2017-09-29

WEST SI DE ST RY IOWA CITY WEST HIGH SCHOOL

2901 MELROSE AVE.

IOWA CITY, IA 52246

WSSPAPER.COM

VOLUME 50 ISSUE 1

SEPTEMBER 29, 2017

50 Y E A R S AT W E S T

P H OTO F E AT U R E

ALYSON KUENNEN

After the girls varsity volleyball team won the second set against City High in the Battle for the Spike on Sept.

5, Marsean “Marsweaty” Rhodes ‘18 landed a backflip, triggering an eruption from West’s student section. The girls would go on to beat City and claim the Spike for the third consecutive year.

CONTENTS FOLLOW US @WSSPAPER

WSS

I N M E M O RY O F MOHAMED YO U S I F

NEW AND I M P ROV E D

U P RO OT E D

50 YEARS AT W E ST

D OW N BY T H E RIVERSIDE

SUMMER SUCCESS: R U BY M A RT I N ‘ 1 8

E SC A L AT I N G EXTREMISM

04 05 16 24 34 44 46

LETTER FROM THE

F E AT U R E 1 0 L AT E STA RTS : A Y E A R I N R E V I E W 1 2 C R AC K D OW N O N C H RO M E B O O KS

P RO F I L E S 1 4 N E W T E AC H E R S , N E W M I N D S 2 0 A L L T H AT JA Z Z : E T H A N B U C K ‘ 2 1 2 2 F I N D I N G YO U R P L AC E : J U ST I N L I U ‘ 1 9

C OV E R

E N T E RTA I N M E N T 3 2 U N D E RC L A S S M E N A N T I C S 3 6 V E GA N FA L L F O O DS

S P O RT S 3 8 WA L K A M I L E I N T H E I R S H O E S 4 0 I N J U RY I N Q U I R I E S 42 FRIEND CRUSH

OPINION 4 8 I N D E F E N S E O F DAC A

EDITOR

Here we are again, milling the halls and sticking to our chairs at 2901 Melrose Ave. This year is different in that it is truly a year of great change at West High, and also a year of remembrance.

We remember Mohamed Yousif, a fellow classmate of mine whom I never had the honor to meet. A student with a passion for fitness, but more importantly a student with a passion for kindness.

We remember the 50 years of excellence that have shaped West High into an incredible incubator of academics, athletics and extracurricuPHOTO BY NICK PRYOR COVER ART BY ANGELA ZIRBES COVER DESIGN BY CATHERINE JU

lars. All the way from the glory days of platform shoes and jumpsuits, to present-day with crop tops and sandals.

Our cover story this issue highlights and celebrates the achievements and growth of Iowa City West with major input from local legends Ed Barker, Jerry Arganbright and Gregg Shoultz.

Enjoy our first issue of the 2017-18 school year, and don’t make fun of your teachers’ old yearbook photos on the back. Unless, of course, they have a mullet.

Until next time,

NINA ELKADI

IN MEMORY OF MOHAMED YOUSIF

Mohamed Yousif was a member of the class of 2018 and attended West High for three years before his death on July 3. He passed away this summer while visiting family in the Sudan. West High students and teachers will dedicate an award in honor of Yousif, which will be given to a graduating senior each year who has been a positive and active member of Physical Education classes for all four years at West High.

TRIBUTE FROM ESAM YOUSIF ‘19 Although he wasn’t well known in the West High community, Mohamed Yousif is perhaps the best big brother that a person could have. If you really took the time to get to know the guy, I’ll guarantee you would be seeing him laugh at the most serious moments; that’s the one thing that made him unique from all of his friends.

Mohamed wasn’t known for getting upset over little things or fighting over things he knew couldn’t be solved simply by arguing about it.

If there’s one thing that I loved about him, it would be his overall personality. He was both mature and immature at the same time, because he knew when and when not to take a situation personally.

His mindset around people only depended on whether he knew you or not. He wasn’t fully himself—just like everyone else—unless you showed a sign that you weren’t acting like someone you weren’t.

Even though I never had a chance to say my final goodbyes to him, he’ll still be my inspiration to be a better brother in the future.

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F E AT U R E

SEPT. 29,

NEW AND IMPROVED

C

CROWDED

CLASSES

BY NATALIE KATZ AND ANJALI HUYNH

J

JUBILANT

With the opening of Liberty, smaller classes were the biggest change students expected to see. Yet, if somebody were to walk into the AP U.S. History or Spanish 4, every seat would be filled.

“Every single AP class is over thirty on an average, which is high,” said social studies teacher Mitch Gross. “I think it [was] a little bit of a myth that Liberty opening would automatically bring small classes to West.”

Even though honors and AP classes have always run on the larger end of the spectrum, this is also true for most courses this year. The science behind this phenomenon is simple.

“While we don’t have as many students in the building, we also don’t have as many teachers in the building,” said guidance counselor Greg Yoder.

When around 20 teachers left West last year for Liberty, not enough of these teaching positions

were filled by newcomers.

“I think one of the big issues here is we didn’t get the staffing at the district level that we probably required,” Gross said. “To some extent, [the district’s] hands are tied based on budgetary decisions at the state.”

With around 600 fewer students at West High this year, there’s now room for everybody to eat in the cafeteria and hallways are less congested.

However, the actual amount of students in each class was never intended to change.

“Honestly, it was never the plan to get class sizes smaller,” said Principal Gregg Shoultz. “The building got smaller, but class sizes are mandated by the district.”

So while you might continue to struggle finding a seat in your classes, at least you’ll be able to enjoy the misleading, yet refreshing, amount of room in the hallways during passing time.

JAVA JOINT

BY ANJALI HUYNH

Fans of West High’s local closet coffee shop have a new place to check out: the new Pump It Up lounge. After many computer labs were dismantled due to the one-to-one Chromebook program, Vonnegut lab was transformed into Pump It Up’s new lounge.

“It’s been a dream of mine ... to provide a really great [lounge] space for students,” said business teacher and Business Professionals of America adviser Diane Fickel. “It wasn’t feasible [before] but things fell into place last year with the oneto-one [initiative] because they got rid of the Vonnegut Lab and it was available for us.”

Run by students in Business Professionals of America, Pump It Up offers a variety of foods, drinks and merchandise from school organiza-

tions, such as Dance Marathon t-shirts. However, these changes didn’t happen immediately. The creation of this lounge came with a large amount of time and effort put in by the students like Pump It Up staff member Lucas Sorensen ’19.

“We were here for days on end,” Sorenson said.

“Painting, trips to Lowe’s, staining stuff, all kinds of great, fun things, but we all worked really, really hard on it.”

Because of the large amount of work put into creating the Pump It Up lounge, the students want others to take advantage of the new room as a place to spend time or do work throughout the day.

“We hope it’s going to become a place where people can come and study and hangout with

their friends,” said student vendor Kiah Martin ’19. “As long as [students] respect it, they can come and hang out as long as they’d like. And if they want something to eat or drink, they can have that, too.”

Fickel also hopes that the rest of the school will utilize the new lounge to make Pump It Up a school-wide resource.

“I would like more clubs and organizations to utilize our service by putting their products in there, putting their posters on our wall and just making it into an all-school thing,” Fickel said.

“A lot of people think that because it’s run by [business] kids and it’s by the business department that it’s only for business students … It’s not, we want the whole community to really get involved and enjoy.”

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F E AT U R E SEPT. 29,

T

TRANSFORMED

TEMPORARIES

BY ANJALI HUYNH

L

Students who once dreaded having to make their way out to the temporaries in sub-zero temperatures no longer have to fear this burdensome journey. Due to the loss of students and teachers that transferred to Liberty High, the temporaries are no longer needed as classrooms. As a result, they have become a new home to extracurricular activities.

One of the first groups to utilize the temporaries for new purposes is the FIRST Tech Challenge robotics team, led by social studies teacher Dominic Iannone.

“Originally, [Dr. Shoultz] contacted me last year about moving the robotics team on campus because he knew that we would have rooms available,” Iannone said. “At that time, we didn’t know where in the building it would be. It was probably early summer that we finalized it and decided that the temps would be a good spot.”

In previous years, the robotics team was held at the

Theodore Roosevelt Education Center. Iannone believes that having the club at West will help smoothen components like scheduling and transportation to meetings.

“At [the education center], we’ve been going 5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. because there had to be time for people to get over there, especially since we had a lot of underclassmen who couldn’t drive,” Iannone said. “So now that it’s here on campus, we can have our meetings right after school, and that lets us get done a little bit earlier and get a little bit more time in, so it’ll be easier.”

Now that robotics is being held on school grounds, the team has been making the transition from its old location. The temps have been remodeled by the team for robotics purposes, which includes setting up computers for programming, creating a practice competition field for robots and storing tools.

LIVELY

LIBRARY

BY JENNA WANG

If students were to walk by the library in previous years, they would see the same furniture that has been around for years—brown shelves filled with thousands of books, white tables, brown chairs and old computers. However, if students crossed through the library today, they would see that most of these things are gone.

One of the first major changes to the library is the repainting of the dark brown shelves and shelf end-caps into a bright mix of Trojan green and gold colors.

“Everything was looking so old and tired because it was so well-used,” said librarian Beth Belding.

Jill Hofmockel, another librarian who helped Belding come up with the look for the library, agrees. “[The shelves] were so brown. They just needed to be less brown,” Hofmockel said. “We loved seeing what we could come up with and having fun. We just needed [the library] to look brighter because it looked so dingy.”

Along with the splash of new colors came new furniture, such as the less cramped high tables, gray-cushioned chairs, green high-chairs and bouncy chairs, a newly designed entryway and the addition of mirrors in

the near future.

Perhaps the biggest change around the library is the computers, or the lack thereof.

“When we were told we were [going] one-to-one, the district told us that our computers were moving on to other schools where there wasn’t one-to-one. We still have several labs [that are] full of computers, but that’s really it,” Belding said. “Because kids have their own [Chromebooks], the desktop computers we have now are used as backup.”

Overall, both Hofmockel and Belding have noticed positive impacts of the changes and look forward to the year.

“Kids have said really positive things. I heard one girl come in today and she said, ‘Oh, I love this library!’ She was so sweet and was talking to a friend, so that was very cool,” Belding said. “We want people to feel like [the library] is a good place to be and that they’re comfortable here and that they can work together and those kinds of things.”

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F E AT U R E

SEPT. 29, 2018

INTRAMURALS nan

BY NATALIE KATZ

While some students seek competition, many dread it. A lot of high school students don’t participate in school sports because of how competitive they are.

Intramurals, recreational sports at West High, can be a solution to this dilemma. With ideas for new activities, they offer something for people of all fitness levels.

Art teacher Christian Aanestad, head of intramurals, has big plans for this year’s events including ultimate frisbee, frisbee golf, badminton tournaments and even kayaking.

“We’ll probably start with something really simple like trying to get kids involved with Run for the Schools. [We are] getting them ready for that running race whether they are running or walking,” Aanestad said.

Last year, most of the intramural events took place in the gym. This year, the plan is to transition to more non-traditional sports, taking people outdoors.

Aanestad hopes to add a temporary frisbee golf course to the front lawns.

“We put so much emphasis [on providing] a lot of opportunities for kids to do [their] traditional sports,” he said. “So these are outdoor activities that get you outside and doing things but they aren’t necessarily a competition.”

Aanestad also wants to get a student advisory group to help so that he’s “doing things that students are interested in and not just doing things that [he’s] interested in.”

As of right now, these are all just ideas in progress, but Aanestad says that more information will be available soon.

So whether you’re the student looking for the most ways to maximize your athletic life, or the one just trying to get volunteer hours, they hope there will be something for everybody in this year’s intramurals

DR. SHOULTZ’S FUN IDEAS FOR

FRONT LAWN FRISBEE GOLF COURSE MOUNTAIN BIKING COURSE SCULPTURE GARDEN CROSS COUNTRY RUNNING ASSEMBLIES

PHOTOS BY TEYA KERNS DESIGN BY FRANCES DAI

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F E AT U R E

SEPT. 29, 2017

LATE START: A YEAR IN REVIEW

In 2016, West High changed school start and dismissal times. A year later, West students and teachers take a look back on changes, both good and bad.

8:50

BY LAUREN KATZ & JESSICA MOONJELY

T

he Iowa City Community School Board’s decision to change high school start and end times in the 2016-2017 school year raised concerns over extracurriculars, jobs and sleep.

Complaints were issued that the previous 8:05 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. bell schedule reflected a lack of concern for high school students’ health. According to Iowa City pediatrician Marguerite Oetting, studies show that adolescents who don’t get enough sleep may become overweight, depressed or have increased risk for car accidents.

“Teenagers need eight to 10 hours of sleep per night, according to the Nationwide Children’s Hospital,” Oetting said. “Getting enough sleep each night can be hard for teens whose natural sleep cycles make it difficult for them to fall

asleep before 11 p.m. and who face a first-period class at 7:30 a.m. or earlier the next day.”

However, for Wala Siddig ’18, the later start time had few negative effects on her mornings.

Siddig is taking a Chinese class through the University’s Confucius Institute, which meets twice a week at 7:30.

“I like the late start time because it allowed me to take an early class at a reasonable time,” Siddig said. Although the 8:50 start time means classes like Chinese can be offered before school, it does come with a cost.

“Getting home an hour later from school means I have an hour less every night for extracurriculars and homework,” she said.

Although Siddig said the one hour less she has in the morning should make her more tired, she

has trouble going to bed until after 11 p.m.

Not only has the late start influenced extracurriculars, but students who hold part-time jobs have also felt the impact. Aisha Kazembe ’18 said she was initially annoyed by the idea of a later dismissal time. Kazembe works at the New Pioneer Co-op, and often doesn’t get home from work until after 8:30. Although she pulls into her driveway tired after a long day, Kazembe said there are benefits to the later start.

“I read an article recently that said teen brains work better later in the day rather than earlier,” she said. “The article said later [school] start times equate to a higher alertness and enthusiasm in the classroom.”

Although many believe that getting more sleep results in higher grades, science teacher Brad

BY TH E

N U M B E RS

40%

of highschools start before 8 a.m.

15%

of highschools start after 8:30 a.m.

Source: Nationwide Children’s Hospital DESIGN BY MEGAN BOLAND

Wymer said there are too many variables to tell care plans are essentially that their older kid whether the late start time was the only factor watches their younger kid and now the younger impacting classroom performace. kid gets out before the older kid, that can create “You could look at the makeup of a first period a serious burden.” class, however, you’re not always comparing apFor teachers who coach junior high students, ples to apples,” Wymer said. the later start time also poses problems. English He added that grades are not always the consis- teacher Nate Frese said although teachers get out tent measure of performance in the way we’d like at about the same time due to their contracts, them to be; one example is that some students practices start later. may have one outlier grade, which would drop “You have to start your practice at around 4:30, the class’s average GPA. so you’re not done at 5:00 anymore. Now you’re “To say that grades have been affected by the done at 6:00, the day is later, and the kids, your late start is totally an opinion not backed by any players, haven’t eaten anything.” type of documented evidence,” Wymer said.

That’s not to mention that junior high practices “And, [because I’m] a biology teacher, evidence now sometimes conflict with high school pracis important to me.” tices. Because both are released at the same time, Although Wymer said he didn’t observe that high school practice start an hour later but run student performance was impacted positively or for the same amount of time. negatively, he did see increased stress levels in With the later dismissal, many clubs shifted students who had after school activities. their meeting times to an hour later but still run “[I found that out] per conversation, because for the same amount of time as two years prior.

I was curious how their lives were impacted,” Among these clubs is debate, which used to start Wymer said. “Students weren’t getting more at 3:30 p.m., but now begins at 4. sleep. They were get“We still meet for ting home later, so “G ETTI N G H O M E AN H OU R the same amount they were staying up of time, so I don’t later.”

LATE R F RO M SCH OO L devote any less Juggling schoolwork time to the club,” and sports is always a M EAN S I HAVE AN H OU R Lauren Ernst ’18 difficult task for athEVE RY N I G HT FO R said. “The later letes. According to LESS dismissal time reEmma Koch ’19, the ally just decreased EX TR ACU RRICU L ARS AN D new school start and the amount of time dismissal times make H O M EWO R K .”

I have to procrasthis balancing act tinate, so I don’t even more difficult.

-WALA S I D D I G ’18 have an hour to “In my opinion, the slack off and watch later start was a bad Netflix.” change,” Koch said. “It negatively affects almost Although she acknowledged that the later diseveryone that is involved in activities outside missal could affect club turnout, she said only of school, from sports to music and clubs. Getting out later means everything after school gets two people have conflicts with university classes pushed back and everyone gets home a lot later.” and would have missed half the scheduled meetKoch said athletes often have to miss more ings regardless of the start time.

Steven Yuan ’19, President of UNICEF USA, school with the new schedule because they have also doesn’t think the later start and dismissal to leave early for away games. times have affected club turnouts. However, he “Last year, I missed at least part of last period one to two times a week,” Koch said. “I know said people generally seem to prefer meeting in the argument is that later start times help high the morning.

“Most of my clubs have been moved to the schoolers get more sleep and perform better, but mornings and sport practices are still at the same now that we get out later, I’m staying up later than I would have, and I’m not getting any more time in the afternoons,” Yuan said. “I am getting significantly less sleep compared to the old start sleep.”

For some parents, the later start time was prob- time, but there is no way to fairly compare the lematic when it came to finding their children amount of sleep I get because I also have more rides to and from school. History teacher Domi- schoolwork and extracurricular activities than nic Iannone said he was mainly concerned about before.”

With the later start implemented only a year the switch of both elementary and high schools.

“I don’t want to be negative about [the later ago, the Iowa City community will have to destart time] because I don’t think it’s a bad thing,” termine over the next few years whether it has Iannone said. “But if you have people whose day created more problems than it has solved.

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F E AT U R E

SEPT. 29, 2017

BY TH E

N U M B E RS

59

percent of sixth through eighth graders in the U.S. are getting less than 8.5 to 9.5 hours of sleep on school nights

87

percent of high school students in the U.S. are getting less than 8.5 to 9.5 hours of sleep on school nights

8.5

hours of sleep per night can increase grades and standardized test scores

Source: National Sleep Foundation

c

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F E AT U R E

SEPT. 29, 2017

CRACKDOWN ON

CHROMEBOOKS

BY EMMA BRUSTKERN

The 2017-2018 school year brought about the start of the one-to-one program. Now that all students have access to their own personal Chromebooks, students are questioning exactly how much freedom they have.

T

he introduction of the one-to-one initiative to ICCSD has showcased the many joys of Chromebooks.

From not having to lug around heavy textbooks to taking fun pictures with your new Chromebook camera, many students appreciate this new technological addition.

However, with any big change comes its fair share of controversy.

According to Adam Kurth, the Director of Technology and Innovation for ICCSD, Chromebooks will help to more easily incorporate technology into the curriculum.

Rather than have to book lab time or laptop carts in advance, teachers can easily access technology whenever they see fit. Furthermore, Kurth believes that Chromebooks will promote blended learning, a method where technology is incorporated alongside traditional classroom activities.

“We spend a lot of time in a lot of our classes going over assignments and going

over basic information that was often review of a reading that was assigned. With students having access to devices and internet at home, that sort of inverts the paradigm,” Kurth said. “The hope in a blended environment is that students can get more out of out-of-class work … [to make] more valuable use of both the teachers instructional skills and more valuable use of the students’ time.”

In addition, students looked forward to new organization techniques and being able to easily access assignments. For the most part, teachers have delivered well on utilizing online resources.

“Most of my teachers have relied more than half of their classwork online, which has been a huge help for me,” said Nick Stilwell ’19. “The teachers have actually been really good at learning how to use [technology] for class after years of using just paper.”

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F E AT U R E

SEPT. 29, 2017

However, the introduction of the oneto-one program was bound to come with some issues.

“There are certain things in year one that will always be rocky in year one compared to future years,” Kurth said. “A lot of those have to do with communication. Getting information to students and teachers and parents about what exactly to expect, what the district’s policies are with regard to devices. We’ve had a lot of that information posted for quite a while on the tech blog, but at the same time we haven’t been really proactive about pushing that information out well in advance.”

Due to a lack of communication, the introduction of the Parent Access Portal via Securly came as a surprise to many students. An email informed parents the first week of school that starting Aug. 30, parents could receive emails regarding their students’ Chromebook usage. If parents choose to set up an account and enter the Parent Portal, they will gain access to the content log, which reveals what sites their child has been visiting and how long they’ve been there, as well as the ability to block certain websites.

With parents having the ability to watch over their student’s every move, some students view the Parent Access Portal as an invasion of privacy. Stillwell thinks the Parent Portal counteracts the idea of school being an open learning environment for all.

“I think a huge goal of the schools is to try to separate parental influence from the students so everyone gets an even bid,” Stilwell said.

The Securly program was chosen by the district to fulfill federal requirements. Under the Children’s Internet Protection Act, the school is required to filter certain categories, such as pornography and other indecent content. The Parent Access Portal is merely a built-in feature of Securly, not an addition. Furthermore, parents aren’t required to access the Portal; unsubscribing from these emails is as simple as a click of a button. Since not every parent-student relationship is exactly the same, what students have access to may vary.

“We have a wide spectrum of parents within our district and some parents will choose to use that service and some won’t.

I would make certain decisions as a parent that I know other parents would not make. I don’t want to be the arbiter of a

“ WE HAVE A WI DE SPECTRU M O F PAR E NTS WITH I N OU R D I STR I CT AN D SO M E PAR E NTS WI LL CH OOSE TO U SE THAT SE RVI CE AN D SO M E WO N ’T. I WOU LD MAK E CE RTAI N DECI S I O N S AS A PAR E NT THAT I K N OW OTH E R PAR E NTS WOU LD N OT MAK E . I DO N ’T WANT TO B E TH E AR B ITE R O F A PAR E NT- CH I LD R E L ATI O N SH I P VI S -À-VI S PR IVACY.”

-ADAM KU RTH , I CCS D D I R ECTO R O F TEC H N O LOGY

parent-child relationship vis-à-vis privacy,” Kurth said.

As a parent in ICCSD, Amy Charles says she does not plan on regulating her student’s Chromebook usage via the Parent Portal.

“It’s absolutely an invasion of privacy, and I think it’s not just unethical but a bad thing long-term to train young people to believe they shouldn’t expect privacy,” Charles said. “It stifles people, makes them cautious in their own homes, leaves them censoring themselves. A population subdued like that is not a brilliant defender of democracy.”

In comparison to other districts, Kurth believes ICCSD is rather lenient about what is blocked and what is not. Some controversial topics are not restricted by ICCSD as they believe it’s important for students to have access to them. One such topic is abortion, which has been blocked by many districts as sensitive material. As a whole, social media is largely unblocked.

The exception is Snapchat, which was only blocked after multiple complaints that it led to bullying and distractions.

“I think the school right now is good at making distinctions. In the last week or so I’ve been just looking up random things that might be blocked, which is probably bad as far as the monitoring goes,” Stilwell said. “For example, it blocks out The Daily Stormer which is a really, really racist website, but it still keeps Breitbart ... [because] enough people use it as a news source that I think it’s good they draw that distinction.”

Overall, the Chromebooks have proved to be both a blessing and a curse. While the Chromebooks make technology-based learning easier, the trade-offs in terms of privacy may be too much for some.

“I think [the Parent Portal] is harmful to a young person’s development. Obviously other parents will have other opinions. But I don’t track my daughter’s every move in real life, and I wouldn’t track them online unless something had gone terribly wrong,” Charles said. “You need a degree of freedom and privacy to explore, make some mistakes, figure out how to handle those mistakes, and begin building yourself as your own person.”

DESIGN BY TYLER THOMASSON

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PROFILES SEPT. 29, 2017

NEW TEACHERS,

The departure of many teachers to Liberty this fall has brought the arrival of quite a few new teachers to West. From business to choir to social studies, these teachers will brings lots of different insights as well as unique personalities.

BRENDON AITKEN, Social Studies If you could make a holiday about anything, what would you pick? “‘Going to the Beach Day.’ [I] love going to the beach; everyone has to go.”

LUIGI ENRIQUEZ, Choir

ABBIE WEIPERT, Business

If you were a crayon, what color would you be?

What’s your favorite breakfast food?

“I rarely eat breakfast, but I eat breakfast for dinner. I make a mean scrambled eggs with hot sauce.”

“I’d be forest green because it’s my favorite [color] and it’s tranquil but vibrant.”

WESLEY PHIPPS, English

DONNA BECKNER, Math

Do you have a go-to karaoke song?

What would your debut album be titled?

“I’m not much of a singer to be honest, so I’m not sure I would have one. When I’m listening to music that has lyrics, I listen to pop music. One song that I like is “Firework” by Katy Perry. It reminds me of spending the Fourth of July with my family.”

“‘Reinvention,’ because I taught for so many years and I stopped. Now I’m teaching again, so it’s kind of a reinvention of what I learned and what I taught before.”

15

NEW MINDS TIFFANY CHOU, Math Do you have a go-to karaoke song?

“I don’t karaoke a lot; I do enjoy singing though. I went to Taiwan last year and we went karaoking.

The song I sang then was “Colors of the Wind’ from Pocahontas.”

CHELSEA PARROTT, ELL Do you have a go-to karaoke song?

“I want to say Spice Girls, like “Wannabe” … when I’m with all of my friends we do a lot of really any ‘90s hip hop or something like that.”

LINDSEY DIXON, Learning Support

PROFILES

BY EMMA BRUSTKERN & LUCY POLYAK PHOTOS BY MADDI SHINALL DESIGN BY JENNA ZENG

AMIRA NASH, ELL What’s your favorite breakfast food?

“Eggs, scrambled eggs, all types of eggs. They’re delicious.”

JOHN COOPER, English If you could be given anything as a dream gift, what would you want?

“I think I would want just like a pleasant little farm. A farm like from the game Stardew Valley. I’m a super nerd ... I love that game. But I love the concept that I could do my own vegetable garden and I could have chickens and goats … I’d feel really at home there.”

MAGGIE YOCIUS, Art

If there was a movie of your life, who would play you?

If you could make a holiday about anything, what would you pick?

“A female version of Kevin Hart because I love his humor and I have a very sarcastic and fun personality.”

“My holiday would [celebrate] the start of Wool Socks Season.”

SEPT. 29, 2017

16

PROFILES SEPT. 29, 2017

UPROOTED

THE STORIES OF FOREIGN STUDENTS FINDING A NEW HOME IN THE UNITED STATES

BY PRATEEK RAIKWAR & SHAWN THACKER

D

epression, racism and abuse are only a few of the challenges that junior Aibeer Mohamed has dealt with and overcome before making it to West High.

Born in Sudan to a Fur father and Sudanese Arab mother, Mohamed was often the target of racist comments due to her mixed race and darker complexion than her classmates. One such instance was when Mohamed was in kindergarten, sharing food with her friends. Asking Mohamed’s classmates why they would share food with a “dirty child” like Mohamed, the teacher proceeded to beat Mohamed’s back, severely bruising her.

Outside of uncontrollable factors like her skin tone and race, Mohamed also faced abuse when she refused to wear a hijab at her strict school.

“I don’t think that it’s right for me to have to wear stuff I don’t want to wear. When I was at that age … nobody cared about what I wore, but in school you had to wear a scarf … If you didn’t, you [would] get beaten,” Mohamed said. “I used

to fight with the teacher a lot.”

Eventually, Mohamed’s father saw the bruises, leading him to confront the teacher. But this protection didn’t solve the harassment Mohamed dealt with at school, let alone all of the other is-

sues her family had to deal with.

On top of the violent school environment Mohamed faced, many of her relatives lived near Darfur, an area affected by genocide.

Although Mohamed was isolated from the violence by living in Khartoum, the capital of Sudan, she couldn’t escape the poverty and familial issues that wore her down from day to day.

PHOTOS BY ALYSON KUENNEN DESIGN & ART BY WINGEL XUE

Having four older brothers, Mohamed is the youngest of five siblings. One of her brothers, Alaeldin, was born with sickle cell anemia and a hole in his heart. These life-threatening birth defects came about because of the unhealthy environment Mohamed’s family lived in: due to their poverty, Moh a m e d ’s mother lived in a very dirty area when she was pregnant.

Despite her age, the responsibility of caring for her older brother fell upon Mohamed, as her mother had to work long and hard hours to simply provide the bare necessities to her family.

On top of caring for her brother’s health, Mohamed herself struggled with the amount of dust and pollution in Khartoum, the lack of resources, the beatings and the discrimination. All of these factors, combined with the lack of stable economic opportunities in Sudan, contributed to her family’s decision to move to Egypt.

But in Egypt, things only got worse.

FOR THE REST OF THIS STORY, GO TO WSSPAPER.COM

17

PROFILES

SEPT. 29, 2017

W

hen she saw a woman smoking a cigarette, she immediately started to cry.

“When I landed in the California airport, I saw a lady that was taking a cigarette,” said Nidhi Patel ’19. “I just wanted to go back.”

Having just moved from India, Patel wasn’t used to seeing women freely smoke cigarettes in public, so her first impression of the United States wasn’t all too welcoming. This cultural transition from India to America took quite a while to adjust to.

Patel moved from India to the United States in 2016. Her extended family of 14 had a system through which the grandparents would work in the United States and then transfer some of their money to the rest of the family in India. This left the whole family in a prosperous state for many years, but that eventually started to change. That process slowed down with the decline of her grandparents’ health. Needing support in the United States, Patel’s grandparents asked the rest of the family to move to the United States.

This led Patel’s family to California and to the culture shock they felt as immigrants in a new country. Sights seemingly mundane, like a woman smoking a cigarette, represented the

discomfort Patel and her family were feeling just minutes after landing in the United States. Although they had to leave her grandparents only one week later in search of economic opportunities, Patel tries to remain positive, specifically enjoying the closeknit group of Indians in Iowa City.

Despite the welcoming Indian community, transitioning into West High’s school community and a vastly different education system remains tiresome.

“I never ask questions in class because I’m always scared that [I’ll] mispronounce something,” Patel said.

Luckily, Patel found the support she needed in teachers such as Maureen Head.

Giving her advice throughout the year, Head has been a key source of guidance and inspiration for Patel.

“I think sometimes for a student learning English, she got discouraged,” Head said. “No student wants to feel like they don’t understand.”

Instead of simply reiterating lessons to Patel, Head made an effort to meet with her before school each morning, developing a personal connection with Patel and motivating her academic endeavors. “[Maureen Head] always gives me positive things—that I have to be strong and I have to ask questions in class,” Patel said.

In the end, this system of support paid off.

“She worked extremely hard,” Head said. “[Now] she’s really excited and really positive …

She kind of hit her stride and [is] not afraid to ask for help—she’s grown a lot.”

While fitting into the American education hasn’t been easy, it’s been a worthwhile effort.

In India, Patel was strongly against many of the principles that guided the education system. For example, Patel was always used to thinking in only one vein of logic: to always listen to the teacher.

One especially memorable teaching was the importance of the first impression, lending itself to Patel’s initial shock seeing the cigarette-smoker. In India, a positive first impression usually means being the brightest student in the class.

Being considered bright was especially advantageous in Patel’s hometown of Vadodara.

“In India, if you are intelligent, then the teacher treats you very special,” Patel said. “[Otherwise,] they think [students] are so bad.”

For example, Patel recalls one instance in which her bright friend was permitted to decide whether or not the class had to do homework that night. At West, however, Patel feels more equal, even given her trepidation for speaking up and asking questions.

And like almost everyone else in the classroom, Patel has always had a hobby to get away from schooltime stress.

“My bicycle has been my best friend,” Patel said.

“Wherever I want to go, [I] go with a bicycle.”

In Iowa, with longer commuting distances and busy hours for her parents, Patel has fewer opportunities to practice her favorite pastime.

Moreover, Patel chooses not to bike as much anymore in order to focus on education and to fulfill her parent’s dream of her receiving a college degree.

In traversing halfway across the globe, Patel and her family have faced many hardships, setbacks and unexpected changes to their plans.

But what has made it all possible has been her parents’ strong work ethic and dream to send their daughter to college. Given her perseverance throughout high school, Patel shares her parents’ determination.

“I [want to] change myself, o get involved in everything, to talk to everybody,” she said. “I’m trying my best. That’s it.”

18

PROFILES SEPT. 29, 2017

2004

2001

Their families are not content with their lives in Zambia and as they search for a new place to live, they pass through Tanzania.

Sikitu and Adela are born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

2004 Sikitu and Adela are displaced by the effects of the Second Congo War and attempted to start a new life in Zambia.

BY ANJALI HYUNH & JESSICA MOONJELY

F

or many, having to flee a war-stricken world characterized by witchcraft and destitution would be considered a nightmare.

For Merci Sikitu ’19 and Linda Adela ’20, it was reality.

Both girls were born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo during the Second Congo War, a violent conflict that displaced over two million Africans. When Sikitu and Adela were infants, their parents fled the country to provide safer lives for their families. They traveled in a group by foot, then by boat, from Kinshasa, the capital of the DRC, to Zambia.

“When we moved to Zambia … it was hard because the people spoke another language,” Sikitu said. “We didn’t know many people, and there

wasn’t a lot of food. It was a struggle in the beginning because the people there would look at you like you were a type of different creature.”

Because of the isolation they faced, the families sought a better life elsewhere. After moving from country to country, the girls settled in Zimbabwe, where they spent their primary years. Although life in Zimbabwe was an improvement, the country still didn’t have the stable jobs their families needed to survive. Because of this, Sikitu and Adela’s fathers found work in South Africa, where jobs were more plentiful.

However, these jobs came with a price: risking their lives. Armed robbers stopped the buses their fathers traveled on and threatened to kill everyone inside if they didn’t give up their wages. Their parents told them stories about what happened during these situations.

“This one woman, she had a baby … and she said, ‘I don’t have money,’ but she was hiding money so she could buy the baby food on the ride,” Sikitu said. “[The thieves] came and searched her. When they found the money, they shot the mom. The baby started crying,

so they shot the baby too.”

Travel was difficult for the girls as well. Sikitu and Adela walked long distances from their refugee camp to their Zimbabwean school. This seemingly simple journey was made dangerous by threats of being bitten by snakes, trampled by elephants or chased by potential rapists.

“These Zimbabwean guys who were drunk would start chasing girls and [would try] to rape them,” Sikitu said. “We would just see them and start running … It was very scary in the moment … whichever person they would catch, they would go in the bushes and rape them. The school [would] not care because they’re used to it.”

School itself was tough because of the physical and emotional abuse. Refugee students like Sikitu and Adela would receive beatings for more trivial matters than Zimbabwean students, increasing the animosity between Zimbabweans and foreigners.

“I used to just cry on the desk,” Sikitu said. “[The teachers] would say, ‘Wake up and do your work’ … And you feel like you just want to stand up, get out of that chair and leave. But you cannot walk out because [the teachers] follow you and you’ll get more whoopings.”

Their parents knew that life in Zimbabwe was not optimal for their children’s success and dreamt of coming to the United States. Eventually, this dream became reality when their visas were granted. The girls were ecstatic.

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SEPT. 29, 2017

2009 - U.S.

2004 After taking a boat to Malawi, Sikitu and Adela relocate to Zimbabwe, where they stay for five years.

LINDA ADELA ‘20 “Big houses. Cars. Everything.

[But] once I got here—oh lord— once I got into Texas, in those apartments, I was like, ‘what the heck is this?’”

2012 - U.S. MERCI SIKITU ‘19

2009 Following an interview for refugee resettlement, Sikitu and Adela are approved to relocate to the US.

“In Africa, when they said we [were] going to America, I [thought] it was like heaven,” Adela said. “Big houses, cars, everything.”

However, life in the United States was not what Sikitu and Adela expected.

“They gave us a house [where] the restroom was bad … We did not have a car or anything,” Sikitu said. “So we’re just like, ‘Where are we?’ because I thought America would be [different], like I didn’t see money on the floor.”

Because the girls came to the US at different times, Adela went to Texas and Sikitu was sent to Alabama. Months after Adela moved, she relocated once again because her parents had difficulty finding jobs. They came to Iowa and lived in Cedar Rapids for six years before coming to Iowa City.

Sikitu, however, stayed in Alabama. Life was difficult there because she did not understand the students and felt isolated by her peers for being different. Her classmates would make fun of her short hair, required in Zimbabwean schools, or would say she used to live with animals.

“What I went through at school was harsh,” she said. “It’s hard without family members.

Nobody [understands] your pain. You don’t know how to express your feelings because you don’t know the language. You don’t know what’s happening, so you just cry and cry. You wish you were dead. I started wishing I was back in Africa because I’d rather struggle than be with these people here, calling me names and making

“[In Iowa City] there’s not as much racist people. They respect who you are. They respect your ideas.

They respect what you do.”

me feel bad about who I am.”

After Sikitu finished middle school, Adela’s family encouraged her family to move to Iowa City, where she was met by a more welcoming, less discriminatory environment. “[In Iowa City], there’s not as much racist people. They respect who you are. They respect your

ideas. They respect what you do,” Sikitu said.

The positive community and supportive teachers enabled the girls to improve their schooling.

Now that they are both receiving better educations in Iowa City, their parents encourage them

to work hard in school and to take advantage of the opportunities they never had.

“In Africa, they always call and say, ‘We need money.’ My mom just sent $200 so she can pay the house bill,” Adela said. “[My dad] tells us, ‘This is why we encourage you to focus on school and stay in school and do good, so you can come and help the family.’”

While the girls want to return to Africa, they do not want to visit Zimbabwe because of “witchcraft” in the country. A Gallup poll showed that around 55 percent of sub-Saharan Africans believe in dark spiritual magic, which has led to Africans being murdered on the basis of them being witches.

“I want to have a job, get a lot of money, then go back to Africa and help people,” Adela said. “But I will not go back to Zimbabwe because… there’s a lot of witchcraft … [and] a lot of people that will go there and not come back.”

Even though the two miss their extended family in Africa, having each other is a source of comfort and support.

“We have memories together,” Sikitu said.

“When I [talk] about something, [Adela] already knows what I’m talking about. But if it was a different person, they would not know what we’ve been through.”

20

PROFILE

SEPT. 29, 2017

ALL THAT

JAZZ

ETHAN BUCK ‘21 With many musical achievements already under his belt, Ethan Buck enters his freshman year as a promising addition to the West High band.

21

PROFILE

SEPT. 29, 2017

BY ANNA BROWN

H

e picks up the instrument, exposure to jazz band is what truly prompt- tice five to six days a week for about an hour aligning his fingers on the ed him to become a more active musician. In and a half, amounting to a total of seven keys, and steadily blows to jazz, players are allowed to personalize the and a half to nine hours of practice a week. produce a rich, melodious sound. After music—an aspect that really appeals to Ethan.

“It doesn’t seem like he’s working hard,” Emassembling the instrument and careful“I think jazz is his area. It’s more free ily said. “It’s kind of amazing. He’ll go down ly listening to the pitch, he meticulously and not as structured as classical pi- [to the basement] to practice and have a great adjusts the mouthtime. He’ll do that every piece to tune. Ethan day for like a year, and “ IT ’S K I N D O F AMAZ I N G. H E ’ LL GO DOWN Buck ’21 quickly runs it just completely shows. through a scale in anThe progress is huge.”

TO PR ACTI CE AN D HAVE A G R EAT TI M E . ticipation of what’s to This work paid off this come. The young alto past summer when Ethan H E ’ LL DO THAT EVE RYDAY FO R LI K E A saxophonist then looks and his family traveled to the bustling crowd of to Aspen, Colorado for a YEAR , AN D IT J U ST CO M PLETE LY SH OWS. Aspen, Colorado and premusic festival his parents TH E PROG R ESS I S H UG E .” - E M I LY BUCK ‘19 worked at. Ethan decided pares to street perform for the very first time in his life. to perform out in the streets Although Ethan’s passion lies in perform- ano … which I think he appreciates,” since a permit is not needed in order to perform. ing jazz music, this has not always been the said Emily Buck ’19, Ethan’s older sister.

“The music festival didn’t have any jazz in it, so case. Coming from a family of musicians, Soon enough, his passion for jazz grew it was cool to do something different,” Ethan said.

Ethan has been exposed to classical music and he began researching certain playIn fact, Ethan’s progress has showed in audisince he was very young. Starting the piano at ers. Players that have inspired him include tions for honor bands, too. He has participat-

4 4 9 YEARS PLAYING SAX

the age of five, Ethan chose the saxophone as his second instrument after his mother convinced him to join concert band in fifth grade.

“I had originally not wanted to play in band.

But since I had to [because my older sister did], I chose saxophone because one of my friends chose to play, and we already had a saxophone at home because my uncle had played it and he gave it to us,” Ethan said.

Even though he didn’t enjoy the saxophone in the beginning because he was forced to play, the social aspect of band appealed to Ethan. This helped contribute to his passion for band later on in his playing career.

“When I was in fifth and sixth grade, even though I hated the saxophone, I still tried to have fun in band. I had a few friends in the saxophone section so we would just mess around and play things up and down an octave and just have fun with ourselves,” Ethan said.

While goofing around with friends increased Ethan’s enthusiasm to play the saxophone, his

HONOR BANDS PLAYED IN

John Coltrane and Sonny Rollins, but one of his biggest inspirations is Charlie Parker. “[Parker’s] alto playing is just so phenomenal and I admire him so much,” Ethan said. “His work ethic in the beginning of his life was also

“ MANY O F MY CLOSE F RI E N DS AR E I N BAN D ...

IT ’S R EALLY G R EAT TO B E AB LE TO PL AY M U S I C AN D SPE N D TI M E WITH TH E M .” - ETHAN BUCK ‘21 so impressive, he practiced like 15 hours a day, and he was just so devoted to the instrument.”

Inspired by Parker’s work ethic, Ethan makes sure to practice almost everyday for several hours a week. On average, Ethan will prac-

YEARS PLAYING PIANO

ed in various highly ranked bands such as the Southeast Iowa Band Association, Coe College Honor band and Kennedy Honor band, all of which he placed first chair in. In addition, he made the Iowa Bandmasters Association band, one of the highest ranking ensembles a junior high student can place in for concert band.

However, all of these achievements were not entirely surprising to those closest to Ethan.

“He definitely has the background [for music] because he’s also been playing piano for a really long time, so he’s just a really musical person,” said Vivien Ho ’21, a close friend of Ethan’s.

Ethan is now grateful for the exposure to concert and jazz band, which has allowed him to make many new friends and create many more memories.

“The only other motivation for me besides competition is friends,” Ethan said. “Many of my close friends are in band, and some I’ve even met through band. It’s really great to be able to play music and spend time with them.”

PHOTO BY ALYSON KUENNEN DESIGN BY LYDIA GUO

22

PROFILES SEPT. 29, 2017

FINDING YOUR PLACE

In a school of over 1,600 students, it can be a daunting feat to figure out where you belong. Justin Liu ’19 shares the activities that have helped him find his place at West High.

BY LUCY POLYAK

H

igh school can be overwhelming for some.

With all of the homework, clubs and extracurriculars, it can feel intimidating to see where to fit in amongst the crowd. Despite this, Justin Liu ’19 has been able to find his place. Liu has involved himself in various activities such as math club, swim team and orchestra.

Liu has been a resident of Iowa City for the last seven years after his parents moved their family here from Dalian, China. Since moving into town, Liu has found it a key part of the teenage experience to become involved in high school activities. By doing this, Liu has turned West into a more navigable atmosphere.

“I’ve joined [extracurriculars] because ... I think [they] really can define a person,” Liu said. “All of those things [people involve themselves in] are really important in high school.”

One of Justin’s favorite clubs to attend is West High’s chapter of the national math club, Mu Alpha Theta.

Liu enjoys math club because it’s a more engaging way to practice math skills than assignments like homework. As a student who sees many benefits to being successful in high school, this has been a valuable opportunity for Liu to become more engaged in academics by giving him a different reason to work on honing his skills.

Math teacher Karen Meyer has enjoyed getting to know Liu through math club as well as having him in her Algebra II honors class last year.

“He’s just always so happy, and I feel like I had a really great connection with Justin. I think being a teacher is about so much more than teaching math, it’s about kind of help-

Justin Liu ‘19 displays his violin in the orchestra room. He has been playing since fourth grade.

23

PROFILES

SEPT. 29, 2017

ing kids navigate through life,” Meyer said.

Having Liu in her class proved to make for a great classroom setting last year. Meyer is a fan of self-motivated students, and she believes Liu was a great example.

“Justin is a very dedicated learner,” Meyer said. “[He] wants to always do his best. I always appreciate that if he makes a mistake, he’ll want to know why he did that, and then he wants to fix it. He’s always striving to have the best scores he can, but he also wants to understand things.”

Meyer particularly enjoyed time she spent with Liu in math club, as it has been a way to get to know students outside of a traditional classroom setting.

“I’ve been on a couple of [math club] trips with Justin,” she said. “I like getting into interesting conversations with Justin … [we have] lots of interesting discussions all the time. I feel like I’ve gotten to see

up for success within the orchestra program.

“You can tell [Liu] is very hardworking, always wants to understand exactly what we’re going for and always sets goals for himself and does his best to achieve them. In rehearsal he’s really diligent, and I’ve always noticed that if there’s something that he doesn’t quite get or something that he’s struggling with … [he asks me] something like ‘how can I do this better?’ or ‘I don’t quite understand what we were going for’ and does his best to make sure that he [understands] that,” Welch said.

Welch appreciates that Liu works hard to become the best member of the orchestra that he can be, but he also likes that Liu isn’t afraid to share his opinion when he has a strong one.

“Whether it’s a question about what we’re doing technically or musically, something that Justin also does is he’ll come up to me after rehearsal and say

“YOU CAN TELL [LIU] IS VERY HARDWORKING, ALWAYS WANTS TO UNDERSTAND EXACTLY WHAT WE’RE GOING FOR AND ALWAYS SETS GOALS FOR HIMSELF AND DOES HIS BEST TO ACHIEVE THEM,” - JONATHON WELCH, ORCHESTRA DIRECTOR

Justin in lots of scenarios outside of the classroom.”

To fully round out Liu’s high school experience, he also plays two instruments. Liu has been playing the piano since he was in second grade and the violin since he was in fourth grade. “[Orchestra] has been fun, I’m excited for this trip we’re taking in the spring. We got chosen to go to a competition in Atlanta, Georgia and it’s really selective, so it’s a big privilege to be going,” Liu said.

This competition is the National Orchestra Festival presented by the American String Teacher Association. Last school year, members of the West High orchestra put in many hours of work to become one of fifteen high school orchestras selected from around the nation. Liu, as well the rest of the orchestra, will be hard at work until attending the competition in March.

The man behind West’s acceptance into this competition is orchestra teacher Jon Welch.

Liu has gotten to spend lots of time playing under Welch’s direction since Welch came to West in the fall of 2016. Welch has found that Liu’s mindset on always doing his best has set him

‘I really enjoyed this piece’ but he’ll also come up to me and say ‘I really didn’t enjoy this piece,’” Welch said. “That’s something I really enjoy about teaching: finding ways for us to be more curious and want to learn more. Justin does a really good job of that.”

On top of all of this, Liu attempts to push himself academically by taking a loaded schedule of rigorous school work. Liu finds it important to find balance between his school life and what he does for fun.

“Something important to me is to do [well] in school and get good grades. I know that your education will really matter for you later in life, so that’s why it matters a lot to me right now,” Liu said.

His best advice for surviving a hard schedule is, “Don’t think that AP classes aren’t a big deal.

Actually do the homework and the readings or you’re not going to be ready for [the class] because you have to really rely on yourself to read the textbook to teach yourself [the material].”

There’s always a lot of craziness to navigate in high school, but Liu shows that no matter the background, interests or plans of a person, it’s always possible to find places to call home.

PHOTO BY MADDI SHINALL DESIGN BY JENNA ZENG

50

Y E A R S AT W E S T

BY JUNHEE LEE & JENNA WANG ART BY ANGELA ZIRBES DESIGN BY CATHERINE JU

Time tells the tale of West High, a school which, when opened, was thought to be the “other high school” in Iowa City. In a half-century, so much has changed. As a 50th birthday gift to our school, we reopen the history books and present the past, present and future of West High and the Trojans.

WE T H R EE KI NGS Of the dozens of perspectives we could use to analyze these last 50 years at West, the principal’s point of view gives us a sneak peak into all aspects of life at our school. Our three kings - Ed Barker, Jerry Arganbright and Gregg Shoultz share their experiences at West and their contributions to the school.

“ I TR I E D TO PL ACE MY E M PHAS I S O N EVE RYO N E .

N OT O N E G ROU P I N TH E PI CK I N G. EVE RYBO DY.”

DR. ED BARKER PRINCIPAL FROM 1968-1979 “I remember the first comment I made to the student body: ‘Welcome to the only high school in the state of Iowa undefeated in any athletic team there,’” Barker said.

It’s been 50 years since those very first words and although West is no longer undefeated, Barker’s attitude of success remains at West.

The school opened in 1968 to a worrisome start; the district ordered the City High students living in the West High district to transfer to this new, unfamiliar high school. The students in the Class of ’69 who were forced to come to West were unhappy about the decision.

To remedy this, Barker made sure that any and all students, whether hyper-advanced or on the verge of dropping, felt involved in academic life at West. For the advanced students, he brought AP courses to the school, beginning with AP English. But Barker says that it was his work with the other end of the spectrum, with students who weren’t academically accelerated, that he felt most proud of in his time at West.

“We had students who didn’t have a love for school,” Barker said. “I wanted them to have a good education, and so we were in what was called Room 20. They had regular classes and they were in there half the day with a special teacher to work with them on an individual basis. That was a really good move.”

Barker frequented Room 20 and said that he got along with the students very well. When he looks back on his experiences with the students,

he says “they weren’t real troublemakers.” His relationship with the students grew to a point where Barker felt comfortable taking them on a trip across the country. He and five students from Room 20 went to Lincoln, Nebraska to visit the Governor’s Mansion; then down to Abilene, Kansas for a tour of the Dwight D. Eisenhower Library, Museum and Boyhood Home; and finally travelled a little ways to Independence, Missouri to take a look inside Harry Truman’s childhood home. Barker recalled the trip vividly.

“We stayed overnight near the Eisenhower place. We slept in a tent, they went fishing, I cooked the fish, and that’s what we had for supper,” Barker said. “Those folks remembered that trip for a long time. It was real good for them.”

Soon after the vacation, Barker realized that Room 20 might be too small for what his students needed. He pushed for the construction of what was then known as the Community Education Center. A place that expanded the experience in Room 20 to a wider array of students, the center grew until it became a high school of its own, now known as Tate High.

“And it all began in Room 20,” Barker said.

Barker’s positive relationship with the students at West wasn’t exclusive to the students in Room 20. In fact, Barker’s philosophy was to move away from discipline and punishment, making him popular among the students and community.

“I didn’t want to have anybody be looked at as a chief of discipline,” Barker said. “We were going to put a lot of emphasis on student government, so we got off to a good start with sponsoring the Student Senate.”

Barker’s administration and the Student Senate worked together to shape student life at West.

Barker remembers a Student Senate organized the Barn Dance that was popular among students, and recalls that he himself square danced at the Barn Dance at one point. He tried to balance the fun and games with limited discipline, adding that “the administration was still in control.” Barker didn’t allow an open campus, and notably suspended the football players after a drinking scandal in 1971. His innovative disciplinary methods were featured in a 1976 issue of Time Magazine entitled “High Schools Under Fire.”

“ WE HAD SO M E CO NTROVE RS IAL SPEAK E RS ... WE ’ R E ALWAYS STARTI N G U P A LITTLE CO NTROVE RSY.” - D R . E D BAR KE R

In addition to the innovation when it came to discipline, Barker was innovative when it came to teaching, a lot of which involved sparking debate through controversial speakers. In one of the first controversial instances, Barker invited a Vietnam War turncoat, someone who switched to the other side during the war, to speak to the student body.

“That started a big controversy and many people didn’t like it. But I did,” Barker said. “So, we tried to get controversial speakers, and we had many speakers come and speak to the student body.”

In a similarly polemical moment in the late ’60s, Barker decided to invite black speakers and white supremacists during Black America week following the Civil Rights Movement.

“We were always starting up a little controversy,” Barker said.

After 11 years as the principal, Barker finally decided to step down and go into real estate.

However, Barker’s contribution to West High didn’t end there; in 2012, the eponymous Barker Field was created following Barker’s $270,000 donation to the school. The money was equal to the salary that Barker earned in his time at West.

To this day, Barker is still one of West High’s notable benefactors. When asked for the reason why he felt such devotion and generosity to the school even 50 years later, Barker’s response was simple: “Having the opportunity to be directly involved in developing the best high school in Iowa.”

“ TH E ASPECT O F WEST H I G H I WAS M OST PROU D O F WAS TH E CU LTU R E O F EXCE LLE N CE WE CR EATE D.”

DR. JERRY ARGANBRIGHT PRINCIPAL FROM 1983-2015 When Arganbright first came to Iowa City, he thought he’d stay here for three to five years.

Thirty-one years later, on the road from Iowa City to Kansas City, Arganbright realized he couldn’t be more wrong. Yet, his three decades at the school didn’t come without its hardships.

“For several years, West High School was always perceived as the “second” high school in Iowa City. Our facilities at the time I joined West High were incomplete,” Arganbright said.

“It was regretful that many in our community including those in district administrative roles at that time perceived these building inadequacies as ‘being ok.’”

Lack of athletic facilities meant that the softball team played at the University of Iowa’s fields, and that the “home” football games were played at Bates Field at City High school. Mike Parker, head coach of girls cross country and girls track, noted that the shoddy equipment played a part in the dismal athletic results in West High’s early years.

“Now, the expectation for our freshman is getting to win a team state title. That wasn’t the case 23 years ago,” Parker said. “For our juniors, sophomores and freshman, it was our hope to win meets.”

For the music programs, the lack of an auditorium meant that band concerts were held at

D RE S S E D FOR S U CCE S S Take a look at the marching band unifroms of years gone by.

1968-1983

“ WH E N TH EY O PE N E D THAT STAD I U M , IT GAVE U S A H O M E .

- R O B M E D D , B A N D D I R E C TO R

the University of Iowa’s Clapp Recital Hall, and orchestra and choir concerts were held in the Little Theatre, which has a maximum capacity of 250 people.

“The band had gotten big enough that we couldn’t fit in the Little Theatre even my first year,” said band director Rob Medd. “It was hard, you had to take pretty much a whole day to set up over there and make arrangements to go over to Clapp Recital Hall.”

Recognizing the need for renovations, Arganbright, aided by parents of West students and some local businesses, pushed to have West’s high school facilities completed. In 1995, West High’s football field and auditorium first opened.

Arganbright, who donated a great amount of personal time commitment and personal financial support to accomplish this task, saw the impact of the construction immediately. An intense growth in community support combined with the mentality of refusing to be second best created a sense of pride in the school.

“When they opened that stadium, it gave us a home,” Medd said. “We opened up our auditorium and we had a home for our concerts.”

For the athletic department, newer and better coaches contributed to this improvement in sporting facilities to create a better sports mentality at West High, which Parker thinks is the true key to West’s athletic success in recent years.

“When you get the right coaches in play, you start to see success,” Parker said. “The facilities, they played somewhat of a part, but it’s the mentality. We just had coaches that convinced the athletes, ‘You are capable of winning.’”

It’s no coincidence that there was a marked difference in performance in both the music and

1984-1993

1994-2014

2015-PRESENT

the athletic departments following these renovations. Within three years of Parker’s arrival at West High, the girls cross country team won the state title for the very first time; since then, the girls cross country team and track teams have gone on to win 10 more state titles. Likewise, the band program, which took only four students on average to the All-State music festival in the early ’90s, transformed that number into 20 students just two years ago. And, as the school grows, renovations continue to be made.

The track was renovated two times, along with the addition of Barker Field, a new soccer field, and other improvements to baseball, softball, football and tennis. The North and South Band Rooms were added in 2007 to accommodate the growing number of band students. Success seemed to accompany growth as well; as Arganbright sums up, “I think the rest is history when you look at all the wonderful accomplishments of our students and staff through those following years.

In addition to this, Arganbright hired roughly 80 of the 97 current teachers at West High. And through his years of great teachers, great staff and great students, greatness became part of the culture at West High. So in 1985, when West had a competition to develop its school motto, a committee of students, staff, and parents jointly decided to endorse, “Where Excellence is a Tradition.”

“There are many schools who have mottos to reflect their school culture,” Arganbright said.

“The aspect of West High I was most proud of was the culture of excellence we created.”

As someone who enjoyed building relationships with West students and as the West High faculty member to have worked here the longest, it was a difficult decision for Arganbright to leave West High.

“I loved working at West and it was very hard to leave. But today I enjoy following all the West High news and happenings from Kansas City where we enjoy our family, traveling, and trying to lower my golf handicap,” Arganbright said.

“While I won’t be around for the celebration at the end of the next 50 years at West, it makes me smile when I think of someone walking into the auditorium and asking, ‘Who was this Arganbright guy?’”

IT MAK ES M E SM I LE WH E N I TH I N K O F SO M EO N E WALK I N G I NTO TH E AU D ITO R I U M AN D ASK I N G, ‘ WH O WAS TH I S ARGAN B R I G HT GUY? ’” - D R . J E R RY AR GAN B R I G HT

“ WE ’ R E G ETTI N G M O R E D IVE RSE ; WE ’ R E G ETTI N G B I GG E R , WE ’ R E G ETTI N G ECO N O M I CALLY AN D CU LTU R ALLY D IVE RSE .”

DR. GREGG SHOULTZ PRINCIPAL FROM 2015-PRESENT Having been the principal at West for three years, it may seem like Shoultz is a newbie when it comes to West High, especially when compared with the longevity of the two previous principals. Yet, Shoultz’s experience with our high school goes back quite a ways. Not only was he the principal at Northwest Junior for 12 years, keeping him in frequent contact with West High, but Shoultz was actually the assistant principal at West High for a year starting in 2002.

Perhaps it’s strange that he’s only the third principal at West in the last 50 years here. Shoultz certainly thought so. But he felt fortunate to receive the torch from Arganbright and to work with the 42 years of development that Barker and Arganbright contributed to the school. (For the astute reader, Barker’s been the principal for 11 years, Arganbright for 31, and Shoultz for 3.

That adds up to … 45? Read more at the bottom of the page.) Now, as the principal in the 50th year of West High, Shoultz was part of the organization team for the 50th anniversary party, which took place Sept. 22 in the courtyard. Both Barker and Arganbright returned for the reunion, and displays of each decades were shown off for the alumni and the staff. In speaking with the returnees, Shoultz noted one aspect that they all had in common.

“They always comment on how accomplished their classmates have been. They know classmates that have been in the four corners of the

“ IT ’S B E E N HAR D, WITH B I G SH O ES TO F I LL . I TO LD ARGAN B RI G HT, ‘ WITH 31 YEARS, I F I COU LD B EAT HALF O F THAT …’”

- D R . G R E G G S H O U LT Z

earth,” Shoultz said.

After the anniversary party, Shoultz looks to West High’s unwritten future and his place in it; he plans to remodel the culture of excellence that was established throughout the years.

“We’re getting more diverse; we’re getting bigger, we’re getting economically and culturally diverse,” Shoultz said. “So, I’m looking to be able to continue our excellence, but in a different way.”

Shoultz wants education at West to be less test score centered and more focused on providing diverse arrays of projects and experiences for the students. Shoultz has some specific plans: he wants to put in new wireless speaker technology, currently only used in the foreign language classrooms, throughout the school to enhance hearing in the classrooms; he wants to make completely wireless Smart Boards that will be able to screencast from a teacher’s computer; and he also wants to expand the domestic kitchens at West to include industrial kitchens, so that students can learn what it’s like to cook in a restaurant setting. With these changes, Shoultz hopes that he can follow in the previous principals’ footsteps in enhancing the school.

“It’s been hard, with big shoes to fill,” Shoultz said. “I told Arganbright, ‘With 31 years, if I could beat half of that …’”

THE FOURTH PRINCIPAL There have been three West High principals: Dr. Ed Barker, Dr. Jerry Arganbright and Dr. Gregg Shoultz. Right?

Wrong. A fourth man in the West High timeline, named Dr. Duwayne Carnes, served as the principal from the beginning of 1980 to halfway through 1983. The Trojan Epic yearbooks and the West Side Story archives show little into what his legacy has left; however, there are many insights into decisions Carnes made during his tenure at West. Carnes changed the graduation location from the West High gym to Hancher Auditorium, and cancelled the Winter Formal and the Student Senate’s Barn Dance. Carnes’ half-year in 1983 eventually settled into the 31-and-a-half-year reign of Dr. Arganbright.

A HI S TORY OF S PORTS TI M E LI NE STATE CHAMPS IN FOOTBALL

1995 1998 1999

VOLLEYBALL

2010 2011

BOYS BASKETBALL

1977 1998 2000 2012 2013 2014 2017

GIRLS BASKETBALL

2012

BOYS CROSS COUNTRY

1988

GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY

1997 1998 2000 2001 2004

FOOTBALL STADIUM BUILT IN 1995 PRE 1995: 2 STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS POST 1995: 17 STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS

TWEENS AT WEST

The number of jokes about freshman seem to get only more common the older that a student gets. This begs the question: what if freshmen weren’t the youngest students at West High?

From 1968 to 1972, West High was the home for grades seven through 12. Northwest Junior High was scheduled to open for the 1971-1972 school year to create a separate space for the under-underclassmen.

Unfortunately, due to a lack of supplies, the school remained closed for another year; yet, with the final shipment of supplies coming in January of 1972, the school opened for the 1972-1973 school year, taking onethird of the students from West and creating a new home for the youngsters.

WATER TOWER distractions such SLIP-UP Without as smartphones and other technology, students in the ’60s and ’70s had to climb to new heights to have some fun.

When West first opened, a water tower that was in West’s current front parking lot was one of the goto spots for vandalism; students would climb the water tower for a little bit of spray paint fun. Yet, since water towers aren’t designed for frequent climbing, an accident was bound to happen. As Barker recalls, a young girl was climbing the water tower for a standard act of vandalism before falling,

BURROWING STUDENTS IN THE UNDERGROUND A custodian picked up on some weird sounds coming from below the school.

When the custodian decided to trace back to the source of the strange noises, he found himself in what appeared to be an underground student lounge, situated in a plumbing and electrical tunnel that existed under West High, equipped with some chairs and couches. Naturally, the administration shut down the student lounge and cut off the access points to the tunnel.

“I’ve never been able to see it, and I’ve always wanted to see how big it was,” Shoultz said. Unfortunately, even Principal Shoultz doesn’t have the keys, leaving the tunnel a distant memory.

breaking a leg and having minor bruises and cuts.

“The superintendent, who I will not name, said to me, ‘Ed, you ought to make the water-climbing a school-sponsored event.’

I said, ‘Are you crazy? There’s no way we’re going to sponsor that event,’” Barker said. “ You have to stand up to the superintendent once in awhile.”

Vandalism wasn’t prevalent at West, but it caused a lot of buzz when it did happen.

Another notable location for vandalism was an old barn house that used to be located to the west of the school building. In fact, City High students would sometimes come to the barnhouse to play pranks with the grafitti. West High students would retaliate with their own vandalism on the City High campus, including a time when they painted over the City High sign with the words “West Best.”

“It’s good that kind of got tamed,” Shoultz said.

DRESS DOWN DAYS Boys: Do you wear dress trousers or slacks, loafers, and button-down shirts to school daily? Girls: Do you wear skirts, blouses, and closed-toe shoes every day to school?

We didn’t think so. As imaginable, the old West High dress code did get uncomfortable for students from time to time. Fortunately, students had dress down days, also known as slob days, which gave them the opportunity to wear our usual t-shirts, jeans and sandals. However, the clothing was still much more modest than today without tank tops, spaghetti straps, or jean shorts of any kind.

“Yes, [the students] were very excited to dress down as I recall,” Lynda Guy ’69 said. “The dress code was pretty strict and [on] this day, we could do our own thing.”

ALUM NI S TOR IE S

VIRGINIA GAY REYNOLDS & LYNDA OWEN GUY CLASS OF 1969 “I must say that I take pride in being a member of the first graduating class,” said Virginia Reynolds ’69. “However, this was not always the case.”

Being forced to switch from City High to a new school wasn’t exactly an ideal senior year.

“Such disappointment. Our class was being split. Sports, music, theater, academic programs - not to mention friendships. I felt like we would become the “other school” located in the middle of a corn field,” Reynolds said.

Despite shaky beginnings, school activities drew interest from students, creating tight bonds that began the West High pride that exists today.

“Sports teams were formed, clubs were started, academics remained strong, friendships strengthened. Over the year a mascot was chosen, a school song was written and a West High Emblem was created. New traditions formed.”

One such tradition was the publishing of West Side Story, a fold-out newspaper when it first began, which Reynolds was proudly involved in.

“Betty Lou Tucker was our sponsor, who offered support and encouragement to our fledgling newspaper staff. As I reread the articles, I can see how the foundation of West High was begun,” Reynolds said. “I laughed when I read the dress code: no flip flops, no frayed sleeves or pants or hair curlers. I was still wearing skirts to school.”

In addition to these memories of her senior year, Reynolds finds a living souvenir of her time at West in her close friend Lynda Guy ’69, an exchange student from Swaziland, South Africa.

Guy finished high school in Swaziland and it was there that she became involved with the American Field Service, an international organization that gives students the opportunity to stay with a family and experience life in the United States.

“An exchange student returned to our school having just returned from the U.S. and came to speak to us,” Guy said. “I was hooked and applied at once.”

Her journey in Iowa City began when she met Reynolds, whose family hosted Guy’s trip. The

two became good friends and for Guy, the Reynolds family became a second home.

“The Reynolds family was wonderful to me and extremely generous,” Guy said. “I loved their beautiful home on Melrose, and the little lake house at the Reservoir.”

Perhaps the biggest adventure for Guy was getting accustomed to the contrasts between high school in Swaziland and Iowa City. “In Swaziland [the students] wore uniforms, stood when a teacher entered, followed a curriculum with up to eight subjects and wrote exams at the end of every semester,” Guy explained. “To wear regular clothes was a big change for me, as was the casual style of walking the halls … It was way more laid back in every way.”

Fortunately for West students, Guy was able to clarify South African misconceptions as well.

“I spent a lot of time explaining how we did have a civilized life in Africa and that I did not ride on an elephant,” Guy said.

Despite the adjustments, Guy embraced her new life and new friends. When asked about her

“ SUCH D I SAPPO I NTM E NT. OU R CLASS WAS B E I N G SPLIT - SPO RTS, M U S I C , TH EATE R , ACADE M I C PROG R AM S - N OT TO M E NTI O N F RI E N DSH I PS !

-V I R G I N I A R E Y N O L D S ‘69 memories at West, the list came flooding out: “My friendships and fun with people that I am still in touch with, laughing at the basketball games, and having parties before dances,” Guy said.

Guy and Reynolds became involved in student activities, wanting to make an impact in student affairs.

“I was fascinated by Student Council, Debate Club, and Drama productions,” Guy said.

“Homecoming and prom were new experiences for me. I helped plan Domestic Affairs Week and International Affairs Week as I was friends with other local exchange students and we had a tight bond. It was fascinating to share ideas.”

As the school year ended, both were able to find positives in their senior year.

“I eventually embraced West and became very active in life of a new school. West High has become dominant in all areas over the past almost 50 years,” Reynolds said. “As I have family in Iowa City, I am back frequently. I look back on my days at West High and wonder where the time has gone.”

For Guy, the ending was bittersweet.

“I cried for days before leaving, as I believed I would never see these people again. It was so emotional, but I was also excited to be going home after a year away.”

However, she remained close with her host family and friends, visiting West several times.

“I was called Swazi by everyone and lots still call me that on Facebook,” Guy recalls. “I love Iowa City and it’s like going home for me in many ways. I was fortunate to be placed with a great family and to attend a school like West. [I’ll be] forever grateful.”

MIKE HANSEN, ANN KENT & CAROL BAUMBACK CLASS OF 1969 “Going to West High as a senior was bittersweet,” said Carol Baumback ’69. “Many of my dearest friends remained at City. It was exciting to go to a brand new school, but it was hard for our class to be split apart our senior year.”

Baumback wasn’t the only disappointed student.

“I was angry [and] unhappy but it really turned out to be a great year,” said Mike Hansen ’69.

Not going to City resulted in more freedom for West students, which played a significant impact on the rest of the year.

“I dreaded leaving half our friends and having to use the City fields, being bussed out in the middle of a cornfield,” said Ann Kent ’69. “However, all students were included in decisions … we got to set a lot of traditions like West Side Story and there was a lot of fun with the faculty and principal.”

It wasn’t fun for most seniors to deal with junior high kids.

“We’d call them annoying pests ... They were small and carried briefcases around. When you’re walking they’d swing those around and hit you in the knee,” Hansen said. “You’re a senior. You shouldn’t have to put up with that.”

There were also four dances a year. Homecoming was casual, with chariot races, football, rallies and a queen-only throne. The second dance was the All-Schools Dance that included West, City, Regina and University High students. The Barn Dance was where girls would ask boys to squaredance. The final dance was the formal Spring Dance.

“I enjoyed going to the dances,” Baumback said. “Our gowns had high necklines and were floor length. We wore gloves [and] the boys had

to take the initiative to ask the girls to dance.”

Sports opportunities for women were rare other than the Girl’s Recreation Association and intramurals.

“There were not any sports for females other than tennis and gymnastics,” Kent said. “We developed a swim team in senior year and competed against four other high schools. West won.”

In addition, the area surrounding West High was not nearly as developed as it is now.

“On the other side of a parking lot there was a barbed wire fence and farms. When we split, we called City High east side and West High country high ... There were miles of cornfield all around,” Hansen said.

Through community building, West’s first year also had controversial matters. International Affairs Week and African American Week were some of the opportunities to learn about current affairs and perspectives of ongoing issues.

“We had lots of speakers come,” Baumback said. “There were no African Americans in our graduating class and only one in the whole high school.”

Recreational drug use of the ’60s also had its impact.

“I heard a few rumors that a few students had tried LSD … It was just the beginning of recreational drug use and it was also the beginning when students were asking for more freedom,” Baumback said.

Before students had more freedom with clothing, there was an enforced dress code. “We did have a strict dress code, even for teachers …

Staff wore suit and tie. The girls had to wear dresses or skirts, even though the hemlines were up to the middle of our thighs,” Baumback Said.

“We wore nylon stockings and girdles. It was very uncomfortable to sit all day at our desks with our knees together.”

Students who didn’t follow the dress code were met with enforced punishments.

“Assistant principal Jim Ferguson ... stopped a girl-a hippie-out in the commons. Her skirt was too short so she got a detention. Guys got detention for not wearing T-shirts or having collars tucked in,” Hansen said. “Just watching the students come out today, the clothing would have never worked back then.”

“ WH E N I TH I N K ABOUT WEST H I G H , I TH I N K A LOT ABOUT TH E PEO PLE . TH OSE AR E TH E MAI N M E M O RI ES ... TH E PEO PLE THAT YOU ’ R E AROU N D.” - N AT E K A E D I N G ‘ 0 0

NATE KAEDING

ZACH WAHLS

CLASS OF 2000

CLASS OF 2009

Seventeen years ago, Nate Kaeding ’00 graduated from West on his way to play football at the University of Iowa. A few years later, he would be drafted as a placekicker with the San Diego Chargers for nine seasons.

At West, Kaeding was occupied with sports all year long including football, basketball and soccer. While playing football, he had the opportunity to play in the new stadium. “The stadium was built in the early to mid 1990’s, and the football team … struggled a little bit in the ’80s when they played over at Little Hawk’s,” Kaeding said. “That was a big community endeavor … and kind of the big turning point for the athletics program when we had our own field to call our own and a place to take pride in rather than going across town to play into the rival’s home field.”

Teamwork especially was important for Kaeding in sports and school. “When I think about West High, I think a lot about the people,” Kaeding said. “Also the time you spend with your friends in the classroom, people you’ve grown up with ... not necessarily the place or the school itself but the people that you’re around.”

That has remained true for Kaeding, even now as a businessman.

“I’m still really good friends with people I grew up with and went to high school,” Kaeding said. “[There are] definitely good memories: keeping close touch with how the teams are doing … and hearing about the success the Trojans have.”

Kaeding frequently travels back to West High.

While walking down the halls, he recalls many memories from his time at West.

“It’s cool to see the old trophies and state championships. It brings back a rush - a lot of great emotions and all the hard work that we put in,” Kaeding said. “Showing up at 5 a.m. on a school day to get a workout and lift, going up with your friends, teachers ... [and] great mentors.”

As for how West sports teams are doing now, Kaeding has advice.

“Just cherish the opportunities you get to do with each other. A lot of the times you get caught up with the laps you’re doing - the wins and losses. Really take a moment [to] enjoy being around each other and the experiences that you’re able to have,” Kaeding said. “The more you care about each other, the more the wins [will] tend to kick in themselves.”

Zach Wahls ’09, an activist for LGBTQ equality, was a student at West during the pivotal year when the Iowa Supreme Court legalized samesex marriage.

“I vividly remember the day being just beautiful. I wrote a column for West Side Story that day which wound up being published in the Des Moines Register,” Wahls said.

This was a major development for Iowa and also a personal event for Wahls, who grew up with lesbian parents who were finally being able to get married. Before this change, it wasn’t easy for Wahls to have lesbian parents as a student amidst a debate about LGBTQ rights.

“When I was a freshman … Ms. Jenifer Secrist helped me really understand that having lesbian parents was not a big deal and that I would be safe in her classroom,” Wahls said. “That was a transformational moment for me and helped me ... to find the courage to be honest about my family structure with my peers.”

Wahls found his outlet through West’s Speech and Debate Club, which was an important part of his school life.

“Without my experience in Speech and Debate, I wouldn’t have been able to give the speech that helped launch [my] work,” Wahls said.

Since then, Wahls has become well-known among the LGBTQ community and his years at West had an impact.

“Senior year was really great, and I was excited to graduate,” Wahls said. “It was an incredibly important time in my life.”

“ M S. J E N I F E R SECR I ST H E LPE D M E R EALLY U N DE RSTAN D THAT HAVI N G LESB IAN PAR E NTS WAS N OT A B I G DEAL AN D THAT I WOU LD B E SAF E I N H E R CLASSROO M .”

-Z AC H WA H L S ‘ 0 9

AL UM NI O F TH E AGE S It’s hard to know what life was like wihthout phones or a computer. It begs the question: What did students do back then for fun?

Learn what it was like to be a West High student in the last five decades from the alumni who experienced it firsthand.

WHAT TECHNOLOGY WAS AROUND AT WEST?

Film projectors were used in the classrooms and there might have been electric typewriters by then. Five years earlier when WHAT CAR DID YOU DRIVE? Typewriting was a required Carol class, we learned on a manual I drove my younger sister, Becky Baumback ‘69 typewriter.

'71 and Guy to school in my Dad's Model A Ford truck circa There was just one computer late 1920's. lab in the whole school so

Virginia Reynolds ‘69

we had a lot of stuff on the chalkboard.

FAVORITE TV SHOWS Few families had a color television in 1969. Everyone got their news from CBS News with Walter Cronkite. He was respected by all and very Carol authoritative. My favorite show Baumback ‘69 in July 1969 was watching the Moonwalk on CBS. It was the time of the space race with the Soviets.

FAVORITE RESTAURANT

Carol Baumback ‘69

Nate Kaeding ‘00

FAVORITE SONGS/BAND I loved the theme song from “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.” I also liked “Alice’s Restaurant by Arlo Guthrie, as its theme was resisting the Carol draft, since we were deep in the Baumback ‘69 Vietnam War. The movie came out when we were seniors.

I liked to get a milkshake at Pearson’s Drugstore, that had a soda fountain and lunch counter. Paglia’s Pizza was also a favorite spot, or anyplace with a jukebox.

After basketball games there was a group of us that went down to King’s Food Host. It was one of those old restaurants where you go sit at a table and Mike then you phone-in your order Hansen ’69 to the kitchen and they bring it out.

I listened to a lot of Dave Matthew’s Band back then.

They were great and still are.

Nate Kaeding ’00

Zach Wahls ‘09

Kanye West came up while I was in junior high and high school.

He wound up having a huge impact on hip hop specifically and pop culture generally. I also spent a lot of time listening to Lupe Fiasco.

HAI R S CA R E Long hair, don’t care. That’s true now and in the ’60s, right? Wrong. Back then, long hair on boys was associated with being a troublemaker and surveys found that girls didn’t want to date men with long hair.

Standing by that belief was a haircut rule at West which enforced that boys weren’t allowed to have hair that went below the collar. However, during Principal Barker’s era, that rule got changed by just one student.

“We had a young lad - the nicest young fellow you could ever hope to have at the school … The assistant principal and myself,

told him he had to cut his hair,” Barker said.

Even though the boy risked suspension from West, he still didn’t want to cut his hair.

“He said, ‘Well, I would like to stay here as a student but if it’s between that and cutting my hair, I’ll leave.’ So he started walking down the sidewalk … I told the assistant principal, ‘Call him. Tell him we’ve changed the haircut rule. We don’t have a haircut rule anymore. Go back to school,’” Barker said. “That’s how that got changed. A little student power.”

AP E NG LI S H PROTE S T Advanced education at West High made quite an entrance.

The first year that AP English came to the school, students were selected to take the course, meaning 24 students weren’t able to take the course. Among those 24 discontented students, two took the issue to court; they successfully appealed to the Iowa Civil Liberties Union to get the selection process changed. The school created a written examination the following year to judge whether students could take the course or not.

Later additions to the AP curriculum did not happen overnight. Arganbright noted that classes were added incrementally, as the district didn’t push to implement AP courses in the high schools.

“Our department chairs joined me in advocating adding more AP courses to our curriculum,” Arganbright said. “It was a push by the faculty at West that made these changes occur.”

Now, 93 percent of West students earn college credits for courses through AP courses, which is significantly higher than the national average of 60 percent and the Iowa average of 62 percent. So, from that rocky start, advanced education keeps steady at West.

32

E N T E R TA I N M E N T SEPT. 29, 2017

UNDERCLASSMEN ANTICS Underclassmen share some of their most memorable experiences from their first week of school.

BY REAGAN HART

NAVIGATION TROUBLES Friends can depend on each other for a variety of things, such as help navigating around a new school. Ella Rosenthal ‘21 and her friend were walking through the halls of West when they ended up on the stairwell that leads to the roof.

“We saw the gate and [my friend] was like, ‘What do you think that’s for?’ I told her I didn’t know, but that we should just keep going. I thought it was for lunch or something when they block off certain hallways,” Rosenthal said.

Her friend was depending on her, because she believed that Rosenthal knew the school better than she did. Rosenthal could feel the pressure when they ended up at the top of the stairs staring at a locked door and a window that looked out upon the roof. They quickly went back down when they realized they had gone too far up. The experience might have been short, but it stuck with Rosenthal.

“When your friend’s like, ‘Oh, ok you know the building...’ I was kind of laughing at myself, but I was also kind of like ‘oh no’. I was a little shyer after that, less confident in myself,” Rosenthal said.

Since then, she has been more cautious when navigating the school, memorizing where the posters are so she always knows what floor she’s on.

ART BY ANGELA ZIRBES DESIGN BY CRYSTAL KIM

33

E N T E R TA I N M E N T

SEPT. 29, 2017

COUPLE GOALS It was the beginning of the day and Keisha Mullen ’20 and her boyfriend were standing around waiting for class to start, when Mullen heard another girl’s comment.

“I heard her… she was like, ‘I’m going to get me a boyfriend like that. They are so cute.’ I was like, ‘Um, thank you,’” Mullen said.

Mullen believes she wasn’t supposed to hear the comment, as it was made quietly enough that even her boyfriend didn’t hear it. After Mullen responded, the girl put her head down, leading Mullen to believe she was embarrassed. Mullen did not mean to embarrass her by responding. She was actually grateful for the comment.

“It was nice that she acknowledged us, but it was kind of awkward because it has never happened before … I felt kind of special,” Mullen said.

MISSING LOCKER The transition from junior high to high school can be confusing for some, especially when your locker doesn’t appear to be where you remember it.

On the second day of school, Luke Arens ‘21 walked through the front door and headed to where he thought his locker would be. The day before, Arens had entered doors on the bottom floor. On the next day, he came through the main doors, which messed up his bearings. Believing he was on the bottom floor, Arens walked to what he believed was his locker. When he got there, the locker numbers weren’t even close to his.

“I was stressed out and panicking. I started looking for people I [knew], but since I went to North Central and all my friends went to Liberty, I didn’t know anyone. I got lucky and bumped into nice upperclassmen,” Arens said.

When he couldn’t find his locker, Arens continued to wander around until someone pointed him to the correct floor.

“I was kind of embarrassed at first, but the dude [who helped me] was super willing and nice,” Arens said. “I was glad I asked for help in the end.”

He might have found his locker, but he didn’t find his way to class on time. He showed up ten minutes late and explained the situation to his teacher who laughed.

34

E N T E R TA I N M E N T SEPT. 29, 2017

DOWN BY THE RIVERSIDE

BY LUKE REYNOLDS

The Iowa River Landing in downtown Coralville is a growing community full of everything from cupcake shops to boutiques. Check out our map to explore all your options at this cool destination.

TRADER JOE’S (OPENING SOON) The country’s largest West Coast grocery store chain is coming to Coralville in October. Known for their Hawaiian shirt-wearing staffers and quirky food options, Trader Joe’s will definitely brighten up the Iowa River Landing when it opens next month. Hummus won’t stand a chance to curried carrot and cashew dip.

30HOP

Known for their rooftop patio and great food, 30hop is a place not to to be missed.

There’s brunch, à la carte, lunch, dinner, and lots of unique options on the menu. Want to try truffle fries? How about a bulgogi beef burger topped with kimchi and Thousand Island dressing? Here’s your opportunity! Take the chance to sit under a blanket of stars while you can.

TRUE STYLE BOUTIQUE

If food isn’t on your menu for a Saturday afternoon out on the town, maybe shopping for new clothes is. With fresh, modern designs and an airy feel, the clothes at True Style are fashion forward and will look wonderful on any woman and body type.

Showing off true style won’t be a problem.

35

E N T E R TA I N M E N T

SEPT. 29, 2017

HIGH GROUND CAFÉ

With all the food places to choose from in the River Landing, maybe you want something simpler and more casual. That’s where the High Ground Café comes in. It offers a wide selection of coffee, tea and other assorted hot and cold drinks.

If you’re after something to eat, there are many types of paninis, sandwiches, soups and salads perfect for sitting back and relaxing with. Enjoy your time!

SCRATCH CUPCAKERY

FUZZY’S TACO SHOP

Have a sweet tooth but don’t want to buy a gigantic cake to celebrate a special occasion?

Check out Scratch Cupcakery for your confectionary needs.

Their adorable, delicious and inexpensive cupcakes are available in all kinds of flavors, and they change daily. There are even monthly specials available.

To keep track of their diverse selection, with everything from Chocolate Mint Fudge Brownie to Stuffed French Toast, check their website so you can know when your favorite cupcake will be available.

This chain, based out of Fort Worth, Texas, brings Tex-Mex food right to the Midwest. With everything from burritos, nachos and tacos, there’s plenty of options to choose from at an inexpensive price. A lot of their dishes are under $10 and delicious. If you’re in the mood for chips seasoned with their signature Fuzzy Dust, queso, a quesadilla, and soda in their complimentary cup, you can get it all for under $15! It’s the perfect place to spend time with family for lunch or dinner.

PHOTOS BY IVAN BADOVINAC DESIGN BY JUNHEE LEE

36

E N T E R TA I N M E N T SEPT. 29,

VEGAN

FALL FOODS

BY ABBIE CALLAHAN

School just started, you meet someone new in science class, you really hit it off and you start to plan your perfect friendship with them. Then, out of nowhere, they drop the v-bomb—you find out they are vegan. All your aspirations of becoming life long best friends begin to crumble. All you want to do is catch a bite and get to know them, but you don’t know what they can or can’t eat. Don’t fret, here are some vegan recipes for the fall.

SO, WHAT’S A VEGAN? A vegan by definition is a person who does not eat or use animal products. Since 2014, the rate of people becoming vegan has risen by 600 percent, according to plantbasednews.org. In the United States alone, there are about one million vegans.

There are many reasons why people are converting to veganism, such as helping the environment, improving their health and saving animals. After seeing these delectable dishes, you may consider trying veganism for yourself.

CHUNKY

chocolate chip cookies 3/4 cup flour 3/4 cup rolled oats 1/4 cup finely shredded unsweetened coconut 1/4 cup vegan chocolate chips 3/4 tsp. baking powder 1/4 tsp. sea salt 1/3 cup packed brown sugar 1/4 cup water 2 tbsp. peanut butter 3 tbsp. melted coconut oil 1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 Preheat oven to 350°F. 2 In a large mixing bowl, stir together 3 4 5

flour, oats, coconut, vegan chocolate, baking powder, salt and sugar.

Add water, peanut butter, vanilla, and coconut oil into a bowl.

Lightly grease a baking sheet, roll dough into balls and bake for 12-14 minutes.

Remove from oven, let cool and enjoy!

Source: theminimalistbaker.com

37

chickenless soup for a

CHILLY DAY 1/2 cup vegetable broth 1 tbsp. soy sauce 1 tsp. vinegar 1 tbsp. poultry seasoning 1 tsp. olive oil 1/2 package extra firm tofu (drained, pressed and diced into 1/4 to 1/2 inch cubes) 2 tbsp. olive oil 2 celery stalks, chopped 2 carrots, chopped 3 garlic cloves, minced 1 tsp. dried thyme 2 bay leaves 4 cups vegetable broth 6 oz. rotini pasta

1 Stir together the broth, soy sauce, poultry seasoning, 2

3 4 5 6

vinegar and olive oil. Add the cubes of tofu and toss until well coated.

Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet and place tofu cubes on the baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes or until lightly browned. Then remove from the oven and let cool.

Coat the bottom of a large pot with olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add celery, carrots and garlic. Sauté for 5 minutes or until vegetables are slightly softened.

Add broth, thyme and bay leaves to the pot. Bring to a simmer and allow to simmer for about 20 minutes.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add pasta, cooking it according to the package directions.

Add pasta, soup base and tofu together. Serve warm and enjoy!

Source: connoisseurusveg.com

AUTUMNAL

8 medium-large apples 1 lemon, juiced (2 tbsp) 2/3 cup sugar 1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon 3 tbsp. cornstarch 1 cup rolled oats 1/2 cup almond meal 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup pecans, roughly chopped 1/4 tsp. sea salt 1 tsp. ground cinnamon 1/2 cup melted coconut or olive oil Source: theminimalistbaker.com

apple crisp 1 Preheat oven to 350°F. 2 Peel apples, slice into 4 pieces and remove 3

4 5

the cores. Then thinly slice the apples lengthwise.

Put apples into a large mixing bowl and top with remaining filling ingredients. Toss until well combined. Place the mixture in a baking dish in an even layer.

Put in the oven and let bake for 50 minutes to one hour or until the topping is golden brown.

Remove from oven, let cool and enjoy!

PHOTO BY PAREEN MHATRE DESIGN BY FRANCES DAI

E N T E R TA I N M E N T

SEPT. 29,

38

SPORTS

SEPT. 29, 2017

WALK A MILE IN THEIR SHOES

BY WILL CONRAD

A few runners share their journeys thus far through their most memorable pairs of shoes.

K ATI E HOE FE R ‘21

Katie Hoefer ’21 has been running for almost two-thirds of her lifetime and has garnered quite a bit of experience in that timespan. Although her career has stretched almost nine years, when asked about the first pair of shoes that carry unique memories for Hoefer, she referred to an old pair of Saucony’s, which she first acquired when she was 12. When Hoefer thinks about these shoes, she recalls the junior high state meet, as well as her successful seventh grade season in general.

“Our team was pretty good in seventh grade,” she said. “We ended up getting fourth at state.

We did really well at meets that year.” While these shoes would last Hoefer a year, she managed to put a couple hundred miles on them.

When first picking the shoes as a seasoned runner, rather than for aesthetics, Hoefer was drawn to the reliability of the Saucony brand.

She also saw benefits to running with familiar shoes.

“If you have good spikes, or if you’ve run well before-hand, then you can put them on and feel good,” said Hoefer. While lifelong running will continue for Hoefer, these shoes will always be a part of her roots.

JACOB GE H LBACH ‘21 While many people focus on a particular pair of shoes, Jacob Gehlbach ’21 has always paid more attention to brand. He has stuck with the Nike Pegasus model since his seventh grade year of cross country, his model of choice throughout his six year running career.

“When Running Wild was still open, we went there, and when I walked in, they looked at my feet and picked the Pegasus as the best fit,” Gehlbach said.

These have taken Gehlbach through the ups and downs of his journey.

To Gehlbach, the feeling of finishing a race is tied to these shoes.

“With every race, I just feel good after I run. During the race, you wonder why you’re actually running because it hurts so much, [but] when you finish you feel a lot better,” Gehlbach said.

This same brand still sticks with him today, and like Hoefer, Gehlbach believes in the benefits of a familiar pair of shoes to an extent.

“The Pegasus fits me really well and I think if I changed, it’d be really abrupt because I’ve been wearing these for six years,” Gehlbach said.

Gehlbach estimates he has run several hundred miles in this same model of shoe, and through it all he still anticipates the rush of finishing that is intertwined with these shoes.

39

SPORTS

SEPT. 19, 2017

JAKE GRE E N LE E ‘19 Few have pushed a pair of shoes’ lifespan as far as Jake Greenlee ’19. When starting eighth grade cross country, Greenlee needed a lasting pair of training shoes that fit his unique running form.

“I went to the running store and they said I had a running gait where my feet curve in and I needed something to pad the arches of my feet,” Greenlee said. “The Guide 7’s were the shoes that fit me the best and the ones that the [employee] at the running store picked out.”

These would end up lasting a full three years and taking Greenlee through the beginning of his running journey, including many milestones. “[My best moment with these shoes was] definitely running my first cross country meet in them. I accidentally [went out too fast] and ran around 19

minutes,” Greenlee said.

There was, however, a point when these shoes’ lifespan reached their end. It is common for those with old shoes to begin encountering injuries frequently and Greenlee’s experience was no different. When it was finally time to go back to the same store in which he bought the shoes, it became clear that they were in dismal shape.

“I was starting to get injured more regularly in my sophomore cross country season, so I went into the running store and the [employee] said that they were absolutely the worst running shoes he had ever seen in his history of working there,” Greenlee said. “I had worn down the entire heel, down to where the sole of the shoe was and where the foot should have been.”

As a result, Greenlee finally upgraded to the Saucony Guide 9’s. Although the Saucony Guide 7‘s carried Greenlee through the bulk of his running career, he was more than happy to move on.

SAR AH HAM E D ‘20 For Sarah Hamed ’20, picking the right pair of shoes was more of a trial-and-error process.

Hamed has experimented with multiple brands and models throughout her nearly four-year running career, going back to seventh grade. However, Hamed’s second pair of shoes would end up lasting the most miles.

“My first pair was Nike Flyknit Free Runs, but my mom didn’t like those because they’re not great running shoes and you can get a lot of shin splints.

So then I ended up getting pink Saucony’s. I got them at the end of my seventh grade year and I started wearing those up until my freshman year,” Hamed recalled.

In addition, the Saucony’s offered her the lightness that other shoes lacked. These shoes also got her through some of the biggest trials of her fledgling running career. Hamed remembers facing one of her most competitive atmospheres

with her shoes.

“When I was in eighth grade at the state meet, spikes weren’t really a big thing so I just wore [the shoes],” Hamed said.

After an estimated 300 miles or more, the shoes finally began to develop a hole and Hamed ended up trading them in for a new pair. Despite launching her running career off these, she’s a skeptic when it comes to lucky running shoes.

“I don’t think [a pair of shoes] changes [one’s outcome] because you can’t rely on one lucky pair of shoes,” Hamed said.

DESIGN BY THOMAS DUONG PHOTOS BY KARA WAGENKNECHT

40

SPORTS

SEPT. 29, 2017

INJURY INQUIRIES

Throughout the years, injuries in high school athletics have increased due to the intensifying atmosphere of high school sports. However, some injuries can be prevented using simple techniques. It is important that athletes take time out of their day to help their body recover from strenuous practices, games or meets.

There are still many questions about the best methods for how to do this.

BY ELLIE GRETTER

HEAT AND ICE TREATMENT: WHICH IS BETTER? Icing and heating are two ways to combat injuries that have stood the test of time. However, the question of whether heating or icing is better is commonly asked. Icing and heating have different purposes for individual injuries.

“To prevent injuries, like when my back was hurting ... I iced it sometimes to prevent it from becoming actually injured,” said Claire Overton ’19.

According to athletic trainer Sheila

Stiles, icing is always a safe option, but heating the wrong injury at the wrong time can actually cause an injury to worsen.

“You can ice just about anything; ice should never hurt you. The thing with heat is that if you do it too soon it can increase your swelling. So, anything that’s swollen should not be heated but ice has really no contraindications for why you couldn’t,” Stiles said.

41

SPORTS

SEPT. 29, 2017

KT TAPE Kinesiology Tape, or KT Tape for short, has become more and more popular in professional athletics within the last few years. KT Tape is stuck to the skin of an injured area, using different techniques according to one’s injuries. However, its purpose and benefits are still unknown to most young athletes.

“I hear it works, but personally I don’t really know what it does. I know it’s supposed to hold stuff in place but I’ve never had an experience when it helped me,” Overton said.

There is uncertainty about the effectiveness of the tape. Brands claim that using KT Tape reduces pressure on injured tissue and provides support to muscles by restricting the muscle from over-extending or over-contracting. Al-

though there is controversy about the effectiveness of the tape, some coaches and physical therapists still suggest that athletes use it.

“I’ve been told to use KT Tape before. Coach Kean recommended it. He said that his stepson injured his shoulder and it helped him, but I have not tried it.” said Dillon Sheppard ‘18.

But, there has been no proven benefit to using Kinesiology Tape, which is why some are still unsure.

“I think a lot of it’s mental but I think there is some good in KT Tape. I have never taken a class on it or learned how to use it, but I can put it on someone if they bring it to me and show me how they want it. I think there’s probably some use for it, ” Stiles said.

DIFFERENCES IN STRETCHING Every team has a warmup routine that is specially designed for that sport and its participants. A question that has surfaced over the last several years is which stretching is most effective: static or dynamic? Dynamic stretching has became more popular as static stretching has been proven to have a negative effect on the body if performed before activity.

“Usually in our warmup we do ... knee pulls, lunges, side lunges towards the net, [back] kicks and high knees and some other [dynamic stretches],” Overton said.

Dynamic stretches engage your hips, legs and core muscles to enhance the stretch.

According to Stiles, Dynamic stretching is best fit for the beginning of the workout to increase muscle temperature and length.

“I like dynamic stretching more than I like static stretching where you’re just sitting there and holding a hamstring stretch. I think it’s much better to do a warmup or a stretch where you’re actually moving while you’re stretching,” Stiles said.

According to Stiles, static stretching is best for after a workout to increase flexibility, thus preventing injuries. Stretches are usually held in the same position for about 30 seconds.

“We do dynamic stretching mostly [before a workout] but I think that stretching afterwards is most important so that you don’t get tight, have tears or get tendonitis like I do. It’s really important to stretch especially since [the volleyball players] are so tall, I’m tall, so I’m super inflexible. I can’t even touch my toes,” Over-

ton said.

Another strategy of static stretching is foam rolling and is a fairly new technique used to relieve injuries. The foam roller is used after or before a workout to stretch the muscles, similar to how a massage would.

“After a workout I like to roll my quads, calves and hamstrings, along with doing [longhold stretching],” Overton said.

Rolling has been proven to prevent future muscle-related injuries.

“Foam rolling is kind of like a self massage and it might help get knots out of muscles that are tight and will help loosen them. If you have an injured muscle, it will help work the knot out, and it helps loosen you up before you start an activity,” Stiles said.

Stretching is important to staying healthy and injury-free, no matter if it is dynamic, static or using a foam roller.

“The biggest thing the doctors told me was that stretching is [important]. When I got my surgery, I had to sit out for two months just because I did not have the range of motion in my arm, and if I got hit then [the hit] would just re-tear it. So, stretching helps a lot,” Sheppard said.

PHOTOS BY PAREEN MHATRE & KARA WAGENKNECHT DESIGN BY MEGAN BOLAND

42

SPORTS

SEPT. 29, 2017

FRIEND CRUSH

BY CAECILIA SHOPPA

S

ometimes, it’s hard to get along with your teammates. Whether it is on a school project or on a sports team, friendship among the teammates is very important. Luckily for Keimoney Lang ’18 and Jane Ratliff ’18, this friendship came easily. Being friends for nearly six years, the girls are bringing their friendship from the court to college. After the decision to attend Des Moines Area Community College together, the girls are more than ecstatic for the next couple years.

“It’s something I can’t imagine doing without her. We make each other stronger in way,” Ratliff said.

Although they have a strong friendship now, the two weren’t always close.

“We didn’t really talk much until seventh grade. Junior high was when we got really close because of a similar friend,” Ratliff said.

Since seventh grade, Lang and Ratliff have bonded over a love for volleyball, shopping and birthdays.

“Since our birthdays are a day apart, we have always had something to bond over. Last year, we stayed in Chicago together,” Lang said.

Besides birthdays, Lang and Ratliff discovered another commonality: volleyball. Since the start of the summer, the girls have bonded over the sport at home and on the court. Lang has participated in volleyball for most of her life with the support of her sister, a former player.

“I guess [volleyball] has always been in my blood. I’ve always done it and always had a passion for it,” Lang said.

Spending everyday together, the teammate and manager need to have a strong relationship in order to succeed in a game. Luckily for Lang, that manager just so happens to be Ratliff.

“It was something I was already considering doing since the old manager graduated. [Keimoney and her teammates] helped convince me to officially join,” Ratliff said.

Thanks to her sister and Ratliff’s support, Lang gives it her all on the court, whether it is practice, warmups or games. With the girls feeding off of each other’s energy, the bond translates strongly to the court.

With Lang being the team’s libero, a player specializing in defensive skills, and Ratliff being the manager, the girls have helped to create a strong team environment. Strong passion

“ [SI NCE WE M ET] , OU R

F RI E N DSH I P

HAS MATU RE D I N A WAY. WE ARE MORE THAN F RI E N DS, WE ARE SI STE RS.” - JA N E R ATLI F F ’18

43

SPORTS

SEPT. 29, 2017

and encouragement has helped the varsity team achieve success in their meets.

“She is like the loud pageant mom,” said Lang. “She is so encouraging to all of us and just wants us to do our best.”

Working together in volleyball has helped to strengthen the girls already existing friendship.

It has helped them to learn more about each other as well as learning from one another. “[Lang] is selfless on the court. She wants everyone to meet their goals and win as a team,” Ratliff said.

Being a strong team player is only half the work.

“She has to be encouraging to us. She is loud, in a good way, and supportive. She makes us work harder,” Lang said.

Having such a secure friendship, the idea of college away from each other was a difficult thought.

“We both knew that no matter where we went, we wanted to be together. I can’t imagine us going to different schools,” Ratliff said.

Luckily for the girls, their coach was able to help out. Being a recruitment manager, their coach introduced them to different schools that were interested in a player as well as a manager.

Luckily, there just so happened to be a school that was interested.

This year, the girls both received offers to play and manage volleyball at Des Moines Area Community College. A school known for their strong athletic programs, it seemed to be the perfect place for the girls to go.

“Getting the offer just felt right. It kind of confirmed what our hopes were for the future,” Ratliff said.

Next year, the girls will live together with two other girls in the dorms. Dorm life can be awkward when you don’t know your roommates, but for the girls that is no worry.

Although college is a year away, the girls are already thinking about life after college.

“I really want to study athletic training and physical therapy, but to do that I need to go to a four year college,” Ratliff said.

“SHE IS LIKE THE LOUD PAGEANT MOM. SHE IS SO ENCOURAGING TO ALL OF US AND JUST WANTS US TO DO OUR BEST.” - K E I M O N E Y L A N G ’18 - KEIMONEY LANG ’18

Lang hopes to continue playing volleyball at a four-year college as well, although she is unsure as to where she wants to go. Whatever the future brings, the girls aren’t worried. “[Since we met], our friendship has matured in a way. We are more than friends, we are sisters,” Ratliff said.

PHOTOS BY KARA WAGENKNECHT DESIGN BY TYLER THOMASSON

44

SPORTS

SEPT. 29, 2017

RUBY MARTIN ‘20 SUMMER SUCCESS Building on a fourth-place finish at the 2016 Olympic Trials, Martin shares her experiences from this summer after becoming an international champion in the 200 meter butterfly.

BY DENIZ INCE

A

MARTIN’S BIGGEST EVENTS

TIMELINE

lready a world-class athlete. Already an international champion. Already a prospect for the 2020 Olympics. And only a senior in high school.

Ruby Martin ’18 hadn’t even started her junior year when she came close to traveling to Rio in 2016 for the Olympics. She competed again at the international level this summer, winning the 200 longcourse meter butterfly at the U.S. Open in 2:10.18.

Martin defeated athletes with years of training and experience on her, including NCAA honorable-mention All-Americans Sharli Brady and Vanessa Krause.

“Going into finals, I can’t think about it too much because … it can be too much mentally sometimes.

I just have to relax and not really think about it, so going into it about ten minutes prior was when I turned on and was like ‘you know I’m gonna give it a shot’ and it went great,” she said with a beaming smile.

RIO OLYMPIC TRIALS Martin competed in several Olympicqualifying events, with her top finish in the 200 meter butterfly.

JUNE 26 - JULY 3, 2016

PHOTOS BY SEAN BROWN DESIGN BY CRYSTAL KIM

45

SPORTS

SEPT. 29, 2017

BY TH E

N U M BE RS 2017 SCHOOL RECORD

55:01

SEC

100 BUTTERFLY HOLDS 4TH PLACE IN STATE’S HISTORY

-NATHAN MUNDT, SWIM COACH

MIN

200 BUTTERFLY WINNING TIME

2016 RIO OLYMPICS PRELIMINARIES

2:09:92 MIN 200 BUTTERFLY - 4TH PLACE

JUNIOR PAN PACIFIC CHAMPIONSHIPS Martin received fourth place in the 200 meter butterfly, and competed in the 100 meter butterfly and 4x200 meter freestyle relay for the U.S. Junior National team.

AUGUST 24 - AUGUST 27, 2016

“I had to work myself back up immediately after trials, which is always not fun,” she said. “It’s kind of like getting back into shape right after you thought your break was coming, so it was difficult. It didn’t feel too nice, [and] I only had about a month, which is not a lot of time [in] swimming.”

Although it did come with its challenges, Martin was a fan of the rest time allotted in such a large meet. At the U.S. Open, Martin was allotted about eight hours between her preliminary and final swims, compared to the four-to-five hours she would regularly get at a meet.

Looking to the future, Martin has her sights setw on traveling to several other large competitions. Already a member of the junior national team, she is looking to join the likes of Katie Ledecky and Ryan Lochte on the national team.

“ WI N N I NG TH E US OPE N CHAM PION SH I PS I N TH E 20 0 FLY R EALLY SPOKE VOLU M ES ABOUT HOW TOUG H OF A R ACE R R U BY R EALLY I S.”

2017 U.S. OPENS

2:10:18

Teammate Nick Saulnier, who traveled with Martin to the U.S. Open, knew she was in competition mode from her demeanor.

“At these elite meets you can definitely tell her mood changes. She’s there to do amazing things and she always does those amazing things. She definitely just gets more serious; she focuses on her races … [and] she’s there to swim fast and race,” he said.

Iowa Flyers head coach Nathan Mundt also saw a difference in her championship swim. Entering the final session in second position, he knew she had a shot at winning.

“It came down to that: just racing the person next to you and being better a little bit on the second half of that race, which she really did better than she ever had before,” he said. “Winning the US Open championships in the 200 fly really

spoke volumes about how tough of a racer Ruby really is.”

Tough, to say the least. Becoming a U.S. Open champion wasn’t part of Martin’s plan; she only decided to attend the meet about one month in advance.

“At the beginning of the summer, I went to nationals, which was also considered World Champ Trials and I competed there. I guess that was my biggest focus of the summer and I tapered down completely for that,” she said. “The meet went well but it just didn’t go exactly how I wanted it to time-wise.”

That last-minute decision to compete in the U.S. Open came with its own challenges. First, this new meet was to be on an international level compared to the national restriction set for the World Champ Trials. Additionally, she was only given a short amount of time to prepare.

PHILLIPS 66 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS Martin finished eighth overall and first in her heat, in the 200 meter butterfly.

JUNE 27 - JULY 1, 2017

To earn this honor, a swimmer must have one of the top six times in the nation by the end of the summer with respect to their event and gender.

“My next big meet that I will be tapering down for is Speedo Junior Nationals, [which will be] held here in Iowa City, which is not normal. Last year it was in Texas and the year before that it was in Washington, and they’re actually holding it in downtown Iowa City. It’ll be nice to sleep in my own bed at night and not have to travel anywhere,” she said.

National and international meets will surely be in Martin’s future, but Mundt attributes her current success to her strong work ethic.

“Ruby is, first of all, really talented, but on top of that she works extremely hard to develop that talent and develop herself into an elite competitor,” Mundt said. “She’s always one that wants to improve and has the drive to do that.”

U.S. OPEN Martin’s most recent meet, the U.S. Open, was held in New York. Martin finished the 200 meter butterfly as the victor.

AUGUST 2 - AUGUST 6, 2017

46

OPINION SEPT 29, 2017

ESCALATING

BY ANJALI HUYNH

O

ver half a century ago, the world was shaken when millions of Jewish, gay and other minority individuals were gassed to death or shot in their own homes during the Holocaust.

What’s worse is, it’s beginning to look like history could repeat itself.

This past year, when given the chance to speak to Holocaust survivor Gideon Frieder, I asked him, “Do you think something like the Holocaust could happen again?”

Frieder replied, “Yes. In fact, I think it [has] already started.”

Fast forward to now, and we can see that this isn’t entirely out of the question.

People have already assembled in the masses to spread their hatred, even going as far as to use swastika. For example, from Aug. 11 to Aug. 12, a group of white supremacists, also identified as Neo-Nazis, participated in a rally called “Unite percent of the Right” in Americans say Charlottesville, Virginia. During holding white supremacist views this time, protesters rallied is acceptable together by carrying Nazi war flags and yelling chants like “F*ck you f*ggots,” “Go back to Africa” and “Jews will not replace us.”

Many rally participants took to social media to share their twisted opinions as well. One self-identified “pro-white activist” named Peter Tefft shared on Twitter: “Nazi is a racial slur against whites” and “The thing about us fascists is, it’s not that we don’t believe in freedom of speech. You can say whatever you want. We’ll just throw you in an oven.”

And that’s not even the worst of it. A poll

9

done by ABC showed that while 83 percent of Americans believe “holding neo-Nazi views is unacceptable,” there are still a projected 22 million people who support Neo-Nazis. That’s an estimated nine percent of the population that, directly or indirectly, support the persecution of innocent civilians simply based on their religious beliefs.

Some groups c percent of religious o n s i d e r e d “Neo-Nazi afhate crimes filiated” by the considered antiSouthern PoverJewish in 2015 ty Law Center, like the Daily Stormer, are as close to us as Kalona. Take a moment and really let that sink in - less than an hour away from our “Iowa City bubble” lies a hate group with the belief that other human beings are lesser than them, simply because they have a different faith, skin tone or sexual orientation.

The fact that groups like this still exist is unbelievably appalling. The United States was built on a foundation of immigrants and the belief that the country is a “melting pot” of unique individuals. However, this concept has disappeared altogether, and instead been replaced with people challenging others’ identities and increasing tensions for no good reason.

To those who say, “Yeah, but the Holocaust was terrible, you can’t compare a group of people chanting to millions of deaths” - I get it. The actions throughout the Holocaust were appalling, and in no way am I trivializing the atrocities during this despicable time. However, the foundations of where the Holocaust began still exist today: hatred, violence, bigotry. What many fail to understand is that the hatred

51

during the Holocaust didn’t disappear. It just ran beneath the surface.

Look at where we are now. There are people that openly think it’s okay to mistreat and discriminate against others just because they have different beliefs. Is that really so different from the Nazis hating Jewish or gay people? Heck, some of the same chants and symbols from that terrible time are still being used. Isn’t that representative of the resurgence of hatred?

I, along with many of you, was lucky enough to grow up in a community like Iowa City, where diversity is abundant, discrimination is not tolerated and hatred is considered a severe offense.

But there are so many others in our counracial hate groups in try that aren’t the US in 2016 so fortunate.

In those places, having skin with a little more melanin or choosing to love someone can be deemed “offensive,” leading to these people being mistreated in a variety of ways.

As an up-and-coming generation of young adults, it is crucial that we are the force driving change to steer our society away from mistakes of the past. Standing up against the hatred surging in the world around our bubble is more important than ever, whether that’s through contacting local legislation or reaching out to those affected by this hatred and telling them they do matter. Because at the end of the day, it shouldn’t matter what shade our skin is, what religion we practice or who we love.

We are all human, and therefore, we all deserve to be treated as such.

917

47

OPINION SEPT 29,2017

EXTREMISM

BY GEORGE LIU

I

t is nothing but a nightmare for a community when a protest turns violent. From Hamburg, Germany to San Francisco, California, instances in which cars are set ablaze, storefront windows are smashed and police are attacked have become increasingly common. Made up of black-clad agitators wielding baseball bats and riot shields, this horde of “counter-protesters” quickly overwhelms the vastly outnumbered peaceful protesters and drives their opponents away with excessive violence. While appalling, these immoral tactics are employed closer to home than you would think, notably by the Antifa group all across the U.S. and Europe.

The first Antifa groups were started in Germany by the German Communist Party to oppose the then rising fascist movement in 1932. Similar groups sprouted up in Europe after World War II with similar goals to their predecessors, eventually spreading to the U.S. and morphing into the violent group known today.

Most right-leaning demonstrations the Antifa disrupt today have no fascist or racist connections. On Aug. 26 to Aug. 27, two conservative rallies were scheduled in Berkeley, California. They included a First Amendment celebration “Freedom Rally” and an anti-communist “No to Marxism in America” demonstration. The organizers hardly fit the profile of fascists or racists. In fact, the “Freedom Rally” organizer, Joey Gibson, is of Japanese descent, and Amber Cummings, a transgender woman, organized the anti-communist demonstration.

Due to numerous threats made by local Antifa groups to instigate violence at each of the rallies, both organizers were eventually forced to cancel them despite having already discouraged fascists and racists from attending the protests. However, this did not stop about 100 Antifa members from showing up to fight the handful of peaceful, anti-communist protesters. The Antifa

quickly dispersed the nonviolent demonstrators with pepper spray and by beating them with sticks, repurposing their “No Hate” signs to forcefully shove people away taking the cake of hypocrisy in the day’s violent events. The police there were met with equal ferocity as they tried to stop the violence, despite retreating earlier to allow the Antifa to infiltrate the counter-protest.

This was not Berkeley’s first instance of widespread leftist violence, nor was it the most destructive. On Feb. 1, 2017, Antifa destroyed downtown Berkeley while protesting right-wing provocateur Milo

“ M OST R ALLI ES TH E ANTI FA D I SRU PT HAVE N O FASCI ST O R R ACI ST CO N N ECTI O N S.” Yiannopoulos’ speech at University of California-Berkeley. Their overblown reaction played directly into Yiannopoulos’ hands.

The rioters, shrouded in black, threw molotov cocktails and rocks at police, lit property on fire and smashed business windows, causing an estimated $100,000 in damage.

Similar but more costly events unfolded in Washington D.C. on the day of President Trump’s inauguration, as well as in Hamburg, Germany during the 2017 G20 summit.

It is clear that the objectives of the Antifa have stretched beyond suppressing actual fascists, and now include resisting anyone who oppose the beliefs of its members.

Being mostly composed of communists, anarchists and socialists, many Antifa revolutionaries have purposely styled themselves as Stalinists and Maoists. The fact that holding these extreme ideologies is even acceptable in America is disturbing.

According to “The Black Book of Communism”, the murderous ideology of the Antifa

has killed between 85 to 100 million people in the last century. Despite all that the Antifa stand for, many Americans still don’t recognize Antifa violence as violence and don’t realize that the group is composed of totalitarian extremists deserving condemnation.

The fundamental problems with the Antifa philosophy of violent resistance lie in the dynamic modern environment in which they are deployed. Neither fascism nor racism are even close to being accepted as mainstream political ideas in the U.S. or Europe as before. According to the Anti-Defamation League, an organization advocating for Jewish rights, the Ku Klux Klan has been on a long term trend of decline, fueled by increasing societal rejection of its values and constant instability in group ranks. Due to this, the small occasional right-wing extremist rallies should not even warrant the attention of antifascists. There are much safer alternatives, such as relying on the police to control the crowd or utilizing peaceful demonstrations to oppose fascists and racists.

No American should submit to the intolerant, unjust and violent censorship practices of the Antifa. The U.S. has been and always should be the epitome of justice, democracy and freedom in the world. By defacing businesses, suppressing dissenting opinions and fighting riot police, the Antifa are starting to shake the very foundations of our nation that generations of Americans in the past and present have worked to reinforce. With the continued decline of fascism and racism in the U.S., America and the world must realize that a new and equally dangerous enemy is already on the horizon.

DESIGN BY SELINA HUA

48

OPINION SEPT. 29, 2017

IN DEFENSE OF DACA With President Trump’s recent decision to roll back the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, DACA for short, the West Side Story editorial board has taken a stance against the decision, with a unanimous vote condemning it

T

his past March, Trump signed an executive order suspending immigration into the U.S. from six Muslim countries.

Now, Trump has decided to end the Obamaera DACA program, which protects young, undocumented immigrants called “Dreamers.”

Although it does not give the Dreamers legal status, it allows them to stay in the U.S. to work without risking deportation.

This rollback of the DACA program will mean 800,000 people in the U.S. receiving the “consideration of deferred action,” which should protect the illegal minors, will risk deportation.

Although those protected are nearing adulthood today, they were adolescents whose parents wanted them to live better lives when DACA was first instituted. Not only did they not know that they were in the U.S. illegally, but they also had no say in their parent’s decisions to put them into this program. They have found jobs, been educated and started lives here in the U.S. The repeal of DACA will uproot them com-

pletely and take away what they have managed to make for themselves.

When the decision came out, the Trump ad-

support that glittering generality? It’s when the Trump administration decides that crime, violence and terrorism stem from Dreamers that it starts to get ridiculous. Attorney General Jeff Sessions used a speech on DACA to say that illegal immigration laws in the U.S. “had put the nation at risk.” How DACA connects, we’re not sure; since people with criminal records are automatically ineligible for DACA, it seems unlikely that Dreamers will suddenly turn to arbitrary crime and “put the nation at risk.”

This begs the question: Why hasn’t the administration found a more efficient way to combat criminal behavior in illegal immigrants? It’s because felonious illegal immigrants are hard to track down; naturally, felons avoid having their information leaked to officials, and the lack of a social security number or even a driver’s license for illegal immigrants can make it impossible to find illegal immigrants on any American database. On the other hand, Dreamers gave their information to the government so that they

DO YOU SUPPORT PRESIDENT TRUMP’S DECISION TO ROLL BACK DACA?

0 13 THE WSS EDITORIAL BOARD VOTED AGAINST THE ROLLBACK OF DACA. ministration explained that eliminating the program was a step to correcting previous failures in the immigration system which had created more crime, violence and terrorism in our nation. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with combating crime, violence and terrorism; who wouldn’t

WHAT IS DACA? DACA gives illegal immigrants who came to the U.S. as minors a chance to apply for a work permit and go to school in 2 year increments before needing to be renewed.

Established in

2012

800,000 immigrants protected by DACA.

ELIGIBILTY REQUIREMENTS

2007

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or earlier year of entry and must have been

years of age or less during

16

2012

and a high-school student, graduate, or in military.

Must have zero to minimal criminal record.

Source: The New York Times

years old or younger when entering the US.

49

OPINION

SEPT. 29, 2017

WHAT’S THE IMPACT OF DACA?

$34,000 5.1 BILLION This translates to

$ $ $

$

earned on average as annual salary of DACA participants.

in tax revenue for the U.S. each year.

WHAT HAS CONGRESS DONE SO FAR? Dreamers can renew licenses through

OCT. 21&

Congress will decide whether to pass protective laws in March 2018.

Source: The New York Times & The Cato Institute

can enroll in DACA, hoping that their spotless fiscal budget means that, from a purely numbers ican jobs that illegal immigrants who reside in records will make them lower priority when it standpoint, it would be ridiculous to cut DACA. the country. It means saying that American citcomes to deportation. Clearly, they were wrong; Yet another one of the Trump administration’s izens who live off of welfare and refuse to find the government chose the easy way out instead argument against DACA is that it is unfair to jobs are more deserving of being American than of a real solution. legal U.S. citizens. The Trump administration illegal immigrants who contribute to the econEven worse, continuing to disguise the deci- speaks as if they don’t care about the country omy. This sort of black-and-white distinction is sion as a valiant fight against crime shows the just as much as a legal U.S. citizen does, and it’s the epitome of the xenophobia that characterdeeply-rooted xenophobia in the American gov- just not true; a significant portion of Dreamers ized the Trump administration’s campaign last ernment. It’s almost as if the Trump administra- are those who’ve received honorable discharges year and which was so strongly fought against tion believes that saying the words “illegal im- from the army. Those protected by DACA are at West High. There are people at West and in migrant” in conjunction with all of the evils of not taking away jobs from legal citizens, they the ICCSD community protected by DACA. our country will lead Americans to believe that are just exercising their legal rights provided by The Dreamers have grown up in America, livthere is a one-to-one relationship between the their DACA licenses. Rescinding these rights ing American lives and chasing the American two. Trust us, there isn’t, and DACA is dream. They are as American as any a prime example. “ TO SAY THAT DACA PARTI CI PANTS U.S. citizen growing up right beside First things first, DACA is a positive them. for the federal government. For one AR E ‘ STEALI N G J O BS AWAY F RO M Congress still has the ability to thing, DACA puts 800,000 people on create legislation to protect the the short list for jobs, and jobs means AM E RI CAN S’ I S TO R E F U SE TO SE E Dreamers. The Dreamers protectrevenue in the form of taxes. Accorded by DACA at this point will be ing to a Cato Institute study conducted AN AM E RI CAN B EYO N D WHAT YOU able to renew their protection until just this January, DACA participants 5, with no indication of what TH I N K AN AM E RI CAN SH OU LD B E .” Oct. average a salary of $34,000, and with will happen beyond that date. By federal income tax rates applied over March 2018, Congress will need to all 800,000 participants we obtain a total of 5.1 targets the Dreamers not for legal status but for have acted upon this ruling, but before then the billion dollars a year that the government will race, ethnicity and other factors they have no Dreamers will still have deferred action proteclose if they choose to remove these people from control over. tion. To leave your mark on this issue, contact their jobs. Over ten years, DACA is estimated To say that DACA participants are “stealing your Congresspeople and let them know what a to have added a total of $60 billion to the fiscal jobs away from Americans” is to refuse to see an terrible decision that the Trump administration budget. For all that the Dreamers contribute to American beyond what you think an American has made. If not out of sympathy for the Dreamgovernment revenue, they barely take anything should be. It’s believing that citizenship by itself ers, and if not out of fear of the billions of dollars out. By law, illegal immigrants are prevented should outweigh any other factor when evalu- our nation would lose, then do it to fight against from means-tested welfare programs including ating an American. It means saying that people a pattern of arrogance and xenophobia that perSocial Security and non-emergency Medicaid. who live in a different country and happen to meates through this country.

The Dreamers’ net positive contribution to the be born in the U.S. are more worthy of AmerDESIGN BY WINGEL XUE

50

A DV E R T I S E M E N T S SEPT. 29, 2017

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P H OTO F E AT U R E C O N T I N U E D

DESIGN BY CATHERINE JU

PAREEN MHATRE During the football team’s first home game of the season on Sept. 1, co-captain Dillon Doyle ‘18 sprints to score a touchdown, making the score 21-0.

The game ended with a 51-3 West victory.

MEMORY LANE MIX-ANDM AT C H Take a trip down memory lane and see what your teachers looked like when they graduated from West High. Can you match the teachers’ old yearbook photos with their current pictures?

1 Christian Aanestad, art teacher

2

B Jean Morsch, math teacher

3

C Maureen Head, science teacher

F I L L I N YO U R A N S W E R S

1

A

4

2

D Stacie Kauffman, para-educator

3 4

5 Kody Pudil, science teacher

5 6

E

6

F Jana Warning, family and consumer sciences teacher

ANSWERS: 1D, 2F, 3E, 4A, 5B, 6C