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Harrisonburg High School • 1001 Garbers Church Road • Harrisonburg, VA 22801 • 540.433.2651 • Volume XC • Issue 5• January 31, 2014

DECA hosts boys volleyball tournament Fernando Gamboa Online Editor-in-Chief The Harrisonburg High School DECA (Distributive Education Clubs of America) program set up to ‘spike down’ childhood obesity by raising funds and awareness through an all male volleyball game. They partnered with Act Out VA, an organization dedicated to working with school districts to establish a minimum of 30 minutes of physical education during the school day.

Each grade had a team, seniors, juniors, sophomores, and freshmen. They duked it out on the court, showing their commitment to the ActOut campaign. The tournament was structured so that there were three rounds played, the first team to get to 21 wins. Games were played simultaneously, to expedite the process. The seniors beat the freshmen, sophomores, and juniors.

See DECA on Page A2

Students excited for summer trip to Europe Celia Ehrenpreis Editor-in-Chief Spanish teacher Patricia Rojas describes her experience with Europe as this: “Walking down the streets [of Europe] is like walking through a museum.” This summer, for ten days, a group of about 15 students and spanish teachers Rojas and Jeffrey Kirkman will be experiencing something similar to what Rojas loves about the continent.

The trip starts off in Paris, where the group will experience everything in the city from Notre Dame to the Musée du Louvre. Chateau de Versailles, and a Seine River Cruise are all on the itinerary for the five days in Paris. Senior Celia Garcia is excited to get out of Harrisonburg.

“I want to travel, and see France. I’m a little nervous about the French speaking,” Garcia said. After the group’s five day stint in Paris, the trip moves to Madrid Spain.

The Puerta del Sol, Palacio Rea, and the Reina Sofia will all be visited.

PHOTO BY FERNANO GAMBOA PENA

GAME ON. Senior Jacob Byrd discusses strategy on the court at the recent DECA volleyball tournament to help stamp out obesity.

This team went on to win the tournament.

Wheeler recognized for pedometer project Mia Karr Editor-in-Chief When P.E. teacher Amy Wheeler put her name into consideration for a statewide award, she doubted she would win at even the local level.

However, not only did she take home first place at the local level for her “Health is Wealth: Pedometers Make Cents” project, but she also placed third in the state. The Virginia Council on Economics in Education sponsored an award open to all types of educators, and Wheeler pounced on the opportunity once she heard about it from a JMU economics professor.

“I went in to it thinking maybe I was off base, and not only did I win locally, but I also went

on to the state level and beat out some really good projects, so that I think was the most exciting and surprising part,” Wheeler said.

For Wheeler’s project, students in her classes wear pedometers every day and record the number of steps. Each step represents one penny. At the end of the quarter, the amount of money earned is tallied up.

At the end of the class, students in her P.E 10 classes do a final project in which they plan a fake trip that incorporates their Driver’s Education curriculum.

For the trip, students must get their imaginary car in order, by researching things like how much new tires and an oil

See WHEELER on A2

change cost. From there, they can pick one of eight locations in Virginia. They use map read-

Heydari volunteers for Day of Service Brenna Cowardin Managing Editor

Second semester off to great start

Luke Gibson Online Editor-in-Chief

See SEMESTER on A2

PHOTO COURTESY OF DAVID LOUGHRAN

LUNCHEON OF CHAMPIONS. Physical Education teacher, Amy Wheeler is pictured here with the other award recipients in Richmond, VA.

See EUROPE on A2

With the recent and somewhat delayed arrival of the second semester, teachers and students are presented with a chance to refresh themselves before the school year continues. For many, the new semester means a changed schedule as well as various other aspects such as lunch blocks.

Cara Walton is one example of a social studies teacher with slight adjustments to her schedule.

“The best part [about the new semester] is the new start. Tensions that may have formed over the first semester are broken and there is the sense that you get to start over fresh. The worst part is learning about 75 or so new names,” Walton said.

Walton uses the second semester as a chance to adjust her lesson plans.

“I look over what I did for the first semester and see what worked and what didn't. I try to make changes to see if I can get things to work better,” Walton said. For freshmen, the second semester is espe

ing skills to plot a route and budget money for tickets (if applicable), round trip gas, food,

PHOTO COURTESY OF AUBTIN HEYDARI

THE MORE YOU KNOW. Heydari and other members of the Gay Straight Alliance papered the town with these flyers for the Day of Service.

On the Web Updated sports scores and schedules for all seasonal sports Feature package stories and extended coverage of print packages Advertising forms and information Breaking news from school and the community Video footage of sports Variety of reviews and blogs Up-to-date gas prices in the area

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Governor Terry McAuliffe volunteered at a food pantry on Saturday Jan. 4 with thousands of other Virginians. With his inauguration, McAuliffe initiated a Day of Service as a celebration of taking office and also to show his commitment to community service. Senior Aubtin Heydari was contacted to be a Fellow, a person who organized a service project in their own community for Day of Service. Heydari decided to raise awareness for LGBT teens through handing out and hanging up fliers around Harrisonburg.

“Anna [Cooper], my precinct captain, [from when I volunteered for the McAuliffe campaign] contacted me and asked me if I wanted to be a Fellow,” Heydari said. “She knew I was leading the Gay Straight Alliance club and she thought that we could do something with that because she wanted to get the school involved as well.”

Groups formed all over

the state to do community service and Heydari was one of 30 to 40 Fellows who led those groups.

“I was one of the Fellows...and most of the people were 20, 30, 40 years old and had been doing this type of thing for a long time and I’m just a high school student. I was having conference calls with 30 year old people and emailing 40 year old people for tips on how to organize [the project],” Heydari said. “It was a really adult-like experience.”

Heydari wanted to get the GSA involved, so he made posters to enlighten the public about LGBT youth. He highlighted in the flier that LGBT youth are more likely to be homeless and commit suicide, and supplied two hotlines and the numbers of two local organizations available for support. He also provided contact information for PFLAG, Parents, Friends and Family of Lesbians and Gays.

“PFLAG is an international organization for par

See SERVICE on A2

Coming Up Musical coverage Winter sports coverage Club news Comparison of local foods Extended learning time update Second semester in full swing Debate district competition Columns and editorials Every person has a story feature

January 31, 2014

The

News Briefs Winter Band Concert The District band concert will be held at HHS on Jan. 31.

The Gloria Wille Bell Scholarship Students planning to pursue a degree in engineering, mathematics, physics or computer science at the University of Michigan. Financial need is not a factor. Providing up to $80,000 over four years of undergraduate study. Due Feb. 1.

Lee-Jackson Scholarship Any junior or senior may apply who is a resident of Virginia planning to attend an accredited four-year college or university. Due Feb 6.

WACE National Co-Op Scholarship Students must have a 3.5 GPA and be accepted to one of the following WACE Partner Institutions: Clarkson University, State University of New York, and Drexel University. Due Feb. 14.

Virginia PTA Scholarship Graduating seniors who plan to enter teaching or other youthserving professions. Students must have a 2.5 GPA or better, provide the evidence of financial need, and must attend a Virginia university in the fall. Due Feb. 20.

Shenandoah Valley Scholarship Students must be a senior and parents must be a member of the Shenandoah Valley Electric Cooperative. This application is due on Feb . 24.

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NEWS- A2

DECA prepares for district competition Julexus Cappell Opinion Editor “DECA prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs in marketing, finance, hospitality, and management in high schools and colleges around the globe.”

In accordance with the organization’s mission statement, HHS’s DECA club plans to do just that on January 13 at districts.

The schools’ competition will include Turner Ashby, Broadway, and HHS, where it will also be held.

“I’m looking at about 22 people from Harrisonburg, seven from Turner Ashby, and four from Broadway,” marketing teacher and DECA advisor Mallory Cromer said.

To qualify for the DECA state competition a person has to compete in districts,

but the district competition itself is open to all club members.

“Anyone is eligible for districts- it really is based on student interest. I know some teachers who ask students if they want to participate,” Cromer said.

District competitions only consist of individuals, because groups are reserved for state competitions. Individuals participating in districts are given a problem relating to business and marketing. They must find a solution to the problem and present it to a judge or judges.

“It is a very professional event. They are given a scenario. They have 10 minutes to strategize and read it, then 5-10 minutes to present to the judge. You are judged on your answers and overall performance,” Cromer said.

Senior Blake Long recollects on a past

competition, explaining how specific the scenarios given to competitors can be. “[A scenario] One I got last year was that a factory blew up in this town and some of the people died. I was in charge of keeping the image alive for the company, and I had to apologize to the community and all.

I had to develop a plan on how to regain our image and keep the support from the community,” Long said.

Not only are the judges looking for how well a DECA member can problem solve, they also are looking at the whole package.

It is required to dress up for a competition in business attire, since the club is for possible future business leaders, judges want to prepare members for that career.

“You have to show business etiquette, they’ll judge you on that,” Long said.

Opinions vary on new ELT time during school day Sarah Scribano News Editor A new system has been set into action this year at HHS. For the first time, the high school is implementing Extended Learning Time. Study halls have been removed from the students options for classes and now there is a scheduled study hall for everyone in the school.

For 50 minutes, two days a week, the students are either directed or considered a choice student. Those who are directed must go to the class that they have a D or F in. This gives students the opportunity to work to bring up their grade by working with the teacher on their assignments.

The choice students are those who have a C average and above in their classes. They have the ability to choose a class, club, or

area to go to during this time, as long as they have signed permission. The second semester is just beginning and there have been mixed reviews of how it worked for the first.

Senior Chloe Scanlan feels that ELT has been both beneficial and not helpful enough. She has a difficult schedule and feels that the time allotted is not enough for to make an indent on her work.

“I have mentorship first block, so I can just stay at the hospital during ELT, but I feel like it’s not enough time to catch up on all the work that I have to do,” Scanlan said.

Scanlan thought that her study hall last year was a more effective way to get her work completed. Scanlan feels that the school should go back to the old method and do away with ELT.

“I like study hall better because it’s more time to catch up on work. Once you’re in the zone you still have enough time to stay in it. I think they should bring back study hall,” Scanlan said.

Senior Alvina Klopot’s opinion is very similar. She feels that ELT has not been as helpful as the study halls were. Kolpot believes that ELT only benefits those who are doing poorly in their classes.

“Study hall is definitely better because you can go off by yourself and work without being distracted. In ELT people have it all at the same time, and all of your classmates are in one area. I don’t really feel that ELT gives the opportunity to talk to teachers because the failing kids in my class get the teacher. So, I am basically being punished for being successful,” Klopot said.

Day of service activity helps raise awareness about LGBT issues SERVICE from A1 ents and friends of lesbian and gay people and tries to educate them on how to be an ally and how to deal with someone coming out,” Heydari said. He included the contact information for the local chapter, the Winchester chapter and the Washington D.C. chapter of PFLAG. Heydari was hesitant to print numerous fliers because of cost, but decided to pay for it out of pocket anyway- and he wasn’t the only one who wanted to support LGBT youth.

“I went to the printing press and the guy there offered to print double the amount for free because he thought it was for a good cause,” Heydari said.

Heydari papered the town with 400 fliers in about five hours on Jan. 4.

“If [businesses] were locally owned we would give [the fliers] to them and they would hang it up. At some other chains we couldn’t leave [the fliers] inside so we hung them up outside and on pillars, someplace in the shopping complex where people

would see them,” Heydari said.

In some cases, he just handed the fliers out.

“Some people would ask me for them because they could hang it up in their businesses,” Heydari said.

Seniors Larkin O’Hara and Tabitha Lafreniere accompanied Heydari on Jan. 4 to put up the posters. Although they originally planned to do something on a larger-scale, the three weeks between the time Heydari found out about the project and Jan 4. “[Day of Service] was very short notice.

We had wanted [our community service event] to be very large, but it just didn’t work out that way,” Lafreniere said. The first idea was a community forum at Court Square theater to discuss LGBT youth issues. However downtown businesses in particular were open to listening and encouraged the trio to hang up the posters and hand them out.

“My favorite part was going downtown and talking to all the store owners, telling them what we were doing and why, and the fact that they were so supportive for

[our cause] and let us hand out our poster and hang them up as well,” Lafreniere said.

O’Hara is excited about the future opinions the posters will change. “[I’m looking forward to] when people will see [the fliers] and it would change how they think about things, and that’s what we’re trying to get across,” O’Hara said.

Heydari has had some follow-up to the distribution of the posters already.

“It turned out very well. I’ve had people actually see the posters and contact me and talk to me about them. [Senior] Fernando [Gamboa Pena] has parents who own a newspaper, and they want to publish [one of the fliers] in their newspaper,” Heydari said.

Though he believes the project succeeded in its mission, Heydari will never know who was helped by his fliers.

“It’s hard to really gauge the effectiveness of [the fliers], but that’s sort of the point. You can never really know who needed that contact information,” Heydari said.

Awards presentation held at Federal Reserve Bank WHEELER from A1 Wheeler attended a ceremony on the 23rd and hotel rooms.

“Sometimes once they’ve paid all the money to keep their car up, and gas, and event tickets, they don’t have any money left. And then they get mad. So my question to them is: what could you have done differently? Is it a matter of budgeting or is it a matter of effort? It lends itself to good discussions and maybe some critical thinking about how they prioritize different things in their life,” Wheeler said.

To accept her state award of $200,

floor of the Federal Reserve Bank in Richmond, Virginia. The ceremony included a luncheon with people from around the state, including employees at the bank.

She and the other award recipients gave a small speech about their projects.

“I happened to be one of the only physical education entries there were,” Wheeler said “When I went to receive the award, people were really complementary toward me because this isn’t something you usually hear about coming out of P.E.” Wheeler’s students have been partici-

pating in the project for nine years, ever since she developed an early version with the P.E. teacher she student-taught for at Turner Ashby. The project has evolved over the years and Wheeler foresees more evolution as she continues with the project.

“I’m always looking for ways to keep tweaking it,” Wheeler said. “Honestly, it really is what you do in life. You get a car and you have to keep it up and you only have so much money coming from your paycheck and it’s real and I think that’s why it’s a good project.”

Club stamping out obesity

DECA from A1

Volleyball aside, these players were there to raise awareness for some startling statistics. According to ActOutVA one in four Virginian youth is overweight, with such a high number of kids affected, less than 10% of Virginia schools provide the minimum CDC recommended 30 minutes of daily physical education.

Harrisonburg City Public Schools falls into the 10%, from grades K-10 students are required to take physical education classes, and at the elementary level children have daily recesses, these all come together to meet or exceed the daily recommended amount of physical activity.

Foreign language students will travel EUROPE from A1

“The kids will be immersed in Spanish culture… [I want them to understand] that Spain is also a mix of cultures, just like the US,” Rojas said.

Junior Fabien Ruiz will also be attending the summer trip.

“I decided to go because, you don’t really get a chance like this very often. I’m really excited to see Paris,” Ruiz said.

A trip of this caliber does not come at a small price, the total cost is $3650. This includes everything from airfare to many of the meals. The trip is from June 20th to 30th.

Second semester offers chance for new start in school SEMESTER from A1 cially different. “[For freshmen this semester,] there’s no “breaking in” period. I teach mostly freshmen, and first semester there is always a period where they are adjusting to life at the high school. By second semester, students should already be aware of expectations and school environment,” Walton said.

SCA President and senior Jacob Byrd has plans to encourage school spirit in the new semester.

“We’re looking at bringing in a performance act with money we’ve saved up. It’s

something to give to the students,” Byrd said.

As a senior, Byrd recognizes that the proximity of graduation could be a potential distraction. “[I have] Calculus fourth block which could be a struggle, but hopefully it will all go well. [Graduation] is kind of exciting, I’m ready to move on,” Byrd said.

Travis Schreiber-May, a fellow senior, also has a positive reflection on his first semester. His focus is now on the final months before he leaves HHS. “I did fairly well. I got all As and one B, so I’ll have to remain consistent or even raise my grade. I can’t wait to walk across

the stage and finally get my diploma, but it’ll be sad to leave the halls of HHS,” Schreiber-May said.

For students who may be feeling the pains of the school year, Walton believes that it is important to continue to maintain a work ethic even in the latter half of the school year.

“Even if you didn’t do well first semester, don’t throw in the towel. Look at second semester as an opportunity to start fresh and correct any mistakes you may have made the first time. And do your work, even if you hate it, your grade and understanding of the class will be better,” Walton said.

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January 31, 2014

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Costa Rican students visit Harrisonburg Ava Reynolds Staff photographer

Traveling to a new country can be intimidating. Especially if it is to a place with a whole new language, community of people, and culture.

For Harrisonburg High School’s Costa Rican exchange students, every student is assigned a host student. Without this host student to show them the ropes, they could be very lost.

Junior Laurie Serrell will be a host student this year.

“I wanted to be a host because I don’t know much about any other cultures and I think it would be a good and fun learning experience,” Serrell said.

Once the exchange students arrive, the host has the responsibility to

show them a normal day, and things that they won’t be doing within their group. They will also show them anything they think the student should see in America and in the host students life.

“I want to take her [the exchange student] fishing, to track meets (because I’m a runner), shopping, a pedicure salon, playing in the woods, walking around downtown, my church, and to a sleepover,” Serrell said.

The exchange students will be doing multiple things during our regular school day.

“I’m going to drive her to school in the morning, introduce her to everyone, have her do my Spanish homework for me, and then she can stay for track practice after school,” Serrell said.

Junior Mariah King is also hosting a

student from Costa Rica this year.

“I wanted to host an exchange student because my friend was doing it and asked me if I was interested. Also I had been to Costa Rica last year, and it just seemed like a really fun experience,” King said.

As for Harrisonburg, King wants to show the students the best spots of the town.

“I will probably show them around downtown and just little things around Harrisonburg like Klines. They are also going to a lot of places in their group,” King said.

The exchange students have hosts to show them the ropes of life in Harrisonburg, and give them a place to stay, but often, the host is more than just a tour guide. A life long friend is made.

NEWS A3

Q & A with Costa Rican exchange student Paula Pizarro 1. Favorite memory: “All the lights in Times Square and a snowball fight; it was really fun.

Some of the other Costa Rican students were there and their hosts.”

2. What do you think of snow?: “It is cold. I like it because I never seen snow before. I’ve seen it in movies, but I’ve never been able to experience it myself.”

3. Least favorite part: “The subways in D.C. because they scares me. One of my classmates got his backpack stuck in the subway door, and he hasn’t used that backpack since. I don’t trust the subways.”

4. Have you traveled a lot before now?: “Only two times, to Orlando and Miami. Both times to become familiar with American culture. Both of those trips were with my family.”

5. What is the biggest difference?: “Here, I’m not in my comfort zone, and at home I can do anything. Here I have to follow different rules.”

6. What are you most looking forward to?: “To experience a new place, and I’d like to go shopping again, and to have fun.”

7. What do you think of winter?: “I don’t like it because I get sick, but I like it because we can have snowball fights.”

9. Do you watch movies in English?: “Sometimes, but we use Spanish subtitles.”

10. How long have you been taking English classes?: “All my life.”

11. Is speaking English in the U.S. different than in class?: “In all my English classes, they don’t teach us how to have a conversation, they only teach writing, so it’s very difficult.”

12. Are there any funny memories you have?: “I was with my friends walking in Times Square to return to the hotel, and then there was a homeless man and he hid to scare us. He jumped out and screamed, and my friends jumped and made a really funny face. He looked like a cat.”

PHOTO BY PETER NORMENT

Interview by Brenna Cowardin

GOOD THINGS COME IN THREES. Sophomore Ellie Plass, junior Evan Dotas, and senior Daniel Roth pose with the awards they received in the Lincoln-Douglas category of debate at the GMU tournament. Plass was fourth, Dotas was second, and Roth was first.

Debaters successful at GMU debate tournament Ellie Plass Style Editor It is, hands-down, the biggest and most challenging tournament the team will go to all year. It puts the others to shame, with more than double the participants of the HHS debate team’s next biggest competition.

The tournament will be held the weekend of January tenth, at George Mason University. Because of the length and how far away it is, this is the only tournament that requires debaters to spend a night in a hotel. Also unlike the usual tournaments, this is an invitational. This means that schools and people will be coming from all over, not just the team’s usual crop of op-

ponents.

Daniel Roth, captain of the LincolnDouglas sector of debate, has high hopes for this year.

“Personally I think I have a good chance of doing well, last year I got to octofinals so I’m hoping to do better than that,” Roth said. The fact the captain of the team broke only to an octo-final spot (the top sixteen participants) shows just how tough the competition is. But Roth is optimistic about the performance of our school as a whole.

“I also have a lot of confidence in the rest of our team, I think that we’re going to do very well as a school and individually,” Roth said.

Only three members of the LincolnDouglas team, one Public Forum team,

and three policy teams went to the tournament.

Members of the Lincoln-Douglas sector of debate, Roth, Evan Dotas, and Ellie Plass took first, second, and fourth place respectively.

Public forum team of Michelle Waligora and Chris Macadam made it to the semifinal round, and Policy team of Aubtin Heydari and Neil Mehta made it to finals.

Debaters are judged based on their speaking skills and how well they argue the round, which is how they make it further in the tournament.

Junior Evan Dotas was pleased with how he did.

"I was really happy with my performance. I didn’t expect to do as well as I did, so I was pleasantly surprised," Dotas said.

The GMU tournament, while usually some of HHS’ biggest competition, was lacking this year.

Senior Michelle Waligora was a little frustrated with the quality of the tournament. "[The tournament was] poor because when there are fewer teams we get less practice and we don't improve. The whole point of a tournament is to debate a lot and get better and that didn't happen this time, we only debated four times compared to the 9 times at JMU," Waligora said.

Even though the opponents were sometimes unsportsmanlike or unprepared, the debaters of our high school proved that integrity and kindness perseveres for the win.

Singers audition for district choir Aubtin Heydari Staff videographer Members of the District V Choir are finally seeing the work they put into auditions last November into fruition. On February 7th and 8th at East Rockingham High School, the District Choir students will meet up with choir students from schools around the district, which includes the city and a couple counties. The esteemed honors ensemble provides a unique experience to those who are able to get in. Senior Abe Nouri is a veteran of District Choir and is anticipating the event. He has been the 1st chair tenor both years he has auditioned.

“It’s different because you’re singing with a completely different group of people, and it’s a very large ensemble which is different coming from a choir of around 30 people,” Nouri said.

Auditions to join took place on Nov 2nd.

The students went up in a bus in two shifts: morning auditions and afternoon auditions. They arrived at Stuarts Draft High School, where they warmed up until their number was called. The actual audition took place in a room that consisted of a room monitor and two judges.

“To get in, you sing a prepared piece and sight read and then you get a score. Juniors and seniors that make it in are eligible for state choir,” Nouri Said. Because it isn’t a blind audition, students are also judged on stage presence.

Along with performance experience alongside the best in the region, District Choir provides the students with an opportunity to meet new people and make friends.

“It’s a fun experience and a chance to make music with area singers,” Nouri said.

PHOTO BY AVA REYNOLDS

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT. Male cast members of Oklahoma! practice their music with choral director Beth Houff. Many of these men were selected for the District V Choir.

Seniors receive early decision acceptances Sydney Little Online Editor-in-chief After submitting their college applications by November 1st for early decision to the colleges of their choice, many students finally got their acceptance letters in late December and up through early January.

Senior Lillian Poirot made the decision earlier in the year to only apply to two schools, James Madison University and Christopher Newport University.

“They were the only two schools I was interested in, so there wasn't really any point in applying elsewhere,” Poirot said.

Poirot was accepted to both schools

within the same week.

“It feels great knowing that both of my applications were accepted and that I have options. I think I want to go to CNU because it's far away but still in state, and it has a great teaching program. JMU also has a great program, but it's still in Harrisonburg so I think that's what's holding me back from going there,” Poirot said.

Unlike Poirot, senior Dean Koo has always wanted to live in New York City. This plan seems to be going well for Koo, seeing as he was accepted into Columbia University, which is located in New York.

“Columbia was the only school I applied to so when I got in I was very excited and glad that I could take it easy for the rest of my senior year,” Koo said.

Not only did Koo, get accepted into one of the eight Ivy League schools, but he will also be receiving a full ride for his first year there.

Similar to Koo, senior Neil Mehta also only applied to one school, but in his case, it was to one of the other Ivy Leagues, Cornell University in Ithaca, New York.

“I was excited about my acceptance and glad that I didn’t have to finish other college apps. Cornell was my top choice, because I felt that going to an Ivy League school with one of the best engineering programs would be good for my future, and I liked it even more after touring it twice,” Mehta said.

January 31, 2014

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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: Celia Ehrenpreis, Mia Karr Online: Luke Gibson, Sydney Little, Rafael Snell-Feikema, Fernando Gamboa Managing Editors: Brenna Cowardin (print) and Isabelle Burden (online) Advertising Managers: Austin Coffey and Joshua Byrd Photographers: Ava Reynolds, Luke Gibson Videographers: Jake McDaniel and Aubtin Heydari Staff Reporters: John Earle, Julexus Cappell, Victoria Giron, Joshua Byrd, Austin Swift, Ellie Plass, Brenna Cowardin, Luke Gibson, Alexis Dickerson, Nishat Jamil, Faith Runnells, Maria Delgado, Pablo Pacheco, Sarah Scribano, Ali Baapir, Danny Dombowski, Hunter Manzano, Jacob McDaniel, Cathryn Hall, Claudio Hernandez, Bulberto TorresCruz, Austin Engle, Aubtin Heydari, Ella Marian, Ben Willis, Ariel Vogel, Garrett Thompson, Jessica Nguyen and Ava Reynolds.

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. newsstreak.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 understand that the school newspaper, newsstreak. com, now has an online version of the publication. I DO NOT want my son/daughter (place student’s name here) to have his or her name or image published on this online venue.

The The

Newsstreak Newsstreak

Op/Ed--A5 A5 NEWS

10 point grading scale was right decision NEWSSTREAK STAFF EDITORIAL At the end of last school year, the school board made the decision to change HHS’s grading system from a seven point grading scale to a ten point grading scale, with the idea being that the seven point scale had largely only resulted in incongruency with other statewide and regional systems with little positive gain.

Last year, for example, Governor’s school students found that their grades were interpreted differently depending on their home school. Two students who both received a 92% in the same class one with a homeschool location of

Rockingham County and one with a homeschool location of Harrisonburg - would receive two different letter grades and correspondingly two different GPAs. The same was true of Virtual Virginia and VHS students, who, even though they were taking a course whose difficulty was weighted on a ten point scale, received a letter grade based on our seven point system.

Thus, the administration modified the system, with the hope that teachers would simply modify the difficulty of their classes accordingly. Whether or not this has actually happened, it seems to be entirely subjective, with some students reporting similarly difficult classes and others reporting that the new

scale is much easier. Either one is possible: while teachers in some classes can simply adjust a curve, other teachers might find themselves having to rewrite requirements or material.

A similar point can be made from a student viewpoint: as the change is in many cases only a difference of a couple points, it amounts to a fairly marginal difference in effort, and so the pattern remains largely the same. Those who try harder will receive better grades regardless of what number the system uses per letter.

This is in any case a change that we can support: intuitiveness is high virtue in the context of the education system.

It seems illustrative of other problems if the grading scale a school uses is so odd as to make teachers write it on the board while handing back every exam. The goal of public education should be to offer itself to as many people as possible, and while analyzing this as a problem this might seem a large extrapolation to make from grading scales, it isn’t: seven point scales put students at a comparative disadvantage to other students whose schools had ten point scales when they apply to college. We shouldn’t sacrifice the ability to give fair opportunity for some vaguely defined haze of “academic rigor”, and with that justification we applaud last year’s decision.

Powerschool leads to constant grades checking I could have surerschool? vived in the days beI need access to my fore the Internet. In grades at all times. Not the days before cell only that, but I need to phones, or rotator dial know that I can scroll phones, or fax mato the bottom of the chines. I could have page and see my culived happily before mulative GPA any electricity or indoor time, any where, in The Mia plumbing. Before the case of emergencies.

Perspective I remember, someprinting press. Before the wheel. Before fire. time in the distant However, sometimes late at night past, when I would first receive a terrible thought seizes me and I news of my grade on a test when it succumb to uncontrollable shiver- was handed back in class. Oh, how ing- what did they do before Pow- the world have changed. Now my

Powerschool obsession intensifies whenever I know I have a test grade ready to potentially shatter my life into a million underachieving bits and I’ve left with no defense but to refresh...refresh...refresh...

Is it an obsession? An addiction? Is it love? Either way, I’m not the only one afflicted. Many of my peers live in the comforting grayblue color scheme that is Powerschool, subsisting off the jolts of adrenaline they receive when they see their grade has changed. When Powerschool was experiencing a glitch earlier this year, you could

New year resolutions do not always work “This year I’m going to be different. No more cursing, no more junk food. I’m signing up for the gym, and definitely not going to as many parties. New year, new me!”

You are most likely Just still going to be the same swearing, Cheeto munching, couch potato, party animal you were last year-- AKA like a month ago. I’m sorry, the truth can hurt, but let’s be realistic.

New year resolutions ideally are goals you want to achieve within a year. You know, stop biting your nails, lose weight, I don’t know fill in your own blank.

Unfortunately, they have

evolved into a list of unattainable goals. So instead of your typically ‘resolutions, talk about what I plan to change about myself this year’ I want to Julexus column switch it up a bit.

Every year on December 31st there are people scrambling to write down ridiculous goals for the next year. I’m all for striving for something, don’t get me wrong, but do you really think you’ll be prepared to run AND place in a marathon if you can barely make it down your street to check the mail? I think not.

Come on people, instead of at-

tempting outlandish feats, why don’t we try a different method-bettering ourselves. I mean yes, maybe I could strive to lose 100 pounds this year, but maybe I’d be better off channeling that energy into something a tad more realistic.

I could volunteer at a homeless shelter, try to make it to church more often, pay a compliment to someone each day. All of those things, in my opinion, deserve more time and provide a better outcome than trying to give up soda for the sake of a stupid list then eventually cracking after two and a half weeks.

So, 2014, I don’t vow to be a different me, I vow to be a better one.

Childhood bullying has real impact Rozda Askari Guest Columnist I was a bright and ambitious student growing up. In my eyes, I thought that every person I would ever come to meet would be kind.

All it took me was to switch schools. It was the first day at my new school. Unlike most stories ending with happily ever after, my story stayed dismal from day one, or so I thought. My story felt like it hit its rock bottom in the fall of 2006. My parents were fond of the idea of leaving our run-down, townhouse and relocating to a newly built threestory house in Harrisonburg. I had to switch schools and make new friends.

I was astonished when my parents broke the news to me.

I didn’t want to leave all my neighbors, friends at school, and the only place I recognized as home since birth. I knew I had little hope of convincing my parents that moving would be disastrous.

I went to school the next day to explain my current situation to my friends and teachers. My friends and I cried up an ocean.

I swore that I would never speak to my parents again because of the complications their decision had brought upon me. In little kids’ dialect, that translated to about a 20-minute car ride with my family where I was giving them the silent treatment.

Eventually, I came to Waterman Elementary. My parents gave me the normal pep talk for making friends at a place I knew nothing about. Clouding what I thought as a deed just to spite me, with assurance such as, “this will be a life lesson you’ll surely use down the road.” I reluctantly hugged them goodbye and went to the bus stop where I waited anxiously.

I was now the quiet kid in school -- the polar opposite of what I had been before. I tried to make friends, but was always shut down by the children who had already established social circles well before my arrival.

My assumption was that they

disliked me over things I had no control or was completely oblivious of.

I loathed recess and lunch.

I was the kid who ate lunch by himself, and sat hunched against the wall, watching other kids have fun during recess. I was a pudgy kid, well over a hundred pounds in the fourth grade. I read day in and day out. I was also the one who answered all the teachers questions.

Another distinct thing about me was my skin color. I have always had a hunch I was different from other kids, but I didn’t know it meant I couldn’t be friends with others. Hurtful phrases came about, ranging from statements such as fatso or nerd, even terrorist. My fourth grade self had no idea what that was, which goes the same for any other kid who used it then. It stemmed from other kids seeing and acknowledging that I was different; I was their labrat of insult words. If I appeared to be hurt by a certain statement, the other kids would be sure to use them again, knowing they would get a reaction. I wasn’t used to being the odd man out. I tried to be nice to everyone I met, as my parents instructed, but that didn’t help me whatsoever.

One day, I finally had the courage to tell my parents that kids at school weren’t being nice to me.

They promptly came down to the principal’s office and had a discussion. The solution was that I would get to eat with the teachers during lunch and read in the library during recess.

The results were disappointing. Kids started calling me teachers’ pet and other nasty things.

It never worked out. One day I decided I’d try again and make friends. This plan backfired over a game of foursquare. I then resorted to ask, “Why can’t you guys be nice to me?” Then one of them said something along the lines of “you’re a terrorist, and you’re a *$#!^*&.” I was boiling with anger and reversed the name calling. A teacher overheard me and gave me detention.

I had little proof that they started it because it was a 3-1 situation where three deceitful statements

were up against my truth. This defeat had set the other kids on higher ground.

Many more altercations like this came about with the same outcomes. I was now deemed a liar. I couldn’t handle it. I stopped doing homework and pondered about my problems every day.

It felt like the whole world was against me.

My parents were too busy balancing work and grown-up problems, and I had no friends or relatives in the area. It was inevitable.

I snapped. One day during lunch, I had tired of putting up with nasty comments. When lunch came around, knowing fully well I would be insulted, I had planned to do something about it.

One of the three kids, the parasites who hindered my success, started his daily routine of name calling. I was aware of what he said but asked the question,”what did you say?” in the deepest voice I could conjure at the time. In a split second, before he could finish repeating what he said, I picked up my plastic blue lunch tray and whacked him as hard as I could in the face.

Then the adrenaline hit me. Before he could swing I whacked him again and my tray went flying (along with my assailant).

Before I realized what I had done, two pairs of adult arms picked me up and took me away to diffuse the situation. I felt relieved afterwards. I never meant to hurt anyone, but I felt that I had had enough and something had to be done. After my suspension from school, I wrote a strongly worded apology letter to the kid. He apologized too. Afterwards, we somehow became friends. I, to a certain extent, felt accepted.

Sometimes the conventional way will not get the job done.

I hope to never resort to such violence again, but some situations make it okay. It was a life lesson, as my parents suggested.

Switching schools at a young age assuredly can affect a child’s life.

He or she will have to grow up a little and realize that not everyone will like them for who they are.

tell something was wrong- people were jumpier than usual, sweatier than usual. I thought there might be all out anarchy. (Especially among the sort of people that says “I just totally, like, failed that test” when they get a 91.)

Maybe the more important question is why we care about the numbers in the little boxes so much.

When did our lives (and our home pages) become a glorified spreadsheet? I would provide the answer, but I don’t have time. I have to go calculate what grade I need on this column to maintain my A in English.

Censorship does not benefit society To censor or not to censor?

Censorship by definition is the suppression of speech or other communiGabbin’ With cation that may be Garrett viewed as objectionable, harmful, or politically incorrect. For generations people have censored television, books, and other literary works. The question is, why do we censor or better yet, what do we censor?

In most cases in the past, censorship has happened because an authoritative power viewed a creative work as harmful to the legitimacy of their power. The scientific findings of esteemed scholar Charles Darwin were banned by many religious groups for the intricate and explicit details providing evidence for the theory of evolution. Mark Twain’s American classic, “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” was banned in some places for its commentary on the South and its treatment of colored people at that time. “To Kill a Mockingbird,” “The Awakening” and “The Color Purple” are other novels, to name a few, that were almost not allowed to create the cultural impact they were destined to have.

Censorship has come to the frontline yet again with more recent controversies such as the Miley Cyrus twerking scandal at the VMA’s or Phil Robertson’s recent controversy.

Miley Cyrus became our generations Elvis who was known for his gyrating pelvis. Both artists were pinned by the media of that time as being no more than an act of sexual perversion that shouldn’t be allowed on television. The media has been tasked with a challenge. Present the truth or hide what they feel is “inappropriate.”

It’s 2014! The push for equal rights and equality among men is still an issue but there are crimes still being committed against humanity that aren’t being emphasized: The silencing of ideas and thoughts because someone disagreed with them. Who is to tell the world what is right and wrong? Not more than two generations ago “the man” was trying to silence the voice and opinions of millions of oppressed people. Had they been successful I might not be writing this column.

Let the people chose what they want to see, read and hear. How can we teach creative writing and freedom of expression if every day there are opinions that will never be heard. What one person believes is not what someone else believes.

Keep your opinion and I’ll keep mine, freedom of the press, voice to the people! Phil Robertson I don’t agree with you, but kudos for stating your opinion.

January 31, 2014

HOT

The

Justin Bieber’s Believe Canadian pop and R&B star Justin Bieber’s newest movie Believe 3D premiered Dec 25 2013.

The new ‘Dynamic Duo’ Amy Poehler and Tina Fey get attention for being a new ‘dynamic duo’ for their monologue at the Golden Globes.

Beyonce’s Album R&B singer Beyonce released a self title album without any promotion Dec 13.

Early decison results Letters of acceptance, defers, or rejection for early decision applicants came out in mid- December.

Early call on snow days It’s always wonderful to have school cancelled the night before!

The Hobbit The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug premiered Dec 13.

Superbowl A classic match-up between the Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks in NYC should provide and entertaining Superbowl experience - as will the commercials!

New TV seasons coming FOX has announced the return of 24 with Kiefer Sutherland on May 5.

UK same sex marriage Same sex marriage was passed in England and Wales in July 2013 and is expected to be legalized by Mar 29 2014.

NOT

Justin Bieber in legal trouble

Believe star was arrested Jan 23 for driving under the influence and drag racing in Miami beach.

Movie theater shooting Shots were fired in a Wesley Chapel, Florida movie theater over thrown popcorn where one person was killed.

No nomination for Tom H Legendary actor Tom Hanks was not nominated for a SAG or Golden Globe Award for his role in Saving Mr. Banks.

College applications due Regular decison application deadline for most universities was Jan 15.

Midterm exams Midterm exams for students were the week following winter break. Snow days and delays did change up exam scheduling.

Extreme Cold Enough is enough already! This polar vortex needs to go back where it came from. -6 degrees is just not right!

Long haul until next break This stretch in winter is quite the long one until our next scheduled break. Keep the snow coming!

Scraping the car Getting the ice off your windshield can be a huge pain- especially if you don’t own an actual ice scraper.

Making up snow days It was fun while it lasted, but making up the snow days will not be a pleasant event.

ELT passes It is mandatory to receive a pass from the teacher or place (exlabs) before leaving for ELT. Cold and Flu Season Be sure to bundle up and wash your hands to avoid colds and the flu this winter.

OP/ED A6

School shootings should be wake up call

American Hustle Crime Fiction movie American Hustle wins the Outstanding Performance by a Cast in Motion Picture at the 2014 SAG Awards.

Newsstreak

Delay Tactics

Rafael Snell-Feikema Online Editor-in-Chief School shootings are terrible, tragic, heart-wrenching things.

They are unfathomable. They are something that should never happen: a waste of life, a waste of opportunity, and a violent, bloody shattering of innocence. Worse still is the fact that we remember only few of them: most people can probably name Columbine, Sandy Hook, and Virginia Tech, but few others. There were thirty school shootings in 2013. Can you name a single one?

It’s not your fault - they are simply too many and too often for them to be properly covered and grieved for. Even more dramatic, however, is the realization that while school shootings may be huge, public, horrifying events, these sort of deaths happen every day. According to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports, 194 children were shot and killed in the United States in 2013, along with 11,225 adults - a higher body count that than of US soldiers in every war since Vietnam combined. And why?

There’s a pretty obvious answer: it is far too easy to get guns.

Firearms can be purchased in a variety of ways with absolutely no background checks (every day “gun shows”, purchasing firearms from individual sellers, and even the internet), allowing mentally unstable or violent people to receive firearms that it is absolutely reprehensible for them to have.

Every gun at Sandy Hook was pur-

chased via an entirely legal route.

Finally, despicably and inexplicably, assault rifles are legal.

While there are pseudo-reasonable arguments for ownership of pistols, hunting rifles, and shotguns, there are none for assault rifles. These weapons were designed with a singular purpose: the slaughter of large numbers of people. No one needs a Kalashnikov to hunt deer. No one needs an M16 to protect herself or himself from a burglar. These are the largest enabler of school shootings, mass murder for which such a weapon is intended.

School shootings bring to the forefront the violence that happens every day in the United States. It is a madness which almost all other modernized countries have given up, and to me it seems bizarre that the ever-present frenzy of gun advocacy can even exist without being considered horrendously offensive.

Gun control sparks heated debate Nothing can set a room methods. ablaze than a good ol’ fashW h i l e ioned yelling match over someone gun control. The sheer would have mention of the phrase to be insane “gun control” can incite to oppose verbal threats and send regulation of blood rushing down peosmuggled and ple’s veins. Usually these illegal arms The Haitch debates segue into raging Aubtin Heydari (which should rants about freedom, but be a primary the occasional productive Staff Reporter focus for the debate about gun control US governcan reveal the difficulty in produc- ment), determining what, if anying effective legislation. Once said thing, is necessary for gun legislegislation is conceived, there is lation is a much harder debate. then the difficulty of passing it Laws and attitudes towards laws through congress, what with the in the US vary region to region. ungodly power of gun rights lob- Statistically, the evidence has varbyists. ied instance to instance as well.

The topic is not controver- One of the issues is that gun laws sial without due cause, however. are only part of the issue with Aside from the immense obses- gun violence; gun culture and rission some people have for their ing trends in youth violence make killing machines, there is a rift it difficult to try to band aid over amongst academics and research- the issue with a government law. ers as to both the effectiveness This is reflected in the regional and necessity of gun control laws. differences. This does not mean Studies on both sides of the de- that effective gun legislation can’t bate have been accused of ma- exist or won’t help, however. nipulating and misrepresenting Australia, which introduced data, as well as having flawed strict gun legislation in the late

1990’s, is a good empirical example of how gun control can be effective. While guns are still available to the public with certification and good purpose, the majority of gun distribution has been limited. The result is a downward trend in suicide rates from guns, homicides from guns, as well as homicides in general. The certification system, requiring time between licensing requests and purchases, as well as tiers for different classification of arms, might be overkill; it does show however that tightening restrictions and background checks on purchasers, as well as providing larger timeframes, will work.

The only truly effective means of gun control will have to be more than just legislation, but will have to be followed by societal shifts. This is a crucial component missing from both sides of the debate. As long as there are surges of crime associated with faulty criminal justice systems, widespread poverty, and cultural violence, gun control legislation will not be effective and homicide trends will increase.

NRA continuously stirring gun control debate Dylan Bontrager Staff Reporter Call me crazy, but I enjoy following politics.

Of course, that much may be clear: why else would I write a political column? I enjoy the debates, and hearing other opinions than my own. But there are a few topics that are, if not utterly intolerable to me, at least mildly off-putting. Among these is gun control.

It’s been a hot topic for years, and especially since the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting in Connecticut just over a year ago, it comes up quite often in the media. Both sides have their statistics; each leads to a different conclusion. Separating fact from fiction is nearly impossible.

Proponents of gun control often point out that the U.S. has higher rates of gun-related crimes than its developed peers. Opponents fire back with “That doesn’t prove anything.” There are cultural differences between the U.S. and

Western Europe, they say, and these are likely to be more responsible for these statistics.

The loudest noise and most extreme positions about guns come from the leadership of the National Rifle Association. They practically worship the Second Amendment and its right to bear arms. Practical solutions to gun violence include, in their minds, putting a gun in every home, in every school, and on every street corner. Their favorite catchphrase is, “The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun” – and executive vice president Wayne LaPierre repeats this every time he gives a speech.

The tactics used by the leadership are underhanded. They use sensationalistic scare tactics like the trite and blatantly false “Obama is coming for your guns!” They throw a tantrum every time the word “gun” is used is the same paragraph as “control” in a speech in Congress. Their solutions are impractical, if they provide any at all. In short, they

are unhelpful, defensive, and obstructionistic; and they are given far too much press time and sway in the legislative process.

The NRA, I think, is the main reason that I dislike the gun control debates. They are always involved, and they have become all too good at holding the system hostage, halting the wheels of progress altogether.

And their motives for their big noises? They are funded by the gun industry. The get-your-gunsbefore-Obama-takes-them-away ridiculousness was created to increase demand for guns and allow gun companies to pad their profit margins. Because of this, prices have gone up, fueling even more hysteria that the “communist” in the White House is raising prices and causing even more gun purchases.

If there’s one thing in politics I can’t stand, it’s cognitive dissonance, and the NRA has it in spades – when they’re not busy manipulating the political process.

We need to focus on mental health issues Joshua Byrd Op/Ed Editor Sadly, more school shootings have hit the U.S. in the past months. These are horrific events that are hard to hear on the news. Whenever I learn about these events, my heart goes out to the families and victims affected.

Following these events the debate always becomes focused on gun control. Let’s get something clear. Guns do not load themselves. Guns do not go off accidentally by themselves in mass school shootings.

Yet people always try to restrict access to guns. People kill people, guns are merely the tool used in these events.

The proposed gun legislation is not going to change anything.

Studies show gun control takes guns away from law abiding citizens, but guns remain on the streets where unlawful citizens have access.

In many of these school shootings different types of guns were used. In the Virginia Tech shooting, the guns used were handguns. At Columbine, the shooters used two 9 MM handguns and two 12-Gauge shotguns. An assault rifle was used at Sandy Hook.

“You won’t get gun control by disarming law-abiding citizens. There’s only one way to get real gun control: Disarm the thugs and the criminals, lock them up and if you don’t actually throw away the key, at least lose it for a long time...

It’s a nasty truth, but those who seek to inflict harm are not fazed by gun controllers. I happen to know this from personal experience,” President RonaldReagan noted in 1983.

President Reagan almost had his life taken by John Hinckley, Jr. The gun used was a handgun. The gunman was found not guilty by reason of insanity. Later it was reported that he had some mental health issues.

Now there is something similar in all these cases. Most of the shooters had some form of a mental health issue(s), and yet mental health has gotten the least amount of attention. Because of the lack of attention, the funding and accessibility to these facilities hasn’t changed in the past.

In Virginia, the general assembly is finally taking up this issue as a result of a tragic incident involving state senator Creigh Deeds and his son who suffered from a mental health issue.

Taking this proactive step to deal with mental health services in emergencies, will hopefully lead to increased availability of mental health services and a decrease in the number of these kinds of tragedies.

Internet can be really dangerous place Evan Dotas Guest Writer “Ginny!" said Mr. Weasley, flabbergasted. "Haven't I taught you anything? What have I always told you? Never trust anything that can think for itself if you can't see where it keeps its brain?” This message, brought forth in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series, is one that has stood the test of time. Of course, I’m not talking about some magical creation in The Chamber of Secrets, here.

I’m talking about the Internet.

In a vast cyberworld with billions of users and billions of sites, there are bound to be some cyber-bridges. And under those bridges live the trolls.

A common species in the Internet, the trol,l typically lives in

their parent’s basement feasting on Cheetos, Hot Pockets, and the tears of the innocent. The way they produce those tears is by lying. Just how easy is it for these beasts to lie on the Internet? I decided to test those limits.

Alexa.com reports that Wikipedia is the seventh most visited website in the United States, and is among the top fifteen most visited in countries such as Canada, the UK, France, Italy, Germany, and many more. Websites like Ask.com are also typically in these top fifteen sites. If that many people are choosing to rely on user-based websites that have no true moderation, that could pose significant challenges.

To see how easy it is to lie on these websites, I went on Ask. com and created an account. I went to recently asked questions,

and the most recent was “How do you know if a guy has interest in you?” If you scan it carefully, you can see George999, who said to (and I am paraphrasing) go into a dark alley if a guy is following you so you can talk to him.

Now, for the sake of humanity, I do pray that this person realizes that this is a terrible idea, but all the same, it is that easy.

The same goes for sites like WikiAnswers. Around a year ago, somebody asked “Did women joust?” And ever since that question was asked, only one answer was placed: “Women were actually never the ones holding the lances. However, there was a type of jousting that involved using women as a mount. This was popular in the southern parts of Europe, but was considered low class, and thus never well documented.”

When my friend placed this answer, he did not need to create an account. It did not need to be verified. And to this day, that answer has stayed on the website, completely undermining its validity.

And finally, I came to the highly-regarded Wikipedia. I have of heard of trolls being caught and mistakes being fixed, so I have no doubt that the edit I made saying Bob Costas is a drag queen will be caught. However, it took me less than five minutes to do such a thing, without having to provide any sense of identification.

In a time of such advanced technology, we are often fascinated. But we also must be skeptical.

It is very easy to provide false information, and people sometimes will believe that. While the Internet is a great thing, it is something that is not to be trusted.

Got an opinion? Send it to newsstreakonline@gmail.com

January 31, 2014

The

Newsstreak

STYLE A7

SNOWY SCREENPLAYS Secret Life of Walter Mitty thoughtful, inspiring

Austin Swift Staff Reporter Walter Mitty (Ben Stiller) is a snow leopard, according to Sean O’Connell (Sean Penn), nothing more and certainly nothing less. He starts the movie as a normal, if not boring, office worker, whose job in the depths of the “Life” magazine building goes almost unseen to the rest of the world, and gradually changes into a ferocious, furry cat in the middle of the Himalayas.

Well, not quite that last part, but just as amazing and just as unnoticed.

Based on the 1939 James Thurber short story, the movie follows Mitty as he goes on a random and wild journey in search of a misplaced photo taken by photographer Sean O’Connell, which was to be used as the cover picture for the final issue of the magazine.

Everybody has the occasional day dream, right? Well Mitty experienced an unusually large amount.

He’d space out mid-conversation, during work, even while he was drinking a cup of coffee, and they were no ordinary day dreams either. His dreams consisted of completely outrageous and extreme adventures and scenarios, which ranged from an all out brawl with his new boss that included him surfing the streets of New York City on a block of cement, to a jump from a bridge straight into a burning building in order to save the three legged dog belonging to his future lover, Cheryl Melhoff (Kristen Wiig). As the movie progressed and he began his adventure in search of O’Connel, his dreams became less frequent and less extreme.

This was one of the most entertaining movies I’ve seen in a long time. It has no repetition whatsoever, as Mitty’s constantly befriending new people, scaling new mountains and discovering new clues. There was rarely a break in action either, as Mitty went straight from one random event or place to another, completely unrelated one. A thing I loved was his un-

usually exceptional skill on a skateboard, which not only helped him kickflip a spot into the heart of his coworker, Melhoff, but also carried him from almost the peak of a mountain to a small airport in a valley, just in time to leave as fast as he came, due to an enormous black cloud emerging from a neighboring volcano.

The movie made me do something I hadn't done all break: use my brain. It made me think about the transformation of Mitty from an average guy with a tie to an extraordinary man with a thick beard, with him ultimately realizing this was the person he had wanted to be all his life. It also offers a different, more in-depth view of the normal cubicle worker, praising the importance of certain jobs and people.

For those who think of it more as a sappy, feel-good movie, well, they’re right, but it also has a fine amount of comedy and action to go along. I found myself laughing uncontrollably on more than one occasion, but then asking why he was still alive as well.

I loved it. It’s a great movie to see as a family, individually, fifteen or fifty years old. I also noticed that almost everyone with a beard was a pretty great character, which may or may not be a completely irrelevant observation.

THE WINNERS: Best motion picture, drama: “12 Years a Slave” Best actress in a motion picture, drama: Cate Blanchett, “Blue Jasmine” Best actor in a motion picture, drama: Matthew McConahey, “Dallas Buyers Club” Best motion picture, comedy or musical: “American Hustle” Best actress in a motion picture, musical or comedy: Amy Adams, “American Hustle” Best actor in a motion picture, musical or comedy: Leonardo DiCaprio, “The Wolf of Wall Street” Best supporting actress in a motion picture: Jennifer Lawrence, “American Hustle” Best supporting actor in a motion picture: Jared Leto, “Dallas Buyers Club” Best director, motion picture: Alfonso Cuaron, “Gravity” Best screenplay, motion picture: Spike Jonze, “Her” Best original score, motion picture: Alex Ebert, “All is Lost” Best original song, motion picture: “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom” Best TV series, drama: “Breaking Bad” Best actress in a TV series, drama: Robin Wright, “House of Cards” Best actor in a TV series, drama: Bryan Cranston, “Breaking Bad” Best TV series, musical or comedy: “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” Best actress in a TV series, musical or comedy: Amy Poehler, “Parks and Recreation” Best actor in a TV series, musical or comedy: Andy Samberg, “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” Best TV movie or miniseries: “Behind the Candelabra” Best actress in a miniseries or TV movie: Elisabeth Moss, “Top of the Lake” Best actor in a miniseries or TV movie: Michael Douglas, “Behind the Candelabra” Best supporting actress in a series, miniseries or TV movie: Jacqueline Bissett, “Dancing on the Edge” Best supporting actor in a series, miniseries or TV movie Jon Voight, “Ray Donovan”

Wolf of Wall Street delivers with great director Aubtin Heydari Staff Reporter

Based off the memoir of Jordan Belfort, literal wolf of Wall Street, this film follows the rise and fall of a New York stockbroker whose entire firm conducts what is known as securities fraud, a lynchpin of Wall Street corruption in the 90s. Leonardo DiCaprio, in his second collaboration with Scorsese, appears as the lead character, with a charismatic Jonah Hill portraying the supporting role of Donnie Azoff.

Both actors give a phenomenal performance, each full of life and painting a unique portrait of their historical person. The pac-

Wolf of Wall Street marks a new milestone in the career of director extraordinaire Martin Scorsese. One of the factors that make Scorsese so unique is the fact that he has directed at least 1 standard-setting, immensely popular masterpiece per decade. Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, GoodFellas, The Departed, and now (earlier in the decade than usual) Wolf of Wall Street join ranks in the list of Scorsese ‘hall of fame’.

ing of the film is perfect, fully capturing the excess and extravagance of the stock market moguls.

The question is less whether or not you should see this movie, but more if you have seen this movie yet. Scorsese’s vision of a man who crumbles under his own greed is too captivating to miss. The real beauty of the film comes from the unique atmosphere created on the screen, one which is only possible with Scorsese, DiCaprio, and Hill at the helm.

Cast of American Hustle creates hit Mia Karr Editor in Chief

American Hustle opens with a shot of main character Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale) delicately arranging his comb over.

It’s a humourous and fitting beginning for a movie about deception and trickery. From that clever opening, the movie continued to impress me.

Rosenfeld is a con man working in phony loans and stolen art when he meets and falls in love with Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams.) Prosser joins Rosenfeld in

his business by impersonating Lady Edith Greensley, a British noble with “London banking connections.” Things are going swimmingly- minus the complication of Rosenfeld’s young son and wife, Rosalyn (Jennifer Lawrence)- when the two are caught by FBI agent Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper). DiMaso offers the pair immunity if they help him to nab four other con men. However, the famehungry FBI agent gets carried away and embroils Rosenfeld and Prosser in a scheme to bust Atlantic City Mayor, Carmine Polito (Jeremy Renner) and

several congressman. Shady deals with the mafia and a budding romantic relationship between Prosser and DiMaso complicate things further.

The movie’s biggest strength is its acting. Every character in the ensemble cast is complex and believable.There is no stereotypical “bad guy”- every character is somewhat morally flawed but also sympathetic.

I found myself wanting everyone to get what they wanted but knowing that things were too entangled for that to be possible. It’s hard to single out one actor for an outstanding

performance, but I thought Christian Bale portrayed the moral struggle of his character very well. Jennifer Lawrence also shined in her smaller role.

American Hustle has a lighthearted side and a serious side.

The plot is engaging and mixes elements of humor, intrigue, and romance. (Not to mention that it is loosely based on true event that occurred in the 1970’s.) The ending plot twist is clever, but I found the movie’s resolution a little unbelievable and tidy. Other than that, I don’t have too many complaints.

Saving Mr. Banks shows whole new look at world of Disney Garrett Thompson Style Editor There is no introduction needed. Saving Mr. Banks is one of the greatest films of the year.

There has never been a more spectacularly splendid look into the magical world of Walt Disney. Following a trend among Disney movies in the past year, Banks tells the story of the materialization of Disney’s classic masterpiece, Marry Poppins.

The plot of the film follows the collaboration between Walt Disney and Pamela Trav-

ers (Emma Thompson). As the author of the Mary Poppins books, Traver’s is reluctant to meet with Disney who has promised his daughters he would turn them into a film.

After experiencing the amazing youthfulness that flowed from Disney and all that he represents, Travers has a change of heart allowing for the production of one of the most timeless films in history.

Tom Hanks in one of his greatest roles yet proves that with good talent, a career can span decades. His portrayal of Walt Disney was one for the

books. The film, directed by John Lee Hancock, was very careful to get every detail correct in regards to portraying one of the most influential men to ever exist. Hank’s gestures and speech were very reflective of the late Disney and he resembled him a little too.

Every leading man needs a Leading woman and Emma Thompson was just that.

Thompson, known for her roles in Nanny McPhee and Love Actually, absolutely dazzles as Pamela Travers, the woman who first brought Mary Poppins to life. Her performance was raw

Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues serves up funny, well-done sequel Hunter Manzano Staff Reporter Anchorman 2 The Legend Continues, directed by Adam McKay, is a goofy American comedy that follows the events of the first film, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy. The main character is a famous San Diego anchorman.

When he goes on a business trip with his fellow anchor, Veronica Corningstone, he forms

the beginning of their relationship. He then insults the public on a broadcast ending in him being fired, but later comes back on the show as her co-anchor.

In the second installment, Ron Burgundy (Will Ferrell) and Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate) are married and are co-anchors for a popular news network in New York City. Veronica is promoted to be a nightly news anchor while Ron is fired entirely. Six months later, Ron is

barely able to keep his job at Sea World, and is fired again for being drunk during a performance.

He is then approached by an agent of Global News Network, the first 24 hour news network.

Burgundy accepts the job and hunts down his old news team.

Upon returning to New York, the eccentric news team is given a low-rated time early in the morning, but quickly outperforms their expected popularity.

As their fame skyrockets, Ron’s

popularity begins to go to his head, causing him to neglect his son Walter. As Burgundy’s fame continues to escalate, the network throws a party where he performs a dance, but when it is sabotaged by a jealous reporter, Ron hits his head and becomes blind.

This film was very well done and every character helps advance the plot. It’s a fantastic film that does a great job with blending it’s comedy.

and witty. Seeing Thompson along Hanks was reminiscent of his days acting along actress Meg Ryan. The two of them together can only be described as magical and when talking about Walt Disney any other word just wouldn’t suffice.

Mary Poppins has lasted the test of time, inspiring young children and opening the hearts of adults for generations. Really getting to see the story behind the story for myself at least, was like finding out the roots to my childhood. The stars aligned (no pun intended) in Disney’s latest masterpiece.

January 21, 31, 2012 2014 August

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P.E. teachers dress comfortably for class Ariel Vogel Feature Editor

The fashion regulations at HHS require our teachers to dress professionally during the week with an allowance for jeans on Friday as long as the educator is wearing a piece of HHS paraphernalia. As the only teachers in the school who are allowed to spend their entire school day in comfortable attire, the P.E. teachers at HHS are surprisingly very style conscious.

“I never wear sweat pants to school. Never ever,” health and P.E. teacher Amy Wheeler said. She explained that she dresses as professionally as she can for school, based on whether she will be teaching

in the classroom or the gym.

Health and P.E. teacher Kevin Tysinger also doesn’t wear sweat pants to school, although he takes advantage of the more laid-back dress code.

“I wear jeans on Fridays sometimes because they allow us to, but I usually am wearing shorts. My shorts are all very similar and comfortable, [and] for the most part [I wear] shirts and shoes that somewhat match,” Tysinger said.

Outside of school he wears mostly the same thing, while Wheeler found some differences in her fashion decisions.

“Typically [outside of school] I wear more jewelry. I’m a big jewelry fan, but I don’t get to wear it usually,” Wheeler said.

Both Wheeler and Tysinger cited comfort as

Latest running shoes from top brand names

their favorite part of the lax clothing regulations.

“I don’t mind dressing up once in a while, but it’s not comfortable. Plus, if I have to show the students something, it’s definitely [more] comfortable,” Tysinger said.

Tysinger listed his main clothing sources to be online and sporting stores, with Dick’s Sporting Goods being one of his favorites. Wheeler, on the other hand, said she didn’t have favorite places in particular.

“I always have my eyes open. TJ Maxx has some good stuff, online places do too,” Wheeler said.

However, the two teachers had one major fashion quirk in common: shoes.

“I have about 12-15 pairs [of tennis shoes]. If I could

have 50 pairs I would! If [people] say that’s a feminine thing then I’m in touch with my feminine side because I love shoes,” Tysinger said.

Wheeler, who is somewhat famous among her students for always having color-coordinated shoes and shirts, attempted counting her pairs in her head.

“They’re organized in ROY-G-BIV fashion on my shelves with black and white on top. This may not be everything but it’s pretty close; I just counted 22,” Wheeler said, later coming back with a more accurate number.

“I had 30 pairs, and I just got two pairs for Christmas. I pretty much have a pair of shoes for every year I’ve been alive,” she said.

What’s your favorite athletic brand?

Op/Ed--A5 A5 NEWS

Price comparison at Dick’s Sporting Goods Women’s Spandex Women’s Reebok spandex- $25.00 Women’s Adidas spandex- $22.00 Women’s Nike Pro spandex- $30.00

Women’s Running Shorts Women’s Reebok Running Shorts $11.97 Women’s Adidas Running Shorts $19.99 Women’s Nike Running Shorts $26.99

Women’s Running Shoes Women’s Reebok Running Shoes $49.99 Women’s Adidas Running Shoes $149.99 Women’s Nike Running Shoes $81.99

Women’s Athletic Tops Selena Matinez, Shene Merawly, Pishdar Abdul, 11 Isaiah Dortch, 11 12 12 “Nike” “Under Armour” “Nike” “Nike”

Women’s Reebok Athletic Shirts $50.00 Women’s Adidas Athletic Shirts $25.00 Women’s Nike Athletic Shirts $28.00

Men’s Compression Shorts ADIDAS SPRINGBLADE RAZOR- $180

Ruayda Qadir, 12 “Adidas”

Silvester Rojas, 11 “Under Armour”

Vicky Cesia Rodriguez, 10 Hernandez, 10 “Nike” “Under Armour”

Increasing number sporting athletic wear at school daily Celia Ehrenpreis Editor in Chief

ASICS GEL KAYANO- $160

NEW BALANCE 890V4- $110

The morning alarm is not a welcome sound for high school students. They may have been up late, working on homework, or cramming for a test. So upon hearing the alarm, more and more students are simply rolling out of bed and throwing on a pair of sweats and a hoodie. This phenomenon is apparent in the halls of HHS, tousled haired sleepy students, are choosing comfort over style for the school day.

Junior Nicole Downey wears athletic clothing to school about once a week.

“It’s so comfortable, and I don’t have to change for my gym class!”

Downey said.

Junior Hannah Purcell also enjoys the comfort athletic clothing provides.

“I wear athletic clothing to school at least twice a week. It just makes getting ready in the morning a lot easier and faster,” Purcell said.

Both Downey and Purcell turn to Dick’s Sporting Goods for purchasing athletic clothing. Purcell’s favorite item is Nike running shorts, while Downy prefers running tights.

Purcell is a three season runner, participating in cross country, indoor track, and outdoor track. She finds herself wearing more athletic clothing when she is in season.

“It’s just a lot more convenient [to wear athletic clothes to school] for practice,” Purcell said.

Men’s Reebok Compression Shorts-$29.99 Men’s Adidas Compression Shorts $26.00 Men’s Nike Compression Shorts $50.00

Mens Running Shorts Men’s Reebok Running Shorts- $21.99 Men’s Adidas Running Shorts- $36.99 Men’s Nike Running Shorts- $34.00

Men’s Running Shoes Men’s Reebok Running Shoes- $49.99 Men’s Adidas Running shoes- $179.00 Men’s Nike Running Shoes- $179.00

Men’s Athetic Tops Men’s Reebok Athletic Shirts- $20.00 Men’s Adidas Athletic Shirts-$25.00 Men’s Nike Athletic Shirts- $28.00

Watches: A runner’s best friend

“It was cheap,” Junior Laurie Serrell said.

“I like that it lights up,” Junior Nicole Downey said.

“It’s really helpful in runs,” Freshman Molly Campillo said.

“It helps me stay focused,” Junior Morgan Heckman said.

“It times things well,” Senior Julie Raab said.

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Wonderful World of Technology

Get to know your iPad Messenger: chat with friends

Camera: capture the moment Reminders: keep track of your things to do Maps: never lose your way again Games center: relax and play

Contacts: know everything about everyone

App store: get the latest, hottest apps Music: play tunes while you work

Safari: surf the web

INFOGRAPHIC BY BRENNA COWARDIN

STEM technology prepares students for future Mia Karr Editor-in-Chief STEM academy students can be seen around school with their program-sponsored laptops, but others may not know that STEM students also get to experiment with a laser engraver and 3D printer. Well, they will, once the currently broken 3D printer gets on its feet. STEM stands for “Science, Technology, Mathematics, and Engineering”, and incorporating the “T” part of STEM into the academy is a constantly evolving process.

STEM coordinator and physics teacher Andy Jackson has added more use of computers to the academy this year. Freshman STEM students used the RocSim computer software to piece together components of rockets for the Team America Rocketry challenge. The physics class regularly uses a program called Graphical Analysis to collect and interpret data.

“For me as a teacher, [I’ve worked on] increased use of technology that’s avail-

able, such a google docs and having the website be more than just a posting of the yearly syllabus, but actually having it be an interactive piece that students go to,” Jackson said.

Sophomore STEM student Christian Gehman most enjoys building his own technology.

“There’s a more hands-on this year. Last year was a lot more learning about things and this year we’re going and building them,” Gehman said.

Gehman’s class recently built electrophoresis boxes, which shoot an electrical current through a gel. The students use them to separate colors, but in the broader world of science they are used for DNA analysis.

Gehman has also constructed methane digesters. Jackson is currently pursuing two grants that would allow for even more biotechnology in the classroom.

“We want to increase the biotechnology aspect of our biology and our secondary engineering courses, but that technology is very expensive,” Jackson said. Funding

YOUR OPINION Do you own a laptop?

YES

NO

53 47 100 people polled in all grades by Cathryn Hall

for the academy comes from Harrisonburg City Public Schools, but the academy also received $5000 from the Virginia Department of Education when it became a Governor’s STEM academy and looks for various grant opportunities.

Although the STEM academy itself is in its infancy, Jackson currently has three former students involved on the cutting edge of technology. One is launching a webbased data analysis software, one is getting their PhD in bioengineering and studying body part regeneration, and one writes an award-winning science blog. It’s feasible that many STEM students could follow in their footsteps. “[My favorite part of teaching in the STEM academy] is still my favorite part of teaching period- watching when students have those ‘Aha!’ moments of making sense out of what they’re working on and especially, and the academy definitely enhances this, when they connect it to other aspects of their life or their interests,” Jackson said. “Things like when a student comes back and tells you they went to

Kings Dominion and the whole time they were on the ride they were thinking about forces of acceleration.”

Second year students, like Gehman, take Engineering 2, Biology, and English through the program. The curriculum is incorporated through English classes by studying technology related books and articles.

Gehman hopes to pursue engineering in the future, so the STEM academy is especially relevant for him. However, not only engineers will be affected by the everchanging world of technology.

“We’re all going to be in technology jobs, so it’s not a matter of whether you choose to go into a technology job. If you’re a nurse, or an engineer, or a mechanic, or a biophysicist- we’re all going to be in technology jobs,” Jackson said. “So the most important thing for us as teachers to do is make sure we’re using technology to learn and produce... because by the time our students are out in the profession that technology will have evolved. So what are students have to do is learn to be a lifetime learner and an adaptive learner.”

Q&A with Instructional Technology Resource Teacher Diana Flick 1. What is the newest technology at HHS? “We are looking at more and more apps and software programs to enhance instruction. Teachers will also have the opportunity to apply for grant money to get technology for their classrooms such as laptop labs, chromebook labs and iPad labs.”

2. What is your favorite piece of technology? “The Laptop is my first choice because it does everything.”

3. What piece of technology do teachers use the most? “Teachers use desktop computers the most.”

4. What technology problems do you spend the most time working on? “The thing that I’ve had to deal with the most is probably just to update the mobile devices like iPods and iPads.”

5. What’s your worst experience with technology? “My worst experience with technology is when we have students ready to take an SOL test and can’t due to Pearson or the website. [I hate] watching students have to wait to take the test when it’s something that we can’t control.”

6. How long have you been working in the school system as a technological resource teacher? “I started out as a math teacher 30 years ago, and

the job I have now didn’t exist, but now the state requires the job I have being an [Instructional Technology Resource Teacher].”

7. How did you get the job you have today? “Technology is something that I’ve been working with [for a long time]. I took programing in college and went through the whole technology explosion, and we didn’t have anything in the schools when I first started. You’re constantly learning something new and I like that.”

E-readers help with organization

Ava Reynolds Staff photographer

For most high school students, lugging around countless pounds of textbooks everyday doesn’t exactly make them want to bring paper “free read” books to school.

That’s where e-readers have come in handy for people in all professions, including high school students.

E-readers such as the Kindle, Nook, and iPad mini have become increasingly popular over the last couple of years. People use e-readers for a variety of reasons. For the book worms, it is a convenient way to always have a countless number of books available.

Some devices even have WIFI and room for games and other apps, which is also a plus for those who need to take a break from reading once in a while.

For high school students, there are several reasons why having a laptop, tablet, or e-reader around is handy.

Senior Evan Yoder is frequently seen with his iPad. “I use it for several things, reading, note taking, internet, and games. It’s basically

TECH FUN. Senior Evan Yoder uses an iPad during class in the band room.

what I would use a notebook for. My iPad had 64 gigs, so it can hold basically anything I want,” Yoder said.

Senior Mariah Flick also posses an ereader, the Nook which is made by Barnes and Noble.

“Having the nook is really good for traveling. Nothing really compares to having an actual book in your hands to read, but when you have to go places it’s very easy just to pull out the Nook. It’s very lightweight and portable. And for me, one of my pet peeves is reading a book and everyone asking me what the book is about, but with the Nook no one bothers me,” Flick said.

The Nook is also a useful tool to have in a school setting.

“When [the Nook] comes to school, I use it waiting for a class to start and if I finish my school work early and I’m just waiting around,” Flick said.

E-readers are becoming ever more popular among school students. They save weight, room, and paper, not to mention how many books they store. When the beginning of the school year rolls around, perhaps students will turn away from the heaps of notebook paper and paper books and will consider an e-reader.

PHOTO BY JESSICA NGUYEN STAY IN THE KNOW. Freshman Harmony Wilson uses the school connect app daily.

School Connect App source of information for students

Jessica Nguyen Feature editor

To get the latest school news one could check on Twitter, Facebook, or as many students are using, the School Connect App. HCPS’s Instructional Technology Resource Teacher Diana Flick is delighted at this opportunity to create new ways of communication with students, teachers, administrators and parents.

“We are just now starting with it, so we are starting small. We have several teachers who have set up their classes, then a student has to download the app and allow the push notifications,” said Flick.

David Loughran uses the school connect app to send out reminders and meet information for his track and field team.

“Almost 30 of our 70 of athletes get the notifications. I can let them know when things are posted on the team website for them to check out,” said Loughran.

Freshman Lydia Liguori was the first of many to get the app.

“It’s easier to have the notifications sent to you then to go visit the [school’s] website,” said Liguori. “My literature teacher

uses it to let us know when we have homework that is due.”

Freshman Harmony Wilson uses the app for indoor track updates.

“I’ve had [the school connect app] for two or three weeks now. I got it so I can stay in the know...[My favorite part is] knowing things before anyone else,” Wilson said.

This app is purely optional. HCPS will not stop sending out information by Twitter, Facebook, or its website. “[The school connect app] just one more layer we are using [for information].

Anything a teacher or an administrator could think of that will get information out to people is what we are going for. The whole idea is to get as many people using it as possible; that makes it valuable,” said Flick.

Still, she wants the app to rise and become another common source for information.

“My goal, as far as our school with this app, [is that] I want to see more teachers buying into it, and if they see it’s valuable then they will use it,” said Flick, “We went from zero to about three hundred people.

Zero to three hundred is a good start.”

January 21, 2014

The

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FEATURE- B1

Envirothon team prepares for competition

Ella Marian Sports Editor Envirothon is a year long event that high school students are able to take part of as a way to learn more about the environment and to be able to compete at the same time. Harrisonburg High School students have been participating in this event for many years. Science teacher Adam Goble has been the HHS Envirothon adviser for four years now. “[Students should join] to learn about the environment, compete for scholarships, and the change to get real world experience,” Goble said Envirothon consists of teams of five or more, with two alternates. The teams go through speech and individual portions.

The individual portion groups are on Wildlife, Forestry, Aquatics, Soils, and a Current Environmental issue. The each team member will be assigned to one of the following portions and they have to present a topic from it. During the speech the team is released a topic where the team will have to talk for twenty minutes. This is se-

nior Larkin O’Hara’s second year participating in Envirothon and will be taking care of the Aquatics portion with junior Kara Simmons.

“Last year we did Envirothon just for fun but we didn’t have enough teammates to fully participate,” O’Hara said. Simmons first heard about Envirothon through Morgan Heckman and joined to get more involved in clubs.

“I decided to do it to get more involved in clubs and because it looks good for college,” Simmons said. This is Simmon’s first year and she heard about it from team captain junior Morgan Heckman. Heckman has participated in Envirothon her whole high school career and has plans to partake again her senior year. “[I joined because] I liked the other people in it and I wanted to learn more about animals,”Heckman said. Heckman will be taking care of the Wildlife portion this year to expand her knowledge.

Support the the Harrisonburg High School Envirothon team at their Winter Training in James Madison’s Montpelier, Orange County January 25, 2014 at 4 p.m.

PHOTO BY ELLA MARIAN

ROLLING IN THE DEEP. “I have to jump onto a deep hole outside and assess the different soils. Then I will decifer what types of plants would be best suitable for that soil,” senior Amber Ness said.

Cafeteria serving lots of local food Julexus Cappell Op/Ed Editor

The week of November 11 was Virginia’s Farm to School Week where the foods for breakfast and lunch at school came from ven-

dors here in the Shenandoah valley. Some options included winter squash, Asian pears, sweet potatoes, and macaroni made with artisan cheese. But, that week wasn’t the only time students receive food grown in Virginia, specifically in our area.

“We do some local every day,” HHS cafeteria manager Tricia Newcomb said.

Some of the local foods offered are apples, which come from an orchard here in the Shenandoah.

“Our local apples come from S h o w a l t e r ’s ,” Newcomb said.

The ground beef

and beef patties as well come from local vendors, also the lettuce. The lettuce used on sandwiches and salad not only are local but go through a different process than usually. Newcomb said that is why they chose it.

“The lettuce we get is local because it is hydroponic. It basically means it is rotated in water rather than just grown in the ground,” Newcomb said.

The farm-to-table program in Harrisonburg City Schools has been in place for five years. In 2012, Harrisonburg City Public Schools purchased more than $90,000 worth of local food, according to an article on whsv. com. Up to 5% of the produce is directly from local growers, and schools, are striving to make that percentage higher.

Recycling program thriving Austin Engle Staff Reporter Every week or two there is an announcement after school reminding teachers to put their recycling bins out. Science teacher Adam Goble is in charge of the recycling. “[Recycling] helps out the school … it gives money back to the school,” Goble said. Recycling companies give money to those who drop off substantial amounts of recycling products at their plants, and use the materials to make energy or to sell to another company.

The money goes to buying new equipment for labs in the science department.

Helping out with recycling has other perks as well. Goble offers all students in his AP Environmental Science extra credit for collecting the cans, bottles and stack of paper. There are around 125 gallons of bottles and 450 pounds of paper each time the supplies are picked up.

On collection usually three-10 people show up to help recycle. Facundo Cabrera, a junior, is one of three most common.

“I’m doing it for the good of the environment, but the extra credit isn’t bad either,” Cabrera said. He also tries to recycle more in his personal life because of the recycling he does at school.

Another student that helps out with recycling after school is Emerson Bonga.

Bonga originally started recycling for the senior service hours that it provides, but now does it for other reasons too.

“It is fun because you can hangout with friends while helping out the school… the compliments from the teachers makes you feel better about yourself,” Bonga said. Bonga in his personal life tries to spend more time recycling because of the work that he does after school.

“Recycling is a good habit to start early,” Goble said. Besides the obvious effect it has on the environment, money can be made off of selling aluminum cans and the copper from copper wire.

Also if turned into a habit early, recycling can be something done for a long time.

PHOTO BY AUSTIN ENGLE

REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE. There are around 125 gallons of bottles and 450 pounds of paper collected each time the supplies are picked up.

PHOTO BY JULEXUS CAPPELL

PEANUT BUTTER JELLY TIME. A cafeteria lady works on preparing hundrerds of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

Plastic or Styrofoam: which is better?

Celia Ehrenpreis Editor in Chief It’s a choice students aren’t even aware of, yet they do it daily.

While waiting in line for lunch, students either choose the blue plastic trays, or the white styrofoam ones.

But do students really know which choice is the better one? Which one is better for the environment? And which one is more cost efficient?

There are a number of pros and cons to styrofoam trays, according to schoolnutritionedge.com. Here are a couple positives; the trays are cheap.

The typical cost of just one lunch tray is five cents, less if bought in bulk.

They require no washing, students can just throw them away after use.

This saves energy as well as manpower, because no one has to exert the energy to wash over 500 trays every day.

However there are a number of cons as well. If the trays are petroleum based products, they can be hazardous to students’ health.

They are also nearly impossible to recycle, because of their low market value.

Recycling centers are unwilling are put forth the effort

to recycle a product that is worth so little, and as a result the trays often end up in landfills. They are non biodegradable so they take thousands of years to break down, while polluting the earth.

The other option that is provided by the school during lunch time is the blue plastic trays. These trays are much sturdier, but are not nearly as light as the styrofoam. They initially cost more than the styrofoam trays, but in the long run they cost less because they do not have to be replenished nearly as often. The trays aren’t thrown away so they save room in landfills, and don’t pollute the earth.

The main con with the blue trays is that they do require washing. Either hand washed or by a machine.

Overall both trays have an upside and a downside but the blue plastic trays seem to have a better environmental impact than the styrofoam.

Horticulture class about more than just plants Victoria Giron Feature Editor Horticulture isn’t just an average gardening class. The class teaches students all about plants from their biology to how to take care of them to eating them. Horticulture has been offered at HHS since before HHS moved to Garbers Church Road.

From the time horticulture was introduced it was a popular class to take.

“Ms. Basset, who used to teach at the high school started the program and then left and Mr.Behr’s brother took over. At that time horticulture was a booming class. He had an entire day of the

class, he taught six classes,” said Christina Welch, who currently teaches the class and has been teaching horticulture for a year.

Even though the class has survived and has been taught for a number of years, the class is smaller than it used to be.

“Interest has dwindled a bit.

I teach two horticulture classes, I have twelve in one and six in the other, so I have eighteen students. The class has just gotten a lot smaller over time,” said Welch.

Welch taps into her previous experiences in horticulture to help her take a different approach to teaching from her predecessors.

“The people who taught horticulture before me taught it

mainly from the book. I do more hands-on teaching. I had actually worked in horticulture before I worked here I worked at Rodemer’s landscaping,” said Welch.

Welch said she teaches the class by the season and starts out with the basics and does fall-themed lessons in the fall.

“When we came to school we pulled out weeds and started learning the plant basics. We did a lot of practical application stuff.

My family owns a farm and has an apple orchard, so I bring in apples and we look at the apples to see if there is anything wrong with them. Then we made cider,” The class then did a unit on making and eating food from plants.

“We worked with pumpkins and carved them and then we worked with the cooking class next door and cooked with the pumpkins. We ended the unit with an in class thanksgiving meal and we learned some table etiquette,”.

Welsh even taught some holiday themed horticulture.

“Going into Christmas we learned about coniferous trees and evergreens and how to identify them.

We ended up making reefs and centerpieces,” Junior Ali Price is one of the students who take horticulture class and enjoys the various activities that she participates in during horticulture “It’s fun. We do a lot of cool

stuff, like, we learned how to weed a garden. You learn more about plants than in regular bio and you get to apply the uses of plants.

We baked and made reefs and stuff, so that was cool,” said Price.

Since the weather is still too cold to plant Welsh is teaching more about pesticides and pests.

The class is also going to learn about how to take care of the plants and careers in horticulture.

When springtime comes, the horticulture class is going to be planting plants.

“We’re going to do stuff in the greenhouse and we’re going to plant in the spring,” said Welch.

For those interested, the class will be offered again next year.

January 31, 2014

The

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FEATURE - B2

Hidden Helpers

PHOTO BY NESTOR FERNANDO GAMBOA PENA

Administrators help teachers, students alike Faith Runnells Sports Editor An efficient, enjoyable classroom and school environment requires much more than just a cooperative teacher and student. Behind the scenes, HHS has four very hard working administrators that lay the groundwork for the beneficial schooling system we have. Principal Tracy Shaver has been here for three years now and thoroughly enjoys it. The other three administrators, Michael Eye, Lesonya Bullard and Eric Sents also work with the school.

There is no typical day for an administrator here at HHS. Their job varies with all the different activities and situations that need to be tended to.

“We try to prepare for some parts of

the day but a lot of the job is just reactions based on who comes in the office with a question, or if something happens that we need to investigate, or something like that.

But there’s no really typical, planned day,” Eric Sents said.

Shaver finds the variability and unpredictability to be the excitement of the job.

“Everyday is different… you never know what’s going to occur on any given day. I do have plans and things I have to take care of throughout the day, but quite often things come up that need to be dealt with at any given moment… I may have to put those plans on hold until I take care of the issue that arises at the moment,” Shaver said.

“But once again, that is the excitement of what I do.”

An administrator’s job requirements vary from observing classrooms to attend-

ing mandatory meetings, issuing and dealing with referrals and disciplinary acts and meeting and talking with parents. They handle just about anything that comes their way throughout the day.

“One thing we try to do every day is to get into classrooms for an hour a day.

Sometimes we can make that work and other times other things come up, but every day we try and then we spend some time doing discipline referrals and that kind of thing,” Sents said.

Shaver very much values the time spent in classrooms as an administrator. “[The thing I most look forward to is] getting into classrooms. I enjoy.. seeing instruction and talking with the students and talking with the teachers, regarding the instruction and student learning that’s going on,” Shaver said. “I love seeing when stu-

dents are engaged.”

Michael Eye agrees with Shaver, saying that he also enjoys observing students that pay attention.

“The thing that I’m primarily looking for in a classroom is student engagement. If there’s a flow in the classroom, there are things I can see as to whether that’s a well run classroom,” Eye said.

The administrators’ main goal is to run the school efficiently, and help both teachers and students to be capable of doing their job well.

“The thing that drives me is seeing students being successful, seeing teachers being successful. Obviously my job is helping to make it so teachers can teach, and students can learn,” Eye said. “That is my driving point.”

Librarians promote love of reading Austin Swift News Editor They’re not a common sight in the classroom, but are still a vital part of the school, and combined, arguably the main source of information as well. Librarians Debra Witman, Billy Martin and media secretary Bradley Walton are the people that make the library world go round.

“I am not technically a librarian, I am the library’s secretary and my actual job title is media secretary. My job is really more what people probably associate with the stereotype of being the librarian, but I’m mostly the person that checks the books in and out of the library and sends out the overdue notices,” Walton said.

Working in a school library is a different kind of job than in a public library, as the environment, customers, books and the amount of books are different.

“The hardest part of the job and the best part of the job are both the same thing, which is dealing with students. It depends on the day and it depends on the student and maybe what kind of day the student is having. You need to have a temperament that enables you to work with teenagers on a daily basis, and figuring out the best way to do that is probably still an ongoing process for me. I used to be fairly hard core and no-nonsense and I’ve learned that that’s not always the best approach to take and that students generally tend to respond better if you take a more relaxed approach, so I try to do that,” Walton said.

School librarian of 15 years, Billy Martin has worked in both elementary and high schools throughout his career and doesn’t plan on moving to any public libraries.

“We all really promote reading, we all promote students finding a genre that they like, but we also try to get people to think outside their favorite box and to try something different. Our ultimate goal is that any student we encounter finds something that they enjoy and maybe comes back to get something else,” Martin said.

Their job as librarians is to promote and provide books to readers, and help them find certain books or preferred genres.

“The ultimate thing to do is to sell books to students and try to persuade somebody to read a book that they otherwise wouldn’t be interested in,” Martin said.

All three librarians work almost an eight and a half hour day, finishing with the watering of the plants and shutting down the computers.

“We do things in different ways. Ms. Witman is a super researcher, if you ask her a question, you will leave with an answer.

If you come in and ask me about a book, you will leave with a book. I’m just not going to take no for an answer. If you go to Mr. Walton, he is like Mr. graphic novel, Mr. contemporary fiction, so I think we try to sell different genres really well,” Martin said. Martin explained that there are three simple job requirements for being a librarian.

“To run the library you need organization, you need to enjoy people, you have to love the written word,” Martin said.

PHOTO BY NESTOR FERNANDO GAMBOA PENA

WHEN IN DOUBT, READ. Librarian Billy Martin lists the prerequisites to being a librarian: organization, a love of people, and a love of books.

Liaisons link school, Hispanic community Jessica Nguyen Feature Editor

PHOTO BY JESSICA NGUYEN

ALWAYS AT WORK. Home School Liaisons for Spanish speakers Edson Arango and Yolanda Blake consider themselves the connection between the public schools and the Hispanic community. Blake worked originally with immigration papers through the Catholic Church and with the Migrant Immigration Program after that, while Arango was a Spanish teacher before transitioning into liaison work

Hidden by the hustle and bustle of students, room 407 is home to two people who dedicate countless hours to helping the Hispanic community. “[A normal day] is sometimes overwhelming but I love what I’m doing,” Edson Arango said. Arango is one of the Harrisonburg High School’s Home School Liaisons for Spanish speakers.

Before Arango was a liaison, he was a Spanish teacher for five to six years.

“I used to do kind of the same with my kids, but in class, you have to teach the content but you are doing other things also. This way I see the bigger picture; we can get help more people and help a bigger piece of the community,” Arango said.

The purpose of Home School Liaisons is to work to establish partnerships between parents and schools. In doing so, they form relationships with parents, so the process of furthering a child’s education can become a collaboration between the student and their teachers and parents.

“I am like a bridge between the school and the Hispanic community,” Arango said.

“I am the bridge between teachers, counselors, administrators, parents and students.”

Yolanda Blake has always been in contact with the Hispanic community. Prior

to being a liaison, she worked with the Migrant Immigration Program and, before that, she used to work with immigration papers through the Catholic church.

“We get in contact with families. We interact with students, counselors, teachers and administrations at the school,” Blake said. “It’s based on communication.”

Parents who do not speak English may not regularly receive or understand messages from their child’s school, and they may feel intimidated about initiating contact with the school. “[Parent and students] don’t know the system and about the programs and classes we have here, and why its important to got to college, work hard to get a good GPA, do extracurricular activities, behave, taken honors classes, AP classes and belong to a club,” Arango said. “We are the same team.

If we work together we are going to see the success.”

Slowly but surely, success is reached.

According to an article on dnronline.com, in 2012, 75 percent of Hispanic Harrisonburg High School students graduated on time, up from 64.5 percent in 2011.

“We have started seeing Hispanic kids applying more to college, being more concerned about taking more challenging classes, and now we are receiving more calls from parents asking for information about the Early Blue Ridge Scholars program,” Arango said.“I love it. I like seeing people being successful in life.”

January 31, 2014

The

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the

FEATURE- B3

Slice Right is

PHOTO BY VICTORIA GIRON

SNAZZY NEW EATERY. Bella Luna Wood Fired Pizza opened recently in downtown Harrisonburg. The restaurant uses local ingredients and handmade dough to make thin-crust Neapolitan-style pizza in a 900 degree traditional wood-fired oven. They also serve classic Italian pastas, salads, appetizers, and desserts. The restaurant, located on West Water Street is one of many new restaurants opening up in downtown Harrisonburg.

Bella Luna serving delicious pizza from woodfired oven Ariel Vogel Feature Editor Since the devastating closure of one of downtown’s most popular restaurants (RIP Dave’s Taverna), there’s been an explosion of new dining places. Across from Oasis Art Gallery, The Downtown has moved in.

Down the block from that, Cuban Burger has settled down. Most importantly, positioned next to Cuban Burger, Bella Luna is taking a stab at the restaurant business.

As one of my friend’s parents is the manager at Bella Luna, I thought I’d check it out.

With the name of the restaurant claim-

ing “Wood Fired Pizza,” I was excited for the authentic Italian-style food people were raving about. I ducked in from the icy winds outside and stepped through the glass doors into a warm and lively atmosphere.

Almost immediately, I was bombarded with cheeriness. Smiling faces came up, shook my hand, chatted with me and finally seated me. While the whole ordeal was slightly overwhelming, I was touched that they were so pleased to see me.

The restaurant had a classy-rugged design to it. The ceiling exposed the piping and rafters and the floor was unmarked gray concrete. The tables and chairs were simplistic and wooden and the woodstove

that cooked the pizza was in the middle of the restaurant. Not a showy place, but sophisticated.

The menu was limited, perhaps because the restaurant is just starting off, but it left me a little disappointed at the lack of options. After studying the six pizza options intently, I settled on the margherita. My friend and I gave our orders to the enthusiastic waiter and settled in.

For a loooong time.

The fact that it takes them so long to prepare two pizzas is probably a good thing, as that implies that they make the food from scratch. This situation may be an anomaly; maybe they’re usually prompt and were just unexpectedly busy the eve-

ning I went. However, a system should be developed to make the process faster. You don’t go to a restaurant to prepare to be hungry. You go out to eat because you are hungry and want someone else to make you food. Thirty minutes later, you may be regretting that decision.

The pizza was delicious--just greasy enough with a perfect balance of cheese, tomato sauce and crust--and a perfect size for me. It’s just big enough if I’m ravenous by the time the food comes, and slightly too small if I’m not, a.k.a. cold pizza for breakfast!

Overall, I enjoyed the joyful staff, and spectacular pizza. I will gladly return for more!

The Galley creates yummy, freshly baked pizza

Sarah Scribano News Editor

Located on South Main Street, The Galley has a unique menu and atmosphere.

When you first walk into the restaurant, you are met with a strange combination of smoke and grease. The restaurant is not top quality by any means. It looks like a diner from the sixties or seventies and that it hasn’t been updated since that time either.

However, the food is always fresh and satisfying, which is what I look for in a restaurant. Compared to other restaurants, their pizza would be the right match if you were looking for a soft, hot pizza with a slightly sweet sauce.

The Galley has a variety of different options to offer on their menu, from greek

gyros to cheese fries with bacon. Pizza is also offered here ranging in different sizes and toppings. A friend and I ordered a small cheese pizza that took about twenty minutes to be made. However, the long wait was worth it because the pizza was definitely freshly made and baked, which ended in a very perfectly cooked pizza.

We tried to split the pizza into small pieces, but it was a failed attempt because all the cheese slid off by the time we pulled the pieces apart. After we had each taken our share of pizza, there was a pile of cheese left in the box. The crust was thin and soft with a sweeter taste, which made the pizza pleasant since there weren’t any hard, burnt pieces. Overall, the pizza was very appetizing, hot, fresh, and baked to the right temperature; not burnt and not doughy.

PHOTO BY VICTORIA GIRON

DINER-STYLE PIZZA. The Galley is located on South Main Street. It’s decorated with a 1950’s aura and it has a jukebox.

Franco’s easy on your wallet Build your own pizza at Vito’s

Pizza Chains: By the Numbers Top 5 pizzerias in the Nation according to pizzatoday.com

California Pizza Kitchen

If you are looking for good pizza, a fair price, and nice dining area, look no further than Tutti Gusti. Right off Hillside Avenue, the location is perfect for college students as well as Harrisonburg citizens.

Tutti Gusti is perfect for families, especially if you have a family like mine that likes different types of pizza. Tutti Gusti does have quite the variety of pizza, from the regular cheese pizza to pepperoni, New York style , Hawaiian, vegetarian and many others. If you don’t like any of those options, you can make your own specialty slice of pizza to your tasting as well as add extra toppings to the existing pizzas. I got two slices, one of cheese and Hawaiian.

The pizza was great. The portions were fairly large. So the price for the two slices

was a steal. The only issue I had with the pizza was not the taste, but the temperature. It was warm, but I like my pizza to be hot when I start eating it.

Pizza is not where the menu stops. If pizza isn’t your thing there are still many options for you like pasta, salads, and calzones. All these items are enough food for dinner and leftovers, take it from a growing teenager.

The building itself isn’t interesting; it is just a brick building. The interior, on the other hand, is much more like a New York pizzeria. There are a lot of booths and small tables. Another aspect that is a good touch to the restaurant is the glass border around the counter where they make the pizza. It allows the customers to see the pizza being made.

Overall I enjoyed my experience at Tutti Gusti. Out of five stars, I would give it a solid four.

Little Caesar’s

Josh Byrd Op/Ed editor

Vito’s Italian Kitchen already has a reputation for being a well-known and wellloved Italian restaurant of Harrisonburg, so upon my attendance for our Newsstreak holiday meal, I figured I should put their pizza to the test.

Let’s forget about the friendly staff. Let’s forget about the comfortable ambience.

Let’s forget about the fact that we were periodically brought delicious baked knots of dough with marinara dipping sauce even before our food was served - let’s just try and focus on the Pizza.

Glancing over the menu, I had to admit that the pre-named pizzas listed sounded extremely appetizing. Despite this, I decided to go for a custom pizza. Vito’s allows

multiple levels when it comes to building your own pizza, such as type of crust, sauce and toppings. Perfect, I thought. There really were no limits - except when it came to the price of each additional topping (around $1.50 each), which makes it easy to get carried away with one’s pizza budget.

The price was a few dollars more than the average pizza delivery place, but this made sense. Vito’s pizza really is more of a ‘premium Italian’ taste: the crust is thin and crispy, and the toppings are genuinely tasty (the meatballs especially). The restaurant truly made it a challenge for even a critical diner such as I to find fault in its atmosphere, service or food. While I may not have finished the entire pizza, I left satisfied, with a pizza box in my hand and dreams of gladly finishing off the final slices tomorrow.

Papa’s John

Tutti Gusti resembles authentic New York style pizzeria inside

Luke Gibson Online Editor in Chief

Domino’s Pizza

Franco’s Pasta and Subs is the small family owned Italian Restaurant that every town needs. Located in the Harrisonburg Crossing Shopping Center, Franco’s friendly service, convenient location, and excellent food makes this one of the best places to eat in the Harrisonburg area.

They serve a large variety of foods including baked pastas and their famous handmade pizzas, which comes both by the slice and as a whole pizza. Franco’s has a little something for everyone who walks

through their doors.

When attending Franco’s Pasta and Subs, my personal favorite meal is a slice or two of their barbeque chicken pizza or their vegetarian pizza, both of which are lightly covered with cheese.In addition to their great food and service, this restaurant offers orders for take out, home delivery, and a large array of catering options for the larger parties.

Prices are generally on the low to normal side as consumers can expect to pay around $2-3 for a piece of pizza, and $610 for a pasta meal. Franco’s is an excellent place to go as a family for a good quality meal without sacrificing your wallet.

Pizza Hut

Austin Coffey Advertising Manager

January 31, 2014

The

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Dance & Company

We offer serious classical and contemporary training from youth to adult in a positive and progressive program of study. Performance opportunities are provided through annual spring concert performances, informal showings and student participation in the dance center's repertory youth performance companies. Classes are offered year-round in ballet, modern, tap, jazz, musical stage, hip-hop, and Irish step dance.

For information and guidance in class selection please call: 810-3631 or 433-7127 or 234-8317 115 South Main St. Harrisonburg VA 22801

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January 31, 2014

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January 31, 2014

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SPORTS B6

ELT provides much wanted sports time

Winter Sports Briefs

Soccer, basketball bring out students’ competitive side Brenna Cowardin Style Editor Two days a week, around 48 students flood the gym for games of soccer, basketball, volleyball and badminton. P.E. teacher Thomas Butler’s new intramural game time is one of the Extended Learning Time opportunities offered to students.

“I do weight training and sports and games, so I just thought it would be a great opportunity to utilize our space twice a week [because I don’t teach a class that needs extra study time with students],” Butler said.

Butler and P.E. teacher Paul Rath both do what they’re good at to give students the best opportunities to play.

“I was in charge of intramurals in the beginning, but... he’s a soccer guy, I’m a basketball guy. When I’m doing basketball, he’s doing volleyball, and when he’s doing soccer, I’m doing badminton,” Butler said.

“We have a really good system.”

Soccer and basketball are popular sports while their respective ELT day partners of badminton and volleyball are not.

Butler described the intramurals’ set up as a convenience store. If you aren’t selling Doritos, but can’t keep the cookies on the shelf, it’s time to get rid of Doritos and sell more cookies.

“If two [sports] aren’t getting signed up

for, and for the other two, kids are always asking, ‘Is there room?’ we just go with the demand,” Butler said. “Volleyball and badminton don’t have too much interest.

Mr. Rath and I... might just offer soccer and basketball [in the future] and have more games [of those two sports].”

Originally, Butler used math to choose which sports to play as intramurals, as well as the sports popularity in regular gym classes.

“We have the full, main gym and we have this [auxiliary] gym. We knew that with badminton [or volleyball] we could fit 24 people [in the auxiliary gym] and in the main gym with games of six on six we could get 24 more people [playing games],” Butler said. If someone is absent on ELT day, there’s a waiting list of two or three students.

In the winter months, the intramurals maximum number of students is capped by the limited space. Butler hopes to have more opportunities available in the springtime.

“When the warm weather comes, we could go outside, we might be able to open up tennis, softball, bigger games, more realistic games of football,” Butler said.

The only requirement for students to play intramurals is the desire to compete.

“If you sign up for soccer and you’re not going to run, not going to hustle, why did you sign up in the first place?” Butler said.

However, Butler does see some students playing more than others during intramurals.

“In anything you have more aggressive students and less aggressive students. Last week we had three way basketball with three teams on the court. Next week we’ll have three on three basketball. We try to mix it up [because] we want to give kids variety so it doesn’t get boring [for the students],” Butler said.

Butler believes that competition would increase if upperclassmen played intramurals, but mostly freshmen and sophomores are signing up.

“Surprisingly a lot of the lowerclassmen are filling up the soccer and basketball. If juniors and seniors signed up, I think the games would be a lot more competitive,” Butler said. “For the first intramural we had a bunch of basketball players sign up... and they never showed up again. I don’t know if they had high expectations, if they thought that the boy’s varsity basketball team would sign up and they would play good game.”

Butler still enjoys watching students play.

“It’s completely different from P.E. because has to play in P.E., and a lot of kids don’t want to... but when you have 24 kids sign up that want to play soccer you get better game,” Butler said.

INDOOR TRACK The junior varsity and varsity indoor track team have been competing in a variety of meets since the season began, including two meets at Liberty University so far, three ‘polar bear’ outdoor meets at Fort Defiance, and one meet at Fork Union Military Academy. The girl’s and boy’s teams both took the Valley District Championship title, on Saturday, Jan. 4. The girls took the win by 149 points while the boys also won by 10 points. The teams will compete in the conference tournament on Feb. 12 and the regional tounrnament on Feb. 22.

VARSITY GYMNASTICS The girls’ varsity gymnastics teamcompeted in their third meet in their home gym of Harrisonburg on Jan. 11. Junior Brooke Cobb placed first on bars and third on floor and beam, to get her a place of second all around in the meet. Junior Meagan Roberts placed 4th on vault and 6th on floor. Junior Aspen Hoak also placed 5th in the meet on floor. The team placed 3rd overall in the meet.

The girls will compete again Saturday, Jan. 25 at Patriot.

VARSITY GIRLS BASKETBALL The girls’ varsity basketball team is more than halfway through their regular season. The girls are currently 2-12-0, but are still looking for a good end to the season. Sophomore pointguard Kendyl Brooks is looking forward to the rest of the season.

“We still have time to improve and get better as a team. We can get some more wins,” Brooks said.

The team’s final three regular season games are home, on Friday, Jan. 31, Tuesday, Feb. 4, and Thursday, Feb. 6.

Come out to support the girls in our home gym at Harrisonburg!

SPRING SPORTS

PHOTO BY FAITH RUNNELLS

HOOP IT. Students participate in a game of basketball during ELT time.

Athletes wishing to play a spring sport will need to have a Virginia High School League physical completed before they can participate in tryouts. Athletes will also have to attend a rules meeting with a parent if they did not already attend the fall or winter meeting.

Weight training offered Duel Enrollment Kinesiology class big hit with upperclassmen Alexis Dickerson News Editor

Ella Marian Sports Editor Juniors and seniors have been offered the chance to take Dual Enrollment Kinesiology as a personal wellness class. HHS has modeled this course to be like the one that JMU does in their program. P.E. teaches Amy Wheeler and Paul Rath teach the class.

“It’s a lecture lab based class where we lecture on specific chapters on a topic and the lab activity would relate to chapter we had to talk about. Like in the cardiovascular chapter we do more aerobic activities. We also introduce students to equipment that they may find in a gym

or at home,” Wheeler said.

This is the second year that the DE Kinesiology elective has been offered at HHS. Senior Sydney Knupp started taking the class as a way to get ahead in college and shares her favorite lab activity so far.

“I blew out my knee so I haven’t been able to really participate in the lab activities, but my favorite out of the ones we did would be the plate workouts,” Knupp said. The plate workouts are a fast paced workout where you use plates instead of dumbbells and it targets everything. Knupp would encourage other students to take this class because it is an opportunity to get ahead in college.

Senior Kyle Templeton first

started taking the class because he could can do physical activity and learn about the body since he enjoys regular fitness and exercise. “[My favorite one] was the kick boxing workout; it was really cool. I thought I wouldn’t get much of a workout but I was pretty sore the next day,” Templeton said. Templeton would encourage other students to take it because they would learn responsibility and life time fitness goals.

“I didn’t think that there was going to be a lot of work, but there is, and you need to use your time wisely and you can learn a lot of lifetime fitness goals,” Templeton said.

TJ Butler, who instructs the weight training class, has been teaching for 12 years. This is his third year instructing weight training. Weight training is a class that is offered during fourth block first semester and in the second semester is offered first and fourth block.

Weight training has about 20 students, filled with upperclassmen.

Being that there aren’t enough teachers available, weight training isn’t offered as a club, but Butler hopes that this will be something that’ll happen in the near future.

“I’m getting old and trying not to hurt myself, I learn through other’s mistakes. There aren’t any benefits of seeing how much I can lift,” But-

ler said.

In order to be successful in weight training, you need to follow the safety rules by always having a spotter, make sure you have good form, and never put on too much weight.

“I’ll do reps of medium weight,” Butler said.

Butler mentions that students of all sports come out, even those students who are not involved in any athletics at all take the weight training class. Butler strives to make all students welcome, athletic or not.

Making sure everyone is comfortable, and goes at their own pace in a safe way. “At the end of the 90 days, they feel better,” Butler said.

Butler points to a student who says he’s never lifted before. “You’ve got to have a good attitude,” Butler said.

Female fitness class What’s Your Worst P.E. Memory? planned for next year Victoria Giron Feature Editor

“Having to run the mile every other three days in Butler’s class.”

-Azucena Dereal, Senior

“I was running the mile and my pants fell down and I tripped.”

-Pishdar Abdul, Junior

“Getting hit on the head with a basketball.” -Veronica Ortiz

“When my dad gave me a new watch and the next day someone stole it in the locker rooms.” -Tony Antonnicola INFOGRAPHIC BY PABLO PACHECO

At the beginning of last school year, 12 girls signed up for female fitness, but none of them would ever get to partake in the class. Despite the success of the class last year- fifteen girls participated- female fitness was not offered this year because those who wanted to take it could not fit it into their schedules. Amy Wheeler, who teaches the class is sad that the class isn’t offered because the class offered a place where just girls could exercise and weight train, without feeling self-conscious in the presence of boys.

The class was offered last year for the first time and was going to be continued this year, but there was a conflict that could not be resolved.

“From what I understand, it was too difficult to make the class fit in the schedules of girls who wanted to take it,” said Wheeler.

The class itself was about exercising, weight lifting, and teaching

techniques to stay healthy and fit for the future when the girls graduate high school. As girls get out of high school and college, some often pick up weight or lose their original fitness, so this course was desgined to prevent that with the girls who took it.

“When you’re out of school it’s hard to find pick up games of basketball or pick up games of volleyball very easily so I try to show them things that the girls can do on their own for a low cost that’s effective,” said Wheeler.

The girls participated in exercises that built their knowledge of fitness.

“The main focus of the class was to teach girls how to do exercises for cardio, muscles, and endurance,” said Wheeler, “We would find different varieties of how-to exercise for each component of fitness.”

The class is being offered again next year for girls to sign up.

“I’m glad it’s going to be offered again,” Wheeler said. “It was a good class just for girls and I think it helps them.”

January 31, 2014

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January 31, 2014

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Sports Briefs BOYS VARSITY BASKETBALL BEAT ROBERT E. LEE

The boys lost their game against Turner Ashby on Jan. 3 with a score of 41-55. They also lost their game on Jan. 7 against Waynesboro with a score of47-59. They beat the won their game against Robert E. Lee on Jan. 10 with a score of 64-59. The boys also lost to John Handley on Jan. 18 with a score of 36-59. Support the boys in their last two games on Feb. 4 7pm at Waynesboro and on Feb. 6 7pm at Robert E. Lee.

BOYS JV BASKETBALL TEAM BEAT TURNER ASHBY

The boys lost their game against Waynesboro with a score of 49-53 on Jan. 7. They won their game against Turner Ashby on Jan. 8 with a score of 65-57. They lost their games against Robert E. Lee on Jan. 10 with a score of 56-73. They lost their game against John Handley on Jan. 18 with a score of 43-51.

Support the JV boys in their last two games of the season on Feb. 4 at Waynesboro at 5:30pm and on Feb. 6 at Robert E. Lee at 5:30pm.

GIRLS JV BASKETBALL TEAM BEATS FORT DEFIANCE

The girls won their game against Waynesboro with a score of 3919 on Jan. 7. They lost their game against Turner Ashby with a score of 26-41 on Jan. 8. The lost their games against Rober E. Lee on Jan. 10 with a score of 31-38. They won their game against Fort Defiance with a score of 44-25 on Jan. 17. The won their game against John Handley with a score of 48-11 on Jan. 18.

Support the JV girls in their last two games on Feb. 4 against Waynesboro at home at 6pm and on Feb. 6 against Robert E. Lee at home at 6 p.m.

BOYS VARSITY SWIM TEAM PLACES THIRD

The boys placed third out of six teams at their Black and Blue Invitational on Jan. 18. Support the boys at their conference tournament at Sweetbriar College on Sat. Feb. 8 against Amherst County, Charlottesville, John Handley, Louisa County and Fluvanna.

GIRLS VARSITY SWIM TEAM PLACES THIRD

The girls placed third out of six teams at their Black and Blue Invitational on Jan. 18. Support the boys at their conference tournament at Sweetbrair College on Sat. Feb. 8 against Amherst County, Charlottesville, John Handley, Louisa County and Fluvanna.

Parker takes on role of shooting guard this season Ali Baapir Staff Reporter Injuries are common for everyone but are even more common for athletes. For junior Isaiah Parker an injury was just waiting to happen before basketball season.

“I got injured a little before the season started,” says Parker. This caused Parker to sit on the sideline and watch everyone else play during the practices and the games.

“I missed about half of the season, which was a bummer,” says Parker. Accidents happen all of the time, but it appears that this seemed to be an unintentional consequence of his actions. Parker broke two bones in his right hand and now has it in a cast.

“I punched a wall when I was angry,” Parker said. Parker is now currently playing basketball as a shooting guard for the second half of the season. He hopes to pursue track later this year and plans to continue playing basketball next year.

“Hopefully I’ll never take my anger out on a wall again,” says Parker. Parker now knows that if he ever punches a wall it can cause greater problems that plaster can’t fix.

Junior Isaiaha Patker

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SPORTS - B8

Bell’s swim season is put to a close Rafael Snell-Feikema Online Editor-In-Chief

An injury is to be avoided for anyone, but in the case of athletes, the pain can be not only that of the torn ligaments, broken bones, et cetera, but also that of not being able to participate in their respective sports. A first hand learner of this fact is junior Austin Bell, a member of the swim team who suffered an unfortunate accident which has kept him out of swim practices since early November.

“I was walking to Westover Pool for swim practice, and [senior] Jacob Byrd and I decided to jump over one of the hedges in front. We did, [but] the second time I wasn’t so lucky and I caught my toes on the ground and broke two of the metatar-

sals on top of my foot,” Bell said.

Bell’s injury consists of not only broken bones, but also several torn ligaments on the inside of his foot. For these, he received surgery and four metal screws which now permanently reside inside of his foot holding the entire piece together.

“It was pretty bad. That was the third day of swim practice, so it screwed up my whole season. I was also planning on going out to Colorado to ski and I couldn’t do that either,” Bell said.

Bell has been under repair for eight weeks already, yet still has a week and a half to go with the cast alone. From there, he will receive a walking boot, and after two or three weeks in the boot, he should be able to begin walking normally once more, meaning that his recovery

should hopefully be timed so that he will be able to rejoin the swim team.

“I’m hoping that once I get my boot I’ll be able to swim - so that I might be able to swim for the last three weeks of the season before the district meet,” Bell said.

Such injuries are fairly common, and in fact Bell notes that he’s not only seen but formed a slight bond with other such injured students. Nods of acknowledgement in the elevator and recognition throughout the school means that the dozen-or-so students in this exclusive group

Junior Austin Bell

have even formed their community, although Bell warns against joining it - not worth missing practice.

“Don’t be stupid. Don’t be jumping over bushes,” Bell said.

Knupp injures knee, ending basketball season Danny Dombrowski Staff Reporter An athlete’s worst enemy is an injury that keeps them from competing and helping their team. Sydney Knupp, a two sport athlete at HHS, plays basketball and soccer. She certainly did not plan on starting her senior year off by tearing her anterior cruciate ligament, medial collaterial ligament, and meniscus. On Dec. 4, Knupp

suffered a severe knee injury in a varsity basketball game against Wilson Memorial.

“I went up for a layup in the game and came down awkwardly. My foot planted one direction and my knee/leg planted the other way, it felt like celery twisting in my knee,” Knupp said.

After only the second game of the season, Knupp was out for the foreseeable future.

She will undergo surgery at

the end of the month and begin her recovery.

“I have surgery Jan. 30, so four to six months after that [I should be cleared],” Knupp said.

In the mean time Knupp has been resting and using her brace to continue to heal.

“I can’t do anything rehab because the doctors hope that my MCL and meniscus will heal themselves if I stay in my brace until surgery,” Knupp said.

Whiplash: the most common way to break a neck is whiplash.

This is when the head is quickly thrown back to a hyperextention and then the quickly back forward.

It is most commonly found in car accidents.

Clavicle Fracture: also know as a broken collar bone, a clavicle fracture usually occurs when someone falls hard on their shoulder. This type of injury is usually able to heal by itself.

Rib Fractures: these can occur during an intense sport or an untreated cough.

Rib Fractures must be treated immediatly since they can lead to other serious injuries.

Broken Fingers: a broken finger can result from an extension of the hand while falling or being jammed between doors.

Thoracic Compression Fractures: they are most commonly caused by the disease osteoporosis which is disease that thins the bones until they break.

Broken Tailbone: the most common way to break a tailbone is when a person falls onto a hard surface in a sitting position and can leave a person in severe pain.

Broken Arm: the most common cause for breaking an arm is when a person extends his or her arm in a way to stop a fall.

Distal Femur Fractures: these are injuries when the joint connecting the knee to the thigh breaks. It is most commonly found in car accidents and falling from extreme heights.

Femoral Neck Fractures: these are the most common types of hip fractures where one or two inches of the hip joint is broken.

Knupp has played a different role for her team this year by being on the sideline.

“Being on the sideline is much different because I have to coach the team, I can’t help them on the court,” Knupp said.

Knupp is not sure whether she will get to step on the soccer field for her senior year.

“I’m not sure if I will get to play soccer it depends how my surgery and rehab goes,” Knupp said.

Work to prevent serious injuries Faith Runnells Sports Editor Sports have the potential to be very dangerous if an athlete is not well prepared or taking proper care of themselves while being involved in the athletic activity.

Jen Glazer, a certified athletic trainer with five years of experience, has been around the job since she was a sophomore in high school. She is the main trainer at HHS, although she sometimes gets student trainers to help her out during different seasons.

There are countless ways for athletes to injure themselves, and varying on the season and the sport, Glazer comes across just about every injury or harm you can think of. “[Our most common injury for each year] literally goes in cycles. For instance, last year we had a bunch of hand fractures, and this year we’re getting a bunch of shoulder dislocations and things like that.

It kind of fluxuates and it’s never really the exact same every single season or even every single school year,” Glazer said.

Although high school sports are not the most intense thing in the world, they can get pretty dirty, and Glazer has had to deal with many of what she calls the worst injuries to have.

“There’s a lot of [injuries] that would be classified as worst, but pretty much any dislocation or bone break is worst and I’ve pretty much had all of them,” Glazer said.

When an athlete gets hurt, the main thing Glazer has to do is to do an evaluation and determine if the injury has to go to a doctor. She must also call parents of an injured athlete, and contact coaches about what an athlete is capable of doing at practice while recovering.

“If they don’t have to go to a doctor, then I will write them a rehab plan for [at HHS] that includes what exercises they should do and how they should limit their practices,” Glazer said.

Although some injuries many seem inevitable or as if athletes can’t control them, there are multiple ways for an athlete to prevent themselves from injury, including stretching, warming-up and being in conditioned shape. Glazer puts a lot of stress on a good warm up.

“Warming up is a big key [to not get hurt]. Just warming up properly and stretching a lot can prevent a lot of injuries,” Glazer said.

Q&A with senior wrestler Trevor Jackson 1. What do you enjoy most about wrestling? Getting my hand raised at the end of a match.

2. What is your most favorite memory while playing? When we won the regular season district title last year.

3. What is the worst memory while playing?

When I broke my ankle.

4. When and why did you start wrestling? First grade and my brother inspired me.

5. Did you achieve any of your goals this season and what were they?Not yet, my goal is to make it to states.

6. What advice would you give to anyone interesting in joining

the HHS wrestling team? Be prepared to work.

7. In one word how would you describe wrestling and why?

Flexible, because you need to be able to do a lot.

8. Have you ever been injured while playing? I broke my ankle when another wrestler fell on it.

9. Since it is your senior year, what “words of wisdom” would you leave your teammates with?Stick with it, some days it’s gonna suck but when it’s all said and done you will be for the better.

10. What do you plan on majoring in college.

Marine Engineering

INFOGRAPHIC & Q & A BY ELLA MARIAN

January 31, 2014

2013-2014

HHS

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THE EXPERIENCE- B10

INTERNATIONAL ADVENTURE

ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF ATTICUS BOLYARD

FROM THE LOOKOUT. Bolyard looks out over Famagusta Bay from Cape Greco.

CASTLE RUN. Bolyard tours Kyrenia Castle, located in the Northern part of the country. The castle was originally built by the Venetians and then modified by the Ottomans. At one point it was a British prison, but now it is a tourist attraction.

Bolyard spends semester in Cyprus Mia Karr Editor-in-Chief Last semester, junior Atticus Bolyard had the chance to experience a new culture, drive on the opposite side of the road, and eat the world’s best cheese. Bolyard traveled to Cyprus, a tiny Mediterranean island near Turkey for four months with his father, who was participating in a philosophy research fellowship.

Bolyard attended the American International School of Cyprus in Nicosia. Most of his fellow classmates were native to Cyprus, but some came from locations as diverse as Israel, Sweden and Canada. While at the school, Bolyard participated in the International Baccalaureate (IB) program, an advanced program similar to that of AP. As part of the program he took classes foreign to HHS, such as Theory of Knowledge (an introduction to philosophy course), and Creativity, Action, and Service. The school was also considerably smaller than Bolyard was used to, with only 20 people in his class.

“It was really nice having a small school

because everybody knew each other and it was really tight knit, whereas here people are more separated into groups,” Bolyard said. “But there’s more people here, more stuff to do.”

Most weekends Bolyard went to the beach (which was feasible as late as November) or went hiking in the mountains.

He also got to experience the culture of the small island nation.

Cyprus was originally a British colony, but became its own country in 1960. Due to tensions between Greek and Turkish Cypriots, the Turkish army invaded in the 1970’s and has remained, leaving the country divided up until today. Bolyard stayed in the Mediterranean-influenced part of the country. Although the culture of Cyprus is similar to that of Greece, it is distinctly unique, and as Bolyard emphasizes, Cyprus is not a part of Greece.

One reason that Cyprus may sound familiar to those in the U.S is because of the giant banking crash that happened in the nation a few months before Bolyard arrived. Although the school Bolyard attended had students that were more well-off, he was able to witness the effects of the

depression, such as closed shops and beggars in the streets.

The food of Cyprus draws from Greek, Turkish, and Middle-Eastern traditions (kebabs, gyros, etc.)

The country’s trademark food is haoloumi, a mixture of goat, sheep, and cow milk, turned into a cheese hard enough that it doesn’t melt when grilled.

“It’s the best cheese I’ve ever had. It’s so delicious,” Bolyard said.

Besides sightseeing and school, Bolyard hung out in downtown Nicosia and played soccer on his school’s team. (Soccer is very popular in Cyprus.)

While abroad, Bolyard missed American toilets (you can’t put toilet paper in the ones in Cyprus) and American architecture.

“The buildings here are more aesthetically pleasing because its all concrete there.

They don’t have many trees,” Bolyard said.

He also found that drivers are much better in the States, with part of the problem being that the government in Cyprus ran out of money to paint lines on the streets.

Bolyard would like to return to Cyprus and visit some of the friends he made during his trip.

“My favorite part was probably just getting to meet all the different people and make cultural connections,” Bolyard said.

BLISSFUL BLUE. Boats rest in the harbor of Kyrenia.

MOUNTAIN MAN. Bolyard hikes in Kyrenia Mountains at St. Hilarion castle. This is just one of many castles in these mountains. Hiking was a common weekend activity for Bolyard.

ANCIENT ART. Bolyard was able to view this mosaic (from Kourion) due to connections with an archaeologist working in Cypress.

THE COLUMN-IST. Bolyard poses at Salamis, in the Northern part of the country. Since the North is occupied by the Turkish army, archaeologists aren’t able to excavate anything here.

UNDER THE SEA. Bolyard goes snorkeling at the Sea Caves. This was another way Bolyard spent his free time in Cypress.