This Edition:

War on Christmas: What’s really important? Page 3

Annual Tree Lighting: Windham community gathers to spread cheer, Page 4

Mock Election: Shane Lafond wins AP Government campaign, Page 6

Mrs. Anderson: Giving ‘wings to children’s dreams,’ Page 7

Jags Come Up Short in State Championship: Football comes close to 2nd title, Page 9

Holiday Recipe: Tasty Snickerdoodles, Page 10

Band and Chorus Concerts: Quick previews, Page 11

Peter Caron Crowned Mr. WHS: See pics of the competition, Page 12

Toys for Tots: Annual fundraiser a success, Page 14

Jags Help With Seasonal Service

By Katey VestaJagRoar Staff

WINDHAM - Serving the community is a key component of the WHS experience, with many students readily going above and beyond the forty hour requirement for graduation. Some community members and WHS students have

been exceeding the call of duty once more by participating in a new program being run at the Nesmith Library that educates senior citizens about technology.

Mrs. Sylvie Brikiatis, the library’s teen specialist, explained how the program works.

Story continues on page 5

Photo courtesy of Cierra CowanRam Sheth, Maddy Bursell and Cierra Cowan, members of the French Honor Society, cook croissants for their “Croissants pour Paris et Lebanon” fundraiser.

Story continues on page 4

By Bella Pfeiffer and Ashley DomogalaJagRoar Staff

WINDHAM - People everywhere have been supplying Paris and Lebanon with aid after they were attacked. Now, WHS’ French Honor Society joins that effort. The FHS is helping to do their part by selling croissants and donating the pro-ceeds to French and Lebanese charities helping the victims.

“As FHS, we wanted to do something to support Paris and Lebanon that would also share the French culture with our community, so we chose croissants, a well-known French pastry,” said senior Cierra Cowan, secretary and publicist of FHS.

Maddie Bursell, a senior and member of the club said, “One-hundred percent of the proceeds are going to the French Red Cross and the

ROARThe Jag DECEMBER 15, 2015

Students assist seniors with technology at Nesmith Library

Cooking for a Cause French students sell croissants to support Paris and

Lebanon after recent attacks

Holiday Lights and Service The holiday season is upon us! I hope you

have a great holiday season with your family and friends. Take a moment to appreciate not only people close to you, but also anyone who has influenced your life in a positive way. This is the season for giving back to those who give so much to you.

I’m so glad to see that people are participat-ing in so many extra community service oppor-tunities at our high school due to the holidays. This is a great time of year for students to get involved and give back to their community in fundraisers like Toys for Tots and other service opportunities like the MSPCA and Sonshine Soup Kitchen. I’m always impressed by the generosity of Wind-ham and every student. The Toys for Tots drive collected 187

toys and over $300, while all the “ornaments” from the Helping Hands tree were taken. But please remember that this season is not the only season that you can give presents and apprecia-tion to other human beings.

There are people in need throughout the entire year, not just in the approaching winter. Do not forget them when the weather gets warmer.

Holiday music surrounds us while holiday lights shine bright into the night. If you want to have some great holiday entertainment, also check out the choir and band concerts on Dec. 15 and 16 at 7 p.m. in the WHS auditorium. The whole community is invited to support the

students who are showcasing their talent and hard work.Happy holiday season and safe travels!

EDITORIAL

Ashley Domogala

The Power of Words, and Their LossThe other day, I finished a beautifully written memoir about a

woman whose husband had lost a large portion of his memory after an operation.

It made me consider what it would be like to lose all of my memories - to wake from surgery and sudden-ly not remember some of my own experiences from growing up, or the most cherished stories I have read over the years.

Then, during a conversation with fellow teachers, someone mentioned a disturbing pattern that she had noticed among her students: many are not reading the novel assigned in her class. It led me to wonder - is this true for my students, too? If it is, what if they aren’t reading at all? What if they are not experiencing the words that gave me such joy as a teenager?

And then I realized: students who are not reading cannot make memories about stories. Without reading, they will never remem-

ber what it was like as a kid to imagine a story taking place, to use the words on the page to envision, hear, feel, smell, even taste the descriptions. They will miss out on one of the most important things I’ve ever learned: what it means to enjoy reading.

I was disheartened at the thought. I don’t know who I would be without those memories.

But I hope that my students are finding joy in read-ing, and making those important memories as they grow. I wish that we could take more time in school, as a community, to read novels - and newspapers, and biographies, and poetry, and all other forms of writing

that engage us in reading. The irony does not escape me that I was inspired to

think about all of this because of a book. I hope it doesn’t escape you either. What book will inspire you? What memory will you make? Don’t wait to find out - go and make it.

Mrs. Ash

Jag OpinionTHE JAGROAR DECEMBER 15, 2015 • PAGE 2

Is Mr. WHS Competition Sexist? Table of Contents

Opinion - 2News - 4

Academics - 8Sports - 10

Features - 11Activities - 14

By Sam Cavallaro JagRoar Correspondent

WINDHAM – Equality for men and wom-en is a huge topic in this year’s presiden-tial campaign. The question of whether young women should be allowed to com-pete in Mr. WHS has come up recently.

Mr. WHS is an annual event at Wind-ham High School and this year’s male

students competed with their talents, air guitar skills and a questionnaire part. Ev-ery year Mr. WHS draws a huge crowd.

“The whole point of Mr. WHS is to be a parody of a beauty pageant,” said Jon Hall, an economic teacher at WHS and an advisor of the Student Council at WHS. “I like the idea of it being a parody of a pageant.”

Story continues on page 3

WHS students and staff don’t think so

THE JAGROAR DECEMBER 15, 2015 • PAGE 3OPINION

Starbucks’ War on Christmas JagRoar Staff

Ashley DomogalaEditor-in-Chief

Mrs. Katherine AshClub Adviser

Brittany MissertGeneral News Editor

Paige EspositoOpinion Editor

Taylor MendesFeatures Editor& Photographer

Nick TaurasActivities Editor

Katey VestaPR & Co-Marketing

Editor

Rachael PageAcademics &

Co-Marketing Editor

Molly RyanSports Editor

Staff Writers:Casey Ergin

Alexandra MillardMatt Petry

Bella PfeifferShelby WarnekeBen Whitehead

Joe Zollo

By Katey VestaJagRoar Staff

WINDHAM - The holiday season is rapidly approaching, and so we once again have the privilege of watching the annual takeover of holiday cheer, good spirit, and media induced rage at the ever-present War on Christmas. This year’s victim is surprising due to its general lack of connection to any controversy. It is, of course, Starbucks.

Anyone who spends some small amount of time online or using social media has almost certainly heard of the Starbucks Red Cup controversy. To recap, Starbucks in years past released special holiday themed cups around this time of year bearing such motifs as snowflakes and tree ornaments. This year, however, Starbucks opted to release cups that are simply red with no adornment other than the company logo.

This may not seem problematic. In fact, to many it is a trivial, almost meaningless change. However, a small number of very traditional, conservative Christians took this as an attack on the meaning of Christ-mas, claiming that Starbucks is behaving with hostility towards the holiday.

This dissent is centralized around a video made by a man named Joshua Feuerstein, wherein he questions if his fellow Christian Americans, “realize that Starbucks wanted to take Christ, and Christmas, off of their brand new cups?”

Of course, this question loses most of its meaning when it’s revealed that Starbucks has never printed any Christian imagery on their cups, only symbols of the holiday season. Despite this, Feuerstein’s video has been viewed several million times, and has even generated a hashtag on twitter. Feuer-stein’s views don’t seem to be extraordi-narily popular within WHS.

When questioned about the controversy, junior Macy Delaney explained that, “I’m a Christian and I’m not offended.” She continued, “I think it’s stupid…it’s just a cup.”

Ms. Katie Joy, a humanities teacher at WHS, shares this viewpoint, adding that, “The cups weren’t religious to begin with. Snowflakes aren’t a religious symbol.”

In the end, though, this alleged “war on Christmas” is causing more trouble than there was to begin with. Starbucks was not attempting to make any political or religious statements with their plain red cups, yet somehow this has exploded into a social media brouhaha across the entire nation. A man, intent on upholding the honor of Christmas, sparked a conflict which blatantly opposes the peaceful and generous nature of the holiday itself.

After all this, maybe it’s time for Amer-icans to sit down over a cup of coffee and determine what’s really important to them this holiday season: the holiday itself, or how it’s depicted by a fast food chain.

What really happened? And what’s really important?

Is Mr. WHS Sexist?

Mr. WHS is not letting women take part on purpose. The idea of the show is to be funny and poke fun at a beauty pageant. If women were allowed to participate in it then the point of the show would change.

The idea of having two separate shows, one for the men and one for the women, has also come up. Will Carpenter, one of the hosts of this year’s show, a school board representative, and a senior, also agreed that two shows would be better than one.

People around Windham High School feel that Mr. WHS is meant to only have boys because the point of Mr. WHS is to make fun of something girls take part in.

“Girls would not take it as a joke,” Carpenter said, when asked if girls should be allowed to take part in future shows. “It

would defeat the purpose of the event.”Ryan Lanouette, a junior, said, “It would

be weird if girls were allowed in the show.” The men at Windham High School do not

agree with allowing females into the show, but how do the women feel?

“It would be weird and there already is one for girls called Miss America,” said Jordan Pellerin, a junior. “Girls would take it too seriously.”

Celine Hashem, a junior, said, “It would actually turn into a beauty pageant.”

The other side of the argument would say that girls can do anything boys can do.

Mr. WHS is not about not letting girls compete because they will not be able to; the point of Mr. WHS is to poke fun at the idea of beauty pageant. Mr. WHS is a funny and interesting show that draws huge crowds and it would not be the same if girls were allowed to compete in it.

Story continued from page 2

Windham Community gathers to spread Christmas cheer

Lebanese Red Cross.” Both organizations were some of the first to respond to the tragedies, and continue to send in aid.

As was re-ported by major news outlets, a series of coor-dinated terrorist attacks took place in Paris on Nov. 13. Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, was bombed the day before. Daesh (also known as ISIS and ISIL) has taken credit in both countries. Hundreds have been killed, wounded, or displaced as a result of these events.

A sense of community and support de-

veloped not only in the two countries, but all around the world. The Twitter hashtag #portouverte was used in France to spread the word that homes, community centers,

and places of worship were open for anyone who needed a place to rest in a remarkable show of kindness and generosity. The hashtag #prayforparis spread like wild-fire on social media through-out the world, even making its way onto the ac-counts of WHS students.

“I’m very proud of the FHS for getting together so quickly and executing our plan so quick-ly,” said Bursell. “It was awesome to see how everyone came together to make this

possible.” The club sold over $700 in croissants,

according to Cowan. “Thank you to everyone at WHS for

contributing to and supporting the FHS fundraiser, Croissants pour Paris et Leba-non,” said Cowan.

Jag NewsTHE JAGROAR DECEMBER 15, 2015 • PAGE 4

Photo by Brittany MissertSanta greets children upon his arrival at the Windham Town Hall.

Annual Tree Lighting Illuminates TownBy Brittany MissertJagRoar Staff

WINDHAM - On Saturday, Dec. 5, the Windham community gathered for the an-nual tree lighting ceremony at Town Hall.

The special event kicked off with the arrival of the Salem Marching Band, who played a selection of Christmas carols to indicate the arrival of Santa and Mrs. Claus on the back of a town fire truck.

“I kind of want to get my picture taken with Santa,” said WHS senior Kate Lu upon seeing the symbolic man. It was her first time attending the event. “It seems like it would be fun.”

Other events for the children included holiday crafts with local Girl Scout troops, the Mitten Tree sponsored by Windham Helping Hands and cookie decorating in

the Senior Center. The Windham Commu-nity Band played a wide selection of hol-iday songs as well, and Chunky’s Cinema Pub provided hot chocolate and cookies to all who wanted them.

Nathan Houde, also a senior at WHS, helped the Boy Scout troop tend to the bonfire. “I’ve been helping with the fire since about 5th grade,” Houde said. “It’s a nice tradition to see the whole town come out and have a sense of community. I also really like playing with fire,” he said, joking.

The night finished off with carols sung by the Windham Middle School Choir and the annual lighting of the fir tree in the town green across from the Town Hall. The Windham Presbyterian Church also provided a complimentary spaghetti dinner after the event.

Story continued from page 1

Cooking for a Cause: Croissants for Paris and Lebanon

Photo courtesy of Cierra CowanA table full of croissants is ready to be distributed to the generous WHS community who bought the tasty treats.

Photo courtesy of Cierra CowanFHS member Chris Houde prepares croissants for distribution before school on Friday, Dec. 11.

Image courtesy of adventcomputer.co.uk

“Since we have a lot of people who come in and ask for help with e-readers and even printing from our computers, [we thought] that we would have some open times when teenagers can help them with their technology.” Essentially, WHS stu-dents tutor the seniors one-on-one to help acclimate them to today’s tech-obsessed world.

One of the best features of the program, according to Mrs. Brikiatis, is the fact that it creates a bridge between two genera-tions. “I think you see a lot of grandpar-ents and toddler-age [interactions],” she said, “but by the time kids are teenagers they don’t mix as much with other genera-tions.”

The communication skills taught by these lessons are beneficial for both parties involved, as they help to create discourse where none previously existed.

“One of the things we really like to do is mix generations,” added Mrs. Brikia-tis, “and it’s a great exposure for teens to learn how to communicate with people of a different generation.”

Mrs. Brikiatis recalled many tales of grandfathers who couldn’t use smart-

phones, grandmothers who couldn’t attach photos to emails, and even a great-grand-mother who had a brand new laptop and no idea how to use it. Due to the teens’ hard work, these people now have access to a whole new digital world that may have been otherwise inaccessible to them.

The students currently involved in the program were unavailable for interview, but Mrs. Brikiatis insisted that other stu-dents who are interested in this program should definitely get involved.

“We would welcome more [participa-tion],” she said, explaining that the library wanted to expand the sessions to run on Saturdays as well as weekdays. Students who want to join this program can see Ms. Londo for more information, as well as talk to Mrs. Brikiatis herself.

Student Volunteers to Send Meals Worldwide

By Taylor MendesJagRoar Staff

WINDHAM - Julie Fares, WHS junior, gathered her friends in a opportunity to volunteer in a non-profit organization to help starving children.

Feed My Starving Children is an organization that travels around America. It set up meetings at churches all around different states.

“You can go to these stations by your-self, with your friends, or anyone else that is attending with you,” she said.

When joining an event from the organi-zation, new members have an introduction explaining the group’s mission and how to package the food.

At this event, people are assigned to different job roles in packaging. Some people will scoop foods like rice, vegeta-bles and vitamin powder into bags. Then

some people will weigh, seal, and box the bags up.

“At the end, after doing it for two hours, they tell you how many boxes they have made all together. Each bag that we make has 6 servings and 36 bags go into a box. My friends and I packed 2,500 meals out of the two packing events,” Fares said.

Fares explained that she found this or-ganization when she went to the 7-Eleven and Fares and her friends found a sticker on a trashcan saying “Feed My Starving Children.” She later looked it up and founded the organization.

Fares said, “I plan on hanging posters and try to raise money. The SMILES club will help me fundraise too since I am a part of that club. I hope to get at least a busload of people to come, students and teachers.”

To find out more about this organiza-tion, their website is FMSC.org.

Julie Fares speaks on her goal to help send food to those in need

THE JAGROAR DECEMBER 15, 2015 • PAGE 5NEWS

Story continued from page 1

Jags Help With Seasonal Service

Picture by Taylor MendesThe tree at the start of the week, now bare - the mittens were all taken.

Helping Hands Mittens TreeIn the spirit of the holiday season, the

Windham Helping Hands Mittens Tree returned to WHS. On Friday, Dec. 11, Principal Mr. Bob Dawson reported that all the mittens were taken, thanks to the generosity of the WHS community. Now children around the Windham community will have much-needed items to combat the winter weather.

Photo by Taylor MendesVolunteers for Feed My Starving Children, founded by WHS junior Julie Fares in Windham.

By Kirk WhelanJagRoar Correspondant

WINDHAM- In the midst of an unusu-ally warm December, things heated up in the form of the annual AP Government mock presidential election on Dec. 11.

The mock elec-tion featured an extensive cam-paign between two students in the AP Government class. One student, senior Shane Lafond, ran as the Republican candidate, and another student, ju-nior Kacie Flahive ran as the Demo-cratic Candidate.

AP Govern-ment teacher Ms. Elizabeth Talon moderated a debate between the can-didates by asking questions about some of the more prominent issues facing America. The debate concluded when dif-ferent blocks of American Studies classes voted to decide the winner.

In the debate, the candidates discussed various issues such as gun control and

abortion. They agreed on a solution to ban assault weapons when both recognized the epidemic of shootings and acknowl-edged the long process it would take to collect the weapons. Whilst talking about abortion, each candidate also agreed that

the male involved should have a say in the decision of an abortion.

When the debate continued, most agree-ments stopped there. Lafond was ques-tioned about his plan to build a wall on the US Southern border. He said, “Building

this wall would protect the citizens from crime, drugs, and keep out those who come into the country illegally.”

When questioned about whether it would conflict with his platform of fiscal conservatism he stated, “It will pay off

in time, because it limits the millions of illegal immi-grants that come to this country and end up living off of the government through welfare.”

Candidate Fla-hive differed from Lafond’s views on abortion. “I am pro choice, but I’m not trying to justify abortion, but we should respect a women’s right to choose,” said Fla-hive (D).

Flahive also took a stance on the gender pay gap say-ing, “If a man and a women have the

exact same job and exact same education, they should be paid the same.”

According to Ms. Talon’s Twitter page, Lafond won with 196 electoral votes.

Ms. Talon was unavailable for comment due to scheduling conflicts.

Students learn about politics in a unique experiment

AP Government Holds ElectionTHE JAGROAR DECEMBER 15, 2015 • PAGE 6SECTION

Update: Recording Banned in Classrooms

By Taylor Mendes JagRoar Staff

WINDHAM – WHS advisories have handed out permission slips regarding recording in classrooms.

On Nov. 17, the Windham School Board addressed the issue in a closed-door meet-ing. A week later, permission slips were given to students and teachers for being recorded in classrooms. The permission slips informed the students, faculty, and parents about the law and asked for their

permission to be filmed in any classroom throughout the school day.

On Oct. 23, the N.H. Department of Education delivered a new law that bans recordings in classrooms. The law states that recordings cannot occur without pub-lic approval. Each instance of recording needs school board approval with a public hearing, permission from the teacher, and permission from a legal guardian for each student.

The law was passed on Aug. 1 by the state legislature.

Permission slips handed out as law continues to affect WHS

Photos courtesy of candidates’ Twitter pagesAP Government mock election candidates Casey Flahive (Democrat) and Shane Lafond (Republican). Lafond won the debate on Dec. 11 with 196 electoral votes after an extensive campaign.

Mrs. Mary Anderson Gives ‘Wings to Children’s Dreams’

By Brittany Missert and Ashley DomogalaJagRoar Staff

WINDHAM - Recently, Mrs. Mary Anderson taught her Honors Precalculus classes some “beautiful dance moves” to help them understand parabolic concepts. This innovative way of helping students understand new material is one of the reasons why her pupils love her.

She has been at the high school since the summer before it opened, and said she has enjoyed every minute spent here.

“I love Windham High School because it is a community,” she said. “Other places I’ve worked haven’t had this sense of

comeraderie, and I love that feel here.” Mrs. Anderson said that she continually

leaves her mark on WHS by “quoting the famous often, dancing in class often, realizing that every student is a different learner and laughing at everything.”

In her speech to the new inductees of the National Honor Society earlier this year, she quoted Paul D. Houston by say-ing she was “giving wings to children’s dreams.” She said that is her reasoning for becoming a teacher.

Mrs. Anderson teaches Advanced and CP Algebra II along with Honors Precal-culus.

She is also the advisor of the Mu Alpha Theta math honor society.

Introducing Ms. Casey Pohlmeyer

By Rachael PageJagRoar Staff

WINDHAM - Ms. Casey Pohlmeyer is excited to be spending her first year teaching at Windham High School.

Ms. Pohlmeyer grew up in Annapo-lis, Md. She was recruited for the field hockey team at the University of New Hampshire and played all four years, captaining her junior and senior years.

She completed both her undergrad in 2014 and graduate degree in 2015 at UNH.

In addition to her college career, Pohlmeyer coached the JV field hockey team at WHS.

She is teaching CP Algebra I, Advanced Algebra I, and Advanced Algebra II. Even

though this is her first year teaching, Pohlmeyer has experience from complet-ing a full year internship at Winnacunnet High School last year.

When asked what she likes to do in her free time, Pohlmeyer said, “I really enjoy working out, finding new music, snowboarding, trying new restaurants in downtown Portsmouth and of course, Netflix.”

Pholmeyer explained that she loves working at WHS for several reasons. She said the teachers are all so friend-ly. “If one teacher finds a really cool activity, they share it with everyone that teaches the same class,” she said. “Everyone is willing to help.”

Pohlmeyer said she is really enjoying WHS, and she decided to stay in New Hampshire after her graduation since

she loves both the New England area and the weather.

Math teacher brings enthusiam and dance moves to the classroom

Jag AcademicsTHE JAGROAR DECEMBER 15, 2015 • PAGE 7

Photo courtesy of Ms. Pohlmeyer

Field hockey coach becomes new math teacher

Photo by Taylor Mendes

By Ashley DomogalaJagRoar Staff

WINDHAM - Math teachers employ all types of different learning methods to convey skills and information to students. But how do we know which methods work most effectively for WHS students?

“Every student is different,” said WHS math teacher Mr. Steve Latvis.

Students are asked to watch teachers as they do problems on the board, work out problems themselves, work in groups, read about methods in textbooks, listen to the teacher lecture, and take notes, among other methods of learning.

The most important part of learning a new concept is seeing examples,” said Mu Alpha Theta Math Honor Society President and senior Marissa Abyazi. She is currently taking both AP Calculus and AP Statistics.

Junior Marina Nysten, current AP Sta-tistics student, agreed that the best method of learning math for her was “watching the teacher do a problem in class.”

However, other students have different learning methods.

“Pay attention in class and put in work,” said junior Zach Augustus, Honors Precal-culus student.

Algebra II student and junior Holly Masse said she learns math best “through practicing problems over and over until I get the right answer consistently.”

Mr. Latvis discussed the difficulties of tailoring to all student needs. He tries to incorporate lecture and group work into his classes to accommodate different learning styles.

He said he mainly uses group work be-cause it offers him a chance to understand where students are having problems on top of letting students get their information in

a different way from other students.He said that some students get the

concepts they are learning from just his lectures, and they are frustrated by having to explain it to other students instead of getting work done in class. However, he said, “Explaining to somebody makes you better at it.”

Mr. Josh Lavoie, WHS math teacher, said, “[Students] work best when they try it on their own first.” He tries to “lead with an example” before letting them work on their own outside of class or in pairs.

He believes the most effective way of learning is when students try it on their own first, and then see a teacher to reinforce their learning if they have any difficulties.

There are all different types of students within the WHS community, and math teachers attempt to accommodate them to the best of their ability.

Students Learn Math Differently

Math Team Makes Its Way to the TopBy Elizabeth O’Neill JagRoar Staff

WINDHAM - The WHS math team is looking to come back strong after just missing second place in Division II of the Tri-State Math League.

“This year is a rebuilding year for our math team at Windham High School. We lost 24 students and 15 of them were seniors. This also means we are a much younger team than previous years,” said Mr. Steve Latvis, the math team coach and math teacher at WHS.

Justin Missert, WHS senior and math team member explained how math team members prepare for their meets.

“For our practices, we meet in Mr. Latvis' room either before or after school. We do not have a strict practice schedule. It is more like a study group practicing math or doing extra math homework,” said Missert.

Missert also explained how each meet is normally set up.

“We get the categories we are com-

peting in about a week or two before the meet. There are five categories each meet, ranging from geometry to statistics. Each person competes in three categories with the potential of competing in the team round,” said Missert.

Each competitor has 10 minutes to answer three questions in a specific category.

“For every correct answer, a person scores three points,” said Missert, total-ing up to 27 possible points per person.

“Scores are individual, except for the team round, and are then added with everyone else on the team to get the team score. The team scores then add to the total team score at the end of the year, which determines the winners,” explained Missert.

The team this year is made up of every grade in the school and even a few eighth graders from Windham Middle School.

Missert said, “There are six seniors, five juniors, seven sophomores, three freshmen, and three eighth graders on our team this year.” Having eighth graders on

a high school math team is not too com-mon. There are different circumstances in which this is allowed.

“If they take a certain math class in middle school, they are able to compete with us,” said Mr. Latvis.

Every student on the team is very proud of how hard they have worked so far. Leyla Desjardin, a senior on the math team, made sure her excitement was heard.

“I could not be happier with our re-sults so far this year,” said Desjardin.

With a very successful year so far for the math team, there is a strong future ahead for them.

The team is currently third in Division II after their third meet on Dec. 2.

“I know students have busy sched-ules which is why our practices are not mandatory. As long as they have fun and win then that is the ideal situation,” said Mr. Latvis.

The team has three more regular season meets this year, along with a state meet on March 15 at Plymouth State

WHS teachers work to accomodate several learning styles

Group rebuilds and competes to win this year

THE JAGROAR DECEMBER 15, 2015 • PAGE 8ACADEMICS

‘The game was close until the very end’

Jag SportsTHE JAGROAR DECEMBER 15, 2015 • PAGE 9

Jags Come Up Short in State Championship

By Matt PetryJagRoar Staff

WINDHAM - On Sunday, Nov. 22, the Windham Jaguars lost a tough champi-onship game to St. Thomas, 6-10. The Jaguars made it to the state championship for the second year in a row but failed to repeat as champions.

The first signs of trouble for the Jaguars was when in the first quarter a blocked punt was returned by St. Thomas for a touchdown. For the next two quarters neither side allowed points.

For most of the game it was a battle of the defenses, but in the fourth quarter the action picked back up.

Windham running back Victor Pizzotti scored on a rush, but the Jaguars failed to convert the subsequent two point conver-sion, resulting in a one point deficit. The Jaguars defense continued to hold firm until St. Thomas’s final drive where they allowed a field goal, increasing the deficit to four.

Windham drove down field with under a minute left and made it deep into enemy territory until a costly game-ending inter-ception sealed the Jaguars loss.

The game was close until the very end, and although they lost, Windham coaches were proud of their team’s performance.

“We played really hard,” said Coach Jack Byrne, assistant coach of the Jaguars

and human performance teacher at Wind-ham High School. “We played really great on defense and offensively we played as hard as we could.”

Part of the reason for the Jaguars offen-sive struggles was the fact that their start-ing quarterback, Griffin Lippold, was out with a broken wrist, forcing the offense to differentiate from a scheme that had been very effective coming into the playoffs.

The game was rather sloppy at points, both defenses forcing turnovers and other mistakes, including seven fumbles by the Jaguars.

“We basically made one more mistake than St. Thomas, and we lost by less than a touchdown,” said Byrne.

Photo courtesy of Phil Sundman

‘Fun to say and even more fun to eat’

Jag FeaturesTHE JAGROAR DECEMBER 15, 2015 • PAGE 10

Courtesy of Paige EspositoWHS Commmunity Poll for Favorite Holiday Recipe.

Holiday Recipe: Snickerdoodles

By Katey Vesta JagRoar Staff

WINDHAM - We recently asked the WHS community to choose a single favorite holiday dessert, and the response was overwhelmingly in support of cookies.These small confectionaries beat out cake and even pie to earn the top spot among the WHS students and staff. This result isn’t all that shocking, especially when one considers the sheer amount of different cookie variations. Even holiday cookies come in many different shapes and styles, from the traditional to the downright odd. This recipe is for snickerdoodle cookies, an American classic that’s fun to say and even more fun to eat.

Snickerdoodles

Ingredients:2 ¼ cups flour2 teaspoons baking powder½ teaspoon salt1 cup (2 sticks) room tempera-ture butter1 ½ cups sugar (+2 tablespoons for coating)2 large eggs2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Instructions:

1.Preheat oven to 350°F. In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, and salt. In an electric mixer, mix together butter and 1 ½ cups sugar until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, mixing until fully combined. Then, on low speed, gradually mix in the flour mixture.

2.Stir together cinnamon and remaining sugar in a small bowl or dish. Shape the dough into small balls, rolling each in the cinnamon mixture. Space them far apart (at LEAST 3 inches) on lined baking sheets.3. Bake cookies until the edges are golden, about 12-15 minutes. Let cool.

Photo courtesy of wannacomewith.com

By Mrs. Sheila CuneoChoral Director

WINDHAM - We are very excited to present several traditional carols and folk tunes of the season. Each have their own intended purpose and custom and all are well known choral repertoire.

We are so eager to perform Fum, Fum Fantasy, an arrangement that combines the words of Deck the Halls and the lyrics of Fum, Fum, Fum to create an energetic holiday favorite. Our biggest challenge will be the Thompson’s Alleluia, one of the most significant pieces of choral reper-toire of the twentieth century.

The concert will also highlight several small ensembles that have taken on the responsibility of learning and rehearsing their own pieces that they will perform at the concert.

It should be an evening of beautiful music.

By Mr. Jared CassedyDirector of Bands

WINDHAM - Our new associate band director, Mark Taddonio, will be directing the Jazz Ensemble as they perform a va-riety of jazz charts featuring instrumental and vocal soloists.

The Honors Wind Ensemble (an audi-

tioned ensemble made up of select WHS Band students) will perform two advanced band transcriptions. The first is a tran-scription of Johann Sebastian Bach's organ composition, "Fantasia in G Major" and the second is a transcription of Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov's "Procession of the Nobles."

The five time nationally recognized WHS Concert Band will be performing three cultural pieces: "Arabesque" by Samuel Hazo, Jr., "Contre Qui Rose," a vocal transcription from Morten Laurid-sen's song cycle, and "KHAN" by Julie Giroux.

The music for this concert is exception-ally challenging and the students have

worked extremely hard to showcase the pieces at their highest level of achieve-ment.

The WHS Music Program will also continue raffling off a trip for two to Paris during Martin Luther King, Jr. weekend in January 2017.

Raffle tickets are $1.00 a piece and can be purchased through intermission the night of the concert.

The drawing will take place between the Honors Wind Ensemble and Concert Band performances!

We hope you can all join us for what is sure to be an outstanding music repre-sentation and talents of our amazing high school students!

‘An outstanding music representation and talents of our amazing high school students’

‘An evening of beautiful music’

GET YOUR YEARBOOK!SPECIAL PROMOTION: Get $5 off for every ad you bring in!

Yearbooks online at jostens.com

Questions?Contact yearbook@windhamsd.org

WHS Winter Band Concert

WHS Winter Band Concert

THE JAGROAR DECEMBER 15, 2015 • PAGE 11FEATURES

Winter Spirit Week Activities

Monday: Pajama Day

Tuesday: Sports Day (Dress in your favor-ite sports team)

Wednesday: Stages of Life Freshman: InfantsSophomores: TeensJuniors: AdultsSeniors: Senior Citizens

Thursday: Festive Holiday Clothing

Friday: JCA Ugly Sweater Day

What: WHS Winter Choir ConcertWho: Featuring the Honors Mixed Chorale and A Cappella ClubWhere: WHS AuditoriumWhen: Tuesday, Dec. 15 at 7 p.m.

What: WHS Winter Band ConcertWho: Featuring Concert Band, Hon-ors Jazz Ensemble, and Honors Wind EnsembleWhere: WHS AuditoriumWhen: Wednesday, Dec. 16 at 7 p.m.

THE JAGROAR DECEMBER 15, 2015 • PAGE 12

Peter Caron Crowned Mr. WHSMr. WHS draws a crowd as it takes on another year

FEATURES

Photos by Williem ShattuckParticipants showed off their talents at the 2015 Mr. WHS competition, where senior Peter Caron was crowned winner. Other participants pictured are Ram Sheth, Link Whiteford, Joe Zollo, Luke Leonard, Will Carpenter, Alex Morrow, and Andrew McCausland.

THE JAGROAR DECEMBER 15, 2015 • PAGE 13FEATURES

Jag ActivitiesTHE JAGROAR DECEMBER 15, 2015 • PAGE 14

By Nick TaurasJagRoar Staff

WINDHAM - The Jaguar Community Alliance held its second annual Toys For Tots fundraiser during lunches the week of Dec. 7 to 11. Students donated toys or money to get a picture with Santa, Mrs. Claus, the Grinch, and Santa’s helpers.

All the supplies will be donated to the United States Marine Corps Reserve.

In total, the JCA collected 187 toys and raised over $300.

Mr. Welch said, “This week was a huge success. Although we made as much mon-ey (as last year), we doubled the amount of toys from last year.”

The JCA hopes that the toys and money will help children across the country who are unable to have many toys or gifts.

Ms. Janice Les, another one of the

club’s advisors, said, “The best part of running Toys for Tots is knowing that the efforts of WHS staff and students will bring so much joy to other children.”

As the holidays come around, it is nice to look on what each and every one of us have, to think about those who are less fortunate, and to make someone else hap-py this season.

The children who receive the toys are very grateful and appreciative of what they receive because they would not get the toys without the Toys for Tots pro-gram.

All in all, this year’s Toys for Tots fundraiser went very well and the JCA would like to extend a sincere thank you to all of the students and staff who helped out by donating, dressing up, and counting the toys.

JCA Collects Toys for Tots

Photo courtesy of Mr. Michael Welch

Mr. Michael Welch as Santa, Ms. Bevin Sheehan as Mrs. Claus, Ms. Katie Joy as a reindeer, and student Jean Mazraani.

By Brittany MissertJagRoar Staff

WINDHAM - Shortly before Thanks-giving during the week of Nov. 16 to 20, schools in the Windham School District participated in the Windham Helping Hands annual Thanksgiving food drive.

It is staged as a competition between the schools to see which school can gather the most food. However, it is all for a good cause.

This year at WHS, it was organized by students involved with the National Honor Society in conjunction with the guidance department.

Senior NHS member Amanda DeSim-one was one of the students who took on the task of making announcements and helping with food collection.

“This year’s food drive went very

smoothly and it was nice to see the school come together as a whole,” she said.

Senior NHS member Justin Missert also helped with the food drive. He sorted food that was collected, weighed incoming food, and prepared all the boxes with the food to be picked up by the fire depart-ment.

Overall, he thought the food drive was a success because the school col-lected “Four turkeys, a few bags of potatoes, a plethora amount of canned vegetables, boxes of noo-dles, about twelve cases of water, and other seasonal and miscella-neous items.”

According to WHS guidance counselor and food drive plan-ner Mrs. Christi Dunn, the entire Windham School District collect-ed 7,000 pounds of food, which

roughly equates to 3.5 tons, for local shelters and Shepard’s Pantry.

WHS itself collected 1,433 pounds of food through the combined effort of stu-dents and faculty. The top eight advisories that collected the most food belonged to Mrs. Bartlett, Mr. Byrne, Mrs. Hartmann, Ms. Haky, Mr. Munsey, Mrs. Dunn, Mrs. Cannon and Mr. Latvis.

WSD Thanksgiving Food DriveWHS collects 1,433 pounds of food for local shelters

Annual fundraiser is a success, with over 187 toys and $300 collected

THE JAGROAR DECEMBER 15, 2014 • PAGE 15ACTIVITIES

Mr. Ken Naroian as Santa.

Mr. Michael Welch as Santa and Officer Greg Iworsky.

Mr. Michael Munsey as Santa, Sara Pascarella, Izzy Eterian, and Skylar Hebert, Mrs. Colleen Smith as a reindeer, and Mrs. Jill Hanlon as Mrs. Claus.

Mr. Michael Welch as Santa, Nick Cravaach, Ms. Bevin Sheehan as Mrs. Clause, and Ms. Katie Joy as a reindeer.

Mr. Michael Welch as Santa, Paul Hynes, Ms. Bevin Sheehan as Mrs. Claus, and Ms. Katie Joy as a reindeer.

Mrs. Kay Shoubash and Mrs. Mary Anderson as Mrs. Claus.

Mr. George Taliadouros as Santa, Elizabeth O’Neil as Jinx, Mrs. Beth O’Connell as Mrs. Claus, Mrs. Katherine Ash as an elf, and Mr. David Gilbert as the Grinch. Photos courtesy of Mr. Michael Welch

THE JAGROAR DECEMBER 15, 2014 • PAGE 16ACTIVITIES

Monday2:30pm- NHS (1/4)2:30pm- Newspaper2:30pm- jagSAT2:30pm- SMILES (every other)2:30pm- Theater3pm- Strength and Conditioning

Tuesday7:15am- Mu Alpha Theta (1/12)7:20am- SALT2:25pm- Math League (1/12)2:30pm- Strength and Conditioning2:30pm- Book Club2:30pm- Theater2:30pm- JCA

Wednesday2:30pm- jagSAT2:30pm- Minecraft2:30pm- Theater

Thursday7am- Mathletes7:15am- SHS7:15am- DECA7:15am- Knitting Club7:20am- SHS (1/21)2:30pm- DECA2:30pm- Latin Club2:30pm- Knitting Club2:30pm- Strength and Conditioning

Friday7:20am- Go Green Club7:30am- Friends of Rachel2:30pm- Marine Science2:30pm- Art Club2:30pm- Games Club

Club CalendarNewspaper: This month, the news team

has become more involved in the commu-nity. Our distribution editor, Katey Vesta, has been out placing stacks of printed editions at area businesses to get our paper into the hands of Windham residents be-yond the high school. Love that commu-nity spirit! Congrats, news team, on the third edition of the school year!

Knitting Club: It’s the holiday season, so knitters have been busy stitching up some great gifts for family and friends! Mittens, hats, scarves, and stockings - you name it, we’re knitting it! Join us on Thursdays in F-318 if you want gift ideas, knitting guidance, or just some fun people to hang out with before or after school. Email Mrs. Ash at kash@windhamsd.org.

Art Club: Open studio and ongoing projects in D203.

Yearbook Club: Do you know some-one that owns a business? Ask them to place their business card in the yearbook for only $50, and you get $5 off your yearbook cost.

Ask a parent, teacher, or friend to place a Recognition Ad for only $25, and still get $5 off the cost of your book.

Questions? Email: yearbook@wind-hamsd.org

Go Green Club: Right now the Go Green Club is working to gather boxes in which to collect all of the extra paper around the school to be able to properly recycle it; keep a look out for these in the next few weeks!

December15- WHS Choir Concert 7-10pm16- WHS Band Concert 7-10pm18- JCA Game NightDec. 24 - Jan. 3 Winter Break January4- Back to school15- Early Release16- WMS-WHS Exchange concert18- No School, Martin Luther King Day26- Quarter 2/Semester 1 ends

December/January Calendar

What’s Happening?Responses by club advisors answer the question

Contact the newspaper staff at jagroarnews@windhamsd.org for story ideas or news. Have a question, comment, or concern? Send it in!

Courtesy of bienvenidos.com

Want to advertise with us?Contact jagroarnews@windhamsd.org

All issues are available online at:issuu.com/jagroar

Follow us!

Facebook:facebook.com/

whsjagroar

Twitter:@JagRoarStaff