Feb. 2015
Volume 90
Issue 5
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Gut check: reporting is the right thing to do Morgan Barth Reporter Students are gathering in a circle, cell phones are coming out. At first it is quiet, but the halls get loud. A fight is about to start. There are 25 students about to witness what is going to happen, but by the time a teacher gets there, the fight Photo by Morgan Barth. is over. Someone is hurt, but nobody seems to know By not telling the teacher, what happened. situations could get worse. Students are not coming Speaking out may not be forward about what is something that students happening in the school. Many people are witnessing want to do, but when someone can get hurt, it is negative actions but do their responsibility to do so. not report the incident to “Tell someone, preferably adults, this affects the whole an adult in authority like student body. a teacher, a counselor, an The cameras in our school can only do so much administrator, a police officer or a parent, and to which means that some do this right away,” states TJ matters are in the hands of principal Dr. Plourde. sudents.
Mandatory reporters are the first people that need to know when something inappropriate is happening at school. What has been seen, or showing proof where the event had occurred is important to report. It is then their job to have let the appropriate authorities know. Plourde wants everyone to believe that people working together can tackle
any problem, no matter how difficult. “I strongly encourage you to come forward and challenge all types of evil,” is what Dr. Plourde wants all students to understand. There are consequences for recording something and posting it online, but not reporting it to authorities. In essence, the Good Samaritan Law, or the Accessory Law, states that if
Or follow us on twitter @TJHSJournalism you’re witnessing a criminal act and you’re able to help, but choose not to, then you can still be charged with a misdemeanor. Teachers are encouraging everyone to speak up. This is confidential, but the problem can be handled. It is the student’s responsibility to tell a mandatory reporter what they have witnessed. Find a teacher or administrator you’re comfortable with talking to, and let them know of the situation. “You often know you are doing the right thing when it feels difficult,” concludes Dr. Plourde. “Doing the right thing can be hard, but our school is looking for young people with courage. You can be one of them.”
Attendance
Council Bluffs University a way for teachers to keep learning Adriana Ibarra Reporter When teachers start teaching, do they ever really stop learning? After getting their college diploma, some teachers decide to continue to go to school and get a higher education. And to continue their education, the district now offers an option. Council Bluffs University (CBU) gives the teachers around the district a chance to better their teaching. “One of the real reasons that we started this this year is because we were notified by the teachers that they want to improve,” says Corey Vorthmann, the
Assistant Superintendent. “When the teachers have confidence, it leads to better teaching. “We started the first classes in November of 2014, there is a class available every Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday night for 2-3 hours. They get paid $20/hour for every hour they attend,” said Vorthmann. “There is no requirement. Teachers can choose to attend or not to attend.” Right now there are over 60 classes at CBU and they’re [the administration] always open to requests for more classes. “Bigger and better is our
“They are always finding ways to better their craft. I think we are truly blessed in here to have teachers that are dedicated and continue to improve themselves, their school, and their district.” Dr. Corey Vorthmann
plan. We want to expand the number of offering and move to ‘on-demand’ learning so they will have opportunities through
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online learning 24/7.” “The classes are taught by other teachers and administration,” Vorthmann continued. “The best thing is it allows the people who have the passion to teach others to do so. I think that’s what makes it so special, it’s for Council Bluffs teachers by Council Bluffs teachers.” “Our teachers are always learning, sometimes students don’t always see that”. With CBU, not only can teachers improve their skills, but they help create a better learning environment and education.
Throughout this trimester, students with fantastic attendance have been put into drawings to win a number of great prizes. Now, prizes for the end of the year have been announced and only the students with the best attendance will get a chance to win them. Students with the best attendance at the end of the Tri can win a bike or iPad. Seniors with the best attendance at the end of theTri can win a free class ring or cap & gown. The START class with the best attendance can win a pizza party.
Clothing Drive From February 16th to March 6th, the Jackets Interact Club is hosting a clothing drive for the kids of TJ. There is a drop-off box in room B113 where any type of clothing can be donated.
Photo of Ms. Pick.
ENTERTAINMENT A mood changing YouTuber Kaylin Skillett Reporter
Felix Kjellberg aka PewDiePie (pu-dee-pie) is a 25-year-old, famous YouTuber from Sweden. He has over 34 Million subscribers which he calls his “Bros,” and is also the most well known YouTuber according to the YouTube company. Felix joined YouTube in April of 2010 and gets paid an estimated $4 million a year by the company for making his videos. He has uploaded more than 2,000 YouTube videos throughout the 5 years on YouTube. His Italian girlfriend since 2011, Marzia
Bisognin, is one of his biggest supporters. She also has her own successful YouTube channel and they appear in each other’s videos every once in awhile. When students were asked about his channel, junior Cheyanne Kuiper said she was a fan of PewDiePie. “I love watching PewDiePie, he is so funny. I love when he plays horror games, I laugh so hard it hurts,” said Kuiper. Other students such as seniors Lacie Bascue and BobbieAnn Sellers stated they also find Felix super funny, and he helps to change their mood. He can
Photo of Fe;ox Kjellberg aka PewDiePie.
change their bad days into good days. PewDiePie works hard and due to his dedication, he is succeeding and
making over 34 Million people happy with his highly amusing videos.
Underground Artist Alejandro Vieyra is how I first discovered Copy Editor Melanie, the song catching
Poster for Into the Woods movie.
Movie Review: Into the Woods
Alejandro Vieyra is complete by having Copy Editor everybody involved in the
Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, and Jack and the Beanstalk. These and more fairy tales are just a few that played a big role in the new musical, Into The Woods. The film is about a baker (James Corden) and his wife (Emily Blunt) who fail to have a child because of a curse. Soon a witch comes along and asks them to retrieve certain magical items that will help reverse the curse. Throughout this movie I was amazed of how well they made these stories intertwine into one motion picture. The story line
same plot with one another. Some big names in this movie is actress Anna Kendrick, who played Cinderella. Kendrick has played in popular movies such as Pitch Perfect and Twilight and I really enjoyed her performance in this movie, as I do in others. Another big name in this movie is the three time Oscar nominee, Johnny Depp. He has played big roles in many movies such as Pirates of the Caribbean, Alice in Wonderland, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Even though Depp was not in the movie as
long as I hoped, I did enjoy his performance. Three time Oscar winner, Meryl Streep was also in the movie, and played The Witch. Streep’s history in musicals, such as Mama Mia, helped her do an amazing job in her musical fairytale role. Overall, this movie and the actors’ performances were great and well worth a couple hours of my time. With all the various stories combined to make a magical movie, it ended “happily ever after.” There was no big flaw I can share that would not spoil the movie, so for that I give Into The Woods 4 out of 5 Buzzes.
There are many great underground artists that some people have yet to discover. They are either listening to music on the radio or just not looking for anyone else to listen to. However, there is someone I find really appealing to a certain pool of music lovers; 19 year-old alternative artist Melanie Martinez. Melanie began on the singing competition show The Voice, and although she did not win, Martinez is still growing and continues to receive support from her fans known as “cry babies.” Her song Dollhouse, off her album DollhouseEP was uploaded earlier last year and has already reached 14,000,000 views on YouTube, and counting. Melanie got a big break when her song Carousel was used for the trailer of American Horror Story: Freak Show. This trailer
Photo of Melanie Martinez.
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my attention from the first time I saw the trailer. Her music style is the type of music I usually listen to, which is why she is one of my favorite artists. With her dark, emotional, eccentric style to her music and calm eerie voice. She resembles other well known artists like Marina and the Diamonds or Lana Del Rey. And although I like these other artists and realize Melanie is similar, I like her for her own originality and music. Sometime in Spring, Melanie will be releasing her full album Cry Baby and I plan on buying it. Fans think this will be her breakout album and she will be more known. I hope this year Melanie gets more fans and her music career continues to gain support. In my opinion she is an amazing artist and deserves more fame than she already has.
NEWS
Two years of free community college Ana Aguilar Reporter On January 8th, President Barack Obama proposed America’s College Promise Plan that would make two years of community college free for students who are willing to work hard. Due to only being a plan he will still need the approval of Congress to be able to pass it. The idea would require the federal government to pay 75 percent of tuition and states to pay the rest. If all states signed on to Obama’s plan, an estimated nine million students could benefit. A full-time community college student could save an average of $3,800 in tuition a year. To be able to qualify for the program, students
THE SIGNAL Editor-in-Chief Derrick Johnson Copy Editor Alejandro Vieyra Paginator Angela Gardner Web Content Hannah-Grace Northam Staff Ana Aguilar Morgan Barth Megan Carroll Adriana Ibarra Dylan Montgomery Kaylin Skillett Taylor Stanfill Morgan Wooton Adviser Rob Lindquist Phone: 712-328-6493 Facebook: CBJacketJournalism Twitter:@TJHSJournalism Web: cbjacketjournalism.com
The Signal is a school-sponsored publication of Thomas Jefferson High School 2501 W. Broadway Council Bluffs, Iowa 51501. The Signal’s office is located in room C128. The Signal is printed by OH-K FASTPRINT in Omaha, NE. The Signal is a school-sponsored-publication and therefore recognizes its responsibility to stay within the boundaries that the school administrator sets. The Signal will therefore inform its readers using a high standard of morals and ethics. The Signal encourages readers to respond in the form of letters to the editor, which can be sent to room C128. The Signal’s editorial staff reserves the right to edit the letters for grammatical errors and to remove any profanity. The editors also reserve the right to exclude letters that are false in their statements or accusations. The Signal will not accept advertisements that promote activities illegal to minors. Advertising rates are available upon request.
would have to keep a 2.5 grade point average while in college and make steady progress toward completing their programs. If they do meet the requirements, they would have their tuition paid for. “What I like to do is see the first two years of community college free for students who are willing to work for it,” said President Obama during his speech on the subject. College officials believe that it will impact students in a positive way. They could save a significant amount of money in the beginning and later on if they transfer to a four year college. Officials also believe that if students have the opportunity of getting their tuition paid, more students would go to college.
“It will start making college the next step for most people,” said economics teacher Mrs. Ross. Tennessee is the only state that will start a “free of tuition” community college program of their own this fall. There is hope that the program in Tennessee will show how tuitionfree education can help reduce poverty in society. However, there is a chance that Oregon could consider the idea. Because of the financial burden college brings to young adults, some high school students do not even consider going to college or even apply for scholarships. With this new proposal, Obama aims to make college the norm and help further the nation’s postsecondary education.
Winter Sports Varsity Wrestling Feb. 5th @ Thomas Jefferson H.S Feb. 11th @ Southeast Polk H.S Feb. 14th @ Sioux City North H.S Feb. 18th-21st @ Wells Fargo Arena Boys Varsity Basketball Feb. 6th @ Sioux City East H.S Feb. 10th vs. Tri-Center H.S Feb. 13th @ Sergeant Bluff-Luton H.S Feb. 17th @ Bishop Heelan H.S Girls Varsity Basketball Feb. 6th @ Sioux City East H.S Feb. 9th @ Sergeant Bluff-Luton H.S Feb. 10th vs. Tri-Center H.S Feb. 14th @ Bishop Heelan H.S Varsity Swimming Feb. 7th @ Johnston Summit Pool Feb. 14th @ Marshalltown H.S Varsity Bowling Feb. 5th @ Lightning Bowl Feb. 9th @ Thunderbowl Feb. 17th @ Denison H.S
Jackets Interact Adriana Ibarra Reporter With multiple clubs around TJ, there is sure something for everybody Mrs. Pick in B113 has now introduced a new club: Jackets Interact. Jackets Interact was started as a way to get students involved or engaged in the community. The club is affiliated with the prestigious Centennial Rotary Club, which is made up of educators, bankers, lawyers, etc.
“I saw an opportunity to work with other people to help out our community and in the school, and be there as a support to people in need,” said freshman Jose Soria. “I hope to accomplish great leadership skills and become more of a positive person.” “I joined the club because I want to make someone’s day and help the community,” said freshmen Lexus Wallace. “I hope to accomplish being involved in as many activities I can for freshmen year.”
Adelin Arroyo, Lexus Wallace and Erika Rickards at SuperSaver for J ackets Interact. Photo taken by Megan Pick.
This club will teach students how to carry out service projects, learn about the world, as well as understand the importance of citizenship. “I hope this club will make a positive impact on members to become positive members of our community,” said Pick. “I hope students will
have fun brainstorming projects, developing plans to put ideas into action, and learning more about our community and international communities.” Jackets Interact meets every Thursday in room B113. Email Mrs. Pick at mpick@cbcsd.org for more information.
Sweet treat Morgan Barth Reporter Ingredients
-Strawberries -Canned whipped cream -Chocolate chips -Cherries
Procedure
-Turn your stove on to medium heat. -Dump about 1/2 the bag of chocolate chips into a small pot. -While waiting for the
chocolate to melt, grab a knife to cut a medium sized hole into the top of your strawberries. -After chocolate melts, dump only small amounts of chocolate into a measuring cup. -Fill only half of the strawberry with chocolate. -Take the canned whip creams, and fill the rest of the strawberry. -When finished pull out the cherries and set a cherry on top of the whipped cream. Photo of the Sweet Treat. Taken by Morgan Barth.
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Behind the scenes: SwarmTV Throughout the week, the class organizes their work with brainstorming, interviewing, writing the This year will be the stories, and taking anchor fourth year that the school shots. Some days, the broadcast, SwarmTV, has members are working so been in TJ. However, not hard that they stay after everyone in the school hours to complete the show. knows exactly what the staff “The plan is on Mondays, goes through to produce Tuesdays, Wednesdays, the weekly show. and Thursdays, we plan Members of SwarmTV and record. Thursday and have specific days set out to Friday we edit and do self do certain things to make evaluations,” said SwarmTV the show available for the adviser Mr. Rob Lindquist. student body on Friday. The cast and crew
Megan Carroll Reporter
of SwarmTV do their best to report the most updated news related to TJ. Everyone has learned specific skills in order to perform their roles as anchors, reporters, cameramen, and editors the best they can. “We set up and control teleprompters, help set up lights and the microphone for interviews,” said senior Alex Adams. Show producer, Hannah Dieatrick was inspired to take broadcasting from
Swarm TV cast preping for the show. Photo provided by Broadcasting.
her older sister who was a former SwarmTV member. “I took broadcasting sophomore year and really enjoyed and got to be producer this year,” said
Dieatrick. Although it takes a lot of dedication, the SwarmTV team has a lot of fun making their shows for the school to watch on Fridays.
NEWS Corey wins scholarship #Freethepits Morgan Barth Reporter
Derrick Johnson Editor-in-Chief TJ junior Megan Corey recently won a $1000 scholarship from the Carter Lake Boys and Girls Club. To qualify, she had to make sure to have good grades, a good interview and essay that can be converted into a speech. Corey presented her speech against 12 other people in front family members and friends. Her topic was about how the Boys and Girls Club has helped her overcome many obstacles in her life. Over the years, Corey has become a regular member at the Boys and Girls Club. “People think it’s a lame
Submitted photo of Megan Corey.
place, but really all you have to do is show up and it’s a fun place to hang out with your friends,” said Corey. Along with Corey, TJ alumni Hannah LaVelle competed in the Boys and Girls Club Midlands Youth of the Year contest. “It gives us a great opportunity to gain money for college,” said Corey. “It lets us learn about what other people have been through and it’s a great learning experience”. With this scholarship, Megan hopes to put the $1000 towards a Business or Sociology major at Creighton or Stanford.
New changes to the 2015-2016 school calendar have been made:
Recently, people have been starting to follow the new style of dying their armpit hair in support of the trending hashtag, #Freethepits. #Freethepits began trending on Twitter after a lady had joked with her co-worker saying that she should dye her armpit hair the same color of her hair. The picture went viral less than an hour after it was posted. The picture sparked a movement and many other women started to color their underarm hairs vibrant colors, copying the hashtag, and posting their pictures on Twitter. “I think it’s kind of strange, the idea of having
armpit hair long enough to color it, that is weird,” said IJAG advisor Jay Busby. “If I saw this, I would think that she was creative, but punkish.” Busby was shocked when noticed that it was a trend and that women were actually doing this. He thought it was unusual but he believed that if this happened in school it would go on for a little bit, then brush over. Busby also stated that he would be okay if his kid wanted to do it, but probably not as accepting if his wife tried it out. Although the trend seems to be dying, it had a big effect on people’s opinions. It was different and odd for women to do which proved a by point saying that they are going to do what they want.
2510 N 9th Street Carter Lake, IA 51510
*School will start on August 31st, 2015 *2016 Seniors will graduate June 4th, 2016 *The school year will end on June 7th, 2016
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