The Express - September 2015

volume 23 | issue 1 | September 2015 | BLue Valley Northwest High School

Shifting the spectrum The concepts of gender, gender roles and sexuality continue to shift nationwide. BVNW furthered this shift in part by adding a femaleexclusive class.

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Feature

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Contents

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Academic aspirations BVNW seniors discuss their plans for college. Check back in our May issue to see where they end up and how they chose their schools.

Shifting the spectrum Members of the BVNW community discuss aspects of a society that is becoming conscious of the grey areas of gender and sexuality.

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Little siblings, big shadows Siblings share what it is like to experience high school with a family member and the pros and cons that accompany it.

Getting down to business DECA and Dawg House welcomed a new sponsor this year, Meghan Trader, who is also a new business teacher.

Staying social With social media consuming lives in society, some struggle to keep up while others choose to stay off-grid.

Head junior varsity soccer coach Brian Murphy talks to his players at halftime during a boys soccer game against Shawnee Mission Nort hwest on Sept. 1. Murphy said, “I want t he kids to see t hat you can have fun and still work hard, and you can still have good et hics and still win. Just give it your all and have fun doing it,�(photo by Nicky Lentsch).

Cover: Freshman Darene Essa takes notes in her sixt h hour Principles of Engineering class. The all-girls POE calss is new t his year (photo by Emily Staples).

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Sports

Opinion

Habitual rituals

Innocent ignorance isn’t bliss

Professional sports fans around BVNW have certain superstitions and traditions surrounding the games of their favorite sports teams.

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History of success Junior varsity soccer coach Brian Murphy surpassed his 700th win of his sub-varsity coaching career last season.

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Depression is on the rise and needs to be talked about in order to improve the negative stigma surrounding it.

Showing respect despite differences We need to accept those whose sexualities, genders, personalities, identities or decisions we do not understand or do not agree with.

Entertainment

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KC caffeine kicks Check out reviews of local places to study while getting a tasty dose of caffeine.

Contact Information

Mailing address: 13260 Switzer Rd, Overland Park KS 66213 Phone: 913-239-3544 Website: BVNWnews.com

Responding to the Publication

Letters to the editor can be submitted electronically on our website at BVNWnews.com under the “Contact Us” tab. Letters may be published either on BVNWnews.com or in our print edition. Letters must not contain personal attacks against an individual and may be edited.

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The Express Staff

Senior Ent. Writer

Editor-in-chief

Business Manager

Natasha Vyhovsky

Print editor

Laney Breidenthal

Reporters

Emma Bruce

Photo Editor

Photographers

Online Editor Olivia Baird

Feature Editor

Purpose

Emily Staples

Opinion editor

Ayesha Vishnani

Justin Lehtinen Jack Oxley TJ Vore Nicky Lentsch

Puzzle Editor

Artist

Sports Coordinator

Assistant Adviser

Chief Writer

Adviser

Avery Mojica

Morgan Lewis Claudia Chen

the express | Issue 1 | September 2015

Madison Graves

Lauren Fischer Eden Kurr Gabe Swartz Xiqing Wang Kaitlyn Noon Brandon Fagen

The Express and BVNWnews.com accept advertisements. Pricing and information can be obtained by contacting us at BVNWnewspaper@ bluevalleyk12.org.

The Express is the official high school news publication of the Blue Valley Northwest High School, an open forum distributed to all students seven times a year. This is the Seprember issue of Volume 23. Subscription rates are $10. The Express is printed by Osage Printing, 400 N Liberty St Independence, MO 64050. This is a student publication and may contain controversial matter. Blue Valley Unified School District No. 229 and its board members, officers and employees disclaim any responsibility for the content of this student publication; it is not an expression of School District Policy. Students and editors are solely responsible for the content of this student publication.

Zac Johnson

Abdul Qaddour Kimberly Hillstock Jim McCrossen

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H

l s

a

al Ritu u t a bi

by Brandon Fagen and Morgan Lewis Four BVNW students share their traditions and superstitions involving professional athletics.

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s the Chiefs, the Royals and Sporting Kansas City begin their seasons, BVNW students support their favorite teams by attending and watching them play. Along with being fans, some of these students also have traditions or even superstitions centered around their favorite sports teams.

Junior Lauren Saunders said Sporting KC is her favorite professional sports team, and soccer is her favorite sport to play.

She has traditions of walking around the stadium and eating at certain restaurants whenever she goes to games.

“Before the game we go to [Chuisanos Pizza] somewhere down by the Legends,” Saunders said. “During the game, I have to do a lap at halftime, and I always go with my friends afterward to Krispy Kreme.”

Saunders said she also has superstitions revolving around the team and what they do. She said if she failed to do these, the team would lose or miss their kick.

“If someone goes with us to the game and we lose, they’re not

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allowed back to the game ever so they’re out of luck,” Saunders said. “I haven’t watched a single [penalty kick] or corner kick in two years because if I don’t look at the field then they’ll score.”

Another BVNW student who has traditions involving Sporting KC is junior Kara Pascarella. She said her liking for the team originated because her dad is one of the Sporting KC coaches.

She also has specific traditions whether Sporting KC wins or loses.

“After games we normally go down to the field club area and watch the press conference and then talk to some of the players,” Pascarella said. “If they win, we’ll go to Krispy Kreme and get donuts, and if they lose we’ll go home.”

Sophomore Sophia Perkin, a fan of the Kansas City Chiefs, is a season ticket holder and goes to every home game she can. She also watches all the away games she is able to.

“The Chiefs have always been like a family to me,” Perkin said. “I went to my very first Chiefs game when I was six months old. It has always been more of a [father] daughter bonding experience with me and my dad.”

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Left: Junior Kara Pascarella stands in front of the Kripsy Kreme off of Metcalf Avenue after a Sporting Kansas City Game. Pascarella goes to Krispy Kreme after every game with her family (photo by Justin Lehtinen).

Above: Junior Lauren Saunders said she enjoys going to Sporting Kansas City games with her friends (photo by Justin Lehtinen).

Perkin said she and her father have traditions that go along with Chiefs games. Every game they park in the same spot and tailgate, and whenever they tailgate they eat barbecue which her dad is a big fan of. Perkin also said she has a jersey that she wears to every game.

“My jersey is a big deal that I wear,” Perkin said. “I usually wear my Jamaal Charles jersey under all my gear to every game; that’s like a good luck charm.”

Sophomore Zach Oaks is also a big sports fan, and his favorite professional team is the Royals. He said that on a scale of one to 10 he is an 11 when it comes to being a Royals fan. Oaks said that he has been a Royals fan since he was born and half of his closet is devoted to Royals sports gear. He too, has superstitions involving his favorite past time.

“Of course I do [have superstitions],” Oaks said. “Man, I could rattle on and on about them, a few of them [are] whenever we are in a very important situation, say a ball is hit whether we are on defense or offense I just knock on wood...that’s one of the things I

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will do.”

Oaks said that superstitions are a big deal in baseball, it is very common for fans and players to have superstitions. He also said another one of his superstitions is to never jinx the team. He will not celebrate until they have actually won. “[The Royals] are the best team in baseball,” Oaks said. “I won’t say this while we are anywhere close to clinching the playoff, but they are going to win it all.”

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Academics and Aspirations

by Emma Bruce Seniors share their plans and expectations for life after high school. The Express will follow up in May to see whether their plans have changed.

Senior Tasia Jewel is applying to theater specific schools in hopes of earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theater or Theater Fine Arts. To get into these schools, it takes more than a paper application; Jewel has to travel and audition for some of these schools in order get a spot in their theater program.

“Just applying, you’re always scared you’re going to get rejected,” Jewel said. “You could get accepted, but then rejected (by the theater program) and not be able to go to that school because you didn’t make their program.”

Jewel said she is considering Pointe Park University and Viterbo University, which require auditions, as well as Colorado State University, which does not. “[The schools] might not want me in their program,” Jewel said.

“So then, that could either make me try to choose a different major or a different school completely. I have to weigh out the pros and cons of which school I like the best, which school offers me a spot in their program, and it’s very difficult.”

Jewel said although she does not know where exactly she is going for college, she knows where she can see herself and where she wants to go.

“I see myself at Pointe Park University or Colorado State University,” Jewel said. “Those are my top two, but anything could happen.”

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Along with several schools in the United States, senior Taylan Erdogan is considering Hacettepe University in Turkey.

Erdogan said he is interested in its six-year medical program that allows students with one or more Turkish parents to apply there for free tuition.

“I love the school,” Erdogan said. “I really love the community; it’s in the great part of Turkey. I enjoy visiting. I’ll be way close to my family too. It’s just a ridiculously good medical school.”

Erdogan said he thinks he will handle the stress of applying to the school well, but he doesn’t know if he will change his mind once he gets further into the process of applying.

“I think that it’s just as stressful for anyone to apply to any college anywhere,” Erdogan said. “I don’t have to send in an essay or a recommendation letter for Turkey. I send my grades. I’m just another number… While I assume that I’ll be interviewed, I’m just not that far down the line, but I really feel like it’s just as stressful for everyone else as it is for me.”

Erdogan said he plans to make the final decision of where to go for college based off where he feels most at home. In addition to Hacettepe, he’s considering several other schools including the University of Washington, the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Kansas. He said once he has more details, he will decide if Turkey is the right option for him.

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Seniors Mallorie McBride and Brenna Harsch plan to attend the University of Kansas (KU) as roommates next fall.

McBride said she chose KU a few months ago and is not applying anywhere else.

“I really just like Kansas City, and my whole family is from here,” McBride said. “I really like the school spirit, and I like the atmosphere that Lawrence has.”

McBride said she plans to major in either psychology or photo-journalism. She considered attending the University of Missouri for its journalism school, but decided on KU for its in-state tuition.

“I’m one of the first few that knows exactly where they’re going,” McBride said. “It’s a familiar place for me, so I’m not really scared to go. I know what to expect going into it.”

Harsch said she decided she wanted to go to KU because of her family background and its location.

“I decided to go to KU by just being raised as a Jayhawk basically,” Harsch said. “My sister and my brother both went there, so I’ve been cheering them on my whole life. Plus, they have the major that I want, and it’s a good location, and I know a ton of people going, so I’ll feel like I’m at home.”

Both Harsch and McBride believe they will still want to go to KU at the end of this school year; the only change they see in their plans is a decision on what major to study.

“KU and in-state schools have kind of a bad rep,” McBride said. “Just because you’ve grown up around them and they’re in-state schools doesn’t mean that they’re not prestigious institutions or good places to go.”

Despite acceptance rates below 6 percent, senior Benji Hawkins said he is striving to attend Yale, Stanford, or Harvard. He is planning on applying to these schools, along with the KU and Ohio State Honors Program.

“I really like the prestige of [these] colleges,” Hawkins said. “I like the academic record and ranking.”

Hawkins said he took interest in these colleges earlier this year, in March. He said the application process for the private schools is different from the in-state application process.

“I’m not really stressed that much, because I also have KU,” Hawkins said. “I’m interested in the KU Honors Program, so that’s kind of a fallback for me.”

Hawkins said he will make his final college decision after he receives acceptances. He has toured KU and said he will tour the other schools if he gets accepted.

“What I’m thinking about doing is going [to tour] after I’m accepted, so I don’t waste the money going out there if I don’t get in,” Hawkins said.

From a counselor’s perspective...

Counselor Becky Coker said students typically follow a pattern of how their plans and stress for college change over their senior year.

“It’s kind of like a roller coaster,” Coker said. “A majority of students get very excited at the beginning of the year, after we go into English classrooms and we discuss the college application process. As the year progresses and deadlines come up, and they are working on their applications, there are some that won’t meet certain deadlines, so they end up not completing applications to several colleges. [This] might be a good thing because maybe they weren’t remotely interested in them to begin with, and it wasn’t a priority.”

Coker said she has seen many students who apply to several selective schools make their college decisions after they receive

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their acceptances or rejections.

She said financial considerations normally play the largest role in the decision.

“A lot of students end up choosing what works out best financially,” Coker said. “They may have thought, ‘Oh I might get a scholarship to this selective school’ and then they didn’t, so that plays a big factor in making the decision on where they’re going to go. Ultimately it comes down to how much they and/or their parents are willing to pay.”

Coker said ultimately, counselors encourage kids to apply for a variety of schools so students have enough options.

“We want you to have some reach schools, we want you to have some safety schools and we want you to have some in the middle, so you’re not left without any options,” Coker said.

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SHIFTING THE SPECTRUM

by Laney Breidenthal, Abdul Qaddour, Ayesha Vishnani and Xiqing Wang

From the addition of an all-girls Principles of Engineering class to Target’s switch to gender-neutral signage, the concepts of gender roles, gender and sexuality are shifting.

Engineering a new role

After eight years of primarily male enrollment in the Principles of Engineering class, this year marked the addition of an all-female POE class. POE teacher Karen Stohlmann said that for the eight years BVNW has offered the POE course, there were only a few girls in an average-sized class, even though she said they were often among the top performers academically.

“Certainly the girls I’ve had in the past were the tip-top of [the] ability and success of the class,” Stohlmann said.

Principles of Engineering is a course that explores the top 17 engineering fields and introduces students to the content these fields undertake during college. Stohlmann said the class is meant to help students make their college choice more efficient. She said she decided to try and reach out to girls in the school to take the class.

Stohlmann said she made the all-female class possible by requesting a list of girls in certain math and science classes who had appropriate skills necessary for the field of engineering. Stohlmann said she then emailed all the female students, encouraging them to take the POE course this semester.

Freshman Darene Essa and senior Emily Ball are currently enrolled in the course. Ball is taking the regular class with one other girl, while Essa is enrolled in the all-female class.

“Ever since I was younger, I’ve always known I wanted to be an architect.” Essa said, “I decided to take this class to see what other options I have.”

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The Express | Issue 1 | September 2015

Gender Terms Cisgender One identifies as the gender they were assigned at birth.

Math and engineering teacher Karen Stohlman outlines the procedure for the simple machines unit. Stohlman is the teacher of both the regular Principles of Engineering class and the POE class devoted to girls. “We are working in class on reviewing for understanding the calculations they have been doing for simple machines,” Stohlman said (photo by Jack Oxley).

Essa said she initially expected the class to be the same as her other classes. However, she said she found the environment of the all-female POE class more focused and determined. Essa said she believes this is because the girls are better at staying focused in comparison to the boys, who can be a bit more distracting.

In contrast, Ball said the class can restrict girls who are intimidated by the number of males from determining whether engineering is right for them or not. However, Ball said the male-dominant environment was necessary in preparing for the field of engineering.

“Having the majority be boys, was definitely a change,” Ball said. “But it’s also a good experience because in the engineering world, the majority of engineers are males.”

Ball said that even though both the males and females have their differences, everyone is motivated in the class because of their interest in math and science.

Seniors Suruchi Ramanujan and Jonathan Lowe took the course their junior year and experienced the class before it underwent the changes. Ramanujan said the part of the class that she noticed the divide between the males and females was when they had class projects.

“The notes and test-taking portion of the class were all fine,” Ramanujan said. “Except when it came to projects, there was a lot of male domination.”

Stohlmann said there is a difference

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between the learning processes of males and females. She said competition is instilled in males from a younger age in comparison to females.

“You learn as a boy to build and be better than the people around you. We don’t really program our girls that way,” Stohlmann said. “It’ll be interesting to see the girls who are new at that, how they embrace that, [what that is].”

Stohlmann said the focus of this allfemale POE class is to help girls excel in a competitive environment. In her normal classes, she said she usually notices that girls will take a backseat to the leadership of boys.

She said she hopes girls can now step into that leadership role in an all-female class.

“I certainly think that women have a different learning curve to go through on how to be a leader in a workforce,” Stohlmann said. “I think there is some connotation to being a strong or wellthought woman versus that as the role of a man.”

Although Ramanujan is not part of this year’s POE class, she said she does not think girls should shy away from a class they think they could potentially excel in just because of the male majority in the class.

“Now I think women have a better opportunity to voice their opinions and form designs based on what they think, not just succumb to what men say,” Ramanujan said.

Transgender Female One was born a male but now identifies as female.

Transgender Male One was born a male but now identifies as female.

Agender Does not identify as any gender.

Gender-Fluid Can identify as male one day and female another day.

Bigender Can identify as both male and female.

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Breaking down gender and sexuality Retail giant Target’s recent transition toward gender-neutral signage sparked a nationwide debate over gender roles. While there are people who argue for traditional “male” and “female” roles, there are also those who believe in a more genderneutral approach to society.

Junior Tess Sharpe said traditionally women are seen as timid and in the background, whereas men are seen as outgoing and in the forefront.

Sharpe said since women constitute more than half of the world population, this perspective should change.

“I believe women should have a louder voice in society,” Sharpe said. “We should definitely have our own say in personal, political, financial and economic matters. I think that men should also, obviously, have a say in all these matters, which they do (already), but I think that (men) should also be open to changing the world.”

Sharpe’s brother, senior Will Sharpe, said society associates males with sports, work and physical activity, and associates females with cooking and a “watered-down version” of the male role. Will said he supports his sister’s views on gender roles.

“I think any good brother… should always respect [his sister],” Will said. “My sister has definitely influenced me…she is ten times smarter than I will ever be. She deserves everything that this world has to offer her, and every opportunity (she encounters), she should be going for it. She shouldn’t have to be faced with these negative stereotypes or pressures by society to conform to a

certain role.”

Will said although women may be seen as less qualified to do certain things in society, men do witness restrictions in their sense of expression.

“It’s a two-way street,” Will said. “Men have expectations that are thrown upon them. Men have this connotation of enjoying sports or wearing certain types of clothing (and) aren’t allowed to enjoy some kinds of music. It’s kind of unfair for people to be expected to enjoy certain types of things.”

Sharpe said these two genders—male and female—are often the only ones traditionally recognized. She said society believes people born with certain genitalia are supposed to identify with the corresponding sex.

Senior Shevlin Whitworth, an LGBT community member, said male and female are not the only genders that exist. Another large gender group is non-binary, which, according to Whitworth, means the person does not identify as male or female.

BVNW’s district diversity teacher Sarah Derks said a common mistake is assuming sexuality and gender are related. She said there is a difference between sex, gender identity and sexual orientation.

“Sex is basically what’s in your pants - what anatomy you’re born with,” Derks said. “Gender is what pants you’re currently wearing. Gender identity is what pants you want to wear. Sexual orientation is whose pants you want to get into.

Derks said there are other categories of

gender that include bigender, feeling like they could be more than one gender, and agender, not identifying with any gender.

Whitworth said individuals can fall under different parts of the gender spectrum.

“You can be at either end of that spectrum or anywhere between,” Whitworth said. “ If you didn’t feel male or female, you would fall somewhere in the middle of that spectrum; that would be like nonbinary. Or, people can fall outside of the binary [when they] don’t feel a connection to any of it.”

Whitworth said when she attends CAPS, she is required to dress professionally, so she wears pants and a button down. She said the combination of her attire and her short hair is sometimes seen by society as masculine, so she is sometimes referred to as “sir.” Whitworth said when this happens, she does not get offended because that person is trying to identify her by how she is presenting herself.

“I don’t like being called a man; I don’t like being called ‘he’ or ‘him’ or ‘sir,’ because that’s not who I am,” Whitworth said. “They think that’s how I’m trying to present, so they’re trying to respect that. They just don’t know that that’s not what I’m doing. So it’s not right for me, but I respect them for trying.”

After moving from Minnesota to Kansas in August 2014, Whitworth said she feels accepted for being lesbian not only in Kansas, but also in the BVNW community.

“I came from a very small town in Minnesota, where it was really not OK to not be straight...”

Whitworth said. “I think Northwest is a really accepting community. I haven’t run into anyone that [isn’t] OK with me.”

Whitworth, who lives with her aunt, uncle and cousins, said she has felt accepted at home since she came out as lesbian to her family.

“She had enough trust in me and confidence

Gender pronouns Masculine Pronouns I Him

He His

Gender neutral Pronouns I Their

They Them

Feminine Pronouns I Her

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She Hers

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in our relationship that she was willing to tell me face-to face what she was experiencing and what she was going through and to me, that put glue between us,” Whitworth’s aunt, Toni Whitworth, said. “It has made our relationship more solid, or firm, because she trusted me to talk to me about it.”

Despite belonging to a conservative church, Toni said her niece’s sexuality is not something she has struggled to come to terms with.

“It has been a non-issue for me as far as [Whitworth’s] sexual preference and my belief as a Christian,” Toni said. “I belong to a church, but that doesn’t mean that I hold true to every aspect of that church’s beliefs.”

Junior Taylor Victorine said Christianity influences her views on gender and sexuality.

Victorine said her interpretation of the Bible is that women should marry men. Victorine said she inherited this perspective from her parents.

“I don’t necessarily support [non-traditional genders], but I don’t think they’re wrong,” Victorine said. “I think that [people who do not identify by a traditional gender] should still be loved, and we should respect them as people.”

Senior Jordan Smith, who is biologically female and identifies as gender-fluid (one whose gender changes), said that similar to Whitworth, they feel accepted at BVNW by many of the people they have come out to. (Smith’s name has been changed to protect their privacy. Smith will be referred to in plural third person pronouns, which is their preferred pronoun.)

Smith said gender-fluidity has different interpretations, but for them it fluctuates.

“I sometimes feel like female is the word that describes me, and I sometimes feel like male is the word that describes me,” Smith said. “Sometimes, I feel like it’s both or neither or some other combination. Usually, I just feel like me, and I

know I don’t fit [into a specific gender].”

Although Smith has not revealed the gender they identify with to everyone, they have received a variety of reactions.

“The first person [I told]…said, ‘That’s cool, do you want me to change your pronouns?’” Smith said. “So there wasn’t a huge reaction with him.

That’s what it’s been most of the time, but some people have given me funny looks or (asked), ‘Does that exist?’ or ‘What are you talking about?’ But it has gotten better; almost everyone has been accepting.”

Smith said they had feelings of gender-fluidity beginning in their childhood, but they did not learn what that meant until winter break of their junior year when they began to use Tumblr to figure out what exactly they were feeling.

“I realized at that point I wasn’t really aware of the fact, in large part, that people could switch genders even one binary from another,” Smith said. “I definitely did not know there was a category for neither or both or some variation thereof, so I figured I was just a very confused girl and had to suck it up.”

Along with being gender-fluid, Smith said they are also asexual, which to them means they are not sexually attracted to anyone. Smith revealed their gender and sexuality to French teacher Breanne Buchanan toward the end of the last school year.

Buchanan said she has had many students come out to her in her two years at BVNW. “I’m just an open person,” Buchanan said.

“As long as what you do doesn’t impact me in a negative way, do what you need to do. That’s always been my philosophy, even when [Smith was] in French II, and I guess that stuck with [them].”

Smith said a difficult aspect of discovering their true identity was admitting to others the feelings they were having and coming to terms

with who they are.

“It was kind of scary putting a name on it because as soon as I told that first person it became kind of real, like I couldn’t hide anymore,” Smith said. “I couldn’t lie to myself if I couldn’t even lie to other people about it.”

According to Buchanan, Smith’s and Buchanan’s relationship did not change after Smith told her they were gender-fluid and asexual, but it gave her better insight into who Smith is as a person.

“I have just learned more about [Smith], which you can appreciate with anyone,” Buchanan said.

“It helps me know kind of what direction I should take things when I’m speaking…Also it has been interesting watching other people interact with [Smith].”

In addition, Buchanan said with more public figures coming out as not cisgender or not heterosexual, more people are willing to follow their lead.

“The norms of our society, I feel, are being broken down,” Buchanan said. “Look at all of these people who previously were in the shadows, were unable to speak about themselves, were unable to do what they wanted to do…the fact that now students can talk about it and it’s not so binary… it’s really cool to see.”

Derks said ignoring genders and sexualities outside of societal norms is not a good way to deal with these differences.

“We hide parts of ourselves from people because we want to be accepted,” Derks said. “For someone’s gender, for someone’s sex - you can’t hide from that.”

Targeting gender roles Target released that stores would switch to gender-neutral signs in its home and toy departments Aug. 7. This change includes the removal of gender distinctions on signs in the home and toy departments such as “boys’ toys” and “girls’ toys.” Instead, these will be replaced by an overarching label, “toys.”

Target is switching to gender-neutral signage because guests raised concerns about the genderbased product suggestions, according to Nelson*, a Target Corporate team member.

Nelson said the phone calls received and comments on the article posted on “A Bullseye View” (found at corporate.target.com) announcing the switch to gender-neutral signage revealed that many customers are not happy with the change.

“They are not satisfied with the change because

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they would like to have everything set apart, as far as what’s for boys (and what’s for) girls, etc.,” Nelson said.

The Target on 97th Street and Blue Valley Parkway have not switched to using genderneutral signs, yet.

Although there are people who are opposed to Target’s decision for gender-neutral signage, junior Tess Sharpe said Target’s new gender-neutral signs will be beneficial for children.

The outside of t he Target store near t he intersection of “I think that that’s going to help some kids 119t h Street and Black Bob Road in Olat he, KS. This location has not yet transitioned to gender-neutral signage. start to learn that they can play with toys from (photo by Jack Oxley). either spectrum that (those toys are) geared with Legos and trucks, and it’s OK if a little boy toward,” Sharpe said. “I know that the toy industry wants to play with Barbies or Polly Pockets.” is very, very notorious for splitting toys up for boys and girls, but if they put them all together, *Due to corporate policy, Nelson said he was not able to kids will (understand) that it’s OK for a girl to play provide his last name.

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History of success

by Gabe Swartz

BVNW soccer coach Brian Murphy surpassed a major coaching milestone, his 700th win.

S

ocial studies teacher and junior varsity soccer coach Brian Murphy surpassed a milestone last soccer season. Murphy reached his 700th career win in his 28th season in the Blue Valley School District.

Murphy said he gained his love for the game after playing soccer in high school. During his time at Emporia State University, Murphy said he was unable to play soccer because the school did not have a soccer team, and he desperately wanted to get back into the sport.

After moving to Ohio, Murphy was the head football, basketball, and track coach at Agra High School. Murphy said he had never played football and, as a result, his football practices usually resulted in players doing something soccer related.

“Those kids learned how to play soccer because they did not know how to play soccer, and our (football) practices literally turned into soccer practices,” Murphy said.

Murphy began coaching soccer in the Blue Valley School District in 1987 at Blue Valley North. While there, he met head soccer coach Rick Pribyl, and they have coached together at BVN and then at BVNW when the school opened in 1993. “[Pribyl] and I have been around so long we just kind of feed off each other,” Murphy said. “He will be saying one thing and I will turn around and be saying the same thing as he said; it’s kind of scary.”

Murphy said he has seen many changes in the way soccer is played. Murphy said it is a great thing to see the growth of soccer not only at BVNW, but also in the rest of the state.

“The game has just changed so much, just the different plays and everything we do,” Murphy said.

“It’s no longer just who has the better athletes and who gets the lucky breaks, now it is much more about skills.”

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the express | Issue 1 | September 2015

Head JV boys soccer coach Brian Murphy yells during a game Sept. 1 against Shawnee Mission Northwest. Murphy passed 700 wins last season. (photo by Nicky Lentsch).

Senior varsity soccer player Gage Pemberton said practices with Pribyl and Murphy are great because they both bring valuable coaching techniques, and they help the players in different ways.

Pribyl said that despite their contrasting styles, they work together well as coaches. Murphy said Pribyl’s coaching style is very laidback, while Pribyl said Murphy brings enthusiasm and jokes when he is coaching.

Pemberton said in his time spent around Murphy, he is always able to enjoy himself and have fun.

“Murphy is more outgoing on the field,” Pemberton said. “He’s in the middle of the play, he is always saying good job or he’s right there to tell you if you made a mistake; he’s there to help.”

Murphy said his time spent at BVN and BVNW have gone by quickly, and he is surprised to have surpassed his 700th win. Over the years Murphy said he has seen growth in the program under the coaching reign of Pribyl and himself.

“I’m just wondering where all the time went,” Murphy said.

“It’s incredible; it seems like it started yesterday. I guess [700 wins] just shows my love of the game, that I enjoy it so much.”

Murphy said he thinks the wins are a reflection of his dedication and the great players he has coached over the years.

The Coaches’ Count state 28 seasons 7 championships coaching in the EKL

with Pribyl

the express | Issue 1 | September 2015

“I want the kids to see that you can have fun and still work hard, and you can still have good ethics and still win. Just give it your all and have fun doing it,” Murphy said.

Murphy said he has changed his coaching style to fit what his players react to the best. “[I’ve learned over the years] not to be so intense with the kids, let the kids play and have fun, let them play relaxed,” Murphy said.

Pemberton said Murphy’s time spent coaching boys and girls soccer, as well as sub-varsity teams, displays the hard work and effort he puts into the extracurricular activities.

“The neatest thing about coaching is the students who come back and thank you for what you’ve done for them; that is better than any of the accolades,” Murphy said.

Murphy said no matter how a team ends up doing, he hopes he can always be a role model to his players.

“I mean yeah, you win state championships and stuff, but when kids come back and say, ‘You made such an impact on my life, when I grow up I hope I’m like you,’” Murphy said. “That is neat.”

711 career sub-varsity wins

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caffeineof kicks kansas city

by Natasha Vyhovsky

A handful of Kansas City drink shops are reviewed on their ambience, price, flavor and caffeine boost to discover the best places to hit the books this year while enjoying a tasty drink.

Quay Coffee

The ambience here is simplistic, industrial, old-fashioned urban grunge, characterized by brick walls and natural yellow light from bare light bulbs in artsy cages. Everyone was furiously working alone on important things while the entire “The Moon & Antarctica” album by Modest Mouse played at a reasonable volume. Bring your Calculus study materials or your AP Chem lab report to really get down to business here. $4.45 Caramel macchiato with housemade old overholt caramel which was not sweet, but really smooth and had a unique bold espresso that was only a little acidic. The caffeine boost was decent, two stars out of five.

Aesthetic: Very hipster. There was a leather baseball hat backwards, Birkenstocks I’ve never seen, a young man coding his own app, and everyone there was on a colorful Macbook.

Tea Drops

The ambience here is light, clean and open with lots of plants and light oak and LED lighting. It feels very home-y - like mom’s kitchen. Come here to be free with yourself; bring your journal, your sketchbook, maybe some English class reading or maybe nothing at all. There is no music, so bring your own. $4.90 Frozen Almond Joy bubble tea: like chocolate milk, runny consistency and tasteless “bubbles.” I felt cute and fun while drinking it, which is always the goal. The black tea offers more calm from school stress than boost for schoolwork - the boost being about one star out of five.

Aesthetic: Everyone looked organic - whatever that means to you.

Z’s Divine Espresso

Scuffed wood floors, overpriced colorful art for sale, like your grandma’s house. They keep your loyalty punch cards in a tiny file folder at the counter.There is a rule against talking on your phone, and a nearly inaudible mix of indie jams play overhead – Tegan & Sara, Milky Chance, CHVRCHES, etc. Bring your Spanish homework here or a light book to read, and do not come prepared for a lengthy conversation, because it is silent. $3.76 Tall iced mocha.; their sizes go in order of “short,” “tall,” “big,” and “great big.” It was a very sweet, traditional iced mocha with very tame and very rich espresso. One of the best mochas in my opinion.Respectable 3/5 stars.

Biker in little hiking sandals who stopped in to drink tea and write furiously with his glasses on in a little notebook.

Aesthetic: Calm spring morning in grandma’s kitchen.

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The Express | Issue 1 | September 2015

The Roasterie Factory Store

The ambience here is clean, modern, open and bright. There is a very serene and kind of a detached vibe. This would be a good place to work with zero distractions. The large, spread-out area allows you to find somewhere relatively secluded and quiet to work hard and stay late into the night if needed. Of all the Roasterie locations, this is by far the quietest, emptiest and best for studying. $4.76 Caramel latte; good, smooth coffee but no caramel taste. The caffeine boost is four stars out of five.

Aesthetic: Very quiet and with a young businessperson vibe.

Mass Street Soda

Smells like a musty warehouse; there is one small bar area to look out onto Mass Street, but it is not the best place to sit and chill. It was completely empty except for a man unpacking boxes of bottles. This would be a good place to come to chat and explore after hours studying, but it is definitely not the ideal place for studying. The children’s movie, “Mr. Peabody and Sherman” was playing on a large t.v. while “Lose Yourself to Dance” was playing through the speakers – it is honestly just a weird shop to check out for a fun time. $2.18 Going along with the coffee theme, I tried an espresso coffee soda that came in a classic, old-fashioned glass bottle. It had a rancid, syrupy espresso taste with almost no carbonation. The one sip I had was not enough to induce a caffeine effect Aesthetic: Weird and empty.

Black Dog Coffee

The ambience here is young, fresh, calm and warm in the main room and then there is a smaller study nook farther back where the smell of learning is pungent. There were a lot of people chatting, but with headphones and the right attitude, you could get a lot done here. I would bring whatever homework you least want to do, because you will feel instantly cozy and motivated here. $4.53 “Dirty Blonde-” hot espresso with white chocolate and hazelnut. The menu is full of specialty sweet drinks versus other places where the standard mochas and lattes are available with your chosen flavors. I can’t speak on the espresso itself, but the flavor was delicious, as someone who loves sweet coffee. I drank this 12-ounce coffee at 6 p.m. and I could not fall asleep until after midnight, so I would give the caffeine boost the full five stars.

Aesthetic: This is a very basic hipster aesthetic - the beginner level of hipster, if you will.

The Express | Issue 1 | September 2015

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Perspectives Photos of Husky life

1.

2.

3.

1. Sophomore Rudhra Thakur sits atop senior Andrew Kastendick’s shoulders while they wait for the cross country team to make their way across the track at Husky Night Aug. 28 at the DAC. Kastendick has run cross country for BVNW all four years, and this is Thakur’s second year running. Kastendick said, “I was holding Rudhra on my shoulders, leading him into battle. It was teamwork. We were like a giant, equivalent of ‘Freak the Mighty,’” (photo by Justin Lehtinen).

2. Senior Hannah Adams uploads new apparel to the Dawg House website in business teacher Meghan Trader’s fifth hour Dawg House class. Adams is the promotion manger for the Dawg House and is in charge of advertising and social media including the website and Twitter. Adams said, “We have been working hard on getting a lot of new apparel on to the website so people can start ordering off the website,” (photo by Nicky Lentsch).

3. Sophomore Bridget Harrison completes the “Momentum Marble” Lab in science teacher James Hales fifth hour physical science class. Harrison had to get a marble down the ramp in 15 seconds only using popsicle sticks and tape. Harrison said, “I swear every time Mr. Hale was watching it didn’t work but every time he wasn’t looking the marble rolled 15,” (photo by Nicky Lentsch).

The Express | Issue 1 | September 2015

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4.

5.

4. Sophomore Joe Havasi takes a knee with the rest of the varsity football team while an injured player from Bishop Miege is transported off the field. The varsity game against Miege on Sept. 4 ended with a loss for BVNW of 14-57. “We played hard, but we were overpowered by their offense,” Havasi said (photo by Jack Oxley).

5. Senior Rachel Young talks to sophomores Emily Myers and Elise Trill about joining the club Husky Pals, during the activity fair Sept. 3. The activity fair allowed freshmen and sophomores to go around the gym during advisory and talk with students from different clubs and learn about how to join them. Myers said,”Husky Pals sounds like a fun club to be apart of,”(photo by Nicky Lentsch).

6. Junior Mikayla Sova stretches alongside a participant of the Northwest Junior Cheer Clinic on Sept. 12. The clinic was for girls grades kindergarten through fifth interested in learning more about cheer. “They learned some cheers, jumps, and a dance and are able to perform with us during an upcoming home football game,” Sova said (photo by Jack Oxley).

6.

The Express | Issue 1 | September 2015

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7.

8.

9.

7. Sophomore Elise Ontiveros and Sai Turaga complete their ions and isotopes worksheet in science teacher Theresa Kennedy’s fifth hour Chemistry class. Ontiveros studied for her Atomic Structure and Mole Conversions test by completing the worksheet.

Ontiveros said, “Well, at first the concept was hard but then I aced it,” (photo by Nicky Lentsch).

8. Sophomore Chloe Ching works on a problem solving activity with her team in math and engineering teacher Karen Stohlmans sixth hour Principles of Engineering class.

The group was trying to figure out how to roll a weight down a ramp as far as possible under certain conditions. “We were running out of time, but I got really excited because I had thought of a last minute, and simple, way to do it,” Ching said (photo by Emily Staples).

9. Senior Nate Kochuyt, senior Jacob Fiola and junior Austin Kelly sing “Invictus” composed by Randall Strope in fifth hour chorale class while practicing for their show on Oct. 5. Kochuyt, Fiola and Kelly are tenors in the chorale (photo by Justin Lehtinen).

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The Express | Issue 1 | September 2015

Staying social Whether to meet new people or enrich the learning experience, members of the BVNW community utilize their smartphones and social media differently.

by Claudia Chen, Eden Kurr and Ayesha Vishnani

Sophomore Audra Elford glances at her phone in the locker area. Elford currently does not use social media but said she might change her mind in the future (photo by Nicky Lentsch).

N

ow more than ever, social media connects teens with each other and to the world.

In fact, according to a report released this August by PEW Research Center, 72 percent of teens spend time with friends through social media, and 57 percent of teens have met a friend online.

Senior Drew Yonke utilizes social media to connect with others; he met his two closest friends through Twitter.

“Only one in a million people are really cool... it’s much easier to find those people on the Internet,” Yonke said. “My two closest friends both live within 10 minutes of here, and I met both of them on Twitter. It really helps that not every interaction 64 percent of teens who have made a friend online met someone via social media

with them is face-to-face. There’s not a lot of drama.”

Beyond using Twitter to meet people, Yonke said it is an important platform for him to express his beliefs. He said if he were to guess, he would say he spends around 14-16 hours a day on social media.

“I’m a lot more open on the Internet,” Yonke said. “I just say what I’m thinking, what I’m feeling, what I’m doing, whereas outside of the Internet I have to be very aware of legal boundaries and what’s going to offend people [and] what’s going to make people uncomfortable.”

While Yonke openly expresses all of his beliefs on Twitter, biology teacher Jeremy Mohn said he is

11 percent of Americans have used dating sites or apps

An iPhone folder is open displaying Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat icons. The Express asked 117 students which social media sites they use, and the most popular ones were these three (photo by Nicky Lentsch).

more cautious with what he posts on social media. “[I am] probably a little more careful (communicating online) because online interactions don’t really have inflection or body language,” Mohn said. “Certain levels of sarcasm may come across differently online.”

Mohn’s main use for social media is to connect with his students and share his enthusiasm for biology, although he said he also uses it to follow sports and other things which interest him.

“It’s always fun to have jokes and puns; that’s the primary thing I guess I’m known for (on) Twitter,” Mohn said. “The blog I use for my course website has an automated Tweet every time a blog

92 percent of teenagers report going online daily

*According to statistics released in 2015 by PEW Research Center

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The Express | Issue 1 | September 2015

is posted, so it’s a way to keep students updated, but it’s mostly just to post links to cool videos, websites and articles about biology.”

In addition, Mohn’s students interact with him on Twitter by using #biostreetcred, a concept some students came up with a few years ago in his Advanced Placement Biology class.

“When they encountered something biologically related, they could get ‘street cred,’” Mohn said. “In other words, they could get credibility for their biological knowledge by pointing it out. I am pretty much the only person who uses the hashtag, and of course students sometimes try to kiss up by using the hashtag as well.”

Associate professor Jeffrey Hall of the University of Kansas Department of Communications said social media in today’s world plays a large role in how students interact and relate with each other.

“Social media plays a very big role in how teens can relate to each other,” Hall said. “They always have to keep in mind that the particular ways that media works makes a big difference in the relationships.”

Hall said social media is beneficial in maintaining connections in situations where meeting in person is not possible. However, he also said it is important not to overuse it.

“Being chained to [social] media is not healthy,

and it’s not good,” Hall said. “It hurts people’s relationships and makes them more concerned about the way they’re presenting themselves.”

Although social media can be used to meet new people, senior Conner Hall said he uses Tinder, a dating app, simply to have fun and not to actually meet people.

“I just go through and see who’s on there, see if I recognize anybody and then see if they like me back,” Conner said. “I don’t use it to its full potential like some people do, where they go through and actually try to start conversations with people and meet new people.”

While Conner does not personally use Tinder to talk to strangers, he said the application does provide the opportunity for new situations to connect with others.

“You could meet people that you’d never meet before,” Conner said. “You’re not as isolated as you used to be. You have more opportunities to meet new people, which can make it easier to find the one.”

However, because social media has made it easier to meet people, Conner said approaches to relationships have changed.

“I think it has impacted the way we view hookups,” Conner said. “It’s not as special as it used to be...it’s not as classy.”

Citing wasted time as a major reason, sophomore Audra Elford made the choice to stay

completely off of social media.

“All my friends are like, ‘you should get an Instagram, you should get a Snapchat,’” Elford said.

“I never got around to it...it’s a huge time waste.”

Without the constant updates from social networking platforms her peers have access to, Elford said she does feel less informed than her on popular or trending topics.

“You’re just less connected,” Elford said. “You don’t know what’s going on as much...you weren’t on Instagram [or] Pinterest, and you didn’t see what was trending.”

As more teachers integrate social media into their curriculum, Elford said she might change her mind.

“It would probably be better for me to just get one so I actually know what’s going on,” she said.

While there are hundreds of different social media sites available, Hall said the one thing they all have in common is their ability to connect teenagers to the world and to each other.

“What ties them all together is that each one of them offers a way for teens to keep in contact with each other from the moment they wake up in the morning to the moment they go to sleep at night,” Hall said. “It speaks to part of what it means to be a teenager, which is that feeling that you want to be connected.”

Social media at BVNW Three members of The Express approached 117 students after school on September 17 to see which social media sites they use. Of those asked...

67 percent use Snapchat

56 percent use Instagram

52 percent use Twitter

32 percent use Facebook

17 percent use Tumblr

4 percent use Tinder

*Students could choose multiple sites if they use more than one social media platform.

The Express | Issue 1 | September 2015

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Little siblings, big shadows

Younger and older siblings who have attended school together at BVNW discuss their experiences with forging paths for themselves.

by Zac Johnson The Express | Issue 1 | September 2015

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Photo by Emily Staples

Cooper and Luke Trusdale Senior Cooper Trusdale has an older sister, Darby Trusdale, a 2014 graduate, and a younger brother, sophomore Luke Trusdale.

Cooper said that he was thankful that his sister preceded him at BVNW because it gave him a different perspective than his peers who did not have older siblings.

“I think my friends who didn’t have siblings come before them, or maybe didn’t have siblings giving them much advice definitely didn’t get as involved as I did,” Cooper said. “I think that’s what makes [the experience] fun, and I think a lot of them probably stuck with what they were comfortable with and didn’t really go outside their boundaries to explore different things.”

Cooper said that he enjoyed having an older sibling with him at BVNW, and that two years was enough time for him.

“I feel like the two years she was here was enough for me,” Cooper said. “Those first two years she helped me a lot just to get used to high school, then after that I felt like I was pretty good on my own.

Now I’m just trying to do the same thing for my brother.”

Luke, Cooper’s younger brother said that he thinks his brother is more ‘sporty’ than he is, however he described himself as being somewhat similar to him otherwise, even being called ‘little Cooper’ on many occasions.

“I used to feel pressured to be like him, but this past year I kind of haven’t,” Luke said.. “I’m really just trying to be my own person now.”

According to Luke he enjoys having his brother in school with him and it has been nice being able to go to him with questions and concerns, and he is also very glad he had someone to come before him in school.

“I feel like it would’ve been cool to be my own person at the beginning and be known for me, but I also feel like it would have been harder because a lot of people came up to me and made conversation with me just because they knew I was his brother and I got to meet a lot of people because of that,” Luke said. “I think I definitely prefer it more than having come in on my own.”

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Photo courtesy of Mike Zegunis

Seth and Zack Zegunis Sophomore Seth Zegunis and his brother, 2015 graduate Zack Zegunis have both played football for BVNW, and have both had their father as a coach while playing for BVNW. “I think I definitely act different because of my brother (Zack Zegunis),” sophomore Seth said. I think it’s mainly just because I always looked up to [Zack] when I was a kid and that’s changed how I act.”

Seth’s brother Zack was a three sport athlete, and Seth, following in his brother’s footsteps, is also a three sport athlete. Their father, Mike Zegunis is currently the head varsity football coach and a teacher at BVNW. “I think there’s nothing but positives that come from having an older sibling come before you. It gives someone a friendly familiar face here at school, other than his dad,” Mike Zegunis said.

Seth said that he took things he saw his brother doing and decided to make and do them in his own way.

“I never really felt pressured to do any of the same things as my brother, I kinda just wanted to do my own thing and some of what I wanted to do happened to be things he had done,” Seth said.

According to their father, every one of his three boys is different personality wise, and he really just hoped that Zack displayed positive characteristics to his younger siblings, which he says he did.

“Seth saw his older brother up here having to deal with having his dad as a teacher and a coach, and I think that’s not always easy,” Mike Zegunis said. “Since Zack was able to handle that situation with grace it gives Seth motivation to do the same.”

As a coach, their father said that he usually sees younger siblings acclimating to the the football team very easily, which he said was a direct result of having an older sibling in the program.

“It was really neat as a dad and coach to see your two sons in the same weight room, or running the same wind sprints, so that was probably my favorite part other than getting to see them every day,” Mike Zegunis said.

The Express | Issue 1 | September 2015

Photo by Emily Staples

Photo courtesy of Anna Chalupa

Jacqueline and Jordan Serati

Anna and Rachel Chalupa

Freshman Jacqueline Serati, and her sister, senior Jordan Serati, both said that while their appearances may be very similar they are both very different.

“We don’t really do a lot of the same activities, I try to get her to do the stuff I do but it doesn’t work out too often,” Jordan said.

“We’re both pretty confident though I think she’s definitely a bit more timid than me. We both really enjoy hanging out with our friends and family though and we really like being connected to people.”

Jacqueline said that she feels as though Jordan is more of a people person, while she usually sticks to her own friend group.

“We both are involved, right now we both do Rebel and we’re both doing a sport,” Jacqueline said. “Jordan has a great reputation, especially a lot of the teachers are always like, ‘Oh, you’re Jordan’s little sister.’ I feel like the teachers expect me to be almost as good as Jordan, she is a great student as well so it puts pressure on me to fulfill what she’s done already.”

Jacqueline said that she never felt pressured to follow in her sister’s footsteps, she just knew what she would be doing when she started at BVNW because Jordan had helped her decide.

“I didn’t really feel pressured to want to do anything because she had done it, I kind of already knew I would be doing tennis, and she just kind of helped me because I already knew a lot of the clubs existed and she just made me want to join them even more.”

According to Jordan she really tried to get her sister to do some of the same things as her, but realized it was not always going to be an option.

“I always do feel concerned, because, I mean, I’m in a lot of stuff, and I really tried to get her to run cross country with me and she absolutely refused,” Jordan said. “So I think I’ve kind of realized that she really needs to make her own path and just do her own thing.”

Sophomore Anna Chalupa also found that she ended up doing many of the same things as her sister, Rachel Chalupa who graduated in 2015.

“I don’t feel that there’s necessarily a shadow over her,” Rachel said. “Even though we’re involved in the same things she’s a very different person than I am. She will make a name for herself in a different way than I did. Even though she may feel pressure I’m sure she’ll be fine and find her own way of doing things.”

While the two sisters may have done many of the same activities, including softball, volleyball, yearbook and FCA, Anna said that Rachel managed her time better and was a bit more personable with her teachers and peers.

“I would say we’re both very friendly,” Rachel said. “She can win people over better than I can, she is very good at talking to people and getting them to laugh which is a skill I definitely don’t have.”

Anna said there were both pros and cons of having a sibling come before her, but overall she was thankful she had someone to go before her.

“Just walking into school as a freshman, [teachers] automatically knew I was Rachel’s sister and they already had a good view of me because they liked Rachel,” Anna said. “Having Rachel come before me was good for me, but sometimes [people] expected a lot more out of me than I could give.”

Rachel said that having her sister at BVNW was one of her favorite aspects in her final year in high school.

“I really enjoyed having Anna at Northwest, even if it was only for a year I kind of enjoyed the fact that we had some distance in between us in terms of age,” Rachel said. “We got to play softball together and that was a blast, having my sister and my best friend on the team. There was someone to rely on whether I was at school, on the field, at home, she was involved in every part of my life.”

The Express | Issue 1 | September 2015

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News flash

The Express takes the news and breaks it down.

Syrian refugee crisis For the last four years, Syria has been involved in a civil war that began with protests against the Syrian government.

As numbers of refugees fleeing Syria climb past 4 million - nearly half of Syria’s population, surrounding countries are running out of the resources to support the refugees.

Syrian refugees are fleeing in all directions to the surrounding countries - Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt being a few of the most populated by refugees, according to a report published by the United States High Commisioner for Refugees.

Countries receiving the largets numbers of refugees in Europe include Germany and Hungary. Hungary is currently working quickly to complete a razor-wire fence along their border with Serbia to stop more refugees from entering at a cost close to $35 million.

As a world power, the U.S. has been involved in discussions regarding how to deal with the worsening refugee crisis, with the topic being address by President Obama and potential 2016 presidential candidates.

2016 Presidental debates The Republican National Committee and the Democratic National Committee have both released schedules for their respective primary debates. During the presidential debates, candidates answer questions for viewers regarding their views on topics such as immigration, women’s rights, funding for education and the economy. The upcoming four for each party are as follows:

Democratic:

Republican:

Oct. 13, 2015

Oct. 28, 2015

Nov. 14, 2015

November 2015

Dec. 19, 2015

Dec. 15, 2015

Jan. 17, 2016

January 2016

Kim Davis TUrkey

Lebanon

Egypt

Iraq

Jordan

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The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in June that same-sex marriage is a guaranteed Constitutional right.

At the end of August, the county clerk, Kim Davis of Rowan County, KY. refused to issue a marriage license to a same-sex couple because, in interviews with numerous news sites, she said to adhere to the ruling interfered with her religious beliefs; she identifies as an Apostolic Christian.

Davis spent five days in jail for refusing to adhere to the Supreme Court ruling. She returned back to work at the Rowan County clerk’s office on Monday,

Sept. 14.

Davis released in an interview with CNN and multiple other outlets that she would not issue or authorize any marriage liscenses for same-sex couples.

Davis said she would allow marriage licenses to be issued from the clerk’s office as long as the licenses did not have her name on them.

A decision has yet to be made by the District Judge whether to allow licenses to be issued without her name, or if she will be sent to jail again if she refuses to issue them with her name.

the express | ISSUE 1 | SEPTEMBER 2015

Getting down to business

by Emma Bruce DECA, Dawg House and the BVNW business department welcomed a new face this year, Meghan Trader. Trader and her students reflect on the first month of school with the new environment.

This August, Meghan Trader became the new DECA and Dawg House sponsor, as well as the teacher of business classes in replacement of Kathy Peres. With an undergraduate degree in business marketing, and a master’s degree in teaching from Bethel University, this is her fourth year teaching but her first year at BVNW. “This is my third school that I’ve taught in now,” Trader said.

“I feel like high school kids are similar in all areas. Kids are kids.

They have the same desires and they have the same attitudes and some behaviors are different, but for the most part, there are a lot of similarities.”

Senior and Dawg House financial manager Libby Kaufman said her first impression of Trader was that she was a warm person. She said Trader was very willing to learn, and since Dawg House is not like any other class, coming in and learning was very important.

“Mrs. Trader is learning about [her position] as she goes,” Kaufman said. “There are different things that we do from a normal business, because we are a school-based business.

[We’re] just teaching her those things and having her learn with us as we go.”

According to student manager, DECA president and senior Jackson Regan, Trader is excited to learn and she has helped the students learn as well.

“She’s gone out of her way several times,” Regan said. “If we ask her to do something, whether it be order fliers or help us reorder food, she’s 110 percent committed to helping us do that. She’s very invested in us as students.”

Regan said that along with training her, 18 out of the 24 members in Dawg House were new this year, so they were trained together.

“We had to teach her what the Dawg House was, what we order, when we order it, just what the daily process looks like,” Regan said. “We’ve worked with her to catch her up on how we run stuff and how things have run in the past.

THE EXPRESS | ISSUE 1 | SEPTEMBER 2015

She’s brought a new mindset of how to run stuff. She’s very enthusiastic about the whole process, so you kind of find some of that energy to just try to improve things a bit.”

Kaufman says she sees Trader bringing in new ideas.

“Peres had been here for a while and she would repeat the same sales, which isn’t a bad thing, but with [Trader] coming in there will be a lot of new ideas and maybe different ways to orient the business so we can make more of a profit with new restrictions and guidelines on food and stuff,” Kaufman said.

“She’ll have some ideas that will help us benefit from that and maybe take on a new face.”

Trader said her students have been welcoming and quick to help her out in the process of learning the many roles of her new position.

“They haven’t made me feel silly for asking questions,” Trader said. “I have been so impressed with their excitement and enthusiasm for it. I feel like I have a really great group. I’m excited to get to know them more over the course of the year.

We have a great team and I’m very grateful for that.”

Meghan Trader, center, talks wit h Dawg House staff members junior Madi Martin and senior Hannah Adams during fift h hour. This is Trader’s first year as Dawg House and DECA sponsor and new BVNW business teacher (photo by Justin Lehtenin).

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ENTERTAINMENT

CROSSWORD

by Avery Mojica

Title: Did you know we have a teacher who...

To learn more about the teachers featured in this puzzle, visit www.bvnwnews.com.

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the express | issue 1 | September 2015

CROSSWORD CLUES ACROSS

1. Carpet cleaners, for short 5. Alphas’ followers 10. Police broadcast: Abbr.

13. Robert Downey Jr., e.g.

18. Top-class 20. Actress ___ Mena of “CSI: Cyber” 21. Mediterranean ___ 22. Instant replay aid 23. Revolving part of an engine 24. “___ you ashamed?”

25. Bit of texting lingo that means “face-to-face” 26. Colorful part of a flower 27. ...helped make the KU fountain blue when the Royals won the 1985 World Series?

29. Notable horseman of the Revolutionary War 31. Posing no challenges 32. Liquid used to fry foods 33. Prohibit 34. Take the peel off of 35. Summer hotspot that sells Tropical Sno 37. ...owns a Djembe drum?

43. This crossword has one 45. Hymnal song 46. Intense anger 47. Runs on TV 48. ...competes in hot air balloon competitions?

SUDOKU

50. Liquid in a ballpoint pen 51. Prepare to propose marriage 52. Skaters’ jumps 53. Sent a quick online message 54. High-stakes test 55. Gave lunch to 56. Not yours 57. Place to get $20 bills 58. Words said at an altar 59. Carry with difficulty 60. They may be burned?

63. Apple relative?

64. ...makes their own sausage?

68. Child on “The Simpsons” 69. They’re on page 12 of this newspaper 70. Sunbather’s goal 71. ___ Park Mall (Overland Park attraction) 72. Mom’s partner 73. A Great Lake 74. Word found in the names of two MLB teams 75. 1996 presidential candidate ___ Dole 76. Dance exclusively for juniors and seniors 78. Snake (through) 79. Fittingly 82. It’s about 93 million miles away from Earth 83. ...teaches Jazzercise?

by Avery Mojica

85. Where 14-Down can be found 86. Propane, e.g.

87. Witch’s hex 88. Direct, as for information 89. ...worked for NBC and ABC before coming to BVNW? 92. Talks like this he does?

93. Popular cheese for crackers 94. Not hers 95. Sound from a cow 96. Elbows rudely 100. Amicability 104. ...was an Honorable Mention All American football player in college?

107. “The Big Bang Theory” creator Chuck ___ 108. Its chemical symbol is Sn 109. Canal sight 110. Video game pioneer company 111. Some woodwinds 112. Ginger ___ (carbonated drink) 113. Disney’s mermaid 114. It’s capital is Libreville 115. Actor George ___ of “Cheers” 116. Big shirt sizes 117. Affirmative answers 118. Belted out a ballad

DOWN

1. Part of a song 2. Hello, in Honolulu 3. Tampa and Tulsa, e.g.

4. One who recounts tales 5. “___ and Butt-head” 6. Ron’s owl in the “Harry Potter” series 7. Level 8. Teenager’s bane 9. See 54-Across 10. Taiwanese and Japanese, e.g.

11. Its capital is Lima 12. Kaufmann Stadium, for one 13. Word in Kansas’s state motto 14. First city in the world to be fully lit by electricity 15. Canvas bag 16. Actor ___ Epps of “ER” 17. Goal for 13-Across 19. “To ___ is human” 28. Kansas politician Kevin ___ 29. Ache 30. All-night dance party 33. Kellogg’s Raisin ___ 36. Famous ___ (cookie brand)

37. Actor Nicolas ___ 38. Lettuce unit 39. Dryer fuzz 40. Say a falsity 41. “Able was I ___ I saw Elba” (famous palindrome) 42. Haute couture monogram 43. Took a plane to the runway 44. Evil trio from “The Lion King” 45. Apple, in French 48. ___ Bay Rays 49. Try to woo (2 words) 50. Clickable computer image 51. Brewery container 54. “Much ___ about Nothing” 55. Looney Tunes hunter Elmer ___ 57. “Stronger than dirt” sloganeer 58. Textspeak shrug 59. Animal often found in 11-Down 60. Container for wine 61. Operator of a motor vehicle 62. What 61-Down needs to do 65. Antithesis for 82-Across 66. It gets hailed 67. Go head over heels for 68. Taco alternatives 70. Daycare diversion 74. Covered in saliva 75. Preoccupied 76. Component 77. Sneaky scheme 78. Gardener’s woe 79. Thumbs-up (2 words) 80. 21st Greek letter 81. Country singer McGraw 82. It’s just under 9% in Kansas 83. Maria’s husband on “Sesame Street” 84. Sag 86. Where to enter this clue’s answer 87. Word after potato or computer 90. Author ___ Hemingway 91. Complains 92. The Beverly Hillbillies, e.g.

95. “Me and Bobby ___” 97. Addis ___ (capital of Ethiopia) 98. Lord ___, author of Don Juan 99. Rock hurler 100. Circulate, as blood 101. After-shower wear 102. Its chemical symbol is Fe 103. “One Tree ___” (Netflix show) 104. How some meat may be cooked 105. Part of an eye 106. Cleaning cloth, oftentimes 109. Chesapeake ___

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Opinion

Innocent ignorance isn’t bliss

F

rom the win for same-sex marriage in the U. S. Supreme Court to improved transgender equality with the coverage of Caitlyn Jenner, the year 2015 has been a year of positive change regarding social stigmas. But the stigma against depression remains.

The problem with society is that people don’t seem to realize how much of a problem depression is. It’s a ridiculous taboo. Everyone in the world has a brain and emotions. Keeping our brains healthy is as important as keeping our bodies healthy. Our brains control everything. If they’re not functioning properly, nothing does.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, in 2013, about 16 million Americans had at least one major depressive episode. That’s about 5 percent of the population. Out of the approximately 1,600 students at BVNW, that would be about 80 students.

Based on those calculations, one in 20 students at BVNW could be facing major depression. Statistically, many more could also be combating milder symptoms of depression.

School psychologist Monica Symes said each of the six mental health professionals at the school see more than three students a day for mental health issues. Combined, that’s more than 18 students every day.

“Depression is a lot more prevalent than I think we would believe because of the developing brain. The societal pressures, along with anxiety and things with school--there are definitely actual students who are suffering from signs of depression and there are students who have been diagnosed with depression,” Symes said.

Not only is depression mentally exhausting, it distorts your thought process. Say, for example, you failed a

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test--normally you’d be upset, but when you’re depressed, your brain goes through negative thought patterns that make even small things enormous in your mind.

The negativity piles up, and within a short span of time someone can go from feeling mediocre to absolutely terrible-sometimes even suicidal.

It’s easy to judge someone without knowing what they’re really thinking or dealing with. Such innocent ignorance is perhaps the greatest example of why depression needs to be advocated for across the globe.

It’s a ridiculous taboo. Everyone in the world has a brain and emotions.

People tend to be more judgmental toward depression because things relating to emotions just aren’t talked about as much as physical health. Health is taught to all students in Blue Valley, but mental health is only given one part of one unit.

emotions, and that can be even more dangerous. Take the time to do some research, and be there for your friends, family, or anyone who is upset.

Things will get better. As someone who has struggled with depression in the past, I can promise you that.

Find a coping mechanism that works for you and spread the word. Don’t be ashamed to speak up about the stigma against depression. Everyone should be cared for.

If you or someone you know is in need, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.

If everyone was better educated about depression and how to talk to others effectively, the world would be a much better place. Think of the millions of lives that would be saved, not to mention bettered.

People need to help people. If that means breaking out of societal norms, then so be it. Everyone--regardless of age, gender, race, sexuality--will be affected by, or will know someone affected by, depression at least once in his/her life.

Reach out to someone, anyone, who you think may be struggling. He/she needs it. Some people are good at hiding their

the express | issue 1 | September 2015

Staff editorial

Showing respect despite our differences The concepts of gender and sexuality have never been black and white, completely binary nor clearly defined. Now, however, in an age centered on media, the gray areas of both have been increasingly gaining attention with famous figures like Ruby Rose and Caitlyn Jenner who have become public figures in part for their gender fluidity.

Of course, like any societal shift or focus, not everyone is in agreement with the idea of gender and sexuality as a spectrum. It becomes important, then, to look at how we respond to our peers whose lives, decisions, identities and personalities we may not understand or may not agree with.

Last month, 150 students at Hillsboro High School in Hillsboro, Mo. stood outside their school for two hours to protest a transgender student’s use of the girls bathroom. The students rallied against allowing the student, Lila Perry, to use the bathroom according to her gender identification.

Of the approximately 1,140 students who attend Hillsboro High, that means almost 15 percent of Perry’s classmates not only can’t seem to accept who Lila is or her decision to use the girls’ bathroom, but they are also actively fighting against her.

BVNW has around 1,600 students, so it is inevitable that not everyone will understand or agree with the different genders and sexualities of his or her peers. The point is, we don’t have to agree; what we do have to do is treat people with respect and care.

If our school truly is a family—which we should be—we should understand what that means in this context. Family members rarely ever agree on everything, but when push comes to shove, they set their differences aside and come together with love and support. We don’t need to agree with our peers always or even sometimes, but we still need to support them.

For generations our society fought against allowing blacks to share bathrooms with whites. The majority of our country didn’t want blacks to be in the same classrooms with white students. Luckily, we realized the error of our ways and have accepted that we are all equal in terms of the respect we deserve. Why should this be different?

It is likely that not every student in the BVNW community feels comfortable with students who are transgender, or fluid, or gay; however, it is pretty safe to say that a protest tearing a specific person down to the point of making national news is something BVNW will likely never do.

We are a school known for our general acceptance for diversity. We don’t all agree, but we can treat each other as fellow students—as human beings. And of that, we can, and should, be proud.

New idea?

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SEND IT TO US The Express c/o Blue Valley Northwest High School 13260 Switzer Rd Overland Park, KS 66213 BVNWnewspaper@ bluevalleyk12.org Room 902 Suggested length under 1,000 words Please include subject information about photos.

the express | issue 1 | September 2015

editorial cartoon by Abdul Qaddour

*The Express has the right to edit all submissions.

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