The Dispatch, Vol. 30, Issue #6, 05.18.18

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MONET'S GARDEN Students celebrate a milestone in high school at a prom night inspired by Oscar-Claude Monet

GLIDING ON ICE Freshman Eliza Sparkes transitions from the UK while holding onto a passion for ice skating

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FINAL GOODBYES Senior staff members of the Dispatch reflect on the past four years of high school

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FRI. MAY 18, 2018

One year of Bulldog Nation

Jocelyn Brooks

Managing Editor

READ MORE “Robinson” pg.

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May 30 Graduation June 2 SAT Testing June 4-9 Summer Drama Camp June 12 Deadline for Schedule Changes

Vol. 30, Issue 6 www.thedispatchonline.net James Bowie High School 4103 W. Slaughter Lane Austin TX, 78749

THE DISPATCH In the beginning, students on campus were introduced to the man behind Bulldog Nation, principal Mark Robinson, who not only gave the school new leadership, but a new voice. Nine months later, it became clear his plans for the school included much more than a new catch-phrase.

“When he took over as the principal of Bowie he didn't come in and immediately make a lot of changes: he listened and asked questions,” administrative assistant Katie Gilman said.

Following assistant principal Susan Leos’ interim role as principal, Robinson maintained her high involvement with the student body and utilized it to form better relationships with the students.

“I've been fortunate enough to work with Ms. Leos and I have an understanding of who she is, and the thing I appreciate most about her is how relational she is and I've certainly tried to continue that because I think that is important,” Robinson said. “Whether it's the little bit of time I have to visit with everybody in the morning and doing the announcements or being in the classrooms— there's a lot the principal has to do and unfortunately a lot of it keeps me in my office, but I'm trying to get out of my office as much as possible because that’s the fun part of the job.

That’s why I got into being a teacher: because I wanted to work with kids, not because I wanted to sit in an office all day.”

This also inspired a “Principal’s Panel” for students of all grade levels who meet to talk about and share their views of the different aspects of the school and its functions.

“We periodically meet and it's to make sure that I’m keeping my finger on the pulse of the student body,” Robinson said. “Then being able to get that feedback and put that into the conversations with the teachers I speak with is really helpful.”

In addition to this, Robinson has developed relationships with student council Co-Presidents Jimmy Counihan and Mateo Huerta to further communicate with students.

“Mateo and I are actually the first student council presidents to have a private audience with the principal,” Counihan said. “Traditionally, student council has acted completely separate from administration with the exception of CAC meetings where student council representatives are more or less figure-heads for the student body. While I still think the voice of students can and should be expanded greatly, I was happy that I was the one to reach out to Mr. Robinson and schedule our first meeting.”

coming UP

A review of the first year under Mark Robinson's leadership

a look

BACK

AUGUST

AUGUST

BOWIE STAR

Analyzing changes made this year under Robinson

On August 3, Robinson begins a weekly newsletter via email notifying the community about events happening on and around the campus.

"BULLDOG NATION"

On August 21, Robinson first coins the name "Bulldog Nation" when referencing the students and faculty on campus during morning announcements.

SEPTEMBER

PRINCIPAL PANEL

JANUARY

On September 28, Robinson held the first principal panel which allows for students of all grades to give feedback on the strengths and weaknesses of the campus.

EVERYONE:1

On January 12, AISD issued chromebooks were distributed to students around campus under the organization of Robinson.

PHOTO BY Austyn Keelty

FEBRUARY UPDATED SECURITY

Following February 14, the school shooting at Parkland, Robinson implemented changes to campus security to ensure the safety of students and faculty.

Campus improvements to be made during summer Maddy Rice

Managing Editor

In your first period class, you're wearing a hoodie, jeans and a blanket around your legs. But in the hallways, you're using your jacket to dab sweat off your forehead. By second period, it’s so humid and stuffy that you’re wishing you never wore jeans.

The Bowie heating ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) system has been a popular source of complaints from students, but the school has been unable to address the issues fully until now, thanks to the new AISD bond money.

From June 1 to July 29, Bowie will be closed for renovations to the

hydroponic piping that operate the HVAC system in order to improve comfort in classrooms.

During this time period, the Bowie office staff will be relocated to Akins High School. As a two summer project, the first installment will be the start to a better learning environment for students and staff alike, as described by the school’s Management Assistant to the Principal Debby Theis.

“I am hopeful that once this project is finished, the student and faculty can look forward to entering a classroom that will be comfortable and conducive to learning on a daily basis,” Theis said.

In order to preserve the safety of Bowie community

members, summer activities taking place at the school have been relocated to alternative locations. One of

march,” junior drum major Adam Dinkins said. “That camp will be moved to Bailey as well as our indoor

“ I am hopeful that once this project is

finished, the student and faculty can look forward to entering a classroom that will be comfortable and conducive to learning on a daily basis.”

- Debby Theis

the activities affected is the summer camp for marching band students.

“We have a camp dedicated to teaching the incoming freshmen how to

summer band rehearsals in August.”

Despite the change in scenery, Dinkins is confident that he and his peers will be able to adapt to the changes

being thrown at them.

“I believe that even though we are in a different environment, we will still be able to teach the incoming freshmen what they need to be successful in the fall,” Dinkins said.

Another organization being affected is the Silver Stars, whose summer “kiddie camp” is where the team teaches students from 1st grade to 9th different dances and activities. Like the band camp, kiddie camp is also being moved to Bailey Middle School.

“It will be kind of hard keeping all the kids since we aren't gonna be in our big gym here,” Silver Star junior Cecilia Ortiz said.

“Finding space to practice our dances because the

school isn't as familiar to us as Bowie is. But other than that, the relocation won’t affect the running of the camp much.”

For students who have been enduring HVAC problems for a while now, the promise of solving the issue has given students hope for the idea that they might not have to wear layers to school when it’s 90 degrees out.

“I've been at Bowie for three years now, so having very inconsistent air conditioning has just become a regular part of Bowie for me,” junior Sophie Bega said. “I’m very excited to have a more reliable system in place to ensure the comfort of students and teachers.”

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Fri. May 18, 2018

The Dispatch

News

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San Francisco trip highlights journalism successes Abby Ong

Editor-in-Chief Eyes locked on the screen at the front of the room, newspaper and yearbook students from schools across the nation eagerly hope to bring home awards.

On April 11-15, the Dispatch and the Lone Star staff got the opportunity to travel to San Francisco for the biannual Journalism Education Association/National Scholastic Press Association (JEA/NSPA) convention.

Newspaper won Second Place Best in Show and yearbook won Sixth Place Best in Show, earning them a spot among the best in country. “[Winning the award] was like this release of all this pent up energy, all of this hard work and giant weight being lifted from my back and shoulders,” newspaper editor-in-chief senior Violet Glenewinkel said. “Hours upon hours for weeks and weeks, even before the school year, we put in effort to transform these 30 year issues into something Bowie has never seen before. This was our holy grail, our finish line, as cheesy as it sounds, and we accomplished it with flying colors.”

Students also competed in individual competitions, with the publications winning eight individual awards ranging from honorable mention, excellent, and superior. Junior Maddy Rice won a superior in Yearbook Copy/Captions for Clubs, despite anticipating otherwise.

EDGE OF THE EARTH: Members of the newspaper staff climb to Marin Headlands for a view of the Golden Gate Bridge during the JEA national convention in San Francisco. The two publication staff's won two major Best in Show awards, while eight students won individual awards for on-site competition. PHOTO BY Michael Reeves

“I sprawled out on the floor next to [my friend] and had a mental breakdown and told her I was quitting journalism forever and that I couldn’t write for squat,” Rice said. “It lasted like 30 minutes and then I was on edge for the rest of the day.”

Competitions took place a day before awards, so that morning was filled with anxious anticipation.

“Honestly, I stopped listening after they called the honorable mentions and

didn’t hear my name because I was absolutely sure there was no way I could get anything above that,” Rice said. “I wish I could remember the moment when they called my name but it all happened so fast, my hands were shaking so much the entire walk up to get my medal and basically the rest of the awards ceremony.

Getting superior had been a goal of mine since Ms. Dellana first brought us to convention my sophomore

year, so it was so satisfying and surreal to have them put that medal around my neck.”

Aside from competitions, sessions were also held to teach students journalism skills. Junior Jadon Alvarez had never been to a convention before and enjoyed sessions.

“I was surprised at how relaxed the convention was because the mentors at the convention treated you like young adults,” Alvarez said.

“You got to pick which sessions you wanted to go that would help improve your journalism and editing skills, which are really useful to us newspaper and yearbook students.”

Students were given time outside of convention to explore the city.

“My favorite memory from the trip was definitely getting to hang out and tour Chinatown with people from both newspaper and yearbook because I definite-

ly think that we all bonded,” Alvarez said. “In Chinatown, I’d have to say the best part was getting to eat authentic Chinese food, drink authentic boba tea, and getting to check out the cool merch they had to offer.”

According to Rice, the trip not only taught journalism skills, but also independence.

“The most I’ve learned about living on my own comes from those trips where I get to dictate what I buy and where I buy it,” Rice said. “If I didn’t go on these trips, I’d be thrown out into the real world which is filled with $50 shoes and overpriced grilled mac and cheese wonder pieces and go completely broke. After the first night where you spontaneously go to the Target across the street and buy your weight’s worth in snacks, you really get a sense of how to manage your money a little better and what that will be like when it’s one hundred percent your money you’re spending.”

The students were accompanied by newspaper advisor Michael Reeves and yearbook advisor Lindsey Shirack.

“The national journalism conventions are a chance for students to collaborate with, compete against, and be inspired by the top journalism programs in the country,” Shirack said. “Our students get to share their knowledge, as well as get fresh eyes to reinvigorate their publications.”

Student ID badges proposed

Bulldog Nation continued

With the recent topic of campus safety still fresh on the minds of students and staff, a new proposal is being addressed to increase security on campus. Assistant Principal Carla De La Rosa sent out an email to faculty last week proposing an initiative that would require all students on campus to wear a lanyard with their respective identification cards during school hours.

“As you know all staff are required to wear IDs, so they are identifiable as adults approved to be on campus,” principal Mark Robinson said. “After the Parkland shooting, a number of students and teachers came forward to ask about students wearing IDs as a sign to each other that they are Bowie students.

Robinson has continued close connections with students and parents through the Bowie Star, a weekly newsletter including updates of the school and its community.

“While I do appreciate his up-close leadership style that is much more involved than Mr. Kane’s laissez-faire leadership style, it has been interesting to grapple with the new-found administrative presence,” Counihan said. “From my personal Twitter account, the hosting of Mr. Bulldawg and Bowie Idol, to homecoming, Mr. Robinson has consistently asked questions, wanted to be a part of the process, and given critiques on my own leadership style.”

Besides different adjustments made to the school and student body over the

Ms. De La Rosa's committee will look at all aspects of students IDs, compare with other campuses, and develop draft guidelines a program.”

The ID badges would be used as a safety persuasion and hopefully would allow students to feel safer coming to school.

"I think the ID badges are a really good idea," junior Terah Clemons said.

"It doesn't hurt to try them out. I would feel much safer coming to school if I knew Bowie was making an effort to keep students as safe as possible throughout the year."

Despite the proposal not everyone is convinced ID badges would do much as far as safety goes for the school.

"I personally think the

badges would be pointless," junior Virgil Anchodo said. "Students would lose their badges and forget them. So many students go to Bowie as well, and trying to implement the use of badges would probably be more of a hassle than anything."

A committee made of volunteers put together

by De La Rosa will decide whether or not the initiative will pass for next year.

“We are able to issue all students an ID for functional purposes like checking out library books and off campus lunch,” Robinson said. “The committee will look at other uses for student IDs as well as issuing lanyards to students so the ID can be worn as a safety/ security measure.” STORY

BY Cianna Chairez

year, Robinson has also spent time looking ahead to what’s next for Bowie.

“I want everyone to feel welcome in the Bowie community.”

- Mark Robinson “A lot of the work I've been doing is based around plans for next year in trying to get some new courses for Bowie and some new electives for next year,” Robinson said. “Things such as really expanding the computer science classes and trying to bring in robotics."

But above all, Robinson has focused on making Bowie a home for everyone, regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, or sexuality.

“I wanted to improve more on cultural proficiency and making it a point to make sure everybody has a place at Bowie,” Robinson said. “I want everyone to feel welcome in the Bowie community. We have such a diverse group of people and so many different cultures, but of course some groups are larger than others so I want to make sure everybody feels good and feels connected. There's one non-negotiable I have which I made sure teachers knew and it’s that we treat every person with dignity and respect, and for me, we can’t do education without that.”

JOIN OUR TEAM

BBQ CUTTERS $13.00 CASHIERS $12.00 KITCHEN/BUSSERS $11.00 knmanagement.com/careers

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The Dispatch Fri. May 18, 2018

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Reviews

You have now been infinitely warned Gracie Angeli Reviews Editor

The definition of teamwork according to Oxford Dictionary, is the combined action of a group of people, especially when effective and efficient. While not always effective nor efficient, a group of heroes has indeed combined with action to provide heart-wrenching entertainment.

Avengers: Infinity War was released on April 27 and ended its first box office week with approximately $338 million. It has been rumored to have the highest movie budget of all time with $1 billion. The movie was also rumored to have been initially split into two movies, but the Avengers movie being released in 2019 is no longer a second part to the same story.

In the newest Marvel movie, the Avengers are once again unprepared for the new threat that comes to Earth. The heroes have to fight for the lives of everyone they love, and for the entire universe. There has never been more at stake as when the universe is threatened by Thanos. Thanos first appeared at the end of the first Avengers movie and has continued to attempt to thwart the heroes since. Thanos has now come to our Earth with his Black Order henchmen to collect the six infinity stones in his gauntlet and gain the power to rule the entire galaxy.

Infinity stones are artifacts that can grant the wielder with the power to inflict their will on all of reality. The stones consist of the Space Stone which opens portals in space, the Time Stone which gives the holder control of time, the Power Stone which can wipe

out a planet, the Reality Stone that can reincarnate people, the Mind Stone which can control the will of others, and the Soul Stone, which is the only stone that hasn’t been introduced in the Marvel movies, but in the comics, its wielder has mastery over every soul in the universe.

In Infinity War, the Avengers continue to work together and collaborate their powers and technology to protect the world from threats too large for them to handle alone. All of the characters are selfless and care so much for one another; they’re like a big problematic family. The teamwork present is one of my favorite components included in the film, and how it builds on the relationships the audience already has with the characters. Another one is the character and relationship development. Each hero matures and develops as a character, and it’s amazing to witness.

This movie is so heartbreaking, yet so heartwarming. My heart is so full after seeing all of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) characters working together, and how their personalities, sense of humor, and way of coping with danger and loss all blended to create a masterpiece.

I am still incredibly saddened every time I think about the movie, because of the various struggles the Avengers faced and the losses they suffered. Some of my favorite characters were hurt. But still mixed deeply into the grief is laughter, because of the humor throughout the entire movie. Humor in the face of danger was carried into yet another Marvel movie and kept up the light-hearted witty banter for large parts of it.

The movie had only been out for a few days before the memes started to show up on social media. Memes are all over the Internet, depicting spoilers that can make the audience who has not seen the movie yet, angry. If these many memes are made in such a short period of time, the movie must be important, that’s all I’m saying.

My favorite part of the entire movie is the reunion and introduction of my favorite superheroes.

There are over 70 Marvel characters that make an appearance in Infinity War, and the interaction between them is life-changing.

Some of the characters see each other for the first time in years, and them coming together once again makes me unbelievably happy.

The crossover between the different Marvel movies brings something incredible to the table.

The Computer-Generated Imagery (CGI) is phenomenal, which isn’t surprising for the incredibly vast budget, but was fascinating to see. The animation used is realistic and cannot be competed with by any other film in the industry. Another one of my favorite elements was that throughout the movie, the perspective changes between the characters and the setting they had been in, and I think that was a cool way to direct it.

The acting was also incredible, and the actors fully immersed the audience in the experience. Tom Holland as Peter Parker does an amazing job playing a selfless and frightened teenager and even improvised his iconic, emotional scene at the end that brought many audience members to tears.

Robert Downey Jr. playing Tony Stark also brings some incredible

Overdosing on judgment Staff Writer

With an open mind, the audience welcomes a pessimistic outlook on society’s handling of alcohol and drugs conveyed with a soothing melody and lyrics that has the means of fully immersing their subconscious.

On April 20, J. Cole released his new album KOD, which he revealed on twitter that the acronym could have three meanings; Kids On Drugs, King OverDosed, and Kill Our Demons. All interpretations appear to focus on the struggle of addiction and substance abuse in today’s society.

Rumored to be recorded in only two weeks, KOD is Cole’s fifth consecutive album on the Billboard 200. When KOD dropped, it broke Apple Music’s 24hour streaming record. In my personal favorite song, Kevin’s Heart, Cole raps about what seems like a relationship on the side, and there is some question to whether his loyalty is wavering due to another person or a drug addiction.

Although many people think it alludes to the cheating scandal of comedian

Kevin Hart, there are drug references throughout the song. Using Kevin Hart’s situation as a metaphor for the taxing emotional commitment of an addiction, Cole communicates the struggle infidelity.

“ Coming from a place of experience, [J. Cole] highlights the importance of growing, despite what the public may see it as, and offers advice on maintaining an audience. ” - Sam McPherson 1985 is the intro to “The Fall Off” and is the last song on the album, which most people are calling a dis track. Never calling out anyone by name, Cole appears to be talking to the new generation of rappers and artists. Coming from a place of experience, he highlights

the importance of growing, despite what the public may see it as, and offers advice on maintaining an audience.

This album is unique, because Cole does not feature any guest voices, and only utilizes his own sound.

Cole also produced much of the album himself, and the meaning behind the songs carries through even to the slow and simple melody of the songs.

On a more serious note, Cole questions the artists about the true meaning of their platform and encourages them to think about their impact.

Bringing racial stereotypes into debate, he reminds young African American artists that they are representing a community.

Cole understands that he has a lot of influence and reach, and wants to use his platform positively.

Overall, KOD is an emotional PSA with a lot of anti -drug themes that Cole has developed from his personal experiences and close proximity to addiction. If you enjoy simple tracks with focus on meaningful lyrics that dive into very sensitive topics with a respectful attitude, you should definitely give KOD a listen.

acting to this movie, and conveys his role seamlessly.

After seeing the movie, I have a long list of questions, and I don’t know if I can wait until 2019 for the next part. There are so many things and relationships left unresolved and uncertain. I want to know who actually was hurt and who survived the movie right now. Although, to make the wait feel shorter, there are already dozens of popular fan

theories and speculations on the ending and what will be revealed in the future movie(s).

I think that everyone should see this movie to appreciate the cinematic evolution present. With the amount of money that was spent on the film, it had a lot of opportunities to be incredible, and it is.

Avengers: Infinity War is incredibly entertaining and 100% worth the watch.

Local

BUZZ

Summer’s coming! As school ends and your schedule opens up, you’ll need to spend your time wisely, so here are some perfect options for just that.

CONCERTS Khalid

HEB Center at Cedar Park May 17

Kenny Chesney

Austin360 Amphitheatre May 16

Dave Matthews Band

Austin360 Amphitheatre May 22

ALBUMS Arctic Monkeys

Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino May 11

James Bay Elextric Light May 18

Ben Howard

Noonday Dream June 1

MOVIES Deadpool 2 May 18

ART BY Callie Richards

Sam McPherson

ART BY Dalton Spruce

Solo: A Star Wars Story May 25

The Incredible 2 June 15

GAMES Sega Mega Drive Classics

PS4, Xbox One May 29

Blazblue: Cross Tag Battle PS4, PC, Switch June 5

The Lost Child

PS4, PS Vita June 19

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Fri. May 18, 2018 The Dispatch

Feature

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Superheroes showdown at walkout Junior Simoon Saiyed defends her beliefs against costumed Spider-Man at gun protest Maddy Rice

Managing Editor It’s the middle of the school day, and junior Simoon Saiyed is arguing with someone dressed in a Spider-Man costume at the foot of the Texas State Capital over gun control. For students like Saiyed, expression is one of the most important aspects of creating change, so, naturally, she could not stay away from the National School Walkout on April 20 to protest gun laws in America.

The walkout took place on a Friday during the end of second period until the beginning of fourth.

Students gathered downtown at Woolridge Park around 12:30 p.m. and walked from there to the Capital. From there, the event featured guest speakers to rally the crowd.

“All the students throughout the U.S. inspired me to walk out, and history has shown the political power that students can have when they choose to take action,” Saiyed said. “Taking action, especially for something that is being advocated to protect young human lives, is so incredibly important because you can’t just ignore the issue and assume it will go away.”

The Bowie administration did not publicize walkout information or specifically endorse student protest since it was during school hours, but they respected students’ first amendment rights by not punishing students for their decision. Students who walked out were not required to sign out

of school but received an unexcused absence for the classes they missed. They were also allowed back to class during fourth period.

“I was in support of the right of students to walk out and stand up for what they believe,” AP Biology teacher Jessica Davis said. “We shouldn’t minimize any group’s desire to improve the world around them just because they are not of a certain age or the timing isn’t perfect, [like] during a school day. If we can spend hours in standardized testing, a walkout shouldn’t be considered too intrusive on our time.”

While protesting, Saiyed and her peers encountered a rightwinged activist who was carrying a ‘Come and Take It’ flag with art depicting a gun instead of a cannon.

Saiyed noted how the person was wearing a Spider-Man costume that masked their face and body, and that they and their friends had attracted a crowd that was having a discussion about gun laws.

“We were intrigued so we stopped to listen, and Spider-Man began spewing nonsense about how illegal immigrants are the ones who commit most shootings,” Saiyed said. “We started getting into a heated argument with the guy, except anytime we asked for proof or an actual historical explanation, he would talk about a completely different subject. He wasn’t even able to straight up say what he believed in; a couple of times it felt like he forgot what he was arguing for.”

“ You can’t just ignore the issue and assume it will go away. ” - Simoon Saiyed, 11

DARING DEBATE: Arguing passionately, juniors Simoon Saiyed, Nyah Bernucho and Kennedy Hartman attract a crowd as they discuss gun control with a pro-gun activist dressed as Spider-Man at the National School Walkout against gun violence on April 20. The debate drew the attention of fellow protesters and even police officers. PHOTO BY Preston Rolls

One of the girls standing with Saiyed during the argument was junior Kennedy Hartman, who was backing Saiyed up as she made her claims. “[An] old white man [standing with the person in the Spider-Man outfit] proceeded to say ‘You guys want to take my guns away,’” Hartman said. “I told him no one wants his guns and he proceeded to call me the B word.”

Saiyed recalls the argument drawing a crowd of people and several police officers to observe.

She said it wasn’t until she noticed that one of the masked person’s friends was carrying a handgun

that she decided it was time to go.

“Being P.O.C, staring at an actual handgun on the body of a man who was adamant that immigrants are the sole cause of mass shootings, which they are so not, made my heart stop,” Saiyed said.

“I began picturing a million things that could go wrong with making this guy way too angry. I mean we are human beings, and time and time again we’ve seen that when people get really angry, and have a weapon on their body, things don’t always end super great.”

Passionate in what she believes in, Saiyed does not regret her action to walkout on that Friday and

urges her peers to take action to express themselves. Concerned for the safety of her peers and herself, Saiyed will continue to support the motion for more gun control until she sees a change within her community.

“There has to be an understanding that when there is something vastly wrong with the way our society is functioning, there has to be action taken to advocate change,” Saiyed said. “That is literally the foundation of our country and something we Americans pride ourselves on: being able to stand up against the Man and pushing for what we believe in.”

Senior kicks off summer as new brand ambassador Natalie Aman Staff Writer

Making snow cones, checking people out at HEB, mowing the neighbors’ lawn; all of these are common jobs of high school students. However, senior Katie Stephenson has instead immersed

BANGS N’ BLUEBONNETS: Senior Katie Stephenson advertises Bangs on her Instagram.

The ad is also posted on the Bangs Shoes official Instagram, @bangsshoes. PHOTO COURTESY OF Katie Stephenson

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herself in a world of advertising and entrepreneurship.

Stephenson is a brand ambassador for a company called Bangs Shoes. A brand ambassador is someone who promotes a company.

“I found the company on-line,” Stephenson said. “Their creators moved to Austin, and they hosted this big event at Zilker Park last July. It was a big scavenger hunt across town. They would post on their social media what the next place was and you could win shoes, flags, socks, and t-shirts” Following the event, Stephenson stumbled upon a group of current brand ambassadors promoting Bangs.

“It was really fun, all the ambassadors got along really well and acted like they already knew each other,” Stephenson said. “All of that got me interested, and I was thinking, ‘how do they know each other? How are they already friends? This seems really cool’.”

Soon after, Stephenson started following them on social media, and got accepted to the ambassador program herself.

“Every semester there are three ‘blitz days’, which is when everyone posts on Instagram,” Stephenson said. “We pick a theme, then we have to post and hash-tag it to create awareness about the brand.

eaving the nest, fleeing the coop— whatever you may call it— moving out is a big step in any teenager’s life. Except, how do you do it? Moving away from the people who taught you how to tie your shoes and ride a bike is no easy task; it requires extensive planning and responsibility. However, for freshly graduated high school seniors this can be a dauntMoving Out ing task given that they have been relying on their parents for 18 years. Before you embark on your exciting adventure into adulthood, you need to know the basics of living on your own.

Column by Ashley Barber

How to ADULT

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SUMMER SUN: Displaying the company flag, senior Katie Stephenson attends her first Bangs event at Zilker Park downtown.

The event featured a scavenger hunt around the city. PHOTO COURTESY OF Katie Stephenson

We also wear their shoes.”

Alongside the responsibilities of advertising the brand, Stephenson’s position has some perks, the biggest being discounts on the trendy shoes.

“I love their shoes,” Stephenson said. “That’s the main reason I

wanted to work with them. I have three pairs because they are so inexpensive now. My favorite is one pair that’s white and has succulents embroidered on the side.”

Having teenagers advertise their products is a marketing tactic used by brands, but not every stu-

CHOOSING A PLACE:

When choosing a new location keep in mind how much everything costs. Like the gas, rent, taxes, and utility services such as water and electric. Another thing to consider is the mortgage or rent on the place you’re looking at. Talk with your parents and figure out if they are going to help you pay your down-payment. If they do loan you money, you will need them to send a letter allowing you to use their money. Be careful of a low down-payment, the less you pay up front the more you pay monthly.

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BUDGETING BILLS: Budgeting for bills is simple; first, find out how much income you are making a month, then figure out how much you are spending and on what. Then based on that information, set aside some money that can pay for utilities and rent. Before you move out start saving up some money, just in-case something were to happen. You should also pay close attention to your taxes.

Check with your parents to see if you’re still on their tax plan before you move.

dent feels persuaded by the ads.

“I think the ambassadors do a good job advertising their products,” senior Lauryn Lomas said, “but I can’t say that it has any impact on me or my will to purchase that item, especially when the ambassadors give those discount codes. It just seems superficial to me and I can’t bring myself to buy their items.”

Although, Bangs is more than just selling shoes. Adventure, travel, and entrepreneurship are all big ideas that the brand embodies.

“This brand takes a portion of their funds and they invest in entrepreneurs around the world,” Stephenson said. “As of right now I think they’ve invested in over a thousand. They take some of their profits and they give it to people in developing countries that want to start their own business. Once that money gets made from their business, Bangs gets that money back so they can reinvest in new entrepreneurs.”

For more information, check out bangsshoes.com where you can get “It’s very cool to get to work with their company, especially that it’s based out of Austin,” Stephenson said. “I love working with a brand that gives back and is doing something for the world.”

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INSURANCE: Renters insurance protects personal possessions, liability, and additional living expenses. This insurance protects personal belongings from damage. Keep a list of the approximate cost of your possessions to see how much insurance you need. Liability covers if someone gets hurt on your property. Additional living expenses covers you if something were to happen to your house. Then they would pay for temporary rentals, hotel bills, and meals while your house is being rebuilt or fixed.

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PACK IT UP: When moving get rid of that “maybe” pile the more time that the item sits in the maybe pile the more attached you will get to it, think either yes or no. Remember to donate, try to find a place near you that takes donations. Everyone starts their life living with their parents.

When buying the basics to living alone, always have a reason for buying it. Only buy what you need so that you can make money.

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The Dispatch

Fri. May 18, 2018

F

Feature

What an ‘ice’ way to spend the days Freshman Eliza Sparkes pursues lifelong passion of figure skating in the United States Austyn Keelty Photo Editor

The soft scraping sound of blades slicing across the freshly groomed ice echoes through the rink as the skaters glide around. Figure skating may be seen as a feminine sport consisting of bedazzled outfits and happy smiles, but a routine on the ice requires talent, dedication, balance, and immense power.

Freshman Eliza Sparkes began figure skating at the age of seven with her older sister, senior Madeline Sparkes, in their hometown Knaphill in the United Kingdom. Eliza’s mother, Nancy Sparkes’ dream was to ice skate, so she gave her daughters the opportunity to pursue something she never was able to.

“Well it was my own little pipe dream as a younger girl but we didn’t live near an ice rink so it was only ever just a dream,” Nancy said. ”When Eliza and her sister were old enough, they showed an interest after watching some figure skating and so they started going to skate camps in the holidays. Then Eliza took it up with weekly lessons back in the United Kingdom. She didn’t skate for two years when we first moved here but showed an interest again towards the end of kiddie school.”

Nancy’s childhood fantasy emerged into Eliza’s newfound passion.

“I loved it so much that my mom signed me up for lessons with my friend Lily, this is all in England,” Eliza said. “I immediately fell in love with it because it became so special to me. We both had lessons every week together and when I moved I stopped because I was too scared to join a new rink. I still really, really wanted to do it but didn’t have the confidence. Eventually it got to the point when I missed it so much and just did it. I started skating again at age 12 after stopping for eight months.”

Eliza and her family moved from England to Austin, Texas when she was only 11 years old. Not only was this a difficult move because of the difference in cultures and relationships, but it also made it difficult for Eliza to pursue her hobbies.

“My biggest challenge with ice-skating was probably because I moved from England to Texas half way through and I had to decide if I wanted to continue figure skating because I had to join a completely new rink and make new friends,” Eliza said. “However, I kept doing it and I pushed through and now I have friends there.”

Eliza and her family moved to Austin for her father’s job relocation and the opportunity to help start up a new string of churches in the United States.

“We left our old church in England to start a new one in Texas,” Eliza said. “So we moved here and helped a few other families start up a new church which is all part of the New Frontiers,[which is] a big group of churches around the world including the one I used to go to in England.”

Madeline admires how much Eliza’s figure skating skills have developed over the years.

“Oh my goodness she is literally incredible, her growth is amazing,” Madeline said.

“It’s funny because the first lesson they teach you ‘how to fall’ so that you can sort of become fearless of the ice and falling. Her

WHATNEEDED? skills are

• There are so many elements to figure skating like, performance, show, appearance, and proper technique.

• Spins require balance, rotations, arm movement and leg positions • Ice skaters need to be aware of their landing and pose whilst turning • Spins are the most challenging for Eliza Sparkes because there is so much technique involved

- Eliza Sparkes technique is really smooth now and I think she enjoys it more now that she feels more confident.”

Eliza improves her figure skating technique and abilities every weekend during her morning lessons.

“In a normal lesson I usually go in on Saturday mornings, I put my skates on, and then we have a warm-up which is like a five to ten minute warm-up of just skating around the rink to get used to the ice,” Eliza said. “Then I have a 45 minute class after that and we just work on jumps and spins and new elements. After that they have public skate which a lot of people stick around for to practice the stuff they’ve just learned.”

In addition to competitions, Eliza’s yearlong ice rink also holds Christmas and summer shows that she has participated in.

“I go to Chaparral Ice, it’s kinda down-

town and we drive there every Saturday, I have a lesson once a week and then I go to public skate just to practice,” Eliza said.

“It’s all year-round, but they also have shows for Christmas and summer. I’ve competed before, but I like to do the shows more because I think those are more fun.”

She is inspired to push her skills to the limit by more experienced figure skaters.

“It’s like dancing, which everyone loves, but I find it so much more interesting to watch on ice,” Eliza said. “When you watch it you think ‘wow, how do they do that’ and when you’re a figure skater you think ‘wow I want to do that’ so that’s why I love it so much and think that it’s the most beautiful sport.”

Even though she took a break from figure skating for a while, Eliza has rededicated herself to her original passion.

“This season in basketball we had a lot of tournaments on the weekends, so I had to stop figure skating for a long time because I could never do figure skating over basketball because at the time basketball was my main priority,” Eliza said. “So I had to stop for the season, but now I’m back at it. With school it’s pretty hard because over the weekends I don’t have a lot of time to do homework.”

Although Eliza ultimately made the decision to continue figure skating, she had support along the way. Madeline and Nancy pushed her to pursue this hobby because of the joy it gave her back in the United Kingdom.

“It was mainly encouraging her that she was really good at figure skating,” Madeline said. ”But I try not to push her too hard to do anything, because I think it’s important for us all to individually find our own passions and to truly love them whole heartedly.”

Eliza truly enjoys ice skating not only because it has been one of her passions for a long time, but because it is a very uncommon sport.

“A lot of people think it’s pretty cool because it’s really unique and not a lot of people do it and I just think it’s an interesting sport and you kind of never really hear of people you know doing it,” Eliza said. “It is to this day my favorite place to be and the best environment to learn in.

It has so many valuable lessons that come from it such as falling over and just trying again [like] not giving up on yourself, trusting yourself, and knowing that you’re trying and you’re going to get there.”

Eliza recommends that everyone should give ice skating a try if it interests them.

“I would 100% recommend ice skating to anyone whether you are two years old or 80 because it’s one of those sports that you can never be too old to start learning,” Eliza said. “You may not get to the Olympics, but it will teach you the feeling of it. It’s such a delicate art because there are so many elements.”

Now finding her place and rekindling her love for figure skating, Eliza practices every Saturday and occasionally performs at shows. She balances her busy schedule with figure-skating, basketball, school and friends, but doesn’t plan to give up figure-skating anytime soon.

“All sports require that mentality of ‘just keep trying’ even though you fail, but I think ice-skating has a lot of different elements to it,” Eliza said. “You have to be flexible and have good balance. I think you can pick a lot of things from different sports and put them all together to create ice skating. That’s why I love it, I just think there are so many different things you can do with it.”

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I

Fri. May 18, 2018 The Dispatch

In-Depth

Jocelyn Brooks

Managing Editor

FROM THE

PRESENT...

"

Bowie's greatest strength is its teachers. We have such a great staff of teachers and coaches— it's what makes the campus so special.

"

—Megan Oldham, 12

"

There always seems like there's something new to find in this school if you keep looking. I am still constantly surprised at what I find in this school all the time and I've been here for four years.

"

—Adam Ybarra, 12

"

It's more than just a class which you take for the elective credit. The programs here are so dedicated to what they do and give great experiences to kids.

"

—Simoon Saiyed, 11

"

Bowie has the ability to promote serious pride—sports games, theatre productions, Silver Stars, Mr. Bulldog, etc. Bowie has always somehow brought students together at every event.

"

—Phil Brual, 11

30 years is a long time for life to happen. In the halls we walk, students have been given promposals, friendships have been formed, tears have been shed, and memories have been made.

30 years of trends have passed, homework has been lamented over, and success has been achieved.

But as these past 30 years come to a close, we open the door to what the next 30 may bring. And 30 years is a long time for life to happen.

And AISD is aware of this. With the passing of the new bond, Bowie and surrounding schools will begin to see changes not only to the buildings themselves, but to the foundation of the programs used and the way students learn. Their approach? This is your school.

“I think student feedback is the single most important factor that can play into improving Bowie's classes and extracurriculars,” junior Jack Fishbaugh said. “By asking our students for ways to improve their programs, we can pinpoint specific issues that administrators may not be aware of. I think adults can often underestimate the amazing abilities of high school students, and taking in their feedback would really go a long way in solving any problem Bowie might have.”

For many students, this simply includes updated facilities, such as reliable air conditioning and heating or improved bathrooms.

“Even though there's been little renovations in the past 30 years here at Bowie, there hasn't been a complete remodel or real modernization of this school,” principal Mark Robinson said. “So this is our opportunity to start that work, and we aren't going to be able to finish it with what we have and this is kind of just ‘phase one,’ but I think the difference we are making is going

6

to be substantial and I'm really excited in being able to engage teachers, parents, students, architects, and engineers in the planning.”

Besides students, this has sparked conversation in faculty regarding changes that would help them create stronger learning environments.

“I think I'm most interested in improving the teacher computers and the heating and air conditioning system,” French teacher Rachelle McCoy said. “That said, I'm excited to see what other improvements come to pass. The tables and chairs that were placed in the academic halls this year, for example, are a lovely improvement which bring more function and enjoyment to the space.”

With the addition of new programs and more opportunities for learning, students will begin to have even more areas to succeed in.

“There's always room for improvement, and we are continually striving to make positive changes in what we do,” McCoy said. “Long-term plans for myself include offering my students more possibilities for travel and study abroad. In terms of the department as a whole, next year we will see some big changes as we venture into offering Latin and American Sign Language as on-line courses.”

Other students hope for more variety in programs, such as pre-professional implementations such as upcoming Capstone classes, job shadowing, and internships.

“I think classes should start focusing more on what we’re gonna do once we get into the real world because even as a freshman, that’s

YEARS AHEAD

Integrating Bowie's rich history with the bright promise of the future getting really close,” freshman Skylar Linscomb said.

The goal in many of these new internal areas of growth is to captivate students in new ways in hopes of appealing to different styles of learning and best fit their needs.

“ There's always

room for improvement, and we are continually striving to make positive changes in what we do. ” - Rachelle McCoy “Students weren’t always engaged or really connecting or really thinking about learning the material,” Robinson said. “They were maybe present in the room but they were not present in the lesson. That was the conversation I started having with teachers—we've got really good students, so let's make sure that what we are giving them is really good. Compliance to engagement to empowerment is starting to build in some choice. Now that we've gotten somewhere and we are really connecting with kids with where they learn, how they learn, and what they want to learn, let's give them some choice in how they learn that."

New learning opportunities will also broaden classroom experiences.

"Whatever the product is—is it a poster, a power point or paper, production, performance, or is it in what they study or learn," Robinson said. "How they learn it is the other thing: maybe researching on their chromebook, maybe it’s going and doing interviews, or observing or going in the field.

So there’s a lot of different areas we can give students choices and now you're re-

JUMPING FROM THE PAGE Page Southerland Page, Inc. architecture representatives work with Bowie to make student dreams a reality "The sketches are important, but it's what students will be doing and how they will be doing it that sets the concept, and that becomes our challenge."

74.5% of students feel air-conditioned hallways are the most urgent need 66% of students are interested in improved rest room facilities Page will be working with students and administration to gain input throughout renovations ART BY Callie Richards

ally empowering them in the learning process.”

This also applies to the current grading system and how scores will be interpreted in the future.

“I want to talk about new thinking and how it’s going to be related to a standards-based mindset,” Robinson said. “Thinking about how we are doing grading on a 0 to 100 scale where an A is 10, a B is 10, a C is 10 and an F is 60 is weird because the math doesn't make sense. It’s disproportionately weighted towards failure and so being able to give students feedback on a 4-point scale or specific standards and then students being able to grow in those areas and then master it would be more constructive.”

In addition, AISD began integrating Blend this year, a program redesigning the way content is provided for students.

“With the implementation of Blend, I've tried talking to the teachers about working smarter, not harder, not adding something else, but taking the things we are already doing and doing them more efficiently or bundling things so they make sense,” Robinson said. “So we aren't using five tools, we are using one. So that kind of stuff is hopefully less stressful and giving kids access to learning and their peers on demand so they aren't just limited and are able to go back and look at your resources in Blend really helps kids relax because now they are able to find all the info that they need.”

But regardless of the new changes to the school, there are still some policies students feel are timeless for Bowie.

“My ideal Bowie is a school where everybody accepts each other for who they are,” Fishbaugh said. “I want everyone to come to school excited to see their friends, and eager to branch out to meet new people.”

...TO THE

FUTURE

"

It would be really beneficial for students if teachers found a way to reduce the homework load so that they had the chance at having a social life outside of school.

"

—Cassie Gutierrez, 10

"

Something at Bowie that needs the most improvement is our theater and stage.

The entire theater facility is in very bad condition and it really hinders our ability as actors and technicians to use the stage for performances.

"

—Chris Lamm, 10

"

I'd like to see an increase in support for students who are suffering academically. I've seen many cases in which people around me have low or failing grades and are depressed due to it.

"

—Bri Isaola, 9

"

The curriculum of regular classes and some pre-AP classes aren't necessarily the most effective because most work overlaps what we have already learned in that class.

—David Findley, 9

"

7

The Dispatch

Fri. May 18, 2018

P

Photo Essay

An Evening in Monet’s Garden

Class of 2018 shares a final dance Preston Rolls PE Editor

Bright colors illuminate the dance floor. The music is cranked to the highest volume. Hands go up in the air as Bowie seniors make their last prom one to remember.

This year’s prom theme was Monet’s Garden, which was planned and decorated by the Class of 2018 officers who have been discussing prom since freshman year.

“We seriously started to suggest themes for prom this year,” senior Natalie Haddad said. “We decided to go with Monet’s Garden, because it’s a very elegant theme that everyone would appreciate.”

The role of the senior class officers are to fundraise for their prom and they have been doing so since their freshman year.

“We started raising money our freshman year,” senior Avery Schmidt said.

“From all four years of Bulldogs and Hot dogs t-shirt sales, doing concession stands after school, spirit nights at restaurants and dodge ball our junior year.”

When planning the prom, the seniors had to find a suitable venue to hold their event and of course all of the decorations that would fit their theme.

“We first had to make sure the venue was large enough for the amount of Bowie students attending,” Schmidt said. “After we checked out the venue we then had to make sure

all of the decorations that we wanted to include would fit in our budget.”

Preparing and decorating a big venue required a lot of people, so the 2019 class officers helped in the process of setting up for the prom.

“Me and the other class officers helped set up prom and then I also helped people check in,” junior Jessica Stewman said. “Some of the other officers helped with coat check, and overall I had a really fun time at prom.”

Every prom needs a good DJ, so the class of 2018 officers had to find a DJ in time before the prom started.

“For us, the DJ was one of the most stressful things,” 2018 class sponsor Karl Lauer said. “Making sure he shows up and making sure he got all of his equipment set up properly.”

Every prom takes months to plan and each prom has had a different theme, location and atmosphere.

“The prom last year was really good,” Haddad said.

“We in no shape want to compare or diminish their hard work, but I’m very proud of the Class of 2018 officers and the work they did for this years prom.”

Ultimately, the goal for the prom committee was to ensure that the seniors attending prom had a good time at their last dance.

“My hopes for all the student going to prom were just that they had a fun time,” senior Emma Roche said. “I hoped they really soaked up the whole experience and they enjoyed the theme of their final dance.”

“Overall,I really hope everyone had a wonderful experience at prom and I’m really glad all our hard work paid off in the end” - Avery Schmidt

OH CRAP: Gathered around, senior Sophia Ahrens, Madison Horner and Avery Schmidt intensely watch their mock game of Craps. There was a separate room full of mock games such as poker and black jack. ‘’Having all the gambling tables was a fun way to take a break from the dancing, it festivities,” Horner said. PHOTO BY Preston Rolls

HANDS HIGH: Junior Josh Gause joins his friends on the dance floor as they enjoy the 2018 prom. The dance lasted from 8 to 11 p.m. with people on the floor all night. “The venue was pretty big and it was well decorated,” Gause said. “It was a hype night and my favorite was the dancing and the food.” PHOTO BY Preston Rolls ONE LAST PARTY: On the Dance floor, seniors Ryan Klienert, Lauryn Lomas, and Luisa Quinchia bust out some dance moves. As seniors, this was their last prom at Bowie. “Senior prom was a good way to reflect on the year and the friends and memories I have made throughout high school,” Lomas said. PHOTO

BY Preston Rolls

GAME OF THRONES: Accepting the crown, seniors Avery Schmidt and Matthew Wheeler were chosen as Prom King and Queen. The senior class voted on who they wanted for the prom king and queen. “We weren’t expecting it at all and it was really neat because the seniors were the ones who voted for us,” Schmidt said.

PHOTO BY Preston Rolls

GETTING LOW: Senior Student Council President Jimmy Counihan shows off his dance moves during prom. A lot of planning went into each person’s prom: attire, transportation and dinner were only part of it. “So because I’d been to prom before I had already been exposed to all of the planning and prep that went into it like getting the bus, getting a house and dinner reservations,” Counihan said. PHOTO BY Preston Rolls

I

Fri. May 18, 2018 The Dispatch

In-Depth

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The Dispatch

Fri. May 18, 2018

I

In-Depth

High schoolers share their opinions on vape pens Passing the device back and forth, a cloud of mist rises over the group of students huddled in the bathroom, filling the stalls with a fruity scent. Created as an alternative to cigarettes, vaporizers have been on the market for awhile but only recently began to increase in popularity, particularly among teenagers.

Given the wide variety of vaporizers available, there are options created to please everyone, allowing for preference of content, nicotine level, flavor, style, and brand, such as the popular JUUL or PHIX. The range of appearances makes e-cigs harder to identify and easier to hide from adults, adding to the appeal.

‘It’s somewhat ridiculous—I have no problem with people using it, as long as they know what’s going on, I’m not going to try to stop them,” junior Phil Brual said. “But the fact that we have guys in bathrooms doing it to where now the bathroom doesn’t smell only like a nasty restroom but also smells like berries and mint, it’s just a weird combination.”

Students vape all over campus, from the bathroom to classes to behind portables. “[In one of my classes] we get a break every class period and they talk to each other, they’re like ‘PHIX

WHAT DO TEENS SAY IS IN THEIR E-CIG?

66%

SOURCE National Institute on Drug Abuse

just flavouring

13.7%

13.2%

5.8%

1.3%

don’t know

marijuana

nicotine

other

FACULTY FEEDBACK

nicotine ultra-fine particles that can be inhaled deep into the lungs flavouring such as diacetyl, a chemical linked to serious lung disease volatile organic compounds cancer-causing chemicals heavy metals such as nickel, tin, and lead * note that different e-cigarette products contain different elements SOURCE www.cdc.gov

milligrams of nicotine and said he vapes because he likes the cloud effect and finds it entertaining when he is bored.

“I’m aware that nicotine is pretty bad for you but it’s not really gonna stop me because I don’t use it everyday,” Barrington said. “I have gotten nicotine poisoning before and it’s not fun. I stopped vaping a lot and only do it like three times a week so I don’t feel sick anymore.”

Finding it helpful for stress, senior Sheldon Wall also vapes with three milligrams.

“It’s just kind of calming; whenever I get extremely mad, it’s something [where] one hit brings down my nerves a bit and it’s very calming and a little relaxing,” Wall said.

“I could literally start and stop, and I wouldn’t have any problems just because I have such a low level [of nicotine]. It just gets what needs to be done, done.”

Watson initially started vaping in an attempt to get her mom off of smoking and doesn’t use any nicotine.

“I guess I see it as better than [smoking], and I don’t really use a strong enough level to feel the addiction and stuff,” Watson said. “I’m a very anxious person, but I don’t have

it strong enough to feel any nicotine rush, so it’s nothing like that. It’s really just the comfort of something to do and to not be sitting fidgeting, plus it’s fun to play with the smoke.”

For Watson, not using higher nicotine levels makes the only downside the mess.

“It is kind of a nasty habit, it’s kind of off-putting,” Watson said. “It does get a little gross like it can get messy, the juice is sticky, smelly. I have hit higher ones from friends and it puts you on your [butt], excuse my language. It’s a huge head-rush and then you have to sit down.”

Sophomore Angelina Amaral thinks kids who don’t do other drugs are more likely to turn to vaping over more intense drugs.

“I just think it’s a better choice than cigarettes and people like to do tricks with them and stuff,” Amaral said. “I don’t think it’s bad, but I feel like people can overdo it sometimes and they need to give it a break.”

Vaporizers are relatively easy to get a hold of, and freshman Avery Shelton believes this to be a reason why it is popular.

“I know a lot of people do it, I don’t know if all the teachers know,” Shelton said. “I know that it goes on in class and stuff. I think if you’re go-

ing to do it, it shouldn’t be at school because some people might not want to be around it.”

Despite it being illegal for students under 18, there are students in all grade levels of high school that vape. From what Brual knows, most begin in the transition between middle school and freshman year.

“I hear a lot of stories about middle schoolers vaping and all that, and most of the time I feel like they’re getting them from an older person, like a brother or sister,” Brual said. “I feel like most people start eighth grade to freshman year because that’s the easiest time to influence somebody, when they’re changing into a new school or changing into a new life.”

Brual believes people should be allowed to make the choices they wish, however they should be courteous and use common sense when it comes to vaping.

“If there’s a kid sitting next to you taking a quiz, you shouldn’t blow a puff into his face,” Brual said. “If someone’s trying to pee, you don’t blow into the back of their neck. If someone doesn’t want it around them, don’t force it upon them; if someone doesn’t want to smell it, don’t do it around them, do it somewhere else.”

VAPING

THE

STUDENT PERSPECTIVE

ART & STORY BY Abby Ong Editor-in-Chief

Teachers and administration speak on rise of e-cigs

A sharp increase in the amount of teenagers vaping has caught the attention of the teachers and administrators, who hope to prevent it.

Vaping is forbidden on school property, but there are still students who continue to do so on campus.

“We have seen an increase of students who are vaping on campus and that’s concerning because that means they’re not focusing on their academics and focused on their work,” academic dean Susan Leos said. “Students in general know they’re not supposed to be vaping, so that makes them hide behind a corner, go into a bathroom. We want students to be able to come to school to learn and to focus on their academics, their friendships, and their extracurricular activities.”

Due to vaping being a new concern, there is no specific discipline code for it and it is coded the same as cigarettes or tobacco. Currently, students who are caught with vaporizers have the device confiscated, to be returned only to a parent, and assigned a day of In School Suspension.

“It’s become a very, very serious problem here on campus,” assistant principal Lawrence Britton said. “It’s something that we are looking to try to adjust the policies [for], because it’s something that’s new, so we’re looking for central office and the discipline office to maybe adjust the policy to [have] more consequences.”

Administration has procedures in the work to tackle the rise in vaping at school with the help of the Security Resource Officers (SRO).

“What will probably happen is that we will get with the SROs, probably at the beginning of the next school year during the professional development, the first days that teachers get here, and give them just a brief workshop making them aware of what those devices are,” Britton said. “Bowie has a lot of good kids, but there are some habits that we need to make teachers aware of. That’s what we want to do beginning of school next year, make them aware of what those devices are.”

AP Biology teacher Jessica Davis is in favor of having guidelines to follow for dealing with

vaping.

“I would love to have something in place,” Davis said. “Hopefully deterrence would be enough for some kids who aren’t really inclined to do particularly bad things, but they don’t think it’s bad so they go ahead and do it. I think if it were really emphasized and there were deterrence in place, those kids might stop.”

There are also plans to get equipment that can distinguish the contents in vape pens. The concern lies not only with nicotine but tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) as well.

“You can quite possibly get THC in it as well,” Britton said. “Students engage in that, and actually, possession of THC is against the law, it’s a violation of the law. We don’t have any way of testing it, but now the SROs are getting the equipment necessary to be able to test it and see if the contents is of THC, which is the stuff in marijuana that gets you high.”

Teachers have already been instructed to keep an eye out for vape pens.

“I’ve heard that a lot of kids, they have this new device that looks like a USB, and it goes in the side of their computer, and that’s really their vaping device and they charge it,” health teacher and softball coach Elizabeth Wissel said. “I know we’ve had kids throughout our campus that are vaping, either behind the portables, in the locker rooms, bathrooms, class. It’s definitely raising a flag of awareness.”

Student leadership teacher and basketball coach Vickie Benson referred to vaping as an “overnight sensation” and aimed to be diligent in figuring out the draws for teenagers interested, as well as the dangers involved.

“My opinion about vaping, is that one, for teenagers under eighteen it’s illegal, it’s not really my opinion it’s just the law,” Benson said.

“Two, I think that not enough teenagers understand the actual, real impact of the amount of nicotine that they’re ingesting or that they’re exposing themselves too, as well as the effects that it has on their young, developing brains.”

With vaporizers and e-cigs being marketed as alternatives to smoking, people turn to vaping as something safe to do.

“I think they think it’s not smoke so therefore it’s not bad, but more and more studies are coming out demonstrating that chemicals even in the non-nicotine version are carcinogenic,” Davis said. “They have the ability to modify the epigenome which changes your gene expression pattern, and that can be passed on to your children. I think that they think that it’s harmless and it very much is not.”

The health dangers are made worse when teenagers experiment with the device. In a method called dripping that creates a stronger hit, the liquid is placed directly onto the coils of the vaporizer. “[Having] the chemicals, [even] outside of the nicotine, inside the cells are dangerous,” Davis said. “Especially in combination with high heat, a lot of them tend to be a lot more reactive, and that’s exactly what happens when [people drip].”

While some students are 18 and can legally vape, Leos still feels that the faculty has a responsibility in addressing the health aspect of vaping for all students.

“I’m not a person who makes choices for adults out there in the world, that’s up to adults to do,” Leos said. “But as a mother and an educator, I think anytime in our health classes and in our science classes that we can promote understanding choices that are out there, students will at least know what they’re getting into or know the options or know the choices.”

Vaping is considered a topic of concern due to the effects it has had throughout the school.

“I know even in health, we have not addressed it up until this year, when we’ve really started talking about it,” Wissel said. “We’re even going to bring it into our curriculum, that’s how much it’s made an impact on our schools.

It’s their concern that students do not know all the facts, and they want to bring it to their attention.”

Benson feels that many teenagers are misled to think it is safe, and she also believes they don’t notice the effects on their performance until they get off of it.

“I know one particular person that was doing

it, and got caught doing it, and stopped doing it,” Benson said. “And while doing it, was like ‘it’s not a big deal, whatever’, but after not doing it for several weeks, [they realize] how much it really impacted them physically: not wanting to eat, or craving that, or having to have that to function, and [that] having that made them as an athlete less productive, that they’re able to see that now by not doing it.”

The perception of safety, combined with many options of shape, content, and flavors, makes vaping an attractive drug of choice.

“The tobacco companies and companies that market the vape industry, they’re marketing in ways that entice students in,” Leos said.

“That’s concerning to me because they’re setting up their product in ways that they know it would be more attractive to students who are not adults. That’s a concern to me, they’re taking advantage of our own kids and students.”

Benson urges students to consider checking with official sources such as JUUL itself or the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) if they want confirmation on health effects, rather than random blogs and YouTube videos.

“I know that even the CEO of the company of JUUL, they are doing research right now, working with the FDA right now on how to limit the accessibility for teenagers,” Benson said. “They claim that, that was never their intent, you know everybody knows the intent was to help smokers stop smoking, but smokers want to smoke, they don’t want to vape, so that’s kind of been a bust. Because of the flavoring and all the different things, it’s very appealing to children even, not just teenagers, like 12 and 13 year olds.”

Britton advises that people should not try things until they know the true effects of it.

“I think students have the perception that they’re invincible, that ‘something won’t happen to me’, and that’s really not the case,” Britton said. “It can happen to anyone, if it’s harmful to your body, it can happen to anyone. It’s just that students think that because they’re so young, they’re invincible, and where it catches up to you is later on. There’s too much uncertainty when dealing with e-cigs.”

1 PHIX pod 1~

JUUL pod ~ 1 pack of cigs 2 pack of cigs

SOURCE www.juul.com & www.phixvapor.com

POTENTIAL DANGERS

break? Yeah, yeah’,” senior Zoe Watson said. “They all go together, a group of six people to the bathroom, come back five minutes later. During lunch, you see everyone going through the parking lot, too. As soon as people see a chance they take it.”

According to senior Kieran Barrington, almost all of his friends either vape or have tried it at some point.

“I think it’s popular because it became a trend, so everyone else wants to join in, and I think more people are using it for fun rather than to actually stop smoking,” Barrington said. “I’ve definitely seen many people vape at school especially with JUULs. I don’t really care that others [do], but they are putting themselves at risk of getting caught.”

Watson believes that since it’s considered a safer drug, students are more unconcerned about doing it in public.

“I think people get too comfortable with it, and they don’t realize they really shouldn’t have it on campus,” Watson said. “People sell it on campus, and [Bowie’s] definitely not a place for it. People get a little carried away.”

Students begin vaping for a variety of reasons. Barrington uses three

S

Fri. May 18, 2018 The Dispatch

Sports

10

SUMIN’S Runners leave competition in the dust STANCE Bowie Track and Field team wins district for the fourth time in a row Good Bye Wenger Sam Blas

Sports Editor

Columnist

It has been about three months since I wrote that Arsene Wenger should resign. On April 20, Arsenal officially announced that Wenger is going to step down after the 2017-2018 season. I definitely agree because Arsenal has been performing poorly and needs changes, but we can’t forget the achievements which Wenger has made since 1996.

In 1996, when Wenger first came to Arsenal, the media used the phrase “Arsene Who?” because simply no one knew about him. Who knew that he was going to stay 22 years?

Wenger’s tactics, also known as “Wenger Ball,” brought a fresh breeze to traditional English football which was “kick-and-rush.”

Wenger Ball emphasized the systematic passes and movements in the attacking third. Some say these tactics are too perfect, making it hard to execute in game, which was one major reasons for the downfall of Arsenal. But Wenger’s tactics made a name for Arsenal and himself.

His heyday was the 2003-2004 season when Arsenal went undefeated and won the Premier League. This record still lasts with Arsenal being the only team who won the league undefeated. Unfortunately, Wenger has been held back by Arsenal’s financial problem caused by construction of Emirates stadium. Since then, Arsenal never held the league title again.

Wenger finally decided to step down after 22 years at Arsenal full of criticism and respect. We cannot forget Wenger’s remarkable achievements he made in the history of Arsenal and football.

Laser Focus: Junior Anna Ippolito practices her shot put form. Ippolito shot puts and throws discus. PHOTO BY Sam Blas

mine and they are stronger than I am, and when they throw further than I do I get kind of nervous and I feel like I need to throw as far as they do,” Ippolito said. “I would just feel intimidated by them with them watching me throw.”

Runners, similar to the field athletes, experienced jitters as well.

Anna Ippolito

Sumin Kim

The track and field program has had a winning tradition for the past few years. This year is no different.

Track and field is once again district champs after winning the UIL District 14 Championship. Boys and girls won with 191 points and 198.5 points respectively.

Track has won district four years in a row. The athletes that contributed to this achievement have worked hard every season. Junior Claire Meyer held a big part in continuing this tradition, placing first in the 1600m and 3200m races.

“It’s definitely great to have continued to be district champs and have built such a strong team with all the other runners,” Meyer said.

“We definitely have people aiming to beat us and that only makes us more competitive as a team.”

The athletes aren’t the only people that feel gratified of this achievement. Another big part of the success of the team was the coaching.

Coach Rita Gonzales, Coach Dalton Pool, Coach Marcos Guerra, and Coach Branyon pushed their athletes to their success.

“Winning district is great for the program,” Gonzales said. “We kept our athletes involved with the program and kept them interested for so many years.”

Winning district is a big moment for anyone involved. Junior Anna Ippolito placed second in shot put and third in discus to help propel Bowie to first place. She is proud of her school and herself in their accomplishments.

“Winning district and area was kind of cool. You get this big trophy and it just feels good because you feel really good because you stay after school and you work and work and you get this feeling of accomplishment after winning,” Ippolito said.

Support can have a huge effect on a teams success. Junior Kasim Gonzalez attributes his success to the ones who supported him the most. He placed second in the 400m race and first in the 4x400m relay.

“My family has shown me the most support during my track years, but my coaches and friends have shown me support as well, I thank them in my success,” Gonzalez said.

“I just hope our team can keep this four year streak going.”

Although they were successful as a team through the season, athletes still felt the pressure.

“A lot of the girls are seniors and their form is more polished than

Gonzalez describes the challenges he went through.

“During the area and district meets I was really nervous, I just thought I wasn’t fast enough to run in the races,” Gonzalez said. “But I got over this through praying and trying my hardest to win the race.”

Despite this, Ippolito got over

SHOT PUT

PR: 33.5ft AVERAGES:

31.75ft in shot put 82.75ft in discus

PLACEMENTS:

2nd Place in Shot put 3rd Place in Discus

her challenges through hard work and training.

“I did well because Coach Branyon, one of our coaches, would record me throwing the discus and shot put,” Ippolito said. “It helped because it showed me what I could improve on with my form.”

Preparing for field events presented its own challenges. Athletes had to train constantly to get to this point.

“I was in power-lifting so I was doing a lot of weightlifting and after that I was just doing track, I was going out to the ring to work on my shot put form and my discus form,” Ippolito said. “I was still lifting weights. I trained pretty hard.

There’s a lot of competition at other schools so I had to work pretty hard.”

For other athletes, cardio is key.

Stamina helps them improve performance on longer events. Meyer, who is a cross country athlete as well, describes her training methods.

“The training regiment was obviously hard. In total I run 50-60 miles a week, including a ten mile run every Saturday. I incorporate my training from cross country because the runs I do are usually more endurance and stamina based so it’s pretty smart to combine the two training methods,” Meyer said.

When running track, athletes employ specific strategies. Athletes utilized these strategies to help propel them to victory.

“At area, during the mile, it was windy so I kind of drafted off the girl in front of me so I can keep up pretty easily,” Meyer said. “In the two mile, I focused on keeping the girl that was in front of me and keeping her there and then passing her on the final lap.”

The track team didn’t stop at district. They went on to win the area meet. Meyer once again placed first in the 1600m and 3200m races, she is proud of her accomplishments.

“It was really motivating to know that I was not only the top in my district but also in the Austin area,” Meyer said. “Definitely gave me some confidence going into regionals and motivated me to want to prove myself at regionals.”

Looking forward, Gonzales wishes not to dwell on one victory, instead to plan ahead to future track meets.

“We need to keep focused. We need to get more athletes involved with our program and keep the ones that are already in the program,” Gonzales said. ”We need to train hard if we want to go any further.”

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A full crowd swarms around the gated diamond with full anticipation. The field falls silent just moments before the leather ball shoots straight down the line.

Milliseconds later the bat hits the ball and it soars across the turf field. Chaos breaks out as multiple players scramble to catch the ball, but it’s too late. The white ball with red stitching whizzes past the outfield, over the gates, and disappears into the distance. The crowd erupts, ‘-’ flashes across the score board, and Bowie takes the lead.

The 2017-2018 Bowie baseball season was a true success: the team pulled out seven district wins despite being seeded last at the beginning of the season. The team even advanced to playoffs.

“This year the team really came out strong even though what was initially predicted wasn’t that great,” junior Virgil Anchondo said. “I think we definitely surprised a lot of people.”

The team practiced Monday through Saturday during the season, as well as a couple times a week during off season to ensure they were in the best shape possible.

“During off-season we lifted a couple days a week and then scrimmaged each other the rest of the week,” head baseball coach Sam Degelia said. “This has seemed to work out well so far.”

Although maintaining physique and endurance is an important aspect in

coming UP in SPORTS June 11-14, June 18-21 Summer Baseball Camp

June 11-July 26 Weight and Conditioning Camp July 16-19 Cheer Summer Camp

PHOTO BY Marisa Salazar

Baseball beats expectations

being a successful group, team chemistry is just as important as anything else when it comes to finding success in the game.

“We have team dinners often to bond and get a little break from baseball,” Anchondo said. “It helps make us a stronger group both on and off the field.”

Once districts came to an end the team went off to compete in playoffs after winning their qualifying game against Anderson, a major rival this year.

“We were able to win out at district, tying with Anderson, which later allowed us to play in those playoff game,” senior Andrew Noack said. “The games against Anderson were really important, and we just happened to stick it out.”

As for next year the team will continue to work hard in preparation for the next season.

“You can never prepare enough, you can always do more,” Anchondo said. “We will continue to work hard and play hard so that we are better than ever for next season.” STORY BY Caitlin Worthington

11

The Dispatch

Fri. May 18, 2018

E

Entertainment

World Guard spins their way to Dayton Life as Guard Captain Photo Essay Editor Splashes of pink, yellow and orange flash through the air as the Bowie Worldguard Members leap across the competition floor. Flags sweep across the room and tears glisten in the eyes of members who will perform with the team for the last time.

After placing first at the state competition, the Bowie World Guard team advanced to the WGI finals in Dayton, Ohio in April.

“It’s felt really nice to be able to place at the state competition and know that your hard work has paid off when we made it to Nationals,” senior Veronica Wisor said. “But knowing you were able to do it with your team is what makes it so memorable.”

The Bowie team competed against 21 other worldguard teams from all over the U.S. and ended up placing 13th at the finals.

“It was definitely more competitive this year, especially after seeing our competition,” senior Lilly Perez said. “I wasn’t upset about our placement at all because we ended the season with an awesome performance and I had so much fun doing it.”

This year, the team’s performance was called “Untitled Work” and the costumes and design of the show were inspired by Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama.

“Yayoi Kusama lives in an

The finish line: The World Guard team gets 13th at finals with their show "Untitled Work". This competition was the guard's last competition of the season PHOTO COURTESY OF Joey Powell

insane asylum and hallucinates, and she has these dreams of constant polka dots that go on forever, so she paints them,” senior Cat Cardenas said. “Our theme is basically about the universe and infinity and how large the universe is.”

Leading to the final competition, the team faced challenges such as learning the new choreography and working with other teammates, but in the end the team’s bond was strengthened.

“The team faced some challenges in the middle

of the season,” Cardenas said. “With constant 12-hour practices and learning new difficult choreography pieces, it definitely becomes a ‘trust the process’ situation.”

The world guard director, Joseph Powell, helped the girls learn the new choreography at each rehearsal, which helped improve their skills for WGI. “Maintaining a World Class program is a hard endeavor and it takes time, commitment, and sacrifices from everyone involved,” director Powell said. “Managing the staff, bringing in the

best educators, and setting a standard for the students are all key components to success.”

This was the senior's last competition for the Bowie Color Guard team, and they'll leave knowing they left their mark.

“I’m very proud of the work I’ve put into this organization these past four years,” Perez said. “It’s still bittersweet that it’s my last competition ever and I’ll miss it a lot, but I’m very excited about the things that [will] happen for this team.”

Color Guard is a unique sport where people spin intricate objects like flags, rifles, or sabers and incorporate elements of dance.

Color guard is a sport that has been apart of senior Shannon Ross’s life since her freshman year and since then, she went from just learning flag tricks to moving her way up to being captain of the entire guard.

As captain, Ross had many responsibilities that came at a cost but benefited the team at the end of the day.

“It’s your responsibility to help lead the team, help motivate the team and help the directors in anyway possible by getting things and making sure everything‘s ready for rehearsals,” Ross said. “Staying late to make sure everyone has a ride home after rehearsals and setting the standard for everyone to follow and make sure you hold everyone responsible to standard.”

Ross also had personal struggles, having to balance her personal life with leading a team of talented girls.

“I think the biggest struggle I faced as being captain is having to separate my friend life from my captain responsibilities,” Ross said.

“Having everyone understand that when I’m in captain mode, I’m not doing anything to undermine or create conflict with anything outside of our colorguard

PHOTO BY Jadon Alvarez

Ross' colorguard leadership inspires

Preston Rolls

life.”

Ross worked hard and was a team player and kept her whole team organized while making sure they excelled at competition.

“Shannon was a really good captain in my opinion because she would be there for you if you needed help,” junior Leah Oetting said. “She was a really fun and kept our team organized and entertained.”

Ross kept motivation going for the team; for learning tricks that came with tossing flags, rifles, and sabers and making sure their performances were the best that they could be.

“Shannon did inspire me and always motivated me to work hard and being able to do tricks like she was able to in the future,” Oetting said.

As Ross departs, not only will she remember all the fun she had on trips to competitions and performing on the floor itself, she will always remember her team of girls and the memories that came with each of them and every competition.

“Seeing everyone connect and building that team bond and seeing that from a higher perspective was one of the best parts of being captain,” Ross said.

STORY BY Jadon Alvarez

STC's "Chicago": Coming to a theatre near you Tilton wins scholarship The Starlight Theatre Company (STC) musical theatre program gets ready to perform yet another musical that has big dance numbers and a catchy song that they’ve been practicing for weeks. The STC works hard during class every B day to make sure their musical is satisfactory. Ready to give the audience a show, the STC musical theatre program knows that their musical will leave the audience waiting and wanting more next year.

STC’s musical theatre program has been working on Broadway’s well known musical “Chicago,” known for its musical numbers and choreography.

“It’s set in the city of Chicago around the time of prohibition and focuses on a woman coming into her own who emotionally reacts and murders her current special friend,” musical theatre teacher Marco Bazan said.

“She goes to jail and meets other married murderers.”

“Chicago” this year is one

of the many STC’s musicals that the cast has had fun producing, while also being one of the many musicals that fits right for the students this year. “[Chicago] fits right for the group,” Bazan said. “It’s hard to find a show that fits for all the students and because our class is predominantly female, trying to find a musical for the group and the roles apart of the musical really fit our students.”

The majority of the characters in the musical include different women who each have a unique background story that contributes to their character’s personalities.

“I play Hunyak who is a Hungarian immigrant that is one of the six merry murderesses accused of murder, but is the only one who is truly innocent,” senior Rebekah Wood said. “I really wanted to play her because she has an interesting accent and dance number with ballet which is very exciting to be apart of in this musical.”

The cast of characters also includes men, like the ensemble, that play import-

$10,000 used to travel to France

ART BY Callie Richards

ant parts that contribute to the storyline of the play.

“I am in the male ensemble and we are pretty short on boys [this year],” junior Kaedon Solana says. “I am just about all the ensemble roles; I play two policemen, a man who gets killed, and the men in cell block tango.”

The scenes in the musical are known for their songs that will ring in your head for hours and choreography that’s unlike any other.

“My favorite part is definitely numbers like ‘All That Jazz’ because it is one of the iconic dance numbers,” Bazan said.

Producing the musical with the acting, singing, and dancing has and will always be fun part for the cast of students.

“I always look forward to

the musical that the class puts on, because it is a fun way to end the year by being apart of a class musical with a smaller cast and a chance to be apart of something that allows me to play different characters, and learn new skills,” Wood said.

Solana admitted that "Chicago" wasn't his favorite musical he has performed in during his time at Bowie, but the process of developing this play has been a blast.

“I can't say that this is my favorite musical I've worked on but it is definitely one that I will remember because of how much fun the process has been and how student driven it is,” Solana said. “It's incredible to see how creative all my peers are and how absolutely talented they are.”

Freshman Leif Tilton is a skilled guitarist who has exceeded his guitar teachers' expectations with his distinguished skills on the guitar.

Recently Tilton received an award from the Texas Commission on the Arts and Texas Culture that has given him the incredible opportunity to work on his guitar skills.

“It’s called the Young Master’s Award and it is given out every two years to eighth to eleventh grade students who all have disciplines all throughout the literature and visual arts; music, dance, and theatre,” guitar teacher Jody Moseley said. "The award was for $10,000 and it’ been spread over for two years through two different summers and during those summers, he is going to use that money to go study with an instructor in France.”

Tilton was shocked when he received the award and felt there could have been improvement but was happy overall.

PHOTO BY Jadon Alvarez

Jadon Alvarez

Entertainment Editor

"I was shocked because we put together a last minute video that was about twenty minutes long and it was done that night,” Tilton said. “I had to make a shortened version of a fourteen minute and eight minute song and I felt like I could have done better on the presentation.”

Not only did this award help Tilton,but he also, in a weird way, helped the guitar community establish their presence in the music education system.

“Some colleges still don’t give scholarship money out to guitars but now we have a kid who is a freshman and won $10,000 dollars as scholarship money,” Moseley said. “It’s definitely progress that guitars are growing into being a more authentic real instrument in the music STOeducation system."

RY BY Jadon Alvarez

coming UP in ENTERTAINMENT May 18-20 Chicago Musical @ Bowie May 21 & 24 Spring Band Concert @ Bowie May 30 Senior Graduation

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C

Fri. May 18, 2018 The Dispatch

Commentary

12

New ID tags will bring safety to Bowie EDITORIAL

Recently, an email was sent out informing staff about a potential security measure to increase the use of IDs around campus.

The idea is that, starting next year, all students and staff will be required to wear lanyard-tied IDs. This is one of the district’s plans to increase security around campuses in Austin in response to recent school shootings around the country.

Although it might seem pointless initially, this new ID system will provide serious benefits that easily outweigh the initial annoyances, providing several security bonuses, function as useful tools, and could provide benefits to students outside of school. As such, this plan should be taken seriously and for good reason.

Before next school year, a student safety committee led by assistant principal Carla De La Rosa will meet to determine the best application of having students wear ID badges every day. Their central focus is identification. In case of an emergency, the IDs would be used to easily identify current Bowie students. In school shootings, such as the Parkland or Townville Elementary School shootings, the shooter was a former student who made his/her way into campus and starting firing. However, with the implementation of these new IDs, it suddenly becomes much easier to distinguish between current and former students in the case of an emergency.

If every Bowie student was to wear such an ID while on campus, the risk of potentially dangerous ex-students entering school grounds and causing harm becomes significantly lowered. In other words, you would be able to tell at a glance if someone didn't belong on campus.

There is one prevalent issue with these

new designs, however. One of the goals of this new ID system is to make it easy to distinguish between current and former students, but it might be possible for a former student with malicious intent to slip into the school with an ID they received back in their high school years. At first, this issue seems to negate the purpose of having these new IDs altogether, but there is a simple solution.

Each year, Bowie could change the design of the IDs enough to where it becomes easy to distinguish between last and next year’s IDs. This way, former students could not sneak onto campus using an ID they received during a previous year without standing out.

In addition to helping keep the campus safe, Bowie officials could also find practical uses for the badges. For example, the new ID system could provide students with various school-related benefits such as a lunch pass, a library card, or even as a tool to take attendance with every morning. Lunch lines can get pretty hectic in the cafeteria, often degrading into a disorganized mess of people jumping in and out of the line because of the slow process of checking out.

However, with the use of the IDs, the lunch line can be sped up by simply swiping the card through a machine rather than having to enter a code, thus; relieving some of the chaos from the lunch lines. Similarly, a swiping machine could be installed in the library to record the date and time of entry as well as any money that was spent printing, replacing our current system of manually recording everything down on a clipboard.

Basically, school IDs would help to make our day-to-day operations run more efficiently.

These IDs could potentially become useful to students even outside of school if the community was to get involved. It's possible that, in the future, local businesses such as

The power of Generation Z

Jake Brien

Commentary Editor

The letter Z is the worst letter in the English language. There, I said it. But like it or not, our generation is called “Gen Z”...or is it iGen? Gen Tech? Post-Millennial? No one can really seem to decide, and that’s because our generation still has some time left before a historian can look at a timeline and say “yep, that’s Gen ___ alright.” So, let’s ask ourselves: what does the future hold for Gen Z? Our generation began sometime around 1999. We grew up in a country filled with strong patriotism following the September 11th attack, a failed war on terror that further divided the Middle East, and a crisis of privacy invasion following Edward Snowden’s leak of the Patriot Act’s questionable ethics.

Under the watchful eye of the Internet (not to mention the NSA), Gen Z has the privilege of accessing the Internet for any informa-

tion which fits its youth. Today, accessing information about how our government is functioning can be done with a quick Google search, or by downloading numerous news apps on one’s phone for instant updates on the state of the country.

We, as Gen Z, have the opportunity to be analytical and unbiased with the politics of this country. By growing up in an age of digital information at our fingertips and a plethora of media sources to choose from, our job is to lead the world for future generations through our political choices.

The previous generation, the Millennials, grew up in a world where the Internet became more accessible than ever before, going from dial up connections in the early nineties to high speed broadband by the early 2000’s. With Gen Z succeeding the Millennials, our generation should seek to serve as the bridge between the Millennials and post Gen Z with our tech savvy nature learned at such young ages.

Concerns exist about the role of technology in our lives. We are the first generation to grow up with easy access to the Internet. Over time, the all-encompassing presence of technology has

certainly played a role in defining each of our characters.

The future of technology in Gen Z is why some people prefer to use the term: Generation Tech. We live in the fastest growing age of technology, just as the next generation will following us.

It is for this reason that our generation, the individuals who grew up on the Internet, should be the ones to pass down technology to our children in a responsible and thoughtful manner.

We, as members of Gen Z, didn’t choose to be born into this generation. For better or for worse, we are experiencing a world that was shaped by individuals who grew up in a world that lacked the digital superhighway of the Internet as well as the crucial value of objectivity of receiving political information.

Knowledge is power, and our generation can use that knowledge to act on shaping the world into a better and smarter place.

It’s our job to lead by example. Let’s show the world that Gen Z, Gen Tech, or whatever historians wish to call it, is a generation that’s more knowledgeable than any other generation before.

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) 841-7825, mail them to 4103 W. Slaughter Lane, Austin, TX 78749 or drop them off in room F-203 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.

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ART BY Abby Ong and Preston Rolls

the Randall's or 7/11 near our school could provide student discounts when students present their IDs when checking out. This has happened for a university called “The New School”, where faculty and business managers worked together to create various student discounts in the stores surrounding campus so long as the student customer presented their ID when checking out.

Of course, this is only something that could potentially happen; there’s nothing anything beyond using them to identify current students. However, if as a campus the decision is made to use the badges more fully, this would be another reason to keep them around.

When it was announced that these new

IDs were going to potentially be put in place, there were many rumors that began floating around campus. Some of these rumors included the need to scan to get into the school, the installation of ID door scanners outside of every classroom, and the placing of GPS tracking chips onto every ID given to students.

The goal of the new ID system is to protect and provide a service to students, not to bar-code and inconvenience them. The school administration doesn't want to create problems with this proposal; they are looking for ways to make the school safe.

All in all, the new ID system would provide several benefits ranging from student services to security.

Letter to the Editor

In response to "The Failures of 'Be the One' The Bowie Counseling staff wishes to provide an alternate view of the Guidance department in response to the opinions shared in the February issue. Since counselor duties are often unknown and misrepresented, we see this as an opportunity to educate and inform about the role of the modern school counselor.

For approximately 3,000 students, Bowie employs seven school counselors: two for freshmen, five for 10th through 12th grade students, and each with a caseload of 400+ students. However, the American School Counselor Association recommends a 250:1 student to counselor ratio.

With caseloads nearly double, we strive to do our best while serving a campus with many needs. However, counselors may get a bad rap because our role is misunderstood. As 21st century educators, one of our goals is to teach necessary skills to make it in the “real world”. Therefore, oftentimes, our counseling services are viewed as unpopular because we offer appropriate, but uncomfortable advice.

Nonetheless, as seasoned professionals, we must guide students towards success while also aligning with Bowie policies. Thus, if we provide an undesirable response, sometimes students view their guidance experiences as unhelpful or negative.

Furthermore, we redirect students who come into guidance with matters outside our realm. For example, did you know that counselors don’t handle attendance?

APs do. Although students look to us as a first stop, we don’t manage all school issues. That doesn’t mean we don’t care.

We merely refer students to the proper personnel who can address the problems

Friday, May 18, 2018 Vol. 30, Issue 6 www.thedispatchonline.net James Bowie High School 4103 W. Slaughter Lane Austin TX, 78749

that counselors cannot.

Counselors spend their work hours on a variety of tasks, both seen and unseen.

Mental health crises are our primary concern and may last for several hours. Students looking for their counselor may often find our doors closed because we are undergoing confidential services. Next come responsibilities from Bowie and AISD. These include, but are not limited to: credit checks; four-year plans; scheduling; letters of recommendation; monitoring student in danger of failing or not graduating; referring students to outside resources and alternative learning programs; working with Child Study Teams; communicating with parents, teachers, and outside agencies; attending 504 and ARD meetings, etc. Counselors simply don’t have as much time as is presumed.

We agree that there is a mental health crisis, which is why we initiated the Be The One program. And we don’t believe that it was a failure; we were encouraged by the increase in student awareness about depression and suicide. In an additional effort to reach out to students, we also instituted Social Emotional Learning FIT sessions, which were open to all students.

Even with large caseloads and responsibilities, we still go the extra mile to try to mitigate this ever-growing crisis. Please support your counselors in an overtasked role instead of unfairly judging our motivations, personalities and availability. We thank you for “being the one” to spread the word about depression, and for being the one who appreciates the challenging role of the modern school counselor.

The Bowie Counseling Department

THE DISPATCH STAFF

PRINT STAFF

GRADUATING SENIORS Violet Glenewinkel Mia Barbosa Victoria Newell Madison Austin Shelby Kelly Cara Andres Ashley Ramirez Kiran Patel Avy Friedman Kathleen Nguyen Justine Lockhart

SPORTS EDITORS Sam Blas Peter Dang

ART/GRAPHICS EDITOR Callie Richards

ENTERTAINMENT EDITORS Jadon Alvarez

STAFF WRITERS Natalie Aman Gigi Francis Katie Holm Sumin Kim Sam McPherson

PHOTO ESSAY EDITORS Preston Rolls REVIEW EDITOR Gracie Angeli

NEW EDITORS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Cianna Chairez Abby Ong

COMMENTARY EDITORS Madisen Johnson Marisa Salazar

MANAGING EDITORS Jocelyn Brooks Maddy Rice

ASSOCIATE EDITORS Jake Brien Ian Miller Shelby Papst

NEWS EDITOR Caitlin Worthington FEATURE EDITOR Mikayla Zellner

PHOTO EDITOR Austyn Keelty

ONLINE STAFF EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Mo Orr MANAGING EDITOR Kaitlyn Zellner SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR Ellie Coulston STAFF Liam Conally Michael Sugrue Robbie Warhola ADVISER Michael Reeves

13

The Dispatch

Fri. May 18, 2018

C

Commentary

A persistent favor in print newspaper Review Editor

The age of traditional paper and ink newspapers have been taken over by screens and convenience of accessible technology. Fresh newspapers, coming straight off the printing press, no longer have the same appeal as the easy access of the Internet. Nowadays people love to get their news from the comfort of their own home.

For many, opening the door to get the daily paper off the driveway has become too much work when compared to on-line media.

Print journalism has diminished greatly in recent years as technology has progressed further and further, and the public just can’t get enough of it.

But for some people, much like how certain individuals still prefer physical books and vinyl records,

click of a button, people can know exactly what’s happening around them. To keep themselves in business, companies widely known for their print publications are resorting to writing stories on-line and publishing everything onto a website.

Around 23% of Americans still read newspapers, but this number will continue to dwindle. However, I don’t think it will ever disappear completely, much like how some people choose to still use physical media CD’ or vinyls for their music. Even though they are outdated and there are more advanced options, print newspapers still have appeal, and will always be used by some.

Additionally, the numerical value of print journalism is also more expensive than digital. The cost of making the paper can be pricey along with the cost of distribution. Printing materials are imported overseas, and this causes print journalism to be much more expensive than broadcast journalism. Digital is cheaper, more convenient and fast, but it still doesn’t compare to the positives of print journalism. Local newspapers pro-

ART BY Ellie Coulston and Kaitlyn Zellner

mote local businesses and help keep companies on their feet.

Print newspapers can never be revoked, and can be treasured for a long time. Broadcast media can be taken aback by the writer, and hidden from public view.

I personally don’t like reading stories and getting my news from on-line sources and will always read print journalism, and I don’t think I am alone in this.

Other people are with me in disagreeing with the rapid increase of on-line media. I think

The problem with pollen CHAT

Review Editor

ART BY Abby Ong

The plague has come. It has contaminated our cars, our senses, and leaves us without any hope of escape.

The yellow waves come without stop and the only thing we can do until Spring comes to an end is endure.

Pollen. Whether you are allergic or not, pollen is one of the biggest frustrations of the second semester.

I am not saying we need to somehow stop the spread of pollen, which is impossible, or say that it shouldn’t happen and plants should die out. I’m only here to voice my frustrations because I hate pollen and know this is just the beginning.

There is not much that can rival my anger to see-

over the chorus of sneezes from every other person in the room.

Appealing to the teachers, they’re suffering just as much as the rest of us. Eight sets of sick students are forcing teachers into piling their money on tissue boxes and hand sanitizer. The school as a whole seems to be suffering from such a ‘good’ time of the year.

The worst part of the pollen epidemic is the fact that pollen is good for the environment.

Pollen brings the growth of flowers and gives bees their important purpose for the Spring season. It’s a good thing and yet it brings so many negatives that it blocks out the positives almost completely.

Nothing I was taught in science could have prepared me for the onslaught of plant-gametes in my entire way of life. Until I had a car, I never realized how much filth people have to deal with.

Personally, I am not allergic to pollen, but it is more than clear from my friend's allergies how bad they have been feeling since the season started.

Supporters of the science behind nature most likely won’t agree with how much negativity I feel about Spring.

However, after a month, I felt this issue needed to be raged about for those who can understand where I’m coming from.

are some ways to maintain a with NAT What positive attitude?

Natalie Aman Columnist

Don't cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.

We're all familiar with that bittersweet phrase.

Whether it’s said at the end of something short lived or long term, that sentence accompanies large changes in one's life. For me personally, change can be exciting, yet very hard to deal with. This life is too short to spend dwelling on the broken things. After all, those broken things are what make us who we are.

So, as this school year winds down and the universe decides to throw a million changes in our face all at once, I want to leave you with some thoughts.

Feeling like you have wasted time on something can feel absolutely draining, along with the many things that are constantly popping up and shaking up our usual routines and throwing us off beat.

We’re constantly being reminded of how short our life is and how much we should be accomplishing with our time, yet we spend hours simply staring

at walls. We get caught up in the funk of wanting something but not having the energy to do it.

In this life, we are not always going to get it right.

We are always growing and always learning from the many mistakes we make.

It’s impossible to live every single day with a go-getter attitude, but those periods of doubt are the times when you grow the most.

I am a solid believer in the mind over matter mentality. For those who don’t really understand what I mean, I’m not talking about telekinesis or some kind of mind control. I’m talking about how your mind can be strong enough to provide physical effects in your life.

Channeling thoughts of success and picturing yourself accomplishing your goal has been proven to increase the chances of those things happening in real life.

It’s not enough to simply picture positive changes happening in your head, but thoughts can and will have an effect on your life.

Tell yourself you’re going to be happy and that you will have a beautiful day ahead of yourself, and you will surely have just that.

Once again, life is too short to waste your energy on the negative. It may take some time to rid yourself of toxic things, but get

worry, b e n’t

ppy! ha

Shelby Papst

ing my white car blanketed in a sheet of disgusting pollen. I had a friend ask me if I drove a yellow car. You cannot even imagine the humility I felt.

The usual task of parking in the morning has been impeded with me now having to circle the parking lot looking for a space not under a tree.

That alone is not worth ranting over, but needing to wash my car every week is doing nothing good for my mental state, because when you’re running late for school and the only space is under a fat tree, you have to pull in knowing your Nissan will never look the same.

For those without vehicles, there is no saving you either. I have seen pollen allergies give students it all from headaches to going through tissue box after tissue box.

The mood of the classrooms and halls are weighed down by the heightened sense of feeling miserable.

Good luck hearing the morning announcements

that print journalism will increase in the future, and if it does not, this medium of information sharing will never die off completely.

While the current trend for news sources has proven to digital, the publics preferences are constantly changing. On-line news may be the more convenient and intriguing option for today’s audience, but it will not always be this way. I believe that print journalism will soon make its way back into the limelight and have its comeback one day.

Do

Gracie Angeli

over digital books and download-able music, print journalism is not quite dead yet. I believe that it will last a long time, due to being raised in a home that always used newspapers.

I would rather flip through a real newspaper and give it my undivided attention than scroll on a website, indifferent to important events occurring.

While newspapers that people hold in their hands and physically turn the pages are no longer the norm, there will always be some individuals rebelling from the status quo. Print journalism will continue to draw in the few that disapprove of the way technology is taking over the world.

Some are aware of the effect phones and computers are having on our social skills and are drawn to something more real.

The New York Times is pushing the digital news to make up for the lack of print being sold. The Times has nearly 2.5 million digital only subscribers and that makes the majority of their money.

Broadcast journalism has become much more popular in media and society in 2018. With the

ART BY Callie Richards

them out. You are a very special person and deserve to be unapologetic yourself.

Don’t make your decisions based on what others will think; do what will sit right with you in life.

We are faced with many choices each day, so don't choose to go through with things that will leave a bad taste in your mouth. You don’t need to depend on other people for your happiness.

It’s healthy to have friends and family to lean on, but independence is also very important.

You are different than every other person in your class, in this school, and in this world. You have the strength to rely on yourself.

My aunt told me that everyday she looks for a new surprise and delight.

Among all the chaos that is thrown at us, life is chock full of new and good things, so go live your best life and don’t forget to seek out the surprises and delights that are going to be delivered to you.

BULLDAWG SPEAK OUT What was the highlight of your school year?

9th

10th

11th

12th

TEACHER

Sebastian Miabal

Payton Lord

Ben Belcher

Stephen Dickson

Jake Morgan

"My experience during the baseball season, because it was my first time playing in high school."

"Being involved in different clubs at Bowie where I could meet new people and form new relationships."

"The Powderpuff volleyball tournament because it brought everyone together and showed competition."

"The musical, because I got to spend time with cool people and work after school to make sure the production was successful."

"The faculty reading because it was cool hearing Bowie teachers reading their work out loud and helping the Lit Mag."

PHOTOS AND INTERVIEWS BY Marisa Salazar and Peter Dang

S

Fri. May 18, 2018

The Dispatch

14

SENIOR Staff

Staff Goodbyes

Senior editors of The Dispatch say their final words on their years of high school, on staff, and what's to come in their futures

CARA ANDRES

ON STAFF

2

years

COLLEGE

MAJOR

Austin Community College

Digital Media Innovation

MADISON AUSTIN

I’ve probably been staring at my computer screen for a good twenty minutes now just trying to figure out a way to genuinely commemorate my high school experience and all the people apart of it. I don’t think I could truly put the depth of all of my profound moments into words. Throughout the span of four years, I’ve learned what it means to love, to lose, and to get back up. Most importantly, I’ve learned what it means to be young. I can't say that these were the best four years of my life, but I'll always look back on them with appreciation.

First off, I want to thank my Dispatch team for always making me feel so at home. Getting to know my staff at a more personal level this year has been such an amazing experience, and I’m forever grateful for all of their kind words and support. I want to thank Mr. Reeves for his endless generosity and his faith in giving me the position of Photo Essay Editor. At times I felt as if I didn’t even deserve to have this title, but I’m very proud of the content I’ve created and the people I’ve got to showcase through my photography and writing.

I want to thank all of my English teachers for shaping me into the person I’ve become today. Thank you Mrs. Wiedmeyer for emphasizing the importance of stand-

ginning and now is the time to do crazy things and have fun.

There are many people who I would like to thank but sadly I don't have enough words left to say it all so this next thank you is for everyone who has helped me along my high school journey, you have all impacted me in ways that I cannot start to explain in a way that would not make me cry but I want you all to know that you will always have a place in heart and thoughts as people who made me feel safe, strong and capable to do anything that I set my mind to.

Finally I would like to thank my table mates, Mia Barbosa, Avy Friedman, and Violet Glenewinkel for helping me when I had no clue what I was doing which was most of the time, I will miss spending everyday with y’all, laughing about dumb things and driving Reeves mad and to those who are in the other class I'll miss y’all as well. Oh and sneaking out for an early lunch. Not seeing all of you next year will be hard, but I know that we will all do great things.

There are so many things that are about to change and I look forward to seeing what the world has in store for all of the graduating class.

AVY FRIEDMAN

3

years

COLLEGE

MAJOR

Trinity University

Environmental Policy

SHELBY KELLY

ing up against the patriarchy, thank you Mrs. Hebert for being the sweetest soul known to man, thank you Mr. Pfeiffer for blessing me with your never-ending insight, and thank you Ms. Rolfe for helping me recognize my creative potential.

Finally, I’d like to express my endless gratitude for my family and friends, since they’ve been by my side through it all. Thank you to my amazing sisters, Vicky and Camila, for always being at my side and helping me discover my worth. I’d also like to thank Bella Lufschanowski, Olivia Norman, Violet Glenewinkel, and Gabe Rodriguez for giving me so much love, care, support, and laughter. Last but not least, I’d like to thank my parents for everything they’ve provided and done for me.

Four years ago, I wrote myself a letter to open during my senior year. I still have yet to open it, but I remember writing something along the lines of hoping that I “have my sh*t together now.” Unfortunately, I can’t say that I entirely do, but I can say that I’ve grown immensely throughout these four years and I’m thrilled to see what the future has in store for me. As I head into the real world, I hope to expand my creative pursuits, seize any exciting opportunity, and truly discover who I am.

Feature Editor

I’ve struggled to write this for the past few weeks and I still am because I want to say and do the right thing, thank the people who have impacted my high school experience, share memories that I can’t get out of my head, and remember the good things. Senior year is finally coming to an end and it’s strange to be turning in the last of certain assignments and saying goodbye to teachers and friends.

One thing that I have learned throughout my high school years through being on staff is that my voice matters and so does my opinion. Newspaper has been a place for me to be myself and learn how and why it is crucial that I voice my thoughts in a constructive way that may insight change. In the years to come when I look back at high school and what I enjoyed about it, newspaper will be one of the things that I think of it has given me so many opportunities that I would have never had otherwise like going to Seattle and San Francisco or attending the football games on the field.

There are so many things coming to a close but also so many new and amazing doors opening that I’m beyond thrilled that I get to walk through like college, moving a away, new friends etc. Our lives are just be-

ON STAFF

Photo Essay Editor

The good old dog days has been a time for change and although it's time to move on, it’s important to remember my experience because it has made me who I am today. It has brought me through ups and down and has allowed me to meet amazing people and experience life and love.

I would like to thank everybody who has made me laugh and grow and develop and who has dealt with my short, curly haired self. I would first like to thank my best friends who have been there for me when I have needed it most and who has made this experience so special. I will never forget about the memories we have made and the journeys we have been on.

I would also like to thank my technical theatre program. I would like to thank Mr. and Mrs. Gomez for my start in the program. I would also like to thank Mr. Humphrey and Mrs. Huerta for seeing potential in a shy girl who, at the time, could barely raise her voice. I would also like to thank Mr. Bazan, Mrs. Cornwell, and Ms. Hall for giving me so many opportunities to help me grow, into a more confident leader I can be today.

I will be forever grateful for the countless hours you all have put into the program and into myself. Also, I would like to thank my tech family. I can never thank you guys

ON STAFF

2

years

COLLEGE

MAJOR

University of Oklahoma

Political Science

Commentary Editor

All of high school, I was so ready to graduate but with only days left, I’m stuck reminiscing over all the memories and bonds I’ve made, not ready to leave quite yet.

There are so many people who’ve made my time at Bowie so meaningful. Simple moments like late night study sessions, off period adventures, and car rides with the music too loud allow me to look back at high school in such a positive light. I wish there was a way to thank every single one of my friends because they’ve all impacted my life more than they realize.

All of my teachers have been incredibly supportive and influential over the years. Specifically, I want to thank Mrs. Flick and Madame Tennen because these women have given me the inspiration to be driven, genuine and compassionate in everything I do. They always took time to listen to me and cared beyond academics.

I’d also like to thank Mr. Reeves for being such an amazing mentor all four years. As a timid freshman who had no clue what was happening, he saw my capabilities before I did. He taught me the leadership skills I needed to succeed along with how to professionally voice my opinions. His newspaper class introduced me to an amazing group of girls that I’m proud to call my friends. Traveling the country and spending countless

stressful Saturdays together will really do the trick.

Thank you to the band program. Without marching band, I’d never be able to say I’ve been at Bowie at 3 am on a Sunday or marched in the London New Year’s Day Parade. I’ve dedicated hundreds of hours to band and every hour was so worth it. Band not only introduced me to some of my closest friends, but also gave me an expressive and creative platform.

Because of Bowie, I’ve been able to leave a mark through performing in a crazy amount of band performances and creating Kindness Day with my best friends. Also, as the editorial writer and commentary editor, newspaper has given me the platform to speak out about issues I’ve very passionate about.

I’ve definitely had many low moments and by no means, will these be the best four years of my life but that doesn’t mean I can’t look back at my time at Bowie as a wonderful growing experience. It’s finally time for us to move onto bigger and better things but it’s also important that we hold onto all of these experiences, good and bad, as they’ve shaped us to be who we are.

Andy from the Office worded it best when he said “I wish there was a way to know you’re in the good old days before you’ve actually left them”.

Sports Editor enough for all of the hard work you put in and for making the hours of rehearsal so memorable. I would also like to thank my newspaper family. Thank you all for making me laugh and being so kind every step of the way. Thank you, Mr. Reeves, for pushing the paper and myself to do the best we can and thank you also for the hours of hard work and dedication you put into making this program into the one it is today. I would also like to thank The First Tee, a program that has helped me grow into who I am today, and I would also like to thank Mr. Cantu for his smile and hard work.

Lastly, I would like to thank my family. Thank you for being there for me every step of the way. Thank you for dealing with the extra hours of extracurriculars. Thank you for helping me through the stress and cheering me on. Thank you to my strong parents, my grandparents who didn’t miss one event, my goofy but amazing brother and my role model nana. Thank you also to my dog Cash for always being the best buddy and most supportive buddy there is.

Thanks to everybody who has helped me through the journey and to anyone that has made me laugh, I appreciate your kindness and patience and I will never forget the impact you have made on my lives.

ON STAFF

3

years

COLLEGE

MAJOR

University of Texas

Communications

15

The Dispatch

2

years

COLLEGE

MAJOR

Austin Community College

Digital Media Innovation

KATHLEEN NGUYEN

Sometimes I imagine what my life would have been like if I had never moved to Austin. But every time I think of what could have been I realize that I’m so fortunate to have found my way to Bowie. I have met and made friends with some amazing people and I have enjoyed the guidance of someone of the most passionate teachers I have ever had. Although Bowie has its faults and my time here was not like High School Musical suggested it would be, I’ve grown in ways that I could not have anywhere else.

Although I might have complained about Bowie regularly during my time here, this school has prepared my for college and for life in general. There are so many lessons I have learned outside of what was assigned for homework. Thank you Ms. Rolfe for helping me find the poet in me and grow confident in her and her words.

Thank you to the Pfeiffers for challenging me, helping me appreciate great literature and showing me that there are good books other than the Harry Potter series.

Thank you to Mrs. Widner and Mrs. Floyd for showing me the importance of being passionate about what I do. Thank you to Mr. Reeves for all the great opportunities and for putting up with my indecisiveness the last

Junior year was an enlightenment: I made the bold decision to rejoin marching band. Because of newspaper, I had the confidence to pursue band again. It was like reuniting with family. My love for the program grew significantly as I became closer with the clarinets and created memories that would last me a lifetime. However, this was also the year I learned to cut off any negative energy from my life.

Senior year was bittersweet: I made the bold decision to pursue journalism as a career path and committed to Temple University. This year has been the year of ‘lasts’. Last first day of school, last first day of marching band, last newspaper issue. To all the friendships I’ve made, thank you for reminding me to never give up and the endless laughs we’ve shared. To my mom, thank you for allowing me to follow my interests and believing in me. To Mr. Reeves and Dr. Rilling, thank you for supporting my dedication to creating work that inspires others and myself.

Despite my excitement towards the end of high school, it has taught me lessons that I will carry with me forever. I am looking forward to continuing my journey in the world and meeting new people along the way.

KIRAN PATEL

2

years

COLLEGE

MAJOR

University of Texas

Business

ASHLEY RAMIREZ

Staff Writer two years I’ve been in newspaper. Thank you Mrs. Stiles for showing me that math can actually be semi-enjoyable. And lastly thank you to all the teachers I have had.

If I listed all my amazing teachers I would fill the whole page.

However, the teachers were not the only thing that made my years at Bowie memorable. I appreciate all the friends I’ve had. Even though I have lost contact with many of the friends I made freshman year I’m grateful for their friendship. And to the friends I haven’t grown apart from thank you for being there throughout my whole high school experience. I wish the best of luck to all my junior friends. Just push through one more year.

I’ve made some incredible memories with all of you and it is thanks to you that my life was interesting and fun.

I’ve had a great time at Bowie, albeit stressful, and I cannot believe I’m actually graduating. After all the hard work, studying and tests the time has finally come. I’m looking forward to finding my place in the world, and, although I don’t know what I want to major in yet, I know Bowie has prepared me for whatever I decide to do. I’m both nervous and excited to be moving on to college but I’m ready to greet the future.

Copy Editor

Reminiscing back on the past four years of high school, I can proudly say that there is nothing I regret.

Freshman year was a whirlwind: I made the bold decision to join marching band. I was clueless to say the least. Prior to high school, I had absentmindedly wrote the extracurricular on my 8th grade choice sheet as a P.E. credit. When I arrived the first day in August, I was hit face first with reality. I was required to memorize music, learn drill, and put the two elements together. I hadn’t realized the depth of “marching band”. However, I took that year in stride and cherished every moment as a rookie.

Sophomore year was a revelation: I made the bold decision to quit marching band. Despite the joyous memories from my freshman year, I doubted myself and my abilities. So, I joined a different organization.

Newspaper. That year I discovered not only a safe haven, but a passion towards a future career. I traveled to my first journalism convention in Orlando and fell in love. I found a creative outlet to express the thoughts in my mind as they became words on paper. That year I embraced my love for writing and begun to believe in myself.

ON STAFF

S

Staff Goodbyes

Justine Lockhart

ON STAFF

Fri. May 18, 2018

Hi! My name is Ashley Ramirez and I have been on staff for three years and have been photo editor for two years. When I first started high school I never would’ve thought I would be involved in the journalism program.

However, being on the Newspaper has taught me many different skills that I can use in the future such as, time management, the experience of working in a business environment, and being accountable for your own work. Because I have dedicated my time to newspaper, it has allowed me to meet different people, make friends, and build relationships. I am glad where my high school career has taken me as it has guided me to learn about different professions and ultimately figure out what I want to do with my life.

In the Fall of 2018, I will be attending Texas State University and pursuing a Bachelor of Arts Major in Political Science with a minor in History and a Teacher Certification in Social Studies, Grades 7-12. When I am older I plan on teaching high school as a history or government teacher.

The decision of wanting to teach has always been something I have always wanted to achieve ever since I was in elementary school. However, being a govern-

ON STAFF

3

years

COLLEGE

MAJOR

Temple University

Copy Editing

News Editor

For me one of the most defining aspects of high school entails my teachers and the influence they have on me. I wanted to use my senior god bye to recognize and thank the teachers and friends that connected with me and took the time to help me grow as a student and person.

By far my favorite class at Bowie was my 7th period rhetoric class. There I learned what it takes to be a successful college student, how to set high boundaries for myself, and how to cross those boundaries. Mr. Flick was a large part of that in that he never treated us like children. We were always his equals and capable of more than what society labels us as. Thank you for letting us be ourselves and appreciating each and everyone of your students.

I met Ms. Stiles for the first time this year but she has been one of the most influential teachers. She cares unconditionally for her students and makes it a point to help us succeed with her “growth mindset” lessons. I am so thankful to have been in your statistics class and to have gotten to know you. You truly deserve the “Teacher of the Year” title.

Newspaper has been a big source of my happiness

in high school. I made friends with people that I probably wouldn’t be friends with if I wasn’t in the class because our other extracurriculars are different. Reeves created an environment where we’re free to express our opinions and creativity. Thank you for encouraging us to make a difference in the world.

My “third off buds,” I’m grateful for our Juiceland runs and car ride jams. Thank you for being unapologetically embarrassing. To “Violet’s Flowers,” thank you for being such good people and helping me to always see the silver lining. And lastly, to anyone I was friends with or met throughout the four years of high school, thank you for making my days brighter.

To my parents, thank you for loving me no matter what and for constantly pushing me in to do my best in all that I pursue.

High school has given me the opportunity to explore different career avenues and hobbies and discover where my passions lie. As my childhood comes to an effective end I’m nostalgic of all the memories I’ve made and the new people I’ve gotten to know. Growing apart from my friends will be the hardest part of this new journey, but I'm super excited to start this new chapter.

Photo Essay Editor ment or history teacher comes from the amazing teachers that have had taught these subjects while in high school and middle school. I want to thank all my friends who gave me amazing memories and laughs throughout high school. I want to think all the teachers I have had that have taught me what I need to know for my life outside of high school.

I am especially grateful for my mom and dad for pushing me to achieve big and better things. My parents have been a huge support throughout my life. They have always been there to help me on a last minute project or help on homework but even more importantly they have been there through my ups and downs throughout my life. They listened to me talk about all my friend drama, dumb excuses for bad grades, have allowed me to vent about the things that are stressing me out, and listened to the crazy things that people at school do. Through all of our disagreements they have supported me every step of the way.

I am glad I spent my four years at Bowie but even more happy to graduate. I am glad I get the chance to meet new people who will bring even more good memories.

ON STAFF

3

years

COLLEGE

MAJOR

Texas State University

Political Science

S

Fri. May 18, 2018

The Dispatch

Staff Goodbyes

ON STAFF

3

years

16

MIA BARBOSA

COLLEGE

MAJOR

Texas State University

Social Work

VIOLET GLENEWINKEL

Seventy years from now when I’m in my rocking chair amongst my loved ones, reading Harry Potter and reminiscing my young years to grandchildren, I’m not going to tell them high school was the best years of my life.

Because it wasn’t, it was life. With some of my best and most difficult moments, and some of the most intense love and hurt I’ve ever experienced, high school was my first real wake-up call to reality. All within these few years I lost people I loved, fell in love, discovered the value of my intense empathy, and discovered my true self.

My experience through my school career wouldn’t have been as impactful without the numerous hearts and minds that have deeply affected me. I’d like to start with the most important person in my life- my mother, Jill, for being the strongest, most beautiful woman I have ever known. You have bones of steel and the heart of a warrior with a never-ending love and passion for me. I want to thank my father, Mark, for supporting me and teaching me what it means to be a leader. To my brothers, Jaxson and Willem, for toughening me up with their teases and sarcasm. And to the rest of my family, the endless support and love from you means the world to me. Thank you and I love you all.

Typically whenever I’d be assigned to a story for newspaper I wouldn’t finish that story until the last possible moment because I would procrastinate but this is something entirely different. Apparently it’s a lot harder for me to write this than it is to write sports stories.

For those of you who know me you know that while I may try to hide how much I actually am going to miss this class, it’s not fooling anyone. This class has meant more to me than words can begin to describe and the people in it have left a never ending impact on my life.

Thank you to Mr. Reeves and my journalism friends for being my second family and for giving me an environment at school that I could call my home. I’ll never forget all the adventures I’ve gone on with y’all. Thank you for putting up with my craziness over the years, I know my dancing and singing isn’t the best and neither are my jokes but I’m so happy I got to be myself around y’all. I know we’re all heading our separate ways for college but don’t worry I’ll still call you up every now and then because I love you too darn much to not check in on you.

To my family, y’all have done so much for me and nothing I say in this will come close to showing my grati-

3

years

tude for it but I’ll try my best.

Marcus, I cherish when we get to see each other even if it’s just to watch Netflix or play video games because it means I get to laugh with you, talk about what’s on our minds and have fun. I still find myself listening to Nero when I miss you because it reminds me of the times we spent together during your senior year. Thank you for being a good big brother for me, I love you so much more than you’ll ever know!

Dad, you have instilled the morals in me that make me strive to be the best person I can try to be. A lot of who I am comes from you; my goofiness, my sense of humor, my determination and so much more. Thank you so much for being my superhero Dad, I love you!

Madre, you have been there for me through it all. You have showed me so much compassion over the years and have helped me to become the strong young woman I am today. I will never be able to thank you enough for your endless support and love. I love you so much!

Bear, thank you for always cuddling with me and making me feel better when I’m sick. I LOVE YOU! Maddie, thank you for all the doggie kisses; you will always be my angel. My love for you is never ending! (:

Editor-in-Chief To my closest friend and boyfriend, Joel, I love you more than I could ever express. So far, 2017-2018 has been the best time of my life because of you. To Mia Barbosa, my best friend, you are the brightest light in my life! I don’t know what I would do without you. To Kendall Franz, Elijio Salas, Keara McGraw, and Grace Buffler, I am so thankful for the precious moments we spent together through these past years growing up. I will always cherish those times and I love you and care for you. And my whole Dispatch Staff who has stood by me, WE DID IT! Second best in the nation! Thank you.

And of all of the teachers who have affected me, I’d like to thank Mr. Reeves for becoming one of my best buds and biggest supporters, Mr. and Mrs. Pfeiffer for expanding my horizons in my passion for literature, Mr. Flick and Mrs. Shumate for introducing me to new ways of thinking, and Ms. Rolfe, my bad ass and good friend.

You all are the reason I got myself to school everyday and enjoyed class more than most teenagers.

And to my twin sister, watching from above, I live my life through you.

I move forward as a stronger, more confident, and wiser young woman because of all the above people mentioned. I love you, I love you, I love you.

VICTORIA NEWELL

ON STAFF

Managing Editor

COLLEGE

MAJOR

Samford University

Journalism & Mass Comm.

The

Dispatch seniors ‘18 SENIOR STAFF: Holding every issue of the paper from their sophomore to senior year, the 2018 senior staff poses for the camera. The staff has accumulated many awards such as a Columbia Silver Crown and 2nd Best of Show at the JEA/NSPA national convention in San Francisco. PHOTO COURTESY OF Sarah Baber

BACK ROW (From left to right): Avy Friedman, Ashley Ramirez, Shelby Kelly, Madison Austin MIDDLE ROW (From left to right): Justine Lockhart, Kathleen Nguyen, Kiran Patel, Cara Andres FRONT ROW (From left to right): Mia Barbosa, Violet Glenewinkel, Victoria Newell

ON STAFF

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I’ve written a lot of stories for The Dispatch over the past three years, but writing this senior goodbye has definitely been the hardest, except for maybe the stories where I got bad interviews, those were pretty difficult. There are a lot of things I could say here, and while my high school experience wasn’t always dandy, there are a lot of people I’d like to thank for making it a time I will remember through the good and the bad.

I would like to thank my grandmother, Nancy Bahm (Nanna B), for being my late night phone buddy and my continuous cheerleader. As well as buying almost my entire back to school closet.

A thank you to my newspaper advisor Michael Reeves. For being an incredible teacher, and educating all of us on what it truly means to do ethical reporting.

For giving us guidance in putting out a fantastic paper, and for encouraging me to be the best I could be. For raising me to leadership positions, putting me outside of my comfort zone, placing difficult stories on my shoulders, and for instilling a love for journalism in me.

Because of the newspaper program at Bowie, I have found my passion and I plan on majoring in Journalism Mass Communication at Samford University, with hopes of pursuing a journalism career in my adult life. Without

years

COLLEGE

MAJOR

Texas State University

Mass Comm. & Design

Managing Editor The Dispatch and The Dispatch Staff, I have no idea what my future would look like. Of all the things at Bowie High School, the newspaper is the thing I will miss the most. In addition to my teacher, I would like to thank Mia Barbosa for helping me navigate being Managing Editor, for putting up with my many, many questions, and for always being really awesome and kind.

I would also like to thank my family, my Dad (Bob), Mom (Alexis), my two sisters Elisabeth and Mary Margaret and my puppies Henry and Louie for always wanting to hang out with me, and for your encouragement and continued support. As well as my best friend Hannah Behan. Even though we live twelve hours apart, she has always been there for me and is always just a call or a text away. She showed me that real friendship is not bound by distance.

I’d like to thank Kanakuk Kamps and my grandfather Sandy Bahm (BB). A thank you to my grandfather for sending me to Kamp, being continuously supportive and my biggest fan, and being the most wonderful grandfather anyone could ever ask for, and Kanakuk for installing a love for Christ in me.

I love you so much and I can’t wait to see how far you go!