April 2023 Hawk

Effects of cannabis among students considered, implications on health discussed

Pages 7-9 Hendrickson High School 19201 Colorado Sand Drive Pflugerville. Texas 78660 Volume 16, Issue 6 April 14, 2023

In this In this Issue...

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4-5

UIL, One Act, Debate

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Nutrition & Health

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Bechdel Movies

2 Our Turn School day disrupted by drug usage in bathroom Opinions Volume 16, Issue 6

Eliana Grant | Reporter If you have been a high school student long enough, no doubt you have noticed the increasing precautions schools take to prevent teens from smoking in the bathrooms. They use a solid mixture between locking doors completely to propping them open, two sides of the same coin which seem to have little to no effect on actual students besides making them try to find a completely different bathroom if it is locked. This I can attest to has been a major inconvenience for myself and other students, for seemingly little actual prevention of drug use.

As most teens have experienced, at s o m e point you may walk into the school r e s t rooms and take i n the unpleasant s m e l l of vapes or marijuana, or even other groups of teens sitting around glaring at you for walking in on them. For me, this has happened more times than I can count. It’s always the same story; you walk into a rest room, walk past the stalls, and there at the end of the bathroom around the handicapped accessible stall is a group of teenagers judgmentally glaring at you for daring to interrupt them for just wanting to use the bathroom.

While this is a n uncomfortable but common experience, it is generally a more positive thing to walk in and see rather than to approach the door and realize it is locked. This creates an incredible negative in your day. Going all throughout the school just to find a door that’s open is inconvenient for students, and while it may prevent smoking, it also prevents easy rest room usage, something which everyone should be entitled to.

On the other hand, the bathroom door is also often fixed open, reducing your feelings of privacy and safety as you go to the bathroom while everyone outside of it can hear and smell everything that occurs, which I believe most teens can agree is less than favorable. In these instances I have heard of students either going to find a different bathroom, which creates the same problem as having it locked, or they actually use the rest room with incredible anxiety as to what people passing by may possibly hear or even that they may look inside. This is a clear violation of privacy for the student body and is all caused by the school trying to

prevent students from smoking.

The most unfortunate thing I have been subject to, however, was during a lunch period in my freshman year. I had gotten up from my lunch table to go to the rest room, and when I walked in it was immediately noticeable that kids had been vaping. The sickening sweet smell mixed with a putrid smokey odor disturbed me, but I carried on and went into a stall.

Right before I was about to exit the stall, however, I heard a female teacher’s voice yelling into the rest room asking if someone was vaping, and proceeding to order everyone out of the bathroom. I barely had time to get myself together and wash my hands before they had lined everyone up against the cafeteria wall as we got to watch everyone, including my friends, walk past and whisper asking what was going on. We were taken into G hall and lined up, then taken into a room with two security guards, where they inspected our bags and separated us from the group if we had vapes.

I didn’t have a vape, and was able to continue on my way to class, however this is a very clear example of the annoyance and hassle that kids smoking in rest rooms puts other students into.

The irritation of walking into a bathroom with people smoking not only comes from the smell, or being glared at by others, but also from the fear that if these kids are caught, you will also be taken and inspected, creating an overall messy ordeal for everyone involved who simply needed to use the bathroom.

In the end, students smoking in the bathroom, a well as the ineffective ways that the school goes about trying to prevent this is incredibly inconvenient and makes an overall unpleasant experience whenever you step out of a classroom to go to the bathroom. I certainly wouldn’t say my experience with the school officers and having my bag checked was awful, or a bad thing overall, but the rampant usage of marijuana and vapes in the bathroom, and how the school deals with that, does create tension and incredible discomfort when you’re just trying to go about your day.

Illustration by | Eliana Grant

Hit or Miss Barren classrooms cause concern for student content Though students spend most of their lives in them, schools are often compared to prison buildings, and many of these comparisons are not wrong. Many classrooms have an absence of windows, color, comfort, or any sort of identifiable object that brings joy. Though the layout of the school is mostly attributed to building designers, many of the ways rooms are decorated are a result of a lack of focus on making classrooms comfortable for students, teachers, and administrators who have to spend eight or more hours a day in. Many studies have been done on the effectiveness of comfortable classrooms on students’ learning - the more students feel relaxed, the more likely they will be able to focus on schoolwork.

A lot of the time, though, students find it difficult to come to school if it feels too much like a foreign environment. Unfortunately, many teachers do not have the money out-of-pocket to spend on beautifying their classrooms. If the district invested more into teachers and administrators being able to make classrooms more comfortable places to learn, schools could gain tremendous amounts of money from an increase in attendance, and maybe an increase in grades and graduation rates.

With no changes, the classrooms that are undecorated and not comfortable in school are a miss.

Locking bathrooms inconveniences students

Smoking in the school grounds is an ongoing problem. There isn’t a single bathroom you can step into without being bombarded by the stench of weed. The school has acknowledged this issue, but the implemented solutions to minimize smoking on school grounds is less helpful than it is annoying.

Certain bathrooms are locked during school hours to prevent smoking. In theory, it seems like it could work but it really only serves as a nuisance to students trying to go to the restroom.

Students walk through the halls, bathroom to bathroom, hoping to find an open one. With this, they wind up missing part of class. With regards to smoking, it does nothing to stop it. The few bathrooms that are open become smoking hot spots.

Students pack into stalls together, creating a line of students who actually need to use the restroom.

While the issues are a product of smokers at school, locking the doors is of no help. Therefore, it is a miss.

Retraction The People’s Choice in Next Top Hawk was not Nigel Norman representing Science Olympiad, but Nicholas Nopper representing ROTC.

Opinions April 14, 2023

Your Turn “I feel like social media effects the way teenagers feel they need to diet because they see all these different types of models and want their bodies to look like that. They believe everything that the internet says, but in reality it’s a lot more work to diet than to just accept your body and be happy with yourself.”

- Ariana Smith, 11 “Too much social media can make people think fake becomes reality and so it can mess with people’s minds and they think they need to do or feel certain things others feel. Put down your phone and hang out with others for 7once.” - Michael Grebb, Principal “Social media has a tendency to portray a lot of what we think we need to be with how modeling looks nowadays. There’s always a push to the need to be skinnier and it brings a lot of issues for growing girls and boys.”

- Ashes Arrieta, 10 “I feel overweight when I see other people on social media with perfect ideal bodies since I don’t have their ideal figure. But since it’s just social media, I don’t let that get to me.” Andrew Rocha, 10 “Dieting is like a beauty standard that some people may not be able to attain so it can create a lot of negativity for people’s confidence because when they are seeing others going on diets and glorifying it, then they can get insecure about it because it’s the unattainable body they don’t have.”

- Natalia Flores, 11

Staff Editorial Social media leads to methods of unhealthy dieting With an increase in the use of social media and trends, health has become a flourishing subject. When the world went into lockdown because of COVID-19, the habit of exercising daily and eating healthy was advertised by many influencers. Routines were created for their followers that would “get them in shape for after quarantine.” With this, “diet culture” was reawakened.

“Diet culture” refers to the belief of thinness being prioritized over health and nutrition, or overall wellness. It centers around calories and unhealthy dieting that can lead to a deprivation of nutrients. The constant promotion of unhealthy diets has normalized eating disorders and self-deprecation.

Additionally, s o m e influencers have b e g u n promoting ways of losing w e i g h t t h r o u g h unsafe methods such as cutting calories, skipping meals, and excessively exercising.

Social media is based on algorithms— meaning the content that is viewed is based on the content that is shared and liked, or interacted with.

People continue to interact with content creators that promote unhealthy or toxic ways to diet.

The main way that dieting is being promoted is through stopping overall food intake. They claim that in order to lose weight people must exercise more and eat less. In reality, it is important to simply watch what kind of food is being consumed rather than the amount of exercise that is being done and how much you eat. As you exercise more and burn calories, the body responds with a need for more calories, whereas if you eat sufficient calories and burn excess, the body is able to maintain a healthy balance.

Additionally, with body image becoming an overall “trend” on social media, teenagers with lower levels of self-esteem are prone to developing eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia. Content creators may be subconsciously promoting these disorders to their audiences through advertising “appetite suppressants” or other supplements that serve

to decrease hunger. Orthorexia is a newly found type of eating disorder developed due to obsession with healthy foods. The line between promoting healthy dieting and developing eating disorders has become incredibly blurred, relating the cause of these disorders directly to food and weight loss.

Wellness influencers are usually underqualified to promote wellness advice in the first place. The health that they promote is closely related to appearance rather than nutrition, which usually deals with weight.

In order to actively promote healthy dieting, it is evident to promote qualified influencers through the algorithm. There are ways to spot unethical influencers that spread misinformation: they constantly post ads and promotions of products, copy other content, lack qualification, and misrepresent research.

Those who should be trusted are those who show their resources and mention qualified doctors or nutritionists.

Another way to avoid misinformation through

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Hendrickson High School 19201 Colorado Sand Drive Pflugerville, TX 78660 http://www.pfisd.net/HHS (512) 594-1100 Student Population: 2,134 Staff: 180 Adviser: Kari Riemer Principal: Michael Grebb www.facebook.com/HawkNewspaper

The Hawk, the official student newspaper of Hendrickson High School, is an open forum for the exchange of ideas and opinions.

Opinions expressed reflect the beliefs of the student author and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the entire Hawk Staff, the Hawk Adviser, the Hendrickson Faculty and Staff, or the Principal.

Letters to the editor are welcomed, and may be dropped off in E211. Corrections will be printed when brought to the attention of the staff.

The Hawk is printed monthly at Community Impact in Pflugerville, Texas. 1,000 copies are printed each run, and are distributed to the student body for free before school on publication day and on newsstands throughout the building.

Editorial Staff Editors

Co-Editors: Yael Behar, Kaitlyn Nash, Natalia Zavaleta Copy Editor: Lili Moran Assistant Editors: Jasper Johst, Kate Hayes

Reporters Savannah Brewer Rachel Calabuig Eliana Grant Delaney Hildebrandt Gigi Hirsch Sophia Johst Damo Kouakou Kamryn Mack Lily Miller Emily Rodriguez Elise Villa Levi Walters

Artists

influencers is doing your own research.

There are many resources available online that are trustworthy. Planning meals ahead and generally choosing healthy foods instead of processed ones are good rules of thumb when it comes to healthy nutrition, eating when your body tells you to eat, and balancing nutrition and exercising.

As far as exercise goes, there are many other benefits besides weight loss. Exercise has proven to help with sleep and energy as well as focus. Over time, exercise helps with building muscle and strength as well as maintaining a constant weight.

Social media has created the false sense that nutrition is directly tied to weight loss, which in turn is tied to overall appearance.

Numbers on a scale should not be put above wellness and nutrition. Health is a puzzle that is composed of many pieces, none which should be ignored to please an unrealistic societal standard.

Illustration by | Yael Behar

Yael Behar Eliana Grant

Associations Interscholastic Press League Texas Association of Journalism Educators Journalism Educators Association National Scholastic Press Association Columbia Scholastic Press League

Honors

ILPC Bronze Star 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 ILPC Silver Star 2021 Columbia Scholastic Press League, Gold Medalist 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021 Silver Crown, 2017, 2018, 2021 Pacemaker Finalist, 2018

Illustration by Yael Behar

News Volume 16, Issue 6

4 Speech and Debate team makes waves at state tournament

Kaitlyn Nash | Photographer Junior Cecilia Acosta reacts to placing 5th in Informative Speaking at States. “The whole thing felt kind of surreal,” Acosta said. “I had never envisioned making it that far, but I was really thankful for the opportunity to share my speech with so many people.”

Kaitlyn Nash | Co-Editor Every year, the Texas Forensic Association holds their annual state tournament. This year, the Hawk Speech and Debate team was able to travel to Houston for this tournament.

Around 17 students qualified for this competition by racking up 10 points from competing in tournaments all year round. Usually, a competitor must get to the semi-final or final rounds at tournaments to get points to make it to

Jasper Johst | Asst. Editor The recent production of Urinetown by the Hawk Drama team has sparked remarkable attention from the Heller Awards for Young Artists (HAYA.) HAYA works to reward and congratulate young artists for exceptional performances in school productions.

The nominations were held on March 5, and several performers from the Urinetown cast and crew were selected.

“I was not expecting to get nominated at all,” junior Ian Vizcarra said. “I got nominated for Best Featured Ensemble.

I was extremely surprised to see my name pop up on the screen.”

The cast of Urinetown watched the HAYA nomination awards together, showing their support for each other.

“My first reaction to being nominated for Best Supporting Actress was [pure]

shock,” junior Presley Copeland said.

“I was in the middle of hugging Kyra [Carr], who had just gotten her name called for a nomination, [when] I looked at the screen and saw my name was on there. I was really excited and hugged all of my friends.”

The practice and adoration that goes into a performer’s role is critical, according to junior Addi Villegas.

“I think as long as you love what you’re doing and put in hard work and dedication, you will have a great performance,” Villegas said. “I was just fortunate enough to have that [passion] be recognized by the HAYAs.” The motivation for winning differs among performers.

“I motivate myself to [win] with the thought of becoming someone that the drama kids could look up to,” senior Kyra Carr said. “There’s a few alumni

the state competition.

“I have a lot of friends on the local circuit who I see every couple of weekends, but it was nice to branch out and meet kids from San Antonio, Dallas, and even areas as far as El Paso,” sophomore Waleed Haider said.

Multiple competitors were able to break, or advance, to non-preliminary rounds. Senior Shauri Yedavalli and junior Isaiah Duvvuri were able to break to Double Octofinals in Cross Examination (CX) debate. Junior Izzy Crim and Duvvuri broke to Informative Speaking Quarterfinals.

Junior Maya Hay broke to Domestic Extemp Quarterfinals.

“I was very nervous until the round actually started, but then I kind of relaxed because I’ve been there before so the nerves kind of settled down,” Duvvuri said. “One thing I would change about my performance at TFA state would be making the edits to our affirmative case before the Double Elimination round, because then we probably would have been in a better spot going into it.”

However, there were only three finalists on the Speech and Debate team at state. Junior Cecilia Acosta broke to finals in Informative Speaking, junior Johnpaul Buwule broke to finals in Original Oratory finals, and Haider broke to International Extemp finals and Congressional Debate finals.

“I was honestly really surprised,” Haider said. “I didn’t go into the tournament with huge expectations.

I just wanted to give my best speeches round to round, and I was happy that it came out with a good result. It was

a really fun experience overall, because both rounds had huge audiences and I was able to land even the worst jokes.”

None of the students who made it to the final rounds are seniors, which means they still have years to come to polish their skills.

“I did amazing,” Buwule said. “There’s like 116 competitors and I broke to finals. It was so exciting because as a junior, accomplishing that is a really big thing.”

However, TFA state wasn’t just about the competition for the students who went. They also were able to spend a considerable amount of time together.

“I really enjoyed being able to go to Houston with all my friends,” Duvvuri said. “We had a really good time on the bus ride. We had wonderful meals. We went to this one really good Persian place. We’ve really bonded over the course of the year.”

Of course, this is not the end for the Speech and Debate team. Both Buwule and Haider still have a TOC (Tournament of Champions) competition on April 14-17. Not only that, but the National Speech and Debate Association hosts their national tournament in June, in which many of the same competitors will be competing, this time in Phoenix, Arizona.

“I’m going to be going to two major tournaments during the rest of the year,” Haider said. “First, I’ll be going to the Tournament of Champions in the University of Kentucky, in late April, and then after that, I’ll be spending the rest of the year really practicing for NSDA nationals, which is at the start of summer.”

in our department that make me think ‘Wow. They’re so cool and talented.’ I want underclassmen to hear my name and think [the same].”

The nominees don’t find out if they have won until April 19, when the awards ceremony is scheduled to occur.

“I’m just happy that I’ll be at the awards because it’s super fun,” senior Tori Ybarra said. “Plus, it’s an honor to be recognized along with all the other talented artists in my category. We [all] strive to put on a good show.”

Until the date of the awards ceremony arrives, the nominees will wait in anticipation.

“It was a blessing to have such amazing cast mates, tech crew members, and directors,” Carr said. “[They] helped make my last high school musical my best one yet.”

Kaitlyn Nash | Photographer Junior Ian Vizcarra and senior Tori Ybarra perform at opening night for Urinetown. “We never think about nominations and stuff,” Ybarra said. “We just strive to put on a good show.”

HAYA nominees reflect on success, process of awards

News April 14, 2023

5

Lip Dub hosted again after many years Yael Behar | Co-Editor After many months of preparation, both before and after filming, the audio visual (AV) and animation team will release the final cut of this year’s Lip Dub. Sporting a much lengthier song catalog, extensive post production, and animation, this Lip Dub is the most ambitious in the school’s history.

“Our plans for this year’s Lip Dub was to take it to another level not yet seen or done by other schools,” AV teacher Ashley Sullivan said. “[Post production] this year is not really a lot of editing, but without giving away too much, I guess we can say that there will be some special effects involved.”

Lip Dubs were a popular trend for bigger schools in the early 2010s, where staff and students alike would gather together for a choreographed walk through school with music to lip sync to. The trend generally faded, but the AV team is hoping that this year’s higher production value will rejuvenate school spirit. “[The Lip Dub] is basically a school collaboration where we showcase school spirit,” AV student senior Lorelei Winnek said. “This year, we’ve gotten more organized. We have so many more organizations this year - everyone’s included, and we have more choreography for each song.”

The Lip Dub has always been a relatively involved project, with hundreds of students participating in the 2016 Lip Dub - this year, however, record amounts of students have participated.

Clubs and organizations have their own choreographed sections. Marching band, several sport teams, Hawk

Journalism, National Honor Society, and Unified Champions compose just a fraction of the participating groups “Since the last Lip Dub, we’ve almost doubled the amount of songs involved, and way more groups are able to be represented,” Sullivan said. “A lot of planning has gone into this Lip Dub. Post production is especially long; three weeks at least. Honestly, the real reason it’s going to take this long is because we only meet every other day, and it’s a collective effort to keep putting together the rest of the pieces.”

This year is the first year that animation has a substantial part in the dub, with multiple scenes containing animation alongside the singers. This addition is the longest part of post production, as animators have to draw and color each frame.

“Due to time constraints, [the animation team] is rotoscoping as much of our animation as possible to save on timing,” animation teacher Brian Westerfield said. “Each scene takes a long time to make, but we’ve started early to speed up the process.

After that, it’s a lot of clean up work.”

Both the AV and animation teams hope that this year’s Lip Dub will outdo previous ones in terms of quality, and that it will inspire future involvement as a result.

“I think there are a lot of people who like to see it come back every year, which I am okay with as long as school involvement keeps up,” Sullivan said.

“It takes more than just us to make a lip dub. With the right planning and the right school involvement, the Lip Dub can happen every year.”

Zabella Ramon | Photographer Students crowd the cafeteria for the final section of the Lip Dub. “[This year’s Lip Dub] is going to be so much better than the ones we’ve done in the past.,” junior Robert Johnson said. “It’s gonna show more, it’s more planned out.”

Silver Dancers prepare for Spring Show Kamryn Mack | Reporter The annual Dance Spring Show is taking place this April, from the 28 to the 29. The event will be held in the Performing Arts Center after school, and participating dance students will be performing their routines. Each ticket costs $10 to attend the performance.

“There are Silver Dancers [performing], and [the show] also includes our surrounding middle schools and our dance department as well,” dance teacher Baleigh Simmons said. “Our theme for the show is the 1920s, to honor the 20th anniversary of the Silver Dancers.”

The preparation process for this show varies between the different dance classes. The Silver Dancers have been learning their choreography for months, yet other dance classes may be in the early stages of their

performances. Regardless, the dance teachers are committed to teaching the routines and adequately preparing their classes for the Spring Show.

“Some dance classes start after spring break, but each dance class will learn a routine that’s a minute and a half long,” Simmons said. “We’ll clean up [the routine], and polish it, and then we’ll set it on the stage.

Same thing for the Silver Dancers, they’ve just known their dances a little bit longer. And we’ve spent more time with them [learning the dances] since the beginning of the year.”

Simmon hopes that the show can run smoothly.

“I hope that lighting and all the extra things we put into our shows can go seamlessly well,” Simmons said. “And, of course, all of our dancers and participants have fun.”

UIL Choir team takes home Sweepstakes Rachel Calabuig | Reporter With bated breath, the Junior Varsity Treble and Tenor-Bass choirs wait in the bus for their results after their choral competition at another high school. Brandon Baker, the choir director, waits in the school to hear how they did. When he announces that JV Treble had earned the highest award and that TenorBass had earned the second highest award, they erupt in excitement.

Over the course of two days spanning March 7-8, the choir program went to the University Interscholastic League (UIL) high school choir competition held at Georgetown High School. On the first day, the Tenor-Bass and Junior Varsity (JV) Treble choirs performed their concert music and sight-read new music for the judges and on the second day, it was Varsity Treble and Varsity Mixed choirs’ turns to compete. Varsity Mixed, JV and Varsity Treble choirs earned Sweepstake and Tenor-Bass earned a Superior.

“Since I’m not just speaking for myself but for everyone that was in JV [treble choir), it was kind of a shock because I guess JV [treble] doesn’t [usually get the highest choral award that UIL offers],” JV Treble choir member and senior Mackenzie McCollister said. “So it’s a huge

thing [for us] to earn Sweepstakes.”

The requirements for performing in UIL was that each choir in a school’s choral program had to learn and memorize three songs each selected by the choir director from the UILapproved list of songs and sight-read a new song in front of three judges.

“It’s a lot of hard work and constantly doing the same thing [preparing for it],” McCollister said.

“You have to be very focused, [be] in the moment [by not letting distractions mess you up, and] just always being ready to work.”

In order to earn Sweepstakes, Varsity Mixed, JV and Varsity Treble had to earn ones across the board for their UIL concert performances and Sightreading portions.

“Performing in UIL was definitely nerve racking, but also a lot of fun,” Stiba said. “Mr. Baker and Mr. Taylor worked really hard to get us there. It was hard work and tiring, but definitely worth it.”

Traugott and Yeidel both agreed with Stiba that preparing for the UIL competition was stressful but paid off in the end.

“When we were given our scores, the entire bus erupted into excited screaming,” Traugott said. “We were all ecstatic because we’d worked so hard.”

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News Volume 16, Issue 6

Political Parley

Biden administration approves construction for Willow Project Lilianna Moran | Copy Editor Despite intensive efforts of environmentalists and recent social media campaigns to thwart it, the Biden administration approved construction for the Willow Project, a massive oil operation, on March 13.

"For years, the United States has been looking for alternative sources of oil,” AP Environmental science teacher Charlene Mitchell said. “The idea is that they want to rely less on foreign oil and get oil on their own, so we won't have to pay all these fees. The project would bring a ridiculous amount of oil to the market, granted it will take a long time before we reap the benefits of the Willow Project because they have to construct everything."

The project was proposed by the oil company ConocoPhillips, and initially permitted by the Trump administration in 2020. Willow’s plan is to establish a large-scale oil drilling site on Alaska’s North Slope in the National Petroleum Reserve. The project originally aimed to install five drilling pads under the Trump administration, however, the Biden administration ultimately

reduced those pads to three, allowing the company to drill 90% of its intended oil--600 million barrels (CNN.) "It's sad but I'm not surprised,” Mitchell said. “The Biden administration had their hands tied because they had to follow up on what the Trump Administration did. If they would have put more blockages in the way of this company, they'd (ConocoPhillips) press charges on the government. It's sad what it's going to mean for the environment. But I do understand that they're trying to reduce foreign oil."

Although this minimization of the national dependence on foreign oil will bring benefits to the US economy and national security, the environmental impacts are not to be overlooked.

"The reason it's such a problem is that it's nearly a billion barrels of oil, it's a

ridiculous amount,” Mitchell said.

“That means we don't need to rely on foreign oil. However, that's also nearly a million tons of carbon that will be e m i t t e d once they've started, which is a massive issue."

If the project generates its estimated 600 million barrels of oil, an equivalent of 277 million tons of carbon dioxide will likewise be produced (Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.) With this immense amount of carbon emissions comes a slew of complications regarding climate change and the deterioration of the ozone layer, a section of the Earth’s stratosphere that is essential in protecting against the bulk of the sun’s ultraviolet radiation.

“Right now the ozone layer has holes in it,” Mitchell said. “The ozone layer is not something solid, it's fluid, and it's moving. And so, when we have holes, as time surpasses, and we're not compounding what's causing those holes, they will shrink in size.

What I would imagine if we're letting a million tons of carbon out into the atmosphere, is that those holes will become irreparable. They will get larger, which means then global warming is going to take a massive tick upwards. Oceans are going to warm, ice glaciers are going to melt, tides are going to rise, and then it's just a cascade from there on."

It is still unclear when construction for the project is to begin, as environmentalist groups continue to attempt to block the progression of the operation.

"It's one of those things where it's really tough,” Mitchell said. “They're trying to give us domestic oil, which would reduce prices. We wouldn't have to be importing things, we wouldn't have those gatherings of all the OPEC nations in terms of figuring out prices, and all the conflict that comes with that. But in my opinion, I would say maintaining that tumultuous relationship with those foreign countries that run the oil trade is the lesser of the two evils to climate change."

Illustration by | Yael Behar

UIL Academic Team sweeps District One Act Play advances to regionals Levi Walters | Reporter

With winter coming to a close, the One Act Play competition season is just beginning.

“The students are the ones directing this year,” co-director Michael Fisher said. “They changed the system.”

The One Act Play is part of the UIL UIL Academics contest that happens every spring, where students select and perform a play less than forty minutes long.

Last year's One Act Play made it all the way to Area, though this year they hope to reach even greater heights.

This year's One Act Play is called The Caucasian Chalk Circle, which is about a period of economic instability wherein a poor woman finds a child and decides, against her better judgment, to rear the child as her own in the face of adversity and financial struggles. This show was picked in celebration of the school’s 20th anniversary.

“Caucasian Chalk Circle was the first One Act Play ever to be done at

Hendrickson back in 2004,” Fisher said “So it’s kind of a “book end” of that time period for the program.”

Hendrickson's One Act Play team placed in the top three teams at District, and went on to compete in Area at Bastrop High School.

“The Area competition went very well, it was our best show yet,” Fisher says “We were competing against some of the Houston suburb schools, and many of them have been to State before, so the competition was tough.”

But that didn’t stop the department from advancing. There are six other groups that they will be competing against at Regionals at San Jacinto College on April 21.

“We’re taking a different approach this year in that wer'e trying to allow the show to be driven by students.”

Fisher said. “I think that’s why we’ve gotten to where we are, with the teamwork of everybody involved.”

Rachel Calabuig | Reporter The weeks and months leading up to the UIL District competition were filled with preparation and practices in order for the UIL Academics Team could do their very best.

The District UIL Academics competition was held at the school from Friday, March 24 to Saturday, March 25, where the UIL Academics Team won District Champion and earned the Sweepstakes plaque.

“I was really proud of them, especially as the day went on and they won more and more [events],” Journalism teacher Kari Riemer said. “I think this is one of our best ever showings at District. I’m glad their hard work paid off.”

What Rieer refers to is the amount of time and effort competitors spent preparing for their events.

“To prepare, I had to learn the rules of the event, and then I had to write and prepare two cases on the pro and the con,” junior Ava Lambert said. “That was probably the hardest part because finding evidence for the cases takes a while [when preparing for the Lincoln-Douglas debate].”

The preparation and studying paid off based on the results which showed that team beat the runner-up, Georgetown High School, by more than double the points.

“This is the third year in a row we have won the 5A District Championship

(there was no district meet in 2020),” UIL Coordinator and debate coach Kirsten Nash said in an email to teachers. “As a team, our students captured seven Team and 14 Individual District Championship titles.”

The seven teams who earned Championship titles include Journalism coached by Riemer, Speech coached by Nash, Aly Mithani and Mike Fisher, Computer Science coached by Terri Thompson, Current Issues and Events coached by Nash and Mithani, Literary Criticism coached by Jordan Smith, Number Sense coached by T.J. Johnson, and Science coached by Tim Bayliss.

“All the science teachers I’ve had over the last couple of years have been a reason for my success this year,” senior Rudolf Bendixen said. “But Mr. Bayliss has been an especially strong influence, not only because of his skills as a Biology teacher, but because of his dedication to the team as our coach.”

Junior Kate Hayes earned the most points out of all the competitors who earned points in multiple events. In fact, she even earned four District Championship titles.

“I didn’t believe it,” Hayes said. “I quickly realized [that] as I kept placing [in my events] as they announced [the results]. I got a great deal of satisfaction [out of that].”

Feature April 14, 2023

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Up In Smoke Cannabis usage among teens drastically increases, could cause health implications Lilianna Moran | Copy Editor Natalia Zavaleta | Co-Editor In the past three years, marijuana abuse in teens has increased exponentially. Columbia University reports that more teens are smoking nowadays than drinking. With an increase in tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) vape pens and other disposable marijuana vapes, it is more likely for teenagers to smoke carelessly, which in turn increases the likelihood of addiction and decreases lung and heart health in teenagers.

“The feeling to begin with, and encouraging that feeling is what makes it addicting,” health teacher Carol Peterson said. “So some people are self medicating.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), smoking marijuana can cause damage to lung tissues and small blood vessels. This can lead to an increased risk of bronchitis and excessive mucus production.

“We’ve seen some cases of popcorn lung,” Peterson said. “Some studies show that it might cause more severe and long-lasting symptoms of COVID.” While popcorn lung is not cancer, it refers to a type of lung disease that causes shortness of breath due to its blockage of air pathways in the lungs.

Additionally, marijuana has been shown to affect all aspects of the brain.The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) argues that the long-term effects of marijuana are dependent on the age of the user, t h e

frequency with which they use the drug, the duration of use, and the genetics and home environment of the user. Additionally, the CDC highlights THC

concentrations in cannabis as another important factor in determining the drug's impact on the brain.

“It reacts differently to different people because there are some people who can

tolerate i t , ” Pe t e r s o n said. “The majority of people use it as a sedative because it relaxes.

In a few people it is actually a stimulant, it gets you going. And then in a very rare

number it’s a hallucinogen, where they actually see things that aren’t there.”

The American Psychological Association (APA) adds to these findings, as they suggest the heavy employment of cannabis on developing brains carries more risks. The brain does not reach full development until an individual's mid-twenties, leaving the brain especially vulnerable to damage from drug exposure. The frontal cortex— the area vital for judgment, reasoning, and personality— is the last section in the brain to fully mature. This means it’s more susceptible to the effects of heavy drug use for a longer duration than other regions of the brain.

“With COVID and all the anxiety, marijuana tends to help relax,” Peterson said. “It relaxes you to the point where you don’t really feel energized to do anything.”

This topic still requires more research to definitively answer marijuana’s long-term effects on body function. However, excessive usage of any cognitively disrupting drug as an adolescent is likely to hold some lasting impact on the body’s ability to properly operate.

Yael Behar | Artist

CBD oil offers safer alternative to marijuana

Savannah Brewer | Reporter CBD oil has been used since the mid-1900’s as a soothing liquid for a variety of different ailments, ones that could stem from either physical or mental health. It is derived from a common cannabis sativa plant, a name that most students would know as marijuana. CBD oil, however, only extracts the medically beneficial properties of marijuana needed to help people or patients, making it legal in all 50 states.

“A lot of science says CBD is helpful in lots of different things, such as pain or anxiety,” EMT instructor Shay Haude said. “It uses the benefits of marijuana without being affected by the actual THC impairment.”

Although Haude does agree there

are benefits from the usage of CBD oil, people who need to do a drug test for any reason would not be in luck, as the oil can still register as positive on a drug test, even if you have not been in contact with any marijuana.

“Some people rub the oil into their arms, while some ingest it.

Ingesting can sometimes test positive on a regular drug test,” Haude said.

CBD oil can also help those with troubled minds, such as those who struggle with severe anxiety or even symptoms of depression. The relief that the oil brings is quick and immense, bringing serene, clear waters to a mind that usually has waves upon waves of mental health struggles strung upon it.

“I’ve seen the effects of CBD helping

mental health for sure, anxiety being the number one thing,” Haude said.

“It’s definitely not a miracle drug, but it’s something to consider as an alternative to more standard care.”

CBD oil does not affect the body negatively in Haude’s experience, unless one would count it not passing drug tests at times when ingested. It instead can help to sooth joints, to give someone a sense of calm in the midst of their anxious mind, or even help someone to fall asleep. Although it won’t work for everyone, CBD oil can help with numerous bodily problems that a number of people in the world experience on a daily basis. Even if the oil does not work for everyone, even the mere thought of ingesting it and it helping your

body can affect you in a positive way.

“Honestly, if the CBD oil doesn’t work and only the placebo effect does, that’s awesome,” Haude said. “One of my kids had a lot of anxiety when she was young and would be very hard to deal with, and she became a lot calmer when she started to take her CBD oil.”

CBD oil can be used for minors and adults alike, soothing whatever the person in need needs help with in their life at the time.

Since there are no ‘psychedelic’ effects inside of the oil, there is no need to worry if a child uses it.

“There isn’t any difference between adults and children using CBD oil,” Haude said. “Because it doesn’t have the necessarily bad things that would hurt children.”

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Feature Volume 16, Issue 6

Up In S

Cannabis usage on campus among students poses problems Lilianna Moran | Copy Editor

According to Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU), adolescent cannabis misuse has increased dramatically since 2000-roughly 245%. In addition to this influx, the development and recent popularization of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) vape pens, has made uncovering this usage much more of a challenge.

“In years prior, you had to burn the marijuana so, you had to have a lighter, it would smell, and it could even set off a fire alarm,” principal Michael Grebb said. “Now, the THC vapes are less odorous.”

THC-containing vapes were first introduced in the early 2000’s and quickly came to replace joints among

adolescents. In fact, a study conducted by the National Institute on Drug Abuse in 2019 recorded that vaping marijuana among high schoolers had over doubled within two years, as traditional forms of the drug, along with cigarettes, continued to decline.

“We’re a drug-free zone at school, so that’s a prohibited item,” Grebb said.

“It’s a problem because I think it leads to truancy, it leads to skipping classes and walking off campus. The health ramifications are also huge, especially for developing adolescents. So, we don’t want them to have problems after they leave here.”

In addition to these products’ concealed smell and different scents, the heavy utilization of the bathroom

as a place to smoke adds to the difficulty in catching students.

“The bathrooms are usually the main area [students use marijuana] because you can go into a stall and obviously, we can’t watch you,” Grebb said. “So, the privacy factor allows some students to choose to smoke.”

With the emergence of these new problems, the school has been employing a variety of solutions to reduce both skipping and drug use on campus.

“We’ve tried to prop the bathroom doors, and we’re trying to patrol the bathrooms a little more frequently,” Grebb said. “We’re looking for other ways to help limit the activity going on in school because we do feel bad

when the bathroom smells and other kids want to use it. They might not want to go into the bathroom because it smells like marijuana.”

Grebb encourages students to stay away from the drug and these new devices for the benefit of their academic success, health, and future.

“Overall, just don’t do it,” Grebb said. “Don’t get involved in it because we don’t even know the long-term effects of vaping. It’s so new. We don’t know what some of the chemicals are that they put in some of the products or where it’s coming from. We don’t know what the damages could be.

They could be long-lasting and you won’t find out ‘til you’re older.”

School enforces consequences for using illicit substances on campus Sophia Johst| Copy Editor

Smoking on campus is prohibited and it’s generally assumed the consequences of such actions are serious. The specific repercussions following the possession or usage of marijuana or tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) on school grounds are not known by many. It is essential to understand the consequences of these illegal behaviors in order to prevent future usage or stop current activities involving drugs on campus. One immediate result of possessing THC or marijuana on school grounds is an automatic mandatory placement in the OC (Opportunity Center).

“Normally, if we catch someone and determine that it’s THC or marijuana, we suspend the student for three days so we can investigate and fact check the situation,” Grebb said. “Then we have a placement conference to determine if we will send them to the DAEP.”

Disciplinary alternative education program (DAEP) is an additional consequence and form of rehabilitation for troubled students. The program is an alternative to regular classes for students who have violated Student Code of Conduct.

“We also do a citation, or the SROs will, and decide if the student will have to do community service or volunteering of some sort,” Grebb said.

While the consequences of obtaining drugs on campus are serious, that is not to say students can’t come back from it and redirect their future.

“You can definitely come back from it,” Grebb said. “A lot of times, when kids go to the OC or another program their grades go up because it’s a little more controlled environment without the distractions of a huge high school.”

It is imperative to recognize the effects of illegal actions on campus,

but it is also crucial to acknowledge the factors that lead to a student using drugs. Mental health and peer pressure seem to be the leading contributor to teenage drug use.

“Sometimes drugs are used to numb or mask feelings or mental health issues such as anxiety or depression,” school social worker Lori Carl said.

“It seems like a lot of times there are groups of students together in the bathrooms that are smoking together, and the pressure to do what the group of friends is doing can be strong.”

Mental health struggles and peer pressure can nudge students down a detrimental path that, in some cases, can damage physical health and have permanent effects.

“Many of these substances are not regulated and students can inhale and ingest things that can cause long term issues including death,” Carl said.

“There are some students that do not

feel as though they can cope without smoking during the school day. Those are the students that I would like to work with to seek help to find other healthy and legal ways to cope with stress or mental health issues.”

The core of the issue is addiction.

A decent amount of students punished for carrying drugs are unable to go a full school day without smoking, hence the use of drugs in the school bathrooms. In order to get smoking on school grounds under control, the root of the issue, addiction and struggles with mental health, need to be addressed.

“If you feel you are experiencing mental health issues or illness please talk to your school social worker or counselor for help,” Carl said. “We care deeply about our students and want all students to feel safe and enjoy a drug free environment.”

How to quit Kaitlyn Nash | Co-Editor Identify your triggers and how to deal with them. These triggers could be parties, marijuana paraphernalia, or certain friends.

Have a conversation with your friends and family about what your triggers are and how you would like them to support you in your journey Surround yourself only with people supportive

of your anti-drug journey. People who aren’t supportive aren’t friends.

Get ready for the withdrawal symptoms and prepare. Some symptoms include insomnia, anger or aggression, and anxiety Find a weed replacement. Some emotional replacements could be yoga or finding a new hobby. If you use marijuana for quelling aliments,

ginger can be used to quell upset stomachs, Valerian root can help with anxiety and insomnia, and ibuprofen or acetaminophen are common pain relievers.

Going cold turkey can be hard. If the resources are available, reach out to an addiction treatment center.

Feature April 14, 2023

Smoke

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Staffer contemplates glorification of drugs in film industry Kamryn Mack | Reporter The portrayal of drugs in the media, specifically in movies and shows, is a mixed bag. More and more films and shows are being made that have plotlines revolving around drug abuse, and not all of them tackle this sensitive topic in the correct manner.

While there are some portrayals that are honest and realistic, there are other portrayals that highly romanticize it and neglect to show the darker sides of it. These media depictions may seem harmless on the screen, but can lead to real life repercussions for teens indulging in this content.

Films romanticizing drug abuse show the addiction in a positive manner, and it’s usually shown as something cool, especially if it’s teenagers participating in the drug abuse. This simple portrayal of drugs as an escape from reality, without any repercussions, either intentionally or unintentionally makes light of the major issue.

Movies and shows that do this, also don't portray the dark sides of addiction, and the terrible effects it can have on the user mentally and physically. There are various effects of

drug abuse that are very detrimental to the user in real life scenarios, like the withdrawal period, yet some shows chose to shy away from it. Instead, some films chose to portray drug abuse and addiction with rose tinted glasses. The hit HBO television show Euphoria is a show that heavily ventures into

s u b s t a nc e abuse, and the lead character Rue struggles with addiction throughout the entirety of the show. The representation of addiction and drug abuse in the show isn’t perfect,

and there are problems in the drug scenes. However, Euphoria at least shows how Rue’s substance abuse actively harms her mental health and her relationships with others.

These representations are

harmful to people watching these films, especially teenagers, since younger p e o p l e may not fully understand the ramifications. Shows, and media in general, affects our

perception of things in the real world, either actively or subconsciously. To see addiction shown in a unanimously positive light, without showcasing any of the many negative effects of it, has an impact on impressionable people watching these films. It's been proven in several studies by John Hopkins Medicine that indicate teenagers are more likely to try drugs, drink alcohol, and smoke if they see overall positive media portrayals of it. Some of these shows that glorify drug abuse might center a teenager in the narrative, and oftentimes these shows are also marketed to teenagers, only amplifying the potential harm this media could cause.

Depictions of addiction in the media are important, and these stories of addiction should be told, just like any other story. However, some of these portrayals are harmful, and only add to misconceptions of drug abuse. Ultimately, these shows should work harder to accurately showcase these stories on screen in a nuanced way, without glorifying addiction or villainizing the drug user.

Yael Behar | Artist

Smoking marijuana causes negative interactions with prescription medications Kaitlyn Nash | Co-Editor Many in pain often seek different ways to alleviate their ailments, such as taking prescription drugs or eawting healthier. However, more and more people have decided to take a different path in their medication journey through using marijuana, in its Cannabidiol (CBD) or Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) form.

In fact, according to a study done

by Statista researcher Jan Conway, 26% of Americans used CBD in 2022, an increase from 8% in 2018. However, the interaction between marijuana and prescribed drugs is one thing new users of marijuana may be unfamiliar with, especially teenagers who may obtain the drug illegally.

“There are all kinds of contraindications,” health science theory teacher Christine Gilbert said. “There are all kinds of drug interactions, no matter what substance you’re taking. There could be

interactions with prescription drugs if using CBD oil or marijuana.”

There are around 27 researched drug interactions that are so highly clinically significant that the risk of the interaction outweighs the benefit, which mostly include opioids. A few of these drugs are morphine, butorphanol, and levorphanol which all can lead to respiratory distress, coma, and even death.

“CBD with THC might antagonize the drug or it might make you not feel the positive effects of a certain prescribed medication,” Gilbert said.

“I don’t believe scientifically they’ve found that marijuana has a lot of side effects as far as being something sinister or something that would cause physical harm, as opposed to a lot of prescription medications.”

Not only that, but interaction between blood thinners and marijuana or anti-inflammatory medication such as ibuprofen have been known

to cause an increased risk of bleeding.

Antidepressants such as lexapro are known to cause extreme drowsiness and dizziness when interacting with marijuana as well.

“I do think it’s important to be mindful,” Gilbert said. “It’s important to do scientifically sound research and not make assumptions. I think it’s always good to be on the safe side.

I would encourage students to do research using reputable sources, not just social media, but actually go in and look at research.”

If one were to want to stop medicating with marijuana, there are a few ways to do so that can limit the negative effects of stopping cold-turkey that can be found on this page.

“The studies show it’s not addictive, but it can be habit forming in that you’re self medicating,” Gilbert said.

“And it is very difficult to put down something that you feel has been helpful. I would suggest that change

often sticks and is more sustainable when we take baby steps.”

Gilbert recommends that all students and faculty be transparent with their medical providers about what kind of drugs they take, especially with marijuana. If someone were to go to the hospital and need a dose of some sort of opioid or fentanyl without telling their provider of their drug use, interactions of marijuana and the drug they are given could be deadly.

“I think what happens is people aren’t honest with their health care providers,” Gilbert said. “They think they’re going to be judged. They think they’re going to be told that they can’t do something that in self medicating has made them feel better. But in reality, as a healthcare provider, myself, and as a former psychiatric nurse and a former substance abuse nurse, I can tell you, we don’t judge. For the most part, health care providers just want to make sure you’re safe.”

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Feature Volume 16, Issue 6

Gassed Up

Athletes discuss the importance of nutrition in overall performance Natalia Zavaleta | Co-Editor Months spent in training, maxing out personal records in the weight room, early morning drills in the cold, coaches yelling constantly. These are all things athletes go through in order to succeed. Though all are essential to creating the perfect athlete, there is also another key factor involved— nutrition.

“I take nutrition pretty seriously because if you don’t fuel yourself with the correct nutrients, vitamins, and minerals that you need, it can definitely affect your sport,” sophomore Stephanie Oiesen said. “If you just eat junk food all the time, then you can’t really perform at your best because you’re not fueling yourself correctly.”

According to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), nutrition plays an important role in athlete health, performance, and recovery. Building a healthy diet ensures that all nutrients are being processed correctly in the body and are able to be distributed to all the needed organs and muscles.

“Nutrition really helps you as an athlete,” junior Sebastian De Lara said. “It leads a lot to the way that you feel when you’re actually about to go compete or train or anything. If you eat bad, you’re gonna train bad because

you feel bad. So I try to eat the cleanest and balance my eating times.”

The ideal diet for a student athlete consists of 45% to 65% carbohydrates, 10% to 30% protein, and 25% to 35% fats. Carbs fuel the body and provide energy to compete, proteins help muscles grow and strengthen, and fats are essential for vitamin intake.

“It’s a thing of dedication,” De Lara said. “You really just gotta know what’s best for you and what you like.

There’s some things out there that are good for you but you won’t like at all, so you have to figure out the perfect mix between what you like and what’s best for you.”

Snacking after exercise is essential as well, as it aids in the recovery process.

It is recommended that athletes consume recovery foods within 30 minutes of

the activity, preferably carbohydrates.

“Usually when I’m training I don’t eat before I run,” De Lara said. “Then within 20 minutes of finishing running I try to intake protein to try and get a good breakfast.”

While some athletes watch what they eat, others make the effort to surround themselves with nutritional foods without worrying about diet.

“Honestly I don’t think too much about it,” senior Hannah Jayes said. “I just happen to surround myself with things that are all nutritionally healthy so I don’t actually really think about whether the things I’m eating are good.”

And then there’s some who have to constantly change their diet in order to be in the best shape possible for the season.

“During football, I had to get a lot of calories in and low protein to try to maintain muscle,” senior Cash Deibert said. “When I was training for wrestling, I quickly switched my diet to lose 50 pounds over the course of a month, which included a lot of spinach and a lot of brown rice. Or at least very small portions of those things.”

Though nutrition and diet are tailored differently for each athlete, they all share a common strategy: know what’s best for your body.

“Make sure your nutrition game is extremely personalized to you,” Deibert said. “Don’t listen to all these other people on the internet who tell you certain things about diet because it doesn’t work for everyone.”

Cutting out excess sugars, finding ways to “hide” vegetables and fruits in meals, doing sufficient research on needed intake and asking coaches what’s best— nutrition is universal in athletes.

“Eat in general because if you don’t eat anything you’re not going to keep your athletic performance as good,” Jayes said. “Eating anything is better than eating nothing.”

Illustration by | Natalia Zavaleta

Proper nutrition ensures complete stability within the human body Emily Rodriguez | Reporter Nutrition can vary for many different types of people from teens all the way to an adult. Young bodies can absorb nutrients from the foods they eat more quickly than older bodies.

Healthy just means a food that stops the human body from getting sick and keeps people living longer. Nutritious means a food that fills the body system with the sufficient amount of nutrients (vitamins, carbohydrates, and proteins) the bodies requires to survive.

As health can avoid getting people sick and have a more chance for humans to live, nutrients can keep the

human body from working improperly.

“If you don’t have enough nutrition, your body won’t be able to function correctly,” junior Christopher Chapa said.

Along with helping bodies function properly, it can do so much more, “It helps balance both your health and your wellness and daily activities, your sleep, and your pattern throughout the day focusing on the nutrition that helps your body and your mind,” sophomore Mikaela Ancira said.

“They’re important and very necessary to the well being of your body.”

Without nutrients, health can be affected. Eating the wrong types of food gives the body improper instructions, which can lead to ill health and disease.

“If I didn’t have any nutrients, I would be very tired and have no energy to do my work,” junior Kaden Johnson said.

As for some people, it's something to think about on a daily basis. Many bodies require different food and nutrients, “Nutrients are something I think about every day,” senior Rebecca Rees said. “Whether I'm just taking vitamins or eating a meal, I think getting the correct amount of nutrients is essential.”

Nutrients are a requirement that the body must must process through in the human body system, without it, things can go wrong.

“Without nutrients your body can’t function, so your mood is awful, your body’s going to start doing things that it wouldn't normally do, you’re going to be more tired,” sophomore Sophie Griffin said. “You’re not going to do as well in school. So, having good nutrition just helps improve your mood, your energy and making sure you’re living a healthy life.”

Feature February 3, 2023

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Troublesome Triad Balancing school work, social life, and sleep takes a toll on student body Savannah Brewer | Reporter In an average high school student’s life, students deal with a multitude of things; three of those things including schoolwork, sleep, and friends. However, there are cases where students are unable to interact with all three successfully.

With the abundance of stress that students receive on a day to day basis, it’s no wonder that certain chunks of their life have been unfortunately blocked out from them due to their schedule.

“I don’t have much of a social life because I’m in soccer,” sophomore Lily Young said. “But sleep is definitely a priority for me because my body can’t run on less than 10 hours.”

A lack of social life outside of school can affect the human body in a number

of ways, mentally and physically.

According to The Education Hub, a lack of social connectedness has been found to be more harmful to one’s health than high blood pressure, smoking or obesity.

“Having too much schoolwork is difficult because it takes up a lot of my time,” Young said. “I don’t end up hanging out with friends, especially on the weekends when I need to get homework done.”

Being forced to stay inside and not participate in activities that are enjoyable due to an intense, heavy workload or the fear of not being able to function properly the next day because of sleep deprivation is a constant stressor among student lives. Along with the

introduction of cell phone usage into students’ everyday lives, the struggle to keep the delicate harmonies of school, life and friends has increased tenfold.

“I'm on my phone 24/7 and it makes it really hard to focus on my work,” junior Mia Mercadosoto said. “It makes it really hard to focus on my work throughout the day.”

With the thought of the work that they need to accomplish every day, students feel the need to take a break from something other than their schoolwork. However, phones can suck students into a rabbit hole of late work and missed sleep that can begin to take its toll on their everyday lives.

“College isn’t that far away, so it

Snack Time What's your favorite "healthy" snack?

really scares me that I’m so stressed right now,” Mercadosoto said. “College life seems even harder in the future.”

With so much stress and imbalance inside of student life, the bright futures that they envision their adult selves having will slowly begin to deteriorate. Overall, keeping grades, sleep and socialization together has become increasingly hard with the uptake of technology and assignments, which only add more stressors for students to worry about.

“I honestly just feel like I’m being stretched thin with all of the things that I have to do every day,” Mercadosoto said.

"My go-to snacks are Goldfish and Skittles, if you call that snacks."

-Davion Alexander, 12

Natalia Zavaleta | Co-Editor Kaitlyn Nash | Photographer

"My go to snack are Welsh Fruit Snacks."

-Cash Deibert, 12

"Go-to snacks are peanut butter on rice cakes, bananas, Cliff bars, and oranges."

-Sebastian De Lara, 11

"In essence popcorn, pickles, chips and salsa."

-Hannah Jayes, 12

Zoe Ewing | Photographer

"I like to eat fresh fruit as a snack. I also like eating granola or protein bars."

-Stephanie Oiesen, 1o

Photo provided by | Hannah Jayes

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Entertainment Volume 16, Issue 6

Poly-cepha What Now? AP Research students describe their year-long projects, prepare for presentations Kaitlyn Nash | Co-Editor There’s only one class where one student could be working on a presentation on artist Will Wood and another could be studying the complex networks that physarum polycephalum has to travel through.

AP Research, the second course in the AP Capstone program which starts with AP Seminar, allows each students in the class to choose a singular topic to research throughout the year that they will give a 20 minute presentation and write a 5000 word essay on, submitting it to the College Board at the end of the year. After months of research, planning, and hard work, these amateur researchers were ready to give their final presentations, which occurred on April 3 and 4.

“I'm mostly studying how emotions may go and reflect themselves inside of writing whether or not we notice it [and] seeing how that translates as opposed to previous research, which is just how writing influences emotion,” senior Gabby O’Donnell said.

O’Donnell decided to do their research on a subject close to their heart; creative writing. They wanted to see how much a student's emotions translated into their creative writing projects over the course of a year.

“Out of the 32 respondents I only got nine actual work submissions,” O’Donnell said. “I was trying to draw data in such a short amount of time. I

could have done it over the whole year, looking for the food sources because but then it was only two weeks and the guardrail basically acts as a road. I then there was a lot of fluctuation.” recommend doing case studies instead Junior Carlos Rodriquez, however, and code, even though it seems like focuses on a completely different more work, I guarantee you, that's the subject: science. right way to go.”

“It's about physarum polycephalum On the same experimental route, and how it's acellular,” Rodriquez said. senior Ambereen Haq decided to take “It's a mix between fungi and bacteria, her research to the road. but it's its own genus so it's able to form “My project is about the effect complex networks of different music around vital food genres on teen driving sources. The gap behavior,” Haq said. between my research “I'm trying to see if AP Research is great is that nobody's one genre of music can and you should done it on more cause more aggressive totally take it.” complex manmade driving compared networks, such as to other genres of the US power grid music. Personally, I Izzy Crim, 11 system, which has a always observed my lot of failures. I was parents driving really gonna try to make aggressively to rock a model to show music and pop music that the efficiency of physarum and I was like, “Wait, does that same polycephalum could be more effective thing occur for teenagers,’ because I've than the current power grid system.” never actually seen a study conducted However, Rodriquez’s slime conquest regarding this on teens.” experiment turned out to be a bit Her musical research took a turn that sticky in the end. He now recommends Haq wasn’t exactly expecting in her future AP Research students to choose hypothesis. something a bit less ambitious.

“My original hypothesis was that “I didn't have a guard gel, which classical music would elicit less stimulates growth in experimental aggressive driving compared to settings,” Rodriquez said. “So when other music genres, but that actually I put the physarum [polycephalum] turned out to be wrong based on my in the experimental mode, it was experiment. I had a control group just reproducing, it wasn't actually where the participants weren't listening

Album cover by | Angelica Pasquali, Will Wood and Mike Diebold Cover of the album Garcia used for his analysis.

“

Photo provided by | Ambereen Haq Graph that Haq used in her project to show the mean aggressive driving stunts based on what music genre each driver was listening to.

to any music, so that proved to actually elicit the least aggressive driving,” Haq said.

On a similar musical note, senior Mateo Garcia decided to base his research on one of his favorite artists.

“I am focusing on the effects of music and how it can affect a community's mental health,” Garcia said. “I am covering Will Wood. [He’s] not exactly a popular artist, but some people may know him. The two albums I'm doing, purely because of relevance reasons, are one The Normal Album and two the most recent one, ‘In Case I Make It.’” Though Garcia is not completely done with his analysis, he does have a certain hypothesis regarding his study.

“The main [hypothesis] that I was focusing on was if a musician has a certain viewpoint, then the community will probably likely reflect that viewpoint,” Garcia said.

The end of the year brings with it the end of AP Research for these students.

However, students are still able to reflect on the importance of the class and recommend it to incoming juniors and seniors.

“I think the class is really fun,” O’Donnell said. “I wouldn't say it's easier but it's a lot nicer to go and have a project and see how it develops and be able to take time on it. I think it’s pretty nice being able to research something that I'm interested in.”

Photo provided by | Carlos Rodriquez Picture of physarum polycephalum reproducing in

a dish for Rodriquez’s project.

Entertainment April 14, 2023

13

Passing the Test

Staff decide whether or not films meet criteria of Bechdel Test

What Is It?

The Bechdel Test is a method of analyzing fiction—particularly film—to measure how well a work represents women.

The test’s criteria is simple: it must feature two named women who talk to each other about something other than a man. The rule originally appeared in 1985 in a cartoon drawn by Alison Bechdel in her weekly feminist comic strip.

Films that pass the Bechdel Test are not automatically positive depictions of women, but the test has continued to increase in popularity since its inception, and is often regarded as the standard for analyzing women’s representation.

By the Decades...

50s to 70s

Levi Walters | Reporter Singin’ in the Rain (1952) passes when Lina and Zelda talk and Zelda reveals that Kathy is doubling her voice.

Sunset Boulevard (1950) passes when Betty and Connie talk about the drive to Norma’s place.

Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961) does not pass.

Rocky (1976) does not pass.

Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979) passes when Loretta, a trans woman, discusses her gender identity with Judith.

Return to Oz (1985) passes when Em and Dorothy talk about Dorothy’s memories from Oz.

In 2023...

Highest Grossing Films

Kate Hayes | Asst. Editor Avatar: The Way of Water (2022) passes when characters Tuk and Tsireya discuss rescuing their friend Kiri, a woman.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023) passes. Cassie saves Jentorra from imprisonment and the two plan an uprising.

Creed III (2023) does not pass.

Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (2022) passes. Two women, Goldilocks and Mama Bear, discuss Goldilocks’ origins.

John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023) does not pass.

M3GAN (2023) passes. The film features three female main characters that talk at length about many things besides men, such as grief, robotics, and murder.

80s to 00s

Oscar Winners

Sophia Johst | Reporter Back to the Future (1985) does not pass.

The Breakfast Club (1985) passes the Bechdel Test. Two of the female main characters open up to each other as one does the other’s makeup.

Girl, Interrupted (1999) passes the Bechdel Test. The majority of the characters are women, and the conversations that occur between the two female leads, Susanna and Lisa, have nothing to do with men or romantic relationships in general.

10 Things I Hate About You (1999) passes the Bechdel Test. Sisters Kat and Bianca have a few conversations, one about the death of their mother.

Real Women Have Curves (2002) passes the Bechdel Test. The movie depicts the struggles of girlhood, self-esteem, and conflict between daughters and mothers.

Juno (2002) passes the Bechdel Test. Multiple conversations take place between Juno and the woman adopting her unborn child.

Kaitlyn Nash | Co-Editor The Whale (2022) does not pass.

Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022) passes. The three main female characters, Evelyn, Joy, and Deidre, discuss everything from bagels to nihilism.

All Quiet on the Western Front (2022) does not pass.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022) passes because many of the main characters are women, including Shuri and Ramonda, who talk about the safety of their village.

Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio (2023) does not pass.

Women Talking (2023) unsurprisingly passes the Bechdel Test. Multiple women within the fictional colony, including leads Salome, Ona, and Mariche, discuss their experiences of sexual assault as well as their lives and hobbies.

14

Sports Volume 16, Issue 6

Tennis Talk Damo Kouakou | Reporter

Coach Derek Bertsch answers common questions about tennis, how it is played What equipment is needed to play the sport of tennis?

“You gotta have a racket. Personally, I like to have my tennis shoes [but] some people have actual court shoes. But if you’re just beginning, just tennis shoes work great. You just need tennis balls and a court to go play at and luckily, tennis is a pretty popular sport throughout the United States, so you can pretty much find a tennis court close to where you’re at.”

How are points counted during a match?

“It goes love, 15, 30, 40, and then game. It’s just a different way of scoring. Basically, you go whoever gets the four first. Then, if you tie at 40 all you go to a deuce, and either we play the next point wins, whoever gets the next point wins that specific game.

And if not, then we do something called add, and you have to basically win by two.”

What are the basic shots in tennis?

“You can have a slice shot where it kind of falls short. You have your forehand, which is just on your dominant side. So if you’re right handed, that would be your forehand. If you’re left handed, that would be your forehand. Whichever is your non-dominant hand is your backhand shot.”

Lili Moran | Photographer Freshman Troy Tran prepares to send the tennis ball back to his opponent at the meet against Eastview on Oct. 5.

How do the players improve their physical fitness?

How many tournaments are played “We do a lot of conditioning. We’ll go run and do some sprints. We’ll do some long throughout a school year? distance but [lots of] sprints because you got to be able to sprint a lot on the tennis “It can vary. Just off the top of my head [we’ve had] about 25 tournaments.

That includes the fall and spring season because tennis runs all year round.

But I know some schools can have upwards of 30 [while] some only do 20.”

court. We do the weight room every now and then but we try to not hit it too much during the season just because they tend to get a little bit sore and fatigued if we do that.

That’s about the full extent we do with just weight room strength and conditioning.”

How important is the balance of strength in tennis?

“Luckily you don’t have to have too much strength for tennis, although it does help, but I know that there’s a lot of people who just rely on fine motor skills. A lot of it just depends on how skilled you are at the actual swing or the movement.

I would say that for most people, they’re more conditioned for endurance or sprinting rather than ‘oh I’m gonna go lift or I’m gonna go be like a powerlifter.’”

What is the process to choose the right tennis racket?

Aidan Doseck | Photographer Freshman tennis player Samuel Lee serves the ball at the meet against Eastview on Oct. 5.

“So for the right racket, it definitely depends on the person. You have some students who like to have a racket that has less resistance which basically means the swing a little bit harder, and the ball doesn’t go as far whereas you have some that like a very tight balanced racket, which means that you swing a little bit less but your ball is definitely going to hit a little bit further. It’s just a lot of trial and error depending on what feels good to that specific person.”

Sports April 14, 2023

15

Your Turn To Swing

Golfers encourage more people to join the sport, cite excitement of the game Damo Kouakou | Reporter The girls’ golf team advances to Region on April 17 after competing in District, with junior Riley Shearn earning a medal. Junior Andrew Cordova also medaled for the boys, but they did not advance.

“Something that makes golf a lot different is the amount of rules,” senior Courtney Birkenhesier said.

“Sure, you don’t have a referee that is there enforcing the rules, but you are given a rule sheet that you have to reinforce throughout your group throughout the day.”

Golfers require both physical and mental skills to play and exercise, with the mental component of the game being more important than the physical. Professional golfers portray

the game as being simple, but even they occasionally struggle to strike the ball straight or even execute a perfect shot.

“Keeping your cool mentally helps you just move on to the next hole and hopefully get a good shot off,” Birkenhesier said. “But it can also keep you from getting disqualified and a lot of penalties taken out on you.”

Win, lose, or draw, many professionals have inspired students to golf to the point of wanting to play for the school rather than just as a hobby.

“Tiger Woods is my favorite golfer, he’s just a huge inspiration in the golf community, which has inspired me to continue,” junior Alex Matthews said. “Wanting to try golf when I was in middle school to

Photo provided by | CADY Photography Sophomore Pete Figueroa smiles as he brings his caddy to the next hole at the boys’ golf tournament in Bastrop on Feb. 15.

after absolutely falling in love with it and I decided to stick with it.”

Just like any other sport, golf has many sets of rules that not even the players can remember.

“One rule in golf that doesn’t make sense is the out of bounds play,” Matthews said. “What that means is that if your ball goes out of bounds, then you have to drop back to where you first hit it from. That doesn’t make any sense to me because you have to walk all the way back there.”

Throughout the United States golf is one of the most popular sports, but in high school it is one of the less popular sports compared to other extracurricular activities.

“The best way to get more people

Photo provided by | CADY Photography Freshman Jaxon Jett lines up the golf ball to take a shot at the boys’ golf tournament held in Bastrop on Feb. 15.

interested in golf is by just showing them what we do because it is actually a fun sport,” Matthews said. “But people don’t see that because they just see it as walking and hitting a ball while sitting with a stick.”

Having to perfect your swing at different distances, golf needs a lot of work to place the ball at the perfect spot to gain an advantage over others.

“My work ethic translates into golf because every time you go out onto the course, it’s a new day and you have to try your best to just keep going and get better,” Birkenhesier said. “It’s a lot of mental games that you really have to deal with, especially on the course and that you have to kind of fight against every day you go out.”

Photo provided by | CADY Photography Freshman Alexandria Matthews finishes her swing, hitting the golf ball at the girls’ golf tournament held in Bastrop on Feb. 10.

16

Back Page Volume 16, Issue 6

Plant Pals

Plant parents around campus give insight on their leafy friends

“Planting sprouts in Horticulture makes me feel accomplished because I get to see them grow bigger and bigger each class period.”

- Zoe Jimenez, 12

“I have this monstera plant, [which] is a very easy plant to have. It brightens up the room and I love it.” - Tam Ly, 12

“Seeing the growth on every plant I nurture always reminds me that no matter how small my act of care is, it matters. The Earth is precious and being able to raise pieces of it means the world to me.” - Jasper Johst, 12

“I didn’t know I had such a green thumb until horticulture. [I love] to watch the plants grow.” - Alvino Elias, 11

“I love taking care of plants because it reminds me to take care of myself. They remind me of the beauty of the world.”

- Liana Gonzales, English teacher