Issue 8, 2013 3014 by The Squall

Dexter High School 2200 N. Parker Road Dexter, MI 48130 www.thesquall.com

The Squall.

May 22, 2014 . VOL. 19. Issue 8.

It ainâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t no lie. Baby, bye, bye, bye. Four years have come and gone, and now we say farewell. Pages 1-16

Thursday, May 22, 2014 The Squall Index 2

4 6 8 11 12

14 16

Staff

4 Feature Academic dishonesty causes conflicts 6 Farewell The Squall’s editors bid farewell to high school 7 Infographic The 2014 senior class by the numbers 8-9 Center Spread The last four years in review 10-11 Interactive Spread 5x5 Seniors, Cup of Joe 12 Opinion What has truly made senior year memorable? 13 Editorial DHS should have a program to help students graduate. 16 Photostory A rising rugby team.

Letters to the Editor Policy: The Squall encourages letters to the editors. They can be emailed to dextersquall@gmail.com, dropped off in room 407 or given to staff member of The Squall. Letters may be edited for length and unprotected speech. Requests to withhold a writer’s name will be considered by the editorial board. Letters should be 300 words or fewer.

Contact us at: 2200 N. Parker Road Dexter MI, 48130. (734) 426-4240 Editors-in-Chief Cameron La Fontaine Levi Kipke Head Designer Abby Mesaros Photo Editors Katie Vontom Sam Musgrove (assistant) Isabelle Sinibaldi (assistant) Copy Editor Lauren Kimmel

Web Editor Bryce Pederson Business Managers Lauren Kimmel Casey Hansen Illustrator & Design Brittany Byma Drew Daugherty

Design Team Sydney Swigart Matt Mitchell Kat Kerska Cadey DesRosiers Sarah Griffith Staff Writers Kait Eekoff Lauren Kimmel Carolin Schade Joe Molloy Derek Seidl Harrison Kane

ext: 7407. dextersquall@gmail.com

Zac Sharp Morgan Van Hoof Zeke Breuninger Teddy Walton Jon LeBlanc Scott Rogers Noah Mellifont Virginia Kivel James Fischer Owen Kellenberger Jake Kilian Photographers Casey Hansen

Brittany Byma Chris Ryan Ethan Kremkus Kyle DeVoogd Jake Kilian Sarah Griffith Adviser Rodney Satterthwaite

To our beloved adviser, Hot Rod Satthew: Words can’t express how much we love you and appreciate everything you’ve done for us. This is our last day, our last issue, and what makes it especially hard is that we’re leaving behind more than just our legacy. We’re leaving you. Cliché though it may be, we’re going to miss these times. Looking back on high school as successful businessmen, entrepreneurs, teachers, whatever it may be -- we will remember our time on The Squall. Mostly good, with a few rough times and uncomfortable moments thrown in there. Take your style of grading, for example. We’ve never known someone with such an affinity for giving zeros. Exasperated sighs rise like flowers in the springtime every time you go to your gradebook. But no one takes it to heart, because they know that they just need to have a simple conversation with you and the situation will be fixed. That’s your charm, Satt. If we hadn’t taken the time to get to know you, our lives up to this point could have gone completely differently. But we did. We became close with you, and never regretted it for a moment. You made us who we are today. With much love, The 2013-14 Squall seniors

Staff Editorials:

Editorials represent the majority opinion of the editorial board. Editorials are unsigned. Columns represented the opinions of the individual staff members who wrote them.

Staff Policy:

The Squall is a student publication distributed to students, faculty and staff of Dexter High School. The Squall is also distributed by subscription to the Dexter community. The Squall has a press run of 1700 copies and is printed by The Argus-Press in Owosso, MI The paper serves as a public forum with student editors making all content decisions. Opinions expressed in the newspaper are not necessarily those of Dexter Community Schools.

Memberships:

Thursday, May 22, 2014 The Squall News 3

Graduation rate falls

Virginia Kivel Staff Writer

Dexter High School’s graduation rate dropped from 94.5 percent to 91.71 percent from 2010 to 2013. While it has remained significantly above the national average of 80 percent, Dexter’s rate has fallen behind those of other local schools such as Chelsea, Saline and Manchester. Similarly, U.S. News and World Report released a study last month that ranked Chelsea and Saline as among the top high schools in the state, but Dexter High School was no where to be found on this list. This study used college readiness, student to teacher ratios and scores on proficiency tests to rank the schools. For Shawn Letwin, a parent of a Dexter graduate, these two issues are clearly related. “The current data speaks for itself about the quality of the high school,” he said. “The largest drop in the DCS graduation rate amongst our peer districts, coupled with no tangible plan or actions … brings us to a point four years later where there has been no appreciable improvement, speaks for itself about the quality of the high school and its leaders. But most importantly it speaks volumes about the school board trustees and the Dexter Difference.” Principal Kit Moran, however, said graduation rate in itself is not a good way to judge the quality of a district. “It is an indicator, not the only indicator (as to the quality of the school at large),” he said. And as far as the U.S. News ranking, according to Superintendent Chris Timmis, they do not include any measurement of graduation or dropout rates. They are calculated through changing formulas that even compare test scores to predictions made based on socioeconomic status.

But it is not only the difference 91.72 between the graduation rates of 96.9 2013 Dexter and other local school, but 97.62 the degree to which Dexter’s rate has fallen that worries Letwin. 92.5 He said, “It was a complete sur96.79 prise to find out in 2010 that just a 2012 98.87 few years earlier in 2007, DHS had the highest graduation rate in the county. Just three short years later, 90.94 our high school had the county’s 92.79 2011 largest drop in the (graduation) 93.98 rate.” The graduation rate calculates the 94.5 percentage of students who graduate 95.11 from Dexter High School within 2010 96.12 four years beginning from the time they entered any school as freshman. Therefore, students who finish Percentage of students who graduated in the past four over the summer or after a fifth year, Saline High School Chelsea High School Dexter High School get their GED, require an alternative educational program or lose credits from transferring schools are count“Everything was fantastic,” he said. “I always knew that ed against the rate. there would be an option to fix (the problems caused by his For Timmis and Moran, this lessens the significance of illness and subsequent absences) whatever class I was in.” the graduation rate. All parties agree, however, that Dexter’s graduation rate Moran said, “From a moral perspective, I’m OK if the should be higher. student gets their diploma at some point.” “We are equipped to do better than 91 percent,” Timmis Timmis added, “Not everybody learns at the same pace. said. “Everyone is working really hard to get the graduation Life’s not a race.” rate up.” Personal lives can also affect a student’s ability to graduHe added that it takes time to see the long-term impact ate in four years. Senior Jake Currie, for example, is finishof the work being done in the statistics. ing his fifth year as a high school student after he missed Moran described a possible solution, saying, “We don’t significant portions of his junior and senior years due to have an alternative program for kids that don’t do normal cyclic vomiting syndrome, school well.” a form of migraines that According to Timmis, however, such programs require caused him debilitating money that the district has not budgeted for the issue. abdominal pain. But Letwin said that without any attempt to identify Because of this, Currie why more students are dropping out or to hold someone chose to repeat his senior accountable for the issue, the district won’t be able to solve year and isn’t considered the problem. an on-time graduate. “When I personally raised a question in 2010 to the “The decision to come board and administration by asking them to explain what back for a fifth year was was the cause for the drop between 2007 and 2010, I never made for several reasons,” received an answer then nor has one been provided to this he said. “There wasn’t any day,” he said. reason to push and have Currie, though, does not think the problem lies with the me graduate early.” school. Students need to be more responsible for their own The administration education, he said. was extremely supportive “The support system is there,” he said. “I see a lot of throughout the medical people failing classes, and they don’t look for the help that’s difficulties, according to available.” Currie.

Dont forget we’re online: www. thesquall. com

Thursday, May 22, 2014 The Squall News 4

Cheating causes concern

Administrators work to address recent issues through a FOIA request of all teacher and administration emails discussing cheating and academic dishonesty in the past year. Staff Writer However, according to Dexter’s IB Program coordinator Kim Lund, it’s not just IB classes where cheating is a Principal Kit Moran said he remembers students copying problem. She said IB students--just like all students--are held verbatim out of an encyclopedia for book reports when he accountable to Dexter’s policies on academic dishonesty in was in high school. relation to internal assessments. However, when it comes to And while the methods may have changed since Moran’s external assessments, which are solely graded by external days as a student, cheating is still prevalent now that he’s a IB examiners, students are held to IB policy which states high school principal. that any assignment where academic Moran said he knows dishonesty has occurred must be given students cheat and said an incomplete. A student is then not administrators and teachers are eligible to receive the IB diploma; under no illusion that cheating Our teaching and administrative staff however, the student may still receive does not occur. According to have growing concerns around the topic course credit from the school. Moran, it happens all the time in of academic dishonesty at Dexter High In addition, Lund said the IB takes all types of classes: from basicSchool, cheating as seriously, if not more so, level electives to accelerated than the district. When students enter courses such as Advanced the IB program junior year, they and -Kit Moran, principal Placement and International their parents sign an honesty policy. Baccalaureate. “The students are very aware of But three recent cases of our expectations,” she said. academic dishonesty within So why do students feel the need to cheat? Lund said the IB program have left a buzz around the school over a lot of it could be lack of preparation on the part of the cheating, and the consequences of those actions. In an IB History class, for example, multiple students students. “People make bad decisions turned in very similar papers to turnitin.com, a website for different reasons,” she said. designed to catch plagiarism. The website’s Similarity “Students don’t start cheating Report flagged the essays, reporting that they contained a as juniors. It’s something that large percentage of plagiarized material, including portions of online articles copied and pasted into the papers without is developed over time and is on-going. Also, students don’t citation. In the IB Film class one student paid $60 to another always plan their time well, and student to write an internal assessment, the name the IB they think they can get away with gives to an assignment evaluated by the student’s IB teacher. cheating.” Furthermore, Lund said that When another student in this class reported the two the concept of cheating may colluding students to the IB teacher, the student who was be different when comparing a being paid to write the paper sent the student who turned teacher’s perspective to that of a the two students in a message via Facebook that contained student’s. For example, a student a threat. The student who sent the threat was suspended. A third incident took place in an IB math class. When might not think that copying a there was a substitute teacher on the day of a test review, one friend’s homework assignment student looked into the teacher’s desk under the pretense of is cheating, but most teachers do finding the answer key to the review; however, said student consider it as such. English department chair and found the answer key to the test instead, took a picture of IB Film teacher Debora Marsh said it and sent it to another student. This student, in turn, sent there is also a significant amount the picture to multiple other students. of pressure on students because of These incidents were confirmed by four sources with the high value that the community first-hand knowledge of the events with the agreement The of Dexter places on getting good Squall not use their names because they fear reprisals from those involved. The Squall received additional confirmation grades. Marsh said she thinks this may be contributing to the overall

Kait Eekhoff

“

dexterglass.com

Handmade! jewelry!at!the!! Dexter!Farmer’s! Market!and! Dexter!Picture! Frame!Shop!

academic dishonesty in the high school. Along with this, the value that students place upon assignments and assessments also plays a role, according to Marsh. She said if students do not find importance in an assignment, then they are less likely to complete it, but because society puts an emphasis on good grades, she said students are more likely to cheat to attain the value of the grade. And Moran said today’s technology makes cheating easier than ever too. “With all the modern technologies like copying and pasting and taking photos on cell phones, it’s so much easier for students to cheat,” he said. Despite the increasing ease of cheating, administrators and teachers alike say that does not diminish the severity of the offense. “Many kids don’t understand how serious cheating is,” Lund said. “You can get kicked out of college for it, and there are severe consequences for cheating or plagiarism in the workplace.” Marsh, speaking from the point of view of the department chairs, agrees. “We know students who have been expelled from colleges because of cheating,” Marsh said. “And we know that cheating can lead to behaviors that won’t make them successful in the future.”

Thursday, May 22, 2014 The Squall News 5 And Marsh said some responsibility for student cheating lies with a teaching staff who doesn’t want to make waves. When students are written up for cheating, for example, counselors are required to make note of it on the Common Application, letting colleges know of the student’s academic behavior, but Marsh said teachers often don’t want to jeopardize students’ chances of getting into to college or risk parent anger or threats of lawsuits for doing so. “We teachers are reluctant to claim that a student is a cheater because that label is so damaging, and we want our students to have the best benefits going into their future,” Marsh said. This leads to a dilemma for the administration according to Moran. Cheating is a difficult problem to deal with because students must be caught first. Then, once and if a teacher catches a student cheating, it is up to the teacher’s discretion if it should be reported to the administration. This means, Moran said, that he has very little way of knowing if the cheating is an isolated incident or an actual problem. But on Monday, March 17 that changed. With one announcement, administrators seemed to acknowledge that cheating is a problem at Dexter High School. Students set down their pencils and papers. Voices quieted. Eyes turned up to the loudspeakers. Moran’s voice spoke out, quiet, hesitant and disappointed. “Our teaching and administrative staff have growing concerns around the topic of academic dishonesty at Dexter High School,” he announced to the whole school over the P.A. “We would like to take this opportunity to emphasize to all that we do not expect our students to engage in any forms of academic dishonesty or cheating.” Moran also sent out an email to parents, encouraging conversation between parents and children on the topic of academic dishonesty. These actions were prompted by a department chair meeting on March 11, where department chairs, including Marsh, requested that Moran talk to students about cheating, partially because of the incidents of academic dishonesty within the IB classes. “(The department chairs) believe that cheating at Dexter has become out of control,” Marsh said. “Students are cheating all the time. From copying homework before a class

to looking over at someone’s paper while testing or worse. Kids have been doing work for each other and turning it in as their own work; kids have been taking tests from teacher’s desks and sharing the answers. It really has gotten bad, and it doesn’t seem like students think cheating is wrong. We are all very concerned about that fact.” For Marsh what Moran did was a good start, but she wanted even more emphasis on the seriousness of cheating. She said, “I wanted Moran to put the fear of God into kids, but the problem is he is such a nice man.” For his part Moran admits he does not like to address issues in mass because not all students cheat, which he said might be why his message didn’t sound as forceful as Marsh wanted it to be. “I didn’t want to punish everyone for something a few did,” he said. “It’s easier to talk about and address such problems on an individual level.” Although he said that he hopes students listened to his announcement and took it seriously, he also said it saddens him when students cheat because he has such a high regard for the students at Dexter High School. For Superintendent Chris Timmis, though, the way to prevent cheating lies in the move towards a more authentic learning model where students cannot simply regurgitate facts and instead must use creativity to solve real-world problems. In addition, Timmis hopes that schools will begin to equip students for dealing with stress and pressure in ethical ways and use incidents of cheating as a learning experience for students. “A person’s true character is found in tough positions,” Timmis said. “Everyone makes mistakes, but it is our job (as teachers and administration) to teach with experiences, helping students learn from their mistakes.”

Statis ti cheat cs show th ing am at schoo o l stud ng high ents h dram at a 50 ye ically duri s risen ng th ars. e pas t Toda y, bet ween perce 75 n surve t of colleg and 98 e stud yed e ach y ents havin ea g schoo cheated i r report n hig l. h Math a cours nd Science es in are th w most often hich cheat e ing occur s.

Photo Illustration Credit: Katie Vontom

34%

Cheating by the numbers

of students admitted to cheating on multiple tests.

82%

51%

of high school students did not believe cheating was wrong.

of college alums admitted to engaging in cheating as undergrads.

95%

of high school students who cheated said they had not been detected.

1 in 3 students use the Internet to plagiarize

Source: the American Psychological Association, caveon.com and Stanford.edu

Thursday, May 22, 2014 The Squall Farewell 6

Our fondest farewell

Cameron LaFontaine and Levi Kipke Co-editors-in-chief

It’s been a long four years. No, scratch that. It’s been a long 12 years. Yeah, 12 whole years. Which means we’re at least as mature as 12-year-olds, right? In reality, though, we’re more than ready to move on. Heck, we feel like we’ve been

1 2

Freshmen.

3 4 5

The sweet scent of B.O. in the middle stairwell. The left side of the hallway. Most importantly, though, we’ll miss those who insist on walking the wrong way, blissfully unaware of their stupidity as they cause traffic flow troubles and hallway hold-ups.

Dewey Scott’s math tests.

The homework that hangs over our heads, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 4 weeks a month, 12 months a year. It doesn’t end.

6 7 8 9 10

The drinking fountain water pressure.

Manure in April. While we’re testing with the windows open, our nostrils are assaulted with the stench of fresh cow pies.

That, “Oh poop we have a quiz today?” moment that we seem to have had at least twice a week.

The locker room gangsters. They’re always there, just eyeing the innocent gym class. Waiting, plotting. Figuring out the best way to break into lockers after everyone leaves. Oh, we know them. We know them too well.

Super accurate “Dexter Confessions” social media accounts.

ready for years. But we know that we’re truly prepared, right now, to go to college, because it’s been three weeks since either of us has done laundry and twice that since we’ve brushed our teeth. After thinking about it for many long hours, we’ve compiled a list of the most essential parts of high school. These are the things that we will miss most as we’re lying in our dorm room beds next year, watching Netflix and rejoicing in the bliss of not having teachers tell us when we can and cannot go to the bathroom.

11 12 13 14 15

The no-food policy in the library. Oh, wait, our bad. They insist we call it “The Learning Commons.” The nasty lunch table residue left behind by A and B lunches. Thanks guys, C lunch children don’t matter anyway.

The humidity in the locker rooms during monsoon season.

Eye contact. With other guys. While using the urinal.

Jason Miller’s voluptuous beard and teddy bear hugs.

16 17 18 19 20

The wi-fi that always connects quickly and easily no matter where in the school we happen to be.

Those annoying newspaper kids.

Losing your pencil everytime it falls on the floor.

Passing time on Fridays. We’re pretty certain that the person who chooses the songs that play over the loudspeakers is the same guy who DJs at the school dances. Excellent job, sir, excellent job.

Freshmen.

SENIORS Thursday, May 22, 2014 The Squall Infographic 7

This year, seniors have spent

154 days in school

Most have spent 13 years of their lives in school

Most are going to spend another 4 years in college

In the end, thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s about

1/ 5

of the average life

REPORT CARD

SENIORS

Student:

2014

Graduation year:

23.2 ACT

AVERAGE

293

SENIORS

Have participated in 31 clubs & activities throughout high school.

Have played 27 Varsity sports throughout high school and numerous club sports as well.

VS.

19.9 20.9 STATE AVERAGE

3.1 96%

AVERAGE GPA

Have been part of the best student section in the SEC for 17 Home football student sections.

Have completed 6 trimesters and 4 semesters over 4 years of high school.

NATIONAL AVERAGE

VS.

PROJECTED GRADUATION RATE

VS.

3.0 77%

NATIONAL AVERAGE GPA

NATIONAL GRADUATION RATE

FOURTEEN

Thursday, May 22, 2014 The Squall Spread 9

Thursday, May 22, 2014 The Squall Spread 8

IntRoDuciNg THE LAST

4 YEARS

FRESHMAN YEAR

AUG. 19 TROOPS WITHDRAWN FROM IRAQ

[{Of.OUR.TIME.AT.DHS}] IN QUICK

REVIEW

Illustration Credit: Brittany Byma

United States withdraws last combat troops from Iraq after a controversial, seven-year war. The last troops were evacuated two weeks before President Obama set the deadline for full departure. Though the war in Iraq is officially over, U.S. work in Iraq still continues.

DEXTER IMPLEMENTS IB Dexter High School officially becomes a registered IB school, now offering 19 IB classes. The class of 2014 contained the first Dexter students to graduate with an IB Diploma.

Staff Writers

1,353

days have come to pass since the 2014 senior class first set foot in the vast halls of Dexter High School. As the seniors start off the next chapters of their lives, we want to reflect a short while on some of the major events that have changed us during our time as Dreadnaughts. Here is a look back at the most impactful events of the past four years in Dexter and around the world.

OCCUPY WALL STREET PROTEST BEGINS

WE ARE THE

99%

Photo Credit: International Baccalaureate Organisation

MAY 1

OSAMA BIN LADEN KILLED An attack is lead by Navy Seal Team 6 to execute al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden. Exchange student Judith Leclerc had a unique perspective on the event having been in France when it happened. “It was everywhere in Europe. You couldn’t even watch a TV show without hearing about it. In France, many people questioned the morality of his death and thought he should have had a fair trial. Many people in France believe that death is never the answer. I do think it’s good that he was killed, though.” - Judith Leclerc, Exchange student.

AUG.19

SEPT. 4

SEPT. 17

The movement in Zuccotti Park in NYC protesting high social and economic inequality begins. Protesters donned the slogan “We are the 99 percent,” referring to how the majority of the nation’s wealth belonging to 1 percent of the nation’s population.

SWITCH TO SEMESTERS

Photo Credit: Rob Boudon

TIMMIS STARTS AT DEXTER Dr. Chris Timmis takes the helm as the new superintendent of Dexter Community Schools. The former Adrian Schools superintendent was hired by the Dexter Board of Education on June 12 and was signed to a 3-year contract on June 28. Dennis Desmarais was the interim superintendent during the 2012-2013 school year after Mary Marshall left the district for another job.

Dexter begins the school year with a transition to semesters for the 20122013 school year after four years of trimesters, expanding each day to six classes instead of five. While some core classes were extended to full-year courses to provide a more cohesive learning experience, music and AP classes already being taught the entire year were knocked from 72 minutes down to 57.

NOV. 6

OBAMA REELECTED President Barack Obama defeats Republican nominee Mitt Romney 281-191 in the electoral college. Obama ran on the platform advocating better education, affordable health care, and decreased dependence on foreign oil.

MARCH 12

DEXTER HAS 8TH SNOWDAY

DEXTER MENS SWIM AND DIVE TEAM WINS THE DIVISION II STATE CHAMPIONSHIP The mens swim team wins the division two State Championship. This was their first state title in 13 seasons (since 1999). John Eber, Mark Brown, Nate Kilian and Brennan Maisch set a Division 2 finals record on the 200-yard freestyle relay.

Photo Credit: Lawrence Jackson

DEC. 14

SANDY HOOK SCHOOL SHOOTING

Photo Credit: Michael McHugh

MARCH 15 TORNADO HITS DEXTER More than 100 homes are damaged or completely demolished when an F3 tornado strikes town. No deaths or injuries were reported. “I would kind of forget that it had happened, but then I would walk outside and see that houses were just completely missing.” - Senior Zac Skinner

20-year-old Adam Lanza breaks into Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut and opens fire killing twenty children between the ages of six and seven as well as seven adult teachers and principles. The shooting led to nationwide mourning as well as a national debate on gun rights.

MARCH 7

Photo Credit: International Business Times

GIRLS BASKETBALL BUZZER-BEATER Dexter women’s basketball captain Riley McDonald sinks a last-second shot to best Farmington Harrison 37-34 after overcoming an 18-point deficit earlier in the game. The team went on to play in the final four at the Breslin Center in East Lansing where they lost in the state to Grosse Point South 29-48.

APRIL 8

Right Photo Credit: Emily Darrow Above: Photo Credit: Emily Darrow

School is cancelled for the eighth time in the same school year due to inclimate weather. As a result, two additional school days are tacked on to the end of the school year.

Illustration Credit: Brittany Byma

MICHIGAN BASKETBALL TO CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

Photo Credit: Pete Souza

2013-2014

2012-2013

MARCH 10

MARCH

Scott Rogers, Harrison Kane and James Fischer

2011-2012

2010-2011

SENIOR YEAR

JUNIOR YEAR

SOPHOMORE

University of Michigan mens basketball makes it to the final game of the NCAA tournament. Michigan lost the championship game 82-76 to Louisville, despite 17 first half points from backup Michigan point guard Spike Albrecht. Following the defeat, sophomore Trey Burke and junior Tim Hardaway Jr. declared for the

MARCH 21 MICHIGAN’S SAME-SEX MARRIAGE BAN OVERTURNED A federal judge strikes down Michigan’s same-sex marriage ban. The ruling was suspended to be further considered by a federal appeals court, but not before hundreds of couples married during the window while it was legal. This decision comes in a wave of cases across the nation allowing gay marriage within state borders.

JUNE 1

GRADUATION Photo Credit: Adam Glanzman

Thursday, May 22, 2014 The Squall Interactive Spread 10

THE FIVE BY FIVE Eric Eisele Senior

Joe Molloy and Derek Seidl Staff Writers Allison Murphy Senior

Brad Lewis Senior

Savannah Krull Senior

Troy Bolton Wildcat

What are your plans for college? Are you looking forward to college? Bradley University, computer animation. That would be in middle of Illinois. Yeah.

Bowling Green State University. No, I’m not because I’m gonna miss working at McDonald’s so much.

DePaul, cinema studies and digital media. Yeah, obviously!

Attending Michigan State University, and, no, I’m not looking forward to it because I’m gonna be a broke chick.

I’ll be playing basketball for Berkeley University, and, as always, keeping my head in the game.

A flash mob or get everyone to wear bald caps to school.

Releasing sea creatures around the school so they can pinch people.

What if the geeks started break dancing and the jocks started cooking? Shoot I think we did that already.

I’ll miss seeing Mrs. Wells and Howard the Skeleton.

Nothing at all. Wait, jk! The people, all the people

2.) Question What is your best idea for a senior prank? Take all of the desks out into the field and make giant genitalia out of them.

I don’t have a good one. They would just be too inappropriate.

What will you miss most about high school? Not having to pay for it, that free education.

I’m gonna miss all the sweet behinds.

When the entire lunch room erupts into song and impeccable choreography. So basically every day.

What do your parents think about your graduating? I don’t know. They’re just sad to see me growing up so fast. I’m their favorite child.

They’re really hopeful that I do.

They’re devastated because I am the sun that gives them the power to get up in the morning.

They’re losing their number 1 baby sitter.

Not having to deal with the high school parking lot anymore.

All the money. You get free laptops and stuff.

My father’s disappointed I won’t be playing ball for the University of Albuquerque. He just pretended to be cool with it to leave the audience with a sense of satisfaction.

What is the best part about graduation? Not coming back to high school. It’s boring here.

I won’t be a minority anymore.

Either my heart-to-heart with my bro, Chad, or dancing with every single one of my classmates for the last time.

Life. (After high school.)

An opinion by Joe Molloy and Derek Seidl Staff Writers

There is no doubt that high school has become irrelevant in the past few months. My grades started off somewhat strong and naturally started to fall through the floor in the last month of school. To top it all off, it is crazy to think that I am expected to know what I want to do with my life already, because when I take a second and realize that I’m only young once, I acknowledge the genius of Cyndi Lauper: “Girls Just Want to Have Fun.” I’m getting older, but I am not getting any more mature. With maturity comes responsibility, and with responsibility comes stress, and with stress comes a stress reliever, and with a stress reliever comes girls, and with girls come children. I am not ready for children. So naturally, I’m going to remain immature for the rest of my life. In the real world, there are many different options for after I graduate (That is— if I graduate). Join the military, get a job, travel the world, save lives, college. The possibilities are just endless. But to tell you the truth, I only want to do two of those things: travel the world and save lives. Basically I’m going to just do me.

Ten years from now, though, I would like to think that I will have my life in order. I would like to think that I will have a job that pays me a ton of money for a very minimal amount of work. I would hope to have an awesome wife or girlfriend who thinks I look like a mixture of Zac Efron and Dave Franco with a hint of Justin Timberlake in my voice (to serenade my side chick). Knowing myself and my tendencies, though, that’s unlikely. I will probably be on the street corner begging for money with my guitar case open while I perform my impersonation of Leona Lewis’s “Bleeding Love.” So if you see me, please throw some change my way. Regardless, the last thing I want is to come home from work every day and think to myself, “Where did I go wrong?” Lately, in fact, I’ve been waking up in the middle of the night with sweat dripping from my forehead caused by the same reoccurring nightmare. I’m running through a neverending forest in nothing but a Speedo, top hat, monocle and a cane. My outfit resembles the Monopoly Man (except for the Speedo), which is a game that I have never won (I clearly need a wife who can handle money #TrophyHusbandStatus). I can’t help but think that this dream represents my life. But what does it mean? Will I lose in life? Will I ever reach the end of the forest? If I do, will there be a full set of clothes waiting

Illustration Credit: Brittany Byma

for me? Whenever I have it, this dream has me tripping out of my mind for a solid hour. Thankfully, reality finally sets back in and I remember that it’s just a dream. It’s at that point I remind myself that life is whatever I make of it. A dream doesn’t dictate where I will end up in life. I may change the world. I may save lives. But the most monumental thing that leads to having success in life is my Twitter followers. As long as I get that little blue checkmark next to my name as the official “Joe Molloy,” I will know that I have made it.

Thursday, May 22, 2014 The Squall Interactive Spread 11

f b g

Match the teacher

2 Scott

7 Bergen

3 Callaghan

Moran

Marsh

j l

to their

8 Oesch

senior photo

9 Dudash

6 Walls 11Mark 10 Jones

12 Romeo

Answers: 1) k 2) f 3) b 4) l 5) e 6) h 7) a 8) d 9) c 10) i 11) g 12) j

1 McDonnough

Thursday, May 22, 2014 The Squall Opinion 12

Best and worst of the greatest year ever Lauren Kimmel Staff Writer Another year has come to an end. And not just any year. The year. The mothership of all years. The Big Kahuna. The grand finale. Senior year. Many events have made this year one to remember. Records have been shattered, thousands of dollars have been raised for charity, the polar vortex tormented the country for months, prom. Years and years—and I mean years—from now, our kids will be looking up at us, asking us that question—I assume—every parent knows is coming. The question

Record number of snow days

Before the year of 2014, getting a snow day was like getting the first spot in the school parking lot: unheard of. But our new superintendent showed us what we’ve been missing out on during all of our years in Dexter Community Schools. Between Dr. Chris Timmis and the polar vortex, we were unstoppable. Our reactions to picking up the phone and reading the “Dexter Comm” on the landline’s caller ID evolved as well (landline: phone for the household that did not work outside of the house; only callers were grandparents and telemarketers). The first time my family got the call, you would’ve thought Barack Obama himself was calling to give us the news (Barack Obama: the president when your parents were kids). And who could blame us? The curse was broken! The second day, the reaction was a little less overwhelming. It was more like Pitbull was on the phone (Pitbull: the armpit of the music industry circa 2014). Like, is it even worth tweeting about? By the third day after winter break, it might as well have been a telemarketer making the call. What’s that? Another snow day? Hey, it happens, it’s casual.

whose answer will drain away that innocence in their wide eyes ... “What was your senior year like?” Suddenly, all of the memories from this top dog of a year will come washing over you. How does one even begin to describe all that has happened between the months of September 2013 and May 2014? That’s when you can refer back to this page (I suggest you laminate it for preservation purposes). Send them here, where I’ll do the talking for you. I’ll do my best to describe “the good old days” (what your kids will know this year as) in a way that I imagine a child in the year 2030 would understand. This includes providing explanations for today’s technology and phrases.

Prom at the Big House

Photo Credit: Chris Ryan

Dexter High School is a place most seniors associate with B.S. answers for quizzes we didn’t study for and finishing homework assignments the hour before it’s due. Typically it’s not a place we associate with expensive flowers, freshly shaped eyebrows, and floor length gowns we spent more time choosing than we did the college we will be attending in the fall (flowers: prior to the government’s preservation kick, inducing the confiscation of all living organisms, we had these cute little plants we would wear on our wrists or lapels during big events). And sure, when you say “football field” I think of sweaty hulking men, obnoxious fans and overpriced snacks, none of which are very prom-esque... but it’s the Big House! The place where records have been broken, games have been won, and victors have been created. Is my opinion biased? Hail yeah it is. But I think even Sparty himself would admit that this venue change was a huge improvement , and it made for a memorable night. Photo Credit: Savannah Krull

When we maxed out on spots in the parking lot

Near the end of this year’s winter season—so around mid-March—there were massive snow piles that took up two spots in the parking lot near the beginning and end of every row. As time went by, more and more sophomores were getting their licenses, the snow didn’t melt, and most seniors were still actually coming to school (snow: before global warming took a turn for the worse, the temperature would become so cold that rain became these beautiful yet obnoxious little white flakes). These elements created the parking spot drought of 2014. It was mass chaos—like vying for food during a zombie apocalypse (zombie apocalypse: I don’t need to explain this to you, as I’m sure you learned all you need to know from the government-issued informational videos from the zombie apocalypse scare of 2027). It was a great day when Connie came into our fourth hour to give some kid a hard time for parking halfway up a snowbank in a nonexistent spot, then escorting the poor kid out, car keys in hand, head hanging in shame, to move his vehicle (car keys: jingling in pockets, hanging from a lanyard around one’s neck, or taking up space in a junk drawer, car keys were an icon of the ages before all cars were push-to-start). Remember, these were some of the best days of our lives.

Photo Credit: Spencer Vollmers

Thursday, May 22, 2014

Our View: DHS should do more to help all students graduate on time Over the past several years, graduation rates at Dexter High School have been declining. There were 290 students in the class of 2013. Of that total, 266 graduated, meaning there was a 91.72 percent graduation rate. Nevertheless, that class also had the most students in DHS history accepted into the University of Michigan. Therefore, with students not graduating, the graduation rates and other academic statistics are falling, even though many other students are doing well. Because of this, DHS should instill a program that helps struggling students graduate on time, increasing graduation rates to represent the academic standard that DHS strives to achieve. The high school atmosphere presents many struggles for certain individuals. Devoting seven hours a day to six different classes within eight months to learn material that may not be very interesting is a problem for many students. For those struggling on the pathway to graduation, mandatory study sessions should be implemented periodically throughout the week days, aiding students in their studies and assisting them with any questions they have about the material they are learning. A student with two or more grades below 65% at anytime during the semester would have to participate in these study sessions four days a week for the remainder of that semester. A program like this would help ensure passing grades to those who fit into the “off track” category. One could argue that a program such as this is unnecessary for high school. Part of high school is learning the responsibility of balancing academics with various other extra curricular activities that a student takes on during everyday life. To add, extra staff or funding would be need to enforce this type of program. Statistics show that students who drop out of high school are projected to earn a median annual salary of $21,000 dollars, With a high school diploma, however, this average income increases to $30,000 dollars per year. It’s evident that high school graduates have more opportunities after high school than do those who drop out early. For this reason, it would be worth it to spend extra money on a program for failing students. The point of a school is to educate students and help them learn how to succeed in life after

The Squall Editorial 13

What do the editors think? DHS should instill a program that helps those individuals graduate on time, in turn raising DHS’ graduation rates.

DHS is doing things fine and no new programs are needed

Illustration Credit: Brittany Byma

education. Thus, schools should be willing to spend extra money if it means getting students where they need to be for the future. Students who are given more graduate support from faculty and staff will have a much better chance to succeed beyond high school.

What should DHS do to help struggling students graduate on time? “Implement an after school program to help students comprehend the curriculum they need to graduate.”

“I think they should have classes and meetings for kids who don’t graduate to show them their chances for the future.”

Ryan Clements Freshman

Sofia Sokansanj Sophomore

“Special programs should be created to help kids make up classes that they’ve failed.”

Meghan Luoma Junior

“I think we should model ourselves after North Carolina University and have solely paper based classes.” Jonah Hancock Senior

Thursday, May 22, 2014 The Squall Feature 14

d e r a p e r p s r o i n e s Are h g i h r e t f a e f i l for ? l o o sch

Photo Credit: greeblie, Photo Illustration: Sarah Griffith

Thursday, May 22, 2014 The Squall Feature 15 From the University of Michigan and Washtenaw a degree in either education or fire science. Community College to the Naval Academy and Australia, Students the graduating class is taking on new adventures and new Undecided On the opposite end of the spectrum, some students are still deciding. experiences. Here’s a run down of what’s ahead for some Senior Jimmy Messmore’s plans are still in the works. While Messmore has committed to Florida State University, he is uncertain members of the class of 2014. College in Michigan

Living within a 20-minute radius of a college town has its perks. The University of Michigan is a popular choice among Dexter high school students. Based on the information given to the counseling office thus far, sixteen seniors will be attending U of M next year. One of those sixteen is senior Marissa Butler. “I always thought I would end up there,” Butler said. Butler intends to major in Screen Arts and Cultures at U of M. Although this study houses only a small group of students, it has much to offer. “Both my brother and sister are at U of M,” Butler said. “It’s a great school with great sports, too. It has everything I want.” U of M is one of many in-state universities that Dexter students gravitate towards. Another popular choice is Michigan State University, where senior Savannah Krull will be going to school in the fall. “I wanted a big university that was still close to home,” Krull said. Being only an hour away gives Krull the freedom of going to college while still being within a reachable distance of family and friends. This close proximity was one of the deciding factors for Krull in choosing MSU.

if he will actually be attending in the fall. “I’m kind of drawn to the idea of getting a job and living in Chicago for a year,” Messmore said. “I’m going to wait until school gets out to decide.” While the decision deadline for most universities was May 1, senior Parmeda Sokansanj is waiting until May 14 to make her final decision. “I’m going to Depaul University next fall,” Sokansanj said. “I will be studying Communications and Political Science.” Her final decision came between MSU and DePaul. Two radically different schools, according to Sokansanj. “DePaul is in the city of Chicago,” Sokansanj said. “I decided to take the risk and try something new and unfamiliar by moving to the city.” After graduation, counselor Geraldine Holmes believes that every student can find their niche. “It’s all about the best fit for you,” Holmes said. “No matter what you decide it should be somewhere or something you love.”

College Out of State

While many students choose to stay in-state, some take a different path. Senior Graham Northrup will be attending the University of Chicago. “I don’t know what I’m going to study yet,” Northrup said. “It’s a smaller University, but it still offers the tools for ground-breaking research. I’m thinking I might study Applied Mathematics, or something more sciencebased.” No matter what major Northrup chooses, he feels the University of Chicago will provide him with the experience and education he is looking for. “I also applied and was accepted to Kalamazoo College and the University of Michigan,” Northrup said. “I like them both, but I love the city of Chicago.” Another student who has chosen an out-of-state University is senior Amelia Sadler. Sadler applied to thirteen out-of-state colleges, and finally settled on the University of California, Berkeley.