Nielsen honored at State Capital
School Board discusses new state budget
By Jason Wang Business Manager
By Shine Cho Assoc. News Editor The South Pasadena Unified School District Board of Education discussed the restructuring of school funding in Governor Jerry Brown’s 2013-2014 proposed budget during the February 19 meeting. According to the proposal, Governor Brown introduced the “Local Control Funding Formula” to change how California funds its schools. The state government would provide approximately 35 percent more funding to each school district, roughly $2,400 per student. The current state budget structure accommodates a revenue limit per student and other categorical funds. The new structure would take the place of the revenue limit per student with a base funding per student. The section of the categorical funds would be replaced by a supplementary grant for career technology education, a fund for free and reduced meals and English learners, and education for grades K-3. Visit tigernewspaper.com for more information.
Rachael Garner
Asst. Supt. Dr. Scott Price explained proposed restructured school funding at the Feb. 19 meeting.
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KICK BLOCK Sophomore Kevin Chen performs simulated fights and breaks boards with seven other MA Extreme Black Belts during the 2013 Talent Show on February 19. See Pages 6 and 7 for more.
Students compete in annual Talent Show Kelsey Hess Senior Staff Writer The 2013 Talent Show featured ten acts ranging from dances to musical performances to martial arts on February 19. Twenty-five groups originally auditioned for the show on February 4 and 5. A group of ASB judges ranked the auditions based on their levels of entertainment and creativity, then selected the ten highest-scoring acts to perform. “This year, my goal was to encourage a wide variety of talents to come and audition,” Commissioner of Assemblies senior Nick O’Brien said. “As a result, the crowd was very involved, and we definitely ended with a bang.” Junior Sam Chen com-
Academic Decathlon earns seventy medals in competition By Jordan Xiao Staff Writer In its first year of competition, the South Pasadena Academic Decathlon team was named Division Champions of the Los Angeles County competition and was two places away from qualifying for the California State level. Individual decathletes earned a total of seventy medals in their competition on January 26 and February 2 in categories such as speech, economics, social science, and mathematics. The SPHS team earned the Rookie School of the Year Award and a trophy for first place in the Super Quiz event, which were presented to the team at the Los Angeles County Office of Education banquet in Montebello on February 13.
Despite beginning practice sessions much later than most schools, South Pasadena decathletes earned all but one out of nine medals for overall scoring in Division III. Sophomores Glenda Chen and Elise Matsusaka also earned medals in each of the ten individual events. “Next year we will be in Division I, which will be much more competitive, but I’m sure our students will step up to the challenge,” faculty advisor Mr. Oliver Valcorza said. “I’m hoping to advise a more competitive program next year.” The awards banquet marked the end of the competitive year for the decathletes. “I’m so proud of what the team has accomplished in its very first year, and I can’t wait for next season,” decathlon vice president sophomore Brooke Drury said.
posed an original instrumental rendition of Adele’s “Skyfall” by ear by listening to the song on repeat. He performed the piece with three other orchestra members. Junior Annie Kim sang “Gravity” by Sara Bareilles with a piano accompaniment, and senior Diane Kim and seven other students showcased their martial arts skills by performing simulated fights and breaking wood blocks with their fists and feet. “Performing in front of an audience was unlike anything we’ve ever been able to do before,” Kim said. “Since I’m a
senior this year, I just wanted to leave a long-lasting impression [on the students].” Commissioner of Spirit senior Lauren Riley announced GQ nominations between acts, and Commissioner of School and Community senior Isabel Chin and Commissioner of Athletics senior Bryan Bednarski introduced the annual Pennies for Patients fundraiser. ASB’s goal is to raise $7,000 throughout the drive, which began on February 20 and raises money for leukemia and lymphoma research. The official results of the Talent Show will be announced by the end of the week.
Social Studies teacher Ms Maryann Nielsen traveled to Sacramento on February 11 to be recognized by the state as a California Department of Education Teacher of the Year Semifinalist. Nielsen surpassed seventy other K-12 teachers in the Los Angeles region to reach the state-level and received a plaque at an honorary banquet in the state capitol. “I didn’t expect to advance as far as I did,” Nielsen said. “In all honesty, I feel like I was selected to represent the many excellent teachers in the State of California, not just myself as an individual.” Teachers were selected based on a series of essays and an interview conducted by the state selection committee comprised of fellow teachers, administrators, and organization representatives. Committee members also completed on-site visits to evaluate teaching methods and the overall classroom atmosphere. Five of the fourteen teachers who represented their counties at the state level were recognized as California Teachers of the Year. Five more teachers were finalists, an honor given to SPHS science teacher Mr. Paul Groves in 2010. The remaining four teachers, including Nielsen, were named semifinalists. The committee chose individuals who embody a visible passion for teaching and are inspirational for education as a whole.
Carnation sales higher than expected By Jenny Wang Staff Writer Associated Student Body officers and commissioners spread South Pasadena High School love on February 14 by visiting fourth period classes to deliver carnations and personalized messages to students. Over 400 carnations, priced at $2 each, were sold from February 1 to
February 12 during lunch on the Tiger Patio for Valentine’s Day delivery. “The carnation sales are a great way to tell someone, friend or significant other, how you feel about him or her,” senior Patrick Gan said. “It promotes goodwill towards others.” The sophomore class hosted the annual fundraiser. This year’s sales increased by approximately ninety carnations from last year’s
Siria Medina
Senior Vice Pres. Jessica Ng distributes Valentine’s flowers. Senior Amber Laird receives her personalized carnation.
event and exceeded the officers’ expectations of 350 flowers. “We wouldn’t have been successful if we didn’t have students who actually care about each other and are willing to go out of their way to purchase carnations for their friends and loved ones,” Sophomore Class President Jasmine Lee said. The Sophomores Working Activity Team carried out the event, selling carnations at lunch and organizing and assembling the flower grams. “The students really seemed to enjoy being able to send flowers to each other in order to truly demonstrate their appreciation, and so for that reason it was a smart and considerate fundraiser,” SWAT member Hanna Crowley said. “Plus, we sold a lot more flowers than we expected to, so it was really win-win.” The proceeds from the carnation fundraiser will be combined with the funds raised by the over 900 candy cane grams sold in December to make a deposit for the 2014 prom location.