The Harbinger 19-20: Issue 7

the harbinger.

S H AW N E E M I S S I O N E A S T 7500 MISSION ROAD PRAIRIE VILLAGE, KS 66208 N O V. 2 2 , 2 0 1 9 VOLUME LXII ISSUE 7

BATTLE When times are tough, the 7th Missouri Brigade Civil War Re-enactors are there for each other

PEEK INSIDE

09 | THANKSGIVING OPINION

1 8 & 1 9 | E A ST A RT I STS

2 2 | S A L S A DA N C E R E V I E W

02 | INSIDE COVER

cover photo by | aislinn menke cover design by | lilah faye and aislinn menke

ONLINE

PREVIEW @smeharbinger

@smeharbinger

@smeharbie

CARTOON | RIVER HENNICK

S TO RY A N D V I D EO

PODCAST

REVIEW: HOT COCOA RECIPES

IB CLASSES BREAKDOWN

Staffer re-imagines hot chocolate this holiday season. See what recipes worked and which didn’t. by | jackie cameron and ryan gossick

International Baccalaureate student discusses the classes and IB dynamic at East. by | sophie henschel and ally talge

IN FOCUS | PHOTOS OF THE WEEK

L E F T Seniors Phillip Clemente, James Stowers, and Walter Honnald line up for the SHARE dodgeball tournament photo by | megan stopperan B E LOW Juniors Ava Peters and Caroline Eason do activities during twin club photo by | tommy paulus

STAFF LIST PRINT EDITORS Lila Tulp Carolyn Popper Caroline Chisholm ONLINE EDITORS Ben Henschel Jackie Cameron ASST. PRINT EDITORS Catherine Erickson Rose Kanaley ASST. ONLINE EDITORS Lauren West Riley Atkinson HEAD COPY EDITORS Carolyn Popper Jackie Cameron ASST. HEAD COPY EDITOR Natasha Thomas PHOTO EDITORS Aislinn Menke Ty Browning Kate Nixon ASST. PHOTO EDITORS

Sarah Golder Trevor Paulus Julia Percy MOBILE MEDIA PHOTO EDITOR Elle Karras VIDEO EDITORS Maggie Schutt Ryan Gossick ASST. VIDEO EDITOR Lawder DeSantis VIDEO TRAINING EDITOR Sydney Williams BROADCAST EDITORS Alex Dinyer Lucia Barraza ASST. BROADCAST EDITOR Sophie Henschel PHOTO MENTORS Taylor Keal Megan Biles Megan Stopperan STAFF WRITERS

Natasha Thomas Ben Henschel Caroline Chisholm Lily Billingsley Lauren Dierks Lydia Underwood Thomas Paulus Campbell Wood Sydney Decker Rose Kanaley Allison Wilcox Lilah Faye Gabby Caponecchi Brynn Winkler Lauren West Jackie Cameron Kelly Murphy Maddox Mogenson Winnie Wolf Jilli Foley Lila Tulp Catherine Erickson Lucia Barraza Carolyn Popper Sydney Newton Celia Condon

Elizabeth Mikkelson Sophie Henschel Annabelle Moore Anna Stover Sarah Bledsoe Emma Brown COPY EDITORS Lila Tulp Carolyn Popper Caroline Chisholm Ben Henschel Jackie Cameron Natasha Thomas Catherine Erickson Lauren West Lydia Underwood Brynn Winkler Allison Wilcox Rose Kanaley Lily Billingsley Riley Atkinson Maddox Mogenson Campbell Wood Lucia Barraza Sarah Bledsoe EDITORIAL BOARD

Lila Tulp Carolyn Popper Caroline Chisholm Ben Henschel Jackie Cameron Natasha Thomas Catherine Erickson Lauren West Rose Kanaley Riley Atkinson Lilah Faye Brynn Winkler SECTION EDITORS EASTIPEDIA ONLINE Annabelle Moore EDITORIAL PRINT Lilah Faye NEWS PRINT Alison Wilcox ONLINE Brynn Winkler OPINION PRINT Maddox Mogenson PRINT Annabelle Moore

ONLINE Sophie Henschel ONLINE Gabby Caponecchi FEATURE PRINT Natasha Thomas ONLINE Lily Billingsley A&E PRINT Lauren Dierks ONLINE Thomas Paulus SPORTS PRINT Sarah Bledsoe ONLINE Lucia Barraza PAGE DESIGNERS Natasha Thomas Caroline Chisholm Carolyn Popper Lily Billingsley Lauren Dierks Lydia Underwood Thomas Paulus Rose Kanaley Allison Wilcox Lilah Faye

Brynn Winkler Lauren West Jackie Cameron Kelly Murphy Maddox Mogenson Jilli Foley Lila Tulp Catherine Erickson Sydney Newton Celia Condon Elizabeth Mikkelson Sophie Henschel Sarah Bledsoe STAFF ARTISTS River Hennick Lilah Powlas STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS Reilly Moreland Annakate Dilks Noelle Griffin Hadley Hyatt Phoebe Hendon Bella Wolfe Elise Madden Grace Allen

Morgan Woods Lucy Kostner MULTIMEDIA STAFF Olivia Olson Natalie Scholz Lawder Desantis Evelyn Roesner Ryan Gossick Maggie Schutt Max Patterson Alex Dinyer Sydney Williams Ally Talge PODCAST EDITOR Sydney Williams ADS MANAGER Sydney Newton CIRCULATION MANAGERS Campbell Wood Anna Stover SOCIAL CHAIR Lila Tulp

EDITORIAL | 03

design by | lilah faye editorial illustration by | river hennick

FOR: 10 AGAINST: 1 The individuals on the editorial board who agree with the viewpoint of the editorial are represented by for, and those that disagree with the viewpoint of the editorial are represented by against.

IT’S ALL ABOUT THAT

WORK-LIFE

BALANCE To improve productivity and decrease mental health issues and school costs, SMSD should consider piloting a shorter week

W

ith blurry vision and dark purple under-eye bags, students fill in the last answer on their Pre-Calc homework and set the alarm for three hours later: 6 a.m. With seven classes worth of homework every night, this stress-inducing routine is repeated five nights a week.

The looming expectations of getting into the best college or being successful after high school push the “never take a break” lifestyle.

And it’s threatening to the mental health of teenagers.

To improve productivity for both students and teachers and decrease both mental health issues and school costs, the Shawnee Mission School District should consider piloting a four-day week for the five high schools in the district. The anxiety-inducing culture of racing from school to clubs to practice to hours of homework for the large majority of the week needs to stop — an extra break day is a way to help.

High school has become prime grounds for an over-intensive work environment — there needs to be a catch-your-breath day to regroup a little. If it’s seven hours of school, two hours of practice or a club and three hours of homework a night, students are ‘working’ 12hour days and 60-hour weeks. Compared to the average of 45 hours a week in the workforce, this is too much and results in a never ending cycle. It’s intense.

Teenagers have never been more anxious, according to Neat Today. And a survey written about on their website says that nearly twothirds of students were overwhelmingly anxious, which increased from only half just five years before.

Mental health experts are describing this increase in anxiety as an epidemic. The goal of taking this extra day for a break wouldn’t be to get out of school — it’s to take a break. A break that can heal our brains, reduce anxiety and give us time so we can return to feeling more relaxed and ready to be productive again.

Something always needs to be done, whether that be college applications, the rhetorical analysis of “Into the Wild” or mastering the periodic table.

There’s no time to be a kid. We find ourselves turning down family dinners because of the hours of studying that need to happen after practice. And when we do have to sit still and be with family, our leg anxiously taps under the table because of the looming thought of homework. We stay up late to get everything done and the “nine hours of recommended sleep” gets laughed off too often.

That break day can bring time for family, for a rest, for sleep. And at a time when anxiety is being called an epidemic, a built-in mental health day is more important than ever.

The trend of piloting and implementing a four-day week has already been carried out by 560 U.S. districts and is becoming increasingly more popular, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Japan Microsoft recently piloted a strategy similar to this where they shortened the employee work week by one day — which meant Monday through Thursday — and their relative productivity increased by 40%.

A culture of hard work in our society produces stress and anxiety both in the workplace and in schools. Japan’s culture of overworking has stretched to the point at which people die from working too much.

Both Japanese and American employees spend over 45 hours a week at work, according to Business Insider. Instead of going on vacation, employees in both countries are staying at work longer than people in other developed countries. Their lives and value is found in their work. And students are the same way.

When Japan Microsoft broke this stereotype by shortening their work week to four days, they not only saw a 40% increase in productivity, but CEO Takuya Hirano also noticed the workers were happier with the extra break.

Their mood booster came from the extra time they had to recuperate and take a load off for themselves — their lives were not engulfed in work.

And with an extra day, attendance has been proven to go up. Districts like the Lathrop School District, which is located 40 miles north of Kansas City, MO, have seen this increase because the extra day is a chance to fit in appointments for check-ups. And the chance of getting sick decreases when more sleep is implemented into the week. Both of these decrease the makeup work and falling behind in classes — something no high schooler or teacher wants to deal with.

There are currently around 560 districts through 25 states that have one or more schools on a four-day schedule. Colorado has about 98 school districts working with the four-day week, whereas Kansas has seven.

Those seven, which include Caney Valley and Bluestem, make up only 2% of school districts in Kansas. And if SMSD wants to continue producing intellectually competitive and mentally healthy students, ours should be added to the list.

At this time, SMSD is claiming that there isn’t enough money to cover what they want to accomplish as a district. This could be the way to do that, while simultaneously benefiting the mental health of students and teachers.

The Lathrop School District was the first Missouri School to move to a four-day work week. According to fox4kc.com, the early figures said the savings would total to around $100,000 a year, which was proven true eight years later. And that money went towards budget reserves and the teacher salaries — so the teachers got paid more.

Our district could save thousands from the change to a four day week — there would be three weekend days instead of two where the electricity and utility bills wouldn’t cost as much. Sure, there would be sports practices or events, but that would be something that a few janitors would be able to handle, instead of the whole janitorial staff.

The way we’d meet the number of minutes required each school year is unknown since we’ve never done it before. Some schools like Lathrop added hours onto the school year, and others have shorter breaks. But, according to Dr. Leonard, one option for us could be increasing each school day to last until 3:30 or 4:00 p.m.

While removing a full school day from the week would require working out the hole of organizing, the benefits would quickly fill it — it would be helping the students, teachers and schools throughout the SMSD. Students can put their Chemistry homework away for 24 hours so their brain can rest and the problem of anxiety can be reduced — all while saving money for the district.

04 | NEWS

NEWS

design by | allison wilcox

Catch up on news around the school, the state and the nation

HIGHLIGHTS by maddox mogenson

HEALTH CARE A M E R I C A ’S H E A LT H C A R E S EC TO R I S A N E M P LOY M E N T P OW E R H O U S E T H AT I S K E E P I N G T H E U. S . L A B O R M A R K E T ST RO N G. H E A LT H C A R E H I R I N G I S S O RO B U ST , T H E I N D U ST RY WO U L D B E P R E T T Y M U C H I M M U N E TO A R EC E S S I O N O R CHANGES IN POLITICS. CNN | 11/18/19

MA RK YOU R C A L ENDA R CHOIR CONCERT | D EC. 4

SAT TESTING | D EC. 7

PTSA MEETING | D EC. 12

SCAN ME | NEWS Scan to read about the new “7:20” Statement by teachers and students

T O P The cast of the musical does their first read through of the script in the choir room photo by | kate nixon

LOC A L

Worlds of Fun holds their second annual of WinterFest

WORLDS OF FUN’S second annual Christmas festival, Winterfest, will begin on Nov. 23.

Winterfest, similar to Worlds of Fun’s Halloween Haunt, is a holiday celebration that features decorations, holiday mascots and Christmas-themed shows with holiday songs.

The centerpiece of Winterfest is a two-story lit tree that greets guests as they enter the park. The rest of the park is covered in thousands of lights that are meant to illuminate a cheery atmosphere.

Junior Lydia Seymour attended Winterfest last year and thought it was a great way to enjoy the holiday season

with her family.

“The decorations are really good.

They really hype up Christmas time,” Seymour said. “It’s very magical.”

To further the holiday experience, the park has decided to make changes to some of their dining options.

Restaurants throughout the park will be switching up their menu to add wintery entrées and desserts such as maple-glazed ham and hot chocolate.

Along with holiday decorations, new holiday-themed attractions will also be available for kids and adults alike.

Younger audiences can take part in cookie decorating, sending letters to Santa and attending a Christmas-

inspired Charlie Brown show. New additions to the park for parents include carriage rides and holiday shopping opportunities like Christmas tree ornament shops and Christmasthemed merchandise.

Seymour thinks Winterfest is not only a great opportunity to have holiday fun, but also a great distraction from a stressful end to the first semester.

“Last year, I went to make myself feel less depressed about taking finals,” Seymour said. “I kind of forgot about all the stuff I had to do. I was just having a good time.”

N A T I O N A L Recent school shooting in Santa Clarita, CA ON NOV. 14, two students were killed in a school shooting at Saugus High School in Santa Clarita, Calif. making it the 45th school shooting that has occurred in the U.S. this year.

With 45 school shootings in 47 weeks, the U.S. averages approximately one school shooting per week in 2019.

This event brought a growing debate among school administrations

about the traumatic experiences that active shooter drills themselves carry.

Administrators around the country believe that the quick actions of the students during the shooting in Santa Clarita might prove that active shooter drills are too realistic.

Junior Sophie Rice, Kansas Youth Lieutenant Governor, believes that active shooter drills are an effective

and successful way to prepare for an unexpected situation.

“I think [active shooter drills] are a real situation that could be a potential possibility in school,” Rice said. “I think that it’s good that people are prepared.”

On Nov. 19, East took part in an active shooting drill which illustrated a real-life situation and prompted realistic responses to the scenario.

EAST

The musical cast begins practicing

THE CAST LIST for this year’s spring musical, “Crazy for You” written by playwright Ken Ludwig, was announced on Nov. 14.

The musical is a romantic comedy based off of 1930s musical “Girl Crazy”, that follows a classic boy-meets-girl storyline, according to director Brian Cappello.

“It’s still kind of an older story, but the dialogue is very funny,” Cappello said. “It’s got great songs.”

The songs were written by George Gershwin, a well-known Broadway composer. Cappello thinks these classic songs will be well-executed by this year’s cast.

The cast features 43 students, starring freshman Fritz Sullivan as Bobby Child and senior Lucy Brock as Polly Baker.

“Crazy for You” strays away from last year’s fantasy-filled production of “The Little Mermaid.”

According to Cappello, this show is going to be much more showy and extravagant — in areas such as set design and costuming — than last year’s production.

“We haven’t had a show that’s the old Broadway type of stuff,” Cappello said. “It was about time.”

Unlike past shows, this one will also feature rented costumes and tap dancing — two features that will contribute to the show’s glitzy and glamorous storyline.

The most exciting part of the show, according to Cappello, is the cast overall. He believes that this year’s cast is perfect for this show and will be able to execute it perfectly.

“We have the kids to do it,” Cappello said. “We have a lot of very talented kids in all areas.”

NEWS | 05

design by | catherine erickson photos by | megan stopperan

CANS FOR A

CAUSE

StuCo hosts annual can drive and corresponding events to collect food and donations for the Johnson County Christmas Bureau

PA S T F U N D R A I S E R S

A B O V E Freshman Robert Marx performs Elton John songs during the StuCo talent show supporting the Johnson County Christmas Bureau. photo by |megan stopperan by brynn winkler

NOV

19 OCT

24

STUCO TALENT SHOW Profits from the $3 entry fee donated to JCCB

CAN DRIVE ASSEMBLY Event to raise student awareness and money

BY T H E N U M B E R S

461

BOXES OF MAC & CHEESE

274

Boxes of mac & cheese collected by the winning 2nd hour

ABOUT

1,500 1,200 CANS DONATED BY

H AU B E R K

CANS DONATED BY

HARBINGER

4,648

TOTAL NON-PERISHABLE ITEMS

S

tuCo’s annual can drive for the Johnson County Christmas Bureau (JCCB) brought in over 4,300 non-perishable food items and will continue collecting monetary donations throughout the year for the non-denominational non-profit organization.

According to StuCo sponsor Brenda Fishman, this amount puts the fundraiser slightly behind last year’s can drive which collected money and food items equivalent to $17,000, whereas the drive this year has generated $10,000 so far. Though fundraising will continue throughout the year, Fishman credits a decline in student participation in recent years to lack of awareness.

“In the last few years, I do believe that maybe students have been less informed and aware of the need in Johnson County and the good work of the Christmas Bureau,” Fishman said.

Fishman also said the cancelation of MORP due to low ticket sales will likely contribute to an overall lower contribution of money to the JCCB, as it is usually one of StuCo’s largest fundraisers, bringing in over $1,000 last year.

Cans were collected throughout November and students were encouraged to bring specific foods that the JCCB is in need of, such as mac and cheese and peanut butter. StuCo also organized competitions between various groups within the school, such as Biology vs.

Chemistry, IB vs. AP and Harbinger vs. Hauberk in hopes of increasing donations.

The Harbinger vs. Hauberk showdown became especially competitive according to Assistant Hauberk Editor Maddy Slaughter, who made several trips to Aldi where she purchased nearly 1,500 cans from money that staffers donated.

“It was funny because I spent so much time [at Aldi] and knew exactly what to do,” Slaughter said. “The workers there were like, ‘Were you here yesterday buying cans?’”

Slaughter encouraged the Hauberk staff to Venmo her $1-2 for her first trip to Aldi, but once Harbinger caught on to their plan, they decided to collect more. By the end the staff accumulated $653 and surpassed The Harbinger by

about 300 cans. Overall, the two staffs combined collected almost 3,000 cans — over half of the total amount raised at East.

Though she said it was fun to beat Harbinger, Slaughter said that wasn’t the only reason they were motivated to buy cans.

“I definitely wouldn’t have felt bad [if we lost] because we will feed so many families during the holidays,” Slaughter said.

The cans collected in the November can drive will be donated and then distributed to low income families in the Johnson County area through JCCB’s holiday shop that opens in December in what used to be Olathe’s Best Buy. The JCCB works to provide new outfits and toys for children, gifts for adults and food and hygiene products for the entire family, according to Fishman.

Fishman said that though she thinks some people in the East community are simply unaware of the work of JCCB, students can also get complacent and forget there are people in the area that are in need.

“While I know that not everybody at Shawnee Mission East is well off, I think most of us are fortunate enough to have a place to stay, a roof over our heads, food, clothing, the basics,” Fisman said. “It wouldn’t hurt to go to your neighbors and say, ‘Hey, my school’s having a food drive and I’d like to contribute.’ I think everybody can do their part.”

StuCo plans on contributing their part by volunteering at the JCCB on Dec. 9. Student body president Eva Hill, who volunteered last year, said the experience was a rewarding one.

“I was able to use my background in Spanish from my classes in school to help these people. It feels really rewarding — not just like, from an elitist view, but really as humanitarian,” Hill said. “It’s great to help these people and get to know them.”

StuCo will also continue to organize events to raise money for the non-profit, including the annual talent show on Nov. 19, fundraising nights at local restaurants and holding a coat drive in the spring.

06 | NEWS

design by | natasha thomas photos by | bella wolfe

Barikmo implements mindful meditation opportunity for students during seminar by annabelle moore

E

ast Instructional Coach Kristoffer Barikmo started Mindfulness Moments — a mindful practice session created as an outlet to relieve stress for students — on Thursday, Nov. 7.

To participate in Mindfulness Moments, students can pick up a seminar pass from outside Barikmo’s office in the library.

Barikmo’s idea to start the sessions spurred from his own practice of working with student leaders over the summer through a program called Global Youth Leadership Institute. Within the program, Barikmo works as an Institute Coordinator, helping students and teachers across the country to promote stress relief and mindful meditation.

Through the students he was working with, Barikmo saw trends in the stress that students deal with and realized that simple practices such as breathing and meditation can serve as a helpful break.

Along with the leadership program in the summer, Barikmo’s personal practice comes from the Calm app. He has a reminder sent at 9:30 p.m. to begin a series of guided meditations, breathing exercises and reflections each day.

To Barikmo, mindfulness is an opportunity to pause and let the brain refocus, all while being aware of the present moment.

“That’s really all mindfulness is about,” Barikmo said. “Being aware of how our body feels, what our mind is thinking and just being in the present moment — not thinking about what happened before, or what’s happening later, but to just be aware and present.”

After assessing how mindfulness practices impacted students from the Global Youth Leadership Institute, Barikmo realized the benefits this could have in the East community.

“These mindful moments allow students to give themselves permission to focus on themselves,” Barikmo said. “We all have so much going on — so much stress — that simple, five-minute practices do a lot to create balance.”

During the first two Mindfulness Moments sessions, Barikmo led the class using practices from the Calm app. He started with simple breathing exercises that don't take much — other than being aware of your breath and what it is doing to your body.

After the students became attentive to their breath, they did what Barikmo calls a body scan. The function of this practice is to be aware of sensation in the body, such as how your feet feel on the floor or your hands next to your leg.

“We will go to the doctor if our arm’s broken or if we have an infection — but we have to go somewhere to get that help,” Barikmo said. “With mindfulness, it allows us to say we can do this ourselves and fix our brain and help understand how we can bring our brain into focus, and that’s something that can help everybody.”

Along with running Mindful Moments, Barikmo is working closely and communicating with East’s Student Services to seek out people in need of stress relief or who are simply interested in doing something good for themselves.

East social workers Emily MacNaughton and Elizabeth Kennedy are working with Barikmo to provide an opportunity for students in need of an outlet for managing stress, anxiety, depression or other seasons like finals that are hard to manage.

MacNaughton and Kennedy’s jobs, in this regard, are to direct students towards practices like Mindfulness Moments.

After MacNaughton attended the second Mindfulness Moments session on Nov. 14, her main takeaway from Barikmo’s instruction was the r e i n fo r c e m e nt t h a t mindfulness is not so complicated.

“One of the things that we talked about today specifically was that being mindful and finding peace is not meant to be this super quiet, still, nobody moves type of thing,” MacNaughton said. “It’s meant to be able to be done anywhere in the midst of everything going on.”

With students running down the halls outside of the dance studio where Mindfulness Moments is held and the sound of feet stomping toward the weights room, MacNaughton found the location to be a metaphor for what they were learning in the class.

“Real life says that lots of things are going to be happening around you all the time, and you can’t expect it to be completely seamless 24/7,” MacNaughton said. “That’s not what mindfulness is.”

Along with reinforcing the use of mindfulness in real-life situations, MacNaughton sees Mindfulness Moments as an opportunity for students to expand their toolkit of coping mechanisms.

“Because mental health is a key factor to success as you’re sitting in class doing math, journalism, English and everything else, you can’t fully approach these activities if you’re stressed or panicking,” MacNaughton said. “If we’re working on doing mental health and mindfulness training to help students reach that point of peace and contentedness, then it’s a win-win for everybody.”

Sophomore Vivian Riehl finds Mindfulness Moments as a time during the school day to refocus and reestablish her goals for the week. Riehl attended the two sessions of Mindfulness Moments that have been held and sees it as a vital aspect of East that should have been implemented a long time ago.

With club and school volleyball, Riehl finds it hard to find time to just breath.

“I know that I’m not the only one at East who’s stressed — I know we all are,” Riehl said. “Having this opportunity during the day to come to Mindfulness Moments, sit down, be peaceful and breathe is really important.”

MacNaughton, Kennedy and Barikmo hope that Mindfulness Moments will continue to grow and gain members.

Barikmo plans to keep the announcement about Mindfulness Moments on the forefront by sending out emails asking teachers to help facilitate conversation along with keeping in touch with Student Services.

“It’s really, really helpful for students and it’s so simple,” MacNaughton said. “It’s just a moment once a week that you can get some calm and some peace.”

FINDING

A B O V E Barikmo explains the positive, calming effects that mindfulness has on the brain photo by | bella wolfe

B A R I K M O ' S S T E P S TO

1

NEWS | 07

design by | jilli foley photo by | megan biles

WELCOME TO

Kansas medical center opens their brand new severe mental illness hospital early this fall

STRAWBERRY HILL by allison wilcox

WHAT’S INSIDE?

A look at the features the location offers to their patients and guests

1 2 3 4

INDOOR RECREATION Built to give patients an area for exercise, movie nights and yoga classes

GOURMET MEAL PLANS Contains in-dining services and friendly dining with healthy food choices

CASUAL LIVING SPACE 47 private rooms with full size bathrooms and a music system to give the guests a homey feel

TECHNOLOGY Dedicated technology spaces to help manage personal affairs

S

trawberry Hill, the newest addition to the University of Kansas Medical Center, began offering mental and behavioral health inpatient services to patients Sept. 4.

All patients at Strawberry Hill will be treated for a short term of four to six days for immediate help in crisis situations — any situation where someone could cause harm to themselves or other people very soon — according to Jill Chadwick, Director of Media Relations at KU Med. As an inpatient hospital, they’re allowed to treat patients with medications, then release them with outpatient services to follow up.

KU decided there was an immense need for the services offered at Strawberry Hill because of the large numbers of people with mental illnesses. In the greater Kansas City area alone, one in every 10 adults have a severe mental illness, and of those, 40% of the cases are untreated, according to Health Forward.

“It’s for patients who are in crisis,” Chadwick said. “So it’s not like a state hospital where once you’re there you’re in forever, it’s for what is known as immediate help or attention for somebody who might feel for

example like they’re a harm to themselves or harm to others.”

KU decided as a health system there were patients that would benefit from the facility and with advocates they were able to fund Strawberry Hill. The center, located in the downtown KC area, provides easy access for all patients in need of treatment by being in a central location.

Senior Paige Ceule is aware of the services taking place at Strawberry Hill and believes it will be beneficial because people will be made more aware of how many are affected by mental illnesses.

“I think it’ll make people more aware of what’s going on in people’s lives and that stuff, like that doesn’t happen just to teens and it’s not really something you can easily grow out of,” Ceule said.

The building that’s been vacant for five years is a total of 220,000 square feet and has been renovated to include 47 private rooms. At the facility there is an indoor recreation area for exercise or movie nights, outdoor space for activities, inroom dining and quiet rooms for reading and relaxing. These rooms were created to make the stay more enjoyable for patients while they go through treatment.

KU Health Systems made the decision to purchase the building in dow ntow n Kansas

City to create Strawberry Hill in March of 2018, projecting the cost to be $61 million, while the final cost was not revealed.

The 47 rooms they offer host individuals and help them through therapy to heal and recover from their current crisis.

“It’s a huge need in the community and actually across the nation,” Chadwick said. “There’s just not enough beds for people with mental needs and so our goal is to always provide the best care possible for the state of Kansas and of course the community. We think it will provide much, much needed services.”

KU Med has a facility similar to Strawberry Hill called Marillac, which is for children under the age of 18 suffering from mental illness. Chadwick thinks it’s important that there is the same facility for adults because Marillac only treats minors.

East Psychology teacher, Brett Kramer, believes since we are near KU Med and Wyandotte County, people in our community should and will use the services offered there.

“It’s important we have facilities like Strawberry Hill because there is every bit a need for mental health care as there is for physical health care,” Kramer said.

“The difference is you can’t see someone’s struggles emotionally and cognitively because it’s in their mind — it’s where it exists, and you can’t see that. Just because we can’t see mental health struggles does not mean there is not the need for more care and there is.”

08 | OPINION

design by | annabelle moore

OPINION

HIGHLIGHTS A look into student opinions and the opinion section

THE WEEK IN 280 C H A R AC T E R S W E ’ R E S O E XC I T E D A B O U T T H E L AU N C H O F D I S N E Y + I N T H E U S A N D C A N A DA ( F O L LOW E D S H O RT LY BY AU ST R A L I A & N Z ) DISNEY+ HELP | 11/12/19

B A BY I T ’ S C O L D O P I N I O N S W HAT’S YO UR O P IN IO N O N CO L D W EATHER? I absolutely hate the cold — there’s nothing worse than getting out of your car on a cold Monday, bracing yourself to get in the school without frostbite. I’m not the type of person you will find sledding on a snow day.

meredith mccgannon | junior

H OW DO YO U F E E L A BO UT W I N T E R CO M I N G EARLY TH IS Y EA R?

F E D E R A L J U D G E TOS S E S O U T P R E S I D E N T T R U M P ’S L AW S U I T TO B LO C K H O U S E C O M M I T T E E F RO M G E T T I N G H I S STAT E TA X E S , R U L I N G T H AT H I S C O U RT I S N OT T H E P RO P E R J U R I S D I C T I O N TO H E A R T H E CASE NBC POLITICS | 11/11/19

STA RT I N G A RO U N D 7 : 3 0 A . M . E T , M E RC U RY W I L L B E C ROS S I N G I N F RO N T O F T H E S U N . T H I S O N LY H A P P E N S 1 3 T I M E S A C E N T U RY, A N D T H E N E X T O N E WO N T O C C U R U N T I L 2 032 .

T H O M AS Z U R B U C H E N | 1 1 / 1 1 / 1 9

I feel that there’s the potential for a lot of snow days and the fact is that there’s more opportunities to have hot chocolate.

O P I N I O N AT E D

jack meuten | junior

DO YOU WRITE IN CURSIVE FREQUENTLY? | 346 VOTES

F U N A N D GA M E S

27%

YES

STORIES O F T H E WE E K WO R D S EARC H S T A O D C H I C K F I L A D K Q E C D C B D C O L L E G E P D R O E W U B A Y D I V A

CO L L EG E p. 5

K B H S V X H G N A D A D E P E S A S S F B

M I N D F U L N E S S p. 6

F Y S O B C X L E V S A T R E R C WA N R Y

TC BY p . 7

A W A S O N C O R L I D U F S K A X G E E S

C U RS I V E p. 9

I O C Y A L H P S O F R A T E D R Z R A D I P R I D G I R R A F H O O P R F T G E S O T S T V A N L I B I L L I E N I L I S H L J T

E N V I RO N M E N T p. 1 0 R AT E D - R p . 1 1

S U I W I H S D X A K H Y Q M X S O T A P I

T H A N K S G I V I N G p .1 2

E V L Y V G T R B W E R S Y I E T G Y S L N

A RT p .1 4 - 1 5

N QW R I E M D S V I V I N G O N H H O M G

C I V I L WA R p .1 6 - 1 7

L M A I G R A L I F P T E G D R A T G P A S U L R O S T S S J K T Q L O A E S Q J L E I

B A BY S I T T I N G p . 1 9

F O M P K U R S N OW D A Y Z D L M L S T S

LO C A L p . 2 2

D P R D N U A D O G A K L O C A L E L T A U

D U P E S p. 2 3

N D I S C Q E A C H I A K F I L S D OWO S

SA LSA p. 2 4

I S O A H A K R E S P L B V M O T I V F O E

B OW L p. 2 8

M A P T H A N K S G I V I N G GW C D V D B

A N S W E RS | P G. 21

73% NO

S C H OO L p. 3

C H RI ST M AS p. 32

DO YOU THINK PEOPLE FEEL TOO MUCH PRESSURE TO LIVE ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY? | 295 VOTES

34% YES 66% NO DO YOU THINK THE AGE RESTRICTION IS TOO OLD ON R-RATED MOVIES? | 309 VOTES

70% YES 30% NO DOES YOUR FAMILY DO A NON-TRADITIONAL OR TRADITIONAL THANKSGIVING? | 277 VOTES

22% NON-TRADITIONAL 78% TRADITIONAL

rewriting

OPINION | 09

design by | sarah bledsoe

Staffer believes cursive is an important skill to learn in elementary curriculum

TRADITION F

by elizabeth mikkelson

rom going back and dotting the cursive “i’s” in obligatory birthday thank you notes to not lifting our pens off the paper while signing NHS forms, the cursive we learned in third grade has played a part in all of our lives.

When my third grade teacher wrote (in cursive) that cursive was on our agenda for the day, my dreams of learning the fancy font and grownup style of writing were fulfilled. I had visions of all my assignments boasting the sophisticated calligraphy and believed this would be the way I wrote for the rest of my life — turns out it isn’t as vital to my high school writing abilities as I thought.

The fun script we learned in elementary school is a dying culture — and isn’t seen as often as it should be in high school. Although cursive has been a writing standard for so long, our generation and generations to come are disconnected from it.

If it was required more often in elementary and middle schools, many more people would use it as their main writing style because as we would get better and more familiar with it, it would probably be even faster than the writing we do today.

The Common Core (academic standard for literacy) removed the required handwriting course for cursive in recent years due to a lack of importance. Not only do my cursive g’s look way better (and fancier) than my print ones, but it also teaches students precision and accuracy in its writing technique.

While there are compulsory writing laws for cursive in specific states today like Texas and Florida, which will over time add in cursive to their elementary school’s learning requirements again, each state should come up with their own handwriting laws with reinforcements of the style throughout middle and high school.

Also, with technology becoming more present in our society, it is becoming less important to know

writing skills. Kids are tech-savvy more than ever and are relying more on Google spell check than actually learning fundamental writing ideas.

With 6-year-olds understanding iPhones more than 60 year olds, it’s safe to say that technology is the future and cursive is not.

Cursive was a part of the school’s common curriculum when most of us high-schoolers learned it. And for the rest of elementary school, cursive was reinforced by my teachers as an option. The teachers who preached cursive wanted to instill the muscle memory of the new writing style into us. But since Mrs. Nelson’s third

common in our age demographic, that I would prefer to write in it because when I do whip it out every now and then, it makes my handwriting so much better than normal.

Even if it’s not a big part of today’s society, cursive should still be considered a part of history in the writing and translating aspect from looking at works written hundreds of years ago and being able to interpret that certain penmanship.

While I don’t always write in cursive, I see it in older generations all around me. With some, cursive is commonly used as their sole form of writing because it was taught more

While cursive can sometimes be seen as an old, unimportant form of writing, it also carries a different importance among culture and tradition in the world. grade class, the only time I loop my letters is when I sign after swiping my credit card.

While cursive can sometimes be seen as an old, unimportant form of writing, it also carries a different importance among culture and tradition in the world.

With cursive getting less common in our society, people probably think that we don’t need to be able to recognize it anymore. I believe that we should be learning it more because it is getting less common, and should be more aware of it.

It would greatly increase our writing abilities and effectiveness when writing if this style was more frequently taught in school and we were able to practice it more to improve.

Sure, even though the multiplepaged how-to packets got a little lengthy in elementary school, I now know that it wasn’t just a way of writing, but something that was important at the time for learning and expanding my writing skills.

Little did I know, that would be the year in my life I probably used cursive the most.

I know that if cursive was more

prominently when our parents were young. It is likely to say that with our age group however, writing in this polished style will not be as common as we see it today.

When my relatives write me birthday and Christmas cards, it’s always written faintly in cursive and it’s only slightly difficult for me to read the handwriting. My 67-yearold aunt using cursive her whole life made me realize how prominent this writing style was for their generation and how it’s gradually fizzling out for my generation.

To keep the culture alive, teachers should require it more often than they do and make us more comfortable with the style by assigning more handwritten papers and assignments in cursive.

When the next generation wants to go to the bank to deposit a check but isn’t able to because they weren’t taught how to write their name in cursive, they’ll realize the magnitude.

We need to keep cursive in our culture and keep the third graders excited about the cursive lessons — it’s a part of history, and it should remain that way.

THE BASICS I T ’S D I S A P P E A R I N G

45 states, including Alaska, adopted the Common Core State Standards for English, omitting cursive from the curriculum * Alaska and Hawaii not pictured

2 1 S T C E N T U RY S K I L L Many believe that the instructional time is better spent on other classroom activities focused on our increasingly digital society.

“For many students, cursive is becoming as foreign as ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics.

In college lecture halls, more students take notes on laptops and tablet computers than with pens and notepads. Responding to handwritten letters from grandparents in cursive is no longer necessary as they, too, learn how to use email, Facebook and Skype.”

- Washington Post

In 2007 only 15% of students used cursive on the SAT

15%

R E AS O N S TO K E E P REPORT CARD

A MATH A SCIENCE A+ READING A ENGLISH

Increases brain activity

Improves academic performances

Influences reading and writing language

BENEFITS OF CURSIVE TA S K S A S S O C I AT E D W I T H C U R S I V E

spelling

critical thinking

grammar

planning

punctuation

efficiency

*Information courtesy of lemonly.com

10 | OPINION

design by | carolyn popper

SMALL CHANGE

B I G I M PAC T Staffer adjusts her lifestyle to benefit the environment, but resents the guilt attached to failing to live completely green

C

by sydney decker

elebrities and influencers love to tell us to make a change. I’m told through Instagram posts and stories that if I don’t turn to a completely non-waste, zero-carbonfootprint and no-meat-consumption lifestyle, then I may as well not bother having kids because we’ll all be dead in 15 years. These celebs on social media have mastered the art of guilt tripping down.

There is too much blame and guilt projected on others for not using reusable or recyclable products, and living environmentally friendly isn’t always the most attainable or financially stable lifestyle.

The #savetheturtles movement has led me to feel guilty every-time I drive-thru Starbucks to get my grande iced latte.

So this week I decided to stop scrolling through my feed filled with environmental posts and see if my “going green” choices would be worth the lifestyle change that I was being pressured into.

The first step for me was cutting down single-use plastic, like straws and Ziploc bags. It wasn’t difficult when I was home and able to use metal utensils, but when I went out to eat at Panera for their heavenly mac and cheese, I forgot my antiwaste utensils and ended up using plastic ones. My forgetfulness left me feeling guilty and like all landfills were a product of my mistake.

When packing my lunch, I had to resist pulling open our “baggy” drawer and instead settle for reusable tupperware.

As for my drinks, I always made sure to recycle water bottles if I had to use one — and thankfully, my Celsius energy drinks are recyclable as well. But frustration overwhelmed me when I realized my Nature Valley granola bar wrappers weren’t recyclable and destined for the trash can.

As much as I tried to avoid anything non-recyclable, I found it easy to be

forgetful and didn’t think of all the alternatives to plastic trash.

My attempt is an example of why, although I think it’s important to put some thought into the plastic waste individuals create, living completely green is a major lifestyle change and it should be done mindfully and gradually without too much guilt attached to the lifestyle. These habits aren’t easy to adopt for families without the money or resources to live plastic-free.

But I had no complaints for this next simple step: thrift-shopping.

Chain clothing stores mass produce at a rapid rate, which releases toxic and environmentally harmful chemicals, meanwhile thrift stores give clothes multiple uses for different owners, reducing the mass production of clothes.

Thrift-shopping for the best finds was a skill I could execute with my eyes closed.

Shuffling through Savers and Goodwill racks, I knew I wasn’t running the risk of buying a shirt someone else would be wearing at school tomorrow. And, I was helping the environment.

I attempted to wear an entirely thrifted outfit to school, consisting of a green sweater, a chain necklace with red jewel pendants and high top Nike Air Force 1’s — but I was tempted to slip into my “nonthrifted” Nike sweatpants. I was proud of my outfit execution, but since it wasn’t 100% eco-friendly, I felt like I dumped a truck-load of trash into the ocean.

This is the mindset we must avoid by telling ourselves that we are making a positive impact and that even trying to make a small change in your life is good enough.

Possibly the largest component contributing to air pollution is cars.

Carpooling can be a practical option, but to take this a step further, I thought it’d be a good idea to try to ride my bike. It was going to be hard to distance myself from my beloved car, Billy, but the Earth’s

health comes first.

But when visualizing myself on a bike in 20 degree weather with ice on the sidewalk I feared it would only result in a bike crash — this made my environmentally friendly bike ride plan impossible. Unpredictable weather and other inconveniences such as unsafe roads and sidewalks or too long of a commute demonstrates the difficulty in attempting to live 100% eco-friendly.

Lastly, I became a vegetarian for a day. Forming meatless meals wasn’t significantly challenging but if I continued on a daily basis, I wouldn’t always have vegetarian options available and that can sometimes prove to be more expensive and harder to find when eating out.

For dinner, I ended up going to Chipotle for my classic steak bowl order — minus the steak. I also forgot a reusable fork, and there was no conceivable way for me to eat my vegetarian bowl with my hands without getting some concerned looks — so I had to give in to using a plastic fork.

One celebrity that spoke out about being vegan was one I truly admire — Billie Eilish. She posted to her Instagram story and collaborated with Woody Harrelson to talk about how eating meat damages the earth. I was disappointed to see one of my favorite singers and an actor from many of my favorite movies make me feel like my current lifestyle was a disgrace.

I think, if fitting, even high school students can take those extra steps to buy reusable tupperware and straws and eat meat-free — but if you forget a metal straw, or have been dying to get the newest Urban Outfitters collection, you shouldn’t feel guilty. Individually, it’s up to you to live for yourself and no one should live with the burden that everything they do is killing the environment. And remember that enjoying steak in your Chipotle bowl for lunch, won’t end the planet and our existence.

EASY F I X E S Simple ways to adjust your lifestyle in an environmentally friendly way

CARPOOL Try carpooling to school with friends to curb air pollution.

V E G E TA R I A N S ave t h e p l a n et a n d t h e a n i m a l s ! D i a l d ow n the meat-eating and go ve g eta r i a n .

PLASTIC USE Eliminate single use plastic. Use some re u sa b l e wa te r b ot t l es a n d t u pp e r wa re.

THRIFTING Chain stores mass produce clothing in fa c t o r i e s . R e d u c e a n d reuse and visit a local t h r i ft sto re.

BIKING Completely eliminate car e m i s s i o n s by b i ki n g o n a n i c e d a y.

SCAN ME | VIDEO Scan this QR code to watch the promotional video of Billie Eilish and Woody Harrelson encouraging people to take charge and make a change for the environment.

OPINION | 11

design by | lauren west

Staffer believes America’s age restrictions are unfair

IT’S

Differences between US and European age restrictions

16 IN U.S.A WED

SO UNFAIR A

by lily billingsley

t 16 years old, I’ve already been driving long enough that I no longer feel the need to keep both hands on the wheel. I can legally marry in 42 out of 50 states and be tried as an adult in 13. I can get emancipated from my parents, drop out of school and pilot my own glider plane. But when my friends and I attempt to stuff our pockets with QuikTrip candy and head into AMC to see “It”, our only options are to sneak in or go with a parent.

Sporadically placing these age restrictions as teens grow to “adulthood” creates an illogical order of laws.

15-year-olds who are still at the bottom of the high school food chain can operate a 4000-pound vehicle, but need to wait 11 more years until they can rent one.

In many other countries across the world, adulthood is streamlined into the age of 18. Everything is even — you are an adult when you turn 18. In the Netherlands, people slowly gain driving right until they can drive anywhere, drink and vote all at the age of 18. They get all the pros and cons of being an adult on their 18th birthday.

And if they abuse any of these, they can be tried as an adult. With this method, once kids turn 18, they have the right to be as independent or dependent as they want to be. They are trusted to make their own decisions and be held responsible for their own actions.

18 THE AGE MOST COUNTRIES OBSERVE A S E N T E R I N G A D U LT H O O D

The logic behind these systems makes a whole lot more sense than our restriction in the U.S. I was able to drive myself to school freshman year, but I can’t go see “Joker” without my mom as a junior. I could celebrate my third wedding anniversary before I can pop a bottle of champagne. And an 18-year-old can openly carry a gun when just one year earlier, they couldn’t even get into that R-rated movie.

America’s varying age restrictions lead to a grey area in-between childhood and adulthood. One second I feel like an adult driving my babysitting kids to go see

a movie, but then the sample lady at Costco still tells me I need to come up with a parent. When these rights aren’t given at the same time, teens are left in the middle of an awkward position in society — one where they are no longer kids, but don’t feel respected or trusted by adults.

If we were more like the Netherlands, and one age meant everything was officially legal for us, then this area would be eliminated. Eighteen would mean

IN THE U.S. AT THE AGE OF 16 YOU’RE LEGALLY ALLOWED TO GET MARRIED

WORK IN THE U.S. MOST TEENAGERS ARE ALLOWED TO HAVE A JOB LESS THAN 40 HOURS A WEEK

I still have more than a year until I can feel like

DRIVE

at least half of an adult in this country, and in

IN THE U.S. MOST TEENAGERS

two months there will be no more sneaking

ARE ALLOWED

into a rated R movie at Ward Parkway.

TO DRIVE AND OPERATE A

adulthood — and no more confusion.

Teenagers’ lives and the world that they grow up in are affected by policies made by politicians that they couldn’t vote for. Since I won’t turn 18 until two months after the 2020 presidential election, I need to wait until I’m 21 to vote for the president. And even by the time I’m 18 and can vote in local elections, my teenage years will almost be over.

Having a higher age on these restrictions doesn’t make our country safer — it makes teens more likely to rebel against them. Kids work around these age restrictions regardless and if these restrictions were changed, these illegalities would be more regulated.

In the United States, 11% of all alcohol is consumed by 12-to-20-year-olds, according to the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse. Higher drinking ages aren’t causing people to refrain from drinking, it’s making teens more likely to sneak beers into their basement with friends.

Instead of going out to a bar and safely drinking around other people, college kids are secretly binge-drinking at parties and blacking out as if it was normal.

I still have more than a year until I can feel like at least half of an adult in this country, and in two months there will be no more sneaking into a rated R movie at Ward Parkway. But for now, I guess I’m stuck seeing “Frozen 2.”

VEHICLE

& IN EUROPE VOTE IN EUROPE, AT 16, YOU CAN VOTE IN ANY ELECTIONS HELD

FIGHT YOU CAN JOIN THE MILITARY AND ARMED FORCES AT 16

DRINK AT 16, IN MOST EUROPEAN COUNTRIES IF NOT ALL, YOU ARE ALLOWED TO DRINK

12 | OPINION by sophie henschel

“ H E Y, I N C AS E you’re wondering — which I know you are — there are nine days, 14 hours, 29 minutes and 53 seconds till Thanksgiving break!”

Within seconds, my family’s replies roll in, cracking the inside jokes we’ve cultivated over the years at our not-soconventional Thanksgivings. And my family happens to include two: my blood family and the Caponecchi’s.

Five Thanksgivings ago, they invited us to celebrate with them in Colorado — I was more than thrilled to be doing anything other than our old annual traditions.

Taking the old traditions and revamping them to fit your family’s personality and lifestyle is something every family should be doing. When I think “Thanksgiving,” I think horror movie marathons, ski races down Vail Mountain, our alt-fused Thanksgiving songs and studying at the local Bookworm coffee shop. Now, I can’t imagine celebrating any other way.

Since that turning point five years ago, our classic Thanksgiving festivities — running around the front yard playing Cops and Robbers with our cousins, Nana (over) cooking the turkey and taking awkward timer-photos of the family — have evolved into annual exotic bowling nights and dinner table concerts to concur with my

design by | riley atkinson

family’s evolving interests and our desire to spice things up.

Don’t get me wrong — I love my family more than anything, but they live 10 minutes away and I’m around them all the time. So the unconventional, crazy traditions with my other family have become something I

Taking old traditions and revamping them to fit your family’s personality and lifestyle is something every family should be look forward to.

Who even came up with all of these “normal traditions” anyway? Turkey, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie and parades filled with non-holiday related floats? I’ll tell you one thing — it wasn’t my family.

The odd traditions have brought us all closer together — especially through the inside jokes. That one time my older brother Ben wiped out on the security cameras five years ago still gets brought up on a daily basis. Or the time Olivia’s friend pretended to be head over heels for Anton, our foreign exchange student, who probably thinks he still has a chance.

I used to dread the thought of getting the same, “Oh my goodness when’d you get so old?” or “Do you have a boyfriend yet,” a billion times.

Now, we countdown the days till the eleven-hour drive to my favorite place, getting excited for all my favorite traditions: shopping in Vail without buying anything, watching my dads fly their drones, willwe-get-eaten-by-mountain-lions hikes.

I’m constantly waiting to whip out our ~exotic dancer~ bowling alley names: I’m Cherrie, Sinnamonné for Ben, Sugar for Olivia, Gabby is Kandy, and Jake prefers the arcade. A classic every year.

Embracing the stares as Oliva yells out, “Hey, nice one Sinnamonné” as the ball rolls into the gutter is the best part. A majority of people don’t spend their Thanksgiving this w a y , but that’s what makes my family

different. And I love it.

I’ll be the first person to tell you, if your family is thinking about switching it up this year — whether it be for Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years or even Memorial Day — do it.

Switching it up can come in all sorts of ways, but a good start is with awkward silences. You can’t avoid them, but you don’t have to play by the rules. So instead of submitting to the never-ending “how’s schools”s or “what are Ben’s college plans”s that fill the quiet tension, take a page from our book and belt out the national anthem.

Yeah, you heard me. The national anthem, or really any song to know by heart. Another one of our favorites being an original by Gabby herself, “If I were a Turkey” derived from Beyonce’s iconic, “If I were a Boy”. Like ours, your table might turn from an awkward regathering to a full-on Acapela group.

What I’m getting at here is that your family won’t regret stepping outside the Th anks giving-dinner-at-grandma’shouse box. Start singing through the silences or suggest a horror movie instead of Charlie Brown, because the best way to truly come together is to do it in a way that’s far from normal.

The best way to truly come together is to do it in a way that’s far from normal.

INNOVATIVE TIPS

SOPHIE’S FAVORITE TRADITION

Ideas for other families to spice up their traditional thanksgiving traditions

#1 #2 #3

When I think “Thanksgiving,”

travel somewhere new

I think horror movie

take a roadtrip somewhere the whole family enjoys

marathons, ski races down Vail Mountain, our alt-

try new activities attempt something new, like the henschel character bowling

fused Thanksgiving songs

make new foods

Bookworm coffee shop. Now,

and studying at the local I can’t imagine celebrating

switch a few traditional foods for things like sushi or italian

any other way.

ATYPICAL THANKSGIVING Thanksgiving havetoto Thanksgiving doesn’t need be be celebrated way celebratedininthe thetradidtional traditional way

OPINION | 13

design by | caroline chisholm

W

hen the bell rings and my fourth hour IB standard level math class is over, my friends and I scurry downstairs, talking about whatever homework we were just assigned or what things we might get up to with Mr. Kramer in Psych next hour. But the other day, I had barely made my way down to the third floor when I heard it through the hallway rush. My friend and I both stopped mid-conversation, shocked. All through my fifth hour, I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

“Quit being such a faggot!”

I’m not sure if it was the word itself that threw me off guard or the fact that it was being said in the hallways of my high school — in 2019, no less. I’d like to think that I’m the type of person who would’ve turned around and said, “Hey, not cool,” or even “Seriously?”

But I just kept walking.

I said nothing for the same reasons most of us say nothing: fear and doubt. Will they laugh at me? Is it my place? They aren’t actually racist, sexist, homophobic, you name it, right? These thoughts swarm in our heads, pulling us away from what we know is right. Those worries aren’t uncommon — in fact, they’re universal. But they shouldn’t stop you from interjecting when the situation calls for it.

I know firsthand that correcting someone can feel a bit daunting, especially when words are as harsh as the slur I heard in the hallway.

But like all things, knowing how to confront someone takes practice.

There are a few key things to remember when you’re speaking up to educate someone. Explain to the person how their joke is hurtful, be understanding and make sure you aren’t attacking them. The point isn’t to start a debate, but instead to show someone how their words can be negatively interpreted and received.

Showing empathy and not attacking the other person tend to go hand in hand. When you hear someone say something offkilter, take their intentions into account. Did they call your friend’s new haircut gay because they hate gay people or because they’ve grown up hearing the word gay used synonymously with stupid?

Regardless of the context in either example, it’s not an okay thing to say. But when someone simply hasn’t been confronted — especially face to face — about the detriment of the

words they casually throw around, they won’t be able to reorient their thinking.

A quick and simple way to get your point across is to put them in the shoes of whoever they’re making the butt of the joke. How would they feel if people used an important part of their identity as a word that meant stupid, bad or useless? How would they react if they heard people insulting something of personal significance to them for the sake of a laugh?

Sometimes, people just make honest mistakes. If someone says something insensitive, take a breath and ask yourself how you’d want to be treated in that situation. And circumstances aren’t always perfect.

In some situations it can be harder to find a way to open up that dialogue — especially when we’re with our friends.

There’s a sociological effect called the Bystander effect — thanks, Kramer — that says people are less likely to take action for a victim when other people are present. This effect plays out in our lives nearly every day. If we see a fight break out in the hallway, we pull out our phones and go straight to Snapchat instead of intervening or getting an adult. As rumors about a girl in your English class are sent around in your group chats, we screenshot them to forward to the next person instead of shutting them down.

High school is nerve-wracking enough. It’s completely reasonable to find remaining silent more preferable — and comfortable — than speaking out. The idea of confronting a friend or peer about something they’ve said can make anyone anxious. But when you know what they’ve done is wrong, it’s important to muster up the confidence to tell them that they’ve been hurtful. It takes a lot of courage to raise your voice and stand up for others, but when you know how to approach those conversations, getting through them becomes much easier and leaves both parties satisfied.

Friends are supposed to make each other better people. If you stay silent and let someone continue to put others down for nothing more than the sake of a punchline, you’re not being a good friend. And if your friend can’t make a joke without putting someone else down or using offensive language, they’re probably not that funny anyways.

B REAK THE

BYSTANDER

EF F ECT by phoebe hendon

How to confront peers who make offensive and incentive jokes

@ ! $ #%

STEPS TO SPEAKING UP

1 FIND THE MOMENT 2 3 4 LISTEN 5 BE CONFIDENT DON’T ATTACK

PRACTICE EMPATHY

FEATURES | 14

design by | natasha thomas

F E AT U R E

HIGHLIGHTS

H E N RY S OW E L L F EAT U R E D ARTIST

PA S S I O N P R O J E C T S

H E N RY ’ S FAV O R I T E TO O L S

B E L O W Junior Will Townsend holds the class snake during Mr. DeBey’s environmental education class. photo by | elise madden

M I X E D M E D I A / 3 D A RT I ST

silver gelatin photo paper

P H OTO G R A P H E R

50 mm prime lens

HOW DO YOU APPROACH MAKING ART? “Recently, [with] the layers project I did, I was really happy about how it turned out, because I had no idea where I was going to end up, but I just kind of kept going. Rather than being like, ‘Oh, I’ll mess it up,’ I was like ‘I don’t care’ because I had no attachment to the piece whatsoever.

That approach helped me just be like ‘Well, this might look good.’

DO YOU PUT MEANING INTO ART BEFORE YOU MAKE IT, OR DO YOU FIND THE MEANING AFTER? “Kind of a 50/50. With the layers project, my whole thing was that it meant nothing. And that was just me working on something.

T O P Junior Violet Apodaca talks to the newly formed Youth Against Climate Change club about how to canvas and find supporters for the upcoming Climate Change rally. photo by | sarah golder

But I put in random tiny little details that people could latch onto and then make up some cool story behind it. Like I wrote in random numbers on my [project] that you can only see if you happen to catch the light

R I G H T While constructing a clay dragon in ceramics, senior River Hennick chats with senior Jane Sonnichsen, who is working on her “pun project”, in which she is tasked with making a pun out of clay. photo by | ty browning

just right. Or I painted the inside of these bells in a project two different colors, and other weird stuff like that.

It means nothing, but I was kind of like, ‘ooh, somebody might like it —

layer project henry sowell

at least if they look at it long enough.’ They’ll find some little nuggets of information that might make them feel

V I D E O F E AT U R E S SCAN ME | THE HUSTLE WITH LYDIA UNDERWOOD Watch staffer Lydia Underwood attempt to “hustle” or be an extremely productive student for three days | by ryan gossick

Check out these recent videos featuring students and teachers at east

interested even though I know it means nothing.

WHERE DO YOU WANT TO TAKE ART AFTER HIGH SCHOOL? “I don’t know, I’m figuring that out right now, I guess. I’m going to college but probably for something unrelated like therapy or beekeeping — beekeepers get paid a lot! I don’t see myself reasonably doing art as a career because I feel like I enjoy it too much to want to make it a career. I want to be able to make what I want to make.

SCAN ME | 21 QUESTIONS WITH MR. LAIRD Get to know Mr. Laird in this spin off of Vogue’s 73 questions, this time cut down to 21 | by olivia olson & evelyn roesner

SCAN ME FOR MORE ABOUT HENRY Read the rest of Sowell’s interview and learn about the artists that inspired his work

FEATURES | 15

design by | celia condon photos by | taylor keal & phoebe hendon

F A R L E F T Junior Kyla Herrick, sophomore Lindsay Brown and Eva Sidie watch the kids they babysit and nanny

T

by phoebe hendon ypically, an overpopulated group chat is just another nuisance that eventually gets put on “do not disturb.” But for the 311 people in the massive La Babysitting Club 3.0 GroupMe, the daily notifications are anxiously awaited with hope that they’ll be the first to respond to a Saturday night babysitting gig.

La Babysitting Club 3.0 is a group text with predominantly female members spanning all grade levels. The members are primarily East students and recent graduates, but the chat has branched out to students from St. Teresa’s, Sion and Rockhurst. Members use it to trade babysitting gigs, but some take advantage of the large audience to promote StuCo events such as the ongoing can drive, advertise volunteer opportunities and sell things like prom dresses or concert tickets.

There have been several versions of the chat over the years, but the current iteration — the 3.0 — was created by East alum Sadie Osborn. When Osborn was a freshman, the original Babysitting Club chat was deleted when the owner faced backlash from group members over her comments supporting the release of the Eastonian. Osborn thought the club was too beneficial of a resource to be lost over a petty squabble, so she created a new chat dubbed La Babysitting Club 3.0 and remains the owner to this day.

For junior Kyla Herrick, the chat is a place to make some quick cash when she isn’t scheduled for her job at Energizing Mission. But in her sophomore year, she was too busy — and too young — to be hired anywhere. She figured out babysitting was the best way to get cash and had a friend add her to the chat. “[Babysitting] is much easier, and it can pay really well,” Herrick said. “It was a lot easier to just use the babysitting groupchat than trying to find a regular job.”

Herrick was able to pick up a semiregular gig with a family, which isn’t unusual for people in the chat. Since

ADVENTURES IN L A BA BYS I TT I N G finding a babysitter is difficult, parents usually ask those who pick up a shift over the chat to come back and sit for their family again. Herrick isn’t crazy passionate about babysitting — or at least, spending copious amounts of time with crazy little kids — but she finds it a good way to make money here and there, especially since she can pick up shifts on her own schedule and has full control of how much or how little she wants to work.

But the chat isn’t just a tool to make money. Sometimes, members’ constant checking and refreshing of the chat isn’t to see if any jobs have been offered, but to see if a job they’ve offered has been picked up.

If it’s last minute or on a weeknight, it can be tough to have something you’ve offered be picked up — but according to junior Jane Ford, more often than not, someone pulls through. Though Ford nannies Wednesday through Friday as opposed to picking up random jobs, she and Herrick both remarked the chat provided a comfortable safety net for whenever they’re unavailable to sit.

“I offer up some of [the nannying gigs] on the chat if I don’t have anyone to cover them, which is super nice because then I don’t have to feel bad about telling the parents no,” Herrick said.

La Babysitting Club 3.0 isn’t just useful for the members of the chat trying to babysit — it’s a good resource for parents who need sitters.

Every fall as East graduates head to college, the chat is flooded with job offers, especially nannying gigs. Girls offer up their coveted, full-time positions to whoever claims the gig first with a “me!”

The nannying jobs tend to go quickly at the beginning of the school year, but once most have been grabbed, members spend the rest of the year competing for Friday and Saturday jobs as they roll in throughout the week.

And while many one-night jobs are offered, the large number of members creates competition. According to senior

Elise Griffith, there typically isn’t enough time to wait, meaning you can’t afford to check your calendar to see what you have going on Saturday before you commit to a job.

“It’s really hard to get a job because there’s so many people in [the chat].

By the time I’m done reading [an offer] someone else has already taken it,” Griffith said.

During Rockhurst alum Jack Scott’s senior year, being in La Babysitting Club 3.0 was more than just a couple of daily notifications. Though Scott had been added into the chat by his girlfriend, East graduate Katie Caniglia, he’d spent most of his high school summers consistently nannying for one family.

But over during the summer of 2019, the mom Scott nannied for was laid off her job, leaving her unable to afford Scott as a nanny. Scott was faced with the pressure of having to make up the $1,500 he expected to make from nannying.

Scott lived in a single-parent household, which meant he was expected to step up around the house and cover college dorm expenses. La Babysitting Club 3.0 was how he made up for lost nannying income. In July, he sent out a message to the chat asking for babysitting gigs. His message got 25 likes, and within three weeks, he’d made around $500.

“I was able to get about half of the money I expected to make back, and that never would’ve happened without the support of the other people in the chat,” Scott said.

Herrick and Griffith cover gigs here and there, Ford mostly nannies, and Scott just needed a saving grace — but the babysitting club pulled through for them all where they needed it.

Desperate for gas money? Need cash for a QuikTrip run with your friends?

Does the impending doom of crushing student loan debt have you down? La Babysitting Club 3.0 is the place to get the green.

CLUB

The stories of a few members of the GroupMe chat, ‘La Babysitting Club’: a source for students to find babysitting jobs

B U S Y B A BYS I T T E R S A look into what a few students do on a weekly basis to reel in the cash

THE NANNY JANE FORD

F O U R D AY S A W E E K

“Once I started driving, my nanny family would give out my number to their friends, and so now I have a bunch of different families.”

T H E COV E R ELISE GRIFFITH

OCCASIONAL “I babysit these two little boys… [one of the boys] just got over cancer, and he always talks about his little Epipens and carries them around everywhere... it’s the cutest thing ever.”

T H E WO R K E R KYLA HERRICK

W H E N O F F WO R K

“Now that I have a job, I can save my money from [Energizing], but then spend money from babysitting.”

FEATURES | 17

design by | aislinn menke, lilah faye and maddox mogenson

FIGHTING AS A

J The Civil War reenactors of the 7th Missouri Brigade support each other on and off the battlefield

FAMILY by natasha thomas

B E L O W Kevin and Kelsey Christensen observe items from their collection photo by | aislinn menke

unior Kelsey Christensen could always spot her dad easily — if it wasn’t the full captain’s outfit and sword that he was brandishing, it was the look of pure enthusiasm that he wore as he stood slightly apart from the line of uniformed men yelling orders. If he saw her among the crowd of spectators watching the re-enactment, he always broke character for a second to smile at her.

But then Kevin Christensen’s mind would return to figuring out how he would get his 15-or-so buddies decked out in Civil War era gear into the next maneuver.

He’d known the people standing by him for 15 years.

When he first joined the 7th Missouri Brigade of Civil War Re-enactors, he wasn’t sure he had much in common with them other than a love for “1863 U.S. Infantry Tactics” and the fact that they both donned Union navyblue uniforms every other weekend. But when he saw the members genuinely caring for each other, he and Kelsey grew to care for them too.

Kevin went from being the new private in the unit to its captain. The 7th Missouri became their support system, their family. Family that every few weeks drove hours to Chickamauga or Gettysburg and re-enacted scenes from the Civil War together.

Kelsey used to go to every re-enactment with her dad — every few weeks they would cram poles, canvas tents and other equipment into their car as soon as Kelsey got out of school on Friday, and drive to the scene they were re-enacting. Kevin planned the battle scenes with his buddies while Kelsey practiced sewing with the wives or played in the creek with the other children. They were miles away from any problems at home they’d been dealing with that week. Something about being out in the middle of nowhere replaced every worry.

“It’s the marching,” Kevin said. “It’s singing songs. It’s being hot and sweaty and freezing cold.

It’s bitching and moaning to your buddies [...]

It’s that camaraderie.”

Those were the good times, but the bad mattered even more to Kevin.

The unit stuck with each other when rain that had poured all night

on the campsite seeped through their tents. But more importantly, when someone was in between jobs and couldn’t afford the cost of the next event, a member would volunteer to drive them and the unit would cover the costs.

When one member of the unit’s wife passed away, he was left with unfinished house projects that had piled up while she had been sick. So the 7th Missouri pulled together a caravan of cars, packed up tools and headed to the hardware store. They spent the weekend doing yard projects, replacing windows, reframing doors and rewiring part of the electrical system.

The unit began to become more important to Kevin — and to Kelsey.

One of Kevin’s best friends Mike had a daughter

“It’s the marching,” Kevin said.

“It’s singing songs. It’s being hot and sweaty and freezing cold.

It’s bitching and moaning to your buddies [...] It’s that camaraderie.”

kevin christensen named Clair who went to all the events, and Kesley began to ask about her before every re-enactment. Julia, whose husband Paul re-enacted with Kevin, became Kelsey’s go-to consultant whenever she found daddy long-legs in her tent — Julia always put on a brave face and “did battle” with the spiders, as Kevin put it. They started to see that it was a community, not just strangers who shared a common interest.

And when Julia got cancer, the unit set up a fundraiser website to raise thousands of dollars in support.

After Julia’s diagnosis, Kevin and his friends put on bright pink “Team Julia” T-Shirts underneath their uniforms before lining up to role call at that weekend’s re-enactment. When Julia came up to them, the row of men took off their jackets. Julia cried, and she never cries.

Kesley later found out that Julia had a severe fear of spiders, although she never let on when she went to fight

them out of Kesley’s tent that day.

Kevin was always amazed at the closeness of the group — he loved that whenever Kelsey ran up to his buddies huddling around the fire, they dropped their conversation to tease her and get her to smile. That this unit had made him feel like he would do anything for the other members. Then the day came that he needed it too.

Driving back from a re-enactment, Kevin remembers the conversation he’d had with Paul.

“I knew my marriage was on the outs. It was probably the first time that I ever actually told anybody where things were. It was...” Kevin paused, and let out a long sigh. “Just to be able to tell that somebody was there for you, and understood, and didn’t judge.”

Kevin and Kelsey were struggling, but not alone.

Mike and his daughter Clair were there to support them, offering help even when they didn’t ask for it. Clair was a friend for Kelsey to confide in, and their home was a place for Kevin and Kelsey to come when they needed to get away from it all. When their real family was struggling, their other family stepped in.

Kesley got older and got busy with volleyball and homework, and started going to fewer and fewer reenactments. Now that she’s a junior in high school, it’s been a while since her last weekend with the unit. Kevin, once captain of the unit, demoted himself to private to trade some of the event trips for Kelsey’s weekend volleyball tournaments. But they still think about the 7th Missouri Unit in its heyday — all that it’s given them, and all the friends that they’ve made.

It’s why Kelsey can’t help but smile when she unrolls the sewing kit that the wives in the group had fruitlessly attempted to teach her to use. Kevin wears a proud smile when he recalls the days that he was the captain, the days that he and Kesley never missed a re-enactment. But they also know that the people they love are only a call away.

Kevin and his buddies still frequently go out for a beer, and Paul takes care of Kesley’s pet ferret over spring break — they give him a gift card, though he always tries to refuse. Even though Kevin only goes to a few events a year now, the 7th Missouri remains a family no matter how long its been since they’ve marched together.

READY FOR COMBAT “This is the exact sword, 150 years old, that was presented to Captain Buchanan of Company I after the battle of Vicksburg.” - Kevin.

Following a memorabilia collector and member of the unit nicknamed Tic Tac’s death, his wife donated the relic to the unit.

“You’re looking at spending about $12-1500 for one personal kit. Because you’re looking at about $1000 for the musket, uniforms [are] $100 to $200, shoes [are] $50 to $200. It depends on how insane you wanna go.”

MEMBERS OF THE FAMILY RAMROD

Got h is n a me b e ca u se, d esp ite b e in g o n e o f t h e most o rd e r ly me n in t h e b r ig a d e, h e’d a lways le ft t h e ra mro d ( t h e meta l to o l u se d fo r c le a n in g t h e r ifles) in t h e we a p o n , w h ic h wo u ld la te r b e a cc id e nta lly sh ot a c ross t h e fie ld w h e n t h e r ifle d isc h a rg e d .

T I C TA C

T h e Civ il Wa r me mo ra b ilia co lle c to r w h o ma d e h is n ic k n a me by p rete n d in g re d t ic ta c s we re b lo o d y teet h in a p a r t ic u la r ly g r u eso me sce n e

C H E C K M AT E

Ca n a lways b e fo u n d p lay in g c h ess a t t h e eve nts

A few objects that Christensen has collected over his years of reenactments

FEATURES | 17

design by | aislinn menke, lilah faye and maddox mogenson

FIGHTING AS A

J The Civil War reenactors of the 7th Missouri Brigade support each other on and off the battlefield

FAMILY by natasha thomas

B E L O W Kevin and Kelsey Christensen observe items from their collection photo by | aislinn menke

unior Kelsey Christensen could always spot her dad easily — if it wasn’t the full captain’s outfit and sword that he was brandishing, it was the look of pure enthusiasm that he wore as he stood slightly apart from the line of uniformed men yelling orders. If he saw her among the crowd of spectators watching the re-enactment, he always broke character for a second to smile at her.

But then Kevin Christensen’s mind would return to figuring out how he would get his 15-or-so buddies decked out in Civil War era gear into the next maneuver.

He’d known the people standing by him for 15 years.

When he first joined the 7th Missouri Brigade of Civil War Re-enactors, he wasn’t sure he had much in common with them other than a love for “1863 U.S. Infantry Tactics” and the fact that they both donned Union navyblue uniforms every other weekend. But when he saw the members genuinely caring for each other, he and Kelsey grew to care for them too.

Kevin went from being the new private in the unit to its captain. The 7th Missouri became their support system, their family. Family that every few weeks drove hours to Chickamauga or Gettysburg and re-enacted scenes from the Civil War together.

Kelsey used to go to every re-enactment with her dad — every few weeks they would cram poles, canvas tents and other equipment into their car as soon as Kelsey got out of school on Friday, and drive to the scene they were re-enacting. Kevin planned the battle scenes with his buddies while Kelsey practiced sewing with the wives or played in the creek with the other children. They were miles away from any problems at home they’d been dealing with that week. Something about being out in the middle of nowhere replaced every worry.

“It’s the marching,” Kevin said. “It’s singing songs. It’s being hot and sweaty and freezing cold.

It’s bitching and moaning to your buddies [...]

It’s that camaraderie.”

Those were the good times, but the bad mattered even more to Kevin.

The unit stuck with each other when rain that had poured all night

on the campsite seeped through their tents. But more importantly, when someone was in between jobs and couldn’t afford the cost of the next event, a member would volunteer to drive them and the unit would cover the costs.

When one member of the unit’s wife passed away, he was left with unfinished house projects that had piled up while she had been sick. So the 7th Missouri pulled together a caravan of cars, packed up tools and headed to the hardware store. They spent the weekend doing yard projects, replacing windows, reframing doors and rewiring part of the electrical system.

The unit began to become more important to Kevin — and to Kelsey.

One of Kevin’s best friends Mike had a daughter

“It’s the marching,” Kevin said.

“It’s singing songs. It’s being hot and sweaty and freezing cold.

It’s bitching and moaning to your buddies [...] It’s that camaraderie.”

kevin christensen named Clair who went to all the events, and Kesley began to ask about her before every re-enactment. Julia, whose husband Paul re-enacted with Kevin, became Kelsey’s go-to consultant whenever she found daddy long-legs in her tent — Julia always put on a brave face and “did battle” with the spiders, as Kevin put it. They started to see that it was a community, not just strangers who shared a common interest.

And when Julia got cancer, the unit set up a fundraiser website to raise thousands of dollars in support.

After Julia’s diagnosis, Kevin and his friends put on bright pink “Team Julia” T-Shirts underneath their uniforms before lining up to role call at that weekend’s re-enactment. When Julia came up to them, the row of men took off their jackets. Julia cried, and she never cries.

Kesley later found out that Julia had a severe fear of spiders, although she never let on when she went to fight

them out of Kesley’s tent that day.

Kevin was always amazed at the closeness of the group — he loved that whenever Kelsey ran up to his buddies huddling around the fire, they dropped their conversation to tease her and get her to smile. That this unit had made him feel like he would do anything for the other members. Then the day came that he needed it too.

Driving back from a re-enactment, Kevin remembers the conversation he’d had with Paul.

“I knew my marriage was on the outs. It was probably the first time that I ever actually told anybody where things were. It was...” Kevin paused, and let out a long sigh. “Just to be able to tell that somebody was there for you, and understood, and didn’t judge.”

Kevin and Kelsey were struggling, but not alone.

Mike and his daughter Clair were there to support them, offering help even when they didn’t ask for it. Clair was a friend for Kelsey to confide in, and their home was a place for Kevin and Kelsey to come when they needed to get away from it all. When their real family was struggling, their other family stepped in.

Kesley got older and got busy with volleyball and homework, and started going to fewer and fewer reenactments. Now that she’s a junior in high school, it’s been a while since her last weekend with the unit. Kevin, once captain of the unit, demoted himself to private to trade some of the event trips for Kelsey’s weekend volleyball tournaments. But they still think about the 7th Missouri Unit in its heyday — all that it’s given them, and all the friends that they’ve made.

It’s why Kelsey can’t help but smile when she unrolls the sewing kit that the wives in the group had fruitlessly attempted to teach her to use. Kevin wears a proud smile when he recalls the days that he was the captain, the days that he and Kesley never missed a re-enactment. But they also know that the people they love are only a call away.

Kevin and his buddies still frequently go out for a beer, and Paul takes care of Kesley’s pet ferret over spring break — they give him a gift card, though he always tries to refuse. Even though Kevin only goes to a few events a year now, the 7th Missouri remains a family no matter how long its been since they’ve marched together.

READY FOR COMBAT “This is the exact sword, 150 years old, that was presented to Captain Buchanan of Company I after the battle of Vicksburg.” - Kevin.

Following a memorabilia collector and member of the unit nicknamed Tic Tac’s death, his wife donated the relic to the unit.

“You’re looking at spending about $12-1500 for one personal kit. Because you’re looking at about $1000 for the musket, uniforms [are] $100 to $200, shoes [are] $50 to $200. It depends on how insane you wanna go.”

MEMBERS OF THE FAMILY RAMROD

Got h is n a me b e ca u se, d esp ite b e in g o n e o f t h e most o rd e r ly me n in t h e b r ig a d e, h e’d a lways le ft t h e ra mro d ( t h e meta l to o l u se d fo r c le a n in g t h e r ifles) in t h e we a p o n , w h ic h wo u ld la te r b e a cc id e nta lly sh ot a c ross t h e fie ld w h e n t h e r ifle d isc h a rg e d .

T I C TA C

T h e Civ il Wa r me mo ra b ilia co lle c to r w h o ma d e h is n ic k n a me by p rete n d in g re d t ic ta c s we re b lo o d y teet h in a p a r t ic u la r ly g r u eso me sce n e

C H E C K M AT E

Ca n a lways b e fo u n d p lay in g c h ess a t t h e eve nts

A few objects that Christensen has collected over his years of reenactments

design by | lila tulp photos courtesy of | alex manning & aislinn menke

I’ve been really interested in art my whole life.

I’ve kind of always been into painting and drawing and I’ve taken art classes my whole life. alex manning | sophomore

by | kelly muphy

M A D E BY A L

S O P H O M O R E S A L EX M A N N I N G and Maeve McGrath were hanging out late at night in Manning’s basement when McGrath mentioned that she’d love it if there were some butterflies and stars painted on her Nike Air Force Ones.

Manning said that she’d always wanted to try painting Air Forces, but she didn’t want to draw one butterfly’s wing bigger than the other or get some bright red paint in the wrong spot and permanently mess up a friend’s favorite pair of shoes.

“I really do not care if you mess them up,” McGrath remembers saying. “I know you’re super artistic and you won’t. Just do whatever you want.”

Manning used acrylic paint and Molotow paint pens to paint one small Monarch butterfly on each shoe, getting more comfortable with each brush stroke.

Each time she and McGrath hung out she added another design until McGrath’s shoes were covered in stars, flames, polka dots, checkerboards, paint drips, suns and butterflies.

Soon after McGrath wore the sneakers to school, Manning was flooded with texts, snapchats and Instagram DM’s from people asking if she could paint their new pair of Air Forces or Toms. She made an Instagram account called @madebyal last May to continue to grow her business.

“She can do a lot because her art is so multifaceted, she can go so many different ways with it,” McGrath said. “She can’t just like paint shoes, you know, it translates to so many different things that she can do.”

Earlier this semester, Manning tried out a new medium by creating a sun design and then screen printing it onto a T-shirt for a

Graphic Design class project. The Instagram DM’s flooded in asking to buy the t-shirts just like the shoes.

Manning is currently developing two new T-shirt designs and she hopes to sell more products like phone cases and stickers in the future.

“I try and base my products off of my customers, so I make designs that I know they’ll like — like butterflies, suns, rainbows and that kind of thing,” Manning said.

Manning has gone from making Disney princesses out of clay to watercoloring on canvases — and she doesn’t plan on quitting anytime soon. Her dream is to one day have a profession that revolves around art. “[Art] isn’t just something she does for school or to make money,” Alex’s mom Stephanie Manning said. “She loves it.”

It’s both as a way to sort of brand myself so people can see the other side of me, like the more creative side that you might not get from just a social media account, but also to show fun pictures of me and my friends or someone else that I wanted to paint. gretchen raedle | senior

G R E TC H S K E T C H E D O N C E A W E E K for about a month last summer, you could only find senior Gretchen Raedle in one place — the watercolor paper section at the Paper Source in Leawood. The second she’d tried cream-colored absorbent watercolor paper, there was no going back to stationery paper.

“I don’t like painting with anything else [other than watercolor] because I feel like with watercolor you can make it dark or you can make it light,” Raedle said. “But like if I mess up, I can just paint over it with water and it’ll pretty much erase.”

Raedle decided to use her new love for watercolor to paint a picture of her friend Piper Noblit from Noblit’s Instagram.

“It might not be perfect or anything

but I was like, ‘Oh I like the way it looks, I’ll send it to her.’” Raedle said. “She was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I love that it’s so good!’

So then I kind of just started doing it more after that.”

Since then, Raedle has painted many of her other friends and even some celebrities too. She posts the paintings on her art Instagram account: @ gretchsketched.

“I think her work is very meaningful because she’s always drawing subjects that she knows,” Raedle’s friend senior Chloe Sowden said. “She’s either in the picture or it’s her friends in the picture so she gives a lot of them away as gifts and that makes them even more special.”

Raedle was inspired to take her art to Instagram after a conversation with family friend Brittan Bates. Raedle was

surprised when Bates told her that she had an Instagram baking account, until she learned that Bates uses it as a way to brand herself.

“In job interviews they’d say, ‘Tell me about something we couldn’t read on paper’ and she’d say, ‘Oh, I bake a lot.

Here’s my baking account’” Raedle said.

Although Raedle continues to paint with watercolors, she prefers to do it just for fun and has no interest in pursuing any sort of art as a career. “[@gretchsketched] is both a way [for me to] brand myself so people can see the other more creative side that you might not get from just a social media account, but also to share fun pictures of me and my friends or someone else that I wanted to paint,” Raedle said.

FEATURES | 19

CRAFTING

C R E AT I V I T Y I think that [surfing and painting] are both outlets for me and I like to combine the two. I have a few surfer or ocean paintings of waves, but I think they’re both outlets for me creatively and physically. maggie nottberg | sophomore

M AG G I E M A D E

SOPHOMORE MAGGIE NOTTBERG is running out of space in her bedroom untouched by her paint brush. Her door is speckled with the stars of the solar system, her headboard is covered in whales swimming in an ocean scape of different shades of blue and her walls are coated in elephants, the sea and abstract paintings.

For Maggie, art is everything. She sees art in the waves crashing when she surfs, and her family’s smiles after she cracks a Monty Python joke.

When she was in fourth grade, Maggie paddled a blue surfboard off the shores of Hawaii for her first surfing lessons. She took to it instantly, going back to surf on different beaches in Hawaii over the next few years in a row — each time noticing the movement of the waves.

Ever since, inspiration from the ocean and movement of the waves strikes whether she’s laying on a beach in the Bahamas or surfing in Hawaii.

“I like taking things that have motion or life to them and painting them, and just how it looks like it’s swirling,” Maggie said.

And her canvases aren’t filled only with oceans — when she went to Kenya on a mission trip to learn what it’s like to be a woman living in Kenya with impacts of their education and access to clean water, she saw art everywhere.

She watched the way the elephants moved and how she could emulate their figures with her paintbrushes, after the trip painting them based off of pictures from her phone.

Maggie loved looking at art almost as much as painting it — museums seem boring to most five-year-olds, but not Maggie. Her dad, Tyler Nottberg, watched as her appreciation for art grew through trips to the Nelson.

Then, in seventh grade, she fell in love with Michelangelo’s attention to detail and realism on a trip to Rome with her dad.

“Sometimes when you go to an art museum with a child, it’s sort of a chore,” Tyler said. “With her, I think she used it as an opportunity to see how diverse and how emotionally instructive all of the art was.”

Tyler thinks even her sense of humor is connected to how she’s grown as an artist. She has confidence in herself enough to self-promote her art.

“Making a joke is a little bit like putting a piece of art out and seeing if someone likes it, like what if no one laughs?”

Tyler said. “There’s a certain amount of confidence you need to have in yourself to be able to throw out a reference

by | rose kanaley

or do something along those lines.”

For Maggie, it’s not about the end product, although she finds pride in everything she makes. She loves the process of painting — looking through her camera roll of pictures of the Atlantic Ocean or elephants, the trips to Hobby Lobby to find the perfect colors and canvas board, finding her current favorite movie soundtrack — Interstellar — to play while she paints.

Maggie doesn’t usually sit down and paint everything at once — she paints over the span of a few weeks, whenever she has a few hours here and there to focus on it. But she doesn’t mind the cups of paint water or pallets of acrylic paints covering the basement floor.

“Everything is just so chaotic, but that’s kind of how my life has always been so it’s just that everything’s fun and chaotic and I paint whenever I have time I do anything,” Maggie said.

Maggie’s always been a naturally good painter. When she was three, her mom, Leigh Nottberg, needed a painting for their front entrance. Instead of buying one, she turned to Maggie. Leigh bought paints and canvases for the two of them and let Maggie take one while she painted the other — the paintings that remain over 10 years later on the wall of their front entrance both look like those of professionals.

“Each night in the basement, I would make two or three colors and we would paint whatever we wanted — there were no rules,” Leigh said. “We could be using the same colors and then finish and the next night we’d go down and make new colors.”

According to Maggie’s friend Kira Patt, her artistic side is visible in her life regardless of if she’s painting.

“She shows it through, duh, her drawings, but also shows it a lot in her daily life, just like the way she writes her notes or sometimes she’ll just doodle in her drawings or her journal,” Patt said.

While she doesn’t plan to build a career with art, Maggie hopes to run a booth in the Prairie Village Art Show next spring to display and sell her work. Given Maggie’s love for acrylic painting and pride in her work, it’s a natural next step to open new planet-painted doors.

“I’m always really proud of what I make,” Maggie said.

“Whether it’s a mess up or not, I always end up making it look cool, and I like to show it to people so I’m always really proud of what I make.”

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A&E | 21

design by | lauren dierks photos courtesy of | iBooks, itunes, imbd & spotify

A&E

HIGHLIGHTS

The Harbinger hub for all things trending in the arts and entertainment world

N O V E M B E R R E L E A S E S *information courtesy of iBooks G E T A L I F E , C H LO E B ROW N

IN THE DREAM HOUSE

AU T H O R | TA L I A H I B B E RT

AU T H O R | L I SA J E W E L L

PAG E S | 3 8 4

PAG E S | 3 5 2

G E N R E | RO M A N C E

G E N R E | M YST E RY

The first novel in a trilogy about the Brown sisters is a breezy delight, filled with snarky banter and dreamy love scenes.

When Libby unexpectedly inherits her family’s London mansion, she’s pulled in by a history of family dysfunction, a mysterious stranger, and several deaths.

BLUE MOON

IN THE DREAM HOUSE

AU T H O R | L E E C H I L D

AU T H O R | J E N N Y S L AT E

PAG E S | 3 6 8

PAG E S | 2 4 0

GENRE | THRILLER

G E N R E | E S SAYS

Ever wonder who’s riding the bus with you? In Jack Reacher’s world, you best believe it’s going to be someone dangerous.

N E W LY R E L E A S E D

Though actress Jenny Slate’s book was born out of her desire to make sense of her life—of heartbreak, of intimacy issues, of depression and hopelessness, and of her path to personal healing.

A REFRESHED REVIEW Staffer rewatches childhood favorite TV show by celia condon

YOU CAN NOW get all you wanted in your wildest dreams people — because every season of Wizards of Waverly Place is now on Disney Plus.

As soon as the iconic theme song blasted through my AirPods, my 2007self came to life.

And when the “Skip Intro” button appeared, it almost felt like an insult as the infamous “Everything Is Not As It Seems” channeled my inner wizard.

I’m only four seconds into episode one of Wizards of Waverly Place, and I already know Disney Plus is the therapy I needed this month. It made failing that nomenclature mastery 18 times sting just a little less.

The song alone was enough to make me feel bad for myself, a now 15-yearold who doesn’t get to live my old life luxuries. The treat of coming home from school everyday to feel like I have my own magic as I watch the newest episode — having no other obligations.

With episode one revolving around Selena Gomez’s character, Alex Russo, going to a ‘Suburban Outfitters’ sale,

I couldn’t help but laugh knowing the name would’ve meant nothing to me when I watched nearly ten years ago.

I found myself syncing up with the pre-recorded laugh tracks — right on cue.

All the characters are exactly as I remember them: a snarky Alex, a nerdy Justin and a spastic Max. Just a couple of episodes into the wizarding world had me cracking up to Alex’s sarcastic bashing on her brothers, and smiling at the 2007 fashion.

My expectations were to feel the way I feel about every other sitcom: repetitive and predictable.

But as I sat up until 1 a.m. finishing the first season, I knew it was my sitcom soulmate.

The “It’s a Laugh Production” logo bubbles across the screen with rainbow dots and a bouncing noise to go with it: an image I hadn’t seen in a while, but still coming with the same disappointing feeling of another episode over.

C E L I A ’S OV E RV I E W WIZARDS OF WAV E R L Y P L A C E

“Just a couple of episodes into the wizarding world had me cracking up to Alex’s sarcastic bashing on her brothers, and smiling at the 2007 fashion.”

WO R D S EA RC H ANSWERS SEARCH ON PAGE 8

“Only four seconds into episode one of Wizards of Waverly Place, and I already know Disney Plus is the therapy I needed this month.”

S T A O D C H I C K F I L A D K Q E C D C B D C O L L E G E P D R O E W U B A Y D I V A K B H S V X H G N A D A D E P E S A S S F B F Y S O B C X L E V S A T R E R C WA N R Y A W A S O N C O R L I D U F S K A X G E E S

E V E R Y T H I N G I WA N T E D

I O C Y A L H P S O F R A T E D R Z R A D I P R I D G I R R A F H O O P R F T G E S O T

SINGER | BILLIE EILISH

S T V A N L I B I L L I E N I L I S H L J T

RELEASE DATE | NOV. 13

S U I W I H S D X A K H Y Q M X S O T A P I

GENRE | POP

E V L Y V G T R B W E R S Y I E T G Y S L N N QW R I E M D S V I V I N G O N H H O M G

“I really like her new

L M A I G R A L I F P T E G D R A T G P A S

song because it’s

U L R O S T S S J K T Q L O A E S Q J L E

different than her

F O M P K U R S N OW D A Y Z D L M L S T S

I

other songs lately — it

D P R D N U A D O G A K L O C A L E L T A U

is a little more upbeat

N D I S C Q E A C H I A K F

and not as dark.”

I S O A H A K R E S P L B V M O T I V F O E

ellie brown | senior

I L S D OWO S

M A P T H A N K S G I V I N G G W C D V D B

1 2

SEASON 1 EPISODE 3 Alex learns that there’s a magical resource to get information about any subject in the form of a pocket elf — so she secretly uses one to pass a Spanish exam.

SEASON 2 EPISODE 1 Frustrated with the constant comparison to her big brother, Alex uses a magical genie to wish that Justin would be forgotten. But when the genie goes too far and makes Justin completely disappear, Alex must figure out a way to get him back.

*information courtesy of iTunes

A&E | 22

design by | caroline chisholm photos by | julia percy

STO RE

LOTS OF

LOCAL

LOV E by lauren dierks

W

ith the most authentic thing from Kansas City I own being a toosmall Charlie Hustle “I Heart KC” shirt, I feel like a failure of a Kansas citian. So when I got word of I Heart Local, a pop up shop in downtown Shawnee full of locally made items, I figured it was time to liven up my Kansas City fan wear.

Rushing through the glass doors of the small storefront to avoid the unbearably cold wind, I immediately found myself apologizing for bumping into another shopper. The classroomsized store was crowded and single filing around the square room was the only route option because of the cramped space, but even though it was cramped I knew I wasn’t going to be disappointed because of the walls and tables full of items.

I was offered a sample from a candied nut assortment — the dark chocolate almonds I snagged were the perfect shopping snack. The flavor was much better than my go-to Price Chopper guilty pleasure and left me wishing there weren’t so many eyes around so I could sneak a few more.

I walked in expecting a shop full of Kansas City themed clothing — based on the name

With an average price of $25, I was glad to see it was somewhere I could come back and Christmas shop at without going broke.

lauren dierks | junior alone — yet was surprised with a boutique filled with everything from home decor to chocolates and flavored honey. It’s not everyday I see a “KC” themed store that sells things other than different colored T-shirts with a printed “LA KC NY” on them or shuttlecock socks and hats.

The slow pace of single file gave me a chance to get a good look at everything the store had to offer. Every few steps I spotted a different piece of unique, vibrant art, cozy hand-knitted mittens

SNEAK PEAK

Staffer reviews the recently opened pop up shop, I Heart Local

and a pair of crafty looking earrings perfect to gift my mom or sister. It was very plaza-art-fairesque with so many varying items in one place.

Due to the cramped space it got a little difficult figuring out who was an artist and who was a customer, or when one maker’s work ended and another began. Nevertheless, the small room contained enough to keep my eyes from getting bored while scanning the space.

The $3-$200 price range was reasonable considering the large difference in sizes and types of goods being sold. With an average price of $25, I was glad to see it was somewhere I could come back and Christmas shop at without going broke.

After around fifteen minutes and still only halfway through the store, I was welcomed by East Alumni and co-owner of the store Haley Crosser, her mother and former SHARE director Pat Kaufman and other co-owner Breck Liston.

*****

L A U R E N ’ S R AT I N G | 5 S TA R S

With an original goal of 10 vendors within the shop including themselves, they exceeded their goal with 24 and counting and still have about 12 on the waitlist with offers coming in almost every other day, according to Crosser.

Because of the small maker community, or community of people who make and sell their own items, in Kansas City, the owners already knew most of the vendors in the store from craft shows or other makers.

The boutique will be open until the end of December — just in time for the holiday season.

From there, the owners will decide whether or not to run with it full time.

So from now till Dec. 31, I will be avoiding the chaos at Town Center or Oak Park for my holiday shopping needs and head over to I Heart Local to get gifts that have a little more meaning than just a Bath and Body Works candle for each of my friends.

A L L P H O T O S Pop up shop, I Heart Local, is full of Kansas themed products and handcrafted pieces from KC natives. photos by | julia percy

design by | jilli foley photos by | reilly moreland

KNOCK IT OFF

by caroline chisholm

A&E | 23 Staffer reviews knock off products compared to the original products

T E D DY COAT

C R Z YO GA PRICE | $24 FROM | AMAZON

PRICE | $31.59 FROM | AMAZON

I THINK WE CAN ALL AGREE that Lululemon leggings are the best mix of comfortable and cute, but it’s hard to justify the $6 that are left in my bank account after shelling out a hundred dollars for one pair of them. I wear my Lulu leggings until every seam has fallen apart to rationalize the cost. But now, thanks to an alternative brand, CRZ Yoga, I can save the 70-or-so dollars. The brand expand on my legging color palette without compromising the quality, using just an hour or two of babysitting pay.

FILLING PINTEREST BOARDS and Urban Outfitters’ display windows since last fall, the sherpa coat trend isn’t leaving Cosmo anytime soon. Instead of dishing out $70 on the popular Urban Outfitters sherpa I recommend the shockingly similar yet significantly cheaper Amazon jacket. While I know buying on Amazon can sometimes be a little sketchy, trust me when I say this coat is sure to keep you warm throughout this upcoming cold season. The only downside? This dupe doesn’t have the drawstring bottom the UO version offers.

A P P L E C AS E PRICE | $12.99 FROM | AMAZON

L E TT E R N EC K L AC E

PRICE | $8.99 FROM | AMAZON

THE ANTHROPOLOGIE INITIAL NECKLACE — you know the one I’m talking about ­— ­­has been put on and taken off my Christmas list more times than I can count.

I just can’t seem to legitimize the $40 price tag. After finding this Amazon version, I couldn’t wait to wear it and see if anyone noticed any difference — which no one outwardly did. The gold accessory will top off any outfit this holiday season the same way the Anthropologie necklace would, without leaving you with an empty wallet.

IF I’M PAIRING MY PHONE with a case straight from the Apple store, I know the quality will be seamless. But the $40 price tag made me jump out of my typical phone case comfort zone of buying based off brand reliability to try a knock-off case from Amazon — this time for only $12.99. Providing me with the same silky silicone feeling, the Amazon case offers a more protective bottom compared to the Apple original.

& MORE More dupes that are stylish and look close or the exact same as the original

$19

$24

$19 *photos courtesy of amazon

24 | A&E

design by | rose kanaley photo by | elle karras

LET’S

SALSA

I

Staffer reviews her experience at a salsa dancing class

by gabby caponecchi

’ve never been much of a dancer. Five years ago, I came to my senses and traded my ballet shoes in for cleats.

While I was flipping through channels recently, I came across an episode of Dancing with the Stars and saw ex-White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer’s attempt at a salsa, and I was infatuated not only by the intricate costumes, but also the intensity of the dance.

Salsa is easy to learn but difficult to master, that much I knew. But after watching that episode, the ballerina in me knew I should give it a shot.

I called Viva Social Dance Studio — KC ’s Premier Salsa/Latin Dance School — and learned they had an available two-and-a-half hour class every Wednesday night. I signed up with every intention of learning more about the catchy, sensual dance and its fusion with deep Caribbean and African musical styles. The class was only $20, which is a steal for the amount of teaching you

T O P Junior Gabby Caponecchi tried salsa dancing for her first time at Viva Social Dance Studio: KC’s Premier Salsa/Latin Dance School this past Wednesday. photo by | elle karras

GABBY’S TIPS Tips for non-salsa dancers before taking a class wear clothes you can move easily in put your hair up so it’s out of your face wear comfortable shoes to dance in stretch a little before so you don’t pull anything

SA LSA S P OTS

I came in expecting to make an absolute fool of myself but walked out knowing I could crack salsa’s code in a single lesson — at least with the specialty and patience seen at Viva.

gabby caponecchi | junior receive.

As I crept inside the studio, anxious to put on my “dancing shoes” again, I was met by my first instructor, Sherree Watson. Talking with Watson for 10 minutes took all my negativity away — her soothing voice brought a sense of security with it, extinguishing the nervous thoughts of a dance class with complete strangers that might judge my lack of ability.

Watson started us out with a few “easy” steps to get us warmed up. She had me and six other beginners stand in front of the mirror-flanked room, so we could get the full learning experience and mimic her steps and movements.

She took time to make sure every beginner had it down before moving on without judgement. I expected the class to be like the quick paced ones I saw on TV, but I was wrong.

We started with the “basic step” by counting 1-2-3 forward, foot taps on 4, then 5-6-7, foot taps on 8. We repeated this step for awhile until the class had the

8-count down. The instruction and patience at Viva made it easy, even with my own lack of dancing skills.

Next we learned left and right turns. You first step across your body to open up and then turn 180 degrees back and step again so you’re facing the front. We also mixed in steps like the Suzi Q, Hook Spin, Flares and Chase Turn. After mastering “one step,” we were immediately thrown into another. Although in the end, after I got ahold of things, I almost felt like a natural when she began to call out the different steps and combine them all together into one dance.

After 30 minutes, the rest of the instructors walked in, something I didn’t know about. It made me a little anxious to know that I wouldn’t be staying with Watson.

The group was then divided into beginners, mediocre and mastered — I definitely knew what group I was in.

So I followed the rest of the beginners next door to a different studio to do some partner work. There I met my second instructor, Josh Hernandez.

Hernandez has been teaching in Kansas City for 17 years, since 2002 and in 2011 moved to Viva, teaching there since.

After the informal introduction, Hernandez seemed thrilled to give me the complete salsa learning experience. I learned to keep my hands cupped, to stand up straight with my shoulders back and never duck when being turned — because the man should raise his hand as needed. These adjustments made the couples dancing

****

V I VA S O C I A L D A N C E S T U D I O | 4 S T A R S 5 7 2 2 | N I E M A N ROA D

less awkward, because it looked like I had a better idea of what I was doing.

Viva Social Dance Studio suits every dance style and skill level, from prima ballerinas to the bare-minimum amateurs. I came in expecting to make an absolute fool of myself but walked out knowing I could crack salsa’s code in a single lesson — at least with the specialty and patience seen at Viva. Visit their website online and book a class if the thought of salsa dancing interests you.

You won’t regret it, and trust me — this is coming from someone who has two left feet.

Different places in Kansas City to try out salsa dancing classes

The Overland Park Ballroom

American Ballroom Dance Studio

Dance Kansas City

12170 | blue valley parkway

3654 | 95th street

1717 | wyandotte street

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www.euronetworldwide.com Copyright Š 2019. Euronet Worldwide, Inc. All rights reserved.

26 | SPORTS

design by | sarah bledsoe

S P O RTS

STUDENT POLLS

HIGHLIGHTS

HAVE YOU EVER CONSIDERED JOINING THE EAST BOWLING TEAM? | 297 VOTES

32% YES 68% NO

Sports updates, schedules and quotes about the winter sport season

M A R K YO U R C A L E N DA R DEC

3 JAN

9

SHOULD NCAA PLAYERS BE PAYED? | 275 VOTES

70% YES

WINTER SPORTS | meet the coaches night 6 - 7:30 p.m. @

30% NO

East auditorium

HAVE YOU EVER BEEN TO A NASCAR RACE? | 315 VOTES BOW L I N G | F i rst va rs i t y

22% YES

tournament and opening invitational 8 a.m. @ Royal Crest

78% NO

Lanes

JAN

17 JAN

17

B OYS B A S K E T B A L L | Va r s i t y game against SMS 7 p.m. @ East

HOW DO YOU FEEL GOING INTO YOUR LAST WINTER SEASON HERE AT EAST? CHEER | Senior night and h a l ft i m e p e r fo r m a n c e 7 p. m . @ East

T O P Seniors Zaden Deemy and Gabby Mack play football during cheer practice as a fun bonding activity photo by | kate nixon

L O C A L S TA N D I N G S Chiefs

Wins

Losses

7

4

AT H L E T E ’ S T A K E

It is exciting but sad at the same time because it is going to be your last time competing in that sport.

You just want to make the most of your time with your friends and sport and you want to make sure you go out with a bang.

sean battey | senior

Mavericks

Wins

Losses

6

7

I am feeling good and I feel like we could win state this year. I am really confident that we can beat Olathe East, which is our biggest competitor.

We have gained a lot of new talent these past few years and I think everyone has improved last year and this year we can all make it to finals and win.

wyatt morse | senior

SCAN ME | Q&A

T O P Senior Andrew Groat raises his arm to block a shot during the SHARE dodgeball tournament photo by | ty browning L E F T Seniors Ben Walburn and Max Tucker tackle senior Tommy Beikmann in a flag football game photo by | julia percy

Scan the QR code to read the NCAA Rule change Q&A

by Sydney Decker

SPORTS | 27

design by | lily billingsley photo courtesy of | debbie

L EA R N I N G TO L EA D Student Activities Advisory Council (SAAC) allows student-athletes to give back to the community and build their leadership skills

S A A C I M PA C T CADEN NICHOLSON SOCCER Doing [SAAC] is making me want to continue being a better leader and really being that too when I play soccer in college.

SARAH BINGHAM VO L L E Y BA L L I think [SAAC] will help me become a better leader and help make all of our sports teams at East more celebrated and more successful.

LEE MARSHALL FOOTBALL {SAAC} is helping my future out a lot by opening my eyes to the real world and real life problems right in my own community that I can actually help with and try to make better for others.

UP NEXT | VOLUNTEER HOPE HOUSE W H E N : D EC E M B E R 4 H o p e H o u se p rov i d es d o m est i c v i o l e n ce v i c t i m s i n Ka n s a s C i t y w i t h s h e l te r a n d c o m p re h e n s i ve s e r v i ces, a s we l l a s a 2 4 - h o u r c r i s i s h ot l i n e.

by tommy paulus

J

unior Sarah Bingham slammed her locker shut and cooled down after an intense volleyball practice filled with sprints and serves. She went to the senior parking lot, not to blast the A/C in her car and head home, but to get on a school bus with other athletes to package and hand out new clothing at Micah Ministries.

Bingham is a part of the Student Activities Advisory Council (SAAC) which consists of 32 of East’s “outstanding student athletes,” according to Athletic Director Debbie Katzfey. The students are nominated to be on the council by their respective sports coach based on their leadership capabilities and athletic progress.

One Thursday a month the council meets in the library with Head Football Coach Justin Hoover, Associate Principal Susan Leonard and Katzfey to hear leadership lectures from Hoover. They also self-evaluate their individual capabilities of leadership on and off the field because, according to Bingham, athletes can’t be good leaders without knowing who they are.

The meetings are also a way for the students to form close relationships with people of all grades at East and to catch up with everyone’s season and life, according to varsity cross country captain and gymnast, senior Brooklyn Beck.

“These meetings are really important to have for the students because they are a way for them to bond with anyone from all

sports,” Katzfey said.

Every month or so, the students take field trips for community outreach. The students recently carried their leadership roles to Micah ministries on Oct. 28. Micah Ministries — a volunteering group at the Independence Boulevard Christian Church in Downtown Kansas City — is a partner with SAAC, and the students have been volunteering there for the past three years.

On field trip days, the students leave East on a school bus around 5:30 p.m. so they have time between their practices to change and take a break. At Micah Ministries, they make hot food, organize sanitization kits, pass out clothes or talk with the people coming there, according to Katzfey. “[They’ve been] wonderful helpers — [They are] very focused and joyful, which really is a gift to guests,” Reverend of Independence Boulevard Church Lee Chiaramonte said.

One moment that struck junior and varsity soccer player Caden Nicholson while volunteering was an encounter he had with a young homeless woman and her child. He sympathized as she told him about her life living as a young woman without a home while trying to care for her child in the cold fall weather.

“Just having a quick conversation with and serving her meant so much to me seeing how a small action helped her out,” Nicholson said. “It really put my life into perspective and it felt so good to help everyone out as a team.”

The council is continuing their outreach this winter through their projects with the

Hope House — a shelter for women and children in abusive situations. The students are encouraged to spread the word to students not involved in SAAC and will be bringing a collection of stuffed animals they’ve collected from students donations.

Being apart of SAAC, the students althetes’ goal is to carry their leadership on the field to their outer community. Along with volunteering they are using their leadership skills to help out all athletes at East through their new initiative Lancers for Lancers, a cooperative effort of the students to bring in more attendees to every type of sporting event.

According to Bingham, after having the bleachers in the main gym packed with attendees at her volleyball game on senior night and the soccer regionals – which she attended – it’s important that every sport has a crowd to support them.

“It feels amazing when there is a large atmosphere and people are cheering you and anyone who plays a sport at East deserves that feeling,” Bingham said.

During their meeting on Nov. 7, each student chose a few upcoming games to attend and are tasked with encouraging friends and peers through anything from an Instagram story post or just telling friends to come to most of the games to hype up the players and hopefully help them play better, according to Nicholson.

“Rather than just going to the same sports games, they are coming together as Lancers to support one another when they play and show how strong our community is,” Katzfey said.

28 | SPORTS

ROL LIN G by lucia barazza

S

ophomore Victoria Leal sets her feet and walks up to the lane, lining her star-covered glow-inthe-dark bowling shoes six paces to the left of the center board. She brings her blue and purple 14-pound bowling ball up to her face, staring down the pins. With a quick bounce off her back foot, she rotates back then releases, sending the ball barreling down the lane until it smashes into two of the three split pins. She almost had the spare.

Walking back to the table, she points to the scoreboard: “I still beat you!”

“It was close...” her dad Micheal Leal replies, scrunching his face in frustration.

This is Victoria’s typical Tuesday night, practicing at Mission Bowl in Olathe. For the past six years, bowling has been a major part of Victoria’s life, and a passion that has brought her and her dad closer.

The past years have been packed with hours spent practicing curving techniques and learning to read lane oil patterns. Her expertise and technique throughout the high school season earned her a trip to the state bowling competition last year as a freshman. She was the only player from the East team selected for state.

But for Victoria, league or East tournaments and practices don’t compare to the competitiveness of the matches against her dad.

Tuesday’s matches are filled with high fives and trash talk, with the night often ending with a text to one of her older brothers updating them on the winner or top score,

design by | elizabeth mikkelson photo by | ty browning

Sophomore found her aptitude for bowling while competing and bonding with her dad

TOGE THE R

which varies from week to week. They are always pushing each other to be better.

“All her high games have been against me because she wants to beat me,” Micheal said. “In high school she only has one 200, but she has like five of them against me. Her highest [scoring] game was against me.”

For Victoria, bowling is her and her dad’s “thing.” He never misses supporting her at her meets.

“Every single game I bowl, he texts my mom what I got and what happened that game,” Victoria said. “If I do really good he’ll text my siblings and everyone that I did really good. I don’t [text them] because I know he will.”

Victoria found bowling after her dad got a job as a cook at Mission Bowl. Tagging along to her parents’ bowling league practices, she would break off to find an empty lane and practice on her own, learning from trial and error.

Her dad’s job meant unlimited free bowling, so after finishing his own practice he would practice with her. He became her first coach and started teaching her the basic hand forms and techniques based off his own bowling experience. The Mission location was only four minutes from her house, so it didn’t take long for the lanes to become her second home.

“I could go down there whenever I wanted and just bowl,” Victoria said. “Sometimes I’d go to work with my dad and stay there the entire day with my dad.”

After Mission Bowl’s Mission location burned down and they started bowling at the Olathe location, she met Frank Russell — a bowling coach and employee. Watching

Victoria practice with her dad one night, he knew she had what he calls the “it” factor. Frank became her coach and bowling mentor, who has coached her for four years now.

“You can just see that there’s a natural athleticism in a person and they have that look in their eyes we call the ‘Bowler’s Bug’,” Frank said. “They want to get better and you want to help them [get better].”

In high school she only has one 200, but she has, like, five of them against me. Her highest scoring game was against me.

michael leal | victoria’s dad Bowling is now a part of Victoria’s social life — she invites her friends to go bowling to hang out. But while her friends mess around and have fun, she’s focused on getting better, treating the hangout as a practice opportunity.

“They have no idea what to do with bowling, it’s kind of fun watching them try,” Leal said. “They hate bowling with me. I’ll bowl like a 200 and they’ll bowl a 100.”

Bowling is also an opportunity to help Victoria pay for college, as many tournaments offer money prizes for winners. She’s estimated her earnings to be around $200 so far.

Victoria is currently preparing for high school bowling season by putting in more hours at the lanes as she hopes to compete at state again this year. High school season involves daily practices, meaning she’ll have to temporarily quit her job at Fairway Creamery. But the two months of sacrificing her salary are worth it to qualify for state. But even as high school season starts, she’ll still fit in a couple of hours to trash talk her dad on Tuesday nights.

BREAK I N G DOWN BOW LING TER MS down the remaining pins on SPAR E l totheknock second bowl

SPL I T l a gap between two or more pins Before her practice begins, sophomore Victoria Leal prepares mentally in order to do her best photo by | ty browning

the pins to a new full R E - R AC K l resetting rack *information courtesy of bowling universe

SPORTS | 29

design by | lauren dierks photos by | lucy kostner

Teachers commentate for East sports to strengthen relationships and keep their love of sports alive

TEACHERS

KRAMER

KLEIN

Sport of choice: Basketball because he played it in high school

by syndey newton

L

eading up to basketball tryouts his senior year, World Regional Studies teacher Steve Klein played basketball and conditioned every day after school — training for the required six-minute mile that every athlete had to run and perfecting his shot with his coach at the nearby Jewish Community Center.

He had grown six inches and four starting spots had opened up.

However, four weeks before tryouts, he tore two ligaments in his ankle — benching him for the season.

His summer basketball coach, who’d heard about his ankle, recruited Klein to be an assistant coach at a local high school for the season — landing him his first coaching gig at 17, in charge of kids the same age as him.

“It was good for me from a social standpoint and a confidence standpoint,” Klein said. “To coach before you’re really confident and really talkative, it certainly made me both.”

The confidence he built while running drills and building other kids’ confidence came with him when he started announcing for East sporting events and helping out with the scoreboard.

Klein started ten years ago when he was asked to work the chains at an East football game— moving the first down marker on the sidelines of the football field as the teams gained yards. When the announcer at the time left, Klein was asked to replace him — and as someone who originally majored in sports broadcasting before switching to history, he agreed to take the job.

“He’s got a good radio voice,” East Athletic Director Debby Katzfey said.

“When’s he’s announcing at the games, it sounds good.”

Klein now announces for football and both girls and boys soccer, in addition to keeping score and occasionally announcing basketball games. Some games take up the majority of his night — from 5:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. On those nights, he’ll have to miss KU basketball games and coaching his 13 year-old son’s basketball team — something he’s experienced for the past 10 years.

Klein’s wife, Nikki Klein, says that Klein’s whole family receives an email from him everytime something exciting or funny happens at a game. According to Nikki, Klein takes it very seriously.

“It’s a fit,” Klein said. “It provides a little extra income, while also allowing me to be a bigger part of the school and watch the players progress in their competitive careers.”

As someone who has been involved in sports for the majority of his life, announcing for sports has given Klein the opportunity to stay vested in the competition of sports, even though he doesn’t play them anymore. All the competition — announcing for his favorite sports, coaching for his kid’s basketball team — keeps his life as a teacher steeped in his love for sports.

“To me, a team sort of has a spiritual connection to each other. I like that part which is a big part of coaching,” Klein said.

“I don’t think I’d enjoy my life a lot if I wasn’t involved in competitive atmospheres.”

00:00

Sport of choice: Basketball because he played it in high school

T

he day after boys varsity soccer fell to Blue Valley West in the quarter finals, senior Simon Zimmerman walked into his sixth hour AP Psych, still down from the sting of the loss and the memories of his fellow teammates crying on the field. Walking through the door, he was immediately greeted by teacher Brett Kramer, who congratulated him on a great game — making sure to mention all of Zimmerman’s highlights and assure him that their loss was just unlucky.

“I felt as if he was really watching the game,” Zimmerman said. “I was really happy with how he actually analyzed the game.”

Kramer was on crowd control during the KSHSAA Boys Soccer Quarterfinal, East’s last game of the season — stopping the crowd from yelling at the other team and screaming insults. This is one of Kramer’s many jobs dealing with East sports, but he doesn’t do it for supplemental pay. For him, it’s about building relationships with students and playing a reliable role in their lives.

Five years ago, Kramer’s role in East sports began when he announced a soccer game, subbing for Mr. Klein. Since then, he’s played six different roles in over 12 different sports — from keeping stats for girls basketball games to timing swim meets.

Kramer says he’s willing to do just about anything with regards to working athletic events. In his mind, it’s an opportunity to get to know and support students in a different arena than the classroom. “[He] doesn’t coach, but [he] certainly helps us in a capacity that allows us to have

the games,” East Athletic Director Debbie Katzfey said. “Without the people behind the scenes, the games wouldn’t take place.”

After each game that Kramer commentates or works, he makes an effort to talk to the athletes the next day, telling players how well the team moved the ball, or how proud he was of the seniors after senior night.

“He definitely brings a positive vibe,” Zimmerman said. “He makes everybody happier.”

And after interacting with his students when they aren’t sitting in desk chairs, announcing gives him the opportunity to meet the parents of students. It’s allowed him to feel more like a part of the “very large” East community, compared to the small town where he was born.

“It’s nice to have a teacher that you can talk to about sports,” junior Reese Althouse said. “And not just sports, you can talk to him about anything.”

Now that the fall season is over, Kramer will move on from helping with boys soccer and football to his favorite sport: basketball. He will attend every varsity girls basketball game to keep stats, while also keeping score for all of the other girls and boys basketball teams whenever he can — right after he finishes teaching six classes.

“In the classroom, I’m the one that’s supposed to keep order and have all these tremendous lesson plans and differentiate my instruction,” Kramer said. “At a sporting event, I don’t have to be Mr. Kramer. I’m a human being there to support Shawnee Mission East.”

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PHOTOSTORY | 31

design by | kate nixon

CLUB

Chinese Club held a calligraphy day on Nov. 13, inviting students to learn calligraphy, eat and participate in a calligraphy competition

CALLIGRAPHY L E F T Junior Lucy Hartman dips her brush into a cup of ink. “I went to take pictures for fun, and a lot of photographers actually ended up participating because not many people were there,” Hartman said. photo by | kate nixon B E L O W A drawing of a goldfish hangs on the white board aside other calligraphy pieces and drawings. photo by | morgan woods

A B O V E L E F T Students gather around tables and attempt to copy symbols from their phones and from paper. photo by | kate nixon R I G H T Senior Elizabeth Fredrick hangs up new calligraphy next to old prints from former students. “It’s art basically and that’s super fun because I like art. It’s a different style of art that we don’t usually get to do here,” Fredrick said. photo by | annakate dilks

A B O V E M I D D L E Senior and National Chinese Honor Society vice president Elizabeth Fredrick writes a Chinese symbol. photo by | sarah golder A B O V E R I G H T Sophomore Abigail Patton works on writing a Chinese phrase.

“Although you’re just writing words it’s really artistic because you’re doing it all pretty and I like to bullet journal so I like that kind of stuff,” Patton said. photo by | sarah golder L E F T Senior Emery Uhlig laughs while doing calligraphy. “We had these sheets of characters and I was trying to copy some of them down. I made some mistakes and after a while I gave up...I started trying to paint animals but that didn’t go very well [either],” Uhlig said. photo by | annakate dilks

H O L I DAYS ALT-COPY | 32

HAUL OUT THE

design & copy by | lila tulp

Whether you're feeling festive or a little bah-humbug, here are some tips to ease into the holiday season

L E T ’S EAS E I N TO I T Whether your holiday energy matches Buddy the Elf, or the premature Christmas lights have you feeling like a scrooge — it doesn’t change the fact that it’s almost the most wonderful time of the year. So grab your fuzzy socks, cuddle up by the fire and read some ways to ease into Christmas and sleigh the holidays like a pro.

*photos courtesy of target.com

D E C K YO U R H A L LS

S P R E A D T H E S P I RI T

H EA R T H E M S I N G

Everyone knows that Scrooge combatted his, well, Scrooge-ness with generosity — share some holiday love with your friends and set up a Secret Santa. If you want a way to spread your spirit over a span of weeks, this gift-swap is the route for you. Grab some friends, family or co-workers and let’s get this planning started for a jingle-bell-rocking season!

S H O P T I L L YO U D RO P T I P S A N D T R I C KS WA K E U P E A R LY SET A BUDGET GO IN WITH AN IDEA

Scan to listen to this perfectly picked playlist

(you don't need four pairs of Uggs this year)

R E M E M B E R C Y B E R M O N DAY G E T YO U R S H O P P I N G D O N E One of America’s weirdest — and most materialistic — Thanksgiving traditions can be shifted from a fall activity to early bird Christmas planning with the right strategies.

Yep, I’m talking about Black Friday. Even if all your friends want for Christmas is you, take a look at my favorite tips and deals to get ahead on holiday shopping — and save money for decorations.

S T E P BY S T E P 1 : A S S I G N & P L A N YO U R DAY S 2 : G I V E YO U R G I F T S 3 : H AV E A F I N A L PA RT Y

S L E I G H W I T H SNACKS

Scan to shop all your decoration needs at Target

There’s no bigger holiday indicator than the shift from all things pumpkin spice to the reign of peppermint — the minute those red Starbucks cups make their debut, the time has come. Go ahead and trick your mind (and your tummy) into the spirit with these very merry masterpieces fit for Santa.

A TA K E O N T H E C L A S S I C S GINGERBREAD ICE CREAM EGG N OG COO K I E S P E P P E R M I N T H OT CO COA CO CO N U T M AC A RO O N S Scan this QR code to try the recipes for the holiday spirit snacks above

As your cornucopia and fake pumpkins go back into the attic, here are a few Christmas decorations to deck your halls and spruce up your living space. And if you think it’s too early, according to psychologists, it’s a proven fact that people who decorate for the season earlier won’t have a blue Christmas — so add some simple touches to your home or room before you’re full on rocking around the Christmas tree.

M E R RY M OV I E S While you’re recovering from one too many pieces of pumpkin pie, claim your spot on the couch and get cozy for a movie that’ll put the holly jolly idea in your head. Feel free to hop on your own favorite streaming platform and watch some subtle-y spirited flicks from every genre. *photos courtesy of imdb

BABY IT'S COLD OUTSIDE G R A B YO U R C OAT I C E S K AT I N G W I N T E R W O N D E R L A N D WA L K THE PLAZA LIGHTING

A L S O F E AT U R I N G . . .

WHAM! MICHAEL BUBLÉ ARIANA GRANDE I’ve been blasting “Mistletoe” by Justin Bieber on my aux since the beginning of October, but if you’ve been holding off till a little later, here’s a happy medium just for you. While you’re dressing your turkey and mashing your potatoes, queue up these tunes to your speaker to jingle all the way into your Thanksgiving feast. *photos courtesy of itunes

H A R RY P OTT E R

(just because their lights are up doesn't mean you have to follow suit)

In the midst of your week-long Thanksgiving break, take some time to venture away from the comfort of your fireplace to a winter wonderland. Grab some mittens or a hat — did I hear someone say Santa hat? — and warm up your car, cause baby, it’ll be cold outside for these activities.

H A R R Y & S A L LY

JUST FRIENDS

G E N R E | FA N TA SY

G E N R E | RO M A N C E

G E N R E | C O M E DY

N o, t h i s i s n ot a C h r i st m a s m ov i e, b u t t h e fra n c h i se ce l e b ra tes t h e h o l i d ays i n a l l seve n se q u e l s — so g ra b yo u r wa n d a n d m a ke a d ay o u t o f i t fo r a m ov i e m a ra t h o n !

Fo r a l l o u r h o p e l es s ro m a nt i c s o u t t h e re, t h i s o n e's fo r yo u . W i t h sc e n es ra n g i n g fro m fa l l to w i nte r, i t ' l l p u t t h e w i nte r i d e a i n yo u r h e a d w i t h o u t ove r w h e l m i n g yo u w i t h j oy.

I f yo u ' re u p fo r a laugh this R ya n Reyn o l d s c o m e d y i s fo r yo u . T h i s m ov i e h a s m o re t h a n e n o u g h s n ow y s h e n a n i g a n s to l a st t h e rest o f t h e h o l i d a y se a so n .