By Rachel Goodman In a world where reaching your dreams seems nearly impossible, there are those who are willing to fight for their desires and never let go. There are true leaders, those who do whatever is possible to help others find themselves. These motivators encourage others to chase their dreams. Seguin graduate Dnomyar (Lamar) White does his best to help others get where they want to go in life. Just two months ago, he and a group of friends formed the Outstanding Motivators in the Game (OMG). The associa-tion is dedicated to helping children and their

families suffering from poverty by sponsoring and providing assistance. They try to do this by inspiring the talented citizens of society to stand up and go for their wildest dreams through encouragement. “We created [the group] because we’re tired of people blaming society for why they can’t do things,” Lamar said. “We motivate. We’re creating a movement to better everyone. We’re defying society.” To get their name out there, OMG sells wristbands for $5 each. Of the profit the organizations donates $1 per wristband to Children International. The remaining pro-

Alum Organizes OMG Street Team

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Crime Busters

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Beliebers.MTV

Fact or Fiction

E n t e r t a i n m e n t p g . 4

By Holly McCleary Sunny skies, cooler weather, and nice nights that needed a light sweater. Along the streets, banana and date trees aligned beautifully. There were mountains -- actual mountains. California was, by far, the world’s greatest thing for senior Aya Shishani. Thanks to a travel agency, Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America Nationals was filled with adventure for her and adviser Mrs. Donita Garza. “We got to do so much more than just go to Anaheim, compete, and come back home,” Aya said. “The first day we got there, they took us on a tour of Los Angeles and Beverly Hills.”

Shishani said that they went to the Walk of Fame and she got to compare her hands to Robert Downey Jr.’s. The rest of the day was spent at Universal Studios. The following day, Sunday, was their free day, so they embarked on an hour-and-a-half journey to the local shopping center. “It wasn’t that nearby at all,” she said. “I did get to see the Crystal Cathedral, though, so that was memorable.” Monday was quite an adventure for Aya and Mrs. Garza. The two spent the day at Disneyland. “If you’re not five-years-old, you probably won’t enjoy it,” she said. “The ‘It’s a Small World’ cruise there was pretty creepy.”

Finally after three days of nonstop going, going, going, Shishani and Garza went to the competition. Compared to State, FCCLA Nationals was a more fun and less difficult Shishani said. “It was stressed to us that we’d gotten over the hard part, since we’d already made it to Nationals,” she said. “I was a bit antsy the night before my event, but waiting outside my competition room, I got rid of most of the nerves.” Her nervousness was a good thing, though, because she stayed on her toes and walked away with a gold medal and a $1,000 scholarship. The event was Early Childhood, open to her since she was in Ready, Set, Teach! the

Above: Senior Aya Shishani and Mrs. Donita Garza, FCCLA sponsor, sit together in the plane for an FCCLA trip. Right: Shishani competes, visits Universal Studios and the beach while in California.

Student’s Trip to Nationals

The talented people of the O.M.G Street Team from Arlington’s local area in the graphic.

ceeds will be used for supplies. “There’s no money coming out of this [for us],” Lamar said. “We’re not giving money, we’re giving items. I don’t invest in money. I invest in people.” Lamar said that he is lucky to have the time to work with organization. For right now, the plan is to build up OMG and set their foundation. Eventually, however, he said they fully intend on add-ing more talent, which may include fashion designers, athletes and other artists of the com-munity. Senior Jaclyn Puga is part the of the movement too. “I revised Facebook posts Lamar put up about looking for models, sent it to him, and he liked it,” Puga said. “He asked me about my interests and put me in charge of promot-ing and creating the website. Now I’m part of that movement... helping others”

Recently, OMG had a photo shoot in Fort Worth and models from all over the area took part in it. “[The photo shoot] blew up,” he said. “We had fun, and it wasn’t all business. There were people... talking -- growing.” Lamar said he is always looking for more people. He finds his inspiration anywhere and anything. “I watch people around me and how they show their talent in the world,” he said. “Bad stuff happens, but it feels good because there’s good in the world, too. It knocks people off their feet in a positive way. It’s happy.”

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2 { OPINION } 10 - 3 - 2011Staff

Ms. Erin AdwellAdviser

Mr. Michael HillPrincipal

Holly McClearyEditor-In-Chief

Daniel ErakovichReporter

Leslie SandigoReporter

Harry NguyenReporter

Rachel GoodmanReporter

Delbreisha PaigeReporter

By Delbreisha R. Paige

Everyone should know who Justin Beiber is by now. He’s a seventeen-year-old whose first claim to fame was his hit single “Baby”. With a voice of an angel and the hair of a model, Justin has hypnotized a majority of both teen and pre-teen girls across the world. Because of this a widespread fan base was created from America all the way to Austrailia, whom they call the Beliebers. Beliebers are, by definition, obsessed with the singer. They are true fans that believe in him, hence the term “Belieber”. These fans aren’t just suffering from insanity, but also have been infected with what the media calls “Beiber Fever”, a highly contagious disorder that has plagued MTV studios and put television airwaves in possible danger with their craze. Beliebers are currently raging on the web about rumors regarding the possibility of MTV hosting a show called The Beliebers World. This rumored show would have a Jersey Shore-like feel to it

with ten to fifteen girls who would be competing against each other for Justin Beiber himself. Apparently from sources, the show would be for Beiber extremists, those who send death threats to Selena Gomez, the stars girlfriend, daily. Even some rumors from the sources say that Justin and Selena would be trapped in a house with up to fifteen of his biggest fans. What does that tell you? Having a house full of undiagnosed lovesick girls might be a monster drama for us reality show watchers. Hopefully no one will get hurt while the show is in production (if it does anyways). I’m praying that this show is just a clever cover-up for a new intervention series for all deeply psychotic loons out there who worship the kid. Hopefully the grand prize for the winner is an all-expenses-paid vacation to the mental institution, because you’d have to be out of your mind to be a part of this catastrophe.

And even though this concept may seem totally crazy, it’s pretty ingenious for Justin’s career. It could probably shoot his popularity to the sky. If his manager is smart enough, they’ll cash in on this idea and get a few potentially life-threatening, hair-pulling crazies off his back for a while. So, here’s my first opinion of this ludicrous idea of a show: it’s a huge exploitation of Justin Beiber’s career and God-given talent. But when I really think about it, I change my mind... Let’s hope our dear MTV does actually make this show so that the girls can humiliate themselves on national television so that medical science can finally find a cure for this madness and end it all. Now, think about this: who in the world is famous enough to have their own reality show about fans. Not even Michael Jackson reached this level of stardom, and he was the king of pop. There’s something to talk about.

MTV’S The Beliebers: Fact or Fiction

Jordan BergReporter

‘The Cougar Times’ is the student pro-duced newspaper for Seguin High School stu-dents, faculty and the community. The primary purpose of the paper is educational, but it also serves to inform and entertain readers. The stu-dent newspaper acts as a forum for student ex-pression and the discussion of issues concerning its audience. Newspaper content is deter-mined by the staff. Editorials reflect the opin-ion of the board. Columns and commentaries reflect the writers’ views and do not necessarily represent the opinions of the newspaper staff or school administration. The Cougar Times reserves the right to accept or reject ‘Letters to the Editor’ and to edit for length, style, punctuation, and readability, but not content. ‘Letters to the Editor’ must be signed to be considered for publication. The staff adviser can be reached by email at eadwell@aisd.net or send snail mail to Seguin High c/o Erin Adwell, 7001 Silo Rd., Arlington, TX 76002.

By Lauren Hampton Divorce is a hard thing. It’s a fact of life: people change and grow apart. My parents are di-vorced. When I found out what was going on, I found myself completely lost. Sometimes I would blame myself. There was some counseling involved. I could actually talk to someone about what exactly I was feeling at that time. It’s hard to be the hot potato between the two people you really love. My two lives, two homes, two parents. My mom… and my dad. I have a suitcase packed and ready to go. It helps. I find myself keeping track of a list of things I need to take with me, ones that cannot stay put away in my many suitcases and bags and bags’ bags. Things like phone chargers, a toothbrush, and that accursed retainer that I occasionally for-get. I take my dog with me every time. He’s my anchor, the one thing that really stays the same. Sometimes I want my clothes that I left at the other house thirty minutes away. I go insane once in a while and ask my mom if I kept one of my shirts over at her place. When I was younger, I would see my fa-ther leave with some friends-- sometimes just one friend-- and hate it. It was horrible. When my dad got remarried, he began to stop paying attention to me. It feels like I’m being forgotten. Like I don’t exist at all. That is the worst part. My dad started to spend all his time with his friends and his new spouse. I was gone in a way. That’s the thing about it all: you feel like your world has begun to crash down on you. You’re asleep and there’s no way to wake up and save yourself.

By Leslie Sandigo Everywhere you look, you see the cliques. High school is one big hulking label gun. Freshman? Bam! You’re labeled a fish, a punk, a jock, skater, blah, blah, blah. It’s inevi-table. And somehow, someway, students think that labels are just about the greatest thing. Freshman year, I listened to a specific genre of music, dressed a certain way, etcetera. Now, I’m a senior, and I could care less. And a big part of that reason is because of my friends. They changed me in a way. All of them, every last one of my friends are so completely dif-ferent from each other, and they were the best friends I’ve ever had. The last time I ever paid attention to those stereotypical labels was sophomore year. There was my friend, the complete prep, and my other friend, the hardcore punk chick. They were the polar opposites of each other, and I loved it. They went from bubbly, to absolutely silly, to amazingly awesome. No matter what “label” they were, my friends would crack jokes every second. Everyone changes sometimes. I see it for the better. Personally, over the last four years, I have matured more. And once my friends had graduated and moved on to bigger, better things, I felt different. They were the ones who had changed me for the better. I am more focused now than ever on getting into the college I want. I would not label myself as anything but Leslie as of now.St

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By Holly McCleary & Leslie Sandigo “Seguin is a microcosm of the real world,” Principal Mr. Michael Hill said. Already set in stone, Crime Stop-pers is giving students incentive to anonymously tip police officers when a student may be skipping classes and/or possess illegal substances. The program has always been around, but a change recently took place. In reward for successfully re-porting a student skipping class, the informer will receive $20. The best part? Students can re-

port other students anonymously by dialing the Arlington Crime Stoppers line. “When students call the tip line, it speaks a volume,” Hill said. “We’re trying to be a safe drug-free school. We’re here to learn and increase our opportunities [in life].” Finding out whether or not a student is truly skipping is a process. A computer generates a figure that indicates whether the tip is likely to be good or not. Officer Samples said that reduc-ing truancy was the impetus for im-

plementing the reward. “[Crime Stoppers] is to help stu-dents be aware of the crime and help us stop it,” Samples said. “They are our extra eyes and ears. We can’t be everywhere at the same time.” An even bigger reward of $20 comes if the student skipping is tru-ant. “These people are breaking the law,” Samples said. “Help from the students and community [brings us together]. Like I said before, we can’t be everywhere at once.”

Crime Busters: Tattling Is Rewarding

3 { EducatION } 10 - 3 - 2011continued from page 1

previous year. It was a four part-er: a compiled portfolio of lesson plan ideas, reasearch about child development for reference, and documentation of what she did at her field-site. “I set up a resource box filled with craft supplies and everything I might want to use for a lesson,” Aya said. “The next part was teaching the lesson. I was given a scenario and a topic and half an hour to improvise a lesson based on that using nothing but my box while judges reviewed my portfolio.”She had fifteen minutes to teach the les-son to an age group of six-to-eight-year-olds. Following that was a five-minute interview session. “This year’s theme was ‘Making Reading Magical,’” she said. “I went into the room wearing a silly magician’s hat, read ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’ aloud to three judges. I had them make ‘mad hats’ made of construction paper and decorate them with our own crazy dreams.” The following day was Wednes-day, and Aya and Mrs. Garza went to Knott’s Berry Farm, an amusement park in Buena Park. “The lines were freaking enor-mous, but it was ton of fun making new friends in the lines,” she said. “What else can you do when you’re doing nothing but wait for a whole hour? I even got to cut in front of someone as a thank you because I said ‘God bless you’ after they sneezed.” Thursday was busy for the two, seeing as they went straight to the awards ceremony after breakfast. And finally af-ter they finished the awards, they two got dressed for Huntington Beach. “Since all I’d known before was the stinky, sea-weedy one at Galveston, this was a huge surprise because the shore was absolutely beautiful and the water was absolutely blue,” she said. When they finished, they took a dinner cruise around Newport Harbor, which was gorgeous said Shishani. “Staying in California with Mrs. Garza was an awesome opportu-nity to bond with her,” she said. “I ended up seeing her as a friend and a teacher, rather than just a teacher by the end of the trip. I was glad to have been able to bring her to Nationals for the first time.”

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By Daniel Erakovich It’s the start of a school new year, and that means it’s football season. This is Seguin’s fourth year under Coach Carlos Lynn, and under his tenure, the Cougars have made the playoffs twice. Leading the way for this year’s defense is senior Steven Aikens. Already

Varsity Football Player Committed to University of Houston

From Left to Right: During rehearsal Sep. 10, junior Asiah Muhammad, senior Thoa Nguyen, sophomore Jeriah Garcia, senior Stephany Mesa and senior Keyundi Brown review the script for the upcoming play ‘Our Town’.

Mrs. Josie Drewett and Mrs. Glennie Simmons, Assistant Principal, discuss plans for Operation Graduation Sep. 10. Operation Graduation is the annual effort to get near-graduates to complete course work.

Junior Co-B Carroll plays the trumpet during the first pep rally Sep. 15.

Senior Steven Aikens looks towards the sideline at during the Sep. 2 varsity football game against Mesquite Poteet.

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committed to the University of Houston, Aikens is in his final year as a safety for Seguin. “I’m very excited and happy, but also sad because this is my last year play-ing with my Cougar family,” Aikens said. Playing safety is no simple task. They have to guard against the deep pass, go after runs the linebackers miss, and scout out the opposing offense for the rest of the team. They are the last line of defense. If they make a mistake, it could lead to six points for the other side. “He’s one of our captains, so we make sure he’s doing the right thing and keep him in tune in our gameplan,” Coach Lynn said. “Opponents tend to line up away from him because he is a playmaker, which gives us an advantage.” And with teams like Mesquite Poteet, Everman, and Mansfield Summit that can score fast, Aikens needs to prep for a lot. “I listen to a lot of music before the game to get my mind straight” Aik-ens said. Last year, Aikens was scouted by a number of schools from the Big 12, Conference USA, and Mountain West to play for in 2012. According to Rivals.com, teams interested in the three star recruit were Oklahoma, Texas, Texas A&M, TCU, Oklahoma State, Baylor, Missouri, and

Houston. He verbally committed to Houston at the end of last March. “I had Baylor as a big look, but Houston had a family environment. Plus, I wanted to stay a Cougar.” he said. “I’m very excited, and can’t wait to play on national TV,” Aikens contin-ued. Houston usually televises their games on FSN, CBSSN, and ESPN3.com. “He has the potential to go to the next level if he keeps a level head,” Coach Lynn said. “Really, the sky’s the limit. It’s up to him.” Last year, Seguin failed to make the playoffs because of missed opportu-nities that cost them crucial games. One reason was because of the defense, which, while full of talented players, allowed an average of 294 yards and 21 points a game. That, along with costly penalties on both sides of the ball, doomed Seguin many times. This year, however, Aikens has other plans for the team. “My goal for the team is to win state,” Steven said. “My personal goal is to continue to break records at Seguin.” And after a very successful cam-paign last year, which saw him get on the 7-4A All District 1st team, he has the opportunity. If you go out to one of the games this season, keep your eye out for Aikens. He’s wearing his #1.

4 { ENtErtaINmENt } 10 - 3 - 11

HOTTEST HITS OF ’11

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Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

VIdEO GamErs’ VIcE

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Columbiana

“Modern Warfare Three is going to be a great game. I can’t wait for it to come out. I already preor-dered it.”

Adrian Salas | Sophomore

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“Revelations looks like a cool game that’s interesting. Hopefully it’s better than Brotherhood.”

Kevin Nguyen | Senior

That’s What They Said...Reviews by you!

“Over the summer, I watched ‘Horrible Bosses’ and really liked it. It was really funny. Everyone should go out to watch it.”

Breanna Franklin | Sophomore

“I liked the ‘Pretty Little Liars’ book series by Sara Shepard. Every page is filled with new drama. The show is not anything like the book!”

Ashlee Brown | Senior

“I saw ‘Ant Farm’ for the first time over the summer. I really liked it.”

Irene King | Sophomore

“‘30 Minutes or Less’ was a ha-ha-larious movie and I definitely recommend it to everyone.”

Kelsey Deweese | Senior

“Dead Island looks like a good game. I want to check it out for a good time.”

Jacob Glanton | Senior

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“Battlefield 3 is bet-ter than Modern Warfare 3. It has better graphics and newer activites.”

Omar Yousef | Freshman

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Drama Club Luke Longacre, Lonnie RoyalEnvironmental Club Donna P. Marshall-KnowlesFCCLA Donita Garza and Cathy OwnbyGay Straight Alliance (GSA) Elizabeth SimpsonHOSA Deb WorkmanInternational French Club (IFC) Mr. Frasier, Mr. BlanchardKey Club Ms. HundleySocietas Animi Voluntarii (aka Latin Club) Marshal L. Westfall-HaessigUIL Accounting Anthony RobinsonUIL Calculator William BryanUIL Computer Applications Shanda ShoopUIL Computer Science Stephen FornalUIL Current Issues & Events Jessica LavyUIL Debate David RodriguezUIL Journalism Shanta MacKey, Erin AdwellUIL Literary Criticism Janie BerryUIL Mathematics William BryanUIL Number Sense David Rodriguez UIL Poetry & Prose Shanda ShoopUIL Ready Writing David CrockerUIL Science Lara BowersUIL Social Studies Michelle Heath

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“It’s a fun, enter-taining game, and it’s a good game for friends.”

Dejan Pavlovic, Jr | Sophomore

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“I’ve always been a big fan of Zelda, and this could be the last one in the series. It has the most precise controls of the Zelda games so far.”

Daniel Erakovich | Senior

The Leg

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