The Triangle, Issue 2, Vol. 104

DIGITAL DEMOCRACY

THE

TRI NGLE Columbus North High School • 1400 25th Street, Columbus, IN 47201 • Volume 104 Issue 2 • Nov. 1, 2024

EDITORS-IN-CHIEF Nicolas Bowers Lois Guest Maia Jamieson

IN-DEPTH 16 Digital Democracy

ASSISTANT DESIGN EDITOR Aidan Brown

From the polls to your for you page, the election has taken a new stage in the lives of teenagers

IN-DEPTH TEAM Sarynel Barbosa Kuilan Stella Gaylord Annie Green Cecilia Gutierrez SOCIAL MEDIA TEAM Maggie Russell Greta Schuetz STAFF Colin Amini Mia Bowers Gabe Carrilo Chloe Feliciano Jaedyn Greenlee Owen Grimes Bella Herbert Brooklyn Hurt Leo Iorio Alexa Lanam Gabe Manning Gabe Marsh Audrey Nordman Cassie Osburn Addisyn Pulley Claire Rawlings Gabby Revell Caeden Sych Maddie Williams ADVISERS Roth Lovins Rachel McCarver

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ONLINE PREVIEW

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Editorial Policy The Triangle is the designated forum for student expression at Columbus North High School. The student staff chooses all content.

Signed columns published in The Triangle express the writer’s personal opinion and not the views of The Triangle, student body, BCSC, administration, board of trustees or faculty of Columbus North.

The Triangle practices ethical journalism by providing balanced and fair coverage as determined by community standards. The Triangle strives to achieve 100 percent accuracy by checking sources, spelling, and quotes and attaining multiple sources.

The Triangle encourages letters to the editor, but reserves the right to reject them for reasons including but not limited to lack of space, multiple letters of the same topic and personal attacks contained in the letter. The Triangle will not edit for content, but reserves the right to edit for grammar and length. Letters should be submitted to room 1507 or sent via e-mail to administrator@ cnhsmedia.com. All Letters much be signed by all persons involved in writing the letter, which the staff will check for validation. A letter sent via e-mail must be validated with a signature from the writer before The Triangle will publish it. If responding to a publication, letters must be turned in within one week of that

publication’s distribution.

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ETHNIC EXPO

Students and a staff member discuss Lukas Hoehån’s senior project

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NEWS

SIX CANDIDATES SEEK ELECTION TO BCSC 4-5 SCHOOL BOARD

The six BCSC school board candidates voice their plans to impact the local school district

GERMAN CLUB FEATURED AT ETHNIC EXPO EVENT

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INSTAGRAM CREATES SOCIAL MEDIA OPTION FOR TEENS

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IGRAD FUNDING GETS BOOST BY LOCAL GRANT

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Students and a staff member discuss Lukas Hoehån’s senior project

Students and Staff discuss new teen accounts

The iGrad program gets a boost to help students graduate

WHEN SPIRIT COMES ALIVE

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Teachers and students describe the customs and experiences of celebrating the life of the dead and keeping their spirits alive

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STUDENT LIFE DAY OF DRAMA 8-9

Students participate in the 24-Hour Theatre event to raise money for the drama department

INVENTIONS OF A GENERATION 10

SWENEXT plans for their academic season as women in STEM

WHEN SPIRIT COMES ALIVE 11

Teachers and Students describe the customs and experiences of celebrating the life of the dead and keeping their spirits alive

EXPERIENCING EXCHANGE 11

Students discuss their lives in the foreign exchange program

DAY OF DRAMA 9

Students participate in the 24-Hour Theatre event to raise money for the drama department

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OPINION PENNIES DON’T MAKE CENTS

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TWO STEPS BEHIND

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ROAD TO DRIVING

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ALL OF ONE MIND

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The U.S. needs to find an alternative to minting pennies Examining the trend of Mukbangs With so many steps to getting a driver’s license, it starts to become an overwhelming process Social media is deleting individuality

SEASON SUCCESS 22 An update on how the tennis season prepared for the state championship

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SPORTS

MIND OVER MILES 20

Students discuss the mental aspect of cross-country and how it impacts the season

FLIPPING INTO ACTION

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The gymnastics team prepares for a fresh 2024-2025 season

NET GAINS 22

The Men’s Tennis team discusses their journey to the Indiana State Tennis Tournament

CAPTURE THE OPPORTUNITY 23

Flag football is brought to light as a new sport

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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Six candidates seek election to BCSC School Board

by Claire Rawlings design by Maddie Williams

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The six BCSC school board candidates voice their plans to impact the local school district

FROM THE CANDIDATES Leigh Britt

“I am passionate about education, the experience of kids in school. I’m passionate about getting them ready for the next step.”

Tom Glick

“We can make things look nice, we can build things that are pretty, and attractive looking, but what is that doing to better our education?”

Samantha Ison

“I am a believer of having parents be more involved. I would like for teachers and parents to work together.”

Whitney Loyd

“I want to ensure that we have the best corporation possible so each of them can reach their full potential.”

David Theile

“If you don’t come out of North with life skills ready, then we’re not doing our job.”

Nicole Wheeldon

“I like to have an open mind when it comes to new issues that come up. I think it’s important for a person that’s willing to listen, willing to see all sides of a situation.”

photos for the Triangle

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NEWS

artholomew County is preparing for the elections, and this year, there’s more to vote for than ever. Specifically, six candidates are running for seats on the BCSC school board. School Board candidate Leigh Britt shares why she believes education is such an important topic.

“So for me, education is my hill to die on,” Britt said. “I am passionate about education, the experience of kids in school. I’m passionate about getting them ready for the next step.”

Britt also voiced how she wants the referendum to be decided by the voters, not school board members.

“We need to keep our teacher salaries, keep our school resource officers, keep our stem aids, and make sure that our buses are safe for students,” Britt said. “I want that to go back on the ballot, because I want the voters to have the opportunity to vote on that referendum. If the voters decide overwhelmingly that they want to do it again, then we need to do it again. If the voters decide overwhelmingly that we don’t want to do this anymore, it’s on them to decide that.”

School Board candidate Nicole Wheeldon supports the referendum, and believes that it will help maintain teacher pay.

“So the referendum that’s currently in place expires in 2028 and it allows supplemental money to go to the school system, primarily used for teacher’s salaries,” Wheeldon said. “I do believe that we need a referendum to help maintain our teacher pay.”

Wheeldon emphasizes the importance of knowing who you’re voting for, and understanding their positions.

“There is just so much activity and noise, and there’s a skill to knowing how to sift through all of that and do the real research into candidates and positions and know where you stand,” Wheeldon said.

School Board candidate Whitney Lloyd also feels strongly about voting, and hopes BCSC teenagers will feel empowered and excited to vote.

“There’s a lot of important issues nationally and locally that I believe students are passionate about and it’s my hope that they will let their voice be heard,” Lloyd said. “With the attention that has been on the election, I would hope that more people are sifting through information, learning about candidates, studying up on issues, and being empowered to vote.

Certainly, it’s just a huge election.”

Lloyd also supports the referendum, noting that she believes it is necessary to support multiple different aspects of education.

“I believe the referendum should be decided upon by our community.

As a board member, if elected, I would vote to put it on the ballot so that our community has the choice whether or not to put another referendum back in place,” Lloyd said. “I do believe the referendum is critically important for the continued level of teacher pay, school safety, stem education, and more. I am pro-referendum.”

School Board candidate Tom Glick emphasizes the importance of money being used efficiently, and for students’ benefit.

“We’re spending inappropriately on things that look nice instead of applying money just to fix things and update a little bit,” Glick said.

“We can make things look nice, we can build things that are pretty, and attractive looking, but what is that doing to better our education?

How is that bettering our students?

Because in reality, aesthetics don’t breathe education.”

Glick noted that he disagrees with how the referendum will increase tax rates depending on where you live.

“Some people’s [property taxes] went up 40 percent, some only went up 10 percent, and some even went down,” Glick said. “I know people that are a little disheartened because property taxes and asset values are based on how nice a neighborhood is so it’s almost like a ‘punishment tax.’

If keep my property looking nice, then I get punished to pay more because I’m actually caring for my property.”

German Club featured at Ethnic Expo event Students and a staff member discuss Lukas Hoehn’s senior project

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by Cassie Osburn design by Caeden Sych

photo by Lois Guest Donner Center was one of the early voting centers in Bartholomew County.

School Board candidate Samantha Ison voiced her support for analyzing how the administration allocates its funding.

“I believe our teachers are our front line of schools. Without teachers we have no school,” Ison said. “I’m curious why teachers are not upset that the administration is taking money from the educational fund and putting it into operations.

We need to look at why we are overspending in certain areas and have so much waste.”

Ison supports bringing more parental engagement in the school board.

“I am a believer of having parents be more involved,” Ison said. “I would like for teachers and parents to work together.”

School Board candidate David Theile supports managing the district’s funds more effectively, believing it prevent the need for a referendum.

“So, if you look at the educational funds for your teachers, the administration and the school board have been moving funds out of that operation, so that puts the teacher pay in jeopardy,” Theile said. “ In my opinion, if we manage our funds correctly, and not move funds out of there into the operations fund, there shouldn’t be a need for the referendum.”

Theile believes that BCSC needs to be responsible for preparing students for the future, not only academically, but also for their adult careers.

“If you don’t come out of North with life skills ready, then we’re not doing our job,” Theile said.

“We, as a school board, and as educators, need to make sure that through the education experience you have, that when you come out, you can function properly in society and you’re ready to go whatever path you choose.”

He wants students to be prepared for their future with all aspects they might need, including the voting experience. to read more visit cnhsmedia.com

or the first time since 2019, a German Club tradition has returned. The club used to organize and run a food booth at the Ethnic Expo every year, but had to stop because of the pandemic.

Senior Lukas Hoehn decided to take on the responsibility of planning the booth as his senior project.

“My German teacher reached out to our class saying that she needed help setting up this booth and I responded saying that I’d love to help, it sounded fun and I could make it my senior project,” Hoehn said.

As one of the main organizers of the booth, Hoehn was responsible for making financial spreadsheets, finding volunteers and planning the menu.

“We ended up serving bratwurst both with an American bun and with a German bun from a bakery,” Hoehn said. “We also had a currywurst option, which was the bratwurst with a curry sauce and curry powder. We had sauerkraut, red cabbage, potato salad as some of our sides and a drink called spezi, which was a mix of Coke, Fanta and some lemon.”

German teacher Amelia Shaw considers the booth a huge success.

“It was a success from a monetary standpoint because we made a profit and it was a success for us as a program because we had a lot of volunteers and it got a lot of students involved who don’t have a lot of after school activities,” Shaw said.

As successful as the booth was, the volunteers working there ran into a few problems, according to German Club member Arhant Awale.

“We kept running out of ingredients to make stuff,” Awale said.

Hoehn provides a few more details about their issues with insufficient inventory.

“We ended up selling out of our brats, so we had to get more,” Hoehn said. “We

photo by Caeden Sych almost sold out of all of those, too. We went through almost 800 brats.”

Despite these challenges, Hoehn noted that the money made from the booth exceeded his expectations.

“We ended up making about $4,400,” Hoehn said. “Our goal was $3,000.”

The profit made by the booth will be used to fund activities for the German Club and German students.

“We will probably go on multiple field trips, but the first field trip we have planned is for my German 3 and 4 students,” Shaw said. “We’re going to a place called the Heidelberg Haus. It’s in Indianapolis, and it’s a German bakery, cafe and restaurant.”

In addition to providing funds for the German class activities, Shaw notes that those who volunteered also gained volunteer experience, and learned how to work with custumers.

“One thing they gained was they had to interact with customers, mostly adult customers, in a professional manner and not all of the interactions were positive,” Shaw said. “In food service, you’re always going to have a grumpy customer.”

Awale agrees that volunteering at the booth helped him and other students practice important life skills.

“It builds up teamwork because there are multiple stations you have to work at,” Awale said. “My friend was grilling and I was at the bun-cutting section.

Then there are the cashiers. They took the orders and then they had to yell the order back at us.” to read more visit cnhsmedia.com

NEWS

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Instagram creates social media option for teens Students and staff discuss new teen accounts

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by Brooklynn Hurt design by Bella Ruiz

ixty-eight percent of 15-17 year olds use the Instagram platform according to a 2023 Pew Research study. The social media app has launched a new option for teens. The app has restricted “Teen Accounts” that can improve both mental and physical health, as well as safety according the app’s website.

Spanish teacher Meagan Hearne discusses why she believes it’s important to have these restrictions.

“I think it’s important for minors to have social media restrictions for multiple things,” Hearne said.

The accounts will feature restrictions, including screen time warnings. Junior Danni Riley believes teens addicted to the app should have time limits.

“I would spend a lot of time on Instagram,” Riley said. “I think if you’re addicted to Instagram like me then you should probably have a time limit on it.”

Hearne is concerned that an issue caused by too much screen time is the loss of sleep.

“Kids are losing sleep because they’re on their phones,” Hearne said. “You’re not giving your body sleep, and eventually that’s going to catch up and it’s going to catch up in a way that will manifest itself in mental illness and physical illness.”

To help teens stay off the app during the night the app will go into sleep mode from 10 p.m.-7 a.m. Social studies department chair, Laurie Martin supports this idea.

“I also like that it won’t allow teens access from 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. which will hopefully encourage them to spend more time sleeping and less time on social media,” Martin said.

Parents will be able to control screen time settings, and see what content their teens are viewing.

Martin believes parents should be aware of what their children are doing online.

“It’s important that parents always know what their children are doing online and to protect them from issues that teens don’t yet have the ability or wisdom to navigate on their own,” Martin said.

Mental health is one of the issues that Instagram is focusing on with this option. Riley admits that social media has affected her mental health negatively.

“I do think that it’s probably made my mental health a little worse,” Riley said.

Riley thinks the changes will benefit teens even though they might not act like it.

“I think it will benefit, but I feel like a lot of people are just going to act like or say they don’t like it,” Riley said.

Martin believes it’s the right direction, but other social media apps need to follow suit.

“I definitely think it’s a start,” Martin said. “That being said, Instagram is only one form of social media. If all other types of social media follow suit I think that would be greatly beneficial.”

The social media account option targets 16 year olds and younger

to read more visit cnhsmedia.com

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NEWS

WHAT’S NEW?

The teen accounts will have several new features: PRIVATE ACCOUNTS: With default private accounts, teens need to accept new followers and people who don’t follow them can’t see their content or interact with them.

MESSAGING RESTRICTIONS: Teens will be placed in the strictest messaging settings, so they can only be messaged by people they follow or are already connected to.

TIME LIMIT REMINDERS: Teens will get notifications telling them to leave the app after 60 minutes each day.

SENSITIVE CONTENT RESTRICTIONS: Teens will automatically be placed into the most restrictive setting of our sensitive content control.

LIMITED INTERACTIONS: Teens can only be tagged or mentioned by people they follow.

SLEEP MODE ENABLED: Sleep mode will be turned on between 10 PM and 7 AM, which will mute notifications overnight and send auto-replies to DMs.

Source: Instagram.com

TEEN ACCOUNTS

Students share their opinions on this option for younger teens “It will help kids not get into things that they shouldn’t and it helps prevent bad things from happening.” junior Wendy Rosas

“I feel like there’s nothing wrong with it and its unnecessary.” sophomore Miranda Manrique

“I feel like they can be helpful but also problematic because a lot of athletes use their accounts for recruiting.” junior Bailee Scruggs

iGrad funding gets boost by local grant iGrad program gets a boost to help students graduate

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$335,000 grant has been approved for the continued development of the iGrad program, aimed at supporting students in Bartholomew County. The grant, funded by the City Redevelopment Commission, will provide critical support for the program’s growth and sustainability. iGrad Program Director Jennifer Steadman Ryan was present when the grant request was advanced to the City Council.

“I was at the Redevelopment Commission meeting when the Commission voted to move the request on to the City Council,” Steadman Ryan said. “I’m very proud of the iGrad Program and happy to hear the support from the Commission and others at the meeting.”

The iGrad program provides support for students who are struggling academically or falling behind in earning the necessary credits for graduation. Currently serving around 600 students in Bartholomew County, the program offers a range of services designed to help students succeed. “iGrad is a program that helps students who are struggling with their classes and behind in credits,” Steadman Ryan said. “We have 2 full-time team leads, 11 graduation coaches, and 2 college and career readiness coaches.”

The $335,000 grant will be primarily used to fund the salaries and benefits of these team leads and coaches. These individuals are responsible for providing direct support to students, offering mentorship, coaching, and academic assistance to ensure they stay on track.

“This money all goes towards the salaries and benefits for the team leads and coaches, the money from TIF does let us use other monies for programming for the students,” Steadman Ryan said.

The impact of the iGrad program has been overwhelmingly positive, with students benefiting

by Audrey Nordman design by Aidan Brown

from the thorough support it provides. By addressing both academic challenges and personal development, the program has helped many students improve their performance and get back on track toward graduation.

“The support from students and educators has been tremendous, the feedback we receive is so positive, students feel that iGrad becomes like a family to them because of the support they receive,” Steadman Ryan said. “We are developing new programming for 10th graders this year that will help students think about potential career paths and skills.”

Community involvement is also a part of iGrad, helping to strengthen the connection between students and local resources. By engaging community members, iGrad creates opportunities for students to receive additional support and guidance outside of the classroom.

“We have community volunteers who come in to tutor in subjects such as math and science, we also have plans to have community partners come into the schools to talk about their careers and education,” Steadman Ryan said.

“Donations from the community also help stock the program’s ‘Care Cabinets,’ which provide essential items like hygiene products for students in need.”

Looking ahead, the longterm vision for iGrad includes expanding its community volunteer program to further enhance the support available to students. By growing this initiative, iGrad aims to bring in more community members who can offer the mentorship, tutoring, and career guidance necessary for the program.

“My long-term goals for the iGrad Program are to expand the community volunteer program so students have more opportunities to work with tutors,” Steadman Ryan said.

photo by Lois Guest

Students work with iGrad coaches to focus on credits for graduation. The program is partnered with Ivy Tech and uses a team approach to mentoring students.

ABOUT iGRAD

Info about the iGrad program’s impact on students

Serves over 500 students every year Partnered with Ivy Tech Provides students in grades 8-12 who are identified as at-risk with academic support and mentoring All students who started 12th grade in iGrad graduated from high school in May 2023 Source: ivytech.edu

NEWS

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DAY OF DRAMA

Students participate in the 24-Hour Theatre event to raise money for the drama department design by Addisyn Pulley photos by Aldo Ramos

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STUDENT LIFE

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1. Junior Nora Kleinhenz and sophomore Chloe Feliciano act in the romance play.

2. Sophomore Alyssa Maddox and Freshman Alex Preston act together in the drama play.

3. Freshman Masha Pivovarova performs in the mystery play.

4. Freshman Mason King participates in a romance production.

5. Senior Zoe King acts in the mystery performance.

6. Sophomores O’Malley Taylor and Braden Huckaby participate in a mystery play.

7. Junior Layla green acts in a romance play.

8. Sophomore Sebastion Hartwell participates in a drama production.

STUDENT LIFE

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INVENTIONS OF A GENERATION SWENEXT plans for their academic season as women in STEM

by Chloe Feliciano design by Aidan Brown

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veryone has used something made by an engineer. From a toaster to a car; nearly everything people use today has started as a small thought in someone’s mind. CNHS girls have created a club to channel their inner creativity. Club leader Grace Huang talked about the club and what happens inside. SWENEXT is an acronym that the girls came up with to describe the club.

“So, SWENEXT, The SWE stands for Society of Women Engineers, and the NEXT is just next, like the next generation,” Huang said.

It’s a club for girls who want to participate in engineering, with plans to do STEM related activities. Despite this, it’s beginner friendly.

“It’s open for everyone,” Huang said. “I know a lot of people there who have no idea if they want to go into engineering, but they come because they can see their friends and that’s really fun.”

Huang noted that members don’t have to meet after school, and instead meet during some Advisories.

“We meet in Mr. Branham’s Room, 2212 during advisory,” Huang said. “Every other Wednesday, this year we’re doing Wednesday on A days.”

Huang said she is happy with the club’s success and attendance.

“We have over 20 members,” Huang said. “About 13-14 people come each time pretty consistently. I think it’s been pretty successful. Not even with just the membership, having everyone come together to talk about things they love is really important.”

Huang emphasizes the importance of the club to her.

“I loved building stuff as a kid, very cliche,” Huang said. “I really

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STUDENT LIFE

liked LEGOs and stuff like that.

I really love the interdisciplinary nature of engineering.

Engineering is everywhere.

Anything you use someone had to engineer. And I really want to make that impact.”

Her love for engineering has transferred to her future as well.

“I’m partly planning on majoring in mechanical engineering in college,” Huang said.

Her passion also is for others in her community and she strives to make a change.

“There weren’t a lot of girls also doing [STEM], and I really wanted a place where we could all come together to feel safe and supported,” Huang said.

“Because I know a lot of people end up dropping out of those things because they don’t feel like they have a community there, and I never want that to be the reason someone decides not to pursue STEM.” Other girls have enjoyed taking part in SWENEXT, including Vincia Li. “SWENEXT has been super cool,” Li said. “I think all of their activities are really cool. And they always invite someone to tell us about their engineering job. I think it’s really cool to hear about how their careers are.”

The attitude of the club is purely for fun, while also being academic in nature.

“I plan a lot of science related activities,” Huang said. “Recently this year we’ve done popsicle stick catapults, and we’ve just started a bigger project, a boat.

We’re going to take cardboard and pool noodles, and stuff like that and each group is going to build a boat.”

Li noted her participation in the boat making contest. to read more visit cnhsmedia.com

photo by Maddie Williams SWENEXT gathers materials at their last club meeting.

WOMEN IN STEM Info about how women have impacted the industry

Women make up 34 percent of the workforce in science, technology, engineering and math Men in STEM annual salaries are nearly $15,000 higher per year than women ($85,000 compared to $60,828) 21 percent of engineering majors and 19 percent of computer science majors are women

Source: the AAUW, Census.gov

WHEN SPIRIT COMES ALIVE Teachers and Students describe the customs and experiences of celebrating the life of the dead and keeping their spirits alive

by Gabe Manning design by Mia Bowers

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ost holidays are a time for celebrating and living in the moment, but not every holiday is celebrated by rejoicing and living. Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead is celebrated in Mexican culture and celebrates the lives of late family members, pets, and even celebrities. Spanish teacher, Maria Sanchez Cisneros explains what Day of the Dead is.

“Day of the Dead is a 3-day celebration, where we take the day to celebrate and remember our past loved ones, past family members, and to honor them and keep their memory alive,” Sanchez said.

From a student’s perspective, the Day of the Dead can be used as a time for learning about your family and their values. Junior Barbara Rubio explains what the Day of the Dead means to her.

“To me, it’s a day where we celebrate those who have passed in our family. On the Day of the Dead, I always tend to find myself asking about our relatives who have passed and what their life was like,” Rubio said.

Sanchez noted that celebrating loved ones isn’t always about mourning and being upset, rather, within the culture, it can be quite a beautiful thing. She emphasized how in the United States, people tend to be scared

of the topic of death and it can have a very negative connotation.

“I think that in the US, people get really nervous about the talk of death. It’s kind of taboo; the topic of death,” Sanchez said. “However, in other cultures like Mexican culture and Guatemalan culture, it’s not necessarily taboo. If anything it’s a celebration that we still love them and they’re still in our hearts.”

Although the Day of the Dead is not a national holiday, there is still a handful of people who still celebrate it. Rubio details how she feels about people outside of Mexican culture celebrating the holiday. to read more visit cnhsmedia.com

MOST POPULAR FOODS DURING DAY OF THE DEAD

Sugar Skull

Flan

Mexican Hot Chocolate

Pan de Muerto

EXCHANGE EXPERIENCE Students discuss their lives in the exchange program

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eaving everything behind- your friends, family, and familiar routines- to immerse yourself in a completely new country for an entire school year. That’s exactly what junior Cris Santacreu, one of North’s foreign exchange students has done, stepping into Columbus North High School with her fresh perspective, untold stories, and her immense courage to embrace the unknown. According to Santacreu, the transition from her Spanish school to an American one was enough to give anyone whiplash.

“Here the schools are very different from Spain,” Santacreu said. “Classes in Spain are fixed and we are always with the same classmates and the teachers are the ones who move between classes. Here the teachers have their own class and the students

have to go to their classes.

Another difference that has struck me is that here, sports are super important and people take sports super seriously, while in Spain sports are not so important; many people practice some sports but not as much as here.”

According to friend and teammate sophomore Tania Maldanado, the culinary transition was difficult on Santacreu.

“I’ve noticed that she’s had to adjust to the different meals,” Maldanado said. “She really misses Spanish dishes.”

According to Santacreu, the difficulty in moving countries lies not only in the change in school difficulty and cooking, but in the homesickness that occurs.

I had a hard time the first few days because I missed my parents and friends, and the thought of not seeing them for so

by Colin Amini design by Gabe Marsh

long was hard,” Santacreu said.

“But little by little I adapted here and I’m super happy with the life I’m creating here.”

While Santacreu might feel that there certainly are drawbacks, according to Santacreu, the exchange program can also be very exciting and full of new experiences.

“One thing I was really looking forward to doing was going to a soccer game, and a month ago I went to the East vs. North game and really enjoyed it,” Santacreu said.

Maldanado further explains the ways she has attempted to integrate Santacreu into American culture.

“Me and Crisitina have gone to Starbucks where she tried a new drink for the first time,” Maldanado said. “I’ve introduced her to Target, and we’ve gone to football and soccer games together.”

Junior Cris Santacreu According to Santacreu, she not only found a community in attending school sporting events, but found a community even more in actually joining one.

to read more visit cnhsmedia.com

STUDENT LIFE

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OPINION ROAD TO DRIVING With so many steps to getting a driver’s license, it starts to become an overwhelming process

by Mia Bowers

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s 15 and 16-yearolds go through the process of getting their license, they might notice it is a little more complicated than expected. You have to first get your learner’s permit, 15 is the earliest age you can get it. You have to take a test that asks extremely specific questions that are a bit redundant at times. Then you have two options from this point. You can either go the Driver’s Education route or opt out. Taking Driver’s Education saves you some time but it’s a whopping 450 to 475 dollars depending on the school you do it through.

The main thing that bothers me about the whole system is that you have to be 16 and 90 days to get your license. What is the 90 days doing? By the time you turn 16, you are so excited to get your license but then reality sets in. Those 90 days turn into the longest 90 days of your life.

These 90 days were especially bad for me and my circumstances.

My birthday is right on the cusp that decides whether I am a sophomore or a junior. That means I am one of the last juniors to

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OPINION

get their license. It is a humbling experience to be constantly be in need of a ride everywhere. It makes you feel like a burden to everyone around you who does have their license. I wanted was to have the feeling of independence that I have longed for all my life. I wanted to have the security of knowing that I would never have to ask for a ride again. I wanted to be able to drive my friends who didn’t have rides because I know exactly how it feels to be in that situation.

As if age doesn’t discourage people from getting their license, the long and expensive steps it takes does. There is no reason that 30 hours of Driver’s Education should be necessary. I fully understand that there should be some sort of program to inform driver’s ed students basic driving protocols and safety, but 30 hours is just overkill. I personally lost engagement and motivation to finish the course.

At the end of the day, it’s not that big of a deal, but it would be nice to make the process of getting a driver’s license more straightforward than how it is currently.

TWO STEPS BEHIND Examining the trend of mukbangs

by Gabby Revell

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wo. Steps. Ahead. I am always two steps ahead.

Influencer Nicholas Perry, known as Nikocado Avocado said in a recent video. The content creator started out as a vegan lifestyle vlogger, however things took a turn as he shifted towards mukbangs. In each video, he ate increasing amounts of food, and his following grew.

Perry is not the only food influencer who has blown up.

Creator Jennavieve Dunbar, more commonly known as JellyBean.

Sweets is an influencer who has had a recent burst of popularity.

She blew up because of her recent weight gain, and commenters saying they were afraid she would follow in Perry’s footsteps. She is known for starting her videos by chugging half of her drink in one sip, then eating fast.

Many creators have made careers off of food, such as karissaeats and Keith Lee. TikTok followers have been concerned about Mukbangers like Dunbar and Perry.

The reason so many are concerned over these two over the others? The sheer volume of food they have been eating in their videos. Perry can be seen

downing family size bags of Takis with packs of ramen, piles of McDonald’s food spread across his floor in a single sitting. Dunbar is more moderate, but can still be seen on her account eating large amounts of Taco Bell in a very short amount of time. She brags eating two grilled cheese burritos in under four minutes.

The controversy over mukbangers seems to mostly come from their fans, concerned about their wellbeing. Another creator, Alex Yosiekho, who is known for playing over/under bites with his food, has been the cause of some concern. His fans urge him to slow down and enjoy his food, saying it looks like it hurts in his videos.

Other creators such as janemukbangs and RIYMA are seen with large amounts of food in their videos, but don’t receive nearly as much hate, as they never eat the entirety of the food in one sitting. Typically they don’t eat more than half of it in each video.

The health risks associated with many mukbangers outweighs the amount of money it brings in.

Seeing the effects of mukbanging in Perry, we can determine he is definitely not two steps ahead, he is two steps behind.

PENNIES DON’T MAKE CENTS The U.S. needs to find an alternative to minting pennies

by Cassie Osburn

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or decades, the U.S. has had a problem with pennies. Currently, it costs more than 3 cents to mint a single penny.

As a result, the U.S. is losing millions of dollars every year producing these coins.

Moreover, few people use pennies after receiving them as change, creating a constant need for more pennies. The lack of pennies in circulation causes the U.S. to mint more pennies that probably won’t be used. Instead of continuing with this perpetual production of pennies, the U.S. should abolish the coin.

It is generally thought that to stop minting pennies, Congress would have to pass a law getting rid of them. But Congress is often busy with more important matters.

Fortunately, U.S. law may provide a way to end penny production without Congressional action.

According to Title 31 of the U.S. Code, Section 5111, “The Secretary of the Treasury shall mint and issue coins … in amounts the Secretary decides are necessary to meet the needs of the United States.” This means that if the Secretary of the Treasury were to decide that pennies were no longer necessary to meet the needs of the United States, they may have the power to abolish the penny.

Even if the U.S. manages to get rid of the penny, one problem still remains. As of right now, pennies

are necessary in cash transactions that can’t be settled with larger coins. To address this issue, we should follow Canada’s example.

Years ago, Canada faced a similar problem with pennies.

They cost too much to produce and had little purpose. So, they abolished the penny and implemented a rounding system for cash payments.

Payments that aren’t cash are still rounded to the exact cent, but cash transactions are rounded to the nearest nickel. For example, a person would pay $4.35 in cash for a product that costs $4.33, and something that costs $4.42 would be $4.40 in cash.

While some may find this system unfair, as it could increase the amount they have to pay by a few cents when they use cash, economist Robert Whales found that, using this rounding system, prices are just as likely to round up as they are to round down. So although people who use cash regularly will have to pay a couple cents more for some things, they will see the price they have to pay decrease just about as often.

It is ridiculous that we waste millions of dollars every year making coins that the majority of people won’t use. Pennies have been an issue for decades.

We have to stop procrastinating and make a decision that will benefit the country.

ALL OF ONE MIND Social media is deleting individuality

by Brooklynn Hurt

S

ocial media is a big part of people’s lives.

It dictates the trends, what’s right or wrong, what’s cute, what’s weird.

People have become crazy over what’s trending. The second something starts trending it becomes on everyone’s minds.

Stanley Cup revenue has increased tenfold since becoming trending on TikTok. When something starts to trend you begin to hear and see it everywhere among the majority of people, especially younger generations. Unfortunately, with all of these people wanting to look and be what’s trending, they all end up being the same.

Leaving us copies, and pastes of one another.

We no longer have individuality.

I think that it’s been stolen by social media.

People no longer have unique styles, likes, or even vocabularies. Everyone likes the same music, clothes, brands, books, foods. How many videos have you seen of people raving about the same artist? Clothing websites or brands?

Most of these trends come from Tiktok. About 53 percent of people say they are Taylor Swift fans with over 2.6 million videos with #SwiftTok according to TikTok. That’s a little over half of the US population. Her popularity increased majorly after she started trending on social media

for her Eras Tour on TikTok with over 150 million monthly users in the United states.

Tweens have even started hoping on the trends, specifically skin care, and makeup. These tweens are known as “Sephora Kids.” Kids are becoming more worried about what’s trending than being kids. They don’t know what they like without the trends telling them what that is.

Mindlessly scrolling has become a soul hobby for many. Sports participation has decreased by about 10 percent from 2019-2021 according to USA facts. According to a survey taken by Cosmo JrTracking, the average teen spends 4.8 hours a day scrolling, and with a school day for most on top of that it doesn’t leave much time for other activities.

Social media has put us in a small standardized box that has become almost impossible to get out of if you’re a social media user, or trend follower.

Although it’s understandable humans by nature crave others’ approval so it makes sense why everyone wants to be trending.

We no longer have hobbies and things we like. We’ve become too busy scrolling and having people tell us what’s cool or not.

We’ve been robbed of the ability to be unique due to the virtual world we now live in, and it will continue to take more of our individuality if we let it.

OPINION

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TOO MUCH NOISE The Triangle staff discusses the impact of misinformation during elections

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ith the upcoming general election, social media has created an environment ripe for misinformation and deception. Whether it be from random people, the media, or from candidates themselves, it can be difficult to know what’s true and what’s not.

According to PBS NewsHour, two thirds of Americans view social media as a bad thing for democracy. Yet, at the same time, half of Americans get their news from social media. With the rise of social media over the past decade, it’s now hard to escape it.

Whether you get your news from apps such as Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), TikTok, Facebook, or any of the other social apps available to our devices, misinformation plays a role in what you see. For sixty-six percent of the Triangle staff, social media is their main source of news. When someone opens a social media app, they are flooded with content, and users are often left without tools to help know if it’s actually factual, or just someone spreading misinformation.

According to a Harvard University study, websites such as the Associated Press and PBS News are considered highly factual, but it is important to look at multiple sources when trying to understand the news.

With it being an election year, an increasingly large amount of political content is being put out by candidates, the media, and really anyone who feels like posting about politics. While getting to know and understand the candidates and their policies in any election is important, political misinformation is incredibly dangerous, and can be harmful for our country. A new type of activism, called “slacktivism”, has become increasingly more relevant online. According to Oxford Dictionary, slacktivism is defined as ‘the practice of supporting a political or social cause by means such as social media or online petitions, characterized as involving very little effort or commitment.’

While it is normal to feel passionate about politics, and is a everyone’s civil right to comment about and criticize the government, it is dangerous to do so without the proper understanding of the situation. Commenting on a complex topic without doing research beforehand is irresponsible, and further contributes to misinformation online.

Whether you enjoy elections and politics or not, they are necessary parts of our society, just as free speech is necessary. But with the power of free speech comes the responsibility of upholding the truth, and ensuring that voters have the tools they

need to feel informed and confident when going to the polls. No matter your political views, nearly everyone can agree that politics has become increasingly divisive over the past decade. Mainstream media should be held accountable for their role in this, but it is important to note the role that social media and slacktivism have played in this, and how so much political commentary is overwhelming for voters, and makes the country seem more divided than it truly is.

Politics should be boring. After all, it’s about complex policies, legislation, and the legal process. But instead, it often feels like reality TV, and this is a disservice to the democratic process, and the ideals our country was founded on.

Politics and social media aren’t going away anytime soon, and as each election passes, it’s become more and more important to figure out how they can coexist. Free speech, while a civil right in this country, is a responsibility that everyone must understand. Democracy is a fragile system, and with every post, every comment spreading misinformation, cracks form in the system. It’s up to all of us to patch up those cracks.

COMICS BY CLAIRE Sophomore Claire Rawlings illustrates some teenagers’ feelings about the social media and the impact on first-time voters

EDITORIAL

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DIGITAL DEMOCRACY

From the polls to your for you page, the election has taken a new stage in the lives of teenagers

by Annie Green, Stella Gaylord design by Cecilia Gutierrez, Sarynel Barbosa Kulian

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IN-DEPTH

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wipe, share, comment, it’s never been easier to invoke the First Amendment than it is now. With social media at everyone’s fingertips, the election process looks different than it used to. This Tuesday, Nov. 5, citizens will be going to the polls and cast their vote towards the leadership of this country.

With presidential elections being right around the corner, and both Vice President Kamala Harris and Former President Donald Trump having social media platforms, how will it affect this year’s results? The entire country is watching both candidates extremely closely with the election on the horizon. One way to view both political figures is through social media. Government teacher Emma Hollman gives her opinion on candidates being active on social media.

“I think it can be beneficial,” Hollman. “I think it all comes down to how candidates choose to use it, so it’s kind of up to them if it’s more of a positive or negative light. I think for the most part it’s beneficial because it helps people connect with them in a kind of similar way that any public figure or celebrity does. It’s a good way for people to stay up-to-date with what candidates are doing and their policies because it’s an easy way to post and get information out to them.”

Hollman also gave her view on how social media platforms affect our views towards our political candidates.

“I honestly think it can have a pretty heavy impact on how we view political candidates, whether for president or for another office,” Hollman said. “Especially I think what celebrities say about politics and political candidates can have a lot of weight. I think whenever celebrities choose to publicly endorse one candidate over another, it doesn’t necessarily have as much impact as I think. I feel like people think it does, a lot of people I think are coming to the realization that celebrities are kind of detached from the rest of society. So, people don’t regard them as heavily. I feel like celebrities might think that they do, because people are starting to understand how detached they are from the ‘typical American.’”

Similar to Hollman, AP Government teacher Dan Marsh spoke his thoughts on how political candidates use social media and if it should be involved less.

“It goes back to James Madison and it goes back to Federalist Number 10: ‘Air is to fire what Liberty is to factions’,” Marsh said. “If we are going to allow for liberty to exist, political parties are always going to exist. If we start to squash what social media is doing, we are now squashing liberty. We, as a culture, have from the very beginning embraced a First Amendment freedom of speech concept, so much so that it’s embedded into us and sometimes we use it incorrectly. We’re so ingrained that I should

be able to say what I want when I want even if it violates a company’s policy. We believe that we’ve got the right to say what we want to say when we want to say it on any platform possible.

In 1787, the constitution was written with some sole ideas about America and how it should work. One of these sole ideas was everyone having the right to the freedom of speech and press, and with social media now involved in politics Americans find it much easier to spread their opinions and thoughts.

“I think if we start limiting social media, we are then one step towards the next form of speech. So does that mean we now go after the radio? Does that mean we now go after the newspapers, the TV? What’s the next thing we say, hey, we can’t allow that to be said on the TV because it’s too influential in politics?” Marsh said. “So, even though I think there are definitely dangers of social media involved in presidential elections, you can’t squash that danger. We can’t force everybody to have the same political views. We can’t squash liberty because then all we’re doing is going back to the tyrannical government that we fought against in the revolution.”

Marsh also spoke his personal opinion on how the voting system could be better, along with each candidates’ personal usage of platforms.

“I believe we should have a national ballot so that every state, every county, the ballot looks the exact same,” Marsh said. “Canada does this, and it creates a much more uniform process compared to how our elections are in the United States. The more people that are on ballots, the less likely we are to vote. I also think one thing that could be addressed that would really help our voting isn’t so much the process of voting, but how our political district maps are created. If you look at Minnesota, for example, their district maps are drawn not by political partisan elements, but by the state, an independent commission made up of both Democrats and Republicans and they look solely at population.”

Marsh also shared how the state of Minnesota votes and how it differs from the other 49 states. “They’re not looking at socioeconomic [status], they’re not looking at gender, they’re not looking at race and all those other factors that you can start to look at the data and create lines to benefit your political party. They’re dealing with the same issue. It’s just different from state to state depending upon what that political party’s power is in that state. If they can control it, they’re going to do things to keep themselves in power, and that’s just human nature. You need to use social media. It’s a great tool. It’s a dangerous one if you’re not using it correctly, but it’s also a great tool in terms of being accessible to the content. By doing so, one, it keeps you more informed on the entire picture, but it also allows me as a

to find your polling place visit indianavoters.in.gov/

Places to vote in Bartholomew county Indiana. teacher to show two different sides or three different sides of arguments in the classroom.

We’ve gone away from facts and have allowed ourselves to let our opinions be our driving force and our political conversations, as well as that, losing respect for the other person.”

Both Hollman and Marsh spoke on what they wish they knew sooner relating to voting, hoping that this information is known amongst this generation. Hollman spoke of the fact that she wished she knew sooner.

“I see a lot of Americans in general that I wish they knew sooner is the primary process and how that works,” Hollman said. “It does vary across different states, so it’s really important to see what the process is in your state and how you can be a part of that. It is a crucial step prior to the general election that voter turnout is not always great for. It’s really important for people to also vote in the primary because that determines who you get to vote for in the general election.

The beginning steps of the entire election process and makes a big difference.”

Marsh spoke about how much financial power goes into politics, even without the average American being aware of it.

“I wish I knew then was how much money plays in politics,” Marsh said.

“And following that dollar gets a better understanding of decisions that are being made, which I don’t know if that really answers the question about voting, but I think it does answer the question about knowing more about the world of politics and what happens in America.”

IN-DEPTH

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Statistically, a lot of social media’s users are below the age of voting in the United States of America.

Hollman and Marsh both spoke on why you should be involved in politics even if you can’t vote.

“But the bottom line fact is what happens in this 2024 election, whether it’s in the White House and the United States House and Senate or if it’s in the State House up in Indianapolis or if it’s in the city county buildings, they’re going to affect your life for the next two to four years,” Marsh said.

“So even if you can’t vote right now, being engaged in politics is going to let you know what this person has done while you weren’t able to vote.

And now you can vote, is that who you want in those offices? Have their actions impacted your life in a positive or negative way? Just because you can’t vote doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be actively engaged, I think that’s a big part of it. If your parents took you to vote and were talking about politics, even if it’s just a general conversation at the dinner table, you’re more likely to get yourself engaged in politics as well.”

Along with Marsh, Hollman agreed with him on the subject, adding a few thoughts of her own.

“One hundred percent, because even if you can’t vote yet, you can still influence people that do,” Hollman said. “Then I think that gears you up and gets you ready for voting when you’re at that age. It is very crucial to get involved, understand policies, learn what you support and don’t support, as early as you can so you’re ready and excited to participate when you have the opportunity.”

While most teenagers can’t vote, they are still heavily involved in an online world of social media.

Platforms like these provide a constant stream of entertainment and information which they are subconsciously consuming. It affects the way we think, talk, and act.

“I generally like to try and stay away from social media because I know that it can be swayed one way or swayed another so I try not to listen to it,” senior Eli Psota said.

Even with his knowledge of social media’s bias he still admits to falling down political rabbit holes from time to time.

Although social media sites provide many Americans with news, not everything they hear will be accurate.

“Every single piece of media is biased in some way or another, whether you want to believe that or whether you want to acknowledge that. Every single piece of media or news you consume is biased in one way,” academic coach Evan Kuhn said.

Accurate or not, it has a huge impact on the world of politics.

“In these last several election cycles, freedom of speech has been at the forefront where you can say whatever you want to an extent,” Kuhn said.

“And so I can go out there and can I make a story up about a candidate and people view that as truth in gospel?”

Since social media’s rise in popularity in the early 2000s it has had an impact on voters, and keeping people up to date with news is only part of it. Humanizing politicians has been a strategy used for years by political campaigns.

Showcasing their family, doing personal interviews, and letting them shake hands with average people are some of the strategies previously used. With the invention of social media political candidates are more easily seen as people.

“If we are going to allow for liberty to exist, political parties are always going to exist. If we start to squash what social media is doing, we are now squashing liberty.”

AP government teacher Dan Marsh

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IN-DEPTH

“It all comes down to how candidates choose to use it. It’s kind of up to them if it’s more of a positive or negative light,” Hollman said. “For the most part, it’s beneficial because it helps people connect with them in a kind of similar way that any public figure or celebrity does.”

Despite the spread of misinformation, social media can also motivate people to vote and provide teenagers with an outlet to get involved in the election.

“It’s important to vote because we were given a right to vote and I think you should be able to practice your right,” Psota said.

“It’s your right to do it, and we can do it and some people can’t, so I think you should if you can.”

Even if students are unable to vote there are ways for them to participate in the election.

“You can volunteer,” Kuhn said. “I know, there are grassroots organizations where you can volunteer, and you can get your parents and people whose friends you have who are 18 can vote, get them involved, and encourage them in the electoral process.”

Social media’s impact on the election has been substantial and created a voting environment with different problems than other elections.

However, it has also created a generation of more educated, involved individuals.

“Social media is an everchanging environment of politics, it’s not going anywhere,” Marsh said. “It gives us a connection, it allows for our politicians to directly interact with us as constituents, as human beings in this country.”

to read more election coverage visit cnhsmedia.com

ONLINE SOURCES

Here are some tips to make sure the info you are sharing is credible

1. Never share a post on social media without fact checking it first. Check dates and sources before confirming if something is true.

SHARING

SLOW DOWN

2. Slow down while reading or watching.

Processing the information can help better determine if it seems true.

FACT CHECKING TOOLS FOR TEENS

Since teens are exposed to political information on social media what are some sources they can use to distinguish fact from false?

3. Try and find the original ORIGINAL sources. Often things on social media can be shared over and over. Finding the original source will help reveal where the news was heard.

1. OpenSecrets.org

Open secrets is a non profit organization that is based out of Washington DC. It has unbiased political information centered around campaign funds and financing.

Great for finding finance information centered around politics.

2. FactCheck.org

Fact Check is an in depth nonprofit group for voters and their goal is to “reduce the level of deception and confusion in US politics”. They mainly focus on the candidates and members of their team and monitor what they say to determine factual accuracy.

3. Ground.News

Ground news is a source that rates and compares news articles. Their focus is determining bias, factuality, and ownership of information. It is a broad source which covers a variety of political topics and is good for finding overall transparency.

4. PolitiFact

VERIFY

4. Don’t believe everything social media says. There are many sources trying to mislead people and spread false information.

A nonprofit project that is good for fact checking journalism. Their main focus is identifying political fairness, transparency, and fairness. PolitiFact has helpful clarifying information shown in a simple way.

5. Snopes

Snopes is a website that is helpful when determining misinformation from fact. They cover multiple topics besides politics and mainly focus on debunking rumors and myths commonly seen on the internet.

IN-DEPTH

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MIND OVER MILES Discussing the mental aspect of cross-country and how it impacts the season

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by Gabby Revell design by Gabriel Carrillo ive Kilometers. Three point one miles. 5,000 meters. 16,404 feet.

Junior Sam Steinmetz focuses on every step.

“I just think about the race. It’s as hard as I can go, as fast as I can go. Nothing more, nothing less,” Steinmetz said.

Steinmetz has run cross country since seventh grade, has been a part of North’s program for the past three years and has big goals for his junior season.

“I want to break 16 minutes in the 5K…I just plan to keep running, keep improving, until I get there,” Steinmetz said.

Senior Draven Martinez also hopes to make his senior season the best yet.

“I keep working every day, keep giving everything at practice every day,” Martinez said. I am a leader for the team, I make sure that everyone is also putting in 110 percent each day.”

Martinez has been running for seven years now and has goals for the team to win state this year.

“My favorite part is winning as a team,” Martinez said. “When I’m done running and see my teammates coming in, and we go up to the podium and they’re like, ‘North is number one.’ It’s just something that sticks with you for a while.” Last school year, Martinez took AP Psychology, which is taught by Richard Sluder; the Cross Country and Track & Field head coach.

“Just having an idea of some of the psychological

principles helps me understand,” Sluder said. “A typical coach might say ‘stop being lazy’ or ‘learn to work harder,’ but having some of that basic psychology background, it helps me remind myself that kids might be going through things in their life, or that they are trying, and just might not be having a good day.

Similarly, Martinez agrees that psychology has helped him in his running. “[AP Psychology] helped me understand that sometimes you have to look at things in a different way,” Martinez said. “If I want to do something, and doing it the way I’ve always done it isn’t working, I take a step back, think about it, and think about a new way to approach it.”

Freshman Lucy Nevins has a different way of getting through her setbacks.

“I just try to move past it and work even harder the next time to make up for whatever I lost,” Nevins said. “If I have a week with low mileage or I just feel slow, I just try to work even harder after that.” Nevins emphasizes her struggles with

photo by Ashley Perez Senior Carys Glyn-Jones participates in a cross country meet the mental aspect of running more than the physical aspects.

“My biggest mental challenge is getting over fear of other people being better than me and getting too worried about other people around me than to focus on doing my best personally,” Nevins said. “I just have to focus on my race.”

Sluder teaches his athletes how to persevere in the face of adversity using his psychological knowledge.

“The most important thing that I think we teach them is resiliency,” Sluder said “How to bounce back from setbacks and how to be a good leader and a good person. I think if you’re not

a good teammate and you’re not a good leader, you’re probably not going to have great results anyway.” Even though cross country is an individual sport, Sluder still places emphasis on being a good leader and a team player in order to succeed.

“We have five pillars that we say our program is built off of, so we really built off those five pillars a lot instead of just saying ‘we want to win this meet,’ ‘we want to win that meet,’ we feel if we can achieve filling those five pillars, working hard, being a good leader, things like that, our results in meets will come,” Sluder said. to read more visit cnhsmedia.com

RUNNING IN RE VERSE A look at the point system of cross country.

The goal of a team is to have the LEAST amount of points by the end of the meet. Only the first 5 runners who finish are scored and they are given up to 5 points based on the order they finished.

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SPORTS

+ 1 point

+ 3 points

+ 2 points

3rd Place

2nd 1st Place Place

FLIPPING INTO ACTION

The gymnastics team prepares for a fresh 2024-2025 season

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s the winter season approaches, the gymnastics team has officially begun preseason training.

Senior Reese Euler will be returning for her fourth year, and is eager about her final gymnastics season as a Columbus North Bulldog.

“I am very excited about the upcoming pre-season,” Euler said. “We’ve had consistent attendance throughout summer and fall workouts so that going into preseason we’ll be able to get a head start on skills” Euler said.

Head Coach Bob Arthur has set clear expectations for the preseason, focusing on building team chemistry and skills.

“The primary goals during the preseason are to keep the girls excited for the upcoming season,” Arthur said. “We have a very experienced and talented group of gymnasts returning this year, along with six new freshmen, so teambuilding and getting everyone on the same page will be crucial,” Arthur said.

Several athletes including junior Hannah Perry have already set personal goals for the preseason.

“I’m super excited for floor this year,” Perry said.

While Perry focuses on floor this year, Euler is looking to work on her skills on beam and tumbling.

“I am excited to work on new skills on beam, especially tumbling skills during preseason” said Euler.

Team dynamics is also a part of preseason. Coach

by Audrey Nordman design by Bella Herbert

Bob Arthur emphasized the importance of the bond they are developing.

“Most girls are returning, so that chemistry has already been built, however, we have a couple of freshmen that we have been able to connect and grow chemistry with as well,” Arthur said.

Working on specific skills and executing them is another component of preseason preparation.

“Almost half of the gymnast’s final score is based on execution, so simply working on that will provide immense payoffs no matter what the individual’s skill level is,” Arthur said.

By working on both advanced skills and basic execution, the team aims to find success across the board. The mental aspect of gymnastics is also a focus of their preseason.

“I think just focusing on my goals for the season and setting my mind on those goals right from the start,” Perry said.

Looking ahead, the team works to improve each athlete’s individual skills.

“We have a broad spectrum of skill levels, from beginners photo by Regina Holguin Freshman Peyton Hewitt vaults at gymnastics practice. to state contenders; our challenge in the preseason is to elevate everyone to the next level,” Arthur said.

As the Dogs gymnastics A history of the girls gymnastics team’s success team works through preseason, their focus Girls gymnastics was added to the IHSAA in the 1972remains on building a 1973 school year. strong foundation for the season ahead.

“I want to help this team The girls gymnastics team has won 3 state champions: win State, but most of all 1972, 1973, and 2015. become a team; improve our team bond and relationships The team also has four runner-up finishes: 1986, 1987, in the process,” Perry said.

2008, and 2017.

A LEAPING SUCCESS

SPORTS

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NET GAINS

The Men’s tennis team discusses their journey to the Indiana State Tennis Tournament

by Colin Amini design by Jaedyn Greenlee While Hammel believes that individual hard work is certainly impactful, he also elaborates on the importance of the desire to want to be better, both on an individual and team level. “[I tell my players to] learn from each other,” Hammel said. “Push each other to be better. Understand what it takes as 1 player and a team of players to achieve the goals and results we have had. It’s a process from year to year and each person has to have the pride and desire to do better and be better.”

Sophomore Shashu Sabapathy shares that in addition to the team’s raw desire to be better, the team’s deep level of skill aids them in their ability to win games.

“We are able to perform because we have one of the best players in the state, which helps our lineup by putting a great number two singles player against other teams,” photo by Lou Briand Sabapathy said. “We also have a relatively close skill level around the Junior Vince Sasse volleys at the net. team, which provides a well-rounded matchup against others.” he sharp crack of tennis balls Sun said that the team’s confidence not only meeting rackets echoed across comes from the team’s skill, but their access to the courts. The squeak of rubber some of the best resources in all of Indiana. soles on the smooth clay. The air “Columbus has probably one of the best thick with the scents of fresh-cut environments for competitive tennis in all grass, sports drinks, and the unmistakable of Indiana,” Sun said. “Columbus has an rubbery aroma of new tennis balls. This amazing number of talented coaches, a lot will be the atmosphere of the Indiana State of talented players, and a lot of public and Tennis Tournament, the culmination of private resources. CNHS has also been North Tennis’ efforts. For sophomore Alex consistently ranked in the top 5 tennis high Zeng, these efforts have been a long time in schools, and we have some of the best players the making. in the state playing for our team.”

“I play every week, so I’ve been playing Hammel felt strongly that the team is since the start of this year,” Zeng said. prepared and ready for the tournament, but Sophomore Richard Sun started his work at noted that their success will be based on a similar time. their draw.

“I train year-round, so somewhere around “We have been tested and we will be very the first Saturday of January [I started],” confident going into the state tournament,” Sun said.

Hammel said. “It’s all about the draw. We Head Coach Kendal Hammel said the won’t blow any of the good top teams away importance of hard work, a philosophy that but we will believe that we can compete with he has built his coaching style around. anyone. The team is ready. They are already “My coaching process would be that if you talking about possible match ups. We have have put the hard work in then good things to trust each other, support each other, and will follow,” Hammel said. “The more you’re believe that each spot can make a difference out practicing, playing, drilling, competing, and for the team’s success.” conditioning the better player you will be.”

Ganesan further elaborates on the team’s degree of motivation.

“Our varsity squad is very strong, with some top players in every position, but what sets us apart is the determination we have to win North’s first state title,” Ganesan said.

Sabapathy aims to make the coach’s and teams efforts not feel obsolete, and feels confident in the team’s ability to do so.

“I want to be a part of a team that has accomplished something,” Sabapathy said. “I think I owe it to my coach for putting so much time and effort into us to try our hardest to work towards a state title in the team division for North. I feel like it is possible this year with a great team this year.”

Similarly, Zeng feels very confident in the team’s odds and in what sets them apart from their peers.

“I think the determination to win, the will to not lose, sets us apart from other teams this year,” Zeng said. “We’ve already beaten people ranked above this, who says we can’t win it all?”

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photos for the Triangle Senior Hank Lin won the first individual boys state tennis championship in school history last Saturday. Lin was 27-0 this season and finished his career with a 74-2 record as the number one singles player.

CAPTURE THE OPPORTUNITY Flag football is brought to light as a new sport

by Owen Grimes design by Alexa Lanam

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he screech of whistles. The passionate fans. The stomping of cleats pounding the field. To lots of people these events might not hold much meaning. But when introduced to a group of people who want to be a part of something bigger than themselves, it can mark the start, middle, or end of what can be a win or a loss. For this group of girls, starting a new flag football team marks the beginning of a long journey.

Sophomore, Melissa Chavez McDonald explains why girls would want to join.

“It is the opportunity to learn a new sport and start from scratch,” Chavez McDonald said. “There are many people who do not want to enter a sport because they think they do not have the skills or experience playing. In this case, since it is a new sport, we are all going to be learning and we will all level up together, we are going to learn the basic skills.”

Chavez McDonald explains how she’ll spread the word to students who are interested.

“I want to inform people in many ways,”Chavez McDonald said.”First by meeting with the girls to explain how to play, showing them videos, because I know that since it is a new sport not many people will know about it. I want to introduce them to the world of flag football so that they can enjoy it as much as I do. But I think the best way for them to learn this sport is to see and have the opportunity to play it, because that’s how people fall in love with a sport.”

Sophomore, Aliyah Young explains why she wants to join the flag football team.

“Two of my brothers played football and I have always had the urge to play football so I feel like this is a fun idea,” said Young.

Junior, Lydia Kushman gives her reasoning of why she wants to join.

“A Lot of my friends are doing it and like I have wanted to play football before but playing with the guys isn’t always an option,” Kushman said.

To establish something is a tough task for anyone to accomplish. But for Chavez McDonald, it was a task she was willing to take to inform others about something

she is passionate about. While possibly motivating others to be passionate about it too and explains why making this new sport public will ultimately be a good idea.

“The team can create a new community in Columbus North,” Chavez McDonald said. “In my experience this sport has united not only players but also their families, as they come together to support the team.”

Freshman, Kori Jones explains why starting a new sport such as flag football is a good idea.

“I think it opens opportunities for girls and will also be great exercise,” Jones said. “It gives more options for female athletes still figuring out what they want photo by Lois Guest to do for a sport.”

Melissa Chavez McDonald the founder of the club Motivation is a process of suggesting a state of mind that has individuals engage in goal-directed behavior. Young shares how she would motivate others to join the new sport.

“I could explain to them what would be fun about it, what would be beneficial about RULES FOR FLAG FOOTBALL it, and what it could mean for them in the future,” Young said Kushman gives her motivational approach 1. Flag Football consists of teams when envisioning the opportunity of of 5-8 players on the field against playing flag football with teammates. another team “I have already talked to my soccer 2.

Players cant obstruct or guard teammates about it, Kushman said. “So their flags that’s how I found out. And then motivated other teammates to join because it’s something we all like, but we have never had the opportunities.”

Chavez McDonald gives some information 3. Every game starts with a coin on when the games will be played and how flip the rosters will be set up.

4. Players can’t run with the ball, “We play on weekends, especially Sundays their feet cannot leave the ground because it is when colts league games are played, said Chavez McDonald. “The team will play a mode 5vs5, in the field 5 offense and 5 defense. I hope to recollect enough girls to have 20 players on the roster, so we Source nflflag.com can have a bench.”

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FEARFUL FACTS Students share their thoughts on the spooky season design by Maia Jamieson “[My friends and I] are dressing as the three witches from Hocus Pocus. We needed a trio costume and we thought that would be perfect.”

THIS OR THAT CNHS Media surveyed 50 students to find out their opinions on Halloween

junior Gabby Spurgeon

Yes

Are you dressing up?

No

“I’m going to be the calcifer, which is a sentient flame form an anime called Howls Moving Castle. It’s one of my favorite animes and I love this character and I figured it would be a cool idea.” sophmore Ari Green

Haunted House

Haunted House vs.

Scary Movie

Scary Movie

“Me and a group of friends are being the Chippets. We needed something for a group of three, so we looked on Pinterest.” freshman Rue Payne

Skittles Kit Kat Snickers Starburst Original M&M’s Milky Way Butterfinger Hot Tamales Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup source: realsimple.com

$12.2 billion spent a year on Halloween