February issue

A12: Political feature previewing March primary B1: Snow feature: snow cream, best sled spots

The

B3: Behind the scenes of the musical, Aida

Newsstreak

where every person has a story

Harrisonburg High School • 1001 Garbers Church Road • Harrisonburg, VA 22801 • 540.433.2651 • Volume XIC • Issue 6 • February 29, 2016

Amine breaks school record, going to state tournament Ellie Plass Online Editor-in-Chief

PHOTO COURTESY OF YUSUF ABOUTABL

Senior Abrham Amine has only been running for two years. His track career began when he moved to Harrisonburg his sophomore year of high school, and since then he has broken a school record, competed at the state competition and earned numerous first-place finishes at races.

Before he began running, Amine lived in a country in Africa called Eritrea. He describes what life there was like in a single word: “tough”.

“Once you finish high school, you have to get a certain GPA if you want to go to college. College is free but if you don’t make it you don’t have a chance and you just go [in]to the military,” Amine said. He was preceded in the move by his father, who moved to the U.S. when Amine was seven years old.

“He did the process for us...He moved when I was seven, so I didn’t see him for 10 years,” Amine said. “I don’t know why he moved but he told me when I came here [that] he’s always been wanting to go to Europe, where my [aunt] is, but he didn’t have a chance to go there so he came here.” Despite the efforts of his father, Amine still had trouble adjusting to the different lifestyle here.

The language was the thing that he had the most trouble with, and admits that even now he is “still learning”. He took English classes in Eritrea, but it was mostly

VICTORY. Senior Abrham Amine crosses the finish line in first place at Liberty University, winning the 1000m run. He also won the 1000m run and the 1600m run at a Virginia Tech Invitational this year.

See AMINE page A2

After prom to cost Winter graduation allows 16 to receive diplomas Faith Runnells over $5,000 Print Editor-in-Chief

Abby Hissong Print Managing Editor

With spring right around the corner, prom season is quickly approaching.

While the junior class officers plan the dance part of prom, parents of junior class students are responsible for planning the after prom festivities. Hoping to provide a drug and alcohol free venue for students to have fun after prom, an after prom event is traditionally held at UREC, JMU’s recreation center. Mother of junior Duncan and sophomore Lucie Rutherford, Kim Rutherford is heading the committee of parents planning after prom this year.

“I first became involved this past summer when I realized that as a parent of an upcoming junior, somebody needed to be responsible for collecting the standard $25 from other junior parents at fee day in order to pay for after prom activities and prizes,” Rutherford said.

Since then, Rutherford has reached out to fellow junior class parents, as well as parents who have helped out with the event in the past, for advice on how to proceed with planning. Recently, the committee has decided on a theme as well as some of the activities that will be taking place at the event.

“So far, the committee has only had two meetings, but we are planning to meet at least once a month, if not twice.

We are planning to have a “Wild West” theme, so we’re going to plan our decorations and games around that,” Rutherford said.

As far as activities for after prom go, the planning committee has multiple ideas for the festivities that will take place. With UREC recently undergoing renovation, the space has even more activities available than in the past, including rock climbing, a lazy river, and pool volleyball court.

“We aren’t sure whether or not the pool will be open [at after prom], be.

See AFTER PROM page A2

As an extension of the class of 2015, 16 students walked the graduation stage and received their HHS diploma in January. They have each had different reasons that prevented them from graduating last spring, but they now join the rest of their class as HHS alumni.

“They don’t necessarily feel like they’re a part of the class of 2016 because they’ve been here for four years, so it’s kind of symbolic for them because it’s their own ceremony, away from the class of 2016,” guidance co-directer Lisa Warren said. “We just wanted to take that time to celebrate those 16 kids who met the requirements for graduation in the first semester.”

The graduation is also held in January because many of the graduates plan to at-

See GRADUATION page A2

PHOTO BY MARY STRICKLER

THE WALK YOU’VE BEEN WAITING FOR. Leidy Castillo walks into the auditorium at the beginning of the graduation ceremony on Jan. 30, being cheered on by administration.

Exchange students adjust to American norms Austin Swift Print Editor-in-Chief

PHOTO BY MARY STRICKLER

THE AMERICAN GAME. Exchange student Beatriz Gonzalez with Theresa Eckstein at a JMU womens basketball game. Gonzalez stayed with the family of Michelle Eckstein as part of the Costa Rican exchange program.

Coming up Spring sports preview Spirit week coverage Forensics and debate updates Humans of HHS Downtown art show coverage Book reviews Classes that will change your life Student guest columns Newsstreak scavanger hunt

Three weeks in an unfamiliar country with unfamiliar people - and a lot of food.

Thirteen Costa Ricans came to America through an exchange program, where they spent a week in New York City, a week and a half living with their exchange families in Harrisonburg and three days in Washington D.C. before returning home.

The program runs through their school, which also offers exchange opportunities in France and London, as well as the opportunity to host exchange students.

Senior exchange student Natalia Camacho, who lived with the family of senior Allison and junior Jaci McGranah-

Social Media www.hhsmedia.com @_HHSMedia @StreaksSports @hhsmedia15

an, came for the chance to live on her own. “[I wanted] the experience of living somewhere else and to get away from my parents for a while. That was the main thing that made me want to do it,” Camacho said.

In her brief exposure to American culture, the biggest surprise for Camacho was the food consumption. “[Americans] eat a lot. The amount of food everywhere is just ridiculous,” Camacho said.

“For our age, we don’t have as much liberty, like to go out or hang out or stuff like that, but I think it’s because we can’t drive until we’re 18. But in high school [in Costa Rica] you don’t get as much freedom as you have here.”

The difference in teenage

See EXCHANGE page A2

On the Web Priyanka Bhuta beam routine video Boys basketball photo gallery Extended coverage of print packages Advertising forms and information Breaking news from school and the community Jazz ensemble feature Variety of reviews and blogs Featured photo of the day

February 29, 2016

News-A2

The Newsstreak

Amine is no “primadonna” AMINE from A1 things like the alphabet instead of regular and practical speech. “[Adjusting to Harrisonburg] was hard, especially the language. The language and the school hours are different. We go from 8 [a.m.] to 12 [p.m.] in my county but here [school is] all day long, so I still miss the school hours there,” Amine said.

During his sophomore year, Amine had a lot of success with running for the track and cross country teams.

Track coach Jerry Hertzler has been working with Amine for two years. “[He is] extremely hard working. He is dedicated to the sport [and] dedicated to getting better,” Hertzler said. “[He] trains hard. He’s pretty easy going and he’s got a good sense of humor.”

Among other successes, this year Amine broke a ten minute time for the two mile race in an indoor track meet.

“That’s pretty good,” Amine said.

He also had notable success at the Virginia Tech meet this year. The first time Amine went to this meet, he missed beating the school record in both the 1000 meter and 1600 meter by less than a second.

“I first went [to Virginia Tech] in the beginning of the season. I did some pretty okay times. Then I went back [Jan. 30 and] it was an elite meet. A lot of people from different states, six [or] seven, states [were there],” Amine said. “I did pretty well in the 1000, broke a school record, but it was so hot by the time I ran the 1600, so [that] wasn’t that great. I still ran a pretty decent time.”

Even though Amine wasn’t happy with the 1600 meter time, it was still a fast race.

“For him it was not an extremely fast mile, but an average person there would have been thrilled

with that mile time. He had run faster earlier in the season so that’s why he probably would not be thrilled by that time,” Hertzler said.

Hertzler and Amine went into the second Virginia Tech race with the goal of receiving a fast time.

“Really the sole purpose of going back to Virginia Tech to the premier meet was to set school records. The second time we went down there, [Amine] went out hard, [he] went out with the sole purpose of running a fast time whether that resulted in first place or not. This time he shattered [the record] by 4 seconds,” Hertzler said.

Now, Amine is prepping for the state meet, which will take place at Liberty University on Feb. 26 and 27. He is working hard to overcome the injuries he has, and trains daily with the track team.

“I’ve been training well, preparing myself, strengthening my muscles. I still have injuries, but [I’m] working with the trainer,” Amine said. “It’s the shin splints. I’ve always had them so I’m kind of used to them. I ice them after the race so they’re not bad.”

Amine will face tough competition at the meet, but he knows exactly what he’s up against. He’s most worried about a competitor from Sherando in the 1000m race, as well as a runner from Midlothian High School.

Amine likes knowing what he’s up against.

“It gives me an idea of what I should do and how I should run whatever event that I’m doing strategy wise so [I] can attack. It gives me a good [idea] of how much behind or ahead of someone I am,” Amine said.

Even though Amine is ahead of his teammates as far as times go, he doesn’t let it get to his head.

“There’s no primadonna. He wants to be with them and he’s friends with everybody on the team; guys and girls. I know he’s well-loved by all of them, and he reciprocates that too,” Hertzler said.

Winter graduation held GRADUATION from A1 tend Blue Ridge Community College (BRCC) in the spring semester, and to enroll and continue their education, they have to have their HHS diploma. Leidy Castillo is one of these students who plans to attend BRCC. Right now, she is taking one last Spanish class for college credit.

“When Mr. Eye called my name [to walk across the graduation stage]… It felt so good,” Castillo said. “I cried a lot. Not a lot, but I cried. I was excited.”

The majority of the students had completed all of the classwork required for graduation, but were being held back by an SOL or other test.

“A lot of these kids have taken a test numerous times, and because of a language barrier, they can’t pass the test. It’s not that they don’t know how to do the material, it’s just that the test is causing a barrier,” Warren said.

Castillo was most challenged by an SOL test, as she took the test over five times before finally passing to be able to graduate.

[The SOL] was so hard. [When I passed,] I was excited. I finally passed the test,” Castillo said. Castillo plans to attend Blue Ridge Community College and then transfer to James Madison University.

Although the typical classroom remediation offered at HHS is helpful to many students, Warren had focused on finding different options for these now recently graduated students to be able pass their specific test. “[This year] we offered those kids a class out at Blue Ridge, and they actually enrolled as college students but stayed high school students, and they got a different form of English remediation out there. And it was very successful,” Warren said.

Secretary Lynda Blackwell is another face that had encouraged these new alumni when they needed.

“Ms. Blackwell helped me because when I went to school every day she was standing there with a big smile. Not one day I didn’t see her smile. She motivated me to try harder and push myself to the max,” Dove said. After graduating, Dove now aspires to go to a community college in the fall. “[I] just find paths for the kids to do to get the help that they need, to provide them encouragement. Some of the kids say I super-stalk them when they’re not coming to school,” Warren said. “[I] do whatever it takes to get them to come back and do what they’re supposed to. But mainly, [I am] a cheerleader.”

PHOTOS BY MARY STRICKLER

OPEN UP YOUR STRIDE. Senior Abrham Amine leads the pack in the 1600m at the Conference Meet in Hagerstown, Maryland.

After prom to be held at renovated JMU UREC center AFTER PROM from A1 out to seems eager to contribute to the

cause we would have to hire a lifeguard for the event. However, we are definitely going to have rock climbing as well as tons of other activities,” Rutherford said. “First and foremost, we are getting a money blowing machine that I think students are going to really enjoy.

Other than that, we’re going to have intramural sports, such as dodgeball and indoor soccer, inflatables, a video game room, a photo booth, a candy bar, big prizes, and much more.”

One challenge the parents have faced so far with planning the event is fundraising. They plan on contacting local businesses about donating money for cash blowing machine and prizes towards the event. In addition, a GoFundMe page has been set up for anyone in the community who would like to contribute to the event.

Mother of junior Cade Templeton, Becky Templeton, is involved with the planning committee as well as helping to raise money.

“So far, everyone we have reached

event. JMU has even offered to double whatever we raise as a school, so that is a huge contribution. Other than that, we are going to be reaching out to junior class parents to donate not just their money, but also their time on the night of the event to make sure it runs smoothly,” Templeton said.

The tickets for after prom will be sold alongside prom tickets, but students don’t necessarily have to attend prom to attend after prom. The tickets will be running $5 each to be as affordable to students as possible.

Attendance by any and all upperclassmen is highly encouraged, as the point of the event is to have fun with friends in a safe environment.

“Prom is always a time where young adults are known to make poor decisions, and so we are hoping to provide a venue where they can be with their friends in a safe place, have a great time, and make their prom night a memorable one,” Templeton said.

PHOTOS BY MARY STRICKLER

CELEBRATION. (Above) Graduates sit in front of the stage on Jan. 30 as they listen to the graduation speech given by Jill Hart. (Left) Marlin Glascoe shakes Superintendent Scott Kizner’s hand as he crosses the stage.

Costa Rican exchange students compare countries EXCHANGE from A1 freedom is present in the Costa Rican schools as well.

“You choose your classes, we don’t. I think the biggest [difference] is we are just given the schedule, like ‘this is what you’re going to do. Come to this class at this time, leave this class at this time and take this, this,’” Camacho said. “It’s not optional, you can’t choose anything unless you want to take another math.”

Camacho enjoyed being a part of American culture and education. “[I’ve gotten] the experience of living alone and with other people. It was pretty much a vacation. Getting to know the school system is the part they mainly focus on, [as well as] all the museums,” Camacho said.

The activities she did with her exchange family were thrilling and away from the norm in Costa Rica.

“The things to do at night [are really fun]. We went ice skating, we went roller skating and we went through the drive through, but on top of the car. So yeah, you don’t do that in my country. I wish I had thought about it, but we don’t do that a lot,” Camacho said.

Camacho was the McGranahan’s third exchange student. They hosted David Acuna, another Costa Rican, and Basile Pracca, who was an exchange student from France who stayed for an entire school year with multiple families. Becoming comfortable with the students within the first days of their arrival was the most challenging for those who had a shorter stay. “[Handling the exchange student] was a lot easier with Basile because I already knew him from school because he lived with Bailey Swayne first. Then we became friends and were joking like ‘oh we could live together’ and then we did,” Allison Mc-

Granahan said. “But with David and Natalia it was pretty awkward at first before [we became] friends and it’s just that initial not friends yet [phase] that was awkward.”

Living together significantly helped them become comfortable with each other.

“You’re kind of forced to [befriend them] because you see them every day and you finally start getting used to what they’re like and what they like to do and what their opinions are on things, and then you can start bonding over your similarities,” McGranahan said.

Camacho found interest in the differences in everyday activities of Americans.

“The biggest thing that Natalia was interested in was every time we did something like [getting] random food, or [going] random places we go, like every day life, things that were very different [to her].

I would’ve never expected her to be like

‘Wow this is so strange,’” McGranahan said.

The varied lengths of their stays meant the family had to cram activities into the Costa Rican’s schedules that they could stretch out when with Pracca.

“With Basile, [he and our family] could do [our] normal thing. He wouldn’t even talk sometimes at home because I was doing homework or he was doing something else,” McGranahan said. “But with Natalia we went mini golfing, we went bowling, we went on a hike, we took her everywhere we went. Every single day we’d be doing something.”

McGranahan values the relationships she takes out of the experience, even if she doesn’t have much time to make them.

“You become friends so fast because you’re living with them and it’s just about making connections,” McGranahan said.

February 29, 2016

News-A3

The Newsstreak

First STEM class graduates this June Jackson Hook Sports Editor

PHOTO BY CHRISTA COLE

MARBLE MAYHEM. Seniors AK Koyee and Abner Johnson examine their paper rollercoasters.

“They had to come in under certain budget to build the rollercoaster to do certain things, then they were scored on their rollercoaster about how well it did that, how good it looked, how well it worked, if it met all of those constraints. Then they had to get assigned to someone else’s rollercoaster and modify that rollercoaster using our dweeno technology...they have to unite the four different rollercoasters into one mega rollercoaster...All four rollercoasters have to be integrated together to work as one total rollercoaster,” Jackson said.

Kim ranked nationally as gamer Noah Siderhurst Op-Ed Editor

but not anyone can become good at it. Kim thinks that for him, hard work was the key to his success.

“A lot of times to improve myself when I was just starting out with the game, I would go to custom games to just work on one aspect of the game and then I would build on that and practice another aspect,” Kim said.

However, Engle thinks that there is still a lot of talent involved in Kim’s success.

“In terms of skill level, he’s easily a good 10 times, 20 times better than me,” Engle said. “Just watching him play, everything seems so much better.”

Even with the high level of skill and commitment to the game that Kim has, he is still able to do well both in his academic and social lives.

He is currently taking several AP classes and is involved in robotics.

“I think he balances League [of

Legends] and his social life very well,” Engle said.

However, balancing academics and League of Legends may become With 67 million monthly players harder for Kim soon as he is currentand 27 million daily players, League ly a senior and will be moving on to of Legends, a popular online battle college next year. Despite this, Kim arena game, is the most played onwill not stop playing League of Legline computer game in the world. It ends. On the contrary, he has plans even has its own professional league to continue playing, but now at the much like any other major sports collegiate level. league and is actually recognized by “I’m thinking of getting into the the U.S. government as a sport. collegiate championship when I go Being so popular, there are many to college,” Kim said. people at HHS that play League of As far as playing League of Legends Legends. One of these people, senior full time as his career though, Kim Peter Kim, has been ranked in the top thinks otherwise. Although there are 600 best people in North America. a few side effects of playing too much, “I really enjoy playing upper tier,” such as carpal tunnel syndrome, an Kim said. “I’ve spent like half a year injury affecting the wrists and hands on this game in just hours alone.” and closely linked to computer overAnother player, senior Austin Enuse, the main reason Kim does not gle, who plays with Kim, described see playing full time to be an option, why the game is so fun for so many at least for the moment, is the compeople, including himself. mitment of time “The game and work. itself is unique “[Playing full every time,” Entime] is definitely gle said. a big commitment The compaif you’re in college ny that makes because you still League of Leghave to put in lots ends, Riot, adds of practice just like new aspects 67 million monthly players any sport,” Kim to the game said. f r e q u e n t l y, Gamespy Gamers’ Choice Golden Joystick Award- Best For now, Kim keeping it inFree-to-Play Game 2011 Awards 2009 - Readers’ will continue to teresting for its Choice Choice play at his current players. level which is still This and the very good.

Golden Joystick Award eSports ability to play “Watching PeOnline Game of the Year Game of the Year Award the game with ter it’s like: ‘Wow, I 2010 Nominated 2015 friends explains wish I could be like its popularity, that,’” Engle said.

League of Legends 27 million daily players

Three years ago, HCPS introduced the STEM program to the middle school and high school levels. Now, in 2016, the first class of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math students graduate. Among those students is senior Harrison Chicas. Chicas views STEM as an advantage for getting into the colleges he has applied to.

“A lot of people told me that [STEM] was a great opportunity for me because I have always been in advanced classes and I was told it would be a great thing to put on my college application,” Chicas said.

Chicas, who hopes to attend either Virginia Tech, Virginia Commonwealth University or the University of Virginia, has been satisfied with his STEM experience and wants to build his knowledge of engineering in college and apply his future careers.

“The engineering classes have been good to help teach us a lot of stuff that will benefit in the future.

The best thing is getting all of this hands-on experience and we integrate what we’ve learned into our jobs later in life,” Chicas said.

There are some disad-

vantages to being the first class of students in the STEM program. This is the case for senior Abner Johnson.

“In my first year [in STEM] they were just trying out a lot of stuff, they were figuring out what works and what doesn’t, so I think that now when people go though they will learn from a better system. It’s definitely better now than what we had,” Johnson said.

Although being the first class came with this disadvantage, senior Lauren McKenzie believes many advantages came with it through the trial and error of different experiments.

“We got to do things that didn’t always work and sometimes the failures were more fun than actually getting to do [the experiments],” McKenzie said.

Even though the senior class had the disservice of being the guinea pigs of the program, Johnson believes that the head start will help them in the future.

“I think we definitely got a headstart on all of the experiences we got to do, like methane digesters and all kinds of cool things. I think a lot of other people didn’t get to do things like that, so it is definitely something that helped us out a lot when we were applying for colleges,” Johnson said.

Tutoring gives confidence Angel Hendrix Feature Editor English and AVID teacher, Hannah Bowman-Hrasky is the adviser of the Minority Student Achievement Network (MSAN) club at our school.

MSAN is a national organization which is where the club at our school comes from. They are dedicated to creating equity in school. MSAN has recently started a tutoring program called “Streaks serving Streaks.”

Hrasky went to a conference in Wisconsin in October held by MSAN with Kirk Moyers and six students.

This is where the tutoring program idea originated.

There is a lack of minority students in AP, dual enrollment, and honors courses because minority students feel unsupported. “[They think] they’re going to fail, they’re not confident about it or they don’t see friends like them in those classes. So we wanted to provide that

support for those students and the best [way] we could think of to [do] that was to [start] a peer tutoring program where they can connect to other students like them who are taking honors classes,” Bowman-Hrasky said.

Sophomore, Nyah Jordan has been a part of MSAN since her freshman year. She looks forward to starting the tutoring program because she believes she will also benefit from helping other students.

“Maybe if they have another way of learning I can learn from them and learn from my mistakes, too,” Jordan said.

Students volunteer to help tutor others and can get involved at anytime by talking to Bowman-Hrasky or emailing her. Those who are interested in getting help from a tutor can talk to their teachers to set up an appointment during ELT or academic academy. Under the student tab on the HHS homepage there is a link to a tutor request to fill out.

Bugg retiring after 50 years of coaching runners Ava Reynolds HHS Media Coord.

Gary Bugg is celebrating his 50th year as a track coach. He has coached cross country, indoor track and outdoor track.

Bugg spent his first eight years as a coach at Nelson County High School before moving to Broad Run where he was for two years. Finally Bugg settled at HHS, and has been here for 40 consecutive years.

Bugg’s career didn’t always revolve around running. He was a biology teacher and then an earth science teacher at HHS. After teaching for 23 years, he taught in a full time position and then as a substitute.

Bugg gained his experience for coaching today from running when he was a student. He ran from eighth to twelfth grade as well as two years in college.

“The coaches I worked under early in my coaching career were mentors to me. I still call one of them up and pick his brain if I need to. I watch other coaches, I go to clinics, I use common sense,” Bugg said.

Bugg has found value and reward from coaching throughout his 50 years. One of the most rewarding aspects of his coaching job is just seeing improvements in his individual team members.

“Do you think I would coach 50 years if I didn’t love it? Every kid that improves is its own reward. Getting an 8-minute girl miler down to 7 minutes is just as important and rewarding as getting a 6 minute miler down to 5:25, [which is] a state quality time,” Bugg said.

Bugg claims his coaching mentality is different than his former colleague, Coach David Loughran.

“I hardly subscribe to Coach Loughran’s philosophy of “do every little thing right every day.” In the distances, I believe you must build a base of miles and miles and in technique events learn the basics first, then the details,” Bugg said.

Bugg did not coach for 50 years without having to work through challenges.

One of the things he believes when it comes to coaching and teaching kids is to be himself, and he believes his patience lends itself well to being a coach.

“The challenges of coaching are just like the challenges of teaching. Every kid is different, yet basically every kid is alike.

[I have to] find the common ground [and] be firm, be nice, be fun, be sincere,” Bugg said.

With a 50-year career of coaching under his belt, Bugg is proud of many things.

“I am very proud of the fact that I started the girls cross country program in 1979 and coached it until 2000. I also “invented” the Co-Ed relays in track which is the only such relay in the state of VA because mixing boys and girls is now illegal in VA sports, but we are grandfathered in. And finally, I was honored to be inducted into the Harrisonburg Sports Hall Of Fame last fall. I don’t think it was because of any one thing I did, it’s just that I did it for so darn long,” Bugg said.

After 40 years of teaching Bugg claims there are too many amazing memories to count.

“The 2007 boys state championship was right up there. But it is really all the special kids that make up the memory book…[there are] so many,” Bugg said.

PHOTO BY FAITH RUNNELLS

STILL LOVING IT. Track Coach Gary Bugg will retire from coaching at the end of the 2016 indoor track season. He has specialized in coaching sprinting and hurdling. HHS swept the girls Valley District in hurdles, placing 1st, 2nd and 3rd. The girls track team won the District Title and the Conference Title this year under Bugg’s tenure. Bugg believes some ideals are always necessary while being a coach: “Be nice, be fun, be sincere.”

February 29, 2016 The Harrisonburg High School Newsstreak The Policy The Newsstreak is published by the students of Harrisonburg High School every month. Reproduction of any material from the newspaper is prohibited without the written permission from the editorial board. Advertising rates are available upon request.

It is the policy of the Harrisonburg City Public School Board to comply with all applicable state and federal laws regarding non-discrimination in employment and educational programs and services.

The Harrisonburg High School City Public Schools will not discriminate illegally on the basis of sex, race, religion, national origin, disability or age as to employment or educational programs and activities.

Editorials appearing without a byline represent the majority opinion of the staff, but not necessarily the opinion of the adviser, school administration, or the school system.

Signed editorials are accepted from people on the staff, but are subject to editing according to published guidelines and policies. Editorials may be edited for special reasons.

Letters to the editor are encouraged and must be signed and a telephone number must be given.

Names may be withheld if the editorial board feels there is a just cause.

The Newsstreak reserves the right to edit and may refuse to publish ads or letters deemed inappropriate, libelous, or obscene. Please drop your letter by room 444 or give them to any staff member.

Letters may also be sent to the high school.

The Editors and Staff Editors-in-Chief: Print: Faith Runnells, Austin Swift Online: Ellie Plass Managing Editors: Abby Hissong (print), Garrett Cash (online) and Olivia Comer (online) HHS Media Coordinator: Ava Reynolds Advertising Manager: Joshua Byrd Photographers: Ava Reynolds, Maria Snell-Feikema, David Gamboa-Pena, Brian Alvarado Page Editors: Ava Reynolds, Faith Runnells, Austin Swift, Maria Snell-Feikema, Samantha Little, Hannah Miller, Audrey Knupp, Jackson Hook, Theo Yoder, Lucie Rutherford, Abigail Hissong, Sabrina Gerald, Christa Cole, Noah Siderhurst, Angel Hendrix, Sam Heie, Alexia Munoz-Moctezuma, Irene Liu, Owen Stewart Staff Reporters: Yusuf Aboutabl, Brian Alvarado, Yogesh Aradhey, Alissa Burnette, Kyle Brown, Joshua Byrd, Garrett Cash, Christa Cole, Olivia Comer, Danny Dombrowski, Sarah Earle, David Gamboa, Sabrina Gerald, Sako Haji, Sam Heie, Angel Hendrix, Abigail Hissong, Jackson Hook, Tazhan Jaf, Audrey Knupp, Joshua Lichti, Samantha Little, Irene Liu, Bryan Luna, Owen Marshall, Hannah Miller, Alexia Munoz, Richie Pannell, Nyah Phengsitthy, Ellie Plass, Anna Rath, Doug Ritcher, Keyla Rivera, Christian Rodriguez, Faith Runnells, Lucie Rutherford, Noah Siderhurst, Maria Snell-Feikema, Becky Staton, Owen Stewart, Austin Swift, Emily Thurman, Madison Varner, Theo Yoder, Carrie Yoder Professional Affiliations The Newsstreak participates as a member of several journalistic evaluation services including the Columbia Scholastic Press Association (CSPA-2010 Gold Evaluation and 2005 & 2009 Silver Crown Winner), Quill&Scroll Journalism Honor Society (2012 Gallup Award), National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA) All-American, the Virginia High School League, Inc. Trophy Class Award, and the Southern Interscholastic Press Association All Southern Ranking and 2010 Scroggins Award winner. hhsmedia.com opt out notice: If you do not want to allow your student’s full name or image to appear on the school newspaper site, please send an email to vkibler@harrisonburg. k12.va.us stating: I DO NOT want my son/daughter (place student’s name here) to have his or her name or image published on the new online version of the newspaper, www. hhsmedia.com.

Op-Ed-A4

The Newsstreak

Student involvement in politics critical for the future of our country NEWSSTREAK STAFF EDITORIAL Why should we become involved in politics? Are you interested in higher minimum wage, lower taxes, equal rights for gays and lesbians, making marijuana illegal, or continuing to allow your children to enjoy free education?

According to civicyouth.org, 45% of 18-29 year olds voted in the Presidential Election of 2012, while the turnout for the same group was 51% for the 2008 Presidential Election. To get what we want out of our government, we need to participate in it. And we can start locally.

Knowing what is happening in the world is more important than knowing who posted on Snapchat. As soon as we leave high school, we are met with the real world. Whether you are a fan of the current system and cycle of the American life or not, you have a duty to be informed and voice your opinions about what is a daily occurrence as a citizen.

Here are some of the most popular issues in American politics.

First, LGBT are becoming more well known and gaining support. According to Gallup, in 2015, 60% of Americans now support same-sex marriage. This was as the Supreme Court was ruling whether it was constitutional last May. For or against it, it is becoming a major topic in our country.

Second, marijuana has been very controversial because of its ability to be used medically and because of some states slow legalization. When families use this product in states such as California or Col-

orado, they are in compliance with state law, but breaking federal law. This has caused more of a divide between federal and state governments because of the topic’s significance and the need for patients to acquire this drug legally.

Third, to be able to get free public k-12 education is something we take for granted as well. Sure, you will come across teachers you don’t like, but “free” is a word that we all can agree is pretty good.

According to theguardian.com, in 2010, 70 million children had no education.

That we take for granted what others wish they had is unfortunate, and we need to realize how much we really have.

Fourth, immigration has been a huge topic on the campaign trail for 2016.

Whether to ban a certain ethnicity or to kick them out of the U.S. has been suggested many times. What we decide on this issue, or any of them for that matter, could impact hundreds of thousands of our citizens.

Our lives are impacted so much on what has happened in the past and what must happen in our future. It is our job to clean up what we were left.

Campaigns need to begin to target us, the future of the nation, the citizens who will have to clean up the mistakes of past administrations in order to live in the country that represents us all.

Being passionate about specific issues, such as immigration or legalization of marijuana, also correlates to how involved one wants to be in politics. Whether you are for or against the topics, to stand for your beliefs, you have to be politically aware to project your voice in governmental decisions.

Infographic by Noah Siderhurst

Disney channel popularity declining Abby Hissong Managing Editor

Charming to save the day, the same cannot be said within their television shows. The ability to connect with a character has also been increasingly lost in the For years, Disney has been ability to create original premisthe symbol of innocence, known es. Despite their unique plots, I for masterpieces that transport find it hard to see how a young children to another world. One of person can learn from a talking Disney’s most popular creations dog with a blog. Disney Channel is Disney Channel, which provides has become much more interkids and tweens with their own ested in shows that are marentertainment separate from the Dear Abby 2.0 ketable, rather than those that programs their parents watch. could provide at least some However, there is a point where we type of value in a child’s life. reach the threshold of teenage life in which One of my most vivid memories I have we can no longer be satisfied with Disney’s from elementary school is watching the censored dialogue. Looking now on the Lizzie McGuire episode where she has to shows that occupy the time slots on Disney gather up the courage to ask her mom if channel, it is easy to regard them as childshe will take her bra shopping. As a prepuish and lacking any value. However, this is bescent nine year old, that storyline really perhaps not an effect of our aging minds, struck close to home with me. Throughout but rather Disney’s ultimate downfall in the the episode Lizzie struggles with how to television industry. bring about the question. She goes through Growing up in the early 2000s with various plots that all end in failure, until shows like “Lizzie McGuire,” “Kim Possible,” she just can’t take it any more and ends up and “That’s So Raven,” I was a Disney fanatblurting it out at the worst possible time- in ic. What made these shows intriguing was front of her dad and younger brother. Afnot always a focus on quality humor- it was ter the embarrassing outburst, Lizzie learns the authentic lives of American teenagers the important lesson that the best way to with a twist at times. For example, some communicate with someone is directly, had a secret spy identity or a psychic powbecause keeping feeling pent up always er. Yet, even with these not-so-typical qualends up badly. As a result of this episode, I ities, each episode was still able to morph learned an important lesson in a seemingly a humorous story into a life lesson that was random storyline, (and asked my mom to somehow incorporated into the plot. This take me bra shopping). era from the late 90s into the early 2000s, While the disenchantment with kid’s in my opinion, was the golden age of Disshows inevitably comes at a turning point ney Channel. within a any teenager’s life, Disney Channel More recently, however, Disney seems has failed to continue its previous authento have fallen short of this title. While they ticity in telling stories. It seems destined have evolved significantly within the movthat the next generation will never get to ie franchise, now including more tales of know the old Disney. heroines who don’t have to rely on Prince

Presidential election crossword puzzle

WHAT IS THE STAFF EDITORIAL? The unsigned staff editorial appears in each issue and reflects the majority opinion of the Newsstreak Staff Editorial Board. The Editorial Board is comprised of all editors-in-chief, page editors, advertising managers, photographers and selected freshman journalism students. In no way does our opinion reflect that of the school system or the administration.

Islamophobia hits close to home Zoey Fox Guest Columnist Donald Trump suggested banning Muslims from the United States, and we laughed, thinking that surely no rational person would ever agree to a policy so blatantly discriminatory.

But last December, “Islamophobia” gained new meaning in Harrisonburg and surrounding counties, when an infuriated minority of Augusta County parents shut down the school district after a teacher assigned her class a worksheet that asked students to copy a line of Arabic calligraphy.

The writing was an Islamic declaration of faith, and the school received a flood of threats and accusations alleging that the school was indoctrinating their children with Islamic teachings.

The event highlighted a striking disparity between our society’s attitude towards Islam and our attitude towards other religions—namely, Christianity.

In the west, we think of Islam not as a part of the culture of the world we live in, but as a Middle Eastern cult; we equate exposure with indoctrination.

But like many school districts in Virginia, Augusta County subscribes to the Weekday Religious Education (WRE) program for elementary schools, and here, self-righteous cries of “Indoctrination!” are pointedly absent. According to their own mission statement, WRE is an openly “Christian-based,” optional service that “provides public school children what schools, by law, cannot provide and that is the spiritual guid-

ance that is necessary for the development of the whole child.”

Children with parental permission are taken off the school’s property once a week to learn Christian values from the Bible. While the program exists in their schools, so does an uncomfortable incongruity that suggests that Augusta County parents were not worried about keeping religion out of public schools, but of keeping the wrong religion out of public schools.

We think of Islam as a drug, as though prolonged exposure results in ruination and addiction. The panic in Augusta County served only to emphasize and reinforce the idea that a person’s religious preference is something outside his or her control. Islam does not kidnap the devout followers of Christianity; religions do not steal followers. To believe that Islam does grants it more power in our minds than it has in reality—and only contributes to the irrational fear that leads to discrimination. Though we seem to forget it, religion is a choice.

The discord in Augusta County has drawn our attention once again to the issue of separation of church and state, but we are holding separate discussions about Christianity in schools and about Islam in schools.

In light of December’s events, we should wonder why we feel so threatened by exposure to one religion and not another. We have to recognize that Christianity is treated differently in public schools than other religions—and we need to question the validity of that double-standard.

Presidential election word search

Puzzles by Anna Rath

February 29, 2016

HOT or NOT Super Bowl 2016 The Denver Broncos beat the Carolina Panthers 24-10 in the 50th Super Bowl.

Zika Virus The Zika virus is spreading quickly and can be found anywhere from Argentina to the southern U.S. It causes babies to be born with abnormally smaller heads.

Health experts are concerned as millions of tourists will travel to Brazil’s coastal cities for Carnival and the Olympics. It has been declared a global emergency.

Iowa Caucus Results Democrat Hillary Clinton won the Iowa Caucus with a slim majority against opponent Bernie Sanders. For the Republicans, Ted Cruz pulled an upset win over Donald Trump, while Marco Rubio came in a strong third.

The Oscars are too white People are calling out the Oscars for having all-white Oscar acting nominations.

School now closed on March 1 An expected surge of voters for the March 1 Virginia primary election has forced HCPS to close all schools that day.

The March 11 early release day will now be a full day for students.

Chris Christie Abandons Ship New Jersey Governor Chris Christie abandoned his state while they were in the aftermath of the blizzard storm to campaign in New Hampshire. Christie has since dropped out of the race for the Republican Presidential nomination Grammy Awards Taylor Swift used her acceptance speech to point out how young women need to stay the course and work hard.

Sydney Leroux is to miss the Olympics Sydney Leroux, American professional soccer player and Olympic gold medalist, announced her pregnancy, meaning she will have to miss the Olympics.

New Hampshire Primary Results Republican Donald Trump won the New Hampshire Primary with 10 delegates and John Kasich was second with four.

Bernie Sanders won over Hillary Clinton with 15 delegates to Clinton’s nine.

Cruz releases attacking T.V. ad: Republican Presidential front-runner Donald Trump is threatening to sue rival Ted Cruz for the negative ad he has released recently attacking Trump. Cruz vows just to run it more frequently.

Grammy Award performances The 58th annual Grammy Awards were held on Feb. 15 and featured many unique musical collaborations along with some unusual performances including Lady Gaga’s tribute to the late David Bowie.

Dirty Snowmelt The dirty snowmelt runoff could damage the local environment. The salt and deicing chemicals used on the roads can pollute the snow. When the snow melts and runs into the local streams it affects the stream and the wildlife.

Chinese New Year: Chinese citizens all over the world celebrated Chinese New Year on February 8. Celebrations included lanterns, red envelopes, and lots of food. This is the year of the monkey.

Stacey Dash’s Comments on Black History Month Actress Stacey Dash made comments saying that black people don’t need channels like BET or award shows such as NAACP Image awards and we should get rid of Black History month overall.

11 advances for the HHS Swim and Dive team Freshman Andi Fox, freshman Samantha Little, senior Aaron Gusler, sophomore Urie Conis, sophomore Christian Rodriguez, senior Gavin Boontarue, junior Andrew Rath, freshman Kyle Brown and all three divers, freshman Jack Fleming, sophomore Isaiah King and senior Abner Johnson all advanced to regionals.

45 killed in Damascus suburb bombing A triple bombing on Sunday Jan. 31 killed at least 45 people and injured a 100 others in the Syria .

Groundhog Day Punxsutawney Phil did not see his shadow which means spring will come early.

Since 1887 the groundhog is recorded to not have seen his shadow only 18 times.

Snow forced schools to close twice last week. Phil’s not quite ready for spring yet!

Rio’s water is badly contaminated After sailing in an Olympic test event Erik Heil was treated at a Berlin hospital for a flesh eating bacteria.

Barbie’s New Body Barbie will now come in four body types, seven skin tones, 22 eye colors and 24 hairstyles.

The Newsstreak

NRA doesn’t help country which prevents us from having a reasonable discussion on the best way to save lives in the future.

With all that goes on in The NRA is a massive the world today, it’s hard propaganda machine. not to lose a little faith in Although their suphumanity. And the posed purpose National Rifle Asis to protect sociation is always gun rights, they near the top of the mostly work list of things that to convince make me ashamed people to buy to be human. guns. They do Simply the fact everything in Guest that we feel the their power to Columnist need to have an increase gun entire organization sales, includjust to protect our ing fear-mongering and rights to own guns says a building distrust in the govlot about America. It shows ernment. They are largely how violence-obsessed this funded by businesses that country is. Many gun own- sell guns, so the more guns ers are terrified of Big Bad that are sold, the more ‘Bama taking away their money they make. That’s guns, machines which were why they do things like trycreated to end lives. The ing to convince people that NRA and its following of they should form militias gun nuts care more about because the government the safety of their guns at any time could begin to than the innocent lives de- oppress them. People buy stroyed every year by these into their insane propaweapons. ganda, and it makes them Mass shootings are be- money. coming more and more freThe NRA wants mass quent. Liberals commonly shootings to happen. They suggest enacting stricter are like instant money for gun controls to prevent fur- the gun industry. Every time ther mass shootings, but a mass shooting happens, the NRA, along with con- the NRA is sure to warn evservative gun nuts, stops eryone about how Obama our nation from being able is going to try to take away to engage in conversa- their guns, so they better tions about the necessity get as many as they can of guns, what the second while they’re still available. amendment should entail Gun sales increase, which and gun regulations. leads to more mass shootThey complain that their ings, the NRA urges people rights are being infringed to get more guns, and gets upon as soon as anyone even more money. It’s a visuggests that there’s not cious cycle. really a reason to own an The NRA uses mass assault rifle or that maybe shootings as a sickeningly we should make sure ev- effective advertisement. eryone gets a background They don’t mind that peocheck when buying a gun. ple are getting killed beThey start shrieking about cause they get to hold on how people are trying to to their two favorite things: steal their guns from them, money and guns.

Seth Bontrager Guest Columnist

Op-Ed-A5

Don’t hate on Hil Democratic candidate has lots of experience that could lead to Republican defeat in fall election Cecily Lawton Guest Columnist

the Senate, she was one of its most liberal voters, along with up-and-coming lefty Elizabeth With all the buzz late- Warren of Massachusetts and ly about the Iowa caucuses, Sanders himself. So she’s pretpolitics has been a huge top- ty liberal herself when you ic of discussion among stu- compare her with the rest of dents here at HHS. And when the Democratic party, espeit comes to my friend group, cially on LGBTQ and women’s “political discussion” mostly issues, both hugely prevalent topics today. means talking about And then how great it’d be if there’s the issue Bernie Sanders beof the Super PACcomes our next presbacked politician. ident. After a bit of Yeah. Just like this, and some “tryeverybody else ing to decide who’d except Bernie, be worse--Trump or okay? It’s the unTed Cruz,” the conGuest fortunate reality versation inevitably Columnist of the times, and moves on to another it’s great to strive topic: Hillary Clinton. for the kind of “Oh, she’s a Democrat, and campaign that doesn’t have a woman! They must like her!” you naively think. “How appro- corporate money as a fuel source, but a campaign takes priately feminist of them!” money, too, and we have to reThat’s funny.

Because among my friend alize this. How else can you get group, the opinion seems to elected in a glorified publicity be closer to something like (read: popularity) contest?

So, yeah. I’m all for Bernie, “Hillary=HELLary.” Young lefty pacifism, and socialism (really, feminists find Hillary too centrist, too corporate, too con- it’s true, even though I’m deservative. “You mean I should fending Hillary). But if it turns support her just because she’s out that he’s too liberal for the rest of the country and a woman? How sexist!”

And I disagree. Clinton is doesn’t get the Dem’s nominot only a woman, not only a nation, leaving it to Hil, what “former First Lady,” but a pow- are we going to do? She’s not erful, successful, and smart Satan, you know. In fact, she’s politician. Are we forgetting got pretty damn solid liberal her position as Secretary of credentials, all things considState? That she was a New ered. And we could finally get York State Senator for eight a woman in the White House. years? Maybe not, but Ber- As POTUS. Not FLOTUS. So if nie Sanders and his uber-lib- it comes down to it this Noeral (ahem, socialist) policies vember, we need to support are making Hil seem terribly her (uhh, VOTE), so we don’t centrist, so clearly we’re for- end up with a real devil in the getting that while she was in White House.

Trump is not what America needs right now Ryan Doerr Guest Columnist When Donald Trump, a man known primarily for his ridiculous wealth and even more ridiculous toupee, announced that he was running for president in June of 2015, the rational part of America was shocked, appalled, and (mostly) amused. We laughed off his declaration under the assumption that it would vanish within several weeks, harmless and forgotten.

That was not the case.

The Republican party, already sliding down a slippery slope into radicalism, fell much farther in the months following last June. Trump now holds the lead in the GOP polls, with approximately 28% of the Republican vote in his favor. What began as a national joke is now something much more dangerous, and we aren’t laughing anymore.

Trump is playing a dangerous game with the American people. We are living in a time where terrorism is a seemingly growing threat, the middle class is disappearing, and all hell is breaking loose. The nation is looking for something to blame

its woes on, and a while some may see man like Trump-it as an exaggeratwho seems to have ed view of the man all the answers--is we’ve all come to exactly the kind of dislike, it’s not so far “leader” that a terrifrom the truth. Hitler fied people are willwas blatantly racist ing to look to. Where in his campaigns, Guest we are unsure of and many doubted Columnist where we went that he would ever wrong, he knows exmake it into a poactly who to blame. The middle sition of power--until it hapclass is shrinking? Mexicans are pened. He won over a terrified stealing our jobs. Terrorism is nation with his brilliant idea: increasing by the year? These turn the Jews into a scapegoat damn Muslims have infiltrated for Germany’s problems (much our great country with their as Trump is trying to do with Islam. Trump’s key demograph- every brown American today). ic is uneducated whites, and Hitler appealed to the unedmany are not informed enough ucated poor by claiming that to refute his statements. He the Jews were draining public has alienated people of color, resources, and proposed mass the troops, women, the LGBTQ deportations (as Trump is doing community, the poor, and ev- with the Mexicans). In fact, in a eryone else that doesn’t meet 1990 interview with Vanity Fair, his “upper-class white man” re- Trump’s wife Ivana confessed quirements. We’ve all seen the that at one point, Trump even damage ignorant upper-class kept a copy of Mein Kampf by white men can do to society, his bedside (a fact he himself and this makes Trump all the confirmed). more dangerous.

Many people who are on In fact, the last man who the fence about Trump say that took a nation by storm like they wish someone else was Trump was one Adolf Hitler saying the things he is saying, on the eve of WWII. This com- but in a “less racist” way. The parison has been made wide- simple fact of the matter is that ly throughout the media, and Trump’s policies are directly

linked to his alienation of whole groups of people, and therefore inherently racist. His ideas are perilous to the safety of America, and, above all, the man isn’t even a politician. Many believe that what America really needs to get us through the tossings and turnings of the economy is a true businessman. While Trump’s four business bankruptcies alone should speak to his economic capabilities, the foundation of his empire should say a whole lot more. Trump is a man who has built everything he has upon the ideals of capitalism and an economy that serves the 1% more than anyone else.

The interference of big business in American government has been a problem for decades, and the human embodiment of capitalism sitting in the Oval Office does not bode well for our country.

In an era of progress, Trump’s election into office would set us back another 50 years, and bring a level of oppression into this country that would have unforeseen consequences. Presidential elections always mean voting for the lesser of two evils, but don’t let your vote be cast for the worst of them all.

Sanders routinely overpromising public Joshua Byrd Advertising Manager When the winter snow hit, I went and shoveled out my car and my car’s spot for hours. A few days after the storm, I went to the gym to workout.

When I got home, someone had taken my spot. The parking spot I worked hard to clear had been taken by a college student because they were too lazy to dig out their own spot on the street. This other person reaped the rewards of my hard work. I had to go park at

the top of the hill, Sanders. He is promand almost ate it ising a lot of things on black ice when like free college, walking down the free health care, and street. I was not many other types of happy about it. socialistic programs.

Let me preface To pay for them, this article before I Right-Winged he will up taxes not Byrd go any farther. I’m only on the rich, but not against some also on the middle welfare or an ecoclass. Both groups are nomic security net, but there hard working. He is promoting comes a point when paying taking the fruits of people’s for these programs, the taxing hard work (shoveling snow), system used becomes outright and giving it to others (who did theft. This story reminds me not shovel snow). of the Presidential race, parLet me put it another way. ticularly one candidate, Bernie As a society we have agreed

that it is wrong to steal, whether it be money or any other possession. What Sanders is promoting is using the government to take even more money (up to 70 percent of every dollar earned), and giving it away like Oprah used to give away stuff on her show (YOU get a car, and YOU get a car, everyone gets a car!).

When someone has to pay over 50 percent of every dollar earned, they are paying to work which is ridiculous. It is theft. Why do they even work?

FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA FACEBOOK:

HHS media

INSTAGRAM:

@hhsmedia15

TWITTER:

@_HHSMedia @StreaksSports

SNAPCHAT:

@hhsmedia15

February 29, 2016

The Newsstreak

Ads-A6

James McHone Jewelry

540.801.8989 “We serve authentic Chinese Food and Sushi!”

Hours: Monday - Friday 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Saturdays 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Phone Number: (540) 433-1833 Located off Court Square James McHone supports the Streaks!

Located at 563 University Boulevard Suite 110 (Across from Costco) Eat in, Carryout, Delievary, and Catering, Order Online orientalcafeonline.com www.facebook.com/orientalcafe

L & S DINER

255 North Liberty Harrisonburg, VA 22802 Mon-Fri 5:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.

Sat 7 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

3094-A John Wayland Hwy, Dayton, VA 22821 Phone: 540-879-3636 Like us on Facebook

36 Flavors

945 S. High St. Harrisonburg, VA 22801

February 29, 2016

Ads-A7

The Newsstreak

EMU students on cross-cultural this semester, Mt. Sinai

DOWN THE STREET AND WORLDS AWAY Putting liberal arts into action for the common good.

Campus open houses: March 19, 2016 April 9, 2016 (or schedule an individual visit on a convenient day for you)

Register today!

emu.edu/visit

Harrisonburg, Virginia

February 29, 2016

Reviews-A8

The Newsstreak

Sia creating magic for herself

24

Maria Snell Feikema Photographer

#Team Kanye #Neither

9

#Team Khalifa

Sia has made some drastic changes over the past few years, molding her image in the eyes of the public, transforming from a behind-thescenes pop songwriter to an established artist.

Though many of her songs are familiar, Sia has gone out of her way to hide her identity in the past. The 2006 hit “Breathe Me” was written by Sia as well as “Diamonds”, performed by Rihanna. By the time “Chandelier” came out, Sia had already written for such artists as Katy Perry and Beyonce.

Her 2014 album, 1000 Forms of Fear, recognized Sia as a solo artist. It told the world that she was an artist herself, and that though she wrote for countless other artists, she herself could be distinguished individually. It obviously worked, seeing as the album charted number one on the U.S. billboard 200, “Chandelier” becoming a worldwide top-10 single.

This is Acting, Sia’s most recent album, was released January 29, 2016.

It’s main premise is the fact that the entirety of the album is comprised of rejected songs that were written by Sia for other artists usage.

It takes guts to showcase rejected work, and in that, it’s evident that

Sia released this album to symbolize her growing artistic freedom. The theme of “breaking free” is consistent throughout the album, hence “Bird Set Free” and “Unstoppable”.

However, after the first few songs the theme becomes somewhat repetitive, as it tends to be a commonplace and generally shallow theme for typical pop songs.

Sia’s recognizable vocals still remain their own, however, slipping and belted and cracking. They’re unusually distinguishable compared to the typical pop star’s.

Yet, because the album is compiled of songs written directly for the usage of other artists, the songs lack the emotional depth that held the charm of 1000 Forms of Fear. There are definitely some impressive tunes, but overall the album seems to lack a

sense of self. “Move Your Body” illustrates this perfectly, generally lacking in depth and taking on a very typical beat and bass, showing that it was specifically designed to be a top 40 hit.

By the time “Unstoppable” and “Cheap Thrills” roll around, the album’s repetitive nature becomes a bit grating. Typically, an album escalates and falls, yet since This is Acting is a collection of songs written from different times and moods, the lack of flow is evident. However, Sia’s powerful voice at least keeps the album interesting.

In general, the more low-key songs are the most pleasant. “House on Fire” offers a catchy beat and showcases the slippery, aching side of Sia’s voice, while being more mild and less grating than the others. “Broken Glass” “Sweet Design” shows a vitality and playfulness that sets it apart from the others. Sampling trumpets and a hoppy, quick beat, it’s not just another top 40.

Sia has spent a large majority of her career behind the scenes. This is Acting represents Sia breaking free from the inauthenticity and superficiality of the pop music industry.

Sia is becoming her own artist, free from restrictions and rejections. And that’s just what she should focus on; creating for herself, not for others.

Khalifa’s Twitter battle helps sell album Jackson Hook Sports Editor

“Taylor Gang or Die,” Gabriel Alvarez, Jose Lopez, and Christan Zuniga said.

67

When I heard Wiz Khalifa was coming out with his new album Khalifa, I was not excited. Wiz has never really been one of my favorite rappers. Every once and awhile he will come out with a big hit like “See You Again”, which he released this past year with Charlie Puth.

His tribute to Paul Walker received much praise and brought his name back up in pop culture. The only problem with Khalifa is that there really is not one song that stands out from the rest, but at the same time, there is not any one song that I think is terrible.

I’m not sure what Wiz and fellow rapper Kanye West’s thoughts were when they had their recent Twitter beef, but I know for sure that the little fight they had will help both rappers sell more albums than they would have previously. I wouldn’t be

surprised at all, but they are geniuses if either of the artists did this to make more money.

I’m honestly not a huge fan of the album just because most of the songs are really mellow and don’t really “turn up”. If I want to chill with some of my friends and we are in a good mood, I want to listen to something that turns up. “BTS”, “Cowboy”, “Bake Sale” (featuring Travis Scott) and “Zoney” are the best songs on

Diverse style makes Kanye album classic Austin Swift Editor-in-Chief Album: APresentation of album: D After a whirlwind of cryptic tweets, name changes and sketchy release dates, Kanye West has finally dropped his seventh studio album. “The Life of Pablo,” formerly known as “Waves”, which was formerly known as “Swish,” and is a reference to Paul from the Bible, was sort of released on Feb. 11 with kind of the entire track list.

Although the manner in which the album was released probably deserves just as much talk as the album itself, I refuse to give in to my sour emotions. But I will lend my thoughts to a (not so) brief complaint.

Kanye will forever be my favorite artist, but this album definitely challenged my love for him. I don’t have many issues with the name changes, but the availability of the album is what was upsetting. Feb. 11 was the date, and, although it was released at his fashion show that night and on the music streaming site Tidal soon after, the day came and went with no album available without subscription to Tidal. In fact, I spent the six days following its release scouring the internet for some sort of leak or sketchy download site. After years of loyalty, I didn’t think I deserved to have to pay $12.99 a month just to get the album (and after watching his Feb. 13 Saturday Night Live performance of a few songs, I was even more hesitant). However, I finally took the plunge and subscribed. There’s a happy ending though, by subscribing to Tidal I got a 30 day free trial, so my plan is to cancel the subscription right before the trial ends.

I won’t get to keep it, but I’m hoping by that time there will be a free download I can find.

“The Life of Pablo” comes 12 years and five albums after “College Dropout,” but is more similar to it than any of his other works. There’s a strong rawness to it that’s set over simplistic beats with a lot of sampling from classic jazz and R&B songs. You can still detect hints of other albums in it as well; the autotune and singer side of himself as seen in “808s and Heartbreaks,” the abrupt, choppy flow from “Yeezus” and a carefully put together musical aspect like in “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.”

There’s also a refreshing variance in style of song throughout the album, which is something current rap has so unfortunately deprived us of.

Kanye himself just seems more mature in this one too.

His narcissism is ever-present in “MBDTF” and “Yeezus” (the later’s title sums it up), but “The Life of Pablo” seems more two-sided. While he still doesn’t shy away from his typically outrageous lyrics (he blatantly disses Taylor Swift in “Famous”), it reminds me of a guy who has outgrown his wild bachelorhood and settled down with a family.

One of my favorite parts of the album is “I Love Kanye,” which you could understandably assume to be a tribute to himself.

However, it’s more of a mockery of all the criticism he receives, but at the same time a satirical acknowledgment of realities in

them. Probably the funniest thing he’s ever rapped.

Each song has a different element that makes it great.

I wouldn’t say “Ultralight Beam” is among the top five on the album, but it’s placement as the first track is something remarkable. Beginning with a preaching child, it quickly turns into a very Gospel-heavy track, and as a result the most powerful song on the album.

“Pt. 2,” “Real Friends,” “FML,” “30 Hours” and “Facts” are all standouts for me. “Pt. 2” and “Facts” are a lot more along the lines of modern rap with heavy bass and jittery beats, which definitely isn’t a bad thing on an album this diverse. “30 Hours” is a mellow reflection of both an earlier relationship and his current one with Kim Kardashian.

Good content.

The features are the only thing I find a little less spectacular, but I suppose MBDTF set the bar pretty high. People like Young Thug in “Highlights,” Frank Ocean in “Wolves” and Ty Dolla $ign in “Real Friends” are all disappointing. However, none of them were intended to totally transform their respective songs, which really comes back to it just not being a feature-focused album.

However, formerly unheard of Desiigner, who recently signed to Kanye’s GOOD Music, definitely stood out among features on both “Freestyle 4” and “Pt. 2.”

Particularly on “Pt. 2,” he comes in after a sharp, high pitched Kanye in a contrastingly slow and slurred verse that turns an otherwise good song into great song.

In addition to Desiigner, Kendrick Lamar’s feature is arguably the best on the album. His back and forth with Kanye on “No More Parties in LA” makes it one of the top songs on the album.

the album.

Wiz starts off his album with “BTS” (be the same), where he preaches about trying to do the best that he can and how he wants to “be the same”. This was definitely the best choice for the first song of the album because he raps about his grind.

“Cowboy” is a really catchy song that has a chorus that really hooks the listener.

“Bake Sale” was released on Jan. 21 as a teaser for the album featuring Travis Scott. It’s pretty obvious what Wiz raps about just based on the name of the song.

“Zoney” is my personal favorite because of the surprise “artist” featured in the song. Wiz’s son Sebastian is featured at the end of the song saying “I love you daddy,” and repeating whatever his dad says.

I definitely would not recommend buying the entire Khalifa album, but I would endorse buying a couple of the more upbeat songs found on the album.

Superbowl halftime show lives up to hype Beyonce, Bruno Mars appearance sparks day-after controversy when pair overshadow headliner during golden anniversary of game Yusuf Aboutabl Staff Reporter The SuperBowl is the most watched program in television history, which makes the halftime show just as popular.

This year’s halftime show featured three music superstars: Beyonce, Bruno Mars, and Chris Martin. That tri is legendary, each appearing in their own halftime show prior to this one. The combination of pop, alternative rock, and R&B made for an unforgettable performance.

The show kicked off with Chris Martin singing the Coldplay fan-favorite, “Viva La Vida”. The song brought nostalgia upon the viewers since it was published in 2008. It sent chills down my spine. I’ve been in love with Coldplay since their release of the album “Death and all his Friends,” so Martin’s choice of “Viva La Vida” set very well with me.

I will, however, say I’m disappointed that there wasn’t enough of Chris Martin. The If Kanye could’ve picked anyone to go for six minutes with it should’ve been Kendrick, and it’s an absolute gem. Probably more appealing to moderate rap fans is “Waves.” Chris Brown (somewhat surprisingly) adds a really nice pop/R&B element to it, and Kid Cudi’s harmonizing across a few of the hooks is a very small piece of the song, but one that makes it exponentially better.

Kanye doesn’t exactly stand out, but you can expect it all over the radio when (or if) the album is released outside of Tidal. Finally, “Famous” has to be my absolute favorite. Rihanna’s hooks sweetly interrupt Kanye’s swift flow over

show was dominated by the artists ‘featured’ in the performance.

Beyonce’s performance was nothing short of outstanding.

Her message was heard loud and clear. It’s great that artists can use their music to send a message. It’s their own way of bringing attention to an issue that they believe is important.

Many people thought Beyonce was pushing her political agenda on the audience and called her anti-cop. Those who believe that didn’t receive the right message. Beyonce’s message in her music was anti-police violence. Her vocals made sure that her message was delivered beautifully.

Bruno Mars is the greatest pop artist of this generation.

His catchy tunes can always be heard on the radio. His performance in the halftime show was unforgettable. ‘Uptown Funk’ won a Grammy just recently and rightfully so.

The combination of Mars and Beyonce made the show relatable to this generation.

Swizz Beatz’ vaguely comical undertones, and the sampling of Sister Nancy’s “Bam Bam” just highlights Kanye’s incredible mind for music. Meshing all of those contrasting elements together makes it a masterpiece.

As Future drops an album every five weeks or so and Fetty Wap is the hottest one out, rap right now all sounds incredibly similar. But The Life of Pablo is refreshingly different, I think that’s the best possible way I can describe it. Few albums can compete with “MBDTF” or “Graduation,” but the “The Life of Pablo” is definitely close to that level.

Ads-A9

The Newsstreak

February 29, 2016

The Smith House, 2nd floor, 311 S. Main St., Harrisonburg, VA

540-432-3863

MUTERSPAUGH Insurance Agency, Inc. Large Enough to Serve, Small Enough to Care

234 E Market St. #2 Harrisonburg, VA 22801

Established in 1979

540-433-2423

February 29, 2016

Experience-A11

The Newsstreak

Prom venue moves to Linville

Alexia Munoz Staff Reporter After much discussion and searching for an available venue, the 2016 prom will be held at The Barn at Kline’s Mill in Linville, VA on May 21.

The barn offers catering services provided by The Early Catering Company who serves country style meals and entrees. It is on 10.5 acres of farmland that provides a natural touch for the event.

English teacher Sara Gingras and chemistry teacher Kasey Hovermale are the junior class sponsors in charge of the planning that is taking place. After former junior class sponsor Bonnie Anderson retired last year, Gingras and Hovermale took her spot to try to make an unforgettable prom for the students. “[We changed the location from last year] because Mrs. Hovermale and I came on kind of late to being class sponsors. There’s not a lot of venues locally that can hold the number of stu-

dents that we need, so we had limited options and this place was nice and could hold us,” Gingras said.

The barn has an outdoor view of the Valley hills and is quite spacious inside. The ceilings along with yellow pine and wooden walls are meant to make the impression of a modern day farm.

The venue holds up to 250 seated guests and offers an extra outdoor room.

The venue is located six miles away from Harrisonburg, so the school will be providing buses to transport the juniors and seniors to the barn if needed. The buses will be available both to and from the prom.

“Ms. Prieto is a big fan of providing transportation in case people are concerned about getting to prom,” Hovermale said. “We’re going to deck it out like a party bus, so that way it doesn’t look like a transit bus, to get people to and from there if transportation is an issue.”

Gingras agrees with the idea because of the common bus transportation she has witnessed at weddings.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF KLINES MILL BARN

LIGHTS , CAMERA, PROM. The ceilings along with yellow pine and wooden walls make the impression of a modern day farm. Members of the prom committee have chosen this new venue for the May 21 junior/senior prom.

“We talked about how a lot of adult venues provide buses for their guests. Lots of weddings I’ve been to have buses and they take people to the venue, so we want to do the same thing just because it is a little bit out there,” Gingras said.

We want to provide transportation so everybody has access.”

The 2015 prom was held at the Spotswood Country Club in Harrisonburg. The faculty was unimpressed with the venue, which eliminated it as an option for the

Cadets learning to waltz for JROTC ball with professional dance lessons Nyah Phengsitthy Staff Reporter Before attending their annual cadet ball at the end of Feb., JROTC students were required to take dance classes. This event is for cadets and their JROTC leaders to come together as one and recognize each other in being in the program. The night will start with a dinner and later carry on with awards and recognition of others. Sergeant Major Wilder will not only attend the ball as a JROTC leader, but as someone to have fun.

“It’s trying to teach little things about life and to have fun, and we have fun. It’ll make prom look like a backyard barbeque,” Wilder said.

Dance classes began in early February, where students mainly learned how to waltz. Other dances that were included were the swing, salsa and the bachata. Students were taught in either the auxiliary gym or multipurpose room by dance teacher Karen Reedy along with her assistants` during physical training days.

Reedy works at JMU as a contemporary dance teacher and is also involved with Dancing With the Stars of the ‘Burg.

Every year, she offers to come in and teach our JROTC students at no cost.

“The ball is supposed to be

a class act and then we have dancing. The kids love it, and even I love it,” Wilder said.

The majority of the freshmen weren’t familiar with taking dance classes before learning to ballroom dance. Freshman Farah Ragab had some experience at a younger age.

“I use to do ballet when I was a little kid, but then I quit.

I later took other dance classes along with gymnastics,” Ragab said.

Senior Dylan Grogg has been in JROTC since his freshman year and has participated in each dance class given.

“The dance classes are fun.

You get to see how coordinated and uncoordinated some people are and you get to experience it with everyone in the class,” Grogg said.

After being in the program all of high school, senior Isis Gutierrez attended her last cadet ball.

“It’s really sad to see all of it go, but I’m really excited being a senior. I get to be made fun of and be on all of the superlatives. I get to see how all the underclassmen put it all together for us because the seniors get recognized the most at the ball,” Gutierrez said.

Students will end the night dancing until midnight.

“It’s a time for everyone to come together and be friends and have a good time,” Grogg said.

2016 space.

“Last year, it was at Spotswood Country Club and I think the students were pretty okay with it, but I think a lot of the faculty didn’t feel like it was a good experience, so we chose purposely not to go back to that venue,” Hovermale said.

The committee has not picked a theme yet, but they’re glad that the important and prominent pieces are all in place.

“I guess a lot [of planning has happened], we don’t

really know yet. Mrs. Hovermale and I feel like people around us are getting nervous, but right now we feel like we have the venue, we have the DJ, we have the big pieces, so we’re doing okay,” Gingras said.

Gingras also admits that the reason a theme hasn’t been decided yet is because of the lack of communication and group discussions throughout the prom committee.

“Just getting everybody together [is difficult] and finding time in all our

schedules because we’re all so busy,” Gingras said.

“Sometimes it’s hard to get the officers all in one place to make decisions, but we’re hoping for a meeting next week where we make some real decisions about prom.”

Once the planning is over, Gingras and Hovermale hope to have a classy, fun prom. Anyone interested in working on the prom committee should see Gingras, Hovermale or a junior class officer.

Girls wrangle with dress decisions for JROTC ball, prom Alissa Burnette Staff Reporter Members of JROTC will be attending the annual JROTC military ball on Feb. 27. However, Senior Isis Gutierrez and Sophomore Michelle Pineda will be attending prom in addition to the ball this spring. The decision to take part in both the ball and prom comes with another decision, determining if there’s a need to buy two dresses for each event or just wear the same dress twice.

“I’m going to buy more than one dress,” Gutierrez said. “I just don’t want to wear the same thing more than once.”

As for Pineda, buying two dresses was also the evident

choice.

“I wouldn’t want to use the same thing twice, and plus I like to try out new things,” Pineda said.

The task of finding a dress is doubled when separate dresses are needed for both occasions.

“Basically I’m looking everywhere for dresses, it’s so hard to find one,” Gutierrez said.

“I’ll either look on lulu’s.com or promgirl.com online.”

The price of a prom dress can range anywhere from $50$1,000, more or less.

“My dress for the ball was $128, so it depends,” Pineda said. “I’ll probably get something cheaper for prom, because it’s not as special to me as the military ball.”

Gutierrez has also already

purchased her military ball dress.

“My military ball dress cost $40 and then I think my prom dress is going to cost more, but I’m going to keep it under $150,” Gutierrez said.

The overall impact on the need of having to buy two dresses was different for both Gutierrez and Pineda.

“I’m feel okay about buying two dresses, I mean I might even just borrow someone else’s or just go simple for prom,” Pineda said.

Gutierrez, on the other hand, felt differently about having to buy two dresses for both events.

“I was like, ‘this is such an inconvenience, but I guess it’s like my own fault because I decided to buy two,’” Gutierrez said.

Seniors showcase final projects at Musical Art Show

PHOTOS BY BRIAN ALVARADO

FINAL PROJECT. Senior Millie Gandia-Rivera displays her artwork at the Musical Art Show. The artwork at the exhibit is a collection of her work throughout high school.

February 29, 2016

Experience-A11

The Newsstreak

Burgess adding leadership in classroom, on court Faith Runnells Print Editor-in-Chief From Kelley Street to 26 states, CTE teacher and varsity boys basketball coach Don Burgess has built himself around his work ethic. Burgess’ testing experiences, especially in a time 30 years ago that was not always accepting to all races, began early.

“I remember early on, my twin sister and I going to certain restaurants and we wouldn’t get waited on,” Burgess said. “We’re sitting there past the common time for somebody to come and wait on us, and my mom and dad getting frustrated and saying ‘We’re leaving.’”

Burgess’ mom is white and his dad is black. They started their relationship more than 35 years ago when interracial relationships weren’t widely accepted.

“Growing up, you know, it was blacks and whites. I saw my parents go through a lot when interracial relationships really weren’t common… My dad was in the last graduating class of Lucy F. Simms High School, which was the allblack school,” Burgess said.

Burgess was born and raised on Kelley Street, a street in Harrisonburg that has a controversial reputation. His parents still live on Kelley Street today.

“Unfortunately, my area was always told ‘You’re not going to do this’ or ‘You’re not going to amount to this.’ I had a lot of peers that made incorrect choices,” Burgess said.

Burgess began to spend a lot of his time as a youth on basketball. He worked with his dad at the Simms High School courts. As his passion for basketball became bigger, he spent countless hours perfecting his basketball skills.

“With the competitive juices and the challenge, I wanted to be as good as I could be. I wanted to be the best high school basketball player I could be,” Burgess said.

“And those were the little goals I wanted to do: Be the best sophomore player I could be. Be the best junior [player].”

Burgess wanted to challenge the common theme of other athletes around his neighborhood.

“It was always a ‘would’ve, could’ve’ [with people in my neighborhood]. And I was like, ‘Wow, there’s a lot of folks here who were a would’ve, could’ve,’” Burgess said. “And they weren’t bad folks. They were very good people that helped mold me as well because they were a motivating force in regards to [me thinking] I don’t want to be another statistic.”

Athletics started to become the driving force that he knew could help him become more than someone who ‘could have been’. He and his twin sister were the first in his family planning on going to college, and he knew that financial burden would be hard on his parents, so the potential scholarships in athletics were a big motivation for Burgess.

“There’s a quote that I go by: ‘Your current circumstances don’t determine your success,’” Burgess said. “I can’t even count the number of hours that I would play on my own, or work out on my own, or shoot on my own up at Simms School.”

Burgess’ first athletic scholarship was actually in baseball after playing in Babe Ruth All-Stars and for the high school in an All-Stars game. He was only a sophomore at the time. He turned it down.

As a junior, Burgess and the

PHOTO BY BRIAN ALVARADO

LEADERSHIP LIVES. Boys basketball head coach Don Burgess (left) works with potential basketball players during tryouts for the 2015-16 season. Burgess graduated from HHS and has now returned as a CTE and leadership teacher as well as a coach. rest of the HHS basketball team went to states. As the team travelled further in the tournament, Burgess was able to showcase his individual talent to bigger scouts and coaches.

He ended his senior year with over 10 full ride scholarships to play basketball.

He went to Radford University to play. He received his degree in Business Management and got into coaching after college. He has travelled to a myriad of destinations for his coaching, including Italy, France, Alaska, Russia, and Puerto Rico - on top of over half of the states in the U.S. “When I go back... to speak

to the youth all up and down the East Coast, it’s pretty cool to say, ‘You know, who would have thought? Someone from a small area was able to travel [and do this much]... If I was making poor decisions or poor choices early on [I wouldn’t have had these opportunities,]” Burgess said.

Burgess credits much of his success to his roots.

“I know how hard my mom and dad worked… We might not have had a whole bunch of money but we had a whole bunch of love,” Burgess said. “[My parents] instill in my sister and I: treat people how you want to be treated, and also no matter how bad you think

you may have it, there’s always someone else out there who has it worse than you. So I’m always, for the most part, in a pretty good mood.”

Burgess plans to continue his coaching at HHS and instill the same values that he has learned throughout his life to his basketball players.

“You could be the smartest kid, or you could be the kid who’s not as smart. But if you treat folks the right way, good things will happen,” Burgess said. “Don’t be a good person, be a great person.”

Civics teachers celebrate Black History Month Yusuf Aboutabl Staff Reporter

PHOTO BY BRIAN ALVARADO

TIME TO LEARN. Social Studies department member Emily Dean works with her U.S. History students. Several teachers in the department plan lessons that cover issues specific to Black History Month.

Man on the Street

What does Black History Month mean to you?

Freshman Sophia Thomas

Freshman Nick Delves-Grodon

Freshman Jan-Marie Joven

“I think it means celebrating a group of people that have been oppressed in the past by our country, it also celebrates everything they have achieved even through all that.”

“To acknowledge colored people who fought for the rights of Blacks who would not have had the rights that they have today without them.”

Freshman Juan Martinez

Freshman Chenelle Francois

Junior Alexander Cruz

“It doesn’t speak to me on any level because I’m not black.

It’s also kind of racist because it segregates minorities even more.

Where is the white history month? It’s contradictory.”

“It’s a time when people who are African-American can get to know their culture, get to know where they come from and get to know their background.”

“I think Black history month in simple terms is celebrating Black excellence. That’s the cliche. I also think that it brings a lot of light to a lot of issues that African-American people are facing currently”

“It’s a time to celebrate and respect African Americans for everything they have done.”

All around the country, people are celebrating Black History Month. The month of February commemorates the struggles African Americans have endured throughout their history, not just in the United States, but other countries as well. At HHS, teachers cover Black History Month in different ways.

Social Studies teacher Jere Borg goes out of her way to make sure her students are aware of the contributions of African Americans to this country.

“I’ll do the section for civil rights out of order. I do this for my Government and Geography class,” Borg said. “I teach anything that has to do civil rights in the month of February.”

Borg thinks that the month of February is a time to target contributions of African Americans.

“We chose February because it revolves around black history,” Borg said. “It is a time to focus.”

Other history teachers will attempt to point out African American contributions in the section rather than switch to sections that center around black history.

U.S. History teacher Emily Dean believes that contributions from African Americans can be found everywhere you look in American history.

“For most units in U.S. History, there is a way to highlight African American contributions,” Dean said. “Right now I’m teaching the Civil War era, so in that sense it does lend itself to the abolition of slavery and extending civil rights to all citizens.”

Dean, however, thinks months that highlight specific ethnicities do more harm than good, “It detracts from the contributions in a way,” Dean said. “It counteracts what it’s supposed

to be doing which is providing a broader view of history. I think by highlighting them I think what that can have the tendency to do is to add to notion of the difference which I think can be problematic. That being said, I understand where these months come from because there was a long time in American education where entire groups of people were totally left out of the story. I know that a lot of people might not agree. I’m not criticizing these attempts within a school system, but I think a more encompassing multicultural education should aim to do it all the time.”

Dean is afraid that setting aside just one month to celebrate black history doesn’t do them enough justice.

“It oversimplifies the contributions by calling them out in only one month,” Dean said.

Simms center hosted historical presentation Tazhan Jaf Staff Reporter On Wednesday, Feb. 10, the Simms Center celebrated Black History Month with a free event to help educate others about the Downtown Harrisonburg’s Antebellum African-American Community.

Prior to the civil war, free African-American property owners created a community right next to Harrisonburg. Within the community, trades were passed throughout the families, and relations were produced to provide free African-Americans a pathway through the difficulties of living in a slave state.

Ryan Bachman studied African-American property at James Madison University. He and Robin Lyttle, who founded this program, lead the discussion of the history behind Harrisonburg’s streets.

“I started the project because there was research being done about the African-American community [in the] Valley, but it was all going to other libraries and there was no place for easy access for black communities specifically. This is part of our monthly programs. We just purchased a little house [at 425 Hill Street, Harrisonburg] which is going to our new center,” Lyttle said.

Throughout the event, Bachman displayed to the audience the main areas of the city where there was easy access for freed

slaves to own property. This property ownership helped form community bounds in the 1800s.

“From a detailed perspective, this shows that a lot of older histories of the communities don’t get into the kind of freedoms that freed people had in the Civil war. [The property ownership] shows that people really did have control in at least some aspect of their lives, even with slavery still legal,” Bachman said.

Towards the end of the presentation, people had the chance to meet author and Harrisonburg, VA native Doris Harper Allen. Allen wrote the book The Way it Was (Not The Way It Is), an autobiography beginning more than 80 years ago. Within the story, Allen talks about how she felt enslaved

during her childhood living in the northeast section known as “Newtown.” The story goes into detail about how she and her family coexisted with Harrisonburg’s white community.

“I have always been writing this and that and I got inspired

by Martin Luther King [Jr]. I went to the march in 1963 with my son, we got into the bus that left Harrisonburg and we were the only two blacks. All through the years I followed Martin Luther King [Jr], believing in him, thinking of him, and talking about him. Then they had these talks in council and I became interested in that and I went to council meetings. I was a spirit leader in the Martin Luther King way,” Allen said.

Allen voices the concerns and hardships living in a segregated community, her book shows history of changes in the city of Harrisonburg. Changes in church, school, jobs, and even family.

“We need to learn about this history and if we have a better understanding of the history level we will have a better understanding of one another. We may even start to heal some of the problems of young people getting shot for no reason by our law officers. There is no reason why we should not know this, and now is a good time to learn.”

Lyttle said.

For more information about upcomming events check out www.valeyblackheritage.org

* Strong Tax Plan * Stronger National Defense * Strong Healthcare

* Pro-Life *Tax Reforms *Stronger Foreign Policy

Ben Carson

* Religious Opportunity * Better National Defense * Improve Workforce

* Better Veteran Rights * Help small businesses * Protect Gun Rights

of students surveyed know the Mayor of Harrisonburg is Chris Jones

12%

On Tuesday, Feb. 9, the Newsstreak staff surveyed 132 students in an effort to gauge the school’s political literacy by asking questions relating to local and national politics.

4 of 132

49

another party

4

12

21

46

Of the 132 surveyed...

* Won New Hampshire Primary * Tax Reform * Immigration Reform * Second Amendment Rights

Donald Trump

of the 132 students surveyed know George Bush was the president before Barack Obama (2000-2008)

57%

students identified Mark Warner or Tim Kaine as a Virginia Senate representative

Maria Snell-Feikema Staff Reporter

* Finance Reform * Early Childhood Education * Women’s Rights

Hillary Clinton

Bernie Sanders

a regular citizen point of view.” The internship has also helped guide him towards a possible career path in the future.

“It showed me that that’s something that I want to work more in the background in politics, and at any level, not just state level,” Byrd said. “It’s made me realize I don’t want to be the politician, but the staff that helps the politician get elected, or helps manage their office.”

Byrd’s father, Ted Byrd, has held the position of mayor of Harrisonburg, and continues today as a city council member. Byrd said that though his influence inspired him to want to pursue a career in politics, the two find different aspects appealing when working in politics.

“It’s kind of interesting, because he doesn’t like the politics side of it as much. He’s more into public service. He does what’s best for the community, so he doesn’t really like the politics of it, like having to run a campaign,” Byrd said, “He sees why it’s necessary, but I enjoy the politics of running a campaign. He always jokes that I’m more of the politician in the family than he is.”

Byrd feels that, overall, the internship has been of great value as an immersed experience in the world of politics.

“I’ve really been able to see that just as a regular citizen, you never see what goes on in the background,” Byrd said, “I’ve been able to see how they actually run campaigns, especially at the local level. It’s an experience that you can’t r e ally get unless you’re working in it.”

* Won New Hampshire Primary * Free College Tuition * Better Paying Jobs * Fight Climate Change

ter Obenshain’s win in November he has turned to more legislative services in his internship.

“I made a database of all the bills he’s ever sponsored and patroned and what they were about, what happened with them, like if they passed in the senate or failed in the senate, or if the governor signed or vetoed the legislation,” Byrd said. “He’s been there since 2004, so it was a lot of work.”

After finishing that project, Byrd has since moved on to a different task. “[Obenshain] is in session in Richmond right now, so I’m still doing legislative things, but it’s changed.

Right now we’re reading the Daily News Record and sending the legislative assistant and senator Obenshain articles about people to whom we think a letter of congratulation is due,” Byrd said. “It could be people who win 4-H awards, or someone getting elected, or someone getting an award... I just found one about someone winning an award at the Chamber of Commerce banquet, so I sent that information to them so that they can write a letter to congratulate them.”

One of the most interesting of those experiences for Byrd was during Election Day at the Spotswood Elementary precinct.

“They had me count how many people were going through the doors and voting,” Byrd said. “It’s interesting how they can get some form of numbers based on turnout projections that they have. It’s just kind of seeing all the math and statistics behind it that you wouldn’t see from

Byrd immerses himself in political internship

Senior Josh Byrd has been interning with state senator Mark Obenshain since the beginning of the school year, in concert with HHS’s mentorship program. Though there are many options for internships, Byrd says that he specifically chose his to be politically related because of his interest in the field.

“I knew I wanted to do something with political science next year, I’d actually like to major in political science and be involved in politics. So when I signed up for mentorship, I was trying to think of what I could do in that field, while still in high school,” Byrd said.

“I had previously been a page at the Virginia state senate, so I had worked with Obenshain to try and get the nomination. When I decided I Don’t know their wanted to try to find a political internship this was the logical political answer.” identification During fall of 2015, Byrd worked with Obenshain’s campaign management team.

There, he was involved in polling the public and reporting Are Democrats statistics.

“I was making phone calls to pretty much every county and city,” Byrd said, “They tended to be RepubAre Republicans lican voters. We would ask if they were voting, then who they intended to vote for, and then how they were voting.

Are Independants Being on the backend of things kind of gives you numbers about what the turnout is going to be, and what you should expect the results to Identify with be.” Byrd said that af-

What today’s youth know and why they should care more

POLITICS

Ted Cruz

spectives were represented.

“I think that made a really strong case. I’m really happy with the numbers. I feel like 400 people is just a list of people, but when you actually see 400 people together, it's a much better impression,” Mehta said.

Because of the amount of community members that showed up to support this movement, including the YAHHS, the city council had a unanimous vote at the end of their meeting to decide to implement Section 8.3 of the Comprehensive Plan.

“Zach [Benevento] confirmed that our petition had been passed by them, so I think we definitely created a big impact on them. I feel like our group was more articulate than the college students, so I think we made a big impact as younger [group],” Moss said. Benevento is a leader of YAHHS. “I was excited about that. Obviously it was a group effort, we all wrote the things that we had to say, so collectively for our group it is something that is really exciting,” Slykhuis said.

As for the future of the club, the Young Activists members hope to expand and put their name out there. “ I think it will be really cool to see the club expand as their presence gets more well known within the school,”senior member Rachel Rohrer said.

Marco Rubio

the politics of our city. There’s so many people in the club already that it’s great to be apart of something as big as that,” Moss said.

Senior Hollyn Slykhuis was one of the speakers for YAHHS. “I liked the feeling of the community coming together like that. I really appreciated that we had a lot of different ages and a lot of different groups and it’s just cool to all unite together for a cause like that. The support was strong, and I think the council felt that,” Slykhuis said.

Several of the YAHHS members at the meeting will be able to vote in the next presidential election, which is something Mayor Chris Jones stressed was important if we wanted to see change, however Slykhuis will not be 18 by November. That didn’t stop her from participating.

“It was cool for me since I won't be able to vote in the presidential election coming up to see how you can still be involved politically and still make a difference, which is something that’s really important to me. This is something that anyone can do regardless of age and I really liked that feeling of making an impact,” Slykhuis said.

Senior Ami Mehta also attended the city council meeti n g .

She felt it was really important that s o many p e r -

The Newsstreak

Jeb Bush

Despite the cold temperatures, high winds and falling snow, the Young Activists of HHS (YAHHS) were not discouraged from attending the first City Council meeting of 2016.

The YAHHS members were joined by sixth graders, JMU students, EMU students, environmental builders and community members who are passionate about the environment. Each group presented about why bringing clean energy to Harrisonburg matters to them. The event, titled “Feel the Energy”, was put together by a group of local activists, the Global Climate March Committee. They put together a climate action earlier in the year, Postcard to Paris.

The purpose of the event was to flood the first city council meeting of the year with their petition to implement Section 8.3 of Harrisonburg City’s Comprehensive Plan and to bring clean energy to our town. Section 8.3 reads “To create a set of environmental performance standards for public and private development and redevelopment projects.” The petition had over 400 signatures.

Junior Lucy Moss, one of the 15 YAHHS members present, felt that it was important to be a part of.

“Know[ing] what’s going on in the city and supporting change in the city [is important]. Also it’s just good to be aware of

Ava Reynolds HHS Media Coordinator

Young activists attend City Council meeting

February 29, 2016

Experience-A12

February 29, 2016

Feature-B1

The Newsstreak

Ready, Set, Snow!

How to make ice cream out of snow

PHOTO BY CHRISTIAN RODRIGUEZ

Ingredients: You will need two bowls, 1 big spoon (not shown), 1 small spoon, measuring utensils (not shown), milk, sugar, and vanilla extract.

Sophomore Christian Rodriguez captures these intricate snowflake designs as they fall on his coat.

Gather snow: Using one of your bowls, and your big spoon, go outside and scoop up a good amount of clean snow.

PHOTO BY HANNAH MILLER

PHOTO BY ANNA RATH

Freshman Anne Penrod makes a snow angel. “I Sophomore Gabby Wilson and freshman Abby Campillo take advantage of the like making snow angels because I can fall back snowy weather and go sledding with friends at Kiester Elementary School. “My into the snow and know that I won’t hurt myself,” favorite part of sledding is the rush of adrenaline you get,” Wilson said.

Penrod said.

Maintenance workers struggle to keep parking lots safe

Samantha Little Feature Editor While students and staff enjoyed a five-day weekend because of winter storm Jonas, the HCPS maintenance staff was hard at work clearing the close to 30 inches of snow that accumulated on the school grounds. The whole process took a day and a half and about six maintenance workers to complete it. Executive Director of Operations and School Safety Craig Mackail supervised the work that needed to get done.

“Usually we don’t start pushing snow until [the storm] ends because it really doesn’t make a lot of sense to push it and then go back to push it again. Although in this case, with that amount of snow, we actually started pushing the snow on Friday when it started.

We pushed into Saturday be-

cause there was so much snow that it was going to be unmanageable if we just let it pile up,” Mackail said.

The main goal when the maintenance workers first started was to keep the entrance-ways to the schools open and prevent mounds of snow from piling on walkways.

However, the challenge they faced was finding space to put the abundant amount of snow after plowing it.

“When you have a storm like this, with unmeasurable amounts of snow, the problem with pushing it is finding the place to put it. Then the other thing is with our equipment; when you have an amount of snow like that, versus a couple of inches, you can’t make a long run across the parking lot because there’s so much snow that builds up on the blades,” Mackail said.

Worker safety is another

consideration for Mackail when coordinating work hours and duties.

“One of the things we always have to consider is how safe it is for our employees to get in with a big snow like this. To clear lots, many of the workers don’t live in the city, so that’s a challenge and we have to consider that,” Mackail said.

“They know that when a snow storm like that comes, they’re on call and we get it done as quickly as we can and as safely as we can.”

While many people see the HHS grounds as a good location to take advantage of the fun that can be held in the snow, they often prevent the maintenance department from clearing the snow as fast as possible.

“One of the big challenges we have is keeping people out of the lots. I know people think it’s fun to be in the snow and drive around, but we have to

keep people out of the lots so that we can push snow without any obstructions. When people drive in the snow it compacts and makes it hard to move because then it freezes and turns to ice,” Mackail said.

Even though the city streets were cleared as the storm neared it’s end, Mackail said they didn’t give a true understanding of the condition of the schools’ parking lots.

“I think people need to understand that when it comes to clearing school lots, by Monday or Tuesday the primary roads were in pretty good shape but that’s not a real inflection of our parking lots. The city has big trucks and a lot of people working on the roads. Some may think that since the roads are fine the parking lots will be fine, but it’s like apples and oranges; there’s a difference between pushing roads clean and clearing parking lots,” Mackail said.

Measure snow: Measure out four cups of snow and put it in the other bowl.

Measure milk: Measure out one cup of milk and pour it in with the snow. You may use any kind of milk you wish.

Measure sugar: Measure out ¼ cup of sugar and pour it in the bowl.

Where is the best place in Harrisonburg to sled?

Keister Elementary

45%

Spotswood Elementary

16%

Other

Waterman Elementary

21%

18% INFOGRAPHIC BY NYAH PHENGSITTHY

Teachers schedule midterm exams around blizzard Lucie Rutherford Sports Editor While storm Jonas buried urban and rural areas around the Northeast with more than two feet of snow, Harrisonburg was no exception. Receiving approximately 25 inches of snowfall, HCPS announced that schools would be closed on Friday, January 22 which also happened to be the last day of the semester, thus the last day of finals week.

For many teachers at HHS, the cancellation forced them to completely change how they did their finals and midterms, and some to terminate the test all together.

English teacher Sara Gingras took the latter option.

“I completely cancelled my

midterm, students had a couple essays that were due at the end of the semester, so I just counted those,” Gingras said. “Honestly, I was a little bit upset just because I treat it as my marker of how well my students did for the semester. So, I was disappointed because I like that feedback. But the kids will survive.”

Not only did they survive, but their reactions were ones of mass joy and excitement Gingras said. The students of English teacher Melody Wilson did not have the same reaction to their teacher’s decision of moving the final to earlier in the week.

“They weren’t happy about it, but they already knew what it was going to be,” Wilson said. “Normally I give a review before [tests], but the tenth

graders were given an SOL practice prompt to prepare them for the SOLs that they have to take, so there was nothing they could review, so they wouldn’t be missing anything.”

Despite moving the test to an earlier date, grades were not affected.

“It was still graded, but it didn’t affect them by losing out on any type of review or anything like that,” Wilson said.

“It’s something that they had been working towards all along anyway.”

After not knowing what to do because of the messed up schedule, earth science teacher Brittany Wolchak decided to do her own thing.

“My first block wasn’t affected, they were in school the day of their final on Thursday,”

Wolchak said. “But, my other two classes were supposed to take it Friday. What I did was made it optional for them to stay after school and take it.

If it would benefit their grade, I would keep it, and it would count towards their grade, but if they didn’t do well on it, I wouldn’t count it against them just because they didn’t have the same amount of time to study.”

Between her two classes, Wolchak had a group of less than 10 who stayed after school.

“They did okay,” Wolchak said. “Some of them it helped and some of them it didn’t count. [For me], just the fact that they stayed after was a good reason to make sure they were getting the grade that they deserved.”

Vanilla Extract: Add a tablespoon of vanilla extract to the mixture. This is what gives the snow cream flavor, so you can add more if you wish.

Stir: Stir all of the ingredients together until all of the ingredients are combined, and the snow cream has the consistency you want.

All done: You can stop here and eat it as you would regular ice cream or make a milkshake out of it.

INFOGRAPHIC BY ANGEL HENDRIX

Man on the Street: What was the best part of Blizzard Jonas?

Senior Ramin Khosravi “Well, the best part was getting snow. We haven’t really gotten any snow in awhile, so that was cool.”

Senior Moneé Willingham “When we got school canceled on Friday and I had a final exam for chemistry that got canceled, that was good.”

Junior Robbie Stevenson “Having off Friday, and just being away from school. I just didn’t really feel like coming to school.”

Junior Brian Bratton “After the semester was over, it was nice to get a break from school, so I ate a bunch of food and played a bunch of Black Ops 3.”

Junior Chenelle Francois “I got to stay inside, and read.

I think watching the snow fall was really pretty.”

February 29, 2016

Feature-B2

The Newsstreak

FASFA program benefits first generation college students Ellie Plass Online Editor Senior Ruben Rojas is the first person in his family to go to college. He completed his FAFSA (Federal Application for Student Aid) during the week of Feb. 8, the school’s FAFSA week. With the help of the counseling department, he was able to get everything submitted.

“It was a struggle. a lot of typing. When I didn’t know anything [the counselors] would come to me and tell me what it was and then I understood it,” Rojas said.

He plans to attend Blue Ridge Community College next year.

This year, our counseling department won a grant to be a part of the “Super FAFSA Project”, a program that is only awarded to a

few select schools. Lisa Warren is one of the counselors leading the project, along with her colleague Emily Barnes.

“It’s supported by the state of Virginia, but they only select so many schools based upon student demographic and school demographics. Because of our free and reduced rate and because of our diversity in our school we’re kind of a prime example of what [the program] is looking for,” Warren said.

The program awards a small amount of money to the department and sends things like t-shirts and cell phone covers to help promote the week. The main thing that the program gives the school is publicity. The counselors plan on doing FAFSA help whether or not they are awarded the grant.

“We as a counseling depart-

ment have a mission that no matter what we were going to have this [FAFSA] process anyway. We were going to do this anyway for students whether or not we got accepted for the project week.

Ultimately we would have done the same thing whether or not we had the project just because that’s what we do,” Warren said.

Many of the students who get involved in the program are like Rojas; the first people in their family to go to college. Warren believes that this is why having a week dedicated to the FAFSA is so important.

“We have a lot of first generation college students and we have a lot of students just in general going to college, which is what we want: all students to pursue some kind of secondary education. A lot of times students think in the

back of their mind ‘Oh, I can’t go to college because I can’t afford it’ but if we can help them navigate this process then they could see that college is affordable for them,” Warren said.

Although many students receive aid, there are times in which they have to scale back their dreams.

“This is kind of an opportunity for students to say ‘I have my sights set on JMU or UVA’ but financially once [they] get [their] financial aid package ‘Oh, well my family can only afford Blue Ridge’,” Warren said. “The biggest barrier [is that] kids just don’t think they can afford [college] so they don’t think that they can go to college when a lot of the time once kids find out that they can receive Pell Grants and scholarships and grants they [realize they

can].”

Warren has been helping students fill out the FAFSA for nine years, but she’s been working on the forms since she herself was eighteen.

“It’s really nice when you see students who have worked really hard and have done the right thing and done everything we’ve asked them to do. They sit down and they are so worried about paying for school and they see that they are gonna receive that Pell Grant or additional grants.

I think in general it helps all students, so every time I help a kid I get very frustrated as far as the actual application for financial aid, but when you see students who are getting the scholarship because of that one application it’s very rewarding,” Warren said.

Costs of college auditions adding up for Aleman

Doug Ritcher Staff Reporter

Senior Valerio Aleman is applying to and auditioning for 10 music colleges. He has found this to be a surprisingly expensive experience for him, but still believes visiting, applying and auditioning is a vital process. “[Finding the right school is] mostly about trying to find a really good music program and faculty that will help me be a

great musician and just a space where I feel like I can learn. Even if they have great faculty ,it’s still important for me to feel like I am home,” Aleman said.

Application fees are among the most standard expenses that seniors deal with. Most fees are between $50 and $70.

Alone, they are more of an inconvenience to Valerio and others, but they can still add up.

“They’re pretty standard, but I’d definitely say it’s gotten pretty expensive…applying to 10

different schools,” Aleman said.

Aleman also factors in the money that goes towards his auditions. “[Traveling] is definitely the most expensive part, especially with hotels in New York and Boston. Overall it gets pretty up there. It’s more expensive than I would like it to be,” Aleman said.

Aleman mentioned that there are ways to cut costs on trips, but that it isn’t always ideal to do so.

“I could come into an audition the day of and leave the day of, but then the toll of that trip is going to be exhausting and I won’t have as good of an audition. So, usually I have three days per city, but that’s 30 days not being here and a lot of hotel nights,” Aleman said. He estimated that a three day trip to New York could be around $400.

He expressed gratitude for his family’s ability to support him in these expenses. However, families that can’t afford these trips

are rarely given compensation.

“Most colleges won’t help with traveling expenses because you technically could get there and leave in one day for much cheaper, but where you try to cut money you also cut quality from the experience,” Aleman said.

“Overall, [the application and audition process] is definitely a lot more expensive than I expected. It’s not something that was on my radar until I saw the bills,” Aleman said.

Aida: the musical in review

PHOTO BY BRIAN ALVARADO

PHOTO BY BRIAN ALVARADO

PHOTO BY BRIAN ALVARADO

PHOTO BY DAVID GAMBOA

PHOTO BY BRIAN ALVARADO

PHOTO BY BRIAN ALVARADO

PHOTO BY DAVID GAMBOA

ALL HANDS ON DECK! Clockwise from left: Freshman Weston Hatfield puts on his costume; the ensemble performs one of their dance routines; senior Andy King sings one of his solos; senior Ellie Plass sings “My Strongest Suit” with junior Ana Hart, one of her hand maidens; senior Jaymie Inouye, who played the role of Aida, with the slaves from Nubia; parent worker Paul Warne works on putting the finishing touches on the intricate set; and Plass gets her Egyptian eye make-up applied in preparation for Thursday night’s performance. The cast had never fully run through the show prior to opening night. “It was incredibly stressful, but I believe that the rawness of opening night made it one of our best performances,”

February 29, 2016

MAKING

Feature-B3

The Newsstreak

MUSICAL MEMORIES

Behind the

SCENES

4:30 p.m. - Named characters arrive in drama wing 5 p.m. - Entire cast arrives 5-6:45 p.m.

- Cast puts on makeup and style hair Merchants/courtiers: Normal clothes, and regular stage makeup with hair half up half down.

Nubians: Look dirty, create some bruises with braided hair.

Handmaidens: Egyptian cat eye and stage makeup with a more pristine polished hairstyle.

6:45 p.m. - Cast assembles in choir room for vocal warm-up

7:06 p.m. - Directors give notes about how to better the performance, and the pre-show pep talks begin.

PHOTO BY BRIAN ALVARADO

INTENSE. Junior Ben Hollenbeck performs his solo song about his evil plots to kill the pharaoh in the musical Aida.

Hollenback shaved his head to more accurately portray his evil character.

Aida is first musical to have understudies Garrett Cash Online Managing Editor For the first time ever, the musical offered cast members understudy roles. Their role is to step in if the main lead they’re studying is unable to perform. Since the position may not need to be filled, the understudies must memorize all the lines and choreography of the main lead while still memorizing their own.

Sophomore Julie Hedrick, understudy for Ellie Plass in the role of Amneris, couldn’t contain her excitement for the performance. She felt honored that she got to learn the lines and procedures for a lead role and believes that it gave her the chance to become a better performer.

“It’s a good brain thing and a good theatre thing. Normally in theatre, you only have to rehearse one part, but I’m rehearsing multiple parts, so

there’s a lot of character building and for all the variations of the different parts on top of [learning the role for the character] Amneris,” Hedrick said.

Senior Noah Heie, the understudy for Andy King, who has the role of Radames also believes that the chance to be an understudy gave him more experience in theatre.

“It’s a good experience to have because, in the real world, in order to get a role, you have to be a swing, which means you understudy multiple characters,” Heie said.

Freshman Julia Inouye, understudy for her sister, Jamie Inouye, in the role of Aida, believes that being an understudy was a fun opportunity, but also included a lot of hard work.

“It’s hard work, but it’s fun because you have another character that you get to play around with, but then you also have other characters that you’re being in the show, so you kind of get two experiences within one show,” In-

ouye said.

Hedrick also believed that being an understudy required a lot of work and explained the process that goes along with it.

“Rehearsal is very difficult, honestly. It’s just because I have to learn my choreography and while I’m learning my choreography, I have to periodically be checking [on what Plass is doing], and I have to be able to remember both, and then while we’re dancing, not do her part, and I have to do my part,” Hedrick said.

All of the understudies were very nervous for the performance, but they all felt ready for their role and knew they could enjoy it.

“It would be terrifying, but I mean, It would be really cool to be able to perform what I’ve been working on.

As an understudy, you work on the role, but you don’t ever get to perform it. I guess it’d be a really cool experience,” Inouye said.

7:15 p.m. - Characters take their places backstage.

7:30 p.m. Musical parent chairwoman Stephanie Wilson comes out to deliver the pre-show speech to audience.

8:14 p.m. - Laura Ruple quick change backstage

7:37 p.m. - Aida and Radames quick change 8:02 p.m. Strongest suit scene starts

8:17 p.m. - Nubian king begins to be made up

Parent committees critical to musical success Josh Byrd Advertising Manager There are 26 different committees that help put on the musical. Stephanie Wilson is the vice president of Stage Streaks, the booster club for the drama department, and is automatically the chair for the musical. Her job entails helping all the committee chairs as well as helping

where she is needed. She has put in over 100 hours.

“Trying to help the individual committee do what they need to do,” Wilson said. “I don’t have a specific area….. [I] just coordinate and communicate with whoever to make their jobs easier.”

There are over a 100 parent volunteers. One of the costume committee chairs, Julie Hatfield, has been involved in the musi-

cal for six years. There were two years where she didn’t have a child in the show, but she enjoyed what she was doing so much that she did not stop.

“I didn’t want to quit,” Hatfield said. “At the time I had Weston (her son) coming in two years, so I knew I was going to be back in it, so why wait.”

As the cast calls them, the costume moms start working on the musical in

December. Hatfield says she sews in the morning before work for at least an hour. She sews an hour after work, then comes into the school around 3 p.m. and stays as long as people are rehearsing. She thinks the hardest part of her job as a costume mom is things are always changing.

“People get added, scenes get changed,” Hatfield said. “You have to go with the flow.”

FASHION

The leads of Aida: street style to costume

8:24 p.m. - Merchants get goods/things they are selling

8:34 p.m. - Merchants prepare to enter through the aisles

8:47 p.m. - Handmaidens change into Nubian costumes and makeup

8:50 p.m. - Nubian king is finished with makeup

8:56 p.m. Intermission/cast snack time ELLIE PLASS, 12

ANDY KING, 12

JAYMIE INOUYE, 12 9:38 p.m. - Corin Vogel gets made up to look more sick, Amneris also changes into black robe 9:44 p.m. - Makeup station closed

9:52 p.m. - Amneris changes into her wedding dress on stage

AMNERIS

RADAMES

AIDA

PHOTOS BY CHRISTIAN RODRIGUEZ

10:10 p.m. Show ends

9:45 p.m. - Written in the stars scene

9:59 p.m. - Places for last scene

February 29, 2016

Ads-B4

The Newsstreak

1663 Virginia Avenue, Suite 210 Harrisonburg, VA 22802 Hours of Operation Monday - Thursday 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM Phone: (540) 442-9100 Fax: (540) 442-9096

www.staciedietzdds.com

49 W. Water Street

80 W. Water Street

Mon-Thur 7 AM - 10 PM Fri-Sat 7 AM - 11 PM Sun 9 AM - 9 PM

Mon-Thur 11:30 AM - 10 PM Fri-Sat 11:30 AM - 11 PM Sun 11:30 AM - 9 PM

Have you visited Bella Gelato & Pastries?

Buy one scoop of gelato and get a second scoop FREE! Must present this ad to receive special.

Limit one coupon per customer. Offer expires 04/1/16

ISLAMOPHOBIA

February 29, 2016

Feature-B5

The Newsstreak

Islamophobia: (Is·lam·o·pho·bi·a) (pronounced: iz,lämə’fōbēə) noun - Dislike of or prejudice against Islam or Muslims, especially as a political force

Muslim students experiencing negative reactions from peers

It’s high time we change Islamic stereotypes Yusuf Aboutabl Staff Reporter

East. Since they have not visited themselves, all they have to go off of are those movies.

There needs to be a revoIslamophobia is a major issue lution in Western media and in the United States, and if you news. You’ll never hear a stodo not agree, then you are part ry about an Arab philanthroof the problem. pist donating millions Ever since the atto build a school, but tacks of 9/11, Muslims GUEST you will definitely hear in the country have COLUMN stories about a school been victims of prejuthat was destroyed by dice, bigotry, and blaa terrorist group. Even tant hatred. There is a portion though the latter does not hapof conservatives that either pen more often than the former, spread this bigotry or fall victim because of skewed media covto the lies that they hear. They erage the Western world thinks label an entire group of peo- so. Past generations who have ple over 1 billion strong as one grown up may not change their thing: terrorists. minds, but future ones will grow The majority of the Western up with the right image of the world thinks of one thing when Arab world in their head. they hear the word terrorist: an Another thing that is an issue Arab man with a scraggly beard is the generalization “all Muswearing a turban and a bomb lims are terrorists.” That phrase strapped to his chest. has been uttered by ignorant This image comes from the people time and time again. Do portrayal of Arabs in Hollywood they not realize that the argumovies. Take Indiana Jones ment can be used against them?

Raiders of the Lost Ark for ex- “All gun owners are mass shootample. The scene where Jones ers.” Based on the actions of a is confronted by a man dressed few, I can extrapolate and draw in all black desert attire wielding conclusions about the massa scimitar in Cairo is one of the es. Only when the argument is most ludacris portrayals of Ar- used against them do they reabs I have ever seen. The man alize that it is severely flawed. I starts flaunting his sword at do not believe this issue can be Jones in an intimidating fashion solved. until Jones pulls out his gun and “People are people are peosimply shoots him. ple,” U.S. history teacher Mark The first time I saw that Tueting said. scene, I asked my dad about Generalizations and stereowhy the movie lied about how types will always exist in comEgyptians look. He said that munities in this country and it made the movie better and throughout the world. Different that if they were portrayed as groups of people will never fully how they really were, the movie know everything about another would be much different. group of people. Even if they That was one of many exam- did, they still wouldn’t underples where the Middle East is stand all of it. Foreign cultures falsely represented in Western and religions are too complex media. Depictions like these are to be generalized. You can nevwhat imprint a negative conno- er describe a group of people in tation of Arabs and ultimately one sentence or even one paraMuslims in the United States. graph, but unfortunately that is A solution to this would be to what some people opt to do. correctly portray Arabs as how These issues are not to be they truly are instead of build- taken likely. There are almost 3 ing onto the stereotypes that million Muslims in the United already exist.

States. While most of them do Many people in this country not face this problem daily, it is grew up watching these mov- still big enough to bring up. This ies and that’s all they think of toxic ideology must change. when they think of the Middle

Abby Hissong Managing Editor Since the events of Sept.11, anti-Muslim sentiment has become increasingly prevalent in America. This phenomenon, referred to by many as “Islamophobia,” has lead to a significant fear of those who practice the Muslim religion, and has rooted itself into American society.

Junior Ali Al-Shebani has lived in America for most of his life, yet he still deals with prejudice and offensive comments about his race and religion on a daily basis.

“As a member of

an immigrant family, I came to America aspiring for an education and peace, yet people in our society have not realized that. People in our school assume I have no respect for women or wish to impose Sharia law in our community. I can’t count how many times I’ve been called a jihadist or a terrorist this week alone.

Every day I hear people scream ‘Allahu Akbar’ in the hallways in a demeaning manner making fun of suicide bombers,” Al-Shebani said.

O v e r the last year, the issue of Islamophobia has become more and more of a widespread issue with the activities of ISIS, a jihadist militant group, making threats against America and committing acts of terror all over the world.

This has only added to the rise in tension against those of Muslim faith in the United States.

For junior Mohamed Qadir, the prejudice has always been there, it has just become more obvious in recent years.

“There are a lot of people that look at Muslims in a bad way at this school. Especially when the girls wear the hijab. You can just tell from the stares that people get.

Yesterday in gym class a student told me to go bomb the school.

In this case it was my friend, but there are other people who call me a terrorist or ask me if I love ISIS, and they mean it,” Qadir said.

HHS has a variety of cultures and religions within the school; however, when it comes to representing this diversity, some feel that it is not accurately portrayed. According to Al-Shebani, those who are not white or Christian often end up feeling like they are being left out. A specific instance being the mandatory holiday concert all students attend before winter break every year.

“This school claims that there is no favoritism, yet when they put on a “holiday” concert, the majority of songs performed are Christian themed with maybe one or two secular songs. Yet, they have the audacity to call it a ‘holiday’ event without representing true deprecation from church and state. HHS wants each person to feel comfortable; however, it’s not something I see them actually pursuing. The school itself, not just a student body but the administrators as well, can work together to lessen this prejudice towards muslims,” Al-Shebani said.

In recent months, anti-immigrant rhetoric has spiked in local and national politics.

After the Paris attacks, more than 24 governors have said they don’t want Syrian refugees in their states.

Even before Paris and San Bernardino, a 2014 survey by the Council on American Islamic

Does Islamophobia exist at HHS? Islamophobia is defined as the dislike or racism towards Muslims. 100 students were polled on whether or not they felt Islamophobia exists in our school.

Relations found that 52 percent of Muslim students in California reported being the target of verbal abuse and insults. That’s double the number of students who report being bullied based on gender and race nationwide.

“I don’t think there’s anything this school can do [about Islamophobia], really.

It’s been a problem for a while. I don’t believe that oppression against Muslims receives nearly enough attention when compared to other minorities especially. I wish I could say that it was easy to fix, but we all know that’s not the case. People who have an Islamophobic mindset tend to stay on that side of the pendulum and because of the media, they stay there,” Qadir said.

Virginia is among the few dozen states where Syrian refugees have been embraced by the governor. Harrisonburg City Public Schools are a safe haven to hundreds of immigrants from all over the world, but that doesn’t mean students aren’t susceptible to internalizing anti-Muslim stereotypes they hear.

“Islamophobia definitely exists in America whether or not people want to admit it. We have become more or less a society that jokes about things that should be taken or seen as offensive,” Al-Shebani said.

“It’s this social stigma that’s wrapped around our brain that we just don’t like people who are culturally different than us. I believe we should step outside of our comfort level and be exposed to various religions or cultures.”

Yes: 62 No: 38

Hijabs worn as traditional sign of modesty Yogesh Aradhey Staff Reporter The hijab is a piece of clothing worn by some Muslim women.

There are several types of hijabs but colloquially, it is a headscarf that covers a woman’s head, hair and chest. Other types of hijabs might have a net over the woman’s face or cover her whole body except for the eyes.

In history, the origins of veiling started with the Asyrians dating as far back as the 13th century BC. In their culture. Veiling was a symbol of class and respect and only “proper” women veiled themselves. In fact, lower class women were forbidden from wearing such clothing. The practice made its way through Greek and Roman cultures but was never widespread until the

expansion of the Ottomans.

When the Muslim faith spread across the Middle East, so did the practice of veiling.

The Qu’ran, the Muslim Holy Book has two verses on Hijabs.

It aims to avoid the harassment of women by them hiding their beauty from showing in public.

Although there is debate over whether or not women are actually required to wear a hijab, it stems from the idea that both men and women should dress modestly in front of others. For women, this most commonly translates to a hijab.

Many women who choose not to wear a hijab say that despite the original intention, it actually attracts more attention in western society and goes against their philosophy of modesty.

Junior Sara Mustafa, is one of this school of thought and has

made the decision to not wear a hijab.

“They are just worn just for modesty,” Mustafa said. Believing that there is more than one approach to modesty, she does not see the need to cover her head in public.

“Other women in my family do wear them, but I choose not to,” Mustafa said. “I don’t have anything against wearing a hijab or women who wear it. It is a choice they make.”

Such a choice, whether to wear a hijab or not, is one that women at least get to make in our society. In countries like France, recent events mixed with a history of trying to secularise all aspects of life, there has been a huge push to make head coverings illegal. On the other hand, in some middle eastern countries, they are mandatory.

February 29, 2016

Sports-B6

The Newsstreak

Castillo fine tuning dancing skills learned in NYC Owen Stewart Sports Editor Sophomore Greg Castillo was raised in New York City and attended a dance school while he was living there. He is now in his first year at HHS. “I attended Renaissance Musical Theatre and Technology for a year when I was a freshman, but I had to leave [the school] when I moved here to Virginia,” Castillo said.

While some dancers specialize in only one style of dance, such as contemporary or jazz, Castillo enjoys performing in multiple styles.

“My favorite styles are hip hop, jazz, modern and ballet. I’m kind of all over the place,” Castillo said.

Many things go into being a successful dancer, but Castillo attributes his quick mind as one of his strongest points.

“Any choreography they give me, I’m going to learn it quick. I’m a pretty fast learner, I catch up with everything quickly,” Castillo said.

Before moving to Virginia, Castillo performed his routines all over New York City, with some being in prestigious dancing atmospheres.

“I performed in downtown [New York City], I did a dancing show with my Kings Bay Boys and Girls Club, I performed at Hostos Community College, which is a really advanced school

for singers and dancers. I also performed at LaGuardia High School in Manhattan, and there’s more, too,” Castillo said. Despite all of these performances in New York, it was a routine performed right here in Harrisonburg that Castillo named his most challenging.

“I have a friend that took me to JMU to dance, and they’re pretty tough. It was an advanced dance group and I’m not used to dancing so fast like they did, so it was a really good experience. It was really hard for me,” Castillo said.

At HHS, Castillo also participates in wrestling, and is planning on trying out for the baseball team in the spring. Castillo believes that dancing helps him prepare to play other sports as well. “[Dancing] helps me have stamina, lots of stamina. It improves my breathing so that if I’m playing baseball or basketball, I won’t get tired easily. Every dance I do, I think of it as a sport. I just play along with it,” Castillo said.

While Castillo is an accomplished dancer, he isn’t satisfied yet, and wants to improve on a few parts of his dancing. “[I would like to improve] my skill and technique. I’m trying to learn more technique and make everything look sharper.

[Also to] make everything look unique and dance my own way,” Castillo said. Castillo is also hoping to take

his dancing abilities into a possible career later in life.

“I’m trying to pursue dance and singing. Those are my two favorite things to do. So, I’m trying to make everything possible. [I plan on] graduating high school, then going to New York or LA and make a career out of myself. I’d like to go to college as well, and just try to make things work,” Castillo said.

Along with his dancing abilities, Castillo is also a singer, and gained exposure when he was younger by making YouTube videos of him singing.

“I was only like eight years old when those videos were made, but I would like to pursue that dream too, and make some more YouTube videos. I made a lot of videos when I was younger,” Castillo said.

Castillo also isn’t solely focusing on a dance career, and would also like to pursue a career with his singing.

“I’m trying to extend my [musical abilities] more because I’d like to make a career out of it. I want to meet new people, get connections to new people, and go to studios,” Castillo said.

And that career could already be well underway, as Castillo has a possible album-in-the-making.

“I already have like five songs on deck to try to make an album. [When it’s done] I’d like to show it to musical producers,” Castillo said.

PHOTO BY BRIAN ALVERADO

IN THE ZONE. Sophomore Greg Castillo prepares for his role in the school musical Aida.

His experience with dance has helped him in the production. Castillo moved to Harrisonburg this year from New York City.

Ringle enjoys benefits of school dance class Richard Pannell Staff Reporter Senior Kaelah Ringle is a student in dance class 3-4 with teacher Amber Corriston.

“It helps me forget about any problems I have or anything I’m going through,” Ringle said. She has been interested in dancing since she was 13. Ringle got into dancing after watching a dance show called America’s Best Dance Crew by Randy Jackson.

“I really liked what they were doing [in the show] so I decided to take dance classes,” Ringle said. In her other dance classes she takes jazz and hip hop. She has been going to In Motion school of dance in Harrisonburg for three years.

“We do recitals at the end of the year in May, and we learn a routine, get costumes and perform it,” Ringle said. Her favorite styles of dance are jazz and lyrical.

“At first I’m a little nervous, but as soon as I get into it, I don’t even see the audience. I’m just in the zone and trying to do my best,” Ringle said. Ringle doesn’t expect to become a professional dancer but want’s to continue it for fun. Ringles

favorite thing about dancing is that it is her way of expressing herself.

“Some people express themselves with writing or painting, but this is my way of expressing myself,” Ringle said.

Her classmates see her as a teacher and positive influence in class.

“Kaelah is such a sweet girl she is always really upbeat and smiling,” junior Noelle Warne said. “In class PHOTO BY RICHARD PANNELL we always have some times where we watch other peo- READY POSITION. Senior Kaelah Ringle works through a ple and then give them routine during a dance class. feedback and she is really and just learning new things in dance that I good at giving helpful feedback, she always presents things in a good didn’t know about.”

Ringle is honest with herself and her way.”

Ringle is a teacher to her classmates be- ability, but keeps a positive attitude regardcause she shows what she has learned in In- less.

“She is not afraid to say she does stuff Motion to the rest of her class here at HHS. “She teaches us other stuff from the wrong but she is also not someone who is other dance class she takes,” Mcileain said. constantly putting herself down,” Warne “She has helped me with choreography said.

Dancers take lessons to prepare for future Douglas Ritcher Staff Reporter Located a block off of court square, Harrisonburg Dance and Company teaches many levels of ballet, tap, jazz, modern and other types of dance. The building is full from five to nine every weeknight with classes in every age range.

A number of students have taken classes this year. Sophomore Joshua Lucas currently takes a tap class and has also done modern jazz. Lucas started dancing at age eight, but took a break in sixth and seventh grade. Lucas attributes gender stereotypes to his hiatus. “[There was] lots of pressure from everywhere saying ‘Guys can’t dance. It’s weird. It’s gay,’” Lucas said. He returned to Dance and Company in eighth grade determined to gain the dance skills necessary to go into musical theater.

Senior Noah Heie started for the same

reason.

“In musical theater you’re expected to be able to do [tap and ballet],” Heie said.

The skills he has learned have helped him to fill these expectations at schools with prestigious theater programs like Ithaca and Carnegie Mellon.

Junior Ana Hart joined Dance and Company this past year in ballet.

“I knew dance and company had a lot of dedicated people and a lot of advanced students. I wanted different teachers, different challenges,” Hart said.

Among those challenges is flexibility. “[My biggest struggle is] lack of flexibility. You can hurt yourself. I did a move called a calypso where I leaped out with my legs spread and I fell. I was sore for about three weeks after that,” Lucas said.

Signing up for classes at Dance and Company typically starts with a discussion of skill level with a teacher. After this discussion, Heie was placed into an advanced tap class.

“[My classmates] kicked my butt. They were all incredible,” Heie said. He eventually found his way into another class that fit him better.

Once in a class, students participate in weekly, one-hour group sessions. Classes typically consist of a 15-minute warmup, 25-minute technique practice and 20 minutes of routine learning. Throughout the rest of the week, students can be expected to make improvements on their own.

“The rest of the week, I stretch some for ballet and tap around the house,” Heie said.

“I don’t have a way to run through it during the week [but,] thinking about choreography can be just as helpful for remembering it as actually going through it,” Hart said.

Every class is preparing a four to five minute routine to be performed at the recital held at JMU’s Wilson Hall on May 28 and 29.

Upcoming spring sporting games, events BASEBALL

GIRLS SOCCER

3/15 Varsity vs. Millbrook @ Millbrook High School 3/15 JV vs. Millbrook @ Harrisonburg High School

3/15 Varsity vs. Millbrook @ Harrisonburg High School 3/15 Girls vs. Millbrook @ Harrisonburg High School

SOFTBALL

BOYS SOCCER

3/15 Varsity vs. Millbrook @ Millbrook High School 3/15 JV vs. Millbrook @ Harrisonburg High School

3/15 Varsity vs. Millbrook @ Millbrook High School 3/15 JV vs. Millbrook @ Millbrook High School

BOYS TENNIS

GIRLS TENNIS

3/15 Varsity vs. Millbrook @ Millbrook High School

3/15 Varsity vs. Millbrook @ Harrisonburg High School

UPCOMING

UPCOMING

UPCOMING

UPCOMING

UPCOMING

UPCOMING

NFL needs to fix concussion problem Yusuf Aboutabl Staff Reporter The world of football is massive.

The NFL is a multibillion dollar corporation that owns a day of the week.

Every Sunday from September to December, there are seven to eight games that are broadcast on mainstream television and all games are available on pay TV. Each of those games brings in a huge amount of advertising revenue.

The NFL has become big enough to overlook the safety of its own players. It is a vicious business that has only one goal: to make money at any cost.

Concussions and their long term effects on football players have always been a big issue since the league started documenting them.

The number of reported concussions rose from the 2014 season to the 2015 season after being on a steady decline for the last five years.

The league has been introducing rules that protect the health and preserve the safety of the players, but this clearly has not been working. You would think that a multibillion dollar corporation would spend more than $30 million on solving the biggest issue that it is presented with.

Instead, they make $400 million deals with Microsoft and Bud Light.

The safety of the players should come before anything else, but that has not been the case.

The NFL values the outcomes of the games more than player’s health.

During the 2015 season, quarterback Case Keenum took a vicious hit and slammed his head down on the turf. Immediately afterwards, he clutched his head. He couldn’t get up by himself and still struggled with the help of his teammates.

According to NFL concussion protocol, he displayed four obvious symptoms of a concussion. I’m sure the independent trainer the NFL hires to look for concussions during games saw all of these symptoms. Yet Keenum came out for the very next play.

The system failed him.

He was diagnosed with a concussion after the game, but it was too late.

In 2011, Colt McCoy was knocked out by helmet to helmet contact.

Knocked out. The man was unconscious. He came out for two more plays before throwing an interception which sealed the game for the opponent. This incident made the NFL completely reevaluate its concussion protocol, but the revised protocol still fails to this day.

If this doesn’t change soon, the game may start losing its merit. There are rules and guidelines to keep players safe, but they aren’t working.

Something must be done before this becomes an epidemic.

February 29, 2016

Sports-B7

The Newsstreak

Sophomore competes in bowling competitions Ava Reynolds Staff Reporter Since sophomore Andrew Robinson was eight years old, he has found his experience in sports through bowling, his family game.

“My dad started when he was 12 and my grandfather started back even before him. My mother started once me and my dad got together, so we’ve all been doing it for a long time. I’ve been immersed in it,” Robinson said.

Robinson learned at the local bowling alley, Valley Lanes, where he has been bowling for six years now.

“My dad really was the one who taught me. He didn’t really push hard until I was about 12 or 13 when I really put my spurt into it and then he could explain things to me and I could understand what he was saying,” Robinson said.

Although Robinson started and primarily bowls at Valley Lanes, he has also traveled all over the state for bowling competitions. He can bowl up to 10 games in a weekend competition.

He has competed in Winchester, Waynesboro, Roanoke, and once for the state bowling competition he competed in Hampton, Virginia.

Aside from local district and state competitions, Robinson also competes in an open tournament designed for earning scholarship money every year. He once placed third in his division and won $100 for scholarships. “[I’ve won] maybe $500. I have no idea. I’ve never counted, but the state tournament really gets you more money,” Robinson said.

Robinson also competes in league bowling. Although it is a team competition set over several weeks, Robinson values the individual skills he builds through league bowling.

“It’s a team thing, but it’s also more personal for some peo-

ple because it helps them figure things out where the teammates can help,” Robinson said.

Robinson’s favorite memory from his bowling career was when he met his favorite bowler, who he watched win his first title the year before, at a tournament that includes all of the pro bowlers. “[I’ve been admiring him for] probably about a year because that’s when he got into the PBA [Pro Bowling Association]. He was down there bowling in Waynesboro, and at the very end I got a picture which was my favorite part,” Robinson said.

Robinson practices once a week. Unlike bowling for fun with friends, he has specific techniques he works on to get better, including the different strategies for each formation of pins left in the lane.

“There is a lot more to it than it seems. You have to make sure your timing in your feet is right, make sure your arms are going up right, you’re following through with it. There are so many things you have got to do before you even throw the ball down. You don’t want to just throw it, you want to roll the ball,” Robinson said.

One challenge Robinson faces is finding where the ball needs to go and making it happen in practice, but getting into a game and not having it go where he wants it to.

“It’s really hard when you start doing bad and you’re trying to figure out what you want to do but don’t have time because you only have a certain number of games to figure out what you need to do,” Robinson said.

Despite these challenges, Robison’s highest score is 245 points.

Now that he has reached that, his new goal is 600 points for a set of three games. His closest to that has been 550, but reaching 600 hundred can be challenging because af-

PHOTO COURTESY OF ANDREW ROBINSON

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT. Sophomore Andrew Robinson warms up for his weekend bowling competitions. Robinson participates in muliple competitions and tournaments each month. ter playing two games, Robinson knows exactly what he needs to get to reach 600, and if he doesn’t do well early on, his chance at 600 isn’t possible for that game.

Robinson has expressed struggling with this all year, but has been working on it so even when he knows he can’t get to 600, he can still bowl his best.

“You can’t let that get to your head, because once you let that

get to your head, you stop focusing on getting the ball where you want it to go. Then you’re going to start missing the pocket and that’s just going to screw it up in the long run because you’re going to mess up all of these things you can’t bring back. You’ve got to keep yourself focused more than you realize, and realize it’s not the end of the world,” Robinson said.

Robinson claims that when he

looks at a lane, he thinks it is just 60 feet and there’s nothing else to it; however, there is so much more to it than that.

“It’s a fun thing, but it’s not as easy as 1-2-3. Once you learn how to do the ball and throw it and everything else, then you’re going to realize there’s still a lot more to it than just going up, taking four steps and throwing,” Robinson said.

Bradley brings shotput skills to track team

Hagmaier begins kickboxing class

Sam Heie Staff Reporter

Becky Staton Staff Reporter English teacher Jill Hagmaier has recently started kickboxing at Brian Mayes Karate Studio.

“I’ve recently gotten out of shape and I saw this ad and thought it would be fun,” Hagmaier said.

She enjoys the cardio workout instead of her usual dreadful aerobic classes.

“Everything is really fast-paced and even the warm-ups we do are all motions we’re going to do later in the class. I really, really like learning how to punch and kick,” Hagmaier said.

Jan. 4 was her first time ever trying kickboxing. Hagmaier is very open to have students try kickboxing.

“It’s fun, you build lots of muscle, and you get that cardio, so it’s pretty much a two-in-one deal,” Hagmaier said, “You definitely shouldn’t be intimidated because there are all types of people there. There are people who have been doing it and that are crazy good, and then there are people who have never tried it before like me. There are many body types, so you don’t have to be athletic to learn something from the class,” Hagmaier said.

Nina Bradley transferred from EC Glass to HHS at the beginning of her junior year. She since has taken up indoor track in discus and shot put.

“My mom did [shot put]

so I just started in my seventh grade year of middle school.

She introduced it to me and then I just picked it up and started liking it,” Bradley said.

Bradley’s mother started doing shot put in middle school and carried it out all the way through high school. She had

PHOTO BY GARRETT CASH

PUSH IT. Bradley lifts weights after school during indoor track practice. During the winter, she builds strength for the spring season where she will put her shot-put skills to use.

the same high school coach at EC Glass as Nina did. “ I loved my coach, he was one of the best coaches I ever had,” Bradley said.

Shot put is a sport where an individual steps into a circle and throws a round, heavy, metal ball as far as that person can. The balls usually weigh nine pounds for high school athletes.

Bradley also throws the discus, another indoor and outdoor track sport.

“I like shot put because I’m a very competitive person and like to compete, and shot put is a very competitive sport. I started getting more competitive at shot put when I started high school. There were a lot more people playing, and those people were more intense about it,” Bradley said.

“I work out every day after school. I also have track practice every day which is a lot different to EC Glass’ practice,” Bradley said.

Bradley starts out her workouts by running to warm up.

Bradley then moves to the weight room where she does reps of bench pressing, dumb-

bell lifts, squats and more core and upper body workouts.

Bradley’s max out weight for squatting is 305 pounds and her max bench pressing weight is 170 pounds.

“I eat a lot of granola bars and drink a lot of Gatorade before events. I don’t listen to music though because I just like to concentrate on the event that is coming up,” Bradley said.

The shot put team, unlike EC Glass, currently does not have a full time coach.

“We don’t really have a coach here and so I have to individualize my workouts and practices,” Bradley said. “The transition [from EC Glass to HHS] was fine, but it is a real challenge not having a coach. I just remember what I did at EC Glass and incorporate that into my workouts. Sometimes I will text my old coaches to get advice,” Bradley said.

Bradley placed third in conference with a throwing distance of 32 feet 11½ inches.

She hopes to continue her career into college.

“I hope to go to VMI and continue my career in track there,” Bradley said.

Language teachers lead zumba dance class after school Tazhan Jaf Staff Reporter Get up and dance with Zumba, a Fitness program that uses aerobic exercises (also known as cardio) in dance routines often performed to many Latin-American style music.

HHS is providing a free Zumba class for girls only, student and staff, who are willing to attend.

Yolanda Blake, who the liaison for Spanish and Latino students, and Anu Beheraj, the ESL teacher, work to put together class meetings.

“I took this class last year with Marina Lamb at Waterman [Elementary School], she is the main contact for the Zumba class. Anu Beheraj and I help organize and put together where we would be dancing at. As of now, it’s located in the choir room,” Black said.

The class is available every Tuesday and Thursday at HHS schedule from three to four in the afternoon.

Morina Lamb, from central office, is a certified Zumba teacher and she leads the students in various dance moves provided in the Zumba guidelines on Thursdays, while a different Zumba instructor, Kate

Hoffmeyer, volunteers on Tuesdays.

“I’ve done this before, but it used to be at other schools and it’s great that it’s here so there’s no excuse for students and staff to not attend. I used to go to the old HHS and it’s my first time being in this building,” Hoffmeyer said.

The instructors are providing alternative dance fitness routines and not just limiting them to Zumba, so it meets everyone’s needs.

“We are trying for other options, because I don’t just have Zumba, I have Kettlebell, Pound, and HOT HULA. So there’s a different variety of fitness workouts to choose from, and it will all be up to what the class wants to do that day,” Lamb said.

These exercises include fast and slow rhythms with resistance training, which is moving your body against resistance. Zumba classes are safe for all ages because there are nine different versions of the classes for different ages and exertion levels.

“The class is very diverse, as long as you’re moving and having fun, it doesn’t matter what you do,” Hoffmeyer said.

PHOTO BY TAZHAN JAF

LETS GET PHYSICAL. Teacher Yolanda Blake and Freshman Kateryna Peterson get their groove on during the after school zumba dance class located in the choir room.

February 29, 2016

Sports-B8

The Newsstreak

the

IMPACT INJURIES of

Injury Profile: Paul Weiss

A hip impingment is a condition in which there is abnormal contact between the ball and socket of the hip joint. This causes increased friction during hip movements, which can lead to joint damage.

Injury Profile: Mikaela O’Fallon The ACL is a ligament that joins the thigh bone and the shin bone, and controls back and forth movement of the lower leg. A tear is caused by a sudden twisting motion of the leg.

Injury Profile: Hannah Tyler

Weiss’ hip hinders running career

The most common growth plate injury in the ankle occurs at the end of the fibula. It is similar to an ankle sprain, and doesn’t showup on an X-ray. Symptoms can include ankle pain, tenderness and swelling over the growth plate.

Owen Marshall Staff Reporter

to help strengthen my leg and my bones. It helped me relieve my injury so I could run again my junior year,” Weiss said.

Senior Paul Weiss has faced many Unfortunately for Weiss, the injuries throughout his running ca- injuries came back before his sereer. But most recently, they have nior season even started. affected his ability to run since soph“This year, I started to notice omore year. it coming back around mid-sum“After I broke my leg [sophomore mer when I started running lonyear], I had a stress fracture in my ger distance runs. That’s when right hip which pulled me out of the I realized something wasn’t last part of the season. I had broken straight in my hip,” Weiss said. my leg during the cross country seaTo help Weiss recover more son and I kept trying to come back too quickly, he decided to get extra quickly, which led to a stress fractured help from a professional. ankle, and that turned into a stress “We had been seeing a chirofractured hip,” Weiss said. practor to see if he could tell us A stress fracture is a small crack in what was going on. He had me the bone. They are caused by repet- doing stretches, but that was itive force and overuse of the bone. only helping some, so I pulled To help recover from these injuries, out of cross country season just Weiss has done many things, includ- to make sure I didn’t injure it ing going to special rehabilitation. anymore,” Weiss said.

“I had been working with the YCC Weiss saw a specialist to see if he could get a more indepth look at what was wrong with his legs.

“I went to a specialist in Richmond and had a MRI done.

He told me I had a hip Paul Weiss impingement in both Stress Fracture in hips,” Weiss said.

Right Hip A hip impingement causes increased friction during hip movements, and this may lead to damaging the joint. Weiss was disappointed when he heard that he had yet another injury on his hands.

“Not again. This is my senior year, I really cutting out running. want to get through it. We “I do a lot of extra homework. The thought that maybe pull- injury was bad enough to take me out PHOTO COURTESY OF PAUL WEISS ing me out of cross country of running, but not bad enough to put UNDER THE KNIFE. Senior Paul Weiss has bat- would work, but when that me in a wheelchair,” Weiss said. tled multiple injuries throughout his high school didn’t work, we were thinkInstead of running, Weiss spends running career. His most recent hip stress frac- ing ‘Oh no, what did we his time on school work and gaming ture turned into a hip impingement which ulti- do?’ We could have saved but hopes to be able to run again later mately required surgery to correct. The surgery it, but I really hope we can in the year. on Dec. 17 went well. Weiss was supposed to fix this so I can get back out “The biggest struggle for me is not be on crutches for five weeks, but he ended up there for the outdoor sea- being able to run. I would absolutely being able to get rid of them after two weeks. son,” Weiss said. love being able to get back out there Weiss hasn’t changed with my teammates,” Weiss said.

He only had to take his prescribed pain medicine his routine much besides twice.

ACL tears affect athletic careers Olivia Comer Online Managing Editor A knee has four ligaments in it, one of these being the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). This is the part of the knee that controls sharp turns and twists. However, the ACL is the smallest ligament of the four and it is very prone to giving out especially among athletes. Freshman Mikaela O’Fallon has been through this experience twice in her soccer career so far.

“The first time [that I tore my ACL] I was running after the ball against a girl and I stopped my foot and turned and it popped. Then I fell to the ground,” O’Fallon said. “The second time I was pushing a girl to get the ball then one of her teammates saw me and they both came after me and then I put my foot down to get the ball and one hit me on one side and the other hit me on the other side, so it tore right in the middle.”

The second of her two tears was less of an epidemic. As it was on the same leg (her right), with only a month to separate the clearance from her second injury, she now has to be extra careful with how she executes her game.

“I’m a lot more scared to go out there because it happened twice on the same knee, but I just have to get that out of my head and just play how I’m usually playing. It just makes you think more, you can get a lot better with that mindset and watching everybody play,” O’Fallon said.

O’Fallon has been cleared as of Friday, Feb. 5 and she is ready to get back into track, basketball and, after a few more months of recovery, soccer. This spring, O’Fallon will not be representing the HHS soccer team, and her absence because of an ACL tear will not be the only one on the team.

Senior Sako Haji tore her ACL while participating in pre-season soccer and will not be able to partic-

ipate in the beginning of the spring season.

“Right after it happened, I knew something was wrong, so I went to the emergency room and there was nothing on the X-rays, so they sent me to a specialist to get an MRI,” Haji said.

Since the tear, Haji has spent two days a week with a trainer at RMH to help her strengthen her knee to the way it was before, if not better.

“Right now, I’m doing balancing and straightening and I’m focusing on straightening my knee because the inflammation causes my knee to be stiff, so that's what I'm working on right now,” Haji said.

Haji is on schedule to be cleared in about six months and she is more than ready to resume her play.

“I think once I’m cleared I’ll be a little scared [and] paranoid that my leg will snap again. Maybe just in the beginning though. [I’ll be back on the field] as soon as I get cleared,” Haji said.

7 Most Common Sports Injuries 1. Ankle Sprain- There are more than 3 million ankle sprains every year in the U.S. It occurs when the ankle portion of the leg turns, rolls or twists in an awkward way. It is a short-term injury, usually only lasting about a week.

2. Groin Pull- A groin pull occurs when the groin muscle receives excessive amounts of stress. Jumping and changing direction quickly are the main causes.

Most are minor, but a severe groin pull can include a tear of the muscle and loss of strength.

3. Hamstring Sprain- The hamstring runs along the back of your thigh, and allows you to bend your knee.

During a strain, the muscles get overloaded, and may begin to tear. Not only is this injury common, it’s also incredibly painful.

4. Shin Splints- Shin splints are microfractures

along the shinbone, caused by overuse of the bone.

Stress fractures can also be a cause of shin splints.

5. Torn ACL- The ACL tear is very common and painful. It is especially common in the sports of soccer and basketball, and is caused by a sudden twisting motion of the leg.

6. Patelloformal Syndrome- An injury similar to an ACL tear, patelloformal syndrome is damage to the cartilage below the knee. It is caused by the softening of the cartilage in front of the kneecap.

7. Tennis Elbow (epicondylitis)- Tennis elbow occurs when the tissue on the outside of the elbow becomes irritated. It is an injury common in tennis players, hence the name. It is caused by repetitive arm or wrist motions, especially on the backhand shot during a tennis match.

INFOGRAPHIC BY DANNY DOMBROWSKI

Paul Weiss Hip Impingement (Both Hips)

Mikaela O’Fallon Torn ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament) Paul Weiss Broken Leg Hannah Tyler Ankle Fracture

ART WORK BY BRYAN LUNA

Tyler battles two ankle injuries Joshua Lichti Staff Reporter Senior Hannah Tyler is a member of the HHS color guard and softball team, along with the JMU winter guard. She continues to participate in those sports despite an ankle injury that affects her to this day.

“I had an undetected fracture in my ankle and over time, because it was in my growth plate, it grew a hole in my bone, and so I had to have surgery to correct it,” Tyler said. She injured herself at a young age.

“I got hurt playing sports around my fourth grade year,” Tyler said. She got hurt much before she had surgery.

“I had surgery the beginning of my sixth grade year, [that] was my first surgery. And then as I grew, because it was it my growth plate, the hole regrew and I had to have surgery in April of my sophomore year,” Tyler said. After the surgery, her journey to full health was not complete. She had a long recovery process ahead of her.

“It was a very long recovery I had to do. Really intense therapy, running, getting back strength and flexibility [in my ankle],” Tyler said. Through all that work, a few people stood out in her mind that helped her through it all.

“Definitely my parents, they have always encouraged me, friends [and] people that have worked with me,” Tyler said. Even after she finished the recovery, she was still not quite 100%.

“I think it’s affected me the most in my flexibility and my ability to do normal day things, so it’s taken me a long time to get back to where I used to be,” Tyler said. However, through all that hard work and recovery time, there are some positives in her mind.

“I think it’s definitely made me push myself harder. It’s not as easy for me anymore, so I definitely have to push myself harder not give up on things,” Tyler said. Her injury was not normal in that she didn’t have a defined recovery time table. She did miss an extended amount of time one summer.

“It’s been over the course of years, but I think the longest point I was out was all summer, I couldn’t walk for nine weeks and then couldn’t start running for another month,” Tyler said. Her injury didn’t just affect her physically.

“It’s pretty frustrating because some things are harder for me to do, so I think it has affected me mentally,” Tyler said. While she feels the best she’s felt since the injury, her injury story may not be over.

“I think I’m the closest to my normal that I’ll ever be. If I would ever re-injure it again, I would have to have fusion surgery,” Tyler said. Despite the possibility of a third surgery, Tyler continues to participate in athletics.

February 29, 2016

Ads-B9

The Newsstreak

J. Todd Fowler, DDS, PC General Dentistry

2870-B South Main Street Harrisonburg, VA 22801

Phone: (540) 434-2423 Fax: (540) 801-0493

Miller, Earle & Shanks, PLLC Attorneys and Counselors at Law

560 Neff Avenue, Suite 200 Harrisonburg, VA 22801 Telephone: (540) 564-1555

Located at 258 Timber Way, Broadway, VA 22815 Phone:(540) 896-7095

GO STREAKS

Sports-B10

The Newsstreak

February 29, 2016

Gymnasts at Work

Junior finds love for gymnastics after many years Christa Cole News Editor Junior gymnast Priyanka Bhuta was forced into her sport when when she was young.

“It wasn’t my decision because of my parents,” Bhuta said.

“I’m an only child, so they always wanted me to do several extracurricular activities, so I wouldn’t feel alone I guess. They made me do karate and a bunch of other stuff and gymnastics was just one of the things that they made me try.”

Now Bhuta is glad for the experience, although she wasn’t at the time.

“I wasn’t really interested in sports when I was younger. I guess I never really found myself to be athletic enough to do it,” Bhuta said. “[My parents] ended up realizing I didn’t like it so they took me out of it. When I came to highschool, I really didn’t do much besides schoolwork, so I wanted to do something else…

I was familiar with [gymnastics] so I decided it try it again and I ended up really, really, really liking it.”

Bhuta is undergoing her second year on the team, motivated by more than just her free time to join.

“My cousin was on the team as well and she graduated last year,” Bhuta said. “She’s the one that kind of forced me to restart so I’m glad she did that.”

Bhuta’s cousin not only affected her team membership, but also her specialty event.

“She specialized in beam as well, so I kind of wanted to follow her footsteps,” Bhuta said. Gymnastics coach Michael King has

been working on multiple different things with Priyanka for her beam routine as well as her confidence in herself.

“She’s been working on her hand stand, she has improved on her round-off. Her jumps she has improved on. [I want] her to improve her hand stand, to improve

her turns, which upgrades her routine,” King said. “To be honest, for her to actually get out and do a beam routine is a huge deal because this time last year she would have been petrified.”

With her renewed interests, Bhuta is dedicated to her sport.

Encouragement from King helps

her keep going as well.

“It’s not much of what he says; it’s just his presence, just him being there. I guess he’s just like a fatherly figure… He’s always motivated me and all the other girls on the team have been doing it for several years now, so in comparison to them, I’ve always been

PHOTOS BY CHRISTA COLE

BALANCE MAKES PERFECT. Junior gymnast Priyanka Bhuta perfects her beam routine during practice.

Beam competitors are required to perform many skills during their routine, including a 360 degree turn, one acrobatic flight and tumbling skill as well as a combination skill.

weaker and he’s just stuck by my side through it all,” Bhuta said.

“Sometimes I feel really bad and like I shouldn’t be on the team because they’re a whole lot better, but then in a way, it motivates me to get to their level.”

King has witnessed and been impressed with Bhuta’s diligence.

“Her skills are very basic, and she knows that. However, she has chosen to better herself and be persistent at learning as much as she can,” King said. “She’s probably learning more life skills here than gymnastics...it’s easy to quit when you’re not better than somebody else, but she chose not to, and she’s developed friendships on the team, she’s developed some leadership. Kids look at her and think ‘Priyanka, she can only do this, but she’s out here working hard’.”

Now, gymnastics has become a regular part of Bhuta’s life.

“Gymnastics is basically a part of my routine now. Even when seasons off, I try to go to the gym and stay in shape. It’s just in my schedule like, ‘Oh I have to make time for it.’ It’s not like that, it’s really natural,” Bhuta said.

Not only does the workout come naturally, but it is also refreshing for Bhuta.

“It really cleans your mind.

When you’re doing anything in gymnastics, you’re really focused, and that focus doesn’t just help you in the sport, but it helps you in every other thing that you do in life,” Bhuta said.

Bhuta’s motivation, though, all comes down to passion.

“There isn’t a hardest thing,” Bhuta said. “If you love a sport, then you will do anything to be on the team.”

Mestre helps lead young team Trevino contributes to two winter sports teams

Theo Yoder Sports Editor

Coached by Michael King, the varsity gymnastics team is in full swing for the winter season. Led by team captain Kathryn Mestre, this years team has started off the season with a 2-6 record. King has been coaching gymnastics for 35 years.

“I love seeing the success of the kids,” King said. Every match, the team loads up the bus with all their equipment to take to the school they’re competing with.

Before every match, the team’s warm ups are led by the team captain to prepare the athletes for the upcoming events.

“When the meet begins, everyone is nervous when each event begins and we begin to compete, the team cheers for one another.

Some will have a great event and some will not,” King said.

This year’s gymnastics team is younger compared to previous years, there are no seniors on the 2015-2016 varsity roster. Captain of the young team, junior Kathryn Mestre, first found her love of the sport at a young age. With the help of the Skyline program, Mestre was introduced to the sport, but did not become serious about it until she reached 8th grade.

“I enjoy getting new skills or perfecting a skill that I’ve been working on. Watching the Olympics made me want to do [gymnastics]. In the 2008 summer Olympics, it was watching Shawn Johnson on beam that made me really want to start doing gymnastics,” Mestre said.

Having the role of team captain, Mestre insures that practice stays in order and the various athletes don’t play around. She also helps her teammates out by telling them what they should add or take out of their routines. With many years behind her belt, Mestre has many years of practice and memories.

“My favorite memory was during my freshman year at my first invitational,” Mestre said.

“Our team won first place in our division, it was a great feeling.”

Practices with King and Mestre are kept consistent. A typical practice consists of 15-20 minute warm ups followed by basic skills training. For the remaining part of the two-hour practice the athletes then split off into their respected groups with the events they will compete in during the upcoming match.

“We finish with conditioning at the end, clean up, do our team cheer and go home, with a smile,” King said.

Sako Haji Staff Reporter For many people, maintaining a sport and academics can be pretty difficult, but this is what makes them a student-athlete. Sophomore Emma Trevino is a student-athlete, but she has a lot more on her plate, she is a two-sport student-athlete. This Winter, Trevino is not only part of the gymnastics team, but part of the track team as well.

For Trevino, her sports happen to overlap each other, meaning they happen in the same season.

“It can get really exhausting at times, but it is definitely worth it,” Trevino said. Trevino is able to coordinate her time with schoolwork, sports, and a social life. Practices for gymnastics and track are everyday in the winter season, so Trevino attends both daily, but when she has a track meet on a day she has gymnastics practice, things change up for Trevino.

“When meets are on the same days of my gymnastics practice I have a choice of which one I want to go to, and my coach will excuse me from one or the other,” Trevino said. Many face having to choose their priority when it comes to which sport they want to participate in on certain days such like these.

Trevino still manages to place high in events for both the sports she is involved in.

Trevino has placed in the top four on the beam and the top six on the floor for gymnastics. She has also placed third in the 500, sixth in the 55 hurdle, and her 4x4 relay team placed second,

sending Trevino on her way to regionals for track.

“Both of these sports are mentally straining, and how well you do in both depends on how hard you work at practice since they are both individual sports within a team. But, in the end it is totally worth it,” Trevino said.

There are times where it is challenging for Trevino, but she continues to put in work and follow the path to her goals.

PHOTO BY BRIAN ALVARADO

JUMP. Sophomore Emma Trevino takes a jump during her beam routine. Trevino is in the midst of juggling a busy schedule of sports and school.

King continues to coach, learn Hannah Miller Feature Editor

PHOTO BY BRIAN ALVARADO

ASSIST. Coach Michael King helps junior captain Kathryn Mestre with her bar routine. King has been coaching gymnastics for 35 years.

Though never a gymnast himself, Michael King has coached gymnastics for 35 years. His first job as a gymnastics coach was here at HHS and he’s stayed here ever since.

“I’ll know the time will come [to leave] when I start feeling like I want to be somewhere else.

Right now, it still feels good, I still feel fresh,” King said.

King’s college professor was the one to put the idea of gymnastics into his head, as well as making Skyline Gymnastics possible. Skyline Gymnastics is a program that has been teaching gymnastics to youth in the Shenandoah Valley since 1984.

“One of my college professors was into gymnastics, so he was a strong influence. [He] had a program, and when they retired, they handed it over to me and two other guys. We renamed it Skyline Gymnastics,” King said.

After being introduced to the flipping and turning of gymnastics, he continued to enjoy coaching, as no one can ever know all the moves. “[Coaching] kept me learning the sport, there are so many different events and skills to learn,”

King said.

While King has had a long and deep interest in gymnastics, his kids don’t participate in the sport. “[Coaching has] not affected [my kids] interest in gymnastics, but more in other sports,” King said.

King hopes to keep the sport around by continuing a gymnastics program here.

“I would like to keep the sport alive at HHS. It’s one of our main focuses, on the young kids,” King said. Even starting young, King has found kids are not able to learn all there is to know. With many variations of tricks, King has seen how complex the sport can be.

“Gymnastics has a lot of diversity as far as skills to learn,” King said. As a coach, King has helped many of his students complete challenging moves.

A double back on floor, in which the tumbler completes a round-off into a back handspring, completing two tucks in the air before landing, is the hardest move King has spotted. He has realized what gymnastics can do for a child. King is trying to accomplish anything he can by coaching gymnastics to the younger generations. “[It helps] a lot of kids’ self esteem. More rewarding than someone with just the best skills is coming off the mat and feeling good about what they’ve done,” King said.

February 29, 2016

The Newsstreak

2015-2016

HHS

NEWSSTREAK

PATRONS

NEWSSTREAK SUPER SPONSORS

Alex Truong Amanda and Joey Beppler Anthony Torres Betty Danti and Anthony Danti Blue Ridge Insurance Services Bobby and Valerie Kibler Bucky and Carolyn Custer Camila Domonoske Chayo Moreno Cynthia Runnells Dawn Wine Ruple, P.C. Dr. Scott and Lori Kizner Eleanor P. Adams Judith S. Strickler Kathy and Larry Whitten Kevin and Karen Rose Kim and Ken Rutherford Mark Varner Michele Hensley Noland and James McHone Richard and Sally Morrell Russell and Nancy Grimes Sallie and Scott Strickler Scott and Bobbie Cole Ted and Stephanne Byrd The Brown Family Tom Little and Carmen Moreno GOLD SPONSORS A Touch of the Earth Abe Shearer Aiden Newcity Alex Johnson Alison Domonoske Amanda Dombrowski Anita Lambert Barranco Barranco, Joyce Bill and Bonnie Stewart Bill Beppler Bill Rath Brad and Karen Newcomer Brian and Michele Dombrowski Carolyn Flueckiger

Chad Rummel Cynthia Prieto David and Lisa Varner Dick and Nancy Krause Edwin L. Taylor Emily Sharrer Eric Miller Esteban and Lizet Moreno George and Kara Miller Gloria Ottaviano and Greg Stewart Guadalupe Moctezuma Inge Kutchins Jackie Fitch Jason and Lori Lichti Joan S. Eye Joe and Felicia Glick Joel and Chia-Chi Yoder Joy Strickland Karen and Burns Earle Kent and Sherry Brown Kevin and Sivilay Phengsitthy Laura F-M Lauren Jefferson Martha and Ray Shifflett Martha and Rich Sider Melody Cash Melvin Hendrix Michael Eye Nancy Byrd Nathan and Regina Hissong Noland and Barb McHone Phil and Heidi Klim Phillip Bannister Ralph Hostetler Raymond C. Ewing Roger and Linda Williams Steve and Jeanette Z. Shepard Sue and George Swift Susan Newsome Wesley Livick SILVER SPONSORS Adrie Voors Andy Jackson Ann and Neal Menefee Ann Schaeffer and John Ashenfelter Annie and Mark Carpenter Anonymous Anonymous Bernita Claxton

Ads-B11

Patrons are members of the Harrisonburg community and others who support the pursuit of excellence in the journalistic publications of Harrisonburg High School. Money generated from the patron program is used to offset costs of attending journalism conferences, to print our paper, and to purchase up-to-date technological equipment for our journalism lab. To become a patron, see any member of the Newsstreak Staff or stop by room 444. You can also visit www.hhsmedia.com to download a patron ad contract. Patron level is determined by the following scale: HHS Patrons, $5; Blue Patrons, $10; Bronze Patrons, $15; Silver Patrons, $25; Gold Patrons, $50; and Newsstreak Super Sponsor, $100+.

Bethany Bradley Walton Kim Runnells Theresa Everidge Brenna Kristine Long Eckstein Betty Jo and Cowardin Laura and Sam Wayne Fleisher Cara Walton Measell BLUE Betty Smith Cathy Grogg Margaret SPONSORS Bill and Nancy Cheryl Helmuth Gardner Byrd Logan Marika Runnells A friend of HHS Brent and Tracy Chris Thurman Mark and Aaron Cosner Kephart Christina Virginia Healy Andrew Jackson Cadet Campbell Norment Melanie Smith Barry Hart Rutherford Claire Leeper Mia Karr Beverly Combs Caitlin Francis Clare Yoder Mitch Depoy Charles Getz Carroll and Colleen Morris Mr. and Mrs. Chris Shifflett Nancy Yoder Constanza Rojas George W. Craig Cathy and Roger CSM Russell Hamrick Shoemaker Soenksen Wilder Ms. Mary Crys Roach Charity Daniel Upton Ottaviano Delynda O’Connor Dave Ward Nancy and Greg Hendricks Charlie and Debra Witman Simpson Durmount Perry Patty Hade Delynda Nancy Miller Emily Barnes Danae Delozier Hendricks Paul and Jane Glen Dor Farm Darrell Wilson Dennis Vondrak Walton Heather David and Dwayne Peggy Plass Hostetter Fernando Hottinger Rev. Robert and Jay and Beth Gamboa Edson Arango Dee Dee Jordan Hook Dawn Emily North Richard and NanJay Hook Cockerham Erich Sneller cy Morrell Jere Borg Deb and John Hannah Hrasky Rob and Anneke Johonn Kugel Heidi Green Rutherford Zimmerman Diana Flick Jamie Rob Runnells Kasey Dominique Kwiecinski Robert and Judy Hovermale Evans Jauan Brooks Wolfe Kevin Tysinger Don Burgess and Judie and Brent Sara Gingras Kim Hook family McNett Sarah D. Luke Gibson Donna and Chuck Kathy and Gary Whitmore Mark Healy Schwers Ritcher Sean Rolon Mary Inge Dori Ottaviano Kelley Shradley Sherrel and Frank Mary Strickler Drew and Tracy Kim Hill Hissong Michael Evans Koch Kirk Moyers Tamra Atkins Moses Tinsley Ellen and LaKisha Clark The Coin and Gift Peter Norment William Lily Daye Shop Rachel and Ian Carpenter Lisa Long Tim and Carolyn Linden Emilee Hussack Marcia Lichti Ryan Emily Anderson Lamphier Tim and Gwen Phengsitthy Gail Collins Mark Beppler Stewart Claudia Garry and Peggy Marty Carpenter Tim Meyers Dombrowski Miller Morgan Benton Tricia Comfort Tammy Atkins Gary Bugg Phoebe Tripp and LInda Terry Murray Hayden Copeland Denton William L. Rutherford Rachel Bolyard Tyler and Stover J. R. Snow Roy McCutcheon Christian Yolanda Blake Jackie Zito and Seth Shantz Rodriguez Dick Johnson Susie Bocock Vickie McAlister HHS Janelle Latham Suzanne Smith Wesley Livick SPONSORS Jasmine T. J. Butler Yutzy Family Charlton Tracey Calderson Alison Whalen Jay and Pat Veronica L. Ortiz BRONZE Amy Wheeler Supko William SPONSORS Anne Martin Jessica Dickerson Arlene Wiens Dombrowski Anonymous Bethany Houff Jill Hagmaier Beth Cash Jim and Julie Cosette JohnKramer son Jim and Kathy Geoffray Estes Yoder Isaac Falk Jim and Shelby Jeremy and Cash Tara John Sonifrank Garasimowicz Kerri Hofacker Juan and Kevin and Veronica Sivilay Moreno Phengsitthy Judy and Dean Lynda Newman Blackwell Julia and Brad Mallory and Stewart Adam Cromer JW Johnson and Melody Erin Johnson Wilson Kat Staton Patricia Kelley Kavya Beheraj Paul H. Rath Kendall Bailey

February 29, 2016

Humans of HHS-B12

The Newsstreak

HUMANS OF In keeping with our motto “Every person has a story,” the Newsstreak interviews students every month in the style of Humans of New York creator, Brandon Stanton. The idea is to tell the story of as many of our students as possible. Check out a similar project at www.hhsmedia.com.

HHS

Junior Juleian Cappell

“What was the happiest moment of your life?”

The happiest moment of my life was probably when I first got to see my dad after he got out of jail. I hadn’t seen him since I was a toddler--I’m guessing, I don’t know--I didn’t really meet him like that. I met him when I took a trip to Guyana in South America and it was the first time I had seen my dad for a long time, and so much emotion was built on it because it was my dad, and I hadn’t seen him in a while.

I hadn’t touched him in a while. It was just a good moment for me, my brother and my sister and it was just a great time for my family. I was kind of shocked, but at the the same time I was kind of excited because it was my dad. I wasn’t really tearful, but I’m happy he’s here and there’s nothing much to complain or cry about anymore.

Custodian Roxi Fury

“What is a common misconception people have of you?”

“That I don’t have any brains. Just because of the job title of custodian, a lot of people don’t think you’re as smart as you are. I can do a lot of stuff. I’ve done CNA nursing. I’ve done other stuff, but I like this, and I like the kids.”

“Do you have any passions?”

“Reading. I think it’s important to read. It makes you smart. It lets you know things you never thought happened.”

“What is your favorite book?”

“Now I have to admit this-- a Harlequin Romance! For me, It’s just relaxing.”

Sophomore Tajah Wright

“What’s something people might not see just by looking at you?”

“My personality and who I really am. I’m a really nice person when you get to know me, but sometimes they don’t know that. Some times when people look at me, they think I’m mean, or that I don’t like them, but I’m really nice when you get to know me.”

Sophomore Karina Vazquez “What makes you different?”

“What makes me different from others is my face, but generally, we’re all different in our own ways. I’d say I’m quite unique, different, considering my personality and my shades are gucci.”

Senior Karina Mercado

“What do you like about being a senior?”

“My favorite thing about being a senior is that soon I can have a job and go off to college and not have to worry about anything that is in the high school.”

Sophomore Ricky Rich

Sophomore Dania Sanchez-Tejeda

“It is self-expression. I get to express myself in my art and who I am. I’m creative, because I get to do what I want… I like doing new stuff.”

“What is a common misconception people have of you?

“That I am an antichrist. I’ve been approached by church groups where they’ve straight up said, ‘Do you believe in Satan? Are you evil?’. I just like to wear black and I like rock music, and they get mad at me for that. Just because I like rock and metal music doesn’t mean I’m evil. It is actually the most loving type of music. Sometimes it can talk about bad stuff, but so can any other music. People should not judge people based on their music taste or appearance, because that can lead to very misconceived ideas of people. And sometimes people think I’m mean because of my dressing status. I actually enjoy people, to an extent, depending on their attitude. I do not hate god because I wear black, and I do not like to hate on people because they wear black.”

Junior Omar Hussein

“What was the happiest moment of your life?”

“I am from Iraq and it is all war there. We came to America to get a better life and for our future. It is really good here. I saved my family and I saved myself. It is a better life here than in Iraq.”

Senior Kaywan Hameed

“Who has influenced you the most in your life?”

“My Mom. She’s kind. She was there for me when I went through a lot of stuff. She was the only one and I appreciate that.”

Junior Josh Soto

“What do you like about being a student athlete?”

“I like the people you meet during all your sports. You become really close with some of the athletes, and you become really close with some of the teachers, because they know you’re helping out the school.”

Sophomore Hussein Hussein Student Safety Liaison Jamie “What’s the happiest moment of your life?”

“The happiest moment of my life was learning English. I had a girlWilliams friend who helped me learn it all. First she would show me how to “I think passions kind of change, but right now I like to play the guitar and write my own music. That’s been kind of my passion for the past few years.”

Freshmen Edwin Mendez and Katelyn Leffel “What is a fond memory you have of each other?”

“Hanging out at Simms, the Boys and Girls Club. We met each other there about a year ago.”

talk using her hands. She would say ‘come here’ and wave with her hand. Then I started staying after school and reading books and listening to songs and I got what I got.”

Photos & Interviews by Maria Snell-Feikema, Brian Alvarado, David Gamboa & Faith Runnells