Vol. 25, Issue 2

The Roar News

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1801 HARVEY MITCHELL PKWY. S., COLLEGE STATION, TX 77840 | FRIDAY, Nov. 8, 2019 | VOL. 25 NO. 2 | THEROARNEWS.COM

PHOTO BY KARA GARZA

Up in Smoke

New information about the effects of e-cigarettes shifts the debate over teen vaping alex roeder & kara garza editor-in-chief & staff reporter *Name has been changed for anonymity As the smoke clears around the effects of vaping, students and faculty are learning more about the consequences of what the media calls the “vaping epidemic”.

Media uproar has highlighted the health risks connected to vaping. Both local and national news have focused on instances of illnesses linked to the use of vapes or e-cigarettes. The formula used in name brand e-juices are required to be regulated by the FDA and are not largely linked to the health cases.

The majority of cases concern unregulated or illegally produced vapes, especially those containing THC, the hallucinogenic substance found in marijuana. “[The condition of] those that have been hospitalized or [developed] some medical condition that’s connected to [vaping] isn't

inthisissue

news pages 2-4, 8-9

necessarily solely because they are vaping,” senior Kaylee Brummett said. “It's because they are vaping illegal THC cartridges that aren't regulated.”

Originally, vapes were created to help wean adult smokers off nicotine. The convenience of the device is that it is refillable. The refills, known as Juul pods or e-juices, can be chosen at a lower or higher rate. This feature lets adults monitor their nicotine intake, which can ease withdrawals as a gradual condition. “[Teenagers] saw that adults are using [vapes] to get off cigarettes,” Brummet said.

“Our generation knows what’s in cigarettes is bad. So they saw something else that was said to be safer. So it’s like, 'Let’s do this new thing because it’s ‘safer’.'”

“There’s flavors that are out there like sweets and desserts and candy,” Brummet said. “[They] have turned [the thoughts of vaping] into ‘oh this tastes good. I’m not doing a hard core drug. I’m not smoking cigarettes.

I’m not putting tar in my lungs. They say it's safe, and it tastes good, and it doesn’t make me smell bad.' A lot of people have definitely become addicted to it, and for a lot of people [it is] kind of difficult to give up something that they're so used to using all the time.”

Not only is an addiction to tobacco a concern for cigarette smokers, but cigarettes are known to contain a number of carcinogens, chemicals that encourage the formation of cancerous cells within the body.

“I think vaping is a great alternative to TEEN INTEREST smoking,” senior Garrett Pany said. “Vapes are Many vaping companies sell refills that advertised as being 99% safer than smoking produce enticing smells and flavors. This cigarettes. It’s safer but not safe.” appealing attribute of vaping has been seen to Though vapes are known to contain less affect the image and use of e-cigarettes, says carcinogens than the traditional cigarette, the Brummet. “vaping” continued on page 3

opinions pages 5-6

feature page 7, 10-11, 16

sports page 12-13

reviews pages 14-15

brief | the roar

UPCOMING

2 | in

Nov. 8

Football @Cleveland

Nov. 11

First day of third six weeks

Nov. 13

Deadline to order AP exam

Nov. 19

Girls Basketball @home

Nov. 25-29 Nov. 26 Dec. 9 Dec. 10

NEWS friday, nov. 8, 2019

Thanksgiving break Girls Basketball @home EOC retest English I EOC retest US History/Algebra

IN THE

Choir students compete at All-Region, make choir

On September 28 the AMCHS choir competed in high school All Region.. 18 students made the choir with one alternate, freshman Ashton Jasperson. Making the choir are seniors Christina Williams, Eren Akleman, Gracie Barrow, Hattie Munoz, and Liam Abney, juniors Lauren Moore, Libby Scott, and Tanya Nguyen, Sophmores Aubrey Stuart, Carson Seiber, Claire Grace Franklin, Emma Barrow, Gretchen Barrrow , Lucas Booth, Sarah Barrow, Silas Merrell, and Toni West, and freshman Ashtyn Vollentine.

Students elected for homecoming court at game

The homecoming king and queen were announced at the game on October 4.

Seniors Nate Floyd and Addie Wright were crowned. The rest of the court was made up of seniors Eren Akleman, Raven Gooden, Tatiana Woods, Bre’asia Lee, Brian Darby, Coleman Maxwell, Trey Gage, and Benjamin Wang.

Senior maroon man Reid Foster takes a picture with a mini maroon man. PHOTO BY CLAIRE GRACE FRANKLIN

The debate team poses for a picture after a competition win. PHOTO BY BRIAN ALFORD

The Roar News

A- Side preforms at the pep rally. PHOTO BY RUBY PERRY-MIZE

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friday, nov. 8, 2019

Vapers, administration contemplate habits, policy guidelines for e-cigarettes “Vaping” cont. from page 1

formula of many e-juices contains a number of harmful substances, including formaldehyde and aerosol.

Aerosol is the chemical base for many household items like air fresheners, insecticides, and hair sprays. Formaldehyde is not only used within many building materials, including wood adhesives, but is also a key ingredient in many embalming formulas.

“Even as someone that uses vapes, I know that it definitely has some stuff in it that’s not too great for you,” senior Don Draper* said. “It is in some way better for you, but there are also other chemicals that can basically give you chemical burn in your lungs if you get things that aren’t regulated and don’t have the right ingredients in them.”

UNKNOWN CONTENTS Many students and users of vapes aren’t aware of what they are ingesting when they purchase or use a vape.

“I mean, personally, I thought it was just water vapor,” Pany said.

Without knowing the make up of many e-juices, it is hard to predict the lasting health effects vaping will have on users. Currently there is little to no research being performed to answer the many questions rising around the e-cigarette epidemic.

“I know research has shown that vaping damages your lungs,” assistant principal Keke Johnson said. “We really don’t know what type of toxic chemicals are being put into your system. [There’s] still so much unknown because it’s such a new and recent trend.”

VAPE EPIDEMIC The popularity of vaping has caused administration and faculty to begin taking actions to warn vapers on our campus of the possible dangers. Administrators have included multiple presentations and preventative procedures in Academic Success slideshows to raise awareness to

students.

“Three to four years ago, I think I was a little more naive, as far as how prevalent it is,” Johnson said. “But now I feel [that] about three out of every 10 kids have vaped, whether it be just trying it for the first time or being a regular user.”

With this surge in users, Johnson has tried to educate herself on the dangers of the activity to equip her for conversations with students about the topic. “[A student and I] literally stood in the cafeteria and watched a video of a story of someone blowing their face off from a vape that exploded,” Johnson said. “I was hoping to get that response of ‘Oh man. I don’t want to be in this boat’.”

MARKETING STRATEGIES Along with videos that show the design flaws and physical dangers of vaping, the media has recently attacked vape companies like Juul’s marketing, claiming that companies target minors by offering different flavors and releasing vape merchandise.

“I don’t think the original intent for the company was to market off of kids our age, but once they saw that they were selling a lot and making a lot of money, I think that went out the door and they were just wanting to make as much money as possible,” Krinhop said.

These flavors, Brummett says, appeal to kids who likely wouldn’t have picked up cigarettes because of the smell.

“The flavors are more exciting and appealing,” Brummett said. “A lot of kids our age don’t want to smell like a cigarette.

Cigarettes make everything smell like [smoke]- your breath, your clothes and all that.”

This often means students are less likely to get caught with a vape than with a cigarette which produces a lasting smoke and lingering smell.

“A vape is so easy to conceal,” Pany said. “I’ve walked into the school bathroom and I’ve seen vapes, but if you were to smoke in the school you would probably set off the fire alarm. You can tell when someone’s vaping in the bathroom because it just smells really fruity in there, versus a cigarette -everyone knows a cigarette smell.”

PUNISHMENT The punishment for possession of a vape or any associated product is five days of in-school suspension the first time, and 10 days of in school suspension for the second time. A third time results in automatic placement at Venture, CSISD’s alternative campus. The punishment for illicit substance possession, however, is an immediate placement in Venture.

“I don’t know that you can necessarily compare drugs and alcohol to vaping,” Johnson said.

“Vaping is kind of along the lines of a cigarettes [in punishment].

There’s always been a difference in the two.”

Treating vaping as ‘less serious’ than other drugs or illicit substances became

encouraging to teens, making the activity more of a cool fad rather than a health danger, Johnson says.

“It’s one of those new trends that interests kids,” Johnson said. “But the sad thing is that it’s addictive. And so you think [you’re] just trying it, but the next thing you know, [you] want to do it again. And now, it’s something that you feel like you can’t do without.”

NEW RESEARCH Furthermore, the negative attention from the media has amplified the sense of rebellion and mystery around vaping and has caused teenagers to take vaping less seriously, Krinhop says.

“It’s kind of becoming a joke for kids our age,” Krinhop said.

“But the bad thing about it is that the original attempt was for people to get off of cigarettes.”

Even so, the attention on vaping has brought about some productive changes, and caused the public to take the phenomena seriously. These changes include a raise in the age on tobacco products, which Brummet believes will be an effective preventative measure for future generations.

“People that vape know other people that vape,” Brummett said. “So I do know some of those that are underaged, but have said something about ‘Oh no, I used to be able to buy at this one place but now they’re being really hard on the age, so they won’t sell to me [anymore].’”

As the public witnesses the medical harm caused by vaping, many companies are being questioned on their knowledge of the effects their products have caused.

“I think it’s so eye opening for people that have [vaped] or used to do it, because I guarantee you that no one knew what exactly was in the vape juices,” Krinhop said. “It will definitely make me more cautious to my body.”

4 | feature | the roar

Words of Wisdom Spanish courses structured to improve learning, assist students

is to learn the basics as it helps saanya patel & allen zhang online editor & executive editor students transition from one year to

A good foundation is necessary in order to successfully learn a new language. This especially holds true for Spanish. For students to learn the language, they must first understand the basics before pursuing more advanced courses.

For sophomore Timothy Bacani, a student in Spanish II Honors, Spanish is a unique language.

In terms of structure, it is vastly different from the others.

“The curriculum is naturally harder,” Bacani said. “[I] have to go back [to the] textbook and actually study.”

Spanish teacher Linda Bendiksen explains that for each student their experience is going to be different. They each learn differently and at their own individual pace, she says.

“Basically, whatever their experience was the first year tends to set the tone,” Bendiksen said. “[If they] get a good foundation in level one, then they’re going to have smooth transitions all the way through.”

To Bendiksen, the secret to successfully mastering the course

the next.

“The one thing that level one has to be successful [in] is to understand the underlying grammatical principles,” Bendiksen said. “ it’s critical that the teacher helps them understand [them].”

After gaining a foundation in Spanish I, students have the opportunity to take either Spanish II Honors or Spanish II. “[Taking Spanish II Honors] looks better on college applications and [let me gain] more credits,” Bacani said. “But it also really helps me get a good grip of the language.”

Over the years, Bendiksen has observed that the curriculum has been simplified and made more accessible, she says..

“The curriculum is way watered down,” Bendiksen said. “It’s not nearly the rigor it was, say 10-20 years ago.”

The course is now structured to be more relatable to the student. Teachers are doing a lot to help students alleviate the struggles, Spanish teacher Kendall McCampbell says.

PHOTO BY RUBY PERRY-MIZE

friday, nov. 8, 2019

“I have outlines and visuals,” McCampbell said “Students see the outline and it really makes sense to them.”

Sophomore Zachary Wang considers the changes to be beneficial. They have made it easier for him to learn the language.

“The curriculum isn’t entirely [centered] around the textbook anymore,” Wang said. “Students now interact more with the teacher during the learning process.”

McCampbell believes in letting the students work and discuss with one another to practice applying the language.

“We do verbal activities where they break into partners and other activities,” McCampbell said. ”Now and then [they’ll have] a group discussion.”

McCampbell also stresses the importance of putting time into studying outside of class and homework.

“15 minutes a night is what I asked [and] we do have homework here and there, McCampbell said. “[Spanish is] just one of those classes where you practice even when you don’t have any homework.”

friday, nov. 8, 2019

DEEP IN THE HEART

claire grace franklin senior editor

student examines differences between life abroad and life in Texas Mark Twain said in his “The American Abroad Speech,” “It liberates the vandal to travel--you never saw a bigoted, opinionated, stubborn, narrow-minded, self-conceited, almighty mean man in your life but he had stuck in one place since he was born and thought God made the world and dyspepsia and bile for his especial comfort and satisfaction.” He spoke words of truth people took for granted.

As a former expatriate and third culture kid (TCK) I have experienced the people Twain described in his speech. I was exposed to people who listened to ideas with open minds and lived for the conversations where views were expressed. They would sit for hours debating about topics that could essentially change the world. I grew up in this mind expanding environment.

When I moved to Texas from Doha, Qatar, my world was flipped upside down and I struggled to understand the thought process of the people surrounding me.

I soon realized that those making up my reality had not had the opportunity to have the same cultural experiences. As I immersed myself in public school and the Texan culture, I quickly realized that many people were unable to travel the world like I had done for 13 years of my life.

However, what I did not understand was how closed conversations were.

People were surrounded with resources that create connections, but they did not seem to take advantage of them. I was told by my parents to be careful about conversations pertaining to politics, religion, or other ‘controversial’ topics. In other

I stood there helplessly as his heart-wrenching sobs echoed through my thoughts. Never in my life had I felt as useless as I did in that moment. I just didn’t know what to do. I felt like such an idiot. There had to be something, anything I could say to make his pain disappear, but there wasn’t.

Nothing would make it okay. “I’m so sorry,” I said. I couldn’t think of anything else to say, just those three simple words, but they were enough. My friend looked up at me and our eyes met. Holding his gaze I looked into his bloodshot eyes. His gorgeous eyes, transformed into two deep pools of sorrow. His tears flowed from them, tracing rivers down his cheeks.

And yet through all his pain he managed a small smile that broke my heart into a million little pieces.

“I’m so, so sorry,” I said again, and this time my voice broke. I was at a loss for words as a few tears began to silently trickle down my cheeks. His lips began to tremble and he shook his head, blinking hard.

Swallowing, he held out his arms to me. I squeezed him hard, my hug the only reassurance that I was there for him. He buried his head in the crook of my neck and murmured, “Thank you.” Thank you for what? I wanted to ask, but the words stuck in my throat. I couldn’t understand what it was I had done, how I had helped.

It seemed as though I could’ve done more I just didn’t know what. What do you say to these things? What was there to say? I desperately searched my mind for anything I could say, but I found

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words, I could not be as open I was in Qatar.

My friend Benjamin said the same: “You have to scale everything back, because not everyone has experienced things on the same level as you.” They said I could offend someone if I did not censor myself. I have friends who have moved back to the states and had similar talks from their parents when returning to the USA from the Middle East.

At my school in Qatar, the American School of Doha (ASD), I would hear amazing speeches and debates in class. If school would have a student election, peers would choose the best speech and campaign. We would choose the person who pushed for positive change.

Here, many selections are chosen by popularity and who is the so-called ‘coolest person’ regardless of the views they express.

For example, in my eighth-grade advanced English class there was a debate on whether or not electronics should be used for education. One group was made up of ‘unpopular’ or ‘unknown’ kids. The students in that group had solid points, persuasive speeches, and were prepared.

However, the other group consisted of the ‘well-known’ kids in the student body.

They presented two sub-par points to support their position. The second group won the debate, due to their status.

I used to visit Texas during the summers and I realized that people loved Texas with a passion. I share this passion; I love how there is a sense of welcoming and joy. When people would ask me where I used to live, I would tell them about Qatar. They would think it was crazy to grow up in such a place, and ask about the culture and the cities I visited. Usually, I was cut off by the other person talking about their life in Texas.

I enjoy hearing about people’s lives, but after countless experiences of being glossed over, I wondered if they were truly interested or if it was short lived excitement.

My sisters and I were born in Bryan, Texas. We always enjoyed visiting the Lone Star State in the summers. I share my fellow students’ passion for Texas.

Listening to their personal stories makes me smile.

However, the world is a big, wonderful and mysterious place. I hope in the years to come I will be able to share my stories of travel, culture and relationships.

Texas is amazing, and I love it as my second home, but there is more to the world than Texas. nothing. So I did the only other thing I could do and held him tightly, listening as his sobs eventually died away.

It was soon after that I realized that sometimes the best thing you can do is just be there. Life isn’t fair and sometimes there isn’t anything to say that will make it okay. Sometimes we need someone to simply be there. Not to fix anything, or do anything in particular, but just to let us feel that we are cared for and supported.

HERE FOR YOU allison segers entertainment editor

sophomore reflects on helping others through sadness

6 | viewpoints | the roar

friday, nov. 8, 2019

is teen activism beneficial?

According to “The Guardian”, during the week of September 20, 2019, students throughout the world participated in a ‘climate strike’. In legal cases such as Juliana v. United States, teenagers are suing the government for violating the rights of the youth by allowing significantly environment-harming activities to grow. Some teenagers are even speaking in front of the UN. Outside of these major examples, messages in support of environmental activism are becoming more and more prominent in the media we consume and support-- including recent trends like the #TrashTag or #TeamTrees challenges, which attracted teen participants in support of these challenges. Even some of our accessory trends support this— the recent promotion of reusable bottles and metal straws, for instance.

Yet these actions are criticized by outsiders.

Though teen activism would seem to escape the critique that our generation is glued to screens and oblivious to the world around us, anger has been expressed by opinions writers in news outlets from Fox News to “The New York Times”.

They claim teenager-based climate movements are naive, ineffective and harmful to society.

But how much of that is true?

The climate walkout was estimated to be one of the largest youth-led movements in history. However, news articles about the protest discussed criticisms of the event instead: how it didn’t necessarily increase political pressure in some cases, how there was no participation in China for the walkout despite the country’s high amounts of emissions, and claiming that the statistics of the walkout were unreliable, as they were provided by the organization (the news sources did not gather them).The recent #TeamTrees challenge’s attempt to plant 20 million trees to increase awareness of global warming faced similar criticism: most of the top search results on YouTube and Google claimed how the project would have little impact on the environment itself (despite it be-

ing an awareness project) and accused it of damaging ecosystems through planting non-native trees.

These worries about the project would be important if they were truthful; but the challenge’s website explained how the planted trees would be sustained in their native environments. People are sacrificing facts and making hasty conclusions about how these movements are wrong: even waste-reducing metal straws have attracted protests after one woman died from one. Young activists such as Greta Thunberg are facing dismissive attacks, claiming that she is paranoid, just quoting her parents, or too pessimistic (our president mockingly referred to her as a ‘young girl looking forward to a wonderful future’).

Any of these teen-led movements are, in the eyes of the many, more flawed than productive.

Teen-led protests asking directly for change are apparently too harsh, too paranoid, and unlikely to change anything, while awareness movements are ineffective, pointless, and also unlikely to change anything. Even the straw bought to save the turtles brings contention. But statistics on the changes made are elusive at best.

No matter if you agree or disagree with the motives behind these movements or protests, the knee-jerk negative opinions concerning these protests is a problem. The dismissal of teen movements has seemed to rise as social media has grown— teens last year on both sides of gun control debates faced similar dismissals and criticisms by politicians and news outlets— and although it is important to point out flaws in these methods, only telling a story about what we aren’t doing is just biased.

Besides, sometimes these awareness projects are the only thing we can do— most teens can’t vote on politicians to represent our views, and Texas is already reducing the amount of voting stations near colleges, potentially preventing those who can.

We’re trying our best. The problem here is that, in the eyes of the many, ‘our best’ is never enough.

“It depends. Sometimes people do it just to do something. Other people do it for a legitimate reason. Sometimes people just do it to be annoying to other people.”

-sophomore Shawn Montgomery

“I think it’s good, because we don’t have the right to vote at our age, but yet all the decisions that people older than us are making are going to affect us. The only way we can make change is to protest.”

-junior Chloe Crager

The Roar is produced by the Advanced Journalism class at A&M Consolidated High School, 1801 Harvey Mitchell Parkway S., College Station, Texas, 77840. The opinions expressed are those of the writers and are not reflective of the administrators, faculty or staff of the College Station Independent School District.

Submissions to the editors are welcomed but must be signed and should not exceed 300 words. The editor reserves the right to edit submissions in the interest of clarity and length or to not print a letter at all. Letters containing obscene or libelous material will not be considered.

The Editorial Board consists of the editor-in-chief, managing editor and opinions editor.

The Roar is a member of the Interscholastic League Press Conference (ILPC), the National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA) and the Columbia Scholastic Press Association (CSPA). The Roar is a winner of the CSPA Gold Crown, the 1997, 1998, 2000-2016 ILPC Award of Distinguished Merit, the CSPA Gold Medal Award, the NSPA All-American distinction and 2005, 2014,2016 ILPC Bronze Star and 2007-2013, 2015, and 2018 Silver Star.

College Station Independent School District does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex or handicap in providing education services. Monica Jones, Director of Human Resources, 1812 Welsh, College Station, Texas 77840 (979-764-5412) has been designated to coordinate compliance with the nondiscrimination requirements of Title IX. Molley Perry, Executive Director of Special Services, 1812 Welsh, Suite 120, College Station, Texas 77840 (979764-5433) has been designated to coordinate compliance with the nondiscrimination requirements of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. The Roar News

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The Roar 2019-2020 Staff Alex Roeder Ruby Perry-Mize Allen Zhang Claire Grace Franklin Saanya Patel Elise Sawyer Emmeline Duhon Allison Segers Piper Hitchcock Madison Stanfield Heidi Fahrenwald Kara Garza Faculty Adviser Michael Williams Assistant Adviser Chauncey Lindner

Editor-in-Chief Managing Editor Executive Editor Senior Editor Online Editor Opinions Editor Feature Editor Entertainment Editor Sports Editor Social Media Editor Staff Reporters

The Roar Editorial Board Alex Roeder • Elise Sawyer • Ruby Perry-Mize

friday, nov. 8, 2019

the roar | snapshots | 7

WORK IN ACTION

Original play showcases female talent, challenges thespians heidi fahrenwald | staff reporter This year’s annual fall performance marked a breakthrough for Tiger Theatre. After receiving an email from Austin playwright Don Zolidis, theatre director and teacher Randall Williamson chose to take on “Badger”, an original and never-performedbefore play.

“We chose it because it’s an original work and it suits our company,” Williamson. “It has five female leads and we have very strong female actresses performing.”

The story follows five women who start working in a factory during World War II and how they overcome gender obstacles. Williamson spent his whole summer researching the time period so that the play would be historically accurate. The costumes and props were custommade to fit the unique time period as well. Williams says the stakes are set higher for this performance because they are setting a standard for the play’s future.

“You have nothing to go on,” Williamson said. “The actors and characters are creating a completely original work with new ideas and new concepts and are the first people to say these lines on stage.”

The challenge for the actors was that there are no previous performances to look at to get an idea about how to portray or construct their characters.

It was new territory for many of the performers to create a character from scratch. They had to rely solely on their instincts of what the character should be doing in a particular scene.

“When you’re acting, you become the character that you’re playing because you get to decide their mannerisms,” senior Madelyn Weirich

said. “Going into a new play it’s different that now it’s just your interpretation of what the script says.”

Weirich, who played one of the female leads named Grace, has performed in two musicals and one play which she says had a more upbeat and or humorous feel. Acting in a play that involves issues such as sexual discrimination, unequal pay, and sexual harrassment was also a new challange.

“Something that makes this show different than others I’ve been in in the past is that it’s a lot more serious,” Weirich said. “‘Badger’ addresses a lot of difficult themes and you feel a lot of those intense emotions.”

Preparations for the play were long and tedious with those participating spending up to 10-15 hours a week practicing after school. Senior Coleman Maxwell, who had a lead role and acted as student director, says that the reward for this hard work comes in seeing how the actors form relationships and grow with their characters as well as cast bonding.

“It’s not always theater people inside of it and it’s interesting to see them become part of the theater family,” Maxwell said. “There is a familylike feel to it and that’s something that I’ve always really admired.”

Weirich says that being an actress allows her to escape reality and become someone new. When she’s on the stage, she says that she can leave behind the stress in her normal life and take on a new mission and purpose. From the standpoint of “Badger”, she has learned more about herself as an actress while performing a role with more depth.

“You get to represent people who don’t always have a voice,” Weirich said. “I get invested in a story with these characters, and I hope that people who watch get invested too.”

“Badger” revolves around five female factory workers overcoming adversities.

“You see the characters growing, see the actors form relationships with the character,” senior Coleman Maxwell said.

Senior Maddy Weirich plays a factory worker during World War II. “I play the character of Grace. She grew up on a farm but was kicked off,” Weirich said.

The full cast of “Badger” comes togerther, marking the end of the play. “The actors are creating an original work with new ideas and concepts. They’re the first people to say these lines on stage,” Williamson said.

PHOTOS BY HEIDI FAHRENWALD

8 | student

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friday, nov. 8, 2019

Fickle Funding

Staff, club members explain struggles with funding methods, address problems with providing for clubs elise sawyer & emmeline duhon opinions editor & feature editor School hallways are full of posters advertising profit shares, boxes of chocolate, and order forms for anything from mattresses to soup. The process of planning and executing school fundraisers, however, mostly stays within club meeting rooms. Students such as junior Pravalika Manachi, leader of the AMCHS Business Professionals of America, helps her group decides how many and what kinds they should do.

“I think one of our goals for this year is to do more fundraising,” Manachi said.

“We actually increased dues because we felt that it would be better to have more money in our account.”

To change dues, organize a fundraiser, or get information about the budget of a school organization, students can consult Danielle Cheshire, the AMCHS bookkeeper and budget analyst. Cheshire handles the vast majority of financial processes of the school’s departments and clubs (excluding athletics), including fundraisers.

“If you need to purchase anything for the fundraiser ahead of time, I help order that and get that purchased,” Cheshire said. “I also give [groups] petty cash so that they can make change. Once they’re done with the fundraiser, all the money’s turned into me and I make sure it gets deposited to the bank. I have access to budgets year round and I’m here to answer any questions that [groups] may have, because I can get to the system.”

In order to do a fundraiser, club leaders and faculty advisors such as Student Council advisor Brittney Hawkins go to Cheshire for approval.

“You fill out the form, due at least two weeks before your fundraiser, and you turn that into Miss Johnson,” Hawkins said. “And then, as far as I know, they just tell you if it’s not approved. If you don’t hear anything, it’s been approved. On that form, you have to fill out how much money you think your fundraiser is going to bring in and the dates of it, because they don’t want two clubs selling butter braids, or two clubs both going to Chick-Fil-A for [a] profit share on the same night. They don’t want clubs to compete with other clubs.”

Cheshire, however, sees the process as less limited. In addition, she says it does not take long at all.

“As long as you have the signature by the sponsor, and get Mrs. Johnson to approve [the form]-- she usually gives it to me the same day if she approves it-- I sign off and give it right back to her and she contacts the sponsor,” Cheshire said. “The process doesn’t take long. There really isn’t too much of a limitation when it comes to fundraising, unless it’s illegal.”

Student Council currently relies on a mixture of profit shares, product sales, nosell fundraisers, school events, and ticket scanning sessions to help raise money for the school. Hawkins asks for recommendations from students and other advisors in order to gauge what fundraisers have the most potential success.

“Some of the kids we got were like, ‘Last year at the middle school, we sold chocolate. Can we do that here?’,” Hawkins said. “So I reached out to the middle schools and asked them ‘what company did you use? Do you have any tips?’. They gave me the name, things that they did that worked well, and all the things that they didn’t recommend. I reached out to that company and then went from there.”

Student council also gets opportunities to consider many other alternate fundraiser ideas through various conventions for advisors.

“They have a whole bunch of people there who sell T shirts, socks, chocolate, jewelry, anything you want to sell,” Hawkins said. “So if we’re ever looking for a new

fundraiser, that’s a good place for us to start. Other clubs may not have fundraiser things that they can do like that, so they try to do different things.”

But for other advisors, such as Orchestra director Jane McCormick, time is of the essence-- and fundraisers can be limited by how long she can spend directing them, despite how expensive the course materials are-- even a bow for an instrument can be up to $50.

“Last year we did popcorn sales and ticket scanning, and then a percent of the profits were donated to the orchestra,” McCormick said. “We have a lot more students this year, so we have a greater need for funds. We have bows, we have rental instruments, home instruments, and maintenance. Just replacing and maintaining things is a huge part of the budget.”

Due to this, classes like Orchestra and Band must supplement their limited budget and fundraiser proceeds through student-- similar to the club dues in clubs like BPA. Although her influence is somewhat limited in the area, Cheshire helps coordinate these student costs. “[Course fees] are usually based off of the district, or the director of whatever the club or activity is. Certain ones are course based,” Cheshire said. “Club dues are specifically on the sponsor and the group of students themselves. They can change the amount of dues any time that they want. They don’t have to go through me to get it approved. If they decide ‘hey, we have this extra fee that we have to cover for the group’, they have to get a majority vote. Then I have to have the minutes from that meeting before any changes can be made.”

High course fees, however, do not guarantee financial stability. Despite the varsity debate team’s $350 fee, junior Ayanna Rucker, the team’s treasurer, notes that it is fairly reasonable considering the hundreds of dollars of fees and expenses paid for each of their competitions.

“I think we have to do quite a bit of fundraising compared to other clubs. This year, we really need to crack down, because we need money,” Rucker said. “You have to pay to participate. [In tournaments], you’re paying for people to judge, a hotel, and travel. A lot of our tournaments are far away-- we use rental cars-- so we have to pay for them, and any other form of transportation.”

Rucker hopes the team can do a fundraiser once every month (compared to the 1-2 yearly fundraisers that Cheshire claims groups do on average), something that, thanks to a new computer register system for fundraising called ‘In-Touch’, Cheshire can more easily manage.

“I haven’t found anything that’s not working well,” Cheshire said. “I can tell you that we do have a new entry system that we can enter all of this stuff in so we have a good document trail of everything that goes on here, especially when we’re taking in money. Anytime we have any kind of fundraising, it’s documented through the system. Before, everyone had to keep their own paper trail. [In-Touch] just made everything more efficient.”

Despite these improvements to the school’s financial documentation, finding a way to work with limited finances is still challenging to advisors.

“The school district has a limited amount of money that they have to delegate, and it’s my job to be as efficient with the districts tax money as possible,” McCormick said. “My enrollment went up about 40 students and my budget was still cut. There’s no way the districts can foresee something like that.”

Student Council, in attempts to avoid financial issues, tries to ensure their fundraisers are popular with students-- as even one failed fundraiser means that the group must do more work to regain their losses.

“To a degree, we try to make sure the fundraisers we are doing are ones that will bring in a lot of money, because we don’t want to waste students’ time by asking them to do something that people don’t want,” Hawkins said. “Within the last couple

years, we’ve switched to Butter Braids and chocolate. And if people stop buying that, then we might switch to something else and sell other things like popcorn or soup. We try to keep the things that we’re selling current so that we’re not asking our students to sell something that people don’t want.”

However, even previously-reliable fundraisers can contain risks.

“If we do a fundraiser and it doesn’t go well, we just have to do another fundraiser.

That’s what happened with Sadie Hawkins turning into Winter Formal,” Hawkins said. “Sadie Hawkins ended up losing money two years ago, so we transitioned to Winter Formal last year as a way to try to get more money because [Sadie Hawkins] was a fundraiser that didn’t go well. Because of that, we had to supplement with other fundraisers.”

The debate team has also struggled financially, which is part of the reason why Rucker wants to increase the amount of debate fundraisers.

“There are some challenges that I didn’t expect [as treasurer], and I thought it would be a lot easier,” Rucker said. “There was a time where we had a scare: we got new members, and were planning on getting new members in May, we got a certain budget, and we were running out. It was scary to think that we might not be able to let everyone go to what they want to, but there were never any cutbacks.”

If Student Council or Debate faced financial repercussions for these situations, they would be responsible.

“Usually the club will have to cover the costs,” Cheshire said. “Sometimes we have overhead funds that can be used for different stuff like that in our campus activity funds. But for the most part, usually the club would have to cover if there’s a profit loss.”

Rucker’s solution for avoiding these financial problems and lowering the team’s fees, essentially, is raising more money.

“We need to do more fundraisers, and that will make [Debate] more affordable.

It will bring down the stress [for] everyone,” Rucker said. “The amount of funding we have affects how many tournaments we go to, as well as the amount of people who are able to attend them. When you have 6 or 7 kids, it adds up.”

Student Council’s low fees are also a result of the many fundraisers they do.

However, the increase in fundraisers increases the risk of conflict in the organization, Hawkins says “When we’re asking students to sell something, we have to ask them to handle money,” Hawkins said. “Some students aren’t comfortable with that. Some parents aren’t comfortable with their student going door to door to sell things or asking their child to get money for our school-- they feel like maybe our school should provide that money instead. Even some of it is students who have no interest in selling or talking to people. They won’t put in the work to sell things even though it’s to the benefit of our entire student body. It’s kind of frustrating sometimes that students sign up to be in Student Council and want to help the school but don’t want to help us get money. Part of the reason that we do fundraisers is because we have our dues so low-- we charge $25. There are other schools where dues are like $300 so that they can put on all the events and not have to fundraise.”

Manachi, however, feels confident in her choice to increase the amount of BPA fundraisers, as she feels that the school is giving more acknowledgement to the group.

“We advertise. We’re putting flyers out there, [and] we’re doing our best on social media. I think that it’s how much we advertise that [impacts fundraising],” Manachi said.“I think in the past year or two we’ve definitely been more recognized than usual, which I’m really grateful for.”

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The reporters sent out a survey to the fundraising coordinators of school organiztions. Nine clubs responded.

Types of fundraisers done by the nine clubs: Profit Shares Ticket Scanning Selling Products Group-Related Fundraisers Donation Requests Online Fundraising School Event Hosting Student Fees Corporate Sponsorships 0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

“I feel that my group is underprioritized compared to other groups.”

Strongly Agree: 3 Somewhat Agree: 1 Somewhat Disagree: 4 Strongly Disagree: 1 “I feel that the school could do more to acknowledge our fundraising efforts.”

Strongly Agree: 2 Somewhat Agree: 2 Somewhat Disagree: 1 Strongly Disagree: 1 Neutral: 3

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10 | feature | the roar

friday, nov. 8, 2019

a long way home Organization provides second chances to abused animals, helps find new families allison segers | entertainment editor Abused or older animals are all too often forgotten or ignored by those looking for pet companionship. The organization A Long Way Home helps the animals rescued from abusive situations, even from foreign slaughterhouses, and helps them find loving homes, bringing joy to the families who adopt them. English teacher Linda Calvert has experienced this joy that the organization brings through her Miniature Schnauzer, Bodhi.

“In 2018 I lost my last Schnauzer, Winston, due to a sudden illness,” Calvert said. “Winston was my little buddy and constant companion.

His death left a gap in my life, and I knew I needed to fill it.”

After this loss, Calvert began her search for another Schnauzer to fill the gap Winston had left.

“I was looking specifically for another Schnauzer,” Calvert said. “There’s different miniature Schnauzer rescues all over the state of Texas. I was looking at all of them, but Schnauzers are from three to four hundred dollars for a rescue.”

As Calvert continued her search for an affordable miniature Schnauzer, she happened upon Long Way Home Adoptables, an organization that works with animal rescues.

“I finally ran across a picture of Bodhi at this site, and he was just so adorable,” Calvert said.

“It was here in College Station, and his rescue fee was only two hundred dollars. I read on the site [that] he was a slaughter rescue, and he had quite a story coming all the way from China. That just pulled at my heartstrings.”

Calvert took an interest in Bodhi and was able to visit him through Long Way Home and interact with him in person.

“His foster parents [are] so great,” Calvert said. “They regularly take in a foster animal from Long Way Home Adoptables. They bring in a foster pet with their own pets, and they

keep that foster animal for six to eight weeks.

You get to go into their home and see how the animal acts around animals [and] strangers.

That gives you a really good idea of the temperament of the animal.”

Foster parent Sarah Atchley works frequently with Long Way Home Adoptables and is a foster parent to many of the rescue animals they bring in, including Bodhi.

“I love all of the animals that I get to meet,” Atchley said, “I love getting to see them. A lot

Photo provided by Linda Calvert of them come in and are not in great shape.

They’ve either been abused or neglected or they’re older and sick, and so we get to take care of them while they’re either getting healthy or are in their last few years.”

Atchley says Bodhi was one of her favorite

foster animals, and like any other dog, Bodhi is very playful and loves attention.

“I miss having Bodhi around, actually,” Atchley said. “He loved snuggling. He would come up to you, jump onto the couch, sit in your lap and make you start petting him. And if you stopped petting him he’d shove his nose back under your hand again to tell you that you weren’t done yet. It was neat to see how a dog who had been abused by other people would be so trusting and loving.”

Long Way Home Adoptables focuses on helping older or injured animals that are harder to get adopted, like Bohdi, and works to help rescues find their forever homes.

“Long Way Homes takes animals that are typically more high risk,” Atchley said.

“They’ll be animals that are either pregnant in the shelter or older, or have health problems from local shelters in Texas. [They] also partner with an organization called HSH and Slaughterhouse Survivors in China, and that’s where Bodhi came from.”

Along with partnering with rescue organizations in China, Long Way Home Adoptables uses the funds they earn to provide for the animals under their care.

“Long Way Home is a nonprofit organization, so they run on donations and volunteer workers,” Athcley said. “The donations are used for buying food and paying for the vet care and vaccines and making sure all the dogs are neutered and [have] any surgeries they need. They are one of the best foster organizations that I’ve worked with.”

Long Way Home Adoptables works hard to get these rescued animals ready for their new homes.

“I think it’s incredible they can rescue animals from all over the world,” Calvert said.

“They seem to specialize in those that are in the greatest need. Those are the hardest ones to find adopters for, and I think it’s just a great thing they’re doing.”

friday, nov. 8, 2019

TAKE A BREATH

the roar | feature | 11

Faculty explores benefits of morning meditation, finds peace before chaos of school day madison stanfield & kara garza social media editor & staff reporter Mornings can be maddening. From take care of myself. I forget to be intentional,” The benefits of meditation are often sleeping through your alarm to traffic trouble and last minute assignments, many students overlooked in favor of the stereotypical images on our campus wake up and hit the ground seen by the mainstream media. Many people think of meditation as an ancient disciplinary running.

It’s for this reason librarian Chauncey practice; some sort of ritual with rules and Lindner began offering the library as a quiet regulations to follow in order to be zen. .

“I think meditation is a foreign concept, place for short meditation meetings each morning. Using an app called Calm, Lindner especially in a school setting,” Bridges said. has transformed the library into an inviting “A lot of people have a [wrong] idea of what it is. It’s not a lot of people sitting around on setting for a guided meditation. “[The sessions are] informal, and casual,” cushions humming and chanting. It’s just secretary Krystal Bridges said. “We gather reflective thought, and that can be meditation anywhere you around in choose to do it.” a circle, Meditation usually in can be tailored chairs. [The to fit the needs of program] each individual. talks about It is suggested breathing to find a quiet techniques calming place, and there’s which will differ usually a from person to lesson - like AVID teacher person, and can a thought take as long as provoking GRACE STANFORD desired. Though message. the library only [The library provides a quick is] dark and it’s warm because Lindner keeps a little heater ten minute session, science teacher Samuel Childers says that is enough to see the benefits in there.”

Having a nearby place to practice of meditation.

“If we can take some time, even if it’s just mindfulness immediately drew faculty in. Not only does it provide a quiet place to gather and 10 minutes, to maybe try to find a way to push focus thoughts, but meditation is also known to stress aside, to clear the mind a little bit. I don’t provide numerous health benefits. In addition see how it could be detrimental to anyone,” to lowering blood pressure and relaxing Childers said.

The morning meditations have done the body, meditation has been scientifically proven to help reduce anxiety and depressive more than provide a quiet place to practice symptoms. The practice often helps to mindfulness in the mornings. College encourage one to keep a positive outlook on coordinator Diane Walter says she’s gained a sense of comradery with her fellow attendees life says AVID teacher Grace Stanford.

“There’s something powerful about setting at the morning meditation meetings. “[I like] being there with other people and an intention for the day, taking a minute to deliberately lower your blood pressure, [and] knowing we’re all going through this relaxed really empty your mind out.” Stanford said. “I and together it’s just kind of like a little family in like that intentionality, [it’s] one of the things there. “Walter said”. This is the first time I’ve tried that I forget, in the rush rush, ‘hurry up’. I’m a it. And I really do like it. Give it a shot.” mom and a wife and a teacher and I forget to

“

There’s something powerful about setting an intention for the day, and really emptying your mind out.”

above: Adviser Diane Walter and teacher Hayden Bell focus on breathing. “It helps you become focused and centered,” Walter said.

above: Receptionist Krystal Bridges relaxes her body. “It is a time for me to be able to reflect and slow down,” Bridges said.

PHOTOS BY KARA GARZA

12 | sports | the roar

friday, nov. 8, 2019

Turn Me Up Tigers Transfer senior Kerry Brooks joins football team, helps lead varsity to victory Emmeline Duhon & Piper Hitchcock feature editor & sports editor This year’s football season brings a bundle of new changes to the field. New senior leadership has proven to be one of the key factors in the Tigers’ success on and off the field.

Senior wide receiver Devon Price says it’s his teammates’ long history with each other that’s so important. “[The seniors] grew up with each other, we played in middle school, and now we’re all together in high school. It’s our team.” Price said. “That’s why we’ve had a better year.”

Assistant Coach Chad Bruggmann believes the seniors have realized a greater meaning of competition, what it takes to win, and how to get the rest of the team moving in the same direction.

“Our senior class works well together.”

Bruggmann said. “If you’re going to have a good team, your seniors are going to step up and lead. They’re doing that better than the previous years.”

To senior receiver Valen Jones, team chemistry is also a vital aspect to the Tigers’ success this year.

“Off the field, [the team] builds chemistry.

Kerry Brooks makes a block while playing Katy Paetow.

I’ve known these guys on the field for as long as I can remember,” Jones said.“We work together by doing the same drills each and everyday-- we take it to heart.”

Along with new leadership, the team is adjusting to new players. Senior Kerry Brooks, a new addition who transferred from Bryan High, has already brought a new light to the team.

“I guess it’s the leadership nature I have from being a quarterback for so long,” Brooks said. “It’s so easy to get discouraged when you’re down, but you make sure everybody stays up to make a comeback.”

Jones is thrilled by the liveliness that Brooks has brought to the team through his athleticism, he says.

“He brings a lot of energy because he makes plays. Whenever you get a huge play on the field, it brings up the rest of the team,” Jones said. “If he makes a sixty yard run or a touchdown, it brings up the tempo.”

Jones believes that the main point of success is staying together as a team is the key to success.

“We’ve become closer [by] working together,” Jones said. “We’re getting better everyday.”

Brooks’ teammates have already welcomed him into the Tiger Football family, and are beyond pleased with what he brings

Senior Kerry Brooks prepares to enter the football game.

PHOTOS BY BIBBY BREIDEN

to the field, junior quarterback Kyle Willis said. “[Brooks] is a leader, and he will do whatever is needed on the field,” said Willis.

“He plays all three sides of the ball, he’s unselfish, and he works hard.”

Price is also excited that Brooks has contributed to the team’s chemistry, as well as success on the field, he says.

“He’s done a really good job,” Price said.

“He’s been playing whatever we need him to play, and he’s a big part of why we are doing so well.”

The players have taken notice of his strategic thinking and adaptability on the field, Jones says.

“He’s a great player. The thing about Kerry is that he’s very smart, as well,” Bruggman said. “He can adjust and fit into different situations, and that’s why we’re able to move him around and do different things.

He’s a very gifted athletically, but also very intelligent.”

Junior wide reciever Truman Jasperson, among other varsity players, thinks that with the help of newcomer Kerry Brooks, the Tiger Football team will continue to go far this season.

“Kerry Brooks is the football team.”

Jasperson said.

Kerry Brooks makes a call on the field to his fellow teammate.

the roar |

friday, nov. 8, 2019

news | 13

Let’s Par-tee Students and coaches discuss personal, family connections to golf ruby perry-mize | managing editor When asked what motivates them to play a sport, many athletes cite talent, drive, and above all, passion. However, for senior and captain of the girls’ golf team Bibby Breiden, her sport is about family.

“I don’t have a passion for it,” Breiden said. “It’s a good way for us to bond. Me, my grandpa, and my dad took off [to the] course [for] quality time that I could spend with [them] alone, which doesn’t happen often because we’re pretty busy with work.”

For golf coach and math teacher Justin McKown, whose son played golf under him throughout his high school career, the sport is both a time commitment and a chance for family bonding.

“I was fortunate that [my son] chose to play golf, because he could have played football. He could have played baseball.

But he chose to play golf,” McKown said.

“So it was was really cool because once he got in high school he was with me all day every day, pretty much.”

Time commitment is a factor for the players as well as the coach. On tournament days, golfers have to be ready to play first thing in the morning. “[For] tournaments, we usually get up really early,” Breiden said. “We’ll get breakfast on the way and usually [be] at the course by seven.”

Tournaments are worth the early mornings for the chance to improve individual skills, Breiden says.

“It’s a good way to spend time with yourself,” Breidman said. “While your team

matters as far as scores at the end, you’re playing by yourself the whole round. It’s you working with your swing and doing the best you can do.”

Freshman Sandro Iero agrees that the relaxed speed of golf allows for greater technical precision over the course of a competition.

“It’s slower pace, and then you also have to have a lot of coordination,” Iero said. “[Golf] is a lot harder, in my opinion, than most sports.”

Given the difficulty, Breiden prefers recreational golf over competitive golf. She performs better when not keeping score, she says.

“I enjoy it more whenever it’s not the pressure of playing for an actual score,” Breiden said. “That’s not really competitive of me, but I like it better whenever I’m playing for leisure.”

The beauty of golf isn’t in winning for McKown either, he says. He’s more concerned with fostering community on the team.

“Creating life--taking 10 to 12 guys, and not only teaching them how to play golf, how to hit a golf ball, how to chip, how to putt, [but] teaching them to have that to play for something bigger than themselves,” McKown said.

One difference between the boys’ and girls’ teams is their attitudes toward the sport, Breiden says.

“They’re much more competitive about making themselves better,” Breiden said.

“We have the goal of trying to be better, but it’s hard whenever there’s only seven people.”

Breiden believes the girls’ team’s small size may be partially explained by the preeminence of other sports.

“Whenever we went to middle school, the three big sports were volleyball, basketball, [and] track,” Breiden said. “So when you get to high school and there’s things like golf or tennis, there’s just less of a motivation to do that from a lot of girls.”

McKown has his own opinion as to why the girls’ team is smaller than the boys’.

He speculates that the community aspect of golf is more important to girls than the sport itself.

“My theory is that girls are more social than boys,” McKown said. “Guys learn they don’t need four or five guys to practice, and they’re okay with that, whereas that’s kind of hard to get [girls] to do.”

McKown adds that golf is not well advertised among girls.

“Girls really don’t know golf is an option,” McKown said. “The coach before now, coach Terrell, would go to volleyball tryouts; he would recruit them to come play golf because they were athletes. And he had a little success doing this.”

Despite the team’s small size, girls’ golf shouldn’t be written off entirely, Breiden says.

“We’re going to do the best we can with what we have,” Breiden said. “We’re not going to go to state. We might not even make it to regions, but I feel like with the players we have, we have a good shot at doing good.”

friday, nov. 8, 2019

14 | reviews | the roar

a whole new film the roar reviews: disney adaptations

elise sawyer | opinions editor Although I had low expectations, I was still intrigued about the Lion King remake— in my 7th grade yearbook, after all, the original was voted the school’s favorite movie. Unfortunately, these expectations were not even met. Minutes into the movie, I felt nostalgia, and not the ‘I remember that part of the Lion King’ kind: specifically, I felt nostalgia for when my elementary school would give children hot chocolate each year while playing the movie ‘The Polar Express’.

Why? Because, like the Polar Express movie, the Lion King tried and failed to look realistic and instead looked uncanny. The CGI was not realistic-looking enough to suspend my disbelief (which is why I will not give it the title ‘live action’), but it was not unrealistic enough to portray the emotions of the characters: making tragic scenes like Mufasa’s death feel almost soulless. On top of that, the 2-D animation was already impressive and effective enough at telling the story-while, although I’m sure the CGI took a large amount of work, it really just made the scenes more busy and less pretty. But what I hate most about this movie was that scenes were added specifically to ‘show off’ the technology: there was one montage that lasted about two to three minutes that was almost comedic for how tedious it was, meanwhile, the movie’s villain song was cut down substantially and lacked any of the visual greatness the original had as some sort of ‘trade-off’. There were other cuts and changes in the story, and although I’ve never been the biggest fan for how the original movie’s plot moved along, the addition of a weird romantic tension subplot between Simba’s mother and Scar didn’t help. In general, the CGI took away from the movie and the changes to the story were primarily to show off more CGI-- and, of all the remakes, this is likely my least favorite.

madison stanfield | social media editor

When I went to go see Disney’s live action remake of Aladdin I was completely set that I wouldn’t enjoy it. I had little confidence that Will Smith could pull off such an iconic character, and remaking the movie without Robin Williams as the genie didn’t seem like a smart move. I wasn’t into it the first time I watched the movie. I thought the CGI was bad and I didnt think the acting and singing were anything special. The comedy fell flat with me and I couldn’t stand the genie no matter how hard I tried to. I left the movie feeling really underwhelmed and a little disappointed that they butchered what was my favorite Disney movie. However, I went to see it a second time, this time with a more of an open mind, and was genuinely surprised that I enjoyed it so much. I took more time to notice the things that were actually really good. The set design and the costumes were amazing and added a whole new element to the story. It really felt like you were immersed in the culture. The song Speechless was a great addition to go with Jasmine’s more up to date storyline. But the real standout was shockingly the genie. I enjoyed his presence a lot more the second time around and I don’t think the movie would have been as good without him. Remakes might not always live up to their predecessors but I think Aladdin is the best Disney remake to date, and I would highly suggest going to see it if you haven’t already.

the roar | reviews | 15

friday, nov. 8, 2019

sweet as pie the roar reviews: aggie habitat for humanity pumpkin patch Visiting

pumpkin

saanya patel | online editor patches have always been one of the highlights of my fall. One amazing local patch is the Aggie Habitat Pumpkin Patch located on Rock Prairie Road. It’s fun to walk around it and marvel at the sheer quantity of pumpkins that appear all shapes and sizes. This is the perfect pastime for a warm fall day. The pumpkin patch also provides wonderful backgrounds for photos. The bright orange pumpkins are a great way to truly embrace the season. Even better, all the proceeds from pumpkin purchases go towards the BCS Habitat for Humanity, a local non-profit organization providing affordable housing in the Brazos Valley. This is certainly a great way to celebrate fall and while doing so, make a difference in the community.

Pumpkin patches are a claire grace franklin | senior editor long standing fall tradition. I went to the Habitat for Humanity pumpkin patch, and found an enormous pumpkin. The pumpkin patch had a large variety of pumpkins, and most of them were in pristine condition. I enjoyed the set up— all the pumpkins were organized by weight and size. You could easily stroll through the pumpkins and pick out exactly what you are looking for. Also, around the pumpkins were cute places to take photos. There were hay bales and props to use to take pictures. The pricing was fair and was practical. All the pumpkins were priced by height and width. The prices are a bit higher than a supermarket, but all proceeds go toward Habitat for Humanity. I would highly recommend going to the patch for a good pumpkins and experience.

As

your resident girl, pumpkin patches in the fall are kind of my scene. With the close proximity of the Aggie Habitat for Humanity to my home and the sudden drop in temperature, a trip to the patch was just what the doctor ordered. The pumpkins were well organized and easy to see, which made the selection process a breeze. They had a large variety to choose from, ranging from pinky-finger size to bighonking pumpkins. The aesthetic of the field was perfect for cute pictures, as it was decorated with bails of hay and wooden scarecrows by all the large oak trees. I came on what you might consider the “ideal” pumpkin-patching day, so the line to check out did take a few minutes, but the weather was so nice that I didn’t mind. I left the patch with a very cute instagram post and a perfect pumpkin to carve something spooky in. If you’re looking for a nice, family-friendly, and very cute experience, the Aggie Habitat for Humanitty pumpkin patch is the way to go.

alex roeder | editor-in-chief white

PHOTO BY SAANYA PATEL

16c

etc.c the roar

friday, nov. 8 , 2019

each happy memor y Students discuss opinions on letterman jackets and high school rings claire grace franklin senior editor Rings and jackets hold different reputations in the hearts of students and A&M Consolidated High School. “[Your letterman is something] you have to work hard to get a jacket,” senior Jazzamine Washington said.

“There’s a lot of requirements and things and it takes time to get them. It’s not something you can just wake up and get, so I think it’s important to get a letterman jacket.”

Students have often been discouraged about buying jackets because of their high cost.

The average cost of a letterman jacket at A&M Consolidated is 280 dollars.

“There’s like a stigma about getting a letterman jacket I think and people always like, ‘I don’t have enough money for that,” Washington said. “I don’t think anyone should feel bad if they

can’t afford the letterman jacket.

But I think if you can, it’s a good thing to get one because I feel like you’ll like looking at it later.”

Some students see the letterman jacket as important, but should only be available for certain programs..

“I just think is like when jackets first came out, it was really just for varsity sports,” senior Kurt Hopkins said. “Now it is kind of excessive.”

School rings hold a different status to the students.

The school norm is to not want or respect the idea of school rings.

“I think college rings have a meaning. High school is a big achievement in itself. College I feel like it’s more superior to that and it should just be left at that,” junior Jase Powell said.

Due to the large number of students attending Consolidated the preference of school rings varies from person to person.

“I know it was a big deal to me when I was younger,” junior Kallie Williams said. “When my mom gave me her class ring, I

just [wanted] to be able to do that to my future children or grandchildren.”

Students who invested money into a school ring understand the varying of opinions of their fellow peers.

“I think it’s because it’s just so like cliche to get one, and because they’re not always like the best designs,” Willams said. “I know that some people were making fun of some of the designs for certain, like groups or things like that.”

Overall the student body sways toward the letterman jackets and also view them as a memorable part of their highschool experience.

“I think Letterman jackets are like way up there,” Williams said. “Because they are something that you wear it and people see it and they’re like, ‘Oh, I got you.’ Versus rings where people don’t necessarily always see your hands. If you have your letterman, then people remember that.”