The Dispatch, Vol. 35, Issue #4, 2/17/23

POLITICS

Federal government has banned the app TikTok on all government issued phones. pg.3

Lawsuit against theater director advances

The original civil lawsuit filed on Sept. 29, 2022 targeting Bowie’s long time head theatre director Diane “Betsy” Cornwell with accusations of sexual harassment, drug coercion, and emotional and verbal abuse has progressed. A group of new plaintiffs have joined the original group of five Bowie alumni who originally filed the lawsuit.

On January 13, 2023, four previous Bowie students Luke Fisher, Rose Collins, Suzanne Edwards, and Sarah Alessandro were added in a new lawsuit filed against her in state District Court. Cornwell has been dropped from the concurrent Federal Court case, which is now focused on Austin Independent School District (AISD).

The new state lawsuit against AISD includes allegations of assault and failure to report sexual assault. Collins attended Bowie from 2015 to 2019. The lawsuit states that she was sexually assaulted by another member of the Starlight Theater Company (STC) and Cornwell declined to remove or otherwise discipline perpetrators of same. The lawsuit claims Collins asked the student to stop and the plaintiff alleges they didn’t.

Alessandro, who attended Bowie from 20072011, stated that her high school theater environment was toxic during her time in the STC.

The suit details a moment in which Alessandro claims that Cornwell purposely tripped her on stage and showed no remorse.

Alessandro claims that the "emotional recall" unit in class negatively impacted her and remembered the lessons to be traumatizing for her.

"It felt like we were being graded on who can cry the most who can talk about the worst thing and throughout the entire process, we were very much encouraged to be as intense, deep, and emotional as possible" former Bowie student Austin Civatte said.

Civatte's decision to withdraw from Bowie before graduation was motivated by the negative impact that the conditions of his theater class, led by Cornwell, brought to his school life.

“I was trying to find some comfort in a teacher that I really did look up to despite everything that I had heard, and everything that I had been through, I wanted to be comforted,” Civatte said. “And all I got was ridiculed and confused. She laughed in my face. And I just ended the conversation as soon as I could, and that day, I finalized plans to leave the school and I did not finish my senior year at Bowie.”

The suit demands that Cornwell’s name be removed from the new Performing Arts facility, and to include proper training and monitoring for theater directors.

“I had friends who were plus-sized who were who were made fun of for their weight, were of a certain race, and would be cast as if there was one black role in a show, no matter how minor that role was, regardless of that actors talent,” Civatte said. “Yeah, you're gonna be put in that role, but I have several friends on the trans-spectrum who were consistently mis-gendered, making their body dysphoria so much worse.”

Dispatch staff reached out to Bowie principal Mark Robinson, who stated he could not comment on personnel matters.

The Dispatch reached out to AISD for comment, but received no response at press time.

STORY BY Lucille Price

Artificial Intelligence changes the face of education with programs such as ChatGpt. pg. 7

ART BY Ava Wong

THE DISPATCH FRIDAY, FEB.17 2023

Lucille Price Editor-in-Chief

Facing icy roads, freezing rain, dodging tree debris, and damaged power lines, Austinites felt the wrath of an intense ice storm that lasted nearly 72 hours.

The crisis struck late on Monday, Jan. 30, and tested the strength of the community and infrastructure. Tuesday temperatures reached 29 F with freezing rain until Thursday according to www. accuweather.com.

Austin Independent School District (AISD) opted to close all AISD campuses and related events from Tuesday, Jan. 31 until Friday, Feb. 3 and many districts nearby followed.

“Teachers were informed about changes and the implications of those changes in terms of programs and operations,” Principal Mark Robinson said. “For example, when did athletic games need to be rescheduled? When could we start fine arts practices again? Or because we resumed operations over the weekend, what was allowed and what was not allowed and so there was a lot of communication about that."

Bowie’s varsity basketball team was directly impacted by the shut down. Boys varsity basketball coach Trey Lindsey oversees the challenges presented by rescheduling games in the middle of the season.

“We're the only team in the

district having to play four games in five days because we had a situation with Akins where they basically opted not to play us Saturday,” Lindsey said.

“So we had to go Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday in two back-to-back games and we’re right in the middle of a run towards the playoffs.”

The team was unable to practice for three of the four days during the storm, but was able to get a practice in on Friday afternoon when weather conditions were safer.

“We thought we were playing Saturday originally but that game ended up getting canceled the morning of the game so that was bad in itself,” Lindsey said. “It was an adventure but we were able to do one shoot around on that Friday, and then we were able to practice Saturday, but those were three days off in the middle of the season that we were obviously not expecting but we got a couple practices in and then back at it on Monday and we played that night.”

Junior player Mason Wasserberger felt the effects of playing back to back games.

“My legs are so sore right now, everyone's tired. But we wanted to get in the gym during the ice storm but stuff was all closed pretty much, I've heard some complaints but we all know that we have to pretty much win out to make the playoffs and a lot of them are se-

spite the obstacles the icy weather brought them this season.

“Four games in five days is gonna take a toll on kids and three of those are on the road,” Lindsey said. “So, I wish we could even say we have more home games but we got tough kids and they know it's the home stretch and they know that it's for everything now to extend our season so they're not complaining, they're showing up and they are in good moods every day, they're in good spirits and feeling good so I think we'll be just fine.”

Lindsey was reminded of the 2021 snow storm’s rolling blackouts caused by Texas’ inadequate power grid which canceled school.

“After hearing AISD was canceling events, we were all a little nervous after the winter storms and how that's gone,” Lindsey said. “Basically every basketball season for the last four years has had some sort of interruption if you’re in Austin, so I think every coach around the city felt similar. We were all texting each other like, ‘oh, here we go again’ but luckily [storm conditions] didn't get too bad.”

Robinson felt similarly.

“With the way that we all left school on Monday, it was eerily reminiscent of previous times when we knew that we needed to take everything with us because we might not be coming back for a while so I think everybody agreed that it was the right thing to do when we saw the freezing conditions, to keep everybody safe at

ing rain that morning, it made sense that we would need time to make sure that we could get everybody safely to school. We did see the ice and broken limbs and we knew that we had significant power outages in the city.”

According to www.nytimes. com, Travis county had 146,000 customers without power. Unlike the storm of 2021, the 2023 ice storm’s power outages were a result of falling trees weighed down by frozen rain.

“We’re still in the process of cleanup. We were asked to take care of what we could and so I think students are probably seeing that in the last few days,” Robinson said. “But anything that's too big or we're gonna require heavy equipment for us to fix trees that may be over sidewalks or that we have concerns about continuing to fall, we’ve surrounded those with caution tape so that they don't present an immediate danger until the district can come help us with that clean-up.”

Despite maintaining power, Bowie was hit by the storm with broken tree limbs. Student council Vice President Bailey Alsup knew and her team has worked to keep “I was really sad about how destructive the ice storm was to lots of plants around the area at Bowie because in student council we have been working so hard on the school’s gardens all year just to have them freeze over,” Alsup said.

Becoming an adult: high schoolers hit milestones

In the process of leaving high school, there are many responsibilities that students have to take on top of their normal day-to-day tasks. This part of growing up is something that schools don't teach and means that students have to learn to do these new things on their own. This can be a scary experience for people but is a good way to learn how to do adult things on your own. For senior Cade Harrison, getting his license was a huge leap and responsibility towards adulthood. He explains when the topic first started coming to mind how it feels to finally have a way to get around on your own where ever and whenever you want.

“It's like a sense of freedom, you're free. Finally, I got to do whatever I wanted without having to worry about people finding me,” Harrison said.

Harrison proceeds to say what the process of going from his permit to his

license was like and the struggles that he encountered along the way.

“The only day I was able to go was Valentine's Day. I was doing in-person school at that time and since Valentine's Day was a late start I tried to get my permit done,” Harrison said. “I waited there for four hours and did not get it. I was just waiting there and then I had to go to school or else I'd be counted absent. I left and came back another day where I knew I would be able to just be scot-free without getting counted absent.”

Harrison also expressed how he originally felt about driving and how he slowly learned to become more comfortable on the road.

“My mom was always cursing at people for driving poorly,” Harrison said.

“When I started paying more attention to how people were driving, I realized how right my mom was. I was a little scared because of how reckless some people can be.” Harrison tells about how it feels to finally get your license and be able to

give

ART BY Maddy Franco

PHOTO ESSAY For their final production of the year, Starlight Theatre Company brings Newsies to life. pg. 16

PHOTO BY Arden Ray

SPORTS

Girls soccer player Liz Luck dominates the field her sophomore year. pg. 11

PHOTO BY Nick Wood

IN-DEPTH

HAVOC: A tree in Austin splits due to the weight of ice on it's branches. Multiple interstates were shut down in Texas as a result of slick roads. PHOTO BY Michael Reeves

AISD Superinten-

The search continues for a superintendent

At the end of the 21-22 school year, superintendent Dr. Stephanie Elizalde stepped down and returned to her old district in Dallas ISD. Following this news the Austin Independent School District (AISD), appointed Dr. Anthony Mays as interim superintendent. In November he announced he would be leaving AISD for a Houston-area district.

After this announcement, the AISD board of trustees hired the company, GR Recruiting, who advertised the position and got input from the public on what they want from the next superintendent. The trustees made it clear that this person would not be the permanent superintendent and they would look for another applicant to fill that vacancy which will be announced in June.

GR Recruiting took applications until Dec. 15 when the board unanimously voted for Matias Segura as the interim superintendent.

On Jan. 26, the AISD Board named GR Recruiting as the superintendent search firm. A final agreement with the firm had not been signed at press time. The Board will hold a special meeting on Monday, Feb. 20 with the new search firm at the Board Auditorium beginning at 6 pm. The Board had three specific areas they want the company doing the search to focus on. These include Openness, community engagement and experience.

A timetable for hiring has not been released.

STORY BY Carey Wooley

Carey Wooley Editor-in-Chief

A theme that has stayed prevalent for Bowie’s administration team is adaptation. After four years of having to adjust to unseen circumstances and new challenges, principal Mark Robinson and the assistant principal team are finding what policies and rules work best for the student body.

When student’s came back from winter break, the administration began to roll out new signs that would live outside of student bathrooms that have a QR code that students can scan if they feel unsafe in the bathrooms and want to alert an adult.

“We don't necessarily just want to put the posters in the restroom because we're seeing things get destroyed in the restroom like sinks, soap dispensers, stalls, doors, all of it,” Robinson said. “We don't want these to be destroyed either. So we are trying to remind students what the expectations are without just giving them more things to destroy.”

"The posters also map out what is and isn’t acceptable behavior in the bathrooms. The poster has rules like only one person per stall, no loitering or vaping, and to only use the bathroom in the hallway your class is in. There is also a reminder that all bathroom entrances are monitored with video.

My biggest concern is students belonging because I feel like when students feel they belong, they treat the people and place better.

“It's still rolling out because we really haven't gotten all the signs put up that we wanted to. So, we're still very much in the implementation phase of that,” Robinson said. “I know that we are still not where we want to be in terms of vandalism, vaping, and the kind of behavior that makes some students not want to use the restroom.”

Mark Robinson Principal

“Over the past four years, I definitely feel like the underclassmen using the bathrooms for things like vaping or whatever has increased a lot more like when I first got here,” senior Sami Sagebiel said. “I feel like I didn't see it as much as I do now and I don't know how you would change it, but the culture around the bathrooms has definitely changed a lot.”

“I wish our overall environment was more pleasant,” sophomore Genevieve Theil said. “We still don’t have AC or heating in the academic hallways, and in the fine arts wing, where we do have heating, it comes along with a bad smell. I also wish they were better about stopping the fights and vandalism that happen in the bathroom.”

According to the National Center of Education Statistics (NCES), since the return of students to classrooms since the pandemic, schools across the country are seeing a decline in students mental health and increase in dangerous behaviors and vandalism. Administrators and counselors are hoping to continue supporting students and putting up friendly reminders around campus to improve these behaviors.

“I think staying home and always being online made people think, oh, my actions don't matter and make them feel like they can do whatever they want,” Sagebiel said. “I feel like that has continued into the years past COVID.”

At the beginning of the year administrators rolled out several new protocols for students including ID badges, bathroom passes that have colors correlating to the hallway it is in, and who is allowed off campus for lunches. They hope these new posters on top of the already existing policies will improve how students feel on campus.

STOP AND THINK: Before entering each bathroom on campus students will see these posters outlining appropriate and inappropriate behaviors. Administrators hope this will improve student safety and make bathrooms a place students don't feel uncomfortable entering. PHOTO BY Nick Wood

These posters have already begun popping up around campus, but there will be many more inside and outside of the bathrooms. Other posters reminding students of phone free learning and to always have IDs on, are also in classrooms all over campus.

One of the main concerns regarding the bathrooms is vandalism. While it was a bigger problem last year, soap and toilet paper dispensers continue to be broken and go missing in many bathrooms. Whole stalls have been broken and are unusable.

“I know not everybody's wearing their IDs so I would definitely say that with regard to all those things, we still have ways to go,” Robinson said. “There are some organizational things that we still need to figure out because we have added the athletic

building now. We are seeing an improvement but we still have room to grow.”

According to Robinson administrators are hoping to continue making campus a safer place for all Bowie students. He hopes to find more policies that work for the Bowie community and add more safety features to the actual building.

New challenges will continue to arise, like the recent winter storm, but Bowie administrators are prepared to tackle them.

“My biggest concern is students belonging because I feel like when students feel they belong, they treat the people and place better,” Robinson said.

Bowie's Late work policies cause students to feel stress

Savannah Linscomb Dispatch Reporter

Spring semester can be a stressful time for students. As students begin the final stretch, they often struggle with meeting deadlines for assignments and their grades and social lives suffer because of it. With sports tournaments, UIL competitions, looming AP tests, and for some SAT, the hours in a day are stretched thin as they attempt to balance school with other activities.

is, benefits students. Most late work policies are decided by a team of teachers who are teaching the same subject, such as biology and anatomy teachers Stacie Feen and Renee Keyes.

“So, like Ms. Keyes who also teaches anatomy, we, for consistency among students, have to have the same policies regarding grading late work,” Feen said. “So, we have identical late work policies, in terms of how many points off as well as what determines something late.”

“My late work policy is that there's no forgiveness for not doing it but I don't take any points for turning it in late because I'd rather people do the work than worry about taking points,” Day said.

Day’s students have an overwhelmingly positive response to his policy. Although every policy is designed to teach a student a life lesson, Day wants to give the future bosses of the world an example of a more obliging environment.

Late Work Policy

• For every day a lab or test is turned in late ten points will be deducted

• If a daily grade is turned in late there will be an automatic 30 point deduction

• Late work due to absences needs to be turned in a timely fashion

Teachers' late work policies differ across the school. Some teachers adopt more laid back policies to give students room to take their time and complete their work as they need. Other teachers prefer a stricter late work policy to keep their students attentive.

One student who knows all about a busy spring semester is junior Ana Magana. Magana is on the track and debate team which keeps her busy on top of classwork. For her, strict late work policies are difficult as they affect the quality of her work.

“If there is a strict policy, it really takes away motivation to do it,” Magana said. “I try to finish it as fast as I can. So it can be really bad quality.”

Magana also has a job outside of school, further affecting her time to finish assignments. Although many teachers have exceptions for being sick, attending a sports tournament, or UIL event, many teachers' exceptions don’t stand for students with jobs.

“I miss out on lots of work and it can make it very hard to catch up,” Magana Said. “Sometimes I have to choose between failing or sleeping.”

Each teacher has a unique late work policy and they believe that the policy, regardless of how strict or lenient it

Consistency is important to both students and teachers. Teachers have indicated that they have to find a balance that works for them with the number of students they have to teach and how often they have to grade or regrade assignments.

“I have six sections in all anatomy, around 190 students," Feen said. "I think that's sort of one reason why but also it's just a life skill to have your things taken care of when they need to be taken care of."

Feen’s late work policy like other teachers involves a point deduction for work depending on how late that work is, for students who are present when the work was completed but failed to complete it the point deduction can be 30 points for one day.

"I like a more lenient policy because some of us have learning disabilities that aren't accommodated so it makes it really hard to get work in on time," Magana said.

Policies have to work for teachers and students. While consistency among subjects may be prevalent, consistency in all teachers is not. Advanced Quantitative Reasoning (AQR) teacher Edward Day has a much more tolerant policy that works for him and his students.

“I think learning to respect deadlines is a very important lesson to learn," Day said. "And definitely some teachers will teach that and more power to them, but I feel like I want to teach that some of you will be bosses someday and perhaps you could be a bit lenient about other things.”

Feen Stacie Feen Edward Day Edward Day

Students find the pardoning policy to be a breath of fresh air, senior Serena Cuzze finds Day’s policy to be amongst her favorites, as his policy allows students to work ahead at their own pace or fall behind.

“There are just some days where I'm very mentally drained and there's a lot going on in my life,” Cuzze said. “Having it not count against me is really nice.”

While students find the policy to be helpful because of its lenience, other teachers fear students will not learn to respect deadlines if given the same forbearance in all of their classes.

“The reality is it looks like if you submit your car insurance late, you're not insured or there's a substantial financial penalty," Feen said. So, it's just a good skill to realize that there are deadlines for things and if you can't manage the deadlines there are consequences.”

Late Work Policy

• No penalities if not turned in by the due date

• If a student needs more time on an assignment he will allow that

• Tolerant to absences affecting when a student can turn something in

ART BY Carey Wooley

ART BY Carey Wooley

Stacie

Abbott announces future action

Governor speaks on police funding, border, education in inaugural address

Mazzy Warren Managing Editor

With topics like abortion, immigration, and gun safety weighing heavily on Texans’ minds, junior Vivian Jordan knows the governor of Texas has the power to change each and every citizen’s day-to-day life. That’s why she believes it’s important that Texans vote for politicians who will represent them with their policy.

Last November, Gov. Greg Abbott faced off against Beto O’Rourke in a head-to-head election that would decide the fate of the Texas legislature. Abbott secured 54.8% of the vote, winning the election and securing his continued position as governor of Texas.

“I'm not surprised Abbott was reelected, because overall, Texas is still a red state,” government teacher Ruth Narvaiz said. “If you look at a map of how people vote, there are democratic splotches in the big cities. So you consistently see blue in Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, and here in Austin; the rest of the state is red, which overwhelms the blue votes.”

Abbott and O’Rourke, as the two major candidates for governor, had differing opinions on how the state should be managed. Although Abbott had more supporters state-wide, O’Rourke was the favored candidate in Austin. Although she knew she would see these results, Jordan was unhappy to hear of O'Rourke's defeat.

“His loss is both upsetting and expected,” Jordan said. “As someone who's lived both in and out of this city, it’s expected that places like Austin vote democratic, be-

cause people are sharing new opinions. But, most of the state is still red, and that's really disappointing.”

In his third inaugural speech, delivered January 17, Abbott promised to focus on the economy, infrastructure, and school systems in Texas. Jordan hopes to see positive reforms, although she doubts that’s what she’ll see.

“There’s not much I agree with Abbott on, so there’s lots of changes I’d like made,” senior Hunter Benson said. “I want to see less extreme Republicans, and more reasonable people and policies.”

with the extra funds, Abbott has proposed a cut to property taxes.

"

Along with these topics, he discussed allocating more money to border control and to the police. Abbott claimed that police de-funding “let dangerous criminals back on our streets,” and that “the Biden Administration is not enforcing the [immigration] laws already on the books.” Benson believes Texas should hold different priorities, instead of focusing on federal matters.

“I don't know if the tax cuts will pass,” Narvaiz said. “I would love for my property taxes to be lower, but the government has to get money somehow. We have a surplus now, but what happens in ten years when that surplus is used up? Property taxes pay for education, so where are you going to get money to run schools, if that surplus is used and tax revenue has gone down?”

I think Abbott's trying to create an issue where there isn't one. It's something lots of Republicans do, to make people mad.

Hunter Benson Senior

“That's not his job,” Narvaiz said. “Border control is a federal concern. For states to handle that; it’s not how the government works. Greg Abbott’s an attorney, he knows that’s not how the government works. He just wants to sound good in his speech, but that’s why you need to look at the facts behind what he's saying.”

According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, Texas GDP grew 8.2% in the third quarter of 2022, far above the national average, 3.2%. This has created a budget surplus in Texas;

In February 2021, Texas faced a winter storm that turned into a state-wide power crisis. Since then, many Texans, Jordan included, have held a lack of trust in the state's grid; despite this, Abbott claims that, since their bipartisan reforms, “no Texan has lost power because of the grid.”

He now plans on expanding the grid, to match population growth.

“There’s enough issues with the grid that need to be addressed, before we begin working on expansion,” Jordan said. “We were forced to see that in the last few freezes, with Texans losing power.”

With regards to changing the student curriculum, Abbott stated that “schools are for education, not indoctrination,” and that they “should not push social agendas.” As Abbott claims, “no one knows what’s better for a child’s education than their parents.” Not even their teachers.

“I think Abbott’s trying to create an issue where there isn’t one,” Benson said. “It’s something a lot of Republicans do, pick a random topic to make people mad. They just do that to have something to say, and because they want to teach their own divisive ideas.”

On May 24, 2022, 21 students and teachers lost their lives to a teenage gunman at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. Narvaiz hopes to see rulings passed in response to this tragedy.

“I don't know how they will address this, but it's an important issue, and it's gotten a lot of attention,” Narvaiz said. “It would be good to see Abbott pass something related to school safety. We have a wide open campus; we’re an easy target for someone who wants to come in with bad intentions. Anything to make this campus safer is a great idea.”

Both Benson and Jordan believe it’s important for teens to follow the

Women's abortion rights continue to change as Congress passes the Born Alive Bill. It's a terrible, sorry attempt to gain power over women and their bodies.

Amara Lopez Dispatch Reporter

Questions?

JAN 20, 2015

ABBOTT ASSUMES OFFICE FOR HIS FIRST TERM

JAN 8, 2019

ABBOTT ASSUMES OFFICE FOR HIS SECOND TERM

MAY 19, 2021

ABBOTT SIGNS ANTI-ABORTION TEXAS HEARTBEAT ACT

JUNE 1, 2021

ABBOTT SIGNS BACK THE BLUE POLICE REFUNDMENT LEGISLATION

SEPTEMBER 17, 2021

ABBOTT ALLOCATES $2 BIL. TO BORDER SECURITY

NOVEMBER 8, 2022

ABBOTT'S RE-ELECTION ANNOUNCED

JAN 17, 2023

ABBOTT ASSUMES OFFICE FOR HIS THIRD TERM

changing world of politics around them. Narvaiz agrees that, though teens don’t often take these things to heart, they should pay attention so they know how to step into their future role as voters.

“These topics are especially important when I’m looking at my students,” Narvaiz said. “Many of them will be 18 soon, and if they didn’t vote in this election, they’ll be able to vote in the next one. If, say, Greg Abbott’s running again, they need to form their own opinions about him now, so they can decide how to vote in the future.”

President Joe Biden bans beloved app TikTok

Maddy Franco Dispatch Reporter

Even before Joe Biden assumed the presidency, U.S. leaders have been looking into TikTok, one of the largest social media platforms in the world.

In 2020, President Donald Trump tried to pass a bill banning TikTok on all platforms, claiming it's a threat to national security. Congress foresaw Biden's proposal, suggesting he hold off on it, as it could lead to possible legal actions from Bytedance, the company behind the app. After three years, this proposal has finally come through, but only for government issued devices.

On December 28, Biden signed the 2023 Federal Spending Bill, a 4,126-page document containing a clause prohibiting TikTok on government devices. This was a compromise, as Bytedance tried resolving the issue months prior to the ban.

“I believe it was a smart political choice to lower the risk of sensitive information leaks,” sophomore Jolie Kingham said. “It makes sense that government officials wouldn’t want to risk anything being leaked.”

As TikTok is a Chinese owned app, American politicians fear that the Chinese government will use TikTok

to exploit users, stealing their device's data. Government officials asked their staff to delete the app from their phones before this bill passed. The app will be permanently banned by the end of February, 2023.

“I don't think the ban is that bad, because everyone who uses TikTok uses it on their personal phones or personal computers,” social studies teacher Charles Stampley said.

This ban affects four million government employees, whose issued devices will lose access to the app. The only people that are not affected are law enforcement and national security agencies, who can reference the app for special security cases.

“I do believe this ban is helpful, because I've worked in cyber security before and there are a ton of cyber security concerns out there,” Stampley said. “I have worked with government and military systems, and I'm all for banning TikTok on government devices.”

Bytedance is based in Beijing, China. This makes U.S. officials believe the company is using their employees to send millions of U.S. citizens’ data to the Chinese government. Even though this theory hasn't been confirmed, several articles have stated the company has access to information like IP

address, contact info, and much more while you're on their app.

“All of our data is collected all the time by different apps, and TikTok is no exception, unfortunately,” sophomore Sofia Yordanova said. “But I don't really think it matters too much for us, past important passwords being leaked to certain personal accounts.”

For over three years, Bytedance has tried to negotiate offers with the US Committee on Foreign Investment to keep the app on all devices, as they

don't want to lose those four million users. The Committee of Foreign Investment group reviews everything that goes through with foreign deals. They argued to keep TikTok on all platforms, while they work to detect all interferences from the Chinese government.

“I do think TikTok's ban was useful to some extent, but it's not really helping the problem of the data being leaked, whatsoever, " Yordanova said. “TikTok is not the only app that has access to our data.”

Before this ban took place, over half of the U.S. governors had previously banned TikTok on all state issued devices; some states have banned other apps as well. Even Afghanistan and India have banned TikTok for privacy reasons.

“The banning of TikTok is something that each company and state will have to decide for themselves,” Stampley said.

This banning is common within other companies, as well as universities, throughout the United States. The government wasn’t the first to take action; several universities in Texas were some of the first to have taken initiative on this ban. These universities include the University of Texas, Texas A&M University, the University of Houston System, and Texas Tech University.

“I don’t think schools like Bowie will ban TikTok," Kingham said. "There would be a lot of backlash, and people would get very upset considering how much TikTok is a part of an average kid's life."

Concerns? Email: bowie.journalism@gmail.com

Just eleven days into the new year, U.S. House Republicans submitted and passed a new abortion bill, putting a spotlight on their true agenda with their new, slim House majority. The full title of the bill is the “Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act,” and it is exactly as it sounds. The new bill mimics a law passed by Missouri in 2022, which requires medical professionals, in the rare case that the baby is born alive and survives an abortion, to preserve the life of the fetus and prosecute the parent who underwent the abortion for neglecting the child of proper medical care. In my opinion, I see this new legislation as a sorry attempt to strengthen the GOP’s standing in American politics, as not only does it try to gain more power over people with uterus's, but leads moderate voters away from the party. Similar to most of the bills recently drawn up to restrict abortion access, this new ‘Born Alive’ bill aims at parents who undergo abortions in which a fetus is born alive, as well as any health care providers who fail to comply with the requirements of care to save the child. While the bill protects mothers from federal prosecution, it instead blames medical professionals, who could potentially face up to five years in prison. Those who fail to provide proper care are considered to have intentionally killed, or attempted to kill a child. They are then prosecuted with murder.

This bill disregards the fact that the majority of abortions are preceded during the first trimester of a woman’s pregnancy, where the infant is not fully formed, and can not be ‘born-alive’. In the case that a baby survives an abortion, a case that many states ban, indicating that the birth of that child would either endanger the parent’s life or the child’s in some way shape or form.

The legislators who voted in favor of this bill lack empathy and have forgotten that each pregnancy is different, and is not a place where legislation is welcome, especially at the federal level.

While the bill is unlikely to pass through the Senate, which is held by the Democratic Party; what's concerning to me is the path that the GOP seems to be headed on, with their new House majority and the issues on their political agenda. It took House Republicans less than ten days to introduce and pass the bill to the Senate, and what's even more alarming is that the vote resulted in 220 to 210, in favor of the legislation. In the midterm elections last November, we saw both parties call attention to abortion rights to gain votes. However, the GOP highly overestimated the number of Americans that would support their initiatives, specifically those pro-life voters they were relying on. This led to the failure of the anticipated “red wave." More notable was the obvious trend of Republicans winning their races with relaxed abortion policies.

Since Roe v Wade was overturned, there has been a clear outcry from millions of Americans, begging those in power to fight for freedom to their own bodies. As I see it, the last thing our country needs, or wants, is for the GOP to not just threaten a person’s right to bodily autonomy and family planning, but to proper medical care. We need to work together, whether that means more negotiation between politicians or more moderate candidates. We need to see these changes so that we can heal from not just a pandemic, but from extremist politicians from all sides.

PHOTO COURTESY OF Office of the Texas Governor GEN Z 20% 21% 59%

29% 38% 33% ART BY Mazzy Warren SOURCE Morning Consult

ALL STATE DEVICES PARTIAL BANS NO BANS IN PLACE

WHERE IS TIKTOK BANNED?

ART BY Mazzy Warren SOURCE Yahoo!Finance

Junior returns to All-State Ensemble

Finnegan Alexander balances All-State choir with starring in musical theater productions

Kate Davis

Managing Editor

Standing in front of the audience, spotlight beaming down, junior Finnegan Alexander prepares to perform with the Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) All-State Choir.

The process of becoming a member of the All-State Choir consists of progressing through several rounds of auditions at the regional, area, and state level. This will be Alexander’s second year as a part of this choir.

“It feels great. I had so much fun with it last year and I’m very excited to be a part of it again,” Alexander said. “It definitely feels like there’s this community that I’ll be coming back to there. Just the whole sense of being around a group of such like minded people, such talented people is so inviting and exciting for me.”

Alexander has been interested in

music and musical theater since he was a young child attending summer camps.

“I started singing for an audience when I was about four. I think I’ve just always had that element of rhythmic motion and musicality in my brain,” Alexander said. “I’ve had a passion for it pretty much forever, but you can pin it on Paramount Theater summer camps as a very young child or middle school musicals.”

Originally, Alexander had intentions to focus on his musical theater career solely. However, choir director Aaron Bourgeois convinced Alexander to join the Bowie choir, where he fell in love with the environment.

“It’s always a lot of fun and I have gotten into a position where I’ve gotten to lead sections and help people out with different things,” Finnegan said. “Just being able to sing with the group in this kind of more relaxed

setting is always a lot of fun, and I’m glad I get to do it.”

Other members of the Bowie choir enjoy Alexander’s presence in the program, attesting to his ability to positively lead other members.

“Finn’s very focused when it comes to working on basically anything in his life and you definitely feel that when he’s at choir,” junior Daria Abramovitch said. “He knows what he’s doing and is always determined to do the best he can. He also directly makes sure that his section knows what they’re doing and are comfortable with it.”

Not only has Alexander had an impact on his peers since joining the choir, he has proved to be a dedicated and promising student.

“He gives a lot of time to individual practice in a way that I’ve seen few students have a passion for in my career,” Bourgeois said. “He wants to

get better at his craft and be the best he can, and he knows that practice is simply the only way to go about it. Though confident and secure in his abilities, what makes Finn great is that he is always striving to find the adjustments he can make to get to that next level. He always aims to build upon what he has done and progress further.”

Having had limited choral experience, Alexander faced some difficulty in developing some of the key skills needed for the AllState audition process.

“One thing in particular he had to work hard on in his first year was learning how to sight read music, because he never had to do so in the past,” Bourgeois said. “This sight reading element is immensely stressful, with students having only 30 seconds to look over a sight reading example and be able to sing it in full, so I was very impressed that he was able to develop the skill to such a high level in such a short amount of time.”

“The hope is Broadway, the hope has always been Broadway, the hope will always be Broadway,” Alexander said. “Although I think anything in that kind of performance area would be fantastic. Just to nail down even local regional theater or choral work would be a lot of fun for me although I do still love that acting and performance aspect.”

The whole sense of being around a group of such like minded people, such talented people is so inviting and exciting for me.

Along with being a member of a selective choir comes new expectations, which Alexander is learning to handle.

“It’s not really that I feel pressure, I feel driven,” Alexander said. “I feel that now I know I’m there, I can progress from there and I know what I can focus on from that. So I think it’s a little bit of a pressure aspect but it’s more an intrigue as to what will come next.”

The All-State choir has provided some new opportunities to Alexander that can’t necessarily be replicated by the program at school.

“It’s just more for the people who are already musically inclined, that get chosen through the audition process,” Alexander said. “That provides a very different performance aspect to it. It’s not just your parents in the audience, it’s a massive house of musical educators and all kinds of different folks that just wanted to come and see it. So there definitely are different expectations set.”

"As Alexander works towards these goals of pursuing a career in musical theater or choir, the Bowie fine arts programs are helping refine his skills and supporting his aspirations.

“As far as the music realm goes, he can pretty much have his pick of any direction and he would be immensely successful,” Bourgeois said. “He would, of course, be a great educator, but Finn’s passion really is performance, it’s what he lives for.”

Being a member of several fine arts programs, while also balancing an education has proven to have its difficulties, however Alexander has learned to balance his responsibilities.

Though confident and secure in his abilities, what makes Finn great is that he is always striving to find the adjustments he can make.

"“Well I think I found my groove,” Alexander said. “The time it starts to get a little complicated is the start of second semester because that ends up being full on musical season which makes it hard to balance schoolwork and shows. Choir sort of has to become third priority to the rest of it. For the rest of the year I would say everything is pretty smooth. So, all of it evens out pretty well.”

Aaron Bourgeois Choir Director

While finishing out his high school programs Alexander is consistently looking to improve his skills and better prepare himself for collegiate and professional careers.

These opportunities to perform on stage with the All-State ensemble has aided Alexander in choosing potential career paths.

“If you feel like it’s not working, try something different because that’ll always lead you to some kind of point of learning where you’ll realize that’s better for me or it’s not working but now I know what is,” Alexander said. “Fail forward. Always learn from a point that you can’t make it try to find out why.”

Track Five band reaches 1.6k monthly Spotify listeners

Donna Kim Dispatch Reporter

For childhood friends Caiden Kinsey and John Michael Rocha, forming a band and producing music seemed like a distant reality. Now as high school seniors, their band’s debut single has reached over 25K streams, with their newest single steadily climbing numbers in streams every day.

As described in their Spotify biography, Track Five is a poppunk band that was formed in 2020. The band consists of four members: Ace Brown as the main vocalist, Caiden Kinsey plays guitar, while John Michael Rocha handles the bass, and Mac Allen beats the drums.

Track Five aims to produce songs and bring together communities of the pop-punk genre, taking heavy inspiration from bands such as Green Day and Blink-182. But at the core of their band are four long-time friends, all with unbreakable bonds and a brotherhood-like friendship.

“I’ve known Caiden since first grade, the rest of us met

We

in middle school,” Rocha said. “We’ve all always been close, and we’ve hung out every week since 8th grade. Mac joined a little late, but he’s just as close.” Track Five didn’t start out as an official band, but rather a few friends who liked to have jam sessions in their garage.

Over time, Rocha, Allen, Kinsey, and Brown became the four main members of a band that was in the works of being created.

“We decided to become a band during COVID in 2020. Ace was supposed to be our manager, but the manager became our lead singer,” Kinsey said. “We needed a drummer, so Ace invited Mac to our jam sessions, and it all worked out.”

2021. While having only four members, Track Five’s name suggests otherwise.

“For a straight year we had been brainstorming band names. We went through Ion, False Utopia, and other cool names,” Brown said.

John Michael Rocha Senior

"“One day when we were all hanging out in Mac’s car, we turned on the radio, where it showed the track of each song of an album that’s playing. On the fifth song, track five came up, and that’s when John Michael said ‘That’s our name, right there.’ When people ask why our name is called Track Five when there’s only four of us, we tell them that the fifth member are the fans.”

member equally contributes to the band, whether it is producing music, coming up with new melodies, or brainstorming lyrics.

“At the end of the day, we all do the same thing. Ace helps with lyrics and guitar, Caiden with riffs; everyone has their parts and everyone has their suggestions,” Rocha said. “We all have our own, creative output, especially in the studio. We all have something to say and ways to contribute. That’s what makes Track Five, the four of us putting our minds together to create and play music.”

Track Five’s debut single, Hold You, currently has over 25K streams on Spotify. Released in July of 2022, Hold You tells the story of a man torn between his love for music and his partner. The song contains an upbeat, pop-punk melody, composed with impressive instrumentals.

Track Five became the band’s official name around October of

Some bands have a leader, but for Track Five, there is no official leader. Instead, each

“For Hold You, we worked with Roost Recording Studio and producer Jimmy George,” Allen said. “Jimmy has more of a calm, blues kind of feel. Our other producer, Frenchie Smith, who we’re working with right now at The Bubble Studio, has more of an emo kind of vibe. We produced Never Be As Happy with him, which is why it has more of a rock feeling.”

Track Five’s most recently released single, Never Be As Happy, was released on January 1, 2023. Unlike Hold You’s pop-punk feeling, Never Be As Happy contains more of a rocklike melody and lyrics.

“So whenever we made Never Be As Happy, we brought it up to Frenchie. We had the macaroni and the Popsicle sticks, and we were missing the glue. Frenchie gave us the glue to put those pieces together and make a macaroni Eiffel Tower

or a bridge,” Rocha said. “I wouldn’t say our original song was changed but it was definitely structured a lot differently than what we thought, and we were pretty iffy on it. But we listened to it and we really liked it. We trust him now, with his musical capabilities.”

Hold You and Never Be As Happy are Track Five’s only singles out as of now, but the band has a current project that is to come in the future.

“We’re planning to get back into the studio next month for our new album and to release new songs,” Kinsey said. “We think, guaranteed, even if we don’t end up finishing the album, we’re going to drop it at the end of the school year.”

From starting off as a couple of friends who liked to experiment with instruments, to releasing singles on music streaming services, Track Five has gone a long way to refining their art. There is no doubt that

even after high school, Track Five will climb the ladder to stardom as a band.

“You wouldn’t think that when you first start a band and you can barely play a Green Day song together, that you will make a song with more than 10K streams,” Rocha said. “It’s cool seeing how far this band has gone, it’s just great.”

PLAYING SOME TUNES: Seniors Caiden Kinsey (front) and Mac Allen (back) experiment with some new sounds for the band. Track Five has been a band since 2020. PHOTO BY Donna Kim

Finnegan Alexander Junior

all have our own creative output, especially in the studio. We all have something to say and ways to contribute.

Dancer turns towards a bright future

Ally Bartek experiments with multiple styles including contemporary, hip hop, and ballet

Sophia Sanchez Feature Editor

Pointing her toes, feeling the stretch throughout her muscles, senior Ally Bartek warms up for her Advanced Dance 4 class.

Dance has been a part of Bartek’s life before she could walk, her older sister was her introduction to the world of dance.

“Even as a newborn, Ally would quiet down from any fussy moment, if her sister, Maggie, started dancing to the Bella Dancerella DVD and just watched intently,” Bartek’s mom, Alice Lin said. “Ally started kiddie tap and ballet classes around three years old through her day care, but really chose to dance versus other sports around six years old.”

Over the years Bartek has learned numerous types of dance such as tap, contemporary, hip hop, and ballet. Bartek feels that her experiences as a dance aid for Advanced Dance 4, and being a part of a new dance company, BHumn Arts Ensemble, has helped her grow in numerous ways.

“I have been dancing for a really long time,” Bartek said. “I think that recently it has been helping me make better connections with people because the dance team that I’m on is new. It’s with a bunch of new people from all the way over from Leander to Buda. It’s been helping me learn how to communicate with people that I haven’t met before.”

According to senior Parker Friedman, Bartek’s history in dance is noticeable in their dayto-day practice.

“Ally’s technique is literally so good,” Friedman said. “She has a big background in ballet which is really evident because she’s really good at elongating and her movement always has a lot of strength.”

According to Bartek, Bhumn Arts Ensemble focuses a majority of their time together training and perfecting skills to showcase growth.

“My company doesn’t really care about competitions but we do perform to showcase the dances that we’ve been working on,” Bartek said. “We’re mostly focused on the performances of our dances but I have competed

a couple times and I’ve won regards but not any important ones.”

Participating in dance both in and outside of school has given Bartek the opportunities to continue exploring different styles of dance, working on numerous new pieces.

“I did a show with my company at the end of last school year,” Bartek said. “It was for concert pieces, so the dances were anywhere from nine to 15 minutes long. That was really fun just because it’s not something that I think I usually get to do. We were all just hanging out for a long time and it was really fun.”

"Although Bartek’s passion for dance has been visible for a majority of her life, COVID provided the much needed break to her busy schedule.

“Dance takes up a lot of after school time so it’s hard to balance doing homework and dance also at the same time,” Bartek said. “During freshman year right before COVID happened, I thought about quitting. The pandemic kind of gave me a break without me having to say that I quit. Once I went back to dance, I was more grateful and appreciative, since I hadn’t been doing it for a while.”

Bartek’s passion and pursuant attitude to achieving new goals has not gone unnoticed by many of her peers.

“I am and will always be so proud of Ally,” Lin said. “When she is dancing on stage, she is breathtaking and I am forever in awe of her ability, focus, and artistry.”

trated when I am not able to get something, I tend to reflect on my past self and how I’ve grown from that, thinking about how I’ll be able to grow from where I am now to something else in the future.”

Dance is a widely recognized competitive sport due to the precision needed to master a move. According to Bartek even after years of dancing there are still things she wishes to improve on.

I am always so proud of Ally. When she is dancing on stage, she is breathtaking and I am forever in awe of her ability to focus

Despite the hardships, Bartek’s feelings towards dance have not wavered as she continues to push herself to learn. “I don’t really say anything to myself to stay motivated, it’s more like just feeling happy to dance,” Bartek said. “Whenever I am struggling, upset, or frus-

Alice Lin Ally Bartek’s mom

"“Right now I’m really focusing on my ballet technique and strengthening the right muscles and for that,” Bartek said. “But I think I also really want to work on creative freedom while I’m dancing and being able to express myself better in that aspect.”

Bartek assisted with choreographing the dance aide section of the fall show along with Friedman. According to Friedman their growth is evident

since freshman year.

“It was fun to see what we choreographed on stage,” Friedman said. “I’d say my favorite memory dancing with Ally would be our pre-drill class freshman year. We made up dances in groups which was really fun. Now we look at the videos from that year and they’re all really funny because they’re pretty bad and embarrassing.”

Dance has always been a part of Bartek’s life. As she moves into adulthood and begins to pursue other interests, she hopes to never forget her artistic roots.

“I hope dance will always be a part of Ally’s life,” Lin said. “Whether as opportunities to perform, learn or just as a way to relieve stress.”

Bartek is now an ACE (Amplified Convention Experience) for the National Dance Honors Society, meaning she’s an assistant that travels to multiple areas to dance with them. According to Bartek, traveling has given her new insight into dance performances and the work behind them.

“Dancing just makes me feel happy,” Bartek said. “When I think about it, that’s all I feel, just happy.”

Although Bartek is not planning on going to college for

dance, she hopes to go to attend an out-of-state college where the city provides multiple dance classes for her to participate in and enjoy.

“The world of a competition dancer is filled with ups and downs,” Lin said. “As this chapter comes to a close for Ally,

I hope she will always remember the good things. How strong and confident she is for putting her craft out there for all to see; all the good people she met and befriended in this world; how much she loves dance and the way it has made her smile since she was a tiny dancer.”

Bowie students prepare for their upcoming adulthoods

CONTINUED from pg. 1

phone because we don’t care anymore. It’s the final sense of privacy that you get after finally being set free. No one’s going to bug you because they don’t know where you are.”

Harrison goes on to share his experiences during the driving test itself, and how he was feeling while in the car with the instructor during the big moment. This determind if he gets his license or has to wait to redo it in another 90 days.

“The only thing I remember is just don’t go too fast, that’s the only thing I could think of,” Harrison said. “Then afterwards, he said, okay you’re good, then just gave me the paper saying I finished the test.”

Junior Maya Graves is a student who’s recently gotten their license and they tell about how their experience at the DPS office and getting their license.

“My experience was bad, I waited there for about two hours and they didn’t have enough seats for us. The documents I needed were my birth certificate, proof of residency, proof of going to school, and social security card,” Graves said. “Those are all the documents to get your permit, and then you don’t need those documents again to get your license because you already have the permit.”

Graves explains how they were feeling about getting their license before actually going to do the driving test and going to the DPS office.

“The aspect of driving I was most looking forward to was the freedom, I didn’t have to plan around my parent’s schedule any more I could go anywhere I wanted anytime but, I was afraid of driving in general, you’re literally controlling a two-ton vehicle that could seriously hurt or kill people,” Graves said.

Another part of being an adult is getting a bank account and learning to manage the money you make. Junior Natalie Valdez explains the ins and outs of setting up a bank account, learning to use a debit card and some of the benefits and downsides that come with using it in the real world.

“The process itself isn’t too complicated,

1 2 3 4

frankly it’s not that hard if you have what you need,” Valdez said. “Getting the bank account required multiple forms of identification, for security purposes. They said that you need your social security card, some sort of state ID like a driver’s license or permit, you could also use your passport if you had one. Once you had your identity approved you give the bank people like 30$ as your starting amount, I think they said that it was required in order to open an account with them. You also have to answer some standard questions, they usually just revolve around what-if situations.” Valdez goes on to tell about how banking

online and her banking app has helped her get transactions done even quicker as opposed to going to the bank and depositing the money in person. Going into the bank is useful today mainly for depositing cash, and sometimes checks, but it can be time-consuming if you just need to move money around your accounts.

“For me, having a bank account and a card has made it much easier to manage my money,” Valdez said. “My bank has this lovely little app, where I can essentially do anything there except for deposit money. A few months back I moved some of my savings to my checking account so that my bank wouldn’t charge me $5 dollars. I

was able to do it in less than a minute. The app’s home screen shows you how much money you have in both of your accounts, and there’s a tab that shows your receipts which is helpful for double-checking if you made that [transaction] or someone else did.”

Valdez also talks about some of the situations in daily life that have been made easier for her now that she can use her debit card instead of cash all the time.

“I can now pay with more than just cash,” Valdez said. “There’s not necessarily much danger with getting a debit card, in my opinion. But cash is great for small businesses.”

STRIKING A POSE: Ally Bartek performs for the new dance company BHumn Arts Ensemble after weeks of practice. Bartek feels being a part of the new company helped her improve multiple styles of dance and improved her communication techniques. PHOTO COURTESY OF Ally Bartek

Whenever I am struggling or frustrated, I tend to reflect on my past self and how to grow from where I am now to something else

Ally Bartek Senior

POINTING HER TOES: Bartek showcases new dance techniques that she has been training for. Bartek now travels as an ACE for the National Dance Honors Society, and performs for them in multiple areas.

PHOTO COURTESY OF Ally Bartek

ART BY Lucille Price and Madeleine Travis

NEWSIES

actors shine bright on stage

of the Starlight Theater Company (STC) hold their hands up high as they beam their smiles into the audience. The whole cast gathered together onstage to joyfully thank the students and staff who took the time to come out to the theater to watch their show. “I really believe that all of our audiences enjoyed the show,” Fleming said. “We put our all into every production, every night. We really tried to make sure everyone in the audience left the theater feeling happy and fulfilled with the show we put on for them.”

Crumpled newspapers flying through the air and into the audience, singing, dancing, intricate set designs, and emotional expressions. That’s what the James Bowie High School Starlight Theater Company (STC) production of Newsies was all about.

On Thursday, Jan. 19, the STC had their opening night. Production and rehearsal started in November. Sophomore Jayden White, who is a member of the STC, describes his experience rehearsing for his role Tommy Boy in the musical.

“In November, we focused solely on vocals, making sure as an ensemble the songs sounded good,” White said.

The production team wasn’t brought on stage until December and dress rehearsal didn’t begin until January. Cast members were expected to rehearse everyday including weekends for two months straight until opening night.

Senior STC member Jack Fleming played Davey.

“The time frame we were given was shorter than usual, however there was still enough time for everyone to prepare,” Fleming said.

Musical preparation process takes time and commitment from STC members. A lot of thought goes into the decisions for how rehearsal time is spent. Rehearsals are spent running lines, stage blocking, set designing, costume fitting, practicing scenes, singing, and much more.

“I honestly think that if I were to

have more time then I would have tried to over-correct things that were already good enough,” Fleming said.

With quick set changes, fast costume swaps, and challenging monologues, directors try to eliminate stress come time of show night. Many STC members think there was enough time to get ready for opening night.

“I definitely had enough time to prepare for my role because we rehearsed for about two months and had a lot of time to practice music, lines, etc.,” White said.

Although the audience sees the work of the actors on stage, many of the STC members play large roles behind the curtains, where they cannot be seen. Each part in making production flow smoothly is imperative. “I think upperclassmen definitely have a big part in leading behind the scenes because whether they are actors or serve as assistant directors, they have the experience in the company to be able to guide people through the process,” White said.

anticipation of how the crowd will receive their performance.

“The audience response to the show was incredibly positive, our director said he got nothing but compliments, which is all you can really hope for in a performance,” White said.

"Newsies is the third official show in the new Performing Arts Center. STC members now have a bigger and more updated space to rehearse and put on a show. The larger space gives actors more space to let their performances come to life.

“I really believe that all of our audiences enjoyed the show. We put our all into every show night and really tried to make sure everyone left the theater feeling fulfilled.”

Jack Flemming Senior

“ It’s a really nice space with more backstage area and room to move around onstage, and a great audience space as well,” White said. Newsies will not be the final show of the year for the STC. There are still two more shows to go in the next three months. After Newsies, the company has plans in store to create more shows for their beloved audience in the new Performing Arts Center.

For the STC actors, audience reaction can have a huge impact on actors and directors keeping them on their toes with

“Bowie theater is an incredible thing to be a part of and I’m glad I have it as an extracurricular for my high school years,” White said.

FISTS TO THE SKY: Members

PHOTO BY Arden Ray

HAVING FUN ON STAGE: Members Jason Forst, Nadia Petru, and Jack Fleming laugh as their characters spend time together. These three hit the stage playing Jack Kelly, Spot Conlon, and Davey. “We put our all into every show night and really tried to make sure everyone left the theater feeling fulfilled,” Fleming said. PHOTO BY Arden Ray

FROM THE HEART: Jason Forst uses his passion for acting to display powerful emotion on stage, as the audience watches in amazement. Forst played Jack Kelly in this production. “Before I go onstage I just remind myself I enjoy every moment. It is so much fun and it goes by really fast, so I try to soak it in and have a great time,” senior Lainey Killian said. PHOTO BY Arden Ray

POINTING AHEAD: The audience, full of staff and students excited for the production, watches expectantly as senior Lainey Killian takes the stage for her solo. She played Katherine Plummer in this production. “Before I go onstage, I remind myself to enjoy every moment. It’s so much fun and it goes by really fast, so I try to soak it in and have a great time,” Killian said.

PHOTO BY Arden Ray

Arden Ray

Photo Essay Editor

As the cast of Newsies reflect on their performance, members break down each night

74% of TX high school students attend a school that offers Foundational Computer Science

51% of U.S. high schools offer a computer science class

SOURCE: CODE Advocacy Coalition

AI tech will add nearly 700,000 new jobs in the next decade

SOURCE: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

IS EDUCATION AI REWIRING

Growing popularity and use of chatbots initiate new discussions

Ava Wong In-Depth Editor

As she grades her class’ final essays, an English teacher comes across one essay that seems too perfect. She double checks the name at the top of the page and concludes this is out of character for this particular student. She checks the other essays to see if it was plagiarized from another student, but can not find anything. She confronts her student the next day. When pressured, the students revealed they used an AI program to complete the essay for them.

On November 30, 2022, OpenAI released an AI language model free to the public named ChatGPT. The chatbot uses deep learning techniques to generate human-like responses to text inputs, creating the feeling of having a fluent conversation for users. The chatbot additionally is able to write essays based on prompts given by users.

“I work using a deep learning technique called transformer-based architecture, which is trained on a massive dataset of text,” ChatGPT said*. “During training, I learn to predict the next word in a sentence based on the context of the words that come before it. When you ask me a question or provide me with text, I generate a response by considering the context of input and selecting the most likely next word.”

The bot is able to use numerous sources to give users an original response.

“My training data includes a diverse range of texts, such as books, websites, and scientific papers, so I have the ability to generate responses on a wide range of topics and in different styles of writing,” ChatGPT said.

Since the bot produces an original response, through a combination of multiple sources, many plagiarism detec-

tors can not detect the artificial work. This opens a door for students to use AI as another source of cheating on assignments.

“It is possible for high school students to present work as one’s own, though it was generated entirely by me or another AI tool,” ChatGPT said.

With this, there comes an argument that using an AI to complete school assignments is not technically cheating since the response students are plagiarizing can not be copyrighted. Makayla Schmuck teaches computer science and web development.

“I believe this is a poorly phrased argument for cheating,”

Schmuck said.

“It is true that AI generated work cannot be plagiarized because it legally cannot be copyrighted. However, plagiarism is not the only form of cheating. This is why we have the term for “academic integrity” and having accountability for your work, not the work of others, or in this case the work of a bot.”

ing and writing skills, and to understand the material they are learning,” ChatGPT said. “The goal of education is to gain knowledge and develop a deep understanding of concepts, not just to complete assignments. Using me or any other AI tool as a shortcut to completing schoolwork goes against the spirit of education and can ultimately hinder a student’s personal and academic growth.”

Though the use of artificial intelligence as a means of cheating on academic assignments is not an entirely new problem, it has become increasingly more common with the introduction of ChatGPT and other AI’s that are free to the public.

I believe that one of the best ways to combat the improper use of technology is to actually embrace the technology itself, under acceptable standards.

According to the Bowie Academic Integrity Policy, section 2, plagiarism is the unauthorized usage of “passages, materials, words, or ideas that come from someone or something else,” without properly citing the source. As stated more specifically in section 2a, this includes copying “text (ideas, words or syntax) or other materials from the internet, book, article, computer code, or other source” without properly citing.

“Presenting work as one’s own that has been generated entirely by an AI tool, without proper citation or acknowledgment of the source, constitutes academic dishonesty,” ChatGPT said. “It is the responsibility of students to ensure that their work is original and properly cited, regardless of whether it was generated with the help of an AI tool or not.”

The use of an AI to complete work by a student mitigates the entire point of why the work was given to the student in the first place.

“If a student isn't doing their own work, it is prohibiting them from learning which is not what school is designed to do,” senior Riley Peterson said. It’s important to contemplate submitting work from another source in place of one’s own work, whether or not it is AI.

“It is crucial for students to develop their critical thinking, problem-solv-

"“Ultimately, there will always be someone somewhere with ill intent who will exploit something for their own gain, and realistically you can never catch every single one,” Schmuck said. Then comes the concern of how to handle the potentially growing issue.

“The goal here would be to mitigate as much of this issue as possible,” Schmuck said. “One way to mitigate this issue would be to reevaluate the academic integrity policies and ensure the wording encompasses any work created by an AI and its validity for assignments in a school setting. Another way to mitigate the issue would be to provide training for teachers who are unfamiliar with AI and educate them on things to spot for AI generated work, as well as classroom strategies to prevent this from becoming a major issue in class.”

There are some faults to AI generated work that can be caught. ChatGPT and other AI’s write in an unsophisticated manner that may sound incoherent or not match the class’ expected writing style.

“AI generated programs are often too advanced to expect from a student, or have a programming style that is vastly different from what we learn in class,” Schmuck said.

A student’s past assignments may also reveal their hand when trying to cheat using AI, or any other source. Teachers may be able to detect cheating based on what they know about their students.

“Teachers can detect AI by how well they know their students,” senior Laura Latt said. “If a teacher suspects their student used AI, it’s probably because the way they completed their assignment is on a different level than how they completed past assignments.

However, they can’t know for sure.”

According to Schmuck, the AI generated work lacks the humanity and motion of student generated work.

“Teachers naturally get a feel for an individual student’s work as the year progresses,” Schmuck said. “I often tell my students that, although they might not believe it, their code looks like handwriting to me. A student’s work contains their style and voice which is unique to them. Although their work adapts over time with their skill level, it is always unique. AI generated work tends to lack this uniqueness and feels flat or engineered.”

The growing use of artificial intelligence in education is not a solely negative concept. Instead, it may open opportunities for positive change.

“The up and coming growth of AI is a great thing,” Peterson said. “It may change the way we go about certain things, such as carrying out tests or essays on paper. But it can also alter the mobility of students and teachers by offering greater learning opportunities or lightening work loads. It kind of is a double edged sword but if used correctly it could probably end up doing more good than harm.”

A study done by Grand View Research found that the global AI market is currently worth $136.6 billion and is expected to grow by more than 13 times in the next decade or so, reaching $1.81 trillion. The growth of AI is not slowing down, and according to Schmuck, it is important to pay attention to how it is used. AI can help students competently learn and get ahead rather than set them back. It depends on how they choose to use it.

“I believe that AI tools are just that, tools,” Schmuck said. “They can be used to help make your job easier, cut back on time consuming tasks, and help bridge skill gaps. Consider Google for instance. Google is an immensely helpful tool for students to quickly look things up on their own and have access to a huge amount of resources for learning. At the same time, Google can also easily be used by students to cheat and get answers to test questions or to steal work from others and pass it off as their own. Ultimately, it’s less about the tool itself being good or bad, but more about how the tool is being used.

Moving forward, AI technology will be a factor in education. Whether or not it is used to strengthen learning or not rests with the teachers and students in the classroom.

“Technology should be used to improve the lives of people, and I am a big advocate for implementing technology in the classroom where appropriate,” Schmuck said. “AI is just another breakthrough in technology, and rather than focus on just the bad aspects of it I would like to wait and see all of the ways it can be used to help improve our lives.”

* ChatGPT was interviewed as a source for this story. No additional edits have been made to the responses.

STUDENT AI TECHNOLOGY

Has neuronsthe cells of the brain. Use electrical impulses and chemical signals to transmit information between different areas of the brain

Has unitsreceives info from other node or external source and computes an output. Units are connected to each other, providing a way for information to move between layers

SOURCE: Queensland Brain Institute

ART BY Ava Wong

Makayla Schmuck Computer Science Teacher

Galentine’s Day Vax

Yeet Lewk Cancel Culture

Antiwork SIMP

Flex Metaverse FWIW for what it’s worth

Hard pass Quiet Quitting

text

Gen eration

A S M R

A relationship where both partners do not establish or communicate clearly to define status. Neither party in the relationship is certain of what the other is to them.

Posting a discrete video or photo of a new partner with the intent to announce your relationship while also keeping the identity a secret. One example would be sharing a photo of your clasped hands.

Love Bombing

Lavishing a new romantic partner with grand gestures while isolating them from their friends and family in order to gain control in the relationship. Not every gesture is a red flag so this can be hard to spot

Soft-launch “Rizz”

55% Of Gen Z spends 5 or more hours a day on their smartphones

SOURCE 99Firms

change

Accompanied by technology, Gen Z is setting new standards and altering the English language, flipping the script on communication

Isabella del Nido

Editor-in-Chief

Carving out their own vocabulary and bypassing outdated means of communication, Generation Z fosters change through technology adding one new word to the dictionary at a time. Over time, the internet has become a place where many cultivate new relationships and form new concepts. For Gen Z, which comprises any one born between 1997 and 2012, one popular place where this communication and interaction happens is TikTok. According to Forbes, over 60% of TikTok’s users are Gen Z, meaning 60% of its users could be picking up the same habits and languages. “Most of Gen Z is really wrapped around TikTok,” freshman Gianna Gonzalez said.

“I think the main thing is that Gen Z gets their personality from the app. I feel like anything that’s popular on TikTok, my generation just runs with it.” Through apps like TikTok, new terms are often introduced, but the app’s algorithm helps them to go viral. Gen Z’s adaptation of new terminology on the app could replace the slow spread of language by word of mouth through instantaneous sharing and imitation.

Gonzalez provides reasoning to why this generation could be intercon-

ART BY Isabella del Nido Z

nected. “I feel like Gen Z is wrapped around other people’s opinions,” Gonzalez said. “We want people to have good opinions about us and we want to fit in rather than stand out. So, feel like whatever’s on TikTok and whatever’s trending everyone will do anything they can to fit in.”

Many linguists believe that Gen Z is hurting the English language. Because of the internet, new words are made each day and are seeping into conversations and standard English.

UT OnRamps

Rhetoric teacher Kimberly Wiedmeyer reflects on how she sees new language enter her classroom. “I learned what one word meant and then tried to use it and my students laughed at me,” Wiedmeyer said. “They’re like, ‘nobody says that anymore, stop saying that Mrs. Wiedmeyer.’”

"Some words that are unique to my generation that I use on a day to day basis are LMAO, OML, L, and bet.

Daniel Cardenas Senior

assessments, or letters,” Pfeiffer said. “We have to remember that punctuation and grammatical rules still matter when it’s formal writing and during standardized testing. That being said, it’s often hard to express tone when typing, so people try to express tone by manipulating punctuation.” According to Rhetorikos, many worry that the internet may have an unnatural effect on English. Nontraditional words and writing styles being created could be seeping into our day-to-day speech. “Students are so used to texting and typing informally, that they develop lazy and bad habits,” Pfeiffer said.

“I’m not sure how much the internet is changing the rules, but they are certainly changing,” Pfeiffer said. “For example, it is now acceptable to use the word ‘literally’ to emphasize an exaggeration. That used to be the literal opposite of how this word should be used. ‘That soccer player is always injured. He is literally made of glass.’ This is now okay. That’s crazy to me. Is the internet to blame? Maybe. I saw ‘literally’ used in this manner more on the internet than I ever did before. Whatever the cause, our grammatical rules are certainly changing and becoming more relaxed and informal.” Gonzalez reflects on how she talks to others is different to how she talks to them on the internet.

The turnover of popular phrases as older generations try to understand could cause a miscommunication and lack of understanding between all age groups. This could lead to further resentment between generations.

“We have to try our best to communicate,” AP literature teacher Judd Pfeiffer said. “We need patience, empathy, and understanding. My parents and their friends use the internet, and certainly use social media, way more than I do, so it’s not always about younger people communicating differently because of the internet. Maybe we can avoid misunderstandings by talking in person more. So much of in-person communication is non-verbal, a lot is lost when the majority of our communication is online.”

Online communication and overall writing on the internet has become its own distinct genre with its own rules and mannerisms. According to, The Guardian, understanding emotion through writing is becoming a fundamental skill.

“I think that’s really interesting because I often feel that kids know all caps mean screaming, but my mom doesn’t,” Wiedmeyer said. “When she texts in all caps I’m like are you yelling at me mom? So I don’t know if these rules are universal yet.

And the other thing that I often think about is like, and I’ve read articles about having a font for sarcasm because how do you connote that and oftentimes this is lost in text messages. It’s an interesting thing to think about, like should we teach text to speak over something like cursive which is now dead.”

As an English teacher, Pfeiffer sees the repercussions of this new way of talking online with his students.

“I have no problem with this when we are writing direct messages, texts, or informal emails, but my students sometimes struggle to turn this off when they are writing formal essays,

“Students struggle with easy stuff like apostrophes, subject-verb agreement, pronoun case, and idioms involving prepositions more than ever before. It’s frustrating, because I truly believe my current students are incredibly intelligent; we just have to learn to make the switch when we are writing in a formal manner.”

When it comes to talking to others online, the range of textual innovation and expression that someone can find on Tumblr, Twitter, or even TikTok brings a loaded meaning to three dots ellipsis, at the end of a statement or a question without a question mark, or even “idk lol.”

“I feel like tone is very important because there’s certain ways that people can say things that are received differently,” Gonzalez said.

“It’s mainly just abbreviations and shortening things,” Gonzalez said. “You would never say “OMG” in person. If anything mainly use slang over text.” According to Rhetorikos, In order for English to remain useful and help communication, it needs to adapt to its current speakers’ habits. Pfeiffer explains how he’s since a shift from his generation to Gen Z.

“We didn’t use as many conventions and acronyms to shorten what we were saying, like “FYI” replacing “for your information,’” Pfeiffer said. “We just said the actual words. But we had our own way of speaking that was influ

enced by music, film, and other media forms just like y’all.”

Historically, shifts in language can happen over time. While the internet has sped up these shifts, it’s not necessarily new.

Tone is more important than grammar because if your tone is wrong people could take a compliment as an insult.

Daniel Cardenas Senior

“For example, someone could be like, ‘What are you doing,’ or ‘hey what are you doing?’”

According to Gonzalez, when it comes to communicating over social media students can say whatever they want to say, even harmful things that a person would never say to someone’s face. She feels as if because the generation is so wrapped around technology it gives people the power to hide behind a screen. “I think we have to be more careful than ever before,” Wiedmeyer said. “I think that sometimes words that we want to claim as our own to use, we are checked more about “Well should we be saying that? Why do I need to say that word and claim it as my own? And we talked about that in Rhetoric classes, especially in words regarding your identity and how you can say it and who should say it. Why do I feel the need to say it? I think all those things are much more pronounced than they used to be 10, 20, or 30 years ago.”

"According to Pfeiffer, modern English was becoming less formal before the internet began changing most aspects of our lives. Reading letters from the 19th century can show how formal everyday speech was. “I do think the internet has made our speech more casual and economical,” Pfeiffer said. “But English is always changing, and that’s not a bad thing. Now, we (usually) no longer use dehumanizing language to describe groups of people. In that way, our language changing is a good thing.

"

Kimberly Wiedmeyer OnRamps Rhetoric teacher

I think the internet has helped spread information that has made our language more inclusive. For example, we now use gender neutral pronouns more often. Instead of saying “he or she”/ “his or her”, we say “they”/ “their” even when the antecedent is singular. That’s a great thing.” Gen Z and the power of the internet have gone hand in hand creating change, for better or for worse. New words enter our dictionary and the generation takes previous words and creates a whole new meaning.

What’s said online has become its own category of communication. As generation Z grew up with the rise of the internet, its imprint could have lasting effects on the way we traditionally use vocabulary.

“I think we’re realizing that as long as you can understand what’s being said, contractions, leaving letters out are going to continue happening,” Wiedmeyer said. “I think there are some English teachers that are horrified by that. I think there are some teachers that are looking at English as something that is living and breathing and changing to meet our needs. But at the end of the day we are all still reading and we are still writing. The venue is just different.”

Former Bowie assistant leads Longhorns

The Texas men's basketball team has been on a tear this year. With less than a month until March Madness, Texas has made a strong case to be a top seed by picking up three wins against top-10 ranked opponents, while leading the Big 12 with a 20-5 record.

This season has come with difficulty though, for the Longhorns experienced hardships earlier in the year with ex-head coach Chris Beard being fired for an alleged assault. As a result, assistant coach Rodney Terry has stepped into the role of head coach and has the Longhorns winning.

Rodney Terry isn’t new to the city of Austin, as in 1986-1990 he was the point guard for Division II St. Edwards. After, in 1991-1993, coach Terry served as an assistant coach for Bowie High School, in which he helped the famed Bowie head coach Celester Collier in his first season at Bowie. Coach Terry also had a couple coaching stints at two different high schools and two different colleges before getting offered an assistant coaching job on the 40 Acres.

In his first there in 20022011 he recruited the likes of Longhorns legends such as Kevin Durant, D.J. Augustin, and Tristan Thompson. He then left to become head coach for Fresno State and UTEP. In 2021, Beard hired Terry to his second stint with the Longhorn staff. In his short time so far, he has landed major recruits to help with Texas’ basketball success.

Since coach Terry became the interim head coach on December 12 2022, coach Terry has led the team to a record of 12-4 and a top-5 ranking in the Associated Press (AP) poll. In the last month, Coach Terry has solidified Texas as the top team in the Big 12 with important conference wins.

Terry has not done it himself though, as a lot of the team’s success falls in the hands of Canadian native, point guard Marcus Carr. Returning for his super senior season granted by the NCAA for Covid-19, Carr is having a big season averaging 17.0 points per game on 45.3% field goal percentage with four assists a game. He has made a big leap from last year and solidified himself as the number one option in this Longhorn offense.

Additionally, this year, Texas has the best defense in the Big 12 averaging 60.6 points against per game. Iowa State transfer, sophomore guard Tyrese Hunter, has been a major help on the defensive side guarding the best players all season. In the paint, Dylan Disu has been a big factor by helping the team with 1.5 blocks per game.

Terry has the whole team coming together with a single goal in mind: to win. Incorporating players past the starting five players, Texas has had great bench play this year, for the bench has collectively averaged almost 30 points a game.

One player that has taken everyone by surprise this year is Sir’ Jabari Rice. A fan favorite, Rice had monster games against Tennessee and Baylor by scoring 21 points in both games. He has been a very reliable player shooting one of the highest shooting percentages on the team.

Terry has the Longhorns rolling at the right time with only one more month until March Madness is upon us. The former Bowie assistant has the chance to coach himself into the head coaching job for next year's season by having a strong run in the big dance.

COMING UP IN SPORTS:

Rise in underage sports betting

60%-80% of high schoolers reported gambling money in 2022

roughly $3.8 billion lost in legal sports bets 4%-7% of teens display gambling additction

High School Gambling Stats

Increased accessibility has allowed Bowie students to gamble on sports

Editor

When watching your favorite sports team, fans usually care about one thing: winning. However, this is only the case for some, as many fans now care about more than winning: how much a team wins or loses by, how much both teams score, or how much one player scores.

This is the world of sports gambling, a growing industry with 50% of its participants between the ages of 18-34. But these aren’t the only people betting, as an increasing number of high schoolers have now joined the betting underworld and aren't planning to stop anytime soon.

Underage betting is an illegal practice with massive legal implications. If caught, minors can face punishments such as fines, suspension of their driver’s license, probation, community service, and jail time. To combat this, many teens use unorthodox methods to get their bets placed, like junior *Mo Howard, who is new to the sports betting world.

“My friend actually set me up with a bookie, and the bookie gives you a $50 free play to start and I’ve been betting ever since,” Howard said.

Underage betting isn’t just a

Bowie issue, however, as many teens at Bowie have huge group chats with students all over the city and state. Sophomore *Larry Fine has been using an app called Fliff to place bets.

“My friends all started sports betting before me and once I saw them all making money I wanted to get in on it,” Fine said. “The way I decide my bets is by talking in my betting group chat and we decide on the picks for the day.”

Gambling has always been advertised as a way to win big. However, what companies fail to mention are the major financial risks that spark when you start.

“The risk factor of it all really makes me keep coming back to it, seeing the money out there that people win really makes me believe that I can be next,” Howard said.

Sports gambling has consistently become increasingly desensitized by the year, as fantasy football and March Madness pick 'em' pools aren’t considered to be gambling at this point. Teens are now looking at what would be called “real” betting on stuff like point spreads and money lines.

“I’ve been doing fantasy football for years and it kind of just lost its edge so I moved onto actual sports betting instead,” Howard said. “I wanted

to use a bookie because I was able to bet on teams to win and stuff like that instead of just betting on players like Prize Picks.”

Prize Picks is the most popular app for underage gamblers, as all users need is an ID to register and, through a legal loophole, it is considered a fantasy sport which means it’s legal in all 50 states.

For junior *Steve Harvey, this made it an easy choice on where to start.

“I use Prize Picks, which is legal in Texas,” Harvey said. “You are allowed to bet on Player props which are like individual betting lines and I use that platform because it's simple, it's easy, and it's legal. I also use it on my dad's account so that I can bet legally.”

Like any other business, Prize Picks is always trying to reach new consumers. They mostly do this through social media advertising, using influencers to sell their product to

a large audience, which mainly consists of teens and young adults,to bring in the most money.

“TikTok influencers have definitely factored in to me starting to bet because I feel like if there's other people that are my age, that are winning big money why can’t I,” Howard said.

"Addiction is the main problem with gambling, as countless people get addicted every year.

Rick Benson, a writer for Algamus Gambling Treatment, believes that adults aren’t the only ones affected.

“Teens are two to four times more susceptible to developing a gambling problem than adults,” Benson said. “Teenagers are more likely to develop gambling addictions because the parts of their brains needed for making good, reasonable decisions have not yet been fully developed. Therefore, they are more impulsive and less inhibited.”

Despite Benson’s claim,

Harvey doesn't believe he will ever get addicted.

“I set a limit to myself of four bets a week,” Harvey said. “I do that so that I don't get addicted. And if I start to notice that I like watching the game and I feel like I need to bet on it or something then I'll stop betting which I haven't had to do that yet.” Fine has witnessed the hardships of betting first-hand, as he believed it to be easy before realizing it's much more challenging than portrayed.

“My first couple weeks I was down a lot of money because you can't make the bets yourself; they're presented to you by the company so it’s hard to win money,” Fine said.

Sports gambling is here to stay and will continue to thrive as the number of states who have legalized betting has jumped from seven in 2018 to now 36. Additionally, three more states have outstanding bills regarding sports betting.

“I think in the next five years, it'll become legal everywhere,” Harvey said. “There's just so many ways you can gamble and it’s become so popular everywhere.”

*Some names in this story have been changed to protect the identity of the student as they wish to remain anonymous.

Cheer preps for nationals in state competition

Consisting of over 25 members, the cheer team competed in the UIL state convention competition on January 14 in Fort Worth, Texas. The team secured a 21st finish in a field of over 100 teams.

For junior Samantha Jordan, even though the team didn't make the final performance, the team did great. This was Jordan's second time participating in the UIL state competition.

“The whole environment was great,” Jordan said. “Our team really brought out all the energy on the mat and I am proud of our performance.”

Jordan believes that the team can reflect on this year’s competition and improve upon their mistakes. Fixing these mistakes will help the team place higher in next year's competition.

“I think we can improve on this year’s performance,” Jordan said. “If we all work towards the same goal and give it 100 percent, I don’t see why we don’t improve.”

Wrapping up her three year cheer career at Bowie, senior Zoe Kanz competed in her final state UIL competition.

Kanz looks back on her time on her the cheer squad and the cheer program as a whole.

“I began cheer as an 8th grader at Gorzycki Middle School with all my friends, after not competing in cheer as a freshman, I decided to try out as a sophomore and made varsity," Kanz said. "The experience has been so good and we have such amazing coaches and girls here.”

Having been a sophomore during the COVID pandemic, Kanz reflects on her senior campaign and how much the team has changed since her sophomore year. In this, she mentions the comradery the team developed this year.

“COVID hit during sophomore year and the whole experience came to a

stop,” Kanz said. “My junior year was a lot better as the team really started to build and improve, but this year has been my favorite so far and it’s not close. We all have such a good connection that helps us get better.”

In her second year as the cheer head coach Alyssa Alex traveled and led the team in her 2nd UIL state competition with the team. Coach Alex was pleased with the team’s progress over the course of the year that enabled them to challenge for a top-20 spot in the state.

“We were so excited to go to the State Championships and represent Bowie,” Alex said. “We performed well and it was exciting to know that we were only a point away from making finals. The huge improvement from last year is something that I am super encouraged about.”

The huge jump in placement from last year to this year is a point that Alex refers to a lot. According to her, The change in team culture, leadership, and teamwork helped the 'Dawgs thrive.

“Our seniors on the team really set the tone this year of wanting to go and show the state what Bowie Cheer was capable of,” Alex said. “They really set the tone at the beginning of the season by making sure that they were giving 110% to what we were doing and that they expected the other classes to follow suit and really give it their all this season. The seniors in any program establish the standards and overall feel of what the team will [do]. This year my seniors have been an incredible example and great leaders of the team.”

Despite not qualifying for finals, the cheer team’s season is far from being over. Traveling to Disney World, the cheer team has the opportunity to compete for the National Championship as a result of their hard work.

“[The team is] leaving to head to the National High School Cheerleading Championships in Orlando Florida,”

Alex said. “We had to compete at regional competitions and get a bid to compete at the National Championships.”

Leaving February 9, Coach Alex describes the level of effort and dedication the team has spent in preparation to become potential National Champions. Coach Alex also refers to the mixed emotions that characterize season's end.

“There are teams from all over the country,” Alex said. “We will get to see some really cool routines and represent Bowie at the National level. The ending will be bittersweet for many. The seniors leaving is going to be hard, but the competition brings out excitement for the whole team and we are ready to compete."

CHEERING LOUD: The cheer team competes in the UIL State competition. Narrowly missing out on a spot in the finals, the team used their state performance to prepare for nationals in Orlando, Florida. PHOTO COURTESY OF Samantha Jordan

I've been doing fantasy football for years and it kind of just lost it's edge, so I moved onto actual sports betting instead.

Mo Howard Anonymous junior

ART BY Asher Hagan

Michael Vienneau Dispatch Reporter

Queen Liz leading the Bulldog charge

Super Sophomore Liz Luck has come into her own as a defender for the Lady ‘Dawgs

Ben Tillisch Sports Editor

Patiently waiting for her teammate to serve the ball in from a corner kick, sophomore Elizabeth Luck dances around the edge of the 18-yard box, fighting for an edge on her opponent. Familiar with the pressure and intensity of varsity games, Luck tunes out the onslaught of instruction offered by coaches, parents, and teammates that echo throughout Chaparral Stadium, the home ground of Westlake.

The ball now hurtling through the air, Luck breaks towards the goal with her eyes intently locked on the ball. Seizing her chance to push her team to a victory against the 2022 State semifinalist Westlake Chaparrals, Luck times her contact and guides the ball into the net.

The opportunity to score as a defender is often rare. However, Luck managed to slot one home against cross-town rivals Westlake before the celebration was cut short, as her goal was called back by the referees for offsides. Having the chance to win the game is often a pivotal moment for many underclassmen, so Luck opens up about the fluctuating feelings in scoring a go-ahead goal that was ultimately not counted.

“I was super excited when I scored against Westlake but it got taken back which made me super mad,” Luck said. “They are a good team and I have some club teammates on that team as well, so it would have been fun to beat them.”

One of two sophomores on varsity for the Lady ‘Dawgs, Luck is forced to face and perform against girls with more experience than her on a gameby-game basis. Because of this, Luck is required to show her skill in other ways like her superior hard work, determination, and technical ability.

“Being on varsity as an underclassmen is very intense because the majority of the girls are bigger than me,” Luck said. “I like playing against older people though because the games are more intense and the skill level is very

good. While I am playing, I want to work to my expectations for being on varsity so I always remind myself to give it my all and work as hard as I can

while I am on the field.”

Now a solidified starter and crucial part of the Lady ‘Dawgs defense, Luck reflects on the beginning of her soccer career and what attracted her to the sport. Luck also has an older brother as an example, for he plays a similar position in soccer as well.

“I first started playing soccer when I was three years old Luck said. “I love how competitive soccer is and the fact it’s a team sport, so me and my teammates all work together and work hard towards the same goal.”

Preseason primarily serves for players to showcase their skills to their coach to show why they deserve to play. As a starter Luck has already been a part of many important games and experienced the range of emotions in both preseason tournaments and district varsity games.

“My favorite moment this season was in our preseason tournament when we won one of our games in penalty kicks,” Luck said. “Penalty kicks are very stressful and nerve racking, so we were very relieved and happy to win.”

A former Bowie soccer player herself, varsity head coach Carrie Hoffman-Howell respects the drive Luck presents to her opponents and the rest of the team. Luck’s intangibles has made it easy for Hoffman-Howell to entrust Luck with a spot in the starting 11 as an underclassmen.

the girls,” Christodoulides said. “It’s difficult because a lot of people put pressure on themselves to perform when they are new to a team, but Liz has handled the pressure really well and been able to give us really good performances.”

In terms of the team, Luck applauds the team chemistry and loves the environment provided by the coach and the team themselves. The sophomore starter also offers insight on pre-game rituals for the Lady ‘Dawgs.

“Our team environment is super important and a lot of people on our team are in friend groups because of soccer which helps team chemistry and helps us play better on the field,” Luck said. “Before the games we also like to listen to music because it gets us pumped up and ready to play.”

Going beyond team chemistry and friendship though, Luck’s competitive edge has boosted the team’s energy before and during games. Christodoulides suggests that Luck’s incessant will to win personal and team battles has helped the team center on the primary goal of winning.

“It’s refreshing having someone like Liz on varsity because she adds that extra layer of competitiveness,” Christodoulides said. “She takes pride in her defending and takes it personal when an opponent gets past her, so that mindset helps the rest of the team bring the same energy.”

Getting a chance to play at the varsity level for the first time this year, Luck describes the emotions of being able to represent Bowie. Additionally, having two years of eligibility left allows Luck to think of her future as not only a player, but as a role model and leader as well.

“Representing Bowie as a varsity player for the first time is super special and I love being able to play with really good players and hopefully

explaining the composure Luck has displayed in games as a newcomer to the varsity starting eleven. “As an underclassmen, it has been very impressive the way she has integrated into the team with the rest of

er. “I see her becoming one of those leaders that leads by example,” Hoffman-Howell said. “Eventually, hopefully, she’ll find her voice as she gets older and feels more and more confident because she’s the best defender in the program.”

Scholastic Art Award winners triumph

Two Bowie students compete and win recognition for their art pieces at a regional level

Amilia Velez

Entertainment Editor

Examining the canvas, senior Winter Brown reflects on a piece that he doesn’t know will win big in the regional Scholastic Art Awards.

The Scholastic Art Awards are a competition where hundreds of students in Austin submit their creative pieces for scoring by judges in many fields from painting, ceramics, and photography. The Scholastic Art Awards were founded in 1923 and the main goal of the organization is to allow creative teens to have a platform to display their art. Brown submitted two art pieces, one being titled Internet Sobriety.

“Internet Sobriety was inspired by an art piece I had done over quarantine,” Brown said. “Despite the headaches, I kept trying to go back to my phone because I didn’t know what else to do with my time. When I finally realized the origin of my headaches, I turned towards art as a way to use the time.”

According to Brown, the piece was made to depict everyone’s struggle to get off of their phones and was a style that was new to him.

“It was a difficult style that I’m not used to doing, so there was a lot of practice that needed to happen before starting the actual piece,” Brown said. “I needed reference photos, and then I needed to practice drawing those.”

Along with Brown, sophomore Sophia De Kruyff also won a Silver Key for her piece titled Surprise. This piece features a black and white tiger leaping at the viewer.

“I drew a tiger leaping at the camera on a fourteen by seventeen inch mixed media paper,” De Kruyff said. “I used various sizes of micron pen and cross-contoured to shade. For the background, I used black acrylic paint and a thick poster Sharpie.”

De Kruyff found inspiration from something in her everyday life. According to the Scholastic Art website, it is essential for teens to showcase personality in their submissions.

“I was scrolling through Insta-

gram and saw a post of a collection of works from Douglas Smith,” De Kruyff said. “I really liked the way he used a hatching on a scratch-board, so I decided to see if I could do the same thing but with a pen hatching on regular paper.”

The Scholastic Art Awards required students to submit through an online platform. According to Brown, there is a lot of competition with talented artists around Austin.

“I kind of had no expectations

while entering the competition,” Brown said. “I hoped to win something, but the website is kind of difficult to navigate at times, so I couldn’t gauge the talents of the other students that had submitted their work.”

The Bowie art program has a wide variety of classes and teachers that allow students to explore their art interests. According to De Kruyff, a good art teacher, like Mindy LeJeune, is essential for success in art.

“Ms. LeJeune, who I’ve had for two years, has helped me so much by giving me great advice and letting me skip or pause on class assignments to work on entering competitions.”

The Scholastic Art Award judges focus on three main things when scoring pieces; skill, originality, and emergence of personal voice.

“I think personal expression is

important for students in art,” LeJeune said. “Scholastic loves personal choice and expression and we ask [our students] to show that in their submissions.”

Brown and De Kruyff were two of five winners from Bowie of the regional Scholastic Art Awards. According to Brown, channeling his personal voice was something that was essential in creating his piece.

“Student voice is something that I want my students to learn from their experience entering into the Scholastic Art Awards,” LeJeune said. “Expression in a visual way and not a verbal one is something so important in art.”

According to Brown and De Kruyff, time management is especially important when completing any art piece for a contest. “I got the due date mixed up in

my head, so I thought I had to get my piece done a week earlier than I should have,” De Kruyff said. “I ended up really rushing things and using my whole Thanksgiving break to draw which led to some mistakes that could have been avoided.”

The Scholastic Art Awards happen every year and students have the chance to enter multiple times throughout their time at Bowie. Students like De Kruyff want to continue to pursue their passions in art through competitions like the Scholastic Art Awards and contests.

“I know that I want my future career to involve art, hopefully traditional, but other than that, I have no specifics,” De Kruyff said. “I just know I’ll be sticking with it and entering more competitions and more styles in 2023.”

Speech and debate students continue to excel in tournaments

Charlotte Koellner Dispatch Reporter

Lions, tigers, and state qualifiers! Oh my! Bowie junior Bella Barkkume has qualified for oral interpretation state, nationals, and has been scouted by the University of Texas at Austin (UT) Speech team all in one tournament weekend. Barkkume’s qualifying piece, titled The Property Known as Garland, discusses the troubling life of Hollywood child star Judy Garland.

“The event I participated in at the [qualifying] tournament in January was Dramatic Interpretation (DI). It’s ten minutes long, so essentially a really long monologue,” Barkkume said. “My piece was on Judy Garland’s life and about how even today the media controls a female star’s success based on their appearance. This leads many young female celebrities to fall into addiction, alcoholism, and eating disorders (ED’s). Within our society we need to recognize that this problem has continued throughout history, and is prominent in our influencers even today.”

Students in the oral interpretation program at Bowie practice voice changes, physical blocking, memorization, and go through the process of trimming down a script of their choice. While performing their piece, each student has to act as every character in their ten minute script, similar to a one-man-play.

“There are five main events that Bowie students compete in at tournaments: Humorous interpretation (HI), Dramatic interpretation (DI), Program oral interpretation (POI), duet, and duo,” Barkkume said. “We select a movie, article, or show and trim down part of the script into ten minutes and write an intro. Picking the piece is probably the hardest part. After you have your script trimmed you want to focus on memorization, and then play around with what event it fits into.”

Barkkume was not the only Bowie student who earned the twelve points necessary to compete at state; more than 30 Bowie oral interpretation students will test their skills this March at the state tournament in Houston, Texas. Tournament preparations at Bowie have been long underway according to Oral interpretation captain, Nadia Petru.

“State preparation is different from a regular tournament because state preparation starts a lot earlier,” Petru said. “Interp is great because you can make a lot of choices on the spot, but you

can’t do that without

memorization. I want to have my piece fully memorized, so I can have fun when I perform. I’m also trying a lot of new things with my piece at local tournaments so that I don’t have to risk experimenting in the state tournament room.”

Oral interpretation tournament coordinator, Lucas Wilcox, and his duo partner, senior Sara Caballero, have also qualified for state. The pair have been competing at tournaments this year with their piece titled, Beetlejuice, featuring a segment of the script from the popular 80s film.

“Sara and I have decided we want to be really competitive with our piece this year. We want to go to the state finals; we want to win state,” Wilcox said. “So we are practicing a lot more and spending time together, and trying to figure out how we work together in that scene. We’re also constantly looking for ways we can elevate our

piece, increase our humor, and just play it up.”

Similar to many extracurriculars, oral interpretation heightens skills that can be used outside of the classroom and tournament room. Bowie oral interpretation instructor Marco Bazan helps his students build skills that improve communication, leadership, and self confidence.

“We work on the strategic type of things that we have to do, such as reading, selecting, and trimming scripts,” Bazan said. “But I do think that the students are building a skill set that they are unaware of. They may not notice but we’re building up their leadership abilities and helping them discover their own voice.”

Tournaments are held weekly at local high schools and can last up to ten hours. The frequent competitions offer students numerous opportunities to switch up their pieces and try new events to determine what works best. The regular tourna-

ments provide the team with more feedback from judges and peers. As the Bowie state qualifiers prepare for their largest competition yet, they are utilizing all suggestions to make their performance stronger.

“When you compete at local tournaments, judges get ballots to fill out. The judges give you notes on things that they’d like you to improve, parts that they thought you did very well, and parts they didn’t like,” Barkkume said. “ I definitely take those notes highly into consideration, and it helps me find little details that I can change. But judges will give irrelevant advice sometimes, so I really think that it’s important to take whatever suggestions resonate best with you and trust yourself.”

It is recommended for students to experiment outside of their comfort zone to discover what methods of performing work best for them individually. However, at times, experimenting outside of comfort zones doesn’t work well in a competitor’s favor.

“Just have fun with it. If you’re doing a piece that you hate because you think it’s going to do well, it’s not going to do well. You have to enjoy what you’re doing,” Wilcox said. “You know you worked incredibly hard on those pieces, and when you’re not doing as well as you want to, don’t let that discourage you. Let it drive you.”

Despite the competitive side to oral interpretation, tournaments open up many opportunities for contenders as well as help build connections within the speech community.

“It’s comforting to have a community where you know everyone and even though you’re competing against them, I’ve still made so many friends around the country because of these tournaments,” Barkkume said. “I think that it’s just really cool to have the opportunity to meet new people and see how talented they are and learn everything you can from them.”

For Barkkume specifically, oral interpretation has opened up doors larger than she could have hoped.

“Being on the UT speech team has been a goal of mine since the day that I joined oral interpretation, and I was scouted by them this last tournament,” Barkkume said. “I was offered a scholarship at the UT Speech and Debate camp this summer, and I’m really proud of myself for being able to do that. In addition to that I’m hoping to do well at state and then tackle nationals this summer in Phoenix, Arizona.”

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT : Juniors Bella Barkkume and Jaden Demetri practice for their upcoming oral interpretation competition. Barkkume heads to the UT speech and debate camp this summer on a scholarship.

PHOTO BY Charlotte Koellner

SKETCHING THE ART: Senior Winter Brown sketches art from a picture on his phone. Brown’s piece “Internet Sobriety” is based off of his time spent on technology during quarantine, and represents people’s struggles with phone addiction. PHOTO BY Charlotte Koellner

"

Expression in a visual way and not a verbal one is something so important in art.

Mindy LeJeune Bowie Art Teacher

New murder mystery lures in viewers

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery sets new watching records and hits the box office

Claire Scott Reviews Editor

The palm leaves rustle from the Mediterranean winds, songs from island birds grow distant as the splashing of waves from the salty ocean creep towards the shore, and the hurried footsteps of a killer escaping the crime scene fill the ears of watchers.

Coming into the spotlight and setting the record straight for many murder mystery films to come, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery has taken the moving-making industry by storm.

All in the name of a baffling homicide, thousands of movies swarm towards this niche plot to attempt to make it big in the box office.

While the concept of a bloody conundrum is simple, some films hit the bullseye of success while others plunder to their death of bad reviews from both the average viewer and the critic.

Glass Onion, however, nailed it perfectly as it made its way to the top of Netflix’s top-watched movies.

The film made its first debut in September of 2022 at the International Toronto Film Festival. But it did not pick up traction until it was bought and released by Netflix on December 23, 2022.

With constant raves from influencers on social media platforms such as TikTok and Instagram, Glass Onion reached its peak of $15 million dollars in just a matter of days and over 209 million hours of viewership in less than two weeks.

From scheming rich people to multiple jaw-dropping murder segments, Glass Onion has your mind thinking like a detective, as producer Rian Johnson takes you along the storyline of a spine chilling murderous crime on an opulent island getaway.

To paint the picture, a charming yet mystifying tech billionaire by the name of Miles Bron, played by Edward

Norton, invites old friends with an eerie past to his extravagant private Greek island. And while everyone is enjoying many of the rich amenities that Bron’s lavish villa has to offer, all hell breaks loose when someone turns up dead, suspected to be killed by poisoned alcohol. But in the blink of an eye, detective Benoit Blanc, played by Daniel Craig, is on the case to find the killer with mischievous motives.

Glass Onion is a sequel to Knives Out, which was released on September 7, 2019. But there is a clear-as-day difference of quality between the two films.

Not only are the characters in the sequel more well-rounded and developed but the storyline is much improved, meaning that there are not as many plot holes as there were in the first movie.

The only similarity that the two share is that they both cast Daniel Williams, but other than that, the only likeness they share is the titles.

There is no reason to watch the first film because you won’t be getting background knowledge, just a similar plot line.

Surprisingly, Glass Onion does not feature any actor or actress debuts. All characters cast have had multiple years within the limelight.

For instance, Madelyn Cline played Whiskey, but she was a star in the show Outer Banks, What Breaks the Ice, The Giant, amongst many others. And Kathryn Hahn, who portrayed the character of Claire Debella, also acted in WandaVision, Mrs. Fletcher, and Step Brothers.

Because there are so many well known actors and actresses in Glass Onion, many fan bases have been attracted to the film. This explains how the movie got traction so fast.

Before diving into the masterpiece of a movie, there are negatives to point out.

Around the one hour mark is when

it starts to go boringly slow. It’s like the directors just added unneeded dialogue to drag out the screen time. And just like any mystery film, there is just about always a big red herring. But the one in Glass Onion was rather expected and kind of silly. In terms of comedic appeal, Glass Onion seriously lacks this concept. Although the film doesn’t revolve around comedy, there should at least be a baseline of understanding that any film that is portraying murder should have some type of humor to lighten the topic for younger audienc-

es. The jokes that are present in the movie are rather corny, and don’t click with the audience. I don’t recommend that kids under the age of 10 watch this.

But all negative aspects aside, Glass Onion still remains as a theatrical sensation. As proved by Google Reviews with an overall 3.3 stars of 5, ninety two percent from Rotten Tomatoes, and 7.2 of 10 stars from IMDb.

Pulling from Google Reviews, many people said that it exceeded their expectation from the first one, which I

agree with wholeheartedly. And from Rotten Tomatoes, reviews state how orchestrated each character’s performance was, and yet again see eye to eye with that statement.

Glass Onion deserves its time in the spotlight. You’re in for a treat filled with astounding acting, a captivating storyline, and aesthetically pleasing island-like set.

There is also a coordinating podcast called the Nigh After Podcast. Go to thedispatchonline.net, to hear more about the Glass Onion from Bella Boone and Audrey Cullinane.

Latest HBO addiction becomes a watch-worthy hit show

Alex Edwards Digital Managing Editor

In 2013, the game The Last of Us was released to universal critical acclaim, ushering in a wave of new video games with immersive, movie-like storylines. Now, almost 10 years later, The Last of Us is back, this time as a purely cinematic experience with no game to be found.

HBO’s adaptation of The Last of Us released its first episode on Jan. 15 and has aired four more in the weeks since, with five more to go. Much like the game it’s based on, it is phenomenal.

As a fan of the game, I was initially a little worried about the show and wasn’t convinced it would be good, based on the long history of bad or underwhelming video game adaptations. However, I was more assured by the creator, Craig Mazin’s attachment to the project, as well the game’s original co-director and writer, Neil Druckmann, returning in both of those roles. Still, I’d have to see it to believe it, and that I did.

The Last of Us has a simple premise. A tough, emotionally desolate, survivor in a zombie apocalypse is

forced to team up with a young girl who he eventually ends up serving a parental role. While it’s not the most original setup, it really shines in its execution.

The characters here are nothing short of great, with lots of depth and nuance to them all. Joel, a hardened survivor, played excellently by Pedro Pascal of The Mandalorian and Game of Thrones, is someone who’s cut himself off from emotions after losing

his daughter in the apocalypse. He doesn’t want to risk getting connected to someone again. Despite his wishes and better judgment, you see him slowly get back in touch with his parental instincts. The other main character Ellie, played outstandingly by fellow Game of Thrones actress, Bella Ramsey, is also great. She also puts on a tough exterior, though in a more immature way than Joel. She is well reflecting

for her age, but also longs for people who care for her and some semblance of a normal, zombie-less life, which she never had. While I didn’t immediately love the portrayal of Ellie like I did Joel, due to a few more differences from the game, I very quickly got past that, and have been sold by the character.

To touch on the more technical aspects of the show, the cinematography is excellent. You see so many fantastic wide shots of the decrepit cities that, despite their state, manage to look beautiful when shot this well. It really helps to get you immersed in the world of the show.

The music is also fantastic, composed by Gustavo Santaolalla, who also created the music for the original game. It’s often understated, but the soundtrack does a lot to enhance the tone of a scene.

I think my favorite episodes so far have been episodes three and five. Episode three is mostly a stand-alone story in the world of the show, though it still progresses the story and builds on the themes depicted so far. Episode three is a brilliant, beautiful story about finding hope in a world of dark-

ness that’s just as heartwarming as it is heartbreaking. Episode five is another fantastic one and is this show’s equivalent to a mid-season finale. It feels very climactic with some scary and exciting action and more emotionally powerful moments.

Despite these being my favorites, every episode so far has been great to varying degrees, and all progress the plot in great ways. While it’s only a little over halfway finished, The Last of Us is shaping up to be one of the best shows of the year. It looks incredible, the characters and their writing is amazing, and the story is one that will make you feel all the emotions.

The Last of Us is not just about surviving through the apocalypse, it’s about the bond and connection between the characters and how they will do anything to help their loved ones make it in this dangerously violent world. And that’s why this show holds a prominent place in television. There is nothing more vital than family and friendship. I would recommend The Last of Us to anyone who wants to watch some top-tier television.

New DreamWorks film expectedly dominates theaters

Noah Ellinger Dispatch Reporter

His boots imprinted on the coarse dirt of the Italian desert, his cape elegantly flowing in the wind, his rapier clashing on his waist. He draws his sword, facing the three enemies that are preventing him from achieving the last wish.

Puss in Boots: The Last Wishes was released on December 21, 2022, bringing a sequel to the first movie that was released eleven years ago. Directed by Joel Crawford, and a spin-off to the Shrek franchise, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish tackles serious topics such as loneliness, mental health, retirement, and acceptance.

The movie starts with Puss on his last life of nine after facing off against a giant threatening a village. Throughout his nine lives, Puss has lived recklessly, almost living like an unstoppable force of good that could escape death itself. He proves this by saying throughout the first few scenes, ‘Puss in Boots laughs in the face of death’.

After finding this out he’s on his last life, he continues to not care and be arrogant about it by going to a bar and drinking milk.

While he is in the bar we get an introduction to one of

the best villains DreamWorks has ever created. A wolf bounty hunter, who has been watching Puss carefully and hunting him. Puss being arrogant draws his rapier, for it to just be deflected by the hunter in the blink of an eye. Puss in Boots: The Last Wish did something that many animated movies haven’t done in a long while, they introduced a proper and menacing villain.

When introducing a villain you need the character to cement into the audience’s mind.

The way the movie does this is by making our hero Puss, after taking down a giant seem like an unstoppable force, straight into an insignificant hero that can’t stand up to this force. It’s almost like all of Puss’s power he gained by defeating the giant transfers to this villain, who easily beats Puss. Making the villain encased into the audience’s mind.

After deflecting the rapier, the bounty hunter and Puss go into their first fight. With the outcome resulting in Puss ending up on the floor bleeding and afraid.

This is where the movie goes into its first topic: fear.

Puss then has flashbacks of his past lives, his failure, his wins, but most importantly the people he has spent time with.

The next scene features Puss’s rapier 10 feet in front

of him, the hunter pushing it closer, repeating my favorite line of the movie, “Pick, it, up.” Then our hero does the unbelievable, he runs away in fear, enforcing that our villain is possibly unstoppable.

This introduction alone was one of my favorite entrances to a villain ever. The cockiness of the villain and the animation keep a steady and stable scene causing the scenery and fight to be memorable. The comic style adds this 2-D effect that gives the animators more creative

freedom and intense breathtaking duels. The twists of the fairy tales were also one of my favorite additions to the movie.

To give a clear example, one of the villains is Goldilocks and The Three Bears. The twist this movie adds is that Goldilocks is a member of the bear family. Instead of Goldilocks being Attacked by the bears the day she stumbled on the cabin, they embrace her as a part of their family which adds funny interactions and arguments between

Baby bear and Goldilocks.

Another clean addition is the side character they introduce and bring back. My favorite side character was the abandoned dog, Perro. His characterization throughout the movie is a dog who keeps an optimistic attitude no matter how bad things are.

This adds the comedic relief the movie required, while the rest of the personas revolved around dark pasts and mistakes.

The return of Kitty SoftPaws

adds a romantic relationship that developed way further than it did in the first one.

Starting with Kitty being Puss’s ex-fiancé after Puss bailed on their wedding day, which is revealed towards the end of the movie.

Puss in Boots: The Last Wish was an enjoyable adventure that highlights intense topics that have not been tackled by an animated movie in a long time.

The animation takes a more comic style, making the fights captivating and breathtaking to watch. The characters have deep backstories that make them relatable and interesting to the viewers.

The movie scored a ninety-five percent rotten tomato score and I couldn’t agree more with the rating. Every movie has its pros and cons, and although my review mostly revolves around positive aspects there were some negative ones.

One I would like to point out was the song at the opening of the movie. When we are introduced to Puss he sings a song to kick off the movie, re-watching the movie got me thinking about how out of place this song was.

But if that was the only con I found then this movie definitely deserves a good hour and a half of your time.

ART BY Asher Hagan

ART BY Asher Hagan

ART BY Noah Ellinger

Theory & race stolen from education

Politicians discuss forbidding Critical Race Theory from education after Florida bill passes

Imagine a dystopian America. One where education is regulated to be taught using less than 50 words and only 10% of history is allowed to be taught.

To everyone’s knowledge war, crime, hatred, and all things that harm the idealistic view of the world never happened. The world has been peaceful and just since the dawn of time.

This is the world we are being marched toward. One where America’s history and the cruelty of man are swept under the rug because educators are worried about fines and lawsuits that teaching history has the possibility of bringing.

In 2022 Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill called “The Stop Woke Act” into law. This bill outlaws teaching anything other than the fact, such as any theories or speculations historians have made including the well-renowned critical race theory.

This bill revolves around the students' feelings and whether a student feels racially attacked or anguished.

The attempt of enforcing laws that lead to the censoring of facts is outrageous. This bill will only lead to an incredibly flawed education system where educators are afraid to teach what needs to be taught.

The Stop Woke Act specifically mentions the following as offenses that would be reprimanded in the result of a student feeling anguish: the feeling that their race is being villainized, stated to have privilege, morally inferior, racial “colorblindness” viewed as a form of racism, or making students feel guilty for past actions of their respected race.

Punishment of educators can involve lawsuits directed toward the school as well as the possibility of teachers losing their jobs and livelihood. However due to the vagueness of the bill and the unprecedented implementation it brings, many still

Dylan Zellner Commentary Editor EDITORIAL

speculate how severe enforcement will be when educators are accused of breaking the Stop Woke Act.

While the bill was initially passed in early 2022, U.S. District Judge Mark E. Walker stopped enforcement due to its vagueness and for violating the First Amendment; discriminating against speech based on viewpoint.

History is important and this bill undermines it, contradicting the disclosed purpose of creating the Stop Woke Act.

However, according to DeSantis, as well as those who support the bill’s passing, the Stop Woke Act's main and only purpose is to ensure that education is to only teach facts.

According to The Stop Woke Act’s supporters, the bill was put in place with the hope of fighting bias and allowing students to use the facts they learn in the classroom to form their own opinions outside the classroom.

Although teaching students with the purpose of them forming their own opinions should be every educator's purpose, this bill misconstrues what fact is.

If important theories such as critical race theory are considered to be biased and untrue due to the nature of being a theory, then in comparison theories such as relativity, the Big Bang theory, evolution, atomic theory, Newton’s law of gravitation, etc. should all be inappropriate to be taught in school.

According to this bill and its supporters' logic, theories and speculation are misleading and inappropriate to be taught in school. This is due to the belief that teaching these varying subjects is viewed as indoctrination into the left wing.

While the contrasted perspective of critical race theory is a more liberally founded idea, theory, in general, is important; especially one so consistently discussed with today's current events as well as the rising discussion of social justice and activism.

In addition to theory, history

should be taught without an educator's concern for students feeling about the harsh nature of American history.

If history isn’t properly taught as well as the theories as to how our history is still affecting us, it will disrupt student education as well as to avoid unconscious racist beliefs that are possible to form when not exposed to history.

Learning the history of the USA is incredibly important because it acts as a guide on how the misdeeds of our founders are still affecting America today as well as how to right that wrong. Without the theories of how history is affecting the day-today lives of the USA, it will become increasingly difficult to notice and fight the injustice that Americans constantly face.

In addition to the contradiction this bill faces with itself, it is incredibly apparent that the bill was written with a political agenda in mind. The mention of students feeling attacked by feeling their race is villainized or holds privilege is in direct reference to white students.

As a country, we need to set aside our feelings and biases and teach the youth what’s important. Students need to be taught everything that they will face outside of school, theories included.

While the Stop Woke Act tries to dress as a law that helps students fight bias, it embodies the opposite. This new law will hurt younger students despite how much anguish they have a possibility of feeling because it will create less informed students. The Stop Woke Act counters education and counters justice.

ART BY Asher Hagen

Incentives taken from students for nauseating reasons

from illness, this adds unnecessary stress to students' already stressful day off. While students are taking these sick days they are missing assignments, notes, tests, and are already forced to make up these losses.

On top of apparent stress of falling behind, students are now plagued with the thought of losing their incentive.

Coughing and bedridden for a week, unable to move with a fever burning through the bed she’s sleeping on. Jasmine Doe stays home to beat the sickness that's taken control of her immune system when she notices something that sets her mind on fire, more than her fever ever could.

Doe lost her incentives in spite of her attempts to stay caught up with her school work from her bedside. Knowing that she’s mathematically challenged and struggles excessively with the pressure of a test, she’s going to be forced to take the final and potentially fail.

Attendance incentives are an incredible perk that all students look forward to, allowing students to trade their final test scores with their nine weeks average.

These incentives can save a student from failing a test in a subject a student struggles in or for one who struggles with testing in general.

According to bowie.austinschools, the primary goal is to increase achievement by maximizing the time students spend in instruction as well as discouraging non-essential absences.

However, this purpose is contradicted when looking at how student's can lose them.

For example, sick students who stay home lose their chance of getting one, two, or any incentive with no control of their own.

While students’ stay home with the intention of not contaminating their peers, those students get punished.

These TEA rules don’t fit the unpredictability life holds, nor does it take into account natural occurring events that affect students' attendance.

While Bowie is obligated to follow the rules that the TEA has set aside, these rules are completely inappropriate and don’t reflect students’ lives.

However, not all sick days count against

EDITORIAL POLICY

• The Dispatch is the official student newspaper of James Bowie High School. 3500 copies are published and distributed for free six times a year, generally once per six weeks for the school’s students, staff and community.

• The Dispatch is an open forum for student expression. The Dispatch is not reviewed by school administration prior to distribution, and the advisor will not act as a censor. Content represents the views of the student staff and not school officials.

• The Dispatch works to avoid bias and/or favoritism. We strive to make our coverage and content meaningful, timely, and interesting to our readers. Our articles reflect our genuine objective of reporting news and will be held to a high standard of quality.

• We make every effort to avoid printing libel, obscenities, innuendo and material that threatens to disrupt the learning process or is an invasion of privacy. We avoid electronic manipulation that alters the truth of a photograph without indicating that the photograph is an illustration.

• Staff editorials represent the opinion of the editorial board arrived at by discussion and will not be bylined. Bylined articles are the opinion of the individual writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Dispatch staff or administration as a whole.

• The Dispatch welcomes reader input. Please send any letters, articles, comments or corrections to bowie.journalism@gmail.com, call (512) 841-4184, mail them to 4103 W. Slaughter Lane, Austin, TX 78749 or drop them off in room F-214 with adviser Michael Reeves or any editor. Letters must be signed, and emailed letters will require verification before publication. We will not necessarily publish all letters received and reserve the right to edit for length and clarity.

students’ incentive. The only exception for a sick student to keep their incentive is for the individual to show up to class for at least 45 minutes. This is ludicrous especially because it pushes sick students to potentially infect students around them with the hopes of keeping their incentives.

In addition to keeping students and staff safe

Students should only concern themselves with getting better and healing, without the additional stress of losing their incentive.

However, students aren't the only people upset with the loss of incentives, parents are too. According to a Facebook page where parents express their concerns, parents have stated their frustration when their students lost their incentives because of the flu or strep throat.

Both parents and students are recognizing the flaws of this unforgiving incentive system. This alone shows the flaws this system holds over students.

The incentive system we have in place needs to be adjusted to fit student life. The current guidelines are unfair to students who, while sick, attempt to keep up with their schoolwork, or any sick student in general..

A sick day should only count against a student if there is no communication with their teachers and there is no attempt to avoid falling behind in classes.

The current TEA guidelines don't allow room for the randomness and unpredictability life holds. There are too many days that count against students that disregard the entire purpose of the incentive system altogether.

*Jasmine Doe is a made up name for creative purposes

THE DISPATCH STAFF

Bentlee Toland

Bella Verette

Quinn Wilkinson

DIRECTIVE EDITORS

Alli Ekrot

Grace Harris

Lauren Wright

DIRECTIVE STAFF

Emily Loewe

Amara Lopez

ADVISOR Michael Reeves, MJE

PATRON SPONSORS The

Ethan Atkinson

Colin Barnes

Isabella Boone

Mars Canepa

Audrey Cullianane

Noah Ellinger

Cooper Lieberknecht

Rachel Maddox

Nathan Pasley

Luis Rodriguez

Caffeine: a student secret to success

You drag yourself out of bed, after a grueling night of homework and stress, trying to grasp that you now have to make it through another harsh day at school. You know the only thing that could put you in a better mood is your tasty, morning energy drink. It might be the only thing you’re looking forward to as you start your school day.

The same could be said for about the three-quarters of American kids who consume caffeine on a daily basis. And, while the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends teens to consume less than 100 mg a day, which approximates an eight-ounce cup of coffee, it’s easy to see how quickly caffeine intake can add up when considering the consumption of energy drinks and local coffee shop brews. But is it a bad thing for teenagers? And should it be limited?

Well, I think that caffeine is all relative to the person who consumes it. For many, it is a necessity that keeps them going when they have no energy left to give. For others, it makes them too hyperactive to focus on what they need to be doing or carrying about their day. So, in this case, we must first consider the positive aspects of caffeine consumption.

First of all, as a stimulant, caffeine will make one more alert and boost overall awareness. It has also been proven to help one process information faster. Moreover, there’s an undeniable academic benefit here, given what high school students are expected to do all day. Something that can improve focus and give you more mental energy? That sounds like caffeine for the win.

Caffeine has also been shown to improve one’s mood. So, we shouldn’t think about removing that from teenagers’ daily lives. It’s also doubtful that teachers want to deal with even grumpier kids with shorter attention spans. And how many adults would want to give up their own sources of caffeine, given the health benefits to them as well?

However true, not all things about caffeine consumption are positive. Some potential side effects include insomnia, restlessness, diuresis, upset stomach, and even cardiac arrhythmia (irregular heart rhythms). But it’s also important to understand that some people are more sensitive to caffeine than others. It comes down to understanding one’s health and risk profile, and how an individual reacts to caffeine.

Indeed, caffeine consumption by coffee drinkers also has been proven to provide major health benefits, as studies with adults by the John Hopkins University School of Medicine have confirmed. Coffee drinkers are actually less likely to die from coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and kidney disease.

Caffeine has also been associated with a lower chance of developing Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease. Not only this but, researchers have found favorable enzyme levels in the livers of those who drink coffee, compared to those who do not. Even

colorectal cancer risk appears lower for coffee drinkers.

Perhaps some of the difficulties with caffeine consumption come from what it’s commonly paired with: sugar. For example, a grande Vanilla Frap from Starbucks contains 430 calories and 95 mg of caffeine. Size up to a Venti, and that’s 530 calories and 125 mg of caffeine.

Additionally, a typical energy drink contains around 40 grams of sugar and 160 mg or more of caffeine. For example, a Monster Energy drink contains 57 g of sugar, and 160mg of caffeine while, a Rockstar Punched Energy Guava flavored drink contains 83.5 g (equivalent to 21 teaspoons) of sugar and 160 mg of caffeine.

Furthermore, If someone is trying to limit caffeine intake, particularly late in the day, there are a number of unexpected sources of caffeine to watch out for. For many of us, we could be taking in caffeine without even knowing were doing it.

One of these surprising sources of caffeine is certain over-thecounter pain relievers that also contain ibuprofen, frequently for treating headaches. Snack bars may also include caffeine in the

form of coffee beans, matcha, cacao, or even green tea extract. Even “decaffeinated” coffee contains some amount of caffeine –up to 15 mg depending on quantity.

Teenage deaths related to caffeine have also led to a stigma, however, as long as you are taking in a healthy amount of caffeine, tragedies like this cannot happen. Teenagers and adults alike just need to be more aware of the amount of caffeine they are consuming whether in caffeinated drinks or in over-the-counter pain relievers.

Ultimately, as with so many things in life, moderation is key. And, given the large number of other dangers lurking out there for teenagers in this day and age, is it really fair to call attention to something as relatively harmless as caffeine? Especially when it might be the one thing that gets high school students to school on time and in a better mood than when they rolled out of bed. Knowing your body and your limits is important to maintain a healthy life; we should keep this in mind when consuming things like caffeine.

The winter break schedule needs adjustments

Waking up late, family gatherings, a much deserved pause from the pressures of piling homework and looming deadlines, students can look forward to all of these activities when winter break arrives. However, last semester students had to wait a few extra days to enjoy this cozy, alarm-less luxury.

Winter break was pushed back for the 202223 school year to begin on December 22, and end on January 10. Structuring the break this way meant it began later in December than usual and ended farther into January. This change was made by the district for the 2022-23 school year. I enjoyed this extra time off in January; however, I believe that more of a balance needs to be struck between time off in January and in December. It’s important for students to be granted some down time with their family at the end of the year as well.

While this year’s break did allow for time to decompress after the end-of-year rush, and ease calmly into the New Year, students were impacted by having less time to spend participating in traditions with family.

Winter break was two weeks and five days long, beginning on December 22. Even though the last four days of the semester were half days due to finals, it’s likely that many students spent the afternoon hours studying for their exams the following days. This meant that while students could have been relaxing or spending quality time with their families, they continued to bear the ever-present burden of stress.

This decision also impacted those who

celebrate winter holidays such as Hanukkah or Christmas creating a swift transition period between school and holiday customs. For example, there were merely three days off before Christmas for students to participate in festive activities, and Hanukkah went on for two nights while students continued their academic responsibilities.

Additionally, knowing about the extracurriculars and school activities my peers participate in, I think it’s fair to assume that the busy life of a high school student yields barely enough time for students to take part in winter rituals with their families.

In our household we celebrate Christmas, and I remember hurriedly decorating our tree on December 20, and baking traditional recipes in a rush attempting to get to bed at a decent time before my next final. Even though these may seem like small sacrifices, they all add up during a time that already feels like a sprint to the finish. Therefore, I think it is very important for students to be able to slow down, and be present with their families.

All of that being said, I am aware that some students enjoyed having so much time off in January. I understand this point of view, especially given holidays in January such as the New Year should be a time to slow down and breathe as well. Also, the longer the break extends into January, the more students are able to ease back into the school year.

For this reason, I don’t think it would be a good solution to drastically shift the schedule of Winter break. However, I do think that pushing the first day back to December 19 or 20 (depending on the calendar year) and moving the end of the break accordingly would be a good decision. This would please both those who enjoyed the extra time in January, and those who felt overwhelmed by an abrupt transition in

December.

Pushing this date a few days earlier would allow for students to spend more time gathering with relatives and taking time to slow down. It could also allow for a more stress-free transition into the holidays, and give teachers the opportunity to be present with their families, taking much needed time off at a more timely date.

In the end, winter break is a time for families to spend calmly and reflect back on the year. It’s

important for both students and teachers to feel like they have this time to live in the moment and participate in making special memories without the overhanging shadow of stress or grades in their minds.

Therefore, winter break should begin earlier in December to allow students and teachers the ability to participate in traditions, or surround themselves with family, no rush, making the most of every moment.

ART BY Lillian Hoover

ART BY Vivi Lopez-Stern

ESSAY

FFA arranges interactive experiences

Students prepare their final goodbyes to their animals after the annual livestock show

Hiking up the hill blanketed in dead grass which acts as a direct pathway to the barn and stables that house animals ranging from turkeys to steers, is a daily experience for students raising livestock through the Future Farmers of America organization.

“Being able to train an animal from the very beginning of their life, where they can’t even walk yet is rewarding to see them go on to win competitions but really seeing your hard work pay off,” Olivas said.

In September, students choose their animals depending on their area of expertise. Students will make the voyage to the barn at the back of campus every day for the next four months.

Accessible both by a small dirt road or football field to refill water, feed or train their animals, rain or shine, until the yearly Travis county livestock show in January when for many FFA students, the journey ends, and their animals adopted or sold. Eva Garzza is an avid member of FFA, who chooses to raise pigs and turkeys.

“I discovered FFA because of my sister. She is a couple of years older than me and in her freshman year of high school she became interested in[agriculture] at the time I wanted to be a vet, and I thought it sounded interesting so I joined the next year in seventh grade and haven’t stopped since,” Garzza said. “[One of the animals] I work with are turkeys, they’re poultry, so it’s relatively simple; you get your birds, you feed them, and get them water. But with pigs, judges are looking for more even with your own showmanship.”

Texas’ unpredictable weather can be a wary obstacle when dealing with animals whose homes are outdoors. The prolonged summer heat waves last-

ing most years until November is the biggest concern for FFA students as tragic stories discourage carelessness. Madeline Rains frequently comes across issues while raising her bunnies.

“Considering that in Texas it goes from freezing one day to 70 degrees the next, we have to take in the bunnies inside. Bunnies can typically handle cold weather, but once it’s freezing

and below you should take them in. But changing their location frequently tends to stress them out and it can be a lot of work,” Rains said. “And in the summer large fans kept on all day long to keep the animals from excessive exhaustion.”

Steers take more dedication and involvement than most animals available to raise through FFA. Setting aside their enor-

UNPREPARED TO BREAK BONDS:

While in one hand Amelia Olivas holds the harness latched around Boone’s, her steer’s neck with the other she secures the small piece of rope which keep Boone from making any aggressive and sudden movements. Still, their bond is evident as Boone nuzzles Olivas’s shoulder, unbothered by his constraints while in her presence, displaying affection is easy for him after the eight months Olivas has spent raising him.

“It’s really hard to keep from getting attached to these animals, and often I don’t. I know they will end up being sold for meat but in the end, we all become attached and it’s hard for everyone in FFA,” Olivas said. “But I do think It teaches a really important lesson about grief.” PHOTO BY Emerson Traugott

mous size, steers are a traditional aggressive animals, so one on one experiences are essential for future livestock shows to run smoothly.

“For steers, there is quite a bit of work you have to do compared to the pigs and lambs I raised last year. I have had both of my steers since May and raised them for a full year they are ten times the size of a lamb,

so it is a little more dangerous, but if you work on them when they are young they will be sweet when they’re older, after the bond and trust you build with them,” Olivas said. “The cleaning is ten times what is needed for lambs, overall steers are much more a labor-intensive animal.”

Amelia Olivas, the designated steer expert and she found her

passion for agriculture through an unlikely show-and-tell presentation in fifth grade, a simple belt buckle sparked her yearning for competition and a bond with animals. The daughter of two city kids has forced many selftaught moments for Olivas from driving a trailer housing two 500-pound and heavier steers to the inner workings of livestock shows.

“The rundown of livestock shows starts with you signing up online. There are two types of shows, hair shows, which I do in the winter, and no hair shows, which I do in the summer. When you get to the shows you set up your pin where the steers are essentially tied to a fence for the entire day. For hair shows you will wash them to make them nice and fluffy and wait until your class is ready,” Olivas said. “But before the show even starts there is “showmanship” which is how you perform, judges will see how you set up your animals and if you look confident.”

The dedication and outside-of-school requirements FFA participation demands can deter some incoming students however the enormous learning opportunity for those seeking a career in the veterinary field or other jobs affiliated with animals additionally the substantial scholarship available helped change Rains idea of the organization.

“It’s a lot of work choosing to be in FFA, definitely if you raise bigger animals, but I would say that all the different people you meet along the way make the experience really special. Some of my closest friends are in FFA with me and it has made the experience so much more fun,” Rains said. “And really what makes it worth it for me is the experience you get with the animals, and the sense of accomplishment you get after all the time you spent raising these animals.”

ALTERNATIVE RECIPES:

Mixing the two large purple buckets filled with feed for Buck the exotic, or the silver steer and Boone the America, or the black steer. A concoction of hay, corn cotton seed hull, better known as show steer finishing feed along with milk replacer, a top dress that helps with their stomachs. “Steers require a lot of work. Any food they get is ten times compared to animals like lambs. I give them a milk replacer, hay, and any other feed all act as nutrients for them,” Olivas said. “It is also important to let them go outside for a few hours a day, because they start to get restless and begin to destroy things.”

SQUEALS OF EXCITEMENT: The pigs are kept in corals to the right of the barn. Larger animals can pose more difficulties for students. “For pigs you have to ‘work’ them, which basically means you have to take them out and walk them with a little whip,” Garzza said. “The whip doesn’t hurt them, but you do have to direct them where to go.” PHOTO BY Emerson Traugott

PHOTO BY Emerson Traugott

COW COMPANION: Out for their daily walk Alyssa Lusk takes her Heffer, Jolene, named for her flaming locks of auburn hair, start to make their way over to the other steers in order to socialize. Despite the nearly 500-pound animal beside her, Lusk knows her strong bond with Joelen will stop her from acting rash toward the other animals. “She kind of like a pet, because raising an animal is a big commitment, but you really grow a bond with your animal,” Lusk said. “At the end when you have to sell them it’s really sad because for me at least Jolene is like my best friend. PHOTO BY Emerson Traugott

PHOTO BY Emerson Traugott

Emerson Traugott

Photo Essay Editor