Volume 77 Issue 6

THE

DART UNDER Pressure

HANDLING STRESS IN SCHOOL As high school academics and extracurriculars become more demanding, the Dart explores how students’ mental health is affected.

St. Teresa's Academy | Kansas City, MO | Volume 77, Issue 6

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TABLE OF

CONTENTS

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2 January 27, 2018

NEWS

4. Students attend the Women's Symposium

Star Spotlight

6. Layne Stowers' mission trip to Haiti

A&E

9. Behind the scenes with Teresian Editors-in-Chief

Reviews

10. Movie: "Black Panther" 11. Novel: "The Power"

Features

12. Soundcloud rappers 14. Students with mom teachers

Centerspread

16. Handling high school stress

Perspectives 21. Your vote counts 22. The rise of consumerism 23. Rap and hip-hop are real music

Sports 24. A look into the lives of STA's horseback riders

Community 26. STA theater girls find productions around Kansas City

Last look 28. Tips and tricks from the 2018 valedictorian and senior class president

ask the dart 30. What do I do if I want to take a gap year, but my friends and family want me to go to college?

Cover and back page design by Anna Ronan, cover photo by Anna Louise Sih

LETTER Hey readers, Stress is a weight we all feel on our shoulders. It’s the five hours of nightly homework, the commitment to our six different extracurriculars, the pressure to have great relationships with friends and family and so much more. With the rise of teen suicide in KC recently, the Dart investigated the relationship stress has to mental health. Be sure to read Margaux Renee and Katie Gregory’s centerspread story on this issue.

For most of us, it’s part of our morning routine to say bye to our parents as we head to school and them to work. But for some at STA, they part with their moms in the hallway as their mom heads into the classroom and they head to their advisory. Flip to page 14 to read Olivia Wirtz’s feature on our STA students’ relationships with their mom teachers.

Check out our Star Spotlight pages, with photos from Olivia Wirtz and a Q&A done by Julia Kerrigan. This issue, we talked to Layne Stowers about her recent mission trip to Haiti where she volunteered in a hospital, helping with surgeries, taking vitals and even delivering a baby.

Also this issue, our sports pages feature an equestrian. Read more about the not so common sport on page 24,

from the e d i to r s

with a story by Reagan Penn and photos

by Meghan Baker.

With second semester almost halfway over, many of us are are trying to push our grades up before finals roll around. Ever wonder about what valedictorian Natalie Kistler’s study habits look like? Read all about how Kistler balances school and personal life on our Last Look pages, featuring a Q&A from Delaney Hupke and photos by Trang Nguyen.

In honor of Valentine’s Day this past month, three brave seniors from the Dart staff volunteered themselves to go on blind dates with three seniors from Rockhurst High School. Check out DNO to see who the lucky bachelorettes were and watch Madeline Loehr’s video on how the dates went.

Recently, the Dart has revamped our Spotify page and published new playlists created by a few of our staffers.

Follow us on our Spotify to check these out, and don’t forget to follow us across our other social media.

Au revoir,

2017-2018 Editors-in-Chief Zoe Butler Lily Manning

WEB

Managing Web Editor Katie Gregory Social Media Team Aspen Cherrito, Kailee Ford, Riley McNett Breaking News Editor Trang Nguyen Multimedia Editor Kate Jones

PRINT

Design Editor Gabby Staker Visual Illustrator Nicole Slocomb Photography Editors Meghan Baker, Anna Louise Sih Page Designers Amy Schaffer, Anna Ronan, Delaney Hupke, Ella Kugler, Ella Norton, Julia Kerrigan, Katie Gregory, Lily Hart, Lily Manning, Margaux Renee, Riley McNett, Zoe Butler

COPY

Features Editor Margaux Renee News Editor Annabelle Meloy Lifestyles Editor Mary Massman Opinion Editor Julia Kerrigan Sports Editor Kendall Lanier Staff Photographers Amy Schaffer, Lucy Hoop, Madeline Loehr, Maggie Hart, Riley McNett Staff Writers Anna Ronan, Aspen Cherrito, Delaney Hupke, Ella Kugler, Ella Norton, Faith Andrews-O’Neal, Gabby Staker, Gabrielle Pesek, Grace Fiorella, Kailee Ford, Kate Jones, Katie Gregory, Katy Rouse, Lily Hart, Lily Manning, Olivia Wirtz, Reagan Penn, Riley McNett, Torri Henry, Trang Nguyen, Zoe Butler Adviser Brad Lewis page design by Ella Kugler

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DartNewsOnline and the Dart are created by the student newpaper staff and are maintained and published by general operating funds of St. Teresa's Academy, a Catholic institution frounded by the Stisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet.

DartNewsOnline and the Dart will not publish opinions that contradict the teachings and beliefs of the Catholic church, whether on a diocesan or worldwide level.

Editorial Policy

The Staff of DartNewsOnline and the Dart are subject to prior review by the St. Teresa's Academy administrative team in circumstances that concern Catholic doctrine, student safety or illegal behavior. DartNewsOnline and the Dart will not publish reviews of sudent work or performances. Personal columns reflect the opinions of the writer, not necessarily the staff or school.

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DartNewsOnline and the Dart encourage the community to post comments on the website. Letters to the editors can be sent in the following ways: in person to Brad Lewis in Donnelly room 204; by mail to St. Teresa's Academy, Attn: Brad Lewis, 5600 Main Street, Kansas City, MO 64113; by email to blewis@sttersasacademy.org or to dartpaper@gmail.com. DartNewsOnline and the Dart reserve the right to edit or shorten letters for publication.

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DartNewsOnline and the Dart will publish corrections as soon as possible after the error is discovered.

4 Febuary 27, 2018

Women's Symposium shares UNTOLD MATTERS After the success of last year's Women's Symposium, Jacquin aims to leave another lasting impact this year. rStory by Mary Massman

Lifestyles Editor Photos compiled by Trang Nguyen Breaking News Editor

T

he auditorium is silent as students lean forward in their seats and listen intently, stricken with disbelief. Some hold back tears while others are simply confounded by every word. They listen to the stories of Joe Amrine and Reggie Griffin, who spent 17 and 23 years, respectively, on death row for crimes they did not commit.

Sitting among the students is librarian Carrie Jacquin, who watches all of the students react to and absorb the message the exonerees share about the cost of the death penalty.

Presentations such as these are what comprise the Women’s Symposium. It was these messages of injustice that prompted Jacquin to initially propose the idea for a symposium back in 2016.

“The idea of the symposium was to bring in speakers and experts to talk to students about the work that they do here in our community and the activism that they participate in around the issues that they care about,” Jacquin said.

The symposium grew out of the freshman English project Jacquin assigned to her classes, where students choose a topic to research that deals with an issue impacting women. They then research their topic through documentaries, databases and books.

“I think we’re in a unique position here at St. Teresa’s,” Jacquin said. “With my research project, I wanted to focus on things that I thought were going to impact you guys and be issues that you would be dealing with. Knowing all of you guys were going to go off to college, the fact that one in five of you would

experience a sexual assault is horrifying to me.”

Although Jacquin began planning the symposium to include the core women’s issues she used in the freshman project, such as sexual assault and human trafficking, she then branched out to include other social justice issues in the community, such as food insecurity and homelessness.

“Regardless of whether it seems like a women's issue at its core or not, women seem to be kind of at the forefront of drawing attention to [social justice issues] in some cases and making change happen around them,” Jacquin said.

An aspect of the Women’s Symposium that makes it especially unique is the use of local community activists. Sophomore Anne Chapman, who was in Jacquin’s English class last year and completed a project on human trafficking, admits she does feel more inspired by local change agents.

Chapman began her research project unaware of how frequently human trafficking occurred, so she was shocked at what she discovered about local human trafficking problems. According to the National Human Trafficking Hotline, the state of Missouri received 421 calls with 135 human trafficking cases reported in the year 2016 alone.

“We need to bring in more of a centralized way to combat these issues,” Chapman said. “ If we bring in instances where human trafficking is happening in our own city, or sexual harassment is happening at high schools around Kansas City, it adds more of a need for them to be stopped, and it adds more of an emotional connection to the topics.”

After the symposium’s debut last year, Jacquin submitted a form request, and the Women’s Circle of Giving granted her the money to be able to put on the symposium this year. The Women’s Circle of Giving is made up of

Students listen intently to speaker Martin Okpareke of the Jewish Vocational Service as he addresses struggles with refugee resettlement during the Women’s Symposium March 3. Librarian Carrie Jacquin began the Women’s Symposium to help students understand the work activists do in the community. photo courtesy of Brad Lewis

philanthropic women who pool their contributions to distribute to the STA community for needs that could not be met or pursued within the current operating budget. “[The grant] will provide lunch for our speakers and some of the expenses that are associated: printing our programs, getting some gratitude gifts for our speakers and things like that,” Jacquin said.

After reading the freshman and sophomore class survey responses following the symposium, Jacquin was able to evaluate how the day went for students and figure out how to plan better in the future.

“Overall, there were requests for different sessions, so this year we added animal activism and we've added a session about LGBTQ resources,” Jacquin said. “So I've really appreciated the honest feedback I got on the survey after the event and tried to put some of those things in place.”

One new option caught the eyes of sophomore Brooke Fallis. Fallis is already involved with animal activism outside of school, but looked forward to seeing what the speakers had to say about being an animal activist and how to become more involved.

“I've been involved at KC Pet Project for a while and I've gone

vegetarian because I'm really into animals and helping them,” Fallis said. “It's good when more people go to presentations like that because more people will be involved in the solutions to animal activism. If we keep expanding the amount of subjects then more people will be informed on the world's problems.”

For Chapman, the new civil discourse session seemed particularly interesting. Civil discourse is engagement in conversation intended to enhance understanding of other’s opinions. Chapman hoped that attending this session would help her hold more respectful arguments with people she disagrees with.

“I think civil discourse is important and especially with this political climate,” Chapman said. “Civil discourse is the basis of our nation, and it's not just one-sided.”

Although some students may not feel that they will be impacted by these topics, Jacquin feels the speakers that come are able to connect with them through vivid experiences in activism or community organizing.

“The sessions that had the most impact on students last year were people who were able to tell a story or tell other peoples' stories,” Jacquin said. “I think once you hear someone's story whose life has been touched by

the opioid crisis or human trafficking or homelessness, that just builds empathy across our entire community for other things that we may not experience ourselves.”

Executive Director of Missourians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty Staci Pratt, who spoke at the symposium last year and returned this year agrees with Jacquin that telling stories is very effective in spreading awareness since it can help us understand the world.

She feels that by listening we can better understand and act for change.

“The voices of the marginalized are often lost,” Pratt said. “Many of us do not encounter them in our daily lives.

Joe and Reggie courageously share their real-life experiences of death row.

When you listen to them, you cannot help but translate capital punishment from an abstraction to the actual taking of a human life-the very person who stands before you.”

As Joe and Reggie finish their stories, Pratt notices students are both attentive and reactive, clearly connecting to the narratives shared and the larger issue.

Her mission is accomplished.

“These stories can help awaken a desire to create social justice and end the death penalty through concrete action,” Pratt said. “It is possible to change our world, and I see young people being at the forefront of that.”H page design by Riley McNett

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Star spotlight

L ay n e STOWERS From Jan 12-19, senior Layne Stowers stayed in Fonds Parisien, Haiti on a medical mission through the Haitian Christian Mission, where she got experience in the operating room.

Story by Julia Kerrigan | Opinion Editor Photo courtesy of Layne Stowers

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February 27, 2018

H

ow did you end up going on this mission trip?

It is through my church, Philips Presbyterian, and part of it is through Doctor Ted Higgins. He started this surgicenter down there and so he’s been going four times a year for tons of years it seems like.

The trip is not normally for students, but rather medical professionals. I knew the director of international mission at our church, so she put in a good word for me.

Who did you stay with while you were down there?

The Haitian Christian Mission, which is what Doctor Higgins and his group goes through. They started after the huge earthquake in 2012.

What did your typical day look like in Fonds-Parisien?

I spent a lot of my time in post-op, so right after patients came out of surgery and off anesthesia. We would be in charge of taking vitals, doing anything they need, whether they need to go to the bathroom, or they need water, anything. But then, randomly at times, a surgeon would be like “Ok, come follow me,” and you would just listen. One of my first times in the O.R., one of the surgeons hands me a scalpel and tells me to cut. I’m like, “what are you talking about? No, I’m not going to do that.”

But he said, “yeah, cut from here to here.”

It was really hands on. We did one or two operations that I was in each day, starting the third day. I did help a baby be delivered, which was really cool. Words can’t really describe what it’s like to see one of the worlds many miracles. I couldn’t be more grateful to have been a part of bringing a new child into this world.

Was there ever a time where you felt totally out of your comfort zone?

No, I really didn’t. Throughout the trip I met these people and we became friends, and I was comfortable just being there alone and partially because it’s a new experience and you’re never going to be bored. In the medical aspect of it, it’s kinda weird, but when you’re in the O.R., it’s kinda calming.

Some people get worried, and they’re like “oh my gosh, the smell of the O.R. is gonna kill me,” but it just excited me.

Did this trip help you decide what you want to do as a career?

Initially I was thinking that maybe I just want to be more of a pediatric nurse. We didn’t have any children there, it was mainly adults, so I didn’t really get the pediatric aspect of it. But the more time I spent with the adult patients, the more time I thought that maybe I did want to be in surgery or in the operating room.

What was your favorite experience while you were there?

Definitely my times in the OR, because it’s just amazing to have world class surgeons teach you. They don’t have HIPPA in Haiti, which are all the regulations that say you can’t share any information and you can’t touch a patient in surgery. All the rules are so strict. In Haiti, they just need help. So those rules aren’t a thing. So being able to help all those people even though I don’t have training yet. It’s kind of a goal of where I want to end up.

What did you do about the language barrier while you were there?

In a sense, the barrier was easier to overcome with the translators. I knew how to say so many things in Spanish, but I couldn’t because they couldn’t communicate. That barrier of saying “it’s going to be ok, don’t worry, this feeling is normal” or even talking to the patient’s family was difficult.

Could you see yourself doing something like Doctors Without Borders as a career?

I’ve definitely thought about working in underdeveloped countries. I don’t know if that’s something I would do long-term as a career, but Doctor Higgins goes down for a week four times a year, and even just that is enough to help them. He’ll do all the major procedures and he’ll teach the Haitian surgeons, so in that period of three months when he’s not down there, the Haitian surgeons can work, check up on patients, do surgeries, and allows him to perform major surgeries that are booked months in advance. It allows for more impact the way he does it, because it’s not like an American coming in, fixing things and leaving them to suffer.H

page design by Margaux Renee

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bits and pieces

PHOTO OF THE ISSUE

Photo by Amy Schaffer

The Dart chooses a staffer's photo to be featured each month.

My life sucks

Junior Caroline Reid demonstrates a leap as her teammates watch at William Jewel College Feb. 3. The JV dance team practiced their power jumps one by one before performing their routine for three technical judges.

My life rocks

Compiled by Madeline Loehr | Page Designer "I was driving when it was dark and it was raining really hard and I ended up hitting a car. I went to court and I had to go to traffic school for four hours on a Saturday morning."

-Kaleigh Klosak, junior

In the NEws Kansas City Eric Hosmer plans to leave the Kansas City Royals next season. He signed an eight-year contract worth $144 million to play with the San Diego Padres. Hosmer has played for the Royals since 2011 and was a key player that helped them win the World Series in 2015. He plans on wearing the number 30 jersey for the San Diego Padres in honor of his former teammate, Yordano Ventura.

8 February 27, 2018

"I got invited to New York City for spring break. Of course I said yes and then she said they were plane tickets and I started crying because I've never been on a plane before. I'm so excited -Lauren Biritz, sophomore

Each month, the Dart compiles local, national and world news.

by Kate Jones | Multimedia Editor

United states A mass school shooting in Parkland, Florida, left 17 victims dead. The perpetrator, Nikolas Cruz, used an AR15 rifle (a semi-automatic weapon), which can be bought with no waiting period by anyone with a clean record over the age of 18. Students of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, where the shooting took place, have taken to social media to speak out against gun violence.

World The Winter Olympics are taking place in PyeongChang, South Korea. Red Gerard, a 17-year-old, won the gold medal in men's snowboard slopestyle for the US after reportedly oversleeping after staying up late watching Netflix. Chloe Kim, also 17 years old, became the youngest woman to win an Olympic snowboarding gold medal during the Winter Games.

Taking Charge:

A&E

the teresian editors-in-chief The Dart looks at the experiences of the Editors-inChief of the yearbook, Teresian.

Story by Kailee Ford Editor of Twitter Photos by Faith Andrews-O'Neal Writer

B

eing an Editor in Chief for the Teresian yearbook is a big commitment. This means that you have to schedule meetings, set up dates for deadlines and help the other members of the yearbook staff.

Basically it means working hard and trying to be a leader for lots of people.

But, to senior Mamie Murphy, all the work is worth it.

Murphy has always liked to write and decided to take journalism when she came to STA. She had no experience with journalistic writing, but was willing to try it.

“I thought I wanted to be on the newspaper staff,” Murphy said. “Then when the girls from yearbook came and talked to us about yearbook, I liked that even more.”

During Murphy’s junior year, her second year on yearbook staff, she was able to apply for the Editor in Chief position. She knew that she wanted to be an EIC, but had doubts about her abilties for the position.

“I was thinking that this was something I would like to do,” Murphy said. “But I wasn’t sure it was something I’d be good enough for.”

She ended up applying and became an EIC for the yearbook staff her senior year.

Seniors Camille Goodwin and Bridget Graham originally hadn’t thought about taking journalism as an elective. They had both thought about taking classes related to theater, but

for Goodwin, it wasn’t the right fit.

“My mother suggested I try out journalism since she wrote for the Dart when she went here,” Goodwin said.

“I ended up liking it and I kept with Seniors Bridget Graham from left, Mamie Murphy and Camille it.”

Goodwin look over photo editor Catelyn Campbell’s work. The Instead Teresian will be available for distribution this fall. of following in her mother’s footsteps and pursuing instead. Although she didn’t want to be in journalism at first, she later saw the Dart, Goodwin decided to apply journalism as a passion of hers. for the yearbook Graham, like Murphy was, drawn to When she applied for staff newspaper while taking journalism, her freshman year, she had the but decided on yearbook instead opportunity of applying for a “With Teresian you get to be more leadership position on staff. She rounded and get to be your own became the name and index editor, designer, ” Graham said. which meant that she had to check Being in a very important leadership each name in the yearbook and make position can be very stressful for the sure it was spelled correctly.

“It was the worst job ever,” Goodwin EICs. All three girls see yearbook as taking up a big portion of their time. said. “But, it got me on track for a leadership position for my junior year.” It’s also very stressful having so many people counting on them.

Halfway through Goodwin’s junior “I just have to tell myself that the year, one of the two EICs left staff. The entire school is relying on me to EIC that stayed, alumna Liz Barton, do this and I can’t quit when things needed help, so she asked Goodwin get hard,” Goodwin said. “I have to and Murphy for help. That was when push through and I have to make the Goodwin decided she really liked the staff push through when things get EIC position. She applied for it her junior year and became one her senior difficult.”

Even when times get tough and year.

“When I found out I was so excited,” schedules get crazy, to these girls, creating something memorable for Goodwin said. “I was very excited that I got to be a leader and do what I want the school is worth it.

“I love creating for people to do.” something that shows their year and For senior Bridget Graham, she a part of history, ” Murphy said. “It didn’t think journalism was a good sounds dramatic, but many years from fit for her. She liked acting a lot, now, [this yearbook] will be history.” H but was put into journalism class page design by Ella Norton

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Reviews

"the power"

challenges the strength behind gender

Rather than creating a dystopian novel with a happy ending, Naomi Alderman writes a story about the corruption of female power.

Story by Lily Manning Editor-in-Chief HHH

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lay in bed at 11 p.m. on a Tuesday night. I’ve been up since 6 a.m. and all I really want to do in this moment is turn my lamp off, flip over and shut my eyes. Instead, I’m stuck reading another hundred pages of “The Power” in order to reach my deadline for newspaper. I feel my eyelids sinking shut, and every few minutes I have to force them back open. I’m struggling through chapter after chapter of a really striking book, but one that failed to grip my attention.

I came across “The Power” as I dug through Amazon’s list of best sellers. It was named as one of the best books of 2017 by the New York Times, NPR, the Washington Post and even Barack Obama, so I figured the book had to be good. Little did I know, I was in for hours of forcing myself to finish the book.

In “The Power,” Naomi Alderman describes a world where teenage girls have suddenly discovered that their bodies carry a deadly electrical charge.

The charge lies in an organ, termed the “skein”, across their collarbones.

It can be projected onto anything, harming or killing others, electrifying a swimming pool or shorting a whole neighborhood’s electricity.

Once the power is discovered in girls, the world is turned upside down.

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Alderman explores what a world would look like where parents fear sending their boys outside, girls are the backbone of a nation’s military and men fear being raped in dark alleys.

The novel is written from four different perspectives, each chapter different than the last, showcasing the inner thoughts of a young British woman whose father heads a gang, an abused foster child who escapes her family to lead a new religion, a foreign journalist reporting from the midst of revolution and an American politician struggling to cope with the new power found in her and her daughters.

With the book jumping from story to story each chapter, I found it extremely hard to get through. If I’m being honest, I probably wouldn’t have finished it if I didn’t have to in order to write this review. Because the focus is on four different characters, the story felt all over the place at times and it was easy to confuse some plot lines. If the story had been between the perspective of just two characters, I think it would have been a lot stronger in terms of its structure.

I think stylistically, Alderman does a beautiful job at balancing serious issues in a way that doesn’t come off preachy, but instead comes across as really dark, leaving the reader to think about what they want to take away from the scene.

The book showcased a world turned upside down, where men experience the sexism, abuse and oppression that women today experience in almost every aspect of life. But, Alderman doesn’t use this gender reversal to say ‘With women in charge things would be better,’ though maybe it would be.

She uses the reversal to explore what happens when we correlate power to our gender, when we assume, simply because we identify as a certain sex, that we have an automatic power over someone of another sex.

In the scene that shocked me most throughout the book, a woman who stole the reign of her country from her husband after she discovered the “skein” in herself, becomes truly intoxicated from her newfound power. After being interrupted by one of her male servants, she forces the man to eat broken glass as punishment. This is just one of the horrific events that takes place in this country under this female rule.

Throughout the book, scenes like this exude the message that feminism isn’t the assertion of one gender being superior over another, or even that both genders are equal, but simply that power has no tie to our gender. Though the book can be dark (and if you have taste similar to me, hard to get through), the message it leaves you with is one I would recommend to others.H

"Black panther": an ode to the black experience

"Black Panther" challenges the way the world and media views Africa and its people.

Story by Faith Andrews-O'Neal | Writer HHHHH

A

s a black person (specifically, the granddaughter of African immigrants) consuming western media, there is very little representation seen for people of color. In most bigbudget films, we are seen very rarely as a main character- one free from the bonds of servitude, or a stereotypical “sassy” friend. That same negative portrayal is seen of Africa. Most of us at STA have read Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. The Congo, in the central region of the African continent, was portrayed as a sprawling wilderness, filled with primitive, barely articulate savages. Contemporarily, take Taylor Swift’s Wildest Dreams video. Filmed in Africa, the video portrays two white protagonists, frolicking with zebras and giraffes, not a black person in sight.

Black Panther takes that narrative, and chucks it out the window. As a Marvel fan who has seen every movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to date, this movie exceeded my very high expectations.

Black Panther centers around King T’Challa, played by Chadwick Boseman. His first appearance in the Marvel universe was seen in Captain America: Civil War, in which his father died in an explosion, making him King of Wakanda. The movie follows him trying to fill his father’s shoes and fighting for the land he rules. His main adversary is Erik Killmonger, played by Michael B. Jordan. With Marvel’s history of lackluster villains (think Whiplash in Iron Man 2. Who? Exactly.), Jordan’s character shines through. T’Challa references him as “a monster of [Wakanda’s] own creation”, and his past with Wakanda gives him a depth very rarely seen before in Marvel movies.

The movie succesfully showed that

Wakanda, and its citizens, had many dimensions.

As seen throughout the movie, Africa is home to a multitude of varying cultures and vast potential to thrive. Often, Africans are seen as one group of people, despite their having a plethora of tribes present within the continent. During T’Challa’s inaguration to become king, the people of neighboring tribes stand chanting atop the mountain. As he looked to them, there was a field of vibrant color, with each tribe’s apparel representing actual tribes found in Africa. There is a man with a lip plate, a homage to many tribes throughout Africa. One of the dresses worn by Lupita Nyong’o’s spy character, Nakia, was adorned with a print inspired by the kente cloths of Ghana. I had rarely seen diverse and beautiful references such as these in any movies I’d attended.

Another unique aspect was the bountiful resources of the country of Wakanda. The country was wealthy, albeit isolationist. Sitting on a mountain of vibranium (a fictional, very valuable metal), it was more advanced technologically, medically, and economically than any other country seen in the Marvel universe. This view of Wakanda was a direct rebuttal of many in the world’s view of Africa- a rebuttal long overdue.

Black Panther, above all, is an unapologetically black experience. This was clear upon entering the theater. As I walked into the theatre, I automatically ran into two family members, a friend from dance and two family friends.

Members of black greek organizations proudly wore their symbols, couples showed up in matching dashikis, and during the movie, I could hear the familiar raucous laughter, reminiscent of a family get-together at my grandmother’s house. For once, there was a cast full of superstars who looked like me. I recognized the fierce love in Angela Basset’s Queen Ramonda, one that I see in my mother, aunts, and grandmother toward me constantly. I could feel my face light up and my jaw drop watching Nakia and Okoye stand their ground and fight fiercely for their country. I could see myself clearly in these impassioned, strong, brilliant women, warring for a cause they held dearly in their hearts.

In a world where racism runs rampant, and Hollywood still doubts the integrality of accessing the black audience, Black Panther is a beacon of hope. The fact remains that this is a milestone not only for black cinema, but for an industry that has oft tossed us aside. Black people exist, African people exist, and we are different and beautiful and beyond worthy of recognition.H page design by Lily Manning

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features

Soundcloud:

a universal platform

High school students use Soundcloud not only to listen to music, but also as a platform to upload their own.

Story by Ella Norton Page Designer Photos by Amy Schaffer Page Designer

“T

his might be a little loud, so sorry in advance,” Rockhurst junior Gabriel Vianello said as he sat down to a set of purple drums in the middle of his room, a microphone set up to capture the sound. The cords from the microphone ran across the rug and connecedt to the computer, which is ready to record Vianello’s next project.

Vianello is one of the 10 million artists who uploads their music to Soundcloud, a music streaming service where people can upload and share their work. It was launched in 2008. Since then, artists such as Chance the Rapper and Post Malone have gotten recognized on the site.

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February 27, 2018

Over 175 million people use Soundcloud. Vianello credits this to the service’s accessibility and it’s easiness to use.

“The interesting thing about Soundcloud is that it’s so easy for people to upload stuff, it’s just a click of a button,” Vianello said. “I think the fact that you can listen to your friends’ music or someone you know in general on some kind of platform is really interesting and I think that’s a big reason to why Soundcloud is so popular.”

Shawnee Mission East sophomore Kaden Bornholtz, another artist on Suondcloud, thinks Soundcloud is so popular because it allows you to upload up to 200 minutes of free songs. Other music apps charge to upload songs and Spotify requires you have a copyright and music license.

However, Soundcloud doesn’t give the artists royalties to their songs. Ads cost seven dollars a month which then gives the creator a certain amount of money based on the amount of views the song receives.

Bornholtz chose to upload his music to Soundcloud because it was

a free app and he saw a rapper he followed gain attention from it.

When Bornholtz decided to record and upload music to Soundcloud, he chose to focus on rap because he grew up listening to artists like Tupac, Lil Wayne and Eminem.

“Rap stuck with me,” Bornholtz said.

“Something a lot of people don’t know about me is that I really like country and alternative rock. But if you don’t have a country voice you can’t do that.

With rap, if you know how to and you have the lyrics, you can do it.”

Vianello on the other hand, uploads music he would describe as alternative rock, with aspects of other genres mixed in.

“I’m really influenced by bands like Tame Impala and Radiohead, so they’ve had a big impact on my music,” Vianello said. “At the same time I’m really into hip hop and I feel like [it] had a bigger influence on me when it comes to lyrics and the beat.”

Vianello started uploading music when he was in middle school after a few of his sister’s friends introduced him to the app.

“I’ve known about Soundcloud

since seventh grade and I feel like it Since the beginning, Vianello has “It can be hard if there’s a specific was pretty new at the time,” Vianello always played the bass, the guitar, song and you don’t know who sings said. “I was just doing it for myself and the drums and sung for his songs. He it because if you look it up there’s so nobody else.” records them all separately and then many songs,” Egan said.

Rockhurst junior Mike Lee also edits them together.

Egan likes Soundcloud because it started uploading to Soundcloud just “I usually do the music first allows her to discover a variety of for fun after he decided he wanted to because writing lyrics is hard for me in new music. try making music. particular because I really want them “It’s a lot more loose and if you “I did this on the fly because one to sound poetic and meaningful,” don’t have a specific playlist, you never day I was like, you know it would be Vianello said. “Creating music comes know what’s going to come on next,” kind of cool if I did this,” Lee said. “I naturally to me and I can think about Egan said. “I think it’s cool because just learned how to then and I’m still what I want to record in my head.” that’s how you find new songs and learning a lot about it. Music is a way Both Vianello and Bornholtz new artists.” where I can step back and do my own taught themselves how to edit. For Music platform aside, Vianello’s thing and just black out all the Bornholtz, one of the disadvantages parents have been very supportive other stuff.” of Soundcloud is the decrease in the of his music and encouraged him to Lee said finishing a song takes him music quality. follow his dreams. about three weeks, with writing the “When you’re hearing it in the “My parents are really into music so lyrics taking the longest. However, he studio with your headphones, it I’ve always been surrounded by it and managed to write, record and release sounds really good,” Bornholtz said.

I think that helped with my love and his first song in a day.

“But then you have to go the extra passion for it,” Vianello said. “My dad is “I didn’t even have any lyrics but we mile to make it sound even better a really big fan of music so whenever I found the beat and I knew we had to then it was because Soundcloud, since finish a song, he critiques [it] because do something with it,” Lee said. “We it’s free, tones the quality down.” his opinion is pretty important to me.” went and bought a microphone that Approximately 12 hours of audio Vianello hopes to go into audio night and I stayed up to 4 a.m. just are uploaded to Soundcloud every engineering with a minor in business writing. The next day we started at 10 minute. For STA senior Maureen Egan, in the future. [a.m.] and it was out by 12 [p.m.]" this can sometimes be an issue.

“I want to go into music production In addition instead of just like performing to accessibility, because I feel like it gives me more Soundcloud opportunities to work with other also gives artists people” Vianello said. “If I knew how the opportunity to produce music, I could create music to connect by the way I wanted to and not have to having features under the command of that allow people someone else.” H to contact one another.

Bornholtz links his email to his Shawnee Mission East sophomore Kaden Bornholtz brainstorms lyrics account in case by the J.C. Nichols fountain on the Plaza Feb. 10. Bornholtz lets lyric inspiration come to him while sitting at parks or in his room. producers want to reach out to him.

Bornholtz finds inspirations for his songs by playing a beat while playing video games and freestyling. Once he has found something he likes, he shuts everything off and writes.

“The first song that I released, it’s not on my Soundcloud anymore, was called Purple Dreams,” Bornholtz said. “Growing up as a kid I used to daydream a lot but I didn’t like the title daydream. So I put purple for day Rockhurst junior Gabriel Vianello arranges audio clips in his room Feb. 6. To get into the music because I feel like when people think industry, Vianello wants to study audio engineering. of purple they think of a happy time period.” page design by Lily Hart

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Features

mother-daughter duos take on high school together The daughters of STA teachers discuss the ups and downs of having their moms at school.

Story by Olivia Wirtz | Writer Photos by Ella Kugler | Writer

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veryone is familiar with the question that moms ask: “What did you do at school today?” Many teenagers find themselves trapped and forced to explain their entire day only for their mom to not quite understand their daily routines. However, the daughters of teachers at STA don’t have this issue. Not only are their moms there for every pep rally and auction skit, they also understand their daily schedules and the overall environment of STA. Freshman Molly Hirner felt truly ready for her first day of high school.

Molly had a secret weapon that only a handful of girls at STA have: her mom with her. Molly knew what to expect from an everyday routine at STA, always having an accessible source for her questions.

“I was a bit more prepared than a lot of other freshman,” Molly said. “If I was ever confused about anything I would just ask my mom and she would know.”

Molly can remember her mom teaching for most of her life. Diane Hirner is an English teacher and cohead of the [English department]. After teaching at STA for nine years, this is the first year that she will have Molly with her.

“I have always wanted Molly to come to STA,” Diane said. “I’ve been dragging her over here since she was in kindergarten.”

Molly has attended STA’s various events with her mom throughout the years.

14 February 27, 2018

“Molly has come to pre-prom, sporting events and plays,” Diane said.

“I remember when she was in first grade, one of the game’s themes was ‘Avatar night’ and the seniors painted her blue.”

“It was my dream to come here when I was little because my mom would always talk about it,” Molly said.

“I didn’t really even consider any other schools.”

But the Hirners are not the only mother-daughter duo. Three other teachers have freshmen girls at STA. “There are four of us [teachers] who have freshmen girls this year,” Diane said. “I’m sure there are going to be moments when it’s awkward or embarrassing, but there are many benefits too.”

Freshman Adele Quick also has a mom teaching English at STA. Jennifer Quick began teaching at STA during the 2016-17 school year.

“My mom has been teaching for basically my entire life,” Quick said.

“She was pregnant with me while she completed her student teaching.”

Because it's the first year of being with her mom at school, she is still learning how to balance the ins and outs of home and school life.

“My mom being a teacher has also impacted my friends,” Adele said.

“Currently it is simple stuff, like I can’t tell them all of the embarrassing stories about my mom, even though there are many.”

“In the future, once my mom is teaching the grade level that I am in, it may be awkward with my friends being around their teacher in a social setting and that they can’t talk openly and freely about their English teacher with me,” Adele said.

Senior Ruthie McKee and sophomore Charlotte McKe have had their mom with them at STA for four years. As an academic counselor, their mom has helped them with the hardest aspect of STA: academics.

Kelly McKee also teaches a course for freshmen at STA called Star Seminar.

“It was really nice to have her freshman year especially because I had the inside scoop on Star Seminar,” Ruthie said. “I was able to ask a lot of questions.”

Ruthie can also remember visiting STA when she was younger.

“One day I came to STA with my mom and it was Halloween,” Ruthie said. “So everyone was wearing their Halloween costumes and it was really fun to see. I also loved hearing the stories about the older girls at STA.” Having just moved from St. Louis, freshman Anna Albritton is not starting high school in a new city alone, but with her mom, too. Her mom, Vickie Albritton is a math teacher at STA. “I think the first day of my freshman year was more intimidating because I wanted people to get to know me,” Anna said. ‘If they have her as a teacher they might perceive me in a different

English teacher Dianne Hirner’s daughter Molly is a freshman at STA. The St. Peter’s graduate grew up hearing stories of STA from her mom that ended up encouraging her to become an STA student.

way.”

“It’s not like I introduce myself like ‘Hi, my mom teaches here,’” Anna said.

“Before they find out, I really try to get to know them.”

But Anna has some concerns about going to school with her mom.

“Sometimes I have typical drama but I feel like I can’t really tell my mom about it because it might affect what she thinks of certain people,” Anna said.

And just like every other motherdaughter relationship, there are always disagreements of some sort. Most students get to escape that stress when they come to school, but not the daughters of teachers.

“Every mom and daughter goes through a little nit-picky fight,” Diane said. “My only worry is that one of ours could possibly spill over at school.”

Academic counselor Kelly McKee and her two daughters, sophomore Charlotte McKee and senior Ruthie But however difficult or even McKee. uncomfortable it might get through their high school years, the girls really value the little perks of having their mom at school with them.

“It's really nice, for instance, if I need money for Bistro or something like that she is there,” Anna said.

Charlotte also utilizes her mom always being around.

“Whenever I am sick I can just go to her,” Charlotte said. “If I am ever having a bad day or I can’t find a room for a free, I just go to her. Little things like that are really nice to have,” Charlotte said. H

Jennifer Quick and daughter Adelle, freshman, smile for a photo. Adelle originally thought about going to EHS until her mom suggested she go to STA.

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As high school academics become more demanding, the Dart explores how students' mental health is affected. compared to the adult level of 5.1.

The study also revealed that 31 percent of teens reported feeling overwhelmed, depressed or sad, 36 percent reported feeling fatigued or tired and 23 percent reported skipping a meal due to stress.

After the release of the study, former APA CEO Norman B. Anderson, PhD, weighed in, calling these statistics “alarming.”

“In order to break this cycle of stress and unhealthy behaviors as a nation, we need to provide teens with better support and health education at school and home, at the community level and in their interactions with healthcare professionals,” Anderson said in a statement.

When left untreated, this chronic stress can start to build up bringing on more serious consequences.

According to a study in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, “fatigue and prolonged stress may heighten risk for suicidal thinking or death by suicide.”

Science teacher and mother Renee Blake has observed stress in students at school and at home.

“I’m wondering about all these suicides in schools: is that a result of all the pressure that we’re putting on students to do well?” Blake said. “I think that it is a factor.”

Teenage and young adult suicides are on the rise, even in Kansas City.

According to Fox 4 KC, Jackson, Cass, Clay and Platte counties saw a total of 43 suicides in the under 25 category throughout 2017, 17 of which were in

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er name is called and she walks to the front of the room to grab her test. It’s handed to her, folded and facing down. She takes a seat, too nervous to flip it over; she can already see three possible points missed on the back side of the test. She musters the courage.

60 out of 78. She whips out her calculator. That’s a 76.92 percent. Her fingers are flying. Her grade is going to drop 7.45 percent. A classmate taps her on the shoulder.

“What’d you get?”

“An 88,” she lied.

“Oh, I got a 97.”

Junior Anne Claire Tangen describes this as a typical morning in one of STA’s more rigorous classes, where “What’d you get?” has become a phrase charged with stress and intimidation.

“Mentally, I feel like we're all fighting with each other just to see who can do the best,” Tangen said. “People are just trying to one up each other and it can get to you.”

This competitive culture is not limited to STA, however. Expectations for high schoolers have ballooned in past years, creating a fierce classroom environment and ultimately affecting students’ mental health.

In a survey released in 2014, the American Psychological Association reported that high school students’ stress levels are continuing to rise, rivaling those of adults.

In this study, stress levels were assessed on a ten point scale where 3.9 is considered a healthy level of stress. In the report, teens averaged a level of 5.8

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the under 19 age category. In Johnson county, 8 teens took their lives in 2017.

In January of 2018 alone, three high school students have committed suicide in the Kansas City Metropolitan area.

Tangen also believes there is a definite correlation between the teen suicide rate and the modern day pressures of high school. She attributes the pressure to the college admission process and the necessity to take on too much in order to be seriously considered for scholarships.

“It’s so competitive with everyone else and we’re killing ourselves in the process and it’s so not healthy,” Tangen said.

Blake seconds this, describing high school pressures as being part of a “trickle down” process.

“I think colleges are expecting more for applications for students to get in because the higher level schools, they want to see the transcript, what honors classes did you take, what AP classes did you take and what extracurriculars were you in -- they want to see all of that,” Blake said. “So then that just kind of filters down.”

In addition to school stress, many students are involved in extracurriculars outside of school or work part time jobs.

Counselor Peg Marland, who graduated STA in 1975, had a different experience.

"There's a lot more stuff that people do outside of school than ever existed,” Marland said.

In 2014, the national Census found that nearly 60 percent of all children participate in extracurricular activities like jobs, sports or lessons.

Despite this, a 2013 survey of U.S. colleges and universities conducted by the National Association for College Admissions and Counseling (NACAC) found that the majority of colleges ranked extracurricular activities as being of moderate or limited importance.

Instead, they place emphasis on grades

18 February 27, 2018

in college prep courses, strength of curriculum and admissions test scores.

Junior Lucy Whittaker also notes the uptick in stress she experienced once she started her job.

“I feel like sophomore year was my most stressful [year] because that was when the difficulty in my classes picked up and I had never had time to manage that much before. It was especially difficult because I just started a job over the summer so then I had to balance that on top of school,” Whittaker said.

When Marland attended, STA students were not participating in club sports or other time consuming extracurriculars with the rigor that they are now.

“I don't know how people have the time in the day to do everything,” Marland said.

Blake also explained that as a teacher, she doesn’t always know what kinds of expectations and responsibilities students have after school. As a mom of an STA alumna, however, Blake was able to grasp what isexpected of high school students. “[Jennifer] played basketball here,” Blake said. “I could always tell during basketball season her stress level, especially for papers...” she paused, searching for the right words, “she would have crying sessions,” Blake said.

Despite this stress, Blake explained that Jennifer was able to learn planning and organization skills to manage her demanding schedule.

“If we sat down, we were able to make a plan or a calendar,” Blake said.

Still, Blake worries.

“It’s going to be interesting to see 10, 20 years down the road,” Blake said.

“You guys are already under so much pressure, what’s it going to be like for your kids?”

Whittaker, who took Advanced Biology her freshman year, felt the class was the only one she took as a freshman that prepared her for her

more stressful sophomore year.

“I don’t think freshman year really prepared me for time management all that well, except for Advanced Biology because we got to set our own deadlines,” Whittaker said.

The taxing environment of school doesn’t just affect its students. Teachers, too, often feel the pressure.

“I probably overdo it, but I sat down one time and figured out that I probably put in between 80 and 90 hours in a week,” Blake said.

A 2015 survey by the American Federation of Teachers found that 73 percent of respondents reported feeling stressed at work. Only around half of those same respondents said they felt enthusiastic about their jobs.

In an article about stress in adolescents, published in The Atlantic in 2015, it was reported that “over long periods of time, elevated levels of stress hormones can degrade the immune system, cause heart problems, exacerbate respiratory and gastrointestinal issues, and bring on chronic anxiety and depression.”

Tangen describes a clear link between the stress of high school and the state of her mental health.

“I’ve struggled mentally for a while,” Tangen said. “It kind of started sophomore year when things started to get pretty busy.”

Tangen was able to manage her stress until junior year, which has the reputation of being the most academically challenging year of high school. The first semester of junior year was extremely difficult for Tangen because of her demanding schedule and rigorous course load.

Tangen was taking AP Computer Science Principles, Honors Physics, College Pre-calculus, Latin III, AP Literature, AP U.S. History, Social Concerns, and Online Personal Finance.

“I was up really late all the time and that has an effect on you and your

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mental health,” Tangen said.

Despite this struggle, Tangen recently met with counselor Amanda JohnsonWhitcomb to try to destress.

“I was like ‘I’m not okay’ and we just talked it out and stuff and I thought I was being dramatic but I’m really not,” Tangen said.

St. Teresa’s employs four counselors for a student body of 597. In addition to this, STA also holds STAR Seminar once a week for freshmen, a semester-long class designed to “help all freshmen make a successful transition into high school,” according to the school website.

Despite these efforts made by the school, many students still struggle. In a survey conducted by the Dart, 76.4 percent of the 212 respondents said they felt like the competitive academic environment at STA contributes to mental health breakdowns.

Tangen believes that school perpetuates the problem and stands in the way of its solution.

“The problem is if you are having a mental breakdown, you don’t have time for it,” Tangen said. “I feel like our school just doesn't allow for it.”

Whittaker agrees that the school could be doing more to ease excessive stress on students.

“I would suggest that there be more communication between some of the teachers on the deadlines they give us,” Whittaker said. “It’s like there will be three pretty laid back weeks, but then you’ll have two tests, an in class essay and a project due in the same week and it can get overwhelming that way.

According to Marland, there are ways students can mitigate stress-induced simple anxiety and depression “Just talk about it,” Marland said.

“Whether you talk to your friends about it, or your family or a counselor at school, the best thing people can do is not suppress it and have some human connection." H

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An increasing number of studies suggest a link between school and mental health disorders.

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just can’t do this anymore.

Walking around school, that line can be heard repeatedly throughout a single day. With school, work, sports and extracurriculars, students have a hard time finding balance within their lives. High stress levels in teens have contributed to higher suicide attempts in the past decade. Because of this, schools should be organized to prioritize the mental health of students.

Due to these increasing stress levels, the suicide rates are at their highest level since 2007. 29 percent of those suicide attempts happened on an exam or exam results day, according to the Office for National Statistics.

This alarming statistic should prompt schools to prioritize the mental health of students.

According to the American Psychological Association, teens have reported having higher stress levels than adults and don’t use the right coping mechanisms to reduce stress.

Instead, they skip meals and lose a critical amount of hours of sleep. The

APA’s Stress in America survey found that 30 percent of teens reported feeling sad or depressed because of stress and 31 percent felt overwhelmed.

Another 35 percent of teens reported that stress caused them to lie awake at night and 26 percent said that they are overeating or eating unhealthy foods in the past month. School plays a major factor in this. Nearly half of teens said they were stressed by school pressures.

Often times here at St. Teresa’s, multiple tests and essays are scheduled on the same day causing the rise of stress levels in students. Students are too busy worrying about their homework, tests, grades and college applications that they disregard their mental health needs. It’s important for teens to build adaptive coping skills, rather than maladaptive coping skills such as emotional eating or alcohol or drug use, as a means to manage their stress on a continual basis. Even teachers forget the dangerous risk of not prioritizing students mental health.

This alarming problem proves that

Right on Target

there should be funding for schools to ensure that students mental health is a priority. Funding for mental health resources for students would increase students’ performance, limit mood swings and unhealthy eating. These changes would lead to a much easier and brighter path to a successful future, one with less anxiety for students as well.

In order to improve mental health, it is recommended by BMC Psychiatry that teachers should be educated in the signs of mental illness. Students are afraid to ask for help, fearing that they would be judged by their peers.

There should be open discussions about mental health to help eliminate the stigma that that goes along with it. This would help them do better in school and life. It is shown that if students gets eight hours of sleep a night, then they’re more productive and have an optimistic view of life. If the “children are our future”, we have to make sure that we preserve their mental condition. H

27/29 staffers voted in agreement.

The Dart asked students, "Should schools be organized to promote the mental health of students?"

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“Yes! Students today are more stressed out than mental patients of the 1950s... We put too much stress on ourselves and we are too anxious but the reality is that stress and anxiety are not something we can turn off with a switch."

Junior Hannah Jirousek “Schools should structure their curriculum to promote empowerment and mental health. It’s important that schools support the wellbeing of their students so that they can flourish.”

who you vote for

perspectives

should not depend on the candidate's party Voters should pick their candidates based on their views, experience and actions, not what party they are running for.

Story by Katie Gregory Managing Web Editor

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was 15 during the election of Donald Trump, which occurred during the first semester of my sophomore year.

On that night in November, I was on campus watching the whole thing with my friends. I had followed the election since the beginning in spring 2015.

Coming from a politically split family, the importance of being well-informed in politics had been ingrained in me from a young age.

I was well aware that just a short four months before, WikiLeaks had published emails from Hillary Clinton and other prominent Democratic National Committee (DNC) members in which they discussed a sabotage of Bernie Sanders' campaign, calling it a “mess” and exploring a possible narrative to undermine Sanders.

This revelation surprised and upset me, naive as I was about the inner workings of the Democratic party.

Sanders had been my Democratic nominee of choice, but I had previously accepted Clinton's nomination and resolved to rally behind her to defeat Trump.

These emails, however, were the final catalyst in my split from a lifelong commitment to the Democratic party.

I now no longer consider myself a member of the Democratic party, and while I will be happy to vote Democrat if they nominate a candidate I can truly believe in, I am also just as happy to

vote third party.

In 2016, NBC and Wall Street Journal polls found nearly half of all Americans, 47 percent, were open to voting third party. Despite the increasing openmindedness of the voting public, third party candidates still struggle to be taken seriously because of the difficult requirements in order to participate in the presidential debate or appear on the ballots.

Third party candidates struggle to appear on the ballot in many states because they are not considered serious candidates by many state governments.

Proving they are serious candidates is difficult because they are prohibited from appearing in presidential debates.

Appearing in presidential debates is hard because they are hosted by the Commission on Presidential Debates, a private organization that was cochaired by the heads of the Democratic and Republican National Committees and designed to exclude third-party candidates.

Anyone that has ever read a single headline about politics in the United States knows that there’s not much the Democratic and Republican parties agree on. There are few things that can bring them together, but one thing

they can work together on is keeping third party candidates from the public eye. What does that tell you about our political system?

I encourage everyone who is registered to vote to reflect on what they value in a candidate. Personally, I want a candidate who advocates for gun control and values our global society. Someone else, however, might want a candidate who protects American businesses or is tough on immigration.

Those values should be what’s most important, and if the candidate who follows those most closely happens to belong to a third party, that shouldn’t be a deterrent in supporting that person.

Many people feel like a vote for a third party candidate is the same as throwing your vote away. I’m sympathetic with this view point, and I understand why in our rigged two-party system, it can feel this way. However, I’ve come to the conclusion that, if we are ever to break out of the partisan system we’ve gotten ourselves into, we’re going to have to look beyond the two popular parties and stand up for a candidate we really believe in. That’s why, when I register to vote in seven months, I won’t be declaring a party. H page design by Anna Louise Sih

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entertain less, retain more When each source of information has turned into a form of entertainment, its sense of purpose is lost.

Story by Zoe Butler Editor -in-Chief

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e’ve all heard it. It’s become a cliche in and of itself. Your mom or any righteous adult slams you with the deprecating look.

Then you mouth along, knowing the words exactly, as she gives the: “You teens are spending too much time on your phones...they really are taking over our world!” That’s when you tune her out, and she carries on about how things were different back in her day.

But the problem isn’t the current teenage generation. The problem is that every source of media or outlet of information has turned into a form of entertainment, losing its sense of purpose.

Your mom’s right. Things were different back in her day. But it’s more than the semi-recent emergence of social media. It was about 20 years ago that Network News underwent a transformation. They got smarter. They figured out how to package their news segments into a smaller time slot, airing at exactly the right time, and so “prime time” was born.

And it only escalated from there.

The flashy effects and eye-catching headlines tore up television and the way we processed and formed opinions on this information was altered. It became aggressive and slanted, each segment having a different agenda depending on which news channel you tuned into.

Eight years ago, journalist Nicholas Carr wrote in his book “The Shallows: How The Internet Is Changing our Brains” about our state of “perpetual distraction and constant disruption.”

This book was mainly referring to computers and laptops, but is now most relevant when thinking about

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smartphones and tablets.

In an interview with the Huffington Post, Carr discussed how we have an unlimited amount information at our fingertips, and it’s affecting how deeply we are able to be thinking.

In order to form long term memories, we need some kind of persistence for it to move beyond the conscious mind.

But with technology, we are virtually pushing information in and out of our conscious mind, never fully retaining it.

It’s undeniable that technology has become a necessary thing, at least for the society that we live in. Its convenience, speed and accessibility are all progressive features that are helping improve and shape our future.

But when looking around at my classmates on their phones, and when I occasionally become conscious of how much I am glued to it myself, I wonder how much is actually necessary.

Where is the line between crucial communication via text message, calls or emails and harmless things like listening to music or taking photos versus how much time we spend on social media or other forms of pure entertainment?

I decided to conduct an experiment based off this inquiry. I asked 11 students to share with me their battery usage, and I was able to confirm that a significantly greater amount of time is spent on social media/apps strictly used for entertainment than any other applications.

The battery usage for Snapchat averaged at 31 percent and for Instagram averaged around 18 percent.

The battery usage for something like the Messages app usually hovered around three percent. Now, Snapchat is one example of a “game” app that is prone to taking up more battery life than any other app regardless of how much time was spent on that app, but the disparity still remains alarming.

Living in a consumerist society, it’s only smart for these media companies to try and sell their product in whatever best way possible. But as the consumers, it’s our job to not buy into everything they put out to us. When it comes to news, if we are no longer able to differentiate between an act of consumerism and information worth hearing, then we’ve lost any type of real purpose. And when it comes to social media, the apps’ strategy is to make us sell ourselves to everyone else: how can prove that we are living the perfect life, worth hitting that follow/like/comment button?

What’s important is that we are able to notice when our attention is being hijacked by all these sources of constant entertainment, and that at any point, we’re able to turn it off. We need to remember that each of these sources of information, whether social or mainstream media, are businesses first.

They may be able to consistently gain viewership, but we can’t let them alter the way we process information. H

reunderstanding hip hop music

Don't judge what rappers say, but why they say it.

Story by Torri Henry | Writer

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his is not real music.”

This is something my mother has repeatedly expressed.

Whether we’re in the car or just chilling at home listening to hip-hop music on the radio, those words never fail to come out of her mouth. However, I disagree. Modern hip-hop music is different from that of the past, but that does not make it less real.

Our generation tends to get criticized and stereotyped by older generations for the genre of music we listen to.

Misunderstanding rap and hip-hop music is a big problem in our society today. Hip-hop artists like 21 Savage, Migos, Drake and Cardi B have become fairly popular in recent times, and older people don’t understand them. They believe hip-hop and rap are ruining pop culture. A lot of hip-hop artists talk about sex, drugs and money because it’s their reality. It’s not fair to judge an artist for expressing their lives to us through their music. We should focus on the reason why they came up to the top from where they did, which has a much deeper meaning.

Hip-hop music’s foundation is systemic racism. Last month, the jobless rate among whites was 6.6 percent; among blacks, 12.6 percent.

Rapper J. Cole is very outspoken about the hardships that come with being a person of color. In his music, he addresses the negative stereotypes of black people. One being the only way

a black man can become successful is by “selling dope, rapping, or go to the NBA.” Because this belief is so ingrained in African Americans head, their mind is limited to few possibilities of success.

Out of every 100,000 Americans, about 700 are incarcerated, but out of every 100,000 black men, over 4,000 are incarcerated, mostly for drugs.

And one of the many effects of that trend is that combined with felony disenfranchisement laws, it means 13 percent of black american men are denied their right to vote. In 2010, black americans made up 13 percent of the population but had only 2.7 percent of the country's wealth. The median net worth for a white family was $134,000, but the median net worth for a hispanic family was $14,000, and for a black family it was $11,000. The median wealth for a single white woman has been measured at $41,000, while for hispanic women it was $140, and for black women, $120.

In a way, these artists have created a platform for those who have never

believed in themselves or people who come from the same beginnings they have. For example, a lot of people condemn Cardi B because she’s a former pole dancer. While that may not be the ideal job, we have to recognize her circumstances. She is Dominican and Trinidadian and grew up in a poor, Latino neighborhood in the Bronx. As a woman of color in a working-class environment, , she already had barriers that block her from being successful.

She’s exposed to things an upper class suburban person will never have to be exposed to and the only way she knows how to make it out of her struggle is to rap about it. Fortunately, her career has came out as a success.

Hip-hop artists are crying for help but we aren’t listening. Their struggles and hardships is one we take lightly, only paying attention to the cool beats of the songs. Once we can replace the negative image of the hip-hop genre with an image of seriousness, we can have hope that their struggle will be reduced in the near future. H

more columns on Dartnewsonline sleep deprivation is the real monster under the bed Story by Ella Norton Writer

everyone should say time's up

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Story by Grace Fiorella Writer page design by Anna Louise Sih

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sports feature

A.

Horseback Riding: A sport with responsibilities Horseback riding is a sport with several responsibilities. It also creates a companionship with an animal.

Story by Reagan Penn Writer Photos by Meghan Baker Photo Editor

24 February 27, 2018

A. Sophomore Daniella McCasland ties her horse into a stable so she can clean her after their lesson at Fox Hill Manor Feb. 9. McCasland rides her horse 3 to 4 times a week.

B. Freshman Meghan Williams jumps a log fence with her horse at Misty River Equestrian Center Feb. 19. Williams trains with her horse twice a week.

C. Sophomore Daniella McCasland sits on her

horse, Adele during her lesson at Fox Hill Manor Feb. 9. McCasland has been riding horses since she was 6 years old.

D. Freshman Megan Williams leads Minor, her horse, back to the stables at Misty River Equestrian Center Feb. 19. Williams tries to compete at five horse shows during the summer.

E. Freshman Megan Williams rides her horse around in circles at Misty River Equestrian Center Feb. 19.

B.

S

ophomore Daniella McCasland gets in the car, hoping to get some homework done on the drive before practice. Forty-five minutes later she arrives at White Fox Manor, ready for at least three hours of practice. McCasland walks into the barn to greet her horses; Destiny and Adele. She is ready for another day of horseback riding.

McCasland began horseback riding when she was six years old because her parents didn’t want her to develop a fear of horses. Ten years later, she hasn’t stopped since.

McCasland now has two horses and rides three to four days a week for at least three hours at a time, accumulating more than 90 hours in a two month period. Besides taking up after school time, it also requires time commitment during school. According to McCasland, going to competitions usually require missing school. “[Horseback riding] definitely is a time commitment,” McCasland said.

Both McCasland and junior Holly Phalen own horses. According to Phalen, owning horses is a large responsibility and only a portion of her time is spent riding. “[I] usually ride for an hour and a half,” Phalen said. “We do showmanship, which is on the ground, and that’s about 30 minutes. It takes an hour to pack up, brush and blanket the horse.”

Freshman Megan Williams is currently leasing a horse, but hopes to one day have a horse of her own.

According to Williams, leasing a horse doesn’t come with as many responsibilities as owning a horse does.

“Since I don’t own [my horse], I don’t have to go feed him every single

C.

day,” Williams said. “But it’s definitely a lot more [responsibility] if you own a horse.”

While owning a horse isn’t necessary for horseback riding, the rider and the horse are more comfortable with one another and each other's abilities. “[My trainer and I] are the only ones that ride my horse” McCasland said. “[Nobody] can do anything to make my horse slightly different.”

According to Phalen, riding her own horse creates a special bond between the rider and the horse.

“I think it makes you really comfortable with the specific horse” Phalen said. “Sometimes it’s good and sometimes it’s bad. It’s good because then you can train harder and you know what they’re capable of and how far you can push them, but sometimes you can be too comfortable and expect too much out of them.”

According to McCasland, horseback riding is different from other sports because of the bond that is made with the rider and the horse, which might be the most important part of riding.

“You have to have a connection with the animal,"McCasland said. "You both have to trust one another,” H

swim team bonds

E.

page design by Gabrielle Pesek

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D.

Community

Acting it out: THEATER STUDENTS FIND NEW OPPORTUNITIES Plays outside of school in Kansas City provide a broader spectrum of experience in theater for students.

Story by Annabelle Meloy News Editor Photos compiled by Anna Louise Sih Photo Editor

S

he’d been through it so many times, callback after callback of dancing and singing auditions to determine if she had made it into the show. This had been her dream since before second grade.

Rejection hurts, so it was a pleasant surprise for her to be accepted and cast in the Coterie's show "A Charlie Brown Christmas."

Freshman Mia McManamy first got into theater right before second grade and has had a deep passion for it since, leading her to participate in every aspect of acting she could find, including shows at the Coterie where she took master acting classes and other places all around Kansas City.

“I was called back for Charlie Brown, and then they gave me the full script and said, ‘Prepare two scenes, you have the whole script,' McManamy said. “It was a little intimidating at first, but I was very honored to get a message from the Coterie saying we want you to audition for this, and when I ended up getting it I was like, ‘Oh my gosh.’ I feel so good that they picked me.”

McManamy’s love for acting has

26

led her to spend hours every week on dancing and acting lessons to improve every little bit she can for future shows.

She believes that lessons are the key to getting new roles that she normally wouldn’t have been able to do as she participates in at least five shows every year.

“I train every single week,” McManamy said. “I take dance classes, voice lessons and practice acting pretty much every single day. If anybody wants to go into it, I think it’s really important to have the background, so that’s what I’m trying to get now so I can hopefully make it into a good college with a good musical theater program.”

Like McManamy, freshman Isabel Mayer has been participating in theater from a young age to build up her acting credits for the future and to pursue her dreams of making acting a career.

“Within the past two or three years I’ve been like seriously hunkering down on stuff to try and perfect [acting],” Mayer said. “Someday, eventually, I know it’s kind of unrealistic, but I want to be on Broadway.”

Sophomore Mia McManamy sings a song from a local production of the musical "Annie." photo courtesy of Mia McManamy

February 27, 2018

Reaching that goal takes effort, and to get into higher levels of acting, girls like Mayer and McManamy have had to expand their acting experiences beyond shows at STA. The most popular places to participate in have become Rockhurst, Christian Youth Theater and the Coterie.

“It’s very different because at the Coterie, you’re working with adult professionals who this is their life, so they’re kind of mentors for me,” McManamy said. “At STA, it’s more of a community based aspect where everybody’s very nice. They’re still dedicated, but they’re not as serious.”

Community and professional theater can open up new doorways for actors and actresses for every show they participate in.

It gives them chances to meet new directors and experience different

directing styles outside of those at STA. longer Prentiss and Perry listening to Junior Margaret Jordahl has auditions but professional directors and participated in at least 25 shows ever students that they haven’t been around since getting her start in "Seussical for long. the Musical" in third grade. Her long “Here at STA, you go into the choir involvement in productions has led her room, and sing a cut from the song to learn from a wide array of students that they give you, and then you come and play directors. back the next day, and there’s dance “Everywhere you go, it’s just a and monologues,” Jordahl said. “On different vibe, and I feel like that comes CYT, you show up and you sing your from the director,” Jordahl said. “Like audition song in front of everyone Mrs. Prentiss is awesome and is just who’s auditioning. Actually it’s kind of so trusting in us. And that makes the nicer because it’s not just this director show really great, and then you go watching you.” somewhere else where the directors are Although STA plays directing every single move exactly. And normally only that makes a good show too, but it’s just include STA so different." and Rockhurst With every part of theater, girls get students, the chance to branch out and meet more student actors, especially people they wouldn’t normally meet at a school setting. This can help them get used to working in professional theater or in larger performances in the future.

“I’ve met more unique people outside of STA theater because they’re from different schools obviously, and they come from different backgrounds, so I really like that,” Mayer said.

“Obviously at STA, we all come from different backgrounds, but it’s not a big variety of people.”

Besides meeting other actors, one of the most popular ways to get involved in theater has become acting camps. Both Mayer and McManamy participate in camps over the summer, winter and spring breaks. “[In summer] I went to Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan,” McManamy said. “It’s actually a high school boarding school, but they have summer arts camps for the all the different arts, and I think that was the biggest point in my career as you could say.

I learned so much, and I got to be in an atmosphere that was focused on all arts.”

With every new show, students have the opportunity to perform Junior Margaret Jordahl plays the role of Amber in and audition in front of CYT's production of "Hairspray Jr." in 2016. photo people they don’t know. courtesy of Margaret Jordahl Outside of STA, it’s no

outside plays give girls the opportunity to work with professional actors who have been acting and auditioning for years. Their guidance can help students avoid what not to do or tips to enhance their performances.

McManamy has acted in three shows at the Kansas City Repertory Theater and two at Shawnee Mission Theater in the park, leading her to work with many adult professionals on stage and eventually land roles in more professional shows.

“I would say if you love it, work as hard as you can at it,” Mayer said. “Definitely have confidence in yourself because that is a huge thing in theater. If you don’t have confidence in yourself, then no one else is going to.”H

page design by Julia Kerrigan

27

lAST LOOK

valedictorian

natalie kistler's helpful tips Valedictorian and senior class president Natalie Kistler shares her best studying tips and tricks.

Story by Delaney Hupke Page Designer Photo by Trang Nguyen Breaking News Editor

1

How do you manage your time being a varsity athlete, class president and the valedictorian?

I really like to be busy so it definitely works because I am really busy. [Playing sports] is definitely a priority in my life, but it never keeps me from doing my homework. There have been some late nights, but when I get home it’s just getting down to business more when I’m in a sports season than when I’m not. I still go to bed by 10:30 p.m., still take a shower and eat dinner. I don’t think I’ve ever stayed up on a school night past midnight studying. I have a routine.

28 February 2, 2018

2

Do you have any tips about procrastination?

I know that if I have my phone next to me, I’ll keep going back and forth every two seconds so a lot of times I throw my phone on my bed across the room while I do my homework. Then, I try to go segments at a time, do something then I can get on my phone. It takes some practice, getting in the habit of not letting yourself get distracted, but honestly, some procrastination is good. It keeps me from going insane, studying for so long. So little breaks, but more planned breaks than straight up procrastination.

3

How do you utilize your time in frees at school?

I always go to the library. I don’t have that many frees because I am in choir, so I have that extra class. So I always go to the library and try to get as much homework as I can done because I don’t want to do it at night and I think it is easier [to get it done] here [at school]. And I don’t really go to just hang out in frees ever.

4

How do you plan to use all the opportunities STA has to offer?

I'm definitely a planner, but I would say I'm more guided by my passions.

I never thought that I was going to be class president and I didn't plan it out, then the year before I was junior class rep and I was like, "Okay I guess I'll just do it.” I would say it's more like it comes along and I say "I'm interested, I'll do it," and not plan it out.

5

How do you make time for family and friends with all your extracurriculars?

Sometimes I feel like I probably value my friends too much over my family, but some days I get really planny about my time, like I can hang out with my friends for this amount of time, then I can do homework for this amount of time, I like it to have structure. I feel like studying hasn’t really held me back that much, I mean it has sometimes, but there hasn't been anything that I wish I would have done that I skipped for studying.

6

What things outside of school have help you?

My family, especially my parents, they are into the work hard, have fun kind of thing.

That if you plan your time right you shouldn't have to sacrifice anything, but you should still be able to do well and work hard. It just comes into my personality naturally.

And my friends are super supportive about me wanting to study and make me feel less nerdy. I feel like I can be a cool nerd at the same time. My coaches are very big into school and doing well.

7

What did STA do to help you prepare for college?

From the beginning of junior year, [Mrs. Hudson helped me by] just meeting with me and letting me ask her

questions and just holding my hands through the process. Then, my teachers in general, challenging me to work hard and being real. That’s been good to prepare me mentally for college. They are your friends, but also they want you to get in the habits that will be good for college. I always took all the hardest classes. I don’t know if I choose them because they were necessarily hard, but maybe I did. I guess if I see a list of classes and there is a harder one, my first instinct is to choose the harder one just because, maybe it’s like a confidence in myself, or it’s just me saying I want to challenge myself or maybe a “this is what I do” mentality.

I’ve been given a lot of opportunities to be challenged, but also live comfortably.

8

How is your routine different in the off season?

I don’t like not playing a sport as much because I feel like, during a sport season your days are more standard. I’m going to get home at six, I’ll eat dinner, take a shower, watch an episode, and then I’ll start my homework. I guess I’m not as good at adjusting to a random schedule. I feel like I have to plan when I’m going to do things where in sports seasons it’s more set out for me.

9

Do you listen to music when you do your homework?

No, I can’t focus.

Some of my friends listen to thunderstorms, or rain , or spa music.

And I can’t, I just get caught up. If I don’t like the song then I’ll go change it and it just doesn’t really work. The only homework i could listen to music with is math. But reading anything I can’t. H

page design by Zoe Butler

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ask the dart

what do i do if i want to take a gap year, but my friends and family want me to go to college?

Each month, the Dart chooses a student-submitted question to answer.

Story by Katy Rouse | Writer Illustration by Katie Gregory | Web Editor

I

would encourage you to do what you want to do, if you think that taking a gap year is the right decision for you then do that. But only you would know the answer to this, you can’t have your parents, family or friends make this decision for you.

This isn’t a question to take lightly because college is usually a big deal for everyone. If you really want to take a gap year then think of the possible outcomes that may come from taking this gap year.

Taking a gap year could seem scary for many parents to think about. The most important thing to tell your parents and family is your specific plans after high school. To many people, taking a gap year means learning more about yourself and earning money and life experiences. So this means that you need to figure out exactly what you would be doing to make your parents have more faith in how you would be spending your gap year.

Typically, gap years have been shown to be very helpful in the development of young adults. Ninety percent of students who take gap years are enrolled in college within a year of their

gap experience. Seventy-five percent are happier with their post college career.

Eighty-eight percent said that the gap year experience helped with their job search.

Taking a gap year could be a good experience, but you need to narrow down what you're going to be doing during the gap year. Maybe it’s volunteering or getting a job to put more money towards college and further education.Whatever it is, your parents will want to know your exact plan during your year off, so make sure its well thought out.

Although taking a gap year could be an enriching experience, if you're thinking of applying for scholarships you should review the conditions and make sure there isn’t a “no deferral” policy. If you want more perspectives on your choice, call the school you would like to go to and see their opinion, because it could matter a lot.

The time after high school is supposed to be yours- a time to be independent for the first time and make your own decisions.

It feels so important and exciting for that exact reason. There's a lot to take into consideration no matter what path you choose to go down, but either way the decision should be one that is made by you, not your parents, friends or anyone else. After all, if it wasn't then it wouldn't be yours at all. H

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30 February 27, 2018

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