Tiger Hi-Line The
Volume 48 Edition 20
Correction to Feb. 27 Book Nook story The Book Nook story from last week noted that “all items range from 10 cents to $2, but nothing went beyond that.” In fact, some items are priced higher due to their current appeal and popularity.
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Along with capturing ‘best robot’ award,
Robotics team takes third at Regionals David Bergstrom Staff Writer
The CFHS robotics team won the quarterfinals in St. Louis, but lost to the top two teams in the semifinals by just a few minor errors, and was awarded the Motorola Quality Award for best robot. The next regional competition will be held on March 26 in Minneapolis. Each year in robotics there is a competition that the team must work together to accomplish. This year Team 525, which consists of 25 students and 10 adult mentors, also known as the “Swartdogs,” have been given a challenge by First Overdrive. This is the ninth year Kenton Swartley’s robotics team has been eligible to compete. “This year we call DisTek our home, but in several months, we will have to move to another location,” Swartley said. “We have been at DisTek, CFU, a store in the mall and in my classroom over the past years.” The Motorola Quality Award is giv-
en to the team that has the best animation design of their robot and of their animation of the theme of the year. This year’s theme was, “What can you invent that can help your community?” “Last year we were given the third rank at semifinals at Regional and lost due to a judge’s error,” senior Christian Sims said, “and the same thing happened in 2003,” Swartley added. The competition was held in St. Louis on Feb. 27 through March 1, and all projects were due on Feb. 19.Each team had the drivers of the robots, the coach for the drivers and a new position this year called the “Robo-coach.” The competition took place on a 54 x 27 foot carpeted arena with a steel piped fence as a lane divider on the field that the robots must go around in order to collect points. At the beginning of the race, the robots went around the divider to collect points. Six and a half feet above the floor in the middle of the course was a horizontal ladder that went all the way across the field. There were four
trackballs that have a 48-inch diameter that will be positioned on the ladder in a random order for each game. Each team got to work with two of them. The teams got points for putting their trackballs back up there and for knocking the others down. The robots must be built to withstand the trackball falling on them in case the opposing team does knock their ball down on them. The team got points for taking the ball with them around the course and each time it went around. The teams also received extra points for having the robot grab the ball and reach it over the ladder and drop it on the other side. Team 525 competed in 1999, skipped the competition in 2000, and has been competing every year since. Thanks to several team sponsors, this has been made possible. These sponsors are Rockwell Collins, DisTek Integration, John Deere Waterloo Operations, Eason Grant provided by Cedar Falls High School, UNI College of Natural Sciences and Iowa Space
David Bergstrom Photo
Working on the team’s creation, robotics members junior Deanna Ament and early grad Kyle Redfern ready the robot for the upcoming competition. Grant Consortium. Each of these sponsors has donated $1,000 or more. While
there are other sponsors, they usually give anywhere from $20 to $500.
Drama department to host productions of ‘Meeting Sam,’ ‘Harvey’ on March 7-8 Arlene Freudenberg Staff Writer
CFHS students will perform “Meeting Sam” and “Harvey” on Friday, March 7 and Saturday, March 8 at 7:30 p.m. in the CFHS auditorium. Tickets will cost $4 for students and $5 for adults. Activity passes will be accepted. “The one act is about an author coming home to her apartment to find a bunch of her creations begging her to finish their stories,” senior Dallas Salmons explained. “The play “Harvey” is about a family trying to deal with a relative who sees a large white rabbit. It’s the story of them trying to set things straight, and they realize the best thing for them is to let Harvey stay.” Since directing a play is such a timeconsuming job, CFHS graduate Spen-
cer Collins is assisting Rathe in directing It’s sometimes hard to balance school work, “Meeting Sam,” which is a one act play that will play, and all the other stuff going on, but be performed before when the performance comes it’s all worth it “Harvey.” Junior Megan because you realize all your hard work has Kleitsch, who has a part finally paid off. in “Meeting Sam,” explained the benefits of having Collins as a di —Katelin DeSerano rector. “He has differ Sophomore Actress ent ways to memorize lines than Rathe, and he They build our self-esteem when we ues, the challenge is doing charactermakes play fun,” Kleitsch said. Although Collins makes participat- do things right,” Salmons said. ization,” sophomore Katelin DeSerano However, the directors can only do said. ing in the play fun, the actors appreciso much, so the real work has to come ate both directors. The actors also put a lot of time into “They’re very helpful in getting us from how much the actors put into it. perfecting their performances. “In the beginning it was challenging to do things and making things that “We’re here every day until six, make the play turn out for the best. to remember lines, and as play contin- and it’s a blast. But as the performance
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moves closer, we have late practices until nine.” Deserano said. With all the time and work the actors are putting into the play, some would assume it doesn’t leave time for anything else. “It’s sometimes hard to balance school work, play and all the other stuff going on, but when the performance comes it’s all worth it because you realize all your hard work has finally paid off,” DeSerano said. However, if questioned about the reasons on why to participate in play, the answer is always the same. “Being able to hang out with my friends and doing the stuff I love doing,” Salmons said. DeSerano agrees that both the play and the partnership make it worth it. “I love acting, and I love play,” DeSerano said.
Tiger Hi-Line The
OPIn n IO OPI IOnn
our view our view Student efforts reflect well on school Last weekend, the CFHS Jazz 1 Band captured first place honors at the District Jazz Festival at Waterloo West High School. This means that they are invited to perform in the Iowa Jazz Championships to be held in the Des Moines Civic Center on April 15. Three CFHS students, Joe Citta, Mark Lukasiewicz and Natalie Takes were recognized as Outstanding Performers. Jazz, Too finished ahead of all other second bands. Additionally, last week junior Hanley Coyle was the first CFHS student to be selected for All-State Jazz Band in Director Kyle Englehardt’s years at Cedar Falls High School. The Tiger Hi-Line Staff would like to wholeheartedly congratulate the jazz bands, and specifically Coyle, Citta, Lukasiewicz and Takes, for their wonderful accomplishments. This winter has been filled with triumphs for Cedar Falls High School students. The women’s basketball team’s outstanding performance that qualified them for State, speech team’s many Division I ratings, Future Problem Solver’s advancement to State, robotic team’s extraordinary scoring at regional competition and the many philanthropic acts of students, have all reflected very well on our proud school. Additionally, senior Sarah Anderson received the prestigious BorlaugRuan International internship for her work with the issue of world hunger. Anderson was selected for this honor from a pool of applicants after presenting at the Norman E. Borlaug International Symposium in Des Moines earlier this school year. Such accomplishments are the result of the dedication of the CFHS staff and student body. As we approach the final months of the school year, we hope that our string of good fortune continues. We offer best wishes to the cast and crew of Harvey and Meeting Sam during this week’s performance. We offer best wishes to students competing in spring sports and other activities. And we offer best wishes to the many seniors awaiting admissions decisions from colleges or hiring decisions from employers. The impressive accomplishments of recent months have shown that the CFHS student body is one that has achieved great things and is ready for the competitions and challenges that the future holds. Our experiences thus far have prepared us for the future.
Write 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. Each edition is published on Wenesdays during the school year in The Insider and Waterloo/Cedar Falls Courier, 501 Commercial St., Waterloo, Iowa 50701. 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
Editor-in-Chief: Briana McGeough News Editors: Olivia Schares and Kellie Petersen Opinion Editor: Torie Jochims and Jacqueline Jordan Sports Editor: Jakob Zierer Feature Editors: Honor Heindl and Briana McGeough On-Line Editor: Ellen Wrede Entertainment Editor: Kristen Hammer
Leave it to the people:
Superdelegates harm electoral process In the current Democratic presidential nomination, there are two different results you have seen. There are solely the delegate count from delegates given out correspondingly to the results of the primaries and caucus, and then there are results with these delegates plus super delegates. Super delegates are delegates that party of- Vincent Stigliani Staff Writer ficials and high ranking members of the Democratic Party. They can put their support behind any candidate. Super delegates make up 1/5th of the convention. A candidate would have to have over a 3/5th lead for them to not have the power to overturn everything the candidate has accomplished. Following the hectic 1968 Democratic National Convention, changes
were made that lessened the impact of party leaders and gave more power to the voters. Following this, many Democrats felt that too much power had been taken away from elected officials, which weakened the Democratic ticket.
Are we a country of the people, or of the highranking party leaders? After the 1980 election the super delegate system was implemented in response to these concerns. Many Democrats hoped this would ensure that the Democratic Party’s stances did not waver and that candidates from other parties would not be able to succeed on the Democrat ticket. This system has already swayed an election. In a very tight 1984 race for the Democratic nomination Walter Mondale was able to triumph over Gary
Hart because of the large backing of elected officials. In this year’s election, Hilary Clinton’s delegate count looks much better when the super delegates are taken into account. She has been in politics for a while and is getting more pledged super delegate, for she is more of an “establishment,” candidate. That these super delegates are even a factor in this election is not fair. Although the original intention was to make sure the Democratic nomination was given only to someone who follows the party line, both candidates accomplish this requirement. These super delegates definitely need to be disbanded. In a time when voting numbers are already low enough and we are trying to bring them up, nothing says “We don’t trust your vote,” like this broken system. I find it incredibly disappointing that in the Democratic race, the winner of the popular public vote may not be the candidate to win the party nomination. Are we a country of the people, or of the high-ranking party leaders?
Romance thriller Twilight comes to big screen The Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer has become a huge success with y o u n g adults, such a success in fact that now this Mercedes Larson amazing seStaff Writer ries is coming to the big screen. Director Cathrine Hardwicke, will soon be shooting, Twilight, in Oregon by the end of February. So far, Lana Veenker the casting director for Twilight, has announced that Kristen Stewart will be starring as Bella and actor Robert Pattinson will be starring as Edward. For a visual of these celebrities Kristen Stewart has been in the follow-
ing movies: Panic Room, In the Land of Women, The Messengers, Zathura, and many other movies. She has also been in the March 2007 cover of Teen Vogue, which also included a photo spread. Robert Pattinson has been in movies such as: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire as Cedric and Little Ashes as a young Salvador Dali. “I am ecstatic with Summit’s choice for Edward,” Stephenie Meyer notes on her website StephenieMeyer.com, “There are very few actors who can look both dangerous and beautiful at the same time, and even fewer who I can picture in my head as Edward. Robert Pattinson is going to be amazing.” Meyer also comments on the casting of Stewart on the website. “She’s an amazing actress with experience all across the board—action, horror, comedy, romance and more. “Since Twilight has moments that fit into every one of those genres, I’m thrilled to have a Bella who has prac-
tice with them all.” Veenker has also recently announced that there is a current casting call for Jacob Black. Hardwicke and Veenker are looking for an authentic Native American male within an age range of 16 and 18. The entire casting for the Cullen family has been set, and they are as follows: Peter Facinelli as Carlisle, Elizabeth Reaser as Esme, Jackson Rathbone as Jasper, Nikki Reed as Rosalie, Ashley Greene as Alice and Kellan Lutz as Emmett. Seeing that the Twilight books are so popular, many teens and young adults in Cedar Falls and throughout the United States will be anxious to visit theaters once this likely box office hit comes out. A release date, however, has not yet been set for the film. For more information and updates on the Twilight movie, visit http://www. stepheniemeyer.com/twilight_movie. html.
Tiger Hi-Line The
SPORTS SPORTS
Women’s 16-game win streak comes to end in loss to eventual state champ Matt Hart Staff Writer
The hearts of many CF basketball fans and players were broken last Wednesday in Des Moines at Wells Fargo Arena as the clock ticked down to a final score of 52-40. Cedar Falls stayed right with Iowa City High until the fourth quarter where City High scored 14 unanswered points after being down by one starting the fourth quarter. Regarding preventing City High’s fourth quarter run, head coach Dan List said, “I really do not think it was so much what we could have done differently, rather the fact City High did what they had to do. We were geared
to shut down the inside game of City High, and Kelli Krei went out to the perimeter and hit two 3’s. She is their 6’ 3”, All State Iowa recruit.” Krei scored a game high 20 points for City High and proved to be almost unstoppable. The Tigers high scorer, Laura Johnson, had 16 points in the game. “Wednesday’s game was a tough loss. We were right there the whole time but just couldn’t come out with it in the end. I think the hardest thing for me wasn’t the loss itself, but realizing that the season was over.” This year’s Tiger team had done something that hadn’t been done since 2001 by qualifying for the state tournament.
“I really do not think it was so much what we could have done differently, rather the fact City High Did what they had to do.”
—Dan List women’s basketball coach
“They had a tremendous will to win. They had great team chemistry. What we lacked in size, they made up for by playing their hearts out. There was no ‘me’ or ‘I’ with this group. It was ‘we’ and ‘team’,” List said. This year’s team did not disappoint
with their 19-5 record and their 8th ranked, state-qualifying team. They also beat No. 2-ranked Ankeny on their way there. This year was a special team, but a lot of people are wondering, “Can they do it again?” “It will be very difficult to duplicate this season, all things considered. Yet, it will be up to the returning juniors and sophomores to dedicate themselves to becoming better as individuals and to begin building the team chemistry. It starts in the off season. There is talent there, but they need to put time in and dedicate themselves as this year’s seniors did. Will they work to develop the unselfish chemistry this senior bunch had? The potential is there, but only time will tell.”
Track teams prepare for season despite weather woes Deep men’s track team readies for top finishes
With 20 returning letter winners, women’s track team has big goals
Alex Entz
Sara Strever
Staff Writer
Staff Writer
If there is one word to describe this year’s team, it could only be this: deep. The team boasts a squad of 90 players, and expectations are exceptionally high. “I will not put any limitations on what this team can accomplish,” coach Robert Schmidt said. The team is currently in the midst of some grueling workout sessions. The sessions focus on core training and lifting; the hard running will come later. By doing this, the team hopes to cut back on the chance of sustaining severe injuries. “We need to make sure that we use every players’ best talents, so avoiding injuries is key,” sophomore sprinter John Gogola said. Though the running hasn’t started, the optimism has. The team is already being called a serious contender for a state championship. “I think we’ll do really well once we start the season, but right now our job is to go out and give 110 percent every day,” Gogola stated. The players and coaches alike seemed to be happy to bear the burden of being the perceived frontrunner. “We have never won a boys track state title at Cedar Falls. If our talent and training come together, we can be a top team,” Schmidt said.
The women’s track and field season has officially started and head coach Troy Becker, who has been coaching for the past 13 years, has high expectations, especially after last year’s success. Last year, they won the district meet and finished 5th at the state meet. “Our goal (this year) is to finish in the top two at State and win Districts again. Because of the weather, we have only been able to practice two times, but we have a lot of really talented people returning and a very good group of new people, so we are very optimistic,” Becker said. Nina Savage, who has won two state titles, has similar high expectations. “Because of the incredible amount of talent we have on the team this year, our goal is first and foremost to improve as much as possible. After we take care of that, it will be winning Cedar Falls’ first women’s track and field state championship!” Savage said. The team has 20 returning letter winners. These team members include several state and conference champions. Faith Burt, sprints, has won 10 state championships; Shawn Shaddox, middle distance, has won two state championships; Brianne Hutchins, sprints, has won three state titles; Nina Savage, hurdles,
“Our goal (this year) is to finish in the top two at State and win Districts again.” —Troy Becker women’s track head coach has won two state titles; Charla DeVries has won a state championship; Summer Anderson, a conference champion; Leah Blanchard, a conference champion; Danielle Sturm, a state place winner; Liz Bauer, a conference champion; Paige Hersom, a conference champion and state place winner; and Natalie Reindl, a conference champion. “If we can stay healthy and come together as a group, I think we can be one of the best teams in the state. The key will be finding ways to utilize the new people and their talents. If we can stay healthy and come together as a group, I think we can be one of the best teams in the state. The key will be finding ways to utilize the new people and their talents,” Becker said. Coach Becker has plans in order to make this one of the best teams. “Key people on this team will have to sacrifice some personal goals and events for the benefit of the team. If we can get the team first attitude, then we have a chance to be very good.”
Athlete Week of the
Laura Johnson Women’s Basketball In the Tigers’ heart-breaking loss to City High at State, sophomore Laura Johnson provided a stand-out effort, scoring 16 points. 1.) How was this season different from other seasons you’ve played? We had a lot of team chemistry this year. We all got along with each other on and off the court. 2.) What did coach tell you after the game? The coaches told us that we should be proud of ourselves and what we’ve accomplished as a team this year. They said that when we look back on the game later, that we can hold our heads high because we know we left it all on the court. 3.) What will you miss most about this season? This season was a ton of fun, and I’ll never forget it. I think what I’ll miss most is just hanging out with the team.
Tigers in Action
Women’s Basketball 2/27 lost against City High 52-40 Women’s Track Indoor Wartburg 3/10 (Waverly @ TBA) Men’s Track Indoor Wartburg 3/11 (Waverly @ TBA) Women’s Soccer Metro Jamboree 4/1 (W. East @ TBA) Men’s Soccer Metro Jamboree 3/28 (Home @ TBA) Women’s Tennis Dubuque Hempstead 4/5 (Away @ 9 a.m.) Men’s Tennis Dubuque Hempstead 4/5 (Home @ 9 a.m.) Women’s Golf MVC Quadrangular 4/8 (Cedar Rapids @ 3:15 p.m.)
Tiger Hi-Line
FEATURE FEATURE
LAM! S The
Cup of Joe poetry slams provide outlet for ideas
environment. Listening to other poets is very fun. Plus, the prizes at the end are very cool, like banana hooks,” Creasey said. Creasey said that more high school students should drop timidating, People in this society aren’t al- in. should attend; but Howays given a voice. The poetry even“Students if you don’t like poetry, nary wants people to know slams gives everyone an oppor- slam poetry is different. It’s more in-your-face. It’s more that it’s OK. tunity to have a voice. modern and fresh. It doesn’t “It’s scary. You may share have to rhyme; it just has your very best poem, but the to flow. You can slam about audience may not like it. But regardless of how they react, —Shereena Honary anything from RoboCop to it’s still your space, your mo- Poetry Slam Coordinator the war, and it’s just a lot of fun,” Creasey said. ment to get your thoughts out. Local artists make the adThey can take it or leave it, vertisements and posters for the and that’s the thrill of it. Audience interaction,” Honary said. The poetry slams are open for any- slams. “It’s another way to involve the Honary said that poetry is an impor- one to participate in. tant form of self expression, which is “It’s perfect that the slams are held community. I want the community to what inspired her to start the slams. at Cup of Joe because there’s no alco- be exposed to the art and the artists to “I like poetry. I always wanted to hol and people of all ages can enjoy it be exposed to the community. They do something different that no one else and get inspired. I was worried at first. I help me out and I help them out,” Hohas done. I wanted to bring something wasn’t sure if the slams would take off. nary said. Creasey has made a poster for the urban to Cedar Falls. I work at Cup I wouldn’t say it’s a hit yet. People are of Joe, and we’ve had a lot of artists still afraid to get up and perform. I en- upcoming poetry slam. “It’s cool to have gotten the chance coming through to perform, but rarely courage anyone to express themselves any poets. We always have musicians, because it is an environment where to design the poetry slam poster of the but there are other art forms that Cedar people will not judge. I want to make it month,” Creasey said. In the end, Honary said that everyFalls has not been exposed to. People really fun,” Honary said. have done poetry slams in the past, but Senior Megan Creasey enjoys going one needs to express him or herself in some way. I wanted it to be more regular. It’s never to the poetry slams. Honary said, “It’s important because been a community event, bringing high “They’re very supportive of the poschool students and college students ems. And it’s a very open and friendly we all need a form of outward exprestogether. I wanted it to be available for everyone, not specific for a certain audience, like just college students at UNI,” Honary said.
Nadia Honary Staff Writer
Poetry slam: a competition at which poets recite original work. These performances are then judged on a numeric scale by previously selected members of the audience. This is the encyclopedic definition of a poetry slam. But according to UNI student Shereena Honary, who started the monthly poetry slam events held at the Cup of Joe cafe, the words “poetry slam” mean much more. “To me, a poetry slam is an endless opportunity. It’s an opportunity to get up and say whatever I want to say. I can’t scream at people my anger on any random day. Poetry slams let me get it all out. It’s like looking at a blank canvas. The canvas is the audience, and I spew my words on to them. For that moment, I have their ears,” Honary said. To share something as personal as a poem in front of an audience can be in-
Next Slam: Friday, Mar. 7 8:00 P.M. Cup of Joe
sion; an outlet of some form. My expression is poetry. I don’t paint out my frustrations or play out my frustrations through music. I do it through words. It’s important to have the opportunity to voice you opinion in some way. “People in this society aren’t always given a voice. The poetry slams gives everyone an opportunity to have a voice.”
DECA sends 11 students to national competition Jillian Dally Staff Writer
After the state competition in Des Moines on Monday, Feb. 25, the CFHS chapter of DECA, Distributive Education Clubs of America, will be sending 11 students to Nationals, which will be held April 26-29 in Atlanta. “I’m going to Nationals. I got second place in Des Moines where I presented a paper, took a test and did role playing. My group got second place with honorable mentions,” sophomore Colin Ashwood said. Students can compete in a number of different events both individual and
group. The individual events include accounting; apparel and accessories; food marketing; restaurant marketing; and retail merchandising. Group events include buying and merchandising; hospitality team; sports and entertainment; and travel and tourism. “I received third place overall, and in my specific sports and entertainment individual bracket, there were 25 competitors. Due to default, the first or second place competitors might not be able to go, then I would be able to go to Nationals,” sophomore Allison Duchman said. DECA is recognized nationally as
an entrepreneurship opportunity. It’s an opportunity for those who are interested in any business career choices. “My favorite part of DECA is getting to know a lot of people involved in it at Cedar Falls and other places throughout the state. My favorite part about the competitions is being put in a situation where you have to think fast and creatively. You also have to forget about your nerves and just do it,” Duchman said. According to Duchman and Ashwood, DECA is a lot of fun; though, it requires commitment. Students have to be dedicated and work with what they have.
Award Winners:
Stephanie Mally - Outstanding Chapter member Whitney Gerholdt - $250 scholarship winner -
Individual Events:
Amanda Traetow - 1st Place Restaurant & Food Service Marketing (1st place test, 1st place role play) Stuart Steffy - 2nd place Entreprenuership Business Plan, & Honorable Mention Retail Merchandising Stephanie Malley - 1st place Business Services Research Paper Allison Duchman - 3rd place Sports & Entertainment Marketing (2 - 3rd place role plays) Mason Troendle - Honorable Mention Sports & Entertainment (3rd place Test score)
Team Events:
Whitney Duhaime & Mark Otte - 2nd place Business Law Team Mike Bangtson & Alper Tuken - 3rd place Buying & Merchandising Team Colin Ashwood & Alex Entz - 2nd place General Marketing Research paper, Honorable Mention E-Commerce Team Natalie Craig & Whitney Gerholdt - (1st place Hospitality Team testing scores) Stephanie Malley & Carie York - Honorable Mention Travel & Tourism Marketing Team