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The Phoenix May 13, 2014
Fremont High School, Vol. 2 Issue No. 7
Speech contest: breaking boundaries by Alex Bernauer Managing Editor
Giving a speech is hard enough—let alone giving a speech in a recently aqired secondary language. The entire English Learners Development (ELD) Department at Fremont High School (80 students) participates in two speech contests. The Fremont speech contest took place on May 5th. It serves as a practice contest
for the Fremont Union High School District (FUHSD) contest on May 15th. Both of these contests display the hard work and progress that all of the ELD students have put in to improve their English speaking abilities throughout the entire year.
The FUHSD speech contest was created by ELD program administrator, Welton Kwong seven years ago. The purpose of the contest is to push all the ELD students from the entire district to do something outside their comfort zone and, to gain greater experience and understanding of the English language. “The higher stakes involved with the speech contest force the students
to have to really practice,” Akane Tanaban, ELD two teacher, said. According to multiple sources, initially there was not a Fremont speech contest only the larger
FUHSD contest. However, since the first year of the FUHSD contest was voluntary, only a few ELD Fremont students participated in comparison to other schools in this district. Thus, the Fremont speech contest was created the following year as a precursor and a method of preparation for the actual contest.
See ELD on page 2
Ashley Chavez| The Phoenix
IRENE Liang gives her speech in the small auditorium at the Fremont High School speech contest on Monday,May 5th.
May marks brain cancer awareness month by Hauraa Aalabdulrasul
Arts & Entertainment Editor
With the start of May comes the start of Brain Cancer Awareness month. According to the American Brain Tumor Association, about 4,300 children younger than age 20 will be diagnosed with brain tumors. Of those diagnosed, 3,050 will be under age 15. Brain cancer has no known cause, but doctors have found many risk factors to getting brain cancer like radiation to the head. Brain cancer starts when a tumor is formed in the brain. Tumors appear when cells form abnormally because they don’t divide correctly. They don’t die like they are supposed to, but instead, just gather up and form a mass in the brain. As this process goes on, the tumor continues to grow as more and more cells are added to the mass.
Eventually, the tumor spreads all over the brain and the body is affected. Things that happen to a person with brain cancer include weakness in the body, difficulty walking, seizures and headaches. Other common symptoms are nausea, vomiting, blurry vision, memory and speech issues or even personality changes. There are many different types of brain cancers, but all share one similarity: taking away people’s lives and hurting families. Many organizations and research groups have planned fundraising and awareness events this month to spread the word about brain cancer and raise money for research. The Miles for Hope Foundation, a research center located in Florida provides funds for brain cancer research and clinical trials. During the month of May,
they held an event in Boston that raised money for brain cancer research. The 5K run/walk event bought many closer together as the walked for a cure. Another event closer to the community, was the Breakthrough for Brain Tumors Walk in Los Angles held by the American Brain Tumor Association. Just like the event in Boston, this event was a 5k run/walk event that raised money for brain cancer research. “I love hearing about the different walks and fundraisers for different kinds of cancers, especially brain cancer,” Anchal Takiar, senior said. “It’s such a horrible thing to happen to someone and these events make me believe that there is hope to finding a cure.” Both events didn’t just raise money but they helped to spread awareness around the community. It brought
many people together and pushed people to work towards a common goal. However, it seems that Fremont high isn’t doing much for brain cancer awareness month. Just like black history month, Fremont is lacking in awareness or any involvement at all. Usually the month of May is filled with talk about senior prom, graduation and end of the year activities. Students spend a lot of time and money on these events, but a majority of them aren’t aware that May is brain cancer awareness month. “Why is it that students chose to spend $65-70 on senior prom tickets and endless hours preparing for the “big night” but not many are willing to create an event dedicated to raising money for cancer,” Kenia Duenas, senior said. “I think students
deserve to have a good time and enjoy themselves because they have worked so hard. But all of these events overshadow the importance of this month and that isn’t okay.” The only cancer month students seem to be familiar with is breast cancer awareness month. A Majority of students display their support with pink ribbons attached to backpacks and wearing the famous “ I <3
boobies” bracelet. “I know that if everyone actually tried putting in effort to raise awareness and money for brain cancer like they do for breast cancer, we could make a difference,” Sara Ibanga, senior said. There are still many
days left in May, and a lot of time to show your support. Wear anything gray (the color for brain cancer awareness), create a fundraising event or anything else you can do to help.