Ed 3 2015

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the communicator

Vol. 32, Edition 3, February 2015

INC ARC ERA TION p. 34

contents.

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a walk in the park Ann Arbor’s parks have been dutifully maintained and loved by city residents, including Community High students.

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14

the way to community Former Community High dean Judy Conger, along with others, finds that the school hasn’t changed so much since the early days.

inside the photo room Steve Coron and photo students share favorite spots and memories within the classroom.

16

2

eliza vs. anders vs. food

Eliza Upton challenges Anders Rasmussen with the Blimpy Burger Challenge.

Who will reign victorious?

the c o mmunic at o r

26 the ann arbor skate park The Ann Arbor Skate Park has pleased local skaters thanks to the hard work of many, including Tony Hawk.

32 profile: mike monahan The owner of Monahan’s Seafood Market, discusses fishing, Zingerman’s, Hoover vacuum cleaners, and what’s next for the 35-year-old business.

34 incarceration Two local programs are attempting to help the incarcerated through reading and faith.

47 could you let birth control down?

How human error is being blamed for birth control’s success rate.

what we’re sayin’ Dear Readers, First semester has come to a close, and it has contained a great deal of voices. As a student newspaper, the months since September have forced us to reflect on what it means to have a voice. In Ferguson and across the nation, those who felt voiceless found their voices in protest. After the shootings at Charlie Hebdo, there was an international outcry for the importance of freedom of speech, that our voices always be free. Many more questioned whether a publication that suppresses others should be given a voice at all (p. 53). And the voice that brings us into these events when we aren’t affected by them directly is the media.

In a culture of constant affirmation through likes and retweets, social media in many ways validates our voices (p. 30). Do voices gain power when we are all handed an easily-accessible platform, or are they more likely to get lost in all of the noise? An enduring means by which people claim their voices is humor, like acclaimed cartoonist Bob Mankoff (p. 38), and another is through their art, like Community’s photo students (p. 14). In cases of sexual assault, victims are often denied a voice (p. 54), but one way in which young women may be able to gain a voice is through comprehensive sexual education (p. 24) and access to reproductive healthcare (p. 50). Arguably our nation’s most voiceless individuals are those who are incarcerated (p. 34).

A voice is a powerful thing, and we will wield it as best we can.

Love, Your Editors

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letter from the editors

we’re ready now

THE COMMUNICATOR

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Printing thanks to Edwards Brothers Malloy.

Jeff Ohl Emily Ojeda Kelly Arnold Kelsey Albig Eleanor Olson Madeline Halpert Ada Banks Isabel Ratner Eva Rosenfeld Hannah Davis Hannah Rubenstein Marcelo Salas Dominic DiFranco Sophia Simon Chase Dudley Grace Stamos Managing Editors Emily Fishman Caroline Phillips Katerina Stegemann Cameron Fortune Eliza Upton Sophie Steinberg Kathryn Garcia Alexandra Hobrecht Hannah Tschirhart Adviser Kea Von Emden Marie Jacobson Tracy Anderson Devin Weeks Jack Kelley Sophia Werthmann Grace Koeple Cover Art Josh Krauth-Harding Abe Weiner Marcelo Salas Frances MacKercher

Editors-In-Chief

Staff

february

3

the dream index. alexandra hobrecht & kelsey albig eleanor olsen illustration

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larence Collins III, like many people, has experienced a dream about dying. Death, along with being chased, having one’s teeth fall out, driving a vehicle without control, falling and drowning are six of the most common dreams people share. Dr. Michael Lennox, author of “Dream Sight: A Dictionary and Guide for Interpreting Any Dream,” says that dreams provide an insight into one’s life.

“Dreams reveal us to ourselves by providing glimpses of information ordinarily hidden beyond the boundaries of the conscious mind.” There are three main steps in interpreting dreams, the first step being the Universal Landscape.

The Universal Landscape is when a dream is easily relatable to most people and the emotions humans share. Second is the Dreaming Lens, which puts the dream into context and deepens the interpretation. The last step is The Personal Focus, which combines ideas from personal experience. Using these three steps, Lennox has come up with a guide to figuring out the meaning behind such dreams.

“Every dream has a meaning but only if you ask,” Lennox said. being chased. zzz Being chased is the most common dream shared by people.

Dreams where one is being chased are mainly fear-based.

Since this is not something that usually happens in conscious life, it gives people a chance to see how they would react to the danger. These intense dreams usually include waking life stressors that are not as life-threatening as the

4 the c o m m unic a t o r

dream. The mind will use the dream experience of surviving danger in order for us to be ready the next day for the challenges we face. Because these dreams are often recurring, they show how they balance out the unconscious fears and anxieties that we collect during the day. Depending on the type of dream, some can represent self-sabotage or the dreamer can be running away from a success or responsibility. If the dreamer knows the person chasing them, it might be beneficial to let them get caught, as it could bring them into reality with something they are facing. teeth falling out. zzz Lennox writes that these types of dreams correlate directly with insecurities from being out of control, looking bad, aging and other unmet needs. Our teeth are made for three primary functions: nurturance, joy and protection.

“If a person is not able to be self-nurturing, attract loving connections and maintain a sense of being safe from danger, the basic constructs of a secure lif are not likely to be available,” Lennox said. When this dream image appears it is likely there are issues with the dreamer’s personal security. The intensity of the dream shows how much fear is being conveyed. If you “sink your teeth” into something, it can mean you are taking something head on. On the other hand, if the dreamer loses their teeth, it means they are unwilling to move forward with whatever is happening. On some personal level dreams about losing teeth can connect to the dreamer growing up into adulthood.

driving a vehicle without control. zzz Dreams where the dreamer is driving usually signify their path through life. Cars and other vehicles have a lot of significance because people often use them in everyday life. They are a symbol for us always moving.

“If you are driving out of control, you must consider what area of your life might be beyond your ability to regulate,” Lennox said. If the car is not responding to you, you might not know how to take control of your path through life. The speed can also symbolize if the changes happening are too fast or slow for you. If you cause an accident, it could be mean you need to look at the aftermath of your choices. Being in an accident can show how you have abandoned your path because of people and other sources. The weather can also add meanings to the dream. Rain in the dream can represent the emotional issues to your path in life, whereas ice can indicate that your emotions are being blocked making your path difficult. falling. zzz Many dreams frequently include the idea of falling, often in nightmares and bad dreams. The act of falling is not actually what causes the fright in these dreams, but what follows the fall. Whether a person is falling off of a cliff or down a flight of stairs, the thought of hitting the ground is the real danger.

According to Dr. Michael Lennox, this simulates the idea of heading towards something in real life. To go even deeper, it can mean one is surrendering and letting go of whatever they have been holding onto. The direction of the fall can also represent the feeling of the dream. Falling backward can indicate not being able to see the direction one is taking, while falling forward allows you to see what is happening, but still indicates lack of control. Spiral twisting can even

indicate spiraling out of control to the extreme. The feeling of the fall can represent the conflict going on in the dreamer’s life. dying. zzz Dreams about dying significantly represent change. The idea of change is the cycle of things never staying the same, whether interrupted by birth or death. Death in dreams often show that a large change is going on in the dreamer’s life.

It can depend on who is dying in the dream to learn more about the change that is occurring. The death of a mother of father can represent the dreamer needing to let go of ways they parent themselves that they no longer need, whereas the death of a friend can mean the dreamer wants to let go of a certain behavior they, and the dying friend, exhibit. If the dreamer his/herself dies in the dream, it can mean the change occurring in their life has a huge impact on their lifestyle, such moving, a breakup or a new job.

“Death is an ending, which must always be followed by a new beginning,” Lennox writes, though this is symbolic and not literal. drowning. zzz Lennox said in his book, “To drown is to die. To die is to sacrifice part of the Self in order to be reborn again. Therefore to die in a dream is a beautiful transformation.” These dreams are universally surrendering to our emotions we have to attend to. Lennox also believes that on the symbolic perspective it is a very serene experience. He believes this peaceful surrender can be overlooked. If the dreamer is panicking in such a dream it means they are uneasy with the transformation. If they can breathe underwater it connects with the concept that they are comfortable with the transition, even though it is less common.

student dreams.

Annie Noffke: “I used to have a dream

[where] I would be walking, and these holes in the ground would appear and I would fall into them. I kept having [the dream] until finally I was sick of it. I was like, ‘Screw this, I’m just gonna let go.’ So I let go, and I fell through the hole, and landed in this weird space. It was entirely dark except for a light streaming from the hole, and there was a secretary sitting at a desk, typing on a computer. She said, ‘You want to go back up? Ok.’ She pressed a button and I went back up in the dream. Then I woke up and never had that dream again.”

Sophie Haviland: “It was summer and I

was partying with my friends, who weren’t my actual friends just random people I liked. We were at this cliff diving place, and we had a barbeque and it was so fun. Then I got really scared to jump off the cliff. All of my friends were doing it saying ‘It’s so fun.’

Then this really annoying guy in the dream was like ‘jump’ and I said no and then he pushed me off the cliff. I started freaking out and couldn’t breathe and it was really scary. I was drowning and then this really hot guy dived into the water, carried me out and saved my life.”

Clarence Collins III: “There was this one

time where I was six. There was a monster, he was a big Orc type guy, [who] had huge horns. He was grey and muscular, and he had a club. I remember I was hiding in a closet and then he picked up the closet and threw me out the window, and I fell on a bus for some reason. I got out and then he fell me. And then I remember I was squashed, and then I woke up.”

february

5

snow daze

cameron fortune

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or high school students in Ann Arbor, there isn’t a feeling much better than waking up to a call from Liz Margolis, Ann Arbor Public School’s director of communication, on a dark, snowy morning saying that school has been cancelled. An unexpected day off won’t cause teachers to complain either. They enjoy them as much as students, but when they come just before a deadline, they can disrupt a classes flow.

This year there were two snow days in a row just before the semester finals, causing some classes to fall behind with their tight schedule. Anne Thom-

times that snow days occur is near the end of the first semester in early January. This could be because it is around the time of the first big snow of the year.

Not having that time in class before exams can stress students out. Stephen Brandel, a CHS senior felt this way.

“These past snow days were a little frustrating because they happened just before finals and we had to make up classes in different blocks,” he said.

When snow days are not just before an important assessment, they are much easier to enjoy for everyone. They allow students and teachers a little extra time to rest, and put people in a better mood

“I love the idea that [our family] can’t go anywhere, we are here together, just us.” as, a math teacher at Community High School was inconvenienced by the days off.

“There is a lot of material that my Algebra 1 class needs to know for the midterm that we missed out on,” she said.

This didn’t used to be the case. In the past teachers would be able to create their own exams and remove the content they didn’t get a chance to cover.

This changed with the introduction of more common assessments.

“It can be pretty difficult on students to miss school before a final, especially with the common assessments that we are required to give at this point,” Thomas said. “In the past, if I had had snow days like these, I could have changed the exam to remove the things that we didn’t get to.”

Unfortunately, one of the common 6 th e c o mmunica t o r

at school when they come back from the mini surprise break. Anne Thomas enjoyed her time off.

“I am often grading [on snow days], but at least I get to wake up slower, have my cup of coffee, look at the snow, and enjoy the moment.”

One of the few positives of going to a school in Ann Arbor during the unforgiving winter is being able to hope for snow days. Looking out the window at night before going to bed and seeing snow falling can make any student excited because of the possibility of a snow day. Kids living in southern California aren’t so lucky.

It is possible to have too many snow days; last year AAPS neared the state limit of 30 hours of cancelled school.

Once the limit is reached, schools are required to make-up the time in the

spring or summer. For students this isn’t a serious worry. Brandel isn’t too concerned about the make-up time.

“I guess it is in the back of my head, but it has never gotten to a point where I would worry about it, since I really like snow days,” he said.

AAPS hasn’t had to extend school due because of too many snow days in a very long time.

“I have worked here for over 12 years and we have never had to make up any days past our June end date since then,” Margolis said.

Although people love the extra days off of school, a lot of people dislike being stuck in their house all day due to the snow. Brandel enjoys hanging out with his friends on days off, but says that on snow days it can be difficult to get together without driving in the poor road conditions. Thomas has a different way of looking at it.

“I love the idea that [our family] can’t go anywhere, we are here together, just us. We don’t do that enough in our culture, we are always rushing from one place to another.”

a walk in the park

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dominic difranco

rom the rushing waters at Argo Canoe Livery to the green fields of Buhr Park, Ann Arbor’s parks have catered to their residents for over 100 years. The parks of Ann Arbor have so much to offer. Not only do the parks have a long tradition, but they have an excellent history of quality and support.

“The most special thing about our parks is the people who support us,” said Jason Nealis, the Buhr Park Recreation Supervisor. “We have great support from the people of Ann Arbor. We try to provide them with a good product and they reward us.”

The support from Ann Arborites comes in the form of funding and feedback.

Recently, citizens of Washtenaw County voted in favor of a ten-year spending plan that will make $3.4 million for area parks and recreational facilities. The generated funds will be used for acquiring, developing and maintaining parklands and operating recreational facilities for the benefit of area residents, according to the language of the ballot.

These millages are on the ballot near-

ly every year and provide for much of the funding for Ann Arbor parks and the greater Washtenaw County.

Feedback from Ann Arbor residents is also helpful to the parks administration.

“We get a lot of comments about how we’re doing something good how or we’re doing something bad,” Nealis said. “They let us know about it. They care about everything.”

This quality of support has lasted the existence of the parks since their establishment in May of 1905 when Mayor Francis W. Hamilton appointed the first Board of Park Commisioners.

The first Board of Park Commissioners were Royal S. Copeland, George P. Burns, H. W. Douglas, L. D. Wines and David F. Allmendinger.

There are many parks in the Ann Arbor area, most of which are free for use.

“My favorite park is definitely the Arb (Nichols Arboretum),” said Miles Schwarz, a freshman at Community. “I like how it’s very wide and outspread. It just has a lot of natural beauty.”

Allmendinger Park, named after one of the first park commissioners, is close in proximity and is used by Ann Ar-

bor Pioneer High School. Several Pioneer athletic teams use the open fields to practice, including the Men’s, and Women’s Cross Country team, Track and Field and also the Ultimate Frisbee team. Ann Arbor parks cater to many sports associations throughout the city ranging from Rec & Ed to some high school sports.

Community students don’t just go there on their own time, they even visit the parks for school events like Forum Day. Some forum classes take a day out of the year to go to a park of Ann Arbor to bond and fully grasp the idea of the Community difference. Miranda Iannelli, a junior is Chloe Root’s forum reflected on her experiences in the parks.

“We went to Argo last year and had the best time. Canoeing with my friends, lying in the sun, and just having a chance to relax.,” Ianelli said. “I can definitely say that Argo gave me new friends, and brought me closer to all of my forum family.”

The Ann Arbor parks have contributed to the community for years and with the great support of Ann Arbor citizens will continue to endure. february

7

the way to

community eva rosenfeld and frances mackercher

8 the c o mmunica t o r

When Judy Conger was appointed interim Dean of Community High School in the summer of 1994, change was imminent.

“Community was this little school that almost felt like it wasn’t held to the same rules as the other schools,” she said. “Kids were smoking in the school. I don’t think attendance mattered – just all kinds of rules that the school board had for other schools, but nobody paid that much attention to Community, so it just operated how it wanted to.”

Today, talk of an older, more colorful Community is rampant. Many insist that the school of today is a subdued, regulated version of its former self. In 2008, NPR ran a story entitled, “Alternative ‘Commie’ High Mellows with Time.” So exactly what within the halls of 401 North Division Street has changed, what remains the same and what’s happened along the way?

Community’s building was built in 1907 to serve as an elementary school called Jones Elementary. It was segregated, attended by primarily black children until desegregation took place in the mid-1960s.

The district then closed the school as part of a restructuring plan to increase racial integration. It reopened in 1972, as the inception of Community High School.

Community High School was founded on the principle of using the the city of Ann Arbor as a classroom, and spent its first years developing the Community Resource program, which allows students to create their own courses using resources and instructors from around Ann Arbor. Community was not the only alternative high school in Ann Arbor at the time. Earthworks, an even smaller alternative school, was founded in 1971 as Pioneer II. By 1977, enrollment at Earthworks was so low that Earthworks and Community High merged.

Over the course of Conger’s deanship, the school’s climate changed

significantly.

“A lot changed in the district,” she said. The lax regulations eventually became too much of a liability, and Community’s rules became more in line with the rest of the district.

“We had to become more of a school,” Conger said. “I had to say to people, I know you love your school but it’s still a public school.

You can’t do that in a public school; it’s still paid by taxpayers. So things did start to change. It’s not like it was back in the ‘80s, but that’s just the way times go. I regretted that, but at the same time it was necessary.”

But for Conger, the shift in policy did not seem to cause a shift in spirit. When she returns to the school now, she is struck by the teachers and students with the same enthusiasm as when she was dean, decades ago.

“Community has been for a long time this little gem of a school that attracted all kinds of kids-- kids who wanted to write their own curriculum and kids who just wanted to hang out,” Conger said. Any change in Community’s people, she believes, is a change in perception and not in the actual workings of the school.

“I don’t find a lot of difference in the teachers or the kids,” she said.

“I think it’s very much the same, but I think we’re probably getting more and better publicity. I also think that memory is a funny thing, and I think there’s also a vested interest in saying, ‘It’s not as good as when I was there, because I was so cool and you’re not.’”

There have been numerous changes in Community’s structure since it opened. Forum began as a twohour daily class and the students were made to feel comfortable in an informal family atmosphere. Over the next thirty years things such as forum, start time, which used to be 8:30, deans and classes changed.

But one change that has created a definite impact on Community is

the increase in enrollment. Enrollment has grown from 250 in 1981 to 475 in 2015.

Judith DeWoskin, who has been teaching English at the school since 1984, believes that a small school is an important part of Community’s environment.

“I think we have to be really careful,” she said in regard to the ever-increasing population. “I think it’s important to keep the personal relationships with the kids and to have time for those relationships and space for them. And because it has gotten so much bigger, it’s a little hard to keep track of all the kids.

I have 27 kids in my forum. Some of them are struggling academically and I’m struggling to keep track of those issues.”

DeWoskin does see a few strengths in numbers.

“The truth is even the kids I don’t teach, I know their faces, because I see them in the hall,” she said. “You want to keep people knowing everybody. I don’t think bigger is better, but there are certain advantages to getting a little bit bigger. We get a little more staff and we get a little more praise and more attention.”

In terms of the students themselves, however, DeWoskin supports Conger’s view.

“Kids don’t change,” she said.

“They offer the same challenges and the same joys and irritations that they always do.”

She also seconded the notion that although the students haven’t changed, perception of them has.

“Even though we still have a lot of stereotypes that we have to deal with, like we’re the school for the druggies or the burnouts, I don’t think that’s the prevalent stereotype anymore,” she said. “There are people who believe that, but there are a lot more people who understand the beauty and strength of this school.”

february

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travel emily ojeda

Name: Dan Henig Occupation: Musician Favorite Time of Year to Travel: Christmas, with family.

Favorite Place: “My favorite place (to visit) is luckily the city I live in, Nashville, Tenessee. There is so much music and I have a really great network of friends and professionals here. But visiting Michigan and other cool places like New York City, Seattle and London are always great places to visit.”

Name: Niel Dayringer Occupation: Odd jobs and freelance photography.

“Usually I cook for work, when I am working at a job. But having wanderlust makes it difficult to find jobs that are conducive of bringing plans of travel to fruition.”

Favorite Time of Year to Travel: “It kind of depends on where you’re going and what your plans are.”

Favorite Place: “I can not say that I have a favorite place in the world, aside from camp (Algonquian).

Everywhere is beautiful, and people are nice everywhere I have ever been. I think what makes a place special is the new interactions with strangers, exposure to a new culture, and the unique experiences you have while there. Most of my trips are within Michigan, or the surrounding areas like Chicago or places in Ohio, but I do prefer to go places that I have never been before.”

10 t he c o m m uni c a t o r

Name: Rebecca Galler Occupation: Sophomore at Huron High School Favorite Time of Year to Travel: Summer Favorite Place: Micheldever, England. “It is a small town about an hour and a half outside of London. It has great classic charm with houses that are about 600 years old.

There are great trails through the countryside that are very fun to explore. We have great family friends that live there so it is very nice to see them when I go there.”

dewoskin does february halloween dance fiona mckillop photos

TOP LEFT Students dance the night away. in Craft Theater.

TOP RIGHT Judith DeWoskin dressed as a valentine.

MIDDLE LEFT Aly Reynolds dressed as the moon emoji.

MIDDLE CENTER Jacob Johnson dressed as “his dad in the seventies”.

MIDDLE RIGHT Clarence Collins dressed as a hippie.

BOTTOM LEFT Sara Jackson, Angel Rich and Sarah O’Connor dressed as babies.

BOTTOM MIDDLE Clara Motino, Juliet Gustafson, Raven Eaddy and Jula Heckendorn being friends.

february february 11 11

finals:at last natalie potter & sophia werthmann anurima kumar photos

12 t he c o mmunica t o r

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ights blared as performers stepped on stage in front of over a thousand people in the 2015 FutureStars finals competition. From the Ann Arbor Public High Schools of Huron, Pioneer, Skyline and Community, students (the stars of the future) spent weeks rehearsing and competing against each other in Pioneer Theatre Guild’s annual FutureStars competition. Through four themed preliminary shows — this year being “On Broadway NOW”, “107.1 Picks!”, “Movie Songs (2000-2015)” and ‘MyTunes NOW” — contestants battled against each other to advance to finals and win the audience’s hearts. Favorite acts and the ultimate winner were chosen based on the crowd’s reaction and a rotating panel of judges.

“FutureStars is great,” said Alona Henig, CHS senior. “I think it’s a great opportunity for people who aren’t ‘theater people’ to come together and share their talent and a space to perform.”

On Jan. 24, for the sixth year in a row, the FutureStars finals were sold out. At 7:00 p.m. as students, parents and anyone with ticket in hand gathered outside the Schreiber Auditorium, the performers waited with mixed emotions in the Little Theatre next door. After an encouraging speech from one of the many directors, the performers became mentally prepared and fired up.

“I am so excited!” said Community High School senior and performer Isaac Scobey-Thal.

“I am extremely excited,” said Oren Levin, performer and CHS senior.

“There are going to be so many people who are going to be performing incredibly and I’m excited to see it all. The crowd is going to be phenomenal.”

When the curtains rose at 7:35 p.m., the prepared, excited and Men’ s Wearhouse clad hosts Emily Uhlmann, Ba-

sil Baccouche, Arthur Mengozzi, Chloe Park and Wouter Ritsema opened finals with a small performance of their own, including a flip off a trampoline executed by Baccouche. The guest judges for finals included local actress Eva Rosenwald, Ann Arbor Mayor Christopher Taylor, 107.1 host Matthew Altruda, University of Michigan musical director Catherine Walker, and UM running back Drake Johnson.

Each of the judges were asked to give their opinions. More or less they were stunned in amazement. With 22 acts total, 18 which were judged, the audi-

ence experienced an entertaining and mind blowing night.

Starting off the show was a non-competing performance by the Rising stars, the next Future stars. Throughout the night, screams of support and applause followed each act including a giveaway of flowers to each competitor from a front-row audience member. Judges’ comments included Rosenwald’s “Way to bring it,” and Johnson’s “Thank god there are voices like that.” In addition to the performances, videos from PTG alumni were shown in between every couple of acts. Videos from Ashley Park, now an performer on broadway in Chicago, and Jack Falahee, who plays Connor Walsh on ABC’s legal drama series “How to Get Away with Murder”, showed the audience and competitors that PTG can make a difference in a

performer’s life.

Marin Scott, a CHS junior greatly enjoyed the first half of the show.

“Oh my god it was amazing!” She said.

“All of the singers are incredible. I’m just constantly blown away by Tasha’s voice. She’s insane. ” After a boyband style performance by Oren Levin, Isaac Scobey-Thal, Daniel Xiang, Austin Hadwick and Tommy Kim to “Play My Music,” the official competition portion was over. To finish off the night, while the judges went backstage to decide this year’s winner, both Future and Rising stars performed a Company Medley and the coaches Tim VanRiper and Claire Crause performed “Like Breathing” with help from the other coaches.

“It was really difficult [to select the top five],” Johnson said. After the show, he said, “It was an amazing experience, coming back to Pioneer, from playing [football] here, it was kinda surreal, coming up here and seeing all these young kids who are singing their hearts out.”

The five finalists were named: Sam Torres dancing on silks to “Chandelier” and singers Micah Miller, “At Last”; Michael Rigney, “Pompeii”; Tasha Thomas, “Listen”; and Payton Lao, “Bound to You”. The hosts signaled to the crowd to vote for their favorite act by hovering their hands over the heads of the finalists, one at a time. The amount of noise the crowd made for each finalist was compared, and this gauged the winner. With so much talent at hand it was somewhat hard to distinguish which contestant got the most applause from the audience. In the end, Huron High School senior Micah Miller was named 2015’s FutureStar. As streamers and balloons fell from the ceiling, Miller was surrounded by her friends and fellow performers.

“It feels unreal– kinda crazy,” Miller said. february 13

inside the photo room

“This photo room is my home. It is my nest.

It is my happy place. It is my nirvana. It is my shelter. It is sometimes the bane of my existence here. All of the above.” -Steve Coron, art teacher

“The first time I walked in here I thought, I can’t believe I’m finally going to teach in this room, in this school. That was a really great feeling. I remember that day. I couldn’t believe it. I felt like I had reached the mountain top. No really, it was a special time. It was really great.” -Steve

14 t he c o mmunica t o r

“I think a lot of the photo room is Steve. It’s open; it’s definitely not a strict environment. You don’t feel like you should be quiet or you shouldn’t say something.” -Molly Prochaska, film photo TA

molly’s favorite spot “This is the sink area. It’s definitely where people have the most confusion, and it’s the point of the photo room right here. Without this, you couldn’t do what you’re taught here. It’s pretty important.”

steve’s favorite spot “I love my corner because I have the window, I have light, and I’m a corner person anyway;.

When I go to a restaraunt I always choose a corner so I can see the room. I can sit here and I can see all my stuff and my books are here and this is kind of my nest within the nest, my corner of the nest, and I can see the whole class which helps with knowing what’s going on.”

“This room has a comfort level and I can’t explain it. I think it might be the history of this room. The history of film photography at Community High is pretty rich and very long and really happy and you can feel it when you come in this room cause I’ve left a lot of old stuff up and I try to set up that atmosphere that is a comfortable place to work, and it just feels really nice to be in here.” -Steve

february

15

H feature

C

i everyone and welcome to 2015 and second semester! In a shocking disappointment, Eliza vs. Food’s Vermonster challenge photos did not land me on the list of 2014’s top 10 most beautiful people. However, my mom was left speechless by the pictures. I’ll consider that speechlessness pride and use it to distract her when our first semester grades are sent home. Anyway, as Buzzfeed, Facebook, and Hoda and Kathie Lee are constantly reminding us, the new year brings a bunch of firsts. And so, on the fourth day of the new year, Eliza vs. Food had another first. The competition expanded for this edition and is now Eliza vs. Anders vs. Food. That’s right ladies, the always lovable Anders Rasmussen joined me and competed in this spectacularly greasy challenge.

Unfortunately I did not get to eat ice cream this time, but we were dining at one fine Ann Arbor institution that is never a disappointment: Blimpy Burger. Anders and I, along with a small group of paparazzi and supporters, entered the new Blimpy location around 1:00pm on a Sunday afternoon. It was the last day of that beautiful two week winter break, and a friendly little eat-off was the perfect way to cap it off.

The game plan: each was to consume a quint (five patties) topped with cheese, bacon, a fried egg, fried mushrooms, fried banana peppers, lettuce, pickles, ketchup, and mustard (Anders opted to add mayonnaise to his burger). And after some confusion in the ordering line (that was Anders’ fault), each was also given a large order of onion rings. The first one to finish their entire meal would be crowned victor. With the addition of a Snapple and a second order of onion rings (again Anders’ fault) my bill came to a whopping $27.53, and I am proud to say that this time no soliciting was done to pay for the food.

I have to admit sitting down at that table with my heavy tray and Anders staring me down, I was a little nervous. Anders is a fantastic eater and I wasn’t quite sure of what he was capable of. Besides being a quint virgin, I had un-friendly onion rings staring me down, and I began longing for a leisurely meal rather than a barf-inducing race.

Scared and not nearly hungry enough, it was too late to back out.

With napkins in place, we unwrapped our burgers and began.

My first mouthful of juicy burger goodness was great, but when I went back in for round two, biting closer to the center of the burger, my tongue was shot in agony. The burger was blazing hot and slowly burning off my taste buds one by one. With watery eyes I looked up at Anders and saw that he was not sharing my pain and was beating me by a noticeable margin. Taking bite number three made me think of waving a white flag. It seemed like an early defeat was destined. But with a mouth full of burger and eyes full of tears, I was reminded of my previous defeat. Losing to the Vermonster had been devastating.

Could I take another loss? What would happen to my reputation of being a graceful and champion food eater? If I lost again, would I now only be known as a graceful eater? It was these thoughts and the wise words of Marcelo Salas (and Eminem), “snap back to reality” that kept me focused. I bit again and pushed forward.

About halfway through my burger I realized that Anders was still ahead. I needed to switch up the strategy. I set down the burger and started shoving onion rings down my throat. Though the temperature of the onion rings was a relief for my tongue, their crispy texture was hard to swallow. Desperately I started using the Snapple to wash those devil rings down.

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eliza vs. anders vs. food eliza upton eliza upton & isaac scobey-thal photos

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After a couple of handfuls I went back to the burger. To my horror the burger had not cooled down. It felt like it had almost gained heat and strength. But Marcelo’s voice played in my head and I bit forward, thinking of my path to victory.

While I was finishing up my burger, Anders, who was just a bit offset by a Snapple spill, had started his onion rings. At last the race seemed more even. Swallowing the last bits of beef, egg, and mushroom, I began round two with the onions. My strength in onion ring stuffing was out-doing Anders’ and I was pulling ahead. It only took a few more handfuls and gags until at last...yes… I had done it! The tray was cleaned of food and I had beaten Anders, clocking in at a magnificent eight minutes and fifteen seconds. Anders was not far behind, and we ended it all with a greasy (and very disgusting) yet honorable handshake.

I’d like to finish up the same way I did first edition with the Communicator tradition of giving out “thanks” and “apologies”. First I would like to thank Blimpy Burger for a great challenge. If you haven’t visited the new location yet check it out. It’s a fabulous place and a great way to gain your freshman, or in my case senior, fifteen. Apologies to the Blimpy Burger fry cook for all the confusion about the onion rings.

Next I want to thank Marcelo for subconsciously pushing me through the challenge. His help was given all the way from Quality 16. Also thanks to the pals who came to watch: Pajama Benjamin, MadRoses, SmoothE, and our Cameraman Ike. And I apologize that you guys did actually have to watch all of that. I also apologize to all the strangers in line who didn’t have a choice but to watch it. I’m sorry if the very sight of my beef covered face ruined your appetite. Lastly, I want to thank Anders. He was a great and talented opponent, and he somehow managed to still look good while demolishing that burger. Thanks for spending a chunk of change doing this, I’ll buy your No Thai sometime.

In the end victory hadn’t been easy. It brought me tears, tongue blisters, a close call with a gag, and a considerable dent in my bank account. But that victory tasted better than the burger.

ABOVE: Blimpy Burger re-opened its doors on Oct. 3, 2014. Its new location is 304 S. Ashley Street in Ann Arbor.

TOP TO BOTTOM: Eliza sheds tears over a burnt tongue. Anders off to a strong start while demolishing his burger. The dirty remains of a painful challenge. Eliza and Anders head to head in a close race.

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clever title.

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LIVING AS AN EXCHANGE STUDENT kea von emden

I

eleanor olson illustration

sat on the plane. I was still crying from the goodbyes when an old woman asked me to help her put her bag in the storage room. She didn’t see that I was crying even though my face was bright red, but when she looked at me she made a sympathetic face and said, “Oh sweetie!” and patted my shoulder. I got out of my seat and helped her.

“Being an exchange student is always going to be as hard as you make it,” said Katrin Popken, my school tutor at the last preparation meeting with a group of young students going to America for a year. I thought a lot about this sentence and it made me a bit afraid that I might fail but I tried to take this as advice for the upcoming year.

My friends said that it would be a waste of time to spend one year in a different country with a different culture.

They said it is pointless to have to repeat the year back home and then graduate one year later than everyone else.

They said I could go to another country after my graduation and I could work and travel before I go to college.

But I decided for myself that I wanted this experience. I wanted to to go to an American high school and live with an American family. I knew that it would be hard, but I wanted to challenge myself.

If someone asked me what I have already learned from being an exchange student, my answer would not be simple.

The exchange is a rapid, brutal, hurtful, overwhelming thing, but a beautiful and amazing experience. Exchange is going from thinking you know who you are, to having no idea who you are anymore, to being someone new. But not entirely new. You are still the person you were before but you jumped into your new life.

You have to start thinking about your whole situation and start looking at your surroundings. Thinking about the strange clothing, the strange food, the different language. About why you are actually here and not back home. You have to prepare yourself for all of the people you will be meeting. They look at you like you are an alien. All of those

people who make fun of you because of your accent. Who say your name wrong and whom you have to correct. And you start laughing about yourself and you start trusting the new people who seem to care about you even though they have known you for only a few months.

I learned how it feels to be on my own while I’m away from home, with no one you really know and no one who seems to understand you and your homesickness. But I found out that I can actually do it. That I can be independent and think for myself and that I am able to make my own decisions. I learned to love my home country and I learned to be thankful for my family and friends.

Once you start living in the present and have thought about all the changes happening in your life, you will finally arrive in the country you came to. I am finally open to meeting new people and getting new experiences that are overwhelming.

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S

arah O’Connor is beginning to stress as testing season begins, and she hasn’t even taken finals yet.

“First of all, you already have all of your other finals for regular school, and then you have to add the whole aspect of the extra curriculars, and then your test scores are compared to everyone else and it’s just a lot,” O’Connor said.

However, this year’s adjustments may bring a healthy change for her.

A new test has been created, called the M-Step.

It is a part of the set of tests consisting of Math, English Language Arts, Science and Social Studies components. It is now an addition to the number of tests that juniors take. This package includes the ACT, the WorkKeys test and the M-Step. The portion of the test replaces the Michigan Components of the MME. For younger students, the MEAP, which used to be in the fall, will now be in the spring. Since the test is online, not all of the juniors can take the test at once because most schools do not have enough computers to do this. Instead, some students will take the test on some days, others on separate days.

What students used to know as the MEAP (Michigan Educational Assessment Program) is now the M-Step (Michigan Student Test of Educational Process). It will now be taken at the end of the year.

It is also completely online. The ACT is still going to happen, on March 3. Another part of the packet of test is the WorkKeys test, happening on March 4. Community High School Dean Marci Tuzinsky explains what the WorkKeys test is. “[It] makes certain that you have the basic skills

to be employed,” Tuzinsky said.

Instead of the third day of testing of the “Michigan Components,” the M-STEP will take its place.

“It’s not going to happen on that third day in March,” Tuzinsky said. “The difference is that it’s now going to happen sometime in April, we are given an 8-week window between April 13 until the end of May and each school is allowed to do it.”

Students in the past have had most of their tests on paper. But the M-STEP will be completely online. According to Community High test administrator Cherie Charbeneau, having this test online has many advantages.

“All of our students are so used to doing things on the computer, that they are going to get really good at this really fast,” Charbeneau said.

There are many helpful tools that students can use while taking the test. These include a calculator, a highlighter and a tool that crosses off answers a student knows are not correct. For multiple choice questions this tool will be very helpful. Charbeneau also thinks that online testing will benefit students who have vision issues or dyslexia.

“There’s a line you can put under the line you’re reading and if anyone is dyslexic that’s going to be very helpful,” Charbeneau said.

Not only will students benefit from online testing but so will administrators. Since the test is completely online, there will be no handling of paper.

Also, test results will be sent back much more quickly.

Students will take each subject of the test in that specific class. For example, their math part of the M-STEP test will be taken in the students’ math

stepping up testing technology:

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class. Charbeneau is in favor of this change.

“Somehow that feels more right to me,” she said.

Along with students being in the class for that subject of the test, the English Language Arts and Math portions of the test will adapt to their previous answers.

This adaption is called a computer adaptive test.

The Math and English Language Arts test will be computer adaptive. According to Tuzinsky, this means based on your answers to the first few questions, it will “adapt and give you different questions based on whether you got those answers right or wrong.” Tuzinsky says that having computer adaptive tests will dig deeper into an area that the student is thinking.

“It thinks, ‘Ooh do you know even more? Do you know even more? How about this?’”

Tuzinsky is hoping somehow there can be a way of testing without so much time. She says it’s a balance between evaluating how much the students are learning, but not taking away too much time to test that learning.

She would also prefer for the future that not all the tests are in the eleventh grade. Tuzinsky said she would like smaller tests and less time, “maybe sprinkled out.”

Unlike Tuzinsky and Charbeneau, not all students are in favor of online testing. When surveyed, more than half of 25 Community High students said they would prefer a writing standardized test as opposed to an online one. Sabina Fall, a freshman at Community High agrees.

“If you have to stare at a screen for a really long time it can hurt your eyes, I just feel like it would

the m-step

be uncomfortable,” Fall said. “I think writing is just easier because you can go back and everything is just right in front of you, which means you can go back more easily and change your answers and it’s right in front of you in real life.”

Fall would prefer the original test taking methods, although she will not be taking the M-Step this year. Mari Milkie, a Community High senior, says she would prefer an online test.

“I would much rather take a standardized test online,” Milkie said. “You waste a lot of time on tests filling in a bubble with graphite, and the fact that you could lose points just because your pencil is messed up or you couldn’t erase fully is really stupid. Also it would allow people to move through the questions faster and have more time to actually think about what they are doing, which is more efficient and allows people to do better on the test.”

The installment of online testing seems to have many advantages for both students and teachers.

Tests will not all happen at the same time, so students will have less stress at one time of year.

“We’re working on a pretty creative schedule to minimize the impact of doing that testing, and so we’ll know exactly what that will look like probably in January,” Tuzinsky said.

For this year, the changes are set in stone, but for following years, there could be more to come.

“I hear different things at different times, so I wouldn’t even begin to speculate,” Tuzinsky said.

isabel ratner and emily fishman eleanor olson illustration

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cold but thriving

jeff ohl and abe weiner eleanor olson illustration

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as the temperature drops, the ann arbor farmers market’s environment changes.

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ales shrink, temperatures drop, heat lamps come out.

But, Robert Donovan, who has to wake up at 3 a.m. to get to the Ann Arbor Farmers Market on time, keeps coming year-round.

Donovan sells apples, baked goods, cider, butters and pies from Kapnick Orchards, which is based in Britton, MI. During the summer months, however, Donovan said that he and his coworkers would bring more than ten types of fruits and vegetables to market, including raspberries, potatoes and peaches. The decrease in variety, along with the worsened weather, results in a decrease in sales. Donovan said that the Ann Arbor Farmers Market alone brings in about $10,000 on Saturday peak season. In a Wednesday during December, Donovan put the number closer to $700.

Donovan said that since apples can’t be grown year round, Kapnick uses a special storage system to preserve the apples.

“Apples can be put into what they call ‘controlled atmospheric storage,” Donovan said. “They’re stored at about 34 degrees and they pump out the oxygen and pump in CO2. The CO2 helps the cellular structure of the apple from breaking down.” He said that, depending on the variety, this process could be used to store apples for up to a year.

Then, while at the Farmers Market, heat lamps are installed to prevent the apples from freezing, which Donovan said would ruin them.

While many vendors do not do as well in the winter Rena Basch thrives during the winter. Her company is Locavorious and they sell local frozen produce.

“We buy food from all the local farms during harvest season,” Basch said.

“Then we prepare, package, and freeze it so people can still get local produce during the winter.”

Basch came up with the idea because she felt there was a need for local pro-

duce in the winter that was not being fulfilled.

“I would always get depressed in the winter when I had to go back to buying produce usually shipped in from South America at the grocery store,” Basch said.

Basch sells the majority of her product during the winter season with a few exceptions such as strawberries which have a very short harvest season – only 3 weeks. She sells strawberries almost year round at local grocery stores such as the People’s Food CoOp. Even though Basch sells individually packaged frozen fruits and vegetables she does the majority of her business through a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) subscription service.

People buy this subscription during the spring, summer, and fall; they then pick it up at the farmers market or at a few other local markets during the winter.

With Locavorious, Basch has tried to fill the lack of local produce offered in the winter however whenever possible she recommends buying fresh, local produce in the winter.

Some vendors at the farmers market do not even attempt to sell their product in the winter months. This is true for Deanna Malan, who sells her handmade purses and bags. Malan is a retired school teacher who has been selling her purses and bags at the Farmers Market for 40 years and has never attempted selling them in the winter.

“It is not fun for me to stand outside in the winter and there simply is not enough business to make it worthwhile,” Malan said.

Malan operates on Saturdays from mid-April to Christmas. Her peak season is in May when she can sell upwards of 20 bags a day. She sees another peak during Christmas due to holiday shopping and after that she closes up shop until the groundhog

peaks his or her head again.

While operators like Malan close down their stands during the winter months, Sarah DeWitt’s climate-controlled office is open year-round. She is the Market Manager of the Farmers Market and has worked for the Market for two and a half years.

“Jan. through March are our quietest months, we see about 30 vendors,” Dewitt said. “We see a lot meat vendors so they don’t have to worry about keeping it cold. It picks up in April when you see a lot of the bedding plants [plants that can be used to make flower beds] and spring produce.

We see a peak from late April to late June. July and August tend to be some of our slower months mostly because people are crossing over from their spring crops to their harvest fall crops.

Then we pick back up in mid-August all the way through Oct. Then, usually around Nov. whenever the frost hits, it sort of dips off. Then we pick up in Dec. mostly for holiday goods.”

Because of this, the Farmer Market isn’t even open on Wednesdays during Jan. through April. However, DeWitt says that the vendors that do stay open continue to do “pretty well” in the winter. She attributes this to fact that the Ann Arbor Farmer Market is one of the few places customers can access local food in the winter.

In terms of foot traffic, DeWitt said that on a Saturday in fall over 5,000 customers and 110 vendors might come on a Saturday, while around 3,000 might come in December and roughly 1,000 during January through March.

Even though not all vendors operate to full capacity or even operate at all during the winter the Farmers Market is still operational and still is there for its loyal customers.“We feel it’s important to remind people that you can get local food in Michigan all year round,” DeWitt said. february 24

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how health classes are failing: sex education in the united states frances mackercher

Imagine walking down the street when suddenly you pass a vending machine. You turn back to buy some chips, when you realize the machine isn’t holding food -- it’s holding condoms. This is the Netherlands, where safe sex is considered a right.

In the United States, this is not the case.

“Currently there is no federal law that mandates sexuality education, and states are left to decide if and how sexuality education will be taught in public schools,” said Cherie Seitz, a certified Sexuality Educator working at Planned Parenthood. This is unfortunate, but true.

With states in charge of their own sex education, classes vary significantly throughout the United States. Only 22 states mandate that sex education be provided, and only 13 states mandate that sex education, if provided, must be medically accurate. In recent years sex ed has become an increasingly controversial subject in the US. The government has come under scrutiny for funding and supporting abstinence-only programs, despite many studies which prove that abstinence-only sex ed is less effective.

As an argument against teaching sex education, many claim that it encourages sexual activity and leads to higher pregnancy and STI rates. This is, in fact, false. The Netherlands has one of the lowest teen birth rates in the world.

The country teaches sex education in primary and secondary school, compared to the US where most students begin sex ed in the 7th grade. They also air a safe sex movie on public television three times a year and public places are filled with sex positive advertising.

“Teen pregnancies, birth rates and sexually transmitted diseases in the United States are ranked among the highest among industrialized nations,” Seitz said. “On the flipside, the Netherlands, Germany and France continue to have the lowest teen pregnancies, birth rates and sexually transmitted diseases.”

Seitz toured Europe and Brazil in order to study sex education overseas with the Advocates for Youth program, an organization that helps young people make informed and responsible decisions about their reproductive and sexual health. The tour group made a list comprised of things that would bring the US up to date in sex ed.

The first step is to mandate sexual education and advocate for more comprehensive sexuality education. This is followed by supporting and utilizing massive social marketing media campaigns for positive sexuality education (like the

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Respect Yourself Protect Yourself Campaign in Europe), and working more closely with parents, families, youth and faith communities to become responsible sexuality educators themselves.

Changes like these could bring a much needed improvement to the sexual health of the US. In Michigan alone, it is illegal to talk about abortion in schools as an option for unexpected pregnancy and to hand out condoms on school property. Despite the evidence that says we need to update the way we teach sex ed, there are still numerous roadblocks.

To make a change in the sex ed curriculum there is a long process that can often take over a year. The Ann Arbor Sexual Health Education Advisory Committee (SHEAC) is responsible for approving new curriculum that is taught in health classes in the Ann Arbor school district.

The committee is composed of parents, students, teachers and faith leaders (rabbis, priests, etc.). To make a change in the curriculum, SHEAC has to approve the change. Then it is sent to the AAPS Board of Education for them to vote on. If the board approves it, the change goes through two public hearings, then back to the board for another vote. If the board votes yes, the change can finally take effect. This process takes a lot of time and effort, and the changes often end up rejected.

“The Dutch, Germans and French spend far less time and effort than Americans in trying to prevent young people from having sex and more time and effort in educating and empowering young people to behave responsibly when they eventually decide to have sex,” Seitz said. And these European methods seem to be working.

“Even with open, honest and pervasive sexuality education, youth are not engaging in any more sexual activity than their counterparts in the U.S. Youth in the Netherlands (a country often seen as more liberal than the U.S.) actually have a much later average age of sexual debut for youth,” Seitz said. Adopting some of the methods used to teach sex education in Europe could prove critical to lowering teen pregnancy/STI rates in the US. In Seitz’s words, “The mantra is really ‘safe sex or no sex.’” Here in the United States it seems to be “No sex at all, ever.” However, since our country’s sex education seems to be failing our nation’s teens, we may look to a future with more progressive sex education curriculum.

the drinking age hannah rubenstein

The stroke of midnight on New Year’s Day of 1972 began a new stage in the lives of 18 year olds throughout Michigan; they had just gained the legal right to buy and consume alcohol.

John Kerr, a 1972 graduate from Pioneer High School, distinctly remembers this event.

“A friend of mine had just turned 18 in December,” Kerr said. “He had a party New Year’s Eve and was able to legally go out and buy alcohol after midnight.

That was a big deal.”

While the state brought the drinking age back up again in 1978, the lowered age changed how alcohol was thought of in the state, especially by younger people.

The age being lowered to 18 is not at all unusual from a global standpoint.

The worldwide average drinking age is 15.9 and it is 18 in the majority of countries. The United States is only one of six countries that have made it 21.

Part of the motivation for the United States changing their drinking age came from the Vietnam War and the passing of the 26th Amendment. Previously, the drinking and voting age had been 21. The fact that young men who were not old enough to vote were being drafted into the war, however, angered many citizens. As a result, the 26th Amendment was ratified, allowing anybody above the age of 18 to vote, and eventually the drinking age followed suit.

As the drinking age was being lowered throughout Michigan, there were other changes occurring here in Ann Arbor; in 1972, Community High School officially opened its doors.

Mike Mouradian, who taught at Community from 1975 to 2010, spoke about the founding of the school in a period of war and social transformations.

“During that time when the world was changing, they just said, ‘let’s have a school with no rules’,” Mouradian said.

“So for those first few years, there were really no rules.” He added that the age of majority, or the age when a person is officially recognized as an adult by the law, had been lowered to 18 very

recently at that time. That meant that many students attending Community were legally able to move out of their parents’ houses and live on their own while still attending high school. Due to this, “the atmosphere [in the school] was different,” he said.

Mouradian added that while he taught at Community, he participated in a lot of school events or dances, which would sometimes expose him to underaged drinking that occurred. “On occasion somebody might show up to a party drunk,” he said, explaining how the close relationship between students and staff would play into how these issues were dealt with.

“The teachers were sort of friends with students, so if somebody came drunk, we would take them aside and say, ‘I think we need to get you home’.”

Kerr mentioned that during his high school days, it was fairly easy to acquire alcohol. “Kids who wanted to get alcohol were pretty successful at getting it,” he said.

While that might have been Kerr’s experience in 1972, Amelia Rappenport attended Community High starting in 1978, the year the drinking age returned to 21 in Michigan.

“For my friends, alcohol was something that was a luxury if you could get it, but it was very difficult to get it,” Rappenport said. “I would say it was not common.”

Perhaps the brief window of time when the drinking age was 18 marked a significant change in the attitudes of students towards alcohol. Kerr added that being a teen during those years changed more than just his high school experience. “Throughout my college career alcohol was legal, so it was pretty casual; it wasn’t a big deal,” he said.

Since the drinking age has risen to 21 again, many current high schoolers, all of whom chose to remain anonymous, seem to wish to return to a culture where alcohol is not treated like that big of a deal.

One student said that her biggest problem with the drinking age was the strict culture built around it. “You’re

raised to think it’s such a taboo thing, like a forbidden fruit, and that makes it a lot more desirable,” she said. “The law exacerbates that, but the problem is with the culture.”

Another student brought up that viewing alcohol as “forbidden fruit” could lead to underaged drinkers being put into danger. “That taboo makes it so that a lot of kids don’t feel comfortable being honest with their parents, and that’s what puts people into such dangerous positions,” she said. “If you don’t have a designated driver and you have to drive home and you’re drunk, that’s bad, but if you can trust your parent to come and pick you up, that would be much better.”

Drunk driving is a definite danger.

Solely in America in 2013, an estimated 10,076 people passed away in drunk driving crashes. Even with those horrifying realities, there are numerous other hazards that come with drinking, particularly when underaged. According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, “each year, approximately 5,000 young people under the age of 21 die as a result of underage drinking; this includes about 1,900 deaths from motor vehicle crashes, 1,600 as a result of homicides, 300 from suicide, as well as hundreds from other injuries such as falls, burns, and drownings”. Underaged drinking can also damage the devolpment of the brain or other bodily organs.

Despite all of those risks, underaged drinking is common for teenagers in America. According to a 2005 Monitoring the Future study, “three-fourths of 12th graders, more than two-thirds of 10th graders, and about two in every five 8th graders have consumed alcohol”. The drinking age being bumped up to 21 clearly does not stop young people from being capable of obtaining alcohol. Concerns over personal freedoms versus health risks have been and will continue to be hotly debated in this country.

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HISTORY OF THE ANN ARBOR SKATEPARK

eleanor olson bryan mitchell bryanmitchell.com photo

Hundreds of thousands of excited skaters push and shove against each other to see the world famous “Birdman,” Tony Hawk, do tricks in the new skatepark. June 21, 2014 marked the opening of the Ann Arbor Skatepark and one of the most exciting days for Ann Arbor skateboarders. Patrick Eagle, a junior at Community who was at the skatepark on the day of the opening said, “There were so many people!” Eagle said.

“You couldn’t do any lines (long runs of tricks), and you were constantly getting snaked (people cutting into a run), but it was really cool to have the energy of so many people there.”

Ann Arbor has long been the home to many skateboarders, with an estimated 5,000 skateboarders currently living in Ann Arbor, ranging from eight year olds to 40 year olds. Unlike the “Hollywood” image of skateboarders as punk teenagers with mohawks, the Ann Arbor skateboarder spans many socioeconomic backgrounds and occupations. However, until that day in 2014, it did not have a skatepark.

As one saying goes, if your city doesn’t have a skatepark, then the city is your skatepark.

Unfortunately, this is not a law recognized by the Ann Arbor Police Force. If you are caught “using your city as a skatepark” you risk confiscated boards, getting kicked out, and a $100 fine if the police are called. “I always know where all the exits are so if I need to run, you know I know where to go,” said Dug Song, the man responsible for the proposal of the Ann Arbor Skatepark. “It probably comes from being chased by cops enough times you know where to go.”

A logical solution to this problem would be to build a skatepark, and that’s what 26 t he c o mmunica t o r

Dug Song and Trevor Staples set out to do in 2005, when they formed the Ann Arbor Skateboard Action Committee (AASAC).

“Every time I go and skate, I am like ‘Wow,’” Song said. “I can’t believe we actually did it. We got to be a part of something, to get stuff done here.”

THE BEGINNING

Dug Song, now an Ann Arbor Business owner, first pitched the idea to build a skatepark in 1998, after he graduated from the University of Michigan in 1997.

“I was trying hard to figure out what it would take to stay here and a skatepark was one of those things,” said Song. “So I petitioned city council. [I] knew nothing about the political process, just showed up one day.” Song was inspired to build the skate park after going through the Ann Arbor Park Department five-year budget plan and seeing an outline for a skatepark. Song put together a presentation and some handouts and went to a city council meeting.

However, his drive didn’t last long.

“I met up with my friend Trevor at the time and we both got into this and then it just kinda died off,” said Song. “We all got busy . Until we had the critical mass of a few folks who could actually meet on a regular basis to propel the process forward it just sort of lingered.” It wasn’t until Dug Song, Trevor Staples, a teacher in the Ann Arbor Public Schools, and other committee members formed the Ann Arbor Skatepark Action Committee in 2005 that the project got rolling.

Staples has lived in Ann Arbor his whole life, attending Bach, Slauson, Pioneer and Community. Ever since he was a teenager in

the 1980’s he has been interested in building a skatepark in Ann Arbor.

“What really got me involved was when Kunselman came on city council because I knew him from skateboarding back in the ‘80s and it was someone who I knew was supportive of skateboarding who would be helpful,” Staples said. “I joined up with Dug and in 2007 we began holding meetings and the first one was in the basement of Launch Board Shop, about a dozen people showed up, some kids more parents, people who were interested.”

Staples and Song led the project to build the skate park, however they were backed by a very supportive community.

“I ended up recruiting a lot of other people to a board that ended up getting pretty good, pretty diverse,” said Song. “Folks who were skaters, who weren’t skaters, we had a judge, we had parents, we had people who didn’t have kids who were skaters themselves, just a big mix. Some folks later who came from the world of city politics from parks and who knew how this stuff worked.”

Staples and Song both expressed a lot of frustration with the political process in Ann Arbor. They said it took them seven years start to finish the whole process of building the park, half the amount of time it took to finish the dog park.

“It’s sad when you look at other communities that get this stuff done in a year or two because they have the political will to do it.

Here, in a city like Ann Arbor, everything is pretty pretentious.”

Staples saw a lot of the problem coming from a lack of funds. “There are dozens of skate parks in Michigan since 2000 and

K

I skate the bowls, where the older guys hang out. When I went to Community it was in the ‘80s, we were hardcore punkers back then and skateboarding was part of that punk theme, and it’s grown from there and now it’s sort of mainstream, which is pretty cool.

-Trevor Staples

Bowls are really cool. These rocks are really good too… but… the tranny run…. I like the snake run a lot too. This bump is pretty cool, the boob… That’s cool.

-Sam Works

I like the whole thing, it’s pretty awesome. I like the three stair, that’s nice, and the rail. I learned how to do that in November so that was pretty dope.

I like the five stair, I landed a trick down that.

My favorite part is how you can do a perfect line down the five stair, you can hit the rail, and then pop over the pyramid, and then take the other two sets of stairs. I love how it’s made so you can flow from the top of it to the bottom of it. I also love this euro gap.

-Marius Johnson

-Patrick Eagle

I like how well it’s built and how the ramps just flow together.

Because some skate parks are not designed well and it just doesn’t feel good.

-Zane Jones

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Ann Arbor just got one last year,” Staples said. “As far as Ann Arbor being more open to it, money is really what is the determining factor. And as far as Ann Arbor being more liberal, I think in a lot of ways it is, but when you dig a little deeper it’s a lot like other parts of Michigan.”

According to Staples, the biggest problem was funding.

“When we set out to do this, we aimed for a million dollar skatepark,” Staples said.

“So in 2007/2008 was when the economy crashed pretty hard. That’s when we started fundraising and it was very hard to get people to commit to funding.” The project got their biggest break when in 2010 the Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Commission pledged to match up to $400,000 to develop the skate park.

After the money was secured away, the design process for the skatepark began.

Since the beginning in 2005 the proposed location for the skatepark was Veterans Memorial Park, so the main focus was finding a skatepark designer. “We searched far and wide to find the best skatepark designers we could. I mean, there is only a handful of designers,” Song said. “Wally [Hollywood] is who we ended up using. Whenever I drop 2005 2006 into a new city there are two things I always check out; the library and the skatepark.

You can tell a lot about a community by how good its libraries are and whether or not it has any skateparks.”

In 2013, the Ann Arbor City Council unanimously approved the design for the Skatepark at Veterans Memorial Park and a groundbreaking ceremony was held. Construction was done over the following year, during which some overly eager teenagers broke into the unfinished skatepark.

“It was all fenced off, but there was this one part connected to the baseball diamonds where the fence was covered by those yellow plastic round things, so we just hopped over that, it was really easy to just slide over it. And we just kinda skated,” said a Community High student. “I just wanted to get a feel for it. I figured there wasn’t a lot of risk.

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I’d been waiting since like 5th grade.”

members a much more skateboard-friendly Community.

“They did have Community Resources THE OPENING “[Tony Hawk] did tricks that weren’t even back then and I remember someone had skateboard tricks,” said Sam Works. “He a Community Resource that you could get did a frontflip off of his skateboard and a PE credit for skateboarding to school,” landed on his feet. It was insane. I was like- Staples said. “Yeah there was a lot of skateboarders at community, thats where I met a thats not a trick!”

The opening of the skatepark included lot of my friends who I still skate with now.”

Dug Song who attended the University not just Tony Hawk, but many other professional skaters and even the first all girls of Michigan in the 1990’s also remembers a strong skate community in Ann Arbor. “I skate.

“A lot of people showed up,” Song said. remember you would see the corner of state “We are also fortunate that we have folks and north U, right there where Walgreens like Andy McDonald. A guy who grew up is now I guess, that whole corner right there skating with a lot of Trevor’s crew even above the diag, that corner used to be filthy though he didn’t technically live here, he’s with skaters,” Song said, “You could go now one of the world’s top professional there any day, any time of the week, they were just hanging out there sort of like they skateboarders.”

With so many famous faces, it was no won- owned downtown. We used to go out on der the event attracted thousands of people. these sessions like all city… there were like “Everyone is doing these year end reviews, 80 kids.”

Now, with more enforced anti-skateboardsome of these great skate photographers are using these photos from the park opening, ing rules this is harder to find. “It still exin the summary of the highlights of 2014 ists, for sure, like when you go down to the with Tony Hawk and all these guys, it was skatepark, like I’m still skating in the dead amazing,” Song said. “I think its what this of winter, in December and there is still like 40 kids at the park and it is like freezing,” community deserves.” great skate comFor Staples and Song, the opening was 2007 2008Song said, “And Yipsi has a2009 more than just some event; it was the end munity too, they built their own skatepark, of a long journey filled with hard work and their own DIY skatepark in a tennis court, Prospect Park. Its pretty hardcore.” dedication.

However, Marius Johnson is bringing “The best part about it was seeing everyone out there enjoying it,” Staples said. “I skateboarding back to Community with the worked on it for 7 years and I got known as Skate Club. “I saw that a lot of people… well the skatepark guy. By the time it got built not a lot but a lot of people that I’m friends it felt good, but what felt better was seeing with skateboard and I said “Do you want to it enjoyed the way we thought that people go to the skatepark one day?” and they were were going to enjoy it. That is all ages and like yeah so we found some other ninth all ability levels and even non-skaters going graders who skateboard and we were like, we should start a club!” Johnson said. “So there.” we got that going, we started going, having Cameron drive us, and it became a club.”

THE NOW Johnson hopes that membership will go Skateboarding and Community High up in the springtime, as indoor skateparks School have had a long history. Now, you can see the signs around the campus that are pretty far away. read “No Skateboarding,” however this was not always the case. Trevor Staples, who attended Community in the 1980’s re-

ZANE JONES Q: Do you go to the Ann Arbor Skate Park?

A: “I skate there everyday, when it’s warm after school.”

Q: What’s your favorite part about it?

A: “I like how well it’s built and how the ramps just flow together.

Because some skate parks are not designed well and it just doesn’t feel good.”

JULIAN MAYES-BURNETT Q: Do you skate at the Ann Arbor Skate Park?

A: “Yeah, sometimes.”

Q: What’s your favorite part about it?

A: “The snake run.”

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SAM WORKS Q: Do you skate at the Ann Arbor Skate Park?

A: “Oh yeah, it’s a great time.”

Q: What’s your favorite part about it?

A: “The snake run is phenomenal, and the bulls are far more fun than I expected. It has a really nice street course. I think the snake run is probably the best part, it’s just so much flow, it’s great.”

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HOW THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN IS THRIVING ON SNAPCHAT

image courtesy of social media at umich

he first week of classes after winter break this year brought frost and and a windchill of down to negative 21 degrees to Ann Arbor, which posed a particular problem for University of Michigan students walking outdoors from class to class. And Nikki Sunstrum, the social media director at the UofM, knew that there would be students who didn’t have the appropriate winter garb for facing the cold.

“There are kids who don’t have gloves or mittens, or I see people on Twitter who are coming back home to Ann Arbor from Texas or California and may not be prepared as a freshman to dress for the weather,” Sunstrum said.

That’s when she decided to call up the MDen. Soon enough, Sunstrum had driven over to the store and purchased hats, mittens, handwarmers and a scarf. She then made her way to the Diag with one of her interns, opened up the university’s Snapchat account and waited.

“We told people [via social media] to come see us,” Sunstrum said. “So we were just plucking students that were texting across campus with freezing cold fingers and handing out gloves and taking a video of talking to them. [The students] said that they were grateful. For me, the social element of my job isn’t just the social platforms, but going out and being social with the students as well.”

University of Michigan’s recent social pride and joy is the school’s Snapchat use. Not only does the university’s account have thousands of followers, but Snapchat themselves recently gave Michigan the opportunity to add not only four new Geofilters (filters a user can access when he or she is in a certain location), but also a Campus Story for students to send in snaps and have them be seen collectively by the entire on-site student body.

Sunstrum says she first thought of utilizing Snapchat for the university while she was watching last year’s Super Bowl.

“I watch the Super Bowl because, for me, it’s become a place to see new social habit, for watching for cool new stuff happening in social media,” she said. “And Audi happened 30 t he c o m m unic a t o r

to partner with the Onion, the satirical online article generator, and they used Snapchat to snap live at the Super Bowl.

I was really intrigued by how that was going to be of any benefit to anyone, and I followed along.”

Soon enough, Sunstrum brought the idea of creating a university Snapchat to her team, and they begun research.

She credits her student interns for knowing what’s popular on campus, as they told her about how much they and their friends had been using the application. On Feb. 26, 2014, Sunstrum and her team launched the account, and the University of Michigan became the second university in the world to have a Snapchat.

“We jumped in and were all-in from the get-go,” Sunstrum said. “We tracked analytics, we watched everything, we had 1000+ new followers in the first day. People were really excited about it.”

While the Snapchat had success from the start, Sunstrum said it’s not her team’s main focus.

“The question for us became how do we apply collaborative efforts throughout the university system?” Sunstrm said.

“What I don’t want is everyone on campus feeling like they need a Snapchat account. I want people to work together to use our branded account to really draw the eyeballs to the overarching entity. We were able to partner with our Office of Development on Giving Blue Day. We were able to partner with the Health systems about a blood drive. So we do all these snap stories in collaboration with other people to get the eyeballs on their content as well, only in this new venue that we’re really thriving in.”

The Campus Story that students from all around campus are able to send snaps to is out of Sunstrum’s control. She says that Snapchat themselves chooses which pictures and videos will be apart of that day’s campus story. But with aspects that are in her control, Sunstrum has found that University of Michigan students love to be reshared in this manner.

“One of the things that we did on a whim in the beginning

it that could have been dangerous was start screenshotting content that was submitted to us,” Sunstrum said. “That was a faux pas on Snapchat. But now, we are fortunate that whenever we showcase a person or student, any sort of individual who shares content with us, they find it flattering and feel very special to be reshared by us.”

Nick Margolis is a Community High graduate and current junior at the University of Michigan. He says he uses Snapchat several times a day throughout the day, and that he’s noticed the new Michigan campus addition.

“I’ve watched all of the snaps on it,” Margolis said. “Some are pretty funny. I think it’s been a positive update to both Snapchat as a social media application and the school, as it only creates fun publicity.”

Margolis also says that the recent additions to Snapchat on University of Michigan property reminds him of an application he previously beta tested called Sup where users share videos of their surroundings with friends. “[Sup] would use different people’s locations to show lines at events or bars,” Margolis said. “I think Snapchat is playing off that as it connects the Michigan campus and it’s students.”

Rose Lewis is a Community High senior who was accepted into the University of Michigan via early action. Lewis is currently planning on attending the university, and has been offered a place on the rowing team. She says she uses her Snapchat account infrequently and has seen the Campus Story and Geofilters.

“It is really interesting because it’s like a little glimpse into what the students who are there now are doing,” Lewis said.

“I also like it because I obviously already live in Ann Arbor but have never seen [the university] from the perspective of a college student. It’s pretty cool to see literal ‘snaps’ of what the current students are doing throughout their day and how they are seeing and using Ann Arbor.”

Lewis also says that, as a prospective student, she enjoys how the Campus Story is giving her a taste of what may soon

be her everyday life.

“One time I saw people erging on the [Campus Story] and I got all excited,” Lewis said. “It really just makes me wonder more about how different it’s actually going to be. I have no idea what to expect, despite having lived in Ann Arbor for so long, but seeing the stories makes it seem more real. Like college is actually going to happen.”

Sunstrum says she knew prospective students would be watching the Snapchat developments from the time the account launched.

“A large portion of our Snapchat audience is prospectives, and that’s great for us,” Sunstrum said. “Building that consumer relationship (via social media) is so important because we know that the data says, more than anything at this point, that our generation and the younger generation are trusting their friends more than they’re trusting an advertising agency. We’re not watching TV anymore for it to tell us what to do. All of our platforms give us the opportunity to build a connection that we can then turn into an actual physical student. And when they get here, its more about utilizing the tools for education, information, resource and fun.”

On Feb. 1, Sunstrum had her eye on ways for the university brand to develop in the future as she watched the Super Bowl.

“Right now, we are really looking at how to reimagine our YouTube channel. On Facebook, our videos auto-play, which is great because that means more eyeballs are on it.

We’re looking to get more visual moving content out. We’re working on making videos on maybe a day in the life of someone, or one for study tips. It’s hard to say what the next big thing will be, but we’re really focused on storytelling, and that’s what we’ve found sells and is successful, and so we’re finding new ways to do that.”

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MIKE MONAHAN hannah davis & marcelo salas

photo courtersy of lisa monahan

Mike Monahan, the current owner of Monahan’s Seafood Market, discusses fishing, Zingerman’s, Hoover vacuum cleaners, and what’s next for the 35 year old business

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nce a commercial artist for a Lansing area department store, Mike Monahan found little comfort in laboring over drawings of Hoover vacuum cleaners and Johnny Carson suits. So, he brushed aside the studio deadlines and two art degrees to work at a fish market owned by the Real Seafood Company.

A year later, he purchased the shop and established Monahan’s Seafood Market as a retail of his own.

At first, Monahan was limited in his knowledge of seafood: the craft, the industry and the fare. This changed at the hands of his earliest clientele.

“When I first started here, I was just a kid selling fish who had an interest in eating fish and fishing. I really didn’t know much. But every time a customer came in and bought something unusual, I would ask, ‘How are you going to prepare that fish?’ By the end of the day, I would have five or ten ideas of what to try that night,” said Monahan.

Now a proud store owner, Monahan was introduced to the seafood business early on, as his home was nestled on the shores of Lake St. Clair. His first catch, a perch, came at the age of two on Cedar Lake with the help of some more experienced fishermen. And, eventually, he entered summer fishing tournaments with his father, competing for new equipment and other scrumptious prizes.

MORE THAN A FAMILY Mike met his wife in a Cadillac truck when his friend asked if he could drive her to work one morning. Lisa Monahan, however, has become more than a life partner. Mrs. Monahan has worked the shop with Mike and their children, Carson, Kimberly and Sarah for 35 years.

“A lot of parents don’t get to spend

as much time with their kids because they’re working all the time. I’m working with my kids all the time,” Monahan said.

Outside of the family, Monahan has teamed with Paul Saginaw and Ari Weinzweig in the founding of his market and later Zingerman’s Delicatessen.

In the deli’s first years, he was running from building to building until his own business picked up. While his presence in Zingerman’s has diminished, Monahan still works with his former partners, buying and selling stocks.

With the installation of a kitchen and cafe area, Monahan’s underwent noticeable changes in the market’s style of operation.

“I think we have really gotten more sophisticated in our retail selection and our knowledge of the fish that are out there and the different people in the different parts of the world – what they want and what they do with these products,” said Monahan. “We’ve learned a lot more about different things to do with our products. [We have] a lot of new sauces, rubs and marinades, different cooking styles. Adding that element of cooking the fish here has added to our business. Instead of just retail, we have all these customers sitting around and eating now.”

Because the selection of fish is seasonal, the menu changes with great frequency. This is Monahan’s favorite aspect of the business.

“This time of the year, when the water’s all cold and the shellfish is all sweet, I’d say there’s nothing like a simple steamed mussel or maybe some steamed clams with chilli tomato sauce,” he said.

SPREADING THE SPICE Since its founding in 1979, Monahan’s has served as dining place for the likes of Anthony Bourdain, a celebrity chef, to W. Michael Blumenthal, the

former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury.

But the most memorable experience to date came at the expense of a regular customer.

When Monahan was preparing a sample of the smoked fish pâté on a cracker, a fateful customer reached over the counter to grab her taste tester.

When she pulled her arm back, a living crawfish had latched onto her sleeve, causing her to flail. Moments later, a scream erupted from another corner of the shop. The creature had landed in a bystander’s purse.

Monahan’s location at the heart of Kerrytown has also made the spot a lunch option for students at Community High School.

“Back in the old days I was kind of the mean old guy chasing [students] out because they would come in here, block the aisle, hang around and make a lot of noise, scare away the little old ladies and stuff. Now that they’re actually buying our food and sitting down, I enjoy the kids,” Monahan said. “Community kids are great.”

It is important to Mr. Monahan that the market continues to grow and maintain a high quality of service.

“I think we probably know more about the international preparation of these fish more than anyone around,” he said.

The next goal for the business is to open a full-fledged restaurant, but, as he nears retirement age, Monahan would like to pass the market on to one of his children or trusted staff members.

“It’s kind of fun because we have all these smells and flavors out there.

We’ve had customers from all around the world teaching us for 35 years.

Business has been good.”

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ABOVE the washtenaw correctional facility houses programs to assist the incarcerated, two of which deal with faith and reading

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TODD S C H U LT Z S AY S THE LORD SAVED HIM. madeline halpert

marcelo salas photo

It happened during the third year of his prison sentence when a gang fight escalated.

“It was either hurt or be hurt, and [God] stopped me and said, ‘Take a look at this and try something different.’ And I did,” Schultz said.

It was then that Schultz’ life began to change.

“I stopped being that person,” he said.

“I looked where my life was going and how it was continuing to deteriorate.

I was becoming more like an animal than a responsible man, and I had to stop that.”

Schultz started going to the church in prison, where he found Northridge prison ministry. This program is one of many intended to help prisoners become more responsible during and after their time in prison. Through letters, church activities and pro-social groups, Schultz began to surround himself with better individuals. “[I found] my new social group, my new role models,” Schultz said. “I didn’t have to be that tough guy that I thought I needed to be. I could look at these other people and say, ‘This is the person that I want to be.’”

According to a study from the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics, an estimated 68 percent of 405,000 prisoners released in 30 states in 2005 were arrested for a new crime within three years of release from prison. 77 percent were arrested within five years. Ken Smith, one of the leaders of the Prison Ministry at Northridge Church, says that through their program, they can significantly reduce this percentage.

“We have found that with people who develop faith and understanding, it gets down to about 25 percent [of people who return to prison],” Smith said.

Smith explains the ministry has a multitude of methods intended to help their “friends inside” get back on their feet. One of these ways is by building relationships with them through a pen pal program.

“We write to people inside and send them materials about things that they can do as far as anger and all kinds of other issues,” Smith said.

Smith adds that the ministry also does one-on-one visits with the prisoners, where they’re able to talk freely about who they are now, and who they would like to be in the future.

Their program “One Day with God” offers the opportunity for reconnection between incarcerated parents and their children.

“We take the children of our friends inside in the prison for the whole day,” he said.

The day consists of playing games, music and crafts. At the end of the day, the children leave with a big package of gifts from their parents.

Smith feels it’s important the prisoners get a chance to do these types of activities. He believes they deserve forgiveness.

“People think that people in prison are like [they are] in the movies,” he said. “They’re not. They’re just like you and me. They put their pants on the same way we do, they have families they love, they have the same concerns that we have, but they did something

wrong, and they got caught for doing it, and now they’re paying the price. But they deserve another chance, and God gives another chance.”

Schultz wishes that people would think twice before judging someone who has been incarcerated.

“Men and women who are in prison– they are human beings,” Schultz said. “And they can change, and change takes hard work on their part, but it also takes forgiveness by society to take them back into the community.”

He says that the current justice system, along with rates of mass incarceration, do not allow for change. He likes to think of it as putting a shoebox on a shelf for a period of time. A few years, or ten years, or 20 years go by, and it’s time to send the shoebox home, so someone takes the shoebox off the shelf and releases it into the world. But it’s still the exact same shoebox someone put on the shelf 20 years ago.

Schultz believes programs like Northridge Prison Ministry gives prisoners a chance to feel like more than just another shoe box on the shelf, to feel like they’re evolving.

“A lot of men and women are in prison because of poor self-image, feeling ashamed that they can never be anything other than that inmate,” Schultz said. “Because in prison, that’s what you are. You’re an inmate or a number, so you don’t feel like a human being anymore. These programs help you to strive to be something that you didn’t think you could be.”

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S TAY I N G I N C L O S E R T O U C H .

It was after a mother finished reading the story “Fish Had a Wish” in the Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility that she began to cry. She was narrating a tape that would soon after be given to her child.

Karen Smyte, a volunteer and board member of the program Staying In Closer Touch, was with the imprisoned mother. Smyte thinks the repetition of the word “wish” in the book is what made her cry. She believes the mother was thinking, “I wish, I wish, I wish, I could be with my child.”

“Staying in Closer Touch” is one of Children’s Literacy Network’s four main programs to help get books in the hands of low income children. The program’s volunteers work at three correction facilities in Michigan: the Washtenaw County Jail, the Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility and the Men’s Federal Detention Center in Milan.

The volunteers then help mothers, fathers, grandmothers and grandfathers select books for their children and grandchildren record readings of the books. They send these recordings, along with cards decorated by the parents, to the children of the prisoners.

Kristy Cooper, the executive director of Children’s Literacy Network, says the program can serve more than one purpose.

“For a lot of the children, it’s a really great experience to hear their parents’ voice on command,” she said. “And to actually be able to do that in the context of encouraging reading and helping them be interested in reading is vital.”

Cooper says that the tapes can be delivered to children all over the state.

Because the Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility is the only women’s prison in the state, any woman who is incarcerated in Michigan is then brought to Ypsilanti. This can make it difficult for the children to see their incarcerated parents.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics, around 53 percent of 36 t he c o mmunica t o r

people held in the nation’s prisons in 2007 were parents of minor children.

For Rick Duncan, a volunteer at the Milan Men’s Federal Correctional Facility, the program hit close to home.

He found an ad for Staying in Closer Touch during a difficult time in his life when he was looking to volunteer regularly.

“When I saw it, it sent a shiver down my spine because my dad had been incarcerated for ten years,” Duncan said.

“And not only was he incarcerated, but he’s also illiterate.”

Duncan was 25 years old when his father was imprisoned. He says it felt almost like a death in the family– except worse, because the pain continued on with no closure.

“I closed off to the world,” he said.

“It was very painful. All day long, every day, I had this aching, searing feeling in my stomach.”

Duncan says that, no matter how hard he tried, he could not stop caring about his father. He visited him often. They wrote letters which, due to his father’s illiteracy, could be incredibly difficult for the average person to understand.

Still, Duncan and his father remained in close contact.

Duncan explains that during a person’s time in prison, their relationships with family members are often messy.

He likes that the program can provide a form of effective communication for parents and their children.

“If they’re going to be in touch anyway, this is an opportunity to make that contact as positive as possible,” Duncan said.

Jan Brimacombe, the first volunteer at the Milan’s Men’s Federal Correction Center, says she does it because of the positive feedback from inmates.

“It was just amazing to hear a grandmother say, ‘My grandson listens to this book every day. He takes the book to bed,’” she said.

Brimacombe also likes the personal twists the prisoners add to the stories.

On one particular occasion, a father

chose a story about three little owls waiting for their mother to come home from hunting. The father changed the three owls’ names to the names of his own children, and the mother owl to the father owl.

Brimacombe says that one of the largest challenges the program faces is getting new volunteers into the prisons.

“Our biggest frustration is not with the men, but with the bureaucracy,” Brimacombe said. “I have a volunteer I met with in October who wants to do this program, and she still hasn’t been called by the prison to be trained.”

She says that there can also be miscommunications between the program and the prison. If the prison is under lockdown, it’s difficult to contact the prison to find out what’s going on.

Smyte adds that there can be a different kind of difficulty for the inmates.

She says the hardest moment is when the book is closed.

“The moment the recorder goes off is exactly when the absence of not being with that child is felt acutely,” Smyte said.

Smyte feels the program could be expanded to many other prisons to help prisoners remain in contact with their families.

“My dream is to spread the program all around the country,” she said. “I believe it’s a relatively easy intervention that helps build community and connects families.”

Smyte hopes to create a book club with the parents and their children. She believes it would provide an opportunity to bring children of incarcerated parents together, with no shame involved.

Duncan says the most gratifying part for him comes with thinking about what these stories mean to the children, and how it inspires a love of reading.

“Some child that was just born– they didn’t do anything to deserve what they have,” he said. “They’ve been dealt some difficult cards, but that package that you’re holding is going to bring them such happiness.”

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bob mankoff sophia simon

“Humor is a universal phenomenon.

We know of no culture that doesn’t have it, but the content of that humor is different in different cultures,” said Bob Mankoff, cartoon editor of The New Yorker magazine. Similar to how language, customs, or traditions can vary around the world, humor exists as a diverse social construct. Despite changes in the way people perceive humor, there is no question of its necessity as a social tool.

“In a species such as ourselves who have to both collaborate and compete, humor acts as a safety valve and tension reliever,” Mankoff said.

However, humor does not exist solely for competition and diffusing tension.

The presence of humor in early hominids helped lay the foundation for the complex social society we live in today.

“Humor is basically a social phenomenon,” Mankoff said. “People laugh 30 times more frequently when they are with other people than alone. Laughter occurs throughout the day in ordinary conversation. Interestingly, we laugh more after what we say than in response to others.”

Comedy exists for a multitude of reasons - to connect, relax, challenge - but fundamentally, the human ability to laugh binds us together as a social society. We are a humor-seeking species.

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Although humor changes dramatically across time and space, the way people experience humor nowadays can be organized into various humor styles.

“Psychologists classify them as affiliative, self-enhancing, aggressive and self-deprecating,” said Mankoff, who identifies his own sense of humor as “very semi-serious” (a definition that is, in it of itself, comedically juxtaposed).

Mankoff’s unique ability to understand his own sense of humor comes from the fact that he has devoted time to understanding humor from an academic perspective. In 2003 Mankoff was invited to the University of Michigan’s Knight-Wallace Fellowship program to give a lecture and was connected with Richard Lewis.

“During my stay I had some meetings with Ric Lewis, a professor of psychology and linguistics. Meeting with Ric rekindled ideas that had long laid dormant about investigating the way in which people view and “get” cartoons,” said Mankoff.

Of the forms of humor, Mankoff has developed a personal preference: “Put me down for satire. Sarcasm is just basically insult in a comic envelope. Nobody can agree on a definition of irony, and parody is too parasitic for my taste.”

An example of a comedic technique that can produce a satirical form of comedy is incongruity.

“In my cartoons I create an incongruous situation that also makes sense within a comic framework. What has been called an appropriate incongruity.

So, I might have a patient on a psychiatrist’s couch saying ‘Just once I’d like to be accepted for who I’m not,’” Mankoff said, describing a cartoon idea. “On one level it doesn’t make any sense; we want to be accepted for who we are.

But on another it does because someone undergoing psychotherapy also has aspirations to be different.”

Incongruity theory is used in many of Mankoff’s comics, but the method of producing humor also lives outside of his written comedy. When asked what he considered to be his greatest talent, Mankoff replied: “My humility.”

As a cartoonist, Mankoff requires a skill set necessary to not only understand humor, but to create it.

“Long story short: It’s hard to be funny for money,” said Mankoff, “In the ordinary course of events you don’t have to find humor; it will find you.”

Although humor is a naturally occurring part of our everyday lives, in special cases where people must create humor for an audience - like stand up comedy shows and cartoons - it can be

“[Humor exists] to sharpen our wits; bond with our friends; disparage our enemies; connect with our lovers; to help bear the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune and the heartache and the thousand natural shocks that flesh is heir to.”

difficult.

“If you want to create humor for others to enjoy you have to exaggerate or refine the ‘you had to be there’ humor of everyday life so that you don’t have to be there,” said Mankoff, “That means you have to be alert to life’s absurdities, conflicts and annoyances and for comic purposes make them even more absurd, conflicted and annoying.”

One might assume that throughout the process of creating humor, knowledge of what causes people to laugh would be helpful. However, given the complex nature of humor psychology, Mankoff considers the opposite to be true.

“As a cartoonist, I pretty much block out all this knowledge or I would never be able to do a cartoon.”

Mankoff reads hundreds of cartoons every week and plays a major role in deciding which ones make it into the magazine.

“As cartoon editor, I’m aware of all the different factors that go into why we like or dislike a cartoon,” Mankoff said. “Often the joke as a joke is a very small part. We may like the cartoon because it reinforces a view that we have or satirizes a political position we don’t hold.”

A knack for not only understanding good humor, but identifying it is also important to Mankoff’s line of work.

“I’m looking for a mix of observational humor, political and personal satire and inspired absurdity,” Mankoff said.

Furthermore, it is the Editor’s job to

pick the right cartoons to run, not just the funniest ones.

“All issues can be addressed, but, for The New Yorker, as I’ve said, tastefully.

That’s because The New Yorker is not essentially a comedic environment. Its default condition is to be serious and empathetic. Only certain kinds of humor will work within that framework.”

Selecting the right cartoon can be particularly difficult in cases where humor is not appropriate. Mankoff found his work most meaningful when he was tested with the challenge of “finding the right cartoons to publish after 9/11.”

In recent events, this question of what is okay or not okay to publish was put to the test in the case of terrorist attacks against the Charlie Hebdo publication, a French satirical magazine.

“On a personal level I was shocked, horrified and saddened by what happened [at Charlie Hebdo]. There are almost no good reasons for killing someone and a distressingly long list of bad ones. On that bad list, one of the worst reasons has to be because you’re offended by someone’s cartoons,” Mankoff said.

Having had personal experience censoring himself and second guessing a cartoon’s appropriateness, Mankoff understands that not all humor is fit to print, but he also recognizes that humor, along with all forms of expression, can be offensive and accepts that.

“I’m not one of those who believes cartoons, jokes and humor of all kinds

should get a pass from criticism just because it’s humor. These kinds of humor are all part of free expression and along with that goes the right to freely express your displeasure,” Mankoff said. “That’s all part of a democracy where we have freedom of expression, especially and explicitly and most importantly for expression we don’t like.

It’s not needed for what we like.”

The importance of humor in everyday life as a form of expression is not to be overlooked.

“Humor questions everything. Its essence is skepticism of received wisdom, even the received wisdom of religion.

The business of humor is not to be respectful. I think more harm is done by respect than disrespect. And I vote for skepticism over belief any day. Look what blind belief got us the other day,” Mankoff said, in reference to the attack against Charlie Hebdo.

Humor is an aspect of humanity that is almost solely attributed to lightning what can sometimes feel like a lonely and cruel world. “I think the overall message is that life is too serious not to be taken humorously,” said Mankoff, describing the general meaning of his work.

Quoting famous author and poet, Oscar Wilde, Mankoff said, “If you want to tell people the truth, make them laugh, otherwise they’ll kill you.”

february

39

O

josh krauth-harding

n May 8, 2012, voters in the Ann “I think it’s good pressure,” McCormick liking it,” Haidu-Banks said. “I’m figuring Arbor Public Schools District vot- said. “We’re in the 21st century now, so I out how to use it, and figuring out how to ed on a bond issue to replace out- think the expectation is that students are project PowerPoints, lectures, video, etc. dated technology throughout the using technology in their everyday life. To My presentations are more colorful because school networks. The support for the bond get students ready for being in a very tech- of it, I have access to more materials, priwas overwhelming. nological society they need to be exposed to mary sources, photographs, where as beOverall, the bond will spend $45,855,000 different types [early on].” fore I might have been passing it around in a three-step series with the last of the Some teachers don’t like this pressure as for people to look at—now I can project it. money coming in 2018. So far, the bond has much. Cindy Haidu-Banks, a Community Hopefully it’s improved my lessons a little already spent $7.85 million on in-school veteran US History teacher, said that she bit.” student computers, including the iMacs in thought this pressure was a little too much.

Another addition that’s been on the rise the computer lab and media center.

“We’re constantly given technology, and for a position in classroom technology are With $2.126 million spent on teacher we’re expected to use the new technology,” cellphones, yet few teachers use these in and administrator computers, the amount Haidu-Banks said. “There’s very little train- their lessons. Many have outlawed them. of technology implemented in Community ing on the new technology, and for some of “I’m an extreme cellphone hater, so when classrooms has risen steeply—whether it’s the older teachers—I would be one—it can someone says the word ‘technology’ to me good thing or a bad thing, that’s up to the be daunting. It’s not naturally the way that I think of cellphones, and I want to throw teachers.

I think, or that my mind works, so it’s hard- them out of the window,” Kiley said. “It’s “I think the use of technology, when used er—I have a long learning curve.” discouraging for me to see anytime a kid efficiently and well, gets a free second, can enhance learnthey reach for their “I THINK IT’S THE TEACHER’S RESPONSIBILITY TO CHOOSE THE TOOL phone instead of ing and enhance student engagement in talking to someone WISELY [AND] IT’S ALL BASED ON THE SELECTION OF THE TOOL.” what they’re learnthat they’re sitting ing,” said Marcy Mcnext to.”

Cormick, a Foundations of Science (FOS) Plus, technology may take away some of Not only is it diminishing social contact, teacher at Community High School. “[It the beneficial experiences our parents ex- Kiley explained, it also messes up her recan] get kids excited about doing things in a perienced when they were in school, points sults from students. “[Instead of] asking new and different way.” out Haidu-Banks. someone a question, everyone just resorts “Kids learn in different ways, so I think “I get a little worried about the loss to looking it up on the internet, and then I [that] some kids really love lecture and of pen and paper,” Haidu-Banks get some junky Wikipedia definitions for some kids hate it,” added Courtney Kiley, said. ”I think it’s important to everything.” another FOS teacher at Community. “I write and there’s some brain McCormick doesn’t think it’s that think having a flashy PowerPoint will help action there that helps with black and white. It all depends on some kids remember the information, but retaining the knowledge.” what it’s used for. then actually doing a simulation will help There are other forms of “A cellphone can be potentially a the kids.” technology in the classroom very powerful tool if used appropriMcCormick isn’t the only teacher who that aren’t as obvious such as ately, given the right type of app feels this way, [statistic] students said the new projectors that appeared or right type of program being they’ve used technology regularly in all of freshly in Community high school used. It’s all based on the selectheir classes this semester, suggesting it’s a rooms at the beginning of the 2014-2015 tion of the tool,” McCormick trend that’s here for better or for worst. Mc- school year. said.

Cormick suggests that this is due to pres“It took me a while to get used to the pro“Personally, I’m neutral sure from the district higher-ups. jector that we have on the ceiling; now I’m about technology in my 40 t he c o m m unic a t o r

op-ed.

the reason for

RAP

despite common belief, rap is not all negative.

R

marie jacobson

apping essentially involves the speaking or chanting of rhyming lyrics set to a beat. The rhyming created by rappers is a sophisticated style of poetry. But these rhymes also often address provocative subjects such as violence, women, and money. Rapping first gained popularity in the U.S. in the 1970s as a kind of street art, especially among African American teenagers. By the 1990s, rap matured from an old-school-style based on relatively simple lyrics, to a new-schoolstyle, which was louder and included more complex lyrics.

People listen to rap music for its clever and poetic wordplay, cultural references and commentary on life. Much of rap music’s appeal comes from its catchy beats. Athletes, such as Claire Fendrick, often listen to rap music before a game because the fast tempo motivates them to play hard.

It is unfair to group rap as an entire genre as sexist and inappropriate because not all rap is about violence, women and money.

Rappers take pride in being trendsetters and setting themselves apart from the crowd.

Therefore, rappers rap about powerful topics. Rappers are just giving listeners what they want. Outside of rap music, our society has a fascination with violence, easy money and sex. These topics lead to the common belief that rap music can is a bad influence as well as a catalyst in problems such as teen pregnancy and crime. However, these issues existed long before rap music became prevalent.

Despite these opinions, there is rap music that is positive and can serve the purpose of improving social consciousness by increas-

ing awareness of the issues that people face.

When dealing with social problems, one of the most important ways of finding a solution to the problem is to make others within our society aware of it. Rap music is a great tool for facilitating that process; due to its popularity, it has the ability to bring a message to masses of people. There are socially aware groups such as Public Enemy and Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five which wrote songs about sociopolitical issues and black nationalism. Snoop Dogg, Eminem and 50 Cent became popular because they help perpetuate America’s culture of violence.

When a rapper writes a song that speaks of violence, drug use or other criminal activity, it could easily be because that is something they have witnessed in their living environment. Therefore, they are in a good position to give a detailed account of the details of these actions. Rap music artists often create a fictionalized account of certain events for the purpose of intriguing and entertaining people. When rappers rap about vulgar topics, this does not mean that they support these things. Rappers often use characters to facilitate those accounts or use their words to create these characters along with vivid storylines that often are related to urban subject matter. This is no different than the movie industry; when our favorite actor portrays these same adverse actions in a movie, it is not seen as degenerate. Rap music is a great and powerful tool that can be used for good purposes. When critiquing rap music, one has to go beyond the surface of what they are hearing and attempt to ascertain the message that the music is attempting to send.

QUICK BARS

>>

Sean John Combs, also known as P. Diddy, is an American rapper, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur. Combs received his education at Howard University, majoring in business administration.

Rapper J. Cole attended undergrad on academic scholarship degree at St. John’s University in Jamaica, Queens, graduated in 2007, and received his degree in business.

2 Chainz. rapper from College Park, Georgia, was a standout basketball player at Alabama State University graduated from ASU after four years with a 4.0 GPA.

february

41

artist profile: eleanor olson hannah rubenstein eleanor olson art

What is the story behind [the painting below]?

This is a self portrait that I painted this school year, but last calendar year. It was painted so it could be entered into the YoungArts foundation along with 4 other self portraits and 5 other pieces. It was painted on a wooden board 4ft by 3 ft, making it the largest painting I have done. The pattern in the background is similar to a pattern on my favorite shirt and pair of shoes. I also love to paint flowers, and they appear in many of my pieces. My skin is purple because of a poem I wrote about who I am, and why my favorite color is purple. This was also the first self portrait I did with my new glasses, so they are yellowthe complimentary color to purple.

How did you get interested in art?

I don’t know, I‘ve been asked that a lot. As far as I know I’ve just always drown, ever since I was a little kid. My elementary school art teacher thought I was pretty good, so when I was in middle school my mom sent me to Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp. I think that was the first time I ever did anything outside of just Would you say that that was a pretty big moment, in terms of what you learned at Blue Lake?

It definitely was, I ended up taking best in show that first year.

It was kind of a whirlwind.

42 t he c o mmunica t o r

Who or what inspires your art?

My favorite artist by far is Degas. He is a French impressionist. But the impressionist movement as whole is definitely something that inspires me. I like the idea of incorporating things like movement and light into work.

But I also like contemporary artists. Specifically, I like the work of Marco Mizani. He’s not a very famous artist but he draws flowers and they’re just exquisite Why do you think art is important to you or others?

Art is personally important to me because it’s something I’m very passionate about. I think art is im-

portant for the world because, well I have a sweatshirt that says “The world without art is just eh” and I think that that’s very true.

If there’s not art in the world, there’s not a lot of beauty or purpose so I like that people can bring their individual ideas and expressions into the world through art.

I think theres a reason why you can find cave paintings from thousands of years ago because it’s always something that humans like to do.

How do you think that having art in your life has changed or helped you?

It definitely has given me a lot of direction. It’s something to put a lot of time and energy into and commit to and really enjoy. It’s definitely a way to express myself.

film vs. digital.

a look at how photography has changed with steve coron. alexandra hobrecht

What did you think the first time you use a digital camera?

Do you prefer using digital or film? Why?

It was weird. It was like, “Oh wow, look at that, an instant picture.” It was kind of cool and I was kind of excited because my son was playing hockey at Huron at the time. We actually bought it in Traverse City when he was in a hockey tournament, and then we went to watch the hockey games and took all these pictures, and they were like, “Oh! Ah! Woah!”.

I learned on film, when I was in high school. I was 16. I just like the process better, although I do a lot of digital. I like being in the dark room, using the chemicals.

I like that atmosphere, I like the quality of print I get from film. I basically like black and white images. Digital is getting closer in quality to film, but I still prefer the process of film.

What would you say are the advantages to using film and the advantages to using digital?

Do you think that there’s a point where too much editing could happen?

The advantage for digital right now is speed. If you need to have things done quickly, it’s so easy.

It’s easy to shoot and dump it, shoot and change it, and especially in the industry, for whatever reason, people can shoot and email things and send things to their clients really quickly. Some people would say there’s no advantage to film, but if I look at image quality, the actual print itself on good photographic paper, and if it’s a good print, I think there’s a quality to that that digital hasn’t achieved yet. But it’s close. It really comes down to preference then, and what you like. Some people are getting rid of all their film stuff because it’s expensive and it’s bulky and it takes too much time. And for the industry, for photography, the industry doesn’t use film. It’s all digital.

I don’t care how you make your art if it’s good art. And whatever good art is, we can debate that too, but sometimes people just edit because they have all those apps and they want to see what they can do, and they think it’s cool. I’m all about editing if you do it thoughtfully and you have an intention and you can talk about why did it, and what you hope to achieve with the edits. I’m not one to judge that, openly, just on face value, to say it’s wrong to do so. Most things exist and they exist because people use them in creative ways. So it depends what you’re doing. At least you’re photographing and trying to make something. That’s important, I think.

february

43

what should I listen to now? hannah tschirhart

what to listen to

when to listen

Let’s Go Surfing- The Drums .

III. Urn- Childish Gambino

driving to the beach/surfing

Flashed Junk Mind- Milky Chance .

Beautiful Dream- Dale Earnhardt jr. jr.

when you feel like spinning in circles

I Wonder- Rodriguez

when you are feeling thoughtful

I’m Not Through- OK Go

writing letters

Miss You- The Rolling Stones

saturday nights with your friends and a favorite activity

The Summer- Coconut Records

friday afternoons

Led Zeppelin- The Lemon Song

fast driving

All The Time- The Bahamas

when you need something to remind you of summer

falling in slow motion

biking to the ice cream shop

A Well Respected Man- The Kinks

putting on sweat bands before you’re getting ready to do something where you will sweat

Mo Money Mo Problems- The Notorious B.I.G.

when you need to dance your heart out

Jimmy- MIA

cruising top down on a sunny day

The Horse- Beach Fossils

driving to camp

One Fine Day- The Chiffons

trying on dresses

Sunday- Earl Sweatshirt

in an intense life realization

Mushaboom- Feist 44 t he c o m m unic a t o r

cleaning your house

What Community Was Rockin’ To

IN

2014

abe weiner

THE TOP SONGS THAT COMMUNITY HIGH STUDENTS WERE LISTENING TO THIS PAST YEAR.

No Role Modelz - J. Cole

Don’t - Ed Sheeran

Cedarwood Road - U2

Two Weeks - FKA Twigs

Blank Space - Taylor Swift

Budapest - George Ezra

Fever - The Black Keys

Centuries - Fall Out Boy

Partition - Beyoncé

i - Kendrick Lamar

Chandelier - Sia

Habits (Stay High) - Tove Lo february

45

fashion.

TESS HEIDT a freshman at community high school, tess heidt, wears an oversized, falltoned flannel with checkered paisley squares. pearl earrings, dark leggings & brown boots complete this warm, 90’s esque outfit.

46 t he c o m m unic a t o r

fashion.

CLARA KAUL

black scarf salvation army

$1

“I like how [fashion] is a form of expression. The way you dress can really convey a certain aspect about you. I like wearing clothes that make me feel really powerful. It makes my day better, changes the way I feel and it gives me c o n f i d e n c e .”

plaid sweater macy’s

$30 red skirt old navy

DRAW FROM HER LOOK

$15

• elements of prep: plaid, skirt & stockings.

• a scarf can complete any outfit. adorn your neck with a color that pops or that fits with your look.

• boots are quite the statement, but they will cost you.

black boots nordstrom rack

$75

WORD ON THE STREET KEEP PLUGGIN’ AWAY

GET OVER YOURSELF

layers stay warm and add a little somethin’ somethin’ to some neutral colors.

sweaters w/ elbow pads avoid the rollerblading prepster look.

patterns use these with caution.

non-prescription glasses stay in your lane. optics make you look desperate.

watches fill that void on your wrist and complete your sleek, modern outfit.

joggers don’t suffocate your ankles and burn your fashion sense at the stake. february

47

We are proud to print

The Communicator for

Ann Arbor Community High School

Full Service Book and Journal Manufacturing Since 1893

www.edwardsbrothersmalloy.com

GET IN THE GAME!

Teen Membership at the YMCA ANN ARBOR YMCA

Teens aged 12-19 can join the Y for $15/ month and access all the Y has to offer.

Get in shape with pick-up basketball, teen yoga, studio cycling, strength and conditioning, free weights and two indoor pools and an indoor track.

Not into sports? Our Youth in Government provides opportunities to get involved with governmental processes (including a three-day trip to Lansing!) and Youth Volunteer Corps gets you involved with service in your community during the school year and all summer long.

The Y is open 5:30 am to 10 pm Monday through Friday, and 7 am to 7 pm on weekends, so, no matter what your schedule, there’s time to hang out at the Y. For more information, go to www.annarborymca.org, call 734.996.9622 or stop by after school.

op-ed.

how likely is it that you could let birth control down? sofia simon

The New York Times published an article in September of this year with a series of graphs showing the effectiveness rates of different types of birth control from spermicides to the hormonal implant. The article was titled “How Likely Is It That Birth Control Could Let You Down?”

The article showed graphs of common methods of barrier and hormonal birth control and their rates of effectiveness. The x-axis represented the number of years a woman used contraception which covered a span of 1-10 years, while the y-axis represented how many women experienced unwanted pregnancies out of a denominator of 100 women.

Of course, the only 100 percent effective method of preventing pregnancy is abstinence. There is no argument to be made there. If you are sexually active you are exposing yourself to risks that would otherwise not apply to you. One must also keep in mind that we are practically swimming in risks throughout our everyday lives. Every time you turn on the oven, mow your grass or get into a car you expose yourself to a certain amount of risk. Someone who drives four hours to and from work every day is probably more prone to the risk of a car accident than someone who drives once a year. Birth control is no different.

Any increase in risk over time is purely statistical and operates within a significant margin of human error.

All women who are sexually active are at risk of unintended pregnancy.

Of those women who are at risk, 68 percent consistently use a method of contraception. The other 32 percent is made up of women who use do not use contraception or use it inconsistently. Women who use birth control consistently account for only 5 percent of unintended pregnancies annually. If 3.1 million unintended pregnancies occurred in 2008, than 50 t he c o mmunica t o r

women who consistently use birth control only accounted for 155,000 of those pregnancies.

Those numbers say a lot about birth control’s effectiveness and how helpful contraception can be for someone who is not ready to be pregnant. If anything, Long Acting Reversible Contraceptives (LARCs which include IUDs, Implants, and Injections) are seriously underrated in their effectiveness.

According to the CDC the most effective method of birth control (besides abstaining) is the hormonal implant (0.05% of 100 women experience unplanned pregnancies).

The Implant is more effective than both male and female sterilization. Sterilization is considered an extremely reliable method of contraception for people who do not want any children or do not want more children. To think that the hormonal implant, a reversible and safe method of birth control, can protect against pregnancy more effectively than tubal ligation and a vasectomy is amazing.

There is a general trend between longer lasting methods of birth control, their margin for human error and the perceived decrease in their rates of effectiveness. The pill appears to be statistically less effective simply because it’s easy to forget everyday whereas someone accessing the Depo Provera shot only has to remember birth control once every

3 months. This statistical increase in the probability of human error over time directly correlates with the effectiveness of birth control. When the Pill is used correctly and consistently, only three in 100 women experience an unplanned pregnancy over the course of 10 years. However, when used incorrectly or inconsistently, as

many as 61 in 100 women experience an unplanned pregnancy over 10 years.

We can’t blame extremely effective, helpful, and safe medications for our own mistakes. Failure of birth control is not the primary cause of unplanned pregnancies: human error is. Ultimately, birth control does not let you down, you let birth control down.

>>

when the pill is used correctly & consistently, only three in 100 women experience an unplanned pregnancy

op-ed

C

death to the group project. katy stegmann

I

nstead of fostering good communication skills, group projects put an unnecessary burden on certain students, while others get a three day break from trying. By turning a blind eye to unequal distribution of work, like teachers so often do, they leave a few of us feeling that we will always be completely on our own, and leaves everyone else with a sense of decreased accountability.

Those that claim group projects are essential for teaching how to work with others, clearly don’t understand that the only life skill you learn is to do everything yourself, and be nice to avoid getting flack for suggesting other group members do something.

Those that claim that doing everything for yourself is good because they like to help others, or are too much of a perfectionist to let the group help, clearly haven’t spent their whole life being the project savior.

The single handed control gets old fast, and is replaced by the intense

desire for a group that will pull their weight.

While group projects are exhausting academically, this is only one of two large issues, the other being that their slacker mentality soon spreads to your personal life.

Not unlike raising a small child, part of successfully managing a group includes lifting their self esteem. You quickly become the go to person anytime they need something that isn’t easily taken or achieved. This leaves those who become the default backbone feeling used and exhausted at the prospect of running several people’s lives for them, while still trying to figure out their own.

At an age when everything is so confusing and hard to navigate, it becomes impossible to be the best version of yourself when half of your energy has to be devoted to helping others through their easily solved problems. When you’re running on four hours of sleep the added burden becomes unbearable.

You start to crack under pres-

sure, and you let things slip. It feels like you will never get ahead of the game enough to relax.

Group projects are detrimental to everyone involved. They breed laziness in some, and sleep deprivation in others. The life lessons many claim these projects impart are a far cry from what you actually learn: keep your head down, do everything, and above all make them feel important.

The slacker mentality, however, isn’t just an academic problem, and can quickly bleed into your personal relationships.

Not only are group projects poisonous to friendships, but they leave people dependant on your help and energy, despite the fact that you have problems of your own that need solving.

This new responsibility is even more draining, and can cause school to become overwhelming. I think it’s safe to say, we’re ready for the death of the group project.

february 51

PN ITR S C

PIN

TER

ES

T

op-ed

kelly

arno

ld

52 t he c o m m unic a t o r

M

y winter break was full of excitement and stillness alike. While I did find plenty of time to relax, I also was able to learn and try new things. My brother came home for a few weeks, and we may or may not have spent a night or two playing video games, trying out new maneuvers and cheat codes. I brought an Apple and Goat Cheese Salad to my family holiday dinner, a new recipe that I discovered. I visited the Detroit Institute of Arts when my Nana came to town, and was able to map out the pieces I most wanted to see.

I was able to do these things thanks to one special social media website: Pinterest.

Type pinterest.com in your browser and you’ll find yourself bombarded by visuals, images streamlined in slim columns, optimized for infinite scrolling to your heart’s content. Each image has a caption and, when clicked, links to a website. For example, one “pin” could have a picture of a fishtail braid and be captioned “How to Fishtail Braid”, complete with a link to the hair tutorial. As a user, you start with several standard Pinterest boards (you can edit the names of them and add more boards later). Each board has a different theme, ranging from food to sports and everything in between. When you find a pin that interests you, you can “pin” it to one of your boards, and you can also edit the original caption as well. If you find a pin that you think a friend would enjoy, it’s easy to send it to them. Not to mention you can add your own pin by choosing an image on your computer or copying the link from a website you enjoy.

It’s very addicting.

The site is essentially a visual search engine, ripe with opportunity.

And yet, as proven by the sites long list of advertisers, many seem to think of Pinterest’s users as only women, mostly stay-at-home moms and crafty types. It may seem to be filled with too many irrelevant how-to’s and not enough content to satisfy a quick-moving adolescent mind.

Pinterest is for everyone. A male friend of mine joined Pinterest some time ago and pins motivational quotes, marketing infographics, and Jim Harbaugh-themed media. He loves it. There aren’t just pins about crochet and baking cookies (those pins are there, if anyone’s interested), there’s also pins for architecture and tattoos and basketball statistics. And, according to the Global Web Index, Pinterest’s active users have grown by 111% in the past six months.

It’s a platform that is unique and on the rise.

Pinterest is a place of little negative exchanges, and more for inspiration. While Facebook and Twitter are for conversations with friends, those sites can sometimes produce malicious content as users may argue or send each other rude comments. These websites being centered around conversation indicates that are more opportunities for hurtful exchanges to take place. Pinterest is an image-based experience and, while commenting is an option, it is minute in contrast to the visual aspects, meaning nasty comments are rare.

And it is massively underutilized. Pinterest is a place where users can dream about where exactly they want to go for spring break or learn how to tie a bow-tie. It’s a place to find a hip-hop elliptical workout, learn how to take notes in class that you’ll remember and discover a new shortcut for Photoshop. It’s a place of possibility, something so rare to find among social media sites today.

op-ed

C

JE SUIS CHARLIE?

J

caroline phillips

e suis Charlie. I am Charlie.

This phrase has been shared around the nation in support of the victims from the recent shooting in France that occurred on the first week of the new year.

On January 7, 2015, two masked gunmen forced their way into the offices of the French weekly satirical newspaper, Charlie Hebdo. An Al-Qaeda branch located in Yemen claimed responsibility for the attack, killing twelve people and injuring eleven (more lives were lost in additional attacks, connected to the aftermath of the attack on January 7).

Soon, “Je suis Charlie” was shared all over the world.

The name Charlie comes from the newspaper author, Charlie Hebdo. The support of the matter is admirable and unifying, but it seems as though most people fail to see what they are in fact supporting by sharing the words, “Je suis Charlie.”

Charlie Hebdo is a majorly offensive cartoonist, and is responsible for pub-

lishing thousands of insults and immensely disrespectful, racist cartoons, sales that drastically increased after the shooting. The satire cartoons consisted of horridly offensive racial slurs directed at mainly muslims, arabic and middle eastern cultures and the unacceptable writings/drawings of their religion, specifically the muslim God, Muhammad. This is what prompted the attacks. The magazine also includes insulting, offensive, outlooks on jews, christians, homosexuals and women.

What happened in Paris is an awful tragedy. There is no excuse for the violence and lives lost. I too, am saddened by the attack and the victims of this crime. However, by sharing ‘Je suis Charlie,’ one is also supporting another crime of hate and intolerance in the world. ‘Je suis Charlie’ is a notion I’m sure intended for support and positivity, but really has many hateful, complex other issue woven in between the 3 simple words.

I am not Charlie. I do not support

what he published - he was wrong.

I do support the victims and the fight against violence, the fight for peace and acceptance among cultures. That is the message that we need to be posting on windows, cars and social media. Unless, of course one does indeed agree with the opinions of Mr. Hebdo and does wish to support his values- one without a doubt has the right to support him.

The issue of attack, and what supporters of the victims should be focusing on is the utter disrespect and lack of acceptance of others. The gunmen failed to realize that their attacks did not fight the hate and disrespect the magazine had shown them, but actually, developed even stronger tides of the injustice, intolerance and separation of people.

So, in support, in faith and wanting better, in strides of love and challenges of difference, know where the issue lies and fight the true battles of attack- that occur in more ways than one. february

53

op-ed.

punishments for sexual assault on college campuses need to be more clear. hannah rubenstein

The issue of sexual assault on college campuses has been at the forefront of the news in recent months. Scandals and protests have been coming into the public eye in a wide variety of schools, including Columbia University, Yale University and University of Virginia. Due to the attention that this subject has been receiving, 90 schools have been put under investigation by the U.S. Department of Education to insure that they deal with reports of sexual assault properly.

Despite all of this, the lines of sexual consent still seem fuzzy to some and social pressures keep the attacked from reporting their assault.

A recent article published by Rolling Stone detailed an account of a freshman being gang raped at a University of Virginia fraternity party. Since the article was released, a number of problems have been found in it, such as the fact that the main source insisted on being anonymous and refused to let them interview her alleged attacker, and many key aspects of it have since been retracted by the magazine. The biggest concern in the minds of many feminists who are working towards changing the frequent overlooking of sexual assault cases is that this article will give the movement a bad name.

The number of sexual assault reports and resolved cases in colleges has been increasing dramatically in the past few years. According to a recent study, 9 complaints were made and 10 cases were resolved in 2009, whereas 96 complaints have been made in 2014 and 39 were

community is a village.

resolved. While the fact that the number of resolved cases is not growing in time with the reports is a concern, this is huge progress, and aspects of a high-profile article like the Rolling Stone one turning out to be false can only hurt this important cause.

A key issue with the reporting of sexual assault is many people do not understand the difference between ‘yes’ and ‘no’. To some, wearing revealing clothing or being drunk or otherwise incapacitated means that the sexual assault was provoked or the unconscious state of the victim somehow made the rape okay.

The truth of the matter is that consent is not a blurred line. It is easy to tell when somebody is saying yes. A certain outfit does not say yes, the person in it does.

Being too drunk to think straight is not a yes. Being unable to say the word ‘no’ does not mean that ‘yes’ is implied.

Despite the retraction of Rolling Stone’s story, UVA’s policy on sexual assault on their campus falls flat compared to many other colleges. For example, their Policy of Procedures for Student Sexual Misconduct Complaints go into details about the proceedings once a case of sexual assault or harassment has been reported, but is altogether unclear on many subjects. Georgetown’s Sexual Harassment and Sexual Misconduct Policy, on the other hand, is more detailed, readable, and explores many more specifics on what qualifies as consent so as to help those who might be confused.

It gives instructions on how you can find assistance right after an incident. It

states that the staff is “trained annually on what constitutes sex discrimination, their reporting responsibilities, and how to handle reports of sex discrimination with a trauma-informed approach and campus resources.”

Something that both of these policies are missing, however, is clear information on what the punishment is if found guilty of sexual assault. Obviously the consequences would change for every occurence, but something more than a vague idea of possible expulsion would be nice. It is clear that many do not understand what rape truly is, or sometimes they simply choose to disregard information. A study from 2007 shows that, depending on the circumstances of the rape, the chance of the victim pursuing university action is 0.2-0.6 percent.If rapists have believed up until this point that that tiny percentage of a chance of being reported to the university, let alone actually convicted, would be all the punishment they could face for raping somebody, then something needs to change.

If the expressed consent of a partner is not required in order to have sex for these people, then the punishments they will face needs to be much clearer. The policies on sexual assault on these campuses should give more examples of the harsh punishments that students would face and for which particular crimes.

Maybe that would be the one thing that would truly make them think twice about having sex without direct consent.

are not realistic for everyone. For those who cannot afford such pricey trips, the Village Fund serves as a reasonable solution.

Chris Hicks, the secretary at Community, stated that the fund is filled entirely by donations, most of which come from optional PTSO donation forms sent to parents at the beginning of the year.

Even so, there is typically enough money in the fund to cover scholarship requests on a case-to-case basis.

“Rarely does [the fund] go down to zero,” said Hicks.

When the Village Fund isn’t used for field trips or forum outings, it can be used to purchase yearbooks for seniors who cannot afford them. It is critical that

the school continues to use the account in creative ways. Students should always be encouraged to pursue opportunities out of the classroom, and financial roadblocks must be eliminated.

As a school, we were able to raise over $14,000 for Food Gatherer’s, a locally-based food bank. The same efforts can be directed towards filling the Village Fund. Be it through a forum fundraiser or a charitable, student-run event, this fund can experience the same level of growth. Community High is a village, as we maintain an intimate level of support for others. Let’s give everyone the educational opportunities they deserve.

marcelo salas

On a four-day trip to Washington D.C. for the Fall National Student Journalism Convention, I cautiously spent $90 out of pocket for food alone. A checked bag, a ticket from Detroit Metro to Washington Dulles and additional trip expenditures brought that total up to around $750.

Knowing that the cost of this trip would be steep, I asked my advisor to put in a request for a scholarship from Community High School’s Village Fund, a PTSO account set aside for providing students with school trip scholarships. My request was never met; the fund was empty.

Our student body is granted numerous privileges: an open campus, access to neighboring businesses and biannual forum trips. These privileges, however,

54 t he c o mmunica t o r

op-ed.

periods, period. hannah davis

There is no doubt that a large majority high school students are uncomfortable with discussing women’s menstrual cycles. But why is that? If some girls are fortunate enough, they are able to openly ask their friends if they can borrow a tampon if they happen to start their period at school without having one handy, but try to remain discrete while doing so.

Women must feel comfortable with their bodies in their learning environment, and we as high school students must eliminate the negative connotation that surrounds women and their periods.

Leah Davis, former CHS student and peer educator at Planned Parenthood, feels that it is necessary for women to feel as comfortable as possible with periods in order to thrive.

“We need to talk about these kinds of things so that people are not uncomfortable dealing with it, and instead they feel comfortable with their own bodies in the way that they work,” Davis said.

“Periods are a really big part of being a woman physiologically, and so to be able to talk about it openly means having a healthier relationship with our bodies,

because we feel like we can embrace the way that they function as opposed to feeling like we can’t talk about them, and that it should be a secret, and that we have to hide our tampons when we go to the bathroom,” Davis said.

Davis believes that if the negative attitude towards periods continues, women will begin to feel detached from their bodies and they won’t appreciate the way that they function Without menstruation, reproduction would not be possible. Having children is a beautiful part of womanhood. We need to be able to understand these things and discuss them in a way that everyone can appreciate them so that we can love our bodies and all that they do for us.

A lack of education is a large source of why people feel uncomfortable with the topic of periods. Every high schooler will see a minimally detailed diagram of the uterine lines shedding at some point in a health class, but this is clearly not enough to give people the proper education on the importance of menstruation.

“My own dad thought that all women got their periods at the same exact time

every month because it’s something he’s not used to talking about, so whenever he did it was a gross thing. He was uneducated which is so unfortunate,” Davis said. “It’s so important that people are educated about the functioning of their own body. The fact that people don’t know these kinds of things is not okay, that’s not the way that we should be. We need to learn about the way our bodies work and appreciate them to the fullest extent.”

I want to see the world change into one where young girls don’t need to sneakily grab a tampon out of their backpack, slide it up their sleeve and awkwardly ask if they can use the bathroom.

“People need to feel like they can talk about their periods because it’s a normal part of life,” Davis said. “People can’t be ashamed about the way that our bodies function, especially if we want to have a healthy relationship with ourselves, which is one of the most important relationships that we will ever have in our life.”

me!”

Getting into any college is a reason to celebrate and a reason to be proud of yourself. Though, just because one person got into their dream school with a scholarship does not mean everyone else is done with the application process.

When someone signs on to their Twitter account or Facebook and writes “OMG! Going to Harvard”, someone out there is going to read that who is struggling with a college essay or tuition rates. People also need to keep in mind that not everyone is going to college after high school.

He or she is either going to feel bad about themselves, stress out even more or want to hit something (or someone).

People need to keep in mind that not everyone is in the same situation. Before clicking “post” and “tweet” they need to ask themselves if they are being mindful.

When you rip open your college letter and read “Congratulations! You have

been accepted,” run to a phone and text your friends, or give your parents a hug.

Real friends, not Facebook friends, and family will be happy for your acceptance.

Before people post about it on social media, they need to begin to ask themselves “why?” There is no reason to share that to hundreds of followers or friends over social media, who all have their own situations during this time of transition in many seniors lives.

Keep all that college excitement light years away from a computer, especially during this time of year. Just do not, under any circumstances, make a post about how you got into your “dream school,” because there is a good chance that some stressed senior looking at their computer or down at their phone is going to read it and think, “Great! but please shut up”.

#college grace stamos

“Blah Blah University, Class of 2019”, Just got a $24,000 scholarship.” I have been seeing these types of posts sprinkled throughout social media as more and more students hear back from colleges.

Believe it or not, but no, not every single one of your followers on Twitter cares, except for your close friends and nosy aunt.

For those high school seniors planning on going to college, filling out applications and waiting on edge for a college acceptance or denial is far from enjoyable. First semester of senior year is stressful. It’s full of college essays, the Common Application, recommendation letters and wanting to pull your hair out.

As a senior going through the dreaded and infamous college application process, the last thing I want to see on my Twitter feed is, “Accepted to my #1 college with a $10,000 scholarship! Go

The Communicator, being committed to the free exchange of ideas, is an open forum for expression of opinions. It is student-run; students make all content decisions. Letters to the editor are encouraged and can be sent to thecommunicator@googlegroups.com. Signed articles will be accepted with no prior administrative review as space is available. The Communicator reserves the right to edit submissions. Furthermore, opinions expressed therein are those of the authors and not of this newspaper, Community High School, or Ann Arbor Public Schools. For our complete policy, please see www.chscommunicator.com.

february

55

op-ed.

the trouble with greek life. sophie steinberg

The Greek System has been a part of American college life since 1776. It has grown and weaved itself into almost every university and college in the United States. We, as a society, have evolved, but sororities and fraternities seem to be holding onto sexual abuse, racism, homophobia, transphobia, and other forms of discrimination. Sidelining transgender, intersex, genderqueer, or otherwise non-gender conforming people, while inviting others based on external elements and social status. They are wrapped into their own bubble of parties, frivolous spending, and hyper-materialism.

Besides the environment that is cultivated in greek life, the fact that it doesn’t welcome everyone who wants to join, based solely on arbitrary decisions, should be enough of a reason to rethink the structure it’s based upon.

Just because a certain group of people get to enjoy the benefits of being in a sorority or fraternity, doesn’t mean that the system is honorable, and it does not mean the system benefits society

as whole. Some college students spend rife amounts of money trying to fit the mold of the sorority or fraternity they wish to join. They rack their brains for the “cool” thing to say only trying to impress a group of older, cooler students, who in their eyes, will determine their fate. Students that are turned away face devastation, and excluded at the start of their college experience .

The Greek system does not condone sexual assault, but sexual assaults seem to be abundant in that environment.

Large-scale parties can be an “ideal” place for predatory behavior. Fraternities are competitive, testosterone-driven environments, and when they are fueled by alcohol and casual sex, sexual assault starts recurring. A study done in 2007 and 2009, published in the NASPA journal, found that women in sororities are 74% more likely to experience rape than other college women.

The pressure that is put on girls in sororities to not speak up about assault isn’t spoken of, but it’s standard. If a boy

from a fraternity, sexually assaults a girl from a partner sorority, he understands the consequences she will face if she chooses to press charges. This girl would be trying to disassociate herself with her sorority. She would be making herself an outsider of a group that she has put so much effort into being involved in.

Not all sororities and fraternities are structured the same way. There are many houses that have found a way to become more than a social group. They study together, volunteer, and can act as leaders. This being said, even if every house incorporated these aspects, the foundation would never be destroyed.

Sexual assault, discrimination, and an unfair enforcement of the importance of external qualities and wealth would still be prevalent. In this day and age where change, equal rights, and acceptance is celebrated, this age old system is thwarting future generations. It’s time to focus on self esteem, maturity, and encouraging organizations to represent universities and the nation in a positive way.

I would not be allowed to give blood.

And, as I looked forward to helping people in one of the easiest ways there is, I couldn’t help but wonder if this was the last time I could donate.

I’m gay and proud of it. But, because I haven’t had sex yet, I passed the FDA’s rules and now there is a pint of my blood going to people in need.

The FDA argues that men who have sex with men (MSM) are at an increased risk for HIV and Hepatitis B infections.

Recently the FDA considered changing it from a lifetime ban to a one-year deferral, but those talks were for naught.

The ban still lives and healthy donors are being turned away for no other reason than their sexual preferences.

HIV isn’t a gay disease. AIDS does not discriminate. No one wants to be infected.

Unsafe sexual practices are, for the most part, how HIV spreads. The fact that the FDA puts all MSMs together

as having unsafe sex is insulting. The possibility that a straight man can sleep around every night and face no deferral--but for MSMs one sexual encounter is enough for a lifetime ban--is even more so. Not only are MSMs as a group being type-cast, they are being treated differently than straight men. And as a future MSM I am angered.

I cast my voice with the American Association of Blood Banks, America’s Blood Centers and the American Red Cross to urge the FDA to repeal this discriminatory policy. Every two seconds, someone in the United States needs blood, and each pint helps someone in need. Banning MSMs from donating constrains an already limited supply.

Fortunately for those in need of a transfusion, blood doesn’t care about the donor’s sexuality. The FDA should regulate donors based on the the contents of their blood, not whom they have sex with.

blood bias. matthew ferraro

My stomach churned as I looked towards the beds where my classmates lay peacefully. Six of them had needles in their arms, with long, narrow tubes leading to bags where blood was slowly collecting.

I looked away--back to the informational packet the Red Cross had given me. Twice a year the Red Cross club at Ann Arbor Pioneer High School organizes a blood drive, and I was about to give for the first time.

I felt good about donating, if a little squeamish. According to the pamphlet, my donation could help as many as three people. I sat alone in the row of chairs--I was the last student to donate that day-displaced from my fellow classmates who were already giving blood. I read and reread the donor eligibility section.

First off I had to make sure that I could donate. Then I got angry.

I read that if I were a man who had been in sexual contact with another man,

56 t he c o m m unic a t o r

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can you find these words?

1. assiduous: hard-working 2. anachronistic: out-of-date 3. amicable: friendly, agreeable 4. demagogue: leader 5. intrepid: adventurous 6. jubilation: joy, celebratio 7. ostentatious: displaying wealth 8. surreptitious: secret 9. spurious: lacking authenticity

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10. precocious: advanced at a young age 11. florid: red-colored, flushed 12. adulation: high praise 13. circuitous: indirect 14. frugal: thrifty 15. orator: speaker 16. vindicate: to clear from blame 17. prosaic: dull, commonplace

M C

18. longevity: long life 19. hedonist: person who pursues pleasure as a goal 20. venerable: respected due to age 21. impetuous: acting without thinking 22. benevolent: friendly and helpful february 57

community creativewriting

SHORTS

CHS students share exerpts of work from Judith’s first semester creative writing class.

through the borderlands poem by marcelo salas

artwork by eva rosenfeld

In desert heat We meet defeat, The border tall, Our spirits fall.

All earnings spent, We sleep by tent, Young children cry, No food nearby.

We flee from Hell, The drug cartel, From rival war, And threats galore.

New homes we seek, Our bones are weak, Strange lands so near, A road of fear.

30 t he 2015 58 c o mmunica t o r

C

picture this

RECALLING INFLUENTIAL LOVED ONES THROUGH PHOTOGRAPHS

Camille Revon

When Taylor Tucker-Gray was two years old, she and her mothers moved to Oakland, California. There she made her first best friend: Camille Revon.

Although Taylor was a year older than Camille, the two hit it off instantly. Living across the street from one another provided an easy journey for playtime and adventures.

“One of my favorite memories of being with Camille was when we went over to her house and played on her piano.” Taylor said. “I spent most of my time with her.”

When she was five, Taylor and her parents moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan. The long-distance separation could kill some friendships, but for Taylor and Camille, it is beneficial.

“We have one of those relationships where we don’t need to be in close contact constantly to still have a close relationship with each other.” Taylor said.

The pair share a couple similarities but seem to have significantly different lifestyles. Taylor feels that the distance keeping them apart helps bring them closer together. Whenever they see each other it is as if nothing has changed.

“We’re more sisters than best friends.” Taylor said. “I know that I can always talk to her. She is the one constant in my life.”

picture this Catherine Nicoli

It was on the first day of kindergarten that Kaleb Doughten-Priuska met Catherine Nicoli. Their mutual friend Angie had been sitting near the two and introduced them, and they’ve been friends ever since.

Attending both primary and secondary school together, as well as attending the same church for a time, has helped keep the pair close and positively impacted them.

The two bond over mutually-adored tv shows, movies and dancing. The similarities between them make it easy to talk and confide in one another.

“We share a lot of the same good characteristics,” Kaleb said. “She has helped shape me into the person that I am.”

Kaleb sees Catherine as a type of motherly or sisterly figure in the sense that she can tell when he is doing something he shouldn’t and helps him get back in check.

“At the end of the day I feel like she is a person I can always talk to.” Kaleb said. “She gets me.” february

59

art throb: kay senn,

senior, aspiring web comic