The
Placing first at state
Tiger HI-LINE
Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012
For the first time in CF history the pom routine received first/page 3 Follow us on Twitter @ tigerhiline, Facebook at TigerHilineOnline and on our website at www.hiline.cfschools.org
Volume 53 Edition 12
Changes in study hall options hope to help raise CF students’ grades While students enjoy sleeping in on Tuesday mornings and sipping at their warm Starbucks lattes, teachers and administrators have been working to try to increase the rate of student success. A dramatic problem teachers and administrators have taken notice of at Cedar Falls High School is the growing amount of students on failing lists. The root of this problem lies not with students being incapable or lacking the skills to pass, but in students neglecting their work. Associate Principal Dana Deines has been working to help solve this problem by finding a way to get students to complete work during the day to achieve the goal of seeing more students pass. “As you may be aware from our late start Tuesdays, our school has taken on a professional de-
velopment initiative to create a PLC ( Professional Learning Communities) at CFHS. With this initiative we have a focus on learning, collaboration and results. Our overall goal is to help all students learn at high levels. It would be disingenuous for us to set this goal without creating a system of interventions to give struggling learners additional time and support for learning during the school day,” Deines said. “We have been looking to find additional intervention time during the school day to help all our students be successful. Each grading period we see many students failing to complete assignments and as a result under perform and/or fail classes.” To solve this problem, students will be placed in larger study halls during the school day and only students failing a
class with teacher recommendation will be required to do their work in smaller study halls with more individualized attention until they receive passing grades. “Teachers will use this support time to assist students with their academic requirements. Our idea is to have small study halls available each period to focus our academic support with students that may be failing class(es) due to incomplete assignments. We have set a goal to decrease the number of failing grades at our school,” Deines said. Susan Langan, department head of guidance at Cedar Falls High School expects positive results from this new intervention program. “I think it’ll be really good for the kids once they realize they can get the extra help and we have really great teachers to work with them,” Langan said. “We’re just trying
to get students extra support and more motivation to get some of their work done to increase their achievement.” Math teacher Ron Hoofnagle said he believes the new study halls will benefit many students, including the ones that are already passing who take the initiative to get extra help. “This change is being done because many students within the school who are in trouble academically are having that trouble due to not doing their school or homework. We are trying to give them additional assistance and attention to help them get that work done. Rather than the penalty for skipping your homework being a zero, the penalty will be that you do your homework,” Hoofnagle said. He doesn’t see a problem with the new study hall arrangements.“Students who
need extra help will still be able to get it. I do think we need to ensure it’s clear for these students how to get help during their study halls, and that it’s simple, so they’re not likely to get frustrated and skip the help,” Hoofnagle said. Starting this week, the new study hall program will begin. This innovative change may seem sudden to students, but the idea has been in the making for the past year. “We have been looking to pilot this large /small study hall process for the past year. Our building leadership team has worked to move this concept forward. We are now ready to try this intervention and to see if there are benefits to continue and/or expand this intervention in the future,” Deines said. By Staff Writer Amanda
HARWOOD
Blue Zone Project hits Cedar Falls Cedar Falls High School hosted Cedar Falls Blue Zones community kick off on Wednesday, Nov. 28. About 450 people were at the event. It featured music, food and a lecture to introduce the project and its goals to the city. The Blue Zones Project is a world-wide intention to improve the quality of life through stimulating healthy ways of life. The collaboration between the sponsors Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shields and Healthway is an attempt to make Iowa the most healthy state in the country. National Geographic author and researcher, Dan Buettner, who came to talk about it last Wednesday, studied the longest-lived cultures in the world and brought together all the aspects that make such difference in those communities, trying to apply it to daily life. According to Blues Zones
effort for Cedar Falls Community Schools coordinator Troy Becker, who had been involved with physical activities before, the goals to the community are very broad. The intention “is to get several different areas like schools, work places and grocery stores to help improving the wellness and well being of the community.” To achieve those goals he said he believes that nine things should help. They include being physically active and having the right out look. “Usually people who live a long happy life know their purpose. They understand the importance of slowing down and enjoying life” he said. Other things include eating wisely. For example, when older people drink a glass of red wine each day, it brings a lot of benefits like reducing risks of cancer. Building strong rela-
have a sum that shows healthy impacts in the community, then the place that applied gets certified. So far Lincoln Elementary and North Cedar have become certified, and other elementaries are on the way. He said the real key to the Blue Zones being successful is to not approach it as a timeline. “It is our new way of life; it is long term. If we want long term impacts what we are doing here has to be sustainable. We don’t want to do it for a year, become Associate Principal Troy certified and stop. We want to make sure that this is not something that is not going area establishment needs to go away,” Becker said. through a check list that adds Everybody working on points for each term accomthe project is a volunteer. The plished. When those points tionships and prioritizing family are also very important. A short term goal for the project in the community is to get the city certified in different areas. To be certified, each
“Usually people who live a long happy life know their purpose. They understand the importance of slowing down and enjoying life”
BECKER
sponsors picked six communities in Iowa to be their test cities, including Cedar Falls and Waterloo. With success, it will be possible to start Blue Zones in another communities. Becker said he believes that the biggest challenge for Cedar Falls is “to get the word out to the entire community. The people that are involved know about Blue Zones, but we need to get other people [involvement], and have them start to live the Blue Zones style of life.” He added that the kick off was a good opportunity to bring the Project out and have the community start to know about it and sign up. The committee intends to get more establishments and people in the community as members of the Blue Zone work. By Staff Writer Ana
CUNHA
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The
OPINION Our View
‘White Christmas’ draws out a crowd
In a busy, stressful world of essay writing, scholarship applying, homework completion and AP studying, time seems to slip by unnoticed (until that college application deadline arrives). Being so caught up in the worries of a teenage student, it can be easy to miss the things going on all around and the beauties our small town of Cedar Falls has to offer. On Friday night, downtown was sparkling. The brightly lit store fronts and Christmas displays captured the attention of the many passersby. Restaurants and the lovely Cup of Joe coffee shop were busy warming their customers with good food and drink. The decorated trees, light displays and holiday music added to the cheering atmosphere. However, the best treat of all was to be found after stumbling into the Oster Regent Theatre on Main Street for the showing of “Irving Berlin’s White Christmas.” The cast included former CFHS student Falken Jaramillo and current English teacher Michelle Rathe. Jaramillo performed without missing a step as he danced and sang in a small ensemble of actors. Rathe sparkled on stage, making her experience evident as she captured the audience’s attention and had them laughing out loud. The musical’s visual appearance was enticing, with brightly colored costumes and changing scenery. The sounds coming from the orchestra pit were just as magical as the performances on stage. Senior Bennett Ford played the drums and band instructors Gerald Ramsey (playing the clarinet, saxophone and flute) and Kyle Engelhardt (lead trumpet) also contributed to the merry sounds. There is still a chance to catch this highly recommended live entertainment. Get tickets at the Oster Regent box office or call 277-5283. The last showings are Dec. 7, 8 and 9.
Contact Us The Tiger Hi-Line is a weekly publication of the journalism classes at Cedar Falls High School, 1015 Division Street, Cedar Falls, Iowa 50613. Our website is www.hiline.cfschools.org. The Hi-Line is distributed to CFHS students on Tuesdays to read during their RCTs fourth period. Columns and letters do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Hi-Line staff or Cedar Falls Schools. The Hi-Line editorial is presented weekly in the editorial labeled Our View, and it is the view of the majority of the editors listed below. Reader opinions on any topic are welcome and should be sent to The Tiger Hi-Line staff or delivered to room 208. All letters must be signed. Letters must be submitted by 3 p.m. on Thursday for publication in the following Tuesday edition. Letters may not exceed 300 words and may be edited to meet space limitations. Writers should include their contact information for verification. Editor-in-Chief: Maya Amjadi News Editor: Katherine Mayhew Opinion Editor: Maya Amjadi Sports Editor: Jared Hylton Feature Editor: Sandra Omari-Boateng Entertainment Editor: Lindsey Davis Hi-Line Online Editor: Martha Hall Staff Writers: Ana Cunha, Amanda Harwood, Linne Hoofnagle, Karley Izer, Alyssa Jensen, Maddie Kemp, Lauren Nickerson, Quinn Stabenow, Liam Tate
Tiger
HI-LINE
Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012
Uniforms limit number of outlets for creativity and self-expression
Dulling out individuality isn’t the way to stop bullying Across the nation, schools both public and private have been debating implementing school uniforms. Administrators and parents believe that school uniforms will eliminate discrimination and bullying in the school environment. This and other perks that are said to come with school uniforms are false, and other problems arise from the idea. First of all, the most obvious point against uniforms is that they restrict self-expression. We live in a dynamic society, full of unique characters that make our world a spontaneous one. Cutting that off at a young age only stifles creativity and encourages conformity. We want to encourage our children to be expressive and to think outside the box. Forcing them to wear ugly gray sweater vests and starched white shirts is not the way to do that. T h e genderspecific uniform guidelines often reinforce the gender binary in the school environment. The separation between females and males will only increase. If uniforms were all-encompassing and non-gender specific, this problem would not exist. However, uniforms are not all-encompassing. There are limited choices for males and limited choices for females. Though females can wear uniform pants, men are not allowed to wear uniform jumpers. Conflict would arise if a male attempted to wear the specified “female” attire. This poses problems to LGBT progress in school environments. Another strike against this trend is that uniforms are un-
necessarily costly and useless. No kid wants to wear a uniform on the weekend, to the movies or out with friends, which leaves parents no choice but to purchase clothing besides uniforms for their kids to wear outside of school. Uniform clothing is also expensive. Monogrammed school-specific polos, jumpers and ties all must be custom-ordered to fit the
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We live in a dynamic society, full of unique characters that make our world a spontaneous one. Cutting that off at a young age only stifles creativity and encourages conformity.
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uniform code. These are often expensive and, considering the fact that they cannot be used all year, a strict uniform code would be wasteful. What is the message we are trying to send children? I’ll tell you; we’re proposing that everyone can only get along if everyone conforms to the same standards. It’s not a healthy lesson. The message should be conflict resolution no matter the physical appearance. In the real world, people do not all look the same. That brings us to one of the most troubling points; does teaching children that everyone should look the same harm their outside social life?
Uniforms restrict a vital part of social interaction: communicating by outer appearance. Though people often say that being judged on your appearance is a negative thing, I would argue that it can be a positive thing. Clothing is an important part of culture; removing that from developing children and teenageers will effectively create a generation of unsatisfied drones. Lastly, where did we get the idea that bullying and stereotypes would magically disappear if we implemented a strict uniform? People will not stop bullying each other based on appearance, which manifests itself in ways besides clothing. If we convince ourselves that placing limits on clothing choices will eliminate school bullying, we are kidding ourselves. Statistics collected by David L. Brunsma from the University of Alabama and Kerry A. Rockquemore of Notre Dame for The Journal of Education Research show that there’s nearly no change in student behavior after the implementation of school uniforms. The conclusion of the study reads, “Based upon this analysis, the authors were forced to reject the ideas that uniforms improved attendance rates, decreased behavioral problems, decreased drug use or improved academic achievement.” The only real solution to bullying and other problems in the elementary and high school environment is encouraging and teaching openmindedness in students. Messages that circulate throughout the high school that exacerbate stereotypes and bullying are often ignored. Want to end bullying? Address the root of the problem, cutting off a few of the branches will not do any real good.
Staff Writer Linne
Hoofnagle
3
The
Tiger
SPORTS
Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012
STATE CHAMPS Pom and All-Male routines
HI-LINE Athlete of the
Week
bringing home the ‘ship
The CFHS dance teams performed at the State Competition last Friday, and let’s just say, “They didn’t even have to try. It’s always a good time.” Pom and All-Male took first place in their classes. The girls Pom routine, choreographed by Shannon Chrusciel, marks the first time Cedar Falls has ever won a state championship in the Pom Division. The Tigers finished with an average judges score of 66.38 (70 points possible) in Class XIII, finishing .75 points ahead of second place Sioux City North. Next season the dance team loses five seniors off of the State Champion-winning Pom routine. “It feels amazing,” senior dancer Halle Benson said. “I think it feels even better that we made history. We went out there, and we knew we did amazing as a team. One thing we didn’t have that other teams did was technique as a team, and I think we went out and did it sharper and had more energy than any other team. We just worked our butts off, and we knew we did our absolute best.” The boys All-Male routine won the Large School AllMale category for the third
straight year, completing “The Dynasty.” The dance was choreographed by Coach Alyssa Nolte and Leah Mills. Not only did they bring home the title, they were also selected as one of three Judges Choice Awards which are given by the judges to the three best routines. This is the first time Cedar Falls has ever won a Judges Choice Award in any category. “I feel like I’ve been through it all with the whole All-Male team. I was on it the first year, and we got third. We’ve just gotten better every year after that. After State this year, I was speechless because I didn’t know how to express how much I love the All-Male guys and how proud I am of the girls Pom Routine. I’m going to miss it a ton,” senior captain Raud Kashef said. By winning this, they are now elgible to dance at the State Basketball Championship game at Wells Fargo Arena in March. “The Males” also walked to Zombie Burger for lunch where they performed their entire routine outside the front window while waiting to be seated. They played a pivotal role in earning the Sportsmanship Award back-to-back
years. The Hip-Hop routine, which also featured all-male dancer and state soloist Richard Lam, earned a Division I rating but placed seventh out of 11 teams, not earning a trophy. They scored an average 63.25 points, just one point behind fifth place Davenport West. The Coed routine took fourth place but didn’t receive a trophy because only the top three teams in Large School Coed received trophies. The routine was choreographed by coach Alyssa Nolte and featured a “Wild” theme. Most of the routine was performed to the song “Born to be Wild” by Steppenwolf. The routine received an average score of 60.5, barely making the cut for a Division 1 rating. They fell just 2.33 points short of third place Ames. “Even though we didn’t place and did the best we could, we had Richard [Lam], which made it really fun too,” senior captain Allie Armstrong said. The Kick Routine failed to earn a Division I rating, with an average score of 58.5. Teams must have a minimum average score of 60 points to earn a Division I rating, and to place, teams must have a Division I
rating. Cedar Falls wasn’t done bringing home trophies yet though. For the second straight year the Tiger dance team was awarded the Sportsmanship Award. A large part of that award goes to Lam who printed off slips of paper with a poem he had written wishing other teams luck and encouraging them on their upcoming routines. The All-Male and Coed guys then handed the poems out to girls teams and used them as conversation starters. Junior Timmy Sevcik proved to be the ladies man at State; he could frequently be found with other teams. All State Routines can be found online; they will also each be performing at halftime of home basketball games throughout the season. To learn which days each routine is performing, visit the dance team’s webpage at www.cfschools.org/dance-team/performances. This Friday at halftime of the men’s basketball game, the fans can watch both of the winning routines — Pom and All-Male. Sports Editor Jared
HYLTON
Ellen Jones
Women’s Bowling What are your goals for this season? I want to keep improving every meet and win a couple meets. What did you do to prepare in the off season? Every once in awhile I go bowling by myself so my muscles keep the memory. What are this year’s team’s strengths? Our six varsity members from last year are all back, so we don’t have any new people, so the team chemistry is still there. How long have you bowled? I’ve been competitively bowling for three years, but I’ve been around bowling my whole life. What do you think about Valley Park closing? We weren’t necessarily happy about it, but it was understandable. The lanes were really bad. It’s inconvenient.
Tigers in
Action
Men’s Basketball (1-0)
Next up: Iowa City High on Dec. 7 at 7:30 p.m. at home
Women’s Basketball (2-1)
Next up: Waterloo East on Dec. 4 at 7:30 p.m. at home
Wrestling
Next up: CR Washington and CR Jefferson on Dec. 6 at 5:30 p.m. at home
Bowling (1-3)
Next up: Dubuque Senior on Dec. 7 at 3:45 p.m. at Maple Lanes
Pom Jessica McMurrin
All-Male Ted Tilahun
Coed Allie Armstrong & Conner Calhoun
Hip-Hop Halle Benson
Men’s Swimming (0-0)
Next up: Linn-Mar on Dec. 4 at home
4
The
CAPTURED
Tiger
Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012
HI-LINE
Shake Yo Groove Thang Anna Love Photos
From top left, going clockwise. Kick shows off their flexibility. Josh Ochoa strikes a pose. The boys of all male make a statement. Molly Juhlin gives a little something to the audience. The co-ed group finish off their routine. Lisa Schreck performs during pom. Hip-hop girls synchronize their moves. More pom girls smile for the crowd. Raud Kashef pumps up the audience. The pom squad moves to the beat. Richard Lam and Sam Jamison get cheeky.