Volume 3, Issue 3

Fremont High School

the

PHOENIX

by Sarah Arkoh

Arts & Entertainment Editor

The following article is a follow up to An Increase in Teen Border Crossing published in the October 28, 2014 issue of The Phoenix. Because of the sensitivity of this topic, the names of the Fremont High School students who contributed to this article have been withheld.

The Bay Area is no stranger to diversity.

According to a 2010 census report, 52.5 percent of the Bay Area’s population is European American, 6.7 percent African American, 0.7 percent Native American, 23.3 percent Asian, 0.6 percent Pacific Islander, 10.8 percent from other races and 5.4 percent from two or more races.

The second biggest group is the Hispanic, or Latino, population totaling 23.5 percent, a number of whom have migrated to the United States.

Naturally, Fremont High School is also very diverse.

Our school proudly supports a number of students who have recently migrated to the U.S. For many, the process of coming to the U.S. has not been an easy one. Their stories are also often hard to talk about.

Our first student recently arrived in America. Selfmotivated, he was determined to make it to America even though that meant coming alone. The scariest part of his journey was riding “La Bestia.”

Also known as “El tren de la muerte” or “The Death Train,” “La Bestia” is a network of trains that many migrants from Central America take with the hopes of traveling through Mexico and to the U.S.-Mexico border without having to pass through checkpoints. According to Wikipedia, it is estimated that some 400,000 to 500,000 people ride this train every year.

What makes this train most dangerous is the fact that it is a freight train and therefore was not built for passengers. Many must jump onto the moving train which is a danger in itself. Passengers who ride this train for several miles often face violence from other passengers. They also face several other hardships including the possibility of falling off the train and being detained by officials.

Along his journey, our first student met several other teenagers his age who were also traveling to the U.S. with the hopes of gaining a better life.

Since arriving in the U.S., he has been able to study and explore new places. It has been eight months since he’s returned to Central America and because of his undocumented status, returning home will not be an option. He says his family and friends are what he misses most.

When asked about his plans for the future, he said, “I want to be someone in life. If I study, I will be able to get a good job and bring my family [to the United States].”

The next student who shared her touching story with The Phoenix arrived to the U.S. in January of 2013. She was motivated by her grandmother to look for a better life. She also wanted to help her family.

Traveling through the desert, she faced several hardships. “I didn’t eat. It was cold. I walked through the desert for a month. The scariest part of my trip was seeing dead corpses.”

The treks of desert between Mexico and the United States are not easy to pass through. These deserts include the Chihuahuan Desert and the Sonoran Desert. Migrants passing through oftentimes travel with only the clothes on their back; they have no food, water or excess clothing. They face extreme temperatures, upwards of 110 degrees fahrenheit during the day and below zero at night.

Depending on their starting and ending points, journeys can be several hundred miles long. Since it is easy to lose a sense of direction while traveling, migrants often times rely on coyotes, or paid guides, to lead them through.

Our student made it through. The last time she was in her home country of El Salvador was in November of 2012.

“I miss my culture, my family, friends, the church and the school,” she said. These are all things she sacrificed to pursue a better life in the U.S. “If God allows, being in the U.S. will help me achieve my goals, [along] with the help of my parents and teachers,” she continued. “I want to become a lawyer or doctor so that I can help [other] immigrants who travel to this country.”

Due to her current status, she will not be able to return home until obtaining the proper legal documents to remain in the country. She is supported by her family with the hopes of achieving her goals.

“I dreamed of coming to the United States so that I could help my family and make a better life for myself,” our next student writes. “My journey went well, thanks to God and everything turned out good.”

“My sisters and brothers came with me on the trip. The scariest part was when I got lost in Mexico and some men were following me.”

When asked about her life in the U .S., she writes, “When I arrived in the United States, a family from Mexico gave me a lot of support, like my real family.”

Even though the family she is currently staying with has accepted her as their own, she says they can never replace her family back home.

“I miss my family the most. It’s not the same to be around other people without having the comfort of your family.”

Unlike the aforementioned students, she has the freedom and legal documentation to visit her family back in Central America. Her next trip is planned for April of 2015, during spring break.

Vol. 3 Issue No. 3 Dec. 9, 2014

“My plans for the future include learning English so that I can get a job and be able to help my family.”

The last student interviewed by The Phoenix has a story a little different than the rest. He was born in the U.S. However, his parents were not and were residing in America undocumented. His father was deported back to Mexico roughly two years ago and his family made the decision that it would be best to stay united as a family, resulting in a move to Mexico.

Although he had stayed in Mexico before, life there was a drastic change, one that took the entire family a while to adjust to.

“Since we grew up here, going back to Mexico was kind of hard,” he said. At the beginning [of being in Mexico], we had the same things [as in America]. We explored different places in Mexico. We had fun.”

“But then when we got to Puebla, Mexico. Since we used up a lot of money to start building our house, we started having less. We had less in Mexico than we had here in the U.S. After six months, we were actually running out of money. There were days we had to limit our food because we didn’t have enough.”

His family had less money coming in than was going out and they were living on about $90 to $100 a week.

After about a year in Mexico, he came back to America alone with the hopes of continuing his education and supporting his family back home. He currently lives with his mom’s godmother. He also has another residence in Sunnyvale.

“I miss having the closeness of my family. I miss just being able to talk to them in person. I talk to them over the phone but it’s not the same.”

Our student works a part-time job and sends most of his paychecks home to his family in Mexico.

“Sometimes I stop caring for myself so I can provide.

My family limits themselves but not as much as they had to before I started working in the U.S.” Since he is a natural born citizen of the U.S., he is able to travel back and forth between countries without worrying about legal repercussions.

“I’m trying to see if I can earn enough money during the summer to go visit next year,” he said.

In addition to helping his family in the short-term, he plans on helping out long-term as well.

“I want to get a small, fast career. With that career, I’m going to try and bring all my brothers and sisters over here so they can have a better future.”

The Fremont High School community continues to support these student and many others as they pave their futures in the U.S. In addition, The Phoenix would like to thank these brave firebirds for sharing their stories.

The journey towards a new life Students at FHS share the stories behind their incredible journey across the U.S.-Mexico border Photo courtesy of National Geographic

News 2

dec. 9, 2014

Teacher Milestones Key Club makes blankets for babies

by Kayla Layaoen Managing Editor

Bo Buhisan

15 years

Buhisan has been teaching for 30 years, and 15 of them have been with Fremont. This year, he is the junior class Guidance Counselor. He is also an adviser for the Filipino Youth Organization and has founded programs like the Kapatid Mentorship program at Stanford University.

Joseph Kelly

15 years

Kelly has been teaching at FHS for 15 years. This year he teaches four band classes and orchestra, as well as directing the marching band. His high school music teacher was his inspiration to begin teaching. Kelly felt that music activities at his school gave him a purpose and was certain that he would teach.

On Nov. 15, Fremont Key Club members invited Key Clubbers from all over the division to the FHS library to make blankets to donate to the mothers of premature babies at Lucille Packard Children’s Hospital.

Around 80 Key Club members showed up to the event and made a total of 31 twist-tie blankets. This special type of event, called a Divisional Council Meeting, is hosted monthly, KEY clubbers making blankets for premature babies in the FHS library. with a different school in the district hosting the providing members with blankets,” Patel said. event every time. Fremont updates about the division Four different memhas been hosting the Noand upcoming plans. FHS bers of the Kiwanis Club, vember DCM for over five Key Club President Neeja which is Key Club’s paryears, and making blankets Patel took over after that, ent club and a community for the event is a tradition. giving blanket demonstraservice club for adults, were Fremont is a part of tions and working with the in attendance, including Division 34 South, along rest of the board to make city councilmember and with Homestead, Lynsure the event ran smoothly. Kiwanis president Jim Davis. brook, Cupertino, Monta “It’s amazing to know FHS Key Club spent Vista, Los Altos, Palo Alto that we have been able to around $300 on fabric, givand Mountain View High make an impact, as cliched ing up their Halloween to go School. as that sounds,” Patel said. buy fabric for the event in Lieutenant Gover“That feeling is really solidi- order to get the sale prices. nor of the district and fied when we go deliver the Preparation for the event Homestead senior Noori blankets to Lucille Packard begins at about a month in Tawakol led the meeting and we see babies wrapped advance every year. before blankets were made, to be taken home in our “It takes a bit of prepa-

Sports Editor

15 years

Krippene has taught for 15 years at Fremont. This year she teaches intro to Culinary, Culinary I and Culinary II. She was a chef for eight years and had her own catering business. At one point, she missed teaching and didn’t like serving food to strangers anymore, so she went back to teaching high school.

Robert Javier

20 years

Laurie Turner

25 years

Javier has been teaching for 20 years. This year he teaches 10th grade world literature and 12th grade story and style. In his senior year of college, he was an orientation advisor for freshmen. He enjoyed leading groups, helping people out and fostering the community, which eventually led him to become a teacher.

Turner has been teaching at Fremont for 25 years now. This year, she teaches physiology and environmental science. Outside of school, she enjoys reading, exercising, traveling and spending time in nature. She is very interested in animals and has many pets in her classroom.

ration to go buy the fabric, cut it to the right length, and then plan for the 80 person DCM, but it is not too daunting,” Patel said.

Key Club meets on Tuesdays in the small auditorium at lunch. The next DCM is Homestead’s Carolling for Cans event, where division members will go around and sing Christmas carols and ask for donations of canned food.

Interventions to help struggling teens

by Chau Nguyen

Celia Krippene

Photo courtesy of Vicky Chung

California Education Codes have prompted schools to expel fewer students and instead introduce interventions, which are programs that focus on correcting behavior, rather than immediate expulsions and suspensions.

In past years, the Fremont Union High School District has aligned with the statewide movement to require more interventions before expelling students.

“There was always supposed to be interventions, but the state is now really saying, ‘You need to be able to show the things you tried,” Coordinator of Educational Options Alison Coy said. “There’s a part of the expulsion code that says in order to expel for certain offenses, you need to prove that other means of rehabilitation have failed.”

Interventions are developed with the idea to correct behavior, rather than punish them. The district has created drug courses for students struggling with addiction or abuse.

It includes a 90 minute presentation focused on the effects of drugs on the brain, to a ten week course from Advent Group Ministries, an organization that helps individuals with addiction and provides counseling.

The ten week course focuses on teaching potential benefits from not using drugs or alcohol. Another program from Advent called “Step Up,” provides up to ten hours per week

on “group therapy, recovery education, individual crisis counseling and family therapy.”

These programs do not cost much, according to Coy. Most of the money is shared from grants received by the Santa Clara County, while Advent is paid through Medi-Cal, a social welfare program for low income families.

The 90 minute presentation for parents and students on substance abuse is paid for by the district.

But for other interventions, Fremont has difficulty budgeting.

Most schools have 90 percent of their classes made of core classes while 10 percent are made of intervention classes, according to Dean of Students Jay Lin. Twenty five percent of Fremont’s classes are interventions, while 75 percent are core classes.

“But I want to say that each of those interventions do that,” Lin said. “To help provide equity and provide that level playing field that a lot of other students who may be coming from privileged background or who have parents that are highly educated can give them.”

Because of this, Fremont receives a bit more funding than the other schools because there is a greater need for these programs.

There are more severe interventions. Expulsions usually result from offenses where the action is severe enough that it carries potential danger to the surrounding students or fall under

the “Big Five”, rules that when broken, are ground for immediate expulsion.

Under the Big Five, students are expelled because they are a threat to the student environment.

The key difference between the expulsions and other intervention programs is that expulsions are a last resort.

The zero tolerance policies are confined to the Big Five, but other times, situations have a lot of gray area because there are other factors to evaluate for the appropriate intervention.

“So really, it’s looking at the evidence in every case, about weighing student safety with students’ rights,” Coy said. “The students on campus have the right to be safe and the student who got in trouble has a right to be at school.

It’s about balancing those rights.”

Another intervention offered is Saturday school.

Saturday school is common, but the distinction is classes are closed at 15 students and supervised by four adults: a student conduct specialist, a dean, one teacher and a counselor.

Expecting classes to double, the district hopes to minimize costs, but still stay true to the model by hiring an additional teacher and counselor.

Fremont has tried to incorporate new interventions such as Academic Foundations, classes designed for each grade level to help in developing habits and making sure students are set to graduate and develop skills in the real world.

In previous years, there

were only two classes, but now there are four.

Each district has different interventions. The Santa Clara Unified District has an intervention titled New Valley, which allows students who failed classes to have a chance to regain those credits by taking a placement test.

If they score enough, students are viewed as competent and will receive credits for those courses.

The process for “recovering” is much faster, but there are less school site based interventions.

“The Santa Clara interventions had interventions stopping you after getting there, while the Fremont one has interventions that prevent you from getting there,” Assistant Principal Ben Gonzales said.

Combined with this, Fremont has over 500 students in English Development classes. This year, there are 115 new students, while 300 or more students may have been at six years or more.

Students who read at a low level take Perspectives, while below that, students reading at a fifth grade level or below, take Read 180.

These classes are designed to push falling students and catch them up with others.

“The deans, assistant principals and the principal at Fremont are leading the district, I think, in this work,” Coy said.

News

dec. 9, 2014

3

Dairy Belle udderly closes after 57 years the

by Chau Nguyen Sports Editor

After 57 years of service, the Dairy Belle located across Fremont High School is now closed.

For the past 20 years, Dairy Belle was owned

by Korean families. In the past, business started to slump over the summer from the lack of high school students. According to Peter Kim, son of the former owners of Dairy Belle, business slowed down because of multiple reasons.

“Business has been in the slumps because of the competition,” Kim said.

“You know how there’s The Habit, Five Guys and In N Out really close to each other? Well a lot of kids are going there.”

According to Kim, the landlord of Dairy Belle is also the owner of Falafel Stop, a neighboring restau-

1279 Sunnyvale Saratoga Rd. Room 84 Sunnyvale, CA 94087 (408)522-2400 fremonthighphoenix@gmail.com fhsphoenix.com Managing Editors Ashley Chavez Kayla Layaoen AS of November 26th, Dairy Belle is now closed.

rant that shares the same parking lot with Dairy Belle.

“Because the Falafel Stop takes a lot of the parking spaces, it deters some people,” Kim said. “But you know, business is business.”

There are other Dairy Belle chains located in the

Bay Area, one in San Leandro and Hayward.

“We’re sad because we used to come here for the cones,” customer Armando Hernandez said. “Too bad, you know.”

“I’m disappointed that it’s closing because it’s been

Chau Nguyen | The Phoenix

here a long time,” customer Jean Hernandez said.

After this, the owners plan to rest.

“My mom’s getting old and she’s going to visit some family in Korea,” Kim said.

Elections impact education and students

by Sravya Bathula Staff Writer

There have been multiple measures and bonds that have been passed in California that significantly affect students’ education.

One of the propositions that affect the budget of our school system is Proposition 47. Currently, California spends $62,300 per prisoner and $9,100 per K-12 student yearly.

According to the Legislative Analyst’s Office, by voting “Yes” on this measure, criminal offenders who commit certain non-serious and nonviolent drug and property crimes would be sentenced to reduced penalties, such as shorter jail terms. State savings from this measure will be spent on supporting school truancy and dropout prevention, mental health and substance abuse treatment, and victim services. Since this measure has passed, the expenditure on each K-12 student will increase and action will be taken on truancy and dropouts.

Locally, Sunnyvale has passed Measure J and Measure K. These two measures help accommodate the growing student population in the Fremont High School District. According to the district website, fuhsd.org/ measures, Measure J is for the renewal of the existing $98 per parcel tax, a form of tax that is used for the funding of public education in California, from July 2016 through July 2022 (the current parcel tax is set to expire in 2016). Measure K is for the new $295 million given to the district to build new classrooms, improve old facilities and increase access to technology.

The purpose of passing Measure J is to pay for core

PHOENIX

programs and staff salaries using the parcel tax. This is to prevent the reduction of academic classes and avoid losing college preparatory, honors and Advanced Placement classes. This also includes the insurance of high quality preparation for college and careers and the continuation to attract and retain highly qualified staff.

It is not just the new measures and bonds that affect our education. The people who govern our state, and the Board of Education, directly affect the funding for our education.

The purpose of passing Measure K is to construct new buildings, renovate facilities and increase access to technology. This measure bond will build 51 new classrooms to accommodate the additional 1,850 students currently enrolled and repair, modernize and replace older classrooms and facilities. It will also provide better access to technology for teachers and students, and will upgrade and improve the computer networks, which will enable connection to other classrooms and better access to worldwide material.

For universities in the University of California system, it is all about tuition. According to www. insidehighered.com, UC administrators are ready to raise tuition prices by 27 percent by the end of the decade, despite objections from students and the gov-

ernor of California himself, Jerry Brown. He wants to cut costs by emphasizing three-year degrees and online education. According to the Huffington Post, the U.S. Board of Regents voted to raise tuition five percent each year for five years, increasing next year’s in-state student base costs from $12,192 to $12,804, and ultimately to $15,564 in 2019.

This does not include additional fees, books and room and board.

It is not just the new measures and bonds that affect our education. The people who govern our state, and the Board of Education, directly affect the funding for our education. A small group of elected officials at the local, state and federal levels, determines what needs to be done in schools each year and the resources that they will have.

Governors influence public understanding of issues such as school expenditure and privatization, and can defend schools if state legislators pass any legislation that is poor or damaging. If a governor does not give importance to public education, he or she can push the agenda back, which decreases the amount of resources the public schools will receive and causes struggling schools to struggle even more.

The state attorney general advises state legislatures and agencies, including the Department of Education, Board of Education, and institutions of higher education. According to educationsvotes.nea. org, he or she is viewed as the “people’s lawyer”, and is involved in many issues that affect students and schools.

Duties include proposing student truancy laws, inves-

tigating for-profit colleges, and assembling task forces to examine school safety, bullying and the usage of standardized tests.

School board members make decisions about dayto-day agendas of a school district, including hiring and firing administrators, determining salaries and purchasing classroom materials such as textbooks and technology. Most importantly of all, Board members are required to put the needs of their students first.

Members of the U.S. Congress are obligated to determine the national standards for public schools and set spending through programs such as IDEA, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, which are meant to decrease inequality in public education. They serve on committees that draft and negotiate legislation, sponsor bills and cast votes, resulting in laws that could completely change the function and face of public schools. It is incredibly important that members of Congress are able to cooperate with other parties, listen to educators, prioritize education, and create real solutions to support students.

All these measures and bonds will create new opportunities and learning environments for students.

Hikes in tuition prices will be difficult for future college students, but most of the money is intended for better facilities and more programs. The future for students’ education is changing rapidly, so it is important that we are all informed.

News Editors Jasmine Salik Sonya Jindal Sports Editor Chau Nguyen Arts & Entertainment Editors Sarah Arkoh Juan Martinez Opinion Editors Melissa Parlan Tatiana Castillo Lead Photographer Priya Lee Staff Writers Sravya Bathula Margaret Bernauer Hannah Marie Butay Ariana Honavar Hiro Sarah Kacmarsky James Kanuch Kristina Lechuga Dana Nissan Rachel Pena Nazmiye Ornelas Rodriguez Essam Rao Snigdha Rayala Nicole Stibbard Julie Wi Emily Wright Cindy Zhang Kelly Zhong Adviser Stacey Stebbins The Phoenix, protected under the California Education code, is a public forum for the students of Fremont High School. The Phoenix staff will publish features, editorials, news, and sports in an unbiased and professional manner.

Editorials are the official opinion of The Phoenix.

Opinions and letters are the personal viewpoints of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Phoenix. All content decisions are made by the student editors, and in no way reflect the official policy of Fremont High School, nor the opinions of the administration, faculty, or the adviser.

Business advertisements are accepted in The Phoenix. However, The Phoenix reserves the right to deny any ad. Those interested in running advertisements can call the Business Manager at (408)522-2400, or email fremonthighphoenix@gmail.com Lettters to the editor and questions for the advice column, may be submitted online at www.FHSphoenix.com, to room 84, Ms. Stebbins’ mailbox, or emailed to fremonthighphoenix@gmail. com. Identities of those who submit questions will remain anonymous. The staff reserves the right to edit letters to conform to styles and policy. Letters to the editor will be published at the discretion of the staff.

The Phoenix is the official student newspaper, and is distributed free of cost to the students. The Phoenix publishes eight issues throughout the school year.

Opinion

Dec. 9, 2014

4

Passing vs. learning: do you know what you learn?

by Jasmine Salik News Editor

It’s a known fact that students put more pressure on themselves to get good grades rather than focusing on learning itself.

I am definitely guilty of directing all my energy towards my grades instead of the learning and I am sure that most students around the school are too, since I see and hear examples of grades overtaking learning daily all around me in and out of the classroom.

I blame the constant pressure that people in our society put on students. For example, our teachers and parents tell us to get “good grades”, which we all know is relative to each student.

Living in the Silicon Valley adds a huge factor in students’ altered mentality because of the enormous amount of competition in

this area.

It is known that the Silicon Valley is one of the best places to live in due to the amount of technologybased companies and job opportunities for engineers.

However, this area’s good reputation also comes from the success of education and the high API scores at many schools in the area.

If you think about it, all aspects of high school are a huge competition.

We are all competing with each other to go to the best colleges, receiving the best SAT and ACT scores, staying active around the community with the most volunteer hours… the list is endless.

However, the one thing that all students put first on the list is the grades they receive compared to others. This can drive students to focus all their energy on their grades.

Logically, it would make sense that by focusing on the learning, good grades will come with the effort put in. However, most students are so caught up with the competition of high school that they either forget this key idea or brush past it thinking they can beat the

system.

I can’t even recollect the countless times I have heard someone ask, “Did you do the homework?” and another student replied with, “No. Whatever, I’ll still get an A in the class so it doesn’t even matter.”

We all hear our teachers telling us to do the homework since it will test our understanding and help us formulate questions on concepts we are still unsure of. Guess what? All of the ideas on the homework will be on the test. So instead of freaking out about getting an A in a class we should all take a deep breath and focus our energy into actively trying to learn and understand the material so that our overall grade can be a reflection of our efforts. Easier said than done, I know.

One thing that I know for sure of is the amount of stress that comes with the mentality of grades over everything. It is so incredibly stressful directing all of my energy towards the different letter grades I receive in each class. The concept of only focusing on the learning can be frightening for me because of the fear

Different teacher, same respect

by Snigdha Rayala Staff Writer

Some substitutes are nice, engaging and fun.

However, many substitutes are mean, angry and don’t know about the lesson plan because they are not familiar with the class. When the substitute puts a student’s name down and complains about them on the substitute report, the substitute will probably be insulted after class. However, is the substitute really at fault in this case? Whenever a substitute is present, the class decides that they get to do whatever they want.

Running around the room and talking out of place are common activities that students engage in when there is a substitute. No matter how nice a substitute is, at the end of the day, rules are rules, and the teacher needs to punish the troublemakers.

When a substitute is present, it turns into “do whatever you want” day.

Everyone keeps talking and getting out of their seats.

It gets so bad, that I just want to yell at the top of my lungs. It’s absolutely disgusting, and this is just the beginning.

The worst thing is when the substitute has an accent or a stutter. For some reason people find it so funny when someone can’t speak English as well as them. For example, once, my math class had a substitute that had a slight accent.

The whole class started making fun of her and said that she was Latina (though she wasn’t) and that she could not speak English. I doubt they would like it very much if someone made fun of them like that.

Many people assume that when the students misbehave, it is the teacher’s fault because the teacher is not teaching correctly. However, it’s not. The teacher can tell the students to behave, but a teacher only sees his students for an hour a day. It’s not like the teacher can force the students to do something. It’s up to the students to be responsible and mature because we are highschoolers, not elementary school children. In fact, even elementary school children are better behaved than high schoolers. At least elementary school children don’t cuss at the teacher.

When a student misbehaves, I doubt that the substitute is going to think highly of them. There is a reason why substitutes are much nicer to the students that behave than to the students who don’t behave.

However, a misbehaving student makes a substitute

not want to talk to them.

A student misbehaving not only tarnishes their reputation, but also tarnishes the school’s reputation.

Maybe if people didn’t act so rude to substitutes, we could increase our reputation and kill the “Fremont is ghetto” stereotype.

Think about how someone’s parents or teachers are treated. Are they cussed at and screamed at and disrespected? I don’t think so. If parents and teachers are treated with respect and kindness, then why are substitutes not respected?

Substitutes are adults, making them your elders. Elders are supposed to be respected. Just because they’re not referred to as your teachers or parents, doesn’t mean that they are any different.

Maybe it’s time we thought about things from the substitute’s point of view. It’s not like they enjoy getting shouted at and made fun of. They have feelings too. Next time someone gets annoyed at a substitute for giving them a punishment, think about why the substitute gave the punishment and how the substitute feels.

The mistreatment of substitutes has gone way too far. It is unacceptable. I see substitutes who have to lose their voice yelling at kids to stop talking, or see them struggle to take attendance.

We are high schoolers and we can do much better.

Kristina Lechuga | The Phoenix

of not seeing any results.

Students (including myself) enter each class with set goals and expectations of the grades we should be receiving, and if we don’t see results right away we get scared away into doing things just to get a good grade and don’t actually learn anything.

Most students brush off classwork, homework and projects and don’t take the time to value their importance because all they’re focused on is getting the most points to boost their overall grade percentage.

As high school students, it is natural for us to compare our successes and failures to other students and because of this, the first instinct students have when tests are passed back is to ask others what grade they received. Students may not be aware of this, but this is a way of comparing themselves to each other and it is obvious that the competition of high school is in all of us whether we’re aware of it or not.

Grades, friends, high school, family and life in general are so stressful and

can be overwhelming. But I know that if I put in even half the energy I have over my grades into actually learning the material then I shouldn’t even have to worry about my grades. The success that I expect should be guaranteed because of the effort I put in. I know this is kind of cliché, but I think it’s important to understand that the energy you put into things is the energy you will receive. If you put in good energy about school, positive things like good grades and success will occur.

Pull those headphones out

by Nazmiye O. Rodriguez

There has always been a controversy over whether listening to music actually helps you concentrate on your schoolwork, or if students use it as an excuse to procrastinate on that essay due the next day.

There are two sides on this topic. One side states that music is very distracting and it does not allow student to stay fully concentrated on schoolwork. The only way for these people to stay focused on their schoolwork, is by having complete silence.

The second side is those people who believe that students need music to be able to concentrate. Without it, they procrastinate and don’t end up finishing their schoolwork.

For me, listening to music does help me concentrate on my homework, and it helps me finish it faster. However this is not always the case. Sometimes I am unable to stay focused with music playing in the background, and the only way to finish whatever I am working in is by having complete silence.

I think that if music helps students work better, then we should be allowed to listen to it during class.

But we also have to respect the teacher, if given this privilege. It would be very inappropriate to listen to music during a lesson. During class work or quiet times in class are good times to take advantage of having the opportunity to listen to music. ”I just started this year and I would say I am in the ‘experimental phase’,” Virginia McCabe, science teacher, said. “I let my students listen to music only when they are doing independent work that does not require me or talking to a lab partner.”

Teachers do not believe that we can have our full attention on our schoolwork when we are listening to music.

Oftentimes, students have trouble concentrating on schoolwork when they know they have more than a couple hours of it to finish. They end up procrastinating because of too much stress. Statistics show that listening to the right kind of music helps relax your brain and relieve stress; therefore it helps you focus better on the tasks you are performing. The right kind of music is anything that you enjoy listening to.

“I am happy to allow students to listen to music when they are doing independent work on something like a mini-poster or organizing,” Stephanie Fuji, English teacher, said. “However, I don’t allow students to listen to music when they really need 100% focus on something.”

I have to agree with Fuji because I am also not able to have all my focus on schoolwork sometimes when the music I’m listening to contains lyrics, rather than just working on the schoolwork without listening to any music.

Music should be fine to listen to in classrooms because it helps you focus and relieves stress. However, we have to respect our teachers and their decisions on whether they let us do this.

Staff Writer

Opinion 5

by Melissa Parlan

One thing seniors can relate to this time of year, is the stress, worry and anxiety felt while going through the college application process and/or make decisions and plans for their future.

I myself felt a bit overwhelmed about the whole process. The faint idea that my independent adult life is about to begin freaked me out a bit. Being a senior, I’ve also seen my peers go through a similar emotion.

I’ve seen my classmates help and support each other in their choices, but I’ve seen far more negativity sprouted from it all.

Heavy judgment unfortunately comes out during college application season.

From assuming where people are going, to judging them for their choices, it seems like people get worked up during this time.

Let us not forget the heated

dec. 9, 2014

arguments on the Facebook FHS Confessions page regarding college. Given the Confessions page about who deserves to go to a certain college, its obvious that college is a very touchy topic, more often associated with hate and anger.

It’s pretty disappointing that we, as a society of teenagers and young adults, have put such a stigma on college acceptance, and that the more “prestigious” college someone goes to, the “better” they’ll turn out. Or if someone attends community college, they did something wrong during high school. In general, we’ve made peoples’ self worth associated to what college they go to.

In all honesty, this just isn’t the case. A person really shouldn’t be judged and labeled for where they decided to take their education beyond high school.

Everybody has their own special path to life, and shouldn’t be judged for that.

Although we tend to rank colleges, in reality, there shouldn’t be a ranking of people and their college of choice. A person who goes to UC Berkeley is no better or worse that a person who goes to De Anza

Community College. Both special in their own way and have made a big choice in their lives: to continue their education.

This can be seen through the phrase “UC De Anza.” I’ve overheard my peers say things along the lines of: “Oh, I failed that test. UC De Anza bound!”

It’s meant to be funny and sarcastic, but it’s actually repeople have

were admitted into Stanford. That being said, it is so much more about your actions and involvement rather than your title as a student. The kid with the lowest grades can become super successful in the future. People have the ability to change.

I feel like this negative and judgmental stigma comes from the lack of understanding on how personal going to college can be. There are so many

Anybody worried about their future should take a step back, relax, and realize that they’ll end up wherever they need to be. put down community college, making fun of it, treating it as if it’s the absolute last resort choice a person could take.

Again, it’s not where who you are or your future.

The bigger picture is what you did or do in high school or college. The actions of a hardworking student at community college, changing their ways to better their future seems much more admirable than a person who continued to be a lazy student despite the fact they

factors being put into a person’s plans after college. Their type of major, interests and few of these factors that can lead a person to where they end up going for college. Everything about the process is personal, so nobody has the right to judge.

I believe that personal motivation is a great thing for a person to have in regards to going to college and anything else in life. I motivate myself all the time. In my case, my personal goal

is to work my hardest to get accepted in the right college for me. A little self-competition is an amazing thing to have. However, it’s never ok to bring other people into it.

It’s not acceptable to compare yourself with another person when it comes to planning for college. After all, it’s your own education doesn’t regard you being “better” or “worse” than any other person.

I’m not trying to say my class is evil, or that all seniors become horrible people this time of year. I’d like to think this problem arose subconsciously, without the intentions to put our classmates down. It all comes from the stress we, and society, put onto ourselves to get into college and become “successful.” Theres always the certain “panic” to get into the “best” college.

And if we don’t, we think of ourselves as failures. There’s this pressure to be “the best” and make ourselves seem like the perfect student. All the work put onto this also adds onto the stress of it all. As teenagers, we tend to compare ourselves with our peers. By being surrounded by so many other people doing the same thing, its easy to compare ourselves

with others and either put ourselves down, or raise ourselves up for it. In the midst of it all, its easy to get bitter and hateful towards the whole process and exert such negativity.

However, we should remind ourselves to look at the bigger picture. In all acutality, a college acceptance is just admittance onto their campus. That can be super symbolic of a person’s hard work and achievement in high school, but other than that, that’s all there is to it. Working hard, improving yourself and learning all that you can is what should really matter when it comes to college.

Yes, this time of year is stressful for all seniors. The work and emotions associated with it all is inevitable.

However, there’s a better way to go about the whole process. If mindsets change to being more accepting, open-minded and positive, all the hate can be avoided.

In the future, it’ll never be too late to make choices for your future. Through the right focus and mindset, anyone can change who they are. Anybody worried about their future should take a step back, relax, and realize that they’ll end up wherever they need to be.

Text

by Hannah Butay

December has arrived, which means it’s time for cheesy Christmas carols and overly-decorated houses, not to mention seeing all your annoying relatives and the age-old question: “What are you going to do after high school?” Sounds fun, right? It doesn’t, but as a kid, the holidays probably did.

Back then, you’d sing along to the lame holiday songs. You’d point out the brightest house on the block and marvel at how pretty it was. The only thing your relatives would ask is “How are you?” You’d reply your cousins.

Now, everything just seems boring and cliche.

You’ve heard the generic festive tunes a thousand times. The obnoxious houses annoy you. You say one, maybe two things to your cousins when you see them. It seems like all your relatives care about is what college you’re going to attend.

So why has everything changed? Why do you hate the things you used to love?

The answer is simple: age.

As a teen ready to transition into the not-so-fun world of adulthood, you’re more your English essay than

“chestnuts roasting on an that friend who won’t talk to you anymore, and you (shamefully) keep on thinking about that one cute person who sits next to you in history. The holidays are supposed to be a time to focus on your family, but that’s kind of hard to do when you’ve got a million other things in mind.

We’re young and we won’t be this age ever again. We need to appreciate our youth before it’s too late.

The older you get, the more experience you earn, which is typically a good thing. However, going through the same festivities over and over again isn’t.

Sure, singing along to “Rudolph the Red-nosed

Emily Wright | The Phoenix

or so years of your life, but after that it just becomes redundant. The songs, the decorations, the food, everything’s the same. It’s over things you’ve been through for practically your whole life.

Seeing all your relatives was probably one of the highlights of the holidays as a kid. You loved getting reconnected with them and felt like they genuinely cared about you. Now, all you ever get from them is something relating to college. They ask which ones you’re applying to, what you’re planning on major-

advice based on their past college crusades. Sure, they mean well, but it tends to go in one ear and out the other when you’re trying to get away from anything related to school. Plus, the college lifestyle they had was probone you’ll experience.

As a teen growing up in ity, gifts have started to lose their value. Everyone wants the new iPhone 6, not a handmade sweater knitted

by Grandma. You spend more time browsing on your phone than actually talking to your family. Money’s also a lot tighter now than

a decade or so ago, which means that you probably want for the holidays. You have to settle for getting a pair of socks or a gift card to some store you had no idea was still around. Getting gifts is the universal best part of the holidays, but it really starts to lose its spark when every gift you get is something you’ll never even use.

The way I see it, I think we should all just learn to let it go a little.

We’re at that point in our lives where we’re so close to being adults that we forget just how young we actually are. So, for at least a day

during the holiday break, we should all just forget the stressful college application process and the dozens of assignments. Put down the phone. Talk to your uncle, and if he wants to talk about college, genuinely try to listen. Smile when you receive a gift card to Blockbusters or a package of year-old sugar cookies. Relax and forget about your pride that day.

Try to have fun with your cousins, because they’re all probably going through the same struggles you are.

We’re young and we won’t be this age ever again. We need to appreciate our youth before it’s too late.

Special Feature

Dec. 9, 2014

6

SAFETY AT SCHOOL The basics

by Julie Wi Staff Wrtier

During an emergency on campus, there are two possible procedures the school can do: either Lockdown or

A History

Shelter in Place.

“Code Red,” which is known officially by the school as Lockdown, is the more urgent procedure that can occur on campus. Lockdown is initiated when there is an armed threat either on campus or in the surrounding neighborhood. Students and teachers should lock doors, barricade classrooms, and remain in a quiet, still position until the threat is cleared.

“Code Blue,” known officially as Shelter In Place, is not as urgent. When Shelter In Place is initiated, there is a nonimmediate threat outside of the neighborhood, requiring some caution. Students and teachers are to remain in their classrooms with the doors locked and classes can continue as usual indoors. If the threat becomes more dangerous, the school will proceed to Lockdown.

Deadliest massacre:

by Sonya Jindal

The Bath School Disaster –1927 – 45 Victims

News Editor

Recently, school shootings have become a predominant affair. Every campus, such as K-12 public school, private schools and universities/colleges have all fallen victim to massacres of school shootings.

The Bath School Disaster is the deadliest recorded school shooting in the United States history. According to NPR, 38 schoolchildren, ages seven-14, were killed when a series of bombs went off in Bath Township, Michigan on May 18, 1927. The bombs killed two teachers, four adults and another 58 people were wounded. The bomber, a school board member who was angry regarding property taxes used to fund the school, was also killed after he burned down his farm and blew up his car.

Most famous:

Earliest shooting:

Columbine – 1999 – 15 Victims

Pontiac’s Rebellion – 1760 – 10 Victims The earliest known school shooting in the United States occurred on July 26th, 1760 in present day Greencastle, Penn. This shooting was labeled as Pontiac’s Rebellion school massacre.

The school master, as well as about nine children, were killed by the shooters.

The Columbine school shooting is the most notable shooting in US history. The shooting is referenced in many forms, such as literature, songs, television shows and movies.The shooting at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, occurred on April 20, 1999. The two shooters, both seniors at the school, walked onto campus armed with guns and homemade bombs, killing 12 students and a teacher. A total of 24 people were injured, botn on campus and trying to flee and escape.They both committed suicide at the end of their rampage.

A serious affair

by Maggie Bernauer Staff Writer

What is the first thing you think of when you hear the words Code Red over the loudspeaker?

Students take this announcement as a time to chat with friends and pull out their phones. The definition of Code Red is a very serious security warning; it is a threat that a shooter becomes present on a school campus.

The definition states the words very seriously, but students still tend to let it escape their minds that a killer could be on campus. The way students and teachers act has to change. The level of seriousness needs to be reevaluated.

People need to be more serious during Code Red whether it is a drill or real.

Code Red drills are meant to

prepare the students and faculty to understand what to do in a real Code Red. It is like studying the wrong information and then failing that test.

If students practice bad habits during the Code Red drill they will more likely be unprepared if a real Code Red happens. Lockdowns are not fun situation, Fremont has had multiple scares where a shooter has been presumed to be on campus. Lockdowns are not a time to pull out your device or start talking. The level of seriousness that is present in the classroom can be a life or death factor. The loud voices and bright screens defeat the whole purpose of barricading and hiding.

“We should take every drill like

it is real,” sophomore Anna Stevenson, who has been through multiple Code Red drills and real Lockdowns said. “Also the school could maybe test a Code Red when we are caught off guard to create more seriousness,” Stevenson said.

It is impossible to create a fear that represents a real Code Red. “The best solution to create seriousness is for teachers to model good behavior and be serious,” ASB advisor Amy Gibson said.

Shooters have a mindset to get in and out as quickly as possible and create the most damage in the shortest amount of time. Do not help them out by giving away your location. In these

types of situations it is important that students and teachers prepare for the worst thing to happen. But sometimes the emotion of fear is not present in Fremont’s classrooms. “On the other hand people did not take it seriously and that scares me,” Stevenson said.

During Code Red other people’s fates are determined by others actions. It is one thing to put your own life in danger, but when those actions become a threat to others it is not okay. The outcome of a Code Red is unpredictable but in any situation you always want the odds in your favor and being serious will provided the best chances of survival.

L

Special Feature

Dec. 9, 2014

7

School shootings are a common concern throughout the United States. While it’s ideal to believe you are safe at school, history has proven this isn’t always the case. It’s up to the school to have effective emergency procedures in place, as well as to be able to report and respond to warning signs.

In the event of an emergency, just how ready is Fremont?

Most recent: Marysville Pilchuck High 2014 - 5 victims

Deadliest single gunman:

The Marysville Pilchuck High School shooting is the most recent shooting of 2014. The shooting occured on Oct. 24, 2014 in Marysville, Washington. The shooter, a 15-year old freshman, killed four students, fattally injured 3 before shooting himself. Social media played a huge role in contributing to the shooter’s motive to kill.

Virginia Tech – 2007 – 33 Victims Virginia Tech is considered to be the deadliest shooting rampage conducted by a single gunman in the United States history. The lone gunman, as well as a senior at the school, killed 33 people, including himself, on the campus of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Virginia, on April 16, 2007. The victims were all students and staff and Virginia Tech.

Most recent: Sandy Hook Elementary – 2012 – 28 victims The Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting is the most recent shooting that had a death toll above 10.

The incident is noted as the deadliest mass shooting in a grade school level, as well as the second deadliest school shooting conducted by a single gunman. Before the shooting spree occurred, the shooter shot and killed his own mother. The shooter, armed with multiple weapons, shot and killed 20 first-grade students, six teachers and then took his own life.

What’s it like here at Fremont?

by Ariana Honavar-Hiro Staff Writer

In the past, there have been several lockdowns at Fremont because of threats of violence and danger. Our students know the best just how stressful these lockdowns can be. Once people realize that it is not a drill they panic. It is human nature to panic and be afraid in a situation that we are not well prepared to handle.

Lockdown drills are not always taken seriously and many times students treat it as a joke or a way to skip class and play on their phones. When doing these drills the lack of seriousness doesn’t help anyone because students will not know what to do when the time comes to protect themselves. The teacher’s job during a drill is to give all the information needed so that the students know what to do in an

emergency when they are in that class. In case of an emergency people should not have to ask what they should do, they should be able to remember the procedures.

At school, there are number of things we are told to do during a lockdown based on our location.

The science wing for instance is so close to the back parking lot entrance to school that there is high chance that at a shooter could enter through there. There is also an advantage to this though because students could escape the building and run off campus to safety. Several of the buildings are not that close to the exits and do not have the same advantage and disadvantages. One thing to keep in mind in the event of lockdown is the situation will not always

be the same and the procedure will differ based on where you are. “Students should listen to their teachers and make sure they understand the plan for what to do in an emergency, that way if something happens in any of their classes they are prepared,” Brian Emmert, principal, said.

Administrators do what they can in order to ensure the safety of all the students. Our safety is the biggest concern for them, so they collaborate with local law enforcement to create a plan, structured so that everyone on campus is safe and accounted for. In the past we have had lockdown drills to help us prepare for an emergency “Fremont received a positive response from the Sunnyvale Safety Department,” said Emmert. The report was that classroom doors

were locked and officers were unable to open the doors.

There are three things that students are recommended to do if they are outside during a lockdown and are still on campus: run, hide, and defend. These will ensure that even if a student is in a dangerous situation there is a clear plan on what to do. After seeing the horrible events of Columbine and Sandy Hook, the whole lockdown process has taken a whole new level of seriousness.

“Students should try and use the lockdown drills as a way to practice the plan and in the case of a real emergency be able to execute it well,” Emmert said.

One thing that students can do that is in their control is how well they act towards others. This is something that can prevent

school shootings and has to be done before it happens. If students should make sure they are kind to everyone, because in a lot of cases students that are bullied and are outcasts are the ones that can become dangerous. It is important to keep in mind that how you behave towards others deeply impacts them and what may seem like a joke to you does not look that way from the other side. The threat of a lockdown is a threat that will always be there, and as a student that is scary because we have to worry about someone attacking our school. Ever since we were young we have been taught what to do in case there was a gunman at school and as long as we are prepared the threat may not be as terrifying.

Arts & Entertainment

Dec. 9, 2014

8

Fremont student acts his way into college Fun holiday ideas

by Cindy Zhang Staff Writer

In late June, seniors Parker Kaeding, Wendy Frye and Mikaela Rangel attended six days of performances, workshops and college auditions at the International Thespian Festival.

Of the three students, Kaeding was the only one who received callbacks. In fact, he received 27 callbacks from the 37 tech theatre interviews he attended.

“I was told that was the most callbacks at the International Thespian Festival,” Kaeding said. “As I went to each of those 27 school booths, they told me, ‘You’re the one everyone here wants, you’re the one everyone’s trying to get and everyone’s fighting over.’”

What exactly is it that distinguishes Kaeding from other students and causes so many colleges to take an interest in him?

“I think they’re looking for experience,” Kaeding said, “but not only experience. They want the whole package. They want someone who’s not only into theatre, someone who they can relate to. I was told by the people that I was very articulate, I was easy to talk to, they liked me; I was throwing in jokes in my spiel.”

Of the 27 schools Kaeding revisited, seven automatically accepted him.

Of these seven, however, Kaeding is only applying to two.

“Yeah, there’s five other schools that gave me automatic acceptance, but they weren’t that great,” Kaeding said. “I have better options, and I didn’t want to waste my time applying to a

Photo courtesy of Sue Larson

KAEDING acting in The Foreigner during his junior year.

school I knew I didn’t want to go to.”

Kaeding never expected to have received so many callbacks; given the experiences of Gonzalez from last year, he had expected a relatively similar number of callbacks.

“I was going through the callbacks, expecting maybe 2,” Kaeding said. “But then I was like, whoa, I got some more: two, six, eight.

And then it kept building and building until almost every school I was taken one off of, and I was so extraordinarily happy.”

Now that Kaeding has

been admitted into college, he has two options. One option is to get a Bachelor Arts, or BA, in theatre, where he would be able to do everything: acting on stage, lights behind the scenes and all else that pertains to theatre.

There is also the Bachelor fine arts route, or BFA route, as opposed to just Bachelor Arts. Since a BFA focuses solely on lighting design, if Kaeding chose the BFA route, he would only be able to do lighting design.

A majority of Kaeding’s portfolio was actually on lighting design, since

tech theatre was the chosen category of theatre that he’s strived in and has been successful in.

“I’m not excited for when I have to make that final decision once I see the schools I’ve gotten into; whether I want to go to just tech theatre, sign my life away to lighting design for four years, or go to a theatre where I can do it all.

I am leaning towards BA, though.”

According to Kaeding, tech theatre is everything that happens that the audience doesn’t see.

People who do tech theatre controls the lights, such as a flash of lightning or the brightness of the lights, and sound effects, like a boom of thunder.

“The actor gets all the credit,” Kaeding said. “It’s easy to be an actor. There’s all that kind of stuff that goes into a play, that no one really sees and is taken for granted: they tie together to put the entire show together and on its wheels.

“The main reason I chose to go into tech theatre is because there is such a larger job market, and so much more money. The tech theatre is big, it’s something not a lot of people know about, and if you’re good at it, you will get a job, you will make money. It’s a more solid career route than being an actor.

“It’s really nice to know I’ll be able to go to a college, to have the security knowing that I’ve been accepted, and yeah, I’m applying to much better universities than I was accepted to, but if I don’t get in, I’ll have choices.”

by Dana Nissan Staff Writer

Photo courtesy of Etsy

The holiday season is here. Here are a few ways to make the most out of the upcoming holidays.

1. Play games related to whatever holiday your family celebrates. One game is “Left-Right Pass The Gift. Your family sits in a circle and you wrap a gift with lots of wrapping paper. You pass the gift to the direction of left or right and when the music stops you unwrap a layer.

This game gets your family nervous and excited for who will win the gift after all the layers are unwrapped.

2.Watch a feel-good movie to get everyone in the spirit. Some good movies to watch with your family are Home Alone and Hundred-Foot Journey.

3. Bake deserts. Making different shaped cookies and decorating them is a fun way to share ideas with family members. Brownies are also perfect with a cup of milk or coffee.

4. Go to San Francisco. Visit the 16th Avenue Tiled Steps Project, which features a tiled staircase. On every step, you enjoy a different design that builds up to one big picture.

These items will ensure a fun holiday season with your family.

Getting a job isn’t that hard

by Juan Martinez

Arts & Entertainment Editor

The world revolves around money. It’s a coinoperated world. As teens, even if we want a job, there are slim pickings. But, there are still a few good options left.

It’s almost holiday season and the only thing that can keep a teen from gift shopping is the emptiness of their wallet. Saving is always an option, but that’s not always possible.

Spending might be a part of human nature, but don’t fret: you can get a part time job. Hold your horses before you go filling out a bunch of applications, and keep these things in mind.

First, know what you’re applying for. A job is no joking matter; there’s a lot of accountability involved.

You should always read the job description. It might say that the employee has to know extreme acrobatics and if you can’t touch your toes, you shouldn’t be applying. If a friend works

there, ask for an opinion on the workload. It could save you from placing yourself in the wrong working environment. Also, ask the hiring manager what your responsibility will be on the job. If all else fails, research the job online.

Secondly, time management is absolutely crucial.

If you don’t have time for a job, don’t apply for one.

There’s not enough time in the world to do everything so don’t try. It’s an unnecessary achievement if later you can’t even keep up with your schoolwork.

“It’s a good idea to hold a job if you’re a junior or senior.” Lorena Villagómez said. Villagómez works as the college and career counselor at Fremont High School. “I recommend a total of 10-15 hours each week max. That way you have time for homework, extracurricular and personal stuff.”

Next make sure you have good social compatibility. In all jobs there will be

some kind of person-to-person contact. Being a little socially awkward should not discourage you from applying. (Unless you vomit upon contact, which might get you fired.) Also keeping a calm and levelheaded demeanor is a skill that can take you far. You’re going to be in some high-pressure situations and losing it will not be an option. You do not want to be yelled at and then subsequently fired.

Plus, it won’t look good down the road.

Lastly, be prepared for an interview. It’s mandatory but don’t be afraid.

This is a chance to showcase personality and professional etiquette. Don’t ever let them know you’re nervous, and if you are, lie about it.

Tell them about what makes you the strongest candidate for the job. You’re probably not the only applicant. An interview doesn’t take much time and putting your best foot forward is all you can do so don’t sweat it if you do bad. There’s no harm in

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Arts & Entertainment Healthy changes to your diet Dangerously confusing 9

Dec. 9, 2014

by Sarah Kacmarsky Staff Writer

Teenage girls are recommended to eat between 1,600 and 2,000 calories a day.

by Emily Wright Staff Writer

3 out of 5

Teenage boys are recommended to eat between 2,600 and 3,000 calories a day.

Sometime before another climax in Shannon Hale’s Dangerous the main character says, “Tell me again . . .

I’m going to try to listen better,” which sums up my reaction to this book almost perfectly.

Maisie Danger Brown, the main protagonist, was born without a right arm, and has always been treated and viewed as different. Nonetheless, she has dreamed of being an astronaut almost her entire life. When she wins a sweepstakes to go to astronaut camp led by a distinguished scientist, Maisie is ecstatic. However, she eventually realizes that her dream could very soon turn deadly. The trip of a lifetime is filled with new love, danger and mysterious alien artifacts that will change Maisie’s life forever.

Author Shannon Hale (Princess Academy) fills the book with action and excitement. All the characters have well-defined personalities, especially the punny dad and the swearing French friend.

Maisie goes through all of space camp in the first 50 pages of the book, and much of the 405 page novel is spent describing the time after Maisie moves away from the friends she’s recently made. At times, the book skips a long span of time with very little description. The most extreme example is when Maisie skips forward four months in as many sentences.

Interactions between Maisie and her parents, especially her father, are one of the highlights of the book.

However, the plot arc featuring Maisie’s mother falls short.

The biggest gripe is probably the climax. Just when it seems like the perfect time to end the book, Hale adds another mission for Maisie that has little connection to the rest of the book. Several times, things get so confusing and weird that it’s necessary to reread previous parts.

It seems like the only character who is developed near the end is Maisie and her view of the love interest. Most of the story seems to speed by, while some of the action scenes seem to go on for way too long, which made me feel that Dangerous should’ve been two books.

The ending doesn’t leave the reader hanging, but many readers will not be satisfied with how certain characters end up. Based on that alone, it doesn’t seem like this will be the start of a new series.

We all know that we have to eat our fruits and vegetables, but with busy schedules and surrounding fast food restaurants, it’s easier to choose the quick, greasy option. If you choose the healthier option, not only will you feel better, but you will feel fuller and have more energy. Contrary to popular belief, it can be easy to eat healthy on the go.

Many restaurants offer salads or meals that combine vegetables and protein. By choosing broccoli over burgers, not only are you consuming minerals that your body will actually use, but you are fueling your body with minerals that can lower your blood pressure and keep you energized. If you go for the unhealthy option, you may have higher blood sugar, cholesterol and you will gain more weight due to retaining water and empty calories your body will store as fat.

Sodas are nice and convenient, but they are full of empty calories.

Other beverages such as Purtiy, fruit juices, or even better, water, are much healthier options that won’t leave you feeling bloated.

Chips are salty and don’t have much nutritional value. Instead, you can swap them for carrot chips with cream cheese, peanut butter, hummus or dried fruit such as banana chips or dried berries.

Food labels that lie: Everything you need to know

by Kristina Lechuga Staff Writer

In a nation where approximately 70 percent of adults are considered overweight or obese, it’s no coincidence that type two diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure are on the rise in America.

Balancing a healthy diet with comfort food can be difficult for any American. For those who try to make healthy choices when at the grocery store, one may turn to food labels and nutrition facts for help in making a decision.

What many aren’t aware of, however, is the deceit in our labels.

According to a study by the University of Minnesota, 26 percent of people read the nutritional facts on the food they buy. For a nation that’s obsessed with fad dieting and losing weight, that percentage is surprisingly small. One issue with nutritional facts is the serving size. Often times, the serving size represented on the label is much smaller than what one would actually eat, ultimately tricking the consumer into believing that what they’re eating is

Look for foods with: FIBER

CALCIUM

IRON

PROTEIN

VITAMINS

LOW FAT

POTASSIUM

Photo courtesy of Korea Lifts

much healthier.

A three ounce bag of potato chips contains three servings, with about 15 chips per serving. The label says that it’s only 160 calories per serving. Eat the whole bag?

460 calories, almost ¼ of your daily caloric intake.

Another issue with food labeling is the claims that they make. Take a second glance at what you’re

eating. Does xanthan gum sound “all natural”?

Buying something that says “all natural” may make a consumer believe that what they’re buying is healthy. In truth, there’s no definition for all natural as defined by the United States Food and Drug Administration.

“From a food science

perspective, it is difficult to define a food product that is ‘natural’ because the food has probably been processed and is no longer the product of the earth,” the FDA’s website said. “That said, FDA has not developed a definition for use of the term natural or its derivatives.”

One of the few terms that has a legal definition is “organic,” which under the United States Department of Agriculture guidelines, means that “most synthetic fertilizers and pesticides” are prohibited in the farming of organic fruits and vegetables. High amounts of pesticides have been linked to cancer and birth defects, and although organic food

OMEGA 3 is almost always pricey, it can be worth it when you put your long term health into consideration.

What about “100 percent juice”? Not exactly true.

“To save money, companies dilute their wares with cheaper juices like white grape, apple or pear,” senior editor at Mental Floss Ethan Trex wrote. “The finished product is still 100 percent fruit juice, but it may not be juice from the fruit you were expecting.”

In other words, 100 percent grape juice may have just as much apple juice as it does grape juice.

Another label that people watch out for is anything that contains high fructose corn syrup. In truth, table

sugar and HFCS are nearly identical in every way.

“They all have essentially equal proportions of the same simple sugars, glucose and fructose,” sweetsurprise.com said, a website created by the Corn Refiners Association to debunk myths about HFCS and its effects on health. “Each has similar caloric value where one gram equals four calories, and they are metabolized at about the same rate and are indistinguishable by the body.”

Simply put, HFCS and sugar do the same for your body; consume both in moderation in order to stay healthy.

Labels on food can be full of misleading statements and vague claims, but being educated on how to maintain a healthy lifestyle will ultimately make the biggest difference.

SPORTS

Dec. 9, 2014

10

Football team loses in first round of playoffs

by Ashley Chavez Managing Editor

For the first time since 1974, Fremont’s varsity football team went undefeated for more than seven games.

In fact, they went undefeated for nine. Despite the devastating loss to Homestead during their last game of the season, they continued on to the Central Coast Section where they played Piedmont Hills High School. Unfortunately, Fremont fell short two points making the final score 33-31, ending their football season for the year.

This however, will not prevent the team from working and continuing to improve. According to Coach Jake Messina, the team plans to train throughout the year until next season.

This year was not only eventful for the team, but for the school as a whole.

With the help of ASB and the rest of the Fremont community, the school was able to unite. The school introduced new ways for all students and staff to get involved in the games.

On the day of the Homestead versus. Fremont

game, Fremont hosted local radio station 99.7 NOW at lunch to broadcast live from campus. Due to Fremont’s successful season, the school received coverage from many other outlets on social media, such as Cal-Hi Sports Bay Area, a program that has televised high school sports in the Bay Area for 12 years.

A pep rally was also set up to encourage students to attend the game.

During the game, ASB designated an entire area on the bleachers as the “spirit section” where students could sit and do collaborative cheers. A video was posted on YouTube prior to the game, where students could learn the cheers.

While most of the time teachers could be spotted at football games, the team wanted to encourage more teachers to take part. Every Friday, the football players would wear their jerseys at school to promote the game. As a way of commending a teacher of the player’s choice, players would lend the teacher their other jersey.

This small but meaningful gesture was a way of creating unity between the

teachers and the football team, a unity that might not have ever been addressed before. This new tradition made such a difference in the community that NBC Bay Area did a short piece on it during the evening news. The broadcast featured senior Afa Prescott as well as the teacher he gave his jersey to, Beth Villa. The broadcast also mentioned that the Homestead game was Villa’s first football game that she had ever attended. Without receiving Prescott’s jersey as an invitation to support the team, Villa may have never attended.

Messina believes the school having supported the team as much as they did, really did benefit the team.

While Fremont has had successful seasons in the past, there was a certain sense of community that had been lacking.

According to Messina, when looking into becoming employed at Fremont, he was advised to look elsewhere. Messina felt that he could make something of the football program.

“I was told not to come to Fremont,” Messina said.

“I didn’t listen.”

QUARTERBACK Phillip Tran rushes the ball against the Piedmont Pirates.

TRAN completes his pass to wide receiver Alejandro Morales.

Priya Lee | The Phoenix

Priya Lee | The Phoenix

Hopeful runner ups

by Priya Lee

Lead Photographer

Though they went into league finals seeded second place with a record of nine wins and three losses, the varsity girls water polo team was not able to win the league champion title.

On Nov. 4-7, Fremont High School hosted the El Camino Division League Finals Tournament. The girls played both Wilcox and Santa Clara High School in the tournament, coming out victorious and putting them into the championship game.

If they had won the game, they would have been named co-league champions with Lynbrook, but they ended the season with a loss of 7-4.

“I actually think we played decently,” senior Mina Loldj said. “It sucks that the score shows up as it did. It seems like they were so much of a better team, but they really weren’t.”

“We came one game away from winning leagues and going to CCS,” Coach Mo Clark said. “We put ourselves in the position to win. We put ourselves in the position to do well. We put ourselves in the position to control our own destinies.

We played a strong team and we got hit with the flu bug.”

During their final game, the girls said that they started the first quarter strong, and then made some mistakes they weren’t able to make up for.

“I feel like if we did score the first goal that would have helped us, because a lot of the time we are down starting off and then it’s hard to get back up,” senior Monsi Magal said.

Despite not being able to win the championship, there were still some highlights in their season.

Fremont was able to beat every team at least once in the regular season, even beating Lynbrook 7-5 at home.

They also had a memorable victory against Santa Clara that went into overtime and then sudden death with a final score of 13-12. One of the games that the girls thought was the best was against Homestead High School at a tournament.

“My favorite game was against Homestead because they’re our rivals,” Loldj said. “Even though it wasn’t as publicized as some other sports when they play their rivals, we still played Homestead. They’re in a higher division, so many people assumed that we were going to lose, as did Homestead, but we ended up winning.

It was a really exciting game and it was really nice to beat Homestead my senior year.”

They were able to come out of season with a league record of 9-3 which almost matched last year’s season when they went to Central Coast Section.

They did not expect to do so well this season because their top scorer,

Rea Brakaj, and their goalie, Varsha Srivastava graduated last year.

“I think that we did really well and we did better than I expected at the beginning at the season,” junior Carmen Steinmeier said. “In the beginning, I didn’t really have a lot of hope. But then after our first game against Lincoln, when we won 16-4, I knew we were going to do super well.”

The team felt like they improved on many things like having more players step up to the plate and taking more outside shots.

They also feel like they communicated more as a team and have grown closer together. However, building up skills was only half of the battle for the team.

The girl’s mentality really affected their games.

“Our mental game was a weakness,” Steinmeier said. “If we would get scored on, we would just shrivel up; we wouldn’t come back and make it up.”

Even though they were not able to win the league title and go on to CCS, the girl’s water polo team still placed second and hope to do better next year.

“It sucks that we weren’t able to go to CCS, losing in the championship game,” Steinmeier said. “We still got to the championship game and I know that we’re better than Lynbrook and we could have beat them, but stuff happens and we lost, but we still had a great season altogether.”

Senior Wills We The Phoenix will the old tradition of senior wills to the class of 2015 and all following classes.

You all know that the senior quote is no more, but the Phoenix is bringing back an old tradition -- senior wills.

Let upcoming classes know what legacy you’re leaving them with (ex. “I, Jane Doe, would like to will all of my detention slips to Jill Doe, 11”).

Submit a 140 character or shorter message to the Phoenix on the Contact section of our website

sports

11

Dec. 9, 2014

A study in bad sportsmanship among athletes

by James Kanuch Staff Writer

The feeling of being at sports games is thrilling for fans. Whether they’re rooting for a team or actually playing the game themselves, people tend to get caught up in all of the excitement.

However, fans can get carried away and the end result can lead to violence if their team loses, or if the rivalries between fans become intense.

In 2011, San Francisco Giants fan Bryan Stow, along with two other Giants fans, were beaten up in a parking lot by two Dodgers fans after a game in which the Dodgers beat the Giants in the Dodger’s stadium.

According to various news sources, the attack was unprovoked by the victims and the two Dodgers fans responsible were eventually caught. Stow suffered serious damage to his skull and is now taken care of by his family.

Along with the issue of violence in sporting events, bad sportsmanship has become another problem not just with the players but also with coaches, fans and parents alike. Erik Duus, the coach for the varsity wrestling team, explains why players or spectators may have bad sportsman-

ship and violent outbursts during varsity games. “[Violence erupts] Just out of frustration because the match or game or whatever the competition is, isn’t going their way,” Duus said. “And since they’re already frustrated because they’re losing, then any little perceived misjudgment from a referee or anything big your opposition is doing just contributes more to their frustration. And out of their frustration they like to yell, complain. And usually nothing comes out of the yelling and complaining, which frustrates them more and sometimes that escalates into a physical confrontation.”

According to ABC News, on Sept. 29, a football game called the “Island Bowl” between rivals Encinal High School and Alameda High School got cancelled after a fight got out of hand between Encinal High school and Central Antelope High school football players at another game in Sacramento.

According to Alameda school officials, one of the players from Encinal started the fight by tackling a helmetless opponent. Then players joined in the fight by leaving the bench, as a result eight Encinal High players suspended. Because

of Encinal’s behavior they weren’t able to participate, which left many fans disappointed.

An article written by past sports writer Nathaniel Snow studied the reasons of sports violence. Some reasons include the socialization of others as ways to directly affect one another’s social characteristics, and that the desire to win has caused aggressive behaviors between athletes.

Jake Messina, coach of Fremont’s football team, experienced this aggressiveness out on the field.

“Couple of weeks ago, when we played Wilcox, at a certain point of time we were winning the game and they weren’t expecting that,” Messina said. “And so some of the behaviors that kind of came as a result of that on their end were not good.

I thought we dealt with it pretty well, we didn’t react to it, but it’s not something you want to see in high school athletics.”

“Most teams if they’re coached well and are prepared, then any type of external distraction at a match, is just that, an external distraction,” Duus said. “And they’ll just put it out and move on and just focus on the game. But, if they’re not well prepared, it can disrupt the flow of the

Photo courtesy of Marcio Jose Sanchez SAN Francisco Giant’s Michael Tucker is held by a Los Angeles Dodgers, while the Dodger’s Eric Gargne is held in 2004.

competition and concentration of the competitors that are involved as well.”

“Part of it starts with coaching, probably the majority of it is coaching,” Messina said. “Obviously coaches don’t raise the athletes they are in charge of.

So you are somewhat limited in terms of what you’re getting but you can certainly have a standard within your program with things you won’t tolerate. And typically the teams that are committing a lot of personal fouls and kind of just indulging in those type of behaviors during games, ultimately it is a reflection of coaching

whether we like it or not.”

Duus believes that there should be stricter policies when it comes to violent outbursts and bad sportsmanship.

“Well, I think that when it does happen it needs to be recognized as being not acceptable,” Duus said. “And the punishments that I’ve seen doled out for any time this type of thing has happened is kind of a slap on the wrist, nothing that serious and they’ll throw you out of the venue.

And that’s about it. And I think it needs to be way more serious and harsh.”

Messina has another

point of view on the punishments that should be made for bad sportsmanship and violent outbursts.

“So it’s not that they’re enough, it’s whether they’re enforced or not.” Messina said. “For example during the couple of games we’ve been had this year, I watched the opponents allowed to do any number of things that I thought were either unsportsmanlike or at least something that should be reprimanded and depending on the officiating crew that may or may not happen.”

Paving for success in college level soccer

by Rachel Pena Staff Writer

Junior Jessica Yu at Fremont High School already has an athletic scholarship.

Yu started playing soccer at the age of four, after moving from Canada to California at a very young age. Initially her parents wanted her to play ice hockey. She also tried figure skating for a brief amount, but she did not like it.

Soccer registration forms were sent to the previous owners of the house she currently lives in and her parents made her try soccer. She was comfortable playing the sport.

At the age of seven, Yu joined her first competition team with the club Sunnyvale Soccer Alliance Extreme 96. As some of her teammates entered high school in that team, she decided to move back down to her own age group. At the age of 12, she joined Santa Clara Sporting ‘97G White, an elite premier team in her area where she continues to play.

Yu has traveled across the U.S. with her Santa Clara Sporting ‘97G White Team. She is able to maintain a 4.0 GPA while still doing soccer three times a week with her team, and community service with the Bay Area Women’s Sports Initiative. BAWSI is an after school program leadership for young

girls.

She participates as one of the leaders that teaches young girls how to play soccer.

“Most of my weekend is mostly dedicated to soccer,” Yu said.

Through soccer, Yu was able to accomplish multiple achievements.

The Santa Clara Sporting ‘97G White team is in the Division 1 Soccer of the state, which composes of the highest ranking teams in Northern California. According to gotsoccer.com, they are currently ranked twelfth in the nation,

and third in Northern California. As Yu was playing in the field in a tournament at a Las Vegas showcase during March of her freshman year, the University of Oregon scouted her.

The University of Oregon offered her a 93 percent tuition scholarship, which means the school will pay 93 percent of her total tuition.

“Soccer is a huge part of my life because the amount time it takes, commitment and a lot of sacrifices is a lot,” Yu said.

Before she decided to fully commit to the University of Oregon, she traveled to other states and universities in California during Feb. of her sophomore year. The universities that she focused on were in Oregon, Washington and Santa Clara due to their proximity.

However, she mostly focused on Washington and Oregon because the universities are not as close as Santa Clara. She decided to commit to Oregon because the school offered her a better scholarship. According to Yu, the school has good facilities and great support for their athletes.

“I am lucky to have my family and teachers that supports me during my stressful time,” Yu said.

Although sophomore year was the hardest year for her. since it was the year where she explored universities, she played for varsity girls soccer and her club. She hopes to play with the Pac-12, which is the highest sport division in the National Collegiate Athletic Association.

Photo courtesy of Jeff Yu

sports

Dec. 9, 2014

12

Preparation pays off for CCS

by Kelly Zhong Staff Writer

This year’s varsity girls cross country team’s preparation paid off, ranking ninth overall in Division I of the Central Coast Section.

The CCS race this year was at Toro Park, Salinas on Nov. 15. The eight schools ranked in front of them were Cupertino, Salinas, San Benito, Menlo-Atherton, Palo Alto, Gunn, Monta Vista and Homestead.

In order to determine the rankings, the places of each of the seven runners of each school are added up.

The school with the lowest number is first place, and so on.

Coach Mark Shields was proud of the team’s ranking, especially since it was out of 17 schools, with 129 runners.

In addition, they ran the four fastest times in Fremont this year.

“It’s probably the best cross country season in the last 15 years since the late mid-nineties,” Shields said. “The girl’s team is very powerful.”

Furthermore, this year’s team is particularly young, made up of three freshmen, two sophomores and two juniors.

“I”m happy because older people would graduate and then we wouldn’t really have a team,” Jacqueline J. Escalera, team captain, said.

“We have a lot of young people; it’s a good base for

Photo courtesy of Gina De Cesare GIRLS cross country teams at the start of the CCS race at Toro Park on Nov. 15.

the team and they have a lot of room to improve.”

Not only are the veteran runners excited, the freshmen on the team are excited as well.

“I feel really proud of our team and myself for making it on varsity the first year, especially going to CCS with all the varsity girls,” freshman Brenda Blanco said.

What’s even more surprising is that some of the newer freshmen on varsity have only started running recently, either last year or this year.

Despite this, the newer runners have improved their speed and stamina quickly throughout the season and through summer conditioning.

Contrary to popular belief, cross country practice for CCS is not more intense than normal practices. The biggest change in practice is that Shields recommends more rest, called active rest, as well as ice baths, where

athletes literally submerge their bodies in a bathful of ice. Though it may sound painful, it is beneficial for an athlete.

“It is refreshing,” Shields said. “It coagulates lactic acid and tired muscles and the fix is when you get out of it, your heart starts to pump all of this warm blood to the cold limbs. That warm blood starts to flush out all that old blood.”

When the runners begin to tire during a race, they have numerous ways of how they keep running.

Most of them agree that they may start to slow down, but all of them said that they would never stop in a middle of a race.

Although no one made it to state this year, next year’s projection appears to be hopeful.

“We would have a chance of going to state; all the teams in front of us have seniors that won’t be there next year,” Shields said.

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