Issue 7

THE

ANCE

8701 Pacific St. Omaha, NE 68114 Volume 61 Issue 7

April 7, 2017

* FEATURE Check out the drug in-depth on pages 7-20.

BROKEN BUDGET District strives to continue to fix money-related issues Westside Community Schools Budget

DER CO

NSTRU C

C

A C ON

I T U CA

TION - TION U N A D C E R N C O O N I STRU T U

A C ON

I T AU

N O I UT

RE ES E P I K E COPY EDITOR

“There’s no happy news in here,” said Dana Blakely at the board meeting about the budget on Monday, March 20. “I don’t think anyone leaves here with any sense of happiness.”

Blakely is a member of the Board of Education. The district is still facing a deficit, as state funding goes down and expenses go up, so more budget cuts are being made. The focus of the March 20 meeting was to announce the new proposed cuts.

Those cuts amount to about $3.4 million and range in variety from eliminating four full-time custodial positions to changing transportation routes.

This year, the district said that revenues have grown by less than one percent while expenses have grown by four percent.

“Out of control spending is not our problem,” said Superintendent Blane McCann. While the district may not want to make cuts, he added, “Austerity only goes so far.”

CTION

Deciding what programs to keep and what to cut is a difficult process in which many people are involved. The actual budget committee is made up of community members, parents, staff and Board of Education members. Their job is

BLANE MCCANN

SUPERINTENDENT

“Out of control spending is not our problem...austerity only goes so far.”

to go through all the expenses and decide what programs and positions are most important to the district. This year (and last), they used a process called the “onion process,” which McCann has used in previous districts he worked in.

According to McCann, the process helps “get into the core of what is most important. [It asks] what are the things that make Westside what it

is?”

The process assigns points to different programs, categorizing them by ranking how closely they impact the classroom. The lower its score, the more a program impacts the classroom and the less likely it is to be cut.

However, the “onion process” was not the only process involved.

“What we also did is put kind of a check on that process,” Robert Zagozda, the Chief Financial Officer of the district, said. “We had the committee with community members and things on it, [do] an old-fashioned ranking from top to bottom as they saw things that were eligible.”

In other words, the committee also ranked everything to determine its overall importance.

The committee tried to keep cuts from affecting their priorities, which were maintaining lower class sizes, keeping modular scheduling at WHS, having reading coordinators (for both remediation and primary school), educational assistance services, school social workers, school psychologists, the one-to-one learning initiative, keeping the science adoption program and the performing arts.

Story continues onto page 2

Graphic by Jim Schueneman

2

NEWS

CONT.: District begins plans to make cuts to budget Despite efforts to protect those areas, some cuts still affect them. The proposed cuts that could most directly affect the high school are the proposed elimination of four full-time custodial positions, five full-time educational assistants (with 15 educational assistant positions eliminated in total), two and a half (two full time and one part time) positions in the EY program, an administrative assistant at the high school, getting rid of substitute teachers for juniors and seniors, changes in the transportation system for athletes, eliminating three bus routes and getting rid of two and a half positions at the West Campus.

The positions that will be eliminated from the West Campus have not been decided yet, but it is likely that those affected will be relocated within the district. Across the district, new material selection will also be delayed

and there will be a technology refinancing.

While none of these cuts are irreversible, and some of them are the same from last year, it is difficult to change them, according to Adam Yale, another member of the Board of Education.

However, if income from property tax goes up or the district makes more than expected, the board plans to reevaluate the n e e d to cut EY positions and custodians.

I f c o m munity memb e r s disagree w i t h the cuts being made to different programs, like the reduction of many positions, there are ways to contact administrators and Board of Education members about the budget. The budget is not final yet, and more meetings will be held in July and September.

“We have a program attached on the website, it’s called Let’s Talk, where people in the

BOB ZAGOZDA

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

“[Last year] anybody that submitted an idea on Let’s Talk, that was presented to the budget committee so that all suggestions were heard.””

community put their ideas in,” Zagozda said.

“So, [last year] anybody that submitted an idea on Let’s Talk, that was presented to the budget committee so that all suggestions were heard.

So everybody had input on every idea that was submitted.”

Let’s Talk will continue to be used as a main outlet for community members. At the meeting, new legislature and its potential impact on the district was also discussed.

Some proposed bills could have a negative impact on the district’s revenue, which also negatively affects the budget.

Blakely stressed that in order to prevent more budget cuts in the future, community members should stay updated on what is happening at the state level of government.

“Over the years, stuff adds up,” Blakely said. “Please keep advocating. Now is not the time to fall asleep at the wheel in terms of what’s happening at the legislature.”

Westside board members discuss the 2016-2017 budget cuts at a Board Meeting in 2016. For more information on this year’s budget cuts, visit the district’s website. Photo

by Celena Shepherd

NEWS

3

FAREWELL FACULTY

Story by Cynthia France and Tristan Newman

Teachers not featured on this page that have publicly announced their leave: Jolene French

THERESA CRNKOVICH

Current Position: Director of Counseling

Q: Why are you leaving?

“Last summer I moved to Gretna when I got married. I have been here for 11 years and the driving is a lot for me right now and my children go to Gretna and I just started thinking, you know, this is a lot of driving. I’d like to be closer to home. Then a friend called me, that I used to work with here at Westside who works at Elkhorn High, which is closer and she said they had an opening and so I thought I would explore that. And then when I found out more about the job— it’s a school counseling job — [I realized] it was the full package and I just felt like, you know, now is a good time in my life to maybe make a professional change.

[Additionally,] I just felt like, I needed a new challenge. I love my students here and I love my coworkers here, so that’s the part that made it hard for me [to leave].”

new position: Counselor, Elkhorn Q: What is your Favorite memory from teaching at Westside?

High School “My department here is like a family so that’s just been awesome. We have been through weddings and funerals and crises and good times and that’s just nice to feel like a part of a family here at work.”

JAIME PIERNICKY

Q: Why are you leaving?

“The Department of Ed contacted me about this position, and I hadn’t thought about it until they had asked me if I’d be interested in applying for it and I thought I couldn’t hurt to apply. When I was interview for it, I got pretty excited about the job so I decided to take it. I [wasn’t] really planning on it, but it just happened.”

Q: What is your Favorite memory from teaching at Westside?

Current Position: Business Instructor

new position: Curriculum Spe-

cialist at the Nebraska Department of Education

LINDSAY SCOTT

“I’ve really enjoyed the opportunities I’ve had at Westside. The people that I work with are some of the best teachers I’ve ever been around. I’ve enjoyed working with athletics, [there’s] lots of fun memories with that. My first year at Westside they sent me to China. I got to take the students to China and that was incredible. There’s too many specific memories to name. This is a pretty great place.”

Q: Why are you leaving?

“It was really hard. My kids are in Elkhorn. I live in Elkhorn. The opportunity came up and I just kind of thought: The 25-minute drive to work, the 25 minute drive home… Being on the same schedule as my kids was huge. That was really the only thing because I absolute-

Q: What is your Favorite memory from teaching at Westside?

Q: What is your Favorite memory from teaching at Westside?

instructor

new position: Math instructor,

miss my colleagues.”

Marian High School

Q: Why are you leaving?

“I am leaving for Marian because before I came to Westside, I taught at another Catholic school. I enjoy being able to talk to my students about their faith. I really enjoy the environment and feel that it offers a good life balance. That’s something I just can’t get at Westside.”

“I feel like Westside has made me a way better teacher. I worked with some really outstanding educators in this building. I feel like I learned a lot from them. I enjoyed my time here and I will really

Current Position: Math

SYDNEY KOBZA

ly love it here.”

current Position: Science instructor

“[One of my favorite memories is from when] I student taught here, [and on] my first day of student teaching I burnt an entire package of flame paper. I lit it on fire and it lit the table on fire....There are a million [memories].”

new position: Science instrcutor, Elkhorn High School

Dog Grooming 402-884-0330 right across the street from Westside High School!

8713 Shamrock Rd Omaha, NE 68114

4

EDITORIAL

The LANCE The Lance is a school-sponsored publication of Westside High School, Westside Community Schools, 8701 Pacific St., Omaha, NE 68144. The Lance office is located in room 251. Phone: (402) 343-2650. The Lance is an in-house publication.

The paper is distributed every month to all students, except in vacation periods. Subscription rates to others are $25 prepaid. The Lance is printed by White Wolf Web, in Sheldon, IA. Advertising rates are available upon request. The Lance editorial staff reserves the right to edit all ads for clarity and grammatical errors.

The editorial staff reserves the right not to publish any ads that are libelous or that contain non-factual information.

The Lance editorial staff also reserves the right to nullify contracts at any time without prior notification. The Lance also refuses ads that promote activities illegal to a majority of the student readership.

Reader response is welcomed in the form of letters to the editor.

Letters should be less than 300 words, signed by the author and sent to room 251. Names may be withheld upon special request. Lance editors will decide whether to honor such requests.

The Lance editorial staff reserves the right to edit letters for clarity and grammatical errors. The editorial staff also reserves the right to not publish any letters that are libelous or that contain non-factual information.

The Lance is a member of the Nebraska High School Press Association, the Columbia Scholastic Press Association, the National Scholastic Press Association and the Quill & Scroll Society.

The Lance staff recognizes that the administration of Westside Community Schools controls the curriculum and, thus, sets the parameters of the production process of school publications. The Lance staff also recognizes its own responsibilities to inform, enlighten and entertain its readers in a way that reflects high standards of journalism, morals and ethics.

Editors-in-Chief Celena Shepherd, Libby Seline; Managing Editors Jim Schueneman, Sam Cohen; Media Coordinator Madigan Brodsky; Design Editor Bella Radler; Photo Editor Roshan Sapkota; Copy Editors Emma Korengel, Reese Pike; News Editors Nick Vincentini, Georgia Wimmer; Opinion Editors Alex Bergin, Maryam Akramova; Feature Editors Malia Battafarano, Julia Steiner; Sports Editors Trevor Mumford, Nolan Tracy; Arts and Entertainment Editor Theo Jansen, Sophie Knight; Staff Writers Ryan Adkins, Cindy France, Alex Goldstein, Kaelyn Mettler, Tristan Newman, Aaron Norton, Nicole Petersen; Photographers Taylor Baca, Lili Fogland; Advisers Timothy Kaldahl, Jerred Zegelis.

Graphic by Sam Cohen

Editorial

Drugs should be decriminalized to help society The war on drugs, a government crackdown on anything related to the drugs deemed illegal by the government, has failed our people.

In the United States talking about drugs is seen as taboo. It’s illegal, so you can’t talk about it rationally. You don’t see many adults or authority figures in our society open to sharing the positives and negatives about drugs. We instill that drugs are what bad people do or that touching drugs will ruin your life.

The extreme statements make the whole situation a big mystery, and as naturally curious and rebellious creatures, it has the negative effect.

This system of treatment around drugs has failed our country and needs to come to a stop. Against what might be first instinct, we must implement rigorous, truthful and open education around drugs as well as decriminalize the offense, moving the responsibility from the criminal justice system to a public health issue. This move, to most, seems radical. Decriminalization does not mean legalization. We don’t want kids running around dropping acid every day or snorting cocaine whenever they want. Decriminalization means the cops aren’t going to throw you in jail or charge you for what you have.

In 2001, Portugal decriminalized possession of drugs in small quantities.

The results of this move have had great impacts on the country’s people as a whole.

According to Business Insider, the percentage of drug-related offenders in Portuguese prisons dropped to 21 percent in 2012 from 44 percent in just 1999. That has freed up more space in prisons, meaning money is saved from not using as many prison resources and more people on the streets contributing to the economy as a whole. These people now have opportunities to live lives and work and be around society.

The United States has 2.3 million people incarcerated in total. If we

could even get that number down a little, it would be a step in the right direction. The less people we have to take care of, the less money we have to spend.

Something else we see in Portugal is a steady decline in adult drug use.

People aren’t sucked into this mysterious world of illegal activity. They are informed about drugs and are able to have open conversations about the pros and cons of their conversations. It’s less of a rebel act if no one treats you like a rebel for doing the act. It loses the edgy appeal and creates an informed populace.

If we decriminalize, this gives the oppurtunity for studies to be done more openly, for better education on drug safety, for open conversations between authorities and young people. All of these things help create a safe society to live in.

This fear of the government also causes distrust between police and the public. People don’t want to go to the hospital if they overdose because they could get in trouble. What if they get charged with a felony and completely ruin their life because of one dumb decision at a party one night?

Many would rather risk their lives. Many are taught that they should.

In decriminalized Portugal, there is also an increase of adults getting enrolled into drug treatment programs. People are less scared to reach out for help. The public is more accepting of drug users trying to get clean and as a result, more people are getting the health care that they need to actively and effectively participate positively in a functioning society.

Our war on drugs causes too many problems in the United States. The way to win the war on drugs is to stop telling people what to do and help them learn the truth, make decisions and get help.

Warrior Voice

Do you think the punishments for drug related crimes are reasonable?

Armani williams, FRESHMAN

“There are some drugs that are really severe and that can mess you up, but there are also drugs that aren’t as severe like marijuana that shouldn’t have as serious sentence.”

Tierney schirmer, sophomore ALEXIS ROSE, JUNIOR

“No because I think there are other crimes that should be [considered more important].”

“I don’t. I think compared to other crimes, the sentences for drug related crimes are totally unreasonable.”

ANNA KNUTSON, Senior

“I don’t know, I think they’re pretty reasonable, and it’d be hard to change.”

OPINION

5

People need to take action against global warming “Talk the talk, walk the walk.”

As a young girl this saying had always confused me. I thought when people said something, they would always live up to it. Unfortunately, people doing what they say does not MARYAM AKRAMOVA often happen. When OPINION WRITER it comes to big issues most people have an opinion and a stance, but they don’t do anything to change the problem.

I’ve realized that in big issues, such as climate change, we talk about fixing the problem, but continue doing nothing after that.

Climate change is a change of the climate patterns as defined by dictionary.com. This is mainly caused by carbon dioxide in the atmosphere as stated by NASA. The problem with just talking or reading about global warming is that people get fired up for a few minutes, maybe even days, but then the original “spark” burning through people disappears. If we only just keep talking, we will never have change. Opening communication is step on of the solution.

Now it’s time to move onto the next stage: generating solutions.

There are steps to spread the word and prevent global warming. Spreading the word is important because people need to understand the issue of climate change and realize it is a problem because of the damaging effects it’s having on Earth. Then we would research about the problem and solutions to solve it.

Helping the environment will cost time and money but will be worth it.

There are a few steps that can be taken to help slow climate change and there are reasons why they are important.

In the technology fueled world one good solution would to be to download an app that helps limit and control your usage of electricity and energy. Conserve Energy Future recommends Kil-Ur-Watts and Wiser EMS. These apps help calculate the amount of energy you use. All you have to do is apply the steps they give to help control your energy usage.

Another option is to eat less meat, especially beef. The importance is that cows produce methane, which is a bad greenhouse gas.

This greenhouse gas is just as bad or worse than carbon dioxide and result in a dramatic heating of the Earth. Eating less meat may be difficult at first but there are plenty of other options available. They can also result in a healthier body as well as a healthier Earth.

Also, one does not have to fully give up beef but limit it to once or twice a week. Chicken and poultry are a better option than cattle and still are meat products. There has to be a trade-off in slowing climate change and this is one that could make a small splash into a big impact.

Join the Arbor or Earth day celebration. I went to one last year and learned much about the climate change issues. They had also handed out free trees to plant and goodybags that all involved helping the planet and reducing Carbon Dioxide in the air. Visiting these places gives you a deeper understanding of the issue, and they give you the materials to help out the planet. Now it’s time to follow through.

It’s time to stop talking about climate change and actually doing something about it.

The first step in change is the hardest, so let’s take it together.

Graphic by Sam Cohen

POlice and Public relations The criminal justice system should listen to youth

ALEX BERGIN OPINION EDITOR

The way our citizens, especially young people, think about their police force has been the subject of controversy for the last few years. With incidents including Ferguson, Tamir Rice, and Eric Garner being in the forefront of protests and media coverage, there has been a clear divide between the police and the public. This is damaging our communities as a whole, causing unsafe streets and fear of extreme brutality. The rift between our young people and our law enforcement needs to be mended if we ever want to reach

a peaceful society.

The first part of this process is to figure out why the relationship between minorities and the police is tense.

According to Gallup, only 50% of young people have “quite a bit” or “a great deal” of confidence in the police.

This number is from a 2014-2015 poll. Compared to a 2012-2013 poll, that trust is down 7%. That’s half of us.

Those numbers plummet to 30% amongst African Americans. This is the sad reality we face.

There is a constant fear amongst some people that if you at all disagree or exercise your rights to a police officer, your life will be in immediate danger or your punishment for something you may or may not have done will be extremely severe.

What our police departments around the country lack is proper crisis intervention training, and long term training in general. Many police academies take a matter of a few months to complete. In Omaha Police Department Academy, they focus on many things like ticket and report writing, firearms, radio procedure and things of the like, but I noticed a lack of crisis intervention training.

In Norway and Finland, police go through a multiple-year police academy with a focus on de-escaltion.

Why not here?

The words, “I feared for my life,” seem to eradicate the wrongdoing of publicly executing a civilian, regardless of guilt or innocence of the dead.

Tamir Rice, for example, was wielding what was a “Probably fake” gun, according to a 911 call that officers were responding to. According to the Los Angeles Times, he was twelve years old. He is now dead. The officer claimed that he feared for his life, and did everything correctly, is not being criminally charged for the public exe-

cution of this boy that happened within seconds of arriving on scene. A 12-year-old boys execution went viral.

The reason why our relationship is bad, is because the laws enforced, and the way they are enforced are practices that make young people feel scared of brutality in any form. This distrust in the community has been rooted in our society for much longer than our generation has even been around.

We look back in history and see time and again that when the government and the police actually listen to minority and young leaders, the relationship between the two get better. When the calls for stopping police brutality, and amoral practices is ignored, the gap between us and our protection is widened.

In the 70’s and 80’s the crack down of the War on Drugs made tensions rise, and again, minorities and young people were the ones targeted. Nixon connected youth rebellion to drug use, putting a label on young people and severely impacting relationships that young people might have with their law enforcement.

Since the 1900’s people have been speaking out against police brutality and the law enforcement that directly targets them.

In the 90’s, rappers regularly spoke out against the police. Famously, NWA brought attention to the chant that has become a staple at parties and concerts.

“F*** the police”.

Tupac spoke many times against the power position that the police hold, especially over minority communities. Even while a police officer was holding his dying body, after being shot, he never turned his back on his deeply held belief that the problem wasn’t good cop, bad cop. It was the reality of being a cop in general.

As the officer asked a dying Tupac Shakur who shot him, his face turned peaceful and his last reply was an obscenity.

When generation after generation of pop culture is anti-police, then generation after generation of young people are going to see this and model it.

This environment is dangerous. If you don’t trust the police not to hurt you, who do you call when you are hurt?

Who do you call when you need help in an emergency? If you are afraid of your protectors, you will never be safe in your communities.

We all have to start listening to our young people and our minorities if we want to fix the rifts in our communities. The messages being sent out are very serious, and if we continue with this trend of the angelic police versus the criminal public, we will watch as crime and hate fill our streets.

“We look back in history and see time and again that when the government and the police actually listen to minority and young leaders, the relationship between the two get better. ”

ADVERTISEMENT

6

Come with your Westside I.D. for

10% off your purchase!*

So much more than coffee....

S.E. Corner of 72nd & Pacific

RAISE YOUR SCORE

*90th and center location only!

Preparing Warriors for the ACT and SAT for over 16 years...

Helping Schools & Families Create College Graduates With Minimal Debt JohnBaylorPrep.com ȝ John Baylor Prep ¬ @JB_Prep

IN-DEPTH

7

DRUG culture at westside

Graphic by Bella Radler

X

X

X AN A X

X A NA X

X AN A

NA X A

X AN A X

X ANA X

X ANA X X

X ANA X

A NA X

X ANA X

X AN A X

Letter from An Editor It is no secret that the walls of almost every high school contains talk about the exchange or use of drugs. We’ve seen it in movies or on the news, but what do you know about drugs and your school? Let’s put away the rumors and prepare for the facts.

Prepare to read about someone’s lowest point, greatest triumph or comeback with drugs all in the mix. Several anonymous students have bravely written about their perspectives or experiences with drugs. Maybe you sit by one of them in your math class, or perhaps you will pass by one of them in the hallway today. Maybe the biggest surprise is how you’re not so different than them. We are all interconnected through our school, and they are apart of the collective drug culture here.

But don’t forget, so are you.

The Lance feels passionate that publishing this drug in-depth can only help our district. The purpose of this in-depth is to reveal where Westside stands, so as a district we can further improve and collectively find solutions to any distasteful findings. We have offered an objective look at drugs and students.

The statistics in the following pages may surprise you, or perhaps you won’t be fazed. Regardless, this information is important for all of us. These facts matter, and you’re apart of this drug culture, whether you realized it or not, so read up.

— Celena Shepherd, Editor-in-Chief of The Lance

8

IN-DEPTH

DRUGs

ROUNDTABLE How would you describe the culture surrounding drugs at Westside?

CP: I know a lot of people who have connections to drugs and stuff, so [Westside is] not really anti-drugs. The school doesn’t really say anything against drugs, maybe, as much as other schools do. When I went to Millard it was like no drugs!

[Millard] was crazy about no drugs and here [at Westside] they don’t really talk about it.

EB: When [Westside does] the section in healthy living about like anti-drug stuff that is really the only time they focus on it. Otherwise I feel like [drug usage] is like very obvious as a student l, but it doesn’t really seem like a big deal.

DR: Kids think it’s really cool to do drugs, and they like to brag about it to their friends. People don’t really care about the health issues with drugs; they just think it’s a social thing.

PS: I think that it depends on who you are. Say you smoke weed, I’m not saying I do, I’m just saying say a lot of people at Westside do.

I think that’s pretty apparent and obvious [that people smoke weed.].

I don’t think all people brag. I think people who are new to drugs might thinks it’s cool. Say you’re a freshman, I think that’s when bragging happens, but when you get older, it is just something you do, not something you think you’re cool for doing.

just depends if you can handle your life well.

EB: Each person [doing drugs] starts [using recreationally] and maybe they still see as recreational, but they are [actually] abusing it. I don’t obviously suggest doing it but I think that’s okay for certain people if they can handle life outside of that I still think there’s obviously negatives PS: Yeah, she made a good point. I feel like you can recreationally use it as long as you don’t start to abuse it and you don’t want to take over your life.

Like ‘oh I can’t smoke a blunt today [then] my day is going to be awful. I don’t think that [someone’s day] should depend on [whether they use drugs.]

SS: I think if [marijuana] was to be legal everywhere

Julia Romero, 11: JR Casey Plucinski, 11: CP Brendan Plucinski, 9: BP Ryan Melcher, 11: RM Wyatt Janicik:, 11 WJ Hayden Joy, 10: HJ Jeffrey Higgins, 10: JH Daniel Reinhart, 11: DH Erik Henry, 10: EH Emma Boyd, 12: EB Piff Shepherd, 11: PS Story by Nick Vincentini and Theo Samir Sidiqui, 10: SS Colton Willnerd, 12: CW Jansen [that regulation].

HAYDEN JOY SOPHOMORE

“Every second of every day she had to be high or drunk...it was starting to affect everyone...”

RM- I feel like the culture surround drugs is...I don’t feel like it’s like selected around a specific person because I’ve seen people I’d never expect to do drugs and they would like tell me stories so I feel like it doesn’t matter who you are or what you look like; the culture is just everywhere.

PS: Especially because we are in high school so [drug usage] is something that is very common.

EB- I think when it starts it is just like ‘I’m a kid I can still do this and have fun with it and not worry about the consequences as much,’ [but] when you get older if you are doing them and stuff, sometimes it goes badly,

What are your feelings towards recreational drug use?

CP: I think it depends on the drug. Like marijuana, I think should be legal at this point. I mean, why not?

PS: I think it depends on [the person.] Since you brought up marijuana, I think depending on the person recreational use is definitely acceptable. It

there should be limits on how much you get.

HJ: I think you should be evaluated upon your psychological willpower and what you’re willing to do and what you’re willing to not do on top of regulating how much a person can get at once.

PS: I feel like regulations are good thing, but it’s easy to get [drugs] so we can have [regulations] like that but you can [still] get however much you want whenever you want. I know multiple people who sell whatever [amount].

DR: But even if people are able to get it no matter what it will make it harder for them to get it and therefore less people will be doing it.

RM: I think we should treat marijuana and alcohol the same as how we treat guns we should have a mental screening to see are you mentally sound are you going to be able to hold a job is your life going to collapse as soon as you start using this [drug].

CP: That may be a problem because at this point I’ll call [some drug usage is] really ingrained into American culture,which is kind of unfortunate that you have to be careful some people will be really against

HJ: I feel like if weed is legalized it will take some time for it to become a normal thing in our society because that’s [not] something that’s been okay for so many years, and it will just take some time for people to get used to it and realize that this is part of the culture and this is how it’s going to go.

JH: I feel like we have had a lot of power just by making it illegal because if half drugs were legal we wouldn’t be having these hard discussions about them. We would used to them by now.

EH: I wouldn’t be surprised if certain kids with still go behind their parents backs even if it was legal. They would use their parents money and go behind their backs to do it anyway. They might just want to hide what they’re doing or that their parents personally would punish them even if it is legal.

BP: People do that now with cigarettes even if they’re adults they don’t want their parents to know because that’s frowned upon now because of all the health risks.

PS: You guys said that marijuana wasn’t really the norm, but I feel like in American culture smoking weed kind of is pretty normal even though it’s illegal in most states. I feel like it’s something that a lot of people do like a lot like parents do it. Lots of parents do it and you would never know that.

WJ: And if it is legalized it’s probably going to become the same level [of popularity] as alcohol and tobacco.

How have drugs affected you?

HJ: Well, [a family member of mine] has had a problem with drugs in the past not just exclusive to weed. She had problems with alcohol as well, and it had been a very controlling thing in her life for a while, because every second of every day she has to just be high or drunk, just because she wanted to

IN-DEPTH

9

DRUGS AT

X ANA X feel good and be happy all the time, so that became a really bad thing for her because she could find a job. She would just bum around all day and it was starting to affect everyone... because she would begin stealing and going behind our backs about stuff and then she went to rehab...but I feel like depending on who you are we can’t really solve the problem [of drugs], because it’s... ingrained into your mind.

EB: I think a big part is the culture around drugs and alcohol in school and also how you’re raised. It definitely affects your view on other people using it.

Do you think Westside does a good job handling drug abuse?

BP: I’ve never heard of Westside directly handling a case of drug abuse so either they handle it really well or it never happens.

PS: I feel like its the school’s responsibility to a certain extent, because I feel like it’s a personal issue.

BP: They don’t want to promote that culture so I think that’s the reason they tried to help people.

They don’t want to promote it, so I think that by helping they’re sending the message that we don’t like drugs and we don’t like people using drugs.

WJ: I feel like it’s not much of a problem, but if a kids coming to school high or drunk then yeah they should get involved, but I feel like it hasn’t been much of a problem so the school hasn’t had to react to anything, and so kids are using it more because it hasn’t really become a problem. That hasn’t been brought up seriously with anybody yet.

PS: I feel like they just want to protect Westside’s image, so they shove you over to the alternative, and like you said, you aren’t getting any help. Maybe the school should have a program so they can improve.

WJ: I feel like they use the alternative as a place to send anybody, and nothing will get reported on so Westside won’t be in the news for teen pregnancy or substance abuse. Westside’s problem is solved but the student’s individual problem isn’t.

HJ: I think the message that Westside tried to send, along with what they do about drugs, is pretty counter-intuitive and it makes Westside lose a lot of its validity to people who know that happens, because they don’t directly say ‘don’t do drugs’, but there’s kind of a vibe that they don’t want you to do it.

CP: If they’re the face of Westside then the people who get sent to the alternative school then Westside is going to make more of an act to try and help those people rather than throwing them off to the side.

CW: It reminds me of D.A.R.E. ‘Just don’t do it’.

That’s the solution ‘just don’t do it’. Simple right?

EMMA BOYD SENIOR

WESTSIDE gotten three times in the last few years, and your parents sign you up, and they decide whether or not you have to go.

CW: I’m not totally convinced it’s random because I’ve been here four years and never gotten a letter, and you’ve gotten three in the last two?

WJ: My dad has been signing me and my two sisters up for random drug testing...and I’ve been picked and had to go like three times now and I’ve never done drugs. My dad always questions why I keep getting picked and I don’t know.

Do you think Westside does a good job teaching about drugs?

CW: I think they do what’s required in healthy living.

EB: Healthy living did good enough, like there were definitely some drugs I learned about in that class that scared me out of wanting to try it and it showed the bad side of them. I feel like it’s hard because they don’t really do enough to show weed is the most commonly used drug and the most public one and they don’t do enough to work against that. I think the problem is that people don’t really see the negative side effects of it...They talk about heroin, meth, and stuff which is obviously bad and we need to learn about it, but at the same time most people know that’s really bad and that there are more negative side effects than positive.

“I remember my freshman year I got suspended for drinking in school and the only protocol was that I got suspended...

CW: I think I might be the only person at the table that goes to the CAPS building which is at the alternative.

The people who have a problem, you might not think about it because we don’t talk to them on a daily basis, but they just kind of disappear they just go away and their problems aren’t solved. But you haven’t spoken to them in months and they aren’t doing any better.

EB: I remember my freshman year I got suspended for drinking in school and the only protocol was that I got suspended and I was assigned to work with the substance abuse officer for six weeks. I never went and they never really followed up on it...I guess they do take it seriously, but I know a lot of people who have come to school messed up constantly and they never even get acknowledged, and when they do it’s a slap on the wrist. Which, like I said, I don’t think it’s their job to fully keep us on the right track forever because we do need to take care of ourselves and learn for ourselves, but I think there’s a middle ground we could work towards.

HJ: I feel like any teaching done about drugs here is fear mongering because I remember last year in healthy living every time you’d learn about some kind of drug it would be endless list of awful things that will happen to you if you do them and I feel like they do more of that than teach about how it happens and the signs and risks of it so I think it’s trying to scare us.

SS: I’ve already forgot everything we learned in Healthy Living.

EB: I feel like it would be interesting to take a class SS: I feel like the only thing I’ve heard of Westside, it may not be the greatest thing, but I’m pretty sure to leave school during your open mods as a junior and senior you have to sign up for random drug-testing, but that’s the only thing I can think of when it comes to Westside.

junior or senior year focused on drugs, not to scare us out of it but to talk about all of the real things that happen with drinking and driving and things that people don’t think about when they’re recreationally using drugs, and it’s starting to affect us more when we get older and as freshmen we’re at the place of “oh of course we’re never gonna do this”, so I don’t need to worry about it so I feel like it’s useless at that point.

PS: Yeah, that program is in place but I know it’s super easy to go around. If you just don’t go, like there’s a [few] week time-span of when you’re supposed to go and take it, but if you don’t go it’s not a big deal.

PS: Yeah, I’m kind of shocked they don’t have a class for drugs specifically in high school. I took a class about mindfulness last year and it was fun, but I feel like drugs and alcohol would be a good thing to have a class for.

EB: You get letters in the mail and I think I’ve only

10

IN-DEPTH

the facts about drugs

Blurbs by Alexander Bergin, Cynthia France, Biruk Tewodros and Georgia Wimmer

MAR I JU ANA

IN H A LA NT S

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), marijuana is produced from the Cannabis sativa plant or the Cannabis indica plant and is considered a stimulant, depressant and a hallucinogen. While under its influence, marijuana inhibits motor skills, alters your senses and impairs decision making skills and using marijuana can lead to distortion of one’s perception of time, anxiety, depression and memory loss according to the New Health Advisor. When users are high, they feel different symptoms depending on the strain they use. One strain causes the user to feel euphoric, giggly, relaxed and creative while the other strain causes the user to feel slow, hungry, and likely tired. It can also lead to blood sugar level changes and a lower blood pressure. Smoking marijuana can lead to lung infections and damage, bronchitis, lung irritation and an increased heart rate. However, according to the NIDA, medical marijuana can be used to treat several things in the human mind and body. According to Business Insider, marijuana can be used to treat at least the symptoms of chronic pain, glaucoma, chemotherapy, nausea, headaches, epilepsy, Dravet’s syndrome, Alzheimer’s disease, pain from multiple sclerosis and other types of muscle spasms, etc. It can also help slow down or stop the progression of cancer cells and be used to treat PTSD, anxiety and nightmares.

According to the NIDA for Teens, inhalants are depressants and can be everyday items such as nail polish remover, spray paint and , air dusters. Users experience a feeling of happiness, dizziness and hallucinations. This drugs is dangerous because repeated inhalations can lead to unconsciousness and death, and when used long-term, the many different chemicals found in inhalants are absorbed by the body and break down tissue fibers, which leads to muscle weakness and nerve damage. Additionally, inhalants increase the risk of heart damage and liver failure as well as memory problems.

ALCOHOL According to Teens Health, alcohol is a water soluble depressant made from fermented grains, fruits and vegetables. A depressant slows down the central nervous system, which produces a calming effect. Additionally, , according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), it also causes mood changes and reduces coordination and decision making skills. Binge-drinking can lead to many health concerns such as liver inflammation, high blood pressure and increased risk for a stroke, and consuming alcohol also weakens the immune system, leading to increased risk for illnesses and liver and breast cancer.

Alcohol is highly addictive and can cause severe chemical dependency, but according to Medical Daily, in moderation, alcohol does have health benefits. These include lowering your risk of Cardiovascular Disease, preventing common colds, decrease chances of dementia, diabetes and gallstones.

LSD/ A C ID/ M USH R O O M S Lysergic acid diethylamide, LSD, is a psychedelic drug. During the “trip” or, people’s experience an altered state of being. users experience intense hallucinations. The effects of the drug last about eight to 12 hours, although many users may feel shadows of symptoms for a little while after the effects of the drug wear off. While everyone’s experiences are different, many similar symptoms may occur. According to Foundation for a Drug-Free World, sleeplessness, loss of appetite, high body temperature, dilated pupils and increased heart rate are some of the physical symptoms. Muscles also clench and unclench and all muscle movement will also become intense. Additionally, users are also prone to expressing intense emotions, which are affected by the environment of the user This drives someone to make tragic decisions such as suicide, assault or murder. When things go wrong, it is known as a “bad” trip. “Good” trips are known as when you have feelings of expanding the mind, giggly and happiness, and experience “good vibes”.

Psilocybin mushrooms are also a psychedelic drugs that cause intense feelings and hallucinations. While the high lasts about four to six hours, feelings can be just as intense. According to Partnership for Drug-Free Kids, your mood and state of mind is altered. Your body may become heavy, and your muscles may relax.

Both of these drugs can cause good and bad trips.

The intense effects of these drugs though has opened some conversations in the medical field. Both are being studied for their effects on mental health and its benefits for treating the symptoms of different mental illnesses.

ME T H A MP H E TA MI N E According to NIDA, methamphetamine is a synthetic stimulant drug. It is commonly produced in hidden illegal laboratories by mixing other forms of amphetamines, which is another type of stimulant.

Crystal methamphetamine is a form of the drug that comes in glass like fragments or shiny bluish-white rocks. It is commonly referred to as chalk, crank, crystal, ice, meth or speed. Methamphetamines can be taken by inhaling, smoking, ingesting in pill form, snorting or injecting it into the bloodstream. Users usually take a large amount for several hours over a couple of days, usually sacrificing giving up food and sleep, and the high from the drug comes and goes quickly, so it is common for users to “binge and crash” on the drug. Methamphetamine increases the natural amounts of dopamine found in the brain. The drug’s ability to release high amounts of dopamine results in the rush of euphoria that simulates a high.

Although amphetamines can be used to treat diseases like ADHD and narcolepsy, short term effects of the drug include decreased appetite, rapid heartbeat, irregular breathing and increased blood pressure and body temperature. The effects are even more serious in the long term; they include extreme weight loss, dental problems known as “meth mouth”, paranoia and hallucinations. In addition, continued methamphetamine use affects the brains dopamine sensors and can cause problems with emotions and memory.

T O B A CCO According to the Center for Substance Abuse (CESAR), tobacco is a smoked substance that contains nicotine and is considered both a stimulant and depressant. Smoking can lead to many types of diseases, cancers and other health problems, and it increases the risk of developing tuberculosis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(s), (COPD) Additionally, according to Diabetes New Zealand, smoking increases cholesterol, and blood pressure levels within the body thus increasing the risk for Type 2 Diabetes. It also damages the lungs and reduces the amount of oxygen sent throughout the body, causing breathlessness and wheezing as well as increasing the risk of a heart attack. Smokers are also more prone to develop lung cancer, cardiovascular diseases, respiratory infections and blood vessel diseases.

New drug counselor works at Westside after budget cuts MA RYA M A K RA M OVA someone who we could all go to and talk to and vent to.”

OPINION EDITOR

Last year, the district eliminated the position of Susan Schlegel, a full time drug and alcohol counselor, because of budget cuts. Sarah Fehringer, who is also the social worker for the district, now holds the position of the drug counselor.

The transition between the new counselor and the position going from full-time to part-time has affected students who need a chemical dependency counselor. Proposal 13, or the elimination of a full-time chemical dependency counselor saved the school approximately $58,000, according to information previously published by the Lance. It still left senior Erandi Ortiz feeling discouraged.

“It was very disheartening because [Schlegel] helped me get through a lot during my freshman and sophomore year,” Ortiz said.

Ortiz was affected by the position becoming part-time and losing a trusted adult has had a toll on her and other students, she said.

“It wasn’t just about the drug use,” Ortiz said. “It was

There has also been an underlying fear in students because of Fehringer being a social worker. Ortiz said that having a social worker as the counselor makes her feel unsafe because she feels that the counselor could get parents involved.

“There is always this fear of ‘could they put me away, could I lose my freedom?’” Ortiz said.

Fehringer’s job as social worker entitles her to work with families and students in certain situations. She also works as the school’s chemical dependency counselor, which takes her to both main campus and west campus. She does evaluations of the students and recommends outside resources to help. The problem Fehringer has encountered is being too busy to help the students as much as she has wanted to.

“I think it helped [to have a drug and alcohol counselor],” Fehringer said. “I’ve been a lot busier this year than previous years because of having a dual role. It’s created more work with planning individual work and group work.”

The issue, Fehringer thinks said she, is a deep issue in the Westiside community but she has certain solutions to help.

“I think I do a pretty good job with connecting with students and then connecting them with resources or seeing them on a weekly bases and continued follow up,” Fehringer said. “I think the wrap around services I provide are good.”

Solutions offered by the district consist of linking the students with outside resources to help them after evaluation.

“As I mentioned, Ms. Fehringer has had some outside resources who hook parents and students up with as well,” said Assistant Principal Trudi Nolin. “Some of these resources would be Journeys, Hearland Family Services and a couple of other resources she would be able to refer to them as well.”

Originally, Westside was unique in offering the program, which set it aside from other school districts. This was taken into consideration during budget cuts in eliminating the program.

“I think it was part of the planning of eliminating that position [chemical dependency counselor],” Fehringer said. “In that position is that we are an education facility, not a treatment program.”

IN-DEPTH

11

DRU G C AT E G ORY D E FIN I T I O NS Depressants: slows down brain func- Opiates: painkillers that cause the user tion and makes user feel calmer to experience a feelings of pleasure followed by feelings of relaxation Hallucinogens: cause the user to experience halluncinations, which alters Stimulants: increase the users’ energy their views of their environment and heart rate often causing paranoia Information is courtesy of Villanova University

P RE SCR I PTI ON DR UGS When used for the right purpose, prescription drugs can be extremely helpful for one’s health. Although it can take away pain and treat illnesses, prescription drugs are frequently being taken as a recreational drug. According to the NIDA, opioids, central nervous system depressants and stimulants are the three most commonly abused types of prescription drugs. Opioids, such as Vicodin (Hydro) and OxyContin (Oxy), are painkillers that can cause problems, such as a decrease in a person’s rate of breathing, if taken in large amounts. Central nervous system depressants, such as Xanax, are used to treat anxiety and panic attacks by slowing down brain activity. They are extremely easy to become addicted to and stopping its use can cause seizures. Additionally, stimulants, such as Adderall, are commonly used to treat ADHD. They cause the user to become more alert and energetic. However, they can also cause an increase in heart rate, blood pressure and body temperature. Stimulants can also cause seizures, irregular heartbeats and cardiovascular failure.

E C STA SY / M O LLY According to NIDA, ecstasy/molly is a synthetic drug that’s main function is to alter mood and perception. It is a stimulant and hallucinogen that creates feelings of increased energy, pleasure, emotional warmth, and distorted perception. Ecstasy/molly can be taken as a capsule or tablet, or in a liquid or powder form and is usually taken with other drugs such as alcohol or marijuana. Ecstasy/molly increases dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin in the brain, which ultimately increases energy, heart rate and blood pressure and triggers hormones that affect sexual arousal and trust. Health effects of this drug include nausea, muscle cramping, involuntary teeth clenching, chills, blurred vision and sweating. Its effects usually last from three to six hours, but if taken continuously for over a week one may experience irritability, impulsiveness, depression, anxiety, decreased appetite, and memory and attention problems. Long term effects of ecstasy/molly include the body’s inability to regulate its temperature which can lead lead to liver, kidney, or heart failure and ultimately death.

COCAI NE According to the NIDA, cocaine is made from the coca plant and is a stimulant drug used to “feel good.”

The drug increases dopamine levels, which makes users feel energetic and alert. However, cocaine also causes paranoia and a constant feeling of restlessness. In the body, use of cocaine leads to an increase in heart rate, blood pressure and body temperature and can also cause Parkinson’s disease and hallucinations. Additionally, cocaine that is snorted can lead to a loss of smell, problems swallowing and nose infections. Cocaine injections can lead to a higher risk for HIV.

H E RO I N According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA), heroin is an addictive opioid drug made from morphine, a substance taken from the seeds of the Asian poppy plant. Heroin can take the form of white or brown powder or a black sticky liquid. Heroin is used by being injected, snorted or smoked and can be mixed with other drugs such as cocaine, and it binds to opioid receptors in brain cells and alters important functions like blood pressure, breathing, and arousal. Some short term effects of heroin use are dry mouth, flushing of the skin, clouded mental function and “heavy” feelings in hands and feet.

Additionally, long term effects of heroin are more severe.

These include collapsed veins, heart infection, constipation and stomach cramping, liver or kidney disease and various lung complications. In addition to long term effects, heroin can be fatal if overdosed.

DRU G H O T L I N E S Al-Anon/Alateen: 888-425-2666 Crisis Call Center:

800-273-8255

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism:

The National Alcohol and Substance Abuse Information Center:-

800-662-4357

800-784-6776

Celebrities and musicians influence teen drug culture A LE X G O L D S T E I N those who are famous as invincible and not ‘human’ be- music has many lyrics that promote the abuse of drugs STAFF WRITER cause of their status in society.”

In music and movies, adolescents can get the idea that In today’s society, drugs drugs are easily accessible and very a r e prominent in many communiokay ties, especially among young b e people. High school kids get cause caught up in drugs from peer t h e y pressure and issues in their own h e a r life, but what else? According their to Westside social worker and idols certified drug counselor Sardoing ah Fehringer, pop culture has it and a huge impact on drug abuse believe among young people. t h e y “I think it influences kids, should as kids look up to famous peobe dople and often copy their style, i n g language, habits,” Fehringer said. “Often people see drugs along with the people they look up to. Today’s rap

SARAH FEHRINGER

DRUG COUNSELOR

“I think [music] influences kids, as kids look up to famous people and often copy their style...”

and alcohol. For example, “Collard Greens” by Schoolboy Q, a grammy nominated artist, is about distributing and purchasing drugs with quotes like “Drink this, smoke this, get down with the ****.” Lyrics like this from artists that adolescents admire make them want to do the same things as their idols.

According to a 2015 study by Edison Research, a well respected company that conducts lots of polls and surveys, “the average teen listens to four hours of music a day.” When that music is promoting drug abuse the listeners are influenced to do or sell drugs.

Not only are these suggestive lyrics in rap music, they also show up across all genres. Legends like The Beatles have mentioned the use of recreational drugs in their music. Also, in TV shows like “Breaking Bad”, the main character prospers because of selling drugs.

Influences like these could possibly introduce young people to thinking drugs are okay and perhaps leading them to a life of addiction.

12

IN-DEPTH

DRUGS

Statistics from an anonymous survey of 290 Westside High School students.

(Sample size may not be representative of full population.)

AT WESTSIDE

48%

34%

of Westside

of Westside

students have

used

students have

X A X ANA X NA X

illicit

drugs

drugs

prescribed

Marijuana

42.8%

Alcohol

40.7% Inhalants

5.9%

Adderall

17.6% 15.2%

X ANA X

Xanax

Hydrocodone

13.4%

Has a student at Westside ever sold you drugs?

OxyContin

7.2% 8.3%

LSD

6.9%

Cocaine

6.6%

Ecstasy

4.8%

Mushrooms

I don’t use drugs 39.3%

No 24.8%

Yes 35.9%

Nicotine

13.4% 1.7%

Meth

1.7%

Heroin

Graphics by Jim Schueneman

IN-DEPTH

13

of the 48% who have used illicit drugs...

9%

tried once

monthly

17%

11% weekly

85% seek help for 10%their drug use of Westside

students know someone who uses drugs

Daily

6%

5% quit

How do drugs influence your life?

NEGATIVE 14%

POSITIVE 40%

NEUTRAL 46%

“I am in the top 10% of the class, and most of my friends are in the top 10%.

Most of my friends use drugs often. I believe there is some correlation between drug use and success.”

“Members of my family have become addicted. This addiction had begun to control every aspect of their life and as a result, the rest of my family's lives have been negatively impacted.”

“I stopped doing drugs because it gives you a bad reputation. I think it's more of a hobby for boys, not girls.”

14

IN-DEPTH

DRUG CULTURE

AT WESTSIDE MIDDLE SCHOOL Eighth grader shares personal insights about drug culture at the middle school One of the most shocking things that happened when I entered Westside Middle School was the shift in culture.

Suddenly, people were bragging about having sex and stealing their parents’ alcohol. Sure, I quickly adjusted, but I still walk around school listening to this and feeling very confused.

There are just so many immature kids who seem to be very glad to engage in things far beyond them. Do they do it because they have something to prove? Or is it the feeling of camaraderie that comes with joking about smoking weed? Whatever RAMYA IYER motive, seeing bareGUEST WRITER the ly-even teens start being so vulgar, both in their words and actions, is kind of ridiculous to me.

The middle school’s “drug culture” consists of a small, concentrated group of kids who enjoy gossiping about getting high. In fact, the most surprising part about middle school students who do drugs is how much they

like talking about it. It seems like everyone has heard them, the kids who drone on about how they “got so stoned last night” (marijuana seems to be the drug of choice). Even our teachers have openly admitted to hearing some pretty off-putting things. Many people may very well be lying about their drug use, but that doesn’t matter much because they apparently care enough to brag about it, ultimately adding on to the drug culture.

Drugs seem to have become more poignant to middle school students. Even kids like me, who spend their evenings doing homework and occasionally snap-chatting a friend, can’t help but eavesdrop on the latest drug incident.

At the end of the day though, I really don’t care about how my peers use their free time. As terrible as it sounds, I, and many others included, are just temporarily invested in our classmate’s drug habits before it suddenly gets obnoxious and fades away. But unfortunately, even though there’s really such a small percentage of drug-users at Westside Middle School, someone always seems to give it the attention it craves.

“There are just so many immature kids who seem to engage in things far beyond them...”

THE F A C T S

28

11.7

2.7

Percentage of eighth grade students who said that they had drank alcohol some point in their life

Percentage of eighth grade students who claimed they smoked pot at least once in the past year

Percentage of middle school students who reported using steroids

Data courtesy of research done in 2015 by Teen Rehab Center

Freshman compares and contrasts drug culture at the middle school and high school I was in seventh grade. My eyes were just being opened to the world of hanging out with friends without supervision, sneaking into PG-13 movies, and the grading scale of A’s and B’s instead of 1, 2, 3. One day, after shopping around with a family member, she asked me to wait in the backseat while she went to go talk to someone in the parking lot. She came back to the car holding something I didn’t recognize. As we drove off I MEREDITH MATZ noticed something green and leafy in the bag. I later realized it was GUEST WRITER marijuana.

I’m not the only person who was first exposed to drugs in middle school. Other high school kids have said that they were exposed to drug use by their peers in middle school. Thankfully, many of these high school kids knew that saying no in middle school was the better and smarter answer, but there is still a significant fraction of students that don’t understand that saying no is an option. Feeling like an older kid and having the so-called bragging rights to tell all of their friends that they tried something new is sometimes enough for these kids to feel the need to say yes.

Contrary to middle school, high schoolers know better than to use drugs but still use them. Popularity, fitting in, trying new things and needing some way to feel relieved of stress are all reasons why teens use drugs, as well as many more. Although there is a fraction of kids who use drugs in middle school, the culture of drug use in high school trumps the culture in middle school, but for different reasons. Unfortunately, some use them for the wrong reasons. Abusing drugs in high school is an everyday thing for some people. Being involved in school and having friends who influence you to make good decisions is a way to steer clear of drugs.

Drugs can cause mental health problems, family problems and depression, which just begins to describe the negative side of drugs.

I believe that kids should always say no to drugs, no matter what age they are or grade they are in. From what I’ve seen in my years as a student at Westside, many people can throw all of their worth and talent away because of abusing drugs. No is always an answer — don’t hesitate to say it.

“I believe that kids should always say no to drugs, no matter what age they are or grade they are in.”

IN-DEPTH

15

Marijuana Legalization PRo: Government should repeal racist drug laws LILLI M A RV I N government needed an excuse to criminalize and SHIELD DESIGN EDITOR

Life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness and racial inequality. Our country, founded upon values, both discriminatory and unifying alike, has a race issue.

As per the Drug Policy Alliance, the war on drugs “produced profoundly unequal outcomes across racial groups, manifested through racial discrimination by law enforcement and disproportionate drug war misery suffered by communities of color.”

While some Americans may argue that the prohibition stems not from racism but rather serious threat to the public, it is critical to see that there is truly no danger. Often, marijuana naysayers claim that the drug can harm the lungs, or other respiratory functions. However, according to a recent study by Emory University, the danger isn’t from cannabis itself but rather “the papers the participants used to roll their joints.”

Furthermore, arguments have been made concerning pot lowering IQ levels. This argument has been proven false, as per the University College of London, there is “clear indication that cannabis is unlikely to be the cause of any IQ decline.” In prohibiting this drug in the name of imaginary symptoms, we are not only denying medical patients the sometimes life-saving care they need, but also perpetuating the race issue in our country.

The prohibition of marijuana stems from a racist and ludicrous government agenda. According to NPR, following the Mexican Revolution, an inundation of immigrants flooded into the United States, and the

deport the individuals. Their resulting answer?

The villainization of cannabis. Harry Anslinger, adamant racist and first commissioner of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics, used oppressive and heinous scare-tactics to gather public support of the prohibition. Anslinger was once quoted, per the Huffington Post, by saying “Reefer makes darkies think they’re as good as white men.” Other juvenile scare-tactics employed by Anslinger included stating that marijuana would make frankenstein drop dead. In linking minority’s crime and behavior to the drug, the general public soon began to fear the harmless plant and pushed for the ban.

Stemming only from racist and childish logic, our country soon began to adopt gradual restrictions concerning marijuana laws which led to the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, effective-

“...the war on marijuana has drastically ruined the lives of countless individuals, and further enforced the barriers keeping people of color from reaching social equality”

ly criminalizing the use of the drug. Despite little medical or scientific evidence, our country acted out of racist fear of minorities to prohibit cannabis. This unjust social sentencing to individuals of color only further perpetuates the race issue at the heart of our American identity. In the historic American fashion, white people have consistently received special treatment concerning the sentencing of marijuana-related crimes.

According to the ACLU’s 2013 report “The War on Marijuana in Black and White” a black person was “ 3.73 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than a white person—a disparity that increased 32.7 percent between 2001 and 2010.” Delving further into the oppressive nature of the prohibition, to continue from the ACLU report, “In the worst offending counties across the country, Blacks were over 10, 15, even 30 times” more likely to be arrested.

Less of a debarment in the name of public safety but rather another tool in the United State’s repertoire of racial bigotry, the war on marijuana has drastically ruined the lives of countless individuals, and further enforced the barriers keeping people of color from reaching social equality. Any individuals supporting the prohibition are thus supporting the discrimination of minorities and enabling the United States’ bullying behavior. In calling for a repeal, we begin to progress towards correcting the government’s despicable attitude towards anyone who isn’t white.

CON: LEGALIZATION EFFECTS, harms NON USERS S OPH IE K N I G H T done in Colorado that found 74 percent of adolesA&E EDITOR

Drugs are becoming more available to the anyone on American soil, especially with the legalization of marijuana in seven states and Washington D.C., for recreational use.

Legalizing drugs in all 50 states could be detrimental to the financial stability and the mental and physical health of millions of Americans. This will simply hurt Americans from the increased short term and long term risks of marijuana.

It’s simple: the legalization of drugs can and will only create more problems in our society.

In an article published by the American College of Pediatricians, it is proven that the use of marijuana is harmful to youth. The article also proves that legalization of marijuana for medical and recreational use has caused more exposure of the drug to teenagers.

America’s teenagers should not be exposed to marijuana.

Exposing marijuana to teenagers is setting their lives up to possibly become unfulfilling. By legalizing the drug, this will allow easier access to youth. The article uses a study

cents being treated for the abuse of marijuana had, in fact, acquired the drug from someone who was being treated by the use of medical marijuana.

The use of marijuana can lead to addiction according to the National Institute of Drug Abuse

chance of contracting a sexually transmitted disease, also problems with coordination and low reaction time.

If drugs are legalized, there will be more heart attacks, more strokes, more STD’s, and more injured people from car accidents. Let’s not forget about the drug-free citizens whose lives could be put at risk by someone who tests positive for marijuana and decides to go on drive one night.

The Foundation for a Drug Free World also provides long-term effects, which include the loss of brain cells, poor academic performance, an increased chance of dropping out of school, lower life satisfaction, addiction, financial difficulties and physical abuse.

If drugs are legalized there will be a higher dropout rate, more depression, more people depending on the government financially and more people facing physical abuse. Again, think about the many ways this could affect the the drug-free population of America.

People of all ages deserve the right to a drug free world. They should not be taken down by addiction or by any effect of marijuana.

“People of all ages deserve the right to a drug free world. They should not be taken down by addiction or by any effect of marijuana.”

(NIDA). Kids who use marijuana before the age of 18 are more likely to develop marijuana use disorder, the continued use of cannabis. Seventeen percent of teens will become dependent on marijuana.

The Foundation for a Drug Free World provides many short-term effects of marijuana. The shortterm risks are heart attack, stroke and a higher

16

IN-DEPTH

UNDEFINED

Student reflects on past experiences involving drug usage

LIBBY S E L I N E him. He asked if he could have something to do, he lost all self-control, but that’s why he loved the Graphic by Bella and she coldy replied no. drugs: it was fun.

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

In the summer of 2016, Drake* went to work promptly at 5:00 p.m. as he would any other day of the week. To a stranger, he looked like a typical lifeguard. The red shorts and bright orange whistle around his neck made sure of that, and his sunglasses hid his bright blue eyes, which were dilated.

He climbed into the lifeguard’s chair feeling relaxed and eventually fell asleep.

Boom.

His body hit the concrete and completely missed the pool of water in front of him. His knees and elbows were scratched, but he didn’t feel anything. Actually, Drake doesn’t even remember any of this.

What he does remember is sitting in the lifeguards’ office and being fired for coming to work high on Xanax. He also remembers walking home and feeling extremely upset.

When he arrived home, he fell asleep on the futon in his basement and took more Xanax.

Then he remembers the sirens as the ambulance approached his home. His dogs were barking and cops rushed in as he lied unconscious on the kitchen floor. *** Drake’s drug usage began in middle school with marijuana.

He and his friends smoked maybe once or twice a month. Doing drugs became something to do while they were together and they thought they were cool.

They smoked in his friend’s backyard, which was nothing extraordinary. No trees. Just dirt on the ground which reminded him of the times he played baseball and hung out with his friend. It was secluded, though, and nobody ever caught them doing drugs.

Drake liked the buzz he felt when he was high.

He didn’t have a ton of money to buy more drugs, but getting high was relaxing and nothing bad ever happened. *** Drake was at the hospital after he overdosed on drugs and was fired from his job, and for three days, he just had to sit there.

No books.

No TV. No anything.

He could talk to a nurse, but she did not like

Sometimes he wore restraints, even though he wasn’t violent. In fact, most of the time he was “out of it” and drifted in and out of consciousness because his blood pressure was so low. At the end of the three days, a doctor cleared him to go home and face his parents’ punishment.

He could not leave the house or use his phone.

His parents did not know he still had access to drugs.

Drake found his secret stash of drugs inside pillow case and popped more Xanax into his mouth. He wanted to feel the high again and didn’t keep track of the amount of bars he was taking. He walked into his kitchen to get something to drink.

Suddenly, he’s on the floor. The sirens are growing louder. He overdosed again. *** The part about drugs that intrigued Drake was the rush of adrenaline he felt.

In 2014 through 2016, he became more involved in “the game” of drugs and drug dealing.

He took the essential risks needed to stay in the game.

He had to think about transporting drugs without being caught and fought with people about certain deals being made. He blacked out at parties and heard about all of the “crazy stuff” he did the next morning.

It didn’t start out that way.

He smoked marijuana at a park after school some days throughout 2014 and 2015. Additionally, he and a friend started selling their leftover drugs at school. Selling drugs made him feel anxious, but he was careful about it. Plus, he liked the rush of the moment. He did not make a lot of money selling drugs, but most of his money went back to buying more marijuana.

In September of 2015, he was introduced to Xanax. His dealer offered to throw it in with a sack of marijuana.

In the first months of 2016, he came to school high on Xanax everyday. He’d put even more bars in a mint container and take more during class. By June, he was taking eight bars each day.

Once he took a bar, he would not remember the rest of the day — that’s another reason why he liked using. And most people did not even know he was high unless they looked into his eyes During this time, his drug dealing business began to grow. He sold different kinds of drugs — the more “hardcore” ones like molly, cocaine and heroin. He also took these drugs, and when he did

The morning after a party he’d wake up feeling groggy. He rubbed his eyes and looked at his phone.

People texted him asking if he was okay and looked at the pictures of him.

He thought it was fun. After all, he was just living the what he called the party life. ***

After Drake overdosed for the second time, he was sent to rehab — also known as the worst three weeks of his life.

For approximately 20 hours each day, he stayed in his room. It was small, but there was just enough space for two beds and a shelf to put clothes on.

Among the other teenagers, Drake was known as the “new guy.” They picked on him and attempted to get Drake in trouble.

One time some kid threw a billiard ball at the back of another kid’s head. He was blamed for it.

In these moments, Drake explained his side of the story. The counselors had to accept both sides even if one person was lying so both parties were usually punished. Drake felt frustrated. He believed the situation was unfair to him. Plus, the kids he was surrounded by were different than him — they did hard drugs everyday, while he had only done them for a couple of weeks. He felt like he didn’t belong.

The worst part was group therapy; Drake loathed group therapy. The room was filled with much older adults sitting among teenagers as they all participated in Narcotics Anonymous. The adults were drinking black coffee and eating “weird’ doughnuts and conversed about how to continue improving.

The conversations that filled the room did not help Drake, and most of the time he kept quiet.

After the three weeks were over, Drake knew he never wanted to go back to a place where he felt like he couldn’t express his opinons. *** When Drake looks back on his high school career in twenty years, he won’t remember the drugs.

He will remember bowling nights with his friends and the nights of “urban exploration.” He will remember the activities and how his grades have improved. He will remember riding his bikes around his neighborhood on sunny days as the wind gently blows in his face.

Drugs are in the past — something that he did.

They don’t define him.

Radler

*Drake is a name given to protect the identity of the student

IN-DEPTH

17

STUDENTS AND X ANA X

DRUGS

Student reflects on past drug addiction MAL IA BAT TA FA RA N O FEATURE EDITOR

It’s morning. *Sarah sits in her eighth grade Family Consumer Science class. She is supposed to be taking notes, but she can’t focus. The world around her seems distorted.

She gets to the point where she can’t keep her head up anymore. As she lays it down on the table, the boy next to her, who knows what’s going on, grabs her notes and begins to fill them out for her. It’s the last thing Sarah remembers from that day before coming home from school, her head aching and her irritability returning.

“That [incident in Family Consumer Science] was like the one time where it kind of hit me, like ‘yo, this is bad. I really cannot pay attention anymore,’” Sarah said.

During this time, Sarah was taking opioids, which she’d been prescribed initially after her back surgery, but continued to take after she no longer medically needed them. She said that, contrary to common belief, the drugs didn’t make her numb, but rather worry-free. At the time, Sarah had a lot to be worried about.

“When I first started opioids, my brother had passed away a year beforehand in a motorcycle accident,” Sarah said. “I was just really down and I was really sad and I just didn’t really know what to do… I see [drugs] as a coping method.”

Eventually, another student found out what Sarah was doing and told the middle school deans, who brought her in. Hearing the story, one dean, who has a history with Sarah’s family, began to cry. She took personally the weight of what had occurred. Despite their sadness, however, the deans were not angry with Sarah. They offered her school counseling to help her get through the tough time, making a genuine effort, Sarah believes, to help her. She said she’s grateful for that, and advises other administrators to do the same.

“Focus on what [the drug users] feel, because they’re clearly the ones hurting,” Sarah said.

Sarah’s mom did not display the same sympathy of the deans, and wanted to punish Sarah for what she had done, according to Sarah. “[My mom] was just livid more than anything,” Sarah said. “She didn’t understand [my drug use] at all.”

Sarah herself did not go through counseling at school. She said, however, that the effort the deans made to help her showed that they at least had some resources to aid those who have drug addictions, as she can now recognize that she did.

“Looking back at it, if you had asked me [in eighth grade] when I was doing them I would never admit to [being addicted] whatsoever,” Sarah said. “But now, after I’ve been through everything and after I’ve gone over it, I would say that I was, and that I did have a problem.”

Sarah went through therapy outside of school and eventually recovered. She attributes her successful recovery largely to the support of her friends.

“A lot of my close friends just kind of stuck with it and were like, ‘you went through this and I saw that you went through this and I’m gonna be here for you even after this,’”

Sarah said.

Jane* is one such friend. She and Sarah have known each other since elementary school, becoming friends in a chance meeting walking out of school when Sarah was in second grade. By the time Sarah was in eighth grade, the two were best friends. Yet Sarah’s addiction drew the two apart.

Initially, Jane, who has done other drugs before, tried Sarah’s pills, but she didn’t like them. After that, she pushed Sarah to stop taking them. Sarah was stubborn, and no matter how many times Jane tried to get her to stop, she wouldn’t listen.

“It kind of annoyed me that [Sarah] kept taking them but I got over it because [she was] my best friend,” Jane said.

The two began fighting more, however, although not always about Sarah’s drug use.

Several times, Jane said she considered telling Sarah’s parents what was going on, but never did. When they finally found out, Jane said she was relieved. She wanted Sarah off the pills. Their disagreement about Sarah’s drug use had taken a toll on their relationship.

“We just weren’t as close,” Sarah said.

Since Sarah got clean, however, the girls’ friendship has been becoming stronger again. “[Sarah was] my best friend,” Jane said.

“We’re getting back there.”

Recovery, Sarah said, forced her to create a whole new attitude for herself. In middle school, she was very depressed. Now, she is different.

“This year I kind of re-innovated myself to the point where I’m just a lot more peaceful,” Sarah said. “I’m a lot more mellow. I just take things as they come.”

Sarah has tried a few other drugs besides opioids, including marijuana and alcohol. Since her recovery from her addiction, however, she said she has “pretty much stopped.” She still hangs out with a crowd where many people do drugs, though, and she’s well aware of the large, underlying drug culture here.

“I actually kind of think it’s hilarious because Westside has such a zero tolerance policy for drugs, yet I bet you, you can walk out into the hallway and pinpoint five different people that have stuff in their backpack right now,” Sarah said. “You don’t see it, teachers don’t see it, but you hear about it all the time.”

Sarah acknowledges that it can be tough to identify drug users, as many don’t display any signs of use. For those who do start to show signs, however, she says she thinks administration should act.

“Just focus on the people whose grades are dropping at a rapid pace, they do have stuff like that or they’re misbehaving a lot in class,” Sarah said.

As for the drug users themselves, Sarah suggests they try to find the underlying reason that caused them to get into drugs and focus on fixing that.

“Address what you think first caused it,” Sarah said. “No one’s going to be there for yourself more than you. You’ve got to learn to have confidence in yourself and appreciate yourself as a person, because you are a person. You are a human being and you are an individual and you have more worth than whatever it is that you have in your hand.” *Names have been changed

“You have more worth than whatever it is that you have in your hand.”

Student speaks from experience, gives advice about drugs Drug use is complicated, and it’s different for everyone. This is my story. It all starts out smoking marijuana and having no troubles in the world. The high is relaxing and feels amazing, but the next thing you know you’re smoking everyday and your bank account is running out of money. You put getting high before everything else in the world, and do not want to do anything without having marijuana in your system. Often times, nobody sees a problem with their smoking because it’s so common, and before they know it marijuana turns into other types of drugs.

For me it started off slow, but the pace picked up real quick. I smoked and did prescription drugs occasionally. Then it progressed to experimenting with MDMA. A couple of months later I added cocaine to that list. It is all fun and games until you get in too deep. At that point, I could not imagine going to any event sober. I had to be intoxicated off of something to be having fun.

I do not remember anything from second semester last year. Everyday I came to school intoxicated and left every mod possible to get more intoxicated. It was a progressive issue, but I didn’t find any problem with it since tons of other people did it too.

Everyday you can guarantee that I was trashed, stoned, or messed up off cocaine. It was fun for me for a while, but you can only mess around like that for so long before conse-

quences set in.

Next thing I know I had gotten possession charges and was sent away. Drugs can be “a fun time”, but when you can’t remember the last day, weeks, or even months of your life, it’s gone too far. Many people do not want to admit that they may have a problem with drugs. I lost all relationships with my family and did not even know who I was anymore.I got to a point where I realized I wasn’t going to make any real life moves doing this kind of stuff.

I’m not saying that all drugs will ruin your life, or if you experiment you’re an awful person, but they are capable of crumbling the relationships you’ve built, and damaging your future. Sometimes the people who don’t think they have a problem are the ones who end up seeing their lives slip away right in front of them. It’s not about what your past looks like. If you have gotten involved with drugs, that doesn’t define you.

But it’s time to take a sober step back and think about how drugs have affected your life.

Story written by an anonymous student

18

IN-DEPTH

STUDENTS SPEAK OUT

Student challenges society to change views on marijuana I grew up in a very religious household. I was taught from the beginning that any sort of drug was harmful and dangerous not only to my health , but to my dreams and goals. For the most part, my parents and teachers were right.

Hard drugs like heroin or cocaine would have a detrimental impact on my well being, but marijuana does not — it should not even be grouped in the same category.

According to Live Science marijuana extract started out as a medical drug, but by the 1930’s it was banned in 24 states because it quickly became associated with Mexican immigrants. This is where the vision of marijuana began to shift, because of propaganda aggressively targeting minority populations.

The fact is, marijuana didn’t kill anybody last year. Yes, zero individuals. There is no scientific evidence that proves an excessive amount of marijuana causes death. Meanwhile alcohol, a legal drug in all 50 states and most countries worldwide, killed an estimated 88,000 people according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Even with this fact in mind, marijuana is deemed a gateway drug and a harmful drug. Now that’s not to say that there are no negatives to the drug. According to an article published in a Seattle Newspa-

per called The Stranger in 2014, excessive use of the drug can lead to memory problems and decreased cognitive functioning for individuals who are roughly under the age of 25 and whose brains have not fully developed. For adults, there are no scientific downfalls. So, if you are smart about how much is consumed, and if you are doing it legally, smoking pot is essentially harmless.

But what about the lifestyle aspect? How does using it impact your future? Again, for most people it doesn’t. I’ve tried marijuana — I will be up front about that. Smoking a joint didn’t change my goals or my drive. It didn’t stop me from achieving success, nor did it inhibit my growth as a person. I’m still going to college and still going to be successful. In fact, I don’t even smoke it on a consistent basis.

My message isn’t coming from some pot head who screams “420 is life” at the top of their lungs. My message is coming from a smart kid who is gonna graduate in the top 20 percent of his class. A kid who has a direction in life. A person who realized that it’s okay to form your own opinion. A person who is trying to open some eyes. Because contrary to popular belief, marijuana does not ruin lives.

The generation above ours needs to quit with

this negative connotation about the drug because all of their so called “reasons” have been debunked. I’m that goody-two-shoes kid who grew up thinking marijuana was a bad thing, but once I was old enough to form my own opinion, I realized that it was unjustly being crucified because of negative propaganda campaigns and the overall media presence skewing our vision.

The uptight generation that precedes us refuses to acknowledge science and overall social construct to push their agenda. They refuse to accept that society is changing. In my opinion they need to relax, heck maybe they even need to smoke a joint of their own.

Story by an anonymous contributor

Graphic by Bella Radler

Students should not be judged for illicit drug usage I don’t do drugs. I’ve never been high, tripped on LSD, or even smoked a cigarette.

I therefore have zero knowledge or experience of how drugs can enhance someone’s day to day life, and honestly I don’t have any interest to find out. The main knowledge I know about drugs comes from what I have been taught in school; drugs are always bad, and to never use them. However, several of my peers, and other fully functioning people in society, are drug users of some sort.

Unlike my teachers constantly encouraging me not to drugs my drug using associates do not go around encouraging me to do drugs. They participate in drug usage for themselves, without judging me for not using.

It is for this reason that I feel I have no

place to judge or have an opinion on people who do happen to participate in drug usage.

I don’t think it is right for people to limit

enjoy using drugs for recreation do not automatically have lesser value as a person than those who do not. In circumstances where drug usage doesn’t result in a harmful action to society, I don’t see why I or anyone should have an issue with those using drugs. It is just like how it is not my problem if people want to eat junk food or not exercise.

Teenagers are old enough to make decisions for themselves.

It is not anyone’s place to get involved with the decisions they make. If users aren’t using to the point where the drug has harmful consequences happening to others, then, in my opinion, it should be up to the user whether or not they want to use the drug— not myself, not teachers, not parents, and not the law.

Story by an anonymous contributor

“Teenagers are old enough to make decisions for themselves. It is not anyone’s place to get involved with the decisions they make.” who they associate themselves with based on weather or not they participate in drugs.

People who may have a drug addiction, or just

Sophomore warns of the dangers of prescription drugs

Graphics by Sam Cohen and Julia Steiner

Within the walls of classrooms, teachers inform students the effects of doing drugs.

Their words have two effects: some students heed their message and avoid doing drugs while other students ignore their warnings and do drugs. I haven’t been impacted CHLOE FOWLER either way my entire SHIELD COPY EDITOR life.

Throughout my entire life and entire school career, I never paid attention in health classes. Everything seemed obvious: use protection when having sex, these are common side effects to depression, this is

what happens during puberty and don’t do drugs.

There wasn’t a definitive reason for me to pay any attention at all, and the lessons filled neutral space in my brain allowing me to not form an opinion about any of it.

However, after one of my family’s closest friends’ son committed suicide by overdosing on a different prescription drugs, my opinion changed.

At the time of his death, I didn’t know much about him at all besides the few obvious points.

The only funeral I’ve ever attended was his, and seeing a deceased teenager in a casket is something that will change you. Since the day of his death, I’ve paid attention in health classes.

Without a life changing event, I don’t know where I would be, how my opinions would change and who I’d be friends with. The orange bottles doctors give you, are one of the scariest items I’ve ever laid eyes on.

IN-DEPTH

19

Prescription Drugs

“I feel like prescribed drugs help people focus more and not be miserable whereas drugs like marijuana just help them be happy for little bits of time.”

Quote collected in school-wide survey

More teens die from prescription drugs than heroin and cocaine combined.

Source: Dosomething.org

Prescription drugs help student with mental illness Mental disorders are typically pushed to the side and seen as lower than a physical disability. People don’t understand the psychological toll they can take on someone. One of my main issues will always be misophonia, which is being sensitive to the noises people make with their mouths, such as smacking their lips, eating loudly or whistling. It gets to the point where sometimes in class I have to leave the room because someone is chewing gum. Misophonia distracts me from school work and life in general, I can’t tell you the last time I ate dinner with my family.

Another one of my mental disorders is Borderline Personality Disorder, which entails having an extremely inflated ego. I have a bad habit of shooting others down and hurting their feelings but denying it ever happened. On top of it all the worst thing I have to deal with everyday is my depression. My depression can cause me to feel happy one second and then manically depressed the next. Depression is best explained by the constant feeling of guilt, self-pity and sadness without any cause.

With the help of therapy, medicine, and my friends, I realize my problems and can control them in better ways. Although one

may say that being on drugs turns you into a zombie, and that you can manage yourself on your own with time, I disagree. I have one form of medication that I take two pills of every morning. Instead of making me happy, it takes away the sadness, so it’s almost like a crutch without me having to depend on it.

People have a preconceived idea of someone with a mental disability, that they are a skinny person in big clothes with dark circles and are unable to get out of bed without dropping into a pile of tissues and sadness, but I don’t think anyone except for my closest friends have any idea at all that I have one disorder, let alone three.

Another argument someone may have is that you’re are able to rid the feeling with surrounding yourself with things that you enjoy, but I don’t think that’s valid unless you take a walk in the other person’s shoes. These things affect me no matter the time, place, or people I’m around. Typically, the times I should be the happiest are the ones when I feel the worst. I deal with three mental disorders every single day, but still manage to get things done all with the help of prescription drugs. As expressed, prescription drugs help me out a lot and without them I’d probably be a huge emotional trainwreck, my medications help me handle my emotions in ways others can’t.

“With the help of therapy, medicine, and my friends, I realize my problems and can control them in better ways.”

*Written by an anonymous contributor

20

IN-DEPTH

Alcohol

Information courtesy of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Students Against Destructive Decisions and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention

“It has no affect on my education. If it did I would stop. Occasional alcohol use isn’t problematic because I only drink in social situations. ” — Anonymous Student Quote collected in a school-wide survey

33

8

37

60

Percentage of students who said in a 2015 survey that in the past month, they drove after drinking alcohol.

Percentage of teenagers who have reported having at least one drink by the time they were 15 years old.

Percentage of people who have consumed alcohol by the end of eighth grade.

Percentage of students who have had at least one drink by the time they were 18 years old.

29.6

189,000 Amount of drinking-related emergency room visits for people under the age of 21 in 2010.

Percentage of students who said in a survey that the last time they drank was in their own home.

Student reflects on how alcohol has influenced social life For a long time, I didn’t drink. I was the friend at the party who always politely declined the offer. I didn’t really have a problem with it, I just kind of saw it as something they did that was fun and something I didn’t want to try. I had a good time being sober at these parties and I got to meet a bunch of people, dance, and just have a good time without alcohol.

I eventually started to drink when I got the chance. There never was a specific point when I started, it just became something I did. Once I started, I realized why everyone else had. It’s an easy way to get out of your head and have a good time, and it can really help you get out of your comfort zone, which I loved.

After it became a regular thing, I never gave it much thought. If I were out, not driving and it was offered to me, I’d happily accept. Most of the time I sobered up before coming home

that night, but there were times where I came home and had to talk to my parents while still a little drunk. Other than those few stressful moments, I found very few faults in drinking.

Then came a party where I wanted to go hard. I drank way too much that night.

That night is a little hazy still, but I do know I made some not-awesome decisions. I didn’t get caught and figured it was just a one night drank-too-much thing and didn’t change my habits. A few months later, I once again decide that I want to drink a little more than I normally did. I blacked out for the first time ever, which led to me getting caught that night and explaining to my parents what had happened. I didn’t do much socially for the next two months and I haven’t drank since then. I stopped because I was reminded how I didn’t need alcohol to have a good time and the consequences I faced were awful. I still go to parties and have fun, without drinking. Overall what drinking did for me is help me to get out of my own skin a little bit. I drank at small and big parties with people that I knew and didn’t knew. It just helped me be more outgoing and talk to new people.

“...It’s an easy way to get out of your head and have a good time, and it can really help you get out of your comfort zone...”

Story by an anonymous contributor

FEATURE

21

WII BAND TOGETHER Game console brings friends closer together MAL IA BAT TA FA RA N O, J U LI A S T E I N E R

FEATURE EDITORS

Senior Soren Johnson’s band locker is home to a variety of items in addition to his trumpet, including Christmas lights, a Battle of the Bands poster and an alarm clock. The decorations give the locker a festive atmosphere and a personal touch. But among the small treasures lies the prized possessions: a Nintendo Wii and the TV they need to use it.

Johnson and his friends can be found gaming nearly every morning before school and many afternoons. Among these friends are fellow seniors Jacob Wigodsky and Avery Wetzel. “[The game] gives us something to do during time that normally would be spent doing nothing,” Wetzel said. “Now we spend it with each other having fun.”

The occupation of Johnson’s band lockers has evolved over the years. After having kitchen appliances that couldn’t always be plugged in and a TV with only four channels, Johnson was ready for something new. The friends started asking around for a gaming device, and freshman Michael Wenzl answered their call, bringing in a Wii. Many games were brought in, but the favorite was Wetzel’s Super Smash Bros. Melee, which has become the only game the students play.

The game has become a significant aspect of the students’ senior year. In addition to playing at school, the friends, all members of ATSB, have brought the Wii on show choir trips and had tournaments (both on show choir trips and at players’ houses) involving as many as 27 students. The kids are varied in ability, some inexperienced and others skillful from hours of practice. While some students battle, others stand in the background, commentating.

“It’s a really cool environment,” Wetzel said.

“There’s all these people behind you while you’re playing and cheering you on.”

“It’s like we’re a little community,” Wigodsky said.

Spending that time together has helped the students become closer as well. “[The Wii has] been a good thing overall friendship-wise,” Johnson said. “[The game] brought a lot of people together that wouldn’t have been brought together.”

The staff’s response to the device has been fairly accepting. Band director Tommy Krueger doesn’t favor the pastime, but he hasn’t been adamant about the game’s removal, as long as the students don’t play during school hours.

Students, unlike teachers, are often awed by the sight of the Wii. Although they may want to have one for themselves, Johnson said his situation is unusual.

“I know people wanted to [have a gaming system in their locker] but the availability really isn’t there,” Johnson said. “I got the locker at the end of the band hallway right next to the wall and it’s the only locker with the availability to have an outlet. So I’m kind of the only one who can [have a game system] right now.”

“He’s got a monopoly in the gaming business,” joked Wigodsky.

“But we’re hoping to pass [the game] down next year,” added Wetzel.

As for the three friends, while their high school careers come to an end, they don’t think their gaming days are over.

“We’re all planning to stick around and have tournaments at my house and stuff,” Johnson said. “[Playing Smash has] really kept our friend group together.”

The pastime has certainly enhanced their high

(Above) Seniors Soren Johnson, Avery Wetzl and Jacob Wigodsky play the Wii before school.

(Left) A player competeS just before the morning bell rings on April 5, 2017. Photo

by Sam Cohen

school experience, and Johnson said they won’t forget that.

“We’ll definitely have a lot of memories about how [playing Wii together] has impacted our lives,” Johnson said. “[The game] created our friend group and brought us closer.”

BOOMER RADIO: OMAHA'S HOME FOR CUBS BASEBALL

22

SPORTS

SIDELINED Junior sits out from soccer season due to surgery NOLA N T RACY back, which would require a surgery to be removed.

SPORTS EDITOR

Westside junior Sam Mormino had been coming off a great start to his high school soccer career, after starting at fullback for the majority of last season for the varsity team. This spring, however, the outlook is vastly different, as it is unlikely Mormino will get the opportunity to suit up for any matches.

Mormino had been suffering from lower back pain since early in the school year, but he never really thought too much of it until lately.

“At first I just thought maybe I had just slept funny or something,” Mormino said. “I also just really wanted to keep up on workouts and stuff to prepare for soccer, but eventually I realized it wasn’t normal.”

After months of suffering, he decided it was finally time to see a doctor and find out what was wrong. At first, he believed it was just a stress fracture in his lower back. After X-rays didn’t show much at first, the radiologist later called after further examining it and suggested he get a MRI or a CT, immediately.

Mormino followed the suggestion, and went to get more accurate tests done that day. When the doctor got back to him that day, he let him know that he had found a tumor located in Mormino’s lower

“He called after finding the tumor and let us know they would need to do a biopsy on it, to determine whether it is benign or malignant,” Mormino said. “[The doctor] also let us know that it would need to be removed as soon as possible.”

After having surgery on Feb. 21, the biopsy revealed that the tumor was benign, meaning it was not cancerous. The doctors still have not found any certain cause for the growth.

Now, after surgery, comes the hardest part for Mormino. The operation came at a very inconvenient time, with soccer season just beginning.

Mormino is currently doing various things as rehab for his back, including swimming, biking and other stretches.

The full recovery time will vary depending on how it goes, but the original estimate was three months total with six weeks on crutches.

However, Mormino is hoping to shorten that time through rehab and taking good care of it.

“We’re trying to work through the recovery so I can start to ease my way back into soccer after I get off crutches,” Mormino said.

Although it is obviously not ideal, Mormino said he is looking forward to getting back to the pitch as soon as possible, and stronger than ever.

SAM MORMINO JUNIOR

“We’re trying to work through the recovery so I can start to ease my way back into soccer after I get off crutches,”

ADVERTISEMENT

Junior Sam Mormino avoids a fallen player on the soccer field during a game in the spring of 2016. Mormino played on the varsity team.

Photo by Siena Gailloux

5

Westside/Dist. 66 School’s Parents & Grandparents Our family has specialized in helping families like yours buy or sell District 66 Homes since 1975.

With more than 100 years of combined real estate experience, let our professional

KORT A. IGEL D.D.S., M.S. network work for you! We will give

10801 Pacific Street, Suiteattention 200 you the experienced, personal Omaha, NE 68154

you deserve and results you expect.

402.330.1152 igelorthodontics.com Call Today!

402-690-1591

20oz. smoothie

Marty, Alan, and Anne Cohen

for only

CBSHOME Home Real Estate Co.

1590 West Dodge Road #200 68118

Smiles start here.

Omaha, NE 68118

www.martycohen.com

$2.99

*

5/5/2017 3/31/2017

*Not Valid on Fridays

A&E

23 Aries 21 mar – 19 apr

Taurus 20 apr – 20 may

Gemini 21 may – 21 jun

Aries, with your ruling planet as Mars you are always on the go. You always think there is not enough time in the day, which stresses you out. Being a very dynamic and active sign you may feel the need to rush through things and not think them through. Sometimes you must learn to slow down and take your time. Today: Start meditating.

With Mars moving into your sign during the month, you’ll be full of emotion and romance. You love to be in action at all times, ready for anything and prepared for the worst scenarios along the way, making you a fantastic partner. A good way to keep blossoming relationships in a positive way is to adventure together and explore your common interests together. Today: Go see a movie.

Gemini, you are stuck in the same routine. Your sign tends to have a passion for the things that they love, and if you’re not living your life to the fullest you should switch up your normal day. With Neptune moving into your sign you should be making crucial decisions about your career and money. Today: Hang out with old friends.

Cancer 22 jun – 23 jul

Leo 24 jul – 23 aug

Virgo 24 aug – 22 sept

With Jupiter being across the chart of your sign, it’s sure to be your month. Your social life is intact and your friendships are strong. As long as you are keeping a positive attitude, so will everyone else. Your only weakness is sensing tension between people around you and getting caught up in it. Keep out of other people’s problems because it’ll come back to bite you if you’re not cautious. Today: Bake yourself a cake.

Virgos are a seemingly aggressive sign. You have a wall you put up but once someone knocks it down you can give them the benefit of the doubt in any situation. Even if you come off a little harsh sometimes, assure your friends and peers that you have good intentions. Today: Apply for a new job.

You’re a very good friend and a fantastic listener. People come to you with their problems because of your trustworthy advice and thoughtfulness. This month will be a little different. With Venus leaving you will be doing less listening and more talking. Try not to get into any harsh emotional rants that you may later regret. Today: Do something you’ve been putting off for a while.

Libra 23 sept – 22 oct Libra’s are the some of the most indecisive people you may ever meet. You are a very serious thinker and an extremely hard worker which makes things tense when it comes to communication. If you’re single or in a relationship, this if your year to really focus on yourself and decide what’s right for you.

Today: Do something that takes you out of your comfort zone.

Capricorn 22 dec – 20 jan This month you need to pay attention to your spending as these past few months have not been good for you. If sacrifices come up in the next few weeks you have to think of what you may need to drop in order to maintain other things. You are great at making decisions, so choose wisely.

Today: Put twenty extra dollars into your savings account.

Horoscopes by Kaelyn Mettler

Scorpio 23 oct – 22 nov Scorpio, you are very confident with yourself. Although some people take this as a bad thing it is a great thing to be comfortable in your own skin. You should surround yourself with other Scorpios who share the same passions as you do. You may even find a new friend. Today: stay afterschool to finish your homework.

Aquarius 21 jan – 19 feb With Venus in retrograde you should spend some time focusing on yourself. Pay attention to your own needs and give yourself a break for once. With it being Aquarius love season you may feel a little more emotionally attached these next few weeks, so take a shot on that special someone. Today: Meet a new friend.

Sagittarius 23 nov – 20 dec Your love planet is Mercury which moves so fast that your love life will have tons of ups and downs this month. Luckily they’ll move quickly, without dwelling with anything for too long. This is also a good time to pursue a new relationship. Seek out someone as loud and adventurous as you or find someone quiet because opposites do attract. Today: get yourself the new shirt you’ve been wanting.

Pisces 20 feb – 20 mar You’re a very quiet and reserved sign, which makes others weary of you. Your true friends will stick to your side because they know you so well. In order to expand your circle you’ll need to show your intuition and compassion. With energy flowing through you, this weekend might just be the best one in a while. Today: Get a new drink at a coffee shop.

Graphics by Bella Radler

24

A&E

WHAT TO DO THIS Spring Break LEAVE TOWN

Story by Emma Korengel Graphics by Bella Radler and Sam Cohen First, Leave town. It doesn’t even have to be far, really. You and your gang could all just dogpile into the back of somebody’s Volvo and go drive out to the woods to throw stones in a river, or some other vaguely sentimental thing people do in movies. I know that not everybody has the money for a vacation, and it’s understandable. But it’s not too pricey to just drive.

Drive anywhere! Drive to Kansas City.

There’s plenty of shopping, weird 80’s convention centers, Kansas City’s own zoo, and the start of the spring baseball season for the Royals. Drive to Des Moines! I’m sure there’s something to do there! Although admittedly Des Moines is not the most lively place to drive. Drive out to those weird, unsettling cornfields near Boys Town. if you go

LEAVING OMAHA

SKC 330

too deep, you’ll probably get arrested for trespassing, and against my better instinct I’ve been advised by my editors to not encourage this.

There’s also a nice movie theater nearby and a very vacant and highly unsettling lake park you can wander around in if you’re looking to get stabbed or something. If you’re up for a challenge, try to road-trip it to Sutherland. I’ll be honest with you, I’m not sure why you would do that or what’s in Sutherland, but I’m sure you can see some grass or cows along the way.

Variety is the spice of life. It pays to have a change of scenery even if you’re on a budget.

If you can’t drive, go sadly bum a ride off of a friend. Car broke down? Same thing. You don’t need a lot of money to settle down into the back of somebody’s car where there’s Dorito crumbs, some coats, and an ice scraper on the floor.

SOCIALIZE Second, see some friends. It’s easy to get disconnected with people or talk to them less frequently when you aren’t forcibly made to see them every day. Making plans with buddies is a surefire way to cheer yourself up, and they don’t even have to be fancy. Some of the best outings I’ve had have been totally unscripted( and largely led to some very bad life decisions and dehydration) but were overall a fun time for the whole gang. See a movie! Go to a spooky child’s playground at night and get paranoid of shadows in the dark! Run back to the car and almost break your ankle because you insisted on wearing pumps! The possibilities are endless as

long as you keep your tomorrow-self in mind and don’t wind up wearing yourself out too much.

Socialization is certainly nice, but an underappreciated way to spend your break, if you want, is having some time to yourself. Everybody, regardless of how much they get out, needs a little time to recharge before leaping straight into another activity. Veg out and catch up on that show people have been telling you to watch.

Get some late work done. Check out a new album, watch some videos– do whatever makes you happy. It’s good to push yourself sometimes, but it’s good to know your limits and when you just need a little time for yourself.

WHS LTE

Edit

7:37 PM

86%

Messages (13) Group Message

7:36 PM

Friend

7:30 PM

Friend

7:11 PM

Attachment: 1 Image

Tryna hang?

whats up

Group Message

7:06 PM I think it starts at like 9

Friend

7:05 PM

Friend

6:59 PM

whadduh younglin

are you kidding me?

SLEEP

Z Z

Z

Lastly, but certainly not least, is sleep. Sleep is a truly wonderful thing. I think we can all agree, sleep is great. Even if you’re a night owl, pushing 4 a.m. every week, sleeping enough is truly one of the luxuries of life. Go get some sleep. Heck, sleep in till two if you want. Lately, it’s getting harder and harder to get those eight hours we’re supposed to have.

So treat yourself.

You have a lot of options during Spring Break, it’s true, and I’ll admit, there’s a lot of pressure to spend it “well”. In my book, a break is done well in whatever way makes

you happy. You want to go throw a rager in an abandoned barn? Does that make you happy? Then you did this break well. Just want to wear yoga pants and watch movies?

If that makes you happy, then you did well.

These are all just recommendations, I can’t stress it enough. Nobody should guilt trip you into doing something that doesn’t make you happy just because you feel that if you don’t, you wasted your break. You do you, reader.

Relax, recharge, and never look back. Have a great break!