Valentine’s Day
Stabberts
Sadies Dance Old tradition comes back to GBHS
B1
C1
Three brothers dominate sports
G8-9
Students tell comical Valentines stories
The Granite Bay Gazette GRANITE BAY HIGH SCHOOL w 1 GRIZZLY WAY w GRANITE BAY, CA w 95746 w VOLUME 21 w ISSUE 5 w FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2018
COMMENTARY
Time’s up...
katie cologna
kcologna.gazette@gmail.com
Common app brings self-realization
“W
rite a profile of yourself in news or news feature style, as if you had interviewed yourself,” read the prompt for my last supplemental essay for George Washington University. “Wow, they shouldn’t have given me such an easy one,” I said to myself after reading the prompt. What was fortunately my last supplemental question was also the most dreaded of them all. After two months of procrastination, it was finally time to sit down and plan. What was supposed to be a productive brainstorming session ended up being an egregious process with a less-than-perfect outcome, leaving me thinking: “Why is this so hard now, when I do it all the time?” This essay should have been an opportunity for me to take time and reflect on myself – the good and the bad. Instead, it ended up giving me the realization that even among the most intelligent and talented group of students, somehow we all tend to lose ourselves in our journey to the so called “real world.” The journey that is Every supposed to prepare us student for the real world has should take turned into pride in a journey themselves. of getting the best grade-point average, highest test scores and the most extracurriculars and volunteer hours. I’m not saying the rigorous schedules that students have don’t prepare them, but it is the worst when you see a group of 20 kids apply to the same school that all have GPAs ranging from 3.8 to 4.6, that are active in sports and clubs, and have extracurriculars and internships – and only two or three get in. I can also say that a majority of those students are either qualified or overqualified and should be a student at their desired school. There are more than 500 of us, all competing to get to our goal – in that race, we have put ourselves in an unfair situation of comparing ourselves to everyone else. This especially goes to every “average” or “college prep” student out there. I have never been a full Advanced Placement or CP student – I’ve always taken a mix of AP and CP classes – but I have seen the stigma around being a student who takes normal classes or might have a lower GPA. It shouldn’t matter what class you are taking, what the person next to you in class got on a test or what college your classmate got into and you didn’t. Every student should take pride in themselves. If they can say with every class, sport, activity or club that they tried their hardest, whether the outcome be achievement or downfall, at least they can know that they put their best effort and passion into it. *** Katie Cologna, a senior, is a Gazette co-editor-in-chief.
and not just in Hollywood Gazette photo illustration /KATIE COLOGNA Gazette model /KATIE HUNTER
A teacher uncomfortably hovers over a student, representing some of the sexual harassment incidents between teachers and students at school.
District confronts sexual harrassment claims and students share personal stories BY NOELANI NICHOLS
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nnichols.gazette@gmail.com
f you think it’s not happening around you — you’re wrong. If you think it hasn’t happened to your friends — you’re wrong. If you think it isn’t happening right this moment — the stats will tell you. You’re wrong. According to Rape, Abuse, & Incest National Network (RAINN), an American is sexually assaulted every 98 seconds. Only this time, it happened here. Sexual harassment allegations against former Woodcreek High School Health teacher, Douglas Mason, recently surfaced and gained attention district-wide. Much of the buzz did not per-
tain to the question of whether or not Mason is guilty — but rather why Roseville Joint Union High School District initially declared his behavior anything other than “sexual harassment.” The same Sacramento Bee article that stated Mason had touched his 14-year-old student inappropriately, pulled up her skirt and asked her to call him over the summer to “hear her voice” also announced that RJUHSD did not initially find such behavior to constitute sexual harassment. Since RJUHSD’s initial decision — and since the case’s increased publicity — they’ve issued a new statement in which Mason has been “placed on administrative leave.” RJUHSD Executive Director of
Personnel Services, Brad Basham, who issued the statements, denied comment on the particular Woodcreek case but did emphasize the steps the district has taken and will take to prevent similar cases from arising. “District administrators must attend sexual harassment training every two years, district staff are asked to review the sexual harassment policy and post a copy in their classrooms annually, and parents and students are notified of the policy at the beginning of each school year,” Basham said. “In addition, we have added an Anonymous Bullying/Harassment Reporting button to the homepage of our school websites.” Though the district takes mul-
FAST FACTS Victim help wCall 800.656.HOPE (4673) to contact a RAINN trained staff member. wDocument any comments and different treatment you’ve received, wReport the harassment. wSeek therapy and take advantage of local resources. Sources /RAINN and FORBES
tiple measures to prevent such inappropriate behavior, there are still — clearly — those who refuse to comply. “I believe there are several avenues to increase (sexual harassment) awareness on campus, including campaigns & assem-
blies led by student government, integration into the course curricula (i.e. Health & Wellness) and through (school newspaper) articles,” Basham said. Above all, Basham emphasized See HARRASSMENT, page A8
PSAT mishap confronted
GBHS administers wrong test to students, making all students’ test scores invalid BY BRAYDEN JOHNK
bjohnk.gazette@gmail.com
“I was absolutely shocked,” Granite Bay High school sophomore Ipsha Pandey said about her unusually low PSAT score after it was released in December. “I didn’t know there was anything up when I first saw my score,” Pandey said. “I actually thought I was in the fifth percentile in the country.” Pandey was not alone. Of the 19 freshmen, 98 juniors and the entire 500-plus sophomore class who took the PSAT (Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test) on Oct. 25, all of their scores were invalidated after an unfortunate set of circumstances resulting from miscommunication within the GBHS administration. Students were given the Oct. 11 version of the PSAT on Oct. 25, meaning they took
a test other students across the nation had already taken two weeks before. “Just prior to going on break for summertime, we ordered tests for the Oct. 11 test,” assistant principal Brian McNulty said. “That was the date that we were working under the assumption we were going to do.” However, the Roseville Joint Union High School District then planned its annual professional development day for Oct. 11, the same day GBHS was planning on taking the PSAT. The PSAT was subsequently rescheduled two weeks later to Oct. 25. The problem resulted when GBHS administrators neglected to notify the College Board, which administers the PSAT, of the date change. “Not realizing that there were two other versions ... and that we needed to call PSAT See PSAT, page A8
inside This Section news
Gazette photo
New laws legalizing marijuana in California allow for easier access to the drug.
Prop. 64 kicks into gear Recreational marijuana’s effects are up for debate BY KATIE COLOGNA
kcologna.gazette@gmail.com
It was not much of a shock to most Californians when Prop.64 was approved by voters in November – largely because the state’s laws against marijuana cultivation and possession were never very strict to begin with.
A rise in students vaping on campus
Students hop fences to make it to class
The alternative methods of smoking may have impacts on students.
The safety of students is at risk because of their rush to class.
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But with the Adult Use of Marijuana Act having gone into effect on Jan. 1, the new year has brought some changes. “The regulations with regard to the use of cannabis and to the cannabis market itself will always continue to evolve,” said Paul Armentano, the Deputy Director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. “I like to tell people that the enactment of broad-based laws like Prop. 64 See MARIJUANA, page A8
Victim blaming dress code is not acceptable Students should feel safe in their own school.
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