Hajime Miyasaka returns to visit campus By Sofi Goode Feature Editor
Rachael Garner
Queen Lauren Claro headed the Homecoming Court, which also included seniors Erin Chan and Lia Lohr, junior Amber Laird, sophomore Siria Medina, and freshman Grace Wakabayashi.
Rain dampers Homecoming picnic By Christian Miyamae Staff Writer The Homecoming picnic was rushed from the softball field into the SPHS gym due to inclement weather on Friday, November 4. Many school clubs had to adapt to the transition. “At the beginning it was really stressful,” said Commissioner of Clubs Michelle Ozaki. “I think a lot of the clubs had pressure moving because they didn’t know where they had to go. The rain actually brought us together during [the transition] and overall I think it went well, even though it was totally hectic.” The clubs running the inflatable rides fared worse than others, as the attractions were not fully inflated
until later in the picnic and attendance suffered due to the rain; although ASB pays for the attractions, the clubs were unable to meet their fundraising goals. Most clubs were able to bring in more than $100, but many of the clubs in charge of inflatable rides made less. The Hip Hop Club made only $24 while the Christian Campus Fellowship brought in $35. The weather also negatively affected clubs that sold cold food and beverages. The Red Cross Club, which offered boba, raised considerably less than it expected to. “[The rain] lowered our sales by about $100 because people don’t want to buy cold drinks when it’s freezing outside,” said club president Montane Silverman.
Key Club, however, benefited from the rain. “I think we raised more money because the cold weather made people attracted to our warm food,” said Key Club president Tiffany Yin. The club served a variety of Chinese foods, including chow mein, fried rice, and chicken. The picnic featured live music from seniors David Lee, Kelsey Nakamura, Libby Rainey, Audrey Ford, and Ben Hillman. Junior Ashim Shrestha and sophomore Sophie Negrini also performed. “The atmosphere this year [was] different and I think Michelle had to deal with a lot, including the rain, and she worked incredibly well with what she had,” said junior Will Jones.
Seniors apply early By Alex Tranquada Copy Editor While most seniors are resigned to spending the coming weeks sequestered in their rooms writing college essays, those who apply early decision to a particular school can afford to maintain a social life through the month of November. The early decision option allows seniors to submit their application and receive their results up to two months before the school’s normal deadline. Many early decision applications are binding, meaning that if the student is accepted, they must attend the school in question. Early action, an alternative offered by many colleges, offers the accelerated timeframe of an early decision See “Early decision” on Page 2
Katie Whitworth
Schneider, who was re-elected on November 8, spoke at the Wednesday City Council meeting.
Joe and Khubesrian join City Council
By Madison Amido Staff Writer Challengers Bob Joe and Marina Khubesrian and incumbent Richard Schneider were elected to the City Council on November 8. With David Sifuentes retiring and current member Mike Ten finishing sixth, there will be
multiple new faces on the Council. Khubesrian will be the first woman to serve since 2003; she received 1,748 votes. Schneider received 1,745 votes, and Joe came in third with 1,478 votes. Art Salinas finished with 1,056 votes. “The election process was a very humbling experience, but See “Election results” on Page 2
SPHS senior Hajime Miyasaka visited campus yesterday. Miyasaka—who was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig’s disease) last year—arrived on campus at the end of fourth period and stayed through the end of lunch. “He’s wanted to come back since he was released from the hospital,” said senior Nicole Lussier. Lussier is the president of campus club Youth With a Voice, which was founded to help support Miyasaka and his family. Miyasaka was hospitalized in June and not released until October 31, when the school began making plans for his visit. “ASB has been working with his parents and Ms Joan Aguado to make this a reality,” said ASB director Mr. Casey Shotwell. When he arrived on campus, friends and students, some of whom had not seen him since he left school, greeted Miyasaka. Peers brought him cards, letters and CDs, while the
ASB class made posters. Since he arrived home, Miyasaka has been keeping in close contact with his friends. “He can type with his feet,” said Miyasaka’s father, Hiro. “He uses Facebook to talk to his friends… sometimes he even plays Call of Duty.” Miyasaka hopes to stay home for the foreseeable future, staying in contact with his friends through the Internet and taking visitors.
Jennifer Kim
Miyasaka poses with his parents.
SPHS addresses cheating By Libby Rainey Editor-in-Chief Assistant Principal Mr. Jack Smith and SPHS department chairs are working together to address the growing issue of plagiarism. They are analyzing methods of prevention that will better prepare South Pasadena students for both educational standards in college and competence in the workplace. SPHS staff is focused on addressing this ever-changing problem first on a department level and soon with the entire faculty. They will eventually be implementing new techniques both in the classroom and in instruction to steer students away from the temptation of cheating. Smith is focused on educating teachers on the issue of cheating and examining what they can do to deter students from taking the easy, but potentially dangerous, alternative: copying the work of others. “We really need to systematically assess what plagiarism is,” said Smith. The department chairs and Smith are looking into changes in class curricula that will focus more on demonstrating knowledge. These are expected to involve more longterm projects and research-based learning in all subject areas. A long-term curriculum change is not the only preventative tool to which teachers are turning. After discovering a number of pa-
pers taken from online sources for an assignment in AP Government, department chair Ms Maryann Nielsen began using turnitin.com, a site that matches student papers with Internet sites and student work and generates an “originality report.” English teacher Mrs. Kim Kadletz has used turnitin.com for a number of years. “We have to nip [cheating] in the bud at this level,” said Kadletz. She believes it is the responsibility of teachers and parents to take high-school-level cheating seriously, and notes that many colleges have a zero-tolerance or two-strike cheating policy that could ruin students’ chances at educational success. The next steps for the department chairs are unspecific at this point, but Nielsen notes, “We have been dealing with this issue all year. We’ve been looking at several different definitions of cheating and several different policies of different schools.” Among the options being considered is a policy from Arcadia High School. For some advanced courses, students are required to attend school early so all class periods can take exams at the same time and place to avoid the spreading of test information. “The next step is bringing this [issue] to the faculty, and putting a systematic curriculum together regarding cheating and plagiarism,” said Smith.