Marchcryofthehawknhhs21132

North Harford High School

211 Pylesville Road, Pylesville, MD 21132

410-638-3650

Volume 48, Issue 1

March 27, 2017

Heroin tree display provides awareness, conversation starters at The Nest BETHANY BIRCHFIELD News Editor From March 3 to the 17, students and staff may have noticed a white tree standing in the corner of North Harford’s cafeteria.

However, this isn’t just any old decorative tree. This is the The Conversation Tree.

The tree that originated at Harford Technical High School, features 55 “conversation hearts” (the candy hearts with words on them). These hearts contain inspirational words and conversation starters. Of the 55 hearts, 29 of them feature a picture of a person from Harford County who died from a fatal heroin overdose.

The tree is currently displayed in the NHHS atrium.

Harford Tech Special Educator and S.A.D.D. (Students Against Destructive Decisions) advisor, Deborah Schlehr, explained “Our S.A.D.D. organization wanted to put a “face” to addiction. We wanted to remove the stigma and

show that addiction does not have a stereotype; it is the person in front of you at the grocery store, the parent on the sidelines of a practice for their child, the student in your class, or a peer in your group.”

North Harford Spanish teacher and S.T.A.R.S (Students Taking A Responsible Stand) advisor, Lori Rake, stated: “I was really intrigued by it! The people at Harford Tech brought it up to us and they talked to us about it. I thought it was really cool especially since the heroin problem is such a huge issue in Harford County and the surrounding communities, so I was really excited to have it here to try to help spread awareness. It goes really well with the Addicted play.”

Rake also explains that she thinks the display is impacting students in the school. She reported “I think some of the people that went up and looked at

the pictures, saw some graduates there. I know we lost someone recently, so I think it really does have an impact on students and makes them really think about it.”

This is only the second year for the addiction display, but the display is designed to continue for years to come. Schlehr’s plans for the display involve getting the exhibit to every school in the county next year. Getting it to as many schools as possible seriously allows for the tree to raise awareness about heroin addiction, and especially awareness of the growing epidemic in Harford County.

Along with The Conversation Tree, the display also includes The Chain of HOPE. This chain of Hope stands for Heroin Overdose Prevention Effort. During lunch students receive a slip of paper and add a “link” to their school’s chain by writing down a goal or dream that they possess

and would like to see come true.

The exhibit allows the current subject of addiction to impact students and staffs of schools all over Harford County, and it aids in educating the youth in order to increase addiction prevention.

This display will be traveling to other schools in the county including Havre de Grace, Fallston, Bel Air, Patterson Mill, Edgewood, and C. Milton Wright. Each school will make their own chain of hope and they will be displayed together at the Bel Air Public Library in June.

Conversation tree display bringing awareness to Hawks. Students have been visiting the tree during lunch blocks.

Photo credit- Lori Rake

Students attend recent delegate meeting, SGA President Herron selected as Harford County Delegation ANDY MILLER Reporter

Student advocacy participants from The Nest pose for a picture together. The students had the opportunity to participate in Student Advocacy day on February 28, 2017.

Photo Credit- Laura O’Leary

Students from North Harford had the opportunity to participate in Student Advocacy day on February 28. The students who went to the event had come up with a list of five bills and voted for them at a student government conference. From there each county in Maryland has the option to send a delegation to Annapolis to advocate for those five MESC bill stances.

SGA president senior Hannah Herron had the opportunity to be a part of this event in Annapolis. “This is the first time Harford County has sent a delegation.” Herron said. When she and the other students involved arrived they had a tour of the state house and the house chambers.

The group got to sit in on the senate session and got to meet delegate

Andrew Cassilly and Senator Bob Cassilly. “That was really fun to actually be able to meet our county representatives.”

The students also had the chance to sit in on committee hearings and advocate for bills of their choosing.

Harford County is able to vote for policies but not budgetary stuff. “For example, like the pools and the drama fees the student member of the board cannot vote for or against funding, so it really kind of limits what they’re able to do.” Herron added in Frederick County they have no voting rights on any policy; they’re just at these committees to give their opinions. The bill being advocated can impact students advocacy being represented to the board.

Herron is hoping to hear the results of the house vote within the next few weeks at the time of this interview.

The young advocates also got to interact personally with some of the delegates face to face. Delegate Cassily came to the restaurant the group was eating at and talked to students about his

job, the committees he’s a part of, and what the committees do in the house. “It was so cool to see him in a real life setting. He made the effort to come down and talk to us.” Then Herron met with Senator Cassilly and discussed the senate and how the senate represents Harford County as a whole.

The students attending had their 5 MESC bills to advocate.

One bill involved reducing the sugar of school lunches. Another bill was about giving crossing guards more power. A bill Herron did a project on was house bill #7 which forces the county governments to investigate the source of lead poisoning. Herron says if a kid does a blood test and has a level of 40 milliliter/deciliter of lead in their blood then the government is required to investigate the source whether it was from the home their living in to the pipes in the school, or county facilities. “It promotes health and wellness in the community. It can cause brain problems, heart problems; It’s pretty bad.” Herron said.

Cry of the Hawk

Opinion/Editorial - Page 2

March 27, 2017

Answering ‘if’s in life Unnecessary executive order Three people out of 784,000 refugees from the Muslim banned countries have been terrorists.

Photo credit: Marissa Ramsland EMILY MILLER Columnist There are so many decisions we are faced with every day. What should I wear to school? Should I really do the math homework, she’s probably not going to even check it? These are simple, mindless questions we confront day to day. But, what about the decisions that will impact your life forever.

These years in high school all lead up to what you’re going to do with the 12 years of learning, control, stress. What college are you applying to? Seems easy enough, right? Wrong. In elementary school, they don’t mention that

you have to factor in sky high tuition costs, dorms with strangers, endless essays, SAT’s, and god forbid if you don’t get a 4.0 or straight A’s, then you’re in serious trouble. What if I don’t get into the same college as my friends?

What if I get rejected? What if I enroll into college and hate it? On top of college visits and SAT tests we still have school to worry about. Waking up at the crack of dawn, like zombies, we make the journey to school for another day of the endless cycle.

For me, my average week consists of tutoring students after school four times a week, staying after for club meetings for hours at a time, four tests in a day, since all of my AP classes are on the same day, and at the end of the day who can forget our best friend, homework. On top of that we have to keep up our relationships with friends and family.

Sometimes I wonder, what if I didn’t decide to take AP classes, what if I didn’t get involved in clubs? Would I be less stressed or happier?

The if’s in life is always in the back of my mind. Every action, every decision affects the next day,

week, and year of my life. These years are supposed to be the best years of our life. I can’t help but wonder, am I allowing school to taint the time I’m supposed to be cruising around after passing my driver’s test, traveling, and just having fun stupid times with my friends?

Don’t get me wrong, I have thoroughly enjoyed moments throughout school, joining journalism and being welcomed by the kindest people you could ever meet, finding FFA and my notch as secretary, through these experiences and so many more I have discovered my passion for filmmaking and computer science.

I’ve decided not to lead my life based on the what if’s that scare me back into my shell. Abraham Lincoln once said, “The best thing about the future is that it comes one day at a time.” I couldn’t agree more. I’m not going to compare myself to my peers. I’m not going to sweat on the small things. I’m not going to change myself for others. Now, what if we all believed in our own self - worth and ignored those who said you can’t and start deciding our futures for ourselves? What if.

Education for incarcerated: morals producing new life for post-prison or reducing opportunity for taxpayers?

VIEWPOINT The goal for a good bit of high school students is to further their education by taking college courses in attempt to make a better future for themselves. Adults go back to college or take online courses with these same ambitions. But would a prisoner do the same for the same reason?

The Goucher Prison Education Partnership helps some inmates do just that. Goucher College has opened up the opportunity to about 100 criminals to create a better future for themselves after they move past the prison walls and out into the world.

Faculty members teach courses at the Maryland Correctional Institution for Women and the Maryland Correctional Institution - Jessup.

The education for these inmates, who apply just as the regular college students, is free of cost. The inmates must be in prison for at least a year and may also transfer their credits earned

to Goucher College or another college to continue their education if they are released early.

Those in the program take part in prison activities from 4am to 2pm then move to do schoolwork until about 9pm.

Is all the work of the program worth the time? Or is it just another hassle for taxpayers who work to provide for the prisoners school fees?

From a general perspective, it isn’t fair. Taxpayers pay for state run programs that have nothing to do with them. In a study, it has been found that the average taxpayer from New York pays about $60,000 per year for an inmate.

On top of that, the taxpayers are people who are most likely pursuing an education have already worked had for degrees which they have already had to pay college fees for; parents who will go on to support their kids through college.

So is it fair that prisoners have the opportunity to receive the same education, earn the same

Cry of the Hawk 211 Pylesville Road Pylesville, MD 21132 (410) 638-3650

degrees, go on and fight for the same job positions, and further their future just as much as any other normal person for free, even after they have committed a crime?

The program has been found to benefit. In a study it has been found that the average percent of prisoners who return to jail within the next three years after their release is about 40 percent.

It has also been found that those who go through the program have a lower reincarceration rate because of the new opportunities they have been given to succeed.

Also, for every dollar that is spent on a prison education program, the public is able to save about five dollars in reimprisonment costs.

Though the program might showcase a moral effort on the part of correctional facilities, it is not fair to those who might end up paying to basically have their dream job position taken from them.

News Editors: Kiernan Furness Bethany Birchfield Opinion/Editorial Editor: Marissa Ramsland Features Editor: Amanda Scarboro IDR Editor: Maria Kropkowski Society, Students & Culture Editor: Kyle Russell Copy Editor: Darby Hyde Video Managers: Kate Meagher

putting millions in danger EDITORIAL Recently, America’s new president issued an unconstitutional executive order banning citizens from Iraq, Iran, Libya, Sudan, Yemen, Somalia, and Syria, all Muslim-majority countries from entering the country in the next 90 days, and all refugees for the next 120 days. Trump claims that this ban will protect the United States from terrorist attacks. However, this is patently untrue.

First, according to the Migration Policy Institute, only three people out of all the refugees from these countries have been terrorists. Three out of 784,000, which is .00038 percent. There is very little justifiable fear of these people. In fact, there are more deaths from far right-wing terrorists per year than from Islamic jihadist immigrants, according to the think tank New America.

Another issue with the ban is that all the countries with the largest amount of Americans killed by their citizens are not included on the list.

If Trump actually wanted to protect Americans, he would be banning immigrants from those countries. It’s probably not a coincidence that he has real estate and business ventures from the countries not included.

There are also some saying that Obama did the same thing, which is false. The Obama ban on immigrants was much smaller in scope, limited to only Iraq, it came about from specific threats, and there was no outright ban, only delays on processing.

This ban is, in fact, unconstitutional. It violates the Immigrant Nationality act, and discriminates on basis of religion.

Trump plans on giving Christian and minority religions preference in the future when immigrating here, which is wrong.

Everyone can be persecuted, just in different ways, and they all need help.

Not only is this ban unethical, it was executed terribly and disorganized. There was no legal review, little of the order was shared with career officials at the Homeland Security Department or the State Department, and Customs and Border

Emily Miller Entertainment Editor: Emma Marley Sports Editors: Jessica Carnivale Brett Friedel Business Manager: Samantha Steltzer Web Manager: Darby Hyde Reporters: Lira Barbalate, Natalie Beyer, Hannah Eyler, Katie Kettell, Andy Miller, Emily Rinaca Channel 35 Production Manager: Samantha Steltzer

Protection officers were also caught unaware. This resulted in chaos all over the country, with officials unsure of how to enact the convoluted policy, and protests erupting.

Thankfully, a federal judge granted the ACLU’s request for a stay on the executive order.

This was a big win, but it was not enough, it only restrained refugees with valid visas from being deported, not completely ending the ban.

These are some of the most vulnerable people in the world, and they cannot afford to be turned away from a country that will help them. This ban will end people’s lives, not save them. It will not only end them by denying refuge, but also by giving ISIS fuel for recruitment.

We are a nation founded on immigrants, yet each generation has a had an ugly reaction to them, whether it was the Jews, Irish, Italians, Vietnamese, or Cubans, and all of those reactions were unfounded.

Something similar to this happened during the Holocaust.

There were frightened people trying to escape from their persecution, and America turned its back on them, leaving them to die. This included Anne Frank.

As we condemn those actions of the past, so it happens that the people supporting this ban today will be the villains of tomorrow’s history books.

The vast majority of refugees are not trying to cause harm.

They are simply trying to live.

And even when they do get to western countries, they are ostracized and discriminated against for no reason. There have been many attacks on mosques here, even one as recent as the 29th, that killed six people. We are not the victims, they are.

There is a piece by SomaliBritish writer, Warsan Shire. It reads, “you have to understand, that no one puts their children in a boat, unless the water is safer than the land. No one spends days and nights in the stomach of a truck, feeding on newspaper unless the miles travelled mean something more than a journey.”

America has a moral obligation to protect these incredibly brave people, who sacrifice so much to come here.

The Cry of the Hawk newspaper is published 10 times a year by North Harford’s Journalism II/III class. All editorials and viewpoints express the feelings of those on the staff and not necessarily those of fellow students, administrators, or teachers.

Please do not hesitate to submit letters to Advisor Jen Chandler in room D207. Letters should be no longer than 300 words, must be signed, and may not contain vulgarity.

Cry of the Hawk

March 27, 2017

VIEWPOINT With prom coming up, there is no doubt that students at every high school are flocking to get dates, dresses, and plans with their friends for a day that is two months away.

For some, prom is considered to be one of the best nights of their life. Students spend hundreds on a dress or tux, go all out to ask their crush to be their date in an “Instagram-worthy” manner, and take hours beforehand to get ready.

Others, though, don’t care much for prom, which they see as a place for a bunch of their acquaintances to get together, “dance” on each other, and share fake smiles. They don’t see it as the best night of their life, but rather a huge chunk of money spent on one night that really isn’t worth the possibly-thousand dollar event.

According to statisticbrain. com, the average amount spent on a prom dress is $195 and the average cost of a prom ticket is $75. Hair and nails together costs $105, a corsage/boutonniere costs $40, a tux is $100, and a limo rental for the night costs around $110 an hour.

In total, that comes to a cost of

Need for women protection against sexual assaulters

$850 for one couple. Many people say that prom is the best night of any young person’s life, but is it really worth the enormous expense some people pay?

The reality is, prom is nothing more than a night where a bunch of teenagers get together and dance, and though it is a more extravagant and fun event than most dances, spending $1000 on the night seems a little steep.

Prom night will fade from memory over time; the dent in your wallet has a much more immediate impact. The reality is, whether someone gets makeup done by their friend or by a high end beauty salon, everyone looks beautiful.

Prom should not be a competition about who spent the most money.

This might come as a huge surprise, but the amount of money spent does not make one night more beautiful or more important than any other night.

The same effect can be achieved simply by gatherine a few friends, ordering a pizza, and sharing some amusing anecdotes. What does make it more meaningful are the friendships created, the memories made, and the peace of mind. A price cannot be put on that. ing depression, PTSD, self harm, suicide, substance abuse, eating disorders, and sometimes, unplanned pregnancy, as a result of these attacks in addition to the guilt and shame they feel for being a victim.

Women who have endured sexual assault or rape are not protected enough. A corrupt justice system has made countless women too scared to tell police about what was done to them because of the fear that they’d be blamed.

These situations are often turned on the women for wearing provocative clothing, or “leading someone on” as if being attacked was her fault.

Another instance of corrupt

Unhealthy habits of lacking Z’s, Discouraging dreadful deprivation Photo credit: Marissa Ramsland

Sleep: Spending sensibly Dishing out dough for dance,

Opinion/Editorial - Page 3

SAMANTHA STELTZER Columnist I like sleep. No wait, I take that back; I love it. But, like every member of the student body, and [probably] most of the administration, I can’t seem to get enough of it. Time and time again, I just seem to keep losing it beneath a pile of never ending homework, dance, chores, the Internet, and soon enough, a job.

It seems people at school feel the same way. Students are either sleeping in class or boasting about how much sleep they got, or didn’t get for that matter, as if it was a competition. Oh wait, what was that? You only got three?

Do you think that we should be impressed? I for one, am appalled.

being raped or sexually abused, then abortion should be an option that is available to her.

Having the baby of someone who did you extensive physical and emotional harm would be a terrifyingly hard thing for any woman.

EDITORIAL In this instance a woman Whether people want to talk should without question obtain about it or not, sexual assault the right and authority to make is an issue that has never gone such a decision, and under no away. In fact, statistics show circumstances should a sexually that every 98 seconds an Ameriassaulting second party have can is sexually assaulted and any right or privilege within the only 6 out of every 1,000 rapists victim’s life. and assaulters will end up in Spousal rape is a thing. It is prison. obviously not in every marriage, Male predators are not bebut it does occur. This bill is ing punished to the extent that just one example of the lack of they should be. No one protection to assault vicshould get away with Women who bravely report be- tims. sexual abuse. Where is Finally the question ing assaulted or raped and who that remains is: why are the justice?

The reality is that inform the police are left feeling women getting their sometimes when an asand safety taken guilty and responsible for the at- rights sault case is reported away, while male predatack, rather than protected by the tors are getting their there is not always something done about system that is designed to do so. rights and safety handed it. If there is not enough to them? evidence against the asIf someone commits saulter, then there are no charg- justice for women in these situ- an act as utterly disgusting and es pressed. According to the ations comes into play with the wrong as sexual assault or rape Rape Abuse & Incest National recently passed bill in Arkansas. then they should NOT be grantNetwork, 90% of adult rape vic- This bill is called the Arkansas ed anything. They should NOT tims are female.

Unborn Child Protection From be given the right to choose Countless numbers of these Dismemberment Abortion Act. another’s fate. They should be women who bravely report beIt states that a man has the behind bars. ing assaulted or raped and who right to sue his wife if she wishes There needs to be a change. inform the police, are left feeling to get an abortion even in cases of Women who live in a country as guilty and responsible for the rape. Under normal and healthy great and free as America should attack rather than protected by circumstances, abortion should not be oppressed by male predathe system that is designed to not be something that is heav- tors. It’s time for justice to be do so. ily considered because it ends a served to the assaulters on a Following their attacks, these child’s life. great big silver platter. It is time victims of sexual assault face a However, if the circumstance for women to feel truly safe again multitude of problems includ- includes the mother of the child in any and every situation.

Not getting enough sleep should not be an excuse to participate in this “competition” of sorts.

Sure we’re all guilty of moaning to friends about not catching a few z’s but to keep repeating this needs to stop. We all know nobody gets enough sleep so stop saying it likes it the most profound point in the world.

Obviously it’s clearer and extremely easy for us to complain about the amount of sleep [and schoolwork] we get because we like it and it’s fun and an easy conversation started for everyone and the few who are the “less words spoken the better” type of people. Or, when we want to avoid doing the Mount Everest pile of homework we have to do.

We beg our teachers for less homework and for a chance to get to school later. But then we’d have to give up our glorious 2 o’clock dismissal and that ain’t happening anytime soon.

Students need to realize just how different hours of schooling and bus routes affect us here at NH. Since our houses are much farther apart than they are in the squeezed neighborhoods of Bel Air, our time spent sitting on the bus can total up to an hour. Especially when you’re getting on it at 6:00 A.M. like I do.

And when our teenager brains need at least ten hours of sleep every night, the effect of our loss of sleep can have the same effects on our grades as binge drinking and chronic marijuana use, according to a new study published in the journal Sleep.

I know I’m not the first to bring this issue up but there are ways to rework this problem when the student body is coming in looking like Dracula in the sunlight right before he burns away into dust. Harford County Public Schools Transportation could take a closer look into the bus routes and find new ways to rework drive time so that you aren’t having time wasted spent on looping streets twice or taking the long way when there is clearly a shortcut.

If we are able to shave off even something like fifteen minutes of wasted time it could be a small step into lessening our competitions about sleep depravity. Fifteen minutes may not sound like a to you but if you add that up over the week, I know I would earn each week an hour total of extra sleep back. Isn’t that want we all want? More time spent in dreamland? Or would you like to continue fighting for gold in the No Sleep Olympics?”

Transgender rights threatened,

Republican concerns needed elsewhere EDITORIAL Last year, President Obama made protections to ensure transgender people had the right to use bathrooms that matched their gender identity, because of a law barring sex discrimination in education. However, the Trump administration has changed this legislation, leaving it up to the states to decide.

In making this decision, Republicans have cited concern for women and children. They argue that allowing transgender women in the women’s restroom will open a gateway to assault and violence, with people exploiting the allowance.

There are several problems with this line of thinking. There are already many legislations prohibiting violence and sexual assault of any form in the bathroom.

Isn’t this law just a redundancy?

Also, before banning vulnerable people from going into the bathroom they feel most comfortable in, sex offenders who in some states are still allowed in public bathrooms should be banned.

In fact, the only cases of transgender people actually using public bathrooms to prey on others haven’t been transgender people at all, according to npr.com. They were cisgender men who dressed up to look like a woman solely for that purpose, and just by do-

ing that, were violating numerous laws, and likely would have done it whether or not transgender people were permitted. Never has there been a case of an actual transgender person sexually violating someone in a bathroom.

Transgender people are actually more likely to be the victims of crimes while using the facilities meant for the gender they identify as. One study by UCLA found that 70% of transgender people have reported experiencing being denied access to restrooms, being harassed while using restrooms and even experiencing some forms of physical assault.

Transitioning for transgender individuals is already extremely hard. Why make it harder by forcing them into a place where they probably will be ostracized and harassed? If it will be easier, just let them go in the bathroom that matches their gender.

Republicans love to act concerned for women and children when making laws that will harm others. If they actually cared about women, they would stop trying to harm our reproductive rights, and if they actually cared about children, they would stop forcing them into bathrooms they don’t feel comfortable in. All this is is just irrational fear and hatred of an area they’re not familiar with and change to their worldview.

March 27, 2017

Cry of the Hawk

Opinion/Editorial - Page 4

A day without women In favor of...

Opposed to...

Emily said...

America needs to wake up. Whether you are a player on the United States Women’s Soccer Team or a blue-collar worker, inequality is not a stranger. The United States Women’s Soccer team is projected to make $5.2 million in profit for the federation while men are losing $1 million in debt. However, when men LOSE a game they make $5,000, but if women lose, they make nothing.

All of our greatest moments in history has come from the courageous acts of standing up for what they believe. Ending of segregation, rights of LGBT’s, women’s march, Photo credit: and marches against war.

Future lawyers, artists, and even presidents are taught by educators of America. Of all educators in America, 75% are women. Who would teach the children of America without women? This was proven when schools shut down when women teachers walked out to promote change in Prince Georges County.

As a woman in America, I am proud to be a part of the movement to give women equal pay, job security, and a beginning to gender justice.

Let me get this straight: On March 8, 2017, thousands of women skipped work to protest inequality. Okay, that seems like a good idea, right? Absolutely not.

In Alexandria, VA, Chapel-Hill, NC, and Prince George’s County, MD, schools were forced into closing that day because of “inadequate staffing”. Not only does this negatively affect the children’s education but also creates a disruption in family’s’ schedules. For what?

To protest #ADayWithoutAWoman.

This protest gave women a break from work, chores, and typical ‘housewife’ jobs in order to show how women are necessary in soKyle Russell ciety. The idea was that without the help of women there was absolute chaos and the world would burn.

Oh wait, that’s not what happened.

Nope, the world keep turning and the sun still came out on March 9, 2017. So, what was the purpose of the protest again?

Here’s an idea, let’s figure out what we want and do what it takes to get it. Right now the idea behind the protest are about the desire for equal pay, equal opportunity, and more respect. A survey done by American Association of University Women

Appeals prove not to be ideal

Photo credit: Juliet Seger AMANDA SCARBORO Columnist Since the spring season for sports has just begun, in order for students to be able to tryout, they must have passing grades.

Ironically, I’ve been hearing students complaining about having to get an appeal, or not receiving an appeal.

My message to you is this: enough with the complaining.

The only reason you are in the situation is entirely because you put yourself in this situation.

I’m all for the idea of a second chance, especially since I know school can be difficult for some students. Everyone should be given a chance to redeem themselves, However, there are students who fail every single class and are still seeking an appealand who believe they deserve one.

I mean really, all you have to get is straight D’s to be passing,

and that is not hard.

If students are not putting forth effort in their classes, why do they deserve to participate in things they want to do? The answer is that they shouldn’t.

In reality, school is more important than sports and activities.

Are you really going to become a professional football player?

Probably not, so your academics really should be your priority.

A student with straight E’s is not trying, not even a little bit. In some cases, not doing the homework and doing the classwork alone can get you close to passing.

While it is not ideal, if you did not do well on every test and quiz but did your homework, you have a chance at passing. I’m certainly not suggesting this should be your goal, you should always do all of your work, but come on, do something.

The purpose of an appeal is a chance to get your grades up, but the majority of students who are given appeals don’t change their habits at all. They are granted the appeal with the idea that whey will improve their grades; they have to attend study sessions for some teams, they have to get every teacher to sign a progress report, and they have to meet with administrators about their progress or lack of.

But all the while, these students are allowed to participate

in their sports activity, taking away time and energy from the very thing that needs to have attention: school work.

Additionally, how can these students learn that failing classes is not okay if they are still allowed to partake in the activities they want?

Giving undeserving students appeals is setting them up for failure in college. When these students go off to college they are going to be hit with the reality of what consequences really come when they fail their classes.

In most colleges if you get anything below a C, you will not be able to participate in sports.

Making our appeal policy more strict will show students how important their grades really are, as in failing in college can lead to failing in life.

A student that has excellent grades and is a good athlete deserves to be on the team more than a student that has horrible grades and is a great athlete.

If a student truly cares about participating in an activity, they would pass their classes, or at least if they are given an appeal they would attempt to improve.

If a student chooses to not care about their school work this implies that they do not care about whether they will be able to participate in a sport or activity.

showed that for every dollar that a male makes, a female makes 80 cents. There is no denying that a 20% wage gap is unacceptable. The problem we all face is how do we fix the pay gap.

I can assure you it’s not by skipping work to protest not getting paid enough at work. Well paid vocations require years of schooling and hard work. There will never be change if we don’t prove that we are just as capable as a men. Ghandi said, “You must be the change you wish to see in the world” and his words apply to what women are going through today. If you want to see something change, go out and do it. It’s as simple as that.

Today it seems as if women think that everyone is against them. Since the recent election of President Donald Trump, there have been more women’s rights rallies and protest than any other time in my life. The claim that he is anti-women and trying to take away the rights of women is false and in no way shape or form can be proven to be true. Although he has made sexist comments in the past he has not taken away anything from anyone based on their gender. To express his gratitude for women he took to Twitter on International Women’s Day saying, “I have tremendous respect for women and the many roles they serve that are vital to the fabric of our society and our economy.” .So it’s time to put away the protesting and start acting on the ideals of the uprisings.

Disproportionate ratio of diversity, equality in media EDITORIAL Diversity on the television screen has no doubt been a controversial issue. Majority of the controversy comes from the lack of diversity in television, however there have been several arguments stating that there is too much diversity in media.

There is no such thing as too much diversity. In other words, there is no such thing as too much equality.

For decades, television and movies have been predominantly white. Yes, there was racial inequality in the 1960s, explaining why there was a lack of diversity.

But it is 2017, not the 1960s.

The real question is, why are people so threatened to the growing diversity modern day? Change is hard, it’s understandable. But if it’s that difficult to accept the change of allowing minorities to have equal representation in media, then that’s a problem.

According to annenberg.usc.edu, about 72% of actors who had speaking roles in television were white, 12% were African-American, 6% were Hispanic/Latino, 5% were Asian, 2% were middle eastern and 3% other. Out of all minority races versus the single Caucasian race, whites still outweighed minorities 44% more.

Jessica said...

In 1908, 15,000 women workers walked out and marched in New York City for shorter hours and better work conditions. It’s 108 years later and women are once again taking a stand for their right to equal pay and to demonstrate how women are discriminated against, sexually harassed and have no job security.

To those who put down the march for women’s equality, think about your mother, sister, wife, best friend, or even yourself. Why are you trying to silence their voice instead of projecting it to the world?

The four leading organizers of the “A Day Without a Woman” were arrested for blocking traffic. Sound familiar? In the 1900s when women organized, they were also arrested for blocking traffic.

One was a new mother who was in so much pain because she could not nurse her own newborn baby. Citizens have the right to assemble and petition their government. However, when women do it, they’re irrational and crazy.

I am not a radical feminist, but I do believe in women being equal in every way to men. According to a study by the Center of American Progress, if all women took a day off from work it would cost the United States, $21 billion dollars. If we make such a huge contribution to the economy why are still being paid less?

This is not acceptable.

How can minority groups feel equal and that they play a significant role in society if huge productions don’t represent them adequately?

It also isn’t like there are more whites than minority groups to select from in the media. According to sciencechatforum.com, 16% of the world are whites, 15% are African-American, 55% are Asians, 8% are middle eastern and 8% are central/south American. So technically, minority groups outweigh whites by 70%. So why aren’t they represented equally in media?

Yes, the directors and producers main priority should be to pick out the best actors or actresses for any production. Having quality actors on a production makes a good show and hopefully, good ratings. However, having a diverse cast allows everyone to feel equally represented, which leads to groups of all races to come see the production and sharing it to everyone. Now that’s a successful production.

Diversity is also not only having one black friend, out of the other nine white members in a cast. Diversity, out of a cast of 10 members, would be two white members, two black members, two Asians, two middle eastern and two Hispanics, five of them men and five of them women.

This is not only diversity, but this is basic equality. If anyone has a problem with that ratio of minorities to whites, then the problem is not the media, it’s you.

Cry of the Hawk

March 27, 2017

Victory:

KIERNAN FURNESS News Editor On Friday, March 3, eight boys, four judges, two hosts, a field reporter, and the entire tech crew and Advanced Journalism staff took to the stage working both in front of and behind the curtain to produce the Mr. North Harford pageant.

The entire show was pulled together in approximately one week. Each contestant had to walk in formal wear, strut their swimwear, perform a talent, showcase a group dance, and answer an on-the-spot question.

Each contestant joined for a different reason, but not one seems to regret their decision.

Senior Zach Miller explains he participated “Because it sounded like fun and my brother did it so I wanted to see if I could win too, because he won.”

Although Miller didn’t win, his only regret, according to him, is not participating in past years.

Noah DeHart, this year’s youngest participant, claims deciding to join “wasn’t really that big of a deal. I had a great time.

I mean first of all, I met a lot of great guys, and I don’t really

Berrell wins Mr. NH pageant; 8 contestants compete for title

Miller comments, that the divercare what people think of me so going to win with his streamer sity was one of his favorite parts: it was easy to go up on stage and dance.” make a fool of myself.”

Talents ranged from dancing, “It was kind of fun like to see To come up with his acts, De- to body building, to drumming, everyone’s acts, and see how they interpreted the different parts Hart explains “Well for spirit to stand up comedy. like talentwear, I know we’re wise or cosall duck farmers tume-wise.” around here and However, everyone makes Berrell endfun of us, so I figed up takured I’d play into ing the title that a little bit, get (along with the fans cheering.” the sash and The freshman crown) derode a toy tractor spite how around the stage close the for this portion of competition the show while this year sporting denim was.

Bercutoffs and a flanrell owes his nel tank. He consuccess to tinued on to say, “I his sisters, like to make people claiming laugh.” that they’re Miller shares the reason this hobby, and he competed according to audiin the first ence members his place: streamer dance def“My sisinitely made people Win earns the title of Mr. NH with comedic skills. ters wantlaugh. Win Berrell, this year’s win- The senior posed after being presented the annual ed me to particiner, even claims “I crown and sash. pate in Mr. thought Zach was

Brown nominated for Teacher of the Year KATE MEAGHER Video Manager

Teacher of the Year is an award given to the most hardworking and inspiring teacher in Harford County. Last year, North Harford Middle School math teacher Sharalyn Heinly won the title, but this year, science teacher Elizabeth Brown was nominated for Teacher of the Year.

The process of the nomination involved Brown writing three essays, submitting reference letters from Mr. Carr, and another person of her choosing, two of her AP physics students, seniors Courtney Klapka and Abigail Brosh.

“We just wrote about how... we thought she’d be a good candidate for Teacher of the Year so we just wrote this letter and sent it in,” Klapka commented on the letter she and Brosh wrote.

“Mrs. Brown said she teared up when she read it.” Klapka also commented on the details of the letter, “...when taught by Mrs. Brown... you want to go to school and want to come to

Page 5 - News

class.”

According to her students, every class is something different that is equally as exciting, making AP physics a fun and enjoyable class. They agreed that Brown’s course inspires her students to want to pursue STEM careers af-

When taught by Mrs. Brown you want to go to school and want to come to class.

- Courtney Klapka ter high school.

Another student of Brown’s, Caitlyn Radel, claims “Mrs. Brown, she’s really good at helping students that need help. If you ask her a question she will immediately jump in and help you as best she can... She creates her own labs which is really awesome so she actually knows exactly how the lab works.”

After the initial screening process for all of the Teacher of the

Year candidates, the field was narrowed to just 10, and Brown was a part of that elite group.

She was required to interview in front of a panel of judges from Harford County, including members from the Board of Education, HCPS staff, and community representatives.

Brown explained how being nominated was an honor and how it has reinvigorated her teaching. It caused her to reflect more upon herself as a teacher, giving her the drive to make new and interesting lessons for her students. “I eat, breathe, and sleep my lessons and it can be overwhelming and lead to burn out...” Brown commented.

The science teacher notes that teachers come to school every single day for their entire career and maintain the same drive and creativity. “We can’t get senioritis! So opportunities like this, where we get validation for what we do, are really helpful in maintaining motivation to be the best teacher we can be,” Brown added.

North Harford. When I was like in eighth grade, they were like ‘Winnie when you’re a senior you gotta participate in Mr. North Harford.’ And then earlier this year they were like: ‘Winnie! You gotta participate in Mr. North Harford, you already said you were going to in eighth grade!’ So I had to.”

Berrell was escorted by retired English teacher (also his aunt) Mrs. Linda Duncan. He floated across the stage during the swimwear event, being pulled in a kiddy pool. However, his stand up comedy was arguably his best event.

Teachers Joanna Dallam, Lori Rake, Laura O’Leary, and Mary Capellan volunteered to judge the event and according to them the competition was extremely tight. Dallam even shared that the difference between the winner and runner up was only by a single point.

At the end of the night, the fundraiser was extremely successful, and even the boys who didn’t walk away with the crown were extremely happy for Berrell’s success and the experience as a whole.

SAE project makes change KYLE RUSSELL SCC Editor

to give their time towards my project which was really frustratIn the ag/magnet program ing.” She explained that finding at NHHS every student has to locations that will work better choose a project to do for all four for the collection of recycled mayears, known as an SAE project. terials was also a challenge in this Senior Kayla Gorrell’s project fo- process. cuses on the recycling initiative.

Gorrell adds “We are saving “My SAE the earth by recyproject is cling and it’s going We can use this determining to help the environhow to imment, and that is project as an prove the rewhat people need excuse to better cycling rates to realize. We only at North have one earth and the environment Harford high if we want it to be and make the school and around for a long world a better developing time, we need to a good recytake better care of place. cling ethic at it.”

-Kayla Gorrell this school,” Gorrell hopes said Gorrell not only to change “I have different parts of my recycling habits, but also to help project. I have student monitors the students learn a thing or two. and I have to change the loca- “So many things can be recycled tion of the trash bins.” She has to that you don’t realize.” track the success of the recycling “Other SAE projects don’t deal on certain days. with the school in general, which The senior said she had a lot of is what makes this project so obstacles to face with this proj- unique... we can use this project ect, but her hardest challenge as an excuse to better the enviwas “finding student monitors ronment and make the world a because people didn’t really want better place.”

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Cry of the Hawk

March 27, 2017

Girls purchase affordable dream dresses for dances:

Modern day fairy godmothers turn high schoolers into Cinderellas HANNAH EYLER Reporter

Cinderella couldn’t attend the royal ball without a proper gown, likewise many high school girls miss out on their event of a lifetime for the same reason. Cinderella’s fairy godmother was by her side, similarly students have the Aberdeen Lions Lioness Club to give them a night to remember.

The Cinderella’s Closet Organization will be sponsored again by the Aberdeen Lions Lioness Club for the seventh year. The foundation allows students who normally wouldn’t be able to attend prom due to costs, show up in their dream dress.

The organization was started in 2010 by three high school seniors striving to achieve their girl scouts gold award. “They had a fashion show and gave dresses away and our club, the lions club, helped them that year as far as trying the dresses on and all that stuff. After that in 2011, we took it on as our project,” comments Aberdeen Li-

ons Lioness Club member, Sandy Pierce. Flyers have been sent to all public high schools in Harford, Baltimore and Cecil County along with many private schools, urging students to come pick out a gown. Each year about 200 girls receive dresses, but plenty of dresses still remain, Pierce estimates they have about 1,000 dresses at the moment waiting to be given away.

Being a mom herself, Pierce understands how expensive prom can be considering the dress, shoes, hair, make-up, and the ticket itself, which can be around $70. “We can help with getting the gown and that’s the biggest hurdle to jump and some girls probably wouldn’t be able to attend prom at all if they didn’t get help with a free dress,” she explains. Some dresses are even brand new, donated by local stores, the others being gently used and only worn one time.

Drop boxes are located throughout the county at different loca-

Envirothon takes victory against rivalry schools

Photo Credit: Jess Carnivale

rent event, problem solving topic.

This year, we got a problem to solve where we had to write a soil and water conservation plan for landowners that were going to be farming an inherMARISSA RAMSLAND ited piece of property.” Solving Op/Ed Editor the difficult challenge was not a one person job; multiple students helped with the success of finding the solution to their problem.

The presentation team included juniors Will Beltran, Aubrey Williams, Ryan O’Leary, Olivia Sheldon and sophomore Will Eakes.

Sheldon, who was responsible for the soil conservation plan shared that the most challengWill Beltran and Ryan O’Leary are ing part about the pictured above taking in the nature. Other whole project was students helped with the presentation inmaking a 15 minute cluding Aubrey Williams, Olivia Sheldon, presentation as deand Will Eakes. tailed as possible.

North Harford’s own En“We found all of the best virothon team successfully management practice for the brought a win back home to farm. We evaluated what kinds the nest at their recent compeof soil the farm had, which is tition. The team had to solve a what allowed us to pick the topic relating to soil and water best management practices conservation. and determine the best crop Adviser Mrs. Laura O’Leary rotation,” explained Sheldon. explained, “There’s this fifth The team also had helping topic and it’s sort of like a curhands backstage from students

tions, some including the hair cuttery at Harford Mall, K&B Bridals on main street in Bel Air, Amanda’s Florist in Havre de Grace, Heart to Heart Hair Studio in Aberdeen, and Happy Hair Salon in Elkton.

Cinderella’s closet is overflowing with dresses, Pierce encourages girls to come out and get a dress. She explains, “even if honestly you know if it’s not a matter of you need, maybe you can afford to go out and buy a 200 dollar dress, but if you don’t need to, come and get a dress.”

All that is asked is that students bring a student ID to prove they’re a high school student then they can receive a dress. At their latest event, girls attended from schools all over Harford, Baltimore, and Cecil County, including Harford Christian, Patterson Mill, Edgewood, Harford Tech, Joppatowne, Perryville, and even some homeschool students. “So we get them from all over the place, coming for a dress,” adds Pierce. and professionals. Junior Alayna Dorbert contributed with helping create posters and junior Andrew Lechner had an worked with the budget of the plan.

With the challenging problem, the team suck out with additional help outside of the team. “We had to have a soil guy come in and help us a little bit and he spent like a half an hour to help us figure out how to do the resel calculation, it was kind of crazy. You wouldn’t think something about soils wouldn’t be so math related,” shared Laura O’Leary.

All of the hard work paid off for the team, who ended up scoring a 93 out of 100, winning first place. “John Carroll used too many slides and gave pamphlets out to the judges and that’s kind of not part of the rules. Harford Christian, who we always want to beat, got third with an 87,” stated adviser. North Harford not only won, but was the only team who achieved a score in the 90s.

Looking ahead, Laura O’Leary believes that her team has a good chance in winning in the next competition on April 11, qualifying them for States, and maybe even Nationals in the future.

The presentation, which was the assessment is only one sixth of the team’s total score.

The team will then be tested on April 11, in soils, forestry, aquatics and wildlife.

The Lions Lioness Club of Aberdeen follows the motto of “giving every girl a chance for a night to remember” in order to fuel their organization. “We don’t want any girls not getting a chance to

go to their prom because you on have one prom. You don’t want to miss that if you don’t have to. If we can help them get a dress so that they can go, that’s what we want to do,” states Pierce.

Cinderella’s Closet helps girls achieve their perfect dream dress without the crazy cost. In past years about 200 girls received dresses.

Photo Credit: Sandy Pierce

Getting ‘sum’ experience AMANDA SCARBORO Features Editor Imagine spending a Saturday from 8am until 10 PM doing nothing but math. On February 25, a group of five senior ladies did exactly that. The participants that competed in the 14hour math challenge were Brooke Moretz, Courtney Klapka, Abigail Brosh, Jessica Douglas, and Emma Foote.

Ms. Christina Fiorentino was one of the teachers in charge of supervising this math challenge, but she was also the teacher that found the special group of girls.

“They (the five girls) happened to be in my calculus class and math honor society, so I was hoping that somebody would do it and these ladies stepped up to the plate,” she explained.

The real name of the challenge is Moody’s Math Challenge, and this year is the first year students from our school have participated in it. “It (the challenge) is something that we’ve gotten in the past but this is actually the first year that North Harford has decided to put together a team and compete... they are five really great and talented students that each had a unique perspective that I think really contributed well to the team. It was a lot of fun,” says Fiorentino.

The problems the girls had to solve for the contest “had to do with solving some environmental problems, very open ended style

questions so there is not a right or wrong answer, it is really just kind of analyzing data and figuring out a solution that the students found that it best fit,” Fiorentino explains.

The hardest part for the girls according to Fiorentino was “since they had not seen the problem yet, you have to dissect and really analyze that problem, and figure out a way to organize your data and then as a team come up with a solution, and that is really, really challenging. For them it took a little bit of time to get started, but once they got the ball rolling, things started to pick up quickly.”

The girls had till 10 pm to finish, and they finished around 9:30 pm.

The team will know their results sometime around the middle of April. If they do win they get “Lots and lots of money, and if they did really well they have a chance to get full rides to colleges, which is a big deal. Most of the time teams win smaller prizes, which would be split among the five of them.’’

The winners and runner ups of the competition also get to take their winning proposals/projects to New York City to share their research with others.

Fiorentino is already looking forward to next year, as she hopes people will compete again.

“I hope I’ll have a team that wants to do it, if there is five people out there that are willing to do it then we will definitely do it, I would like to make it a tradition.”

March 27, 2017

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Cry of the Hawk

Pancakes, pie in the face: FFA week excites students about agriculture HANNAH EYLER Reporter

North Harford’s Agriculture Program, being a unique feature of North Harford is something to celebrate. This year’s annual FFA week kicked off on Tuesday, February 21 with a faculty breakfast in the media center where pancakes and waffles cooked by FFA members for the NH staff.

On Wednesday, they had their general meeting where they discussed upcoming events and recruiting ideas. Thursday and Friday, FFA took the opportunity to display their animals; Sheep, Gracie the cow, and Burt the alpaca were out by the bus loop.

Also on Friday, the annual basket bingo took place along with the pie in the face contest. Throughout the week, all students had the opportunity to place their spare change in a milk jug piggy bank, each one with a different FFA member or teacher’s picture, determining who would win the contest.

Lynne Thomas, sophomore was the lucky winner. “Somewhere over 200 people attended, it was the most successful bingo that we’ve had recently, so it

was good a fundraiser to help us raise money for our chapter,” comments agriculture teacher, Erika Edwards.

Along with all of these events, FFA members participated in Maryland FFA’s spirit week where they could post pictures on Instagram corresponding to the theme of the day.

Even before the beginning of the week, FFA was working hard to promote agriculture in our community. They visited Brightview Assisted Living over the weekend before the week to help the residents with planters. They plan to go back in the spring to install a raised bed vegetable garden.

FFA’s involvement goes way beyond this one week as they attend many competitions and conventions to prove their agricultural knowledge.

Every year they attend regional speaking, an event where members can perform various types of speeches. “I’m participating in agronomy which is like plants, it’s crops, weeds, like farming equipment, like hay judging, all that kind of stuff,” comments FFA president Emily Shiloh.

After regional competitions comes state competitions, then national competitions which is

the highest level to compete at as a FFA member. Last summer, the convention was hosted in Oklahoma and some members were able to attend. “We had a team of members go for nursery landscape, which is like landscaping and knowing all of the plants in landscaping,” explains Shiloh.

The North Harford FFA chapter has roughly 100 members, but nationwide, thousands of students are involved in the organization.

“Our ultimate goal is to have more members but we hope that the members we have now can talk to their friends and say ‘hey this is what I love to do’ it’s and opportunity that everyone should explore,” says Shiloh.

While membership is open to everyone, it is preferred that an agriculture class is taken as well. Shiloh advises anyone who wants to join to “talk to someone who’s already in FFA and see if it would be right for them.”

The agriculture teachers and members main goal by hosting the week

was to educate non-ag students about agriculture and show their involvement at school. “I think a lot of students know that they go to a high school that has animals on their farm, but they don’t really realize the importance of the animals or why we have them there, so we did the educational videos on the announcements to kind of introduce our animals to the school,” explains agriculture teacher, Erika Edwards. She also

hoped to, “show students what we do in the greenhouse and show them how the lettuce that we grow in the greenhouse is in the school lunches.”

Shiloh hopes that “students learned that FFA it isn’t just for farmers, it’s for everyone and that we really like to encourage leadership among our members and that we’re not just farmers, not all tractors and cows, we do other stuff.

Photo Credit: Erika Edwards

Addicted reveals devastating drug effects; Drama II children’s play underway Students, staff, alumni produce realistic show LIRA BARBALATE Reporter

Addicted has been a staple at North Harford for the past four years. Initially written by school psychologist, Ms. Christle Henzel, the show displays the realistic effects and consequences of substance abuse among users and their families.

Out of the many people that auditioned, five North Harford students were given the opportunity to act in the show. Katie Abernethy, Kirsten DiBastiani, Jillian Nooney, Matthew Johnson, and Bethany Birchfield.

These five students are accompanied by two alumni students, and two professional actors hired for the adult roles. The show is performed at North Harford and also at Mt Zion church in Bel Air. Addicted is sponsored by the Office of Drug Control Policy, and has been widely promoted on social media as well as on the radio.

Mrs. Nancy Green considers North Harford very lucky to be able to continue showing Addicted with such talented actors, despite the difficult acting style and memorization over a span of

MARIA KROPKOWSKI IDR Editor

months to prepare. She also hopes to give a conversation starter for students and their parents. “It’s a really great way to talk about a difficult subject. It’s all about education and awareness.”

Henzel, the director of the show, got the inspiration for the

I want the audience to experience the emotional roller coaster of addiction.

-Christle Henzel play after losing her brother to a fatal heroin overdose. Her loss inspired her to give an insight to what addiction looks like for people who don’t know just how bad the epidemic could be.

“I want the audience to experience the emotional roller coaster of addiction, and the devastating impact it leaves behind.” Addicted began as a draft four years ago, around the time when drug-related problems in the county began to grow.

These problems persisted, to lead to an even greater purpose for the show’s continuation.

According to those involved, the show is directed towards anyone and everyone. The show can be a support for recovering addicts, a call to current addicts that struggle without help, and everyone in between. Abernethy believes that “There’s really a story for everyone.”

When it comes to preparing the performance, the acting crew works along with other performers and tech crews for hours out of the week. The actors have remained generally the same through the years. Abernethy, DiBastiani and Nooney all struggle with addiction in their family, just like many students.

Upon hearing about the show, Abernethy immediately knew she wanted to be a part in spreading that message. “I thought it was one of the greatest things in the world, ‘cause nobody was talking about it.”

For Nooney, an aunt that had been struggling with addiction for years has made plans to attend the show. “It’s really important to me.”

The Drama II class has been hard at work perfecting this springs children’s play. The play that has been selected for this year is “Peter Pan”. Sophomores Tanner Russell and Jared Hedrick are co-directing this spring production.

Russell said he is most excited to “bring the play to life in a new way,” and his favorite part so far has been casting people.

The main role of Peter Pan will be shared by junior Samantha Flickinger and sophomore Carly Lindhorst, who will each perform two shows as Peter Pan. The cast is proud to perform the show for three different occasions, North Harford High School, North Harford Elementary, and Fawn Area Elementary in Fawn Grove Pennsylvania.

Flickinger, who not only plays Peter Pan, but Starkey for the other two shows, is most looking forward to “seeing the kids’ faces during the play because it’s Peter Pan.” Co-director Hedrick is most excited for being able to “break the fourth wall a lot and getting really involved with the kids and the

audience. Doing something like Peter Pan gets them really excited and may make them look forward to joining drama.”

Hedrick has enjoyed this process because it means he gets to work with all his classmates and everyone brings a fun and energetic environment to the stage.

Everyone knows Peter Pan is supposed to fly, but the drama department has run into a minor inconvenience since there since students are not allowed to fly in school productions.

While they have yet to come up with a solution for the flying, they will work around it and give their best efforts to make Pan come to life without having him fly.

According to Russell, who other than co-directing, plays the part of one of the lost boys, says, “Everyone in drama feels like family and it’s a very energetic atmosphere.” The students say they are looking forward to having everyone see the results of their hard work and hope the kids really enjoy the performances and are encouraged to join Drama when they are in high school.

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March 27, 2017

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March 27, 2017

Karen Fike, Agent 7233 Harford Road Baltimore, MD 21234 Bus: 410-444-8800 karen@karenfike.com

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March 27, 2017

Cry of t

Pets in t Charlie ‘rams’ his way into Goetz heart

Humphrey’s special pups

EMILY RINACA Reporter

AMANDA SCARBORO Features Editor

Junior Gracie Goetz woke up on Christmas morning with a surprise.

She had been gifted two female goats. An even bigger surprise was waiting for her later. When Goetz got the goats, she did not know one of them was pregnant. She and her family thought the goat was growing normally but just getting a little big. When the baby was born they named him Charlie, because he was born on her Uncle Charlie’s birthday.

Charlie is a male pygmy goat and is full of energy.

Goetz said that one time she was outside taking care of one of her horses, when “all of the sudden Charlie jumped with all four paws on the back of my horse and my horse just stood there calmly Photo credit: Gracie Goetz like it was normal!”

Mrs. Katherine Humphrey is very passionate about her dogs, which include a 13-year-old male German shorthair pointer named Rambo , and a 11-yearold Weimaraner female, named Venus. Humphrey loves these dog breeds because “it was important that we had a dog that was loveable and would run with us and would just be really active. They are just the best.”

Photo credit: Katherine Humphrey Although Humphrey is an admitted dog lover, her husband was not a dog person. “I had to find a dog that my husband liked because he wasn’t a dog person and when we met our first dog (a Weimaraner), we had just finished playing tennis and my husband had sweat on him and my dog licked him to pieces and loved him, so he fell in love with the dog.”

A funny memory that comes to mind when Humphrey thinks of her dogs is “my first dog would chew everything of mine. Nothing of my husband’s, only mine. He would go into the laundry hamper and just take out my clothes, and not my husband’s clothes.”

Breeding Q & A with Erynn Otte

S

C

Compiled by: Andy Miller

What is Anomaly Rabbitry?

“It’s basically just a business selling lionhead rabbits. I started it for my capstone project to study consumer preference for rabbit coat colors.”

What does it take to care for the rabbits when breeding?

“Everyday, sometimes twice a day for those babies, just going out there and make sure they have food. They all have their separate cages and I clean them out once a week. Twice if there’s babies. We just buy giant compressed hay bales, whole bags of Purina rabbit chow and large bags of pine pellet bedding that you would use for horses.”

Photo credits: Erynn Otte

What do you do for the business?

“I just take care of the rabbits. I breed them, I tell her [Erynn’s mom] what colors they are and what genders they and decide prices for the rabbits.”

How do you prepare them for sale?

“When their around eight weeks old, we just brush them up, clip their nails, and then they’re ready to go.”

Why did you choose rabbit breeding as a capstone?

“Rabbits have a really short gestation period. They are only pregnant for 30 days and then they have their babies so it’s easy to do that.”

What exactly are you trying to find out in this capstone?

“I’m breeding lionhead rabbits and their a new breed and there’s only 3 colors of them that you can show in rabbit showings and none of the other colors are permitted. My capstone is trying to prove that consumers prefer the banned colors over the allowed colors to try to prove that we should allow more colors to be shown in that breed.”

Speaking of pets... students sh

Compiled by: Emma Mar

“People who eat food off your plate because that isn’t nice and it’s my food don’t touch it.”

-Seirra Martin, junior

“When you’re working on a group project and someone changes something and they don’t tell you about it.”

-Savannah Six, senior

“When people walk too slow in a hallway and act like they have all the time in the world. I’m in a good mood until I’m almost late to class because of you.”

-Eric Peluso, sophomore

10-11 Features

the Hawk

the Nest

Ascione saddles up

Blishe: A real life duck farmer

KATIE KETTELL Reporter

HANNAH EYLER Reporter

While North Harford is known as the duck farmers, very few students actually farm ducks. However, junior Haley Blishe has been raising two ducks for a little over a year now.

“They’re names are Cheese and Quackers,” said Blishe, “And they are cross breeds.” Blishe’s father, Shaun Blishe, brought them home one day as a surprise. “My dad just came home one day with them and said “here’s some ducks.” I was so excited,” Blishe stated.

With her dad picking them up from Tractor Supply, it was a great surprise for Haley, her sister, and her mom. “We all love them, they’re a part of our family,” Blishe said. Despite being usually wild animals, they behave just like any normal pet. “They run around the yard and play in the inflatable pool we fill up for them.” Blishe said, “They love playing in the water.”

Cheese and Quackers started off taking up residence in the Blishe home bathtub, but as they grew bigger, they needed a better place to go. “We picked up a big chicken coop, and built that for them to live in. It was just like a mini house,” stated Blishe. “They’re really good ducks,” said Blishe, “they’re really well Photo credit: Haley Blishe behaved and super loveable”.

Junior Oriana Ascione owns two horses, Zazu who is a Chincoteague pony, and Corona an American quarter horse.

Ascione’s horses aren’t just pets as she competes in barrel racing and other games with them. She primarily races Zazu as Corona is too young and still needs more training.

“I’m going to take him (CoPhoto credit: rona) to college with me and comNakiska Papenfuss pete in intercollegiate rodeo association, so I’m in the process of training him,” explains Ascione.

Although the horses train hard to compete well, they still know how to have fun. “The pony is always trying to kiss everybody because he thinks he gets treats,” says Ascione.

The chincoteague pony, Zazu, may be 5 years old, but Ascione claims that he still acts like a baby. He’s very nibbly and he likes to bite everyone”.

Students explain their strange encounters with animals

Compiled by: Natalie Beyer

“So I was like ten, it was in the summer and as I was coming out of an exhibit, I literally was chased by ten peacocks. They didn’t stop and then I stopped running and they like climbed all over me.”

-Joy Yoor, freshman

“A dog bit me because I had a spongebob shirt on. The owner said it was because he (the dog) hated spongebob.”

-Savannah Dieter, sophomore

“Once, I got pinned to the ground by a cow, and my dad had to come and save me. I almost died, but I lived to tell the story. It also happened with a sheep, but I was able to save myself. I also almost got pulled off a boat by a tuna fish.”

-Brooke Rickey, junior

“One time I had a hamster that would escape its cage so I named it Houdini. Then one time it got out and I lost it.

Never saw that little furball ever again.”

-Meghan Bundick, sophomore

hare their biggest pet peeves

rley

o t e n m s

“When you’re in a conversation with someone and all of a sudden they change the topic and completely ignore what you’re talking about.”

-Aerionna Long, junior

“When someone assumes your sexuality based on the way you dress, they’re jumping to conclusions and it’s not right.”

-Jacob Thompson, sophomore

“When people chew with their mouth open because I find it really disgusting and I don’t need to see your food.”

-Olivia Davis, junior

Page 12- Entertainment

Cry of the Hawk

March 27, 2017

In the spotlight: Addicted performed on main stage Drama participates in Netfest;

KIERNAN FURNESS BETHANY BIRCHFIELD News Editors

On February 17 and 18, drama students from around the county came together at Bel Air High School to watch, critique, and learn together at the 10th annual North Eastern Theatre Festival, also referred to as Netfest.

North Harford has participated in this event since its very first year, and 2017 was no exception. Some of the students who attended were seniors Kirsten DiBastiani and Katy Abernethy, junior Jocee Sevilla, sophomore Alyssa Marks, and freshman Dylan Kapustensky.

Netfest consists of various workshops, main stage plays, vocal, monologue, dancing, and scene adjudication, as well as a variety of other events.

DiBastiani explains “They have workshops for vocals if you want to do singing there, they have some more serious ones with acting, like really developing characters, they have some for behind the scenes too,

if you want to do tech. And if you’re more into makeup and costuming they have airbrushing and hair styling ones.”

Netfest also provides dancing workshops and competitions for the attendees.

Sevilla went to the event for two days and also participated in a dancing competition.

She explained, “I took three dance workshops and then I also did a dance competition, and the judges really liked my number!

They didn’t really have any bad things to say. I danced to Invincible by Kelly Clarkson. I really liked the song so then I just started improvising and that’s how I choreographed it!” Sevilla recommended Netfest to students because it’s a great opportunity.

Kapustensky attended the festival on Friday only, and the freshman commented, “I did basic stage combat and theatre

games... I learned in basic stage combat how to punch and make it look real, but not actually hurt the person.”

His favorite part “was seeing all the schools perform,” and one of

think everyone really really liked it, I know we got almost all superior ratings.”

The senior followed by sharing, “there were so many people crying afterwards, some people even had to get up and leave so it was really great to see that what we’re doing actually matters.”

The audience filled out critique forms, and one even raved: “It was heartbreakingly amazing.”

Abernethy also performed in Addicted, playing the role of Dan’s Mother.

She states that performing on the main stage was different than she thought it would be, “It was much more difficult than I had anticipated because of the fact that there were no microphones and we had a different tech crew, so it wasn’t what we were used to.”

DiBastiani went to both days

“...It taught me how to go deeper in myself than I thought I would, and it makes you more comfortable around strangers” -Kirsten DiBastiani those schools was North Harford with Addicted, by The Nest’s very own Christle Henzel, the school’s psychologist.

DiBastiani, who plays the role of Becky in Addicted, claims “It was all really good, I don’t know I

of the festival and out of all the workshops her favorite “was the vulnerability one. When I did that workshop it was actually really amazing. I got to cry in a room full of strangers, I liked it because like it taught me how to go deeper in myself than I thought I would, and it makes you more comfortable around strangers.”

After participating in such diverse events, both Kapustensky and DiBastiani agree they would recommend Netfest to their peers.

“I’d recommend Netfest because it gets you out of your comfort zone and teaches you new things,” Kapustensky explains.

Many students have reported that participating in Netfest improved their performing skills as actors, actresses, directors, and tech crew.

DiBastiani adds, “It’s just so much fun and you get to meet all these people who are actors like you and who have the same passion as you.”

National Art Honor Society spreads

kindness through “random acts of art” KATIE KETTELL Reporter Photo credit: Kathryn Humphrey

The National Art Honor Society, lead by Mrs. Kathryn Humphrey, participated in a project entitled “The Kindness Rocks Project”, the brainchild of Megan Murphy, a parent coach and freelance writer. The idea is to write encouraging and thoughtful things on rocks and drop them wherever you like, allowing strangers to stumble upon them.

The Kindness Rocks Project started with Murphy dropping just a few rocks at a time. But after receiving thankful messages from people and strangers who found them, Murphy stepped up her rock painting in order to spread even more motivation to those who need it.

The idea is to spread kindness and inspire others through “randomly placed rocks along the way.” Humphrey knew this was just the project for NAHS. “The idea of “random acts of art” has been something we have wanted to do for a few years. I thought this would be a great way for NAHS to combine our random acts of art with a project that is already in existence,” stated Humphrey.

NAHS hopes that people who receive a rock will make one and pass it to another person, making a chain reaction of kindness. “If you receive a rock, we ask that you pay it forward and make a rock and share it with someone else,” Humphrey said.

But Humphrey and NAHS isn’t thinking small when it comes to spreading this project. “Eventually, we would like to leave the rocks in our community for people to discover and hopefully continue the project outside of NAHS,” said Humphrey.

March 27, 2017

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Cry of the Hawk

Student Spotlight Ford sings in noteworthy choir Applying, auditioning, committing; MARISSA RAMSLAND Op/Ed Editor

For eight years, Alex Ford has been singing with the Maryland State Boy Choir, traveling from Chicago and Texas to Bermuda and Costa Rica. The Maryland State Boy Choir is an organization founded in 1987, growing from 17 boys to now 150 -170 members. The choir is divided into multiple groups, including the treble choir, concert choir, young men’s chorus, and tour choir. The choirs range in style who ranges from singing folk songs to pieces from the renaissance era and everything in between.

Ford has made a name for himself in the group, taking the position as head chorister, which is the head student leader of the entire organization. As head chorister, Ford provides guidance in musical aspects or life challenges for the younger boy members.

“My job is to assist the directors and proctors and any interns in what they might need in doing. I have to go to every single event for the choir [which is] very, very often,” explained Ford.

The schedule extends to four or five days a week in assisting the choir, compared to an only one day a week schedule when he was deputy head chorister.

The big position comes with many challenges Ford has to entail. “Every Wednesday, I have to help the treble choir and while I’m there, they don’t know me that well since I’m not in their choir. Every week, I try to discipline and help them sing and learn. When I discipline them, they look at me in a bad way, but when I motivate them in a good way they appreciate it. You have to have a balance of being strict and the good guy,” stated head chorister.

The choir has helped Ford not only grow musically, but grow as a person as well. “When I first started the choir, I was kind of an outlier and shy. I wanted to

quit when I was younger because [my] schedule and I didn’t really feel accepted, but I just got more comfortable and we [choir members] all became friends and it just grew and grew and grew,” Ford shared. The choir has taught him how to read music and sing better, discipline himself, and change as a person.

The hardest challenge for Ford is keeping the drive in the group. Ford shares, “As you get older, you have more things to do and less time and you don’t have as much motivation. The hardest challenge for me is keep an upbeat attitude and keep going because if you keep going, your world just changes.”

Despite the difficulties, Ford has travelled and experienced many places that are not only around the state, but the country and parts of the world. Ford believes the fondest memory for most members is their summer camp.

The camp occurs once a year in late June for a week. “We’ve been to Gettysburg College, Dickinson College, McDaniel and St. Mary’s College. The reason why it’s so memorable is because we sing, we have a great time, we watch movies, we play games, and electives. Some electives could be leather crafts or garage band. In between we rehearse three times a day and it’s a great experience,” Ford described. However, his personal favorite memory was when the choir went on a cruise to Bermuda when he was 13.

Ford appreciates his choir greatly for the bond that everyone holds. The choir is not just boys who like to sing, but more like a family, or as Ford explained, a ‘brotherhood.’ “It doesn’t matter if you’re in the youngest choir of six year olds to the oldest guys of 21. We always back each other up. These guys can change the world because we have blacks, whites, Asians, every type of ethnicity that comes together just for the love of music.”

Two Hawk’s journeys to college KIERNAN FURNESS News Editor College applications are hard enough without the stress of worrying about rejection from a specific program or major. Despite this, seniors Marissa Ramsland and Kirsten DiBastiani took a chance and auditioned for music programs at their colleges.

Ramsland, on the other hand, auditioned as a band student so her experience was a little different. “If I went to Towson I would only minor in music, so it wasn’t like I had a music ed interview or anything like that... Basically, I got there and registered and we had like an introduction to the music department at Towson ran by the faculty and music students so that was really nice. The audition itself was like any other audition, there were three professors (the flute professor and the clarinet and bassoon professor) and I performed my selections and they asked me several questions regarding why I want to minor in music.”

The flutist auditioned at both Towson University and Susquehanna University and explained “Susquehanna was more rigorous I guess because I had to perform two contrasting selections. I did Faure’s Fantasie again and Bach’s sixth sonata, an oral assessment, theory assessment, keyboard placement and musicianship assessment.

They also gave me a schedule before my audition day about when each of my assessments and placements were so I really liked how organized they were

with that.”

“At the oral assessment, I had to do melodic sight reading and find pitches and intervals and that was pretty rough because I never had any vocal training so I was kind of guessing my way through everything. In the musicianship assessment, they played two melodies and you had to say whether the second melody was the same as the first or different and you had to specify whether

prepare but if you suck at sight reading a college might think of that as like you can’t keep up.

But some colleges are really fast paced and they have a concert every two or three weeks, so if you mess up because you’re nervous in sight reading or something they might look at you and move along.”

Ramsland claims what made her most nervous was “definitely all of the assessments I had to do at my Susquehanna audition. I practically had to sight read multiple excerpts and identify vocal intervals and stuff and I never learned any of those things so I was really unprepared.

“I just had to take so many assessments at Susquehanna and most of them in topics I’ve never learned or taken classes or lessons in which made me uncomfortable, but I did pretty decent under the circumstances.”

DiBastiani auditioned at UMBC and Towson, as for results “from UMBC I got accepted, I actually got that last week.”

DiBastiani was unsure of her status at Towson at the time of this interview, however she has recently been informed that she was accepted into the music program at Towson, and that is where she is now committed to go.

Ramsland also received great news, “I just received my acceptance to Towson’s music department this past weekend which is pretty exciting, and I just got accepted to Susquehanna’s department as well and even got a scholarship.”

“As for my actual performance with my flute, it was the same as Towson, I had multiple professors judicating me and they asked me questions like my plans after high school and why I’m going into the BA and stuff like that.”

-Marissa Ramsland the difference was rhythm or a pitch difference. As for my actual performance with my flute, it was the same as Towson, I had multiple professors judicating me and they asked me questions like my plans after high school and why I’m going into the BA and stuff like that.”

According to DiBastiani, what’s most nerve racking is “sight reading because sight reading is really hard. It’s the one thing you don’t know and you can prepare and prepare and

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March 27, 2017

Cry of the Hawk

Students test, bust age-old MYTHsteries Can you cook an egg with the sun?

Is yawning contagious?

EMILY MILLER Video Manager

KIERNAN FURNESS News Editor

Whether you’re running on two hours of sleep or bored out of your mind during class, yawning fits can take over anybody at any time.

The myth we tested was if yawning truly is contagious. Juniors Bethany Birchfield, Maria Kropkowski, and I attempted to bust this myth.

Our test involved watching a video that challenged viewers to try to make it through the entire video without yawning. The video included video after video of yawning animals. A couple seconds into the video Birchfield was yawning uncontrollably.

Since Birchfield began not long after I joined in. Kropkowski managed to beat the video. It’s now five minutes after watching the video and Birchfield and I are still yawning our brains out.

This myth was not busted. After doing a little research about contagious yawning, I found there is a scientific basis for this phenomenon. According to psyhcologytoday.com, pictures and sounds of yawning can trigger your brain. Scientists have concluded that if we learn more about what causes the brain to yawn we can discover more about autism and schizophrenia.

Although it is February and typically not the warmest month of the year here in Maryland, senior Emily Drapinski and I were challenged to answer the question: is it possible to cook an egg on the pavement?

Luckily, the weather has been reaching abnormal highs for this time of year so on Friday, February 24, at two PM when the temperatures were around 60 degrees we conducted the experiment. To begin, we took an egg straight from the fridge to outside and cracked it open onto a makeshift bowl of foil we created. We’d done our research and foil is a thermal conductor, which makes it the perfect surface to protect the driveway pavement, while simultaneously aid in cooking the egg.

We waited for an hour, leaving the egg in direct sunlight and watching it closely- however no cooking took place. At this point, we referred back to the internet. Wonderopolis.org informed us that a magnifying glass could increase the sun’s rays and heat, directly focusing them on the egg. Determined, we tried using a magnifying glass for the next hour. By now it was four pm and the egg was still cold to the touch, we decided to leave for a little and hope the egg would be cooked when we returned. An hour later, we came back and found our egg scrambled- but not cooked.

Unfortunately, Mrs. Drapinski had unknowingly run over our experiment with her car. Although this could have altered the results, we feel it is safe to say that our egg did not and would not successfully cook on the driveway. However, admittedly, February is not the time to try and cook an egg outside, considering eggs must be at least 144 degrees to fry and the weather was, at most, 62 degrees the day of our experiment.

In conclusion: although cooking an egg outside may not be impossible, it will only work on extremely hot

Can you teach an old dog new tricks?

Does sugar make kids hyper?

LIRA BARBALATE Reporter

MARIA KROPKOWSKI IDR Editor

It’s an old myth, but has the truth ever been revealed?

Can you teach an old dog a new trick?

Mythbusters, a popular television series, created an episode featuring some older canines and used the tasty treat method to ‘condition’ the dog into learning. Parading them through a series of talents that are traditional to most dogs, they both got high scores and passed the trick test. Now, it’s hard to bust a myth based on just two dogs, but there is scientific back-up to the process. Teaching dogs new tricks is all about the brain, and changing it accordingly. One of the most common processes is conditioning. This could include presenting a treat at the sound of a bell, a bark, a tune, etc. to give them positive reinforcement.

In the Myth busters episode, the dogs were given commands and a treat if they completed them. The verbal command they heard let them know that they would be given a treat, so they continue to react in the same manner, even if a treat is not in sight.The fact that older dogs have a better attention span than puppies can also help, despite the fact that puppies’ minds are easily imprintable. Just like the Myth busters episode, this myth has been proven to be busted.

It is a common belief that kids go crazy when consuming sugar. But how true is it really?

Through research and experimentation, I set out to find the answer. Using the same person and the same materials, I tried to find out if increased amounts of sugar, cause kids to be increasingly hyperactive. Every day, for three days straight at 6:00 PM, I gave her 1 ½ cups of lemonlime Gatorade. On the first day, I gave her just the Gatorade by itself and there was no change in her behavior. The second day, I gave her the same amount of Gatorade, with a teaspoon of sugar mixed it. This time, there was also no great change in her behavior.

On the third day she was given the 1 ½ cups of Gatorade, with 2 teaspoons of sugar. After she consumed the drink, she was slightly more hyper, however this may have been because it was after school and she had been keeping her energy in all day.

According to numerous studies, sugar does not make kids hyperactive. Studies done by Yale University, University of Kentucky, and University of Iowa tested the theory with sucrose, aspartame, and saccharin. All studies found that the sugar had no real effect on the children’s behavior. In 1982, the National Institute of Health declared that scientifically, there is no link between sugar and hyperactivity.

Can balloons make a chair fly?

EMILY RINACA & HANNAH EYLER Reporters As this experiment would cost a lot of money, we were not able to test it ourselves. Instead, we did some research to see if it worked for other people. A man named Larry Walters tested the myth and concluded that it worked, but took a lot of effort.

On July 2, 1982, Walters tied 42 helium-filled balloons to a lawn chair and was shot into the LA sky at over 1,000 feet per minute. With him, he had food, water and a BB gun so that when it was time, he could shoot some of the balloons and begin his descent. During the flight, Larry encountered some slight complications when he dropped the gun, but ended up in Long Beach, Ca, in a neighborhood tangled up in power lines.

Today Larry said, “I didn’t think that by fulfilling my goal in life -- my dream -- that would create such a stir,” he later told The Times, “and make people laugh.”

Can arms float after pushing them against a doorway?

ANDY MILLER Reporter This myth involves nothing but your arms and a door. If someone pushed their arms against the sides of the door frame for 30 seconds, their arms should float upwards from their sides. Scientist refer to it as the Kohnstamm effect. (A sustained involuntary contraction of a muscle after a prolonged voluntary contraction). The myth is indeed true. After the reporter place his arms in the doorway for 30 seconds, they did rise involuntarily.

Can you pull a table cloth off of a fully set table?

JESSICA CARNIVALE Sports Editor You’ve seen it in movies but is it video editing or is it real?

We’re talking about the classic tablecloth bit. Is it really possible to for someone to pull off a table cloth without moving anything on the table? We wanted to find out, so the journalism staff gave it a try.

We set up a table with a tablecloth, cups, and plates. To create a more realistic dinner setting, we put weights on the plates and inside the cups. Once the cloth was pulled from the table, the plates came off the table and the cups spilled. Where did we go wrong?

Our first mistake could have been the type of table cloth. We used a cotton cloth when a shinny slick cloth is recommended.

The next problem was the pulling technique. Instead of pulling up then down it, must be quickly pulled straight down. The last hiccup was the type of china we used. For positive results, consider using heavy plates and silverware.

Even though we busted the myth, it is possible under the right circumstances.

March 27, 2017

Advanced Journalism students had the chance to spend time uncovering what happens with key behind-the-scenes people at The Nest. Take a peek into a day in the life of these super stars.

Secretary shows kindness KYLE RUSSELL SCC Editor We have four amazing secretaries in the building, Mrs. Byrd-Grimmel, who deals with discipline, Mrs. Torbert, who does the weekly bulletin for the staff and keeps everyone on the same page, Mrs. Harmon, who deals with attendance and signing students in and out of school, and Mrs. Iddings, who deals with just about everything.

In one day Grimmel not only handles the discipline issues that are sent to the office, she is also tries to be a big help to her co-workers and students. She gets supplies for teachers, helps kids sign in when they are late, addresses things that deal with maintenance, provides Edline

activation codes, and admits people into the building.

With regard to discipline, Grimmel has a lot of responsibilities which include filing the referrals, sending letters home to

the families and monitoring the people when they come into the office. More importantly Grimmel adds that she “tries as hard as she can to make their day just a little better.” She believes in this motto: “They are already coming to the office to be disciplined so I try to be as friendly as I can with them because I think everyone needs a friendly face every once in awhile and if you are nice to them they will be nice to you.”

Some people may think that being a secretary is boring or tiresome, but Grimmel would argue “It’s not” and admits she loves her job. She loves to make jokes with all of the staff at The Nest and tries to be the sunshine on a cloudy day.

Henzel helps students through hard times BETHANY BIRCHFIELD News Editor

Page 15- SSC

Cry of the Hawk

School psychologist Christle Henzel is a very busy lady. Her day consists of attending meetings where student’s needs are discussed, and problem solving to figure out how they can help the student to the best of their abilities.

Henzel also does crisis counseling, which is done so that a student who has experienced a crisis will decrease their chance of having any long term psychological trauma.

In relation to crisis counseling, Henzel must help teachers and staff understand and learn about

a child’s needs and disabilities in order to help the student excel as much as possible within the school’s limits.

The psychologist also does suicide assessments as well.

Henzel explains, “If someone tells me that they’re going to harm themselves then I have to make sure that they’re safe and I do an assessment. I do risk assessments which are basically if someone’s making a threat towards the school or somebody else, then I have to do a whole assessment process to determine the level of risk and make sure everyone is safe.”

Janitors reveal duties LIRA BARBALATE Reporter Building engineer Kevin McGibney is the head of the team of people responsible for much of what goes on to keep the Hawks Nest functioning daily. This includes starting off his day with unlocking the building, having his staff tour the school to check that mechanical systems are up to par, including lights, plumbing, and more.

But if these systems are ever operating poorly or not at all, McGibney and his custodial staff do their best to make repairs. If the issue isn’t fixed completely after being tended to, a work order is made to have the facilities’ crews come to have a look. Even still, some jobs require an outside contractor.

As you’d expect, these staff members maintain cleanliness around the school, inside and outside. Whether it be bathrooms, lawn, fields, hallways, classrooms, etc., they take care of it. The only areas not tended to by them are the SWAMP ponds and wetlands around campus.

In the snowier months, janitors are tasked to remove snow from walkways and steps around the school for students and teachers.

You may see custodians in and out of the cafeteria during lunchtime as well. They man the area, maintaining a clean environment (or as close as they can get to one with so many students). Between each lunch rotation, they fix up the area for the new groups of students.

Outside of the school, the staff takes care of traffic cones, bus duty, deliveries, and much more.

A word of advice in McGibney’s experience, “The one thing you learn early on is no day ever plays out the way you try and plan it.”

Details on Deputy’s duties; Sounding the siren for students SAMANTHA STELTZER Production Manager Deputy Eric Blottenberger is out and about, making sure students and staff at North Harford are safe. As soon as he arrives, Blottenberger touches base with the administration to see if there are any problems. Since “any day is not a normal day,” he must be prepared for anything thrown his way.

After this initial check in, students may have some trouble finding Blottenberger as he monitors what is going on around school by talking with the staff and students, varying his location as he goes.

The randomness of his locations is a common theme as he believes that randomness is a “good deterrent...such as any fights.”

Blottenberger thinks that being in hallways and striking up conversations let students see him as more approachable and help them “learn me as a person and to get to know me as an individual.”

Getting to know people and “putting people at ease” is a lot of what the deputy does and he says he “finds [it] enjoyable. That’s one of the best things about this job - nothing on my plate in the beginning [of the day] and I get to circulate.”

When students are in classes, Blottenberger turns in “reports to the sheriff’s office” to “stay on top of things” and to “clear the desk

off in case any problems arise.”

Blottenberger does leave the school at times “if patrol deputies need me” or if “I need to drop off papers at the Jarrettsville precinct. My own initiative to do and go out lets me make a good rapport with other deputies and my coworkers.”

Being at North Harford has been a change for Blottenberger, as it serves “a huge area” and there are more accidents to prevent with more student drivers instead of “my other school’s where there were a lot of walkers. Football games [here] are larger than other schools so I manage more traffic at the games.”

“Communication is key,” Blottenberger affirms, which is why he always makes sure he has not only his police radio but his school radio with him so that he can check in not only with the high school but with the elementary and middle as well.

Nursing students back to health

EMILY MILLER Video Manager

Before taking on the position at North Harford, Mrs. Joanne Dorsey, school nurse, worked as clinical nurse and as a school nurse in a career that has already spanned 40 years.

Dorsey’s normal day begins by arriving at school first thing in the morning and picking up her mail that consists of doctor’s notes and other medical information. Being a nurse goes beyond consultations with students throughout the day.

She keeps a list of all injuries in the school, which is a very, very long list. Dorsey’s job also includes keeping track of students when they are not at school.

Before any field trip, Dorsey checks every attending student’s medical records to inform and supply the teacher with either an inhaler or medication to ensure the student’s safety on and off campus. Contacting doctors to follow up with students is a daily routine in Dorsey’s day.

Even though Dorsey is a nurse, she still does her share of teaching. Dorsey teaches students about health as well as instructing athletic trainers and making sure all athletes have their proper medication. She really enjoys talking to students, but her favorite moments are times when she helps a student understand more about their illness.

As a nurse, you’re exposed to all the sickness the school has to offer. She still takes home the sore throats and aches, but has built up an immunity over the years. When asked about students who come to the nurse looking for a ticket home, she says she can tell when a person is truly not feeling well and for those who continue to come in are nicknamed, “frequent flyers.”

Dorsey says she has had to learn how to be patient with others. Sometimes people are grouchy and cranky and don’t feel good, but Dorsey says she continues to attempt to make the students feel comfortable and to treat them with care.

Cry of the Hawk

Page 16 - IDR

March 27, 2017

Head, shoulders, knees, and toes Students at NH were polled to find the average type of certain traits.

Compiled by: Marissa Ramsland

155 students polled

Birth marks are dominant traits Compiled by: Emily Rinaca

Tongue rolling is a dominant trait Tongue rolling is partially genetic. If you inherited one or two copies of the dominant tongue rolling gene from your parents, then you would be able to roll your tongue.

A permanent mark on the skin which is usually present at birth or several weeks after. Vascular birthmarks are resulted in increased blood vessels in an affected area. Pigmented birthmarks are a result of excess skin pigment cells in affected area. Many dermatologists believe birthmarks are hereditary or caused by an imbalance in factors controlling development and migration of skin cells.

Compiled by: Samantha Steltzer

Compiled by: Darby Hyde Polled: 110 students

Having double jointed, or hypermobile joints, means that your joints are able to extend easily and painlessly beyond the normal range of motion. This trait is recessive. It can be caused by bone shape or the depth of the joint sockets, muscle tone or strength, a poor sense of proprioception, which is the ability to sense how far you’re stretching, or a family history of hypermobility.

Sources: Tongue: childrensmuseum.org

Birthmark: www.treatcure.com

Hair: ehow.com

Double Jointed: www.livescience.com Height: education.vic.gov, disabled-world.com Belly buttons: blogs.webmd.com Eyes: www.littlethings.com Earlobes: www.udel.edu

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Cry of the Hawk

March 27, 2017

Average Height

Compiled by: Natalie Beyer

: 8 1 3 1 : 8 d 1 e 3 g 1 emales a e: 63.2 inc hes Males aged 9.3 inc hes F :6 ag e r g e a v r A e v l A a l n s a o n e i h t c a n s i N e Natio h 5 c n 6 i : 7 69. age r : e e v g a A r e S v A H S H N NHH

E ye C o lo r

Compiled by: Amanda Scarboro

Many folks wonder how they ended up with one or the other type of belly button. Is it genetics? Does it depend on how your umbilical cord is cut at birth? Turns out that it is just depends on the amount of space there is at birth between the skin and the abdominal wall. If baby has more skin than space, he will develop the rarer “outie.�

If you have blue eyes, you most likely have great inner strength and physical strength, people sometimes judge you before they get the chance to know you. People with Hazel eyes are said to be independent and confident. The study says that people with brown eyes are agreeable, assertive, and reliable. They also tend to be loyal, gentle and respectful. Green-eyed people tend to be seen as alluring, attractive, and mysterious, and tend be creative and handle pressure well.

Compiled by: Maria Kropkowski

Compiled by: Darby Hyde

March 27,2017

Cry of the Hawk

Page 18 -Sports

Cry of the Hawk

March 27, 2017

Page 19 -Sports

Senior shoots, scores, succeeds Alumnus causes racket BRETT FRIEDEL Sports Editor

Senior Alan Lackey loves playing basketball, and he has been by the North Harford’s basketball team’s side for four years.

At the end of the 2017 season, Lackey reflected on his experiences and said that the highlight of his high school career was starting in his first ever varsity game. “[It] was awesome, especially with the whole crowd there and it just was so much fun,” said Lackey.

Lackey really wanted to add that he was really excited about his first game because he “got to start against Perry Hall Christian and not only did I start, but I went out there with a lot of energy.”

Lackey’s energy was evident as soon as the game began. “ As soon as that ball was tipped off I was so excited, I even got down the court and scored the first two points of the game.” Lackey continued, “I was even more pumped up because my cousin plays basketball and I have always looked up to him, now I scored my first ever varsity basket while he was in the stands watching me.”

After an admittedly difficult season last year, Coach Jeff

Burrows was a lot more satisfied with this year’s season. He added, “Teams are getting very tough and athletes are getting very skilled.” Senior Jeremy Wilcox added, “ I have been on the team for three years and I think our team definitely works as a whole lot more this year. We had good players last year, we just didn’t perform together as much as we should have.”

All those hard practices, running and sweat made the year difficult for all the athletes but Lackey said it was all worth it. “I ended off this year’s season very happy” stated Lackey.

Soon the seniors will be leaving the nest and will have to say goodbye. Even with the departure of the senior big things are expected from the team next season

The seniors finish strong after a long season. After a few years of playing together the boys have created great memories and long lasting friendships. Photo Credit-Jake Helevicz Pictured (left to right)- Coach Jeffery Burrows, Tommy Holmes, Wyatt Ortman, Sam Cornelius, Jeremy Wilcox, Zach Helewicz, Thomas Dolinar, Alan Lackey, Coach Bill Taylor

Ball rolling in student bowling, Students strike their way to success JESSICA CARNIVALE Sports Editor

ate and fun to be around. Practices were full of smiles EveryCompassion and smiles. These one encouraged each other to were words used to describe do well and have a good time!” the Special Education bowlThe bowling team practiced ing team here at North Harford. twice a week and participatVolunteer Abby Renzulli stated, ed in multiple tournaments.

“I really loved participating on The team include most of the the bowling team! The students special education staff, student on the team are so compassion- volunteers, and approximately 25 bowlers. The tournament against other schools took place at Forest Hill Lanes but the students practiced in the hallways of North Harford.

Junior Julia Cameron stated that her role as a volunteer was to “make sure everyone was being safe and assist with helping people who needed it.” She enjoys Photo Supplied by Special Ed department the program

because it gives her an oppertunity she typically would not get at another school and allows her to interact with great people.

A similar answer was giving

by Renzulli who claimed that her roles “was to help out keeping everything in order and to be a friend.”

Being involved in this activity was not only beneficial to the special education department but also helpful for the volunteers. Cameron stated, “it was so much fun, and I am looking forward to it next year. I learned that I really enjoy helping people succeed in activities!

That way, it’s fun for everyone.”

Renzulli also stated, “overall I learned that you can make a friend anywhere in our school. If you smile and are kind to someone you can make their day.”

Not only did the volenteers enjoy participation but The student chared their expierence. “It was fun it was pretty cool we didnt win but we had a lot of fun” stated Senior Lauren Showalter.

The bowling went very well and big thing are expected for the team next year.

teaching tennis team NATALIE BEYER Reporter

regional leagues (Baltimore Tennis Patrons) and have visited international tennis tournaments such as Wimbledon, the French Open, and the US Open, but I’ve never forgotten the excitement of playing for North Harford. And so I’m very happy to be welcomed back into this community.”

In terms of the North Harford tennis team, who has had much success in the past years, Chalk intends on “enhancing” the success of the team by “improving physical stamina and mental toughness”. With the help of Coach Feight-Edmonds and Coach Six, Chalk plans on helping each member of the team reach a higher level whether it be

With the beginning of new seasons comes the beginning of new coaching careers. This year the tennis team has gained a North Harford alumni Kevin Chalk.

Chalk, a graduate of 2009, was a member of the Cry of the Hawk staff and was also a top tennis player for the Hawks in his sophomore, junior, and senior years of high school. He then went on major in English for two years at Towson.

Chalk was able to see an improvement in his skills and began to realize just how competitive the overall tennis world was. “In high school, it was difficult to realize just how much dedication and work it takes to be a top I also would suggest never belevel tennis athlete, ing satisfied or overconfident but in college, I was more exposed in your own skills; always to different players challenge yourself to be better and tournaments, and constantly question why. and that really enlightened me as to -Kevin Chalk who/what else was out there,” stated the alumnus.

After his two years at their first year or last. He says, Towson, Chalk went on to “I want to focus on improving focus on being a Writing our competitiveness and techSeminars major at Johns Hop- nique in general.” He wants to kins University and tempo- help better prepare players for rarily put down the racket. the end of the season county Chalk found himself in and regional tournaments.

As a message for high publishing, but soon realized that he wanted a job more “ac- school athletes in general, he tive and meaningful and more believes that they need to step closely aligned with interests”. back and realize how in charge He was soon after offered of their own situation they are. a varsity tennis coaching po- If players want to reach the sition at Oldfields School next level, the former athletes in Baltimore County where believes that they should be he realized that he enjoyed able to listen and work with the watching his players be coaches and focus on finding able to overcome challenges routines and working on atand learn new techniques. titudes to benefit themselves.

“I also would suggest never The new coach said he being satisfied or overconfidecided to take a career path dent in your own skills; always in education and is now challenge yourself to be better studying to become a Secand constantly question why.” ondary Education English Chalk also explains that teacher. As he awaits the the opportunity of playing start of his program in the high school sports may only summer, Chalk has brought happen once in a student’s his skills and knowledge lifetime, and though the exback to the nest to help asperience might seem chaotic sist in coaching this season. with academics and other Chalk says, “I have great distractions, after four years memories of playing tennis at student athletes may realize North Harford, I have loved that the experience was “more the sport of tennis ever since fun and consequential than I started playing when I was you recognized at the time.” nine years old. I’ve played in

March 27, 2017

Cry of the Hawk

Boys lacrosse

KATIE KETTELL Reporter

North Harford boys laThe strength of our crosse was back in action at the team is defense, and beginning of March, being led by coaches Mr. Nate Lucky and our season will be Mr. Brady Green. dependent on if we Though the squad lost mulcan score goals or not. tiple seniors at the end of the 2016 spring season, Green and ~Brady Green Lucky aren’t phased. “There’s a couple of seniors we will miss offensively. We have such a nice group of defense it will make up for it,” said Green.

Junior Garrett Thomas believes certain stand out player will really help make a difference on the team this upcoming season.

“Thomas Dolinar is a fantastic shooter and can rip some G’s [goals],” Thomas said. Green is betting on a veteran player as well to lead the team to victory. “ Stephen Goedeke for sure. He was the MVP last year and he’s playing a more offensive role this year which is new for him, a lot of our success will depend on him,” said Green.

Softball MARISSA RAMSLAND OP/ED Editor

Our goal is to bond as a team, have a lot of fun and win some games. We need to practice a lot and have lots of team bonding experiences. ~Katie Larkin

Coach Kim Iddings’ biggest goal for this upcoming season is to go to States, by making sure the team continuously practices. “I want to make sure we practice as we play and play as we practice,” shared Iddings.

Senior Ada Heinze, however wants to bond as a team and is looking forward to the experience throughout the season. “I’m looking forward to bonding with my teammates and just have fun playing relaxed my senior year,” said Heinze. Senior Katie Larkin agrees with Heinze, wanting a similar senior year of the softball season softball. “Our goal is to bond as a team, have a lot of fun and win some games. We need to practice a lot and have lots of team bonding experiences.” Larkin continues, “I’m excited to meet everyone, getting along with everyone, making new friends and having fun playing softball.”

The biggest difference between this season of softball compared to last year is the fact there are three new coaches. Iddings explained, “We have three new coaches this year and I think three new coaches getting to know 15 new girls in varsity will be our biggest challenge.”

Larkin believes the new set of coaches will bring positive change to the team and the way they practice, which will lead them to success.

Larkin, is confident that they will beat their biggest rival. “We have a bunch of really good girls this year and we have a couple freshmen that we pulled up [to Varsity] and they’re really good,” explained Larkin.

Track & Field

ANDY MILLER Reporter

I know we’re young but youth is something that has a lot energy; when you harness it, you get good things out of it. ~Julio Fernandez

Track and field season has started again under the guidance of several new coaches and new and veteran athletes alike.

Mrs. Kathy Ege, firstyear coach, believes that the sprinters have a lot potential. “From our first practice to now , we have got some really good talent.” Ege says the team has a good amount of freshmen who are strong runners along with the upperclassmen who are the leaders of the team.

Coach Julio Fernandez coaches the jumpers, including the athletes who do the triple jump, high jump. He said he knows the students participating are very hard working and he expects them to be tough. “I know we’re young but youth is something that has a lot energy; when you harness it, you get good things out of it.” Fernandez hopes that as long as everybody works hard and stays committed the team should be fine.

Head coach Ann Scott believes the team is going to have a very successful season. Scott says that a lot of new people and freshmen are coming up for track. “Overall I know that all the seniors hope to leave their mark on the records and the season as a whole.”

Additionally, math Mrs. Cristina Fiorentino and special education teacher Mrs. Megan Fries are both assisting with the team as well.

Page 20- Sports

Springing into Action Girls lacrosse KATE MEAGHER Video Manager

This season I expect us to work as a team and not as individuals and to push each other every day at practice to become better. ~ Rachel Ator

Coach Patty Murdy believes “We have good leadership in our returning players. They’re all very positive and have good sportsmanship so we’re excited about the upcoming season and their leadership. Generally we have a younger group, we have a lot of sophomores and freshmen this year. And we’re excited to see how they all come together and what they can do.”

“We’re not really doing anything different. I know we want, the girls were going to try to make it a fun environment for the girls to excel and develop throughout the season.

We have a really young team this year. We have a lot of sophomores and a lot of freshmen and not a lot of juniors and seniors so I expect this year to kind of be a learning year and I think our team will be good just because we have a lot of girls that have a lot of potential to have a great amount of talent. We have a lot of young girls that are pretty good so I think we have the potential to have a really good season and end on a strong note.” said Tara Flottemesch.

Rachel Ator said “this season I expect us to work as a team and not as individuals and to push each other every day at practice to become better.”

Ator also said “This year we’re not doing a lot differently, but we do have a younger team, so I think that’s something we can use to our advantage and we can use it to make us better. “ I’m just really excited to have a good senior year and to play with girls I haven’t played with before.

Tennis DARBY HYDE Reporter

We have many players who have never played the game before, so building our team confidence and skill set is my main goal. ~Wendy Feight

Coach Wendy Feight is a familar face at the Nest. After coaching basketball this fall, she’s back to head up the tennis team this spring.

Her goal is “is to build a confident and successful team.

We have many players who have never played the game before, so building our team confidence and skill set is my main goal. We have many new players, so we are building our team from the ground up.”

Though teams are only a few weeks into the sason, there are already some athletes leaving a good impression.“Tommy Campbell really stood up in tryouts and he will be playing first singles. He has never played tennis before, and is actually very talented. Also, Riley Lavin she will also be playing singles (her spot hasn’t been decided) and she has also never played tennis before and is very talented as well.” said Feight.

New to the team is Assistant Coach Emilie Keith, who said that “the team as a whole really wants to have a goal to continue to improve daily. We are a young team and it’s a bit of a rebuilding year for us with the exception of a few positions.” She added that there were 11 seniors last year, so this season is totally different in “the dynamics, leadership, and skill level of the team.”

Madison Neilson great backhand has been very impressive so far, according to Keith. The Hawks also have two players new to tennis, Kayla Mangin and Meghan Coyne, who “have been working really hard and are making great strides!

Both coaches confirm that they always have high expectations of this team and this year is no different in that respect. “Megan Waskiewicz has been a contender for us in girls singles both at UCBAC and Districts since she was a freshman. We are looking for great things from Megan again this year as a senior.,” said Feight. “We are fortunate to have our girls doubles team of Lindsay Young and Emily Drapinski back this year. “

Baseball

EMMA MARLEY

Entertainment Editor

I would like to see us improve all season and give everyone we play a competitive game. We look to win every game each season and that goal will not change. ~Timothy Larrimore

Pitching their way into a brand new season, varsity baseball’s head coach, Timothy Larrimore, is experiencing the youngest team he has had in 27 years. Being a very young team, Larrimore states, “We have some very good talent” and they seem to be “a hard working group.”

Although the team works together to showcase each individual players talent, the coach shares that his goals for the current season are to “improve all season and give everyone we play a competitive game.” Every year, the team seeks to win every game they participate in, and this year is no different.

The most challenging teams the players will face during this spring season include Bel Air and Patterson Mill High School. Last year, the Bobcats won the state championship while the Huskies lost. Another contender includes the Mustangs, found at C. Milton Wright.

On May 2, close to the end of the regular season, the Hawks will be facing off against the Mustangs. The players will compete at Ripken Stadium at 7PM. Larrimore states that this is one, of many Varsity games, that everyone should attend.

When you go and watch the boys in action, watch out for senior catcher Jack Stinar and senior pitcher/ first baseman Jordan Wax. These boys keep the team growing strong and are “overall great players.”

Catch the baseball team in action this spring season up until the end of their regular season, May 5.