The Clipper October 2019 issue

THE CLIPPER

VOLUME 29 | ISSUE 1 | OCTOBER 2019 | PLATTE COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL

NEWTreats PAGE 06 ON THE STREET

A LOOK INSIDE TABLE OF CONTENTS

Cover

Filling out her order, junior Autumn Colstion visits Platte City Nutrition on Sept. 11.

Platte City Nutrition is located at 1302 Platte Falls Road.

Photo by Isabelle Mulvaney

FEATURES

OPINIONS

SPORTS

LOVE IS AN OPEN DOOR

TOUGH BREAK

By Tatianna Tafolla

By Kiersten Robbins & Charisma Root

10

14

School policy causes confusion amongst students

Boys swim team adjusts to higher turnout rate

03

08

District awards new food service contract to SFE

LGBTQ+ teens need an accepting enviroment to safely grow

FOOD FIGHT

By Sophie Zimmerman

04

CHECK YOUR TECH School district hit with ransomware

By Kiersten Robbins

IN A NUTSHELL

By Charisma Root

12

Commom sports injuries avoidable with proper precautions

RISING TIDE

By Audrey McCoy & Grace Roggy

05

11

15

LGBTQ+ teens celebrate sexuality, gender

Chicken patty removed from lunch menu

Schools use rivalry game to benefit charities

COME AS YOU ARE

By Tatianna Tafolla

06

NEW TREATS ON THE STREET

Residents have chance to support two new local buisnesses

PASSION FOR PATTIES

By Sophie Zimmerman

Created by: Editor-in-Chief

RIVALS TEAM UP

By Kiersten Robbins & Grace Roggy

Staff Writer Audrey McCoy Grace Roggy Sophia Zimmerman

Charisma Root

Photographers

07

Feature Editor

Claire Graves Isabelle Mulvaney Jessenia Orellana

Guide to achieving new ‘fashion’ trend

Tatianna Tafolla

By Audrey McCoy

BASICALLY VSCO

By Jessenia Orellana

Kiersten Robbins

Opinion Editor

Adviser Kari Johnson

October 2019, 03

Food Fight

District awards new food service contract to SFE

By: Sophia Zimmerman he switch from Opaa to Southwest Foodservice Excellence has become a hot topic throughout the district. People are discussing why the switch happened after nearly 30 years with Opaa.

Every five years the school district, by legal requirement, bids out contracted food service but until now have always reselected Opaa. However, this year as the district went through their reselection process, there was more competition than there has been in the past. Executive Director of Operations Jay Harris led the committee responsible for interviewing the applicants, then made recommendations to the panel.

Harris said the committee had administrators, some admin assistants, two board members, and himself as members. They interviewed the applicants and then made a recommendation.

While making the decision, the committee evaluated multiple aspects of the potential providers and came to the conclusion Southwest Foodservice Excellence was the most beneficial provider.

“There is a number of criteria that we use to evaluate all companies, but I will tell you the three most important, Harris said. “That's the quality of the food, the participation-meaning how many students were participating in breakfast and lunch, and financial performance, a potential contractor had to show us how they could make all three of those successful.”

The district and committee ensured

T

In the South Cafeteria, Kim Eshnaur serves a new lunch to students. The new food provider, SFE, guarantees to deliver “delicious and diverse menus that leave students satisfied.”

Photo by Claire Graves

the company demonstrated they have quality food and menus, are going to increase student participation and will successfully do so in an efficient manner financially. The board then officially approved the new contract Southwest Foodservice Excellence.

Students and staff are not the only people adjusting to the switch.

Eric Lugo, kitchen manager of the North Cafeteria, gave his perspective on the new provider and how the student body has reacted.

“I believe the communication is 100 percent better than last year,” Lugo said. “On our first day of our training they gave us so much information that led to, I think, our success on the first day. The recipes are different, they are more in depth, and I think they taste better, to be honest. The new lunch program is doing, more and it's got way more variety.”

This sharp contrast has inspired some questions and concerns in the student body. Staff and students want to know if they are getting less food or smaller proportions than they use to. They also want to know if they are receiving healthier lunch options now than when Opaa was the district food provider.

“I don't think proportion sizes have changed,” Lugo said. “What has changed in Missouri, is you are seeing more whole wheat. Pizza crusts and biscuits are whole wheat and throughout the years you’re gonna see more changes to that.”

Junior Abbey Rolofson said a big factor in why the new provider is re-

ceiving so much negative feedback is because of the loss of chicken patty.

“I miss breakfast day and chicken patty day,” Rolofson said. “It is a big thing that a lot of people are upset about, including me, because we have had that since kindergarten so, it's pretty upsetting to get that taken away from us in some of our last years of high school.”

Other people said the change isn't providing them exactly what they need for their health and diets. Students have allergies, specific food constraints, and strict dietary needs.

Sophomore Paige Roberts said the new lunch provider could do a better job of including more options in their menu for the lactose intolerant.

“I am lactose intolerant, and it’s harder to find things without dairy in them this year, while last year there were more options,” Roberts said.

The taste of the food has also been a hit-or-miss topic within the student body. There has been a lot of negative feedback, but a substantial amount of positive feedback on certain dishes and meals as well. Junior Noah Jeffers has enjoyed the food offered by SFE more than Opaa ́s.

“Opaa wasn't the best,” Jeffers said.

“Once my pizza was green. SFE is infinitely better than Opaa because their food tastes better. I really like their salisbury steaks and their chicken.

They provide more food. When I was eating Opaa I was never full, but now I feel good after eating. I aprove this lunch provider switch.”

Check Your Tech School district hit with ransomware

Written by Kiersten Robbins

R

ansomware has made itself a known presence in the school district and surrounding areas over the last few weeks. It was just a Monday night when Director of Information Services Andy Hall received news that the district had been hacked.

“There was a lot of panic, I have done this type of work for 23 years and have never had anything like this,” Hall said. “Ransomware is a type of virus where they’re not taking your information but they’re encrypting it in a way that you can’t use it anymore. Making it unreadable, putting it in code. And then they ask for money to give you the tools to decrypt it so you can get your data back.”

Professionals were immediately called and consulted on how to properly resolve the problem. Hall then proceeded to notify the FBI, but with the hacker based in Russia, the boundary between the FBI and the CIA’s jurisdiction becomes blurry.

“As soon as it happened I started calling experts, professionals and every reliable source,” Hall said. “All told me to not even begin discussing with the hacker because as soon as they know you’re hard up, you’re desperate, they start messing with things making it more difficult. It also raises a flag that says, ‘Hey come get us again because we’re gullible, and we’re willing to pay the ransom.’”

While very few teacher stations were affected by the virus, some servers and files were encrypted. The backups in the network were lost as well, except the few that were stored at offsite locations.

According to Hall, the version of

ransomware used was unique. It had a program built into it that could locate and shut off the secondary software as well, deleting any of the backups.

“Basically, when the hack happened, it encrypted everything and left one readable file in each directory that said ‘Hey your files have been encrypted, contact this email address with this code, and we’ll tell you how much we want,’” Hall said.

This virus affected everyone in the district but most severely the desktop network-based classes such as video production and computer programming, led by teacher Ashleigh Schlorholtz. These courses rely entirely on the network.

“Some classes I couldn’t do because everything I needed was on the computers,” Schlorholtz said. “Some classes that were internet-based, what they were doing didn’t really affect them too much because they could use their Chromebooks. I couldn’t print for a while. I still can’t print in my room. I had a drive where I had saved all of my video footage for practice for my video classes. I don’t have the drive anymore.”

With teachers unable to use their desktops or access data stored in shared drives, their daily schedules have undergone quite a few alterations. Like sophomore Ava Roberts’ classes have had to adjust to the problem at hand, as the projector screens remained unavailable.

“I couldn’t get notes done and teachers had to do it on the board,” Roberts said. “I thought it was weird because, who would want to target a school?”

The IT department has taken

extensive precautions to make sure this never happens again, setting the firewall so that it blocks off communication from about a half dozen countries. They also implemented some new policies to make passwords more complex.

“We were prepared for something like a tornado or a fire, where if something happened to the high school we had a backup at Barry or if something happened to Barry we had a backup at the high school,” Hall said. “We weren’t prepared for a situation where the entire network got hit. So we have some backups that were offsite totally disconnected from the network, but unfortunately anything that was connected to the network as far as backups was either encrypted or deleted.”

With these preventative measures in mind, there is still always a chance this could happen again in the future. Senior Zachary Hunt guessed as to how our district was chosen so randomly out of the hundreds of other schools susceptible to similar attack.

“I mean anyone could have been picked,” Hunt said. “I’m pretty sure they just had our name on a dart board, blind folded themselves and threw it.”

During the file recovery process, IT has also worked to implement new security measures by modifying all of the desktops, backups, as well as the network, so they will be better equipped if an event like this ever happens again.

“I felt bad for IT because that’s a lot of work,” Schlorholtz said. “They worked around the clock, and I think they haven’t gotten enough credit for it.”

October 2019, 05

COME AS YOU ARE LGBTQ+ teens celebrate sexuality, gender

By Tatianna Tafolla

E

ach year on Oct. 11 individuals in the LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer/questioning+) community celebrate National Coming Out Day by opening up about who they are and how they identify.

To help others feel more secure about participating in the event and becoming more open about who they are, sophomore Dakota O’Brien, junior Rolan Fitzgerald and senior Ashley Lienemann, leaders of the schools GSA/Friends Club, chose to share their own personal stories to help others feel more comfortable in participating in such an event.

“When I was in seventh grade, I didn’t know what pansexual or non-binary was,” O’Brien said. “I knew the basics, but then I looked deeper into other things and went, ‘Huh that’s sounds a lot like me.’”

O’Brien personally identifies as non-binary, a title on the gender spectrum where one person doesn’t identify exclusively as male or female.

Someone who identifies as non-binary may feel like a mix of genders, or not feel like any gender at all. Pansexuality is the sexual, romantic, and/or emotional attraction towards people regardless of gender identity.

“It’s hard to go through those types of things alone, but you get used to it

after a while, which isn’t necessarily something you should be used to,” O’Brien said.

O’Brien went through multiple sexuality and gender identities before officially deciding on their two set labels. These labels were also accompanied by a recent name change, which aside from some general confusion, provoked no initial backlash. While there are sexualities attracted to more than one gender, there are also identities that feel attraction to none at all.

“When I first made it clear that I was ace to my friends I was around 14,” Lienemann said. “I mean there’s always reservations about ‘Oh, how do you know at that young age?’ especially about sexuality.”

Lienamenn identifies as asexual, or ace for short, which is the umbrella term for someone who has low to absent sexual attraction. They have now identified that way for around six years, but have just recently begun to consider themselves agender as well.

“I realized I was agender more recently when I realized I’m allowed to be feminine and non-binary, and that masculine doesn’t have to be the default,” Lienemenn said.

Agender can be seen as a non-binary identity or living as “genderless.”

Lienemenn has huge support from their friend group and encourages others that if there is a plan to explore

sexuality, to be sure to have a close group of people in which to confide.

“If you see a transgender guy, that is a guy, and saying otherwise can be super harmful, and people who are transgender already face their own thoughts and anything bad you can say about it we’ve already thought ourselves,” Fitzgerald said.

Fitzgerald identifies as transgender and bisexual. The term transgender refers to someone who identifies with a gender idenity different from their assigned sex. Bisexuality is the sexual attraction to more than one exclusive gender, generally both males and females.

“I’ve had the feelings that I was a boy my entire life, but stuff had happened, and I didn’t really come into terms with it until my freshman year,” Fitzgerald said.

Fitzgerald decided to come out to himself first before opening up to friends and family. After coming out to those first few groups of people, school was next. By contacting a social worker, Fitzgerald changed his preferred name with the school district.

Students and teachers have caught on with time, and this year he has even joined the Homecoming King ballot.

“Being transgender isn’t a choice, and more research comes out everday explaining what’s going on and what’s happening,” Fitzgerald said.

06, Feature

The Pirate Tea is a passion fruit tea created by Angel and Nate Biggs. With every purchase of a Pirate Tea $1 is given back to the school.

Photo by Isabelle Mulvaney

Bill Burns shows off his motorcycle and his storefront. He chose the slogan “Midwest Baking with an East Coast Attitude” to match his personality.

Photo by Isabelle Mulvaney

NEW Treats ON THE STREET

Platte City residents have chance to support two new local businesses Written by Audrey McCoy

P

latte City residents have recently experienced the opening of two new specialty restaurants in town, Platte City Nutrition and The Cake Guy. Platte City Nutrition offers a variety of energy teas and protein shakes which serve as healthy substitutes for unhealthy quick-bite eateries.

“We are an alternative to all of the fast-food restaurants young people go to,” Platte City Nutrition owner Angel Biggs said. “We like seeing that the ways of eating are changing, and that we’re able to provide that.”

The new business has established a social media platform and frequently uses it to reach a younger demographic. They see a variety of people come in, and make it their goal to leave members of the community feeling better than before. Daily specials such as Teacher Tuesdays and Student Saturdays have brought many customers involved in the school district.

“We are trying to ramp up fundraisers for athletics or clubs and we want to help raise money for whoever we can,” owner Nate Biggs said.

“We’re very passionate about schools and students. The Pirate Teas are very popular because we keep track of how many we sell so that every time we sell one, a dollar goes into the school district.”

The Pirate Teas are one of the best sellers among the assorted selection

of healthy beverages offered with the aim of helping people live healthy, whether that be mentally, or working towards a physical goal.

“Our teas are a healthy version of an energy drink,” Angel said. “They don’t have any sugars and they are a different type of energy that you’re not going to get a sugar crash or any jittery feeling from. They also have collagen, B12 and B6 vitamins, and aloe in them which help with your hydration and energy levels. They give both energy and mental focus.”

Platte City Nutrition had its grand opening on August 9-10 and the Biggs are enjoying the atmosphere and the energy that having a storefront brings.

They hosted the student section to make posters for the first home football game and hope to extend their hours so that they are able to be involved in more community events.

The Cake Guy is a bakery known for creating custom cakes, cupcakes and cake pops.

“I like the smaller town feel of Platte City,” The Cake Guy Bill Burns said. “I picked Platte City because it’s a little sentimental to me even though I’m from Parkville.”

Custom cakes are not the only thing The Cake Guy plans to sell once the business is up and running. He plans to sell his customer-favorite cake pops and cupcakes, as well as the veteran-owned and operated Black Rifle

Coffee to walk-in customers after his hopeful opening on September 26.

“I’ve always been artistic, and 12 years ago I attended cake decorating classes with my sister,” Burns said.

“Once I started learning about the different icings and stuff, I just picked it up. After that basics class, everything else has been self-taught.”

Burns said he’s passionate about cake design and hopes to start teaching cake decorating classes out of his storefront. Not only does he bake and design as a career, but he also enjoys doing so in his free time. Each year, he looks forward to Cryptic Con, a local horror movie convention because he creates the cakes for the celebrity dinner.

“All the cakes I do for that are the most fun because they’re horror-oriented,” Burns said. “Those are the only cakes that I don’t sit down and sketch out.”

Both Platte City Nutrition and The Cake Guy are unique to Platte City not only as new specialty shops but also for how deeply they care about the community.

“Seeing people’s reactions when they get their cakes is almost the most gratifying part,” Burns said. “Anybody and everybody is welcome. I’m told that I should go on those competition shows, and I don’t want that. If I’m going to be known or popular, I want it to be in the community.”

October 2019, 07

Basically VSCO

Guide to achieving new ‘fashion’ trend

By Jessenia Orellana

E

veryone knows of the “basic” characteristics that have recently become trendy amongst girls, but thanks to Tik Tok, “basic” has been rebranded as the now infamous “VSCO” girl. It started in the summer of 2019 and continues to be one of the most popular trends for our generation. Not only is the trend popular, but 83 percent of students said they know a few “VSCO” girls. Because it is so popular, here are some tips and tricks to help you achieve the look of a “VSCO” girl.

And I oop!

Style your hair by throwing it up into a big perfectly messy bun.

SKSKSKSKSK!

When becoming “VSCO” the center piece needed to achieve the look is an oversized, colored tee

Always ensure you have a scrunchie or 2 on your wrist as well.

Not only can you use it to hold back your hair, but also as an attention-grabbing accessory To pair with your oversized t-shirt, girls athletic shorts are a must.

Remember to make sure they’re almost, if not completely, shorter than your shirt One of the most crucial supplies you’ll need to be a true “VSCO girl” is a Hydro Flask. Not just any Hydro Flask though, specifically one covered entirely in stickers and ideally with friendship bracelets tied to the lid The final piece needed to tie this entire look together is your classic white Crocs or a brand name pair of Birkenstocks

LOVE IS AN OPEN DOOR

LGBTQ+ teens need an accepting environment to safely grow

By Tatianna Tafolla

T

he LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and queer/ questioning/plus) people in your life are the people you eat lunch with, maybe someone you see at family holidays, or even be the person you share all your highs and lows with. Maybe you’re the LGBTQ+ person in your life.

The ever-growing presence of LGBTQ+ individuals existing within our community is a reminder of how important it is to stay progressive, accepting and understanding for whomever that person may be in your life.

Each individual identifying within the LGBTQ+ community has a unique and personal idea of what “acceptance” looks like in their home life

and school environment. Asking that person what actions can be made to further advance that feeling of acceptance is crucial.

As progressive as times are for the LGBTQ+ community, compared to the past, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) surveyed that out of 10,000 identified LGBTQ+ youth, at least 42% said that the community in which they live is not accepting of LGBTQ+ people.

This may not appear to be a large percentage, considering as it is less than half of those surveyed, but that’s at minimum 4,200 people feeling as if they aren’t safe in their own environment to be themselves.

Missouri is one of 28 states with

the lowest rating for protection against discrimintation of those in the LGBTQ+ community (according to Freedom For All Americans, a site set to inform others of their rights.) So, it is safe to say that there is room for progress not only within our state but also within the school.

Effort can be made to better understand LGBTQ+ youth and to help inform other students of the difficulties that stem from coming to terms with being outside the realm of social conformity.

At this pivotal age of learning and self exploration, it can be extremely damaging to LGBTQ+ youth and their self confidence to be put down about their sexual and gender identities.

Six out of ten LGBTQ+ students have reported feeling unsafe at school because of their sexual orientation.

Young people who are open about their sexual and gender identity to their family report feeling happier than those who aren’t.

80% of gay and lesbian youths have reported severe social isolation after being open about their identity.

*Information provided by dosomething.org

Becoming an ally to those in the LGBTQ+ community is an important step towards progression and understanding. Not only can this create a sense of acceptance, but it can also provide a form of security and safety for someone.

An ally, as defined by the Gay Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), is someone not particularly identifying under LGBTQ+ terms, but a supporter to the LGBTQ+ community, or someone who participates in the advocation of equal rights and fair treatment. Having these people at

school, as well as in a home environment, is a crucial step towards inclusion.

A larger piece of the puzzle is being active, becoming informed, and staying aware of what’s occurring around you. Trying to understanding the LGBTQ+ presence is an important part of becoming an accepting community.

If someone is confused it’s recommended to ask questions to become better informed and to know whether or not the opinion or ideas formed of the community are accurate or should be better discussed.

Someone identifying as LGBTQ+ needs a supportive community of people who are willing to step up and support them. Safe spaces are important whether they’re a physical place or a person.

Knowing someone is welcome and accepted in their community is crucial especially during the growing stages of life.

If there is confusion, think of that person, or those people, in your life.

Ask them questions, deepen your understanding about who they are, and stay open-minded.

10, Opinion

IN A

Nutshell

School policy causes confusion amongst students

S

Written by Charisma Root tudents have most likely seen at least one of the numerous posters plastered around school with the big bold “nay” symbol placed over the picture of a peanut. Each sign proudly proclaiming the absence of peanuts throughout the building. The peanut-free policy is a fairly new concept in our school district, and there is quite a mix of opinions surrounding its importance and enforcement.

Peanuts can cause severe, potentially life-threatening allergic reactions, and with a minimum of 37 reported nut allergies in the high school alone, it is a topic that must be discussed.

There are no set food allergy laws in existence outside of the Center of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)’s 2013 publication of voluntary guidelines for managing food allergies in schools. So, it speaks volumes of our schools’ value on student safety that we have not only adopted these guidelines, but even taken it a step further and introduced a school-wide peanut-free policy. However, the purpose is defeated if this policy is not properly enforced. Advertising our school as something we only “somewhat” are provides a false sense of security that may end up doing more harm than good.

The results of a student survey revealed only 31 out of the 226 respondents said the peanut-free policy is adequately enforced. Despite our peanut-free lunches and many signs stating that peanuts are not allowed in the building, it isn’t uncommon to see students, or even staff, eating and sharing homemade snacks containing the allergen. Those who find the policy important, such as school nurse Jennie Olsen, can only make so much of an impact without a joint effort

from everyone else.

“I think the peanut policy is absolutely necessary, though I am not sure that it is followed and enforced as much as we would like for it to be,” Olsen said. “Unfortunately with so many people coming in and out of the school, we can’t always know who is and isn’t bringing in food, but we try our best to make everyone aware of what our policy is.”

The policy relies on students to be conscious of their decisions and teachers not to allow free exceptions.

The issue with this is that most people assume students with allergies, such as junior Elizabeth Hampl, are capable of looking out for themselves. Which is true. However, this unenforced yet highly-advertised nut-free policy creates a false illusion that extra caution is not necessary.

“I think by the time you’re in high school, for kids with allergies at least, you should know what you can be around, what you can’t be around, how to be responsible and check labels,” Hampl said. “So I don’t think it’s necessary to have that strict policy, but I think it’s a little bit dangerous [to advertise as peanut free when it isn’t enforced] because parents might get the wrong ideas.”

For parents of students with serious allergies, such as sign language interpreter Janeen Hudson, leaving their kid’s side for hours at a time can be a difficult task. Knowing what kind of environment their child is entering is half the battle.

“We walk into the schools, and we see these posters and think ‘Ah, what a relief, we’re all on the same page here,’ but then we see what’s really happening and realize ‘Okay we are not 100% peanut free’ and that’s scary,” Hudson said. “I teach my son what foods to avoid, how to read labels and know

what reactions to look for. Everyday when I drop him off at school I say a quick prayer and hope that even though my eyes aren’t on him, that those around him are looking out for him. Putting my trust in others to keep him safe has been the biggest challenge of my life.”

The policy we have now is backed by great intentions, but it’s irresponsible of us to promote the idea that students with allergies are completely safe from a food that is being consumed in the halls and classrooms daily. While a total peanut-free school is a nice ideal that makes parents feel at ease, it would be better to have strictly peanut free lunch tables, classrooms, and zones than an entirely semi-peanut free building with no telling who is eating what and where. A study referenced in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (with a data set of 2,223 schools and 1,116,667 students over a 5-year period) exploring the effect of school peanut-free policies on clinical outcomes showed that middle/high schools with peanut-free classrooms had less student reactions requiring epinephrine administration, while schools with broad policies had higher epinephrine administration rates. The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology theorizes that this may be because less rigid avoidance strategies are used when a peanut-free policy is in place.

Something needs to change in our school. This could mean introducing monitored absolute peanut free zones, or putting more effort into enforcing our policy and educating the students and staff on why we have these rules in place. It could also mean potentially removing the policy altogether, or at least making it clear to the allergic students (and their parents) how leniently enforced it is.

October 2019, 11 If you had the chance would you bring back chicken patty Wednesday?

Do you miss chicken patty day?

11.1%

14.6%

85.4%

88.9% Yes

No

171 responses

Yes

No

Passion for Patties Chicken Patty removed from lunch menu

By Sophia Zimmerman

T

he news of chicken patty Wednesdays vanishing from the school lunch menu spread through Platte County when the first Wednesday of the school year hit. Students and teachers had a lot to say about the disappearance of the long-time tradition of chicken patty day.

“We worshiped it as a holiday,” sophomore Austin Vanek said. “We really liked chicken patty day and everybody celebrated it. It was kind of like a mid-week celebration.”

Many students were enthusiastic about chicken patty Wednesdays and said it was a staple in the weekly school routine. It was something students cherished and bonded over.

It wasn't just a day; it was an experience, a consistent piece of our lives for almost 12 years. To have it taken away during these final years of our K-12 education has been upsetting for many people.

“It was more of a tradition than a lunch choice,” sophomore Meredith Ballou said. “We had it all through elementary school, middle school and high school.”

Love the taste or not, after all this time, that dish belongs in the school.

Considering our student body has always expressed an affinity for the dish and its tradition, it was unfair of the school to discontinue chicken patty Wednesdays without a warning.

“The kids are sad that chicken patty day is gone because they enjoy the consistency of knowing every Wednesday what they were going to have for lunch,” theater teacher Erica Glidewell said. “Kids like structure and consistency, and it tastes really good too.”

Students took comfort in the fact that there was a small slice of schedule and routine in their lunch. By highschool, these kids who have grown up in Platte City have grown accustomed to the reliability of Wednesdays

providing exactly what we expect: chicken patties with mashed potatoes and rolls.

IT WAS MORE OF A TRADITION THAN A LUNCH CHOICE. SOPHOMORE MEREDITH BALLOU “We will bring chicken patty day back eventually,” kitchen manager Eric Lugo said. “It may not land on a wednesday, but we will sneak it in somewhere.”

While it is upsetting that the tradition may never return, it is comforting that the kitchen staff acknowledged and recognized the unhappiness of the student body regarding this change.

I think a majority of the students and staff will be grateful just to have the dish itself back on the menu at all.

12, Sports

TOUGH Break

Common sports injuries avoidable with proper procautions

Most common sports injuries: 62% of organized sports-related injuries occur during practice

- Sprains and strains - Knee injuries - Swollen muscles - Achilles tendon injuries - Pain along shin bone - Rotator cuff injuries - Fractures - Dislocations

Source: Stop Sports Injuries

Written by Kiersten Robbins and Charisma Root and patellofemoral syndrome. very sport comes with the High school sports can boost risk of an injury. These self-esteem, commitment and teaminjuries can be difficult for work. However it also presents a danhigh school athletes, causing ger by increasing the participants’ risk feelings of guilt and disappointment for many severe injuries and negative that may lead to a fear of telling their health impacts. According to At Your parents or coaches. Often times the Own Risk, 90 percent of student athpressure or passion to play can cause letes report some sort of sports-related further damage to pre-existing injuinjury. More specifically, 37 percent ries. of high school athletes say they have There are two different types of experienced sprains, and 12 percent injuries where young athletes are report they have sustained concusconcerned, overuse and acute injuries. sions and head injuries.

Acute injuries are caused by sudden Thankfully there are many ways trauma whereas overuse injuries are to prevent and avoid most of these more likely to develop over a period common injuries. For example, a of time. Athletes who play one sport cross-country runner’s form while are more likely to sustain an overuse running can play a huge role in their injury because they are using the same safety and injury prevention. Junior parts of their body, unlike athletes Kaylee Major suffered from shin who play multiple sports and use splints because of incorrect form while numerous parts of the body. Acute running. injuries are usually a result of a single “I was very sad, for a very long incident, for example, twisting an time,” Major said. “It took me out of ankle or wrist in basketball. our season before districts, and I’m a According to Live Well with varsity runner. I did physical therapy UnityPoint Health, some of the most for three or four months.” common injuries high school athletes To reduce the risk of a sports injury, receive are ACL tears, strains, concusaccording to CareCentral Urgent Care, sions, shin splints, shoulder injuries build up endurance and increase

E

intensity slowly as fitness improves.

Always preface intense exercise or training with a warm-up to increase blood flow and improve flexibility.

Wear the correct protective gear, no matter how trained you may be.

Also, sport-appropriate equipment (i.e. helmets, shin guards, knee pads, and proper, well-fitting clothing and shoes) will reduce risk. Weights, cross-country and track coach Chris Stubbs is familiar with the importance of these safety measures.

“For the most part with cross-country with shin splints and stress fractures, yes, they are preventable,” Stubbs said. “It’s by doing work early in the summer, so when the season comes you don’t try too much too soon.”

It might seem unnecessary to stretch or have a cool down after a workout, but by skipping these measures, this may be setting someone up for a painful injury and inconvenient recovery. Some of these injuries may be unpreventable, but by wearing the right protective gear and building endurance, it is possible to decrease the chances of being injured as a high school athlete.

October 2019, 13

Sports-Related Injuries

RICE Treatment Method: Rest

Concussions and fractures

Ice Compression Elevation

Injury Prevention Pre and post workout stretching, yoga and breathing exercises

Helmets, knee pads, KT tape, brace, proper clothing, etc.

Specifics Sprains and jammed fingers

Concussions, turf toe. fractures, achilles tedonnitis, ankle sprain, ACL tear, torn cartilage, hip pointer, burner or stinger, spine injuries, sprains and strains Runner’s knee, ACL, MCL, shin splints and tendon strains

Source: verywell health by Jonathan Cluett

Ankle sprains, jammed fingers, knee injuries, deep thigh bruising, facial cuts and foot fractures Source: Stop Sports Injuries

Ankle sprains, tendon strains, achilles tendonitis

Shin splints, achilles tendonitis, plantar fasciitis, runner’s knee, muscle, ligament and tendon strains

14, Sports

Almost finished with his lap, senior Baxter Stone speeds up on Sept. 16 at swim practice. This year, there are 28 swimmers on the team.

Photo by Jessenia Orellana

On his seventh lap, senior Regan Koch finishes his last breaststroke lap at the YMCA on Sept. 16. Koch has swam all four years of high school.

Photo by Jessenia Orellana

Rising Tide

Boys swim team adjusts to higher turnout rate Written by Audrey McCoy and Grace Roggy

T

he men’s swim team takes on a new year with a total of 28 swimmers, the most in Platte County history.

The team practices at the community YMCA competition pool everyday from 3-5 p.m. With the team being as large as it is this year, members will have to work together to achieve their goal of winning conference. Conference is important to the swimmers because of the rivalries they have developed with other teams, and the oppurtunity they have to be displayed on a banner at the YMCA if they win.

According to head swim coach Bret Anderson, success doesn’t rely on the size of the team. However, he did say that he hopes it will create competition for varsity spots and push everyone to work towards their personal goal to be individually successful.

With the increased number of swimmers this season, it has been difficult for individual swimmers to

have one-on-one training. The team has to use more lanes this year during practice because of the bigger team and the one male diver who needs two lanes to himself.

Freshman Joey Croy said the team warms up with multiple down-andbacks for freestyle followed by a practice of the different strokes. The swimmers then work on turns, starts and any other exercises that will help them.

“The hardest part of having a bigger team this year is that compared to last year it’s harder to bond with people and have good relationships with everyone,” senior Rhett Spell said.

Often times the boys swim team will participate in different team bondings outside of the sport. These activities are to help bring together the boys.

“One of my favorite team bonding activities is when we have team dinners after a hard practice,” junior

Matteo Herrera said.

Junior Luke Harms said he enjoys swimming because it is a fun way for him to stay in shape and for him to spend time with his teammates.

“My favorite team bonding activity is called The Pirate Drill,” Harms said. “We bring up a senior and take turns talking about him and sharing stories.”

It is a common goal amongst the team to medal and improve times at meets. Sophomore Zach Sill said the team has a chant and a spirit symbol they use to improve their luck. Although team bonding is important to build relationships, the larger groups have to work hard to achieve and maintain their goals.

“Practice with more people is different from last year because we have a lot more freshmen,” Spell said. “It’s harder to keep everyone in check and get work done to reach our goal of winning conference.”

October 2019, 15

RIVALS T eam UP

Schools use rivalry game to benefit charities Witten by Grace Roggy and Kiersten Robbins

F

ive years ago, Activities Director Phil Dorman and former Kearney activities director Eric Marshall paired up to brainstorm an idea. This idea gave way to the now annual Highway 92 Showdown rivalry game. Kearney and Platte County have kept the tradition of working together to raise money for various charities such as Team Up for the Battle, Team Up for Down Syndrome and most recently Feed Northland Kids.

“This year we decided to give to our local Hillcrest and the PCHS Treasure Chest for Platte County families in need of help,” Dorman said.

Through community donations, t-shirt sales and loose change from students and staff, a total of $5,000 was

Behind the press box, sophomore Kalina Arnold and FBLA adviser Arian Huhmann sell t-shirts to raise money for the Highway 92 charity event. The event raised more than $4,000 for the Platte County Treasure Chest, Hillcrest and the Kearney Food Bank.

Photo By Claire Graves

raised throughout the events leading up to this years game. At the game, volunteers also collected an additional 2,585 non- perishable items from the community.

“We paired with the Platte-Clay Electric business as a sponsor, and they helped come up with this idea to give back to our own community,”Dorman said. “This year was the first year we have given back locally.”

Amaira Peterson, sophomore member of Future Buisness Leaders of America, volunteered at the football game to collect donations from Platte County and Kearney attendees. The community had the option to pay $5 or donate five non-perishable items in return for entrance to the game. It was a community-wide competition between the two, to see which school

could raise the most donations.

“For FBLA, we kind of take advantage of it for community service because we have a chapter project that is called community service and use that to get some ideas for that chapter project,” Peterson said.

As for the football game, Kearney and Platte County have had a long-standing rivalry for years. On Sept.13, Platte County beat Kearney with a final score of 51-14.

“If you had just a charity event game, then you would have some involvement from the community, but if you tie the charity event to a rivalry game, then everyone in the community will come show support, the whole student body will become involved and you will get a better outcome,” Dorman said.

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