2013-09-27

westsidestory IOWA CITY WEST HIGH SCHOOL

2901 MELROSE AVE.

IOWA CITY, IA 52246

WSSPAPER.COM

COUNTING CANDLES pg. 23-25

Does the number of candles on your birthday cake really determine who you are? The WSS investigates what it actually means to come of age.

VOLUME 44 ISSUE 1

SEPTEMBER 21, 2012

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SEPTEMBER

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safe and sound

West has a lock on school security after completing building upgrades and violent intruder teacher training over the summer.

[11-13]FEATURE

meet the millennials

Maybe when parents grumble, “When I was a kid, things were different,” they’re on to something. Hear what students have to say about the quirks of our generation.

[23-25] IN-DEPTH

let them eat cake

Every day, people celebrate birthdays. Another year, another milestone. But does age really mean what we think it does?

[33] SPORTS

9.27.13

Lushia Anson Fiona Armstrong-Pavlik Stephon Berry Lucy Blair Abby Burgess Aaron Carter Meredith Cullen Paul Curry Schyler Davis Nick Deerberg Anna Furlong Lydia Hinman Valerie Hsieh Kelsey Keranen Megumi Kitamoto

West’s fencing club is on point and sparring for attention. Since starting last year, the club has been growing steadily.

[pg. 16-17]

WSSpaper staff

Sports Co-editor Designer Managing Editor Editor-in-Chief Design Co-editor, Photographer Copy Co-editor Assistant Editor, Arts and Entertainment Co-editor Katie Peplow Designer Anthony Pizzimenti Writer, Co-Web Master Lizzie Pruneau Photographer Apoorva Raikwar Designer, Videographer Velarchana Santhana Profiles Editor Leela Sathyaputri Artist Daniel Syed Writer Julia Truszkowski Writer, Designer, Videographer Gage Van Dyke Photographer Tyler Voss Design Co-editor, Feature Co-editor, Backpage Editor Shirley Wang Design Co-editor Jaycie Weathers Feature Co-editor Rebecca Wen Writer ycle this ec Sara Whittaker Adviser Grace Young Business Editor, Designer cover art by//leela sathyaputri Cover photo by//Hannah Muellerleile

Madie Miller Anna Mondanaro Katie Mons Amelia Moser Hannah Muellerleile Matthew Murry Blake Oetting

agazine

Copy Co-editor Opinion Editor Writer Archivist Photographer Sports Co-editor News Co-editor Video Editor Co-Web Master Photographer Artist Designer Writer, Designer, Photographer Writer, Artist Social Media Editor, Arts and Entertainment Co-editor Writer Photo Editor News Co-editor Sports Co-editor Artist, Designer Photographer Feature Co-editor Writer News Co-editor

M

Hilah Kohen Alora Kraus Lauren Knudson Brittani Langland Jaeho Lee Brooke Lofgren Kaitlyn McCurdy Consuelo Mendoza Hannah Merrill

en garde

Please R

photo by//Gage van dyke

Ruby Murray ’15 performs during the football game against Kennedy on Sept. 13. West won 41-14.

{Design by SHIRLEY WANG }

WEST ALUM HITS DISNEY He was Wesley in the Princess Bride and the prince in Beauty and the Beast. West graduate Grant Linden Scan this to ’12 has leaped out of Theatre West watch the segment and is expanding into Hollywood.

Linden recently made an appearance on a segment [a short show in between shows] on Disney Channel called “Coppertop Flop,” aired on Aug. 2 this year. He is making an appearance on a segment called “Homeroom,” scheduled to be on Hulu or YouTube later this year.

Grant Linden appears a segment called “Coppertop To aspiring actors at West, Linden advised, Flop” on Disney Channel “Surround yourself with creative, productive people. In this world it is extremely easy to get discouraged but when you have those types of people surrounding you the positive energy fuels you.”

WEST SIDE WORD

COMPilED by//MEGUMI KITAMOTO

yotch (yo-ch)

iDE Ssto ries

A WAKE UP CALL The administration at West High has instituted a new cell phone policy which further discourages use of cellular devices during class time.

“We have informed the staff that we made a modification in the cell phone policy: students are not permitted to use [cell phones] during class time at all, [and] in addition, if teachers feel they have to take the phone from the student, to instead send the student to office,” said Principal Jerry Arganbright.

The plan was designed to eliminate teacher responsibility for missing phones and to enact immediate action against students using phones in school.

COMPilED by//BLAKE OETTING art by//leela sathyaputri

@Weah298:

Making varsity throwing! #aimhigh

@EmileeBenedict:

NEWS BY THE NUMBERS

Ranking of the University of Iowa on the Princeton Review’s 2013 list of the Top 20 party schools in the U.S.

Students at West who are Semifinalists in the National Merit Scholarship Program

COMPilED by//shirley wang

new

Amnesty International Improvisation Club Political Forum National History Day Club clubs Rollerblading Club eSports Anime Club Podcast club COMPilED by//lucy blair

Leah Dusterhoft ’17 Zach Richmond ’14

The WHSDM, Friday night home games, watching Theatre West productions and the best part of the year: track season

@ICWingUlti

Emilee Benedict ’15

Huge skies, monster lay outs, suffocating cup defense, running chilly offense and other awesome, frisbee - related verbs. #Wings West High Ultimate Frisbee Team COMPilED by//lucy blair

Pursing victory with honor “Live Like Line”: the phrase shouted from the crowd at the volleyball games, highlighted by the neon orange on t-shirts. All in remembrance of Caroline Found, a student whose life was cut short in 2011 due to a moped accident. Forty minutes away, “Just Drew It” blazes in white on the deep purple t-shirts at Linn Mar High School, inspired by Drew Wall, a student who passed away from cancer in 2012.

Using these six words and the great significance behind them, West Guidance Coun-

1 “ 22

Like saying “yo,” but way more lax bro-esque.

“Yotch! When are you asking your girl to homecoming” COMPilED by//fiona armstrong-pavlik

@wsspaper asked West High students What are you looking forward to this year?

selor Paul Breitbach and Kennedy High School Golf coach Mark Wilden created the Live Like Line/Just Drew It Pursuing Victory with Honor Award.

“Hopefully after sometime this fall we’ll get some of the athletes together from both schools and talk to them about what they want to do [with the award] so they have more involvement,” Breitbach said.

“Both of these young people impacted their communities beyond their sports … we want to help other athletes remember that it’s bigger than just winning or losing.”

COMPilED by//shirley wang

I know that when I have watched other teachers here at West, I have seen those same traits over the years. As a new teacher here at West, I tried to emulate

what they were doing as much as possible. I

guess that you could say that I have had amazing mentors over the past eighteen years.

-Brad Wymer, recipient of the Outstanding Biology Teacher Award in Iowa. The National Association of Biology Teachers selects a teacher from each state based on their “teaching ability and experience, cooperativeness in the school and community, inventiveness, initiative, and student-teacher relationships”.

COMPilED by//shirley wang

Check out what happened on this day every year for the past 37 years. } september 2013 NEWS 3

{Design by Meredith cullen}

Administration upgrades school security

By Kelsey Keranen

kelseyjanekeranen@gmail.com

While the students of West High were taking advantage of the summer’s freedom, administrators at West High were busy enhancing the school’s security system by upgrading various points around the building to create a more secure environment.

Not only were teachers carefully instructed on how to protect students and themselves in the case of a violent intruder, the school’s physical security also underwent a revamp, improving both the locks on classroom doors and the security cameras.

“After quite a bit of funding, we

were able to put in intruder door locks,” said Principal Jerry Arganbright, “Now all teachers have the ability to lock the doors from the inside.”

Despite rumors that the enhanced security was due to the Newtown attacks, Arganbright said that’s not the case.

“The district had been discussing security changes long before the attacks occurred; it was an unfortunate coincidence that they happened to align [with the Newtown shooting],” Arganbright said.

As well as new locks, there are now more cameras installed both on the interior and the exterior of the school.

“Last year, we put enhanced cam-

era security in place. Now we can make sure that the people in the school are people who need to be here, and that people around the school are parents or students, or anyone otherwise appropriate to be on school grounds,” Arganbright said.

Teachers’ opinions on the new safety precautions vary.

“It’s sad to think that this is the world we live in,” French teacher Theresa Juhl said, “It’s a necessary adjustment to keep the kids safe, but it’s certainly very sad.”

“I think it’s a good thing,” German teacher Linsey Choun said, “I have children who go to school in the district, and I like to see that they consider safety important.

photo by//brooke lofgren Throughout West High, more locks and security cameras have been added to ensure a safe school environment.

Our school is considered to be a very safe school, and there is a lot of [concern] from what you see in the media; I don’t think you can ever be too precautious.”

Teachers undergo security training By aaron carter

aaroncarter51298@gmail.com

Teachers gathered inside West High to be trained. It’s not often that a teacher would be taught something, rather than teaching someone else, but this was a entirely different reason. On Aug. 15, this was for the protection of the school.

It is important that all 2,000 students are protected.

Jerry Arganbright, This was one Principal of the main reasons Principal Dr. Jerry Arganbright decided to do this event.

“Should something stange happen, I want to have the staff prepared both mentally and physically,” Arganbright said.

In order to prevent a tragic event like what happened in Newton, Connecticut, this was appropriate. In the shootings in the Aurora, Colorado movie theater and at Sandy Hook elementary, both shooters

showed signs of mental illness.

“Both staff and myself need to make certain that the people coming into West belong here,” Arganbright said, “If there is anybody with a mental health issue and seems violent, or a bit out of place, the staff has been trained to respond correctly and effectively, and

“

order of what teachers would try to do with their students in a strange situation like a shooter being in the building.

“We run fire drills all the time in the schools and the result of that is there have been no deaths in fires in the past year. But many people have died from shootings

I still believe teachers are prepared, but they are capable of doing things more swiftly.”

-Principal Jerry Arganbright

I am sure they will do just that.”

One of the leaders and trainer of staff in this event was Lt. Bill Campbell. Aside from training the teachers, Lt. Campbell is a member of the Iowa City Police Department response team. These drills were brought to the ICPD attention, and they stepped up and led these drills. The way they taught the staff went by this simple but important rule: “Run, hide, fight.” That is the

in schools, and this is why I think the school district decided to have these drills,” Campbell said.

One of the many teachers that went to the training was Biology teacher Jenifer Secrist.

“At first I was reluctant to go because I already felt that I had a good idea of how to react. Turns out I was completely wrong, and these mock drills were 100% beneficial,” Secrist said.

There were three different mock drills that took place that day, all different situations and different locations of the gunman.

“Before the mock drills took place, I had always assumed that I would bring you [my students] back to where my office is, in the small room right next to the classro om,” Secrist said, “During the Jenifer Secrist, drills, I came Biology teacher to the realization that since I have a back door that leads outside, if I knew the gunman was in a different part of the building and not outside, I would tell [my students] to run and don’t stop.”

Students trying to hide are more likely to be targeted if a gunman is in the building if there is not chaos among students.

“These mock drills empowered [teachers] a little bit, this gave us assurance that we can fight back,” she said.

4 NEWS SEPTEMBER 2013 {2012 – NASA’S MARS ROVER FOUND EVIDENCE WATER HAD PREVIOUSLY EXISTED ON THE PLANET.

{DESIGN BY HANNAH MERRILL}

term facilities plan which included closing Hoover.

“Hoover is an old school and it needs a lot of renovations if we continue to use it,” she said, “Every single family in the Hoover district is within walking distance of at least one, sometimes up to six or seven other elementary schools.

I think it is the right decision to close it.”

Dorau added that the board is required to follow the Barker Guidelines, which outline the necessary steps to take when considering the closing of a school.

“I think those set of guidelines are what would be practical for us to follow,” Dorau said.

To plan for future construction, the school board has already approved three purchases for land.

“We have a lot of students that are in temporaries in our district, and we want to make sure those students get into buildings,” she said. “The two elementaries on the east side are going to help alleviate a lot of overcrowding and I think it’s going to be nice to have those new buildings.”

Various renovation projects planned for Penn and Mark Twain Elementaries may also help.

“We spent a lot of time crafting a long-term facilities plan and now that that is in place I am hopeful we will be able to move forward. We’ve purchased land; now comes the fun part of building and renovating.”

“

Dorau recognizes the overcrowding problems in the district, but a plan for a third high school is very far off in the future even though land has already been bought. Integrating the future high school into the current district may be a challenge, but North Central Junior High could act as a model for a smooth transition.

“You’d start with a low enrollment number at the additional high school and eventually grow it,” Dorau said, adding that the high school would be built for 1,500 students, “But when you build the core facility to accommodate that growth in the future you can add onto it at a much lower cost.”

Building a third high school in the district does have pros and cons that need to be weighed. English teacher Kerri Barnhouse recognizes both sides of the argument.

“Selfishly, I don’t want to lose any kids from West High,” she said, “I like the kids we have, the diversity [and] personalities. It breaks my think-Kerri Barnhouse heart ing of a third high school taking those kids away.”

However, Barnhouse also knows the growing population at each high school is a major problem.

“It’s about kids having opportunities,” she said, “There are kids that can’t participate because they’re not [the best]. The bigger our school gets the less opportunities kids will have to get involved.”

Whether or not a third high school will break ground any time soon, the district will continue to grow and each side of the argument must be weighed.

“I think we have a great district,” Dorau said, “We have teachers, faculty and staff that are highly dedicated to their professions and are doing wonderful things in the classroom. I think we need to look at how we can continue to lead in the state and in the nation.”

IT’S ABOUT

PHOTO BY//HANNAH MERRILL ABOVE: Hoover Elematary School is a district school that the ICCSD school board plans on closing.

Keeping up with the school board

As another year commences, the ICCSD school board has many important decisions to follow up from last year. For West High, students focus on the school board as they make their decisions to address overcrowding felt all around the district.

BY MEREDITH CULLEN

meredithmcullen@gmail.com CLOSING HOOVER

A record number of constituents turned out for the school board election Sept. 3, proving there are many issues around the district voters are concerned about. Incumbent Tuyet Dorau had the most votes with 43%, and newcomers Chris Lynch and Brian Kirschling will join her.

Despite the successful election, Dorau knows it’s back to work for the board to accomplish everything they want to. A major debate for the school board is the overcrowding

felt all around the district. Hoover Elementary was announced as an option to alleviate the overcrowding. It could be closed for the elementary needs and used as a space for City High.

Dorau said she voted against closing Hoover Elementary.

“If we were going to specifically close a school we always need to make sure we very clearly articulate our rationale for closing that school, and specifically engage that school’s community population in the process,” she said.

Sally Hoelscher, another school board member, voted for the long-

KIDS HAVING

OPPORTUNITIES.”

THIRD HIGH SCHOOL

After summer break, it became clear that the pushing and cramming between classes in the halls of West High may be getting a little tighter.

Hoelscher’s plan to address the overcrowding issues includes the implementation of the long-term facilities she voted for.

“It’s going to take time, [but] hopefully we can catch up and stay ahead of it. But we’re growing, that’s a good challenge,” Hoelscher said.

2011 – MICHAEL JACKSON’S DOCTOR’S TRIAL BEGAN.} SEPTEMBER 2013 NEWS 5

{DESIGN BY LAUREN KNUDSON}

Spreading the word

Smith publishes AP Economics study book When one thinks of a teacher, they think of a person who teaches face to face using a textbook that someone else created. However, social studies teacher Tyson Smith went above and beyond and is teaching students outside of West.

Published on Sept. 23, 2013, Tyson Smith’s AP Micro/Macroeconomics All Access is an AP test prep guide on the ideas of Micro and Macroeconomics. These two ideas are the bricks and mortar of understanding how economics work: Macroeconomics provide concepts and structure to the study of economics. Microeconomics exemplify the small details that solidify the larger ideas.

The writing process began in 2011 when Smith was contacted by his previous publishers.

“I was asked to write this book after serving as content editor for

some other prep book,” Smith said.

Starting in July 2012, Smith produced manuscripts for the book leading up to March 2013.

Throughout 2012 and 2013, editors at the Research and Education Association bounced manuscripts back and forth with Smith to produce good content as well as clarity.

However, much of the book’s conPHOTO BY//LIZZIE PRUNEAU

Tyson Smith, social studies, teacher holds his new A.P. Economics study book.

tent is not centered on text, but the reader’s education.

“A lot of the time was spent on glossary and appendices, practice questions and answers and making all the graphs that are in [the book],” Smith said.

Through the use of visuals and helpful explanation, students are engaged in an active interchange between teacher and student rather than a bombardment of arbitrary facts.

After teaching for 11 years at West, Smith has had many opportunities to develop his ideas through the instruction of his AP Economics course.

“Students from past years were quite helpful in getting me to reflect on the clearest way to express many of the concepts. Without the opportunities to instruct this course and to have taught such successful students I likely would not have been approached and asked to write this book,” Smith said.

Bresnahan writes book about Caroline Found, 2011 volleyball season

BY GRACE YOUNG

graceyoung1997@gmail.com No one will ever forget the tragic yet inspiring volleyball season of 2011 following the death of team member Caroline Found and just to be sure they don’t, head coach Kathy Bresnahan has drafted the season into a book.

In what she described as a “really emotional process,” Bresnahan recaps the extraordinary season in which West High overcame the loss of Found, a setter for the team, but more importantly “the heart and soul of [the] team.” Just two months later, the Women of Troy

won the state championships in a dramatic fashion over cross-town rival City High.

“Several people have considered writing about it, [but] people connected to West High volleyball, myself included, wanted to make sure that the journey was also told from our perspective,” Bresnahan said.

“I think it’s important though for people to remember that the 2011 was also a celebration. The West High students, community, parents merged together and the tidal wave of emotion was an amazing process to watch evolve,” she said.

Using her own notes from

throughout the season, Bresnahan spent her summer writing away and after “12 weeks, with 10- to 12hour days” produced “Livin’ Like Line — A Team, A Tragedy and A Triumph.”

After giving members of the squad a chance to read it, Bresnahan passed it off to an editor. Currently on hold until the end of volleyball season, Bresnahan expects many more hours of revising to follow before it is sent off to a publisher.

“This story was my gift to [the West High volleyball family] to honor their accomplishments and document our love for Caroline,” Bresnahan said.

CURRENT Events

QUIZ

SEPTEMBER

1

What is the newest upgrade to downtown Iowa City?

A) New sidewalks B) Wi-Fi throughout downtown C) Landscaping on the Pedmall D) New lamp-posts

Which downtown business is re-opening after a fire?

A) The Englert B) Panchero’s C) Bruegger’s D) Linn Street Cafe

3

Princeton Review named UI number one in which category?

A) Politics B) Town life C) Extracurriculars D) Party school

Which part of City High was recently upgraded?

A) The cafeteria B) The lockers C) The fine arts center D) The bathrooms

5

2

4

The Iowa legislature will revisit giving gun permits to which group of people in 2014?

A) Deaf B) Blind C) Under 18 D) Over 60

Answers: 1. B, 2. C, 3. D, 4. C, 5. B

BY ANTHONY PIZZIMENTI pizzimentiAnthony@gmail.com

COMPILED BY//LAUREN KNUDSON

6 NEWS SEPTMBER 2013 {2010 LOS ANGELES RECORDED THEIR ALL-TIME RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURES AT 113 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT.

WHATIN THE WORLD?

{DESIGN BY VELARCHANA SANTHANA}

United Kingdom

Australia

A British psychic who claimed he could speak to the dead was accused of placing humans in his ghost tour to knock on command after a man jumped from the psychic’s attic after the tour.

A kayaker was rescued from Governor Island off the coast of Western Australia after being trapped by a very large crocodile for more than two weeks.

The Netherlands

A Dutch company is selling one-way tickets to Mars for 2023. So far, 2,782 people have registered and will undergo selection based on videos they submit this fall and interviews conducted early next year.

COMPILED BY//MEREDITH CULLEN

The Maldives

A coconut was detained by police in the Maldives after it was accused of possessing black magic. It was placed near a presidential election polling station for bad luck.

Strabala runs for Coralville mayor Motivated by dissatisfaction with the status quo, the West High senior will pursue the city’s highest office.

BY FIONA ARMSTRONG-PAVLIK

fiona.armstrongpavlik@gmail.com

He only became eligible for the position a few weeks ago when he turned Logan Strabala ’14 18, but Logan Strabala ’14 is running for mayor of Coralville.

Despite having no official endorsements, Strabala remains optimistic, and believes his chances of winning are “about 50/50.”

“I don’t have [any campaign] money, so it’s kind of word-ofmouth at the moment,” Strabala said of his strategy.

Strabala says his main reasons for running are Coralville’s unsound fiscal policy and disagreement with the other mayoral candidates’ platforms.

“I didn’t like the other candidates, really, and there’s a lot of debt in Coralville, so I figured I might as well run,” Strabala said.

Although he is 63 years younger than current Coralville mayor Jim Fawcett, Strabala feels he is qualified for the job.

“I feel like it’s not [as hard] as people think. It’s just a lot of headache stuff, it’s not, like physical

“

support,” Strabala said.

Strabala thinks the transition to being mayor would be relatively simple for him.

“I don’t think it would be an obstacle. The mayor position is based around having a full-time

... THERE’S A LOT OF DEBT IN CORALVILLE, SO I FIGURED I MIGHT AS WELL RUN.”

-Logan Strabala ’14

labor or anything,” Strabala said.

He said that, if elected, his primary goal would be to stop Coralville’s excessive spending on developments like the Iowa River Landing. Instead, he hopes money could be used to repair roads and invest in education.

“I [would] start by getting public support [and] letting people know what the issues are,” Strabala said.

Strabala also said he would be interested in cooperation with the city council.

“If I won, I would have enough

job, and I only work part-time,” Strabala said.

Strabala thinks the biggest obstacle would be getting elected.

“Reorganizing everything and just getting used to it would be [other challenges],” Strabala said.

“I think the best part about it would be the experience and getting to know people in the town,” Strabala said.

Despite this early venture into politics, Strabala says he is not interested in pursuing other political positions after high school.

{DESIGN BY HILAH KOHEN}

RUMOR BUSTER

Locker waiting list?

What better way is there to celebrate the beginning of a new school year than to compare locker numbers with your best friends?

Unfortunately, not everyone got a locker at orientation.

While it’s true there was a locker waiting list at one point, according to Principal Jerry Arganbright no one is currently on it. The school ordered 80 new lockers this year. Some students do have smaller lockers than others, but have no fear, no student is without a locker this school year.

busted Air conditioning in the whole school?

It is hard to deny the influence record-breaking high temperatures have had on the beginning of this school year: they’ve had students hoping for (and getting) early outs on several occasions. According to Principal Jerry Arganbright the district plans on installing air conditioning throughout the school system. However, the year this will happen is still unclear. After the heat we’ve had this year, it seems to have proven itself necessary in the near future.

CONFIRMED COMPILED BY//BROOKE LOFGREN

2009 – BBC REPORTED GEN. MCCHRYSTAL REQUESTED MORE TROOPS IN AFGHANISTAN.} SEPTEMBER 2013 NEWS 7

FRESH FACES IN HIGH PLACES Now that the new school year is well on its way, the WSS learned more about some of West High’s newest teachers.

COMPILED BY//REBECCA WEN, ABBY BURGESS, LIZZIE PRUNEAU AND KELSEY KERANEN

COLBY MILLER POSITION: Assistant Principal

DAVID COVINGTON DEPARTMENT: Social Studies REASON FOR COMING TO WEST: “I was a para-educator at West High last year. I attended City High school and then the University of Iowa.”

LOOKING FORWARD: “West High is an amazing school, so this opportunity was a no brainer. I enjoy the culture of this school.”

FUN FACT: “I’m a true convert: used to be a Little Hawk, now I am a true Trojan.”

REASON FOR COMING TO WEST:

“The position of assistant principal was available, and West has such a great reputation. It was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.”

LOOKING FORWARD: “I’m most ex-

cited to get a chance to work with so many great kids and faculty, and the community in Iowa City.”

FUN FACT: “I have a passion for running; I run daily, over 50 miles a week.”

BRIDGET WAACK

JENNIFER SCHEIVERT POSITION: Librarian REASON FOR COMING TO WEST:

“I moved from Okasa, Japan. My husband is at the university getting his doctorate, so I applied for a few jobs and ended up here.”

FUN FACT: “I lived in both Thailand and Japan. I learned to scuba dive in Thailand.”

DEPARTMENT: Social Studies REASON FOR COMING TO WEST: “I just moved this summer; I was excited to get the position in this district right away.”

LOOKING FORWARD: “I’ve heard great things about West and its students, so I’m most looking forward to students who are excited and ready to learn.”

FUN FACT: “I lived in Laramie, Wyoming in the mountains for a few years while getting my master’s degree, which isn’t an experience a lot of people get to have. I was also once chased by a buffalo in Yellowstone.”

DOMINIC IANNONE DEPARTMENT: Social Studies REASON FOR COMING TO WEST:

“I used to teach at Northwest Junior High, [and] I also taught in Des Moines. I chose West because I used to teach high school and I liked it a lot better; West High gave me the opportunity to teach high school again.”

FUN FACT: “I play the guitar and love science fiction.”

8 PROFILES SEPTEMBER 2013 {2008 – UCLA MATHEMATICIANS WON $100,000 FOR FINDING A 13-MILLION-DIGIT PRIME NUMBER.

{DESIGN BY VELARCHANA SANTHANA}

LORI TREVINO DEPARTMENT: Science REASON FOR COMING TO WEST: “[I got my] masters in science education at the University of Iowa. I am a second career teacher. My first career was in nuclear medicine. I was a program director at a training program in Orlando, Florida.”

MELISSA GILLISPIE POSITION:

preter

Sign language inter-

REASON FOR COMING TO WEST: “I am the sign language interpreter from Van Allen Elementary School.

I worked with younger kids there. I wanted to start in high school, so when I got an offer, I took it.”

FUN FACT: “I live in Williamsburg.

I lived in Florida for several years.

My favorite place in the world is to be at the beach.”

FUN FACT: “I have terrible allergies to everything.”

GREG YODER

SAMANTHA DRELLA

POSITION: Guidance Counselor

POSITION: Secretary

REASON FOR COMING TO WEST:

REASON FOR COMING TO WEST: “I am originally from central Iowa, but I moved here from Minnesota. [When I lived in Minnesota] I was a substitute teacher. [I moved to Iowa] because my best friend convinced me to. I had heard good things about West.”

“I was formerly at City High for seven years and Washington for five years. West was a lot closer to home, [and] my children attend Weber Elementary.”

FUN FACT: “I love sports: biking, baseball [and] just being outside. I am [also] fluent in Spanish; I used to teach it.”

FUN FACT: “I like to whistle.”

DALIMAR SANCHEZRIVERA TIFFANY ROISLAND DEPARTMENT: Social Studies

DEPARTMENT: Spanish

REASON FOR COMING TO WEST: “I moved from La Crosse, Wisconsin.

[I moved here because] my husband got a job at the university.”

REASON FOR COMING TO WEST: “I did student teaching here last semester.”

FUN FACT: “I have been to all fifty

states.”

LOOKING FORWARD: “I want my students to be exposed to as much Spanish as they can; I want them to be exposed to the diversity, the culture and fall in love with the language.”

FUN FACT: “I’m from Puerto Rico, and this is my tenth year in the US. It was when I came here that I learned to speak English, since I became so immersed in the language.”

2007 – GEORGE RIEVESCL, THE INVENTOR OF BENADRYL, DIED AT AGE 91.} SEPTEMBER 2013 PROFILES 9

{Design by KATIE MONS}

ART by//ANNA FURLONG

A Capitol idea

Madison Voigt ’15 and Lexi Weber ’14 look to take on jobs as pages in the U.S. Senate and the Iowa House of Representatives, respectively.

By HANNAH MERRILL

hannah.merrillWSS@gmail.com

As the new school year rolled around, most West students anticipated their return to Madison Voigt ’15 the routines that develop from balancing classes, homework and extracurriculars. For Madison Voigt ’15, however, the commencement of fall classes meant a journey to Washington, D.C. Unlike her fellow classmates, she would not be sitting in seven classes per day, five days a week, but rather would be joining pages and senators in the excitement of the nation’s busy capital.

Voigt left for a semester in Washington on Sept. 5 to have a once-ina-lifetime experience. She will be working amongst 29 other pages alongside U.S. senators and staff on the floor, giving her a taste of government life.

“I’m really excited about the new experience in general,” Voigt said.

“My day-to-day life will be so different. I’m excited to become close to the other pages, and to explore the city with my new friends.”

But Voigt’s experience will not be

all exploration, as her obligations as page will keep her busy. All pages are expected to attend school. Voigt will go to the Senate Page School, an accredited school, meaning that her credits from school in Washington will transfer over to West when she returns. The school will offer her core classes such as math, science, English, and social studies.

However, since it is a page school, the schedule will revolve around when the Senate convenes and adjourns.

School will take up most of Voigt’s mornings, after which she will report to the Senate an hour before it convenes to prepare the floor. Pages will copy documents, exchange messages between senators and give help when needed, putting Voigt right in the middle of the action.

Voigt has not yet participated in local politics, but she thinks the page program could open her eyes to an interest in that area.

“I wanted to do the program for the experience,” Voigt said, “but being a part of the program allows me to explore the option of being involved in politics if I did develop any strong interests.”

As for her attitude walking into the U.S. government?

“I think it will be amazing to be part of the government process,” she said.

By GAGE VAN DYKE

agvdmaster@gmail.com

While most West High seniors are planning on what college they are attending next year and Lexi Weber ’14 whether or not they will be living in a dorm or apartment, Lexi Weber ’14 is applying to the Iowa Legislative Page Program where she could be a page for congressman Kraig Paulsen. The duties of a page are attending meetings between the representatives, and communicating key information between other representatives.

Weber will be graduating West High after the first trimester to accommodate the program’s schedule, which starts in February and ends in the Spring. However, the effect of Weber leaving after the first trimester is she will miss out on key musical experiences.

“With show choir [and other] extracurriculars … I enjoyed the musical, and it really had me stop and think ‘is it worth it, giving all these things up?’” Weber said.

After serious contemplation and support from her counselor and teachers, Weber was more confident in pursuing her goal.

“If there was a risk worth taking, it would be this. Just getting the chance to do this is worth it,” Weber said.

Weber believes that communication is an important skill to possess as a page, and she has improved that skill through her other responsibilities in participating in State

Fairs and extracurriculars.

“The skills I’ve learned through showing cattle and 4H and tutoring with special education has helped my communication skills … just being able to communicate, and sit down talk to a complete stranger is really important skill if I’m going to be in this program.”

Weber took a trip to Des Moines last year to better understand how business in the state capitol works.

When she came back to school she had an improved understanding of lobbying after seeing them first-hand in action. Brady Shutt, Weber’s AP Government teacher, could see Weber’s application of new knowledge during class discussions.

“Last year she had gone to visit, and we were learning about lobbying and legislation … she had such a more vibrant understanding than anyone else because she had actually seen people lobbying,” Shutt said, “To experience it and live it … you can’t duplicate that in a classroom.”

Shutt recognizes the roughness of politics and challenges, but he believes Weber is up to the task.

“Politics is tough, and Lexi is tough,” Shutt said.

Whether or not Weber sees herself branching out further into politics, she said she hopes for the chance to work for the Iowa House of Representatives as more than an internship, and more of a cherishable experience that she’ll remember years to come.

“I would hope for it to be an experience I would never regret, never forget,” Weber said.

Weber will find out in late October if she has been chosen for the job.

10 PROFILES SEPTEMBER 2013 {2006 – The Republican Party chose Minneapolis-St. Paul for its 2008 convention.

The

meaning

of

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Millenial

By LUSHIA ANSON & STEPHON BERRY lushia.anson@gmail.com stephon.berry15@gmail.com

Generation Y, better known as The Millenials is a generation most often praised by others for how interconnected we are globally yet criticized for our apparent narcissism. But what do Millenials think of their own generation?

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e live in a world where we are constantly bombarded with information. Tweets, online articles, YouTube videos, texts and advertisements – all targeted to get our attention – are always popping up on whatever technological devices we own, updating and influencing almost every aspect of our lives.

Although it is almost impossible for anyone to go through the day without coming into contact with some form of media, this information overload is most strongly affecting one generation in particular: the Millennial Generation. Also known as Generation Y, this group is defined by most sources as people who were born between the years 1980 and 2000.

TECH DISTRACTION With every technological innovation comes a new opportunity for people to enhance their daily lives.

“I would define our generation as a whole as having a lot of accessibility … because of the

range of smartphones and highspeed internet … everything is just so rapid-fire fast,” said Thomas Sparks ’14.

West science teacher and previous West student Jeff Conner ’05 had a different experience.

“When I was in high school, only a select few students had cell phones … they were not like smartphones, they were just simple phones and you could text with them, but that was about the extent of technology,” he said.

Today, the possibilities are almost endless: one could look up a topic or a statistic with a click of a mouse, instantaneously communicate with someone from across the world or even spread an idea across the internet and reach millions of people in under a day. The question is: is technology starting to affect our lives so much that we are becoming completely defined by it?

Math teacher Karen Meyer believes that growing up with such an abundance of technology and information has overwhelmed the Millennial generation.

“I think that this generation is more distracted … and less able to stay focused on the projects at

hand,” she said.

Sparks agreed.

“I think it’s more of an attentionspan problem, because a lot of the times we like to try and multi-task; we want to be able to do homework, listen to our music, watch TV and download music all at the same time,” he said.

Conner explained why he has a tendency to do multiple things at once.

“I think part of having a computer

“

I THINK IT’S MORE OF AN ATTENTIONSPAN PROBLEM ... A LOT OF THE TIME WE LIKE TO TRY AND MULTI-TASK.” -Thomas Sparks ’14

on or my tablet out is just me wanting to have the security, that I know what is going on in the world,” Conner said. “When I’m having a one-on-one conversation, I’m afraid that there might be other things going on that I don’t know about.”

Meyer thinks that the seemingly excessive flow of information and media can benefit people by

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“Our generation is more liberal and untraditional on social issues like gay marriage.”

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helping an individual learn to discipline themselves.

“There are ways that we can teach people about moderation … because that’s going to apply in a lot of different areas as well,” she said. “[As parents, if] you teach your kids about ... moderation in everything that they do, that’s going to be a big plus.”

However, that may come easier for some people than others.

“I think potentially it starts

’17

“This is the technological age, we have computers and internet. I guess we just need to not abuse it and use it for good.”

to create a bigger gap between learners, because I think that those who are able to stay focused and discipline themselves … will continue to benefit from this incredible media onslaught, as opposed to others who maybe … weren’t gifted with that same kind of focusing ability,” Meyer said.

CONNECTED COMMUNUCATION Some of the major sources of this “distraction” are the new methods of communication.

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12 FEATURE SEPTEMBER 2013 {2004 – US MILITARY LEADER SUSPECTED OSAMA BI N LADEN WAS RESIDING IN PAKISTAN.

4

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“The Indian woman who won Miss America, people would never say that stuff to her face but [anonymity] has emboldened people so they can be racist.”

According to Yair Abramoff ’15, face-to-face interaction has begun losing its value because of more convenient and impersonal methods of communication.

“It’s so much easier to talk to someone [online] … there’s a lot less person-to-person talk,” he said.

“People can talk to each other late at night and all throughout the day … when, before cell phones, people only talked for a couple of hours a day.”

Sam Ruback ’15 believes that technology has not only transformed the methods of communication, but the manner of interpersonal interactions as well.

“I think people can be a lot more casual [and] much less formal with each other … when our parents were our age, they were taught to respect their elders so much more than we have been taught because we can speak to them so much more easily,” she said.

Not only is it easier to instantaneously communicate with friends and family, it’s easier for media outlets to spread messages to a wider audience as well. Millennials are often on the receiving end of hundreds of advertisements, articles, tweets and various other types of media every day, all competing to be heard.

“I feel like that sometimes the media tries to bend things every little which way to get more attention,” Sparks said. “It’s more about info-tainment now.”

Ruback believes that the overexposure to media and information may be a huge factor

Ben

in the development of people’s thoughts and ideas.

“If you click on a YouTube video, then the recommended videos are like the same, so it’s easier to spiral into ideas … because everything is so grouped together, you can get caught up in one specific idea because you’re just in that section,” she said.

Because of this “spiral effect,” it is easier to get caught up in ideas of the “perfect” individual, according to Ruback.

“It’s partly made us more selfconscious because it’s so much easier to spread images, so we see a lot more of the “ideal” people,” Ruback said. “It’s so much easier to spread the ideas of what is good and what is bad about people’s bodies and personalities.”

This abundance of information, according to Meyer, can also narrow a person’s perspective.

“When there’s this much access to information, people don’t have the full story all the time,” Meyer said.

Despite this, the new ability of the Millennials to rapidly spread messages also has its positives.

“Our ability to [communicate] with one another has made us slightly more open-minded than our parents were,” Ruback said.

REWIRING OUR VALUES While technology may impact the way Millennials acquire information, it could also affect the way they think.

There are many ways that students think the values of the Millennial generation have changed.

5

n ’1

o Nels

“Being connected to social media, and an overemphasis on TV and entertainment.”

“

I THINK WE TEND TO BE MUCH MORE FOCUSED IN THE ‘NOW.’” -Jeff Conner ’05, West science teacher

Katy Alden ’16 believes we have become more accepting overall as a society on controversial issues, such as gay rights.

“Back when [my mother] was a kid, if someone was gay, that was like, ‘oh my goodness, what?’,” she said. “Now, if you hear your friend is gay or whatever, you’re like, ‘okay, that doesn’t really affect me or anything, cool, go for it’.”

Alden said acceptance tends to spread in society.

“I think there’s a lot more people who are coming out … if one person starts accepting it, then a bunch of people do,” she said.

Another thing Millennials may be inclined to do is spend more time concentrating on the present, according to Conner.

“I think we tend to be much more focused in the ‘now’, and not really looking ahead and not really looking back, and that’s concerning to me a bit,” Conner said.

Abramoff said that this can lead to a lack of motivation in Millennials.

“I think a lot of kids of this generation aren’t thinking about what’s going to happen after high school,” Abramoff said. He thinks that because Millennials have become accustomed to a more convenient life, they don’t feel the need to work as hard.

Emilia Szmyrgala ’14 believes that

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{DESIGN BY LYDIA HINMAN} {PHOTOS BY LUSHIA ANSON & STEPHON BERRY}

’14

“Acceptance. Everyone wants to prove that they’re somebody, doing something, going somewhere.”

prioritizing the present can have other effects.

“I feel like our generation strives for [things] but may never achieve them,” she said. “We’re so wrapped up in getting everything right now, in high school, so that we’re ready for college, but what happens in college?”

Others, like Kate Thorne ’14, do not think our values have drastically changed from previous generations.

“I think [all generations] have more similarities than we think,” Thorne said. “Everyone wants happiness, everyone wants love and everyone has goals. They just change based on the society.”

Meyer also thinks our values have stayed the same for the most part; however, she said “distraction” has had an effect on how we follow those values.

“I hope that people are still kind and respectful and giving and honest … but again, that distraction takes away from it,” Meyer said. “For example, if I have a student that’s super respectful, in the moment that their phone rings, are they going to pick up the phone and are they going to answer it when I’m sitting right here with them? Or are they going to let it go?”

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’14

“How we’re adjusting to society and technology: the younger you are, the more knowledgable you are.”

2003 – SIBERIA HAS ITS LARGEST EARTHQUAKE IN 70 YEARS, DESTROYING 300 HOMES.} SEPTEMBER 2013 FEATURE 13

{DESIGN BY TYLER VOSS}

CONSTANT CONNECTION

BY MATTHEW MURRY & HILAH KOHEN ART BY// KELSEY KERANEN

As class Twitter and Facebook pages pop up around the school, the line between academic purpose and inappropriate interaction continues to thin. The West Side Story set out to see what forms of online communication are acceptable and what ones are not.

A

s students and teachers at West embark on a new year, teachers throughout the school are developing new techniques to match. More and more instructors now sport Twitter and Facebook accounts, and every class is required to have a webpage by the end of first trimester. Just like any other change, scholastic social media has its unintended consequences: the line between professional and personal interactions could become increasingly blurred. Nevertheless, social studies teacher Brady Shutt says West High’s burst of technological innovation has significant upsides.

“I think that it’s a fantastic, handin-hand, beautiful opportunity to integrate new methods and formats for communicating and exchanging ideas,” Shutt said.

Principal Jerry Arganbright said the school’s increased technological capabilities have played a major role in spurring interactive teaching methods, including the use of social media.

“With all the technology now installed and operational, we’re on the front end of all that happening in our classrooms, so have I seen an increase in using social media?

Definitely,” he said.

Social studies teacher and director of debate Megan Johnson said she’s taking advantage of one of social media’s biggest advantages: accessibility.

“They are going to be on Facebook at night anyway, they’re going to be checking their Twitter at night, so they can quickly, easily go to the page to figure out what assignment they have due tomorrow,” she said.

Claudia Tait ’16 put it more bluntly.

“No kid’s going to check their teacher’s webpage rather than Twit-

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ter,” she said. [social media] … You know, there’s Tait contends that social media’s tweeting, there’s a lot of media that popularity gives it an edge over I even have a hard time keeping up conventional teaching styles as with myself. But we tell people just well. not to forget that those communi“Kids are a lot more attached to cations always have to be profestheir phones than they are to their sional … there’s really no margin textbooks,” she said. for error with that.”

On the other hand, many students Spanish teacher David McNair don’t have instant access to laptops thinks that teacher-student online and speedy Internet service. When connections should stay strictly rehe considers the disadvantages of lated to school. classroom connectivity, Shutt said, “It varies depending on the stu“the biggest one is the digital di- dent, depending on the situation, vide.” but I would Jo h n s on say as a general agrees. rule of thumb “I always THOSE COMMUNICATIONS that you need make sure that ALWAYS HAVE TO BE to keep a proI’m providing fessional workanything that I ing relationship would provide THERE’S REALLY NO with that stuthrough social dent,” McNair MARGIN FOR ERROR media in the said. However, class,” she said. WITH THAT.” he believes that Perhaps the -Principal Jerry Arganbright there can be exgreatest ethical ceptions. dilemma that has accompanied the “Of course there are situations use of social media for academic where the student is a friend’s son purposes is the increased potential or daughter, or a neighbor. That for personal entanglement between might change things because there students and teachers. Some teach- is already a pre-existing relationers maintain a strictly professional ship outside of the academic relaonline relationship with students, tionship,” he said. while others believe that increased Kai Yan ’14 agrees with this expersonal connectivity can be ap- ception. Yan, having attended depropriate. bate tournaments around the counArganbright said there is no de- try with West High faculty, has a fined district policy on online more extensive relationship with teacher-student interactions. debate coach Megan Johnson than “Every year, we remind the adults most students do with teachers. He … to just be careful in any com- believes that online social connecmunications they have with stu- tion with teachers is permissible if dents … I think particularly with there is already a pre-existing relahigh school-age kids … we want to tionship. make sure that all communications “Megan’s my debate coach … are always appropriate,” he said., since we communicate so much “We don’t tell people you can’t be anyways, it’s not necessarily someon Facebook; we don’t tell people thing out of the ordinary. I don’t you can’t have communications via have Megan for a class except the

“

PROFESSIONAL...

debate class, and social media makes it easier to communicate with her,” he said.

Yan said online relationships shouldn’t be treated differently from face-to-face ones.

“There’s not a difference … between communicating in person and … online … if you’re going to communicate, you’re going to communicate, and social media makes it easier for you,” he said. “I go and talk to [English teacher Kerri Barnhouse] every other day … is there really a difference between communicating then and communicating at home using social media? I don’t think so.”

As society becomes increasingly intertwined with technology, the future for social media in teacher-student relationships remains unclear. Shutt believes that new communication technologies will provide unique educational opportunities.

“One thing that I think you’re going to see with teaching as a profession is a much faster level of sharing and coordination of ideas, lesson plans [and] primary source materials in terms of the use of social media. It’s going to break down the typical way that we organize ourselves as a building, as these departments who meet and collaborate and create,” he said.

Johnson thinks that social media will have restricted growth, citing its volatile nature. “I think it could definitely become more of a thing, but I think if there were ever to be one negative thing happening that it could … become something that isn’t allowed,” she said, “As far as this district, I envision it as something that probably will continue to grow … but I think that it will stay pretty strictly professional.”

on the spot

Should students and teachers be friends on Facebook?

Yair Abramoff ’15

Amelia Skopec ’15

“I think they should not be friends on Facebook until after the student is not “Probably not because that taking a class from the teacher because could influence teacher’s opinion the teacher-student relationship should of them or vice versa.” be professional.”

Alex Choi ’14

“I think it’s all right as long as it’s used in a way that helps education.”

COMPILED BY// MATTHEW MURRY

2001 – THE FBI RELEASED 19 PHOTOS OF PEOPLE BELIEVED TO BE THE 9/11 HIJACKERS. } SEPTEMBER 2013 FEATURE 15

{DESIGN BY APOORVA RAIKWAR}

GOODBYE GLUTEN

BY REBECCA WEN & ABBY BURGESS

“I went home from school sick every single day,” Quint said.

After taking a blood test wen.y.rebecca@gmail.com & abbyn.burgess@gmail.com during her freshman year, she found allergies toward We’ve all heard of the fads before: gluten, dairy, corn and chicken. in fat-free, South Beach, low-carb, Both Saylor and Paleolithic and now, the gluten-free Quint eat mostly fruits, diet. All these diets have some logic vegetables,and lean meats now. behind them, but surely that does “I feel lighter on my feet, not alone qualify them as healthy. I’m not sick anymore, [and] I With a growing number of people feel a lot more fit,” Quint said. shying away from gluten, the n o t Others choose a gluten-free h a s n ’ t question arises: why go gluten-free? diet because they notice health noticed any In many cases, it is because of benefits. Kayla Culjat ’14 has been significant difference an allergy. Symptoms gluten-free for over two in her energy level. of gluten intolerance Although gluten-free months and says she and Celiac Disease, does not plan to return diets may seem like a fad to some, a severe allergy to to her old eating habits. others believe it is a fairly easy and gluten, can include skin Culjat went gluten- healthy diet to stick to. However, rash, gastrointestinal free with the rest of there are right and wrong ways problems and fatigue. her family. Making the to the gluten-free lifestyle.

Jenny Saylor, an art Saylor says replacing gluten decision to eliminate teacher at West High, Jenny Saylor, art teacher wheat, rye and barley with substitutes like “tapioca discovered she was products was no easy flour, potato starch, xanthan intolerant several years ago. task at first. Now her gum … all increase “Originally, when we tried diet mainly consists of blood sugar levels.” [going gluten-free] we were soy, and she replaces Many foods labeled hoping for some [athletic] gluten with flaxseed “gluten-free” contain performance benefits,” Saylor said. and chickpea grain. extra sugar, fat and When Saylor removed Aside calories to imitate from being gluten from her diet, she gluten-free she is also the taste and texture did notice a big difference. vegetarian by choice. of gluten.

Saylor “I had some aches and pains,” argues that foods like “You really have to read Madeline Quint ’14 Saylor said. “In time, some of those up before you try going gluten-free waffles aches and pains had gone away.” gluten-free. It is easy to and pizza have Additionally, her become low on zinc and have B1 little benefit for those who are gastrointestinal issues were vitamin deficiency,” Culjat said. gluten-intolerant or otherwise. gone in “almost in 24 hours.”

Instead of a replacing gluten These deficiencies can cause Like Saylor, Madeline f a t i g u e . with processed food, Saylor and Quint ’14 discovered However, Quint both support whole foods. that she is also “We’ve been forced to go with Culjat gluten intolerant. says she whole foods. It increased the

Source: National Foundation for Celiac Awareness COMPILED BY//REBECCA WEN

quality of our diet,” Saylor said.

Quint also suggests reading food labels so people can stay conscious of what they eat .

Recently, more foods are being labeled gluten-free due to the increased market demand.

Restaurants l i k e M o n i c a ’s , M o n d o ’s Draft House, and the Wig and Pen offer glutenfree meals.

“It’s not nearly as hard as people make it out to be,” Saylor said.

PHOTOS BY//APOORVA RAIKWAR

16 FEATURE SEPTEMBER 2013 { 2000 – FRANK WILLS, THE SECURITY GUARD WHO DISCOVERED THE WATERGATE BREAK-IN, DIED.

WHAT’S IN THIS __________? hot dog

{DESIGN BY HANNAH MUELLERLEILE}

With tailgating in full swing, the West Side Story takes a look at the ingredients of BY//VELARCHANA SANTHANA PHOTO BY//LIZZIE PRUNEAU one of the most popular tailgating foods--the hot dog. COMPILED

Dru Mueller

Associate Research Editor of the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics

According to Mueller, “ingredients in hot dogs vary widely depending on the type and/or brand.” To see if any of the following ingredients are in your hot dogs at home, check the nutritional information.

SODIUM NITRATE According to studies being reviewed by the American Institute for Cancer Research and the World Cancer Fund, there is a link between sodium nitrate in some types of hot dogs and colorectal cancer. Sodium nitrate is added to hot dogs as a preservative. Nitrates form a carcinogen called nitrosamines that can cause cell damage when mixed with foods high in protein, like processed meats.

CARMINE Carmine is a type of red dye used to give hot dogs that reddish-pink outer shell color. Made out of crushed beetle shells, this dye has few known health risks. However, carmine has recently been linked with the trigger of allergic reactions of people with insect allergies.

POTASSIUM AND SODIUM TRIPHOSPHATES Potassium and sodium triphosphates are salts used as a firming agent and allow the water and oils to mix within the hot dog. The same salt has been used in detergents, paper and rubber; however, there have been no negative health effects directly linked to this salt.

PHOTOS AND COMPILED BY// VELARCHANA SANTHANA

Hot dog buns are a good source of calcium. In fact, Sara Lee Soft & Smooth White Hot Dog Buns contains 10% of the calcium needed in the average adult’s diet.

MYTH:

“

MYTH:

“

food fiction The West Side Story asked students for some common food myths.

CALCIUM

An apple has just as much sugar as a candy bar.”

Organic food is better for us (compared to) non-organic food.”

maybe?

Research is still on-going to discover whether or not organic food is healthier.

“A recent study examined the past 50 years’ worth of scientific articles about the nutrient content of organic and conventional foods. The researchers concluded that organically and conventionally produced foodstuffs are comparable in their nutrient content,” Mueller said.

Gabby Klemme ’17

CONFIRMED

Although an apple and a candy bar have roughly the same amount of sugar, apples are healthier because of their nutritional value. According to Mueller, “Apples contain vitamins and minerals that are essential to healthy growth and development, as well as brain functioning, heart health and our bodies’ other daily needs. Apples are also high in fiber, which can help you feel full and discourage overeating.”

Abigail Brown ’14

1999 – BILL GATES DONATED $1 BILLION FOR MINORITY STUDENTS PURSUING MATH/SCIENCE DEGREES.} SEPTEMBER 2013 FEATURE 17

STARSTRUCK

We admire celebrities from afar in magazines, TV shows and movies, but rarely do we get the chance to meet them. WSS talked to students who have met Hollywood’s elite and got the scoop on other obsess-worthy starlets.

BY JULIA TRUSZKOWSKI & JAYCIE WEATHERS juliatruszkowski@gmail.com weathers.jaycie@gmail.com

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LITTLE MIX

Most fanatics sitting front row at a concert reach out their hands, and think brushing fingers with their favorite celebrity is something to brag about. Mark McGlaughlin ’16 was lucky enough to take this a step further.

“It was my first concert ... at the Blue Moose last year,” McGlaughlin said.

McGlaughlin was excited to see his favorite band, Of Mice and Men. “I was crowd surfing,” he said, “I ended up getting thrown on stage [and] I stayed up there for a few minutes.”

Eventually he was asked to get off the stage, but not before he had a moment to bask in the limelight.

The concert was a memorable experience for McGlaughlin.

“I was like, ‘wow, I’ll have to come to more of these.’”

2

18 FEATURE SEPTEMBER 2013 {1998 – GOOGLE ANNOUNCED ITS BIRTHDAY.

Sarah Rinehart ’15 expected to admire the view of Chicago from 1,353 feet above the street level, but little did she know she’d get to admire the likes of Johnny Depp, too. On spring break three years ago, Rinehart made a trip to the Willis Tower with her dad, and it just so happened that Johnny Depp had a similar idea.

“I told my dad that [I saw] him, but my dad didn’t believe me because [Depp] was wearing sunglasses and a hat, so it was kind of hard to tell. Then I saw some other girls go to take a picture with him, so I went up and asked if I could have a picture,” Rinehart said.

Luckily, it was early in the morning, so the crowds were minimal.

“When I talked to him, he had kind of an accent so then we looked him up on Wikipedia afterwards and found out that he was from Kentucky or something,” she said. “I was really nervous and definitely starstruck. I don’t think I seemed too crazy, but I was freaking out on the inside,” Rinehart said.

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Security is usually the worst part of the airport: long lines, crabby officers and the smell of feet. For Haley Steffen ’15, it was a lucky place to be on her way to Ecuador with the West Galapagos trip.

“We saw all these big guys [and] lots of guitar cases and everything, and knew something was up,” she said. Steffen soon realized there were three out of four members of the British girl group Little Mix right next to her in line.

“They all had hats, and Perrie had sunglasses on, to try and disguise themselves a little bit, but, I mean, it didn’t work,” she said.

Although Steffen didn’t have much time to talk, she was surprised at how nice they were — especially her favorite member, Perrie Edwards.

“We were the only ones who knew who they were, and we were freaking out,” she said, “[I was] definitely not calm when I saw them.”

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Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games swept the nation, continuing the prevailing pattern of teen fantasy novels topping the charts.

Upon the release of the first book in the trilogy, students everywhere were buried behind the famous Mockingjay cover.

For Zane Larson ’15, the books were more than just a passing fad. Larson uses his favorite series as a stress reliever caused by school, work and other mundane activities.

“It’s an escape from reality,” he said.

“I’ve read the series seven times ... [and] I enjoy them every time I read them.”

While some book-to-movie adaptations fall flat, Larson found the Hollywood version to be almost as enjoyable.

“I don’t even think I can count how many times I’ve seen the movie,” Larson said, though he estimates around 50-75.

In addition to using The Hunger Games to pass time, Larson tries to relate the series to school assignments.

As for the haters of the books, Larson respects a difference in opinion, but “they can’t get in on my party,” he concluded.

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LADY GAGA

THE HUNGER GAMES

“I think she’s more of a character than a person,” said Hannah Abram ’14 about her favorite pop icon, Lady Gaga.

Abram’s love for Lady Gaga started when she came out with “LoveGame” in 2008. “[I admire that] she controls how she is seen. Like, people don’t really catch her buying groceries in the tabloids,” Abram said.

Lady Gaga is known for her outlandish costumes and theatrical performances, creating a buzz of controversy wherever she goes.

“I think she’s really funny; I feel like half the things she does are a joke, even if they aren’t. I thought the meat dress was really funny, and everyone hated it,” Abram said.

Aside from the statement-making stunts and outfits, Abram commends Lady Gaga for her singing chops too. “[If I could meet her] I’d actually be really creeped out, and not know what to say or do. I’d try to play it cool, I guess. I would sing to her. That’s what I’d do. I’d sing one of her songs to her,” she said.

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1997 – THE U.S. SUDDENLY LOST COMMUNICATION WITH THE MARS PATHFINDER ROVER.} SEPTEMBER 2013 FEATURE 19

Penny For Your Thoughts

As Iowa’s mental health system transitions, controversy over appropriate levels of state funding and services abounds. While schools are not directly affected, additional and unrelated funding shortfalls may exist.

By lauren knudson & Amelia moser leknudson18@gmail.com moser.amelia@gmail.com

Just two weeks ago, the 39th Annual National Suicide Prevention Week concluded, ending the seven days designed to raise awareness and try to prevent what millions of people a year are already attempting: suicide. In light of this, West High invited public speaker Jordan Burnham to talk to sophomores on Sept. 11.

Burnham tried to take his own life his senior year of high school, and since has traveled around the country to share his story and educate people about the dangers of keeping quiet about mental illness.

WEST DIFFICULTIES Due to personnel shortages and lack of certain resources, West High has made minor changes to its mental health programs this school year. One of the those adjustments has affected the hours the testing center is open to students.

“The testing center hours were changed because of special education staffing issues. Until we can

“

Until we can find another way to staff the testing center, [its] hours ... [may] even be

eliminated.”

-Assistant Principal Molly Abraham

find another way to staff the testing center, the hours will stay as they are or possibly even be eliminated altogether,” said Assistant Principal Molly Abraham. “We plan to re-evaluate at the end of first trimester and see where things stand.”

While staffing shortages in special education have been a challenge, Abraham said that, in addition, certain specific accommodations students request can be difficult to provide. “ O n e t h i n g w e ’ r e running into is people asking about audio versions of textbooks. You’d think new textbooks would all have some kind of audio version available, but they don’t, so there’s been some costs for that [and] we’ve had to figure out how to make that happen,” she said.

Fortunately, many of the accommodations students may request at West such as extra time or adjusted assignments don’t require additional spending, according to Abraham.

“Our teachers are really, really good about making accommodations, and there isn’t really any huge cost to most things,” she said.

An additional change is at the district level. Fund-

ing for a federal grant called the Safe Schools-Healthy Students grant that the Iowa City Community School District (ICCSD) received in 2008 ran out over the summer.

“Through the grant we were able to hire Student and Family Advocates who have expertise in the area of mental health and are familiar with all of the resources in the district and in the communit y, w h o c a n assist s t u dents and help them come to school ready to learn,” said Joan Vanden Berg, the ICCSD Youth and Family Development Coordinator.

Vanden Berg expressed concern about the futures of some of the services covered by the grant.

“The grant was able to cover the cost of therapy for those who did not have insurance; this is a gap that we’re working to fill. We have raised some money to meet this need, but we’re concerned that we won’t have enough,” she said.

Others agree that having access to social workers within the school system has been beneficial.

“I know that the ICCSD has come a long way since the time

I first joined up. I’ve been in the district now eight years. When I first came, we didn’t have social workers, necessarily, in the building. And now I know there are two that are located within West High’s guidance office here,” said Greg Yoder, a guidance counselor at West.

TYPES OF ACCOMMODATIONS For students who need educational accommodations, there are two options: a 504 or an individualized education plan (IEP).

A 504 is the less formal option. In order to receive one, you contact the guidance or administrative offices and they review your request.

If they believe the accommodation is necessary, they write you a 504.

According to Molly Abraham, there are approximately 75 students at West High who have an accommodation plan.

“We have a number of students who have 504 plans as well as students who have IEP’s who have a list of accommodations; some it’s short, some it’s long.

Everything from extended time, to [having tests] read-aloud, to different graphic org a n i z e r s ,” Yoder said.

The other option is an IEP. “IEP’s are different legislation … there is funding for IEP’s and it is a much more rigorous process to become eligible.”

According to the U.S. Depart-

20 FEATURE SEPTEMBER 2013 {1996 – The tanker Julie N spilled over 100,000 gallons of oil into Portland Harbor.

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the counties know they won’t have a place to go, so they’re cutting services now.”

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-State Senator Rob Hogg

ment of Education, a student must first be tested for a mental disability. Then, based on the results of the test, the student will either be granted an IEP or be denied.

IEP’s generally require more funding then 504’s but, “accommodations are things that need to be met regardless of money that is involved,” Yoder said.

STATE FUNDING Aside from school programs, Iowa as a state is changing mental health and disability programs across the board, from being county-based to being regionally-based.

Because of this, the budget the state legislature sent to Governor Branstad for signature included $13 million in a risk pool for mental health and disability funding that counties could access if their budgets were overstretched during the transition period.

Branstad item vetoed the money.

“By vetoing the money the counties know they won’t have a place to go, so they’re cutting services now,” State Senator Rob Hogg (DCedar Rapids) said. “The over-

riding need was this safety net where counties would go when people had unexpected or unplanned [mental health] needs.”

These services include ongoing appointments, group homes and residential services, as well as others. Hogg said a bill the legislature passed and Branstad signed in 1995 affects how much the counties can do to make up for potential losses.

“Cities and counties aren’t allowed to spend more money even if they wanted to … [that power] was taken from them. If a residential facility closes, that is on the state.

Governor Branstad signed that [cap on county spending] in 1995. So that’s on him. I don’t have any problem with assigning him a big chunk of that blame,” Hogg said.

Branstad’s communications director, Tim Albrecht, disagreed facilities and counties would be underfunded.

“As usual, Sen. Hogg’s over-heated, partisan rhetoric doesn’t match reality,” he said. “In the past two years alone … the State of Iowa has invested more than $115 million in new state funding for mental health services at the county level.

[That], in addition to the coming Iowa Health and Wellness Plan, made the additional $13 million state funds outside the best interests of hardworking taxpayers at this time.”

*Source: National Institute of Mental Health 1995 – The US released the new $100 bill design.} SEPTEMBER 2013 FEATURE 21

{DESIGN BY GRACE YOUNG}

“

I LIKE THE OPPORTUNITY TO WEAR WEIRD THINGS WITHOUT BEING JUDGED. FOR MY SHIRTS, I USUALLY GO TO RAGSTOCK TO FIND HAWAIIAN SHIRTS IN GREEN

GOLD.”

AND

-Cameron Braverman ’15

YOU?

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H

omecoming is just around the corner, and with it comes a week filled with crazy themed spirit days culminating with the classic green and gold day on Friday.

While most students opt for a simple t-shirt and some beads, a handful of students will pile on anything and everything green and gold to show their enthusiasm. The WSS tracked down some of West High’s most spirited students and asked them about their vibrant dress choices on spirit and game days.

“

I GO ALL OUT ON SPIRIT DAYS BECAUSE I THINK ANYTHING TO UNITE PEOPLE IS WORTH DOING. IF THAT MEANS LOOKING LIKE A WACKO FOR A SEVEN-HOUR SCHOOL DAY, THEN SO BE IT. I HAVE THE REST OF THE WEEK TO LOOK ‘NORMAL.’” -Anoushka Divekar ’16 PH BY

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THE LOOK ON PEOPLE’S FACES WHEN THEY SEE WHAT I’M WEARING.”

-Carlson Sunleaf ‘16

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FOLLOW US @wsspaper FOR SPIRIT WEEK UPDATES

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SPIRIT

UNIFY

DAYS EVERYONE. IT DOESN’T MATTER WHO YOU ARE OR WHO YOUR FRIENDS ARE. WHEN PEOPLE GET DRESSED UP FOR SPIRIT DAYS, IT SHOWS THAT WE ALL CARE ABOUT OUR SCHOOL.” -Lilly Pypes ’14

22 SPIRIT SEPETEMBER 2013 {1994 – PAUL NEWMAN DONATED $200,000 TO HELP RWANDAN VICTIMS OF THE CIVIL WAR.

By Danial Syed & Shirley wang danialsyed2007@gmail.com shirley.wang5615@gmail.com

{Design by hannah muellerleile}

HOW MANY CANDLES?

just about every child dreams of one day turning 18.

Turn back the clock and picture your 11th birthday.

Remember how, with near infinite slowness, the 11th candle digs its way into the birthday cake’s creamy filling? The 12th hops on just 52 weeks later, and the 13th lands soon afterwards. Yet when candle number 18 comes rolling along, the change it creates is indisputable. After a taste of the cake and a hearty slap on the back, you’re pushed off into the real, adult world - no ifs, ands or buts about it.

Yet oftentimes, aging isn’t that simple.

Layla Hannaford ’15

About 13 years ago, police officers discovered Layla Hannaford ’17 under a bridge in Jinshan, China. They passed her onto an adoptive care facility until a permanent home could be found. Left without a birth certificate or any contact information for her parents, authorities had to depend on doctors and specialists to determine Hannaford’s age. Their final estimation dated her eight months back to Sept. 5 – a shared birthday two years apart from her adopted sister, Teah Hannaford ’15, whom doctors had determined to be an 11 month-old.

Once given these labels, they became appropriately-suited to their respective age groups and grew up along with the others.

“I’m pretty sure I’m my age, because I act like my age or younger,” Layla said, laughing. “I like goofing off and I don’t really like responsibility at all.

Most of my friends are like this.” Layla, a freshman, said she doesn’t recognize a distinction between those who are older and those who are younger in her class.

“There’s a difference between freshmen and seniors, but with freshmen and sophomores, not as much,” she said.

In addition to Layla and her sister, West students Hannah McGowan ’14 and Elisa Abram ’17 were both found abandoned as orphans. Even though their ages are technically unknown, none of them have felt as though they stand out behavior-wise. ”I have never thought of myself as not ‘fitting’ in based on my age or the possibility that it could not be 100% accurate,” McGowan said.

It’s tough to pinpoint whether these girls were precisely aged, have adjusted to their peers, or simply fit in by coincidence.

WILL THE CAKE TASTE ANY DIFFERENT? Adolescents often desire to conform, be accepted and welcomed. However, in the United States, this perfectly normal inclination is often taken to an extreme and finds itself replaced with an overwhelming pressure to conform.

According to Micheal Lovaglia, a sociology professor at the University of Iowa, this is because the United States has one of most age-segregated societies, structured with expectations that certain age groups act in similar ways.

“More than most countries, people in the USA tend to associate more with age peers and less with those a generation older or younger,” said Lovaglia.

“During adolescence, the influence of peers becomes more important than the influence of parents.”

It is patently obvious, yet somewhat disregarded, that those who are the same ages do not always display the same behavior. For instance, while the Chinese Zodiacs at Peking Buffet may be really cool, you’ve probably noticed by now that not everyone in your grade acts timidly (the Rat, ’14s and ’15s), ponderously (Ox, ’15s and ’16s), short-tempered (Tiger, ’16s and ’17s) or amorously (Rabbit, ’17s).

“Individuals develop physically and socially at different rates. For example, some 16-year-olds are still children, [while] others are nearly adults,” Lovaglia said.

Because of the way Americans define age, a huge burden is put on peoples’ shoulders the instant they turn 18, whether they’re prepared for it or not.

These initiates of adulthood have all made decisions before, but now as “grown-ups”, their choices seem to matter even more. How prepared do they really feel?

Research done by the National Institute of Mental Health shows that 17-year-olds’ brains begin to express a more matured prefrontal cortex – this helps them make more complex decisions. Young men and women become better at weighing outcomes and making good judgements. This development allows them to have better sense of self-control, allowing them to keep emotions and impulses in check.

Furthermore, there are other factors that influences a teen’s psychological

By the numbers: age of majority

At the age of majority, people cease to be children in the eyes of the law. Young men and women become legally independent from their parents and acquire control over their own persons and decisions.

Naturally, the age of majority isn’t the same everywhere. Because “adulthood” is a rather subjective term, its definition varies all over the world.

If you’re

16 17

You’re considered an adult in:

18 21

U.K & Cuba El Salvador (women only) & North Korea United States, France & China Egypt & Germany

*National Secondary Transition Technical Assistance Center

maturity.

“Cognitive development is hampered during adolescence as teens mature sexually,” said Lovaglia.

“They have more important things on their mind than thinking logically. By age 25, most people have settled down to the point where they can be considered to have mature judgment.”

Although we can’t assume all 18-year-olds are ready to make the jump to adulthood, it is acceptable to declare that some are. Yet as demonstrated by the stories of the Hannaford sisters, McGowan, and Abram, it’s hard to say whether this is strictly for social or biological reasons. The causation behind this trend may even be a mixture of the two.

“Some people mature faster than other people. I think some people can have more responsibility than others and their parents could tell if they were responsible enough,” Layla said.

Without a doubt, there’s a whole lot more to age than meets the eye.

As demonstrated by the ambiguities present when dealing with people with unknown ages, differing cultures and even normal distinctions between two people of the same age, linking certain privileges (such as the right to vote, fight in the military, play violent video games, etc.) to statutory ages may not always make sense. On the other hand, it’s probably not realistic to expect the law to cater to each of our particular aging needs.

Perhaps, in the grand scheme of things, the wax sticks on our birthday cakes don’t really define us; maybe the sweetness of our achievements and the wholesomeness of our experiences are a great deal more important. After all, no one really eats the candles, anyway.

Hannah McGowan ’14

“

some 16-yearolds are still children, others are nearly adults.”

-Michael Lovaglia, Professor of Sociology

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THE

FARON RUSH ’14

PHOTO BY//ABBY BURGESS

BY MEGUMI KITAMOTO

megumi.kitamoto@gmail.com

Faron Rush ’14 has been rapping since eighth grade, but only began taking rap seriously last year.

“I love rap music because it has so many categories within itself, [and] I felt like I could do better [than the people I listened to], and it actually turned out pretty good. I do not create the beats; I just rap,” Rush said.

Some of Rush’s favorite rappers are well-known, even among those who are not familiar with rap music. “[I like Jay-Z] because he has been [rapping] for so long, and I grew up listening to him. Other

rappers I like are Kanye West, J. Cole and Curren$y,” Rush said.

However, listening to rap music and creating it are two different worlds, and Rush encountered some difficulties.

“Since I have no sponsors, I do everything myself. But if I want to do something big, I have to learn to work off what I have and make the best of my situation,” Rush said.

These hardships will not stop Rush from pursuing rap as a career.

“When I watched [the first video I created, ‘Studio Life’] that was released last year, I knew it was something that I wanted to do as

a career, but I am also considering college as well,” Rush said.

Rush’s first mixtape, also titled Studio Life, will be released on Sept. 27.

“I would recommend the song ‘The Life’ because it is showing my everyday life; the things I do and my challenges and how I overcome them,” Rush said.

Aside from “The Life,” Studio Life contains 15 songs that are each two to three minutes in length and it will be available on iTunes, in addition to datpiff.com and livemixtapes. com, the latter two being mixtape streaming sites. Rush will also be selling copies at school for $10.

“[Through this mixtape,] I want to convey that I can actually rap and that I can be an artist. [Studio Life] is something that I put a lot of emotion, time and dedication into, and that is apparent from the intro of the first track. I tried to make enjoyable music that one can actually listen to. [The mixtape] means everything to me,” Rush said.

SCAN THIS FOR MORE COVERAGE ON WSSPAPER.COM

1993 – MEDAL OF HONOR RECIPIENT JAMES DOOLITTLE DIED AT THE AGE OF 96.} SEPTEMBER 2013 A&E 27

Arts

the

fashion profile justin barry ’15

PHOTOS BY//ALORA KRAUS

West Side Story: Describe your go-to outfit.

Justin Barry ’15: I typically like to wear colored, flat fronted shorts [simple shorts without cargo pockets] and a long sleeved button down or collared shirt. An occasional vneck is always good too.

WSS: Who inspires you to dress the way you do?

JB: Tim Yu ’12 inspired me to dress nicely because everyone looked up to him for his style.

WSS: Do you have any fashion tips?

JB: Always tuck in your shirts, because it makes you look more professional. Also, wear flat fronted shorts because they’re classy. Don’t wear the same type of outfit every day. You should try to diversify your outfits.

WSS: Where do you like to shop?

JB: One of my favorite stores is Gap, because it is affordable and they have a wide variety of classic

pieces. I normally get all of my vnecks from there. Also, I have three [pairs of] shorts, each in a different shade of blue from Gap, that I am always rotating out throughout the week.

WSS: Why did you start collecting socks?

JB: Last Christmas, my sister [Chelsea ’13] got me these ridiculous socks with monsters on them.

At first I thought they were stupid, but I wore them to school anyway and everyone thought they were cool. Ever since then I have been collecting and wearing odd socks, and now I have 14 pairs. Some of my favorites in my collection are my lightning bolt socks and dinosaur socks. I also have a pair with sharks on them that I wore during Shark Week.

WSS: What advice do you have for people trying to figure out their style?

JB: I think it is important for people to express themselves and wear whatever fits their personality. Sometimes I’m confused when people tell me I have a nice sense of style. I don’t spend a lot of energy worrying about what I’m wearing.

Instead, I just put on what looks nice. I just wear what I think is practical and comfortable, because that is my personality.

COMPILED BY//MADIE MILLER

PHOTO BY//NICK DEERBERG

An eclectic style of music with inflections of many genres express Emily Hollingworth’s ’15 personality.

“Band helps me appreciate the musicality that the artist is trying to show,” she said.

“My Type” Saint Motel If you love trumpets, you’ll love this song, and who doesn’t love a good trumpet?

“Our Taste is Violence” Little Arrow This song is super beachy and relaxing. (I was Little Arrow’s 18th follower on Spotify, no big deal or anything.)

“Unbelievers” Vampire Weekend Vampire Weekend’s lyrics are always really interesting. They put a lot of thought into their songs.

“Dark Paradise” Lana Del Rey I love this song because it’s so unique and Lana Del Rey has the voice of a goddess.

student mixtape emily hollingworth ’15

“Miracle Mile” Cold War Kids The epitome of road trip songs.

“Fall of ’82” The Shins The Shins are so underrated. This is a kind of chill song, but it’s chill without being boring.

“Lisztomania” Phoenix This song is so upbeat that it can turn any frown upside down.

“Something Good Can Work” Two Door Cinema Club I can’t resist my urge to dance when I listen to this song.

COMPILED BY//TYLER VOSS

28 A&E SEPTEMBER 2013 {1992-RANDY JOHNSON TIED THE AMERICAN LEAGUE RECORD FOR LEFTIES WITH 18 STRIKEOUTS.

{DESIGN {DESIGN BY

BY MEGUMI MEGUMI KITAMOTO} KITAMOTO}

band crush arctic monkeys

BY BLAKE OETTING

oetting.blake@gmail.com

The releases of “R U Mine?” and “Do I Wanna Know?” were intriguing, yes. The idea of one of the most prolific and lyrically significant bands creating a new masterpiece?

Nerve-tingling. The final product?

One of the best rock albums of the decade- AM. With the release of their fifth studio album, the Arctic Monkeys not only deliver more pulse-pounding, new wave British invasion rock, but evolve their performance by including sounds from late 90s hip-hop and

glimpses of catchy indie hooks.

The Arctic Monkeys are sometimes lumped together with The Strokes or The Hives in terms of sound and appeal, but with AM they prove to be in a league of their own. Alex Turner, the lead singer, strings together a narrative which can manipulate the listener in a variety of ways. In “Arabella,” echoing verses create a psychedelic contrast to the guitar-heavy chorus: “My days end best when the sunset gets itself behind/ That little lady sitting on the passenger side/ It’s much less picturesque without her catching the

PHOTO USED WITH PERMISSINON FROM//ADDY TAYLOR

light/ The horizon tries but it’s just not as kind on the eyes …”

The Arctic Monkeys follows tradition with previous albums Suck it and See and My Favourite Worst Nightmare by providing lighthearted, relaxing tracks alongside classic rock pieces. “Mad Sounds,” is like “Fluorescent Adolescent” and “Black Treacle” in providing lofty, fun compositions. In an interview with The Telegraph, Alex Turner echoed the sentiment of fans around the world: “This new record is us raising the bar as recording artists.”

While acknowledging their

continued improvements, the singer grossly undersold the importance of their new record. AM is a still shot of music right now. Artists like the Black Keys, The XX and Vampire Weekend are transcending the traditional barrier of an “alternative group” and reaching the mainstream. The last time we saw this was with The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan (among others). However, with this record, The Arctic Monkeys add their name to not only the list of good bands making it big, but a hallmark of new age rock and roll.

artist of the month

addy taylor ’14

“

It was our first project and

I [probably] spent 10 hours on it.

The goal of the project was to capture shading.”

COMPILED BY//STEPHON BERRY

1991-PRESIDENT GEORGE H.W. BUSH SAID HE WAS ELIMINATING US BATTLEFIELD NUCLEAR WEAPONS.} SEPTEMBER 2013 A&E 29

PHOTO BY//HANNAH MUELLERLEILE {DESIGN BY MEGUMI KITAMOTO}

review la michoacana

BY REBECCA WEN

wen.y.rebecca@gmail.com

Iowa City’s downtown restaurants may be losing their appeal to a gem by the Iowa River. La Michoacana Taqueria sits quietly next to Leash on Life on Highway 1. I was drawn by gossip of La Michoacana’s authentic Mexican food, $1.50 tacos and fast to-go options.

The restaurant is small but comfortable with a large menu printed above the cash register, and a glass refrigerator displaying bottles of Mexican Coca-Cola, Jarritos and water. After a conversation with the cashier, the food comes steaming in with four types of homemade salsas. I face five corn tortilla tacos: fish, beef tongue, beef cheek, carnitas and chicken. Of course the burritos and quesadillas are superb but the tacos are where it’s at.

The fish taco combines a crispy, flaky fish of the day with cool white sauce, lettuce and a warm, earthy corn tortilla. It only cost $2.75 and

the reader max granfield ’14 PHOTO BY//HANNAH MUELLERLEILE

it burned the roof of my mouth.

I moved down the line onto the beef tacos. The beef cheek and beef tongue, priced at $1.50 and $1.75 respectively, are both incredibly tender and juicy, though the beef cheek is softer. These tacos are wrapped in two tortillas each and topped with plenty of cilantro.

The carnitas and chicken tacos, both $1.50, have similar flavors but the texture of the carnitas is much lighter. Unfortunately, the chicken was on the drier side, but with salsa, cilantro and a good squeeze of lime, I was left more than content.

As for the to-go, the food comes snug on styrofoam plates wrapped in plastic wrap. Most of the food tastes just as good to-go, but the toasted torta buns become slightly soggy after just a few minutes.

Everything is down-to-earth at Michoacana. The people are kind, and they combine simple ingredients to make pure, quality food.

COMPILED BY//KAITLYN MCCURDY

1.Warlord Of The Air Michael Moorcock Warlord Of The Air is a book that makes you reconsider how you view things. It was one of the first of what would become the steampunk genre, but since its genre was not defined yet, it is very much its own thing.

3.Fahrenheit 451 Ray Bradbury Ray Bradbury frightens me more than Stephen King. It amazes me to think that this book was written in 1951, when the greatest growing distraction was television. Now we have video games and a plethora of other distractions to keep us happy.

2.All Quiet On The Western Front Erich Maria Remarque Books like All Quiet On The Western Front make me think that literature can save the world. Therefore, this book might be the solution for world peace. If only the fellows upstairs and across the sea would give it a chance.

4.Animal Farm George Orwell The pigs of a farm organize a revolution to overthrow the humans, but they soon begin to break their own rules and revise their history.

By the end of the book, the ruling pigs are no different from the humans who came before them. As long as there is society, this book will be relevant.

30 A&E SEPTEMBER 2013 { 1990-DAVID SCOUTER’S NOMINATION FOR SUPREME COURT WAS APPROVED BY SENATE COMMITTEE

{DESIGN BY ANNA MONDANARO} ART BY//ANNA FURLONG

October 2013

Feeling stressed? From peers to well-known singers, there are a plethora of people to watch or listen to nearby that will help you forget all of your worries with their mind-blowing talent, whether it is through music, literature or art. There are also ample opportunities to support the local music program. Check out the calendar below for arts and entertainment events in Iowa City.

Sun.

Mon.

Tues.

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COMPILED BY//BLAKE OETTING

Thurs.

Wed.

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PHOTOS BY//MEGUMI KITAMOTO AND ANNA MONDANARO

3

Fri.

Sat.

4

5

Euforquestra Gabe’s 9:00 p.m.

Hospital Charity Performance Auditorium 2:30 p.m.

8

6

10

Music Auxiliary Car Wash Coralville HyVee Parking Lot TBD

Beats Antique Blue Moose 9:00 pm.m

Choir Concert Auditorium 7:30 p.m.

Aaron Carter Blue Moose 5:00 p.m.

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AP

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Motion City Soundtrack Blue Moose 6:00 p.m.

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Writing in the City of Literature Englert 7:00 p.m.

Animee Mann Englert 8:00 p.m.

AP

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Vermeer and Music Exhibition Series Englert 3:00 p.m.

AP

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Sounds of the Stadium Concert Auditorium 7:30 p.m.

25

26 Rocky Horror Picture Show Englert 11:59 p.m.

AP

1989 – A TEAM OF TWO PEOPLE WENT OVER NIAGARA FALLS TOGETHER IN A SINGLE BARREL.} SEPTEMBER 2013 A&E 31

1461 Coral Ridge Ave, Coralville, IA Monday-Saturday 9:30 AM-9:00 PM Sunday 10:30 AM-6:00 PM www.birthright.org/iowacity

Z’Mariks Noodle Cafe 19 South Dubuque St. Downtown Iowa City 319-338-5500 32 ADS

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Take out and catering available

{DESIGN BY JAEHO LEE}

Fencing

“[Fencing] is fun both physically and mentally in that you get to play with swords and you have to think about it while you’re playing with swords,” said Nadav Kohen ’16

BY NICK DEERBERG

nick.deerberg@gmail.com

From football to golf, West has always been a school proud of its sports. This year, fencing found its way into our school. As Nadav Kohen ’16, a member of the West High fencing club said, the fencing community at West was “non-existent.” That is certainly not the case this year. West High’s fencing club was unofficially started last school year and was officially established as a club this year, and is already gaining new members.

Nadav Kohen ’16 and Schuyler Cantrell ’15 duel it out at The Iowa City Fencing Center.

FOR MORE COVERAGE GO TO WSSPAPER.COM PHOTOS BY//JAEHO LEE

Kohen and Cantrell demonstrate Sabreur fencing. Sabreur fencing requires faster movements and attacks.

Kohen demonstrates Sabreur “En garde” position with Cantrell.

Kohen and Cantrell fence Foil. “It’s a sport where you can participate as actively as you want to.”

Cantrell flèche Kohen in Épée fencing. “[Fencing is] stylistic so you can fence in a way that is good for you.”

1988 – TRACK OLYMPIAN BEN JOHNSON WAS STRIPPED OF HIS GOLD MEDAL DUE TO STEROID-USE.} SEPTEMBER 2013 SPORTS 33

Athlete Q & A {DESIGN BY NICK DEERBERG}

Akash Borde ‘15 Cross Country

Ashlynn Yokom ‘14 Cross Country

Nate Boland ‘14 Football

COMPILED BY//BRITTANI LANGLAND + BROOKE LOFGREN ART BY//KELSEY KERANEN

Q: Q:Favorite What ismovie? your favorite movie?

Q: Q:Favorite What ismovie? your “pump-up music?”

Q: movie?

Q:Favorite If you only had one meal left, where would it be?

Q: Q:Favorite What ismovie? the worst advice you ever recieved?

Q: Q:Favorite What ismovie? your favorite quote?

A: The Dark Knight

A: “The Blue Danube Waltz”

by Johann Strauss II

A: The fourth floor.

A: “To run your best, make sure you carbo-load with Panchero’s an hour before your meet.”

A: “Do what do, or do what don’t, there is no do what try.”

A: Lilo and Stitch

A: “‘Make it Nasty’ because the beat goes with the rhythm of my running.”

A: At a Japanese restaurant in Hawaii

A: “[If] at first you don’t succeed lower your standards.”

A: “There are clubs you can’t belong to, neighborhoods you can’t live in, schools you can’t get into but the roads are always open.” -Nike

A: Rocky Balboa

A: “Right Above It” by Lil Wayne

A: El Cactus

A: “It only gets easier.”

A: “It doesn’t matter how hard you can hit, it matters how hard you can get hit, and get back up.”

- Rocky Balboa

A: Hunger Games

A: “Nobody’s Perfect” by Hannah Montana

A: Three Samurai

A: “Whoever wants it most will win in the end.”

A: “Live life like it’s your second chance.”

A: Wedding Crashers and Anchorman

A: Kanye West, Lil Wayne, Drake

A: Sarafinos - an Italian restaurant in Pittsburgh

A: “Play football in the Rec Center gym.”

A: “Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.”

A: Love Actually

A: “Roar” by Katy Perry

A: Bacco Tutoria in Boulder, CO

A: “‘Be yourself.’

Whose self would I otherwise be being?”

A: “Be grateful for the empowerment to change what can, and the knowledge to know what can’t.”

Laynie Whitehead ‘15

Volleyball

Noah Federici ‘15 Golf

Eveline Dowling ‘15

Swimming

34 SPORTS SEPTEMBER 2013 { 1987 – NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE GAMES WERE CANCELED DUE TO A 24-DAY STRIKE.

ADS 35

F A L L

RIGHT: Grant Higgins ’15 hits a ball during practice on Sept. 19.

BELOW: Football players prepare to play defense on Sept. 13 against Kennedy.

West won the game 41-14.

CENTER: Coach Brian Martz gives Josh Jensen ’15 encouragement during the varsity race on Sept. 19 at the University PHOTO BY//LIZZIE PRUNEAU of Iowa Cross Country Course.

PHOTO BY//ASHER VAN DYKE

S P O R T

S

PHOTO BY//HANNAH MUELLERLEILE

PHOTO BY//MADIE MILLER

Take a look at the action of this year’s fall sports teams’ practices, tournaments, games and meets.

PHOTO BY//LIZZIE PRUNEAU Noah Federici ’15 reacts to a putt during practice on Sept. 19.

Julia Crouse ’15 bumps during practice on Sept. 13.

36 SPORTS SEPTEMBER 2013 {1986 – CLIFF BURTON OF METALLICA DIED IN A BUS ACCIDENT IN SWEDEN.

PHOTO BY//MADIE MILLER Cross country runners compete in the junior varsity race at the University of Iowa Cross Course on Sept. 19.

{DESIGN BY KATIE PEPLOW}

PHOTO BY//HANNAH MUELLERLEILE

PHOTO BY//ALORA KRAUS PHOTO BY//MADIE MILLER

PHOTO BY//HANNAH MUELLERLEILE TOP LEFT: Abigail Brown ’14 goes up for a hit during practice on Sept. 13.

TOP MIDDLE: Jacintha Thomas ’15 dives during the swim meet on Sept. 10.

TOP RIGHT: Mikaela Morgan ’15 spikes the ball during practice on Sept. 13.

CENTER: Wynton Karanja ’14, Akash Borde ’15 and Abdalla Ali ’15 run during the varsity race at the University of Iowa Cross Country course Sept. 19.

FAR LEFT: Lydia Hinman ’14 competes in the 100 meter backstroke race on Sept. 10.

PHOTO BY//ALORA KRAUS

LEFT: Noah Federici ’15 and JD Goodfellow ’16 walk to the next hole during practice on Sept. 19.

PHOTO BY//LIZZIE PRUNEAU

PHOTO BY//ALORA KRAUS

PHOTO BY//GAGE VAN DYKE ABOVE: Jackson Voigt ’14 sets up before the play begins on Sept. 13 against Cedar Rapids Kennedy.

ABOVE: Mariah Weston ’15 races against Cedar Rapids Washington on Sept. 10.

1985 – HURRICANE GLORIA HIT THE EAST COAST FROM NORTH CAROLINA TO MAINE.} SEPTEMBER 2013 SPORTS 37

RISING STARS

{DESIGN BY VELARCHANA SANTHANA}

{DESIGN BY BRITTANI LANGLAND}

Oliver Martin ’17: football

WSS: When did you start playing football?

OM:I first started in first grade, playing flag football, [and] then I played two years with North Central, and I was also on a travel team.

WSS: What inspired you to play football?

OM: I just love to play football, and having to compete … my dad inspires me as well.

WSS: What is your position on the team?

OM: Wide receiver.

WSS: Do you have any athletic role models?

OM: Calvin Johnson [Detroit Lions] and Eric Decker [Denver Broncos], who are both wide receivers.

WSS: Was the transition to high school football difficult?

OM: It was taking it to a whole new level, and it was hard, but I adjusted quickly … travel games also helped me prepare.

WSS: How does it feel to be the only freshman on the team?

OM: Everyone is welcoming, and fun to be around … they challenge me to be a better player.

WSS: How do the other players and upperPHOTO BY// GAGE VAN DYKE

Ali Tauchen ’17: volleyball WSS: When did you first start playing volleyball?

AT: In sixth grade when I started playing at Iowa City Rockets.

WSS: What is your position?

AT: I play middle.

WSS: How does it feel to be a freshman on a varsity team?

AT: It’s kind of an honor. I take pride in it. I know not everyone gets that chance so I try to make it worth it.

WSS: Was the transition to high school volleyball hard?

AT: It’s different than club volleyball. The [high school] practices are more intense than club and we work on different things because of the different ages we have. There are girls who have four more years of experience than me, so I need to work on better positioning.

WSS: What are your goals for the season?

AT:We’re hoping to get to state and become close as a team; hopefully a championship too.

WSS: What are your long term goals?

classmen treat you?

OM: They are all good team members … [they] welcomed me, and they treat me like any other friends my age.

WSS: What are your thoughts on the first few games so far?

OM: They are really fun [and] exciting.

WSS: What has been the most challenging thing about being on the varsity team?

OM: Having competition at my position and being pushed every day by the other team members to play better.

WSS: Is it hard to juggle school, practice and games?

OM: [It’s] challenging, but if you manage your time right, it’s easy.

WSS: What are your goals for this season?

OM: I just want to contribute to the team, help them make the playoffs and do my part on the offense.

WSS: What are your plans for the future? Do you ever want to play professionally?

OM: I plan on playing football, baseball and swimming in high school, and whichever one I am best at [I’d like to] play professionally.

COMPILED BY//CONSUELO MENDOZA PHOTO BY//ALORA KRAUS

AT: I hope to get a scholarship [for volleyball in the future].

WSS: Do you plan on playing any other sports?

AT: Basketball.

WSS: How is the season going so far?

AT: We’re still developing as a team; we need to play together more and be one.

WSS: What has been the most challenging thing about volleyball so far?

AT: The conditioning, working out as a team and after doing the workout having to go back to volleyball and play hard.

WSS: What is the best part of being on the team?

AT: The girls and the coaches, because if you don’t like your team, you’re not going to have a fun season.

WSS: What inspires you to play volleyball?

AT: I love my team. We’re a fun group of girls.

In general, I like everything about it. Some people use dance or music to express themselves and volleyball is my way of doing that.

38 SPORTS SEPTEMBER 2013 {1984 – AVRIL LAVIGNE WAS BORN.

COMPILED BY//LYDIA HINMAN

{DESIGN BY BRITTANI LANGLAND}

THREE

SISTERS

ONE

TEAM

BY KATIE PEPLOW

katiepeplow14@gmail.com

Sisters live together, eat together and run together. At least that’s the case for cross country runners Emmie Skopec ’15, Gabby Skopec ’17 and Jessie Skopec ’17. This fall marks the first season that all three sisters are on the same team.

“Having Emmie and Gabby around is really fun ... and has been a really good thing for me,” Jessie said.

Not only are the girls on the same team, they also all run varsity. Although the competition is high among the sisters they say, according to them it has been a beneficial experience so far.

“I’m very competitive with them, but they also support me more than anybody else on the team,” Emmie said.

The sisters said cross country hasn’t changed what goes on at home much, except for the amount of laundry that needs to

be done.

“I bet our mom would say there is way too much laundry,” Gabby said.

Communal ice baths are also a new tradition.

“This summer Emmie and I bought a miniature blow-up pool [to use] for ice baths in the driveway and had to avoid telling our young neighbor that she couldn’t swim with us because we were about to fill our pool with ice,” Gabby said.

Conversation about running takes place “all the time,” said Emmie.

“On the way to school we wonder what the workout will be; after school we talk about how the practice went, and then over dinner we discuss previous or upcoming meets,” Emmie said, “We tease each other about who did the best in the workout.”

Emmie didn’t let her younger sisters go into the program without giving them some advice.

“She would tell me what Coach [Parker] was like ... and how to stay positive and do my best,” Jessie said. Emmie also told Gabby how to become popular among the girls on the team. “[Emmie said] if I bring popsicles, everyone will love me for that day,” Gabby said.

Being on the same team has brought the sisters closer together because now they can talk about practice every day and connect.

Emmie says her sisters make the team better as a whole and agree that they all push each other to become better.

“They are always there to supp o r t me and know what I’m going through,” Jessie said.

RUNNING FOR THE KIDS

BY MADIE MILLER

famadiemllr@gmail.com

For the kids. It’s a simple phrase that has been etched in the hearts of people everywhere. For Maggie Taylor ’15 and Meredith Arpey ’14, that phrase means so much. It has been an inspiration for them to dance for 24 straight hours at the University of Iowa Dance Marathon the past two years. Soon the phrase will be a motivational force as the longtime friends run 26.2 miles.

The Dance Marathon veterans will be traveling to Chicago on Oct. 13 to run 26.2 miles in the Lasalle Bank Chicago Marathon to raise money and awareness for pediatric cancer.

The two friends have attended the University of Iowa Dance Marathon and have leadership roles in the organization of the West High Mini Dance Marathon. In addition, they volunteered at Camp Heart Connection, a summer camp in Des Moines for cancer patients.

Taylor and Arpey have each raised $400 to participate in the marathon. Training has intensified over the summer, as the girls have been increasing their mileage each week to prepare for the marathon.

Despite the scorching heat and busy schedules, the kids inspire them to keep a positive attitude.

“Throughout training, I have realized that if those kids can fight for their lives, we can fight through 26.2 miles,” Arpey said.

The girls have been following a training schedule that Dance Marathon provides. They try to meet up and run together whenever possible. Enthusiasm has been building as the marathon is just 16 days away.

“I’m looking forward to stepping across the finish line and knowing that we just ran 26.2 miles for the kids,” Taylor said, “I’m looking forward to the day that there is a cure, and every kid has the chance to run.”

Arpey and Taylor have made it their mission to contribute to pediatric cancer causes as much as they can. They are passionate about inspiring others to do the same.

“Some people might think we’re a little crazy, but it’s all for the kids,” Taylor said.

LEFT: Gabby Skopec ’17, Emmie Skopec ’15 and Jessie Skopec ’17 ABOVE: Meredith Arpey ’14 and Maggie Taylor ’15

1983 – LARRY BIRD BECAME THE HIGHES PAID CELTIC IN HISTORY.} SEPTEMBER 2013 SPORTS 39

n a j o PINBOARD THE Tr n o i t Na

{DESIGN BY BRITTANI LANGLAND}

Sports updates that caught our eye this month.

Stretching

it

Out

PH

AMOTO OTO BY//MEGUMI KIT

is student Currently, he West High teaching with her, Brad biology teac h c a o c ew Wymer. welcomeswnim between team has ’s rl Butler floats gi e Th t an d an junior w assist the varsity welcomed a ne on and picks yr B s ason. varsity team coach this se herever it’s a swimmer up the slack w Butler was a w rsity of Io needed. for the Unive r West is e 100 th in ed liz ia “Working fo and spec fly s a great 0 it’ 10 n, , fu ck a lot of back, 200 ba d ds,” Butler e compete group of ki and 200 fly. H 10 oking forig s and B said. “I am lo in the NCAA’ as w g the team d in an lp s, ward to he Championship n.” r the team in any way I ca a captain fo ar.

ADIE MILLER ye //M or BY ni D se LE PI s M CO during hi

Swimmers

The girls cross country team has administered a new stretching program designed to be more efficient and just as effective as the previous method. The change occurred because it is believed that the team was spending too much time on stretching and not enough on the actual cross country workout.

Previously, stretching

COMPILED BY// KATIE PEPLOW

10 things you didn’t know

JV

poms to nationals

The West High JV Poms dance team qualified for Universal Dance Association (UDA) Nationals which will take place at Disney World in Orlando, Florida. This is a feat that has never been achieved by the JV Poms before.

“I am very excited to be going to Nationals … everyone on the team has worked so hard, and we defi-

nitely deserve it,” said Holly Manternach ’15, one of the leaders on the team.

Right before qualifying for Nationals, the team attended a dance camp. The camp lasted for two days, and the team had to learn and master three new dances by the end of the camp, staying up all night to practice and perfect each dance. “[Camp] is very challenging because you have to learn three new dances

took about 20 minutes, but now the job is done in about 10. The new program incorporates one stretch for arms, and a new focus on stretching the Achilles tendon, a vulnerable place of injury for distance runners.

“It’s efficient and it focuses on certain muscles,” said Emily Starman ’14.

about

in two days and you have stay up almost all night to get your routines looking good,” Tannor McDonald ’16, one of the dancers on the team, said.

“On the last day you perform two of the dances that you learn at the camp. It was very tough but well worth the work.”

COMPILED BY//ARON CARTER

Bres

1. She wanted to be a Native American when she grew up.

2. She went to a Catholic grade school in Dubuque until 8th grade.

3. She sold nightcrawlers and had a vegetable stand as a kid.

4. She got kicked out of Brownie Scouts even though her mom was the scout leader.

5. She started showing horses when she was nine years old.

6. She was the high school state barrel racing champion as a senior.

7. She bagged her first deer in 8th grade.

8. Her favorite activity is morel hunting.

9. In the summer, she read 2-3 books a week.

10. She has always dreamed of being on Survivor.

40 SPORTS SEPTEMBER 2013 { 1982 – J OHN PALMER BECAME A NEWS ANCHOR FOR THE TODAY SHOW.

COMPILED BY// CONSUELO MENDOZA

Footing the bill

{DESIGN BY FIONA ARMSTRONG-PAVLIK}

Over the summer, Congress faced the self-imposed threat of letting interest rates for student loans double from 3.4% to 6.8% per year. Instead, Congress approved a new bill that ties the interest rates for student loans to market interest rates.

Pro: Taking action College students everywhere sigh with relief thanks to Barack Obama’s signing of the Bipartisan Student Loan Certainty Act. Thanks to the bill, Students will now have a better idea of what they are getting into when it comes to receiving loans.

Although interest rates for student loans will now be connected to market rates, the act ensures that the interest rate for student loans won’t become ridiculously high.

To control unpredictable increases from getting unmanageable, the law caps interest rates at 8.25% for college students and 9.5% for graduate students.

Having low interest rates on student loans is especially important because it can take many years to recover credit ratings after defaulting on a student loan.

Not only does the interest rate have a peak, but it will also be fixed for the entire life of the loan. This means that when a loan is given, the interest rate will never change for that particular loan.

The Bipartisan Student Loan Certainty Act is already helping students who have taken out loans since it passed. The interest rate has gone down to 50% of what it would have been and is now only 3.86%.

With these new rates, experts

estimate that the average student will save $1500 between July 2013 and July 2014. That’s a lot of money, and in college, every penny counts.

Helping people find affordable ways to further their education is the main priority with this law, but it also has another perk. This law will lower the nation’s deficit by an estimated $715 million by 2023, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

When students getting loans are so young, it makes sense to have a plan that would make them as affordable as possible to avoid longterm problems.

QUALITY of life

INDEX SEPTEMBER

College applications Everything about them is tedious. Seriously, faceless admission boards, you don’t need to know what year my parents graduated from high school. minus 2

Heat The gym is a sauna, and the hallways are a great chance to rub shoulders with those who just took advantage of it. Ew.

minus 4

Anti: How about an interest in delayed gratification?

In a study to test delayed gratification, a researcher puts a squirrelly young child in a chair and a single marshmallow is placed in front of him. The researcher says to the kid: if you don’t eat the marshmallow in the next fifteen minutes, you’ll get another one. However, if you eat it, you get nothing.

In this situation, Congress is the kid and that marshmallow is student loan rates, and unfortunately for current and soon-to-be college students, that marshmallow went down the hatch sooner than you can say “paralyzing student debt.”

Since interest rates are low right now to encourage spending in order to rev up our sluggish economy, it means undergraduates this fall can borrow at 3.9% for both subsidized (loans for which interest does not accumulate while a student is in school) or unsubsidized loans. For graduates and parents this fall, they can borrow at 5.4% and 6.4%, respectively. The year the loan is taken out, the interest rate is frozen for the life of the loan.

This bill means that in our currently depressed economy, interest rates are low for borrowing and

will be until the economy picks up again.

However, therein lies the problem.

When the economy improves, the market interest rates will increase and cause student loan rates to increase until they reach the limits set by the bill: 8.25% for undergraduates, 9.5% for graduates and 10.5% for parents. If and when rates reach those caps, it will be almost 20% more expensive for students to borrow money than if Congress had just let the interest rates on loans double to 6.8% in July.

Instead of trying to craft a bill that would have ensured fair interest rates for students no matter the

economy, Congress passed a bill purely to have the ability to look good and say that they helped students.

However, the bill was passed with no thought to the future. Millions of students in the years ahead who have waited their whole lives to go to college will have to face sky high interest rates to borrow money in order to get an education.

Instead of rewarding students with delayed gratification, Congress’s impulsive bill only adds more expenses to going to college and may cost future students the education they deserve.

Was Congress’s decision about student loans a good one?

2013-2014 Editorial Board

13-11

The WSS editorial board voted narrowly in support of Congress’s decision.

Lushia Anson Fiona Armstrong-Pavlik Stephon Berry Abby Burgess Meredith Cullen Nick Deerberg Megumi Kitamoto Brittani Langland Kaitlyn McCurdy Hannah Merrill Anna Mondanaro Katie Mons

Amelia Moser Hannah Muellerleile Matthew Murry Blake Oetting Katie Peplow Velarchana Santhana Julia Truszkowski Tyler Voss Shirley Wang Jaycie Weathers Grace Young

#Blessed Our sports teams are picking up where they left off, and we once again top the state in ACT scores. Pity those who do not walk these hallowed halls.

plus 7

Homecoming I have finally realized the true meaning of this storied event: shamelessly trying to dress better than everybody else.

Have fun, everyone.

plus 1 Total: plus 2

COMPILED BY/BLAKE OETTING SCAN THIS TO READ A STAFF EDITORIAL ABOUT SYRIA ON WSSPAPER.COM

1981 – THE TGV HIGH SPEED RAIL BEGAN, RUNNING 300 MILES BETWEEN PARIS AND LYONS. OPINION SEPTEMBER 2013 41

Locker blocker

{DESIGN BY FIONA ARMSTRONG-PAVLIK}

Current rules prevent students from entering closed hallways during lunches , regardless of their ability to stay quiet.

As children in elementary school, we were forced to walk single file along the silver lines, hands at our side, never permitted to talk or even wave to friends in the hallways.

Teachers reprimanded children for using a “level two” talking voice in the hallway or veering from the straight line of the class.

The teachers’ overzealous enforcement of these rules caused us to create petitions and have heated debates over lunches and recesses about how to fight the arbitrary rules we had to follow.

We were relieved to finally escape the iron clutches of foolish hallway rules when we went to junior high - or so we thought.

At West, we have three lunches determined by the floor of your fourth period class. During the different lunch shifts, only one hallway is open to walk and eat on. It is common sense to keep the floors that still have class quiet and

distraction-free, but what happens if you have to run to your locker on a “closed” floor during lunch to grab a last-minute math assignment you forgot to do the night before?

The majority of the time, you get stopped 10 feet from your locker and are forced to turn around and go back to the designated lunch floor empty-handed and full of frustration.

Most students at West are respectful and can handle walking quietly in hallways, but administrators take no chances by strictly enforcing this rule for all students, no matter what their credentials may be. Granted, there are some students who cannot be trusted to be quiet, but this is the reason we have the supervisors.

We respect the hallway monitors for being consistent with every student, but if a student is not being disruptive to a class, then they should be permitted to quickly do

what they have to do and go back to lunch.

Increasing the severity of the punishment for disruptive students and allowing respectful students in the hallway may be an option for changing up the way lunches work, but it does run the risk of increasing the gray area of discretion for the faculty that has to enforces these rules. The way things are now allows for zero misunderstandings and no room for argument with the monitors which is both good and bad.

The main goal is to keep the hallways distraction-free for classes that are in session, and when hall monitors raise their voice at a student it creates more noise than quietly going to his or her locker would in the first place.

In high school, we are supposed to be preparing for the harsh realities of the real world, but sometimes we are still treated like children. In life

outside of school, we have to learn to be respectful during appropriate times, and if we fail to meet these expectations, there are severe consequences. Instead of reverting to elementary school-like rules, we should be allowed more freedom.

If this liberty is taken of advantage of or abused, then administrators have the right to take the privilege away. Until then, we should be given the chance to act like adults by making the right decisions.

Is the rule preventing students from entering other hallways needed?

21-3

The WSS editorial board voted against the rule.

Guest opinion: Please wear a helmet

BY KATHY BRESNAHAN PE teacher

Only two short years ago, our West side community was shattered by the death of Caroline Found. It was a ‘one in a million’ accident that took her life. It left all of us that loved and respected her grief-stricken beyond words.

Caroline was riding a moped and not wearing a helmet.

As is so often the case, everyone vowed to always wear a helmet whether on a bike, moped or motorcycle. However, as time passes, our memories fade, and good intentions fall to the wayside. Every time I see anyone riding a moped without a helmet, particularly one of our students, it hurts.

Going home from practice the other night, I followed one of our students riding his moped and weaving in and out of traffic. Not only was he driving erratically, but he was not wearing a helmet. I vowed I would talk to him when I had the chance. I wondered if his parents knew that he did not wear a helmet.

Four blocks later, I came upon a moped/car accident. The young woman was lying unresponsive in the middle of the street. The driver of the car that hit her was sobbing; the victim’s companion that was riding with her cradled her head and kept calling her name. Her moped was lying in the street with the engine still running. I was overcome with emotion as I thought about how our lives can change forever in just a split second.

As she lay prone in the middle of Benton Street, I searched for her pulse, and I did not think there

was any chance she would pull through. The next day I found out that the young woman survived the accident. She was lucky. Her story had a happy ending.

Please – if you ride a bicycle, moped or motorcycle – wear your helmet. When you ride a moped or motorcycle, it is not a question of ‘if you will put it to the ground’ someday but rather ‘when.’ Your only protection is a helmet. Do it for yourself, your family and your friends.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR may be sent to fionaarmstrongpavlik@gmail. com (letters should not exceed 300 words). Each letter must include the full name of the author and year of graduation (if written by a student). The WSS reserves the right to edit letters for length and clarity.

GUEST OPINIONS should be sent to fionaarmstrongpavlik@gmail. com and should be approximately 300-400 words. Please include your full name and phone number.

EQUITY STATEMENT

It is the policy of the Iowa City Community School not to discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, martial status, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, disability, or socioeconomic programs, activities, or employment practices.

If you believe you have (or your child has) been discriminated against or treated unjustly at your school, please contact the Equity Director, Ross Wilburn, at 509 Dubuque Street, 319-688-1000.

EDITORIAL POLICY

The West Side Story reflects the views of the staff and does not represent the school administration, faculty or student body. Guest articles may be accepted to represent an additional point of view or as a part of a collection of reader contributions. The staff will carefully scrutinize all reader submissions.

All ads are subject to approval by the business staff. Those that are libelous, obscene or plainly offensive may be rejected. The West Side Story attempts to publish all letters, which must be signed, to the Editors, but may reject submissions due to space limitations, inaccuracy or poor quality. It is the responsibility of the opinion editor to verify authorship. Editors can make minor edits for the sake of clarity, length and grammatical correctness.

1980 – POLICE’S “DON’T STAND SO CLOSE TO ME” WAS THE NUMBER ONE SONG ON U.K. MUSIC CHARTS. OPINION SEPTEMBER 2013 42

{DESIGN BY FIONA ARMSTRONG-PAVLIK}

Don’t constrict yourself Crossing the line (unless you’re a snake)

BY MATT MURRY

BY DANIAL SYED

mattlm67@gmail.com

danialsyed2007@gmail.com

I’m a science major.

Or, at least, I plan to be. Yet if this is the case, you ask, why in Arganbright’s name am I writing in a newspaper? For what reason am I dabbling in journalism, the art of falsehood and distortion, when I could be piecing together honest research abstracts and theories?

To one degree or another, most of us college-bound seniors worry about the relevancy of our resumes. I personally fear that when Yale University’s head Admissions Officer looks at my application, she’ll spit sulfuric acid upon my writing and drama accomplishments.

You may well wonder, “will those 200 hours of hospital volunteering really impact my admission as an underwater basket weaver? Does MIT give a flying fadoodle about your Theatre West career?

Conversely, you might not. “I’m not going to college,” you may declare, or “I’m still a freshman!”

Your college of choice may even ignore resumes altogether, admitting students using a supersecret formula involving your GPA, ACT scores, SAT scores, Iowa Assessments, and horoscope sign.

Yet whether your collegiate attitude is panicked or utter Zen, this issue is still relevant—it’s a weed that stems from a far broader problem.

Self-doubt, the real bad guy in any collegiate odyssey, is a vicious parasite. Imagine the star soccer player who never tries out for Theatre West. It’s not so hard, is it?

“I can’t speak well,” she says.

“I can’t act, can’t dance … I’m planning to become a star soccer play anyway, soccer and acting together are just too much to handle…”

Through a wicked combination of excuses and self-deprecation, the soccer player convinces herself to avoid acting altogether.

This scenario’s end-result is a onetrack mindset—and unfortunately, one-track minds are a dime a dozen. They’re so common, in fact, that a truly diverse student is a rare treasure.

At the end of the day, the big universities don’t want a gaggle of uber-specialized geeks. They want leaders. Innovators. Geniuses.

People who aren’t characterized by one-track mindsets. In James Gleick’s biography of physicist Richard P. Feynman, aptly named “Genius,” he points out that Feynman didn’t win the Nobel Prize or invent Quantum Electrodynamics by restricting himself to physics. In fact, he worked tirelessly to stretch himself out as far as humanly possible, learning to paint and even play the bongos. And guess what? He went to MIT. The moral of the story? Spread yourself out a little! Your history major isn’t constantly breathing down your neck—universities are admitting you, not your career focus.

Now, none of this means that we should forget about our future careers—it’s crucial for us to choose our college majors carefully, and we should make sure we’re prepared.

If you wish to pursue neurology, and Dr. Frankenstein offers you an internship in his evil laboratory, then by all means, take it! But if you ever want to do something other than mixing monster mash (which you certainly should), don’t worry. The college of your dreams won’t raise an eyebrow just ‘cos you’re diverse; trust me, it’ll give you a great, big, hug.

Some rules are meant to be broken. We’ve all walked in a hallway meant to be closed.

Texting in class is part of many of our routines. But some rules should be honored. I cannot count how many times a person ever-sosneakily darted in front of me in the lunch line and expected me not to notice. Yeah, we all saw you. How difficult is fairness to understand? I’ve been waiting in line for 10 minutes. What gives you the right to bypass everybody who has waited their turn?

This may seem like a incoherent, disjointed rant, but I believe it is indicative of our student body’s values. What does it say about our morality when people believe it’s okay to not wait their turn?

Teenagers’ myopic attention span and inability to understand decency is quite concerning. How will this translate into our adult lives? Does cutting in line hint at something more serious down the road?

Cutting in line is essentially theft.

Many people think that jumping lines is no consequence to the people behind them, but nothing could be further from the truth.

It’s stealing their time. For every person that darts in front of me, it’s longer that I have to wait. Even worse, in the case of many lunch lines, cutting is actually stealing food. The pizza line has a finite number of slices. Far too often, the food is gone before I get there because of people who jumped in front of me.

Total abandonment of commonly upheld values now may suggest abandonment of said values in the future, with more grave consequences.

Disregarding school rules now may indicate disregard for actual

laws down the road. If somebody thinks that it’s OK to steal time and food now, they’ll have no problem with more serious things as an adult, such as stealing money or shoplifting. Acknowledging that your wants are no more valuable than that of your peers is a universal skill that applies to all facets of life. Cutting in line and robbing a bank are exactly the same, in the sense that the perpetrator selfishly thinks his or her want takes precedence over other people.

What this all boils down to is respect. Respect for your fellow classmates and respect for the system. Cutting in front of somebody is blatant contempt. By jumping in front of them, you’re essentially telling them that your time is worth more than theirs.

Admittedly, the administration has done a better job this year than before. The splitting of lines in the ninth grade wing, and administrators watching the cafeteria line makes things a lot better.

But administrators shouldn’t need to enforce rules to prevent cutting in line; this should be something that people just don’t do. Basic moral principles should dictate if people cut in line or not. Would you steal somebody’s phone if there wasn’t a teacher watching? Would you take their lunch? Because that’s really what cutting in front of them is: a theft of someone’s time.

1979 – THE US DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION GOT FINAL APPROVAL FROM CONGRESS. } SEPTEMBER 2013 OPINON 43

{DESIGN BY FIONA ARMSTRONG-PAVLIK}

Struggle bus

Take back the controller

BY STEPHON BERRY

BY PAUL CURRY

paul.michael.curry@gmail.com

stephon.berry15@gmail.com

Money makes the world go round, and it’s a resource of which I have very little. I’m a member of a paycheck-to-paycheck kind of family, which means that every penny, nickel, and dime is assigned a purpose before they’re deposited into a bank account, and then? The ultimate vanishing act. You can line up every second Thursday to see the show.

All of this basically means one thing: we have no room for surprise expenditures. So you can only imagine my frustration when school, which is mandated, became that expenditure. I don’t have a car for transportation and neither does my mother. The only person who does in our family is my grandmother, but she uses her car for work in the mornings and afternoons.

Over the summer, my family moved further away from West approximately 2.8 miles. The day my mother went to register my brothers I had to work, so she registered for me. She also applied for busing services, which I was sure we’d qualify for. Nope. We weren’t quite far enough away from the school.

Which means that when Aug. 21 lurched up I was left to wonder where my bus was. When 8 a.m. rolled around and it still hadn’t arrived, my mother and I were scrounging around the house for what change we could find in order to provide me with bus fare to school and back. Which wasn’t quite as easy as it was last year since bus fare has gone from 75 cents in Coralville and 50 cents in Iowa City to a standard dollar fare in both.

Let’s do some quick math: in a school year, that’s about 360 bucks to school and back. I could pay 30 dollars for each month I have even one day of school, which is

every month from August to June.

That totals $300 for the ten months school is in session. That may be 60 clams less, but for my family that’s still $300 too many.

Of course there’s the option of just walking, after all, it’s only 2.8 miles. Consider the seasons. For any of us who have experienced an Iowan winter, it’s not hard to imagine the chilling wind carving chasms in your face. And the recent heat waves don’t really endorse the idea either.

So I had one last hope. I’d speak to the man who had provided me a bus pass last year, after my spout of tardies and periodic absences began to threaten truancy. He’d sort me out with a bus pass; he’d understand.

Well, while I can say he understood and even sympathized a bit, that source turned up broke. Apparently this year a new policy for student aid had been implemented and you must now be an at-risk student or homeless in order to qualify for a bus pass. At-risk meaning I had to be threatening to drop out, or ... can you guess? Yep. Truant once more.

With no car, no school bus and no bus pass, anger truly began to fester. It’s as if circumstances placed my foot in a bear trap.

My options had dwindled from beaucoup to binary. I could stop coming to school and become an at-risk student or continue to be disciplined for trying. Thankfully Mr. Johnson came through with a possible solution. Hopefully this works; if not, there’s a good chance that you’ll see another installment of this about the case C misdemeanor my truancy will cost my mom and me.

I started playing video games when I was very young.

I used the WASD keys to walk before I could walk. I typed out “lol” into “Warcraft 3”’s chat window before I even knew what the acronym stood for. I would pronounce it “lawl” and thought it was some strange colloquialism you typed out at the end of a sentence.

My favorite game was a computer version of Disney’s “Hercules,” which I pronounced “pork-ales” for no apparent reason.

I remember spending days frying the back of my irises with images of “Jack and Daxter,” “Bugdom” and other old classics.

But recently, as I delve into my more modern repertoire of computer games like “Call of Duty” and the “Mass Effect” series, I feel as though some magic is missing.

For example, the final battle of “Jack and Daxter 3” takes place in a war-torn desert where the player drives a vehicle to shoot down a massive alien. Once the creature is damaged but still moving, the player climbs onto its back and battles huge black tentacles that I guess are alien bachne.

In contrast, the final battle of Halo 3 pitted the player against a floating orb-thing that was literally the size of a football. I rolled my eyes so hard during that “boss” battle I saw my frontal lobe (quite green I might add).

It is not only final bosses that have decreased in power as processors have gained more.

Many modern video games are so linear that they resemble playing two-dimensional snake. They focus on stories with writers that are a strange combination of Stephenie Meyer and that guy who wrote a series of books based on Mega Man. Instead of working on gameplay, developers spend time

44 OPINION SEPTEMBER 2013 1978 – THE AMERICAN PAINTER T.C. CANNON DIED.

crafting a crushing abundance of micro-transactions that slowly bleed the player of money and unlock content tantalizingly slowly (so slowly it’s in its own “Legendary League”).

There is definitely something wrong with the gaming industry when “Minecraft,” a game programmed by one person, is more successful than “Aliens Colonial Marines,” a mess of a game created by a studio of a couple-hundred programmers.

It is obvious that industry games are now more interested in profit than fun when looking at abominations such as “Serious Sam 3: BFE.” The series was supposed to mimic the fast paced antiquated gameplay of “Doom” and “Quake.” But the third installment of the series rips off “Call of Duty” so hard I’m surprised there hasn’t been a suit.

The fast-paced gameplay is gone, and it looks like“Call of Duty” run on a MacBook Air bootcamped with Windows 98. Yet, according to game reviewer IGN, the game is “great.”

As with most markets, consumers control the video game industry.

But no longer can video game players buy like lemmings and devour micro-transactions, ridiculous stories and repetitive gameplay. Mass-consumer action like the backlash against the Xbox One and the iPhone’s “Candy Crush” is the first step in the process of a more enlightened gaming culture that demands more than $60 downloadable content to give you a hat and a new map which could be created by a 10-year-old with Source SDK. Players need to start controlling not just the games, but the industry - saving the world, and their wallets, lol.

P.O.S. of the month

{Design by KATIE MONS}

1993 toyota tercel

Compiled by//Madie Miller

Ranon Fuller ’15

“

Neither of the seat belts lock, so if we crash, the seat belt won’t hold you back. The whole point of the seat belt is that it looks safe so I don’t get pulled over.”

“

“

I call the car Lefty because the left turn signal blinks really fast. To everyone else that sees me drive, they must think I really want them to know I’m turning left.”

“

I’ve had to fill my tires up with air three times since school started.

They can’t hold air.”

If I try and put a CD into the CD player, it gets stuck about halfway and when this happens the CD player makes a deathly grinding noise for about half a minute.

Then it spits it back out and I have to try again.

{

Complete the

lyrics

With Margaret Shullaw

“WE Can’t Stop”

by Miley Cyrus

PHOTOS by//ABBY BURGESS

WSS: Red cups and sweaty bodies everywhere hands in the air like we don’t care cause we came to shullaw: let down our hair WSS: So la da di da di, we like to party dancing with shullaw: a ton of flair WSS: It’s our party we can do what we want It’s our party we can say what

we want It’s our party we can shullaw: become much better people by putting on the brakes and heading home to read a good book.

“Blurred Lines” by robin THicke

WSS: OK now he was close, tried to domesticate you But you’re an animal, baby, it’s in your nature Just let me

shullaw: get out of your way cuz you are scary WSS: You’re a a good girl I know you want it I know you want it You’re a shullaw: stupid idiot if you think I want it WSS: Can’t let it get past me You’re far from plastic Talk about getting blasted I hate these shullaw: songs that make no sense if you are over forty

COMPILED by//BLAKE OETTING & Shirley Wang

1977 – There was a penumbral lunar eclipse.} HUMOR SEPTEMBER 2013 45

{DESIGN BY JULIA TRUSZKOWSKI}

2

3

1 FOR

4

wsspaper.com MORE COVERAGE GO TO

SCAN THIS WITH YOUR SMARTPHONE TO LINK TO OUR WEBSITE

WHSDM BEAT CANCER RUN West High staff ran a football from the University of Iowa Children’s hospital to West High in honor of two children who lost their lives to cancer Sept. 13. The event attracted cheering students clad in “Beat Cancer” t-shirts.

1

PHOTO BY//ALORA KRAUS

WEST HIGH VS. KENNEDY West High defeated Cedar Rapids Kennedyw 41-14 at a home football game Sept. 13, continuing their strong start to the season. For more sports coverage, check out the website.

2

CLUBS FAIR FARON FREESTYLES The West Side West High’s own Story investigated Faron Rush ‘14 raps West High’s anexclusively for the nual club fair to West Side Story. Go online to watch the entire per- get the inside scoop on all the school’s clubs, including the formance.

VIDEO BY//MEGUMI KITAMOTO AND Republican Club. Find out KATIE PEPLOW about more, including photos SYRIAN CIVIL WAR and videos, online.

“I really don’t think PHOTO BY//MADIE MILLER that military action in Syria is the corMUSIC PLAYATHON rect response. I think that the The WSS staff comsuggestion they’ve made about piled a video of stuSyria turning over its chemical dents performing at weapons and signing under the the Music Playathon chemical weapons agreement at the Coralville Center of Peris what should be done” forming Arts on Aug. 25.

-Maggie Terry ‘17

3

5

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VIDEO BY//HILAH KOHEN

VIDEO BY//LUSHIA ANSON, MEGUMI KITAMOTO, JAEHO LEE, AND ANTHONY PIZZIMENTI

PHOTO BY//ASHER VAN DYKE

46 WEB SEPTEMBER 2013 {THE NUMBER ONE SONG WAS “PLAY THAT FUNKY MUSIC” BY WILD CHERRY - 1976

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5

6

{Design {Design by by anna aNNA mondanaro} mONDANARO}

WE STAND UNITED

Photos by//Gage van dyke

As students file into Trojan Stadium to watch the Men of Troy take on Cedar Rapids Kennedy, they stand together in the fight against childhood COMPilED by//Anna Mondanaro cancer.

“

Below: The Men of Troy shake hands with Kennedy players after their 41-14 victory.

seeing the west high community come together in their gold ‘beat cancer’ shirts was such

a special sight.”

-Adrienne Jensen ‘14

Below: A spirited West High student section reacts to a fumble.

Bottom Right: The Beat Cancer run began at the Mercy Hospital downtown.

ACTIVE EDUCATORS

COMPILED BY//ABBY BURGESS AND LUCY BLAIR ART BY//KELSEY KERANEN

ll her track

FINN

Surprisingly enough, your teacher was once in high school too. They played sports and participated in activities, Just like you. The WSS asked them all one simple question, What did you like about being in sports?

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{DESIGN BY TYLER VOSS}

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