges have considered bans, and the giant Huffington Post website last month published an article titled, “Why Your College Should Ban Yik-Yak.”
teacher Doug Bristol explained the danger of social media and how it influences our lives. “Before there were computers, kids were still harassing each other, like writing notes to each other,” he said. “But now when people do it on social media, it’s not just one note to one person, or shared with a couple people you know. It can be out there to millions of people before you even know it happened.”
continued from page 1
school because of excessive bullying.
flict — and no one can be held re“Yik Yak was used at our school to sponsible. The schools in the valley mostly target incoming freshmen,” have restrictions on certain websites limiting them from access at school. she said. However, Basalt’s individual bulAn example of a post, called a “Yak,” lying policy is that there can be no is, “I don’t know why Aspen and derogatory written or pictorial comBasalt kids are hating on each other munications in any media site; there while Carbondale kids are the real can also be no threats or physical tools.” contact. This Yak, like all others, remains All these policies are easily disreanonymous, so hating spreads from garded in Yik Yak. With no conschool to school only to create con-
The danger of technology is at an all-time high for today’s youth. Basalt
High
School
computer
November 2014, Volume 1, Issue 1 Co-Editors: Andrew Olson and Tyler Jackson
Business Manager - Oriah Clarke
Staff Oriah Clarke, oriahlani@gmail.com Anders Brucker, djdenmark18@gmail.com Andrew Olson, andrewolson@rfschools.com Maria Esquivel, mariaesquivel@rfschools.com Maile Wood, mailewood@rfschools.com John Glen, johnglen@rfschools.com Tyler Jackson, tylerjackson@rfschools.com Griffen Jenkins, griffenjenkins@rfschools.com Benjamin Koski, benjaminkoski@rfschools.com William Orben, williamorben@rfschools.com A.J. Thompson, ajthompson434@comcast.net Atlanta Ellison, atlantaellison13@hotmail.com Raquel Vasquez, rachelvasquez40@gmail.com Mariemma Uguccioni, mariemmauguccioni1@gmail.com
Adviser Randy Essex, ressex@postindependent.com
Mission The Longhorn Roundup is committed to bring the BHS student body and administration newsworthy articles that will inform, educate, and entertain in a reliable and timely fashion while maintaining the districtwide core values and contributing to the overall pride of our school.
Letters to the Editor We welcome letters to the editor. Please email one of our co-editors, Andrew Olson at andrewolson@rfschools.com or Tyler Jackson at tylerjackson@rfschools.com
Advertising Please contact Oriah Clarke at oriahlani@gmail.com
970-704-0664
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Longhorn Round up | November 2014
Abuse dilemma continued from page 1
she said.
Some people have suggested a class for boys and girls to take in school that would teach them how to become proper young men and women. Glenwood Springs High School football players are spending some practice time each week discussing such topics.
The teacher who experienced abuse said, “I think I could see it for both, what’s acceptable behavior, and what’s not.” Such a class, she said, should be geared toward boys becoming young men and toward girls on how to recognize domestic abuse, and how to deal with the situation correctly. Counselor Bo Takarabe said that if you or one of your peers is getting abused, know that help is available and you aren’t alone. Don’t be afraid to help your peers if you think they are in danger. “It’s more common for a friend of an abuse victim to come and talk about someone else’s abusive relationship than the victim themselves,” Takarabe said.
Emma Bielski of the Advocate Safehouse Project in the valley said to reach out to a trusted adult.
The school offers many readily accessible resources. You can always talk to Takarabe, Mink and teachers around the school, or contact a resource center, which offer 24/7 service (contact ivnfo located at the end of the article). All your information will be completely anonymous through all of these resources.
Knife incident
Student flashes knife in boys locker room By J.d. Glenn And Ben Koski Principal David Schmid stressed that Basalt High places a premium on safety following an incident Oct. 22 in which a student brought an open-bladed knife into the boys locker room.
“That is our job, to make sure we’re all safe together,” Schmid said at a school community meeting the following Monday. At 12:30 p.m. Oct. 22, a student reported to school Resource Officer Brian Lemke that another student was in possession of an open knife in the boys locker room.
No one was harmed in the incident, but it stirs fears of events similar to this happening again. Ever since the first recorded school shooting in 1760, and especially in the last decade, schools across America have experienced shootings, threats and even massacres. But valley residents thought that such incidents would never happen here. Schmid sought to reassure students, parents, and locals that the community is safe. At the community meeting
Monday morning, he shared his viewpoints on safety in the Basalt High School community.
“We don’t take school safety lightly, because it is our No. 1 job. All the adults in this room, that is our job, to make sure we’re all safe together,” he said. “We take care of each other and become responsible for each other. And I have to say I appreciate the boys who came forward to tell us about that because they helped keep us safe. “You know, we’re all held responsible for keeping us all safe. And I just want to say to you that if there’s any time, ever, that you do not feel safe in this building, or around in the community, you need to come tell us about it. We just know that you’re not going to learn in the correct way if you don’t feel safe.”
Vice Principal Jamie Hozak added, “It is important to know that Basalt is a safe place and we have to work together to keep it that way. The students let us know about the incident, that’s what I mean by working together. Safety is our top pri-
ority here.”
As a community, Basalt High will use this experience to unite the students and staff, letting them work together to ensure that the school is a safe and productive environment. The case was referred to the Ninth Judicial District Attorney’s Office.
DA Sherry Caloia said that in such cases, juveniles accused of crimes and their parents are given a document to appear for a certain date.
“Before that date we can decide to send him to diversion, and if so then there is no filing in court,” she said in an email. “If that does not happen then he and his parents must appear on the date in the Promise and at that time they will be served with a Petition in Delinquency. The case proceeds in Juvenile Court after that, pursuant to special rules. “In cases involving serious matters or weapons, it is my policy not to send these juveniles to diversion,” Caloia said.
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Longhorn Round up | November 2014
Welcome, new staffers, to Longhorn family By Raquel Vasquez
Basalt High School this year welcomed aboard 12 new staff members and a new vice principal. Even if every new school year brings new faces, many students were astonished to see how many new teachers were in the halls this year. “Yes, I had the mentality that many teachers had moved, but it was impressive to see how many staff mem-
bers were actually received,” said a junior from Basalt High School. It takes a lot of courage to enter a totally different experience than what you are used to. It is like taking on a sport you have never played before. That is how many new staff members felt when they started teaching. Here are introductions of 10 of this year’s new staff members.
Lance Bronk
U.S. history and A.P. U.S. history
Meet Jonathan Gorst:
Gorst, the concert and chamber choir teacher, came to the valley this year to be the music director at the Glenwood Vaudeville Revue.
“I moved to this area not knowing I would have a teaching career,” Gorst said. “It seemed like a really great opportunity to use what I’ve learned in Broadway and from my teachers, who gave me a love and appreciation towards music.”
Even if it is his first year teaching, Gorst had worked on Broadway shows including “Cats” and “Phantom of the Opera.” He has visited many major cities and played in their theaters over nine times in his career.
Meet Jamie Hozack:
Even though many students missed former Vice Principal Adriana Hire, the school got the opportunity to meet a new vice principal named Jamie Hozack. Hozack was a math teacher for 10 years. When he got the opportunity to become the new vice principal he felt very excited and at the same time he was a bit nervous. “There were so many mixed emotions that I was going through. There was like nervousness, excitement and other feelings that I didn’t know how to feel in that moment.” But once he got to this school he felt welcomed.
“It’s an interesting thing to know all those theaters around the country, which some of them are 100 years old and others are up to 10 years old,” Gorst said.
Cynthia England Registration
Paul Dudley
Spanish 2, 3 & A.P.
Meet Sofie Stenstadvold:
Sofie Stenstadvold is this year’s new Psychology and freshmen American History teacher. Stenstadvold attended Basalt High as a student. “I feel a lot of similarities, it is hard to identify differences,” Stenstadvold said, “the reason why I say this is because there is the sense of community, everyone knows everyone, it is very supportive, and it was something I loved.” She said that it was different from being in the teacher’s perspective than a student’s. Including she feels that there are more similarities in her perspective than there were differences. What made Stenstadvold decide to come back to this community was because she loved Basalt and there are still a lot of teachers that she admires from back then.
Andrea Turner
Special Education
Kate Bradley Librarian
Karen Ross Math
Randy Essex Journalism
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Longhorn Round up | November 2014
School song Basalt High’s spirit will soon be set to music with two special compositions By A.j. Thompson
The thud of a bass drum rattles your sternum. Horns screaming intricate harmonies send chills down your spine. Woodwinds breathe their airy tune into your eardrums like a personal secret between you and music.
A colorful spectrum of sounds and harmonies explode out of a shiny brass tube, tainting the air with sound waves as they travel and collide with your eardrums like a baseball bat against an apple. A rush. Goosebumps. Repeat. This is the Basalt High School band composing its latest masterpiece with such precision it’s hard to tell what instrument is playing what harmony. The crowd sits observing in a silent state of awe. But this year the band is incorporating something so special into its musical vault that the crowd will have no choice but to stand up and cheer.
This year, Basalt High School is getting two theme songs that will represent the school and be played at big home games, pep rallies, dances, bonfires and other events. One song will be what is known as an
alma mater, a Latin term for “nourishing mother” that in this context is a more slow, reflective, beautiful type song meant to represent our school. The other song will be a fight song to play when our team scores a touchdown, at pep rallies and other times to get pumped up.
The conductor of the band is Nick Lenio, an instrumental conducting master from Pennsylvania, who’s been in the Basalt school’s music program for three years now, running both the middle and high school band. Lenio brings something fresh to the table with his groovy, funkfilled and seemingly unheard-of compositions. It seems Lenio is putting a new twist on what is typically thought of a school band and redefining what one is capable of. Even more so now, with these new additions to the band and Basalt High School all together. Basalt High Principal Schmidt seems to agree.
David
“It builds a sense of unity,” Schmidt said in an interview, “I think it’s fun
as a whole school to sing a song together, it builds this kind of camaraderie and togetherness.” Megan Sherry of Basalt High School’s student leadership program is also on board with the idea. “I think it would bring people together and make people excited to come to games and sing the song.”
So when will these themes be ready to go? Under what circumstances will they be played? Who’s writing them? I asked Lenio to clear the air on some of this. The mystery man behind these songs is Jeremy Leidhecker, a former teacher turned composer living in Pennsylvania who took third in the Cine International Film Scoring Competition last spring.
Lenio said Leidhecker is a talented composer. The school has commissioned around $1,000 for this project and Leidhecker has gripped the project with both hands. Last year, he came to Basalt for a week to observe the area and get a better sense of where he would be writing. According to Lenio, the alma mater
is close to completion and the fight song has a loose sketch to it. Lenio estimates that both of these purple pride songs will be ready to go sometime around this spring.
How to be involved
This is obviously a very exciting addition to BHS and you can help be a part of it. When the fight song is done and written, the music staff is going to let the student body write the lyrics. There are no restrictions on who can write them and as long as you include Longhorn pride (and appropriate language), it’s open to anybody. These songs will add something special to our school that not many other schools in the valley have. The songs will help build a sense of community and togetherness between the students and help unite our school as a whole.
Freshmen expectations The reality is both harder and easier than many students imagined By Maria Esquivel
We’ve all felt it. The strange rush of thoughts and realizations when you’re first coming into high school. You’re almost overwhelmed. You probably expected more, or maybe less.
“I thought it was OK, because you come into a new school and you’ve got your friends,” freshman Abraham Hernandez said with a smile. “But I was also scared because I felt I wasn’t going to make it and fail.” And who hasn’t felt scared? Even if some won’t admit it, everyone’s felt that slight fear of entering an overall bigger school. That fear of entering a new era of your life where everyone demands more.
Some freshmen have actually voiced surprise about what high school is really like. “Well, I thought that high school was going to be harder and more demanding,” freshman Erica Ca-
ñas muttered with a slightly dumbfounded look. “But instead the teachers left it as your choice on whether or not you want to fail.”
And Cañas did prove a point. High school represents the beginning of students’ integration into real life. Those who choose not to apply themselves most likely won’t get very far. It’s all about learning, practicing, meeting new people and meeting deadlines, students and teachers say. High school helps you sharpen those skills. So naturally, once the initial fear of entering high school has passed, students need to start focusing on getting through classes. And even the new classes hold surprises, things completely different than what students expected.
“I feel like it’s a bit more challenging because it’s high school. And I like it. I’ve learned that if I have something that I’m struggling with, I need to
get help,” Hernandez said. “And I’m happy that it’s not as simple as middle school. ... I love the challenges. They prepare me for real life.”
Students also have a sense of excitement for high school — anticipating the freedom, Homecoming Week, being able to choose classes. It’s nothing like elementary or middle school, where schedules and freedom are controlled, students say. “I was looking forward to choosing my own classes,” freshman Doris Carballo said. “The freedom too! Breaking free from the shackles of middle school.”
In high school everyone’s moving on to become adults and must practice responsibility and management of their time. Sports push participants even more so, because there’s always the threat of being taken out of a game for not doing school work. To an eighth-grader, high school sports could seem really intense.
“When I asked someone if high school sports would be a lot more difficult or different than middle school, they said they were,” Hernandez said. “And I thought I wouldn’t do sports. But then I realized that I want to improve my responsibility in all fields and work on my physical activity.”
Said Carballo, “Coming into high school can be a very intimidating experience. Everyone’s felt it. But it’s never actually a bad fear, unless you’d like to label that way. It’s usually just a healthy fear. When you try something new, it’s always a bit intimidating but you’ll eventually learn from it.”
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Longhorn Round up | November 2014
HOMECOMING By Tyler Jackson and Will Orben
Despite a tight budget, Basalt’s Homecoming Week was quite successful, according to students. Homecoming Week kicked off with a magic show by Jason Alan, an Ohio magician who performs around the country. He uses cards to deceive and amaze the audience. The first day of Homecoming Week was Ex-Ed, where students got to pick from a wide range of activities to go on for the day. These included a trip to CSU, a movie day, a lesson on survival, fly fishing, hiking, sailing and many more choices. On Tuesday night the movie “Divergent” was shown outdoors. Seniors won the Brute Volleyball tournament and the team of Juniors and Sophomores won in the Powderpuff Football game for the very first time. Despite the bonfire burning out quickly, students had a great time dancing to the music. In the football game, Basalt crushed Coal Ridge in a blowout victory with a score of 30-6. At the dance, some students described the music as out of date and hard to dance to, but liked the chance to dance and hang out with their friends. Theme days brought out the creative side in many students at the high school and was a great way to have fun and dress up during the school day.
The freshman King and Queen of Homecoming 2014. Aranza Lopez and Alex Alberto. Photo By: MacKenzie Bauer
Theme Days:
This shows the intensity and action-packed Powderpuff football game. Photo By: Will Orben
The Students Speak:
Students unanimously said their favorite times during Homecoming Week were the after-school and lunchtime activities. These were Powderpuff Football, Brute Volleyball, Four-Way Tug-of-War, Movie Night and the bonfire. Some students gave us their opinions on their favorite
activities: “The best thing about homecoming is that we don’t have to do as much work.” — Omar Merlos “The after-school and lunch activities.” — Manuel Parada “My favorite part of Homecoming was participating in the pep rally at the middle school because I got to go be a leader and get the kids pumped up.” — Stephanie Nevarez On the other side, students thought that the music during the dance could’ve been improved. “The music during the dance got lame sometimes.” — Kalissa Stump “I didn’t like the bonfire because I thought that it would be more like roasting marshmallows and playing games, like what you’d do at a campfire. I didn’t think it’d just be music and dancing.” — Stephanie Nevarez
The seniors successfully stole the win in this years Brute Volleyball tournament. Photo By: Kaity Johnson
Tuesday, Twin Day: Students and administrators had the opportunity to dress alike. Wednesday, Generation Day: Freshmen were babies, sophomores were college prep people, juniors were businessmen and businesswomen, and seniors were the elderly. Thursday, Disney Day: Freshmen were characters from the Lion King, sophomores were characters from Monsters Inc., juniors were Disney villains, and seniors were Disney heroes and princesses. Friday, Hollywood Day: Freshmen were beach babes and bros, sophomores were yacht club members, juniors were the L.A.P.D., and seniors were red-carpet celebrities.
Football Game:
The Basalt Longhorns started strong right out of the gate and rode that feeling all the way to the end. With a good amount of time left in the second quarter, the Longhorn’s triumph was put on hold due to a few lightning strikes. Coal Ridge High School got the ball in the end zone only once, and the game ended at a Longhorn 30-6 victory. Continued on next page...
“Set, hut!” As the Powderpuff game got intense, many of the girls couldn’t wait for the two words that would start off the game. Photo By: Kaity Johnson
The teachers dominated the students in this years Teachers versus Students volleyball game. Photo By: The Basalt Longhorn football team took a succesful win against the Coal Ridge High School during this years Homecoming game. Photo By: MacKenzie Bauer
Kaity Johnson
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Longhorn Round up | November 2014
Despite their loss, the freshmen and the seniors, nonetheless had fun during the Powderpuff football game. Photo by: Kaity Johnson
The “Jumores” took the crown in this years intense Powderpuff football game. It seemed as though it would be a tough knot, but it was a striking victory for the sophmores and juniors. Photo by: Kaity Johnson
... Homecoming continued.
After School/ Lunch Activities:
The Homecoming football game was kicked off with an inspiring performance by the Basalt High School Chamber Choir. Photo by: Kaity Johnson
Even with a smaller budget, Homecoming activities were still pulled off really well. Tuesday, students gathered to spread popcorn everywhere and watch the movie “Divergent.” Wednesday night, the seniors won the Brute Volleyball tournament and the “Jumores” won the Powderpuff Football game for the first time in Basalt High School history. Students won the Teacher vs. Student volleyball game. The four-way tug-of-war ended up with a junior class win. Thursday night featured a bonfire ignited behind the school and everyone danced to techno music. The Homecoming Parade was on Friday, and many teams, clubs and classes from the schools were represented.
Big talk with Smalley:
This year for Homecoming Week, the Student Leadership Class had a much smaller budget to plan the activities. “The Leadership Class had failed to fundraise in past years leaving the budget for this year smaller than past years,” said Ralph Smalley, Basalt High School’s Student Leadership Council leader and physical education teacher. After the Homecoming Dance, students complained about the DJ, saying that the music was outdated. “The DJ agreed to play less grindy music and more songs like ‘The Cupid Shuffle’ that gets everyone involved,” Smalley said. “He was what the administration was looking for because of the songs he did and didn’t play.”
Twin Day was a fun, colorful, and entertaining success. Many kids came in that day having the true mentality of what they thought being a twin would be like. Photos by: Kaity Johnson
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Longhorn Round up | November 2014
SPORTS
Football By Griffen Jenkins
Basalt High School’s football team won three games this year, improving from 2013’s 2-7 overall finish. Coach Carl Frerichs and senior captains Jake Levy, Alex Nakagawa, Josue Vigil and Richie Guerrero pushed their team this summer and fall to improve. “The offseason weight room was a big thing,” Frerichs said. “We really tried to do things in the spring football camp to get the kids a little more motivated to show up and buy in. And I feel that we had an awesome turnout.”
Frerichs said only two players didn’t show up to at least one day of the offseason lifting. Frerichs also changed offensive and defensive schemes.
“We were 2-7 last year but we were in every game. So, I mean, we were only a couple plays away from being right where we wanted. Even though we were frustrated with our record last year, we also look at it as we lost a game 6-2, 8-6, 21-7, 2110. We were a competitive team last year.”
Cross Country By Maile Wood The cross country team had a very eventful season this year. “We qualified a boys team for the State meet as well as one girl as an individual.” Coach Ron Lund said about State.
Two students from Basalt High School finished in the top 10 in the State Championship. Hailey Swirbul, a junior, finished second. Finishing eighth in the State Cross Country Championship was a senior, Zach Walsh. “As far as next year goes, we are losing a couple seniors but hope to add some new kids to the program,” Lund said.
It was a successful season overall, and good luck to the Basalt Longhorns next season.
Trying to make the offense as simple as possible for the kids was one of Frerichs’ changes in the offseason. The chemistry and attitude of the 2014 Longhorns impressed Frerichs this fall.
The Longhorns finished 3-6 (2-3 in league) and just missed the playoffs this year. Sophomore quarterback Miles Levy led the offense. He attempted 123 passes and completed 47 of those for 783 yards and six touchdowns. Senior Josue Vigil led the rushing attack, carrying the ball 164 times for 756 yards and five touchdowns. Senior Fullback Richie Guerrero led the Longhorns in receiving with 16 receptions for 282 yards and three touchdowns.
The Longhorns’ defense was led by senior linebacker Alex Nakagawa. He finished with 55 solo tackles, 26 assisted tackles, seven tackles for a loss and one sack. Basalt’s leadership on the field proved to bring some fight this season as they finished the season beating rival Aspen 28-22 at home.
Basalt High’s volleyball team fought hard through a difficult season. By Maile Wood
“I’m very proud of my team and their willingness and determination to not give up,” said Dianna Evers, one of the volleyball coaches.
The varsity team ended the regular season with no wins and 16 losses.
The season wrapped up with a loss in the league tournament Oct. 24.
This season’s coaches include Evers, Kara Lindahi and Jack Mercer. Evers encourages extra training including volleyball camps, open gyms and going to the weight
room. “The more time you spend in the gym, the better you become,” she explained.
While the season is over and was tough, Evers said the players get a lasting lesson. “Pain is temporary, pride is forever,” she said.
Golf
By Anders Brucker The Basalt High golf team had eight members this year, which was a low number compared with past years. Last year, the golf team had its greatest achievement when Tristan Rohrbacher took home the state championship.
However, Rohrbacher had graduated and Basalt students struggled to make regionals.
The team sent three golfers from Glenwood Springs to the state tournament on the Front Range. Glenwood Springs High doesn’t have a golf team, so those students
compete with Basalt High.
Roger Gauthier, a student from Glenwood High School placed the highest, tying for 17th in the state.
“We hope to place better next year and have more golfers on the team.” junior golfer Jessie Ogren said.
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Longhorn Round up | November 2014
SPORTS
New Schedule
Varsity softball fights to winning record By Maile Wood
When it comes to Basalt High School softball, there’s nothing “soft” about the sport.
Attitude, motivation, teamwork, and sportsmanship are all in play.
This year, sporting new uniforms that are white with purple sleeve, and yellow accents, the varsity team had 14 wins and seven losses before going to the state tournament. At state, the Longhorns lost to Larmar 14-4.
JV finished its season with a 6-9 record.
Coaches for this season included Colin Young, Brian DeCrow and Scott Strobel.
Strobel said he thought the varsity team had a good chance to advance at state. “If we hit the ball and do what we can in the field, I think we’ll advance,” he said before the
game.
“I think that if we keep doing what we’re doing and play our game, we will do just fine,” said freshman Jordan Banc, who plays outfield and pitcher. “It feels awesome to be able to play on varsity as a freshman because I’ve worked hard, and that was one of my goals for this year.” Ambitions for next season are left on a high note.
Strobel said his favorite part of the season was the freshmen enthusiasm. “It seems like they love to play, and I watched them all get better,” he said.
By Oriah Clarke
As the first semester reaches the halfway point, Basalt High students are adapting to a brand new schedule change, some more smoothly than others. Basalt High School is the only school in the Roaring Fork School District to change its schedule, raising questions about the purpose.
The new schedule is organized in what is called “skinnies” and “blocks.” In previous years, Basalt had a standard block schedule, and rotated different classes every day.
Now, it has one-hour periods known as “skinnies.” These classes are math, English, and social studies, and meet every day.
eracy scores,” said Principal David Schmid. “Our math and science scores are doing very well, but our English department needed improvement.”
He added that having skinnies every day will essentially give students eight more weeks of instruction in these classes than the previous block schedule. The schedule change mostly applies to freshman and sophomores, and some juniors. Due to the fact that seniors are taking more advanced AP classes, hardly any have the new schedule. Student reaction has been mixed.
Junior Miguel Fabela said he thinks it has benefitted some The “block” classes are an hour and a students, but there is also a fault half and meet every other day. These in the system. are science, AP classes and other electives. In addition, the school switched from “late start Mondays” (in which school started at 9 a.m. instead of 8 a.m.) to “early release Wednesdays,” which cut “skinnies” into 45-minute classes, and “blocks” into 70-minute classes. Basalt High’s administration made decision independently. “Our main purpose was to raise lit-
Amy C. Cecil, OD, FCOVD 0100 Elk Run Drive Suite 206 Basalt, CO 81621 phone 970.927.5107 fax 970.927.5018
“I have my hour-long classes in the morning, and then my blocks in the afternoon, so I get really tired, and my mind won’t cooperate.” He added that teachers who teach block classes at the end of the day should be understanding that the one-hour classes earlier can easily run down students.”
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Longhorn Round up | November 2014
COMMUNITY NEWS
Destroying elements, or building them? By Ben Koski
A hotel is being built in Willits. Here’s what you need to know: Willits, in less than a decade, has transformed from a little neighborhood to a large community. With the growing popularity and residents come increased needs for recreational areas. Whether it be for skiing, snowboarding, hiking, visiting friends or just sightseeing, outof-town visitors need a place to stay — which Willits has lacked. As the community grows, this is changing.
The hotel will be part of line of Starwood’s Hotels, called the “Element Hotels.”
The hotel, expected to be open by
Basalt “high” By J.D. Glenn
Thanksgiving 2015, will be an extended-stay model, adding convenience for those who would like to stay in the valley for several days or more. Some people have critical opinions of the hotel’s location — especially the soon-to-be-hotel’s next-door neighbors — due to its large size that critics say will take the feeling of living in a rural area away from the locals. “I am definitely going to miss the rural feel that I have grown attached to over the years that I have lived in the valley,” a hotel neighbor said.
Asked about the convenience of Marijuana became legal in Colorado this year, and now Basalt is about to have a marijuana store and farm.
The farm is being built across from Holland Hills in Basalt, and Town Manager Mike Scanlon said Basalt will have at most two operations. When some local high schoolers were asked about the impacts the store will have on the community and high school, they had a variety of answers. “Well, there will be more pot use if it is built, and it will have a bad influence on minors,” freshman Henry Vargas said. Basalt’s new marijuana greenhouse.
Sophomore Roman Ceja said, “I feel like more kids will be getting in trouble with weed.” He also said,
the hotel’s location, Mike Scanlon, Basalt’s town manager, said: “Given its access to Highway 82, the retail hub that Willits has become, and the ability to go up and down valley made the location for a hotel inevitable (a hotel in that area was actually planned 15-20 years ago).”
tive aspects come with a new hotel. For many years, downtown Basalt and Willits competed, but now they are “championing each other’s strengths,” as Scanlon put it. The hotel will help unify East and West Basalt into one large community, plus it will bring in taxes to help support local schools and services.
“I don’t think there should be a pot farm near the school.”
eco-friendly, yet we are spending so much energy growing weed.”
“The advent of Whole Foods Market turned the inevitable into the actual.” So far, the only negative prospect is that the hotel will help transform — Town Manager Mike Scanlan Along with convenience, many posi- this little community into a more ur-
In a group of students who requested to remain anonymous, one said, “A lot more people will come to school high. I know that for a fact.”
One student joked, “I’m going to rob it!” Although he was kidding, the student brought up a concern that the high school’s resource officer, Brian Lemke, mentioned: “A negative impact is the desire for criminals from out of state to steal large quantities of marijuana.” Lemke also said, “The biggest problem is the amount of electricity it takes to grow that much weed. It is incongruent to the beliefs of our community because we want to be
Scanlon, the town manager, said a lot is unknown about the effects of legal marijuana. “I’m not sure we’re going to know the real impact on the community and high school for some years to come. ... “In those states that legalize it you’ll probably impact the number of people in prison, charged with possession etcetera and its criminalization. So there could be an impact on the criminal culture that profited from it being illegal which positively impacts the community and high school, but I’m not sure anybody really knows. So for this issue we’ll need to wait and see.”
Clark’s Market: 20,000 square feet of nothing By Andrew Olson
Since early July, the building once known as Clark’s Market has been vacant. The question remains: What is to be done with this massive empty property at the center of buzzing Basalt? Mike Scanlon, Basalt town manager, has the answer. Scanlon, whom the Roundup interviewed by email in early October, had known about the closing of Clark’s a year before it happened. He and the property manager were originally hoping to fill the empty space with another grocery store, which Basalt desperately needs. “Frank Taverna — the owner — and
I worked on that option for over nine months with no luck in finding a replacement,” said Scanlon. “But my belief is that major renovations are going to be required on that property for that to happen, and I’m not sure it’s economically viable right now, but we’ll see.” One idea was to convert the space to a recreation center, or BIF (Basalt Indoor Fields). “That was an idea that the owner of the property had developed and was seeking support from the community and town to possibly build,” Scanlon stated in his interview. But once Taverna learned
that the town would be forced to provide a minimum of $500,000 in support, he withdrew the idea.
The desire for a Basalt grocery store grows as time goes by.
“City Market’s always packed,” said Basalt High student and local resident Tyler Jackson. “People might shop at the new grocery store instead of packing City Market full, possibly reducing the store’s crowded environment.”
Without a solid plan in place, Scanlon believes that the replacement of Clark’s is probably
two to three years away.
“It’s important that the community finish the ‘Our Town Planning’ process, set a vision for the downtown area and find the ‘right’ retail and residential pieces that will bring vitality to the downtown.” As time goes by without a solid plan to fill the empty Clark’s Market building, other construction projects are under way, including a Willits hotel, Rocky Mountain Institute headquarters near downtown and a recreational marijuana store across from Holland Hills. According to Scanlon, Basalt appears to have a bright future.
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Longhorn Round up | November 2014
Opinion: Teachers shouldn’t also be coaches By Anders Brucker Schools all over America struggle with finding qualified coaches.
While the best athletes are not always the best coaches, neither are teachers or parents at times. A good coach or teacher is the key to success. If that particular coach or teacher is not qualified, then the team or student will not be successful. At most schools, a coaching position is more of a volunteer job because the pay is minimum. Schools are more likely to hire teachers to be coaches because they can make a little extra money and the schedule works. The schools are very biased toward teachers and tend to favor them more. This makes it hard for people from outside of school who want to coach. In the Roaring Fork Valley, we are fortunate to have many experienced sportsmen who would be willing to volunteer their time. I strongly believe that coaches outside of our school would be a great addition to our sports program.
Being a teacher is one of the most stressful jobs. I have lots of respect for teachers. They spend hours outside the classroom creating lesson plans, grading papers and helping students after school hours. So at times, it may be hard for a teacher to find free time to coach a sports team to its best potential. If teachers didn’t have assistant coaches it would be virtually impossible.
There have been many occasions when my teacher coaches have missed games for meetings, etc. All the best coaches I have ever had were 100 percent devoted to the team and that is why we were so successful. Coaches devote their time to the game because they are passionate about it and want to pass on their knowledge. Even though the staff at the school may be passionate about the game and qualified to coach, they are not fully invested because many times work interferes with their time to coach. Coaches also can be biased — even the best ones, as well as some teachers. If a student is not performing
well in school but is the team’s best player then the teacher coach may be inclined to sit that player and the rest of the team would suffer. This can go both ways, because teachers can also make the school work easy for the good players in class so that they will always be eligible to play. This is why students should only see their coaches at practice and not in the classroom.
There are exceptions to anything, and some teachers make great coaches, but overall I wouldn’t want to see my coaches every day in the classroom. Students get frustrated at teachers, and their attitude at practice may change due to this. I am guilty of this myself, as I sometimes get upset with my teachers and don’t want to see them outside of class. I see sports as a way to leave school behind. In the past few years our sports teams haven’t preformed up to par and many students are not enthusiastic. By bringing in new coaches I believe students would have a more positive attitude toward sports and give it their all.
I also strongly believe our school needs a full-time athletic director. Our school misses out on amazing opportunities because our athletic director is tied up with schoolwork. With a full-time athletic director, our school might have new opportunities that students may not be accustomed to in their everyday sports life. Our sports program would be more organized and there would be better communication if we had a full-time athletic director. A fulltime athletic director would have more time to thoroughly search for the best coaches. I am not trying to attack our sports program because I value coaches in general, as it is practically a voluntary position, but having teachers as coaches has a negative impact on our school’s success in sports. I think our school can take the first steps to improve our sports program by integrating more coaches who are not school staff.
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Longhorn Round up | November 2014