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Echo
I like (being able to leave Homecoming early) because before you were roped into staying the whole time.
OPINIONS
Echo Tuesday, September 5, 2017 2017
Lily Johnson, junior
Editors-in-chief: Mimi Fhima & Annabella Strathman Managing editors: Anna duSaire, Alec Pittman, Dani Orloff & Atticus Raasch
Copy editors: Alex Balfour, Elise Riley, Nicole Sanford & Sophie Yarosh Design editors: Devin Raynor & Sam St. Clair Photo editors: Caroline Green, Grace Farley, Emma Kempf & Hannah Wolk Assistant photo editor: Breanna Thompson News editor: Yonit Krebs & Sumaya Mohammed Features editor: Amaia Barajas & Maddie Lund In-Depth editors: Isabel Leviton & Hanna Schechter Sports editor: Sam Birnberg & Jacob Stillman Opinions editor: Hannah Leff & Lukas Levin Entertainment editor: Isaac Wert Diversity editor: Makagbe Kuyateh Web design editor: Josh Halper & Adam Johnson Profiles: Ndunzi Kunsunga Staff: Tjessa Arradondo, Maximillian Bechtold, Beck Bergland, Malaika Bigirindavyi, Chloe Blodgett, Daebreona Byrd, Natalia Caraballo, Culver Carden, Jenna Cook, Eli Curran-Moore, Nietzsche Deuel, Maia Doherty, Brooklyn Donelson, DaShaun Emerson, Racquel Fhima, Esther Gendler, Tenzin Gyaldatsang, Katie Hardie, Calvin Hatcher, Marta Hill, Abigail Intveld, Avia Kaner-Roth, Isabel Kjaer, Samantha Klepfer, Eleanor Kline-Olson, Alexis Machoka, Kimon Malone, Kahiro Lara Martinez, Stuart Monicatti, Evelyn Nelson, Sophie Olmen, William Phelan, Carissa Prestholt, KJ Preston Pepperell, Leila Raymond, Hadeal Rizeq, D’aviyan Robinson, Mariana Sanchez Zapata, Ruby Stillman, Jaye Townsend, Amber Tran, Isaac Wahl, Hayley Westwood, Emma Yarger & Samyu Yenamandra
Business manager: Yonah Davis Principal: Scott Meyers Printer: Quad Graphics Adviser: Lori Keekley
MEDIA POLICIES
The Echo is the official studentproduced newspaper of St. Louis Park Senior High School. It is published triweekly for the school’s students, staff and community. The Echo is a designated forum for student expression in which students make all decisions of content without prior review from school officials. The adviser will not act as a censor, but will advise students. Students have the final decision on all content. The Echo will work to avoid bias and/ or favoritism. We will strive to make our coverage and content meaningful and interesting to all our readers. We will make every effort to avoid printing libel, obscenities, innuendo and material that threatens to disrupt the learning process or is an invasion of privacy. We will avoid electronic manipulation that alters the truth of a photograph unless clearly labeled as a photo illustration. Staff editorials represent the opinion of the editorial board arrived at by discussion and will not be bylined. Bylined articles are the opinion of the individual writers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Echo staff or administration as a whole. The Echo welcomes reader input. Letters to the editor and suggestions must be signed and should be no longer than 250 words and may be emailed to slpecho@gmail.com or submitted in room C275. Emailed letters must be verified prior to publication. We will not necessarily publish all letters received and reserve the right to ask the writer to edit for length and clarity. Anonymous letters wherein the Echo does not know the identity of the writer will not be printed. Advertisements will be sought from local businesses and school clubs and sports. We maintain the right to reject any ads we believe to be false, misleading, inappropriate or harmful. The Echo does not necessarily endorse the products or services offered in these advertisements. NSPA All-American and Hall of Fame member; 2011, 2016 NSPA Print Pacemaker Finalist; 2013, 2014, 2015 National Print Pacemaker Award Recipient; 2014, 2015, 2016 Online Pacemaker Finalist; CSPA Gold Medalist; 2013 CSPA Gold Crown; 2015 CSPA Hybrid Gold Crown; 2012, 2014, 2016 CSPA Silver Crown; JEM All-State.
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OUR PERSPECTIVE
Administration must prepare for dance changes
I
n hopes of allowing more students to attend the dance this school year, Student Council elected to host the Homecoming dance in the high school’s gym. For the past several years, the Homecoming dance has been at a location other than the high school. This resulted in higher ticket prices ranging from roughly $25-35. The higher price was mainly because of the bus cost and rental space required to accommodate hundreds of students each year according to Sarah Lindenberg, Student Council adviser. As opposed to previous years, the new location will allow for cheaper ticket prices, a more accessible location and the ability for students to leave at their will. During dances, students have previously been forced to stay for the entire duration of the dance. Not only have there been adults to assure no student leaves, the distant location made it difficult and discouraged students to leave the dance until they could be bused home. With the convenient location of the dance, in the school, it makes the act of leaving early a lot easier. Because the dance usually lasts several hours, leaving early can cause a student to be unaccounted for until the dance end. Nowhere in the Student Handbook
Art: Nietzsche Deule
Taking Off: Leaving dances may jeopardize the security of students. Administrators should notify parents and students should stay for the entirety of the dance. and Policy Guide is it stated that the school is liable for students during dance hours. Because of the celebratory nature of the event, being in a supervised environment may lead to students making better choices. Allowing students to leave early raises the editorial board’s concerns of students’ safety and parental awareness. We urge students to act safely and responsibly during, and especially after, the dance. With new freedoms given, it is important
Echo Policies 2017-2018 Who’s in charge of the Echo?
The Echo is the official student-produced newspaper of St. Louis Park Senior High School. Students make all decisions of content without prior review from school officials or censorship from the adviser. Staff editorials represent the opinion of the editorial board, consisting of the Echo staffers. Additionally, the editorial board should discuss coverage concerns, ensure their voice represents the student body and should be mindful of creating an inclusive environment for all staff members. Because students learn more when they make publication choices, prior review or restraint does not teach students to produce higher quality journalism. The only way to teach students to take responsibility for their decisions is to empower them to make those decisions freely. Additionally, democracy depends on students understanding all voices have a right to be heard and knowing they have a voice in their school and community.
What are our ethical guidelines? The Echo will work to avoid bias and/or favoritism. We will strive to make our coverage and content meaningful and interesting to all our readers. We will make every effort to avoid printing libel, obscenities, innuendo, and material that threatens to disrupt the learning process or is an invasion of privacy. We will avoid electronic manipulation that alters the truth of a photograph unless clearly labeled as a photo illustration. In order to strive for objectivity, journalists should avoid covering stories of which they are involved. Journalists should
to consider not only personal safety, but also the safety of peers. The editorial board believes the administration should fully prepare for students to leave the dance early and develop a complete plan to inform students and more importantly, parents, of this development. The administration should send out an email regarding their policies during the dance to let parents know their child may not be where expected during dance hours.
avoid a real or perceived conflict of interest as well. The publications will not shy away from covering newsworthy controversial issues of importance to students. Journalists should work to cover these topics robustly. Reporting in scholastic media that omits essential pieces of information because of review or restraint is an indirect form of fabrication. It destroys not only truth but credibility and reliability.
What happens if we make a mistake? While journalists strive for accuracy, we know errors can occur. In the event if an error being reported by readers or noticed by staffers, students should first check to see if the information is erroneous. If students deem the material to be incorrect, they should alter any online content to reflect the correction and then print a correction in the next edition. Students should be careful not to restate the error, but to correct the erroneous information. In regard to material appearing on the website, nothing will be taken down unless it’s proven factually false or otherwise legally deficient as of the time it was published.
What do we do with reader input? The publications welcome reader input. Letters must be signed and should be no longer than 250 words and may be e-mailed to slpecho@gmail.com or submitted in room C275. Emailed letters must be verified prior to publication. We will not necessarily publish all letters received and reserve the right to ask the writer to edit for length and clarity. Anonymous letters wherein the publication name does not know the identity of the writer will not be printed.
Additional policies can be found at slpecho.com
PARK TRAIL
Nietzsche Duel nietzscheduel@slpecho.com
Dharamsala
Places we went this summer ...
Kenya Nairobi
Quebec Montreal
India