January 2014

theroar January 2014

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theroar Voice of the Students

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4 Inbox

17 In Charge

Letters, surveys, tweets and more

Winter sports welcome three new coaches

5 Dystopian District

18 Underappreciated

School boardâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s choices eerily echo Hunger Games

Team managers play key role in athletic success

6 Blame Game

19 Cat Tales

Cuts come back to legislature, voters

7 Money Matters

Fee discourages diversity, inspires inequality

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Fending off police dog Timber, officer Brian Delossantos demonstrates the canineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s training as part of Mary Kellyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s senior project. The presentation, given to seniors during homeroom, included demonstrations of the dogs heeling, sniffing out drugs and bringing down suspects.

15 Sizing them up

District chooses to ignore class size amendment

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10

(QWHUWDLQPHQW 20 Movie Review

Photo: Alannah Stewart

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Catching Fireâ&#x20AC;? darkens, intrigues

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21 Archery achievement

Capstone Comes Aboard Third path appears with new, higher standards

by Natalie Brown

ON THE COVER: Illustration by Jack Dickens for The Roar

Sam Lack gives a blow-by-blow of sports metaphors

What Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve Lost â&#x20AC;&#x2122;Cats cope with cut costs and a shift in education resources

by Erin Sheridan and Michelle Maldonado

Problems in the Philippines 12 Junior Megan Turingan helps pick up the pieces after typhoon devastates her hometown.

Senior imitates bowwielding â&#x20AC;&#x153;Hunger Gamesâ&#x20AC;? protagonist

22

Music Review Boy band proves talent in â&#x20AC;&#x153;Midnight Memoriesâ&#x20AC;?

23 Book Review

Lockwood & Co. cleverly scares and captivates

by Valerie Ferretti and Jessica Whaley

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&KULVWPDV FKHHU WKURXJKRXW WKH \HDU Christmas is one of my favorite times of year. Not for the candy canes, or the gifts or even for the lack of school, but rather for the general good-feelings that come along with the holiday.

There are a lot of things in this world that could be fixed if people cared about everyone else year round as much as they do during Christmas. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m not saying that caring is a cureall, just that it helps.

Despite its commercialization, Christmas has retained its core. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s about giving, about being more excited to see the faces of your family members when they open their presents, than finding out what they got for you. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s about singing carols, not as an individual, but with a group of people.

In the movies, the kids who continue to bully others during the holidays get whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s coming to them. No one stands for their nasty behavior, and I like that. We donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have a bullying problem at this school, but maybe look at it from a worldlier perspective. If we kept good cheer in the air, maybe our government would sort itself out or world poverty would decrease.

Perhaps thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wishful thinking, but when has singing joyously all together ever failed the human race?

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twittersays Our slogan should be something inspiring, not something that makes it seem like we all failed when we didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t. â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Rosalie Heninger, @RosalieHeninger

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Why are finals even a thing? â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Taylor Eenhuis, @taylor_eenhuis

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/DFNLQJ OHJJLQJV" $FFRUGLQJ WR WKH GLVWULFW GUHVV FRGH OHJJLQJV DUH VWRFNLQJV DQG FDQQRW EH ZRUQ DORQH 6WXGHQWV QHHG WR KDYH VHOI UHVSHFW Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m not sure about anyone else, but I am sick and tired of seeing girls walking around wearing â&#x20AC;&#x153;booty shorts.â&#x20AC;? Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re a) not flattering, and b) mentally scarring. I come here to learn, not to be bombarded by cellulite and excess skin.

The same goes for â&#x20AC;&#x153;leggings as pants,â&#x20AC;? which are NOT pants. Contrary to what some people may think, you can see everything through the thin material. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just disrespectful to yourself and others.

Students, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s really not OK to show the world everything youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s really not. Modesty is, actually, much more attractive because it shows that you have regard for yourself. This is not a night-club. This is a school, and if you donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know the difference, then I suggest that you educate yourself. Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not the same; you wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t dress like you do for school if you were to go to a night-club and vice-versa.

Teachers, by not ensuring that students follow the dress code, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re essentially setting up students to be ridiculed by others. I (and most people I know) donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t think very highly of people who choose not to follow the dress code. I think that â&#x20AC;&#x201D; at least for their sake alone â&#x20AC;&#x201D; teachers need to begin dress-coding students. ,JNNBZB $IJTPMN UI (SBEF

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staffeditorial

7KH ([FHOOHQFH *DPHV" &HUWDLQO\ QRW DW WKLV UDWH A government that mandates the annual sacrifice of children to a state-sponsored “competition.” A government that enforces the rules when it’s most convenient, and neglects them when it’s not. What does it say about our educational governing bodies that a description stolen from the “Hunger Games” fits them to a tee?

The current climate of hypocritical selectivity of the rules that has consumed the school board and our own administration is unacceptable. As young citizens of a country that is currently experiencing increasing political gridlock, the attitude that is possessed by our administrators and school board members does nothing but increase our cynical worldview and exacerbate our innate disrespect for the rules.

And while disrespect may not be a problem for the school board, our administration relies on our obedience and our willingness to respect their authority. Despite time constraints that have been placed on both teachers and staff this year,

blatantly neglecting rules that were previously labored on and emphasized to the point of nausea is not exemplary. It was the hypocrisy and downright inhumanity of Panem’s Capitol that begot rebellion. Sporadically enforcing the dress code, while not on par with the forced sacrifice of children, exacerbates teenage laxity — an attitude that is not conducive to success in a rigid adult world. As for the school board, denying lower-income students an outstanding education is, in many cases, sacrificing them to society. Limiting educational opportunities and producing veiled threats about the future state of choice schools in not characteristic of a benevolent leader, but rather a bully; someone who feels the need to malign others in order to feel powerful.

In District 3 of Brevard County, at a “school of excellence” where the students are inconsistently dress coded and in a county where the elected officials are oblivious to our needs, the odds are not in our favor.

MDQXDU\ O theroar O

Molly Minta

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Let me preface this by saying that I love government. Whoa. Now thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a sentence you donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t hear every day, is it? But, I confess.

I will be a hard-core, big government, deficit-loving liberal till the day I die. I just think that government has the capacity to do a lot of good, despite the asinine politicians and constipated bureaucratic system mucking it up.

But, in the past year and a half, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve become incredibly disillusioned with the state of our local government. Our local school board, to be exact. The five members of the school board have poorly managed the budget, ignored and patronized student journalists, and completely disregarded their role as quasi-role models. All their antics have done more to increase my cynicism about this state than the passage of the â&#x20AC;&#x153;saggy pantsâ&#x20AC;? law by the Florida Legislature last year. Which is a shame, because government really needs competent workers right now.

Because I really like the legal system and believe that most humans are innately good, I tend to make a lot of excuses for government. Believe it or not, but government class will teach you that the basic bureaucratic structure is really the most efficient way to run any large group that has many people working for it, whether it is a government or a corporation.

But even someone like me, who loves government so much she volunteers for it, is not deaf to the constant complaints of teachers, parents, and fellow students about what a poor job the school board is doing.

The basic facts are not in dispute; the school board has poorly managed its money, and hasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t gone about recovering from a $33 million deficit in the most comfortable way. The members seem to be oblivious to the wants and needs of education in this district, despite not one member lacking educational service prior to their election to the board, and they have acted in an impossibly self-serving manner.

But, instead of blaming them or their greedy political tendencies, I think itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s important to look deeper into the matter.

%\JRQH HUD 7KH ROG )ORULGD &DSLWRO Why have they acted this way?

To cry incompetence is not an incorrect assertion. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just a little superficial. The school boardâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lack of efficacy is not due to its ineptitude, but rather to a state Legislature that is egotistical, litigious, and stubborn.

The Florida motto is â&#x20AC;&#x153;in God we trustâ&#x20AC;??

More like â&#x20AC;&#x153;cut, cut, cut, and when youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re done, cut again.â&#x20AC;? Our state legislators might as well have scissors for hands. Government here is not on a diet, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s anorexic. And when it comes to wanting that state thigh gap, education is usually the first to go. Florida has one of the lowest per-pupil spendingâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; $8,741 as of 2012. This is coupled with a below-average math and critical reading mean score. Furthermore, the actions of the state Legislature over the past year arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t ones that will foster educational success.

Take the Class-Size Reduction Amendment.

Beginning as a referendum, this amendment has had strong support from the voters in Florida, and yet the Legislature has created an environment that incentivizes debtridden school districts, such as ours, to break the law because it is actually cheaper to do so. Education, with its massive socialization power, should model any behavior but manipulation and sliminess, which is ultimately what this is. The Florida Legislature dislikes the amendment and,

despite its position as a representation of what the people in this state, has done anything in its power to nullify it. Even in a county where the majority of the people â&#x20AC;&#x153;directlyâ&#x20AC;? benefit from public education (i.e., where the plurality of people are not over 65), it would be very hard to effectively manage it with a guiding body as apathetic as the Florida Legislature.

So where has the money thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not been given to education gone? Much of it has gone to grow our economy, where it has gone to fund private sport stadiums and the like. While Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m not implicitly against this, I just wonder if this money is going to the best cause. A growing economy is certainly important, as is employment. But who is going to benefit, in the long run, from a growing economy if the Florida Legislature keeps turning a blind eye to the needs to education in this state? Not the college graduate with mountains of debt because her Bright Futures were cut. Not the teacher who is swamped with six over-flowing classes out of seven. In the long run, this marginalization of education could even hurt business. I know education doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t seem that important right now; homework is boring and grades cause too much stress.

But receiving a good education is absolutely vital to society and, if weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re drawing on American values, to democracy.

Education is so important to our formation as interesting people and also, of course, to us obtaining jobs in the future.

I know a lot of us (OK, probably most of us) still wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t care. High schoolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s boring. But itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s this kind of attitude that has led to the more obvious injustice; a school board, who has had to deal with an uncaring Legislature, making decisions to save itself. The elimination of the buses, and the resulting traffic in the mornings and in the afternoon. Unfair application fees, larger classrooms, and the threatened closing of choice schools. It may seem like these problems came from an ineffective school board, but thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not really true. They began with an unchecked, uncaring state Legislature and, ultimately, with us.

Elena Abascal

-XVWLFH QRW VHUYHG 6FKRRO ERDUGҋV EHKDYLRU SURPRWHV LQHTXDOLW\ Evil scientist versus the naive but brave medical intern. The twisted computer hacker versus the brilliant technology prodigy. The cold-blooded killer versus the determined and courageous police officer. My favorite story growing up was Bluebeard, an evil king who would marry young princesses, take their enormous fortunes and then kill them. One day, the king married Laila, a clever princess who uncovered his ploy, defeated him in a battle and bequeathed his considerable wealth.

Even then, as an 8-year-old who understood little about real-life justice, I was comforted by the idea that good had the power to prevail.

The older I have gotten, the more I have come to understand how much of a fairy tale justice can sometimes be. Where is the justice, for example, in allowing the school board to impose a school fee that the Florida Department of Education has confirmed is illegal? Why is the entity responsible for representing the young people of Brevard County able to disregard the law without a second thought?

I have to question what the district really means by “ensuring the best for all our students” when it decided that classes overflowing with students were in our “best interest.” Despite voters’ support of the legislation, the school board has ignored the Class Size Amendment, which caps class sizes at a maximum of 25 students. Instead, the school board paid a $170,000 fee to neglect the amendment and ultimately save the $3 million it costs to enforce the policy. I’d like to know if I as a student can also disregard the dress code and cell-phone policy by paying a tiny fine.

And if that weren’t enough, the board recently elected to impose an application fee for choice schools such as this one. Now for those of us whose families are able to afford a $30 fee, it is easy enough to brush off the charge. And when the board claims to offer waivers for impoverished students, it seems like there really isn’t an issue at all.

But the application fee is inherently stacked against low-income and minority

students for reasons more complex than just cost. Some students may not have families who understand how to navigate the complex system of paperwork required for a waiver and unfortunately, there are some parents simply too disinterested to be bothered. And with the school board now proposing that the application process be completed online, I have to wonder to what lengths the board is willing to go to disadvantage less well off students.

How can there be diversity in choice schools if students who don’t have access to material resources are weeded out before they even have the chance to apply? Diversity is not just something that Brevard Public Schools should strive for, it’s something it should be proud of striving for. It’s something that’s worth much more than any amount of revenue brought in by a school fee. It is invaluable. And unfortunately, to the district it is seriously underappreciated.

Imagine my surprise when the application fee information sheet that was handed out in December did not mention the ability to apply for a fee waiver. And why would it? The school board gains nothing by offering a waiver.

In fact, the loss the board undertakes each time it awards a waiver is, very literally, a calculated loss — a $30 loss to be exact.

Perhaps the school board should clarify that when it vows “To serve every student,” it really means every affluent student.

To accept the application fee as fair is to deny the disadvantage it places lowincome students on. Anyone who has seen the actual fee waiver request form will agree that is anything but trivial. The form requires documentation about income and

a significant amount of time and thought to fill out. Who is affected by this? Certainly not wealthier students whose families can easily afford the fee. Certainly not students whose parents have the time to maneuver the paperwork and rifle through their filing cabinet to find the documents. It’s the students whose parents take on longer shifts and multiple jobs, whose parents didn’t attend school and don’t have an understanding of the public school system.

It is these students who find themselves hurt by the organization that promised to stand up for them.

Today, the school board’s mission statement “To serve every student with excellence as the standard” rings hollow. If the standard involves breaking the law and

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imposing discriminatory practices, then excellence is certainly not the word that comes to mind. As the school board sees it, the ends really do justify the means. Is this really the message we want the school board sending to us as students? That it’s all right to dodge the law and break the rules as long as it means we accomplish what we need to? I don’t expect anything from the board that I do not expect from myself; honesty, fairness and responsibility for my actions. The board must be held to those same standards.

Princess Laila isn’t the only one demanding a refund.

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News Feed Education

&URZQLQJ $FKLHYHPHQW 1HZ SURJUDP FDSV FXUUHQW FXUULFXOXP ZLWK PRUH ULJRU %\ 1DWDOLH %URZQ Despite attending a school nationally recognized for scholastic achievement, some students crave more rigor in their academic diets.

In response to competition from academically rigorous International Baccalaureate and Cambridge programs, the College Board has unveiled a new graduation diploma program with increased emphasis on independent research and teamwork components. Starting in the fall of 2014, West Shore will adopt the Advanced Placement Cambridge Capstone Program. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The College Board has had to compete with other advanced programs, like ACE and IB, and this was their response,â&#x20AC;?

Principal Rick Fleming said.

Fleming and AP English Language teacher Jeanie Griffin both researched the program two years ago and began the process of integrating it into the West Shore model. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I spend a lot of time on the College Board web site, and it was surprising that Ms. Griffin was looking this program up concurrently,â&#x20AC;? Fleming said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We looked at what the specs were, sat down together and thought this was modeled after our existing program.â&#x20AC;?

After Fleming sent a plan relating the schoolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s current graduation track and curriculum to Capstone standards, he was informed that they were piloting the program only in 50 large, urban high schools nationwide, including four predetermined Florida schools. Eight months later, however, the College Boardâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s southeast regional director Bard Keeler put West Shore on a list of possible schools to join the program. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I was informed about the pilot schools but little did I know that we were put on Bard Keelerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s radar based on our existing AP pass rates, the number of AP courses that we offer, and the number that our students take,â&#x20AC;? Fleming said.

The new program will encompass two years of coursework requiring four AP courses per year. In the first year, which

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can begin in either sophomore or junior year, students take the Interdisciplinary Investigations and Critical Reasoning Seminar focused on collaborative group work through analysis of current topics, including climate change and deforestation.

During the second year, students participate in the Capstone Research Project where they write a 4,000 to 5,000 word academic paper which is graded by College Board on a topic of their choice. â&#x20AC;&#x153;College Board talked to universities and said research skills are a big part of what theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re looking for in students, meaning how well do these students know how to research a topic, synthesise information, and work as a team to present that information,â&#x20AC;? Fleming said.

Students who successfully complete the research project, seminar course and score of at least a Level 3 on at least three of their AP exams, they will receive the AP Cambridge Capstone Credential which, according to College Board, may be supported by scholarships, honors programs and even college credit.

Fleming expressed regret that many upperclassmen wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be able to take advantage of Capstone. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I feel a little bit bad for the juniors and seniors,â&#x20AC;? Fleming said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Many of them would have qualified based on the things theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re doing already.â&#x20AC;?

Senior Lexie Krehbiel, conversely, feels she dodged a bullet with the new program due to the increased workload. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m kind of glad. It wouldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been another thing on my plate and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve done the things Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve liked to do,â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve pushed myself academically, so Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m happy with my high school years.â&#x20AC;?

Chris Melchiori, however, has mixed emotions about missing the opportunity to get involved. â&#x20AC;&#x153;As a junior, I kind of wish I had gotten in the program,â&#x20AC;? he said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It wouldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been nice and helped with my AP scores. Then again, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s less work that I have to do, so itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s kind of good to miss it.â&#x20AC;?

AP Environmental Science teacher Paula Ladd thinks the program has promise but hopes the research project will coincide with Science Research standards. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s good for students who want to compete, but I hope the second portion will be applicable to research students,â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We still donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know what it looks like because itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not matured yet, but I hope it will work.â&#x20AC;?

Some teachers, including drama teacher Maureen Fallon, are concerned about the arts getting put on the back burner. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Well, if kids have to choose four APs, theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re going to have less flexibility to take those arts courses like band, orchestra, and drama,â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lost opportunities.â&#x20AC;?

Fleming contends that electives and performing arts would be unaffected. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The great thing about Capstone is that itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s so similar to what weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re already doing,â&#x20AC;? he said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;If you were to take an average of our senior class, I would say probably 90 percent take five or six AP courses. Most would easily fulfill the requirement, so there wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be a big shift.â&#x20AC;?

While Fleming wants to have the three separate paths of acceleration available to students â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Diploma of Distinction requirements, dual enrollment/early admissions and Capstone â&#x20AC;&#x201D; he emphasized that all three are equally viable. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want anybody to get the perception that because this new academic track is on board that somehow the Diploma of Distinction is a dumbed down version of Capstone,â&#x20AC;? he said.

The administration is getting ready to plan a meeting with the sophomore and freshman classes and their parents to spread information on Capstone, which will most likely be scheduled in the spring. Formal program registration will occur during registration for the 2014-2015 school year. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Be it [Diploma of Distinction], early admissions or Capstone, I want to better each student to get into the college of their choice,â&#x20AC;? Fleming said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s my job and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m ready to do it.â&#x20AC;?

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News Feed Education

$XVWHUH DGMXVWPHQWV %XGJHW FXWV LPSDFW PRYHV IURP K\SRWKHWLFDO WR UHDOLW\ %\ (ULQ 6KHULGDQ DQG 0LFKHOOH 0DOGRQDGR As a daily routine, students come to school and do not notice the “little things” that go on in the background, more focused on the newest social media hype rather than the test they take in second period. While this occurs, the faculty attempts to combat the ever-growing pile of work it must complete each day before school in order to prepare for classes. While the work load was not previously this excessive, budget cuts have caused a multitude of teachers to lose their jobs, increasing the amount of work the faculty is required to accomplish in order to maintain its standards.

“We lost 10 percent of our county budget several years ago that never came back,” Principal Rick Fleming said. “It started five years ago when we lost a 10-month assistant principal, a 12-month clerk in the front office along with half of our media assistant clerks.”

Due to this, the administrators had to take the initiative, adding volunteers to keep West Shore up to par.

“So, we lost about 18 and a half hours of man labor per day alone in the office,” Fleming said. “Those jobs didn’t go away, they just got shifted to me, Mr. [Robert] Farrell, Mrs. [Jackie] Ingratta and all the other people in the front office.”

In addition to administrators gaining more work, teachers have lost half their planning time, requiring them to teach six of the seven classes.

“It has been extremely difficult to have one less planning period,” English teacher Jeanie Griffin said. “I am finding that I cannot provide as much feedback on the essays as in past years. Also, it is nearly impossible to adjust to student learning and lesson plans to fit student needs as there is little to plan readjustment lessons and create reteaching assignments. Physically, I am exhausted most of the time.”

Griffin said she is constantly working and to use her time more effectively, she is going to have to cut school in some way.

“I am either going to have to have students

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do more independent quiet seat work so I can grade or I am going to have to cut back on essential assignments,” Griffin said.

“Regardless, whatever I have to do will impact students in a negative manner and this makes me pretty upset.”

Teachers who previously taught six of seven classes last year received additional pay but this year since it is required to teach that many, they have to teach seven of seven for higher pay.

“I must teach seven out of seven classes so that I will not suffer a loss in pay,” French teacher Jennifer Walker said. “Teaching this many classes has made my life much busier. I do not have any planning periods to correct papers, plan lessons and create Power Points.”

Being the lone French teacher, Walker is the only one capable of sponsoring French Honor Society.

“It is much more difficult for me to plan the million things I must do for French Honor Society and Congres, the state French competition,” Walker said.

Due to the economy, Walker also teaches at Eastern Florida State College.

“I teach at EFSC because my salary as a teacher is still frozen for seven years in a row now and I am not making enough money to pay my mortgage,” Walker said.

Knowing how taxing this year would be on all the teachers with the loss of a planning period, science teacher Sheri Jenkins, English teacher Amanda Kopp and the administration all made a plan for Senior project changes this year that would help ease their workload.

“We came to the compromise that although teachers will not grade the Senior Papers, they will still partake in the grading process for products and portfolios so that they have the opportunity to see the products of the students’ individualized projects and that this remains a school wide effort,” Kopp said.

Kopp understands teachers’ need for time and planning so she says she is happy to

take on the Senior Paper grading in order to give them the time that they need to help develop the students into the kids that they are when they come senior year.

“I have seen such growth in skills and maturity in our students from their ninth grade year when I first had this year’s graduating class to this year and I know that much of this comes from the hard work and dedication that our teachers put forth,” Kopp said.

In the past, the Senior Project Coordinator had three planning periods but this year Kopp only has two planning periods.

“I feel fortunate to have two planning periods and use every second of them,” she said. “I spend a significant amount of time trying to contact them via email, my text message reminder service, making phone calls to them and guardian’s emails as well. So, that second planning period is usually spent coordinating with those students, and/or working on my other senior project coordinator duties such as training faculty for grading, organizing senior board speech presentations, reworking the curricula as well as handling various administrative duties.”

Kopp said juggling such a diverse rigorous load in no way makes her unique among the faculty.

“I am no different than any of our teachers at West Shore. I too spend many hours after and outside of school, working from home, often past midnight to meet deadlines and to provide better, individualized learning opportunities for our students,” Kopp said.

Because teachers teach six of seven classes, the school had to give up to clubs meeting during school hours.

“If I understood the intent about removing clubs and relieving teachers of work it has increased the amount of work I have to do because I have to be here before and after school in addition to in school,” Student Government Association sponsor Robert Sarver said.

Though Sarver said it must be difficult for

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students who canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get to school to participate in clubs, the students in SGA seem to be handling the loss of club time pretty well. â&#x20AC;&#x153;However, the clubs that I am affiliated with still work excellently, since the students are of such an excellent caliber,â&#x20AC;? Sarver said.

Not only has club been eliminated from the school day, but some clubs have diminished since teachers and students do not have time to sponsor or participate in them before and after school. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Because I do gymnastics in Orlando, I do not have time to do clubs after school since I leave early already,â&#x20AC;? sophomore Mattie Shaw said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I could do clubs in the morning but by the time I get home from Orlando and do my homework it is too late for me to wake up early and get there on time.â&#x20AC;?

With the loss of corridor busing, the students are no longer on the constraints of having to get on the bus in the afternoon meaning clubs can meet before or after school. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Since I am in more than one club, it is better that they are before and after school because I am able to go to all the meetings and do not have to pick just one to participate in,â&#x20AC;? junior Alicia Ortiz said.

Even though the school eliminated clubs to ease the impact, it lost valuable people and acquirements that would have made it easier. â&#x20AC;&#x153;One less person to answer the phone, one less person to answer questions from parents, one less person to help with customer service such as students needing something,â&#x20AC;? Fleming said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s enough â&#x20AC;&#x201D; I do not want to lose any more.â&#x20AC;?

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News Feed Typhoon

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eighborhoods turned into lakes, houses demolished and streets scattered with rubble. Images of people scrambling in search of their loved ones filled TV screens on Nov. 8, as junior Megan Turingan and her mother watched anxiously from their living room. When Haiyan — a super typhoon generating 195 mile sustained winds — roared into the Philippines, Megan’s family lay in the cross-hairs of destruction.

“We were all freaking out because the city that had been on the news for forever is Tacloban,” Megan said. “And that’s where my mom grew up and [she] still has family who live there.”

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With communication down for days, the junior nervously awaited news of her motherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s family including her sister and two aunts. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I went out a lot with my friends to distract myself, but it was always in the back of my mind,â&#x20AC;? Megan said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I was in a daze the whole weekend.â&#x20AC;?

For Joy Turingan, Meganâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mother, the typhoonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s severity came as a surprise. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I already knew that the storm had its sights set on my hometown,â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;But we go through at least 20 storms every year, so even though I knew the city would be hit, I was confident that it would get back up as theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve always done.â&#x20AC;?

On Sunday night, Joy received word via Facebook that her family had survived. The worst typhoon in Philippines history had flattened surrounding buildings, but the Turingan familyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s house remained intact. â&#x20AC;&#x153;My first reaction was of disbelief,â&#x20AC;? Joy said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I have never seen the city covered with water as tall as a house.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;My aunt had a concrete wall next to her house that took all of the force from the flood and the wind, so their house is fine except the roof and kitchen were blown off,â&#x20AC;? Megan said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They were actually really lucky because the house across the street is completely gone, and if that wall wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t there they probably wouldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been gone too.â&#x20AC;?

Senior Mark Wilson also had family in the stormâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s path, but despite being located on the Philippines coast, a church owned by his family survived the wall of water. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We lucked out,â&#x20AC;? Mark said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;No one got

hurt, so all the prayers were answered.â&#x20AC;?

Even though the storm did not directly affect Mark, he experienced an emotional impact.

7<3+2216 96 +855,&$1(6 +DL\DQ 1RY Â&#x2021; PSK VXVWDLQHG ZLQGV Â&#x2021;&DWHJRU\ .DWULQD $XJ Â&#x2021; PSK VXVWDLQHG ZLQGV Â&#x2021;&DWHJRU\ )UDQFHV $XJ Â&#x2021; PSK VXVWDLQHG ZLQGV Â&#x2021;&DWHJRU\ -HDQQH 6HSW Â&#x2021; PSK VXVWDLQHG ZLQGV Â&#x2021;&DWHJRU\ â&#x20AC;&#x153;I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t really have the connection that my mom does because Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve never been there, but I still felt it,â&#x20AC;? he said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Seeing my momâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s reaction is what got me the most sad because she was crying.â&#x20AC;?

Numerous challenges arose in the wake of the typhoon as emergency funds and accessible resources began to dry up. â&#x20AC;&#x153;During the first few days after the storm, they strained water they pumped from a well because it came out sandy,â&#x20AC;? Joy said.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;To conserve fuel for cooking, they gathered scraps of wood from houses that washed out on to our street. They used these to boil the water to drink and candles for light in the evening. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I felt so helpless looking at videos and aerial photographs of what the storm did in its wake.â&#x20AC;?

Megan decided to fight that feeling of helplessness. Feeling a need to reach out and assist her hometown, she created â&#x20AC;&#x153;A Turingan Family Drive,â&#x20AC;? a relief program that allows participants to â&#x20AC;&#x153;adopt a school childâ&#x20AC;? by providing him or her with a backpack full of school supplies and clothing for $10. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Relief from other countries, as well as those coming from local Philippine organizations, have been providing the victims with food and water and temporary shelter,â&#x20AC;? Joy said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;However, there is no mention of how they will be helping the school-age children prepare for their return to school.â&#x20AC;?

Turingan family members planned to personally deliver the supplies collected by the relief program during the Winter Break.

Schools were set to re-open on Jan. 15 after the debris has been removed and power restored. But according to Joy, much relief aid is still needed.

More than two months after Haiyan made landfall, the Filipino government has reported 6,000-plus deaths and more than 1,000 people still displaced.

Said Megan: â&#x20AC;&#x153;I still get chills seeing footage on the news of places Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been to before that are now destroyed.â&#x20AC;?

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([WUHPH PHDVXUHV %RDUG RSWV WR LJQRUH FODVV VL]H ODZ %\ .DWLH *DUZRRG About $3 million. That’s how much Brevard Public Schools saved this year by allowing 30 Brevard schools to break Florida’s Class Size Amendment, which was implemented in 2002.

The amendment requires that middle and high school classes not exceed 25 students. The school board decided that paying a $170,000 fine this year would be a better choice than providing the $3.4 million needed to hire the 64 teachers needed to comply with the amendment.

Despite the board’s reasons for breaking the law, some teachers and school officials say that not complying with the amendment, which was twice approved by Florida voters, sets a bad example for students.

“I understand why they did it, but nobody is happy about willfully breaking the law,” Principal Rick Fleming said. “It was to save money, which ultimately saves jobs, which ultimately provides additional service to kids, but I don’t like the message that it sends.”

According to Fleming, the main reason why the school board broke the law was because the state has failed to generate enough money to carry out the Class Size Amendment. Fleming said the school board didn’t have any good alternatives.

“It’s like you’re in a fight, and you’re not a fighter, you’re a lover and you’re backed into a corner and someone’s punching you,” Fleming said. “Do you come out fighting and defend yourself or do you just sit there and take a beating?

“It’s like the state has backed us into a corner; in one instance they’re telling us you don’t have money to meet compliance of the law, so we need you to break the law. If you come out fighting, you’re going to get suspended, but if you sit there and take a beating,

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you’re going to get killed.”

Although breaking the law seems extreme, school officials say that if they hadn’t done so, some middle- and highschool programs, such as robotics and Lego League, would lose funding and “pay-to-play” fees for all high school sports would be implemented.

This year, most of the classes that are not in compliance with the law are at elementary schools. Three of Brevard’s 27 middle and high schools are not in compliance.

Fleming said he expects all classes on campus to continue to meet the classsize requirement this school year.

“We may see a few additional students in classes, but I don’t think it will be substantial because our staffing is already established,” he said.

Math teacher Donald Gornto credits students’ high academic performance to the Class Size Amendment.

“An advantage of West Shore is that the administration tries to keep class sizes small,” Gornto said.

“That’s a reason why West Shore is so successful.”

English teacher Jeanie Griffin said she supports the amendment.

“It provides a positive learning atmosphere where teachers have the chance to work with the kids, walk around the class to help and answer questions,” Griffin said. “Students can work in small groups and they aren’t as distracted by noise levels.”

Even though the school board’s decision has drawn much criticism from parents, teachers and others in the community, Superintendent Brian Binggeli said he has students’ best interests in mind.

“I can accept disagreements, I have thick skin,” said Binggeli at a November school board meeting. “But what I can’t accept are people suggesting that I don’t care about children.”

Ignoring the Class Size Amendment not only will cost Brevard County a $170,000 fine and its “A” district rating with the state, but it also will impact when teachers and students will return to school next fall.

Because the district will drop to a “B,” under state law it can no longer set its own calendar. But according to school board member Michael Krupp, semester exams will still be given before Winter Break, students will come back to a review day on Jan. 6 and the new semester will start on Jan. 7. Under this plan, next year’s first semester will be 86 days long and the second will be 94.

“We’ll fall into that category where we can’t start school any sooner than two weeks before Labor Day, which means end of August, and that means we’ll go all the way into June to end the school year,” Principal Rick Fleming said. “We haven’t done that in a really long time.”

In fact, the last time the school year started in late August was in 2007, when the “Save Our Summers” law was enacted. The legislation states that schools cannot start the school year more than 14 days before Labor Day. Because schools in academically highperforming districts are exempt, this hasn’t pertained to Brevard County School District in recent years.

The decision to ignore the Class-Size Amendment was announced at a Oct. 22 board meeting, but Krupp said the ramifications are not set in stone.

“This may all change if the Legislature affords school districts a bye on the loss of the “A” grade category for a high-performing district,” Krupp said.”We should have an answer to our appeal in March as to whether or not we can start prior to Aug. 18.”

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. t i n i e r ’ u Yo How many other books can you say that about?

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During the past couple years, the role of a sports manager has shifted gears. Keeping statistics and filling in as waterboys used to be the main goal, but now the managers serve as sort of an inspiration for the team. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The managers help us by keeping important information for us during the games and help us to analyze our performance,â&#x20AC;? senior soccer player Ryan Robidoux said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;But most of all, they provide a lot of comic relief which lightens the mood in a positive way.â&#x20AC;?

Sports managing has become a growing occupation. The boysâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; basketball team included four managers, the boysâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; soccer team, three; and the girlsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; soccer team, one. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s nice always having a manager at each practice and multiple ones at the games,â&#x20AC;? senior basketball player Sam Lack said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They bring spirit.â&#x20AC;?

While some came by choice, other managers chose to take on the position due to recent injury.

Girlsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; soccer manager Katherine Avrakotos dislocated her ankle, broke her tibia, and fractured her fibula in a club soccer incident but chose to manage the team to stay close with her teammates. â&#x20AC;&#x153;My injury happened about a week before tryouts so I was very disappointed I wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be able to play for the team,â&#x20AC;? Avrakotos said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;As manager, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m still able to participate in some team bonding and still be a part of the team despite the fact that I cannot play with them.â&#x20AC;?

Despite the fact that Avrakotos cannot play with her team, she continues to show her team spirit by going to all of their games and cheering them on. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I still go to all of the games and keep stats because I like to see how well they are doing this year,â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Of course itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sad not being

able to play, but Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m glad I can be a manager and still be involved with the team.â&#x20AC;?

Although managers never play in the game, senior Gage Giunta, who has managed the boysâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; soccer team for three years, received a medal for being manager when the team defeated Berkeley Prep in the 2012 FSHAA state championship. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Winning the state championship game was out of this world,â&#x20AC;? Giunta said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;As it may seem unlikely, several players from that winning team theorized that my presence at every game we won had a slight correlation.â&#x20AC;?

Ever since then, Giunta has taken his role as manager very seriously.

Giunta claims he does the teamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x153;dirty workâ&#x20AC;? like getting water, towels, announcing names and distributing rosters. But that is not the only thing he does. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Most importantly as manager, I serve as a source of inspiration for the team to strive for a win at each game,â&#x20AC;? Giunta said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Not a single game goes by where somebody doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t say â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Gage this one is for you.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;?

While his first year managing the team was when they reigned as state champs, Giunta continually comes back to the boysâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; soccer team despite its record. â&#x20AC;&#x153;My first year managing was primarily a push to gain experience in different fields of high school extracurriculars. After the success I brought for the team, it was expected of me to make a return appearance in the next season,â&#x20AC;? he said.

While many of the teams have an abundance of managers, the players appreciate all they do and would not have it any other way according to Robidoux. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We all love the energy they bring to the team regardless of whether they are a player or not,â&#x20AC;? Robidoux said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They help us all around.â&#x20AC;?

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%\ 6DP /DFN Sports trivia question: What college football player won the 2013 Heisman Trophy, becoming only the second freshman to do so? Was it Texas A&Mâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Johnny Manziel, Florida Stateâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Jameis Winston, Floridaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Jeff Driskel, or Bostonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s David Ortiz?

Perhaps I belong in the entertainment section. Justin Timberlakeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hit single â&#x20AC;&#x153;TKOâ&#x20AC;? is both catchy and fun to sing along to, especially while in the car, much to the dismay of your family and their ear drums. It is also inarguably and irrefutably incorrect. In boxing, TKO stands for technical knockout, and occurs when a referee, official physician or fighter determines that a boxer cannot safely continue the fight, and ends the match, declaring the opposite fighter the victor. In short, one guy is still conscious, but is in pretty bad shape, so the referee stops the fight and gives his opponent the victory. A key element in a TKO is that the incapacitated boxer is not actually unconscious, just unable to continue. In his song, Timberlake, when speaking of this woman who causes him so much woe, claims â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m out for the count, yeah girl you 3XQFK ,W $ ER[HU WULHV WR NQRFNRXW KLV knock me outâ&#x20AC;? and that it was â&#x20AC;&#x153;with a RSSRQHQW ,I KH VXFFHHGV KLV YLFWRU\ ZRXOG TKO.â&#x20AC;? Is it catchy? Sure. Is it factual?

EH FDOOHG D . 2 QRW D 7 . 2 Nope. If Timberlake was â&#x20AC;&#x153;knocked outâ&#x20AC;? and â&#x20AC;&#x153;out for the count,â&#x20AC;? then it popular vernacular of students who are wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be a technical knockout, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d be able to escape a task in class as the period a regular knockout. I get it, Regular-KO ends before theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re expected to complete doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t sound nearly as good, and probably the task. Getting hit â&#x20AC;&#x153;below the beltâ&#x20AC;? is wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t make for a Top-40 smash hit, but an illegal boxing move, and in common at least it would be technically correct. vocabulary is simply an action that is There are plenty of popular yet misused considered dishonorable. sports idioms that have become a part If youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re among those who think sports of our daily vocabulary. To stick with shouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t hold a lofty place in society, I ask our boxing theme, the phrase â&#x20AC;&#x153;saved by you to consider the following examples. the bellâ&#x20AC;? originated when a boxer was If you accomplish a task in such a way near unconsciousness and therefore that it was better than expected, how defeat, yet the round ended â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and the would you express your emotions in any bell sounded â&#x20AC;&#x201D; before he was officially way other than â&#x20AC;&#x153;that was a slam dunkâ&#x20AC;?? declared a loser. Now it has come into the If youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re the next in line for an

amusement park ride and you declare yourself â&#x20AC;&#x153;on deck,â&#x20AC;? youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve used a baseball idiom.

If something has been going well since it began, and you say that itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been stellar â&#x20AC;&#x153;right off the bat,â&#x20AC;? youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re again using a baseball phrase.

When something goes as it was expected to, you might say it was â&#x20AC;&#x153;par for the course.â&#x20AC;? If you did, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d be making a golf analogy.

You could use the phrase â&#x20AC;&#x153;out in left fieldâ&#x20AC;? to describe â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weirdâ&#x20AC;? Al Yankovic, a satirical song-writer; or Stan â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Manâ&#x20AC;?

Musial, one of baseballâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s all time greats.

If your pesky parents claimed that the time you got caught out past curfew was your â&#x20AC;&#x153;third strike,â&#x20AC;? then once again, baseball jargon has affected your life.

If youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re giving something a last-ditch effort, and you call it a â&#x20AC;&#x153;Hail Mary,â&#x20AC;? contrary to popular belief, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not making a religious analogy, but one of American Football. (A hail mary is a play used on the final snap of a football game in which all receivers run to the end zone and the quarterback heaves the ball in an effort to score a late touchdown.)

If youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re fed up with your younger brother and decide that itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s time to â&#x20AC;&#x153;drop the glovesâ&#x20AC;? and engage in a physical confrontation, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve used a phrase that originated in ice hockey, where players throw off their gloves before engaging in a fight.

To put it simply, thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s no way sports metaphors donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t drastically affect your life.

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s time to face the facts, sports matter, and people who say they donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t are severely mistaken.

Now for the answer to your trivia question.

Amid a scandal surrounding an alleged sexual assault, Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston used the increased publicity to fuel his Heisman campaign, winning the 2013 trophy. He became the first Seminole to do so since Chris Weinke in 2000.

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I want to preface this review with a disclaimer: I have never read â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Hunger Games,â&#x20AC;? nor do I believe it is necessary to read the book in order to enjoy a movie adaptation. That being said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Hunger Games: Catching Fireâ&#x20AC;? is a particularly impressive piece of cinema that outshines its predecessor in every manner. It provides an incredibly satisfying experience, and I will be eagerly awaiting the third movie.

With an interesting message, it actually attempts to treat its teenage audience like adults who could comprehend the complex issues it puts forth, even if this gets covered up by some distractions.

The filmâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first half is what really made it memorable for me. Katniss and Peeta continue their fake love affair from the first film, but the citizens of the districts are catching on that itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a sham, leading to unrest. To solve this unrest and to please President Snow, the totalitarian prime minister we were introduced to in the previous film, our protagonists decide that Katniss and Peeta have a fake wedding to make the illusion more genuine.

They journey to each of the districts and continue the act at the Presidentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s command and, along the way, witness the effect Katniss has and the dissent she has raised. The three finger salute becomes a sign of rebellion, and citizens who use it are executed on the spot, showing that unrest will not be tolerated. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Catching Fireâ&#x20AC;? is almost a repeat of the first movie, an attempt to recognize and correct the mistakes of the first Hunger

Games. The actual games this time around are a lot more interesting because for the 75th Hunger Games, in an attempt to off Katniss, the contestants will be previous Hunger Games winners, creating a bestof-the-best brawl to the death. Having previous winners makes the Games increasingly more interesting, and the contestants are way more interesting than the previous ones, though itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s pretty obvious who will die immediately and who will be important to the plot.

The first movie had some glaringly obvious flaws, most notably the â&#x20AC;&#x153;shaky cam,â&#x20AC;? which can easily be attributed to the fact that the movie would have received an R rating if it didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t find a way to conceal the violence. Whether or not it was clever, violently shaking the camera during every action scene spared the audience of children any sort of traumatic cruelty.

This detracted heavily from the message.

From my understanding, the books were incredibly violent, so much so that many people were curiously concerned how filmmakers were going to downplay it on the big screen, while keeping it digestible to older audiences. I was expecting the same cleverness for the sequel, but I was pleasantly surprised that the liberal use of violence was actually used to enhance the plot and make the tyranny of the Hunger Games more obvious.

There is a clear message of dystopian existence and class conflict embedded into The Hunger Games series. The games themselves are reminiscent of the gladiator battles of ancient Rome, which brings up interesting concepts about the end results of capitalism. The fact that these ideas are being marketed to teenagers both pleases and concerns me; I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know if the teenage fangirls that fawn over Peeta and Gale are missing the message or if teenage boys are so distracted by the constant intense action that there isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t a moment of calm to really let the ideas of the film set in. This is the contradiction of â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Hunger Games.â&#x20AC;? These movies are so desperate to get their message across at all that they sacrifice said message in favor of action and romance, because few would watch it otherwise.

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5HDO /LIH .DWQLVV 6HQLRU 3URMHFW IHHGV D QHZ KXQJHU %\ /DXUHQ <RXQJVRQ When it came time to choose a Senior Project, Genna Owen wanted to pick a subject a bit out of the box. She loves the hit series â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Hunger Gamesâ&#x20AC;? and found a way to bring it to life by becoming an archery expert, much like the franchiseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s protagonist, Katniss Everdeen. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I learned archery because it looked like fun,â&#x20AC;? Owen said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Every summer I work at a Cub Scout day camp at Wickham, and one of the activities available is archery. Since I am the leader of Wee Camp (for kids 4 years old and younger), I occasionally have to help out at the different activities. Archery is one of the only ones where I am no help because I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know how to shoot. Now I will be able to help the range masters.â&#x20AC;?

Owen likes the idea of using her Senior Project to assist the campers in learning this new skill of archery and make the process more comfortable for the young campers.

Her compassion towards children mirrors that of Katniss, who risks her life in order to save her sister Prim. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Some of the kids are really shy and will refuse to do an activity unless I do it too,â&#x20AC;?

Owen said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Now I will be able to help these kids and make their experience at camp even more fun.â&#x20AC;?

Gennaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mother Sheila was surprised her daughter chose archery for her project. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I do like Gennaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s project idea, but I did not expect her to pick something like archery,â&#x20AC;?

Sheila Owen said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I thought she would choose something related to animal welfare or endangered animals. This is a big stretch

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for Genna because she had never used a bow before and it involves a lot more than just pointing and shooting the bow.â&#x20AC;?

On her journey to gain Katniss-like skills, Genna learned some of the basics. She mastered proper technique and determined the draw weight she needs for an accurate shot. However, just like The Hunger Games character, she had to face some complications

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during this process that prevented her from gaining further archery skills. â&#x20AC;&#x153;My mentor, Joe Raliegh, has been out of town to buy a specialized compound bow for me so I have not learned a lot,â&#x20AC;? Owen said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I had some trouble with the draw weight of the

bows he owns because they all have a pretty high draw weight. So while he finds me a bow with a lower draw weight, I have been adding back exercises to my powerlifting routine to develop the muscles in my arms and back.

So the draw weight will not be as big as a problem.â&#x20AC;?

Gennaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mother does see Katniss-like qualities in her daughter emerged during the Senior Project process. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Her time-management skills have gotten stronger because she had to fit strength training specifics to this project into her already busy schedule for her arms, shoulders and back, so she can pull the 70 pound compound bow back to shoot the arrow,â&#x20AC;?

Sheila said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Genna has also developed more self-confidence and has learned a lot about pushing herself to accomplish what she needs to do to complete a project, no matter how difficult or frustrating it is at times.â&#x20AC;?

While Katniss bounces between her two potential boyfriends Gale and Peeta, Genna knows which one sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d choose if she were in Katnissâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; position. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Definitely Gale,â&#x20AC;? Owen said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;He has a cause he is fighting for and takes care of Katnissâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s family when she is gone. He is reliable and strong and passionate. All Peeta did was give her some bread and wait until they were in a deadly situation to make a move. Obviously she would fall for him since he was the only one not trying to kill her at the time. Gale was with her from the start, and donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t people say you are best friends with the one you are meant to be with?â&#x20AC;?

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0LGQLJKW 0HPRULHV ' ZRZV ZLWK PDWXULW\ %\ $QGUHZ /LP From the Beatles to â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;N Sync, the boy band phenomenon has come and gone several times in music history. Since finishing third on â&#x20AC;&#x153;The X Factorâ&#x20AC;? in 2010, English-Irish group One Direction (dubbed 1D) brought a new age of the boy band.

With â&#x20AC;&#x153;Up All Night,â&#x20AC;? 2012â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s best-selling debut album, 1D is undoubtedly the biggest boy band in a while.

Incorporating a rock sound and adult themes, their new album â&#x20AC;&#x153;Midnight Memoriesâ&#x20AC;? shows the boysâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; steady evolution into men.

When I heard the first single, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Best Song Ever,â&#x20AC;? when it was released this July, I was hyped for the rest of the album. The songâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s upbeat, and the vocals are significantly better than on previous albums. Many criticisms of the group point out the synthetic vocals, especially on choruses (â&#x20AC;&#x153;What Makes You Beautifulâ&#x20AC;?). This album always has a clear lead singer, supported well by the others. The song describes finding an independent, confident girl to dance with â&#x20AC;&#x153;all night to the best song ever.â&#x20AC;? The singer is so enamored with her he â&#x20AC;&#x153;canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t remember how it goes,â&#x20AC;? knowing he â&#x20AC;&#x153;wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t forget her.â&#x20AC;?

The song material is common; how many songs nowadays are about love and partying? But quirky lines (â&#x20AC;&#x153;her daddy was a dentistâ&#x20AC;? but she kisses him despite knowing he â&#x20AC;&#x153;had a dirty mouthâ&#x20AC;?) keep it entertaining enough. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Best Song Everâ&#x20AC;? is a well-executed song, exciting every time you listen.

The second single, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Story of My Life,â&#x20AC;? was released Oct. 28 and immediately became a favorite of mine. The song starts with a quiet acoustic guitar, which continues until the chorus, where drums, strings and Harry Styles come in strong. The vocals are some of the best on the album. As in all boy bands, there is always a weak link vocally, but supposed weak links Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan lead the song.

Louisâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; verse is wonderfully emotional, and Niall handles both his solos well. This contrasts with previous albums, where the two often had to be auto-tuned and supported heavily by other members. There is a problem with the lyrics though; I have no idea what the song means. Harry sings how heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll â&#x20AC;&#x153;drive all night to keep her warm,â&#x20AC;? which I guess is sweet, but this makes â&#x20AC;&#x153;her broke inside.â&#x20AC;? Apparently nice deeds break women. Although the lyrics have seem to have no meaning, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Story of My Lifeâ&#x20AC;? sounds so amazing that Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll forgive the lyrics. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Midnight Memoriesâ&#x20AC;? shows just how rock 1D can be. Describing fun with a girl at a wild party, each verse utilizes a 80s rock sound with a guitar blaring between each line. Harry and Niall almost curse, moving away from the bandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s formerly clean image (â&#x20AC;&#x153;People talk shhh, but we donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t listenâ&#x20AC;?).

The chorus incorporates a stomp-and-clap beat, also very 80s. The boys comfortably show their rock and roll sides with Harryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s gravelly â&#x20AC;&#x153;Ow!â&#x20AC;? and Liam Payneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s whisper-singing. The bridge is my favorite part; Niall is spot on, and I find Harryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s shout charming. However, Liam sings of a girl who is â&#x20AC;&#x153;5 foot something with skinny jeans.â&#x20AC;? Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s literally describing the majority of high school girls around the world; itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just pandering.

Overall, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Midnight Memoriesâ&#x20AC;? is a great 80s-rock-inspired anthem.

One Direction is so much different from the teens they were on â&#x20AC;&#x153;The X Factor.â&#x20AC;? Successfully incorporating a rock sound into their new album, 1D showed they have the ability to evolve past their pop beginnings. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Midnight Memoriesâ&#x20AC;? will impress more than just the millions of teenage Directioners. And hopefully the age of the boy band will continue.

For Limâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s full track-by-track review, go to www.westshoreroar.com.

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*KRXOLVK GHOLJKWV 6SRRN\ Ҋ6WDLUFDVHҋ ZRZV %\ 'DQD %URZQ For fans of Jonathan Stroud’s Bartimaeus trilogy, Stroud’s latest, “The Screaming Staircase,” will be a treat, particularly as it’s the first installment in a new series, Lockwood & Co. For those who haven’t read the Bartimaeus books: Go read them, and then, with your appetite whetted, come back to “The Screaming Staircase” for another dose of Stroud’s wit and grisly depictions of the supernatural.

“The Screaming Staircase” takes place in a world where England has a problem with ghosts. A problem, in fact, that started 50 years ago, when “Visitors” became much more frequent and deadly. Now it’s impossible to deny their existence, and those who don’t want to die horribly of ghost-touch stay indoors at night, protected by iron, salt and running water. If a ghost shows up indoors, the inhabitants call psychic investigation agencies. Because only children can see the ghosts properly, they form the front lines of the agencies, usually under adult supervisors. But the novel’s narrator and protagonist, Lucy Carlyle, had a bad experience with a cowardly supervisor, so she came

to London and found employment with Lockwood & Co., an agency run entirely by adolescents with no adult supervision. This doesn’t sound like the best idea, but Lucy and her colleagues — the debonair, charismatic Anthony Lockwood and decidedly unattractive George Cubbins — do a pretty good job, until one night when they incur a fine for £60,000 that they don’t have. Struggling to rehabilitate the agency’s reputation and raise the money, Lockwood decides to investigate a decades-old murder, but the investigation is put on hold when one of England’s richest men shows up on their doorstep and offers them the money just to spend the night in Combe Carey Hall. They can’t refuse, even though the hall is one of the most haunted houses in England, complete with deadly “Red Room” and terrifying “Screaming Staircase.” Most of the previous occupants — including the last team of psychic investigators to attempt the feat — have died horribly.

I can’t help but harp on the Bartimaeus trilogy, but “The Screaming Staircase” is a good read on its own merits. While lacking the complexity and deeper significance of Stroud’s other work, it’s clever, gripping and deliciously dark. At first the expedition to the Hall looks like an incongruous intrusion into a story that’s moving in another direction, but the ending ties it all together nicely, even suggesting that the bigger mystery of the origin and nature of the “Problem” itself may be addressed in sequels, which I eagerly await. I would definitely recommend “The Screaming Staircase,” but if you’re of a nervous disposition, don’t read it after dark.

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