Issue II, January 2022
t a S f t f a 2 i 0 r a 21-22 L e h T
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TABLE of CONTENTS LETTER from the EDITORS
NEWS
4 What’s new in the news? 8 Rising Jaywalking Rates: Why running across the street after school is a bad idea 9 Low Student Enrollment: An insight into its effects on BCPS 10 Man on the street: FSA replacement
OPINIONS
11 Senior superlatives are self-serving: The controversy behind senior superlatives
FEATURES
12 Cowboy Pride: Cooper City High School celebrates its 50th anniversary 14 Simply the best: A look into CCHS’ Teacher and NonInstructional Staff Member of the Year 16 Gender disparaties in classes: The lopsided world of stereotypical beliefs 17 Fantasy football fever: CCHS students and their leagues
ENTERTAINMENT 18 Battle of the Bowls: Bahia vs. Playa 19 Thespian Fall Production gallery
Dear reader, Welcome to the second issue of the 2021-2022 school year! This year marks CCHS’ 50 year anniversary, and in honor of such a momentous occasion, we are dedicating this issue’s theme in celebration. As a student-run publication, we hope to continue to shed light on a variety of events both past and present, that have shaped the history and future of CCHS. We would like to thank our readers for supporting us from our early beginnings as C.C. Writers 50 years ago, and would like to thank those who continue to support student journalism. We hope to continue to document the most pressing issues in our CCHS community for years to come. Sincerely, Elena Ashburn, Chris Gomes and Kayla Gates
MEET our STAFF Print Editor-in-Chief Elena Ashburn Online Editor-in-Chief Chris Gomes Managing Editor Kayla Gates
SPORTS
20 Athlete of the Issue: Madison Smith’s journey with Spinal Muscular Atrophy and softball 21 Fall Sports Highlights gallery
Social Media Editor Nicole Nadler Head Editors Olivia Gil Emily Moreno
ON the COVER
This issue of The Lariat is themed to celebrate the 50th anniversary of our school. The logo on the cover was used throughout all the 50th anniversary celebrations this year.
Staff Writers Ashlyn Cohen Lucia Correa Ava Kuznik Malia Lahey Lily Mitchell Nina Ramirez Addison Roberts Photographers Shira Aroshas Melissa Sarosi Adviser Fallan Patterson
General Editors Jenna Hendrick Orian Tzipora Harosh
Cover design by Elena Ashburn Logo by Cooper City High School All graphics and images not credited to The Lariat Staff comply with fair use standards.
The opinions and/or activities are not endorsed or sponsored by the School Board.
table of contents 3
What’s new No more mandate: New vote results in lifting the mask mandate in all BCPS schools, allows opt-out The School Board of Broward County (SBBC) voted 7-1 to remove the current mask mandate and substitute it with a new optional policy on November 9. Masks were previously made optional for high school students in October, but now the order extends to all students. Masks will now be ‘strongly encouraged’ for high, middle and elementary school students, staff, visitors and vendors. A formal opt-out process is not required. B r o w a r d County Public Schools (BCPS) implemented their new policy on November 20. “We also wanted to make sure [when choosing a date for implementation] that we gave ample opportunity for our students and our families who wanted to be able to go out and receive their first vaccine or vaccination, they had the ability to do that,” BCPS Interim Superintendent Dr. Vickie Cartwright said in a press briefing. Some community members agreed with SBBC’s tiered approach to mask mandates after vaccines were recently approved for children as young as five. “As more and more people become fully vaccinated and COVID cases decrease, I don’t mind, slowly, reducing the restrictions of wearing masks, as long as everyone 4 news feels comfortable and safe,” middle school
speech-language pathologist Cynthia Ortiz-Correa said. During the meeting, vaccines were also addressed as elementary schools will be visited by medical professionals to provide vaccines for the newly allowed age group. These strategies were previously seen at high schools around the county. However, the SBBC is not requiring vaccines at the moment. “I think that using the masks should be mandatory because not all students have the vaccine,” the parent of a Pioneer Middle School eighth grader Zulma Suarez said. “I understand maybe some parents agree with vaccines or might not but I believe that students should keep using the mask.” In addition to vaccines, the steady decline in quarantining students has also been cited as a reason to lift the mandate. BCPS saw as many as 733 students quarantined on October 25, and it has fallen to only 484 in early November. “I think it’s better if people have the vaccine they can not wear a mask and if they don’t have the vaccine they should,” Pioneer Middle School eighth grader Juan Calderon said. “But I think it should be mandatory for elementary.”
BY EMILY MORENO AND ELENA ASHBURN Photo by The Lariat Staff
in the news? Harvest Drive makeover: What was new this year? The COVID-19 pandemic made this year’s Harvest Drive food collection more challenging than usual, with CCHS losing its Publix location where people would stand with a list of items and ask shoppers to buy and donate. To try and get more student involvement this year, CCHS had put a twist on the collections. Each club competed against one another to see who could bring in the most items with each item having a different value. “This year we added the inter-club competition to try to make a fun, friendly good cause competition and whichever club collects the most items would get some sort of pizza party at the end,” National Honors Society (NHS) advisor and teacher Nicole Hicks said. Having friendly competition is a way for students to be more involved and work together to achieve a common goal. The Harvest Drive collection at CCHS normally reaches 16 pallets of donations collected, however this year proved challenging. “I’m excited to report that the Cooper City kind cowboys rallied and we came close to hitting our goal with the support of the students bringing the items and a local public’s allowing us the opportunity to collect for a few hours on a Saturday,” Hicks said. The collections were open to everybody and clubs
like NHS, Key Club and Interact Club were just some of the many that took part in this year’s friendly competition. “I have deeply enjoyed working with the rest of the NHS [members] to help facilitate another year of giving back through the Harvest Drive,” junior and NHS vice president Matthew Feirstein said. “We worked to bring a new and innovative approach to help foster and incentivize giving back, especially in such needing times.” With this year’s Harvest Drive having a spin on it, many clubs were eager to participate for the good cause. The Harvest Drive is a tradition at CCHS and within all of Broward County that has been going on for over 28 years. It provides Thanksgiving meals for people in need and brings them other items as well. The collection ended up with CCHS being short of the collection goal of 16 pallets and the DECA class/club won the competition for most points of collection items. “We are kind cowboys and we take care of one another and we’re here together to make the world a better place,” Principal Vera Perkovic said.
BY ORIAN TZIPORA HAROSH Photo by Melissa Sarosi
news 5
Pandemic pill: A new weapon against COVID-19 A new pill called Molnupiravir produced by Merck & Co. has the potential to ease COVID symptoms before they become serious. The current debate in the fight against COVID-19 is the public’s resistance to receiving the vaccines introduced by Pfizer and Moderna. This issue has been complicated by the continuous spread of vaccine misinformation, the beginning of booster shot administration and vaccine mixing. This pill may provide an alternative for those who are still hesitant. Although the pill doesn’t prevent infection and spread of COVID, it has alleviated symptoms preventing hospitalization or death in trials. Merck applied to the Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) for emergency use authorization, a similar process the vaccines went through as part of Operation Warp Speed. The FDA voted November 30, 1310 in support of the emergency use of the Molnupiravir pill. “The extraordinary impact of this pandemic demands that we move with unprecedented urgency,” Merck President and CEO Robert M. Davis said in a recent press release. As the first oral treatment for COVID-19 this new medicine could have a large impact on the pandemic and become a persistent form of medication if COVID becomes a regular threat.
BY ADDISON ROBERTS
CCHS campus cleanup: A solution to clean up our school with student involvement and incentives CCHS has existed for 50 years, and a lot has occurred on our campus. In that time, our school has gone through a variety of changes, many of which have taken a toll on the cleanliness of our campus. National Honor Society (NHS) advisor Nicole Hicks and Florida Future Educators of America (FFEA) advisor Deborah Covard along with the student body have come up with a creative solution to help fix the problem that plagues many high schools. Together, they came up with a campus cleanup that provides incentives for students but also helps to clean up our school. “We started [on November 6] and plan on carrying into the spring,” Hicks said. “Mrs. Covard and I were thinking about a way to get the kids an opportunity to earn service hours, but in an actual, authentic way of doing deeds for the community and then something for a campus so that if you think it’s beautiful, you’ll want to do it.” The campus cleanup occurs monthly until March 12, but there are ideas of extending it beyond then. “It’s open to everybody, not just clubs, [but] also for kids who want community service, but we originally reached out to NHS, [Student Government Association], [Latinos In Action], Multicultural Club, and almost everybody,” Hicks said. “It’s a great way to get to know kids outside of the classroom, and it’s great to do something hands-on together for a common purpose.” On the surface, a campus cleanup may seem like just a way to get service hours, but it also allows teachers insight into the students they teach every day. 6 news It’s also a good opportunity to improve
our school’s well-being through student involvement. “When we were preparing for our 50th anniversary, we knew we were going to be touring the school with alumni, so we wanted to make the campus beautiful, and we thought to ourselves (Mrs. Hicks and I), how can we help cleanup the campus, make everything really pretty but also get the students involved in it, because this is our school and everybody is a part of it, while also providing community service,” Covard said. The connection between students and teachers remains a focal point in this project. The project helps facilitate bonding between the student body and faculty in the quest for a common purpose. “We liked it and we thought why not do this every month?” Covard said. “Truly, it’s not a club thing.” What once started as a way to help cleanup the campus in preparation for the 50th anniversary celebration has morphed beyond that. In conjunction with the student body, Mrs. Hicks and Mrs. Covard have spearheaded a project designed to help improve life on campus for the present, while also providing meaningful incentives for students to participate. However, it’s not all just a means to earn community service hours. There is also a larger connection being made. “All students of CCHS are invited and welcomed to help participate to better our campus,” Covard said. “It’s for anybody, whether you are in a club or not in a club.”
BY CHRIS GOMES
Keeping our cool: A/C malfunction leads to an hour long break After a cool Tuesday morning, the temperature picked up, but with the air conditioning off in all buildings, this led to classrooms heating up. Some students started to feel the heat with a few getting headaches or overheating while in class. In order to keep students cool, administration enacted an hour-long break to let students get some fresh air. “I was in class and I had headaches and I couldn’t focus and I was sweating,” sophomore Lydia Kentis said. “I felt dizzy at some points.” Starting after third period or B lunch on November 30, all of the student body congregated at the courtyard, red awning and surrounding areas as they
awaited instructions to return to class. Students used the opportunity to socialize with their peers and waters were passed out to the students before everyone finally returned to class for about 50 minutes of instruction. “Being outside for an hour was actually beneficial to me because the heat was becoming a little unbearable,” sophomore Madison Rodriguez said. “It gave us some time to regroup before having time to go back to class. Plus I got to miss math, which added a big bonus of course.”
BY EMILY MORENO
2021’s Winter Spirit Week: CCHS is kicking off the holiday season CCHS is preparing for this year’s Winter Spirit Week. Starting December 6, the school will be getting ready for the holiday season. Coordinated by the Student Government Association (SGA), each day has a festive theme assigned. “I’m excited to see everyone dress up and participate in spirit week,” SGA recording secretary Ellen Huang said. Monday is a pajama day inspired by the infamous christmas movie Home Alone. Tuesday is a whiteout inspired by Frosty the Snowman. Of course, no spirit week is complete without a twin day, which is on Wednesday. Students are encouraged to match their “Santa buddies.” Thursday is a Grinch day, as students are encouraged to wear crazy Whoville headwear or crazy hats. Finally, Friday is the Nightmare Before Midterms, which is an ugly sweater day.
“Winter Spirit Week is an opportunity for both students and teachers to have a little fun before the stress of midterms. Much like Homecoming Week, Winter Spirit Week gives us all an opportunity to dress up with our friends in the various themed days,” SGA advisor Natalie Flaten said. “SGA tries to come up with dress-up days with items and clothing that students and staff may already have in their closets in order to make it easy for everyone to participate, so we hope that a large number of CCHS Cowboys will join us in this fun week!”
BY EMILY MORENO Photo by Emily Moreno
news 7
Rising Jaywalking Rates
Running across the street after school can be dangerous It’s a popular place to grab a morning coffee and to spend time with friends after school, but since the Cooper Square Retail Plaza (CSRP) opened across from CCHS, it has seen a rise in jaywalking rates as high as their ice cream sales. This illegal and highly dangerous act has become commonplace among CCHS students. Some CCHS staff attribute this increase in jaywalking to the opening of CSRP. “When Cooper Square opened up, there was a large percentage of students who [began to] head over there after school or before school,” eleventh grade assistant principal Robert Herzog said. “Unfortunately, based on previous walking assignments, the students are just walking from the South gate by [the softball field], across the street; which is the quickest way.” As students walk from point A to point B, they have found that the fastest way through is a honkfilled and bolting straight line through Stirling Road rather than taking the crosswalk by CCHS. This reckless route to CSRP has caused some students to earn jaywalking tickets in the process. “Unfortunately, there have been a few students who have gotten tickets or at least warnings from the deputies [for jaywalking],” Herzog said. With before school traffic being characteristically chancy, even students who follow safety precautions have found themselves in injury-inflicting situations. “I was skating to school and a truck stopped for the stop sign on the crosswalk, instead of before the crosswalk,” sophomore Andrew Guzman said. “I wasn’t necessarily hit by the truck, but my foot was run over.” With heavy foot traffic colliding with street traffic before after 8 news and
school, CCHS’ administration and security teams have put a number of precautions in place to prevent future jaywalking and, in turn, further injury. “Jaywalking is dangerous and illegal, so we have been encouraging students to walk directly to the East of [the softball field], to the crosswalk,” Herzog said.“We’ve been working diligently in collaboration with the Broward Sheriff ’s Office (BSO) to keep everyone safe.” Herzog is delivering morning announcements over CCHS’ intercom to remind students of afterschool traffic and to advise them to use the school’s crosswalk. BSO is also patrolling Sterling Road, directing students to the crosswalk and even meeting with the manager of CSRP to ensure student safety. “The biggest problem is over at the plaza afterschool. BSO and the school are working together to try tightening it up,” school resource officer Kevin Coleman said. “We have a meeting sometime this week with Ms. Perkovic, Mr. May and the owner of the plaza.” C S R P ’s efforts, in collaboration with CCHS and the
BSO has not only addressed the issue of jaywalking, but of trespassing and loitering as well. According to Coleman, the plaza is enforcing rules that make these minor crimes unappealing. “What they’re trying to crack down on [now] is if you’re not over there for any purpose after school, they’re gonna trespass you,” Coleman said. The BSO’s efforts, along with Herzog’s daily morning announcements have helped to reduce the amount of student jaywalkers before and after school. “I have noticed a reduction in the amount of students that have been crossing Stirling illegally, by utilizing jaywalking,” Herzog said. With help from CSRP, CCHS is looking forward to a virtually jaywalk-free school year. As the school’s outreach has led to safer before and after school routines, students have been guided away from oncoming traffic and towards a concrete paved path. Though taking this route creates a minor detour for students, it is the legal and cautious way to enjoy an afterschool ice cream.
BY OLIVIA GIL
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With thousands of students reported as “missing” in Broward County Public Schools (BCPS), the Broward Teachers Union (BTU) canvassed neighborhoods on September 25, hoping to find their students. This door-to-door outreach approach has been named the “Ready for You! ReEngagement campaign.” It brought together educators from across Broward County, including CCHS’ own Principal Vera Perkovic and twelfth grade assistant principal, Carla Hozebin. In conjunction with other members of BTU, they were able to reach families at their homes and find out why their students were not attending school. Many BTU members found that these students had not been attending school due to a transition to online school, via Florida Virtual School (FLVS) or even moving out of the country, while still registered at BCPS. “I understand that there is a lower enrollment across Broward County Public Schools, due to the fact that many students were online last year and may not be attending face to face instruction [this year],” Hozebin said. “I went with Ms. Perkovic to students’ homes to try to either update their records, make sure that they were enrolled in school and attending and/or get them to be enrolled at Broward County Public Schools with much success.” Though this approach brought many students back to school, BCPS staff may not see the extent of their
efforts u n t i l the end of Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) week, which ran October 11-15. FTE week determines the state funding that schools will receive based on student attendance reports turned into the Florida Department of Education and, in turn, the Florida Education Finance Program. Without this funding, public schools across the county could face a series of cutbacks, reflecting those seen at nearby schools. Cooper City Elementary School (CCES), for example, was forced to downsize its science and media programs due to lower enrollment. These two decisions led some parents and teachers to believe it will negatively affect students in the future. “I was just really disappointed when I got the call and the email about them cutting the science special. It’s one of my kids’ favorite things to come home and tell me about, especially as a science teacher,” Marine Science teacher and father of two CCES students Jason Scarlatelli said. CCES has not cut their science program entirely, as it is still taught in the classroom. Much like their media program, which has also been removed as a special, according to Scarlatelli. Some teachers at CCHS are concerned how lower enrollment and subsequent cutbacks could affect their students, many of whom rely on academics and electives to increase interest in future careers. “Now, with cutbacks and staffing issues, we’re going to lose
the interest that we provided, that the school has provided to them over the years,” English 4 teacher Shauna Mogan said. Many students discover interests at school and in the classroom on topics they may only realize could be a career path after their experiences on campus. This is an issue which has yet to be seen just a mile away at Pioneer Middle School (PMS), where many CCES students make their transition from primary into secondary learning. Though this is an uncertainty that many Broward County public schools now face, the likelihood of it affecting PMS, as well as CCHS, appears to be low. “As far as I know, our student enrollment does not appear to be down regarding the number of students, with an average at about 25 per class size,” Pioneer Middle School teacher Kathleen Mogan said. CCHS is seeing similar statistics, with only an 11-student decrease from the 2020-2021 school year to the 2021-2022 school year, according to CCHS’s information management specialist Chiquita Black. As the number of unenrolled students matches the new student registration almost exactly, CCHS may not see any changes by the end of FTE week at all. Once schools secure their student attendance numbers by the end of FTE week, the state will ensure an appropriate amount of funding which will allow their curricular and extracurricular programs to continue running without facing unnecessary cutbacks.
BY OLIVIA GIL READ MORE AT: thelariatonline.com
news 9
TH E S N T O REET N A M FSA REPLACEMENT
For many students in Florida when they think of state tests, they think of the Florida Standards Assessment (FSA). This year that might change. Governer Ron DeSantis is planning to eliminate the FSA and replace it with ‘progress monitoring.’ He also adds that this year will be the last for annual tests. This change will affect mostly sophomores, but freshmen and juniors also have strong opinions.
Briana Galarza, freshman “FSA testing stresses out students and should not determine how well the students understand the curriculum. Students crack under pressure and might get bad scores but have good grades so this change will be good.”
Jada Knight, sophomore
“I think that's a good idea especially because state testing tends to cause stress in students.”
Madison Jockers, sophomore
“I think having progress checks throughout the year is better than having one big test at the end of the school year because it will be a lot less stressful for students and teachers.”
Rachel Weiss, junior
“It [the progress check] will put less stress on everyone turning test season. Also possibly make us feel less judged for a score on a standardized test, that isn't that big of a deal in the long run especially if some people don't test well.”
Maya Levinstein, junior
“I wouldn't mind no state testing, because some people don't really test well or they get nervous, so it doesn't make sense to test us all on the same thing and then measure our intelligence based on that.”
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BY AVA KUZNIK Photos by Ava Kuznik
Senior superlatives are a time-honored tradition that allows the senior class to vote titles for their peers in various categories. “The officer team and I wanted to choose senior superlative categories that we thought our classmates would find fun and relatable,” senior class president Harris Aversa said.
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This year, the process works by nomination by peers and then voting based on the top three candidates per each category. Some of the senior superlatives that students can run for are Class Clown, Most Likely to Run for President, as well as many other cliches that organize into the head of certain cliques. Such as that of the title Social Butterfly, that, as the name concludes, awards the person who is the most popular and sociable. Senior superlatives accentuate the already difficult pressures involving popularity in highschool. In today’s modern age, whoever gets the most votes often has the most
followers on social media as that is where most of the campaigning occurs. Many seniors have taken to social media to gain campaign for nominations. However, the focus should be on the students, to nominate who they feel deserve the vote, rather than who has the best campaign. This, in turn, ensures that the students with the most followers will have the most influence over the voting decisions. Which begs the question whether or not the people that are running truly deserve the award over others with less social media popularity. “I’m voting for people that I feel best match the characteristics of the title that they are running for,” senior Tamar Shani said. “I chose to run for Ms. Cooper because I feel that it is the title that best matches me.” For instance, one should not campaign to be nominated for having the best eyes. This skews the sample of the nominees in the running. Even though some may want to be nominated based on the actuality of the category, many merely choose the title that they most want to show to their future children to brag about how cool their mom was in her youth.
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The controversy behind senior superlatives
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But s o m e underclassmen are looking forward to this. “Senior superlatives seem like fun,” junior Jordan Deåblasis said. “I see all of the campaigns on social media and am looking forward to having this my senior year.” Though it may seem small, comparing students to each other, particularly those that categorize one’s appearance, pits peers against peers and can make someone feel unwanted by their appearance as students will need to vote who has the best of their features in the category. A proposed solution could be to cease social media campaigns, especially before voting, and to discard the ones that rate a student’s appearance such as “Best Eyes” and “Best Hair.” As they are now, senior superlatives have become a frivolous school-sanctioned popularity contest.
BY NICOLE NADLER
opinion 11
e d i r P y Cowbo tes its a r b le e c l o o h c S h Cooper City Hig 50th anniversary Cooper City High School’s “tradition of excellence” was highlighted at its 50th anniversary celebration. Founded in 1971, the school reflected on its history and growth. CCHS alumni were invited back to Cooper City to celebrate homecoming at their former high school. The celebration took place during the school’s homecoming week. The celebration kicked off at the CCHS homecoming football game, which took place on Friday, October 15. Members of the CCHS community arrived on campus at 5 p.m. for a preparty. The event had music, games, photo booths and food trucks. Current and former CCHS students roamed the stadium up until kickoff. Attendees took group pictures, played cornhole and bought food from vendors such as Clutch Coffee. Fans were decked out in their Cowboy colors of red, black and white, and alumni were invited to join the Sound of Pride halftime performance. The 50th anniversary celebration continued the following day. CCHS alumni were invited back to CCHS onthe morning of the homecoming 12 news dance. The school
opened its doors from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, October 16 for campus tours. The event was organized by the AICE Travel and Tourism class. As part of the course’s curriculum, the students are required to organize and host a large-scale event. The class saw the school’s 50th anniversary as the perfect opportunity to plan an event. “The 50 year anniversary was a great success,” AICE Travel and Tourism student Jerry Valdez said. “It was so good to see all the alumni come together and see their old school.” Over 50 CCHS alumni attended the event. The attendees were guided through the campus, which has undergone a series of substantial renovations over the course of the school’s history. For many alumni, the current campus has been completely transformed. “The school has changed a lot; they have added so many new buildings, a swimming pool and best of all a football field with lights to enjoy home games,” ESE Department Chair and event organizer Nicole Hicks said. “But the Cowboy spirit still remains the same with the students.” The red awning housed
high top tables and 50th anniversary decorations. On the outdoor stage, the band performed for the guests as they enjoyed food and refreshments. The event featured contributions from the current student body as well. In the gym, representatives from each organization on campus set up booths to showcase the history of their clubs and sports. Alumni were able to talk to members of the groups they were once a part of. Aside from the alumni, the event featured many esteemed guests. New Broward County Public Schools (BCPS) Interim Superintendent Vickie Cartwright made an appearance. She met with Principal Perkovic and thanked the CCHS student body for its contributions to the community as a whole. “It was such a pleasure to meet Principal Perkovic and staff members during Cooper City High School’s 50th Anniversary Celebration,” Cartwright said.
BY KAYLA GATES
50th Anniversary Celebration
Throughout the month of October, CCHS put on several events to celebrate the anniversary of the school, including the Homecoming game and a 50th anniversary alumni event.
Photos by Melissa Sarosi, Emily Moreno, Shira Aroshas and Elena Ashburn
news 13
T S E B E H T Y L P SIM
A look
eacher and T ’ S H C C o int
Non-Instr
r aff Membe t S l a n o i t c u
of the Year
Hard work, dedication and a sense of community. All three of those are things valued by CCHS’ community of Cowboys, and all three of those are traits embodied by this year’s Teacher and Non-Instructional Staff Member of the Year. In October, Misogi Abe and Idania Rodriguez were named this year’s Teacher and Non-Instructional Staff Member of the Year (respectively). The Lariat talked to both of them about their time at CCHS and what it means to them to be awarded this prestigious honor.
Misogi Abe
2021 Cooper City High School Teacher of the Year Misogi Abe is this year’s Teacher of the Year. She is in her fifth year as a mathematics teacher at CCHS and her third year as math department head. After changing her major three times, Abe graduated from Florida International University (FIU) with a bachelor’s in art history and photography. She traveled after her graduation expanding her photography portfolio but realized she was destined for a different course. “I got offered a grant and scholarship to get my Master’s in Fine Arts to then teach Fine Arts,” Abe said. “I decided that I would rather be teaching in a high school level and middleaschool level.” In 2010, she began teaching at Attucks Middle School in Hollywood and taught at middle schools for several years before she realized she wanted to teach high school students. After applying to a handful of high schools, she chose to work at CCHS. “Ms. [Michelle] Alvarez was really the teacher that kind of pulled me in to Cooper, 14 features
because I had little ones that ended up joining the Littlest Cowboys [program at CCHS],” Abe said. “Both my boys went to Littlest Cowboys, and that’s really what pulled me in [to CCHS] was the ability to teach and see my kids and see the environment that they would be in as well.” Despite her arts degree, Abe teaches math. With her engineering background, she knew she was either going to teach drafting or math, and it turned out to be the latter. “Math was just something that was just so easy to explain,” Abe said. “The patterns, the repetition of it was just something that is almost like a skill that you can build on versus I think reading and literature and it’s just so subjective in certain ways, whereas math is much more concrete. It was easy for me to teach.”
She credits her high school teachers for instilling in her a deep understanding and appreciation for math and keeps in touch with those educators that made an impact on her. “I’m still close with all my math teachers,” Abe said. “We have lunch once a year.” Being honored with this prestigious award makes Abe feel recognized for everything she does for CCHS, from gifted support, to leading the department, to teaching advanced math classes, to welcoming new teachers. “Being part of the team [at CCHS] and encouraging other new teachers [to] just come to events and just be part of it has been really important to me,” Abe said.
Idania Rodriguez
2021 Cooper City High School Noninstructional Staff Member of the Year Idania Rodriguez is this year’s non-instructional staff member of the year. She is the officer manager and the principal’s secretary, and she is on her fourth school year at CCHS. Rodriguez earned her bachelor’s degree from FIU as well, and spent most of her professional career working in human resources and customer service. After resigning from her job with a private company, Rodriguez was looking for a new path. “I wanted a more flexible job closer to home, and a job where I can also have more quality family time,” Rodriguez said. “So, it just happened that [CCHS] had an ad out, and I just happen[ed] to apply.” CCHS is the first school Rodriguez has worked at and she has had largely positive experiences here. “I love Cooper City High School,” Rodriguez said. “I love the people. I love the community, the students. And it’s just really opened my eyes as to what goes on behind the scenes at a school. So it’s made me more empathetic, towards like my, my own kids’ school, and teachers.” Rodriguez deeply appreciates the award she was given; she was not expecting it. “I was very humbled,” Rodriguez said. “I was not expecting to be nominated, and I was very humbled and very surprised, and it just I just feel really appreciated at this point.”
BY ELENA ASHBURN Photos by Melissa Sarosi and Elena Ashburn
features 15
Gender Disparities in Classes The lopsided world of stereotypical beliefs Though living in the 21st century, the world still continues to hold onto it’s stereotypical beliefs. Whether it’s thinking that only girls can be involved in taking care of children or guys being the ones to have to know how to fix cars. Take CCHS for instance, it has a variety of clubs and classes such as robotics, early childhood education, and weight training. Though either sex can join, one gender always dominates the other in involvement. One of the most common being childcare. “The majority of my students are female,” early childcare education teacher and director of Littlest Cowboys preschool Deborah Covard said. “I absolutely wish that boys would get more involved.” When asking some childcare students how they felt, they couldn’t agree more. “I think that boys should get more involved and break the gender stereotypes that teaching is for women,” junior Grace Malan said. “Because they do have a lot of fun in this class and the kids really do enjoy having other boys in the class, especially the boys that only see girls come in, they like having boys here.” “It would help give them insight [in life] as well on how to handle kids,” junior with two classes of childcare Francesca Basaran said.
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Though many agree on how beneficial it can be to both students and kids, there remains the common misbelief. “I think that sometimes people have this misconception that this is not the place for them, because they’re boys, but it actually very much is the place for them,” Covard said. Moving on to another common class: weight training. “There are many more boys to girls with me only seeing about two to three girls in my weight training class,” junior with 4th period weight training Noah Perez said. Though this class may seem to be more of one for guys, especially football players, it provides a unique experience that is valuable to anyone who decides to join. “I think it has benefits for both genders,” Perez said. “I believe that working out and getting in shape is good health ethic for either sex.” Continuing on, Robotics gives students the unique experience of building battle bots for future competition. While this is true, not too many girls are involved. “In total there are three girls including myself,” Basaran said. When asking the other side, there is the point that girls may be missing out on something that they’re interested in.
“I think there should definitely be more [girls],” robotics student Christian Chin said. “Because STEM and Robotics are really cool and I think people who are into that would really like the robotics class and club.” Not only have classes been misunderstood as more of one particular gender thing, but even clubs face the same cliché. Best Buddies is an after school club that partners students with or without disabilities. Although there is the common issue of not as many people showing up, due to it being after school, those who do argue that more people should get involved, specifically b o y s . “I 100% do think that m o r e b o y s shou ld join Best B u d d i e s ,” Best Buddies Vice President Nick Cohen said. “It’s a great cause and we only have meetings once a month, there’s no reason you can’t make time for that.” While this may not seem to be too big of a deal, it doesn’t stop at just what
the students think they can or can’t do but even extends towards the teachers as well. “Teachers tend to discipline boys more severely and provide them with more praise and feedback than girls,” The Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) stated. Though all these concepts and issues can’t all be addressed and fixed immediately, changes must be made. “Schools and teachers should encourage their classes and clubs as more gender equal,” Basaran said. “For instance, encourage more boys to do childcare and more girls into robotics.”
BY LUCIA CORREA READ MORE AT: thelariatonline.com
SY FOOTBALL FEVER A T N A F CCHS students and their leagues
For football fans, this time of year signifies the start of an annual sports tradition: fantasy season. Like any other sports community, fantasy football has fostered fun competition and life-long friendships throughout the CCHS student body. Fantasy football is a popular game in which football fans can create and manage their own teams using players from the National Football League (NFL). The simulation allows fans to create their own leagues and compete against their friends and family. While fantasy football requires no athletic ability, the game requires participants to rely on their sports knowledge in order to build the best team. Prior to the start of the NFL season, each league participates in a draft, where they can select NFL stars to make up their teams. Many groups utilize the opportunity to get together for a “draft party.” A team’s success is dependent on the players’ performances in real NFL games. Fans earn points when a player performs well, whether it be scoring a touchdown or sacking a quarterback. They can also lose points for poor performances, such as missing a field goal. The team with the most points at the end of each week wins their matchup. For many CCHS students,
the fantasy football tradition starts at a young age. One group of seniors has kept up their league for the past nine years. The boys have played fantasy football since elementary school, and have continued to this day. Over the years, the league has grown significantly in size. As the boys grew up, they made new friends, who eventually joined the league. This includes some of the seniors’ older brothers, who continue to participate in the league from their college. “Our league has grown, and so have we,” senior and original league member Adam Avin said. Each year, the group hosts a draft party, where each member has the opportunity to come together and select their teams. While many chose to participate in virtual drafts, the boys use physical boards in order to make the competition more personal. “I like watching football men score points for me,” senior and new league member Nathan Eccher said. Although intended to be fun, the boys take the game rather seriously. Last year, the loser of the league was forced to wear a shirt that read “I lost fantasy football.” Despite the antics, the league has ultimately brought the friend group closer together. The fantasy football
tradition has helped keep their group together for the past nine years and intends to do so for the years to come. While fantasy football is often viewed as an aggressive game for competitive sports fans, the group of CCHS seniors has proven that it can be so much more. Their league represents lifelong friendships built through friendly competition: the true meaning of sports. Pictured on left: (Left to right) CCHS seniors Kennan O’Malley, Jake Ligouri, Colby Dernis, Nathan Reed, Adam Avin and CCHS alumni Jagger Ligouri and Brendan O’Malley pose for a picture during the second year of their league. Pictured on right: (Left to right) CCHS seniors Nathan Reed, Kennan O’Malley, Adam Avin, Jake Ligouri, Colby Dernis, Nathan Eccher, Jake Gold, Jesse Staple and Zachary Roisman pose for a league picture this year.
BY KAYLA GATES Photos courtesy of Adam Avin
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The Battle of the Bowls Bahia vs. Playa
As new stores were being built around the time of August, two big acai bowls storefronts compete in business, Bahia Bowls and Playa Bowls. Bahia Bowls is located in Coopers Square, right across the street from CCHS. Playa Bowls is located in University Drive, Davie. Bahia Bowls gets a lot of attention from CCHS students due to its proximity to the school , it’s within walking distance for hungry students to buy after school. The store is open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturdays and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays. “I absolutely love going to Bahia Bowls after school,” sophomore Devin Alderman said. “The staff is so nice and they are always so welcoming, they know my name and my order every time I go. Their bowls are so refreshing after a long day of school and it’s a great place to catch up with any school work and hang out with my friends.” Playa Bowls is known for their adorable monthly stickers and wide variety of bowl choices. Playa Bowls opens everyday at 8 a.m. in the morning and closes at 9 p.m. . “I really like Playa Bowls’ aesthetic and atmosphere,” freshman
Alex Tortarsky said. “The bowls are so good. My personal favorite is the nutella bowl. Me and my friends got really cute mummy stickers that I put on my water bottle. It’s my favorite thing to eat before a soccer game.” Along with Bahia, Playa is known for their high quality ingredients and healthy bowls. Playa offers multiple bases to choose from and is high on friendly customer service and efficiency. Playa is known to have a tropical themed restaurant that draws a lot of attention from their customers. The theme provides a healthy summer atmosphere that reflects their healthy bowls and smoothies. Bahia is known for their purple themed restaurant to represent the look of an acai bowl. Bahia Bowl provides a list of all their ingredients online and a short summary of their health benefits. Bahia Bowl also takes severe precautions to ensure that all of their customers with allergies or any underlying health conditions are safe. Many of their customers love this idea, it makes them feel important and cared for. “Usually when I go into a store to eat something, I’ve had bad
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experiences when asking what’s gluten or not since I’m gluten free,” sophomore Esther Weissmark. “They usually tend to give me an annoyed look, but at Bahia Bowls the employees were so helpful and sweet to make sure I was safe and that made me a loyal customer since then.” The texture of a bowl at Playa is known to be more of a yogurt base. The ones at Bahia are more of a thick smoothie and are very crunchy due to their signature granola. When I went to Bahia Bowl I tried the Summer Breeze bowl, it had such a good flavor and I loved the texture. At Playa Bowls I tried the Nutella bowl and I was taken back about how good it had tasted considering that nutella and acai is an unusual combination. The competition is close and students tend to love both. They are both fantastic and have great customer service and tasty food.
BY ASHLYN COHEN Photos by Malia Lahey and Ashlyn Cohen
Thespian Fall Production
Troupe 0784 put on their production of the play “She Kills Monsters” by Qui Nguyen on November 18 and 19.
Photos courtesy of Jim Schwantes
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ATHLETE OF THE ISSUE mith’s journey with Spinal Madison S Muscular Atrophy and softball Freshman Madison Smith is just getting started on her adventure in softball, and is determined to not let her physical differences stop her from achieving her goals. Smith has Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) which causes her to have weak muscles all over her body. SMA is caused by a lack of spinal motor neuron (SMN) protein w h i c h affects t h e ner ves t h at
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control the body’s muscles. This protein is necessary for muscle development and movement.
Due to SMA, Smith uses an electric wheelchair on a daily basis. Because the wheelchair is electric, Smith is able to go over 5 miles per hour, assisting her when playing softball. Although she has lived with SMA all her life, she won’t stop living the best life that she can. Smith says that softball has always been a part of her life and she would like to keep it that way for a long time to come. “Both of my parents played softball so I grew up playing at the softball field with them,” Smith said. “When I was nine my neighbor, Stephanie Sharkey, invited me to one of her practices. Her coach asked me to come out and practice with the team and he invited me to join the team.” Although not on the same team as Sharkey anymore, Smith is currently thriving on Florida Power Black, a South Florida travel softball team, which made it to states in December.
“I now play for Florida Power Black. I taught myself to slap, which is a form of hitting where you walk in the box,” Smith said. “I hold onto my bat with one hand, and the other [hand] I drive my wheelchair with.” M a n y teammates of Smith have been exceedingly proud and happy for her since the day she joined the team, including Kyleigh Hope. “She brings encouragement like no one else on the team,” Hope said. “She always knows what’s going on and exactly what to say to encourage the team. I’m so proud of her progress and how she keeps progressing despite adversity. She tries so hard at whatever she does and isn’t afraid to keep trying if she fails.” After a series of accomplishments at Florida Power Black, Smith has decided to take on the CCHS softball team. She will be trying out for the school team in January 2022.
“Madison is in full uniform, out there with her peers,” Madison’s mother Jennifer Miller-Smith said. “She’s right there in the mix of things. She fully practices with her team, she just can’t play in the games due to rules and regulations.” With Peer Counseling, rigorous classes and the possibility of the school softball team coming into her schedule, Madison really is achieving so much as a freshman. “Something I would want people to know about those with physical differences playing sports is that just because they have a physical disability, doesn’t mean that they should be treated any differently than others,” Smith said. The future is shining bright for The Lariat’s athlete of the issue, Madison Smith.
BY JENNA HEDRICK Photo courtesy of Madison Smith
Fall Sports Highlights Below are some highlights of the CCHS fall sports season, featuring our track team, girls; volleyball team, boys’ football team, and swimming and diving team. Additionally, The Lariat staff would like to extend our congratulations to all of the students that committed on November 10 to play their sports in college.
Photos courtesy of CCHS sports teams, The Round Up, David Rosenfield and The Lariat Staff
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