THE
Starkville High School
JACKET BUZZ Volume XXV, No. 1 • August 19, 2016
INSIDE
New Year, New Position Alexander joins SHS principal staff
Freshman tricked with a third floor on first day at SHS Page 2
Questions are raised about dresscode Page 3
Swim and Soccer conduct tryouts to make teams Page 4
By Katelyn Peeples Jacket Buzz Staff
After Sean McDonnall was hired as principal, Starkville High School had the task of finding a new assistant principal. Former West Lauderdale Middle School principal, Ben Alexander filled the position. Alexander is originally from Columbus, “I’ve been married for 17 years, I have two daughters, I went to Mississippi State and I am currently working on my PHD at state.” Alexander had a smooth transition from the former Camryn Dawkins/ Jacket Buzz Staff Photo school. West Lauderdale, a 4A middle school boasts dif- Mr.Alexander works on paper work for a 9th grade student. ferences from 6A Starkville switched from a middle I’ve worked at. Since I’ve make sure everything runs High School with 1,433 stu- school to a high school he worked at schools similar to orderly, discipline problems said there are only a few dif- Starkville High I wasn’t too stay to a minimum, and do dents attending. Alexander said,” Mr. Mc- ferences in the two schools overwhelmed,” said Alex- what ever I can to help out the teachers, I am looking Donnall and other assistant and former schools where ander. he has worked. This year Alexander will forward to a great year.” principals made my move to “The first day went well. be responsible for the 9th a larger school easier.” Although Alexander SHS is very similar to schools grade class. “I am going to
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The Jacket Buzz
August 19, 2016
Freshman looks for third floor on first day of high school KB Hobart
Jacket Buzz Staff Each year upcoming freshmen come to SHS not knowing what to expect or what to believe. Freshman Molli Brown said, “I definitely did not know what SHS would be like or where any of my classes were.” On Brown’s first day of school she had no clue where her classes were, so she got help from a senior. The senior told Brown her class was on the third floor. Freaking out and not knowing what to do with time ticking to get to class, Brown asked a teacher where the third floor was.
“The teacher chuckled at me while I was freaking out not knowing what to do. I then figured out that there was no third floor, but I was on the complete wrong side of the school,” Brown said. Other than being told there was a third floor Brown’s first day of school was still very nerve racking. “I definitely was not expecting Starkville High to be the way it is with my sister and my closest friends being at the high school. I thought that we would be able to have our phones and wear leggings.” She expected to have a lot more freedom than she actually does.
LJ Dumas /Jacket Buzz Staff Photo
Freshman Brock Berryman works on a project in IED .
Progressing through the first two weeks of school Brown agrees that it has been a good experience so far.
“At Starkville High School the students and teachers are a lot nicer than I expected, I thought that the upper classman would be really intimidating and scary but they’re actually really sweet to the underclassmen,” Brown said. The first pep rally and homecoming are what Brown looks forward to the most. “I’ve heard about pep rallies and homecoming week for so long it makes me really excited for the events, I’m more nervous about pep rallies because I don’t know what to expect and how to prepare for it.”
Tributary causes field turf foundation problems By Anna byrd Jacket Buzz Staff
In the fall of 2015, Starkville High School Football coaches and players noticed a consistent wet spot on the artificial turf field. This inconvenience led to historical knowledge about our campus. As pictured in the map, there was once a tributary that flowed through the East
side of campus. Time and construction of the current high school on the property caused the tributary to be filled with rocks and dirt in order to create stable ground. “When the artificial turf was laid,” Athletic Director, Milton Smith, said “the plastic was too thin allowing the rocks to puncture it and water to seep in. It was a quick and easy fix, the turf was rolled back and a
mixture of rocks and dirt was pressed in, while also patching the plastic.” This spot was approximately three or four feet in diameter. “Neither the players or coaches have noticed any excessive build up of water since the repair. We’re confident in the repair after all the rain there has been these past few weeks,” Smith said.
Submitted Photo
The former tributary ran through the middle of the football field, metting at the ditch on Lynn Lane.
Construction on Yellow Jacket Drive bridge has ended pus, causing delays in the morning. “The SHS carpool line is very slow this year,” said sophomore Cade Vickers. Construction on the bridge on Since school starts later, it is Yellow Jacket Drive began on hard to get a new routine. SophoJuly 21. Because of the construcmore parent Lanna Miller said, “I tion, a new carpool policy was have adjusted pick up and drop [utinto place. off to avoid the area (carpool “After drop off, drivers turnedGG Thurlow/Jacket Buzz Staff Photo lane). between the east wing and white SHS Students who drive to house and exited via the faculty Part of Yellow Jacket Drive has been repaired as pictured above. school were not able to access the parking lot (going back towards Because of the reroute, carpool parking lot from the west side of the red light),” said Assistant was directed through the camthe bridge. Students had to either Principal Ginger Tedder. By GG Thurlow Jacket Buzz Staff
enter from Lynn Lane or Louisville Street. ”After school pick up was also an issue. Parents were to follow the same route as in the moring.” Sophomore Leilah Taylor said. She said after school, carpool was bad becasue of the wait (due to traffic) or walk to meet your ride somewhere. Construction wrapped up on Monday, August 15. Carpool on Yellow Jacket Drive has returned to the normal routine.
August 19, 2016
The Jacket Buzz
OPINION Done like a girl By Savannah Munn Jacket Buzz Staff
“You run like a girl,” has always been an insult. Entering middle school, the number of girls involved in sports plummets as they focus being girly or pretty. Sporty and girly is seen as mutually exclusive because a strong girl cannot be a girl who enjoys putting on makeup. Girls drop out of sports because they’re told they can’t do it. Challenging this trend are the women making history in this year’s Olympics. Swimmer Simone Manuel almost stopped swimming when she was young because she “didn’t see anyone who looked like her.” This year she became the first African-American woman to win gold in an Olympic individual swimming event. Fellow swimmer Katie
Dresscode causes major issues
Ledecky challenges every competitor in her race, the last swimmer with a time twentythree seconds Savannah Munn after Kate finished, earning Columnist the praise from Michael Phelps, “she just whoops all the boys.” As the first American woman to be the world champion for four consecutive years, Simone Biles is also argued to be the best gymnast alive. With four gold medals and one bronze under her belt, Biles isn’t letting anyone tell her she can’t do something. These woman don’t do anything “like a girl,”they do it like a champion. They work hard for what they achieve and make history doing it. Doing something “like a girl” is doing something right.
By Rachel Adair Jacket Buzz Staff
Six years ago the Starkville Oktibbeha Consolidated School District switched from a very relaxed dress code policy to a much more strict dress code policy. All students are required to wear Starkville Oktibbeha School District t-shirts or school colored Polos and black or khaki slacks. Many students at Starkville High School disagree with the guidelines set for students, including me. I don’t agree one hundred percent with all of the tedious rules like the color of your shirt and whether it has to do with Starkville High School. A tshirt is a t-shirt and covers the same amount of area no matter what color or what it says, right? I understand the purpose of a dress code is to monitor how
Staff
Leadership Team Editor in Chief: Camryn Dawkins Faculty Adviser: Angela Hobart
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Sarah Blanton Mari Hunter Brown Dawson Burrell Anna Byrd LJ Dumas KB Hobart Trey Jackson Hailey Locke Maggie Miller Savannah Munn Katelynn Peeples Joah Poole Bryan Richey Clay Roberts Angel Tate GG Thurlow
appropriately students dress, but why does the color of our tops and bottoms matter? I think that students should have more Rachael Adair options on what Columnist colors and types of clothes they can wear. Why are students limited to only black or khaki pants? Jeans are the same material and fit the same way no matter what color they are. Students should be aware of what they are wearing at all times and be respectful to teachers and administrators who believe what they are wearing is too revealing or innapropriate. Yet, I believe that students should be allowed to choose how they dress as long as it is appropriate. Then, teachers and administrators would have more time to focus on their other responsibilities.
Editorial Policy The Jacket Buzz is published by the Journalism Department at Starkville High School. The Jacket Buzz is a studentrun publication committed to providing SHS with objective information and serves as a forum for student expression. Opinions expressed are those of students and do not necessarily reflect the views of administrators and others in the Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District. Content decisions are made by student editors. Factual errors will be corrected in the next scheduled edition. Letters to the editor are accepted and published, excluding those that are deemed libelous or disruptive. Unsigned or anonymous letters will not be published. All letters are subject to editing for grammar and space availability. All letters and comments may be e-mailed to shsjacketbuzz@ gmail.com.
Sports Jackets compete in Brandon Jamboree game
Page 4 The Jacket Buzz August 19, 2016
By Camryn Dawkins Jacket Buzz Staff
This past Friday, the Jackets traveled to Brandon to play the Brandon Bulldogs in a preseason jamboree. The Jackets fell 14-0 to the Bulldogs. Senior offensive lineman Connor Reinike said, “The passing game needs improvements, but overall we have lost some things going for us this season.” Reinike went on to say the team has high expectations for the season after winning
on defense are key improvements for us.” Jackets are ranked at number seven in the SES Preseason Poll. “The most exciting thing about the season is proving everyone wrong. I want to win a State Championship and win the Butkus Award for the best linebacker in the Submitted Photo country,” Gay said. The Jackets open the season The offense watches as the defense tries to stop Brandon’s offensive drive. with the Noxbuee Tigers at the state championship last Senior Linebacker Willie YellowJacket Field this Friday year, but has to take it one Gay said, “Scoring on offense at 7 o’clock. game at a time. and being more aggressinve
Tryouts underway in the Jacket Nation By Hailey Locke Jacket Buzz Staff
Starkville High School Swim Tryouts were held on August 2,3 and 4th. This season the team gained 6 new swimmers. The swim team has been working mainly on endurance to get ready for the season. The swim team will have their first meet August 20, 2016. “My goal for the season is to make finals in all 6 Submitted/ Photo, Anna Byrd/ Jacket Buzz Staff Photo relay events and to have at least 6 Pictured left, swimmers practice vertical kicks during early morning swim swimmers in the finals.” Said Coach practice. Freshman Angela Ross, pictured right, looks for an open pass. Hobart. hope this upcoming season is good Sophomore Kaylie Beth Hobart practicing the way we have been.” because it is my last year to play Starkville High School Soccer Trysaid, “Tryouts were good. We added for Starkville High School. Preparouts were also held on August 8 and more people to our team, which I’m excited for. I expect my team to do 9. This season there are 12 seniors; ing for this season we are going to better at state and place higher in 5 girls and 7 boys. The boys tryouts start practice right away so when it were at the Starkville Sportsplex and becomes soccer season we will be relays.” Senior Captain Tristen Grantham the girls were at the Starkville High conditioned very well.” Coach Fyke said, “Tryouts went said, “I think tryouts went better School practice football field. fine. Had no real surprises which The Lady Jacket Soccer Team has than I expected them to go. We still is always a good thing. 30 people a new coach this year; Pat Burton. have a lot of work to do but I think made the team including middle Senior Lawson Joy Dumas said, “I we will do well this year. I expect us to have a good season if we keep think tryouts went very well, espe- school. We are practicing everyday cially since we have a new coach. I during 4th block.”
Fyke said they are working on strengthening and sharpening our ball skills. He expects for them to compete for 90 minutes every single game with 100% effort and with will win a lot of soccer games. Senior Vance Dewberry said, “Tryouts went very well. There was a lot of young talent. We had a variety of under class-men who will grow and contribute to the team. I think we will be very good this year. Hopefully we’ll be able to reach the playoffs.” Since Madison Central and Northwest Rankin are in our district, we’ll have to knock out one of those teams to reach the playoffs. If we play at our highest level, we should be able to do that, Dewberry said. This year is the first year soccer is fourth block. “That gives us more time together as a team to build our chemistry and learn how each of us play. We are practicing everyday, getting touches on the ball, lifting weights, and watching film to prepare,” Dewberry said.