Iowa City, IA
4B Sports
17A Arts and Entertainment
City v. West basketball
A day of show choir
14A Opinion
6A News
Voluntourism
March for Life
The Little Hawk Vol. 79
Thursday, February 14, 2019
Issue 4
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Budget cuts hit City High
Cuts in government funds mean the Iowa City Community School District will slash its budget for next school year by five million dollars By Shoshanna Hemley
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ABOVE: City High students with possible grade point averages. Photos do not reflect specific students’ GPAs PHOTOS BY LOTTIE GIDAL
Balancing act By Julianne Berry-Stoelzle, Alison Kenaston, and Natalie Green
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or years, graduates of City High School and other schools in the Iowa City Community School District have not been using a weighted grade point average system. In many cases, when these graduates applied for college admissions and financial aid, their GPAs were compared to weighted GPAs, making it harder for these graduates to get the same opportunities as graduates from schools with a weighted GPA system. “I worry over the years, how many students lost out on big dollars because they didn’t quite hit the GPA requirement,” Principal John Bacon said. “It bothers me and I am glad we are fixing it.” Most colleges in Iowa do not differentiate between weighted and unweighted GPAs. Those colleges use the GPA that “is most beneficial for the student.” This means that unweighted GPAs are directly compared to weighted GPAs, so City students had to get better grades in their AP/Honors classes to get the same GPA and the same chances. “The reality to me is that the ship has sailed on that issue [of weighted
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The Iowa City Community School District’s transition to a 5.0-scale GPA starting in the 20192020 school year is causing dispute throughout the students and teachers in the district versus unweighted GPAs] in our state. We have to get on board so that our kids aren’t at a disadvantage,” Bacon said. “I am really pleased that we are doing that.” Starting with the 2019-20 school year, the Iowa City Community School District will be implementing a weighted GPA system for AP and honors classes. This means that the grading scale for AP and honors will be changed to a 5.0 grading scale for only those classes. If a student takes a AP or honors class and get an A in that class, that will be five points factored into the GPA instead of four points. Then going down, a B would be four points, a C would be three points and so on, with an F still being 0 points. The grading scale will also be standardized with an A ending at 90%, B at 80%, C at 70% and D at 60%. “It’s a big deal for us,” Bacon said. “It’s something that I think is long overdue and positive.” The first time this issue was
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brought to Bacon’s attention was a few years ago when a parent of a student, who was applying for financial aid, realized that their kid was at a disadvantage. They told Bacon that they had to hit certain GPA cutoffs, which was harder to do at City High than at a high school using a weighted system. “I had looked into this a little bit at the time and I was under the impression that they were adjusting,” Bacon said. “I really believed that was correct at the time. It stuck with me.” Bacon mentioned his own son applying to college and how he has noticed that colleges look at GPA and then give students financial aid according to their GPA, without considering weighting. “Personally, I have seen things this year through new eyes because I have son that is a senior,” Bacon said. “Going through the application process and learning about financial aid, you start to understand things a little differently. All of the sudden it’s personal,
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and you get it.” With Bacon’s encouragement for change, Diane Schumacher, who is in her third year as curriculum director for the Iowa City Community School District, began investigating how many colleges adjust for weighted GPAs. She sent out a mass email to the admissions and scholarship departments of every college and university in the state of Iowa. With the results, she made a spreadsheet color-coordinating the colleges green if weighting helped and white if it did not make a difference. “I was going to make it red if weighting seemed to harm a kid,” Schumacher said. “I did not find any place where it did.” Almost all of the colleges will take the GPA regardless if the student is under a weighted GPA system, with an exception of some of the more selective colleges. However, Schumacher did not contact more prestigious colleges such as the Ivy League schools. “I started just with the Iowa colleges. I couldn’t do every place in the nation, and that is where the majority of our kids go,” Schumacher said. “Because in our survey of Iowa schools [changing to a weighted GPA] didn’t hurt anybody, I just can’t imagine that it would hurt someone going to an Ivy League either.” Story continued on page A7 Facebook.com/thelittlehawk
ithout the necessary funds from the state government to deal with the growing expenses of the Iowa City Community School District, the 2019-2020 school year will be expecting a five-milliondollar funding cut for next school year. The cuts will be made to funding for staffing; physical projects, such as renovations, will not be affected. “84 cents out of every dollar goes to somebody in the district,” Superintendent Stephen Murley said. “So most of budget goes to certified staff, teachers, or care professionals in the class.” Due to statewide lack of funding for the growing expenses of the district, certain changes will be implemented. The district has been encouraging teachers to take advantage of an early retirement program being offered. The program targets teachers and staff who will be at least 55 by June 30th, 2019 and who have been teaching with the district for a certain amount of years, at least seven consecutively. The offer is a year’s worth of salary being paid after retirement as well as the district’s health insurance until the retiree is age 65. The retired teachers will then be replaced by teachers new to the career who will be earning a lower salary. Every year, teachers’ salaries grow. Older teachers who can qualify to retire will tend to have been working within the district for longer than younger teachers. The older teachers will be earning higher salaries, so if the district can replace them with younger teachers earning less, they can save a significant portion of the five million dollars. “The district is going to make every effort to keep these changes away from the classroom, away from those direct services to kids. Whether or not that’s going to be possible, I think that remains to be seen,” Principal John Bacon said. Until the district knows how many employees will be retiring early, it will be unable to know how much more it will need to cut. Without this knowledge, the direct effect it will have on City High students is unknown. If not enough staff retire to save a significant portion of the five million dollars, than the cuts will be felt more directly at a classroom level. Some anticipated changes are potentially larger classroom sizes district-wide on both the elementary and secondary levels. Some electives with low enrollment might be put on hold. Story continued on page A7
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2A NEWS
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
Club Feature: What is RISE? Many City High students have heard of RISE club, but barely any know the acronym. RISE serves as many City High students’ safe place and is open to anyone who wishes to attend By Zoe Miller
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ISE stands for Responsible Individuals Striving for Excellence. The club meets on Tuesdays after school for about two hours. The goal of the club is to connect students with faculty who can help them address problems in their community. It serves as a safe space for students to talk about the things they are experiencing. Hassan Keita ‘22 has been attending RISE since he finished with cross-country. “I’d say [RISE] is a place where you don’t have to hide anything. You can say anything and talk about your problems,” Keita said. Ange Sila ‘19 has also found RISE to be a safe haven for discussion. “I come in and I’m surrounded by really intelligent people and we talk about our days and strive for excellence. It’s been really good. I like sitting across the table from people who are just like me,” Sila said. Everyone is welcome to join RISE. “Come in. It’s not just for minorities, it’s for everyone to come in. I kind of hate that RISE has been labeled a club for minorities. It’s not: anyone can join in. It doesn’t matter what race you are,” Sila said.
Letter from the Editors Dearest Readers,
Because of all the cancellations, we weren’t able to take a photo together so Phoebe edited this one. Happy winter.
Happy Valentine’s Day! This issue is full of The Little Hawk’s fun takes on Valentine’s Day. In the news section, we have a City High + Valentine’s Day-themed crossword puzzle, with a very special prize for the first ten readers to come to 2109 with a completed puzzle! No, editors and other people who helped make the crossword, you cannot win a prize. Speaking of prizes, The Little Hawk has had our annual cutest couple contest flooding Twitter these past few weeks. The couple with the
most liked tweet will win a $50 date to Basta on us! So get ready for the big announcement on February 14. If you love reading The Little Hawk and have always wanted to be part of the magic, sign up for news lab for third trimester or next year with your guidance counselor! We are always looking for new additions to our family, and we would LOVE to have all of you! Stop into room 2109 with any questions and we are happy to answer. Love always, Papa Phoebe & Mama Maya
NEWS 3A
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
Past prank wars By Zoe Butler
There have been many iconic pranks throughout City High’s years. Alumnus Jerry Gerard ‘80 recalls some of his favorites.
Smoke bomb clearouts
Lady liberty dress-up
Donuts on West’s hill
“It wasn’t me that did it. But I do know people that did occasionally throw a smoke bomb to into the front doors [of City High]. It was pretty intense because it was always a building-clearing event because they were fairly large smoke bombs. I think they were making it themselves. There were some pretty crafty people back in those days.”
“A lot of students from West would vandalize or dress up the Statue of Liberty we have out front. It was always a ‘rivalry’ type of thing.”
“We would...like, drive up on the grass and ‘eat’ donuts and stuff like that especially in the winter. West High has that big incredible hill that goes down to the football field. So that was really always a challenge anyway. Well, I guess it was pretty exciting.”
Car jigsaw
ART BY ZOE BUTLER
“Some of the stuff that we did that was fun was moving the cars around. Getting into the cars wasn’t the problem, because I don’t remember picking the locks. It seemed like they were all open, then we’d move them around in the parking lot. And if you get enough people you can lift anything. Literally. Everybody had to get very coordinated to get them out of the mess that we would create. It was hilarious. One time I drove this kid’s car in neutral all the way down the hill and out the parking lot and past the statue. I don’t remember exactly where I parked the kid’s car and I can’t remember whose car it was. Obviously nobody ever got into any trouble for those things back then.”
Downtown benches cause controversy
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By Henry Mildenstein
n an effort to improve the pedestrian mall, the downtown district decided to replace 80 of the old benches downtown with 70 newer benches featuring three seats as opposed to the one seat benches with no dividers. To many people, it seems as if the change was meant as a hostile action towards people experiencing homelessness. The main opponent to the new benches was the Catholic worker house, which started the initiative to replace the new benches with ones similar to the old ones. The city estimated this would cost around $150,000. Colin Fowler, the beat cop for the Iowa City downtown, suspects that the new benches won’t affect people experiencing homelessness in Iowa City. “During the recent local debate about the benches, I have yet to hear a single homeless person talk to me about it. I have also never heard of any of them being offered a place to sleep in a church, which are full of benches and out of the elements,” Fowler said. Fowler often interacts with people experiencing homelessness during his shifts. “I often start my shift in the morning with a walk through the ped mall and it is very rare to find someone sleeping on a bench from the night before. Most of the time when people talk about people sleeping on the benches in the downtown they are referring to people they see sleeping during the day. When I get called to respond to those people, they are often intoxicated and didn’t mean to sleep there,” Fowler said. Fowler believes that people experiencing homelessness do not prefer to use the benches as a place to sleep. “I talk to people experiencing homelessness every day. We are on a first-name basis and I often connect them to resources. They tell me that they don’t like to sleep on the benches overnight because they are so exposed. When the bar crowd heads downtown, they head to their sleeping spots. They prefer anywhere with shelter instead of the benches.” Fowler said. Ingrid Streitz ‘19 believes that the newly designed benches are a negative addition the downtown Iowa City. “I don’t like them, but they still have a good amount of the old ones left that people can sleep on. If they replaced all of them, I wouldn’t be ok with it I don’t think,” Streitz said. Cady Gerlach, The Director of Strategic Operations and Resource Management at Shelter House, thinks that the benches are not a hostile act towards people experiencing homelessness. “During the evening hours, we are not aware of people sleeping on the benches. There wasn’t any hostile design with the benches. For the last two years there was a very long and open public process where the materials are picked out, there were designs layed out, and there were meetings about the benches at the public library,” Gerlach said. Gerlach also believes that homelessness is a distraction to the central issues involving the newer benches. “I think the conversation about homelessness was a distraction to the central issue of public planning and how people use the benches downtown. The benches are a newer kind with a divider in the middle. If you have ever been to an airport, people don’t tend to sit next to people they don’t know without a divider,” Gerlach said. While Gerlach is an advocate for people experiencing homelessness, she does not believe that having one-seat benches accomplishes the goals that people think it will. “At Shelter House, we are working every day to house people. I don’t think benches are a longterm solution to fixing the central issue that people experiencing homelessness face, which is the lack of housing,” Gerlach said. Gerlach is also happy with the amount of work the city is putting in to help the homeless population. “They have supported a lot of endeavors and initiatives in affordable housing, they have worked with interesting and innovative zoning codes, and they have worked with different agencies with addressing direct homelessness and with agencies that help contributing factors to homelessness,” Gerlach said.
4A NEWS
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
ABOVE: Students in a MLK day workshop PHOTO BY ELLIS CHEN
City celebrates Martin Luther King Jr. Day with special classes
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By Ellis Chen & Mariam Keita
nstead of holding regular classes on Friday, Iowa City high schools held a celebration of the life of Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. At City High, students flocked to a plethora of activities and discussions about civil rights and the legacy of Dr. King. “Humanize My Hoodie,” a movement based on the use of art to eliminate negative perceptions of minorities based on their clothing, was among the most popular sessions, attracting around 50 students to screen-print shirts. Some students also chose to leave campus to do volunteering activities at places like Crowded Closet. “So much of what Martin Luther King Jr. did was about giving back to his community. And the majority of the donations for Crowded Closet go back to charities worldwide, so it’s going back to the world as a community, but also locally,” Ryan Carter ‘20 said. “It was a lot of fun. It’s fun to go out and contribute something, even if you’re also hanging out with your friends. It’s cool to think ‘I did stuff there, and it helped people out.’” Others chose to do civil rights trivia, or learn about the relationship between athletes and activism with Mr. Black, as well as the issue of media representation of minorities. Poetry was also a popular activity. The “Modern Civil Rights Movement” session connected the 1960s Civil Rights movement to current movements, with discussions of disenfranchisement that non-white voters faced, as well as modern-day voter suppression. Quotes and lyrics from Tupac, 21 Savage, and Jay-Z were also used to analyze the relationship between hip-hop music and social justice. Students also discussed the effect of some crucial individuals, like Bayard Rustin and Ruby Sales, who are often not included in history books. Panels and discussions also made up a large portion of the sessions. Aiming to facilitate an exchange of ideas about community-wide issues, the Activism Panel had local activists speak to students. For the immigration discussion, students discussed the social webs that connected immigrants and non-immigrants and shared the per-
sonal experiences and struggles that they or their family members had experienced as a result of being immigrants, including different treatment for having an accent. “My grandpa participated in activism in his country, Guyana, which helps me relate to what MLK did in terms of his activism,” Wayne Joseph ‘21, who attended the immigration session, said. Following an hour-long lunch break, Roger Lusala, president of MYEP, a non-profit organization that provides advocacy and person-centered services to people with disabilities, gave a keynote speech on the value of giving back to one’s community. Lusala was joined by Bruce Teague, a local business owner and recently elected city councilmember, who expanded the message in the context of supporting black-owned businesses. Both speakers were selected for their outstanding contributions to the Iowa City community. Another popular activity was movie watching, with films spanning from “Dolores to “Kirikou et la sorciére” to “The Hate U Give.” Following each movie, there was a discussion of the content of the movie and its relation to Dr. King and his legacy. The most popular event was hosted by social studies teacher John Burkle, who discussed representation and equality in comic books in the Little Theater and showed Marvel’s “Black Panther.” “I learned a lot about different comic books and characters that helped accentuate diversity in comics—an example of this being the X-Men, who were really a cover for society hating on the minority population just because they are different from the rest, and...minorities’ responses to that,” Sam Horwitz ‘20 said. “I think that Black Panther helped me enrich my understanding because it showed us an example of the successes of MLK. Black Panther is a prime example of how minorities are just as good, if not better, at a lot of things that the majority does not seem to want to give them credit for. The all-black cast with only a few supporting white characters really showed me how this sort of thing should be.” In the “Pop-Up Activism” activity, students identified issues important to them and considered specific ways to create change. Issues included the discipline disparities between black
ABOVE: A cultural cooking workshop in honor of MLK day PHOTO BY JONATHAN ROGERS and white students within Iowa City, as well as the legality of conversion therapy for minors in many states. “MLK was very passionate about activism and what he believed in, and that’s inspiring. He inspired others to make a change and do something, even though the times he lived in were tough,” Zola Kovach ‘21 said. “He knew it was dangerous and was literally murdered for it, tragically, but he still did it because he cared about people, which I think is amazing.” Students were also eager to participate in activities about mindfulness, which was related to MLK day through discussions of using it to build
better relationships with others. In room 3106, students formed a talking circle, a safe space in which they could share their ideas about many topics related to race. “We talked about all kinds of racial issues and things involving race. It’s something that people give power to even though it is very simple. I learned it’s important to share different opinions and not judge people,” Cece Kelly-Harvey ‘21 said of this experience with the talking circle. “Ultimately, today is a day to commemorate somebody who did something very important for the United States. It’s a sign for change and of somebody not afraid to address problems that are happening.”
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
HUMANS OF CITY HIGH “Mi familia es lo que yo amo lo mas en el mundo. Casi toda mi familia vive aquí en Iowa y siempre nos reunimos aquí a celebrar la Navidad, el Dia del Pavo, cumpleaños y cosas asi. Mucha gente no tiene la oportunidad para convivir con su familia como yo entonces estoy muy agradecida por eso momentos. Yo quiero que mi familia sea orgullosa de mi. ¿Quien no quiere eso? Una de las razones que yo trato sacar buenas notas es para que ellos sean orgullosos de mi. Sacando buenas notas y mi familia siendo orgullosa de mi son cosas que van juntos. Pero también saco buenas notas para mí misma. Yo quiero ser orgullosa de mí misma. Mi familia siendo orgullosa de mi es motivación para salir adelante.”
“Estoy apasionado de jugar soccer y basket porque eso es lo que he jugado desde que he estado pequeño. Todos mis amigos jugaban eso entonces me involucre y lo he amado desde entonces. Desde que ya podía caminar [lo he amado]. Mis primos y mis íos me llevaban a jugar con ellos y me enamore. Me siento apasionado y se me olvidan mis problemas. [Quando yo juego] se me quita la depresion y no se, nomas es algo que amo.”
“Napenda vipodozii. Tangu nilipokuwa darasa la tano. Mimi hua naangalia video kwenye YouTube na Instagram ya watu [kufanya] vipodozii. Naangalia watu kama Jaclyn Hill, NikkieTutorials, na Jackie Aina, ambaye ninampenda kwa sababu ni mweusi. Ninapenda NikkieTutorials kwa sababu mbinu zake ni nzuri sana. Napenda kufanya vipodozi kwasabu ni shughuli ninayofanya nikijihisi upweke. Pia vipodozi ni sanaa, sababu unapaka rangi kwenye uso wako kama [turubai la kuchorea]. Hatua unazochukua kama mchoraji pia unafanya vivyo hivyo kuhusiana na vipodozi.”
NEWS 5A
By Cecile Bendera & Everline Bwayo
[“My family is what I love the most in the world. Almost all of my family lives here in Iowa and we always come together to celebrate Christmas, Thanksgiving, birthdays, and things like that. Many people don’t have the opportunity to spend time with their family as I do, so I’m very grateful for those moments. I want my family to be proud of me. Who doesn’t want that? One of the reasons that I try to get good grades is so that they will be proud of me. Getting good grades and my family being proud of me are things that go together. But I also get good grades for myself. I want to be proud of myself. My family being proud of me is motivation to succeed.”]
[“I’m passionate about playing soccer and basketball because it’s something that I’ve played since I was little. All of my friends played that so I got involved and I’ve loved it ever since. Ever since I could walk [I’ve loved it]. My cousins and uncles would take me to play with them and I fell in love. I feel passionate and forget about my problems. [When I play] I don’t feel depressed anymore, and I don’t know, it’s just something that I love.”]
[“I’ve liked to do makeup ever since I was in fifth grade. I like to watch YouTube and make up Instagram videos. I watch people like Jaclyn Hill, NikkieTutorials and Jackie Aina, who I love because she is a brownskinned girl. I like NikkieTutorials because he make up techniques are really good. I like to do makeup because its a hobby I do when I feel bored. Also, makeup is art because you put makeup on you face just as you would when painting a canvas. You take the same steps as an artist as you would when you do makeup.”]
“Muchas cosas me molesta, pero creo que lo más que me molesta son las personas que están de pie en lugares donde no deberías estar. Por ejemplo, me molesta cuando a un grupo entero le gusta pararse en la parte delantera del vestíbulo y amontonarse. Esa es una sección muy ocupada y solo se quedan allí y ni siquiera les importa.”
[“A lot of things irritate me, but I think that the thing that irritates me most is people standing around in places where you shouldn’t be standing. For example, it irritates me when a whole group likes to stand in the front of the foyer and huddle up. That is a busy section and they just stand there and they don’t even care.”]
“Nilianza [kuariri] video kipindi kaka yangu alianza kufanya mziki. Alianza kuimba miziki nami nilimrikodi. Basi, baada ya hapo nikapenda kurikodi video zake zote. Lakini, tunafanya mambo mengi zaidi. Mara kwa mara mimi mwenyewe huna najirikodi nikiwa naonyesha ujuzi wangu na pia krosi zangu za mpira wa miguu. Sana sana napenda video za mziki za msanii [wa Tanzania] anayeitwa Aslay. Kuimba kwake, video zake huwa nzuri sana na pia, mazingira ya video zake hunifurahisha.”
[“I started video editing when my brother started doing music. He started singing songs and I recorded him. Then, after that, I started to love to record all his videos, but I do more than that. I record myself doing skill moves for soccer. I love the [Tanzanian] artist by the name of Aslay. I love the way he sings. His music videos are really good and...his video settings are also good.”]
6A NEWS
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
ABOVE: The rally at the March for Life in D.C. PHOTO BY JOSH POE
March for life By Phoebe Chapnick-Sorokin
A
mong the hundreds of thousands of young people who attended the 46th annual March for Life in Washington, D.C., on January 18 were seven City High students. Noah Kabat ‘20 attended the march for his second time, a tradition that he remembers his brother doing before him. “It’s always been a thing to go to as a prolifer,” Kabat said. Kabat went with 15 people from his church youth group as part of a larger group that took up four charter buses. The event began with a youth rally in Capital One arena. “[The arena] was almost full of people all just being together and that was really cool,” Kabat said of the youth rally before the march. There was then a full rally, with speakers such as Ben Shapiro, a video call from President Trump, and a surprise attendance from Mike Pence. After the rally, the group attended the march, which goes from the Washington Monument to the Supreme Court building. Teens were seen holding signs with terms such as, “Choose love, choose life,” and, “I am the pro-life generation.” Kabat said he especially enjoyed the march part of the event. “It’s breathtaking, really, the amount of people who show up,” Kabat said. “I mean, there’s half a million kids and people from all over the
Seven City High students attended the 46th annual highly controversial March for Life in Washington, D.C., on January 18, 2019 US that come and then the march itself is really fun.” Josh Poe ‘20, another student who attended the event, was amazed by the number of people who were at the march. “There were a lot more people than I thought there would be, even though I had been there last year,” Poe said. “It was really powerful to see the turnout.” Poe believes that the large turnout is partially due to the pro-life white house officials that President Trump has appointed. “People who support the movement are happy that it’s a pro-life White House and that kind of encourages people,” Poe said. Kabat hopes that by going to the march, the United States will get closer to not having legal abortions available. “The hope is that abortion is abolished and the truth about it is uncovered,” Kabat said. “I
mean, it’s basically a big lie...around the country that it’s healthcare and just that we can show that it shouldn’t be a choice.” Kabat believes that there are better options available other than abortions. “I mean, adoption is a big option. There’s pregnancy centers around the country that can help,” Kabat said. In addition to attending the March for Life event, Kabat and Poe often pray outside of Emma Goldman clinic, an abortion clinic in Iowa City. Poe strives to eliminate the stigma that the prolife movement stems from religious beliefs, rather than being fact supported. “There’s always exceptions, but there’s science out. We know that the heartbeats start pretty early,” Poe said. “It’s a moving, living thing and, I mean, there’s always exceptions, but I just think the fetus is not necessarily a bunch of cells. We’re all a bunch of cells.”
Kabat wishes that there was less negativity surrounding the pro-life movement. “I think if you could just let it be—I mean, just show it for what it is and not try to negate any of what they’re trying to do. It’s there, so don’t try to destroy it in any way,” Kabat said. Kabat believes a lot of this negativity stems from the media. As an example, he points to a video that was circulated of a teen from Covington Catholic. “They took a short video against him to find any negativity they could. I think he was unrightfully attacked,” Kabat said. “They quickly jumped on something that could make us look bad and worse than it was and longer videos will show that he didn’t really do a whole lot wrong and he had a response anyone could have in that situation.” In addition to the pro-life events, the group also took some time to walk around D.C. as tourists. “We went sightseeing around Washington, D.C., and went to a bunch of the memorials at night and they were really cool. That was really fun,” Kabat said. All in all, Poe and Kabat believe that this was an impactful experience and hope to return in upcoming years. “I keep attending to keep spreading the message. I don’t want to keep attending, because the problem we’re attending for should be resolved, but until then, I intend to keep going,” Poe said.
ABOVE: Photos from the March for Life in D.C., including (left to right) Valerie Teets ‘19, Paul Waikel ‘22, Josh Poe ‘20, Jonah Waikel ‘20, Noah Kabat ‘20, Sebastian Nuxol ‘22, and Maria Brown ‘20 PHOTOS BY JOSH POE
NEWS 7A
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
GPA change continued from A1 Schumacher also contacted the other Urban Education Network (UEN) schools, which are other schools with high student populations, in Cedar Rapids, Des Moines, and Davenport, and asked their curriculum directors if they used weighted or unweighted GPAs. She found out that most of them used weighted grading systems and shared all of the information she had gathered with the secondary administrators. “They all agreed, if it’s going to help our students, we should move forward with this,” Schumacher said. The next decision was choosing which classes to weight. Most other UEN schools weight AP classes and either honors, college classes, or Project Lead The Way courses. The administrators of the Iowa City Community School District decided to start with weighting AP and honors Courses. “A couple of [the curriculum administrators of other UEN schools] told me, ‘Get ready, because when you start down the road of weighted grades, you’re going to get every teacher saying, ‘Weight my course. It should be weighted too. My kids work really hard and should have a weighted grade as well,’” Schumacher said. The graduating class of 2019 will be the last class of City High students to have valedictorians. Starting next school year, a new system will be in place. Students with a GPA between 3.50 and 3.74 will be considered cum laude, 3.75 to 4.00 is magna cum laude and 4.01 or higher will be summa cum laude.. “When I was a young girl, I learned what a valedictorian was, and from that point I kind of knew it was something I wanted to try and achieve,” Victoria Weckmann ‘21 said. “Since getting to high school, I have worked really hard to keep my grades up so I could qualify for valedictorian, so when they decided to change the system it was a little disappointing.” Weckmann understands that valedictorian and summa cum laude is just a title that you graduate with, but she finds the sudden change in the system a little disheartening. “I always liked the idea of a valedictorian system. I think the whole idea behind honoring a student at graduation is that you’re honoring someone who worked really hard through high school in order to achieve great things. Because the summa cum laude system makes it easier to be one of the distinguished students at graduation, I think it takes away some of the value of the idea behind the whole thing,” Weckmann said. However, some students think that the move away from valedictorian is a good thing. With the news of the new weighted GPA system, the seniors won’t get a chance to benefit from it. Kate Murray ‘19 expressed her feelings about the two subjects. “I have some mixed feelings because I am a senior,” Murray said. “It’s a little bittersweet because I am sad I don’t get to experience it. I am [also] glad that the younger generations will.” In her opinion, the current valedictorian system only represents those kids who get As in easy classes. While she knows there are kids who get all As in harder classes, she feels like without weighting, those kids are at a disadvantage. “I don’t think [the valedictorian system] is representative of the students how take more difficult classes but get one or two Bs,” Murray said. “I think this [new cum laude system] will be more representative of the students who try harder at City High and it will reward them for that.” With this new system, Murray encourages everyone to enroll in AP and honors classes. She is excited that taking the risk of a harder class will no longer negatively impact a student’s GPA. “Take advantage of this!” Murray said. “I have not gotten to take advantage of this and never will on the high-school level. You should be able to take as many AP and honors classes as you want... even if you get a B, it will show that you are trying harder and learning more.” While this sounds encouraging, Jason Schumann, an AP World History teacher at City High, warns students not to overload on classes. “While the purpose of the policy—encouraging students to take more academically rigorous classes to better prepare them for college—is certainly admirable, I do worry it might lead to some problems down the road with students being overscheduled,” Schumann said. “I can envision a situation where students are registering for a bunch of AP and honors classes simply because they want to chase a higher GPA.” When signing up for AP and honors classes, Schumann challenges students to ask themselves, “Would I want to do an assignment for that class at 1:00am?” If the answer is no, the student
should seriously reassess if they want to take the class. “If the class covers a subject you are genuinely interested in, then the assignments do not really feel like work, and the more rigorous class is a good fit,” Schumann said. “When registering for classes, students should be encouraged to create a schedule that offers academic challenge, but also is realistic given the student’s other time commitments.” The big question for the students at City High during the transitioning period is what to do on their college applications when they are submitting a GPA that is partly weighted and partly unweighted. Administrators, especially guidance counselor Linda Hoel, are currently working on a solution to explain the transition to colleges. They plan to add an explanation to the high-school profile that City sends to all colleges to which City High students apply, as well as either on the transcript itself or the profile on the Common Application. Additionally, any student may request a standard letter explaining the weighting system that can be submitted to any college where they are applying. “[Telling colleges about the transitioning period] is a continuing issue and concern and there is more study and research and thinking that it going to go into it, so we don’t have a final response yet but this is a starting point,” Hoel said. “I know that whatever decision everyone comes up with will be a student-friendly decision because our whole purpose is to make this more equitable for our students.” There is particular worry about what box to check when applying to colleges: the one that the GPA says that it is weighted or the one that says that it is not. “I would go back to a counselor and ask them what they would recommend you checking and then if there is anywhere on the application where you can write out an explanation or anything like that, you could say, ‘Please let me explain. I checked weighted, however that only applies to my senior year,’” Schumacher said. “Then if you feel like you need more explanation, they could send a letter along with it too.” Evan McElroy ‘21 will have two years without weighting and two years with weighting factored into his GPA. He thinks that the change to weighted GPAs is a good thing, but is skeptical with the way that this change is being implemented. “I think that adding notes on the transcript is a half measure. It wouldn’t surprise me if colleges don’t read the notes because the GPA is already too low,” McElroy said. “While it won’t be fun to retroactively change GPAs, I think that it is a necessary step if the district wants to do the change.” He is extremely worried about colleges not being properly informed about this transition period. “I don’t know what the solutio[n] is, but I don’t think that leaving the old grades alone is it,” McElroy said. “All in all, if they want to change the future years, I think that they need to change the past years as well.” Many other students and parents also wish that the GPAs could be retroactively weighted. However, the administration does not feel comfortable doing this for a variety of reasons, including that some AP teachers use an extended grading scale, making 85 percent count as an A, to encourage students to take their classes without risking their GPAs. “The fact that they might have made that adjustment and we would weigh it, it seems like some of those kids might have the benefit of a double bonus,” Schumacher said. “Then you also would have kids [saying], ‘Wait, I would have taken an AP course if I would have known it was weighted.’” While she wishes that the school district could have made this change sooner, Schumacher believes that not changing the weighting is for the best, as it would not be fair to students who chose to not take an AP or honors classes due to worries about their GPA. “We just felt like we could not turn back time and make those changes for those kids in the past, that we would have to do this from this point forward,” Schumacher said. As with any change, there are a lot of mixed feelings about the Iowa City Community School District’s new weighted GPA system. However, the concerns are mainly about the transition period. Starting with the class of 2023, students will have all four years of weighted GPAs. “It’s a fresh start moving forward,” Bacon said. “Our students were at a tremendous disadvantage. By us making this change, we are leveling the playing field for our kids.”
Spending cuts continued from A1 “If we have to make cuts at the building-level staffing, that’s going to be problematic and difficult. It’s my great hope that we are going to be successful at creating a plan to keep it away from having to do that,” Bacon said. The state of Iowa has given the district 1% in supplemental aid, which is unable to keep up with the growing district. The district’s growing costs are higher than the funding given by the state, resulting in the cuts. While many district teachers understand the cuts, they are still disappointed with the loss of longtime teachers. “I’ll be sorry not to have their knowledge and experience around, because I feel like I’m still learning from them. But I mean, I understand if the district needs to stay in business, then sometimes we have to do things, but it’ll be a loss to lose all the knowledge and experience,” a longtime ICCSD teacher said. She later stated, “I don’t want [to sound like I’m] putting down young teachers, because they are amazing, and they know things, and they make us all better teachers. But also there’s a lot of really great experienced teachers out there who are leaving the district because of this incentive.” However, not everyone who was offered the incentive is taking it, for varying reasons. “As long as I have something to offer the students. I want to keep [teaching] as long as I can. It gives meaning to my life,” the same ICCSD teacher said. Although this may seem nerve-wracking to district employees, Murley believes that the local legislature has the situation under control and are aware of the issues, and Bacon believes that the surrounding community supports the need of education. “By and large, the Iowa City area is represented by people that typically have a strong commitment to public education funding,” Bacon said. “Unfortunately, in other parts of the state, there’s opposition to that and I think that in terms of why there hasn’t been funding for public educa-
tion at a higher level, I’m not sure I would look at the Iowa City contingent of the state legislature and point the finger at them.” Some students believe that public education needs to be prioritized by the state government. “It seems like they’re not prioritizing what we need efficiently,” Kate Wolfe ‘21 said. “We’re going to be the future. It’s obviously what everyone says, but it’s true. We need education because we’re going to be the next lawmakers, the next government. It’s just necessary.” Bacon agrees that the state government needs to focus more funding on public education. “When I was a kid, the motto in the state of Iowa was, ‘A place to grow,’ and I thought that was the most beautiful motto. It’s the two things we do really well. It’s kind of a double meaning. It’s a place to grow corn and farming,and it’s also a place to grow families. It’s a place to grow young people,” Bacon said. “We might not have an ocean in the state of Iowa and we might not have an NFL football team or a mountain range or a super-big city, but we have always had in this state a great commitment to being a great place to raise your family.” He believes that the state of Iowa needs strong funding for public education in order to continue being a “place to grow.” “[Public education is] one thing that the state of Iowa should just take care of at the highest possible level. We cannot sacrifice our public schools in this state. It’s an invaluable resource that we have,” Bacon said. The next steps for the district remain unknown until the district is aware of how much needs to be cut. Whether or not future cuts will need to be made depends on the state government. “Believe me, I fight hard for this school. That’s the bottom line. I fight hard for City High when it comes to advocating for what’s best for this building,” Bacon said. “So I will go into the process doing everything possible to keep budget cuts as far away from direct services to students as humanly possible, I can promise you that.”
8A NEWS
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
People gather in downtown Iowa City on January 19 for the 2019 Women’s March Photos by Zoe Millera
Women’s March By Zoe Miller
O
n January 19, 2019, people gathered in the Iowa City ped mall for the third annual Women’s March. Similar marches were held around the country. The march began with three speakers: Mazahir Salih, Mary Mascher, and Royceann Porter. Once the speakers finished, the group marched around downtown Iowa City. The speakers’ speeches focused on the progress that has been made and the change that they hope for in the future. At one point people were encouraged to hug each other to show love and unity. “I’m marching today because while I’m seeing change happening, it’s not happening fast enough. I hope that someday I can raise my daughters in a world that’s better than the one I’m growing up in,” said Ally Andreasin. The march had a smaller turnout than the ones from previous years due to the cold weather. It was about 19 degrees, paired with strong winds. After the speakers had presented, the march began. People marched along Clinton Street, chanting, “Women’s rights are human rights.” “I think it’s important that women’s voices are heard. We need to start making the pathway right for our country again,” Marianne Davenport, a City High parent, said. There was a common thread of the want of change throughout the people at the march. “I am here today because the government as it is right now needs to change. Everyone just needs to change and realize different perspectives and recognize that intersectionality needs to be approached,” said Emily Hansen.
“I’M HERE BECAUSE I THINK IT IS IMPORTANT THAT WE STAND UP FOR WHAT WE BELIEVE IN AND WE SHOULDN’T JUST LET OTHER PEOPLE TAKE AWAY OUR RIGHTS.” CLAIRE KELLY ‘18, PICTURED ON RIGHT
“TODAY I AM MARCHING FOR THE EQUAL RIGHTS OF ALL PEOPLE NO MATTER THEIR GENDER, SEXUALITY, RACE OR ETHNICITY.” EDDIE,
PICTURED ON LEFT
9A NEWS
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
LH Crossword By Phoebe Chapnick-Sorokin & friends
The first ten people to come to room 2109 with a completed puzzle will receive a special treat!
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
10A NEWS
nw Ocea
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ater (9
ater. It’s the one thing we can’t live without. Humans can last without food for over three weeks (Gandhi is a famous example of this; he starved himself for over 21 days in protest of the British occupation), but without water, we die in a matter of days. Most of us consider access to this invaluable resource as fairly simple; turn on a tap, and fresh, clean water pours out. In 2010, the U.N. declared access to water a human right, and since then, global efforts have increased the number of humans who can say they have it. A lot of whether or not you have that access depends on where you were born. Canada is one of the richest countries in the world in terms of water per capita, and countries such as Sudan or Yemen are some of the poorest, despite having similar population levels. So as the world’s population booms, the question increasingly becomes: is there enough water to go around? The answer? No, there isn’t. You may remember hearing about Cape Town, South Africa’s water crisis in early 2018. Climate change had helped plunge the region into the worst drought it had seen in a century, forcing the city to declare ‘Day Zero’ on March 18, when the water would simply run out. But it’s not just Cape Town. Sao Paolo, Jakarta, London, Tokyo, Melbourne, Beijing, Istanbul, Bangladesh, Barcelona, and Mexico City will all face their own ‘Day Zero’ in the next several decades, as the global demand for water will surpass the supply as soon as 2030, 11 years from today. What is causing this rapidly increasing demand for water? What measures can we take to change how we treat and use our most valuable resource? What will be the consequences if we don’t? 6.50%
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ART BY HAILEIGH ST
By Lottie Gidal
How can we preserve water?
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The United State’s crumbling infrastructure system causes over two trillion gallons of water to be lost every year. That’s roughly 18 percent of our treated water. Harsh winters like this current one are especially hard on pipes that can be over 70 years old. But the amount of money needed to fix the system counts in the trillions of dollars.
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As agriculture makes up the vast majority of water consumption, scientits are looking for any way to help use less of it. Currently, 60 percent of the water diverted for growing crops and feeding livestock is wastedeither from leaky pipes or by evaporating due to inefficient irrigation techniques. 95 percent of the world’s irrigated farmland uses the most innefficient method: flooding the fields.
With the existing climate change scenario, by 2030, water scarcity in some arid and semi-arid places will displace between 24 million and 700 million people.
The U.S. withdraws 322 billion gallons of water per day.
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Roughly 30 percent of all food produced in the world is wasted or thrown away. Changing our habits (and portion sizes) would make an enourmous difference in the water con300 sumed.
million tons produced
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Climate change is quickly causing already wet areas to experience heavy flooding, and dry areas extreme droughts. Access to that 0.05 percent is becoming erratic and unreliable. Droughts cause populations to overuse their groundwater resources, a non-replenishable source. The US has seen the devastating effects of flooding and hurricanes, worsened by warming ocean temperatures, in Houston, Florida, and Louisiana.
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Changing where we grow crops, so the most waterless regions aren’t growing the most 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2014 water-consuming crops.
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Tons of meat produced globally
1.2 billion people, or 20 percent of the world’s population, live in areas of water scarcity, defined as when water withdrawals exceed 75 percent of the water supply.
The last time the federal government performed a water assessment was in the 1970s.
The world’s population has grown from one billion in 1800 to 7.6 billion in 2018. Projections place total population at 8.6 billion by 2035 and 10 billion by 2050.
The water footprint of the US is more than double the world average.
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THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
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Ocean water (96.50%)
Water (71%)
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Water (71%)
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Water Water(71%) (71%)
Land Land(29%) (29%)
Every time you flush a toilet, it uses 3.6 gallons; a shower takes 17.2. But personal consumption, things like running the dishwasher or sinks in the bathroom, only account for about eight percent of water consumption. Agriculture uses over 70 percent, and industry the other 20 percent. The vast majority of accessible water is embedded in the food and water we consume. The amount of water in a bottle of Coke is not what Cape Town you see in the could have enough bottle. It’s water for all 4 milembedded in lion of its residents the ingredients with the water it used to uses in its wine produce the drink, industry alone. the water it takes to grow feed, sugar, etc.
Remember the more than 70 percent of water trapped underground? Some of it exists in shallow aquifers--groundwater accumulates in pockets under top layers of soil and rock as a result of precipitation. This is then filtered down through layers of Surface level (30%) porous rock and accumulates in pockets called aquifers. The rate of replenishment depends on the type of porous rock that covers the surface, but most aquifers, if completely drained, would take hundreds of years to fill back up again. And the majority of aquifers we draw on are much deeper. Precipitation doesn’t affect the ancient water that is trapped down there. Once it’s gone, it’s gone. The U.S. Geological Survey compared aquifers to a savings accounts--it’s okay to draw from them once in a while when you’re in trouble, but any more than that and you will quickly run out. Except that’s not how we treat them. California is currently suffering its worst drought in recorded history, and has upped its use of ground- Over 50 percent of the US water dramatically, rising over 20 percent. There are relies on groundwater no restriction; people are allowed to draw as much water as they’d like, as groundwater levels are kept secret from the public. In 2018, NASA released satellite data that showed worldwide shifts in precipitaion and groundwater levels, with wet areas getting wetter and dry areas getting drier. Since those dry areas are the ones that rely heavily on groundwater, a loss in precipitation is putting the aquifer levels in a downward spiral, as the rate of withFor decades the Ogal- drawal only grows. And as those underground lala aquifer in the US water levels lower, the cost of the energy required to pump the water up to the surface becomes (one of the largest in more and more prohibitive. In California, the the world) has been cost of pumping up from a single well is approximately $300,000. And while we pump more and withdrawing at a rate more water, the ground actually starts to subside, thousands of times or sink, as the soil compresses. Mexico City is greater than its being sinking at a rate of up to nine inches per year. restored In China it is even worse. As groundwater levels have dropped as much as 45 feet in the last 50 years, sections of the Great Wall have been buried by sand, and it is estimated large portions will disappear completely in the next 10-20 years if action is not taken. There are also concerns that aquifers are becoming contaminated. Opponents of fracking, the process of drilling for underground oil by shooting high pressure water mixtures to release the gas, have long said that the proces releases dangerous chemicals that contaminate groundwater. Other toxic chemicals and nitrates used in agriculture seep into the groundwater as well.
COCA COLA 125 LITERS
CELL PHONE 909 LITERS
1 DOZEN EGGS 2,408 LITERS
Aquifers
Water (71%)
Surface level (30%)
esh eshwater water(3.50%) (3.50%)
Surface level (30%) Groundwater (70%)
Land (29%)
Groundwater (70%)
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Groundwater Groundwater(70%) (70%)
Surface Surfacelevel level(30%) (30%)
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TEFFENS
3.4 million people die a year from preventable water-related diseases.
Compared to today, five times as much land worldwide will be under extreme drought by 2050
The average American diet alone uses 1,000 gallons of water. That’s the equivalent of about 60 showers. While much of the water is embedded in the ingredients, how far your food has traveled is another factor to consider, as well as whether it was grass or grain-fed, as the latter is more water-consumptive.
What about desalination?
So we can only drink three pert of the water on Earth. Why not d a way to access the other 97 cent? Drinking straight saltwater ually rapidly dehydrates you. Denation isn’t anything new; it’s ually been around for thousands years. It’s even mentioned in the le (see Exodus 15:22-26). Sailors , and still do, use it on longer ages. Earth does it all the time: ar desalination of saltwater is ere rain comes from. The human-driven process of ling saline water to evaporate d remove the freshwater is relied
Throughout human history, water has been treated, and priced, as a public resource. But as its scarcity grows, private interests are starting to eye the world’s water supply as an increasingly profitable commodity. A basic example might be the company Nestle, which recently caught heat for buying the rights to small aquifers that communities depend on and draining them to resell the water in bottled form, paying exponentially cheaper
on by one percent of the world’s population (Israel alone gets 50% of its water from desalination plants), and that number is only growing. The UN estimates that by 2025, 14 percent of the world’s population will rely on desalination for their daily needs. The problem is, it’s just too expensive. Most of the cost comes from the energy required to run the plants. By some estimates, you would need to transport water 2,000 km to equal the cost of desalinating it. At the moment, the technology does not exist to produce enough water in any kind of cost-efficient way.
COTTON SHIRT 2,700 LITERS
1 LB BEEF 9,000 LITERS All products have some hidden amount of water, but nothing comes close to the amount of water used to produce meat. Cows eat alfalfa, which the US grows in the desert regions of California, who ships in over two trillion gallons of water a year from the Colorado River to grow the cattle feed. Americans are notorious for diets high in meat, and the rest of the world is starting to join in. But they can’t...there simply isn’t enough water. Just a year of a vegetarian diet is estimated to save 575,000 liters of water. It’s not that eating meat is inherently wasteful, Americans just tend to do it a lot more than is considered healthy. Cutting back even a little makes a big impact.
“Water is the petroleum of the 21st century” -Goldman Sachs prices than what residents were. This has raised the age-old question of who has the rights to what water. But if water is public (and therefore free), there are no incentives to value it as we should. If water were financially worth something, perhaps we would not be using it in such absurdly wasteful ways. Too often what we pay for water doesn’t even cover the cost of transport. But if water were worth more, the price of everyday products would skyrocket, and the burden of this would be born by the poor.
GLOBAL MEAT CONSUMPTION 350
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Accessible (33.33%) (70%) Groundwater (70%) (33.33%) Surface level Groundwater (30%) Trapped (66.67%) Accessible
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Fresh water (3.50%)
Land (29%)
Fresh water
6.67%) .50%)
Freshwater water(96.50%) (3.50%) Ocean
hen you look at the earth, what do you see? A massive planet covered mostly in water: 71 percent, to be exact. The oceans hold 96.5 percent of the Earth’s water, leaving just under three percent of all water on the planet non-saline freshwater. Of that three percent, over 2/3 is trapped in ice and glaciers at the poles. So humans have had to make do with that one percent However, about 70 percent of that one percent exists as groundwater and is extremely difficult to access. We are accustomed to using the <0.3 percent Accessible of water that flows in surface-level lakes and rivers. That is a set amount. The water isn’t going anywhere. But the ways in which we use it are. On average, humans need to drink a gallon a day to function normally.
NEWS 11A
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REFERENCES
US Geological Survey United Nations Penn State University The Pacific Institute National Geographic Water Footrpint Calculator NASA and JPL New York Times Our World In Data World Wildlife BBC News
Vox Associated Press World Water Development Sierra Club World Water Council Environmental Protection Agency Columbia University INFOGRAPHICS BY LOTTIE GIDAL AND NINA LAVEZZOSTECOPOLOUS
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12A OPINION
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
Winter blues
How seasonal change can affect mental health and how state legislation can affect the care people receive
LH Executive Editors
Maya Durham Phoebe Chapnick-Sorokin
Opinion Editors Esti Brady Rhys Holman
Features Editors
Zoë Miller Nina Lavezzo-Stecopoulos
News and Sports Editor Lottie Gidal
Photo and Video Editors Lindy Rublaitus & Alison Kenaston
Copy Editors Phoebe Chapnick-Sorokin Emme Perencevich Mira Bohannan Kumar
A&E Editor Lindy Rublaitus
Web Editor Mira Bohannan Kumar
Graphics and Social Media Editors Zoë Butler Olivia Lusala
Culture Editors Cecile Bendera Mariam Keita
Staff
Alice Boerner, Maya Chadwick, Elena Dreyer, Mario Medellin, Virginia Muturi, Montserrat Rodke, Javon Tyler-Cook, Noah Bullwinkle, Ellis Chen, Millie Garcia, Kate Goodvin, Natalie Green, Shoshanna Hemley, Reese Hill, Henry Mildenstein, Josh Poe, Owen Sorenson, Carly Weigel, Jack Bacon, Eva Bailey, Julianne Berry-Stoelzle, Everline Bwayo, Augustine Connolly, Jesse Hausknecht-Brown, William Irvine, Rachel Meehan, Ruth Meehan, Tariq Murphy Adviser: Jonathan Rogers
Mission Statement The Little Hawk, the student newspaper of City High School, aims to inform, educate and entertain readers; to provide an educational opportunity for the students who produce it; and to provide a medium for commercial advertising. Equity Statements It is the policy of the Iowa City Community School District not to discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, disability, or socioeconomic status in its educational programs, activities, or employment practices. If you believe you have (or your child has) been discriminated against or treated unjustly at school, please contact the Equity Director, Ross Wilburn, at 509 S. Dubuque Street, 319-688-1000.
ART BY HAILEIGH STEFFENS
T
oday is February 14, 2019. Spring break is still far away and winter break feels like a distant memory. In this time between breaks, it can be easy to feel overwhelmed by the constant flow of tests and projects that seem to increase in difficulty by the week. But you are not alone in this feeling. This condition is known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Mayo Clinic defines this as “a type of depression that’s related to changes in seasons.” It is estimated by Dr. Norman Rosenthal, world-renowned researcher and psychiatrist who popularized the term SAD, to affect about six percent of the adult population in the United States, over 19 million people. With this being an issue that afflicts the lives of many students and adults throughout winter and summer, it is key to understand its causes and potential solutions of this widespread issue. SAD most commonly presents itself as feeling depressed, losing interest in things one usually enjoy, feeling sluggish or low on energy, and having thoughts about death or suicide. The time of year that one is affected by the disease can change its effects as well. During the summer, it is common to lose weight, have trouble sleeping, or feel anxiety and agitation. Conversely, during the colder months that we’re enduring now, oversleeping, weight gain, and tiredness become more likely. The exact cause of SAD is unknown. However, it is hypothesized that its cause is related to how the body responds to the change in sun-
light as seasons change. A lack of sunlight can lead to a decrease in levels of serotonin, the brain chemical commonly associated with feelings of happiness and wellbeing, leading to depressive symptoms. The lack of sunlight can also create a shift in a person’s circadian rhythm, which can cause additional changes in brain chemistry that contribute to SAD. But regardless of the exact causes, SAD is a serious disorder that can be extremely detrimental to the lives of those afflicted. So if you feel any or many of the symptoms listed above, it is possible that you are suffering from SAD or some other similar condition. If that is the case, it is important to contact a doctor or mental health professional to see if treatment would be beneficial for you. Then, if it would be beneficial, figure out what type of treatment would be best for you. Some of the most common treatments include light therapy, or shining a special light on you when you first wake up, which mimics natural sunlight and changes brain chemicals associated with mood; and psychotherapy, which is also called “talk therapy”. Though there are many types of psychotherapy, the most popular type used to treat SAD is cognitive behavioral therapy. It works to identify negative thoughts that cause the patient misery as well
as finding ways for them to cope with their condition in healthy ways. The final common treatment for SAD is medication to help ease its symptoms. This is usually done with antidepressants, which work to counteract SAD through modifying serotonin levels in the brain, though the amount and strength of the antidepressants vary depending on the severity and nature of the symptoms. But gaining access to these necessary services has become more and more difficult in recent years, due to the actions of our state legislature. In 2015, Governor Terry Branstad stopped funding and ultimately closed the mental health facilities in Mount Pleasant and Clarinda, leaving Iowa with just two mental health beds per 100,000 people. This, according to the Treatment Advocacy Center, isn’t enough, falling short of its recommendation of 50 beds per 100,000 people. These closures put Iowa in last place in the United States for mental health care as of 2017. This means that those who are in need of psychological treatment aren’t able to get the help they need. This both worsens their conditions due to lack of treatment and can, if their symptoms make them prone to violent outbursts, make them end up arrested for crimes that could have been prevented if they had access to
“IOWANS WHO ARE IN NEED OF PSYCHOLOGICAL TREATMENT AREN’T ABLE TO GET THE HELP THEY NEED.”
proper mental health programs. This also disproportionately hurts poorer communities, with a study from 2017 published in the Journal of the American Medical Association finding that nearly twice as many mental health services were available for those with high incomes compared to those who made up the bottom quartile of incomes. The only way to fix this and ensure that people are getting the help that they need and deserve is to call your state representative to express to them that equal access to mental health services is an important issue. This will create pressure on them to draft legislation that would help combat this issue and guarantee that people will receive adequate care. Unlike other issues, the availability of mental health services isn’t an issue that requires passing sweeping legislation that would upend society as we know it. It would simply mean that mental health care would be funded as the priority it should be. In 2018, Iowa had a $127.3 million budget surplus that didn’t end up being used to help Iowans. That money could have gone to services for mental health care, such as facilities to house those who need psychological help, as well as resources for mental health professionals that would help take Iowa out of our dead-last ranking in the nation. The reason for funding these services shouldn’t only be to save lives, but to ensure that those that are affected by these conditions are able to function day to day and are able to achieve fulfillment regardless of the conditions that may afflict them.
OPINION 13A
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
Head-to-Head: Is show choir a sport? T
By Julianne Berry-Stoelzle & Jesse Hausknecht-Brown
NO
F
or years, students in show choir have dealt with their passion and pastime being disrespected and dismissed by the general public. This is commonly seen in how show choir is seen as a “performance art” instead of its proper place as a sport. But the definition of a ‘sport’ is “an activity involving physical exertion or skill in which an individual or a team competes against another or others for entertainment.” This qualifies because show choir is very physically exerting activities. Not only is there intense cardio and aerobics, but the voice training and breath control alone are both very demanding on your body. Show choir is about sharp, energetic dancing, as well as powerful vocals, all at the same time. It is not an easy task to continue to sing at a loud tone while doing high-energy movements. It takes a great amount of breath control and core muscle to have the ability to do so. You can’t gain those skills without practicing, just like in any other sport. Many assume dancing and singing are natural-born skills, something that you are born being able to execute perfectly. But these preconceived notions are simply incorrect. Just like in any other sport, the skills you need have to be practiced and maintained. People are not born with the ability to pitch a baseball perfectly or swim competitively. These skills need to be practiced just like singing and dancing, or else you won’t be able to compete at a high level. Some of the best singers and dancers in the entertainment world today started off not being able to sing or dance, but with practice, they have been able to be successful. Additionally, competitions are a very important part of show choir, as in many sports. Most show choirs in the Iowa City area have three to five competitions per season. Sports such as basketball or football are played directly against another team. They gain points throughout the game, and the highest scoring team wins. Show choir competitions work in the same way. Throughout any performance, judges score the group based on execution of choreography, vocal technique, uniformity, etc. This is the equivalent of a football a touchdown or a baseball team scoring a home run. Though show choirs do not go head to head like football or basketball teams, they are still scored directly against other show choirs. Even though show choir competitions are very different from cross-country meets or volleyball tournaments, the general idea is the same--that is, to compete against other schools and organizations, as well as provide entertainment for the community.When you join a sports team, you are usually given a contract to sign saying you will attend practice, keep your grades up, eat well and stay away from drugs and alcohol. It is no different for show choir. If you break the contract you could get benched or even suspended from the team. This is virtually the same whether it be basketball, show choir or any other sport. So if it is the same contract, why is one activity a sport and one isn’t? Many people do not consider show choir a sport and think of it more as an art form. Singing and dancing are two activities society views as art and a way to express emotion. Several other sports could be listed in this category, such as figure skating and synchronized swimming which clearly qualify as sports. Though figure skating is dancing on ice, it is still a sport. Show choir is very similar in terms of the overall concept, so why can’t show choir be seen as a sport as well? Stereotypical sports and show choir are very similar in many ways that include competitions, practice, physical strength, workouts, teamwork, entertainment, and much more. Most people today don’t see show choir as an actual sport because of the singing and musical aspects. But both parts together at the same time is what really makes show choir a sport.
YES
he lights go up on a stage of costume-clad performers ready to spin, clap, harmonize, and dance in perfect synchrony in front of an audience. But is it a sport? Show choir should be viewed as an art form that requires some athletic skill, not considered a sport on its own. There are other types of arts that demand tremendous strength, such as ballet or aerial dance, yet these activities aren’t sports either. They are not based and judged on athletic ability alone. There are the other aspects that draw the crowds and make show choir performances so enjoyable. These are the performers’ ability to sing clearly, their confidence that shines through when they dance, and their ability to accurately represent a certain scene. In short, they try to captivate the audience by putting on a spectacle. When evaluating what a sport is, you have to take into account that there are many different interpretations of the word. You have to think about what activities you know are sports and gather their similar characteristics. For example, basketball, wrestling and running are sports that face no opposition to their title because they all require physical strength and hours of training. Activities like dance, show choir and arguably marching band, also require physical strength and hours of training, but the difference. here is that these activities also require an artistic or musical component In American society, especially in high school, sports are valued very highly. Show choir enthusiasts may say that they want the title of a sport, when really, they want to same recognition for their hard work that athletes get. Certain extracurriculars simply get more attention than others. Basketball, football, and volleyball have massive crowds, schoolwide attention from teachers and students, and promotions that other groups are not offered. Less popular extracurriculars like Art Club, Spanish Club, and Culinary Club have the same attention problem as show choir. People simply don’t pay attention to them. While this may be frustrating, accepting show choir into the athletic world isn’t the solution. Show choir is not judged purely for athletic ability. It’s participants don’t practice enough to build up strength and conditioning. For sports like swimming, practice is at least two hours a day, six days a week. Within the sports world, it’s true that some sports require more physical strength than others, but most sports train in the weight room to build the muscle needed for sports. While show choir participants may say that they are as active as athletes, it’s doubtful that the entire 4th Avenue company would show up to lift weights twice a week, as this would not help them improve like it would for a sport. Show choir is not judged purely for athletic ability. Show choir participants don’t practice enough to build up strength and conditioning. For sports like swimming, practice is at least two hours a day, six days a week. Within the sports world, it’s true that some sports require more physical strength than others, but most sports train in the weight room to build the muscle needed for sports. While show choir participants may defend themselves, saying that they are as active as athletes, it’s doubtful that the entire 4th Avenue company would show up to lift weights twice a week, as this would not help them improve like it would for a sport. By the majority of society, show choir is not accepted as a sport. One clear way to see this is that show choir is covered under arts and/ or entertainment sections, not the sports section. This is true for countless newspapers. Show choir is put in this section because that is where readers expect it. Show choir is physically demanding and it requires the same amount of activity as some sports, but in the end, show choir participants simply want their hard work to shine through to the rest of the world and to get the recognition they deserve.
By Rachel Meehan & Ruth Meehan
ART BY ZOË BUTLER
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM |FEBRUARY 14, 2019
OPINION 15A ART BY ZOË BUTLER
Silent anniversary A year after Parkland, discourse around gun control has dwindled, to the detriment of all By Mira Bohannan Kumar
T
oday is Valentine’s Day. It’s a day for cutting half-hearts out of a folded sheet, exchanging notes and candy and flowers, a day for cheesy romance quizzes and special additions to The Little Hawk. But this day now has a far more sobering meaning as well: it’s the anniversary of one of the deadliest mass shootings in American history. On February 14, 2018, 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz entered his alma mater, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, with a semiautomatic rifle called an AR-15. He pulled the fire alarm and began to shoot at students and faculty as they attempted to leave the building. 17 people--14 students and three faculty members--were killed: Alyssa Alhadeff, Scott Beigel, Martin Duque, Nicholas Dworet, Aaron Feis, Jaime Guttenberg, Chris Hixon, Luke Hoyer, Cara Loughran, Gina Montalto, Joaquin Oliver, Alaina Petty, Meadow Pollack, Helena Ramsay, Alex Schachter, Carmen Schentrup, and Peter Wang. Hixon, a veteran who died trying to protect students from gunfire, was the eldest at 49 years old; several of the victims were 14. 17 more were injured. One radiologist who treated the victims wrote in an article in The Atlantic that “[m]ost of them died on the spot; they had no fighting chance at life.” In the few weeks following the shooting, anger and grief intermixed to create a movement. A
group of MSD students formed Never Again MSD, organizing for common-sense gun-safety measures, like universal background checks and gun registries, in Florida and nationwide. Eventually, that movement morphed into the massive March for Our Lives, which held hundreds of marches nationwide in support of gun control. Across the country, young people, parents, communities, and advocates lobbied for change. After the success of a national school walkout, closely followed by March for Our Lives, several MSD students went on tour to promote political action and youth voter engagement, and across the nation, the spring of 2018 mobilized multitudes to speak out about gun control. Here in Iowa City, I along with several other City and West students formed Students Against School Shootings (SASS) after a walkout we organized on February 19, 2018. For almost a year now, we have been working to prevent gun violence in Iowa City, in Iowa, and around our nation. We organized a March for Our Lives event last March, for which almost a thousand members of the Iowa City community turned out in a blizzard. Now, a year after the Parkland shooting, I’m policy director for SASS, and we’re still hard at work organizing in the Iowa City area. But everything is not the same as it was a year ago. Sometime after Parkland, perhaps in the
spring or summer, something shifted. Suddenly, gun control was no longer a topic of conversation; our quick news cycles moved on to other issues like romaine lettuce recalls and prospective Democratic presidential candidates. People forgot about the tragedy of the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas. They forgot about the horror. The Dickey Amendment, which banned the CDC from researching gun violence, was repealed--but Congress did not allocate funds for that research, rendering the repeal toothless. Significant advances in gun-safety legislation were made in some states last year, but some states, like Iowa, have not become safer. In fact, the conservative-trifecta (conservative Republicans control the state house, senate, and hold the governorship) Iowa government is currently finding a way forward for an amendment to the Iowa Constitution that would prevent any gun-control measures from being enacted. Hope springs eternal--a bill proposing universal background checks has been introduced in the federal House-but any change to be made on this front will be an uphill battle against the political machine of organizations like the NRA. Progress comes slowly, yes, but progress cannot come when we choose to forget. Every year on this day, without fail, we cut half-hearts out of folded sheets, exchange notes and candy and flowers, read and write special
additions to The Little Hawk. But every year, too--not just today, but many, many days of the year--silent anniversaries pass us by, anniversaries of the tragedies that American society chooses to forget. On April 20, the anniversary of the mass shooting at Columbine High School, in which 15 people including the perpetrators died. On December 14, the anniversary of Sandy Hook, when we lost 20 young children and six school staff members. On June 12, the anniversary of the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando; on that night in 2016, 49 people were killed. On October 1, the anniversary of the mass shooting in Las Vegas, during which 59 people including the perpetrator passed on. We need to remember these devastating events as well, to honor the memories of those we have lost and to keep pushing for the change that must be made. SASS is holding letter-writing sessions at City and West today, February 14, after school, and another on Saturday, February 16 at the Iowa City Public Library (to learn more, you can check our social media @sassiowa). Join us, and tell our elected officials: We remember Parkland. We remember Columbine. We remember Sandy Hook. We remember the grief and the loss. We remember the victims. Even though the anniversary of the shooting at MSD will come every year, tragedies of its kind don’t have to happen again.
A stand for grade fairness By Azzura Sartini-Rideout & Katherine Introna
T
he school board has decided that, starting next year, we will be on a graded on a weighted system. That is to say, our grades will be on a 5.0 scale rather than a 4.0 scale. Students who obtain B’s in AP and Honors courses can still maintain a 4.0, and an A in an AP or Honors course will give a 5.0 for the purpose of calculating grade point average. The system will give students who decide to challenge themselves with harder courses the opportunity to be recognized for their efforts. However, the school board has also decided
not to apply the weighted grades retroactively, families, first impressions are important. How meaning this system will only apply to future can we expect a piece of paper attached to the years, not previous years. back of our transcripts to This signifies that, while our save us from the first-glance “WE EARNED transcripts will say “weighted biases of college admissions grades,” for juniors the previdirectors? 4,806 students OUR GRADES; WE ous three years will still apwere accepted into the UniDESERVE TO HAVE pear out of a 4.0. This puts us versity of Iowa last fall; even THEM REPRESENTED at a significant disadvantage. more applied. Although there will be a With thousands of appliACCURATELY ON OUR letter attached to our trancants, there is no guarantee TRANSCRIPTS.” scripts explaining that we are that the letter will get more in a transitioning year, at a than a glance. Our grades glance we will look far worse are crucial for catching than the competition. As us students have been the attention of the colleges that we hope to attold many times by the school system and by our tend. How can this year’s juniors hope to stand
a chance against other students if our total GPAs can only reach a maximum of a 4.25 to other schools’ 5.0? Even though the change will most affect the juniors, that does not mean that this year’s freshmen and sophomores are exempt to the issues this system creates. One of the reasons given for not changing our grades for every year of high school is that teachers may have given specific grades bearing in mind the 4.0 scale. Even if that is the case, the changes aren’t significant enough to outweigh the benefits of changing grades retroactively. We earned the grades we received; we deserve to have them represented accurately on our transcripts. The only way that the weighted system can fulfill its potential is by applying it to all of our work.
16A A&E
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
Featured Artists Bella Epstein and Haileigh Steffens
B
By Reese Hill
right colors, sprawling landscapes, and watercolors that bleed into intricately planned blotches and blocks: one of many recipes senior Bella Epstein uses to create her unique artwork. In her AP Studio Art class, she creates piece after piece to complete an extensive portfolio she will submit at the end of the year. This is not only the culmination of her year’s work, but a path she has been following her whole life. “I had a very art-centered childhood,” Epstein said. “I went to an arts preschool and I did a lot of creative activities with my mom. In elementary school, I always looked forward to art class...I think I got a lot more serious in junior high when I started taking art classes outside of school. They helped me realize how much I love art and that I wasn’t half bad at it.” Every artist faces the pressure to find their own niche in the art world. Varieties of supplies, subjects, and styles pose the challenge of discovering what works best. Epstein has used charcoal, acrylic, pencil, and many other mediums in her art, but finds watercolor to be her favorite. “Even though it was frustrating to not have a solid style and medium, I still love to experiment and try new things,” Epstein said. “There are so many different art forms and mediums to try, and it’s exciting to get out of my comfort zone...I love working with watercolors. I find them very relaxing and I always come back to them. I almost always paint nature, and I like to use vibrant colors...I want my art to convey the beauty of nature. I think it is so important to love and honor the nature around us, and I guess I do that by trying to capture its beauty.” In AP Studio Art, students spend the year creating a portfolio of 24 different pieces of high-quality artwork, 12 of which showcase the breadth of the student’s talent and 12 of which are dedicated to a specific style of piece. This is Epstein’s second year taking the class. “Last year, [the class] was really to experiment with different things and kind of find my mojo,” Epstein said. “This year, it’s me painting new subjects. I’m not super into focusing on one thing for the concentration part of the portfolio. I don’t like that, because last year I ended up painting so many landscapes, and while ABOVE: A self portrait in Bella Epstein’s own style I love painting landscapes, it just got so ART BY BELLA EPSTEIN repetitive and annoying. I think...my goal is to have a concentration but keep it exciting for me.” The workload of the AP Studio Art class, while not tedious, requires intense dedication and passion from students to create a strong portfolio on time. Epstein remains successful by never leaving around loose ends. “There have been a few paintings, like the strawberries, that have taken me so long,” Epstein said. “One accomplishment for me is that I finish almost everything so I don’t just start something and leave it.” Epstein plans to use the techniques she has developed in the class and her lifelong love of the subject to pursue a career in teaching art. “I want to teach art to kids and help them create and imagine,” Epstein said.
ART BY BELLA EPSTEIN AND HAILEIGH STEFFENS
By Owen Sorenson
E
ver since she can remember, Haileigh Steffens ‘22 has been drawing and doodling with supplies provided by her family. For Steffens, drawing is not only a way to pass time or have fun, but also a way to express herself. “It was something that I have done since I was little and when I was super bored at home I would just draw. My uncle got me a set of markers that I used for a super long time,” Steffens said. “I also would just doodle and draw during school because I would get bored and then I met some of my friends who are into art, so I suppose that reinforced my passion.” As drawing with a pencil and paper is possible anywhere and at almost any time, Steffens finds it as the best outlet for her creativity. However, she does enjoy painting if she has abundant time. “Mostly, I do just black-and-white drawing because I draw during class,” Steffens said. “If I really like something, I will ink it. I will paint sometimes, but not very often because painting can take a long time and I don’t have much patience.” Despite having multiple different art styles, doodling is still close to Steffens’ heart. Finding a passion for the simplicity of being able to take a pencil and any piece of paper and create something, she predominantly sticks to doodling. “Doodling is just like a to-go thing that someone does Say you’re in [a] position that you’re in class and you’re bored, so you just distract yourself by drawing,” Steffens said. “After a while, it becomes really fun and then it just kind of becomes a hobby.” One of Steffen’s closest friends, Grace Freerks ‘22, has been her greatest influence throughout her art career. When they first met, Steffens was inspired by Freerks’ experimentation and style. To Steffens, seeing someone who would do art simply because they wanted to try something new helped her expand her own art style. “I really like her style and she is doing all sorts of different things and just doing certain pieces of art just to experiment,” Steffens said. “Over the summer, we would have days where we would just draw a lot.” Steffens tends to follow a loose art process that helps her get her work done. She starts by letting the picture cultivate while she tactfully procrastinates. Eventually, once she feels the mood to do so, she will play a podcast and then carefully draw out her masterpiece. “I will start by procrastinating because that helps with creativity, and then I start making little sketches and I would see what has nice spacing, or what looks the best,” Steffens said. “Once I choose which one I like the best, I will sit down to a nice podcast and then start sketching in pencil and then do it in pen or Sharpie.” As a necessary progression to her art career, Steffens has taken to commissioning her art. She has discovered that commissions give her a valid reason to focus and expand her art style. However, because of this, her art focus has shifted from working for herself to working for others. “Going into high school, I realized that...I wanted to keep art as a hobby, because I really like doing art, but with school being so demanding and having so many responsibilities, art had to become a responsibility for me to keep doing it, so lately I have been doing a lot of commissions, but in the past I had never done that,” Steffens said. “With commissions, it has given me a chance to explore different styles and things. They have have really just given me a chance to explore what I could be doing.” Steffens focuses a good portion of her energy on making art for The Little Hawk. She has found that taking part as a Little Hawk artist has helped her both expand her art style and draw new and completely different subjects. “I really wanted to join The Little Hawk, but my schedule unfortunately wouldn’t allow me to do that, and so I wanted to get involved in a different way,” Steffens said. “I went and asked if they needed any art and almost immediately they contacted me wondering if I was willing to do this piece of art on shoplifting. This was just a whole new thing to me that I was really excited to do.” Without taking up commissions, Steffens wouldn’t have been exposed to the different styles and subjects that people request. She most likely would have continued her art, but would have lacked the natural expansion that commissions have offered. “I probably would have just kept to myself and [continued] doing doodles in class and I wouldn’t have really expanded my art style,” Steffens said. “I think it is really important as an artist, especially younger, to really explore and find out what you like to do and so going out and doing The Little Hawk was really cool.” Despite changing the focus of her art to more of a commision basis, Steffens does not fear the possibility of turning her art into a responsibility. Steffens views turning to commissions as a necessary but beneficial endeavour. “If I have time my to-go thing is to go to draw because I love it, but during the year I realize that I will never have time unless I have a reason to,” Steffens said. “I don’t know what that says about me, but I know I really like drawing.”
A&E 17A
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
A day in the life:
showchoir Show choir season has hit City’s two groups, 4th Ave and Charisma, hard. The two choirs have gone through two show choir competitions this season already, with two more to go. This is just one of those show choir competitions as described by the students themselves By Lindy Rublaitus
6:00 AM
Students stumble onto a cold school bus, carrying their backpacks, blankets, and instruments. Everyone is half asleep, hiding themselves in their coats as they prepare for an hourlong bus trip to their first show choir competition of the season. “I slept for most of the bus ride up, but the energy was pretty excited and tense,” said Veronica Abreu ‘19. “The roads were bad, and I think there were definitely some nerves because of that.”
8:00 AM
Charisma, 4th Ave, combo, and crew shuffle into the small classrooms and pack their items against the wall. Parent volunteers have set up mirrors, makeup kits, and curling irons for Charisma to start setting up for their performance at 9:00 am. “We’re led by a volunteer from the hosting school to our room, where the parents have set up our mirrors and put out our makeup kits,” Francesca Brown ‘21 said. “We typically have about an hour to get ready, which involves our makeup, hair, and costumes. It’s a great atmosphere, we all listen to music and sing along as we do our makeup and girls help other girls with things like eyeliner and applying false lashes. Moms go around with curling irons, adding curls to our ponytails, applying gel to keep the fly aways down, and perpetually telling us to add more blush. You can tell there’s a buzz of excitement in the air and everyone is in a good mood, despite the early hour.”
9:00 AM
Charisma hits the stage. Blue and gold sequins shine on the edges as they prepare for the music to start their performance. Announcers yell their name and students cheer from 4th Ave and Liberty Storm. “Well, being on stage is a little nerve-wracking, but thrilling at the same time. Everything just flies by when you’re up there,” Heba Abdalla ‘19 said. “After so many weeks of practice, it’s scary, especially when you’re being judged...just waiting and hearing everyone. Plus, I stand out a lot compared to the other girls, so I have this extra pressure to prove that just because you don’t fit what we’ve come to know as a show choir-looking person, you can still go out there and be just as good, but when you step on and you hear the music start, all your fear and worrying go out the window and you just enjoy the feeling of being up there.”
ABOVE: Helena Brown-Rodriquez ‘22 performing in Charisma PHOTO BY LINDY RUBLAITUS
11:30 AM
Time to relax. Some people are in the homeroom playing card games, some have headed down to the cafeteria for a snack, and some are getting some rest after the long bus ride. “Usually most of the combo congregates around or in the cafeteria,” said Tobey Epstein ‘21, a trumpet player for both show choirs. “Someone almost always brings a card game of sorts and there’s lots of shenanigans that tak[e] place. When we’re in the cafeteria, it usually means there’s not much else to do, so we waste time by talking and eating along with the card game.”
12:30 PM
One of the most intimate moments for 4th Ave is its personal warm-up with director Tyler Hagy. All of the singers gather in their homeroom and perfect vocals before they actually hit the stage for a pre-show rehearsal. “Before every performance, we try to think about why we are telling this story and some motivations we have. It is also the first time we performed outside of Iowa City and the community that started the Wave so we weren’t sure if it would mean as much to a foreign crowd,” Abreu said.
1:00 PM
Arm-in-arm, 4th Ave, combo, and crew meet in the gymnasium for a second warm-up that takes place on risers with music. They start going through the show all-out while Hagy runs to the front to scream what they need to fix to perfect the show. “It’s the point where all of your adrenaline and nerves are building up. Going through the show is just to brush up on last minute changes but after is the part that matters,” Tommy Brands ‘19 said. “We stand in a circle and Hagy talks about what this show should mean to us. You really have to go into your own head and think about the emotion you need to put in and what the show means to you specifically. Especially for a show like the Wave, where you hear about the impact it has on everyone, it’s impossible to not get into it. After our last competition, Madeline Pugh [‘19] started chanting, ‘Everywhere we go,’ and we all got super hyped up and you could feel the energy from every person in the room.”
1:30 PM
Two snare hits moves everyone onto the stage. The lights are shining bright onto the colorful group of 4th Ave and it’s time to share its message. A loud chant comes from the audience: “What street? 4th Ave!” “Walking on stage is this really nerve-racking and electric moment. Backstage, you can feel the anxiety and excitement coming off of everyone,” Lillian Prybil ‘19 said. “When the drum clicks, the cue to walk on stage, you just take a deep breath, roll your shoulders back, and smile. The lights really are blinding. A lot of people don’t realize how hard show choir can be. When you’re really dancing full-out, you get really winded and that makes it hard to sing loudly and with good technique. But since we’re being judged the entire time that we’re on stage, we can’t afford to be out of character or not sing at any moment. This year it feels more important than ever to convey the story because of what our show is about. I have to think really hard about what it would be like to be a parent of a child with a disease and to know that they might die before I do. I really try to channel that, especially in the ballad. It’s an exhausting 15-20 minutes and almost every time we get to the end of the closer, I feel lightheaded and like I have absolutely no more energy left. It sounds super cheesy, but we really do leave it all on the stage. You should feel like crap at the end, but that’s how you know you’ve performed well.”
ABOVE: Veronica Abreu ‘19 performing in 4th Avenue PHOTO BY LINDY RUBLAITUS
6:30 PM
Morning awards are one of the most tense parts as it decides that fate of the evening. If 4th Ave places in the top -scoring groups, then they perform again to have the chance to improve their score. “Morning awards are always fun, but you can tell everyone’s a little anxious. We typically have all of City sit together in the same area of the auditorium or gymnasium, like one big family. Everyone is talking about what their predictions or hopes for the awards are. At the two competitions we’ve had this year, 4th Ave has made it to finals and so everyone is really happy when they find out we’re moving on. For me, being in Charisma, morning awards are kind of like our final destination, since the place we’re given is the place we get. Then, us Charisma girls get to relax and hang out for the rest of the day, watch other groups, and cheer on 4th Ave,” Brown said.
8:00 PM
Evening performance is 4th Ave’s last chance. The group has one more chance to prove to the judges that it is the best show choir. Another ‘click-click’ from the drum set and they are back on stage. “Cheering for 4th Ave is so fun. Seeing them perform, no matter how many times I’ve seen it, doesn’t get old. I get to see my friends having fun and enjoying what they’re doing after putting in so much work. We support each other through our cheering, which makes being up there seem a little less scary when you have someone rooting for your success,” Abdalla said.
10:00 PM
Evening awards tend to start as a dance party of sorts, where show choirs dance with each other from across the room, chanting to each other and cheering on peers to do back flips or popular dance moves. The top six show choirs to perform throughout the whole day are ready to hear the final results, which pick one grand champion. “Usually, around the time of the final performance, everyone meanders into the auditorium and we start trying to gather together to cheer,” said Epstein. “The final scoring is going on behind the scenes at this point and at the same time, most of everyone attending the competition has been packed into the theater. There’s lots of waiting and singing along to background music. Finally, the results are read out systematically and we all get to cheer.” At their first competition of the season, Muscatine River City Showcase on January 12, 4th Ave placed fifth during finals and also took home the People’s Choice Award while Charisma took second place in the all-women’s division. At their second competition, Anamosa Sadie Street Showcase, 4th Ave placed third with Best Male Soloist award for Ian Allen and Best Combo while Charisma placed first as the only all-women’s show choir at the competition.
11:00 PM
The way home is sometimes the roughest part of the day. Just like the morning, some are extremely excited, still high off the energy from the awards ceremony, while others hope they can catch a wink of sleep. “On the way home, everyone should just sleep, but sometimes the whole bus sings a few songs, and then people talk among themselves. Some of the best bus rides have been when I sat near people I didn’t know super well and then got to talk to them for an hour about the most random things,” Prybil said.
18A A&E
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
The Progression of
Jazz Combos By Owen Sorenson & Emme Perencevich
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he horn section swings into an intense groove as the saxophone player readies himself to let loose an energetic, improvised solo. Aaron Ottmar, the jazz director, paces in front of the jazz combo, bobbing his head to the rhythm. “I think that the main goal of ours is just to make people feel like they have the correct tools they need [to solo],” Ottmar said. “[I hope that] when the time comes and they have to solo in front of a crowd, they will know what they are doing.” The jazz combos tend to have fewer students and a set ratio of instruments that differs from the normal composition of the big band jazz groups at City High. Ottmar also tried to include a mix
of students from the different bands. “A combo is intended to be a smaller group, ranging anywhere from a trio [to] going on 10 or 12. I tried to switch it up so it wasn’t a hierarchy of combos,” Ottmar said. “I mixed students [who] play in different jazz bands so that they are playing with different people. I wanted to mix the grades too. I kept a similar instrumentation between the combos as well, meaning I would have the same number of a certain instrument in each combo.” With the combos comes a very different set of skills that they promote. The original intention of the combos is to help students gain confidence. Due to the reduced numbers, the students are able
to hear themselves apart from the rest of the band when they play, as well as having more opportunities to play solos. A secondary goal with the combos is to help them understand how to play solos and improve their improvisational skills “I’d like for them to be more comfortable at improvisation as a whole, including their work in the big bands,” Ottmar said. Prior to this year, the City High jazz program has only ever had unofficial jazz combos. Due to many opportunities that the students in the combos had last year, Ottmar decided to formally organize the combos. “The jazz combos have always been around, but it has never really been formal. I really wanted to make it a formal thing because there are plenty of opportunities for combos to play,” Ottmar said. “I wanted to make another avenue for us to talk about jazz improv and soloing, particularly for those people who were interested in doing such a thing.” Currently, the Jazz Combos have been focusing on different arrangements of music that are designed for smaller jazz bands. The music also continues to focus on the improvement of their solo and improv skills. “There are arrangements just for combos and we have been working on them and preparing for a different performance–each combo has a different performance coming up,” Ottmar said. “In addition to that we have been talking about improv and soloing and what it is like to be in a smaller group instead of a big band.” Ottmar’s main role in the dynamic of the jazz combos is to continue to guide and direct. He also makes most of the administrative choices for the combos, choosing which festivals and competitions that they will hold a performance. The biggest responsibility, however, is to teach about students in improv and soloing. “I am directing all of the groups, but I would love it if they could get to a point where they could be self-led. I just give them some sort of direction and focus just like any other group,” Ottmar said. “I also help a lot with the soloing and improv. That is probably one of the least familiar thing[s] with any student in our jazz program, because it is something that we don’t talk about a whole lot in the other types of bands.” Despite being the main administrative force, Ottmar has allowed more power in the decision-making process to the students. So far, the students have been able to vote on the names of their jazz combos, as well as choose the songs that they are going to perform. “I would say the students play a bigger administrative role for sure because Mr. Ottmar has included us in deciding what songs to play,” Nolan Vibhakar ‘21 said, “which is very different compared to the jazz bands in which he has basically picked all the songs.” Without any set expectations, Ottmar kept an open mind and focused more on the aspect of continuing the students’ musical careers. This has allowed him to be more flexible in his areas of focus, as he didn’t feel as if he had to reach a personal quota. “I didn’t necessarily have any expectations for them. I just was wanting to have students to have more individual time and gearing towards one-on-one time to make it more comfortable with them,” Ottmar said. “I just want them to be able to recognize, especially in improv, how to understand what certain notes are good to use, what certain scales, and how good solos can be constructed, which is really [what] uses that creative part of your brain.” Despite focusing most on what needs to be fixed or improved, Ottmar has, at times, also recognized the skills that the jazz combos have improved upon. He has noticed a great shift in the students’ comfort and confidence while playing in a small group. He believes that this change is the largest point of progress in the bands. To Ottmar, the jazz bands are a great foundation to help improve these skills. “I think just having the understand[ing] of just how to play in a smaller group [has improved],” Ottmar said. “I also think just having an interaction with each other, because a jazz band is a more constructive group, has helped with improvement.” The students have also noticed an improvement in their work as the year has moved on. The combos have seen an improvement on their overall ability to improvise as well as orient them into looking ahead in their music careers. “I think the combos have definitely improved from where we started and my goal is to become an even better player, especially when it comes to improvisation,” Vibhakar said. “I think the combos do a really good job of helping with what I’m really looking forward to: just getting to play more music.”
ON THE SAX: Nolan Vibhakar ‘21 performing at the Jazz Showcase with his and several other combos PHOTO BY LINDY RUBLAITUS
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM |FEBRUARY 14, 2019
Music Review: “Human” by Dodie Clark
“Black Mirror: Bandersnatch” Review By Jesse Hausknecht-Brown
By Mira Bohannan Kumar
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A&E 19A
odie Clark produces art the way the rest of us produce carbon dioxide: as a natural byproduct of her existence. I don’t know about anyone else, but this makes me want to pull out my instruction manual and ask, “Am I doing this right?” “Human” feels like all of Dodie’s music: intimate, yet bold, like a clarion call; jumping tonally from happy songs that sound sad to sad songs that sound happy and then to songs that are neither and both; and, as always, it gives me an ache in my chest that could be tears but could also be ecstasy. This new selection is also short, like her other EPs. Dodie always creates teasingly short collections, leaving her fans to wonder which songs from her prolific YouTube channel will be released. This album, like a platter at an expensive restaurant, presents seven tastes, each lingering, each not quite enough to satisfy. I, for one, will be coming back. The album begins with “Arms Unfolding,” perhaps its most “typical” Dodie song (at least in my mind), despite its novelty. It’s delicate, full of blooming harmonies, set on a backdrop of droning hums that, every time I hear them, stop me short. It’s impossible to do anything but sit still with eyes closed when this song plays. After this opening comes “Monster,” which tells the story of a relationship that becomes hatred (the music video, directed by the fascinating and ingenious PJ Liguori, is worth several watches) in unexpected yanks of chords and chorales and a tone not unlike “In the Middle,” a previous, upbeat Dodie selection. This is the song I think of most when I say “sad songs that sound happy.” It’s a perfect song for angry dance parties. “Not What I Meant,” a gloomy, yet hopeful song about artists and social media, comes next. Lewis Watson joins Dodie to croon, “Not what I meant when I said that I/I wanted to be seen.” There is very little I can say about this song except that it is pointed and sure of itself and a piece of art. In a dizzy transition, it’s followed by the title track of the album, “Human.” This turns out to be a slightly twangy, sad-song-that-sounds-just-melancholy duet with Tom Walker about hope and unhealthy pedestalizing (that’s a word now). I think it’s a great song, but I’ve been curious about why it’s the title track of such a complex album. “Human” (the song) is the Xander Harris of this Scooby Gang. “She,” the fifth track, is perhaps the most fascinating song in the album in terms of its history. It’s an old song that Dodie recently decided to revamp, and she’s brought it to soaring life here. I’ve always liked it, but in “Human” it brings me joy (that means I get to keep it, right?). The penultimate song, “If I’m Being Honest,” hit me as a thrilling, ambitious ode to insecurity and beginnings. It’s beautiful, and Dodie’s use of strings comes to the fore here, creating not just a song but an atmosphere. “If I’m Being Honest” isn’t my favorite song in the album, but it’s the one that takes me to Dodieland on the express train. The final song, “Burned Out,” is most likely my favorite Dodie song of all time, and here it’s rendered with such delicacy that I can picture her hunched over with a pair of tweezers. Hearing it on this album brought me to the reason I love Dodie most: her art is at once open and secretive, broken and whole, weak and strong, in the way that great art is, and I want her to be happy so badly it hurts. In “Human,” she makes the listener worry, hope, laugh, and cry for her. If you haven’t heard the album, I’ll overstep my boundaries and give you a recommendation: find a free half hour. Shut the door to your bedroom. Sit on your bed, one leg beneath you, the other curled up to your chest, so that you can keep hold of yourself. Close your eyes. Press play. It’s worth it.
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dark commentary on society and free will, “Black Mirror: Bandersnatch” is filled with mystery, unexpected plot twists and a variety of bleak endings. While “Bandersnatch” has many thrilling aspects to it, the choose-your-own-adventure component leaves something to be desired. The newest installment of the “Black Mirror” series, released by Netflix on December 28, is a whole new kind of television. Interactive movies are by no means new to the cinema world, but “Black Mirror: Bandersnatch” is the first one to truly grab the audience’s attention. During the movie, the viewer has the option to make choices for the protagonist. Set in 1984, young Stefan Butler, played by Fionn Whitehead, is trying to make it in the world of video-game design with his masterpiece game, “Bandersnatch,” based on a novel written by alleged psychopath Jerome F. Davies. He meets Colin Butler, played by Will Poulter, a famous video-game creator who seems to know things that Stefan doesn’t. Tensions with his worrisome father escalate throughout the film as Stefan’s character begins to match that of Davies’s. Throughout the movie, the viewer is presented with choices that can control Stefan’s actions. These decisions can be as small as what Stefan eats for breakfast and as big as what he uses to commit a murder. The film has multiple endings, which are reached by making a certain set of choices in a specific order. However, the film seems to double back on itself, letting you see the same choice twice and choose a different option. I found parts of “Bandersnatch” to be excessively confusing because of all the repetition. It felt like I was working towards something, but didn’t know what. The obvious goal was to have Stefan make a good video game, but I think that the show was playing on the fact that the viewer would try to make moral decisions for Stefan, when in the end he always ended up dead or in prison. Having to watch and rewatch scenes was simultaneously exhausting and exciting, I became increasingly confused as the plot developed and the choices became less clear. The story didn’t move in a linear pattern like most movies, shows and books do. Instead, it moved in an jagged way, which is a different way to tell a story, but it is also unusual concept which made it hard to follow. When I worked my way through the “Bandersnatch” story, I opted not to make a choice during the whole film. My logic was that every time the viewer is presented with two choices, they really have three choices. The two obvious options shown on the bottom of the screen and then there was a third choice, to not make a choice at all. By doing this, Stefan got the five stars on his video game at the end. “Bandersnatch” was very artistically pleasing. The dark colors and shadows in essentially all of the scenes gave the movie a particularly ominous and eerie feel. There was also a retro 80’s video game theme throughout the film, which added a nice touch of nostalgia. Placing TV screens in mov-
PHOTO COURTESY OF NETFLIX ies, giving the visual effect of a screen on a screen, is a nice graphic design move and made the choices about going back in time more interesting. One of the biggest critiques I have about the movie was how the characters were not characters at all, merely plot devices placed in a story to convey a larger message. Stefan’s character was especially shallow. He seemed to be there just to open a conversation about free will. The show is incredibly meta and breaks the fourth and fifth wall over and over again; these aspects make the characters seem even more small and lifeless, because the idea behind the show is to think about a greater force, not just the surface level characters. In all honesty, the latest chapter of “Black Mirror” is immensely terrifying at points, because the viewer has to be the one to continuously make terrible decisions for Stefan and watch as whatever they choose ends in death or destruction. Stefan essentially has a conversation with the viewer about Netflix and how he doesn’t have control over his actions. This forces the viewer to think about how Netflix, along with other large cyber corporations, may really be taking control of its users. In the end, I think that “Bandersnatch” is something that everyone should watch, if not for entertainment, at least for the new way of telling a story.
“Les Misérables” to hit Opstad in spring By Reese Hill
POSTER BY LINDY RUBLAITUS
The spring musical, Les Miserables, has been cast, and the theater department is abuzz with excitement. Over 90 students auditioned against snow days and inclement weather, and the tedious casting process resulted in an ensemble of about 50 students. For many of the leads, this is their breakout performance. “Being cast as Eponine was a shock. I never really thought I’d get it,” Alejandra Revelez-Poindexter ‘19 said. “The past three years I’ve been only ensemble, so this role means quite a lot to me. Since 2012, when the movie came out, I have been obsessed with her. She’s an amazing character that carries around an immense amount of pain.” While Revelez-Poindexter is a veteran of the theater department, for many of the cast members this is only their first or second production, including Quinn Kopelman ‘19, who was cast as the revolutionary leader Enjolras. “I was really nervous to audition since I’ve never done anything involving singing or acting before, and I was really only able to because a number of my friends encouraged me,” Kopelman said. “So then to see that risk pay off with a role as cool as Enjolras is a really wonderful feeling.” While rehearsals for the actors have begun, the musicians and tech crew have a big responsibility ahead of them as well. Director Troy Peters shared information on the equipment that will be involved on the set, including a bridge that spans most
of the stage and a two-piece, 20-foot-long barricade. “The set is going to be larger than we planned,” Peters said. “We were thinking about trying to keep this small, but once we get in there and look at the space, what we have to fill, it’s going to be quite a challenge.” Last year, the set crew built a functioning turntable for the set of Little Shop of Horrors. While the plan had initially been to reuse the equipment this year, it may now prove impractical for this production. “We won’t be using the turntable because of the amount of sets that we have to wheel in and wheel off, and that would cause too much of a challenge,” Peters said. Les Miserables is “a lot of little pieces:” the objects onstage as well as the actors and crew who move and navigate around them. Set changes will happen behind a moving curtain and walls and backdrops will be flying in and out...all while the cast is performing. But Peters has faith in the department’s ability to rise to the challenge and keep the show fluid and functional. Not only that, but the cast is entering the process with positivity and enthusiasm. “Between the actors, pit, and the tech crew, almost all of my best friends are involved in the show,” Kopelman said. “Really, if I didn’t do this show, I think I’d constantly be missing my friends over the next few months. And not just that, but the opportunity to meet so many new people is really exciting.”
20A A&E
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
Diversity in Congress After the 2018 midterms, Congress’s demographics have changed to better represent the population By Emme Perencevich
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Why don’t all Muslim women wear hijab? By Mariam Keita, Cecile Bendera, & Everline Bwayo
The Little Hawk spoke with several Muslim women about why they do or do not choose to wear the religious head-covering that has come to be known as hijab
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ijab is an Arabic word which directly translates Daily Beast among others. Her TEDx Talk “What does the Quran to “barrier.” Many would recognize the word to really say about a Muslim woman’s hijab?” has garnered over 3.8 mean the headscarf worn by Muslim women out million views since it was first published at the beginning of 2017. of religious faith. Others would call it a tool of In it, she describes hijab as it is interpreted in the modern day as oppression in a patriarchal society that aims to police woma byproduct of misogyny, functioning as a tool to police Muslim en’s bodies. City High is home to a growing Muslim student women’s bodies and keep them in roles which are subservient to population, some who choose to observe modest dress and their male counterparts. others who do not. “It’s the women who’ve committed the crimes. It’s the women Contrary to popular belief, the hijab is not merely a physiwho got these funny ideas in their heads, ideas that actually led cal object, but rather, it is the concept of both internal and them out of the house, led them into society, believing that they external modesty. It does not simply stop at covering one’s can make a contribution, and we all know, honorable women, they hair. Within the Muslim community, there has been a lot of stay at home; honorable women stay invisible,” Ali said in her dispute over whether or not covering the hair is mandatory speech. (fard) to fulfilling the demands of Islam. If this is, in fact, the Muslim women’s relationship with hijab does not exist on a bicase, then choosing not to cover one’s head would be impernary. A woman’s perspective on the idea of hijab may even change missible (haram) in the faith. within her own lifetime. Enter Dina Torkia. Feda ElBadri ‘21 is a Muslim woman who chooses not to Torkia, better known by her web alias, Dina Tokio, is a Youtube cover her hair in public. personality and social media influencer who first rose to promi“For me, [the concept of] hijab is modesty,” ElBadri said. nence making hijab tutorials and marketing herself as a modest “I don’t want it to seem that anything that I do outwardfashion icon, recently caused a stir online when she chose to publy somehow shows who I am inside. I don’t think that the licly discontinue wearing her headscarf. way we act and the way we appear to other people somehow Torkia, who also made comments condemning the commumeans that we’re good or bad.” nity of Muslims who choose to don Still, many Muslim women who the headscarf as a “toxic cult,” has “IT’S THE WOMEN WHO’VE do cover their hair,hijabis, derive since received torrents of negative COMMITTED THE CRIMES. IT’S THE backlash for her public decision. So confidence and empowerment from their headscarves. much so, that she was able to make WOMEN WHO GOT THESE FUNNY Nadal Elmak ‘21 believes that 45-minute video just by reading IDEAS IN THEIR HEADS, IDEAS THAT athrough covering the hair is fard, and first the vitriolic comments on began covering her own hair at the her videos. ACTUALLY LED THEM OUT OF THE age of twelve. It was a decision that Torkia provides a very public HOUSE, LED THEM INTO SOCIETY, came not without strong deliberaand severe example of the criticism BELIEVING THAT THEY CAN MAKE A that Muslim women face when maktion on her part. “I was like, ‘What if people start CONTRIBUTION, AND WE ALL KNOW, ing decisions about how best to folbullying me because I’m wearing their faith. While having doubts HONORABLE WOMEN, THEY STAY AT low this hijab? And I see other people about hijab is not uncommon, HOME; HONORABLE WOMEN STAY getting mean comment[s]. Maybe I many women do not end up removshouldn’t wear it,’” Elmak said. ing their headscarves as a result of INVISIBLE.” Despite her inhibitions, she ultithem. mately decided to wear a headscarf Heibat Ahmad ‘21, much like Elto school one day in seventh grade. mak, was in the seventh grade when SAMINA ALI, AUTHOR FOR THE “I felt nervous. It was really scary she first began covering her hair. HUFFINGTON POST and people would just stare at you,” “I had just come back from Elmak said. my trip to Sudan and I saw all my Though three years after that first day in seventh grade, neighbors and family wearing them. I wanted to try it out and I Elmak has yet to regret her initial decision to begin covering stuck with it,” Ahmad said. her hair and believes that it has strengthened both her spiriUnlike Elmak, however, Ahmad did have doubts following her tuality and her confidence. decision. “I feel like a hijab is protection from other people,” said “The exact same day, seventh grade, I was sitting in the car and Elmak, “I don’t need anyone. I can talk and feel protected I was about to be dropped off. I was sitting in the car and I was with the hijab. I feel Allah [God] with me everywhere.” like, ‘You know, I kind of don’t want to do this,’ But I went inside While Elmak may have had to come to term with her anxand did it anyway,” Ahmad said. ieties about other people’s perceptions of her hijab, ElBadri Neither Ahmad nor Elmak can recall ever having felt pressure has dealt with misconceptions surrounding her spirituality from family members to begin covering their hair. and commitment to Islam due to choosing not to cover her “I think that they would be shocked by the change because I’ve hair. worn [a headscarf] consistently for four years now, but I think that “People don’t think I’m Muslim or they think that I’m they would be fine [if I took it off],” Ahmad said. not religious,” said Elbadri. “I cover my hair to pray, and At the end of the day, ElBadri wants Muslim girls to know perhaps because hijab is interwoven with communicating to that they have a choice when it comes to whether or not they will God for me, it is always going to have that wearer-to-God cover their hair. connection.” “If we say something like, ‘All Muslim women should wear hiThe Muslim community is a large one, with an estimated jab,’ what are we going to do then? Are we going to make it a prob1.8 billion followers, according to the Pew Research Center. lem for Muslim women who don’t wear hijab?” asked Elbadri. “I With that kind of size, it should come at no surprise that not value the connection that [I] have to God, to Allah, more than all followers of “the world’s fastest growing major religion” anything else. If you feel that [covering your hair] will strengthen believe covering one’s hair and abiding by the rules of hijab your connection, then you do what you do. You do it to be a betare a required part of the faith. ter Muslim, to be a better person. I don’t want it to be that you’re Samina Ali is an outspoken author, Muslim feminist, and trying to be better for anybody else, because at the end of the day activist who has written for The Huffington Post and The it’s about you and your relationship with your religion.”
6 seats flipped in the 2018 midterm election. The Blue Wave flipped 43 seats, taking control of the House. The flip was expected, but what was not were the “firsts” that the Democratic representatives brought to the House. This Congress is also the most diverse, with a record number of female, minority, and LGBT+ representatives. 2018 marked the most female House of Representatives, with more than 100 women being sworn in and the first female congresswomen from Iowa. From the first two Muslim congresswomen and the first two Native American congresswomen to the reelection of the first female Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, and the youngest woman ever elected to Congress, Alexandria OcasioCortez, the so-called “Pink Wave” marked the 98th year of many American women earning the right to vote. This change, however, is far from bipartisan, with a majority of the women taking their seats on the left side of the aisle. The Democrats also brought more ethnic diversity to the 116th Congress, with more representation of Muslim, Palestinian, Native American, Black, and Latinx people. This diversity will lead to the de-biasing of decisions, consideration of a wider range of solutions, and more perspectives on issues pertaining to certain people. Having a more diverse group of decision-makers will also make Congress better able to tackle ethical challenges and big problems like immigration and structural violence. Once again, this change isn’t bipartisan; while the percentage of Democratic white men in Congress dropped to 38 percent, the percentage of white, male Republicans rose to almost 90 percent. All 10 openly LGBT+ members of the 116th Congress are Democrats, with the first openly bisexual person, Kyrsten Sinema, elected to the Senate. The first same-sex mother in Congress, Angie Craig, is also the first openly gay married woman in Congress. The Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus, which was formed in 2008, currently has 115 members, two of whom are Republicans. The caucus’s mission is to ensure “the extension of equal rights, the repeal of discriminatory laws, the elimination of hate-motivated violence, and the improved health and well-being for all regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity and expression,” according to its website. If this goal plays out, it will mean huge changes during this year’s congressional session with more reforms on hate speech and discrimination. There are several things to take away about the types of people who represent us in our government. With almost five percent of the adult population openly LGBT+, it’s great that there is more representation of these people in our government. It’s also great that there are now so many young girls and boys who, for the first time, can see themselves in the House. With the 40% of homeless youth identifying as LGBT+, it’s essential for them to know that there are so many options for them. However, people should still keep in mind that a diverse left side of the aisle won’t be a cure-all for hate and discrimination. Many staffers who work for these representatives are far from “diverse.” Regardless, this change will not only bring in a variety of people but a greater diversity in political opinions. This diversity reflects the great melting pot of America.
Cultured Corner The Cultured Corner is a column on pop culture where we bring you the news that students are talking about.
Saye Traore ‘20 “I heard that Meek Mill said he was tired of girls wearing lace front [wig]s. He can clearly see the lace and that is clearly not a look. Basically, he’s just had a bad experience with girls and seeing all the lace. I don’t think that [lace fronts are] all that. I personally can’t say that I’ve seen a good lace front, but he’s messing around with people with money. I’m sure there’s some good lace fronts out there, but I haven’t witnessed it. I don’t think it’s a big deal that he made a comment on it because girls always say, ‘Oh, I like guys who have their hairs like this. Don’t come near me if your dreads aren’t twisted right or if your hairline is not right.’ I feel like girls comment on stuff like that too, so it’s not that big of a deal. It’s just hair.”
Riley Moore ‘19 “Pretty much, Trump is asking for a lot of money to build something big that’s probably not going to make a huge difference or [be] something that the country really needs. I think it’s a little ridiculous from the president. Also, because of the government shutdown, Clemson went to the White House and [the president] gave them a thousand hamburgers. He specifically said he paid for all the hamburgers.”
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o many, horseback riding appears to be a solo sport, but for Alex ‘20 and Rachel Marsh ‘22, quite the opposite is true. Not only do they consider themselves part of a team with their horses, but they also have each other to rely on. “When I was in elementary school, I tried so hard to talk about horses with my friends and none of them ever got it,” Rachel says. “They would just sit there and listen and then move on to something else that all of them knew about. I’ve essentially given up at this point. If I didn’t have my sister...it’s just emotions, you don’t keep them all up inside you, because then you would go crazy. You have to let them out somehow. If I’m really mad or happy about something that Ivan did, I’m not going to tell my friends, because they’re not going to understand. I’m going to tell Alex, because she’s been there and she gets it. It’s really nice to have her.” Both sisters lease horses out at Bent Creek Farm, a local English barn. Alex has Bentley, a tall, brown 14-year-old quarterhorse thoroughbred mix with a history in jumping, and Rachel has Ivan, a 13-year-old thoroughbred who has a weakness for carrots. “[The horse is] your friend but also your colleague,” Alex says, “because you work with them and you spend so much time together. That sounds so bizarre, but you think of them all the time. Every time the weather changes, you have to change their blanket. When it’s this cold, all I can think about is them standing out in the cold, it’s just always in the back of my mind.” Owning, or leasing, a horse is a huge responsibility, and requires an extraordinary time commitment. Both girls are out at the barn four times a week in the winter, and almost every day in the summer for several hours at a time. As much as both sisters are sad they don’t get to spend as much time with friends as they would like, they agree the time is well spent. “It has helped me so much. A lot of the
ABOVE: Rachel ‘22 and Alex Marsh ‘20 with their horses Ivan and Bentley PHOTO BY LOTTIE GIDAL
Riding together Sisters Alex and Rachel Marsh share what it’s like to be responsible for a horse, and how it feels to experience that together By Lottie Gidal people that I know don’t take responsibility as seriously as it should be taken,” Rachel said. “It’s not like basketball or another sport where it’s only that season and that’s when you focus on it. This animal depends on you, and you want the best for them, for them to be comfortable and to be happy. And you really realize that because you’ve had to take care of another animal you’ve really grown up mentally so much faster.” Alex and Rachel are both a part of Pony Club, a national organization that allows young riders to compete at a series of levels, from novice all the way up to Alex’s current level, training, where riders jump upwards of 3’9.” Alex says she and Bentley have put a huge effort to get there. “We’ve grown together; he’s done it before and I haven’t, so he’s teaching me but we’re also learning together,” Alex said.
This is something both sisters stress, that as much as they have taught their horses throughout this process, their horses have given them so much more in return. Rachel’s horse Ivan is prone to injury, and she is sometimes forced to sit out of competitions or training because her horse needs time to heal. But she says this has helped to give her a positive outlook. “[Ivan’s helped me] to see the seriousness in situations but not to take it too seriously, and not to dwell on the bad things too much,” Rachel said. “He’s a very happy horse, and he has taught me, which is crazy because he doesn’t speak, to see the happier things, and dwell on those because those are ultimately more important.” Pushing past the unpleasant aspects of riding is something Rachel knows all too well how to do. After a fall when she was
“People friends are intelligent. If you do something wrong, they’re not going to like it, but horse friends forgive you quicker. The second you offer a horse treats aftera you’ve apologized and admitted you did something wrong, when they accept your treats, you know you’re back on good terms.” PHOTOS BY LOTTIE GIDAL
11, Rachel quit the sport for several months, too afraid of falling to get back on the horse. But seeing Alex enjoying herself so much convinced her to come back. “I would have stayed quit. If it wasn’t for my family, I would not be riding right now,” Rachel said. “Bentley taught me to take a breath, relax, and stay calm. I’d always try to get everything perfect every single time, he’s taught me to not be a perfectionist. We’d been trying to do leg yields for years, and he had always been so tense, and I finally figured out that it was because I was trying to force him into it,” Alex said. As a junior, Alex knows she has a limited time left with Bentley; her lease ends when she finishes high school. “I cry so easily. It’s going to be horrible,” Alex said. “I think it’s because we started from nothing: in the beginning, he didn’t even want to touch me. The first time I got on him, he just ran around with his head in the air. He had no muscle, no balance, no nothing.” When Alex goes to college, Bentley will be returned to his owner, who used to keep him as a pasture pony, not riding him nearly as often as he is being ridden now. Alex says her biggest fear is that this is the role he will return to once she leaves. “When I put a saddle on him he’s like, ‘Eugh,’ so annoyed, but every single picture I have of him jumping he is so happy,” Alex said. “His eyes are so open. His ears are completely perked. He’s so happy and it makes me happy because then I know he likes what he’s doing. I would rather him be sold to someone who would use him than have him sit in pasture again.” As much as the sisters enjoy working with their horses, at the end of the day its easy to see them as another friend, albeit one that can’t talk. “They’re always there for you. Even though the horses can’t speak, they’re just solidly there for you,” Rachel said. “You can hug them and they will hug you right back. In a way it’s tainted our life, but in the best way possible, because it’s opened us up to all these unique opportunities. I have memories that nobody else has and I have been taught lessons by things that can’t speak that will stay with me for the rest of my life.”
B2 SPORTS
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
“DURING PRACTICE, WE FOCUS ON DRILL WORK ALONG WITH BOWLING GAMES. WE WORK HARD ON OUR APPROACH, FOOTWORK, TIMING, AND SPARE SHOOTING AS WELL.”
COMING UP FOR CITY
Feb. WRESTLINGS Wells Fargo Arena 14 Des Moines
COACH MIKE DEGNER
“SO THE BOWLING SEASON HAS BEEN GREAT AND MY FAVORITE PART IS THE BAKERS ROUNDS BECAUSE ALL OF US GET TWO FRAMES AND IT’S REALLY FUN. THE REASON I WENT OUT FOR BOWLING WAS BECAUSE I WANTED TO TRY SOMETHING NEW.”
Feb. BOYS 14 BASKETBALL
City v. Dubuque Hempstead Valley @ Home 4:15 p.m.
Feb. BOWLING 20 State Championships
LEO KEARNS ‘21
Feb. BOYS TRACK 26 Wartburg Indoor Invitational
165
Feb. GIRLS TRACK University of Dubuque 4 p.m. 28 at Chaplatay Recreation Center
“IT’S HONESTLY A GENTLEMAN’S SPORT. LIKE, OUR FIRST DAY THERE THE FIRST THING WE LEARNED WAS BOWLING COURTESY, WHICH IS TO BE NICE TO THE OTHER TEAM. IF YOU’RE TRYING TO TRASH-TALK YOU COULD GET KICKED OUT.”
BOYS SOCCER
March Jamboree @ Cedar Rapids 29 Washington 4 p.m.
Apr. GIRLS SOCCER City v. Pleasant Valley @ 3 Home 4:15 p.m.
Varsity’s point average for the season
ABOVE: Max Grothasun ‘19, Eli Anderson ‘19, and Kia Svoboda ‘19 PHOTOS BY LOTTIE GIDAL
JOHN GEERDES ‘19
BOWLING L E T T E R F RO M T H E E D I T O R
I
don’t know about you, but at this point in the game, I don’t know how I can be expected to last two full days of school in a row. I’m sure you must be feeling something similar. But while we lounge about at home, sleeping in until noon and binging Netflix, our fellow student athletes are missing valuable practice time, not to mention losing opportunities to compete. Keep them in your hearts and minds as we inevitably miss more of our education. In this issue you’ll be able to get some wellness tips about living a healthier lifestyle, meet two sisters who have committed themselves to a spectacuraly intense sport, and get caught up with the boys and girls basketball teams as they finish up their seasons. You’ll be introduced to three City High students who have Danni Russolevel abilities in taekwondo, and who could kick any of our butts without
too much effort. Finally you’ll learn how the wrestling team has overcome injuries and loss of players to come back at the end of their season, as well as Isaac Weigel, the swimmer who won’t be stopped. As backbreaking as this issue has been to put together, I am incredibly proud of what we have to show you. Time flies, and its hard to believe this is already our fourth issue of the year. Soon, my ducklings, I will be headed off on the next stage of my education, never again being forced to hear the question, “So! Where are you going to college?” (We don’t find out until April 1st, so stop asking until then). I know it’s tough to read all the words in this newspaper, so I’ve tried this issue to make it easy on you. Hopefully the smaller bunches of text will invite your eyes to keep going. The reporters are all starting to think about becoming editors next
year, taking on more responsibility as we approach the end, and coming up with brilliant ideas every day. My fellow editors constantly amaze me with their inspiring levels of committment, creativity, and communication. And of course, this paper could never have been produced without the generous contributions from viewers like you. Thank you.
Lottie Gidal
SPORTS 3A
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM |FEBRUARY 14, 2019
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Carry a water bottle Over 60 percent of the human body is made of water, and we need to constantly replenish that amount. On average, you should be drinking one gallon of water a day. That’s about eight cups. Staying hydrated increases short-term memory retention, improves cognitive abilities, and increases your metabolism. Those nasty headaches or feelings of tiredness you have during the school day? Nine times out of 10, you’re just dehydrated. Having a water bottle on your desk is a helpful reminder to take a sip. Not to mention, investing in a reusable water bottle is a great way to decrease your carbon footprint.
Even shoulders Chin is parallel to the floor Back is straight with shoulders directly above hips. Spine is neutral--no flexing or overarching to emphasize the lower back curve
Knees pointed straight ahead
You’ve heard it a million times: breakfast is the most important meal of the day. It’s an easy meal to skip out on. Oftentimes teenagers and adults will sacrifice breakfast for an extra 10-15 minutes of sleep. But its benefits outweigh this. It kickstarts your metabolism, and allows your brain to get the nutrition it’s been cut off from since the night before. Breakfast doesn’t have to be an ordeal of making pancakes or eggs. Grabbing a banana and Cliff bar on your way out the door takes an extra 30 seconds. If you’d like something more substantive, try meal-prepping breakfasts on Sunday nights, baking a bunch of muffins that you can slowly go through as the week goes by.
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INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 cups flour 2/3 cup sugar 1 1/2 tsp baking powder 1/4 tsp salt 1 cup mashed ripe bananas 1 large egg 1/2 cup melted butter 1/4 cup milk 3/4 cup chocolate chips
PREPARATION:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line twelve 1/3-cup muffin cups with
Turn off screens an hour before bed As nice as it is to relax with Netflix after finishing your homework, without a break in-between screen time and sleep, your quality of the latter actually worsens. According to the National Sleep Foundation, the blue wavelength light from LEDbased devices (phones, computers) increases the
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release of cortisol in the brain, which makes us more alert, and inhibits the production of melatonin, which is needed to fall asleep. That’s part of the reason why taking a nap during the day without closing the blinds is especially hard. Try dimming the lights 90% of in your room and getting Americans use out a book, listening to a their devices in podcast, or playing some of the last hour your favorite music before before bed going to bed for the night.
Introspection is a luxury most of us do not have. But taking some time once in a while to reflect on your crazy life will help you cultivate a better understanding of who you are and what you want. Meditation is one form of this, providing you a space to sit back and try to relieve some of the pressures you face every day. There are numerous different techniques and, like yoga, many are easily accessible online, ready for you to spend just a few minutes relaxing at the beginning or end of your day.
With such a stationary lifestyle, constantly hunching over desks and sitting in bed, it is inevitable that Americans don’t have the best posture. A straight back helps to keep bones and joints in their proper alignment, reducing risk of serious joint pain later on in life. So try challenging yourself to have good posture for an hour while you’re at school, then start increasing the amount of time you spend sitting up straight.
In the dead of winter it can be hard to get out and aboout, so here are the Little Hawk’s easy tips for mental and physical wellness in the new year By Lottie Gidal
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Yoga is a great way to stretch and strengthen your muscles, all from the comfort of your bedroom floor. While there are over a hundred different schools of thought on the practice, some combination of stretches, meditation, and assuming various poses is the most common. According to the American Osteopathic Association, physical benefits include balancing your metabolism, increased flexibility, injury prevention, increased muscle tone, and improved respiration, to name a few.
There are million of tutorials online, so you can tailor your routines to the time and energy you feel like putting in. But Iowa City also has several local yoga studies, such as Hothouse Yoga downtown on the pedmall. If you’ve ever had Mr.s Brinkmeyer, you know she talks students through “yoga in your seat” at the start of class. If you are a student athlete, you may have already been introduced to some form of yoga as a stretching routine after a hard practice. As yoga participation has soared over the past few decades, don’t be afraid to grab a friend and hop on the bandwagon.
IN 2019
BE HEALTHY Yoga
foil muffin liners. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in large bowl. Mix mashed bananas, egg, melted butter and milk in medium bowl. Stir banana mixture into dry ingredients just until blended (do not overmix). Stir in chocolate chips. Divide batter among prepared muffin cups, filling each about 3/4 full. Bake muffins until tops are pale golden and tester inserted into center comes out with some melted chocolate attached but no crumbs, about 32 minutes. Transfer muffins to rack; cool.
Meditation
Posture
6 WAYS TO
5
3
BANANA CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS
Eat breakfast
4B SPORTS
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019 CITY HIGH BASKETBALL City v. West Breakdown
City Ball drops
the
In a surprising upset, the girls and boys teams fall to to West, but learn what it will take to make this week’s playoffs a success By Lottie Gidal
I “I WAS PROUD OF THE SECOND HALF, THE WAY WE CAME BACK. WE REALLY PUT IN THE EFFORT AS A TEAM. HOPEFULLY THE REST OF THE SEASON WILL GO GOOD, JUST CONTINUE TO GROW AND COME TOGETHER AND IMPROVE.” ANTONIO TURNER ‘19
n what is normally the most anticipated game of the basketball season, barely a hundred supporters were in the stands Thursday night to cheer on their teams as City prepared to take on West for the second time. Low turnout and a slew of missed practices due to weather set the stage for a night of disappointment for East Side fans. “The West High game was our worst game of the year, shooting-wise,” girls coach Bill McTaggart said. “I think we got frustrated when we got behind and it just snowballed. Plus, we were missing practices and that didn’t help us any. I think it was a wake-up call that we can’t play 80 percent in practice and expect to show up and play great on game day.” After starting the game on relatively even footing (the score was tied up until the end of the second quarter, with the Little Hawks starting halftime down by only two points, 29-27), Trojans started connecting on shots they had been missing in the first half, upping their shot percentage dramatically. With six minutes left, City was down by 10, and the margin just kept getting bigger. McTaggart says their biggest challenge came from poor shot selection and defense. “We didn’t take good shots, and we didn’t move the ball,” McTaggart said. “We’re hoping that we improve on the defensive end and are more crisp on our passing.” However McTaggart is proud of the team for fighting it out. There’s no question West High is a formidable
“WE CAME TOGETHER MORE AS A TEAM THIS YEAR THAN LAST YEAR. WE PLAY MORE FOR EACH OTHER THAN FOR OURSELVES. THE COACHES HAVE MENTIONED IT, BUT WE PUT IT TO USE.” JASON ALLEN ‘19
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019 team, just two days after City v. West, the “team across the river” defeated Marion, who was ranked #1 in 4A and hadn’t lost in 41 straight games. “We didn’t give up. We were still battling till the end,” McTaggart said. “Four of the next five games are against rated teams, it doesn’t get any easier. That will help us down the road because West is a good team.” The boys team, on the other hand, despite a loss, walked away having improved from their last game with West earlier this season. In December they finished 6636, but on Thursday managed to close that gap by 10 points. Though they lagged behind during the first half, the boys made a big comeback in the third and fourth quarters. “I was proud of the second half, the way we came back. We really put in the effort as a team,” Antonio Turner ‘19 said. Coach Derek Roberts attributes this to strong defense and increased turnovers in the last parts of the game. “I thought in parts of the late third quarter and parts of the fourth quarter, the five guys that were on the floor were working hard on the defensive end,” boys head Coach Derek Roberts said. “As a result, we turned them over a couple of times and got some stops that allowed us to attack on the other end and get to the free-throw line.” Turnovers, or changes in possession, early in the game allowed West to stay ahead. Roberts also said that the team was not running its best offense, which caused low percentage shots. But in some ways these setbacks allowed the team to see what it needed to work on going into playoffs. “We have a lot to improve on still, which is the exciting part. The great thing about playoffs that start in two weeks is that everyone is 0-0,” Coach Roberts said. “Offensively, we have to flow better into our sets [and] offenses, which is something that is correctable. Defensively, we need to be more consistent and keep teams off the offensive glass.” As much as the team knows it needs to improve on, certain aspects of the game remain firmly within its grasp. While its record remains pretty constant compared to past years, the boys team feels its members have really come together this year to start communicating and working together as a team. “I can say we came together as a team more this year than last year,” Jason Allen ‘19 said. “We played more for each other than for ourselves. The coaches have mentioned it, but we put it to use. I don’t have an example, but it’s our mentality throughout practice and in games.” Both teams have their regional tournaments in the coming week and feel that the competition against West helped prepare them to take on some of the best teams in the state. “We feel good moving forward into the playoffs because we want to be playing our best basketball in February in our district,” Coach Roberts said. “We’re hoping that leadership from our seniors can end us on a high note this season. We have beaten or played close with all of the
SINCE THEN
2/2
SPORTS 5B
BOYS
City beats Knoxville 70-58
GIRLS City falls to Dowling Catholic 79-69
2/2
Senior Keyshawn Christian led the night with 21 points and 14 rebounds. Ry Threlkeld-Wiegand ‘19 had 14 and seven.
Before their game against West City was ranked No. 1 in the state, and has since dropped to No. 6. West, previously unranked, now sits at No. 9. City still retains an impressive 14-2 record going into the playoffs.
LEADING SCORERS Turner
205pts
Threlkeld-Wiegend 126pts Westlake
105pts
368pts
Joens Nkumu
305pts 148pts
Rocca
PHOTOS BY LOTTIE GIDAL AND NATALIE GREEN
6B SPORTS
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
WORDS BY MIRA BOHANNAN KUMAR ART BY HALEIGH STEFFENS
WE JOIN OUR HEROES, THE METTLESOME RYAN CARTER ‘20, TIMMER PENNY ‘19, AND AUBRYN KAINE ‘20, AS THEY CONQUER THE CHALLENGES OF TAEKWONDO...
R
yan Carter ‘20 has been practicing taekwondo for 11 years. Nevertheless, he says he has never stopped learning. “One of the guys I used to train with, Michael Clapp, he said, ‘Once you get your black belt, you re-learn everything that you learnt up till then,’” Carter said. “Learning how to do correct movements and techniques is never the hard part. The hard part is having the control when executing them...especially when teaching younger kids. It’s also the same thing with music. You can teach an eighth-grade player to play some insanely hard thing...but if they don’t have the technicality musically to play it, [they can’t]. It’s the same thing with martial arts.” Control is a crucial aspect of taekwondo, Carter said. “When I started doing it competitively, there wasn’t really a youth competitive team, so my brother and I would train with the collegiate people, and the only reason my dad let us do that is that he knew the level of control all those guys had while they were sparring,” Carter said. “Some of my friends might not say this--that I, as a person, have self-control when I do things--but it does teach you about self-control and to realize the things that you can and can’t control. My teacher...she was almost like another parent to me, the way that she trained me and taught me and instilled a lot of morals.” Carter said the control and honor system of taekwondo were integral to his performance during the half-decade he spent in the competitive circuit. “You end up meeting a lot of people and you learn something new from every person that you meet. There’s this one guy--when we’d compete, we were in the same division...we
would spar each other a lot. Right before our fight, we would be talking casually and joking around...then they’d call our names up and we stepped in the ring, and we were aiming to win against the other person,” Carter said. “You view each other as equal. There’s this mutual respect, whether you know the person or not, through the sport. Of course you’re both trying to win... but because of the way they are and the way they fight, you can view them as equals.” As he has grown up, Carter said, taekwondo’s presence in his life has evolved. “It was my sport growing up. Some kids did club soccer, others did running--for me it was just taekwondo. That’s just what I did and I enjoyed doing and my whole family did,” Carter said. “I started doing it competitively when I was about eight or nine, and then I stopped when I was 15, because that’s when you can start going for knockout shots and I valued my brain a little bit. I had other things I wanted to do--like for trombone, you need to use your hands. So I stopped doing it competitively.” Now, though, Carter said his time in taekwondo has shaped him in more ways than one, including giving him an ideal to live up to in his daily life. “Some of the people I’ve trained with, I still look up to them as people. They might make a stupid joke, but when it comes down to it, I know they’re a reliable person, they’re a good person, I can trust them,” Carter said. “I like to think I’m sort of like that sometimes, where I can be the stupid guy that I am and do all this other wacky, stupid stuff, but then when it really comes down to it I can be there, helping people out and doing what needs to be done.”
RYAN CARTER ‘20 BREAKS A BOARD DURING PRACTICE
“YOU VIEW EACH OTHER AS EQUAL. THERE’S THIS MUTUAL RESPECT... THROUGH THE SPORT.” -RYAN CARTER ‘20
PHOTO COURTESY OF RYAN CARTER
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
SPORTS 7B
-
E
veryone finds something different to enjoy about the activities they love. Timmer Penny ‘19 said his experience with taekwondo created an outlet for his energy. “Taekwondo was just great exercise, especially for a young kid,” Penny said. “There was a long period where I wasn’t doing any exercise and the only reason I could be in shape was because of [taekwondo].” Penny started in taekwondo in elementary school and worked hard at it for several years before dropping the martial art in his freshman year. “The only reason I stopped was because I was playing football and those practices were getting in the way, and school was actually getting really intense, so I stopped to focus on football and my grades,” Penny said. “It would’ve been fun to stay, but it was more worth it to concentrate on school.” Despite having dropped taekwondo, Penny has fond memories of his time practicing it, including his stints in tournaments. “My favorite part was actually learning the martial arts and then going and competing in tournaments. That was the most fun for me, was learning the skills to beat others in tournaments,” he said. “It’s just not like anything I’d ever done before. It was really fun--you’d go there and it was kind of like any other tournament, you’d wait around, wait for your time, and then you put on your gear and you spar other people. You win medals, you gain recognition, and it’s just a lot of fun. I had a great time.” Still, it wasn’t all fun and games. Penny said he had to work hard to hone his skills. “The hardest part was getting stuff right. Martial arts teach-
ers have to be very strict. They have to make sure you know what you’re doing, so you mess up one little thing and you get in a lot of trouble for it and they basically pressure you until you know how to do it perfectly,” he said. “The hardest part was learning new things and then perfecting them, but after a while, once you’ve got them down, it is worth it.” Penny’s work paid off: he met several of his goals, both tangible and in principle. The goal of getting a black belt, which Penny achieved during his years in taekwondo, came as he progressed through belt levels. “I didn’t really start with that goal in mind, but once I achieved it, I was like, ‘I mean, I can keep going, there are more belts I can achieve, but...it’s a good time to stop.’” But concrete achievements weren’t the only rewarding part about Penny’s experience with taekwondo. “When you break your first board, that’s always pretty nice,” Penny said, “but the best thing for me was finally reaching the top. Most of the time when I was there, I was a student and I was looking up to these people who were really good and who knew everything, and [my teacher] was like, ‘Watch how he does it,’ and eventually, after doing it for long enough, I became that person, and he was like, ‘Watch how Timmer does it. Do it just like he does. Give them an example,’ and once I got to that point, that’s when it felt pretty special to have stuck with it for so long.” Penny said that he achieved his goals in taekwondo, and he’s satisfied with his experience even though it isn’t ongoing. “I definitely felt satisfied with how far I went, and it was just a lot of fun,” Penny said. “That was a pretty special moment for me...realizing that I’ve come a [long] way from where I started.”
AUBRYN KAINE ‘20 DOESN’T PULL PUNCHES
TIMMER PENNY ‘19 KEEPS HIS EYES ON THE PRIZE
“I LIKE...DOING IT AS A PART OF [MY] LIFE, SO IT’S LESS OF A COMPETITION. IT’S MORE THAN A SPORT.” -AUBRYN KAINE ‘20
PHOTO COURTESY OF TIMMER PENNY
PHOTO COURTESY OF AUBRYN KAINE
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aekwondo is an enduring presence in Aubryn Kaine 20’s life, an activity to which she has been dedicated for over 12 years. “I started when I was four and a half years old at Master Chol Choe’s Black Belt Academy,” Kaine said. “I am a thirddegree black belt. I got that when I was nine years old.” Kaine’s journey with taekwondo has involved multiple stages of learning, practice, and refinement. “A lot of it was figuring out how to move my body to be able to copy what I was seeing someone else do,” Kaine said. “Once I stopped being able to learn anything new, then it became more about, ‘How can I help someone else learn what I know?’” The skills Kaine gained at learning don’t just benefit her in the dojo, however. “The stuff that we do at school–the patterns that I learned tae kwon do in, the patterns that I learn academics in–it’s easier to focus in school when I do taekwondo,” she said. “[Taekwondo]’s what started me in athletics, which makes me so I don’t get as irritated.” Much of the knowledge Kaine has learned from taekwondo comes from the martial art’s dedication to core morals. “The tenets of taekwondo are courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control, and indomitable spirit, and I memorized those before I was five. Those are like life skills of, ‘This is how I want to be in the world,’” Kaine said. “It also means that I never...was afraid of other people, because I always knew that if
something got too far, I could protect myself.” Despite her many years of experience, Kaine still has more she wants to achieve in her taekwondo career. “There’s a limit to getting my fourth-degree black belt: I have to be 20 years old. You can teach once you’re 20. I would have gotten my fourth-degree black belt when I was 15, but I was too young, so I’m still waiting,” Kaine said. “I’m definitely planning on getting my fourth done sometime during college; I’m thinking to teach in some way.” The enthusiasm for taekwondo that drives Kaine to teach comes from her belief in taekwondo’s merits. “I think that it’s a really good experience for everyone, and especially with some of the stuff with Mollie Tibbetts–needing to protect yourself, learning how to do it, and having that be a basic part of who you are, has been really, really good for me, and I think it teaches some skills that I see a lot of people don’t have,” she said. “It makes it a lot harder to go through life if you don’t have these central core values.” Kaine also said that there are many reasons to practice and love taekwondo, ranging from competition to self-improvement. “People do...it as a sport, especially sparring, which is what the Olympics are. That’s really competitive and it’s pretty similar to football, just with individuals,” Kaine said. “However, there is another aspect of tae kwon do that I like more: doing it as a part of your life, so it’s less of a competition. It’s more than a sport.”
THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2019
8B SPORTS
Rising above the injuries Even after the loss of a number of key players, Little Hawks started the season with strong hopes, which have been delayed by a slew of injuries By Jack Bacon
W
ith the state tournament beginning, Little Hawk wrestling hopes it has turned the corner. After a regular season derailed by injuries and illness, 170-pound wrestler Brandon Lalla ‘19 believes City is prepared to turn heads in Des Moines. “We’ve had a rough season,” said Lalla, “but we’re back on track now.” Despite losing multiple state tournament qualifiers from last season, including state champion Jacob Dykes and runner-up Wilfred Kadohou, City came into the season with high expectations. The Little Hawks won the MVC regular season championship in 2018, as well as the MVC Tournament. With multiple state qualifiers returning, Lalla says the team hoped to repeat as MVC champs. “Winning titles is always the goal,” said Lalla. “We’re always competing for MVC titles and state titles.” However, City quickly realized that a regular season championship wasn’t in the cards. The team was hamstrung by injuries in the first half of the season and dropped key conference matchups. “Before [winter] break we didn’t have a full lineup,” said Lalla, “So our team was only running on three-quarters of what it should have been.” At least six of the team’s 14 varsity wrestlers missed competitions due to injury or illness, including 285-pounder Jacob Murry ‘19, who was consistently ranked in the top five when healthy, and 106-pounder Ethan Wood-Finley ‘20, who was ranked number one for most of the season. Now, though, the Little Hawks are healthy. With all of their starters back in the lineup, they’re looking to return to the state dual tournament, something the program had not achieved in a decade until last season. The state duals only welcome eight schools. Lalla says that qualifying would be vindicating for the team. “Having success at State would go a long way in showing people how good this team can be,” said Lalla. There is a viable path, but it won’t be easy. City has to go through Cedar Rapids Prairie and Western Dubuque, two schools
ABOVE: JV wrestlers in City’s home meet against Dubuque Senior PHOTOS BY LOTTIE GIDAL that narrowly defeated the Little Hawks earlier in the year, to qualify. City’s lineup was not at full strength then, as Wood-Finley did not wrestle in the Prairie dual and other starters were injured for the Western Dubuque matchup. The duals are expected to be close. Prairie, City High, and Western Dubuque finished second, third, and fourth respectively in the MVC Tournament last weekend with little separation between each team (the Little Hawks were at full strength). City wrestles Prairie on Wednesday, February 6, with Western Dubuque to follow later that night if they win. Then, of course, there is the individual state tournament. City High currently has five ranked wrestlers, and most of the roster as a chance to qualify. Districts, the qualifying brackets for the state tournament, are on February 9.
Weigel for the Win
PHOTO BY MADELYN HELLWIG
City is primed to replicate its success from last year, but it will take a total team effort. Wood-Finley, Murry, and Kyle Heffley ‘19 at 152 have the best chances to win it all or at least place in the top three. Then it will be up to the rest of the lineup to overachieve. City needs to qualify as many bubble wrestlers as possible and needs the rest of their returning qualifiers to get as far as possible. Lalla, who qualified for State last year, is setting his goals accordingly. “My goal for this year is to place,” says Lalla. “I’m going out there with confidence.” Fans haven’t seen much of this healthy Little Hawk team. Now they’re about to get a good look under the brightest spotlight in Iowa high school sports.
By Julianne Berry-Stoelzle and Alison Kenaston In a season plagued by injuries, Isaac style at that meet. Additionally, he was the Scheels Athlete Weigel ‘21 has managed to remain of the Week for January 21-25 for his efforts at the varsity healthy. Weigel has won almost every conference meet. individual event he has been put into, “He has a lot of confidence in himself now and that constantly working to reach the goals has really translated into the pool,” Huff said. “He is he has set for the future. significantly faster at this point than he was last year.” “He has been just a workhorse for Weigel is grateful for the support of his coaches, us,” Coach Jordan Huff said. “We can’t and even looks up to them as his role models. really ask for a better competitor than “I don’t have famous role models,” Weigel what he has brought to the table and said. “I would like to think I can go for those whether he likes it or not, he has behigh, high heights but I think my coaches are come a bit of a leader on the team.” very apparent in my everyday life so it’s easy Weigel currently has a place in the to keep reaching for where they’ve been.” top five in Iowa in the 200 freestyle and Weigel has been swimming competitivethe 500 freestyle. With times of 1:45.75 ly since he was five years old. However, his for the 200 and a 4:47.84 for the 500, he favorite thing about it might be unexpectdominates the distances at meets. ed to some people. “What motivates me is the feeling “A part [of swimming] I greatly of achieving your goals. It is amazing cherish is the silence,” Weigel said. to have a goal and by the end of the “When you’re swimming, you don’t season you can get that and feel conhave to listen to other people talk. tent,” Weigel said. “Then you can If someone is trying to talk to you, focus on a new goal.” you can say, ‘Oh, I’ve got to do this real His current goals include placquick.’ That’s pretty nice.” ing top three in the 500y freestyle The City High boys swim team practicand top five in the 200y freestyle at es around 20 hours a week. This can make state as well as breaking the school finishing homework a struggle. Weigel typirecord for both the 200y and the cally only gets six hours of sleep a night and 500y freestyle. These records stand knows this is not enough. at 1:42.57 for the 200 and a 4:35.42 “I try not to think about that,” Weigel said. for the 500. “It doesn’t help if you’re constantly worried about “He has really taken this year every single thing. It doesn’t help with your swimand really ran with it, or I guess ming and it doesn’t help with school. So I just try to swam with it would be the better think about where I’m going.” way to put it,” Huff said. Even when struggling with sleep deprivation, WeiWeigel swam the second fastest gel explains how the team always supports him. time in sophomore conference “The whole team is helping each other. If you need meet history at MVC and also won help, just ask,” Weigel says. “The coaches are amazing, sophomore conference championthe best in Iowa. If you have any concerns, you can ships for the 200y and 100y freejust talk to them, they will help you out. They know what they’re doing. They’ve been doing it for years.”