The Highlander--Issue 10

Highlander

Volume 53, Issue 10

McLean High School; 1663 Davidson Road, McLean, VA 22101

April 24, 2009

Shefali Hegde Assistant News Editor

“You’ll be sitting in class, and two kids will be giggling over a photo,” said a male junior who wished to remain anonymous. “There was one named ‘The Madison Girl’ and another called ‘The Mirror Pic,’ and both got heavily transmitted.”

The passage of nude photos through text messages has now been termed as “sexting,” a portmanteau for sex and texting. The practice has become a dominant concern in the teenage community over the past few months.

Labeled as pornography, sexting is a felony that could result in over a year of prison time. Last week the Fairfax County Police Department (FCPD) issued a press release on sexting, it read “it is here and it is destroying lives.”

At 17 years of age, a person can be threatened with placement on the Virginia Sex Offender Registry for spreading, creating, or even possessing racy photos via cell phone. Under state and federal law, the student would be guilty of severe child pornography, a charge that could lead to anything from delinquency to imprisonment.

One student, whose name was withheld by school officials, was recommended for expulsion last year when School Resource Officer Douglas Meyer received evidence of his participation in sexting. Though he cannot discuss details, Meyer hopes the incident will tell student the school is serious about combating sexting.

“The county and the school are very firm on this,” Meyer said. “This stuff can get you immediately kicked out.”

Meyer admits that the controversy over sexting is “a growing problem” and is “very recent.” This Tuesday Principal Deborah Jackson devoted almost nine minutes of “Principal’s Corner” to discourage students from sexting and give tips on how to avoid its consequences.

According to Meyer, there have already been several incidents at McLean where he has had to take disciplinary action this year.

“Students have directly brought to me inappropriate pictures, and I had to deal with it immediately,” he said.

One in five American teens said they have either posted or sent sexually explicit photos of themselves through an electronic medium, according to The National Campaign to Prevent Teen & Unplanned Pregnancy.

Many students in the area contend that sexting is a widespread phenomenon. A senior from Langley High School said that the majority of his friends are somehow engaged in sexting.

“Most guys with decent social skills have these photos on their phone’s picture gallery,” he said. The content of the pictures ranges from the “somewhat innocent” to the “very in-depth,” according to the Langley senior. “Some reveal the entire female anatomy.”

Head Security Officer Buddy Sekely expresses confusion over the whole practice. “I don’t understand why 15 and 16-year-old boys and girls send photos like these,” he said. “What is going on through these kids’ minds?”

Though sexting is a recently targeted practice, the general idea of sending these kinds of photos is not new.

“As far back as eight years ago, kids have been sending lewd pictures,” Sekely said. “Then, it was a much slower process where kids had to burn a CD and make copies.

Digital cameras were only just getting introduced.”

Because photos can now be easily spread with the press

of two buttons, “it makes it hard to keep up with,” Sekely said.

Some students think criminalizing sexting violates their rights. “If you want to send pictures of your own body, you should be allowed to,” sophomore Chris James said. “It’s the right of the people in the relationship. There’s no privacy anymore and too many things are out in the open.”

Senior Alex Suter agrees. “I figure if two individuals want to ‘sext,’ they should be allowed to,” he said.

However, school officials say that consensual sexting, though seemingly innocent, quickly spins out of control.

“Once you hit that ‘Send’ button, you can never take it back,” Sekely said. “It won’t just stay between the couple.”

The writer can be reached at Shefali_hegde@hotmail.com

the untold consequences of

SEXTING

Highlander 2 Poor economy affects DECA fundraisers Rubina Sarkisian Assistant News Editor

From April 29 to May 2, 18 Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA) members will be traveling to Anaheim, California to participate in the annual International Career Development Conference. To meet their $5000 goal to sponsor the trip, students raised money selling Chick-fil-a, Smoothie King, Entertainment coupon books, MHS label coffee, Little Caesar’s pizza kits, Krispy Kreme doughnuts and also held a car wash.

The overall cost of the trip is $775 per person, which includes the flights both ways, the hotel, a day at universal studios, registration, and meals.

According to senior and DECA District President Chelsea Shalhoup, the process of getting every qualified person to go on the trip was no easy task, primarily due to the poor economy.

“We had two sisters and only one could go because it’s just so much money,” Shalhoup said. “There were also a few other people who couldn’t go although they were eligible. The economy has definitely made it difficult for parents to pay to for their kids to go.”

Senior Olivia Michael was scheduled to compete with her sister, Angelica Michael, after their win at the state competition, but due to the cost of the trip and the economy, paying for two people is just too expensive.

“Going to California isn’t exactly cheap,” Olivia Michael said. “It made sense if only one of us could go; it would be her because she’s a junior and can continue next year.”

Michael is not upset about the situation. “In me not going, there was an opportunity for someone else to go who didn’t quite make the cut at states,” Michael said.

“We see the economy affecting some of our students’ families,” DECA advisor Debra Fargo said. “But we gave each student another chance to get sponsors and donations, either family or businesses, to reduce the cost of their trip even further.

There were some money issues and some scheduling conflicts with sports and other activities. But it all worked out.”

There are a lot more people going on this trip than the past couple of years. “This year’s officer team came up with the idea and named it DECAchievement. Officers and other students who are ‘DECA veterans’ were assigned mentors who were new to DECA and competing,” Fargo said. “We had a couple of breakfast meetings during Highlander Time and other meetings so the students could ask questions in a casual environment.”

This program helped new competitors not shy away from competing and helped them prepare. “Its awesome, we’re really expanding and I think that’s a product of the mentorship program we had this year,” Shalhoup said.

The writer can be reached at rubina.sarkisian@gmail.com

NEWS

April 24, 2009

Fashion marketing students run prom fashion show at Lord and Taylor

photo by Mohammad Tavakoli Fashion marketing teacher Lynda Campbell and students rehearse for the upcoming prom fashion show at Lord and Taylor in Tyson’s Corner mall taking place tomorrow. “the neat details, and making sure everything is in order,” Moises Cazal she said. “Making sure everyone is on the same page.”

News Editor Throughout the day, login books will be kept at all cash Tysons Corner mall fashion marketing students have organized a prom fashion show in a collaborative effort registers to record all dress purchases; that way, customers to promote new styles for the prom season. The show will can make sure no one from their school has bought the be hosted by Lord and Taylor in Tyson’s Corner mall on same dress.

The students will model dresses according to themes April 25 at 3 p.m.

“Its amazing being exposed to executives in the retail they chose ahead of time, like ring of fire, under the sea, industry who are willing to give back to the community electropop and bare naked ladies. Participating in the by taking time to mentor and shadow students who have fashion show is part of the students’ grade, but being a an interest in their field of expertise,” fashion marketing part of the fashion show is more important to the girls.

“We are all taking this class for a reason,” junior teacher Lynda Campbell said.

At the fashion show, customers are offered a 25 percent Heather Wald said. “We enjoy the subject; it’s not only off all purchases throughout the day. Family and friends for our grade.”

The fashion show also serves as a way to refresh everyof models who attend the event will receive gift bags from thing learned throughout the year.

Lord and Taylor.

“Producing the show made us incorporate everything “It’s a good incentive to get people to come,” senior we learned throughout the year,” Shepley said.

Candace Shepley said.

Marketing students planned every aspect of the show, from the music to clothes selections and the walking time The writer can reached at MoisesCazal@hotmail. on the runway. According to Shepley, the hardest part was com

Prom preparations begin to fall into place Cammie Meade Reporter

the Design and Printed Materials committee.

Student volunteers from outside of the class officers have stepped up to take a leadership position The final countdown to prom begins as the juin the planning. “We have at least one student on nior class representatives and volunteers finish the each committee who is from outside of the class planning process that began almost a year ago. officers,” Gale said.

It is a tradition for the junior class to plan and However, all of this work does not fall solely on pay for prom; as seniors, they then receive the same Where: Westwood the shoulders of students; parent volunteers also ashonor. Junior class sponsors Farris Gale and RaCountry Club sist in the entire prom planning process. “We have chel Siska attended prom last year in order to start When: May 30, 2009 maybe like 10 to 15 volunteers leading the commitbrainstorming ideas for this year. tees and one main prom mom who then delegated Currently, there are still decisions to be made Time: 9 p.m. - 12 a.m. roles to the other moms,” Gale said. concerning prom, but Gale hopes that those choicIn addition to these prom moms, there is a dees will be finalized in meetings.

Theme: Fire and Ice mand for chaperones as the prom evening draws “Everything I know right now is where, when, near. The committee has created a website that feaand the theme,” Gale said. “The rest of the decisions Tickets: $45 tures all of the information concerning prom night will probably be made in the next two weeks.” and opportunities for parents to volunteer. “We One of the first decisions made was the date need as many [chaperones] as we can get because and location of prom. The date is May 30 and the not everyone stays the whole night; they work in venue is Westwood Country Club in Vienna, the location of last year’s prom. infographic by Cammie Meade shifts,” Gale said.

The website is a new approach to an old conAnother early decision that was made was the decided to have two dance floors instead of one dance floor cept. “They used to make a flyer and this year we decided theme of the evening. Past themes included dancing in the because they were too small,” Lichtenbaum said. moonlight, Arabian nights and “I don’t wanna miss a thing,” During the meeting on April 15, it was decided that the to save paper and put it all online,” Gale said. Also included a song by Aerosmith. This year, the juniors decided on the price will be $45, the same price that tickets were last year. on the website are lists of limousine rentals, tuxedo rentals, theme of fire and ice, with red and blue decorations setting “[The price is] based on last year’s prices and the number of salons and florists. There is also information about a florist who is giving away a prom package for two in a contest. For the scene at the dance. students,” Gale said.

At a meeting on April 15, decorations were one of the The final decisions that need to be made will be consid- more information visit http://www.fcps.edu/McLeanHS/acmain topics of discussion, along with the budget for the ered at the beginning of May at a meeting on May 13. The tivities/Prom%202009/Prom2009site.html.

Despite the decisions yet to be made, everyone involved event and the tickets. Other more detailed topics were dis- designs for prom t-shirts have yet to be decided as well as cussed, and decisions concerning minute details during the other details concerning the prom favors. “We still have to has high expectations for the event already. “We hope that it evening were decided. Design and Printed Materials co-chair decide how long we are going to sell tickets for,” prom com- runs smoothly and is organized,” Gale said.

Anni Lichtenbaum was in attendance at the meeting. “We mittee member Olivia Cho said. Cho is the other co-chair on The writer can be reached at csmbballgirl@comcast.net

NEWS

April 24, 2009

CIA reaches out to government students Chris Herron-Venancio Reporter

AP government students have had the opportunity to listen to six guest speakers from the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), who discussed with students about foreign governments.

The sessions took place on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, starting on April 13 and continuing until April 30 in AP government teacher Ian Howell’s room.

Each of the speakers is a specialist to a specific country’s government. During the session, students ask the speakers questions about that country’s photo by Mohammad Tavakoli government and the speaker reA Central Intelligence Agency speaker explains Mexican politics to government sponds with in-depth answers. students last Monday.

This is the first year that the CIA has sent speakers here, but Iran. The last session will cover all of “I was already considering a career because of how well the sessions have the countries together. in international relations, but [the sesbeen going, there is hope that this will The discussions are also meant to sions] definitely showed me how many continue next year. be a review for the AP exams. Part of options there are,” Streeten said.

“We hope it will be an annual the curriculum for AP government is The sessions have been open for thing,” Howell said. comparative government, and each of anyone who is interested in attendStudents also thought that the the discussions is on a different coun- ing, not just AP government students. guest speakers were a helpful addition try’s government.

The discussions allow students to learn to the year. They get professional views “It will help in class because the new views that are different from their on subjects they are learning about. analysts provided us with a memora- preconceived views. “I don’t think “I think it should be an annual ble overview that is more in depth and people know how the West, especially thing,” senior Cranley Lockhart said. easier to understand than any text- the US, plays a large role in world “It allows us to see things in a new perbook,” senior Maggie Streeten said. politics,” Lockhart said. spective and to be updated on current Throughout the discussions the To attend, students must sign up trends.” speakers also talked about their jobs for the desired time. The lists are availEach session focuses on a different with the CIA. able in Howell’s room. country’s government. It first began Students in attendance could blend with Nigeria, second Russia, third their classroom knowledge and infor- The writer can reached at chrishMexico and fourth China. and fifth mation from the speakers together. erron1@yahoo.com

Twitter Users are a minority at Mclean Prianka Das Advertisement Manager

“What are you doing?”

This question is answered daily by frequent Twitter uses. Users send and read other Twitter users’ updates, much like the temporary Facebook statuses known as “tweets.”

This free service works by letting you broadcast your message as a text to your friends’ cell phones, an instant message, or online on the twitter website. Posts are limited to 140 characters.

The first “tweet” was posted by co-founder Jack Dorsey on March 21, 2006. The initial concept was for bike messengers to be able to let each other know where they were located all over the city. Three years later, over 14 million people have signed up.

However, Twitter doesn’t seem to have a large impact on McLean.

Junior Mary Wood doesn’t have a Twitter account, but has taken an informed decision not to do so. “It’s just rapid fire telling what you’re doing at the moments. But from the preview video on the Twitter home page, I don’t really like what I’m seeing. I’m not very interested,” she said.

Many students simply consider Facebook their most preferred networking site. “I feel it’s pointless compared to Facebook statuses. You really don’t need that many updates on your status,” Wood said.

Sophomore Maria Lu has an account but doesn’t go on it very often.

“I joined it to stalk celebrities,” she said with a grin. “I don’t really have any friends on Twitter because no one at McLean seems to use Twitter.

I think it’s more of a device to use to look up artists and bands, not really for socializing like on Facebook,” Lu said.

Social media strategist Rajiv Doshi points to several reasons why Twitter hasn’t hit the high school crowd just yet.

“Twitter is still relatively young and small compared to social networks like Facebook and MySpace.

I think adults jumped on Twitter first because they found the value in sharing information and communicating. High school students interact with each other in school already; there is less value in a tool like that,” Doshi said via e-mail.

Twitter seems to be most dominant in business companies. “Companies specifically are leveraging Twitter to listen to their consumers and then engage them for customer support, brand awareness, and loyalty,” Doshi said. “They have a direct channel to communicate to their most passionate consumers.”

Twitter is growing very quickly.

For now, though, this young application has yet to gain McLean’s favor.

The writer can be reached at priankadas91@yahoo.com

3

Highlander

New executive Macs plan for next year Ryan Flamm Reporter

On April 15, the new and old executive McLeaders met in a round table discussion in the career center during Highlander time. The new executives were all McLeaders- this year and were selected to become an executive by recommendation from faculty. As executives of the McLeadership program, students are able to practice life skills like leadership.

“You get a better sense of how an organization like this is run,” junior Aleigh Kemp said.

At the meeting, the old executives passed on knowledge and advice to the new executives and brainstormed about such things as how to get the little Macs more interested.

New executives also discussed their responsibilities as the executive McLeaders. According to new executive Abigail Dean, students discussed new ideas and what they wanted to do next year to improve the program.

“It’s a trial year; we are trying to see what works and what does not,” Kemp said.

This is the program’s first year, and has been subject to change as a result.

“We had to do some modifications on the fly,” math teacher Mike Farmar said. “We are trying to make the transition to high school as easy as possible.”

The executive McLeaders are currently in a transition period between the old and new executives. To help the new executives get on their feet, they were assigned to an old executive at the meeting.

“It is kind of a buddy system, where they can ask the old execs questions,” Farmar said.

On April 22, the new executives were assigned their respective McLeaders, also known as Big Macs. Each executive was assigned 10-20 Big Macs.

According to Dean, the McLeadership program has been seen as a great thing to put on one’s college application; thus, many McLeaders may not be in the program to really help, but rather to look good.

“We want to try to make it less of a sticker to put on college applications,” Dean said.

The writer can reached at rflamm@gmail.com

AP exam schedule Morning (8 a.m.)

Afternoon (12 p.m.)

Monday May 4

United States Government and Politics

Comparative Government and Politics French Language

Tuesday May 5

Computer Science A, AB Spanish Language

Statistics

Wednesday May 6

Calculus AB Calculus BC

Chinese Language and Culture

Thursday May 7

English Literature & Composition German Language

French Literature

Friday May 8

United States History

European History Studio Art (portfolios due)

Monday May 11

Biology Music Theory

Physics B Physics C: Mechanics

Tuesday May 12

Chemistry Environmental Science

Psychology

Wednesday May 13

English Language & Composition Italian Language and Culture

Art History

Thursday May 14

Macroeconomics World History

Microeconomics

Friday May 15

Human Geography Spanish Literature

Latin Literature Latin: Vergil

Japanese Language and Culture

(2 p.m.: Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism)

infographic by Devan Kerley

4

NEWS

Highlander

April 24, 2009

Technology specialist retires to Cape Cod Nikki Kaul Assistant Features Editor

He walked the hallways of McLean, helping teachers and students alike with their technological snafus. Last Friday however, McLean technology specialist Paul Kozar retired permanently from high school technology assistance.

“I am retiring with my wife and we are heading up to our lovely home up in Cape Cod to enjoy the rest of our retirement up there,” Kozar said.

Kozar has been working as the technology specialist at McLean for five years. He recently turned 60, and has decided to retire with his wife and enjoy the beautiful surroundings at his retirement home up in Cape Cod. “I have enjoyed my time here at McLean tremendously,” Kozar said. “However, I am really looking forward to my time in Cape Cod. I am going to learn how to fish, rake for clams, do some reading and writing and just spend time with my wife.”

Librarians Carol Cuccia and Joan McCarthy have each worked closely with Kozar for three years, calling upon his help for technological problems that the computers in the library faced at times.

“He [Kozar] is an incredibly kind, knowledgeable and sweet man whom I have shared a great and very professional working relationship with,” Cuccia said. “McLean and I have been very lucky to have someone like him working with us. We will miss him terribly when he retires and moves away.”

Kozar worked in the library alongside

present included Erin Truesdell, Alan Munaker, Lori Wagoner, Helen McNamara, Christie Taylor, Wayne Smith, Julia Murdock and many more.

“I have had an incredible connection with McLean for the duration of my time that I have been here,” Kozar said. “My kids went and graduated from here, so I’ve been a McLean personnel member and parent. It’s been an incredible experience overall.”

Kozar, after years of technology assistance and supervision, library support and computer work, left for Cape Cod today with his wife. Up in Cape Cod, Kozar will pursue his personal interests by continuing work on a book that he has already started writing.

“Faculty and students alike are at a great loss because of Kozar leaving and I simply cannot stress how high his stanphoto by Mohammad Tavakoli dards were,” McCarthy said. “He always AP Biology teacher Julia Murdock bids an emotional farewell to Paul Kozar as he greets all went the extra mile, and no request was his party’s attendees. Kozar was the technology specialist at McLean for five years. too great or too small for him.”

Kozar, with his time at McLean as a McCarthy and Cuccia, assisting them many cure, since he understood the value and great technology specialist behind him, now looks times with technological problems they en- importance of engaging in learning.” ahead to the future with his wife, his book in countered. Since the librarians have many A retirement party was held on April 16 progress and all his free time to spend how facets to handle, Kozar was of significant in Kozar’s honor for all his time and efforts ever he so chooses. help to them, aiding in computer safety in- to ameliorate the technology that he donated “You know that famous saying ‘today is struction so that students could use them to McLean. Since the servers at McLean face the first day of the rest of your life?’ Well toproperly. problems at times, Kozar helped to make reday is that special day for me,” Kozar beamed “Mr. Kozar’s depth of knowledge and pairs so that students and staff were able to as he spoke to the party’s attendees during technological experience just astounded me,” easily access their work. his farewell speech.

McCarthy said. “He did everything possible Teachers and administrators alike atin his knowledge bank to ensure that the technology students used was safe and se-

tended the party to bid Kozar farewell. Some of the teachers and administrators who were

The writer can be reached at Nikkster1@gmail.com

Foreign language students travel across the Atlantic

Th e

package by Ned Burchfiel

Dates: March 30 to April 11 Places visited: In BadenWürttemberg (Germany’s southwest state): Heilbronn, Karlsruhe, Stuttgart, Tubingen, Rothenberg and other areas.

Favorite Moment: “Clubbing at the Manhattan Club.”

Saddest Moment: “Leaving.”

Slept in: Leingarten, a Heilbronn suburb, in exhange hosts’ houses.

Favorite Food: “Döner kebab.”

Memorable Moment: “Getting hit by an eagle at a birds of prey show.”

Would you visit again?

-Michael Free“If I could I would never leave.” man, junior - Junior Michael Freeman

image of Spain, France and Italy based on a graphic by Ville Koistinen

an Tri p

e Latin Trip

rm

h

Dates: April 2 to11 Places visited: Spain (Barcelona), France (Nice), Italy (Florence, Rome), and “many others!”

Favorite Moment: “Getting to speak Spanish in Barcelona.”

Saddest Moment: “Saying goodbye on our last night in Rome.”

Ge

T

Field trips to the museum are always fun. But how about a plane ride to some of the most beautiful places in Europe?

German teacher Karen Wolpert and Latin teacher Jim Bigger took groups of students to Europe Favorite Food: over spring “Gelato at Vivoli’s in break. Bigger’s Florence.” trip was a tour of Memorable Moment: Spain, France and “Seeing the Colosseum in Rome.”

Rome. Since there is Would you visit again? no Latin-speaking “I’d love to study abroad country, the students in Barcelona.” visited various - Senior Chelsea Sparta destinations in the continent instead.

Wolpert’s German students participated in an exchange with a school in Heilbronn, located in the southwestern portion of Germany. They spent much of their time with their exchange students, allowing for multiple opportunities to practice their German speaking skills.

image of Baden-Württemberg based on a graphic

by David Liuzzo

April 24, 2009

NEWS

Highlander

5

Theatre department to perform Grease as spring musical to Cook, this prop really makes the play come together.

Although this year was not originally scheduled to be a “musical year” as “Suessical the Musical” was performed last year, the theatre department chose to perform “Grease” because they knew it would bring in big audiences.

If all goes as planned, this musical will help them fund their trip to Edinburgh, Scotland this upcoming summer in which they will be performing “Alice in Wonderland” in the “Fringe Festival”. Although the theatre department needs to Cat Davis raise $100,000 in total, they have already raised $76,000 Editor in Chief through individual donations, bake sales and One Acts.

In 1971 America first fell in love with teen heartthrob According to Perrino, Grease is one of the plays that and “greaser” Danny Zuko and innocent Sandy Olsson in brings in the most viewers. “The theatre boosters said ‘let’s the musical Grease. These two timeless characters are now rego ahead with it and get the McLean community behind entering the theatre world, this time on McLean’s own stage us to be able to perform at the prestigious theatre festival.’” by seniors Emma Lord and Charlie Cook. Starting on April Perrino said.

30 and going to May 3, a cast and crew of 55 will be putApproximately 1,600 high schools across the country apting on a rendition of the musical Grease directed by theatre plied to go to the festival and only 70 get accepted, only two teacher Denise Perrino and assistant directed by senior Nina of them from VA. “It is not a competition to perform there,” Scholl. “By far this is my favorite play,” Lord said. “I am a Perrino said. “It is a competition to little bias because I have always loved Grease get there.” since I was a little kid. I always wanted to Perrino said it is extremely implay Sandy, but I never thought I would.” portant to buy Grease tickets early Perrino has been working as a theatre because she expecting to sell out evteacher for the past thirty-one years and at ery night.

McLean for the past ten. As the musical pro“Twenty years ago, when I worked gresses, she is getting more and more excited at Oakton and we did Grease we for the arrival of the performance. sold out every night,” she said. We “You keep on thinking ‘it’s not gonna need to get the word out that tickets work, it’s not gonna work,’ but eventually need to be purchased early.” something clicks and it does start to work,” On April 25, there will be a chilPerrino said. “Granted, it is not perfect yet dren friendly version of the show put but we are getting there. on for only elementary aged kids, as Students have been preparing for the Grease is not very appropriate for musical for eight weeks, working on all of younger viewers.

In this version, the elements including singing, dancing and inappropriate references including acting all at once. According to Cook, the that of alcohol, drugs and sex will hardest part is getting the dances correctly. be omitted but “We will be doing “At first it is frustrating,” Cook said. “You a lot of the songs and dances,” Perreally don’t know what you are doing. You rino said. “We really want the kids have to drill it over and over. Learning the to dress up and at the end they will dances are easy, but remembering them is get to take pictures with the cast and the hard part.” the car.”

The musical is choreographed by junior photo by Mohammad Tavakoli As opening night gets closer and Julia Katz who teaches all of the dances to Senior Charlie Cook who portrays hot shot Danny Zuko in the upcoming musical Grease praccloser, Cook admits that his nerves the cast. “You would think [Katz] was a pro- tices Act One with the cast and crew. Students have been working for over eight weeks in order are getting the best of him, “I would fessional choreographer,” Perrino said. “She to perfect the show. Senior Emma Lord is portraying love struck Sandy Olsson. be lying if I said I wasn’t [nervous]. is absolutely amazing.”

Everything is all going to work out.

According to Perrino, students have a lot It is a great crowd and no matter if I am ready or not I am time.

It is going to be a good crowd.” to look forward to when they come to the performance, “the just going to go what I do and hope for the best.”

One of the most exciting things about the performance dancing, the singing of course and the acting” Perrino said.

[The play] “Is turning out just as we hoped it would and is one of the primary props that truly bring the spirit of the “Everyone is so enthusiastic about it.. It is really a fun show we are all very excited about opening night” Lord said.

50’s to the stage. “[Getting the car] was a big deal,” Cook to do.”

Tickets are on sale for ten dollars for students, 12 for said.

Cook believes that Perrino has done a good job insuring adults and 20 for preferred seating.

So Grease up your hair, “It was custom made for another Grease play, so we all that students have had enough time to balance the rigorand put your pink dresses on and get ready for some serious love the scenes with the car in it.

It makes us all feel so leous practice schedule with their schoolwork. Even though practices have been every day from about 2:30-5:00, Cook gitimate to have such a big prop.” The theatre department ‘Grease Lightenin’. says that balancing school work along with rehearsals has was able to attain a real Grease Lightening car on the set that The writer can be reached at not posed any problem. “It is not too hard to keep up with has been used in other renditions of “Grease” and according Cdavis2871@yahoo.com school,” Cook said. “Mrs. Perrino has set it up so that there are revolving schedules. We will rehearse one scene and she will ask for one group of people and if you are not in the scene or asked to be there you don’t have to be.”

Although Lord is a madrigal and Cook has been in a number of school plays including Romeo and Juliet, neither of them have ever been a lead in a performance before this.

“Emma has been fantastic,” Cook said. “She is amazing at singing and acting. She has helped me a lot. This is her first lead as well and she has just been doing an incredible job.”

Lord is most looking forward to performing the romantic song “Summer Nights” because “we get to be silly, happy and fun.”

On the other hand, Cook is sticking to the cool, Greaser side and said that by far his favorite scene is the “Grease Lightening” song.

“The dance is a lot of fun and we get to do what we want,” he said. “We are just a bunch of crazy guys having a good

Chorus puts a modern spin on Aida Molly Welch Managing Editor

Watch out, McLean: after greased lightning comes Aida, another rock musical that the Performing Arts department will enact this spring. The cast will perform Elton John and Tim Rice’s modern adaptation of the classic opera beginning the first week of June and plans to primarily use chorus class time to create a contemporary version of the production.

Performing Arts department chair and Chorus teacher Linda Martin says that the chorus classes are approaching the musical as essentially a fourth quarter project, with most rehearsals occurring in class while leads practice after school. Not only will the chorus classes use class time for rehearsal, Martin will be designing the set and doing some technical work for the production, while chorus students have already volunteered to design costumes and do makeup.

Martin and the cast plan to update what

senior Jackson Langevoort (playing Zoser, the main character’s father) called “a very old story” that has “been around for thousands of years” to make the production more current.

“It’s a timeless play; it could happen anytime,” Langevoort said. “We’re basically changing the set and costumes to make it modern.”

Set in ancient Egypt, Langevoort said that the cast and crew will put a modern spin on classic tenets of Egyptian architecture with structures like Plexiglass pyramids. The cast will be dressed in contemporary clothing.

Martin also plans to bring in Reed Rogers, a 2007 McLean graduate, as technical director for the production. Rogers is a recent graduate of Fullsale University with a degree in theater production, and will not be paid for his services. While at McLean, Rogers was an active participant in performing arts with stints in shows like Jesus Christ Superstar. Rogers will do the lighting for

Aida, help the men’s chorus build the set, and teach chorus students more about show production.

“It was an opportunity for someone just out of school to work on his first major production,” Martin said of Rogers.

Music for Aida is, according to Langevoort, “guitar-based, with a couple of amplified keyboards.” The orchestra and the band, directed by Chris Weise, will also contribute musical numbers, and the dance team will be dancing in the musical.

Although production of Grease is also currently taking place, Langevoort and Martin both said that Aida has not suffered as a result.

“There’s not much of a conflict because [Grease and Aida] are like a month apart, but some people in both [productions] have to divide their energy,” Langevoort said. “Pretty much every guy in Aida is in Grease.”

Martin agrees. “We’re not conflicting at all,” she said. “There’s some time overlap, but

there’s different people involved.”

Martin says the most difficult aspect of the production to manage so far has been scene changes. “[The play] is in a lot of different places,” she said. “In designing the set, it’s been a struggle to make one that will fulfill all our needs.’

Martin is also worried about being able to have the tech crew, orchestra, set, and cast together on the stage only six days before the production is scheduled to premiere due to auditorium scheduling conflicts. However, she says participants are planning accordingly. “All the elements should be done and should be working,” she said. “The set will be built by the middle of May. But putting it together six days before will be interesting.”

The writer can be reached at mwelch34@yahoo.com

6

NEWS

Highlander

April 24, 2009

Virginia to institute statewide smoking ban Shefali Hegde Assistant News Editor

Despite being home to the world’s biggest cigarette factories, Virginia voted its first ever public smoking ban into legislation this month. As of Dec. 1, the ban will prohibit smoking in most Virginia restaurants, bars, and public schools.

A few exceptions do exist, and smoking will still be allowed in separate ventilated rooms, private clubs and on some outdoor patios.

Many students say that they have been looking forward to such a prohibition in the state for a while. “I was always annoyed by smoking in public restaurants,� junior Lizi Garvin said. “I like that the government is finally trying to discourage people from endangering everyone’s health.�

In Virginia, 19 percent of adults smoke cigarettes regularly, according to the Virginia Department of Health (VDH).

Additionally, more than 9000 high school-aged youths begin smoking each year. “The government definitely had to start taking action, even in indirect ways,� Garvin said.

Twenty-three other states and Washington D.C. already have implemented similar public smoking bans. “I remember going to California and appreciating how smoke-free everything was,� junior Shannon Yarnoff said. “I

sort of hopelessly wished they would do the same thing here, and I’m proud that they finally did.�

Still, other students see the mandatory prohibition on smoking as detrimental. “I can’t support this ban,� junior Matt Parent said. “Tobacco is vital to our state’s economy.�

However, health factors seem to have outweighed corporate fiscal difficulties. Playing a big role in the ban’s approval was the urgency of second-hand smoking, which alone causes 1,000 deaths in Virginia annually.

Since 2006, the smoking bill has been working through both the Virginia and Maryland Congresses. Until recently, the House of Delegates had continually rejected the bill in spite of rising health concerns over second-hand smoke, fearing it would intrude upon business rights. “They finally realized public health is the most important thing,� Garvin said.

Some remain upset over the ban, claiming that it represents a reversal of Virginia’s political dedication to personal liberties. “Who is the state government to ban substances from private places?� Parent said. “I feel like this is a huge infringement on our rights.�

photo illustration by Shefali Hegde Virginia restaurants, such as this one, will enact a complete ban on smoking by Dec. 1 2009. The prohibition was enacted to curb secondhand smoking death rates and Medicaid bills for smoking-related deaths.

The writer can be reached at shefali_hegde@hotmail.com

Hazardous April Fool’s virus still hiding Charlie Park Assisstant News Editor

Conficker, also known as the April Fool’s virus because of its once-conjectured outbreak on April 1, is a computer worm that exploits a vulnerability exclusive to Microsoft Windows. Other operating systems such as Mac OS and Linux are safe from direct Conficker attacks.

April 14’s Symantec report states that three million computers worldwide have been infected with the Conficker worm. Several public facilities had been reported with the worm, including University of Utah and CBS. Symantec Corporation, a major security

vendor, reported that the symptoms of the Conficker infection included deletion or restrictions on systems’ backup and security features—and prevention of access to security vendor websites. The worm tries to spread across the network and creates loopholes in the system to steal information from the infected machines.

According to a report from the United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT), Conficker can reach computers from the internet, network sharing, peer to peer (P2P) networks and USB drives.

The worm is also spread by the links in community networks such as Facebook via hacked accounts, according to CBS News.

McLean has already taken actions to protect its computers from Conficker threats, according to Peg O’Hara, a School Based Instructional and Tech specialist. “DIT �������������������������������� (������������������������������� Department of Information Technology) deals with Conficker like any other virus threat. It relies on a centrally managed version of McAfee to insure that all computer virus definitions are current and Microsoft’s System Management Server to apply Microsoft’s security patches on all computers in the school system,â€? O’Hara said. “Locally, we prepared for the virus a month prior to the announcement of a possible viral launch.

The preparation was designed by DIT.�

To protect the personal computer from

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Conficker threats, one must update the the system with the MS08-067 patch�������� (available from Microsoft website) which resolves the vulnerability used by Conficker. If the computer is already infected with the worm, one should use an uninfected computer to download and run specialized Conficker vaccine programs that are available in major security vendors (such as Symantec or McAfee) in addition to installing the new patch.

The writer can be reached at sircharliepark@yahoo.com

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EDITORIALS

April 24, 2009

Highlander

7

Hallway traffic causes congestion Torin Liberthson- Brown Assitant Editorials Editor

The one minute bell rings, and the huge group of people blocking my way will definitely add on another minute to my time. After every class, there are massive groups of people standing in clusters and filling up the middle of the hallways, making it nearly impossible to get by.

However, it is not only the hallways; it’s also difficult to get to my locker because students huddle around it. When it is a hassle to get to a locker or to get to class because there are large masses of people standing in your way, many tend to get very upset—especially if this happens to them every day.

Not only is it difficult to pass, but it is aggravating having to push through people just to get to a classroom a little way down the hall. “I usually hold on to someone’s backpack so they can pull me through the crowd,” senior Amanda Ball said.

Almost everyone has been guilty of standing in the hallway or stopping in the middle. However, some hallways are worse than others. “The blue hallway, after classes just before seventh: that’s usually the worst one,” junior Mark Greenwood said. Being a senior does not give you the right to stand in the middle of the hall and cause an inconvenience to others.

Although many people like to blame the freshmen because they are new, and now have the privilege to linger in the halls without teachers monitoring their every move, it’s not only their fault. “I would say it’s the seniors that tend to block up the hallway, but in between classes it’s everyone,” Ball said.

Students are not the only ones who have difficulty getting through the halls. There are certain teachers who “float” from room to room during the day and have to push carts through

the with them that tend to take up a lot of space. The teachers are constantly stuck waiting for a crowd to break, or trying to push through an unruly group of students. Imagine having to push a cart through the blue hallway in between a class. It would be very difficult to make any progress through

the hall, especially before the bell rings. These teachers can be late as well, which can leave students thinking that it is acceptable to be late themselves.

It may be surprising to some students, but the hallways could be more dangerous than you think. In the halls, many people get hit in the arms, back and face by other students’ bags. The force of many people can push someone into an-

other, into the lockers or into the walls. If someone is walking up the wrong side of the stairs, they risk being pushed down by the herd of students walking towards them or causing a stop in the stairwell, taking time and making it difficult for people to get by.

“You’re supposed to walk on the right side. I mean that literally and figuratively,” Greenwood said. “You wouldn’t drive on the wrong side of the road.”

It is extremely rude to not pay attention, apologize, or even care that you have just knocked someone over, hit them in the face or pushed them aside into other people. It is annoying to be so blatantly unaware of what or who surrounds you.

Sometimes it’s not even people who are going too fast and knocking into people. It’s the students who are slow and hold up a line of students. “There are people who walk really slowly in a line, but with a gap in between them.” Greenwood said.

“They’re too spread out to move around, but I feel rude just pushing through the gap.” Moving extremely slowly does not help the fact that it is already hard to maneuver the hallways.

The hallways need to be art by Kyana Afshar shared. They aren’t meant for people to stand in, or for a leisurely stroll. They are there for getting to where you need to go in less than five minutes. Students need to respect the hallways and make an expedient, but safe trip to class.

The writer can be reached at Torin.Liberthson@yahoo. com

Reckless driving not monitored on school roads Alison Shapiro Editorials Editor

The

Highways can be daunting with speedy drivers and crazy merging.

Windy, curvy roads can be difficult to maneuver around and intersections can be busy and chaotic. But the most dangerous place to be in a car is around a high school parking lot. In the mornings, many students are barely awake from pulling all-nighters and they can’t keep their eyes open to watch the road. Some are occupied sipping their coffee and checking to make sure they’ve done their homework for first period. By the afternoon, a lot of students are too excited and wired after finally making it out of school, and the last thing on their mind is how well their driving is.

As high school students, we’ve only had a maximum of

two years driving experience, and for some, a lot less. It is certainly not enough to call ourselves even close to being experts at driving, but a lot of the time, we are more confident than we should be and end up causing minor collisions or back-ups.

I’m aware that we are not elementary school kids, and we do not need to be babied around or have our hands held as we walk. I know that high school students have the common sense to look both ways before crossing the street. Still, there should be someone regulating and directing drivers leaving and entering school.

Leaving the junior parking lot in the afternoon is a nightmare. Everybody is fighting to get out as soon as they can, and it’s chaos when every student is racing to be the first out the door. Students do not abide by the right of way and many are speeding, thinking that they can go 35 miles per hour when they shouldn’t be going over 15. It is extremely

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dangerous to speed when there are so many kids trying to cross the street—all of whom are lugging around backpacks and talking with their friends.

Our school desperately needs an officer or crossing guard to direct traffic before and after school, reducing the danger that driving on school property creates.. With the school budget the way it is, it may seem like too much money to hire a crossing guard to come in every day, but to me, it seems like an essential necessity for the safety of the students.

Although I have never seen an accident occur at school, I have certainly seen some close calls, and the school should not wait for something to happen to finally take action. If an accident does occur involving students, it will cost a lot more than hiring a crossing guard to protect the safety of our students.

The writer can be reached at alison519@gmail.com

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8

EDITORIALS

Highlander

April 24, 2009

Prom committee should consider ‘going green’ Lately I’ve been hearing a lot about new reforms to become more “green.” From the fashion industry’s clothing made of organic material, to my peers who only eat organic foods, it seems that ecofriendliness has become a new trend. But, it’s not merely businesses who have been working to make a difference. There have been a number of schools across the nation that have already held “Green Proms,” where, instead of having crazy decorations and nothing eco-friendly, everything goes along with the ‘green’ theme.

This is a great idea. Prom is one of the most environmentally wasteful events that we have at McLean.

Each year, the students who go to prom leave with a gift. Last year there was a shirt that was passed out as guests left the dance.

HB-Woodlawn Secondary Program usesd water bottles as an alternative that said “Go Green Prom 07-08”on them with their school name. This way, students were always hydrated.

“

“We talked to Whole Foods about our green prom idea,” HB-Woodlawn junior Lydia Fisher-Lasky said. “They donated flowers for decoration and food for the cause.”

“

Torin LiberthsonBrown Assistant Editorials Editor

It should be a collaborated decision to work towards going green, even if it is just for one night in our community.

There is no reason why McLean can’t do the same thing. We could have ‘Highlanders’ on it and ‘Fire and Ice’ so that everyone would still have memories of Prom, and be able to re-use it.

Woven flowers were the only decorations used at the dance. Many businesses are pushing the “green” effort, with re-usable bags, and Whole Foods can’t be the only store willing to help the cause.

But we could do even more, especially with transportation. Student could coordinate their rides so that fewer limos and cars could be used to limit air pollution.

It should be a collaborated decision to work towards going green, even if it is just for one night in our community. Any effort counts.

“Our prom didn’t cost any more than previous years,” Fisher-Lasky said. “In fact, I think it cost less to do it this way. Overall, it was a success.”

With donations and the money that has already been saved up, ‘going green’ should be easy for this year’s Fire and Ice theme for prom. This way, we can feel good about our prom efforts knowing that we have made an strong attempt to save the planet.

Going green is easy if we all get involved, and this is the perfect way to make everyone at McLean aware of their enviroment.

The writer can be reached at Torin.Liberthson@yahoo.com

Vandalism of election posters proves nothing Nikki Kaul Assistant Features Editor

Every year, the student government elections turn out a great number of student hopefuls. Many of these students are looking to help ameliorate McLean, help it reach standards previously not attained and increase the numbers of students familiar with them. For these elections, people advertise in all sorts of ways to reach out to the masses in the student body. But, recently, I have observed that the candidates’ posters have been seriously violated.

Why do students at McLean feel the immature need to damage the posters with peoples’ faces on them, to change names around so that they have provocative meanings or to simply rip them down?

By doing so, people are doing nothing more than stampeding on candidates’ hopes to improve the school and it crushes their self-esteem as well. If we want our student

government leaders to be confident of themselves, then when they campaign, we absolutely cannot go and destroy the posters that they spent their time and effort making.

Put yourself in the shoes of your fellow classmates running for office. How would you feel if you saw your picture laying on the dirty ground, muddy footprints stamped all over it, ripped to shreds with disgusting pictures drawn all over it? I don’t know about other people, but I know that I would be greatly offended.

In fact, when I first entered McLean in my freshman year, I was very excited about coming to a new school with a student governing body. I had many fresh ideas, and I wanted to innovate the currently existing ones.

However, once I saw for myself what happened to the campaign attempts of the candidates, and the boisterous behavior of students during the speeches, I completely lost interest.

I hate to admit it, but I do deeply regret being a hypocrite for criticizing such behavior of my fellow classmates

and schoolmates when I myself am not running for student government. Still, I can safely state that I do not cause damage to the posters that candidate donate so much of their time to creating. I am aware of the fact that many people run for student government with a true purpose in mind.

Therefore, by stampeding on the posters that they create as part of their campaign, students are disrespecting their fellow classmates, especially for the candidates who have put everything they have into their campaigns.

If students do not want to stop people who are vandalizing posters for student government, the least they can do is help to clean up the trash.

Call it what you want, but ripping, tearing down and destroying these posters is vandalizing, whether people label it as such, or even if they just want to call it “having fun.”

The writer can be reached at nikkster1@gmail.com

More often than not, technology makes life difficult Ibrahim Jacobs Assistant Sports Editor

T

echnology can be helpful in everyday life. The ability to do simple tasks many times faster than our ancestors is indispensable when the technology actually works. However, I spend more time fixing and trying to deal with slow or malfunctioning technology than I do actually benefitting from the time it saves me.

In the past week, my TV remote decided not to work, my phone died three times right after being charged, the essay I e-mailed to myself didn’t send and my camera lost a bunch of previously taken pictures. Not to mention, my computer never works as fast as it should and facebook chat and I are having serious communication problems in our relationship.

Technology is supposed to make my life easier, but right now it just seems to be getting more difficult. The time and energy spent dealing with malfunctioning technology is overshadowing the advantages.

Sometimes I wish I could just write all my essays by hand and somehow develop communication skills good enough to make one phone call from the house without having to

deal with my problematic cell phone.

The only piece of technology that seems almost irreplaceable and most reliable is the iPod. The jump from a single CD that held roughly 15-20 songs to the iPod Touch in

such a short amount of time was unbelievable. It is able to play thousands of songs, not to mention the ever-growing wealth of applications and videos. It has to be the one thing that people can depend on a daily basis.

Although more convenient, the only

art by Arthur Kwon- Lee

thing that separates a cell phone from a house phone is texting and poor communication skills.

It would be nice if you could simply call your friend from your house and tell them that you will meet them at Chipotle in 20 minutes, instead of calling every 30 seconds with updates and racking up your phone bill at the same time.

The reality is that if someone didn’t have their phone, they could probably manage.

With the iPod Touch and iPhone now having a texting application, the standard cell phone could be obsolete in a short time.

The most unreliable so-called “technological advancement” is my e-mail. It amazes me that almost one out of every five e-mails that I send doesn’t get through and many attachments are lost along the way.

If a student can’t rely on their e-mail to simply deliver their homework to the teacher intact, than what are they supposed to do?

As frustrating as it is, technology can have some benefits. But, with so much that doesn’t work, it is almost easier to just not have it and spend a little longer doing something.

The time that you save with new technology is overshadowed by the problems it causes.

The writer can be reached at I.Jacobs@hotmail.com

EDITORIALS

April 24, 2009

Highlander

9

Since elementary school, students have been told to stand up every morning, place their hand over their heart, and recite the Pledge of Allegiance to the United States. Mandating the pledge is a controversial issue, with people on both sides arguing whether or not students should be forced to stand up and repeat the words “I Pledge Allegiance.”

Student don’t have to Pledge Devan Kerley News Editor

The pledge of allegiance is a fundamental part of the school day, but few ever stop and think about what they’re actually doing when recite it, or realize that maybe they shouldn’t.

The words “under God” found in the pledge are a point of contention for those who believe in the complete separation of church and state. Opponents of the pledge are right to be angry. However, they are misdirecting their criticisms. The main problem with the pledge isn’t the mention of the Christian God; it’s that the pledge is required or encouraged in public schools at all.

Patriotism can be a valuable and powerful ideal. However, blind patriotism is senseless. It goes against the nature of what true patriotism should be to force citizens to exhibit devotion to a country, and that is what the Pledge of Allegiance does. I don’t understand the idea of cheering on a country, regardless of its policies and actions, just because someone happened to be born there.

Even if you are in complete support of the US’s policies and structures, from the invasion of Iraq on false pretenses to the use of torture on prisoners, to the outdated Electoral College, why is there a need to recite some tired and repetitive oath day after day that loses all its meaning and value that it ever had because of excessive repetition? Recitation of a pledge day after day to demonstrate patriotism just seems silly.

Senior Danielle DaCrema hasn’t said the pledge for years. “It’s not that I don’t like the country,” she said. “It’s that I don’t think people should have to say it every day to prove it. I think it’s meaningless.”

From the moment children first enter the public school system, they are brainwashed to be patriotic and support their country—without sufficient reason. Children and people in general should make an educated choice about whether or not they want to be patriotic to their country based on its ideals and actions.

The pledge of allegiance is just one way that the government enforces blind conformity. It seems in conflict with the idea of a free democracy to encourage mass avowal of allegiance.

Pledges are more fitting in authoritarian or militaristic regimes—not democracies. Indeed, few other democratic countries have pledges, although institutions like Nazi Germany and the Ku Klux Klan did.

In an interesting parallel to the Nazi salute, before the hand over the heart gesture was begun, people recited the pledge with a Nazi-esque salute, called the Bellamy salute after the pledge’s author, Francis Bellamy. An interesting side note: Bellamy was a socialist nativist. The pledge had originally begun as a defense against the tides of immigration around the beginning of the twentieth century, and it still seems like the avowal of a country insecure about its citizens’ loyalty.

Stand up, don’t sit, for your freedom

“We shouldn’t have Shefali Hegde to say words about how Assistant News we love our country,” Hours after one senior Shannon Spellof the darkest events man said. “We should in our country’s just know it in our history—the 9/11 hearts.” attacks—three BrookThe pledge is not lyn firefighters raised technically compulsory. an American flag in In 1940, the Supreme the ruins of the World Court ruled that the Trade Center. Flying recitation of the pledge on a 20-foot pole for could be required, but the following seven then they overturned months, the flag reafthat decision in 1943, firmed American unity stating that “compuland resilience despite sory unification of the overwhelming devopinion” violates the astation of Sept. 11.

First Amendment. That In those following doesn’t stop many teachweeks of panic and ers and other authority fear, it was the symbol figures from emphasizof patriotism that kept ing or pressuring stuAmericans going. In dents to say the pledge those days, students so much that it might recited the “Pledge of as well be required.

Allegiance” with pride, Spanish teacher Juaware of the massive dith Bott firmly believes significance behind in the pledge. Saying the words “indivisthe pledge, she said, “is ible,” “liberty,” and showing an allegiance “justice.” to our inheritance, to However, in recent photo courtesy of www.loc.gov our heritage, and to the years, such patriotism future of our country.” has gradually been During the pledge, she fazed out. Students leaves the room. “I spesee those lines as tirecifically stay away because I know that I some, insignificant, or irrelevant. During cannot mandate [students] to stand and it the morning announcements in my third makes me so annoyed,” she said. period class, perhaps one student glances High school tends to be somewhat leup to acknowledge that the pledge is being nient. I haven’t stood for the pledge for said. Nobody stands up. Nobody glances several years, and the most I get from my up at the flag. teachers is a disapproving glare or a request Definitely nobody recites the words to “at least stand,” even if I won’t recite like “I pledge allegiance.” Eventually, teachers all the other good little boys and girls. give up trying to coerce defiant, or lazy, I don’t stand for good reason, though. kids to engage in the practice.

It’s not because I’m lazy. It’s because I don’t Because of this, McLean should more want to show respect for an inanimate vigorously encourage students to particiobject that doesn’t deserve my allegiance pate in reciting the Pledge. While religious without a good reason—a reason that I concerns are legitimate reasons to opt out, haven’t even discovered yet. Eventually, laziness and pointless rebelliousness are my teachers get used to this and leave me definitely not. alone.

What the school is creating are classI doubt that students in elementary or rooms of non-participators. Some believe middle school have even this much freeit beneath their self-worth to yield to a hisdom, though. By the time students get to torical tradition, and others are simply too the point where they don’t have to say the tired to stand up early in the morning. pledge, many already have it so ingrained This lackadaisical attitude towards our in them that they keep standing, keep renation’s values is not to be encouraged. Inciting, without ever really knowing why deed, if we cannot even commit our attenthey do it. tion to a 30-second pledge to our nation, Not only does the pledge unquestionwhat can we do? ably violate the freedom of religion in the For a generation often characterized by First Amendment (“congress shall make apathy and narcissism, perhaps forced parno law respecting an establishment of reliticipation in an activity would not be such gion”) by mentioning the deity of one para bad thing. ticular religion, it encourages conformity By all estimates, teenagers today are less and uninformed obedience to policies and patriotic than their generational counterinstitutions that are anything but infalparts. Voluntary military recruitment has lible. stagnated in recent years, as the Army and Marines miss their recruiting goals by The writer can be reached at 10 percent each year, according to Army Dkerley09@aol.com Times.

The percentage of applicants for gov-

ernment jobs, such as the Foreign Service and the CIA, is also falling.

The reason for this? Students can now use their First Amendment rights as an excuse to be lazy or make a loud personal statement about their “unique” political views.

But claiming the Pledge of Allegiance violates your personal rights is ridiculous because the pledge explicitly dedicates itself “to liberty and justice for all.”

I suppose the dissenters wouldn’t be aware of this though, since they so resolutely refuse to repeat the words.

Opponents of the pledge are especially affronted by two words in the last line: “under God.” These people go so far as to boycott the pledge altogether, rather than merely skipping over those words.

Though hearing the word “God” does no constitutional harm, students still denounce their patriotism to make a “powerful” statement about atheism.

Almost everybody would agree that the Pledge is not a religious exercise, nor does the presence of the word “God” suddenly make the United States a theologicallybased country again.

It is easy to disregard the importance of the flag, sitting unharmed and unthreatened in an air-conditioned classroom.

But consider the outlook of soldiers in combat overseas who look to these symbolic representations as motivation for fighting.

The young men and women who make up the US military lend the ultimate service to their country, standing on the front-lines to protect constituents.

The least we can do is stand up every morning, place our hands on our hearts, and pay these Americans a much-deserved tribute. Instead, we choose to file unfounded complaints about brainwashing or about personal liberties.

When Francis Bellamy coined the Pledge of Allegiance in 1897, it marked a turning point in American history. In post-Civil War America, the Pledge was yet another product of truly being the “United” States, rather than the conglomerated mishmash of colonies that had been assembled previously.

Now, more than a hundred years later, with two overseas wars, a faltering global economy, a domestic crisis, and everincreasing multiculturalism, the need for singular and powerful patriotism is just as urgent.

The flag is a constant, unwavering symbol showing that, despite changing administrations, despite disillusionment with certain ideals, American ideals remain the same.

It propagates exactly the right type of patriotism, instead of wrongly directed jingoism. Saying the Pledge can remind us of those days when America was invincible in its unity: Sept. 12, 2001, Dec. 8, 1941 and, of course, July 5, 1776.

The writer can be reached at Shefali_hedge@hotmail.com

10

Highlander

EDITORIALS

Bad grades not a thing of the past for regular-ed Henry Kuhl Reporter

should suffer in comparison.

“Just because the AP classes are harder, doesn’t make it fair to have their grades changed, when ours aren’t,” sophomore Jonny Ball said. Indeed, just because we are not geniuses, or do not want to take more challenging classes, we do not deserve to be left behind.

To compensate for this discrepancy, regular classes need some kind of incentive as well. Having our C D+ grades changed retroactively would benefit us greatly, D especially sophomores and juniors.

F For example, if a junior has earned a mix of C’s and B’s over the past three years, his GPA will probably come out to about a 2.7. If his grades from the past three years were retroactively weighed however, he would most likely end up with a 3.0 or above.

The school board should graphic by Cammie Meade apply retro-activation to all classes. It is unfair that non honors students do not get any special advantages. Students who are taking the advanced classes already have a leg up to getting into college. There are many students in regular classes who try really hard and succeed. They adeserve that extra push to bump up their GPA. If the county does not retroactively change the grading scale for regular classes, it could very well be the make it or break it factor for many students awaiting acceptance into college.

Even though the 10-point grading scale will take effect starting next year, the past is set in stone for many students.

Only those who have taken an Advanced Placement (AP) class will be able to have their grades retroactively changed.

C+ The decision of whether or not to retroactively weight preB AP and honors courses is going to B+ be voted on later in the month.

At the school board meeting on A January 22, Superintendent Jack Dale said, “if practicable,” the honors/pre-AP courses should be weighted.

However, apparently some members of the school board have “expressed reluctance.” Honors classes would be weighted with a one-half point, while AP has already been given a weight of one point.

The problem is that FAIRGRADE and the school board never thought about the effect that this has on students in regular classes. In my opinion, if students in other classes get to have their GPA’s changed, that effectively lowers the GPA of students in regular classes.

Don’t get me wrong. I completely support and believe in all of FAIRGRADE’s statements and goals. It is excellent that, starting next year, the grading scale will be changed. Many students will end up getting higher GPAs than they would have in the past, which will ultimately help their future.

But it is not fair at all that just because we ‘regular students’ are not taking advanced-level courses, that our GPAs The writer can be reached at Henry_Kuhl@yahoo.com

Too much focus on the popular vote Alison Shapiro Editorials Editor

It’s always been the students whose names have been heard the most out of everybody else’s, and not always for a Class elections are typically depicted good reason.

The popular kids could be the students who are in the most in movies as nothing more than a popularity contest among students. It’s all trouble all the time, or who are the center of all the gossip on about who the prettiest is or who has Monday morning. Those types of students are definitely not the most friends or whose name is con- the kind that I want running the school. I want somebody stantly heard through the hallways. I who is dedicated to their work, and who has clearly thought have yet to be proven wrong in the years that I have voted in out what they want to do in the upcoming year and how they want to be remembered as a great class officer. class elections at McLean.

“It would be better if I was more informed so I could For me, it seems as though the popularity connotation that goes along with class elections is more than just a myth. voice my opinions,” Karr said.

There are plenty of students who are qualified to run the It has been hard not to notice the multitude of posters hanging around the school that promote candidates for class school, but who could be intimidated by the tough competioffice. But, looking closely, there is nothing on the posters tion of their opponents that may have more friends, or who about a candidate’s goal for next year, or even a general look could be better known, to vote for them. “They are afraid of rejection,” Karr said of other students that could run against at what they hope to do to benefit the school.

The only thing you see is a pretty picture to look at and the so-called “popular” students.

I have yet to cast my ballot confidently, knowing that my a catchy slogan to remember. That, in itself, is certainly not enough to base my decision when voting for class council. It school will be in good hands. I have yet to fully understand seems if you have an appealing picture and a slogan, then it what a candidates intentions are before arbitrarily voting for them, just because there is no alternative. I definitely do not is enough for people to want to vote for you.

Politics should definitely not be run in this way, and al- base my ballot on the prettiest or the coolest of those runthough a school election is not akin to the presidential elec- ning, leaving with no choice other than just close my eyes tion, it is still not an acceptable way to choose who will run and pick one. your school.

Students need to realize that the objective of these class The writer can be reached at alison519@gmail.com elections is not for the students running to see who really likes them enough to vote for them. It is about choosing responsible, hard-working students that can handle running a large school such as McLean, while instilling in us important lessons about voting.

I have yet to see what the president of my class has done so far this year. Maybe that’s just me, but if others feel the bj same as I do, then something isn’t right. If students are not aware of what a class office entails and what that class officer is going to do to benefit you and where you go to school, then there surely is not a point to these elections other than a popularity race. bj I could easily list who the “popular” kids are in my grade, and I’m sure many other people in this school can as well.

Junior Amy Karr agrees, and believes that it is easy to know who is popular around the school. bj “You know who they are because you hear their name a lot,” Karr said.

Vote:

   Hot

Funny

Cool

April 24, 2009

Apple is taking a bite out of our wallets Reza Masgarha Reporter

Apple Inc. recently increased the price of some new songs on iTunes by popular artists from 99 cents to $1.29, but many old songs that are still popular and selling well will see their prices increase as well. With the price increase, iTunes may see their sales go down.

It looks like Apple will be going with the bully business strategy: hold your customers upside down, shake them, and see how much money you can squeeze out of them.

Most of the songs in iTunes’ 10-million song library will be staying at the regular price of 99 cents, and some will drop in price to 69 cents.

Offering, or at least promising to offer, 69-cent songs seems like a public relations move. iTunes heavily advertises 69-cent songs to calm the masses, while in reality the business is offering 69-cent songs few and far between. You are most likely going to see the cheaper songs as part of a package deal. They will also be featured in iTunes new playlists titled “great songs at a great price.”

The higher pricing appears to be an attempt at increasing overall sales by offering an incentive to buy albums rather than individual songs. For example, a popular artist could have a 15-song CD with three or four songs hiked up in price to $1.29, but iTunes could still be selling that album for $14.85.

A small bonus is that new songs purchased will be exempt from copyright laws. You can now burn CDs and share them with whoever you want. So for everyone who has never made a mix tape or burned a CD, you can now stop holding your breath.

According to Billboard Charts, digital music downloads totaled over one billion dollars last year. And let’s be honest, how many of us buy all of our songs from the iTunes store?

To me, these new prices seem like a very bad idea.

You’re not supposed to bite the hand that feeds you, especially if it is feeding you one billion dollars in digital music sales annually.

According to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), nearly 99 percent of all music downloads over the internet are through file sharing web sites.

I think that Apple should be happy with the business they are getting. The best customers are the ones that are willing to pay for something that they could get for free.

Apple should be appreciative of the people who pay for all their music. Instead they are starting to nickel and dime their loyal customers.

The decision is especially bad considering the tough economy where everybody is waning to cut down spending.

Many people have qualms against downloading music off a program like Limewire for fear of being caught. I guess the RIAA is going to send somebody to kick down your door for downloading a song or two.

The truth is that not a single person has ever been prosecuted for downloading from a file sharing program. The only people who have been in legal trouble are the ones uploading the content.

I’m not encouraging downloading music for free. It would just make sense for Apple to take into consideration the ease of getting music for free.

While offering songs at 99 cents they were able to make enough money to run the multi-billion dollar company that is Apple profitably. In a world where digital media is at you fingertips and free, raising prices is only going to push customers away.

The writer can be reached at rmasgarha@yahoo.com

April 24, 2009

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Techno teaching:

IN-DEPTH

April 24, 2009

13

in McLean and across the country, teachers are bringing technology into the classroom art by Razan Khashoggi photo illustration by Mohammad Tavakoli

Teachers overcome the struggles of new technology

M

ath teacher Adam Shipman had to miss class for meetings. In order not to waste class time before the Advanced Placement Exam, Shipman recorded his voice with SMART Board cues to have the substitute play the lesson electronically.

Shipman isn’t the only teacher bringing technology into his classroom.

According to him, the administration and teachers have taken a more active role in incorporating technology in the classroom and have done a great job.

McLean is following a recent trend of many schools and reshaping the way a classroom has been organized in order to utilize technology.

According to a survey of more than 500 district technology directors commissioned by Light speed Systems and Thinkronize, 78 percent of K-12 teachers were adopting digital multimedia resources, 65 percent used online learning games and simulations, and 65 percent and 60 percent took advantage of teacher-generated online content.

Senior Pranay Bhargava, a student in Shipman’s class, praised his teacher for the effort, but he didn’t think the lesson was successful. “Without a teacher, you can’t ask questions,” he said. “You just have to write down the information and you don’t really understand the subject.”

Shipman agreed. “The ability for the student to ask questions is a key part of the education experience,” he said. That is why when he returned to class the next day, he reviewed the lesson and asked for any questions. A balance between the use of technology and a conservative classroom setting is ideal, he said.

“Technology can supplement education but it can’t be the primary source,” push them to have students apply knowledge from technology to real world Bharghava said. situations.

So far, Shipman and his colleagues have already held many optional classHe described an example of this as students having to build a boat that es for teachers to enhance and ease their use of technology in the classroom. would float, rather than learn the vocabulary words from a physics book.

They plan to have upwards of 16 total classes this year. The McLean staff is “That’s exactly the way it should be,” senior Nicky Smith said about Curtaking a much more active approach, with most of these classes being news. tis’ foundation. “You need teachers to guide the students, but ultimately the “We try to show them that it’s a tool that can help their teaching, not another burden,” he said. “The problem is, like anything else, it’s one more thing.”

The classes have covered everything from the use of SMART Boards and response systems to wikis, blogs and podcasting.

Assistant Principal Stephen Wojciechowski thinks “We’re constantly looking to educate our teachers, but that, given today’s trends, technology is essential to teachers can only do so much at one time,” he said. education. “The world of the students today is instanta“It’s a process, sometimes training might be lagging or neous,” he said. “The school and the teachers are trying their best to intertwine with the students.” behind. It takes time.”

Some educators are going beyond the types of re-Assistant Principal Stephen Wojciechowski form at McLean and completely restructuring the style of a classical classroom. Paul Curtis works for an organization called the New Technology Foundation that reforms schools and uses technology “as a lever for change.”

13 years ago the New Technology Foundation organized their first high school in Napa, Calif. At the school, every student has their own computer with web access. It’s “a huge students should be given more independence in how they learn using techshift in the way info is handled,” Curtis said. The idea is not to “have [stu- nology.” dents] memorize; that’s not the world anymore.”

Wojciechowski said he could see how something like this could be inThese schools train teachers in the technology they need to know and corporated, but it would be difficult considering the constraints teachers are

“

“

Talia Roth Editor-in-Chief

under from the state and its testing. “Under such a big system it would be hard to say ‘McLean High School…do it,’” he said. But “it’s a possibility, anything can happen.”

Curtis said many teachers across the US are having problems knowing how to implement technology in the classroom. The correct way is often more time consuming than many schools are looking for. He described the common errors in using technology as throwing computers at the situation, appointing teachers that don’t know how to use it and leaving students to interact with computers all day.

Vice Principal Stephen Wojciechowski said that teachers at this school work hard to avoid these kinds of problems. “We’re constantly looking to educate our teachers, but teachers can only do so much at one time,” he said. “It’s a process, sometimes training might be lagging or behind. It takes time.”

Shipman doesn’t think that large-scale changes belong in high school.

He supports the gradual changes he believes McLean is sponsoring and said McLean is comparable to most schools in the county.

According to some students, though, the use of technology at McLean has flaws. “They are interactive, but they oversimplify information. They just go over basic facts that all of us know and they don’t teach us new information.”

For Smith, students are not using technology enough. “I want there to be laptops and access to the internet in every class, or we should be able to bring our own laptops so we can take notes,” he said. “It’ll make it easier to study.”

Shipman believes that technological advancement is beneficial, but recognizes that there will always be some people that don’t agree.

“There’s always resistance to change,” Shipman said. “Will every teacher in this school use technology? No, but that doesn’t make them a bad or good

teacher.”

Shipman said teachers need to be comfortable with imperfection in order to experiment with technology.

“If technology is new, teachers are constantly recalculating what they did, so that next time it is going to be better,” he said. “That’s one of the keys to technology: being okay with your lesson flopping. It’s very hard.” With the smallest mistake, students can become very critical, he said.

Smith believes that the implementation of technology is all a learning process that will yield results. “In the end you learn more,” Smith said. “You can personalize your own learning experience. You can find pictures on the internet if you’re a visual learner, or podcasts if you are an auditory learner.”

Curtis said that sweeping reforms are needed at high school and is hopeful that the new administration and time will bring needed change in the education system. “The Obama Administration has put a lot of money into schools making changes,” he said. “By ten years, we’ll have a really good vision of what a good school looks like.”

In ten years, Ship=man is confident McLean will be very technologically different. He believes every student will have some sort of response system, with a presentation station in each classroom.

Wojciechowski sees the school taking steps to provide each student with a laptop or an iPhone, something that students can use to instantly get all the information they need.

Despite this, Shipman warns that “with anything in education, it has to be gradual,” he said. “One of the issues with technology is costs. To do a largescale switch-over, I don’t necessarily see that happening at high schools.”

The writer can be reached at talia.roth@hotmail.com

14

Highlander

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Highlander

15

The meaning behind the number 397

performance.

According to U.S. News and World Report, they first look to see if the students at the school Around school, banners announce that are better than the statistically average students McLean is “#55 in the nation.” Even pencils were by taking the reading and math results on the specially made and distributed, engraved with the standardized high school tests—for Virginia, it same words. is the SOL. Then they take into This year, U.S. News and World consideration schools that are disReport determined the top 100 advantaged by students that have public high schools in the U.S. lower than average incomes since Why did McLean go from being it has been shown that they tend recognized as number 99 last year to score lower on the standardto number 55 this year? ized tests. Afterwards, they take One reason is that last year Newsthe number of seniors who took at week only conducted the study for least one AP exam during their enAmerica’s top 100 high schools. tire high school career. This numAlthough U.S. News and World ber they divide by the number of Report also made their own study, seniors along with the number of Newsweek received more publicity. seniors that passed the AP exam at This year, however, U.S. News least once during their entire high and World Report took over and school career. Finally, this numcreated a ranking system that is difber is divided by the number of ferent from Newsweek’s process. seniors. This determines the colFor instance, Newsweek does not lege readiness index. The qualityinclude magnet and charter schools, like Thomas Jefferson High School, photo by Charlie Park adjusted AP participation weights are weighted 75 percent and then but U.S. News and World Report In December of 2008 McLean High School was officially announced as the 25 percent is AP participation. does.

55th best high school in the nation.

In order to rank high schools, U.S. News Some students, however, feel Jay Matthews, contributing ediand World report takes various attributes into consideration including AP that the publication should include tor for Newsweek, justified why the testing and demographics. all students in their estimations. magazine excluded magnet and “It’s unfair that they only base it charter schools that “the Challenge give counselors the incentive to push students to on seniors,” sophomore Nisha Rana said. “Other Index is designed to honor schools that have done take challenging classes so that they can be more grades take the exam and work hard.” the best job in persuading average students to take prepared for college.

Other high schools that were included in list college level courses and tests. It does not work U.S. News and World Report, on the other were Langley who ranked number 76, Thomas with schools that have no, or almost no, average hand, looks at how well schools do on the AP Jefferson who ranked number 1, and Woodson students. The idea is to create a list that measures exam, rather than basing it solely on quantity.

The which ranked number 90. how good schools are in challenging all students, and not just how high their students’ test scores criteria they use to rank the high school is a bit more complicated than Newsweek because they The writer can be reached at are.”

In addition, Newsweek only counts the num- try to balance demographics as well as AP exam Asli.Uyanik@hotmail.com

Asli Uyanik Assistant Advertising Manager

ber of AP exams taken by all the students divided by the number of graduating seniors. They focus on the number of students that take the AP exams rather than how well they do so that counselors do not prevent students with average grades from taking an AP class. Also, they hope that it would

8 2763 34 45 2 39 1 1 78 27 3 5 65 17 85 27

55

16

Highlander

FEATURES

April 24, 2009

The Clan prints first all-color yearbook Alison Shapiro Editorials Editor

Students that are purchasing a yearbook this year are getting a bargain that other students in the past have yet to have.

Students are paying the original $65 for an all-color yearbook, as opposed to last year when only some of the yearbook was in color and it was the same price.

It has been five years since the yearbook staff raised the base price of their yearbook. Although an all-color yearbook costs significantly more than just having selected pages in color, the yearbook has still been able to keep their prices the same.

Despite hard-hitting economic times, the yearbook’s publisher, Herff Jones, has been able to lower their prices, making it easier for the staff to take advantage of the great deal, and put out the all-color book.

The Clan has always been able to provide for themselves, being self-sufficient to publish the yearbook, and using extra money for equipment and other supplies. This year, the yearbook staff is putting their extra money towards producing an all-color yearbook for students to enjoy.

“All of our funds to produce the yearbook come from

[yearbook] sales, fundraising and ad sales,” said photojournalism and psychology teacher and yearbook advisor Meghan Percival.

The 304-page, all-color yearbook and the 32-page supplement will cost the staff $6,000-7,000 more than having 104 pages in color, like last year. Typically, the staff uses extra money not spent on printing the yearbook on camera equipment, paper, printer toner and other supplies used throughout the year. The staff also uses leftover money to submit their yearbook for judging at state and national press organizations.

The staff is really focusing on the quality of their pictures.

“We are definitely trying to get a lot more colorful photos because we want to take advantage of the all-color yearbook,” junior staffer Kendall Hymes said.

The Clan is promoting the all-color yearbook as a great way to commemorate the year in vivid color. The staff is working hard producing the yearbook and hopes to continue an allcolor yearbook for next year and possibly years to come.

“I haven’t really heard about student reactions, but I know the staff is really excited,” Hymes said. “We really want to

[do an all-color yearbook next year] because we really like the idea.”

The writer can be reached at alison519@gmail.com

photo by Nikki Kaul

A clearer image: evaluation of the difference between DVD and Blu-Ray Bryan Kress Assistant Features Editor

dios in both formats, providing Blu-ray with a wider selection than ever before.

Video game enthusiasts also have the option of using Playstation 3 systems for viewing Blu-ray movies, since the system has a built-in disc reader. The popularity of the format grew with the release of the gaming system.

Aside from this, the greatest attraction to Blu-ray is the quality. The extra storage space provides greater sound and

Despite the format’s technical advancements, it suffers from high prices. On average, a Blu-ray player costs 200 dollars, while an individual disc costs 30 dollars. These prices Since its introduction in 1997, the Digital Versatile Disc serve as a deterrent to some customers who cannot afford the (DVD) has not faced any major competition in the home steep expenses and therefore stay with standard DVDs. entertainment business—until now. The Blu-ray format has “The only reason I would buy a Blu-ray over a DVD is steadily been growing in popularity and could possibly take if it were an action movie because it would be nice to see over the DVD’s market in the future. it in high definition,” Hill said. “Otherwise, I would buy a Blu-ray originated as an alternative for DVD on High DVD because I can save a lot Definition (HD) televiof money.” sions, but struggled from Special Movie Game Storage While DVDs still have the beginning. It sufCost Features a commanding lead in the Cost fered due to high prices Systems Space home entertainment marand consumer disinterest. ket, Blu-rays are expanding Also, a rival format was deXBox, XBox Has standard rapidly. Sales have doubled veloped around the same 360, Playstation $99 features $6-$20 4.7 GB compared to last year, with 9 time called HD DVD, 2 and million units sold in the first which ushered in a twoPlaystation 3 quarter of the year. Also, Bluyear competition between rays have attracted 13 percent the two formats. Blu-ray High Definition of DVD customers. came out strong, and in quality with “They will both be around 2008, the HD DVD forPlaystation 3 25 GB $170-$250 enhanced $20-$30 for many years to come, Even mat was discontinued. though the Blu-ray can hold With HD DVD out audio and so much more.” Hill said. of the way, the main comvideo Some, like Hill, believe petitor would be standard the two formats will coexist DVD. Technologically, Blu-ray is more advanced than the competition. The disc picture quality compared to DVD’s standard quality. Video for a long time, while others view Blu-ray as the successor and next generation of DVD. alone can hold five times the amount of data than DVD, is more detailed, and the images are sharper and clearer.

Sophomore Jimmy Hill owns a Blu-ray player and has While the shift from DVDs to Blu-rays may not be as imwhich means more content and special features can be writnoticed the clear difference. mediate as the 1990’s changeover from videotapes, the growten on the disc.

“You can see things so much clearer on a Blu-ray,” Hill ing popularity of the high definition discs could signal an The Blu-ray player also benefits from its compatibility with standard DVD. Therefore, consumers are not forced said. “If you watch a movie such as Saving Private Ryan on eventual transfer in the future. to repurchase discs in their DVD collection to use on their Blu-ray and then watch it on DVD, you would never want The writer can reached at bkress1992@gmail.com player. New releases are also being put on the market by stu- to watch it on DVD again.”

Seasonal affective disorder affects students

Zenobia Morrill Reporter

The end of the school year is right around the corner, and McLean is well into the Spring season. Some are finding it a little bit harder to concentrate on school work. This isn’t just because some people feel burnt out from persistent mundane tasks. The loss of motivation can also be attributed to the nice weather.

During the winter, it gets dark earlier as the sun sets late into the afternoon, and the cold weather extinguishes the urge to spend more time outdoors. For some, life becomes a depressing and repetitive cycle of dull tasks. According to Mayoclinic.com, normal reactions to the winter time include over-indulgence in eating and sleeping more. However, some people undergo a more serious reaction to the cold weather where they display symptoms of depression. This condition is classified as Seasonal Affective Disorder, otherwise referred to as SAD. Those who are diagnosed with SAD experience feelings of hopelessness, anxiety, listlessness, social withdrawal and increased appetite during the wintry months. Although only about five percent of the population suffers from the more severe case, the National Mental Health Association estimates that 25 percent of the population experiences some forms of mild symptoms.

When the weather becomes nicer and the days start last-

ing longer, the 10 million Americans affected by SAD begin to regain energy and overcome their winter blues. Suddenly, the light at the end of the tunnel becomes apparent. The warm weather acts as a mood elevator, especially to students and teachers anticipating summer vacation eagerly. This inviting atmosphere causes teachers and students to have a desire to spend more of their day outside and less time behind the desks.

Senior Rebecka Hoffman says that spring time is one of her favorite times of the year.

“I want to get my homework done quickly so I can spend the rest of the day outside or with my friends,” Hoffman said. “When the days last longer, I enjoy taking advantage of all the extra time. It becomes a problem because it becomes harder to study for finals.”

Sophomore Eric Dindlebeck said, “When it’s this nice out, I just want the school year to come to an end.”

Even teachers anticipate the summer time and spending time outdoors. Science teacher Claire Silva has already taken advantage of the warm weather.

“I really love the spring time. I look forward to sunny days and warm weather,” Silva said.

This new supply of energy is not just a simple matter of elated feelings due to the warmer weather, but is actually found to be related to the body’s natural chemical makeup.

When it is darker in the winter with limited amounts of sunlight, people tend to sleep more. As an effect, this reduced level of sunlight interferes with our Circadian rhythm, also known as the body’s natural biological clock.

Researchers have also found that this disruption causes the depression that one may experience during the winter. On the contrary, as the spring season approaches, the increase in sunlight regulates the body’s internal clock and causes people to experience an increase in energy and focus. Scientists have also found that the sleep-related hormone, melatonin, has links to depression. The extra sleep people get during the longer winter nights leads to an increase in the production of this hormone. During the spring time, more sunlight causes an increase of the neurotransmitter serotonin. The lack of this natural brain chemical is another factor that increases SAD symptoms during the winter.

Look on the bright side of things. Although you may be tempted to slack off on the workload and spend more time outside, your teacher is probably in a better mood too and is more likely to let a missed assignment slide. The wintry months are over, and the working season is rapidly coming to a close.

The writer can be reached at zsmorrill@yahoo.com

FEATURES

April 24, 2009

Highlander

17

What springtime has in store: Seasonal changes bring intense allergies to students Nikki Kaul Assistant Features Editor

Spring marks the arrival of more hours under the sun, warmer temperatures, happier moods—and unfortunately, more intense allergies.

Some students at McLean suffer from different types of outdoor allergies, including dust, peanuts, shellfish, foods, pets and environmental objects.

Freshman Grace McNamara suffers from a variety of severe allergies, many of which are seasonal.

“I am allergic to dust, pollen, grass, cats, certain kinds of trees, and certain soaps,” McNamara said. “I have had allergies for about six years now.”

Allergies to pollen are affected by factors like temperature, the time of day and rain.

Pollen allergies include grasses and trees which tend to retain allergy inciters. Dust mites can linger around under the bed at nighttime, and can eventually lead to asthma in addition to allergies.

The gamut of the prevention methods which people utilize to control or prevent allergies includes keeping the lawn grass cut short. This way, the chances of pollen accumulating are less likely.

Also, when going outside, some people tend to go in the late afternoon or right after heavy rainstorms, when airborne pollen levels are lower.

In addition, air conditioners at home are better

art by Kristine Keenan

than fans, which can move the dust around the room to undesirable locations and worsen the allergy situations. It also helps to dry clothes in an automatic dryer rather than on hangers outside, where the clothes can collect dust and pollen that is hanging around in the air. Hardwood floors instead of carpets prevent dust buildup around the house.

McNamara puts a protective cover over her bed The writer can be reached at nikkster1@gmail.com for moderating her allergies while she sleeps. “I put

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it over my bed before I go to bed every night,” McNamara said.

Another way to control allergies is allergen sprays that people use on their mattresses before they go to sleep at night. It helps to kill dust mites and various other allergy inciters so that people can get a peaceful night’s rest.

Some medications that people take to control their allergies are either prescribed or over-thecounter. Popular brands widely used by people for allergies include Claritin, Zyrtec, Nasonex and more.

“I personally take Allegra, which was prescribed to me by my allergist. It works the best for me,” McNamara said.

Some outcomes of these allergies are loss of voice, sneezing, coughing, swelling, itching, hives, upset stomach, scratchy throat, runny nose, rasping voice and many more.

For the spring season, watch out for the weather and all the pollen blowing around everywhere. Go outside when it has just rained and take medicine prescribed at the appropriate dosage. Springtime brings nice weather, but along with it comes intense allergies that are rough on noses as well. Keep air conditioners and dehumidifiers on, get hardwood floors instead of rug or wool carpets and always remember to wash your hands thoroughly with soap!

18

FEATURES

Highlander

April 24, 2009

Shed winter layers for a fresh look: Spring 2009 brings color back into your wardrobe

Jasmine Mohandesi Features Editor

April showers bring May flowers—along with new spring fashion. According to NY Fashion Week Spring 2009 Runway, this season welcomes silk pants, sequins, sheers, ruffles, jumpsuits, metallics, florals and the All-American and hippie looks. The color of the season? Yellow.

However, pinks, neons, mix and matched colors, blues and purples will still be popular.

1.

During Paris Fashion Week, designers pulled out new looks. Valentino was medieval-inspired, while Giabattista Vallia took inspiration out of the 50s.

Hermes went Old West, while Louis Vuitton tried global and Chanel went ladylike.

According to Nordstrom Assistant Manager Aresna Awar, Jack Rogers wedges and Sam Edelman sandals are the shoes of the spring season.

The hippie-look is a popular spring trend. Fluid tops, long dresses and headbands are popular picks for the season. This Diane Von Furstenburg shirt is an example of a fluid top that works well with skinny jeans.

2,.

again. Wear them with short shorts and maxi-dresses. The Sam Edelman “Seville” wedge shown at right is a popular pick for spring because of its trendy gladiator straps.

embellishments are must-haves for your wardrobe.

These Jack Rogers “Navajo” thong sandals are casual, yet chic and can be paired perfectly with floral dresses.

3.

8.

The writer can be reached at mohandesij@yahoo.com

Wedges are popular

Sandals with

5.

“Sandals, wedges, thick straps and bright colors are popular in the shoe department this season,” Awar said.

Nordstrom sales associate and senior Liz Gray said that layered pearls and flowered headbands are must-have pieces for spring wardrobes.

This season, handbags with bold patterns will be seen everywhere.

Designed in bold prints and different shades of yellow and pink, this Tory Burch bag is a perfect example of what a spring handbag should look like.

One trend that can be easily added to your spring wardrobe is florals.

Headbands and pendants with flowers and sandals embellished with flowers will be popular this season.

The Tasha flower pendant (shown right) can be added to a simple shirt.

4.

6.

According to Nordstrom sales associate senior Liz Gray, pearls are in. These layered pearls can be purchased at Nordstrom.

7.

Sun dresses, floral dresses and Maxi dresses are fashionable this spring.

9.

Skinny jeans will

be seen everywhere this spring. Pair them with embellished sandals or wedges and a fluid top.

Yellow has been

declared the color of the season.

Handbags, shoes and clothes will be seen in yellow now more than ever. This Nordstom yellow bag is a must for spring and summer.

April 24, 2009

SPORTS

Highlander

19

The Nats may not be the hottest team in DC, but it’s fun nevertheless to get out. The following can help make your experience a day (or night) to remember.

Left: Sophomore Clare Nelson strategically places her body to go the furthest distance without falling in the long jump event.

Above: Sophomore Jalil Muhammad is in mid-throw for the discus event. Behind him a net surrounds the area to prevent any spectator injury if a misthrow occurs. photos courtesy of Kent Arnold

Track and Field:

team runs past injuries and move forward to districts

°

Elizabeth Masgarha This above-average injury rate has led the team to suffer more Sports Editor than usual because it is the top players that are being put off to As the season peaks, track and field gets prepared for a meet at the sidelines.

UPenn, where 30,000 viewers await.

The injuries range from hamstrings to backs to hips, taking an “It’s going to be so intimidating,” senior co-captain Kristoff athlete out for a few days, weeks or for the entire season.

Inocentes said. “We’ll be competing with schools from all around “We walked into the season expecting to be a lot stronger as a the country, and to be performing in front of that many people whole,” Inocentes said. “But both distance and throwing lost top is unreal.” players as a result of injuries, and while different sections are still So far, the team has traveled to distances as far as Elon Univer- competing well, we’re suffering more than usual.” sity and Newport News in order to gain the chance to compete at But the injuries don’t stagnate these athletes in the least bit; the highest level. With this travel, many would assume that cost even with injuries being such a growing problem among the follows, but the team has worked it out so that money wouldn’t team, the team is still willing to put the best foot forward and be a restraint. compete.

“Coach Jones works hard to try and make the team self“It’s my first season doing track and I’m having so much fun,” sufficient,” Inocentes said. “We held a lot more invitations and junior Caitlin Baker said. “These are the best and most dedicated charged schools to compete so that we could afford to pay for athletes and I love being on the team.” travel and lower the price for each athlete.”

Baker is not the only one who keeps an upbeat attitude and a The athletes—in categories ranging from poll vaulters to discus belief in the team’s ability. throwers, sprinters and distance runners—all compete separately “We still preform at a high level with the other schools,” Inbut with every placement come allotted points that go towards a ocentes said. “I admit it’s hard because we could be much better combined overall score. that what we are, but it is the This system gives students in team’s continuing motivaeach event not only the option and effort that we portunity to succeed inare where we are.” dividually, but to transThis mentality is fer that success for the important to keep Vault Pole team to win as a whole as the team moves as well. closer to qualifyThroughout this ing for districts.

Discus High Javelin season, the team has “I think we’re Throw Jump had multiple wins but going to do fine; 60 no combined team we can’t worry Shot Put victories. about what has 40° Junior Troy Smith happened, but just Long/Triple Jump attributes much of this to to keep our success an immense loss of athletes up,” Inocentes said. to injury and a small portion The writer can be reached at emasgarto grades as well. illustration by Elizabeth Masgarha ha@yahoo.com “We lost a sprinter to grades, but mostly to injury,” Smith said.

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1

Take the Metro!

2

Buy tickets in advance—and online.

Nobody wants to miss the first few innings waiting in traffic. And with tickets from West Falls Church to Navy Yard at just a few dollars, you’ll save a lot of money, too.

Don’t want to stand in a hot, sweaty line to get nosebleed seats? It’s much easier to book tickets online from the Nationals site, where you’ll have a wide selection and plenty of time to choose.

3

Pick the right day.

4

Eat beforehand.

5

Explore the stadium.

Not all games are created equal. Try to book tickets for a day when the Nationals play a division rival—or the Orioles.

Nationals Park may have an impressive selection of food and drinks, but the prices are a disappointment. Spend your money on a nice view of the field, not on food you could eat at home or in DC.

If the game isn’t as exciting as you hoped, you still have a huge ballpark to navigate. Try visiting the plaza near the main entrance for a host of interesting stores and restaurants. You can also go to the very top to get a view of various monuments. Just don’t take someone else’s seat!

20

Highlander

SPORTS

April 24, 2009

Jock stereotype absent at McLean

David Berk Sports Editor

The public has two different stereotypical views of professional athletes. On the one hand, they accord athletes a lofty status based solely on the excellence of their athletic ability.

Thus, LeBron James is “King James” and Dwight Howard is “Superman”.

On the other hand, some of the public view athletes as below average in intelligence. Wizards interim head coach Ed Tapscott recently acknowledged as much saying, “Most people think that they [athletes] are just talented, not intelligent, but it takes a certain amount of real intelligence that has to go into their work.”

A split view of athletes, as well as different treatment, also exists at the high school level. In what appears to be typical at high schools throughout the United States, student-athletes at Clay High School in Jacksonville, Florida, “are the most popular kids at the school,” observes junior Andre Lafontant.

“Because you play sports, teachers know you and are willing to extend some kinds of special treatment,” Lafontant said. “As a star athlete, you have brought recognition to the school, and so you receive special treatment. For example, I was late to class one day and an administrator stopped me, asking, ‘Didn’t you score the first touchdown in our game the other day?’ I responded ‘yes’ and he let me off without a detention, a detention that a non-athlete most surely would have received.”

At McLean, however, students seem to view athletes as they do other students.

“I personally don’t think that at McLean we classify our athletes as ‘dumb jocks’ or as ‘special.’” junior Mesum Mathison said. “I think we have respect for athletes and what they do because a lot of students do multiple activities and I think that we see the value of all the activities, so no one thinks that some activities are more valuable than others.”

Some students even feel that the opposite is true, and that academic performers may be more likely to receive special treatment than athletes.

“You get off with more for academics things like science fair,” junior Amy Taylor said. “Teachers will give you more leeway if you have a big academic event than if you have a big sports event. I think that students don’t view athletes

art by Arthur Lee as special because of the nature of our parents. We live in a mostly middle class area, where academics are valued more than sports.”

McLean faculty members interviewed strongly assert that they view their student-athletes as they do the rest of their students and that they treat them the same as they do their other students.

“I’ve never treated an athlete special in terms of cutting them slack,” English teacher and assistant girls soccer coach Marc Cascio said. “I’ve socialized with them more because I am interested in sports, but it would be unacceptable for me to treat them differently.”

Further, teachers seem not to feel any pressure from the

athletic department to treat athletes differently.

“I have never felt pressure,” history teacher Helen Stephan said. “If anything, I have received tremendous support from coaching staffs when I had a student –athlete having problems.”

And McLean athletes themselves don’t believe they receive special treatment.

“I guess it’s just a misconception,” junior Phillip Bouchard said. “I know that I don’t feel as if I’m treated special. Other students do other activities too, like journalism, so people don’t feel as if athletics are above those activities.”

The writer can be reached at dberk2@gmail.com

Nationals’ new players look to make a difference Andrew Davis Assistant Sports Editor

Since their move to Washington in 2005, the Nationals have been infamous for their inability to win games. After several losing seasons, culminating in a league worst 59-102, many fans were starting to get fed up.

This past winter, however, the team made several big offseason moves to try and remedy the lack of wins. These included the acquisitions of outfielders Adam Dunn and Josh Willingham and pitcher Scott Olsen.

Many Nationals fans at school see these moves as a serious attempt to improve the team on both offense and defense.

Junior Will Burleson believes that Dunn’s presence will be especially beneficial to the team.

“Adam Dunn brings some serious power,” Burleson said.

“He is a truly great hitter, and he can really impact the team’s offensive firepower in a positive way.”

Dunn was drafted in the second round of the 1998 MLB Draft by the Cincinnati Reds; the team selected him for his power-hitting ability. After a one season stint with the Arizona Diamondbacks, he signed a two-year, $20 million contract with the Nationals.

One of Dunn’s greatest contributions to his team is his ability to hit home runs. Last season, Ryan Zimmerman and

Lastings Milledge were tied for the team lead with 14 home runs each. In contrast to this, Dunn has hit at least 40 home runs in each of his last five seasons. Burleson hopes that this offensive ability will translate into more wins for the Nationals.

“If a guy can hit 40 home runs for you, that can be a tremendous help,” Burleson said. “The team’s biggest problem last year was their lack of runs. Home runs will eliminate that problem.”

Junior and Nationals fan Alex von Bredow agrees that Dunn will help the offensive side of the Nationals game.

However, he argues that the team’s real weakness is pitching.

“Over the past couple of years, it has seemed like there is a revolving door on pitchers. There has not been a single great starting pitcher since the team moved here,” von Bredow said.

After finishing last in the National League East Division, the team’s front office recognized the need to acquire an ace pitcher. During the offseason, they traded second baseman Emilio Benifacio and several minor leaguers to the Florida Marlins; the team received pitcher Scott Olsen and leftfielder Josh Willingham in return.

Since his move to Washington, Olsen has been recog-

nized as the ace of the starting rotation. However, Burleson does not think that one pitcher is enough to remedy the situation. After all, pitchers have to to rest for a couple of games after playing.

“They added one starting pitcher that can only play every fifth game,” he said. “They still need to fix their bullpen and put together a solid starting rotation.”

Burleson believes that the Nationals can improve their pitching staff through their farm system and by using trades and free agency.

“They have had some really high draft picks and managed to get some solid young pitchers. If the team develops them right, then they could turn out to be a big help in the long run,” he said.

Despite these current problems, both Burleson and von Bredow believe that the Nationals’ offseason moves will help at least a little this season.

“With their offseason improvements and better offense, the team should do better this year,” Burleson said. “They certainly will not lose a hundred games again.”

The writer can be reached at adavisbb@yahoo.com

SPORTS

April 24, 2009

Highlander

Getting the facts on spring sports Girls Soccer Season highlight: “So far, probably going undefeated for the first seven games of the season,” senior Caity Flint said.

Key player:

Boys Soccer Season highlight: “When we beat Stonebridge, who won the district last year, 2-1 in the final minute,” senior Sam Radelet said.

Key player:

Senior Caity Flint has scored five goals and tallied 20 assists this season.

Senior Sam Radelet has scored eleven goals in the past seven games.

Record: Overall: 8-1

Record: Overall: 7-2

District: 3-1

District: 5-0

* Excluding the results from the team’s game against Langley yesterday

* Excluding the results from the team’s game against Langley yesterday

Baseball

21

Softball

Season highlight:

Season highlight:

“When we crushed Langley 8-1 and Riley Beiro hit two home runs,” junior Sean Fitzgerald said.

“When we beat Madison because they are always good and they think they are the best, but we proved them wrong,” junior Lauren Sutherland said.

Key player: Junior Sean Fitzgerald is hitting .500 and holds a 4-0 pitching record over four complete games.

Key player: Junior Lauren Sutherland has a 7-2 pitching record and a .520 batting average.

Overall: 10-3

Record: Overall: 12-3

District: 7-1

District: 6-1

Record:

22

SPORTS

Highlander

April 24 , 2009

photo by Mohommad Tavakoli Varsity girls soccer scrimmages during practice. Senior Caity Flint attempts to get by sophmore Katie Yensen while freshman Rose Sommovigo and junior Casey Alexander watch.

Varsity girls soccer tears up the field Girls varsity soccer began the season with a 7-1 record, losing their first game last Wednesday. The team’s first game was against Wakefield, whom they beat 15-0.

“We played Wakefield last year and beat them,” girls varsity soccer Coach Laura O’Brien said. “We knew going into this game that the field suited us and it would be kind of like a scrimmage.”

During the Wakefield game, the McLean coaches tried to keep the score low by putting different kinds of restrictions on their team and switching up the positions. For example, the forwards played defense while the defenders played offense and the only people that were allowed to score in the second half were the players who had not already scored.

Due to the team’s record, the players and coaches have received more support from their peers and have noticed an increase in their fans.

“There are a little more [fans] than last year, probably because of our record and how well we’re doing,” senior forward and midfielder Caity Flint said. “Support is always a good thing to have.”

Five out of the 11 starters on the team are seniors, but there are also three starting freshmen. One freshman that the coaches have recognized as a real competitor is forward and midfielder, Josie Seebeck.

“She has no regard for potentially injuring herself,” O’Brien said. “She goes in harder for tackles than anyone I’ve ever seen before. She is not only physical, she is a fantastic soccer player and is very skilled.”

Caity Flint

photo by Mohommad Tavakoli

Last summer, Seebeck received two concussions. She got hit in the by a goalie and kicked in the head. Because of this, she is forced to wear headgear during all games and scrimmages.

“I’m used to the headgear now, but it took awhile,” Seebeck said.

Seebeck has already earned five goals and five assists, and

“

As a team our strengths would have to be our ability to play well under pressure, and the amount of effort everyone is willing to put in so we can improve.

-Freshman Josie Seebeck

has acquired the nickname, “the bulldozer” from her coaches. Seebeck credits all the team’s wins to their chemistry, and is thrilled to be a freshman on the team.

“We all work great together,” Seebeck said. “As a team, our strengths would have to be our ability to play well under pressure, and the amount of effort everyone is willing to put in so we can improve. It’s incredible being undefeated so far, and being a freshman makes this entire thing even more

Josie Seebeck

The writer can be reached at djabbour80@gmail.com

Jasmine Mohandesi

Position:

Position:

Mid-fielder/Forward

Mid-fielder/Forward

Grade: 12 Season goals: 4 Season assists: 6 Years playing soccer: 13 Nickname: “Flint”

Grade: 9 Season goals: 5 Season assists: 5 Years playing soccer: 10 Nickname: “Joe” photo by Danny Jabbour

exciting.”

So far, the two closest games for the team have been the games against Stonebridge and Madison. The games were back to back with the Highlanders capturing both victories by one goal.

Within the first three minutes of the Stonebridge game, Stonebridge scored their one and only goal.

“We dominated possession of the ball throughout the game, but it was difficult because we started down and had to come back,” O’Brien said.

Just as in the Stonebridge game, the Highlanders won 2-1 against Madison. According to O’Brien, Stonebridge had talented players on the team, but Madison had a better game plan.

“Stonebridge is a good team, but they don’t have any particular strengths,” O’Brien said. “Madison is good because they are very sneaky in how they play. They come up with game strategies that puzzle us.”

The Highlanders had their first loss last Wednesday against Woodson.

“We just weren’t mentally prepared and didn’t take the chances we were given to score,” Seebeck said.

Though the team still has a winning record, Assistant Coach Marc Cascio has not completed his goals for the season.

“I’m proud of all the girls’ effort, but I don’t think we’ve reached all our potential,” Cascio said. “We are not in a position where we can be content with our results,” Cascio said.

“

Danny Jabbour Assistant Features Editor

Position: Forward Grade: 12 Season goals: 13 Season assists: 6 Years playing soccer: 13 Nickname: “Jazzy” photo by Danny Jabbour

SPORTS

April 24, 2009

Highlander

23

JV, frosh have no closure to season

sports column

Ibrahim Jacobs Assistant Sports Editor

At the conclusion of every varsity sports season, teams that finish well get a chance to play in numerous tournaments and playoff games for a chance to win the district, state and so on.

However, for JV and freshmen teams, the end of the season means that the season is over—and even an undefeated record won’t get them into the playoffs.

18 years ago, Bruce Patrick, the father of current football coach Jim Patrick, was the county’s athletic director. When the budget was running low, he was forced to make a decision with the meager amount of cash he had. As opposed to cutting entire sports programs, Bruce Patrick opted on shortening the schedules of JV and freshmen teams as well as canceling all tournaments.

“I don’t believe [cutting the tournaments and reducing games] was something he wanted to do but he was put in a situation in which he was forced to pick the lesser of two evils,” athletic director Tom Herman said.

Obviously Patrick did not want to limit the tournaments and number of games played. It provided more incentive to work during the season by giving players something to play for. His decision did have its benefits, as he ended up retaining many smaller teams such as swim and dive and gymnastics that might not have been around today. The choice was originally made because of the budget; however, between 1991 and now, the budget hadn’t always been bad and the original policy could have been brought back on numerous occasions.

“It’s been 18 years and they haven’t restored it yet; obviously, with the current budget, I don’t see them reinstating it anytime

soon,” Herman said.

The lack of tournament games and a shorter schedule could leave some players running out of stamina and being susceptible to injuries at the end of the season. A longer schedule than the players are used to, mixed in with tournaments, could really throw off the play of some athletes and leave them unprepared.

“I have never been to one of those tournaments,” sophomore girls JV basketball player Cassidy Kelty said, “but I assume that the first time you participate in one you are most likely a little blown away. But I don’t think that means that you are unprepared. Coach O’Brian wouldn’t put us on his team if he didn’t think we were prepared.”

If there are no tournaments for JV or freshmen sports, what keeps them motivated?

What separates an undefeated team from the rest of the district? With the current system of no tournaments, there is not enough recognition for great teams. For example, this year’s girls freshmen basketball team outscored their opponents 764 to 258 on the year, with ten of their 16 wins coming by 30 points or more.

Although they played some close games, it is likely that they would have won a tournament had there been one in place.

Patrick did the right thing when the hard decision was put on him. Canceling tournaments is nothing compared to losing entire sports programs; however, when the budget gets fixed and the economy improves, district tournaments should be added to the schedule to improve incentives for players and provide meaningful titles for teams hoping to go all the way.

photo courtesy of Kent Arnold From left: C.J Rogers, Michael Shipley and Kyle McColgan sign their letters to play college football. Rogers and Shipley will attend Emory and Henry College and McColgan will play at Shenandoah.

Five football players sign with colleges Ibrahim Jacobs Assistant Sports Editor

For many high school athletes, the end of senior year marks the end of an athletic life and the end of competitive play. This year, however, five graduating seniors will be going on to play college football.

Christopher James Rogers, Michael Shipley, Kyle McColgan, Milton Smith and Ethan Beckett all signed letters of intent to participate in college football.

“It helps to have a successful season but if you have a good highlight tape it is a lot easier. Coach Patrick and I put together a CD of my season highlights and sent it to different colleges,” Beckett said.

Linebacker and wide receiver Rogers will join fellow teammate Shipley, who played running back and defensive end for the Highlanders. A Division III school with a rich tradition of success, Emory and Henry has won numerous Old Dominion Athletic Conference titles, including a tie for the best conference record last year.

Also a running back and defensive end,

The writer can be reached at I.Jacobs@hotmail.com

better scores. better choices.

PrepMatters.

PSAT

|

SAT

So you’ve rocked your SAT? Now it’s time to roll through Subject Tests and APs.

by Ned Johnson, Founder and President of PrepMatters, Inc ""Once more, dear friends..."

You've taken the SAT once, maybe twice.

You've got a great set of scores. You're beginning to page through those thick college books and get excited. What now?

The good news is that the two most important factors in college admissions are grades and SAT or ACT scores.

Done. The bad news is that AP and Subject Tests are looming. Keep your cool, use your time wisely, and the spring of your junior year just might be doable!

All about Subject Tests SAT Subject Tests are a great opportunity to show that you're ready for the rigors of college course work. Not all Subject Tests, however, are

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McColgan will play at Shenandoah University. This USA South Conference team will give McColgan a chance to play against teammate Smith, who will be attending rival Averett University. Smith played running back and linebacker last season for the Highlanders.

“It was actually difficult to get recruited because I only played in two games because I busted up my MCL. But the [Shenandoah] coach came to talk to me so he made it easy,” McColgan said.

McColgan was held to only two games this season due to injury. He tore the MCL in both of his knees which cut his season short.

Finally, Beckett will take the field for Gettysburg College. The wide receiver and defensive back will play in the Centennial Conference; the team finished with an even record of 5-5 last year.

The writer can be reached at I.Jacobs@hotmail.com

individual test preparation & educational counseling |

SUBJECT TESTS

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AP

|

APPLICATIONS

|

ESSAYS

for everyone. If you've got a college list together, check with individual schools for their requirements: some don't require any, some require one or two, and very few require three.

You should take only those tests for which you are the most prepared. Just because your math teacher has covered all of the topics on the Math Level 2 test doesn't mean it's for you. The idea is to reinforce strong SAT scores - not undermine them. June is the perfect time to take a history or science - especially if you've just taken the AP course. If you need to put off a test until the fall, consider making that one Literature or maybe Math. In all cases, take some practice tests to see where you stand. If you feel that you will need many weeks worth of preparation to get ready - you're likely taking the wrong test.

Grades first." Grades are what matter most to the colleges you hope to attend. That you take AP courses matters; it demonstrates rigor. That you do well in those courses matters; again, grades come first. In contrast, the scores you get on your APs are secondary.

AP classes vs. AP tests So raise your hand if you or someone you know is near the point of melting down about AP exams this month? At the risk of invoking the ire of every AP teacher from here to California, I offer this advice: AP scores don't matter as much as other things or as much as you think. AP exams are not a required admissions criterion for college. Repeat the mantra: "Grades first.

Grades first Ideally, you've been preparing all along, have a light workload in your other classes, and will do fabulously on your APs. But, if your life is harried, you're buried in work and you are stressing out, remember: grades first. You can get into the college of your dreams with lower AP scores in a way that you cannot with lower grades. Grades first.

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So why do we do it?

A solid AP score can only strengthen your college application. Once you are in college, AP scores will matter if you hope to opt out of a 101 course and tackle the harder stuff early on, if you want to graduate early, or you plan to double or triple major. However, if you study like a maniac to get a top score on the AP and, as a consequence, bomb a test, quiz or paper in that or another class, you have made a bad trade-off.

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24

Highlander

D.C. engergized energized

by the

Danny Marx Reporter

With the Redskins in the off-season, the Wizards season of 19-63 finally finished, and the Nationals off to a 3-10 start, the talk of the school is the Washington Capitals (Caps).

While walking the halls, a couple of “Rock the Red” T-shirts and an Alex Ovechkin jersey can usually be found when stopping to scan for friends, or reading the words on people’s shirts. After a win, Caps clothes are being spotted and gossip is circulating around the school about the hottest team in DC. During C-lunch, at the table closest to the security office, senior Ben Smith is the only student who watches the Caps.

“It’s cool that some people are actually paying attention to hockey,” Smith said. “I’m excited for the playoffs. The Caps can really go far if they play well.”

In Amal Fahmy’s first period Geosystems class, senior Colleen Devlin contemplates the Caps’ playoff potential.

“The Caps have a lot of young players that only know the first round of the playoffs,” said Devlin, who has been watching the Caps years prior to their recent success. “The fact that most of these guys haven’t been beyond that point could hurt them in terms of mentally hanging in there all the way to the end, but I believe in them. I think they’ll win the Stanley Cup. If not now, then soon.”

Not all Caps fans are experts. In the boy’s track locker room, junior Daniel Mooney concurs with teammates complimenting the Caps, despite mispronouncing the Russian superstar’s last name “Oh-va-chek-in.”

“He is a phenomenal player,” Mooney said. “He can carry the team a long way.”

SPORTS

April 24, 2009

APITALS Capitals Assistant Coach Jay Leach has the unique privilege of coaching Alexander Ovechkin, whom he considers the most talented player in this new generation of hockey.

“There’s a special engine that drives this guy,” Leach said.

“He’s explosive, he has a huge passion to play the game, he takes very few nights off, and he plays his hardest all the time.

That’s his biggest contribution; it’s leading by example.”

Leach, a seasonal resident of McLean, believes Ovechkin, the National Hockey League’s reigning most valuable player, deserves the title of MVP again this year.

“These writers know a lot, but they’re not on the inside, so they don’t really know what this guy is about,” said Leach.

“What Alex does over and above for charity, how many sick kids he sees a year, how many people he helps, without a lot of publication; that’s what makes him a true champion.”

The Caps finished the regular season, 50-24-8, atop the Southeast Division, second in the Eastern Conference. They have sold out virtually all of their games this season. Last season, prior to the hiring of Head Coach Bruce Boudreau, the Capitals struggled many nights only to lose their home games in a half-empty Verizon Center, despite being loaded with talent.

According to Leach, who has been with the Caps for five seasons, “When Bruce came in, it was like opening up the faucet for a lot of these guys who are allowed to play to their capabilities, and actually be allowed to make a few mistakes,” he said. “You have to have tolerance to be a coach in the National Hockey League. If you get upset about every little thing these guys do, it’s awfully tough to coach and it’s awfully tough to play. He’s allowed them to work through their mistakes.”

With a new coach last season, the Caps clinched the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, edging out their division rival Carolina Hurricanes. Despite having lots of momentum entering the playoffs last year, the Caps fell in the first round, after seven games against the Philadelphia Flyers.

The Capitals were trailing the New York Rangers 2-1, in the first round of this year’s Stanley Cup playoffs. The results of Game 4 were not available by press time. Game 5 is tonight.

Regardless if the Rangers do end up upsetting the Caps, or if the Caps lose in another round or two, or even if the Caps win the Stanley Cup, they will still have increased and energized their local fan-base substantially.

Despite DC being so much farther south than the big hockey towns up north and in Canada, the Caps have proven that if you bring out a winning hockey team anywhere, people will start paying attention. Leach sums it up best, “Alex and that core of guys like Semin and Federov and Mike [Green], and you can’t forget Nicky Backstrom, have come in and played an energy style of hockey which people like. This town appreciates hard work and a good product and they have a chance to watch maybe one of the best players ever to play the game front and center, right here in their own town.

I know these tickets are expensive, but I can tell you this guy is worth the price of admission.”

The writer can be reached at nimbalo871@verizon.net

photos by Danny Marx The Capitals scrimmage during a recent practice at the Kettler Iceplex on top of Ballston Mall in Arlington. Their recent success has energized their fan base, and sparked new interest in the team. Over the past two seasons, fan support has grown so much that practices are now open to the public free of charge. (From left to right: head coach Bruce Boudreau, right winger Eric Fehr, and goalie Jose Theodore)