2015-2016 Wingspan Issue 4

Wingspan WEST HENDERSON HIGH SCHOOL

June 2016 • Volume 35 • Issue 4

HB2 debate

North Carolina losing jobs, money with law

Page 9

Greek life Are fraternities, sororities in your future?

Page 11

College map Class of 2016 makes college commitments

Page 13

Summer fun Staff suggests Top 5 things to do this summer

Page 22

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contents

9

4

staff EDITORS-IN-CHIEF SPORTS EDITORS Carlie Gillespie Isabella Perron Caroline Ward Jackson Whiting MaryKent Wolff Kole Thomas

WEB EDITOR-IN-CHIEF OPINION EDITORS Ari Sen Katie Farina Zach Godwin asst. Brandan Naef, asst.

JUNIOR EDITORS NEWS EDITORS Samantha Gonski Dhuru Patel Sarah Stertzbach Graham Neve

FEATURE EDITORS FEATURE WRITERS Samuel Littauer Emily Mertz Emily Treadway Blake Kinsey Grant McIntyre

ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR STAFF WRITERS Emily Turpin Katlyne Featherstone, asst.

Bobby Slagle, asst.

Autumn Goings Bartel Van Oostendorp Aurora Sandoval Sean Sullivan Caroline Whiting

MANAGING EDITORS Rachel Raasch PHOTOGRAPHERS Kiersten Woodring Will Lindsey Annalyse Wilkins

ADVISER Brenda W. Gorsuch

(Cover photo by Annalyse Wilkins)

DESIGNER Collin Huske

10

21

15

Carson Krisinger

opinion

23

14 - 15 profiles

4 - 8 senior columns

Seniors on staff reminisce about their high school years

Seniors express themselves in variety of ways

17 doctor shortage Nation faces critical lack of medical professionals

9 staff editorial

“Bathroom Bill” must be repealed by lawmakers

sports

news

18 - 19 sports signings

Seniors sign with colleges to play sports

10 HB2

N.C. Gov. Pat McCrory signs controversial bill into law

a&e

11 greek life Seniors headed to college may join fraternities, sororities

features

20 robotics

Local robotic team goes to regional competition

21 exotic pets

Dogs and cats aren’t the only options for students

12 Class of 2016 Soon-to-be graduates choose colleges, military, work

22 - 23 fun times The top 5 things you need to do on summer vacation

Wingspan The student forum of West Henderson High School is published four times each year by the newspaper journalism class. The purpose of Wingspan is to convey school and community news to the students, faculty, administration and community.

Wingspan content is determined by an editorial board of student editors.

CHECK US OUT ON WINGSPANONLINE.NET

Wingspan is a Southern Interscholastic Press Association All-Southern, National Scholastic Press Association All-American, Columbia Scholastic Press Association Gold Medalist and N.C. Scholastic Media Association All-North Carolina and Tar Heel Award publication.

Staff editorials express the opinion

of the editorial board. Columns reflect the opinions of the individual writers.

Circulation is 2,000. Printed by Target Printing & Distribution of Fayetteville, N.C. 28273.

Contact the staff at wingspan@hcpsnc. org. The Wingspan staff also publishes online at wingspanonline.net.

/ JUNE 2016 / 3

columns

MARYKENT WOLFF

UNC - GREENSBORO

Fond memories reflected on as senior year comes to a close

A

s I’m writing this, Katie is playing music from Spongebob Squarepants (Gary’s Song, if you’re interested).

Emily is sitting on top of a table, egging Katie on. Ari’s feet are on my desk as he complains and curses, as he so infuriatingly does.

Carlie is laughing so hard that her face is turning red while her head is on my shoulder. I’m watching it all, and I’m happy. It’s moments like these that have gotten me through the last four years.

As cliche as it seems, the newspaper staff members are like family to me. I’ve spent countless hours in the back room with them, forcing myself to get work done in between laughs. I’ve shared hotel rooms with them and gotten kicked out of my own bed. I’ve wandered through Disney World with them while they graciously ignored the rude things I said when I got aggressively grumpy from hunger.

They’ve seen me cry more times than I think any of us are comfortable with, but they’ve been there for me each time something has gone wrong. I genuinely don’t know what I would have done without them here, dragging me without hesitation through the mess that is high school.

When I came to West, I was afraid I wouldn’t have moments that I would be able to remember fondly, like watching Bob’s Burger marathons with Emily or witnessing Aury St. Germain “inverted twerking” in the back room. I was

worried that I wouldn’t have the amazing experiences I was promised, like going to Duke Youth Academy (DYA) and meeting some of the most loving, accepting people I have ever known. I was scared I wouldn’t be able to keep my old friends, like Carlie, one of my best friends for over 10 years now, or make new ones, like Garrett, my new Texan friend who has been such a blessing in my life since DYA.

As I’m trying to finish this, I’m wedged between Carlie and Caroline while we talk to Mrs. (Denise) Warren. I can hear High School Musical songs blasting in the back room.

The underclassmen are giggling from their side of the room when someone starts screaming the lyrics to “Breaking Free.”

I’m watching it all, and I can’t imagine not being on staff anymore.

Next year, I won’t be causing trouble in the back room. I won’t be spending half of my day in Z-2, and I won’t be racing to grab one of the good rolly chairs. This is so hard for me to wrap my head around because it was times in Z-2 and moments with the staff that have kept me sane.

High school definitely wasn’t the best four years of my life, like my dad told me they would be. I dreaded waking up most mornings and I sighed each day before walking up the senior steps. I may not have loved high school, but I loved the moments that got me through it. I wouldn’t trade these people, experiences or memories for the world.

CARLIE GILLESPIE Senior steps provide a daily reminder of the future to come N.C. STATE

S

tarting this year off painting the senior steps really put things into perspective. I got a group of my friends together. None of them were particularly artsy, but we all were able to work together to make something great.

We thought about the year ahead of us jokingly (“Just think what it’s going to be like when we are sitting in a class with a water bottle and air conditioning”). I didn’t realize then that senior year would pass by as fast as it did. It feels like just yesterday I was waiting eagerly with my friends for it to begin. It’s hard to believe the year we always waited for is almost over. I knew senior year would be great, but if I could go back and tell myself all the great things I would experience this year, I wouldn’t have believed myself.

I went from painting the senior steps to climbing them every single day for the rest of the year. Each day I walked up the steps, I’d looked at what I had painted, remembering a time when I thought senior year would never come. But senior year did come. It happened faster than I anything I’ve ever experienced. One minute I was coming to “ChalkYour-Spot” and the next it was Christmas Break. I was both relieved and in despair. I had finished applying to two great colleges. I had written my first real research paper, and I was just about ready to start my graduation project. It had been a lot of hard work. I had experienced weekly visits to Panera Bread to keep up with three AP classes and long nights of

4 / WINGSPAN /

last minute studying for statistics tests. I was determined to make my second semester great. The conditions were perfect. I had journalism first period with the newspaper at my fingertips. My second and third period were filled with my close friends, and in my fourth period I ended up making a best friend I’d only met a few months before.

I’m here to say my efforts were successful. My second semester passed by just as quickly as my first. We (barely) got out all four of our issues by the end of the year. We finished the semester with all of our friendships (and most of our sanity) in tact.

Senior year wasn’t what I’d imagined. It wasn’t the idealistic picture everyone had painted for me. At the beginning of the year, I didn’t realize that it wouldn’t be all sunshine and senior privilege. But now I understand senior year is mostly hard work with a side of reward. Seniors work for their privilege. Seniors must create the memories they wish to experience.

There are a lot of things I’ll miss about West, but I’m optimistic about the future. College is just another thing that seems so distant, but will be over before I know it.

With the future stretched out in front of me, just like at the beginning of the year on the senior steps, I have no idea what freshman year will hold, but I’m prepared to savor every second of it.

WESTERN CAROLINA

CAROLINE WARD

Getting stuck on fence provides metaphor for senior year

A

week before senior year started, I found myself stuck on a fence. Not a metaphorical fence either, a real, actual chain link fence was stuck right in my leg. Despite my probably inappropriate sense of humor about the whole situation (“Good thing we did leg day at the gym today, huh?”), I was in a predicament.

No matter how much I tried, I couldn’t get myself off the fence. After trying to convince my tearful friend that we didn’t really need to call our parents, or 911, I ended up on the phone with my mother, the fire department coming to cut me off in the middle of the night, an ambulance ride, and a visit to Mission’s trauma center.

Needless to say, once I admitted that I needed help, I had several doctors, nurses, and EMTs ready to support me. They sent me on my way to face my senior year (and my rather angry mother) with a nice scar and a cool story.

Now, at the end of senior year, I find myself hung up on a different kind of fence, the fence between childhood and adulthood. As I straddle this fence, I still find myself surrounded by people who are willing to help me the minute I admit that I need it.

Doctors, nurses, and EMTs have been replaced by family, friends, teammates, coaches and teachers. As I prepare to “climb over this fence” if you will, I find myself constantly surrounded with the best support system I could

imagine. I have played my last basketball game, attended my last pep rally, taken my last “last first day of school” pictures and published my last newspaper.

All of the things that have been my life for so long will soon become memories. As the Class of 2016, we all have some very big steps to take after graduation, and sometimes the looming pressure of adulthood can be overwhelming. Life will be full of ups and downs, and sometimes we won’t be able to do it on our own. We will need to reach out for help. Sometimes we will get discouraged, but it is important to remember where we come from. It is important to remember that no matter what hurdles we have to jump over, hoops we have to jump through, or fences we have to climb, we have already accomplished much.

We know hard work and excellence. We will always have the memories of award-winning publications, pep rallies and undefeated basketball seasons. We will always be athletes, scholars and friends. No matter where the future takes us, we will always be Falcons, and we will always be Dirty Birds. We all have that going for us, and the rest will follow. We can take with us the lessons from these four years, and we can soar. We have been set up for success.

Now we just have to prove we can do it. Thank you, Class of 2016, for four great years. Hop on over that fence and keep on moving forward. I know you will all do great things.

ARI SEN Don’t forget to question authority and everything else

UNC - CHAPEL HILL

T

wo years ago I tried to leave.

I saw the beautiful private school campus: the swimming pool, the high tech science classrooms, the library that could have been something out of Hogwarts. I wanted all of it.

I wanted to never walk on gum-strewn sidewalks of mediocrity into the ugly, aging rectangular brick buildings ever again. I wanted to never sit in cramped desks with 30 people who didn’t get it. I dreamed of a better life.

But cold reality took my dream away.

“Unfortunately we are not able to offer you enough scholarship money to attend,” the white piece of paper emboldened with the school crest read.

I thought my life would change if I left. Turns out it changed because I didn’t.

If I had left, I never would have gotten the opportunity to travel across the country to Washington, D.C., Chicago, Orlando, Columbia, Chapel Hill and so many other places, run the best scholastic news website in the country (well, in my opinion) or sweat in a polyester uniform while performing in front of cheering crowds.

I would never had been the N.C. High School Journalist of the Year, prom king or one of the top 10 students in the class. If I had left, I would never have met some of the most interesting people in the world: the people I call my

friends, my peers and my teachers. I would never have learned who I was: curious, driven, passionate and rebellious as hell.

At any other school, they probably wouldn’t tolerate my wild swearing in defense of free speech, my harsh criticism of the sartorially inept or insane clarinet horn flashing at the end of a show (to be fair they still don’t tolerate it very well). At any other school, I probably wouldn’t have been able to make mid-day Bojangles’ runs, lounge in a rolly chair all day or skip Human Geo so I could work on the newspaper. No, at some private school, I would have been part of the blue blazered masses of rich kids (no offense to blue blazers).

West gave me the chance to stand out in the crowd of the people I used to despise, who now I have come to love.

I love all 30 of the kids I share a classroom with. I will miss the gum-strewn sidewalks.

West gave me the better life I dreamed of.

Now, it is finally time for me to leave after four long years of procrastination, swearing and journalistic domination. As I move onto to a new place (Go, Heels!) with new people for me to meet, I will remember the lessons that West taught me. When you’re stuck in a bad situation, make the most of it. Always question authority. And don’t forget to raise a little hell.

/ JUNE 2016 / 5

feature

RACHEL RAASCH

UNC-CHAPEL HILL

High school just one step to the future, not whole life

H

igh school for me was not four years of torture. Nor was it the best four years of my life. No soap opera drama occurred, no crazy romances, no evil teachers and no angel educators.

High school for me has been a step. High school has never been my whole life. That’s not to say I didn’t take my high school experience seriously. I cried over frustrating math, stressed about how the end of our elements project would turn out in chemistry, became family with knights and ladies and guys and dolls with the musical cast, and was elated seeing our freshly printed paper delivered.

I’ve had drama over who’s invited in the prom car, and “Does he like me back.” I’ve had impromptu karaoke dates, ice cream sleepovers and late night bonfires discussing the perfect recipe for s’mores and making wishes on stars. It’s important to experience all of these things.

Enjoy the moment you are living in whether that’s a complicated class or night out with friends. Even in the most intense days of senioritis, enjoy your last moments. You will never have these opportunities again, you need to soak in every minute you have. However, have a little perspective that this is only four years and little things should not be the cause of stress.

When I look back at my time at West, the best memories come from those obscure moments — the awkward silences

before everyone collectively bursts out laughing, wiping my sweaty palms before musical auditions, the solid two minutes in the morning when you are trying to figure out if it’s a homeroom day or not, and times reading bathroom graffiti was a juxtaposition of encouraging words of love and support and people scribbling curse words.

Of all my time at West, my hours in the journalism room have stood out the most. Z-2 has become a sort of home away from home for me. In my three years of writing stories, designing ads, taking interviews, singing along to early 2000s jams and laughing and cringing at the Top 10 board in the back, I’ve met the most creative, fun and intelligent people here, and working with them has totally changed my perspective on what it means to be a teenager.

West is a great place where you adjust to yourself, find who you are and start to become OK with showing that to the world. I entered a shy, lonely, reserved, overly optimistic freshman, and I will walk across the stage confidently knowing that despite not having all the answers, I have the ability to figure it out.

After I walk across that stage, I will get to sit down next to all of the amazing friends I’ve been lucky enough to find and grow with. I know everyone has had his or her own experiences, but we all share some version in this type of growth, and I look forward to seeing where we all end up in 10 years.

KIERSTEN WOODRING School was the ‘best of times,’ it was ‘the worst of times’ CAMPBELL

I

t was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” This quote from A Tale of Two Cities defined my four years at West.

Most of my four years were spent with my friends by my side. My friends changed every year with a new friend group. It took me a while before I found my place. I spent my freshman year feeling very out of place — hiding in the shadows and meeting very few people.

When my sophomore year began, I knew I had to find new friends. My friends were a few seniors and the color guard. But it wasn’t long before the seniors graduated and color guard was over, which left me back to square one.

So my junior year I spent most of my time with the theater kids and the smart kids. I struggled to keep up with these two friend groups, seeing as I was not the smartest nor was I the best actress. But I loved everyone who I had met throughout these years.

My senior year I wanted to be the happiest person I could be. So I went back to what I loved. I did color guard again. I started my fourth year of theater, and I was the co-managing editor of the Wingspan with one of my best friends. I chose to attend a school with one of my friends.

We made plans to room together at Campbell University.

I would have a friend to help me feel a little less homesick for when I was four hours away from home.

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Life was great. These were the best times. I loved senior year up until September when my fun-loving brother passed away. His funeral taught me that friends are everything. It doesn’t matter if it has been two weeks or two years, friends will show up for you.

His life taught me to live every moment like it is your last. He was always brave and had many people who loved him. It was no longer important how I was seen. It didn’t matter what clique I was in or who my friends were.

His death still left me feeling like I was very alone. My friends proved me wrong. They showed me that I will never be truly alone. My friends from four hours away drove down to spend the week with me. All of the color guard went to his funeral for me. All of my friends showed up just to see me. They distracted me during one of the hardest times of my life.

They are the ones who I cry to if I am having a bad day.

They are my family. My friends are the most important thing to get me through the best and worst times of my life.

It took me four years to find my friends. I am so glad I did.

I owe my whole high school career to them.

I will remember the great times, and our crazy adventures to new places are the things I love. These are the people who helped create who I am. I will forever miss all of these moments at West.

EMILY TURPIN Taking the memories into the next step in life APPALACHIAN STATE

J

unior year was my year. I poured my heart into making good grades and also a good amount of money since I practically lived at my job.

It was the year of never ending hippie fam group messages and outings. I fell in love for the first time. I was always hanging out with my senior friends, pretending that I was a senior, so on graduation night when my friends walked across the stage without me, I was left blind sided. People were constantly confusing me with a senior because I was doing my very best to act like one.

My actual senior year came around, and I had no clue what to do. Senior year has been an absolute roller coaster, but I have learned several things.

One very important piece of advice I have for all the juniors and underclassmen — do not take on more than you can handle. There is a difference between challenging yourself and drowning yourself. School is important, don’t get me wrong, but so are ice cream dates with your friends.

When you look back on high school, you’re not going to want to remember that all you did was your homework.

You’ll want to remember kissing your favorite person under the stars and getting rowdy at football games. You’ll want to remember playing Cards Against Humanity after finals and laughing until your stomach hurts in the back room of Z-2. You’ll want to remember eating Lo Mein in your

hotel room in Orlando with your best friends.

Sometimes high school sucks. I’ve had my fair share of drama and stress to make me want to graduate right his very moment. However, I’ve been very careful to not just wish my whole high school experience away. In one of my favorite shows, The Office, Andy Bernard says, “I wish there was a way to know you were in the good old days before you actually left them.” Trust me. By senior year you start to get a little burned out, but enjoy your high school moments instead of constantly hoping they’d end quicker.

For me, one of the worst parts about senior year is that I didn’t realize who the important to me until senior year was coming to a close. Don’t worry about what everyone else thinks. Learn how to forgive, even when you do not receive an apology. We all mess up and make mistakes. Even if someone isn’t looking for your forgiveness, forgive them for both your sake and theirs. At the same time, cut the people out of your life that are hurting you instead of helping you.

Learn to do things for your own happiness and remove the people from your life who show you over and over that they don’t care that they’re hurting you.

I’ve spent four years walking these halls, and I know I wouldn’t be who I am today without the people I’ve met and memories I’ve made. Don’t wish it all way. Too soon you’ll be walking across the stage wondering where the time went.

ISABELLA PERRON

QUEENS UNIVERSITY

Student earns opportunity to play college volleyball

A

fter being nailed in the face with a ball and holding ice to my nose for two hours, I gave up baseball. When I was little, I belonged to a dance academy, a gymnastics team, a cheerleading team, a soccer team and a co-ed baseball team. I never knew that I would one day be willing to give up those sports for just one.

When I was in the third grade, my grandmother came to visit my family, and she brought me a blow up beach ball.

Once it was blown up, I hit the ball back in forth with her and, thus, she introduced me to volleyball. Ever since, I have never stopped playing.

When I moved from New Jersey to North Carolina in the third grade, I continued to dance, cheer and play soccer.

When I got into middle school, I gave up all the other activities to give my complete attention to volleyball. One of my earliest memories of volleyball was when I was on the middle school team and I had Coach Corhn. She had me practice some days with the varsity team and that made me develop confidence in myself as well as learn to be a vocal player. In any sport, it is important to communicate with your teammates, and it was very beneficial to learn how to do this at a young age.

While I played school ball, I also played club ball on the side. Since the sixth grade, I have been playing volleyball year around. That is seven full years of non-stop volleyball.

Around 10th and 11th grade, some girls will start to tire of volleyball, but I continued to enjoy it.

If I had to do it all again, I truly would. I would never give up the experiences I gained through this sport. Every weekend my friends would make plans to hang out, but I always had somewhere to travel to compete. It has made me the person I am today.

My sophomore year I set up a recruiting page. It asked me what size college I was looking for, which area of the United States, and the major I wanted to study. It was easy for me to narrow down colleges I would be interested in because I knew I wanted a small school that offered nursing.

I had gone on campus tours while my older brother was looking, and I hated the large campus feel. I communicated with many college coaches and visited their campuses. It was a really great experience.

I always looked for one thing major thing from a coach — I wanted the coach to believe in athletes being students first. When I went on my visit to Queens they had me laughing and smiling. At the end of the visit, the players all hugged me and gave me their numbers.

I knew right away Queens was where I needed to be.

Other campuses didn’t compare. It is the best of both worlds, and I have been waiting for so long to start this journey and take advantage of what I have been offered.

/ JUNE 2016 / 7

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opinion

HATE BILL 2

Legislature, governor make N.C. nation’s laughingstock

T

welve hours.

Twelve hours was how long it took for the N.C. General Assembly to write, introduce, debate, vote and gain Gov. Pat McCrory’s signature on the now infamous House Bill 2. This piece of discriminatory legislation has cost North Carolina millions of dollars and continues to embarrass us on the national stage.

House Bill 2 or HB2 (nicknamed “the Bathroom Law”) passed in the legislature’s first emergency session called in the last 35 years. It was in response to a Charlotte city ordinance that extended non-discriminatory rights to the LGBT community. The most polarizing part of this new law is the provision requiring transgender individuals to use the restroom of the gender on their birth certificate. The Charlotte ordinance overturned by HB2 had allowed them to use the restroom of their gender identity.

This section of the bill is where the most controversy has been generated with groups disagreeing on the rights of transgender individuals. This bill not only allows for discrimination against transgender men and women involving restrooms, but it also allows for discrimination against other members of the LGBT community. This kind of discrimination is unacceptable in the 21st century.

Not only is the bill harming the state’s image; it’s hurting the state’s economy in very real ways. PayPal canceled plans to build a facility in Charlotte which would create 400 new jobs, and they aren’t the only company. Numerous businesses have either decided to avoid future expansion into North Carolina or have

canceled expansion plans.

More than a dozen organizations have canceled conferences and conventions planned in the state, which would have pumped thousands of dollars into local economies.

Numerous entertertainers have canceled performances, including Bruce Springsteen, Ringo Starr, Pearl Jam, Blue Man Group and Maroon 5.

This is just adding to the list of ways House Bill 2 is hurting our state’s reputation in the national eye. This is the kind of backward policy that would be expected out of a conservative state like Mississippi, where legislators passed a similar law that hasn’t received nearly enough attention. One possible explanation is that more is expected out of North Carolina, a swing state that constantly rides the fence between liberal and conservative.

The only argument that the supporters of HB2 have to offer is that keeping transgender individuals out of bathrooms will somehow protect women and children. Transgendered people are not pedophiles, and there’s simply no evidence that transgender individuals are more likely to commit any kind of sex crime, or even any crime at all.

In fact, Media Matters reports there isn’t a single reported case of a transgendered person committing a sex crime in the 10 states with equal access restrooms laws.

It’s time for the General Assembly to repeal this disastrous law before it harms our great state even more. What kind of state are we? A regressive state that pushes back to a discriminatory past or a progressive state that can be a leader in expanding civil rights.

/JUNE 2016 / 9

features

Common sense or bigotry?

New N.C. law draws national attention, costs state millions by / Caroline Whiting / Staff Writer

I

t was getting late in the evening on March 23. N.C. Gov. Pat McCrory looked over House Bill 2 (HB2), which would become known as the “bathroom bill” because it requires transgender individuals to use the restroom appropriate for the gender on their birth certificate.

Earlier that same day, the N.C. General Assembly had passed the bill to revoke Charlotte’s recently passed nondiscrimination ordinance, an ordinance that provided protections for transgender and LGBT residents.

Charlotte’s ordinance was set to go into effect April 1.

McCrory signed HB2, 12 hours after it was introduced in a special one-day legislative session. It’s not clear whether McCrory or the lawmakers realized the national backlash that would result from their actions. The national news media as well as social media exploded with coverage of HB2. Lawmakers and opponents argued over the question, Is HB2 common sense or discrimination?

Since March, dozens of companies, corporations and organizations have come out against North Carolina’s new law. They are threatening to refuse to do business in the state until HB2 is repealed. Apple, American Airlines, the National Basketball Association, the NCAA, Microsoft, Wells Fargo are among the groups opposed to the law.

Hollywood filmmakers, authors, musicians and government officials from other states are refusing to come to

HB2 Timeline

Feb. 22 - House Speaker Tim Moore calls for legislation to revoke “the bathroom piece” of city ordinance.

Feb. 22 - Charlotte City Council adds LGBT protections to the city’s nondiscrimination ordinance.

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the state as part of the backlash.

HB2 was passed in response to a nondiscrimination ordinance passed in Charlotte on Feb. 22. The ordinance granted protections in places of public accommodation for individuals in the LGBT community. Companies and organizations could not refuse service to anyone, including those in the LGBT community.

What caught people’s attention was the so-called “bathroom section” of the ordinance which allowed transgender individuals to use the restroom that best matched their gender identity rather than the gender on their birth certificate. Promptly after the ordinance was proposed, the N.C. General Assembly stepped in, saying the law violated the right to privacy and threatened the safety of women and children. Thus, HB2 was proposed and passed in less than a day during a special session that cost N.C. taxpayers 42 thousand dollars.

HB2 includes more than the restroom provision.

Local governments are required to follow the state law and cannot pass anti-discrimination ordinances that include sexual orientation or gender identity.

If an individual is gay or transgender, he or she is not protected in the state. A trans woman must use the men’s restroom, and a trans man must use the women’s room if that is what’s listed on their birth certificate.

Local government power is further restricted.

“The law says that a local community cannot contradict or expand what Raleigh has established,” Frank

March 23- The N.C. General Assembly passes HB2— the “bathroom bill.” McCrory signs it into law that night.

March 21- Against the wishes of Gov. Pat McCrory, lawmakers call a special session to discuss the ordinance.

April 8 - Music legend Bruce Springsteen cancels his Greensboro concert set for April 10.

March 29 - The American Civil Liberties Union and other parties file a lawsuit asking the courts to overturn HB2.

Gerard, civics and economics teacher, said. “The law also includes if a community wants to impose a raise in minimum wage.”

Employers have the right to decide the starting wage for their employees, but if communities or cities want to raise the minimum wage, they cannot under HB2. In places where the cost of living is more expensive, this has become a controversy.

In addition, if an individual believes he or she was fired for discriminatory reasons, that person now has no right to sue the employer or organization in state court.

The person’s only recourse would be federal court, which is more expensive and time-consuming.

Despite the backlash, lawmakers don’t appear to want to back down anytime soon. “Gov. McCrory agrees with President Obama that all people are welcome to our state, and everybody will be treated well with extraordinary hospitality,” a statement from McCrory’s office read.

“However, the governor respectfully disagrees with the political left’s national agenda to mandate changes to basic, common-sense restroom norms.”

Sen. Tom Apodaca of Henderson County has suggested putting a decision about the law on the November ballot for state voters to decide. “If it were up to me, I’d just put it out to a vote of the people. Let them decide what they want to do,” Apodaca said. “Let’s put it on the ballot and get it over with once and for all. If the majority wants this, fine. If they don’t, fine.”

April 12 - U.S. Justice Department officials warn HB2 violates the U.S. Civil Rights Act Title VII and Title IX.

April 12 - McCrory signs order preventing state employees from being fired for being gay or transgender.

May 9 - U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch files a lawsuit against N.C. over constitutionality of HB2.

May 9 - McCrory files a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Justice.

May 17- Rowan Board of Education votes to allow students to bring pepper spray to use against transgender people.

To GR K or Not to College students consider advantages, disadvantages by / Bartel Van Oostendorp / Staff Writer

M

atthew Carrington lay face down in raw sewage in the basement of the Chi Tau fraternity in Chico, California.

After spending the night forced into a freezing cold air-conditioning vent, his muscles burned from doing a seemingly endless number of push-ups and other gruelling exercises next to his fellow pledges. Later, the brothers came again with the full five gallon water jug, which Matthew was forced to drink. He listened to his tormentors scream insults and instructions and read the phrase that was scrawled all over the walls: “In the basement, no one can hear you scream.”

Suddenly, his vision went black; his “brothers” watched as he shook on the ground in a seizure. Later that night, he would be pronounced dead from water intoxication.

“Hazing is clearly one of the largest issues we face in fraternities and sororities, and it is also one of the more known identifiers of the Greek experience on college campuses,” Elliot Kimball, adviser for Greek life at the University of North Carolina at Asheville said.

“Fortunately, I’ve never lost a student directly to hazing, but a loss of life is never easy and completely inexcusable when caused by irresponsibility and behavior that could have been prevented.”

As the school year comes to a close, high school seniors are faced with the question of what college they will attend, but the decisions do not end there.

Just after new students arrive on college campuses, they are faced with the possibility of going Greek. If they choose to pledge, they go through recruitment “rush” week where different fraternities and sororities hold social events to recruit new members. If a fraternity or sorority likes an individual, they issue an invitation to join.

That’s when the initiation process begins.

“When I chose to go through recruitment, I had some reservations because I wasn’t sure what to expect through the process or what joining a sorority would be like,” said Katie Kennedy, a freshman at UNC Chapel Hill. “During

the new member period and through initiation, I did not experience any hazing. Pi Beta Phi has a strict no-hazing policy that is central to our chapter’s values.”

But unfortunately, for the 9 million students involved in Greek life, that is not always the case. As of 2008, 73 percent of students in social sororities and fraternities reported that they had experienced hazing in some form.

And according to the University of Maryland, since 1970 there has been at least one death per year as a result of hazing.

Colleges are working to abolish hazing.

“All of the organizations are pretty good about going to trainings and things that address hazing and shed light on hazing and why it’s bad,” said Angela Kroninger, a student worker for fraternity and sorority life at UNCA. “We all know why it’s not OK to haze, and there are a bunch of trainings that we go to and a lot of conversations that are held on hazing because some people take it too far.”

For many students, the pros outweigh the cons. The promise of friends, involvement on campus and opportunities to improve themselves and the community draw students into the Greek community.

“I chose to join because it offered a diverse community of women who have become my best friends,” Kennedy said. “In addition, Pi Phi portrayed an incredible sense of sisterhood and philanthropy that inspired me to join.”

Philanthropy and character building is not all that draws pledges. Some are attracted by the reputations and stories that come out of the Greek community. Wild parties, crazy activities and binge-drinking competitions are some of the factors that attract members.

“There is a lot of drinking and partying involved with Greek life,” Olivia Slagle, a non-Greek freshman at UNCChapel Hill and West alumni, said. “I’ve talked to students who felt a lot of pressure to attend those kinds of social events because of their involvement in Greek life.”

However, the stereotypes created by pop culture and movies have led to many Greek students feeling misrepresented and misjudged.

“I am not oblivious to the headlines about some of

the activities and scandals that have occurred through Greek organizations at some universities, and I am well aware of the stereotypes,” Kennedy said. “But these ideas simply do not portray the true character of the majority of Greek communities in colleges.”

Though commonly shown in a bad light, Greek organizations are the largest group of volunteers in the United States, reporting more than 10 million service hours last year, according to The Fraternity Advisor. Fraternities also raised more $20 million for philanthropic efforts, according to the National Interfraternity Conference.

“Once a year, Gamma Phi Beta holds its Crescent Classic, and we do a pancake dinner. We sell $5 tickets for all you can eat pancakes,” Kroninger said. “It’s really awesome because we’ve been able to donate this past year more than $1,000 to Girls On The Run of Western North Carolina.”

Though many of the chapters have good reputations, women in sororities are 74 percent more likely to experience rape than other college women, and according to a Harvard School of Public Health study, living in a sorority house makes a woman three times more likely to be raped.

“I do think that the amount of sexual assault is a problem on college campuses, and women should be able to go out without feeling threatened or endangered,” Kennedy said. “There have been an increasing number of lectures, lessons and informational services available to help prevent, intervene and, if necessary, recover from sexual assault. The problem of sexual assault is not overlooked, and many women in the Panhellenic Council are becoming more and more aware and involved in the fight against it.”

Regardless of the dangers and concerns, according to the Washington Post, Greek numbers are increasing.

Membership in the National Panhellenic Conference has risen 10 percent over the past two years and is expected to climb more rapidly in years to come.

Membership in the North American Interfraternity Conference has risen 45 percent over the last 10 years and is predicted to climb still.

/ JUNE 2016 / 11

features

Pass with

Flying Colors

What is the next step for 2016 seniors?

AB Tech Javan Allen Taylor Barton Jonathan Beddingfield Kade Blackwell Gabi Blake Sirena Bryson Chad Buckingham Samantha Byrd Trey Cochran Ciara Duff Chandler Ensley Jimmy Forbes James Hoffmann Lexy Hoover Hayley Lance Alan Lee Kaitlyn Lee Katie Marcello Morgan Lindsey Erwin Martinez Saul Montiel-Rodriguez Bailey Morgan Kizhanai Phiffer Jadeian Pickens Kail Ring Tyler Sem Henry Sink Taylor Stamey Rhiannon Stutzman Aislinn Suelflow Zora Talley Jeff Thompson Marcelo Tinoco Dare Towe Tabitha Warren

Appalachian Nicole Cantrell Robert Hinchliffe Emily Turpin

Belmont Abbey Savannah Smith

Blue Ridge CC Emma Allison Rachel Baity Johnathan Carberry Addison Conard Christian Davidson Taylor Dudley

12 / WINGSPAN /

Jade Dunbar Max Finotti Sean Fish Caitlin Fuentes Zach Fulcher Jimmy Gash Shelby Goode Hannah Guthrie Sebastian Hernandez Sydney Hodges Mackenzie Hitch Jolin Islas Melin Islas Charlye Israel David Jackson Taylor Johnson Clarrisa Jones Jami Jones Grant Kilpatrick Maija Lacey Richard Leon Bryce Lotz Vinnessa Mao Taylor Mathews Brittany Mills Lucas Moffitt Chasity Morrison Capers Nobles Kyle Padgett Luke Page Hunter Paris Matthew Pedersen Megan Powers Shannon Powers Emily Prezas Velasco Dylan Ramackers Aly Rich Chantal Reed Katie Robinson Denis Santamaria Diana Sarith Travis Sprague Sarah Stott AJ Sumner Bailey Tavel Ryan Thacker Ashley Thompson Tristan Tilson Elsy Vera Rico Danylle West

Bradford Institute Mackenzie Keel

Brenau Jasmine Holt

Brevard Tanner Bullock Bryce Kinsey Josh Penland Clayton Privette

Zeke Jones - Army William Jackson - Military Justin Jarvis - Marines Spencer Lance - Navy John Williamson - Military Katelyn Ward- Army

NC Central

Campbell Ashley Dyer Kiersten Woodring

Carson-Newman Austin Hall Tristan Thomas

Centre

Nathan Bryans

NC State Amir Al-Abed LeighAnn Devore Leah Dorn Carlie Gillespie Zach Hainsel David Olvera

Queens University

Stephen Perron

Citadel Sebastian Gonzales Ramirez

East Tennesee State Andrew Dean Taylor Lance

Carey Cosgrove Isabella Perron

Saint Clair Giana Marzella

Saint Olaf

Fruitland Baptist Dalton Street

Gardner-Webb Reagan Birkhead Julianna Goode Nathan Greer Hope Johnston Courtney Kanetzke Tyler Lindsey Josh Wesson

High Point Cassidy Carter

Kansas State

Madison Duran

SCAD Annalyse Wilkins

Tennessee Tech Taylor Houck

UNC-Asheville Samantha Creech Tyreke Dunbar Levi Gibbs Jenvina Mao Morgan McKeel John Muse Holden Raesemann

UNC-Chapel Hill

Zach Smith

King Michaela Morris

Liberty Skylar Hanes Sydney Hogan

Armed Forces Hunter Davis - Military Nathan Kuykendall - Military

Brian Arden Dylan Buchanan Rachel Raasch Tia Olson Rebecca Olson Ari Sen

UNC-Charlotte Laure Castellanos Drew Corn

Davis Fisher Sarah Gillette Mary Haley Colby Kilpatrick Nadine Langsdorf Taylor Martin Dante Padilla Amy Reisman Kaiden Turner Morgan Whitted Brant Wilson Ellis Young

UNC-Greensboro Hannah Astin Meagan Brewer Jennifer Diaz Katie Farina Kerstin Jenkins Jonah Van Doren MaryKent Wolff

UNC-Wilmington Faith Gonce Olivia Hogan Carson Krishingner

Univ. of Arizona Ethan Stepp

Univ. of Tennessee Izzy Denman

Virginia Tech James Murray Kyle Laffin

Western Carolina Ashelie Allison Bailey Austin Nikkita Calderas Megan Carroll Dara Case Rylee Dean Christina Eplee Kendall Gilliam Farrah Gillie-Menafee Andrew Guffey D.J. Harrison Mitchell Henson Lauren Heywood Maddie Iurato Hannah Jackson

Jake Justice Brandon Krepela Evan Langsdorf Selina Lara Abbey Lauffer Hannah Grace Lemacks Madi Metts Junior Mintz Lindsey Nofsinger Sheridan Patterson Kayla Petri Isaac Ray Vivian Rodriguez Brittany Rucker Nia Sellas Chelsea Shaw Colby Sousa Sammi Stanley Samantha Thielke Scott Tippet Caroline Ward

Wingate Jackson Hetzler Bradley Hull Alexis Morse Alexis Whiteside Megan Palmer

Winthrop Gracie Carrick

Wofford Sara Yarbrough

Work Force Beau Burguires Zach Endriss Chase Massey Sam Merriam River Mitchell Armando Mondragon-Baza Cassie Musser Kyle Posey Silvia Reyes-Ornelas Guillermo Rosales Escobedo Tevis Stephenson Jacob Vallieres Abby Walden David Watts Brandon Wright Jackie Wimmer Parker Young

MAP

A map depicting the various locations members of the Class of 2016 will be attending college in the fall. Members of the class will travel to places as far as Arizona, Minnesota, Kansas and Canada.

(Graphic by Zach Godwin. To see an interactive version of the map go to wingspanonline.net)

on the MAP

Class of 2016 known for facing new challenges

W

hen this year’s seniors were put to the test, they proved their ability to adapt to any change that came their way. They took on Common Core, the new N.C. Final Exams and the move of the civics and economics requirement to their senior year.

“It was fun to be the class who tried new things,” student body president Sammi Stanley said. “I think it helped us learn how we work best and what tests we work better on, computer-wise or handwritten.”

The civics and economics class, taught by social studies teachers Frank Gerard and Vanessa Price, has been one of the most popular and beneficial classes, according to 40 percent of the senior class. Civics and economics had previously been taught to underclassmen.

“I think any student is going to appreciate a class that is more along the lines of their daily lives or at least what you see on the news. I think seniors especially should be aware of that,” Gerard said. “It was an excellent decision to move it to senior year. Not every county in North Carolina teaches it to seniors, but we made the decision and the county office made the decision to do that. It makes a lot of sense because that’s the age at which you’re voting and that’s the age where you get your first credit card. It’s a lot that seniors are experiencing for the first time.”

The move of courses to a different year wasn’t the only change that happened during their four years at West. Common Core was fully implemented in the sophomore year of the Class of 2016. The new math classes used techniques to help students understand the

real world use of the equations they were learning.

The N.C. Final Exams also changed several times during the seniors’ four years at West. The English II exam became an online class and the math classes changed their exams from the traditional algebra and geometry questions to Math I, Math II and Math III.

While the seniors were learning new skills, they were also learning about their character.

“Our graduating class stands out because we have so many unique people,” senior class president Izzy Denman said. “It has also been the most productive year in terms of growing closer as a school.”

Valedictorian Leah Dorn agreed that the Class of 2016 is made up of unique individuals. Although Dorn didn’t attend West for all of her four years of high school, she has come to view the school as her home.

“Coming to West from another school, I didn’t know what to expect,” Dorn said. “But everyone here was so nice and accepting and really made this place a home for me.”

Stanley also feels that the Class of 2016 had a lot of individuals emerge as leaders.

“Everyone is very confident in themselves, and we have a lot of great leaders in our class,” Stanley said.

“Although we have many different people with many different talents, we are unified under a common cause to increase the spirit of West and to make a positive impact on the community.”

Looking back at their high school career, the seniors

remember the friends they made, the games they won, and the junior and senior proms they attended. One event that will always be remembered is the Katy Perry “Roar” video that the whole school came together to create in their sophomore year.

“My favorite memory would have to be the ‘Roar’ video,” Stanley said. “That was a really great experience, and we all came together as a family.”

As the graduating class moves on to a life after high school, they look forward to their future. Most seniors plan on attending a four-year or two-year college, but a few are planning on entering the workforce or military.

“I am very enthusiastic about my future,” Denman said. “ All the paths that I have taken so far have led me to exactly what I want to do.”

The seniors have learned much in their four years at West, and they are ready to begin the next phase of their lives.

“I think West has prepared me for my next step in my educational journey, and the teachers here have really taught me how to be prepared,” Stanley said. “But no one should wish high school away because in a minute you are going to be graduating.”

The graduating class leaves behind their mark as students who have loved and supported each other.

“Something that’s always stood out to me about this class is that there are so many genuinely good people in it,” Dorn said. “I am always surprised by the love and support that has come out of this community.”

/ JUNE 2016 / 13

prof iles Senior runner wears ‘lucky’ socks to every meet in high school by / Brandan Naef / Asst. Opinion Editor

H

anding off the baton to freshman Jaia Wilson, senior Olivia Hogan finished the last regional track meet of her high school career. Her team crossed the finish line in first place to win the 1600-meter relay at the regional meet to qualify for the state championship meet.

“Since I was the first leg, I knew it was really important to get a good start to set the tone of the race,“ Hogan said. “When they shot the gun, I took off as fast as I could knowing that if I didn’t run this hard it could be it for my running career.

I crossed in first, handing the baton to Jaia. We held first the whole race, and I couldn’t be happier with the way we ran.”

Hogan has been running since seventh grade. While in high school, she has run in 73 meets. For the past three years, Hogan has run all three sports seasons, cross country in the fall, indoor track in the winter and spring track.

“I did track in middle school, and I knew I wanted to do track in high school. Then I got involved with cross country,” Hogan said.

“I joined it because the people I met in cross country also did track. I started off competing as a sprinter and jumper. Later, I went over to the mid-distance team.”

Starting her freshman year of track, Hogan wanted to stand out and be the runner that no one forgot. While shopping in downtown Asheville, she found the perfect way to do just that — starting a tradition that lasted through seven seasons wearing her “Geek” socks.

“You start out as an underdog, and no one has high expectation of you. I knew I wanted people to remember me. I didn’t want to be just

another face in the crowd,” Hogan said. “I wore them to the first track meet and decided to wear them through the seasons. I almost didn’t wear the socks my sophomore year, but my friends encouraged me to keep the tradition for the rest of high school.”

Hogan competed at the NCHSAA 3A state championship meet in Greensboro on May 20.

She competed at the state meet for indoor track in February. Reflecting back on the indoor state meet, Hogan realized she was nearing the end of her career.

“Once I was at the state meet it took me a few minutes to soak it all in that I would be graduating in a few months,“ Hogan said. “Realizing this was my last time running indoor track, I wanted to go out there with my teammates and make it count one last time.”

For Hogan, being on the track team has helped her make some of her best friends.

“Track has brought me my best friends and has opened a lot of opportunities and experiences that I wouldn’t have had if I hadn’t run track,” Hogan said. “If you are going to run, you need to give it your all, but have fun. Even though it is hard, if you don’t go out there and make light of it, you are never going to enjoy it. There are days you don’t want to go practice, but the end result will be worth it.”

Hogan will attend the University of North Carolina at Wilmington in the fall. Although she won’t be competing in college, she believes her experiences with track have given her an advantage. “Track has taught me to push myself beyond my limits because running is very much a mental sport, and if you don’t have the right mind set, then you won’t succeed,” she said.

Sock’em it to

14 / WINGSPAN /

Early grad travels to Thailand to earn diving certification by / Dhuru Patel / News Editor

T

he colossal shadow of the whale shark slowly covered senior Carson Krishingner. He continued swimming toward it, being careful not to get too close. After admiring the whale shark for a few moments, he turned around and continued his descent.

This is just one of the memorable experiences that Krishingner had while on his trip during the second semester to Koh Tao, a small island off the coast of Thailand. He completed all of his required course credits in the first semester and was able to graduate early.

“The purpose of my trip was to experience what professional diving would be like,” Krishingner said. “I came here with the goal of becoming a Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) certified diver.”

Koh Tao is a well-known location for tourists looking to learn how to scuba dive. It is a rather small island, only eight square miles, with a population of about 1,382.

“The reason I left West was because I wanted to travel and gain some adult experiences along the way,” Krishingner said. “I felt that I was mature and prepared enough to do something different.”

Most early graduates end up working full-time to save money for college. However, Carson took this extra time to try and better himself by exploring the world and learning along the way.

“One of the reasons I came to Thailand to dive was that it was much cheaper to earn my diving license,” Krishingner said. “Also, the training there is arguably better than in the United States.”

The cost of getting a PADI Divemaster License is about $400, according to Padi.com, but that does not include the cost of gear and the actual scuba sessions.

Living in a country with a lower cost of living, such as Thailand, was a better financial option.

“I put a lot of planning into actually getting to the island and had to put a lot of time into researching,” Krishingner said. “But I actually didn’t have any idea what I was going to do at the island, I was just expecting to go diving a bunch.”

Krishingner contacted Buddha View Dive Resort about six months in advance to ask for more information about their diving programs. He also researched about mainland Thailand to get a better understanding of what he might be getting himself into.

“I wasn’t really that scared or nervous about visiting another country,” Krishingner said. “I have been to a few other countries, so I was more excited than nervous.”

Krishingner had visited several other countries, such as the Caribbean islands, Fiji, Bali, Mexico and Honduras. These experiences helped prepare him for going to Thailand.

“The culture there was very different, and there was a lot of diversity, but like-minded people,” Krishingner said. “My hotel room didn’t have air conditioning, so it was incredibly hot the entire time.”

People from all around the world congregate in Koh Tao, so the tourist population is very diverse. Although the local culture is also very tourist-oriented, it is heavily influenced by Thailand, so Krishingner got to experience

off the BEATEN path Senior Carson Krishingner shares the water with a manta ray as he scuba dives in Koh Tao, Thailand. Krishinger moved to Thailand after the first semester. He worked to obtain his diving license while there.

“

I felt that I was mature and prepared enough to do something different.

- Carson Krishingner, 12

”

Thai culture firsthand.

“I lived on the west coast in Sairee, which has a white sand beach and heavy flora behind it,” Krishingner said.

“There were a lot of turtles on the island, as well as sea turtles swimming around.”

Krishingner saw many sea turtles while diving because Koh Tao serves as an important breeding ground for hawksbill (sea turtles) and green turtles.

In 2004 the Royal Thai Navy introduced hundreds of baby turtles to the island, hoping to increase the population.

“I lived in a hotel-like apartment with a bed, fan, bathroom, shower and fridge,” Krishingner said. “The

room was rather bare, but I wasn’t in there that often anyway. The only thing it didn’t have was air conditioning, so it was really hot.”

The average temperature is in the mid 80s throughout the year, according to holiday-weather.com. However, it feels much hotter because the humidity is very high, typically as high as 100 percent, Krishingner said.

“Every day was completely different. I usually got up around six in the morning to get ready for diving,” he said. “There were usually four dives a day, two in the morning and two in the evening.”

Sometimes Krishingner did workshops where he practiced maneuvers and strengthened his diving. Occasionally, he assisted beginner divers in the pool and ocean. Then at night he would go out with his friends.

“The worst thing that happened to me was that I got into a motorbike accident while on the island,” Krishingner said. “I couldn’t dive for two weeks, so I was really bored in that down time.”

As of May 10, Krishingner had completed his certification and was back in the United States. He plans to attend the University of North Carolina at Wilmington beginning in January 2017.

“I learned a lot about myself, mostly from living on my own in a different country for a few months,” Krishingner said. “I think the main thing I learned is that no matter how challenging the circumstances are, everything is going to be all right.”

/ JUNE 2016 / 15

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population in the United States is growing fast, and as lots of older “Our people live longer, we’re getting to be an older society. We’ll need more specialty care around geriatrics or senior populations, and we’re not well prepared for that in particular.

Steven Smith, director, Henderson County Health Department

“

DISASTER

Shortage of doctors causing issues in heathcare by / Aurora Sandoval / Staff Writer

A

lmost every child at some point dreams of being a doctor, but fewer and fewer Americans end up as physicians.

America is facing a severe shortage of doctors as the population continues to grow older.

“I’m more worried that it’s such a challenging profession now that fewer people will seek that avenue, that course to become a physician,” Steven Smith, Henderson County Health Department director, said. “So I think we should perhaps relieve some of the pressures on medical students, including the cost of education.”

Even though many people are losing interest in studying to become a doctor, senior Rylee Dean is interested in pursuing a medical career as an anesthesiologist, a physician that specializes in anesthesia and administers anesthesia to a patient before surgery. Dean plans to take premedical classes at Western Carolina University.

“You’re always going to need medical care and that’s one of the most important things, so I think people should really reconsider that because people are always going to need doctors,” Dean said, “That (doctor shortage) just encourages me more into being a doctor, so I can help people.”

The United States could be facing a shortage of as many as 90,000 doctors by 2025. As people are living to be older, their need for medical assistance increases. As America’s population continues to increase, the number of doctors available is now decreasing.

According to the “2013 State Physician Workforce Data Book,” more than half of the states in the United States had fewer than 90 primary-care physicians per 100,000 residents.

It’s a very long and costly journey to become a doctor for people of today’s generation, which contributes to the problem that fewer and fewer people are seeking to follow the path of studying to be a doctor.

“It’s clear whatever reasons you assign to the physician shortage, clearly that capacity in this country is not growing as fast as needed,” Smith said. “Some of that is the limitation with

how many students the medical schools can take.”

Being a doctor requires a lot of knowledge, patience and commitment. It’s not easy being a doctor today as there are many requirements and traits that doctors must have. Most doctors pick up the interest early in life of wanting to help people and believe they can do that by being a physician.

“If you ask most doctors today why they got into the field, I think it’s that they want to contribute something and to help people be better, feel better and be healthier,” Smith said.

One of the causes of the doctor shortage is the substantial amount of money and time it costs to study to be a doctor. The cost of medical school alone in America can range anywhere from $50,000 to $150,000 per year, depending on location and specialty.

Studying to be a doctor can take anywhere from 11 to 16 years. The requirements include four years at a college or university, four years in medical school, a residency program that can last three to five years and, for some doctors, an optional one to three years in fellowship programs.

Another major cause of the doctor shortage is the fact that the generation known as the “Baby Boomers” are becoming senior citizens and need more medical assistance. Some of these new senior citizens have chronic diseases that need to be treated with frequent appointments with multiple doctors.

There are approximately 76 million Baby Boomers in the United States and only about 900,000 current physicians in the country to care for all of these new senior citizens. Total healthcare costs are also predicted to increase because of the aging Baby Boomer generation.

“Our population in the United States is growing fast, and as lots of older people live longer, we’re getting to be an older society,” Smith said. “We’ll need more specialty care around geriatrics or senior populations and we’re not well prepared for that in particular.”

Most medical students will be left hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt by the time they

finish their residency programs.

There are many career options available to students today. When it comes to choosing what career path to follow, working in the medical field is not the first option for many students because there are other careers available that take less time and money to pursue.

“I think we’ve always had a good pool of people that can meet the educational requirements standard,” Smith said, “But I think cost is the biggest barrier now that professionals are considering.”

There are many bad effects that could result from the doctor shortage. Doctors are cutting down on the amount of time they see each patient, placing a big strain on the patient-doctor relationship. Doctors aren’t able to get to know their patients well because they have a certain number of patients they have to see each day.

“They definitely have financial and business pressures because what they get paid for any given service has declined over time,” Smith said. “They are trying to be very efficient about how many patients they see in a day and that puts pressure on the appointment schedule.”

Being a doctor is a complex job. Doctors have their patients’ health and well-being in their hands. If they happen to make a mistake, it could result in harm or death. This is one of the reasons why the educational requirements for being a doctor are time-consuming.

It doesn’t look like the educational requirements for being a doctor will change any time soon, Smith said.

“It’s not just knowing some things. They literally have your health and well-being in their hands,” Smith said. “I think the educational requirements are in line with the importance of that decision-making process that a physician must go through.”

The doctor shortage affects rural areas more than cities. Only 9 percent of American physicians practice in rural areas, but onefourth of the U.S population lives in rural areas.

In some places, it’s not easy to find a doctor nearby, so people have to travel farther to see a doctor.

Highlights •Training to become a doctor can take between 11 and 16 years with four years undergraduate school, four years medical school, and a three to eight years residency program.

Fellowships can add an additional one to three years.

•One in three practicing physicians over the age of 55, and many are expected to retire in the next 10 to 15 years

•Six in 10 physicians say it is likely that many physicians will retire earlier than planned in the next one to three years

•20 percent of people older than 65 have five or more chronic diseases, see 14 or more physicians and average 40 doctor visits per year

(www.bartonassociates.com) (University of Illinois)

/ JUNE 2016 / 17

spor ts

SIGN ME UP TRISTAN THOMAS, Carson Newman

STEPHEN PERRON, Centre College GRACIE CARRICK, Winthrop University

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RYLEE DEAN, Western Carolina

SAVANNAH SMITH, Belmont Abbey

TANNER BULLOCK, Brevard College

TAYLOR HOUCK, East Tennessee State

ISABELLA PERRON, Queens University

MICHAELA MORRIS, King University

CLAY PRIVETTE, Brevard College

Senior athletes commit to play college sports

11 track members compete at state championship meet by / Samuel Littauer / Feature Editor

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Running

Streak On March 1, junior Dylan Shamburger runs in the track meet against North Buncombe. Shamburger was one of the members of the track team that advanced to the state meet in Greensboro last month. (photo used with permission of Lifetouch)

he crowd grew restless as they awaited the start of each race. In front of a packed stadium, the West track and field team competed in the state championship meet at North Carolina A&T in Greensboro on May 20.

The men’s and women’s teams were able to qualify 11 athletes to compete at the state meet.

Representing the men’s team were juniors Bradley Barham and Dylan Shamburger.

The women’s team sent freshmen Shylee Stocks and Jaia Wilson; sophomores Madison Conner and Taylor Meadows; juniors Gracie Tate and Meleena Robinson; and seniors Rylee Dean, Olivia Hogan and Kendall Gilliam.

After qualifying at the regional meet, the team members were eager to compete at the state level.

“I was really excited, but also nervous to compete,” sophomore Madison Connor said. “I knew there would be a lot of tough girls there, but I was just excited that I got the opportunity to go there.”

Connor had won the regional competition in the high jump. She went on to place seventh overall in the state meet, beating competitors much older and more experienced.

The women’s 4 x 400 meter relay team that included Hogan, Meadows, Wilson and Stocks were the regional champions.

“Going to state was a very humbling experience,” Meadows said. “There I saw so many good athletes, and it inspired me to continue to work hard to get to that level.”

Meadows was able to qualify as a part of both the 4 x 400 meter and 4 x 200 meter relay teams. The 4 x 200 team included Meadows, Dean, Wilson, and Robinson. The group’s time broke a school record that had stood for 11 years.

“It was really exciting to be competing at such a big meet against athletes we had never seen before,” Robinson said. “During the relay, I was trying to focus on my form and stay strong throughout my leg of the race.”

In the discus, Barham captured a 10th place finish. In his first year as a member of the track team, Barham has watched himself improve.

Having also joined the indoor track team in the winter, he has seen his shot put increase by a distance of eight inches since his winter competitions. Previously, Barham attended a 4A school, and according to Barham, the large number of athletes on the track team had kept him from getting time to perfect his form in the discus and the shot put.

As he now finds himself a part of a much smaller team, he’s been able to improve in both of his events. Barham found himself in the state competition for the first time in his career.

“There were some really big guys at the state meet. Many were even going to go compete in college,” Barham said. “When you throw, you just

“

This year’s seniors have a great love for this sport.

They were serious leaders and made the season fun.

— Lt. Col. Randy Lytle Track Coach

”

have to remain focused, visualize your throw and then do it.”

According to Barham, he felt nervous on several of his throws and came within six inches of qualifying for the finals heat.

“Next year, I hope to place in the top three,” Barham said. “It’s going to take a lot of hard work, and I’m going to have to get stronger.”

Having fallen one place short of qualifying for the state meet last spring, Shamburger was motivated to qualify this spring. At regionals, he put up qualifying times in both the 800 meter and the mile; however, his times put him as the last seed in the state meet in both of his events.

“At state, I looked down the line and saw so many strong runners, and I got nervous,” Shamburger said, reflecting on his mile performance at state. “I took an early lead and led my heat throughout the race, and that was a huge confidence boost for me.”

In that event, Shamburger set a personal record of 4:25 in the mile and finished 8th overall.

In the 800 meter, he posted a time that clinched him the 10th spot overall.

Other finishes for the team included a 12thplace finish for the women’s 4 x 400 meter relay team. Gilliam took 15th in the women’s triple jump, and Tate took 13th in the 100-meter hurdles and 13th in the 300 hurdles. The women’s 4 x 200 meter relay team finished in 12th place, and the women’s 4x100 relay team placed ninth.

As the season comes to an end, the teams will graduate six seniors, including three state qualifiers. According to coaches, the seniors were a crucial to the team’s success.

“This year’s seniors have a great love for this sport,” Coach Randy Lytle said. “They were serious leaders and made the season fun.”

Dean is the lone track member who will be continuing her career at the college level as she has signed to run for Western Carolina University in the fall.

Following their state meet, several members of team captured all-area honors.

For the men’s team, Barham received honors in both the shot put and the discus while Shamburger was awarded all-area honors in the 1600 meter. For the girls, Connor in the high jump, Robinson in the 100-meter dash, and both the 4 x 100 and 4 x 400 meter relay teams were awarded all-area honors.

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Senior Brandon Krepela and sophomore Oussa Bun command their robot at the robotics competition at North Guilford High School in Greensboro, N.C. on March 6. Krepela and Bun were two of the 30 members who traveled to the regional competition at North Guilford. (Photo by Patrick Sullivan)

Students from 5 high schools make up Robotics Team by / Autumn Goings / Staff Writer

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he robot just wouldn’t move. The right wheel was out of line. The Gorillas team members rushed to fix the bot in their 10 to 15 minute time slot before their next competition.

Using a 7/16-inch wrench and washers, the team fixed the robot and had their driver run it through a test trial. In the end, they gained points from their individual matches that helped their ranking for the competition.

“We don’t just build robots. We come together, and we’re all really close on the team,” sophomore Christopher Krepela said.

A group of about 30 students from five high schools make up the Henderson County Public Schools Robotics Team, otherwise known as Team 1225 or The Gorillas. The team’s build season normally begins on the first Saturday in January. They have six weeks to complete their robot and have it ready for competitions. Each student has a job to do, whether it be in a big or small group. Until May 1, the team worked on their robot at Blue Ridge Community College.

“Every year the teams are assigned tasks, and they must design a robot that can achieve these things or complete a couple of the tasks — however, the team chooses to get points,” Kathleen Abraham, science teacher, said.

There’s much more to robotics than building robots.

There are a number of things that each of the students has to do in order to complete the robot and make it functional. They draw from science, technology, engineering and math, or “STEM” classes.

They program the robots using coding and build a body for the robot. They use mathematical algorithms in order to solve the trigonometry involved in the process.

“There are so many different jobs on the Robotics

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Team that it’s like running a business. They do marketing and advertising. They solicit money from local businesses,” Abraham said. “There are so many different skills they learn when it comes to education, including real world knowledge and people skills.”

One of the biggest problem for the students on the Robotics Team is time management. During their six-week build season, the students met five to six days a week, staying at it as late as 10 and 11 o’clock on school nights.

Completing homework and attending or joining extracurricular activities for school could be difficult.

The students had to maintain their grades in their school classes, but in the end team members said it was worth it.

“Overall, it’s just really time consuming,” sophomore Paiton McDonald said. “So with the rigorous schedules we had, it could be hard to find time to do robotics and do it efficiently, as well as find time to do homework and do that efficiently as well.”

Of course, the Robotics team built robots, but it was more than that. As much time as the students spent with each other, they built new friendships and relationships.

Their trips to competitions also gave them time to bond, but seeing as the team was made up of a diverse group of students from different schools, there were bound to be disagreements and frustration at times.

“When there is a disagreement between us we never say anything because we don’t want to jeopardize our work,” McDonald said.

Last year, The Gorillas won the state competition to qualify for the national competition in St. Louis. That was something that made the team members proud.

“Because we’ve taken so many trips to competitions with each other, we’re close. It’s a lot of fun to be around those guys,” Krepela said.

Being on the team has given team members leadership opportunities. Some of the students get put in charge of a specific group. The group usually has a certain job they must accomplish to contribute to the robot.

Being in charge of other teens in their age group could help the students with social and communication skills, with their leadership skills and with people skills. It could help the students step out of their comfort zones.

All together the Robotics Team was beneficial, team members said.

“It was really cool when our team’s main mentor, Mike Murphy, put me in charge of the construction. The group was mainly boys, seeing as there are only four girls on the team this year,” McDonald said. “I felt very proud of myself that I was able to work hard enough to have the trust bestowed upon me to complete the project.”

According to team members, no one has to be the next Einstein or even some sort of prodigy to contribute to the team, and it’s not just a club for smart kids. All of the students on the team share a close bond.

“We all get along relatively well. It’s just a challenge because everyone is from different schools,” McDonald said. “We’re just this diverse group of people. No one really likes the same things, so sometimes it would be frustrating when they have different opinions on things than you did.”

The team is open to anyone interested that’s a Henderson County high school student. It’s an educational and fun experience for the students.

“The reason for the Robotics Team is to help the students become problem solvers and prepare them for a job market where they will be dealing with new technology,” Abraham said. “They learn how to use that technology for their community. They learn how to take their knowledge and their skills to build a better community.”

Students turn to unconventional animals for pets by / Sean Sullivan / Staff Writer

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hat is that?” junior Chloe Biggs asked her sister and dad. The man approaching them held a strange writhing animal in his hands. “This is a sugar glider,” the man answered.

“There was this guy from Pocket Pets, and he had his own sugar glider,” Biggs said. “He had them in his pockets, and they were crawling all over him and hanging out. My sister and dad saw them in downtown Brevard, and they thought they were really cute. She’s been wanting a tattoo or a puppy. Since a puppy was too much work for her and she’s always gone during the day and a sugar glider is nocturnal, my dad thought that was a better option.”

The family went on to name the marsupial, a mammal whose members are born incompletely developed and are carried and suckled in a pouch on the mother’s stomach, Kyrie. Kyrie is kept in a specially designed cage that has a rubber coating to make sure he isn’t eating plastic. His diet is mostly fruit and food pellets that are made out of grains or anything that has sugar.

To take care of Kyrie, Biggs gives him two apple slices at night, and every other day she sprinkles some vitamins on his fruit.

“It’s mostly just sugar they eat. They’ll eat any type of fruit: tomatoes, apples and grapes,” Biggs said. “He has a cage, it’s kind of small. At my sister’s place, he has a bigger one. They have to be sugar glider safe materials because it can hurt his nails. If he chews on it, he would be eating plastic. It’s metal, but it has a rubber coating over it.”

Biggs isn’t the only student at West with an unusual pet. Sophomore Thomas Miller has a hedgehog named Briar. Miller got Briar from a woman who breeds them in Charlotte.

“The lady I bought the hedgehog from handed me the box. My mom took it out of my hand to look, and when she handed it back to me, my hands weren’t there. She dropped the hedgehog five feet and was just a little shaken up,” Miller said. “My parents were looking around for a pet for Christmas, and they found this lady who a had hedgehogs.”

Briar eats cat food and other foods to keep her healthy, and when she exercises, she’ll run on a wheel or swim in the bathtub. Since Briar is nocturnal, she usually is active during the night.

“I have to make sure she gets her exercise, and she’s a tension animal, so if they don’t get out, she can die or get really depressed. She is nocturnal so she likes to play during the night,” Miller said. “She’s not the smartest creature in the world, but she can run on the wheel and when you put her in the bath she can float and swim.”

Junior Emily Treadway also has an exotic animal, a ball python named of Laquisha Terrell Washington.

Treadway feeds Laquisha frozen mice once every week and cleans its cage out every two weeks. Laquisha also likes to swim in an inch of warm water to get her exercise.

“One time I put Laquisha Terrell Washington in my

Junior Emily Treadway holds her ball python named Laquisha Terell Washington. Treadway is one of several students who has an extoic pet. (photo by Ari Sen) parents’ bed and then I left the house,” Treadway said.

“When I got back home, she wasn’t in her cage and my mom wouldn’t go into the house until I found Laquisha and put her back in her cage.”

Treadway feeds Laquisha in a separate cage because, if not, the animal would associate a hand reaching in the cage to get her out for food. Treadway was bitten by the ball python once when she scared the snake by trying to adjust its habitat. Laquisha’s mouth is small, so the bite didn’t hurt too badly.

“In her cage she can stretch the entire height of her cage, which is very tall, and then she falls over at night, waking me up,” Treadway said. “That’s her trick, but it’s very annoying.”

Treadway’s mom was not too happy about her daughter’s decision to buy a snake.

Miller, Biggs and Treadway all think that normal pets are fine, but having exotic pets is more interesting.

“I have three dogs, and that’s enough dogs. I don’t like cats,” Miller said. “A hedgehog sounded interesting, and I like interesting.”

Another student with an exotic pet is freshman

Thomas Southern. Southern has a two-foot long bearded dragon named Smaug. Smaug likes to eat vegetables and live cockroaches that are two to two and a half inches long.

“He’s not that common, and he’s very hard to take care of,” Southern said. “He looks weird, but he’s still a pet.”

Smaug will bite if he gets mad, but usually is calm.

The only time he has bitten Southern was when Southern was feeding him. The bearded dragon has sharp teeth.

Southern also likes to walk him outside with a harness.

“Smaug likes to attack himself in the mirror,” Southern said. “Whenever he sees himself in the mirror, he jump at it and hits the glass.”

Smaug is kept in a terrarium. His species is from Australia, so one side of the terrarium has to be hot and the other side cooler so he can cool down. The light bulbs that are used with the terrarium cost about $100 each and have to be changed every four to six months.

“The light bulbs produce radiation to keep Smaug healthy,” Southern said. “If he doesn’t have the radiation he could get a bone disease and die.”

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a&e by / Blake Kinsey / Feature Writer

The warmer months are approaching, and summer is vacation is only days away. With long, busy summers, there are many different things to occupy your time. Summer should be a time to unwind and do fun activities with friends. So, if you are in need of ideas for something to do, here are five suggestions.

Mud & Color Runs

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things to do this summer

“The Color Run” is a perfect example of a fun summer activity. Known as “the happiest 5K on the planet,” the color run is a 5K where you are running, and you are constantly being covered in paint. People throw paint and even spray you with paint. The run is coming to Asheville this summer on Aug. 6.

You can register at thecolorrun.com/locations/asheville.

Staying more local, the “Mad Mountain Mud Run” is another fun way to run a 5K. The mud run is a 5K located in Hendersonville’s Berkeley Park, where runners run the race with numerous obstacles involving significant amounts of mud. The run is open to anyone since it is the only race of its kind that lets you choose your heat based on your ability. The race is run in teams of four with competitions for best team names and best themed costumes for teams. The race will take place on June 4. You can learn more or register for the mud run at madmountainmudrun.com.

“I originally found out about it through my mom who had heard about it,” sophomore Cameron Brothers said. “I enjoy just about every aspect of the mud run.”

Both runs are a great way to run a race without the exhaustion of solely running the race itself. Either running a race of paint or mud and obstacles, each one is great way to escape the boring workouts.

The Orange Peel

The Orange Peel is a popular music venue located in downtown Asheville at 101 Biltmore Ave. It has hosted many well-known artists, such as Bob Dylan and Ice Cube. The Orange Peel provides quality concerts for residents in Western North Carolina. The biggest concert coming up this summer is AWOLNATION on July 9.

The Orange Peel is not just limited to music. It offers shows by comedians as well, including Louis C. K. Also, for up and coming artists, The Orange Peel offers open mic nights to support lesser-known comedians.

“Doing my senior project at the Orange Peel was a really fun experience, and it made me feel really grown up,” senior Amy Reisman said. “I’ll just go to the Orange Peel if there’s a band I really like, but I’m normally there every few months.”

Over the last three years, The Orange Peel Social Aid and Pleasure Club has become recognized as one of the best live music venues in the nation. Featured and highlighted in USA Today, Travel and Leisure Magazine, Southern Living, Rolling Stone and a number of regional and national newspapers and magazines, the club is known for presenting up and coming new talent as well as showcasing legendary performers.

(All photos used with permission)

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Roller Coasters

Dollywood is a popular theme park only two hours to the west in Pigeon Forge, T.N., with many thrilling roller coasters and many slides in the water park. Coming this summer, Dollywood will have the world’s fastest wooden roller coaster. “Lightning Rod” is themed after a 1950s hot rod and launches the rider from 0 to 45 miles per hour, more than 20 stories high. The coaster winds through the trees and the valleys surrounding Dollywood and reaches top speeds of 73 miles per hour, making it the fastest wooden coaster in the world.

You can learn more and buy tickets for Dollywood at dollywood.com.

Carowinds, located in Charlotte, two hours to our east, is another quite popular choice for roller coaster lovers. Its newest high-speed roller coaster is “Fury 325.” The new coaster is in its second season and is a major hit. The coaster is the fastest and tallest coaster in the world with a height of 325 feet. It reaches speeds of 95 miles per hour. On top of being the world’s fastest and tallest coaster in the world, it is also the longest coaster in North America, more than 1.25 miles long.

“I thought it was by far one of the best rides at Carowinds,” freshman Ray Olinger said. “It was really fast and exciting and had many scary moments, but it was a just a fun time overall.”

The lines may be long, but endure the long waits and you can be the next to experience the stomach-dropping feeling of riding the newest coasters in the area.

You can learn more and buy tickets at carowinds.com.

Drum Circle

Downtown Asheville has always been an interesting place to spend time, mainly stereotyped as “Hippie Central,” but you can’t go wrong visiting on a Friday evening for the Asheville Drum Circle. Drum Circle is a tradition for both locals and visitors. Every Friday night, people of every age and description come to Pritchard Park in the middle of the downtown area either to participate or watch.

Anyone can participate, by drumming with the crowd, feeling the rhythm and dancing to the beat or just watching and enjoying the show.

“I’ve been going to Drum Circle since I could walk. My parents would go every week and just take me with them,” junior Kasey Marsh said. “It’s such an embracing community.

People connect and play off each other’s beats, and it’s nice to just let go and have fun.”

The Asheville Drum Circle is a way for people to just enjoy themselves in a fun relaxing environment. If you’re willing to give up a Friday night or two, Drum Circle is the perfect escape for a warm summer evening. As a bonus, Splashville and Shindig on the Green will be only two blocks away.

Trampoline Parks

A trampoline park is a great way to have fun and unleash your inner child. There are many in North Carolina, but until recently, none in our local area.

Launch is a 25,000 square foot trampoline park located at 24 Walden Drive in Arden.

Launch has more than 12,000 square feet of trampolines, and it even has angled trampoline walls. Of course, jumping is not the only thing to do. Launch has trampoline basketball courts and obstacle courses as well. You can learn more at launchasheville.com.

“I went to a different trampoline park further away, and this was the first in our area, so I decided to go,” sophomore Sean Griffin said. “There were people of all ages, and it was only a little bit crowded.”

Sky Zone, another very popular trampoline park, also has a location coming to Asheville very soon. Sky Zone was the world’s first indoor trampoline park and has other locations in Charlotte, Raleigh and Durham.

Whether it be Launch or Sky Zone, they are both great ways to unwind and have a fun time by yourself or with friends.

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Driving Falcons Forward 4801 Asheville Highway Hendersonville, NC 28791 presleyautomotive@att.net Mark Presley, Owner