Vol 51 Issue 5

1111 S. Dee Road • Park Ridge, Illinois 60068

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Vol. 51, No. 5

February 6, 2015

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY JOSHUA LARRAGOITY

Southwords uncovers a variety of unique foods and drinks at local establishments.

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Furry friends

Maine South junior adopts dogs for a cause.

Page 12

Girl power

Feminism deserves a new definition.

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Empty theater

Trips to the movies decline in popularity among Hawks.

Page 10

Full-court press

Upperclassmen lead the boys’ basketball team.

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NEWS | February 6, 2015

Brian Gentile named top high school innovator David Kloc News Writer

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rian Gentile, a senior at Maine South, was recently named as one of twenty award-winners in the new Celebrating High School Innovators initiative at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

This initiative started accepting applications from high school students throughout Illinois in late 2014.

This is part of a new push by the University of Illinois to encourage and motivate high school students to innovate without a focus on testing or grade point averages. “ The High School Student Innovators awards program is the University of Illinois’ way of recognizing and learning from innovative high school students in Illinois,” said Gentile. “I think U of I’s goal is to learn as much as they can from the award winners, so that they can try to better teach or inspire innovation in schools.”

Gentile became involved in this program in November of 2014.

“Mrs. Maksymiu, the career and college counselor here at Maine South, had sent all of us an e-mail with information about the program,” he said. I read it and thought it was pretty cool, so I decided to apply.”

This was a competitive program, and Gentile was unsure if he could make it, but decided to give it a shot.

“I didn’t think I would actually get it, though—I was just applying for kicks,” Gentile said. “I really have to hand it to Mrs. Maksymiu, without her finding these types of things and sending them out, I never would have applied.”

“To be eligible for the application, we had to have made some sort of innovative impact at our school,” he said.

“During my junior year, I had a significant involvement in the founding of the Science Tutoring Program here. I wrote several essays about my experiences and our results with the program as time went on, and I guess they liked it.”

The S cience Peer Tutoring Program is a program where students are matched with a peer tutor. Their peer tutor then helps their student to better understand concepts being taught in their science class.

This idea to create a science peer tutoring program was sparked during his junior year.

“I found a bunch of my friends were having trouble,” Gentile said. “I helped as many kids as I could, but then I thought it’d be better to start a tutoring program so everyone could

PHOT PHOTO BY rhyanne noche

MAKING A DIFFERENCE Senior Brian Gentile (right) tutors Junior Adam Kosciarz in science. Gentile was one of 20 recipients of this award and will receive his award in March at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. get help when they needed it much more easily.”

With the help of Chemistry teacher, Mrs. Sayre, and Science Department Chair, Mrs. Biewenga, the Science Tutoring Program was born.

Helping to create the science tutoring program led him to win the award.

He learned that he was one of twenty award-winners in December, and that he would be interviewed

formally in March. The awards ceremony will take place over two days at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign College of Engineering.

Gentile’s idea of helping his friends grew into more.

“This program started because I was looking out for some friends.

When your intentions are right, you have the passion and don’t give up, then there’s no telling what you can do.”

funding for every junior to take the ACT, and although that will continue for this year, questions have been raised whether or not Illinois will continue to fund this.

The Illinois State Board of Education spokesperson Mary Fergus stated that the state has “budgeted enough money” for districts that decide to administer the ACT for this current year, about $14 million.

She also said that the state is “committed to ensuring that students from low-income families have access to the ACT as we transition over the next few years to PARCC,” but whether or not districts will be given funding is contingent on state funding.

District 207 has decided, for this year, to continue to administer the ACT to its juniors. But, according to a newsletter released by District 207, “we are uncertain about the state’s

ability to financially support this in the future.

It goes on to say, “students may need to register to take the ACT test on national testing dates if the test is not provided for them by the state of Illinois.”

Maine Township has not decided if they will be able to fund the ACT in the future. This has raised some concerns.

Senior Jeri Ortiz feels that the state should fund the ACT. “I think that it is pretty ridiculous that they don’t want to fund one day of testing,” she said.

Students taking the PARCC will attend both weeks of school in March and May, but they will be on a shortened schedule.

Non-testing students will have March 3 off from school. Freshmen will take a PARCC test while the juniors will take the ACT.

PARCC exam replaces the PSAE this spring

Chris Brendza News Writer

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his year, Maine South students will be administered the new Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) assessment in the spring.

Two separate weeks of testing will focus on freshmen in English 1 and Algebra 1 classes.

The PARCC assessment is being administered statewide this year, in accordance with the new Illinois Learning Standards that were implemented in 2010.

PARCC itself is an association of twelve states (including Illinois) that developed this test to support the implementation of new Common Core standards. These are standards that students should meet to be prepared for college and beyond.

This test has two sections. Each test

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will be administered a different week in the spring.

Section one is administered online, meaning that students will take the test on their Chromebooks.

The first week of testing is the “performance-based assessment.” It will take place from March 3 through March 6.

The second section of testing is the “end-of-year” assessment. It will be given from May 18 to May 21.

Both sections include an Algebra 1 and an English Language Arts assessment, but they each test different concepts.

This new testing replaces the old state requirement of the Prairie State Achievement Exam.

The PSAE was administered to juniors instead of freshmen, and it also included the ACT as a portion of the test.

The state therefore provided

February 6, 2015

| NEWS

New C-Team course proves controversial Jake Kay

News Editor

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n the coming school year, the Constitution Team at Maine South will experience a significant change. The C-Team students will all be enrolled in a single new social science course called “We the People.”

The course will focus on interpreting the Constitution and applying it to various court cases in order to prepare the team for their competitions throughout the year. This is contrary to years past, in which the C-Team members were placed in an Advanced Placement course, AP US & Comparative Government, which was comprised of multiple classes.

The addition of this C-Team-only class came about largely as a result of scheduling.

“What starts to happen when the school offers a class like AP Comparative Government, which combines the C-Team curriculum and the AP Government and Politics curriculum, is the number of students who ultimately take the course starts to shrink,” said Principal Messmer. “This is due to the way things

are structured in terms of scheduling and class availability. In the past, if a student wanted to take AP Comparative Government, but didn’t want to be on C-Team, it would have been very hard for he or she to take that class.”

“We the People” will be neither AP nor accelerated; it will be a “regular”-track class. This aspect of the class has been a cause for much debate.

Students who are enrolled in AP Comparative Government but are not a member of C-Team find the change to be beneficial.

“I think the change will be a positive one,” said senior Robert Zacchigna. “There aren’t many kids in AP Comparative Government who are not on C-Team already, so if all the C-Team kids were in one class, it would be much easier for those other students who are not.”

Some C-Team members are upset by the change and find it detrimental to the entire program.

“I think the change could possibly decrease the talent level because kids who would normally take accelerated and AP classes are not going

to want to take it because it will negatively affect their GPA,” said senior and C-Team member Alex Solberg.

“I don’t think it will be good for the program that has won State for 20plus years.”

There are options for students who want to be on C-Team but are deterred by the fact that the course is not accelerated.

“One of the things that [C-Team head coach] Mr. Trenkle said is that students could take ‘We the People’ pass/fail, because it’s a normal class, and then they could also take AP Comparative Government,” said C-Team member Matt Kelly. “But I don’t think many kids would be willing to do that.”

Even with these drawbacks, Kelly also finds the course beneficial in ways.

“Since Mr. Trenkle will be teaching ‘We the People’, he can focus specifically on the aspects of the Constitution and government that are most important for the Constitution Team, and there will be more time for the C-Team units to work together and complete their work,” he said.

Though the student body has cit-

ed both pros and cons regarding the new class, the effect of this change will not be able to be determined until next year. However, responses from juniors, the potential C-Team members of next year, suggest that the good may outweigh the bad.

“I feel like colleges will be more impressed by the fact that a kid is on C-Team than disappointed that they dropped from an accelerated to a regular social science curriculum,” said junior Nick Martens. “I feel like all the criticism regarding the nonaccelerated aspect of the course is overblown.”

Mr. Messmer has high hopes for the future of C-Team following the establishment of “We the People” as a year-long course.

“If there is an issue that arises where there are not enough students willing to sign up and take the class, adjustments can be made so that they will want to take the new course,” he said. “However, I believe that we have fantastic students here and I, quite frankly, expect us to continue our reign as state champions every year.”

Alex Ellyin & Stephen Sakowicz Editors-in-Chief

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n the first day of the new semester, the Alternative Resource Center, or ARC, changed its name and also moved to its new location next to Maine South.

The program, which serves about 30 District 207 students in a small, structured setting, is now known as the Ralph J. Frost Academy. This was the result of the students wanting to change the name of their school.

Ralph J. Frost was a longtime employee of District 207. He was Maine West’s first principal and later became an assistant superintendent for the district.

In addition to the name change, the Academy chose a mascot for their athletic teams. The teams are now known as the “Flyers.”

The nickname is a reference to a District 207 fundraising effort during World War II when Maine Township students raised enough money to purchase a C-54 Transport Plane

for the war effort.

ARC was previously located in Morton Grove. The new location is at 1177 S. Dee Road, in what used to be the Tool and Manufacturing Association building. According to Mr. David Beery, the District 207 Director of Communications, the move offers several amenities not offered at the previous location.

“This [new location] means convenient access to support services, including social workers, psychologists and Maine South’s school resource officer,” Mr. Beery said.

“In addition, the location means that Frost Academy students and staff enjoy the same Quest food service available to Maine South students and staff.”

The new building has several classrooms, a workout room, lunchroom, staff offices, as well as a music room.

In the spring, the District 207 administrative offices will move from Maine South to this building. The district offices have been located

PHOTO BY JOSH LARRAGOITY

ARC changes location and name

RALPH J. FROST ACADEMY This is a classroom at the new Ralph J.

Frost Academy. Formerly known as the Alternative Resource Center, the Academy is now housed right near Maine South, at what used to be the Tool and Manufacturing Association, or TMA, building.

at Maine South for the past three eastern portion. decades. The district offices will be The district offices were located housed in the west half of the build- in this building until the 1980s, when ing, while the Academy occupies the they moved to Maine South.

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COMMENTARY

| February 6, 2015

‘Humanist’ rather than ‘feminist’ Alex Ponder Commentary Editor

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ritics of modern-day feminism misunderstand active feminists as being a group that believes females are in some way better than males, or that women simply hate men; however, this isn’t the case.

The modern feminist movement is about gender equality, an ideal our nation was founded on.

Feminism is the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities—the theor y of political, economic, and social equality of the sexes.

The word ‘feminism’ has come to have a negative connotation. Some people, after hearing this word, shut down and fail to stop and think what the word actually means.

Over the course of time, women have made significant gains, but there still isn’t total equality.

According to the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, if female gains continue at the same pace they have over the past 50 years, it will take 44 years, or until 2058, for women to achieve equal pay.

In a short film on sexual inequality produced for International Women’s Day, Daniel Craig stated, “Women are responsible for two thirds of the work done worldwide, yet earn only 10% of the total income and own 1% of the property…So, are we equals?

Until the answer is yes, we must never stop asking.”

Wo m e n h a v e been seen as less than

men and, to an extent, forgotten about throughout history. When the Constitution was written, African Americans were unfairly considered as only 3/5 of a person. Women were not even mentioned.

During the post-Civil War era and the passing of the 15th Amendment, which gave African Americans the right to vote, many women were appalled with the lack of female representation in government.

In the late 1800s, the Feminist movement reached its peak, and by 1920, women were granted the right to vote.

The grievances of feminists, however, could not simply be resolved with the right to vote. In the 1960’s, women were viewed as the stereotypical “housewife” and struggled to pursue careers due to pay and work discrimination.

Females have made significant gains since the time when they were not even mentioned in government; however, men and women are still not viewed as completely equal.

Some critics of modern feminism argue that women in the U.S. are better off than women in other countries around the world, so we should stop complaining.

Should we stop progressing as a society, even though women are still told they are less than men? Yes, women in the United States have more equality than women in some other nations; however, that isn’t a reason to settle for less.

In September, Emma Watson, the

“The biggest risk for feminism is that they’re losing the marketing war. The allimportant cause for equal rights of women is being hijacked by some extreme agendas.”

-Jack Cahill-Lemme ‘16 “This misconception that feminists are crazy radicalists is absurd. Unless you want to say that MLK, Jr. was a radicalist. Because equal rights and opportunities is a civil right, no matter race or gender.”

-Tim Kwasny ‘15

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“I think most people are feminists, they just don’t like the word, because, historically, with feminism you think of people marching and yelling, but today it’s more about the equality for both genders.”

-Michael Harris ‘15

U.N. Women Goodwill Ambassador, gave a speech on feminism. In her HeforShe campaign, Watson stressed that both genders need to be involved, hoping to move past the “us vs. them” mentality.

Watson not only discussed gender discrepancies for women, but for men as well: “I’ve seen young men suffering from mental illness unable to ask for help for fear it would make them look less ‘macho,’” she said.

“In fact in the UK suicide is the biggest killer of men between 20-49 years of age; eclipsing road accidents, cancer and coronary heart disease.

I’ve seen men made fragile and insecure by a distorted sense of what constitutes male success. Men don’t have the benefits of equality, either.”

Watson pointed out.

Beyoncé has also spoken on the issues of gender inequality. Instead of using the word ‘feminist’, she uses ‘humanist’ because, like Watson, feminism isn’t solely about women, but men also. It is the balance and equality of the two sexes.

To those who say feminists just “complain,” I suppose we do, but not for the reasons some accuse us of.

We object to wage inequality. We object to the historical mistreatment of females. We object to being forced into primitive gender roles.

We don’t think women are “better than men” or should just be handed things because they’re females.

It’s quite the opposite, actually.

Feminists—humanists—want to rise above gender lines and act and treat each other as equals.

L a b e l m e w h at y ou w a nt , but—I’m never going to stop “complaining” until there is equality.

“Feminism isn’t about raising women to the same level that men are on. It’s about getting rid of the levels all together and just treating everyone with respect.”

-Mia Celenza ‘15 “I don’t particularly like the word feminism. It sparks immediate conflict between the two opposing sides of its meaning.”

-Sabrina Tamas ‘15

“The notion is not about man-hating, it’s about equality. It’s about treating everyone, no matter what your gender, as important and capable.”

-Sarah Biggins ‘16

Maine South High School 1111 South Dee Road Park Ridge, IL 60068 http://www.southwords.org

Signed letters to the editor should be delivered to LRC1, given to a member of the editorial staff, or e-mailed to southwords@maine207.org.

Southwords reserves the right to edit material for clarity and brevity and to reject obscene/libelous submissions.

Scan this QR code to e-mail Southwords Editors-in-Chief

Alex Ellyin Katie Krall Stephen Sakowicz

Production Editors Josh Larragoity Rhyanne Noche News Editors

Erin Clements Kristin Camiliere Jake Kay

Entertainment Editors Katie Kaminsky Kate Papciak Matt Weiss Features Editors Monica Bielawiec CJ Johnson Laney Kraus-Taddeo Commentary Editors

Annie Krall

Alex Ponder Sports Editors

Austin Derrick John Lavaccare Sam Tinaglia

Art/Production Team Basia Chruscinski Adviser

Mr. Stathakis

February 6, 2015

STAFF EDITORIAL

| COMMENTARY

Sharing the news: college admission letters e all crave acceptance. Whether from our peers, our family, or from an admissions officer at a prestigious college, most of us seek affirmation of our worth.

When we evaluate ourselves based on others’ criteria, we are often subject to incredible highs or intolerable lows.

These highs and lows summarize the college admissions process for many students.

When admission letters arrive from colleges, everything we have worked so hard for comes down to three words: accepted, denied, or deferred.

Upon receiving acceptance letters, students have a right to be proud of their achievements, but at the same time, they need to be concious of others who were denied from their dream school.

Most students at Maine South apply to multiple colleges with rolling admissions. Many colleges such as the University of Iowa and Loyola University in Chicago have rolling admissions. This means that there is no set deadline for when students must turn in their applications or for when they will be notified of their admission decision.

The admissions officers review applications as they receive them and contact students in one to two

months. In September, a student can be notified about her acceptance into Illinois Wesleyan University and a few weeks later open an email from Michigan State University with that school’s decision.

Thes e accept ances des er ve celebration, but they need to be celebrated properly.

After letters are sent out, students often take to social media to share their news. Posing with your acceptance letter and a sweatshirt emblazoned with the school’s logo that you stole from your older brother, is only allowable if you have committed to go to that school.

A litany of photos of someone with their countless acceptance letters isn’t only annoying; it’s also inconsiderate of other seniors who are experiencing the trials and tribulations of the college admissions process.

O t her s cho ols such as t he University of Michigan and Yale University have a specific day when admission letters are sent out. Students are notified, and the next day is often filled with students parading around Maine South in their college’s gear.

While this blatant advertisement of a student’s admission decision is tacky, it is tolerable. Wardrobe is a form of self-expression and should only be censored in extreme cases.

The truth is that colleges will accept some students, deny others, and a few will be deferred. The way students handle these decisions is a reflection of their character.

Telling someone about your acceptance in person is preferable to sending out a Tweet, Facebook post, or Snapchat story, especially if the person you are speaking with did not receive the same good news.

In the late spring, Maine South will hold its annual College Shirt Spirit Day where students don clothing from the college they have decided to attend. All Hawks deserve to sport clothing of their future

school on that day. Wearing your college’s gear on this day is not tacky because it’s not self-congratulatory— it’s demonstrating school pride.

Plus, by this time most people will have committed to their colleges, so wearing a shirt of your school is understandable.

Most Hawks know that the college you attend doesn’t define who you are as a person. The Class of 2015 has worked very hard, which has resulted in many athletic and academic achievements. Be proud of the next school you attend, but just remember to consider the feelings of others along the way.

the start that we had very different personalities, we were the best of friends.

Some people have elaborate stories about where they met their best friend. These tales are usually revealed at weddings when, for six to seven gruesome minutes, the maid of honor recounts her first encounter with the bride in excruciating detail. My story is short. I didn’t meet my best friend at Starbucks or at a Cubs game; I’ve known her my whole life.

Being a twin has its privileges.

Having someone your own age and with a similar level of intellect living across the hall from you makes homework a breeze. Anytime Annie found herself struggling with the economic and social impacts of the French Revolution, she would burst into my room, throw her essay on my desk, and within an hour it would articulate the struggles of the French

people so expertly that it would bring a tear to Robespierre’s dry eyes. A similar situation often played out while I attempted to complete my math homework.

After making a name for myself on the middle school girls’ volleyball circuit, I began to concentrate on individual sports. I became infatuated with golf and tennis. While they are typically solitary activities, Annie and I would always go to the driving range together or volley with one another.

We are very different individuals, but our common interests always kept us close.

Sharing a birthday with someone does come with its challenges. We are constantly compared against one another whether it is our test scores, the number of AP classes we are taking, or our golf swings. Due to these pressures, we have coevolved.

Annie is the typical Renaissance

woman. She makes the world’s best apple pie, knits, and drives a pontoon boat. In the future, she is debating becoming a pediatric optometrist or a very successful baker. I, on the other hand, spend my days logrolling and enjoy watching Brewers games from the early 2000s. Someday, I would like to become the first female general manager of a Major League baseball team.

In the past year, I have been incessantly asked two questions: “Where are you going to college,” and “will you go with your sister?”

The answers to the above are “Northwestern University” and “absolutely.” While some might see college as a fresh start, I know that it is four years of more adventures with my best friend. We each possess different attributes and we are stronger together. Being a twin is the best birthday gift I have ever received.

ILLUSTRATION BY BASIA CHRUSCINSKI

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From wombmates to roommates Katie Krall

Editor-in-Chief

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wo cribs. Two backpacks. Two bicycles. Two golf bags. Two birthday cakes. All my life I have been seeing double. My visions aren’t the result of poor eyesight; having multiples of the same objects is one of the wonderful side effects of being a twin.

My twin sister Annie and I were born on Feb. 27, 1997. I can’t say that I remember much of that day or that year, but I’ve gleaned from my parents that I suffered from mild insomnia as a child and my sister spent the first four years of her life either eating or sleeping. While it was obvious from

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COMMENTARY | February 6, 2015

The unappreciated aspects of going to school

your everyday life—how much the things in school really matter.

Rather than focusing on some of the negatives of school, think about all the great opportunities you have at here. I took for granted all of the Sam Tinaglia social, academic and future benefits Sports Editor school offered. y sophomore year was off to a Most people don’t value what you great start, with exciting new actually get out of school, and I only classes, friends and teachers. But right realized it when I couldn’t go back. For when I was getting settled in, the rug me, it’s seeing friends—and not just was ripped right out from under me. your friends, but the atmosphere of Only two weeks in, I surprisingly walking through the halls and seeing got a virus called the Entero virus. It people you recognize and saying a caused my nerves to stop working, simple, “hello.” which made it hard to do everyday I missed the little things in school, things like stand up and walk. So I too, like a student responding with would have to relearn how to do those something funny to what a teacher things again, meaning I couldn’t go says and hearing spontaneous to school. laughter. Simply being a part of the When you don’t go to school for an school community is amazing, and extended period of time, you realize some people don’t get to experience how valuable school is to you and that.

I have come to particularly miss all of the extra-curricular activities and clubs that are available to kids, and opportunities to take more classes on my favorite subjects.

At the start of this year, I knew I had some unique teachers, like Mrs. Wagner, Mr. McGowan, and Ms. Kochan, and I was really looking forward to learning all the great things they offered.

I was ready to go to class every day and learn about all the cool new things they were going to teach us such as the secrets to editing videos in broadcasting, the reign of ancient civilizations in History, and controlled experiments in Physics.

It’s very important that we have this great opportunity to be able to learn these new things. Some people in the world never get the opportunity to go to school.

Some kids say, “I don’t want to go

to school. It’s just a waste of time, and you won’t need any of the things they teach you in the real world.” They also would say, “I’d rather be home.”

I know—I used to be one of those kids.

Most of us just don’t realize how much school is helping us grow and how many more opportunities it gives us.

After being out of school so long, I’ve realized just how much I took for granted and how much I miss, specifically friends, teachers, favorite subjects, and intellectual stimulation.

Some students don’t think about how much they are getting out of school by going every day. It was only after an extended absence, that I realized how much school really matters.

What some see as a dull day of school on Tuesday, I see as a blessing: the opportunity to learn alongside my friends.

body.

Why does Queen B feel the need to change her already-stunning body?

Or why does Jennifer Lawrence want to be altered in any way? I know why: the battle for perfection. They feel the same stresses as an average Maine South student—except they are multiplied by a thousand, considering the public scrutiny of their every move.

S o ciety puts s o much pressure on all of us to be skinny or in shape. I know for me, the pressures of society make me feel like maybe I am abnormal or I don’t “look good.” But I just have to realize that maybe that’s not the real Queen B or Justin Bieber I’m seeing. That maybe in real life they are normal-sized humans.

U n f o r t u n a t e l y, t h i s realization never comes for some people. According to the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders, 69% of girls said that pictures made an impact on their body image.

These were girls in 5th-12th grade.

Boys are affected by this battle, too. Men make up 1015% of people with an eating disorder. All of this because people don’t see that their

bodies are perfect the way they are.

Or they feel that by exercising control over their image they might gain more control over their lives. This need for some form of control is a common cause of anorexia and bulimia.

Despite societal challenges, I am optimistic for the future. A major change is developing—and it’s a step in the right direction. As Meghan Trainor notes, more of us need to

start dancing around with our friends saying we’re “bringing booty back.”

Let’s take the idea of a positive self image out of the dance party and into the real world. I know my friends and I are putting an emphasis on being proud of who we are.

Celebrities and people in the limelight have the power to affect us in positive ways. But only you can control your own image.

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We need to destroy the little Photoshop of horrors

Katelyn Kahn Staff Writer

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ociety fights many wars. The battle for a perfect body image is one of them. While pop icon Meghan Trainor declares, “every inch of you is perfect, from the bottom to the top,” the media and advertising companies portray a different story.

When I open my Victoria Secret Magazine and flip through the pages of People, I often am shocked at how some models look. Every single model is nicely toned with just the perfect amount of fat, looking “oh-sonatural.” Let’s face it—that’s not real.

Who or what is adding fuel to this fire? Photoshop. Photoshop is an innovative, yet potentially dangerous, piece of software which people can use to change their appearance in pictures, and in our ever-present pursuit of physical perfection, the Photoshop epidemic is spreading like wildfire.

Time after time, I am saddened when I hear that a favorite celebrity of mine has had their pictures Photoshopped. Now we aren’t talking about an added Instagram filter to posts, but completely altering the

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I like myself better here.

ILLUSTRATION BY BASIA CHRUSCINSKI

February 6, 2015 | ENTERTAINMENT

‘Pippi’ brings the magic of childhood to the stage

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t is a tradition in the Fine Arts Department that every four years, the winter play is a children’s play. This year’s show is “Pippi Longstocking,” a children’s musical adapted from the novel written by Swedish writer Astrid Lindgren. The lighthearted nature of this classic children’s play allows both the audience and the cast to relive the joys of childhood.

This play focuses on the spunky, yet fearless, Pippi; a nine-year-old redhead who leads an extraordinary life, complete with horses, monkeys, and the circus.

With her mother in heaven and her father as a pirate king off at sea, Pippi is left alone with her monkey, Mr. Nelson, and horse for company.

Soon enough, Pippi becomes friends with local kids named Annika and Tommy. Pippi runs into many conflicts with several adults who believe they are smarter than Pippi, such as Tommy and Annika’s teacher, circus performers, policemen, and more.

The main theme of the play deals with the power struggle between kids and adults. Pippi is a very fearless child who is eager to show off her strength.

“Everything Pippi does is loud and crazy, which makes this so fun,” said the actress portraying Pippi, junior Chrissy Friel. “Because it’s a kids’ show, everything is bigger. Nothing about this show is slow. One minute I am talking to my horse or monkey, climbing up onto my house, running from the police, hiding in barrels, or even getting cake shoved in my face.”

This show differs from typical winter plays because it is physically demanding for the actors, specifically for Friel.

“Pippi does a lot of jumping,” Friel said. “At one point, I’m doing a leg hold into a cartwheel into the splits. There’s definitely a lot more physical stuff to the show, something that I’ve never done before.”

Due to the high demand for various stunts and other movement, dance teacher Ms. Sinclair, helped the cast learn m ore ab out c ont a c t

PIPPI’S LULLABY

Pippi, played by Chrissy Friel, is singing to her pet monkey, Mr. Nelson, to try and calm him before bed. This is just one of the many scenes that incorporates musical pieces with acting.

PHOTO BY JOSH LARRAGOITY

improvisation.

Contact improvisation deals with movement between actors on stages, such as fake fights or dances.

“Ms. Sinclair taught us that using the core is key during contact improvisation along with trust in your partner,” said Friel.

O n e of t h e m any unique aspects to the show is the incorporation of music and choreography.

The show was written with music, but senior music DRESSING UP THE WINTER PLAY Costume crew prepares director Tim Kwasny has flower-filled hats to be used in the show. Children’s plays involve a lot of vibrant been given the opportunity colors, which costume crew takes in consideration for each cast member’s costume. to write something original for this production. personality gets displayed through the set. She isn’t “I started writing about two months ago, and, this normal girl-she’s very quirky and fun. We can’t originally, I was only supposed to be doing the have a [plain] set, we have to have one that looks orchestration, but the composer, well, he kind of like Pippi.” wrote it poorly,” Kwasny said. “So I had to edit a Junior Alyssa Bulatek, head of costume crew, lot of it, and rewrite some stuff, and even add in is developing costumes to fit the whimsical style some songs because things were missing. So, it’s of the show. been a long process, but it’s been a lot of fun. And “The costumes are really diverse because of all a lot of it has been a collaborative effort; we have the different settings in the show,” said Bulatek. such a great team.”

“Because of that, there are so many different In addition to Kwasny, sophomore Natalie influences for their costumes, ones that I didn’t Briggs and senior Connor Flynn are helping realize when I read the play initially. The most coordinate the music to fit with the show. The fun part for me has been pulling older costumes team is working to create the appropriate music from the racks and realizing they could work for atmosphere. This year, the pit is larger than this show. So, there are new things and old things, normal, and consists of 18 people. which makes it really cool visually.”

Although not visible to an audience Mrs. McCleneghan, drama teacher and director member, the crew members are what of the show, is delighted to see this show be put make the show possible. to stage.

Livvie Goble, a senior, is both stage “What’s so cool is that Pippi is someone we all manager and choreographer for the show, know,” Mrs. McCleneghan said. “Most kids read and has had the opportunity to this growing up, so it’s really fun to see. It’s really work with both cast and crew. a light hearted romp where the kid wins.”

“Crew puts together the “I think people will really appreciate the efforts magic,” said Goble. “Without of the kids involved. There’s a big cast, there’s music, the actors on stage, we wouldn’t there’s choreography, great props, this huge pit, and have a show, but without the crew overall just an amazing production team. It’s a big there wouldn’t be any magic. You deal, bigger than we thought it’d be. The audience wouldn’t get to see the circus, you wouldn’t will have so much fun.” see horses on stage. None of it would be In addition to their general performances, possible. It wouldn’t be the work of there will also be a special showing for a group art that it is.” of third graders who have read the book, “Pippi Junior Kiara Irizarry is very Longstocking”. They are eager to come and see the busy with the production familiar characters on stage and experience the because she is the assistant tech story in a live setting. director and co-props head.

“Every four years, when we are choosing a show, “The set is huge, and we we look for different books that are age-appropriate have a small time to build it for them to read. The kid is the hero in this show, in, which is challenging. We and the adults are the bad guys. Kids love that,” said want to make it look perfect for Mrs. McCleneghan. the kids [in the audience], so they “Pippi Longstocking” will be performing on can see it come to life,” Irizarry said.

Feb. 19 and Feb. 20 at 7:30 and on Feb. 21 at 2:00 “Another challenging and 7:30 in Watson Auditorium. Tickets can be part is making sure Pippi’s purchased at the door for $7.

PHOTO BY JOSH LARRAGOITY

Entertainment Writer

ITY PHOTO BY JOSH LARRAGO

Katrina Iorio

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ENTERTAINMENT

| February 6, 2015

TOP SECRET ACI

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Katie Kaminsky, Kate Papciak, & Matt Weiss YR CB PHI

PHOTO BY JOSH LARRAGOITY

PHOTO BY JOSH LARRAGOITY

t is not uncommon to get bored with popular restaurants. The menu items remain constant, so variety is rare. Luckily for consumers, secret menus provide an opportunity to add an exciting twist to their typical orders. Secret menus are either created by the customers or the restaurant itself. Southwords’ Entertainment staff ventured to Starbucks, Potbelly, Noodles & Co, Jamba Juice, and The Sandlot to learn more about secret menus and their unique aspects.

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Entertainment Editors

Starbucks

Jamba Juice

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15 South Prospect Avenue, Park Ridge (847) 292-5678 any Maine South students have developed a slight obsession with Starbucks. With Starbucks’ secret menu, customers have the opportunity to switch up their typical orders.

“Quite often, secret menus are just if you have a drink idea, like maybe you want us to put hazelnut and mocha in a frappuccino with protein, we can do that, and give it a name,” said a Starbucks student employee.

The most popular item on the secret menu is the Cotton Candy Frappuccino; a Vanilla Bean with raspberry syrup (pictured above).

“Even though we could just put it on the menu, and I’m sure they would sell rather well, there are a lot of ingredients used to make the secret menu items.

Like, to make a Twix Frappuccino, it involves over 3 different syrups and it just takes a lot of time to create even one of them,” said the employee. The secret menu provides customers with a way to get creative with their order.

“Somebody could just come in and ask ‘could you make this?’ and I can.

When you say ‘I don’t like coffee,’ or ‘I don’t like this,’ we can always be flexible and make you something that you can enjoy.”

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630 Davis Street, #101, Evanston (847) 425-1740 amba Juice has long served as a favorite among smoothie shops for Maine South students. Their secret menu was created by their fans in online blogs, and soon spread to the storefronts. If a customer wants to order a drink off the secret menu, they have to bring in the recipe from the website they found it from.

“Half the time most of the new employees don’t know anything about it unless they hear somebody come in and ask about it,” said Remus Campbell, a Jamba Juice employee (pictured above). “The ingredients are online. Half of the stuff that they have is not in our system. We have to see what the ingredients are and see if we even carry it. If we carry it, we can make it.”

One of the most popular secret smoothies consists of lemonade, soy milk, strawberries, pineapple sherbet, and lime sherbet. “[The menu] definitely makes the job more interesting,” said Campbell. “You have your regulars that order the same drinks over and over again, and you know those recipes off the top of your head. To have somebody come in with something off the secret menu, and having to ask them to pull it up, makes the job more fun because you’re doing something out-of-the-box.”

PHOTO BY JOSH LARRAGOITY

PHOTO BY JOSH LARRAGOITY

February 6, 2015 | ENTERTAINMENT

Potbelly

Noodles & Company

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107 South Northwest Highway #10, Park Ridge (847) 692-6699

he Potbelly Underground Menu is a corporation-created menu that includes 11 sandwiches and four desserts, and can be found on various webpages.

“When Potbelly’s posted [the menu] on Facebook, everyone went crazy,” said a Potbelly employee. “It is nice when people can order something other than what’s there.”

Out of the 11 sandwiches, the most popular are the Lucky 7 and the Clubby.

The Lucky 7 (pictured above) combines Potbelly’s Wreck sandwich (ham, turkey, roast beef, and salami) with their Italian sandwich (salami, pepperoni, capicola, and mortadella) while the Clubby consists of turkey, ham, bacon, provolone cheese, and ranch dressing.

One of the more bizarre options is the Elvis which includes peanut butter, bacon, and bananas. The most popular items from the dessert menu are the Cookie Collision Shake and the Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Shake.

510 West Touhy Avenue, Park Ridge (847) 292-6502 oodles & Company is often frequented by customers looking for a quick Italian fix. The restaurant has developed their own secret menu that they often switch up. Currently, customers can order a Meatball Sub, Whole Grain Tuscan Linguine, Bacon Mac and Cheese, or Barbecue Mac and Cheese (pictured above).

“It’s exciting to train employees about unique off-menu items,” said a Noodles & Company employee. The secret menu items allow employees to add a bump to their routine and make something different for their customers. The ingredients used for the secret menu are already in the store, making it easy to create the items.

“I definitely don’t find the menu to be annoying. I’m pretty used to having people order the different menu items by now,” said the employee. The decision to add more secret menu items does not stem from the individual franchises, but rather the corporate headquarters of Noodles & Company.

PHOTO BY JOSH LARRAGOITY

The Sandlot

1120 W Touhy Ave., Park Ridge (847) 692-1900

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lthough The Sandlot has only been in Park Ridge for one and a half years, its customers have already created a secret menu. “It’s fun to have a secret menu, but we didn’t plan to have [it]. They’re all things that the customers have asked for since we’ve been open,” said Tom Marabanian, owner of The Sandlot.

The secret menu includes adaptations of familiar items like grilled chicken, vegetable sandwiches, double dogs, or grilled cheese for the kids. However, they also will make more unique items for customers.

While their typical sandwich is called the Two-n-Two, with two beef patties and two slices with cheese, they will cater to customers’ specific and unique requests.

“We’ve served Five-n-Five’s, we’ve served Seven-n-Seven’s, and we’ve served three 16-n-16’s,” said Marabanian. “One of our guests came in with some of his friends and said, ‘Can you stack up a 16-n-16?’ So he ate a 16-n-16, which took him about seven and a half minutes. And then after that, he came back with another one of his buddies, they lined up two 16-n-16’s, and it took them about 6 minutes to get them down.”

The Sandlot usually enjoys when people order off the secret menu because it makes the work day more interesting.

“We’re very happy to do anything that anybody would like us to do if it’s within our means to do,” said Marabanian.

SouthwordS 9

FEATURES

| February 6, 2015

Rising prices and an increase in home entertainment options lead to a decline in theater attendance.

Features Writer & Editor-in-Chief ince 1994, the number of people going to theaters to see movies has decreased by 27% according to the Theatrical Marketing Statistics.

The number of frequent moviegoers has decreased in the age groups 18-24 and 25-39, but moviegoing has hit a 20 year-low among teens.

The majority of teens have stopped going to movies because there are so many alternatives that require less planning, money, and effort.

Netflix, OnDemand, online streaming, and watching DVDs have become extremely popular among teens.

Although we may take for granted having the Pickwick and Muvico just minutes away, the rise of OnDemand and especially Netflix are a couple of factors contributing to the decline of teens’ interest in going out to movie theaters.

“There are many other ways of seeing movies nowadays with the advent of Netflix,” senior Thomas Janowski said.

Netflix has become immensely popular for Maine South students over the past few years and has g re at ly cont r ibute d to mov ie theaters becoming less popular teen destinations. “[Netflix] has a bigger variety of movies and TV shows,” senior Melissa Walek said. “Plus, it’s less expensive, and you don’t even have to leave the house.”

Before the rise of Netflix and other video streaming sources, going to the

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theater to watch a movie with friends was commonplace.

Killing a few hours watching a movie was so popular years ago because the we couldn’t binge watch TV shows as easy as we can today.

Nowadays, instead of going to the theater, it is easier to turn that threehour window into eight episodes of “Friends” on Netflix. The “oldfashioned” option to watch movies is still available to the students but is declining in interest levels among

current teenagers.

Plus, the hassle of going to the movies is just not worth it.

“The prices at cinemas like Muvico are ridiculous,” said junior Sabrina Geraghty. “If I have to work for the money that I earn, I don’t want to pay $10.50, plus parking, and plus food and

ILLUSTRATIO N BY RYAN KO VACIN

Georgia Loutrianakis & Alex Ellyin

ILLUSTRATION BY BASIA CHRUSCINSKI

Coming soon to a theater near you: no one

drinks just to see a movie that’s going to come out on DVD in a month or so.”

Janowski feels the same way Geraghty does about the cost of a movie.

“Why go out and spend money on parking, food, and a movie ticket when you can eat your parents’ ice cream, lie in your own bed, and watch a movie at no price to you?” Janowski said.

Staying at home to watch a movie is a much less expensive choice, and unlike previous years, you don’t have to leave the house to watch or rent one.

There are t imes, howe ver, when seeing a movie in theaters is preferential to watching Netflix, waiting for a DVD copy, or going OnDemand.

“I sometimes go to movies with my friends to laugh at horrible movies,” senior Julia Samulak said.

“Also, I would go to see the premieres of really big movies, like ‘The Hunger Games.’ Those are the times people go to movies.”

Wh e t h e r it’s g oi n g t o s e e a legendary movie or a flat-out disastrous movie, some people are still willing to take the time and go to a movie theater.

More people though would rather stay home and watch Netflix or a movie in the comfort of their own home as opposed to going to a movie theater.

“The walk from the fridge to the couch is much shorter than the walk from the concession stand to the seat,” Walek said.

February 6, 2015 | FEATURES

Teachers go the extra mile(s) “The one-on-one conversations I have with students, I just go home and think about them for several Features Editors days,” said Langmyer. “It is just such a rewarding experience for me, and any Maine South students that’s not money, that’s not status, frequently complain about the that’s something that comes from the length of their commute, even though heart, and having those interactions students are rarely more than a few with people is what drives me.”

Although taking public miles away. Some teachers, however, travel many more miles in one day transportation can prove to be than students will travel during an efficient, for many teachers, it is not an option, and they must commute entire semester.

Several staff members commute by car.

Mr. Knodle, a Maine South science from a variety of regions in the Chicago metropolitan area and teacher, understands the hardships of organize their schedule to be early long car rides.

“In my fifteen years at Maine for school on a daily basis. This often includes enduring tedious drives South, I’ve driven over 300,000 miles,” and highway jams to get to and from said Mr. Knodle.

These trips prove to be laborious, school.

Some Maine South teachers are and more often than not, accidents or other inhibiting willing to go the extra factors slow down mile—or seventy-five .

M a i n e S o u t h “In my fifteen years the trip home.

“I c om e f rom math teacher, Mrs. Langmyer, lives in at Maine South, R o c k f o r d ,” M r.

Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I’ve driven over Knodle said. “The commute is about Yet, she teaches every 70 miles one way. It day in Park Ridge, 300,000 miles.” usually takes an hour Illinois.

“Currently, I have a house up in and 15 minutes or an hour and a half.”

With the constant uncertainty of Milwaukee because my husband got a job up there,” said Mrs. Langmyer. Chicago weather and traffic patterns, “He’s been working up there for about commute conditions are never a year and a half and I did not want to consistent.

Sometimes these conditions leave Maine South.”

Mrs. Langmyer lives in Milwaukee prevent teachers from going home for the weekends and travels back entirely. Mr. Knodle has had offers to her Glenview apartment where from his colleagues to stay in town she resides for the school week. This on a stormy night.

Waking up early is generally lifestyle does not discourage her love of teaching and she continues to enjoy a sacrifice that has to be made by teachers who commute long distances. teaching South students.

“I leave really early in the morning “I’ve always jumped into a new situation very positively, very to miss a lot of traffic and that makes energetically, but I’m not ready to the commute a lot easier than dealing with the crazy drivers,” said Mr. leave,” she said.

Instead of driving, Mrs. Langmyer Knodle.

The hour-plus drive is already takes the train to go home.

“I have a frequent rider card on an exhausting process. Finding the Amtrak,” said Mrs. Langmyer. entertainment while in the car can “I know the conductors, I know the make the drive back and forth seem schedule, I know if they’ll be late or less difficult. Mr. Knodle has listened on time. It is so super convenient—I to over 100 books on tape during his catch it in Glenview and it takes 61 long drives.

On Mrs. Langmyer’s Friday nights, minutes, usually.”

After the commute, the most when returning to her Milwaukee important thing for the Maine South home, she enjoys interesting company math teacher is her interactions with on the train.

“If there is a Bucks game on a students during the school day.

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Friday night, there will be some high school kids from the North Shore high schools catching the train,” said Mrs. Langmyer. “Which is so cool to me because I never grew up in that kind of environment, where you could just take the train.”

Special Education teacher, Mr. Crawford, resides in Plainfield with his family. For Mr. Crawford, getting to Maine South can be a challenge, particularly during the wintertime.

“In snowstorms, [the commute] could be like two hours to two and a half hours,” said Mr. Crawford. “Only one time in seventeen years have I been stuck here. I stayed at Rosemont for one night.”

There are reasons why teachers travel long distances to work at South.

One reason to live miles away from Maine South according to Mr. Crawford is the expensive real estate in Park Ridge. Towns further away from Park Ridge sometimes offer better housing opportunities for a lower cost.

“The further west you go, you get more house for your money,” said Mr. Crawford. “So, as a young guy back then, starting a family, we wanted a big house, and the only negative was my commute.”

Teachers consider the balance between financial, personal, and material needs when making the decision to work at Maine South.

“If something happens and you need to shoot home, basically you’re an hour away. It’s never convenient if your kid’s sick and you need to get them from school or your wife has to run an errand, you’re an hour away,” Mr. Crawford said.

Even through all the sacrifices that need to be made, dedication to this learning community is the main reason teachers choose to teach here.

“I love my courses that I teach, I love my department, I love just being a part of the Maine Township Schools and I really wanted to stay here,” said Mrs. Langmyer.

For Mr. Crawford, Maine South has been the starting point of his career, and continues to be a prominent part of his life.

“This is where I started,” Mr. Crawford said. “So, unless I change careers for some reason, I would never really think about leaving.”

Mrs. Langmyer Math teacher

“I just think so highly of the school.”

Mr. Knodle

Science teacher

“What a great opportunity it is to come to a school like this.”

Mr. Crawford

PHOTOS BY RHYANNE NOCHE

Monica Bielawiec & Laney Kraus-Taddeo

Special Education teacher

“I feel like it’s home—I feel like I’m a Hawk.”

SouthwordS 11

FEATURES | February 6, 2015

Lending a helping paw

PHOTO COURTESY JESSICA ALTMAN

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PHOTO COURTESY JESSICA ALTMAN

she said. “I always wanted a dog but we travel a lot. Instead of finding a News Editor babysitter, we foster dogs.”

Getting into the fostering program very year, the Park Ridge Chamber of Commerce recognizes seven individuals and that PAWS offers is a lot simpler than one business as “Community Stars.” On Feb. 21, some may think. Applicants need to one of the individuals being recognized is Maine be able to provide a safe and healthy living area for the foster dogs. Other South junior Jessica Altman.

At this year’s Community Dinner and Dance, than that, all that is really needed is the held at the Chicago Marriott O’Hare, Altman responsibility that comes with taking will be honored for her community building, care of a dog.

“There’s an application on their specifically for fostering abandoned dogs.

Only one nomination is needed to be able to website, and they’re looking for people who are responsible and dedicated to win the award, but she received two.

“The person who originally nominated me was the animals,” the junior said. “So it’s not the president of the Board of Directors for the Park hard to get into.”

The program fosters both dogs and Ridge Friends of the Park,” said Altman. “Then PAWS [Pets Are Worth Saving] also nominated me.” cats, so even if you aren’t a dog person, There were two other students nominated by you can foster abandoned cats. If you the president of the Board of Directors. They are like cats and dogs, then you can open on the Junior Advisory Board along with Altman. your home to foster both animals.

“They want as many fosters as they “I’m on their Junior Advisory Board, and she nominated the three of us on the JAB for our work,” can get, so as long as you’re up for the challenge of caring for the dogs and cats said Altman.

The president of the Board of Directors had then they’ll accept you,” said Altman.

Meeting a dog’s needs can be very nominated the three with plenty of time for the Chamber of Commerce to choose a winner, but expensive, but luckily the foster family PUPPY LOVE Junior Jessica Altman is a source of shelter Altman didn’t find out about her nomination until is provided most of what is needed. for many pups seeking their forever homes. Altman’s foster dogs, “PAWS gives us the food, leashes, Bobby (left) and Bradley (right) come from PAWS animal shelter. a couple days before they selected her as the winner.

“About two days before the Chamber selection crates, and they provide veterinary care,” date, the President of the Board told the three of said Altman. “We just buy toys. Now, because we they are suffering from, so they usually need more us that she had nominated us,” said Altman. “The have had so many dogs, we’ve gone and bought our caring for than dogs in perfect health.

Chamber of Commerce then called and told me own cages, leashes, treats, etc.”

“We had a blind dog and one dog suffered from After fostering for over three years, Altman has congenital heart disease,” Altman said. “The last big I had won.”

Altman first got involved in fostering the pups had many dogs through her doors. Having at least one was a mom with four puppies.” one dog almost every month, she can now say she when she wasn’t able to get a dog of her own.

The puppies were newborns when she received “I started fostering in September of 2011,” has fostered 50 dogs. them. They had been born the night before at a “Right now we are different foster home. The foster family had brought fostering numbers 49 them back to PAWS, not wanting to take care of five and 50,” said Altman. dogs at once, but Altman accepted the challenge Si nc e she h a s with a smile on her face. been fostering dogs “They were 36 hours old when we got them,” for s o l ong , s h e said Altman. “The mom was found as a stray and frequently takes the went to a foster home with a cold. We kept the 40-minute drive out puppies until they were eight weeks old. They to PAWS to take in were so cute.” new dogs.

There are all different kinds and sizes of dogs “On average, we that are taken into PAWS and put in the foster go once a month,” program. Some may be ten pounds and others said Altman. “We could be over 100 pounds, but Altman has a size keep our dogs for an limit for the dogs she fosters. average of two weeks “We only foster small dogs,” said Altman. “My except for rare cases.” mom thinks any dog over ten pounds is too much.”

Since the dogs Even though Altman can only take in smaller from PAWS have all dogs, her help is greatly appreciated by PAWS and been abandoned, the Chamber of Commerce. Her caring actions rare cases come up a have saved the lives of many abandoned dogs. lot. Most of the dogs Her big part in fostering 50 dogs is what has made Altman gets have the Chamber of Commerce recognize her as a SLEEPY TAILS Some of the puppies Altman cares for are newly born. These injuries or illnesses Community Star. puppies are only thirty-six hours old.

Erin Clements

February 6, 2015 | SPORTS

Mike Greco Staff Writer

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ach year the Maine S outh Wrestling program expects dedication, heart, and success from each of its wrestlers. To get ready for each season, wrestlers must train all year in order to be in top shape.

This preparation means that each season, there are high expectations for this program led by Coach Kevin Hansen.

“A lot of guys have dedicated their time and it shows in their efforts as they wrestle,” said Coach Hansen.

The Hawks have been successful this season, going 11-6 in their matches thus far. Their success led to two victories at the Conference meet.

On Sat., Jan. 24 at Glenbrook South, Junior Ibrahim Nasir and Senior Andy Kopplin took home titles at the CSL Conference Championship, in the 285-pound and 220-pound weight classes respectively.

“Andy and I were wrestling partners during the summer,” Nasir

said. “We worked hard and trained hard to accomplish our goals.”

Coach Hansen attributes the success of Nasir and Kopplin at the meet to their hard work throughout the season.

“Both Nasir and Kopplin put in a lot of time, and the championships were well earned,” Coach Hansen said.

On Jan. 16, the Hawks took on New Trier at home and defeated the Trevians. The victory was aided by match wins from senior Peter Lenti and junior Kyle Cacciatore.

“Peter and Kyle were viewed as underdogs against New Trier, and they helped our team to get a big win,” Coach Hansen said.

The Hawks prepared for that victory over New Trier by building their confidence over the course of the season. One key win that helped them do so took place in Skokie in late December.

“I feel one of our most important wins was against Niles West,” said Coach Hansen. “That was also my

PHOTO BY RHYANNE NOCHE

TAKING DOWN A TREVIAN

Senior David Lackajs takes the offensive against a New Trier opponent. The Hawks won the meet and used it as preparation for their Conference and Regional meets.

PHOTO BY RHYANNE NOCHE

Wrestling fueled by conference success

EYE OF THE TIGER

Senior Andy Kopplin prepares to wrestle during a round against New Trier Jan. 16. Kopplin was crowned CSL Champion in the 220-pound weight class on Jan. 24 and looks to continue his success in the Regional meet.

favorite match of the season.”

Taking a look at the postseason, the Hawks will compete in class 3A, beginning with Regionals at Lake Park on Feb. 7.

S e c t i on a l s w i l l t a ke p l a c e at Glenbard North the following weekend, and the State meet in Champaign is the week after that.

“In class 3A, the biggest division, every match is hard to win, and each match is like fighting a battle,” said Coach Hansen.

While the team has had many accomplishments throughout their season, they still have a lot of work to do as they head into the playoffs.

C oach Hansen has high expectations for his wrestlers, and hopes for the best for each member of the team.

“I’m hoping that each wrestler wrestles as hard as they possibly can and to the best of their abilities,” stated

Coach Hansen.

The Hawk wrestlers are also optimistic that their teammates can do well come playoff time.

“I hope we can get a couple guys to Sectionals, and have the top tier make it to State,” said junior Connor Schaul.

The success of the team this season is attributed to not only hard work and preparation, but leadership from senior wrestlers.

“Our seniors lead by example on and off the mat,” said Coach Hansen. “They work hard to not only be successful wrestlers, but also successful people. Andy Kopplin, Daniel Coakley, and C.J. Yager have been the biggest leaders amongst our seniors.”

That senior leadership has combined with strong performances from underclassmen such as Nasir to help the Hawks achieve success.

UPCOMING WINTER SPORTS EVENTS

GIRLS’ BASKETBALL: TONIGHT, Feb. 6, Home vs. Evanston, 7:30 p.m.

CHEERLEADING: Friday-Saturday, Feb. 6-7, State Meet at U.S. Cellular Coliseum in Bloomington WRESTLING: Saturday, Feb. 7, Regionals at Lake Park High School in Roselle GIRLS’ GYMNASTICS: Thursday Feb. 12, Sectionals at Lake Park High School in Roselle, 6 p.m.

BOYS’ SWIMMING: Saturday, Feb. 14, CSL South Conference Meet at Evanston High School, 1 p.m.

BOYS’ DIVING: Saturday, Feb. 14, CSL South Conference Meet at Evanston High School, 9 a.m.

BOYS’ BASKETBALL: Friday, Feb. 20, Home vs. Glenbrook South, 7:30 p.m.

MAINE HOCKEY: Mar. 7-22, AHAI Blackhawk Cup State Tournament, AHAI Center in Elk Grove FOLLOW

@S out hwords Sp or t

ON TWITTER fo r HAWK SPORTS U PDAT ES

SouthwordS 13

HOCKEY | GIRLS’GYMNASTICS | BOYS’ SWIMMING | BASKETBALL | CHEERLEADING | HAWKETTES | WRESTLING

John Lavaccare Sports Editor

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PHOTO BY JOSH LARRAGOITY

his year’s Maine South boys’ basketball team is one of the most experienced in recent memory.

Two seniors, forward George Sargeant and guard Caleb deMarigny, are in their third full season playing on varsity. Junior guard Jonathan Arenas was also a starter on last season’s team.

“We know what it takes to win, and how to get it done,” deMarigny said. “Plus [we have] the experience of having played with each other basically since we were little kids.”

“Experience has a big role in our success,” Arenas said, “but what’s more important is our selfless play and desire to come out every day and play our heart out for teammates.”

The three veteran starters have combined with two seniors new to the starting lineup, guard Nick Ruben and forward Davis Neilands, as well as consistent contributions off the bench, to form a roster that’s had a successful start to the season.

“Davis and Nick, they needed to come in and mesh, and they’ve progressed so well,” Coach Tony Lavorato said. “Now we don’t have two new guys anymore. The two new guys have become part of a cohesive unit.”

“Even though we have four senior starters, we don’t look at age in our program...If you notice, we also have two sophomores on our team that get significant minutes. It isn’t about senior, junior or sophomore, it’s the best five players.”

RISING ABOVE

George Sargeant snags a rebound during practice last week. Sargeant scored a careerhigh 29 points in a victory over Galesburg on Jan. 19.

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Over the course of the season, this year’s Hawks have developed a stong rapport.

“Our strength is our balance and chemistry,” deMarigny said. “We can score from any position, and have guys that trust each other from top to bottom throughout the team.” “[This team is] a family,” Arenas said.

In their previous five seasons, the Maine South boys’ basketball program has been on a streak of success. Since the 2009-’10 season, the team has won 19 games or more in every season. The stretch includes four regional championships, two conference titles, and three seasons of 25 wins or more.

“Six years ago, if you think about it, our seniors were sixth graders,” Coach Lavorato said. “They were in our Hawk basketball camp, looking up at the camp workers, who were juniors and seniors who won 28 and 21 games. That impacts everything that we do. It’s not so much what we do year in and year out—it’s how we do it.”

Even among those successes, this year’s Hawk squad stands out. The team kicked off the season with the best start in Coach Lavorato’s tenure, going 10-2 in November and December. That hot start included a sweep of the Maine West Thanksgiving tournament, as well as a 3-1 performance in conference matchups.

The team proved their standing as a state power with a 2-1 record at the prestigious Proviso West Holiday Tournament. At Proviso, the team captured victories over two highly-ranked teams in Uplift and Proviso East. Sargeant was named second-team AllTournament at Proviso among many of the state’s best athletes.

The Hawks reeled off nine straight wins to start 2015. They traveled three hours west to Galesburg, Illinois for a Martin Luther King tournament, and went undefeated, beating Minooka, Warren, Rockford East, host Galesburg, and Dunlap by an average of 19 points per game to claim the tournament title.

Arenas, deMarigny, and Sargeant were all named to the Galesburg All-Tournament team.

“I would say the entire Galesburg weekend we were playing our best ball of the season,” deMarigny said. “Hopefully [we] will continue to improve our play moving forward.”

As of today, four guaranteed games remain in the Hawks’ regular season: vs. Palatine in Milwaukee tomorrow, at Niles West Feb. 13, vs. Glenbrook South at home Feb. 20, and vs. Maine West at home Feb. 24.

“I believe this team hasn’t reached its full potential,” said Coach Lavorato. “If you reflect on your achievements in the past, it stops your progress, so for us, you also need to have amnesia...we just

PHOTO BY JOSH LARRAGOITY

Boys’ basketball thrives with experience, chemistry

LETTING IT FLY

Caleb deMarigny attempts a jump shot during practice last week. deMarigny is in his third season starting for the varsity Hawk squad.

focus on the present.”

“We’re on the homestretch of the journey, you can’t let up off the gas, you can’t relax, you’ve got to keep striving, keep achieving, keep pushing each other, and if you’re able to do that it could really be a special journey.”

If the Hawks finish in the top two of the conference after those contests, they will compete for a conference title in the CSL South Championship Feb. 25. The Hawks are looking to win their third straight conference championship. Though Coach Lavorato emphasized a game-by-game approach, he acknowledged that the team is striving for the CSL South title.

“We want to get better every single day,” Coach Lavorato said. “But I’d be foolish to tell you that winning a third conference championship in a row isn’t a goal.”

After the conference championship, the playoffs begin. Maine South will compete in Class 4A once again, and will kick off their run at Regionals the week of Mar. 2, with a chance to move on to the Waukegan Sectional the following week. Though the Hawks acknowledge the road to going far in the state playoffs will be tough, they believe they have the potential to get there.

“Our goals going into the rest of this season are to win the conference, and be playing our best basketball going into the playoffs, and make as deep a run as we possibly can,” deMarigny said.

What does it take to be on the Southwords staff ?

T

he back page of this newspaper is the application for the 20152016 Southwords staff. Please look below for a job description for each position on staff.

The Southwords staff consists of editors-in-chief, news editors, features editors, entertainment editors, commentary editors, sports editors, production editors, graphic designers, artists and photographers, as well as several staff writers and freelance writers for each section.

It is necessary for editors to have strong proofreading skills and be able to work with students collaboratively.

Editors must always be approachable and never condescending. Editors should be familiar with Adobe products. As part of the Southwords editorial board, editors will come to a consensus on a topic in one well-written opinion piece that represents the newspaper’s view as a whole. Editors must be enrolled in Newspaper Practicum for the entire year, because this is where the paper is created.

All positions require enthusiasm and consistent contributions; students applying must be willing to spend time and put forth a great deal of effort on their work. Also, staff must also be able to work in a timely manner, as meeting deadlines is vital to being on a newspaper staff.

For more information on any staff position, feel free to e-mail an editor-in-chief or the faculty adviser, Mr. Stathakis.

Editor-in-chief Editor-in-chief is a position only open to returning editors. The editor-in-chief ultimately guides the vision of the entire paper and must be familiar with the editing process, as well as Adobe products, such as InDesign and Photoshop.

This position is also responsible for writing “Property of the Editors,” a column in Commentary section.

The editor-in-chief is also responsible for the cover page, so he/she must have knowledge of what will be published in the other sections of the paper.

The editor-in-chief must be in attendance at all extra paste-up

hours and offer assistance in any South. way possible.

Commentary writers need to be creative and opinionated. They News must be able to present an issue T h e N e w s s e c t i o n c o v e r s about which they are passionate, developing stories about issues that avoiding ranting and remaining directly affect students, both inside professional. and outside the school.

Commentary editors must be News writers need to be informed extremely careful, because editing about school and national issues and opinions can be problematic. Editors must be comfortable interviewing must also be open-minded, because a people. Staff and freelance writers wide variety of opinions will always alike must be able to write objectively exist in their section. and with finesse.

News editors must be up-to-date Sports on news inside and outside of school.

The Sports section covers all Editors must also be ready to fact- sports at Maine South. check articles.

Sports writers need to be up-todate on all sports at Maine South.

Features Sports writers should be creative in The Features section contains the their reporting on events. Accurate widest variety of articles. Features reporting is crucial. focuses on issues that directly affect Sports editors are responsible students, both in and out of school. for making sure that each Maine Features writers must be inventive; South sport is covered during a given finding an interesting topic to report season. about can sometimes be challenging.

Sports editors must be aware of A good features section focuses on varsity sports happenings, as well as relevance and interest. other sports included at school. A Features editors must be well- deep knowledge of sports—within the rounded and ready to condense and school and outside of the school—is edit articles fairly. Fact-checking is a necessary component of being an necessary, but the most emphasis is editor for the Sports section. placed on relevance.

Production Entertainment To help with the technical aspects The Entertainment section of putting together a newspaper, contains reviews and articles a production editor must be related to art, music, video games, knowledgeable in the maintenance literature, restaurants, and anything and operation of PC computers, else that might be considered a Windows operating system, as entertainment. well as have skill in InDesign and Entertainment writers must be Photoshop CS6. Most importantly, well-informed of the school’s fine art the production editor must be willing events. Unique to the entertainment to learn to use these programs more section, writers specializing in a proficiently and offer help whenever specific genre (music, TV, etc.) are necessary. welcome.

The production editor should Entertainment editors need to attend every meeting and pastebe knowledgeable about popular up—when the final components of events and recreational activities and the paper are added together—to open to writing and reading about provide the editors with technical different topics. The Entertainment assistance. staff also creates or assembles any games featured in the newspaper.

Graphic Designers Graphic designers are responsible Commentary for improving the layout of the paper The Commentary section is the and assisting the editors-in-chief and voice of the students at Maine section editors with the aesthetics of

the paper. They should be familiar with Photoshop and/or InDesign software.

Artist/Cartoonist Artists and cartoonists should be able to produce realistic and creative illustrations to accompany articles on a variety of topics. It is helpful for an artist to be familiar with Photoshop software, scanner software, and InDesign (or be willing to learn the software and hardware). Often, illustrations must be produced quickly and on demand.

Photographers Photographers should be comfortable with taking photos and skilled in doing so. Photographers must be ready to take pictures at any time and to take specific pictures by a set deadline.

Photographers must also have flexible schedules, since they may have to attend away-from-school events. Owning a digital camera is preferred but not required.

Staff Writers All writers must have a good grasp of grammar and be able to write concisely. Because writers aren’t in the Newspaper Practicum class, it is important that writers communicate frequently with editors. Staff writers should have the time necessary to complete their articles; they need to be consistent and dedicated to their work.

Staff writers will sign a contract to contribute a minimum number of articles. Though their primary contributions are towards their assigned section, they may also write for other sections.

If you or anyone you know is interested in joining Southwords, visit http://apply.southwords.org, and sign up for an interview outside of C130 (the English workroom) by Friday, Feb. 13.

Interviews begin Tuesday, Feb. 17.

Due Friday, February 13

ALL STAFF MUST SUBMIT AN APPLICATION Staff

Application

There are two ways to apply for the 2015-2016 Southwords staff. PLEASE NOTE: online application is preferred, but you may complete the paper application below and drop it off in the Southwords mailbox in the English office, C130. See the reverse side of this sheet for job descriptions, and feel free to contact Mr. Stathakis with any questions.

ONLINE: APPLICATION PAPER:

APPLICATION

The easiest way to apply is to visit http://apply.southwords.org or to scan the QR code to the right. Your application will not be processed until you have also signed up for an interview outside the English office, C130. Current staff members do not need to sign up for an interview unless applying for an editorial position.

Use the form below as a worksheet to prepare for the online application.

Name:___________________________________________________________ Class of 20______ E-mail address:____________________________________________________________________ Freshman year English teacher:

My cumulative GPA is _______. My most recent semester GPA is_______. Sophomore year English teacher: Extracurricular activities I will be involved with next year:

Junior year English teacher: Art/Computer design teacher (if applicable):

Staff application:

Open to current and prospective staff members

Returning staff members must complete this form.

Please indicate your order of preference by numbering your choices (1st & 2nd). Select no more than two, but you may select only one if that’s your only section of interest.

Editor application:

Open to current and prospective staff members

ALL editors must take Newspaper Practicum (usually 8th period), which will earn you an elective English credit.

Please indicate your order of preference by numbering your choices (1st & 2nd). Select no more than two, but you may select only one if that’s your only section of interest.

­­_____News writer ­­_____Features writer _____Entertainment writer _____Commentary writer ­­_____Sports writer ­­_____Photographer* ­­_____Artist/Cartoonist* _____Graphic Design team*

*Please bring portfolio/samples to interview, if possible.

­­_____News editor ­­_____Features editor _____Entertainment editor ­­_____Commentary editor _____Sports editor ­­_____Production/Design editor _____Editor-in-Chief

(For returning staff members only. All Editor-in-Chief candidates must contact Mr. Stathakis.)

Please return paper applications to the Southwords mailbox in C130 (the English Workroom).

TO COMPLETE YOUR APPLICATION, YOU MUST SIGN UP FOR AN INTERVIEW ON THE SCHEDULE OUTSIDE C130 by FRI., FEB 13