Hawkeye 3 2018

SPECIALIZED POLICE OFFICER AT MTHS MARCH 2018 | VOLUME 33 | ISSUE 4

HAWKEYE WWW.THEHAWKEYE.ORG

10

DIVERSITY OF TEACHERS DOESN’T MATCH STUDENTS

12

STUDENTS SPEAK OUT AND

BY WALKING OUT 16

MOUNTLAKE TERRACE HIGH SCHOOL | 21801 44TH AVE. W MOUNTLAKE TERRACE WA 98043

2 | MARCH 2018

Hawkeye

We’re writing a book about you.* *Okay, and about 1300 of your closest friends.

The TEMPO. Your student yearbook.

Reserve a copy today.

$75 • $65 w/ASB for sale in the ASB office.

And, no. That’s not the cover for this year’s book.

We’re a bit more creative than that, but we want to keep it a surprise.

Hawkeye

MARCH 2018 | 3 HAWKEYE LEADERSHIP ‘17-’18

SIERRA CLARK | HAWKEYE

JONATHAN KWONG | HAWKEYE

14

Contents March

22

JONATHAN KWONG | HAWKEYE

16

2018

7 What is a government shutdown?

8 New classes for the next school year introduced 14 The elimination of net neutrality 16 School shootings, student activism and gun reform 22 The first face you see inside Terrace

JONATHAN KWONG | HAWKEYE

7

8

HANK BELANGER | HAWKEYE

TRADITIONAL LIVING CAN CONFLICT WITH MORALS

S

life then there’s conflict. Guns were created to hurt and kill efficiently. When you realize 65 percent of preventable suicides are by gun and 96 people die every day in this country due to gun violence, then maybe it’s understandable to think, “Hmm, maybe I don’t agree with my parents.”

Traditionally, the basis for pro-gun beliefs is the Second Amendment. But the Constitution was adopted well over 200 years ago. The 18th amendment made alcohol illegal, yet that was quickly abolished. The point is, times change, and not everything that was relevant in 1787 is relevant now.

The last major reason given was personal taste, which can also be considered convenience. Now, this changes in regards to every argument, but in gun reform, personal taste can be pretty easy to pinpoint. “Guns don’t kill people, people kill people.” It is so much easier for people to brush it off, to say it’s not their problem, but the fact is that it is everyone’s problem.

Gun violence can affect anybody. Not too long ago, a student at Marysville-Pilchuck High School took his father’s illegallyowned gun and killed four people. This could have been avoided with stricter gun laws, background checks and supporting laws. H

Contact Us Email editor@thehawkeye.org

@MTHSHawkeye @MTHSports @MTHSWeather

Phone 425.431.5058 Website www.thehawkeye.org Mail Hawkeye Room 130 c/o Mountlake

TheHawkeye

MTHS Hawkeye

Terrace, WA 98043

Name in bold indicates the staff member of the month as selected by the Editorial Board. .......................................................

Advisers Vince DeMiero and Mike McLaughlin FANs Coordinators Sandra Merten & Cathy Fiorillo Printing Pacific Publishing Member MTHS ASB, JEA/WJEA, NSPA, Student Press Law Center, Tao of Journalism

......................................................

Mission

Mission Statement The Hawkeye’s mission is to provide the MTHS community with quality, thought-provoking student produced publications. In policy and in practice since 1960, the Hawkeye is a designated open forum publication.

Policies

The Hawkeye has established several open public forums for the exchange of information, opinions and artistic expression dedicated to those in the MTHS community. Since 1960, we have faithfully served our audience and community as an open, public forum where student editors make all decisions.

Editorials The editorial section of the Hawkeye serves as a forum for wellwritten, thoughtful, longer forms of expression. Signed editorials represent the opinions of the author. Unsigned editorials represent the opinion of the Hawkeye Editorial Board. Views printed herein are meant to be opinionated and do not necessarily represent the opinions of the Hawkeye staff, student body, faculty, administration or school board. The Hawkeye will print submitted guest editorials as space allows and requests that all contributors include their name, signature and position relative to the editorial. The Hawkeye will edit all submissions for accuracy, spelling and grammar. We reserve the right to refuse to print any submission.

Letters to the Editor Readers are encouraged to voice their opinions in the Opinion section, a public forum for the expression of varying viewpoints on relevant topics. The Hawkeye will print as many letters as space allows. Letters must include the author’s name, signature and class or position relative to the letter. Typed or legible, hand written letters are acceptable, but should not exceed 200 words. The Hawkeye will edit all letters for accuracy, spelling and grammar. We reserve the right to refuse to print any letter.

Editorial Cartoons Submissions represent the view of the artist. Editorial cartoons accompanying editorials and editorial columns represent the view of the author. Cartoons are selected based on appropriateness and clarity of message.

Advertising The Hawkeye will not accept any advertising that the Editorial Board deems to be: factually inaccurate; designed to mislead, deceive or defraud; containing malicious, vindictive or unsubstantiated attacks; offering goods and/or services illegal for teens to possess, buy or use; libelous; obscene; creating imminent danger or disruption to school. The Hawkeye reserves the right to refuse any advertising, solicited or unsolicited. Advertisements do not necessarily reflect the views or endorsements of the Hawkeye staff, student body, faculty, administration or school board.

Revised 9/2013

.......................................................

COVER ILLUSTRATION BY FLYNN THOMAS

Terrace High School 21801 44th Avenue West Mountlake

Visual Graphics Editor Tessa King Photo Editor Harper Thomas and Jacob Allard Design Editor Open Online Data/Online Manager Sam Johnson Audio/Video Manager Open ....................................................

2017-2018 Hawkeye Staff Alice Sampson, Amy Harris, Andy Nguyen, Annabeth Woodard, Ben Hawkins, Ben Rigney, Bruno Porras, Cameron Suraci, Charlotte King, Christen Spadavecchia, Ciara Laney, Corey Takeya, Emma Holbrook, Erin Martino, Ethan Dunne, Flynn Thomas, Gavin Norley, Hank Belanger, Ian Dortsch, Jackson Freund, Jacob Finerty, Jake Paulsene, Jenny Tran, Jonathan Kwong, Josh Setala, Katrina Fredericks, Lenise Tay, Leo Diaz, Lexi Dellinger, Lindee Cutler, Maddie WolffGee, Maria Hernandez, Matthew Hipolito, Meghan Park, Memphis Ramerman, Nina Pavlovic, Nhan Tran, Nhung Lam, Praditha Halstad, Praise Jingjit, Rackeb Kelemu, Robert Krieger, Samantha Svikel, Semira Beraki, Sophi Burbank, Teresa Bonilla, Tommy Tran, Trinity Alber, Vito Sparapano, Yannie Tran and Zoe O’Brien

Letter from the Editor

eeing from both points of view on a topic is almost always difficult. I struggle with it myself, but I try to stick with my morals when it comes down to it. For example, if one of your moral baselines is that you value life, than there are technically many things you would likely need to change about your lifestyle.

But here’s the thing – I’m not here to force you to change your lifestyle, I’m simply here to explain why others’ opinions sometimes seem outSierra Clark landishly wrong to you. For example, CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF if one did value life, they would likely be pro gun reform. “Life” means being alive, and guns kill.

Guns kill people and animals. But not every person who says they value life believes in gun reform. There are generally three major reasons as to why we believe certain things: the beliefs of our parents, tradition and personal taste, which varies.

Let’s stick with the topic of guns.

If you grew up in a gun-friendly family that went hunting or shooting regularly, it’s easy to be pro-gun, but if you value

Co-Editors-in-Chief Sierra Clark and Vivian Nowka-Keane Editorial Board Ben Eyman, Harper Thomas, Nolan DeGarlais, Sam Johnson, Sierra Clark and Vivian Nowka-Keane Editorial News Editor Nolan DeGarlais Sports Editor Kennedy Cooper and Sarah Davis Op-Ed Editor Marianne Nacanaynay Lifestyle Editor Annika Prom Business General Manager Ben Eyman Distribution Manager Open

mthshawkeye

@MTHSHawkeye

© 2018 HAWKEYE | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

4 | MARCH 2018

OP/ED

Hawkeye

POINT/COUNTERPOINT

IT’S TIME TO RETHINK ABORTION There are libertarian considerations as well as moral and ethical concerns O

nce I was a fiery-hearted progressive with intense feelings I agree with this statement for the most part. I’ve expressed shouldn’t always have the final say. If we believe it is immoral of incredulity toward Republicans for their, according to my libertarian leanings in the past and still stick by them. I for a mother to abuse her unborn child in this way, then we my perception at the time, blasphemous lack of support for believe we must err on the side of personal liberty and have have effectively ceded the grounds that the baby should be abortion. I held the view that I’ve heard the government intervene as little as possible so people can treated as a separate entity and that the mother shouldn’t most commonly touted by pro-choicers live their lives free to make mistakes always have complete sovereignty over the of, “It’s the woman’s body and should and imbue their own meaning into baby. If we can agree that it is morally wrong be her decision — any government their lives. However, I marry a to harm the baby in this way then we regulation of what a woman can do stipulation to that policy that believe the baby has rights which should with her body is wrong.” I doubt many is currently missing in the be protected because the mother can pro-choice advocates would disagree debate. One can do as they not be guaranteed to make the best with that statement; more often than please privately until there decision.

Matt Correa not I’ve seen them agree with that is an externality where What then, is a pregnant HAWKEYE CONTRIBUTOR sentiment and add the notion that another citizen can be mother who doesn’t want to there is a substantial element of anti-woman rhetoric behind affected without conbe pregnant to do? Steven the criticism of abortion. sequence. The exterCrowder said it best: “I am This is where I take issue with the current debate on abornality in this case, is pro choice. 1. Abstinence. 2. tion the most — as soon as one claims the opposition to the child — note that Contraception. 3. Adoption. 4. their ideology is fueled by bigotry with shaky evidence or I said child and not the Motherhood. You’re pro-murno evidence, you should start to imagine there is something diminutive “cluster of cells” der.” It began to really puzzle me rotten in the state of Denmark. Not to say there is somethat gets thrown around why women think abortion is an thing inherently wrong with accusing the opposition of those often in this debate. imperative right for women to have. qualities, but to do so without equally bold evidence and to Let’s start with the argument 45 percent of unplanned pregnancies predicate your argument on the insufficiencies of the opposithat a woman should have the are the result of couples deliberately not tion is where the true evil lies. right to abort her baby at any point using contraceptives — I unequivocally SIERRA CLARK | HAWKEYE This sentiment that one who opposes abortion is automati- in the pregnancy, from when she gets detest the argument that a woman has the cally a woman-hater or is indifferent to the plight of women a positive result on the pregnancy test right to kill a baby that was conceived by her is truly dangerous to allow to continue to be mainstream. to the day before delivery. It has been consistently proven own irresponsibility. With every right comes an equal and The incomparable Ben Shapiro said it best in a lecture he that a baby born after 25 weeks can survive reliably without opposite responsibility — the right to have sex with whomgave at the University of Connecticut remaining in utero (obviously as long as ever you please and the right to create a life whenever you in response to a woman in line for the it is fed and nurtured the way any other please comes with the responsibility that you not create a “I believe we must err Q&A asking, “How do you defend your newborn should be) and live a healthy life, baby when you are not ready. Condoms at my local gas staon the side of personal opinion [against abortion] as a white, largely free of the effects of premature birth. tion cost 6 dollars for a pack of three — two dollars each; liberty and have the government intervene as well-off, religious male?” To which I refuse to support legislation that allows a you could find that in quarters if you looked hard enough in little as possible.”

Shapiro responded, “Evil things are baby to be killed who has developed enough your furniture — how is that not the obvious first step somestill evil even if I am a white, well-off, to where if taken from the mother can one takes when they are about to have sex and don’t want to Matt Correa HAWKEYE CONTRIBUTOR religious man.” He went on to compare become a baby as we can all agree on. have a child? the debate to the abolition movement, Most people that I present that argument This responsibility, in my eyes, must be enforced with the noting the similar disparity between the general lifestyles of to will fire back with “the vast majority of abortions occur rule of law. In the same way that one can get blackout drunk opponents and proponents. in the first trimester.” I will not try to refute that as it is if they so choose but cannot operate a vehicle or machinery “The people who were fighting against enslavement of black verifiably true; however, this is a philosophical discussion of which could hurt another innocent person lest the law punpeople were a bunch of well-off, white men for the most part. whether or not it is moral to do so, not whether or not that is ish them, the law should punish those who have sex irreThey didn’t live in the South, they didn’t live the lives of the reality of our society. sponsibly and create a child, who under current law could be plantation owners — ‘this is evil and we are here to stop it.’”

We can agree that post-25 week abortion is immoral; let’s killed on the whim of the mother. I am unwilling to sacrifice This is imperative to realize – just because one does not live examine whether or not pre-25 week abortion is immoral. the rights of an unborn child for the convenience of a reckthe life of a person who will be more affected by legislation Someone who kills a pregnant mother is charged with double less teenage girl who should have known better, or worse yet does not bar them from having the place to make a moral homicide — proof that the baby is worth protecting. Perhaps an adult woman who either did not advocate for herself when judgement. Believing that one has the right to say that slavyou cling to the argument that as long as the mother is carher partner insisted they not use contraceptives or deliberery is wrong, never having owned slaves or experienced the rying the baby she gets to decide and that the assault on the ately chose not to herself. It is a failure of our culture that we hardships faced by plantations owners, is to concede that baby is really an assault on the mother’s sovereignty over her even consider pushing the message that you can conceive and anyone has the right to make a moral judgment on legislabody — no different than regular assault. A flawed argukill a child before you’re old enough to buy cigarettes and we tion, regardless of if it directly affects their current affairs. ment in my eyes; nevertheless there is an easy refute. The brush it off as a bad mistake anyone can make when they’re On to why I take issue with the mantra, “My body, my CDC says an unborn baby is susceptible to serious structural young with no legal consequences. It is even more inexcuschoice.” This is the libertarian argument; what a private and functional disfigurement of the central nervous through able for an adult, who should have by now learned that conindividual does privately should not be regulated by the govalcohol use by the carrying mother from the third week of ceiving a child is not something to take lightly and should ernment. Democrats are keen on this argument though they pregnancy to the end. not be treated as a “whoopsy” which has no consequence. It believe the government should be more involved in people’s If we believe it is morally wrong to abuse the baby at this is not too much to ask that one practice safe sex lest they face lives in myriad other ways — an interesting contradiction. point, the baby does indeed have rights and the mother the harsh consequences. H

Hawkeye

OP/ED

MARCH 2018 | 5

POINT/COUNTERPOINT

INDIVIDUAL CHOICE IS CRITICAL Without pro-choice policies, the government would be making the choice for you

HA WK E K| AC LAR RR SIE

grew up in a small city called Hastings, Minnesota.

As teenagers, we are extremely horny and have an Every other block had a church, all different sects urge to discover specific things that are appealing to like Catholic, Lutheran and others, everyone did us. the same routine. Sundays There are accidental pregnancies that happen were for the church service whether it’s the girl’s choice or not. Having sex at a and Wednesdays were for young age is dangerous and risky, and only having Bible study. My friends and I faith in a condom and a pregnancy pill is not the went to the same church so we best. would often go together.

What I said earlier still applies, everyone has One thing that was always a choice in what they want to do with their life. difficult to understand was There are teenagers who want to have a baby and Samantha Svikel the meaning of the religion, I am all for it because they’re making a decision HAWKEYE STAFF or in simpler terms, the they’ll love. meaning of religion as a I believe that after three months of being pregwhole. I felt more pressured to believe in God than nant, which is after the first trimester, you should it was my own opinion. I couldn’t wrap my brain not have an abortion. This is only because after around the fact I was supposed to believe a book three months, the baby fully starts developing. written thousands of years ago. Let alone believe The brain begins developing and after that point that the people in the Bible like Adam and Eve were I believe that you’re killing a living human. Which actually physically on Earth. is extreme, but if the baby is developing a brain it’s When I was 12 years old already becoming my family moved to Seattle, human.

“Having sex at a young age is dangerous and risky, and it was here when I started I also believe if havand only having faith in a to develop my own opinions. ing a baby will harm condom and a pregnancy It was a little weird at first the woman, like risktest is not the best.” because I wasn’t used to differing her life or the Samantha Svikel ent ethnic groups being in the baby’s, then having a HAWKEYE STAFF same school, as the majority of baby at that point is my previous school was Caucasian. not worth it.

Many people grow up in a setting where they Everyone has a choice on if they want to need to fit a certain mold to fit in and blend with continue having a baby and I know that the crowd. For example, if you aren’t completely for other people, like people who are pro left-wing liberal in Seattle you’re judged by other life, having a baby is a must. people to not being open to ideas, or if you don’t go If you don’t want to have a baby for to church every Sunday in Minnesota, you’re seen by your whole life, good for you and you the rest of the community as a sinner and that you’re should follow through and not feel presdestined for damnation. sured to have a baby.

After 12 years of living in a city where I had no A lot of my points on why I believe in freedom to believe in what I choose, I realized that pro-choice aren’t fully developed and I’m capable of forming my own opinions and estabI can’t convince you to be pro-choice lishing my own views. I began to realize that I am an because it is your choice, just like how it Atheist. is my choice.

The environment I was raised in catered towards Personally, I don’t want to have the me having the beliefs I do today. I don’t believe that pressure of having a baby pushed upon forcing your child to go to church every Sunday me, I don’t want to have a baby if it’s at an age where they don’t understand and can’t going to kill me and I definitely don’t choose what they are singing, who they are praying want to have the baby if it will die. to and what they are praying about. Everyone has a I’m a very emotional person, and if the choice whether they want to believe in God or be an baby were to die I’d be devastated, having Atheist. an abortion would do the same thing, but I’m currently 16, and I’m afraid of the future and I would make sure to have an abortion what could happen. I don’t know where I want to before three months. go to college. I have no idea what I want to be when Life is crazy and no one wants to follow I’m older. All I know is right now, being pregnant through with something they don’t want and having a child is the absolute last dot on my list. to do. You just have to live life the way In my opinion, being pregnant comes with multiple you want, making your own choices, and complications, especially at such a young age. hope for the best. H

YE

I

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Now it’s your turn

So, what’s on your mind?

LET YOUR VOICE BE HEARD: Got an idea? How about a strong opinion?

See something you like? Can’t stand something else? Then write a letter to the editor of the Hawkeye! Drop off your handwritten or printed out letter to us in room 130, email us at editor@thehawkeye.org or tweet it to @MTHSHawkeye

OP/ED

6 | MARCH 2018

SIE

RR

AC

LAR

K|

HA WK

EY

E

By Meghan Park HAWKEYE STAFF

W

ith the talk of gun control heating up after the most recent school shooting in Parkland, Florida, many people have targeted mental illness as the main problem. However, talk of mental illness, especially talk of people being “insane” or “crazy” should not overshadow gun control awareness. Regardless, people who should not have access to guns or those who pose a threat to others or themselves, still have access to guns and that is the main concern.

The concern of gun control shouldn’t only revolve around the topic of whether or not people with mental illness should have legal access to guns, the concern should focus on the general public. Any average Joe shouldn’t be able to walk in a store with cash and easily walk out having purchased a gun. When the blame is placed on mental illness, not the gun, the conversation is shifted to one that does not invoke much change in the system.

In the United States there is a general screening done before a person may obtain a gun. One must answer questions like, “Have you ever been convicted of a felony,” “Have you ever been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence,” “Are you an unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana or any other depressant, stimulant, narcotic drug, or any other controlled substance,” as well as others according to the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF). With this screening, you’d assume that more people would be weeded out and denied access to a

Hawkeye

GUN VIOLENCE IS NOT SYNONYMOUS WITH MENTAL ILLNESS

gun. However, according to the FBI website, denials are rare and occur less than 1 percent of the time – meaning out of more than 100 million checks only about 700,000 have been denied.

To be mentally ill is a battle within itself. If someone is struggling with “crazy” thoughts, then they should not have a gun. Although mass shootings have been the main focus, they aren’t the only events in which guns take lives.

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in 2014 there were about 42,800 deaths by suicide, about 50 percent of which were by a gun. Mentally ill people should not have a gun, I agree with this, however, when anyone can buy a gun it creates the same problem — lives being lost. A 2015 analysis of 235 mass shootings found that only 22 percent of the shooters were considered mentally ill. So, although mentally ill people should not have guns, mental illness isn’t the common factor in mass shootings. We should be focusing on the weapons the criminals have in their hands.

Furthermore, the U.S. isn’t proven to have higher rates of mental illness or violent behavior and yet from the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, a constantly maintained database, it states the U.S. has the 31st highest rate of gun death in the world, about eight times higher than Canada and 27 times higher than Denmark, one of the countries with

fewer occurrences of gun violence.

With all the deaths that have happened because of guns, why do we continue to focus on possible factors in contributing to the problem like mental health? Perhaps we want something about the person to blame, and I do agree it is part of the issue, but we need to start holding the tools used responsible. It is not just that people have access to guns, it’s that many may not realize how dangerous they truly are.

To drive a vehicle, something that has the power to take lives easily, one has to go through an extensive process and waiting period along with upholding many regulation to maintain a license, because we acknowledge how dangerous cars are. However, we don’t have this kind of process for obtaining guns. Furthermore, the Washington Post concluded as laws regarding driving have become more intricate, the number of deaths due to vehicles has gone down.

Meanwhile, gun laws remain erratic with high death rate.

Should we really be standing by idly as more lives are lost because of our inability to realize how dangerous the guns we hold are? How many lives will it take for us to realize we need change and we need it now? Are we to stand by as mental health is wrongly put as the target of the talk as the cold killer stands behind it? Guns should be what we attack, not the brains of people, which should be treated, not barred. We must take action against the guns and we must do it now. H

NEWS District redefines crowdsourcing parameters Hawkeye

By Nolan DeGarlais NEWS EDITOR

In an email sent out to Edmonds School District (ESD) staff, Assistant Superintendent Greg Schwab informed district-wide staff of new ESD policies and procedures related to fundraising. Based on the direction of the Washington State Auditor’s Office, the ESD School Board decided to prohibit the use of third-party crowdsource fundraising websites such as GoFundMe and DonorsChoose for the purpose of raising money for ESD programs.

Crowdsource fundraising websites allow people to raise money for programs and opportunities over periods of time such as weeks or months, where people can donate directly to the fundraising campaigns. Often, these crowdsource fundraising campaigns are directed to reach a particular goal in the specific amount of time the fundraising campaign is set to last. After the campaign has concluded, the people who set up the fundraiser receive the money donated during the duration of the fundraising campaign.

Before the recent decision by the School Board, teachers and other ESD employees were allowed to raise money for their classrooms and school projects with crowdsource fundraising websites such as GoFundMe. However, now ESD employees must seek methods of fundraising where money is received and can be deposited immediately and not a system where money is raised over an extended period and deposited at a later date, as this goes against the new School Board and Washington state policies.

At the School Board meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 9, the policy

prohibiting the use of crowdsource fundraising websites was first proposed. This policy decision was finalized during a School Board meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 23 when the policy received a second reading before being officially enacted.

School district employees can no longer use these crowdsource fundraising websites when raising money for the school district as well as for schools and programs within the ESD. With this new policy, ESD employees can no longer directly use crowdsource fundraising websites to raise money for projects such as increasing classroom supplies.

The School Board enacted these policies due to new policies enforced by the Washington State Auditor relating to donations to schools, which made using these websites for contributions prohibited by state law.

“There is an important legality associated with this change; crowdsource funding sites cannot meet the Washington State Auditor’s requirement that donations made to a school district must be deposited to a district bank account within 24 hours,” Schwab said. “It is for this reason that we need to prohibit their use.”

While fundraisers taking place at the time of the policy’s adoption were allowed to continue until they were complete, no new fundraisers could be initiated after the School Board made the policy official on Jan. 23.

Although ESD employees can no longer directly raise money using crowdsource fundraising websites, Schwab made it clear the websites can still be used to raise funds for programs within the district under correct procedures.

MARCH 2018 | 7

“Probably the simplest approach [to continue to raise money with crowdsource fundraising websites] is to work with PTAs [Parent Teacher Associations], booster clubs, the Edmonds Education Association and other school support organizations to set up fundraising activities using HANK BELANGER | HAWKEYE crowdsource funding sites,” Schwab said. “Once the fundraising is completed, a donation can be made to the school by the group who sponsored it.”

Also, families, community members, businesses and other local organizations can still make direct donations to programs within the ESD. These outside groups can set up their own private crowdsource fundraising campaign and then make a direct donation to the ESD program they wish to support with the money they have raised.

These new fundraising policies, although many may find them to present a challenge, ensure the district complies with auditing requirements set by the Washington State Auditor. School programs may continue to receive direct support from the community, but can no longer raise money directly using crowdsourced fundraising. However, if district programs follow proper procedures, then school programs should continue to receive support from family members and the community. H

DAMAGING IMPACT OF GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN

By Bani Bedi HAWKEYE STAFF

In the span of only three weeks during January and February, America faced two government shutdowns and may well face this problem again in the near future.

Lawmakers struggled to reach compromises to settle the political instability in Congress.

But what is a government shutdown?

There has been a dichotomy between Democrat and Republican parties regarding immigration, especially regarding the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program that has held up agreements on an operating budget.

President Donald Trump was adamant in shutting down the government over this issue to get “support from the Democrats.”

John Kelly, White House Chief of Staff,

HANK BELANGER | HAWKEYE

alleged Dreamers of being “too lazy” to sign up for citizenship.

On the other side, Democratic Congresswoman Judy Chu felt it was “cruel” to deport and break apart undocumented families. She stated, “they have contributed through school, work or military service.

And they’ve stayed within the law.”

The Democrats want to protect the rights of immigrants, and the Republicans want to dismantle DACA as they believe it would be more beneficial for the economy and safer for Americans.

A government shutdown prohibits Congress from funding the United States government. Instability within the parties and the inability to compromise regarding certain issues can halt Congress from passing a spending bill and can lead to a government shutdown.

Short-term spending bills were passed in the process of coming to a conclusion.

The government is in the process of passing a budget bill, which would allow 300 billion dollars for government spending for the next two years.

With this new budget bill, Democrats plan to improve infrastructure and fight the opioid crisis while Republicans plan to aid the Pentagon and its domestic services. The bill also allows for an additional 90 billion dol-

lars for disaster relief in Puerto Rico following Hurricanes Irma and Maria.

President Donald Trump is especially enthusiastic about the billions of dollars that are being invested in creating a “military stronger than ever before.” The military funding has increased 54 billion dollars, or 10 percent. The bill funds the Pentagon for the next eight months. The costs for nonmilitary programs are only funded till March 23, and at their current levels.

Popular controversial fiscal debates such as immigration, including DACA, have not been included or compromised. The new bill has not soothed the fear of undocumented immigrants, especially after Trump’s emphasis on the harsh consequences regarding it.

However, with the combination of extreme fiscal expenditure and the new Republican tax plan, it is estimated that our national deficit will rise significantly. President Trump believes it can be covered through this new policy, which is presumed to increase jobs and is adequate enough to stimulate the economy.

Edmonds Community College economics professor Barry Kotlove saw the government shutdown as “overblown” and “[had] no excuse for it.” He believed the instability was due to political factors and lack of the ability of both parties to compromise.

“If the rules were written more carefully, [this shutdown] could have been avoided. A different fiscal rule is needed,” Kotlove said.

According to Business Insider, 18 federal government shutdowns have occurred since 1974. Before the Trump Administration, a government shutdown occurred in 2013 during previous president Barack Obama’s administration over disagreements concerning the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare.

With only a year into his presidency, Donald Trump has already threatened numerous government shutdowns. A Democrat has stated that “his comments are totally divorced from reality.” President Trump seems to underestimate the costs of a government shutdown.

A government shutdown restricts federal workers from performing their services and getting paid. Social security, Medicare and unemployment payments continue during a shutdown. School breakfast and lunch programs will still be funded. Veterans will still receive benefit checks.

However, if a soldier is killed in action, their family would not be sent a $100,000 check, nor have a dignified transfer of remains. US economic data collection will be halted, including the Center for Disease Control’s ability to continue monitoring dis-

NEWS

8 | MARCH 2018

Hawkeye

New classes for the masses

Story by Annika Prom Graphics by Jonathan Kwong HAWKEYE STAFF

MTHS has expanded course offerings for the 2018-2019 school year. New classes being offered include Literature of Social Justice, Ethnic Studies, Human Anatomy and Physiology and AP Art History, along with the return of the Walking/Conditioning class available in previous years.

There are also two new Intra-District programs offered through Sno-Isle next year, which include Healthcare Professions and Applied Engineering and Manufacturing.

AP Art History, open to grades 11 and 12, is a yearlong class to be taught by Michael DeNoma that fulfills an art credit. The curriculum seeks to teach the background of art development over the course of human history.

Biology teacher Penny Lefavour will teach Human Anatomy and Physiology, which is a yearlong class open to grades 10-12. Students will study the living matter and biological systems of organisms; students will participate in dissections to expand learning. The class can count for Career and Technical Education (CTE) credits or lab science credits.

Ethnic Studies and Literature of Social Justice Edmonds School District (ESD) Social Studies Content Lead Jeff Stone pushed for the implementation of the Ethnic Studies curriculum across the ESD. Lynnwood High School (LHS) was the first in the district to offer Ethnic Studies, where the class is currently in its first year.

However, the content of the class will vary between LHS and MTHS as the class’s teacher will “fine tune it and tweak it to every school.” Stone will teach Ethnic Studies at MTHS next year.

“It’s one of three [social studies] options for seniors. It’s not that you have to take it. If you’re interested, you may take it.

It’s fits the lens of equal opportunity, equity of access,” Stone said. “It’s a course for everybody.”

Ethnic Studies will “examine the imbalances of power, wealth and opportunities within society” and cover the eth-

nic breakdown of topics such as immigration policies, incarceration rates, home ownership, the gender pay gap ad wealth disparities.

“That’s Ethnic Studies,” Stone said after explaining each topic.

Stone’s goal is to open students to thinking differently about their world, exploring identities, understanding how they fit in society and taking a stand for what they believe in.

Though, Stone respects if students disagree with class content. At LHS, Stone’s Ethnic Studies students will tell him when they need some time to breathe and calm down as a result of the learning material, and Stone will comply.

Those who are working to plan the Ethnic Studies class are putting forth their best effort to educate teachers and to let minorities weigh in on the class’s content. They have collaborated with people of color and specialists from the University of Washington Bothell to do so. As a result, they hope to include representation in the curriculum and be considerate of various perspectives.

“We’re well aware that currently—we have an Ethnic Studies team—we have one teacher of color on this Ethnic

Hawkeye

Studies team. It weakens our ability to see everything. We strive to find ways to help have this non-white point of view present,” Stone said.

MTHS added Literature of Social Justice to the offerings for senior English, which humanities teacher Erin Grambush will teach. According to the MTHS course catalog, students in this class “will examine literary works of social movements, their broader impacts, and intersectionality.”

Though Grambush studied English and history in college, she said she’s always viewed history with a lens due to learning in college with a “social justice slant” from her teachers.

In the meantime, Grambush has dedicated time to planning the class and learning the necessary language to teach it, similarly to how LHS trained their Ethnic Studies staff.

“I’ve been doing some talking about race in the classroom trainings and things like that which kind of prepare you for stuff but none of it really does. I was talking with [English teacher] Ms. Widrig the other day about having discussions with the N-word and how it’s a difficult task because so many students especially in super liberal Seattle are like, ‘Well, that’s not really an issue anymore,’” Grambush said. “I know our students have had issues with that.”

Stone recalls a similar discussion in his own Ethnic Studies class, reinforcing the importance of having a conversation about sensitive topics.

“That came up first quarter at Lynnwood High School, it was tough but they got through it. From my outside perception looking in, listening to students, listening to staff, it’s better. You don’t avoid it, you address it,“ Stone said.

The two split up to present to various junior classes about Ethnic Studies and Literature of Social Justice. In doing so, Grambush and Stone aim to clarify the purpose of the course and build off feedback regarding its content.

“We are defining what it is. We’re creating our narrative.

We’re asking for community input on all this. We’ll ask students now,” Stone said.

Due to the nature of topics covered in Ethnic Studies, Stone feels “controversy is inherent in the course.” He clarified that Ethnic Studies seeks to show the perspectives of a diverse range of people and their living conditions, then allow students to understand their circumstances and develop interpretations and opinions based on those.

“Each unit of study is designed around knowing the fact that it’s controversial. The intent of each unit is to have outside authors and—as we mentioned, we’re predominately white teachers—authors of color to talk about these issues, to write about them, to read them, to watch them in a video,

NEWS to hear them in a song,” Stone said. “We use outside sources to bring up the issue, to talk about it, to facilitate discussions; it’s a matter of reflecting in personal reflections [and] group reflections.”

As Literature of Social Justice overlaps with the content of Ethnic Studies, Grambush expressed similar sentiment and emphasized her desire for students to “process the materials in a safe environment.” Her students will also learn how to respond to differing viewpoints in society.

“In my mind, when I look at this course, I also look at this course as “How do we engage with people who have different opinions?’ It’s a great experience to see all sides of an issue and be able to look at it as ‘OK, this is one perspective and maybe I don’t agree with it, but I can see where they’re coming from,’ instead of taking the defensive position of ‘You’re wrong and I’m right and I don’t even want to talk about ideas that aren’t similar to mine,’” Grambush said.

In late January, educators made it known that they want Ethnic Studies available in all ESD high schools as a senior social studies credits. Less than 20 school districts on the West Coast offer Ethnic Studies as a social studies credit.

“The goal was just announced that, as to at some point have Ethnic Studies senior history at all high schools. It was told to administrators, ‘This is the vision,’” Stone said.

Stone will dual-teach at LHS and MTHS next school year if a sufficient number of students sign up to take Ethnic Studies.

“I don’t know what to expect out of Mountlake Terrace. I’m hopeful students accept [the Ethnic Studies class] and are willing to try it out; that’s my hope,” he said.

AP Art History DeNoma is slated to teach AP Art History next year, which covers information dating back to over 20,000 years ago and teaches “the entirety of humans making art so from caves to galleries today” and “the conditions that the art was made in and what it was responding to.”

Contrary to DeNoma’s other classes, AP Art History is not a studio arts class and is academically based, meaning

MARCH 2018 | 9

students will learn about art but not produce it. As the class is geared toward taking the AP test in May, students will not participate in big projects in AP Art History.

Rather, students will learn the styles and motives behind different art forms and develop opinions based from that information.

“I like the idea that you got this knowledge base and you can check your own preferences at times. I think that’s really important,” DeNoma said. “Honestly, making arguments for things that I didn’t initially like has caused me to get a greater appreciation for them over the years. Making arguments for art that’s not my personal style really helped broaden me as a person.”

DeNoma previously taught the class for one year when he lived in Texas. This time around, DeNoma wants to incorporate more usage of technology in the class because his students in Texas did not have personal computers as MTHS students do.

He aims for his students to come out of AP Art History with a changed worldview like his students in Texas did.

“My experience with [art history] is that it informs how you view the world and that’s a wonderful thing and so I hope [students] can away a fraction of what it means to me in my life and being able to see the world in that lens, I would consider that a success,” DeNoma said.

DeNoma believes taking AP Art History can leave an everlasting impact on students once they create connections between art and the world.

“Art is part of our inheritances as human beings and so being able to understand how that has evolved and changed throughout all of these years and how you look around at the world today, how you see it impacting things, it can be powerful. I hope some part of that will strike my students and stay with them,” he said.

Across his two classrooms, DeNoma created posters in various styles that comedically and artfully promote AP Art History. “[I was] trying to be specific in the appeal,” he said. “It was a nice challenge for me to think about different times in art history and try to have posters represent those different things and try to make them amusing.” H

10 | MARCH 2018

NEWS

Hawkeye

School Resource Officer position reintroduced following hiatus Officer is tasked with forming positive student relationships, ensuring student safety on campus

Being an enforcer of school rules will not be a role of the SRO. MTHS administrators will still be the ones tasked with enforcing school rules and discipline, with the SRO only becoming involved when police involvement would usually be needed, such as when narcotics are involved or when students need to report illegal activity. The ESD, which oversees the relationships between district schools and local police departments, also believes having an SRO on campus can act as a deterrent to bringing illegal items such as narcotics and weapons on campus.

Schellenberg stressed the SRO position is separate from the MTHS administration, and the SRO will not serve in any administrative capacity at the school. The SRO will

By Nolan DeGarlais concern themself primarily with matters relating to law NEWS EDITOR enforcement and mentoring of students.

A School Resource Officer (SRO) will be implemented “The SRO is not an extension of the admins, they’re not at MTHS for the remainder of the current school year – going to be chasing kids to class or writing up tardies, so and likely beyond. The SRO program is a collaboration they’re not doing my job or [Behavior Coordinator David] between the Edmonds School District (ESD) and the Whalen’s job,” Schellenberg said. “Ideally, they would not Mountlake Terrace Police Department and will place a spe- have much to do.” cially trained police officer at MTHS during regular school The SRO will not become officially involved in student hours. The primary function of an SRO is to ensure the conflicts on behalf of the police department unless these safety of students and staff on the MTHS campus. conflicts concern illegal activity. However, given the stuThe SRO will be a member of both the MTHS staff and dent relationships component of the SRO position, they the Mountlake Terrace Police Department and will work to may come to talk with students and attempt to mentor form relationships with the MTHS school community. A them while working to resolve conflicts. Given current significant purpose of the SRO will be ESD policies for police involve“I know there will be some to build positive relationships with and ment with students, parents will students who will see someone in serve as mentors to students, helping be notified whenever the SRO uniform, and it will make them less to mediate disputes. Having an SRO needs to speak with their student comfortable, but I want to overturn will also be a resource for teachers, as regarding legal matters. that and make them feel more the SRO can present to classes about The SRO will possess an indicomfortable [with an SRO].” law enforcement and law enforcement vidual workspace at MTHS Greg Schellenberg education. and will be stationed full time INTERIM PRINCIPAL Interim Principal Greg Schellenberg on the MTHS campus, with expressed his desire for the SRO to have good relationships their police patrol car parked outside during school hours. with students and be a well-known face in the school comAdditionally, the SRO will have a firearm as part of their munity. equipment on campus and will possess comprehensive “I’ve worked with SROs in the past, so I think initially it’s police training on how to operate said firearm. a chance [for the SRO] to meet the school and build relaSchellenberg expressed that the SRO’s implementation tionships,” Schellenberg said. “I want them to be a familiar has been planned by the ESD since the previous summer presence and built trust [with students]. I know there will and was not prompted by any recent events, locally or be some students who will see someone in uniform, and it nationally. will make them less comfortable, but I want to overturn “I know recent events in Florida have certainly sparked that and make them feel more comfortable [with an SRO].” people’s attention in terms of having [a police officer] on Schellenberg hopes the SRO position will be based on site, but nobody decided that because of some problem we relationships with students and will not be confined to the need to make sure we bring [an SRO] back,” Schellenberg minimum duties laid out by the job. said. “It’s just that money will allow it now.”

“More than anything else, as school personnel, it doesn’t The SRO position at MTHS is not a new concept and matter if you’re a teacher, an admin, a custodian or a was maintained at all ESD high schools, including MTHS, resource officer, you’re more effective when leaning on relabefore the 2010-2011 school year when it was removed at tionships first and your duties second,” Schellenberg said.

MTHS and most other ESD high schools due to budget “If this goes right, we’re not going to have this ‘cop on camcuts. pus,’ we’re going to have another staff member on campus.”

During the 2010-2011 school year, as the ESD along with

other school districts within Washington state looked to decrease expenditures, they decided to eliminate their portion of the cost shared with the Mountlake Terrace Police Department for the MTHS SRO. The decreased budget led to the elimination of the SRO position at MTHS along with other ESD high schools where the cost of maintaining the SRO position was determined to be too high.

Hawkeye

NEWS

“That was the time of substantial budget shortfalls expressed concern that the SRO having information across the state,” Schellenberg said. “Since the cost of the about students could be used for immigration enforceSRO is shared between the police department and the ment. Although the SRO agreement between the ESD school, it was the place to shave some cost.” and the city of Mountlake Terrace specifies the SRO will Although the SRO position was removed at most ESD have access to students information when they require it, high schools due to these budget cuts, an SRO remained both parties have clarified the SRO will play absolutely at Lynnwood High School (LHS) through their coopera- no role in immigration enforcement against students and tion with the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office. their families.

The LHS SRO was kept at the school due to the Schellenberg ensured students and families their immischool’s location within unincorporated Snohomish gration status information would still be kept closely County and not within the city of Lynnwood, which guarded by the administration and would not be any would mean potentially slower police response to the more available to the public with an SRO on campus school. than it is currently. Additionally, he promised immigrant The ESD has recently decided to refund SRO posistudents and families their immigration status would not tions at ESD high schools as part of its effort to ensure be used against them by the SRO or police department. school safety and timely emer“[The SRO] is not directed to gency response in all ESD schools. [conduct immigration enforce“More than anything else, as Meadowdale High School had its ment] by the police department; school personnel, it doesn’t SRO position restored last year, they’re not directed to by the matter if you’re a teacher, an and there are plans to restore school,” Schellenberg said. “Any admin, a custodian or a resource the SRO position to Edmondsinteractions with any student will officer, you’re more effective when Woodway High School next year. not be trying to determine their leaning on relationships first and During the period without an immigration status. We keep that your duties second.”

SRO, MTHS has used a School information [on immigration staGreg Schellenberg INTERIM PRINCIPAL Liaison Officer as a replacetus] very private.” ment to ensure school safety. The Training for the MTHS SRO Mountlake Terrace Police Department assigned a police will be conducted before they begin at MTHS by the officer to make MTHS a part of their regular patrol, National Association of School Resource Officers although they were not regularly on campus and were not (NASRO). NASRO training includes education on known by students. school-based law enforcement, SRO ethics, teaching and “We have [with the School Liaison Officer] some eyes guest speaking, diversity, understanding of special needs on the building, some frequent stop-bys a few times a students, social media, counseling and mentoring, the week, but not [a police officer] on site,” Schellenberg said. teenage brain, sex trafficking of youth, effects of trends “We’ve had a School Liaison Officer that was keeping and drugs on the school culture, response to threats, preclose tabs on us, but that’s different from having someventing violence in school and school emergency operabody full time on campus.” tion plans.

Currently, without the SRO, the primary emergency As well as attending the mandatory NASRO training, response method has been dialing 911, with emergency the agreement between the ESD and city of Mountlake response times varying depending on other issues in the Terrace specifies the SRO will participate in ongoing Mountlake Terrace community and the level of emertraining throughout the school year provided by the gency at MTHS. Officers responding to the 911 calls at ESD. The training provided by the ESD is meant to MTHS do not have SRO training and have no estabassist the SRO in understanding procedures used in the lished relationships with students and staff members.

ESD relating to police, safety and discipline. Specifically, Given the current political environment, some have this training will cover the ESD Race and Equity Policy,

MARCH 2018 | 11

response training, student discipline, emergency preparedness, responsibilities for suicide prevention and threat assessment teams.

“With time and the right person, I think [the SRO] can really be seen as a positive asset to the school,” Schellenberg said.

A community meeting was held on Feb. 22 for the Mountlake Terrace community to ask questions about the role of the SRO and share their concerns about the program.

The ESD has expressed interest in continuing to have a dialogue with the community to address continuing concerns about the SRO program as they come up. H

12 | MARCH 2018

NEWS

Hawkeye

Hawkeye

STAFF DIVERSITY The student body has become more diverse, butPie what about the staff?

Chart

KIMBERLY NELSON HAWKEYE STAFF

10%

28%

With only a quick look around the school, every student and staff member is visibly different in gender, race and age. Within that, every single person has less predictable differences in religion, sexuality, political beliefs and much more alongside that.

In 2012, 51 percent of students in public elementary and secondary schools were white, 16 percent of students were black, 24 percent Hispanic, 5 percent Asian or Pacific Islander, 1 percent American native and 3 percent were two or more races, according to the Department of Education. These numbers are predicted to fluctuate by 2024, with 46 percent of students being whiteChart and 54 percent, more than half of stuPie dents, as people of color (POC).

Christian/Catholic However, teachers are less diverse in terms of Secular race. Across the country, roughly 80 percent Other of teachers were white in 2012, and one could preferPie notChart to say assume that the general staff at MTHS would 8% reflect those numbers.

If students at MTHS are accurately compared to student numbers all around America, the ratio of POC students to 8% POC teachers isn’t really comparable.

“You’ve got all kinds of diversity [in 10% students], based on the stats, just looking, it’s not represented [in staff],” paraeducator and ontime 55% graduation coordinator Jose Aguiniga said.

While the staff here may not be as racially diverse as the student body, Aguiniga said that isn’t the 28% most important thing. “[MTHS staff are] great people and they care about the kids and they want to work hard for their students. If anything, I think that diversity would be nice, but I would say that from what I can see, we’re trying to step towards that,” Aguiniga said. “[The staff is] predomi-

RELIGION

nantly white-American, not to say that that’s bad, that’s just what it is.”

Political standings is only one of many 20% touchy subject when it comes to school.

While teachers are able to state their views, there is a fine line between stating one’s 10% views and pushing them on students.

“We’re supposed to keep church and state separate and most of us are pretty responsible about our political beliefs, we try not to say anything too strongly one way or another because 20% we don’t want to be offending students,” psychology teacher Kimberly Nelson said.

The amount of students a statement could offend is arguable though, as data from the 2016 mock presidential election gave more correlation to the school’s political beliefs.

Based on the mock election, around 64 percent of students voted Christian/Catholic for the Democratic candidate, around 19 percent voted for the Republican Secular candidates and the last 17 percent voted for the lesser known, independent Other parties. prefer not to sayand staff] are pretty close “I think [the ratios between students because there’s definitely people of all ilks politically in our building, students and staff. So, I think that’s probably one of the areas where we are a little more connected,” Nelson said.

Nelson was pretty close on her assumptions in the way that MTHS has more of a left-leaning staff, but the ratios weren’t as similar as one might assume.

In the staff, around 46 percent identified as left-leaning or Democratic, 46 percent belonged to independent or lesser supported parties and, of those who responded, only four 55% percent identified with Republican or right leaning political beliefs while the last four percent preferred not to say.

In this, it shows that the staff has a lot more of an independent political belief than the student population appears to.

Oddly, most of the other things that define a person’s identity are hard to come by. Whether it be sexuality, religion or political beliefs, non-visible identity characteristics aren’t something that many teachers share.

In fact, in the Hawkeye’s survey of MTHS, 30 percent of teachers wanted

MARCH 2018 | 13

White Person of Color Other/Prefer Not to Say

JOSE AGUINIGA

10%

Pie Chart

Story and Graphics by Sierra Clark Photos by Harper Thomas

NEWS

which you have a lot of support and encouragement,” Nelson said.

Nelson also said that generational differences could be a cause.

“Anybody who’s going to be 50 and older was raised in a time where you have to be really careful who you tell you’re gay. Even though it’s socially acceptable within our community, they’re still living with how they’re raised,” Nelson said. “Most of you, your generation, it’s gotten a lot easier, but it still is a huge struggle for a lot of people, their families and such.” to have some sort of anonymity, whether it be Overall, the Edmonds School District has been making moves to try and diversitotal anonymity, or not wanting to be interviewed fy school staff, while also picking staff based on experience and how well they could on the topic of diversity of MTHS staff.

70% fit into the MTHS community.

“It’s just a lot of things going on, so once you “I have absolutely no complaints from our administration on gender or culture attach your name to it, your comment could be misissues, but they’re all white males. That was an issue interpreted, especially as a staff member Pie Chart when we hired (former principal Greg) Schwab and we at a school. You have to be careful with Left had two white males already in place,” Nelson said. everything you do, you have to represent the Independant Nelson, along with other staff members, are excited to school, but at the same time you have your own Right see diversity in MTHS, but know that the job is depenbeliefs and you’re not always allowed to share your Pie Chart dant of who applies. beliefs because you work with kids,” Aguiniga said. prefer not to say Left 4% “I understand [that] what the stats show is true, it’s There are countless reasons why staff members may have wanted to 4% 70% Independant mostly white-American, but I also want to say that remain anonymous when sharing their views. one of the reasons I doRight like working for this school “That depends on their community within the school. There prefer in not to say I do is that, this school district particular, are just different reasons why people may hesitate to respond,” 4% 4% respect that they’re trying to move, they’re Nelson said. “If you’re in a department or group that’s very being more culturally aware,” Aguiniga said. conservative or very liberal and you’re the opposite, you’re Nelson also said she believes that the not going to want to say too much.”

46% school is already very diverse, even if it Department judgment is only one side of the conversaisn’t as noticeable. tion, and student judgment is a whole other concern.

“Just because the obvious differences “Another thing could be that if students found out, 46% are color of skin or sexual identity and maybe staff felt that if students found out they were 46% gender, there is so much diversity within a certain religion or things like that, students would a group of people that is huge, even with look at them differently. That’s not something that staff people that get along well, there’s huge members here, for the most part I know, they want 46% diversity,” Nelson said. “I love the way all students to feel safe and want to work with them,” diversity is happening and it’s becoming Aguiniga said. more and more diverse in so many ways, I When looking through the individual responses, there love it. It’s probably one of the most exciting was a small correlation between staff who wanted to things that’s happened for me as a teacher.” H remain anonymous and having a sexuality other than hetEDITOR’S NOTE: The entire MTHS staff was contacted and a total of 30 erosexual. people responded representing all areas of the faculty and staff.

“I would say that [they] just worry about being judged. People The survey was conducted in late February. your age, you’re in support circles with your friends and stuff in

White Person of Color Other/Prefer Not to Say

RACE

POLITICS

14 | MARCH 2018

NEWS

Hawkeye

A NEUTRALITY CRISIS: THE INTERNET AND YOU

By Matthew Hipolito HAWKEYE STAFF

“URGENT,” the white text reads. It’s in bold and splayed out, centered on a stark red background. Below it is one sentence, also in white. It reads, “If you’re not freaking out about Net Neutrality right now, you’re not paying attention.”

This image, created by Battle for the Net, a subsidiary of the internet civic action group Fight for the Future, was found plastered all over popular sites such as Reddit (currently the fourth most trafficked site in America) on Nov. 22, uniting thousands of individual communities in drowning out front pages in a sea of pleas in red and white.

What is net neutrality?

Net neutrality is a policy enacted Mar. 12, 2015 by the Federal Communications Commission, a five-person board that regulates interstate communications, under orders from then-President Barack Obama. Officially called the Open Internet Order, the act reclassified broadband internet service providers (ISPs) as ‘common carriers’ and broadband internet as a utility similar to power, gas and telephone services. The common carrier designation subjected ISPs to additional regulation under Title II of the Communications Act of 1934, which requires them to conduct themselves in a “ just and reasonable” manner in charging, practicing, classifying and regulating communications services, and making “unjust or unreasonable discrimination” in those respects unlawful.

Notable supporters of net neutrality include Vint Cerf, whom The Guardian calls “the father of the Internet”, Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web, and Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple. Proponents claim that the policy is essential to the maintenance of Constitutional rights - in fact, the Electronic Frontier Foundation said that “an attack on net neutrality is an attack on free speech”.

What will change under the new rules?

One of the most common claims by proponents of net neutrality is that its demise paves the way for companies to begin increasing the price of existing internet speeds and the creation of paid “fast lanes” — something Burger King lampooned in a parody promotional video where customers had to pay up to $26 extra for extra mbps — or, making-burgers-

per-second — in order to get their Whoppers Both sides claim that repealing or retaining net neutralwithin 15-20 minutes. In reality, Mbps stands ity will foster innovation. Supporters of net neutrality, like for megabits per second, and is used to meaMIT’s Technology Review, say that the promise of steady, sure internet speeds. flat internet prices will ensure smaller startup companies A similar claim is that repealing net neupossibly the next Facebook or Tesla - to have the same access trality allows ISPs to charge extra for access to the internet and its billions of users as giant corporations to certain websites like Twitter, Facebook such as the current Facebook and Tesla. and YouTube. California Representative Ro Opponents of net neutrality claim that the increased reguKhanna tweeted a picture of internet packlation stifles innovation by diverting resources — in fact, ages in Portugal, a country he claimed is one of the central claims in the FCC’s repeal is that a 3.6 without net neutrality, where categories like billion dollar drop in total investment by ISPs occurred in Social, Video, and Music are priced at five the period directly after net neutrality was implemented. euros apiece - pointing to the conclusion that simple access to That money, they say, could have gone towards new internet these websites was five euros extra on top of a monthly interinfrastructure like cables and routing equipment. Through net bill. In reality, the EU - of which Portugal is a member investment, they say, that money would back into the - has net neutrality regulations, and the packages were to add economy. These opponents claim that internet prices could additional data for certain sites and apps on top of an existnot be inflated or that access to certain sites could not cost ing general data plan for mobile phones. extra thanks to FTC oversight of ISP commitments to net Under the new rules, the FCC would require “disclosure neutrality. of ISP network practices.” More specifically, the blocking of “lawful content” and “non-harmful devices” must be disclosed, as must the throttling or “[degraded or impaired] The rules, when first enacted in 2015, were met with hosaccess to lawful Internet traffic” and the blocking or contility from ISPs. USTelecom and Alamo Broadband filed trolling of “specific protocols or protocol ports” and “types lawsuits against the FCC for overreach of its authority a of devices”. The practice of affiliated prioritization, which week after the rules were approved in federal appeals courts “directly or indirectly favors some traffic over other traffic… in the District of Columbia and Texas regions. More notably, to benefit an affiliate” must be disclosed, as must the idenorganizations representing national players Verizon, Sprint, tity of the beneficiary, along with paid prioritization, which T-Mobile, Comcast, Time Warner and Cablevision also filed “indirectly or directly favors some traffic over other traffic… suits in the DC region. in exchange for consideration, monetary or otherwise.” ISPs These lawsuits were settled in favor of the FCC in 2016, must also, under the new rules, disclose pricing information and a promised Supreme Court appeal did not come to fruiand what speeds can be expected at what price points, along tion by the time Barack Obama left office. with privacy policies and ways to address complaints.

Not that it mattered. Three days after inauguration, While practices such as blocking, throttling, and paid or President Donald Trump elevated Republican Commissioner affiliated prioritization must be disclosed under the new Ajit Pai, an Obama-era appointee (followrules, they are not explicitly banned. ing the tradition of having three majority, Oversight of net neutrality would be “An attack on net two minority commissioners on the FCC transferred to the FTC, another federal neutrality is an attack board) to the position of Chairman of the commission, which would to enforce “comon free speech.”

FCC. A letter sent by Pai and his Obama-era mitments” to net neutrality entered into by Electronic Frontier Republican colleague, Michael O’Rielly, on “many of the largest ISPs”. However, the Foundation Dec.19, 2016 said that the FCC intended to commitments of ISPs stop short of ensur“revisit [in particular new “enhanced transparency” rules], ing that net neutrality as it was implemented in 2015 is preand Title II Net Neutrality proceeding more broadly, as soon served. On April 27, 2017, the day after the FCC announced as possible.” Pai had, when the rules were first implemented, its intent to repeal net neutrality, Comcast removed from its criticized them by quoting Sith Lord and Senator (later page on net neutrality policies a pledge not to engage in paid Supreme Chancellor, then Emperor) Sheev Palpatine by sayprioritization, leaving promises that they would not block or ing “Young fool … Only now, at the end, do you understand.” slow lawful content and that they would be transparent in In addition, Democratic commissioners Tom Wheeler their practices. According to Recode, AT&T embarked in January on an ad campaign to ensure customers that it would and Jessica Rosenworcel ended their terms shortly before not block or slow lawful content, but remained ambivalent on President Trump took office. Their seats would go unfilled until August, leaving a 2-1 Republican majority. whether they opposed paid prioritization.

There was little news until Apr. 26, 2017, when Pai The changes technically prohibit states from passing their own net neutrality legislation, barring “rules or requirements announced plans to make net neutrality a voluntary commitment - a decision that was counterproductive, according that we have repealed or decided to refrain from imposing in this order or that would impose more stringent requirements to New York Times opinion contributor Tim Wu, thanks to “[net neutrality’s] popularity, record of success and accepfor any aspect of broadband service that we address in this tance by most of the industry.” Pai, at a speech that day at order.”

The rise and fall of net neutrality

Hawkeye

NEWS

the Newseum in Washington, D.C., cited the rolling back of window for filing lawsuits is “not always clear whether the the plans of smaller ISPs, such as those in Arkansas, Illinois, deadline applies to the 10 business days after the FCC puband Missouri to upgrade their services, and pointing to a lishes an order on its website or to the 10 days after the order study done by Hal Singer, business professor at Georgetown is published in the Federal Register”. On Jan. 16, eight busiuniversity and a fellow at the George Washington Institute ness days after the changes were published on the FCC webfor Public Policy that found a 5.6 percent decline in capital site Jan. 4, 21 states - every state with a Democratic attorney expenditure by the 12 largest ISPs domestically. The New general - moved to sue the FCC to ensure those states a say York Times, in an editorial, responded by saying Pai had in future legal proceedings against the ruling. cherry-picked his data, pointing to a pro-net neutrality Five days after the Federal Register filing, on the 27th, group’s estimate that total investment by public broadband Senate Democrats introduced a resolution to nullify the companies had increased by 5.3 percent. repeal order under the Congressional “Washington state In May 2017, the FCC voted 2-1 to move Review Act, which allows Congress to, will act under our own forward with Pai’s proposed changes, with with a simple majority in both houses authority, our own laws Democrat Mignon Clyburn as the sole of the federal legislature, review and and our own jurisdiction dissenting voice. In response, many large repeal newly-passed federal regulation. to protect #NetNeutrality internet communities sprang into action, According to Battle For The Net, in the for all of Washington’s with large companies like Netflix, Twitter, Senate, one more vote is required to pass citizens.”

Reddit and Discord pledging to take part the resolution that would form half of a Jay Inslee in the Internet-Wide Day of Action to Save rollback repeal. The other half would then GOVERNOR Net Neutrality, organized by Battle For The have to be passed by the House, where Net. The Day of Action consisted of popup alerts and push “over 25 Republican votes” are required. notifications sent out by popular websites and apps and users In Washington, the vote so far looks as if it will prosharing pro-net neutrality images and changing their profile ceed along party lines: both of Washington’s Senators, pictures in solidarity.

Democratic Senators Cantwell and Murray as well as all Despite these efforts, the FCC, on Nov. 21, 2017, officially of the state’s Democratic Representatives, Representatives set a date for the vote that would implement Pai’s proposed Delbene, Heck, Jayapal, Kilmer, Larsen and Smith intend to changes. The vote, set to take place on Dec. 14, would spur vote in favor of the repeal resolution, according to Battle For more outrage from the internet community, and the front The Net. All of Washington’s Congressional Republicans, pages of Reddit and many other popular sites were plastered Representatives Beutler, Rodgers, Newhouse and Reichert with the red URGENT message by the next day. are listed as “no stance”.

The vote proceeded along 3-2 party lines, with Republican Commissioners Michael O’Rielly and Brendan Carr and Chairman Pai voting in favor of the changes, and Democratic In general, the repeal appears to be an unpopular move. A Commissioners Jessica Rosenworcel and Mignon Clyburn poll by the University of Maryland cited by the Washington voting against them.

Post states that 83 percent of Americans disapproved of the resolution to end net neutrality. A different poll by Politico and Morning Consult gave different figures - while they cited 52 percent of Americans as approving of net neutrality, far lower than Maryland’s 83 percent, they found that just 17 percent of Americans disapproved of net neutrality, a figure in line with Maryland’s 16 percent.

The rollbacks were only officially entered into the Federal Because of the popularity of net neutrality and the FCC’s Register, which is the official legal publication of the United decision to repeal it anyway, the subject has been one of States Government on Feb. 22. Before that, the changes were much controversy, as illustrated by the numerous protests not official, although Ars Technica reports that the ten-day organized by Battle for the Net and other similar groups.

Many protested the FCC by submitting comments on the proposed changes through official channels.

However, it was discovered that “millions”, according to NPR, of anti-net neutrality comments had been made under stolen identities - attributing anti-net neutrality opinions to people, such as former President Barack Obama, that did not necessarily share them.

In some cases, comments were found using the identities of the dead. The discovery prompted the Jan. 16 lawsuit against the FCC

What do people think?

Does the FCC vote mean the end of net neutrality once and for all?

MARCH 2018 | 15 led by New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.

FCC spokesman Brian Hart claimed in response that, according to the Washington Post, “comments submitted in support of net neutrality were probably tied to automated accounts”, citing 7.5 million pro-net neutrality comments filed by emails generated by one “fake email generator website”, and 400,000 more comments submitted by Russian emails.

What does this mean for Washington state?

The impact of the repeal remains to be seen in Washington State. Although states under the new rules cannot pass their own net neutrality regulation, the day before the repeal was officially passed, Governor Jay Inslee announced on Twitter plans to maintain net neutrality within the state, saying that “Washington state will act under our own authority, our own laws and our own jurisdiction to protect #NetNeutrality for all of Washington’s citizens,” and that in spite of FCCimposed “roadblocks” Washington would “stand up for innovation, stand up for consumer and protect an internet”, using “every tool in our toolbox to do so.” When asked about the language preventing states from imposing their own net neutrality orders, he responded in three words: “Bring ‘em on.”

The day after the vote, Inslee promised to adopt rules within Washington “about the essential net neutrality of the internet”, saying that the demise of net neutrality would stifle future technological innovation in Washington, comprising a “threat to our economy” that he would not “take lightly”.

Plans for net neutrality in Washington came to fruition in what GeekWire called “a direct rebuke to the other Washington” Feb. 27 with the passing in the state Senate of Substitute House Bill 2282, and its subsequent signing into Washington State law just over a week thereafter.

The bill, first introduced into the legislature Dec. 13, 2017, outlawed the blocking of “lawful content, applications, services, or nonharmful devices, subject to reasonable network management,” the “[impairing or degradation of] lawful internet traffic on the basis of internet content, application, or service, or use of a nonharmful device, subject to reasonable network management,” and “[engagement in] paid prioritization.”

The bill was signed into Washington State law by Governor Inslee on March 5.

Washington is the first state to sign into law net neutrality legislation among the 26 other states, according to Ars Technica, that currently have such legislation on the floor.

Of those states, only Oregon has passed net neutrality legislation through both houses of the state legislature, while Montana Governor Steve Bullock, a Democrat, signed an executive order Jan. 22 requiring ISPs within the state to abide by net neutrality rules.

Legal challenges to SHB 2282 that GeekWire call “likely” have yet to emerge as of writing. Although the net neutrality has been voted as repealed, numerous objections from federal legislators and state governments through bureaucratic channels and from internet communities such as Reddit, Twitter and Discord continue to dog the proposed changes as they progress through the stages of actualization.

It is unclear at this time how other states will react to the changes and how the federal government will respond to state-level legislation, but many states, Washington among them, are determined to fight. H

16 | MARCH 2017

NEWS

Hawkeye

STUDENT ACTIVISTS SPEAK OUT AGAINST GUN VIOLENCE

By Jackson Freund and Nolan DeGarlais

bump stock was used in the deadly Las Vegas shooting last The AR-15 (short for Armalite Rifle 15) is a semi-autoOctober. matic (meaning one bullet per trigger pull) rifle designed for From 1994 to 2004, a federal ban on certain semi-automat5.56x45mm NATO caliber by the Armalite arms manuFebruary 14, 2018 started as a seemingly normal day at ic firearms defined as assault weapons, as well as magazines facturing company in 1956.

Based on Armalite’s previous Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School (MSDHS) in defined as large capacity was in place, prohibiting the manuAR-10, the AR-15 formed the basis for the fully-automatic Parkland, Florida, a public high school with over 3,000 facture for civilian use of assault weapons such as AR-15(meaning the weapon fires as long as the trigger is held students. However, at around 2:19 in the afternoon, close style rifles.

The law was passed for a ten year duration after down) M16 rifle adopted by the US military in 1964 and still to school dismissal time, a former student entered Building a close 52-48 vote in the Senate on Sept. 23, 1994. The ban used by the Army today.

In 1959, Armalite sold the rights 12 of the campus, which contained over 900 students and expired in 2004 due to the lack of legislative efforts to extend to the AR-15 design to the Colt Manufacturing Company, 30 teachers. He was armed with a .223 caliber, AR-15-style the ban under the Bush administration. who still hold the trademark on the name today.

However, in semi-automatic firearm and several small capacity magazines.

The assault weapons ban did not prohibit possession of 1977, the patent on the gas system that the AR-15 employs After entering the building, the shooter pulled a fire assault weapons manufactured prior to the ban’s enactment, expired, allowing several companies to build rifles patterned alarm, causing confusion throughout the school due to a fire meaning civilians were allowed to keep assault weapons on the AR-15 starting in 1989, leading to what is known as drill which had occurred earlier in the day. In this confualready in their possession while the ban was an AR-15-style rifle. sion, the shooter was given ample opportunity to open fire in place.

While many challenged the law on AR-15-style rifles quickly grew popular, among the students. Even though an armed school resource “It’s as if you shot constitutional grounds, all federal review leading the National Rifle Association officer working for the local police department was present someone in the head courts upheld the assault weapons ban.

(NRA) to dub it “America’s Rifle”.

The at MSDHS, he did not enter the building and instead posiwith a Coke can.”

There have been many efforts to reintroNRA cites the modularity, modifiability, tioned himself between two other buildings, falsely believing Dr. Peter Rhee duce the ban since it expired, most recently and reliability of the platform as a factor the shooting to be coming from outside.

TRAUMA SURGEON, US NAVY CAPT. (RET) with new legislation introduced into the in its widespread use. Available modificaIn the aftermath of the Florida shooting, thousands of House of Representatives on Monday, Feb. 26. The law, tions include sights and scopes, different barrels and recoil student activists around the country made their voices heard titled as the “Assault Weapons Ban of 2018,” would seek to reducing attachments. However, federally allowed customand began speaking out for gun control in America. Many reintroduce the provisions of the ban in place from 1994 to izations also include bump stocks, which take advantage of a made comments specifically referencing the type of weapon 2004, although it does not have a set expiration date. weapon’s recoil to allow the weapon to fire faster, increasing used by the shooter and how available said weapon was to Dr. Peter Rhee, a trauma surgeon and retired Navy capthe fire rate to one similar to a fully-automatic weapon. A him. tain, calls the weapon “a perfect killing machine.” Rhee is most known for saving the life of Rep. Gabby Giffords of Arizona after she was shot point blank in the back of the head with a 9mm pistol at a meeting with her constituents.

Rhee describes a pistol wound as “simply stabbing with a bullet.” He describes an AR-15 wound as “it’s as if you shot someone in the head with a Coke can.”

There has also been an effort to ban the use of bump stock modifications on semi-automatic weapons, which is one of the measures student activists have pushed for in the aftermath of the MSDHS shooting. On Feb. 20, President Donald Trump proposed banning the sale of bump stocks, which he claimed “turn weapons into machine guns.”

The issue of school shootings is one which applies to students everywhere in America, including within the state of Washington. There have been numerous examples of student deaths related to firearms in our state, such as the 2014 Marysville Pilchuck High School shooting.

On Oct. 24, 2014 in Marysville, Washington, five students were killed during a school shooting, including the shooter.

This shooting occurred during the school’s lunch break, where the shooter allegedly stood up at his lunch table and opened fire, hitting and killing two students immediately, and fatally injuring two more and injuring three other students, before taking his own life.

While the Marysville Pilchuck High School shooting is the most prominent example of a school shooting in Washington state, there are numerous other examples of Washington stuPHOTO BY CIARA LANEY | HAWKEYE dents dying as the result of the misuse of firearms.

Members of Eco Club carry posters during the March 14 walkout advocating gun control and paying tribute to the On Apr. 27 in Lacey, Washington, a student brought a 17 victims of the Feb. 14 shooting at MSDHS, as well as to the victims of other notable school shootings in the U.S. HAWKEYE STAFF

Hawkeye

NEWS

MTHS and Edmonds School District administration said students would not be punished for participating in the walkout. However, students are responsible for any work or instruction they missed while they were absent from class participating in the walkout.

The MTHS portion of the walkout was organized by the MTHS Gay Straight Alliance, the Black Student Union and the Latino Student Union, who heavily utilized social media to publicize and promote the walkout.

Eco Club was also involved in the promotion of the MTHS walkout, creating and putting up posters around the school to promote it further.

During the walkout, students met on the track at 10 A.M. for a 17 minute period of silence, forming a circle on the track and holding hands, with some students bringing handcrafted signs to promote the cause. The silent protest was supervised by MTHS administrators, teachers and counseling staff, who ensured the safety of all students choosing to participate. Additionally, many students wore black clothing to show their support for the walkout and the victims of school shootings across America.

Students at MTHS are also currently involved in organizing for the Seattle March for Our Lives protest, which will take place in downtown Seattle on Saturday, Mar. 24 alongside other protests

nationwide, beginning at 10:00 A.M. in Cal Anderson Park and ending near Key Arena. These students plan to meet every Thursday leading up to the day of the protest and for weeks after optionally in biology teacher Jonathan Tong’s classroom, room 122, planning carpools and creating signs to bring to the march. H

DEREK NGUYEN | HAWKEYE CONTRIBUTOR

firearm to North Thurston High School, discharging “But instead we are up here standing together because if two shots. This student failed to hit anyone during the all our government and President can do is send thoughts shooting but caused panic among students. This led to the and prayers, then it’s time for victims to be the change student receiving up to a three year sentence for illegally that we need to see.” bring firearm to school and discharging said firearm in a Student activists have also attacked the influence organijuvenile detention center. zations such as the NRA hold on American politics, and In Rockford, Washington on Sept. 2017 another school the ways in which NRA influence has kept gun reform shooting occurred, killing one student and injuring three from being passed. others. The student killed allegedly went up to the stu“If the President wants to come up to me and tell me to dent after his gun jammed and tried to convince him to my face that it was a terrible tragedy and how it should not continue; the shooter then pulled out a second weapnever have happened and maintain telling us how nothon, shooting and killing the student. The shooter then ing is going to be done about it, I’m going to happily ask opened fire on a group of running students, injuring three him how much money he received from the National Rifle others before being subdued by the school janitor.

Association,” Gonzáles said.

A woman living in Everett decided to look through her Since the shooting at Columbine High School in 1999, grandson’s journal when she made a startling discovery. there have been 25 fatal mass shootings at American Her 18-year-old grandson, Joshua O’Connor had writelementary and high schools. The student survivors of the ten in his journal about how he was planning on shooting shooting at MSDHS have initiated a new wave of student his classmates. The grandmother called the police in the activism determined to bring about reform they insist will morning and was able to stop O’Connor before it was too help put an end to school shootings in America. late. According to the police, O’Connor studied previous “We are going to be the kids you read about in textschool shooters to not make their mistakes. He apparbooks,” Gonzáles proclaimed in her speech. “Not because ently was also planning on using grenades and a semiwe’re going to be another statistic about mass shooting automatic rifle to kill students in the attack, as well as a in America, but because we are going to be the last mass homemade bomb to kill himself. His goal was to kill as shooting. Just like Tinker v. Des Moines, we are going many students as possible and to end his own life in the to change the law. That’s going to be Marjory Stoneman process. O’Connor was undecided about his target, tryDouglas in that textbook and it’s going to be due to the ing to decide between going and committing the crime at tireless effort of the school board, the faculty members, either Kamiak High School or ACES High School. the family members and most of all the students.”

David Hogg, a 17-year-old student from MSDHS, To make this change, students at MSDHS have formed spoke out promoting gun reform laws after his experience the activist organization Never Again to call for the gun in the shooting which killed 14 students and three teachreform they believe can bring an end to school shootings ers, and injured an additional 14 people. While hiding in America. in a closet with 65 other students he began recording “so Never Again is an activist organization formed by the that if I was left in that classroom and all of our 65 souls MSDHS mass shooting student survivors. This group has were left on that classroom floor, our voices would echo advocated for stricter gun control laws, such as tougher on.” national background checks for gun buyers, and has He became a strong voice among the students, heavily started the #NeverAgain movement on Twitter to spread involving himself in the campaign for gun reform. Instead awareness for the problem of school shootings and hoping of staying silent, he spread awareness through speeches for for there to “never again” be a school shooting in America. change in gun laws and led other students to follow and Never Again is also responsible for organizing the nationgive public speeches of their own. wide March for Our Lives protest marches happening Adding to Hogg’s defiance, he allegedly hung up on a across the country to call for stricter gun control and phone call from the White House, referring to the call as background checks. offensive because it came during March for Our Lives is a nationwide “...We are going to be the last his period of mourning the victims protest to call out legislators and get mass shooting. Just like Tinker of the shooting. The call suppospeople to talk about gun reform and v.

Des Moines, we are going to edly asked him if he would attend a vote in support of it. Protests are change the law. ” discussion with Donald Trump, to planned in major American cities which Hogg responded, “We don’t around the country, with the main Emma Gonzáles MSDHS STUDENT AND SHOOTING SURVIVOR need to listen to President Trump. event being a march on Washington President Trump needs to listen to D.C. scheduled for Saturday, Mar. 24. the screams of the children and to this nation.”

The #Enough school walkout, organized by Women’s Emma Gonzáles, a senior at MSDHS, was another stuMarch Youth, encouraged students to leave their classdent that gave a passionate speech over gun control at an rooms for 17 minutes at 10 A.M., signifying the 17 lives anti-gun rally, making many bold claims about the lack of lost at MSDHS. The walkout was held nationwide on gun laws in Florida and America as a whole.

Wednesday, Mar. 14.

Due to this, the popularity of her speech has grown Not all schools were supportive of the planned walkouts, nationwide and has started movements all over the counsuch as Needville Independent School District in Texas, try for gun control laws, such as “March for Our Lives,” which claimed that any students participating would be an event made by student activist organization Never suspended for three days. However, many colleges and Again. universities responded to these claims by stating any sus“Every single person up here today, all these people pension due to protesting and walking out will not affect should be home grieving,” Gonzáles said in her speech. chances of admission.

MARCH 2018 | 17

18 | MARCH 2018

FEATURE

Hawkeye

WORD ON THE STREET:

THESE TEACHERS ARE ALL WRITE

Story by Ciara Laney Photos by Jonathan Kwong

published and be a writer.” being The Jack of Souls.

Later, Merlino came to the realization that writing was a “It’s the story of a young man who’s cursed to die on his nineteenth birthday and he has to figure out a way to break job which is often done alongside another, more permanent, Not too many people, let alone teachers, can say that they the curse. All the stories involve him finding a way to break occupation. are writers. Currently, two MTHS English teachers are “I didn’t realize at the time that it’s extremely hard to make the curse, but the solution is worse than what the curse was, working on novels while also balancing their teaching careers a living as a writer,” Merlino said. “Most writers don’t just and so now he has to deal with the solution that he’s commitand personal lives. ted himself to. Plus, he’s, of course, trying to save the world, write; they have a day job. There’s like only 700 writers in like many fantasy novels,” Merlino said. the country that live on their one job that’s just writing.

There is an element of realistic fiction in Merlino’s novels.

Everybody else is pretty much doing something else too.

Merlino’s inspiration for the series came from his love for That was college when I really decided I wanted to try to Shakespeare’s time, the English Renaissance and for western write.”

Junior history and english teacher Stephen Merlino is American history, the wild west.

Merlino also emphasized how his love of stories and words currently on his 17th year teaching at MTHS. Before that, “I gave England a frontier and the frontier a native group, led him into seeking a writing career. he was a tour leader in Europe and an exhibition leader but instead of the natives like that were in our continent “I just love stories and I love words, so I guess I’m kind of in Alaska, Mexico and parts of the Caribbean and the in real history, these natives are ready for the invaders and wired that way just like some people are wired from math, they’ve seen them coming. They figured out how to fight Columbia River. which I’m not and things with math in it really stress me them, and so there’s threat of war always coming in the hori“It was a wilderness cruise ship about 150 ft long and we out,” Merlino said. ”Whereas writing and words are my zon,” Merlino said. would take small groups of people out and natural language. It’s the way my brain “I didn’t realize at the time In The Unseen Moon series, the main character, Harric, chase whales and go hiking and look at works in any way, images, finding words to that it’s extremely hard to tries to solve his problems and falls in love along the way birds and stuff,” Merlino said. “It was like capture the images. That’s me. That’s the make a living as a writer. with a female character, Caris, who is autistic. Both of living on Discovery Channel.” way for me to pursue those things.”

Most writers don’t just them are attempting to solve their problems while trying to Merlino’s previous occupations helps White had wrote on and off his whole write; they have a day job.” become who they want to be. influence the stories he writes now. life, but his writing really took off six or Stephen Merlino “She wants to be a knight, and they don’t let women do that “I learned so many fascinating things seven years ago.

HUMANITIES TEACHER about the history of the west and the “I always wanted to be a settlement of the west and so much natural history,” Merlino writer, ever since I was a kid,” White said. said. “So much biology and just the weird beauty of nature.

Things that are weirder than you can imagine and think up yourself helped me stimulate my imagination to create stories about fantasy worlds and fantasy history for worlds that I make.”

“I finished the first draft of something I’m English teacher Peter White has been working at calling Ghost Hunter,” White said. “Basically Mountlake Terrace High School since 1984. Needing to pay Ghost Hunter is about Jack Reacher meets for college, White has worked being “everything from truck Saw.” driver to old mill worker to commercial fisherman to choker White is currently writing a book based on setter logging.” his personal encounters with ghosts, a lot of After going to college, White become a teacher. “It [teachthat being from his time living in Thailand. ing] fits me. It’s what I’m supposed to be doing. I’m not sure “I write pretty dark stuff on the average,” I wanted to become a teacher. I wanted to get out of it, but I White said. “I’ve tried write a couple of teen couldn’t find anything else that suited me.” pieces and I have one about a werewolf I like.

Prior to MTHS, White was a private school teacher, but I find it difficult, somehow, to pull this life shifted to a public school teacher. “The private school that I into my writing life. I’m one of those people worked out was folding, so I needed a job,” White said. that have pretty sharp boundaries between things.”

White makes an effort to apply his writing into his teaching style. Specifically, his class has taken extractions from novels and plays Merlino’s writing career started to kick in during college. and turned them into screenplays.

“I first started writing in high school, when I wrote games “My writing influences my teaching more for my friends like Dungeons and Dragons games. I would because I have a pretty sharp eye for what make up worlds and scenarios and characters and things. makes good writing and how to analyze pieces and look at them and how to learn new Then of course I was an English major in college, so I took tricks,” White said. creative writing classes and I had professors that would let Merlino proudly showcases the cover of his two published books, The Jack of Merlino is currently writing another book you write stories instead of essays sometimes,” Merlino said.

Souls and The Jack of Ruin, the first two books in the series. in The Unseen Moon book series, the first book “That’s where I really decided I wanted to try to get things HAWKEYE STAFF

Job History

Works in Progress

Writing Career Takes Off

Hawkeye

Merlino opens up to his favorite picture in The Jack of Souls which depicts a landscape from the fantasy world he created. where she’s from. Plus she has these other challenges, but those challenges give her gifts with horses, and knights need to work with horses, so she’s got super strong gifts but she’s also got struggles,” Merlino said.

Merlino explained how his teaching career and love for teaching English has aided him in his writing career, providing him with inspiration to keep writing novels.

“Part of my love for stories is teaching them the main characters in my stories, some of them are teenagers, so it helps to be around teenagers all the time to know what they do and think about and what’s important to them and what’s not and what makes them irritated and what doesn’t,” Merlino said.

“So that helps a lot, the main characters being basically young adults. Otherwise, just getting to read and talk about history also helps stimulate my imagination, and I’m always learning something new when I’m teaching.”

Over his writing career, Merlino has been nominated for various awards. In 2014, The Jack of Souls won the Pacific Northwest Writers Association’s unpublished novel competition for the Science Fiction/Fantasy category.

He has won a silver medal for the Independent Publisher’s Award. The prequel chapter of The Jack of Souls won 2016 L. Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future.

The Unseen Moon’s second book, The Jack of Ruin, was voted into third place for cover of the month on allauthor.com. At this point in time, his first novel is free on Amazon for Kindles.

FEATURE ful you generally have to revise multiple times. Novels take three drafts, at least, before they’re right, at least. And that’s always kind of a drudge compared to the creation process and just letting it flow.”

To maintain the balance of all of the things in his life, White maintains a strict schedule to ensure he is able to accomplish all of his goals for a day. He splits his time up for work, family, writing and exercise.

“I get up at 5 and I write every morning for an hour and that’s my writing time. If I get that done, I’m happy,” White said. “I have real sharp boundaries. I’m real careful with my time. Like when I’m here [MTHS], I’m here; I focus, and I’m able to focus really well while at school, and once I go home I pretty much put it out from my head and focus on my other stuff. I basically get through it by having real sharp boundaries. ” Merlino also agrees scheduling is very important when balancing work with personal life. In response, he tries to stick to a schedule, but it is challenging for him to make time for both writing and exercise.

“It took me three years just to write the second book and that’s just getting a couple hours after work, going away for days on the weekend, not being with my family during those times, which makes it harder on my wife,” Merlino said.

Another struggle, according to Merlino, is time.

“It’s the time and balancing it with family. That’s the sad thing about needing to have a day job. I would love to work just a couple hours a day and teach two classes, but I couldn’t feed my family that way. The time is the biggest struggle, just

MARCH 2018 | 19 finding the time to write. It can be done, and I think you just have to be disciplined,” Merlino said. “I have to be organized and disciplined.”

Advice White advises other authors to schedule a time and write, whether there’s inspiration or not.

“Set a time, sit down, and make yourself write everyday at that time and it will just come, even if you sit down and start writing and you don’t know what to write about, but maybe this will be cool, and you start writing off and sooner or later you just kind of do and then sit down and do it.”

Merlino also had advice for new writers, telling them to not worry about the order in which they begin to tell their stories.

“Just write a scene and the rest will come. The very first thing I ever wrote was a kids’ novel that I never published.

But I saw the middle of that first, and I wrote a scene which I thought was awesome, and then I sat back and thought ‘who is this kid’ and ‘how did he get in this situation’ and then I worked back from there and I saw other adventures he had and I wrote those and they all just came together like beads on a string,” said Merlino.

He also advises others not to focus on quality of the work.

“Don’t worry about if it’s good enough,” Merlino said.

“Don’t let that stop you from writing because the first draft is always crap. H

Juggling Act Balancing a writing career and a teaching job can be a struggle. To deal with that struggle, it is important to be disciplined and organized.

White says he often struggles with sitting down and making himself write.

“I enjoy the creation more than the fine tuning that you need to do. So like the latest screenplay that I just submitted into a contest is the sixth draft. In order to be success-

Set up for success; White prepared to get to work on his screenplay called Container. It is about paranormal happenings from three points of view, on a container ship leaving Seattle, Wash. and heading to Bangkok, Thailand.

NEWS

20 | MARCH 2018

An What’s needed? inventory checkoff of school sheds: MTHS has two emergency supply sheds.

While they contain enough supplies to handle a “small scale disaster”, their contents leave much to be desired. Here are some of the supplies that might need to be restocked.

Hawkeye Organization

Although the sheds are periodically Tarps can be used in a variety of ways, checked up on, the exact quality and from covering broken windows and quantity of their contents are unknown. being a stopgap fix for minor storm Students who would like to help can visit damage to creating a waterproof awning Jean Brzovic in room 201. or rainwater catch.

MATTHEW HIPOLITO | HAWKEYE

Blankets

Bandages

Blankets help keep people warm in cold weather, as well as helping injured people’s body temperature up. Strips of cloth can be torn to create tourniquets, which can help stop heavy bleeding.

Bandages and small first aid kits can not only contain items to stop bleeding but sterilize wounds, preventing infection that could make an injured person sick even after their wounds are treated.

By Nina Pavlovic HAWKEYE STAFF

TEACHERS, ADMINISTRATORS SEEK TO KEEP BUILDING PROPERLY SUPPLIED IN THE EVENT OF A NATURAL DISASTER

Tarps

Right outside of the softball field here at MTHS, there are two sheds that hold emergency supplies. These supplies are supposed to be used to not only sustain students and staff in the case of natural disasters, but also to shelter students and staff from the harsh weather if people were ever forced out of the main building for any reason.

However, exactly how prepared is the school to handle these so called disasters? According to assistant principal Peter Schurke, not very prepared at all.

“We’re equipped so far to handle a small scale disaster,” Schurke admits. “We have some first aid equipment, some blankets, we have some capability to handle some injured people.”

Even though the sheds have been around for over seven years, until now there just hasn’t been the spare money to get any more supplies than the minimum amount that the school district provides to high schools. The minimum is same amount they provide for elementary and middle schools who have a much lower student body count than a full fledged high school.

While the school is built to stay standing in the face of a significantly sized earthquake, one can never be too careful. What if the building collapses, and the school is forced to evacuate. What if the collapse causes injuries? Can the injured students and staff be adequately helped? At current supply levels, there just wouldn’t be a sufficient amount of supplies to help everybody. This leads to the questions of why no money been put aside or saved up to restock the sheds with more or new supplies.

Well, it’s because all of the school’s budget has been funneled toward hiring enough teachers and having enough support equipment and personnel around to keep our school running smoothly and efficiently, leaving no money to fund the restocking of the sheds. It hasn’t been until very recently that awareness was brought to the sheds and the supplies within them.

Since we don’t have sufficient funds to do quite as much restocking and preparing, the staff have put in other efforts to make sure the students are safe. For example, there are plans for if there were to be a collapse or if students were to get trapped inside the school building. There are teachers who are either willing to learn or all ready trained in how to save students from a collapsed building, how to navigate safely in a collapses building and other safety procedures.

Even if the school had all the money it needed to restock the sheds, organization is still a big hurdle. Schurke does do

periodic checks, but it’s been a long time since someone went through and did a deep clean and organization of the sheds.

No one is completely sure of the numbers. What supplies are in stock? How much of it does the school have? How much of the current supplies are expired?

Due to these questions and out of concern for the safety of the students here at MTHS, drama teacher Jean Brzovic decided to call attention to this at the February PTSA meeting.

Brzovic said she has always been the type of person to notice and worry about these kind of things, so she decided to take on the task. Schurke says it’s also something she’s doing as part of her administrative internship here at MTHS, so this project is also something she has taken on as part of her internship.

How can we take a fresh look with a fresh set of eyes at our security plans and our disaster preparedness? Brzovic has decided to go through the sheds and not only take inventory, but clean out what’s expired or unusable as well. This is a considerable job for only one person to do. For anyone who is willing to help with this task, they can come to Brzovic’s room, 201, and talk to her.

If students were willing to put forth the effort, the sheds could be organized and cleaned in no time. For those who would like to help, but just don’t have the time, they can also donate needed supplies, such as tarps, canopies or blankets.

It would not be a desirable situation for students to be stuck outside without enough supplies to shelter themselves from the elements, or not enough bandages and bactine to help out those who are injured.

There have also been other changes thanks to Brzovic’s efforts. Thanks to fines and fees office manager Sandra Merten, MTHS has received $2,000 to replenish the supplies in the sheds. She put in a special request after hearing about and talking about the situation with Brzovic at the PTSA meeting.

The money was reallocated from the schools building budget, since there was some carry-over money from last year as Merten said.

“I made the request as I felt we needed to improve/update out emergency sheds,” Merten said.

All these steps are being taken to improve survival chances in the event of a natural disaster, but there’s always more that can be done. Donating an old, but intact, tarp or blanket doesn’t require much effort, and helping out a few times after school doesn’t cost anything, so students are encouraged to help with the efforts to replenish the shed. H

Hawkeye

Story by Jackson Freund Graphics by Robert Krieger HAWKEYE STAFF

Elon Musk is one of the richest and most well-known men in America, as well as the maker of the “Not a Flamethrower,” the owner of “The Boring Company,” the CEO of SpaceX and the founder of Tesla. Musk is also involved with improving and inventing new rockets that can hopefully, in the future, bring the dream of colonizing Mars into reality.

The idea of colonizing another planet has been NASA’s dream for many years; however, the funding for sending the first person to Mars would be $6 billion according to NASA, although other researchers at NASA have estimated the cost at $100 billion for travelling there and back. Using his company SpaceX, Musk created different plans at a lower cost and is currently trying to reach Mars before NASA. SpaceX is a company with the set goal of commercializing space travel and getting the first person on Mars’ surface.

“If he can make the cost of space travel lower than the maximum cost people are willing to pay, then he can commercialize space travel,” STEM teacher James Wilson said on the topic of Musk’s plan of the commercialization of space travel.

Musk has created revolutionary inventions in the field of space travel to accomplish his goals, one such invention being the reusable rocket.

The reusable rocket is an innovative tool that can allow space travel to become commercialized.

Musk’s Falcon 9 rocket has a completely reusable first stage.

The current price to create the Falcon 9 rocket is $62 million, with the first stage reducing 70 percent of that cost.

NEWS

MARCH 2018 | 21

SPACEX BLASTING OFF AGAIN This first stage can be reused 10 times withsome people worried over the sanitation of out hardware changes and up to 100 times the car and if it was made in a perfectly clean with only moderate refurbishment, greatly room. If the car was made in a dirty room, decreasing the cost many problems could result, of space travel. one of which being the “If he can make the cost of As of February invasion of Earth’s bacteria space travel lower than the 6, 2018, SpaceX’s on Mars. If the car were to maximum cost people are current success crash on Mars and also be willing to pay, then he can rate has been 75 unsanitary, bacteria from commercialize space travel.” percent, with Earth could contaminate James Wilson STEM TEACHER only one failed future research missions. landing of a A common problem seen reusable launch vehicle and three with Musk’s plans of commercializing space successful landings. Last year saw travel is the potential pollution on Earth. more promise, with zero reported The current fuel used for Falcon Heavy is failed landings and 15 confirmed RP-1 (a refined kerosene) and liquid oxylandings. As of this year alone, gen, which both produce large amounts of there are 27 planned launches carbon dioxide when burnt. RP-1 has a this year alone, giving SpaceX 34 percent carbon content, the amount many opportunities for more of RP-1 in three Falcon 9 rockets is 440 successful landings. tonnes. With Musk’s plan of launching One of the first fully reusable a rocket every two weeks, the pollution rockets is SpaceX’s “Falcon involved in launching SpaceX’s rockets Heavy,” a revolutionary rocket will continue to build up to around that can carry nearly double 4,000 tons per year of carbon dioxide. the weight of any other rocket Another major problem involved in history. Falcon Heavy can lift in Musk’s plans are the copious nearly 64 metric tons, which is amounts of potential space pollumore than double the weight capation. Old satellites and pieces of bilities of Delta IV Heavy, another rocket have been floating in space for cargo rocket. The fully reusable launch many years now, and this pollution can vehicle saves millions of dollars and cause interference with potentially newer reduces the amount of metal necessary launches. Not only is there large amounts to launch a rocket. of space pollution, but much of it is During a launch, the “Falcon Heavy” unmarked with little way of knowing its carried Musk’s very own Tesla brand location in Earth’s atmosphere. car into Earth’s orbit with a mannequin Musk has the encouragement of the in a spacesuit acting as the driver. This public to get a person on Mars, but he has car is currently orbiting Earth with a live also made a bet with Michael S. Malone, a camera sending video of the car’s travels journalist and host of several tv shows, that back down to Earth. he can get a person on Mars by 2020 or Musk has joked about his 2025. To complete this task, Musk still has car many times, even many goals to accomplish, mainly complettweeting “I’m sure it’s ing the rocket he plans on sending people in. parked around here Musk currently has the goal of creating the somewhere,” referencing BFR, a 42 engine rocket that would end up the idea of forgetting where being around 400 feet tall. This giant of a you park. This car currentrocket is what Musk plans on using to send ly has plans to orbit Mars; the first person to Mars, making it the larghowever, there have been a est rocket ever made and surpassing Saturn few problems involved.

V, the rocket that took humanity to the The prospect of Musk’s moon and back. Musk also plans on making car orbiting Mars has made this the largest rocket in history and making

this rocket completely reusable, increasing its reusability to 1,000 launches before needing replacement.

These monumental changes in space travel and the emphasis on commercialization is the driving reason for SpaceX’s popularity and success. Musk’s plans will change the future forever, and even potentially “making the moon a resort destination” as Wilson puts it. If Musk can fix the problems currently then there will be no stopping the future of space travel. H

22 | MARCH 2018

SCHOOL OF ROCK:

LIFESTYLE

Hawkeye

MYERS A MAINSTAY AT TERRACE

By Ciara Laney HAWKEYE STAFF

Before working at MTHS, 1978 alumnus Jerry Myers was versatile in the workforce, having jobs such as plumber, mover, handi-mart worker and dishwasher. While working at MTHS, Myers has been a gym manager, doorman at dances and an announcer at games. Currently, he works in security at MTHS. Myers grew up playing soccer. He played soccer for the MTHS men’s soccer team between 1976 and 1978, and was team captain.

“I was trying to take care of my teammates from a young age. When I grew up in athletics, I was always captain of my teams. I’ve always had a responsibility for how kids acted.

That’s kinda who I am even away from the job,” Myers said.

At 23 years old, Myers was asked if he wanted to be an assistant soccer coach by then head coach Wayne King, who coached him prior on the high school level. In Nov. 1987, the soccer team that he coached won a state title.

“After coaching [at MTHS] for two years, the vice principal approached me and asked me if I’d like to be a study hall teacher,” Myers said. “So that’s what I did when I first started

In 1978, Myers was a senior at MTHS. He played for the Hawks’ men’s soccer team.

PHOTO COURTESY TEMPO

“I’ve been here for a long time and I care about [students]. Though sometimes I might not come across that way, I’m always watching them to see if there’s anything I can do to help.”

Jerry Myers SECURITY OFFICER

different people’s personality.

“Let’s say you’re in a bad mood. Sometimes, you may come across being a little harsh. Or if you’re in a really good mood, you may come across as seeming too soft. I kinda see every side of that plus the balance in between there. I’m a moody person, I’m human, so things happen,” Myers said.

Aside from working, Myers enjoys fishing, camping and playing the guitar. His experience as fisherman includes catching steelhead, trout and bass. He has also been playing the guitar since he was six years old.

“I’m the type of person that can go home and crank up my guitar and play for three hours straight all by myself and enjoy it,” Myers said.

After Myers turned 50-years-old, a lot of his speed and jumping ability was lost. He then focused his attention on guitar.

“My dad was a real excellent guitar player,” Myers said.

“When I was in high school and college I was in various bands as a singer and played very little guitar, but I’ve always wrote little songs on the guitar and known how to play. It’s something I really enjoy. I love loud music. Extremely loud music.” H

working here; I sat in study halls.”

Myers currently works in security for MTHS. According to Myers, the school needed someone to work in security because no one else previously had that occupation. His job ranges from patrolling the parking lot to being a substitute.

“The interesting part about my job is that it changes so much,” Myers said. “This morning I arrived at about 10 after 6, I don’t start until 6:30 but I like to arrive early. I sit at my desk, I check my messages, I look at my cameras. This morning, the office called and said ‘we need a sub at room 104,’ so I subbed for [civics and government teacher George] Dremousis.”

Myers’ main job is to watch the security cameras as students come in and out of the school. However, he has a variety of other tasks, such as checking for passes to leave the campus during lunch, working in the parking lot and issuing parking permits.

Since Myers is stationed at the front of the school and watches the security cameras, he sees the variety of people who enter the building everyday.

“I get to see everybody,” Myers said. “And I’m a people watcher. Even if I’m away from the job and I’m at a concert or I’m down at Pike Place Market, I watch people. I try to read their faces, read their mannerisms. Again, that’s something I’ve done my whole life. I try to understand what kind of mood a person is by looking at them, or how they’re acting or how they’re acting with others.”

Myers’ personality is depicted in his occupation. “The weird thing is my job is an extension of who I am. I’ve kind of always been the person who’s looked after kids.

So even in elementary and junior high I’ve always been a student leader who helped with kids as far as rules went,” Myers said.

As with any job, struggles arise when working in security. Sometimes, it can be frustrating to Myers when a few students are rude to him because they don’t want to be at school or are prejudiced against security before getting to know him.

“I’ve been here for a long time and I care about them,” Myers said in response to other’s opinion on security.

“Though sometimes I might not come across that way, I’m always watching them to see if there’s anything I can do to help.”

According to Myers, seeing a variety of people on a daily basis entails trying to understand the different types of cultures and people on campus at MTHS and recognizing Myers playing the guitar. One of Myers’ passions, among fishing everyone as their own individual person. Due to the wide variety of people at MTHS, he has had to learn to adjust to and camping, is playing guitar, a talent inherited from his father.

PHOTO COURTESY JERRY MYERS

SPORTS

Hawkeye

MARCH 2018 | 23

MOUNTLAKE TERRACE

THE STATE CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM FOR SPORTS HAS SHIFTED OVER THE PAST DECADE Story by Ciara Laney HAWKEYE STAFF

Over the years, the classification of MTHS in the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA) has changed. Activities and Athletics Director Kim “Stew” Stewart, said, “we went from 3A to 4A. We were huge.” But that was more than a decade ago.

MTHS’s classification has changed frequently over time due to student enrollment changing. Originally, MTHS was a 3A school and climbed up to 4A. Then, Edmonds-Woodway High School was built and MTHS was again classified as 3A. According to Stewart, two years ago after Lynnwood High School was built, MTHS dropped down to 2A because people are generally more attracted to newer schools.

“It’s all based on numbers,” Stew said.

To classify as a 2A school, the net enrollment of students must be between 461 and 971.71 in grades 10-12. There are currently 65 2A schools in the WIAA. Net enrollment is the ratio of students enrolled in a school, regardless of age, to all the students of the official school age population.

Mountlake Terrace has a net enrollment of 961.95, and is thus a 2A school. The only factor that is considered in classification by the WIAA is the net enrollment, and not the sports teams’ abilities.

Moving down to 2A took affect in the fall. In the past, MTHS teams would play the three other high school teams who are larger than 2A in the Edmonds School District: EdmondsWoodway, Meadowdale and Lynnwood.

Starting in the fall a new football configuration will be established with MTHS playing primarily 2A teams.

“The rest of our schedule will be divided up. Right now we are looking at teams from the county line, which is 205th, north to the [Canadian] border. In between there, the 2A teams that are in there we are going to divide into two

Classification Enrollment Ranges

4A 3A 2A 1A

1343.29+ 971.72 1343.28 461 971.71 214.50 461.24

Number of Schools

64 66 65 65

2B

83 - 214.49

60

1B

26 - 82.99

64

Classification Enrollment Ranges 4A 1343.29+ 64 3A 971.72-1343.28 66 2A 461-971.71 65 1A 214.50-461.24 65 2B 83-214.49 60 1B 26-82.99 64

different divisions. It’ll be a 2A footballonly league,” Stew said.

There are benefits to having a 2A football-only league, according to Stew.

“The stronger teams are going to be up top, and the teams that are traditionally weaker will be down below. Now, the teams obviously up-top will have a better opportunity to make it into post-season than the teams below. But, there are programs that are failing. Anacortes and Sehome were close to dropping football,” Stew said.

Stew believes shifting from the current 3A schedule the Hawks have been playing to 2A doesn’t have a negative effect on the student athletes.

“They just go play their hearts, and that’s what I love about this school and its athletes and its ASB and its music programs and all that stuff,” Stew said. “People just try to do the very best they can.”

Steve Willits, MTHS alumnus and high school sportscaster, said he saw an effect of 2A on the athletes and shifting down. He said it “gives them that extra confidence.”

Sizing down to 2A can be a better fit for competition in different sports. Willits gave an example that the basketball team this year had a better chance at beating a 2A than 3A teams because Metro league schools are stronger and draw from a larger population. Willits also pointed out some negative effects, including that there is more distance traveled being in 2A than 3A or 4A. Playing schools farther away can put a financial strain and inconvenience on supporters attending games.

There is a balance of pros and cons of MTHS shifting to 2A, but in the end the classification isn’t what matters.

“We won WESCO that’s 3A and we’re a 2A team, and we have a trophy sitting upstairs for winning WESCO, and we got to state, but we go to state for 2A,” Stew said. “I don’t think that matters. It’s what you got on the court and who’s coaching them.” H

Number of Schools

24 | MARCH 2018

Hawkeye

YOUR FUTURE IS CALLING

SENIOR ADS SENIOR

TRIBUTES

Work with world class faculty in a field you love at an affordable price.

1/2

full

1/4 DUE MARCH 18, 2018

Start your Triton journey now at edcc.edu/getstarted.

Buy a senior ad for the yearbook!

Full page for $150, with a ten (10) photo limit and 1000 character limit. [8.75”w x 11.75”h] 1/2 (half) page for $100, with a six (6) photo limit and 600 character limit. [8.75”w x 5.75”h] 1/4 (quarter) page for $50, with a three (3) photo limit and 300 character limit. [4.25”w x 5.75”h]

Learn more: 425.640.1706 | admissions@edcc.edu

http://bit.ly/2FoXNHP

EMAIL TEMPO@THEHAWKEYE.ORG WITH QUESTIONS

The book we’re writing about you* is almost finished. *Okay, and about 1300 of your closest friends.

The TEMPO.

Your student yearbook. Reserve a copy today. $75 • $65 w/ASB for sale in the ASB office.