How to Spend the Holiday SeasonHoliday (Page 10-11)

Opening up a Can of Worms...and Tobacco

In-Depth (Page14-15)

Kicking off the Winter Sports Season

Sports (Page 7)

How the Internet Will “Delete” High School

Opinion (Page 18)

5810 McArthur Ranch Road . Highlands Ranch, CO 80124 . 303-387-3000 . Volume 9 . Issue 3 . December 14, 2012 Facebook: The Rock Student Newspaper Twitter: @therocknews13 Online: RockMediaOnline.org

rockthe

“I think that with all the information we have on tobacco, kids would be smart enough not to chew it...but apparently

I’m wrong.”-Derrick Trotman ‘13

Read more on pg. 14-15

the student voice of rock canyon high school

02 Nowthe[12/14/12]

12 hours, sore muscles and numeous paint stains later Eco club brings the first ever Eco Week to the students Nov. 26-30. For each day of the week, students and staff were asked to do one thing to make a change in their everyday life that would make an eco friendly impact. Although the week started off slow with few students participating in Meatless Monday, by Tuesday, most were on board and powered down their electronics and turned off the lights in the classrooms and administration offices. During Water Bottle Wednesday, the club sold aluminium water bottles for $4.00. But, when students brought four plastic water bottles to recycle students and faculty could have got the discounted price of $2.00. Many people also came to enjoy free Gatorade if they had a reusable bottle with them. “Water Bottle Wednesday went really well. Lots of people came up with their recycled water-bottles and took advantage of the free Gatorade,” Wei Ye ‘14 said. On Thursday’s “Make a Pledge Day”, over 250 pledges were made towards doing one thing to

Going Green to Save Green

Planting the seed of change one bin and bottle at a time

The Club Beat

make a change in everyday life. In fact enough pledges were made that the Eco Club has decided to get a tree to put on campus for the 2nd semes-ter. Eco Friday wrapped up the week with wearing green or blue in support of our Earth. “It’s great to know that many students and fac-ulty were able to see that they could make a dif-ference by doing little things around the school to help the environment,” Mytheri Ramesh ‘15 said. Next on the agenda for Eco Club is taking on and reintroducing the Biggest Loser Competition between teachers which will happen early next year. “The Biggest Loser helps reduce the school energy by how much energy we use on a daily basis, by turning off lights when you leave the classroom or shutting down computers when not in use,” Tran said. For the first ever Eco week to be at our school President of Eco club, Jenny Tran ‘13 said; “Eco Week went well for this being the first time, I think the fact that students are more aware of who we are as a club and our mission makes this week a success.”

Random Acts to Make a Difference

1. Jenny Tran ‘ 13 and Priyanka Philip ‘14 pose in front of newly painted bins in celebration of completion Nov. 6. 2. Priyanka Philip ’14 paint Wednesday’s poster on Nov. 6 in Geof-frey Brinker’s room. ” Painting the posters made eco week real, ” Philip said after hours of poster making. 3. Ben King ‘14 and Parker Benson ‘14 staple posters during 8th period for the upcoming week balancing on 12 ft. ladders. “It was quite challenging, yet fun,” Benson said. “Every time I pressed on the wall it pushed me back and it felt like I was going to fall backwards.”

Hauling 14-pound Thanksgiving turkeys down an assembly line can be tough work, especially when the holidays are meant to be relaxing and rejuvenating. But members of Random Acts of Kindness, was more than willing to do the job if it meant helping the less-fortunate and spreading holiday cheer. On Sunday afternoon, Nov. 18, RAOK, with the help of Colorado’s Action Center, distributed boxes of turkeys and cranberries to families in need. The group wanted to do this because it not only helped others, but it also helped them. “It’s really easy to take what we have for granted, and it’s always good to have a reality check,” said RAOK leader Mimi Kim, ‘15. In the past, Kim has done similar things to help out, but this was the first time she has actually given the turkeys to the families. Before going to the event, Kim and co-leader Kelcey Beckman ‘15 had some pre-event work to

do. They had to sort out dates and times with the Action Center, plan with other members of RAOK to find a date when most of the other members could go, and decide how all of the members would get to the event. “We went with the group and when we got there, they divided us up into smaller groups,” Mi-chael Baer, ‘15, said. “We worked in an assembly line handing out food to the people who couldn’t afford it. It was really heart-warming!” On the day of the event, 8 students came to help out. “The group was so nice and helpful, and we all were able to get some great community service hours,” said Kim. Although Thanksgiving has already passed, there is still Christmas and New Years- plenty of opportunity for students and families to go out, help the needy, and spread the holiday cheer.

How a new club is making a difference in both their school and in the community one random act at a time

H.A.P.P.I. is acronym with a positive connota-tion and deeper meaning; Helping Adoles-cents Prevent Poor Impulses. The H.A.P.P.I. club is devoted toward the aid of students and children in making virtuous choices. “HAPPI club is a club dedicated towards helping students make good decisions,” President Alexis Svenson ’13 said. “We will be doing various events throughout the year, but as of right now we are in the planning stages.” H.A.P.P.I. is working with the ‘To Write Love on Her Arms’ club to raise money to put on events, providing safe environments for stu-dents. The money is also going towards doing something fun, such as a movie night, for the “Love on Her Arms” club. Next semester the club will focus on the middle school and work-ing with students in preparations for high school and the importance of good making good choices “In high school, as in later in life, people will be forced with choices,” Svenson ’13 said. “The goal of the club is to help students make thorough and well thought decisions.”

Donning neon orange vests, five students from the RAOK club prepare to serve Thanksgiving dinner to the needy Nov. 18. Mimi Kim ‘15, Mia Maciolek ‘15, Jordan Clark ‘15 and Emily Haigh ‘15 gathered at the Colorado Action Center to distribute boxes of food to those who need it most. “It was a great experience to see the people smile as their cars pulled up to receive their Thanksgiving food,” Haigh said. “

If You’re H.A.P.P.I. & You Know It...

There’s no “I” in TEAMS As students work to solve real-world prob-lems, TEAMS brings a whole new meaning to the word “team”. TEAMS stands for the Test of Engineering Aptitude and Math and Science, and this is a new club at Rock Canyon led by Ms. Powell. In TEAMS, students work in small groups to solve problems that engineers find in the real world. This year, the topic is cyber-security. Students will create a portfolio on the com-puter and learn all about the topic. Once they collect information in the portfolio, they use their creativity and thinking skills to solve the problem. The TEAMS club will compete in the State competition at CSU on March 7, 2013. “TEAMS is an excellent opportunity for students to learn how to work as a team to solve problems,” Cindy Powell, advisor and RCHS physics teacher, said. “It also encourages higher-order thinking and creativity in that they have to utilize all their knowledge in math and science to solve these problems.”

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With the semester coming to a close, what do clubs

have in store for 2013?

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Any students interested in creating their own club can contact the front

office for more information

Eco club members spray paint a total of 51 recycling bins Nov.6 for classrooms. ” Since we bought a ton of bins from Home Depot and distributed them to many teachers, I hope that our hard work paid off and they are a success,” EJ Katsoulas ’13 said. Each bin was spray painted by hand by members of the Eco club ( pictured: Ej Katsoulas ‘13, Nick Zindel ‘13, Jenny Tran ‘13, Wei Ye ‘14, Hunter Tran ‘14, Ben King ‘14 , Geoffrey Brinker, science teacher, Ashley Benson ‘14, Priyanka Philip ‘14 and Catie Yanchek ‘14).

photos by [maerohrbach]

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Now 03the[12/14/12]

With the release of the initial audition results, several students have been selected for two Colorado All State Choirs: Emilia Bartelheim ‘14’, Samuel Makikalli ‘14, Logan Schafer ‘14, Meredith Kelly ‘14, Lauren Veltri ‘13, Ashley Kisner, Quinn Kennedy ‘13, Maddi Long ‘13, Nicole McDaniel ‘13, Lily Gardner ‘14, and Rachel Zetwick ‘14.They were chosen through a rigorous audition process while competing against the most talented high school vocalists in the state. “I feel like making All-State is somewhat like a rite of passage, since I remember all of the other upperclassman two years back or so having to do all these seemingly impossible things to make it,” Emilia Bartelheim ‘14, said. “It’s quite relieving to know that I’m going to get to perform with the Jazz Choir. I was a bit of a mess in the nights lead-ing up to receiving my decision, so it feels good to have the burden off of me.” Along with the anxiety of waiting to hear about one’s selection, the auditioning process for All-State Choir is also known for its difficult nature. “For Jazz Choir auditions, everyone has to send in an audition CD that’s scored; if your score is

high enough you get called back.” Bartelheim said. Who had to audition by performing the pieces Tenor Madness and It Could Happen to You. ”It was a bit of a pain for Jazz Choir, since you have to record your performance, and you con-stantly have to listen to yourself, and so you pick out specific nuances or other things that bother you.” she said. Samuel Makikalli ‘14, who was selected for the Classical Men’s Choir, also testified to the nerve-wracking auditions. “I had to perform my piece, Sebben Crudele, live along with a few scales and other musician-ship exercises,” Makikalli said. “After the audition, I felt like I had crashed and burned. It wasn’t until I took the time to relax with the other Rock Canyon kids there that I was able to decompress and relax a little.” Despite qualifying for their respective choirs, the vocalists still have another round of auditions along with a greater degree of rehearsal and study up until their performances in February. “I have music for both Jazz and Classical at this point,” Bartelheim said. “Everyone has their Clas-

Set the World on “Choir”After months of practice, preparation, and a scale exercise or two, 11 students have been selected to truly sing their hearts out and participate in Colorado All-State Choir in February

sical music, and there are tracks up on the website so we can learn our respective parts. But for Clas-sical choir, we still have another audition ahead of us where we’ll be tested on our knowledge of music theory. So our goal until then is to make sure we’re prepared for that audition.” Bartelheim and Makikalli, along with the other students who made it onto the choir, will perform Feb. 7-9at the All-State Festival at the Belco Theatre with the Colorado Convention Center in Denver. “I’m personally pretty elated to have made it onto the All-State choir, since I’ve been wanting it since freshman year.” Makikalli said. “But what made this even better was the fact that 10 other Rock Canyon students, in addition to myself, were selected for All-State. It’s a phenom-enal accomplishment for Mrs. [Julia] Dale and the rest of the Performing Arts department.”

“Oh Come All Ye Faculty” Belting out your favorite Christmas Carols with your friends is a great way to be together and get in the holiday spirit. Some of the staff and students are doing just that by gathering in the mornings and singing carols. Sue Young, “A-Da” counselor started this new tradition in order to usher in holiday happiness. “I just got this idea of how much fun it is to sing carols during the holiday. Singing lifts spirits and I know lots of people who just need a ‘pick me up’ around this time of year, so it’s a great way to start the day,” Young said. Once choir teacher Julia Dale agreed to play piano for the singers, staff and students were invited to come bring their favorite songs and join in on the fun.

“So far it’s just been a handful of staff. As of right now, there are more kids than staff which is awesome. I think it is a hard time for the staff to come sing because they need to be there for their students,” Young said. “Most of the time the staff will swing by for a song or two and then have to go back. Ideally, it would be at a better time but right now it is the only time that works.” With finals next week, singing might be the break needed in between all the coffee runs and study sessions.

Students and faculty get into the spirit of the season with the help of choir teacher, Julia Dale

(From left) Emilia Bartelheim ‘14 and Samual Makikalli ‘14 stand outside of the Choir room during a Jazz Choir rehearsal following their admittance to the Colorado All-State Choir. “I’m personally pretty elated to have made it onto the choir,” Makikalli said. “I’ve been wanting [this] since I was a freshman.”

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On Dec. 1, a contingent of Rock Canyon’s choir went carolling in Castle Pines.The group spent the afternoon singing a wide range of holiday themed songs to a crowd of all ages eager to ring in the holidays. The choir was accompanied with a horse drawn carriage offering rides around The Village Square and a Santa for the kids to share their wish lists with. “The event is so much fun,” said Ann Manto ‘13, a three year veteran of Caroling in The Pines. “ It’s required for Jazz Choir and the Women’s Select Choir to participate, but a lot of us volunteer to do it anyway, because the proceeds go to charity.” Manto said. The choir not only brought holiday cheer to the crowd, but also was able to show off their talented voices.

“O Little Town of Castle Pines”

Spring Musical to be a “Tale as Old as Time”

The Arts BeatA quick glance at what’s

going on on-stage and in the practice room

“And All That Jazz”

The cast list for the Sprng musical, Beauty and the Beast, was realeased Dec. 1. Out of over 80 students that auditioned, only about 55 were selected to be a part of both the cast and chorus. The show will run from Mar. 6-10 of 2013, with rehearsals beginning at the start of second semester.

Congratulations to RCHS Jazz Band who, after weeks of preparation and hours spent going over the pieces competed at the Jazz Festival, last Friday, Nov. 30 at Grandview H.S. The band took home superior ratings meaning straight ones and landed second place out of 10-15 bands competing that day. Dec 5 the band performed once again at their Winter Jazz concert, in the auditorium. With a significant amount of audience, consisting of parents and friends, the scene was set. “ I’m excited for this concert. We are play-ing five songs that are both jazzy and winter themed,” Nicolette Guerin ‘12 said during a short break before the concert started. The band played a mix of classics such as Baby, It’s Cold Outside, O Holy Night, A Christmas Song, A Riff in Time and Be Nice to Me. Before the high school band got a chance to play the middle school band, had the chance to play two Jazz ensembles for the audience; Comin’ Home Baby by Bob Dor-ough and Ben Tucker and The Jazz Police written by Gordon Goodwin, directed by band director of the middle school, Mr. Scott McGowan During this short and sweet performance, it was announced by band director Joel Naegle that 11 students from band and orchestra auditioned for All State Band as of Dec. 4 and will hear results in the near future. At a later time, check out TheRock-MediaOnline for updates.

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for those with dreams of entrepreneurship. In reality we face business choices every day of our lives. Marshall supports this theory, interlacing business ethics with his teaching. “We did a high school food court activity where they had to make decisions about what restaurants would go in a food court at a school. That’s a decision that students could be faced with making,” Marshall said. “I think it’s a very relevant course to students. We deal with economics every single day of our lives. At its core, economics is about making choices based on the fact that we have limited time, limited resources, and we can’t have everything that we want.” Students like Mathivadhani Harikrishnan ‘15 plan to take this one step further. “I would like to start my own business before I graduate by taking Ms. Robinett’s classes,” The DECA member said. Robinett’s classes are designed to prepare students for just that. “It’s real-life skills through project-based learning. I give you the information, and then you take that and apply it.” Robinett says; “You have to take those concepts and put them into real life every single day.” After taking her classes, in the last semester of their senior year, Ms. Robinett’s students will be able to realistically see if this is the right career path for them. “At the end of my course you will start a real business, with real money, with real products. That’s the end results. You will find out whether or not this is what you want to do,” Robinett said. Business is more than a class; it’s a part of preparing yourself for the real world. “If you want to be successful in life you have to understand business,” Trotman said.

Now04 the

The Daily Grind Starting Up

Rock:What is your business? Sattem: I am the founder of Carma Productions, it is a video marketing firm. We offer video solutions for realtors and start-ups to develop a plat-form to showcase their products. We’re also working with Kick Starter and with indiegogo.com.

Rock:Why did you decide to start this?Sattem: I’m really good with multimedia and video production and so instead of getting a job at Qdoba or somewhere, I decided to start Carma Productions; it would look great on a resume. I am my own boss, so it’s flexible, it works well with a high school schedule.

Rock:What classes or experiences here at Rock Canyon helped you with your business?Sattem:The whole process of RCTV and coming up through all the vari-ous video classes has given me the skills that I need for this. The quality of my work is comparable to the professionals in the field right now.

Rock:What has been your biggest success with the business so far?Sattem: I’ve done internal videos for Coca-a-Cola and videos for local businesses such as Team Speed. We’re working with Innovation Pavillion and thats where the office is right now.

Rock:What advice do you have to others?Sattem: Start small, you don’t need an office or anything too major. Do quality work and you will get noticed. Just start doing small projects and soon you’ll get referrals.

Rock:What do you want to do pursue career wise?Sattem: When I graduate from college, I want to be in the financial side of business. My first choice for college is Northwestern University. I’m very interested in the entrepreneurial process and the startups in general and the exciting environment associated with that. Morphing my love of business and startups, we’ll just see where things go.

Rock:Have there been ups and downs?Sattem: For sure. It’s all based on dealings with customer service, negotiating deals and trying to make sure your terms are laid out at the beginning of certain deals and so when a client has false perception as to what they were entitled to. Just managing that whole customer service side, that’s probably the hardest part of this so far.

Rock:What has this brought you success wise?Sattem: It’s an innovative thing that I can talk about. There’s not many young entrepreneurs out there and so that’s a definite resume boost. It’s also given me a lot of on-the-ground learning experience as to the cycle of startups and business climates in general.

Steven Sattem ‘13 has always tried to be ahead of the game. Instead of getting a job, Satem spruced up his

resume by starting a business

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Business Cheer

For students like Derrick Trotman ‘13 and Mathivadhani Harikrishnan ‘15 business classes aren’t just a part of the cirriculum, but a gateway to their future

FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America) is not all work and no play; students in Janna Robinette’s FBLA club have a celebration party for the holidays and recent achievments

Mcguire talks with Sam Molitoriss ‘15 about their upcoming competition in FBLA during the Dec. 10 Christmas party. Mcguire was on the team that took second in state at last year’s competition, defeating 50 other teams. “It was quite exceptional to think that Rock Canyon held the first four places of the competition. We actually did so well that they thought we were cheating,” Mcguire said.

Kyle Broyer ’13 listens to the new members introduce themselves to the club. Business has been Broyer’s favorite subject, taking him all of the way to nationals in competition last year. “Business is applicable. I plan on having a career in marketing,” Broyer said.

Daniel Gibbons ’14 studies for his upcoming competition in DECA. Gibbons has wanted to have a career in marketing and managing hotels ever since he encountered business. “I want to make all-state in this competition. I have spent a lot of time preparing,” Gibbons said.

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photos by [nishikavirmani]

You’ve been asked the same question since you were a four year old and could conquer the world. What do you want to be when you grow up? Derrrick Trotman ‘13 has been able to answer this question for as long as he can remember. “I’ve always been interested in business,” Trotman said. When it came to signing up for high school classes, there was never a doubt of where he would gravitate. Janna Robinett teaches the majority of business classes including Principles of Business, Business law, and Accounting. She has so many that, when asked which classes she taught, she grinned and said; “All of them.” Trotman grew to be very involved inRobinett’s teachings, becoming treasurer of both DECA (Distributive Education Clubs of America) and FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America). “It’s real-life skills through project-based learning. I give you the information and then you take that and apply it. You have to take those concepts and put them into real life every single day.” Robinett said. A major aspect of business is the economy: crunching num-bers, making graphs, and balancing budgets. “Economics studies the choices that we make every day with our lives. It’s a very relevant concept because all day, everyday, we are using economics whether we know it or not,” Tim Mar-shall, economics teacher said. Economics class is particularly relevant to businessminded students; an excellent way to see if you are cut out for the world of numbers. “It’s foundational to business. When you talk about using scarce resources that’s what businesses do,” Marshall said; “If you don’t have an understanding of economics you’re not going to be successful in the business world.” Business falls under the common assumption that it is only

Faces 05the[12/14/12]

You inspire me to do well and go hard at my dreams because of

your music” is one of the many com-pliments Curtis Duncan ‘13 receives from his fan base and friends. His first day at Rock Canyon served as a catalyst for his rapping career, and continues to inspire him to express his opinions and feelings about his life and the Rock Canyon community. Duncan gave us some insight into his career and the stories behind the scrawled lyrics in his “Black Book.”

Rock: What is your stage name and how did you come up with it?Duncan: It’s Klassick and it comes from the idea that my flows are sick and I’m classy. So Klassick came to be.

Rock: Who is your biggest non-mu-sical influence?Duncan: I am influenced by those who put others before themselves.

Rock: What kinds of messages are you trying to convey to students?

Duncan: To get their minds to thinking outside of the “bubble” through satirical messages, so they look at themselves in the same light.

Rock: Are there stories behind your songs as you write all of your own lyrics?Duncan: “Debt-Ceiling” is a political song about the political messages that are constantly jammed in our heads, and then “Progressive Movement” is a personal story about me, and “Surviving the Storm” is about persevering through hard times.

Rock: Are your parents supportive of your music?Duncan: They used to not be, but then my mom found some of my writing. I started out with poetry to vent, and my mom was really appalled with what it said. When she saw that I’m on a LLC with Mastermind Productions it made it that much more real. My mom will try to come to shows.

Rock: When did you become associ-ated with Mastermind Productions?Duncan: I work with a rapper called Youngblood who graduated from Mountain Vista named Mike Woodruff. I met him at King Soopers and then we connected over Facebook. I googled “Colorado rap music” and found him. He is CEO I’m Vice President of Mastermind Productions LLC. We’re an indepen-dent artist. We don’t have any other artists on cur-rently, but we are open to any kind of music. We’re just a local label trying to get everyone involved. It doesn’t matter what you play; it can be any genre.

Rock: When did you start pursuing a music career?Duncan: I was always really good with words from a young age. I was talking at two and reading at three. I became lyrical from a young age, and

when I was fourteen I recorded my first song with Garage Band on an Acer laptop with a Rock Band microphone. I laugh about it to this day, but it was a great experience. I put the song together in twenty minutes.

Rock: How do you feel about some of the stereotypes that are associ-ated with hip-hop?Duncan: There’s not all black rappers, and we don’t all write about the same stuff. I remember someone saying, mainstream rap on radio “is gar-bage over dubstep beats.” Kids that listen to rap on the radio don’t understand the history, and that it all comes from pain, and comes from poetry, starting in the 70s. Yeah I do sag my pants, yeah I do rock Jordans, yeah I do wear diamonds sometimes, but that’s not what I’m infatuated with, that’s not me as a person. The people I hang out with influence that.

Rock: What is your favorite song that you’ve written?Duncan: “Surviving the Storm” because it was a collaboration. It was great, there were some gang members from Denver and then me, a white kid from Highlands Ranch. I realized that we can relate on a lot of different levels and have a lot of the same problems.

Rock: Was there one singular mo-ment that made you want to rap and write poetry?Duncan: The first day of freshman year I was wearing a Forum tee and had long hair. I was from Arvada and didn’t understand how judgmental people were. I walked up to group of girls who were all blond and asked them where the 9000s were, and one girl gave me look and turned back and said to her friends “is he talking to us?” I was nervous first day of high school and until that moment I totally Zen and then I was put in such a new and different environment. From that moment on I liked to put the pieces back together with my writing. I’ve seen death, divorce, people cheated on, and I’ve been cheated on. I’m trying to open up so someone can be heard. There’s no in betweens between popular people or loners here unless they’re in a specific clique. I might not always have the time to hear someone’s issues but I hope my music is for when I can’t get to you, you can listen to it and it gives people something to connect and relate to.

Rock: You recently had a show; how was it?Duncan: I was in the third Denver Showcase at Cervantes Masterpiece. It starts off as a 30 second a capella and then it’s 30 seconds on a beat against another rapper. I made it into the final round and lost, but the MC didn’t show up for the final battle, and instead of battling at the end we did a cypher together. It was a great experience. There was live graffiti and MTV was shooting a video there.

Rock: Do you get nervous before performances/battles?Duncan: Absolutely, I get nervous just like I’m sure everyone else at school gets before their extracur-ricular activities. Doing a show is a huge adrenaline rush, but I think about it like this; When the Broncos are at home you go and support them to cheer them on, it should be the same for me because i am rep-resenting the peoples word of mouth in Colorado. Therefore the more “Home Fans” I get at my shows

in essence, help me become less nervous and let me know that I have support in my favor.

Rock: If you could collaborate with any artist who would it be?Duncan: Justin Bieber, I don’t care what anyone says, imagine two worlds apart combining on one track, it would be amazing and open all sorts of doors in the hip-hop/mainstream world. That would be the bridge of all bridges and the foundation of all founda-tions in the music entertainment business.

Rock: What teacher(s) has been the most helpful and supportive of your music/poetry?Duncan: The teachers that have helped me the most musically are definitely [Marlaine] McMechan, [David] Sapienza, [Tony] Koy, and [Matt] Sassali. Also [Eric] Schmidt helps out often by helping me realize that certain people have high values and expecta-tions throughout society. Basically what I’m saying is that he helps me keep me on the side of less cursing throughout my tracks.

Rock: Does being a football player and involved in music make you feel like you’re breaking stereotypes?Duncan: Absolutely, I’ve been breaking stereotypes, but it motivates me more.

Rock: If you could change one thing about Rock Canyon what would it be?Duncan: If I could change one thing at Rock Canyon it would be everyone’s perception of people and them being so quick to judge. I mean, people should be social, and say “Hi” to strangers. We are a community, whether you like most people or not.

Rock: Have you ever thought of be-ing a writer instead of a rapper?Duncan: I have thought of being a writer and a rapper, because why should I limit myself to any one thing?

Rock: What’s the biggest compliment you’ve received from a listener/fan of your music?Duncan: “You inspire me to do well and go hard at my dreams because of your music,” and “Your music saved my life.”

Rock: Where do you see yourself in ten years?Duncan: Owning my own label and hopefully bring-ing on other MCs who are young and trying to spit. I would want to own my own company and still be able to do what I want.

Go to rockmediaonline.org to listen to Duncan’s music and go like his Facebook page “Klassick,” to stay updated on his journey as an MC.

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Keeping it Klassy:

The MC Essentials

From musical influences to lyric books and fash-ion, there are a few things an MC must possess beyond a mind for music.

1. “People compare me to Atmosphere, and Tech N9ne sometimes. Mostly I have my own style so that’s what gives me my buzz, because I’m not like anyone else,” Duncan said. 2. “I have several books full of lyrics, some written so others can’t understand them, they are formatted for my eyes only and the images in my “Black Book”, as I like to call it, represent moments in my life that are significant to me, as well as important people who are close to me. It’s honestly just motivation to never quit,” Duncan said. 3. “My hat represents I’ve rocked a fitted cap to the back since seventh grade, it’s just me as an MC. me. I’ve rocked a fitted cap to the back since seventh grade, it’s just me as an MC,” Duncan said.

Curtis Duncan ‘13 is an aspiring MC. He shared his thoughts and feelings on his music and the Rock Canyon community

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representation on the varsity squad. With the lack of seniority on the squad, a majority of the squad is stepping up to help co-lead the team. Outside of gym, the varsity squad enjoys team bonding and participates in activities together such as pump-kin carving. These activities have helped the team achieve results on the court, and together they would toward, boxing out, defense and pushing the ball up the court more. “I think we are going to have a lot of success this year if we keep up the good work,” McClaire said.

06

The lady jags are hot off a winning season last year, ending with a record of 19-6-0. Though the stakes are high again this season, the team has started off the season in a positive direction. Dec. 4 was the team’s first game against non-conference opposition, Arvada West High School.

Jags Outlast Eagles in Overtime Thriller

Gamethe[12/14/12]

Boys Basketball LeadersScoringReboundingAssistsBlocks

Mitch LombardJack LambTyler GarciaJack Lamb

So.So.So.So.

13.3 PPG5.5 RPG1.3 APG0.8 BPG

Girls Basketball LeadersPoints Per GameFree Throw FG’s MadeTotal Points

Erin McClaireErin McClaireMorgan RoosErin McClaire

Jr.Jr.Jr.Jr.

12.5 PPG87.5 %11 FGM25

Guard Tyler Garcia 15’ brings the ball up the court in the first game of the season against Pine Creek. Garcia finished the game with 15 points, 7 from the free

throw line.

Rabecca Pousma ‘15 drives to the hoop during a blowout, 69-28 victory over the Arvade West Wildcats. Pousma had four points.

Freshman varsity swimmer Madeline Lacy 16’ finishes her 100m Fly in

1:00:56 in a meet against Highlands Ranch Dec. 4 at North Ridge Rec Center.

[jeremypurchase]

McClaire and Koslosky lead Lady Jags over Arvada West

[michaelshapiro]

[nicolecassou][maerohrbach]

Hard preseason work paid off as the team won the game by 39 points by a final score of 69-30 Jaguars. “We are a young team and are still growing, Kendall Koslosky ’14 said. “ We hope to have a really good season.” Thursday Dec. 6 was yet another test of early season strength, as the lady jags played a close and hard fought game against Cherry Creek High School resulting in a 53-45 win. “I think the last two games have been a good start to the season and they were learning experi-ences for our team,” Erin McClaire ’14 said. “We have been working hard and we’re a tight knit team.” This season, the team is lacking any senior

The first game of the year. The crowd is raucous, the emotions run high, and the long wait after last year’s second round playoff exit is finally over. With the student section filled with roughly three hundred students decked out in nearly all white clothing, the Jaguars Varsity basketball team began their season Nov 28. at home versus the Pine Creek Eagles. The Jaguars have a lot of changes on the team this year with new Head Coach Kent Grams and only five returning varsity players. Throughout the first half, the game re-mained tight with no team gaining a lead of more than seven points. The Jaguars went to the half up 29 to 27 with a strong effort on the defensive end by Jack Lamb ‘15 and solid shooting by Josh Peterson ‘12. Both teams came out to a very fast start in the third quarter, with the Jaguars

being outscored 25 to 19 as Pine Creek took a 52 to 48 heading into the fourth quarter. The fourth quarter proved to be a defensive battle with only six points being scored in the whole quarter. The key play of the quarter and the game came within the last ten seconds of the game by Mitch Lombard ‘15. With under ten seconds left, Lombard calmly dribbled the ball to the top of the key, and drained a three pointer to tie the game at53. The game was sent to overtime, and the Jaguars rode the wave of momen-tum to ultimately defeat the Eagles by a score of 68 to 61. The star of the game was Mitch Lombard who ended the game with 23 points on 10-14 shooting.

Stat Central Here’s a look at some of the notable statistics through the first week of games for the 2012-2013 basketball season

Lombard comes up clutch during overtime in the season opener Nov. 28

“Potato chip, potato chip, munch, munch, munch, we think your team’s a mighty fine bunch,” was the

victorious cheer of the girls swim and dive team after their dual meet against Highlands Ranch. The

Lady Jags beat the Falcons 267-99. “I thought is was so much fun,” Jordan Kramer ‘14 said. “This year we have so much team spirit

and I love watching everyone swim, I’m so glad I get to be part of the team!”

A majority of the swimmers were familiar with their competition.

“We don’t consider Highlands Ranch a rival, but it’s always more fun to swim against school’s

closer to you. I liked having fun with and compet-ing against my friends from Highlands Ranch,” Vee

Vanderpoel ‘14 said. The first event, the 200 Medley relay kicked

the meet off with a competitive spirit, as the Jags out touched the Falcons by less than a second. On

the diving side, Tori Rimer ‘15 won the One-Meter event by almost 45 points, and the meet closed

with the 400 Freestyle Relay, which the Jags won by seven seconds. Head Coach Nicole Vanderpoel is

looking ahead for the Jags to continue to improve for the rest of the season after this win.

“As in all competitions, we learned there are definitely some things we need to work on in

practice, so, we will continue to fine tune our starts, technique and finishes as we are a work in progress

and have many meets ahead,” Vanderpoel said.

Sunken Falcons

[nicolecassou]

Familiar faces don’t stop the Lady Jags from crushing their

competition

Jags Pounce in Statement Win

[jeremypurchase]

1.2.

3.

Swimming:

Girls Basketball:

Boys Basketball:

07Gamethe

From the Court, To the Field, To the Pool, To the Mat[12/14/12]

Wrestling:

Date: Location: Opponent: Time:

12/29 G.W High School

George Washington

4:00 p.m

1/10 Northridge Rec Center

Douglas County

4:00 p.m

1/12 Valor Christian Golden Colorado

5:00 p.m

1/22 Littleton HS Littleton 4:00 p.m

Date: Location: Opponent: Time:

1/17 ThunderRidge Thunder-Ridge HS

4:30 p.m

1/24 Regis Jesuit Regis Jesuit HS

4:30 p.m

1/31 Heritage Rock Canyon 6:00 p.m

Date: Location: Opponent: Time:

12/17 Ponderosa HS Ponderosa 7:00 p.m

1/05 Denver East HS Denver 1:00 p.m

1/11 Rock Canyon Rampart 7:00 p.m

1/12 Rock Canyon Palmer HS 1:00 p.m

Date: Location: Opponent: Time:

12/13 Dohrety HS Dohrety 7:00 p.m

12/20 Rock Canyon Mullen 8:00 p.m

1/09 Rock Canyon Westminster 7:00 p.m

1/11 Montbello HS Montbello 7:00 p.m

As winter sports begin thier seasons, be sure to check up-coming competition schedules

Quote of the Month:“It was awesome that all three of us (Shannon Lieber ‘13, Brooke Wakefield ‘13, Alli Mcclosky ‘13) got to play in the All-State game togerther. I’m very thank-ful for that.”

- Brooke Wakefield ‘13

5.

1. Brandon Frazier ‘13 and Richard Davis ‘14 fight for postion on the mat at practice Oct. 15 2. Ryan Hommell ‘15 drops back to pass against Chaparral Nov. 3. The Jaguars eventually lost 49-3 3. Tay White ‘13 puts up a three pointer against Pine Creek Nov. 28. The Jaguars won in overtime by a score of 68-61. 4. Lindi Riley ‘ 13 dives off the the board in a meet against Highlands Ranch Dec. 4. The Jaguars blew out the Falcons by a scor e of 267-99. 5. Axel Larsson ‘13 whipps the ball in from the sidelines in the Round of 16 against Heritage Oct. 29

4.

Jags in Action: Caught in the Moment

At every level of every sport new seasons can be unpredictable. Teams that were the best last year can be the worst, and the worst teams can be the best. For cheerlead-ing it can be even more unpredictable, there are no preseason games or friendly scrimmages. A routine is choreo-graphed, and at the first competition of the year all you can do is hope the judges like the routine. RC cheerleaders began working before school ended last year, throughout the summer, and almost every night after school to create a impres-sive routine. Over the summer they were lucky enough to travel to Austin, Texas for the UCA cheer camp. Texas is notoriously good at cheer, so it pushed the cheerleaders outside their comfort zone, but it was also a bonding experience for the team. “Austin was really fun and it was a great experi-ence to be away from home and to be with my friends. They days were long, and hot, but the trip was worth it,” Blair Whitworth ‘15 said. They have put in sweat and tears to accomplish their goals. But at many of their competitions they have not gotten the place, they worked so hard for. Although they have never got less than fourth place, they have left some of the competitions

with their heads down, hoping they could have done better.

Dec. 7, the cheerlead-ers got up early to get to the school and warm up. After they finished, they hopped onto a party bus provided by the parents, and tuned the world out on their rhinestoned head-phones. State is divided

into two parts, prelims and finals, if you make it through prelims you will perform a second time in finals. RC’s scores were high enough to allow them to compete twice. “We dropped one stunt and we were so excited to find out that we got to compete again in finals,” captain Clara Goodman ‘14 said. Despite the few mistakes, the cheerleaders were disappointed of their performance. After many hours, a bloody nose, and tears, RC cheer found out that they got 4 place. “At first I was disappointed because we had such a big chance at winning. I soon realized though, that in the big picture, fourth place is an amazing accomplishment,” Goodman said. This season has brought home many trophies, but the it isn’t over for cheer yet. Next on their list is a trip to Disneyworld for Nationals.

They started the countdown 17 days and 10 practices before the big day, but for Varsity poms, State couldn’t come fast enough. During the entire journey, only one goal was in their heads: “be the ‘yes team.’” What does it ex-actly mean to be the “yes team”? “Being a ‘yes team’ means that we left it all on the floor and proved to be a team the judges want to see again in finals,” Captain Hope Bell, ‘13, said. “A team the judges would say ‘yes’ to.” The dancers had a great start to their com-petition season. They took home multiple first place trophies, as well as a third place trophy at the Continental Leagues (the second biggest competition next to state). At State, the girls, and everyone who saw them dance, said that they performed their personal best. “I think our competition season has been great,” Ashley Nuss, ‘14, said. “Our team has gotten so close and we improve at every com-petition.” At each practice, the team was presented with a sign that had a motivational quote and a days-until-State countdown. The signs were meant to motivate and excite the girls; to make them realize how soon competition actually was.

The team worked hard every day, not al-lowing a minute to go by wasted. The month

before State, they prac-ticed about seven hours a week (not including bas-ketball games and other competitions). With only two minutes allowed on the State floor to show the judges what they could do, each and every member of the team made sure they mastered

each step before competing. “We worked really hard to make sure we went into state with confidence and lots of energy,” Bell said. Unfortunately, many faces left the Denver Coliseum shocked and disappointed on Friday afternoon- the group of teams competing in the State finals did not include Rock Canyon Varsity poms. The team showed good sports-manship and returned to support RC cheer and watch the other poms teams compete in finals. They plan to put State behind them and begin working hard for the national competition in February. “Although they were not a “yes team” to the judges, they did the best they could, and the best they have every done before,” Rebecca Kaze, ‘15, captain of the JV poms team, said. “And that is all that matters. The dance looked amazing to me.”

After a long couple of months, the majority of Varsity cheer’s- competition season is over.

Despite disappointing results at State, Varsity poms still accomplished their goal of being a “yes team.”

Toe Touch Herky/Hurdler Back Handspring Tilt

Jump where your arms are set in a “T” and your legs split to the sides of the body.

Jump where the front leg is straight in front of you and the other leg is bent in the back.

Tumbling skill where you jump backwards, flip over your hands, and land on your feet.

Dance move where one leg is held above your head and your body is tilted over.

Cheer & Poms Terminology

”“I soon realized though,

that in the big picture, fourth place is an amaz-

ing accomplishment.Clara Goodman ‘14

The “Yes Team” We Will Rock You

08 Nowthe[12/14/12]

”“ Being a “yes team”

means that we left it all on the floor.

Hope Bell ‘13

We’ve Got Spirit!

1. The JV poms nail their kickline and went on to bring home a trophy. They won first place, at Leagues, which is their second biggest compe-tition of the season. “When my poms team found out that we placed first we were so happy!” Katelynne Wilkins said, ‘16. “We worked really hard and were glad to know that it paid off.” 2. Piper Melbye ‘16, Haley Shapiro ‘15, and Ashley Bradley ‘16, mem-bers of the JV cheer team huddle together at Leagues competition at Douglas County High School Nov 7. The JV cheer team put a solid routine on the mat, with a few mistakes, but the difficulty made up for the flaws, and they ended up getting third place. “We worked so hard this season, and it’s hard when the judges only see what you did on the mat. So when we got third we were happy with that,” Piper Melbye said. 3. Varsity cheer hits their pyramid in finals on Dec. 7 at their State competition, at the Denver Coliseum. They added difficulty to this pyramid a few weeks prior to the state competition. “We had so much energy coming from all of the stundents who came to support us in finals,” Clara Goodman ‘14 said.

A Glance at Competition Season Q and A With The Girl Who Does it All

Q:What sports do you play and how long have you been playing them?A: “I play cheer, track, golf, and figure skating. I used to do soccer but didn’t have time to try out for high school. I played gymnastics when I was little to learn how to tumble. I started cheer in 5th grade. I was on two All-Star(competitive) teams until I was a freshman, then I did varsity cheer and the Peak level 5 All Star team. This year I just do Rock Canyon cheer. I’ve been golfing since I was little but I started playing more in 6th grade and last year I was on the golf team. I did track in 7th and 8th grade for the middle school and summer track. And I ran track for the school last year. I’ve done skating since first grade; they don’t have skating at school but we’re working on making it a club, so it’s just competitive. I’ve done it the longest out of all my sports.”

Q: Why do you like each sport?A: “I like all the sports for different reasons and I think that all the sports that I play help each other in some way; kind of like cross training. I love how each sport that I play is so different and somehow they all have little sim-ilarities that help with each other. And I also like how some of my sports are team sports and I can also do some individual sports.”

Q: What is the difference between cheerlead-ing at school and cheerleading at Peak?A: “School cheer and All Star is a little differ-ent because in school you don’t just compete, you also have to cheer at games and assem-blies, and you also have to know a bunch of sideline cheers. In All Star cheer, it’s all based around competing-- there’s a lot more travel-ing and harder skills that are legal to do.”

Q: How do you manage all of your sports and school work and still have time for a social life?A: “I’ve always been busy-- since 4th grade-- so I am used to it now. At school I try to get as much homework done as possible so I’m not up late after cheer doing it. I also don’t pro-crastinate, and I think I stay pretty organized, and now that I can drive it’s so much easier getting to places I need to be. Sometimes I wake up early to skate or go to bed late doing

miles traveled to competitions out of state

hours is the length of an average competition day

length of varsity poms routine

9100

sets of siblings in the cheer program

7 19

total number of bows for all poms dancers

1min, 58 sec

seniors on varsity cheer: Ari DePaola and Carli Webber

my homework so the next day or on weekends i can be with friends. Sometimes I feel like I don’t have a social life, there’s a lot of things I miss, or can’t go to because of sports. But I do meet a ton of people through my sports. I still always try to make time on Fridays and Saturdays to spend time with friends.”

Q: Do you plan to continue playing all of these sports all through high school and in college?A: “ I know that I always want to be involved in sports during and after college but I haven’t decided what sports yet. Maybe if I get a scholarship that would help me pick! I’m going to try and do all the same sports... My goal is to try and get 12 letters, so that would be cool.”

6$550822price of one cheer mat

By the Numbers: Cheer and Poms

underclassmen on varsity cheer

Caleigh Newberry ‘15 does almost every sport imaginable, keeps her grades up, and still manages to have time for her friends and family.

Nowthe 09[12/14/12]

1.

2.

3.

Dec 7, Caleigh Newberry stands in the Coliseum after her state performance. Part of her role in the routine was a back handspring full, an advanced tumbling skill. “Our routine is very difficult and everyone has to give their all when we perform, ” Newberry said.

Times10 [12/14/12]

Christmas:

To kick off this holiday season, The Rock has

compiled a few of our favorite activities to light up this Winter Break. By hunting for some decked out holiday houses, creat-ing fun DIY gifts within your budget, scoping out the best holiday Starbucks

Deck the Halls with Boughs of Holly Starting as early as Thanksgiving weekend, holiday lights, huge blow-up animals, and decorations of all types began appearing along the streets. Junior Christian Baker’s family and neighbors try to outdo each other every year with their holiday decor. “It’s so much fun to watch people compete in holiday light competitions, because they all go over the top with crazy lights,” Baker said.

Up On The House-Top

drinks, and by lear-ing about RC’s favorite holiday traditions, we hope to provide you with the tools you need to make your holidays as easy as1-2-3. So Merry Christmas, Happy Ha-nukka, or Happy Kwanza from The Rock

as easy as

Materials (Michaels):-One stocking

(any size)-Glitter glue pens

-Bells or any other accessory

-Hot glue gun

The Fire is so Delightful

Santa’s WhiskersIngredients:-1 cup margarine -1 cup sugar-2 tablespoons milk-1 teaspoon vanilla-2 ½ cups flour-¾ cup cherries-½ cup chopped pecans -¾ cup coconut

Incredible Edible Caramel CornIngredients:-1 cup oleo-2 cups brown sugar-½ cup (light or dark) corn syrup-1 teaspoon salt-½ teaspoon baking soda-1 teaspoon vanilla-6 quarts popped corn-1-2 cups unsalted Span-ish nuts (optional)

1

2Directions:Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Melt butter; stir in brown sugar, corn syrup and salt. Bring to a boil stirring constantly. Boil without stirring for five minutes. Remove from heat, stir in baking soda and vanilla. Pour over popped corn and nuts, mixing well. Turn into two large shallow baking or roasting pans, or even cookie sheets can be used. Bake in 250 degree oven for one hour stirring the popcorn mix every 15 minutes. Remove from oven, and cool. Break apart and store in a tightly covered container and enjoy.

Directions: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.Cream together the margarine, sugar and milk. Then blend in the milk and vanilla and stir in the flour, cherries and chopped pecans. Form dough into two 8” loaves, and then roll in flake coconut. Wrap each roll in wax paper and chill thoroughly in the fridge (at least overnight). Once the dough has sat overnight, cut into ½” slices and bake until edges are golden (not dark brown).

1

3

1 2 3- -

Materials (Michaels): -One green wreath

-Two boxes of small ornaments

Directions: Take each ornament

and slide the hook of the ornament through

one branch on the wreath. Repeat step for

each ornament.

Materials : -One jar

-Any figurines-Sparkle glitter

-Glycerin -Distilled water

-Super glue

1

2Directions:

1. Super glue the figurine to inside

of lid2. Take jar and

fill with distilled water

3. Add a small amount of glycerin

to distilled water4. Add any amount

of glitter/sparkles5.Once glue has

dried on inside of lid with figurine,

twis lid on jar6.) Shake shake

shake!

All I Want for Christmas is YouEasy, fun gifts that can be made us-ing inexensive supplies from any craft store. A quick alternative in case they don’t just want you for the holidays...

Snow Globe

Wreath

HomemadeStocking

Directions: 1.Take stocking

and other materials

2. Use glitter pens to draw or write the phrase or

design desired3. Let dry

4. After glitter glue is dry, hot

glue bells onto

stocking 5. Let dry

Times 11 [12/14/12]

Up On The House-Top

Peppermint Mocha“It tastes like Chanukkah (Christmas and Hanukkah) in a cup and makes me happy because I know it’s holi-

day time.”-Riley Furhman ‘13

Baby it’s Cold Outside

Caramel Brulee“It just gives me a warm and com-forting feeling. I look forward to it

coming out because it just com-pletes the season.”-Ashley Zerby ‘15

Egg Nog Latte“I love egg nog lattes because they’re really milky and help get me into the

holiday spirit.”-Ashton Drawe ‘15

Most Wonderful Time

Chocolate Covered Pretzels Ingredients:1 bag of Milk Chocolate Chips1 bag of Snyder’s Pretzel Rods Any type of SprinklesDirections:1.In a microwavable bowl, melt the chocolate chips, occasionally stirring to help melt the chips.

32. Remove from the microwave and dip pretzel rods into the chocolate, use a spatula to coat the pretzel evenly. 3. Immediately coat the dipped pretzel in sprinkles of your choice. Place the pretzels on wax paper to dry.

1

1

2

2

2

3 3

3 “In my family, we each have a house and we pick a theme for it. Then we have three hours to decorate and we take pictures and email them to everyone we know and they vote for their favorite. The winner usually gets a gift card.” -Rebecca Kaze ‘15

“Every year we light the candles each night and recite a prayer, we then open a gift and eat potato latkes while occasionally singing Hanukkah songs.” -Parker Benson ‘14

“Diwali lasts four days and each day has a different tradition. The first day is a general celebration, the second is celebration between husband and wife, the third is between brothers and sisters, and the fourth is general

celebration. We give presents, go to parties, and light candles and fireworks.” -Megha Mahale 14’

Christmas Hanukkah

Diwali

[catieyanchak] [ashleyboatman] [rachelcuny]

[rachelcuny]

[kelceybeckman] [rachelcuny]

Of the Year

“One of my favorite things about Christmas is driving around looking at all the lights whether it’s in Colorado or in South Dakota with my family, they’re always beautiful,” Taylor Broschat ‘13 said. “I love going to the houses that go all out, and I love helping my dad put them up on our house.”

A Family Drama With a 50’s Flare

1. The cast of Roomful of Roses (both overstudies and understudies) listen to notes about their performance after a run-through of the entire show, November 9th. “It was one of the best shows I have ever been in” said Luke Hoffmann 13’ 2. The Roomful of Roses cast rehearses with-out costumes in the auditorium, as the clock ticks towards 8:00PM. 3. Syd Charvat 13’, Zach Rickert 14’, and Liam Kelly 14’ discuss matters regarding Roomful of Roses in the auditorium minutes before the show. “I was a stage manager in this production,” Charvat said. “I’ve stage managed before, but I think that this time I had a better handle on how to manage a show and have fun at the same time.”

As the second show of the year, the Drama Department’s production of A Roomful of Roses was intended to serve as the dramatic contrast to the first show of the 2012-2013 school year, The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940. Harboring a cast and crew of theatre veterans and rookies, the show quickly took on a life of its own, and grew into a truly “family-oriented” production; one that brought students together and helped them grow as actors and tech workers. However, contrary to popu-lar belief, the show actually did not revolve around flow-ers....or a room stuffed to the brim with roses. “[The show is] about a girl whose parents get divorced after her mom cheated on her dad and, as a result, the courts awarded her dad custody,” actor Jake Smith ‘13 said. “Even though her mom tried to fight to win custody, her dad wouldn’t have it and he actually took her to South America to avoid allowing the courts to get her back. Then, when the play actually starts, she comes back to live with her mom.” Smith’s character, Dick Hewitt, is the teenage boy-next-door, who has been tasked with winning the affection of the main character, Bridget Mc-Gowan (played by Lauren Wearsch ‘13). Bridget was just recently allowed to come and visit her

mother Nancy Fallon (played by Belle Diebel ‘14) and her step-father Jay Fallon (played by Max Pederson ‘14) for the first time in eight years, and Nancy’s friend Grace Hewitt (played by Lela Smith ‘14) immediately takes it upon herself to make sure that Bridget feels welcome. “I’m the neighbor that’s trying to convince her go on dates with me and go to the dance with me,

but I’m not succeed-ing very much,” Smith said. The show itself proved to be a chal-lenge for many of the actors, both in regards to the dense content matter of the 1950’s play, and towards the

fact that many of the actors were asked to explore characters they had never played before. “I usually play an older, funnier guy who doesn’t necessarily want people to like him,” Jake Smith said. “Whereas this is more of a case where my character wants people to like him, and he wants to be liked.” Similarly, several of the actors were also faced with playing characters that were far outside of their comfort zone--especially in regards to age and life experience. “I play a loving father named Jay, and I have a wife named Nancy, and a son named Larry, and

my one main goal in life is to make one big, happy family,” Max Pederson ‘14 said. However, some of the actors, such as Emily Klein ‘16, were thrown an even greater challenge. On the first day of rehearsals, Klein was asked by director, Cindy Baker, to move up from her posi-tion as a reserve understudy to the understudy for the female lead. “It was probably the best feeling ever...I went up to Mrs. Baker to ask her if I could be on light crew, and then she said ‘Oh, I actually need you to be an understudy’, so it was kind of abrupt, but it made my year-- it was incredible,” Klein said.“I am the understudy for Nancy, and the whole show basically revolves around her trying to open herself up to her daughter and have her daughter open up to her, and have her realize that--whatever her mistakes were in the past--they can’t necessarily determine her future and the future of her family.” The show also proved to be a learning experi-ence for many of the tech workers as well. Several of the techies, such as Michael Miller ‘16, had even acted in the previous show and chose to stay on for another production in hopes of expanding their skills backstage. “I am on sound crew, and basically what we do

$2,500-$3,500Average Cost to Produce 1 Fall Show

40-50 vs 50-85Number of people who audition for a Fall Show, versus the number of people who audition for a musical$10,000-$13,000

Average Cost to Produce a musical

4-6Average number of actor and tech worker injuries per musical (mostly sprains and bruises.)

Waiting in the Wings

is help the actors sound pretty and make the mu-sic play,” Miller said. “I chose to be on sound crew because I had already been on props and I really want to get a sort of roundabout feel for all of the crews, but I don’t think that I’d ever do lighting because I’m just scared of the catwalks. But I just wanted to do sound because it sounded really fun, and I thought that I could get into it.” The show itself ran from November 15-17

and yielded an audience turnout greater than what the department had come to expect for the second show of the year. However, regard-less of the end result, the true magic of the show manifested itself in the

relationships the students build with one another on and off the stage. “What I love most about theatre is that the people are just really, really good. You meet so many different people and different personalities and all of them are loving and they just bring you in as a family--that’s basically it, we’re just like a big family in the drama department and it’s just really nice to be a part of it.”

12 Nowthe[12/14/12]

Shortly after completing their second show of the year, A Roomful of Roses, the actors and tech workers alike reflect on what the experience was like, and on how, only weeks after completing production, they have already begun work on the school musical

The Rock takes a quick look backstage to see what it takes to costume, make-up, produce, create and direct a typical production

By the Numbers: High School Theatre

[sydcharvat]

photos by [lukehoffmann]

[Getting the news of her role] It made my year...it

was incredible!Emily Klein ‘16

They just bring you in as a family...We’re just a big

family.Michael Miller ‘15

1. The entire cast and crew of Roomful of Roses celebrates after a successful run-thru of the entire show. 2. Nathan Nelson 14’ irons a shirt as a member of costume crew. 3. Liam Kelley ‘14, Max Pederson ‘14, and Spencer Zulkoski ‘13 spend their time offstage in the drama room getting into costume and putting on make-up. 4. Director Cindy Baker and Alex Davenport ‘13 discuss set design during a dress-rehearsal.

The Rundown on Troupe 7206

93Number of students officially in Drama Club this year

31%Percent increase in students from five years ago

Now 13the[12/14/12]

The air in the Bellco auditorium is electric, light shines through the open exit doors, but the stage remains darkened. The entire three-day event has lead up to this moment. The crowd is hushed, the speaker anxious. Suddenly, a name is announced, the Rock Canyon section of theatre goes wild, absolutely wild. The kind of wild that a stadium full of football fans express when their team wins the Superbowl. The kind of wild one goes through when they win the lottery. The kind of wild that a kid experiences on Christmas. Time after time, another Rock Canyon Student compet-ing at this year’s 2012 Thes Con at the Denver Convention Center is called to receive an award for winning their competition, and essentially get-ting confirmation that their performance was one of the best in the state. Each time, a great feeling of happiness and joy for that person is expressed. For someone winning an event at Thes Con, it is not just an award, but recognition that their performance was one of the best in the state and that they most certainly will have the opportunity to go to the national performances. The winners include Ashley Kisner ‘13, for solo musical performance, Logan Schafer ‘14 for Improv performance, Syd Charvat ‘13, Nathan Nelson ‘14, Quinn Kennedy ‘13, and Kalle Sorbo ‘15 for One-Act play presentation, and Lauren Wearsch ‘13, Kinsey Riley ‘14, Christina Enloe ‘16, Sam Molotoriss ‘16, and Larissa Rosendale ‘14 won for tech olympics. “When I finally found out that we had a perfect score I was exstatic”,said Nathan Nelson ‘14 after hearing he had won for best One Act Performance. The joy was universally shared by performers and non-performers alike, and a great team feeling was expressed. “I think its great that the Theatre department finally has something to show for all the hard work” Jake Smith ‘13 said.

“I’m proud to be a member of the Rock Canyon theatre department” Zack Rickert ‘14 said. Thes Con in itself is an ordeal, and is the cul-mination of months of rehearsal and many more months of practice. It is an exhausting three-day experience filled with workshops, performances, competitions, and ultimately, fun, that make it the premier event for thespians to look forward to. “It gives you a way to interact with so many talented people, see some amazing performers, and learn and practice what we love doing” said Bethany Hopkins, ‘15. Thes Con is one of the few places where intense learning about acting can take place. Unlike in rehearsals or at school, you can take specific and intense classes at Thescon about how to improve your acting performance, from pantomiming to dialects, from character movement, to Saturday Night Live Style Improv. “I learned so many new key aspects of charac-ter development through movement and motiva-tions” Max Pederson ‘14 said. “When I was able to be critiqued by profession-als in the field, it was majorly beneficial,” Nelson said. The workshops at Thes Con can expose actors to things that were fundamentally out of their comfort zone. “I also was able to try out some new things in the field that will benefit me in the future” Kalle Sorbo ‘14 said.

A record breaking winning streak at Denver Thespian Conference shows that the drama department is a force to be reckoned with

[lukehoffmann]

photos by[lukehoffmann]

35Number of students currently in the school’s International Thespian Chapter100%

Percentage of lights used in any given musical performance

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1 2 3

4

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1

2

1. Ashley Kisner ‘13 sings the solo musical theatre piece“I Don’t Remember Christmas” in the “Mainstage” showcase in the concluding ceremonies of the Thesipian Conference 2. (Fifth from right) Logan Schafer ‘14 performs alongslide his Improv Frenzy team, Team Inspirtaion, as the final act of the Thespian Conference “Mainstage” showcase.

What Chew Gunna Do About It?14 Times

the[12/14/12]

Justin Baker ‘13 * wasn’t intro-duced to chewing tobacco in the typical way; he has grown up in the presence of it

Like Father, Like Son

The Official Tobacco Policy

Rock: What is the school’s policy on tobacco products?Kiesow: There is no tolerance for tobacco products. I will get noti-fied if any student is using tobacco and then it is a mandatory ticket through our agency. I have no digression on that. Rock: Do RC students com-monly get caught with tobacco products?Kiesow: I wouldn’t say it’s necessarily common because most kids that are using it aren’t making anyone aware that it’s wide out in the open. Rock: What is your advice to anyone who is trying to quit? Kiesow: The advice I would give is to just be diligent. If you want to quit, there are many ways to do it and they would have to figure out the best way for themselves. As much as when you’re young you think you’re invincible, study after study shows that years down the road is when it’s going to really get to you. Gum cancer and lung cancer is proven, it’s not a philosophy. So do whatever it takes to quit.

Officer Rick Kiesow

[virginiavaughan]

A:“It really depends for me. I think the an-swer is maybe because it depends on who they are. I wouldn’t want to change someone as a person to date them.”

Nique Caler ‘15

A: “I wouldn’t date someone who chews. It’s not a huge deal or anything and I think it’s their decision but that doesn’t mean it’s not gross.”

Kaitlyn Darbe ‘14

It started with my dad. He never actually gave me a can but I had a seen him do it a million times. That’s pretty much why

I started to.” Senior Justin Baker * is one of the many students who use chewing tobacco on a regular basis. But unlike the others, he was first introduced in his own home by a parental figure. Smokeless tobacco is obviously legal for Baker’s father and anyone else who is over the age of 18. However, Baker started to chew when he was only 15. “The first dip I took was freshman year,” he said. “I didn’t really think anything of it. The last thing in my mind was getting addicted.” For four years, Baker took a dip regu-larly. “I would say I would take at least one

dip a day, finishing a can every couple weeks. It’s not a very expensive hobby so I never saw any reason to quit.” However, just recently, Baker has tried to quit chewing tobacco for good. “It’s really really hard to quit,” Baker said, “You just get cravings and it’s pretty much all you think about. Especially when I’m driving, that’s when the cravings get the worst.” For most people, chew is something that is used in a leisurely time which makes it espe-cially hard to quit. When a person who chews has nothing going on, taking a dip seems like a good solution. “It’s something that pops into my head when I’m not doing anything else. It’s such a bad habit,” Baker said. Many different athletics are also associ-ated with smokeless tobacco. For example, baseball players have a history of chewing during their games. Today, more and more of these players decide to chew bubble gum or spit sunflower seeds as a healthy alternative. Sports here are no different. “I always start to chew more during football season. When a bunch of guys are hanging out after prac-tice, it’s like a social thing” Baker said, “I used to play baseball too and it was the same thing.” Four years after taking his first dip, Baker is finally begin-ning to realize the consequenc-es of this addicting habit. “I’ve heard all the facts about how chew causes mouth cancer and all that. I’ve always known it wasn’t good for me, but this year it’s finally start-ing to sink in,” he said. But quitting something that has had a presence in a person’s whole life is

anything but easy. “It takes a lot of self control but I really want to prove to myself that I can do it. I also want to prove my to dad that I can quit because it was some-thing he was never able to do.”*Name has been

Q: Would you ever date some-one who uses smokeless tobacco? What is your stance on boys who chew?

Students now have the option to clean up trash in the parking lot after school as opposed to sitting in detention. Bottles filled with chew spit are a common occurrence to those who spend time cleaning for detention. “It’s by far the worst thing to have to pick up,” Chris Pietra ‘14 said, “They are all over the back of the parking lot.”

People who use ‘dip’ or chewing to-bacco increase their risk of oral cancer by

(50%)Sources: CentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention.govAmericanCancerSociety.orgOralcancerFacts.org

With cigarettes on the back burner, chewing tobacco is the growing phenomena in high schools across the nation

Terminologydip: tobacco placed in the lip.spitter: a bottle or cup used to spit intonicotine: addictive chemical in tobacco

Alternativeschewing gum: $1.35sunflower seeds: $2.99

Aids to Quit: • Patches• 1-877-44U-QUIT• School Counsel-

ors• killthecan.org

Fast Facts

Times 15the[12/14/12]

A Rock Canyon student suffers the consequences of trying to quit chewingStudent Fights a Vicious Cycle

”“It made me go crazy

Ryan Young ‘13

[tristansagar]

(91.2%) of girls surveyed wouldn’t date someone who uses chewing tobacco

A:“No I person-

ally wouldn’t date someone who uses chew-ing tobacco. Some people think that it’s attractive but I don’t at all. I think it’s really gross.”

Halley Haug ‘15 When asked the question, ‘Would you ever date a guy who used chewing tobacco’, not only did the majority of girls answer no, many of them also put a little something extra to truly prove their point. In our survey, 90% of girl students stated they would not date someone who uses smokeless tobacco. “I’m against students chewing tobacco in school; one, because it’s disgusting and two, it’s unhealthy. I think with all the information we have on tobacco, kids would be smart enough not to chew it... but apparently I’m wrong,” Derrick Trotman ‘13 said.

A: “I wouldn’t date someone who chews. It’s not a huge deal or anything and I think it’s their decision but that doesn’t mean it’s not gross.”

Kaitlyn Darbe ‘14

A: “I def-initely

wouldn’t date

anyone who uses chewing tobacco. I don’t think that it means they are bad people but it’s just a really nasty habit to have.

Quincy Schurr ‘13

It was time to stop.” That simple, yet powerfully bold statement came flowing out of the mouth of senior, Ryan Young*, as we sat in a poorly heated car and

discussed his fight to end an addiction that ultimately put him in the hospital. Those words indicated a major change in life; a

change that would hopefully be for the best. “It’s scary to think that you can get cancer from

chewing,” Young ‘13 said. “I was doing a can every two days, so I decided it was time to stop.”

Young’s struggle with tobacco began in middle school when older friends of his

introduced him to cigarettes and he began smoking. By the time the

nicotine addiction settled in, he had already had several

altercations with his par-ents and the law, forcing

the realization that something needed to

change. Chewing tobacco

is not a healthier alternative to

smoking; know-ing this, but not knowing if he had the strength to quit yet, Young began chewing tobacco instead of smoking cigarettes. It’s no secret that chewing tobacco, or ‘dip’, is a common cause of oral cancer. Ac-cording to The Oral

Cancer Foundation,

40,000 Americans are diagnosed with the disease each year, and close to 8,000 of those cases end in death. After a couple of years, and several prior attempts to quit, the reality of the dangerous habit became clear to Young.It was time to stop. “My first step was literally throwing my can away,” Young said. Without the temptation so nearby, the

high school student had a better chance of defeating the demon that he had car-ried with him for so long, but distance wouldn’t be enough, and the fight had only just begun. Several days after the decision, on a mid-spring Tuesday night, Ryan Young’s parents frantically drove him to the Sky Ridge Medical Center Emergency Room. The vital first steps proved to be the most challenging, and dangerous. “It made me go crazy. I already have heart conditions, so that made my heart freak out and I had to go to the ER for an anxiety attack,” Young said. Young was feeling a pain in his arm similar to what one would hear from someone who had suffered a heart attack. Although he was released after eliminating the fear of a possible heart attack, the experience was a wake-up call that it wasn’t going to be so easy to do this on his own. He needed some form of help. “I had to get nicotine gum after about four days,” Young said. “The problem was, I wasn’t old enough to buy it.” Nicotine gum, a smoking cessation aid sold in stores, allows smokers and other tobacco users a chance at weaning off the substance, as opposed to quitting

“cold turkey.” Due to the obvious presence of nicotine in the gum, it can only be purchased by an adult, and it is often more expensive than regular tobacco products, often surpassing them by over 20 bucks. The most popular brand, Nicorette, can even cost up to 80 dollars. The desperate situation led to

a quick reaction. Wanting not to go back to tobacco or the Emergency Room, the scared teenager did something he’d hoped he wouldn’t have to do. “I had to steal the gum from King Soopers.” Although illegal, this was

his best chance at being free of the addiction and feeling good again; a feeling that is now back with the current senior. After staying diligent and fighting off the rabid cravings, Young was able to suc-cessfully quit tobacco, completely. He has been tobacco free for over a year and a half now. “Not putting holes in my lip and not getting cancer is a pretty big positive for me,” Young said. While he may have been able to dodge the threatening future by giving up the habit, there are many who are dealing with the same struggle he was. Young gives his advice to those currently fighting tobacco addictions. “Try to get some nicotine gum at the lowest milligram, and just throw your can or cigarettes away.”

Ryan Young’s struggle is proof that it isn’t easy to fight off an addic-tion, but it also proof that, with hard work and steady persistence, it can be done.

*name has been changed

the custodians involves janitorial issues. The “Janitors”, as they are widely known, pick up after the students once lunch is over. The popular misconception about the custodi-ans’ actual titles and jobs doesn’t bother them very much, but it is their general lack of acknowledg-ment on the part of the student body at large and the immense amounts of trash that they encounter during the two lunch periods alone that can frustrate them. “We’re here to work for the chil-dren. We don’t want our job easy; we want our job fair,” Aguirre said. The total amount of trash that the custodians collect during lunch alone over the course of a week works out to 96 cubic yards of trash (including recycling). To put that into perspective, that is four cubic yards short of a football field—al-most enough trash to cover that field with a three-foot-high layer of trash. The concern of trash can often take away from other custodial responsibilities. Neel in particular can feel the strain of the time crunch that lunch presents. “When there’s

an event to set up in the commons or in the gym, we are often rushed to tear down the lunchroom so we can set up bleachers or tables or whatever we need,” Neel said. Each specific event then poses trash issues of its own, each to vary-ing degrees. The custodians also tackle the role of snow removal when Rock Canyon is not fortunate enough to have a day off on account of the weather. Armed with two John Deere Gators—each equipped with a snowplow—a snow blower, and some shovels, the custodians work in tandem with the custodians

16

Trash Canyon The people who are key to the successful operation of any school—any good school—are often found to be those who are in the more social and common of circles. Administra-tors, teachers, coaches, parents. These individuals fill many of the necessary roles in and around a school. It could not operate properly without them. But what happens when students eat lunch, when a door stops work-ing, when plumbing ceases its regu-lar functions? Does trash take itself out, do sidewalks clear themselves of snow, do school events set up their own tables and haul out their own bleachers? Enter the custodial staff of Rock Canyon, comprised of six people, each as different as the next. Carolina Aguirre, the area man-ager, directs her “crew” with firm attention and tender puns. Rhonda O’Connor, (the “floater” custodian who works at schools in the Douglas County School District on an as-needed basis) cooks her family’s dinner from scratch with her daughter, Caitlin, and uses her vacation time to take her aging mother to Skyridge Medical Center for breast cancer treatment. Upon coming to the United States five years ago (May 2007) as citizens of the Philippines, Remy Mendoza and her husband endeavored to ob-tain their United States citizenships, a feat they accomplished Oct. 3. Gary Neel often talks fondly of his wife and family and is a man who, having grown up in Los Angeles, would very much enjoy living in a smaller, more closely-knit town than the suburbs of Denver. Gerard Roundtree, the night lead, possesses a passion for painting and can very easily hold an intellectual discussion about a great many top-ics He is also knowledgeable of the universes of science fiction and is responsible for the large paintings that have been displayed around the schoool for the past several years. Alice Guitron, a custodian who works on the night shift, is a quiet woman who likes to keep mostly to herself and values the work she does at Rock Canyon. Probably the most public role of

at Rocky Heights Middle School and are charged with clearing the entirety of the sidewalks around both schools, though Rock Canyon’s custodians are normally able to focus on the area around our own school. With the load on each custodian’s plate, they are all grateful for any and all manners of assistance that can be rendered, especially around their lunchtime responsibilities. But the custodians’ jobs are not done without their enjoyment. “This crew is the best. Bar none. I’ve been in other schools, I’ve been with other groups, and this crew is the most coherent by far,” said Aguirre. The general, overall message that the custodial staff would like to convey to students is their wish for the students’ self-advocacy. It can start with picking up one’s own trash. The school has added more trash receptacles to accommodate this, and all the staff asks is that they will be used.

200,806Kilowatt Hours (KWh) of electricity used December, 2011

20.8%Percent increase in electricity usage since 2009.

273.7Amount of electricity (in KWh) an incandescent lightbulb uses in one month. 96

The amount of trash, in cubic yards, generated in one week at Rock Canyon. This includes recycling.

A square with a volume of 96 cubic yards would be able to hold 54 dismantled space shuttles.

1

A glimpse into what happened to that water bottle you left in the courtyard last week

3

2

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[lukehoffmann]

[brandonreimers]

[brandonreimers]

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[brandonreimers]

Timesthe

[12/14/12]

1. A smattering of lunch leftovers dots the courtyard of the school, leaving litter for the administration to wrestle. “At this point, we don’t know if it’s out of outright disrespect or if they simply forget about it” Principal Andy Abner said about the littering at lunch Nov. 7. Abner proceeded to remind students eating in the courtyard to pick up their trash once they were finished eating-even then, trash still remained.2. “The nice thing about the evening shift is that there are no kids,” Gerard Roundtree said about his experience on the “graveyard” shift Dec. 7. He and Alice Guitron work the shift together in an effort to maintain the school via overnight maintenance. It is Roundtree’s paintings that are annually displayed throughout the school and depict various science fiction and fantasy scenes, most notably works depicting “Star Trek” and “Star Wars”.

4

3. (From left to right) Carolina Aguirre, Gary Neel, and Remy Mendoza work the daytime shift, lunch being the biggest of their stressors. They are tasked with performing regular maintenance operations as well as keeping the school clean, something that is becoming more and more difficult to do with the increase of littering. “Some of us have children ourselves, so… we under-stand that sometimes they can forget things,” Mendoza said on forgetfulness, a possible culprit behind the littering issue, Nov. 14.4. Remy Mendoza and Gary Neel ride one of the school’s John Deere “Gators” as they return from their delivery to one of the school’s trash dumpsters. “You know, sometimes people see me driving this Gator and smile or laugh… then they want me to get out of the way,” Neel said with a chuckle, Nov. 28. The “Ga-tor” is one of the tools considered invaluable to the custodial staff, primarily as a trash hauler and a snowplow.

”“It’s not fair that the

employees have to pick up the trash that other people

leave behind.-Principal Andy Abner

The Custodians speak for themselves

Community 17the[12/14/12]

Don’t forget! Enroll NOW for Spring Classes – classes start January 22!

For more information on scholarships, campus tours or to get an information sessions, contact Student Recruitment and Outreach at 303.797.5637 or visit

www.arapahoe.edu/studentrecruitment 303.797.4222 | arapahoe.edu

PresiDent’s scholarshiP: •Graduatehighschoolwithacumulative

GPAofatleast3.25 •$1,800peryearbasedonfulltimeenrollment

1st generation scholarshiP: •Neitherparenthasabachelor’sdegree,

youhaveatleasta2.25GPA,andyou aretestingat090levelcourseswiththe ACCUPLACERorACTscores

•$1,600peryearbasedonfull-timeenrollment

college launch scholarshiP: •Graduatehighschoolwithacumulative

GPAofatleasta2.0andyouare testinginto060levelcourseswith theACCUPLACERorACTscores

•$1,000peryearbasedonfulltimeenrollment

free money for College?!Seniors! Apply early for scholarships! Applications will be accepted starting December 1!

Scholarship recipients will be awarded as applications are received.

Hey, ConCurrent enrollment StudentS!If you are signed up for a Spring ACC Concurrent Enrollment college course, you MUST return your registration form by the end of January.

Check with your counselor for more details.

I really like Laundromats. First off, I like how they smell; like dirt and fabric softener. I like that you don’t have to put on an act or appear collected. No matter how perfect your life is, there is nothing glamorous about cleaning your clothes. Here’s the sad thing, most of us don’t go to Laundromats. I would venture to say that the majority of Rock Canyon students have washing machines, that many of us never have any reason to set foot in a Laundromat. And maybe that’s the problem. We are drowning in the pressure of doing secret laundry. No one sees us wash our clothes. There’s a good chance we don’t even wash our own clothes. We just go home at night and the next morning we come out, put together as ever. And this brings the feeling that we’re on a different playing field than those people who have to admit that they wash their jeans; who have to expose themselves and the fact that their clothes don’t clean themselves. Do you remember Polly Pockets? Those little three inch plastic dolls with the rubber clothes? I used to love those things. I remember one par-ticular one my little sister had. It came with a little yellow booth and a track. Unlike her usual normal rubber attire, this Polly Pocket had magnetic, plastic clothes. So you put her feet on the track and slid her into the booth. Then you pressed a lever or something and when she came back out, she was wearing a different outfit. How magnificent! As far as anyone can see, Polly’s life was spectacular. That’s how I feel about everyone my age. We all pick a few friends that we are willing to confess our humanity to, but besides that, we go around all the time, acting like everything is okay. At the end of the day, we retire to our little plastic yellow booths and emerge the next day, wearing a different plastic out-fit and having not a care in the world. I know people who will live their whole lives never admitting how much they struggle. Have you ever picked up a re-ally gorgeous rock from a river only to discover that the underside is covered in moss and dirt? Under every rock, is another story. Under the kid whose grades you are jealous of might be the fear of fail-ure. Under the prettiest girl you know might be her countless insecurities. Under the most successful people you know might be the dozens of times that they’ve been told “You aren’t good enough” and the fact that they are starting to believe it. If you’ve ever seen Juno, I love that set of lines that goes: “You’re so cool and you don’t even try” “I try really hard actually” Every now and then, it’s okay for us to show some humanity. To admit that we work for what we have. To admit that yes, school is exhausting, yes, rejection hurts and no, we did not just roll out of bed with our hair looking this way. And if nothing else, be kind to one another. Because we all have dirty laundry.

18 Takethe

[12/14/12]

How the Internet Will Delete High School

The Hoff-ington Post

By Luke Hoffmann

Believable

Pizza Hut Launches Perfume

I have a pathological fear of turning off my phone. I am terrified that, in the length of time that my phone is left to its own devices (no pun intended), I will somehow fall out of “the loop” socially, and out of relevance altogeth-er. Granted, I know that once the movie is over, and once my class lets out, I’ll be able to rekindle my relationship with the rest of the world in less than a minute. But even with that sense of security thrumming in the back of my mind, why is it that I still hesitate to hit the “off” button? Society has turned us into a generation governed by function-ality. We see no point in wasting time going to the library when we could download the book to our Kindle, we see no value in wasting an hour of our lives in seminar instruction when we could sync the lecture to our iPhone and listen to it while we work out, and we see no point in meeting our friends for coffee when we could simply text them when it’s most convenient for us. Following the dawn of the age of social media, teenag-ers and adults alike have become so infatuated with their own sense of relevance that they fear the thought of un-plugging from Facebook or Twitter for even the briefest of moments. They fear that, following five minutes of discon-nect, they will fall so far out of sync with the talk and mo-tion of the everyday, that they will lose their sense of self altogether. Without the constant assurance that they can let the Facebook world know that they “ate enchiladas for dinner”, or that they can Instagram a photo of their friend eating an ice cream cone while wearing hipster glasses in a matter of minutes, they feel as if people don’t care about them and that, simply put, they don’t matter.

RunningErins

By Erin Snyder

Does Life Have an Off Button?

By Syd Charvat

Why students should be getting ready to plug into their future

We all fear the thought of being alone, but what happens when we fear the thought of being abandoned, not by people, but by our phones

However, if this is true and we really have become a society so supremely governed by narcissism and technology, then what would hap-pen if we chose to make a universal change, and completely unplug for a certain amount of time each day? Would we find a newfound confidence in ourselves? Would we take that free time to do something productive? Would we spend more

time with our friends and family? Or would we take that time to connect to the world around us--to meet people, make memories, and live life in the fullest, most organic way? In truth, probably not. We wouldn’t take that hour of free-

dom from Orwellian iPpression to do anything that would make an impact on the world around us, or serve to promote the improvement of mankind, but we would use it to reconnect. With that hour, we might read that book our friend recommended, go and see the latest installment of Twilight with our best friends, give our seemingly estranged mother a call, or go for a bike ride for the first time in years. In an hour, we would find a way to see the value in ourselves again. We would finally be able to see that there is a life outside of tweets, status updates, and snapchats. We would be able to understand that there is a way to communicate beyond headphones, speakers and text messages. And, more than anything, would be able to realize that, although convenient, technology can never replace the experiences we have every day.

The growing trend of having classes, courses, and homework online instead of through traditional formats is a trend that concerns me, because of the fact that it threatens to dramati-cally change high school as we know it. Ever since the Dot-Com Bubble of the mid to late 90s, the internet has become an increasingly influential and powerful tool. No longer is it just a place for chat rooms and forums and no longer is it confined to the laboratories of CERN and to the homes of the most intellectually sound (need I say ‘geekiest’) individuals, the internet has grown into much more. Almost everyone in America (77.3% according to InternetworldStats.com) has reliable, secure internet access, and for good reason. The internet has developed into a place to socialize, to learn, to do business, to check your

finances, to book a trip, to do almost anything we would do normally. But with this, comes an in-crease in the amount of education offered online, which might seem like a beneficial thing, until we think about it… In our high school today, we have the ability to do a dozen things online that we previously had to do in person. Most recently, math and science homework has began transitioning into an online environment. A decade ago we could hardly use the internet to access anything related to Douglas County Schools. More and more teachers are merely pulling up online pages to conduct les-sons. Perhaps in 30...20...maybe even 10 years, we will have a school experience completely unrecog-nizable to the one we have now. Having lessons online saves a lot of money, something that the Douglas County School Dis-trict doesn’t have, hence the recent teacher layoffs and schedule changes. MathXL, a program used in most math classes, saves a tremendous amount of paper and ink, thus saving a tremendous amount of money, thus is a positive thing for Douglas County. However, the more money we save, the more attractive a proposition seems. We would hold classes in mud pits if it was permissible by law and saved us thousands of dollars. The fact is, the web is cheap, at least for educa-tion. That’s why many schools, like The University of Phoenix and CollegeAmerica, enthusiastically promote their “convenient” online programs. This trend is already moving to public schools, espe-cially through the online courses offered through the summer here. High school is a unique experience that we must go through; from the parades to the sports to the clubs to the classroom, these elements of high school life complete our experience, an experience that would be impossible if we were to learn while sitting at our computers, learning from virtual instructors who teach virtual lessons. But alas, that’s where we’re headed. Perhaps in a half century, our classrooms will be our messy bedrooms. We will have only online friends, clubs and activities will only exist on Facebook, and sports will be nonexistent. No longer will you see your friends during passing periods, no longer will you go to a play production or basketball game. Your high school life will become limited and unimportant. Welcome to the Future!

When the going gets tough, sometimes it’s okay to let the world know you’re only human

Life and Laundry

Unbelievable

Unbelievably Believable

”“We would find a way to be human again

That’s What She Syd

Now you can smell of “freshly baked, hand-tossed dough” thanks to Pizza Hut’s

newest product: pizza perfume.

Man Gets A Ticket After Being Hit By His Own Truck- A Massachusetts man just

couldn’t catch a break Monday when he got a ticket after being hit by a truck. What’s worse, the truck was his own.

Elephant poop produces new Thai cof-fee- Ripened coffee cherries are fed to

elephants on a reserve in Thailand where the excreted beans are roasted into ‘Black

Ivory’ coffee.

Why We Always Set the Brake...

Watch out Starbucks

Decelerator Helmet Allows Humans To ‘Slow Down’ Time, Experience Life In

‘Slow Mo’

Slowing it Down

McDonald’s Employee Attacked Over Unwanted Cheese On Hamburger

Do You Want Fries With That?

Are Those Birds in Your Pants?Alberto Diaz Gonzalez, Miami Man, Smuggled 16 Birds In His Pants At

Miami International Airport

Rock: How do you feel about chewing tobacco?Anonymous: “I’d say I’m for kids chewing tobacco in school. I used to chew tobacco and although I was forced to quit, I loved chewing when I did. It’s not about whether you believe in it or not - it’s about the fact that some students [who are] eighteen, are adults, and should be treated like them.”

Editorial 19the[12/14/12]

Our generation has an uncanny knack for finding loopholes. We never cheat, yet we still crane our necks to catch a glimpse of the answer to number 6 on our lab partner’s test. We never talk to strangers, yet we friend people on Facebook that we’ve never spoken to before. We never break the speed limit, yet we still drive at 32 in a 25 because we haven’t reached a speed that warrants a ticket. And we never smoke, yet we still feel that chew-ing tobacco is perfectly acceptable. Ever since the first grade, we have all been forced to sit through lengthy seminars and counseling videos about the consequences of smoking and of becoming addicted to tobacco. Teachers and par-ents alike have done their best to equip us with the knowledge necessary to make sound decisions, and to, above all else, know how to identify the latent threats in anything and everything we come into contact with. But, if that is true, then why is it that so many teenagers have found themselves reaching for the bottom of the can time and time again? According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse 8.7 million Americans (3.5% of the popula-tion) aged 12 and older were current (past month) users of smokeless tobacco products in 2008, most commonly young adults ages 18 to 25. Ignoring the obvious health risks of using smokeless chewing tobacco, millions upon millions of teehagers have found themselves addictied to a substance that can not only lead to drug-related dependence, but also to serious health complications--such as cancer and heart disease. Ironically, of the estimated 20% of high school boys and 2% of high school girls that use chew-ing tobacco on a regular basis, a majority of them refuse to believe that there is any truth to these statistics.

Many believe that smokeless tobacco is a “safe” alternative to smoking cigarettes, when in actuality, chewing tobacco, contains over 2000 chemicals at 28 carcinogens that have the potential to do just as much (if not more) damage than smoking cigarettes on a daily basis (examiner.com). And, as evidenced by the wise words of childhood PBS characters, regardless of your initial reaction to the drug, ad-diction will quickly send its victims down a slippery slope characterized by rotting gums, corroded teeth, and an inability to chuckle at an Orbit gum com-mercial ever again. So why is it that teenagers still chew? In an area as affluent as Highlands Ranch, many students and adults find it difficult to believe that chewing is an actual issue in this day and age. Many people believe that the “real” issue is combatting the diffusion of drugs like marijuana in high schools, and instilling in teenagers the belief that, even if something is legal, that doesn’t necessarily make it “right”. They feel that chewing tobacco is an evil that only

Are We Really Just Opening a Can of Worms?

shows its face amongst baseball players, and in rural communities. However, if that is the case, why is it that so many Rock Canyon students have to look twice before taking a drink from the water bottle they left unwatched for five minutes? Much of this problem lies in the fact that teenag-ers have always felt the innate need to rebel. We think that, through violating the norms of the world we live in, we can find a deeper sense of relevance in being different--relevance in being the “kid that chews”, as opposed to being the “kid that smokes weed”. Just as well, we do not want to have to face the serious implications (both at home and in the courthouse) of breaking the law, so we do our best to navigate around the fine print, and find a way to satisfy our addiction without being forced to pay too steep a price. So, rather than taking a chance on a gullible-looking clerk at a liquor store, we ask our parents and 20-something friends to buy us beer, we drive people around after only holding our license for five

months under the pretense that the red-headed kid in the back is really our brother (even though we look nothing alike), and we keep the tags on expen-sive pieces of clothing so that we can return them after wearing them to dinner once or twice. We do all of these things in hopes of finding a way to rebel, while still maintaining a spotless record. Just like with chewing, we hope that we can find a way to do something dangerous--something “cool” and “wild”--without having to worry about someone catching us in the act. In the end, the PBS characters that worked so ardently to show us what addiction looks like will have the last laugh. However, the consequences won’t appear in the form of red and blue flashing lights, or as a team of armed deputies. Instead, life will ask us to pay our dues when the time comes. For our own sake, I just hope that we can still chew a piece of Orbit by then.

A Dangerous Habit: Often ignored, the chewing of tobacco is one of the most harmful things we can do to our body. The staff of the rock, condemns the use of tobacco and urges all students to avoid partaking in this illegal and dangerous addiction.

Teenagers have “chewed” for nearly 200 years. However, has it reached a point where we need to finally kick the can?

Staff The goals of The Rock, the student news-paper of Rock Canyon High School, are to

inform, educate, and entertain the readers as well as to provide an educational oppor-

tunity for the students who produce it.The first three copies of The Rock are free, additional copies are available for 50 cents

each.The Rock invites your comments. Letters

to the editor and commentary submissions are encouraged. You are also encouraged to submit coverage ideas, cartoons, photos

or anything else you wish to see in the Rock. Opinions of the staff are presented as edito-rials. All editorials are at least the majority

view of the editorial board. We also feature a number of columnists and commentary writers. Their opinions are their own. The

Rock is a forum and welcomes content from our readers.

Rock Canyon High School 5810 McAr-thur Ranch Road

Highlands Ranch, CO 80124Phone 303-387-3000/Fax 303-387-3001

Virginia VaughanMae Rohrbach

Bri Cooke Jeremy PurchaseMichael Shapiro Sachin MathurAndrew BohrenKelcey Beckman

Cecilia CastroErin Snyder

Cambel WinklerJacob Battock

Ashley Boatman Nicole Cassou

The Rock Newspaper Staff

Non-Voting Adviser: Kristi Rathbun

FOR AGAINST

Rock: How do you feel about chewing tobacco?Uralli: “I just don’t see the point [of using chewing tobacco in school or in general]. It looks disgust-ing, most people throw up

the first time they try it, and you have to spit out all of that nasty stuff. I mean,

if you want an oral fixation just chew some gum. It’s just in general very unattractive to me.”

Alison Uralli ‘13

Anonymous Student

What’s Your Take?

Let us know what you think! Follow us online at therockmedia.org and Twitter, and “like” us on Facebook

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Rachel CunyNishikia VirmaniLuke Hoffmann

Natalie HolthausLinnea Melbye

Brandon ReimersNicole Newman

Lauren PayneMaddie Whitten

Tristan SagarCaitlin YanchakQuentin BooseJulia Henning

Editor in Chief: Syd Charvat

Managing Editor:Kayla Neil

Reporting:

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National Honor Society Meeting

7:15 a.m.

Senior Graduation Speaker

Aucitions after School

Girls BasketballPonderosa7:00 p.m.

Girls SwimmingGeorge Washington

4:00 p.m.

Girls Basketball Ponderosa7:00 p.m.

Boys Basketballat Rock Canyon

4:00 p.m.

Boys Wrestlingat ThunderRidge

6:00 p.m.

Rock the Runway Fashion ShowDTC Marriott:

silent auction 11:00a.m.show 2:00 p.m.

7

8th Grade Parent NightAuditorium6:30 p.m.

Senior Graduation Musician Aucitions

after School

One Act Play Festival 7:00 p.m. in the Auditorium

Finals Week

4

Enjoy Your Winter Break!

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ProfessionalDevelopment Day

Martin Luther King Jr. Day

2013

End of Hanukkah!

“I’m really excited to go see my girlfriend in Florida over winter break,” Nick Wilson ‘13 said. “I

haven’t seen her in a long time!”

“I’m excited to go to the moun-tains and go skiing, and just play

in the snow with my friends,” Dylan Pepplear ‘16 said.

“I turn 18 over break, so I’m really excited for that, and I’m

also going to California and New Mexico to see family,” Cameron

Streich ‘13 said.

“I’m staying up at my friend’s condo and snowboarding for 2

weeks straight, ” Colin Borner ‘14 said. “I’m excited to start a new

year with new goals.”

“I’m mostly spending time with my family over break, and I’m

most excited for Christmas cook-ies and ice skating,” Adrienne

Gullia ‘13 said.

Christmas!

Happy Holidays Rock Canyon!

Stay warm with

7298 Lagae Road, Castle Rock, CO(720) 733-6699