Track season begins pg. 22
Theatre department performs InnerSolar pg. 9
Creek construction update pg. 11
Choir and band members advance to All-State level By Emily Ruthven Around Creek Editor
Clear Creek’s fine art programs were, once again, proven to be successful when two choir members and one band member were given the title of All-State choir and band students. Jason Keyzer plays the trombone for the Wind Ensemble. The audition music was released in early August, meaning that Keyzer had been preparing this music during marching season. Along with his own ability, he received help from both band directors, Ogechi Ukazu and Eric Williams, along with his private lesson teacher, Mr. Robichaud In order to earn the title of All-State, Keyzer had to audition for region. Upon his success, he then auditioned for area, leading to his rank of All-State. The audition process is not a simple one, as Keyzer was present at the location, Katy Seven-Lakes High School, for a total of five hours. Despite his musical ability, his success did not come easily because Keyzer also plays for Creek’s junior varsity basketball team. “People always have more time than me because I play sports. This means that when I do have time to practice, I have to work really hard,” Keyzer said. The competition atArea is always fierce. “I was a little nervous but I focused on the competition. Being in sports has actu-
ally helped me thrive on it,” Keyzer said. While juggling advanced classes, sports and band, Keyzer found time to come up to the school during win-
cism. He’s doesn’t accept just being okay. He works hard, when you have those two things in a kid they’ll go far,” Ukazu said. “It is extremely difficult to make
ter break to rehearse with Photos courtesy of band and choir state your sophomore guidance from Ms. Ukazu. year, and he’s going to be “The thing that separates him from even better next year,” Ms. Ukazu said. the kids he was competing against at the Keyzer performed with other All-State level was that he has that work All-State members in San Antonio. ethic and he’s very critical on himself “It feels like all my hard work and also performances,” Ms. Ukazu said. finally paid off,” Keyzer said. Keyzer also stayed late in the band Choir students must also work excephall after school practicing his music. tionally hard in order to advance to the state “He’s very open and receptive to criti- level. Creek’s state choir members were
Iris Garcia and Zachary Hoover. Overall, the process takes about two and a half hours to audition, which contains musical performance and sight-reading. Most students received their audition music around the same time that Keyzer received his: late July or early August. The music “is pretty difficult compared to the music I normally sing [here at Creek],” Hoover said. In order to advance to the state level, it is imperative that one practices, regardless of personal skill. “I would practice for about one, and sometimes all the way to two hours per day,” Hoover said. Along with practicing alone, Hoover also practiced with his private lesson teacher David Smith and both of the choir directors at Creek, Mr.Park and Mr. Stultz. “For sure, auditioning for AllState choir was one of the hardest things I have ever done,” he said. “I’ve learned a lot about myself and how far I can push my capabilities. I’ve learned how I compare to others and how my dedication can get me anywhere, if I set my sights on [my goal].” Like any director would be, Mr. Park and Mr. Stultz are incredibly proud of their students. “All three [fine arts state ensemble members] have represented Clear Creek High in San Antonio [very well],” Mr. Park said.
Creek varsity basketball team ends season at playoffs By Troylon Griffin II Managing Editor
Creek’s basketball team has enjoyed its season of various wins and few losses. The team recently made it to the playoffs after victory against Clear Lake. The varsity basketball season started off with a win against Manvel, with a score of 74 to 60 on November 17. The season opening game began with Manvel in the lead, having a score of 22 to 17 by the end of the first quarter. “We just looked like we were lost defensively,” Wes Bryan, head basketball coach said. “With it being a new season, you don’t really have a lot of knowledge of the other team.” The team succeeded in catching up the HISD school. Coach Bryan cited Nick Shipley, Xavier Ferrell and Rashadre Wilson as some of the factors in such success. Shipley made eight of his nine shot attempts earned the team 34 points, six rebounds and two blocks. Senior guard Xavier Ferrell earned 16 points, while Wilson added 12 points to his teams score and had five rebounds. The game was followed by many wins including a notable win against Clear Springs on January 15. The team was down by 17 points in the third quarter but managed to score enough points to win with a score of 65 to 64.
“We turned up our intensity,” Coach pley, the team beat Springs by one point. Bryan said. With “We didn’t the excepplay very tion of hard, I felt their game like in the against first half. C l e a r I told the Brook, the guys beplayers exfore the perienced game, it’s nothing but been a long wins during time since the month they’ve of January beaten us February was a and they series of are dying wins for the to beat us. most part. We saw it The team all sums c o r e d mer long.” victories With a against score of 24 Brazosto Spring’s wood and 36 at halfFriendtime, Raswood, but shadre Wilson scored received Photo by Katie Rodriguez 14 of the 17 points Creek their first loss against Springs, earned in the third quarter. Xavier Fer- after playing them for the third time. rell continued to help his team by adding “We did some good things last year,” 19 more points to his team’s score. Along Bryan said. “We were 33 and 4 and we with the efforts of Tyree Bearden and Shi- had a lot of returning players. This year
we have five returning players from varsity and several new younger guys. Many of them have improved. Bryce Lovejoy has had much improvement and did well in district and played a good game against Clear Lake and Nate Jackson led us in scoring against Clear Falls.” The coach noted that tournaments greatly helped prepare the team and has given them much experience. He cited the Conroe tournament, in which they played over the course of two days, as a major highlight this season. He noted that the team showed their endurance and strengthened their skills during the tournament. The team made it to the playoffs last year, going all the way to regional finals, which was only one game away from state. Bryan expressed how he feels the team prepared and trained very well, noting they did well in the off-season. He noted that they’ve been “battle tested” by the “tough” competition. Nevertheless, he cited the team’s biggest challenge this year as being injuries. Bryan cited how the team hasn’t been “healthy” due to not playing as many games together with every member. The team ended up placing second in District behind Dickinson and advanced to the first round of playoffs, where they played Alief Elsik. Although the game ended in a 73-67 loss, the boys fought hard and never gave up.
2
Opinion
“Luke Bryan, he’s cute and a great singer.” - Henry Portyllo 9th grade “Justin Bieber “Bryson Tiller because he’s because he’s “Wiz Khalifa beautiful and amazing.” because I love him and I enjoyed his - Trisha Paulson his music.” last concert.” 9th grade - Nohelle Lewis - Abby Mitchell 10th grade 9th grade
“Kendrick Lamar because of his amazing Grammy performance.” - Courtney D’agosta 11th grade “Bleachers because all their music is amazing and the lead singer is a very unique performer.” - Christine Taylor 11th grade
“Yo-Yo Ma because he is a really talented cellist.”- Jude Quaddumi 10th grade
“Taylor Swift, because she is a great role model.” - Julia Brental 11th grade
“The Script because their music is inspirational and awesome and they’re so talented!” - Fizza Gilani 11th grade
“The Clear Creek Wind Ensemble because they’re lit.” - Jason Keyser 10th grade
“Brantley Gilbert because he is coming to Houston on my birthday and I love him.” - Maya Fraser 11th grade
“The Trans-Siberian Orchestra because they’re awesome.” - Sam Turner 12th grade
“Michael Jackson or Billy Joel because they’re classic” - Deja Harell 12th grade
“Lecrae because his music has had the most influence on my life.” - Drew Huddleston 12th grade
“George Strait because he speaks the truth about life.”
- Steven Gurman 9th grade “Van Halen because Eddie Van Halen is the best guitar player alive.” - Chris Gomez 10th grade “Matchbox Twenty because I love almost all of their songs.” - Tyler Martin 12th grade
2015-2016
HiLife Staff Principal: Jamey Majewski Advisor: Wynette Jameson Editors-in-Chief: Emily Berthiaume Kelsie Sullivan Managing Editor: Troylon Griffin II Design Editor: Kelsie Sullivan Features Editor: Emily Berthiaume Teen Interest Editor: Alyssa Lobue Sports Editor: Troylon Griffin II Around Creek Editor: Emily Ruthven News Editor: Tiffany Wade Advertising Manager: Issac Villarreal Photo Editor: Evelyn Salinas Hannah Pearson Online Editors: Evelyn Salinas Leo Solis Photographers: Alyssa Hutchison Reporters: Jose Mares Jr. Kyndal Dillehay Katie Rodriguez Lindsey Loechel Aleida Solesky Anna Scheuring Justin Staton Alayna Gover Asiel Velasco Kevin Briones
Published at Mirror Publishers in Texas City www.creekhilife.com For ad rates call: (281)284-1889 Fax: (281)316-0587
3
Editorial
Emily’s Editorial: Legacy of Harper Lee
Emily Berthiaume Editor-in-Chief On February 19, 2016, the world lost a brilliant mind when Nelle Harper Lee passed away at the age of 89 in her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama. Her debut novel To Kill a Mockingbird is one of the most important and influential books ever written about the American South, and is considered one of the most beloved and widely-taught works of fiction to this day. To Kill a Mockingbird’s immediate success when it was published in 1960 overwhelmed Lee, who never wrote another novel. Labeled by a recluse by the press, she lived quietly in her small Alabama town for the remainder of her life, refusing to share her life with the outside world. Lee never expected any success from Mockingbird, and even told an interviewer in 1964
she “hoped for a quick and merciful death at the hands of reviewers.” However, her fame only continued to grow after the 1962 film adaption of the novel starring Gregory Peck was released and became similarly hugely popular. In February 2015, Lee’s publisher announced plans to publish a manuscript Lee wrote in 1957 entitled Go Set a Watchman. The sequel of sorts of Mockingbird was actually written before the original novel, but explored what happens when Scout returns to her hometown as an adult. Despite enormous sales, the book received only moderate reviews, in part because of the fact that literary hero Atticus Finch was portrayed as a now-racist old man. The circumstances of the publishing of the novel was also suspicious, with some speculating Lee’s agent took advantage of her old age. However, the mediocrity of Watchman could not diminish Lee’s legacy and reputation as the author of one of the most well-loved American novels of all time.
I first read To Kill a Mockingbird in ninth grade for my English class. Although it sounds cliché, as soon as I picked it up I could not put it down until I was fin-
think about what justice truly means and how detrimental being judgmental can be. The profound impact of the book was deeply personal to me, but it also reached much farther than personal connections at the time of publication. At the time of Mockingbird’s publication in 1960, the Civil Rights Movement was well under way. Today, the book is taught in thousands of classrooms across America as a way to open students’ eyes to not only the extent of historical institutionalized racism in America but also the modern relevancy of Scout’s story and the importance of standing up for what is right, no matter what. Harper Lee’s legacy and impact on both the literary world and the public cannot be understated. With only one novel, she was able to both reach people on a personal level and convey timeless truths about the horrors of racism, the importance of justice, and the value of integrity. Her legacy will live on for years to come as students just like myself discover the book and let it change their lives and the way they view the world.
“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view... Until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it.” - Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird ished. To this day it remains the best book I have ever read for a school assignment and one of the favorite books of all time. I was enthralled by the frolicking adventures of Scout and Jem, the moral authority of Atticus Finch, and the honest description of racial tensions in the 1930s Deep South. Fifty years after the publication of the book, the intriguing story still encouraged me, along with all modern readers, to
Troylon’s Talks: Black History Month
Troylon Griffin II Managing Editor Many people have often come to me or other blacks during February and asked, ‘Why don’t we have a White History Month?” I’ll admit I once questioned this as well but it was very briefly because I learned early on the purpose of Black History Month. Black History Month was the creation of Carter G. Woodson, when he and the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History announced that the second week of February was “Negro History Week.” This week was chosen because it coincided with Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass’ birthdays, which are February 12th and 14th. Blacks had already celebrated the dates during the nineteenth century so it was not hard for many to start recognizing Negro History Week. The week of celebration finally became a month of celebration in 1970 when leaders of a black organization at Kent State University proposed its expansion in 1969. The U.S. government finally recognized
Black History Month officially in 1976. So why? Why did historian Carter G. Woodson choose to create a month that recognizes the history of African Americans and their descendants? Well, during the era of Jim Crow and throughout the Civil Rights era, African Americans were the victims of much racism and discrimination. To coincide with this, the public did not regard the history and contribution of blacks throughout the years. As Malcolm X noted in his autobiography, his high school textbook had little more than just a paragraph about slavery and the slaves’ liberation. Even when the history of blacks in America was acknowledged, it was presented in a biased and quite frankly disrespectful manner. It’s not like Hollywood or the media helped much either. Whether it be blackface or downright scrutiny, early depictions of blacks in movies and entertainment were not very respectful and are the main reason for most bad stereotypes today. Carter G. Woodson’s vision and intent in the creation of Negro History Week was to regard and acknowledge the history and contributions of African Americans throughout history. If you’re someone living in the Jim Crow and Civil Rights era, when your history is already being ignored and the media is horribly representing you, you’ve got to take advantage of whatever opportunity you get to have pride in your culture. This is one reason that arguing for a white history month is practically overkill. Hollywood and the media have always portrayed white Americans in a positive light and manner and have given young white children many idols and positive role models to look up to, while the same cannot be said for African Americans. In fact, Carter G. Woodson believed that if
whites knew the true history of blacks in America and Africa, the negative stereotypes and images of blacks would cease. In 1976, upon the government officially recognizing Black History Month, President Gerald Ford called to the public to “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.” As Diversity Plus magazine says, the purpose of the month is for remembrance of important people and events in the history of the African Diaspora. Today, that is still the purpose and has been ever since the week was created and since the week was extended to a month. Carter G. Woodson dreamed that African Americans would be acknowledged for their contributions to science, civil rights, law, literature, and to the overall betterment of society. Nevertheless, Black History Month is something that has begun to be misinterpreted and taken out of context by so many, including those who acknowledge it. Many have reduced it to a month in which we only speak of famous black historical figures like Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks, and overall do not take complete advantage of the month. We should also speak of are those who aren’t acknowledged as much as Benjamin Banneker, who is one of the reasons Washington D.C. is designed the way it is today, or Charles Drew who is the reason we have blood banks. The list goes on and on. Carter G. Woodson wanted us to know of those who helped form America’s backbone, and show why African American’s rights needed to be fought for by figures like MLK and Rosa Parks. Overall, black history month is a time to remind us of the idea of perse-
verance and a time to remember history that we may not always get to learn in history class. History is obviously a vast and extensive subject that two semesters of class couldn’t possibly cover. We should always take whatever chance we can to learn of history that we do not always learn of in school, and to learn history in general. It is history that reminds us of who we are, where we came from and how to learn from past mistakes. In recent years, another issue that I find being brought up to me is whether we still need a Black History Month. Well, whenever I think of this question, it makes me think of something my history teacher told me when I asked her of her thoughts on Black History Month was. She told me that she wants American History that acknowledges history from all perspectives of all races. I couldn’t agree more, and the same goes for Carter G. Woodson. Woodson envisioned that someday a week or month would no longer be needed to honor black Americans because their history would no longer be scrutinized or ridiculed in history books. As I’ve stated before, Black History Month originated as way to acknowledge the disregarded history of blacks in America. Black history is American history and that history alone is too expansive to put into one month and as I continue to complete my course of AP US History and see the contributions of blacks being acknowledged in my textbook, I think it’s safe to say that the day will come in which we will not need a month to acknowledge any race’s history, for we will have textbooks and a history that fully remembers and regards the history of all cultures of America and the world.
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News
Zika virus spreads across North and South America By Emily Berthiaume Editor-in-Chief
A travel advisory has been issued for 21 countries in the Caribbean and South America due to an outbreak of the Zika virus. 29 countries, mostly in Latin America, have confirmed Zika transmission, according to the Pan American Health Organization. Although typically harmless, the virus can cause birth defects in babies if pregnant women are infected. The World Health Organization has said they expect the virus to spread across all of the Americas, including the United States, infecting three to four million people in the next year. The most common symptoms of the Zika virus include mild fever, conjunctivitis, and headache, although 80% of those infected have no symptoms. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, it involves “normally mild symptoms lasting from several days to a week.” However, the virus does pose a serious threat to pregnant women, as it has been linked to thousands of infants born with microcephaly, a serious neurological condition that causes abnormally small heads and sometimes deadly developmental delays. No treatment or preventative vaccine is currently available. Within an 11-week period from November 2015 to January 2016, 270 babies were born with microcephaly in Brazil, according to the Brazil Ministry of Health, with six confirmed to be caused by the Zika virus. Only 147 cases were reported in all of 2014.
“It really is an unprecedented event,” said Dr. Lyle Petersen, director of the division of vector-borne diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “You’re dealing with children with a severe neurological disease they’ll carry with them for the rest of their
but nothing of the magnitude that the Brazilians are going through,” he added. Because mosquitos carry the disease, the outbreak first occurred in Brazil and rapidly spread to other tropical countries where mosquitos are common. The lack of natural immu-
A mosquito from the genus Aedes, which can carry Zika virus. (Jeffrey Arguedas/EFE via ZUMA Press)
lives. That’s a devastating outcome.” The continental United States is at a lessened risk to the virus, mainly because of cooler weather, prevalent air conditioning, and effective mosquito control. Puerto Rico, American Samoa, and the U.S. Virgin Islands are at a significantly higher risk. “You never say never, but I’m fairly sure we’re not going to have a problem of great magnitude in this country,” said Dr. Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institutes for Allergies and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health. “There will be some unfortunate cases,
nity also contributed to the rapid spread. Aedes aegypti mosquitos, the main vector for Zika transmission, are present in all Caribbean, South and North American countries except for Canada and Chile, according to the CDC, which issued a Level 2 travel alert, Practice Enhanced Precautions, for those travelling to affected regions. Pregnant women were especially urged to postpone travel to Bolivia, Brazil, Cape Verde, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico,
Panama, Paraguay, Saint Martin, Suriname, Samoa, Venezuela and Puerto Rico. The Aedes aegypti mosquito bites all day long, so reapplying repellent is important, officials warn. Twenty cases of Zika have been confirmed in the United States so far, with three in Harris County, TX. The United States is pushing to develop a vaccine for the virus, as it now poses a serious threat. “I’ve made it clear that we want to put a full-court press,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, who heads the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said. “I’m saying, ‘Folks, this is it, all hands on deck for Zika, this is really important.’ We are rapidly pushing.” Researchers were previously not focused on the disease because the risk to infants was not seen in large numbers. Better testing and more research into how the virus works are now top priorities. “Zika has been a relatively inconsequential virus as far as we were concerned in the United States or even globally,” said Fauci, whose group is part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). “However, we have been working for some time, intensively and quite successfully, on viruses that are very similar.” Research on Zika is also being done at the Galveston National Laboratory, a branch of UTMB in Galveston, Texas. Its aim is to determine how much damage Zika might do in the United States and what can be done to stop it. “There’s a lot of work gearing up very fast,” said Scott Weaver, scientific director of the lab.
Mexican forces capture drug lord El Chapo again By Kyndal Dillehay Reporter
Mexican forces captured the man said to be the most wanted drug lord in the world, Joaquin “El Chapo” Guz-
man, on Friday, January 8. The Mexican forces caught Guzman in the midst of a raid at about 6:30 a.m. Eastern Time. The raid took place in Los Mochis, a city along Mexico’s coast in Sinaloa state. It was a bloody event, which resulted in
five of Guzman’s men dead and another six arrested. No Mexican navy personnel were killed, however, one was injured. A mixture of guns and grenades was used as the Mexican navy methodically searched each room of the two-story building. However, Guzman used his knack for escaping to evade the authorities and slip out of the house via a secret passageway. The escape route led through the maze-like system of drains below the streets of Los Mochis. Ninety minutes passed before the authorities found the hidden path, which led to a cat-and-mouse chase with Guzman that the drug lord eventually lost. His undoing, authorities said, was his stealing of a car. Police spotted him speeding on the highway and he was nabbed at a nearby budget hotel. Just three days shy of six months since his last escape, Guzman was back in police custody. “MissionAccomplished. We have him,” Enrique Peña Nieto, the Mexican President, posted on Twitter, courtesy of CNN. The success of this raid, however, was far more important to Mexico’s government than simply the capture of another drug lord. Guzman has already escaped twice from prison, with the second being an escape via a hole dug through the floor in his shower and a motorcycle altered to run in a low-oxygen environment. For many, Guzman’s freedom has been a symbol of the Mexican government’s ineptitude and corruption. Mexican citizens have begun to lose trust in the abilities of their government and the justice system and Peña Nieto is hoping that the recapture of “El Chapo” will restore their faith.
“The arrest today is extremely important for the security institutions of the government. Today our institutions have demonstrated one more time that our citizens can trust them, and our institutions are at the level that has the strength and determination to complete any mission that is granted to them.” Peña Nieto said, courtesy of CNN. Currently, Guzman is being held in the same prison that he escaped from the second time. However, there are plans for the drug lord to be extradited to the United States. The plans were set into motion as soon as he was recaptured. The U.S. has been calling for his extradition since as early as June 16, 2015, before Guzman’s second prison escape in July. In the U.S, “El Chapo” faces seven drugrelated charges of various jurisdictions. “Since Guzman Loera has been recaptured, the beginning of the extradition proceedings should begin,” the Mexican attorney general’s office reported, courtesy of CNN. Despite various opinions of U.S. and Mexican citizens, Guzman does not see himself as the “bad guy”. In an interview with actor and director Sean Penn for Rolling Stone magazine, Guzman says he started selling poppies and marijuana at age 15, because there was no other way for his poverty-stricken family to live. The interview was seven hours long and took place in an undisclosed location in a dense jungle, with Guzman agreeing to answer follow-up questions via cell phone. “Look, all I do is defend myself, nothing more. But do I start trouble? Never.” Guzman told Mr. Penn.
News
5
Snowstorm Jonas encourages many to stay inside By Tiffany Wade News Editor
strom by winds that reached 75 miles per hour at Dewey Beach, Delaware, and Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. From there to New York, sustained winds topped
extremities of the weather and the consequences of being exposed to such extremities, serious problems still occurred. At least 48 people died, about a quarter of a
barring non-emergency vehicles from the roads of New York City and Baltimore were lifted early Sunday morning, and The snowstorm Jonas hit along the mass transit systems that had been partialEast Coast from January 22 to ly suspended during the storm January 24. It buried a large were scheduled to run again. portion of the affected area New York City, otherwith more than two feet of wise known as “The City snow. The heavy snow also That Never Sleeps”, was impacted parts of the South more like a ghost town with and Ohio Valley on the first everything dark and barren. day and brought snow to the Crews worked to reach all Plains on the second day. of the streets to clear the snow, Jonas is the largest snowbut the job was immensely storm on record for several tedious, so not every street locations in the East and the got the attention it deserved. second largest storm for New “You can’t even call 311 York City. Snowfalls totals because they don’t even pick from the storm topped out up the phone now,” a resident at 42 inches in parts of West of the Pelham Bay section of Virginia and at least 14 states the Bronx said. “Even if they in total received more than a made one pass yesterday, this foot of snow from the storm. would have never gotten to the “This is kind of a top-10 way it is now. This is terrible.” snowstorm,” said weather serA home in Loudoun Counvice winter storm expert Paul ty, Virginia was even burned Kocin, who co-wrote a twoto the ground on Sunday along volume textbook on blizzards. an unplowed road, WashingThe storm dropped 26.8 ton Post reported. Fire crews inches of snow in New York had to choice but to stretch the City’s Central Park, which is fire hose more than 800 feet to the second highest total for reach the house and all residents any storm since 1869. The within the home were rescued. A light snow continues to fall in Brooklyn, and with a travel ban, all roads are quiet on Saturday, Jan. 23, 2016, durstorm itself travelled from the Gulf Coast The Maryland Emergency Manageing a powerful weekend storm blanketing the East Coast in snow. (Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times/TNS) to New England, with areas of Washingment Agency asked people to keep from ton surpassing 30 inches. The heaviest un- 30 miles per hour and gusted to around million customers lost power, and hun- traveling in any form, however airlines official report of snow was in a rural area 50 miles per hour. There were also ex- dreds of crashes have been reported. Many resumed service a few days later. An airof West Virginia with 40 inches of snow. treme bursts of thunder and lightning. businesses and schools were also closed port in New Jersey reported that more than The snow was whipped into a maelWhile residents were informed of the due to the harsh conditions. Travel bans 200 flights were cancelled the next day.
Flint water causes citizens to become severely ill By Emily Berthiaume Editor in Chief
The city of Flint, Michigan has been pumping drinking water heavily contaminated with lead to its residents ever since an April 2014 switch from Lake Huron to the Flint River as the main water source in order to save money. The Flint River water proved to be highly corrosive, damaging outdated lead pipes and polluting the water with much more lead than is legally allowed or safe. The situation came to national attention in early 2016 when a federal state of emergency was declared in Flint. Despite switching water sources back to Lake Huron in October 2015, lead levels are still too high in the tap water, rendering it undrinkable and unusable. Although the state and National Guard are now handing out filters and bottled water to residents, thousands of children have already been exposed to toxic levels of lead. The EPA limit for lead in drinking water is 15 parts per billion. Water is considered toxic waste when lead levels exceed 5,000 ppb, however, some houses in Flint measured at a level of 13,200 ppb. Lead poisoning is known to impair cognitive function, shorten attention span, and spur antisocial behavior. Many kids in Flint are already considered “at risk” due to the extreme poverty of the city, and “neurological and behavioral effects of lead are believed to be irreversible”, according to the World Health Organization. The switch to the Flint River was supposed to save the financially troubled city
one million dollars a year. However, the river water was tainted by decades of far runoff, sewage, and industrial effluent. Locally, the river was known as “General Mo-
of residents’ homes. General Motors themselves switched to Lake Huron water in October 2014 because they were worried about the tap water corroding engine parts.
Sincere Smith, 2, of Flint, Mich., is one of three children living with his single mom Ariana Hawk, 25. He is suffering from a severe skin rash that his mother believes is due to bathing in the contaminated Flint water. (Regina H. Boone/Detroit Free Press/TNS)
tors’ sewer” due to the automobile manufacturer’s extended use of and dumping in the river. The water proved to be difficult to sanitize due to its high levels of chloride, which is corrosive to iron. Corroding iron consumes chlorine, which is the main chemical used to make water drinkable. River water is also 12 times as corrosive as Lake Huron water, which led to the noxious element leaching into the water supply
After the issue came to light, many concluded that the city had been neglected due to its population of mostly poor minorities. 57% of Flint’s population is African-American and 41% live under the poverty level, according to the U.S. Census. “Would more have been done, and at a much faster pace, if nearly 40 percent of Flint residents were not living below the poverty line? The answer is unequivo-
cally yes,” the NAACP said in a statement. Some called the handling of the situation “environmental racism” because race and poverty factored into how Flint wasn’t adequately protected and how its water became contaminated. “While it might not be intentional, there’s this implicit bias against older cities -- particularly older cities with poverty (and) majority-minority communities,” said Democratic U.S. Rep. Dan Kildee, who represents the Flint area. “It’s hard for me to imagine the indifference that we’ve seen exhibited if this had happened in a much more affluent community.” However, state officials, including Michigan Governor Rick Snyder, disagree. While he admitted there were “major failures” in the process, he blamed it on bureaucrats, specifically “a handful of quote-unquote experts that were career civil servant people that made terrible decisions.” Attorney General Bill Schuette is currently investigating the situation, including a class-action lawsuit that alleges the state Department of Environmental Quality did not treat the water for corrosion in accordance to federal law. He is also addressing the issue of residents continuing to be billed for their water use, despite the fact that it is toxic and unusable. He has said that his office has begun investigating steps to provide financial relief to the people of Flint. “I would certainly not bathe a newborn child or a young infant in this bad water, and if you can’t drink the bad water, you shouldn’t pay for it,” Schuette said.
6
News
Gun law allows open carry to designated owners By Emily Berthiaume Editor-in-Chief
A new Texas law that went into effect January 1, 2016 now allows licensed gun owners to openly carry their weapons in public. Although more than 40 states allow some form of open carry, Texas is now the most populous state to do so, with 925,000 men and women holding active state-issued gun licenses. Only those with concealedhandgun permits are allowed to openly carry weapons, and all must submit their fingerprints and pass a criminal background check. Open carry means that guns can be worn in holsters on hips or in shoulder holsters. Texans do not need a state license to buy a handgun, but must meet federal qualifications. An age requirement of 21, completed training course, and examination are necessary to carry a weapon outside of a residence. Supporters say that openly displayed weapons will help deter potential criminals, while opponents argue that there is no evidence that open carry states are safer, and that police officers will have trouble identifying criminals and bystanders. “What we proved is that the sight of a firearm is not something to fear in the hands of law-abiding citizens,” C. J. Grisham, a retired Army sergeant who formed Open Carry Texas in 2013, said. Businesses can ban open-carry on
their property, but must post signs at entrances. Typical Texas businesses Whataburger, Whole Foods, Torchy’s Tacos, and HEB have banned open carry so far. Both
trol, even adamant supporters admit it will probably not change much. “I don’t think you’re going to see a major change,” State Represen-
Benjamin Ralston with his Kimber Pro Carry 1911, front, joins other activists during an Open Carry Walk in Arlington, Texas, on Friday, Jan. 1, 2016. (Brad Loper/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/TNS)
concealed and unconcealed handguns are still banned in certain places under Texas law, including sporting events, amusement parks, bars, schools, courts, governmental meetings, and places of worship. Although the law does provide more freedom as far as gun con-
tative Larry Phillips, the author of the law, said. “Most people I talk to say they’re going to conceal carry.” Law enforcement agencies prepared for the day the law would go into effect, releasing PSAs and training their officers on proper protocol.
Tim Vasquez, a chief of police in San Angelo, said officials were expecting a “huge learning curve” in enforcing the law. “Most of us do support concealed, but we also understand that open carry creates a whole new set of problems,” Chief Vasquez said. “If our officers see someone with an open carry, they do have the ability to stop and identify whether that person is permitted or not.” Many Texas public officials celebrated the law going into effect, condemning those who oppose it or argue it will lead to less safety, especially in light of the numerous mass shootings in America. “This is just propaganda by those who either don’t like guns or who are afraid of guns,” Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick said. “I respect some people don’t like them, but don’t stop us who love guns, who love the Second Amendment, from being able to protect ourselves, our families, our businesses and our friends.” The law comes at a time when the gun control debate is heating up, with President Obama delivering a tearful speech about the necessity of stricter gun control on January 6. He plans to unveil a series of executive orders intended to reduce gun violence. “We know we can’t stop every act of violence, every act of evil in the world. But maybe we could try to stop one act of evil, one act of violence,” he said.
Man arrested in 1983 League City triple homicide
By Lindsey Loechel Reporter
Jesse “Dean” Kersh was arrested outside a taco shop in Spring, Texas on January 26, 2016 after being charged with three cases of murder. The now 58year old suspect is finally facing the consequences for his murders after more than three decades of frustration and unanswered questions regarding the gruesome crime that rocked League City in 1983.The murder is still remembered as the first multiple homicide and the most gruesome crime in the city’s history. The case was called the “Corvette Concepts” case due to the fact that the murders were carried out at an automobile sale shop with that name. Beth Wilburn, 25 at the time of her murder, was the co-owner of the shop located at 595 West Main Street. She was stabbed 114 times and shot four times, resulting in her death. 28-year-old Thomas Earl McGraw, who was an oil field worker and friend of Wilburn, was stabbed with a screwdriver, then shot seven times. James Oates, 22 at the time and an electrician who was hired to install fluorescent lighting in the shop, was shot multiple times in the head. Oates was married with two small children and another on the way, and had been paid just $20 to install the lights. “He was about 30 minutes short of finishing the job when he was killed,” Lt. Jim Gibson, who spent more than a year investigating the case, said. “It was on a Wednesday night and what was interesting is that he was supposed to have done the work on the Sunday night before but couldn’t be-
cause his baby got sick. Then he was going to do it on Tuesday night, but he didn’t
burn. Oates, who was working on installing the lights in another area, was the last to die.
have enough gas money.” Mugshot courtesy of the LCPD “Unless someone walks The murders occurred the in off the street with a guilty night of November 2, 1983 but were not conscience and confesses or gives us a discovered until the next morning when good lead, I think this case is going to be Wilburns’ business partner, Bob Currie, around for a long time, I realize that eventered the shop and discovered the grisly ery day that goes by the probability of scene. Police investigating the scene in us solving it gets dimmer and dimmer,” 1983 said that Wilburn, who was in an of- League City Police Chief Ron Wrobelfice at the shop, was most likely the first ski, main investigator of the murders, said murdered. Police believe that McGraw, following a futile two year investigation. whose body was found near the office, was No one would have guessed that after killed moments after arriving to visit Wil- more than 30 years, there would be a break
through and an arrest in the case. Kersh was an employee at Corvette Concepts at the time of the murders and had always been on police radar. He was interviewed extensively in 1985 in connection with the murders. Kersh told investigators that all three victims were at the shop when he left work that day and that he did not own a .22-caliber handgun like the one used in the murders. No new tips were received until 2006 when Darryl Krogman reported that he was with Kersh when Kersh bought a .22-cailber handgun at a gun show. Krogman further reported that he had made a silencer for the .22-caliber handgun on Kersh’s request about six months prior to the murders. Investigators now believe forensic evidence links Kersh to the murders and they are confident he acted alone. In 2013, investigators concluded that marks on the bullets recovered from the crime scene showed that some sort of silencer was used, which supported Krogman’s report and linked Kersh to the crime. They also compared DNA recovered from under Wilburns’ fingernails to that of Kersh and he could not be excluded. This was enough for Judge Kerry Neves of the 10th District Court of Galveston County to issue the arrest warrant. Kersh is in jail on a $150,000 bond, $50,000 for each murder. In Texas, the murder of two or more persons in one criminal episode is capital murder punishable by death, but that definition did not exist in 1983 and therefore cannot be applied to this case. This case carries a possible prison term of five to 99 years and/ or a fine of up to $10,000 for each charge.
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Boko Haram attacks and burns a Nigerian village By Tiffany Wade News Editor
Gunmen riding motorcycles raided a Nigerian village under the cover of darkness, killing dozens of people and setting homes on fire. The attack began on January 30 and took place right after evening prayers. “We had just finished evening prayers when the gunmen came to our village and indiscriminately opened the fire and set fire to homes,” resident Kulo Sheriff said. “They detonated two bombs, which added to our fright and confusion. Everybody fled to the bush from where we saw our homes burning.” Boko Haram militants, armed with machine guns, opened fire on Dalori village near Maiduguri, which is the largest camp for those displaced by the terror group’s violence and housed around 20,000 people in Nigeria’s northern Borno state. There is no set number as to how many people were harmed or taken, however, it is reported by the Borno State Health Commissioner Haruna Mshelia that at least 85 people died, 16 others were missing, and 59 others were injured. 20 or more of the victims were also said to have burned alive in their homes during the attack, which also causes some confusion to the death count. “Some women were kidnapped by the Boko Haram gunmen but I don’t know how many there were,” NEMA chief Mohammed Kanar said.
Boko Haram is a Nigerian jihadist group that has attacked the North for years with an aim to impose a stricter enforcement
and assassinated politicians and leaders. Last year, they claimed the morbid title
Two refugee women forced to flee their homes in north eastern Nigeria after attacks by the violent Islamist militia, Boko Haram, who fled to Fuga village, central Nigeria, hoping to make a new life. Women were forced to convert to Islam. (Robyn Dixon/Los Angeles Times/MCT)
of Sharia law across Africa’s most populous nation, which is split between a majority Muslim North and a mostly Christian South. Boko Haram has escalated their attacks as ISIS escalates theirs. The group has bombed schools, churches and mosques, kidnapped women and children,
of deadliest terror group for the killings in Nigeria, Chad, Niger, and Cameroon. The group, which is solely based in north Nigeria, killed 6,644 people in 2014, an increase of more than 300 percent from the previous year, according to the latest tally from the Global Terrorism Index.
This number was calculated to be higher than that of ISIS’s 6,073 killings, to which it reportedly pledged allegiance last year. The government took subtle action at this time by becoming very aware of the attack and ordering the Obama administration to hold back all weapons that would be shipped to the Nigerian government. While this was true, the administration was still providing training, equipment, and funding to countries menaced by Boko Haram. “I was kind of astonished,” John Campbell, a former ambassador of Nigeria, said. “It implies that the U.S. has contributed to Boko Haram’s violence by declining to supply military equipment.” President Obama later decided that it was time to authorize the deployment of 300 U.S. troops to Cameroon in order to help with the struggle against the Nigerian terrorist group two weeks before announcing his decision to send Special Operations Forces into Syria. The actions of the U.S. government were perceived to be irrelevant to what the original goal was: to prevent Boko Haram from being able to kill so many civilians. While weapons were not sold to Nigeria, they had their own equipment that worked just as well for them. “To me it is utterly baffling,” Campbell said. “Boko Haram’s success against the Nigerian military is not the result of a lack of military hardware.”
Supreme Court Chief Justice Antonin Scalia dies Tiffany Wade News Editor
until we have a new President,” Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said.
of the Senate’s essential responsibilities. The passion between both sides upon
took place after Ronald Reagan’s failed efforts. President Kennedy lost all favoritism within the conservative activChief Justice Antonin ists at the time, who viewed Scalia died at the age of 79 his rulings on certain rights on February 13. He was the with the high court’s liberal judicial standard-bearer of bloc as an example of leaders the conservative movement choosing political expediency and was known as the court’s over ideological practices, most productive member. whether it was true or not. Scalia died in his sleep early The nomination of a juson Saturday while in West tice, however, takes about Texas for a hunting trip. 75 to 90 days, but replacing “For almost 30 years, JusScalia will not be easy since tice Scalia was a larger-thanhe was very outspoken in his life presence on the bench,” work and dedication and had President Obama said, calling many admirers in the Senate. him “an extraordinary judicial Obama’s first two apthinker” with “an incisive wit”. pointments to the court were The president said that relatively easy since Justice he intends to name a replaceSonia Sotomayor and Justice ment in due time, despite calls Elena Kagan were replacfrom Republicans to wait until ing liberal justices. Obama the next president is elected. will need the support of all “There will be plenty 46 members of the Demoof time for me to do so and cratic caucus and at least 14 for the Senate to fulfill its Republicans to successfully responsibility to give that appoint Scalia’s successor. person a fair hearing and a In the president’s previous timely vote,” Obama said. Supreme Court nominaAfter hearing about the tions, just nine Republicans news, the Senate leaders imvoted to confirm SotomaySupreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia in a September 2010 file image at the University of California, Hastings. Scamediately clashed over the prospect of lia died on Saturday, Feb. 13, 2016. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group/TNS) or and four voted to confirm Kagan. whether to even consider filling the vaIf Republicans leave Scalia’s seat cancy so late in President Obama’s term. However, the minority leader re- the division in the court makes the upcom- vacant for any lengthy time, that sets up “The American people should jected this response by claiming that it ing battle so unique. The last confirmation the possibility of a series of deadlocked have a voice in the selection of their would be unprecedented for the Supreme in the eighth year of a presidency was Jus- four-to-four votes in which the ruling of next Supreme Court Justice. There- Court to go on without a vacant seat and tice Anthony Kennedy, whose 97-to-none the lower federal court would stand as the fore, this vacancy should not be filled that it would be shameful towards one Senate confirmation in February 1988 law of that particular region of the country.
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Around Creek March/April Monday
Tuesday
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Girls/Boys Socccer vs. Brazoswood (Boys Senior Night)
The Band Perry @ rodeo
6 Shawn Mendes @ rodeo
7 Miranda Lambert @ rodeo
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Girls/Boys Socccer vs. Friendswood Softball vs. Falls
Los Huracanes Del Norte
Branda Los Recoditos @ rodeo
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Keith Urban @ rodeo
Holiday
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Girls/Boys Socccer vs. Dickinson
Kenny Chesney
@ rodeo
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Girls/Boys Socccer vs.
Holiday
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Softball vs. Friendswood
Baseball vs. Clear Brook (Away) Kid Rock @ rodeo Baseball vs. Dickinson (Home)
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Late Arrival Chris Young @ rodeo PTSA Popcorn @ lunch
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Brett Eldregde @ rodeo
Pitbull @ rodeo
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Thursday
Wednesday
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Holiday
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Friday
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Jason Aldean @ rodeo
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PTSA Popcorn @ Lunch
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Girls/Boys Socccer vs. Friendswood
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Cole Swindell @ rodeo
Jason Derulo
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Luke Bryan @ rodeo
Holiday
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Florida Georgia Line @ rodeo
Jake Owen @ rodeo
Saturday
Softball vs. Lake
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Softball vs. Brazoswood Project Grad Lunch Darius Rucker @ rodeo
Holiday
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Softball vs. Clear Spring
Little Big Town @ rodeo
Holiday
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Billy Currington @ rodeo
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Holiday
Brad Paisley @ rodeo
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Lake
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Softball vs. Brazoswood
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Baseball vs. Friendswood Softball vs. Spring
S TA A R Te s t i n g Baseball vs. Clear Brook (Home) Softball vs. Falls
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Softball vs. Friendswood
Late Arrival
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World Health Day
Baseball vs. Dickinson (Away) Softball vs. Brook
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World Autism Awareness Day
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Around Creek
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Theatre department performs Hewlett’s InnerSolar By Alayna Glover Reporter
On January 14- 16, InnerSolar premiered at the Clear Creek Intermediate teaching theatre. InnerSolar is about the planets personified as humans, each representing different issues and perspectives. The show revolved around the Earth, played by Zoie Ellis, narrating the stories of each of the plants in our solar system. One audience member was chosen to be the sun and got to select which planet’s story came next. “Picking the sun was definitely the best part because you see the person’s face light up and they go ‘Me? Oh no way. And now I have to go down there?’ It was pretty funny seeing an audience member all flustered for a moment,” Ellis said. Each of the planets had an unique, yet very human story. For example, the story of Saturn, played by Sierra Boudreaux, involves a couple getting ready to go out on a date. “InnerSolar was an overall amazing experience,” Boudreaux said. “Mainly because Mr. Hewlett wrote and directed the play, like he did for winter show my freshman year. Seeing his words come to life was just as fun as performing.” As both director and writer of the show, Clear Creek Theatre Department head Mr. Hewlett faced new challenges, in part because of the construction that restricted use of the main auditorium. “I wanted to find a way to use the CCI
space in an interesting way. We knew we’d have to perform there this year because of construction, and I already had an idea of using the planets as metaphors as parts of human experiences and human life,” director and writer Bradley Hewlett said. He explained how he saw the stage at CCI
but then as a director, I have to ignore that vision a little bit and see where the actors and the technicians are going to take it,” Mr. Hewlett said. “So, it’s almost like I’ve got this writer part of my brain sitting on my shoulder kind of watching how it’s playing out, but trying not to interfere.
Photo by Leo Solis
and how it’s set up much like a circle, “so we now have an audience that’s literally an orbit around our actors.” This is the third time Mr. Hewlett has written a show staged here at Creek, but this is the first one that’s a full-length play. “In a way, it’s more challenging because when you’re writing you have a certain vision on how its going to turn out,
[And then there’s] this director side of my brain that’s making the choices and trying to ignore the writer side because as a director, I have to take the direction the actors and crew are taking.” The crew took the words that Mr. Hewlett imagined and made the show come to life, working together and staying after school for long hours.
“Working backstage is stressful,” says co-head of costume, Lillian Welborn. “But it’s also really fun and a great learning experience.” Mr. Samson, the technical director, handles everything that happens backstage. He’s the one that makes sure Mr. Hewlett’s vision is made into reality correctly and smoothly. “Sometimes it can be challenging, but it’s very rewarding to be able to express your creative side,” says Samson. He works hands-on with the crew everyday. “Everyone has such special, unique qualities and talents that are in different disciplines of tech that working with the crew is always a surprise to see who’s going to flourish and come up with new talent. So, it’s sort of revitalizing; it ignites my passion for the art over and over.” Mr. Samson and Mr. Hewlett have worked together many times in the past. “I think Mr. Hewlett and myself work very well together. He does a lot of big planning for mass details, and I do a lot of small planning for little details. We try to make it a very efficient and exciting process.” Because this is a smaller show, the whole cast has bonded. “[The most exciting part is] seeing the actors working on new characters and making these scenes come to life,” says Mr. Samson, “ and then getting to see these aesthetics the technicians prepare so long to build, creating the world the actors live in.”
Creek DECA’s regional success sends them to state By Emily Ruthven Around Creek Editor
In DECA, students learn important skills such as public speaking, presentation etiquette, economics, and business. Creek DECA achieved major success when all it’s students who competed in regionals advanced to the state competition. DECA is a national association, with four regions in the North Atlantic, Central, South and West. With all of these regions combined, more than 185,000 students participate in the program. Its core values are competence, innovation, integrity, and teamwork, according to the DECA association. The four official categories of DECA include marketing, hospitality and tourism, business management and administration, and finance, all of which promote entrepreneurship. In most categories, student groups work together to create a hyper-realistic business plan to promote their imaginary company or product. The intricate planning and intense preparation that goes into these projects really “prepares you for the real world,” Valerie Severance, a junior DECA student, said. Students involved in DECA aspire to join the business world. The class can help them decide which fields best suit their talents and interests.
“You might think you want to go into the fashion industry, and then it is nothing like you expected,” Severance said. DECA gives students the chance to eliminate any paths that don’t coordinate with their style, thus providing them with a smooth
Categories contain a multitude of business types, including environmental projects. One group, consisting of juniors Severance, Lydia Haregot and Diego Allison, decided to promote a fashion company of their own creation. The
Photo by Ms. Mosely
transition into the real world and workplace. “[The class] gives you a sample of different industries for you to try out and see what works for you,” Severance continued.
team worked for months, perfecting their presentation, gathering real numbers and statistics and planning everything from store design to promotional parties for their
company. The trio used Allison’s experience in fashion design and production, as he has created his own fashion line in the past, which he continues to work on today. After competing against 15 other presentations in the fashion category, Severance, Haregot, Allison, and the 200 million dollar company advanced from regionals to the state level, along with every other group in the Creek DECA program. Along with preparing business plans, DECA students also run the school store, selling coffee, snacks and other beverages. Working in the store helps fund the students’ tip to San Antonio, where the state competition will be held. If students achieve a high amount of success with DECA, they have the opportunity to apply for and earn scholarships. DECA provides more than $300,000 a year in scholarship money for college and high school students across the nation. For those interested in pursuing a career in business or finance, or maybe just looking for a great learning opportunity, DECA may be a great choice. It is never too late to join. Students from 9th grade to 12th grade are eligible to join the class. Both Severance and Haregot joined their sophomore year and have advanced to the state level twice now. “We have so much fun, but also get a lot of work done,” Haregot said.
Around Creek 10 Library’s 3D printer promotes modern learning
By Nicholas Wright Guest Reporter
Edmunds said. “They could be used to make sculptures or a small Willie the Wildcat.”
Students and staff at Clear Creek High School now have a unique way to complete school assignments and major projects in the classroom. New 3D printers have been introduced to all high school libraries in the Clear Creek Independent School District through a grant from the Clear Creek Education Foundation. The 3D printer, also known as additive manufacturing, uses a resin that releases in strings which are layered on top of each other, held together without the need for time to dry. Depending on the size of the object, the project could take hours to make. For example, a small treasure chest replica that is made solid and rather smooth by the resin takes around six hours to fabricate. The printer has only been used a few times by students so far, but they were successful in making a small boat that floats on water for a class competition. Laura Gladney-Lemon, head librarian at Clear Creek, has also made a working spool with the 3D printer. Although most students are not familiar with the printer yet, many are interested in learning how to use it. “They’re a cool opportunity we have and open artistic possibilities,” junior Gregory
Clear Creek believes the 3D printers are a great addition to the library because they allow students to print solutions for needs in their own life. “3D printers are paving the way to more interactive and creative learning styles,” said Librarian Gladney-Lemon. “Not only
will the students have the outcome of an innovative project, the process to get there
Photo by Nick Wright
will also teach them important computer and technical skills like Computer Aided Design.” It will also benefit students who have to create a project but might not be able to make it by hand. They now have the tools to learn how to use the 3D software to print their
project and be creative without the need to be well-versed with art design. They can use a computer program to bring their imaginations to life in the form of a threedimensional item. “Many teachers are also excited about how the printer can be implemented into their lesson plans, because it is a new way to teach students and can be far more interactive than simply reading a textbook,” GladneyLemon said. “This also gives teachers the opportunity to assign projects that are threedimensional, opening the door for previously unthinkable projects.” A growing number of people are seeing the benefits of incorporating the 3D printers into their schools or businesses as they become more advanced. Some of their current uses are for space research, mechanics, education, and have even been used to make food. Clear Creek High School is excited to offer this new opportunity to enhance learning for students and staff through innovative technology.
Seniors participate in local student government day By Emily Berthiaume Editor-in-Chief
Selected seniors from high schools across CCISD, including ten from Clear Creek, participated in League City student government day on February 9, shadowing heads of departments and hosting a mock city council meeting. The partnership between the City of League City and CCISD was intended to teach students the importance of local government and being a well-informed citizen. Mr. Lewallen, AP Government teacher at Creek, selected interested seniors from his class to represent Creek. The students then chose who they wished to shadow throughout the day. “I’ve always been interested in politics and how a city is run and who does what. Seeing how the local government influences our daily life is really exciting, to see all the things they do for us,” Alexis Gabbard said. Gabbard was elected to be the mayor of the student city council at the mock city council meeting, a responsibility she took very seriously. “It was a lot of fun being the mayor. I felt honored that I was nominated and chosen. I felt a responsibility to step up and take charge of the meeting. Hopefully I was a good mayor and got the job done!” she said. Other students shadowed positions such as Police Chief, Fire Chief, City Manager, or Council Member. “I shadowed the chief of police, which was so cool,” said Lisa Hart. “He wasn’t
my first choice, but it was so eye-opening! One thing I learned is that the Chief of Police’s jurisdiction goes all the way to
voted on them during the meeting. Issues included the quarter-cent sales tax that voters rejected in a past election, commu-
Alvin, Pasadena, Participants of student government day and Mr. Lewallen nity events, and imLa Porte, and proved sidewalks Galveston, so he’s in charge of this whole and lighting on roads. area. There’s only 128 officers that moni“It was really interesting to see tor League City, and they made 4,500 ar- how the local government came togethrests last year with only three complaints.” er to discuss issues that are important After a couple hours of observing the to us as high schoolers and it was neat mentors in the field, everyone reconvened to get to tell them what are important for the mock city council meeting. The to us as high schoolers,” Carolina Sarstudent city council members discussed ria, student city council member, said. local issues that were important to them, After the resolutions were passed, drafted four resolutions, and debated and council members called on the students who
had been shadowing heads of departments and asked them specific questions relating to their field concerning the resolutions. Employees and students alike made the meeting fun, asking light-hearted questions ranging from “what do I do if noisy teenagers keep being loud outside my house?” to “what facilities in the Parks and Recreation department are available to host community events?” Every student had a unique experience learning about what it really takes to work in specific fields. “I got to go into a jail cell and all the employees were so nice! All the officers are so nice and super buff,” Hart said. “Everything was so cool, especially being inside the evidence room. There’s 50 years of evidence in there, like slot machines from an illegal gambling bust and brand-new jet skis, boats, and cars. I also got to hold a gun, which was really cool. One of the giant ones. I accidentally pointed it at a police officer, but it wasn’t loaded, so it was okay.” Along with the fun, many important lessons were also learned. “One of the most important things that I used during the meeting was my leadership role and teamwork skill. Working together helped a lot,” Gabbard said. “I also learned a lot about government and learning how to prioritize what needs to get done in the city.” “Before student government day I had a perception of the police as militarized and sometimes corrupt, but now I know that corruption is very uncommon and the police in League City at least are not militarized at all,” Hart said.
Around Creek 11 Creek construction to be complete by March 2016 By: Nicholas Wright Guest Reporter
handicap accessibility as well as the new fly system. Also, the majority of the old
Since the beginning of the school year at Clear Creek, there has been construction in the old teacher parking lot and theater. The parking lot near the bus barn has been replaced by a new building for CTE, Career Technology Education courses. This has been in the works for the past two years, starting with Mr. Sheets’ Construction Technology II class. They presented a slide show to the board of trustees, superintendent, and the architects for their bond, which would give the CTE courses the needed space that the late 1950’s building did not provide. The students, Daniel Williams, Brandon Peters, Jonathan Meyers, William Graham, Lindsay Easterwood, Robare, Clint Currie, Jose Gonzalez, and Laura Brightbell, all worked on the presentation for seven weeks. Williams, Graham, Andrew Robare, and Gonzalez presented it twice, with the second time broadcast on local news. Around the same time, the theater building at Creek also needed some renovation. Renovations to the current auditorium building mainly focus on installing a fly system. A fly system for theatre is a system of stage ropes, pulleys, and counterweights that takes large set pieces and drops to be “flown” on and off stage. There is also a general redesign of the stage layout to update and accommodate
building, such as where the Over the past year the Photo by Nick Wright CTE courses and current plans were finalized and drama rooms are located, is being torn resources were bought to begin construction. down. The courtyard will be extended to PBK’s architects surrounded the parking lot where the CTE buildings currently are, and next to the bus barn with a fence and tore where the drama hallway and rooms are out the concrete. In the theater, a temporary currently there will be a new layout for a wall was put up and stage floor torn out.
Black Box theater and renovated classroom. The Carlisle gym wall is also being rebuilt.
At the theater, the foundation was refilled to support columns for the new fly loft, which required tearing off the roof above the stage. Construction then began setting up the fly loft structural ‘skeleton’ and tearing down the walls for the new classroom and storage areas. A sheet of protection was put up to block out the inside areas from the outside elements, due to how the roof was being fixed. The fly loft and remodeling behind the stage is currently still being finished. After the auditorium is completed, the drama hallway will be torn down. The theater department will not be getting their space back until construction is completely finished because the construction is currently utilizing the loading dock of the theater set shop. The Clear Creek Theatre Department is looking forward to continual improvements and taking steps to being on par with the rest of the auditoriums in our district in the near future. Some improvements hoping to be addressed are the current house seating area in the auditorium that has a very steep incline as well as hopefully adding an official ticket and concession booth. The theatre department is happy with the renovations currently being done and is looking forward to the plans of further improvement in the future. The CTE building is scheduled to be completed February 29 and the theater is scheduled to be done in late March.
Clear Creek wrestling team has successful season By Troylon Griffin II Managing Editor
Creek’s wrestling team participated in their regional tournament on February 12 and 13 at the Merrell Center in Katy, Texas. While the team as a whole didn’t go to regionals, four of the team’s members participated. These four were Timothy Thompson, Rocky Batterson, Erika Pena and Sabi Ezeh. Ultimately, Timothy Thompson took second and Sabi Ezeh took sixth. Thompson became the sole member of his team to go to state on February 19 and 20. The wrestling team has been off to successful season since their start in November. One of the team’s most successful tournaments has been their participation in the CyFair Invitation, in which nearly a hundred schools participated. Seventy wrestlers participated and out of those seventy, Timothy Thompson and Rocky Batterson placed fourth. “The season’s been pretty successful. A few people have quit because they couldn’t keep up with the pace but it’s been interesting this year with a new coach. He’s been a big help and it’s been a lot of fun.” Thompson said. Thompson is a sophomore who also wrestled his freshman year and in total has wrestled for 11 years. Coach Brian Wyman noted that this has been a notable first year at Creek as a wrestling coach. “It’s definitely been an adjustment and a challenge, but in a good way.
The kids have been competing at a high level so it makes everything else seem not nearly as important.” Wyman spoke highly of Timmy Thompson, noting that he and Rocky Batterson are two of the team’s best wrestlers.
You’ve got team points and you’ve got individual points,” Wyman said. “You can have an individual do really well and that individual will continuously go on, and if that individual’s teammate doesn’t do well, then they’re done and it’s not
Photo courtesy of Clear Creek Wrestling
“They’ve had a really good season so far,” Wyman said. “They placed fourth at the Cy-Fair meet, so it’s a pretty significant accomplishment.” Thompson also spoke highly of the meet. “It was just a whole lot of fun, and anyone who didn’t place got to watch the others and enjoy the experience.” Thompson said. Addressing his wrestlers success in regionals and throughout the season, Wyman compared the sport of wrestling to track. “There’s two ways you can get points.
affecting anyone else.” Wyman spoke hypothetically to further explain wrestling’s protocols. “ Lets say, for example, that you and I are wrestlers and we’re on the same team. I have a bad day and I lose both my matches, but you have a really great day. Just because I lose my matches, doesn’t mean it’s going to affect you. You can win first and I can get last and it won’t affect you, so you still get to have success.” Wyman said. Wyman went on to explain
the
team aspect of the sport. “Now where it comes into the team aspect, it’s when we go to things called duels, where its our team versus another team so we take all of our guys against all of the other team’s guys. They wrestle with one weight class at a time. We do both duels and individual matches throughout the year.” Wyman said. Thompson was proud of his success, not just at regionals, but in the whole season. He later explained why he wrestles in the first place. “I choose to wrestle because it is the most challenging sport in the world and is one of the oldest sport in the world, second to races and running.” Thompson said. “There’s an unprecedented amount of discipline that goes into the sport and it’s something that not a lot of people can do. It makes you feel unique.” Thompson went on to explain that he originally practiced the martial art judo, having been inspired by watching his father practice the similar art of jitzu. Thompson eventually decided to switch to wrestling when a wrestler defeated him. “One day this wrestler came in to the dojo and took me down three times in a row and I found out what he was, a wrestler, and I told my dad that’s what I wanted to do. I’d been doing jitzu and judo for four years and stopped doing that because I fell in love with wrestling.” Thompson said. Overall, Thompson, his teammates and coach are proud to have someone on their team go to state and represent Creek and maybe even the entire Clear Creek district.
Clear Creek H Course Selec
JOURNALISM Course Number 1701
CAPSTONE SEMINAR
Course Number 1995
BAND Course Number 8621, 8625
DIGITAL & INTERACTIVE MULTIMEDIA
Course Number 7201
ADVANCED JOURNALISM: NEWS PRODUCTION
Course Number 1711
HUMANITIES
Course Number 1551
CHOIR Course Number 8507, 8501
INTRO TO VIDEO/AUDIO PRODUCTION
Course Number 7210
PHOTOJOURNALISM
Course Number 1771
DEBATE
Course Number 1611
ORCHESTRA
ADVANCED JOURNALISM: YEARBOOK
Course Number 1801
DRAWING
Course Number 8021
THEATRE ARTS
Course Number 8721
Course Number 8311
FASHION DESIGN
GRAPHIC DESIGN ILLUSTRATION
Course Number 7240
Course Number 7241
High School ction Guide CREATIVE/IMAGINATIVE WRITING
Course Number 1511
PAINTING Course Number 8051
PRINCIPLES OF AGRICULTURE
Course Number 7000
GAME PROGRAMMING
Course Number 7250
HOLOCAUST STUDIES
JROTC
Course Number 4750
Course Number 6501
PRINCIPLES OF FLORAL DESIGN
SCULPTURE
Course Number 7030
INTERIOR DESIGN
Course Number 7100
EDUCATION & TRAINING
Course Number 7700
Course Number 8101
BUSINESS, MARKETING, FINANCE
Course Number 7300
METAL MANUFACTURING
Course Number 7150
HEALTH SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY
Course Number 7501
JEWELRY Course Number 8161
MICROSOFT COMPUTER APPLICATION SPECIALIST
Course Number 7321
ENGINEERING DESIGN
Course Number 7900
14
Features
Harvard report recommends less emphasis on tests By Emily Berthiaume Editor-in-chief
A new report from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education entitled “Turning the Tide” recommends that universities’ admissions process focus more on a student’s engagement with his or her community and less on personal success. More than 80 colleges nationwide endorse the report, authored by the Making Common Cares project. The findings show that college admissions should send “compelling messages” stressing the importance of “ethical engagement” – concern for others and the common good – as well as intellectual engagement. For many students who attempt to do it all, including taking many AP courses, volunteering, and being involved in many extracurriculars in order to impress colleges, this news could mean a more relaxed approach might also be viable. “From the second my day begins at 7 a.m., to the second it ends more than a dozen hours later, I’m immersed in learning for the test, studying for the test, and being tutored for the test,” Justin Weiss, a high school student from West Hempstead, N.Y., said to USA Today College. “Are pieces of paper with 100 questions going to really help us in the future?” he said. “Should someone with more mon-
ey and a better tutor than me Decreased emphasis on Photo courtesy of Harvard be able to attend the college standardized tests like the of their choice while I’m at a disadvan- SAT and ACT is a major focus of the retage? College admissions should be based port, recommending admissions offices on your ability to better the world — not work to “relieve undue pressure associated to outperform someone on a test, and I with admissions tests”, discourage stuhope that colleges will take this report to dents from taking an admissions test more heart and level the playing field for us all.” than twice, or even make standardized test-
ing optional. Focusing on meaningful extracurriculars rather than being involved in as many activities as possible and encouraging students to find a college that is the best fit for them, not necessarily the most impressive name, is also recommended. “I think our students are just doing too much,” Massachusetts Institute of Technology Admissions Director Stuart Schmill, who endorsed the report, said. “They feel like they have to do too much and they really don’t. We want to send this message that they can pull back on that a little bit.” MIT, Yale, Dartmouth, Brown, and Brandeis have all endorsed the report, indicating their admissions process supports holistic considerations. Yale has added a question to their application asking students to “reflect on your contributions to family/community, and/or the public good.” This report is just one of several revisions top universities are making in order to make the college admissions process more inclusive to all students, leveling the playing field and resulting in more diverse campuses. “Obviously we want human beings to be more caring and compassionate,” Carol Barash, the founder of Story 2, an online educational company that helps students with college admissions essays, said. “But the intentions of leaders at elite institutions can’t change the fundamental issues that create a system that’s vastly unfair.”
Civil Rights Movement celebrates 62nd anniversary
By Anna Lopez Guest Reporter
On December 1, 1955, rising civil rights leader Rosa Parks was arrested on a Montgomery bus, after refusing to give up her seat to a white man that wanted it. This now-famous event would be one of many events that would kick off one of America’s most prominent social campaigns: The Civil Rights Movement. The Civil Rights Movement had simple motivations: to give blacks and mi-
norities equal rights and access to the same freedoms as whites. At the time, blacks had to sit in the back of buses and theaters, they weren’t allowed to use the same restrooms and water fountains as whites, and overall were victims of verbal and physical racism and discrimination. It was a time of segregation, and putting blacks and whites in separate schools, neighborhoods and public service buildings ensured that. As well-known individuals like Martin Luther King Jr. and many others initiated the Montgomery Bus Boycott in
response to Rosa Park’s arrest, other individuals, both young and old, were breaking the segregation barriers of education in America. Blacks such as James Meredith became the first African American to attend the University of Mississippi in 1962. In the area of primary school, Ruby Bridges became the first black to attend an all-white elementary school in Louisiana. The efforts of protestors such as four young African American teens who, at a “whites-only” counter at a coffee shop, furthered the fight for equal rights. Protests like this and various other efforts of black leaders would ultimately lead to the 7-2 decision in the Boynton v. Virginia case, which ruled segregation on vehicles unlawful, thus making Rosa Parks’ arrest not in vain. Groups such as the Freedom Riders further helped in the fight for equal rights. Nineteen sixty-three proved to be a pivotal year, as President John F. Kennedy delivered his own speech on Civil Rights and explained his reasons for sending the National Guard to allow the admittance of two African American students into the University of Alabama. Months later, the spirit to fight for equal rights was increased by Dr. Martin
Luther King Jr.’s “I Have A Dream” speech. “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin,” King said. “But by the content of their character.” In the aftermath of King’s speech, tragedy fell upon the movement in the form of a bomb that killed four young girls. The assassination of John F. Kennedy furthered these months of tragedy, but led to Lyndon B. Johnson using the nation’s anger to push through new civil rights legislation. That legislations included the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 on July 2, which banned discrimination in employment and in public places. Following this was Dr. King’s award of the Nobel Peace Prize for his fight for equal rights. King would be tragically assassinated four years later, but his accomplishments showed that his death was not in vain. Overall, despite the casualties and struggle in the fifties and sixties, the Civil Rights Movement proved to be one that allowed for the better opportunities all races are given today in the United States of America.
Features
15
Manatee no longer classified as endangered species By Emily Berthiaume Editor-in-chief
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has proposed to remove the West Indian manatee from the endangered species list, now classifying them as “threatened”. While the removal is a testament to the species’ United States population dramatic increase, it is partially a result of a decades long battle to stop classifying the animal as endangered in order to get rid of reduced boat speed requirements and limits placed on waterfront development. The West Indian manatee, which lives off the coast of Florida, was added to the endangered species list in 1972. In 1991, there were a mere 1,267 manatees in the entire United States. However, by February 2015, more than 6,300 manatees were counted, a 500 percent increase, according to the service. “The manatee’s recovery is incredibly encouraging and a great testament to the conservation actions of many,” Cindy Dohner, the Southeast Regional Director of the service, said in a news release. “Today’s proposal is not only about recognizing this progress, but it’s also about recommitting ourselves to ensuring the manatee’s long-term success and recovery.” However, not all those celebrating the reclassification care about manatees. In 2005, the Florida Home Builders As-
sociation sued the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, demanding a review of the manatee’s placement on list. Residents of Crystal River, a neighborhood on the coast of Florida near where manatees frequent,
vard County Commissioner Curtis Smith, a proponent for lessened restrictions, says the current restrictions are based on emotion towards the animal, not science. “The good news is that the manatee
Manatees find refuge in the warm waters of Blue Spring located at Blue Spring State Park, Orange City, Fla. (Red Huber/Orlando Sentinel/TNS)
formed Save Crystal River and filed a petition and two lawsuits seeking reclassification in 2012. The primary reason for these legal actions was to eliminate restrictions put into place to protect manatee populations, such as slow boat speed zones. Bre-
population is increasing and federal officials are finally acknowledging this fact,” said attorney Christina Martin who represents Save Crystal River. “The bad news is that federal officials took so long to accept the good news about the manatee’s im-
provement. We are glad to see that the manatee is doing well, but all taxpayers should demand that the government do much better, going forward, in following the requirements of the Endangered Species Act.” Manatees remain protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, and the service emphasizes that the fight is not over. The Fish and Wildlife Service is “happy with the status quo, but the threat is still out there, and it’s not going away,” Katie Tripp, director of science and conservation for Save the Manatee Club, said. “You don’t celebrate when you’re not done with the game. There’s a lot more work to be done to safeguard the habitat, to get manatees removed from the Endangered Species Act altogether.” Federal protections credited with reversing the species’ deadline will not change, such as habitat protection. “The manatee is one of the most charismatic and instantly recognizable species,” Michael Bean, principal deputy assistant secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks at the Department of the Interior, said. “It’s hard to imagine the waters of Florida without them, but that was the reality we were facing before manatees were listed under the Endangered Species Act. While there is still more work to be done to fully recover manatee populations, their numbers are climbing and the threats to the species’ survival are being reduced.”
Obama bans microbeads in all cosmetic products By Anna Scheuring Reporter
On December 28, President Obama signed the Microbead-free Waters Act of 2015, banning the manufacturing of microbeads in products and starting 2016 off to a clean start. The bill will become effective on January 1, 2018. Under the new environmental law, cosmetics and toothpastes will be banned from containing the tiny plastic microbeads. Microbeads are small plastic microspheres made from polyethylene and used in cosmetics such as face washes, hand sanitizers, scrubs, and lotions, and in hygiene products such as toothpastes. The microbeads are mainly used for exfoliating and cleansing purposes, however, they are environmentally damaging. The beads themselves are not considered toxic, but once they and other microplastic debris are in the wa-
ter, they attract harmful chemicals like PCBs, which adhere to their surface and become concentrated there. When cleansing products are spit into the sink or washed off, the small beads wash into the drains. Because they are too small to be filtered by wastewater treatment systems, the plastic microspheres invade the bodies of water, hurting the water systems. A study estimated that over eight trillion plastic beads are washed down drains on a daily basis in the United States alone, enough to coat 300 tennis courts every day. Microbeads harm the environment because they are not biodegradable and once in the water systems, impossible to eliminate. Aquatic life also mistakes the microbeads for food, which disrupts the digestion process of the marine life once the beads are swallowed. One study found that over 600 different species of marine species were hurt by microbeads. When fish consume the microbeads, the plastic particles are transferred along the food chain, and since
humans consume seafood, humans suffer consequences as well. Scientists are researching to determine the negative impact that exists when humans eat the marine life that has previously ingested microbeads. The movement against microbeads began in 2004 when a study led by University of Plymouth Professor Richard Thompson was published in a magazine, outlining the distribution of the microbeads as a part of pollution. Another study in 2009 observed that the microbeads were too small to pass through water filtering systems. Hundreds of campaigns have arisen, formed to raise awareness of the plastic beads and to motivate people to help the environment by no longer using the product. Dozens of large companies such as Ikea, Crest, Johnson and Johnson, L’ORÉAL, Lush, Oral-B, Target and many more have pledged to stop producing and selling products with microbeads. Following the microbead movement, changes have begun to occur in order to
improve the quality of the environment. The Netherlands was the first country to announce to be microbead-free by the end of 2016. In the United States, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Maryland, New Jersey, and Wisconsin signed the legislation that banned the manufacturing and sale of microbead-containing products. This all culminated in the Senate passing the Microbead-Free Waters Act of 2015, which will be in effect in 2018. The solution to the problem that microbeads cause will be to eliminate the material from all products to prevent them from leaking into the water systems. More and more companies and corporations are agreeing to halt the production of the pollutants for good. In order to help maintain the environment, consumers can pledge to stop the use of products containing microbeads. The process for microbeads to be phased out completely will be long, and the cooperation of countries around the world will be absolutely necessary.
16
Arts
“I made this piece to attempt to push the boundaries of the way the human eye perceives the human face.”
Art to the right by Maddie Castillo
“This piece was made entirely of wood.” Art to the left by Diana Morales
“Harold is a physical representation of my anxiety.”
Art to the right by Bailee Henneke
17
Arts
“The king of the sea protects his kin within his domain.”
Art to the left by Ruben Flores
“This piece was an effort to push myself outside of my boundaries and use clay in a way I hadn’t ever before.” Art to the right by Avery Little
“This piece is called ‘Beautifully Broken’ and it is a representation of my experience in Haiti. It’s made completely out of trash and my goal was to put it all together beautifully.”
Art to the left by Sarah Wilson
18
Teen Interest
David Bowie passes away after battle with cancer By Tiffany Wade News Editor
English rock star known for musical transformations, David Bowie, passed away on January 10, two days after his 69th birthday. He was suffering from an 18 month battle with cancer when he died peacefully near his family. Bowie was born as David Robert Jones in South London’s Brixton neighborhood on January 8, 1947. He expressed an interest in music from an early age and began playing the saxophone at age 13. His brother was his true inspiration and introduced him to the vast worlds of rock music and beat literature. His brother, however, ended his own life in 1985 after being sent to a mental institution by his parents. This event inspired his song, “Jump They Say”. While he had some rough patches, he pushed through and became a commercial artist as well as continuing to work as a musician by playing in a band called Davy Jones and The Lower Third. The lack of publicity of the band, however, did not do him justice. His name changed to David Bowie once he became confused with the band when the name had changed to Davy Jones of The Monkees. It was inspired by the knife developed by the 19th century American pioneer Jim Bowie. After Bowie temporarily paused his music career and lived at a Buddhist monastery in Scotland, he began his own mime troupe called Feathers. It was around this time that he met An-
gela Barnett , who he marrried soon after. He returned to being a full-time musician in early 1969 and signed a deal with Mercury Records. That summer the single Space Oddity was released, which he later said came to him after seeing Stanley
giving it a heavier rock sound. He included a song called All the Madmen which was solely based on his institutionalized brother. Bowie’s 1971 album, Hunky Dory, included a tribute to Andy Warhol, the Velvet Underground and Bob Dylan, which gave
A growing memorial for David Bowie at his star on the Walk of Fame on Jan. 11, 2016 located on Hollywood Blvd in Hollywood, Calif (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times/TNS)
Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey. Audiences absolutely adored the song, which gained popularity when it was used during its coverage of the Apollo moon landing on BBC. It later was released in 1972 and climbed to number 15 on the charts. His next album, which was released in 1970, was The Man Who Sold the World and further boosted him to becoming a star. He tried something new with the album by
him a lot more credit as people were familiar with those groups at the time and got a chance to hear their favorite stars sing with David Bowie, making him a new favorite. Once he revealed the shocking detail of his preference for the male gender and introduced Ziggy Stardust to the pop music, he created his album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, which made him a superstar. He
signaled a new age in rock music in this album which seemingly announced the end of the 1960s and the Woodstock era. As he ended his Stardust stage, Bowie produced albums for Lou Reed and Iggy Pop and disbanded the band. He went with a glam rock style with the album Aladdin Sane in 1973 and released Pin Ups with was filled which included songs recorded by Pretty Things and Pink Floyd. He fully changed his look around this time and released David Live in 1974 and Young Americans in 1975. The latter album featured backing vocals by Luther Vandross and a cowirtten song Fame with John Lennon, which became his first American number one single. He also landed the title role in The Man Who Fell to Earth a year later as his love of film grew, and performed on Broadway in The Elephant Man. Three years later he was recording Let’s Dance, which contained the songs Modern Love and China Girl and featured the guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan. After producing many collaborated albums which proved to be flops, his Bowie Bonds were discovered to be his most popular creation. He issued the bonds in 1997 and earned $55 million from the sale. The rights to his back catalog were returned to him when the bonds matured in 2007. His health began to be a scare when he suffered a heart attack while onstage in Germany. However, he kept producing and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996, and was a 2006 recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
Teen Interest
19
Modern production Grease Live! comes to life on FOX By Anna Scheuring Reporter
On the evening of January 31, fans of all ages tuned into FOX to watch the live production of the classic musical Grease. The star-studded cast of talented dancers, musicians and actors combined their skills to bring the beloved show back to life. The members of the cast included Julianne Hough as Sandy, Aaron Tveit as Danny Zuko, Vanessa Hudgens as Rizzo, Keke Palmer as Marty Maraschino, Carlos PeñaVega as Kenickie Murdoch and Carly Rae Jepsen as Frenchy. Other notable members of the cast were Jessie J, Joe Jonas, Eve Plumb, Mario Lopez and Didi Conn. Over 100 members made up the cast for the musical. Warren Casey and Jim Jacobs wrote the musical Alex Rudzinski and Thomas Kail, the director of Broadway musical smash hit Hamilton, directed. More than 600 members of staff and crew made Grease: Live! possible. Rehearsals began on November 30, 2015, being perfected until the premiere live showing,. The story begins in 1959 at Rydell High School. Characters Danny Zuko and Australian transfer Sandy Dumbrowski fall in love at the beach over the summer. Their romance remains a secret as the two plan on going their sepa-
rate ways. Danny plays the leader of the rebellious gangster group of the Rydell High School, the “T-birds”. The “Pink Ladies” the popular girls group at the high school, led by Rizzo, takes interest in the innocent, new girl Sandy and they befriend her. Peer pressure and cliques complicate
bring the love story to life with hit songs such as Grease Lightning, You Are The One That I Want, and We Go Together. Grease: Live! puts together the image of the ideal high school experience of being a rebellious teenager in the fifties. The Grease: Live! musical was shot
Julianne Hough and Aaron Tveit in Grease Live
the relationship between Danny and Sandy as Danny tries to keep his “cool, hard kid” image for his friends at the same time trying to impress Sandy. The “T-birds” and “Pink Ladies”
live over the course of three hours using over twenty one different stages, including two sounds stages, a back lot, and outdoor and indoor stages at Warner Bros. studios in Cali-
fornia. The cast members had to change quickly in between each scene, have just minutes to change for different scenes. The cast was often seen running or being golfcarted through the set in order to change. The extremely realistic sets, the cinematic beauty, the throwback costumes and the performances combined that had the audience raving on how well done everything was. Every stage was decked out, including an entire carnival decorated set for finale, bringing the 1978 film back to life in a vibrant way. Critics and celebrities had many positive comments to say about the live performance. IMDB gave the musical a 7.9 rating out of 10, and IGN.com gave it a 8 out of 10 rating. The show endured a thunderstorm, sounds drops and a couple songs dropped in static, yet still 12 million people tuned into FOX to watch the musical. Hours before the show began, Vanessa Hudgens, playing Rizzo, lost her father in his battle with cancer. As the show must go on, Hudgens performed, and exquisitely played her role. Though many did not expect her to portray Rizzo well, she proved wrong and made her performance of There Are Worse Things I Could Do”on of the best moments of the show.
Nominations for 2016 Academy Awards announced By Emily Berthiaume Editor-in-Chief
The nominations for the 2016 Academy Awards, which will be hosted by Chris Rock on February 28, have been released to the public. Survival frontier film The Revenant leads the pack with a total of 12 nominations, with Mad Max: Fury Road coming in second with 10. Intended to honor the best performances and films of the year, the actor and actress nominations soon received criticism for being comprised of almost entirely white actors. Best Picture, the most prestigious award of the night, nominations went to a total of eight movies, including biographical comedy-drama The Big Short about the housing and credit bubble during the 2000s, historical drama-thriller Bridge of Spies starring Tom Hanks as a lawyer during the 1960 U-2 incident during the Cold War, and Brooklyn, a historical period drama set in 1950s Irish Brooklyn. Mad Max: Fury Road, an action-adventure fourth installment in the Mad Max franchise set in a post-apocalyptic future, The Revenant, book adaption drama-thriller The Room, and biographical newspaper drama Spotlight round out the nominations. Best Actor in a Leading Role nominations included biographical movies, such as Bryan Cranston for his role as real-life Cold War era Hollywood screenwriter Dalton Trumbo in Trumbo and Michael Fassbender as Steve Jobs in Steve Jobs. Eddie Redmayne, who won the category last year, is nominated again for playing Lili Elbe, one of the first known recipients
of sex reassignment surgery. Matt Damon, who has never won an Oscar for acting despite being nominated twice before, is nominated for his lead role in The Martian. Leonardo DiCaprio, who has famously never won an Oscar, is also nominated
these nominations for being primarily white actors. Spike Lee and Jada Pinkett Smith both announced they would not attend the ceremony because of lack of nominations for actors of color. The president of the Academy released a statement announc-
The class photo at the 88th annual Academy Awards luncheon at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Monday, Feb. 8, 2016. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times/TNS)
once again for his role in The Revenant. Best Actress in a Leading Role nominations went to Cate Blanchett for her role as a women going through a difficult divorce in romantic drama Carol, Brie Larson as single mother in Room, past winner Jennifer Lawrence for her role as real-life independent self-made millionaire Joy Mangano in Joy, Saoirse Ronan in Brooklyn, and Charlotte Rampling in 45 Years. Many in Hollywood heavily criticized
ing the need for change in the Academy. “This is a difficult but important conversation, and it is time for big changes,” Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences President Cheryl Boone Isaacs said in the statement. “The Academy is taking dramatic steps to alter the makeup of our membership. In the coming days and weeks we will conduct a review of our membership recruitment in order to bring about much-needed di-
versity in our 2016 class and beyond.” Last year’s nominees were similarly criticized for their lack of diversity, and the audience was down 16 percent, a six-year low. Chris Rock hosting may be an attempt to include more diversity in the broadcast, although notable nomination snubs such as no Best Picture nomination for Straight Outta Compton and Sylvester Stallone being the only actor nominated in Creed brought the controversy to the forefront again. Lupita Nyong’o, who won an Oscar for her role in 12 Years a Slave, also responded to the situation. “I am disappointed by the lack of inclusion in this year’s Academy Awards nominations. It has me thinking about unconscious prejudice and what merits prestige in our culture,” she wrote on her Instagram. “The awards should not dictate the terms of art in our modern society, but rather be a diverse reflection of the best of what our art has to offer today. I stand with my peers who are calling for change in expanding their stories that are told and recognition of the people who tell them.” Actor in a Supporting Role nominations went to Christian Bale in The Big Short, Tom Hardy in The Revenant, Mark Ruffalo in Spotlight, Mark Rylance in Bridge of Spies, and Sylvester Stallone in Rocky reboot Creed. Actress in a Supporting Role nominations went to Jennifer Jason Leigh in Quentin Tarantino film The Hateful Eight, Rooney Mara in Carol, Rachel McAdams in Spotlight, Alicia Vikander in The Danish Girl, and Kate Winslet in Steve Jobs.
20
Teen Interest
The Fifth Wave disappoints with cliche adaptation
By Emily Ruthven Around Creek Editor
“The 5th Wave is an effectively decent post-apocalyptic, young-adult, world-in-the-balance survival thriller,” Eddie Cockrell of Variety added. The film, despite sub-par reviews, had an all-star cast including Moretz and Roe. Other actors included Nick Rob-
dier, respectively. The alien-apocalypse film fell flat in the eyes of critics. They complained how the movie did not portray the main character Cassie very well. “These important elements are sketched and undeveloped in the film. Instead, we’re left with Cassie and Evan
thing Cassie from the book, with her raw tenderized heart, would never have tolerated,” a critic on RobertEbert.com said. Director J. Blakeson’s movie adThe site assigned the film one and a half aptation of the best selling book, The stars. Other ratings followed suit. Rot5th Wave, failed to impress its viewers. ten Tomatoes delivered a rating of 17 Centered around an alien invasion, percent and Metacritic gave 34 percent. The 5th Wave tells the story of a Contrary to the unsatisfactory teenage girl, named Cassie Sulreviews of the movie, the book livan, portrayed by Chloe Grace was a hit. Common Sense Media Moretz, and her struggle for surwrote that author Rick Yancey vival through alien attacks titled “keeps readers guessing and the “waves”. The first, an electrolevel of suspense high throughmagnetic pulse, took away all out the book.” They continued, power from Earth. The second saying that the book showcases was a global earthquake, causing “plenty of originality. It’s a nailmassive tsunamis and flooding, biter from beginning to end”. destroying costal cities and counCritic Allison Shoemaker of tries. The third wave took the form Consequeceofsound.net agreed. of contagion, wiping out those “The 5th Wave doesn’t without a strong immune system. come close to reaching the By the fourth wave, the aliens, heights of the source material.” named the others, had taken over Yancey’s book is part of a humans bodies, making it imposseries. After The 5th Wave was sible to trust anyone. However, released in May 2013, and the Cassie takes a risk and enlists the second installment, The Infinite help of a boy, Evan Walker, porSea, was published in Septemtrayed by Alex Roe, whom she ber of 2014. Information regardfinds while on her journey. In uning the production of the second der two hours long, the film packs film is currently under wraps. several action scenes, including “With two films left in the snipers, helicopters, explosions, trilogy, the filmmakers still have and about everything between. the time and opportunity to get Alex Roe, left, and Chloe Grace Moretz in Columbia Pictures’ “The 5th Wave.” (Chuck Zlotnick/Sony Pictures/TNS) Some critics complained about having this quality material better than right,” another cookie cutter apocalypse movie. inson, who portrayed Sullivan’s high throwing longing looks at one another, Cockrell said. However, fans can still “The 5th Wave is another dys- school crush Ben Parish. Robinson also confusing monologues where people fig- get their alien-apocalypse fix by readtopian washout,” Peter Trav- appeared in Jurassic World. Leiv Sch- ure out what the 5th wave is, and reunion ing Yancy’s The Last Star, the third ers of Rolling Stone commented. reiber, and Maika Monroe also had roles scenes that have no punch. The closing book of the series. Readers can purchase However, some critics disagree. as a military leader and tough female sol- narration is milquetoast cliché, some- the novel on May 24, 2016.
Ricky Gervais hosts the 73rd Golden Globe Awards
By Anna Scheuring Reporter
On the evening of January 10, the 2016 Golden Globes Ceremony concluded after a successful night of laughter and entertainment. Though many celebrities left empty handed, dozens of stars were lucky enough to leave the show sporting the golden trophy.
The Golden Globes, beginning in 1944 to honor the best achievements in filmmaking, have taken place every year since. The show offers entertainment and dinner to celebrate film and television. Actors and actresses are nominated based on their roles in television shows and movies by the Hollywood Foreign Press, prior to the ceremony. A notable star is chosen to host the Gold-
en Globes, and celebrities then present the awards as the show goes on. The ceremony is a televised event for everyone to watch. Well-known comedian and actor Ricky Gervais hosted the 73rd Globes for his fourth time. While the actor did a successful job as the host, Gervais is under fire for his risqué comments about transgender celebrity Caitlyn Jenner. “I’ve changed,” Gervais said, “Not as much as Bruce Jenner. She became a role model for trans people everywhere. She didn’t do a lot for women drivers.” Gervais, though choosing debatable jokes for his transition speeches, remained persistent and succeeded to entertain the large audience and everyone watching the show. Jennifer Lawrence was awarded Best Actress in a Motion Picture for her role in Joy. “I am incredibly grateful to be recognized by the Hollywood Foreign Press for my role in Joy. It was an enormous privilege to play such an amazing women. And it is an honor to be among the other extraordinarily talented women in this category. I share this with David O. Russell and the incredible cast and crew,” Lawrence said on her award. Sylvester Stallone took home Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture for his role in Creed. Alejandro González Iñárritu was awarded Best Director for the motion picture The Revenant. The Revenant won Best Picture in the drama category, with The Martian winning best Picture in the comedy genre. Leonardo DiCaprio took home the honor of Best Actor for his role in The Revenant. Taraji P.. Henson won Best Actress in a TV Series, Drama for Empire.
Actress in a Leading Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture was awarded to pop star Lady Gaga for her role in the television series American Horror Story. “I feel like Cher in that John Patrick Shanley film Moonstruck right now. This is one of the greatest moments of my life,” Lady Gaga said. The Globes brought many memorable moments. Jamie Foxx caused many laughs as presenter when he imitated Miss Universe host Steve Harvey’s mishap reading the card. Sylvester Stallone, famous for his role in the Rocky films, received a standing ovation from the audience as he accepted his award. Denzel Washington inspired a sweet moment as he brought his wife and three children on the stage to accept his award. America Ferrera and Eva Longeria joked about how Hollywood confuses all Latin American women, jokingly calling themselves “Charro” and “Salma”. The presentation from Jennifer Lawrence and co-star Amy Schumer resulted in a laughter-filled audience. Surprisingly, the ratings for television viewings of the 2016 Globes lower than expected. About 18.5 million people tuned in to the showing; down over five percent from the 19.3 viewers of the 2013 show. As it is award season in the world of entertainment, many of the actors, actresses and musicians from the Globes will be returning to the Red Carpet to receive new awards and recognitions. The Grammy Awards will take place on February 15, and the long-anticipated 88th Academy Awards on February 28.
Teen Interest
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2016 Grammy Awards honor the best in music By Anna Scheuring Reporter
The 58th Grammy Awards, the biggest night for music of the year, took place on Monday, February 15. From historical first-ever Grammy moments to singers of all genres joining together to honor fallen artists, the 2016 Grammy Awards were one to remember. The Grammy Awards began in 1959 when the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences came together to create an award show where music could be celebrated, similar to the Oscars for movies. Artists are nominated by the NARAS, then a winner to take home the golden gramophone is chosen and presented at the award show. The night is filled with entertainment through performances from the most popular artists. Rapper and actor LL Cool J, for his fifth consecutive time, hosted the show the three and a half hour show. Taylor Swift, nominated for seven awards, opened the show with a stellar performance of Out of the Woods from her 1989 album. Country fans were then given a treat when country artists Carrie Underwood and Sam Hunt combined their voices to sing Heartbeat and Take Your Time. Kendrick Lamar, in the lead with 11 nominations, was awarded Best Rap Album, Best Rap Song, and Best Music Video along with four other wins. Lamar also combined theatrics to create a stunning yet controversial performance, singing his
songs The Blacker The Berry and Alright. Chris Stapleton took home the Grammy for Best Country Album for Traveller. Ed Sheeran won Song of the Year for Thinking
Video. Swift also took the golden award home for Album of the Year for her album 1989.Other Grammy winners included The Weeknd, Little Big Town, and John Legend.
Taylor Swift backstage at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards on Monday, Feb. 15, 2016, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. (Allen J. Schaben /Los Angeles Times/TNS)
Out Loud along with Best Pop Solo Performance. Bruno Mars and Mark Ronson won Record of the Year for Uptown Funk. Meghan Trainor tearfully accepted her award for Best New Artist. Justin Bieber’s Where Are Ü Now won Best Dance Recording. Taylor Swift’s star-studded music video for Bad Blood won Best Music
For the first time ever in Grammy history, the Broadway musical Hamilton was broadcast from New York to perform their opening number live. Hamilton was awarded Best Musical Theatre album, to no one’s surprise. Also making Grammy history was Gwen Stefani, as a music video was made live in between commercials for
her song Make Me Like You, in collaboration with Target. Adele preformed her hit All I Ask from her newly released album 25. New artists on the rise Tori Kelly and James Bay sang a duet of their songs Hollow and Let It Go. The Weeknd earned a standing ovation from the full audience after his exquisite performance of his most popular songs. Country music’s Little Big Town sang Girl Crush. Justin Bieber made a different approach to his performance of Love Yourself, using just a guitar and his voice to deliver the lighthearted performance. He then quickly threw the guitar to surprise to put on a show along with Skrillex for the song Where Are Ü Now. 12-year Joey Alexander, the youngest Grammy nominee to date, also stepped on to the stage to deliver an impressive piece of musical work. Pitbull closed the long show. The night was also filled with performances honoring late musicians and current legends. Lady Gaga honored David Bowie. John Legend, Demi Lovato, Meghan Trainor, Luke Bryan and Tyrese worked together to sign a medley of Lionel Richie songs to honor the talented singer. Richie then walked on to the stage closed the performance with his popular song All Night Long. Stevie Wonder and Pentatonix worked together in acapella in synchronized harmony to remember the life of Marvis White. Towards the end of the award show, dozens of late artists were remembered. Despite the big night at The Grammy Awards, the show only drew in 24.9 million viewers, the smallest audience since 2009.
Harry Potter fans anticipate new edition to series By: Alyssa Lobue Teen Interest Editor
Fans of the Harry Potter series have been ecstatic for the newest edition to the wizarding world but the wait has ended due to the release of the trailer of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, the beginning of a trilogy following the Harry Potter series seventy years before Potter was born. “I always said that I would only revisit the wizarding world with a thought that I was really, very excited about and this is it,” J.K. Rowling, author of Harry Potter, said. In 1926, the trailer shows a witch named Porentina Goldstein, played by Katherine Waterston. She explains to the magical congress of The United States of America a certain dilemma she came across, describing how a wizard entered New York with a case full of magical creatures, some of which have escaped. The wizard is Newt Scamander, played
by Oscar winning actor Eddie Redmayne. Those who pay close attention to details recognize Scamander as the author of Harry Potter’s schoolbook from Hogwarts, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Scamander comes from England to New York as a magical zoologist who studies magical creatures and monsters, such as Grindylows, with a questionable briefcase. This will be the first time America will be recognized as a place that had witches and wizards. The difficulty of not exposing wizardry has also been shown to be a large piece of this movie’s plot due to a group of non magical people, formally known as muggles but the American term has been released as “no-majs”, that call themselves Second Salemers. Made to sound similar to the salem witch trials, they have the goal of attempting to end all magic. Main characters are Credence, played by Ezra Miller, Graves, played by Co-
lin Farrell, Jacob Kowalski, played by Dan Fogler, and Mary Lou, played by Samantha Morton. Originally, Michael Cera was considered to play the role of Jacob, but he later passed on the film role to voice The Lego Batman Movie. The movie has been directed by David Yate and produced by David Heyman, who also directed the final four Harry Potter movies, has scheduled to be released on November 18, 2016. Fans have also been graced with an upcoming London theatrical production, the eighth addition to The Harry Potter Series. The two-part play, set 19 years after the last novel, was written by Jack Thorne and will be directed by John Tiffany. It will follow Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows, showing the trio of Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, and Harry Potter as adults working at The Ministry of Magic. The play also seems to have a spotlight on Potter’s son, Albus who struggles to live up to his father’s legacy. Although most actors’ names will be released at a later date, the trio of main character’s performers have been released. During late December the decision was made to cast Jamie Parker, actor and singer, as Potter. Paul Thornley, an actor recognized for his role in Les Misérables, will play Weasley. Noma Dumezweni, an English actress and former winner of an Olivier Award, will act as Granger. “I’m so excited with the choice of casting for Harry Potter and The Cursed Child. I can’t wait to see Jamie, Noma, and Paul bring the adult Harry, Hermione, and Ron to life on stage next summer,” J.K
Rowling posted on the website Pottermore. Although Noma has the capability to exceed the high expectations that come with the role of Hermione Granger, many fans are upset due to the color of her skin. After seeing Granger played by Emma Watson, critics are questioning whether the play will remain loyal to the movies. J.K Rowling later responds perfectly to the remarks regarding Noma Dumezweni. “Canon: brown eyes, frizzy hair and very clever. White skin was never specified,” Rowling tweeted. Dumezweni received exemplary reviews for Linda, a play written by Penelope Skinner. Noma also played roles for The Winter’s Tale as well as Romeo and Juliet for the Royal Shakespeare Company. Fans of the series, Doctor Who, also know Noma as UNIT Captain Erisa Magambo. She will also make a directing debut February 2016, at the Royal Court Theatre with I See You by Mongiwekhaya. Matthew Lewis, who played Neville Longbottom for the movies, also tweeted support for Dumezweni. “And Neville Longbottom was blonde. I really don’t care. Good luck to her,” Lewis said. The response from Emma Watson, the original Hermione, was patiently awaited until she started off the new year of 2016 by affirming her approval of Dumezweni as Granger. “Can’t wait to see Noma Dumezweni as Hermione on stage this year,” She tweeted. With a cast of more than 30 actors and actresses, the play will open for shows on July 30 at London’s Palace Theatre.
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Sports
Athlete of Varsity track team begins competition the Month By Anna Scheuring Reporter
Xavier Ferrell Xavier Ferrell is a senior basketball player. He considers his biggest accomplishment during his four years at Creek to be helping his team go to the regional finals play-offs, one of their farthest feats. He will likely attend UT Dallas next year and is proud of his four years at Creek.
On January 28, the Creek Wildcat track team began the 2016 competition season. They finished the 2014-2015 season by placing 4th in the CCISD district standings. Boys and girls from Varsity had members continue all the way to the Regional competition. This year, the Wildcats aim to finish the season at the State competition. The boys and girls track teams are led by the boy’s Coach Ruben Jordan, and the girl’s by three-year head track coach, Coach Zachariah Zepeda. The coaches have high hopes for their teams this season. Every day, beginning in January until the end of April, the Wildcats step on to the track or field to practice. The track team has members specializing in many events, from shot put and discus all the way to the long distance running events. For the boys, the strong points will come in the relays, hurdles, and distance events, according to Coach Jordan. The girls bring returning experience in the open sprint events, the field events, and the long distance runs. Coach Zepeda has high expectations for his track athletes, and looks forward to the season ahead. “I am most looking forward to see how we progress throughout the season and what kind of accomplishments the girls achieve, and as long as we keep achieving those one week at a time, I think by the time District gets around we
will get a lot of kids out to Area, Regionals and hopefully State,” Zepeda said. Coach Jordan surely knows how to lead a team, as he goes on to his 29-year career as a coach at Clear Creek High School. “I think it should be successful with some key members coming back from last years team to provide a lot of scoring. Our goal is to be in District contention at the end of the season and advance a lot
Photo by Amanda Compton
of guys and relay teams to the Regional meet,” Coach Jordan said about the team. Many upperclassmen track veterans will be returning with high hopes of beating previous records and working towards the ultimate goal, a district championship and even a trip to state. Senior Anna Scheuring, a pole-vaulter for Clear Creek High School, looks forward to the upcoming season. “I am very excited to start competing again. I am working hard to clear higher bars and hopefully make it to the State track meet. That is my ultimate goal, to have the opportunity to com-
pete in Austin in May, ” Scheuring said. Four-year Varsity track athlete Jessica Ransom is excited to see what her final season of High School track has in store. She has been apart of the 4x100m relay, 4x200m relay, 4x400m relay, the open 100m, and the open 200m dash. Ransom hopes to accomplish making it to Regionals and after Regionals being a State Qualifier. The girl’s track team noted the strong bond they have formed as a team. “We all get along and we all work very well together collectively as a team. There is no drama there is no excessive attitudes or anything like that. We are all very supportive to each other no matter where anyone is possession rise in running,” Ransom said. Junior Haylie Ruhl, a thrower for shot put and discus, also had a good word to say on her team. “Our team does a lot together and I am happy for that. I feel like that will help us in the meets,” Ruhl said. The Wildcats have a lot in store. They finish with their motto “Be the best we can be and always leave your best on the track.” The Wildcat track teams will continue to improve and compete, and no matter what the results, leave their best on the track. Important meets for the Varsity track team will take place on February 26 at Clear Falls against CCISD rivals, the home meet, Bill Dawes Relays, at Clear Creek on March 11, and the April 1113 District meets at the newly opened Challenger Stadium to determine who will continue on the Area track meet.
Texans end season in loss to Chiefs
Lindsey Loechel Reporter
Alison Wilkes Alison Wilkes is a senior soccer player. She has been playing since she was a child and plans on playing in college. However, she says she will likely focus on academics more than soccer. She plans to major in computer science at UT. She considers her best accomplishment to be helping her team defeat Clear Falls and Clear Lake, two of Creek’s most prominent soccer rivals.
Off target and lacking confidence from the very first snap, Hoyer killed the Texans’s success with three unforgivable picks and a lost fumble over the first two quarters of play. “I need to be better than that,” Hoyer said after the game. “That’s the bottom line. Just a lack of execution. I picked
Things didn’t get any better for the Texans in the second half. In a baffling move, Texans head coach Bill O’Brien The Houston Texans faced a grueldid not remove Hoyer in the second half ing and embarrassing defeat by the Kanbut kept him on the downward spiral. sas City Chiefs at NRG stadium on Janu“I did not consider that,” O’Brien ary 9, knocking them out of the 2015 said after the game regarding replacing Playoffs. The game came to a close Hoyer with Weeden, the Texans second with a final score of 30-0 in favor string quarterback. “I felt like sticking of the Chiefs, pushing their winwith him was the right thing to do.” ning streak to 11 games and markHoyer in the second half produced ing their first playoff win since 1994. four punts, a drive that ended on downs The Kansas City Chiefs became and a ghastly fourth interception. the first team to record a road shutout While Houston was embarrassing in a playoff game since the Carolina themselves, Kansas City brought their Panthers did so in 2005. It was KanA-game. In the third quarter, Chris sas City’s game from the very beginConley received a nine yard pass from ning, when they opened the scoring Alex Smith, and proceeded to run for in spectacular fashion and didn’t look a touchdown, knocking the score up back. Although the Chiefs offense to 20-0. That was followed by a stunwas hardly prolific, a 106-yard touchning fourth quarter in which Spencer down by Knile Davis on the game’s Ware completed a five yard run, elevatopening kickoff set the tone. After the ing the score to 27-0. The final scoring first quarter, the Chiefs were up 7 and play of the game was credited to Cairo closed out the first half up by 13 when Santos, who completed a 33 yard field Chief’s Cairo Santos completed two 49 Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith (11) is sacked by goal and bumped the score up to 30-0. yard field goals in the second quarter. Houston Texans outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus (59) in the The Texans came into the game fourth quarter during the AFC Wild Card game on Saturday, Jan. Conversely, Houston’s first half 9, 2016, at NRG Stadium in Houston. The Chiefs won, 30-0. (John with the NFL’s hottest defense, but was a nightmare for their supporters. Sleezer/Kansas City Star/TNS) J.J. Watt and friends could only watch Hoyer tossed three interceptions—inas Hoyer handed the game away with cluding one on Kansas City’s 2-yard line the wrong time to have the worst game.” every errant pass. The Texans defense to end an eight-play, 77-yard drive—and The giveaways made Hoyer the first stood tall on several occasions to keep fumbled in Kansas City territory as the quarterback to produce a four-pack of turn- things within reach, but star defensive offense mustered little beyond a few De- overs in the first half of a playoff game end J.J. Watt was sidelined after sufferAndre Hopkins catches and an Alfred since Miami’s Dan Marino did the same ing a groin injury during the second half. Blue 49-yard run. As the Houston Chron- thing in a January 2000 divisional-round At the end of the game, the Kansas City icle’s Brian T. Smith and John McClain loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. That was Chiefs walked away with a wild card slot for explained, Hoyer didn’t do himself any Marino’s final game for the Dolphins and the 2015 playoffs. The playoffs culminated favors in the biggest game of his career. this could be it for Hoyer in Houston. in the Super Bowl 50 on February 7, 2016.
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Broncos and Panthers square off in 50th Super Bowl By Anna Scheuring Reporter
On February 7, the Carolina Panthers and Denver Broncos matched up at Levi’s Stadium in California for the 50th annual Super Bowl. The highly anticipated event drew in the third largest audience in TV history, averaging 111.9 million viewers. To the surprise of many, Lady Gaga kicked off the game with a phenomenal presentation of the National Anthem. “This is one of the highest honors of my career,” Gaga said about her performance. The Panthers came in to the Super Bowl with only one loss, while the Denver Broncos came in with four losses. The Carolina Panthers, led by quarterback Cam Newton, were anticipated to win the game, coming in with almost perfect season, while the Denver Broncos came in with four losses over the season. In the first quarter, the Broncos earned three points on a 34 yard field goal by kicker Brandon McManus, followed by a fumble recovery at the end of the quarter, setting the score 10-0 going into the 2nd quarter, Denver in the lead. The exceptional Denver defense made it difficult for the Panthers throughout the game, but North Carolina successfully made it to the end zone allowing running back Jonathan Stewart to score an impressive touchdown, putting the score at 10-7. Denver quarterback Peyton Manning threw an interception, but the Broncos quickly rebounded to score on a punt, setting the score to 13-7 going in to the half. At half time, Coldplay, Beyoncé and Bruno Mars took the field to entertain.
Over 115.5 million people tuned into the show at halftime to watch the show, the highest amount of viewers of the night. The show involved colorful props and a children’s orchestra. Coldplay opened with their well-known song Viva La Vida, then
son, Whitney Houston, Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, Madonna, and Prince. Going in to the second half, North Carolina quarterback Cam Newton threw a 45-yard pass, allowing Panther kicker Graham Gano to attempt a 44-yard field goal.
The Denver Broncos’ Von Miller (58) forces a fumble by Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton (1) in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl 50 at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., on Sunday, Feb. 7, 2016. The Broncos won, 24-10. (Gary Reyes/Bay Area News Group/TNS)
Paradise followed. Bruno Mars took the stage and livened up the crowd with his hit Uptown Funk. The talented Beyoncé then danced on stage, causing uproar in the audience, and performed her new single Formation. All three artists then joined together to finish the show with a medley of Fix You and Up and Up. The halftime show finished with the video of past memories of half time performers and most memorable moments, including Michael Jack-
Denver pushed the score to 16-7 after another 3-point field goal and failed drives. Denver defense proved to be much for the Panthers, as they finished the third quarter with their fifth turnover of the game. The final quarter of the game began with a bang, as North Carolina slot back sacked Manning for the third time to recover the ball for the Panthers. Anther Panther field goal set the score to 16-10, the Broncos still in the lead. The Carolina defense re-
lentlessly worked to control Denver from moving the ball, but a Carolina fumble allowed the Broncos to score a touchdown run at the end of the fourth quarter. In the end, the top defense in the NFL won over the best offense in the NFL, and the Denver Broncos won the championship. From a puppy monkey baby to a dancing Dorito baby, the Super Bowl 50 commercials were also a part of the big night. The Super Bowl, being the most viewed television show of the year, gives big business and corporations a chance to advertise. It was concluded that each thirty-second advertisement cost up to five million dollars for a spot on the highly watched event. Hyundai, Doritos, and Heinz produced the top five fan favorite commercials, according to a USA Today poll. Denver quarterback Peyton Manning was also a big part of the anticipation of the game. Rumors were tossed around that the player would be ending his 17-year career at Super Bowl. At the end of the game, Manning was questioned if the game was his last. “I don’t know the answer to that. I talked to Tony Dungy last week and he said that he got some good advice from Dick Vermeil and I think maybe Bill Cowher as well about not making an emotional decision one way or the other. So I think that was good advice to kind of let this sink in. It’s been an emotional week, emotional night, and the night is just beginning. I look forward to celebrating with my friends and family and I think I’ll take some time after that. Like I said, I am going to enjoy the night, take it one step at a time.” Manning said at the conclusion of the game.
24 PHOTOFINISH