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VOLUME 33, ISSUE 5

RETHINKING HOMEWORK Center-Spread

Rethink what type of homework is most beneficial for class and hear teacher and student input in this issue’s C-spread, pages 6-7.

Thursday, March 5, 2015

www.hopkinsrp.org

Students engineer for greener future

The Scholastic Art Awards recognized 31 HHS students regionally for their work. (From left to right) Rachel Colestock, Isabelle Bergman, Alyssa Resnick, Lauret Wilson, and Samantha Schultz, seniors, were awarded for their work in drawing and painting, photography, and ceramics.

Water bottle filling addition designed to reduce plastic waste

by Sophie Frank Staff Reporter What started as class curriculum turned into a commissioned

project for Mechanical Engineering students Zach Shear, Andrew Patel, and Charlie Abel, juniors.

Earth Club wanted more water bottle filling stations at HHS,

but hiring a professional to do the job would cost thousands of

dollars. After failing to acquire a grant, the club found a cheaper solution in the Technology Department.

Mechanical Engineering students normally have a final project to

photo by Claire Benton

Scholastic Art Awards

recognize artistic touch

undertake at the end of the semester, but Mr. Robert Fuhr, Tech-

by Addie Lennon News Editor

of designing a new, cost-efficient filler option to Shear, Patel, and

Jonathan Clay, senior, spends half of his school day in the ceramics studio with AP Ceramics and a directed study. His time in the studio has led him to win two Scholastic Art Award (SAA) Gold Keys.

“Honestly, I wasn’t really looking forward to anything. There are eighth

nology Department and Earth Club advisor, assigned the task Abel specifically.

“I had [Shear, Patel, and Abel]

as sophomores in Introduction to Engineering, so as advanced students, I tried to get more of a prac-

tical application for what they’ve

graders who enter who are amazing, so I thought I wouldn’t win. But then I did, and it was a nice surprise,” Clay said.

Clay was the recipient of two Gold Key awards for his deer antler teapot and smoke-fired bottle ceramic pieces.

This is the highest award that can be received at the regional level.

Every year, the SAA recognizes students regionally with Gold Keys,

Silver Keys, and Honorable Mentions, and the top 2,000 are recognized nationally with Gold Medals and Silver Medals. This year, HHS students received a total of 31 regional acknowledgements, up from 17 last year, in the drawing and painting, ceramics, and photography areas.

ART AWARDS cont. on page 3

learned,” Fuhr said. “I tried to get Reusing water bottles could reduce excess waste. Bottle filling stations would facilitate reuse. photo by Ruby Krietzman

them a real world problem-solving assignment.”

So the boys took on the challenge

to solve a real scenario affecting their

community - a real engineering experience.

“We started off just brainstorming ideas - how to make it work.

We drew up all the parts we were going to need on Autodesk Inventor, a 3D modeling program,” said Shear.

STUDENT ENGINEERS cont. on page 8

Winning becomes routine for Novak The basketball coach stands at center of team’s perennial success

by Kyle Makey Staff Reporter With their 91-66 win against Edina on Friday, Feb. 13, boys basketball earned their 20th victory of the season. Almost every other school in the state would automatically consider a 20-win year a great success, but for the Royals, it’s just another season.

For the 24th straight season, the Royals eclipsed the 20 win mark. The last time the boys basketball team did not reach over 20 wins was during the 1990-1991 season, the first season at HHS for Mr. Ken Novak Jr., head coach and Social Studies. He had spent the previous

10 seasons coaching at Blaine.

The 24 consecutive 20-plus win seasons is the longest active record in the state. Braham is second with 19 straight seasons.

“I wouldn’t have known that record. I don’t really pay attention to those types of accomplishments,” Novak said.

He is not new to such achievements, as he has won at least a share of 21 Lake Conference titles, has the most state championships for a head coach at one school in Minn. at six, has won 761 games as of Feb. 24, has been ESPN’s High School Coach of the Year, and was inducted into the Minn. Basketball Hall of Fame.

Despite all the success, Novak hasn’t recently considered moving on to coach at the next level.

NOVAK cont. on page 10

One-to-one technology to come

by Nate Pasko Print Editor-in-Chief The one-to-one technology steering committee is exploring the option of Chromebooks as the personal device given to each HHS student next year.

“We examined obstacles and opportunities that could arise from each possible device and compiled a list of needs and challenges from each department at HHS,” said Mr. Ivar Nelson, Director of Technology, Media, and Information Systems for the Hopkins School District. “It was quickly apparent that our options were either a laptop or tablet, and through continued discussion, it seems that a Chromebook comes the closest to fulfilling those needs.”

The steering committee is including a number of factors in their decision, chiefly the ‘80 percent solution.’

“A main concern is finding the tool that can be included in at least 80 percent of a student’s work, with the other 20 percent accomplished through more traditional means,” Nelson said.

“We had to consider a number of elements, including what this would mean for teachers, what the device can and can’t do, how we will manage over 1700 devices, and the strains that will be placed upon the Hopkins network.”

SPORTS, page 10

Nordic season recap

The nordic team continued a strong tradition, sending eight skiers to state.

FEATURE, page 9

Laptops serve as a learning tool for students in the classroom.

Chromebooks are currently being explored as an option for the one-toone technology program for the 2015-16 school year.

A Converse canvas

photo by Ruby Krietzman

At the Feb. 5 school board meeting, Nelson and Mr. John Toop, Director of Business Services, presented information to the board surrounding the Capital Projects Levy appropriated to fund one-to-one and other technology projects and provided the board with the expenditures in this levy.

The funds in the levy will be able to support the one-toone technology. The one-to-one program will eventually be approved by the school board as part of the budget proposal as a whole.

“The school board’s role in this decision is comparatively small but very important,” said Mr. John Schultz, Superintendent.

The steering committee is

in no rush to make their final decision.

“Right now, we are taking a deeper look at the Chromebook.

There are seven different models to choose from,” Nelson said.

“We are under no deadline and are simply focused on making the right decision for both staff and students.”

Members of Student Government are currently beta-testing a few of the seven possible Chromebook models.

The plan with which the committee is moving forward will give every student entering grades 10-12 a device during the 2015-2016 school year.

Stay tuned as The Royal Page continues to report on developments on the one-to-one technology front.

Hannah Paavola, junior, paints with Converse shoes as her canvas.

What type of student are you?

Are you hardworking? Too cool for school? Take the quiz and find out now.

Take the quiz on

hopkinsrp.org

RPThursday, March 5, 2015

RP BRIEFS Students and Hopkins community participate in Empty Bowls Fundraiser On Feb. 11, HHS ceramics students helped Hopkins citizens make bowls for the Empty Bowls Fundraiser. The other participants included the Community Chair of Empty Bowls, district staff, and community leaders.

The annual Empty Bowls Fundraiser at Hopkins Center for the Arts will be held on March 24 this year. People who attend the event will be able to pick a bowl and decide whether or not to donate. All the money raised will be donated to ICA Foodshelf and ResourceWest.

Over the past 16 years, the Hopkins Schools community has raised a total of $862,025 during the Empty Bowls fundraiser.

Fourth graders in all six Hopkins elementary schools made bowls along with the students in ceramics at North Junior High, West Junior High, and HHS. “The goal of the fundraiser is to raise $80,000. The day before the event, we usually raise $65,000 of that in sponsorship,” said Barb Westmooreland, coordinator of Empty Bowls.

The expenses of the event are minimal because almost everything is donated.

“Everyone can come, you can make donations if you want to, but everything is free,” Westmooreland said. “You come and walk around the art center, choose your bowl, have some food. There is entertainment that changes every half hour.”

Deeply Royal hosts Step It Up Deeply Royal, the hip-hop dance squad, is known for their performances at various sporting events and pepfests. On Tuesday Feb. 17, they decided to celebrate Black History month by hosting their 8th annual Step It Up event.

This years’ lineup included hip hop and step groups from various places across the metro area, including Champlin Park, Edina, Robbinsdale Cooper, LoveWorks Academy, and Eastview.

Double dutch girls of Pros of the Rope also made an appearance.

Solo artists included Bianca Williams, senior, who shared spoken word, and Malik Andrews (“Dirty White”), senior, who performed an original song. The event was MC’ed by HHS alum Lance Mitchell, and the night closed with a performance by the hosts themselves, Deeply Royal.

Students from all over the metro expressed creativity through spoken word, rap, hip hop, and step. The event is expected to be held again next year.

briefs by Isabel Hall and Addie Lennon

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Engage:

Dr. Hollie leads students in a discussion of culture

by Jack Smith Staff Reporter Last year, the class of 2014 represented over 29 different countries.

With such a diverse student body, the HHS community is usually accepting of different cultures and new ideas. However, there’s always room for improvement.

“The teachers of the high school have been working with a consultant named Dr. Sharroky Hollie out of California.

For the last two years, he’s been working with the teachers on how to make our classrooms more responsive to all sorts of different cultures. Not just race, but youth culture, gender culture, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status,” said Ms. Felicia Homberger, language arts.

Last Wednesday, a total of 35 students and several teachers met with Dr. Hollie to discuss the different types of cultures and how to be more responsive to the various groups.

“I took them through an identity development exercises that forces one to look at him/ herself in different layers, separating race from all of the cultures (or identities) that we are.

I call these the rings of cultures.

The rings are age, ethnic, socioeconomic, gender, orientation, and others.” Said Dr. Sharroky Hollie, executive director of the Center for Culturally Responsive Teaching and Learning (CCRTL).

Spearheaded by student government, students also dis-

Dr. Sharroky Hollie is a national consultant with the Center for Culturally Responsive Teaching and Learning. A group of students met with him to develop strategies to make HHS more culturally responsive.

Dr. Hollie has also been working with the staff for the last two years. photos by Ruby Krietzman

cussed some of the challenges they face at HHS. A different meeting has been scheduled to work on possible solutions to these problems.

“The plan was to bring students into the conversation,” Homberger said. “When you’re working with High School students, they are young adults and they have a stake in the school.

We just felt bringing the students in was essential in that it can’t work without the students’

participation.”

Some of the topics included race, religion, gender, and sexual orientation. Other issues involved making HHS classrooms more responsive to the rings of culture.

“The areas that stood out to me where the students thought Hopkins could be more responsive were: the need for gender neutral restrooms, prayer rooms for Muslim students, movement in more classrooms, and making

the learning process shared by teachers and students,” Hollie said.

Of course, these changes won’t happen overnight. For HHS to see these ideas put to action, it will take dedication and cooperation from students and staff alike.

“I think both students and staff were energized by the conversations and most of us want to move forward,” Homberger said.

Measles makes comeback

by Jack Smith Staff Reporter Before most students entered kindergarten, they walked into the doctor’s office, sat down, and waited for the nurse to stick a needle into their arm.

After an acceptable amount of crying, they walked out knowing only that the shot they just got will keep them from getting sick.

However, how much does the average student know about what these vaccinations are actually doing? What even are diphtheria, measles, and rubella? And most importantly, why do shots even matter?

Measles, a virus that has reemerged in the past few years, was declared eradicated from the United States in 2000.

That’s because, for the most part, we were able to successfully vaccinate our population against the virus.

There’s a simple reason for this sudden comeback; fewer people are getting vaccinated.

Vaccinations work by taking advantage of our immune

system’s natural ability to learn how to defend itself against diseases.

In the case of measles, doctors inject a live strain of the virus into a patient so the patient’s immune system can learn and remember how to fight it off. If enough people get vaccinated, the virus can’t spread and will die out.

“It’s based on the premise of herd immunity. If a certain percentage of a population is vaccinated against a disease, we can prevent the spread of that disease. If we fall below that percentage, the disease still spreads,” said Ms. Bobbi Pointer, Licensed School Nurse.

Herd immunity doesn’t require everyone to be vaccinated, but if more are people protected from a disease or virus, fewer people will get sick as a whole.

Essentially, vaccinations not only protect the person receiving the shot, but work towards protecting the entire population. In a school, this is crucial in maintaining a healthy student body.

The District has a “no shots,

no school” policy, though it’s possible for students and parents to “opt out” of their vaccinations. As a result, there is a small percent of unvaccinated students at HHS and throughout the district.

“Many people have medical reasons they can’t be vaccinated.

If they are going through chemotherapy or they are immunosuppressed for any other reason, they cannot get vaccinated.

However, many people choose not to vaccinate for fear of autism, or because they don’t think it’s good to put that kind of stuff in their body,” Pointer said.

These fears have contributed to a rise in the percentage of unvaccinated children in Minnesota and the United States as a whole. In fact, in Minnesota alone, the CDC estimates

that roughly 6.5 percent of kindergarteners are unvaccinated against measles mumps and rubella.

If this percentage continues to rise, the population risks losing its herd immunity, and outbreaks like the one we are currently experiencing will become more common.

So, before the class of 2015 finds themselves in college dorm rooms next year, they must first re-trace those pre-k steps back to the Doctor’s office, sit down, and wait for the nurse to come and give them their much-needed shots (in most cases meningitis and hepatitis B). Then, after they shed an appropriate amount of tears, they can go to college knowing they are protecting themselves and their fellow students.

“ “ ____” ____” Vaccinations are safe and have been proven over and over again to save lives.

-Bobbi Pointer, school nurse

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RPThursday, March 5, 2015

AP appeals to motivated students

by Haley DenHartog News Editor

prove my intellectual and critical thinking, and a lot of times when you get into the higher level classes, they are actually interesting- they teach me more about what I can do with my life,” Bartels-Mills said.

Teachers report that one of the biggest differences between an AP class and a regular level high school class is the student’s ability to prepare.

Many teachers who teach regular level high school classes begin the course with demonstrating many different study

techniques, then later begin to teach the material. Since it is a requirement for AP classes to be reviewed by college professors, many AP teachers expect students to know how to study.

Teachers and students alike notice differences in behavior and participation in AP classes as opposed to regular classes.

Overall, it was reported that students taking AP classes are more motivated to listen and ask questions.

“I think to make the conscious decision to sign up for an

604

HHS students took at least one AP exam

967

total AP exams taken

by HHS students

677

total AP exams passed

by HHS students

AP or Honors class implies that you have a certain motivation. I don’t think there is a huge difference between academic ability in Regular Chemistry and Honors Chemistry, it just comes down to what students want to put their efforts into,” said Mr. Matt Kappel, Science.

In order to graduate, students must complete 54 credits. In the event students are short credits, they tend to lean towards taking classes that will not challenge them, but still fulfill their credential require-

ments.

Whether it be interest, resumes or another force, students signing up for AP classes must possess some sort of motivating factor because AP is never a requirement in high school.

“In AP classes, you have to push yourself harder and you have to realize that it’s not all busy work, it’s critical thinking and being able to understand concepts beyond basic knowledge,” Bartels-Mills said.

2014 statistics

In the spring of 2014, 66 percent of Minn. students who took an AP exam earned a passing score, according to the Minnesota Office of Higher Education (MOHE).

Although AP exam scores don’t count towards grades, AP classes may allow more flexibility in students’ college schedules or allow them to graduate early.

The opportunity for college credit motivates some to enroll in rigorous courses, but teachers have noticed that many students are also encouraged by the AP label.

“Sometimes students take AP classes just to build up their resumes. I hope they are there to learn the material, but I think that, for some AP kids, what motivates them is the future,” said Ms. Felicia Homberger, Language Arts.

Last year, MOHE reported that 40,877 Minn. students took an AP exam, which was more than a five percent increase from the previous year. Many colleges around the country are creating higher admission standards, which forces students to be strategic when enrolling for classes.

What some students don’t

realize is that they are not only signing up for a more rigorous high school class, but they are also committing themselves to completing work at college standards. Before an AP class is allowed to be taught in a high school, college professors teaching the same subject must sign off on the curriculum. “[AP Language and Composition] is designed to be the replacement class, so that if kids do score so well on the exam, they can pass out of freshman composition because they have already had the class in high school,” Homberger said.

While preparing for the future inspires some, other students sign up for demanding coursework because of their personal interests.

“Some people take AP classes because it will look good on their transcripts and others take classes that they are interested in. When I’m interested in the subjects, I’m more motivated to work hard,” said Celine BartelsMills, senior.

Bartels-Mills has taken AP classes all three years at HHS. This year alone, she is enrolled in three.

“I decide to take AP classes because I have the drive to im-

infographic by Isabella Weisman

Scholastic Art Awards Continued from page 1

“This year’s AP Ceramics students are very self-motivated. I knew they were good kids, but you never know how many are going to win an award,” said Ms. Terry Chamberlin, Art. Hannah Senser, Sam Greenwald, and Lauret Wilson, seniors, were also awarded Gold Keys in the ceramics category.

Mr. Rob Fuhr, Technology Education and AP Photography teacher, had two photography students, Alyssa Resnick and Anne Goodroad, seniors, win Gold Keys this year.

In previous years, college professors selected recipients, but this year the winners were chosen by a group of high school teachers across the region.

“The way they picked things this year seemed to be way different than last year. The art teachers and I discussed it, and we didn’t know if it made a difference or not, but we suspect it did,” Fuhr said.

Submissions are judged based on a variety of aspects, but ultimately are graded subjectively from an artistic standpoint.

“As far as quality of composition goes, it is somewhat instinctive how I grade based on what I can see,” Fuhr said. “It’s pretty much like there’s a matrix of concepts that you put on it as a teacher.”

Chamberlin agrees that there are multiple aspects considered in judging.

“It has to be creative, original, technically skilled, and express something personal - some voice. There has to be something in

the work that grabs the judges,” Chamberlin said.

Students recognized by the SAA come from a variety of backgrounds. Caterina Rizzi, senior, a foreign exchange student from Italy, received an honorable mention in the drawing and painting category for her self portrait titled “Il Bacio (The Kiss)”.

“Our teachers back in Italy are very technical, so before you start to express yourself, you must learn how to use the pencil, the paint, the watercolor. After, you can use the technique in a more expressive way. Here, they don’t really care as much about the technique and are very interested in expressive work, which was kind of difficult for me,” Rizzi said.

Isabelle Bergman and Rachel Colestock, seniors, were also recognized in the drawing & painting category and received Gold Keys.

Winning a Gold Key can open up scholarship opportunities, including a $14,000 renewable scholarship to the Minneapolis College of Art & Design, though not all students choose to pursue their art after high school.

“I’m probably going to minor in [ceramics] after high school, and then continue it on the side because it’s fun,” Clay said.

Clay enjoys the freedom that art allows him, and acknowledges that he is always improving.

“I like that I can’t expect anything to come out perfect, because it won’t,” Clay said.

The Scholastic Art Awards recognize students in the categories of drawing and painting, ceramics, and photography. In order of top, left, right: Ian Eltringham’s ‘Exhaust,’ Isabelle Bergman’s ‘Another Scream,’ and Jonathan Clay’s ‘Smoke Fired Bottle.’

photos provided by artists and hopkinsschools.org

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RPThursday, March 5, 2015

Editorial #20beautifulwomen This hashtag is meant to challenge and empower women to

The staff editorial represents the viewpoint of the Royal Page

post a picture of themselves in which they feel beautiful, but has the potential to turn into a popularity contest.

Self-empowerment corrupted by need for validation through likes

Instagram trend is a viable avenue for public female empowerment

by Addie Lennon News Editor When I open up my Instagram app as of late, my feed is flooded with photos of women; be it selfies, professional photos, or candids. The #20beautifulwomen hashtag has spread rapidly, and encourages women to upload a photo of themselves in which they feel beautiful, and then nominate 20 other women.

I often hear people talk about this trend with annoyance. They don’t like the fact that it has taken over their page, get irritated with the added “tagged photo” notifications that they receive, or think that it promotes vanity.

But shouldn’t we be supporting the improvement of self-confidence among women?

In a study conducted by Florida State University, it was found that women who browsed Facebook for 20 minutes had lower self esteem than those asked to do research online for 20 minutes. Modern social media is incredibly harmful to the way that women, especially younger girls, view themselves.

The 20 beautiful women challenge is a much-needed turn in a positive direction for social media.

Women who may typically feel embarrassed or self-centered for posting a selfie are encouraged to take a minute to appreciate their self-worth. The point of this challenge is not to compete for “likes,” but rather to boost one’s selfconfidence and to inspire other women to do the same.

Personally, as I scrolled through Instagram and saw photo after photo with the hashtag #20beautifulwomen, I was inspired. I was touched by the female presence in social media, and the acknowledgement of each other’s beauty.

There was an obvious community being built among women through likes and positive comments, and it continued to spread through the tagging of female friends and family members.

So ladies, if you have yet to be nominated for the 20 beautiful women challenge, consider it done. I encourage you to post a photo in which you feel beautiful, and keep spreading female female empowerment. Confidence is contagious.

Top 10 :

by Claire Benton Front Page Editor Social media is a place to share experiences, gossip, rant, and, recently, to promote some goodness in the world.

As a female, I see where the intentions for #20beautifulwomen came from. All women should feel beautiful and empowered and should have the self-esteem to show their faces without the fear of being judged.

Unfortunately, social media is flawed in that it tends to turn these things into a popularity contest.

After the moment girls posted their #20beautifulwomen on Instagram, they likely visited Instagram much more often than normal - why? Because we cannot help but care about how many likes we get. So girls will put on makeup, pose, or find an already edited photo and put on more filters to try to fulfill society’s standard of beautiful.

That completely defeats the purpose of the challenge.

I commonly find my Instagram feed cluttered with selfies, posted solely for the purpose of getting it

Things to do on a spring break staycation

to your favorite golf 10 Head simulator

in bed wishing you were 9 Lay somewhere else, having fun 8 Stay away from MOA

yourself for April 1 7 Brace college admission decisions at tropical places like 6 Eat Rainforest Café

hopping (pay for one, 5 Movie see three)

KG back in a T-Wolves 4 Catch uniform

3 2

1

Build a snowman and put beach wear on it Go to Black Coffee Waffle Bar; make sure to Insta Take a road trip... to Chipotle

out for some “likes.” Personally, I’d rather see photos of rare moments, adventures, or the outdoors.

I must admit, I posted a #20beautifulwomen on Instagram too. I am not perfect. I would like to hope my intentions were pure, but it did no great good to my self esteem to post that photo.

So why are we putting a number on the amount of beautiful women in the world? Why does one person get to decide who is beautiful, when anyone can be beautiful?

As much as I support the empowerment of women, I cannot support their subjectification to judgement on social media. It’s not so easy to fix others’ standards of beautiful, but we can change our own. I hope everyone reading this sees themselves as beautiful.

Today’s technology is rapidly changing and has started to reform our teaching, learning, and classroom atmospheres. There are positive and negative effects that go hand in hand with these transformations.

How often is technology the center of your learning? As of late, it would be hard to imagine school without it. The ability to obtain information is almost instant, making research and awareness of what’s going on around us seamless.

By maintaining a technologically-advanced classroom, our school enhances our experience, while preparing us for the futuristic and competitive ‘real’ world we will face.

However, on the other side of advancement is the question of how far we will go, and how far is too far.

Looking around a classroom that has gone one-to-one can be quite an eye-opener to the amount of ways technology is utilized as well as abused.

Although Photobooth during class may be a habit of the past, Twitter is easily reachable, just as tabs for games open and

close in two swift clicks.

Studies have shown that eye health is affected greatly by looking at screens for extended periods of time, as we do in school regularly.

Creativity is surely sparked with the use of technology and the seemingly endless possibilities it encompasses. However, presentations typically entail time spent ensuring it’s visual appeal rather than researching and really getting to know the subject.

Another issue technology poses is the laziness of students and teachers. The ease allows for less time being spent on homework and getting to know a subject and more time for procrastination or distraction. It allows teachers to use the same presentations and documents repeatedly instead of having to work through and re-write things for each class.

Student engagement can accelerate or plummet based on the proper use of technology. We must vow to use it, as well as our brains, to the maximum capacity, as we are here to succeed and prepare for our bright futures.

Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down In this space, HHS students share positive and negative facets of their lives and the world around us.

“Committing to the University of Wisconsin- Stout.”

-Kevion McDonald, senior “The hockey season ended and I’m going to miss it.”

-Alex Hymanson, sophomore “Deeply Royal killed it at the pep fest.”-Parker Banyard, junior “New quarter means I don’t get to see Sammler every morning.” -Elissa Marble, senior infographic by Madeline Martodam

Building a better online community

by Callan Showers and Nate Pasko Print Editors-in-Chief We see a lot of things we don’t like on Twitter.

There is probably a parody account, counterpoint, and, unfortunately, many blatant examples of ignorance against whatever your passion or belief may be.

And that is the world we live in.

In our article on page five, we tell the story of a localized instance of rape culture that appeared on our Twitter feeds.

We want to clarify that the people who tweeted and posted #HDRT were likely not aware of the rape culture they were perpetuating, and we do not seek to shame them for their actions.

We hope our article educated the larger community on the destructive culture that they were contributing to - even if they didn’t know it. More than that, we hope our article shed light

on a topic that is often misinterpreted and taken to extremes on social media.

The students who used #HDRT were never formally asked to remove or change it by peers - and that is the fault of all of us.

We seek to empower students to stop scrolling and recognize when something on Twitter is not okay. When something offends you, it’s likely not just you who feels that way, and you shouldn’t let it continue.

Tell an adult. It’s not the job of your parents, your teachers, or your administration to monitor Twitter. It is their job to maintain a safe and inclusive environment for you, so when Twitter becomes a battle arena, they must cross the digital line and intervene.

While Twitter can be and is, for many, a productive outlet for the spreading of positive messages, it can be just as detri-

mental to causes that began with good intentions.

It is easy for people who see their deep-seated beliefs and passions condemned on Twitter to hide behind the screen and profess their rage, rather than realize others may not be coming from the same educated perspective.

For all of us who have made this mistake, we know how bad it feels when someone takes the conversation out of context and it starts to feel like a battle against you, rather than a battle for a cause.

Send positive messages on Twitter, and leave the debating for the classroom. In person, there is no time to formulate the ‘perfect’ biting response, no dictionary or Wikipedia to reference, and no friend to text for advice.

Let’s create a social media world less polluted by ignorance and hate, and an educational world filled with thought and insight.

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RPThursday, March 5, 2015

& boys:

The messages we special feature

should tell

Living in a rape culture

No advertising company, television show, social media app, sports team, or video game producer sought to foster a culture of rape and sexual assault in their programming.

It exists there, though.

Likewise, the social world of a high school creates an environment in which condoning rape culture is as easy as a scroll of a thumb.

Ms. Katie Eichele is the director of the Aurora Center for Advocacy and Education at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities (UMN), a program that works to “serve all victims/survivors/concerned people of sexual assault, relationship violence, and stalking at the University of Minnesota and Augsburg College.” In a phone interview with The Royal Page, she explained that young people today are susceptible to a “rape culture.”

“The way we view rape culture is as a society of attitudes and behaviors that perpetuate the idea that, particularly, women’s bodies are hypersexualized and viewed as less than men’s are,” Eichele said. “Women are viewed as sexual conquests.”

Eichele explained that rape culture validates the perpetrator’s actions and blames the victims.

“What society is doing is excusing men of their inappropriate behavior. That’s the epitome of rape culture; it actually shifts the accountability from those who perpetuate the crime to the victim,” Eichele said.

For HHS students, one example of rape culture is on Twitter. This Sept., some HHS students adopted the hashtag #HDRT, which others eventually came to learn stood for Hopkins Date Rape Team. They began using #HDRT in Instagram and Twitter captions and bios.

When three students who tweeted and posted the hashtag were questioned by The Royal Page, two of them claimed it did

not stand for HDRT, but when asked to explain what it did stand for, they did not provide an alternative.

One, however, admitted that it did indeed mean Hopkins Date Rape Team, but said “we don’t act on it, though.”

Others who “liked,” “favorited,” or commented on the posts confirmed the hashtag’s meaning.

While the tweets and Instagram posts were “favorited” and “liked” by as many as 150 people, certainly not all knew the true meaning.

The hashtag was nothing more than a joke. Still, an HHS student who had liked multiple posts containing the hashtag on Instagram, who wished to remain anonymous for this story, was ashamed upon realizing the true meaning.

“At first I thought it must have been an inside joke, but date rape could never be funny. I was embarrassed to have associated myself with [the hashtag],” the student said.

Ms. Kirsten Slinde, Health Sciences, questioned why the HHS community allowed HDRT to exist.

“Do people call [those students] out on it? Do they say that this is not okay?” Slinde said.

Ms. Patty Johnson, Principal, asserted that beyond sexual violence, students must be wary of their online footprint.

“I always ask students how they want to represent themselves in front of their peers and the adults in their community, because everything that is put [online] is an opportunity for others to build a story about who you are, whether they are accurate or not,” Johnson said.

How It’s Created Eichele believes that there are deeply rooted thought processes that need to change in order to fight rape culture.

“Instead of teaching young men or older men how to respect women, [rape culture] simply validates that men continue to view women as objects in a de-

In our hands, we hold commonly accepted myths surrounding rape and sexual assault.

meaning fashion,” Eichele said.

Eichele added that in addition to the glorification of rape culture in the media, an idea called “victim blaming” is inherent to the life of rape culture.

“We also pay attention to when people say it’s the woman’s fault - we call that victim blaming. I just read an article about dress codes - too tight of pants or not being able to wear dresses without straps to prom - that’s our society perpetuating victim blaming,” Eichele said.

The Aurora Center maintains that, “Sexual assault is never the fault of the victim. The blame lies with the person who chose to hurt you.”

Questioning what the victim was wearing, if the victim was under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or whether the victim was “asking for it” are common examples of victim blaming.

Exploring Masculinity Further, Eichele noted that rape culture cannot be recognized without exploring masculinity.

On Feb. 23, the Aurora Center and UMN’s Women’s Center co-hosted a screening of The Mask You Live In, a documentary film that, according to its website therepresentationproject.org, follows boys and young men as they struggle to stay true to themselves while negotiating America’s narrow definition of masculinity.

The film highlights the idea of “toxic masculinity” that feeds rape culture. The societal construct of masculinity strips young boys of qualities like sensitivity, vulnerability, and empathy and reinforces qualities like strength, apathy, and violence.

By being taught to value characteristics such as those, it becomes easier for young boys to assume the same attitudes towards women.

As detailed on therepresentationproject.org, not only have 93 percent of boys seen online, visual pornography before they turn 18, 68 percent of boys watch it weekly. Additionally, 39 percent of boys have seen “bondage porn,” including scenes with sexual and physical assault. Dr. Philip Zimbardo, professor emeritus of psychology at Stanford University, addressed this topic while being interviewed for The Mask You Live In, saying “[Porn teaches boys] how to relate to girls and women, that this is what is right, that this is what women want, that this is how men are supposed to perform.”

Additionally, language like “I’d hit it” or “You smash that” is generally accepted regarding sexual

Defining Consent One of the major issues that arises when factoring in alcohol consumption and drug use, Eichele believes, is consent.

“When we talk about consent, it goes beyond no means no. It means silent means no, and it means consent can be revoked,” Eichele said. “You have to ask every single time, and you have to be given a yes that is voluntary and excited.”

Ms. Jane Kleinman, Health Sciences, agreed with the need for a clear message of consent.

“I always say that if I had boys, my message to them would be that to get consent, you have to get a yes, and it can’t be under the influence. Just because you’re messing around with somebody and one thing leads to another that’s potentially rape. You can’t get consent if somebody’s using,” Kleinman said.

Eichele, Kleinman, and Slinde all stated the need for bystander intervention. At HHS, #HDRT was able to exist for upwards of six months. It was never brought to the attention of HHS staff or administrators before The Royal Page’s reporting, and Kleinman sees that as a problem.

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have to say something; as a bystander you have to step up,” Kleinman said.

Eichele defined being an active bystander as “knowing that you have a responsibility and a goal to interrupt assault and preparing strategies to use,” if the need to interrupt an assault arises.

“I tie it not just to being a good bystander but learning how to practice good leadership,” Eichele said.

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by Callan Showers and Nate Pasko Print Editors-in-Chief

Do a R

This is the first of three Royal Page special features about rape. Here, we call attention to the culture. In our next issue, we will provide the facts and figures of sexual assault, and, finally, we will discuss progressive solutions.

relations with women and is seen on social media, in music and movies, and on student Twitter feeds. The nature of violent verbs such as hit and smash paired with pronouns ‘it’ and ‘that,’ rather than ‘her’ or ‘she,’ perpetuate casualized rape culture.

The Mask You Live In notes that many men who observe sexual assault know something wrong and violent is going on, but fail to act against it due to fear of losing social status. Despite this, Eichele and Kleinman both believe men who speak out against sexual assault, rape, and rape culture can be the most valuable advocates.

“It takes males to stand up as the bystander,” Kleinman said.

“They can be the most vocal.”

Eichele stressed the value of men who speak out against the culture.

“Most men don’t engage in sexual violence, but most men have a lot of power in interrupting it from their peers. It takes a lot of courage to do that,” Eichele said.

It does not take engaging in sexual violence to allow for its existence.

“When we talk about sexual violence, a lot of men in the past have disengaged and said it’s a women’s issue, but it’s not. It’s a human issue,” Eichele said.

Impact at Home Katherine Swenson, senior, is the first female president of HHS DECA since Mr. Jesse Theirl, Business Education, began advising the club eight years ago.

“To me, it illustrates this ingrained idea that males are more suitable for positions of power, especially in the professional world,” Swenson said.

Swenson, who is also the School Board Representative for Student Government, believes that social issues like rape culture can often be polarizing and easily misinterpreted.

“It’s difficult to easily quan-

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tify things like rape culture, because social awareness movements are often misinterpreted by people who take the extreme edges and use them as the popular definition of that movement,” Swenson said.

Johnson noted that every student should enter the classroom feeling as if their opinions matter.

“I want kids of all races, ethnicities, genders, sexual orientations, socioeconomic statuses, and religions to feel respected, accepted, and valued for the experiences they bring in and that filter through their day,” Johnson said. “That’s why I spend so much time working with staff to create responsive classrooms.”

Johnson and the HHS administration work to create “responsive classrooms” by bringing in experts.

“It’s not just staff who create positive culture here, because students have just as much responsibility. That’s why we conduct activities and bring in experts - to talk about the culture of the building, how students are feeling, and then what the students can do,” Johnson said.

Swenson distinguished rape culture, particularly, as something extremely deep-seated in everyday life.

“To me, [rape culture] is so ingrained that people don’t notice it,” Swenson said. “It’s similar to the way in which a fish doesn’t notice it’s in water.”

Editor’s Note The Royal Page would also like to make clear that while our rape culture article focuses on the pervasiveness of rape by cisgendered men against cisgendered women, rape affects homosexual, transgendered, and gender non-conforming people, as well - at alarming rates. We will acknowledge these statistics, and far more hard numbers regarding rape, in our next feature.

RETHINKING HOMEWORK.

By Danielle Fogelson and Alex Felemovicius, Feature Editor and C-Spread Editor of the Royal Page

ietzman

photo by Ruby Kr

What type of homework prepares you best for your

NOT

ES

Practice Test

tests and why?

Notecards

“I study my notes because it has all the basics I need to know. I don’t like going over too much material because then it crams everything.”

-Shi Chen, junior

Homework has always been an implied part of the educational experience. Recently, however, its merit has been taken into question.

“There must be purpose behind every homework assignment, and it should be meaningful. Homework should absolutely be about practice. It should never be about just giving students something to do,” said Mr. David Braaten, Business Education.

Braaten recently attended a conference centered on the book “Rethinking Homework,” by Cathy Vatterott, Associate Professor of Education at Washington University in St. Louis. The conference focused on the types of homework that are most effective. After studying the book, he changed the way in which he goes about creating homework in his classes.

“When I give homework now, I’m very mindful of why exactly I want the students to do the assignment. It’s also important for me to then do something with the homework — not just handing it back with a score, but really giving feedback to the students. The feedback on homework should tell the students where they’re at,” Braaten said.

Mr. Brent Hering, Mathematics, echoes Braaten’s point that homework serves to identify students’ understanding of a topic to both the teacher and the students themselves. In Advanced Placement (AP) Calculus, students complete homework online through a program called WeBWorK which is new to the class.

Through this program, students receive immediate feedback on their work.

“I really wanted students to know if they’re ready for a test beforehand. In a way, [WeBWorK] is almost like a little pre-test,” Hering said.

Many elementary schools around the country, such as Hawthorne South Elementary in Chicago, have started to not require homework. Jami Dehn, a teacher at the school, explains that daily assignments measure a student’s work ethic more than his or her knowledge and most of the time, it comes back with obvious assistance from parents. For many classes in this elementary school, teachers are now reserving their grade books for in-class work.

This trend has now become a discussion in secondary education. Grading expert and former high school teacher Ken O’Conner discusses his philosophy that

grades actually deter some students from doing homework. He stated, “Nobody gets better from getting a one out of 10, but with descriptive feedback saying ‘You did this well, and this is where you need to improve,’ [a student] is far more likely to do his or her homework.”

Ms. Diane Schimelpfenig, director of Teaching, Learning, and Assessment, has recently joined the discussion as Hopkins junior highs begin to think about changing some homework-related policies.

“A group of junior high teachers and administrators are studying grading practices at that level, and our work has not yet been completed,” Schimelpfenig said. “We anticipate making recommendations later this spring.”

In order to ensure that the homework gives students an accurate evaluation of their understanding in the class, Mr. Jacques Youakim, Mathematics, explains that homework should mirror the assessments.

“I end up saying, ‘Okay, here’s what I want my kids to know.’ When I make my test, I write the questions, and beside them, I write another set of similar questions for homework. Sometimes all I change is the numbers,” Youakim said.

Due to the similarities between homework and tests, especially in the math department, Hering finds that there is a very strong correlation between his students’ test and homework scores.

“The students that are getting 100 percent on their WeBWorK, if I was going to generalize, are going to do okay on the test,” Hering said. “The students that are not doing well on the test are getting low scores on the WeBWorK. They’re not putting the time in and may not understand the concept.”

One unique aspect to the WeBWorK program is that while all the problems within a set are similar, the numbers are different. Because of the variation within the problems, the answers to the homework are no longer posted online as they used to be, which Hering believes is actually beneficial to the students.

“I know that students are working more on homework than they ever have before,” Hering said. “Students I’ve had in the past will say they ended up copying the homework the night before, or sometimes they would get stuck while working on the homework, and end up following or copying the work online. This could lead to the misconception that they understood the material

“I use notecards because it is a review to write them and then the studying part comes more naturally.”

“Practice tests because then I know what I got wrong and what I need to study.”

-Julia Laden, senior

when really they didn’t.”

The issue of plagiarism is hardly a new topic within schools, and it is one that proves difficult to solve.

“I think homework is a really hard thing for teachers in the sense that, if you had an ideal student that does the homework because they value it, then that’s perfect, and you don’t have to worry about the grading piece so much and the issue of copying wouldn’t be so important,” Braaten said. “But, if people will only do it when points are assigned, it creates this frenzy which can lead to high-stake,s meaningless work.”

Braaten stresses that when a student chooses to cheat on an assignment or to not fully complete it, they will suffer from the repercussions. He feels that if students were internally motivated to do their homework, this issue would not exist.

“If you don’t do the homework, you not only don’t get the points, but you’re not getting the content, so you’re not prepared for the test,” Braaten said. “Homework is practice, and at a sports practice, a coach doesn’t give you a score.

So, if you think about homework in that sense, there should, ideally in this utopian world, be an intrinsic value to the student to do homework and put effort into it.”

Although there is a trend of abandoning outside work assignments, many studies have proven the reasoning and importance of homework. According to a study completed by Harris Cooper, director of Duke University’s Program in Education, there is a positive relationship between the amount of homework students do and their achievement outcomes.

He found that students who had required homework performed better on class tests compared to those who did not.

Unlike Cooper, Youakim finds that the students in his AP Statistics class, which offers extra credit for the optional homework that is turned in, are motivated to complete their work. Of the 36 students in his first hour class, 32 turned in the homework.

In Youakim’s opinion, the students who do their homework understand that it is ultimately their responsibility to do as much work as necessary to prepare for a test, which may vary from student to student on Feb. 9.

“I am a firm believer that kids will do what they want in order to get the grade they want,” Youakim said. “They know what’s necessary in order to be successful. As time goes on, kids will find out what would have better helped prepare them for the test.”

-Mackenzie Fannon, junior

If your homework was optional, but you knew it was helpful for a test, would you do it?

*176 HHS students were surveyed. Each person resembles about four individuals.

YES

NO

Never 8.5% Sometimes 56.3% How often do you copy or share homework with others? *176 HHS students were surveyed.

Most of the time 15.3%

Always 19.9%

The Royal Page 2014-2015

Editors in Chief Nate Pasko Callan Showers

Front Page Editor Claire Benton

Design Editor in Chief Alex Felemovicius

News Editors

Haley DenHartog Addie Lennon

Opinion Editor

Madeline Martodam

Feature Editors Danielle Fogelson Madison Petty

Sports Editors Hillary Donovan Ben Segelbaum

Backpage Editor Tobie Soumekh

Photo Editor

Ruby Krietzman

Infographic Editor

RPThursday, March 5, 2015

the

8 feature

Students engineer for greener future Continued from page 1 Shear, Patel, and Abel designed their water bottle filler from scratch, but to figure out the mechanics of the water fountain system, they had to do some research.

“We took apart one of the water fountains in the school in the Tech Ed hallway by the wood shop - in the middle of class to see how the fillers that are already being made work, and based off that, we came up with our own idea that we thought would be simpler and cheaper,” Shear said. “We were right.”

The filler add-on they designed resembles a sink faucet coming out of a normal drinking fountain. A switch controls the valves within the fountain

to determine whether pressing the button will send water through the regular drinking fountain spout or the water bottle filler.

After finalizing their design at the end of the semester-long class, Shear, Patel, and Abel, accompanied by members of Earth Club, presented their idea to the administration. The boys were shocked when they were then asked to build a prototype.

“Fuhr said [the administration] would most likely say no because of health concerns like students wouldn’t be able to install all the piping and stuff,” Patel said. “So, we were pretty surprised [when they said yes].”

Shear, Patel, and Abel started constructing the pro-

totype after school on Tuesday, Feb. 24. If the administration approves it, their filler could become a permanent part of HHS. However, getting their design to that point will require much more work.

“There are still questions as to whether it will be sturdy enough, so that’s a technical issue that we have to look at,” Fuhr said. “That’s kind of the process of engineering - to design, test, and build a prototype and then to redesign, retest, and build again. We’re in that first step.”

All three of the boys want to pursue engineering after high school, so they appreciate the experience this project gave them. “[The project] will look

good on a college application or resume,” Patel said.

Yet, with all of the hours they’ve invested into the filler, they are excited to be done with

it once and for all.

“We’ve spent so much time looking at it,” Shear said. “But we designed it, so we want to finish it.”

Zach Shear, Andrew Patel, and Charlie Abel, juniors, sketch a model for their water bottle filler add-on. Mr. Robert Fuhr, Technology Department, assigned this as their final Mechanical Engineering project. photo provided by Zach Shear

“Live Long & POPS-Per”

Junior, senior band students perform in 43rd annual Pops concert

Isabella Weisman

Business Editors

Jacob Ungerman Brian Yu

Web Editors in Chief Bradley Kaplan Ellie Maag

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Staff Reporters Jack Bass Benji Bloom Will Cohen Justice Feldman Bea Frank Sophie Frank Josh Freeman Izzy Goldfarb Isabel Hall Judaisha Jackson Noah Kaplan Kyle Makey Jack Smith Jordan Zaroff

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Mr. Kocur

The editorial represents the opinion of the newspaper staff. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the administration, the student body or the advisor. Signed viewpoints represent the view of the writer.

The Royal Page operates as an open forum student publication, and student editors make editorial decisions regarding content.

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One: Jazzy Dickerson, junior, sings during Pops. She sang a rendition of “Happy” by Pharrell Williams.

Two: Allie Ries, junior, sings and plays guitar during the concert. She performed an original song.

Three: Claire Dirnberger, senior, dances during the concert. She danced with the rest of the senior ladies.

Four: Emma Reese and Maddie Steinbrunn, seniors, dance in the annual senior ladies’ dance. Their theme was “Purple Reign.”

Five: The Lean Mean Performance Machine performs during Pops. This was the first act of the concert.

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Six: Band students perform a song. This was one of many instrumental performances during Pops. photos by Ruby Krietzman

Geoff pays tribute, sings for Lang Royal of the Month

by Isabel Hall Staff Reporter Ethan Lang, HHS alumnus of 2009 and former member of Geoff, passed away unexpectedly in his sleep on Jan. 30, 2015.

The current Geoff members attended Lang’s funeral on Saturday, Feb. 7 to sing “For Good” from the musical Wicked. “‘For Good’ was a piece Ethan and his choir sang at [his] graduation. It’s a piece for him and his family that holds some significance. If you look at the lyrics, I think it describes what impact he made in his life,” said Mr. Philip Brown, choir director.

Graham Hutson, senior and current Geoff member, noticed what an influence Lang had on other people’s lives during the funeral.

“It was amazing to see how many people Ethan had a positive impact on. It sounded like he was a very energetic and outgoing guy who helped change a lot of people’s lives,” Hutson said.

Other Geoff members understood the significance of the performance.

“We didn’t think of it as a performance but more of a tribute to Lang,” said Robbie Torborg, senior and current Geoff member.

Lang was very well-liked during his time at HHS. “His personality was vibrant and energetic. He was the guy who took the time to get to know everyone in the high school and didn’t have an enemy in the world,” Brown said.

“He had a lot of different friend groups because he was involved in a lot of different activities.”

Lang was a member of Geoff his junior and senior years, as well as theater and the swim team.

“He was a great baritone.

His sophomore year, he was a soloist for me at the Lake Conference Varsity Festival and was my student conductor his senior year. He was also involved in the musical ‘Working,’ and the musical ‘Beauty and the Beast,’” Brown said.

Geoff has an impact on members and their families that lasts for years.

“At the funeral, there were at least 15 former Geoff guys who made it a point to fly in from wherever they were at,” Brown said. “I think there is a feeling that they need to look out for each other, and I think it’s great that they can support each other.”

Brit Stein, senior

This month’s Royal of the Month, Brit Stein, senior, was nominated by the administration due to her achievements both in and out of school.

“It feels really nice to be recognized for some of the things I’ve been doing well and makes me really appreciative of all of the teachers and administrators who have been helping me get to my goals and work hard,” Stein said.

In addition to her rigorous course load, Stein participates in a number of extracurricular activities, such as DECA, cross country, track and feild, peer tutoring, United Synagogue Youth, a Jewish Youth organization, and Minnesota Nice- a school club that does local service projects.

Stein makes sure to fulfill all her responsibilities before having fun.

“I’m naturally a focused person,” Stein said.

“When I have a goal, I try to think about all of the things that need to be done because I’m the type of person who likes to get things done and then go out and have fun because then I can enjoy it more.”

the

RPThursday, March 5, 2015

feature9

Paavola paints with Converse shoes as canvas

by Izzy Goldfarb Staff Reporter Two summers ago, Hannah Paavola and Rachel Dutcher, juniors, were feeling “artsy.” So they picked up some cheap canvas shoes at Target and made them their own with Sharpie.

What began as an art project one summer day turned into a real business for Paavola. She now sells custom pairs of colorful, hand-painted canvas kicks that she claims are made with love for $30 to $45.

The first pair of shoes Paavola made for another person was also the first pair she made using paint, rather than Sharpie. “[Using paint for the first time] was a little-nerve racking; it was an experiment,” Paavola said.

Paavola gave her first customer free shoes, but there was a catch. Lauren Moberg, junior at Totino-Grace, was asked to be a promoter - a PR girl - for the custom shoes. She has helped bring in around five customers.

“I wear them around school and tweet pictures of them, and people kept asking me where I got them. I tell them all about Hannah and they are always super interested,” Moberg said.

If you’re interested in having hand painted shoes made by Paavola, you could map it out but most don’t. No two pairs of Paavola’s free-handed creations ever look alike.

“Most people just give me

a theme to go off of. The most specific request I’ve ever gotten was to write ‘Jump Around’ on the side and to include a badger,” Paavola said.

Paavola enjoys that creative aspect of her business.

“I really like working off a theme. Once, I had a girl come to me and say ‘I want shoes that look like the beach,’ so I got to do anything that related to the beach, like palm trees and sail boats,” Paavola said.

The majority of the orders Paavola gets are for graduation gifts. These particular gifts are designed to be fun, unique spirit wear for colleges.

Paavola recently received a request for shoes with a University of Wisconsin - Madison theme. The school fight song was written on the shoes’ tongues.

Tony Baker, junior, has a pair of shoes made by Paavola. His theme was camping and the outdoors.

“The shoes I got turned out very nice. I would buy another pair,” Baker said.

Paavola is very dedicated to her business and her customers’ satisfaction. She is so committed that she has brought a pair to work on during her AP World History class.

The perks of having your own business are abundant, according to Paavola. The business gives her a chance to make money and express herself creatively, while doing a relaxing activity that she enjoys.

Top Left: Hannah Paavola, junior, sells hand painted shoes. Paavola designed this pair for a student at the University of Wisconsin- Madison.

Bottom Left: A majority of Paavola’s orders are graduation gifts for students to wear at their respective colleges. This pair was painted for a student at Arizona State University.

Top Right: Paavola is usually given a general theme to go off of, but these shoes were the most specific request she has gotten. She wrote the University of Wisconsin- Madison school song on the shoe’s tongues.

Bottom Right: A pair of one-of-a-kind shoes Paavola paints for her customers. She was given a paradise theme for these shoes.

photos provided by Hannah Paavola

10sports

the

RPThursday, March 5, 2015

Top nordic athletes participated in state meet

By Will Cohen Staff Reporter

Jennifer Olson, senior, skiing in the classic race at the state meet at Giants Ridge in Biwabik, Minn. The girls team placed seventh overall at state. photo provided by Jim Arneson

This year’s HHS Nordic season was considered a success, placing as high as third in conference races and sending ten total skiers to the state meet. The girls team finished seventh among all teams at state.

“It was just so great to compete at such a high level with my team,” said Katie Craemer, senior. “I was thrilled to be out there giving it my all.”

Despite injuries and illnesses, HHS was still able to land seventh at state for the girls.

“We had been battling illness and injuries all year. It’s tough to stay healthy in this sport because you’re out in the cold for hours and you get tired of constant movement,” Craemer said.

Trey Taylor, senior captain, caught a serious cold hours before the section meet on Feb. 2nd. Taylor was a significant part of the team’s success throughout the season and always finished with good times.

“It was really unfortunate,

but that’s sports. Those types of things are going to happen,” Taylor said. “It can come at the worst time.”

Dylan Cleary, senior captain, was the only HHS male to qualify for state. He achieved a time of 16:33 at state, good for 70th place.

“State was a big deal to the team this year considering we had a much bigger senior class and we knew it was our last shot at it,” Cleary said.

Nordic practices were held to around 6:30 after school everyday, typically being the last sport to finish.

“We worked really hard and we all pushed each other past our limits to be the best we all possibly could,” Cleary said.

“We all knew state was a realistic goal so we had a big target to shoot for all year.”

Mesabi, a national nordic event at Giants Ridge ski resort in Biwabik, Minn., was a big success for the girls who placed third at the race.

Renae Anderson, sophomore, and Claire Benton, junior, both qualified to participate

on the midwest junior national team in March. The national races will be held in Auburn, California from March 8-14.

“It was such an honor,” Anderson said. “I had one of my best times at state, and things really went well for me all season.”

At state each racer participates in the classic and skate races. The classic race was an overall boost to push Anderson to nationals. Anderson achieved a time of 17:45 and placing 27th out of 157 racers. For Anderson, it was a big deal for her to train to get better at skate so she could be equal in both races.

“I was trying to work on both, but I needed more work on skate,” Anderson said. “I worked really hard, and it payed off, so I’m really happy and excited about this opportunity.”

This year’s nordic team had both individual and team success.

“I was really proud of everything that the team accomplished this year,” said Cleary.

“We challenged ourselves all year and conquered goals that we set out to achieve.”

Injury-filled wrestling team looks ahead to next year

By Noah Kaplan Staff Reporter Although their record may not reflect it, the Royals wrestling season has had some upsides to reflect on their 8-17 season.

The season started out on a high note when the Royals took down Park Center in their first match of the season. Following that win, the Royals were taken down by Robbinsdale Armstrong.

With a 1-1 record in the first week of the season, the

Royals had a statement to make in the upcoming tournament on Saturday, Dec. 6, 2014. The Royals took third place out of 12 teams and still had their eyes set on a great season.

After a month of winning half the time they wrestled, the Royals placed third once again in a tournament at HHS on Jan. 3, 2015.

Throughout the rest of the season, the Royals struggled to stay healthy and had trouble finding ways to win. In the last 16 matches, the Royals only came away with four wins and

had a six-match losing streak in the midst of the win drought.

Throughout the drought, the team experienced many injuries and had trouble getting around them the rest of the season.

“We were not able to reach our true potential due to injuries, but we tried our hardest to adapt to the situation given,” said Blake Bachmeier, sophomore.

The season ended on a hardfought loss to Minneapolis South in the first round of the 6AAA sectional tournament.

In that match the Royals were

still not fully recovered from injuries, but were unable to come close, losing 19-55.

“The season was a learning experience for our team and can lead us to a positive and winning season next winter,” Bachmeier said.

In the end, much of the team will be back for at least one more season. The Royals only had three seniors this past season, and will have a lot of returning leaders and upperclassman with five seniors and seven juniors next season.

“Watch out for us next season.” said Sam Szuba, junior.

Justin Grunseth, sophomore, pins his opponent to the mat. The boys wrestling season came to a close against Minneapolis South in the first round of sections on Feb. 10.

photo by Noah Kaplan

Winning becomes routine for boy basketball coach

Head coach Ken Novak Jr. continues tradition of excellence year after year Novak Cont. from page 1 “I enjoy coaching, I enjoy working with the guys, I really do. For me, it’s not as much about playing the other team as it is playing ourselves,” Novak said. “It can get frustrating, it can get tough. We try to get our kids to really work hard and have certain virtues that can help them achieve certain goals.”

As a coach, it is Novak’s responsibility to help the team win basketball games. However, one of his goals every year is to make his players better human beings and help them prepare for anything in life.

Mr. Ken Novak Jr, social studies, coaching during section game against St. Louis Park on Feb. 25.

Novak has been with the HHS boys varsity basketball team for 25 years. photo by Benji Bloom

“I’m trying to help those kids learn, concentrate, focus, persevere. In essence, to be able to do well at anything. Youth have a tendency to think that what they are doing is good or good enough and our job is to push them into thinking that it isn’t good enough, and we can do better,” Novak said.

John Warren, senior and captain, believes that he and his teammates have all been affected in a positive way by Novak.

“Novak has helped me become a smarter basketball player and helped make the game become easier to me,” Warren said.

“He cares about us as a team.”

Wyatt Johnson, senior, can only confirm Novak’s aspirations as a coach.

“Novak hasn’t only changed me as a basketball player but as a person. He has taught me how to concentrate and work my hardest at the times where I don’t feel like doing so,” Johnson

said.

One thing that drives Novak crazy is when his team doesn’t compete and give it their all in each and every game. There has only been one instance of that happening this year, against a team from Iowa, and it hasn’t happened again.

“He coaches the way he does because he doesn’t care about winning and losing. He cares about competing,” Warren said.

Despite the messages and legacy coaches leave with their players, at the end of the day, most are judged by their wins and losses. Novak doesn’t care too much about the wins but can’t stand losing.

“Personally, winning to me isn’t that big a deal. I just really hate losing. Losing pains me.

Losing really, really bothers me,” Novak said. “This will surprise many, but winning state championships aren’t all that important to me. It’s the games I lose that I

graphic by Isabella Wiesman

ultimately think about the most.”

When the team isn’t competing in games, Novak has to judge whether or not the team is truly enjoying the game of basketball or are just going through the motions.

“There is a saying out there that is like ‘find something that you love and then become great

at it.’ I’m not sure I’m buying that. I don’t buy that philosophy,” Novak said. “My philosophy is ‘be so good that no one can ignore you’ and when you become so good at something and start becoming an expert in it or start becoming great at it, that’s when you start to love it.

You’ll truly love to do it.”

the

sports11 RPThursday, March 5, 2015 Boys hockey captains continue careers post-season

By Jordan Zaroff Staff Reporter

As the boys hockey season came to an end with a 1-0 loss in the section quarterfinals to the Wayzata Trojans, 10 seniors completed their competitive hockey careers that night. But for Matt Hines and Josh Kuehmichel, seniors, Junior Hockey is next.

Junior Hockey is generally for players between the ages of 16-20 years old. Junior Hockey is split into different regions throughout the U.S. and Canada.

In the U.S., the top tier is represented by the United State Hockey League (USHL), the second-highest tier is the North American Hockey League (NAHL), and the third-highest tier is split between several different leagues.

Travis Boyd, an alumni of the HHS boys hockey team, was drafted by the Washington

Capitals of the NHL in 2011 and now plays for the Minnesota Golden Gophers. Boyd played Junior Hockey for the U.S. National Development Program, based in Ann Arbor, Mich., after he graduated early from HHS. Hines and Kuehmichel play defenseman and goalie.

“The minute I get there I am competing for the starting job,”Kuehmichel said. “It is a huge role for a young player like me to step up and play goalie and lead by example.”

Both Kuehmichel and Hines were captains on the varsity team this year. Kuehmichel posted a .910 save percentage during the regular season. Hines led the team in penalty minutes with 39 and started almost every game.

As the captains begin their Junior Hockey careers, they will each be heading to different places. Hines will be playing for the Minnesota Magicians in the

Left: Matt Hines, senior, defending against a Wayzata skater during the sections game on Feb. 19. Hines will play for the Minn. Magicians next year.

Right: Josh Kuehmichel, senior, defending the net during sections on Feb. 19. Kuehmichel will play for the Brookings Blizzard next year. photos by Hillary Donovan

NAHL, which is based out of Richfield, Minn. Kuehmichel, will be playing for the Brookings Blizzard in the NAHL, which is out of Brookings, S.D. Junior Hockey is usually played during your first and second years out of high school. When choosing

to play Juniors, both Hines and Kuehmichel are opting to take the year off from college.

“At first I was a little scared of taking a whole year off of school,” Kuehmichel said. “But it is my dream to play Division I hockey, and it is really hard to go straight

from high school hockey to college hockey. Also, colleges look for mature players and they will find that in my time Juniors.”

Both players are looking forward to the next step in their hockey careers, and are looking to exceed Juniors and try to go

to the next step which is College Hockey. Kuehmichel does not know what college he would be interested in, but Hines, is interested in Minnesota, Mankato.

“I’ll try to be the hardest working guy out there, and will try to lead by example,” Hines said.

Brian Cosgriff to Hall of Fame Girls hockey season comes Coach inducted into Minn. Girls Basketball to close after loss in sections Hall of Fame after 16 years with Royals

By Judaisha Jackson Staff Reporter Brian Cosgriff, girls basketball coach, is set to be inducted into the Minn. Girls Basketball Hall of Fame.

"I'm really humbled and honored," Cosgriff said. "I think it speaks volumes to the players and coaches.”

In addition to coaching basketball, Cosgriff has taught physical education at Alice Smith Elementary School since 1987.

Cosgriff attributes his success to the Hopkins community.

“All I did was take the work ethic of Ken Novak Sr. and transfer it over to the girls program,” Cosgriff said. “This wouldn’t be possible if Ron Sellnow didn’t hire me and Dan Johnson didn’t allow me to work here.”

Since he started coaching in the 1999-2000 season, Cosgriff has led the Royals to five state championships, including a three-peat from 2011-2013.

Over the past five seasons, team has posted a record of 134 wins and only 8 losses. In addition, Cosgriff has led the team to 12 Lake or Classic Lake conference titles.

This season, the team is currently ranked first in the state and 14th in the nation, with a record of 23-1, as of Feb 26.

The Minn. Girls Basketball Hall of Fame inducted its first

class in 1993. It was created by the Minn. Girls Basketball Coaches Association as a way to honor elite coaches. Coaches are nominated by their peers in the coaches association.

Many of Cosgriff ’s players continued playing basketball on the collegiate level, such as Nia Coffey and Mikaala Shackleford. T’Aire Starks, senior, will play for Iowa State next fall.

Shackleford currently plays basketball for the University of Illinois.

“He taught me a lot and I’m never going to forget him,” Shackleford said.

Maddison Zemlicka, senior and veteran of the girls basketball program, credits much of her success to Cosgriff ’s coaching.

“Not only does he teach us skills on the court, but in life as well,” Zemlicka said. “And that’s been really helpful.”

Carl Pierson, president of the Minnesota Girls Basketball Association, stated that Cosgriff was inducted because of his success on the basketball court.

“Cosgriff was selected because of his remarkable track record of success and his litany of state tournament appearances,” Pierson said.

Pierson also noted that Cosgriff is widely known for having dominant and successful teams.

“I would say that Coach Cosgriff has earned the respect

of coaches across the state not just because of all the wins and championships accrued, but also because his teams are known for being very disciplined and fundamentally sound,” Pierson said.

It is through practices that the team has developed that discipline. In a typical practice the team goes through multiple cardio exercises, numerous shooting drills and intense scrimmages.

It doesn’t stop. According to assistant coach Gary Westman, what sets the team apart from opponents is their work ethic.

“It’s a process that we start at a young age,” Westman said.

“We instill fundamentals and values, and then we work on them constantly.”

During the summer, the team hosts breakfast clubs, basketball camps and a traveling team. Even during the nocontact period, the girls practice together to develop chemistry and perfect their game.

“Cosgriff is really good at bringing strangers together and molding them into a team,” Zemlicka said.

Cosgriff is determined to keep his players humble and hardworking. Before every practice he huddles the team and reminds them to never become satisfied.

“Work every game, every possession,” Cosgriff said. “Play every game like it’s your last.”

say that Coach Cosgriff has earned “theI would respect of coaches across the state not just because of all the wins and championships accrued, but also because his teams are known ____” for being very disciplined and fundamentally sound. “ -Carl Pierson, President of the Minnesota Girls Basketball Association

____”

By Bea Frank Staff Reporter On Wednesday, Feb. 11, the girls’ hockey season came to a close with a 7-3 loss to Minnetonka at the section semifinals. Despite the loss to their Lake Conference rival, the team still feels positive about the season.

“It’s obviously not the way we wanted to end our seasonespecially by such a big marginbut I think that the score did not show how we fought hard and played to the end,” said Kate Glover, sophomore.

Glover plays defense for the Royals, and this was her third year on varsity. With two goals and nine assists, she’s ranked fifth on her team for total points scored.

“I just try to help the team as much as I can. If the team wins, I’m happy,” Glover said.

The Royals had a regular season record of 11-12-1, opening with a 10-0 win against North Metro. Among their other wins was one against Wayzata, a game many players were proud of.

“When we beat Wayzata, it was probably our best game as a whole team,” Glover said.

In the Lake Conference, they finished fifth of the five

schools, falling right behind the Edina Hornets (15-17-1).

“We were very disappointed when the season ended," said Chris Erickson, head coach.

"But the girls never gave up and worked hard until the final horn- as a coach I could not ask for more than that."

This was Erickson's first year as the girl's coach, and he enjoyed the season.

"It was a good, hard-working group of players," Erickson said.

Overall, Erickson believes the season went pretty well.

There were some big victories, in particular the conference wins against Wayzata and Edina.

"We played in one of the toughest conferences - as well as one of the best sections - in the state, and competed very well,"

Erickson said.

They also beat Benilde-St. Margaret’s in their first game of the section tournament. The last time that the team had won a sections game was four years ago.

“I was just happy that we won a section game,” said Corbin Boyd, senior captain. “It was huge to finally do so.”

Boyd was the team’s assist leader, with 33.

The team will be losing many players next season, with eight seniors graduating this year. This includes both Boyd and this season’s goal leader, Grace Bizal, senior captain.

“It’s going to be hard next year because they’re losing a lot of girls, but they’ll be fine,” Boyd said. “They’ll just have to try their hardest every game.”

Point leaders on the girls varsity hockey team Corbin Boyd Kylie Hanley Grace Bizal infographic by Hillary Donovan

= 5 points

RP Thursday, March 5, 2015

the

12 backpage

ridgedale BEFORE

the

REDONE AFTER Ridgedale before and after the construction

picture As reported in the Sun Sailor, “the construction at the mall marks the first step of a much larger $400 million redevelopment project the city hopes to pursue in the Ridgedale area in the coming years, which Minnetonka Mayor Terry Schneider discussed during his “State of the City” presentation Feb. 13 at the Minnetonka Community Center.

The city envisions a new theatre, restaurants, parking structures, an eight-story hotel and conference center, housing units and office space.”

Exterior Chipotle Entrance 11%

NO

AFTER

31% MAYBE

Interior Lower Level

58%

BEFORE

YES

Will you be more likely to shop at Ridgedale after the construction?

BEFORE AFTER

What MALL

20%

do you most

Exterior Big Bowl Entrance

HHS students recall their junior high experience as a time of transition, battling Algebra, sleeping through Driver’s Ed, and flirting or (less likely) shopping at Ridgedale mall. Now, that very mall is experiencing a transition of its own.

Ridgedale Shopping Center is undergoing construction in three phases to become more upscale.

The renovation began by increasing the size of Macy’s, will continue with the construction of a Nordstrom department store where a

The Royal Page surveyed 100 students.

Here are the results.

frequently

shop at?

Macy’s Men’s and Home store once stood and will culminate with the pending incorporation of three free-standing restaurants.

The second phase will also include the addition of two restaurants and a reconstructed parking lot with a pedestrian bridge leading to the entrance of Nordstrom and a connection to a prospective bike trail Rachel Ricchio, senior, works at the Ridgedale store Len and understands why the mall decided to renovate.

While Ricchio notes that the construction is intended to

attract more shoppers, she observes that the construction has actually caused a decrease rather than increase in business.

“My store had to move upstairs, which has made it hard for our store to keep doing well because people don’t know where we went,” Ricchio said. “The map is always changing, and it is driving people crazy.”

The construction has also caused hazards for mall employees. Employees have been assigned parking spots in the back of the lot and are

After pictures used with permission from Ridgedale Center Before pictures by Ruby Krietzman, Photo Editor

fined and towed if they park in front of the designated area.

“It is really icy outside, and it can be dangerous and a hassle to walk so far alone at night in the dark. Also, if you are late to work, the parking can make it more difficult because there is a longer distance to walk,” Ricchio said.

Even though the construction has caused short-term problems, Ricchio acknowledges that it will be beneficial in the long run.

“Honestly, I think the construction will help the mall

16%

a lot because everyone likes Nordstrom since they always have good brands. I think the construction will not only incline more HHS students to shop at Ridgedale, but also Eden Prairie and Minnetonka students,” Ricchio said. “It will be a great opportunity to get more people working because there will be more positions to be filled.”

Sara Anderson, junior, works at the Ridgedale store Francesca’s and agrees that the mall is changing for the better.

“The new stores are more high-end, so the tone of the

4% entire mall is going to change.

I think the mall will be better, especially for dances and events for school because we won’t have to go all the way to MOA to find a dress,” Anderson said. “This change was definitely necessary because I felt like Ridgedale was declining.”

Although Anderson believes the mall is going to cater to more upscale shoppers, she thinks that the variety of shoppers will increase.

“There will be somewhere for everyone to shop,” Anderson said.

By Tobie Soumekh, Backpage Editor and Isabella Weisman, Infographic Editor