Wingspan 2014-2015 Issue 4

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wingspan

LAST LOOK: FAREWELL TO CLASS OF 2015

12-13

Seniors reflect on four years at West as they prepare to take the next step

SKIP THE DRAMA Staff questions national GED advertisement that sends the wrong message

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NINE TO FIVE

Students prepare for the responsibility that comes with having a summer job

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west henderson high school | 3600 haywood road | hendersonville, n.c. 28791 | june 2015 | volume 33 | issue 4

02 | advertisements | wingspan | june 2015

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18 top 10

9 staff editorial

23 boots on the ground

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ontents

Senior staffers make their final remarks

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“Stop thrusting your pelvis at me like that.”

— Melissa Hannah (on making up dance moves)

Senior staff makes its final list

Staff challenges message of confusing billboard

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Students consider military as a post-grad option

Seniors make plans for future

High school sports come at a high price

features

“This is a little higher than my tree stand back in Mills River.”

— Aaron Davenport (on Willis Tower in Chicago on the recent band trip)

21 signing day Athletes commit to play for colleges

12-13 next step Find out what seniors have planned for next year Staffer profiles the senior class

22 season wrap-ups

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Spring sports come to an end

17 all in a day’s work

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staff

WEB EDITOR-INCHIEF Ari Sen

FEATURE EDITOR Natalya Lunsford ASSISTANT FEATURE EDITOR Rachel Raasch Kiersten Woodring

ENTERTAINMENT JUNIOR EDITORS EDITOR Alex Ginn Isabella Perron Caroline Ward ASST. MaryKent Wolff ENTERTAINMENT EDITORS TECH CREW Katie Farina Maggie King Emily Turpin

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wingspan

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eregrine

Students apply for summer jobs

EDITORS-INCHIEF Polly Phillips Olivia Slagle

“I know what a cock-block is now.”

— Suzanne Perron (on knowledge) “It’s never an accident. I’m just narcissistic.”

— MaryKent Wolff (on liking her own posts)

sports 20 price to play

senior profiles 10 - 11, 14-15

eard

in the

CHECK US OUT ON WINGSPANONLINE.NET

opinion 4 - 8 final columns

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MANAGING EDITOR Austin Woodard SPORTS EDITOR Amy Turlington

PHOTO EDITOR Will Lindsey Annalyse Wilkins

STAFF WRITERS Megan Guess Grant McIntyre Natalie Young

What are you looking forward to the most this summer?

ASST. OPINION EDITOR CARTOONIST ASST. SPORTS EDI- Kayla Petri Carlie Gillespie TORS Josh Conner FEATURE WRITERS Jackson Whiting Sofia Molina Brandan Naef OPINION EDITORS Dhuru Patel Joel Fennimore Bobby Slagle Sarah Wentzel Kole Thomas

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

Visit us at wingspanonline.net editorial board of student editors. Wingspan is a Southern Interscholastic Press Association All-Southern, National Scholastic Press Association All-American, Columbia Scholastic Press Association Gold Crown and N.C. Scholastic Media Association All-North Carolina and Tar

The beach —14% No school — 26% Work — 9% Time with friends — 21% Other — 30% (Based on a survey of 84 students)

Heel Award publication. Staff editorials express the opinion of the editorial board. Columns reflect the opinions of the writer. Circulation is 2,000. Printed by Target Printing & Distribution of Fayetteville, N.C. 28273. Contact the staff at wingspan@henderson.k12.nc.us.

contents | 03

BOSTON UNIVERSITY

Buddy the Elf provides inspiration for surviving senior year

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ou sit on a throne of lies!” Buddy the Elf’s inspiring message has rung in my head many times throughout senior year. Every senior before me had told me that senior year was the best year, but I saw very little truth in this.

In place of the wonderful experience of senior skip days and enjoying all the new privileges at my fingertips, I suffered through grueling hours of studying and college applications that just stopped short of asking for my soul. I was lied to.

I won’t tell the same lie to you. Senior year is a grueling year, one filled with stress eating, sleep deprived nights and crippling senioritis. This will not be the best year for anyone who is putting forth full effort.

However, this is nothing compared to what awaits. Senior year is the last flight of stairs until the balcony. This year has represented the challenge to prepare me for the new journey ahead of me.

I don’t want to convey that all of my time at West has been a struggle. There have been truly wonderful moments as well.

It is well known that nothing that comes easy is worth having, and this is true for high school as well.

Throughout my time at West I have heard a student body come together to roar. I have seen the halls lined with red, white and blue. I have felt the electricity of a school jumping to its feet at a game. I have been a Falcon, and this has been a great experience. Unfortunately, all things must come to an

end, and my time at West is no exception to this, so I must make the transition from a Falcon to a Terrier.

I am ready to go BU and embrace a new city with new peole, ideas and opportunities. I intend to make the most of this new world I have the oppertunity to enter and use this to make myself the best I can be.

This brings me to my one regret I have about my time at West. Despite my very comedic personality and talkativeness I did little to get involved and often tried to avoid making close ties to my classmates until I became an upperclassmen.

Knowing this about myself and wishing I could change it, I challenge you to make the most of every moment you have.

Take the tests and drama in stride so you may appreciate the friendships and experiences that are available.

At the risk of invoking a cliche, I challenge you to be the best you can be not for your parents, your friends or your school but for yourself, so that when you leave West to go onto to your next journey you will have no regrets, only good memories.

I challenge you to be better than me, Mr. Jones and anyone else here. I challenge you to be able to say that you made the most of every moment and be honestly able to say you were the best.

In short, I challenge you to be the best to ever walk these halls, and I know that if you are reading this, it is in you.

UNC- ASHEVILLE

High school years provide path to self-discovery

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or my column I was going to rant. It was going to be a huge stress reliever in which I stuck my metaphorical middle finger in the air and shouted profanity to four years of hell.

I still stand by everything I said in my almost column, but then I read some of the other columns on how high school did suck, but it wasn’t completely bad. In these stories of survival, I saw all this hope and inspiration and knew that I couldn’t make my entire column a negative rant.

Maybe a week earlier when I was having another breakdown this would have been my giant “FU” to West. But then I realized my high school experience hasn’t been flowers and sunshine, but it has had a few beautiful summer days.

It is in this school that I became the person I am today.

This person is a mess, but it is still a mess I am proud to be.

For years, I was just trying to fit in. I would try to pretend that I was something I wasn’t. All those years I silenced my voice and never stated my opinion or added my thoughts.

This continued through middle school and into high school.

But freshman year this started breaking. Thanks to theater that I found my voice, literally.

I used to be shy, but theater, for the most part, started the crack that would ultimately lead to me breaking my bonds of conformity. As the years progressed, I found myself becoming more outspoken. Perhaps it was just me

04 | opinion| wingspan | june 2015

finally becoming comfortable with my peers, but my hunch is that it was me finally becoming OK with myself.

Junior year was my major turning point. I had finally found a group where I was able to be myself. They were a group of amazing seniors that were weird, and brilliant, and nice. They were exactly what I needed. Between the late nights of Cards Against Humanity and watching all of the Lord of the Rings, I found my place.

Then June came and junior year was over for me, but high school itself was over for them. August rolled around and they were all off to college. I realized that I was right back where I started. These people were my foundation, and when they left, my foundation was nearly destroyed.

I had to learn to live without support. I was thrown into the deep end without floaties and I was terrified. At first my head kept going under the waves, but then I figured out how to tread water and then, at some point, how to float.

Somehow, in the mess of senior year, I found new friends, ones I could have a spontaneous dance party with in the senior lot. I also had a hippie fam where “real talks” were frequent. I learned to be my own strength. Through my trials and tribulations of four years of high school, I haven’t become a completely different person. I simply discovered the one who has been there the whole time. For that, I am eternally grateful to West.

GARDNER-WEBB UNIVERSITY

Bucket list helps senior persevere through the tough times

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ometime around the second week of senior year, I decided to make a “West High Bucket List.” The purpose of this list was to make sure that I finished everything I would miss the opportunity to do once I graduated.

For example, before I left West, I wanted to ride the red newspaper wagon at top speed down Y-hall, climb up in the ceiling behind the theater stage, catch one of the frogs that lives in the creek next to the school and open the jar of queso in the Z-2 backroom. I also wanted to run a personal record in track and make it to state with my 4 x 800 team.

So I added these things to a random sheet of paper in my room and wrote West High Bucket List at the top. As the year progressed, I kept adding more things to the list and checking off the ones I completed. Surprisingly, this simple piece of paper has helped me get the most out of my final year at West.

One of the best things about senior year is being able to relax and be yourself without worrying about what other people think. My bucket list has helped me enjoy senior year more and has helped me make sure that I got done all the random things I have wanted to do since freshman year.

Senior year is a great opportunity to discover who you are and what interests you want to pursue, and oddly enough, my bucket list helped me organize what I wanted to do with my senior year. Attending West is a unique op-

portunity, and I want to make the most of it in every way.

Out of everything on my bucket list, Number 11 ended up being the most important. During the terrible week before Christmas break when I wanted to put all my school supplies in the shredder, I wrote on Number 11 two words: “Keep Going.” Although I can’t exactly check this number off until I graduate, this seemingly obvious saying has helped me persevere when I wanted to just give up.

True, senior year has been difficult. The common misconception that junior year is the hardest was completely wrong, so underclassmen, don’t be fooled.

Senior year has been bombarded with college applications, scholarship essays, research papers, and schoolwork.

To top it all off, we’ve all had to fight a terrible case of senioritis, which showed up right around the most critical point in the year.

In the midst of all this stressful stuff, Number 11 on the bucket list helped me remember to keep pressing on, no matter how behind I felt or how impossible a task might have seemed. Looking back, I think seniors would agree that refusing to give up after all this time was a good choice.

So underclassmen, remember when you get to senior year to “keep going.” It’ll be worth it. You’ll surprise yourself with your accomplishments and enjoy seeing how your life decisions play out.

APPALACHIAN STATE

4 years of high school went by fast, but friendships remain

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remember the first day I walked into newspaper class my freshman year. It was loud. People were switching seats left and right, and this really intimidating lady yelled at me first thing to take a seat.

I searched the room for a familiar face and wound up in the second row closest to the door behind sweet Alex Ginn. That’s where it all began.

Since that day I have moved up from the bottom of the food chain. From “Call Me Maybe” to throwback Backstreet Boyz, journalism has definitely become my home over the past four years. I’ve learned a lot of things in the backroom in my time here, like how to make the best Top 10 boards and how to cram three weeks of AP Language into two days with minimal tears.

Somewhere along the way I became best friends with all of you. I guess a big part of that was the massive group message that started between nine of the funniest people alive. We have junior year Quill and Scroll luncheon to thank for that. Slowly we are all growing up, graduating and parting ways. Next year half of us will be continuing the ongoing legacy here and half of us will be hours away at college (but only a text away). Let’s be real, I’d not only be extremely bored without Hippie Fam, but I’d be lost.

Going into high school, I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life. Honestly, 2015 seemed so far away. I

figured I would know what I was going to college for and what job I wanted when I became a senior, but I didn’t. Seniors really don’t have it all together like you think they do.

I’m almost certain I put a different major on every college application I filled out in the fall, but somehow like many before me I have also figured it out.

When you start your senior year, people tell you it’ll go by fast, but you don’t believe them until it’s the middle of May and you realize it’s all over in a matter of weeks.

You work hard for three years just to make it to the top and to rule the school, but honestly, it’s not as great as you imagined. Sure you can cut freshmen in the lunch line, steal rolly chairs in the backroom, leave class a little early, but the high rubs off after the first couple of weeks.

You’ll swear on your life that you won’t procrastinate and you won’t catch senioritis. It’s likely your year will start like that. You get to the middle of the school year, and your only thoughts are spring break, prom and graduation. Now two of those things have passed, and it’s become bittersweet. The countdown of days until graduation keeps getting lower. The once three digit number has become a two digit number, only to be replaced soon by a single digit. As much as I swore I wasn’t going to miss this place, I know I will and all the people here. Thanks for an awesome four years, Falcon family!

senior columns | 05

UNC-CHAPEL HILL

How Class of 2012 taught me I don’t ‘Have It All Together’

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he Class of 2012 was made up of gods and goddesses.

Impressive deities that sat in rolling chairs, danced on cars and, for some strange reason, talked to me.

An uncomfortable 14-year-old wearing bandanas and bracelets as part of an awkwardly misguided quest to be cool, I was in awe of their apparent grace, intelligence and the fact that they “Had It All Together.” One of my newspaper EIC’s was the homecoming queen, and the other was a Morehead Scholar. The theater seniors didn’t just act; they became their characters. It was just a coincidence that the musical my freshman year was Grease, but to me it seemed like fate.

To me, the Class of 2012 WAS the cast of Grease. They were all best friends who sang and danced and loved each other through all the drama, although I’m sure their drama was no where near Grease level. They were like this giant beautiful family of real adults that truly had it all together.

When my freshman year was over, Catherine Swift, a senior who had become a role model for me, wrote in my yearbook that she believed I could be anything I wanted: student body president, editor-in-chief or theater goddess. Her vote of confidence made me sure that by the time I was a senior, I too would “Have It All Together.”

But I don’t. Instead of taking in an awkward 14-year-old caterpillar and sending out a beautiful 18-year-old butterfly, West took in an awkward 14-year-old caterpillar and is about

to send out a 17-year-old girl still half in the cocoon. I don’t “Have It All Together,” but that’s OK.

At the beginning of my senior year, my goal was to impart the same wisdom to the freshmen that “my seniors” gave to me. I wanted to seem like an older and mysterious role model who knew what she was doing, created amazing newspapers, owned the stage in the musical and definitely “Had It All Together.” Now, as my senior year draws to a close, I realize if I haven’t been those things, it doesn’t matter.

I sit in rolling chairs, perform on stage and spend my hours editing the Wingspan, but I don’t exude the same sense of calmness and poise that I always felt from those 2012 seniors. I don’t know exactly what I’m going to do when I do finally unfurl the wings that were carefully crafted, feather by feather, inside these halls, but it’s OK.

The most important thing the Class of 2012 did wasn’t win prestigious awards or write an impressive piece of literature. The thing they did that impacted me the most was talk to me.

I was in awe of the fact that they “Had It All Together,” but I was more in awe of the fact that they noticed me.

And that is what I hope I have done. I don’t need a freshman to be impressed by a song I sing or an article I write. I just want someone to feel like they can do anything because someone from the Class of 2015 told them they could.

APPALACHIAN STATE

Buds, roses and thorns discovered during senior year

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he only way I could explain my senior year is the “highest of highs and the lowest of lows.” Mountains and valleys. Beginnings and ends. Buds, roses and thorns.

At the end of each day at camp, we would go over our buds, roses and thorns. Just to make it clear, buds were things we believed were promising, held hope, could blossom into a flower. A rose was something enjoyable, something positive, something full of love. And a thorn was something negative you wish you could change or make better tomorrow.

This taught me to reflect on my day every day — just take a few moments to think about the positives and the negatives. Throughout senior year there have been plenty of buds. Receiving my acceptance letter to Appalachian State University was a bud. It represented what the future holds, that there is some light at the end of the tunnel.

I saw each freshman on the newspaper staff as a bud.

It made me excited to see them excited. It made me excited to see people that reminded me of me as a freshman. I only hope I was half as inspirational to them as my seniors were to me. I think of myself as a mess, so its nice to have someone think I have it all together.

N.C. Theater Conference was a rose. This group of lovely people became my family for a couple of months

06 | opinion| wingspan | june 2015

and made me step out of my box and try something I had never done before. It was exciting and exhilarating, and it involved something I love to do — push myself. Becoming EIC of the Wingspan was a rose even though it was full of endless days searching for fonts and forever looking for red pens to edit drafts.

Z-2 was a nice little cove at West to hangout in during homeroom, lunch or any free time throughout my day.

Another rose was the sweet souls I met while at West.

Olivia Slagle, my co-editor-in-chief inspired me every day.

Mrs. Gorsuch taught me more in her AP Lit class than I have learned in all four years at West.

Our discussions about the American dream and genuine communication made me think in perspectives I never would have before. Kole Thomas, Jackson Whiting and Josh Conner — you are fam. I believe MaryKent, Katie Farina and all of my Wingspan staff will live laughter-filled lives, and I encourage them to enjoy their bright future.

So when I think of high school, I think of all my buds, roses and thorns. The late nights spent with a couple of friends in a kitchen talking for hours and dancing around a campfire. Therefore, I think Charles Dickens put it right when saying: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdoms, it was the age of foolisness.” That was my high school experience.

WESTERN CAROLINA

Right label isn’t as important as liking the person you are

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an, high school was weird. But it sure was great.

A great experience for growing up, mostly. After prepping myself throughout middle school with shows like “Ned’s Declassified” and “Drake and Josh” to get a taste of high school, I can now see how exaggerated those shows really were.

But when you’re a freshman, it all feels so relatable. You stress about the small things. You try to fit in. But most of all, well, for me anyway, I worried about labels.

In every cliche high school movie and show ever made, there’s always the different groups (jocks, nerds, goths, etc.).

Though cliques aren’t really a problem at West, I still felt the need to fit into one of these categories. After trial and error, I came to this conclusion: I was too weird to hang out with the cool kids and too normal to hang out with the weird kids. So now what? Maybe I’m just destined to never fit in. Maybe it’s an inherent flaw? Maybe it’s my personality type. So that’s when I did some research and discovered the Myer’s-Briggs Personality Test.

After taking the test multiple times to see if it was accurate, I kept landing with the same personality type. INFP. Introverted, intuitive, feeling and perceiving. This personality type is often associated with being overly sensitive and weak, and while I couldn’t help but feel disappointed, it did make sense at the time. I developed a sort of label for myself with

this, so whenever I would procrastinate on something or get upset over something dumb, I would always fall back on the idea of “Ah, well, it’s just my personality type.”

I kept this sort of tunnel vision for quite a while, always making excuses and hating myself for believing I was too different. It made the whole idea of fitting in much harder.

When my sophomore year was finished, my two best friends both left West to go to other schools. They didn’t move away; they just didn’t enjoy it here. While we still talked on Facebook, life, at the time, just wasn’t the same. I started to resent my friends. I became stubborn. I refused to make new friends. I wasn’t seeing the big picture.

Throughout junior year, I tried to make friends at other schools through social media. While some of the times were great, I was trying to become someone I wasn’t. I was a huge jerk to some people, constantly trying to look cool and have a good follower count on Twitter. In the end, I only ended up hating myself even more.

This school year I did some “soul-seeking,” per se. I realized how much I’d grown to dislike myself, and I wanted to change. And honestly, it was as simple as forgetting labels, personality types and trying to look cool. It was as simple as being myself. So yeah, personality types are still cool and all, but don’t let them define you as a person. It’s the same as going to a fortune teller and believing everything you hear.

EMORY UNIVERSITY

Life can reveal truths about the person you were all the time

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verything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of human freedoms — to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”

(Viktor E. Frankl Man’s Search for Meaning)

High school is a time of change. During my four years here, I have laughed loud, I have cried, I have endured adversity with the loss of my parents, and I have experienced some of the best moments of my life. All of those experiences have had an impact on me, no matter how big or small, which brings me to a point: you are the only one in control of how things affect you, and, ultimately, the people around you.

After the loss of my mother, I chose to take my situation and turn it into one that made me a bitter being who wanted nothing more than to stay at home with the company of a few good books and the darkness my curtains provided. Two years of that and I decided it was time to turn things around.

I had let my grades fall, and I could see the disappointment in my father’s face and hear it in every word he spoke to me. “Sarah, you can’t just be like a leaf floating down a stream. You have to take initiative,” he would tell me.

The summer before senior year I spent a couple of weeks reading the five AP summer reading books while exploring Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado with my father and my brother. Although I enjoyed all the books, one stood out to me: Man’s Search For Meaning by Viktor Frankl. It was

an autobiography of Frankl’s struggles through surviving a concentration camp during the Holocaust. He lost his whole family in the process. Despite this, he pressed on and stayed positive about his situation. He described how those who experience hardship in life can more easily find meaning in life. I found this to be very applicable.

Last September, my father died unexpectedly. Of course, my mind was going a million miles a minute. My rock, my shield, the one who had kept me going after my mother died, had reached the end of the line and I was now on my own. I wasn’t quite sure what to do. I wasn’t quite sure what to think.

I wasn’t quite sure what I was supposed to be feeling. I even almost forgot how to breathe. I was in disbelief.

But then I remembered all the advice my dad had given me and decided even though I was facing something extreme, I would not allow it to drag me down to the dark place I had been before. I took all my dignity and all my pride and everything I had in me, and I got back on my feet. I am now stronger than ever. And as if life were congratulating me for overcoming what had been thrown at me, I was accepted to my dream college, Emory University. While my situation is in no way easy, I believe that adversity hasn’t built up my strengths, but rather revealed them. I now know I have a lot to live for, and though I wish my parents were here to see me walk across the stage, I know they are looking down on me.

seniorpro/con columns opinion||07 07

08 | advertisements | wingspan | june 2015

Staff opinion: National GED advertisement sends the wrong message Highlights u Dollar General and its Literacy Foundation and the Ad Council have worked together to encourage more than 600,000 adults to get a GED after dropping out of school u One of the organizations that have funded the “Skip the Drama” advertisement campaign, 37 million adults do not have a high school diploma and must work multiple jobs to support themselves because they do not have a diploma or a GED as a credential uThough they are legally equivalent, the GED is valued lower than a diploma by colleges and employers (www.adcouncil.org)

T

he first thing she did when she woke up was check her Twitter feed. As she scrolled down through, she saw retweets and direct messages shaming her.

The tweets were about her and a classmate at a party over the weekend, and almost all of them were either exaggerations or outright lies. Her nervous stomach turned in on itself. She dreaded going to school and facing all the stares and whispers.

High school is notoriously full of drama, and many students are faced with situations similar to this fictional story. Now there’s a way to avoid all the drama, according to a billboard in Mills River — Drop out of school and get your GED instead.

At least that’s how the billboard, as well as others all across Western North Carolina and a recent television advertisement are being interpreted.

It’s an appeal for a shortcut degree, reading, “Skip the drama, get your GED.”

The GED, or General Educational Development test, is a compilation of social studies, sciences, language arts and math tests at the American high school level. Those taking the tests, whether they are students wanting a quick way out of high school or people who dropped out and need proof of education, must make

a score equal to or greater than what high school graduates would score. Though they are legally equivalent, the GED is valued lower than a diploma by colleges and many employers.

Even the military has a limit on how many GED recipients it will accept, and those accepted are often ranked lower than those admitted with a high school diploma or college education.

A GED is not a diploma, not even close, but at least those who take the test have some proof of their qualifications.

That said, the GED has been beneficial for those who dropped out of high school.

According to www.adcouncil.org, one of the organizations that funded the advertising campaign, 37 million adults do not have a high school diploma and must work multiple jobs to support themselves without a GED as a credential. Along with Dollar General and its Literacy Foundation, the Ad Council has helped more than 600,000 adults get a GED after dropping out.

In a joint press release, the two organizations argued that the “Skip the Drama” message of the billboard refers to the drama of trying to find a job as a high school dropout without a GED.

The Ad Council and Dollar General

published a joint press release on Aug. 14, 2014, explaining the context of the advertising campaign and what the groups meant to convey.

But their message angered many.

Instead of communicating the message of skipping the drama of finding a job without a degree or diploma, they read the billboard as encouragement for students to drop out of school. Facebook users have tagged Dollar General in posts about their disappointment with the retailer. Some have said they will never shop at the store again.

“Skip the drama, get your GED” ­­­— as an advertisement, the awareness campaign missed the mark. Instead of leading people to get a GED to benefit their careers, the message has been widely misunderstood.

Wingspan staff members recently saw the billboard in Mills River and were shocked that anyone would encourage students to drop out of high school, so the message Dollar General and the Ad Council intended is not the message people are getting. High school students who behave responsibly, focus on school and control their use of social media get a diploma drama-free without dropping out. It is hard to understand why advertisers would not test market their message before sending it.

staff editoral| 09

DOUBLE TROUBLE

by |Carlie Gillespie

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ushing back from an afternoon at cheerleading practice, senior Taylor Faulkner knew she was going to be late for work. When she walked into Subway that afternoon and saw there was a line forming, she knew she needed to come up with something fast. Her identical twin, Tyra Faulkner, was there with her to help her pick up the slack. While Taylor changed in the bathroom, Tyra put on an extra work shirt from the back and helped cover for her sister.

“Hi, my name is Taylor, how can I help you today?”

No one noticed the difference as Taylor sneaked out of the bathroom and hid beneath the counter. Knowing the switch needed to be stealthy, Tyra dropped a knife over the counter to allow Taylor to pick it up and pick up where her sister left off.

“I’m sorry, you wanted a six inch on wheat?”

“We’ve been through lots of ups and downs,” Taylor said. “We always stick together, through boy drama, friend drama or anything like that. If we ever have a falling out with our friends, which has happened, of course, because friends change a lot from freshman year to senior year, I’ve always had her. I’ve never had a friend problem because I’ve always had my best friend with me.”

In January, the sisters found out that UNC-Charlotte had accepted Taylor, but Tyra would have to choose another college.

“Whenever I first found out (about my rejection), I thought about it,” Tyra said.

“When I first sent in my application, I was thinking, ‘Wow, Charlotte is going to be awesome. We are going to go together,’ and then when I got denied I thought, ‘What was the whole point of me even going to Charlotte?’ I think the only reason I was going was because of Taylor. I realized I wanted to be a little closer (to home) because of the connections I have with my parents.”

Taylor and Tyra have done everything together from cheerleading for 12 years to being involved with the Dance Team.

“We’ve always been together,” Tyra said. “The longest we’ve ever been apart was maybe a day or two for sleepovers. We didn’t really know that we were twins when we were little. Our parents never really made us feel like we were ‘the twins.’ We were just sisters. We have always been close.”

The twins will be separating for the first time in their lives after graduation.

“It’s going to be different when she’s not here,” Tyra said. “We won’t distract each other. We can go out and do our own things. I think it’s just something that we both needed to do for ourselves because we both were dependant on each other, but I think that it will be worth it in the end because of the individuality.”

Tyra has chosen to attend Brevard College and live at home while Taylor has committed to go to UNC-Charlotte.

10 | senior features | wingspan | june 2015

Used with permission of the Times-News

THE FAULKNERS

CODY JACKSON by |Megan Guess

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t was a Tuesday, mid June of last summer, senior Cody Jackson was on a beach retreat with his church where he came to a life-changing realization. It was at this retreat that a great sermon was delivered, and Jackson felt it: the calling. From that day on he knew that he wanted to become a youth minister.

To reach his goal, Jackson will be attending Fruitland Baptist Bible College in the fall.

“I want to be able to tell kids the truth and tell them that God loves them, that they can turn to him,” Jackson said. “I want to make an impression like my youth pastor made on me.”

Jackson will be starting school on Sept. 29. He will attend Fruitland for two years and then plans to transfer to Liberty University for two more years to complete his bachelor’s degree.

Jackson had to make a really tough decision: go to Brevard College to play football or become a minister. He knew it would be fun to go with his friends and play football, a game he loves, but he also knew what he felt when he was called to be a minister.

It was on a Thursday, a week before football signing day, and Jackson was nervous to tell his parents, but also excited at the same time. He knew they would be happy with his decision to become a youth minister because they knew he was struggling with what he wanted to do. Finally, he told his parents his decision.

“There was the slightest bit of sadness in the air, but that went away quickly, “ Jackson said.

The one college Jackson said he would attend if he wasn’t going to Fruitland was Brevard College. “I would want to be a P.E. teacher if I studied at Brevard because I think it would be a cool job,” Jackson said. “I chose to attend Fruitland because it’s close to home and most of the pastors at my church went there. I also toured the school and I really liked it.”

Fruitland was started by the local association of Baptists in 1899. About 25 percent of the Baptist pastors in North Carolina are Fruitland graduates. Fruitland offers an associate’s degree in religion with an emphasis in church ministries, Christian world view or church planting.

“Fruitland has an established reputation for training ministers in expositional preaching,” David B. Horton, Fruitland Baptist Bible College president said on the school’s website. “Graduates of Fruitland leave this school with an undeniable passion for God and an indisputable passion for preaching God’s Word.”

“To anyone who feels the call of God to be a minister, then do it with no regrets,” Jackson said.

AMY TURLINGTON

TRAVELERS

LONG LINE

FAR FROM HOME

by |Kayla Petri

by |Isabella Perron

n August 2014, senior Amy Turlington prepared to start the online application process for her top list of prefered colleges using the Common App website. With some occasional advice from her mom, who was an English major in college, Turlington began work on essays for college admissions and possible scholarships.

Turlington is the youngest of six Turlington siblings who have attended West. Every year for the past 20 years there has been at least one Turlington sibling at West, beginning with Heidi in 1995 and followed by Mark, Chris, Chelsea and Michael.

“I am the youngest of six siblings who have all attended West. My sister Heidi was third in her class and Mark and Chris were salutatorians of their class,” Turlington said.

“Chelsea was the top scholar of the 2009 class and Michael was the top scholar of the 2012 class.”

Recently Turlington was named one of the four top scholars of the Class of 2015 and will speak at the graduation ceremony on June 12. She is also a N.C. Scholar and a member of the Honor Block. Turlington applied to Gardner-Webb, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Berry College, Furman University, Elon University and UNC-Asheville.

Turlington was accepted to all of these schools, but she chose Gardner-Webb because school officials offered her a full-tuition scholarship.

“The secret to success is making yourself get started on work early and not procrastinating,” Turlington said. “A lot of my success comes from knowing what to do and when. So taking extra AP classes and managing it well really helped me.”

Although an incredible amount of Turlington’s time went into her efforts toward her academic success, she also participated in extracurricular activities.

“I ran winter and spring track and cross country, and I played basketball during my freshman and sophomore year before switching to winter track junior year,” Turlington said. “With also taking orchestra, I feel like having extracurricular activities helps you with your time management even though you have less time. Running is my outlet for stress, so if I’m stressed I put it into my running, and it definitely helps.”

Turlington has taken nine Advanced Placement classes on her way to reaching a number of personal goals.

“Getting the full-tuition scholarship was definitely the most rewarding accomplishment I’ve had and helping to pay most of my way to college,” Turlington said.

“Next year I pretty much have a full-ride with grants and small scholarships combined, so it feels really rewarding to be able to say that I earned my way to college.”

Being the last of the Turlington siblings at West as a freshman and graduate as a top scholar, Turlington looks forward to the years to come as a college student at GardnerWebb University.

hile flying to Boston for his very first national journalism convention in November 2013, Austin Woodard looked out the window and caught a small glimpse of Boston University’s campus. On that trip he was unable to visit the school, but he was intrigued.

Nine months later, Woodard made a trip back to Boston to see more of the school, and after that visit he was determined to work hard the rest of his high school career to get accepted to BU.

“I loved the location. It is a very urban setting, and I love cities. I have never liked being in the country,” Woodard said.

Woodard will attend BU this fall to major in human physiology. He received $50,000 in scholarships and grants, which will help pay his $60,000 tuition.

“One big reason I chose Boston was because you don’t have to be a pre-med major to take pre-med courses,” Woodard said. “You get to work with Massachusetts General Hospital, which is one of the top rated hospitals in the country.”

Woodard along with Emily Labbate, Heather Bradley and Victoria Sellers are four seniors who will travel out of state to attend college.

Bradley will attend Penn State University in the fall. It is a 10-hour ride, but Bradley will start off her first two years at Schuylkill Satellite Campus that is two and a half hours away from the main campus. Bradley plans to study astrophysics.

“My brother went to Penn State so I figured I would apply,” Bradley said. “Then I got accepted there, and it was the best out of all the other schools I had applied to.”

The department of astronomy and astrophysics at Penn State is ranked fourth out of the top 10 elite universities nationwide. Bradley received $22,000 in scholarships, which will cover her full tuition.

Sellers will be making a six-hour trip for the next four years to the University of Alabama. She will receive $18,000 per year starting her sophomore year from the U.S. Air Force to help pay for her major in business and logistics. As a freshman she will be starting ROTC .

“I looked at Chapel Hill, Appalachian State and Clemson University briefly, but I always wanted to go to Alabama because I moved to North Carolina from Mississippi,” Sellers said. “I have a lot of friends who are going to the University of Alabama, it has also been engrained in me since I was little that I should go to Alabama.”

Labbate will be driving eight hours to return home as she attends the University of Florida to major in music performance.

Labbate accepted a plan called the Florida prepaid which will pay for her instate tuition. The Florida prepaid plan is an account that parents of students wanting to attend a Florida school can invest in when the child is young.

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senior features| 11

LONG LIN

What is the next step for gradua AB Tech Jennifer Bailey Faith Bland Miranda Clayton Kara Kilby Morgon Lunsford Cameron Morrison Emily Smith Aaron Barwick Zack Byrd Rachel Brubaker Kaden Burnette Jordan Cantrell Sammie Clark Samuel Cocking Kyla Gibson Jessica Harwood Colby Herren Maddie Hobbs Kara Kilby Lauren Kuzniar Lesly Lopez-Luis Jessica Morris Fabian Solis Andrew Spoov Eric Ung

U. of Alabama

Rachel Osborne Tristan Pittman James Pratt Aaron Smith Nicole Smith Elliot Turner Jacob Vasquez Samantha West

King Grant Anderson

Kings Justin Holcombe

La Grange Boston

Brian Albea Brandon Capps Nathan Duncan Tyra Faulkner Cody Green Shayna Landreth Brittney Naef Gabriel Neckolaishen Bree Thomas

Emily Bayless Bryan Check Nik Dylewski Jordan Guilliams Claire Holland Bethanee Hughes Maggie King Natalya Lunsford Jessica Parce Polly Phillips Tracie Ramos Summer Wong Chong

Blue Ridge CC Tucker Anschutz Kody Bates Liam Bradley Danni Cooper Dillon Curtis Kassidy Duncan Katelyn Earley Jacob Flynn Caleb Garren Katelyn Garren Brendon Goings Erin Gromelski Hunter Hall Shannon Hamel Kassidy Harris David Heath Brandon Mayer Mikey Miller Makayla Myles Taylor Norton

Keely Andress Kourtney McCarthy Taylor Pope

N.C. Central

Richard Buckingham Jesse Stepp

Cleveland State Samantha Stanko

Emory Sarah Wentzel

Emory and Henry Emaly Allison Taylor Geyer

ETSU Lexi Owen Traci Wyant

Dustie Fender

N.C. State Zack Crane Maggie Conner Aaron Davenport Graham Galloway Will Hinchliffe Evin Miller Jacob Shoemaker Chloe Whealan Heather Bradley Cody Reggio-Brown

UNC-Asheville

Jesi Ayers Becca Stiz Johnny Weaver Sarah Workman

Florida State Emily Labbate

Fruitland Baptist Cody Jackson

Furman Amanda Southern

Gardner-Webb Amy Turlington Christine Carpenter

Johnson and Wales Quinten Bickford Hannah Morgan

Kentucky Isaac Davis-Peterson

12 | senior section | wingspan | june 2015

UNC-Chapel Hill Logan Byrd William Crouch Spencer Hatfield Alex Jones Katie Kennedy Mali Khan Sam Polivina Olivia Slagle Trevor Smith Haley Staton

UNC-Charlotte Jake Ashba Antonio Bonessi Kyle Byrd Madison Dollar Taylor Faulkner Jason Jansen Jacob Lapanne Haley Lindsey Daniel Molina Sam Schwab Cavan Stanaway

Dustie Fender

Hayley Driggers Holly Jacobs Laurel Koontz Caitlyn Patterson

North Carolina Central University | Baseball

Vincennes

Q: What are you most looking forward to ab college athletics?

A: “I’m looking forward to meeting new peo and getting to travel and explore the country

Paul Reed

Western Carolina Adinda Acosta Jessica Akmal James Bannish Marshall Beaty Ulisses Diaz Joel Fennimore Santina Gebbia Samantha Holmes Mollie Jones Vannah Jones Jake Ryan Devon Spake Jamie Speth Casone Ward Tori Cole Emily Watson Cory Hoots Sabrina Prezas Nathan Steffanic

Penn State

Alex Ginn

East Carolina

College C

UNC-Wilmington

Lenoir Rhyne Hannah Moser Leeanna Chappelear Skyler Villegas

Mars Hill

Coastal Carolina

Victoria Sellers

Appalachian

Lexi Thomas

Austin Woodard

Brevard

UNC-Greensboro Ashley Butts

Grant Anderson King University | Baseball

Q: What are you going to miss most from m from your years at West playing baseball?

A: “I am going to miss all my friends and tha level of competition won’t be as difficult as i be in college.”

Brittney Naef Brevard College | Soccer

Q: What made you decide to play soccer in college?

A: “I’ve always had a dream of playing soc since I was little. I want to play in college an hopefully a professional league.”

Wingate Ben Gustafson

High Point Rachel Kordonowy

Presbyterian Alex Ball

Military Josh Bandy Joseph Bridges Steven Grayson Thomas Hendley Christopher Tyler Lunsford Matthew Moses Dylan Rapp Bailey Zeller

Southwest CC Ashley Goss

Two-Year College Maria Gonzalez Alex McMinn Bryce Williams Hunter Wright

Taylor Geyer Emory & Henry College | Football

Q: What about college athletics are you mo looking forward to?

A: “I really like the coaches, and the campu real community feel.”

Alex Ball

Presbyterian College | Football

Q: What advice do you have to underclassm playing football next season?

A: “Hard work beats talent when talent does work. That’s really been true for me.”

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Samantha Holmes

Western Carolina University | Soccer Q: How do you think that club soccer has prepared you for college level soccer?

A: “Club soccer is a lot of work. It’s very competitive because it’s the best athletes from North Carolina and surrounding states.”

Lexi Thomas

La Grange | Volleyball Q: What advice do you have for underclassmen playing volleyball next year?

A: “Do everything that you can for your team and win state!”

Brian Albea Brevard College | Football Q: What are you most looking forward to about college athletics?

A: “Just getting to play the game for four more years because it will help me enjoy the sport for longer.”

Cody Green Brevard College | Soccer Q: What are you most looking forward to about college athletics?

A: “The competitiveness — it’s going to be a lot of fun to play against good teams.”

Brandon Capps Brevard College | Golf Q: What do you like most about golf?

A: “I like golf because it’s an individual sport, and you don’t have to count on someone else.”

Class of 2015 leaves legacy of renewed spirit by | Sofia Molina

A

s juniors, this year’s senior students pulled off something that had never been done before. In the traditional homecoming skit competition, they beat the Class of 2014 with a choreographed performance mimicking a music video.

Senior Cameron Morrison recalls thinking up the idea with fellow seniors Alex Jones and William Crouch during their junior year. They decided they wanted to do something different from previous years. Crouch liked the music video of Bruno Mars’s song, “Treasure,” and the boys knew that was the perfect song for them to lip sync and dance along to.

After involving their spirited classmates, the boys decided to keep the skit a secret to avoid the other classes stealing their ideas.

“I was supposed to be Bruno Mars in my Uncle Sam costume,” Morrison said. “It was scary, but we did really well. We won the spirit stick last year, and we beat the seniors when we were juniors, which had never been done before. I guess that just kind of proved that we had more spirit than all the other grades.”

The seniors worked hard before and after school with dance teacher Resi Dolbee to pull off their winning performance. The students involved focused mainly on enjoying the experience and entertaining the rest of the student body. The homecoming skit allowed the class to come together and work to beat the rest of the classes.

“It was really fun actually putting all the work into it and actually seeing the results,” senior Zack Crane said. “So that’s why, this year, being on Student Government Association, we realized that if we put out all the work that we could, then we would make senior year as good as we possibly could.”

This year SGA made it their goal to increase school spirit. In previous years, the student section at sporting events and performances had been relatively small. With the help of SGA and the Student Section Revolution they planned in September, the student section grew.

“I feel like the pep rallies that we had, especially the ones with the competitions, really brought the senior class together, as well as the juniors and the sophomores and the freshman,” Crane said. “Everybody looked at all their peers and knew they had competed with these people in order to beat the rest of them. It made the classes bond.”

The seniors built upon the groundwork laid two years ago by West graduate Collin Armstrong, who created the Dirty Birds. The success of the sports teams during the year also made a difference in school spirit.

“The seniors were really motivated to change the spirit of the school,” Suzanne Perron, SGA sponsor, said. “They decided to do not just the Dirty Birds for basketball games, but they wanted to show

that same kind of spirit for football games, and of course, it really helped that we had an awesome football team.”

Class leaders attributed the seniors’ success to the group’s diversity.

“It seemed like last year’s seniors had a really exclusive group and kept things within that group,” Crane said. “We’re trying to get as many people as possible involved. A lot of different people have a lot of different perspectives. The way I view something might not necessarily be the same way other people would. They’ll point out a better way that we can do it, and they’ll help us make everything work as well as possible and work as easily as possible.”

Led by Student Body President Maggie King and Senior Class President Mollie Jones, SGA organized several ways for the spirit to spread throughout the student body.

“The Super Freedom Friday was one of our proudest events,” Jones said. “Maggie and I planned it for a while and worked on it all day to GRADUATION make it happen. But it was awesome and 2015 it turned out great.

Everybody was willing • 236 graduates to get rowdy and have fun.”

King and Jones • Friday, June 12 worked to make the year the best for seniors while King • 7:30 p.m. worked to include the rest of the student body in the events • Johnson Stadium, SGA planned. weather

“We stood out because of how in permitting volved everyone was,” Morrison said. “We’re all really close, everybody is. There are not a lot of cliques. Everybody shows up to football games, to basketball games.

We weren’t really spirited before, but the spirit rose throughout the year.”

Friday night, June 12, the 236 members of the Class of 2015 will receive their diplomas at 7:30 in Johnson Stadium, weather permitting. The seniors will receive six tickets each in case inclement weather forces the ceremony indoors.

The four top scholars from the class, King, Mali Khan, Amy Turlington and Haley Staton will present the senior reflection.

Seniors from the orchestra will provide special music, and the band will play.

“I think their dedication really stands out,” Perron said. “You’ve got some really smart, talented kids who are going happily into their futures. I think that they are going to land in the right place and make a huge difference wherever they are going.”

senior section | 13

CHAPEL THRILL

10 students to attend University of North Carolina by | Caroline Ward

S

enior Katie Kennedy was leaving a winter track meet in January when her friend, senior Haley Staton, texted her that the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill acceptance emails had been sent. Kennedy asked Staton to log into her account to find out if she had been accepted.

After jumping around screaming at the news of her acceptance, Kennedy asked Staton to room with her, and then she went to her car to see if her boyfriend, William Crouch, had received his acceptance.

They celebrated more as she heard Crouch’s father say, “Congratulations” through the phone.

Ten seniors will attend UNC-Chapel Hill next year.

Other students include Olivia Slagle, Trevor Smith, Sam Polovina, Spencer Hatfield, Logan Byrd, Mali Khan and Alex Jones.

“I’ve always wanted to go to Carolina ever since I was little,” Crouch said. “I’ve always been a big basketball fan, and I’ve been to the campus several times so I’m very familiar with it. The campus is beautiful, and it just kind of feels like home away from home.”

In 2014, six seniors from West enrolled at UNCChapel Hill. This year’s 10 seniors will join them along with the 18,350 undergraduates and 10,785 graduate and professional students.

“I’ll know a lot of people so that will be very nice because I won’t have to just go and be completely on my own,” Khan said. “I will always have people that I know

I can talk to, so it will be comforting with all the people going there.”

Chapel Hill is sometimes referred to as a “public Ivy” school by college search websites, meaning it is consistently ranked highly but has lower costs than many other highly-ranked schools. Chapel Hill only accepts 28 percent of its applicants.

“I was excited, and I was proud, but I didn’t feel scared of getting rejected because I’ve worked hard through high school,” Byrd said. “Given the statistics and the research I did when I looked into the admissions of the school, I felt I was a good candidate, so it was really just a feeling of pride and confirmation.”

Chapel Hill had a record of 31,929 first-year applicants for Fall 2015, the 10th consecutive year for record -setting applications.

“When I found out I had been accepted, I was relieved because I hadn’t really applied to many safe schools,” Khan said. “All of the other ones were reach schools, so if I didn’t get into Chapel Hill, I wouldn’t really have anywhere to go. It was a relief to be accepted.”

More than 3,000 of Carolina’s undergrad students produce original research in 140 courses in humanities, natural and social sciences and professional schools.

“I’m excited to be immersed in the wealth of education, research and art that is in the Triangle area,” Byrd said. “Although it’s a little bit intimidating, I’m looking forward to learning about myself and what I want to do with my life, and I think that Chapel Hill will offer me the people that I need to do that and to explore myself and

14 | senior features | wingspan | february 2015

my interests.”

The seniors are all looking forward to aspects of Tar Heel life. UNC-Chapel Hill offers a diverse environment in both education and extracurriculars. There are more than 70 majors and minors in 60 departments, 68 doctoral programs and 112 master’s programs.

“I have a cousin that goes there, and she’s graduating this year,” Khan said. “She really likes it. There’s a big community for Muslims there so that’s going to be very nice because there isn’t really one here. It will be good to get to know people who share my beliefs.”

UNC-Chapel Hill, founded in 1793, was the nation’s first public university. According to Kiplinger’s Personal Finance, it has ranked among the 100 best U.S. public colleges and universities that offer students high-quality academics at an affordable price for 14 years in a row.

“I’m excited, but I’m also really nervous, even though I know a lot of people going there it’s going to be a whole new thing being independent and away from my family,” Khan said. “It’s also a good thing that it’s only four hours away so I can come back often.”

Some of these 10 seniors are going into college knowing what they want to study, others do not know yet.

“I’m thinking about studying political science, but I’m not totally sure yet,” Khan said. “I know I want to do something in the field of international relations.”

Byrd said, “Right now my intended major is English, but given my previous experience in English classes, I don’t feel that it is necessarily the right thing. I am more drawn to liberal arts degrees.”

CLAIRE HOLLAND

AMANDA SOUTHERN

ACT TWO by |Emily Turpin

A

t the end of the long day, senior Claire Holland listened as the announcements came on. She anxiously awaited the announcement of the senior superlatives winners. Holland held her breath as she waited for the winner of Most Talented Female to be called.

She knew she had been nominated, but she wasn’t sure she would win. A big smile broke out onto her face as she heard she was the winner of the award.

When she was younger, Holland would look through her older sister’s yearbooks.

Her older sister, Carly, had been on the Wingspan newspaper staff for four years.

“When my older sister was on staff, she used to show me her high school yearbooks, and I was always so intrigued by them. I thought, ‘I have to win a senior superlative,’” Holland said. “I have to win most talented, that’s the only one I can do because I’m not athletic. Singing and performing is the only thing I’m good at, so I always wanted to win that. I made that a goal of mine.”

From the time she was 6 years old, Holland took classes at the Flat Rock Playhouse. She was in show choir for three years at the Playhouse and traveled and competed in Atlanta. Holland danced for 11 years at Carolina Dance Company and was in five mainstage productions at Flat Rock Playhouse, some of which were musicals. Holland has taken honors theater and honors dances classes throughout her four years of high school. She also competed at the N.C. Theater Conference twice, one year as a stage manager and this year as one of the lead roles.

Holland danced in the musical Guys and Dolls at West in 2014. She won the Arts for Individuals talent show in her sophomore year along with Maggie Connor, singing “She Will Be Loved” by Maroon 5.

Holland is not the only talented member of her family. Charles Holland, Claire’s father, is a professional musician and has been doing shows at the Flat Rock Playhouse for more than 20 years.

“I was also in the talent show my junior year. I sang an Adele song, and my dad played guitar with me there so that was really cool, and that was one of my favorite high school moments because he has been such an inspiration to me my whole life.

He’s the reason I wanted to start performing and why music is such a big deal to me, so getting to share that moment was incredible,” Holland said.

Charles Holland was also voted Most Talented when he was a senior at West in 1981. In high school, he participated in chorus and was in a barbershop quartet.

“Anytime I’ve been able to get my hands on being on stage, whether it’s singing, acting, dancing or even stage managing, I’ve tried to get it,” Claire said. “So I definitely think I’ve done a lot to get this award. I’ve devoted my whole life to performing and musical theater and self expression, so I’m very thankful and very honored.”

JOYFUL NOISE by |Katie Farina

S

itting in front of a panel of judges at Furman University, senior Amanda Southern waited nervously to begin the violin piece she had arranged specifically for this day. Southern really wanted to attend Furman, but she needed a music scholarship to help with the $46,000 annual tuition.

This performance would determine if she would have the opportunity to pursue her goals. Though she was nervous, Southern was confident in her ability with the violin. As she began the piece, she harnessed her nerves and glided effortlessly through “Scene de Ballet” by Charles de Beriot as she had been practicing to do for the past four months.

Weeks later, Southern received the feedback from her audition she had been hoping to hear. Furman offered her a music performance scholarship worth $20,000 if she would major in music. Furman also offered her the $10,000 Bell Tower Scholarship based off on her high school grades, classes and extracurricular activities.

“I was really relieved,” Southern said. “My deciding factor for going to Furman, since it’s really expensive, was that I had to get the $30,000.”

Even though she has been playing the violin for seven years, Southern didn’t plan on pursuing her talent in college. That is, until she attended a three-week camp at the University of North Carolina School of Arts.

At this camp, Southern received private lessons from some of the top music teachers in the United States. She also participated in master classes and chamber music coaching.

It was here that Southern realized that she wanted to participate in music for the rest of her life. She decided to become a music major and pursue a career with her violin as a professional musician.

“I’ve always really liked playing the violin,” she said. “But I hadn’t really considered anything serious until I realized what my potential was. I thought that I wanted to play in college, but I didn’t think I wanted to actually major in music until I realized that I can actually go far with it.”

Southern is dedicated to her violin and spends hours rehearsing. Since Southern doesn’t take orchestra as a class at West, she takes private lessons at Converse College every two weeks and lessons in Asheville with another instructor every week. On top of her private instruction, Southern takes time every day to practice on her own.

Playing the violin is an important aspect in Southern’s life, and she’s excited to take her musicianship to the next level at Furman.

“Playing my violin is very relaxing for me,” Southern said. “I love the sound that I can make when I play. It reflects what I can produce, and not everyone can do it. It’s special to me.”

senior features | 15

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16 | advertisements | wingspan | june 2015

At Season’s Florist in downtown Hendersonville, senior Marshall Beaty arranges flowers to sell in the shop. “I have enjoyed working my senior year, and I plan to continue working during college. Working has helped me manage my time more wisely,” Beaty said. (photo by Graham Galloway)

New outlet mall, improving economy result in more jobs by | Natalie Young

A

t 3 p.m., sophomore Mary Catherine Ball was walking out of the doors of the school at the end of the day.

As she walked to her car, her phone rang.

It was a manager at the new Nike store in the Asheville Outlets that opened recently.

The manager wanted to conduct a phone interview with Ball, who had applied for a job at the new business. She was not sure how a phone interview would go, but he asked questions about sports, easy questions for an athlete like Ball.

A few days later, she got another call. The manager wanted to interview her in person.

When she walked into the interview, she was surprised to find out it would be a group interview. This was different because she had never been in an interview with three people asking her questions and looking to see if she was good interacting with people. After all the interviews, Ball got the job.

The opening of the new Asheville Outlets and an improving economy have created a number of jobs for students looking for parttime summer employment.

“It’s a wonderful world out there. There are a lot of opportunities,” said Pat McCall, acting manager of the Hendersonville branch

of the N.C. Employment Security Commission. “The best thing about my job is that sometimes we get in this mindset that there are certain jobs that we will do. but there are millions of opportunities, some that we would never think of. The best thing you can do is as you go on with school you will figure out what you enjoy doing, and if you can ever find a job that you enjoy doing, it will be great.”

On May 1, the Asheville Outlets brought 60 new stores with more than 800 jobs to our area. Eventually, the shopping center will have 75 stores.

“With all the new job opportunities, you need to know how to get a job. The easiest way to get a job is to put yourself out there,” McCall said. “Employers want you to come to them and show initiative because they will not come seeking you.”

Having a resume can be important when looking for a job.

“Most teenagers believe that a resume is something that employers will look at to see your past work experience,” McCall said, “but in reality, most employers look at resumes for teenagers as something that will tell them what your skills and abilities are as well as your work ethic.”

According to McCall, when teenagers present themselves in person, they should

dress the way that the employer would want them to look when they represent their company.

“You have got to make a good first impression, the more you do in person the better,” she said.

“With the outlets opening, a number of students have found employment. now the harder part is keeping the job,” junior Hunter Paris said. “Many students struggle with disagreements with management or with being late to work.”

According to sjcworknet.org some simple tips to keep a job are to be reliable, be flexible, be cooperative, be honest and keep a good attitude. “My parents told me to work hard and do my best and I would be fine,” Ball said.

“It’s also good for us to keep a job because we need to strive for improvement and work toward making it in the future and if we start now we will be better.”

Senior Haley Staton recently took a job at Forever 21 at the Asheville Outlets.

“One bad thing about working at the outlets is that I spend all my paycheck there,” Staton said. “I was really excited about the outlets opening because there are a lot of different stores than at the mall, but now when my friends want to go to the outlets, I don’t want to go.”

Steps to Success Step 1: Gather necessary information - Social security card, driver’s license, passport, work permit Step 2: Put together a resume — Focus on your past accomplishments and volunteer work Step 3: Plan your wardrobe — Nice, conservative dress for success Step 4: Develop a strategy — Fast food, grocery stores, retailers, camps Step 5: Spread the word — Let employers know you are seeking a job Step 6: Apply and interview for jobs — Be polite, be early Step 7: Complete follow-up and thank-you notes — Keep following up on the status of your application, mail a thank you note (www.quintcareers.com)

feature | 17

TOP 10 REASONS WE WILL MISS

E

HIGH SCHOOL

very freshman on publication staff looks at the “Top 10” board (modeled after The Letterman Show), laughs and waits until their senior year so they can create them on their own. Top 10 is yet another tradition in the journalism room. Every week we gather together and brainstorm ideas for the new board — another thing that contributes to the big family called the Wingspan staff. So, the seniors decided to create one last Top 10 — the clean version — to publish our love for our school.

1. Getting dressed up for prom 2. Waiting all month for Quesadilla Day 3. Reppin’ West on Freedom Friday 4. Screaming at the top of our lungs for the spirit stick competitions 5. Friday night lights with the Dirty Birds 6. Seeing Derek Nagreen in an elf costume every other Christmas 7. Doing the Nae Nae with Dean Jones 8. Working harder on homecoming skits than on our homework 9. Getting a daily story from Amy Zalevskiy 10. Being a West Falcon

TALONS & FEATHERS

Best and worst of the 2014-2015 school year • Having ice days instead of snow days — ­(although an extra winter break was a plus).

• Eric Ung crowdsurfing at prom — One more thing to make Prom 2k15 memorable.

• Whole wheat cookies in the cafeteria — We understand trying to keep it healthy, Michelle Obama, but please not our cookies.

• Semiformal homecoming dance — Any excuse to get dressed up with a group of friends is exciting and fun.

• Dirty Birds student section taking it too far — We love the spirit and the love shown for our school, but we would like to keep it classy.

• Football team in the playoffs — Proud of you all. The Dirty Birds were there for you.

• Sports teams going to state (volleyball, track, cross country, swimming) — But still a little bitter about Cardinal Gibbons.

• The Boyfriend spring musical — The cast and pit orchestra did a great job.

18 | extras | wingspan | june 2015

What is your greatest high school memory?

“My best memory from high school would have to be ‘lunch club’ where my friends and I would watch stuff on Netflix in the backroom during first lunch.”

Chloe Whealan, 12

“Winning the skit challenge for our senior year homecoming pep rally. I was glad to see it come together because we put a lot of work into it. Pep rallies are fantastic in general.”

Zach Crane, 12

“My favorite memory has to be joining the school senior year and being totally accepted despite being from a different school.”

Bryan Check, 12

“My favorite memory of West is after exams when we are able to spend an hour with people we don’t generally get to see.”

Trevor Smith, 12

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Local schools face challenge of funding sports teams by | Ari Sen

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3A state runner-up volleyball team. The North Carolina 100-yard backstroke champion. A football team with its most successful season in more than 30 years.

A dozen or more athletes going on to compete in college.

These are just a few of the accomplishments of the sports program at West in the past year. People think of these accomplishments as a sign of success. But who pays the price for that success?

“The school system does not allocate any dollars for athletics,” John Bryant, the Henderson County Public Schools district athletic director said. “We contribute funds for the construction and general maintenance of the facilities and provide the dollars that pay and compensate the coaches.”

All other expenses of the sports program are funded by the school through gate receipts and fundraising.

According to the school’s athletic director, Assistant Principal Jeff Smith, the school spent a $108,000 on sports teams last semester with gate receipts of $115,000. The extra funds helped pay for spring sports teams. It is hard for the school to break even, Smith said.

“Athletics are very fickle. When you go through a down year, sometimes you need an influx of cash,” Smith said.

“When it comes to refurbishing the track or doing major repair on our football field or practice field or basketball court, it would be nice to have some cash. Right now, we are forced to prioritize. Do we give our athletes new uniforms or paint or get new floors? I think our athletes deserve better. It would be nice to just have a base amount of money to start.

About $10,000 to $15,000 would be great. It would help us keep better care of our facilities.”

Some sports teams cost more than others. Smith said football is the sport that costs the most, but it also brings in the most revenue and helps pay for other sports.

“The equipment costs for football are just unbelievable,” Smith said. “We have to recondition helmets every year. They have to be sent off to an inspector that makes sure they are legal. After a certain age they have to be thrown out.

If there are any cracks or damages they have to be thrown out. It can cost up to $300 for one helmet, and we have 80 players. Shoulder pads are also expensive and can cost from $100 to $200 apiece. Football uniforms can also be really expensive. We bought football uniforms for the first time in eight or nine years, and they cost $9,000. But football also takes in the most money.”

20 | sports | wingspan |june 2015

The school is responsible for funding uniforms and

“The amount of money they (NCHSAA) take from equipment and for upgrading athletic facilities. These our gate money really hurts,” Smith said. “For example, in upgrades can have a high cost. “We are trying to buy a new the Kings Mountain playoff game (in November), Kings scoreboard because the one we have is falling apart. We are Mountain got a share of our gate, and we had to pay all of trying to put a digital Jumbotron scoreboard down there, the expenses: security, ticket takers, even the rescue squad. which could cost from $80,000 to $100,000,” Smith said. “We That came out of our half, so Kings Mountain ended making are also having some discussions with our central office more gate money from our playoff game than we did. The about what it’s going to take to (Astro)turf our football field.” state also walked off with a good chunk of it, and they did

Not only does the school pay to operate the sports nothing.” program, it also has to pay the state and the North Carolina Rick Strunk, the associate communications director for High School Athletic Associathe NCHSAA, says it’s rare that tion. The NCHSAA is a private, an away school makes more nonprofit athletic association money than the home school. that governs high school athletHe feels that these payments ics for the state of North Caroliare more than fair because na. NCHSAA charges a $0.75 per school officials come up with pupil membership fee and takes the fees, not his organization.

15 percent of all gate receipts for “The athletic organization is postseason games in exchange for governed by a board of direcPhoto used by permission of providing locations and logistics tors with equal representatives for playoff and championship from each of the eight regions games. of North Carolina. The repre The NCHSAA also has an alsentatives consist of athletic lotment of additional funds which directors, superintendents and are partially returned to schools other school officials,” Strunk to protect against emergencies. said. “The board of directors Last year, NCHSAA returned determines the formula for the $500,000 back to schools from its travel allotments for different allotment funds. sports.”

“The NCHSAA doesn’t govern Strunk said that many state John Bryant West or North or East other than athletic organizations take Henderson County Public the fact that our high schools 100 percent of all funds from Schools Athletic Director choose to be members and they postseason events, so the 15 are participating in sanctioned athletic activities across percent they take is minimal. the state. Each of our high schools pays a membership fee,

Some of the costs for sports teams fall on students. and when they do, they are accepting the organization,” Members of the volleyball team said that without fundraisBryant said. “I certainly think that our student athletes and ing the equipment and uniforms required for the sport can our schools have found great value in being members. Like cost up to $500. Student-athletes are also responsible for the anything there are limitations, and there are things in which transportation fee which in Henderson County is $20. Smith the organization can grow and be better. It would appear by said the cost is minimal compared to what other school the simple fact that all the schools in the county continue to systems charge, but that sports should be free. be members that the value for our student athletes, the op “We are fortunate in Henderson County that our transportunity for them to compete against other schools in our portation fee is very minimal for our athletes. In Buncombe state, that value exceeds the challenges schools face.”

County that fee is up to about $100 per student per sport,”

Smith agrees that the NCHSAA is helpful, but disagrees Smith said. “I don’t think students should have to pay to with the way the organization structures the playoff games. participate in sports.”

The school system does not allocate any dollars for athletics. We contribute funds for the construction and general maintenance of facilites and provide the dollars that compensate coaches.

College Commitments|Senior Alex Ball (far left) signs

to play football at Presbyterian College as a slot receiver. “I felt good about the school because I really gelled with the coaches, and they weren’t worried about money,” Ball said. “They told me they were excited for me to play.” In the spring senior Dustie Fender (above right) signs to play baseball at N. C. Central University. “I had always dreamed of signing for a college, and it felt pretty good,” Fender said. Senior Grant Anderson (above left) celebrates with his teammates as he signs play baseball at King University. “I was excited because I felt like all the hard work I put in finally paid off,” Anderson said. Senior Brittney Naef (left) signs to play soccer at Brevard College. “I am happy to be a part of the team for Brevard,” Naef said. “I have always wanted to play soccer for a college and I have accomplished that through hard work.”

Seniors taking their game to college with them by | Grant McIntyre

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alcon running back Alex Ball had huge expectations for his senior season. He was already looking at schools to play football at the next level when he tore his ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) at a college camp. It seemed as if his football career would be over without playing his senior season.

“I didn’t know when I first got injured. I thought it was just the LCL (lateral collateral ligament), and I would be out for six weeks,” Ball said. “But when I went to the doctor and saw everything, they told me I would not play. I was on medication, so it didn’t sink in right away.”

Ball missed did miss his senior football season, but he will play college football at Presbyterian College.

Head Coach Paul Whitaker was concerned about losing a senior from his varsity football team.

“You hate to see a senior go down like that with a season-ending injury so soon,” Whitaker said.

The team missed Ball, but finished with an 8-4 record, making it to the second round of playoffs for the first time since 2007.

The Falcons saw strong play from senior Cody Jackson, who had more than 1,000 rushing yards for the season, and junior Stephen Perron, who was a North Carolina defensive player of the year. Other key players were four-year varsity players Dustie Fender and quarterback William Crouch.

“You always want your students to develop to be a good student of the game,” Coach Ben Pierson said. “Teams have different chemistry and last fall’s team had great chemistry.”

A number of seniors considered playing football at the college level walking on, but Ball, Taylor Geyer and Brian Albea signed to play.

“It is exciting, very exciting and very rewarding (to have players going on to play college ball,” Coach Barry Lance said. “To see them as a freshmen all the way to where they are playing college ball has been rewarding.”

Lance has seen a number of players get to the next level. With more than 25 years of coaching experience, he has seen players go to colleges like Notre Dame and the University of Florida, Division I schools with much football history.

Jackson did not sign with the other players. Instead he will be following his higher calling of going into Christian ministry by attending Fruitland Baptist Bible College. Then he is plans to go to Liberty University to become a youth pastor.

“I wanted to go with God’s plan and not mine,” Jackson said.

The team will lose key players at almost every position. Returning players will be Dante Padilla, Davis Fisher, Perron,Tanner Bullock and Shauq Rospell.

“I think going to the second round of playoffs sparked some drive in our players to continue,” Pierson said.

Whitaker agreed: “Last year’s group of seniors set the bar very

high for next year.”

With high expectations for next season, Pierson has already organized workouts for the summer and spring to get players ready for next fall.

Geyer signed to play wide receiver and punter at Emory and Henry College in Virginia, and Brian Albea signed to play tackle at Brevard College.

Geyer knew after his first visit that Emory and Henry was the school he wanted to play for because the team runs a fast, aggressive spread offense that relies on passing plays.

“I am ready for a new football atmosphere, and I am looking forward to meeting new people,” Geyer said.

Geyer had offers from four other Division III schools.

Albea, a tackle for the Falcons, said he was surprised by the offer to play college football at Brevard College. He also talked with coaches from Carson-Newman and Mars Hill.

“Since I didn’t play football until eighth grade, I was surprised I would get to play four more years,” he said. “I like the way the team is set up. Like West, it is a family team,” Albea said.

Albea has enjoyed his high school football career.

“Getting to start on varsity for three years and having a good senior year going to the playoffs was a good experience,” Albea said.

“I got to be a team captain my junior and senior year, and it was a good experience getting to know my teammates and coaches like family. Coach (Paul) Whitaker really cared about us.”

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Spring sports teams finish seasons in playoffs Track by | Amy Turlington

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reshman Madison Conner stepped into the high jump area during the state track meet at the North Carolina A&T stadium in Greensboro.

Looking around, she noticed she was up against tough competition, mostly seniors and all ranked with higher seed jumps.

At that moment, Conner made the choice to not be intimidated. Taking off hard on her right leg, Conner sprinted nine steps and exploded from the track, letting her momentum carry her over the bar. At the end of the day, Conner had moved up six rankings, placing 10th out of 16 and jumping a personal record of 5 feet.

“Going into state, I was nervous starting out because I was the only freshman there, and I was ranked last,” Conner said. “I knew everyone else had way more experience than I did, but I decided to just try my best and see how far I could get. I’m really excited about getting my personal record at state and improving my jump by four inches over the course of the season.”

Also competing in the state meet was the women’s 4 x 800-meter relay team of seniors Amy Turlington, Kara Kilby and Katie Kennedy and junior Olivia Hogan.

The team placed 13th, improving two places from their 15th place ranking, and running a season best of 10:33.

Turlington ran a personal record 800-meter split of 2:29.

“I was extremely proud of the team’s performance at the state meet,” Coach Walt Fletcher said. “Conner impressed me with her jumping, and I think she will really contribute to the team for the next three years.”

On the run| On the second leg of the 4 x 800-meter relay, senior Kara Kilby (far left) pushes ahead of East Henderson runner Molly Horton. The relay team finished second to Pisgah in the Falcon Invitational. Junior soccer player Hope Johnston (top right) steals the ball from a Hendersonville forward before taking it up the sideline. Afterwards, Johnson completed a pass to junior forward Sheridan Patterson. In a game against R.S. Central, senior Laurel Koontz (above) delivers a fastball. Koontz plans to continue her softball career as a walk-on at UNC-Wilmington in the fall.

Soccer

by | Josh Conner

Junior LeighAnn DeVore heard her phone vibrate and picked it up to find a text from her soccer group message.

Her face lit up as she read, “We made playoffs! We are playing the number one seed, Hickory.”

The midfielder felt a rush of excitement as it would be her first time playing in a playoff game. However, an anxious feeling followed as she remembered the opponent they would face in the tough challenge ahead.

The women’s soccer team traveled to Hickory on May 12 to challenge the number one seed. The soccer team played the first half strong, but eventually fell to Hickory, 9-0.

“We started off strong, and we definitely did not give up,” DeVore said. “We played our hardest until the end.

This being my first time going to playoffs, it was a great learning experience for me.”

The team finished with a 8-14-1 record, allowing them to grab the 32nd seed in the state playoffs. The team will graduate six seniors at the end of this school year.

“We are losing 90 percent of our scoring with Samantha Holmes and Brittney Naef,” Head Coach Craig Long said. Next year somebody else is going to have to step up and be a scorer for us.”

Holmes broke the school and county records for most goals scored in a career and made the West All-Star team.

22 | sports | wingspan | june 2015

Softball by

| Natalya Lunsford

Minutes before the Lady Falcons’ first playoff game against A.C. Reynolds, the team struggled to come to a decision on who would play catcher. Their usual catcher, Michaela Morris, had been hospitalized after the previous day’s practice with a serious injury.

Knowing the team needed her, sophomore Kristen Gass stepped up to play catcher.

Although Gass performed well in her new position and senior Laurel Koontz was strong on the pitcher’s mound, the Lady Rockets jumped out to an early lead.

They scored eight runs in the first six innings before the Lady Falcons came alive in the seventh inning to score two runs.

The team lost the playoff game, 8-2, finishing the season with an overall record of 11-11.

“Even though we didn’t win in the playoffs, I still really enjoyed going,” Gass said. “We played well together and worked great as a team. I think the season went really

well. As a team I want us to get further in playoffs next year and get better every game we play.”

The team qualified for playoffs as a wild card. Out of the 64 top teams in the state, 32 from the East and 32 from the West, the first and second teams in conferences were automatically in playoffs. The others were placed into a pool where the highest ranked teams were selected to play.

“It was a learning season for us because everyone needed to step up, and we just had moments where things fell through,” senior Laurel Koontz said. “Next year they’ll know how to step up for themselves from the start.”

Koontz ended her last season with nearly 150 strikeouts, a personal record. The team hopes to make improvements for next season.

“I hope if they play in the fall and they workout every day, they’ll get a little bit better, and we will make progress,” Coach Mike Matthews said. “I want them to have fun because after all it’s just softball.”

Students choose military option to continue education by |Sarah Wentzel

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ontemplating his future, senior Steven Grayson proudly looked at himself in the mirror and admired his JROTC uniform. He had made his decision to serve his country and join the U.S. Army following graduation.

“July 13 I leave for Fort Benning, Georgia, to go to Army basic training. I’m going to be an 11 Bravo infantryman. I currently have an option for a contract to go to airborne school right after I graduate from basic training,” Grayson said. “After that, I’m going to try to go into the 75th Ranger Regiment, and hopefully at some point I can do the Army’s Green to Gold program, go to college and become an officer.”

The Green to Gold Program is a program that allows enlisted soldiers who have served at least two years of active duty to receive scholarships to return to college for a few years on leave. The program also allows officers to earn a commission.

Once in the program, soldiers are discharged from active duty and then enlisted in the Army Reserve.

While the majority of high school graduates go on to college or into the workforce, some, such as Grayson, make the choice to serve their country. Though they are aware of the emotional strain they may put on their loved ones, they believe they have a duty to fulfill.

Grayson would like to become an Army Ranger.

Ranger school is known for its strenuous training and has been described as “the best trained soldiers in the world,” according to the U.S. Army, and Grayson is aware he has no easy journey ahead of him.

“Some of my family members have been in the Army. I just want to do what I feel is right and serve my

country,” Grayson said.

When Grayson informed his parents of his decision, they had mixed feelings. Like any parents, they had some concerns, but they realized it was ultimately their son’s choice and they are proud of him.

“At first my mom was a little upset because no mother really wants her son to do something like that, but in the end they’ve all been supportive and want me to do what I feel like I need to do,” Grayson said.

“They’ve been very encouraging.”

Another West student going into the military is senior Joseph Bridges, who leaves July 13 for U.S. Navy basic training in Chicago and submarine school in Connecticut.

“I decided I wanted to join the Navy when I was having dinner with my uncle. He was telling stories about the Navy and his experiences being a commander. That was a defining moment for me,” Bridges said. “I always felt that I would be a good fit for the military.”

Like Grayson’s family, Bridges’ family stands behind him and his decision to join the military.

“My family supports me. We are a close family, and they believe that I’ve made a good decision,” Bridges said. “I’m excited to start.”

Friends of Bridges also support his decision to join the Navy.

“My friends have said they’re happy for me, but that they’re going to miss me when I leave,” Bridges said.

Like Grayson and Bridges, senior Bailey Zeller will leave for basic training this summer. He has enlisted in the U.S. Army.

Zeller enlisted because of a long-time family connection to the Army. Three out of four of his

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brothers and his father have served in the military.

“One of my brothers just finished officer training, and the other just finished up a tour of duty in Egypt,” Zeller said.

Zeller will leave July 21. “I will be attending basic training at Fort Sill in Lawton, Oklahoma, and then go for auxiliary intelligence training at Fort Huachuca,” Zeller said. “I hope to become a human intelligence officer (HIT). The HIT officers interrogate terrorists after they have been detained.”

Zeller said after the military, he hopes to go to college and then maybe get a job with the Central Intelligence Agency. He feels the training he received through West’s Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps and on the wrestling team will help him in the Army.

“I’m worried about leaving, but I can’t wait to go,” Zeller said. “I will miss my friends and family, but I’m glad to be done with school.”

There are many reasons why a student would want to join the military, including benefits, family traditions and personal values. Some benefits include job security and college funding opportunities.

In addition, high school students who have participated in their school’s Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program can enter the military with a higher pay grade than those who did not participate in JROTC. Lieutenant Colonel Randy Lytle believes joining can be beneficial for anyone.

“I think joining gives people a better foundation for life,” Lytle said. “They start off with a better outlook on life and have many opportunities to become generally more successful in life. I think the military helps any individual that joins. It just helps them with gaining more life skills.”

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