Issue 2 from the 2012 Harbinger.

Shawnee Mission East l 7500 Mission Road, PV KS, 66208 l September 24, 2012 l Issue 2 l www.smeharbinger.net

THE HARBINGER PG 29

GIRLS’ GOLF TEAM DISCUSSES THEIR ROAD TO LEAGUE AND STATE

CURIOSITY

EAST SOPHOMORE CLARA MA NAMES MARS ROVER art by Andrew McKittrick

December 2008 She checks back over all her work. Done. Sixthgrade Clara Ma turns in her worksheet to Mrs. Estevez and grabs a Time for Kids magazine from the bookshelf.

Skimming the pages, one by one, she comes across a story that’s going to change her life forever.

It’s about a girl named Sofi Collis, a third grader from Russia who named the twin Mars Rovers Spirit and Opportunity. The article includes directions to enter an essay contest on the Pasadena, Cal. Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) website. The winner gets to name the upcoming Mars rover that would be launched in 2011.

I have to do this, Clara thinks. I want to do this.

The rest of the day is a blur. By the time she gets home, she already knows what she’s going to write in her essay and what she wants to name the rover

written by Vanessa Daves

-- Curiosity. So she starts writing.

“Curiosity is an everlasting flame that burns in everyone’s mind...” *** May 2009 Clara sits on a leather brown chair in the sitting room watching a National Geographic special on mammoths when she hears the phone ring. Too engrossed in the program, she lets it ring until her mom, Lisheng Cao, answers.

Clara hears her mom gushing from the office. She sneaks down the beige-carpeted stairs and listens to the end of the conversation. Vaguely, Clara hears the woman on the other end. And from what her mom’s saying, she thinks that just maybe it has to do with the contest.

Her mom hangs up the phone, and Clara looks at her expectantly. Beaming, Lisheng tells her the news.

“You won.”

Nine thousand applicants. One winner. Clara can’t believe it. She’s screaming and running up and down the stairs and smiling with excitement.

After finalists were announced back in March, an international poll was conducted on the JPL website where people had the chance to vote for their favorite name.

“It wasn’t a deciding factor of what the name of the Mars Rover would be but it was part of their decision,” Clara said. “And I remember whenever we went to the computer lab [my teacher] would make everyone log onto the website and vote for my name.”

As the winner, Clara got to take a trip to Washington, D.C. for the press release. She was interviewed and filmed reading her essay. While in D.C., she had the opportunity to see NASA headquarters and take a tour the Air & Space Museum.

continued on pg 16/17

2 | NEWS

Seniors Max Hoffmeister and Samie Fetzer eat lunch at the senior barbecue.

THE NEWS

photo by Stefano Byer

IN BRIEF

SEPT. 24, 2012

Junior Anne Foster hits a golf ball during a golf tournament.

written by Greta Nepstad

photo by Marisa Walton

HOMECOMING ELECTIONS Voting for Shawnee Mission East’s Homecoming Queen and King will begin Monday, Sept. 22. Voting will be done through the computers, during lunches and during seminar.

On Thursday, Sept. 20, the nominated Queens and Kings were shown to the student body during seminar via smeharbinger.net.

The nominees for Homecoming Queen are seniors Madi Bradley, Helena Buchmann, Anna Colby, Caroline Creidenberg, Vanessa Daves, Rae Ehly, Leslie Hamilton, Maggie

Niven, Emma Robson, Tiernan Shank and Chloe Stradinger.

The nominees for Homecoming King are seniors Chase Ainsworth, Joe Bahr, Will Cray, Ryan Dugan, Max Duncan, Bucky Kessinger, Nick Kraske, Drew Rusten, David Stewart, Sam Stewart and Geordy Williams.

The Homecoming Queen and her court will be announced at the Homecoming game on Friday, Sept. 28. The King will be announced at the dance on Sept. 29.

CHANGES COMING TO THE VILLAGE The Village Shopping Center will undergo construction changes within the next year. According to the Prairie Village Post, one of the biggest changes facing Prairie Village will be a new concept of a restaurant/theater by STANDEES, a company headed by Frank Rash.

Macy’s Home Store and Einstein Bro’s Bagels are the scheduled locations for the new project, but the site’s uncertain because STANDEES is still trying to find a new location for Einstein.

AMC is planning on opening it’s first ever theater in Prairie Village on the site, conjoined with a restaurant. The theater will be small, with 80 seats in contrast to the 250 in Town Center. The restaurant will

seat 200, and the customer can then take his or her food into the theater with them, where a table is joined with their seat. With their alcohol license, STANDEES would be able to serve their customers alcohol in both the theater and the restaurant.

The proposed theater would show mostly independent films and films more mature in hopes of drawing an adult-based crowd.

There has been some speculation as to whether or not there will be enough parking for the theater/restaurant. In an interview with the Prairie Village Post, Rash said that STANDEES will not interfere with the 4:30 p.m. rush that happens every weekend at the Village.

23 6.022x10 How much is a mole? mols

A LOOK AT MOLE DAY THROUGH THE YEARS 2010

2008

Mole of Fortune

2009

Molestock

2012

Moles of the Caribbean

Molar Eclipse

2011

Moles of the Round Table

Football coach, Chip Sherman, cheers from the sidelines. photo by Jake Crandall

MOLE DAY CHANGES Mole Day, an annual event at East established in honor of the International System unit 6.02 x 10^23, will be organized solely by former Chemistry II students at East this year. In the past, Chemistry teachers Jerrod Bardwell, Stephen Appier and Cole Ogdon have organized the event in collaboration with their Chemistry II students, but with six classes to teach this year instead of five, they don’t have the time.

“I think it’s unfortunate,” Appier said.

“I’d much rather be spending my time involved with Mole Day than the extra time to do other things for my extra class.

It’s a little disappointing and I hope the kids are up to the task.”

The four students organizing Mole Day this year are seniors Stefano Byer, Ian Crawford, Emily Sneed and Claire Tracy.

All four are previous chemistry students of Appier’s.

“We heard that Mole Day wasn’t going

to happen...so we decided to get together and plan it ourselves,” Tracy said. “We’re planning everything as far as getting T-shirts designed, getting food, getting decorations and the activities, too.”

Mole Day’s traditional activities include whack-a-mole, a game in which one of the organizers paints his or her face and pops up from a variety of holes punched out of wood. When the moles’ head emerges, the player tries to hit their head with a plastic, blow up hammer.

Mole Day honors the mole, a very large unit used mostly in chemistry to measure the number of particles in a chemical amount, with a measurement of 6.02 x 10^23. The date and time of the celebration revolve around those numbers. Mole day will be held on Oct. 23, at 6:02 a.m.

“Hopefully we’ll keep Mole Day very similar, with the same fun activities and good food and fun,” Tracy said.

Mole Day Activities MOLESICAL CHAIRS Students walk around in a circle while music plays, when the music stops students must find a chair or be eliminated.

WHACK-A-MOLE Holes are cut into a card board top and seniors pop out of it. Students can then try to hit them with inflatable hammers before they go back into the hole.

NEWS | 3

UNDER ATTACK

East students learn about cyber-bullying prevention at assembly written by Tiernan Shank

As the internet grows larger and larger, it becomes increasingly difficult for teachers and parents to keep a close eye on the lives of their kids on the internet. Because of this the East administration has begun to make effort to protect students from the dangers of the internet.

On Sept. 13, a representative from the Boys and Girls Club of Lawrence assembly presented an interactive PowerPoint on internet safety to East students during seminar.

For Principal Karl Krawitz, the assembly was especially important to bring to light something that he says most kids don’t think about.

“Part of it was to bring about an awareness for students who are using Facebook and Twitter to post online things that we’ve had to deal with in the past year in terms with kids who might be getting bullied online, which tends to be what we see here more so than not,” Dr. Krawitz said.

Dr. Krawitz says that the number of cases involving bullying or inappropriate behavior brought to light by the school’s anonymous bullying hotline was enough for the assembly. This online service that allows students to send emails regarding bullying or inappropriate behavior they have witnessed or experienced at East has made it easier for the administration to track the problem. “[People] will send us an anonymous message that has a Facebook address or a Twitter address,” Dr. Krawitz said.

“They have given their password or something that has allowed us to view the Facebook or Twitter account that they want us to see and some of the things that we have seen are very disturbing.”

Through these accounts, the administration has been able to see everything from inappropriate photographs, to bullying to suggestive pictures or posts about the happenings at parties and the people who are involved.

“When [students] go out online and put [content] some place I just don’t think they really think that it’s going to anyone else except those who they are sending it to,” Dr. Krawitz said. “But the problem is that it only takes one person to cor-

rupt your website or corrupt your entry to your Facebook account by giving away their entry point and then you’re exposed.”

The administration may not be the only people who are taking advantage of the easy exposure. According to the Boys and Girls Club of Lawrence, predators are all over the internet.

“There are so many predators out there that kids don’t know or realize,” administrative assistant to the Boys and Girls Club of Lawrence, Heather Watson-Jackson said. “Most kids just friend everyone on Facebook because they’re excited that someone wants to be their friend and never really check to see if it’s someone that they know. We want them to be educated that you really need to know this person before you say, yes, I will be your friend.”

There are concerns regarding predators that not only inflict physical abuse, but also those that hurt kids through the cyber world.

“When you think about a predator you think about someone doing something physically to you,” Dr. Krawitz said.

“But we’re talking about people who are literally surveying these websites daily to look for an in-road with anyone to get any information that they possibly can. I don’t know what a person can do if you have an account and you have 15-20 people who you really know will protect your site, but it only takes one to allow anyone else in.”

Seniors Emma Meara and Helen Petrow found out how much personal information is on the internet when they decided to google their names. They found a page containing a lot of Petrow’s personal information including their address, phone number and even Petrow’s grandma’s phone number.

This surprised Meara so much that she immediately went and changed her Facebook and Twitter names.

“I’ve always been a little paranoid about people being able to see my Facebook and people being able to see my entire life when I might only be acquaintances with that person or I may only know the person’s name,” Meara said.

Protect Your Profile

Tips for making your profile bully-proof

?

Don’t friend people that you don’t know in real life. They could potentially be predators.

Don’t check into places. Letting people know your location is dangerous, and you could potentially be stalked there.

“Then that assembly happened and it kind of just advanced my paranoia and people being able to see every aspect of my life, so I changed my name.”

Meara encourages everyone to go out and make sure they know all of their friends on a personal level and to change their privacy settings. After going through her friends, Meara deleted around 300 of them.

Other East students have learned about the consequences of expressing their views on the internet.

In November 2011, former East grad Emma Sullivan used Twitter to comment negatively about Governor Sam Brownback. His staff who found the tweet alerted the school. When the East administration asked Sullivan to write an apology letter to the governor, she refused, sparking national appeal.

Sullivan was soon national headline news.

“I don’t think Emma Sullivan really thought that having 15,000 people following her was what she really wanted,” Dr. Krawitz said. “Especially when it started to turn against her and then became nearly impossible for her to leave.”

The situation not only affected Sullivan but also the East administration. Dr. Krawitz received multiple death threats.

“I don’t think people realized just exactly to what extent that whole travesty went to, you know, it went to a lot of negative things happening to my family because the death threats I received,” Dr. Krawitz said. “It just goes to show you that something got so blown out of proportion and lead to quite a few issues for me and my family.”

As far as the future goes, the administration hopes the assembly will prompt students to be more careful about what they post on the internet.

“I don’t think students realize that stuff, once its out there, you will never own again,” Dr. Krawitz said. “I don’t think people understand that it will literally come back and have an effect on them because you just can’t erase it.”

Don’t post personal information like your age, address or social security number on the web.

Inform an adult if someone sends you threatening messages through the internet.

4 | NEWS

LAYMAN’S GUIDE TO THE NEWS PROTESTS AGAINST VIDEO BREAK OUT THE STORY People in 11 nations in North Africa and the Middle East have been spending days protesting and committing violence in reaction to a video, “Innocence of Muslims” and the nation where it was produced, the United States. This may cause further violence in the upcoming days.

The 14-minute film trailer mocks Islam’s prophet, Muhammad. He is portrayed as child abuser, a killer and a womanizer.

The video was posted on YouTube in July, but was recently discovered after Egyptian television aired segments and anti-Islam activists promoted it online. Many of the people directed their anger toward the U.S. government and Israel.

In Yemen, demonstrators broke through a security wall at the U.S. Embassy as several thousand people protested outside. According to Yemeni security officials, four protesters died during confrontations with security forces outside of the embassy. There were also 24 security force members and 11 protesters reported injured according to Yemen Defense Ministry, eyewitnesses and security officials.

WHY YOU SHOULD CARE Political unrest in other countries may have a wide reaching impact beyond the immediate violence. Foreign policy has already been a significant issue and will be addressed in the upcoming presidential debate. The current president’s handling of this matter may become an important point in the upcoming election.

THE FOCUS A video was recently found mocking the Islam prophet and has caused various protests to break out in the Middle East and in North African countries.

SIMPLE WAYS TO STAY CONNECTED

Always the last one to find out the news? Don’t be. This beginner’s guide makes it easy to follow recent events. written by Anne Willman and Matt Hanson

IRAN COMMANDER THREATENS ISRAEL THE STORY

THE STORY

On Sept. 16 at a Tehran news conference, the top commander in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, Gen. Mohammad Ali Jafari, warned that “nothing will remain” of Israel if it takes military action against Tehran over its nuclear program.

There have been remarks in that past making reference to the destruction of Israel, but comments in the conference were more strongly-worded.

He also said that Iran warned that oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz will be in jeopardy if war breaks out between Iran and the U.S. Iranian Officials have threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz before, but less often in recent months.

It was also said at the conference that if it is attacked, Iran will no longer be committed to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Gen. Jafari also said, however, that this does not mean that Iran will build a nuclear weapon.

Israel believes that any attack on Iran would result in retaliation. Iranian missiles and rocket attacks would most-likely be used in a future war.

WHY YOU SHOULD CARE

A video was leaked on Sept. 17 featuring Republican candidate Mitt Romney saying that “there are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. [...]. [My] job is not to worry about those people. I’ll never convince them they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives.”

The video was captured at a fundraiser earlier this year. It was taken by a member of the audience by a camera phone after the cameras stopped rolling.

Romney has not backed down from his remarks.

Romney gave a press conference the day that the video leaked while he was on his way to a fundraiser in Costa Mesa, Calif.

“This is a message I’m carrying day in and day out and will carry over the coming months,” Romney said on Fox News. “This is a decision about the course of America, where we’re going to head. We’ve seen the president’s policies play out over the last four years.”

Last Tuesday, Obama responded to Romney’s remarks during an appearance on the “Late Show” with David Letterman.

“There are not a lot of people out there that think that they are victims,” Obama said. “One thing I’ve learned as president is that you represent the entire country.”

WHY YOU SHOULD CARE

The instability in the Middle East countries will impact the United States. Gas prices will increase significantly if the Strait of Hormuz is closed. If a military conflict arises between Israel and Iran, expect gas line shortages. Also, the United States will have to make decisions on whether to get involved in the war.

Romney’s remarks have stalled his campaign’s momentum by, once again, shifting the public’s attention away from his core message of economic recovery. Not only could his quote and the backlash it has caused hurt his chances in the upcoming election, but it may change the direction of his campaign going forward.

THE FOCUS

THE FOCUS The top commander in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard warned Israel that they would attack them if Israel takes military action against the nuclear program.

There are many apps for smart phones that can give you the latest updates. Try: CNN, NPR or NYT

VIDEO OF ROMNEY LEAKED

A video of Republican candidate, Mitt Romney was leaked of him saying that “there are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what.”

Twitter is an easy way to get information. The tweets are short and to the point.

Follow: @KCstar, @BBCNews, @AP

Go back to the basics. Read the paper. You can learn about worldwide news and how teams are doing in sports.

Read: USA Today, KC Star, NY Times

CHALLENGING POLICY East parents call for a change to the SMSD Tobacco/Alcohol/Drug Contract written by Chloe Stradinger

photo by Connor Woodson

1 2 3

What’s in the contract?

1

First offense in-season calls for a meeting with an administrator, student, parents and coach.

The athlete gets kicked out of their sport for the remainder of the season.

2

If the violation occurs out of season, there is a meeting and the athlete is placed on administrative probation, meaning they’re considered “not in good standing”. By completing a community service program, they can get off of probation.

3

If there are multiple offenses, the student is prohibited from playing sports for 365 days.

More than 60 athletes have had meetings with the administration this year due to violations with the district Tobacco/Alcohol/Drug contract. In response to this, a group of eight East parents opposed to the current contract met with two representatives from the Shawnee Mission School District Board of Education in early August to propose changes. The group thinks this policy, recorded in a 3-part contract (see sidebar) that all athletes must sign, is both counter-intuitive and hard for athletes to understand.

This contract has been in place for 13 years and is the same one that got Chiefs offensive lineman Ryan Lilja kicked off of the SM Northwest football team his senior year.

The group thinks that the policy is detrimental to athletes and that more parents would like to see it changed than admit it.

“The risk you run is that if you think it needs to be changed, you might be perceived as a parent who condones drugs, tobacco or alcohol,” Sitomer said, speaking on behalf of the group. “We don’t condone it, but we don’t think the policy suits it.”

Donna Bysfield, East’s Board representative, listened to the parents with open ears, even though she doesn’t have the ability to change the contract.

“What we do best is listen and pass information back and forth between both sides,” Bysfield said.

Bysfield acts as a mediator between the parents and higher administration, especially the district’s athletic director, Rusty Newman. According to Newman, the district is satisfied with the current contract, which has been challenged twice in court but upheld both times.

“The contract has worked well for the district,” Newman said. “It has been enforced by all schools and we feel that all athletes are aware of the contract and its contents.”

Parents feel differently and are still looking for a change.

East parent Bruce Wendlandt’s son was dismissed from the football team after a violation of the policy. He understands there has to be punishment, but doesn’t think the current punishment makes sense.

“You’ve taken away a multitude of quality contact hours and in lieu of that, what is offered up?” Wendlandt said.

This group points out that taking the athlete out of a sport is counter-intuitive because it leaves them abandoned and bored which, they argue, will lead to less constructive things than working in a disciplined practice environment. Furthermore, the group thinks it’s harmful to separate the athletes from their coaches, who can be strong, positive influences.

“The coaches are mentors, and so you’ve also lost a mentor for your son,” East parent John Marak said.

Athletic Director Sam Brown also thinks coaches are important to helping out an athlete, which is why he allows athletes to continue to stick around the team if the coach allows it as well.

“They can show up to practice, we’re not gonna run them off the field,” Brown said.

Wendlandt’s son has taken advantage of the opportunity to stick around and is now a manager for the football team.

“He broke the rules and he’s paying a steep, steep price. I just didn’t think it was right for us to totally

NEWS| 5

say goodbye,” head football coach Chip Sherman said.

Another complaint from the parents is that the contract is confusing, but according to Brown, that’s part of the reason why there are three mandatory athlete-parent meetings throughout the year. The fall, winter and spring meetings cover everything from academic eligibility to sportsmanship to the dangers of drinking.

Despite this, East has continued to have high numbers of violations compared to other schools in the district. East has more than 60 violations so far this year whereas all of the other schools combined have about 30.

“I’ve certainly been on the board enough years to know that the numbers [of violations] go up and down at different schools over different years,” Bysfield said.

Before transferring to East, Brown was the athletic director at SM North. He was astonished to find such a jump in policy violations after his arrival.

“Everything about Shawnee Mission East is wonderful. There’s very little need here,” Brown said.

“But this is a problem.”

Sitomer tells of a survey done by the Johnson County Regional Prevention Center that revealed a consistent 70 percent of seniors across all Johnson County schools admit that they’ve had more than a sip of beer, alcohol or wine by the time they’re in twelfth grade.

“The only message you hear is that you are the worst offenders of the Tobacco/Alcohol/Drug policy,” Sitomer said. “What I would like Shawnee Mission East kids to hear is ‘we would like you to find other ways for you to spend your evenings, weekends or free time.’”

But while drinking remains a problem, so will the contract in these parents’ eyes. Ideally, what Sitomer would like to see is a more lenient policy like that of the Olathe and Blue Valley districts, which put firsttime offenders on a short probation that only lasts a few weeks of the season. Upon the second offense, probation lasts a longer portion of the season, and on the third, the athlete is out for the year.

Former East parent Steve Howard also thinks East needs a less severe policy. As a high school football player at Raytown, Howard and some friends were caught with beer mid-season. He was benched for three weeks. Luckily for him, the probation was short and allowed him to continue his season and go on to get a football scholarship, his ticket to college.

“I don’t know where I’d be if they’d just kicked me off the team and been done with me,” Howard said.

Marak doesn’t think the contract is beneficial to athletes as is, and finds it’s devastating that years of hard work and preparation for high school sports can lead to only lost opportunities after a mistake.

“It’s not a positive thing. Positive would have Coach Hair run [my son] up the stairs for five months, that would be positive.” Marak said.

Brown wishes that leaving punishment to the coaches would work, but knows there would be no consistency in the degree. Changing it is out of his jurisdiction, and up to the Board of Education.

As for now, the district doesn’t see a change in the contract coming in the immediate future.

“It is [my job] to give the schools what they need to do the best they can for the kids,” Bysfield said.

ONLINE | 6

FOOTBALL

TIME LOCATION

Fri, Sep 28 Fri, Oct 5 Fri, Oct 12 Fri, Oct 19 Fri, Oct 26

7 pm 7 pm 7 pm 7 pm 7 pm

SOCCER

DATE

Tues, Sep 11 Thu, Sep 13 Tues, Oct 2 Tues, Oct 9 Thu, Oct 11 Tues, Oct 16

7 pm SM Soccer Complex 7 - 30 pm SM North Stadium 7 pm SM Soccer Complex 7 pm SM Soccer Complex 7 pm SM Soccer Complex 7 pm SM Soccer Complex

SM South Stadium Lawrence Free State HS SM North Stadium SM South Stadium SM South Stadium

OPPONENT Olathe East @Lawrence FS @SM Northwest @SM West SM North

Olathe East SM North SM South SM Northwest SM West Olathe South

ighting M dia N

EDITORIAL | 7

W

E

S

The district should expand the internet policy so students and teachers can prepare students for the digital age we live in We are isolating our students from the most extensive open forum of all time. If the Shawnee Mission School District hopes to prepare its students for a changing world, they need to reevaluate their Internet policy to allow for social media use in the classroom. SMSD must provide comprehensive classroom instruction on proper uses of technology in the curriculum. Teaching online safety and responsibility to our kids ought to be a priority in our education system. In 2011 the FBI received more than 300,000 complaints of identity theft, fraud and other scams equaling $450 million in losses.

It seems clear that if adults can fall victim to online crime our children are at an even greater risk.

We cannot teach abstinence from social media, for the Internet has permeated every aspect of our lives. Social media is a doubleedged sword. Pictures of questionable behavior can end with a trip to the principal’s office, or loss of a job. It is more than games and cute videos, it is a form of communication that has a permanent place in our culture. It is a tool that, when used correctly, can build networks, start revolutions and spread ideas.

We must teach online safety as we teach new drivers: with real word, behind the wheel ex-

perience.

The district’s Acceptable Use Guideline requires that all Internet use supports learning. However, it does not mention social media or specific content by name. Students are limited in what they can access online, and there are websites even teachers can’t get to. This prevents not only teachers from being able to integrate social media or other resources into their curriculum, it keeps educators from being able to teach students responsible decision making in the 21st century.

A 2011 nationwide survey of educators conducted by the National Cyber Security Alliance found only 51% felt their district does an “adequate job of preparing students” for online use outside of school, demonstrating a belief among teachers for a need to improve how we educate students about online safety. In the same survey, 91% of teachers thought online safety curriculum should be taught in schools.

Some argue that Internet safety education

EDITORIAL BOARD VOTES

FOR AGAINST ABSENT

THE HARBINGER a publication of Shawnee Mission East high school 7500 Mission Road, Prairie Village, KS 66208

Editors-in Chief Anne Willman Chloe Stradinger Assistant Editors Andrew McKittrick Katie Knight Art & Design Editor Paige Hess Head Copy Editor Matt Hanson Copy Editors Anne Willman Chloe Stradinger Andrew McKittrick Katie Knight Erin Reilly Morgan Twibell Leah Pack Sarah Berger Ads Manager Sophie Tulp Circulation Manager Greta Nepstad Editorial Board Chloe Stradinger Andrew McKittrick Erin Reilly Anne Willman

should be the responsibility of the parents.

However transferring responsibility for this education from the school to families creates an unequal learning environment for students who may lack Internet access or a parent with sufficient knowledge of cyberspace. We believe professionals should be in charge of teaching our kids about sex, it should be no different with teaching our kids about proper Internet use.

By not allowing students on websites such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, we cut them off from new and effective learning tools. A 2011 study by the Consortium for School Networking found that schools that allow use of mobile devices and social media in the classroom “experienced substantial educational benefits.”

One benefit cited was how opening social media within the district allowed students and teachers to connect outside of school, “bridging the gap between formal and informal learning environments.” By allowing social media use in the classroom, these schools found they could turn any Internet hotspot into a learning environment. Another benefit outlined in the study was the use of social

STAFF 2012-2013

Jennifer Rorie Katie Knight Grace Heitmann Matt Hanson Julia Poe Kim Hoedel Duncan MacLachlan Staff Writers Julia Seiden Sophie Tulp Taylor Bell Nellie Whittaker Alex May Pauline Werner Caroline Kohring New Section Editor Sarah Berger News Page Editors Emily Perkins Rock Greta Nepstad Editorial Section Editor Jennifer Rorie Opinion Section Editor Kim Hoedel Opinion Page Editors Maggie McGannon Morgan Krakow Feature Section Editor

Erin Reilly Feature Page Editors Jeri Freirich Maddie Hise Spread Editor Morgan Twibell Mixed Page Editor Leah Pack A&E Section Editor Tiernan Shank A&E Page Editors Phoebe Aguiar Hannah Ratliff Sports Section Editor Grace Heitmann Sports Page Editors Alex Goldman Mitch Kaskie G.J. Melia Freelance Page Editors Vanessa Daves Julia Poe Audrey Danciger Staff Artists Matti Crabtree Akshay Dinakar Photo Editor Jake Crandall

11 0 1

media and websites such as YouTube to create individualized learning environments. In the case of YouTube, we have a resource offering students university level lectures on topics ranging from Shakespeare to theoretical physics and step-by-step help for finding integrals. Our students cannot benefit from technology such as this at school unless they have direct access to it.

A concern districts have over unblocking the Internet can be traced back to the Children’s Internet Protection Act of 2001, a policy enforced by the FCC. CIPA includes a provision that provides utility discounts on Internet access called E-Rate, stating that to qualify for that a discount, districts must block “obscene or harmful content.”

Nowhere is social media mentioned. CIPA has since been amended by the Protecting Children in the Twenty-First Century Act to include social media, stating that “these websites are not considered per se ‘harmful to minors’ or fall into the categories that schools and libraries must block,” meaning SMSD is at no risk of losing it’s $250,000 in E-Rate funding by unblocking websites such as Facebook or YouTube. The amendment also created a new requirement for E-Rate funding, calling for “provisions for educating minors about appropriate online behavior.”

Banning social media in schools prevents us from teaching safe online use to students.

We must unblock the Internet and adapt our education system to cater to 21st century students. As President Kennedy said, “change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.”

The Harbinger is a student run publication. The contents and views are produced solely by the staff and do not represent the Shawnee Mission School DIstrict, East faculty or school administration.

Assistant Photo Editors Caroline Creidenberg Emma Robson Staff Photographers Katie Sgroi Annie Savage Connor Woodson Taylor Anderson Miranda Gibbs Meghan Shirling Maddie Schoemann Molly Gasal Stefano Byer Maddie Connelly Paloma Dickey Online Editors-in-Chief Sami Walter Duncan MacLachlan Assistant Online Editors Julia Poe Zoe Brian Head Copy Editors Jennifer Rorie Vanessa Daves Multimedia Editor Dalton Boehm Convergence Editor Erin Reilly

News Editor Pauline Werner Online Photo Editors Marisa Walton McKenzie Swanson Assistant Online Photo Editor AnnaMarie Oakley Video Editor Nathan Walker Live Broadcast Editor Connor Woodson Homegrown Editor Morgan Krakow A&E Editor Maggie McGannon Sports Section Editors Alex Goldman Mitch Kaskie Blogs Editor Susannah Mitchell Podcast Editor Thomas Allen Eastipedia Editor Taylor Bell Interactive Design Editor James Simmons Mitch Kaskie

Social Media Director Maddie Hise Webmaster Chris Denniston Live Broadcast Producers Grace Heitmann Chris Denniston Mitch Kaskie Connor Woodson Andrew McKittrick Thomas Allen Multimedia Staff Maxx Lamb Thomas Allen Chris Denniston Dalton Boehm Tessa Polaschek Nathan Walker Emily Perkins Rock Will Brownlee Miranda Gibbs Meghan Shirling Advisor Dow Tate

Letters to the editor may be sent to room 521 or smeharbinger@gmail.com. Letters may be edited for clarity, length, libel and mechanics and accepted or rejected at the editors’ discretion.

8 | OPINION

I’m NOT

FOLLOWING YOU Photo Editor Jake Crandall explains his hatred for Instagram written by Jake Crandall

artwork by James Simmons and Paige Hess

My biggest problem with Instagram is that it’s influencing the general public’s perception of good photography. Technically, a photo should have proper composition and correct coloring. With Instagram’s standard square crop and overused filters that’s nearly impossible. Photographers are taught that squares have an unappealing composition because when the viewers’ eye looks at the photo it has a very unnatural path. With the app’s preset filters that can’t be adjusted on an individual basis, few photos will ever get the proper coloring they need. Instagram’s filters mimic actual darkroom techniques that used to be a craft 30 years ago, but are now just thrown on a stupid picture of someone’s lunch with no thought as to when the effect originated. We need a better appreciation for real photography.

Many users of the popular two-year-old app think these features make photos better, but it’s quite the opposite from a photographic standpoint. Many Instagram users may think that their photos are comparable to professional photography.

This theory threatens to dilute the public perception of good photography, and frankly just scares me.

A new Doritos Locos Taco commercial featuring a slew of instagram images got me thinking. Are those photos from everyday Instagram users? Can Instagram take anyone’s photos? Did instagram make money off those pictures that the public took? The first line of Instagrams “terms of use” says “Instagram does NOT claim ANY ownership rights in the (content)”. That seems reassuring to most, but being the anti-instagrammer that I am, I read on. The next line says that “By displaying or publishing (“posting”) any Content on or through the Instagram Services, you hereby grant to Instagram a non-exclusive, fully paid and royalty-free, worldwide, limited license to use, modify, delete from, add to, publicly perform, publicly display, reproduce and translate such Content.” which basically means they can have unlimited, free access to every photo that goes through an Instagram filter. The rest is up to individual interpretation, to me it seems very open-ended. I think if they wanted to they could easily sell photos straight off instagram. What if Instagram sold your photo of your burrito to Chipotle and you don’t get any of the profits?

This conspiracy might not convince you to stop using your favorite photo app, but just wait till your photos are being used in advertising without any reparations to the original artist.

The amateur photographer is bleeding to death, wounded by freshmen girls who think a filter makes them a “photog.” When our parents were our age, taking a photo was a process. They had to manually set their exposure and focus, and then get their photos developed, which would at least take an hour. Most of you don’t even know what I am talking about because today we have automatic cameras and iPhones that do everything for us. This is great and makes everything faster, but the automation of the photographic process can actually make photos worse because it takes away control from the hands of the user. Most Instagram users never realize that their phones’ automatic exposures are not always correct and manual adjustments are often needed.

Not only does the automation of the process hurt the visual quality of photos, but it takes away from the user’s appreciation of the photos. Instagram users might not understand what’s gone into their finished products and therefore can’t appreciate their photos as much a photographer who has done the process manually.

GO CROP YOURSELF

written by Kim Hoedel

Drag Reduction Systems, 2.4 second pitstops and scientifically-calculated fuel levels regularly greet me Sunday morning. Now, before you get excited, I am not driving in, working on or even attending this race. I’m at home, curled up on a red leather rocking chair, clad in PJs with a mug of fresh coffee.

After making my prediction of the three drivers likely to win gold, silver and bronze on the podium I select my, slightly more coveted, Dream-Podium Trio; based off the drivers personality, worthiness and, of course, desirability. Surround-sound turned up and cell phone turned off, I’m ready to indulge in my Sunday ritual. Formula One: the most demanding, prestigious and highest-class international racing series in the world. And to think, some kids are at Sunday school.

Formula One is just one piece of the European culture that has crept its way into my life through my parents’ European backgrounds. I’ve spent many nights sitting with my father and brother watching marathons of “Top Gear,” Britain’s number one car show, and slightly less-anticipated nights spent struggling to follow my mother’s favorite artsy French films which, without subtitles, would be neither understood nor heard over my father’s snoring.

Although my father was born and raised in Germany, our family moved from Europe to be closer to my mother’s parents. We moved to America before I was old enough to even bother being awake for my passport picture and having been born in Germany to a native father and American mother, I was rendered a dual citizen.

As far as German goes, I don’t speak the language at any level above pitiful and my knowledge of German history is as limited as that of any other EHAP graduate. But for some reason, I have always felt a stronger attachment to my German side. Maybe it’s because it made me different from everyone.

Maybe what’s foreign and undiscovered is consistently more exciting than what is known.

In elementary school I felt different, and not just because I was the only one who had a dad rocking a pony tail (he has since had the intelligence to cut that off). I felt different because I was foreign. I had been out of the country before anyone else. Heck, I was from out of the country. I was proud of my dual citizenship and I let that be known, and did so obnoxiously.

While I grew up as an American child, it wasn’t hard to remember where I came from.

German books lay sprinkled throughout the house, German food was keen to show up at the table every night and German was still spoken regularly in the house. You know how when you’re little, your parents will spell things out that they don’t want you to hear? Mine spoke German. Correction: speak German.

I grew up similar to any American child, but in the place of Disney Classics stood the British childrens’ shows “Postman Pat” and “Fireman Sam.” Family movie nights would feature a multitude of films from the French “Mon Oncle,” to John Cleese’s “Fawlty Towers” and “Monty Python.” The latter was only appreciated for its silly accents till my more recent years.

The only sport of any relevance within the Hoedel House was soccer. More specifically, Bundesliga, the German soccer league home to our team Bayern-Munich.

To this day, I can’t tell you the first thing about American football. In kindergarten, I joined an all-boys soccer team before a girls’ recreational one was formed. Every practice my brother and I showed up decked out in Bayern-Munich gear that had been sent to us by our Oma (per my father’s request). He wasn’t the only parent dressing us up.

My mother loved to buy me traditional German Dirndls, the classic stereotypical German milk-maid attire complete with blouse, bodice, full skirt, apron and all.

My brother’s framed sixth grade picture on top of our grand piano shows a blondhaired, blued-eyed little Max, rocking his Lederhosen. If anyone ever asked us about it, we would state the facts blankly in a hipster-esque tone paired closely with the

equivalent of today’s “You’ve probably never heard of it.”

To be honest, I have never fully overcome this arrogance. I still feel myself, at times, acting cocky or superior when it comes to defending the sophistication of soccer over football or the difficulty of Formula One over NASCAR. This summer even, I was first oblivious then disinterested in the AllStar Game because all I cared about was the German national soccer team’s battle to win the UEFA Euro Cup. Like I mentioned earlier, I can be a little cocky about my heritage. It’s hard, to not sound stuck-up when casually referencing European culture. I think it’s just in the nature of the word European, which just sounds pompous and proper and overlysophisticated.

I have always been stuck questioning which place I fit into. Would I rather be American or European? Well let’s see. When I think of Europe I think of luxurious, artsy, classy people walking around the streets of London, Paris or Berlin. When I think of America, and I dig my hand into this nation’s groundbreaking Constitution, dedication to battling oppression worldwide and its everprominent pop culture but all I manage to pull out is fast-food, NASCAR and Ford F150s. Now, having lived in Johnson County for nearly 15 years, I should know better than such hillbilly generalizations, but these generalizations are part of what drives me towards calling myself a German. Which makes me a bit of a poser.

I get to walk around sipping my tea being all high-and-mighty of European descent and cast downward glances upon you deep-fried donut-eating Americans when I am more of an American than anything.

I spent the majority of my life in America, enjoying all its liberties and getting the great education that America allows me to, but I’ll just cast off the entire nationality because being European sounds nicer.

When teachers in any history class I’ve ever taken refer to America as “we,” I have always detached myself by using terms like “you all,” “you guys,” or just “America.” I

OPINION | 9

would pick and choose what I wanted from U.S. history and what I wanted to reject. Sure America, I’ll accept all the rights that you’ll give me, but when it comes to slavery or the internment of Japanese Americans during WWII, I’ll pretend I’ve never heard of you.

Sitting in class listening to brutality of the Civil War, I felt disconnected, I felt like it didn’t apply to me. I had no history here, no family that was ever involved. Why should this matter to me? I’d ask myself as I sat, in class, as a free citizen privileged with all the liberties that such “strangers” fought and died for.

It’s no question that my German roots will always be important to me. I won’t lie – even now, I still view myself as more of a German. I think I have always been resentful of the fact that I was moved from my home before I could get to know it. A part of me will always wish we had stayed. I think naturally we are always attracted to what’s foreign and undiscovered, which is what pulls me so strongly toward Germany.

My life today tends to pale in comparison to the promise of the life I never had. I truly believe that if the countries were reversed and had I been born here but moved there, I would long to go back to America. With its handsome cowboys riding up and down every street. Its glamorous movie and pop stars littered on every corner. Its abundance of liberties, including one permitting cars to be washed on Sundays – an act that is fined, by law, in Germany.

In the end it comes down to my legal status, on paper. I am a dual citizen. I am halfAmerican and half-German. I can’t sway the balance whenever I feel so inclined. I can’t pick and choose aspects of each heritage to modge-podge together one picturesque background. I have to fully embrace both histories and both cultures – and be proud of both. Luckily enough, the great nation of America has supplied me with cable, so as long as Speed still broadcasts every Formula One Grand Prix, GoalTV still airs “Hallo Bundesliga,” and BBC America keeps playing “Top Gear,” I’ll be all set to let my Germerican flag fly.

photo illustration by Miranda Gibbs

DUELING CITIZENSHIP

Dual citizen discusses innerconflict between choosing a dominate nationality

10 | OPINION By now you’ve probably seen it. The weird camera angles.

The barely-audible i n t e r v i e w.

The awkward homecoming proposal. an opinion of Yeah, I’m the guy from the video announcements. The “social barriers” guy. Yeah, my interview was pretty awkward, and yes, I asked a girl to homecoming with a cheesy line and an unintentionally creepy smile, but I really don’t want to be known for that. I’d much rather you know me for the club I was trying to promote.

Unfortunately though, my appearance on the video announcements didn’t do a very good job of promoting it. In fact, if you heard about the Breakfast Club for the first time on the announcements, you likely still have no clue what it’s about. So let me explain: For those of you who have never heard of it, or just don’t know what it is, the Breakfast Club is a club devoted to the promotion of social tolerance and understanding and dedicated to the elimination of the unspoken social barriers that exist at East. In layman’s terms, it’s a club that encourages everyone to be friends with everyone and fights against unofficial social rules that divide everyone.

You might contend that such a club is unnecessary here at Shawnee Mission Wonderful. That our school isn’t the same as high schools depicted in movies and TV shows. That here at East we don’t have a clique problem. That Lancers don’t bully other Lancers. But you’d be wrong. Sure, East may have less problems with social divisions and intolerance than other schools, but it still faces such problems.

My therapist parents have always described their clients’ frustrations with unspoken rules, or norms, which serve to divide people, perpetuate existing cliques and limit social activity.

As a kid, whenever I would voice my frustrations about social cliques or restrictions, my parents would remind me that there were others who felt the same way.

For years I didn’t believe them, but my experience on the staff of the Harbinger opened my eyes. The Harbinger showed me a group of people from all different social groups that coalesced so well my parents’ words suddenly seemed believable. But the question remained: if these kids got along so well on staff, why weren’t they friends in the first place? Why were they each in separate social groups? With these questions on my mind, I began to examine the whole problem of social cliques from a sociological perspective.

I decided that social division isn’t inherently bad. In fact, it’s necessary. You’re never gonna fit the whole school at your lunch table or have everyone you know over after the football game Friday night. You can try, but it’s not gonna end well. We have to divide sometimes because total inclusion is a logistical impos-

sibility. It is only when we repeatedly divide by the same lines that social division becomes a problem. And that’s exactly what we do. After all, we’re creatures of habit. We don’t mix it up as much as we like to think we do.

So we divide, and we divide the same way at every given opportunity, and eventually we become enclosed within our own divisions, our social groups. Through these groups, we trap ourselves in and shut others out. It comes by naturally. Want proof? Just try sitting with a different table at lunch sometime.

Your presence would be more than awkward. It would be almost unwelcome. Although there isn’t any real reason you can’t sit with a group of friends outside your own, it’s still a social faux pas to do so. Why? Because such an act is random, it’s uncommon and most importantly, it defies the unspoken social code.

And once I realized all of this, I made a decision that has completely altered my course at East. I decided I was going to break that social code. I realized that that unspoken social code -- that set of rules, of social norms, of do’s and do-not’s -- never does any real good.

So I decided to break that social code. I couldn’t do it alone.

I can’t do it alone. No one can. The only way to generate social change is through the application of groupthink. That’s what the Breakfast Club is for.

Inspired by the movie of the same name and its anti-clique message, it’s a club for anyone who’s ever wished they could break free of social restrictions. It’s a club for anyone who’s always struggled to make friends. It’s a club that gives like-minded people the chance to come forward and admit they want things to change.

Most importantly, it’s a club for all of the above and more. The Breakfast Club, true to its nature, is a club for everyone. So although we are currently looking for a new sponsor, I extend to all my readers an official invite to join our cause. Just look for our group page on Facebook and request to join.

I like to tell my members that breaking social barriers is a lot like dancing. No one wants to do it alone with all eyes on them. But one lone dancer can start a snowball effect of dancing. I’m trying to be that lone dancer, but I need people to follow me for this dance to begin. So join me. Join the Breakfast Club.

GETTING ACTIVE SOCIAL SHAKE-UP A weekend where members are assigned a new clique

SPEED CONNECT Like speed dating, minus the dating

BREAKING BOUNDARIES OVER

BREAKFAST Staffer Matt Hanson explains why East can benefit from the Breakfast Club.

A look at the activities on deck for the Breakfast Club

MOVIE NIGHT

An actual showing of the movie “Breakfast Club”

SOCIAL CHALLENGES Weekly games designed to challenge social perceptions

OPINION | 11

CHILD STARS GONE HAYWIRE Staffer looks back on her wish to be famous as a child.

Audrey Danciger

Amanda Bynes on an episode of “The Amanda Show” in 2000.

Amanda Bynes’ mug shot on from April 6, 2012 arrested for suspicion of DUI.

Lindsey Lohan in “Parent Trap” in 1998.

Lindsey Lohan’s mug shot from July 23, 2007. Arrested for drunk driving and cocaine possession.

photos courtsey by childstarlets.com

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When I was little I wanted nothing more than to be famous. I fantasized about the long, sparkling gowns I would don on the red carpet and the acceptance speeches I would deliver after winning my Oscars. I scrawled my name in shaky cursive over and over hoping to perfect my signature to use for autographs. I would daydream about what I could be known for: winning “Best Actress” at the Oscars, having my songs top the charts year after year or even performing on Broadway.

I wanted to be just like Amanda Bynes, Miley Cyrus and Lindsay Lohan when I grew up; the fame and fortune they had at such a young age was so glamorous and enamoring.

But a lot has changed in the past ten years. I’m less oblivious to Hollywood goings-on now than I was back then.

It seems that instead of being known for a classic movie or chart-topping song, stars are becoming infamous for things that aren’t so awe-inspiring.

These days, fame seems to have a price. Every other star appears to be snorting cocaine regularly, getting DUI’s left and right or cutting off all their hair. Drama like this isn’t exactly what I’d like to invest my time in.

It’s hard for me to remember a time when Lindsay Lohan’s face wasn’t plastered all over the tabloids for a car crash or a drug bust. And then there’s the ohso infamous, salvia-smoking starlet Miley Cyrus. And finally there’s Amanda Bynes who only recently began her fall from Hollywood grace with two DUIs and a suspended license. What happened to these innocent icons that I was so fascinated with as a child?

I guess the pressure of growing up in the spotlight had finally gotten to them. In other words: they cracked.

With all of the sky-high expectations to live up to I can see why. I have hope for these divas, though. After all, Drew Barrymore checked into rehab at the age of 13 and look at her today.

Of course, not every young girl in Hollywood has such vices. There

Mi le cut y Cy hai ting rus r haw into her a 20 k in fau tha 12...i Apri x l f t She was only aw ’ d bes get ig. to th wo f bot e rld h s!

an opinion of

are the occasional Dakota Fannings and Abigail Breslins of the industry who are thriving despite the temptations of some of their twisted peers.

So what causes these downward spirals to notoriety and scandal? Is it possibly the pressure of being under the scrutiny of everyone in the world who pays even the slightest bit of attention to pop culture? Every kid goes through a phase of trial and error until they reach adult-hood.

Growing up in the spotlight leaves little room for the mistakes that every teenager should be making.

I wonder how I would fare in the pandemonium that is Hollywood.

Would I succumb to the drama or just hang around backstage? From what I can see about how these stars hold up, that isn’t really something I’d like to find out. If I’ve learned anything at all from these starlets, it’s that even the sanest of people can take a turn for the worst and have hard time finding their way back.

When it comes down to it, I think I’ve got the sweeter deal. When I make a mistake, I have the benefit of having only a couple people hear about it rather than a couple of continents. I’m not saying that car crashes and smoking salvia are a good idea if you’re not famous, but having the world watch your every move must be brutal.

For now though, I am content with my simple Prairie Village life. Rather than strutting down runways, I cruise down school hallways. Instead of getting dolled up each weekend for a movie premiere, I throw on a dress and heels twice a year for Homecoming and WPA. Rather than eating at the finest restaurants in Los Angeles, I’m at the mercy of my mother’s cooking every night. Of course the glamorous lifestyle the stars live would be amazing, but with the toll fame takes on these people, it’s not worth it.

In 1962...

Get a glimpse of what life was like for a teenager in the 60s Gas price per gallon

$0.31

Gogo boots were the big fashion statement for young women.

For the young men, bow ties were high in fashion.

Famous actress of the time: Audrey Hepburn

3

years of high school Grades: 10-12

Song of the year “Stranger on the Shore” by: Mr. Acker Bilk

President: John F. Kennedy 1961-1963

FEATURES | 13 written by Erin Reilly Bobbi Batson has been looking forward to safe campus. Such activities that would qualify Lancer-blue top and “one of those big, silly this day since February. She’s got her outfit for grants include anti-gang education for staff bows like we used to wear.” all planned out -- a columbia-blue polo, jeans and students, redirective behavior training, On Friday, the group will walk through the and Birkenstocks, although she wishes she exercise programs before and after school and halls of East as they tour the new additions. could’ve worn her favorite cowgirl boots with defensive training for young girls.

Many of the alumni haven’t seen the school the heels worn out. since they left, when it was Everything has to be only the Eastern building. perfect, because on Saturday Another special thing morning, Bobbi is going back that the group decided to to school. make is a memorial of their *** classmates who have passed Batson is one of 173 alum on. Out of over 570 graduates who will be celebrating their in the class of ‘62, 69 have 50th high school reunion passed away.

However, Sept. 20, 21 and 22. The class only one died as a result of of 1962 was the first class to the Vietnam War, which attend all three years of high began drafting in the years school at East, which makes following their graduation. this reunion extra special. “[Something] I wish to According to fellow alum pass along to your generation Jack Matchette, the idea for is that we lose our friends the reunion was put forth through the years, as life

by Steve Hann, who is now is fragile,” alum Kenneth retired and living in Florida.

McGee said.

“He called a couple of his The festivities will buddies up here [in February], culminate in the tour of the and they decided we should school on Saturday morning do this thing,” Matchette said. and dinner at Grand Street Hann couldn’t come up Cafe. There, the group will for all of the preparations, so get to relive the glory days the heavy-lifting was left to with friends, dinner and a the people still in the area. band playing 60s favorites The original core group of like Chubby Checker and eight people call themselves Ray Charles.

“Feet on the Ground,” since The one thing that will they are the ones who are still last longer than the class’s here and able to help with the legacy and the GLAD62 setup. The group has grown Legacy Challenge is the since their first meeting at reconnections that were The Blue Moose Bar and Grill made between the people in the Village as they invited who helped plan the reunion. more and more alum to come “It’s not like in high using Facebook. school where you have your At one of these brainstorm cliques or groups or what sessions, Judy Dutra and have you,” Matchette said.

Connie Bohannan-Roberts “We really all have become were trying to think of a very good friends, and they’re class gift to the school. They a fun group. I would never wanted something that have met them if I hadn’t would have a lasting impact volunteered to be a part of long after their reunion was Feet On the Ground. Seeing over. my old friends will be fun, Fifty years after graduating from Shawnee MisThey decided that they but meeting this new group sion East, the class of 1962 is still involved with wanted to make their own of people is definitely the East tradition, so Dutra and best part of this whole thing.”

East and are preparing to celebrate their 50th Bohannan-Roberts came up McGee credits the anniversary with the idea of creating the internet as the main factor GLAD62 Legacy Challenge. that gave these friendships “We associate the 50th the ability to last.

Anniversary of an occasion with gold, [ergo] Dutra hopes that the the GLAD62 Legacy “We would not have been able to reconnect this the Golden Lancer Anniversary Donation Challenge will be something that future to the extent that we have without the Legacy Challenge,” Dutra said. “This is a way to 50th reunion classes can look forward to Internet,” McGee said. “Your generation has give back to SME, the school that gave the class contributing to. It will let each class make a the ability to stay connected throughout your of ‘62 its start in life.” unique contribution, since the goals of each whole lives[...] My advice is to stay connectedThe GLAD62 Legacy Challenge will class’s funds will support different aspects of -outside of your family, these are the best collect money from alum to create a fund for improving East’s environment. buddies you will ever have.” a specific cause related to East. The program Matchette is most excited for the football that this year’s class will support is called game that part of the group will attend on “Safety and Wellness,” and will allow teachers Thursday, when East takes on Olathe South. to apply for grants that will help keep East a Batson is going to wear her saddle shoes,

THE

FIRST

50

14 | FEATURES

East senior Matthew Boyer plays in family bluegrass band, Prairie Pocket Pickers

G

lad to be home after a long day at Belinder Elementary, fourth-grade Matthew Boyer twisted the brass door knob on his dark blue front door and let himself into his living room. After bending over and sliding his backpack off his shoulders, Matthew looked up and saw his dad in the hallway, staring straight at him.

A hint of a smile moved up his dad’s face.

His father eyed the leather couch next to the metal fireplace. Matthew turned and gasped.

A rectangular case, fabricated with a green cloth covering, lay next to the haphazardly strewn pillows on the sofa.

Matthew hurried over to the case, fumbled with the metal latchings, unzipped the black lining and opened it slowly.

A gleaming, polished new violin with a light brown body reflected his smile. *** Years after receiving that first violin, Matthew practices with his family in the very same living room. Matthew, now a senior at East, leans back in a tan leather armchair as he plays the melody of “Angeline the Baker,” his eyes focused straight down on the fingerboard of his violin. His shoes softly tap the wooden floor in rhythm.

Jeff Boyer, Matthew’s dad, strums on his mandolin while Matthew’s mom, Liz, accompanies the two of them on her banjo.

No words pass between the three of them during the piece. Just the music.

They may not be speaking, but

they’re communicating. Eye contact.

Facial expressions. Small jerks with their instruments. They’re techniques that they’ve developed in their time together as a family bluegrass band.

Born and raised on the East coast, Jeff didn’t have bluegrass in his childhood.

When he enlisted in the army, he didn’t think that any of his musical tastes would change. But in 1972, he was proven wrong.

During a Fourth of July weekend offduty, Jeff visited some relatives near Knob Noster, Mo. After spending the night with them, he decided to visit a music store in the morning. While exiting the store, he happened to see a bulletin board with a sign advertising a bluegrass festival. Interested, he invited a buddy to go with him.

After hearing all the big names in bluegrass perform at the festival, Jeff headed over to a table covered with flyers, advertising other upcoming festivals and performances. He grabbed one of each.

A few weeks later, Jeff traded in his old folk song guitar for a finger picking bluegrass guitar. At the same time, he began learning mandolin.

When Jeff moved to Kansas in the 70’s, he began performing bluegrass with Liz, who accompanied him on guitar. Years later, when Liz was pregnant with Matthew, she decided to start learning banjo.

“A guy had showed me [the banjo] a few years before, and an urge came over me to

learn it in earnest,” Liz said.

She found the banjo easy to play, and began to play it in performances with the rest of her family. Matthew joined the band in fourth grade, filling in the missing role of the violin that their band lacked.

“I always liked fiddle, and my parents were encouraging it since age six,” Matthew said.

The family band consists of Matthew on the violin, Jeff on the mandolin and Liz on the banjo. Known publicly as the Prairie Pocket Pickers, they perform several local gigs and travel around the country to play at different festivals.Since his first days as a member of the Prairie Pocket Pickers, Matthew has enjoyed every moment as a part of his family’s unique hobby. He vividly remembers their first performance together.

Nervous while standing backstage, Matthew had played their two songs, “Angeline the Baker” and “Cherokee Shuffle,” over and over again in his mind while he absentmindedly plucked his strings to make sure they were still in tune.

“With two songs, there’s not a whole lot of room to mess up,” Matthew said.

But with Jeff leading the band with his mandolin, and Liz on banjo, no one missed a beat.

Matthew earned a total o f

10 dollars that day for performing, and was additionally rewarded with a free hotdog from the concessions stand.

Today, Matthew believes that bluegrass has really helped him as a person, and made him well rounded. He thinks it’s increased his ability to easily recognize patterns as well as improved his listening skills.

Performing in his family band has given Matthew an insight into a type of music few people play.

“I always have the option of practicing at home, and my parents are there to help me grow as a musician,” Matthew said.

When he’s not practicing or performing with the band, Matthew is a member of the East Orchestra and takes classical lessons once a week from Laura McGill. He joined school strings in fourth grade, motivated by his older brother Dillon who played cello in orchestra and loved the experience.

Although Matthew plans to become a veterinarian after high school, he hopes to continue playing bluegrass on the side.

McGill, who has gotten to know Matthew quite well in her six years of teaching him, is certain that he will never give his family’s special hobby up.

“I know he will always have music in his life.”

It was started in Kentucky by Bill Monroe in the early 20th century.

Most songs are played in the keys of F, G, D or E. There is a 1, 4, 5 chord structure with strong melodies.

PRAIRIE

PICKING

written by AKSHAY DINAKAR

photo illustration by PALOMA DICKEY

LOOK ONLINE FOR A VIDEO OF MATTHEW BOYER

Forced in the Right Direction

of the apartment complex across the street heard English teacher, Mallory Gaunce, uses mugging experience to pursue her passion of teaching her pleas and took her written by Sophie Tulp photo illustration by Emma Robson into their apartment. She squeezed her eyes shut instinctively to assuage the pain of the burn.

“I remember specifically saying ‘I can’t take this anymore.

It hurts so bad,’” Gaunce said. “It literally felt like I was on fire.”

Unable to see the appearance of her rescuers, Gaunce was forced to trust them as they sat her down on a couch to the right of the doorway.

Her rescuers helped cancel her Capital One and Commerce credit cards as they waited for the ambulance. They allory Gaunce grabbed her large silver Coach purse as she left her work Christmas party. Her mind began dialed 911, as well as her parents and Pratt to let them know to wander to the important meeting she had to attend early Gaunce was safe.

“A guy called me from her phone, and he says: ‘Jennifer the next morning at 7. Excited by the fact it was only 9:30 and she could get to bed early, Gaunce began to walk the I’m with Mallory, she’s okay,’” Pratt recalled. “I said: ‘Put two blocks to her car parked just off the Plaza on 46th and Mallory on the phone. I need to talk to my friend, I need to Summit Street. She clutched her car keys between her know she’s okay.’”

Pratt was frantic, not knowing if the man on the phone pointer and middle finger, the precautionary measure she took every time she walked alone, in case she were to be was actually the attacker. He explained to her that his friends were upstairs in their apartment when they heard attacked. But that wouldn’t happen to me, she told herself.

Gaunce dialed the familiar number of one of her best Gaunce screaming. He told her that one of his friends had friends, Jennifer Pratt. The two friends began to chat about been sprayed with mace recently so they knew how to help the short, black, satin bridesmaid’s dresses they had to her. Her rescuer then handed the phone to Mallory, who purchase from White House Black Market for a friend’s was seated in the ambulance and talking to her parents on another line. wedding.

“I heard her talking to her parents, and she got on the Gaunce heard a noise behind her right shoulder. She turned to look, but didn’t see the figure until it was right phone and said to me ‘Jen, I’m okay, my parents are on the in front of her. All she was able to make out was the fur- way,’” Pratt said.

In the ambulance the paramedics washed off Gaunce’s lined hood shadowing the person’s face, before the attacker raised an arm and maced her. She had no idea what the face and assessed her wounds. Other than some bruising person looked like. The person who would ultimately cause along the jaw she was clear of any signs of a concussion or her to re-evaluate her entire future. No identifying marks. broken bones. Finally safe from her nightmare, Gaunce’s No indication of gender. Nothing. Gaunce wasn’t sure of parents arrived and took her back to spend the night at their anything as she felt herself become engulfed with the house.

Two months later, Gaunce walked down the familiar burning sensation of mace.

“It felt like my face was melting off,” Gaunce said. “The Plaza streets. The sidewalks were bare. Soon a figure emerged from around a corner. The man was large, towering over pain was debilitating.”

Pratt heard Gaunce screaming on the other end of the her petite 5’3’’ frame. She watched nervously as he walked line. Gaunce yelled that she was being mugged, and then straight towards her. The panic set in. Her pulse quickened.

Anxiety settled into the pit of her stomach. Then he walked the line went dead.

“My heart just pounded.” Pratt said. “The phone got right past her, and it was over.

“For a while I couldn’t go anywhere without anyone,” disconnected, so I kept calling her and calling her.”

All Pratt knew was that Gaunce was somewhere around Gaunce said. “I would freak out if there wasn’t anyone the Plaza. She immediately ran out to her white Toyota around me and one person was walking towards me. I Avalon, ready to come to her aid. Both Pratt and Gaunce would have to walk away, turn around or just be with someone a lot.” couldn’t comprehend what was happening.

The paranoia was just one of the lingering effects of her Gaunce struggled with her attacker, determined to keep the bag slung around her wrist. The attacker pulled it away ordeal months after the initial attack occurred. Another was from her with so much force that it tore a muscle located the growing discontent Gaunce felt with her advertising job at MMG Worldwide. The perks of the job, like her first between her forearm and wrist.

“I didn’t understand what was going on, so I didn’t let go business trip to Barbados or seeing Rihanna concerts to promote them were exciting experiences. It was the day to of my purse,” Gaunce said As she turned to run away, her attacker punched her day work, that Guance found herself uninterested in.

“Right after [the attack] happened I got really dramatic,” multiple times along the jaw. At that point Gaunce let her purse go. She heard the slamming of a car door in the Gaunce said. “I would say to myself: What if I had died tonight? I would have died doing a job I wasn’t even distance as the attacker fled the scene.

Still standing, despite the lingering burn of mace and her interested in.”

Frequently reminded of these thoughts, Gaunce often quickly bruising jaw, she began to scream for help. Residents

M

FEATURES | 15

found herself thinking about her first passion: education.

“I like being around kids and watching that light bulb go on,” Gaunce said. “Two months after I was mugged l started thinking ‘okay I’m really not interested in this, I want to start living my life to the fullest.’”

Another thought lingered in the back of her mind during this period of self-doubt: why would somebody be so desperate they would feel inclined to steal? She narrowed down the answer once again to education, or a lack thereof.

“Nobody educated them about what’s right and what’s wrong,” Gaunce said. “No one educated them enough to get them a job and it all went back to that education. That was part of the push that made me want to change.”

Gaunce had always been passionate about teaching and education. She had mentioned to her dad as a teenager that she wanted to be a high school English teacher and a cheerleading coach. He attempted to dissuade her from this goal, telling her she would not make very much money.

Gaunce listened to his advice and went to school for advertising, inspired by her mother who was a marketer.

After re-evaluating her interest in advertising, Gaunce decided to quit her job at MMG Wordwide. She went back to school at UMKC to specialize in Urban Education. As part of her Master’s Certification Program, she was placed as a student-teacher at Wyandotte High School, where she first began following her true passion of being an educator.

“I loved my kiddos,” Gaunce said. “They had a very different set of circumstances and that’s something that as a teacher you look at, especially not coming from a similar background. As a teacher you say this isn’t the way it has to be, but sometimes [the student] doesn’t realize that, sometimes they think this is how it has to be, and that is unfortunate.”

Gaunce recalled one morning how a girl told her she was pregnant and one week later the student came in and apologized for having to miss class that day, because her boyfriend had been shot the night before. This situation was not irregular according to Gaunce, but was just one of the challenges faced by some of the youth of urban communities. Maybe even similar to the circumstances her attacker lived in, that would make them desperate enough to attack her, to steal her purse. But after her year of studentteaching at Wyandotte High School was through, Gaunce was disappointed to find there were no available jobs at any inner city schools.

“I think that they need better teachers for urban education, because that is where the country needs the most help,” Gaunce said. “I am sad to have had to leave, but when it came time to find a job, education is in general pretty tight on available jobs.”

Gaunce had been in contact with a few administrators from across the area. One of these administrators was Dr. Krawitz, her former principal from when she had attended Shawnee Mission West as a high school student. She contacted Krawitz to gain insight on what working in the the Shawnee Mission School District was like. Interested in what he told her, Gaunce applied to the district. She was a candidate to fill a position in the English department at East, and was interviewed by Associate Principal John McKinney.

“The number one thing I look for when I’m interviewing somebody is do they like kids.” McKinney said. “I could tell that she had a genuine desire to work with young people.

Every answer that she gave, the emphasis was on students.

She was in it for the right reasons.”

Although Gaunce still reflects on the incident almost every day, from her ordeal came opportunity: the opportunity for her to pursue her original passion of helping shape young minds as an educator.

“People have interesting ways of getting where they are today,” Gaunce said. “So my genuine advice is to do what you want to do, because you will end up doing it someday anyway.”

SPREAD | 17

16 | SPREAD

LANCER VOICE continued from cover

fulfilling her

CURIOSITY Sophomore Clara Ma wins an essay contest and names the Mars rover

They’re sitting around their wooden dinner table. It’s a normal family dinner.

Except they’re speaking Mandarin Chinese. And they’re talking about neutrinos.

Neutrinos are subatomic particles. An experiment was recently conducted, and based on the findings, some scientists hypothesized that neutrinos could potentially move faster than light. Clara and her dad, Frank Ma, are discussing whether or not this is even possible.

They share a love of science and math, although he says helping her with her homework is becoming a lot harder.

“She’s in precalculus!” he said, referring to the fact that she’s a year ahead of her class in math.

At dinner, they’ll go on and on about science and math.

They’ll talk for hours about the passion they share. He’ll help her with homework, and she’ll talk to him about his work.

When Clara’s essay was picked as the winner, he was touched by her devotion to their shared love of space.

“I didn’t even get to see Clara’s essay until after we found out that she was a finalist,” Frank said. “At first when she showed it to us I was surprised by how short it was. But when I actually read it, I was blown away. She managed to put so much meaning into those 250 words, and I was very moved by the things she said. That was kind of a ‘proud father’ moment for me.” *** May 27, 2009 The day of the press release arrives just in time. Clara can barely stand keeping the secret any longer.

It’s the last day of school. A half day. NASA told the media that national news would be occurring here, although they couldn’t give them any specifics. Media outlets like Fox 4, KCTV5 and the Kansas City Star showed up for it.

All students are called for an assembly in the gym. As they file in and sit down, three NASA representatives begin a presentation about Mars, complete with 3-D pictures. It’s followed by a video about space exploration and the new Mars Rover, revealing the name that was chosen as the winner.

The rest of the day is a blur. Clara is interviewed by various reporters, and she’s just trying to take it all in.

“I felt kind of overwhelmed that day,” Clara said. “But having that, and just getting to talk to so many people who were interested in this experience kind of made me come out of my shell.”

As winner of the contest, Clara’s initial prize was a trip to

Pasadena, California. JPL partnered with the Disney/Pixar animation of “Wall-E” for the contest, so Clara and her family were treated to a trip to Disneyland and got to stay at a Disney hotel.

She also took a tour of JPL, learned the science behind creating the rover and got the chance to leave a piece of her with Curiosity by signing the rover before it was launched.

It took her 30 minutes of preparation to even get to be in the same room as Curiosity — from suiting up head-to-toe in a white cleanroom suit, to going through a tunnel whose purpose was to clear any bacteria off of Clara and her family. But when the moment finally arrived when Clara could sign the belly of the rover, she was ecstatic.

“They set aside this part of the rover,” Clara said. “They taped it off with yellow tape and I got to sign it. I signed my English and Chinese name and I wrote ‘Curiosity.’” *** Clara is off in her own little world. Her grandmother, her “Lao Lao,” is telling her myths and stories about the constellations in Mandarin Chinese. She’s only here for a few months, visiting from Beijing, China. And every night, right before bedtime, she and Clara go out on the deck to look at the stars.

For Clara, it’s more than just quality time with her grandmother. It’s more than constellations or stars or stories. It’s more than space. For Clara, this is their connection.

“I realized that what she sees in China is the same as what I see here,” Clara said. “They’re constant, and in that way we’re connected even when we’re not together. That was just an amazing thought for me.’” *** November 28, 2011 Clara and her family are sitting together under an overcast sky in Pasadena, Cal. Across Banana Creek is the launch pad with the Atlas V rocket holding Curiosity.

Nervous glances are cast at the clouds. They’re all anxious and unsure: What if the launch doesn’t go as planned?

The hours pass quickly. Clara catches up with all the NASA representatives she’d met and worked with two years before. Sitting in the stands together with all the engineers, scientists and workers that helped make this happen, it feels like one big family. As the time of the launch approaches, a hole opens up in the clouds, right above the launch pad.

“It was absolutely perfect,” Clara said.

And then it’s time.

Clara and her sister, Renny, go to the edge of the creek, next to the clock counting down the time, and watch in awe as Curiosity begins to take off.

“Five...four...three...two...one. Main engine start. Zero and liftoff...”

Curiosity gets smaller and smaller and smaller. And then it’s gone, disappearing into the blue sky. *** August 5, 2012 It’s her second and final trip Pasadena, Cal., and Clara knows she’ll remember this for the rest of her life. She’s savoring every moment. Making appearances at educator workshops and other NASA events. Catching up with people she’s met in her previous trips. Learning even more about the science and engineering behind Curiosity.

And then it’s time for the landing -- the moment they’ve all been waiting for. Clara sits in the auditorium on the second row of the stands with her family. All eyes are on the big screen.

Watching. Waiting. Hoping. As the parachute is deployed, people stand up, cheering. And when Curiosity lands, Clara is overcome with emotion. Tears stream down her face, flowing rapidly across her cheeks. She hears a woman’s voice over the crowd.

“Tengo Delta Nominal.”

It’s the scientific term for saying that the rover successfully touched down at Mars without any extremely serious problems, although scientists don’t know if everything is still in perfect condition.

“I just remember the first words after the landing,” Clara said.

“They were very powerful.”

All of a sudden, she’s surrounded by journalists and reporters taking her picture and capturing her reaction the moment of the landing.

“I was the oldest during the landing, so I think it had the largest impact on me,” Clara said. “I don’t know if it’s possible, but I think it was even more spectacular than the launch.”

For Clara, it’s back to being a normal teenager. Back to tennis. Back to her honors classes and straight A’s. Back to watching National Geographic. So she says goodbye to everything for a while. She’s not sure when she’ll be back there again, although she plans to apply for an internship at JPL next summer. After all, there’s no stopping Clara’s curiosity.

Above; Clara Ma and her family standing next to “Curiosity” the Mars rover that Ma named

Creating Curiosity photos courtesy of Clara Ma

MAY 2009 Clara finds out that she has won

JUNE 2009

AUGUST 2012

Clara goes to the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California.

the national essay contest to in early May of 2009 and the Mars rover will be named Curiosity.

She heads to D.C. in the middle of May to read her essay and take a tour of the NASA headquarters there.

MAY 2009

She went to Pasadena, California to watch the rover land in August.

Clara went to watch the Mars rover launch in Florida in November.

NOVEMBER 2011

East students share their ideas on what they would name the Mars Rover if given the opportunity photos by Marisa Walton

“ ” Sophomore Clark Doerr

I would probably just name it ‘Clark’ and stick a picture of my face on it.

“

Junior Victoria Sabates

I would name it ‘The Martian’. That way it would fit in with all of the other aliens on Mars and not feel selfconscious.

”

“ ” Senior Chris Tuttle

‘Billy the Space Pirate’ then it’ll be a pimp on Mars.

SPREAD | 17

16 | SPREAD

LANCER VOICE continued from cover

fulfilling her

CURIOSITY Sophomore Clara Ma wins an essay contest and names the Mars rover

They’re sitting around their wooden dinner table. It’s a normal family dinner.

Except they’re speaking Mandarin Chinese. And they’re talking about neutrinos.

Neutrinos are subatomic particles. An experiment was recently conducted, and based on the findings, some scientists hypothesized that neutrinos could potentially move faster than light. Clara and her dad, Frank Ma, are discussing whether or not this is even possible.

They share a love of science and math, although he says helping her with her homework is becoming a lot harder.

“She’s in precalculus!” he said, referring to the fact that she’s a year ahead of her class in math.

At dinner, they’ll go on and on about science and math.

They’ll talk for hours about the passion they share. He’ll help her with homework, and she’ll talk to him about his work.

When Clara’s essay was picked as the winner, he was touched by her devotion to their shared love of space.

“I didn’t even get to see Clara’s essay until after we found out that she was a finalist,” Frank said. “At first when she showed it to us I was surprised by how short it was. But when I actually read it, I was blown away. She managed to put so much meaning into those 250 words, and I was very moved by the things she said. That was kind of a ‘proud father’ moment for me.” *** May 27, 2009 The day of the press release arrives just in time. Clara can barely stand keeping the secret any longer.

It’s the last day of school. A half day. NASA told the media that national news would be occurring here, although they couldn’t give them any specifics. Media outlets like Fox 4, KCTV5 and the Kansas City Star showed up for it.

All students are called for an assembly in the gym. As they file in and sit down, three NASA representatives begin a presentation about Mars, complete with 3-D pictures. It’s followed by a video about space exploration and the new Mars Rover, revealing the name that was chosen as the winner.

The rest of the day is a blur. Clara is interviewed by various reporters, and she’s just trying to take it all in.

“I felt kind of overwhelmed that day,” Clara said. “But having that, and just getting to talk to so many people who were interested in this experience kind of made me come out of my shell.”

As winner of the contest, Clara’s initial prize was a trip to

Pasadena, California. JPL partnered with the Disney/Pixar animation of “Wall-E” for the contest, so Clara and her family were treated to a trip to Disneyland and got to stay at a Disney hotel.

She also took a tour of JPL, learned the science behind creating the rover and got the chance to leave a piece of her with Curiosity by signing the rover before it was launched.

It took her 30 minutes of preparation to even get to be in the same room as Curiosity — from suiting up head-to-toe in a white cleanroom suit, to going through a tunnel whose purpose was to clear any bacteria off of Clara and her family. But when the moment finally arrived when Clara could sign the belly of the rover, she was ecstatic.

“They set aside this part of the rover,” Clara said. “They taped it off with yellow tape and I got to sign it. I signed my English and Chinese name and I wrote ‘Curiosity.’” *** Clara is off in her own little world. Her grandmother, her “Lao Lao,” is telling her myths and stories about the constellations in Mandarin Chinese. She’s only here for a few months, visiting from Beijing, China. And every night, right before bedtime, she and Clara go out on the deck to look at the stars.

For Clara, it’s more than just quality time with her grandmother. It’s more than constellations or stars or stories. It’s more than space. For Clara, this is their connection.

“I realized that what she sees in China is the same as what I see here,” Clara said. “They’re constant, and in that way we’re connected even when we’re not together. That was just an amazing thought for me.’” *** November 28, 2011 Clara and her family are sitting together under an overcast sky in Pasadena, Cal. Across Banana Creek is the launch pad with the Atlas V rocket holding Curiosity.

Nervous glances are cast at the clouds. They’re all anxious and unsure: What if the launch doesn’t go as planned?

The hours pass quickly. Clara catches up with all the NASA representatives she’d met and worked with two years before. Sitting in the stands together with all the engineers, scientists and workers that helped make this happen, it feels like one big family. As the time of the launch approaches, a hole opens up in the clouds, right above the launch pad.

“It was absolutely perfect,” Clara said.

And then it’s time.

Clara and her sister, Renny, go to the edge of the creek, next to the clock counting down the time, and watch in awe as Curiosity begins to take off.

“Five...four...three...two...one. Main engine start. Zero and liftoff...”

Curiosity gets smaller and smaller and smaller. And then it’s gone, disappearing into the blue sky. *** August 5, 2012 It’s her second and final trip Pasadena, Cal., and Clara knows she’ll remember this for the rest of her life. She’s savoring every moment. Making appearances at educator workshops and other NASA events. Catching up with people she’s met in her previous trips. Learning even more about the science and engineering behind Curiosity.

And then it’s time for the landing -- the moment they’ve all been waiting for. Clara sits in the auditorium on the second row of the stands with her family. All eyes are on the big screen.

Watching. Waiting. Hoping. As the parachute is deployed, people stand up, cheering. And when Curiosity lands, Clara is overcome with emotion. Tears stream down her face, flowing rapidly across her cheeks. She hears a woman’s voice over the crowd.

“Tengo Delta Nominal.”

It’s the scientific term for saying that the rover successfully touched down at Mars without any extremely serious problems, although scientists don’t know if everything is still in perfect condition.

“I just remember the first words after the landing,” Clara said.

“They were very powerful.”

All of a sudden, she’s surrounded by journalists and reporters taking her picture and capturing her reaction the moment of the landing.

“I was the oldest during the landing, so I think it had the largest impact on me,” Clara said. “I don’t know if it’s possible, but I think it was even more spectacular than the launch.”

For Clara, it’s back to being a normal teenager. Back to tennis. Back to her honors classes and straight A’s. Back to watching National Geographic. So she says goodbye to everything for a while. She’s not sure when she’ll be back there again, although she plans to apply for an internship at JPL next summer. After all, there’s no stopping Clara’s curiosity.

Above; Clara Ma and her family standing next to “Curiosity” the Mars rover that Ma named

Creating Curiosity photos courtesy of Clara Ma

MAY 2009 Clara finds out that she has won

JUNE 2009

AUGUST 2012

Clara goes to the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California.

the national essay contest to in early May of 2009 and the Mars rover will be named Curiosity.

She heads to D.C. in the middle of May to read her essay and take a tour of the NASA headquarters there.

MAY 2009

She went to Pasadena, California to watch the rover land in August.

Clara went to watch the Mars rover launch in Florida in November.

NOVEMBER 2011

East students share their ideas on what they would name the Mars Rover if given the opportunity photos by Marisa Walton

“ ” Sophomore Clark Doerr

I would probably just name it ‘Clark’ and stick a picture of my face on it.

“

Junior Victoria Sabates

I would name it ‘The Martian’. That way it would fit in with all of the other aliens on Mars and not feel selfconscious.

”

“ ” Senior Chris Tuttle

‘Billy the Space Pirate’ then it’ll be a pimp on Mars.

18 | FEATURES

living in

bliss-

ima

Six East choir students start a new all-girls a cappella group, Bellissima photos by Katie Sgroi

written by Caroline Kohring The board also sent multiple emails back and forth suggesting names. Inspired by last year’s choir trip to Italy, Daves’ mom suggested various Italian words. Bellissima, meaning beautiful, was the one that stuck.

Daves, May and Whitney also created a Facebook group for potential members and made announcements in all of their choir classes. Trent gives private voice lessons, so she spread the word to all of her students.

One of her students, sophomore Mackenzie Hobbs, decided to try out after Trent’s suggestion. She has a passion for singing and when Trent told her about the group she knew it was where she belonged.

“I was in [the show choir] Vocalocity for my two middle school years, and it really wasn’t a great fit for me,” Hobbs said. “I’m not a dancer at all -- I’m the worst choreographed dancer ever. I prefer to just sing.”

Auditions were held on Aug. 25 and 26 at Countryside Christian Church. Throughout those two days, 18 different girls came and went to the musty church. Upon entering the audition room, Hobbs says she immediately felt at ease. The smiling judges, worn couch and fireplace made a comfortable atmosphere.

Performers stood in front of a coffee table and sang a variety of songs in front of the judges: Trent, Daves, May and Whitney. Then they walked over to the piano and sight read sheet music. By the end of the audition process, the group consisted of 14 girls.

Although Trent is the sponsor, she wants Bellissima to be mostly student-led. Daves, May and Whitney are the execs, but all members contribute to decision-making. For example, the execs picked the initial songs, but they want this to be a group effort, so they gave the rest of the girls a piece of paper to write down suggestions for future songs.

So far, Bellissima has only had three rehearsals--the first was held on Sunday, Sept.

9. According to Daves, the first rehearsal was very informational, with not much time for singing. However, they did start working on

“The Star Spangled Banner”. The girls hope to be able to sing this at sporting events, such as football games.

“The first rehearsal was fantastic,” Trent said. “I designed a couple of warm-up exercises, and by the second time through, we were all grinning and ready to jump up and down.

The sound was glorious and each voice was sensitive to the others.”

Even though they haven’t had many rehearsals, Bellissima plans on performing in the near future. The group doesn’t have any concrete dates yet, but they do intend on holding a 20-30 minute concert at the beginning of November. They are also looking into informal concerts, such as caroling on the Plaza during holiday season.

“I’m really excited for performances,” Hobbs said. “A cappella is a totally different take on performing. You don’t have a piano to back you up, you can’t sing quietly and expect no one to hear you. It’s just a group of 15 girls -- everybody has to be perfect.”

Bellissima members are also looking forward to collaborating with the Y-Chromotones. Later in the year, the two groups may come together to learn and perform songs.

“Both groups have their own unique sound, and combining them could make a really cool mix of voices,” senior Max Duncan, a Y-Chromotones member, said. “It could also make our concerts not only last longer, but more interesting and diverse in terms of the songs and sounds we could achieve. The cooperation between Mr. Foley and Mrs. Trent is phenomenal and I know that the groups could work together really well because of that.”

Although the group is young, Trent says she has high hopes for them.

“I’m wild about this group,” she said. “The group is comprised of talented, smart singers dedicated to the art of making music. They love a challenge, have wonderful ideas for songs and are lovely people. I’m in heaven.”

songs you’ll hear

this

Fourteen girls are crowded into the living room of East’s former choir accompanist, Faith Trent. Some sit on the couch, some surround the piano. Some are inexperienced and nervous; some know exactly what they are doing. They range from freshmen to seniors, hail from East or Pembroke. But despite their differences, they all have one thing in common: their passion for singing.

For over a year, senior Vanessa Daves had wanted to start an all-girls a cappella group.

“All of my really good guy friends are in the Y-Chromatones [an all-boy a cappella group],” Daves said. “I was always wondering why there wasn’t a girls’ group.”

Daves was constantly bugging Trent to help her start an a cappella group for girls.

Trent knew how much time Ken Foley, East’s choir director, spent creating the Y-Chromotones and making them successful, so she figured she wouldn’t be able to squeeze it in.

However, this past year Trent retired from East. Daves hinted to Trent that she would have much more time on her hands, and Trent finally agreed to sponsor an all-girl a cappella group.

“Vanessa, who is extremely persuasive, assured me that she would help,” Trent said.

“After some thought, I decided that conducting such a group would be very exciting and fulfilling.”

Once Daves got Trent’s support, she asked fellow senior Madison May and Pembroke sophomore Lizzie Whitney to help her run the group, called Bellissima. Trent, the three seniors and their mothers make up the “board.”

This board held three meetings over the summer where they wrote a mission statement, decided on the size of the group, chose an outfit and organized auditions. The outfit consists of a satin Chrysanthemum top with pearls, black pants or skirts, and black heels.

The mission statement says that the goal of the group is to offer talented, dedicated singers an opportunity to perform a cappella music in a variety of styles and settings.

November

The Star Spangled 1 Banner

For the Longest

2 Time

by Billy Joel Jar of

3Hearts

by Christina Perry

Nella 4 Fantasia

a classic Italian opera

Beyond

5 the Sea

featured in the musical “Wicked”

6 For Good

featured in the musical “Wicked”

20| A&E

ACID WASH SHORTS

MADE WITH Staffer experiments with DIY projects from Pinterest.

In my first attempt to be crafty, I decided I would make acid-washed jean shorts. There are two rules you need to know before you start: 1. Try the jeans on before you decide where you should cut them — or else denim shorts will become denim underwear.

2. Make sure the jeans you are using are not already acid-washed...or else there will be nothing for you to do to them. Unfortunately, I was not smart enough to realize either of these rules in advance. After spending about an hour pouring bleach into my sink, soaking the shorts and waiting for them to dry, I realized that maybe I should’ve thought of these rules before I got elbow deep in the sink full of chemicals. After I pulled my first attempt out of the dryer and saw what a disaster they actually were, I realized that my first try was a big fail. Basically, the shorts came out looking like one of my dog Lacey’s toys — all worn out and chewed up.

But have no fear, being the relentless person I am, I pursued another attempt on the acid washed shorts.

The second run through went better than planned; I ended up with shorts that didn’t look they had been previously owned by a girl in a rap video and you could actually tell that they had a fading color to them at the bottom. I never really understood why these shorts were so trendy but after putting in the hours of work and the fact that I made them with my own two hands made me become a bit fonder of the troublesome shorts. Don’t be surprised if you see me wearing these bad boys out on the town.

Ever since I can remember, art class wasn’t really my forté. I always colored outside the lines of my Barbie coloring book, ended up eating the glue instead of squeezing it onto the paper. And don’t even get me started on how I was banned from scissors in my early years (I’m still bitter about it.)

What I’m trying to get at is that my hands were not meant to make arts and crafts. When I started using Pinterest I noticed that do it yourself (DIY) projects were the hot new trend. Of course I wanted to be trendy like everyone else so I took a step out of my box and decided to expand my creative horizon — I was going to do a DIY challenge. I purposely chose three projects I thought would be simple, but boy was I wrong.

written by Morgan Twibell

STUDDED SHOES The bedazzler was very popular during my middle school days so I thought I’d do a little bit of a throwback by making some studded shoes. Finding the supplies for the shoes was quite tricky. To my surprise the bronze studs I needed are a rarity in the Prairie Village area. Right when I was about to give up on the shoes, I decided to go to Euston’s Hardware in The Village.

It was nine o’clock at night and by the groans and glares I received while walking in I assumed all the employees in there were wondering why someone would come in that late at night with a request for bronze studs. Once they directed me to the aisle of “studs” (which came as a big shock that they even had a whole aisle dedicated to them) I found just what I was looking for. This was the only project I did where I was actually able to watch TV during the process of making it; all I had to do was super glue the studs to the outside of the shoes. Let’s just say I learned to multi-task while being crafty, and the parents were

HAND-BEADED BRACELET

If you enjoy squinting your eyes to the point that they become permanently stuck or if you like the feeling of having cramped fingers for days, I would suggest you take on the wrapped bracelet challenge.

Now, even though this was the easiest project of my torturous week of crafts, it still left me with a throbbing headache at the end. First of all, I searched the aisles of Hobby Lobby for the leather string and some special copper beads. The other shoppers there (all of them pro-scrap bookers, I’m assuming) could smell my fear from a mile away; they knew I wasn’t one of their kind. Eventually, I walked up to one of the workers for some assistance. I tried to ask for help in the most polite way I could and, in turn, the girl gave me a sigh and an eye roll which led me to believe she was less than pleased as I had just distracted her from rearranging her picture frames. By rearranging picture frames, I mean her picking up the same picture frame and setting it down, about seven times in a row. Once I found all of my needed supplies, I headed home to get

very proud.

started. Maybe if I had fingers the size of fourth grader’s it would’ve been easier to wrap the thin leather string around the copper beads and I wouldn’t have ended up in so much pain. After about five minutes, I was already breaking a sweat, asking my mom to fetch me an ice water. After I finished up and looked at the bracelet, with its intricate design of beads and string braided together, I actually felt a sense of accomplishment I yelled out to anyone in my house who would listen, “Hey! This isn’t terrible!” and “Look mom, this is way better than those thanksgiving paintings I made you in art class!”

I considered myself crafty for about two minutes — then I realized I hadn’t tied a knot on the end of it, and one-by-one each string I had taken the time to wrap together slowly unraveled from the other. Take two went much smoother though, and now I don’t have to buy my sister a Christmas present.

photos by Maddie Connelly

MIXED T ME SO

MIXED| 21

G HIN

OU AB

TR TS

.

ESS

RELIEVE YOUR STRESS

1 2 3 4 5

the athlete

Sleeping for eight to 10 hours is key to keeping stress levels under control. “I don’t think that everyone realizes that getting eight, nine, ten hours of sleep is going to be one of your best defenses against stress because you’re better prepared,” Missy Stover, a childlife specialist at Children’s Mercy Hospital said.

“When I’m stressed out I normally go lift weights. It helps to get my full sweat going on,” senior Jordan Darling said.

Using visualization by creating positive images in your mind allows the body to push out negative thoughts and take control of your stress. Visualization is done best in a quiet, comfortable environment. Doing this before bed can help with sleeping problems.

the A student

“I try to deal with stress by doing other activities I enjoy.

I especially like riding my horse. That’s a fun thing I do most weekends,” senior Anne Recker said.

Do something you enjoy. Although a high school student’s day is filled with homework, extra-curriculars and friends, making time to do the things you enjoy can help you relax, and even complete tasks more efficiently in other areas of your life.

“Breathing excercises are a great ways to shift your focus away from stressful situations,” Stover said. By using techniques like breathing in fives - inhaling for five seconds, holding your breath for five seconds and exhaling for five seconds people can use that time to calm down and decide how to deal with situations.

the social butterfly “I like to go play basketball with my friends at East,” sophomore Clark Doerr

Writing for 10 to 15 minutes a day about stressful events in your life can help you relieve some of that stress and deal with the emotions it has brought on you. By creating a stress journal you can figure out what the main cause of your stress is and what the best way is to cope with those situations.

Academic Levels of Stress 1 being the least and 10 being the most 10 10 8 9 8 13 7 6 6 6 5 3 4 3 2 2 1 1 4 number of students

Social Levels of Stress

17

1 being the least and 10 being the most 3 10 5 9 10 8 7 7 4 6 5 4 6 8 3 2 6 8 1 number of students

Most Stressful Times before bed

25.58%

before school

16.28%

13 20.93%

after school

37.21% during school

*information based off of a 70 student survey

FALL

22 | A&E

SHOWDOWN GO ON

PREMIERES SEPT. 25 on NBC Matthew Perry has had difficulty landing a role that highlights his acting as well as “Friends” did--efforts such as ”Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip” and “Mr. Sunshine” were disasters-- and judging from the pilot of his new show, “Go On”, his dry spell may still be running. In “Go On,” Perry plays a recently-widowed sports radio jockey who is forced to attend grief counseling by his co-workers.

Perry’s character, Jason King, becomes the leader of this grieving group of misfits by helping them deal with their grief in humorous ways, such as a March Sadness bracket, where the group competes for the saddest story. This high-energy part was one of the rare moments where I actually chuckled, but I didn’t enjoy the show enough to believe in the show’s potential to succeed as a series.

Nothing can beat “Friends” and I have a hard time visualizing Perry as anyone other than the neurotic Chandler Bing. Once I finished the show, I realized that Perry has failed with so many pilots because he doesn’t have the ability to carry a show as a main lead -- he needs to play off hilarious “Friends” such as Monica and Phoebe.

Staffer reviews new fall TV shows. written by Paige Hess photos courtesy of tvguide.com

COMA

PREMIERED SEPT. 3 on A&E “They aren’t living, but yet they aren’t really dead, are they?” This quote from “Coma” really grabbed my attention because of its absolute creepiness.

“Coma” is a mini-series aired over two nights that is a remake of the 1978 medical thriller by the same name.

This remake is about a woman named Susan who exposes the sinister truth of the Jefferson and Memorial hospitals.

The show opens with a YouTube video made by a group of investigators that sneak into a bizarre and mysterious hospital. From the first episode, I couldn’t tell what the show was about other than people in a hospital falling into deep comas. Everything just gets creepy from there-- random cameras watching Susan, people framing her and many people becoming brain dead.

“Coma” is difficult to follow because it jumps around frequently. I wish there was more information given to us as viewers regarding the background story. I was so lost that I had to ask my dad to explain what was going on.

I won’t spoil it, but all I can say is that I am officially creeped out by hospitals and hope to never be in O.R. 8.

MINDY PROJECT PREMIERES SEPT. on FOX

Mindy Kaling stars in her own show as a 31-year-old OB/GYN that is caught in a whirlwind of emotion. She is wrestling with her life as a doctor and finding the ideal love life she grew up watching on romantic comedies. Sound like an entertaining show? Yeah, not so much.

With one main character, this show puts all its eggs in one basket and there is a lot riding on whether or not the audience likes the main character. Unfortunately for “The Mindy Project,” it’s quite difficult to love Mindy. In the beginning of the show, she tells her love life sob story to a police officer upon being arrested for drunk driving a bike into a pool. Who does that?

“The Mindy Project” was so bad I was actually proud of myself for finding the patience to finish the show. Being in the shadow of “New Girl” and on a block of four sitcoms in a row, all I have to say is good luck to “The Mindy Project.” If the rest of the series is anything like the first show, it will need it.

LAST RESORT PREMIERES SEPT. 27 on ABC As an obsessive “Lost” fan, I loved ABC’s pilot of the cinematic thriller “Last Resort.” This show has the capacity to appeal to everyone who’s interested in conspiracy theories, a rescue mission, an alcoholic or an island take-over.

“Last Resort” centers around the crew of the USS Colorado and the aftermath of their refusal to follow orders to fire nuclear weapons on a foreign country. Their insubordination results in the ship being fired at and hit by their own government. The crew ends up taking refuge on an island while they debate how to deal with their home country trying to kill them.

The opening scene of the show introduced all the characters but didn’t tell any of their names, which clearly was intentional but still bothered me throughout the show.

As the program went on, everything began to pan out. I began to understand the roles of the characters and the idea of the United States trying to declare war. This scenario would make an awesome movie, but I am curious to see how they extend it into a full series. No matter what happens to the show, “Last Resort” will definitely be on my DVR every week.

BEN & KATE PREMIERES SEPT. 25 on FOX

After watching previews, I figured I wouldn’t like “Ben & Kate” because of the slapstick humor that was displayed, but I was very wrong.

Ben and Kate are siblings forced to take care of each other their whole lives due to their argumentative but mostly absent parents. Kate is said to have “[grown] up too fast”, while Ben “never grew up at all.” The show focuses on how their different personalities bring them closer together.

Kate had to grow up too fast in part because she became pregnant as a teenager and was left to raise her daughter on her own. Kate’s daughter, Maddie, is played by Maggie Jones who is quite possibly the cutest child on the planet. I became ecstatic every time she came on screen. Their goofy friends BJ and Tommy add to the striking chemistry by being even more ridiculous than Ben himself.

Overall, “Ben & Kate” is a feel-good show that, if it keeps up the good work, I definitely wouldn’t mind watching every week.

written by Morgan Krakow For an entire week, I awkwardly made my way through four group fitness classes around the Shawnee Mission East area.

From biking with middle-aged women, to boxing with a huge guy named Ray, my week was exhausting and entertaining. I’m not exactly an Olympian, so some classes were better than others. Find out what’s best for you.

A&E | 23

LET’S GET PHYSICAL YOGA

Yoga is my regular exercise. And I don’t mean to brag, but I am good at yoga. Well, compared to the others in the class, who are anywhere from 30 to 60 years older than me, I’m pretty good. But that’s irrelevant, because workout classes aren’t about size or age. They’re just about you and your personal goals. It’s important to take a class in which you feel you can succeed in but also enjoy at the same time, and for me that’s yoga. It’s the perfect end to a hectic week. The different positions I have learned in this class are fantastic, but my favorite part is the meditation at the very end. Our teacher turns the lights off and we lie on our yoga mats as she coaches us into a relaxed state. Most of the time I’m so exhausted that I fall asleep for the last 20 minutes. But that power-nap completely rejuvenates me. Napping in a workout I’ll admit it sounds a little ridiculous. But when I go home afterwards, everything seems easier. My stresses are less, and I breathe easier. Yoga is perfect for anyone who is feeling stressed and just needs a little quiet time towards the end of the week.

TITLE BOXING Anyone who likes loud rap music and has any sort of pent up aggression, I have found the class for you. During this aggressive hour I hopped, punched, kicked, crunched, crawled, side-stepped and lunged my way into a sweaty and sore mess.

This class is intense. Set to bumping and loud songs by mainstream rappers like Eminem, Wiz Khalifa, and Kanye West, instructor Ray calls out directions in a military-style, “Ya gotta go 1, 2, punch, up, and then down. Then swing in for a body hit.

Like a home run. 1, 2, up, down, home run. NOW GO GO GO!” Did you get that? Yeah, me neither.

I kept having to look around and do that thing where you watch the people beside you and sort of mimic their movements, all while trying to look like you absolutely know what’s going on. I was so intimidated by the buff men and skinny women going after the punching bags like animals. All of my fitness fears were culminating on State Line at 7:30 on a Wednesday night. I went in for the “1, 2, punch, up, down, home run” and felt ridiculous. I don’t punch things. I’m not angry with anyone. I felt like a toddler taking the SAT. I was totally out of place. I felt confused and very uncomfortable.

But about midway through something magical happened. I started channeling a little Muhammad Ali, and stopped caring about anyone else in the class. I just focused on myself. Sure I wasn’t swinging hooks and jabs like the ripped sweaty guy next to me, but it didn’t really matter to me anymore.

I’m completely positive that I looked absolutely ridiculous and was a sad excuse for a boxer. And I’m completely positive that If I ever get into a fistfight with anyone, I will still lose, but it was a good workout. I mean a really good workout. And I felt it in the morning. My shoulders felt as if they had been unhinged from my back and my abs cramped from the perilous sets of medicine ball workouts we did afterwards. Ray had us doing things with the medicine ball I didn’t even know were possible.

I was working muscles I wasn’t even positive existed. I was sweating in places I was sure weren’t supposed to sweat. Did you know your calves can sweat? Well, they can. Title Boxing Club taught me that.

SPIN CLASS I sat in the reception area of the Sylvester Powell Community Center, making small-talk with the receptionists and awaiting my ever-impending doom: spin class. I was scared. Expecting ridiculously fit moms in tight pants, ferociously pumping their legs around the stationary bikes and sweating profusely. I was quite off, actually. Spin class was friendly and fun and the class was surprisingly enjoyable.

It was made up almost completely of middle-aged women and a smiley easy-going teacher. We spun for 50 minutes to peppy and motivating music, lifting up to climb imaginary hills, and crouching down to avoid branches. By the end of it I was sweating quite a bit and in the morning I was pretty sore. If you like 80’s pump-up songs, a friendly non-intimidating workout, or just need a boost on Tuesday afternoon, this class is for you. I was smiling a majority of the time, and for me, that’s the point of personal fitness.

ZUMBA

photos by Annie Savage

Stay Away

Workin’ hard

Doable

Enjoyable

Three rows of women step and shimmy aggressively in front of me. Their footwork’s impeccable. Their timing’s astounding. Their rhythm’s perfect. And then there’s me. I try to follow our quick-stepping teacher, but the moves are so swift and a lot harder than they look. After an hour of being about three steps behind everyone in the class and failing to keep up the beat, I began to realize this Latin-inspired dance class was not for me. Zumba is not all that it is cracked up to be. I hated watching my awkward dance attempts in the wide mirrors around me. I hated how much better the rest of the class was than me. The teacher never even explained how to do any of the steps and just expected us to follow her lead. It was a lot of backside shaking and shimmying -- two dance moves that make me extremely uncomfortable.

I was too focused on getting the routines down to actually put in any force into it and get a decent workout. I didn’t even break a sweat. I can see this class being fantastic for people with a background in dance or can even just keep a beat. But that’s definitely not me, so I didn’t have fun, but I would encourage everyone to try it just once. At the very least you might learn some cool new dance moves to whip out during a party. Ariba!

Loving it

24 | PHOTO ESSAY

Left: Freshman Nikki Konomos gets ready for her first Frequent Friday, “We all got really close as a cast,” said Konomos. “It was a really good experience.”

F

requently reshmen

AJ Orth’s Frequent Friday was performed on Friday, Sept. 14. The drama, “Almost Maine” written by John Cariani, consisted of five different love stories. all photos by Caroline Creidenberg

Above: Freshmen Katie Dahlor and Kyle Baker played a young couple in love. Dahlor enjoyed working with Baker.

Left: “It was my first Frequent Friday,” said Freshman Tyler Armer, “and AJ was a great director!” Armer played a man that couldn’t feel pain.

Right: Orth directed his first Frequent Friday, casting an all Freshman cast, “I really like the dynamic of having everyone in the same age group,” said Orth. “I liked the bonds that can be formed.”

Right: The seats were filled, and ‘good jobs’ echoed through the hallways at the end of the play.

Above: The crowd awaited the cast and crew after the show to congratulate them.

Sophomore Rob Simpson mimicked the hugging that went on after the play

A&E | 25

summer READING East’s most

HATED Books

students’ talk about their least favorite books

written by Phoebe Aguiar

If you accept the challenge of Honors or AP English, you are guaranteed a summer reading assignment. There’s no escaping it. You don’t have to sacrifice your entire summer to reading, annotating and writing essays about a seeming meaningless book. Even if it doesn’t take your whole summer, reading about something you could care less about may not be the highlight of your summer. All the books seem tedious, repetitive and confusing.

“The Book Thief “ Kyle Neidl, sophomore “I really don’t like Fallen Angels [by J.R. Ward]. It’s really slow, and I’m not really a big reader to begin with.”

the logic behind the books

With the availability of summaries, shortened versions and study guides from websites such as SparkNotes, reading the book has almost become optional. With these services, avoiding fully reading the books and only getting the basics is getting easier and easier. If you can find a summary of the book online, not learn anything and hate the book, why would English teachers make you waste your time and read it?

There are more reasons that teachers assign

an interview with Ms. Beachy

Why did you choose this book?

What makes it a good book for freshman to read? How long have your students read this book?

“The way that it was chosen was Ms. Bramley and I had each read it and adored it. We absolutely thought it was one of the best books we had read in a long time and we just had such a love for the book. We thought, wow, this would be great well sort of transitional book between middle school and high school.”

“This [book] deals with World War II... So we thought students can use all of the information that they gained in eighth grade and apply it to this literature. We thought this will be a good and it was challenging enough morally and academically.”

“All Quiet on the Western Front “

Malachi Maccahi, junior “[My least favorite English book] is All Quiet on the Western Front [by Erich Maria Remarque]. It’s a boring story line... and the ending sucks.”

Why did you choose this book?

“I actually did not choose All Quiet on the Western Front for a summer reading book. For 10 honors, there were two teachers already established as 10 honors teachers, Mrs. Burt and Mrs. Gehring-Lowery, and when Ms. Burt moved up I took her spot. I had very little say, I could have, but I didn’t choose to.”

photos by Paloma Dickey and Caroline Creidenberg

“Maybe 4 years. This years’ seniors read it and they may have been the first group... it might be more than 4 years, it might be five [but] as a department we decided that for teachers for honors we all would have a summer reading assignment.

We wanted to be constant with the grade levels.”

an interview with Mrs. Fry

What makes it a good book for sophomores to read?

“It is a just a beautifully written book. It has themes throughout which I think are pretty easy for students to recognize... and I think it is an important piece of literature because it is told from the German standpoint, which doesn’t often happen. It also kind of sets the tone for these themes throughout the year.”

“102 Minutes” & “The Tipping Point“

How long have your students read this book?

“For sophomore English, it’s been on the curriculum list for at least 12 years. However, sophomore honors decided to move it to make room for others during the year. We felt that it was accessible to kids and that the kids could get it.”

an interview with Ms. Tucker

Why did you choose these books?

What makes it a good book for seniors to read?

How long have your students read these books?

“I chose them because junior AP focuses on argument and non fiction, so I try to find the specific criteria that I look for when I chose them.

One has very strong argumentation, argument to persuade, and presents some information in a different way.”

“It needs to be at least college level writing and it needs to fit the criteria of the class, so, as I mentioned, it has to be argument and non-fiction for this class. It also has to be easy enough that a person could read it on their own and teach themselves, without any instruction from me.”

“I just chose them over the summer. I try to chose different outside reading every year, and they wind up going on an outside reading list for the school.”

Juan Ramos, senior “Catcher in the Rye [is my least favorite]. I think it doesn’t portray a teenager’s life correctly... There were a lot of inconsistencies.”

these books than just to torture you. The books they pick have specific themes, ideas and literary elements that will help you prepare for the coming year. Teachers understand that people are busy during the summer. The work helps you understand the books and prepare you for discussions and tests once school starts. They pick the books for various reason, not just to ruin your summer but to get you prepared for class.

“Lord of the Flies “ & “How to Read Literature Like a Professor” Why did you choose these books?

“I am the department chair, I don’t know if I had final approval or anything like that, but we all had to discuss it as a department... those final decisions are made by the grade level PLC and then AP 11-12. And all of the books are on our approved reading list given to us by the district.”

What makes these good books for juniors to read? “[It’s] a how-to book, really, getting students to recognize patterns, recognize it’s not just about the fact that it’s raining, it’s never just raining....

[It helps] develop a shared vocabulary to take us into the rest of the year.”

an interview with Ms. Bonjour

How long have your students read these books?

“I always do How to Read Literature Like a Professor, and I change up the novel. It’s not always the same two. As long as it’s me, I would love to have How to Read Literature Like a Professor.”

NALU-UKULELE.COM

PIZZA BY THE SLICE 11am-2pm Monday- Friday

e t r t i @ w T S n M o s E u _ w H o a l l rbin o F

H

H

ge r

BOBCAT BOUND

SPORTS | 27

Senior basketball player Vance Wentz will be taking his talents up north next fall to play for the Montana State Bobcats written by Andrew McKittrick Driving up to his house in his dad’s white Suburban, senior Vance Wentz begins to notice the signs his little sister made in his front yard. Go Bobcats!

Congratulations Vance! He walks in the front door and sees bags of Skittles and boxes of Mike and Ikes laying in the front hallway.

He begins to laugh as he’s met by his 10-year-old sister, Brigid.

“I saw [the signs] and I started smiling and laughing,” Vance said. “[It was] a laugh that was just kinda happy. It was good to know you’re coming home to people who love you and care about you.”

* * * Vance’s visit to Montana State is coming to an end. Sitting the airport after getting dropped off with his mom and dad, he makes his decision: he decides to follow his dad and play a sport in college. He decides to follow his childhood dreams of playing basketball in college. He decides to move 1200 miles away from home to a small college town of 40,000.

Vance discussed his decision with his parents for 20 minutes at Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport.

“I told my parents, ‘I love it here, and this is where I wanna go,’” Vance said. “It’s far away but I think that’s a good problem to have, getting away for a couple of years.”

Twenty minutes after dropping off Vance and his parents at the airport, Montana State head basketball coach Brad Huse receives a call. On the other end of the phone, Vance tells Huse that he wants to be a Bobcat.

Vance chose to commit to Montana State after his experience on campus.

“I think Montana State appealed to him because it had a fairly large student body,” Vance’s mom, Jenny Wentz, said.

“It has about 15,000 students there, a really nice campus, nice college town,

they have a good football team. He’s gonna have a typical college experience along with being able to play basketball.

We really were happy that he had a chance to go play at a school like that.”

For Vance, playing college basketball was the end to a long road that started with fifth grade basketball tournaments, making the Varsity basketball team and joining an Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) team his freshman year.

He notes his game last year against Shawnee Mission Northwest where he had 38 points and a 30 point performance against Derby in the McPherson tournament as breakout performances.

After these, he was contacted by Cornell, Davidson and Toledo among others.

The offers began to pick up as Vance played in more tournaments with his AAU team, KC run GMC. The team was started in 2003 and has former players from MU, KU and KSU including Marcus Denmon, Tyrel Reed, Connor Teahan and Victor Ojeleye.

During a third place game of a tournament in St. Louis in July, one of Vance’s best friends, Connor Frankamp, broke his foot. He was going for a lay-up in the lane when he was tackled. He fell down awkwardly and suffered a break, opening up a starting position on his team.

“I got in the starting lineup and that’s when I started getting more calls,” Vance said. “I saw my stock rise. I was talking to UMKC, Montana State, Emporia State and a number of other schools.”

During the winter when Vance isn’t playing for KC run GMC, he plays for the East Varsity team. He has made the Varsity team since his freshman year and is expecting to make it again this year. He also plans on increasing his leadership on the team.

“Each year I have been thrust into more and more a of leadership role and I’ve handled that better,” Vance said.

FELINE FACTS So who are the Montana State Bobcats?

Here is some information on where Wentz will be playing next year.

“You have to have confidence in your abilities that you’ll play hard and you’ve worked hard and do what you’re capable of and then good things will happen.”

From his dad coaching his elementary school basketball team to his Montana State commitment and his sister making posters for Vance, his family has always been a part of his basketball life.

Vance has felt support from all members of his family. Pushing and coaching from David. Confidence and support from Jenny. Love from Brigid.

A teammate and partner in his brother, Joey. All helping Vance stay confident in his abilities and helping him reach the point he has today.

According to Vance, one of the keys that helped him make Varsity his freshman year was his dad coaching him from kindergarten through his eighth grade season. He started playing both tournaments and Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) in fifth grade and from sixth through eighth played only tournaments.

“He loves basketball,” Vance’s dad, David, said. “He likes shooting and he went to a little Catholic school called Curé [of Ars]. He started playing threeon-three in a little GABL league with some buddies. Every year we played a little bit more and we had six kids... They did really well and we started playing tournaments.”

For Vance, having his dad as his coach for nine years was an opportunity to learn from one of his role models.

“He’s taught me how to work hard,” Vance said. “If you work hard off the court and in the classroom, things are gonna take care of themselves. You’re gonna give yourself great opportunities.

It’s one thing to talk about that but it’s another to do that in your life.”

Montana State is located in Bozeman, Montana They hold an ongoing rivalry with the University of Montana Grizzlies known as the “Brawl of the Wild” The Bobcats finished a 12-17 record last year and finished fifth in the Big Sky Conference

photo illustration by McKenzie Swanson

Above: Wentz dons the navy and gold colors of Montana State

They have had three appearances in the NCAA Tournament in their team history Montana State’s mascot is Champ the Bobcat Their last tournament appearance was in 1996 and lost to Syracuse in the first round, 88-55

28| SPORTS

a word from the

TEAMMATES

SENIOR

GAVINJORNS Q How is Hudson tougher than most runners?

A “He gives the most effort out of almost everyone on the team, and has a great work ethic.”

written by Maggie McGannon photos by Maddie Schoemann Spectators stand at the finish line watching each of the out of breath runners sprint past. The crowd slowly dwindles as everyone seems to have finished. Parents leave to congratulate their runners – but not everyone has completed the race.

Off in the distance, the last of the last runners are coming in. Freshman Hudson Peters makes the closing turn to come down the home stretch of his first cross-country race.

Contrasting against his plain, sweat soaked t-shirt, you see the white, Apple headphones dangling from his ears, violating the rule against running with music. Peters doesn’t believe in this rule, and proceeded to be the only runner to break it during time trials, along with every practice before it. He listened to podcasts while he ran to distract him from running. Amidst the whirlwind of the start of the season, this seemed to have gone unnoticed by the coaches.

Despite his standings in the trial, Peters completed the race with a mentality that later became second nature: you start the race to finish.

“I could just stop, why am I doing this,” Peters said. “The thing I always remembered is I had signed up to do the race and I am going to finish the race.”

From a distance, cross-country coach Michael Chaffee observed the runners coming in.

“He finished far behind the field, head rolling and tilted back, sweat dripping down the reddening face, hair standing up in every direction,” Chaffee said. “I watched that and said to myself, ‘There’s no way this kid will ever be a runner.’” *** Although Peters grew up playing football and lacrosse, he decided against the two sports when the decision to play in high school rolled around. Factors like price to play each sport and his potential to be successful were put into consideration.

Other details that triggered the decision were his friends.

Seniors Alex Ho and Andrew McWard were planning on joining the cross-country team in the fall of their freshman year, and Peters wanted to stick with what his friends were doing. He also knew there were other perks to the sport including getting to know a large amount of new people and getting into shape.

While deciding what sport to play, his parents were supportive, yet unbiased. “[My parents] didn’t actively pressure me to do it, but they supported me in doing it,” Peters said. “And had I not done cross-country, they would have made me find some other

RUNNING FOR IT A senior’s hard work on the cross country team throughout high school pays off

sport.”

When starting off, Peters did not have much of a passion for the sport. He was ranked in the bottom 10 of nearly 120 boys on the team. Despite being so low in the standings, Peters worked hard each and every practice. Peters also believed his passion for the sport would increase over time.

“I think it’s silly if you are on C team and you don’t really care, because what’s the point? Why are you out here for six days a week, over an hour and a half if you are not going to try your hardest,” Peters said. “You don’t get better unless you try hard. And there’s no point if you don’t get better.” *** To his surprise, when Peters returned to the team sophomore year, he had moved from rock-bottom to the middle of the C team pack. His decision to run track in the spring of his freshman year contributed to his improvement.

“I have always done track [in high school], but it has always been sort of a secondary thing,” Peters said. “It was always, I do track so I’m better at cross country. Because I am not a very good track runner.”

While continuing to work hard, his passion for the sport continuously grew. He also claims that each year has become progressively more fun. However, there were days that presented obstacles. For example, at the Baldwin Invitational in 2012, Peters collapsed right before the finish line resulting in him getting 21st place. This was disappointing because the top 20 runners received medals, and he had never medaled before. Peters has always found ways to overcome challenges and quitting the sport was never an option.

“I really like when I start to do an activity, I like to do it until the end,” Peters said. “Being with friends and being done running is one the greatest things.”

Peters continued his improvement and rose to a better position of being in the top 20 of C team throughout his junior year. *** Going into Peter’s senior year, he knew he had one thing on his mind.

“I remember always looking up to the guys on JV and varsity,” Peters said. “[I was] thinking I would want to be in one of those slots.”

Beginning in the winter following his junior season, Peters began training. In the winter, he would run three miles every other day with the help of his running tights he purchased to stay warm. Once spring came around, he returned to his usual distance-track position. And finally, during summer

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ANDREWMCWARD

he attended the optional Q What do you think has summer running practices gotten Hudson this far in every day. running?

Anticipating on doing A “Even when he was on C well thanks to his training, team he would do harder Peters showed up to workouts. He would always Shawnee Mission Park for push himself to take the the annual cross-country longer route.” time trials. In the brisk morning, Peters started the race with confidence. Throughout the race, his confidence did not dwindle. He soared across the finish line, finishing in 14th place with a time of 20:01, compared to his 30th place finish time of 21:28 one year earlier.

Senior team captain Joe Bahr has run on the varsity team for four years, and is amazed by the improvement Peters has shown.

“I think his improvement is equally as impressive as the times any of the top runners have run since I’ve been here,” Bahr said. “ I think the biggest lesson that can be taken away is that everyone has the potential to be a good runner. The culture on the team right now tells people that if you are on C team you will always be on C team, however Hudson is a perfect contradiction to that philosophy.”

Chaffee truly respects the effort Peters put into the sport. “[Peters is] a courageous young man who almost turns himself inside out to wring out of himself every drip possible,” Chaffee said. “He has the heart that drives him to crazily drive himself through what appear to be mightily painful finishes.”

Chaffee also pays close attention to the immense amount of dedication he puts into practice each day, hoping these qualities will be noticed by future cross-country runners. *** Peters plans on finishing his senior year on the team has always been dedicated to by putting forth as much effort as ever. Looking beyond his current glory days, he hopes to be a role-model that can be looked up to by future runners. Peters has even made an impact on his own teammates.

“Even for varsity guys Hudson can be an example. He always gives his best effort to stick with us during workouts whereas many more talented runners just simply don’t run with us due to a lack of effort,” Bahr said. “His journey over the last four years as a runner is quite remarkable.”

SPORTS

SPORTS | 29

A LOOK AHEAD

ROUND UP

TODAY Girls’ tennis vs.

SMNW @ SMNW 3:30 PM

What kind of injury do you have?

What kind of injury do you have?

I have a sprain on my AC joint and my shoulder; a part of my shoulder is disconnected from the back. When I caught my first pass in the game, the opponents helmet went right into my shoulder. It popped out of place in the first game against Olathe North.

How did you injure yourself & how badly?

It will need surgery after the season. I can play for the whole season as long as I can deal with [the injury]. It’s just kind of a day-to-day thing.

The first time I practiced was a few days ago and it was a lot different trying to catch the ball. I have to get it all taped up so its different with the motion. Hopefully, we will figure out how I will be able to tackle.

Will you be able to continue playing?

Different motions are difficult and I can’t really run into anything. I’ll probably be playing a more limited role.

How has the injury affected you and the team?

I was out for a few days. I am going to see a doctor so we will see from there what’s going to happen. I know I will be able to play which is good as long as I can deal with it. I came out of the second game once we got a pretty good lead.

I’ve been icing it and Mitchell Tyler kind of took over my spot but he hasn’t been in that position as long so it will be good if I keep playing.

My right hip flexor and IT [band] are inflamed and are close to tearing. I wasn’t able to practice for a week and unfortunately it didn’t get any better.

How did you injure yourself & how badly?

Hip injuries are common for runners so I guess when I started doing more rigorous workouts this season my hip was injured.

It’s painful enough to keep me from running and it’s painful to walk. Right now it’s just a waiting game to see if it’s going to get better or worse.

SEPTEMBER 25

Girls’ golf vs. St. Thomas Aquinas @ OP Golf Course 3 PM Girls’ varsity gymnastics invitational @ ON 6PM Boys’ soccer vs. Leavenworth @ Leavenworth 7 PM

How has the injury affected you and the team?

I’ve only been able to participate in two races this season, which is incredibly frustrating. And not being able to practice sets me behind for the rest of the season.

The frustration of not being able to run is worse than the injury. We already lost a lot of our varsity runners this season so we really need to keep all of our returning athletes as strong as we can.

Will you be able to continue running?

I have been practicing, I just haven’t been doing any speed work outs, It’s difficult to practice some times, but I know it will be worth it when I can finally race again.

photo by Jake Crandall

photo by Meghan Shirling

SEPTEMBER 27 Girls’ tennis Sunflower League vs. OE @ Harmon Park 8 AM Girls’ volleyball triangular @ OS 5 PM Boys’ soccer vs. ON @ ODAC 7 PM

SEPTEMBER 28 Football vs. OE @ SM South Stadium 7 PM

Girls’ Golf Continues Goal for State written by Jeri Freirich

The East varsity girls’ golf team is leading into a busy few weeks with league matches and tournaments. So far, the team has played three tournaments and they are preparing for their home tournament that will take place today at Meadowbrook Country Club. The girls will be competing against Blue Valley North, Olathe Northwest, Saint Thomas Aquinas and seven other teams.

“Our main competition right now is Blue Valley North because they have few girls that can shoot really low scores,” junior Jessica Young said.

“If our team can play well then we probably have a good chance of beating them.”

According to Young, at practice the team has been working together to improve individually and as a team. Some of the skills they have been working on is putting and chipping to control the distance and speed of the ball.

“We are just slowly trying to improve on everything.” Young said. “One of our goals as a team is to place well at every tournament this season.”

The team finished third in state for the last

two years. It will be different this year because state was at Shadow Glen in Olathe and now they will have to compete in Wichita at Rolling Hills.

This will mean that the girls will have to stay in Wichita and they will not be able to sleep at home like they did last year.

“I am really looking forward to hopefully winning state and placing well as an individual and as a team,” Young said.

photo by Marisa Walton

BIG MAN 30 | SPORTS

Senior Reed Harbour, a transfer from Mill Valley, is making giant steps this year as an offensive and defensive lineman for the Lancers football team

ON CAMPUS

written by Mitch Kaskie

At the back of the pack, senior Reed Harbour for us,” Sosna said. “But of course he was right is losing ground to his fellow offensive linemen. there to pick him up when the play was over.”

The team is doing their traditional set of sprints Even at size, Harbour never quits a workout.

— starting at the sideline, running to the first He pushes through the running, even when set of hashes and back, half way and back, next he’s hanging towards the back. In games, once set of hashes and back and and finally clear to his necessary blocks are taken care of, Harbour the other sideline and back. Harbour moves looks to take down other opponents to open his size 16 Adidas cleats forward, lugging his up holes for his teammates. After playing 6-foot-6-inch, 330-pound figure across the East every offensive series, Harbour steps in on the practice field. Slowly and steadily, he finishes defensive side, taking up blockers to help his every sprint. He doesn’t complain. He doesn’t teammates pressure the quarterback. make excuses. He just runs.

Along with the work ethic, Harbour had “I hold myself to a different standard, and a great sense of humor. During weights, his push over that,” Harbour said. “I don’t want to teammates started to poke at him for the be the special guy.” “barking” sound he makes while powering Harbour first toured East last spring as a through the lift. It instantly became a hit in the transfer from Mill Valley. His future teammates lockerroom. The sound transformed into the had heard rumors of a new lineman, but were spelling of ‘BUP’ and became used frequently in awe when they first saw him one morning with his friends and teammates. Harbour took during training. on the joke without any embarrassment. Instead “Sherman is not exactly a huge guy, but Reed he embraced it, and began using it on Twitter. just made him look so tiny from a distance,” Coming into the season, the Lancers’ senior David Sosna said. “We were all saying offensive line was one of the biggest question ‘there’s no way that’s him, there’s no way.’” marks. With the losses of Sam Heneger, Tyson The rumors turned out to be true, and soon Nelson, Connor Carollo and Dylan Brett, the enough the team was custom-ordering number Lancers had to virtually rebuild their line.

70 home and away jerseys and pads that would After a 3-0 start to the season, the untrained eye serve as armor for a small army. Harbour was wouldn’t have noticed a difference from last year officially apart of the to this year’s offense.

Lancer football team.

If anything Harbour In the beginning, along with seniors What comes first is Harbour found Will Short and Max respecting other people... encounters with his Kurlbaum and juniors teammates awkward.

Sage Thompson and I always treat others the He was shy, and at Dominique Atkinson way they would want to be times didn’t know have stepped up the what to say.Harbour is standard of the offense. treated. -Reed Harbour no rookie to being the In their three wins, the new guy. In his four line has helped senior years of high school he’d been to three different quarterback Jordan Darling to 601 yards and schools. He found that all had the same rule in five touchdowns. common — if you’re nice to the people around Harbour felt as if he has taken the role of you, they’ll treat you with respect. that signature “big guy” on the team — taking “It’s a new experience each time,” Harbour control of blocks, being intimidating and said. “Sometimes it can be a bad experience, but roughing up the opposition — the kind of role most of time I’ve found that people are open that brings an offensive line together. But as and welcoming.” always, respect comes first.

Harbour began to mesh quickly with “I feel like I’m that big guy on the offensive his teammates. They noticed his never-quit line that takes over and becomes a leader,” attitude in conditioning on the field. One day Harbour said. “But what comes first is respecting during practice, the varsity squad was working other people, and I always keep that in mind on offensive plays. While running a screen and always treat others the way they would pass, Harbour took care of his first block to want to be treated.” protect the quarterback. After the ball was Even if Harbour may be that guy you want thrown out wide, he carried his body 15 extra getting off of the bus first in order to get glances yards downfield. Sticking out his arm, Harbour of shock from the opposition, he’s not a mean covered the entire face mask of some innocent, guy. He may bounce his teammates to the third string linebacker and shoved him straight ground when attempting celebratory chest into the dirt. bumps, or shrug off some of the best defensive “[The team] was getting pumped up because backs in the league but his heart is just as big as he was 15 yards down the field making a block his size 16 shoes.

“

Above: Photo illustration of senior Reed Harbour. photo by AnnaMarie Oakley

”

ONLINE | 31

THE HARBINGER ONLINE

what’s new

Lancer Voice

Harbinger Radio

a breakdown with Co-editor of online Duncan Maclachlan

“It starts with planning your show. Who is going to fill what timeslots, what are they bringing to the table, how much production will need to go into it (interviews, editing, etc.) and of course if it’s something the viewers will want to listen to. Radio is great because it’s medium is sound. It’s also difficult because aside from needing a well written story to go off of, it has to sound pleasing. It has to be music to the viewer’s ears.”

what other staffers think of this new addition

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When would you listen to Harbinger Radio?

Most likely when I am at home doing my homework. sarah berger

jennifer rorie

While I am reading-- weird I know but that is what I do when I read.

I’ll listen to it when I go on a road trip or am driving. morgan twibell

matt hanson

I love the sound of Connor Woodson’s voice, so anytime of the day

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kevin simpson

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“This is the bread and butter of the production. We took our philosophy of offering a little something for everyone and applied it to our radio production. When you tune in you will hear news, interviews with teachers, sports, opinion pieces, the latest jams and the smooth voice of our anchor and Podcast/Radio Editor, Thomas Allen.”

g.j. melia

I would when I have down time and am just messing around on the computer

When I am getting pumped up before a swim meet andrew mckittrick

“Once you have your content lined up, you have to work closely with the producers on brainstorming ideas for background audio, scripting and eventually recording. We record each segment separately then stitch it together in either Garageband or Audacity. With all the pieces in one place, we can insert music and do a final audio check to ensure consistency throughout the broadcast. The final step is exporting the file (which by now is a couple gigabytes) and then loading it into USTREAM Producer to serve to our viewers.”

32| Photo Essay Left: Senior Addie Anthony noted that “not always being the one in charge is sometimes better for the team.”

Below: “The hardest part was trying to balance on the wires,” said senior Madi Bradley. “I was so nervous.” Bradely learned many leadership as well as teamwork skills on the field trip.

Far Below: Krawitz assisted Senior Laura Metz with her harness. “[I’ve] never heard someone having a bad experience coming out of it,” said leadership teacher Mr. John McKinney.

HARNESSING

LEADERSHIP East Principal, Dr. Karl Krawitz, took his leadership class for the fifth year in a row to Tucker Leadership Lab located at William Jewel College.

Above: “I learned that working together [with my team] is key to getting things done.”

Jack Shook said, referring to the high ropes course.

Left: “I wouldn’t have been able to pull myself over the wall without everyones help,” said Senior Hailey Savage.

Above: Seniors Sam Stewart and Laura Metz ate took their lunch break on top of the high ropes course, the ‘Odyssey.’

all photos by Emma Robson