REBEL ROAR
February, 2013 Volume LXXIX, Issue 5 Fairfax High School 3501 Rebel Run Fairfax, VA 22030
Photo by George Flynn Cover photo by Nikki Strickland
Contents News
5 6
Running 2016 News Briefs
Entertainment
7 8 9
Tran’sformations Small Venues Grow In Populatrity Fairfax Academy Student Participates in American Idol At the Movies
Commentary
10 11
Staff Attends Too Many Meetings Lengthening Lunchtimes For Your Flynn-formation
Middle Spread
12
School Spirit
Rebel Roar Staff 2012-2013
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Editor-in-Chief Nikki Strickland Jessica Miers Managing Editor Rachel Tran Copy Chief George Flynn News Editor Suha Khandker Entertainment Editor Emily Verbiest Commentary Editor Erinn Fecteau Features Editor Rachel Tran
Sports Editor Jackson Campbell Art Director George Flynn Business Manager Suha Khandker Aoife Maher-Ryan Staff Writers Hannah Flynn Erich Greenfield David Schrack Adelaide Powell Web Master Erinn Fecteau Adviser Carl Irvin
Features
17 18 19
Art Students Take Top Honors Students Choose Courses for Next Year Students Bond Over Faith Science Olympiad Prepares for Competition Season
Sports
20 22 23
Sophomore Fencer Heads to Junior Olymics FHS Inducts New Hall of Fame Members Winter Guard Program is Growing
Editorial Policy Rebel Roar is a published forum of student expression. Letters to the Editor and guest articles are encouraged. Only signed letters are considered for publication. The editors reserve the right to edit all material in the interest of clarity and space. Opinions expressed do not necessarily represent those of the staff or school administration. The staff writes unsigned editori-
als on a majority basis. The Rebel Roar accepts all advertisements deemed appropriate for a public forum meant for young adults and are subject to the discretion of the editors. Students are encouraged to take an active voice in the student publication. Questions, comments, and letters can be emailed to FHSRebelRoar@gmail. com.
Letter From the Editors Dear Rebels,
L
et us be the first to say that with another quarter done and out of the way, there are only four more months to go! Though we haven’t had much in the way of snow days, it is at least comforting to know that we will be enjoying our summer breaks on time compared to those students living up north. It is true that third quarter is known to be one of the worst quarters to get through given that there are little to no holidays, breaks, and early dismissals. So to get you through another seemingly boring day, we hope that reading this month’s issue of the Rebel Roar will give you something different think about. If politics are your forte, make sure to check out the possible candidates running for the presidency in 2016 on page 4. Do you feel that our lunches are too short? Check out the possible health implications that go with this concern on page 10. Tired of boring and routine schedules? This month’s focus of the middle spread is on how to spice up the Fairfax High School community and specifically school spirit. As Science Olympiad takes home some wins at their invitational competitions in Athens Pennsylvania and Solon Ohio, check out how else the team prepares for their regional and states competition in March and April on page 19. Lastly, as always for the sports junkies, make sure to check out page 20 for a unique story of sophomores involved with fencing and the back cover for an overview of spring sports tryouts. We hope that you enjoy the February issue of the Rebel Roar. We always encourage the use of this paper as YOUR forum so please send us any ideas, stories, questions and complaints to fhsrebelroar@gmail.com. Seniors, these last four months may seem to drag on especially with graduation right around the corner, but try to cherish these memories along the way as these are your final and last four months of your high school careers. Don’t let senioritis get you down too much! Let’s try to finish strong! Sincerely, Nikki Strickland Jessica Miers
Politicians Talk 2016 By Suha Khandker
I
t was just last month that President Barack Obama was inaugurated into office for the next four years. Although the hype of the 2012 elections is over, there has been much speculation over the candidates for the 2016 presidential elections. There have been many names floating around that hint at possible 2016 Democratic contenders. The names have included Sen. Elizabeth Warner of Massachusetts, Sen. Mark Warner and former governor Tim Kaine from Virginia. The two most well known figures who have been on the list of potential Democratic candidates are former secretary of state Hillary Clinton and vice president Joe Biden. In an interview in December on ABC, Clinton said she did not think she would run for office in 2016; however her answer was not a definitive “no”. In a more recent interview on 60 Minutes, Clinton stated that it was too early to predict what she will decide in 2016. Former SecreBiden has also made it unclear as to tary of State, Hillary Clinton whether or not he plans to run for ofPhoto courtesy of fice again in 2016. Biden has run for photobucket.com presidential candidacy in the 1988 and 2008 elections. According to Politico, a number of advisors have said that Biden “wants to run or will be well positioned to run” in 2016. While potential democratic candidates include Vice President older, more experienced politicians, the potential Joe Biden republican presidential candidates all seem to be Photo courtesy of fairly new prospects. These names photobucket.com include Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, Sen. Marco Rubio from Florida, New Jersey governor Chris Christie, and former governor of Florida Jeb Bush. In an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press”, Ryan, who was former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney’s running mate in the 2012 elections, stated that it was Wisconsin rep. “premature” to start thinking about the 2016 presidenPaul Ryan Photo courtesy of tial bid. He stated that he would “decide later” whether photobucket.com or not to make a bid for president in the 2016 elections.
Unlike Ryan, Rubio has not mentioned anything about the 2016 presidential elections. However, Rubio has emerged as a new, fresh-faced, and significant force within the Republican Party. Rubio is also thought of as a serious contender because his nomination may attract more Hispanic votes; something the Republican Party was lacking in the previous elections. Another potential republican candidate, Christie was asked to run for office in the Florida sen. Marco 2012 election but declined Rubio Photo courtesy of photothe offer. In an interview bucket.com on ABC’s “Good Morning America” Christie said that New Jersey gov. he planned to run for another four years for goverChris Christie nor of New Jersey. However, Christie stated if he Photo courtesy of were to run in the 2016 elections he would be more photobucket.com ready than he was in 2012 because he has now been governor for longer and “has hopefully gotten better.” While all of these candidates are new to the presidential race, some Republicans look to Jeb Bush as a leader. Bush is a senior member of the Republican Party that has voiced his opinions on issues from education to immigration reform. According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, Bush is also seen as a promising candidate because his previous work Former Florida on immigration may attract increased amounts of gov. Jeb Bush Photo courtesy of Hispanic votes. While many see Bush as a prospecphotobucket.com tive candidate, if he were to run for candidacy, the American public would have to decide whether or not to elect a third member of the same family within three decades. Although there will be continuing debate on who will run for office in the 2016 presidential election and whether or not it is too early discuss these elections; it is clear that republicans gearing up for a long election. It seems as though they are more determined than ever for a win.
FHS Follow up on Grade Leak By Jessica Miers
O
n the night of Dec. 18, parents, teachers, and students were shocked to read superintendent Jack Dale’s email regarding the anonymous leak of all 2012 students’ final grades on the online Fairfax County forum, fairfaxunderground.com. As a public forum, “Fairfaxunderground” is known amongst the Fairfax community as a local centralized, “Craigslist” providing news and information on a variety of topics such as restaurant reviews, school board discussions, and to the surprise of parents and students from Fairfax High School, semester grades. FHS parent Diane Kirzl said “I didn’t like it but I was glad no personal information was revealed.” Through a single link on a thread created by anonymous user, anyone using the site on Dec 18, could click to download a PDF file that contained FHS students’ first and last names, student identification numbers, and semester and final grades. Senior, Sarah Dowell said, “It was kind of scary knowing that someone could find out personal information about anyone and could possibly leak things much worse.”
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However, as months have passed since the incident, the attitude of most students towards the leak have become increasingly apathetic. “I was kind of disturbed at first, and my parents were very upset, but since the school seemed to take care it it I honestly haven't thought about it since,” said Senior, Casey Donnelly. Through the use of the Google application, Google Alert, principal David Goldfarb, said he was notified as soon as the link was posted under a “Fairfax High School” tag. To the relief of the administration, students, and parents, social security numbers and other sensitive information were not included in the leak. “I think the school did a good job of informing students and parents of the situation,” said Senior, Hannah Baer. “If social security or addresses had been released it would've been worse,” she said. Fairfax County police and FHS security denied any comments regarding suspects as the investigation is still in progress. For now, FHS security and administrators will continue to implement preventative measures in order to ensure a safe learning environment for students online and inside the building.
News
News Briefs
Meteor explodes over Chelyabinsk, Russia. Photo courtesy of photobucket.com
On Feb. 15, a large meteor exploded over the city of Chelyabinsk, Russia. An explosion of this magnitude has not occurred since 1908 when a space rock flew over Tunguska River in Russia and flattened 825 square miles of land. The sonic waves caused by the meteor left many broken windows and buildings in the city. The explosion injured over 1,000 Chelyabinsk residents and left debris all over the city.
South African runner Oscar Pistorius is facing murder charges. Photo courtesy of photobucket.com
Valentine’s day quickly turned horrific when Paralympic champion Oscar Pistorius shot his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp early on Thursday morning. According to the New York Times, Pistorius claimed that he had mistaken Steenkamp as an intruder and shot her “out of fear.” As the bail hearings took place, more of the defense’s claims began to unravel. According to USA Today, Pistorius faces charges of premeditated murder. Final hearings on whether or not
FHS students placed first, second and third in the local Optimist International Essay Contest. Junior Ben Brott won first place and will move on to the district level competitions. Senior Chris Jeong and junior Amanda Tran placed second and third, respectively. All of the winners will receive medals and certificates at the end of the month to honor their achievements.
Pistorius should be given bail will take place on Feb. 21.
Swim competed in State competition the past weekend. Photo courtesy of Lizzy Naka
This past weekend (Feb. 16 and 17) the FHS swim team competed in the Virginia state swim competitons at George Mason University. The swimmers included John Kim, Matty Ferguson, Natalie Dillinger, Marla Surette, Paul Robertson, Megan Green, Samson Miller, Matt Martinez, Troy Springer, Rebecca Byrd, and Laura Griffin.
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: S N O I T A M R O n F o S i ’ t N i TRA taff Ed S
Entertainment
T
By Rachel Tran
his month, Tran’sformations demonstrates appreciation for the school staff, although every day is an opportunity for students to show their gratitude for the time and effort staff members put into their jobs. The Rebel Roar decided to complete a makeover on Ms. Ball, who will unfortunately be leaving this month after teaching government at Fairfax High School for the past couple years.
3) Using a crease brush, apply a medium purple into the creases and towards the outer corners of the eyelids.
1) Apply and blend eyeshadow primer on to the eyelids using fingertips to ensure a longer-lasting, brighter color.
4) Line the top lashes with black eyeliner, starting thin and thickening it at the end.
5) Apply two coats of mascara to both the bottom and top eyelashes.
2) Apply a light purple eyeshadow all over
Photos by Rachel Tran
bone with white eyeshadow to brighten the eyes.
AFTER
BEFORE
the centers of the lid.
6) Highlight the inner corners of the eyes and the brow
Interested in getting a “Tran’sformations” makeover? Submit your name and grade to fhsrebelroar@gmail.com for a chance to be in the next issue!
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Small Venues Grow in Popularity
By Nikki Strickland
S
mall venues allow the audience a more intimate musical experience. Jammin’ Java in Vienna and the 930 Club in DC have become hot spots for students looking for smaller concerts and lesser known groups. The venues also feature comedians and other shows. Here are some upcoming shows at Jammin’ Java and the 930 Club.
930 Club
Jammin’ Java Bad Religion
Secondhand Serenade
Also featuring Against Me! and Polar Bear Club
Fall Out Boy Friday May 31, 2013 8:00PM
Also featuring Juliet Simms and The Baby Grand
Friday March 22, 2013
Monday March 18, 2013 7:30PM
8:00PM
Aaron Carter “The After Party Tour”
Demetri Martin Saturday March 23, 2013
Also featuring Alexis Babini, Nikki Flores, and Petrel
early show: 6:00PM late show: 10:00PM
Sunday March 10, 2013 7:30PM photos courtesy of 930.com and jamminjava.com
Fairfax Academy Student Participates in American Idol By Emily Verbiest
S
tanding before Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj, Keith Urban and Randy Jackson, Maddie Assel auditioned for the 2013 season of American Idol. The Fairfax Academy student from Centreville High School received a “yes” from all four judges. Maddie Assel was nominated by her grandmother to be the next American Idol. After Assel successfully auditioned in Baton Rouge she moved on to the Hollywood round,where she was eliminated. However, Assel’s passion for singing will definitely keep her performing. “I have been singing my entire life, it’s absolutely the one thing I am completely in love with. When I was little I used to sing on the counter at grocery stores, singing has always been my thing,” said Assel.
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Photo Courtesy of communinty.americanidol.com
“I have been singing my entire life, it’s absolutely the one thing I am completely in love with.”
Assel’s participation in American Idol caused some changes in her schedule,“I missed a lot of school because of the competition, but my teachers were very flexible and supportive.” Despite having a fanpage and jetting off to California, Assel remained humble. Assel explained that while participating in American Idol her life was the same just with “a little excitement added.” When asked how she felt about this season of American Idol Assel said, “it was entertaining and fun to be involved in something as special as American Idol, I loved everything about this experience.”
Entertainment
At The Movies By Adelaide Powell and Aoife Maher-Ryan
Warm Bodies
“W
arm Bodies” is a romantic zombie film starring Nicholas Hoult and Teresa Palmer. R (Hoult) is a zombie who cannot remember his full name and spends his time walking around an airport looking for people to eat. He meets Julie (Palmer) when he eats her boyfriend (Dave Franco) on a hunt with other zombies. R soon realizes that he likes Julie and wants to protect her. He takes her back to the airport and gets to know her better by bonding over music. The movie has quite a few nods to Shakespeare's “Romeo and Juliet” and is also unusual in having a zombie as the protagonist. R’s voice is mostly heard in voice-over because he has a limited speaking ability and his thoughts provide a comedic point of view on what is happening around him. Despite a talented young cast, the movie, which ended blandly, was very unsatisfying. R (Nicholas Hoult) and Julie (Teresa
Mama
J
Palmer) share an intense stare during a zombie hunt. Julie is soon led back to R’s residency, an airplane where she can be safe from other hungry zombies. Photo courtesy of www.epk.tv
essica Chastain stars in the new horror movie “Mama,” directed by the celebrated Spanish fantasy specialist Guillermo del Toro. The film is centered on two young sisters left in the woods and found five years later. The pair are then sent to live with their uncle and creepy happenings soon ensue. Black moths begin to appear throughout the house signaling the arrival of Mama, a disfigured ghoul. Mama becomes jealous when the girls are shown love from their new foster parents. The film lacks originality, bearing much resemblance to other horror movies such as “The Omen,” “Children of the Corn,” and “The Grudge.” The ending is displeasing, as there is much action building up to a finale which does not deliver. However, Chastain is impressive, surpassing the expectations one might have for a Victoria, one of the young girls living in a young actress taking on her first horror role. Isabelle Nélisse and Megan Charpencabin in the woods after her parents death, tier, who play Lily and Victoria, also do well in their roles as children coming back stares out into the snow. “Mama” opened number one at the box office earning $28.1 to civilization while still being followed by their strange past. million dollars on its opening weekend. Photo courtesy of www.photobucket.com
The Impossible
“T
he Impossible” is a disaster film based on the real life story of a family which survived the 2004 tsunami. The Bennets go to Thailand for Christmas vacation in a beautiful and relaxing resort, only to be separated and traumatized by the arrival of a tremendous tsunami. Maria (Naomi Watts) and her son Lucas (Tom Holland) work to find a hospital and get help for their injuries. Henry (Ewan McGregor), Maria’s husband, and the couple’s younger sons do their best to try to find Maria and Lucas. The movie is heart-wrenchingly emotional with particularly good performances by Watts and Holland, a novice to the silver screen. The bravery shown by those two and the rest of the family is thrilling to watch and the plot provides many twists and turns to keep viewer interest. The special effects are quite realistic and frightening as well.
Mother and son Maria and Lucas try to stay strong in their difficult circumstances in “The Impossible.” Watts was nominated for Best Actress for both the Golden Globes and the Oscars for her portrayal of Maria. Photo courtesy of www.photobucket.com
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Too Many Meetings
“D
By Jessica Miers
on’t come by to make up work after school today, tomorrow or next week. I’m booked with meetings before and after school,” said every teacher at Fairfax High School this year. Granted, faculty meetings are imperative for enhancing collaboration, problem solving, and overall maintaining a strong, efficient and cohesive staff. However, at FHS, with faculty meetings before and after school on a near daily basis, these “team-building” exercises have become what some teachers may believe as unnecessary overkill. After the replacement of our beloved R&R with the new “Intervention Time,” most Fairfax students would agree that making up work and meeting with teachers has become a never-ending hassle especially coupled with record amounts of staff meetings that greatly decrease the availability of the staff. “After school is the only time students can get one on one time with their teachers. When teachers have too many meetings it is a hassle for the students to have to wait because most of them have other commitments after school,” said sophomore Kristina Nguyen. “Also, students that don't have rides home may have to take the late bus home, yet, when teachers are at meetings, their help is at a shorter limit of time and they may not be able to finish a test or understand material due to the fact that they feel rushed,” she said. Not only does the excessive amounts of meetings negatively affect students in need of extra time and help, they also serve to frustrate and overwhelm many teachers with deadlines of their own. Though several of these
Photo by Jessica Miers
frustrated teachers have asked to keep their names private, they have willingly admitted to the fact that they already lack the time needed to grade papers, plan daily lessons and meet quarterly deadlines and the extra, timeconsuming staff meetings per week only make their jobs more stressful and thus they have less time to help their students. So perhaps it is time to propose a solution or at least An excessive amount of meetings has pulled teachers out of classa compromise to rooms where students need them. the administration. If email is too inconvenient, Nguyen said, "Instead of settling for many short meetings throughout the month, teachers should just have one long meeting covering all of the key facts to save time and to have more flexible hours within the month.”
Lengthening Lunchtimes
P
By Erinn Fecteau
iping hot pizza, French fries, a fruit, and some cookies are common staples of students' lunch trays at Fairfax High School. In the thirty minutes allotted for eating, many students also indulge in potato chips or sweets from the school snack line. Studies show that it takes the body approximately twenty minutes to begin feeling full, which means that in the thirty minute lunch periods, many students are unknowingly overeating. For many students waiting in the cafeteria line will take about five minutes. In the twenty five minutes leftover, students who still feel hungry and return to buy an extra bag of chips or stack of cookies could be consuming unnecessary calories. "Scientists have known for some time that a full stomach is only part of what causes someone to feel satisfied after a meal," reported Ann MacDonald, editor of the Harvard Mental Health Letter, to the Harvard Health blog. "The brain must also receive a series of signals from digestive hormones secreted by the gastrointestinal
tract." In other words, the brain needs time to interpret signals from a person's stomach to tell them that they feel satisfied. With this in mind, perhaps it's wise for FHS to consider lengthening lunch times. With the number of students attending the high school, it would be a challenge to squeeze in more time without shortening classes or ending school a little bit past 2:05. However, with the physical health of students at stake, maybe the latter is a necessary evil. Even more than just students' physical health, and longer lunch period would give a kids the much needed mental break that they wait all day for. Giving students a little bit of extra time for talking and laughing with friends, listening to music on their iPods, or just resting their eyes and brains after a lengthy lecture class, a longer lunch period has many potential benefits both mentally and physically. It’s time to forget about parent’s telling kids time and time again to stop playing with their food. Slowing down to enjoy every bite is an important step to being healthy,
"Scientists have known for some time that a full stomach is only part of what causes someone to feel satisfied after a meal"
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Commentary
For Your Flynn-formation By George Flynn
Hot
Not
Rain , Heat, and Snow
Whens the last time that you saw your mailman walking down the street and thought “dang, I wish I looked as fly as him?” Don’t lie, we all feel that way. Well good news, the US Postal Service has announced that they’ll be releasing a new clothing line later this year. Because, let’s face it, nothing says fashion god like an eagle and an envelope.
Harlem Shake
As unappealing as a video of a group of scandalously dressed youths gyrating across the screen might sound, there’s something about the Harlem Shake that just works. After spending a good half an hour trying to understand it, one finally realizes that there is nothing to understand, and that is what makes it so great.
Paperman
Surprise surprise, Disney Pixar has done it again. The seven minute animation of a man throwing paper airplanes to his love is beyond romantic. If you’re suffering from post valentine's day blues, this film will cheer you right up. If there aren’t a few tears in your eyes by the time the credits come on and it fades to black, we can’t be friends.
Sand in the Parking Lot - Just in case
anyone has forgotten that there hasn’t been a single snow day this year, the school has been kind enough to leave a friendly reminder in the form of wet sand covering the parking lot. I’m all for safety, but there must be a way to keep students safe that doesn’t turn the floor of my car into a sandbox.
Oscar Pistorius
This is kind of sad - tragic downfall of an Olympic hero and so on and so forth - but it’s just too bizarre. Seriously, South African with blades for legs makes it to the olympics. He doesn’t win, but he grabs a few endorsement deals and a supermodel girlfriend. Only to shoot her - on Valentines day. You can’t make it up. The only way this could get any weirder would be if he had used the blades instead of a gun.
Gender Crush Days of the Week -
If I see one more picture of Blake Lively or Channing Tatum with 100 smiley face emojis next to it, there will be some serious issues. By all means, continue spamming my timeline with song lyrics from fourth grade and spiteful subtweets. That’s what the internet was created for, right? But please, go watch a Nicholas Sparks movie or something and spare the rest of us.
All photos courtesy of photobucket.com
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School Spirit Is Rebel Spirit Declining? By Nikki Strickland
“W
e’ve got spirit, yes we do; we’ve got spirit, how Junior Emily Schauss said, “Either you have a ton of school about you?” If students at Fairfax High School spirit or you have none of it. I feel like the freshman class were to be asked this question, the majority would coming in doesn’t really know what school spirit is because we say no. School spirit at Fairfax has been declindon’t really show it. With the senior class ing in recent years and students claim they have this year, some of them have a lot of school had enough. School spirit is “severely lacking,” said spirit, and the rest just don’t. It seems like “I have faith that if senior Student Government Council member Jenny they’re just getting over the whole high people actually try and Brzezynski, “there is not enough participation in school experience. They think they’re too think of the school other school events.” cool to have spirit. Our pep rallies aren’t as To address this issue, one hundred students of good as they used to be, either, and we don’t than themselves then each grade were polled by the journalism staff durwant to be there.” they will actually have ing all lunches on Wednesday, Feb. 6th. The results Some students do not even agree that fun doing it,” were drastically in favor of a lack in school spirit. school spirit is important. Senior Shiv -Jenny Brzezynski Even students in the Leadership class stated that Shah said, “School spirit is not needed they did not think there was enough school spirit because you are going to graduate in four currently. Fifty percent of the polled students who years and this is not the most important identified themselves as Leadership students said that they part of your life. College spirit is more important than high thought school spirit was relatively low. Eighty-eight percent school spirit.” of those same students, however, claimed that they personally There are, though, many students who have faith in the Rebel usually participate in school events. community and believe that the spirit will come back. “I have The issue of school spirit has become apparent to nearly all faith that if people actually try and think of the school other students, though, not just those in Leadership. “I agree that the than themselves then they will actually have fun doing it,” said school definitely needs more spirit,” said freshman class presiBrzezynski. dent Tessa Beckert. “I think Leadership is doing a fine job but One way to increase school spirit is to increase the hype for some of the lack of spirit is that things need to be better adverall sports games. “Coming from every sports team out there, tised because I tell people to come to events or to participate in you play better in front of more people,” said senior basketball spirit days and they don’t even know what I am talking about.” player Taylor Intermill, “It’s called social facilitation; it’s a psy“My brothers said they used to advertise through pride time chological fact.” Many student athletes consider sports a major TV but now that we have IT I have yet to see one ITTV. I know part of school spirit, and encourage fellow classmates to come that it is shown but none of my teachers play it and everyone out and cheer for the Rebels. leaves so it gets forgotten,” added Beckert. There are many possible solutions to rebuilding student and Senior Jenna Capell voiced her opinions, “There is no point staff morale, and spirited Rebels are on a mission to bring back [in participating in school events]. You get no benefits from the excitement at Fairfax. Beckert said, “I think that Leaderparticipating and having school spirit.” ship needs to set an example of how to be spirited and show “Well there’s no detriment either,” said Brzezynski in people how much fun it is because then I think more people will response to these claims, “It’s for the good of the school and to join Leadership and join in on the fun of school spirit.” bring together the students.”
Photo courtesy of Fairfax High Rebels facebook
Student Survey
S
tudents were asked to state whether they strongly disagree, disagree, are unsure about, agree, or strongly agree with the statement “School spirit is relatively high.� Here are the results by grade.
Seniors 2% 13% 16% 25% 44%
strongly agree unsure agree strongly disagree disagree
Freshmen 6% 10% 11% 29% 44%
strongly agree disagree strongly disagree unsure agree
Juniors
4% 11% 20% 30% 35%
Sophomores
strongly agree unsure agree strongly disagree disagree
5% 13% 19% 26% 37%
strongly agree strongly disagree unsure disagree agree
Other Schools Chime In Chantilly High School
“F
or increasing school spirit we take surverys of the student body so they are able to choose the spirit days that we have. For leadership we have a whole agency dedicated to communications which gets the word out to the student body and the community and making posters and banners to hang around the school.”
-Amdanda Standley, Chantilly Class of ‘13
Robinson Secondary School
“W
e hve a Facebook page for the senior class, and have a lot of ‘color-out’ events; blue-outs, pink-outs, etcetera. Our principal will randomly hand out spirit wear in the halls to get us pumped too.”
-Daniel Katleman, Robinson Class of ‘13
Westfield High School
“T
o hype our school spirit we have pep rallies, various spirit days throughout the year, and we also have dances such as club intensity. At sporting events we plan what color or fakeout we are going to do during the beginning of the week and always make school announcements on the news in the morning.”
-Megan Hickey, Westfield Class of ‘14
Rebels Suggest How to Raise School Spirit To raise school spirit, we need dedicated teachers and dedicated administrators and principals that have the ability to make the students have a passion for learning and make them love coming to school. -Sidney Yi
We need more types or students and different kinds of groups involved in pep rallies! No one wants to watch the same group of students year after year. -Cameron Hair
Giving announcements about and credit to more than just the football and basketball teams. Other teams and clubs are out doing awesome things and representing fairfax well! -Ellen Poole
Also we have too many spirit weeks, but the issue is they are all the same! I want more creative spirit weeks. Other schools have things like Disney day and throwback Thursday. I want to have to put noticeable effort into the spirit week. If you want us to do it, make it fun. -Megan Cathro
Art Students Take Top Honors
F
or the past few weeks, students have been intrigued by the new desktop images that were created by senior Heather Pham. “The school computer desktop pictures will be changed every month to feature the Artist of the Month who participated in the Regional Scholastic Art Award Event,” said Anne Nolan, one of the librarians of Fairfax High School. There were three different types of awards given out at the ceremony said John Adams, an art teacher at FHS. According to Adams, The Gold Key Award winner competes on the national level and may be awarded a scholarship. It is the highest achievement at the regional level. The second type of award is the Silver Key, which some regional submissions were honored with. Lastly, some submissions were recognized with a Certificate of Merit, showing that the honoree has artistic potential and reaches a level of achievement. Other art students such as first level Studio Art and Design sophomore, Gauri Tickle, are learning how to use different drawing techniques like cross hatching. “We’re currently working on collages and it’s pretty fun. I can use previous techniques as I move forward with my art,” said Tickle.
Features By Aoife Maher-Ryan
Art III students must participate in the one-person art shows in the commons at FHS as a requirement for the class. This year, the show will take place on Mar. 19 from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. in the commons. Art II pupils have the option of whether or not to take part in the show. “The event is a great opportunity for art students to display their creativity,” said Mr. Adams.
Art students diligently work on different projects in Mr. Adam’s classroom. Photo By Aoife Maher-Ryan
Students Choose Courses For Next Year Students Share What Their Favorite Classes Are: “I started dance academy when I was a sophomore, I like it because I get to dance everyday.” Senior Peanut Saunders
“My favorite class is geometry because I am doing well in it.” Freshman Christine Faunce
“My favorite class is anatomy because we actually learn things that apply to us. We do dissections, and the open heart surgery we went to was cool.” Senior Miriam Lara Photos by Emily Verbiest
By Emily Verbiest
S
econd semester has already arrived and for freshmen, sophomores, and juniors it is time to choose classes for the 2013-2014 school year. Fairfax High School offers a wide variety of options, which can make course selection difficult. With open enrollment, students can freely choose courses like film studies, orchestra, marketing, psychology, and more. Fairfax High School also offers more than twenty AP classes and honors classes for almost every core subject. “Don’t take more advanced classes than you can handle, they’re not kidding when they warn you about the hours of homework that’s required and you can never skip class,” said senior Miriam Lara. Students taking three or more AP classes should consider including a study hall session into their schedule. Students also have the opportunity to enroll in an academy class, but this usually takes up two class periods because of the traveling time that is required if the academy is not at Fairfax. “I take the engineering academy, it’s very laid back and you only get two assignments per quarter. I advise people to take academy, I wish I started it earlier,” said senior Joon Choi.
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Fairfax Students Bond Over Faith By Hannah Flynn
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his school year, Fairfax High School as joined surrounding schools including Westfield and Chantilly, and have opened a chapter of Young Life. Young Life is a non-denominational Christian club that reaches out to adolescents through volunteers, staff, club meetings, and camps. “I love Young Life because it’s a big party. You meet all these people you wouldn’t typically meet and fall in love with them and the leaders of Young Life. All of the leaders care about us and love going to lunch or coffee to talk. It’s literally a family, and it’s the best day of the week. We play all of these weird games and laugh our heads off, and then settle down for a 10 minute devotion. There’s no pushing of religion upon people at all, we just want everyone to know that everyone’s loved.” said junior, Sami West. The Young Life club meets twice weekly, for different events. “We meet on Monday nights for club- which is kind of a big crazy party that ends with someone speaking and Wednesday mornings for campaigners- a bible study and breakfast before school. “ said the leader and coordinator of the Fairfax chapter, Nicole Kortendick. Young Life gives students the ability to bond through faith and socialize outside of school.
“Young Life is a great way to meet other people and grow in your faith. We play a lot of fun games and have really good talks about life.”- Molly Craig
“Young Life is great because of the time you get to spend with some really fun people!” - Kyle Wilkinson
Young Life memebers celebrate Advent with a candlelight vigil and fun.
Fairfax students enjoy a night at Chuck-e-Cheese. Photos courtesy of Molly Craig
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“Basically it’s three things - fun, friends, and God.” - Sami West
Features
Science Olympiad Prepares For Competition Season By George Flynn
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he Fairfax High School Science Olympiad team is preparing for what it looks like will be an exciting season. The Science Olympiad, or SO, team is a group of about 45 FHS students who compete in different science based events. The team competes with other schools not only from around the region, but also around the country in knowledge-based, lab-based, and engineering challenges. The team is coached by Advanced Placement Chemistry teacher, Catherine Williams, and former Solon Ohio team captain, Jake Huang along with the Senior captains Jessica Miers and Kirsten Williams. “The decade of experiences in SO that changed my life Rishab Mokkapati prepares his Robot Arm device for and I want to contribute my small part to foster the same competition in Athens PA. passion for science and discovery, the same camaraderie and teamwork skills, and the same drive to succeed that got me to where I am today. And if nothing else, SO is as fun and as exciting as the Super Bowl, or the World Cup, or the Olympics, except that the students are the players, not just the spectators. For anyone who has never participated in or witnessed SO before, I know this is a foreign concept, but it really is a blast. I wouldn’t compete for six years, then become an assistant director in Maryland for four years, and then come coach at Fairfax if I didn’t have fun doing it all 11 years that I have participated,” said Huang. The SO season officially begins on March 2 with regionals competition at Kilmer Middle School, but the FHS team has not wasted any time. The coaches have been holding practices since the beginning of the school year. Additionally, the team has attended several invitational tournaments in the past few months. Although these competitions do not count towards the regular season, they give the team a chance to prepare and hone in their skills. One of these tournaments was held on Feb 2 at Solon High School in Solon, OH. “This was the first year we were invited to Solon,” said Senior and co-captain Kirsten Williams. “Solon is the number one ranked nationals team and they are known for being absolutely amazing at SO, so it was a huge deal that we got invited.” Fairfax made their presence known at Solon, placing in the top 15 in a field of more than 60 teams. The team also had two groups place in the top 20 at a national invitational on Jan 19 in Athens, PA. Although these scores don’t effect official regular season scores, they do help to establish the team as major force in the SO world going into regionals. As important as ranks and medals are, team members say that winning is not the main reason they enjoy SO. “I like Science Olympiad because I met so many people I didnt know existed at the school and we all come together with similar Seniors Takondwa Kakusa and Chris Roberts compete in the Boomilever event in interests and work towards a common goal,” Athens PA Photos by Jessica Miers said sophomore Divya Rengarajan. Junior Cassie Xia agreed with Rengarajan, saying, “Science Olympiad is a great place that congregates different people of similar interest. It provides more than just medals, it also provides us opportunity to meet new people, cooperate, and know what it’s like to be in the SO family. However, the team will have to focus on the medals if they want to get to advance. Huang said, “To put it in more understandable terms--it is like taking a football team with a starting line-up comprised mostly of freshman that are good but inexperienced, and taking that team to the semifinals of the post-season, and hopefully beyond. That is where we are at right now.”
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Sophomore Fencer Heads to Junior Olympics
By Adelaide Powell
Sophomore Alexandra Marnot is preparing to friendly, we even have Friday fight nights with pizza,” said compete at the Junior Olympic Fencing Championship in Marnot. Baltimore this month. Marnot is a talented athlete who “I got into fencing because I was looking for a was selected along with a few othsport that I liked, but was ers from Fairfax’s Fencing Sports more individual and also Academy to participate. where I could get there on “I’m going to the Junior my own,” added Marnot who Olympics as part of a team for has previously participated in the women’s epee,” said Marnot. team sports like FPYC Volley“I feel a little nervous, since it’s ball. such a big event, but I know it’s Sophomore Emily Kelgoing to be really fun and I’m ley said it was “really cool” very happy about being selected. that her friend is going to the Also, I think it’s a great opporJunior Olympics. “I’m so extunity for me to learn from more cited for her and I know she’s advanced fencers,” she said. put a lot of effort into this,” Fencing for the women’s added Kelley. epee means that the target area Marnot’s family is also is the entire body and the guard proud of her accomplishments. of the sword’s hilt is bigger and Marnot (left) shows her moves against a teammate at “I’m just so impressed by the the Fencing Sports Academy. covers most of the hand. When hard work she has done, she’s both fencers hit each other at the Photo courtesy of Alexandra Marnot made a lot of progress and I same time, the point is counted as know that she will do great,” “double-touch” which gives both fencers a point. Marnot’s mother Valerie Marnot said. The event will take place at the Baltimore ConTo prepare, Alexandra Marnot is doing intensive fencing vention Center, and Marnot will be competing alongside practice with her team. She is focusing on building up her teammates Angela Chen and Veronica Norton. Marnot more quadriceps muscle and improving agility and speed practices at the World Gym in Fairfax with the rest of her so that she will be ready for competition. She also particiFencing Sports Academy team members. pated in the fencing tournament Capitol Clash on Feb. 2 to get ready for the Junior Olympic Fencing Championship. Marnot said one of her favorite things about her fencing club is how well they get along. “My club is really
Super Bowl By The Numbers 0 Interceptions thown by Joe Flacco in the 2013 playoffs 1 Loss by San Francisco in Super Bowls. They are 5-1 all-time. 2 Super Bowls won by the Baltimore Ravens franchise. 34 Minutes that the blackout during the 3rd quarter lasted. 65 Total points scored during Super Bowl XLVII. 108 Yards that Jacoby Jones returned the opening kickoff of the second half. 228 Games played by Ray Lewis during his career. $4 million Average cost of a 30 second commercial during the game. 108 million Total viewers
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Fairfax Inducts New Hall of Fame Members
By Hannah Flynn
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n Jan. 25, 2013 Fairfax High School inducted - once in my freshman year and once in my senior year. We five new members to the Athletic Hall of Fame. didn't take home the championship trophy either time and I Richard Claypool, Dana Henry, Steve Alvis, Mike think our biggest disappointment was that we weren't able Hickson, and John Eastman, FHS alumni and outstanding to do that for our coaches.” former FHS coaches were honored by past teammates, past Dr. Steve Alvis was honored for his exceptional coaches, friends and family. Each athlete was recognized at achievements in basketball, track & field, and football. the boys basketball game, as well as at a private dinner. Alvis a member of the Class of 1967 was honored individu Richard (Dick) Claypool is the winningest football ally, but also with his friend and former classmate Mike coach in FHS history. Hickson. Hickson was a startClaypool coached from ing member of the Northern 1962-1978 for the Region Championship team. Rebels and revived Alvis and Hickson played basthe team for his reign ketball and football together as coach. Although for the duration of their high Claypool was never a school careers. Both honorstudent, his time at ees spoke of fond memories Fairfax was rememplaying together and of their bered at dinner, espehappiness to be back at FHS. cially by his son, and The final inductee to the former player, Greg Athletic Hall of Fame was Claypool. John Eastman. As an out Dana Henry standing wrestler throughout was an outstanding, his time at FHS, Eastman six sport participant was state champion twice, player from 1981and held a 41-0 record for his 1985. Henry lettered senior year in 1998. Mitch an amazing 13 times, Sutterfield, former Fairfax thriving in field hockey, teacher and coach introduced Greg Claypool (a Fairfax Alumni track & field and and remembered the joys of who played for his father), accepting softball. Field hockey was especially imcoaching Eastman in wrestling. for his father, Coach Dick Claypool, portant for Henry, being the only player Steve Alvis, John Eastman, and Mike A plaque displaying each honorin FHS history to play in two Northern Hickson, receive plaques at the boys ee’s achievements will be hung on the “Wall Region Championships. “I played sevof Fame” in the field house, to ensure that basketball game. eral different sports in high school, but Photo courtsey of Peggy Aderton future athletes and coaches remember the field hockey was my favorite and some history of those before them. of my favorite memories were with my hockey teammates. I was fortunate to take two trips to the state finals for hockey
Olympic Wrestling Dropped from Games
By Suha Khandker
On Feb. 12 the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced its decision to consider dropping wrestling from its events starting the 2020 Olympics. The vote was taken among 15 member executive board. Wrestling now joins a list of events that are competing to be included in the 2020 summer Olympics. The committee was voting on which of the current 26 sports it could cut in order to add another event later on in the year. The sports that are fighting for a spot in the Olympics include baseball, softball, karate, squash, roller sports, sport climbing, wakeboarding and wushu. According to ESPN, the Olympic committee decided on which sport to cut depending on a number of criteria. These included TV ratings, ticket sales, and global participation and popularity. Wrestling ranked low on popularity at the London Games and with the global TV audience. In an interview with ESPN, IOC spokesman Mark Adams said “in the view of the executive board, this was the best program for the Olympic Games in 2020. It’s not a case of what’s wrong with wrestling; it is what’s right with the 25 core sports.” A meeting will be held in May, so that representatives from each sport can present their case as to why their sport should be included in the 2020 summer Olympics. The executive board will recommend one sport. The final decision as to which sport will be included will be decided in September along with which city will be holding the 2020 summer Olympics. In response to the recommendation to drop wrestling from the summer Olympic events, Raphael Martinetti resigned from his position as president of Wrestling’s International Federation. Wrestling has been an Olympic sport since ancient times only being absent from the 1900 Olympics in Paris. Many countries have responded with surprise and have vowed to reverse the proposal. The decision that comes in September will have a immense impact on not only on national sports, but on high school and college level sports as well.
Sports
Fairfax Winter Guard Program Is Growing By Jackson Campbell
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inter Guard is a sport at Fairfax that may not first come to mind when thinking of traditional winter sports like basketball and wrestling, but nonetheless will be one of the teams to watch over the next few years as the program grows. During the fall, a few of the Winter Guard members competed with the Color Guard, which performs at Fairfax football games and competitions with the Marching Band. Combining dance, and choreography of flags, rifles, and sabres; the guard adds a visual element that enhances the band’s show. In the winter, the guard competes alone, going up against other schools in the Mid-Atlantic region, where they are judged based on visual effect and execution of their drill and show overall. “We have 18 members this year, compared with only 8 last year,” said Coach Niki Tindall, a former captain of the Winter Guard when she was at Fairfax. “Having more members crowds the floor, but there is so much Fairfax Winter Guard competes at Broad Run High School more work we can give them, and the visual effect is so Photo Courtesy of Kelly Campbell much better when you have more people to work with.” The team competes in the Atlantic Indoor Association (AIA). Fairfax is in the class Scholastic Regional A1, and try to keep things fun and interesting,” Kelley said classes are based off of size, experience, and performance at competitions. The biggest challenge for the team so far has been getting They finished in second out of four guards at their first enough practice time to work on their show, titled American competition at Atlee High School in Mechanicsville, VA. Honey, a song by country artist Lady Antebellum. Their next competition was at Broad Run High School in “We only practice twice a week,” Tindall said. It definitely Ashburn, where Fairfax took sixth out of 12 guards. makes it hard when we don’t have the gym space to work on
our drill. It takes a lot of time to help them learn the show, and before winter sports ended the only time we could usually get was from 8 to 10 p.m, and a lot of the parents don’t necessarily want their kids practicing until 10 at night.” As far as her expectations for the AIA Championships, Tindall said that she would like to see the guard make finals. Based on the number of guards that enter, a certain number from the first round, make it on to the finals. “It’s all about the telling a story, so I want it to be clean from the judges standpoint. It would be awesome to see them make finals because it’s been so long.” Winter Guard may not be a well-known sport, but it has drawn in many Fairfax students. “My friends told me that I’d be really good at it,” Nguon said. “I didn’t believe them at first because I have no hand-eye coordination, but I took a chance.” Fair- “You don’t need prior experience to join,” Tindall said. “The music, colors, dance, and weapons all help attract people to the sport, and it’s a tight community. At our competitions, we see our friends and people we competed with coaching their own guards now, and it’s cool to see everyone still involved.”
“Our captains this are sophomores Zena Nguon and Emily Kelley,” Tindall said. “Zena is good with organization, whereas Emily is very good with helping out others learning the work.” “I help guide people so they reach their full potential and
Spring Sports Begin By Jessica Miers
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here’s no better way to get outside, meet new people and exercise than spring sports. On Feb 18, tryouts for tennis, lacrosse, baseball, soccer, softball and track kicked off the spring season as students braved the cold and worked through the various conditioning drills and practices that all come with playing on a sports team. For some students, this may be their first year trying out while for other, it maybe their fourth.
“It [trying out for sports] challenges my hand eye coordination and gives me the chance to try new things as a freshman,” said freshman Cathy Chang. No matter if new or returning, spring sports offer the opportunity to gain leadership experience, improve certain athletic skills and fitness and overall, work with a team that has similar passions and a drive towards a common goal. Freshman Megha Batra said, “It’s a fun and exciting way to meet new people.”