Issue 13

the harbinger.

*SPECIAL SECTION

Look inside for a special section about technology and its impact on the world today

SHAWNEE MISSION

NORTH

SHAWNEE MISSION

EAST

SHAWNEE MISSION

NORTHWEST

RECONSIDERED The Shawnee Mission School District considers boundary changes to elementary schools due to the changing enrollment of the district STORY ON PAGE 6

SHAWNEE MISSION

WEST

SHAWNEE MISSION

SOUTH

Shawnee Mission East l 7500 Mission Road, PV KS, 66208 l March 31, 2014 l Issue 13 l www.smeharbinger.net

editorial

editorial.

UPDATING THE TEST

VOTES FOR: 10 AGAINST: 3 ABSENT: 0

SAT to make longawaited changes

How do students feel while taking the SAT? (A) distracted (B) stressed for time (C) mentally and physically exhausted (D) worried that their score will ultimately affect them for the rest of their life (E) all of the above The best choice here would be E. Although some students prepare for college entrance exams more than others, tests like the ACT and SAT create many less than positive feelings. In order to reduce some of the negativity surrounding the SAT, The College Board is revising the test for the spring of 2016. College Board president David Coleman said in a statement that the SAT had “become disconnected from the work of our high schools.”

In hopes of better reflecting what students are learning in school, Coleman aims to include concepts on the test corresponding with the Common Core curriculum. The perfect score will change from 2400 to 1600, and students will no longer lose points for incorrect answers. In addition, the essay portion is now optional.

The Harbinger believes that these recent changes are a step in the right direction, but that no single exam, adminis-

tered on a single day reflects students’ abilities.

According to a study conducted by College Board, only 20 percent of classroom teachers believe college admission tests are a fair predictor of college success in comparison to daily work conducted at school. The only way to measure a student’s potential is to take a holistic approach: looking at what courses the student chose to take in high school, what their school is like and how they’ve responded to academic challenges. Instead admissions reps are using a non-holistic approach, students simply become a number, a score.

Although the use of college admission exams as a measure of college-preparedness remains controversial, parts of the SAT overhaul can be seen as advantageous. The goal of the redesign is to get students to focus less on things like studying obscure SAT vocabulary and spending more time using high level thinking. In terms of real-world application in college and the workforce, it makes sense to eliminate seldom used vocabulary words like “inchoate” and “legerdemain” and replace them with words like “empirical” and “synthesis.”

However, this new approach to SAT words causes students to abandon learning for the sake of appreciating the English language. Although well-intentioned, these changes

demonstrate the diminishing value placed on writing skills and a strong vocabulary. There’s a danger in making the test easier.

It’s hard to say whether or not these changes will help lower income students achieve higher scores. Test preparation is costly, and critics believe this has put low-income students at a great disadvantage when it comes to studying for the SAT. Because of this, College Board announced plans to partner with Khan Academy to offer free online practice for students. Nevertheless, the competitiveness of the SAT will still exist, which many students answer with expensive tutoring. Students must have a great deal of discipline to study for the SAT independently and thus, the free online practice offered as an alternative may not be utilized.

If the past is any indicator, the overhaul will do little to make the SAT a fairer assessment of a student’s potential.

Even with changes in vocabulary and greater emphasis on Common Core curriculum, the new SAT is still a far from perfect way of determining intelligence. A better approach would be the creation of a test truly linked to the content and skills students claim to have learned rather than what College Board deems valuable for life in college and outside the classroom.

THE HARBINGER STAFF 2013-2014

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

CO-EDITORS-IN-CHIEF Andrew McKittrick Katie Knight ASSISTANT EDITORS Morgan Krakow Sophie Tulp HEAD COPY EDITOR Sarah Berger ASSISTANT HEAD COPY EDITOR Pauline Werner ART & DESIGN EDITOR Miranda Gibbs ART & DESIGN ASSISTANT EDITOR Phoebe Aguiar NEWS SECTION EDITOR Greta Nepstad NEWS PAGE DESIGNERS Mike Thibodeau Lauren Brown

SPREAD EDITOR Caroline Kohring FEATURES SECTION EDITOR Maddie Hise FEATURES PAGE DESIGNERS Sydney Lowe Pauline Werner

STAFF WRITERS Madison Hyatt Ellis Nepstad Michael Kraske Hannah Coleman Sophie Storbeck Ellie Booton Sean Overton

A&E PAGE DESIGNERS Audrey Danciger Leah Pack SPORTS SECTION EDITOR Will Oakley SPORTS PAGE DESIGNERS Tommy Sherk John Foster

EDITORIAL BOARD ONLINE ASSISTANT ONLINE SPORTS Andrew McKittrick HEAD COPY EDITOR SECTION EDITORS Katie Knight Lauren Brown Michael Kraske Morgan Krakow Will Oakley Sarah Berger ONLINE PHOTO EDITOR Lauren Brown Marisa Walton VIDEO EDITORS Susannah Mitchell Sophie Mitchell Morgan Twibell ONLINE ASSISTANT Annie Foster Sophie Tulp PHOTO EDITORS Julia Poe Hailey Hughes PODCAST & RADIO EDITOR Grace Heitmann Callie McPhail Leah O’Connor Mike Thibodeau Pauline Werner ONLINE CONVERGENCE EDITOR EASTIPEDIA EDITOR John Foster Audrey Danciger Maxx Lamb

PHOTO EDITORS COPY EDITORS McKenzie Swanson Mike Thibodeau Maddie Schoemann FREELANCE PAGE DESIGNERS Clara Ma Grace Heitmann Andrew McKittrick ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITORS Ali Lee Morgan Krakow Annie Savage Sarah Berger Tessa Polaschek STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS ADS MANAGER ONLINE NEWS EDITOR INTERACTIVE EDITOR Sophie Tulp Neely Atha SOPHIE TOLP Ellie Booton Mike Thibodeau Katie Knight OPINION SECTION EDITOR Callie McPhail Pauline Werner Morgan Twibell Kylie Relihan ONLINE EDITORS-IN-CHIEF ONLINE HOMEGROWN EDITOR HEAD WEBMASTER Caroline Kohring Annika Sink Grace Heitmann Hannah Coleman Jack Stevens Julia Poe OPINION PAGE DESIGNERS Taylor Anderson Julia Poe Susannah Mitchell Nellie Whittaker Katie Lamar ONLINE OPINION EDITOR ASSISTANT WEBMASTERS Greta Nepstad Aidan Epstein Paloma Garcia ONLINE ASSISTANT EDITOR Claire Sullivan Jacob Milgrim John Foster James Wooldrige Tommy Sherk FREELANCE PAGE DESIGNERS A&E SECTION EDITOR Tessa Polaschek ONLINE A&E EDITOR Grace Heitmann Phoebe Aguiar Abby Hans ONLINE HEAD COPY EDITORS Audrey Danciger LIVE BROADCAST EDITORS Susannah Mitchell Will Oakley Katie Roe Jack Stevens Clara Ma Andrew McKittrick

BROADCAST TEAM Daniel Rinner MULTIMEDIA STAFF Jack Stevens Sophie Mitchell Matthew Bruyere Annie Foster Georgia DuBois Abby Hans Leah O’Connor TWEETMASTER Jacob Milgrim ONLINE BLOGGERS Corinne Stratton Katharine Swindells Brian Philipps Gaby Azorsky Scotty Burford ADVISER Dow Tate

LACKING SPIRIT In response to “Fueling the Feud”

March 5, 2014 @SMEHauberk: “FINISH THIS SENTENCE!!!! You know you go to East when……” @SMEOffice: “@SMEHauberk Everyone supports each other . . .”

That wasn’t my impression of our student body when I looked around the stands at the girls substate basketball game tonight. A thrilling game, made complete with whistle-happy referees, fiercely aggressive competition, and a crowded Blue Valley student section, dressed to the nines in Hawaiian gear, was seen by a mere 4 members of the student body not obligated to be at the game by some other commitment. The end of their Lady Lancers season drew to a dramatic close with a 31-28 loss.

Wait. I’m confused. When did a game like this, with enough tension, competition, and rivalry to silence a stadium become unexciting and unattended? Why am I embarrassed that Blue Valley students find it exciting to come to the girl’s substate game when Lancer Fans wouldn’t even be bothered?

I have so much pride in our school. Maybe even too much. If you’ve seen me walk the halls during spirit week, you would probably agree with me. I’m the first one to proudly declare that, “I go to Shawnee Mission Wonderful — where the sun shines brighter and life is better” when asked what school I attend by any unfortunate non-SMEast high schooler. I take no shame in losing my voice yelling way too loudly when a chant has apparently already finished. But lately, dare I say, I have been embarrassed by our student body support.

Rivalry isn’t an issue anymore. We hate South and Rockhurst could seriously use some feminine influence. But when did it become “uncool” to show up at less “important” games?

I’m not saying I do a perfect job. Heck, I’ve slept well into the first half of games and left early more times than I can count.

But even when rivalry is concerned, our student section falls silent at the first sign of trouble. And please PLEASE explain to me why a FULL student section sits on their hands while the girls battle it out against South prior to the boy’s varsity game.

If you haven’t seen the student section video from football season, you need to watch it right now. Because THAT is how I want to remember my high school sporting experience. Where did that fire go and why does it seem so hard to merely show your face at a tennis match, track meet, or soccer game? And how many state titles have our swim teams won, again?? But beyond even sports. Don’t forget that our journalism program triumphs as one of the best in the nation. Our theater program is by far one of the most impressive in the area. Band and Orchestra? I think there’s a reason we love our school song so much. These “teams” rival schools from our area, state, and nation. If there isn’t rivalry in that, I don’t know what kind of competition you’re looking for. I am dang proud of our Lancers that put our school on a pedestal in all areas of expertise.

I think it’s about time we showed our appreciation.

I think it’s time we stop bragging about our unity and our “Lancer Pride” and start having some real pride in everyone in our student body.

Lancer Magic isn’t far gone. But we definitely need a some more faith, trust, and a little bit of pixie dust to bring back our school spirit that we so often brag about.

I love this school and I count my lucky stars that a Lancer I will ever be.

May God watch over SM East.

-ERIN COSGROVE, SENIOR

inbox

editorial.

REAL FEMINISM YOU WROTE, In response to “Faux Feminism”

“Faux feminism.”

It’s a lofty claim.

Patriarchy is evident in every part of our society. We have twenty females in the United States Senate seated alongside eighty males. Television ads like GoDaddy featuring women are becoming increasingly sexualized, with women’s bodies being used as objects to sell products.

Patriarchy surrounds us. And just like anything else in our environment, it affects the way we think and approach knowledge. In order to discuss patriarchy and feminism, we must start by questioning the way we think and the way our environment affects our viewpoint.

This article makes an assumption that sexualization is the antithesis of feminism. It in many ways conforms to a societal belief that sexuality and the attraction of the male gaze is negative.

Do revealing outfits and sexual dancing attract the heterosexual male gaze? You bet it does, but are these actions a way of commodifying the female body? The answer to the question can easily be yes, but only if we allow it to be.

In our society, a woman is presented with two options for the way she dresses her body. A female can choose to cover her body and hide it from men. This can be viewed as allowing men and their potential gaze to dictate women’s clothing.

Or a woman can choose to follow in Beyonce’s footsteps and portray her sexuality through revealing clothing choices.

This can easily lead to a woman’s body becoming an object to be adorned and possessed by men.

However, we believe that there is a third option for women.

Let’s give Beyonce the benefit of the doubt and assume that her highly sexualized performance was not intended to attract a larger male audience. Let’s assume that she is dressing in clothes she loves and that she feels comfortable, sexy and powerful in.

With these assumptions, her performance gains a new meaning. Her empowering lyrics for women are no longer contradicted by her actions on stage. Instead, her actions can be redefined by her lyrics. She sends the message that a women can be sexual and yet still maintain control over her own body. She has taken away the power of the male gaze.

She is dressing for herself, with the sole purpose of feeling powerful and confident.

Whether a woman feels powerful in fishnets and heels or in a burqa, we believe that no one individual can define what makes a woman feel confident.

For these reasons, we disagree wholeheartedly with the article’s stance that female performers’ revealing clothing and portrayal of sexuality is a demotion of women.

Sincerely, Ali Dastjerdi and Afton Apodaca NOTE: The use of the terms “female” and “woman” in this article are not intended to be defined by a strictly biological basis. They should be fluidly defined as anyone who decides to identify as such. The term “male gaze” is also not intended to encompass all those who identify as male. In this letter, it is mostly used to signify a heterosexual male, but is not exclusive of other sexual identities.

-ALI DASTJERDI, JUNIOR -AFTON APODACA, JUNIOR

WE PUBLISHED

Letters to the editor

A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE

In response to “Shattering A Chance At Life” I am writing in response to an opinion written in your most recent issue on pro-life choice. First off, hats off to the writer, Ellie Booton. To state her opinion so openly and have it published for all of Prairie Village is a brave action that most of us could not do. Although the writing was well done, I must disagree on some points.

I’m not sure where I stand on abortion myself. I’ve heard numerous accounts of the mother’s guilt after having an abortion that lingers for years. I have no clue what I would do with an unplanned pregnancy, and I can only hope that I will never be forced such a horrible life decision. Either road a woman chooses presents its own challenges.

One thing I will strongly openly state my opinion on is abortion after a woman has been raped. To say that the mother should raise the child to “prove something” is out of line. Unless it has happened to you, no one should have the audacity to say whether the victim should keep her baby or not. To carry that child in her womb for nine months as a constant reminder of the most violent and scarring moment of her life… None of us can even begin to imagine. Ideally, yes, wouldn’t it be wonderful to make lemonade out of such devastating lemons, but we’re only human, and I couldn’t bear to be continuously reminded of my realest nightmare.

Everyone’s view on abortion varies and I believe we will never find a correct answer; it will always remain a grey area.

Whether your opinion is shaped on religion, feminism, or human rights is yours to keep. Consider this: What if we could prevent anyone from having to make such a transformative decision? The answer lies in thorough sex education and available contraception (but that’s a whole other can of worms I’ll let the Harbinger open up…)

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

A week in photos

F E I R B NEWS IN

Major Oil Spill Harms the Environment HAILEY HUGHES Sophomore Mariam Wadood uses the wheel to make a bowl out of clay in her ceramics class on March 26.

ANNIE SAVAGE

During the girls’ soccer scrimmage on March 12, senior varsity player Victoria Sabates dribbles the ball past freshman JV player Katie Kuhlman.

KYLIE RELLIHAN Senior Ty Nanos shows junior Marlena Kaine a picture on her phone during their painting class on March 10.

ANNIKA SINK Seniors Ben Hoffman, Peter Millage, Quincy Hendricks and Drew Harding observe their team games class on March 10.

WRITTEN BY PAULINE WERNER ART BY GRETA NEPSTAD

A

}

Dumping nearly 170,000 gallons of heavy oil into Houston Ship Channel on March 22, an oil barge collided with another ship while navigating one of the nation’s busiest seaports. The port remained closed until Tuesday, March 25, causing a large backup in traffic.

The spill was seen as far as 12 miles away from the crash site a day after the spill, raising numerous environmental concerns and economic worries over the effect of the clogged traffic.

Sophomore Sam McDonald was coming home from a Central American cruise over spring break when he and the 4,000 other passengers were told that there was a crash and that they would have to wait on the ship before they could get off.

“We had to stop for like fourteen hours,” McDonald said. “When we pulled in there was oil everywhere and it smelled really bad. You could just see it on top of the water.”

Coast Guard officials said that it’s difficult to tell how long cleanup will take. Officials are hopeful that, since most of the oil is believed to be drifting out into the Gulf of Mexico, negative impacts on beaches, fisheries and bird habitats will be limited.

East Student’s Mom Runs for City Council

news.

East parent Jori Nelson is running against incumbent Dale Warman for the Prairie Village Council seat from Ward 1, the area from 63rd to 71st street between Nall and Mission. Elections for the four-year term will be held on April 1.

Having grown up and raised her two children in Prairie Village, including senior Audrey Nelson. Jori told the PV Post that she intends to challenge the perception of Prairie Village being a retirement community by making accommodations for younger families and seeking alternative, non-retirement uses for closed schools. A third grade teacher, Jori is also against raising sales taxes.

Audrey says that her mom has been an outspoken member of the homes association that stood against large development on the Mission Valley site, and that she would like to see more cooperation between the City and the Shawnee Mission School District.

“There are things that she wants to change about the city,” Audrey said. “She thinks that a lot of the city council members have been there for a long time, so she thinks it’s time for a change.”

Changes in Sex Education Policy The Kansas Legislature passed a bill earlier this year that would prohibit schools across the state from providing health and sexuality education to their students without a parent consent from. The debate sparked from a hearing over human health and education, and turned into a questioning of school practice and how to involve parents in decisions about their childrens’ education.

Now, according to assistant principal Britton Haney, it’s up to the Shawnee Mission School District (SMSD) to figure out what to do for Shawnee Mission schools.

“They are currently addressing that and figuring out how they’re going to adjust the program for next year,” Haney said. “I believe parents will then decide if their child wants to opt out or not.”

SMSD currently uses an abstinence-based program called Make a Difference!, which came under review because of a controversial poster that was posted outside a classroom in Hocker Grove Middle School.

The district’s decision will determine if the program will change in years ahead to be more parent-inclusive.

LOOK

inside

OIL SPILLS the worst 3 oil spills in HISTORY

1) Kuwait(1991) 520 million gallons of oil 2) Mexico (1979-1980) 140 million gallons of oil 3) Trinidad & Tobago (1979) 90 million gallons of oil

WILDLIFE AT RISK Oil has serious affects on sea creatures and can be fatal

Sea Turtles: Newly hatched turtles won’t be able to surface for air Dolphins: Oil coats their blow holes and enters their lungs Birds: Their entire body is coated with oil when they dive for fish

Steps taken after an oil spill: skimmers wildlife is and vacuums rescued and physically cleaned remove the oil from the water

dispersants are added to the water to break up the oil

news.

CHANGING BOUNDARIES

Changing enrollment in the Shawnee Mission School District prompts a discussion on adjusting school boundaries

WRITTEN BY SARAH BERGER PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY NEELY ATHA

The final report of the demographic study for the Shawnee Mission School District was delivered on Feb. 12. According to the study, East’s current enrollment is 1,652 students. The building has a capacity of 2,159 students, resulting in a 507 student deficit. The drop in enrollment could result in a change in boundary lines, but no decisions have been made as of now.

Preston Smith, principal owner of Business Information Services, LLC, has done about 200 similar studies around the country and had never seen so much excess capacity as he had in the SMSD schools. He says this excess capacity is effecting schools negatively through wasted funds on utilities.

“It costs more to operate [schools under capacity],” Smith said. “You’ve got a lot of space that your heating, your cooling, your lighting is not being used very effectively. It’s not really efficient the way buses are run. You waste a lot of fuel.”

As a way to increase enrollment throughout SMSD schools Business Information Services provided four recommended scenarios to the district. All four scenarios included a change in boundaries and school closings. According to Smith, these were only recommendations and there is no definitive solution he thinks the district should follow.

Superintendent Dr. Jim Hinson announced at a board of education meeting on March 24 that the district has no plans to close any school, but is looking to rearrange boundary lines which would change which neighborhoods attend which schools. No set decision has been made regarding boundary changes, but East area board of education representative Donna Bysfield says the district is currently looking to change the boundaries of under-enrolled elementary schools and try to avoid changing any the feeder patterns

going into middle and high schools.

Principal John McKinney said he would follow any changes the district made, but his main concern is a change in feeder patterns. He worries it will disrupt the traditions associated with going to same schools as siblings.

“When you have feeder patterns it really gives a sense of tradition,” McKinney said. “I think that’s a neat part of this district and any changes would disrupt that tradition."

Since he started working at East in 2000, McKinney says he has also seen a drop in enrollment. He attributes this drop to the older community in the East area and competition with private schools.

“I think its wonderful that we have such a great, established community and all their support, but they don’t have kids,” McKinney said. “It’s difficult for young, married couples, couples that are having school age kids. There aren’t as many homes for them to move into in our area.”

From 1990 to 2012 there was a 7.2 percent drop in births in the 66208 area code. The older population also prevents new families from moving into the area, and according to Smith, provides no new incentive for development. Districtwide there are 117,082 households documented, and out of those 2,829 houses were moved into last year by families with school-aged children. Out of these families, 78 percent only has one child.

Data from the Kansas State Department of Education shows 5.5 percent of Kansas students are home-schooled or enrolled in private schools. This number is higher for East and the district, which in turn helps explain the decreased enrollment. There are currently 24 private schools that compete for students within the Shawnee Mission School District boundaries. Bysfield, who has been representing the East area for 21 years, says she has seen a steady 20 percent of students living in the district attending private

schools.

“I’m a realist so I know if parents are looking for a religious school experience then we’re not going to get those folks here, that’s just the way it goes,” McKinney said. “I think that if they will allow me to talk to them about what East has to offer and demonstrate the focus here is on academics but also allowing kids to have a whole high school experience.”

Some of the East feeder elementary schools have the highest percentages of students enrolled in private schools.

Westwood View, on the northern border of the East area, had 39.9 percent of the students in its attendance zone enrolled in private schools. Prairie Elementary had 35.2 percent of its population in private schools, and Corinth Elementary had 25.2 percent.

While the demographic study showed decreased enrollment this year, McKinney does see enrollment circling back around eventually due to efforts to recruit private school students and a younger population trying to move into the area.

The demographic study reflected this as well. The highest enrollment projection for the 2014-2015 school year is 1,549 students. This is expected to increase over the years with a highest projection of 1,752 students for the 20232024 school year.

To Bysfield, these long term projections don’t seem to be necessarily accurate. While she thinks past data can give an idea of future enrollment numbers, it can’t fully predict it due to outside circumstances such as families moving in and out of the district.

“Its a cyclical thing, but its not a predictable thing,” Bysfield said.

A LOOK AT THE NUMBERS 1,652 students currently enrolled at East

507

The maximum capacity of East is 2,159 students, resulting in a 507 student deficit.

2,829 houses were moved into by new families in the SMSD district

Changes to boundaries affect the of students ment.

school could future enroll-

78 percent of new households with school age children only have one child.

Curfew Crackdown The Plaza tightens their curfew laws, adding to local curfews affecting East students WRITTEN BY ELLIS NEPSTAD ART BY MIKE THIBODEAU

Big Cities with Youth Curfew Laws Washington D.C.

- Anyone 17 and under

cannot be out between 12:01 a.m. and 6:00 a.m.

New York City - Driving curfew for those under 21

- Curfew in designat-

ed areas (parks, etc.)

K

ids under 18 years old cannot hang out together whenever they want on the Plaza or in the Village. They have to leave by a certain time of night; a curfew. Evening curfews in the East area including the Prairie Village city curfew which is 11:00 p.m. The Plaza curfew, during the summer, and the restricted driving license curfew is 9:00 p.m.

Currently the 9:00 p.m. curfew on the Plaza is only in effect during the summer. Kansas City Missouri police chief Darryl Forte said in a statement, the Plaza security a less lenient approach with the curfews.

Breaking curfew on the Plaza could result in being taken to a police station. Over the summer, sophomore Ali Hickey and her friend were on the Plaza 20 minutes past curfew when they were both caught.

According to Hickey, she was at the Plaza Cinemark theater with her friend seeing the movie, “Monsters University”. As they were walking out of the theater around 9:20 p.m., police officers surrounded the theater. The officers asked them if they were 18. Because they were not, the two were taken back to the police station.

When Hickey called her father, h e

news. just laughed. According to Hickey, the police took 32 minors into the police station that night. They also wrote citations which could have resulted in family counseling and up to a $500 fine. When Hickey went to court, none of the police written citations applied to them, because Hickey’s mother was waiting for them on the Plaza.

Prairie Village has a different consequence for breaking curfew.

If a minor is out past the 11:00 p.m. curfew, one of three things could happen.

If minors are out past curfew the police will either escort you home, give you a ticket, or give out personal records that say you have passed curfew before.

The police are not the only people who enforce curfews relating to teenagers — many East parents enforce them too. Parental curfews are a way to keep teens safe. According to Karen Jaggers, a mother of two East students, parents need to insure their children are not in harms way.

“Curfews implemented by parents should be respected because it’s always good to have a level of agreement between you and your parents on issues that concern your safety,” junior Noah Marsh said.

According to sophomore Matt

Ho, breaking a parental implemented curfew lowers the trust between the teen and parents, and this eventually leads to less freedom for the teen in the future.

There is only one driving curfew that affects East students; the 16 lesser restricted license, which mainly affects sophomores. With the lesser restricted license, there is a morning curfew of 5:00 a.m. and a night curfew of 9:00 p.m.

“There is no reason to be out before 5:00 a.m. or after 9:00 p.m.,” School Resource Officer (SRO) Joel Porter said.

According to Porter, breaking the 9 p.m. curfew could possibly lead to a suspension of the restricted license.

If someone driving with their lesser restricted license had a traffic violation than their license would could be restricted. The decision on the suspension would come at the court level.

Although curfews make teens delay plans to hang out together, some teenagers see why they exist.

“One point of view [is that] it could keep the kids safe,” Hickey said . “I know a lot of adults don’t like it when kids are out and about causing havoc. Maybe they [have curfews] to restrain the children.”

It’s about time we met.

Best Company To Work For -Ingram’s Magazine

“Completely Free” Checking and Online Banking Leawood - 3510 West 95th Street - (913) 341-1144 Overland Park - 10700 Nall Avenue - (913) 905-2100 Stop by for free ice cream on Fridays! Like us on Facebook!

www.bankofkc.com

Minimum deposit to open is $50. No minimum balance required on checking accounts, except Investment Checking, which has a $2,500 minimum balance required. $10 monthly service charge with Fresh Start Checking.

Inc

PLY

P

SUP

TO PHO

OVERLAND O S

Overland Photo Supply

8701 Metcalf Ave. Overland Park, KS 66212 913-648-5950 Fax: 913-648-5966 Hours: 10-7 Mon-Fri 10-5 Sat

A Shift in the S

news.

AT

The ACT will undergo numerous changes to the existing test, to be put into effect by 2017 WRITTEN BY MICHAEL KRASKE In the 88 year span of the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT), the test has changed its format several times. Now, starting in 2017, new changes to the SAT will be implemented across the United States. These changes will include scoring, timing, administration, the essay portion of the exam, the math portion and the reading and writing portion. The changes will only affect the class of 2017. For current sophomores, juniors and seniors, the test will remain the same.

The Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) is a standardized test run by the College Board, a private company in the United States, that approximately 1.6 million students take every year. The SAT is used to show colleges what students know and how well they are able to apply that knowledge in a test format. The test was first introduced in 1926, and was called the “Scholastic Aptitude Test”, and was changed to the “Scholastic Assessment Test” to which it is still called today.

In the fall of trying 2015, the PSAT They’re just make to (Plan SAT) their best rate cu ac n will make the test ...a stuof n tio changes as ta represen e. well, serving as dents’ knowledg a preview for the new SAT. There are 17 total changes to the SAT. The most major of these changes include the essay portion of the exam being changed from required to optional. If a student chooses to write the essay, the test is a total of three hours

Don Baker

Lancer Voice Lancers respond to the SAT changes, and how that affects them.

and fifty minutes, and without the essay it’s three hours total. Counselor Don Baker thinks this will help students play to their strengths or weaknesses.

“Some kids are going to love it because they don’t write as well, so now they get to choose,” Baker said. “It’ll be a mixed bag, some will be happy [about the essay being optional], and some will be unhappy.”

Another major change comes in the math portion of the exam. In the current exam, calculators are permitted for all math sections of the exam. Starting in 2017, the calculator is no longer permitted for any sections of the exam. Baker thinks that along with the no calculator rule, the overall math portion of the exam will change, balancing out the adjustment. Although Baker is not positive exactly how the overall format of the math portion will change, he does know that it will change in one way or another.

“With the no calculator rule being implemented, the test questions have to change, there’s no way kids can be expected to do some of those questions without a calculator,” Baker said. “I think it’ll be fine, though; they will make sure the questions are doable without a calculator.”

The last major change to the SAT is the number of questions on the test. The new SAT will feature fewer questions with a greater focus on in-depth analysis of content. This means that questions will be longer and more in depth, but fewer questions on the test overall. Senior Alex Maday, who took the SAT last year, thinks that with fewer questions, the test would be less difficult.

“I think with less questions it will be easier because tim-

Hannah Lewis FRESHMAN “I think I would focus more on preparing for the actual questions, rather than focusing on the essay, because that will be optional now.”

ing was always an issue for me,” Maday said. “For me personally, less questions would make it more manageable.”

Counselor Don Baker thinks the changes are nothing to worry about. He knows there have been several changes made in the past, and doesn’t think the changes will affect students’ scores on the test.

“They’ve made lots of changes to the test in the past,” Baker said. “[By changing the test] they’re just trying their best to make the test better and as much of an accurate representation of students’ knowledge as possible.”

Freshman Hope Hess, who is part of the class of 2017 whom these changes will first affect, thinks the SAT will change in difficulty depending on the person.

“I haven’t taken [the SAT] before so I don’t know for sure, but I feel like it would be a little easier for me,” Hess said.

“I think not having a calculator would be the hardest part because I’m not very good at math to start with. But I think the idea is that the SAT will be easier, but I also feel like it’ll be the same level of difficulty but just laid out in a different format than before.”

Baker has the same idea. He thinks that even though it’s different, it’ll be scored the same and kids will adjust to it the exact same way.

“They’ll make adjustments, and it’ll be fair because everyone will be scored on the same basis,” Baker said. “If everybody is judged the same, it’s going to be fine. The kids that are going to score at the very top are going to score at the very top, same for the kids who are going to score elsewhere.”

Akshay Dinakar JUNIOR

Kelly Pidcoe SENIOR

“More students can relate to it because it uses more vocabulary that kids learn in the classroom, but I think it is not necessarily fair to the buffer years.”

“I would have chosen the SAT over the ACT with the new changes, because I think my scores would be better with the shorter tests.”

opinion.

FCC MONITORING NEWSROOMS

KEEPING

POLITICS OUT OF THE NEWSROOM

Government attempts to intervene with the press should be opposed

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY HAILEY HUGHES

T

here is an underlying opinion in America that the press is biased, corrupted, swinging too far to the left or the right. That’s an opinion of not an obscure idea. Fox JULIA POE News is known as being the conservative voice, while Republicans scoff at CNN and MSNBC. Journalism is no longer an unbiased resource; each station and publication have their own political skew.

This bias might just seem like a frustrating state of normalcy. This is not a minor concern. This bias is changing the ways that journalists report the news. Take for example CBS reporter Sharyl Atkisson. In 2007, Atkisson was the 18th most-used reporter for CBS, averaging 160 annual on-air minutes, and she retained this status until 2012. That year, she chose to turn her attention to the Benghazi controversy, covering in-depth stories into the politics behind how the attack was handled.

Due to her coverage and criticism of the controversy, Atkisson’s air time was sliced. She couldn’t get stories pushed through to production, and was forced to publish editorials and articles on the CBS website. Her computer and files were hacked multiple times by an unknown source. Finally, Atkisson quit. After a frustrated year of reporting in 2013, she had only had 54 minutes on-air.

In Atkisson’s case, her censorship was based on differing political views. This story isn’t an indictment of political parties, but it is an accurate representation of how biased news media has become. The politics behind stories like this are often blown off as “conspiracy theories,” but the subject of press freedom is not one that should be taken lightly.

There is one purpose for the press — to bring the truth “the quality and scope of the police work” and making it a to society. Journalism is a forum for information to be national story that was brought to courts. The entire affair shared and ideas to be discussed. Yet in early February, would not have been addressed without proactive jourthe Federal Communications Commission (FCC) was nalism. It drove an important message — the press, and primed to begin a new study that would force monitors America, would not stand for veiled racism or injustice. into newsrooms across the country in an attempt to evaluThe Trayvon Martin case was a triumph for the power ate the accuracy and appropriateness of reporting. The of a free press. Yet it is only one triumph. Press freedom in study was called the Multi-Market Study for Critical Infor- America is not perfect — it’s very far from it. mation Needs (CIN), and it was a dangerous step towards Yet although American frustration with the press is censoring the press. evident, the American press is still fairly free -- especialCIN should terrify every single American. USA Today ly in comparison to other countries. In Russia, multiple reporter Rem Reider described CIN as “a boneheaded, journalists have quit or voiced unscripted opinions on-air intrusive initiative.” Yet CIN is more chilling than that. over controversies such as the Ukraine, due to Russian It has the ability to keep the press censorship over the topic. In Hong Kong, from publishing unbiased news. editors and media executives are under Press freedom in Placing government supervisors in constant threat; just last month, two exAmerica is not perfect newsrooms gives the government the ecutives of a controversial publication — it’s very far from it. control to stop or revise stories bewere attacked and beaten with iron bars. fore they are even drafted. With that American journalists do not face ramcontrol, the public would be receiving pant censorship or chilling violence. Yet information skewed to fit a politician or political party’s politics are making their jobs even more difficult, and stance on issues. government censorship is yet another step towards crumNewsroom politics are already rampantly changing bling into a biased and untrustworthy press. the ways that news is produced. The introduction of politiUltimately, freedom is necessary for the duty of the cians and heavily biased government officials would only press. In a country of millions, it is easy for individual heighten the problem that programs such as CIN are at- stories to be lost. The press gives voice to those individutempting to remedy. By bringing more politics into the als. Social media gives a majority of Americans access to newsroom, government intervention would serve to de- unlimited information and the ability to voice their opinteriorate the already shaky trust Americans have in the ions. Yet there is no voice stronger, louder or more trustpress. worthy than that of the press. Government intervention CIN would destroy the ability of the press to do one would take away that truth, that strength and that trust of their most important jobs: question the government. by skewing the voice of the press. The press must remain Think of the Trayvon Martin case. An African-American independent from the government, or the voice of the boy was killed; before press intervention, his killer was American individual will be lost. not tried. Publications such as the New York Times published the story front page, questioning local officials for

LEGACY

THE

an opinion of

ALI LEE

The plains of Kansas speeding by and all that can be heard is “Yellow Submarine” blaring with shouts from my brother and I singing along. My parents flashing big grins to each other as they listen. After the song has repeated at least three times, my parents join in, remembering how they used to listen to the Beatles on the radio when they were little.

The Beatles reached the pinnacle of fame and broke up more than 20 years before I was born. Yet they still remain a part of our world wide culture today. They made their first American appearance on the Ed Sullivan show where they performed four of their songs including “All My Loving”, “Till There Was You”, “I Saw Her Standing There” and “I Want to Hold Your Hand.” Last month, Feb. 9,

opinion.

The Beatles remain in today’s culture and are loved by fans who weren’t born when they broke up

marked the 50th anniversary of this group’s monumental U.S. debut.

Some of the most common components in the music world were influenced by the Beatles. They were the first to take the idea of music-film performances of songs, kind of how we see soundtracks now, and just used a video of their performance. In hopes to help ease their busy schedule, they decided to take this idea by just sending videos instead of appearances. Their first music video was for the single “Paperback Writer/Rain” in 1966.

Music videos are now made for almost every song now. The music video is responsible for some of the most popular media today such as MTV and YouTube.

They also were the inspiration for FM radio, which is a major source for music . In 1968 music would for the majority of the time be on AM radio along with the talk radios. The problem was that they would only play music for three minutes which would decrease the chance of them broadcasting songs that didn’t fit the time frame. When “Hey Jude” came to the radio the company cut it off at three minutes when the song’s full length was nearly seven and a half minutes long. An FM

What they left

behind

radio worker named Tom Donahue, in hopes to take off his idea of putting music on FM radio, broadcasted”Hey Jude” at its full length.

FM radio is where I listen to music on the radio and I couldn’t imagine not being able to listen to songs fully on the radio or a car ride where i’m not listening to the radio, that’s just something that is normal. Usually my mom and I disagree on the music that we listen too but, it doesn’t seem to matter what your age is to enjoy the Beatles. My mother has been a fan since she was a child and I love when we are able to enjoy the same music.

Before 1966, most of the albums that were released had songs selected by the record company and not the band. The Beatles, along with their producer created the first concept album, which is an album that has an overall main idea. Their overall theme for the album, “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” was a concert in the park. Instead of the songs being released as singles before they were put into an album, all of their songs were released at the same time. Now concept albums are much more common in the music industry, such as Beyonce’s’ newest album, which was kept secret until it dropped on Dec. 3.

Printing Lyrics on Albums

Stadium Concert Venues

laLaLALAlaLlalalaLALAlA LAlaLALAlalaLAlalaLALA LALALALALALalaLAlalal LALAlalaLALA lalalaLAlalal LAlaLALAla LALALalaLA lalaLAlaLA LAlaLAlaLalala lalalalalalalaLAlaLAlalalalaLa LALALAlalaLaLAlaLALAlalaLaLA lalalalalalaLALAlalalaLA LAlaLALAlalala

The Beatles 1967 album was the first to feature lyrics on the album cover.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF MCT CAMPUS

The Beatles booked the New York Shea Stadium in 1965, the first to preform in a stadium.

Recently, both Ringo Starr and Sir Paul McCartney, the two remaining Beatles, performed at the Grammys. Even Yoko Ono, the late John Lennon’s wife, made an appearance.

Any chance to see a Beatle performing is increasingly rare and I was happy to see them live. The new songs were different than the original Beatles lyrics, but still represent a lot of meaning. I am probably one of many who would like to see these men perform not only their new material but their old classics on a more regular basis.

Given all their history, is it fair to say that the Beatles have been the best band of all time? In my opinion they deserve the title.

Not very often do you see members of a band to be thought of as musical royalty by those who were fans when they controlled the radios in the 60’s and 70’s and also people in my generation as well. They have been a legend in their own time. That is a rare honor saved usually for only the biggest icons of history, that classifies The Beatles as such. They were such an amazing band that hopefully in the future on road trips with my kids, we will be blasting “Yellow Submarine”.

Music Videos

The Beatles were the first group to marry the idea of music and video for their song “Paper” in 1966.

SPEEDING TICKET? TRUMAN TICKETS

FOR A SPEEDY RESOLUTION

Truman Tickets Law

Senior Living That is as Individual as You Are

913-381-6000

816-331-7848

816-471-1114

913-906-9696

913-851-0215

913-825-9600

913-299-1166

Choice of lawyer is an important decision and should not be based solely on advertisements.

Licensed in Missouri and Kansas.

MICHAEL J. STEIERT, D.D.S. LLC General Dentistry MISSION BANK BUILDING 8201 MISSION ROAD, SUITE 231 PRAIRIE VILLAGE, KS 66208 (913) 432-2525

I

need to rejuvenate

M-F 6 am - 2 pm Sat. 7 am- 11am Closed Sundays and Holidays 5606B Johnson Dr., Mission, KS 66202 (one block west of Nall) 913-671-8290

SHINE spa

Whether rejuventating alone or celebrating with friends, Shine Spa in historic Westport is the place to feel your best...with a little extra shine!

Massage, Skin Care, and Beauty

GET 10% OFF WITH THIS AD 4141 PENNSYLVANIA • 816.531.8600 • WWW.SHINESPAKC.COM FRESH...FUN...FABULOUS

What It Means To Be BRAVE

I

opinion.

Ordinary acts of bravery deserve our attention, enlighten our everyday lives

am not always brave.

I don’t always do the right thing. In the spur of a moment, my decisions tend to be uneven, irrational – governed more by my immediate emotions and an opinion of fears rather than sound CLARA MA logic.

That’s why, while I was volunteering at the hospital on a Saturday morning a few weeks ago, I froze. I had just returned to the lobby after transporting a patient to the radiology lab when I saw an elderly woman fall face down on the ground, unconscious, blood spilling from her mouth and chin. It was terrifying.

A thousand thoughts ran through my head. What if she doesn’t wake up? What if I’m the only one here and I should have done something? What if?

Before I could even decide what to do, the hospital lobby was swarming with capable doctors, nurses and security guards. I became a bystander — I shrank away from the commotion. I let myself become invisible. I was not brave enough to offer a helping hand; I wasn’t even brave enough to move.

Two minutes passed. Three, then four. No response from the woman. The makeshift beeping monitor they had at-

In other words...

Inspirational figures give their take on the importance of courage

tached to her chest sped up rapidly, and I held my breath.

Then, finally — after what seemed like an eternity — something.

“Are you alright?” she said, opening her eyes. She could barely move her mouth — her head was bruised, her chin cracked and lips still bleeding. The feeble inquiry was directed at her daughter who stood nearby. The woman, in all of her pain, weakness and confusion, was first and foremost concerned about her daughter’s safety.

“Honey, don’t you worry about me,” she said to her daughter. It was such a simple thing to say, yet to me it was also incredibly brave. * * * When I think of courage, I usually think of astronauts and civil rights leaders, presidents and war heroes. What I don’t often think of, though, are the small acts of bravery that happen every day. The spirited kid on the playground with scraped knees who stands up to the bully. The devoted wife who hugs her husband one last time before he leaves for combat. The elderly woman, who, after falling hard, can think only of the safety of her loved ones when she wakes up.

It is things like these that make me so intoxicated by the commonplace yet remarkable nature of human beings. The part of us that drives us to be brave, to be selfless, to have courage — to put someone else’s well-being before our own

“Passion is what drives us crazy, what makes us do extraordinary things, to discover, to challenge ourselves. Passion is and should always be the heart of courage.”

MIDORI KOMATSU

“I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.” NELSON MANDELA

WHEN SHE SHOOTS, SO DO WE GIRL’S SOCCER BROADCAST SCHEDULE

OPPONENT

DATE & TIME

OLATHE EAST

4/14/14 @ 7:00

PLACE

COMPLEX

SM SOUTH

4/22/14 @ 7:00

COMPLEX

SM WEST

5/1/14 @ 7:00

COMPLEX

BOY’S LACROSSE BROADCAST SCHEDULE

OPPONENT

DATE & TIME

OLATHE SOUTH 4/1/14 @ 7:45

PLACE

SM NORTH

AQUINAS

4/3/14 @ 7:45

SM NORTH

SM SOUTH

4/8/14 @ 7:45

SM SOUTH

in awful situations — even in the smallest, most ordinary of ways.

This kind of courage isn’t particularly exceptional or noteworthy. It’s not going to earn a place in our textbooks; it’s not going to alter the course of history. No, this is the courage that enlightens our everyday. The courage that makes up the small moments of a lifetime. And maybe it’s precisely for that reason that it shouldn’t go unnoticed. * * * I am aware that I volunteer at a hospital. I am aware that every single day, people come in with injuries and inflictions, suffering and in pain. I am aware that worse things happen all the time, that this is nothing compared to all the tragedy in the world. But this was the first time I had ever witnessed such a severe accident while volunteering, and instead of helping, instead of acting, I did nothing.

I realize now, writing this piece, that what I saw in that woman was exactly what I didn’t see in myself. She acted with a courage, a selflessness that I am still striving to learn.

I am not always brave. But I’m trying to be, and I hope someday that bravery — even the ordinary kind, especially the ordinary kind — will come as naturally to me as it did to her.

“Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says I’ll try again tomorrow.”

MARY ANNE RADMACHER

opinion.

COMPETING in the CLASSROOM

WRITTEN BY HANNAH COLEMAN

I could read her face like a book. She wasn’t kidding anyone. She needed to know that she had beaten me. Her busy eyes narrowed as she tried to skim over my newly received PSAT scores. The way she leaned towards me gave away her feigned disinterest. She was completely infatuated with the idea of being better than I was. And that, to her, was the most important thing in the world. She finally managed to snatch the sheet from my hands, and as she did, my confidence fell to the floor. She hungrily searched the paper for just the right spot. Her eyes lit up. She smirked and handed it back to me.

I have a question — just one: why? Why was it that girl’s main priority to best me? It’s because we, as students, are headed in the wrong direction. We get angry when our best friends have a higher class rank than us, and we can’t stand it when we miss two more questions on a test than someone else did. But it’s wrong. We are so very wrong.

Our school environment has become an arena, not a classroom. We compete. We are, in fact competitors. But are we fighting for the right thing? Are we fighting for getting the best grades we can for our future benefit, or are we simply racing to the top of the class just to be able to say that we did so and pad our college resumes?

Ok, let’s take a step back here. I mean, honestly, who doesn’t feel amazing after they get the grade they want on a test? In that moment, when you see your score, you are exhilarated. Then what? You hear everyone else whispering, taking you away from your moment. And what are they saying? You know what: “Hey, what did you get? Oh, I got an A. You got a B? Oh, well I got an A. Oops, did I already say that?”

It’s really hard to hear. What used to be your confidence completely disintegrates as soon as you start hearing those

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY TAYLOR ANDERSON

excited hushed voices boasting about their success. All you are left with is a pit in your stomach. We can’t help it; we start comparing ourselves to others immediately.

We need to base our success on our personal goals. If we meet them, we should be elated.

We are never satisfied, are we? Even if we meet our goals, there will always be someone better than us, right? Well, in all honesty, who the heck cares? Do we actually care what another person gets on a test? No, we don’t. We care about how we did in comparison.

We shouldn’t have to feel like our grades need to live up to anyone else’s standards. It is not their concern. It shouldn’t be anyone else’s concern but your own. By having such a high interest in others’ grades we shift the focus of education into some intellectual competition.

It often confuses me why students love to discuss the quality of their grades but completely despise the class they are talking about. They could care less about what they are learning. They just get through the course and get the grade.

But we have to remember this: what is the point of the class?

The purpose of a course is not to give one bragging rights, but it is to actually educate young students so that when it’s time for us to run this country, we will be able to know what we are doing.

The problem of competitiveness has gotten to the point where there is so much insecurity in students, that we have to search students for their weaknesses. It makes us feel better to do so. If you got a C on a test, and your best friend got a D, in all honestly, you are probably thinking in your mind, “Well, I don’t feel as bad now.” School should not have to come to that. We need to be satisfied with ourselves for once. When

we are done with school, and leading our adult lives, who will honestly remember or even care what you got on that one chapter test in the 10th grade? No one.

You are not going to think about that grade, but you will have something so much more vital. You will have knowledge. Yes, knowledge. That is what we are supposed to take out of school. When you look back at your high school experience, what will you want to remember? Hours of feeling ever-depressed about your almost A? How you used to look around the classroom searching for your friend’s test grade?

The way you felt after you saw it, positive or negative? You should look back on high school and remember what you should have retained: life skills.

The absence for the drive to attain valuable life skills has driven us to make awful decisions. Cheating is the prime example for the lack of interest in retaining knowledge at school. Our minds are so corrupted, so driven to get one good grade, that we risk losing the opportunity to learn something, to make actual progress in our lives. Getting false high test scores isn’t surging us forward, it is setting us back.

So ultimately, should we idolize getting good grades and worship the idea of beating everyone out in the class rank or should we work on what really matters? I still clearly remember when I was humiliated after getting my PSAT scores back in the midst of the sophomore geniuses, but I am starting to look at the scene differently. Because seriously, no matter how I did in high school, it all comes back to what I learned and what I took from my experiences. What we can take from them. And that is how it should be.

LANCER VOICE WHY are students academically competitive?

“We are constantly being compared to one another in GPA, class rank and test scores.

Students receive more pressure from their parents and themselves than they do from teachers.”

JR: Maggie McGannon

“They want to be better than everyone. I think especially with friends, it’s a constant competition comparing grades and such.”

SOPH: Bella Shirazi

“Kids have been brought up thinking that they need to get into the best of the best schools, so they have to be competitive”

SR: Mark Darling

features.

KEY TO

Success Senior plans to take a gap year and work towards a career as a composer WRITTEN BY SOPHIE STORBECK PHOTOS BY MARISA WALTON

S

enior Ty Nanos stares at the mass of people in the Kauffman Center. She’s impressed with the turnout — half of the seats are filled in Helzberg Hall. She spent a whole month, almost seven hours a day, composing, practicing and arranging songs with 25 other musicians for this. The opportunity to perform their original pieces in front of her biggest audience yet via the Grammy Museum’s Music Revolution Project.

Experiences like this are what Nanos works towards. Her hard work in music has gotten her opportunities like the Grammy Project and composing for the spring play this year.

Before the performance, the Sprint Center buzzed with activity. Offices were filled with musicians from around the city. They worked in rotating groups together and received assignments like changing a pre-existing song or writing one from scratch in rotating groups.

Because of her involvement in the Grammy Project, Jonathan Lane, Nanos’ orchestra teacher, recommended her to drama teacher Tom Defeo to compose all of the music that will be featured in

the spring play. Lane said he suggested Nanos based on her involvement in the Grammy Project and knowledge about technology and composition.

The spring play, “Eurydice”, is a tragic love story between Orpheus and Eurydice, who dies and is sent to the underworld. Orpheus can bring her back to the real world as long as he doesn’t check to make sure she’s following him, but he ends up looking. To fit this, Nanos writes short lines of music. Her songs also hint at classical and rock genres.

“Defeo wants there to be a lot of atonal stuff [not in a particular key] to tie in with the eeriness of Greek mythology,” Nanos said.

With school, her two jobs, composing the music for “Eurydice,” writing a book and extracurricular activities occupying her every waking moment, Nanos has little to no free time; not even the weekend offers relief. Nanos spends most of her Saturdays and Sundays working at the local Peachwave or Mission Square Retirement Community.

“It’s actually hard to make time to make music these days,” Nanos said.

“I try to at least pick something up and

practice but my production comes and goes depending on how hard my schedule is.”

After graduation Nanos plans to take a gap year and apply to music colleges.

She said that the decision to take a year off from school was an easy one.

“I was really stressed out about school and what I was going to do and where I was going to go and how was I going to find the time to apply [to colleges] and as soon as I took a step back I realized ‘I don’t have to do this right now. I can take a year and then come back to this,’ my body relaxed,” Nanos said. “Everything seemed to make sense after that. It was more of a relief than anything.”

During her gap year she’ll move to Austin, Texas and continue to work on her book and her record. Nanos’ parents were supportive of her decision to take a gap year. Her father, an audio engineer, has connections to people in Austin. The gap year is mostly for Nanos to see how she does on her own and move towards becoming a film and video game composer.

Nanos’ experiences with the Grammy Project and “Eurydice” have prepared her

The

Top

Score

A look at where two famous movie composers went to school

Hans Zimmer Hans Zimmer is the composer for Disney’s “The Lion King”. He studied music at Hurtwood House James Horner Performing Arts in the United Kingdom.

James Horner James Horner composed the music for the film “Titanic”. He went to school as a music major at UCLA.

spread.

GIRLS on the CLIMB

ng i b re m i tu Cl Cul

spread. “match”

Climbing shoes

“They help stiffen your toes so you can step on smaller holes,” Zoe said. “They’re really tight and I’ve developed some pretty big callouses on my toes.”

Sisters bond through bouldering at local gym WRITTEN BY GRETA NEPSTAD PHOTOS BY ANNIE SAVAGE

The color. That’s the most noticeable thing upon walkSitting down on the edge of a mat, ing into the Cave Bouldering Gym, located 10 stories with her black climbing clothes speckled beneath the ground in Kansas City’s Downtown Under- with chalk, Zoe watches as her mother, her ground. Blue, orange and yellow walls are constructed in mother’s boyfriend and his son walk into the the middle of the floor at different angles, with a kaleido- gym. scopic collection of holds and grips secured with bolts.

“They climb, too,” she says. “It’s because of my Brightly, multicolored tape marks the routes for the climb- mom’s boyfriend’s son, who’s basically my little brother, ers. Electric blue mats surround the structures, waiting to that I started climbing. He started climbing a little before catch a weary climber. school started last year. I started spending so much time People of all different ages cling to various portions here that I wanted to come, too.” of the walls in the Cave, legs shuddering, arms trembling Zoe began climbing in October of last year, and Hanand muscles bulging. Bouldering, a type of rock climbing, nah joined in December. On Tuesday, Friday and Sunday, requires the climbers to use techniques, such as switch- the sisters are dropped off by their parents and climb for ing feet, and strategy to reach the top. hours. It isn’t a rare occurrence when Upon finishing the ascent, the climber the sisters decide stay for the entire tries to descend using the same holds, “That route is in the day, with the occasional pizza delivery. but can elect to jump to the waiting back of your head. It Moving away from the wall, Zoe apmats. proaches the slackline. The tight-ropesticks with you while In the middle of it all are freshman you’re at school or at like piece of equipment is designed Zoe Scofield and sophomore Hannah to test the climber’s balance and home. You just want Scofield, both dressed in black. As the strengthen his or her muscles. Stretchto go back and finish sisters take turns climbing, they cheer ing 20 feet across and three feet above it.” each other on and make suggestions the floor, climbers are supposed to on the routes. When Hannah hesitates, walk the two inch wide line from one Zoe tells her where to put her foot. end to another.

When Zoe falls, Hannah helps her up.

As she nears the slackline, Zoe When they boulder, the sisters are a team. looks doubtful. She’s used to the thicker one, not the slack “It was really hard at first,” Hannah says as she eyes a line that’s only one and a half inches wide. She steps up. route. “You get so tired so quickly. If you learn the right She moves forward. She wavers, then quickly steps off. techniques and if you go frequently enough, it gets easier.”

Back by the walls, Hannah is asking Elsa Bleeker, the Across the room, Zoe approaches an entirely different owner of the gym, if she would show her and her friends terrain. Instead of the walls forming slight overhangs or how to do a certain route. Originally from South Africa, underhangs, the wall curves up from the floor until it runs Bleeker opened the bouldering gym in order to fund an parallel with the blue mats. With her finger, she points to expedition up Mt. Everest. However, as she begins scaling the curved wall directly above the heads of the climbers, the wall barefoot and points out positions to Hannah, her indicating where she’s going to drop. Starting at the base, passion for teaching is revealed.

Zoe begins climbing up the wall, until she’s horizontal. “[My favorite part is] coaching the kids,” Bleeker says With her back mirroring the floor and her blond ponytail as she lightly bounces on the soft mats. “Seeing how they swinging in the open air, her movements are both con- change, seeing how they grow, that’s what I love.” trolled and abrupt. As she reaches the end, she hangs from One of the things Bleeker taught the sisters was to get her chalk-clad fingertips, and then drops to the floor. back up if they fall down. When Hannah and Zoe try a “It took me a long time to be able to do that,” Zoe says route and can’t complete it, it’s the first one they attempt as she rubs her calloused hands together. “There are a cou- when they return the next day. ple parts where you have to switch hands real fast.”

“That route is in the back of your head,” Hannah said.

HANNAH SCOFIELD, 10

Climber’s lingo meaning to grab onto a hold with both hands

Chalk bag

“When you climb you can get sweaty hands,” Zoe said. “So you [use chalk] so you don’t slip off holds and to get a better grip.”

“flag”

Climber’s lingo meaning to stick a leg out straight to your side to balance or extend your reach

“dino”

“It

Climber’s lingo meaning to literally jump to the next hold

sticks with you while you’re at school or at home. You just want to go back and finish it.”

Since the sisters started bouldering at the Cave, they’ve both joined the Cave’s climbing team. Meeting twice a week for group practice as well as for individual training, the sisters are currently in training for their first competition this summer. Zoe and Hannah will be timed as they climb a route and touch the taped box at the top, and will be judged based on their time and technique. They will compete against other teams from other gyms, at regional and national competitions.

“It’s a sport you improve quickly with,” Zoe said.

“You actually see your improvements because you either get a route or you don’t get it. In some sports you can’t see the improvement, but you really can with bouldering.

If you don’t get a route, you’ll go home and the next time you’ll come back. It’s addictive.”

spread.

GIRLS on the CLIMB

ng i b re m i tu Cl Cul

spread. “match”

Climbing shoes

“They help stiffen your toes so you can step on smaller holes,” Zoe said. “They’re really tight and I’ve developed some pretty big callouses on my toes.”

Sisters bond through bouldering at local gym WRITTEN BY GRETA NEPSTAD PHOTOS BY ANNIE SAVAGE

The color. That’s the most noticeable thing upon walkSitting down on the edge of a mat, ing into the Cave Bouldering Gym, located 10 stories with her black climbing clothes speckled beneath the ground in Kansas City’s Downtown Under- with chalk, Zoe watches as her mother, her ground. Blue, orange and yellow walls are constructed in mother’s boyfriend and his son walk into the the middle of the floor at different angles, with a kaleido- gym. scopic collection of holds and grips secured with bolts.

“They climb, too,” she says. “It’s because of my Brightly, multicolored tape marks the routes for the climb- mom’s boyfriend’s son, who’s basically my little brother, ers. Electric blue mats surround the structures, waiting to that I started climbing. He started climbing a little before catch a weary climber. school started last year. I started spending so much time People of all different ages cling to various portions here that I wanted to come, too.” of the walls in the Cave, legs shuddering, arms trembling Zoe began climbing in October of last year, and Hanand muscles bulging. Bouldering, a type of rock climbing, nah joined in December. On Tuesday, Friday and Sunday, requires the climbers to use techniques, such as switch- the sisters are dropped off by their parents and climb for ing feet, and strategy to reach the top. hours. It isn’t a rare occurrence when Upon finishing the ascent, the climber the sisters decide stay for the entire tries to descend using the same holds, “That route is in the day, with the occasional pizza delivery. but can elect to jump to the waiting back of your head. It Moving away from the wall, Zoe apmats. proaches the slackline. The tight-ropesticks with you while In the middle of it all are freshman you’re at school or at like piece of equipment is designed Zoe Scofield and sophomore Hannah to test the climber’s balance and home. You just want Scofield, both dressed in black. As the strengthen his or her muscles. Stretchto go back and finish sisters take turns climbing, they cheer ing 20 feet across and three feet above it.” each other on and make suggestions the floor, climbers are supposed to on the routes. When Hannah hesitates, walk the two inch wide line from one Zoe tells her where to put her foot. end to another.

When Zoe falls, Hannah helps her up.

As she nears the slackline, Zoe When they boulder, the sisters are a team. looks doubtful. She’s used to the thicker one, not the slack “It was really hard at first,” Hannah says as she eyes a line that’s only one and a half inches wide. She steps up. route. “You get so tired so quickly. If you learn the right She moves forward. She wavers, then quickly steps off. techniques and if you go frequently enough, it gets easier.”

Back by the walls, Hannah is asking Elsa Bleeker, the Across the room, Zoe approaches an entirely different owner of the gym, if she would show her and her friends terrain. Instead of the walls forming slight overhangs or how to do a certain route. Originally from South Africa, underhangs, the wall curves up from the floor until it runs Bleeker opened the bouldering gym in order to fund an parallel with the blue mats. With her finger, she points to expedition up Mt. Everest. However, as she begins scaling the curved wall directly above the heads of the climbers, the wall barefoot and points out positions to Hannah, her indicating where she’s going to drop. Starting at the base, passion for teaching is revealed.

Zoe begins climbing up the wall, until she’s horizontal. “[My favorite part is] coaching the kids,” Bleeker says With her back mirroring the floor and her blond ponytail as she lightly bounces on the soft mats. “Seeing how they swinging in the open air, her movements are both con- change, seeing how they grow, that’s what I love.” trolled and abrupt. As she reaches the end, she hangs from One of the things Bleeker taught the sisters was to get her chalk-clad fingertips, and then drops to the floor. back up if they fall down. When Hannah and Zoe try a “It took me a long time to be able to do that,” Zoe says route and can’t complete it, it’s the first one they attempt as she rubs her calloused hands together. “There are a cou- when they return the next day. ple parts where you have to switch hands real fast.”

“That route is in the back of your head,” Hannah said.

HANNAH SCOFIELD, 10

Climber’s lingo meaning to grab onto a hold with both hands

Chalk bag

“When you climb you can get sweaty hands,” Zoe said. “So you [use chalk] so you don’t slip off holds and to get a better grip.”

“flag”

Climber’s lingo meaning to stick a leg out straight to your side to balance or extend your reach

“dino”

“It

Climber’s lingo meaning to literally jump to the next hold

sticks with you while you’re at school or at home. You just want to go back and finish it.”

Since the sisters started bouldering at the Cave, they’ve both joined the Cave’s climbing team. Meeting twice a week for group practice as well as for individual training, the sisters are currently in training for their first competition this summer. Zoe and Hannah will be timed as they climb a route and touch the taped box at the top, and will be judged based on their time and technique. They will compete against other teams from other gyms, at regional and national competitions.

“It’s a sport you improve quickly with,” Zoe said.

“You actually see your improvements because you either get a route or you don’t get it. In some sports you can’t see the improvement, but you really can with bouldering.

If you don’t get a route, you’ll go home and the next time you’ll come back. It’s addictive.”

features.

COMMON PRACTICE According to Eli, these are the most commonly taught martial arts moves that he practices

kicks Senior experiences new confidence and attitude as a result of training in martial arts in an unusual setting WRITTEN BY PAULINE WERNER Senior Eli Esry aims a high kick at his sister’s head. His straight black hair falls down his lower back, and smack. He makes contact with the pad in her hand. His left fist snaps into a left hook to the other pad.

Again. Switch sides.

Three years of six hours a week in the studio later, the kick-then-punch succession, one of the formations that Eli trains, is a reflex. Eli has been coming back to lightweight kickboxing champion-turned teacher Wane Swords’ studio in Merriam since he was a sophomore; his progress is evident. Now able to kick higher and anticipate better, Eli has seen his progression in the studio affect his life in ways he didn’t anticipate.

“It’s like if you’re a basketball player and you make a three-point shot,” he said. “You really feel empowered, you feel amazing and it’s what makes you feel alive.”

He still spends his free time playing any video game he can get his hands on. He still considers himself a slacker student, and his favorite class is still band where he plays the clarinet. He still hasn’t felt the need to do anything but ‘trim’ his hair. What’s changed is his attitude. He now knows that there is something that he’s great at. He’s lost 20 pounds and gained more than the ability to imitate a Chuck Norris-style roundhouse kick; he’s gained confidence, self-assurance.

Now, his response is more ‘go ahead, see what happens’ instead of reserved when he feels confronted. Eli thanks the atmosphere he trains in for that progression. Swords’ guidance in teaching him how to use different martial arts styles from Muay Thai to Aikido to Kempo keeps him interested.

The dynamic between Eli and his sister, 2009 East graduate Ashley Esry who found Swords’ business and trains under him with Eli, keeps him at ease and focused.

Eli trains in Swords’ philosophy; he believes that one martial arts style alone isn’t complete, and that any training is worthless if it can’t be used in real life. That mindset lets Eli feel like he can bring anything he learns with Swords out of the studio along

roundhouse kick

PHOTO ILLISTRATION BY KATIE LAMAR with the knowledge that he excels at something.

Adding to the lightness that Eli thrives in, Swords cracks jokes about forcing Eli to train unbalanced on his off-foot. Fighting his sister adds a heightened sense of competition and a reason to push himself even more. But it’s more than just a desire to come out on top; it’s a drive to get better.

They can trade techniques, laugh and keep going. Swords says that he likes to keep the class relaxed and fun, but Eli and Ashley know that they’re going to get better.

As he got better, the way he looked at and interacted with people around him changed as well. He was used to his hands clamming up and not being able to speak when in a group of strangers. Now that he knows he excels at something he says he finds himself able to hold a conversation with anyone. Less self-consciousness leads to an increased presence in class, where he now raises his hand to speak his mind whenever he has the chance.

Eli’s class of two means that he gets the attention he needs to make sure he understands each form before they moves on.

Swords might plan a session filled with 50 new moves to learn, but there’s no hesitation if Ashley or Eli don’t have it down. The rest of that session will be spent making sure they understand.

Eli says that those technical, step-by-step formations are nice, but they aren’t directly translatable into a real-life situation. So he trains in successive moves to be able to take it apart and improvise against an attacker.

Even with sophomores messing around with fake punches in Team Games class, he’ll now employ his training in responding with a block and a punch next to their head instead of drawing back.

But what makes Eli come back week after week is the way fighting a new person makes him feel. He says there’s a noticeable difference between fighting with Ashley and fighting with Swords, and that difference is what keeps him from getting bored. Swords can connect Eli to new people to fight be-

sides himself and Ashley — the exhilaration that comes with a new opponent is what draws Eli to fighting and makes him never want to give it up.

The important part for Eli is getting to pursue and broaden his experience with fighting, effects outside the studio are really just added bonuses. He says that some people get their exhilaration from acing a test or scoring a goal; the difference with him is that he gets it from fighting a person that can challenge him and help him grow.

With Swords, everywhere but the groin is fair game in a sparring match. Instead of limiting contact to the chest, allowing Eli to know what it’s like to get hit in the face. And that’s what he wants. He wants to learn how to fight in real-life in real-life circumstances.

As far as he’s concerned, the rest is useless.

“That helps you learn how to take a punch,” Eli said. “If you know you can take one, you don’t freak out on the street when you take one.”

Eli knows how far he’s come because he can see the effects that lie beyond how well he can block his sister’s high kick. Swords’ pride in his students’ progression shows on his Facebook page, where he publishes videos of them sparring. He remembers when a light hit to Eli’s stomach would leave him wheezing; Swords now finds himself surprised when he lands a solid punch to Eli’s liver and Eli is unfazed.

Eli sees himself continuing with fighting because that would mean new opponents and new challenges. He loves to fight.

He’s not afraid to break an arm or sprain an ankle, as long as he can hurt his opponent worse. And that fighter’s mindset, according to him, is what he needs to get into a professional ring.

“I would always think that this person is more popular than me, I’m lower than that person because of that,” Eli said. “When I could fight and when I started to get that confidence I was like ‘I can do something that they can’t and that’s going to take me further in life.’”

hook kick

punches right cross

uppercut

jab

difficulty level Eli rates each move in terms of how difficult it is to learn how to do

PIECE OF CAKE NOT TOO BAD SLIGHT HEADACHE QUITE A CHALLENGE

features.

The Myers-Briggs Personality Test is an analysis of people’s personality.

There are 16 combinations of personality types, none better than the other.

The parts to this include: the way you prefer your outer world and interaction with others (extraversion or introversion), the way you take in and interpret information (sensing or intuition), the way you make decisions (thinking or feeling) and how you structure your life (judging or perceiving).

WRITTEN BY MADDIE HISE It’s been a long week, and you’re exhausted.

You’ve got big plans tonight and you need to get pumped. What do you do? Do you go home and take a quick nap? Or do you go meet up with friends and waste some time before your plans?

If the former sounds like something you would do, you are most likely an introvert. If the latter describes you, you’re most likely an extrovert.

Extroverts (also known as E’s) can be characterized as people who are go, go, go. They draw their energy from outside of themselves and are

You are handed a piece of paper and asked to explain what you see. Would you say a blank piece of paper? Or would you say a canvas, paper airplane, etc.? A sensor (also known as an S) would tell you straight what it was: a blank piece of paper. An intuitive would give you examples of all the things the paper could be.

Sensors like facts. They want all the details

You want to break up with your significant other and you know they do not want to. How would you approach this? One, you would tell them straight up the way you feel. Two, you would be worried about the way it would affect the other person and try to explain it in the way that would hurt them least. If you answered one you are a thinker (otherwise known as a T). If you

It’s a fall Friday night. The air is crisp, leaves falling. You walk outside school at 2:40 looking forward to the evening. Do you already have a plan or are looking forward to planning it by ear and seeing where the night takes you?

This is known as the outer life function, how you carry on your life. Judgers, otherwise known as J’s, like to have plans. Perceivers’, otherwise known as P’s, would rather not have a plan.

PHOTOS BY JAMES WOOLDRIDGE

often referred to as hyper by friends. Extroverts can often be identified at an early age. E’s think out loud. To process a situation, they have to talk it out to themselves are others.

“It’s easier to stay organized, at least for me, when I say things out loud,” junior extrovert Clark Doerr said.

Introverts (also known as I’s) draw their energy from inside themselves. They need a quiet place alone to acquire their energy. They are often characterized as good listeners. I’s think

and information and are realistic. They are practical about their choices.

“I like knowing all the steps I will need to take in the assignment,” senior Dara O’Connor, an S, said. “Teachers like it just because I follow their directions well. I just like have a hard time with concepts, I’m more of a facts person.”

Intuitives like possibilities; however, they

answered two you are a feeler, or F. “I’m a feeler, so I’m much more likely to go with my gut action,” psychology teacher Kelli Kurle said. “If I feel like it’s right or I feel like this is what I’m supposed to do, [I] jump into things and be like, ‘let’s do this.’”

Thinkers are likely to view feelers as sensitive since they tend to take things personally.

Judgers are big planners. They feel stressed if their plans get interrupted or, heaven forbid, they don’t have one. J’s prefer to be punctual, if not early.

“Plans are important to have a good time,” senior Gunnar Troutwine, a judger, said. “I like to plan out everything: the day, my outfit for the next day, what I’m going to have for lunch. The only thing I don’t like to plan out is vacations.”

Comparatively, perceivers feel confined by

before they talk, which often times can bother extroverts.

“It affects the way I react around other people like I like to have my alone time,” senior Faith Connelly said. “I have a lot of siblings so I think that’s a big thing that affects it. Every once in a while I like to be alone and re-energize. Most of my friends are extroverts which is a really good dynamic. When I want to go home and be alone for a little while they keep me going.”

are not always realistic about these possibilities.

They see the big picture and things in the future.

“I wouldn’t read the directions,” junior Afton Apodaca, an N, said. “So I’d do the whole worksheet without the directions. And the teacher would always get mad at me because you were supposed to read the directions and do exactly what they say. I always had a problem with that.”

Likewise, F’s are likely to think T’s are coldhearted because they make their decisions with their head.

“Thinkers are more likely to think things through — long term consequences,” Kurle said.

“Thinkers are more likely to look at multiple perspectives, multiple angles. Long term results, that sounds fun, but what would happen if...”

plans. They prefer to not have a plan and instead to be spontaneous. Procrastination is a common trait in P’s; often P’s even work better under pressure.

“I kind of like winging things in general,” junior thinker Akshay Dinakar said. “I consider myself pretty spontaneous, it’s hard to predict what I’m going to do. I try to have plans but they don’t usually work out.”

Village Music Academy (Formerly the Toon Shop)

INSTRUCTION ON

ALL INSTRUMENTS ALL LEVELS located in the Prairie Village shops between Bruce Smith Drug and Live Blue serving the area for over 60 years

913-403-0400 thevillagemusicacademy.com

Mimicking the style of the popular blog ‘Humans of New York’, the Harbinger takes a brief look into the lives of three East students.

HUMANSOFEAST

features.

WRITTEN BY SUSANNAH MITCHELL PHOTOS BY JORDAN HALL

Clayton Phillips, freshman

A soft sunrise. Glowing granny-smith green mountains. Jagged stones jut out underneath a dark figure’s feet in the doodle, and six letters appear within each shape spelling out the company’s logo: Google. The 2011 Doodle 4 Google theme was “what I’d like to do someday,” and freshman Clayton Phillips wanted to “find beauty in everything.” So he drew just that.

Clayton entered the Doodle 4 Google contest when he was in sixth grade, just to see what would happen. He brainstormed ideas and sketched four different drafts. He ended up spending an entire day on the final draft, penciling in details and trying to make it as good as it could be.

He’s always had the drive to make art. It’s been natural for him since he was a kid, going to the Nelson Atkins to take classes and look at art. It’s his passion, and it’s the kind of thing he wants to do for the rest of his life.

Google called his mom a month later. He’d made it to the top 10 in the grade four through six division out of everyone in the nation. He was shocked. He never imagined that his school would have an assembly to announce it, or that Google would fly him to New York City for the awards ceremony. And out of thousands of applicants, he never imagined that he would win the whole contest.

Before the contest art was just a hobby. But winning helped him realize that he could make art his life. It’s been three years since he won; now he wants to go to school for art, maybe become a graphic designer. There are so many possibilities, and for him, it’s only just the beginning.

Viviana Rodriguez, senior She thought they were talking about her. They were always talking about her. It was elementary school, and senior Viviana Rodriguez’s family had just moved to the U.S. from Mexico. She didn’t understand English very well; she felt different. She started to cry when she saw the two other girls talking to each other and looking at her. But during recess, the girls walked up to her and said they only wanted to play and be friends; they didn’t notice that she was “different.”

Viviana didn’t know what an immigrant was until middle school. After elementary school, she went to an all-Hispanic school where the kids would joke about green cards. But it didn’t really hit her what being an immigrant meant until she was in high school. It meant her friends qualifying for the Dream Act, people assuming her family didn’t pay taxes. It meant knowing that some of the only jobs they could get were the jobs no one else wanted.

Since she started high school, she’s been giving talks about immigration to kids around Kansas City. She’s trying to inform people, to combat ignorance. For her, immigration means a lot. There’s a stigma about it, and there’s a lot of misinformation. At one of her talks, a kid asked if she watched “Spongebob.”

Of course she did. Despite what a lot of Americans call immigrants, Viviana knows she’s not an alien. She knows she looks a little different, but she’s not from Mars. She’s a human being.

Ian Rhodes, senior

The guy on his left was from Seoul, South Korea. The girl on his right was from the New England Conservatory of Music. In the waiting room before his audition, senior Ian Rhoads was facing competition from around the world.

He was terrified. When he’d finally auditioned in front of one of Berklee College of Music’s professors, he thought he’d done well. As time progressed he kept thinking of more ways to criticize himself, and he didn’t think he’d get accepted. Berklee was one of, if not the, best music schools in the country. There was no way.

In the third grade, Ian’s dad asked him if he wanted to take guitar lessons. Why not? He started playing, and it came naturally. Putting different fingers on different frets, switching tempos and rhythms; it was second nature. He progressed faster than the other kids, and when Ian figured out that playing guitar was something he enjoyed, he decided to put more work into it.

Since then he’s competed in various jazz festivals, won numerous awards and made East’s top jazz band. On a whim he auditioned for the Marine Jazz Ambassadors, the official touring band of the United States Army, and made it on his first try. They play for dignitaries and heads of state, sometimes even the president.

He wants to score films. Or go into music education. Of course, Ian wants stability and a nice paycheck, but he also wants to be creative. Berklee would give him this opportunity. On Jan. 31 at 12 p.m., when he opened his email, Ian finally received a notice that Berklee had made their decision. He clicked the link to their website, but it wouldn’t load. He sat there, continually refreshing, waiting for the words to appear. At midnight, he got his answer. A wide grin spread across his face, and he raised his arms and cheered. He’d made it.

a&e.F

rank

Claire Underwood

Underwood

HOUSE

Jackie Sharp

Remy Danton

of

CARDS Claire Underwood

Jackie Sharp

Frank Underwood

W

Remy Danton

WRITTEN BY MORGAN TWIBELL

ART BY PHOEBE AGUIAR

The Netflix Original show “House of Cards” released its second season and has grown popular amongst students at East despite its mature themes

hat could be so appealing about a show revolved around politics to a bunch of high school students? Sometimes it’s perceived as being stuffy and boring. But, Netflix’s House of Cards series proves that wrong. This thriller that can be watched all at once has sex appeal, murder, revenge and manipulation, all things that are essential for a good series. This unique show has taken popularity among high school seniors at East.

“At first I was really skeptical [to start the series],” Senior Mary Workman said. “I think it’s different than anything that kids watch on TV just because it’s dealing with real world issues.”

Netflix released its original series “House of Cards” on Feb. 1, 2013. It is Netflix’s own adaptation of the two “House of Cards” books by Michael Dobbs and Andrew Davies.

The political drama is set in present day Washington D.C. Frank Underwood, the main character is a Democrat from South Carolina and is a House Majority Whip who gets passed over for the appointment as Secretary of State. Schemingly, Underwood decides to get revenge on those who betrayed him along the way -- making for a scandalous drama leaving viewers on the edge of their seats.

“It’s one of those shows where you want to keep watching it like it’s a movie,” senior Luke Haverty said. “There’s always a twist that you’re not expecting.”

The second season premiered last month on Valentine’s Day. Fifteen percent of Netflix viewers watched the premiere of the second season the day it came out. Taking into account that this isn’t a show that is played on big time cable TV station. It can only be watched from a Netflix account.

“High school students are on the cusp of voting,” Associate Principal Jeff Storey said. “When you turn 18 and get that right to vote it changes your perspective on how the government works and if you think the government really works that way [it’s portrayed in the show] then it makes the show even more intriguing.”

Storey said he heard about the show from some of his friends and wasn’t the biggest fan of it after the first episode, but he kept watching and was hooked after finishing the first season.

Like with Storey and many others, word of mouth helped this Netflix-produced series become popular. Haverty got addicted to the series immediately when he heard all the hype after the second season premiered, he was even cancelling plans with friends to stay home and watch the show.

“It’s racy and it’s a thriller,” Haverty said. “It focuses on politics but you don’t have to really be into politics to understand the show, it’s kind of like a look into the reality behind our government.”

Senior John Sears heard about the show from Haverty. He then watched

both of the thirteen episode seasons in one weekend.

“It’s dope,” said Sears. “It’s like a literal house of cards because everything’s balancing on [Frank Underwood] and every move he makes has to be perfect because if one thing goes wrong the whole house falls down like the white house.”

It’s known that this generation is extremely focused on technology, social media and TV. In this case, watching too much TV isn’t necessarily a bad thing, seeing as the students are learning about the government or “TV’s version of the government” along the way. One wouldn’t expect students to be expanding their mind just from watching Netflix but according to students, they are.

“House of Cards familiarizes today’s kids with America’s political system.”

Senior Frank Esberg said.

Since all seniors are required to take either a semester or year long government class, it isn’t as hard for them to decode the political innuendo that they hear on the show.

“It’s interesting since we’re in American Government, I feel like I understand more of what is actually going on in the show,” Workman said.

Government teacher Stephen Laird who is a fan himself, wishes he could show it to his students in class if it was more appropriate.

“I think the reason it relates to high school students is ‘cause it’s a great show with great actors,” Laird said. “But also, it plays on Netflix so you have access to it whenever you want.”

Although this show is focused primarily on the ways of the White House, many other aspects of it appeal to high school students besides the politics, like the death, murder and scheming.

“The subject matter is something different from other shows yet the focus isn’t on complicated politics as much as it is on drama and suspense,” Senior Melissa Ator said.

With Netflix releasing their own “Netflix Produced” series, the question is, will our generation help Netflix take over network television channels? Netflix gives the capability to have access to shows immediately because seasons come out with all the episodes at once.

“I like how it’s a Netflix show just because I never watch normal TV so I probably wouldn’t see it if it wasn’t on Netflix,” Ator said. “I watched each season in about a span of a week, I was able to remember what happened in each past episode better than I would normally have if it was on TV.” With the popularity of House of Cards it wouldn’t be surprising to see Netflix’s own shows have a rise in viewership.

“Some people I know have dropped cable subscriptions because they have Netflix and other subscription services,” Storey said. “You have more control over what you want to watch.

“Democracy is Overrated” Frank underwood

After Graduation Party We count on the SME Community for donations for the After Grad Party!! Below are the levels suggested per class, but any donations would be appreciated!!

$20 Freshman $30 Sophomore $40 Junior $50

GOURMET, AND GOING TO STAY THAT WAY CAFE & BAR

PIZZA

Village Shopping Center 6921 Tomahawk Road Prairie Village, KS 66208

913-262-6226 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily

Senior

You may either pay online at https://smepta.wufoo.com/ forms/after-graduation-party or mail your donation to: Mary Shirling, 2701 W. 68th St., Mission Hills, KS 66208 (Checks payable to Shawnee Mission East PTA)

Shawnee Mission East Class of 2014 We are also looking for items to place in our Senior Raffle and would appreciate any donation. Traditionally these items are $50 value or up (tickets, gift cards, electronics, sports related or dorm related items,etc.).

All raffle donations may be sent and/or dropped off at Tracy Tetrick, 5810 Windsor Drive, Fairway,KS 66208

a&e.

I’m walking into the paradise of a high school Pinterest fanatic, but in reality it’s just the eclectic boutique Utilitarian Workshop. The local KC shop, in the Westside neighborhood, is not only a boutique but also an interior design firm.

Utilitarian Workshop fits right into the rest of the neighborhood with hip restaurants and shops. The whole atmosphere oozes an aura of effortless cool. The actual shop is in a refurbished garage that was converted in to shop with a clean but eclectic look created by all of the different products arranged by vendor and style. Overall, it made me think of a Bon Iver song with that same soft, breathy quality.

The guy working the counter channeled the atmosphere with jeans, a flannel and square glasses and the perfect amount of chin stubble, perfect boyfriend material.

He smiled and asked if I need help finding anything, and I am painfully aware of how I will never be that cool.

In order to not stare too much, I focused my attention on the geometric necklaces hanging from an unfinished board along the right wall. The mixed media triangles hanging off of gold chains were something that I would make a staple item in my wardrobe, but the price tag was a little steep around $40 to $50.

I moved onto the large dining room table, made of antique upcycled wood that displays leather goods. Wallets, card cases and a cover for any kind of Apple

PHOTOS BY KATIE LAMAR WRITTEN BY PHOEBE AGUIAR

product were laid out over the wood. The leather is all high quality, soft and buttery.

All of UW’s leather products come from Kansas City Leather Works. Other ceramic plates and bowls on the table hold rings and bracelets. I bought one of these rings a few months ago which I wear everyday on my pinky finger. The rings at UW are made by a Kansas City Artist, and are gold, decorated with small white pearlescent balls.

In the back of shop there is another handmade table of antique wood and along the walls are pennants for all of the surrounding colleges and Kansas City sports teams. UW owns the fact that they are a business operating in the Kansas City area and proudly displays works by

local vendors and products that pertain to KC. There are also several racks of vintage, but very in clothes. Browsing through most of the clothes are men’s clothes there and overwhelming number of flannels and sweaters.

The way UW is laid out reminds me most of an actual house, with furniture layout and the little accessories and homey touches but everything is for sale. Even the vases on the table and the dishes holding the rings and earrings.

At UW you can buy a product that is not only unique but also worthy of an Instagram. It definitely caters to a specific crowd and the cost is enough to makes me think twice about buying.

UTILITY WARE

Utilitarian Workshop prides itself on handcrafted yet modern goods. Check out a few selections from their store.

Hand-made jewelry

The jewelry at the workshop ranges from gold necklaces to beaded bracelets.

Pottery and ceramics

An entire table is dedicated to the ceramic pots created in the workshop.

Sweaters and flannels Although their clothing is aimed mostly at men, comfy sweaters and flannels work for everyone.

SPRING MUSIC SCENE A look at upcoming musical events in the Kansas City area this spring

WRITTEN BY MADDIE HYATT

APRIL 30 BUZZ UNDER THE STARS If you’re a fan of alternative and indie music, the two night Buzz Under the Stars music festival this event is just for you. Buzz Under the Stars is an annual spring concert series presented by 96.5 the Buzz, open to all ages. Hosted at the KC Live! Stage in the Power and Light District. Many popular bands grouped into one huge concert is a recipe for a successful show.

Featured artists include Grouplove, Foster the People, Vampire Weekend and many more.

The Buzz also hosts the popular Buzz Beachball a music festival featuring multiple alternative artists at the end of the summer season.

JUNE 10

A theatrical adaptation to the classic story of the “Wizard of Oz” will premier at the Starlight Theatre on June 10 and run through June 15.

The festive, outdoor atmosphere of Starlight creates an ambiance perfect for a summer night out with friends. The Wizard of Oz is the first summer production for Starlight. The show features actors from around the country in the traveling Broadway show. If you’re a fan of singing, dancing and talented actors, check out this summer production. Tickets start at as low as $50 and go up from there. Starlight will feature five more musicals, as well as concerts, throughout the summer.

ART BY MIRANDA GIBBS

a&e.

APRIL 15 MILEY CYRUS CONCERT The most talked about artist since her racy performance at the August 2013 VMA performance, Miley Cyrus is taking her “Bangerz” tour to the Sprint Center on April 15. From her signature twerking to sliding down an enormous, plastic tongue, the shock value Cyrus creates with her wild persona and onstage behavior is unlike any other current performer.

Cyrus will be performing songs from her latest album, “Bangerz”, including the national hits “Wrecking Ball” and “We Can’t Stop”. Tickets are on sale now and are priced from $41.50 and up. If you and your friends are looking for a night full of provocative props, dancers and costumes you have found the right concert.

MAY 19 COLDPLAY ALBUM RELEASE “Ghost Stories” is the first album for Coldplay since their 2009 hit Mylo Xyloto. Contrasting from their latest pop-oriented album Mylo Xyloto, Coldplay has stated that their sound will return to the “stripped-down, more acoustic collection” they had previously showcased. “Ghost Stories” will be the sixth studio album for the group and will be released in the United States on May 19. Including nine tracks overall, their singles “Magic” and “Midnight”, from “Ghost Stories”, have already been released to listeners and received with popular consumer success and reviews.

APRIL 26 ARCADE FIRE CONCERT The indie rock band Arcade Fire will be performing at Starlight Theatre on April 26 as a part of their Reflektor Tour. This six member group, hailing from Canada, has won numerous awards including two Grammys.

Supporting acts include Kid Koala and tUnEyArDs. Tickets range from $30.50 and $60.50.

This is their second concert in the KC area, after selling out Starlight in April of 2011.

a&e.

WRITTEN BY AIDAN EPSTEIN

PHOTOS BY ABBY HANS

Second Best Coffee Lives Up to Their Name

Circling around Wornall and 82nd Street for 15 minutes, my friend and I couldn’t seem to find the infamous Second Best Coffee. This espresso-centric coffee house was hard to spot if you don’t know what you were looking for (which was the case). No big banner or sign, just an eagle holding a coffee painted on to the window in a deep orange.

Opening up the doors, the hidden coffee shop didn’t hide any personality in the modern decor inside. Wooden walls with accents of orange flower pots and pictures of bikers on the wall complemented the tall steel tables and glistening white coffee cups of every size in the hands of the many customers.

For Second Best’s humble size, it was packed with customers. Almost every wooden booth and steel bar table was occupied. There were two open seats at a metallic bar open which we claimed.

When we went up to the barista we asked him for the best sellers. I’d consider myself an amateur coffee drinker and he recommended the cappuccino for me. My friend, a black coffee drinker, was recommended the Ethiopian blend. He immediately asked if we were from East and said that he has gotten a lot of busi-

ness from kids at our school. The barista was friendly, relaxed and added to the down-toearth Sunday morning feel.

Ordering wasn’t a hard task considering they had a very limited coffee menu, which is what they are known for. The purpose of this coffee shop is to have the “second best coffee”, literally. Unlike coffee businesses like Starbucks, they are aiming to create a cup of coffee that never gets old and tires out their customers. I, for one, don’t get tired of the frothy, sugar-high drinks Starbucks has to offer (with whipped cream added please).

Second Best also sells breakfast food like breakfast burritos and muffins. The apple cinnamon muffin behind the glass wall of the counter caught my eye with its huge size and cinnamon crumbles all over it, I needed to try it. Their special burrito of the day included lamb, so my friend and I decided to order both on a whim.

We sat down and waited for the slowbrewing

Even though Second Best Coffee provides a comfortable setting, but their coffee doesn’t hit the mark

coffee. The coffee took almost as long to make as it took to find the place. Ten minutes later, the cutest baby cup of coffee arrived at our table. It was my cappuccino. The chestnut color of the drink was complemented with a white foam design on top; totally Instagram worthy. My friend’s Ethiopian blend came out on a metal pan and was served in two cups, a white coffee cup like mine and a glass pitcher containing the blend. The presentation was an A+.

At about the same time the warmed muffin, which smelled like an apple cinnamon bundle of goodness, arrived in front of me.

A breakfast burrito, which was wrapped in a white paper and tied with a vintage rope knot, also came out to my friend.

We cautiously sipped on our steaming coffees. Wow, that’s bitter, I thought. I’m not used to this strong of coffee.

I took a quick bite of my apple cinnamon muffin, w h i c h was ex-

D BEST COFFE N O C E SE

(middle) A tray is delivered to the table with a coffee cup and a pitcher which allows customers to pour their drink.

(below) A bike mounted on the wall along with a portrait of a bike race help to add to the down-to-earth atmosphere of the coffee shop.

M

ID

WE

KCMO

STERN MO

T DES

Y

Presenting Like Pros

Check out these unique decorations in Second Best that make it feel just as put together as any Starbucks or Latté Land.

tremely delicious with its warm center and little specs of cinnamon throughout it. The only way for me to approach this cappuccino was sip of coffee, bite of muffin, sip of coffee, bite of muffin.

I thought mine was bitter until I took a sip of the Ethiopian blend; that was a whole other level of bitterness. I’m not hard-core enough to drink that coffee, but if you’re looking for a rustically modern coffee house with insanely strong coffee, Second Best has your name written all over (just like a Starbucks coffee cup).

Although I didn’t particularly enjoy the coffee, my muffin was amazing and I highly recommend it. The lamb breakfast burrito was interestingly delicious, which was surprising to me considering how nervous It’s contents made me feel while I was ordering it.

The presentation was perfect. I was really impressed. Truly an ideal place to spend a morning on the weekend. If I was a hardcore coffee enthusiast and could handle their strong blends, I would go all the time, but since I’m not I’ll go with a Starbucks double chocolate chip frappuccino for now.

(below) This coffee drip tower not only was used to make Second Best’s signature slow brewed coffee, but also served as a cool decoration for the shop.

Since it’s rebranding, Sporting Kansas City (SKC) has fought hard for the Major League Soccer (MLS) Championship Cup and came so close to the championship game many times. But the spell is broken.

SKC won the Cup against Real Salt Lake after 10 rounds of penalty kicks for the first time since 2000.

SKC is just three games into the MLS regular season and already they are showing the potential to win the Cup for the second year in a row. The team is currently 1-1-1*, which is the same record the team started out with last year. SKC lost in the quarterfinals in the CONCACAF Champions League, making it the farthest MLS team to advance.

Beginnings of the season are always tricky, but I trust in SKC. And with that, I confidently present six reasons why SKC will win the MLS Cup again.

sports.

1. “WE DEFEND TOGETHER”

INTRODUCTION

SKC has always focused on local, homegrown items. From choosing Ivy Funds, a Kansas City based mutual funds company, to be on the team’s jerseys to serving Boulevard Beer at the stadium, SKC has slowly become an integral part of Kansas City. Years ago, it was unusual to see somebody wearing the Kansas City Wizards gear. Now, SKC clothing is everywhere.

SKC has made the push to integrate the fans and the city even more this season thorough it’s 2014 season advertising campaign. Their campaign includes

the slogan “We Defend Together” and includes pictures of fans and players together wearing SKC gear while holding the MLS Championship Cup. The players that SKC chose for the picture in the campaign are key.

They choose Seth Sinovic, Matt Besler, Chance Myers and Aurelien Collin. Both Sinovic and Besler are homegrown players, meaning they both grew up in Kansas City. Myers has been a part of the team since 2008 and Collin has been a fan favorite ever since he joined the team in 2011.

3. MATT BESLER

2. EXPERIENCE SKC has become a breeding ground for well-rounded, strong players. Peter Vermes does a great job grooming players and turning them into stars. Most players would move onto better paying teams but SKC players are choosing to stay in Kansas City. The team roster is filled with experienced players who have been on the team back when they were the Wizards.

SKC will have an upper hand with its stacked roster. The experienced players will help the team advance and in turn make all the new players on the team even better. The system that Peter Vermes has is working and it doesn’t look that it’s bound to change anytime soon.

Recently, SKC had five players, Matt Besler, Graham Zusi, Benny Feilhaber, Chance Meyers and Seth Sinovic, out of 26 attend the U.S. Men’s National Team (USMNT) for a World Cup preparation in January. SKC sent the most players out of any other team, with Feilhaber, Meyers and Sinovic attending for their first time.

Not only have SKC players had success in the United States, but many players have gone to play abroad. Kei Kamara, a former player on the team from 2009 to 2013, now plays for Middlesbrough in the Football League Championship over in England. Former player Roger Espinoza began playing for Wigan Athletic in 2012 in the same league as Kamara.

4. SAL ZIZZO SKC midfielder Sal Zizzo is one of the five new players that SKC picked up before the start of the 2014 season.

Zizzo began his MLS career with Chivas USA in 2010.

He played there for one year before being acquired by the Portland Timbers, where he played there for three seasons.

Zizzo’s playing time tapered off while playing for the Timbers, but for SKC, he is seeing a lot of action early in the season. Coach and manager Peter Vermes has been switching up starting lineups these past couple games to see how players work together on the field. So far, Zizzo has been stepping up and proving his usefulness to the team. If Zizzo continues his strong work ethic and passing, he’ll be a commonly found player in the starting lineup.

The campaign is reminding Kansas City that SKC is the city’s team. The pride of SKC and the team’s new campaign will unite the city and fans which will in turn, help the team advance. The players of SKC feed off the fans and this will definitely help the team. SKC is once again collaborating with The Cauldron, SKC’s largest, loudest and most loyal fan group, on banners, chants and road trips.

All these elements combined will give the team the push they need when down a goal.

R EA S O N S W H Y W IN T H E C U P

NG K C WI LL S PO R T I A GA I N

Matt Besler is an integral part of SKC. Whether he’s on defense at Sporting Park or with the U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team, Besler represents Kansas City. The defender has been a part of the team since 2009, is one of the hardest working players and one of the most respected players on the team. Peter Vermes’s decision to make Besler team captain was perfect.

The communication and collaboration that is necessary as a member of the defensive line is something that Besler will bring as team captain.

Besler will make sure that the team is cohesive on and off the field. As a hard worker himself, Besler will make sure the team is giving 100 percent on both the practice fields and the game fields. The entire team respects Besler and his captainship will have an effect on the team’s performance during the season.

WRITTEN BY GRACE HEITMANN PHOTOS COURTESY OF SPORTING KANSAS CITY *Information as of March 27

6. GOALKEEPERS 5. DOM DWYER

Dom Dwyer, a forward, joined the SKC family in 2012 and is quickly becoming a key player on the team.

Dwyer slowly started playing more on the team over the past two years but now three games into the 2014 season, Dwyer has started each game and already has a goal to his name.

Dwyer, originally from Cuckfield, England, is a fast, young forward with the ability to dart in between defenders. SKC hasn’t had strong, reliable forwards in the past couple seasons and has had to rely on midfields, and sometimes even defenders to score goals. Dwyer is a welcome change to the usual team lineup. His excellent positioning and ability to read plays well is not the only admirable quality of Dwyer. At 5’9” and 180 pounds, Dwyer is big for both a forward and a 23-yearold. He has been practicing hard during the off-season and it’s been paying off. Dwyer can barrel through defenders, giving him a huge advantage when he has a scoring opportunity. For SKC, he will be an asset to the team this season and for many more seasons to come.

Before SKC goalkeeper Eric Kronberg stepped onto the damp field at the CenturyLink stadium, he had played a total of 382 minutes for SKC. This, compared to the 11,467 minutes starting goalkeeper Jimmy Nielsen played over four seasons while he was at SKC, is not much. But Kronberg isn’t a rookie player. No, he’s been on the team for eight seasons.

Eric Kronberg is the longest tenured player at SKC. He was signed onto the team in 2006.

The season-opener against the Seattle Sounders on Saturday, March 8 was the first time Kronberg played since 2011.

Kronberg could make or break SKC’s season depending on how he goes for the next couple games. If Kronberg is able

to be confident on the field despite his limited experience, he will be able to rise to the legacy that retired goalkeeper Jimmy Nielsen left behind. However, if Kronberg doesn’t perform well, that might be it for the goalkeeper’s soccer career. Kronberg has high expectations and demands to meet as the goalkeeper, but his longevity on the team will help with communication and understanding amongst the team.

If Kronberg doesn’t work out for the team, SKC has backup goalkeeper Andy Gruenebaum.

Gruenebaum was signed to SKC after the retirement of Nielsen.

Gruenebaum previously played for the Columbus Crew since 2006 and was in goal for a total of 7065 minutes.

LANCERS, ARE YOU READY FOR LACROSSE? THE 2013 LAKC CHAMPIONS ARE. DATE

4/1 4/3 4/5 4/6 4/8 4/11 4/12 4/14 4/17 4/19 4/22 4/24 4/26 4/27 4/29 5/1 5/3

TIME

6:30 PM/7:45 PM 6:30 PM/7:45 PM 7:00 PM 12:00 PM 6:30 PM/7:45 PM 6:30 PM/7:45 PM 1:30 PM/3:00 PM 6:30 PM/7:45 PM 4:30 PM/6:00 PM 2:30 PM/4:30 PM 6:00 PM/7:30 PM 5:30 PM/7:00 PM 2:00 PM/4:00 PM 11 AM/1 PM 6:30 PM/8:00 PM TBD

TEAM

Varsity/JV JV/Varsity Varsity Varsity Varsity/JV JV/Varsity Varsity/JV JV/Varsity Varsity/JV Varsity/JV Varsity/JV JV/Varsity JV/Varsity JV/Varsity JV/Varsity JV 2 Varsity

LOCATION

SM North SM North Wheaton North St. Charles East SM North SM South Lee’s Summit North SM North Heritage Park Blue Valley North Preston Field, Park Hill Lee’s Summit West St. Louis DeSmet SLUH Blue Valley West TBD SM East

OPPONENT

Olathe South St. Thomas Aquinas Wheaton North St. Charles East SM South Pembroke LS North Rockhurst Senior Night Olathe East BV North Northland LS West DeSmet SLUH BV West Olathe East Playoff Game

Junior Kaycee Mayfield has been preparing for track season since fall

E

TRACK in PROGRESS

ast’s track team began training a few weeks ago, but for junior Kaycee Mayfield, the season’s been going on since fall. Having been to two national meets already this year, Mayfield thinks she’s ready for whatever this season can throw at her.

Mayfield started track in freshman year, and now runs for the Varsity team, competing in the 100 meters and the 200 meters. This year she also hopes to compete in the 4 x 400 meter relay.

“Kaycee is such a hard worker and is super dedicated to track,” junior Hannah Nick, a close friend of Mayfield, said. “She takes no seasons off and is always ready to go.”

Mayfield trains with the USA Track & Field organization at the KC Flyers track club six days a week, as well as doing weights two days a week. They do drills such as Ankling, A skip, and A run, to improve their technique and muscle strength.

“It’s really competitive and the training’s basically preparing you for college,” Mayfield said. “So it’s at more of an intense level,” On Feb. 23, Mayfield attended a meet at Kansas State University (K-State) with USA Track & Field. Mayfield placed third in the 200 meter dash and, running the 55 meter dash for the first time, placed third in that event too.

Although this meet was a national event, not many people attended, so it wasn’t as competitive as the ones Mayfield usually attends. The meet had only been going on for a couple of years, and wasn’t widely advertised, so it wasn’t well known. Also, as the meet was located in Manhattan, KS, it was hard for teams from out of state to attend.

The top participants in each event were invited go to the United States Association of Track and Field (USATF) National Youth Indoor Championships in Maryland, and although she qualified, Mayfield decided not to attend, because she wanted to prioritize her training for the East team.

“I would have missed the first couple of weeks of training with high school,” Mayfield said. “And since there’s all new coaches at East, I wanted to make a good first impression.”

Mayfield is particularly proud of her achievement at a national meet in Arkansas on Jan. 18. Unlike the K-State meet, this one was packed, with over 100 people competing in each event. The entire meet was over 12 hours long, and Mayfield placed fifth with her team in the 4 x 400 meter relay.

“There’s nothing like running in front of a huge crowd,” Mayfield said. “I get really nervous before my races, but once the gun goes off, I know it’s time to roll.”

Mayfield ran the 400 meter dash, and was extremely proud of her time of 63 seconds, which shaved almost five seconds from her personal best, placing her 49th in the race.

“It was important to me because the 400 isn’t my race anyway, so the fact that I dropped so much time and was able to place that high in a big meet was really exciting,” Mayfield said.

But Mayfield says she doesn’t have time to sit back and bask in her success. She’s out training every day after school for East track, preparing for the coming season. One thing Mayfield knows she needs to work on if she’s going to reach her full potential this season is her running starts. A good start is crucial, particularly in the shorter sprints, as losing a couple of seconds at the beginning can ruin the race before you’ve even begun.

It’s little things like this that Mayfield knows she need to work on, because she has a lot riding on this season coming up. This is the time for her to be noticed by college scouts. She wants to be selected for scholarships so she can continue with Track & Field at college.

East has the Shawnee Mission North Relays, the University of Kansas (KU) Relays and the SME Quad coming up, and Mayfield is excited to get started and prove what she can do. She loves the way she feels during the race.

“When I run the 200, I just feel like I’m flying,” Mayfield said. “There’s enough time for me to really get up to my top speed.”

Mayfield says there’s nothing like the sense of achievement she gets afterwards, and she can’t wait to channel that passion into this season’s competitions.

WRITTEN BY KATHARINE SWINDELLS PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY CALLIE MCPHAIL

U G N MI R WA

P

CE E Y A K H WIT

To begin warming up, Kaycee runs a four-lap jog around the infield

ART BY MADDIE HISE

After running the four-lap warm-up, Kaycee likes to do A-skips, A-runs and Alternate A-skips before her race

sports.

Kaycee likes to find time before each race to say a prayer

sports.

BLUEBLOOD ALTHOUGH HIS DAD PLAYED FOR THE ROYALS, FRESHMAN JAKE RANDA IS MAKING A NAME FOR HIMSELF ON THE JV BASEBALL TEAM

WRITTEN BY ANDREW MCKITTRICK PHOTO COURTESY OF THE RANDAS When Joe moved back permanently to Kansas City, he was able to start having more family time.

Part of this was becoming more involved with his sons baseball teams.

After Joe retired, he started coaching for Jake’s t’s the 2005 Opening Day in Cincinnati’s Great team in third grade and continues to give the playAmerican Ballpark. Then seven-year-old Jake ers tips. According to Jake, he thinks that it helps Randa sits behind the dugout. He wears a red the team because the other players respect him.

“Well basically what he does is he doesn’t really number 16 jersey with the name Randa on the back.

Bottom of the ninth with the score tied 6-6 and third coach,” Jake said. “He doesn’t teach signs or anything. He just helps with the baseman Joe is up to bat. A full fundamentals of the game. He count and on the next pitch, Joe helps your mechanics to do evhits it 386 feet over the left field His team gathered wall for a walk off home run. For around home plate and it erything and [teach you] what Jake, this isn’t just another profes- was just an unbelievable to do in certain situations.”

Although having a former sional baseball player he admires feeling. professional baseball player from the stands — it’s his dad. for a dad has helped Jake, it “It was a sea of red,” Jake said. has also come with added pres“You see him hit a home run and you’re like ‘oh my gosh’ and you see him running sure. According to Jake, people will come to touraround the bases with his fists in the air. His team naments and watch him play simply because he is gathered around home plate and it was just an un- Joe’s son.

“It was always a dream of mine to coach my kid believable feeling.”

Joe’s career started when he was selected 289th and teach him the game of baseball,” Joe said. “And overall in the 1991 draft by the Kansas City Roy- I was able to do that. I coached jake for probably als. Joe continued to play for the Royals until 2005 four years and then I had to stop and be more of a when he was traded to the Cincinnati Reds. Joe teacher instead of a coach. There were just a lot of moved away from his family for parts of the year in pressures on Jake when I was on the field. I feel bad order to be closer to his team. For the first time, Joe for him. I feel bad that he’s under the microscope a was playing and living away from his hometown. lot and there’s a lot of pressure on him.”

Although Jake sometimes feels this added presOver the summers, Jake would live with his dad in sure, he tries to play the same. He puts the pressure whatever city Joe was playing for.

“We stayed in a hotel for that summer,” Jake out of his mind, trying to focus on the basics such said. “So basically it was a home away from home. as where to hit the ball. He doesn’t want to let it get It wasn’t that long but we would come back a week to him.

According to Jake, he felt some of this pressure before school started. We lived in a Hyatt Place in during tryouts for the East baseball team. Jake was San Diego for a whole summer.”

During the times when Joe was at away games one of four freshman to make the JV squad.

“I was kinda nervous because I know I was goor living in a different city as his family, he tried to stay in touch with his family by calling home before ing to have a target on my back of people trying to batting practice and after games. They watched do stuff,” Jake said. “...Just cause your dad played him live on TV. This continued for two years before doesn’t mean you’re going to be the best player in Joe retired in 2006 so he could spend more time the world, which is clearly not true, that’s not happening.” with his family.

I

JAKE RANDA, 9

For Jake, he is able to draw on the experience of his dad to help him with his high school career.

“He just told me to do my best and not to hang my head if I do something wrong,” Jake said. “[He told me] just to know what you’re capable of is what he said.”

JV BASEBALL ROSTER SPENCER MUSTOE ALEX GLAZER EVAN HOWELL JAKE RANDA CHASE PORTER CHARLIE JENSEN MAX BYERS SAM WILLIAMS HENRY MILLER RAY AGUILAR ZEB VERMILLION MATT ERDNER HENRY CHURCHILL LUKE ANDERSON

SPORTS QUOTED

JUNIOR JACKSON WRIGHT

sports.

“Pole vaulting is a challenge that requires a lot of dedication, but I have a lot of fun, plus the feeling of soaring in the air and clearing a new height it unmatched.”

JUNIOR NIC BAILEY

“The senior leadership this year is really strong so I think we will have another pretty good shot at winning another LAKC Championship.”

JUNIOR TURO VEIRS “SHOT PUT TO ME IS THE BEST EVENT IN TRACK. WE ALL WORK HARD AND ARE SO CLOSE TO EACH OTHER BECAUSE THERE AREN’T MANY OF US.”

SPORT Track and Field Softball Girl’s Soccer Baseball

OPPONENT Quad

DATE 4/1/14

LOCATION SM East

Olathe South

4/1/14 4/3/14 4/3/14

SM Complex Lawrence FS Lawrence FS SM Northwest

Lawrence FS Lawrence FS

Girl’s Swimming

SM Northwest

Boy’s Golf

SM South

4/3/14 3/31/14

Boy’s Tennis

SM West

4/10/14

SM West

Boy’s Lacrosse

Olathe South

4/1/14

SM North

Girl’s Lacrosse

St Teresa’s

4/1/14

St. Teresa’s

Meadowbrook

Sprin g Bre SME ak: Style

photo essay.

1 Spain

A group of Choraliers took the long journey across the Atlantic Ocean to Spain. While there, the choir students sang in concerts experienced a different culture, and traveled to a total of six cities; Toledo, Cordoba, Granada, Seville, Sergovia and Madrid.

ABOVE: A group of East students pose with their Harbinger on a hilltop overlooking the town of Consuegra, which is located in Toledo, Spain. “Spain was a trip of a lifetime,” Senior Sarah Fox said.

“It was my first international trip. I loved walking around Seville, and feeling like I was at home, as Seville is Kansas City’s sister city. But every city was so different that they are difficult to compare.”

L to R: Freshman Bria Foley, junior Austin Dalgleish, senior Sarah Fox, junior John Foster

4,587

8

Monuments Visited

miles flown

3

Concerts Performed

2 Nepal

Senior Melissa Ator explored Nepal on a mission trip. Ator also visited India.

ABOVE: Ator holds her Harbinger in front of a temple next to the Nepali market. “We spent the first few days in Nepal where we visited a leprosy colony,” Ator explained. “Next we headed to Dehradun, India where we saw missionaries who grew up in Kansas City and their businesses.”

7,816

miles flown Group of

11

Ator was the only East student

3 Costa Rica 4 Branson

Nine East students traveled to San Jose, Costa Rica for a mission trip through the Village Presbyterian Church.

ABOVE: Shawnee Mission East Girls hold their Harbinger proudly on the mountain range of Cordillera Centro.

“The people at the church we stayed at didn’t speak English but we got close with the pastor through broken Spanish,” Corinne Stratton said. “We painted and built walls and taught kids English, we also played soccer in the streets with them.”

L to R: Sophomore Kathryn Jones, senior Corinne Stratton, junior Lauren Hunter, junior Kate Mitchell, junior Emma Matthews, sophomore Emma Pirotte, sophomore Kara Koenig. Junior Gracie Guigon, senior Elizabeth Young

3,019 81

& Partly Cloudy

miles flown

1

Church Refurbished

Senior Mallory Morrison went on a family trip to Branson, MO. Mallory took a visit to many attractions including the Titanic Museum.

ABOVE: Morrison shows off her Harbinger in front of the Dixie Stampede, a form of dinner theatre. “The trip was really fun,” Morrison said. “I was really glad to get out of Kansas City and go somewhere fun and relaxing.”

209 miles driven

3

Attractions/ Shows