the
Have a Holly-Squally Christmas
Dexter High School 2200 N. Parker Road Dexter, MI 48130
Womens lacrosse
December 17, 2010 Volume XVI Issue 4
Going, going, gone ...
Supporters say a new tenure law would make it easier to get rid of bad teachers but those opposed say there are already ways to make that happen
HOT
Page 5
or
NOT
Christmas Trends
Page 4
Haviland family mourns loss On Nov. 7, Dexter lost another one of its own. Eighth grader Sean Haviland took his own life after losing a battle with depression. The Haviland family, however, is not taking the loss sitting down. The family has started the Sean Haviland Fund at the University of Michigan Depression Center, which allows people to make donations towards depression awareness. “We knew we wanted to do something to leave a legacy, and once we figured out Dexter hasn’t done something (to promote awareness) in the past, we decided to do it,” junior Jake Haviland said. “My parents mostly found it on their own,” he said. According to Haviland, the community’s reaction has been immediate and substantial. “We’ve gotten a lot of donations through people sending cards and there’s an online link to donate to as well.” Sean Haviland is remembered in many different ways.
Continues in the Rostrum, page 2
photo by Nick Byma, photo illustration by Claire Berger
Kaitlin Gotcher
staff writer
Teacher tenure protects teachers from unfair dismissal and that teacher unions defend with an iron fist. But in the middle of November, a new bill was proposed in the state legislature to reform teacher tenure to identify and remove ineffective teachers, according to its supporters. But principal Kit Moran isn’t so sure. “I don’t think it’s time well spent,” Moran said. “There are better things to spend time on.” Tenured teachers are evaluated every three years. This new proposal would mandate evaluations at lest once a year for every teacher. These evaluations would include marking a teacher as effective or ineffective based on student growth on standardized test scores, which counts as 50 percent of the total evaluation. Any tenured teacher marked as ineffective could lose his or her tenure protection, return to a probationary status and could eventually be dismissed. The current teacher tenure law states if a teacher has been a part of a school district for four years, his teaching contract is renewed for the next year, and he receives tenure if the district believes he has the potential to become a good teacher. For their first few years, new teachers have no tenure protection and are year-by-year contract employees until they receive tenure. John Heuser, a first year math teacher, said he feels at a disadvantage because he does not yet have tenure.
“I think non-tenured teachers, especially first year teachers, have a disadvantage because they are the lowest on the scale,” Heuser said. “More cuts have to be made, and we are the first to go.” Heuser said he likes the idea of tenure because it allows the teaching staff to remain stable. “Stability in teaching staff is good for the teachers and students,” he said. However, because the law keeps teachers in the system, it does not assure the quality of teaching and discourages dismissing teachers by an expensive and time-consuming process, according to Moran. He also said this new tenure law would also allow for the firing of principals who do not comply with the law and replace them with ones who could “fix” the building. “(This law) makes the school like a factory,” Moran said, “and school is not a factory.” Since under this new proposal teachers could lose their job based on student test scores, Dexter Education Association president and computer teacher Joe Romeo is concerned. “I believe that teaching is about things more important than tests,” he said. “I do not believe tests are a good measure of student learning.” For 10 years Romeo has been president of the DEA, and has been a teacher at Dexter High School for over 32 years. According to him, many teachers who are covered by tenure do not have students that have easily measurable skills. How would, for example, art teachers, counselors and teachers who have students for only one term be judged under this proposal? Romeo also said it is demotivating for the
facts about tenure • Before teacher tenure laws, teachers could be fired for speaking up, questioning educational practices, or just because an administrator wanted to give the job to a friend. • Starting in New Jersey, tenure law was passed to protect teachers from unfair dismissal. Today, every state has tenure.
teacher to be paid according to how their students perform and is unlikely to produce better teaching. Romeo said, “Good teachers are motivated by their relationships with students, not because they fear getting fired or are trying to increase their paycheck.”
Single-tier busing system runs in to some snags
Ray Carpenter
copy editor
The busing system has undergone multiple transformations in just a couple of years. The most pressing issue is that of budget, according to director of transportation Sean Burton. “In efforts to be more fiscally responsible with the limited amount of money the school receives, we decided (to) implement the changes,” Burton said. “Last year Dexter Community Schools utilized a two-tier busing system. The dual-tier system was working well. However, it was quite expensive to operate.” The change comes after a period of extended stasis. “Dexter had a two-tier bus system for about the last 20 years,” Interim Superintendent Mary Marshall said. “A dual tier system means that the buses make two separate trips to pick-up students. In our case, students in grades 5-12 were picked up and dropped off first, and then the buses would go back on the same roads and pick up and drop off the students in grades K-4.” This inefficiency was the main cause of the need for change in the system, according to Marshall. Starting at the beginning of this year, the district switched to a single-tier system. Designed to maximize the amount of money
saved, the district has changed to a single tier busing system that utilizes a dual hub pickup/drop off point at the campus schools: “Bates, Wylie, Cornerstone, Mill Creek” Burton said. “We have also implemented a Walk Zone by the campus schools and reduced our office staff by two people.” Marshall said that every year, the district files a report about the transportation department’s cost. The state sends back a report comparing their costs to other districts of similar size, and Dexter’s were consistently higher. In order to rectify the problem, the district conducted a study to determine the most cost-effective method of transporting children. “Although we knew that we would need to customize any system the study might suggest, it was a starting point,” Marshall said. “Feedback from public forums and driver feedback led us to the system we ended up implementing.” The changes to the transportation system were necessary to prevent budget cuts to other, more academic programs. Marshall said “Unfortunately, cuts have to be made. As a district, we have tried very hard to keep needed cuts out of the classroom, looking at all non-instructional opportunities to reduce costs. The benefit of the transportation changes is that we were able to direct the
dollars into instructional areas which minimized the reduction in teachers we would have otherwise needed to make.” Junior Carl Drews said he doesn’t think the new bus transportation system is an improvement, citing the extended travel times for an example. “They doubled the time it takes for me to get home for only a mild increase in efficiency,” Drews said. Regardless, Marshall said the change wasn’t easy initially, but the department worked around the clock to communicate with parents what they were trying to do. “I am really proud of their work and their responsiveness to concerns as they were communicated to them,” Marshall says. The school will keep evaluating routing, school start times,and more, according to Marshall. “We are also looking at a more permanent hub solution, most likely behind Wylie,” she said. “By coming up with a permanent hub solution, we can improve the parent pick up and drop off conditions for Wylie.” Overall, Marshall said she was very pleased with the bus drivers’ performances. She said, “I am in awe of their contribution to each child’s school day. They are the first to wish you good morning and the last to see you home, and I know how much that means to them and to me.” photo by Nick Byma
Facebook statuses about the Dec. 13 snow day
Check out
It’s up, running and epic.
ONLINE
“I love winter, I love snow, I love snow days, I love everything!!!” “oh the weather outside is frightful, but the fire is so delightful” “Really wishes it would not be a snow day as she has tests and essays this week, and won’t be there for them thursday and friday. Needs to get the learning done. Unfortunately” “Awoke from a deep slumber at two to find that my house had been moved to the Artic Circle.” “SNOW DAY!” “chelsea is closed. mary marshall, get on the bandwagon”
December holidays that go unappreciated: •Boxing Day •Stuff-your-face-with-cookies day •Kwanzaa •Muharram •Appreciate your loving, gift-giving relatives day •Hug Carl Schimmel day (Dec. 17)
2
NEWS
Friday, December 17, 2010 Interact serves locally
Norovirus breaks out Recently there was an outbreak of Norovirus at a sorority house in Ann Arbor. This caused some concern in Dexter schools due to the proximity to Ann Arbor. Noroviruses are highly contagious viruses that cause gastroenteritis, an inflammation of the lining of the stomach and intestine. This is sometimes called the stomach flu. Symptoms include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal cramping. Some people also experience headache, low grade fever and body aches. Symptoms usually last for 24 to 48 hours. Norovirus is transmitted by eating contaminated food, which is food prepared or handled by another person who is sick. People can also get the virus from touching surfaces or objects like doorknobs contaminated with Norovirus and then touching the mouth. It’s important for people to wash their hands frequently to help prevent the spread of the virus. School nurse Aileen Kernohan said, “Unfortunately, the gatherings and group meals during the holidays provide a perfect opportunity for the Norovirus to spread.”
After meeting on and off throughout the school year last year, the Interact Club gained much -needed support from adviser and media specialist Jeanine Fletcher. In addition to Fletcher, the club now has a core of student leaders and members to carry the club forward. “The Rotary in the village has, for the last five years, volunteered in the library on Tuesdays and Thursdays. This was a huge sacrifice because most don’t have high school students as children, and I just wanted to give back in some way,” Fletcher said. The Interact Club is a service organization and Rotary Interact is the student affiliate of Rotary International, sponsored by the local Dexter Rotary Club. The Rotary Club supports Interact financially and the two clubs also work together on project and fund raising-ideas. People can get involved with Interact by filling out an application and paying a $10 membership fee. Meetings are Monday mornings before school, and there is an induction ceremony for every new member..
NEWS briefs
Zingerman’s Chef prepares Thanksgiving lunch In preparation for Thanksgiving, Dexter Food and Nutrition welcomed back local chef Alex Young, chef at Zingerman's Roadhouse On Nov. 17, he prepared a Thanksgiving dinner which included smoked, pastureraised turkey, mashed Michigan potatoes, cornbread stuffing, candied heirloom squash, green bean casserole and pumpkin bread and fruit crisp. Chef Young said he was excited to prepare the meal. “(Dexter's) our home,” he said. “My wife and her parents grew up here and our kids go to Dexter schools. I had a desire to give back.” The meal received good feedback according to Young. “Everyone has their own opinions, but the overall feed back was good,” he said. The meal was served to students for $2.50 while it was available to adults for $3.50.
District sells used equipment
Board searchs for superintendent
Because of the recent instillation of new technology and energy efficient products in all schools, the district held a sale of used equipment at Copeland Theater in the Copeland Administration Building. The equipment consisted of printers, computers and other furnishings. The sale was Dec. 2, from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. Then on Dec. 3, from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m., remaining items were offered at 50 percent off. From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., any remaining items were offered at 90 percent off. All items were believed to be operational at the time of the sale and prices were based on used market values unless marked otherwise. Only cash was accepted as payment on the dates of the sale. As of Dec. 10, the total sales equalled $3,387.05. As for the items that were not sold during the sale, those items will be posted in the for sale section on the district website for anyone to purchase.
The district is in search of a new superintendent. According to the criteria on the Dexter Schools website, the district is in search for someone who is qualified with an appropriate masters degree and who is willing to make a long term commitment of service of the Dexter community. Dexter finds themselves in need after former superintendent Rob Glass switched districts to Bloomfield Hills. A recent review of the criteria for the position has been completed and will be available for viewing shortly according to board president Larry Cobler. Applicants will begin to be reviewed in the new year. “At the beginning of January, we will review applicants and decide what to do at that time,” Cobler said. Interim Supt. Mary Marshall is one of those interested in the position. She said, “I want to help lead this district in any way I can, and definitely have interest in the position.”
Wrong answers won't be deducted for on AP tests Murphy Hansen
Staff Writer
The ritual AP teachers perform every spring while preparing their students for the difficult AP testing that is to come, typically consists of warning the students of the dangers of random guessing. However, the college board announced on Aug. 16 that beginning this May, AP exams will be graded differently. The multiple choice portion of the exams will be scored with no point deductions for incorrect answers. According to the College Board Web site, total score on the multiple-choice section of APs will now be based on the total questions answered correctly, without deductions for mistakes. In previous years, one-fourth of a point was deducted for each wrong answer. Only the scoring for the multiple-choice sections of the AP tests will be changed, other sections of the AP exams, such as the free-response questions and document-based questions, will not be affected. Junior Melissa Vesey was not aware of the one fourth point reduction for incorrect answers but thinks it’s a great idea.
“I didn’t know about these new changes, but I did know about the one fourth deduction for wrong answers from my counselor and because I took the PSAT,” she said. “I don’t know how this could possibly hurt anyone. It will only help students get better grades on AP tests and have less AP related worries or stresses.” AP English teacher Mary Mattner likes the change as well. “I think this is a good change,” Mattner said. “It puts the focus on what students know, reduces the game playing that goes along with such tests and encourages them to tackle all the questions.” Junior Lynn Metz also looks forward to this change being made. “This will definitely be helpful,” Metz said. “It will make the whole process of test taking so much easier. I won’t have to worry about deciding whether or not I am confident enough with my answer to fill it out or if it would be more beneficial to just skip it. With the new test scoring system I won’t have to worry about losing points, only gaining them. I think that it is a very positive change that will benefit most students. It will help improve test scores and take some of the stress out of exam taking.” Junior Emily Pap is among the seemingly endless
supply of people who also like the exam scoring changes. “I think the changes will definitely have a positive impact not only test scores, but also students’ stress level while taking the tests,” Pap said. “I’m one of those people that get really stressed out right before a big test, so knowing that I’ll be judged on answers I get right rather than answers I get wrong makes me feel a whole lot better about the AP tests. I’m content with the change. It undeniably seems like a more logical grading system than the previous method to be quite honest,” Pap said. However, AP Government teacher Cory Bergen knows it’s all up to the students when it comes to their scores on the test. “I have no basis to think it will change our students’ scores appreciably,” he said. “It will allow for more risk-free guessing, but unless you have it narrowed down, random guessing is unlikely to help much. Remember, students are scored by how they perform in comparison to others taking the test - everyone will be guessing more as well.” He added, “I think the College Board is just trying to tweak the exam to make it easier to administrate. I doubt this change will have any significant ramifications.”
photo by Nick Byma, photo illustration by Kelsey Heilman
3
Feature
Friday, December 17, 2010
Mac Miller: A Celebrity's Tribute to a Fan Senior Joey King contacts rapper asking him to do a show in memory of his brother, Nick
Lisa Crompton
Get involved editor
Over Labor Day weekend this summer, sophomore Nick King died in a boating accident. Mac Miller, a well-known rapper from Pittsburgh, was one of King’s favorite musicians. Nick’s older brother, senior Joey King, said Nick had been listening to Miller’s music for about a year and a half. In fact, Nick’s last status on Facebook was the name of Miller’s new album: Kicking Incredibly Dope S---, or KIDS. According to Miller, the album name was inspired by the 1995 movie “Kids,” a drama centered around the life of teenagers living in New York City. Miller said his new album reflects the same crazy lifestyle of the teenagers in the movie. Since Joey was a fan, and he also knew Nick was a fan, Joey contacted Miller to tell him about Nick’s last Facebook status and how much Nick loved his music. “It was a stab in the dark,” King said. “I wanted to see if he’d actually do the show.” Miller responded to the message, saying he was honored his music was something Nick enjoyed. Miller also agreed to King’s request to come to Dexter High School for a charity event in honor of Nick. King said he was in awe of Miller’s acceptance of the idea and quickly began to plan the event. Even though Miller agreed, there is still no guarantee the event will happen. Though, Carla Pizzoli, King’s mom, said, “(I) was hoping after the holidays to get more involved
in talking to his agent and firming up that it could really happen and how much expense would be involved –not sure if the expense would outweigh the profit from it, so there are a lot of things to look at.” Whether the event happens or not, Joey said it has been an extensive planning process to go through before Miller can play at the school. He said his mom has offered to pay for Miller’s travel expenses, which will help a lot. King is also working on getting T-shirts made for the event. He hopes he can have T-shirts to sell at the concert and possibly have Miller do a shirt signing at the end of the show. “We are working on getting together major fundraising ideas for the show so we can break even, such as T-shirts, donations, ticket sales and concessions,” Joey said. “All the money we raise will go to the Nick King Memorial Fund, which will work toward a memorial for Nick.” Pizzoli said, “The intent with the fund right now is to build a pavilion and memorial park next to the DHS soccer fields, since Nick loved soccer. It all really depends on how much money we can raise by spring.” Since the planning for the event is such a long process and the gym is not always available, Joey said he hopes the concert will be in the month of March or April. Pizzoli said she is very excited about the idea of having a charity event for Nick. She said, “I think it would be so great to have this concert in Nick’s honor, and even if we just broke even on it, it would be awesome to do this for Nick and have people know it was for him and in honor of him.”
illustration by Carly Cash
Number of dual enrolled students more than doubles 80 Steve Miller
70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0
2006-2007
2007-2008
2009-2010
2010-2011
graph by Nina Smith based on information provided by the counseling office. Data from 2008-2009 is not available.
Chelsea Orthodontics, P.C. Dr. Mary Barkley, specialist in orthodontics 1305 S. Main St, Chelsea 734-475-9143
Do you love your smile?
Feature editor
Senior Brandon Pederson has chosen to dual enroll at Washtenaw Community College for a trimester to get a college credit. “It’s an easy was to get quick credits,” he said. And Pederson isn’t alone. According to figures supplied by the counseling office, the number of students dual enrolled this trimester has risen to 74, more than double last year’s number. Pederson has chose to dual enroll because it’s easy and quick, but counselor Craig Rafail said other students dual enroll for the financial reasons. “You get a college credit,” Rafail said. “That saves you money. Once you get those credits, colleges see you went out of your way to get them.” Dual enrollment is an option for students who are looking to over achieve in high school and set a good foundation for college according to Rafail. And he said he encourages students to dual enroll. “Yeah, I think it’s a good idea for students to get ahead,” he said. In fact, many students who are mature will choose to do this instead of deal with the drama of high school he said. However dual enrollment is not for everyone, such as junior Lindsay Green. “I thought it was going to be fun, but it wasn’t a personable class,” she said about her experiences dual
enrolling at Washtenaw Community College. “I didn’t like the people that were in the class. They were kind of creepy.” In addition to dual enrollment, the consortium program • Pederson is another option for students who want to try something beyond a regular class. Junior Greg Katcher is taking a Marketing class through consortium and says it is a good way to prepare for actual life beyond Dexter. “The downside of consortium is it does not give you any college credit, but it can help you get out of high school,” he said. But one of the best things about dual enrollment is, like consortium, it comes at no cost to the student participating. Since classes at WCC are normally around $300 per credit. This saves the student over $900 per year if they take one class per trimester for the whole year. This year there are double the students dual enrolled this year compared to last year. Students are talking around 74 classes at WCC, compared to around 40 in previous years, mainly because of scheduling problems. Counselor Gerry Holmes said, “The trimester schedule hasn’t worked great for giving students what they want.”
Value has never looked more attractive!
Proud to be a contributing sponsor of the Dexter Dreadnaughts!
Haircuts • Styles • Homecoming & Prom Up-Dos
Dexter Plaza - next to Busch’s
426-6466
4699 East Loch Alpine Drive Ann Arbor, MI 48103 (734) 426-4693
NOW OPEN TO THE PUBLIC!
5 dollars off any Entree with this ad
Open 7 days a week
4
Entertainment Nicole Minzey
Friday, December 17, 2010 entertainment Editor
H ot O r
Christmas LightsDon’t be that one house on the street that doesn’t put up Christmas lights. They’re a fun and festive way to show your Christmas spirits. Take them down when the season is done though. They are no longer trendy in April.
Community ServiceChristmas is a time for both giving and getting, so take this time to give to those who are less fortunate. Volunteer at a soup kitchen, shovel someone’s snow who can’t or just help an old lady cross the street. Do something. Don’t be a Scrooge.
Christmas SweatersThis is the one time of the year that you can wear a hideous sweater with a reindeer sewn on it and call it trendy. Take advantage of it. They’re warm and cozy.
N ot Sitting on Santa’s LapThis may have been cute when you were five, but at this point it’s a bit inappropriate. Sitting on a middle-aged man who works in the mall is a sketch. Stay away. He probably smells like beef and cheese.
Blow up inflatablesWhile Christmas lights are a must, blow up inflatables are a step too far. They are tacky.
Photo by ronnie44052 / used by permission
with a creative commons lisence CarolingAs much as you think you are spreading Christmas spirit by bombarding strangers with your singing, you aren’t. No one wants their evening interrupted to open their door to a large group of singing people who probably aren’t very good.
Photos by Claire Berger, Taylor Garcia and Bethany Martini
Staff Wishlist Claire Berger
Nick Byma
Emily Darrow
LIsa Crompton
Ray Carpenter
Head Design
Photographer
Web Editor
Get Involved Editor
Copy Editor
A Berry Manilow Christmas CD. “Best musician EVER.”
Michael Buble
Canon 7D
“I think I’m on his list too”
“For taking pictures... Duh”
A new Furbee “Coco and I broke up...”
Nicole Minzey “Hot and sassy.”
Students show work at Neutral Zone Sarah Molnar
staff writer
Freshman Amina Vanderhyde likes art because it is an escape. “I mean it sounds like any other cliché, cheesy artist, but it really is true,” Vanderhyde said. “Not everyone is picture perfect and sometimes worries, problems and raw feelings come out in art. Creating art is one way to release emotions. That’s mostly why I like it.” And because they are both into art Vanderhyde and junior Cara Taylor, along with other students, meet together at the Neutral Zone in Ann Arbor. The Neutral Zone was created as a place for young teens to express their artistic abilities, leadership and exchange ideas. It is also a place for students to have their artistic ability recognized among other things. The club was started in 1988, when a group of young teens from Ann Arbor gathered after school and on the weekends to hangout, meet new friends and learn new ideas. For students who are looking to become more artistic, Vanderhyde said the club hosts many different shows, offers classes and helps teens develop more talent on their art work. There are even four different clubs for visual arts. Vanderhyde said, “I do a lot of photography and stuff that is mostly conceptual, and I try to make a viewer relate to a photo on how I feel. They may not understand they are seeing how I feel or what I’m trying to say, but that’s the beauty of it. It’s left to the viewer’s interpretation.” Vanderhyde has been a part of the Neutral Zone since summer when she took a digital photo class and later was invited to be in the Visual Arts Council, where she helps plan the art shows. On Friday, Nov. 19, the Neutral Zone Art Show took place. The show was called “Dreams: A Stumble Into Your Subconscious,” which Visual Arts Coordinator Trevor Stone described as focusing on dream-like and surreal art. “I have not entered any other art shows because I am actually new this year,” Vanderhyde
“
comic by Carly Cash
said. “This was my first. But they have done, I think, maybe four or five before this one.” It was Taylor’s first art show as well. “I had a watercolor symbolism painting displayed,” she said. It was the club’s biggest show yet with 250+ pieces of art, digital video work, jazz, dance performance, industrial music, hip hop, techno and snacks. “At the art show we actually do not win awards,” Vanderhyde said. “It’s all for fun and viewing.” The event was free and a band playing for the whole event. “Not everyone is Recruiters from picture perfect and art colleges also attended for sometimes worries, those who wanted problems and raw to bring their feelings come out portfolio. in art.” “It was pretty -Anima Vanderhyde much the perfect environment for freshman a high school art show, and it was really cool to walk around and see the art work of my friends and of people that I knew, or who were in my art class,” Taylor said. She also said more people should join Neutral Zone. “It’s a really sweet place to just go and hang out and maybe listen to a band if they have one. It’s just like Dexter’s Foggy Bottom, expect finding parking is so much harder,” Taylor said. Vanderhyde agrees. “I would definitely recommend the Neutral Zone to anyone who goes to our school and wants to have a good time,” she said. “Everything there is very free, open and diverse. Everybody there is very accepting, and it is teen-run so it is easy to accommodate yourself. You can sit and do homework there, chill in the recording lab or hang in the art room. It’s a great atmosphere and place to be. Plus they have a ton of classes like cooking, music work shops, photo, screen printing and much more. And if they don’t have a class for you, you can help start one. It’s a great place and everyone should come.”
Expressing themselves : Senior Amber Dostert, sophomore Wiyake-Win Braveheart and junior Mike Spuller hold up their artwork that was displayed in the Neutral Zone Art Show. This was the first time each of them had art displayed in the show.
Photos by Riley Baker
5
Sports
Friday, December 17, 2010
Rec. sports gain popularity among upperclassmen Carl Schimmel
Photos by Deema Yuhasz
Junior Andrew Milkey attempts to pass the ball to his teammates as junior Jordan Sharp goes for the block.
Jedi coach Gary Walls Instructs power forward Sharp.
Jedi forward and junior Bryce Walls braces himself for a pick coming from Sharp during a team scrimmage.
staff writer
Every year students organize themselves into recreational sports teams and get together to compete and hang out. The most common recreational sports for students are soccer and basketball. Teams are usually organized by the students themselves, and that can be one of the problems according to senior Zeeshan Moulvi. Moulvi has helped to organize the senior rec. basketball team, called the Sith. The team has had problems with commitment. “Everyone has different schedules. Practices are hard and money is an issue,” Moulvi said. Gathering an official roster takes a lot of time and effort for Moulvi as well. “(There is) a lot of paperwork that has to be in on time. You have to make sure whoever is playing is on the list,” he said. Another hurdle for rec. ed sports is that many students rely on parents to pay fees and transport them to and from games, so they can’t really agree to play without talking to their parents first. Senior Avery Marvel who
organized a rec. soccer team this year has also had problems. “It’s hard to find everyone during the school day, and not everyone responds to messages on Facebook,” he said. One of the advantages of rec. sports according to Marvel is that it is something to do for the many people who would love to play on a school team but don’t have the time to devote to practices. Rec. sports are less about winning then. As Marvel puts it, they are about having fun with friends and having a good time. Instead of mandatory two-hour a day practices, students can get together and play with their buddies. Moulvi also plays on rec. teams because they are less serious than school teams so he said he enjoys them more. “There is no stress about winning,” he said. One of the major differences between recreational sports and varsity sports is the coach. Moulvi said for a rec. team there is usually no coach or at most there is a parent volunteer. Moulvi likes this because he said he is free to play the way he wants to play. The problem is that sometimes the way people want to play is not
what is best for the team. Eric Skiver who plays for the junior team, the Jedi, has been on teams that have had problems in the past. “Last year the team didn’t try,” Skiver said. “Everyone just tried to take half-court shots.” This year both the seniors and the juniors have organized rec. basketball teams in the same division. The two even chose names to reflect their enmity for each other. According to Moulvi, the juniors basically stand no chance. “They have no talent,” he said. Another player for the Sith, senior Anthony Chislom is not afraid of the Jedi either. He said they are terrible and inquired as to the validity of their roster. “Who do they even have?” Chislom said. Skiver however,defended his teammates saying many of them are go-to guys in the clutch, good distributor and an important assets to the team. He said the seniors are a bunch of nobodies trying to take what we have. The showdown between the two teams is going to be quite intense, Skiver said. He said, “The game should be an epic battle like the clone wars.”
Girls lacrosse becomes official sport Connor Thompson
managing editor
This spring, a new sports team will compete for the maroon and gold: girls lacrosse. Due to the efforts of parents, players and boys team head coach and founder Brian Callanan, the new team has already formed and begun to prepare for the coming season. While a head coach has not been hired, the team has begun practicing with Callanan to learn essential skills and techniques before actual training sessions start in early spring. Callanan has played a role in the creation of the team. Apart from his aid in teaching the girls team basic skills, Callanan was, in fact, the founder of both teams as they are today. “There was already a pre-existing club,” he said. “The kids were just playing lacrosse on their own.”
With Callanan’s help, the school officially recognized first the boys team, followed by the girls. The lacrosse program is continuing to branch out. In addition to the high school varsity and junior varsity squads, a Community Ed boys seventh and eighth grade team was formed last year; Callanan hopes to do the same for the girls team. “For lacrosse, a youth program is extremely essential,” he said. A youth program allows players to learn basic skills essential to the game, one that most children do not play growing up; this is not a problem for other, more mainstream sports such as soccer or basketball. In the meantime, the new team has gathered most of its current recruits from the recently formed field hockey program. “About half of us are from the field hockey team,” junior Emily
Gillis said. “We all wanted to play together; it’s a good way to stay conditioned through the spring.” Before the weather turned icy, the girls practiced with Callanan to prepare for the coming year. Practices generally only covered basic skills, things required for proper training and drills this coming spring. “The practices are hard, but a lot of fun,” Gillis said. “We just keep getting better.” “The team is very athletic, enthusiastic and motivated; they’re willing to learn,” Callanan said. “I’m impressed by those that have attended.” Gillis, however, was unsure of the team’s prospects for this season. “We all hope to do well, we’ll do the best we can,” she said. Said Callanan, “By nature of our philosophy, we will always compete hard, and put a good product on the field.”
Sophomore Megan Flocken cradles the ball during lacrosse practice. Practices usually cover basic skills according to junior Emily Gillis
Flocken and senior Nicole Swisher line up for daily drills. Girls lacrosse is a first-time school sport this year.
Snider clenches varsity assistant coach position Tucker Whitley
photos by Lindsey Gagneau
Basketball coach Randy Swoverland instructs seniors Tyler Dunham and Matt Muchmore
sports editor
The slot was open. The Dreads were in need of a coach. That’s when Brad Snider, a former Dreadnaught basketball player came to the rescue. The Dreadnaught basketball organization, which has shuffled through multiple assistant coaches, including Matt Seidl, and Jeff Ziegler was in need of a new assistant. That’s when head varsity basketball coach Randy Swoverland and Athletic Director, Scott Lucas decided to call up the former junior varsity and freshman basketball assistant, Snider. Swoverland said, “Tim Cain (former junior varsity coach) accepted the JV position at Skyline. Matt Seidl then took our JV position which opened up the varsity assistant position. Brad has done a lot of work with many of these players the past two years. He is a product of our program and knows our system well.” A good pickup? The players think so. “It’s an honor to play with this man,” junior Jacob VanHoof, who played for Snider during Van Hoof’s freshman and sophomore year, said. “He acts like one of us, and the way he plays the game keeps all of us interested in what he has to say. He’s just flat out a good role model.” Van Hoof is among many who say
Snider fits the job perfectly. Even Swoverland seemed excited with the new “pick up,” he said. “Brad has a keen eye for strategy and an excellent grasp of teaching fundamentals. He is also a pretty positive guy and is a well-rounded human being who can keep things in perspective.” Though Snider tends to balance his attention and help out all positions he said, it’s easier for him to focus on the bigs. “The role I chose as a player was to do as many intangibles as possible,” Snider said. “I was the guy that scored 10-12 points, rebounded hard and nobody knew about it. And, while I was a post player, I didn’t have 6’ 9” of talent to throw around on the court. But I try to transfer as much personal knowledge as I have into the boys, and I occasionally see echoes of my style of play. As a player I was an SEC and District champion. Hopefully, I can pass that on to this group.” So Swoverland isn’t the only one excited with the Snider’s move. “I’m very happy with my new spot,” Snider said. “Anytime a coach has an opportunity to coach better or more experienced players, the options available to that coach increase. That’s fun. I love the senior class, and getting to coach them is a great time. That is not to say, however, that
I didn’t enjoy my time with the J.V. or even the Freshmen before that. One of the luxuries our program has is that the coaching staff, regardless of level, is cooperative and open to feedback as a collective unit. So while my responsibilities have changed, the environment has remained fairly consistent.” Snider also said he enjoys sharpening his skills on the side. “I played in a league the last two years in Novi with some former SEC players and some local college players,” he said. Snider said he is becoming much closer with his team. H e s a i d , “This will be my third straight year with the now junior class. “I first was the freshmen assistant coach, then J.V., and now varsity. Believe me, it’s not by design. And while the Facebook requests, WoW invites for triple XP or pestering can get annoying, I wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s a great group.”
•Snider
6
Get Involved
Creekside's Harvest Garden Friday, December 17, 2010
Montero creates a garden for her students to learn nutrition through a hands-on experience
Marne Little
editor-in-chief
While many students learn food and nutrition in a lecture-based classroom, the students at Creekside Intermediate School got the chance to learn in a more hands-on environment. Creekside art teacher Jane Montero is giving her students this chance by creating a garden where students are able to cook and eat what they grow. “We started planning this program last February,” Montero said.“At first, it was just a meeting about having a garden. Then it blossomed into trying to have our own garden and cooking education program based on The Edible Schoolyard in Berkeley, Calif.” Montero visited the Edible Schoolyard Academy in Berkeley, Calif. in hopes of creating her own at Creekside. “I received a Donor Advised Ed. Foundation Grant last May to cover tuition to attend the two-day Edible Schoolyard Academy in Berkeley at King Middle School,” she said. “Attending this event was truly life-changing for me as an educator, parent and adult. I came away with curriculum information, background on how to set up a program like this in Dexter and learned about the organizational systems part of such a huge program.” According to Edible Schoolyard’s mission statement, the program’s goal is to educate students about where their food comes from while creating a more hands-on learning environment. Montero’s goal is for students to see the interconnectedness of environmental factors and food production. With the help of her co-workers, sixth grade teacher Mary Seymour and para-professional Laurel Livingston, the three staff members were able to create a plan for the program. “We met and decided to write a grant application for the cost of one raised bed,” Seymour said. “Our grant request was denied, but that served as a starting point. Word got out that we were starting a garden. Food and Nutrition helped pair us with Alex Young, Zingerman’s head chef and manager, and they helped us by preparing, hosting and organizing a dinner last spring. This event gave us money to complete the four raised beds.” With the help of the grant money and students, Creekside’s garden is already underway. “We have already harvested pumpkins and tomatoes from our four raised beds,” Montero said. “We’re just now starting our flower beds - raised beds. A compost pile is now underway. The raised beds are 4’ x 8’. We grew 17 pumpkins, several tomato plants and basil. Students have been involved in many aspects of this project. From the very beginning, Livingston worked with two special needs students to plant seedlings in our indoor science lab/greenhouse area. They also helped, along with several sixth grade classes, to spread the soil and transplant the seedlings. Recently Mrs. Seymour and Mrs. Livingston have been leading a class of students on clearing the beds and starting a compost pile, along with cleaning and cooking the pumpkins.” Montero said she hopes to base the program on The Edible Schoolyard’s curriculum, where students can learn more than just gardening. “Lessons
are integrated with social studies, specifically related to Ancient Civilizations, which is sixth grade curriculum,” Montero said. “We also hope to integrate lessons with nutrition, science, poetry and art. There’s really no limit, other than time, for what we can teach with our garden and kitchen. Students love coming to work in the garden and kitchen. We have time in the middle of the day when students are in music and lunches are going on for a group of students from all sixth grades to participate. This class is called Go Green.” According to Seymour, the students seem to really enjoy the program and learning about where their food comes from. “Until the recent eat local initiative, most people didn’t really have any idea of how their food got to the store or to a restaurant,” Seymour said. “It seemed that kids would like to find out about food. Those of us in sixth grade love food.” On Oct. 28, Montero and her team hosted a soup dinner at Creekside, serving the produce grown in the Creekside garden. “Our dinner was completely sold out,” Montero said. “(There was a) fantastic turn-out from our community, over 200 people (attended).” Seymour agreed the program and the dinner was a big success. “Students made pumpkin bread using the pumpkins we grew right here at Creekside and was served at the soup supper,” Seymour said. “Many people are supporting this endeavor, and we truly appreciate all of their help. We realized there would be a fair amount of preliminary work to do before getting students involved, (but) the three of us worked on the garden plans, program and updating the kitchen space on and off throughout the summer. It is down right amazing how much has been done, just in the first two months with students involved. The kitchens have basic materials and are organized. We had a successful first harvest and have started a compost area as well as flower beds. Students have baked pumpkin bread, pizza, and applesauce, all from scratch. In doing so, students have had to learn safe paring knife handling, as well as how to follow a recipe, and healthy food prep and food handling practices. Students helped to host our first Soup Supper. Currently we are talking about nutrition and doing some Internet research related to nutrition. ” Although the program takes a lot of work, students are excited to be involved in the garden. “I think the program is very successful,” Livingston said. “Students are excited to learn about how to grow, harvest and prepare food which they will eat.” Although gardening is on hold for the winter, Montero said she hopes to continue the garden every year. “We definitely plan to continue the program and already have plans on expanding the garden outside this year,” she said. “Additionally, it is our goal to have all students at Creekside participate in both the garden and kitchen programs. We’re still very new to this whole idea, and it has taken a lot of planning and extra hours to see this come to fruition. We have to remind ourselves that it took The Edible Schoolyard 14 years to get where they are today.”
Photo by Jane Montero
Scooping the Pumpkin: Sixth grade students Katelyn Niswonger and Kristen Young prepare a Creekside grown pumpkin to make pumpkin bread. The students also learned how to chop up leaves and put them into a raised bed to prepare the soil for crops.
Illustrations by Marne Little
Photo by Jane Montero
Addressing the Class: Zingerman’s Roadhouse Head Chef and Managing Partner Alex Young provided the class with cooking techniques in order for them to prepare for their Soup Supper. Young has also provided his macaroni and cheese and Thanksgiving meal during lunch at the high school.
Photo by Jane Montero
Learning to Cook: Sixth grade student Ben Daugherty prepares a pumpkin to be used in the bread. “Students are excited to learn about how to grow, harvest and prepare food which they will eat,” Livingston said.
8015 Huron Street Dexter, MI 48130 (734) 426-1900
7
Opinion
Friday, December 17, 2010
Squall
The
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Marne Little
MANAGING EDITOR: Conner Thompson
EDITORS DESIGN: Claire Berger NEWS: Kevin Skiver FEATURES: Steven Miller ENTERTAINMENT: Nicole
Minzey
PHOTO: Nicholas Byma SPORTS: Tucker Whitley TRENDS: Sirah Camara uPAGE: Marshall Kellenberger GET INVOLVED: Lisa Crompton
COPY: Ray Carpender WEB: Emily Darrow, Rachel Lomax
DESIGNERS & PHOTOGRAPHERS Riley Baker, Charlotte Becker, Travis Chaffee, Katie Dawson, Leah Drinkard, Lindsey Gagneau, Shannon Gronvall, Justin Juback, Payton Lakey, Bethany Martini, Alison Rossini, Caroline Rossini, Carl Shimmel, Taylor Schmidt, Nina Smith, Nicole Swisher, Christine Wolyniak, Dmitri Yuhasz
MANAGERS ADVERTISEMENT: Kelsey Heilman
STAFF WRITERS Jacob Aliapoulios, Serena Bidwell, Sequoyah BurkeCombs, Natalie Collins, Dan Edwards, Taylor Garcia, Kaitlin Gotcher, Murphy Hansen, Alex Hiner, Brent Kellenberger, Julie Lindemann, Aman-Vir Mandair, Sarah Molnar, Alex Mortensen, Toliver Rogers, Evan Sanford, Jennifer Stirling, Clare Tell, Daniel Whitaker
TWEETER Carl Shimmel
CARTOONIST Carly Cash
ADVISER Rod Satterthwaite
POLICY:
The Squall is distributed monthly to 1,300 students and is estimated to reach 4,786 people with each issue. The Squall is printed by Owosso Argus Press in Owosso, MI and produced by the first and second hour newspaper class.
TALK BACK:
The Squall is an open forum for student expression. It accepts letters to the editor from any and all concerned parties. The Squall reserves the right to screen and/or edit any and all letters for inappropriate content and length. All letters must be signed. Requests to remain anonymous will be considered by the editorial board.
nicole minzey
kevin skiver
Americans waste money
NBA not a real league
entertainment editor
As much as you would like to think you are immune to being swindled by corporate America, you aren’t. Day after day, people in America are convinced to spend massive amounts of money for things that they either don’t need or could find for a lot cheaper. Every day we see dozens of advertisements telling us that one product is better than another that is almost exactly the same. How many times have you gone to the store and thought something along the lines of, “I should buy Bounty paper towels because they’re the quicker picker-upper?” I know I do every time I go to the store. What’s even worse than convincing us that one type of something is the best, is the ability to fool us into buying something trivial we don’t have a use for at all. Silly Bandz are the best example of this. How did we let ourselves be convinced to pay $5 for a pack of shaped rubber bands to wear around our wrists? I know I have upwards of 100 Silly Bandz, and to this day I am disgusted that I surrendered myself to the trend. With Silly Bandz costing just pennies on the dozen to make, the creators of Silly Bandz are making enormous profits off of our stupidity. Even after factoring in packaging and transportation costs, the profit margin is still close to 75 percent. While I let myself fall into the trap of Silly Bandz, one thing I can proudly say I have never owned and will never own are a pair of Ugg boots. I refuse to pay $180 for a pair of boots that are quite frankly, extremely ugly. While many owners of Ugg boots will argue that they wear them for their comfort this is just an
news editor
excuse they use to avoid having to say they buy them for the brand name and because those are the boots they saw their favorite celebrity wearing in last week’s issue of “US Weekly”. What they don’t know is that those celebrities are paid massive amounts of money to walk around in those eyesores, and they get them shipped to their house for free. Going hand-in-hand with the Ugg boot is the Northface trend. When you think fleece jacket, you think Northface. Just like Ugg boots, Northface clothing is overpriced and people will continue to pay for it because they want they want the little half inch logo sewn into their jacket. Being branded is something people will pay good money for. People will pay double for a shirt to have “Hollister” printed across the chest. We have been brainwashed to think that clothes are better quality because they have a moose or an eagle sewn into it. Corporate America has also found a way to take the things we love and turn them into marketing ploys. Take Harry Potter for example. Great books. Good movies. But how much Harry Potter is too much? You can now purchase Harry Potter everything, right down to your underwear. When people start wearing clothing with a fictional character on it, when they wait in line for hours to see that fictional character in a movie and when they would rather read Harry Potter than do homework, we have a problem. The question remains: how much are you willing to pay for the brand name? Will you fall victim to the next bogus trend that corporate America tries to sell you?
Out of the four major sports, the NBA certainly has to be the worst. The NFL is sweet for the hits. The NHL is cool for the fights, and even MLB can have some violence. In the NBA, however, if someone gets touched, it’s immediately broken up. People watch sports for the fights. It’s as simple as that. The most exciting thing I’ve ever seen in the NBA is when Ron Artest tried to kill those drunken Piston fans in Detroit when he was still a Pacer. However, it’s not just violence that defines a sport. Personally, the idea of professional sports seems ridiculous: bunch of kids my age playing a bunch of guys my dad’s age to see who can win and who can make the most money. Relative to professional sports, college will always be better. But even in the pros, other sports at least have some entertainment value. Unfortunately, the NBA isn’t about who’s better. It’s about who’s more famous. One man in the NBA who can drive me up the wall is John Wall. He’s a rookie in the NBA out of Kentucky playing for the Washington Wizards. He hasn’t even come close to proving himself, and he already has a $25 million deal with Reebok. Now he could be out for the season with a foot injury. Maybe it’s from that stupid Dougie he does before every game. Players get paid for not even playing because one stipulation of playing in the NBA is that you’d better have a shoe deal. In the NBA people play for these shoe deals. What would happen if Derek Jeter left for the Red Sox because they offered him $15 more? This is commonplace in the NBA. The only reason Kobe is still a Laker is because they signed the biggest
check. The man that epitomizes the trash that is the NBA, though, is the great LeBron James. He truly is the Brett Favre of basketball, albeit considerably younger. James left the team that drafted him and made him who he is to go to the Miami Heat because Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade were there. The Heat aren’t as hot as people thought them to be, however, so fans are already jumping off that bandwagon. Come playoff time, however, it all goes out the window. Nothing matters any more but the game. Wait, I forgot. This is the NBA. Once again James exemplifies class. After each of his playoff losses, he decided to show his maturity by completely ignoring those who beat him and walking off the court without so much as a handshake. This incident, however, is nothing compared to the actual games. Playoff games are unwatchable because of the fouls. The NBA is the most ticky-tack league ever created. In fact, there has been speculation that the NBA playoffs are rigged. They’re nothing but a show where the teams that go to the championship are pre-picked by the NBA. The league needs ratings, and they know it. The final reason the NBA is a disaster is the gambling. Ever since Tim Donaghy was caught gambling and subsequently fired, it’s been happening but under the table. How else could James draw every foul imaginable, and why else could Bryant shoot a thousand free throws a game. These men dictate games, especially in the playoffs. A solution? Scrap everything in the NBA and start from scratch.
THE all
Squall Call
illustration by Carly Cash
New bus plan creates problems, crowds The wheels seem to be coming off Dexter School’s new bus plan. While the new one-tier bus system does save the district money, it is causing many problems. This new system is causing crowded buses, with some kids sitting three to a seat. Along with the crowded buses, the new bus system has caused all the schools to start at the same time. Younger kids should not be starting at the same time as the older kids. Starting all the schools at the same time also means all ages now ride the same bus together. This can’t be good for the younger children, who are riding with much older kids who could be a bad influence on them. This new system doesn’t seem to work, and none of the kids riding the bus seem to like it. The money saved on the one-tier system is not worth the problems caused. Throughout the day there are only two bus runs, one to pick the kids up in the morning and take them to school, and the other in the afternoon to take kids from school to home. Since there used to be four
runs each day, kids in grades 5-12 would ride the bus first in the morning and also start school earlier. Then, after the buses dropped those kids off at school, they would go back out for another run to pick up kids grades K-4. The bus would pick these younger kids up, then they would start school later than the older kids, usually around 9 a.m. This automatically packs more kids on a bus. Riding the bus when there are a million people on it is never fun for the rider, and it makes it so the driver has more kids to focus on and keep track of while driving the bus. In addition drivers have to find other things to do during the early morning and afternoon hours if they want to make the same money they were making before. School administrators did have good intentions in mind when they decided to change the whole bus system. They are trying to save the district money. Administrators and board of education members have spent the time trying to figure out the best possible way to work this new system and save money at the same time.
But there are other things that could have been done to save the district the money while also keeping the two- tier bus system in place. They seemed to target one area of the district and make all the cuts in that area to try and save the most money. However, there are other areas to cut back on that don’t directly affect students. We would like to see a change back to the old two- tier system. This would fix the problem of the over-crowded buses. It would make it so the little kids didn’t have to ride the bus with the older kids who could possibly be bad influences on them. It would put the school start times back to normal, making it so the younger kids would once again start school later and get out later. And it would also make it so bus drivers don’t have to deal with as many kids at once, letting them focus their attention on the road instead of the things that happen on a crowded bus. While the one-tier busing system was implemented with the best intentions, it doesn’t seem to be working for the students of the district.
8
Photostory
Friday, December 17, 2010
National Honor Society hosts a life-saving event Taylor Garcia
Senior Brandon Hart gives blood for the first time. The whole process took approximately one hour.
Senior Daniel Stefanski and Assistant Principal Mollie Sharrar donates blood. The Red Cross nurses spent the whole day preparing and extracting blood.
Seniors Kailyn Atkinson and Ben Wilson, and custodian Maria Mast sit in line to be checked by the nurses. From this point, blood donors answer questions to make sure they are qualified to give blood.
maybe it was someone like me, but
Staff Writer either way, blood is blood.”
Although many students give blood because of the free food and the chance to escape class for a half hour or more, senior Ben Wilson bases his choice off a simple question. “My mom always gives blood, so I figured why not?” he said. Wilson admits he is far from a noble, self-sacrificial angel when it comes to donating his blood, however. But according to the American Red Cross, the blood that Wilson and hundreds of others donate through mobile community drives truly makes the difference, providing 80 percent of the total source of blood donations. The blood drive that took place Wednesday, Dec. 1 at the high school was Wilson’s fourth. “I’m not afraid of giving blood,” he said. “I always just thought of it as something that you do if you’re healthy and you can. I’ve got more blood than I need. I can spare a pint or two now and then.” Recently Wilson received reaffirmed inspiration to continue to donate. “My grandmother had a heart attack last summer, and she received a blood transfusion,” he said. “I was giving blood before, but that reaffirmed my decision to give. Maybe it was someone who was terrified of giving blood or
Convenience is also a factor that motivates Wilson to donate; however, he intends to continue to do so for as long as he is able. “Yeah, it’ll probably get harder to continue donating just since right now it’s so convenient, but if I can, I will,” he said. According to the American Red Cross, the food provided at every donation location is available in order to ensure a high enough blood sugar level within each donator, but Wilson said it is also a large incentive. “I mean I’d probably do it without the free food, but it’s definitely additional motivation,” he said. “If there’s free food, I’m there.” Due to Wilson’s own personal experience, he encourages students not to hesitate when it comes to securing a time slot in order to donate. “A couple of times ago I was dead last, the last person, so all of the food was gone,” he said. “When I saw the very first time slot was available, I was like, ‘Sure, sign me up!’” In the end, Wilson donates because he along with many others recognize that donating blood is simply the right thing to do. He said, “When people see your sticker, they always act really impressed. Giving blood equals an instant popularity boost.”
The first step of the blood donating process is reading a lengthy packet. Senior Mel Clark reads the packet which is composed of health restrictions and other guidelines for giving blood. Seniors Alex Scharf and Lauren Schoof are the 2010-2011 NHS coordinators for the blood drives. They get all the food for the donors and schedule the workers for the day.
Senior Ben Wilson gets prepped to give blood early in the morning. After incidents with his grandmother, Wilson had an extra incentive to donate this year.
Photos by: Nick Byma Illustration by: Kelsey Heilman and Nick Byma
Seniors Patrick Anderson, Paul Parker, Maggie Grundler, Cara Kovall and Courtney Young get ready to work their shifts. Students completely run the Blood Drive from start to finish. Volunteers help set up, work the drive throughout the day and clean up afterwards.