3.22 Issue

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VOLUME 83, NO. 9 | MARCH 22, 2019 CARMEL HIGH SCHOOL NEWSMAGAZINE

THE

HUMOR

PAGE 26 KAREN ZHANG

34 Bring it On! Violence and 18 video games

GAP

CHS athletes share varsity letter stories

46

Contact information: Mailing Address: 520 E. Main St. Carmel IN 46032 Phone: (317) 846 7221 Ext. 7143 Website: www.hilite.org Email: Staff members may be contacted by using their first initial and their last name appending @hilite.org The HiLite is a student publication distributed to students, faculty and staff of Carmel High School with a press run of 4,500. Copies are distributed to every school in the Carmel Clay district as well as the Chamber of Commerce, City Hall and the Carmel Clay Public Library. The paper serves as a public forum and two-way communication for both the school and the community. Opinions expressed in the newspaper are not necessarily those of CHS nor Carmel Clay system faculty staff or administration.

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Credentials: The HiLite belongs to the Indiana High School Press Association, Quill & Scroll and the National Scholastic Press Association.

Advertising: Businesses may advertise in the HiLite if their ads adhere to guidelines. The advertising policy is available in Room C147 or at www.hilite.org/ads-info.

Editor in Chief Carson TerBush

Managing Editors

Sports Uday Lomada Kelly Truax

Emily Dexter Heidi Peng Misha Rekhter Sam Shi Christina Yang

Perspectives

Jackie Hur Hari Patel

Apurva Marnas Richa Louis

Anushka Dasgupta Aditi Kumar

Jess Canaley Hannah Gretz Kris Otten Alina Yu Anna Klauz

Front Page News

Feature

Raphael Li Laasya Mamidipalli

Ads Team

Agrayan Gupta Michelle Yin

Student Section

Adhi Ramkumar Brian Zhang

15 Minutes Selena Liu

Litebox

Social Media

Web

Armaan Goel Avery Thorpe James Yin

Riya Chinni

Adviser

Angela Li

Principal

Entertainment

Thomas Harmas

Da-Hyun Hong Karen Zhang

Superintendent Michael Beresford

Cover

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Jim Streisel

Responding to the HiLite: Letters to the editor will be accepted for the April 19 issue no later than April 28. Letters may be submitted to Room C147 placed in the mailbox of Jim Streisel, emailed to management1819@hilite.org or mailed to the school. All letters must be signed. Names will be published. (Letters sent via email will be taken to a student’s SRT for them to sign). Letters must not contain personal attacks against an individual and may be edited.

Corrections and clarifications: On page 7, “Monon Cafe and Sweets” should have been “Monon Coffee and Sweets.” On the same page, senior Mallory Cole was not in the photo of the bottom right of the page.

The HiLite strives to correct its errors. If you notice any inaccuracies in this or past issues, please contact management1819@hilite.org.

VERONICA TEETER, AYMAN BOLAD PHOTOS

54

40 NEWS 6 6 NEWS BRIEFS 7 INCLUSION WORKS DECA Ability Campaign, local bakery encourage businesses to hire employees with special needs

8 MAIN STREET MAKEOVER City of Carmel reaches agreement with PNC to buy land on corner of Rangeline Rd., Main St.

10 PARKS AND RENOVATIONS Carmel Clay Parks and Recreation to begin upgrading parks in 2020

11 MAKING ROOM Following release of demographics report, Carmel Clay Schools to undergo district changes in future years

FEATURE 12 12 COMPANY CONNECTION CHS students, staff consider effects, legitimacy of brand loyalty

16 DOES LEGACY RULE? The impacts of where parents go to college has large effect on where students go

10 24 ENTERTAINMENT 32 32 THE ART OF ELECTIVES

Seniors reflect on lessons, skills learned from elective classes

34 BRING IT ON! Spring musical to target new audience, tackle racial issues

36 THE NEW FACE OF ADVERTISING Students, staff reflect on the shift of company advertisements increasing in social media promotions

38 JUST KEEP SHUFFLING

18 IT’S ALL FUN AND GAMES

Students should save their money as Apple’s streaming service brings nothing new to the table

Students discuss fading link between violence, gaming despite popular beliefs

39 ENTERTAINMENT BRIEFS

STUDENT SECTION 24 24 BREAKING GENDER NORMS Freshman Daniel Tanner breaks traditional ideas of gender with style

25 HUMANS OF CHS CHS students, staff share opinions on gender nonconformity

COVER 26 26 I DON’T GET IT!

Students, staff, psychologist share experiences with evolution of humor, differences, similarities between generations

SPORTS 40 40 A CUT ABOVE THE REST

Students, coaches reflect on decisions to add harder tryout standards to previously no cut sports

44 A NEW STEP UP

Head Coach Joshua Miller takes new direction with women’s lacrosse, emphasizing trend

46 EARNING HONOR Athletic department, athletes share their varsity letter story, define what the award means

47 SPORTS BRIEFS

18 PERSPECTIVES 48 48 ZERO OUT OF TEN

Instead of adding ten minutes to school day, administration should consider building in flex days into the school year in the future

@hilitenews

49 DRIVER’S DREAD

Students should consider whether or not driver’s education courses are truly effective

50 PROM AND CIRCUMSTANCE

The growing tradition of promposals is a fun-spirited, important part of the high school experience

@hilitenews

51 NOT TOO (PROM)ISING Students should spend less money on promposals, reconsider their importance

52 OUT OF TIME

@HiLiteOnline

Releasing college decisions sooner could help alleviate problems that rise with housing applications, deposits

53 THE BASKETBALL BOND

Despite its competitive nature, March Madness provides a bonding experience for people

15 MINUTES 54 54 ACROSS THE FLOOR Q&A with Sophia Gilliam, rhythmic gymnast, freshman

@hilitenews

@HiLiteOnline

Decision-Tree Learning

Mapping observations about an item to determine its value

Artificial Neural Networks Learning algorithms that use statistical data modeling to identify patterns

Deep Learning Layering of multiple artificial neural networks that can handle more difficult tasks

HOW DOES A.I. WORK?

THINKING MACHINES

A.I. uses algorithms and machine-learning to solve various problems

Read a story about robots taking our jobs at hilite.org/51666

With President Trump’s recent initiative to improve the nation’s artificial intelligence (A.I.) abilities, learn how far A.I. has come and where it may go in the future GRAY MARTENS GRAPHIC ENGADGET.COM, LIVESCIENCE.COM, VISUALCAPITALIST.COM, LEARNTECHX.COM, FUTURISM.COM SOURCES

EXPLAINING TRUMP’S A.I. INITIATIVE Government Resources

Make Federal data and computing resources available for A.I. research

A.I. Governance Standards

Establish guidance for A.I. development and use

Increase A.I. R&D Funding

Direct federal agencies to prioritize A.I. investments in R&D

Build A.I. Workforce

Prepare the workforce with skills needed to work with A.I.

International Engagement

A.I. IN EVERYDAY PRODUCTS

MYTHS & MISCONCEPTIONS

1998

2002

The Furby toy used A.I. programming to learn languages over time and to conduct simple conversations when prompted by the owner

The Roomba is an autonomous vacuum cleaner that uses A.I. to avoid obstacles and learn room layouts

FURBY

ROOMBA

MYTH: Robots and A.I. are the same thing TRUTH: Robots are physical devices designed to perform fixed tasks, while A.I. uses algorithms to respond to a situation

MARCH,22 2019

Protect the U.S. advantage in A.I. and collaborate with other countries

MYTH: A.I. will try to overthrow humans TRUTH: Currently A.I. is nowhere near this point, and it is doubtful that A.I. technology will advance into consciousness any time in the near future

ECONOMIC IMPACT Northern Europe

North America

15.7

0.9 trillion

1.8 trillion

Southern Europe

3.7 trillion

trillion USD is the predicted economic effect of A.I. on the world economy

Developed Asia

China

7 trillion

0.7 trillion

Rest of the World

Latin America

1.2 trillion

0.5 trillion

IMPACT ON U.S. JOBS

Occupations most at risk from A.I.

(percentage of jobs at risk)

1.8

million

56%

Jobs are expected to be lost to A.I. by 2020

Transportation and Storage 46%

Manufacturing

44%

Transportation and Storage 37%

450%

32% Jobs are 28% expected to be created by A.I. 24% by 2020

2.3

Increase in jobs requiring A.I. knowledge since 2013

million

Support Services Financial and Insurance

2007

2014

The iPhone was released in 2007, and has incorporated A.I. features such as the Siri virtual assistant (2011), face recognition (2018) and auto-suggestions on texts

The Amazon Alexa uses speech-recognition A.I. to respond to voice-driven commands from users Yes

Sure

Maybe

Real Estate Construction

No

ALEXA

iPHONE

HILITE.ORG

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NEWS BRIEFS JOSIE CRUZAN BRIEFS APURVA MANAS PHOTO ROBBIE GE GRAPHIC

M A R C H

Su KEY

NHS Application Appeal Deadline

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A P R I L

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25 KEY April Fools’ Day

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Disabilities Awareness Week

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National Library Week

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Spring Break

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Spring Blood Drive in Studio Theater

NHS Induction in the Auditorium

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at 2 p.m.

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THINK SPRING Carmel spring activities Fishing, picnics and more.

Robert Walis and Kelly Jenkins feature their jewelry and photography work.

ART GALLERY: Junior Molly Cai and Sophomore Jasmine Hsu look at artwork by Carmel Middle School students. The Carmel Clay Public Library showcases art done by Carmel Clay Schools students every year during February.

MARCH 22, 2019

Learn how to skate and enjoy some coffee afterwards.

VISITHAMILTON COUNTY.COM SOURCE

KEY

Critical Mass Discussion: Where: CCPL When: April 3

See a new exhibit about tiny versions of your favoriteAPURVA food. MANAS Good Enough to Eat PHOTO Exhibit: Where: Museum of Miniature Houses When: April 7 Join a book Kawachinanago discussion Japanese Garden: at the library.

Where: Monon Trail April Feature Exhibit: Where: CCA Gallery & Gifts Take a look at a koi pond and relax on your run through the Monon.

Ladies Only Coffee Club: Where: Carmel Skadium Meadowlark Park: Where: Meadow Lane

INCLUSION WORKS Motivated by local business, DECA students start campaign to hire students with disabilities

When you tell someone they are valuable and capable, incredible things happen.

shelley henley, no label at the table food co. founder and owner

NATALIE KHAMIS STORY

A

t no label at the table food co.—a gluten

and-dairy-free food company located on 111 W. Main St.—employees take on tasks that range from packaging and labeling bakery items to making cereal treats. Unlike most businesses, employees at No Label at the Table Food Co. who help run the business are on the autism spectrum.

“Our mission here at No Label at the Table Food Co. is to employ people and provide job skills training for people on the autistic spectrum,” Shelly Henley, owner and founder of No Label at the Table Food Co., said,“We find what’s motivating for the employees and customize their work experience to fulfill that.”

It is this philosophy—and a speech Henley delivered at a Best Buddies event late last semester— that inspired Claire Given, Libby McGuire and Srineeth Challa, seniors and DECA members, to create The Ability Campaign as a part of a DECA project to encourage businesses to hire employees based on their skills.

McGuire said, “No Label at the Table strictly hires people on the autism spectrum, which inspired us by showing us, ‘Hey, this business can fully run on people with special needs. Why can’t other businesses hire employees with special needs?’”

Both Henley and the students who created The Ability Campaign said hiring individuals with disabilities is beneficial to businesses, which is something employers often do not realize.

“The number-one cost to most small businesses is retraining, rehiring and recruiting their employees as another walks out of their doors,” Henley said. “My employees are drama-free. They are honest, and they do their jobs. Individuals with special needs are ideal employees, especially to small business owners.”

To match people with special needs with job opportunities, Given said the team recently hosted an event where 20 local business owners met individuals with special needs looking for job opportunities.

“We actually had some students who said that a business owner reached out to them to try and brainstorm places within the business the student could work,” Given said.

Moving forward, Henley and the students who make up The Ability Campaign all said businesses should recognize the strengths of individuals with special needs rather than how their disability will impact their work ethic.

“Autism isn’t a tragedy, but a whole different way of thinking,” Henley said. “It really is a pool of potential that I’ve tapped into, and when you tell someone that they are H valuable and capable, incredible things happen.”

TASTY TREATS: Here is a display of baked goods at No Label at the Table Food Co. The business’s employees, who are on the autism spectrum, take on a variety of jobs such as making treats like cupcakes and packaging and labeling bakery items.

VERONICA TEETER PHOTO

FARMER’S MARKET: Caiden Wetherald, No Label at the Table Food Co. employee and junior, takes money from a customer at the farmer’s market.

According to Shelly Henley, owner and founder of No Label at the Table Food Co., the bakery’s mission is to provide job skills training for people on the autism spectrum.

VERONICA TEETER PHOTO HILITE.ORG

07

MAIN STREET MAKEOVER Deal between Carmel, PNC Bank finalized; construction of apartments expected to occur PRANAV JOTHIRAJAH INTRODUCTION

LILLIAN HE, BOWEN ZHOU GRAPHIC

SARAH KIM, MADDIE KOSC SPEAK-UPS, PHOTOS

R

1st Street NW

ecently, pnc bank, located on the northeast

corner of Rangeline Road and Main Street, has agreed to sell its land to Carmel after two years of negotiating. The land sold for 2.5 million dollars and is expected to turn into apartments and condos. According to Henry Mestetsky, executive director of the Carmel Redevelopment Commission (CRC), this addition will improve aspects of downtown Carmel.

“If we work to develop the building we see on Main Street, we will see a bunch of people moving in, and we will see a community,” Mestetsky said. “That’s the kind of stuff that people will want to visit when they are outside.

This will also be important as it will open up a lot of business for downtown Carmel.”

Not only will the city and businesses see improvements, but the students who work in downtown Carmel could experience benefits of their own. These could come in the form of more money or job opportunities.

The whole building is expected to be finished in the next couple of years and take up 1.8 acres of land.

To get local opinions on this deal, the HiLite talked to several local business owners and students H employed in downtown businesses.

N W

Mudbugs Owner Roy LeBlanc “If they are going to put more buildings like they have across the street, I do not see much benefit to that other than for the taxpayers. They need to have some retail down here. The people need a reason to come here. One thing that affects everybody is all the road construction. People that come here for lunch are on an allotted amount of time, and if they cannot get here quick, they will not come in.”

Carmel Old Town Antique Mall

E

Mudbugs Cajun Cafe

W Main Street

The Olive Mill

S

The Olive Mill Owner Stephen Hannah “We kind of knew from day one that we were here, that something like this would happen eventually. I think the reality is that it is a natural progression of the development of the Arts and Design District. We are not going to have less buildings as more people come in. We need more services and retail. Most of the city has evolved so far and has been done well, so I think it will be fine.”

08

MARCH 22, 2019

KEY :

PNC Land to be sold to the CRC Land already owned by the CRC

N Rangeline Rd

PNC Branch Manager James Incorvaia “There were lots of pieces that went into (reaching a deal with the city) and we were able to finally agree upon a price and the endgame, or the outcome, of the building and what it would look like.”

1st Street NE

Planned Landmark Building The building will be similar to other developments along Carmel’s Main Street, Midtown and city center and include a mix of residential, business, retail opportunities and public parking. It will be built on the land bought from PNC coupled with the land the city already owns.

PNC Bank

E Main Street N Rangeline Rd

CCPL Digital Media Lab

residential retail/business

Agave Bar and Grill

JOSIE CRUZAN SPEAK-UPS, PHOTOS

public parking

SPEAK UP!

How do you think construction will affect business downtown?

“I think in the long run it’ll definitely help businesses, especially with the Anthony’s complex going up, too.

We’ve definitely seen a lot more foot traffic going around.”

Kyle Fleckenstein, Silver and the City employee and junior

“The construction will affect how people get to the downtown area, but overall, the Monon will still be the main transportation source for people to get downtown, so I don’t think it’ll affect it all dramatically.”

Annie Salter, Bub’s employee and freshman

PARKS AND RENOVATIONS Carmel Clay Parks and Recreation receives $18 million fund to improve parks LILLIAN HE Q & A, PHOTO

How do the bonds help aid this process?

What the bonds are allowing us to do is to go in and make some much-needed infrastructure repairs to those (six parks), expediting that process. We eventually would have probably gotten around to making some repairs at those parks down the road at some point as playgrounds needed to be replaced, but the bonds allow us to do that at a much more aggressive schedule.

What benefits will these changes have on the community?

Improved infrastructure, better support amenities for the infrastructure that’s in place and just better parks in general, more opportunity to get out and enjoy the existing facilities and parks that we have but also more opportunity for families to spend a day in a park and be outside and do things together.

Will construction interfere with surrounding roads?

Which parks?

Meadowlark Park West Park Carrie Grove Park River Heritage Park Flowing Well Park Inlow Park

Kurtis Baumgartner, assistant director of Carmel Clay Parks and Recreation

Q&A

None of the construction that we typically do in our parks impedes upon the normal ebb and flow of the traffic that surrounds the park, but we’ll definitely have to do some park closures and cordon off some stuff as we’re making infrastructure improvements to keep the community safe.

A WALK THROUGH THE PARK Take a look at some of the proposed changes to parks throughout Carmel Move the pavilions to playground’s line of sight so parents can supervise children while sitting down or having a picnic.

Men’s

Women’s

Renovate restrooms so all of them function year-round instead of Porta Potties or ones with sinks outside.

10

MARCH 22, 2019

KURTIS BAUMGARTNER SOURCE

RHEA ACHARYA GRAPHIC

Possible features such as supported swings or slides with bouncy landings to make playground more accessible for those with disabilities.

MAKING ROOM

District population expected to rise; Carmel Clay Schools considers redistricting JOSIE CRUZAN, NATALIE KHAMIS, ADAM SPENSLEY STORY

POPULATION TRENDS

carmel

Take a look at how the school population has changed within the Carmel Clay district

RHEA ACHARYA GRAPHIC COMPASS.DOE.IN.GOV SOURCE

20,000 Number of students

he population of

Clay Schools will rise by 16,000 from the 2018-2019 school year, with this school’s population reaching over 5,500 in 2021, according to the newest demographic report. These numbers directly negate previous predictions that there would be a quick population decline after 2016. With this in mind, the school board has begun to consider redistricting students based off of demographic charts and population sizes in certain areas of Carmel.

Superintendent Michael Beresford said the district looks at these reports to make predictions about student demographics in the coming years.

“What we look at is the projection and then the real numbers, and we respond. Every fall, we have what we call ‘hot spots’ where a student population will be higher in one school than another. We would have to make some adjustments as class sizes get too big.”

Last year, the district administration decided to close both Orchard Park and Carmel elementary schools and construct two new buildings.

According to Beresford, redistricting will take place for the 2020-2021 school year in anticipation of the these two new elementary schools for which construction begins in the 2019-2020 school year.

Junior Merna Botros was one of these individuals who redistricted from Creekside Middle School to Carmel Middle School just before her eighth grade year. She said she believes redistricting is a good thing but that it should be a choice for students, so that they can decide what the best fit for each student is. “(Being redistricted was) good because a lot of the people I met at Carm-

= Carmel Clay District = Carmel High School

15,000 10,000 5,000 0

Number of students

T

‘05‘06‘07 ‘08 ‘09‘10 ‘11 ‘12 ‘13 ‘14 ‘15 ‘16 ‘17 ‘18 Year

= Creekside Middle School = Carmel Middle School = Clay Middle School

2,000 1,500 1,000

BY THE NUMBERS

2015 year when CCS last redistricted students

50.18 miles squared is the area of the district

IN.GOV SOURCE

‘05 ‘06 ‘07 ‘08 ‘09 ‘10 ‘11 ‘12 ‘13 ‘14 ‘15 ‘16 ‘17 ‘18 Year el were people I ended up being with in my high school classes,” Botros said. “It also made me meet a lot of new people I never had seen before.”

The purpose for the redistricting is to balance the student population in each building, which Beresford said concentrated more on the west side of Carmel. Currently, the majority of the student population live on the west side, while the majority of elementary schools are located on the east side. Beresford said redistricting will alleviate the pressure brought by large classroom sizes.

Beresford said, “That’s why the purpose of redistricting is to rebalance the number of students in each building,

so we don’t have one building that has too many kids in it. It makes the whole education system run more efficiently and easier to work with class sizes.”

Sophomore Chae Takahashi, who also redistricted from Creekside Middle School to Carmel Middle School, said she was upset when she first found out she would be redistricted and said she believes it is an unnecessary action.

“It felt kind of pointless,” Chae said. “Because I went to a smaller school with a lot of people as opposed to a bigger school with even more people, it felt kind of pointless (to redistrict), but if that’s what needs H to happen then it’s fine.”

HILITE.ORG

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COMPANY CONNECTION Students, teacher discuss pros, cons of brand loyalty UDAY LOMADA STORY

J

DID YOU KNOW?

sional sports, acting or just people unior connor inskeep likes with power,” Inskeep said. the fashion brand Supreme.

“There is much less pure adverSimilar to many other students at tising going on to appeal to people CHS, Inskeep considers himself an like me. Supreme avid follower of the created their hype fashion brand. Insby limiting stock keep said his wardand getting famous robe has a whole people to wear section dedicated (Brand loyalty) is an their clothes. They intentional attempt to Supreme clothrely on a sort of ing and he keeps to get loyalty and ricochet effect to tabs on the various some emotional get more kids into new products the connection from the the brand.” company produces store...It can be done For Inskeep, and releases so that that marketing has his wardrobe is al- through...appealing proven to be effecways up-to-date. to something bigger tive on him, and He said he rec- than themselves. over time he’s beognizes the efforts come more loyal to Supreme has gone the Supreme line through to form business teacher robert browning of products. He is connections with not alone as many its target audience. other students here “I believe that and around the companies create country go out of their way to buy a hype around (themselves) by creproducts from certain companies. ating a limited amount of product This mentality is known as and just through famous people wearing it, whether it’s in profes- “brand loyalty,” and companies em-

ploy a variety of strategies to secure it within their customers, especially in recent years as it became a more important marketing strategy, with the increased use of social media.

From “Joe Camel” trying to get a younger audience into smoking to today’s celebrities and social media influencers wearing designer clothing, companies have wanted to capture the hearts of the new generation of consumers for decades. While some say such loyalty can be detrimental to the consumers, others say that it makes shopping in such aggressive climates easier, and many agree that brand loyalty is a real phenomenon which results in a bond between consumer and company.

Business teacher Robert Browning defined brand loyalty as any connection between the company and consumer, whether that be regarding their products specifically or another aspect. “(Brand loyalty) is (an) intentional attempt to get loyalty and some emotional connection from

James Jebbia, the founder of the Supreme brand, helped to lauch Stüssy NYC in 1991 and worked with Mary Ann Fusco to open Union NYC. Supreme was launched in 1994.

VOGUE.COM SOURCE

BRAND BREAKDOWN What brands of the following categories do you prefer to use?

LAASYA MAMIDIPALLI GRAPHIC

Samsung Google Phone

Apple

Soda

Coke

Athletic Brands Coffee

Nike

Indifferent Pepsi Indifferent Adidas

Indifferent

Starbucks

Dunkin’

Designer Louis Vuitton Supreme Fast Food McDonalds

Indifferent Wendy’s

20% MARCH 22, 2019

Indifferent

40%

Under Armour Guess Burger King

Indifferent 60%

Lulu Lemon

80%

100%

*177 students were polled to collect data

the store. That can be done through direct advertising, but it can also be done through what they call ‘ESG’ (environmental, social, governmental) where they are appealing to something bigger than themselves,” Browning said. “It causes consumers to not just like the product they buy but also have some bias in favor of the company itself as well.”

Freshman Adrien Qi resells Supreme items and said his experience with reselling made him believe that it is much less about the quality of the products than the hype around them that causes people to be loyal to a brand.

“It’s really hard trying to buy Supreme (directly) because of the pure demand for it. When I was getting started in (reselling), it was amazing how fast places would sell out even for (products like) Supreme chopsticks,” Qi said.

“I know they sell high-end clothes, but now I’m sure people just buy it for the brand name and the ability to show it off. Many of the people I sell to are much more into the company and loyal to them over the stuff I sell.”

However, Browning said he doesn’t believe the Supreme brand specifically has really had enough time to have brand-loyal customers.

“Just based on what I saw and talking to students in school, I don’t think it’s the idea of brand loyalty so much as them tapping into the power of social media and getting people to want what other people have,” Browning said.

“I don’t know whether you can call it loyalty to the company or if it is just some new fad that brings attention to someone. Supreme would have to take what they have and build an actually emotional connection to start building some loyalty to their product. It’ll be interesting to see if they can do that from where they are now.”

Browning instead proposed an alternate popular company that supported his idea: Starbucks.

WHAT’S THE BRAND Here are some of the brands junior Connor Inskeep is loyal to, consistently follows

A UFO shaped chain from the GLD store, a men’s apparel and jewelry destination Price: $225.00 A Guess shirt from the Guess Jeans store, an American clothing brand and retailer, in Soho, New York City, Price: $29.00

Reversible belt from Louis Vuitton in Soho, New York City, which is a French fashion and luxury company Price: $575.00

The Yeezys are from Kanye West’s sneaker collection from 2017 Price: $220.00

RICHA LOUIS PHOTO LAASYA MAMIDIPALLI GRAPHIC

HILITE.ORG

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“It’s really important what kind of image a company puts out there. Starbucks is known not only for their unique drinks but also for how well they treat their employees and their other programs,” Browning said.

Inskeep said he agrees with Browning and said he and his friends like to visit Starbucks for more than just their drinks, although quality certainly does play a role. Even if Starbucks’ drink quality may not always be the best, other aspects of the company experience continue to bring in customers.

“My friends love going to Starbucks because of the ambiance their stores have and how well the employees are treated,” Inskeep said.

“It’s to the point where we feel fine trying out the new stuff Starbucks might put out, even if it’s bad like the rainbow-colored Frappuccino.

It gives us confidence that Starbucks will generally make quality food.”

While Qi agrees with Inskeep on this point, he said the confidence that brand loyalty provides can be used in a manipulative way against the consumer.

“I think it’s good that people can find quality products and sellers, but I could very easily take advantage of that,” Qi said.

“Some of the stuff I sell, I sell at a higher price just because I know people will buy it. There’s no check for the prices of the products I sell.

I wouldn’t be surprised if companies and stores did the same.”

Inskeep said he sees that phenomenon of increasing product prices become more common amongst other companies as well.

Prices correlate to how much customers are willing to pay. As the hype around a brand increases so does the price people are willing to pay for their products.

“I think Supreme is a special case to this just because their model relies on their extremely high prices, but other companies do this all the time,” Inskeep said.

“Starbucks’ drinks are extremely expensive because people will pay that much for that quality drink. iPhones are expensive because everyone wants one, not because they are hard to make.”

Regardless of the current trend to follow a few brands closely, Qi said people should be careful not to be too nearsighted.

Qi said, “Finding a nice company or product makes life easier in the short-term, (but) don’t get trapped by not checking your other H options once in a while.”

SPEAK UP!

JESS CANALEY SPEAK-UPS, PHOTOS

Do you have brand loyalty?

Brandy

Melville

“I usually wear Brandy Melville because they’re in style right now and I like how their clothes fit on me.”

Junior Max Morales

“I prefer the Victoria Secret leggings over LuLu Lemon’s not for any specific reason but because I feel like they are more comfortable.”

Junior Savannah Frauhiger

“I have brand loyality to Adidas because their stuff lasts really long; I really like ultraboosts, and I really like everything they sell. I don’t go to places like Nike because their stuff always breaks.”

Senior Jake Weaver SEARCHING FOR SUPREME: Junior Connor Inskeep scrolls through different resell websites of Supreme clothing and accessories. He said most items, whether clothing or other items, tend to sell out within seconds of being on the original site.

LAASYA MAMIDIPALLI PHOTO

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MARCH 22, 2019

LOYALTY, LOYALTY, LOYALTY

Take a look at the origins of popular company taglines, how companies build brand loyalty

THE TAGLINE

HEIDI PENG GRAPHIC METAPRESS.COM, BLOG.HUBSPOT.COM, FORBES.COM SOURCES

M&M’S: “Melts in Your Mouth, Not Your Hands” M&M’s was popularized during the Spanish Civil War because soldiers were able to keep chocolate with them even on hot days.

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DOES LEGACY RULE? Legacy is key factor in college decision process

F

CALINA HE, LESLIE HUANG PHOTOS

or senior tori ledezma, the

decision to apply early action to Purdue University was an easy one. After all, her parents went there, and Ledezma said that was a large factor for her.

In mid-February, Ledezma officially committed to Purdue University. Ledezma said her final decision to commit to Purdue was heavily influenced by her family.

Ledezma said, “My parents influenced me because they both went there, making me feel more

DIFFERENT PATH (ABOVE) Sophomore Hope Brewer holds up a UCLA sweatshirt.

(BELOW) Brewer’s family pose for a picture with their college gear. Brewer said she does not plan on attending the same college as her parents.

HOPE BREWER SUBMITTED PHOTO

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MARCH 22, 2019

comfortable with the campus and were willing to help pay for my education when they knew it was going to be less expensive.”

According to the Pew Research Center, many colleges have a higher acceptance rate if applicants have a family member that have attended the university. Throughout the college admission process this is often referred to as a legacy admission.

Many Ivy League schools and other top private schools take legacy status into account when assessing applications. Schools consider legacy status for a number of reasons.

Families with multiple students or alumni might be more likely to make a donation. Additionally, legacy students who are accepted are more likely to commit to that school. This incrementally increases the number of admitted students who accept offers. This means more acceptance letters come March 31.

March 31 and April 1 are the official dates that regular decision applications are announced for many colleges. With the influx of acceptance letters, the college decision process can be quite overwhelming. Melinda Stephan, college and career counselor, said that students should take the time to research and find a school that would be the best fit for them. Resources, including Naviance, allow students to help make this process easier.

Naviance serves to inform students about colleges of interest. A few of its features allow students to analyze statistics that help familiarize students with the academic rigor for each school. This helps students narrow down schools that would be a good fit for them academically.

Family influence is one of the many factors in a student’s college decision process. Other factors that play

LEGACY LEVERAGE Take a look at the extent to which highly-selective schools value legacies Key:

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legacy non-legacy

50 acceptance rate (in percent)

ANJALI NATARAJAN STORY

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20 10

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0 ANGELA QIAN GRAPHIC CREATIVECOMMONS.ORG, PREPSCHOLAR.COM SOURCES

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33% of Harvard’s class of 2021 have legacy

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YEARS ago, MIT stated they banned legacy IVYCOACH.COM SOURCE

a role in the college decision process include: cost, size, college major in mind and distance from home.

“Often it comes down to a ‘gut feeling’ about whether a student can see themselves living and learning on a particular campus,” Stephan said via email. “The best way to figure that out is to visit colleges early and often if possible.

There is nothing that replaces physically experiencing a campus environment first-hand.”

College visits allow visitors to take campus tours to learn about the college or university’s facilities, as well as student life, culture on campus, academics and programs offered by the school.

“I decided on Purdue because I knew it was a very prestigious school for my field of study as opposed to my other top choice.” Ledezma said the factors that were most important for her in the college decision process.

Sophomore Hope Brewer, who does not want to attend the same college as her parents, said that she wants to attend a school that will be best for the field of study she would want to pursue.

Brewer said, “Neither of the schools that my parents went to have the major I am interested in doing and are not in Indiana.”

For many students, like Brewer, the distance of the college from home is another major factor that plays a role in the college decision process.

The difference between in-state tuition and out-of-state tuition can vary drastically and is often one of the biggest factors that limit where students

may attend college. Stephan addressed the importance of considering the costs of college admissions at the beginning of the college decision process.

“Cost is an important factor in college decision making that often helps students narrow their options, but it often gets pushed to the side until students are making final decisions,” she said. “Paying for college should be something that students and their parents should be talking about from the beginning and throughout the process.”

Ultimately there is not one process through which a student makes a college decision. Each student often has a unique reason that a school is a good fit for them.

Stephan said, “There are a lot of factors that go into making a college decision. Family can be a significant influence, but if students focus on finding a good ‘fit’ they H can’t go wrong.”

SPEAK UP!

CALINA HE, LESLIE HUANG SPEAK-UPS, PHOTOS

Would you consider going to the same school as your parents?

“I feel that my parents could provide some insight on the school itself or places I can go to, but I also feel that going to the same college repeats what my parents did.”

Junior Jacob Hill “I would consider going to the colleges that my parents went to because both of their schools are academically good, but I would not consider just because my parents went there.”

Senior Angie Stevens

PURDUE BOUND: Senior Tori Ledezma displays her Purdue sticker on her laptop while working. Ledezma has committed to Purdue University, following the path of her parents.

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IT’S ALL FUN AND GAMES eSports Club members disagree with stigma surrounding violent video games WENDY ZHU STORY

A

MADDIE KOSC PHOTOS

s issues like gun violence

take the United States by storm, people often search for something to account for this constant violence. Over the years, many people have attempted to link teen aggression with violent video games; however, according to a recent study published by the Oxford Internet Institute at Oxford University, there is no connection between the two.

In fact, video games, under certain circumstances, can be more beneficial than harmful to teenagers.

For Austin Prader, eSports Club president and junior, video games have had an immensely positive effect on his life.

“I like to think of (playing video games) as an easy way to get involved in the community,” Prader said.

“When gaming was first being introduced, it was mostly just single-player, but now with the integration of multiplayer, most games are almost impossible to play without meeting other people, so that’s an important social aspect of it.”

Prader said he does not believe video games promote violence and said he thinks they promote the exact opposite: a sense of connection and friendship.

“A lot of my friends and a lot of the people I know actually come from (playing video games), and I think a lot of my leadership skills come from leading games or trying to be in charge of a team, so it really means a lot more than people imagine,” Prader said.

Moreover, Brendan Lewis, member of eSports Club and senior, said video games have the ability to not only connect people in a community but also people around the world.

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MARCH 22, 2019

“I’ve met some people who live in different parts of the (United States), and I’ve become friends with them through playing video games,” Lewis said. “It’s a really good medium in which you can play with people you may not be able to see on a daily basis.”

Dylan Gentilcore, eSports Club sponsor and English teacher, said he also agrees that video games are often more helpful than detrimental.

“I’ve always viewed video games as being an extremely beneficial hobby for one to have,” Gentilcore said.

“Like anything else, it can be detrimental in excess, but I think if you are mindful of your video game usage, if you have structures and boundaries put in place, (playing video games) can really lead to students developing a diverse mindset and skill set.”

According to Gentilcore, playing video games can also provide teenagers with valuable skills and knowl-

BY THE NUMBERS

28% of the video game industry is comprised of first-person shooter games

150 MILLION people in the United States play video games regularly, or at least three times per week MEDICAL NEWS TODAY SOURCE

edge that could be applicable to the real world or academics.

“Video games are developed on a global scale, and international companies make some of the greatest franchises around, so they insert parts of their own culture, folklore and customs into there, and you can really experience that in a new way as a teenager in Indiana,” Gentilcore said.

“You can also develop basic hand-eye coordination and memorization. A student (who plays video games) gets used to memorizing the patterns in a video game of a boss fight or the layout of a map. That can really translate directly to the patterns that they’re seeing in equations or geography or anything like that.”

Although there can be several benefits of playing video games, it is important to consider the fact that it can also become harmful and develop addictions. Nevertheless, Gentilcore said having a strong

GAMING GAINS Take a look at some of the positive and negative effects of playing video games Video gamers have a greater ability to filter out distractions when participating in attentiondemanding tasks

Video games can cause addiction by altering the neural-reward system

BUSINESSINSIDER.COM SOURCE WENDY ZHU GRAPHIC

Research shows that playing video games can improve problemsolving skills

Video game players may have faster reaction times

Playing video games can increase visuospatial skills

More involvement in sedentary activities can lead to a higher chance of obesity

support system is key to preventing Gentilcore also said he believes that addiction. blaming teenage aggression on vio“If you are a teenager who doesn’t lent video games is usually a scapehave adults in your life who have goating situation. conversations with you and are en“If you look at the history of gaging in what you’re doing, interthe way we approach these taboo acting with you, and if you use video topics, there’s always going to be games as sort of a dangerous addicsomething we associate with youth tion form of escape, that can be very aggression,” Gentilcore said. “Bedetrimental,” Gentilfore video games, it core said. “You can get was comic books. Beaddicted to (playing fore comic books, it video games) just like I think it’s was rock and roll. I’m any other activity or important that really not sure why substance, and you can exactly we’re pushing we destigmatize start to lose priorities all the blame onto this in your life. You can video games not one medium.” cut yourself off socially, only in terms of Gentilcore said he and it can be like a dis- their violence, believes the next step connect from reality. ” but also with the society should take is to Prader also said remove the stigma surgeneral lifestyle people need to rememrounding video gamers. ber that video games we associate with “I think it’s imporgamers. are only virtual. tant that we destigmaWhen it comes to esports club sponsor tize video games not the idea that video dylan gentilcore only in terms of their games lead to violence violence, but also with in real life, Gentilthe general lifestyle core, Lewis and Prader said they do we associate with gamers,” Gentilnot believe there is any connection core said. “Really, a lot of (video between violent video games and gaming) is a way to socialize and aggressive behavior in teenagers. destress, and that’s very important, According to Prader, it may be especially at CHS, where we have a common to hear about gamers getting lot of stressed students who are just angry, but he said this anger does not trying to find people they can unH always translate directly to violence. wind with.”

LEVEL UP (ABOVE) Austin Prader (left), eSports Club president and junior, watches and helps his club members with a video game. Prader said he has gained leadership skills from playing video games and being a part of eSports Club.

(BELOW) An eSports Club member plays Team Fortress 2 after school on Feb. 28. Prader said eSports Club members meet every Thursday in Room F114 to discuss and play video games with others.

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BREAKING GENDER NORMS Freshman Daniel Tanner transcends typical gender stereotypes with fashion TESSA COLLINSON STORY, SPEAK-UPS

A

ll heads turn to him as he

walks down the hall. It could be how he holds himself with confidence.

Then again, it could be because of the way he dresses. One day, he’s dressed in a turtleneck with heels and statement jewelry, and on the next, it’s a women’s T-shirt with a headband and leggings.

Freshman Daniel Tanner said he feels comfortable in both men’s and women’s clothing, and he doesn’t care what pronouns people use for him, as he said, “It’s all the same to me.”

PRIDE THROUGH TIME

Here are some of the milestones in transgender, genderqueer history

VICTORIA NOPPORN PHOTOS

According to Daniel, clothing does not have a designated gender.

He said, “The female silhouette is much more comforting for me,” he said. “Tighter clothes that make me look less boxy makes me more happy.

It’s all purely intrinsic motivation.”

Daniel said society believes that anything in the women’s section is suggested as “girls only.” However, he said anything can be styled to be more masculine or feminine because in actuality, there is little difference in

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MARCH 22, 2019

men and women’s clothing, other than its cut. Women’s clothing is generally more form-fitting, while Daniel said that men’s clothing tends to be looser, creating a “boxy” shape.

But he said his journey hasn’t been easy. When he first started to dress in feminine clothing, “It was not fun,” he said, and he said he sees the same discomfort in other students who are starting to do the same as him.

But they are not alone—according to studies by the UCLA Williams Institute of Law, as a teenager takes steps toward presenting themselves as gender non-conforming, there is a 15 percent increase in their chance of being bullied. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 34 percent of LGBTQ+ teens have been bullied.

“There’s two sides of the coin; (people) either like it or they don’t,” Daniel said. “There’s the small fraction of people who don’t like it, but they’re too scared to come up to me and say, ‘I don’t like this.’ They say it to other people, not realizing that (I will hear about it) real fast.”

Despite these challenges, Daniel’s mother Karen Tanner said via email that she thinks this school is a safe place for students.

“I do believe (CHS) is a very safe and accepting school,” Mrs. Tanner

Christine Jorgenson becomes the first widely-known American trans woman to have sex reassignment surgery

Lili Elbe received the first sex reassignment surgery (SRS)

1930

FLAMEBOYANT STYLE: Freshman Daniel Tanner tries on a glitzy choker to complement his outfit. Daniel said he likes to push societal boundaries when he dresses himself in women’s clothing.

1980

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders lists gender identity incongruence as “Gender Identity Disorder”

HUMANS OF CHS CHS students, staff share stories on acceptance YASMINE PEHLIVAN, GAY-STRAIGHT ALLIANCE PRESIDENT AND JUNIOR “(I have certain pins on my backpack showing LGBTQ+ support because) I am president of the GSA, and also because I use (these pins) as a way for people to know who I am.

It’s a way to express myself, and so people know that this is me. I want to be a safe person, I’m pretty open-minded. (These pins) help people notice me more, and people compliment me on my pins. I don’t know what the people who notice me or who compliment my backpack think, but, it makes me happy. I try to be a person who is easy to approach, so people know you can talk to me. I’m accepting.”

said via email. “I feel very fortunate to live here and not have to worry about my son being mistreated.”

Daniel agrees and calls CHS a “safe haven” for gender non-conforming students like him and other LGBTQ+ students, especially for those with a strong support group.

“The fact that I do have a strong support group lets me dress like this,” he said. “If I didn’t think that I had a hundred percent support by my friends and people I enjoy, I wouldn’t do what I do, talk how I talk or talk about what I talk about, and stuff like that.”

Social worker James Dowell said the counseling center helps students build that support group so they can be comfortable expressing themselves.

JEREMY HORNER, GAY-STRAIGHT ALLIANCE SPONSOR “(Gender nonconformity) is a topic that frequently comes up during discussion. I think a lot of that is just teenagers who are generally trying to figure out their place, and that can be even more challenging for someone who doesn’t fit the ‘norm.’ I think it’s natural for everyone to be unsure. We talk about things like that as they come up.”

“I think overall, CHS students and staff are pretty supportive,” Dowell said. “I’m sure there are, unfortunately, other incidents, but I think (we should connect students) with the resources they need, whether that’s in the building or outside of it.”

In the end, Daniel said he is supportive of what the school can provide for students like him.

“When it comes to LGBT and gender-nonconforming kids, I feel like Carmel does a really good job, and sometimes people don’t understand that because they compare (CHS) to what they want it to be,” he said.

“They really should be comparing it to other high schools where kids are H having a lot of bad times.”

KRIS OTTEN GRAPHIC GENDERQUEERID.COM SOURCE

PUMP(ED) UP: Freshman Daniel Tanner poses in his high heels. Daniel said he even wore a dress to homecoming this year and that he was mostly femininepresenting at the time. He said, “It didn’t even feel like a journey or a movement­—it just felt normal.

But it did take a lot of courage.”

2010 The third edition of the New Oxford American Dictionary recognizes “they” as a singular pronoun

The word “genderqueer” is coined to describe those who exist beyond binary genders

1995

Facebook begins allowing users to choose from 50 different gender options

2014 HILITE.ORG

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I DONâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;T GET IT! 28

AUG 14, 2018

In honor of National Humor Month in April, people express ideas regarding generational differences in humor KAREN ZHANG STORY AYMAN BOLAD, ANGELA LI, VERONICA TEETER PHOTOS ANGELA LI SPEAK-UPS

A

s kyle fleckenstein, com-

edySportz member and junior, stands on stage during a ComedySportz match, he draws inspiration for his jokes from popular and wellknown events occurring in society.

For example, Fleckenstein said he plans to reference “memes,” which are virally transmitted cultural symbols or social ideas, in his ComedySportz match tonight.

Memes often characterize and define Generation Z (Gen-Z) humor. While some people dislike memes, usually for the reason that memes don’t make sense, Fleckenstein said he likes them.

“I really like memes because everyone has their inside jokes and ongoing things that they have with their friends. Memes kind of feel like inside jokes with everyone where everyone in the world can laugh and join in,” Fleckenstein said. “The ones that don’t make sense are extra funny—it’s the sense of inside jokes only for the people who have been around. It’s like making a meme about memes and it’s even funnier.”

April is National Humor Month, a month that promotes laughter and joy.

According to Kai Hanno Schwind, a psychologist and associate professor based in Oslo, Norway, many aspects of humor are universal and cross-cultural. Schwind wrote his doctoral thesis on transnational format adHILITE.ORG

27

aptations of the sitcom “The Office,” analyzing how comedy formats adapt for different countries and how humor in general travels across cultural contexts and focuses on humor in media, satire, what makes humor controversial and the ethics of humor.

Schwind said via email that social sciences have agreed on three classic humor theories: “superiority theory,” “incongruity theory” and “relief theory.” According to Schwind, the superiority theory claims humor is derived from commentary on social hierarchy which helps political satire. The incongruity theory claims that humor occurs when an expectation is created but not fulfilled, going in a different direction that surprises the audience. This theory

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MARCH 22, 2019

SWEET VICTORY: Junior Kyle Fleckenstein and his ComedySportz teammates celebrate on stage after winning their ComedySportz match. Fleckenstein said he has participated in ComedySportz throughout high school.

VERONICA TEETER PHOTO

“Unlike many people, I find puns to be a very good source of humor. I also enjoy inside jokes because inside jokes are rather niche and they’re so unique that it’s (not) hard to find myself unexpectedly laughing at those.”

Senior Gary Zhang explains some forms of absurd or surreal humor. Lastly, the relief theory states humor offers people possibilities to deal with feelings, topics and anxieties they usually fear or make them feel insecure. Through humor there is the possibility to articulate feelings about those topics and also make them less scary.

The various current styles of humor depict the incongruity and relief theo-

ries, which are especially prevalent in the sense of humor of Gen-Z. According to The Michigan Daily, Gen-Z humor is a branch of “neodadaism,” which is the resurgence of an absurdist style of art, but also humor, known as “Dadaism.” Dadaism is an art movement from the ’60s referred to as “anti-art.” Absurdist humor is a type of humor that is defined by deliberate violations of

TAKING THE STAGE: Junior Kyle Fleckenstein competes at a ComedySportz match. Fleckenstein said he sometimes references memes during his matches to connect with the young audience.

VERONICA TEETER PHOTO

that’s just a personality thing. But at the same time, I think our team has evolved in confidence and experience.

There was one year we couldn’t make up a one-line joke to save our lives and we lost every home match that year because the whole team was afraid of doing one-line jokes. There’s a game called ‘One Liners’ and you can do a lot of different ones, but (the team was) always afraid of coming up with something clever to say. They felt very selfconscious about it. We trained really

“Usually, it’s more accidental human funniness that’s not harmful to anybody (that) just starts getting me laughing.

“I think there’s some really inappropriate jokes (today), rude that is offensive and can be taken offensive. I wouldn’t say all teenagers are laughing at that stuff, but that’s the type, in our culture, in our society, when looking at society in general—not so much maybe the teenagers, but society in general—there’s offensive humor out there that pokes fun at things that are really harmful to people, and I think it is causing a numbing effect that is making it say ‘That’s okay, because we’re laughing at it,’ and so people are going to start thinking it’s okay to do certain things because we’ve made a joke of it for so long, so now it’s no big deal, when it’s really something that could harm them, that could kill them, and limit the choices they have in life. That’s more of my concern, and it’s more of a cultural thing instead of just teenagers.”

HAHAHA! Dad joke: What do you call a man with no nose and no body?

nobody knows!

reasoning, producing behaviors that are often illogical.

Sophomore Annie Kim said she believes she has absurdist humor and that Gen-Z humor is quirky and random, but that is what makes it funny.

“There’s this popular saying where they say, ‘random equals funny,’ which is really true in our generation’s sense of humor. I’ll spend hours just looking at random things I find and laughing at them. Sometimes, they don’t even make sense, but I’ll still laugh at them,” Kim said.

Fleckenstein said he has also seen changes in his sense of humor throughout time and has had to adapt his ComedySportz routines over time.

“What we do and say often evolves with society and with the people,” he said. “We get suggestions from people and we go off of that as well as the vibe of the crowd; you really have to evolve and adapt to whatever situations you might face.”

Jim Peterson, ComedySportz sponsor and director of theater and art, has been the ComedySportz sponsor for almost two decades. Peterson said while he has not seen any drastic changes in jokes made by ComedySportz members, he has seen small changes within each new team.

“Each team has their strengths and weaknesses,” Peterson said. “They change from team to team, but I think

CHS Teacher Rebekah Overbey

hard the next year and coming up with stuff, and of course some kids graduate and we get new kids in. So it just kind of naturally evolves that way.”

Schwind offered a more research-based answer. “(How humor evolves) has something to do with the function humor has in our (societies). What we laugh about reflects what we’re dealing with at this point in time (personally, politically, culturally)—humor functions as a kind of ‘reality check’ of where we stand as a society, as a culture and/or as individuals,” Schwind said. “Simultaneously, we are always influenced by our social peer groups (family, friends, partners, co-workers, countrymen, etc.) and humor plays a significant role in that process. We laugh about what others laugh about. We laugh about the same cultural and social references.

We use humor to differentiate ourselves from others, and, vice versa, we use it to align ourselves with others.”

According to CNN, Gen-Z is often compared to the “Silent Generation,” born between the mid ’20s and early ’40s due to the similar environments surrounding childhood. Additionally, both the Silent Generation and Gen-Z have similar senses of humor that express disillusionment with the state of the world.

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Schwind said he agrees.

“Some types of humor are cyclical because they respond to similar experiences, for instance, global wars, depressions and crises,” Schwind said.

“This makes the study of political satire particularly interesting—how have we been making fun of authorities such as emperors, kings, presidents throughout history?”

Kim said she classifies her humor as “dark,” which is becoming a prevalent style of humor within Gen-Z. Kim said, “I know my sense of humor was different when I was

CHS Teacher Dylan Gentilcore

HAHAHA!

Dark humor: My girlfriend wanted a marriage just like a fairytale. Fair enough. I gave her a loaf of bread and left her in the forest.

smaller and a lot of things that I say now are not things I would say when I was younger. For example, I say, ‘I hate myself,’ a lot now. If I said that when I was younger, a lot of people would tell me to go see a counselor, but now, a lot of people just reply with, ‘Yeah same, me too.’”

Peterson said he believes dark humor is more of an acquired taste and not everyone finds it appealing.

“Well, it’s just a different style,” Peterson said. “It depends on what you find funny. Some people have it, like I have a darker sense, and sometimes

“I think there are a lot of funny things (today). I think we’ve overanalyzed comedy being a little bit more thoughtful.

I think a lot of people just assume like, ‘Oh yeah, you can’t laugh at anything nowadays, everything’s gotta be PC (politically correct).’ Well, PC basically means you’re saying we shouldn’t be empathetic. If you’re saying we shouldn’t be PC, we shouldn’t be empathetic. We can laugh at situations, we can still laugh at stereotypes and tropes and things that we observe in society that are messed up, we just don’t have to do it in a way that clearly makes fun of other people in harmful ways. I think we’re actually getting funnier in some regards then, because we’re able to make jokes that are accessible and stuff but not necessarily alienating people.”

I think dark humor is funny. My wife, not so much. She just (doesn’t) understand how you could, you know, think it’s funny that you’re dealing with death and poverty or whatever. I just think it’s a different way of looking at the world.”

Furthermore, Schwind said there were drawbacks when it comes to humor, dark humor in particular.

“The interesting thing with humor is, that it almost always has a flip-side.

Making fun of someone can be traumatic for that person. Humor can be a tool for oppression. It can justify or ridicule physical violence. It can blur the understanding of issues that are discussed,” Schwind said. “Humor is, by nature, ambivalent, ambiguous and volatile and, as such, it may not always be the best choice in a conversation, debate or discussion. Always consider who you are talking and joking to and be self-reflective if you own the socio-cultural mandate to express and apply humor in a given situation or context.”

However, because so much of humor reflects in society, both Peterson and Schwind said there can be differences in humor between generations.

Peterson said, “Because I teach film, I’ll show like some old slapstick comedy or something like ‘The Marx Brothers.’ However, the Marx Broth-

HISTORY OF HUMOR Learn how humor has developed and evolved in history

Aristophanes

Mark Twain

The Athenian playwright Aristophanes made use of dark humor and used satire and vulgar language in his plays

Mark Twain is said to be the founding father of American humor, laying its foundations in his book The Innocents Abroad

400-500 B.C.

1750s Voltaire

Voltaire was a major thinker of the Enlightenment and used dark humor and satire to criticize society, such as in his 1759 book Candide

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MARCH 22, 2019

1860s

1900s Charlie Chaplin Charlie Chaplin is one of the most well-known examples of slapstick comedy, which involves comedians performing stunts or intentionally harming themselves

the widespread broadcasting has really sped up the lifespan of (humor). If you think about how the media that your parents were exposed to was television—that was the mass media and kids don’t watch television anymore, which is just baffling to me, but that’s okay—I think there is definitely a generational gap which is emphasized through technology. I’m just speaking from my experience with my son.

The things that he finds funny, like on Reddit—he’s on Reddit all the time— and he’ll show me something that just cracks him up, but I don’t see the appeal. You know, humor comes from your experience, your life experience, whether or not you can relate to it.”

Despite gaps in understanding, humor can be one way for people come together.

Schwind said, “Despite generations or social classes, there are some things that everyone loves and can find enjoyment from. Humor is a way to connect with people—to make friends and forge social relationships.”

Fleckenstein said he agreed.

“Anyone and anything can be funny,” he said. “You don’t always have to have something elaborate planned out. If you just say what is on your mind, you’ll find someone H to laugh with you.”

MEME TIME: Sophomores Annie Kim and Lalith Roopesh react to a funny post on Instagram after school. Kim said she enjoys looking at memes and other funny content on social media and sharing them with her friends.

RHEA ACHARYA PHOTO

HAHAHA! Wit-Wordplay: Did you hear about the chef that died?

he pasta way. we cannoli do so much.

ers were very specific to (their) particular time period though so now they don’t really go over well with high school audiences.”

Additionally, according to Fleckenstein, the generational gap in humor may have been further emphasized due to a quick transition to technology.

“The way I see it, is that we as kids have really lived with the internet our whole lives and our sense of humor shows how comfortable we are with technology,” Fleckenstein said. “The older generations can’t really under-

stand it because they didn’t have that connection with the entire world when they were younger.”

Peterson also said he believes technology has helped evolve humor.

“I think it can (be) seen especially through the evolution of a meme. I mean, the cycle is so fast and a meme can start off, be clever and suddenly take off and grow to something that has giant appeal, and then just as suddenly turn into old stuff,” Peterson said.

“And I think a lot of that has to do with technology now. The accessibility and

GRAY MARTENS, JACKIE HUR GRAPHIC

BRITANNICA.COM, THEATREHISTORY.COM SOURCES

Andre Breton

Lenny Bruce

Andre Breton was a French surrealist who is considered the father of dark humor. His Anthology of Black Humor inspired many other authors later in the 20th century

Comedian Lenny Bruce opened doors for modern day comedy with his unfiltered discussions of drugs, race and religion.

1940s

1950s

Mary Kay and Johnny Mary Kay and Johnny was the first American situational comedy to be broadcast on television, centered on the life of a banker and his wife

1960s

1970s Kurt Vonnegut Kurt Vonnegut is well known for his use of dark humor in his books, especially Slaughterhouse Five describing World War II HILITE.ORG

31

ART

THE OF ELECTIVES Art electives shape seniors’ high school experience, plans for future EMILY CARLISLE, ISABELLA WHITE STORY

E

nglish, math, science and

history courses—these are all classes which aim to both educate and broaden the minds of teenagers all across the country. Ever day at CHS students across all four grades find themselves slumped in desks, teachers lecturing on the fundamentals of radicals or the importance of the Enlightenment. For students who decided to broaden their high school experience by partaking in some of this school’s wide variety of art-related electives, this routine looks slightly different.

For Sydney Remble, art student and senior, taking classes from Drawing I to AP Studio Art has given her the opportunity to be a part of something most high schoolers are not.

“Art has given me a more wellrounded high school experience because not everyone is involved in the art department, but I have been,” she said. “Art became an outlet for all the

school work and stress that I have and While involvement in various artit’s a time for me to just be creative.” related extracurriculars serves as an opArt department chair Jen Bubp portunity to experience high school in said that students’ involvement in a different way than most students, it elective courses not additionally provides only provides an outlet students with transferfor students, but also able skills and a chance leaves them with many Art has had such to learn life lessons. a positive impact new abilities.

Joey Gutierrez, memBubp said via email, on my high school ber of New Edition “Students need balance experience. It not and senior, said choir in their lives. Electives has shown him the imonly has taught me provide a rich layer of portance of collaboraculture, creativity and so many valuable tion and determination. personal enjoyment life skills, but it has “Choir has taught for students. Students shaped who I am as me to work hard, but take our classes to a person. also, it has shown me balance the stresses of the value of working senior sydney remble the rigor of their core with others and beclasses and to broaden ing a part of a group,” their aesthetic experihe said. “I have been ences. Electives provide specific skill able to see that if your put all your sets to students that they can use for efforts into something, the return the rest of their lives.” will be great.”

MARCH 22, 2019

COLORING IN THE CANVAS: Sydney Remble, art student and senior, works on her painting during her class period. Remble said although she will not major in art, she hopes to incorporate it in her future.

LILY MCANDREWS PHOTO

DID YOU KNOW?

Out of two million art graduates nationally in 2012, only 10 percent, or 200,000 people, made their primary earnings as working artists.

BFAMFAPHD.COM SOURCE

Kyle Barker, Associate Choral Director and Ambassadors’ Director, reiterated the idea that these electives courses create learning experiences.

“In my opinion, attention to detail is a big skill (the students in choir) learn along with time management.

(They learn) how to communicate and cooperate with others...They learn how to be flexible and make changes on the fly...There’s a lot of real life application skills I think that (students) learn that are not just singing and dancing,” he said.

Bubp said she agrees with Barker and said students learn many skills that are applicable in their lives.

Bubp said, “I think creative problem solving is the number one skill that art classes provide students, which is a life-long, important skill.

I was reading a published article the other day that said the number one skill that companies like Google and Rolls Royce are looking for in applicants is their diversity of professional and personal activities, their skill sets and their ability to think creatively.

In our world of rapidly changing technology and innovations, creative

thinking and problem solving are the greatest skills that we can teach students here at Carmel High School.”

While these courses have had an impact on these students, among many more at CHS, not every senior who has dedicated his or her time and effort to an art-related elective course, extracurricular or hobby will continue with this interest at the collegiate level.

“I am going into nursing, but I think I might get a minor in art still because I will have a lot of credits going into college.” she said.

Despite not planning to pursue these art-related fields, many of these students still hope to carry their passion on into whatever career they decide on. Remble is among these students.

She said, “I would hope that I could incorporate art into nursing in some way, though. I would have to figure that out once I get into hospitals, but I could potentially use art to work with my patients and see if that could help with recovery and treatment.”

Gutierrez said he chose to leave choir in high school in order to give his full attention to his studies and his future career.

“I am planning to study accounting in college. I am not planning on continuing with music or choir in the future,” he said. “I have loved being a part of it at the high school, but I am not passionate about it enough to invest myself into it in college while I am busy trying to get a degree and do other things as well.”

Future plans aside, these CHS students fall into a large group of teenagers who feel impacted by an

art-related elective course or extracurricular. For Remble, being a part of the art department has shaped the path of her high school career and allowed her to take part in something most students have not by the end of their senior year.

“Art has had such a positive impact on my high school experience. It not only has taught me so many valuable life skills, but it has shaped who I am as a person and who I want to be in the future,” she said. “It gave me something to turn to when I was stressed and a place to be creative. Art has shown me so much and is a fundamental part of who I am today.” H SINGING ALONG: Joey Gutierrez, New Edition member and senior, sings during a New Edition class rehearsal. Gutierrez said he will not pursue a musical degree or profession during college, but choir has taught him many valuable skills.

VERONICA TEETER PHOTO

HILITE.ORG

33

BRING IT ON! Spring musical targets high school audience, makes adaptations from original version GRACE XU STORY

F

VERONICA TEETER PHOTOS

or this year’s spring musical,

CHS will take the contemporary route by putting on the show “Bring It On.” The show centers around Campbell, who is the cheerleading captain of an affluent school before she moves to a less well-off school and has to adapt. While CHS has showcased musicals in the past targeting different audience groups from adults to children, this year, the directors said they hope to attract the majority of CHS: high school students.

Kyle Barker and Sam Chenoweth, associate directors of choirs, said a main reason they chose this musical was its appeal to teenagers.

“We try and do something that’s different from the year previously,” Barker said. “Last year, we did (a) Disney (musical), so we had to either do some sort of period musical or we had to go contemporary. We decided to go the contemporary route this year.”

Chenoweth said this year was a chance for students here to gain new skills from previous musicals.

“We wanted to give a different experience and to provide a different kind of training as well,” Chenoweth said.

“And, we still wanted something that still could be semi-large cast.”

According to Sophia Hughes, Accents member and senior, the different training could mean cheerleader training, as cheerleaders play a major role in the show.

Hughes said, “(The cheerleading squad) is going to help with the musical and help to teach how to actually do cheer because show choir dancing and cheer are different things, so I think there’s going to be a lot of flips and cool things that we don’t usually do.”

However, Hughes also mentioned that cheerleading isn’t the only difference “Bring It On” will have with musicals in the past, as this year the

DID YOU KNOW?

In the original casting for “Bring it On,” actors had to come prepared with a cheer and attend a four-week cheer camp.

MENTALFLOSS .COM SOURCE

musical features adaptations from the directors as well.

“I think (the directors are) taking a general approach to the characters,” Hughes said. “(The characters in the movie are) mostly black and Hispanic students, and since Carmel doesn’t have many black and Hispanic students in theater, I think (the directors are) taking more of a general approach, to economic rather than racial differences.”

According to Barker, the directors had to make a few tweaks to the show due to who auditioned and who they casted but tried to keep the overall themes similar to the original. “(Any adaptations made to the musical) come from when we cast the show. We cast based on who shows up and what fits the best role,” Barker said.

“So there were a couple of things that had to change because it wouldn’t have made sense with the cast that we have.

CASTING CALL Take a look at the musical casting process at CHS Directors taught auditioners five different cuttings from the show in which they could choose one to perform for a panel of people

Sam Chenoweth and Kyle Barker, associate directors of choirs, and tech theater teacher Andrew Okerson took notes during auditions to narrow down who they want to see perform again

CALLBACKS

Afterwards, they posted a callback list in which they run another audition to finalize the cast list KAREN ZHANG GRAPHIC MUSICALS101.COM SOURCE

34 M A R C H

22, 2019

KEYS TO SUCCESS (RIGHT): Kyle Barker, associate director of choirs, plays the piano during a rehearsal.

Barker said he hopes that this musical will target a different audience.

Some of those edits (to the musical) were made, but it was more to make sure that we are accurately representing what our cast is, without changing a conversation (in the musical) because that would never be our intent.”

According to Julia Ammons, Accents member and junior, the adaptation makes sense, given possible diversity limitations at CHS. “I think (the directors) could have chosen a different show,” Ammons said, “but they’re making the best out of what they have. I think a lot of people are getting worked up because of the cultural representations... but I think Carmel’s doing the best they can.”

However, Hughes said the directors’ choice of play and changes they’ve made has sparked discussion within the choir community.

“I think it’s definitely controversial, because for a lot of people, this musical was very important to a lot of black people especially when they were younger,” Hughes said. “It’s definitely a controversial thing to put out, but I think it’s possible to make it work.”

Yet for Ammons, she said “Bring It On” will potentially be her first musical at CHS, so she isn’t as focused on which role she receives.

“I’m (auditioning) because it’ll be something I can do and get used to the directors,” Ammons said. “I’m sure it’ll turn out fine, and the people we have at Carmel are so talented.”

As for Chenoweth, he said he hopes the musical will provide a different experience for everyone involved.

Chenoweth said, “(The musical’s) super different, intentionally. So it’s (like comparing) apples to oranges, especially compared to the range (of musicals CHS has).”

In the end, Hughes said she hopes the musical will provide a new and different experience for everyone.

“I think it’s going to be a fun show,” Hughes said. “I heard there’s going to be a lot of cool tech things happening so it’s going to be really cool to see, and I think it’s worth the watch.”

Tickets for the shows will go on H sale April 8.

PARTICULAR PRACTICING: Cast members of “Bring it On” sing during a rehearsal. According to Kyle Barker and Sam Chenoweth, associate directors of choirs, the play will have an adapted cast list to accommodate CHS’s population.

HILITE.ORG

35

THE

NEW FACE OF ADVERTISING

As companies turn to new platforms for advertising, students, staff reflect on impact of social media promotions SARAH KIM STORY

S

ophomore janvi bhatia is a

brand ambassador for the popular bracelet brand Pura Vida.

“I promote (Pura Vida’s) products on social media to try to raise awareness about the brand,” she said. “In recent years, they have really gained popularity and I think some of that can be attributed to the way they advertise.”

Bhatia is just one of an increasing number of teens who are pro-

36

MARCH 22, 2019

NEW MARKET: Sanjana Prasad, marketing student and sophomore, reads from her DECA paper.

Prasad said she researched about advertisements.

SHRUTHI RAVICHANDRAN PHOTO

PURA VIDA PROMO: moting companies on social media Janvi Bhatia, DECA participant and platforms and YouTube to spread sophomore, scrolls down the Pura awareness about their brand. SanVida Reps Instagram account. She jana Prasad, marketing student, said she and a friend used to buy DECA participant and sophomore, their bracelets often and signed up as explained the trend and the marketrepresentatives for fun. ing ideas behind it.

SHRUTHI RAVICHANDRAN PHOTO “As we (prepared) for DECA State, we (learned and researched) These influencers usually get prodthe new ways that companies aducts to promote on their social mevertise. Social media advertising has dia at no charge. definitely become bigger in recent Bhatia described her experience as years,” Prasad said. a brand representative for Pura Vida.

According to Robert Browning, “I filled out a form to be a Pura IB Business and Management teachVida promoter and later got an er, this increase in social media adveremail saying that I met the qualitising is especially true for companies fications. They gave me a code to geared toward high school students. share on my Instagram and some “Companies are finding and tarfree bracelets and stickers. Every geting particular niches of students time someone makes a purchase, that they think are goI get a portion of the ing to have an impact on DID YOU KNOW? sales. It’s honestly reother students at their ally easy to do since I Images and short high school,” Browning just tell people to use said. “Teenagers are in- videos on Instagram my code so that they fluenced by others and center on peercan get a discount,” that’s effective advertisBhatia said. to-peer sharing, ing by the companies.”

Companies only This means compa- which helps brands need a relatively low nies no longer just use market to their budget to maintain a celebrity endorsements target audience. base of nano-influencto raise awareness about ers. Usually, they seek their brands. Instead, DIGITALMARKETING out a couple of stuthey use nano-influenc- INSTITUTE.COM SOURCE dents and then offer ers, or those on social them some free prodmedia who usually have between ucts. In return, they receive adver1,000 to 5,000 followers, and oftising and brand awareness well befer more of a personalized quality. low the usual cost.

SPONSORED ADS Businesses gain customers and the “Learn More” button lead users straight to their website.

SHOPPABLE POSTS You can tap these posts to see details on the products such as their names and prices.

Malibu Bracelet

DA-HYUN HONG PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BUSINESS.INSTAGRAM.COM, PURAVIDA, SOCIALMEDIAEXAMINER.COM SOURCES

Regardless of the type of influencer, companies have shifted their energy and money to advertise in a way that brings more awareness to their brand.

Browning said, “Companies are becoming familiar with marketing through social media and are understanding how to use it, through analytics. There is so much information companies are able to gather from consumers, and once they figure out how to process that information, they can use it to then implement an effective social media marketing campaign.”

Prasad said the marketing strategies she has learned so far can be seen in everyday life.

Read a column online about social media trends at hilite.org/trends.

“When I see someone I know posting about a company, I am definitely more inclined to at least check out what it is, compared to just a sponsored ad that I see in my feed. Also, most of the brand ambassadors usually have a discount code so that adds to the appeal of at least clicking on the link and seeing what it is,” Prasad said.

Brand awareness, according to Prasad, was important before the age of social media advertisements.

Prasad said, “In the end, the main goal of advertising is to make consumers aware of a brand and what it is they are selling.”

However, in her opinion, Prasad said the recent methods of social media advertising through nanoinfluences are most effective.

“Now that we have learned about marketing strategies, I (realize) that in the end, companies just need to get their brand name out there,” Prasad said. “If potential customers are at least somewhat aware of the brand and the person promoting it,

MERCH MADNESS: Pura Vida gives out these rewards to their brand representatives to bring awareness to their company.

Sophomore Janvi Bhatia said she received this merchandise as an ambassador.

JANVI BHATIA SUBMITTED PHOTO

they are definitely more likely to buy something in the future.”

Bhatia said students who want to be a brand ambassador should definitely become involved.

“I would encourage anybody interested (in being a brand ambassador) to reach out to different companies,” Bhatia said. “Most companies have a form you can easily fill out, and they use that to get in contact with you. The process itself is relatively simple as you just post things promoting the compaH ny you represent.”

HILITE.ORG

37

JUST KEEP SHUFFLING New Apple streaming service lacks innovation, adds to overabundance of TV HEIDI PENG COLUMN

A

s more and more streaming

services have emerged and cable TV has fallen out of favor, my father can only think one thing: More is more.

Thus, over the course of four years, I have amassed five different streaming services—Amazon Prime, HBO Now, Hulu, Netflix and YouTube TV. However, recently there have been talks of yet another streaming service scheduled to be released in

DID YOU KNOW?

Apple is investing $1 billion on original content.

INVERSE.COM SOURCE

HEADING DOWNSTREAM Take a look at the similarities between Apple’s streaming service and others Popular movies and shows are available a few months after their release on DVD

Original shows specific to that streaming service

ORIGINAL ORIGINAL

CATEGORY OG

OG

ORIGINAL

Movies and shows sorted into categories

$

CATEGORY

OG

Multi-platform compatibility

Some pay-to-view movies and shows

Rectangular layout Apple’s new streaming service will include: a variety of content for everyone’s tastes a focus on comedies and emotional dramas versus mature themes family-friendly original shows and movies original content free for those with Apple devices

TESSA COLLINSON GRAPHIC DIGITALTRENDS.COM, 9TO5MAC.COM SOURCES

38 M A R C H

22, 2019

the coming weeks by Apple, and I’m less than impressed.

As someone with an array of TV shows and movies at her fingertips, I’ve seen first-hand the various pros and cons of each of these streaming services. Furthermore, if I were to rank these services from best to worst, it would be as such: Hulu, Netflix, HBO Now, Amazon Prime and YouTube TV. THANK YOU TREBEK As a student, I enjoy the benefits of a Spotify Premium student disproduced under these executives— count that packages Spotify and Hulu “Breaking Bad” and “New Girl,” retogether and allows me to listen and spectively—are already featured on watch on the go for a low monthly successful pre-existing streaming sersubscription; the main drawback of vices like Netflix.

Hulu is the commercials, but with Also, Haslam said Apple intends the right ad blocker, it becomes 60 to create its own shows. This new seconds of a black screen, silence and Apple streaming service is beginsome quality homework time. ning to sound like a spin-off of On the other end of the spectrum, Netflix...and Hulu... there’s YouTube TV. If and HBO Now...

I had one word to deAs a self-proclaimed scribe it, it’d be “pointWith this new era of cinephile, it hurts to say less.” It has the most expensive monthly sub- never-ending shows this, but there is such a thing as too much TV. scription, and it offers and streaming With this new era of the fewest options; it’s services to go along never-ending shows underwhelming, and I with them, good, and streaming services wish I had canceled my quality TV often gets to go along with them, subscription sooner. good, quality TV often However, the op- lost in the shuffle. gets lost in the shuffle. erative question isn’t senior heidi peng With an unnecessary “Which streaming serabundance of powvice is the best?,” it’s erhouse streaming services already “What does this new streaming serfloating around in our entertainment vice do for me?” In Apple’s case, the universe, I see no need for yet another answer is nothing. one to be thrown into the mix.

According to Karen Haslam, a reApple isn’t doing anything new, porter for Apple’s new streaming serso save your money—and your vice has built a top-of-the-line video H brain cells. team comprising of names like Jamie Erlicht, a former Sony-Picture execuThe views in this column do not necessarily tive, and Paramount Network’s Dana reflect the views of the HiLite staff. Reach Tuinier; however, many of the shows Heidi Peng at hpeng@hilite.org

ENTERTAINMENT BRIEFS MUSICIAN SPOTLIGHT

Do you plan on performing soon?

COURTNEY: I know we would be all over (performing). We want to establish who we are first and if people like us. Then we go from there.

Q&A with CHS band Broadcast Red Raptor How did you form your band name?

Is there anything else you think readers should know?

COURTNEY: Originally, we were called Broadcast Red, because we’re all in radio. I have a sticker that I made of Mr. James (radio advisor) in a dinosaur costume; we thought “RAPTOR” and made jokes about it and eventually it came together. The radio theme is what ties us all together.

COURTNEY: We listen to people. If people want us to cover a song, I’m not saying we will cover it, but I am saying that we will listen to it, and we could work on it. We are the people’s band.

Do you write your own music?

Scan here to check out their Instagram!

DRAPER: We have one song that we are currently working on. We finished it and it should be published soon.

JESSE COOPER Q&A

DA-HYUN HONG BRIEFS

SENIOR ABBY DRAPER (BASS)

SENIOR CHAE HALEY (VOCALIST & PIANO)

SOPHOMORE WIL COURTNEY (GUITAR & PRODUCTION)

AN EVENING OF SHOW CHOIR

TODAY & TOMORROW 7 to 9 p.m. Auditorium

SUPERSTITION AIN’T THE WAY: Gretchen Fehn, Ambassadors member and junior, sings “Superstition” by Stevie Wonder. Accents performed this piece at Evening of Show Choir last year. She said she loves singing for an audience and bringing back old songs they’ve performed before.

VERONICA TEETER PHOTO

TODAY COMEDYSPORTZ MATCH

7 to 9 p.m. Studio Theater

WEDNESDAY CAMERATA CONCERT

7 to 9 p.m. Studio Theater

GRETCHEN FEHN SUBMITTED PHOTO HILITE.ORG

39

A CUT

MARCH 22, 2019

ABOVE THE

REST

Track teams, others add harder tryout standards to previously no-cut sports SARAH KIM STORY

CALEB SHAFFER PHOTO

HILITE.ORG

41

L

ast

year,

the

women’s

track team was a sight to see. At each meet, four school buses would pull up in the parking lot. More than a hundred girls, all wearing the same blue and gold outfits, would get off.

However, this might not be the case for this year’s track team.

This year, the team’s time standards have gotten stricter, meaning less runners may make the team. This change is not just present in women’s track and field; other previously “no-cut” sports teams, such as the women’s tennis team, have also made stricter restrictions on who can join the team. This growing trend can be attributed to high numbers of people joining the team and a lack of equipment and individual coaching.

Athletics Director Jim Inskeep further explained this growing trend in the sports teams.

“We have several sports which have looked at time standards, ability minimum levels or limiting numbers in the last few years. Much of the decisionmaking comes down to space issues and number of opportunities for students to compete against other schools,” Inskeep said. “Swimming requires all athletes to be legal in three of the four strokes. Track and field has limits in the number of sprinters, for example, due to the number of heats that are typically run in a dual or larger meet.”

Coaches of teams making new cuts this year explained their specific reasons behind these decisions.

Bryan Hanan, head coach of the women’s tennis team, said, “We have 14 courts, and we want to make sure everyone on the team has the opportunity to get better and be a part of the team. In a perfect world, we have 100 courts and I can keep 100 girls.

But we do not, so we just have to see who comes out, and the best players will play on the team.”

CHECKING TIMES: Track coaches look at times after athletes ran 100m sprints. Head Coach Aaron McRill said he implemented the new time cut to keep pushing the runners.

NICK BECKMAN PHOTO

SIZE DIFFERENCE Take a look at the differences between smaller and larger teams.

Smaller Team Work at your own pace

Get more personal help

ADVENTUREFITTRAVEL.COM SOURCE

42

MARCH 22, 2019

Larger Team Encouragement from your group

Bigger audience during events

UDAY LOMADA GRAPHIC

For the women’s track team, other causes also played a role in the decision to make more cuts this year.

Head Coach Aaron McRill explained his reasoning.

“At some point you have to find a way to push the team, and I believe that if you push the very back runners or athletes of the team, that will push the front runners even more,” McRill said. “It is good to have a time standard because it keeps everyone accountable.”

This new time standard can have different effects depending on one’s standing in the team. Breanna Hartung, three-year participant on the women’s track and field team and senior, said the time standard led her to quit track for her last year of high school. Hartung explained how the new time standards impacted her decision to not participate on the team this year.

“I ran track and field my freshman, sophomore and junior years of high school. For the mid-distance section, they did have cuts but they were not as hard to make the previous years,” Hartung said. “(The new time standards) have discouraged me from even attempting

to be on the team to the point that Grogan said, “I just hope to imI did not run track this year.” prove my time from last season and On the other hand work toward the same some runners said they goal of succeeding durare more positively afing tournament season.” fected by these new For the mid-distance Inskeep explained standards.

Abbegail section, they did how the decision to “Abby” Grogan, varsity have cuts but make cuts are made in track runner and sophaccordance with the they were not as omore, explained the Athletic Department differences in the stan- hard to make the despite the drawbacks dards from last year previous years. They to the changes. and the impact on her. have discouraged “There is not a specif“This year the cut me from even ic athlete-to-coach ratio time for my group was within the Athletic attempting to be five seconds faster— Department but differfrom 1:15 to 1:10 for on the team to the ent head coaches have the (400-meter run). point that I did not varying philosophies on This did not affect the run track this year.” the number of studentoutcome of me mak- senior breanna hartung athletes to be kept,” ing the team. However, Inskeep said. “Those it did make the group decisions are reached in smaller which will affect mutual agreement with workouts and therefore possibly my the Athletic Department.” performance,” she said.

McRill voiced his expectations for Regardless of the new cuts, the end the upcoming season, saying that he goals remain the same for the team. wants to make sure the team performs

GETTING AHEAD: Runners warm up during a track practice. Head Coach Aaron McRill said the new times keep runners accountable.

NICK BECKMAN PHOTO

well during the State tournament no matter the team size.

“As far as team goals, we want a podium (for the State Tournament), but the mission is to give it our best and have our best effort on the best day,” McRill said.

Regardless of the team standards and expectations, certain athletes will H always be affected.

STRETCHING OUT: Abby Grogan, varsity runner and sophomore, warms up before a practice. Grogan said while the cut was small, it has shifted the team composition.

VERONICA TEETER PHOTO HILITE.ORG

43

A NEW STEP UP

With recent change in women’s lacrosse head coach, internal promotion trend continues KELLY TRUAX STORY

J

oshua miller, new

wom-

en’s lacrosse head coach, is the latest in a long trend of assistant coaches to take the head coach position when there is an opening.

This trend also occurred in the past few years in tennis, volleyball, basketball and football.

Despite the prevalence of this trend, Athletics Director Jim Inskeep said the school looks beyond CHS as well. Inskeep said the department looks for several qualities in potential new coaches; however, he said assistant coaches have the upper hand of already being known and evaluated within the department. Inskeep also explained why he thinks the trend exists.

“If you have assistant coaches that have a desire to want to become head coaches, that’s always a good thing.

There are a lot of people who (become assistant coaches) because they

44 M A R C H

22, 2019

want to continue to move up. For us, sometimes it’s not only just familiarity with that person, it’s also the feeling that they’re ready to go into that role,” he said. “Lots of times, you get a chance to see people firsthand and how they fit into the culture of your school too. It doesn’t mean that (hiring) within the program is always the best fit for things, and (that trend has) been around half-and-half over the years. Certainly you get a chance to prove yourself when you’re an assistant coach because we know where your strengths are; we know where your weaknesses are.”

After a new head coach is hired, players must adjust to the change in authority and the changes made to the program. For assistant coaches that change may not be as noticeable: Miller said the previous lacrosse head coach, Jack Hettiger, put a lot of responsibility on him,

COACHING CONCENTRATION: Lacrosse Head Coach Joshua Miller instructs the women’s team through a play during practice on March 12. He said his history in the lacrosse program under previous Head Coach Jack Hettiger and his familiarity with the players helped him adjust to the position.

OLIVIA CHILDRESS PHOTO

so he said he felt the team had already established him as a respected coach. Still, Miller said he predicts there are some factors the players will have to adjust to.

“That will be the biggest thing, how I will delegate (as a coach), and how I will delegate probably a little bit differently than (Hettiger) did. I think that might be the part when it’s not necessarily the same,” Miller said. “Honestly I don’t know how much change they’re feeling or going to feel. Some of the changes will just be schematic; a lot of the same stuff is stuff that (Hettiger) and I had talked about and I was on board with doing already. I don’t think there is a whole lot of program-wide changes, it will be mainly game-based changes.”

Lora Adkins, women’s lacrosse player and senior, said she thinks the transition time between head

coaches will be faster because of the “The (coaches) know the backplayers’ familiarity with Miller. ground of kids in the program. Lots “I think it’s going to be a lot betof times they may have known them ter of a transition because when (the since elementary school coming up athletics department) thought that through the feeder program. So fathey were going to bring in somemiliarity is always good and for some one from another school or somekids that is a great thing; for other one who just didn’t know the girls, kids, that is not necessarily a great we all kind of wondered how that thing. Maybe their relationship is was going to work. I just think it’s strained coming in,” Inskeep said. going to be better having a coach “You have all sorts of kinds of relationthat we are all comfortable with ships with your classroom teachersand already know, so some teachers you like, how everybody plays some others you don’t and how everybody as much-which is cerworks together will tainly the same way stay fairly the same,” I just think it’s going with coaches as well.”

Adkins said.

While Miller also to be better having According to An- a coach that we are said it will be benefiiston Eastes, women’s cial for him to bring lacrosse player and all comfortable with familiarity into the senior, there are sev- and already know, program, he said he eral benefits to having is also looking forso how everybody Miller succeed Hetward to seeing other plays and how tiger as the coach. qualities he will Eastes said, “I everybody works bring to the team think it will be benefithis season. together will stay cial (having Miller as “I’m not sure the head coach) this fairly the same.” (what other specific season because he was senior lora adkins qualities) I will bring under (Hettiger), so to the team—that is he kind of knows evprobably to be deciderything. We won State last year so ed as things unfold,” he said. “We he knows how that happened, and he will have to make adjustments. We knows what to do to kind of get us had a really good year last year, we to that point. Also, he’s best friends were really successful on the field with all of the girls, and we all love and off. I feel like our (athletes) him, so I think we’re going to have a gelled together and they were a really good season with Miller.” good team, and there were some Inskeep said it is beneficial that good teammates. You never know assistant coaches bring familiarity what you’re going to get, you never to the program, but sometimes that know who is going come into the can affect coach-player relationships. program or who is going to return

and who isn’t. So, I think there is a lot to be determined as we continue to move forward,” Miller said.

Adkins said she is excited to have Miller as the new head coach because of his coaching style and personality off of the field.

Adkins said, “He is just a really good person and I feel like he is going to be able to be authoritative as well. He’s going to be able to lay down the law when he needs to, but he is also there for everybody—you can always go and talk to him in H school or before school.”

MOVING UP Take a look at how this coaching trend has affected other CHS sports OLIVIA CHILDRESS GRAPHIC

2017

INDYSTAR.COM SOURCE

Men’s basketball Assistant Coach Ryan Osborn promoted to head coach after six seasons under Scott Heady

Defensive Coordinator John Hebert replaces Kevin Wright as football Head Coach after seven seasons as coordinator and fourteen years total at CHS

2015

SMALL ADJUSTMENTS: Joshua Miller, new women’s lacrosse head coach, helps adjust the net at Murray Stadium before a game on March 7.

Though he may have a different approach to coaching than Hettiger, he said that few changes will be made to the team, allowing for a smooth transition.

OLIVIA CHILDRESS PHOTO

Women’s basketball Acting Head Coach Erin Trimpe takes the place of Kevin Sweeney after being a part of the basketball program at CHS for three years

2019 HILITE.ORG

45

EARNING HONOR Athletics department defines meaning of varsity letter, ways of obtaining one JESS CANALEY STORY

E

arning a varsity letter at

any school represents hard work and athletic talent. At CHS, student athletes involved in both Indiana High School Athletics Association (IHSAA) sports as well as Unified Sports have the opportunity to earn a letter. Senior Sloan Goldblatt has played football for 13 years as of the 2018 season and has been involved with Special Olympics for five years.

Goldblatt said depending on the activity, the meaning behind obtaining a letter can change.

“I think (receiving a varsity letter) was a goal for me, for football especially, just because of the competitive nature of football and wanting to reach the varsity level. When it comes to Unified Sports, it was more about helping people out, but the letter was just sort of a perk on the side,” Goldblatt said. “I think getting a varsity letter in either one represents leadership and hard work.”

Ken Browner, head coach of the men’s track and field team, oversees around 250 athletes on a daily basis.

According to Browner, the qualifications to earn a letter in track and field are rather clear cut. An athlete must have 20 varsity points or have competed and won an event at county or win the conference.

“Our way of selecting varsity is pretty straightforward. You either have the

AWARD ACCEPTANCE: Sloan Goldblatt, football player and senior, poses with his father after receiving his varsity letter.

Goldblatt said the varsity letter was a goal and represented leadership and hard work.

SLOAN GOLDBLATT SUBMITTED PHOTO

MADDIE KOSC PHOTO

46

MARCH 22, 2019

faster time than the other kid, or you jump higher, or throw further.

For the varsity roster to be filled out, it’s basically the top three times, jumps or throws,” Browner said.

According to Athletics Director Jim Inskeep, head coaches set varsity letter requirements and the athletic office reviews them to verify consistency between sports. Exceptions to these requirements exist in special cases at the discretion of the coach.

“Across the board, they’re pretty consistent, meaning you have to play a certain number of contests or a percentage of a contest during the season at the varsity level,” Inskeep said. “If they don’t meet the requirements, it can be given at the discretion of the coach.

For example, if a senior cross-country runner has been on the team for four years, but has never been a varsity runner, typically those are the students who would receive a letter at the end of their senior year. They have earned the right to get a varsity letter through their contributions to the program.”

Goldblatt said the lessons and effort behind earning a letter is more important than the physical letter itself.

“I think (being at CHS) has taught me that getting a letter is important to an athlete, but it’s not the most important thing. Getting a letter is obviously a way to show that you’ve excelled on the field, but being able to learn the life lessons from sports, whether it’s Unified or IHSAA varsity sports, is really the most important part,” Goldblatt said.

With around 1,500 student athletes at CHS, the standards to achieve the varsity title may vary; however, the honor carried with earning a letter is universal.

“It has to be earned. I think a varsity letter should mean something. It should be reflective of your contributions to the varsity team,” Inskeep said. “Our standards may not be the same as others, but they’re pretty close amongst the larger schools.”

Browner said he agrees, noting the sense of accomplishment that comes with earning a letter.

“It’s no different than getting a medal in a meet or earning your blue ribbon; you have to earn that.

It’s a sense of accomplishment that they’ve achieved,” Browner said.

No matter what sport students choose to get involved with, Goldblatt encourages everyone to try a sport.

Goldblatt said, “If you have the chance, whether it’s an IHSAA varsity sport or Unified Sports, go out and do it. Whether you’re playing, or helping out, assistant coaching, being a trainer or manager, whatH ever it is, get involved.”

SPORTS BRIEFS KELLY TRUAX BRIEFS

SPOTLIGHT: UNIFIED TRACK

TOMORROW MEN’S AND WOMEN’S TRACK AND FIELD What: Hoosier State Relay Finals When: 10 a.m.

Where: Indiana University

MEN’S LACROSSE What: Game against Forest Hills When: 1 p.m.

Where: Forest Hills High School, Michigan

MONDAY BASEBALL What: Game against Brebeuf When: 7 p.m.

Where: Brebeuf High School

SOFTBALL What: Game against Westfield UDAY LOMADA Q & A, PHOTO

Q&A

reilly sickels, unified track athlete and junior What is Unified Track?

Unified Track is a track and field team that incorporates athletes who have special needs into track and field. We have the (same events) as regular track and field, and we make sure they do these activities and feel included.

When and where do you practice?

We meet every Monday, Wednesday and Friday right after school until 5 p.m. We meet in main cafeteria, check in, and if the weather (is good), we go out to the track. If not, then we meet in the Blue and Gold gym.

What are you looking forward to this season?

I’m looking forward to hopefully a State win. We came close last year; it was a really good season for us, but hopefully we have a lot of upcoming athletes that can help us out in getting a state win.

STRIDES FORWARD: Conrad Weindorf, Unified Track athlete and senior, runs the long jump track to prepare for his jump. Last year, the team went to State, and according to Reilly Sickels, Unified Track athlete and junior, they hope to go again.

When: 5:30 p.m.

Where: Westfield High School

TUESDAY WOMEN’S LAROSSE What: Game against Hamilton Southeastern When: 5:30 p.m.

Where: Hamilton Southeastern High School

AGRAYAN GUPTA PHOTO

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ZERO OUT OF TEN

Ten minutes added onto school day helps district meet time requirement, creates issues for community HILITE STAFF EDITORIAL

T

To be fair, adding ten minutes per o make up for two snow days, day rather than two non-school days to Carmel Clay Schools (CCS) added make up the time does fit the state’s re10 minutes to every school day. State quirements without much disruption. legislature requires Indiana schools to The HiLite staff comhave 180 days of inmends administration structional time (deOUR STANCE for taking decisive fined as time in which Although the action and working students participate in within their limitaan approved educaimplementation of tions to come up with tionally-related activity extended school days a viable solution. under the direction of is necessary due However, the ada teacher) each school ditional time does year. However, CCS to lost instructional not have a significant has performed well time, it interferes impact on class time. enough to bypass the with extracurricular Each class is only exday requirement, so tended by two and our district is able to activities. one-half minutes on meet a requirement of average, which is not enough time to 64,800 minutes instead. While the adaffect lessons or students’ learning. dition of time does pose a solution to Not only that, but the extension the issues the district faces, it also creof time also leads to problems for stuates an inconvenience without providdents with extracurriculars and aftering much instructional benefit.

THE MINUTES

ADHI RAMKUMAR GRAPHIC

Take a look at how different states in the Midwest determine the length of the school year number of instructional hours per year number of instructional days per year and length of school day number of instructional days and hours per year number of instructional days per year number of instructional days and hours per year and length of school year

No numeric minimums CENTER ON TIME AND LEARNING SOURCE

MARCH 22, 2019

BEYOND U.S.

ANGELA QIAN GRAPHIC

Here are the school times in some of the top educational systems around the world 9.5 Hrs/ Day

1. South Korea 220 Days/Yr 2. Finland 5. Japan 14. United States

190 Days/Yr 243 Days/Yr

3.75 Hrs/ Day 6.5 Hrs/ Day 6.5 Hrs/ Day

180 Days/Yr

NORBERTHAUPT.COM, CREATIVECOMMONS.ORG SOURCES

school activities. Clubs and sports teams have had to change their schedules and accommodate the new late bus times, something not made clear to students and staff. The later release is also an issue for those with commitments outside of school, as students now have less time to get there.

One factor the district considered when making the change was graduation, which is scheduled for the last day of school. We understand that scheduling graduation around other schools’ schedules can be difficult, but in future years, the district should consider planning the graduation ceremony a few days after the last day of school for such an occurrence. The district should also consider building more flex days into the schedule to accommodate possible closings. While not much can be done this year, CCS should consider anticipating different circumstances in future years. By doing so, the district can prevent the problems the community currently faces, as well as their own. H

BY THE NUMBERS

57% of children between ages 6 and 17 participate in at least one after-school activity

15%

increase in attendance rate when students are involved in extracurriculars CENSUS.GOV, SYNONYM.COM SOURCE

DRIVER’S DREAD Driver’s education should change quizzes, remove 30-hour requirement

BOWEN ZHOU COLUMN

N

ear the end of freshman sense, allowing you to skip over many year, most of us are given the lessons. I have talked with many others option to get our license early and on this subject, and most people end have the full privilege of driving anyup leaving their computer open on the where at the low age of 16 years and course pages, so they can rack up hours three months. Deciding it would be they were unable to receive while dobest to get my driver’s license as soon ing the problems. This could be solved as possible, I applied for the Central if the time requirement were removed Indiana Educational Service Center because even if we are going through (CIESC) Online Driver’s Education the lessons quickly, we still have to Program. However, what I was met pass the quizzes with a 100 percent. with was something much different This means that even if we did speed from what I was expecting. through, we would need a basic underThe first problem I found was the standing of the topic at the very least. first few lessons of every unit, which The questions you can’t common contain a video about someone getsense your way through are impeccating into an accident that relates with bly precise. Some questions ask how the lesson. It’s quite depressing to long you should brake for and give have multiple friends and relayou the options of two to three tives talk about how sad they seconds and three to four are that the person in the seconds. If you had barely video is now deceased. skimmed through and Secondly, the program saw a three somewhere requires that you take inside of the lesson, a quiz on the video it would cause you right afterwards, to take a 50-50 which would be chance and pick fine if it didn’t test one. Sometimes, you on irrelevant points in their questions. Most lessons don’t coinof the questions are cide with what the “On what street videos say. For exdid the crash ocample, the lessons IG IT’S WORTH IT... cur?” or “When say you are supwas the last time posed to put your the mother saw her child before he hands at two and ten, but the videos got into an accident?” This forces me say you need them at three and nine. to sometimes refer back to the video Other than those reasons, driver’s in the middle of the quiz because I education is still beneficial to take, wasn’t listening for what the victim’s especially when you need to get placH favorite pizza was. es in junior or senior year.

The 30-hour requirement is also a The views in this column do not necesproblem, and an unneeded one at that. sarily reflect the views of the HiLite staff.

Most of the units are built on common Reach Bowen Zhou at bzhou@hilite.org.

OOF

The extent of teenage compassion:

CARSON TERBUSH GRAPHIC PERSPECTIVE

crap, i’m failing all my classes! just got an f on another test oof

my parents just kicked me out of the house unless i get my grades up oof!

why aren’t u responding to me can i please have a place to stay! oOf!!

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PROM AND CIRCUMSTANCE

Promposals are a fun tradition that enhance prom, high school experience JESSICA KONRAD COLUMN

W

ould anyone like to volunteer to come up

on stage and play in this game?” I immediately glued my eyes to the floor and lowered my head. I most certainly did not want to go up on stage. Desperately hoping my front-row seat wouldn’t betray me, my stomach turned when the actress called out to me, “Oh yes, how about this shy girl in the front?” Tentatively looking around, I couldn’t figure out a way out of this one, so I begrudgingly made my way up to the stage.

But when I got on stage, there was no embarrassing game, no cringe-worthy attempt at audience participation. Instead, there was my good friend holding a bouquet of flowers and a giant poster reading “Don’t be in DeNILE. Wanna KILL it at Prom?” (I was at the theater to see his performance in “Murder on the Nile”). My heart leaped. I was so excited I barely even read the poster and blurted out, “Yes!” We took pictures while everyone cheered and clapped, and I laughed at how well my friend had surprised me. Even though we had already agreed to attend prom together at an earlier time, having a promposal on stage was the cherry on top of a great prom experience for us.

Oftentimes, people will complain that promposals have become too ostentatious or place undue pressure on the person receiving the promposal. Although these criticisms have some validity, for the most part, these issues are not grave enough concerns to make the practice of promposing altogether intolerable. Furthermore, I too, was once one of these critics, but experiencing promposals for myself led me to realize how promposals can add a fun, lighthearted element to an oftentimes stressful high school experience. Of course, there will always be those who take certain ideas too far or make others uncomfortable, but these

50

MARCH 22, 2019

A PERFECT PROMPOSAL: Senior Jessica Konrad poses with her prom date CHS alumnus Jacob Wenthe after the promposal.

Konrad believes that promposals should be embraced in high school.

JESSICA KONRAD SUBMITTED PHOTO

scenarios exist in life regardless of promposals. Should couples stop proposing to one another in public on the off chance the receiving party will dislike the proposal or decline? Of course not. So why can’t high schoolers ask each other to prom, a much more low-stakes endeavor, in the same way? The answer is high schoolers both can and should, if they so desire, enjoy promposing to one another. As the end of childhood approaches and teenagers prepare to begin their adult lives, it’s essential for teenagers to enjoy the remainder of their adolescence, and if promposals H bring them joy, so be it.

The views in this column do not necessarily reflect the views of the HiLite staff. Reach Jessica Konrad at jkonrad@hilite.org.

NOT TOO PROMISING

Students should reconsider their promposals; more creativity, less broadcasting on social media

HANNAH GRETZ COLUMN

P

rom season is a traditional, exciting time, but

it all comes at a cost. The amount of money poured into promposals nowadays is unnecessary. According to Fortune.com, an average promposal in the United States costs upwards of $324, as 80 percent of those who prompose plan to do so by spending money. You can save your money and make the moment more special if you avoid the main-stream, attention seeking gestures.

Don’t get me wrong, I do believe that asking someone to prom is a nice gesture, and some of them do bring that “Aw” factor with them, but scrolling past endless, basic promposals is nothing but boring. Where did the creativity go? What happened to sharing that moment with close friends? Why does it need to be on every social media platform? Do all your followers really need to know how someone asked you to prom?

Each year I see a new promposal that is truly creative and shows that someone cares, but I tend to see many more basic promposals, and they are usually ones I have seen before. For example, a giant teddy bear with a punny phrase attached to it. Where is the originality? If you really want to show you care, come up with something new, exciting and personalized. Pinterest may have your back on a lot of creative-style projects, but not this one. Rather, create something with a personalized twist.

More importantly, promposals are meant to be shared between two people and those close to them.

So, why must one’s hundreds or thousands of followers be alerted of your promposal? An added bonus is that your “grand gesture” does not have to be physically grand, make it personalized and special and it will be something much more memorable, as the whole world won’t have access to the photo.

As prom season approaches and the pre-prom stages begin, consider making a memory, not a mediocre, media post that ultiH mately breaks the bank.

H The views in this column do not necessarily reflect the views of the HiLite staff. Reach Hannah Gretz at hgretz@hilite.org.

BY THE NUMBERS

$324 is the average cost of prom for a household

$151 is the average cost of a promposal VISA INC SOURCE

JOSIE CRUZAN SPEAK-UPS

SPEAK UP!

What do you think of promposals?

“I think that promposals are really cute. I think that it’s a fun way to ask your boyfriend or girlfriend or even just a friend to prom. It makes it more exciting.”

Junior Chloe Ramey “I think they put a fun spin on prom, and that they’re cute.

The super big ones can be kind of annoying, though.”

Senior Savannah Fisher

“I think they’re kinda dumb, ‘cause I personally don’t like the attention, and I feel like some of the people that do it only do it for the attention.”

Junior Nathan Finley

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51

OUT OF TIME

Colleges should release college admission decisions earlier to help avoid conflict for students MISHA REKHTER COLUMN

O

n feb. 1, the housing ap-

plication for Indiana University (IU) opened. The application prompts prospective students to place a deposit and reserve their preferred dorm on a first-come, first-served basis. As someone who is strongly considering attending IU, I went along

STATUS UPDATE

Here are upcoming college decision release dates

ADHI RAMKUMAR GRAPHIC IVYWISE.COM SOURCE

MAR

Su M Tu

W Th

F Sa

24

26

27

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30

1

2

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APR.

52

with the process and placed my deposit; however, the whole process felt somewhat ridiculous because a majority of colleges had yet to release admission decisions. Many college admission decisions are only released in late March or early April.

As such, to place a deposit for housing at a school I wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t even convinced I would be attending felt wrong. To be forced to do so before I had even heard back from multiple schools was equally uncomfortable. It felt as if I was being punished for apYOLO plying to multiple schools.

This disconnect between different universities makes the college application process needlessly complicated for students. To avoid dilemmas such as mine, universities have attempted to provide methods for students to receive their admission status earlier by rolling out early decision and early action dates. Unfortunately, these dates are accompanied by stipula-

IVY DAY

tions for students. They require students to submit their applications months earlier than others and the early decision application is binding, meaning if students are accepted they must attend that school. As a result, students often are forced to apply to the regular decision deadline.

However, there is a simple solution which would benefit all parties: establishing a national application day and a national admission decision date which precedes all housing and other post-admission SWAG activities. This sort of system would make applying to college significantly easier. The current application process is messy, different for each school and a detriment to students. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s time for universities to unite, revise their admission H system and prioritize students.

The views in this column do not necessarily reflect the views of the HiLite staff. Reach Misha Rekhter at mrekhter@hilite.org.

LATE MARCH

MARCH 28

FEB. EARLY/MID APRIL

University of Notre Dame Northwestern University University of Georgia Wesleyan University Vassar College Colgate University University of Virginia Vanderbilt University

Harvard University Brown University Columbia University Cornell University Dartmouth College Princeton University Yale University University of Pennsylvania

University of Michigan Ann-Arbor Haverford College George Washington University College of the Holy Cross University of Richmond Tulane University

MARCH 22, 2019

THE BASKETBALL B ND Students should appreciate the bonding experience that March Madness creates CALEB SHAFFER COLUMN

E

very march, fans come

ship game. I remember sitting in my together for the National Colfriend’s living room on the edge of legiate Athletic Association (NCAA) my seat as Butler narrowly defeated Men’s Division I Basketball TournaFlorida in the Elite Eight 74-71 when ment, otherwise known as Shelvin Mack hit a clutch March Madness. One of my three-pointer in overtime to DID YOU KNOW? favorite parts about this time win the game. of year is how close it brings Another reason I enjoy Coin flipping to me to my peers. I am a naturaltournament season is bedetermine March ly competitive person; I always cause of the excitement surMadness brackets have had a desire to win, and rounding the tournament when I watch March Madness, right before it starts. Whenoutperformed those that competitive spirit is at an ever the official brackets created by experts all-time high. My friends and are released, I spend hours based on analysis.

I usually root for hometown researching analyses and teams such as Indiana, Purodds on which teams have PBS.ORG SOURCE due or Butler throughout the the best chance of winning tournament, and we gather and make my bracket based together on the weekends to support off of those predictions. After I our teams. My favorite March Madmake that bracket, I devise other ness memory so far has been Butler’s methods based off of chance using run to the 2011 National Championmethods like a coin flip. When you

BY THE NUMBERS

MARCH MADNESS SEEDING Learn how different seeds fare against each other in the first round Teams are seeded by the NCAA which determines position and who they play

1st Seed

99.26% (135-1)

2nd Seed 3rd Seed 4th Seed

94.12% (128-8) 84.56% (115-21) 79.41% (108-28)

16th Seed 15th Seed 14th Seed 13th Seed

5th Seed

65.44% (89-47)

12th Seed

6th Seed

62.5% (85-51)

11th Seed

7th Seed

61.76% (84-52)

10th Seed

8th Seed

50.74% (69-67)

9th Seed

GRAY MARTENS GRAPHIC NCAA.COM, BLEACHERREPORT.COM SOURCES

56% of millennials willing to miss a work deadline to watch a March Madness game

14 U.S. cities will be hosting the 2019 NCAA basketball tournament WALLETHUB.COM SOURCE

B-BALL, BABY! make your bracket, you maintain a little sliver of hope that yours could potentially be the perfect bracket— that you predicted every matchup correctly and there’s a chance that you might be psychic. I remember that hope turning into reality when Middle Tennessee State did the impossible and beat the No.2 ranked Michigan State in the tournament.

Despite the many ways that you can determine how the tournament might play out, it is important to remember to enjoy the games and the tournament. A big thing that people do during this time of year is worry so much about what they have invested in tournaments that they forget to enjoy the tournament itself. Basketball is a sport my friends, family and I have a deep love for, and during the month of March, I believe it’s very important to remember that watching NCAA sports is truly about enjoying competition at it’s finest with the peoH ple you care about.

The views in this column do not necessarily reflect the views of the HiLite staff. Reach Caleb Shaffer at cshaffer@hilite.org.

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H E T F S L S O O OR R C A Q&A with freshman Sophia Gilliam, who practices unique branch of gymnastics ANGELA QIAN Q & A VERONICA TEETER PHOTOS MARCH 22, 2019

PRISTINE POSE Sophia Gilliam, rhythmic gymnast and freshman, holds a pose with a ball against her back. According to Gilliam, the sport is scored similarly to a dance competition, and judges award points based on originality, creativity and the elements included in the routine.

There was no more time to make the other people. Also, glitter balls are hard to illustrate.

There was no more time to make the other people. Also, glitter balls are hard to illustrate.

e the other people. Also, glitter balls are hard to

AMAZING APPARATUS

HOOP

Take a look at the different types of equipment and the most common moves rhythmic gymnasts use

BALL

Moves: Throws, catches, bouncing and rolling

RIBBON

Moves: Creating shapes: spirals, circles and snakes

CLUBS

Moves: Rolls, high tosses and passes through and over

Moves: Swinging, throwing and catching

ROBBIE GE GRAPHIC THOUGHTCO SOURCE

Why did you start rhythmic gymnastics?

My mom was born in Russia. (Rhythmic gymnastics was) started in Europe; that’s where it’s most popular. I’ve traveled to Russia, and everyone there (knows) about rhythmic gymnastics. Almost every girl (there) is doing rhythmic gymnastics, so when there was a club in Indiana, my mom heard about it. She wanted me (to join it). It’s the only club in the state, so I started taking it. I didn’t really like it at first, but as I got older, I started to appreciate it more and get better, and it was really fun.

BOLD HOLD (RIGHT) Sophia Gilliam, rhythmic gymnast and freshman, holds an apparatus during a practice.

Gilliam said she began rhythmic gymnastics when she was five years old at the Hamilton County Sports Complex.

What’s your favorite thing about rhythmic gymnastics?

With rhythmic gymnastics, you have a lot of things—we call them apparatus, which is hoop, ball, clubs, rope. You learn new things with what you can do with a hula hoop. It’s really cool. If you have a hula hoop, you can show everyone “Oh, look what I can do.” But I mostly enjoy competing (with my) friends.

Why do you think rhythmic gymnastics isn’t as popular here?

I think it’s (not) as popular, not that people wouldn’t enjoy it. I feel like if it was announced (more), then there would be more people doing it and just like gymnastics, it would be popular. People would love it, but I feel we need to get people (more) aware of the sport because I feel that people just don’t turn on the TV and say, “Ooh, rhythmic gymnastics.”

No, that doesn’t happen, so I just think it’s because people don’t talk about it as much, and like I said, we are the only club in Indiana, so I think that has something to do with it. It should be more popular.

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BRILLIANT HOLD Sophia Gilliam, rhythmic gymnast and freshman, balances a hoop on her hand. Gilliam said her favorite piece of equipment to perform with is the hoop because it is her highest-scoring apparatus.

Katerina Folkin (right), Gilliam’s teammate and freshman at hilite.org/folkin HILITE.ORG

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litebox CHAMPIONSHIP PURSUIT

Andrew Owens, Varsity menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s basketball player and senior, prepares to pass the ball in a game against Bishop Dwenger High School on Feb. 22. The final score was CHS 54, Bishop Dwenger 24. The varsity team will compete in State tomorrow at Bankers Life Fieldhouse at 8 p.m.

ANJALI NATARAJAN PHOTO

MARCH 22, 2019