Noah Fogelberg
Jan. 29, 2014 Vol. 41, No. 5 Rocky Mountain High School 1300 W. Swallow Rd.Fort Collins, Colo.
The Rocky Mountain
HFaith and Food
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High School Hijinks: An 18-year-old high school student in Florida was suspended after his school found out that he had began a career in the porn business. According to another student at the school, the suspended student started a job as a porn actor in order to help his mom pay the bills. Among other issues, the suspension raised the question as to whether or not schools can punish students for legal activities they partake in outside of school.
Quote of the Issue: “No matter what happens you can call the fire department and they’ll show up. That’s what I like – no matter what, you’re going to be there and you get to go to work everyday and not know what’s going to happen.” -Andie Kinney on being an aspiring firefighter
Inside:
God and grub: Freshman Austin Harley and sophomores Sam Pearson, Dylan Hird, and Brian Hird enjoy free lunch at the Peace With Christ Lutheran Church.
Local churches attract students with free lunch by Miriam Fieldsfeatures editor and Mackenzie Bartzenreporter
It is Tuesday afternoon, and hungry students flood the doors of the building, waiting in long queues for their lunches. Enthusiasm for pizza has never been this elevated. The food in question is given to students by two churches, the Peace With Christ Lutheran Church and the Third Day Victory Church. They both host lunches for high school students on Tuesdays and Thursdays, respectively. Many students visit each church during the week to eat, socialize, and get away from school for a period of time before heading back to class. Plenty of them wonder about the intentions of the churches, thinking that perhaps the lunches are held in order to draw people to worship services. Others feel that the free meals are a gesture of hospitality. “I would say in part it’s just because they’re trying to be good people,” sophomore Sam Pearson said. “But I think another part of it would be just because they’re trying to get more followers to their church.” Though some students do doubt that the motives of either church are purely
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I would say in part it’s just because they’re trying to be good people, but I think another part of it is just because they’re trying to get more followers for their church. Sam Pearson, sophomore
charitable, many still attend the weekly meals, even those who are not part of the Christian faith. “It’s very nice that they’re providing a meal for us,” sophomore Kacy Yajnik said. “It’s just very convenient, so I take my chances. Plus they usually have some pretty good food.” While it may initially appear that the church’s motives are somewhat unclear, their actions are actually mostly done out of compassion and a genuine interest in the
well-being of students. “What we want to do is serve people where they have needs,” Rob Thaemert, a volunteer who also teaches Bible classes for middle school children Peace With Christ, said. “If we can fill a need, which apparently there is some, it’s really a thing of joy for us.” Kay Rubel, who helps coordinate the weekly lunch at Peace With Christ, is also passionate about volunteering and providing students with meals.
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Jump to church on A2
StuCo makes comeback with Sadie Hawkins Dance by Emily Andersoneditor-in-chief
Since the discontinuation of all StuCo events at the end of the 2012-2013 school year, the new Student Council has been determined to turn over a new leaf for 2014. “We’re just trying to keep a positive outlook on things and help the student body a lot more,” Kristeena Kropp, co-head of the Sadie’s committee said. Part of this renewal entails a revamping of the “Sadie
Hawkins Dance,” cancelled last year, and the implementation of a Spirit Week leading up to the event. “Last year Student Council wasn’t on a good level with the student body, and we were just changing a lot of things around. That is why we stopped a lot of our events last year,” Donald Chen, student body president, said. “But with new leadership comes new ideas. So we’re just trying new things out this year. Sadie’s is going to be really good
because we’re trying to make it really big.” As opposed to previous years, the upcoming Sadie’s celebration will be a week-long event. Because the 2013 Homecoming Assembly was cancelled due to Colorado floods and the subsequent “rain day,” which was called by the district on the day of the scheduled assembly, there will also be a Friday assembly before the Saturday dance. “When people think of homecoming or prom they
think they cannot miss it,” Chen said. We want Sadie Hawkins to become a big tradition like that–a big event instead of a lame spring dance. This year is going to be great. We have so many decorations waiting for you guys, and if you really liked what homecoming was all about, you’re going to love Sadie Hawkins this year.” The Sadie Hawkins Dance will be on Feb. 1 and start at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $12 for couples and $8 for singles.
Pot use up among teens: B4-B5
One Acts Marijuana use Preview: B8 increases: B4-B5 Blenker house sparkles, raises funds: B1
Noah Fogelberg
Preaching while eating: Michael Groves, Director of Education at Peace with Christ Church, preaches to students while they eat the free lunch the church offers every Thursday.
Wrestler overcomes obstacles: A8
Index:
News, A2 Opinion, A4 Sports, A8 Features, B1 Center Spread,B4-5 Limelight, B8
A2 Jan 29, 2014
Rocky Mountain HIGHLIGHTER
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Fields of Dreams Miriam Fields
New year, new you W
e all make them. We all completely fail to follow them. You know what I’m talking about. New Year’s resolutions are the quintessential part of the new year, and they are usually followed for roughly a month before everyone starts to drop their new habits again. I even made a few myself - be more organized, get more sleep, eat healthier… The list never ends. While the intentions of resolutions are good, they don’t often do much, except give one a taste of a healthier life for a few weeks. Here’s the thing: Everyone makes resolutions at the end of December going into January. Why? Well, the new year is a good opportunity to begin again, start over, and have a clean slate. But in reality, this is only in your mind. It’s not actually proven that you have a clean slate in the new year. The only thing that changes is the number on the calendar. So making resolutions in order to start over is really just a mental obligation. In other words, why conform to the usual end-of-the-year promises when you can make resolutions whenever you want to? You don’t have to wait for next year or feel bad if you’ve dropped your resolutions from this year already, because every day is an opportunity to start a new resolution. You can easily wait until you’re ready to change, or you can start change today, if you prefer. Relax. When you want to change, change. It’s your prerogative. If making resolutions on New Year’s Eve works for you, awesome. If not, it doesn’t matter. Let me say that again: It doesn’t matter. Do what feels right to you. If you’re not ready to start reading a book every week or texting less right on Jan. 1, that’s okay. If society as a whole would stop freaking out about only making resolutions on New Years, and if you didn’t have to wait until next year to begin again with a “clean slate,” would you change your actions? I sure would. Because everyone now accepts failure as the default when New Year’s resolutions are made, people assume it’s okay to fail. If you really want to succeed in your resolution, it is helpful to not buy in to this mentality, and sometimes this might require forgetting that it is almost the new year, and instead waiting until a time when you set your own personal goal. The point of a resolution is this: to get serious about an important facet of your life and make a change in that part of it. If you stop believing in the “failure” mentality, put an effort into change, and pick a time that works well for you instead of the rest of the world, it will work. Go get ‘em, tiger.
Miriam Fields is a sophomore and the Features Editor of the RM Highlighter
Noah Fogelberg
Practice makes perfect: During the Code 99 drill, students hide at the designated safe spot in College Trigonometry. Due to recent shootings, Principal Craig Woodall would like to increase the number of these drills until practicing them becomes “second nature.”
Shooting hits close to home Student hears news of Arapahoe shooting, affects them personally by Noel Knostmanreporter
It seemed like every other day for sophomore Katie Krbeck. But Dec. 13, 2013, was not like every other day. On that day, whispers began to reach her through the halls of yet another school shooting. Her heart began to tighten. She had friends at Arapahoe High School. Later that day she heard it: Claire Davis, her friend, competitor, and mentee had been shot. Her heart desperately clung to any piece of hope for her friends recovery. Eventually, the news came, Davis despite her fighting spirit had passed. Her heart was in her stomach, her palms began to sweat, and her throat had this concerning burning sensation. “I thought it would never be one of my friends,” said Krbec. Krbec and Davis were both members and competitors of the IEA, an organization formed to promote and improve the quality of horse-riding competition and instruction available to middle and secondary school students. Katie and Claire were on separate teams, and had a
Church
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“I know there’s a lot of children in this town who don’t get any food at night. So this is one of our ways of doing it, and I have no problems with it.” Rubel said. While it may not be as popular or well-known as the Peace With Christ Church, the Third Day Victory Church has a similar program. “I know a number of students who don’t have enough time to make lunch, or can’t afford lunch, and it’s just nice
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I thought it would never be one of my friends. Katie Krbeck, sophomore
close and friendly relationship. After Claire’s passing both the teams and even the whole organization was grieving. During the race that occurred two days after Claire’s passing, all members of the IEA wore purple ribbons and even had a jump dedicated to the memory of Claire’s beautiful life. Many riders found comfort in their riding as a method to cope with their loss. Some girls were so deeply affected by the loss of their competitor that they could no longer bear to ride, for the memories were too deep.
for them to get out of school,” said Marygreen Beth, who is the wife of the pastor who preaches at Third Day. “It’s a close place where they can feel safe and have a roof over their heads. It’s a nice place to come.” Of course, there are inevitable religious factors that come into play, as is expected when a religious institution gives free food to students of all different kinds of religious backgrounds. Both the Third Day and the Peace With Christ churches have either a
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Katie was among the majority who found solace in getting lost in her riding. Although she can escape in a ride, when at school the memory of her friend and the ever present threat of a school shooting follows her. “You become very aware of everything,” says Katie when reflecting on her new reality. “I even plan out what I would do in the event of a shooting.I know which classrooms I would hate to be in, and the ones I would prefer.” Just like Arapahoe, Rocky has a football team, a music theatre program, and a debate team. Differences between Arapahoe and Rocky exist; however the incident could have occurred anywhere. It could have been Rocky. With this dreadful thought in mind, Rocky when considering prevention techniques has found the most importance in promoting and generating genuine relationships and the general culture of the school. “We can’t be in control of access to weapons, we can’t control people having anger or hardship in their lives, but we can control that we are looking out for each other,” said Jan Harrison, dean of students.
prayer or a sermon they put on during the lunch. “We try to do a three minute something every single week so different youth pastors or kids get to speak,” Beth said. However, teenagers are not always respectful, so politeness is always a concern. “We have groups that have been disrespectful, but not anytime recently,” Rubel said. “I think they’re as quiet as they would probably be in any type of situation with such a large group.”
Because Peace With Christ has been serving meals on Tuesdays for about ten years, with the Third Day Church only beginning to participate recently, it may seem as though the two sanctuaries are competing for attention. However, this is not the case. “I feel that any time we as Christians can reach young people we should,” Rubel said. However, the expenses of charity add up. The church spends an estimated $3000 a year total on this venture alone.
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Noah Fogelberg
Looking good: Music selection editor Rachel Winterbottom (center), Collin Orr (left), and layout editor Madeline Zann (right) discuss recent submissions. The Looking Glass will be accepting submissions until Feb. 14.
The Looking Glass submissions Rocky’s award-winning literary magazine The Looking Glass is open for submissions until Feb. 14. The Looking Glass accepts poetry, short fiction, nonfiction, artwork and music. All written work needs to be submitted in the form of a Word document and artwork should be photographed or scanned and in jpeg format. Music needs to be submitted in an mp3 format and all genres are welcome. Submissions need to be placed into The Looking Glass drop folder in the Turn-In Drive on the school harddrive, so pieces have to be submitted at school. Included in the document should be the author’s name and the name of piece. Unfortunately, covers of
In brief
Noah Fogelberg
Cut off: The local Aggie Theater lost its liquor license for a 20 day period over winter break after management admitted to selling alcohol to minors. Concerts have continued throughout the suspension.
Venue violation School bands impacted by Aggie bust by Jessi Brokopreporter
The Aggie Theater has been around for over 100 years without many problems, until just lately. The historical theater’s liquor license was temporarily suspended for 20 days due to the Aggie illegally selling alcohol to minors. The Fort Collins Police recently visited the Aggie Theater and discovered that they have been allowing minors to drink there, marking the second time in 2013 that the Aggie has been cited for underage drinking. However, the Aggie is not the only place where underage drinking has occurred. “I’m not that surprised. I mean, I don’t want to say it’s a cliched trick, but it kind of is. If you go to any clubs, you’re guaranteed to have one kid who’s going to go in there, and successfully get alcohol. It just happens all over,” junior Catherine Bruning said. Not being able to sell alcohol at the Aggie has affected their business in a negative way. Savage Cabbage, a Rocky band, was scheduled to play there during winter break, before the accusations of underage drinking unfolded. “My band was supposed to play there . . . and it got cancelled because they got closed down a couple of times,” Keaton Nalezny, junior and Savage Cabbage band member, said. “A couple times it was because they actually let minors drink in there . . . they had an undercover cop go in and somehow he got alcohol. So it got to the point where the police were just kind of like trying to bust the Aggie now. A lot of other people want the Aggie to close down, because it’s just an old, raggity concert venue, but that’s the only concert venue we really have, that’s decent, that’s big in town.” In some situations, punishments for selling alcohol to minors can be worse than the Aggie received. The owner of a business that sells alcohol
to minors can be charged with a class one or two misdemeanor, and in some cases even have his or her driver’s license taken away as well for as little as 30 days or as long as a year. Nalezny’s father is friends with Scoo Leary, the owner of the Aggie Theater, and he has been going there ever since he was very young to see performances. Although Bruning goes to the Aggie frequently as well, and would not like to see it get shut down, she does not blame the police for investigating. “I can understand if people are getting alcohol poisoning from this, that it’s just a matter of responsibility. They’re just doing their jobs, anyway. It doesn’t matter if you like cops or not, they’re still doing their job. At least they’re trying,” Bruning said. Nalezny feels differently about the situation than Bruning does because of his connections to the Aggie. He wants the Aggie to open back up so that Savage Cabbage can play there. “Hopefully, it’s getting rescheduled to March 9th,” Nalezny said. “We were supposed to play there over winter break, and they had the whole alcohol violation, and so if they don’t sell alcohol then they won’t make as much money, so they couldn’t have any bands over there, which sucks for us, you know; it’s just the police trying to ruin the arts, mostly.” As of Jan. 23, the Aggie is now able to sell alcohol at its shows. However, if the Aggie gets another strike in the next year, they will have to serve another 30-day suspension, which could be extremely detrimental to the Aggie’s business. Savage Cabbage has been rescheduled to play in March. The Aggie Theater could not be reached for comment at this time.
pieces cannot be accepted due to copyright issues. The Looking Glass is published once a year and is released at a launch party at Everyday Joe’s in May. The magazine is student-run and has accumulated many awards over the years from the National Council For Teachers of English (NCTE), National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA), and American Scholastic Press Association (ASPA), including Super Awards and First Class Awards. All artists will be notified before the launch party whether or not their piece was accepted. Those interested in joining The Looking Glass staff can apply in the fall. Madeline Zann
Internet safety sessions offered for students, families by FCPD Internet safety sessions offered by the Fort Collins Police Department are going to take place in the Community Room at 2221 S. Timberline Rd. in the Community Room on Feb. 4, Mar. 4, April 1, and May 6 at 6:30-8:30 p.m. There will be presentations on the dangers of the internet and how to avoid them. There will be three different presentation groups in order to
In brief
make sure everyone is viewing age appropriate material. The three groups include: 8 to 12-year-olds, 13 to 18-yearolds, and adults. The topics being discussed will include sexual predators, online enticement and grooming, social networking websites, cyberbullying, and email, instant messaging, smartphones and sexting. Anyone can come and the sessions are free for all. Jessi Brokop
Changes made in school to better building’s wireless coverage On Jan. 7, a notice was received by staff informing them of changes the district made to the wireless coverage, which will enable laptops to stay connected to the wireless service more easily. The change made to the service at the school has been effective thus far, receiving positive feedback from areas where laptop computers have had poor connection to the
In brief
server in the past. It is recommended that any problems with the server be reported immediately so that further changes can be made if needed. Technology Site Manager Miguel Sanchez continues to ask students and teachers for feedback so that the coverage can be improved. If laptops are having trouble connecting to the server, please contact msanchez@psdschools. org.
Miriam Fields
Rocky Mountain HIGHLIGHTER
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TheEmily’s Rocky Mountain Embellishments HIGHLIGHTER
Emily Anderson
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Education gap growing
ohn is having an extremely difficult time with math. He is failing all the tests, not understanding the homework, and growing farther and farther behind his peers. His parents, worried about his future, decide to hire a tutor. Of course this is a huge expense, but they feel that the investment will, in the long run, benefit their child by increasing his chances of attending college. Sally is struggling with the class in a similar manner, but her family makes less income than John’s. Her parents simply cannot afford tutoring, and so she is left with fewer resources than John. While John attends the sessions and receives the extra help, his grade improves. Sally’s grade remains the same. The next year, because of this math class and the foundations it established for other classes and standardized tests, John gets accepted into a local college while Sally does not. It is not a matter of competency, or even effort, but simply wealth. And yet, even with the American Dream of equal opportunity, John still has better chances for the future because of his family’s income. As colleges have become more selective, private tutoring has grown to a multi-billion dollar business. There is a guarantee of access to public education in the United States, but wealth is still a determining factor of success. This only contributes to the growing achievement gap between rich and poor. One type of student continues to thrive, allowing their children to thrive, and the other has less resources, less opportunities, and less chances for receiving help and pulling themselves and their families out of poverty. However, there is no black and white answer to this problem. Nobody can tell John’s family that he cannot pursue further education or further help, and nobody can deny tutoring services their right to be a business. While public education is guaranteed to be free, private educational resources cannot be banned just because they give an advantage to wealthier children. At the same time, Sally cannot blame all her failures on her lack of tutoring. There are many other variables in the equation of success, even if wealth unfortunately happens to be one of them. Emily Anderson is a senior and editor-inchief of the RM Highlighter.
RM Highlighter editorial policy The Rocky Mountain Highlighter is a student news publication which strives to report school and community events with truth, accuracy, objectivity, and clarity. The RM Highlighter will also comment on issues of interest to its readers. The purposes of this publication are to report the news to the Rocky Mountain High School community, to provide the school community with a public forum for thoughtful discussion and debate, and to provide students on the newspaper staff with practical journalism experience. In order to make the RM Highlighter as professional a publication as possible, important legal and ethical guidelines will be followed. Senate Bill 90-99, enacted by the Colorado General Assembly during the 1990 legislative session, declares that “students of the public schools shall have the right to exercise freedom of speech and the press.” (Colo. Rev. Stat. Sec. 22-1-120) We, the staff of the RM Highlighter, are prohibited by law from publishing certain materials. We will respect these laws. No material which is libelous, encourages illegal acts, or causes material and substantial disruption to school activities will be published. Expressions which are obscene will not be printed. Profanity will not be printed unless it is considered absolutely necessary by the RM Highlighter editorial board to express the views of the writer or quoted person. Expression which is false “as to any person who is not a public figure or involved in a matter of public concern” will not be printed. “Expressions which are in violation of lawful school regulations designed to control gangs” will not be printed. In the event of a potential controversial item, the editorial board —consisting of all the editors, the advertising manager, and the adviser —will meet to discuss the merits of the item and then decide whether or not to print the item. Coverage of deaths which occur within the Rocky community will be carefully considered by the editorial board. Natural or accidental deaths will be reported for clarifications of death and will contain a memorial. Except in extreme circumstances, suicides will not be
Media too focused on perpetrators
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ith the recent rash of shootings sweeping the nation, it seems that media outlets are adamant on turning shooters into some kind of tragic antihero. Newscasts begin with shots of people fleeing in terror, police surrounding buildings and, most importantly, the body count. Few people can name all the victims of the Aurora theater shooting, but almost everyone knows who killed them. The coverage of violent events has degenerated into a form of sensational entertainment. The news that The Issue: should How the media be given treats the attenvictims and tion is perpetrators of rememviolent crimes. brance of those who were lost, but it is pushed back until the shooter angle has been exhausted. When the cameras are gone from the scene, this is the time that the media chooses to bring up the victims, almost as a reminder to the “excitement” that happened in the past. Victims of violent crimes are more often than not presented after the shocking material has been hashed and rehashed until everyone knows exactly who the offender was and what they did. It seems as if tragic deaths are
covered to reduce glorification of such acts. In general, the RM Highlighter observes the guidelines presented in the “Code of Ethics” of the Society of Professional Journalists. The RM Highlighter will not allow source review prior to publication, unless there is a clarification issue. Source anonymity will be granted only after careful consideration by the editor, with the editor reserving the right to make the final decision. Staff editorials shall be presented logically and will represent the views of the majority of the staff. Editorial criticism, of either individuals or groups, will be based on fact and will be constructive. Guest editorial space, the “Open Forum,” is available to anyone in the Rocky community, including students, parents, faculty, and administrators. Anyone interested in writing in the “Open Forum” should contact the editor-in-chief or the adviser, Stephen Wahlfeldt. Letters to the editor are welcome. They should be signed, and a home phone number should be included. The writer’s name may be withheld upon request, provided the editor agrees that the reasons for withholding a name are valid and compelling. Try to limit letters to 300 words and place them in one of the “Letters to the Editor” boxes, located in the Media Center and the Main Office, or give them to a RM Highlighter staff member, RM Highlighter adviser Stephen Wahlfeldt, or drop them by the RM Highlighter room, Room 528, during 4th period. Letters may also be mailed to the Rocky Mountain Highlighter, Rocky Mountain High School, 1300 W. Swallow Rd., Fort Collins, CO 80526. To talk with anyone on the RM Highlighter staff, phone (970) 488-7090. Columnists express their own views and not necessarily those of the RM Highlighter staff. No expression made by students of the Rocky Mountain Highlighter shall be considered an expression of school board or Rocky Mountain High School policy. Furthermore, Poudre School District and its employees are immune from any civil or criminal action based on any expression made or published by the students. All advertisement is welcome. To place an ad, contact RM Highlighter advertising managers at (970) 488-7091. The RM Highlighter, however, reserves the right to refuse advertising which the staff considers inappropriate for our audience. The RM Highlighter is a member of the ASNE/MCT Campus High School Newspaper Service, and some material is courtesy of that service. The Rocky Mountain Highlighter reserves the right to edit anything it publishes.
The Rocky Mountain
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Kayla Brokop
being exploited to call back attention to what occurred before, resulting in the public anchoring on one thing and giving mainstream media exactly what it wants—an audience. After a shooting occurs, the perpetrator’s face is plastered on the front of every newspaper, every magazine and every television channel. Victims take a backseat while the killers gets their 15 minutes of fame. Their past, their present and their possible future; a shooter is an open book to anyone who pays a slight amount of attention to current events. James Holmes and Adam Lanza have become standard household names on a level of notoriety similar to that of celebrities with a darker tone about them.
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This kind of public mindset on shooters increases the risk of a mentally unstable individual choosing to mimic this sort of action. Disturbed individuals who might otherwise seek help may find excitement in the fact that they can be remembered forever. The shooting at Arapahoe High School serves as the most recent display of shooter glorification. A quick Google search reveals that the gunman went bowling before he went to the school. This kind of information serves no purpose other than to make him more interesting. Useless research is shown to the public rather than information that actually matters. Too often does coverage regarding dark events focus completely and totally
The Rocky Mountain Highlighter is published nine times during the school year by the newspaper staff of Rocky Mountain High School/1300 W. Swallow Road/ Fort Collins, CO 80526. Contact Rocky Mountain Highlighter staff members at 970-488-7090 or 970-488-7091 for advertising information. Also the Rocky Mountain Highlighter staff is in Room 528, during 4th period.
All-American, 4 Marks of Distinction-2013; Pacemaker Finalist-2012; All-American, 4 Marks of Distinction-2012; All-American, 4 Marks of Distinction-2011; Pacemaker Winner-2010; All-American, 4 Marks of Distinction-2010; Pacemaker Finalist-2009; All-American, 4 Mark of Distinction-2009; AllAmerican Hall of Fame Induction-2008; AllAmerican, 5 Marks of Distinction-2008; Pacemaker Finalist-2007; All-American, 4 Marks of Distinction-2007; Pacemaker Winner-2006; All-American, 5 Marks of Distinction-2006; All-American, 4 Marks of Distinction-2005; All-American, 4 Marks of Distinction-2004; All-American, 5 Marks of Distinction-2003; All-American, 4 Marks of Distinction-2002; All-American, 5 Marks of Distinction-2001; All-American, 4 Marks of Distinction-2000; All-American, 4 Marks of Distinction-1999.
Editors-inChief Emily Anderson news Megan Troutman limelight Ad Manager Josh Barrett
around the tragedy and the sensationalism around it. There are countless stories of brave individuals who risked themselves for the safety of others. While everyone knows who the shooter at Sandy Hook elementary was, very few people can name even a single teacher who has died shielding their students in that or other schools shootings. We at the RM Highlighter believe that media outlets need to realize their power to influence people through their portrayal of tragic and violent events. The main focus should not be turning offenders into a sort of anti-hero celebrity, but to help the world understand that more than tragedy and dark intentions can rise from any situation.
Opinion Editor Madeline Zann Sports Editor Noah Fogelberg Features Editor Miriam Fields
Staff Mackenzie Bartzen Marissa Bonertz Jessi Brokop Kayla Brokop Reyna Thompson Noel Knostman Trey Jouard
Center Editor Aaron Yu
All-Colorado-2013; All-Colorado-2012; All-Colorado-2011; 1st place, 5A Sweepstakes-2010; 1st place, 5A Sweepstakes-2009; 1st place, 5A Sweepstakes-2008; 1st place, 5A Sweepstakes-2007; 2nd place, 5A Sweepstakes-2006; 1st place, 5A Sweepstakes-2005; 2nd place, 5A Sweepstakes-2004; 2nd place, 5A Sweepstakes-2003; 1st place, 5A Sweepstakes-2002; 1st place, 5A Sweepstakes-2001; 2nd place, 5A Sweepstakes-1996; 1st place, 5A Sweepstakes-1992; 2nd place, 5A Sweepstakes-1991; 2nd place, 5A Sweepstakes-1990; 1st place, 5A Sweepstakes-1987.
Gold Medalist-2013; Gold Medalist-2012; Gold Medalist-2011; Gold Medalist-2010; Silver Crown-2009; Gold Medalist-2009; Silver Medalist-2008; Gold Medalist2007; Gold Medalist-2006; Gold Medalist-2005; Silver Crown-2005; Gold Medalist-2004; Silver Crown-2004; Gold Medalist-2003; Silver Crown-2003; Gold Medalist-2002; Gold Medalist-2001; Gold Medalist-2000; Gold
Rocky Mountain HIGHLIGHTER
Mad Maddy Madeline Zann
No rest for weary high school students
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or an exhausted teenager, 25 minutes is nothing to sneeze at. Or yawn at, rather. According to a new study released by the Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics, when schools pushed start times from 8:00 a.m. to 8:25 a.m., the amount of teenagers getting at least eight hours of sleep went up drastically. Personally, I’d be happy just with school starting at eight on a regular basis, let alone 8:25 or even, if you can believe it, 9 o’clock. Teenagers do better with more sleep; this isn’t brand new information. We all know firsthand—or wish we did—that the more sleep we have, the better we function in class, the better moods we’re in, etc., etc. However, for some of us, the idea of a good night’s sleep on a school night is a long-forgotten tale of something that hasn’t happened since junior high. I can’t remember the last time I got eight hours of sleep on a school night. Most likely sometime in junior high. Or sometime in the glory days of freshman year when late start was 9:20 a.m. I understand the need for school to get out a decent time so there is time for sports and other activities, and that especially with Rocky’s block schedule, every minute of class time is a precious commodity. However, why does that necessarily mean we have to get to school so dang early? It’s obvious that teenagers don’t function well that early. Forget about all the scientific studies; all you have to do is look around the building. First hour classes are usually the quietest classes of the day, the classes with the most glazed faces and cups of coffee (because caffeine is so good for teenagers, but that’s a whole other tangent). And of course there are always the outliers, but personally, I function fine in the morning, but by the time I get home from school, I have to pass out for at least an hour before I can even think about starting my homework. Of course, by that point, once I’ve gotten home and gotten some sleep, I have less time to work on homework and then I’m up late because I started later and the whole vicious cycle starts all over again. I’m not the only one with this system, either, though there are some very creative sleeping schedules out there, schedules that shouldn’t be required. While the National Sleep Foundation says that getting inadequate amounts of sleep can hinder teenagers’ abilities to deal with stress, we’re pushing back late start—the highlight of any sleep-deprived teenager’s school week—farther and farther. Cause that makes total sense. How many studies do we need before something is actually done about it? Madeline Zann is a senior and opinion editor for the RM Highlighter.
College panic starts early Dear Editor, One of the main concerns of high school students is figuring out their future. Even as a sophomore, the pressure is on to start looking into colleges, and start joining clubs that Letter to the editor will look impressive on a college application. I’ve seen seniors begin to panic. While senior year should the best year of your high school career, more and more worries seem to pile up to the point where students just want to graduate and have solidified plans for their future. I’m lucky because I have parents who are very involved and supportive, so they have helped me and encouraged me to start planning my future early so there is as close to no panic as a possible. Some students aren’t as lucky as me, and they need to take things into their own hands to make the decision to get help. Chloe DeBaere, sophomore
OPINION
Jan. 29, 2014
A5
Taboo tattoos
Tattoos should not block entry to workplace
Times are changing. Tattoos and piercings are no longer taboo. The decisions you make about what to do with your body should be your own decision and shouldn’t affect your job outlook. A butterfly on your lower back or a stud in your nose doesn’t affect who you are as a person and how well you will do your job. According to a study done by Pew Research Center, 36 percent of U.S adults 18-25 and 40 percent of U.S adults 2640 have at least one tattoo. More than a third of the adults in each respective age group have at least one tattoo. Tattoos are a huge part of today’s culture. These little pieces of art that you take with you on your body do not affect your personality. “There is nothing saying a
teacher can’t wear a nose ring, we have several of them, it’s fine, and doesn’t affect the work they do,” counselor Terra Thiebaut said. Many people will get a meaningful tattoo. Whether it is a quote that they live by, a symbol of a lost loved one, or a piece of daily encouragement, tattoos are a way to remember, stay strong, and love life. “There are people that get tattoos that honor someone who has passed away, and that’s awesome,” Thiebaut said. Employers should not punish applicants by not hiring them just because they chose to ink their bodies. Employers should only worry about the work their employees do, not what they decide to do in their personal lives
or what they decide to put on their bodies. It is understandable if employers get involved with personal business if it is beginning to affect the workplace, but there is no reason as to why a tattoo or piercing would affect how well you perform. “Tattoos and piercings in the workplace allow people to express themselves but the minute they become a distraction for their employees, they should be outlawed,” senior Caleb Sexton said. Culture is changing and so should the professional world. Your experience and background should be the deciding factor of your pending employment, not the infinity symbol you have on your wrist. Marissa Bonertz
Pro Con
Kayla Brokop
Got ink? Rethink future employment opportunities It could be the cliché mom tattoo wrapping around your bicep, the hibiscus flower you got on your trip to Hawaii, even a short quotation that carries great meaning for you; the fact is that the probability a young person, have or will get a tattoo or a piercing is high. As a generation of young adults, we have put a large emphasis on the value of selfexpression and have created a trend of making canvases out of our bodies. However, our generation as a whole is approaching a point in our lives where we have become job seekers. And the nature of this period in our lives is that we have the purpose to fulfill
an employer’s requirements and meet their expectations. In some situations, this requires that you don’t mark yourself with body art. In today’s exceptionally competitive job market, the deciding factor between two candidates can come down to the smallest of details. Being professional marked by body art does not appear professional. Job seekers cannot risk jeopardizing careers for an act of self-expression. According to Terra Thiebaut, a counselor who works in the college and career center, “many human resource professionals can be alarmed by tattoos that come off as even slightly offensive to
their personal views.” It’s an employer’s job to look for reasons to not hire you or to separate one candidate from another, so we cannot afford to limit ourselves due to the binding decision of committing to body art. Body art is simply a trend, a trend that will permanently mark you even once the trend has died and the means for removal have proven ineffective. If you have body art or are considering it, you may want to think twice about how you want to present yourself as a professional—or as a future professional. Noel Knostman
photopoll
Do you think school shootings have become “normal”?
“There’s more now and they still affect people, but they’re less shocking because the media covers them so much.” Shannon Fitzsimmons, sophomore
“I don’t think that people become desensitized at all, but people who aren’t directly involved don’t think about it as much.” Brad Morrison, junior
“I don’t think that people are desensitized, but it’s gotten to the point where it’s not as shocking.” Alexis Stockton, senior
“No, I think there’s far too many; they’ve become so prevalent that people have lost sleep over it. We’re oversensitized. Glenn Gainley, teacher
A6 Jan. 29, 2014
Rocky Mountain HIGHLIGHTER
S PORTS
Boys’ basketball season breakdown... the
the
GOOD vs B A D
Marissa Bonertz
Roller coaster: Rocky students perform the habitual Roller Coaster cheer at the boys’ basketball team’s Jan. 17 loss at Collins.
Marissa Bonertz
Disappointment: Junior Wynne Wilson holds his head in his hands in a sign of bitter defeat during the boys’ blowout loss to Collins on Jan. 17.
GOOD
BAD
• Rocky has a great fan base.
• A record of 3-12 speaks for itself.
• The team is young, with only two seniors. This bodes well for the future.
• Handily defeated at home by Fossil, 70-24. • Avg. points per game: Opponents: 60.2 • Rocky: 48.1
• Each player is given a chance to score.
• They play relatively well on the road, having obtained all three wins away from Rocky.
• They have been playing and winning more consistently as of late, adding excitement to every game. • The Rocky Spirit Band is the best in town. Even if they aren’t winning, the band always makes for a lively event.
• Not a single home victory.
• They almost always find a way to blow a game in the fourth quarter.
• They rely on just a few great players to carry the team. This is not a sustainable strategy to win games. • They have talent, but inconsistency holds them back.
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Girls’ hoops tips off in Orlando
by Reyna Thompsonreporter
Trey Jouard
Driving to the basket: A Rocky basketball player drives through a lane in the Lambkins’ defense in the girls’ basketball team’s 61-45 loss at Fort Collins on Jan. 17.
Girls’ basketball Record: 6-9 Stars: Wesley Bannister, Kelcey Bedard, Anna Ernst, Asiah Lawson Who’s Next: Friday Jan. 31 • Home vs. Monarch • 6:30 p.m. Working On: Making the right passes. Doing Well: Working as a team. Quote: “I play basketball for my teammates. It’s a good way to represent my school.” -Kelcey Bedard, senior
Traveling either brings out the best or the worst in sports teams. For the girls’ basketball team, it brought out the best. In the week prior to winter break, the team traveled to Orlando, Florida, for a basketball tournament. The trip to the Sunshine State was a welcome break from the daily grind of practices and games, and it provided a different perspective for the players and coaches. “It was a fun bonding experience, and after a while the team felt more like a family,” senior Kelcey Bedard said. The trip was five days, three of which were spent playing basketball. With Disney World on the horizon, giving 100 percent to a game would be hard for anyone. “You had to shut your mind off, and not think about the fact that you’re going to Disney World,” Bedard said. It’s hard to say whether players fully accomplished the feat, but head coach Todd Matkin said the positives of the trip easily outweighed the negatives. “Players grow so much individually from an experience like this in terms of maturity, self management and organization,” Matkin said. “They gain experience about other parts of
the United States, as well as possible exposure to college scouts.” The team won its first game 45-26 against Westwood High School from Fort Pierce, Florida, a team that had already played 10 games, going undefeated. The Rocky defense was able to hold the Westwood offense to only 3 and 4 points in the second and fourth quarters respectively. Wesley Bannister led the team in points, scoring 16. Anna Ernst led the team with 6 rebounds. After that, they lost the next two against Canon-McMillan and Maine East. Rocky led Maine East going into the fourth by a score of 37-35, but the shots just wouldn’t fall for Rocky in the fourth and ended up losing 46-40. “I think we defended very well, unfortunately we just shot a poor shooting percentage in both of our losses,” Matkin said. “Considering there were roughly 64 teams there and we were in the second most difficult bracket, I was very pleased.” Unlike Bedard and Matkin, freshman Lena Longshore was exposed to her first traveling tournament with the team. “I got to know everyone a lot better,” Longshore said. “It was nice seeing everyone outside of our normal environment.”
It was a fun bonding experience, and after a while the team felt more like a family. Kelcey Bedard, senior
Traveling provides experiences that one would not normally get to be a part of, and when sports are involved, it enriches the experience even more. “Traveling is a rewarding and educational experience,” Matkin said. “Not to mention, we had the opportunity to represent Rocky Mountain High School, Fort Collins and Colorado at the national level.” Down the road, the players may not remember the scores of the games, or maybe even whether they won or lost. However, they will remember the experience of a team turning into a family—and maybe the thrill of a roller coaster or two. “It was a great trip with great people,” Longshore said.
Rocky Mountain HIGHLIGHTER
Erickson from page A8
the following year and eventually earned him his current position on varsity. “I came into freshman year not really knowing what would happen, and I made D team, which I think was probably the best for me,” said the 6-foot-5 Erickson. “I ended up playing all the time freshman year and I started every game.” In order to compete at the rapid pace found at the varsity level, Erickson needed to expand his repertoire. Since becoming a starter for this year’s varsity team, Erickson has been one of the highest scorers and rebounders for the team. Averaging 8.9
S PORTS
and 4.8 rebounds per game, including a 20-point effort in a loss to Fairview on Jan. 24, he has become one of the main contributors to any success the team has had. “I’ve definitely become a better shooter and threat from the field,” Erickson said. “But with that I think I’ve improved my consistency under the basket.” However, Erickson admits that in order for the team to succeed as well as himself, the team still needs to improve their consistency. “I think if I get more consistent, and other players get more consistent we will be in a better place.”
Jan. 29, 2014
A7
Marissa Bonertz
Standing out: Junior Cameron Erickson concentrates on what the next move will be during the Lobos’ 66-35 loss to Collins on Jan. 17. The 6-foot-5 junior made the jump from JV to varsity starter this year.
Jennings
Wrestling
from page A8
Record: Undefeated in duals Stars: Roman Ortiz, Danny Murphy, Dan Macoubrie, Konnor Schmidt pound weight class during his Who’s Next: Friday, Jan. 30 • @Poudre • 7 p.m. long periods of preparation. What going well: The team is doing well at tournaments. “He’s always looking for ways Improving on: Becoming a great team, fighting hard, getting the to improve,” Harris said. “He’s whole team to qualify for state. always looking for ways to get Quote: “My favorite part about wrestling is the competition.” -Dan Williams, senior a jump on his competition and
Tia Clark
Getting animated: Sign language interpreter Gina Harris communicates with senior wrestler Alex Jennings during a match at Loveland on Jan. 23.
that’s what I’m there to support.” Beyond just comprehending the nuances of the sport and conveying information, Harris offers Jennings support on a personal level. From routine practices to tournaments, the duo spend an extensive amount of time with each other, ultimately forming their tight-knit relationship. “She’s there for Alex on a personal level, not just as his interpreter,” Taylor said. “She’s almost like his second mom. [Gina] probably knows more about Alex than anyone of us.” A lot can be gleaned from an individual who copes with a
serious disability. Jennings, who has been coping with his hearing loss for his entire life, was born three months premature. The circumstances of his birth led to severe sickness and the combination of antibiotics used to treat his ailment caused deafness in both of his ears. Jennings’s work ethic on and off the mat, despite his condition, is what Harris has noticed the most from their time spent together. “I get an insight from Alex that’s different from other people,” Harris said. “He is probably one of the hardest workers that I know; definitely
very motivated, very driven. [Alex] will never allow his hearing impairment to be a negative or a disadvantage to him. He takes it in stride and strives to be better.” Although he admits his disorder propels him as an athlete, it is not the defining characteristic that has shaped his wrestling career. “It motivates me to work hard in practice, it motivates me to watch what I eat and a number of [other] things,” Jennings said. “But I don’t think it’s solely based on my hearing. I think I’m just a driven person in general.”
Girls’ swimming Record: 3-1 Stars: Andi Johnston, Daphne Williams, Alexis Badalment Who’s Next: Thursday, Jan. 30 • @EPIC vs. Loveland • 4 p.m. What going well: The team has state qualifiers. Improving on: Overall speed. Quote: “The people make it really fun.” -Madi Higdon, junior
Full speed ahead: A Rocky swimmer competes in a swim meet against Poudre at EPIC on Dec. 12. Reyna Thompson
BOY’S TEAM Play a fast exciting sport where everyone handles the ball and plays both offense and defense All Players Welcome, No Experience Needed Positions for everyone regardless of your age or size
PRACTICE
After use, recycle this newspaper
Practices start on Monday, January 27th and are held on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday from 3:45 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at Rossborough Park (1630 Casa Grande Blvd.), which is just Southwest of Rocky Mountain High School on Dunbar.
INFORMATION Contact Greg Chvatal at 970-581-3233 E-mail Greg@Yuma.ColoState.EDU Web Page: http://www.fortcollinsyouthrugby.org/
FREE GAME
Bring this ad into any of our Centers for 1 free game Laser tag coming soon!
Rocky Mountain HIGHLIGHTER
S
SPORTS
A8
Jan. 29, 2014 Noah’s Nonsense
Defying Expectations
Noah Fogelberg
Struggles not for nothing It is no secret that the boys’ basketball team has had more than its fair share of struggles this season. After getting blown out by state basketball powerhouse Fossil Ridge by 46 points on Jan. 7, it is clear there is no easy fix for the team’s issues. While Fossil Ridge is ranked No. 1 in the state, that game is just one out of a plethora of losses the team has suffered this year, with a record of 3-12. It seems as if losing has become a habit, only having won three games against other sub-par teams. This trend of losing is something that not many of us here in Fort Collins are used to. Although I can’t speak for the backgrounds of every single athlete, and I’m sure there is a level of variation, success is a concept that many athletes have grown accustomed to growing up in a fairly affluent city. Many athletes are at the varsity level today because of the success they had in sports clubs and activities they were involved in when they were younger. Whether it was Junior Lobos or, more recently, the baseball clubs, such as the Lobos Legion A club that many baseball players are involved in, success was almost a given. This has given many athletes a mindset that, given a little work ethic and some natural talent, success will fall into their hands. For the boys’ basketball team, that expectation faded long ago. That’s not to say the team doesn’t have talent; it’s just young talent. Only two players are seniors. Ten juniors, four sophomores and one freshman make up the rest of the roster. Matching up against teams like senior-heavy Fossil Ridge means that wins might be and have been hard to come by this season. That’s also not to say that there is no value in this loss-filled struggle of a season, especially for players who are probably not used to consistently being on the losing side of the court. In a way, there is more value in a loss than a win. Sure, a win is fantastic, and validates your efforts as an athlete, but a loss is humbling. A loss makes it apparent what your team needs to improve upon. A loss shows what your team is made of. Just like how you rise together and triumph as a team, you fall together and share the burden of not having come out on top. I know it’s cliché, but it’s not about whether or not you fall, it’s about how you get back up. Right now, the boys’ basketball team has two options. They can accept that this year just won’t be the year and keep playing as if they are already defeated, or they can take advantage of this golden opportunity to learn the valuable lessons that adversity can teach and become a better team in the process. Noah Fogelberg is a Junior and the Sports Editor for the RM Highlighter
Tia Clark
Take down: Senior Alex Jennings wrestles a member of the Loveland High School wrestling team while sign language interpreter Gina Harris cheers in the backgound during a match on Jan. 23.
Working through hearing troubles, wrestler Jennings finds success with help of interpreter by Trey Jouardreporter
One on one. Mano-a-mano. Although schools receive team scores, there is no disputing that wrestling is inherently an individual sport. At the center of the mat, grappling with a competitor, wrestlers typically receive little outside help besides their coach’s guidance. Excluding these brief instructions, the athlete must rely solely on his strength and dexterity in order to pin his opponent. What makes Alex Jennings unique is the way he receives the input from his coach. Suffering from a hearing loss in both ears, the varsity wrestler’s disability requires sign language interpreter Gina Harris to facilitate communication between him and coach
Sports special
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[Alex] will never allow his hearing impairment to be a negative or a disadvantage to him. He takes it in stride and strives to be better. Gina Harris, sign language interpreter
Ken Taylor during matches and day to day practices. “When he’s out wrestling and when
he’s on the mat, he’s by himself,” Harris said. “Wrestling is probably the most individual sport there is. The biggest part about what I do for him is sign what the coaches say. We’ll tell him what to do and witness his decision making. I’m just a different set of eyes for him.” Harris, however, does not function exclusively as a messenger. Coming from a wrestling family and serving as an interpreter for other wrestlers in the Greeley area, Harris has sturdy roots in the sport. Because of her familiarity, Harris operates as a second coach for Jennings. On day-long tournaments they often discuss potential moves and scout opponents in Jennings’s 132
,
Jump to Jennings on A7
Junior center Erickson grows into varsity role by Trey Jouardreporter
Cameron Erickson entered his first basketball season at Rocky with the same ambivalence shared by his fellow freshman classmates. Erickson, facing a new school, new coach, and new teammates had plenty of reasons to be apprehensive about his freshman season. Despite the trepidation that accompanied Erickson’s first season, the now junior has emerged as the second leading scorer of the boys’ basketball team as well as assuming an essential role as one of the team’s captains. Erickson’s presence in the post tallied 20 points against Gateway and 13 against Poudre, leading the team to two of their three wins this season. “Cam has made the jump from a JV starter to a varsity starter in one year and that’s not normal,” boys’ basketball Trey Jouard coach Jon Rakiecki said. “Typically, you Making a move: Junior Cameron Erickson spins around a Collins defender en route to the start on JV and you slowly transition basket during Rocky’s 66-35 loss at Fort Collins on Jan. 17. into a varsity player, but he has made that transition so quickly. It’s pretty unusual to improve that much in one year.” After becoming acclimated with Record: 3-12 the culture at Rocky and the coaching Stars: Cameron Erickson, Riley Neal, Jordan Williams staff, Erickson realized his potential for improvement and overcame the Who’s Next: Friday • Home vs. Monarch • 6:30 p.m. initial butterflies of his freshman year. Working On: Becoming more consistent and playing a full game. In the off season between his freshman Doing Well: Enjoying playing together as a team and sophomore year, Erickson signifiQuote: “The team makes things better when other things aren’t cantly improved his work ethic, which came to fruition when he made the JV going right.” -Cameron Erickson, junior
Boys’ basketball
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Jump to Erickson on A7
Rocky Mountain HIGHLIGHTER
Lights for charity: Lights adorn the Blenkers’ household, where a donation box is located to give to Habitat for Humanity. The Blenkers family received a house from Habitat for Humanity themselves and enjoy giving back to the community.
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FEATURES
B1
Jan. 29, 2014
PACER problems Fishing with Trout Megan Troutman
In light of giving back
Tia Clark
Blenkers raise money with holiday lights after receiving home from charity organization by Tia Clarkreporter
Normally Christmas lights are a few strands of bulbs strung dandily on a tree or a window sill. It's unusual to see a huge display of complicated lights dancing to Christmas music. However, the Blenkers’ household is a glimmering masterpiece of trees and reindeer prancing in a yard full of sparkling lights that lead all the way to the roof. “We’ve been doing the lights since 2008," home owner Darlene Blenkers said. “That first year we did the lights, just to do the lights.” The Blenkers received their house through Habitat for Humanity seven years ago. Habitat is an organization that builds homes for families in need. They partner with the homeowners to build the new house. “We went to the orientation where they told the families if they got the house,” freshman Connor Blenkers said. “They called
Features special
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the Blenkers and I think my mom started crying.” Volunteers from the organization helped the Blenkers build their home from the ground up. Three months later they had a completed house. The lights became a creative way to give thanks to Habitat. Multiple people started wondering about the lights adorning the house, asking whether they were for charity. “We might as well give it back to Habitat because we’ve got such a beautiful home,” homeowner Hans Blenkers said. The Blenkers began by standing outside, accepting money from people who would drive by to see the lights. A donation box was placed at the end of the yard with a sign listing a radio station, sure to be seen by any one who wanted to listen to the music accompanying the lights. Around Christmas time, the Blenkers neighborhood is always flooded with cars and spectators. “It's amazing to look outside and have people lined up on the sidewalk,” Darlene Blenkers said.
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We might as well give it back to Habitat because we’ve got such a beautiful home... that first year, we made $75. This year we made a little over $2500.
Their neighbors will even make room for the guests by parking down the street, but locals are not the only ones that can see the lights. Habitat has even had the Blenkers’ lights displayed on their website and on YouTube. The Blenkers parents do most of the decorating, setting up the lights and programming them to dance with Christmas songs, but their children help as much as they can. “I’ve helped put up the lights and take them down,” Connor Blenkers said. “I help with traffic as well.” Christmas Eve is one of the busiest nights the Blenkers endure throughout the month of December. They stand outside and greet the audience with hot chocolate, and even Santa joins the fun and hands out stuffed animals to the eager
Hans Blenkers, homeowner
children watching the lights. On Christmas Eve in 2013 alone, the Blenkers raised $500. The donations come in checks and bills, and change dug out of the bottom of purses and car consoles. Visitors often want to help out any way they can. “The first year, we made $75,” Hans Blenkers said. “This year we made a little over $2500.” Along with the lights being creative and interesting to look at, the Blenkers have found a way to make them memorable and life changing for future Habitat for Humanity volunteers and the families they serve. With the help of neighbors and the growing audience, what started out as a small hobby has become a month long affair with lights dancing for charity.
Sometimes I cry when I hear the phrase, “We’re running the PACER today.” It’s one of the few acronyms that makes me want to crawl in a hole and eat chocolate for the rest of my life. For those of you who do not know what the PACER is, I truly envy you. It is not an enjoyable experience, to say the least. PACER stands for Progressive Aerobic Cardiovascular Endurance Run. What? Basically, you run 20 meters back and forth in synchronization with signal beeps. As time goes on, the beeps get closer together, forcing you to run faster. This exercise is not fair to the vertically challenged. Their feet have to move twice as fast as the lengthy. It’s also not fair to the people who are allergic to exercise. It should be called the RDWCYAEYAIYDR. Rabid Dogs Will Chase You And Eat You Alive If You Don’t Run. Progressive Aerobic my patootie. The RDWCYAEYAIYDR will get people moving. Unfortunately it doesn’t have quite the same ring to it. Thus, we are stuck loathing the PACER. When I signed up for aerobics and individual sports, I thought I dodged that bullet. But nope. The PACER is stalking me, I know it. This year was just as brutal as years prior. To give you a good idea of what I’m talking about, here was my thought process . . . Lap one. Bring it on. Lap five. Is it getting hot in here? No? Just me? Lap ten. Alright. I feel a sudden lack of air. It’s ok. No big deal. Lap twenty-five. Oh dear goodness gracious my legs are falling off. I can’t breath. I feel like I’m hiking Mount Everest. Lap thirty. I’m starting to see spots. That can’t be healthy. Where am I? Lap thirty-one. That’s it. I’m dead. It’s all over. Then I stumbled over to the bleachers with three other dying people, and considered breathing into a paper bag. I’m beginning to think I’m a tad bit out of shape. Then there’s that punk that goes all the way to 98 and walks off laughing like it was no big deal. I hate that guy. Needless to say, the PACER is not my friend, and never will be. I admire all who have run above a 40. Seriously, put that on the resume because that’s a huge accomplishment. And to the little man who made it to lap 98? You have full bragging rights. Megan Troutman is a senior and editor-in-chief of the RM Highlighter.
B2 Jan. 29, 2014 Grooving to the oldies: Founder of the Record Appreciation Club Jacob Munro and club member Jacob Fuller (left) enjoy listening to vinyl records. The club meets every Friday at lunch and is always open to new members.
FEATURES Burning up stereotypes
Rocky Mountain HIGHLIGHTER
Mackenzie Bartzen
Vinyl Club creates groovy environment by Mackenzie Bartzenreporter
Born in the wrong time period? Maybe you don’t care for modern music, and yearn for the times before CDs and dubstep ran rampant. If any of those statements describe you, you might want to check out the Record Appreciation Club, more commonly known as Vinyl Club. Run by Jacob Munro, it provides a carefree environment for music lovers to listen to records and talk about the different aspects of vinyl music, from the bands who started out on vinyl to more contemporary artists who have also ventured into the record world. The club was formed last year by a few passionate students, particularly Lukas Hirniesin and Munro himself. “It was all his idea though,” Munro said. “It was his idea to me, and it was his idea that we would bring back Rocky Radio.” For those that don’t know, Rocky Radio was a class where students ran their own radio channel. “It’s kind of like pre-TV Production,” Munro said. “Before you do announcements, there’s Rocky Radio. You put on a radio show and have a station, and we wanted to bring that back.” However, Hirniesin and Munro both ultimately decided that wasn’t the direction they wanted to go, so they put their efforts into starting Vinyl Club instead. “We just wanted to play
Club feature
vinyls,” Munro said. “We found a teacher, and we decided on Mr. Haddad because he has a giant box of 45 RPM records, and he started bringing in more vinyl and stuff like that. It was great.” Now, with some good music and good company in hand, the club has thrived and meets every Friday in Haddad’s room. “We kind of bring back a more nostalgic way of life and thinking to our community,” Jacob said, in response to how Vinyl Club impacts student life. “People don’t really like vinyl or don’t know what it is. I didn’t even listen to vinyl until Lukas showed me.” Although the club’s population may not be the largest, it certainly has passionate students behind it. “I loved it, and the club is really people who enjoy it like us. We think it’s better and much more authentic,” Munro said. Another thing that students enjoy about Vinyl Club is that it is a great time of day to relax and take a break from the stress caused by everyday school life. Anyone is able to join at any time, with no questions asked. Activities are casual, and it is easy for newcomers to join in. “We sit around, listen to music, we talk about different types of records and record players, and we talk about different music that’s coming out that’s more nostalgic,” Munro said. “Everyone who has vinyl records will bring them; it’s a very laid back club.” If you’re looking for a club that is friendly, relaxing, and full of interesting, unique people, Vinyl Club may be a match for you.
Courtesy of Ryan Thomas
Student firefighters: A demonstration showing the time a typical dorm room would catch on fire was only one of the activities participated in at the summer camp held by the Poudre Fire Authority. Seniors Ally Guerrero and Andie Kinney attended the camp and enjoyed learning from actual firefighters.
Aspiring firefighters attend Poudre Fire Authority camp by Megan Troutmaneditor-in chief
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When people think of firefighters, most automatically assume fit, burly men, who run into burning buildings and rescue cats from trees. At 5-foot-2, senior Ally Guerrero shatters that stereotype. After attending a summer camp with the Poudre Fire Authority (PFA), her decision was made: firefighting was going to be part of her future. “It’s just a really physical and challenging job and after thirteen years of public education you’re kind of like, ‘I don’t ever want to be behind a desk again,’” Guerrero said. Guerrero has been athletically invested in her lacrosse team, as well as advanced weights classes. Fitness is a large part of her life, and will remain a part of it through working with the fire department. “For athletic people it’s a really nice environment,” Guerrero
Student feature
It made you really feel like you were trained firefighters. Most camps show you [what they do], but we got to experience everything, and it was really cool. Andie Kinney, senior
said. “It’s like being on a team, but you get to do it for a job.” Senior Andie Kinney attended the PFA camp with Guerrero and has loved the opportunity to work with actual firefighters. “It made you really feel like you were a trained firefighter,” Kinney said. “Most camps show you [what they do], but we got to experience everything, and it was just really cool.” Each firefighter and aspiring firefighter has their own story as to why they chose that profession. Andie Kinney experienced a traumatic incident that led her to pursue a career in public service. “I was in a car accident my freshman year and the people I was with . . . were really afraid and they didn’t want to tell anyone but I wanted to get to the hospital,” Kinney said. “I didn’t have anyone to help me and I was kind of alone at that point because my friends didn’t want me to go to the hospital. They didn’t allow me that and I want everyone to know that there’s someone out there for them that will help them.” From that moment on, Kinney wanted to be an EMT (Emergency Medical Technician) to help people in need. However,
after participating in the summer PFA camp, she decided she was going to be a firefighter. “No matter what happens you can call the fire department and they’ll show up. That’s what I like – no matter what, you’re going to be there and you get to go to work everyday and not know what’s going to happen,” Kinney said. “I don’t want to go to work and do the same thing everyday.” Similarly, Guerrero was looking for a job to keep her on her toes. “I wanted to go into public service, but I feel like every other job has a string attached to it,” Guerrero said. “Police shows up on the scene and someone’s day is about to get a lot worse . . . EMTs, people would rather risk not making it to a hospital on their own than trying to flip an ambulance bill . . . Firefighting, you’re there to make someone’s day better. There’s no bad guy in the situation and you’re just there to fix the problem.” Even though it is a male dominated field, it does not matter to the aspiring firefighters. “It’s kind of hard sometimes because physically I’m a little bit smaller [than the guys],” Guerrero said. “They’re great guys, and by the end of the camp it didn’t matter who was who. We were all taking care of each other.” According to a national study in 2008, 96 percent of firefighters are male. “That’s pretty rare (to be a female firefighter), and I can probably get a job pretty easy if I worked really hard,” Kinney said. “Women can try as hard as men and I don’t think it really matters to me.” It’s healthy to break stereotypes and the two senior girls are already transforming the “typical” firefighter. “It’s a job anybody can do,” Guerrero said. “You shouldn’t feel limited just because it’s not technically normal for a 5-foot2 teenage girl to want to be a firefighter.”
Rocky Mountain HIGHLIGHTER
FEATURES
Jan 29, 2014
B3
New teacher joins the pack Business teacher Padro Gould began teaching at Rocky at the beginning of the 2nd semester.
Q: What past experience do you have with teaching?
Tia Clark
Feelin’ the love: Teacher Laura Hogan and counselor Mark Reedy, who are engaged, enjoy working at the school together. Rocky has multiple teacher couples.
Learning to love
Working with spouses has advantages, disadvantages by Tia Clarkreporter
With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, people are thinking about love a lot more than usual—including teachers and staff members. Usually, the last thing students want to think about when it comes to love is their teachers being in it. Most students think that their teachers crawl up under their desk when the school day is done and stay there until the next morning. Hopefully, they have come to realize that teachers are more than just teachers, which means they have lives outside of school that include friends and family. Sometimes, though, their personal life is brought in to the workplace when they see that special someone walking down the hall. “We’ve been married coming up on 22 years in July,” government teacher Tom List said. “We started hanging out in ’89... that’s a quarter of a century.” The advantages of both Lists working in the same building outweigh the disadvantages. The advantages include being able to see each other for lunch breaks and knowing most of the same staff in the school. This also helps to make their jobs enjoyable. “Sometimes when our kids were smaller and everything was so hectic,” said Jane List, who is the social studies department secretary. “Being at school was the only time that we could just sit
Teacher feature
and talk, the two of us.” The Lists are not the only teacher couple who think working in the same building is not such a bad idea. Matthew and Kim Nigro, science and special needs teachers, respectively, have no complaints about working in the same building. However, working in two different departments means that they do not always see each other and do not normally get a lot of the same students. Though the couples see that many students find it awkward that they are working with their spouse, the fact that the couples are separated for much of that day tends to make it less so. Most are in separate departments and have come to realize the advantages of being in the same building. Math teacher Laura Hogan, who is engaged to counselor Mark Reedy, believes that being able to speak to Reedy about her job is a good thing, although sometimes it is hard to leave work at work. Although it might be an awkward topic, many of the teachers’ children attending the school seem less opposed to the situation then one may think. The Nigros’ daughter, sophomore Maddie Nigro, does not mind that both her parents work at her school at all. “If I ever need money or food or whatever, they are here,” Maddie Nigro said.
DECA to attend state competition Let’s get down to business: Allison Fitcher, Brenda Kordelowski, Caleb Sexton, and Micheli Oliver huddle at regionals. DECA sponsors expect that Rocky DECA will do well at the state competition.
by Kayla Brokopreporter
On Feb. 23 this year, 42 students will be competing in the state DECA competition in Colorado Springs. Rocky’s DECA team generally does very well at competitions. “We’ve got some good competitors,” Terra Thiebaut, DECA sponsor, said. The new sponsors of DECA are confident in the team’s abilities. “It’s a great group of kids and it’s a fun event to go to,” Lynne Lyell, DECA sponsor, said. DECA students do a lot to prepare for their competitions, and to help other students with their preparation as well. “We have student leaders that also put together workshops and get together with the other students, and everything else, and help train and mentor,” Robert Papp, DECA sponsor, said. The sponsors put a lot of work
Club feature
Courtesy of Lynne Lyell
into planning out DECA and insuring that the state competition will be a positive experience for the students who are involved. “It depends what event they’re in as to how we prepare them, but we’ve got study material, and for those who have to take a test, and we help them answer questions anytime we can,” Thiebaut said. Many of the students who succeed in DECA continue to be involved with business after high school. “A lot of the projects and stuff they work on are real world busi-
nesses . . . or they put on a community event that actually takes place and happens,” Thiebaut said. “There is a piece to it in class, the learning piece, but there’s also the real world piece.” DECA provides excellent opportunities for students who are planning to continue with business. Many of the companies who sponsor the DECA state competition are investing in the business leaders who attend the convention. The students who do well in state have the chance to continue on to nationals, which will take place in Atlanta, Georgia.
A: I taught with the Padro Gould University of Phoenix online, and that’s a college organization, and I did my student teaching at Fossil Ridge High School, and also took some classes and shadowed some teachers at Fort Collins High School prior to getting my teaching certification, and Masters of Education at Colorado State.
Question & answer
Q: Have you always taught in business?
A: I’m credentialed in business education, elementary education, and marketing education as well as career and technical education here in the Poudre School District, so I’ve only taught in the business education side. Q: How do you like Rocky so far? A: I love Rocky. Q: What made you want to come and teach
here?
A: I wanted to teach in the Poudre School District, I’ve had opportunities to get interviewed with other school districts in surrounding areas, but I have a son that’s in school here in the Poudre School district, elementary school, and so when the opportunity presented itself to teach here at Rocky, it was sort of a no-brainer. Q: How do your past teaching experiences compare to Rocky? A: My past teaching experiences are pretty much as a student teacher. I was a student liaison at Fossil Ridge High School, where I had a lot of interaction with students, but it was coming more from a disciplinary sort of monitoring of the students capacity, but my teaching was done in the student teaching realm, and that was really exciting. Q: What are your teaching plans for this
year?
A: I plan to teach Accounting One all semester, until summer vacation. I also have Intro to Business—two sections of that right now—and in the fourth quarter I will have two sections of Business [Economy], and finishing up Accounting One, of course. Q: Do you have any previous connections to Rocky?” A: Other than my CSU professor Karen Wangsvick, who was a prior Rocky high school principal, no I do not. Q: What is your favorite part about Rocky so far? A: My favorite part about Rocky is the students, and the efficiency of the administration.
Q: Is Rocky how you expected it to be? A: It’s better than I expected it to be, it’s everything I expected it to be, particularly, as a first-year teacher, it’s great. The support has been great from my department, from administration, the transition seemed really, really smooth, and again the students are phenomenal, great. Jessi Brokop
B4 Jan. 29, 2014
Rocky Mountain HIGHLIGHTER
CENTER SPREAD
Jan. 29 , 2014
“
Legalization of marijuana in state may lead to unprecedented results
B5
I smoked pot as a kid, and I view it as a bad habit and a vice, not very different from the cigarettes that I smoked as a young person up through a big chunk of my adult life. I don’t think it is more dangerous than alcohol.
”
-President Obama on marijuana in a Jan. 19, 2014 interview with the New Yorker
Recreational marijuana to be sold in Larimer County by Marissa Bonertzreporter The start of 2014 has given a whole new meaning to the Mile High State. As of Jan. 1, Colorado became one of two states that legalized the use of recreational marijuana. Unlike Washington, which will open dispensary doors later this year, Colorado opened up recreational marijuana dispensaries on New Years Day. Colorado also became the first place in the world that regulates pot from seed to sale. It is now legal to possess an ounce or less of marijuana. Don’t get too excited. Individuals must be 21 or over to buy recreational marijuana and it is still illegal for minors to obtain and possess any amount of marijuana. However, Denver removed the jail time penalty for people 18-21 in possession of marijuana. Fines will still be issued. Adam Titlebaum, Rocky parent and a medical marijuana caregiver, is a big proponent on the legalization of cannabis. “I think its great because I think it is a less harmful substance to consume compared to alcohol or cigarettes. I myself have been using it for over 30 years,” Titlebaum said. “There are a lot of people like veterans that suffer from PTSD and I have been lobbying for PTSD to be a condition covered by medical marijuana
and it didn’t get covered. That was one of the big reasons I wanted to see recreational marijuana legalized.” He does not merely sell weed. He cultivates hundreds of plants and does whatever he can to help his patients. Whether it be cooking dinner, driving them to the doctor, or simply sitting and talking with them, Titlebaum enjoys doing what he loves and helping people in need. Titlebaum and his wife are partners in this business. They have a warehouse that holds all the plants and make a variety of edibles in their home kitchen. Titlebaum has about 30 clients he cares for. “Every time there has been laxing of the laws in terms of where more people are able to gain access to it, I think all our business increases,” Titlebaum said. He attributes this to the new rule that adults 21 and over can give marijuana to other adults 21 and over, which results in an increase in people buying for others. The Titlebaums do not have a dispensary, and have no plans to open one in the wake of the legalization. “We were thinking about becoming a cultivation facility, which means we’re looking at becoming wholesalers. Dispensaries can’t grow enough medicine so we’re looking at just selling to dispensaries,” Titlebaum said.
There is no doubt that studies have shown that medicinal marijuana can have a positive impact on health impairments. “Pharmaceuticals can hurt people, can kill people, and I think man-made medicines are excellent but they can be abused,” government teacher Charlie Ross said. However, many may argue that recreational marijuana should remain illegal because of the unknown repercussions that may come of it. “I don’t think [the recreational use] is a good idea. I think, like anything, it can be abused,” Ross said. The new laws have also put in place a tax on the sale of recreational marijuana. The first $40 million goes to the construction of schools. “If they are going to use recreational marijuana, they should be taxed for it. There are people on the right side of the spectrum who are opposed to marijuana, recreational wise, but once they get addicted on the income on the taxes from it, there will be people on the right side of the spectrum that will be opposed to get rid of it. I think gaining financially from it isn’t good,” Ross said. Marijuana legalization can be related to prohibition in the 1920’s. The effects will not be known until the regulations have been put in place and have had the chance to settle in to today’s society.
Teen use of marijuana rising by Noah Fogelbergsports editor Breaking news: high school students smoke copious amounts of weed. According to a recent poll of 353 Rocky students, 33.4 percent of students admitted to consuming, possessing or distributing marijuana. Additionally, in a National Institutes of Heath survey released in December, the number of high schoolers who believe marijuana use is dangerous continues to drop, while pot use among teens continues to rise. Rocky is situated in the center of a city known to produce quality pot, in the middle of the first state to fully legalize and regulate the sale and consumption of the drug. This has created quite the controversy throughout the community and caused many to wonder how legalization will affect students at a school affectionately dubbed High High. Although it is too soon after Amendment 64 went into effect to accurately measure the impact that it has had and will have on students, many
still offered up their opinion regarding legalization. Shockingly enough, almost every student asked was in support of legalized weed. “I feel like it’s completely reasonable and that it should be happening in more states than just Colorado (and Washington),” an anonymous user said. Technically, the law does not apply to high school students as only people over the age of 21 will be able to “blaze” without legal repercussions, however the way teens access the drug could be changing. “There are probably people now that have older brothers or sisters that are old enough to get it for them,” an anonymous user said. Although none of the anonymous users of marijuana that were interviewed have yet seen an impact on high school students, they all seemed optimistic about the future impacts that may or may not come to fruition. “I think it could shift people away from things like alcohol and tobacco,” another anonymous user said, citing the commonly held belief that
smoking marijuana is actually less harmful than other legal substances. Another popular belief held by many proponents of weed legalization is that the black market side to the drug could fade away, as many users would opt to buy legal weed in dispensaries in which the production of the drug is regulated and safe, rather than buying in a possibly shady drug deal in which the weed could be laced or tampered with in some form. “(Legalization) is definitely lowering crime. There’s no black market for it anymore,” the second anonymous user said. On the other hand, law enforcement is now dealing with its own struggles when it comes to dealing with students living in a state that has legalized marijuana. “From our perspective, it probably makes marijuana more like alcohol than an illegal substance,” School Resource Officer (SRO), Matt Johnson said. The focus of the police, contrary to popular belief, is not to bust teens with weed however they can, simply to help those whose lives are
being negatively affected by the drug. “I’m trying to help them make good choices for their life. Recover from addiction, all those types of things,” Johnson said. Johnson highlighted the challenges of dealing with the new law, noting the ambiguity of Amendment 64. According the statute, it remains illegal to smoke in public, which has caused many communities and law enforcement agencies to question the meaning of public. Many conservative areas of the state have passed restrictive local ordinances regarding this conundrum, while other, more liberal areas, have been significantly more lenient in defining public. Although no quantitative data can yet be shown demonstrating an effect that weed has had on high school students, Johnson remains keen on the students he serves, being sure that regardless of the legal state of weed, they remain on a positive track for the rest of their lives. “I think we’re in the midst of that transition, and I’m curious to see where it goes,” Johnson said.
B4 Jan. 29, 2014
Rocky Mountain HIGHLIGHTER
CENTER SPREAD
Jan. 29 , 2014
“
Legalization of marijuana in state may lead to unprecedented results
B5
I smoked pot as a kid, and I view it as a bad habit and a vice, not very different from the cigarettes that I smoked as a young person up through a big chunk of my adult life. I don’t think it is more dangerous than alcohol.
”
-President Obama on marijuana in a Jan. 19, 2014 interview with the New Yorker
Recreational marijuana to be sold in Larimer County by Marissa Bonertzreporter The start of 2014 has given a whole new meaning to the Mile High State. As of Jan. 1, Colorado became one of two states that legalized the use of recreational marijuana. Unlike Washington, which will open dispensary doors later this year, Colorado opened up recreational marijuana dispensaries on New Years Day. Colorado also became the first place in the world that regulates pot from seed to sale. It is now legal to possess an ounce or less of marijuana. Don’t get too excited. Individuals must be 21 or over to buy recreational marijuana and it is still illegal for minors to obtain and possess any amount of marijuana. However, Denver removed the jail time penalty for people 18-21 in possession of marijuana. Fines will still be issued. Adam Titlebaum, Rocky parent and a medical marijuana caregiver, is a big proponent on the legalization of cannabis. “I think its great because I think it is a less harmful substance to consume compared to alcohol or cigarettes. I myself have been using it for over 30 years,” Titlebaum said. “There are a lot of people like veterans that suffer from PTSD and I have been lobbying for PTSD to be a condition covered by medical marijuana
and it didn’t get covered. That was one of the big reasons I wanted to see recreational marijuana legalized.” He does not merely sell weed. He cultivates hundreds of plants and does whatever he can to help his patients. Whether it be cooking dinner, driving them to the doctor, or simply sitting and talking with them, Titlebaum enjoys doing what he loves and helping people in need. Titlebaum and his wife are partners in this business. They have a warehouse that holds all the plants and make a variety of edibles in their home kitchen. Titlebaum has about 30 clients he cares for. “Every time there has been laxing of the laws in terms of where more people are able to gain access to it, I think all our business increases,” Titlebaum said. He attributes this to the new rule that adults 21 and over can give marijuana to other adults 21 and over, which results in an increase in people buying for others. The Titlebaums do not have a dispensary, and have no plans to open one in the wake of the legalization. “We were thinking about becoming a cultivation facility, which means we’re looking at becoming wholesalers. Dispensaries can’t grow enough medicine so we’re looking at just selling to dispensaries,” Titlebaum said.
There is no doubt that studies have shown that medicinal marijuana can have a positive impact on health impairments. “Pharmaceuticals can hurt people, can kill people, and I think man-made medicines are excellent but they can be abused,” government teacher Charlie Ross said. However, many may argue that recreational marijuana should remain illegal because of the unknown repercussions that may come of it. “I don’t think [the recreational use] is a good idea. I think, like anything, it can be abused,” Ross said. The new laws have also put in place a tax on the sale of recreational marijuana. The first $40 million goes to the construction of schools. “If they are going to use recreational marijuana, they should be taxed for it. There are people on the right side of the spectrum who are opposed to marijuana, recreational wise, but once they get addicted on the income on the taxes from it, there will be people on the right side of the spectrum that will be opposed to get rid of it. I think gaining financially from it isn’t good,” Ross said. Marijuana legalization can be related to prohibition in the 1920’s. The effects will not be known until the regulations have been put in place and have had the chance to settle in to today’s society.
Teen use of marijuana rising by Noah Fogelbergsports editor Breaking news: high school students smoke copious amounts of weed. According to a recent poll of 353 Rocky students, 33.4 percent of students admitted to consuming, possessing or distributing marijuana. Additionally, in a National Institutes of Heath survey released in December, the number of high schoolers who believe marijuana use is dangerous continues to drop, while pot use among teens continues to rise. Rocky is situated in the center of a city known to produce quality pot, in the middle of the first state to fully legalize and regulate the sale and consumption of the drug. This has created quite the controversy throughout the community and caused many to wonder how legalization will affect students at a school affectionately dubbed High High. Although it is too soon after Amendment 64 went into effect to accurately measure the impact that it has had and will have on students, many
still offered up their opinion regarding legalization. Shockingly enough, almost every student asked was in support of legalized weed. “I feel like it’s completely reasonable and that it should be happening in more states than just Colorado (and Washington),” an anonymous user said. Technically, the law does not apply to high school students as only people over the age of 21 will be able to “blaze” without legal repercussions, however the way teens access the drug could be changing. “There are probably people now that have older brothers or sisters that are old enough to get it for them,” an anonymous user said. Although none of the anonymous users of marijuana that were interviewed have yet seen an impact on high school students, they all seemed optimistic about the future impacts that may or may not come to fruition. “I think it could shift people away from things like alcohol and tobacco,” another anonymous user said, citing the commonly held belief that
smoking marijuana is actually less harmful than other legal substances. Another popular belief held by many proponents of weed legalization is that the black market side to the drug could fade away, as many users would opt to buy legal weed in dispensaries in which the production of the drug is regulated and safe, rather than buying in a possibly shady drug deal in which the weed could be laced or tampered with in some form. “(Legalization) is definitely lowering crime. There’s no black market for it anymore,” the second anonymous user said. On the other hand, law enforcement is now dealing with its own struggles when it comes to dealing with students living in a state that has legalized marijuana. “From our perspective, it probably makes marijuana more like alcohol than an illegal substance,” School Resource Officer (SRO), Matt Johnson said. The focus of the police, contrary to popular belief, is not to bust teens with weed however they can, simply to help those whose lives are
being negatively affected by the drug. “I’m trying to help them make good choices for their life. Recover from addiction, all those types of things,” Johnson said. Johnson highlighted the challenges of dealing with the new law, noting the ambiguity of Amendment 64. According the statute, it remains illegal to smoke in public, which has caused many communities and law enforcement agencies to question the meaning of public. Many conservative areas of the state have passed restrictive local ordinances regarding this conundrum, while other, more liberal areas, have been significantly more lenient in defining public. Although no quantitative data can yet be shown demonstrating an effect that weed has had on high school students, Johnson remains keen on the students he serves, being sure that regardless of the legal state of weed, they remain on a positive track for the rest of their lives. “I think we’re in the midst of that transition, and I’m curious to see where it goes,” Johnson said.
B6 Jan. 29, 2014
Rocky Mountain HIGHLIGHTER
L IMELIGHT
Games and Entertainment Sudoku Challenge The objective of the puzzle is to complete the 9x9 grid so that every column, row, and 3x3 grid within the 9x9 grid contains the digits 1 through 9 exactly once. Each puzzle can be solved with pure logic, so guessing should not be necessary.
Difficulty Level: Hard
(Puzzle solution posted on bulletin board outside of room 528)
Top Ten Things not to do at a Super Bowl party
10. Try Richard Sherman. 9. Only drink water. 8. Ask, “Who is Peyton Manning?” 7. Only watch
the commercials. 6. Bring a soccer ball. 5. Wear a Tim Tebow jersey. 4. Bring a live mascot. 3. Double-dip.
2. Root for the Seahawks. 1. Watch Teenwolf with Donald Chen. Marissa Bonertz, Madeline Zann, Noah Fogelberg, and Trey Jouard
Wolf of Wall Street not for all ages by Marissa Bonertzreporter
Boobs, drugs, and more boobs. That is pretty much all that The Wolf of Wall Street consists of. This three-hour long movie could be cut in half by removing all the shots of naked women and drug use. If you’re expecting a nice weekend movie about the struggles of working as a stockbroker, this movie is not for you. The Wolf of Wall Street is definitely not a family movie. I applaud Leonardo DiCaprio for pulling off an emotional, confused, sex addict after playing much tamer roles in movies such as Titanic and The Great Gatsby. He is very convincing in his role of Jordan Belfort, a stockbroker that continuously makes poor decisions. His decisions catch up with him when the federal government
Movie review
gets involved and wants to shut down his firm. It seems that he is finally going to make a good decision to give up his firm and save himself, but at the last minute he falls into his old ways. This movie drags on and on, with a quick and abrupt ending. The story line itself is not terrible. The drastically different life that Jordan Belfort has is intriguing and an intense eye-opener. However, it is clear that he loves to party, drink, do a variety of drugs, and have sex with multiple women within the first 20 minutes of the film. The uncomfortable tension in the theater could be cut by a knife. When the movie finally draws to an end, the abrupt finale comes as a shock and leaves the audience dazed and confused about what they have just witnessed. DiCaprio has a way of keeping things classy, whether it is giving up the wood board to Rose in Titanic, or throwing soi-
Courtesy Mary Cybulski/Paramount Pictures/MCT
The Wolf of Wall Street: Leonardo DiCaprio (Jordan Belfort) teaches his new employees how to call customers and close huge deals by exaggerating the truth.
rees in The Great Gatsby, but his role in The Wolf of Wall Street is nothing but trashy.
Sorry Leo, but it’s one out of four stars for me.
Rocky Mountain HIGHLIGHTER
Spring musical Urinetown spurs uncertainty Junior Jamison Coe is eagerly anticipating his role as the lead villain, Caldwell B. Cladwell, in Urinetown.
Q: Were you skeptical of the name? A: Absolutely, but this is something I probably want to do for the rest of my life so really I didn’t care what the play was about. Q: How have students responded to the musical? A: It’s very mixed, as far as the
reaction goes. I will never forget explaining to my grandma I was in a musical about bathrooms. She’s still confused, she’s coming to see it, but she’s very confused. It’s been mostly they’re intrigued, because they have no idea what it is.
Question & answer
Q: Why did you audition to be the musical’s villain? A: I like playing villains, I like to imagine that I am a nice guy, at least in my everyday life, but deep down everybody has a little evil. Playing a villain is a very constructive way to be destructive. Q: What do you want the audience members to take away from your performance? A: I think that whenever actors are
on stage, they want the audience to like them. That’s my biggest hope- it’s interesting when I am playing a villain because audience members hate the villain, because they want the good guy to win, but you enjoy watching the villain and seeing everything unfold on stage because of the villain... I want to show that I am having fun on stage, because if I have fun the audience is going to have fun.
Q: How is the musical different
from past productions?
A: The last two musicals I did at the school, Annie and My Fair Lady, are much more recognized. You can say to someone that you’re going to see Annie and people will have an idea of what you’re talking about, with Urinetown that’s not always the case so it’s different in that sense. It’s also much more satirical than the others; it’s making fun of the stereotypical play. Noel Knostman
L IMELIGHT
Jan. 29, 2014
B7
Shatterproof strikes again by Madeline Zannopinion editor
Shatterproof is back, electric violin and all. Shatterproof ’s new album Discord Harmony was released Jan. 10 at an album release party at Hodi’s Half Note in downtown Fort Collins. It is the alternative rock band’s second EP, and Discord Harmony builds off the foundation created in their first EP, Running In Circles. The band is made up of three 2013 Rocky alums—TJ Wessel, Benjamin Spolianksy, and Branson Hoog, as well as local alums Jeremy Marmor and Josh Schoenig. Shatterproof has obviously matured since their 2012 EP, experimenting with newer sounds. That being said, the band seems to have found a niche that works for them. Discord Harmony starts off strong with “Sticks and Stones,” reminding listeners that this band is different than other alternate rock bands: they have a violinist. Wessel’s violin talent compliments Shatterproof ’s sound throughout the song and the album, reminding the listener why Shatterproof is unique to their genre. “Sticks and Stones” not only shows growth in song writing ability, but also in production quality. Overall, Discord Harmony sounds better than their first EP. Discord Harmony was produced at the local studio The Blasting Room and produced by Andrew Berlin, who also produced Tickle Me Pink, a former Rocky band. The album continues at breakneck speed until “October,” which despite
CD review
Courtesy of Shatterproof
An album to remember: 2013 alum Branson Hoog poses while singing for Shatterproof’s new album, Discord Harmony. The album was released Jan. 10 at Hodi’s Half Note in downtown Fort Collins.
some slightly sappy lyrics, breaks up the album nicely with more of an acoustic feel, and finishes out the song with softer vocal harmonies. Shatterproof then returns to their traditional sound with “Expectations” and finishes the album on an eerie note with “TV Dinners.”
While strictly only an EP at six songs, Discord Harmony should leave Shatterproof fans perfectly satisfied and shows good potential for the band’s future. Shatterproof can be found on iTunes and online at Facebook.com/ WeAreShatterproof.
Huge entertainment, small people by Aaron Yucenter editor
If I was allowed just a single word to describe how I felt about The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, it would probably have to be transcendent. Through this film, director Peter Jackson has replicated, if not exceeded, the same degree of epic adventure that he managed to capture with the original Lord of the Rings trilogy. This movie is a long shot away from any form of desolation. Martin Freeman returns as Bilbo Baggins, an adventurous hobbit who has been chosen to help defeat the monstrous dragon Smaug. Accompanied by a motley crew of dwarves and an obscenely tall wizard, the group troops on with the ultimate goal of taking back the home of the dwarves: the Lonely Mountain. Whether it be escaping from elves by riding in barrels, realizing that orcs can have children, or watching Gandalf and the
Movie review
MCT
Hobbits and Dwarves: Hobbit Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman), left, prepares for approaching danger with dwarf Oin (John Callen), right, in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.
Dark Lord Sauron engage in a duel of epic proportions, this movie just doesn’t quit. I found myself trying to not blink throughout roughly three hours so that I could ensure that I didn’t miss a single splitsecond of pure, fast-paced bliss. It’s quite frankly just hard to look away when lush environments and convincing acting come together in a fantasy world with a rich story line. Like the first film, the ac-
companying soundtrack takes nothing away from the mood of the fictional universe; if anything, it draws you deeper into the film, your heart thumping with every downbeat as a breathtaking battle scene takes place. However, the content of the sequel far champions that of the first. Personally, I was a little disappointed in the first movie. It just seemed like filler with a bit of mindless action thrown in.
The second film in The Hobbit trilogy took away all my doubts that these movies are grooming us to be ready for a mind-blowing grand finale. Hard-core fans of the book may find themselves irritated by the discrepancies present within the film as compared to the book, such as the inclusion of Legolas from the original trilogy in the film. A rather major character, Jackson’s choice to have Orlando Bloom shooting down orcs most certainly changes the story line, but not in a bad way. If you look at the book and the movie as separate entities, appreciating the film for what it is will soon follow. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug has everything that I love to see in a movie. Superb acting, amazing visuals and a story line that doesn’t have you yawning every 14 seconds. I probably should have paid more money for the entertainment that I left the theater with. Regardless of whether or not you enjoyed the first film, its successor is definitely worth a watch.
Rocky Mountain HIGHLIGHTER
L act to awe e n O
LIMELIGHT
B8
Jan. 29, 2014 What’s in the Limelight?
T o d ay: Co me d y - A zi z A ns a r i @ Pi kes Pea k Ce n t er J a n . 31: Movi e Re lea se- Tha t A w kward Mom en t M ov ie Re l ea s eL a b or D a y Co n c ert- C od y Simp s on @ M a rq u is The a te r Co m edy- C ol i n M oc h ri e & B r a d Sh e r wood @ Pa ra mo unt The a ter F e b . 1: Sc hool Sa d ie s H awki ns dance @ 7 : 3 0 p.m. F e b . 3: CD R el e ase- Ka ty B F e b . 7: Mo vi e Re lea se- The M on u ments M en F e b . 8: Rock y Ch amb er Fes tiv al a ll d a y F e b . 10: Co nc e r t - 2 Chai nz a n d Pusha T @ Og den The a ter F e b . 11: Co nc e r t - Sti ng a nd P au l Si mon @ P ep si C ente r F e b . 14: Mo vi e Re lea se- En d l es s Love Ro c k y- One A cts @ 7p .m. F e b . 15: O ne A c t s @ 7p.m . F e b . 17: CD Re lea se- Ed Sh e era n F e b . 18: Rock y P re-Festi val Co n c ert, Su mm it a nd Wi nd s @ 7 p. m. F e b . 19: Co ncer t - Pr et ty Reck l es s @ T h e Summ i t M u sic H a l l F e b . 20: Rock y Sin C a p , C B , Ec h oes, LB @ 7 p. m. F e b . 21: Mo vi e Re lea se- 3 Da y s t o K ill F e b . 25: C D R el e ase - The F r a y
Three student directors, four shows, one night, endless fun
Seeing the production play out isn’t only fun for the director or audience, it’s rewarding for cast members as well. Students are people with whom we can con“It’s really cool, because as a cast member fide; they’re the people we go to before adults, you get to see other people’s reactions to your mostly because we can relate to them. performance. You know every punch line Hoping that peer-to-peer interaction will is coming but it is cool to have people spark the creative process, Winter One Acts (a to laugh at you, or with you I guess,” compilation of 20- to 30-minute plays on Feb. Winkelman said. 14 and 15) will have student directors, instead Having a of faculty. sense of humor Both advantages and is important disadvantages come with in all aspects student leadership. One of theater. advantage would be a But to have cohesive unit of students a sense of who can relate to each I wanted to make my humor with other. own style of directing peers, you “Having a student have to estabdirector is definitely less . . . for such a short lish a bond intimidating and stressperiod of time, we of friendship ful,” cast member and feel very close. first. sophomore Katie Winkel“I’m really man said. “They’re more Jacob Munro, close with laid back and generally senior my cast more open to hearing new right now, ideas.” we’ve One new idea can hung out a couple times and transform the whole act, and cast members we’re all good friends. I feel often contribute to the creative process. like I don’t have to threaten “I think student directing is a wonderful them to work, which makes opportunity to allow peers to interact and also it a good experience for serve in a leadership role,” said Larissa Schendel, everybody,” Munro said. facilitator of the One Acts and drama teacher. In four short words, “As a director there is a lot that goes into the Winkelman summed job and I don’t think the students/actors always up the excitement surknow the work that it takes to direct a show. rounding one acts: “It’s This is definitely an eye-opening experience for gonna be rad.” all of them.” Four-year veteran of One Acts, Jacob Munro, is excited for the opportunity to direct his own cast. “I wanted to make my own style of directing and get close with the cast. Even now after being with each other for such a short period of time, we feel very close,” Munro said. Each student director has a different way of directing, but they all share one common trait. “Student directors work more with trial and error than adult directors,” Winkelman said. “They (adults) have a set plan, while students use more of an experimental process.” Audience members going to see the show would see it through a different lens than directors who have every movement memorized. For a director, seeing a production come together in front of an audience is a gratifying experience that someone on the outside might not HMS Barnacle: Junior Devin Rogever know. ers (playing Henry Melvin Sydney “It’s beautiful,” Munro Barnacle) fences junior Julia Johnsaid. “The week before, son (Dunsinane) in the one act, “HMS Barnacle.” Director Jacob however, it’s so chaotic Munro has Rogers casually drink and it seems like no one from a cup in the opening scene. knows what they’re doing.” Reyna Thompson by Reyna Thompsonreporter
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One Acts
►Where: Mini theater ►When: Feb. 1415 @ 7 p.m. ►Tickets: $5 for all