December 2018 ECHO Magazine

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Rolla High School - 900 Bulldog Run Rolla, Missouri 65401Volume 70 - December 20, 2018

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A look into the rich history of Rolla High School

The dangers of dropping out of High School

Astrology at odds with Astronomy, how horoscopes and predictions are made

In this issue...

Mental health in school..................................................................4 RHS Athletic Facilities...................................................................8 Sexual education in ......................................................................12 Astrology.......................................................................................16 Celebrating Christmas..................................................................18

Letter from the Editor

While December is the best month because of Christmas and time off school, it is also the time of Hallmark movies. I’m fairly certain the main source of seasonal depression is not the weather, it is these classic stories and second rate actors hired only because of their well known relatives. No matter how much I hate the writing, acting, and blatant product placement, the formula for these movies must work because so many people watch them.

A woman lost her roots and moved to the Big City to pursue her dreams, but does not realize her real dreams are to be with her High School Sweetheart back home in Miracle, or Wish, or Hope, or basically any Christmas word that could be made into a town name. Also her name is Noel, Angel, Christy, or any Christmas word that could be a name. The high school sweetheart she loves is also conveniently named Chris every time. They could only be more obvious if his name was Santa or Jesus.

Anyway, eventually she goes back to her sweetheart, obviously not without a quick five minute falling out before they reconvene for the finale. I understand this ‘if it is broke, don’t fix it’ mentality these producers have, but also I hate it and the entire concept is ridiculous, who wants to marry their biggest regret, the country boy they dated in high school?

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2018 -2019 Rolla High ECHO Magazine Staff Adviser: Mary Gillis Editor In Chief: Maia Bond Managing Editor: Kayla Copeland Copy Editor: Jace Swearingen Arts and Entertainment: Nalani Massaro Webmaster: Blaize Klossner Photography: Bailey Allison News: Taylor Miller Opinion: Courtney Kelley Sports: Brandon Kirchner Feature: Lorren Black Staff Writers: Cameron Cummins, Julia Leventis, Lauren Ulrich, Rosalia Bolyard, Genevieve Huber, Emma Starns, Kate Brand ECHO is an open forum for student expression. All letters to the editor must include the writer’s name, signature and class or position. Anonymous letters will not be published.

ECHO reserves the right to reject any letters. Letters should be sent to ECHO, Rolla High School, 900 Bulldog Run, Rolla, MO 65401.

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ECHO is a member of Missouri Scholastic Press Association, Journalism Education Association, and Quill & Scroll Honor Society

Rolla High School welcomes

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The twenty-first century has become known as the age of technology. In just the past twenty years, people have seen the growth and innovation of devices such as laptops and cell phones, even seeing them be integrated into schools. Much of classwork done in schools today is done, in the case of Rolla High School, on Chromebooks, greatly reducing the need for paper and pencil.

But as of 2018, RHS has taken the next step in technology, and is expanding the option of online classes.

“I think there are good and bad things about it [online classes].

On one hand, it’s really good that the school is offering alternative forms of education, because it might help some people learn more efficiently. On the other hand, I guess it could be used as a tool to procrastinate more or not show up to school at all. When everything’s online, there’s no teacher in front of you to urge you to actually do your work and get it in on time,” senior Kristina Happel said.

The program has been set up with the Missouri Course Action Program (MOCAP), and will allow a student to take any course offered by Rolla High School online. All courses and material are available every day of the week, at all hours, so students are always able to access their classes. As stated on MOCAP’s official website, their mission is to offer Missouri students equal access to a wide range of high quality courses and online learning that is neither time nor place dependent. Courtney Duncan, MOCAP’s administrative assistant, believes the addition of online courses will be valuable to RHS. “Interest in online education is exploding, which shows the need for flexibility that our lives often demand. We offer tools that are effective, flexible and accessible. Students can take online courses from their own homes, which can resolve scheduling conflicts that a lot of students may have. I think it’s interesting to see how far education has come in such a short time, and I believe it will really benefit Rolla High be able to offer these courses,” Duncan said.

Mental Health in High School: Shining a light on a silent struggle b y

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any people have varying opinions on mental health.

Some say that it is extremely important, others, more traditional folks in a sense, feel that it is secondary to a person’s outward performance. In all reality, everyone’s mental health, especially in children and adolescents, is important.

In an article published by the National Education Association (NEA), there have been numerous neurophysiological studies that show that environmental stressors -such as poverty, family issues, and violence- play a big part in the mental health of individuals, especially those who experience these stressors early on in their lives. Within the United States alone, millions of youth are affected by mental illnesses. Statistics from the NEA show that one in five adolescents suffer from some sort of mental illness or disorder. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, suicide is the third leading cause of death for youth ages 15-24.

Stigma still remains a barrier with coming close to alleviating this problem. Many people put shame and misunderstanding in getting help in the place where love, support and acceptance should be.

Rolla High School counselors Monica Lyle and Liz Pogue feel that stigma is a big factor in this, and that in breaking the stigma of mental health being insignificant, this problem can somewhat be alleviated. These counselors had the opportunity to attend a three day conference with counselors from all over the state, and they see that these mental health issues are a big problem.

“We are seeing mental health issues across the board, across the state, and nationally. They are on the rise, and they are becoming an issue,” Lyle said.

There are a lot of reasons why these issues may be on the rise.

Pogue mentioned anxiety, depression, suicide ideation, and self harm are some common signs that counselors are seeing.

“We have talked about that, but the one I hear us coming to over and over is coping skills. Each person has their own set of coping skills, and this [high school] is a time where each kid should start refining their ‘toolkit’ of coping skills. Some kids are doing that, and some are not. And some of us don’t always have positive coping skills,’ Pogue said Lyle also had some input on the matter of coping skills.

“I think some of it is kids do not necessarily know how to verbalize, or communicate, what they need. And they are dealing with a large amount of stress and anxiety, both in their school life and

their home life. It gets to the point where it builds and builds and builds, and they do not know how to prioritize that. They can chunk it into smaller pieces in their lives. When it gets to that point where it culminates to a brink and it has to go somewhere, they may not necessarily know how to say ‘no’, or ‘I need help,’” Lyle said.

Poor sleep hygiene, or not practicing good sleep habits, seems to be a common stressor that Lyle and Pogue commonly see within their practices, as well as the other Rolla High School counselors and administrators.

“They are staying up late, they do not have their phones silenced at night, so they are waking to notifications and messages. It is also recommended that an individual does not drink caffeine after two pm, because it can disrupt the sleep cycle. And, it is also recommended that you do not sleep more than 20-30 minutes if taking a nap,” both Lyle and Pogue mentioned.

“I see a ton of kids who have terrible sleep hygiene. I think that exacerbates any mood issues students have. So if they are feeling stressed or anxiety ridden, or depressed and you do not sleep well, or if they are using caffeine, I think it can make the mood issues a lot worse,” Pogue said.

The recommended amount of sleep for adolescents is around eight to ten hours per night, according to Nationwide Children’s Hospital.

The stats show that mental health is quickly becoming a rising epidemic, and must be handled with both care and caution.

“I think that in many of the students I have spoken with and come across, and I think Mrs. Pogue can attest to this as well, that there is a very large stigma or stereotype out there that ‘I don’t need to go talk to a counselor,’ or, ‘I don’t need to go lay on a couch and talk to a shrink.’ I always encourage the students that I talk to, that it is good to talk to someone. You can have a great support system with your friends, or family, but I think that it is important to be able to have access to someone who, is not biased in any way. I think it is good to talk about the good and bad things in your life. I think the more you practice talking about these things, not only will you become more comfortable speaking about these issues, but it allows you to get those things out before it builds up into a major issue,” Lyle said.

Both of these counselors stressed that they are always here for their students, as are other counselors. They offer their support to those who are seeking it, and want the student body to know that their office is a safe place for those seeking one.

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PROGRESS in our school district

10th st. from Holloway 1926

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Rolla Public School Classroom b y

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With the repetition of walking the same hallways, to get to the same classes, it’s easy to forget one’s surroundings and feel as though they are simply “going through the motions,” instead of taking a step back to let it all sink in. What may surprise a few is the history of the school district. According to websites and Superintendent Dr. Aaron Zalis, the school district’s history can be traced back to 1864, starting with the first public elementary school, and 1871 with the first high school located in the old Rolla Building on the Missouri School of Mines campus.

“The district used to be on the now-Missouri University of Science and Technology campus. So when you go to Centennial Hall, there’s a building there where the upstairs was for the boys, and the downstairs for the girls, and it was called a prep school,” Dr. Zalis said.

According to a document Dr. Zalis read, the prep school was later discontinued by the state in 1893 for unknown reason, and in 1895, the Rolla Board of Education set aside two rooms of Central Hall for organizing a two-year high school. As years went by, the high school was transferred to different areas in Rolla, each time expanding in size and number of students. Dr. Zalis believes expansion of the school district nowadays can be found in communicating what does and does not work for the community.

“We have to make sure we communicate well with everyone in the community because it’s not me getting my way, it’s what the community supports, and our job is to make recommendations based upon information that we have. The history of the district is also important, because we have a history of being relatively conservative with our budget and we don’t wildly fluctuate after fads as much as we try to stay on course. So I think listening to the community, starting with the people inside the district -teachers and students- and then taking it out to the community and asking, “What do you think about these ideas?” The district evolves based upon that feedback. If it’s not supported by everybody, it doesn’t

Rolla High School Library really matter what I think,” Dr. Zalis said.

When asked more specifically about the conservatism around the school budget, Dr. Zalis elaborated.

“People don’t like to have their taxes raised, and that’s how schools are paid for. It’s kind of like taking a mortgage on a house.

When you’re building a school district, you’re asking voters of the community to let your district borrow money to build on. It’s kind of like fixing up a house. If you want to finish your basement for example, you have to borrow money and the taxpayers will have to pay that back. Right now, we just finished a ten year facility study, and one of the things left on that list for the district is an auditorium for the high school. We’ve got drawings and planning already in place, but that doesn’t mean that’s exactly what it’ll look like.

We spent the whole year going to every building with a committee made up of people from the community, who heard our idea and came up with some basic recommendations on how we might improve the school district. One of the things we left on the last plan is the auditorium. We weren’t able to implement the auditorium, because when we went out and talked to people, they liked the idea, but they just didn’t want to raise their taxes that much.

So we thought we’ll take that off, regroup, and come at it another time,” Dr. Zalis said.

In terms of the possible budget dispute discussed among students and members of the community, a lack of understanding may be why some sides believe one activity receives more income than the other.

“Anytime we ask in a survey, the people of the arts are going to say they don’t get enough, the people of the athletics are going to say the same, and the people that are neither are going to say you spend too much on the athletics. So part of it will be our job to inform people on how that works, but we do try to give everybody everything they need. There isn’t a favorite program for me, because everybody in this district has something they’re interested in that’s very important to that person. I want everybody to have what they need to find that passion and that purpose. I think that’s what school is supposed to be about,” Dr. Zalis said.

In-Depth Look at Rolla High School’s Athletic Facilities b y

Here at Rolla High there are plenty of opportunities for the student body to compete in athletic activities. From football, soccer, basketball, to other teams such as the golf and tennis there are a plethora of opportunities to show physical grit.

One of the most important parts of operating a high school athletic team is having a place to compete at. Fortunately, Rolla offers plenty of facilities to accommodate the many sports teams.

Mark Caballero has been the Athletic Director at Rolla for the past two years.

“Currently, for the most part, all of our facilities are close to campus or on campus. So that obviously has its advantages. Back at Jefferson City where I was the athletic director, we didn’t have that. Most of the facilities were off campus by at least a mile if not 10 miles away. This really helps out when planning tournaments and events,” Caballero stated.

Tax payers fund the school district, that includes the athletic facilities as well. That’s why the athletic department has to be very conscious about the community’s wants and needs when it comes to the school district.

“We have to really know our communities demand and see what they want to see, of course we also have to know what the people of RHS want. Locker rooms, weight rooms, storage, new air conditioning, those types of things. There is a lot to it, you don’t just say “Hey I want this, this and that.” You got to look at the long range plan, and how it fits into the scheme of things, as far as our overall picture, it can’t just be for all sports, it has to be best for all kids in our community,” Caballero explained.

Having a plan is one of the most important parts of operating a wide variety of sports. That’s why as the Athletic Director Caballero has to be concise with what his goals are for his first years at Rolla.

“There are two or three things I’d like to build off, the first being

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Senior Spotlight

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student-athlete development, so that means developing academics as well as athletics. Developing the Rolla Athletic Booster Club more will go a long way into acquiring funding to be able to have projects that the school just can’t afford. Of course understanding what each sports team wants and needs are is also critical. That’s why I meet with the coaches once a month, I’m always out there at the practices talking to them and watching the practice in their fields,” Caballero said.

Of course when funding is tight sometimes the athletic department has to take control of tasks themselves. Many of the issues or projects the athletic department and Caballero tackles is done internally.

“With the training room getting done, was a big part of our plan for the first few years. We didn’t have to have a bond issue for that, we didn’t really have to ask for a ton of money. We just had a bunch of people roll up their sleeves and get after it, like Coach Franks and a couple of other people helped out. We just cleaned the room out and painted it right before break and let it air out when no one was around. The hospital helped us out donating some supplies and the booster club was great purchasing some of the treatment tables and stuff in there,” Caballero said.

There are plenty of small projects that the athletic department hopes to get done in the next few years. Mr. Caballero has a couple that come to mind that he hopes to accomplish during his time as Athletic Director.

“Better air conditioning in the locker rooms, and just better training facilities in general are the first two that come to mind.

Storage areas for the equipment for each sport is also a key one.

Sound systems in the gym, sound systems at the baseball and softball fields. Just overall making sure the facilities are the best they can be and maximize the use of what we already have and add onto that is critical,” Caballero said.

Facility Addition Process

Propostion is introduced Passed by school board Passed by tax payers Construction bids are recieved

Construction begins

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The Detrimental Effects of Dropping Out b y

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Staff Writers The importance of education, which seems to be an inherent priority of society, is

advocated everywhere. However, the level of pressure that is placed on students is a

deal breaker to some when combined with other sources of tension, such as a strenuous personal life. Many times, the response to these overwhelming demands is the obvious option of eliminating the stressors of school by dropping out.

Studies have shown socioeconomic status is a leading factor in high school dropouts.

Those with unstable financial backgrounds are nearly twice as likely to dropout, according to Child Trends. Sarah Kaelin, a counselor at Rolla High School, spoke on a subject much of her career is dedicated to preventing.

“Most of the time, people aren’t dropping out because the subjects are too hard, it is

normally life getting in the way,” Kaelin said.

According to Rolla Public Schools’ Annual Report Card, the dropout rate has steadily

increased between the years of 2012 and 2016, with a steep decrease during the 2017

school year. On a national level, dropout rates are fortunately on the decline. According

to the National Center for Education Statistics, racial background also plays a part in the decision to dropout. In recent years, more effort has been put forth to educate and pre-

vent the detrimental and lifelong effects of quitting school. But for those who continue to drop out, it is a life-altering decision that should not be taken lightly.

The current regulations for Rolla Public Schools allows students of age 17 and older to

dropout of school without parental consent.

“For students [under 17] wanting to drop out, they have to come in with a parent and

meet with the counselors in the counseling office. They will meet with a counselor and

a principal, and then there is official paperwork that has to be filled out. The parent can then choose to seek education elsewhere for their kids,” Kaelin said.

Kaelin acknowledged that among the many options for potential and official dropouts,

one does not exist that accomodates students who fail to seek education elsewhere.

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“Students who stop coming to school, and their parents have not declared that

they are going to be homeschooling get reported to the juvenile office, and then the juvenile office gets involved,” Kaelin said.

Many programs have been put in place to motivate prospective dropouts to grad-

uate on time. One of these programs is the Missouri Options Program. Accord-

ing to their website, the Options Program allows public school enrolled students

who are at risk of dropping out or are not graduating with their cohort group the opportunity to earn a standard high school diploma. Programs like this offer opportunities and second chances to those at risk of failing to graduate.

Additionally, there are smaller, more localized programs many of us tend not to

notice that also factor into making students feel more attached to school.

“Advisory was one of the steps trying to help people feel more connected to

school. They’ve got the same group of people and teacher they are with for several years. We also have credit recovery for kids that exceed the attendance limit that lose credits,” Kaelin said.

An additional group that uses reward systems to push students to attend school

is the Positive Behavior Support committee, which awards students for attending school and earning good grades.

“We have the PBS committee that gives out a lot of attendance rewards trying to

incentivise kids coming to school, and right down to our curriculum trying to en-

courage kids to pick classes that apply to what they want to do in life,” Kaelin said.

Kaelin works towards targeting students’ individual interests, and hopes to aid

them in finding the classes that appeal to them. She hopes to help them find motivation to attend class regularly.

“I really want all students to find a class or two here that is relevant to what they

want to do after high school. I would love for every student to have a good con-

nection with at least one adult in this building that they know cares about them.

Sometimes I think we get so busy trying to get things done that we forget that teachers do care about us,” Kaelin said.

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sex education it’s a touchy subject

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63% of students did not feel they were taught the necessary sex education ECHO POLL OF 110 STUDENTS

“If they’re going to be sexually active, then let’s teach them 12

What do you remember being covered in your health classes?

STDs Methods of Contraception Anatomy of Genitalia Diversity in sexual and gender identity Practicing Abstinence Consent/Sexual Assault Healthy Relationships I Haven’t taken my high school health class All of the Above None of the Above Forty-six percent of students nationwide will engage in sexual intercorse before the end of high school, and 95 percent of students will one day be parents, according to the Advocates for Youth, a nonprofit organization that is dedicated to helping young people make informed decisions. These facts are unavoidable, and yet proper sexual education is often times disregarded throughout the course of a student’s education. Social stigmas make sexual and reproductive subjects an uncomfortable discussion to be had both in the home and in educational environments, and yet its importance in a student’s life is undeniable. Sexual education provides students with vital information that empowers them to make well informed, safe decisions.

“We don’t need to be ashamed of [sex] and we don’t need to have this stigma with it, but at the same time I want [students] to take care of themselves and to be educated.

If your generation is old enough to have sex, you’re old enough to know the consequences,” Childhood Development teacher Jamie Cantrell said.

Knowing the consequences of sexual activity begins with proper education.

The history of sex education in the United States has been largely contentious, and current policies and programs continue to be debated. Starting after the AIDs pandemic of the 1970s, the United States adopted abstinence only until marriage (AOUM) as its singular form of sexual education. Since then, medical evidence has largely disproved this method of education, and efforts have been made to encour-

33(30.6%) 33(30.6%) 15(13.9%)

66(61.1%)

77 (71.3%) 33 (30.6%) 40 (37%) 17(15.7%) 5(4.6%) 5(4.6%)

age more comprehensive sex education.

However, implementation of proper sex ed remains inconsistent and varies from state to state, district to district. Missouri is one of 26 states that does not require sexual education to be taught in schools. Although it does provide guidelines for schools that do teach sex ed, there remains a disconnect in education that can be found in Rolla’s very own district.

“We try to keep it as abstinence [only], but we teach that there are other forms.

The policy is that we really direct people to their parents, because we want people to learn that stuff from their parents. Teachers, just like everyone else, they have their opinion, but we will teach that abstinence is the only 100 percent sure way to prevent birth. I do know that in Child Development, students discuss other forms in that realm,” Principal Dr. Jim Pritchett said.

Rolla’s sex education curriculum is largely determined by the individual health teachers. Students learn curriculum through traditional health classes, and a small percentage will take the Childhood Development class come high school.

Students’ initial encounter with sexual education traditionally started in the fifth and sixth grade, when students would be separated by gender to watch videos covering puberty. “[The video] talked about the choices, values decisions, tampons, pads, what the period was, what to expect. Then the boys would watch their video of the male, understanding erections and what all is going on in their body,” Health teacher Chris

Hill said.

However, after the freshman moved to the high school two years ago, the middle school lost its health classes, where these videos used to be shown, so students are not being taught about puberty. According to a middle school counselor, the videos are now shown in junior high health classes. According to a junior high health teacher, the videos were given to the middle school P.E. coaches. According to a middle school P.E. coach, the puberty videos are not a part of their curriculum. This means that current and future students approaching the age of puberty are not consistently being informed of the changes that will be or are occurring in their bodies.

Even if the videos were being shown at the junior high, many students would have already begun experiencing puberty.

Next up in a student’s intended sexual education curriculum is seventh and eighth grade health classes. Originally, students would watch a video in seventh grade covering the consequences of sexual activity at a young age. The video is now not being shown until eighth grade. Based on all available information, it appears sexual education curriculum most likely begins in eighth grade health class, where students will have a unit on sexual and reproductive education. Within this unit, students go over the consequences of premarital sex, learn basic reproductive anatomy, and go over STD’s. However, students are not taught about the use of contraception, and the actual act of sex is left up to the imagination.

some contraceptive methods that can keep them safe.”

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“I would hope [the curriculum] wouldn’t be 100% percent abstinence because that’s not reality, but it probably is,” Hill said.

Promoting abstinence does follow the state’s guidelines, but the guidelines are not strictly abstinence only. They also allow schools to teach students of the functions of contraceptives. At this point in a student’s education, they would not have received sex education. The education students would receive comes far too late and lacking in necessary content. According to the Center for Disease Control, most teens do not receive sexual education until they are already sexually active. By starting sexual education at a middle school level, students are more likely to delay having sex and will take less unnecessary risks. It could be hoped that these subjects would at the very least be covered more in depth in the required high school health class, but this is not the case.

“I think some people would probably get upset if we talked too much about it,” Health teacher Travis Wrightsman said.

While the class did invite a speaker on STD’s, this only amounted to one class period worth of sexual education being taught in the semester long high school health class. In all fairness, the school transition has changed the set up of health classes and most teachers are now teaching a different grade level than before.

However, this does not explain the lack of prioritization regarding sexual education.

Not only is the curriculum brief, but the main messages it presents are not effective in promoting sexually healthy and

informed students. The results of an ECHO survey of 110 students revealed that 63 percent of students did not feel informed in regards to sexual education. Of the students surveyed, 48 percent of students that had taken Childhood Development did feel satisfied with their education compared to only 26.8 percent of students who had only taken the required health classes. The difference between the two is abstinence only versus comprehensive sex education.

“You have people that say, ‘Just teach abstinence.’ While that is the only 100 percent safe method, humans were made to reproduce, so I’m not naive in thinking students aren’t going to do that, and that they don’t have urges, and that, ‘Well you just control those urges until you get married.’ If they’re going to be sexually active, then let’s teach them some contraceptive methods that can keep them safe,” Cantrell said.

Cantrell teaches what is called “comprehensive sex-ed” in her Childhood Development class. Comprehensive sex education includes information on human development, reproductive health and anatomy, contraceptives, childbirth, and STD/ STI prevention. Comprehensive sexual education also encourages discussions on healthy relationships, culture, gender roles, and threats such as discrimination and abuse. According to a national analysis performed by the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive health care and research facility, “Results clearly show that abstinence-only education does not reduce -and likely increases- teen pregnancy rates.

Comprehensive sex and/or STD education that includes abstinence as a desired behavior was correlated with the lowest teen pregnancy rates across states.” Similar research also found no evidence that providing young people with sexual and reproductive health information and education resulted in increased sexual risk-taking.

“We go way more in depth and way more graphic. I find that some teachers don’t feel very comfortable teaching sex ed, and I feel very comfortable teaching it, because I don’t think it’s something to be ashamed of. I think we need to educate people that this is what it’s created for. Now, if you’re going to take it outside of that, there could be some problems, but I know people are going to do that, so let’s teach them how to take care of themselves,” Cantrell said.

One of the most important aspects of comprehensive sex education in promoting healthy, open conversations regarding student’s sexual health. Modern culture comes with media having more and more influence in the messages teens receive regarding sex, but these messages are not always realistic and can have damaging impacts on student’s perceptions of sexual activities. This makes open conversations covering medically accurate information even more important for students.

“I don’t think a lot of sex ed teachers feel real comfortable having conversations like that,” Cantrell said.

Of the students who had taken Childhood Development, nearly 58 percent reported that they had received the majority of their information on sexual education

A Matter of Facts 14%

14 percent of Rolla High Schoolers have obtained the majority of their information on sex ed from their parents

34% 14

34 percent students have sought resources from a community health center

Fact vs. Fiction “The Pill” has many uses other

“The Pill” and Plan B are the

than preventing pregnancy

same thing

Condoms are prone to failure

Condoms will always be a safe

during use, leading to STD’s or pregnancy

contraceptive

Information pulled from dosomething.org

from school led classes. For students who had only taken the regular health classes, this percentage lowered to 20.6. Another 36 percent of students reported receiving information from online sources, and 27 percent cited their friends and peers as their primary source. Of both groups, only 15 percent reported receiving the majority of information from their family and parents. Proper comprehensive sexual education would promote that the majority of students’ information be provided accurately and appropriately from both the parents and the school system. When teachers and parents let their discomfort impede them from informing teens, it can have harmful effects, especially when it comes to the risks of STDs and STIs. “I think they hit it a little bit in junior high and a little bit in health class, but they don’t hit it as graphic as they need to.

When my students get to me and I cover it, I say, ‘Did you know all this before coming in here?’ No. Most of these students, if they have had unprotected sex, probably do have something because we think in ‘little Missouri’ that we are protected from STDs, when in fact, Missouri is one of the top states in the nation for STDs. Anytime you have a low-income, low-educated state or county, you have higher rates of drugs, alcohol, teen pregnancy, and STDs, that all

goes together,” Cantrell said.

Sadly for the residents of rural Missouri, lesser educational opportunities, availability of contraceptives, and cultural norms make young residents more susceptible to teen pregnancy and STDs. According to the Guttmacher Institute, the number of students in rural areas learning about contraception has declined in recent years, from 71 percent to 48 percent for girls, and from 59 percent to 45 percent among boys.

For students in these areas, comprehensive sex education can keep them from falling into this cycle. This education is vital to the health of young people, but not enough are receiving it. In Rolla’s district, only around 75 of the close to 1,200 students at the high school each year receive comprehensive sex education through the Childhood Development class, meaning the rest are left with only fragments from their health classes.

“If 95 percent of them are going to be in that position, don’t you think they ought to have some education? I know it’s not feasible for everybody to take my class. So I understand that we don’t need to make another [mandatory] class, but I think just if we’re gonna talk about STD’s soley, then it needs to be hit harder at the junior high level, because by the time they come to me, sometimes it’s too late,” Cantrell said.

Whether it be mandating Childhood Development or improving the school’s existing health classes, it is the school’s duty to provide a proper education in all subjects -no matter how controversial- to its students. Lisa Esci Davis, Director of Operations at Tri-Rivers Family Planning, has witnessed the effects of improper sexual education within her reproductive health clinic in Rolla.

“In Missouri, your school system does not have to teach sex ed, it’s not required.

So back in the day, when I started -the early 90s- there was more comprehensive sex ed in schools. We are seeing more and more cases of STDs than ever, and I’m sure it has to do with the fact that fewer kids are learning about it, medically accurately, in schools,” Esci Davis said.

When social stigmas and fear of controversy are prioritized as greater than the quality of a student’s education, sex education can be diminished into a merely uncomfortable inconvenience. The fact of the importance of sexual education cannot be ignored, and it is not realistic to rely solely on students’ parents to educate their children.

“I think it’s a huge disservice to young people to not educate them about something that’s so important and can be so impactful on their lives,” Esci Davis said.

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Astrology b y

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Astrology and the attention to zodiac signs and horoscopes has been growing in popularity over the past several years, but that does not mean to say more people take the study seriously. The divide between those who believe in Astrology and those who laugh at it’s ideas is ever present in the rising discussion of the topic.

Astrologist Cindy McKean believes that Astrology and Astronomy go hand in hand, and should not be as separated as they are.

“Astrology and Astronomy were actually the same subject over a hundred years ago. The age of science came and they began to separate the two. Anything not able to be proven by empirical evidence was then considered magical thinking,” McKean said.

She cites the church as another leader in the movement to make Astrology out to be silliness, but remains firm that the similarities are clear.

“Both look at the stars and their positions to each other. If we look at certain simple things such as how the moon affects the tides or how solar flares affect communication, it is indisputable that the two are tied together,” McKean said.

Although the two may be connected, Doctor of Physics Alexander Mulia believes the differences are just as apparent.

“Astrophysics is the study of space, the planets, the stars, how stars formed, and how galaxies form. It takes the approach of a scientific point of view rather than the stories told in the past. It makes predictions, but you have to present evidence and those predictions are based on physics and how we know the world works. I think that is the main difference between astronomy and astrology,” Mulia said.

Mulia finds it easy to shoot down the ideas Astrology presents because he has yet to see any concrete evidence proving the beliefs.

Assistant professor Clair Reynolds Kueny finds that the reason so many people believe deeply in the practice that lacks evidence is because of the organizational appeal of Zodiac signs.

“It makes it easy for us and is a heuristic, which allows us to make quick judgements about people, what is going to happen to us or others. Even though there is not a lot of evidence behind astrology, it is appealing for us to be able to make predictions and be able to fall back on our ideas of people,” Kueny said.

Apprehension about her job is not uncommon, so McKean analogizes the relationship between meteorologists and psychologists to astronomers and astrologers to make her point of view clear.

If meteorologists say it will be a cloudy day and there will be less sunshine, a psychologist can say that people are more likely to be in bad moods and spend more time indoors, whether it be shopping or doing chores.

“These are everyday things that we know are fact, but imagine if we did this and the meteorologists laughed at the psychologists for saying things like that,” McKean said.

Her preface of defense is followed by more a more in depth look at what Astrology can do.

“The stars incline they do not compel, meaning that they give you a certain proclivity to like or dislike something. If you are born with a lot of Scorpio in your chart then you might have a proclivity to liking seeing bloodshed,” McKean said.

This trait does not define someone because no matter what they stars say, people always have a choice. Bloodshed could lead to becoming a surgeon or a serial killer depending on choices. The stars only predict that someone will feel something, not that they will become something.

When Astrology is predicting human behavior, Astronomy is predicting solar flares, orbits, and solar eclipses. Both use the objects in space to make these predictions, but Astronomy uses the laws of physics and measurable factors unlike Astrology’s complex charts and history.

According to Astrology, a person’s inclinations are distinctly unique because everyone is said to be geotagged at the time and location that they were born. According to McKean, the stars and planets that were passing above us rub against us and cause these changes and traits.

“The Cardinal signs are those four signs that correlate with the change in season: Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn. Aries heralds in the beginning of spring. With that new season you can see that the energy of things are different. We no longer have those day in day out gray skies, we see little green buds on the trees, small signs of flowers coming out,” Mckean said.

Cancer, the height of summer, features peak maturity, growth and feelings of nostalgia and vacation time. These feelings are reported to be related to the traits of a Cancer. Libra, on the other hand, are supposed to enjoy balance because they herald in the

fall, which features cold and death to balance the birth of spring.

“Finally there is Capricorn. They mark the beginning of the winter season, in the middle of death when the Sun is at its lowest peak. Even when everything is dead, Capricorn keeps on working because there is no reason that life shouldn’t go on,” Mckean said.

The stars that decide these characteristics are also observed by Astronomers, but measured by their light. Without much else to go on, they collect information on the light coming from stars in order to come to conclusions about them.

“If a star is getting brighter then dimmer repeatedly, that tells you something about what is happening with that star. We can also look at the star color. You might look at the sky and some stars are blue and some are red. That tells you something about their age or their mass. Particularly large stars are usually blue and we know that because of our understanding of physics. A star that is much bigger than our sun has to burn very bright to hold itself up,” Mulia said.

While the sign and stars can reveal essential information to both Astronomers and Astrologers, McKean looks at an array of factors that determine predictions and horoscopes. One layer is the combination of the mode and the element of someone’s sign.

The three modes are Cardinal, Fixed, and Mutable signs. Each brings about different attributes that contribute to the overall person. The eleme nt of a sign would be Earth, air, fire, and water.

Those also bring about a certain characteristic or predictability about someone.

After those aspects are considered, McKean looks into the archetype for the sign.

“The archetype of Virgo is the Maiden. She gathers all the crops during the big harvest at the end of summer. The reason she does this is because she knows that there is a big winter coming so she takes all the crops while they are still at their healthiest and stores them,” McKean said.

McKean assures that the maiden never hoards the food to herself, she shares what she has, just like the Virgo is known to do.

“They think ahead of time and do a lot of hard work, just like the maiden does when gathering crops before winter. Getting all that food is a lot of hard work, but Virgo doesn’t shy from that,” McKean said.

In comparison to Virgo, the Sagittarius, a fire sign whose archetype is the centaur, is more dynamic, creative, adventurous and passionate compared to the grounded Earth sign. “Sagittarius, unlike the Virgo, is going to want to travel far and wide. The Earth element of Virgo is going to keep them rather reserved, while the fire element of Sagittarius is going to get them talking. If you see the patterns, it starts to make sense when we make the horoscope wheel,” McKean said.

Sagittarius’ ruling planet is also Jupiter, which rules higher education, foreign travels, religion and philosophy. Each zodiac sign has a ruling planet, some even share a planet.

“It took, in some cases, hundreds of years to nail down what the actual personality traits are. The general time stamp is looking at the time that it was discovered and seeing what other planets and stars where in the sky so that they could read it’s surroundings and form the story of the constellation,” McKean said.

Planets play an obvious key role in a person’s makeup according to Astrology, and the placement of these planets and stars are found on a person’s birth chart. This chart is a circle made with the horizon as a line down the middle. It is divided into 12 houses much like a clock, and each house rules a particular area of one’s life. Different placements let McKean know details about that person.

“If there are more planets above the horizon then we know the person is more likely to be extroverted and likes to be surrounded by people. A full fourth house means their home life is very important to them. If they have key planets at the top of their chart then career will be very important to them,” McKean said.

She believes in the complexity and process of Astrology, and often sees customers surprised at what she can tell them. Although Mulia does not necessarily believe in what McKean practices, he does not believe that they should be adamantly against each other, and finds common ground in the fact that both parties are simply curious to explain something about humans and their place in the universe.

Through skepticism, McKean cites the long history of condemnation as a reason to remain strong in her beliefs.

“This is something that has survived thousands of years of persecution and demonization and still thrives. With that kind fortitude, I think it’s worth looking into,” McKean said.

Celebrating Christmas as a Christian b y

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Christmas, being the most wonderful time of the year, is celebrated by people everywhere. Even non-religious people are known to still celebrate by putting up a tree, maybe some Christmas lights, and share gifts on Christmas Day. Christmas is an annual holiday celebrating the birth of Jesus, making it a cultural celebration among millions around the world. Different Christian churches have slightly different beliefs from other churches, but they are set apart from things such as the way they hold church, or the traditions that they uphold. These differences cause a split in churches, called denominations Some denominations of Christianity include Lutheran, Methodist, Catholic, and Orthodox Christians. These different denominations all believe in the birth of Jesus, but they all have seperate Christmas traditions that are celebrated.

The season of Advent has been set aside for the preparation of Christ’s second coming. It starts on November 30th, and continues for four Sundays until Christmas. Through the years, Lutherans have celebrated Advent through a variety of traditions, including an Advent wreath, which is made out of evergreens in the shape of a circle to represent eternal life with God in heaven.

The wreath has candles on top that are lit each Sunday before Christmas.

The Methodist church also recognises Advent as an event that marks the beginning of the liturgical year. Advent is part of the cycle of seasons that includes Christmas and Epiphany, all related in some fashion to the coming of Jesus. That cycle is followed by

Lent, Holy Week, Easter, and the long Pentecost season.

Epiphany, or the feast of Epiphany, is celebrated twelve days after Christmas on the sixth of January. It is set aside as a time when the three wise men brought gifts to baby Jesus. Some churches around the world also celebrate Jesus’ baptism on this day too. Epiphany is celebrated mostly by Catholics and Orthodox Christians. There are many ways that this holiday is celebrated, however one way starts on the fifth of January, which is known as the Forefeast of Theophany. Depending on the day of the week, this could mean an evening service at church. After the service on January fifth, the service of the Blessing of the Waters is conducted. On the sixth of January, the day of the Feast, a reading is held, and a second blessing of the water is conducted. Many places throughout the world these services are conducted near open bodies of water. To symbolize how Christ blessed the Jordan River when he was baptised, holy water is poured into the body of water.

Another tradition associated with this is tossing a cross into the water so that it can be retrieved by divers.

There are many traditions that people take pride in and celebrate during Christmas, even if you are not religious. These traditions such as putting up a Christmas tree as a family, putting up lights, or sharing gifts with family and friends are important to uphold as well. These more cultural traditions can be beneficial and be a way for families to take the time to be thankful for each other and spend time with each other in the middle of the busy winter season. For Christians, Christmas is a time to it is a time to reflect upon the birth of Jesus and to celebrate His death for our sins.

Religious or not, traditions during Christmastime bring together friends and families and they are important for everyone.

STUCO

Spreads Spirit With Acts of Giving b y

During the holidays, many people are left without gifts, food, and even someone to visit them.

In an effort to spread holiday cheer, RHS Student Council, also known as STUCO, is very active in the community during the holiday season. In addition to visiting the Missouri Veterans Home located in St. James, STUCO will be offering a giving tree to collect hats, gloves, and scarfs for those without. If interested, donations for the giving tree will be collected outside of the counseling center. They will also be sponsoring families and residents at a local nursing home and purchasing gifts for those who cannot afford to.

“When we sponsor a family, we have to raise the money for the gifts, which we will do by offering to wrap gifts for staff and students. We’ll have more information on that soon. Then, we can

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shop according to the sizes and interests of who we are sponsoring” STUCO president Ashley Barth said.

This year’s winter spirit week is also an activity brought to the school community by Student Council. The spirit week will be held December tenth through the fourteenth, and there will be a door decorating contest for advisories. Most of the work done by STUCO for these events is by advertising, and they strongly encourage everyone to participate in these activities. Participating can spread school spirit and provides a fun outlet before the stress of finals.

“STUCO’s door decorating contest and ways to raise money for sponsoring families are new this year. We have done the other projects in the past. I would love if STUCO would continue these traditions, and we are always up for new suggestions!” Barth said.

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