Eye of the Tiger (Issue 13, Volume 12)

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Opinion

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Cecil Morris retiring, ending tenure as “author of RHS”

Embrace the “live” part of live music, says junior Marian Abdelmalek

Read what to watch for over the summer in Eye of the Tiger’s entertainment guide

Eye of the Tiger sports staff ranks best athletes at RHS this spring

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EYE OF THE TIGER Roseville High School’s student-produced publication

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MAY 27, 2014 | ISSUE 13, VOLUME 12

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1 Tiger Way, Roseville, CA

Students feel the AP push

BY ROBBIE SHORT

robbie.short@eyeofthetigernews.com

EVELINA KISLYANKA EYE OF THE TIGER

Since 2006, the number of AP courses students at RHS have taken each year has more than doubled, jumping from 473 to 1,064. This is partially because of a push from RJUHSD teachers, administrators and counselors to encourage more students to consider enrolling in AP.

During the 2005-06 school year, students at Roseville High School took a total of 473 Advanced Placement courses.

Last year, that number jumped to 1,064 –a figure more than twice the total seven years before, and one that represents more than one class for every two students at the nearly 2,000-pupil school.

The numbers are similar throughout the Roseville Joint Union High School District. Over the same period, students in RJUHSD’s five comprehensive high schools increased their AP enrollment from 2,432 during the 2005-06 year to 5,707 in 2012-13.

The story is the same throughout the state and the country. According to data released by the College Board – the organization that designs both the curricular framework for AP courses and their corresponding end-of-year exams – the number of high school students who graduate having completed at least one AP exam has nearly doubled both in California and in the United States as a whole since 2003. Students are taking more AP courses – and thus more AP exams – and they are doing so quickly.

That begs the questions, though – what is behind the “AP push?” Why are students doing this, and what does it mean for both them and their schools?

Administrative push According to data presented in the College Board’s 2014 AP Report to the Nation, in 2003, around 515,000 students across the country graduated high school after taking at least one AP exam.

Last year, that number was more than 1 million.

Part of the reason for that jump is a deliberate effort on the part of both the College Board and school districts across the country to expand access to the program to every student.

The Board has specifically focused on recruiting students from traditionally underrepresented groups – including those who come  AP | Page 5

Byrd tapped to take reins New principal hails from Elk Grove’s Monterey Trail HS

BY ROBBIE SHORT

robbie.short@eyeofthetigernews.com

FILE PHOTO EVELINA KISYLANKA

Due to the impending transfer of Geometry in Construction teacher Jeff Bailey (not pictured) to Woodcreek High School, the program, in which students learn mathematical concepts and how to apply them to the real-world task of building a house, will not be available at RHS next year. Bailey and Tyson Maytanes (above), who also teaches GIC, started the program in 2011.

Geometry in Construction leaving RHS

BY SAMANTHA PAUL

samantha.paul@eyeofthetigernews.com

Next school year, Roseville High School will lose one of its most high-profile and publicized programs: Geometry in Construction.

One of its teachers, Jeff Bailey, will transfer to Woodcreek High School this fall, leaving the program without a properly credentialed instructor, meaning that the end of the 2013-2014 school year marks the third and final year of Geometry in Construction at RHS – at least for the foreseeable future.

The GIC program produced three homes in its time at RHS. The first home was put up for auction and sold. The second and third homes were sold, at cost, to the Acres of Hope Foundation, a foundation dedicated to helping women and children escape from violent environments and helping break the cycle of homelessness.

RHS principal Brad Basham, who championed GIC in the Roseville community during its time at RHS, admired the program for its alignment with Common Core standards and its application of knowledge in realistic situations.

“Probably the best part of this class is that it’s an application-based course, which is very much in alignment with Common Core State Standards,” Basham said. “[The standards are] about students working collaboratively, problem-solving, doing some long-term planning and then actually applying their learning in authentic ways.”

Though Basham is sad to see the program go, he understands Bailey’s decision to transfer to WHS. “I understand why – he has friends there, it’s an opportunity to build a new

program, he coaches football there,” Basham said. “It just makes a lot of sense for him.”

Freshman Travis Mays, who is currently enrolled in Geometry in Construction, is disappointed that the program will not be continuing at RHS. “I think it’s unfortunate, because it’s a really good program and it teaches you a lot,” Mays said. “You get to learn a lot of trades and skills that can help you later on in life.”

According to Basham, it would be very  GIC | Page 2

Pathways – one year later

Electives adapt to lower freshman enrollment

BY MARC CHAPPELLE AND ISABEL FAJARDO

marc.chappelle@eyeofthetigernews.com

ROBBIE SHORT EYE OF THE TIGER

Due to the Freshman Courses of Study program that launched this year, Roseville High School students may find it more challenging to immerse themselves in elective programs. At the same time, however, RHS experienced a decrease in freshman failing rates. The program may be a contributing factor to both trends.

At the beginning of this school year, RHS administration implemented the Freshman Courses of Study program, more commonly known as the freshman pathways, with the goal of easing the transition from middle school to high school,

while also preparing freshmen for the later rigors of high school and college.

When choosing a pathway, freshmen have four options: a “Pre-AP” CP English 9/Geography and World Cultures block designed to prepare students for future enrollment in Advanced Placement courses, two terms of an AVID 9 course meant to introduce students to RHS’ AVID program, a Freshman Seminar/Health and Safety block designed to give students the tools to succeed in high school and promote awareness of post-secondary options like college, and a Positive Power course meant to support students struggling to achieve at grade level.  PATHWAYS | Page 4

After playing host to an extensive applicant reviewal and interview process that included more than 20 candidates from several states and various backgrounds, Roseville High School now knows who will lead it during the 2014-2015 school year – and probably beyond.

David Byrd, who is currently in his fourth year as David Byrd principal of Elk Grove’s Monterey Trail High School, will take over the reins of RHS from current principal Brad Basham, who will move to a higher administrative position within the Roseville Joint Union High School District on July 1.

RJUHSD deputy and incoming superintendent Ron Severson announced the district’s selection of Byrd via a districtwide email May 8. He called Byrd “an ideal match” for RHS, praising his “leadership skills, [his] deep appreciation for the 102-year history  BYRD | Page 2

District budgets add’l $6.6m

BY ANDREW SMITH

andrew.smith@eyeofthetigernews.com

Starting next year, the Roseville Joint Union High School District will receive additional funding from the state as a part of the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) program developed by California Governor Jerry Brown and approved by state legislators.

LCFF was designed to support CA school districts with substantial funding without forcing them to comply with blanket standards. Instead, the program allows each district to design a Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP) to budget funding however they feel best meets their own individual needs.

Over the next four years, RJUHSD will receive more than $6.6 million in LCFF funds, almost all of which will be used to provide support for students, teachers and staff.

To determine how to most effectively use the new funds, RJUHSD administrators recently conducted surveys and forums to ask the public for input and suggestions on how  LCAP | Page 3

INSIDE: Upcoming Events...2 | News...2-5 | Español...7 | Sponsored Ad...8 | Features...9-10 | Opinion...11-12 | Entertainment...13-14 | Sports...15-16 | Read more at eyeofthetigernews.com.

page 2 | news

Eye of the Tiger ROSEVILLE HIGH SCHOOL 1 TIGER WAY ROSEVILLE, CA 95678 EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Robbie Short NEWS EDITOR Ian Souza FEATURES EDITOR Marian Abdelmalek OPINION EDITOR Meghan Julin ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Isabel Fajardo SPORTS EDITOR Nick Espino Matt Tawlks COPY EDITOR Olivia Hillman PHOTO EDITOR Madison Macha Evelina Kislyanka

may 27, 2014

GIC: School hard-pressed to find replacement for Bailey CONTINUED FROM FRONT

difficult to find a teacher to replace Bailey who would be capable of continuing GIC at RHS, because finding someone with Bailey’s industrial technology credential – which enables him to teach the construction part of the course – would be “almost impossible nowadays.”

In addition to the issue of the scarcity of instructors with Bailey’s credentials, Basham feels that it would be very challenging to find someone to lead the program as he has. “[It is not easy] to find someone who has the background knowl-

edge in terms of construction, as well as the skills as a teacher and the personality to build a program like Mr. Bailey,” Basham said.

While Basham is not sure whether RHS’ new principal, David Byrd, will attempt to re-establish GIC, he believes that another, similar program will fill the hole left by GIC’s absence in the near future.

According to Basham, there are currently ideas circulating around the faculty about establishing either a biomedical program or an engineering program that would take a hands-on approach, similar to that of GIC. Details on what

exactly either potential program could entail are still in the air.

However, most current Geometry in Construction students are still disappointed that the program will no longer be offered at RHS. Sophomore Kayli Maddox will miss being a part of it.

“I’m really sad because I’m going to miss my friends and the teachers,” Maddox said. “[Because of GIC], I finally know why math is important. I never really cared about it, and now I do.”

(Neither Bailey nor GIC’s other teacher, Tyson Maytanes, responded to requests for comment for this story.)

SENIOR PRANK

ONLINE EDITOR Marc Chappelle

Library offers eBooks

ESPAñOL EDITOR Emma Carlson

BY OLIVIA HILLMAN AND IMÁN RICHMOND

olivia.hillman@eyeofthetigernews.com

BUSINESS MANAGER Monica Linsangan FACULTY ADVISER Bobby Ritter STAFF WRITERS Logan Ash Chase Blatnick Justin Choi Fouad El-Chemali Michelle Im Gabe Lira Sarah Looper Max Modeste Netzy Ortega Samantha Paul Maddy Pilgrim Anna Porretta Neilson Powless Iman Richmond Katelyn Rolen Nick Sapp Daniel Ryan Haylee Sex Dean Sideris Morgan Simpson Andrew Smith Canyon Smith Nikaya Southworth Aaron Souza Marissa Stone Sydney Valenzuela Breanna Weinberg CONTRIBUTING CARTOONIST Michaela Paul

The mission of Eye of the Tiger, a news-gathering organization run by Roseville High School students, is to inform, entertain and serve as a public forum for student expression.

We will accomplish our goals by reporting unbiased news while offering student perspectives in our columns and editorials. This includes, but is not limited to, prominent issues, changes and events that have an impact on the students and communities of Roseville High School.

We will strive to report with depth, accuracy and timeliness. It is not our goal to evoke controversy or sensationalize issues. We do not push moral values or political agendas.

Views expressed in the opinion and entertainment sections, columns and letters-to-the-editor are those of the individual author, and do not necessarily belong to Eye of the Tiger staff, this publication or Roseville High School.

All letters-to-the-editor must be signed and are subject to review by the editorial board before inclusion in the newspaper.

We reserve the right to edit submitted work as needed for space limitations and content. Unattributed editorials reflect the opinion of the staff and must be approved by the entire editorial board.

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Write to us at info@eyeofthetigernews.com

ROBBIE SHORT EYE OF THE TIGER

Last Thursday, members of the class of 2014 brought pillows and blankets to Senior Square during second period to stage a “senior slumber” – a prank RHS principal Brad Basham called “very creative” and let continue uninterrupted until the students were able to break the unofficial senior prank record of 45 minutes and replace it with their own of 48.

Roseville High School is expanding its library beyond paper, and into the digital realm.

The growing demand for digital books around RHS prompted librarian Lauren Zdybel to begin buying eBooks for the school.

“It’s a digital world,” Zdybel said. “It was time to join the twenty-first century. If this is the way to get kids more adamant about reading, then so be it. There’ve been requests and an obvious desire for them, so I’m excited for what’s to come.”

The eLibrary allows students to check out books, sometimes on hold, without risking late fees as eBooks are automatically returned after three weeks. After gaining access to the eLibrary from Zdybel in the RHS library,

students can log on website at any time and check out books, regardless of the school library’s hours, and even over the summer.

Currently, there are 82 books in the online eLibrary, but Zdybel hopes to add over 12 more by summer to give students the ability to choose between 100 books during the summer break beginning at the end of this week.

However, the eBooks are expensive, costing the library about $45-50 each, but Zdybel – who prefers the convenience of eBooks to regular books – finds that the books more than make up the cost in drawing more students to books.

“It’s a wild west out there in eBook world,” Zydbel said. “It’s competitive and it’s expensive, but in the end, it is worth it for the students who really have a desire and a passion for reading.”

BYRD: RHS’ spirit “hard to walk away from,” he says CONTINUED FROM FRONT

and culture of Roseville High School and [his] genuine passion for helping every student find success.”

Byrd began his career in education 18 years ago as a teacher at Cordova High School in Rancho Cordova, where he taught for a year before moving to Sacramento’s Sheldon High School. There, he specialized in US history for seven years before becoming the Elk Grove Unified School District’s curriculum director for the social sciences. Five years later, he moved to MTHS, where he served first as an assistant principal and then as principal.

“When I arrived [at MTHS] five years ago, I was the third principal they had had,” Byrd said. “It’s a very good school, they were doing a lot of good things, but I think they were just beginning to figure out what their identity was, what their school was going to be about.”

For Byrd, “figuring that out” meant focusing on three things: athletics, academics and student activities.

“I got a chance to walk in there with a good athletic program, but an opportunity to turn it into a better one – with a good academic foundation that had been established, but an opportunity to turn it into a better one – with a good student activities program, but an opportunity to help turn it into a better one,” Byrd said, “And so, we really kind of focused and worked on those three areas.”

Byrd and his colleagues’ work paid off. Each of the five years he worked at MTHS, the school’s Academic Performance Index, UC a-g completion rate and overall graduation rate – all relatively standardized and accepted measures of student achievement – improved from the year before.

Also important, Byrd says, was the culture-building he tried

COURTESY ELK GROVE CITIZEN

David Byrd, who is currently the principal of Monterey Trail High School in Elk Grove, will take over as RHS principal starting next school year. He comes to the school with almost 20 years of experience in high school education. to foster during his time there – something he felt was needed at a school that only opened in 2004 and lacked the community involvement and investment found at older schools in the area.

According to Byrd, though, trying to build a sense of community shouldn’t be an issue at RHS, which is nearing the end of its 102nd year and has a “family spirit” that was “hard for [him] to walk away from.”

“You don’t find schools that are 102 years old in such a tightknit city like Roseville that are so integrally involved in what the community itself is about, and everyone I spoke to spoke of that: how important the school was to the community, and how important the community was to the school,” Byrd said. “That’s unusual in a lot of places.”

Unusual, but, for Byrd, good.

“I thought, ‘Wow, to be a part of that, and be on that campus and

work in that environment,’ really, for me, was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that was not going to come along again,” he said.

Before Byrd applied for the position, he spent some time researching RHS, trying to learn about the very history and culture that first attracted him to the school.

Several things caught his eye, he said, besides the systemic community involvement. First, he was “impressed” by the work done by students in RHS’ elective programs – including Dance and Construction – which he says he hopes to expand in the coming years, even beyond their current levels.

He also appreciated the stability of the campus – both in terms of culture and staffing – and was excited to see a unity of purpose among its employees.

“In my interview process and my research on this school, what

I’ve found is that practically everybody that I’ve met that’s connected to this school has the common idea of helping the students that go here learn, achieve their goals, leave here and exit here with the idea of what they want to do with their life,” Byrd said.

“I’m excited to be a part of it.”

Staff members who were involved in that interview process were impressed with Byrd’s own aspirations for RHS, including social science teacher Jessica Fork, who actually earned part of her teaching credential under his instruction.

“He interviewed extremely well,” Fork said. “He seems excited and passionate about Roseville High School – and I think we need some of that.”

Byrd was also one of three potential applicants who met with Basham personally to gain some insight about RHS before deciding whether to apply or not.

Basham himself said he feels like he’s leaving RHS in good hands. “[Byrd] has a vision of what he wants to do – but also, at the same time, he wants to learn about Roseville High School, about what we’re already doing,” Basham said. “He’s not going to be quick to come in and change everything, but he certainly has the ability to make significant changes once he figures out what our strengths and weaknesses are.”

Byrd himself emphasized wanting to take some time to figure out those strengths and weaknesses.

“You can’t come in and quickly try to turn things over,” Byrd said.

“I’m going to have to sit back and talk to some people. I’m going to have to talk to some students.

I’m going to have to talk to some parents. I’m going to have to talk to some staff members to find out, ‘Where does the envelope need to be pushed?’”

However, for Byrd, being patient doesn’t mean setting his sights any lower.

“I think everyone has dreams of every single student graduating – 100-percent graduation rate: Why not?” Byrd said. “Everyone has dreams of all students going on to college – 100-percent success rate at putting students into a post-secondary experience: Why not? Those are kind of big goals, but I think that’s the kind of thing that I’d like to support, get involved in.”

Those goals are ones to start on next year, though. For now, Byrd is just focusing on learning and being thankful.

“I’ve got to approach this as a learner,” Byrd said. “I know there are several people who graduate from Roseville High School who then come back here and work, and that, to me, is an amazing thing – how many people who actually went to this school work at this school. I’ll never be one of those people, so you kind of have to approach that with respect for the fact that people are kind of welcoming me to the family, and I want to make sure I represent them well.”

news | page 3

may 27, 2014

SG may discontinue Lip Dub

BY AARON SOUZA

aaron.souza@eyeofthetigernews.com

Roseville High School’s latest Lip Dub may also have been its last.

RHS’ Student Government class is currently discussing ideas for events to replace the Lip Dub, an annual event during which students and staff dressed up in spirit wear and lined a path for selected student and faculty lip-syncers to dance along as they pretend to sing to popular songs.

The first Lip Dub took place at RHS during the 2011-2012 school year. After the one-shot campus run-through, SG representatives edit the footage taken of the event into a music video traditionally shown at the final rally of the year. This year’s Lip Dub took place Thursday, May 14, and the video of it was first shown to stu-

dents Friday, May 15.

Though some SG students believed that this year’s was RHS’ best, the class is currently working with student activities director Lindsey Parker to develop an event that will replace the Lip Dub, while still featuring many of the same elements.

“We want something that still involves music, still involves spirit, still involves the entire campus,” Parker said.

According to Parker, many students have criticized the Lip Dub for excluding many of the campus’s clubs while showcasing others, and the class is looking for an event that will display all clubs in their entirety.

Additionally, SG believes the Lip Dub may be losing popularity. According to junior Jameson Plaskett, who was on the com-

mittee responsible for organizing this year’s event, the Lip Dub has less to offer the school than it did when it was first introduced.

“We feel that the Lip Dub has run its course,” Plaskett said.

Another major complaint from students who dislike the Lip Dub is that it does not differ much from year to year.

“We try to make [our events] better every year,” junior Maddy Pilgrim said. “That’s why we’re looking for something bigger and better.”

However, Pilgrim believes that, despite the newness of whatever event the class may choose to replace the Lip Dub, many students who were fans of the Lip Dub will still enjoy participating in it.

At this time, Parker does not know for sure if the school will return to the Lip Dub.

EVELINA KISLYANKA EYE OF THE TIGER

RHS’ Student Government program is currently considering replacing the annual Lip Dub with a different event to respond to a perceived decrease in student interest and complaints about its lack of inclusiveness.

New school year to start in new way at RHS

BY MICHELLE IM

michelle.im@eyeofthetigernews.com

FILE PHOTO EVELINA KISLYANKA

RHS student activities director Lindsey Parker is currently working with her Student Gov class and other faculty members to plan an orientation-type event for the first day of school next year. The event may absorb traditionally independent events, such as the back-to-school rally and Club Rush (above).

Roseville High School will undergo many changes next school year. In addition to several new employees joining the school’s administration, the format of the first day of school may be different than that of the first day of any year before it.

During the interview process for RHS’ new principal conducted earlier this month, one applicant from El Camino High School talked about how, at his school, the first day functions as a type of orientation to the campus and the year to come, during which students are able to interact with each other and build school spirit.

RHS student activities director Lindsey Parker, who served on the panel, was impressed by the idea and wants to make it happen at RHS. “It [will] be a new transition into a new school year with a new principal,” Parker said.

Though Parker still needs of-

ficial approval from David Byrd, who will take the helm of RHS next year, she believes that the staff’s “overwhelming” support for the idea will win him over easily, based on an unofficial survey she conducted via email recently.

“The response was overwhelming … [it] was the most unified I’ve seen our staff in a long time,” Parker said.

According to Parker, about 20 teachers replied to her message, and many also visited her in person to voice their approval of the idea.

The tentative plan for the morning of the redesigned first day includes incoming students attending a freshman orientation – something traditionally held the week before the school year begins – with their Tiger Link Crew leaders and members of Student Government, while older students rotate around different spiritbuilding and expectation-setting sessions.

Motivational speaker Tyler

Durman would also speak to each class about the importance of putting one’s best effort forward in school in presentations tailored to the individual needs of students in each class.

During the afternoon, food trucks would be brought in for lunch, and afterward, students would go to their classes for 15 minutes each to receive class syllabi and meet their teachers.

Finally, students would attend the annual back-to-school rally (which is usually held at the end of the first week of school) at the end of the day as a way of trying to foster feelings of school connectedness, according to Parker.

SG is also considering incorporating RHS’ annual Club Rush – an event generally held several weeks after school starts, during which the school’s clubs get a chance to pitch membership to potentially interested students – into the event.

Freshman Anna Ostrom believes the idea to be a great way to

start off the next school year and one that will help freshmen adjust to high school in a more efficient manner. “[After summer, students] are half-tired, and people aren’t really listening on the first day,” Ostrom said. “This is a good idea because people would be more excited to come to high school for the first day.”

Art teacher Joyce Henry agrees with Ostrom in her belief that class time is wasted with students being unable to focus after having been on a long break, and also believes that students’ concentration would be better after an introductory day of more relaxed activities.

“Students [have] a hard time sitting still in their seats after [having been] able to move around all summer,” Henry said. “[Teachers and students] will be able to save instruction time [this way].”

Parker and her SG classes will continue to work out the details of the event over the summer.

LCAP: Expanded hours, transportation, tech access all part of proposal CONTINUED FROM FRONT

the district should spend the money. After hearing from students, teachers, parents and staff, the district administration produced an initial plan outlining proposed uses of the LCFF funds and presented it for public review during RJUHSD’s board of trustees meeting May 13. The district will continue to accept feedback to better adjust to district needs until it submits finalized plans to the state in June.

The district’s main goals in designing the LCAP were, according to deputy superintendent Ron Severson, to “close the achievement gap” and “level the playing field” between below-average and top students. To meet this goal, RJUHSD included a number of steps it believes will promote the development of lower-achieving students in its preliminary LCAP proposal.

Expanded access According to Severson, a need many students and parents expressed at the LCAP forums is that they often want help from their school sites outside of normal school hours but are unable to get the support they need.

To help satisfy this request, the district has proposed plans to expand the hours of current school programs that they believe would benefit students if open longer.

One such resource is the library at each school site. The district currently plans to hold each open until 5 p.m. three days a week, starting next school year.

RJUHSD administrators hope that this will allow students in need of computer access or other supplies to meet the requirements of their classes.

Another resource the district is considering expanding access to is the school sites’ College and

FILE PHOTO EVELINA KISLYANKA

One of the ways RJUHSD administrators are hoping to use the LCFF funds to support struggling learners is through the expansion of bus hours. RHS math teacher Miguel Quinonez (right), whose after-school Second Chance Algebra program at times suffered from low participation last term due to students being unable to arrange alternate rides home, is glad the district is working to identify and meet the needs of struggling learners.

Career Centers, which, under the current plan, will also stay open until five one day a week.

Because the LCAP plans are still in their preliminary stages, there have not yet been any decisions on who will staff the proposed after-school hours. However, RHS librarian Lauren Zdybel believes that students will appreciate the extra support.

“I think it’s a fine idea,” Zdybel said. “Anytime you can give students the resources they need to succeed, it’s a good thing.”

However, one concern administrators have with the potential increases in after-school hours is that many students may not be able to make use of them because of a lack of transportation options home.

Although it has not yet been implemented into the LCAP, the

district is looking to provide students with transportation home – most likely in the form of buses, according to Severson – to eliminate that barrier.

Last term, RHS math teacher Miguel Quinonez ran a program called Second Chance Algebra that offered failing Algebra 1 students a chance to retake the first half of the course for credit after school during the second quarter.

However, many of his students were unable to attend because of an inability to arrange alternate transportation home. Quinonez believes the steps outlined in the LCAP would help students achieve more in programs like his.

“I definitely think that money should be used [to increase transportation options for students], because the students failing often

don’t have support from home,” Quinonez said.

Technology Another goal RJUHSD outlined in its proposal for the LCFF funds is to increase the effectiveness of technology usage throughout the district.

To make technology a more efficient educational tool, the district is planning to reinforce the current supply of technology in intervention and English Language Development courses and to provide more consistent training to teachers on the new technology. Administrators also want to expand the Wi-Fi networks at all district sites.

RHS ELD teacher Crystal Buskirk currently uses schoolprovided mobile devices in her classroom and believes that they

help “tremendously” with her students.

“We use them across the board,” Buskirk said. “[They’re] a huge asset for beginning learners.”

Buskirk also said she agrees with the district’s plans to increase the Wi-Fi strength at the different school sites.

College-and-career readiness The district also plans to further promote students trying to their career aspirations and students being better prepared for college using the funds outlined in the LCAP. One thing administrators plan to do to achieve the first of those goals – allowing students to figure out what they want to do after high school and college – is to further support Career and Technical Education (CTE) courses.

RHS Culinary teacher Angela Ash, whose program falls under the umbrella of CTE, believes that programs like hers are integral to the complete education of a student.

“I think it’s the most important thing for each student graduating high school to be excited for a career,” Ash said.

Ash also believes that the state funding would help support her program and others, and would help students further develop the skills they need to be successful in their chosen fields.

The district hopes to address the second goal – making sure that students are better prepared for college by the time they graduate – by providing additional tutors for students who need additional help with their coursework and conducting more college field trips and informational sessions to make sure all students know what they need to about the college process.

RHS advisor Graciela Fernandez believes that the trips would be a great way to improve students’ attitudes toward attending college.

“I think a lot of the time you hear us talking about college, but if we can get the students out – actually on a campus – it will tell them what we mean,” Fernandez said.

Communication and cultural awareness A final complaint the district hopes to address with the LCAP monies is that of occasional shortcomings in communication between parents and their children’s teachers and counselors.

According to Severson, during the LCAP public forums, several parents shared experiences of not being able to get the help they needed because of either a technological or language barrier.

Reaching out to those parents will be a focus of the district as it moves forward with the plan, and one of the ways it hopes to do so is through the staging of home visits, in an attempt to make sure that parents are fully aware of what is going on with their students at school.

Additionally, to increase the efficiency of communication, the district plans to hire additional translators to help with non-English speaking parents.

RHS learning support specialist and English Language Advisory Committee participant Jenny Bang thinks that staff members – both around the district and specifically at RHS – need to be more conscious of the barriers diversity can sometimes present to communication.

“Since our school is so diverse, making staff aware of different cultures to celebrate is extremely important,” Bang said.

page 4 | news

may 27, 2014

PATHWAYS: Effect varies from program to program CONTINUED FROM FRONT

“There’s enough research out there that suggests that students being successful in their freshman year tend to be successful throughout high school,” principal Brad Basham said. “[Pathways] was our attempt to give our freshmen a strong foundation so that they don’t struggle throughout school, and that they don’t get D’s and F’s and those sorts of things.”

Pathways was also meant to serve as a foot in the door for the school in regards to adopting the impending Common Core standards.

“It’s our first attempt at trying to build in some Common Corelike activities, such as the 20% Project, which is at a much higher depth of knowledge [and] gives students more flexibility and choice and promotes creativity,” Basham said.

However, achieving these goals came at a cost for both RHS’ elective programs and the students in them. After the courses of study were introduced prior to incoming freshman registration last year, nearly all of the programs suffered significant drops in freshman requests.

Those drops forced many of the programs this year to take steps to adapt to decreased freshman enrollment – ones that varied from program to program, both in type and degree.

Eye of the Tiger looked into how many of RHS’ major programs were affected.

ART The Art 1 class saw its number of freshmen cut in half, with 44 students requesting the class this year, compared to 91 requesting it for the 2012-2013 school year.

The art program has seen many of its other courses decline in enrollment.

Teacher Joyce Henry is concerned that freshmen might not have been able to explore enough their freshman year to find a home in the art program.

“You could find a home in a place, and I think it’s really valuable to feel anchored in high school – for some kids that’s essential, but really exploring is wonderful too, because you don’t even know what you’re missing.”

Henry said.

Higher level art classes may feel the effects of pathways in the future as the smaller, beginning group of art students moves up the series of art offerings.

Combined art classes may become a significant side effect of the pathways program. Henry taught a combined Ceramics 2/3 class, as well as an Art 3/4/AP Studio Art class this semester. According to her, juggling the different curricula is difficult.

Senior Hana Zarea wants to remind the school about its many offerings.

“Visual art is just one type of art, there’s drama, there’s dance, and I think a lot of people just focus so much on academics and sports that they forget about art.” Zarea said. “Art is important because it’s an opportunity to express yourself that you don’t get in another class.”

BAND Teacher Mark Toffelmier reports that band classes have shrunk to sizes smaller than in years past.

Toffelmier is disappointed that his students cannot practice consistently year round.

“We really would like to keep all the band kids in class all year.

It’s just like anything else, you spend a lot of time building skills – physical skills – and learning more about music,” Toffelmier said.

The band has reduced its amount of performances by dropping marching band contests or concerts.

Toffelmier attributes the cutback to longer practice and regrouping periods, which is a given with fewer band members.

Toffelmier observes some

EVELINA KISLYANKA AND ROBBIE SHORT EYE OF THE TIGER

Due to the introduction of the Freshman Courses of Study at the beginning of this school year, all freshmen at RHS lost one elective spot from their ninth-grade schedules. That caused a significant drop in freshman enrollment in almost all of RHS’ elective programs and forced the programs to take various measures this year to adjust to having fewer beginning students. misunderstanding surrounding high school bands.

“When someone sees high school band, they just assume it sounds like a high school band, they have no idea how many freshmen you have, how long the group’s been playing.” Toffelmier said. “They just assume it’s going to sound like a high school band, and it takes a while to get to that point.

We spend a lot of time just working on sound.”

Junior Susan Levine notices that some freshmen make up for time lost in one semester by practicing after school.

“It kind of sucks when they can’t play in the spring, or the fall or vice versa,” Levine said. ”Some of the freshmen and other students come by after school, because they realize how much they enjoy the people, the class and just the memories in general.”

GUITAR Similarly, the guitar program has struggled to sustain healthy numbers.

Teacher Brian Hack is concerned that students entering the guitar program later in their high school years may not reach the advanced level or get enough experience performing to reach their true potential.

“I like to have really successful students, but it takes me time to get them to that point,” Hack said.

“I can’t do it in one or two years’ time.”

Hack takes pride in the students that have repeated advanced guitar. He reports that they aim to raise the bar and challenge themselves.

“Some of these folks start to get really good,” Hack said. “They do some really amazing things at the guitar shows.”

Despite current and previous achievement, Hack is not confident in the longevity of the guitar’s success at the advanced level.

“I’m going to end up with students who are well meaning, are going to try really hard, but they’re coming into the game a little bit late,” Hack said. “The time clock for getting those folks is being cut short.”

Senior Mitch Schellenger disapproves of the limitations that freshman pathways brings in terms of electives and students’ participation in them.

“It sucks, especially if you come in and you really want to experience something, because high school’s a time when you’re exploring things and finding what you like, and if you’re not able to have that, I think that’s wrong,” Schellenger said.

DANCE The dance program has actually seen an increase of numbers, with 20 more students registering for the class next than in the prior year. As a result, the Beginning Dance class will be offered in four sections for the 2014-2015 school year.

“This is the biggest freshman class we’ve ever seen,” teacher Sally Cofield said.

Though freshman Allison Palmer has had to deal with large classes, she believes it has been beneficial to her.

“It has been hard, but it’s become a lot easier as time has gone on,” Palmer said. “There are lots of people that you can learn with and they can help you, your fellow peers in your class can help you, and also the teachers are very helpful too if you ask them about it.”

Palmer had to give up taking a foreign language to accommodate taking dance, but she does not mind having to do so, doubling up on French her junior year.

“I wanted to do dance because I wanted to experience the shows because all my friends were in dance and I’m just taking French next year,” Palmer said. “I am excited to take French next year, but I don’t think I missed out. It’s still freshman year so I have three years to take a foreign language.”

On the other hand, Cofield and fellow dance teacher Pilar Steiner are concerned with the growth of their program potentially hurting other programs, particularly concerned with other electives.

“Other programs in VAPA are also in need and they are suffering” Cofield said. “We’re all in VAPA together.”

DRAMA The drama program may have also have difficulty sustaining future advanced courses. In the year prior to pathways, 22 incoming freshmen requested beginning drama. Only four members of the current freshmen class signed up for the course.

“It’s going to be diminishing returns because you’ll eventually eat yourself up, where you have a small beginning group and only a percentage of returns,” teacher Stuart Smith said. “So, in two or three years’ time, you’ll see a diminution of the advanced level.”

With limited schedule space, Smith worries that maintaining consistent practice will become a problem.

“How many continuous months you work on a subject matters a great deal? If you pick up a saxophone for two months straight

and don’t touch it for 10 months, it’s very ineffective compared to working on it a day or two a week, for 12 months a year,” Smith said.

The drama program has circumvented schedule restraints during the day by implementing extracurricular activities, like ComedySportz.

“The group was very, very solid, and it kept morale up all year long, and it was a great event for [the drama students].”

Junior ComedySportz captain Dylan Presti believes the quality of drama productions have not decreased, despite a limited number of members.

“Although we have less numbers coming, it’s the people that want to actually to stay there,” Presti said. “I think there’s always going to be the drama group, and even if less people show up.”

Next year, Smith plans to launch a sketch comedy show, which he thinks will attract a wider audience of people than before.

The limitations of pathways have reminded Smith that it’s important to welcome any willing students outside of school.

“If they don’t come in the door through the classroom, which in the past has been the primary method of access, they can still find a nice open door.”

CULINARY The Culinary Arts program is also struggling with lower freshmen enrollment. This can be additionally problematic for a program that features a three-level course of study that requires students to take increasingly demanding courses to complete the program. If students do not start early enough, they may not have time to complete all three classes prior to graduation.

“We usually have about 200+ freshman enrolled in Intro, and I think this year we have 40,” teacher Angela Ash said. “We’re feeling a pinch for sure. But, there’s still room and we’re a very healthy program, so I think we’ll be fine.”

Jackson also shares Ash’s concerns.

“We don’t have as many students feeding into the introlevel course, which then means that we don’t have as many students going onto our Culinary Tech and Advanced Culinary,” Jackson said.

Senior Brandon Yee, who has taken seven semesters of cooking, might not have taken the class if he was a freshman.

“It might not have been my very first choice that I would have chosen,” Yee said. “I would probably [have taken the class] after

freshman year. But luckily, I was able to have multiple choices and two electives my freshman year.”

However, after being thoroughly involved in the program, Yee does believe that Family and Consumer Science (encompassing the fashion and culinary programs) is vital to students’ education.

“The FACS system is really key because it includes something that everybody needs,” Yee said.

“You need food every day and everybody needs clothing, so it incorporates everyday needs for everyone.”

FOREIGN LANGUAGE The foreign language program remained largely unchanged, despite dropping a full section of Spanish 1 this year, to 208 freshman requests from 272 the previous year. French 1 saw 12 less student requests this year, but the amount of sections saw little change.

Fewer students requesting Spanish 1 this year due to the freshman pathways program made less of an effect on the foreign language program as it did on other elective programs because in previous years, classrooms were as full as 38 to 41 students.

This year, Spanish 1 classrooms were able to maintain an average size closer to 30 students.

Teacher Curt Hobbs believes that this drop in class size was an advantage.

“My colleagues and I feel that the Spanish 1 students were much stronger, because they chose that pathway, they chose to be in there and work,” Hobbs said.

Despite more students entering the foreign language program earlier, Hobbs doesn’t think it will have an effect on students’ ability to reach advanced levels. He anticipates that given the smaller class sizes, the department will be able to move along without spending as much time reviewing concepts, so students are more engaged and likely to pursue more challenging courses.

According to Hobbs, the effects of pathways are yet to be seen, as class sizes will inflate again next year.

Junior Beth Morin completed the series of Spanish offerings at RHS, and believes they are valuable to a student’s education.

“You’re able to see results a lot quicker, you’re learning a language, therefore you’re learning something applicable to everyday life, especially living in California,” Morin said. “It’s been really helpful. I’ve been able to help people at the airport. I was able to use it on my mission trip.”

AVID Presented as a year-long class, the freshman requests for Advancement via Individual Determination have increased from 50 requests for 2012-2013 to 86 this year. As a result, the course had to increase its sections to three instead of the usual two, with Kelly Capell, Emily Dodds and Amy Shishido teaching the classes.

“I think [the growth will be consistent],” Capell said. “It’s always hard to tell, but we seem to have consistently large numbers in our AVID freshman. I do think Cooley and Buljan have great AVID programs, and so that feeds into us pretty consistently as well.”

Though the classes seem large, freshman Peter Bagaoisan believes that the increased size has actually been to his benefit as a student.

“I guess [having a big class] has helped because it helped me develop better note-taking skills and good habits that I already have,” Bagaoisan said. “It doesn’t seem like a big class to me because it’s [taken over] a whole year; it seems like we’ve grown really close to each other, so it’s like a family.”

In addition, Bagaoisan believes that taking AVID will help him in the future.

“I feel like later on, maybe during senior year, I may have trouble with setting up for college and all that, so maybe it will help in the long run,” Bagaoisan said.

“It will definitely be worth it for freshman and sophomore year.”

Capell also agrees with Bagaoisan, and believes the increase in numbers is a positive thing “I think it’s great, I think students having a goal to go to a four year college should be a student’s goal,” Capell said. “If we can help them along that track, giving them good study habits, helping them research colleges, possible careers, that’s what we want for our students. We want them to have the best options.”

WHAT’S NEXT Counselor Graciela Fernandez observed increased deliberation among the incoming and current freshmen as they chose which courses to request.

“They were more meticulous in researching what elective they wanted to take, as opposed to, ‘Oh, I can take all of these electives, and throw this in there, this in there, this in there.’”

Fernandez said. “At the same time, they’re already thinking, ‘Well, I take the following one the following year.’ I almost think it kind of even helped them with their four year planning.”

Basham anticipates that with the relative success of pathways in terms of academics, fewer students will have to retake courses they fail, opening up the opportunity for them to participate in more electives as a sophomore, junior, or senior, effectively compensating for the fewer opportunities they have to take electives in their freshman year.

Although, hard evidence to support that notion is not yet available.

“We won’t see all the grades until the end of the school year, but earlier on in the first few quarters, we were seeing a reduction of the percentage of D’s and F’s compared to what we have seen in the past,” Basham said. “It was pretty significant, but I don’t want to speculate until I see the data.”

While the outcome and effect of the freshman pathways program is yet to be seen, Fernandez agrees with the general consensus among elective teachers and students.

“The more that we can expose students to areas of interest, the more they’re going to have that buy-in to school in general, that purpose of, ‘Why am I here? Is it to learn Algebra 2 or Geometry, or is it really to learn what I want to do in the future?’”

news | page 5

may 27, 2014

AP: Teachers say growth not without issues CONTINUED FROM FRONT

from low socioeconomic backgrounds and/or identify as members of a minority group – through the implementation of initiatives such as the California Advanced Placement Expansion program, which “focuses on those high school students who are most likely to succeed in AP, but are unfortunately not given the opportunity to take AP courses.”

The program, which looks to build off CA Senate Bill 532 – which was passed in 2011 and encourages all high schools in the state to offer their students at least five AP courses – began last school year and helps fund the professional development needed to launch AP courses at 200 public schools throughout the state, many of which have large numbers of students who fall into those underrepresented groups.

CAPE’s overall goal is to establish programs at those schools that will continue to grow even after the end of the three-year initiative.

The College Board has also – by virtue of its work in expanding access to the courses to students at schools that don’t offer any – encouraged individual school districts to work to increase access to their own, already-existing programs.

In response to a 2009 survey conducted by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, 65 percent of 1,024 AP teachers from around the country said that their own high school’s policy in regards to AP courses is to “encourage as many [students] as possible to take them,” and 69 percent said that their schools’ AP courses are generally open to all students.

Only 29 percent said their schools enforce limits on access (such as GPA requirements and/or teacher approval).

This contrasts with the “gatekeeping” that used to be much more common in their programs, most of the survey’s respondents said. Now, the only thing that’s necessary for most students to take AP courses is a desire to do so.

Locally, the elimination of those so-called “barriers to entry” is something RJUHSD administration has focused on since the 2005-06 school year. That year, the district underwent many changes, including the adoption of a new professional development structure, the creation of districtwide common assessments and, as is relevant to the expansion of the AP program, the development of higher standards for district students.

According to RJUHSD deputy (and incoming) superintendent Ron Severson, those higher standards meant a desire for students to take more rigorous courses and to perform better in those courses.

For many students, that meant completing the “a-g” curriculum required for entry into a school within the University of California system.

For others, it meant AP. “We’ve been trying to produce more college-ready students for about the last eight years,” Severson said. “The increase in a-g, the increase in the IB programs [and] the increase in the AP programs are all part of that.”

The district achieved those increases through both the combined efforts of a system of teachers, counselors and administrators, who began encouraging more students to enroll in AP courses, and through the establishment of better ways of communicating information about the program to students and parents who may be interested in participating in it.

The district also asked the leaders of the AP programs at its individual school sites to begin eliminating the prerequisites – including summer work, placement tests and teacher evaluations – that may have been keeping students out of the program.

“We began to peel back some

FILE PHOTO EVELINA KISLYANKA

RHS AP English Language and Composition teacher Denise Weis has noticed more and more “middle-level” students coming into her class who are not ready to achieve at the highest AP level. She says the trend has caused her to shift her teaching to that middle block of students, forcing her to neglect students on the highest and lowest ends of achievement. barriers in terms of AP courses,” RHS AP coordinator Jason Wilson said. “We decided that, if a student wanted to take an AP, college-level course, they should be able to do that.”

In addition to working to expand access since its reorganization in 2006, the district has also recently been looking into ways to make sure all of its students who may benefit from being in AP classes have the opportunity to take them.

One such way is through its recently announced partnership with Equal Opportunity Schools, a Seattle-based non-profit that provides school districts across the country with the resources needed to “close the gap” in terms of which students participate in their AP programs.

The partnership will last one year and include a detailed data analysis of the various categories of RJUHSD’s students. This should mean that, by the time the year is out, RJUHSD’s AP classes will be inclusive of all students who would benefit from taking them, according to EOS chief program officer Judy Margrath.

“The goal is that after a year, we will have provided enough mentoring and strategies and support that those students who should be in those classes are in those classes, and that the participation gap is closed,” Margrath said.

Severson hopes the partnership will make the district’s program more accessible than it has ever been before.

“We have kids who are on free-and-reduced lunch and come from less well-to-do families, and there’s a big gap,” Severson said.

“There’s no logical reason, there’s no language reason – there may be financial impediments, there may be other things, but we don’t know what those are right now, and we want to eliminate those issues.”

Severson said that RJUHSD’s partnership with EOS will also focus on students from underrepresented backgrounds besides those of low socioeconomic status.

Environmental push Though the deliberate effort on the part of both local and national educators to encourage student involvement in AP programs has certainly contributed to the program’s growth, so has something a bit more near and dear to the students who enroll in it – the increasing competitiveness of the high school environment.

According to the College Board’s Report to the Nation, in 2013, nearly 27 percent of US high school students graduated having passed at least one AP exam – up from only 17.3 percent 10 years before. For many students, that jump has translated to both a feeling of pressure to take more AP courses and a belief that doing so is almost a necessity to be a viable candidate for admission to a competitive college or university.

“Just how rigorous college applications have become, and how hard it was to get into some good schools – that’s kind of where the pressure came from, and then also the pressure of trying to get a top status, a top [class] rank,” RHS ’13 graduate Nicky Paige said.

“Most of the pressure I felt came from so many students nationally starting to become so rigorous in their course loads.”

Paige – who graduated from RHS after taking 13 of the 18 AP courses offered at the school and currently attends UC San Diego – is not alone in her view. 90 percent of the teachers surveyed in the Fordham Institute’s study said that they believe their schools’ AP programs are expanding because students are enrolling to make their college applications look better. Only 32 percent said they thought their programs’ growth was due to more students wanting to be challenged at a higher academic level.

Those students might have reason to be worried about their applications, though. Acceptance rates at many colleges and universities across the country are at or near record lows, and counselors are more frequently cautioning students that simply having good grades in regular (or college prep) courses may not always be enough to get into the schools they want to anymore.

“Getting into college has been getting so competitive that it’s almost as if, if you don’t have AP classes, I think students feel at a disadvantage, because so many other students do have AP classes,” RHS counselor Jason Bradley said.

Though up slightly from last year’s 39.4 percent, the admissions rate at UC Davis – the closest UC and one many RHS student apply to – for students enrolling in the fall of 2014 stands at 40.6 percent, significantly down from the 68 percent recorded for applicants eight years ago.

The story is the same across the state. UC Santa Cruz, which in 2006 accepted 79.7 percent of applicants, only offered admission to 56.9 percent this year, and the acceptance rate at Paige’s school, UCSD, dropped from 45.7 to 33.4 percent over the same period. Even Palo Alto’s Stanford University hit a record low admissions rate this year – which, at 5.07 percent, is one of the lowest in the country.

Severson believes the changing college admissions landscape is also partially behind the growth of RJUHSD’s AP program.

“It’s a competitive world,” he said. “It’s harder to get into schools these days, and kids understand that.”

In addition to the admissions officers at whichever school potential AP students would like to attend, there is another group some AP teachers feel drives them to enroll in the program – their friends.

“I think it’s, ‘My friends are

taking it – well, then I’ll take it.,’” RHS AP US History teacher Jessica Fork said. “’I’m not really interested in it, but my friends are taking it and are in there, so I’m going to take it because I’m with my friends.’”

RHS AP English Language and Composition teacher Denise Weis has experienced the same phenomenon.

“There is a lot of pressure from [students’] friends,” Weis said.

“I think there are a lot of people in [my class] simply because their friends are taking it or their friends talked them into taking it, and they’d rather be [in CP classes].”

What the growth means Nearly half a million more high school students took an AP course before graduating in 2013 as did in 2003.

Nearly 300,000 more actually passed an exam – meaning that they are eligible to receive college credit at schools that award it – over that same period.

AP programs across the country – including those at RHS and within RJUHSD – are bigger and, by some measures, better than ever before. The historic fear of exclusion from the high-level courses is starting to wane away, as educators expand access to students from increasingly diverse backgrounds and to students who would not normally consider taking an AP course, and – largely because of that – more are than ever.

But that expansion has not come without growing pains.

According to College Board data, though the number of AP examinees increased by about 195 percent between the graduating high school classes of 2003 and 2013, the number of those students who failed to ever pass an AP exam increased, too – by more than 217 percent, meaning that a disproportionate amount of the participation growth was from students who did not do well enough in their courses to pass the end-of-year exam.

And despite what some students think, the exams are about more than just college credit.

According to studies conducted by the College Board over the past several years, students who take AP courses do not reap any of the benefits many educators tout about participation in the program – mainly its ability to increase success in and preparedness for students’ education after high school – unless they do well enough to pass the exam.

This contradicts earlier teachings of the Board, which said that, regardless of a student’s performance on the year-end test, he or she gained something simply by learning in the rigorous environment provided by an AP course.

The studies that showed that correlation were flawed and failed to control for other variables, according to the Board.

This means that RHS (and

KEVIN CHAPPELLE EYE OF THE TIGER

RJUHSD) students who take AP courses at the school (and in the district) and end up failing to pass the corresponding exams may not receive any significant benefit from doing so – a finding that, if true, would apply to a lot of students.

Between the 2011-12 and 2012-13 school years, RJUHSD students added nearly 1200 AP courses to their schedules – but only 606 passing exam scores to the district’s total, meaning that, according to the conclusions in College Board studies, nearly half of the increase in enrollment may not have resulted in district students gaining anything from their courses.

The Board’s research is ongoing, and no definitive answer has yet been found to the question of which students ultimately end up benefiting from taking an AP course, but some RHS teachers think it mostly depends on the individual.

“Some kids want to see if they can’t challenge themselves, and I think that’s valid – I think they should challenge themselves,” Fork said. “It’s not for me to say, ‘Well, you didn’t do well in most of your classes – you shouldn’t take AP,” because what if the kid ends up taking AP and actually ends up doing pretty well?”

However, others are concerned that taking an AP class can actually end up hurting a student who is not ready for it.

“I think that sometimes … we forget that maybe we’re not helping every kid, and that maybe there are kids that are overwhelmed by [an AP class], and that it’s kind of hurting their ego a little bit because they can never quite get to where they need to be [achievement-wise],” Weis said.

Despite the lack of consensus on exactly which students stand to benefit from AP courses, one habit Fork, Weis and RHS AP Chemistry teacher Rob Mahlman share is occasionally adjusting their instructional methods to accommodate all the students in their classes, including those of different achievement levels – sometimes because they feel they have to. “[Kids coming in now] are really not prepared for the rigors of the AP class, and I think that

does change the way you teach it, because then you have to teach more to the middle group, not the high group, and so the high group doesn’t always get the benefit of the really nuanced teaching that can happen when you have a very small, high-level group,” Weis said. “Instead, what can happen is … you can get this high group and this low group that are not being addressed as well as I think they could be.”

Though Weis tries to keep her grades as close to the scale used by the College Board for the AP exam as possible – meaning than a student who earns an A in her class should end up with a 5 on the exam, a student with a B will probably receive a 4, and so on – both Mahlman and Fork said that they sometimes adjust their grading policies to meet the individual needs in their classrooms.

This can mean both offering additional retake and extra credit opportunities to students who need them and weighing how much effort a student has put into their classes as they grade assignments.

“I’m not going to bring the level of the class down to make sure every student can take an AP class … [but] I try to get every kid an opportunity to not get an F or a D, so they can at least pass with a C,” Mahlman said.

Though, as Mahlman believes, some students may benefit from being in an AP class, even if they can only pass with a C, for others – like RHS sophomore Christopher Parsons – it may not be completely worth it.

Parsons, who took AP European History this year and earned C’s both terms, was encouraged by a staff member at RHS to take the course while he was registering for his sophomore classes as a freshman.

Though he enjoyed the course and feels good about his performance on the exam, he thinks he would’ve been better suited taking something else.

“It was fun, but I don’t think I should have taken AP European History, because history isn’t my strong subject, and I think I would have done better in another course,” Parsons said. “Taking something that wasn’t my strong suit wasn’t a good idea.”

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may 27, 2014

el 27 de mayo de 2014

NOTICIAS LCAP está en revisión en el distrito

POR ANDREW SMITH

andrew.smith@eyeofthetigernews.com

Empezando en el año próximo, el distrito secundario de Roseville (RJUHSD) recibirá fondos adicionales como parte del programa LCAP (Local Control Accountability Plan). Este plan fue creado por el gobernador de California Jerry Brown en el nivel estatal.

LCAP espera apoyar distritos individuales con fondos sin normas oficiales. En lugar de regulaciones, el plan centra en la permisión para más distritos a llenar sus necesidades locales con más libertad.

El distrito recibirá más de 6.6 millón dolores por LCAP y el distrito planea a gastar 1.7 millón de este dinero durante los cuatro años próximos en escuelas del distrito, incluyendo RHS. En relación con los fondos, la idea principia para el distrito está cerrando hueco de

logro. El distrito considerá opiniones del publico de estos fondos hasta que junio. En junio, los planes finales presentarán. Para alcanzar esta meta, el distrito ha desarrollado un número de modas para apoyar la mejora de estudiantes con menos logro.

Horas aumentadas El distrito ha propuesto planes a aumentar los horas de los programas de escuelas que creen beneficiar estudiantes.

Por ejemplo, personas del distrito esperan que la biblioteca esté cerrado tres días de la semana a las 5 de la tarde. Esta permitirá estudiantes sin acceso a la computadora tiempo para completar los requisitos de sus clases. También, un otro cambio incluye la extensión de horas en el centro de las carreras y las universidades.

Tecnología La otra meta del distrito es mejorar la eficacia de tecnología.

El distrito planea reenfocar

Geometría en Construcción no continúa en RHS POR SAMANTHA PAUL

samantha.paul@eyeofthetigernews.com

La escuela secundaria de Roseville está perdiendo uno de sus programas especialmente singulares y populares para el año escolar 2014-2015: Geometría en la Construcción. Uno de los profesores de Geometría en Construcción, Jeff Bailey, estará transfiriendo a la escuela secundaria de Woodcreek a partir de este otoño, dejando el programa sin un instructor calificado.

El final del año escolar 20132014 es el tercer y último año de la Geometría en la Construcción en RHS. El programa GIC ha producido tres casas en su tiempo en RHS.

REPORTAJES

Principal Brad Basham admira GIC por su armonización con las normas básicas comunes y su aplicación de los conocimientos en situaciones reales.

Además de la escasez de instructores con credenciales de Bailey, Basham siente que sería muy difícil encontrar a alguien que dirija el curso impulsado por la personalidad.

David Byrd, el director nuevo para RHS, intentará restablecer la GIC. Según Basham, hay ideas que circulan sobre el establecimiento, ya sea un programa biomédico o un programa de ingeniería que tomaría un enfoque en las manos, similar a la de la GIC.

Morris dice adiós a su casa de RHS POR OLIVIA HILLMAN

olivia.hillman@eyeofthetigernews.com

Con el termino del año escolar 2013 a 2014, la escuela secundaria de Roseville perderá uno de su maestros mejores a un jubila.

Maestro de inglés Cecil Morris está jubilándose este año después de 35 años de enseñando en RHS. Morris enseno en cada la escuela secundarias de Grant y Rio Americano antes de su tiempo en RHS. Morris espera a leer más en su tiempo libre, escribir más – poesía en particular – y montar en bicicleta más.

Morris quiso volverse a un maestro a cabo de su amor para la escuela.

Morris ha contribuido mucho a la comunidad de RHS, enseñando muchas clases diferentes y tiendo muchas posiciones.

Algunas de estas contribuciones incluyen el maestro de clases de inglés, una clase de lista para carreras, multimedia, periodismo

y un entrenador del equipo de nadadores. También, Morris estuvo el coordinador de WASC por tres tiempos y ayudó a establecer la revista literaria en RHS. Durante sus años en RHS, Morris ha visto muchos cambios a la facultad, el campus fiscal – como la adición a los teatros de Patti Baker y JB Gale – pero no ha notado un gran cambio en la personalidad de la populación estudiantil.

Morris espera que los miembros de la comunidad de RHS recuerden su personalidad de trabajo difícil, diligencia y confiablidad.

Aunque Morris esta emocionado para su tiempo de jubila, extrañará su trabajo y sus experiencias con los estudiantes.

“Extrañara los estudiantes”, Morris dijo. “Compartiendo la literatura que me encanta, oyendo ellos hablan de poesía y literatura.”

Menefee va a matricularse en la Liga Ivy POR MARIAN ABDELMALEK

marian.abdelmalek@eyeofthetigernews.com

Estudiante de último año Maya Menefee pronto caminará por el escenario para graduación, avanzando a una universidad de la Liga Ivy. Menefee asistirá a la Universidad de Brown en el otoño.

Menefee aplica a Brown todo en línea a través de The Common Application.

1

Arturo Sotomayor Arturo Sotomayor, un estudiante del tercer año, es nuestro mejor atleta de los deportes de primavera. Él está clasificado octavo en el estado en la carrera de los 800 metros y noveno en la milla.

También él está clasificado trigésimo tercero en el país en los 800 metros y trigésimo sexto en la milla. En sólo esta temporada, Sotomayor ya ha roto tres de los récords de Roseville y ha conseguido un récord personal.

2

maddie meade

El estudiante de primer año, Maddie Meade, es la segunda atleta en nuestra lista.

Ella es número dos en la liga de Sierra Foothills en la carrera de los 800 metros y también tiene el récord de la escuela. Se anticipa

Menefee dio cuenta de lo mucho que le gustaba Brown mientras miraba más a la escuela. “[Brown fue] sin duda uno de mis mejores escuelas”, Menefee dijo. “Siempre pensé que era un tipo de persona Stanford pero cuando investigué más sobre Brown me di cuenta de que era sólo el ajuste perfecto para mí.”

Ella planea estudiar ciencias sociales.

Español la cantidad de tecnología en las clases de intervención y ELD con más entrenamiento de los maestros con tecnología.

Compleción de programas y preparación para la universidad El distrito quiere apoyar experiencia con carreras durante el tiempo de la escuela secundaria.

Para hacerlo, planea a fortalecer clases de las empiezas de carreras y contratar tutores adicionales para ayudar estudiantes con el trabajo académico.

Conocimiento cultural/comunicación Había preocupaciones en el distrito a relación de la comunicación entre estudiantes y padres.

Una razón de esta es obstáculos de lenguaje. Para aumentar la eficacia de comunicación, el distrito planea a implementar visitas a casas de estudiantes y trasladadores para ayudar padres que no hablan inglés.

page 7

Economía AP va a RHS POR NIKAYA SOUTHWORTH

nikaya.southworth@eyeofthetigernews.com

Departamento de ciencias sociales de la escuela secundaria de Roseville está evaluando la adición de un nuevo curso de economía AP. Sin embargo, el cambio no tendrá lugar hasta el año después de la próxima.

El departamento no ha determinado si el curso se centrará en la macro o microeconomía del College Board.

Otras escuelas en el distrito ya tienen una economía curso AP, incluyendo la escuelas secundaria s de Oakmont (que ofrece un curso de Macroeconomía AP) y Granite Bay (fue ofrece macroeconomía AP y microeconomía AP).

El curso puede ser dividido en dos clases, o bloqueado.

Además de econ AP, física C AP es un otro curso que puede llegar a estar a disposición de los estudiantes en RHS por maestra Michelle Walton de matemáticas.

NOTICIAS

Byrd acepta la oportunidad a dirigir RHS POR ROBBIE SHORT

robbie.short@eyeofthetigernews.com

La escuela secundaria de Roseville ha decidido el repuesto del director Brad Basham. El repuesto está de Elk Grove donde él trabaja como el director de la escuela secundaria de Monterey Trail.

Se llama David Byrd quien empezó su carrera en educación hace 18 años como un maestro en la escuela secundaria de Cordova en Racho Cordova.

Entonces, él continuó su tiempo en educación como un maestro en la escuela secundaria de Sheldon en Sacramento.

Byrd especializó en la historia de los Estados Unidos pro siete

años hasta obtuvo una posición del director de ciencias sociales para el distrito de Elk Grove.

Cinco años más, Byrd mudó a la escuela secundaria de Monterey Trail para la posición del director asistente y entonces el director principio.

Byrd trató de establecer y continuar un ambiente de cultura, alguna cosa que no vio cuando empezó su trabajo en MTHS. Byrd le gustan los programas electivos en RHS, inlcuyendo el baile y geometría en construcción. Dos programas que Byrd espera expandir en el futuro.

Byrd agradeció estabilidad en el campus y la cultura y empleado.

FOTO POR ELK GROVE CITIZEN

RHS pasaran una transición en el año próximo con el director nuevo, David Byrd. El director ahora, Brad Basham, está moviendo a la oficina del distrito para una posición nueva de servicios personales. Algunos miembros de la comunidad RHS asistieron durante los entrevistas con directores potenciales y piensan Byrd causaron una buena impresión a cabo de su metas para la escuela.

Dooley obtiene experiencia de mano en la economía POR SARAH LOOPER

sarah.looper@eyeofthetigernews.com

Maestra de ciencias sociales Dana Dooley usa principios económicos de la vida real por la venta de productos en Etsy, un sitio web que permite a los vendedores para comercializar.

Dooley vende artículos de punto hechos a mano como sombreros, tales para computadores portables y bolígrafos de flores.

Dooley comenzó ganchillo a la edad de seis años y luego lo utilizó como una salida creativa, mientras que en la escuela de pos-

grado.

Negocios de Dooley le permite hacer conexiones en su clase de economía, lo que ilustra los principios de oferta y demanda.

Dooley también tiene la oportunidad de conectarse con otros países como Inglaterra y Australia porque clientes han comprado los productos internacionales de los Estados Unidos.

Su tienda en Etsy ha ensenado a Dooley muchas cosas de económica y por eso, ella tiene orgullo de su trabajo.

Clases de gobierno va a Sacramento

POR SYDNEY VALENZUELA

sydney.valenzuela@eyeofthetigernews.com

Estudiantes de la escuela secundaria de Roseville tuvieron la oportunidad de experimentar el funcionamiento del gobierno el martes pasado en su viaje al Capitolio Estatal de Sacramento.

Maestra de ciencias sociales Dana Dooley planeó la visita de campo al capítol. Los estudiantes “Estoy pensando en las ciencias sociales, pero me gusta el plan de estudios abierto allí y tengo una gran flexibilidad si quiero cambiar eso”, Menefee dijo.

Paige Powell, maestra de ingles, cree Menfee tiene muchas capacidades.

“Ella puede hacer casi todo lo que quiere hacer porque es muy talentoso”, Powell dijo. “Ella es una de los mejores escritores que he tenido en 18 años. Ella puede hacer lo que quiere hacer.”

tuvieron la oportunidad de recorrer el capítol y asistir a una reunión política.

Un total de 51 estudiantes fue al viaje con cuatro acompañantes.

El viaje fue originalmente abierta para los estudiantes de las clases AP de gobierno americano pero más tarde fue abrió a la gente que estaba interesado en asistir.

MADISON MACHA EYE OF THE TIGER

Maestro de economía CP, Jamie Bunch, es un maestro que está interesado en una clase economía AP. Lo añadiría al menos de uno año escolar.

REPORTAJES

Addington gaña oro POR BREANNA WEINBERG

breanna.weinberg@eyeofthetigernews.com

Addington participó en el torneo de Artes Marciales del Este Modos y ganó una medalla de oro para la demostración arma corta, otra de oro por sus “técnicas de guillotina” y una de bronce para la demostración arma.

El torneo reciente se llevó a cabo el sábado 17 de mayo a Capítol Christian Center en el gimnasio de la escuela secundaria.

EVELINA KISLYANKA EYE OF THE TIGER

Este año será el último ano escolar para el maestro de inglés, Cecil Morris. Morris planea pasar su tiempo con libros, poesía y relajación.

Deportes: Los 10 Atletas principales

que ella irá muy lejos en esta temporada.

3

adam erickson

Adam Erickson es el tercero en la lista de los primer diez atletas en Roseville. Él es del tercer año y ha demostrado su habilidad constante de lanzar muy bien a lo largo de esta temporada. Él dio a su equipo una oportunidad de ganar cada vez que él fue el iniciador. Erickson resultó ser uno de los mejores lanzadores en la liga de Sierra Foothills.

4

Naomi Monahan

El estudiante del tercer año, Naomi Monahan, es la cuarta atleta en nuestra lista.

Ella ayudó a su equipo de sófbol con ganar el título de la liga de Sierra Foothills. Ella ya se

ha comprometido a jugar para la Universidad de Hawái. Durante la temporada, ella bateó .340, cuál incluye dos jónrones. Ella lanzó 99.1 entradas y tuve 111 eliminación por strikes.

5

Taylor McDowell Número cinco es la jugadora del sófbol del último año, Taylor Brewster-McDowell. Ella ha sido el iniciador para el equipo de universitario desde su primer año en Roseville.

Ella ha contribuido mucho a su equipo por su promedio de bateo de .404, anotar 21 carreras y coleccionar 16 carreras impulsadas como el primero al bate.

Ella planea asistir el centro formativo superior de Sacramento City y más tarde asistir la universidad y sigue con su carrera de sófbol después.

6

Brittani Whitten

El estudiante del último año y jardinero, Brittani Whitten, demostró su dominio con su 27 carreras impulsadas— la más del equipo. Las jugadoras de su equipo admiran a ella, según Katie Edgar. Whitten continuará su carrera de sófbol en el centro formativo superior de Tyler en Tejas, donde ella recibió una beca parcial.

7

Adrianna REAgan

El número siete en los atletas mejores incluye estudiante de último año y atleta de atletismo universitario Adrianna Reagan. Reagan compete para el salto de altura y venció el record de la escuela este año. Para lograr esta, Reagan saltó un 5’5. En el 15 de mayo,

Reagan terminó en primero lugar en los finales de SFL.

8

Kevin Tran

Octavo en la lista es el estudiante del último año, Kevin Tran. Tran adquirí primer equipo de la liga de Sierra Foothills por su temporada destacada. Él terminó en tercer lugar al lado de Ben Judd. Sin embargo, Tran guió el equipo en sencillos por todo el año.

9

Christian Habeil

Christian Habeil, el estudiante del último año, ha empezado para el equipo universitario de voleibol desde su segundo año en Roseville. Él es un jugador clave, y ha sido un Optimist All-Star y un Sac City AllStar. Habeil asisitirá Springfield College en el otoño y jugar para

el equipo allí.

10

Milana Wolsleben

En el décimo sitio está la futbolista Milana Wolsleben, un estudiante del último año.

Wolsleben tuvo una temporada muy fuerte y ella controló el tempo de su equipo de su posición como la centrocampista, dirigiendo con una actitud positiva.

“Ella madurado como persona, así como un jugador de fútbol, ya veces no se puede medir eso en goles y asistencias o victorias y derrotas”, su entrenador Paul Stewart dijo.

List a enumerada por los reporteros de deportes

page 8 | sponsored

may 27, 2014

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That was 1984.

In 2013, there were just 2,087.

Find out how Union Pacific is making that happen at oli.org.

(Public service announcement sponsored by Union Pacific)

GRAPHIC BY HANA ZAREA TEXT BY ROBBIE SHORT

Features

may 27, 2014

page 9

Venerable English teacher bids adieu to RHS

by OLIVIA HILLMAN

olivia.hillman@eyeofthetigernews.com

With the close of the 20132014 school year, Roseville High School will be losing one of its valued teachers to a welldeserved retirement.

English teacher Cecil Morris is retiring this year after 35 years of teaching at RHS. Morris taught at both Grant High School and Rio Americano High School before joining the RHS faculty.

Morris is unsure how he will spend his retirement, though he definitely wants to read, write – especially poetry – and bicycle more in his free time.

Morris’ desire to be a teacher developed from his love for school.

“I’ve always liked school,” Morris said. “When I got close to graduating high school, I realized that I was soon to be out of school. I thought, ‘How can I stay in school and hang out with friends and pass notes in class?’ and I thought that teaching wouldn’t be too bad an option.”

Morris has been a major contributor to RHS, teaching many different courses and stepping up to fill multiple positions in addition to his English classes.

He also taught an Administrative Assistance course to prepare students for a secretarial career, Multimedia and Journalism. Morris has coached swim and was the WASC (Western Association of Schools and Colleges) self-study coordinator three times for RHS, which he notes is “invisible to students but a big deal for administration.” In addition, Morris helped create and advise the production of the school’s literary magazines for many years.

RHS English teacher Paul O’Brien treasures his time at RHS with Morris and being

on the same PLT (Professional Learning Team) team, and he admires Morris and his talent for the English language.

“He is the ‘unacknowledged legislator’ of our Tiger world – to modify [John] Keats,” O’Brien said. “He is the author of RHS, and he is so tremendously gifted in his use of language that I actually enjoyed reading the WASC reports he produced. In addition he knows some really, really, big words – he has the best whisper-quiet persuasive skills and his moral compass is fixed and set upon truth and the beauty of truth in a world that often bends and obscures truth.”

Over his years at RHS, Morris has seen many changes to the faculty, the physical campus – like the addition of the Patti Baker and JB Gale Theaters – but not much change in the personality of the student body.

“Most have been changes to the physical school, like the two new two-story 900 buildings on what used to be the soccer field where we used to have graduation,” Morris said. “The culinary building was remodeled, trees cut down, much more concrete.

The faculty has changed, people come and go, but for the most part, there is not much difference in the students over the years because people are people.”

Morris hopes to have been a model of hard work and diligence, and a reliable teacher and member of the RHS staff. RHS English teacher Denise Weis believes Morris has been all of that and more.

“He’s a really respected and valued member of the department,” Weis said. “He has good insights about good literature, good poetry and how to present it to the kids. He is a hard worker;

EVELINA KISLYANKA EYE OF THE TIGER

Cecil Morris will teach his last ever class at Roseville High School this Thursday. He has been teaching at RHS for 35 years and has earned the admiration of both students and staff. In his retirement, he plans to further pursuing his passions for writing and photography. he works hard in the PLT to get work done. He is a good person to come to be a voice of reason and direction. He has always had solid direction for the department.”

Weis will miss having Morris around the school, and wishes her sons could have experienced his teaching style, as her daughter did.

“He’s been here my whole time here,” Weis said. “I’ll miss him and his contributions and his friendship. My daughter had him; my sons will be here in another year, and I’m bummed that they won’t have him or get to experi-

ence his class, but I’m happy for him to be having this opportunity.”

Though his retirement will be a break from the consistent hard work he put into RHS, Morris will miss teaching and his experiences with his students.

“I’ll miss the students,” Morris said. “Sharing with them the literature I love, hearing them talk about poetry and literature.

They make me laugh, I make them laugh.”

One of Morris’s Advanced Placement Literature and Composition students, senior Stephen Morin, also enjoyed the laughs

that emanated from Morris’s classroom.

“His class had an awesome environment because we were all close and he made us laugh a lot,” Morin said. “He let us have freedom with our poems we wrote so it was always hilarious when we got to present them, and seeing the looks on his face made us laugh even more.”

Morin respects Morris for allowing his students to learn as mature individuals, and for recognizing them as bright students.

“I think Mr. Morris was one of the few teachers who actually treated us like adults, and knew

what we were capable of,” Morin said.

Senior Sam Courville appreciated the interesting ways Morris brought literature to life in his AP Literature and Composition class.

“Morris is one of the most unique teachers I’ve ever had,”Courville said. “I enjoyed the different methods we used, doing projects, reading out loud, etc. to delve into literature that otherwise might have been ‘boring. I think he is a well-respected teacher at RHS he will definitely be missed and whoever takes his place has some big shoes to fill.”

FASHION COLUMN

Students land Kaiser Whalen wears what makes her happy summer internship

by MARIAN ABDELMALEK

marian.abdelmalek@eyeofthetigernews.com

How would you describe your style?

Just comfortable, neutral colors, that’s it really. Just comfortable – that’s my main thing. I feel like [my style] varies; there’s no one person or one thing I derive it from.

What’s your favorite season?

Why? Fall. There’s cute boots, cute jackets, cute everything, the colors of fall, just the feeling. I don’t know; everything about fall is my favorite.

Do you think the style at RHS is diverse?

Definitely. I like the diversity of our campus, and how everyone has their own look.

What’s the most you would spend on an item?

I won’t buy a shirt if it’s over $20.

Where do you usually like to shop?

I shop anywhere. It’s the same thing: if I like it, I like it. It doesn’t matter where it’s from – from Goodwill to Forever [21] to Urban [Outfitters]. Yeah, if I like it, I like it.

What are your favorite colors to wear?

Definitely neutral, this green jacket. Green is my favorite color, and black.

Do you like accessorizing?

I don’t really wear accessories.

My favorite accessory is my boyfriend Aaron.

But, just nose rings and the occasional necklace.

What are your favorite kinds of shoes to wear?

I love boots and my high-top Converse. Whenever I wear my high-tops I feel really badass, I

by SYDNEY VALENZUeLA

sydney.valenzuela@eyeofthetigernews.com

mean, I feel really cool. They just make me feel good and powerful, like I’m gonna go start a rebellion.

Do you feel like your style has changed since the beginning of high school?

No, I think it’s been basically the same. Obviously, there have been like trendy differences, but for the most part it’s the same.

Comfort over style? What’s the most uncomfortable item you own?

Yeah. Even though I’ve worn cute shoes that totally hurt my feet. I have these shoes, they’re one of my favorite shoes ever, they’re like half a size too big

and they’re flats so I can’t, like, fake it. I have to stop every few feet and fix them. But I love them; I haven’t gotten rid of them yet.

What are some of your favorite brands or designers?

I love Steve Madden shoes. Even if they’re totally ugly at first but I see that they’re Steve Madden, I’ll probably buy them. That’s really the only designer I care about.

Do you have any fashion advice?

You do you. Wear what makes you happy, wear what makes you comfortable, wear what represents you.

EVELINA KISLYANKA EYE OF THE TIGER

Junior Madie Whalen loves wearing neutral colors, specifically green and black, and tries to keep her clothing comfortable.

Two Roseville High School students were selected to be a part of Kaiser’s Summer Youth Employment Program.

Junior Joslyn Carrell and senior Courtney Davis were two of 10 students in the Roseville area to be selected for the eightweek paid internship at Kaiser Roseville.

The two students were selected based off their submitted application as well as an interview with Recruitment Services. “[The interview] wasn’t too bad,” Davis said. “It was me and two women, and they were just asking me why I wanted to be involved, and I explained my future goals.”

Davis and Carrell will be assigned individually to a department within the hospital to work in from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. every weekday.

They will spend Monday through Thursday in their departments where they will shadow doctors and nurses, and Fridays in a classroom setting to learn skills that are valuable in the workplace, such as public speaking and working with different people.

“That’s what I’m really excited about,” Carrell said. “To just know how to be more confident in interviews and public speaking.”

Davis is looking forward to the opportunities that working in the hospital will present for her future.

“I’m very excited,” Davis said. “I mean it kind of sucks that I’ll be inside every day of summer so I can’t just hang out

Junior Josyln Carrell and it’s the last summer before college, but I know it’s going to be really rewarding and helpful when I’m trying to get into a nursing program, and I already have experience.”

Davis is going to the University of Nevada in Reno to study nursing in the hopes of becoming a pediatrics nurse. Davis will be residing in a living-learning community resident hall at the university with her fellow prenursing majors.

Carrell’s future plans include studying to go into the OB/GYN field, which she has loved ever since she was in seventh grade.

“I love kids in general and I love babies and so I just want to learn more about the process of it all,” Carrell said.

Carrell is open to learning about other specialties, in the event that she does not get assigned to the department she wants.

“It’ll be cool to see other stuff because maybe I’ll fall in love with something else,” Carrell said.

Carrell is happy that both she and Davis were selected for the program.

“I’m excited that two people from Roseville got it so I’ll go into it knowing that I don’t know anyone,” Carrell said. “I’m excited for [Davis] and hopefully she’s excited for me.”

page 10 | features

may 27, 2014

Senior Maya Menefee headed to Brown

by MARIAN ABDELMALEK

marian.abdelmalek@eyeofthetigernews.com

Senior Maya Menefee will soon walk across the stage and into the Ivy League.

Menefee will be attending Brown University in the fall and that reality still surprises her.

“I’m like on cloud nine still,” Menefee said. “I can’t believe it, like, I’m going to Brown next year and it’s freaking me out, but it’s also nerve-wracking because it’s on the other side of the country so I’m going to be away from my family and friends.”

Menefee applied to Brown all online through The Common Application.

“I was pretty nervous about applying, I wasn’t planning on it so I actually applied the day before it was due and I turned it in and I didn’t expect to get in at all, so when I opened the portal online some people were screaming but I was just in disbelief,” Menefee said.

Menefee realized how much she liked Brown as she looked more into the school. “[Brown was] definitely one of my top schools,” Menefee said. “I always thought I was a Stanford-type person, but when I researched more about Brown, I realized it was just the perfect fit for me.”

English teacher Paige Powell

wrote one of Menefee’s two letters of recommendations. She believes that Menefee being accept is fantastic, well-deserved and exciting.

She plans to major in Social Sciences and hopes to be able to help people through her career.

“I like the open curriculum there and I have a lot of flexibility if I wanna change it,” Menefee said. “I just really want to deal with people with what I’m doing so I’m hoping through that I can see what I want to do with my career path.”

Powell believes Menfee has the ability to accomplish anything she hopes to do.

“She can pretty much do whatever she wants to do because she is so talented,” Powell said.

“She is one of the best writers I have had in 18 years. She is extremely talented. She can do whatever she wants to do because her ability is limitless.”

Menefee’s counselor, Philomena Crone, is excited about her acceptance and choice to attend.

“I love the idea,” Crone said.

“This is actually probably the first time in my career as a school counselor that I’ve had a student get accepted into Brown and go, so I’m very excited for her and I love the idea of her going out of her comfort zone, of leaving California. But, I think the

smaller environment is gonna be great for her because she’ll really shine in that.”

Crone believes that Menefee is very determined and hardworking.

“Maya’s always been a really hardworking student,” Crone said. “I would describe her as somebody who accomplished her goals in a very determined but quiet way. She was always very ambitious all four years so it’s always fun to work with a student like that.”

Menefee’s father, Clark Menefee, is proud of his daughter and hopes she embraces her college experience.

“I’m so proud of her and her accomplishments and am excited for her coming journey,” Clark Menefee said. “I hope she learns how to deal with adversity and how to deal with all different kinds of people. I hope the college experience will open her mind to the endless possibilities for her to make a lifetime contribution to. College will be the time of her life and I hope she experiences the many experiences that will come her way.”

Though she is unsure of what to expect, Menefee is looking forward to her college experience.

“I don’t know what to expect; I’m just really scared about the weather there because we’ve

been spoiled here in California with good weather,” Menefee said. “[I’m most looking forward to] meeting new people – the connections you make in college just last forever so I’m really excited for that.”

As graduation is drawing near, Menefee is proud of the many accomplishments her class has made.

“It’s amazing, it’s competitive,” Menefee said. “I think for the most part we’ve pushed each other to work really hard and we’ve accomplished so much as a class through just working together.”

As Menefee will soon embark on college across the country, Crone hopes for the best for Menefee’s future.

“I hope she stays there, of course, for four years and gets her degree there,” Crone said. “I hope that all her dreams come true.”

Clark Menefee hopes that his daughter will find her life’s true passion.

“Finding her true passion will mean that she won’t have to ‘work’ a day in her life because she will be doing something she truly loves,” Clark Meneffe said.

“I will miss her tremendously but am looking forward to her learning so much in the next four years.”

COURTESY MAYA MENEFEE

Above, Maya Menefee stands outside the gates of Brown University during her recent visit to the Ivy League school. Menefee applied to Brown the day before the application was due, not thinking she had a chance to be accepted. She will attend the university in the fall.

Junior Sophia Diaz to spend summer exploring science passion

by HAYLEE SEX

haylee.sex@eyeofthetigernews.com

EVELINA KISLYANKA EYE OF THE TIGER

Above, Sophia Diaz works on soldering a flower in her second-period AP Physics class. Diaz will be attending an all-girls science and engineering program this summer at Massachusetts’ Smith College. Diaz was drawn to the program because of the opportunity it offered her, and gain the lab experience that would be helpful to her hope to major in STEM fields.

One of Roseville High School’s students has been given the opportunity to travel to North Hampton, Massachusetts to participate in a summer science and engineering program.

Junior Sophia Diaz will be attending the all-girls program at Smith College, which limits its capacity to 100 selected students based on applications, transcripts and teacher recommendations.

The camp spans most of the month of July.

“It was one of the first colleges that actually accepted women over there [on the East Coast] and I like the grounds that it was founded on,” Diaz said. “I like liberal arts colleges because it gives you a wide variety of learning and you’re not just focused on one thing, you are exposed to more fields and education.”

Diaz will complete two science and engineering classes at Smith College and will embark on three field trips to nearby places such as Boston and New York on the weekends.

One of the reasons Diaz chose the summer program at Smith College is because it gives students the opportunity to experience what it’s like in labs.

“I don’t have any experience in a lab and this program offers like the learning experience in the lab while other programs you would have to previously had lab experience,” Diaz said.

Diaz wanted to have lab experience because it is relatable to what she wants to pursue in her college career, which is the Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics fields, also known as the STEM fields.

“I want lab experience because that obviously is applicable to what I want to major in which is the STEM fields and I’m kind of getting a feel for what field specifically I want to go into with science,” Diaz said. “[I am looking forward to] the lab experience; I want to get into the lab and do research because I’m pretty sure that’s what I want to do.”

Diaz believes that there are many opportunities and advises

her peers to keep trying even if they do not get into a program.

“Of course they are so many opportunities everywhere through colleges and private labs,” Diaz said. “This program is very good, but just because you don’t get in doesn’t mean it should stop you.”

According to Diaz, her parents’ initial reaction was excitement, and then worry about the cost of the program until Diaz was awarded a scholarship from Smith College.

“They were really excited because they know I am really into science, but like we haven’t got the financial aid information yet so they were like ‘This is expensive,’” Diaz said.

Diaz’s mother, Marie Diaz, is overjoyed Sophia is attending the summer program and believes it will influence what college she chooses to attend.

“Mr. Diaz and I are very excited and proud,” Marie Diaz said, “Overall, we expect the experience to help shape her decision about which college she will attend after her senior year.”

Dooley practices, applies economic principles through Etsy shop

by HAYLEE SEX

haylee.sex@eyeofthetigernews.com

Roseville High School social science teacher Dana Dooley models real-life economic principles by selling products on Etsy, a website that allows sellers to market their products.

Dooley sells hand-made crocheted items such as laptop sleeves, scarves, flower pens and mainly hats.

“I learned how to crochet when I was six and I actually started my Etsy shop when I was in the middle of graduate school, and so my focus was comprised of teaching and researching and I needed to have another means of a creative outlet,” Dooley said.

According to Dooley, one of the reasons she uses Etsy is to have a way to remove some of her excess creations and to have an excuse to create even more.

“I kept crocheting things and they kept piling up in the house and I learned about Etsy and I thought, ‘Okay, why not try this way of kind of getting rid of the stuff that had been piling up,’ and it also gives me further excuse to continue creating things,” Dooley said.

Dooley first heard about the website through her crochet group in Davis.

“I kept hearing about it; people would say to me, ‘You should try selling your stuff, you could go on Etsy,’” Dooley said. “I looked into it and I kind of looked into other shops, saw what they did and I found out that it actually is fairly cheap to get on.”

She ranges prices depending on materials and time spent on the product.

“It is mostly hats right now, and the bestselling hats are sloth hats, which resulted from a custom order which someone requested it from Australia a couple years back, as well as owl hats and hats with removable beards,” Dooley said.

Dooley’s business allows her to make connections in her Economics class, illustrating the principles of supply and demand.

“In order to connect to school stuff, having the Etsy shop is a really cool personal experience that I can bring into the classroom and teach economics and go over concepts of demand and supply,” Dooley said. “A

lot of students have experience with demand because you are a consumer, you go out into the world and buy things. I’m able to use the Etsy shop as a way to illustrate my personal perspective of what it means to be a seller what it means to be on the supply side and what decisions have to be made what affects inventory.”

Dooley also has the opportunity to connect with foreign countries, as she often ships items internationally, and hopes to one day visit these countries.

“It’s kind of depressing because I want travel as much of the world as my hats are and I even sold hats to countries in Africa, countries in Asia and obviously a bunch in Europe,” Dooley said.

Dooley has found that owning her Etsy shop has helped her greatly in both her own learning and teaching her students.

“Actually, I’ve learned a lot more about economics in the course of having this Etsy shop compared to any sort of class I’ve taken, so it’s great to have that to bring into the classroom to help illustrate concepts,” Dooley said.

COURTESY DANA DOOLEY

Above, Dooley shows off one of the products she hand-made for her Etsy shop. She first started her shop as a creative outlet and now finds it helps her teach real-life economic principles to her students.

Opinion

may 27, 2014

page 11

Live in the moment this summer, not the lens

BY MARIAN ABDELMALEK

marian.abdelmalek@eyeofthetigernews.com

As summer is days away, the wait is almost over and the time for adventures, vacation, hanging out with friends and concerts is among us – it’s basically the best time of the year.

Being someone who has some experience attending concerts and dealing with the mobs and craziness that can arise, I intend to help those who are not realizing the best part of attending concerts.

If you’re reading this and you’re thinking ‘I’ve never been to a concert,’ make this summer the one where you attend one. Go see your favorite singer or band, go hang out with your friends, go and take in some of the best moments that you’ll experience in your teenage years.

Now I know this sounds cheesy, but live music is truly extraordi-

nary. When you’re standing in a swarm of strangers, all hopelessly under the sun, everyone is somehow one. People from all different parts of the community, sometimes country or even world, come together to hear the music they countlessly listen to on their iPod, live. Isn’t it weird to think about how artists create songs to release their personal problems, but then we have the ability to relate and suddenly a song that comes on the radio has so much meaning to us? Music is weirdly wonderful like that.

Going to a concert is so much more than being front row or getting to see this person you’ve seen in magazines; it’s being able to hear music in a different way. When the catty people stop pushing and shoving for front row, and the goal is no longer to have the best view but to be able to hear and take in the music – that’s my favorite part about concerts.

I’ve been a fan of Ed Sheeran for as long as I can remember, and both times I’ve had the chance to see him my concern was never taking pictures or videos of the concert. Granted, I understand that one wants to record everything that’s happening, but what is the point of attending a concert if you don’t

actually get to see past the screen you’re holding in your face?

I attended Endfest on Mother’s Day and I was in the middle of the crowd, and the one thing I noticed was how everyone in the front had their phones in front of their faces. Though I did pull out my phone to take a couple six-second videos and call my friend so she could listen to her favorite song that she was missing, that was all I did – my concern was not on capturing the moment with a recording device.

If you think that video-recording the whole entire concert will let you remember the memory so you can watch it again and enjoy it, I can guarantee that actually watching the concert will last longer in your memory than any picture or recording device can. Out of the many concerts I’ve attended, the most enjoyable and ones that I remember everything are the ones where my phone was in my pocket and I didn’t worry about “capturing the moment,” but dancing, singing, watching and actually taking in the music and the passion that emanates from the stage.

If you’re going to a concert this summer, forget about the drama you might be met with in line, don’t worry about being in the front, take a minute to stop taking pictures and videos

MICHAELA PAUL EYE OF THE TIGER

and allow yourself to enjoy the moment. Forget all the superficial matters and take in the pure beauty of the setting in which you stand – sing to the music, dance to the music, listen to the one thing in the world that can bring various kinds of people together.

The best part about concerts

is never the pictures or videos that you were able to take; they will always be the friends you made and memories you created. Concerts will be long-lasting if you make them. So, if you’re attending a concert this summer – allow yourself to listen, sing, dance and let go of your problems and wor-

ries and let the simplicity of the instrument take you away. I hope you remember the time you got to see your favorite artist and hear the song that has the most meaning to you. I hope you are able to create memories and friends. I hope you sing, dance and laugh.

I hope you fall in love with music.

Wise words of a Despite errors, yearbook is best yet departing senior

BY MEGHAN JULIN

meghan.julin@eyeofthetigernews.com

The article below runs as a tribute to one similar to it that was written by Eye of the Tiger alumna Selina Liang in 2010.

As a graduating senior of Roseville High School, I’ve picked up on a thing or two in my time.

Over the course of the past four years I’ve made many, many, many mistakes, along with coming to realize a lot of things. So, with that said, here’re some pieces of advice that I hope helps you in the future, high school and beyond.

Shrek never gets old. A true tan is earned, not bought. Nodding with a slight smile and occasional laugh will get you through any conversation (exception: family deaths).

Dutch Bros is better than Starbucks.

If you’re trying to make a decision, ask yourself: “What would Lindsay Lohan do?” and do the opposite.

Senioritis can be caught at any grade. Jennifer Lawrence can make any girl question her sexuality. Anything you post on the internet is not private, no matter how much Mark Zuckerberg assures you otherwise. It’s never a bad time to play the Sims. There is a “sacred” water fountain and it resides in the front office, next to the staff bathrooms. Avatar is a Nickelodeon show, not a movie about blue aliens. Beyoncé is queen.

Having fourth period off is just an excuse to go out to lunch every day.

Reality TV is scripted. The most beneficial classes you’ll ever take will be electives. Twitter is never a good place to vent. Food, water, atmosphere. Group messaging is both a blessing and a curse. If there’s gum on the sidewalk, don’t pick it up – it’s not free candy. Use at least decent spelling and gram-

mar when you text, no matter who you are texting. Nestlé Wonderballs will forever be the greatest candy, in memory.

Start a bucket list. Lack of sleep is inevitable, so you might as well make the best of it. A number on a scale does not define you. By senior year you will know who your real friends are, but it’s your choice what you do with this knowledge. The only movie that’s ever been as good as the book is Catching Fire. Attend as many guitar, art and dance shows as you can. Become friends with the campus monitors. Nicholas Cage jokes will never get old. Life was not meant to be lived behind a computer screen.

Do anything with confidence and no one will doubt you. Curiosity may’ve killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back. Spoilers are unforgivable. Be as happy as a bird with a french fry. Pity the conceited.

A sense of humor will get you through anything. Netflix documentaries are where it’s at.

If you get the chance, take Guitar class. Just because it zips, doesn’t mean it fits. You’re a role model to someone. In-N-Out is always a good idea. You will never finish a tube of chapstick.

Belting out “Take Me Home Tonight” when it comes on the radio is just human nature. It’s always a good idea to get in shape, in case of a zombie apocalypse.

A little rebellion is always healthy. Take at least one period off during the course of your senior year, you deserve it. Invest in a good pair of running shoes. Never leave a Marvel movie before the end of the credits. “Bae” is a term for male genitalia in Italian. People will surprise you. John Mayer Pandora station. Save energy drinks for emergency days only. Those who graduated high school before the time of Google and Wikipedia are inspirations. If you still watch American Idol, why? Foreign exchange students are some of the greatest people you will ever meet.

Make it a great day, or not – the choice is yours.

BY KATELYN ROLEN

katelyn.rolen@eyeofthetigernews.com

This year’s yearbook has a white cover and it’s magic.

In all my years here at RHS, which has felt like 40 instead of four, the yearbook covers have been traditionally black aside from that one dark year where the entire thing was themed like an iPad. But we won’t think about that if we don’t have to.

Let’s focus on this year. This year features a pure white cover with a picture of a tiger broken up into

four puzzle pieces. Underneath the book is titled “2014 pieces,” which I felt was appropriate because my will to do any work has also fallen to over 2,000 pieces.

In addition to the cover, the rest of the book is categorized into puzzle-like sections, with my favorite being the senior section which is titled “Final pieces of the puzzle.” Not only was this a heavily themed yearbook with the focus on puzzle pieces, but the theme wasn’t terrible.

The Yearbook class took a real gamble with focusing so much on the theme, but I think it really paid off because it’s not something that’s going to wear out with time, such as the year of the iPad. I also noticed that all the underclassman photos were really condensed this year, and I know it sounds a little selfish, but I liked that because it made room for more senior-oriented pages.

It’s my year, so I of course will be a bit biased in that respect, but

the more attention we can draw to the Class of 2014, the better.

Sorry to all the underclassmen, but it is what it is (I’m not sorry).

But with all the positives in the yearbook, there’s no way that I could avoid mentioning the mistakes as well. And there are many made here so be patient with me.

I will start with the one that offended me the most, which was that one senior had accidental quotation marks printed on her forehead in her senior picture. That is not okay, that was printed into every issue and that was her senior portrait in her last high school yearbook, and apparently no one cared enough to go back through and correct that very fixable mistake.

In addition to that, the AVID page itself was completely mislabeled with pictures that did not match the names listed.

In the index my name was listed as Jaime Rolen – my name isn’t Jaime. Aside from that was

the numerous but traditional misspelling of names, and not to mention a number of omitted senior quotes that were not included, and for no apparent reason.

However, all in all, mistakes considered, this is one of the better yearbooks I have seen at RHS. I really enjoyed the white cover, theme and layout of the yearbook and I am happy that my last yearbook looks the way it does.

For the future years, though, attention to detail would be key to avoid the kind of mistakes that were made in the yearbook this year.

Just simple checking could have resolved a lot of these issues and if anything, special attention should be made to the senior section with respect to their seniority and the fact that this is the yearbook they will save and show their children and grandchildren someday.

Aside from these errors, I think that this year’s yearbook is a true stylistic success.

Senior year: the expected and unexpected

BY SAMANTHA PAUL

samantha.paul@eyeofthetigernews.com

Now that there are only three days left of high school, the fact that the seniors’ lives are about to change is poignant in my mind. It is hard to believe that the Class of 2014 will no longer be in high school by the end of the week, we will be going our separate ways.

At this point in the year, school days are halfway spent rejoicing that we will not have to return next year, and half spent being palpably nostalgic with friends.

A lot has changed since my first day at Roseville High School, not only for me, but for the school.

Even more so, a lot has changed since my first day of senior year at Roseville High School.

When I first entered senior year,

I had a very warped idea of what to expect, based on a mixture of personal observation of previous classes and a pop culture-generated image of what senior year was supposed to be like. I knew that it would be full of exciting senior events, many heart-wrenchingly bittersweet “lasts,” and copious amounts of time spent with friends, to name a few. After spending my last year at Roseville High School, I would like to reflect on some of the events that I had expected, and some that I could never have prepared for.

I knew that Senior Sunrise was going to be teeming with pink tshirt-clad girls, excited to take pictures on the newly painted (in our case, freshly vandalized) Senior Wall. I expected the rivalry between the Class of 2014 and the Class of 2015 to become heavily prominent at rallies, which it did.

I realized that our last Homecoming was going to be one of the best. I knew that Casaba was going to be one of the most amazing nights of the year. I understood that classes weren’t going to get any easier just because it was senior year. I expected Senior Ball to become one of my

favorite high school memories.

I expected there to be great music and great company at the last outdoor dance, and I expected there to be tangible sadness as the Class of 2014 watched our blue and orange balloons drop.

I was not fully prepared for the overwhelming stress that fell upon the Class of 2014 as soon as college applications opened in the fall. I did not realize that most of my spare time would be spent rereading my personal statement in an attempt to craft perfection.

I never thought that the juniors would paint our parking lot purple (but that’s water under the bridge at this point, I suppose). I did not expect senioritis to begin so soon, or to escalate as quickly as it did, leaving my motivation as depleted as RHS’ muffin count in the vending machines. I could never have imagined the stress I felt waiting for responses from colleges and universities, which would dictate where I would spend the next four years of my life. I did not expect the typically familiar faces in the halls of RHS to fill with younger, unknown people.

I did not expect to meet so many people that I would’ve wished I

had become friends with sooner. I never knew how ridiculously ambivalent I would become during the last two weeks of school; stuck somewhere between wanting to stay and being ready to leave.

To sum it up, senior year is not something that can be explained, it has to be lived. There is no way to describe the emotions and the challenges that will be faced, especially not in something as brief as a newspaper article. What I can say is, to the Class of 2015, live in every moment, participate in every way possible and enjoy each and every second spent with your friends, because while it may seem distant, graduation arrives much quicker than you may think.

To the Class of 2014, we did it.

It has been an amazing four years at Roseville High School, and I would not have wanted to spend it with any other group of people.

Ultimately, it is quite apparent that senior year was the best year of high school through every memory and every moment.

Although it was full of unanticipated challenges and moments that I was entirely unprepared for, it lived up to every expectation that I had.

opinion | page 12

may 27, 2014

Nutritious school meals’ mission has gone too far

BY AARON SOUZA

aaron.souza@eyeofthetigernews.com

MICHAELA PAUL EYE OF THE TIGER

The year was 2010. Barack Obama signed the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act into law. School lunch as we knew it was being destroyed. People flooded the streets. Monsters invaded cities.

Then, all was quiet. We thought we were safe. If only we had done something, we could have avoided this terrible tragedy – but it’s too late. The impossible has happened. Thanks to these regulations, our muffins are being removed from the school vending machines.

In this dark time, many of us would have leaned on Pop-Tarts for support, that is, if they still existed. They’re now sold in packs of one instead of two, and for only 25 cents less. Not to mention, they’re whole-grain. I prefer to call the snack an Almost-Pop-Tart.

And now we all stand in the

burning wreckage that is reality. You can’t even buy a nice snack anymore without ending up with a quarter in change.

Who wants a quarter jingling and jangling around in their pockets? Let’s be honest, we’ve all lost more quarters than we’ve spent. Personally, I like to throw my change at things. Mostly people. And that’s just a waste.

All joking aside, it’s insulting that our health could be taken control of. Whose business is it if I like to have a muffin every now and then? Why can’t I have a few Pop-Tarts after class?

At what point was I no longer in charge of my own snacks?

Let’s start by breaking down who’s affected by this change — firstly, we have the school’s healthy consumers of muffins and Pop-Tarts. Since the change, they’re slightly angrier and more stressed out. Believe it or not, muffins are therapeutic. Anyone who tells you differently has probably never had a muffin before. Plus, their health was already fine, meaning this change has done nothing for them.

Then, we have the unhealthy consumers of muffins and PopTarts. They’re angry, but at least they won’t be destroying themselves, right? This would

be true, except that muffins are quite the popular breakfast item.

The muffin industry is a vast and powerful beast. You may try to run but it will catch you.

They sell muffins everywhere.

I once bought a muffin at Home Depot. Believe me: they’re not going to stop eating muffins.

Now, let’s evaluate the immediate effects of this decision.

Firstly, we’re going to see a lot of people bringing muffins and Pop-Tarts from home. Secondly, students are going to be upset that their favorite breakfast snacks are gone. Finally, the stress will build up until we all drop out of school to join the circus. Keep in mind, these are only predictions.

It scares me to think of the steps after this. First they tell us what to eat, and then they’ll tell us what to think. Pretty soon, we’re drones. It’s like Nazi Germany all over again.

Not to push the comparison too far, but we live in America.

In this country, adults can choose whether or not to be unhealthy or obese. This isn’t about muffins; this is about freedom — the freedom to eat whatever we want.

But personally, I’ll never forgive them for what they did to Pop-Tarts. They were my favorite.

classes this year were the easiest they will ever be. As boring as it is sitting in a classroom hearing about how to not smoke marijuana, classes like Health and Safety should not have posed much of a challenge. In the next few years, classes will require effort and you will actually have to turn in assignments to pass classes. And if you blazed through freshman year and are anxious to do the same in the AP courses, possibly you and many others will be surprised to find that A’s will not come as easily as they used to.

Although I myself am a freshman and have not taken any of the AP classes, it is not hard to hear of their difficulty. Hearing the stories of intelligent students rocked by AP Euro and other classes, it has made me reconsider my choice of classes in the future. This has been a large reason why I have chosen to not stress over this year.

While freshman may not have the “glamour” of being an upperclassman, freshman year has its own atmosphere around events that can never be repeated: walking on campus for the first time, going to your first football game, Homecoming. These events will not have the same excitement

around them as they did this year for the rest of high school.

But above the other benefits of freshman year, getting involved in some impactful electives has been the most enjoyable for me. Most freshmen tend to sign up for a foreign language and some other type of VAPA that interests them slightly more than the others.

However, this year, I took both Student Government and Journalism (obviously). While I may have not knocked out some of my graduation requirements, I have received something else from them. Both of these electives and others like them give a purpose to high school outside of the regular education that seems to not be present in some other students. Getting to interact with upperclassmen and go through these electives is definitely worth the commitments to the programs.

Going through high school just for the education can be very monotonous, and I am glad that I will have these electives to continue with through high school.

Although I realize that not everyone in high school has been involved, these have been the most enjoyable parts of my year whether you take them to heart or not.

Electives are just as crucial to a student as academics Reflecting on freshman year

BY JUSTIN CHOI

justin.choi@eyeofthetigernews.com

One thing that I looked forward to when entering high school for the very first time was the class selection. There were so many compared to middle school and many more periods in which to take them. I took Marching Band for the next four years, along with a handful of other elective classes alongside all of my academic classes as well. It was part of the wonder of freshman year that I experienced. However, this year’s freshmen, and those to come, do not get to experience such.

As many know, the new freshman pathways program was implemented this year – purportedly to better prepare students with high school life. It included classes as parts of freshman pathways and pre-AP. Now, it is important to try new things in order to find new ways to help students in their education, but it is equally as important to recognize that certain ways are more damaging than others.

What pathways started, before students even step foot onto the campus, was limiting the amount of elective classes they could take by putting in mandatory freshman pathways

classes in their schedules. Some may find this simple and harmless, but elective classes need freshmen to grow and prosper.

Many freshmen, like my old self, tried at least one class that seemed unique and interesting. These classes that they take often lead them to continue to take the class if they enjoyed it, or try something else next time.

However, with freshman pathways, that mentality to try new things has changed into simply fitting in that one foreign language to fulfill the a-g requirements of colleges. This cuts off the “initial class experience” of an elective and prevents continued support for the programs.

But what about the next years?

Can’t they just take electives then?

Well, can’t they? Technically, yes, they can, but it is well known by informed freshmen and us academic veterans that sophomore and junior year are the years that students are pressured into taking the most challenging and GPA boosting classes one can find.

With AP this and AP that, who has time for guitar or culinary?

When studying for the SATs and ACTs, why would someone take Woodshop or Art? This is the kind of mentality that flows throughout students during this time and makes it much harder to take that first step in picking up and instrument and marching or wielding a brush and painting. By the time students have progressed through their tenth and eleventh-grade years, the elective courses will have lost the potential students they could have had from three years back.

I myself have taken Marching Band for all four years of my high school career and was the Drum Major for my fourth.

Marching band requires much time as there were Monday night practices and Saturday competitions. I put time and effort into the band while laboring through the various AP classes and the ACTs. Some people would look at such as a “waste of time.” They would ask questions like, “Why not have used that time to just take more classes and boost your academic record even higher?” There are many who do not realize how useful such creative classes are.

What many high-end colleges also look for are traits and characteristics that are simply not taught in purely academic classes.

I, myself, was accepted into University of California, Davis, and in these times of an increasingly competitive race to be accepted into colleges, I know without a doubt in my mind that Marching Band played a very heavy role in my acceptance. That program allowed me to put traits onto my application that I otherwise would have lacked as they were not one that could be instilled in any AP classes. I am not the only one to have that aid me in my future educational endeavors. The band has seen members go to Berkeley, Notre Dame and Stanford.

Students, as well as those supporting them, must be aware that electives are some of the most important classes in high school, whether it is for the sake of new experiences or to help out in college admittance. They are not to be taken for granted.

Time after AP testing is a waste

BY NICK SAPP

nick.sapp@eyeofthetigernews.com

AP testing has finally come to an end and, yet, we still have school.

Each year, the College Board has their AP testing during a certain two weeks in early May.

However, these two weeks are a few weeks prior to the end of the school year, leaving a lot of free time after testing. This causes a downright waste of time.

In my case, I was in AP Language and Composition during the second semester, and we were forced to cram all the content into a shorter period of time than that of the first semester in order to get ready for the test. Our class had to rush through learning how to write certain essays and getting practice for the multiple choice.

In the end, the class got through everything, but you always had a feeling of being rushed.

Now that the AP classes have finished their tests, it has be-

come free time for the students.

Although this is fun, it seems that instead of watching movies or whatever else, the time could have been spent on getting better for the test if they pushed the AP tests back by a week or two.

The test dates are the same around the country, even where schools get out a few weeks later then us. Even though the amount of free time after testing doesn’t affect us as heavily as some other schools, it just shows the flaws in the AP testing system.

Overall, the test-makers should reevaluate the test dates, and create a date where it is beneficial to all students learning and preparation for the AP test.

BY ANDREW SMITH

andrew.smith@eyeofthetigernews.com

Freshman year is often considered to be a lost year to upper classmen looking back at high school and to current freshmen craving the “benefits” of sophomore year. Sophomore year for some reason seems to offer a false beacon of hope for these people looking forward to driving and not being looked down upon as a freshman. The reality behind freshman year is that it is not meant to be a stressful or decisive year. It is designed to offer a smooth transition to the high school atmosphere and give direction through the rest of grade school. Believing this, I have taken this year at a slow, relaxed pace and I encourage others down the line to do the same.

As far as academics go, the

Lip Dub brings out best in RHS

BY LOGAN ASH

logan.ash@eyeofthetigernews.com

The 2014 Roseville High School Lip Dub was one of the best experiences of my high school career for a variety of reasons, but there was one that ultimately stood out to me. The amount of overwhelming school spirit that flooded into every single hall and the piercing cheers that rang out as the camera crews rolled through the historic hallways was amazing. It is events like this that make me feel so fortunate to be surrounded by such a great spirited school, along with having such widespread participation in an event like this.

Many other schools have done Lip Dubs, but in my pro-

fessional opinion, none of them come even close to the pure talent that our spectacular school offers. From Mrs. Walton and Mr. Stewart singing “Best Day of My Life” to Beth Morin and Eric Tyukayev rapping “Can’t Hold Us,” I am reminded of the widespread talent that our school has to offer, from our outstanding faculty to each and every student that walks these very halls.

The thing that shocked me the most is how Student Government was able to pull of the Lip Dub, final rally, Ton-O-Sun and the Summer Set Fest without a hitch, all in a matter of two short days. A lot of the student population does not realize the difficulty of planning all of these events in a short time frame with the success that it ultimately obtained in having a good time and bringing the school closer together.

If our school did not offer certain classes like Student Government, Yearbook and Journalism, then this school would be disorganized and misinformed about major events happening in our historical school The people that really upset me

are the ones that complain about every little mistake that they find in the yearbook, newspaper or minor hiccup in the planning of an event. Every single time someone complains, it’s always a student who is not involved in any part of the school and those who do not put themselves out there and try to have fun at this school. In addition, all of the editors and leaders of the events put an insane amount of time into producing the final product, and it is just sad to see how someone can tear one of their fellow classmates down so quickly just because they are too ignorant to realize how difficult of a job the person truly has.

The Lip Dub that we have had for three years now has gotten increasingly better and better due to the participation of our school, but also because of the countless hours that Student Government has out into planning and practicing the Lip Dub, and is why it turned out so great. However, no one recognizes the real hero – Maddy Pilgrim – for taking the reins of the Lip Dub with full force and making it the best one yet. So, thank you.

Entertainment SUMMER IN PREVIEW

page 13

may 27, 2014

Although this will be the last entertainment issue of the school year, we still want to keep you updated on the biggest summer releases and products. Juniors Isabel Fajardo and Michelle Im have compiled a list of things to look forward to this summer, including the movies, concerts and fairs that will be sure to entertain over the break

SNACKS

MOVIES

Apple Pie a la Mode ($5.95) PINKBERRY - The blend of hot and cold worked surprisingly well in this concoction.

The hot apple pie was enough to warm your heart, but not enough to overheat you during the hot weather, and the crunchy, granola-esque crust tasted like brown sugar and added a nice touch. Beware: the syrup at the end of the dessert was too sweet for even me to handle.

RASPBERRY SWIRL POUND CAKE ($4.29) Starbucks - The moist cake was soft to bite into and a great refresher for the summer. The pastel colors added a nice touch of femininity to the treat and confirmed my bias to pink products.

The sweet glaze packed a sweet, almost tart punch as well.

Sonic -- Watermelon Slush with

PINA COLADA FRUIT REFRESHER ($4.29)

THE FAULT IN OUR STARS (6/6)

22 jUMP STREET (6/13)

TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION (6/27)

Adapted from the book, The Fault in Our Stars follows Augustus Waters (Ansel Elgort) and Hazel Grace (Shailene Woodley), who find each other at Cancer Kid Support Group. Though Hazel Grace describes herself as a “ticking time bomb,” they both find it hard to keep away from each other. Inevitably going to be as heartbreaking as the book, The Fault in Our Stars tells the story of Hazel and Augustus finding their little infinity.

Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill are back in a sequel to the ever-popular 21 Jump Street. Instead of high school, this time the duo is set to crash into college and take down a drug ring. Bound to be full of laughter and crude humor, 22 Jump Street is the perfect movie for anyone who enjoyed the first movie or just wants a good laugh.

The Transformers series continues with Transformers: Age of Extinction, taking place four years after its predecessor. But Earth’s peace does not last forever as Cade Yeager (Mark Wahlberg), a mechanic – how convenient – and his daughter, Tessa Yeager (Nicola Peltz), discover a comatic (deactivated) Optimus Prime.

The shocking sight brings in a storm of Autobots, Decepticons and government agencies in another action-packed film.

JUPITER ASCENDING (7/18)

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY (8/1)

THE EXPENDABLES 3 (8/15)

Jupiter Jones (Mila Kunis) has a chance meeting with Caine Wise (Channing Tatum), whose only purpose is to expose Jupiter’s lineage. Unbeknownst to her, Jupiter is actually the sole heir to Earth and has garnered many enemies. Jupiter Rising has the potential to become a sci-fi romance film worth remembering.

Though not as well-known as the other Marvel series, Guardians of the Galaxy is a movie that follows the comic of the same name. Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) is forced into a rag-tag group of misfits after stealing an orb, who then try to escape from the villainous Ronan. Following the usual Marvel equation of humor mixed in with lots of action, the movie is bound to be the perfect action movie this summer.

A combination of old and new, The Expendables 3 features a variety of characters to make up the Expendables, a mercenary group. And in a twist of fate, they go up against cruel arms dealer Conrad Stonebanks (Mel Gibson), the former co-founder of the Expendables. Drama and action is sure to entice.

Jamba Juice - Just like the name says, this pinapple-coconut drink was definitely refreshing, and had chunks of pinaepple in the smoothie. The coconut water had a surprisingly strong presence in the drink and I found myself wanting to drink more even when I had finished it.

NEAPOLITAN CUPCAKE ($3.00) Icing on the Cupcake Icing on the Cupcake never fails with their cupcakes, and this one definitely takes the cake. Underneath the strawberry frosting (that did not taste artificially flavored), sat a chocolate ganache.

The combination of chocolate, vanilla and strawberry reminded me of the Neapolitan ice cream sandwiches I had as a kid and is just perfect for summer.

WATERMELON SLUSH WITH NERDS ($3.84) Sonic - This drink is a dream come true with just the right amount of slushiness and syrup that just dissolves in your mouth.

The nerds added a nice subtle hint of crunchiness after a couple of slurps, not too much to feel weird nor too little to feel that you lost your money’s worth.

Besides, there is always the halfoff sale. And it was true to its name; honesty is always the best option when it comes to food as is candy. Yay, nerds!

RESTAURANTS

STRAWBERRIES & cREAM BUNDLET ($3.99) NOTHING BUNDT CAKES Perfect for summer, the strawberries & cream bundlet is perfect for a sweet summer. Like any other of their bundt cakes, the dough is impeccably soft. Their trademark frosting is still as tasty as ever, however I must warn you: the cake itself is very, very sweet.

PIZZAIOLO

KRUSH BURGER

Famous for its wood-fired pizzas, Pizzaiolo hails from the local city of Colfax.

Located near the Blue Oaks movie theater, this place will be the perfect bite before or after a movie. Though it was set to open up in March, and then pushed back to May, they will open this summer.

Krush Burger is known for its sweet potato tater-tots as well as their popular ninja burger, which has Korean short ribs as the main source of meat. Though it is only accessible through its restaurants in Davis and Sacramento, over the summer the business will open a restaurant in the Roseville Galleria Mall.

QUICKLY Having a few restaurants already in Sacramento, Quickly is set to open in the Roseville Galleria Mall. Quickly specializes in Asian foods, including the popular boba tea. In addition to drinks, the restaurant will also have various dishes, such as eggrolls and an intriguing dish called an egg puff.

page 14 | entertainment

may 27, 2014

ALBUMs

passenger whispers

lana del rey ultraviolence

DEADMAU5 WHILE(1<2)

ed sheeran X

Back with his sad, melancholy songs, Passenger is releasing his fifth album over the summer. Though many of the songs mirror the ever-popular “Let Her Go” in terms of music style and subject matter, Passenger said that Whispers is one of the most ‘up’ albums he has ever created. The lead single, “Hearts on Fire,” was released last April.

Known for her ability to transcend different vocal ranges, Lana Del Rey is back with her sophomore album. Described as ‘stripped down,’ the dark elements will most likely still be prevalent throughout.

The leading single from this album is “West Coast,” released last April.

Electronica artist Joel Zimmerman – better known as Deadmau5 – will soon release his seventh album after many complications, including having many songs deleted from his SoundCloud account. This double album contains a shocking 25 songs and a continuous mix for each disc.

Three very long years later, Ed Sheeran is set to release his new album X, pronounced “multiply.” Sheeran claimed to have written hundreds of songs and narrowed it down to 15 to put on the album.

Though he has not released the actual album yet, he has played many songs off the album during concerts. “Sing” is the lead single.

“Whispers” is set to release on 6/9

“Ultraviolence” is set to release on 6/13

“while(1<2)” is set to release on 6/17

“X” is set to release on 6/27

FAIRS

CONCERTS MOONSHINE JUNGLE TOUR Bruno mars

placer county fair (6/19 - 6/22)

Promoting his second album, Unorthodox Jukebox, Bruno Mars is to perform songs from that album, as well as some hits from his last. Aloe Blacc, the uncredited singer of “Wake Me Up” by Avicii, will be his support act.

The concert begins at 8 p.m. at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, CA, on 5/28.

COURTESY J. PATRIC SCHNEIDER/MCT

COURTESY PLACER COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS

The Placer County Fair is often overlooked, especially in contrast with the state fair. However, themed as a “Summer Beach Party,” there are various contests, shows, local business that are displayed during the fair. In addition, there’s a lot of food and rides for anyone who does not want to drive out to Sacramento to indulge on delicious fair food.

THE ARTPOP BALL LADY GAGA

Set to perform in support of new album ARTPOP, Lady Gaga is sure to wow with her intense array of costumes and riveting stage presence.

In addition, she will be supported by independently notable artists Hatsune Miku and Lady Starlight.

california state fair (7/11 - 7/27)

The concert begins at 7:30 p.m. at the SAP Center in San Jose, CA, on 6/3.

COURTESY JAY JANNER/MCT

ONEREPUBLIC NATIVE SUMMER TOUR ONE REPUBLIC/the script OneRepublic’s Native Summer Tour is ready to showcase their pop songs – including the hit single “Counting Stars” – from their new album. Other notable artists to perform with them include The Script and American Authors.

The concert begins at 7 p.m. at the Sleep Train Ampitheater in Wheatland, CA, on 6/8.

COURTESY SOUNDSPIKE AND HARRY WAD

COURTESY CALIFORNIA STATE FAIR

The California State Fair is a perfect way to spend the summer, especially since there’s nothing to do. The State Fair is home to over 70 thrill rides and countless exhibits and booths. The best day to go is Tuesday, which is Wells Fargo Kids Days, and all the rides are only $1.

VIDEO GAMES

VANS WARPED TOUR various ARTISTS

MARIO KART 8 (Wii u) (5/30)

Kind of like an alternative Coachella, Vans Warped Tour takes place every year. With over 100 bands, the Vans Warped Tour is perfect for anyone who likes alternative music, or someone who just wants to see multiple bands at once. Popular artists this year are 3OH!3, Mayday Parade, The Maine, All Time Low and We the Kings.

The concert begins at 11 a.m. at the Sleep Train Ampitheater in Wheatland, CA, on 6/26.

COURTESY VANS WARPED TOUR

THE NEIGHBOURHOOD THE NEIGHBOURHOOD

Famous for their hit single “Sweater Weather,” this indie-rock band is to perform songs from their latest album I Love You., and possibly some new songs as well. Rapper 100s and the psych-pop group known as White Arrows will also be joining the group, performing songs of their own.

The concert begins at 8 p.m. at the Fox Theater in Oakland, CA, on 7/25 and 7/26.

The much beloved racing game is back better than ever with new features such as anti-gravity racing and the ever-wonderful chance of playing as all seven Koopalings (Bowser’s minions). The beautiful animation and graphics will make it the most aesthetically pleasing game in the whole series.

SUPER SMASH BROS. (3DS) (TBA)

COURTESY GETTY IMAGES

ON THE RUN TOUR beyonce and jay-z After performing at the Grammy’s together, this power couple is set to rock the music world, and help the world in general. A percentage of ticket sales will be donated to the Shawn Carter Foundation to support underprivileged students.

The concert begins at 8 p.m. at AT&T Park in San Fransicsco, CA, on 8/6.

COURTESY INVISION/AP

This popular series is making a comeback with a new edition for the Nintendo 3DS. It is better than ever with a plethora of new features on top of new characters. Pokemon’s Greninja, Animal Crossing’s Villager and Megaman are making their entrance with an improved multiplayer system that allows players to play against friends or online and a new competitive ranking system, allowing players to challenge similar-level opponents.

Sports

may 27, 2014

page 15

Next year, RHS’ athletics program will end its long stint in the SFL and move to the newly reformed Capital Valley Conference. Because many RHS students are unfamiliar with some of the schools in the new league, Eye of the Tiger wanted to take this opportunity to let RHS...

MEET THE CVC

ROBBIE SHORT EYE OF THE TIGER

How we got here Every four years, the Sac-Joaquin Section realigns the schools and their league placements depending on their student population, quality of play and new schools joining the section.

Many deciding factors came into play when the section decided to move Roseville High School from the Sierra Foothills League to the Capital Valley Conference.

One of the most important was that RHS was – and still is – a Division II school, whereas the schools that comprise the new SFL will unanimously be Division I. The worry was, according to SJS leaders, that RHS’ athletic program would not be able to compete with those of the stronger schools.

The new CVC will be comprised solely of Division II schools. In the SFL, RHS played teams with larger school populations, which allowed schools’ sports teams to have a much wider selection of student athletes to choose from while building programs and setting rosters.

In the CVC, the schools have similar sizes in population to RHS, which should allow the

What’s changing

Tigers to be more competitive in all sports.

Still, varsity head football coach Larry Cuhna notes that the CVC will be incredibly tough, just as the SFL was.

“I think it is going to be a lot tougher than everyone is anticipating the CVC to be,” Cuhna said. “The competition will be a lot higher than the expectations are.”

In the SFL, the highest school population was around 2,600 students at a school, and in the CVC the highest population of students at a school is around 2,100.

Another factor that drove RHS out the SFL was its comparatively low competitive equity number. High schools get ranked through a point system that considers major sports like basketball, football, baseball and soccer.

For example, a school sport would get five points for winning a section title and would get one point if they were below .500 in league.

RHS currently has a score of 1.82 points in all school sports, whereas Del Oro and Granite Bay – which will both be in the new SFL – have averages of 2.91 and 3.05, respectively.

In the old SFL, there were six schools total: Woodcreek, Roseville, Granite Bay, Rocklin, Nevada Union and Del Oro. The SFL contained both Division I schools and Division II schools.

In the new CVC forming this next school year, all eight schools will be Division II schools. In addition to the divisional differences between the leagues, there are also several differences between how each functios.

For instance, next year, RHS’ boys and girls varsity basketball teams will be playing on the same night, but they will be playing in opposite locations, as opposed to this year, when they shared a gym on Friday nights.

“I think it’s unfortunate for the girls,” varsity girls basketball coach Josh Errecart said. “They will not be able to attend the big Friday night games for the boys that are often the highlight of the season.”

In attempt to accommodate the basketball program, the SFL changed the schedule last year, making the boys and girls varsity teams play Friday league games on the same night at the same location.

According to Errecart, the girls will have smaller crowds and may feel alienated due to the boys team generally drawing a larger crowd than its female counterpart.

Games like the Casaba game, which takes place the night before Casaba dance, will be affected by the change, which may cause issues for the players, according to RHS athletic director Jaime Bunch.

“I tried to explain to them my concern,” Bunch said. “Now the boys and girls won’t be able to support each other, and the games held for dances are now affected.”

In the CVC, the football schedule will be affected as well. The freshman football team and junior varsity football team will both be playing on Thursdays, making junior varsity have the night games. That will leave only the varsity football team to play on Friday nights.

Additionally, one small change is that instead of having one opponent that requires more than 10 miles of travel – Nevada Union High School – the Tiger will have two: Ponderosa High School and Consumnes Oaks High School.

How the leagues compare FOOTBALL OVERVIEW:

The Sierra Foothills League is well known for a high level of competition in football, and, with the addition of Folsom and Oakridge next season – two team that combined for a 26-3 record last season – should be especially so after the realignment. Oakridge’s only two losses came from Folsom, and Folsom’s only loss was to De La Salle High School in the Northern California open division championship.

The new Capital Valley Conference league is still somewhat competitive, but lacks powerhouse schools like those found in the new and the old SFL. Only three teams in the new CVC made playoffs last season, and all were eliminated in the first round with the exception of Whitney High School.

BOYS BASKETBALL

BASEBALL

The Sierra Foothills League is traditionally one of the strongest basketball leagues in the Sacramento area. Granite Bay, Rocklin and Del Oro are all perennial powerhouses, with Woodcreek putting together some deep playoff rounds as well. The SFL is also adding second-in-the-state Folsom, and always-competitive Oakridge this year.

However, RHS’ switch to the Capital Valley Conference will also provide steep competition. Consumes Oaks advanced all the way to the state semi-final game last year and Antelope, Del Campo and Bella Vista all have very strong programs.

Teams like Oakmont and Whitney, however, should present less difficult match-ups than the Tigers have seen in the SFL.

The Sierra Foothills League is one of the best baseball leagues in Northern California. Teams from the SFL have dominated the SJS playoffs and have either won or finished second – usually both – from 2007 to 2012. Two of this year’s teams are ranked in the top 25 in CA this year by MaxPreps.

Still, the CVC has formidable teams. RHS lost preseason games to Oakmont, Del Campo and Ponderosa, all of whom are in the new CVC. Also, Bella Vista won the league title in 2012 and Del Campo won sections in 2013.

The Tigers should stand to be more competitive in the CVC. This new league will be a step down in competition, but will still be a competitive battle most days.

OVERVIEW:

OVERVIEW:

EDGE:

EDGE:

EDGE:

GIRLS SOCCER

GIRLS VOLLEYBALL

TENNIS

SFL

OVERVIEW:

The move to the CVC should not change the level of competition the RHS girls soccer team will face. The SFL is arguably one of the most competitive leagues in the area, but the new CVC also has very strong teams. Teams like Whitney and Bella Vista are equivalent to teams in the SFL, like Granite Bay, Del Oro and Rocklin, and will be some of RHS’ bigger challenges.

Of next year’s CVC schools, four who went to playoffs last year: Cosumnes Oaks, Whitney, Del Campo and Bella Vista. The SFL is arguably stronger because the teams it sent to playoffs went on further than those from the CVC, but Whitney only narrowly lost to Del Oro in the section championship game, which means RHS would have a tough time in either league.

EDGE: DRAW

SFL

OVERVIEW:

Next year’s SFL line-up features a string of dominant girls volleyball teams the Tigers are lucky not to have to play against.

Rocklin was the SJS Division II champion last year, and Granite Bay won the Division I title after a historic undefeated season. Additionally, Oak Ridge went to the Division I quarter finals.

However, the schools in the CVC may not present too easy of a task for the Lady Tigers, either. The Oakmont Lady Thunder beat the Lady Tigers in the playoffs last year, and the Whitney Lady Thunder also tallied a playoff win. Overall, the Lady Tigers stand a better chance to be competitive in the new CVC than they would if they stayed in the SFL.

EDGE: SFL

SFL

OVERVIEW:

Both the SFL and the CVC offer competitive tennis teams for both girls and boys, but the SFL is consistently run by the legendary Granite Bay Grizzlies – with powerhouses Rocklin and Del Oro hot on the their tails – vying for the number-one spot, making the league very challenging for the Tigers to compete in. This year, the boys team finished last in the league.

According to head RHS boys tennis coach Dallas Guerrero, the CVC will offer more opportunities for RHS’ team to slip in and finish higher than they were ever able to in the SFL. That being said, Oakmont had a freshman go undefeated this year, meaning the Tigers may still have some tough individual challengers.

EDGE: SFL

page 16

1

ARturo sotomayor

Junior Arturo Sotomayor finished as our number one spring sports athlete at Roseville High School. He is ranked eighth in the state for the 800 meter and ninth for the mile. He is also ranked thirty-third in the nation for the 800m and thirty-sixth for the mile.

“Arturo is the definition of work ethic,” said first year varsity track coach Jeremy Wade. “He would not be where he is today and it is what sets him apart from the other kids.”

Sotomayor participates in cross country along with the 400m, 800m, 4x4 and mile for track.

Sotomayor has currently broken three of Roseville High Schools track records and one personal best in this season alone.

According to Wade, Sotomayor is enthusiastic about all events and he needs to be careful so he doesn’t get hurt, like doing the

4

Naomi monahan

Cashing in at number four on the list is Roseville High School junior pitcher Naomi Monahan, who helped the Lady Tigers secure the Sierra Foothills League title this year.

Monahan started playing softball when she was s i x years o l d and has played competitive softball ever since.

7

adrianna reagan

Coming in at number seven of the top 10 athletes is senior track athlete Adrianna Reagan. Reagan competes in the high jump for Roseville High School track and field and has accomplished many things this year.

Reagan’s previous personal best record was 5’4.25”, until she beat the all-time school record this year. To beat the school record Reagan jumped a 5’5. On Thursday, May 15, Reagan took first at the Sierra Foothills League finals, claiming

10

milana wolsleben

Coming in at the number 10 spot on our list is Roseville High School three year varsity senior, Milana Wolsleben.

The center midfielder had a great season, controlling the tempo of the game from the middle of the pitch and dictating passes from the defense up to the forwards.

Teammate and cousin Carlie Reader commented on Wolsleben’s composure at crucial times during games.

“Milana was clutch during big moments in games and reliable for all 90 minutes,” Reader said.

Coach Paul Stewart had nothing but praise for the midfielder. “[Wolsleben is] a leader on the field, played everywhere I asked her (center mid, sweeper, outside full, outside mid) and she worked with everyone to try and get them

hurdles for example.

“He is always concerned about the team and all of their events that he isn’t participating in,” said Wade.

In the 400m, he has a 49.4, breaking his previous personal r e c o r d just behind the schools’ record of 48.32 set by M. Barosso in 1967. In the 800m, he broke the school record which is is now set at 1:52.08.

He also broke the school record for the mile that was 4:18.2, set by G. Fleming and is now 4:14.44, set by Sotomayor.

“I believe this is only the beginning for him,” said Wade. “I believe many more records will be set by him in the future.”

Outside of school, she plays for the Foothill Gold A-team and is already committed to playing softball at the University of Hawaii.

During the season, Monahan batted .340, including two home runs. She pitched 99.1 innings, and had 111 strikeouts. Monahan happened to lead the SFL in wins with 16 this season.

Senior catcher Justine Garner loves having Monahan as a teammate.

“She is a supportive teammate and is always positive on and off the field and I admire how hard she works,” Garner said.

Monahan knows what it would mean to the school to bringing a state championship home, and that is what she is focused on accomplishing. the crown in high jump for the SFL. Junior Camille Cave is very proud of her teammate.

“She worked hard all four years for this,” Cave said. “For her to finally break the record is special.”

Sports 3 2 Maddie meade

Freshman runner Maddie Meade comes in second on our list.

She is number two in the Sierra Foothills League for the 800-meter race. She also holds the school record for the 800-meter competition and had continuously broken it throughout the season. She is expected to go really far this year.

Her teammates are intrigued and look up to her hard work on the track. Teammate sophomore Emma Sessano looks up to Meade for her work ethic and drive.

“Maddie always gives 100 percent in practice and at meets,” Sessano said. “Her hard work is contagious to everyone; she is

5

Kevin Tran

Numb e r eight on our list is Roseville High School senior tennis player Kevin Tran.

Tran acquired the first team all-league regards for his stand-

commitment for her since a young age and it’s taken a lot of sacrifices and hard work for her to get where she is today. out season and for finishing in third place alongside junior Ben Judd. However, Tran led the team for singles all year, and was a four-year RHS tennis player.

“Tran has been a great leader for the new players we have,” head coach Dallas Guerrero said.

“It was always fun to watch him dominate schools like Woodcreek and Nevada Union.”

According to Guerrero, Tran had some great matches against some top-ranked schools in a Fresno tournament at the beginning of the year along with a run at the Sierra Foothills League finals for doubles.

“It was great having him as a teammate,” Judd said. “He always brought a good attitude to practice and he was able to make me a much better tennis player playing against him at practice.”

Adam Erickson

Coming in at number three among our spring top 10 athletes is Roseville High School junior Adam Erickson.

Erickson was the ace of the RHS pitching staff.

He earned his spot on this list with his consistent dominance and ability to keep hitters off balance all season.

The highlight of his season is when he outpitched a University of Southern California-committed student, Mitch Hart, in a head-to-head match-up.

Another aspect that made him stand out was his ability to pitch late into games; even when he

6

taylor mcdowell

Fifth on our list is Roseville High School senior third baseman, Taylor Brewster-McDowell.

She has been a starter for the varsity softball team since her freshman year of high school.

She has played since she was six years old and has played competitively since she was 10.

She has also played competitively outside of school on a yearround travel team called the NorCal Patriots where they travel all over the nation to play.

This year, she has been a huge contributor to the RHS Lady Tigers – with a batting average of .404, scoring 21 runs and collecting 16 RBIs as the team’s leadoff hitter.

Softball has been a huge

8

always motivating and pushing me to do better.”

Senior Jayme Lee is amazed of how mature and driven Meade is as a runner and believes that she is going to take running through and beyond high school.

“She is very mature, and focuses in practices and takes them very seriously, and I think a lot of the team looks up to her in that way,” Lee said. “I also think Maddie is just a natural-born athlete.

I believe she is will get some sort of scholarship for track once high school is over.”

may 27, 2014

Brittani whitten

Coming in the sixth spot is a member of the Sierra Foothills League championship softball team.

Senior outfielder Brittani Whitten showed her dominance leading the team with the most RBIs of 27. In addition to her athletic abilities, players on the team look up to her as a leader, according to junior outfielder Katie Edgar.

As a returning varsity player, she ended the season with four homeruns. Whitten also had a batting average of .350 with 80 at-bats.

She excelled on the defensive

9

christian habeil

Coming in at number nine is Roseville High School senior Christian Habeil.

Habeil is a three-year varsity starter and a key player on the boys varsity volleyball team.

He has been up for first team all-league all three years.

Habiel is an Optimist All-Star and a Sac City All Star.

He is also up for an All-American award.

Senior teammate Bailey Jensen enjoyed playing with Habeil.

“He is a stud of a player, and someone you can always count

was out of gas, he could pitch well and hit his spots.

“He was extremely consistent all year,” senior second baseman Joe Butcoff said. “He always hit his spots and kept the hitters off balance.”

He gave the RHS Tigers a chance to win every time he started, and he proved himself as one of the best pitchers in the Sierra Foothills League.

“Erickson, I think, has proved himself and is really crafty and deceptive,” senior third baseman Chris Anderson said.

Head coach Lance Fischer described Erickson as a “gamer.”

as well, playing outfield and having no errors in the 25 games she played.

“You can trust that she is not going to make an error when she is in t h e outfield,” Edgar said.

Whitten will continue her softball career at Tyler Junior College i n Texas, where she received a partial scholarship.

“She is a great and puts teammate the team first before anything,” Edgar said. “Her love for the game shows when she’s on the field and it also shows in her stats.” on,” Jensen said.

Head coach Cindy Simon was thrilled to coach Habeil during his final season.

“Christian’s level of athleticism helps him achieve success,” Simon said. “He has the ability to block, set and be one of the best defensive players in the section.

He is quick, has a high vertical and is mentally tough.”

Habeil will be playing volleyball and attending Springfield College in Massachusetts in the fall.

We would would also like to honor our top 10 athletes of the year: to a higher level,” Stewa r t

said.

“She matured as a person, as well as a soccer player, and sometimes you cannot measure that in goals and assists o r wins and losses.”

Next year, Wolsleben will continue to play soccer, playing for the Sierra College Lady Wolverines.

1. Arturo Sotomayor (Track)

6. Lindsay Anderson (Basketball, Soccer, VB)

2. Virgie Velasquez (Golf)

7. Matt Tawlks (Basketball)

3. Neilson Powless (Mtn. Bike)

8. Kyle Downie (Baseball, FB)

4. Maddie Meade (Track)

9. Jonathan Lopez (Track, FB)

5. Jon Maroon (Wrestling)

10. Jordan Kunaszyk (FB)

Lists compiled by: Logan Ash

Chase Blatnick

Fouad El-Chemali

Nick Espino

Gabe Lira

Jon Maroon

Max Modeste

Daniel Ryan

Nick Sapp

Dean Sideris

Morgan Simpson

Canyon Smith

Marissa Stone

Matt Tawlks