CUB REPORTER VOL. 5 ISS. 645
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STERLING HIGH SCHOOL
Aim
February March march January 2019
Sterling High School | March 2019 1
+ 02 EDITORIAL
CUB REPORTER WWW.STERLINGPSTUDENTPUBLICATIONS.COM
308 E. Washington, Sterling, KS 675779 Phone: 620-278-2171 Fax: 620-278-3237
+STAFF
editors +MCKIAH San Miguel +grace rowland REPORTERS +andy norez +lucas gilmore +christina voth +Riley Richter +megan roelfs ADVISER +TODD VOGTS
+POLICIES
The Sterling High School Cub Reporter and all subsidiary publications are designated forums of free speech. The print edition is published October through May of each school year by the journalism class at Sterling High School. It is distributed for no charge throughout Unified School District 376 buildings and the Sterling community. The first copy is free. Subsequent copies will cost $1 per copy. For information about being added to the subscription list, contact Todd Vogts at 620-278-2171. Letters to the editor are welcome. Email them to journalism@usd376.com. All letters must be signed. Anonymous letters will not be printed. All letters subject to editing for legal, grammatical and factual reasons.
+ABOUT THE Cover Reporter Megan Roelfs explores the options of arming teachers in high schools. Read more about this issue on pg. 05. www.sterlingcubreporter.com
Percentage of Americans who go Online Daily
Less than Daily
77%
11%
Several Times per Day
26%
43%
Almost Constantly
Data does not equal 100% because they excluded non-internet users
Few Times Per Week
8% Once Per Day
6%
5% Less Often
Data from Pew Research Center
Filtering Internet Content in Schools Smoothwall. Almost everyone knows what it is and what it does. For those who don’t, it has a basic function. It does three main things, it acts as a firewall, monitors what its users do, and most notably filters out obscene or harmful material. Smoothwall is one of many filters employed by schools in an attempt to shield students from offensive content that is online along with removing distractions from the classroom. This purpose is good, except when it hinders learning. Most of us can recall a time when a site we needed to access for an assignment was blocked when we searched for it. The idea behind it is good, yet it seems to get in the way more often than not. A major problem behind this is that the filter looks for specific keywords, without seeing the context behind it. Sites that provide useful information when searching for a project, such as Pinterest, are sometimes blocked because it’s a social networking site. While Pinterest is a social networking site it isn’t the typical kind, it gives students ideas for projects while also giving them the ability to compare their idea with others. While it isn’t reasonable to assume that everyone will always work on homework or school related items, it’s also unreasonable to think that no one will use it for educational purposes. Another possible bonus for less restrictive filters would be helping people learn to filter through information, and
not having to rely on the same few sites for their information. It would also better our ability of telling fact from fiction, finding sources that are truthful and unbiased. The internet is constantly getting more and more information and being able to filter through all this information will be crucial for our future endeavors. Filtering can also cause a difference in education for some students. It is well known that not everyone is born equal. People have different life styles and for some students computers at school are their only form of access to the internet. Limiting sites that they are able to access causes a knowledge gap between them and others who have access to internet at home. The gap will only begin to widen as time goes on, it will become more apparent in their future. Their opportunities can become limited due to their limited knowledge. As melodramatic as it sounds it can and does happen. There is no way to filter out every single website that could be considered non-educational but in that pursuit of doing so we end up filtering helpful sites. The purpose of school filters is to create a protective learning environment for student, when filters start filtering out sites that have educational value, it no longer serves its purpose. — For the Editorial Board
+ 03 Briefs
BRIEFLY STATED +SHS
Physical Science class holds boat race
The physical science class, taught by Matt Perkins held their boat competition Feb. 6. Students were challenged to built boats out of plastic bottles and see who’s boat floated the fastest. Students came up with names for their boats and set sail at the Sterling College pool. All of the boats raced to determine the best one. The project was assigned to teach students the Archimedes Principal, dealing with water displacement and buoyancy. These are almost always taught in physical science classes. The winning team was comprised of sophomore Cooper McGlynn, freshmen Noah Svaty, Josiah Watney, Brooklyn Linden, and Lacey Farney. The boats used a large number of plastic bottles each, some around 200 plus. Most of the bottles came from student’s homes, while some were stockpiled already. After the race, the bottles were put into large, five-pound bags and taken home by some students to throw away or recycle.
+LOCAL
McPherson Middle School students organize walkout
+NATIONAL
Around 50 Mcpherson Middle School students staged a walkout to protest a new online learning platform. Students spread the word of the walkout by Facebook posts and slips of paper with information being passed around the school. This protest took place on Jan. 1, the one-year anniversary of Summit Learning being implemented at the school. Summit is an online curriculum that Mcpherson is using as part of their redesign efforts. In theory Summit is supposed be a new, better way to learn, but students seemed to be fed up with the program. According to the McPherson Sentinel, students were seen holding signs and chanting “No summit, no summit, no summit” throughout the afternoon. Administration made the necessary efforts to contact parents about the walkout via email. Following the walkout, administration has decided to set a time each week to hear student’s concerns with the program.
New York passes new abortion law
The State of New York has passed a law that will legalize abortion after 24 weeks if the woman’s life is at risk. Abortion has been legal up until 24 weeks since 1970, when the state passed its previous law. According to the New York Times, the law is gaining support from pro-abortion rights advocates while anti-abortion activists are condemning it. It was signed on Jan. 22 on the 46th anniversary of the 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court ruling, which placed women’s abortion rights under the 14th Amendment. New York legislature’s official name for the law is the Reproductive Health Act. The New York Post says it’s named this because the law is meant to protect the woman’s health over the fetus if there is immediate danger to the woman’s health. New abortion laws in other states are in the works and many seem to think that they will pass in the near future. One example is Virginia, where a similar abortion law made its way through legislature.
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107 N. Broadway, Sterling Sterling High School | March 2019 3
+ 04 News
B
New nurse aid class offered to high school students
esides offering many extracurriculars, college courses, and online classes the high school schedule now offers a Certified Nursing Assistant course. The new course was made available to students this year with organization from Guidance Counselor Tina Wohler. “We have tons of students that are interested in the health field and we wanted to see if we could offer it during school so that they could get jobs in the summer instead of doing the CNA class during the summer,” Wohler said. With many students interested in the health field, Wohler researched online CNA programs and found one offered through Labette County Community College. “We found out that Labette Community College offers a online program but we would have to get a qualified clinical instructor for students to go to,” Wohler said. “Superintendent Jim Goracke contacted the manor and found a instructor that was then approved by the state. Our students then can go to them to get their clinicals done at the manor on the weekends.” The CNA course currently has eight students enrolled including seniors Brett Riffel, Morgan Simpson, McKiah San Miguel, and Sydnee Carder; juniors Haley Kreie, Cara Cabral, and Alyssa Riemer; and sophomore Haddie Boeken. Students can take the CNA course free through Labette Community College any hour of the school day. “Being able to take the class during school is a big help
www.sterlingcubreporter.com
Cna certified +by Grace Rowland
because over the summer it is a lot of hours and it is almost like summer school because of how long the hours are,” senior Brett Riffel said. “Being able to fit it in my schedule throughout the day is really convenient and something I appreciate the school doing.” Along with flexible hours during the school day, being a certified CNA can offer flexible work hours for students in still in high school and students going off to college and can help students work towards higher nursing degrees in the future. “I am going to get my CNA and then I am going to get my CMA so that I can pass out medication so I can work at a assisted living care instead of a full time care,” sophomore Haddie Boeken said. “I would then be housekeeping and passing out medication but the residents usually do the rest themselves. There is a assisted living in Lyons so I hope that I can eventually work there.” Agreeing with Boeken, Wohler hopes this CNA course helps students get jobs and helps prepare them with hands-on experience. “I think that if this is something they can see themselves do further and maybe go up the chain in nursing. This program gives them practical experience and I am hoping they enjoy the online learning but also the applicable things that they learn at clinicals,” Wohler said. Before students can receive a high nursing degree they must go through nine clinicals and pass the state CNA test, which will take place on April 17 in Hutchinson.
+ 05 Feature
Aiming for a
solution +By Megan Roelfs
Districts, law enformence agencies explore school saftey, educators carrying firearms
Sterling High School | March 2019 5
+ 06 Feature
L
ast month marked the one-year anniversary of the shooting at Stoneman Douglas high school in Parkland Fla. On February 14, 2018, Nikolas Cruz opened fire in the school and killed 17 people and injured 17 others. In 1791, the United States Constitution was expanded to include the Second Amendment, which granted U.S. citizens the right to keep and bear arms. Since 1990, Federal law has prohibited firearms within 1,000 feet of a school zone. With the ever growing concern of whether teachers should carry firearms or not, more and more states are considering passing laws that allow teachers to carry firearms. At least 10 states have passed this law, 28 states have allowed security personnel to bear arms, and eight states have allowed teachers to carry guns on school property with the district’s permission, Kansas is one of those eight. “There are a lot of factors as to why I don’t think teachers should carry guns in school. I think under limited circumstances, there are probably situations that would warrant it.” Sterling Police Chief Derrick Ploutz said. “There is a lot that goes into it. The security of the weapon and I think teachers aren’t necessarily trained in that aspect of life. You know, teachers are trained to educate kids, and
www.sterlingcubreporter.com
I think, at some point, it gets to where we lose focus on education.” 2018 had the highest number of school shootings since 2006 where the previous high had been 59. Last year, 94 people were killed, a significantly higher number than what it was in 2006, according to CNN. A way schools could possibly avoid conflict is hiring a school resource officer. Schools who want to avoid the conflict of training teachers usually hire a school resource officer. A resource officer is simply a law enforcement officer who has been deployed by a police department to provide a safe environment to all personnel while at school. Most will be armed, thus not requiring teachers to carry their gun on them or in their classroom. “How much expense do we want to through for protecting,” Social Studies teacher Brian Richter said. “We can go through metal detectors and hire school resource officers and those kind of things.”
School Resource Officers School Resource Officers (SROs) are trained to move directly to the threat inside the school as quickly as possible, and try to eliminate further injury or any lives lost. Almost 20 percent of public and private schools in the U.S. have school
resource officers and more schools are beginning to hire people in this position, according to the National Association of School Resource Officers (NASRO). “I am very, very pro school resource officer, but the biggest hurdle you run into with that is funding of the position,” Ploutz said. All SROs have to be willing to demonstrate three specific characteristics called “The Triad,” and these traits are ones that are commonly affiliated with being an SRO. These include: serving as a counselor, acting as a teacher, and being a law enforcement officer. “I think that’s a trend we’re going to start seeing with the school security issue and in the overall picture I think that’s the best and probably the most cost-effective way to increase school safety,” Ploutz said.
Teacher Training In order for teachers to be able to carry guns in school, they have to go to training that would teach them when to pull the gun, when to fire and to hold their fire, and how to shoot more accurately. This training needs to be done under simulated and high-stress conditions to prepare them if an actual attack were to happen. Since firearm training skills degrade quickly, this training needs to be frequent and on an on-going basis. There
+ 07 Feature
Would
you
FEEL SAFE if teachers HAD GUNS? The Cub Reporter surveyed SHS students to find out how they felt about teacher having guns.
are some teachers throughout the school that feel like they are comfortable with handling a firearm. “With my background that I have and my knowledge of firearms, I believe I’d make it safe and I would think I would feel comfortable,” Industrial Arts teacher Joshua Pounds said. Having this training is a must, and a crucial aspect of teachers being allowed to carry a weapon in school. If a teacher was to shoot during a lockdown in an attempt to protect those in the school, as soon as the police arrive, they must put the weapon down and be compliant. “There’s probably a 99 percent chance that I’m not going to know who the shooter is, and anymore you have shooters who are students, you have school shooters that are parents, and you have shooters who are teachers,” Ploutz said. “If I come around the corner on an active shooter, that’s setting that staff member up for a very dangerous situation. If I come around a blind corner and all I hear are gunshots, it could be a good guy with a gun.”
Concerns of Teachers One of the biggest concerns of teachers throughout the school is where the gun going to be kept and would students be able to access it easily.
“My gut feeling says most students would probably worry about their teachers carrying weapons for safety issues. Could they be disarmed easily? Is the gun easily available? Could it be used for bad and not good and those kind of things? I think they would feel less secure,” Richter said.
The SAFER Act Kansas is a state that, in order for teachers to carry a firearm in school, the decision must go through the board and board members. On March 27, 2018, the House Insurance Committee had a hearing on House Bill 2789. The bill would help make Kansas staff as first emergency responders and is known as the SAFER Act. This act would also create a statewide plan to allow teachers to carry guns in school. In the bill, districts are required to approve teachers who can participate. An approved teacher must have a license to carry a concealed handgun and have the desire to obtain a license with the SAFER Act to carry a concealed handgun in any building. While the act is still waiting to be passed, “I would not allow my faculty to carry firearms in school even if it was allowed, but what I would support is having a firearm in the office that only certain people
who have had training could access,” principal Bill Anderson said. In the midst of a school shooting, every second counts, from the 911 dispatch call to waiting for the police to arrive. When 911 is called people expect the police to show up almost instantly. Average police response time is about 10 minutes, and 10 minutes can feel like a lifetime, according to sheriffs.org. Various factors come into play when the police are called, depending on how many high priority calls are coming in at the same time. The number of officers that are on duty at that particular time, the number of officers needed for the call, and how urgent the call is. “I would say, I haven’t polled our average response times, but in Sterling our average response time would be very, very quick,” Ploutz said. “A distant example would be, the other day we had a fire alarm up here at the school, and they didn’t even have the chance to cancel anything and we were there. It’s a short time, and unfortunately with an active shooter, we’re talking every second counts,” Ploutz said.
Concealed Carry Act
While people in society might think carrying a weapon is not a good thing, carrying a concealed handgun could help
7 Sterling High School | March 2019
+ 08 Feature
stop a public shooting spree. After the Columbine High School shooting massacre in 1999, Colorado passed a law called the Concealed Carry Act that allowed citizens the right to carry a concealed weapon. After this law was passed, the number of multiple-victim public shootings went down by 84 percent and deaths from these events went down 90 percent, with injuries dropping 82 percent. “I think it could serve as a deterrent to somebody who knows there is a gun, but unfortunately, active shooters go in and they target people,” Ploutz said. ”I think security guards are a deterrent, but I still think the biggest deterrent to school shootings are buildings with officers inside.” Averting Crises As more and more teachers start working in different buildings inside the school system, a big issue
is prohibiting teachers from walking in on a dangerous situation. Several teachers go back and forth between the grade school and the high school, and some even go to the college. Clark Comley, Cindy Anthony, and Janis Fair go between the grade school and high school. Larry Brownlee goes between all three: grade school, high school and Sterling College. “Making sure your schools have good lockdown plans and make sure the school buildings are secure when lockdowns happen are a great way to protect in the event of a crisis,” Ploutz said. “Using your communication systems is a way too. You have to have your policies in place and practice those things and understand what that entails. I’ve sat down with Mr. Goracke, and we’ve reviewed these plans that are in place. We have these discussions so that way we train not only our staff at the police department, but the staff at the school.”
“If teachers feel comfortable with shooting a threat, then I think they should be able to carry a gun. But you have to have assertive teachers that will take action. If they don’t, you’re in trouble.” - senior Morgan Anderson
sCHOOL sHOOTING sTATISTICS There have been 1,300 school shootings since 1970 California, Texas, and Florida are the most common state in which shootings appear Most shooting occur in the morning In 2017, 109 people died everyday from gun violence 2018 had 82 reccored incidents Stats from https://www.campussafetymagazine.com/safety/k-12-school-shooting-statisticseveryone-should-know/ www.sterlingcubreporter.com
+ 09 Sports
More Than Bows & Pom Poms Freshman Tori Gonzalez gives insight on the intensity, difficulty of competitive cheerleading versus high school cheer
+by MCKIAH SAN MIGUEL
F
reshman Tori Gonzalez, a competitive cheerleader, lives and breathes cheer. While also cheering for the high school squad, Gonzales puts in the hours to be able to do both. “I enjoy cheer because I started when I was little and I have loved it ever since.” Before moving to Kansas Gonzalez was able to perform with a team in Florida. “In Florida I did mini cheer for my school, and when I moved to Kansas I wanted to continue cheering even though I was new to the sport,” Gonzalez said. Finding the perfect program was difficult because of how little the cities are surround Sterling. “Sterling didn’t offer a year round mini program, so I had to travel all the way to a hutch gym and began to compete there,” Gonzales said. It wasn’t easy to find the perfect gym, but Gonzalez found her ideal gym at Midwest Express Cheer in Hutchinson. “I decided to relocate to Midwest Express Cheer and I have been there for five years now, and I love it,” Gonzalez said. Although Gonzalez also cheers for the high school squad, she tends to lean more towards her competitive squad. “I really enjoy both so much, but I definitely love competitive cheer more,” Gonzalez said. “They are hard to compare but competitive cheer is a whole other world. The feeling of cheering competitively is indescribable.” The difference between the high school squad and competitive squad make them almost opposites. “In high school cheer you cheer for your team and it is your job to get the crowds spirits up while also encouraging the team players,” Gonzales said. “While in competitive cheer you are performing to loud music and bright lights for a two minute and thirty second routine. Competitive cheer has taught me how to tumble, stunt, dance, and perform in front of a crowd with confidence.” The intensity between high school cheer and competition cheer is on a whole different level. “High school cheer is not as intense as competitive cheer because we lift people up, they are trusting us with their lives as we throw them in the air and other stunting skills,” Gonzalez said. Competitive cheer also takes a lot of work, time, and dedication to be prepared for a competition day. “It takes months of training to get ready for a competition, but in the end it is so worth it,” Gonzalez said.
TORI GONZALEZ
Sterling High School | March 2019 9
+ 10 Sports
THE SHS
The Cub Reporter strives to cover everything we can, but with so many things going on in fall it can be difficult. And so: The SHS Extra Inning was born. Here we cover everything we can fit in this space.
EXTRA INNING Reporter
Lucas gilmore
@lucasgil32
State Wrestling Senior Dylan Stewart wrestles at the K.S.H.S.A.A. State Championship on Feb. 22 in Hays. Stewart lost his first round by decision to a wrestler from Oberlin. Stewart also fell to a Garden Plain wrestler in his second round.
Who plays what?
(Photo by Kayley Clark)
The Cub Reporter takes a look at what sports students are going out for in the spring.
47% 13% 10% 30% Track
Tennis
Golf
Softball
(Poll taken by 50 students)
Seniors reflect on basketball careers As basketball season comes to a close, the seniors have a chance to look back at their high school careers. The end of a high school basketball career can be a sad thing, but it is something seniors can always look back at and remember. “I’ve enjoyed playing alongside some of the guys I’ve grown up with since kindergarten,” sewww.sterlingcubreporter.com
Q&A
Golfer Wyatt Schmidt
CUB REPORTER: Whar are you most excited for when golf season starts? Wyatt: Definetly, I’m excited because we have a new coach and a pretty new team. CR: What do you enjoy about golf? W: Basically everything, from playing rounds to hanging out with the team. CR: Do you anticipate a lot of team success for this golf season? W: We’ve got a lot of new faces on the team, so we’ll have to see how the season plays out. CR: What is your biggest goal for the season? W: I would say that making state as a team is a main goal for us this year. CR: Do you feel confident about your skills? W: For the most part, but there are always things to work on.
nior Max Dutton said. “I’ve also liked seeing how much we’ve all improved through the years.” Senior Debi Schmidt shares what she will miss about high school basketball. “I am going to miss practicing everyday and making relationships with my team,” Schmidt said. “We are a family and I will miss spending that much time with them.
Senior Debi Schmidt
Junior Brady Myers
Sophomore Tyus Wilson
Freshman Sadie Beagley
+ 11 Opinions
POINT / COUNTERPOINT
The Magic Number 18-year-olds should be viewed Age 21 is the practical age to as legal adults be considered an adult +by Christina Voth The age of 18 is the year of many opportunities. It’s the age of consent, voting age, and the age of legal adulthood. The age of 18 was legally labeled as the age of adulthood because of the ability to vote given to 18 year olds by the 26 Amendment. Why should people who are still legally considered children be able to vote? The simple answer; they shouldn’t. Since its been determined that 18 is old enough to help shape countries and fight in wars, then 18 is old enough to be an adult. Some 18-year-olds aren’t completely mature, but age doesn’t equal maturity. Maturity is something that is gained at different rates. Part of becoming mature is transitioning from being dependent on your parents to being independent and taking care of yourself and your future, something 18-year-olds are capable of doing. Some may be concerned because a person’s brain development doesn’t start to slow until they are in their mid-twenties, but that’s another reason why 18 is the best age to become an adult. An 18-year-old’s brain is still developing and the brain’s development is shaped by experiences, learning how to become a functioning adult while our brains are still developing could help us in
the long run. It’s also common knowledge that the older we get the harder it is to learn or make changes because of years of repetition. 18 should be the age of adulthood because it’s an age where we make some of our most important decisions while we can still learn from our mistakes. Reaching adulthood is about becoming independent, and 18 is the perfect time for people to gain that independence. It would be harder to become independent after 20 or more years of being taken care of. 18-year-olds should be considered adults because of the decisions they make and the their new responsibilities.
18
+by Riley Richter Have you ever heard someone say, ‘I’m finally an adult?’ How old were they 13? 18? 21? But what is the right age to be considered an adult? In my opinion you should be considered an adult at 21 for many reasons. The biggest thing most people look forward to when they turn 21 is to be able to legally drink. I think this signifies becoming an adult because you must be responsible with how you use this privilege. Being able to legally drink can affect others if you don’t use it in the right way. If you start to drink at a younger age, it can lead to brain damage. According to the National
21
Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, drinking at a younger age could result to short term memory loss, and possibly leading to Alzheimer’s disease. Believe it or not at 21 you can adopt a child in most states. Taking care of a child takes a lot of time, patience, and most importantly responsibility and maturity. Along with taking care of the child you have to pay bills, provide food, while maintaining a job to pay for all of this. You must be committed to adopt a child as it will take most of your time. The government chose the age of 21 because they felt you would be mature enough and responsible enough to do so. Along with being able to adopt a child you are now able to get married without a parents consent. Getting married shows just how responsible you are since you have to pay your own bills, and provide for yourself. You also must get along with your partner and be able to solve problems on your own. To do this you must be responsible and mature, which in my opinion shows you are mature enough to be considered an adult. All of these reasons prove that age 21 is the best age to be considered an adult. 21 is not to old and not to young, it is the perfect age. Sterling High School | March11 2019
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