November 2023

GREYSCALE REPORT

— 2023-2024 — GREYHOUND — MEDIA

ACES —

Aspire —

Library Interview —

Model UN —

FFA —

Table of Contents Substance Abuse Issue

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ACES How do adverse childhood experiences highten chances of substance use.

Aspire

How to seek suport and healing after drug abuse.

9 Interview with the New Library Tech!!

Read and learn about AHS' new library technician!

UN 11 Model Interviews with Miara Wooten and Urban Cross. Learn more about this club and what they do.

update 13 FFA COLC, GLC, middle school visit, board presentation.

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Mission Statement Note from Illustrators: The mission of AHS Media is to entertain, inform, inspire, and support our community through telling our many stories. We value the stories others want to share. As illustrators for the magazine, we take pride in illustrating work representing the community and its issues.

Left to right: Kai Grist and Alana Risbrudt

Note from the Editors and Designers: The Greyscale Report aims to inform our community through thoughtful, truthful, and extensive interviews of the student body and staff.

We endeavor to report both tough yet necessary topics as well as lighthearted school news. As a reliable and relatable source of information, we strive to be accountable, honorable, and safe.

This month's topic is substance use. We hope you enjoy reading the new issue as much as we enjoyed designing, editing, and researching it for you!

Top row left to right: Kayleigh Luna, Anise Ralston, and Trisanee Siharath Bottom row left to right: Jessica Nonato and Hadara Vaughn

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Adverse Childhood Experiences Have you ever asked yourself why people abuse drugs?

Adverse Childhood Experiences may have something to do with it.

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According to Research done by the Centers for Disease Control and Kaiser Permanente that assessed the relationship between adult health risk behaviors and childhood, ACEs have a significant effect on your risk of substance abuse.

"In the study, 17,000 participants were interviewed about their experiences with childhood maltreatment, family dysfunction, and current health status and behaviors. What they found was the more Adverse Childhood Experiences you have, the more likely you are to have substance abuse tendencies.

Adverse Childhood Experiences/Abuse, neglect, and trauma can take many forms; cases of sexual, emotional, or physical abuse are all examples of ACEs, as well as divorce or loss of a family member and abandonment.

The 3 catagories of ACEs are: abuse, neglect, and household challenges. Each category is further divided into multiple subcategories.

Since the first ACEs study in the 1990s, research has shown that negative childhood experiences have been an essential factor related to drug abuse.

Take the Quiz to find out your ACE number.

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"When children are exposed to chronic stressful events, their neurodevelopment can be disrupted.

As a result, the child’s cognitive functioning and/or ability to cope with negative or disruptive emotions may be impaired. Over time, and often during adolescence, the child may adopt unhealthy coping mechanisms, such as substance use or self-harm. Eventually, these coping mechanisms can contribute to disease, disability, and social problems, as well as premature mortality, depicts the lifespan impact of ACEs."

Di

Ea se rl as y So e, De ci D Ad at al is op h ti a So Pr bi on ci ob li al Be o le ty ,E ha f ms ,a mo vi He nd al t o Di rs t Im io hsr n p a Ri a up l, i sk r te an m en d d t C Ne og Ad ur ni ve od ti ev Ex rs ve el pe e op ri Ch i me an l d nt ce h o s o d

-Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration Center and Prevention

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Adverse Childhood Experiences ACEs have commonly led to mental

disorders later in life, like depression, anxiety, and PTSD (Depression is the most common negative emotion induced by ACEs).

In comparison to those who didn't have any traumatic experiences in both childhood and adulthood, those who have ACEs are more likely to suffer from depression and PTSD. Studies have shown that more than 60% of adults report having at least one adverse childhood experience, and 17% reporting to have at least four or more.

As people turn to drug abuse in response to childhood trauma, they become more prone to diseases, disabilities, and homelessness.

It is up to all of us to be understanding and help those who have fallen victim to drug addiction. As students become aware of ACEs, it can also help us create an environment for younger generations to avoid going down that same path.

The Body Keeps the Score and can Heal From the Past ““We have learned that trauma is not just an event that took place sometime in the past; it is also the imprint left by that experience on mind, brain, and body..”

“In order to change, people need to become aware of their sensations and the way that their bodies interact with the world around them. Physical self-awareness is the first step in releasing the tyranny of the past.”

“As long as you keep secrets and suppress information, you are fundamentally at war with yourself…The critical issue is allowing yourself to know what you know. That takes an enormous amount of courage.”

“Traumatized people chronically feel unsafe inside their bodies… ― Bessel A. van der Kolk, The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma

Want to learn more about trauma and recovery? Find studies online, get a book, or contact a wellness center.

There is Hope According to National Library of Medicine "Resilience is a dynamic process in which individuals can adaptively overcome stress and/or traumatic events. It is the ability to overcome life challenges with perseverance, self-awareness, and one's own p/6 internal — coherence by activating a personal growth path."

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Studies Show the more ACES, the more risk, but studies also show that Trauma recovery can allow one to break free of the dangers of drug use.

According to the National History of Health, People with a score of 5 or higher are 7 to 10 times more likely to use illegal drugs and become addicted.

ACEs can produce and exacerbate depression, and depression may be a significant cause of drug abuse.

Depression is one of the most common and primary negative emotions induced

by ACEs. Compared with other negative emotions, the impact of depression on drug addiction has more critical clinical significance.

For every additional ACE score, the amount of prescription drugs used goes up, and smoking has been seen to increase along with an ACE score p/7 increase.

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Aspire The Journey to Recovery

Long-term substance abuse can be incredibly detrimental to a patient's physical and mental well-being. People who have lived with or known long-term drug users can notice the first-hand effects of drugs on personal health. Users can appear older than they are, lose teeth, experience gaps in memory or difficulty in recovering memories, and lose cognitive awareness. There are many adverse effects, many of which are amplified when users begin at a young age and continue to affect development. At a young age, drugs can affect maturity the ability to handle issues, and negatively impact a user's ability to retain a stable job. Drugs p/8 —

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affect all users, but especially can stunt growth in youth.

Aspire is a community-based service that focuses on helping patients without shaming them for their negative habits.

They endeavor to meet patients halfway without demeaning any recovery efforts their patients have made, instead supporting further growth. Aspire aims to understand and build an active, supporting connection with each patient.

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Aspire has an intensive outpatient program for patients struggling to stay sober, refrain from self-harm, or have just gotten out of the hospital for a suicide attempt or drug overdose. These patients can come to Aspire and receive intensive clinical services, or they can choose to stay home rather than attend a residential program. The goal is to allow patients access to a wide assortment of social workers, therapists, drug or alcohol counselors, as well as peers with similar experiences. Aspire aims to provide the counsel of experts to help their patients with any problems they may experience.

We believe in connection before correction

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Our Treatments: • Burnout • Emotional Breakdown • Feeling overwhelemed With Life • Depression • Social Fear/Anxiety • Situational Trauma • Grief/Loss • Racing Thoughts • Poor Self-Image • Panic Attacks • Poor Self-Image • Problems Sleeping • Low/No Motivation • Isolation or Loneliness • Suicidal Thoughts/Self-Harm

Interview with Thomas Buckley Tom Buckley personally believes in encouraging youth to talk about mental health and drug abuse freely. Our generation can change the way people consider mental health in general simply by communicating their experiences. Aspire aims to break the stigma surrounding mental health and drugs by spreading a message of acceptance and personal growth.

Tom Buckley’s childhood experiences contributed to his commitment to Aspire. He lost his father to addiction at a young age, and shortly after, his brother committed suicide. In the sixth grade, at only 13 years old, Tom was introduced to a world of drugs and alcohol. These harmful vices helped Tom cope with the pain of losing his father and brother at such a young age. For another decade, he relied solely on drugs and alcohol, self-medicating rather than confronting the grief and trauma of his childhood. Tom Buckley’s story is important because it can be applied to countless other youth with similar experiences. Many teens will choose to— find temporary relief through drugs AUGUST 2015 and alcohol, rather than confronting their issues.

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Meet the New Library Tech!

An Interview with Noelle Holden

Let's Welcome Noelle Holden, the newest edition to the AHS library!

Before coming to AHS, she was a library technician at Santa Rosa Elementary for a year and a half. Before becoming a library technician, Ms. Holden spent the last 20 years of her career in graphic design. Despite majoring in graphic design throughout college, Ms. Holden says, "I feel like it was destined for me to become a librarian. I grew up as a library kid loving books and volunteering at my library."

p/10 Noelle Holden is a mother of two middle school girls and — a second grade boy.

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Like many book lovers she enjoys the smell of books, the feel of paper, as well as organizing and cataloging things. Her favorite thing about libraries is the relational aspect of them. It is a great community builder because it brings people together to enjoy their favorite books and hobbies.

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Libraries are important because books are important. They bring people together, inspire, and increase our knowledge of the world around us. They are a pretty fantastic community builder. They are crucial in our disconnected and overstimulated culture.

- Noelle Holden

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MORE INFO

Future Plans Ms.Holden shared with us that she hopes to support the fantastic Ms. Bell's incredible vision of building a robust maker space by sparking interest in maker equipment like the 3D printer and die cutter that students can use to express their creativity. She wants to encourage students to use the maker space because "A library is a lot more than just books," she says.

Libraries can be a place to check out Earth Seed catalogs or Oculus VR goggles. It is unlimited to what a library can organize and share. According to The American Library Association, a library can be a collection or anything for public use. "A collection or group of books and or other print or nonprint materials organized and maintained for use."

A library serves many purposes. Libraries are a space for connection, a place to archive and save knowledge and information via objects, words, sound, and more.

As a library technician, Ms.Holden also wants to increase the amount of checkouts from students. Her Goal in doing this is to inspire students to do personal reading for learning, fun, and enjoyment because there are a lot of books that students need to utilize that they would enjoy. Ms.Holden wants to find a way to get books into the hands of people who have those interests.

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Favorite Book Genre:

Historical Fiction & Memoir

Favorite Series:

Little House on the Praire

Favorite book to movie adaptaton: Favorite color:

Hunger Games Mint

Favorite animal: Sloths Music:

Folk Music

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Model United Nations

What is Model UN? Model United Nations is an international, immersive club that stimulates the future of the United Nations. Students can learn all about world issues, the promotion of peace and diplomacy, and understand the unique viewpoints of many countries. While participating in an academic stimulation of the United Nations, students can play the role of delegates from 193 different countries and attempt to solve real-world issues, utilizing the perspectives and policies of their respective countries. Students prepare speeches, research country policies, and debate issues currently being discussed at the United Nations. Through the club, students are registered for a conference and are assigned a country to represent.

A group representing a singular country will be composed of multiple committees, each with different focuses, such as human rights, access to education, or development.

The Model United Nations club and class at our school are allowed to travel to conferences across California and occasionally even out of state! Last year, the club traveled to New York and participated in a vast conference, interacting with international delegates from all over. The meeting took place in the assembly hall of the Headquarters of the United Nations in New York, and student delegates were introduced to official representatives of the UN. Model United Nations can empower students by preparing them to stand out in conferences and win awards, as well as nurturing exemplary public speaking skills. Model United Nations functions as a fun and interactive class, allowing its students to grow their confidence and encouraging them to feel comfortable and knowledgeable when conversing about global politics with others. p/12 Incoming first-year students, or even students looking to join a — new club, should join Model UN to participate in a welcoming and THE SILUKEIGHT environment. challenging

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In the 23-24 school year (as of October), the following students have won awards for their exceptional speech and debate skills: freshman Charlotte Grant, sophomore Allison Summers, junior Urban Cross, and junior Noah Katona.

Miara Wooten Miara Wooten, recently reelected co-president of the Model United Nations club at Atascadero High School, has always been interested in global conflicts. She joined Model UN in her sophomore year, following covid lockdown, to become more involved with school activities. Model UN provided the opportunity to meet new people with similar interests and expand her interest in politics. The club allowed Miara to become more confident in her knowledge of politics, as well as encouraged her to express her opinions.

She has assumed an active involvement in the community through conferences and frequent fundraising events. Since joining Model United Nations, Miara has won over six awards and attended nine conferences.

Urban Cross

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Urban Cross, a member of Model United Nations, joined due to an interest in world politics. He joined after a suggestion from his counselor and has significantly grown his public speaking and research skills. Model United Nations has helped Urban gain a greater understanding of current events, allowing him to understand why global conflicts arise and how they can be solved diplomatically. Through the club, he has researched specific countries' policies and kept up with current international events. At conferences, he has presented speeches on particular research topics while representing a specific country, attempting to solve specific problems. Urban recommends the class for students who want to broaden their perspective and understand more about world politics. Since joining Model United Nations, p/13 Urban has traveled to New York, attended conferences, — and won an outstanding award.

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GREYSCALE REPORT

GREYSCALE

HOMECOMING HIGHLIGHTS

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