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April 14, 2009
Volume 49 Issue 19
1015 Division St. Cedar Falls, Iowa 50613
Student versus faculty basketball game helps local needs Jillian Dally Business Manager
Thursday night’s match up of CFHS faculty versus students will prove to be a game to end all games as both go head to head to break the 1-1 tie in this third year of the charity series. “I am predicting the faculty to have a score of 112 and the students 34,” English teacher Doug Wilkenson said. The faculty are hoping to break this one to one game tie, although Wilkenson believes last year’s student win was just a “myth.” “We had to let them win at least once. We are not here to crush the students; we definitely want them to come back,” Wilkenson said. Senior leadership is sponsoring this event. “I expect Wilkenson to run his mouth, NEIBA to suck air and the women faculty to dominate,” senior adviser and English teacher Diane Flaherty said. NEIBA, a student run basketball league that has dominated other fun athletic contests throught the year,
wants to make their presence known at the game but are encouraging others to sign up as well. “Of course NEIBA will be there. We like to take advantage of every opportunity to support our school and spread our name throughout the community,” senior Kyle Bernard said. The faculty’s strategy is far different than that of the students’. “Well, we paid off the officials. There will be a lot of fouling, but none of it will be called on us. We are just better than students, particularly senior boys,” Wilkenson said. “We plan to use our youth to our advantage and try to make the staff tired,” Bernard said. The NEIBA boys said they are not going to stoop to the level of trash talking this year. “You should expect NEIBA to carry the student team to a victory over the staff, and do it in a very classy manner,” Bernard said. Wilkenson said that if anyone needed a reminder of what to expect for the game to come and see him before Thursday. “I expect Mr. Wilkenson to run
his mouth all week, but I’m sure he’ll run out of things to say when the game starts and his team is losing by 20,” Bernard said. Senior leadership is sponsoring this game not only for fun but for some good causes too. “Right now Senior Leadership, SSR and Student Forum are hosting. We would like to raise enough money to give some to the Tiger HiLine and also to Relay for Life, as we have students and staff who have been battling with cancer or have had cancer,” Flaherty said. Tickets cost $5, and everyone has to pay, including coaches, players, spectators and even the referees. “Student Forum is having concessions, and there is going to be an old-fashioned sock hop after the game until 10 p.m., which will also be located in the gym. We want everyone to attend, even parents,” Flaherty said. The game is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. in the high school gym. “We really want as many people to come and support the cause. It’s just a really fun time for both students and faculty,” Flaherty said.
Honor Heindl Photo
Activity secretary Jane Carter and Spanish teacher Grace Valdez put their moves on Haley Patterson at last year’s faculty vs. student basketball game. This year the tickets are $5 to support Relay for Life and The Tiger Hi-Line. Game starts at 7 p.m. in the high school gym, and a sock hop will follow until 10 p.m.
Tea Time: concerned citizens protest taxes Alex Entz Business Manager
On April 15, the Cedar Valley will play host to one chapter of a larger protest sweeping the country. A Tax Day Tea Party protest has been planned to take place at 722 Water Street in Waterloo, along with dozens of other such protests across the country. The protest takes place on the day taxes are due, and supporters and organizers alike hope it will be a monumental indication to the government that the people do not condone “pork” projects, higher taxes or big government. The focal point of each tea party is the dumping of “tea”—typically water—into a body of water as a sign of protest copycatted from the
The organizer of the Waterloo event (there will be eight tea parties in Iowa alone, and nearly 70 in Texas), Greg Tagtow has lined up guest speakers and a ceremonial “tea” dumping into the river. In place of tea, the crowd will be using water so as to be more environmentally friendly. The protest is expected to bring between 200 and 300 supporters. Tagtow outlined the night’s key principles. “We want more efficient government, we want more responsible and discretionary spending, and we need to get rid of earmarks,” Tagtow said. Walt Rogers, a leader in the local church and the Republican nominee in the race for the District 10 Iowa Senate race, will be speaking at the Waterloo tea party.
“I’m going to lift up freedom, which is what our country was founded on. When the government gets more control, we lose our freedom,” Rogers said. Tagtow expounded on what the event’s focus will be on. “We will be informing the crowd of all the ways the government is spending in excessive and wasteful ways — state and federal government. It will be informative, we will be telling people how to get involved,” Tagtow said. Both stressed that it will be a nonpartisan event. “We want to involve everyone, because taxes and spending doesn’t affect just one group. Both parties are guilty of wasteful spending,” Tagtow said. In Iowa, the event will hold
special significance, as the Iowa legislature has been debating a tax overhaul that would prevent Iowans from deducting federal taxes from their income before filing for state taxes. The new plan would bring in nearly $600 million in new taxes, but legislators having proposed using this new money to write in tax breaks and credits for the middle and lower class. Democrats champion the tax cuts for the lower and middle classes, while Republicans see a tax increase for small businesses. Looking at the issue, junior Alex Clopton, opposing the measure, called it “double-taxation.” Junior Mike Droste also had mixed feelings about the Democratpushed plan. After noting that 46 of 50 states are facing budget shortfalls, Droste
found the plan to be a waste of time. “No politician wants to be caught dead slashing government programs or voting for tax increases, which is why they’re instead of concentrating on this political diversion that does neither,” Droste said. Droste was encouraged that the plan will provide relief for the lower and middle classes in this recession, but he noted the difference between the parties’ numbers. “The Democrats say it’ll cut taxes for 60 percent and revenue will stay the same; the Republicans are singing a different tune.” In either case, it adds a bit of extra heated debate sure to be brought up at the Waterloo Tea Party. Both issues are seemingly on a collision course for debate and widespread media attention in the coming days.
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District in good financial place in spite of recession, BUDGET however, no new programs, budget efficiencies made from page 2
Kellie Petersen Editor-in-Chief
The economic recession and the threats posed by it have sadly become a fixture of the present American culture. Factory closings, mass job layoffs, the foreclosure crisis, stimulus packages, bailouts and dismal days of stock trading have seeped into every facet of media, from the headlines and covers of news magazines to television shows ranging from AC 360° to Oprah. With the present environment, it is not surprising that the effects of the recession have filtered down to the educational system. The Cedar Falls School District, however relatively unscathed, is still no exception. “We have been impacted to some degree,” superintendent David Stoakes said. Stoakes accounted most of the impact to the 1.5 percent cut to the state government budget made in December, which includes public school districts. The cut was made after the state Revenue Estimating Committee indicated there would not be enough funds to cover the budget as it currently existed. Stoakes said that this cut cost the Cedar Falls School District $290,000. The legislature determines the educational budget according to a formula called the School Foundation Aid Program, which accounts for the amount of students as well as specific criteria such as students with special needs or of low socioeconomic status. Each year the legislature determines how much more money will go into the general education fund according to this formula. However, the budget is generally set for two years, except when subject to change according to conditions such as the current recession. In addition to the state-determined budget, the majority of money for education is derived from tax levies.
Arlene Freudenberg Photo
In a year that saw more unpredictibility for budgeting than in decades, one positive development was a savings in fuel expenses. At the beginning of the 2008-2009 school year, the district had to consider fuel running over $4 for gas and diesel, but as the recession set in and fuel costs dropped, the district has been able to recoup approximately $60,000 from the drop in oil prices. These levies, such as the Instructional Support and Physical Plant and Equipment Levy, are voted on by the public and, unlike the budget determined by the legislators, are not subject to change according to the state of the economy. These two levies are part of the general education fund, but another important tax levy is the Local Option Sales Tax that many districts have in varying amounts. In Cedar Falls, there is a seven percent sales tax, and a small part of this money is used only for school buildings in
Black Hawk County. Stoakes said that about 85 percent of the budget for school districts is composed of these statewide budget components, whereas the individual districts decide upon the remaining 15 percent prior to the beginning of the next school year. One of the specific areas where school districts, including the Cedar Falls School District, are most impacted by the effects of the economic recession is staff. “When 80 percent of our budget is for salaries, it is hard to look
elsewhere,” Director of Secondary Education Dan Conrad said. Another complication is that once individual districts have accounted for salary cost in their budgets at the beginning of each school year, the amount cannot be changed according to outside factors such as the state of the economy. However, districts try to compensate. “We can’t cut back on our salaries during the middle of the year, so we try to create efficiencies,” Stoakes said. Stoakes said that cutting back on energy costs and field trips are examples of how the district might compensate for the money lost due to budget cuts. Also, he mentioned how the low fuel prices had created an unexpected estimated $60,000 in savings. “This was really out of our control, but when the price of gas started to drop, it really helped us a lot,” Stoakes said. Cedar Falls School District Business Manager Doug Nefzger also commented on the unexpected energy savings. “The price of fuel is quite a bit less than what we budgeted for, so we’re very fortunate for that,” Nefzger said. In spite of the savings posed by lower fuel prices, the energy costs of a school district provide an important opportunity to create budget efficiencies. Stoakes said that within the Cedar Falls School District, Cedar Falls Utilities would be asked to survey the district in order to determine efficiency and make recommendations for improvement. He also said that money from the Physical Plant and Equipment Levy is used during the summer to make energy efficient improvements to areas such as windows and lighting in buildings throughout the district. Another potential area for efficiencies mentioned by Stoakes was staff. He said that the district might reassign staff to fill any vacancies. Also, staff members may be moved within subject areas at the secondary level according to changing
tures, state aid allowable growth for future years and anticipated future student enrollment and expenses. However, the cash reserves candemands. not continually be used. Also concerning staff is the “We can do that fairly easily for necessity of open positions, as unnecessary positions may not be filled one year. That’s why we have cash in order to conserve money. Nefzger reserves,” Stoakes said. Stoakes said that cash reserves said that when a resignation occurs, might only be used as a one-time the position will be evaluated to determine whether it is still neces- fund without replenishing, so sary, but that this practice is one that therefore it cannot be used to pay for occurs regardless of the state of the ongoing expenses. Nevertheless, utilizing money budget. from the cash reserve is an approAnother way Cedar Falls, and priate means of compensating for other school districts as well, are compensating is through the usage ofbudget reductions. Nefzger said that cash reserves, which include money when the state cuts the budget for that is not a direct part of the spend- all public schools, individual school districts are required to decide how ing plan. “That in essence is our savings to make up the “difference” that account, the cash reserve,” Nefzger is created. School districts such as Cedar Falls choose to offset some said. Nefzger said that the money in of this difference by using the cash the cash reserve would be used to reserve. In spite of needing to use money offset the money lost due to the state budget reductions. Nefzger further from the cash reserve, the district’s described the cash reserve as “moneycash balances are still in a positive state. we had on hand at the end of the “The district’s cash balances have year” that is composed of unspent state aid money and property taxes improved nicely over the last four the school district has levied as well years,” Nefzger said. Also, the Cedar Falls School Disas unspent budget authority. trict is anticipating receiving some The budget authority is the amount of money a district can pos- federal stimulus money, which will sibly spend, according to how many be used in the special education and students there are in the district, how Title I (for students of low socioeconomic status) areas. However, the much money is received for each student and how much money the amount to be received and when is district did not spend from the previ- still unknown. “We’re not going to spend it until ous year. “One of the things Iowa schools we’ve got it,” Stoakes said. Energy costs and staff are not the can do is levy property taxes speonly areas affected by the economic cifically for cash flow purposes,” recession. Nefzger said. Extracurricular activities, mainly The cash reserve also provides the school district with funds dur- at the secondary level, are affected as well, though not drastically. ing the summer months when no Conrad said that although some exrevenue is earned, in addition to tracurricular activities are supported supplementing the budget during through general fund money, the times of reductions such as these. Nefzger said that the amount of effects would not be as extreme as money from the cash reserve used reducing coaches or games or entire activities. to compensate for budget funds depends on many factors, which may “We’ve been pretty fortunate that a lot of our extracurricular activities include but are not limited to the amount of budget shortfall, estimat- have been self-supporting. So there’s ed current year revenue and expendi- not a huge drain on our educational fund due to extracurricular activiBUDGET, page 8 ties,” Conrad said.
Conrad said that only unnecessary expenses such as field trips would likely be cut. However, certain aspects such as supplies, equipment and travel may be affected. “What we have done is, in working with Mr. Conrad and Ms. McDonald, our two directors of education, we instituted some budget reductions to offset part of the loss of cash,” Nefzger said. Nefzger said that building principals would have to be more “judicious” in how they utilized supply, equipment and travel items. However, he emphasized that travel referred to employee travel for professional development days and conferences and not to student travel for transportation. “It’s teacher travel, not student travel,” Nefzger said. Nevertheless, these areas are still of interest to conserving money. “And we’ll be taking a very hard look at equipment and supplies and travel and all of the things associated with that,” Nefzger said. Although certain areas such as energy costs, staff and extracurricular activities may be subtly affected, Stoakes said that the most obvious effect would be no addition of new programs. However, this also means that existing programs are not likely
to be eliminated. “We won’t see any drastic changes in terms of things we think we need to cut because the budget is not in very good shape, but by the same token we won’t see any new programs because we just don’t have the money to offer that to our students,” Stoakes said. Stoakes specifically mentioned some proposed new programs such as an elementary language program or offering Chinese as a language option at the secondary level. “If we’re going to start those programs, for example, we would have to cut something else,” Stoakes said. Although the addition of new programs may not currently be an option, it allows for the continued existence of current programs. “Given my choice between adding new programs or keeping what we have and not having to cut, I’ll take the second choice because it’s not really easy when you have to cut your budget,” Stoakes said. Although the Cedar Falls School District is affected in some ways by the recession, the overall effect is not severe. This is mostly due to increasing enrollment, which as the state determines the money school districts receive based on the amount of students they have, increasing enrollment ensures money.
Katie Dexter Cartoon “In Iowa, basically every student that walks in the building is worth so many dollars,” Nefzger said. Thus, increasing enrollment creates a good financial position for school districts. “We’re in a very good position. Beyond that, we’re probably in an enviable position compared to a lot of other school districts in Iowa,” Stoakes said. Stoakes mentioned that about 70 percent of school districts in Iowa are experiencing declining enrollment. “So, if you have declining enrollment, it’s not going to be easy on your budget,” Stoakes said. Another assurance is that, according to Stoakes and Conrad, the school district will be able to meet its two primary budget goals of keeping the local property tax at the same level and not cutting any staff positions. “It’s still early, but as of now it looks like we will be able to meet those goals,” Stoakes said. “The superintendent’s goal has been to number one not raise the property tax rate and number two not reduce staff, and we think we will be able to meet both of those goals,” Conrad said. Although the Cedar Falls School District may be in a relatively stable
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position concerning the effects of the economic recession, the administration continues to be mindful with regards to finances. “We always try to be as fiscally responsible as we can. We always want to spend money conservatively. We always want to be as efficient as we can,” Stoakes said. Wise financial practices such as these may become even more beneficial as the state may make further cuts to the state government budget. Nefzger said that other state agencies have been notified of funding reductions, but that it is his understanding that the governor is planning on using federal stimulus funds to offset any further state budget cuts for public education Although not another cut, the budget does not completely fund the four percent allowable growth the state originally determined. Rather, it completely funds half of that amount. Nefzger compared this to having a $1,000 credit card with a $900 limit. “That’s in essence what the state is doing to every school district in Iowa for next year,” Nefzger said. Undeniably, finance and budgets are an important part of the educational system. “The bottom line is that in order to provide the educational resources for our kids that we want to, it takes dollars,” Conrad said. The economic recession has caused the Cedar Falls School District, and countless others, to create spending efficiencies — especially with regard to budgeting (energy costs, supplies, equipment and employee travel), detering the addition of any new programs and utilizing cash reserves. Nefzger said that Cedar Falls had seen the effects of the economic recession through the budget cut made in December as well as with the possibility of another. However, he also said that he believed Cedar Falls was in a relatively good financial situation in spite of the times. “Well, I think overall, Cedar Falls and the Cedar Valley has been, in my view, somewhat isolated from the economic situation we hear or read about across the nation. I do think Cedar Falls is weathering that a little better than our friends on the East and West Coasts,” Nefzger said.
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N eW Rel eases
Music:
•Lady Sovereign Jigsaw •Death Cab for Cutie The Open Door [EP] •Yonlu A Society In Which No Tear Is Shed Inconceivably Mediocre •Papercuts You Can Have What You Want •Metric Fantasies
Movies:
•17 Again •Crank: High Voltage •State of Play
Pod cast
This week’s feature podcast as well as eight others that are updated every other week can be found on The Tiger Hi-Line Online (http://www. cedar-falls.k12.ia.us/buildings/cfhs/ journalism/index.html) by following the podcast links. Internet Explorer does not work for viewing this site. Use Safari, Firefox or Opera for best results. The website is also linked off the high school’s website.
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Duplicity entertains, confuses Torie Jochims
scheme to steal a top secret formula for a shampoo (which seems mundane, but really is much more) and sell it themselves, making millions to live off of the rest of their lives (and spend that time figuring out more about one another …) the obvious mistrust that exists between the two crops up, but more interestingly highlights the potential mistrust they have even in themselves. Being a spy can mess with an internal sense of self, it would seem.
When you don’t even know if you can be trusted, how can you trust someone enough to fall in genuine love? It’s an unspoken question the pair battles with throughout, but one that has viewers practically begging for the spies to find it in them to experience that which many believe to be the best emotion of all – real love. It’s this strange balance between the spy espionage and lingering lust/
potential romantic interest that really spices up the film despite its confusing twists and turns. But, though Owen and Roberts steal the show a good 90 percent of the time, heads of competing shampoo companies played by Paul Giamatti and Tom Wilkinson play their own amusing roles in their intense desperation for this formula. All the plots complexities, however, keep viewers from really getting involved in the film, creating a detachment that prevents you from truly losing yourself in the movie, which is one place the film misses its mark. With the cool, calculated and aloof personalities of both spies, Roberts misses her most noted trait – lovability, but that’s something viewers can get past. Overall, forgetting the absolute confusion of the plot in favor of trying to pick out the inner workings of the leads’ relationship makes this spy vs. spy, vaguely Mr. and Mrs. Smith reminiscent film worth the money for a night in the theater. Roberts and Owen are two unexpectedly fantastic leads, with an onscreen chemistry that is both undeniable and wickedly charming.
Tyler O’Brien, the University of Northern Iowa assistant professor of anthropology, has put together an exhibit called Death Perception: The Science of Forensic Anthropology detailing the routine of a forensic anthropologist in a case. The exhibit begins with a definition: “Forensic anthropology is concerned with the analysis of skeletal, badly decomposed or otherwise unidentified human remains in both legal and humanitarian contexts.” It then takes you through the steps a scientist like O’Brien must go through in order to attempt to solve a case.
The exhibit covers three phases. Phase one, discovery and recovery, details the finding and extracting of a body from the scene of the crime. Phase two, analysis, goes over the many aspects of the human body forensic anthropologists must go over to learn as much about the crime as they can, such as the sex and age of the victim, what caused their wounds and other topics. It goes over in detail how the Blow Fly’s life progression can show scientists how long the body has been decomposed. The final phase, report, shows how scientists identify the victim
and make their final report. Even though the subject is grim, O’Brien refrained from using gory photographs and cheap shocks in an attempt to refrain from sensationalizing the topic. Straightforward, informative photography is used, as well as diagrams and explanatory texts to give you an educated, honest look at what it’s really like. The free exhibit located at the UNI Museums will run until May 16, with the Aztec Massacre and Gangland Graveyard video specials occurring at 1:30 on April 25 and May 9, respectively.
Entertainment Editor
Duplicity is a film with a hard to understand title, and from the moment you sit in the theater with a tub of popcorn, it’s easy to see why this title was given. The film’s plot twists and turns so often audiences find themselves with whiplash before long. Two government spies, working for competing shampoo companies (I know, strange, right?) meet on a mission – Claire (CIA) played by Julia Roberts and Ray (M16) played by Clive Owen– and she sleeps with him, proceeding to steal his secret documents. But this kind of double crossing is only the beginning in the saga of double and triple crossing, and more confusing pieces in a dizzingly intricate plot. And yet, with sparkling onscreen personalities and a fierce electricity that cannot be properly classified as love or sheer competition (it can certainly be seen as lust) viewers can stay fixed on the screen in hopes of working out the complex relationship alone, leaving complex plots to work themselves out as they so often do in movies such as this. As the pair come up with a
Photo from duplicitymovie.net
Roberts and Owen get steamy in a scene from the film Duplicity.
UNI exhibit goes behind CSI Underground Sports with host Trevor Eastman
Find out what other sports CF staff and students enjoy in this show that focuses on one “unofficial” sport in each episode. March 26/ Episode 12 Sophomore Sam Rannells drops by this week to share his thoughts about this year in BMX.
Gage Wente Staff Writer
In 2002, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation on CBS was the number one ranked show on American television ratings. The show follows a group of forensic scientists who track down various criminals using scientific clues left at the crime scene, at victim’s house or even on the victims themselves. The science of forensic anthropology is more than just television shows and fairy tales, however, and now you can see the real-life science behind the TV shows. Dr.
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Ellen Wrede Goes to School
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Comparing & Contrasting Columbus & CFHS
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Uniform-Unlike Cedar Falls, the students at Columbus adhere to very strict guidelines concerning dress. They must wear either khaki or black dress pants and a belt (provided the pants have belt loops), black dress shoes and a white, blue, pink or yellow polo. Columbus mandates uniforms because they’re used as an equalizer between students and allows students’ ideas to make them individuals, not their clothing choices.
Mass-After third hour A.P. Calc, we made our way to the gym for Ash Wednesday mass. This mass is to commemorate the start of the season of Lent. Students sang a few songs led by the school choir. There was a short message and the students then received ashes on their foreheads. We then took communion, which consisted of communnion wafers and real wine (albeit watered down). Food-Though Columbus has fewer choices than we do (two mainline offerings and a salad bar), they were very similar. Since it was Ash Wednesday and thusly Lent, the students didn’t have any meat. I had what could be a typical Cedar Falls lunch of a pretzel, some fruit, a bag of cookies and some milk. Size-Columbus differs greatly in size to Cedar Falls. Despite this, their building is proportional to their size, so the halls seem about the same amount of crowded. Allison’s AP calculus class, for instance, is made up of herself and two other students. The day I visited, we took a trip to the weight room to illustrate a problem. In a normal CF class of 25, out-of-classroom learning is much harder to accomplish. The kind of learning mobility and individuality that Columbus is able to achieve was also evidenced when I visited the art classrooms. Their course offerings reflected the class size, and so were much more tailored to students’ interests. In addition to having pretty much the same equipment we have, they also feature a dark room and a photography class.
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Faculty vs. student game extends tradition of worthy philanthropy
This Thursday night, April 16, another installment of the popular charity fundraiser, the faculty vs. student basketball game, is set to take place. Some of us remember well the very first faculty vs. student basketball game, whose proceeds went toward funding the building of the school in Cambodia. The next year, the proceeds went to a sickle cell anemia charity. Now, this year, the proceeds are set to benefit both The Tiger Hi-line and Relay for Life. We are pleased that throughout these three years the faculty vs. student basketball game has benefitted such a wide variety of charities, all through a single night of fundraising. Thus, we would like to endorse tomorrow night’s basketball game and encourage all who can to attend. This endorsement does not stem solely from the fact that we are one of benefactors of the proceeds that will be raised. Rather, we are honestly happy to support any charity fundraisers, especially ones such as the faculty vs. student basketball game that bring people together for a fun, entertaining, as well as successful, night of fundraising for a worthy cause. We would be endorsing the faculty vs. student basketball game regardless of who the recipients of the proceeds are — not to say that we are not grateful for sharing the proceeds. We are yet again extremely thankful for and happy about the amount of support that we have received from the CFHS community during the difficult financial situation we have experienced this year. The altruism of our school community is also demonstrated by the choice of Relay for Life as the other recipient of the proceeds. As the lives of both Holmes Junior High Principal David Welter and CFHS activity secretary Jane Carter have been greatly affected by cancer, Relay for Life is a worthy choice to receive proceeds. In regards to the importance of this event, we would like to thank Senior Leadership, Student Senate and Students for Social Responsibility for their hard work in organizing the faculty vs. student basketball game, and for choosing to bestow part of the proceeds on us. We hope that the faculty vs. student basketball game will continue to be a fun and entertaining night that benefits others in the process.
Contact the Tiger Hi-Line
The Tiger Hi-Line is a weekly publication of the journalism classes of Cedar Falls High School, 1015 Division St., Cedar Falls, Iowa 50613. The Hi-Line is distributed to CFHS students on Wednesdays to read in their DEAR (Drop Everything and Read) classes. Columns and letters do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Hi-Line or Cedar Falls Schools. The Hi-Line editorial staff view is presented weekly in the editorial labeled as Our View. 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 the following Wednesday. Letters may not exceed 300 words and may be edited to meet space limitations. Include address and phone number for verification.
Editorial Staff
Editors-in-Chief: Honor Heindl, Kellie Petersen and Ellen Wrede Business Managers: Jill Dally and Alex Entz News Editors: Arlene Freudenberg and Sara Strever Opinion Editors: Maggie Devine and Vincent Stigliani Sports Editors: Jackie Jordan, Nick Penticoff and Paul Strike Feature Editor: Honor Heindl On-Line Editors: Torie Jochims and Ellen Wrede Entertainment Editors: Maggie Devine and Torie Jochims Photo Editor: Honor Heindl Cartoonist: Katie Dexter Graphic Artist: Tasha Woods
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Day of Silence not helping gay rights It has always seemed to me that How is staying silent for a day silence is not a good thing. going to give hope for the end of If you look back throughout bullying for GLBT students? American history, major milestones The harassment of GLBT stuin human rights haven’t been made dents has to end with the administrasilently. tors and teachers of Women marched schools stepping up and protested during and doing something. the suffrage moveEither they need to do ment to ensure the something, or the bulability for women to lied students need to be vote. People frestepping up. quently suffered from Which might not police brutality durbe that bad of a thing. ing the Civil Rights If those that have to movement. In the endure the taunting of 1960s, the Stonewall their classmates stand Riots involved a clash up and tell them, “Hey, between gays at the this isn’t OK,” it might Monica Reida catch them off guard. Stonewall Inn and the Staff Writer New York Police that And if there is violent set off the Gay Rights Movement. If you want progress, it seems as though you have to make some noise. Which is the perplexing problem of Day of Silence. Day of Silence is held every year in schools across the nation and involves gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered students and their allies staying silent for the entire day to raise awareness of the bullying students suffer. Coincidentally, Harvey Milk famously said in 1978 that “Hope cannot be silent.”
reaction, a blind eye turned by the administrators to such an event would be wrong, especially with the statewide anti-bullying laws in Iowa that include sexual orientation and gender identity. The main problem with Day of Silence is that it doesn’t seem to be that effective. The amount of students that do participate in the event in schools across the nation is probably not a majority of the students. If only a handful of people are protesting something, people aren’t going to notice. And then there is the problem
with staying silent. Students can’t reprimand them because they’re supposed to stay silent, and knowing the ignorance of some students, they’ll assume that all of the students participating are gay, even though a majority—at least as I’ve observed—seem to be allies. The gay rights movement can’t accomplish anything by being overly passive, in this case being silent. Did the Stonewall Riots occur silently? No. Was Proposition 6 defeated in 1978 by silence? No. Did Larry Kramer become known as “America’s Angriest AIDS Activist” because he stood in a corner and pouted silently? No. In order for anything to happen in any sort of movement for rights, you have to make noise. As for those that insist on bullying students by yelling homophobic slurs that cannot be printed, you are cowards. There is nothing more cowardly in this world than being demeaning to someone because they are comfortable with who they are or what they believe. It does not make you look macho or tough, but insecure and weak. We still have a long ways to go before America is completely safe for gays. But we can at least make a giant step by making some noise to bring an end to school bullying. Don’t stay silent; speak out.
To regain control, GOP reform needed The Pipac Center’s meeting room The months have passed since I had an air of defeatism and pessilast saw that dimly lit room, full of mism. Hundreds of businessmen, assemblylocal conservatives line workers, and broken were packed into dreams. Even with time, the room, silently however, the sting of watching the elecseeing so many people so tion results roll in on utterly at a loss for words NBC and, what else, has not faded. The sole Fox News. I dug victory of the night— into the free food seemingly—was Walt while noting the Rogers’ incredible ‘win’ unique phenomenon over Jeff Danielsen. That certain to happen victory gone, it has been only once in a long winter for my my lifetime: political ideologues Alex Entz both the around the Cedar Business Manager Democratic Valley. Even in candidate and times of defeat-nay, the reigning Republican president especially in times of defeat, the were disheartening conservatives. broken party has the opportunity to
pick themselves up and reform their ideas and sharpen their tastes. Only from its ashes can conservatism rise again and reclaim its rightful spot at the helm of American leadership. To be fair, conservatives are sleeping in the bed they made. The past decade was marked by economic growth and a strong military arm (rightfully), but also by corruption and an unpopular leader in George W. Bush. How does one turn around a train running the wrong way down the tracks? It starts at the local and federal level of government. As Bush knew and McCain failed to learn, all success starts locally, in the grassroots of the community. REPUBLICAN PARTY, page 7
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Thus, I started my search by looking into local leaders, starting with the once-heralded Walt Rogers, who fell 22 votes short of election against Jeff Danielsen. At the ironically named “Victory Party,” Rogers had been the only upbeat one. Yet he was forced to bite the bullet hard just a few weeks later, when he conceded the race to Danielsen. Even when Democrats seemed to be pulling out a sure victory in nearly every race, Rogers put together one of the most well run campaigns in decades and nearly became a prominent face of the Republican Party. Despite his loss, then, it seemed clear to me that he would be a good place to start concerning party reformation. After all, since he was the only one who had (nearly) held the key to defeating the Democrats, he must have had some blueprint for success, and some idea about the party’s future. Rogers openly admitted that the economy cost the Republicans dearly this year, but he stressed that a key to future victory would be work ethic, not issues. “Republicans need to work harder!” Rogers exclaimed. “My election was close because my team worked hard.” Rogers remained adamant that the party’s base platform was strong and relevant, even when asked if it should be updated to bring more youth into the conservative fold, an issue of particular importance to me, as I am but 16 years old. “I believe the platform is good,” Rogers said. “I do believe Republicans need to educate people better as to why our platform is right for the future of America.” Rogers specifically pointed out taxes as a key point of conflict where Republicans failed to adequately promote their ideology. From this interview I gathered that, as stated earlier, Rogers believed conservative ideology is still relevant, but it was the work ethic that doomed 2008
Republicans. I continued my hunt for answers on a local level. This led me to the Black Hawk County Republican
Party, chaired by Don Wood and vice-chaired by Greg Tagtow. Both seemed to stress a major issue. “We need to communicate our basic philosophy better, but our platform is still very relevant,” Wood said. Tagtow seemed to re-affirm Wood’s opinion. “In the future, we need to do a better job of getting our message out. We must continue to put forward good ideas and articulate our own principles.” While I cannot say I was surprised by those answers, I was surprised at the enthusiasm the two seemed to bring to the table regarding the matter. The two also agreed that, contrary to Rogers’ opinion, there had been no singular issue where the Republicans had lost the votes of the American people. The conversation then turned to whether or not the current climate of conservative irrelevance would necessitate a change in platform to appeal to the youth. Again, both agreed that conservatism was more than relevant to modern youth. In
fact, Tagtow even believes that today’s youth are more conservative than in the past. “A lot of youth are showing a
believe the platform is what needs to be changed-but rather the approach to the issues that the party takes.” This had a similar ring to something Tagtow had said earlier: “We cannot afford to emulate the other side; we cannot afford to let issues go by the wayside as they did in the last election.” Lucas was more specific regarding how to get back to the meat of the issues. Lucas stressed focusing on the positives our ideology endorses, instead of pointing at how “wrong” our opponents’ ideas were. At this point, I breathed a sigh of relief, for it Katie Dexter Cartoon seemed that I had found anmore conservative lean, as has been other person who devalued partisanshown in recent polls,” Tagtow said. ship as much as myself. And though I had seemingly missed Walz took a different stand when that idea earlier, it seemed to make asked how to get youth back in the sense: not only did trapshooting party. In Walz’s view, teachers have field its largest team ever last year at taken too big a role in “preaching” Cedar Falls, but the vast majority of and not enough in teaching. Cedar Falls students belong to youth “Young people need to formulate groups promoting church values their own opinions and ideas and (which have been typically regarded they don’t need teachers preaching as conservative-leaning). one way or the other,” Walz said. I decided to move my search This, Walz believes, constitutes a to the federal level after some very major problem. I agree. I have deep soul-searching at the local heard liberal teachers on their pulpit level. Though I was unable to get in more than once and it can be very touch with that National GOP, one disheartening indeed. PETA, for national-level group was more than instance, has pushed its very farhappy to talk to me. Conservative left views on elementary teachers; Thinkers Unite, a relatively new simply getting teachers to remain group coming out nation-wide looks apolitical could definitely buoy the to turn the tables back in favor of the youth element. Republicans. I was able to speak to Walz had another idea regarding the president, Chad Walz, and the how to reach out to the youth: social youth director, Brian Lucas. Both networking sites, like Facebook, were asked about how the party which the Obama campaign used to needed to reform and about how to great success in the past election. “I bring more youth into the party. think the Republican Party needs to Lucas concurred with the statereach out to the younger generations ments of the other three gentlemen and get them involved earlier,” Walz cited earlier when he said, “I do not said. Walz is not alone in his senti-
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ment; many other Republicans have followed this advice and are turning to the Internet to keep youth better involved. All five talked of returning the party to its core values, but I believe that Walz summed them up the best: “American conservatism comprises a diverse mix of political ideologies in opposition to liberalism, socialism, secularism, and communism…main themes include fiscal conservatism, opposition to high taxes, belief in free markets, opposition to many government welfare programs, and (a belief in) spreading Democracy and fighting for basic human rights for all the worlds people.” Want my two cents? While it is true that conservatism is at a low, it is also true that only times of political obsolescence can bring reform and great leaders. It is my hope that conservatives around the nation will use this last election as a compass to guide themselves into future elections. The time for reform is at hand, and it must be a multi-pronged attack. The party needs to identify viable political leaders (a lá Obama) in order to distance itself from political hacks like Rush Limbaugh. It needs to present itself to youth with a more open mind by backing off hard-line rhetoric and embracing a more encompassing approach designed to snag the moderates turned off by the party’s current hypocrisy and bad karma. I’m sure conservatives around the United States have differing opinions, and I’m sure many would take umbrage at what I believe. But take it from a 16-year-old conservative that takes heat for his political views every day-sometimes the only way to the top is a frank evaluation of how the party lost its spark. The spark it had when Newt Gingrich wrote up his “Contract with America.” The spark that had burned its brightest when Bush’s compassionate conservatism won out over a divisive opponent in 2000. Facts need to be faced, and the face needs to be changed for a true, much-needed reformation to take place. One final point of interest: of the five very different gentlemen I talked to, all had one very similar view: that Republicans would return to the national limelight in the near future. Call it the Great Conservative Hope.
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Girls’ golf drives to first victory • First meet kicks off Youngkent era successfully Aubrey Caruso Staff Writer
Women’s golf dueled Waverly in their first meet of the season, winning by a score of 195 strokes to Waverly’s 236. “For our first meet out, it was pretty good. We shot under 200, which is always a goal,” senior Mackenzee Quarnstrom said. This is Megan Youngkent’s first year coaching alone for Cedar Falls. “It was good to pick up a win for our first meet of the season. With the weather impeding our practices a bit, we put up a good score,” Youngkent said. “This was our first meet of the year and also our first meet with Coach Youngkent as head coach. We wanted to start everything off right. We didn’t play our best, but we managed to do enough to win. Everyone has individual areas that they need to work on. If we meet our personal goals, we will benefit
as a whole team,” sophomore Taylor Grapp said. The new change was well accepted. “I like the pressure of things on my shoulders now. The girls are still the same great girls that work hard and listen well and have fun,” Youngkent said. It has been a rough start to the season with the up and downs in weather, but the girls stayed focused to do the best at this meet. “’I think we did well for our first meet considering the weather,” junior Alexis Rokes said. There are changes each girl plans to improve on through the rest of the season. “I myself really need to work on my putting,” Rokes said. “Everyone was pretty excited to start of the season with a win. Now we just have to keep trying harder,” Grapp said. With a win under their belt, the girls plan to do their best at the MVC Triangular at Pheasant Ridge tonight. “We have really great team chemistry this year. If we continue to do well, hopefully we can make a run for State,” Quarnstrom said.
Spring Cleaning
Staff Writer
Women’s track finished in 3rd place at the J-Hawk Invitational on Saturday, April 11. The top performances from the meet included the 1st place team in the 4 X 800 meter relay composed of Paige Hersom, Monica Anton, Cara Strike and Hannah Savage. The 4 x 200 meter relay took second place with a team of Jaqueline Jordan, Cassie Crotty, Allison Duchman and Brianne Hutchins.
Men’s Tennis Junior
Danielle Robertson Photo As the soccer season gets under way, juniors Courtney Dreyer and Linden Terpstra fight for the ball during a practice. The team won their regular season opener, 3-1 against CR Wash.
with team Katerina Wyatt, Makayla Abbas, Kelsey Shumacer and Jordan Weichers, and the 4 X 100 meter relay with team Sarah Postel, Katerina Wyatt, Chelsea Herkelman and Amanda Hosper. “We are starting a critical threeweek stretch where we need to continue the process of getting better and find a way to become closer as a unit,” Becker said. The next home meet for the women’s track team will be the Metro meet on Tuesday, April 21 at 5 p.m.
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“We continue to see all of our first places in the 100 meter hurdles younger athletes contribute,” coach with sophomore Kaitlyn Gillet, 800 Troy Becker said. meter run with sophomore Alana The varsity team also got 3rd Alberts, 3,000 meter run with sophoplace “We are starting a critical three-week stretch where we rankneed to continue the process of getting better and find a ings way to become closer as a unit.” in 100 meter hurdles —Women’s track coach Troy Becker with more Hannah Easton, 4 x 800 meter senior Amanda Hosper, and 3rd place relay with team Allie Wirth, Sibyl in long jump with sophomore ChelCox, Allie Gearheart and Rebecca sea Hurkelman. Obberieder, 4 X 200 meter relay JV got a chance to shine with six
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Bright spots shine in girls’ track 3rd-place finish Sarah Byerly
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1. What do you like most about tennis? It’s fun, good exercise and my teammates. 2. Do you have any memorable memories playing tennis? Both times I went to Districts I had good matches. 3. Who do you look up to as a role model? For tennis, I have to say James Blake is a pretty cool guy. 4. What accomplishments do you have for tennis? I was the number 2 player m freshmen year and now I am first. 5. How do you prepare before matches? Well, before Saturday’s doubleheader I ate one of those two foot Pixi sticks and was up for two hours due to a stomach ache. So that’s pretty good preparation.
Tigers in Action
Men’s Track Placed 1st at Hi Covey Invite Next: Wahawk Relays 4/14 (5 p.m. @ Waterloo West) Women’s Track Placed 3rd at J-Hawk Invite Next: Tiger Invite 4/14 (5 p.m. @ Home) Men’s Soccer Lost to CR Washington in PK’s Next: Linn-Mar 4/14 (5 p.m. @ Home) Women’s Soccer Beat CR Washington 3-1 Next: Linn-Mar 4/14 (5 p.m. @ Linn-Mar) Men’s Tennis Lost to Dubuque Senior and Wahlert Next: Dubuque Hempstead 4/14 (4 p.m. @ Home) Women’s Tennis Beat CR Prairie Next: Linn-Mar 4/18