Indoor athletes compete at nationals

Addison Johnson, Trent Mcfarland earn invite to New Balance indoor track and field competitions in Boston

LORIANA MANNINO SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER

New Balance nationals was hosted in Boston, Massachusetts on March 9. Junior Addison Johnson participated in the two mile.

“To get into indoor nationals,” Johnson said, “I ran a 11:22 full two mile and then 11:18 3200 meter to qualify.”

Senior Trent McFarland competed in nationals’ 800 meter race.

“I qualified for nationals by running a sub 1:58 time,” McFarland said.

Nationals has a very different feel than a regular race.

“When I got to the starting line I was nervous,” Johnson said, “but I just tried to remind myself to enjoy the atmosphere and try to be excited about it.”

“At the line I was nervous,” McFarland said. McFarland was in a different atmosphere than usual.

“I was very uncomfortable with the fact that I didn’t recognize anyone,” McFarland said, “and I wasn’t sure how the race would pan out.”

Johnson raced well, considering it was her first national race.

“During my race I didn’t really think anything,” Johnson said. “I just knew it was time to go.”

McFarland had an unusual start.

I moved up very well after being tripped up in the start,” McFarland said, “and I finished well, passing a couple runners in the last 100 meters.

McFarland placed very well in the 800 meter.

“I ran the championship 800 meter and got fifth in my heat,” McFarland said, “34th out of all the 800 meter runners with a time of 1:55.”

Johnson also placed well in the 3200 meter.

“I was third in my heat out of four,” Johnson said, “and I ran 11:31 for the full 2 mile.”

Johnson was really thankful to have supportive teammates.

“Everyone on my team supported me and made time to text me or tell me good luck,” Johnson said. “Everyone supporting me just makes me really happy.”

Before the race, coach Chris Scott gave some advice.

“He told me that I deserve to be there,” Johnson said, “and to have fun and to take it one step at a time and just go for it.”

Scott also made sure to be there for Johnson.

“One of my proudest moments was just that she got to travel and compete at this national competition,” Scott said, “and held her own.” learn in, so upgrades to the HVAC systems would be a major improvement.

Citizens will be voting on whether to pass the 2023 UCS Safety and Success bond proposal on May 2. If we were registered voters, most of our staff would vote in favor of the bond.

The bond proposal, consisting of two parts, would add numerous new features to schools in the Utica Community Schools district, including Utica High. The future plans are broken up into five categories: safety and security, site improvements, remodeling, furniture and equipment, and instructional technology.

One reason a majority of our staff supports the bond proposal is because of safety and security. New features, such as shatterproof glass and upgraded security systems, will benefit school security. Safety at school is extremely important, especially in recent times. Supporters of the proposal believe this is a major reason as to why the bond should be approved.

Arrow Staff Vote

Redesigning the parking lot is also a huge reason as to why most of our staff would vote in favor of the proposal. A lot of our staff drives to and from school and are almost entirely in agreement that the parking lot is a mess and definitely needs to be redesigned. The bond proposal plans on replacing the paving and entirely redoing the parking lot’s layout, as well as potentially improve lighting and security. Most of our staff wholeheartedly supports this decision, as they believe practically no one is a fan of the parking lot’s current setup.

IF YOU COULD, WOULD YOU VOTE FOR THE PROPOSAL?

YES 13 NO 3

Utica is the oldest high school in the district, and some of our staff believes it’s desperately in need of renovations. The bond proposal would renovate science labs and art rooms, improve plumbing and HVAC systems, upgrade the power system, and replace some of the roofing. Improvements would also be made to Swinehart Stadium, such as improving the press box and bleachers. Some of us think improvements like this are both vital and long overdue, and will greatly benefit students in the future.

Utica is extremely unpredictable when it comes to the temperatures inside the classrooms. One classroom could be insanely hot, while another could be freezing cold. These conditions are beyond irritating and are difficult to

A small portion of our staff, however, would not vote to pass the bond proposal. They argue that while it’s nice to get new things for our school, they believe not everything we’d be getting money for is a necessity, and the proposal should have focused on improving other aspects of Utica. They suggest that money should be going toward supplies, for example, rather than making teachers buy their own. Some staff members mentioned that the art program could use some funding, as supplies rely on donations or making the teachers buy them.

All of our staff agrees that Utica needs to be upgraded in some sort of way. Technology and expectations for how schools should be are rapidly changing, and features that were considered “state of the art” years ago are now very outdated. Despite all being in agreement that Utica needs to be improved, we have conflicting views on what those changes should focus on, ranging from a better parking lot to more supplies for teachers.

ILLUSTRATION BY ZOEY LAWRENCE

Perspectives

What do you think is the most important part of the bond proposal?

“I like the site improvements around Swinehart and the parking lot, and I like the upgrade to the plumbing and the HVAC systems because that’s what’s needed most.”

“Improving the area outside Swinehart, because it would look better.”

“I believe creating additional layers of security would be good because I think it’s very important, and it’s a big staple in the world we live in today.”

Brycen Ealy Dominic Paladino Drew Fromm

“I think what would benefit Utica the most would be the safety, security, and site improvements. When you go to events, you notice that we could use serious improvement.”

“From my standpoint, the safety and security factors are going to be the most important.”

Erin Derk Gabriel Aceti