2008 Newspaper Pacemaker

Best of the High School Press4

Newspaper Pacemaker Award Winners

2008A newspaper and newsmagazine general excellence national competition co-sponsored with NSPA by the Newspaper Association of America Foundation and selected by an independent panel of judges.

Amos Alonzo Stagg High School — 1621 Brookside Road — Stockton, CA 95207 09.07.07

Vol. 51 Issue 1 NSPA ALL AMERICAN HALL OF FAME NEWSPAPER

Bottom Line

Stagg Line

the

theCheCk us out @

Staggline.com

PSAT DeadlineThe last day to sign up for the PSAT is Sept. 28. Bring $13 to Samantha Wirzberger in the counseling office. Only 10 fee waivers are available for the whole school. Late signups are possible if there are any empty slots after the deadline.

Making a pass— See page 7

Junior/Senior Info Night

Representatives from colleges and vocational schools will be on campus Oct. 1 in the library from 6:30 to 8 p.m. They will have information about financial aid and ap-prenticeship programs.

Volunteers neededThe Women Center of San Joaquin are looking for stu-dent volunteers to put labels on their Bi-Annual Newsletter for Sept. 12 and 13. To sign up, call Christina Guzman at (209) 467-2333.

Domestic Violence Volunteers

Interested in helping the UOP-CIP mentors program? The topic they are studying is domestic violence. Lend a hand on tomorrow from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Sign up with Sherry at (209) 941-2611 ext. 328.

SAT Question of the Day

Remember to check out the SAT Question of the Day posted in the library starting today. It challenges students with questions that may ap-pear on the test.

If you enter the library you will see books lying around and open boxes on tables. During this time of the year, when fresh-men are usually given the library tour, the library is closed. At the end of last year librarian Martha Hawley and assistant Susan Babel got the opportunity to make over the library because new carpets were being installed. However, there was a problem with the installation of the carpet and it delayed the remodeling. Although it is taking more time than expected the outcome will be beneficial, Hawley promises, “and more convenient for the students.” Hawley said, “In the past, the library was just a place students would pass through to get to the career center.” The whole new layout has the career center in the front, which is more convenient for students. The main purpose of this trans-formation is to make the library “more student friendly,” Hawley said. “It will be easier to use.” Students will be more interested because of the new dona-tion source. Barnes and Noble will be donating books to the collection. There will be new up-to-date fiction along with what is ordered. The library is now home to 25 brand new computers avail-able for student use. Along with the new computers there are eight of the newer Macintoshes available for students to do word processing. Hawley explained that they were also trying to make it “more reader friendly,” by placing couches and nice lighting “in case a student wants to sit and read.” Not only is the library student and reader friendly, it is meeting friendly. There are three new meet-ing areas that are available for clubs to use during lunch. Another new room is called the Mastery Center, a separate classroom, which alone has 35 new computers. The librarians have gone as far as making the bathrooms ac-cessible to students; they even decorated the bathrooms, accord-ing to gender. The library will be reopened “hopefully soon,” Hawley said. The librarians and the library TA’s are working non-stop to com-plete this make over. For students who retreat to there during lunch or after school, the library’s makeover is taking a lot of time. “I want it to be open again,” said sophomore Whitney Hall. “I’m like okay, it’s been almost a month now.” She is a regular at there and likes to sit and read in quiet places. “Even Barnes and Noble can be loud,” said Hall. “The library is quieter.” The library provides “more access to things,” Hall said, including In-ternet to students who do not have that luxury at home. Not only does it allow students to do work or research, it can be a “Safe-haven,” she said. “When I was younger I would come to books for comfort.” Other students can relate to Hall, but the library staff insists the makeover will be well worth the wait.

New policy sparks debatephoto by erin lund

Concerned parents of a freshman patiently wait their turn to make a com-ment regarding the new dress code policy. With them they brought their daughter’s pink backpack, which was said to be against the new rule. it was

made clear by administration that pink is allowed along with orange and yellow, contrary to rumors spread by students. the new dress code specifi-cally bans red, maroon, and all shades of blue.

DAwN RAe HAll Senior Janoah Olguin re-calls the frustrating day he had in Alternative Suspension Center. “They didn’t know why I was there. I said, ’cause I have red on. They told me to change. I said no, cause the shirt they gave me was dirty. They put me in ASC all day,”

Olguin said. A note sent home to par-ents Aug. 24 explained the new dress code policy. Starting the following Monday, students were not to wear any attire that had red or blue, athletic appar-el not related to Stagg, or hats. Classrooms were checked Aug. 27 by administration and security. Students violating the policy were sent to M-1 where

STePHANIe De leoN

controversyo o f l c l r u Makeover

takes over library

Modified counseling systembrings students closer

Head counselor Melody Tennant and se-nior Alejandro rafael discuss his graduation plans and transcript. She suggests he go to college or start a career.

photo by dAWn rAe hAll

SAMANTHA eSPINozA

The counseling system begins the year with a change. Starting this year, counselors have been assigned to follow a specific graduating class. Select schools in the Stockton Unified School District have changed to grade level guidance. The purpose of this change is to have more contact with the students and parents. Coun-selors will now follow the National Counsel-ing Standards that include improving academic self-concept and acquiring skills for improving learning. In addition to this change, the office will have a counselor of the day accepting walk-ins from any grade level student starting Sept. 1. Walk-ins involve parents and students who have not made an appointment but need to see a counselor that day. Now they have the oppor-tunity to visit without filling out a request form. In order to have different counselors available they will rotate to serve as the counselor of the day. Instead of having to deal with all four-grade levels, counselors will work with one grade level alone. “I like it more,” said junior Jacqueline Lee.

“Last year it felt like counselors were too busy, only talking to seniors.” This year, two counsel-ors will cover each grade level. The new system has both advantages and disadvantages, students say. One disadvantage involves older students losing contact with their past counselors. “They should have started with the freshman class and continued on from there because now the juniors and seniors are forced to establish a new relationship with their new counselors quickly,” said junior Elizabeth Bald-win. In addition to the introduction of the Na-tional Counseling Standards, new counselor Andres Uyeda is putting together a school Web site. This Web site includes many links to the counseling, athletic, and other departments. It is designed to help students and others to know what staff members look like and have contact with them when necessary. It will include the school’s history, game schedules, and faculty contact information. Uyeda’s inspiration was to give the school something to be proud of, something “power-ful and uplifting to make students want to go to school.”

ONLINE: Did you miss the parent fo-rum? Listen to key voices at staggline.com

Feeling cramped

Getting to school just got a lot different. no longer do yellow school buses come before and after school to drop off and pick up students. Why the change? And how are students responding? Go online to read the story by lissette rodriguez and Claire Schef-fer, students from the beginning journalism class.

photo by ChAMpAiGn WilliAMS

they faced the option to put on a Stagg PE shirt or to call home for a change of clothes. If they refused, they were to remain in ASC for the remainder of the day or be sent home. As much as students were in an uproar, administration says it was looking out for the students in making this deci-sion. The policy put in place to

prevent gangs from recruiting students. However, because of par-ent complaints and problems of clarity, Principal Jessica An-derson is planning to put to-gether a parent team that will modify the policy and come up with a draft that will appease everyone. The concern is districtwide,

see ControVerSy page 8

The Stagg LineAmos Alonzo Stagg HSStockton, Calif.

The MustangSan Dieguito AcademyEncinitas, Calif.

Newspaper Pacemaker Award Winners 2008 5

Volume 10 Issue 6 APRIL 2008

Zionsville Community High School’s Student Newsmagazine

Ht h e h a r b i n g e r

Going GreenWith holidays like Arbor Day and Earth Day, April is the month for environmental awareness. Check out these ways to “go green.”

>>> page 16

MIDWEST MUSIC

SCENE

As music becomes more prominent

in our daily lives with iPods and the

like, read about what is fueling the

Midwest’s needs for sounds.

The MuseDreyfoos School of the ArtsWest Palm Beach, Fla.

The ChronicleWilliam Mason HS

Mason, Ohio

The HarbingerZionsville HSZionsville, Ind.

The Winged PostThe Harker School

San Jose, Calif.


The NexusWestview HSSan Diego, Calif.

The Raven's BeakOlathe Northwest HSOlathe, Kan.

The Peninsula OutlookPeninsula HSGig Harbor, Wash.

VerdePalo Alto HSPalo Alto, Calif.


CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

graphic by Keara Hanlon

rescription problem

When senior Andy Best got his wisdom teeth pulled, he was prescribed Vicodin to minimize the pain. After running out of the fi rst

bottle of medicine, Best went to get the bottle refi lled. The pharmacist refi lled the bottle with no questions asked. When Best went back to school, he was approached by many other students who were hoping he’d give them, or sell them, some of his extra pills.

This is not the fi rst, nor will it be the last, case of students looking for a free high from their friends. The abuse of prescription drugs is a problem in high schools around the country. According to an article posted on thesop.org, drug treatment admissions for prescription painkillers increased by more than 300 percent from 1995 to 2005.

Senior Amanda Owens has admitted to taking Vicodin for cramps and headaches without ever having a prescription.

“It’s really easy to get at Dow,” Owens said.

Sophomore Dylan Kidd recently had shoulder surgery. He was prescribed Percocet, another strong pain medication. Before they prescribed the medicine, the doctors sat Kidd down and talked to him to make sure that he understood the consequences of abusing the medicine. They then prescribed him three bottles.

“When they give more than two refi lls, they’re just asking kids to abuse it,” Kidd said. “After a surgery, you’re not going to

need four bottles of Percocet.” Kidd only used about half of

what he was prescribed. His parents took

the rest and

disposed of the pills.“For prescription drugs in Michigan, you

need an ID in order to get the prescription,” CEO of Apothecary Shop Pharmacies Kevin Roeder said. “If you walk in with a bottle and want it refi lled, the pharmacist will check when and what the refi ll was. If they don’t know you as a customer, they’ll check your ID.”

Prescriptions tell a pharmacist the name of the patient, the name of the physician, the date the medication was prescribed and other things like the quantity of medicine prescribed.

Roeder has had a problem in the past with people trying to get medicine so that they can use, or sell, it illicitly. He had two technicians fi red because they were taking medicine and selling it to middle school students. In his line of work, it’s a common occurrence.

“We’ve heard of kids doing it [abusing prescription medications],” Roeder said. “We know it happens and that kids sell it.”

A doctor’s responsibility is to prescribe the medicine best suited to every patient, while making sure they understand the risks of taking the

medicine. It’s the patient’s choice to listen or not to listen to the doctor’s orders.

Oral Surgeon Dr. Larry Skoczylas works with a lot of teenagers. He prescribes them pain medications that vary from Tylenol with Codeine to Vicodin. He never prescribes more than 20 pills, and warns parents that if their child needs to go get a refi ll, they should come back to the offi ce fi rst. The parents, he believes, are the ones responsible for keeping the medicine safe.

“Once it’s into the parents’ hands, we have no control,” Skoczylas said. “It’s the parents’ responsibility to control the medicine.”

Skoczylas once had a parent call him and say that she didn’t know where her son’s bottle of Vicodin was. His friends had visited him the day after his surgery, and the bottle was sitting in his room. After the friends had left, she discovered that the bottle was gone.

Another reason that Skoczylas believes that prescription medicine abuse has grown is because prescription drugs are easier to get to, and because so many people are prescribed to so many things.

Between the years 2000 to 2006, the number of people prescribed to at least one medication increased from 67 percent to 74 percent, according to a Geographic Variation in Prescription Utilization study. That means more drugs were in the hands of more people and left in more medicine cabinets in more homes.

Commercials from theantidrug.com refl ect the same idea. The fi rst ad was shown during the Super Bowl this year, showing a drug dealer put out of business because so many of his teen customers were getting high off of prescription medicine they could fi nd at home.

“When there’s more out there, there’s more room for abuse,” Skoczylas said.

Roeder has had Internet pharmacies contact him about working together. They mostly shipped narcotics and medicines for erectile dysfunction. When people can get medicine from a variety of sources, it’s easy to get a lot more medicine than is needed.

“Mail order and the ability to write prescriptions over the phone means that the chance for abuse is huge,” Roeder said.

Skoczylas almost always calls prescriptions in to a pharmacy so that no one carries around a prescription. That way, parents need to pick up the medicine. He also never hands out medicine at the offi ce.

Although the use and abuse of prescription drugs is growing, Roeder feels that they are benefi cial, and that they are still a valuable part of our society.

“They’re very effective,” Roeder said. “When used correctly.”

Over prescription and lax attitudes cause medication abuse in students

Local umpire job opportunities

Flickering dots

Andrew Bairstaff writer

photo by Josey Groves

PSP Slim updates

The Leak

A fi rmware update is coming to the PSP. Recently Sony announced the availability of Skype for the PSP. Which allows the PSP to send and receive phone calls.

The Skype feature is free to other users and costs as much as an average cell phone bill. Adding this to all the PSP’s other features (video, music, web browsing, and games) will make it a valid competitor of the iPhone.

But there is one fall back of the update. Skype will only be available for the second generation PSP (PSP slim).

The fi rmware update can be downloaded off of the offi cial PSP website, and should be available soon.

Louis Kapp, senior

I’m sick of all these kids wearing skulls on their shirts. If you’re that hard core you might as well carry a skull on a chain.

“

”

Focus on one intersection of white lines and move your focus around to see the dots fl icker from white to black and back!

Intersecting lines:

Larkin Ball Association is looking for umpires for the May to June 2008 season.

Individuals, 16 years of age or older, with background in either softball or baseball are encouraged to inquire. Earn up to $100 per week.

If interested, call Kerry at 839-0668 for further information.

AssociationLarkin Ball

AssociationLarkin BallLarkin Ball

Association

AssociationLarkin BallAssociation

Larkin Ball

Larkin BallAssociation

IB:Sarah Gornicki’s Theory of Knowl-edge class learns in preparation for the IB diploma.

NEWS, page 3“Therefore I am.”

photos by Kayla Sentkowski graphics by Darin Smith

photo/graphic by Josey Groves

Molly Korn & Carol Thompsonmanaging opinion & managing copy

graphic by Darin Smith

Robotics club preps, builds and programs to compete NEWS, page 2

UpdateUpdateFebruary 29, 2008Volume 30 Issue 6 http://update.dhs.mps.k12.mi.us

Percussion group The Resonators keeps the beat FEATURE, page 12

cadenceelectricMCFTA offers exhibits from the ancient to gross FEATURE, page 11

exhibits

The SquallDexter HSDexter, Mich.

The SurveyorGeorge Washington HS

Denver, Colo.

The UpdateH.H. Dow HSMidland, Mich.


rockStudent Voice of Rock Canyon High School

5810 McArthur Ranch Road • Highlands Ranch, CO 80124 • 303.387.3000Volume 4, Number 9 • May 9, 2008

the rockrock

Th e players fought through the season believing in class, heart, and team. Turn to page 25 to relive their story.

The last moments

Flinn Fowler ‘08, Ed Ferguson ‘08, Kevin Ludolph ‘09, Austin Fisher ‘09, and Andrew Hanshaft ‘08, march out to the fi eld before their playoff game against Columbine, May 2. Photo by Max Rowe

The RockRock Canyon HSHighlands Ranch, Colo.

The Heights HeraldColumbia Heights HSColumbia Heights, Minn.

Blue & GoldFindlay HS

Findlay, Ohio


Issue 7, Vol. 90 ■ Kirkwood High School ■ Wednesday Feb. 27, 2008

‘Hope lives on’Kirkwood moves on after one of the worst

tragedies in town history

Over the last few years, Kirkwood has had more than its share of news coverage. Events like the murder of Kirkwood Police Sgt. William McEntee in 2005 and the rescue of two boys

from the home of Kirkwood pizza man Michael Devlin in 2007 have taken Kirkwoodians on an emotional roller coaster ride. Now, a tragedy that has ended six lives and left one endangered threatens to divide the community. Devastating as they were, these events have tested the community’s ability to act quickly, its ability to show love and compassion for one another in a time of crisis, and, most importantly, the ability to heal.

Dr. David Holley, KHS principal, is going through the healing process himself in addition to guiding others, es-pecially students, he said.

“My role is to stay calm and positive,” Holley said. “I need to meet with people and figure out what they need

help with.”The community’s shock in response to the shootings

seems to be magnified by the safe, small-town feel of Kirk-wood. The sting of the situation is increased because it hit so close to home, Holley said. According to Holley, who has resided in Kirkwood since 1951, nothing of this mag-nitude has ever occurred here.

“This is the worst because it happened in our back-yard,” Holley said. “It was very personal and I knew ev-eryone.”

Father Bob Osborne, pastor at St. Peter’s Catholic Church, was one of the first to be interviewed by news stations regarding the shooting. A part of the Kirkwood community for 40 years and a police chaplain for 39, his primary role is helping the Kirkwood Police recover from this “surreal situation,” he said.

Osborne said the church as a whole is also taking ac-tion to speed the healing of the community.

“We try to serve their members best by prayer and

Candlelight vigil draws big crowd

A fter tragedy struck Feb. 7, with the death of six Kirkwood citizens inside Kirkwood’s City Hall, the community came together to mourn the loss of the Kirkwood citizens at a candle light

vigil outside of City Hall.The weather was especially cold, and the clouds

overhead posed threats for rain. The weather condi-tions were expected to decrease the number of at-tendants. But despite the circumstances, hundreds of people surrounded City Hall and Station Plaza across the street.

Around 6:30 p.m., 30 minutes before the service started, the crosswalk between The Plaza and City Hall was crowded with people honoring the sight of the shooting by placing bouquets of flowers on the stairs or simply standing in front of the memorial to honor those who passed.

As 7 p.m. approached, the streets and sidewalk be-come crowded with hundreds of people. But instead of chaos, this gathering was peaceful and the only move-ment going on was in front of the City Hall stairs, where people were walking by to pay their respects.

After the service, talk filled the air at The Plaza of how a tragedy such as this could happen to a place like Kirkwood. Tearful conversations between citizens who knew the victims, including the shooter, Charles Lee “Cookie” Thornton. The conversation consisted of how Thornton was a seemingly good man before the shootings.

When the vigil ended around 9:30 p.m., the stairs in front of City Hall were cluttered with flowers, balloons and signs. Some signs were from neighboring commu-nities offering support that said, “Webster Groves Sup-ports Kirkwood,” and some offer encouraging words from Kirkwood citizens such as, “We can get through this together as a community.”

While signs of encouragement were put up in front of the memorial, signs of anger were placed right next to them.

In front of the stairs of City Hall a woman held a sign that read “Nothing Justifies These Violent Acts” on the front, and “Thorntons should apologize to the families and the community” on the back.

This woman wore this sign in order to express her anger toward the interviews of Thornton’s mother and brother that day by a local news station.

While the woman had no intention of causing an uproar at the service, she was ready for negative com-ments to come her way. She intended to help the com-munity to gain closure by convincing the Thorntons to apologize.

While she expected discouraging words from those who attended the vigil, some who passed by the pro-testing woman whispered to her words of encourage-ment for holding the sign.

While the conversations were going on between the protester and the supporters, hundreds of Kirkwood citizens sing “Amazing Grace,” in honor of those who had died.

Citizens clutched their plastic candle holders while the bell struck six times for each of the victims, and the flames flickered against the freezing wind.

While people felt different emotions just across the street from each other, all of those affected by the tragedy gathered to show their support for those lost by coming together as a community and helping Kirk-wood heal.

sam sauerfeatures writer

Visit the Call online at:http://www2.kirkwood-

schools.org/parent_student/khs/call/index.htm

see Resilience of Kirkwood, p. 4

Flu outbreak causes concern

pg. 2

Making success from scratch

pg. 16

pete krusingsports writer

katie linsleyphoto by

katie moritzeditor of administration

HENRY W. GRADY HIGH SCHOOL, ATLANTA

S I N C E 1 9 4 7

P R O M P H O T O S H O O T

CONTENTS

J O H N L E W I S

comment 3Locking the parking lot gates any longer may drive frustrated columnist Hannah Rosenbaum to a psychiatrist, she writes.

news 6Grady teachers are beginning training to learn how to podcast their lectures for students who miss classes.

feature 12Business teacher Mr. Marlon Pilson hosts business leaders from around Atlanta to talk to his entrepreneurship class about business plans.

sports 15The second-ranked girls soccer team starts the season 8-1 (4-0 in region 5B-AAA) behind goalkeeper Lena James and a strong defense.

BY TAYLOR FULTON

Thunderous applause hailed junior Mitchell Kelly as he,

junior Michelle Gilstrap and senior Randi Hildreth took their final bows after their appearance in the Bill T. Jones and Arnie Zane production on March 1, entitled Chapel/Chapter Blind Walking.

Each year, the Robert Ferst Center for the Arts at Georgia Tech hosts dance performances by world-renowned dance companies. Thanks to a special partnership with the Georgia Tech Arts Education Foundation, Grady students, along with students from Inman Middle

School and Centennial Place Elementary School, participated in weekend classes to learn dance techniques from prominent dance companies.

Gilstrap, Hildreth and Kelly were specially selected to participate when the Georgia Tech Arts Education Foundation contacted Grady fine arts department chair Mr. John Brandhorst looking for students at Grady with dance experience. The three students then participated in the sold-out Saturday performance.

“Mr. Brandhorst came in looking for me, and I thought I was in trouble,” senior Randi

Hildreth said. “Then he made the announcement, and I couldn’t help but get excited.”

Junior Michelle Gilstrap spoke similarly of her initial excitement.

“I was ecstatic, and there really weren’t words for how I felt,” she said.

On the day of the performance, Jones and Zane hosted a master class for interested students. The students came dressed and ready to warm up by 10 a.m. and spent a little over two hours learning from the best the company had to offer.

see DANCE page 10Each dancer was then whisked

BY EMMA FRENCH

Development on the Beltline was halted on Feb. 8 when

the Georgia Supreme Court ruled against the issuance of Tax Allocation District Bonds to the expanding project.

John Woodham, a licensed real estate broker and an experienced real estate attorney, filed a petition challenging the distribution of Tax Allocation Districts for the Beltline project.

In the case, Woodham states that “the proposed use of school taxes to fund the Beltline plan violates…the Georgia Constitution because it contemplates the expenditure of school taxes for non-education purposes.”

The Georgia Supreme Court

ruled unanimously that the use of tax revenue to fund the Beltline TAD is not explicit for educational purposes under Georgia Constitution.

“As a board member, I can tell you that it was certainly an unexpected and a disappointing move,” said Liz Coyle, a Grady parent and member of the board of directors for the Beltline. “But as [Atlanta] mayor [Shirley Franklin] said, the Beltline goes on.”

Proponents of the Beltline argued that the tax was constitutional because the schools will benefit from the neighborhood development the Beltline will spur.

see BELTLINE page 6

BY JANNA KAPLAN

Just partway through the national qualifying tournament, the Grady debate team has already

qualified four people to compete in the National Forensic League National Championship. On the weekend of Feb. 29 to March 2, Grady hosted the first part of the national qualifier for selected forensic events, including public forum debate, Lincoln-Douglas debate and all individual events. Juniors Mike Robinson and Demarius Walker qualified for public forum; junior Scott Bremer qualified in original oratory and domestic extemporaneous speaking; freshman Tyler Olson

qualified in Lincoln-Douglas debate. “It was good seeing the kids do as well as they did,”

debate coach Mr. Mario Herrera said. “What’s even more impressive is the fact that in the events that I coach, none of the kids are graduating. There’s a lot of depth in the team as well.”

Robinson admits that while debating at the tournament was stressful, he was lucky to have Walker as his team partner.

“Debating with [Walker] is fun and I enjoy it, but

see DEBATE page 7

BY KELLY DOUGLAS

Ms. Schalyse Jones, the counselor of students with

last names L-R, packed up her office on an otherwise ordinary Wednesday. Ms. Jones decided to leave her job as a counselor to pursue an opportunity in Los Angeles.

“I have to rip myself away from my job; I mean I’m making a good salary at a good school,” Ms. Jones said. “I will always be welcome to be a counselor, so maybe when I’m more mature and ready to settle down I’ll come back, but for now I’m going to do what I always encourage my kids to do—to follow their dream.”

Ms. Jones, who also works as a disc jockey, will incorporate her love of music with education by doing independent contracting as a DJ and a voice-over actor.

“L.A. has a much bigger music industry than Atlanta,” Ms. Jones said. “I’m planning to get a dual residency so I can get it popping. It would be an error on my part to grow older in this [counseling] job without using my DJ and acting talents.”

Ms. Jones spent most of her life working to become a counselor. She has played many roles as an educator, working as a substitute teacher and a reading specialist. After substituting

see JONES page 6

Students collaborate with dance company

COURT BANS TAX USE ON BELTLINE

Debaters qualify for Nationals

Counselor exits, pursues dream to DJ in California

STUDENTS CELEBRATE MUSIC AND DANCESeniors Amber Taylor and Shakira Howard perform Stevie Wonder’s “I Wish” in this year’s Black History Production Sankofa. Spanish teacher Ms. Demetria Kendrick, the program’s head production manager, collaborated with students in picking out pieces to perform (see related story, page 11).

DANCE REVOLUTION: Juniors Mitchell Kelly and Mia Wales adjust their positions during class.

U.S. Congressman speaks to Inman

about black history p. 7

AJC photographs dressed-up Knights

p. 13

MIN

H L

AM

TA

YLO

R FU

LTO

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An upbeat paperfor a downtown school www.gradyhighschool.org/

VOLUME LXI, NUMBER 6, March 21, 2008

TCID:BW

THE AWARD-WINNING STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF

GRANITE BAY HIGH SCHOOLVolume 11, Issue 1september 28, 2007

GrANIte bAY HIGH sCHool 1 GrIZZlY WAY GrANIte bAY, CA 95746

A seCtIoN

12 pAGes GRANITE BAY

Limiting my life to 500 words or less

AMY HOLIDAY

CoMMentArY

THEGazetteGBHS grieves June deathFreshman killed in hit-and-runBY AMY HOLIDAYsenior writer

Freshmen FortesFantee Jones and Jade Huang are piano prodigies...Page B1

Green Screen 12 Page C1Page A12

GB Superstar Club Day Fall Hot-Shots

2005 GBHS graduate John Uy is on his way to becoming famous–in the Philippines

Fall sports like girls’ tennis, left, are making a splash in the GBHS athletic scene

A collection of photographs documenting the annual Club Day

INSIDEnews A2

Forum A11

Features B1-B8

VoicesA8-11 Sports C1-C6

Green G1-G20Screen

I have sat in front of the blinking, devilish cursor on my computer screen for hours,

fishing for topics for my college essays. I’ve navigated through mazes of memories, looking for a remembrance that embodies the entire essence of who I am (Or, at the very least, who the college wants.) And I’ve juggled a couple of ideas around, trying to find creative ways to present myself in the wake of a generic prompt. But I’m struggling. A lot. Expressing your character in 500 words or less is much harder than I would have predicted. The group of friends I have has a tendency to get into conversations on a daily basis that evolve around our mutual questions about college. The best thing about our dialogues? I found out that each of my friends is going through the same thing as I am. We talk about how our lives are each to vast too capture in a five-paragraph essay. We’ve debated the hypocrisy of affirmative action. We discuss what it’s like to be at the mercy of a financial aid system. To know that you’re not alone on the rollercoaster called college admissions brings reassurance. During a recent discussion about the University of California essay prompts, it became radiantly clear to me just how important the perspectives of our peers are in times of change and transformation. One of the UC application essay topics asks students to write reflectively about how their environment has influenced the person they are today. And being the self-absorbed and self-righteous teenager that I have a horrible tendency of being, I was self-assured the moment I saw the prompt. Granite Bay. What a perfect aquarium atmosphere for an essay! I would talk about the big houses, big egos and big breast augmentations. I’d describe the consumerism and competition. In other words, I was going to write the typical essay of a typical Granite Bay student, gnawing at

See HOLIDAY, page A7

Courtney Parker looked just as stunning as she did every day of her life. She was just as beautiful, just as peaceful, just as striking. Only, she was dying. A machine was helping her breathe. A machine was feeding her.

Her brain stem had been severed and slowly, it was killing her. But to her mother, Nancy Parker, her daughter was still full of life. “She was perfect,” Nancy said. Her petite frame lay under the sheets of the hospital bed, the outline of her athletic muscles reflecting her years as a cheerleader. Dark brown hair fell at her shoulders and framed the delicate features of her mature face. Eyelids fell closed over her deep brown eyes. Her lips were pursed, denying the world the

signature Courtney Parker smile. For two days, Courtney’s life hung in a precarious balance. She had suffered fatal brain injuries and doctors had told her family that that there was no chance of survival. But she was still breathing a little bit on her own. She was unresponsive. But she was still alive. And these faint traces of life were enough to evoke every maternal instinct from Nancy.

See PARKER, page A6Courtney Parker, left, and her friend Kelsey Harter were to-gether when Parker died in an accident on Auburn-Folsom road.

The

Food changes occur with new state legislationFASt FACtS

Food standards for all K-12 schools in California

An individually sold entree may have no more than: -4 grams of fat per 100 calories -400 caloriesAn individually sold snack may contain no more than: -35 percent of its calories from fat -10 percent of its calories saturated fat -35 percent sugar by weight -175 calories (elementary schools) -250 calories (middle and high schools)

Bill mandates reform

PILL Birth control: The ultimate remedy?

BY STEVEN SANKARANsenior writer

BY KALEY HANSENsenior writer

BY JULIANA FEHRENBACHERAND STEPHANIE VATZsenior writers

To the dismay of many K-12 California students, the School Nutrition Standards Bill went into effect this school year. The bill, sponsored by governor Schwarzenegger, provides rigid guidelines as to the content of food sold on school campuses around California. New guidelines regulate the amount of calories from fat and saturated fat that foods can have. Additionally, food may not contain more than 35 percent sugar by weight. However, not all is bad. While the food at Granite Bay High School and across the Roseville Joint Union High School District has become healthier, it

has also become tastier, according to some students. “Our district’s food is night and day better than any other high school that I have been to,” RJUHSD food services director Jay Brown said. And evidence for that is evident in the number of students who are purchasing school lunches; sales have more than doubled since spring of last year. “This year I received some nice comments about the food. Some of them have been critical about items that have been missing (from the menu),” Brown said. Brown and his chefs have been hard at work all summer preparing a coherent menu that makes sense for students and doesn’t sacrifice quality or taste.

New rules and policies have been enacted this year in the Roseville Joint Union High School District, including changes in cafeteria order and food. With the California SB 12 law now in effect, requiring all middle and high schools to no longer sell “junk food”, its become apparent that the whole cafeteria menu was fully changed this year, as well as altering the ways students pur-chase meals. The old procedures required stu-dents to stand in lines outside the front of the small, portable snack bar, the main snack bar and the cafeteria kitchen in which meals were purchased. However, as of the fall of 2007-

2008 school year, student ID cards are required for purchasing meals. This district-wide policy was enforced because of the helpful benefits it provides the cafeteria and school. “The cards track daily meal selections and help (the cafeteria workers) prepare the (correct amount) of food needed for the following day, and that prevents us from running out of a certain meal,” Roseville Joint Union High School District food services director Jay Brown said. “At the beginning of the year, we sold around 100 of the Asian meals a day, but by tracking, we can see that we are selling around 200 each day now.” Another positive aspect of using

She was a healthy 28-year old. She had never had headaches before. She had no history of migraines or chronic illness. She was not a smoker. But she found herself in the emergency room anyway. Shian Hatani, a nurse practitioner’s assistant and sister of GBHS senior Shawn Khorshidian, was recently admitted to the ER for severe headaches. She later found out that she had a blood clot on the brain. And to her surprise, her life-threatening injury was caused by her use of birth control. “I started taking birth control about seven years ago,” Hatani said. “I took it for three to four years and then stopped

See NUTRITION, page A7 See CHANGES, page A7

Menus, policies change

See PILL, page B6

“ To know that you're not alone on the rollercoaster called college admissions brings reassurance.

”

The Central TimesNaperville Central HSNaperville, Ill.

The SouthernerHenry W. Grady HSAtlanta, Ga.

The LiberatorLiberal Arts and Science AcademyAustin, Texas

The Kirkwood CallKirkwood HSKirkwood, Mo.

The GazetteGranite Bay HSGranite Bay, Calif.

El EstoqueMonta Vista HSCupertino, Calif.


16 or fewer pagesThe Kernal East Bakersfield HS Bakersfield, Calif.

Spartan Scroll Schurr HS Montebello, Calif.

Pen Palos Verdes Peninsula HS Rolling Hills Estates, Calif.

Mount Carmel Sun Mount Carmel HS San Diego, Calif.

The Nexus Westview HS San Diego, Calif.

The Epic Lynbrook HS San Jose, Calif.

The Winged Post The Harker School San Jose, Calif.

The Stagg Line Amos Alonzo Stagg HS Stockton, Calif.

The Bruin Voice Bear Creek HS Stockton, Calif.

The Surveyor George Washington HS Denver, Colo.

Hi-Lights William R. Boone HS Orlando, Fla.

Evanstonian Evanston Township HS Evanston, Ill.

The Central Times Naperville Central HS Naperville, Ill.

The Munsonian Muncie Central HS Muncie, Ind.

The Raven’s Beak Olathe Northwest HS Olathe, Kan.

Pitch Walter Johnson HS Bethesda, Md.

The Squall Dexter HS Dexter, Mich.

North Pointe Grosse Pointe North HS Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich.

The Update H.H. Dow HS Midland, Mich.

Vanguard Stevenson HS Sterling Heights, Mich.

The Heights Herald Columbia Heights HS Columbia Heights, Minn.

Eyrie Eden Prairie HS Eden Prairie, Minn.

The Charger Oxford HS Oxford, Miss.

The Kirkwood Call Kirkwood HS Kirkwood, Mo.

Nighthawk News First Flight HS Kill Devil Hills, N.C.

Blue & Gold Findlay HS Findlay, Ohio

The Anderson Edition Anderson HS Austin, Texas

Lone Star Dispatch James Bowie HS Austin, Texas

The Liberator Liberal Arts and Science Academy Austin, Texas

Bulldog Print Yavneh Academy of Dallas Dallas, Texas

Stampede Burges HS El Paso, Texas

tjToday Thomas Jefferson HS for Science & Technology Alexandria, Va.

The Sound Gig Harbor HS Gig Harbor, Wash.

The Peninsula Outlook Peninsula HS Gig Harbor, Wash.

17 or more pagesEl Estoque Monta Vista HS Cupertino, Calif.

The Gazette Granite Bay HS Granite Bay, Calif.

Redwood Bark Redwood HS Larkspur, Calif.

The Chronicle Harvard-Westlake School North Hollywood, Calif.

The Falconer Torrey Pines HS San Diego, Calif.

Crossfire Crossroads School Santa Monica, Calif.

The Rock Rock Canyon HS Highlands Ranch, Colo.

The Southerner Henry W. Grady HS Atlanta, Ga.

The Spotlight Blue Valley West HS Overland Park, Kan.

The Harbinger Shawnee Mission East HS Prairie Village, Kan.

Focus Midland HS Midland, Mich.

The Chronicle William Mason HS Mason, Ohio

The Purple Tide Chantilly HS Chantilly, Va.

Jr. High/ Middle SchoolThe Scroll American School in London London, England

NewsmagazineThe Mustang San Dieguito Academy Encinitas, Calif.

Verde Palo Alto HS Palo Alto, Calif.

Catamount Rancho Cotate HS Rohnert Park, Calif.

The Muse Dreyfoos School of the Arts West Palm Beach, Fla.

Carpe Diem Decatur HS Decatur, Ga.

The Harbinger Zionsville HS Zionsville, Ind.

Play Maize HS Maize, Kan.

North Star Francis Howell North HS St. Charles, Mo.

Featherduster Westlake HS Austin, Texas

Newspaper Pacemaker Award2008 Finalists

StampedeBurges HSEl Paso, Texas

The HarbingerShawnee Mission East HSPrairie Village, Kan.

TWD

M

NEWS: New English 11AP class created» » PAGE 5 FEATURES: Alcohol coverage continued » PAGES 18 – 19» A&E: Concerts to check out this summer » PAGE 23»

ISSUE FIFTEENapril 28, 2008

shawnee mission eastprairie village, kstheharbinger

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he day senior Kristen Altoro got her senior paper back, she couldn’t stop crying.

It wasn’t because she received a grade lower than expected, or even because she hadn’t passed. It was because she was given a label which proved difficult to shake off in the fol-lowing weeks; a label Altoro says is contrary to all the hard work she put into her paper.

Altoro failed the paper due to a charge of plagiarism, and the rumors began flying that she was a cheater.

Altoro’s paper came back from tur-nitin.com, the web site used to catch plagiarism in students’ papers, as suspiciously similar to the paper of a friend who has a different English teacher.

Altoro admits that she and her friend chose the same topic for their papers, and also researched together, but she was not aware that what she was doing would be considered plagia-rism.

“We used some of the same quotes from the books to prove the same points…but I didn’t at all see her pa-per and she didn’t at all see mine from the beginning, so that really frustrated me,” Altoro said.

Tphoebeunterman»BY

LETTERSili t ng

YMore senior papers deemed plagiarized as use of verification methods increases story continued on page 3»

f

2008 Newspaper Pacemaker

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