February 2017
East Leyden High School
3400 Rose Street
Franklin Park, IL 60131
Local Families and Leyden Students:
Undocumented & Unnerved Mariana Urueta-Hernandez
Behind a row of worn down pews, the circle of Mexican and Latino teens buzzes with quiet chatter. The conversation turns from unfinished homework to complaints of being dragged to church. But underneath, there also lies a subtle tension. And eventually, the teens start to voice their anxiety, passing around hurried questions and rumors. Rosa Gonzales* is currently a sophomore at East Leyden. “I heard more ICE raids are scheduled, and that they’re even arresting DACA holders.” The words are false, but they serve to illustrate the paranoia currently gripping many Leyden families and students. While campaigning, Donald Trump took a hard line stance on immigration, and he’s followed through shortly after his inauguration, signing an executive order on January 25 that expanded number of undocumented immigrants who need to worry. Previously, officials had prioritized for deportation those undocumented immigrants who threatened public safety *No real names appear in this story.
or committed violent crimes. President Trump’s executive order includes those with less violent criminal offenses, such as fraud. It’s worth noting that the Obama administration deported around 2 million individuals and that some of the current actions were planned prior to President Trump’s inauguration. What students like Gonzales are worrying about may not be a “crackdown.” Previous immigration enforcement operations have largely occurred silently. But the combination of President Trump’s hard-line stance and the expansion of those facing deportation from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement - a subdivision of Homeland Security and better known as ICE - have led to immigration taking center stage. And Leyden students are watching. “I myself was born here and so was my brother, but my parents don’t have papers, so I’m really scared for them,” Gonzales stated. ICE targeted enforcement actions, often called “raids,” where officers enter apart-
In early February, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) launched a series of targeted enforcement operations across the country. Photo from ice.gov
ment buildings and work sites or set up checkpoints have been visible news items across states as Illinois, Los Angeles, and Washington among many more. Earlier this month, one person was arrested in nearby Melrose Park, a village that had been considering passing a “Welcoming Village” ordinance, which would serve to limit the amount of information that local law enforcement can share with ICE and other federal agencies pertaining to immigrants. Leyden senior Claudia* Hernandez commented on the effect these events have had on her: “It’s weird. You would think I’d be stressed at school but it’s different now. I’m really anxious about what might happen even now. Not just for me, but I’m worried about my entire family too.”
Another senior, Raul* Espinosa explained that President Trump has done little to ease worries, despite reassurance that “Dreamers,” a term used to refer to the undocumented children of immigrants who have been granted temporary deferrals from deportation, will see the DACA program continue. “I feel like it all sucks. Everyone wants to deport us, but they don’t even know how much this country runs on immigrants,” he said, explaining how events have taken a toll on his entire family, with neither he nor his siblings sleeping or eating well with the constant worry. “Yeah, all my grades have gone down,” he said, “especially in serious classes, but it’s hard to care when I might not even make it to graduation.” (Continued on next page.)
Awarding Inspirational Eagles Autumn McGee @autumnmcgee_
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s she walked up confidently to receive her Inspirational Eagle Award, Irma Tovar thought about how different her life had become since starting high school. She’s faced challenges, and the moment gave her an opportunity to be grateful and to be honored for her improvement. Senior Irma Tovar, along with 21 other students from East and West Leyden, received this year’s Inspirational Eagle Award. It’s not like any other award Leyden gives throughout the East and West Leyden Inspirational Eagle Award winners following the dinner. school year. According to Frank Holthouse, Director of Careers and Com- thing was going okay.” Tovar also stated that but its name also suggests that they are munity Outreach, this event allows students if things weren’t going so well, they would regarded as role models for other Leyden to be recognized for improvement and for work on plans and set goals. “All of my students. They can have a positive impact their ability to maintain excellence in aca- teachers wanted me to succeed,” she said. on others in the school, making Leyden a demics, attendance, behavior, and overall Keeping her grades up and staying out of more unified district. citizenship. In other words, these students trouble wasn’t a problem anymore due to “Everyone who received this illustrate how to “commit to excellence.” her resilience and the support around her award has faced obstacles in their life,” Hol While all 22 winners have unique at Leyden. “My attitude toward staff and thouse said. “The difference is the choice to stories, Tovar’s recognition stems from an students is different now. I am more positive persevere. Congratulations to everyone who improvement in her attitude toward school overall,” Tovar said. has been selected you have truly earned this and a reduction in trouble. As a freshman, Stories like these, showing the honor.” Tovar had fallen behind in the transition intersection of hard-working students and Tovar said her story can “inspire process and even considered dropping a supportive school, are the hallmark of students to do better and put other things out. Motivated by her younger brother, for the Inspirational Eagle Awards. In a dinner that don’t matter aside because what really whom she couldn’t set a bad example, Tovar and ceremony on Tuesday, February 21, all matters is how well you do in school and pushed herself to change her habits. 22 winners (11 from the East campus and the type of attitude you have. I want others At the ceremony, Tovar made it 11 from the West campus) were honored, to change for themselves and not for anyone evident that her teachers helped with this joined by their parents or other family else.” improvement. Lisa DeWelde, one of the members as well as teachers whom they This event was funded by the teachers that nominated her for the award, wanted to thank. Each student received a Rotary Club, a fellowship that works to set helped Tovar through RENEW—a program trophy, certificate, and a small gift in honor up service projects and deals with business that helped her stay on track with school of their recognition. networking. They encourage and promote work, attendance, and good behavior. “I Not only did the Inspirational leadership and success among individuals worked with Mrs. DeWelde,” Tovar ex- Eagle Awards recognize those who faced like the Inspirational Eagle award winners. plained, “and she always made sure every- tough obstacles and overcame challenges,
Wisdom from the Winners Francis Bedolla “I’m just honored to be recognized for four years of hard work that I have invested into Leyden and to be appreciated for that hard work.” Hilda Mendoza “Si se puede, no importa los obstaculos en el camino.” Kermira Rockett “Winning the Inspirational Eagle Award has really touched me because now all my hard work over the years is really starting to pay off.” Irma Tovar “It is always good to have the help of teachers and family to support you. I want to thank Mrs. Maldonado and Mrs. DeWelde for helping me change my bad habits.” Mariana Mishchanchuk “This award is the biggest honor, which makes students work harder for the future and accomplish new goals.” Valentina Nacheva “I would’ve never gotten the award if it wasn’t for my wonderful teachers who supported me all the way through freshman, sophomore and junior year. Thank You!”
2 Digital Realty Moves In
News
February 2017
Super datacenter restores ‘face of Franklin Park’ Chris Corr - @Chris_Studios
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n January 23rd, Franklin Park hosted a demolition event, tearing down the where the former Motorola headquarters, which, for years, had been the face of Franklin Park before remaining as an abandoned building. The demolition signaled that the building is now being converted into Digital Realty’s new home. Digital Realty is a San Francisco based company that specializes in digital infrastructure for cloud-based computing. When Motorola sold its headquarter property, Digital Realty chose for that location and Franklin Park to be their next expansion. This 18.5-acre property was vacant for a long time but has now been demolished to pave the way for Digital Realty’s buildings. Right across the street from the location is Digital Realty’s other campus that has been very successful. According to the Franklin Park Herald, director of acquisitions and investments at Digital Realty, Edward Pendarvis stated that “We’ve had a great amount of success at our campus in Franklin Park that’s right across the street from the former Motorola building, and we’d like to continue to expand within the village and within close proximity to the campus we already have here.” East Leyden Junior, Kamil Poplawski stated that he “is glad they are finally doing something with that abandoned building because it has been collecting dust for years.” He went on to state that he remembers
seeing the vacant building at the entrance of Franklin Park coming from River Grove and saw it as an eye sore. Digital Realty’s facility is planned to be a 78,000 square foot infrastructure to handle its new 470,000 square foot data
Former Motorola Headquarters
Digital Realty Franklin Park Plan
storage center. The new data center makes use of the village’s electrical grid, increasing performance in their facilities. Pendarvis stated that following demolition “the plan is to redevelop the site, much as we have next door, in order to continue to add a data center expansion in Franklin Park.” Digital Realty has already developed a gigantic facility next to where the former Motorola property is and it is truly
a sight to see. The building stretches back a few blocks length. While data centers don’t rely too heavily on employees, meaning that this expansion won’t bring too many jobs, it still may add value to the community. While everything is fueled by technology, there is still the need for actual workers. Franklin Park Village President Barrett Pedersen said to the Franklin Park Herald that “the village is thrilled to grow with Digital Realty” and “this demolition marks a historic return of tech-based investment and innovation to the village”. While Franklin Park may not become the next Silicon Valley, the village’s great location, with close proximity to O’Hare International Airport as well as the Chicago Loop, is a draw for businesses. Digital Realty thrives on the close proximity to these fiber optic providers as they allow faster speeds for their solutions. Companies can be very successful when they are in locations that allow easy access to providers. Digital Realty focuses on providing data centers that manage and store internet data. If you’re wondering where the file or document that you save to ‘the cloud’ goes, it is to one of these buildings. They are giant facilities that hold hundreds of servers, hosting everyone’s content and files. Without data centers such as this, some of the biggest companies, or even our files, would not be able to be tracked. Since they do such advanced work in these buildings, they are built specifically for Digital Realty’s services to allow their servers to run efficiently and effectively, more expansion around Illinois.
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Inside Terminal
O’Hare Employee Shares Effects of Travel Ban
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Rachel Modi - @raxhxl_
ractically shutting down Terminal 5, crowds of hundreds, possibly even thousands of lawyers, volunteer lawyers, and citizens gathered at O’Hare International Airport to protest their anger at President Donald Trump’s executive order of a 90-day ban on travel to the U.S. and any refugees from entering the country for 120 days. At least 18 people were detained at O’Hare on Saturday, January 28, but all were released later that night. The lawyers who waited all day sought to help detainees from Muslim countries such as Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, and others while others protesters carried the crowds outside as speakers, including Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky and Robin Kelly and Rev. Jesse Jackson, reached out to other supporters. East Leyden sophomore and O’Hare employee Alex Sanchez witnessed the drastic change in the atmosphere first hand. “[Early on Saturday] it was perfectly fine. We went out for break and we saw like three protesters with a dog, thinking it was a small thing and went back in to do our job. But then we came back out at like 8 p.m. and there was a huge crowd of protesters. You could barely walk through...the whole thing [Terminal 5] was shut down by lawyers, volunteer lawyers, police officers, protesters. There was a [ton] of tension.” Overwhelmed by this unexpected protest, Sanchez explained that he and his coworkers weren’t scared, but nervous to see
Protests in the terminal kicked off a month of immigration advocacy.
what was going to happen next. While trying to leave the airport after work, Sanchez heard constant chants like, “This is what Chicago/democracy looks like!” and “Love not hate makes America great!” But when local officials spoke and expressed themselves, the crowds remained silent and listened. “Usually when there’s a protest that big, there are people who protest against the protesters.....there were zero! Everyone was there to fight for the same reason, even the national guard, the Chicago police, and customs officers were nodding their heads and tapping their feet to the rhythm… Deal with they’re not use to the discrimination, all the hate, all that. They are just leaving on
like happy. And the fact that they came together to help out and actually let those people free.” Sanchez explained that O’Hare did feel safe because of the increased presence customs border patrol officers and the National Guard, but now it seems to have gone back to normal, one per entrance. But there are actually still volunteer lawyers in case anybody needs legal representation. “It just feels nice to know there are people that literally spend their whole day at the airport with other lawyers waiting to help. I just think it says a lot about Chicago as a city to see white men and women fighting for a minority group.”
“I just think it says a lot about Chicago as a city to see white men and women fighting for a minority group.”
Undocumented (Continued from Page 1)
Hernandez has kept up her grades, but said that she understands how such high pressure might hurt students with less developed coping skills, adding that she attends church regularly, such as today, for that exact reason: to pray that “the ICE raids might end soon and things go back to normal.” The current level of fear is affecting behaviors. Many workplaces, health centers, and schools have reported large numbers of cancellations or absences in the aftermath of the executive order. The Villita here in Chicago has seen sales drop as much as 20%. Those affected are hoping that the executive order may meet some sort of judicial obstruction or legal impediment, such as those seen with President Trump’s travel ban. Though concrete action has not occurred, news outlets such as USA Today as well as multiple immigration lawyers suggest that legal grounds to limit deportations may exist, claiming that expedited deportation without proper trial is unconstitutional at best and at worse grounds for a label of inhumane treatment. John Sandweg, head of ICE under the Obama administration, stated, “The Supreme Court has consistently held that even
undocumented immigrants are entitled to due process.” Julia Woods, who headed ICE under the George W. Bush administration, said that the recent expansion of expedited removals across the nation may face legal challenges. Protests, too, have offered some comfort to those feeling anxious about their status. On Thursday, February 16, some participated in “A Day without Immigrants,” with reports of thousands of people foregoing work or school in order to stand in solidarity with immigrants everywhere. “Seeing businesses here that are supporting us was really a relief. And I know not everyone does support us, but seeing things like that, no matter how small, they made me feel a little better” stated Espinosa. Hernandez, when asked to whom she turns to feel better, adds that she hasn’t sought help - unsure of where such a truth might land her. “You just never know who might report you or what might happen. Better safe than sorry.” School officials recognize the difficult task of working with students who are uncomfortable in this context. Principal Mr. Jason Markey offered the following statement: “Our building and district administration have been paying close attention to the news regarding immigration issues over the past several months. Functionally nothing has changed in how we are working with students who are concerned about this issue. The recent news has really been more an issue of enforcement and no new laws have been passed that would impact the school in any way. We will be putting out a letter to all students and parents soon to reinforce that schools are “sensitive locations” as determined by ICE regulations. We also, as a school, are not legally allowed to ask any student about information regarding their immigration status and must educate all students. We value every student and feel confident that any students or families concerned will be reassured by simply contacting a building administrator, school counselor, or social worker. We are not equipped to advise students regarding immigration issues, but we do have resources in the community we can connect our students and families with.”
Opinions
Dare to Dance
THE EAGLE’S EYE STAFF ISSUE 4 EDITORS Editor-in-Chief Weronika Trzaska Broadcast Madison Ganir News Mariana Urueta-Herenandez Opinions Rachel Modi Features Nada Marei In Focus Alessandra Muro Arts & Entertainment Hanna Nazareno Sports Victoria Valentin PAGE DESIGNERS Page 1 Mariana Urueta-Herenandez Chris Corr Page 2 Chris Corr Page 3 Majda Causevic Page 4 Madison Stompor Page 5 Rachel Modi Page 6 Rachel Modi Page 7 Hanna Nazareno Pages 8-9 Alex Guzman, Alessandra Muro, Olivia Soto Page 10 Nada Marei Page 11 Jodi DuBrock, Cristal Salgado Franco Page 12 Mike Motyka Page 13 Krystian Misiewicz Page 14 Weronika Trzaska Page 15 Melanie Lopez, Ruth Merlos Page 16 Victoria Valentin REPORTERS AND STAFF Joey Graf, Nataliyah Grygorash, Nicole Mora, Karla Montesinos, Aliyah Munoz, Jaime Nazario, Miguel Sanchez, William White The Eagle’s Eye is produced by students enrolled in English IV Journalism and English IV Journalism Honors. The opinions expressed are those of the wrtiers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the district. Readers are encouraged to check out our full collection of content and submit story ideas via the web site. FIND US: LHSNEWS.ORG FOLLOW US: @EAGLESEYE212
February 2017
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’ve been dancing since I was 5, and back then, I never cared to consider whether or not to call it a sport. I was thrown into dance to figure out whether it would turn out to be something I liked to do since soccer and basketball didn’t hook me. When I first started dancing, it was for the fun of it and the thrill of performing. As it kept progressing, though, questions about its value kept coming up. My dad himself was trying to get me to lean more towards softball since at the time, I’d been participating in both softball and dance. Because my dad had been playing baseball for so long and started at a young age, he was hoping I’d be the same way. Once he saw I started to choose dance over softball, there were times where we’d have those talks about what was always the better option. I, of course, always stayed on my side of choosing dance because it was something that made me happy and I enjoyed doing it. The day I decided that I wasn’t playing softball for another season, it obviously upset my dad, but he saw it was what I wanted to do. Now, looking back, I don’t have that regret of choosing dance over what my dad wanted. Now that it’s one of my most treasured interests, I find myself having to defend it. Sometimes dancers get told that
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Aliyah Munoz - @Pchee3 dance isn’t a sport. How could something that looks so easy be a sport? That’s exactly the wrong view. The best dancers make impossible movements look simple to others. And that’s where people just assume. They refuse to look into what we really do and how it’s done. We move around just as much as another competitive sport would. We might not be running around the whole time, and our stage is certainly smaller than most fields, but I’m not sure that some of our best conditioned athletes could keep up with our turns, kicks, and leaps. And go ahead and throw out the claim that an athlete needs to compete. We do just that, whether we compete by ourselves or even with other teams. The difference made with competition is the scoring. In any other sport like basketball or soccer, the points are easily determined when you make that goal or shoot that ball in the basket. A dancer is scored by judges. The scoring at a dance competition can either be looking at you as an individual or as a team and ranges from the way you
present yourself to the serious points for technique. I’d like to see a wrestler keep his smile and energy while straining all of his muscles. In the end, I’ll always be defending the fact that dance is sport whether some people agree with me or not. All those other dancers out there who are familiar with having to always defend what they enjoy doing the most, keep working hard, well honestly, keep working harder than all our fellow athletes.
Face of a Criminal?
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hile entering the drive-thru at the McDonalds on River Road and Grand Avenue in River Grove, Cassie Little father saw police lights flashing behind him. Cassie, riding as a passenger, turned to her father, confused. When Mr. Little pulled over, the police officers yelled, “Exit the vehicle with your hands up!” Then, additional patrol cars arrived, yelling orders to “turn off the car and throw the keys out the window.” Through the window, Cassie could see one officer pointing a large gun at the car. Others were pointing their handguns. Little and her father were pulled over as suspects in an armed robbery, which they did not commit. And while they were eventually released, their experience highlights the imbalance of power that occurs in the initial hours of an arrest. When Mr. Little first stepped out of the car, he was immediately handcuffed by an officer. Another came over to Cassie, unbuckled her seatbelt, and asked her to exit the car. Cassie begged to know what was going on and kept saying they didn’t do anything. No information was offered, and instead Cassie was patted down for weapons. The other officers then started to search the car. They found Mr. Little’s pocket knife, which they took along with Cassie’s $2. It was for her soda, but they likely believed both were from the crime scene. An officer handcuffed Cassie and put her into the backseat of one of the police vehicles. Cassie was sitting in the vehicle, unable to do anything for about 30 minutes. She was persistent in asking what was going on, but still, no one would tell her. She eventually started reading from the officer’s laptop that was in the front seat. It had multiple descriptions stated on the screen. It said, a “newer model, black car with partial license plate YZ.” Mr. Little’s car was indeed black with that partial license plate number but was an older car. Additionally,
Madison Stompor - @maxdisxn there were two descriptions of people on the screen. One described a “man with blond beard, black jacket, and camouflage pants.” Mr. Little did have a blond beard and was wearing a black jacket but not camouflage pants. The other description stated, “20 year old female, brownish/ blond hair and a stocking cap.” Cassie is 17 and was not wearing any sort of cap. Cassie was starting to put the pieces together; she, her father, and their car met a number of the traits of the suspects. But she also had zero opportunities to get anyone to hear their side of the story. Over the radio, she heard that the officers were bringing the victim of the robbery over from Northlake where the crime occurred. Once arrived, the victim was asked to ID Cassie and her father. The woman was in police car, hiding behind the window. She confirmed that Mr. Little was not the man from the robbery, but she believed that Cassie was the girl involved. The police then uncuffed Mr. Little but proceeded to tow his car away. Cassie was then arrested although she kept saying, “It wasn’t me, I was at school all day!” Both Cassie and Mr. Little kept shouting, but the police wouldn’t say anything more. They took Cassie to the police station. The oddity of Cassie being taken into custody but not her father might have triggered a quicker resolution, but Cassie’s story wasn’t finished. At the Northlake police station, a detective brought her to another interrogation room and asked her some questions. Cassie kept explaining that she was at school until 2:30 p.m. and there was no possible way she could’ve been at the robbery, which occurred at 2:20 p.m. Unfortunately, she had no evidence to prove this. Eventually, they allowed both of Cassie’s parents to enter the room. There was a lot of arguing and exchanging of words. The police said the only way they could believe Cassie was if they had evidence that she was at East Leyden until 2:30. An officer called East Leyden, but at that point the attendance
office was already closed and there was no one to confirm Cassie was at school that day. Cassie was told she was going to have to spend the night in jail until they could get the proof. At this point Cassie was in tears. There was more arguing and persuading from her parents. After some more calls, the police finally got in contact with someone from the school who could confirm Cassie was indeed at school all day. At this point, an officer explained that she was not getting charged and this was not going on her record. They also said they would give them their car back while emphasizing there would be no fee to pay. Cassie was finally free to go home. Once they got home, Mr. Little, to bring a bit of humor to the family, immediately shaved his beard in fear he would be identified as a criminal again. Soon after the events, the Police Captain of Franklin Park asked the Littles to come into the station so the officers could apologize in person. Mr. Little and Cassie decided against going in due to the fact that they were very upset with the way they were treated throughout the whole experience. They understood that the police were just doing their job, but they felt that it was unfair that they would not immediately tell them what was going on. It was a crazy incident and Cassie is just grateful that she didn’t have to spend a night in jail. After this whole experience, it seems Cassie could handle anything that comes her way.
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February 2017
Generation Disrespect Peers, here’s my pet peeve Majda Causevic- @majda_causevic
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ll right guys, for the first half of the class, we will be going over the homework, and for the second half we will...” The not-so-soft whispers behind me block out the rest of the directions, leaving me to fend for myself. The not-so-subtle side conversations and giggles that spread start to become infuriating. And the internal debate of ignoring the issue or telling my classmates to shush only aggravates me even more. Saying something might cause an argument, but saying nothing will reinforces a negative behavior that, frankly, I can’t stand much longer. Nothing says, “I don’t care what you have to say” more than talking over someone else. It doesn’t matter if the person is a teacher, a peer, or a parent. Talking while that person deserves your attention is as disrespectful as a big “F you.” We all want to be respected and treated well, but, when some of my classmates do everything and anything besides listening, it’s hard to defend them. As teenagers, we are destined to be labeled as, “lazy,” “irresponsible,” and, most commonly, “disrespectful.” We can
“My biggest behavioral issue is when students engage in personal conversations while I am trying to teach.” -Mr. William Krypel. answer with a quick retort, clap back with a nasty remark, or feverishly defend our honor all we like. Lately, I’m doubting that we have any honor to protect. We have our good moments, but our natural instinct is to speak the first thing that comes to mind, whether positive or negative, in every setting. We are incredibly rude to authority figures, all around, believing they shouldn’t tell us what to do because we’re independent and listen to nobody. And we get praised. The likes and retweets come pouring in, boosting our confidence, even if we were wrong. We might do it, but we aren’t aware of it. It’s the subtle side conversations in class, that no one thinks twice about. The problem is particularly bad when we get use to independent work. Some classes offered at Leyden aren’t often
Focus on Service, not Sameness Victoria Valentin- @VickyValentin
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ny time our East and West campuses aim for the same goal but with different approaches, some comparison is prone to happen. The annual district-subsidized service trips are the latest example.. As they approach and as students eagerly volunteer, they’re also inquisitively asking if there’s a “better” trip available for one campus. A little background: the East and West Leyden service trips started separately. West’s mission trip to Puerto Vallarta came first, with the goal of working with children in orphanages as an end of the year hurrah for the West Leyden Service Club. The planning for the East trip to Peru began when students came to Principal Jason Markey three years ago about starting a trip such as the one that was already running at West. Markey stated, “The only reason we have a trip is because they kind of paved the way for us.” It took about two years of students talking to Mr. Markey, who then turned to Dr. Nick Polyak about the possibility of decreasing the cost of travel in the name of service. The district agreed to subsidize portions of the East trip and then did the same for West. Now, students can get to visit Peru or Puerto Vallarta, paying only $500. The portion is to give each student a sense of responsibility but not disqualifying students from the experience based on income.
The Peru trip costs around $3000. With the district footing a large portion of the bill and because the students who go are selected or wait-listed, it’s fair to ask what that money is funding: service or recreational travel--and is one campus doing more of one than the other? East “Peru trippers” from last year returned noting how their physically demanding service of building a greenhouse differed from the actions the West students took to be charitable: working with children. Peru volunteer Nohely Suarez said, “The only time we actually had to relax was when we were eating.” This has some East students looking longingly at the West service trip, where students woke up early to go to an orphanage, playing games and giving them the gift of attention, before spending an ample part of the afternoon and evening in Puerto Vallarta. Aimee Hurtado, a Puerto Vallarta participant said, “By the hotel, they had a variety of places and all the food was really great.” Some days students would just rest and other days they would get a “structured” fun activity and sight see with the group. Once that structured time was over, the students then had the time on their own to go shop in the local stores around the hotel before curfew. But before we cry foul, it’s worth sharing that the work Peru had done was dependent on whatever the community needed at that time. “We never really know what the service is going to be,” says Markey. And
OPINIONS “It’s the increase in technology use. We rely on it way too much,” explained junior, Matthew Ozanic. Maybe it’s the giant computer with the Forever 21 website open, or the constantly updated Twitter feed that might be distracting them. Technology has rapidly evolved into our society, and we are victims of consumption. Everywhere we turn, there is something digital to make your life easier, when in reality, it is only making it harder. We focus on it way too much, and we lose sight of what is right in front of us. “We lack discipline. If we keep talking, teachers just give up and allow lecture-based or developed around spe- us to do what we want,” stated senior Era cific, curriculum routines. These classes Meco. allow students to work at their own pace As kids, we just won’t shut up. and manage completion of projects, mir- If we keep badgering authority figures, roring college routines and establishing persisting, or consistently being a pain in longer, rather than daily, deadlines. the behind in order to get what we want, Watch those classes in the moments parents, teachers, coaches, and every other when everyone is asked to come together; adult may wave the white flag, surrenderit’s like everyone has ants in their pants. ing the battle rather than arguing over Constant chatter and blatant disregard for something they see as pointless. Sure, the what is being presented are the norm. best adults won’t truly “give up.” They’ll Along with our own behavior, keep finding ways to leverage our interwhat baffles me is ests, to incorporate more versatile ways that teachers to engage students. But should they sometimes have to? Aren’t we capable of “Sometimes students can’t pay j u s t doing our part? attention long enough for the end of brush We are high school studirections or they tap out and don’t it off. dents. We possess the cahear all of the information because They pacity to stop what we are they are so used to things changing a r e every couple of seconds. They doing for the purpose of struggle maintaining focus for more done school, to learn. If we stuthan a few minutes.” playing dents want to learn, we have -Ms. Anna Reed Whackthe opportunity. But if you don’t A-Mole, done keep your hands on the keyboard, fighting for students’ take out the earbuds, and genuinely attention. If they acknowledge the nuifocus your attention off the glowing sance, the student feels antagonized, creatbox, expect to fall on your face. ing a bigger issue. Either route leads to an Teachers should not have to hold “L” in the learning game, which ultimately your hand or make exceptions for laziness. no one wants. They don’t have to care for your education So what’s feeding our lack of at- if you don’t. tention?
Peru Service Trip 2016 East Leyden
Mexico Service Trip 2016 West Leyden
charitable work does not need that extra physical demand to be fulfilling. Service is about connecting with the community and fulfilling their needs. Furthermore, Markey responded to the idea of vacation vs. service balance by saying, “the balance is the right balance.” He also pointed out that the schedules for both trips might be more balanced than critics think. East students spent the first four full days at the beginning of their trip to just be tourists, visiting sites such as MachuPicchu, and the rest of the four days to just focus on volunteer work, while West did a balance of each on a daily basis. It is, of course, undeniable that the environments were different. West students spent their down sitting on a beach, while East students recall playing uno and spoons in a hotel room. Suarez says, “My favorite part was when we got to play soccer, and one of the students got their shoes stuck in goat poop.” While West might win the luxury battle, concerns about a significant difference are overstated. Knowing that each trip gives students a new outlook and opportunity to interact with a diverse community outside Leyden and a chance to give back to the community makes them worth keeping as currently configured--although, since I’m going this year, I’d love to avoid any goat poop.
Opinions
February 2017
High School: A Meta4ical Reflection
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Hanna Nazareno - @HannaNazareno
Mariana Urueta-Hernandez - @FoxMuld_r
Each beep made me cringe. Each lap drained my energy. But each turn made me happy. That’s the pacer: the tiring, challenging test of our physical capabilities, with its fixed time increments and beeps that warn you of its end. Now that I’m at the beginning of the end, I’ve realized that high school is like the pacer. At first, you have all this energy, confidence, motivation, and persistence to run. Then you slowly start losing your breath, then you’re questioning your abilities, and at least once along the way, you’ll want to quit. On August 12, 2013, I began my four-year-long pacer, and on May 23, 2017, the last beep will sound. To be honest, I’m out of breath and I want to stop, but if I’ve learned anything from the pacer, it’s that if I keep reach the end, I’ll feel accomplished. Not because of the numbers (GPA, rank, ACT) that represent me compared to others, but because of personal growth.
Forest Gump famously said, “Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re going to get.” In a lot of ways, the same could be said about the high school experience. Except all the chocolates are poisonous. And the box you’re opening is actually Pandora’s box. And the bus stop bench you’re in is on fire. But other than that, that quote is practically exactly about high school. Staring back at my four years of high school, the truth in that quote rings heavily as I reflect back on the unique experiences I faced through each year of high school and its real-time impact on my need to adapt and change over time to meets its requirements. Life changes, whether good or bad, often come randomly, much like the surprise of biting into a chocolate. You don’t know the flavor - whatever the experience, it’s always something new.
Freshman Fun and Funkiness
Opening the chocolate package on August 12, 2013, I was at first awestruck by the pretty golden and blue foil of choosing my own classes. Anxiety was expected, but the seal on the box had never been opened as I took in my surroundings with the starry eyes of an incoming freshman with high hopes and dreams. And for a while, I loved every piece I picked, I was doing well in all my classes and had found making friends easier than expected. Heck, while most people’s biggest grievance was ACCESS, even that low point I enjoyed as I had garnered my own little group there. Homework? Easy enough that I could finish it in five minutes. Multiple classes? More like multiple times for me to slack off in the corner. Simply stated, if the whole box of chocolates was randomly placed, then the row I had begun to pick freshman year had been a statistical anomaly: only the good bits existed, apart from the occasional odd aftertaste of being called out in the hallway for wearing a crop or tank top I would wear. (R.I.P. to the education’s of all the guys who dropped out because of my shoulders.) I mean in relative comparison to the following years, it was a solid 10/10
My freshman year was much like the first 20 laps of the pacer: manageable. I began energetically and optimistically, thinking everything was going great, and doing better than what I expected. On the very first day of school, I was welcomed with anxiety, excitement, and a lot of sweat. The only thing that I looked forward to on the very first day of high school was lunch. The thought of being able to have pizza everyday was exciting; however, the thought of hanging out with all my friends and talking about our day was quickly crushed when I found out I had lunch fourth period, with only 30 other freshman that I barely knew. Dealing with the struggle of getting through the maze-like halls and the fixed dreariness of lunch for 25 minutes was like that awkward half jog to the other line that leaves you with about five seconds before the next screeching beep. Basically, freshman year was just full of awkwardness in all possible ways.
Sophomore Self-Worth and Shame
When I bit into the orange ooze filling that is sophomore year, I became less bright eyed, but I was still up for a challenge. Expecting sweets, I received a bitter awakening in my first AP class. Mr.Tazic was an absolutely stellar teacher whom I adore to this day, but the textbook scouring was an entirely different story. No longer did I have hours to waste at home, but I was actually forced to study and exert effort, a task foreign to not only myself but many others. All of us academic “top dogs” who had never really needed to try in order to ace exams, now whispered in despair the mornings of quizzes and maniacally welcomed each other’s logos on the study guide documents, the glow of which warmed us in the most obscene of hours on test days. If freshman year had been the best tasting picks of the box, then sophomore year had been those three pieces you bite into only to run to the trash can and spit back out. Chocolate one: the endless hand cramping from writing. The second chocolate: constructed out of the L’s I took in Geometry. And the last chocolate: awarded to the freshman who mistook me for a friend in the library and told me an entire life story before noticing I wasn’t listening.
When I finally reached “Level 2” of the pacer, a.k.a. sophomore year, I felt challenged, or in other words, shook. When I walked into my AP European History class for the first time and saw Mr. Tazic, I found myself flashing back to an image of myself lining up at the starting line for the pacer, feeling nervous and tired even before I started the run. Despite spending five minutes everyday thinking about why I took the class, I still found myself strangely driven. For some reason, even though I was surrounded by the smartest people in my grade, Mr. Tazic was like that P.E. teacher (shout out to Mr. Heisler) who motivated you to get one more, to keep going, and to make sure that you push yourself to your limits. Oddly and thankfully enough, those moments urged me to refrain from taking a five hour after school nap. If freshman year was like the first 20 laps of the pacer, then sophomore year are those laps when you hit your stride and feel like you might go forever: the energizing feeling that comes from knowing something is tough but continuing because it feels good and the thought of stopping only brings disappointment.
Junior Jaded and Jammin’ You know when you get past the really horrible chocolates in the box and are completely sure you only have the good ones left? You dive in and take a huge bite instead of a small practice nibble. Well the junior chocolates must be Satan’s favorite. Aside from the tear-inducing flood of worries that are ACT and AP testing, there’s the increased pressure to systematically declare yourself to a definitive path for the rest of your life while still having to ask to use the bathroom. Much like peasants throughout history, boy did I discover I had some legitimate grievances that year. From having to jam into a sweaty prep room every Wednesday in hopes of testing well into the corporate standard of excellence, labeling and boiling down a person’s worth to a percentage, to still being out of breath when walking up the same stairs I’d walk thousands of times by then. Is sulfur-cream a chocolate flavor? How about eternal-damnation dark chocolate?
You know that feeling when you’re running the pacer, and all you’re focusing on is that cone you have to get to and that pacer song that plays while you’re gasping for all the air you can get? That’s basically an accurate analogy to my junior year of high school: physically and mentally challenging. If I felt shook my sophomore year, I felt triggered my junior year. There were so many things I had to worry about: ACTs, AP tests, grades, GPA, my after school nap, college, and basically trying to do my best with the five hours of sleep that I had. Junior year was the year that I just wanted to give up and be done already. It felt similar to the feeling of just having to take a break during the pacer because it was just overwhelmingly challenging. Although I was tired almost everyday, ran on only 5 hours of sleep each day, and considered giving up a couple times, after taking a break and catching my breath, I was able to gain my energy and motivation back...sort of.
Senior Suffering and Certainty Decked out with under-eye bags and with just a subtle hint of political unrest, I’m choking down my senior year chocolates mostly thinking about the unfair lives of the cocoa bean harvesters. I wonder who first thought four years was a good idea. I mean, yeah, Prom might be fun and senior breakfast promises some laughs. But there’s some weird stuff in here. Dancing in the journalism room at 7 p.m. on a Thursday night while eating my weight in quesadillas? And how is it the lunch lady on Twitter STILL has not followed me back. Humiliation peppermint, anyone? I have come to the conclusion that there is one thing from Leyden I am guaranteed to look back on with nostalgia: my friends. Sure, they were few and between, and sure, they have more unflattering pictures of me than our yearbooks combined. But, I know I will miss them as the days of all of us together dwindle down. And I’ll remind them that I have pictures too!
Now, onto the hardest part- senior year. Similar to parts you want to stop because you think your performance is good enough, but you find yourself still running because you know you can do better. The first semester of senior year was surreal because I realized that everything was happening for the last time and that I had to make sure I made the most out of everything. Now that I’m down to my last three months of waking up at 6:05 am and dealing with all the redundant petty drama, I feel like I’m down to my last 10 laps of this “run,” and I know that I just have to give it my all and make it to the cones no matter how much I want to cry and take a nap.
6
OPINIONS
February 2017
An Open Letter to Leyden Lovers And choke-held girl I see y’all. T h e f a c t whatchu doin’ girl? You’ve got to t h a t y o u rip that boy’s arm off of you, or t w o a r e you could suffocate. Seriously, it’s oblivious not safe nor healthy for him to be to the rest holding you like that. S houtout to the handof world holders. We’re cool during ”I fe bro. Keep those el it s it nice f i v e h ould a se a n d minute Mau parate be ke pt in ricio roo simstaring m H fres ernan .” ple. contests hma dez, n in between
Madison Ganir - @madisnganr
D
isclaimer: As I write this, I am eating chocolate covered strawberries--yes, that universal sign of love and affection--on Valentine’s Day. But here’s the deal: my grandma bought me these berries kids. Not a boyfriend or that someone special; my grandmother. So you’ll have to understand that this high point in my romantic life got me started thinking about all of those Leyden couples I see in the hallways. Thus,
en wh nd , so I e i r l f hat boy hoo d a igh sc dmit t it a h “I s in h to a , but To u c h y e I wa . I hav w PDA full-on I F e e l y. I s t y i o T a get did sh al. BU nna s it dark ino e m i g w min , I’m side? Did was g out gree.” er, kin disa Mill someone turn ma ette cher the lights out? Ann th tea ma Do you have to
I am writing the following grannyberry-fueled open letter to all of Leyden’s Lovers. Now, in an effort for this to not be an angry rant at the world, I-a single teenage girl-will hereby address each of the lucky couples individually, letting you know exactly how I feel. Let’s start with Mr. and Mrs.
feel for each other because you can’t s e e ? Perhaps, y’all really are in love, but your raging teenage hormones won’t let you just chill. This next one goes out to you, deep-eye-stare couples. I can’t tell you how many times
Show Must Go On
periods is actually pretty admirable. At least you won’t ever get in trouble if a fight breaks out near you because you’ll be too caught in each other to worry about fists flying. Next - let me briefly address you, choke-hold guy. You dragging your girlfriend by the neck around school ain’t pretty. Maybe you had your arm around her shoulders, but then they moved up to her neck? Maybe she’s just a slow walker? Maybe you need to take your arm off of her altogether? All I know is that I get uncomfortable watching you walk with her.
I completely understand the need for affection in a relationship. You want to show your significant other that they matter to you and how much you “love” them. (I use the “L” word loosely because we’re young and aren’t really sure what love is yet.) I understand the comfort you feel in your significant other’s arms or the familiarity you sense by looking into their eyes. But these overt expressions of emotions at school may be out of place. And they’re definitely sickening sites for a girl coming back to school with a stomach full of Nonna’s chocolate strawberries.
for so long in the hot, crowded venue uninteresting, it was also dangerous. A handful of people were passing out and being rushed to the hospital. It became such a big problem that security began passing out water bottles for the crowd to share. After the slight chaos, Jeremih finally emerged. The crowd forgot about the long wait when he began to perform because we were all just so excited that he even showed up. Well that is until he yelled, “They some haters. F**k y’all” into his microphone and threw everything down and stormed off stage after only singing three songs. This experience not only disappointed me, it also made me angry. I went to Twitter to see if the media said anything about his tantrum or if Jeremih posted an explanation. Sadly, Jeremih offered no apologies and simply blamed the people he was touring with for
not treating him with respect -- the irony. Unfortunately, a lot of celebrities have picked up the act of leaving their paying fans because they know regardless of how they treat them, they are still going to get their support at the next concert and their albums are still going to sell. Personally, if given the opportunity, I would not attend another Jeremih concert because I don’t think it was right of him to leave his supporters like that. If all fans had the same mindset of believing the celebrities immature behaviors are unacceptable, I believe artists wouldn’t continue to do this because they would realize their careers and money would be jeopardized.
Stop supporting immature celebrities who stop performances Karla Montesinos - @karla_m__
I
n the past few years, the behavior of artists has become an issue for paying fans. Celebrities such as Madonna, Justin Bieber, Selena Gomez and Kanye West. have let down thousands of fans due to temper tantrums on stage ei-
ther involving their personal lives or because they were angry with the way their fans were acting. During the 2013 Jingle Ball, Selena Gomez was having trouble with her microphone and instead of handling it in a calm fashion, she said “cooler” artists would be following her performance before she cursed and stormed off stage. Her ex-lover Justin Bieber also ditched loving fans at one of his concerts in Brazil. Someone allegedly threw a water bottle at him on stage, knocking his microphone out of
his hand, causing him to walk off stage and never return. Fans reportedly waited over an hour for him to continue the concert but instead were met with disappointment. However, in Bieber’s case, he may have felt unsafe whereas Gomez was just making a difficult situation worse. Another celebrity
who exposed her diva side was Madonna. After her fans booed her for being late to her show in England, she shouted, “I don’t like to be late by the way, alright? And all you b*****s who keep complaining about it can shut the f**k up.” While these artists have all done their fans wrong, the artist most known for walking off stage during his performance is the one and only, Kanye West. He has gone on countless political and personal rants before throwing a tantrum and leaving his fans confused as to what went wrong.
I have personally experienced an artist whom I adored walk off stage. In the beginning of this school year, I went to go see one of my favorite artists since I was a child: Jeremih. I have been of a fan of him since I was young, and it has always been a dream of mine to see him live. He was touring with PartyNextDoor, an artist I listen to but am not nearly as interested in as I am with Jeremih. After PartyNextDoor sang his songs, we patiently waited for Jeremih to take the stage.
We waited. And waited. For almost two hours, we all stood listening to random hits the DJ was playing to distract us from the fact that we were being disregarded and disrespected by Jeremih. Not only was standing
Fun and Games
At the MEME-ment! By: Hanna Nazareno - @HannaNazareno We are only two months into 2017, and in the realm of memes, it’s been anything but boring. These are the memes of the moment: “Catch me outside, how about that?” “I don’t know, I wasn’t counting,” “the thinking guy,” and “the blinking guy.” Think you can beat our Leyden captions for these memes? Read ours, fill in the blanks, and then tweet a picture of it to #leydenpride and @EaglesEye212. Tweets with the most likes will win a $15 gift card for starbucks!
OURS: “Don’t have to do it if it’s not due today.” YOURS:
February 2017
Horoscopes
7
By: Hanna Nazareno - @HannaNazareno
Aries: (March 21- April 19) You are a get-it-done person and don’t depend on others to make the first move. If you’re having a minor conflict within a friendship or a scuffle with a lover, take charge of the issue. Apologize for your reckless behavior, so the fun can continue and your relationships can continue to blossom, Aries.
Taurus: (April 20- May 20) You may be stuck in between moving forward or staying fixated on your past, Taurus. Remember, things happen for a reason, and with that better things are to come. Don’t let your past hold you back from starting something new. Don’t turn your cheek on a new flame for one that has died out a while ago. Become accepting of your emotions and don’t sabotage your future. Gemini: (May 21-June 20) Your impatience gets the best of you, Gemini. Take a step back and reevaluate what you may be getting yourself into before fully diving in. Advance as your heart chooses to, and don’t wait on anyone else to make the advances for you. Work hard for yourself and you’ll see the results you’ve been looking for.
OURS: “Guys, get out of the halls, it’s 2:30!” YOURS:
OURS: “How many tardies do you have?” YOURS:
OURS: “When you signed up for multiple AP classes and you get assigned homework.” YOURS:
Pizza Topping Personality Test
By: Hanna Nazareno - @HannaNazareno Who doesn’t LOVE pizza? Curious to know what topping you would be, based on your personality? Take this test to find out! Be sure to tweet and share what kind of topping you are @EaglesEye212 with #LeydenPride 1. What gets you the most excited? A) Traveling B) Sleeping C) Hanging out with friends/family D) Lurking 2. How would you describe yourself in social situations? A) I don’t stop talking. B) I took a nap. C) I make jokes and laugh at them. D) I got the chisme in under 5 seconds 3. How do you settle your arguments? A) I reach out to people, and we talk it out. B) I don’t argue. C) Always forgive and forget. D) I throw some shade 4. When something surprises you, you react with A) an appreciative laugh. B) a little bit of a chuckle. C) a really loud and long laugh. D) sending a group chat so everyone is surprised. 5. My favorite meme is A) “Cash me ousside, how bah dat?” B) Thinking guy C) Blinking guy D) “I don’t know, I wasn’t counting.”
Cancer: (June 21-July 22) You may be clinging for dear life on your past, Cancer. If you’re holding onto past memories of someone who isn’t in your life, don’t be afraid to contact them. Tell them how you feel, and feel the weight of the world be lifted off your shoulders. This may not mean things will go back to what they once were, but it opens a door to new beginnings. Remember to keep your head up! Leo: (July 23-August 22) You tend to focus on yourself, Leo. This isn’t a bad characteristic to hold but may become frustrating to others in your life. Swim back down to Earth if someone in you life tries to reach out to you and make sure to hear them out. Communication is key and will help you reach your goals. Talk to someone if there are unsaid things between you two. Virgo: (August 23-September 22) You’re always paying attention to the little details of life and that’s why you’re one of the most careful signs. Try to let loose and be a little “careless.” Don’t worry too much because you’ll have tons of chances to connect to your inner self by finding new habits and changing your routine. You might be a little stressed right now, but this challenge will give you a sense of purpose and help you understand things you never thought you would comprehend. Libra: (September 23-October 22) You tend to want to avoid any public confrontations, but you might have to face one. Make sure to keep your composure, Libra, but don’t lash out in fear of looking like a pushover. If you have something to say, say it, and don’t let others speak for you. Remain assertive when it comes to your personal needs. Remember, it’s never too late to apologize. Scorpio: (October 23-November 21) You have been very determined and focused to reach your goals. You know what you want and you know how to get it. While it may seem like you have everything controlled, deep inside, you know that you have to let go of something. You’re usually stuck in emotional circumstances and this time, you just have to let go. Sagittarius: (November 22-December 21) You tend to be enthusiastic and energetic, but get ready because you will be challenged these next few weeks. You’ll need to be extra positive and enthusiastic as relationships become challenging and conflicts come one after the other. You’ll need to realize when boundaries are crossed and always remember to stay true to who you are, not what people expect you to be. Capricorn: (December 22-January 19) Life may get a bit hectic from time to time, Capricorn, but you’re always up for the task to put everything back into place. Don’t get lost in trying to fix problems that aren’t your own though. By focusing on your individualistic plans you’ll be able to positively turn things back around if you find yourself lost. It’s okay to promise less to people, and deliver more than originally expected if you fear letting people down. Aquarius: (January 20-February 18) You love helping others and being there for them when they need you, but this time you need to help yourself first. Try to talk about your issues instead of trying to hold everything in. Try to stay focused on one thing at a time instead of trying to handle everything all at once. Things will turn out better if you try to focus on yourself and your goals. Pisces: (February 19-March 20) It may be tempting to resort to extreme measures when trying to take the edge off, Pisces. But remember your singledays worth of distraction tactics will not work well in the long run. In reality, you’ll be better off if you took the time to step back and evaluate a situation before diving into it. Channel your angst and see what you get in return, you may be pleasantly surprised with the results. YOUR PIZZA RESULTS Mostly As--ADVENTUROUS BACON: You are full of excitement to try new things everyday. Stay wild, Bacon! Mostly Bs--RELAXED MUSHROOM: You tend to be a relaxed, calm, and laid back person. Your idea of fun and relaxed is watching some netflix with a box of pizza. So stay chill, Mushroom! Mostly Cs--FUN PEPPERONI: Your schedule is filled with fun activities all day long! You love to hang out and have fun as much as possible. Have a fun day, Pepperoni! Mostly Ds--SPICY JALEPENO: Ooo, you are hot! You love to have a fun time, but in a spicy and interesting way! Stay spicy, Jalapeno!
8
In Focus
The Eagle’s Eye
February 2017
9
Facing America: Portraits of immigration e hav ans oceans c i r e the n l Am y al braved takers i t l r a s e g “Ne rs who g risk lar d esto y-lovin al – the ecorde c n a t r e t r d s n e i – lib h of an ations i is not ju r c n r g s sea ary mi igratio ast; it’ m nt sp s volu ry… Im merica’ erica’ o m t A A s hi k to e to a lin a bridg re.” o t fu u . Bush als W rge -Geo
“Remem be always t r, remember hat all O fu I especi ally, are s, and you and descend immigra ed from nts and r e v oluti -Frankli n D. Roo onists.” sevelt
“My husband and I decided to come here. We came here, and we didn’t speak any English at all and because we didn’t speak English, my husband was a mechanical engineer in Argentina, but if you don’t know English you can’t [do that here] and besides, we didn’t have papers. We came here as tourists and after two months, the visa expired, but we didn’t want to go to the country over there because things were getting worse. Then for 11 years, we were in this country, what you call illegally, which means that you have to work in whatever you find. My husband and I found a job at a company that was making Tiffany lamps. They were paying me $1.25 per hour just to put some labels on the Tiffany lamps. We were making no money at all, and we were working from 7 a.m. until 4:30 in the afternoon. We started eating pizza or else we wouldn’t be able to pay rent, and we did that from 1977 until 1979. In the meantime we started learning English in a community college, and my husband had an uncle that knew somebody that could find him a job in what he was doing. I stayed home because I didn’t have papers. I kept going to Triton College to learn English, and I started taking different classes because I wanted a degree in this country. Then in 1984 Ronald Raegan gave Amnesty, and in 1988 we got a green card. When I left my home country, my father was sick, and in 1981 he passed away. That’s the only thing I regret. I am the only daughter that wasn’t able to go back and say goodbye to my dad. I was able to do it with my mother, but I never saw my father again. You have to be very strong to be an immigrant. Not every person can be an immigrant.”
Mrs. Beatriz Porro, Spanish Teacher
“My parents didn’t want to live on a farm their whole lives and wanted to start a family somewhere [with] unlimited opportunities to make money. “It makes me very sad to see all the racism and bigotry going on right now. Immigrants are coming over because they want a better life, and they face so many obstacles and work so hard just to be pushed away by people who think they are all terrorists and criminals. My family and I don’t face the racism that many other immigrants like Mexicans and Muslims go through, but it still makes me very sad to see these people get attacked like they are now. “Like I said before, I think immigrants are hardworking people that only want a better life, and they should not be punished for that. They work hard and do jobs that other people don’t want to do but forget are important. They also create a very diverse community that teaches acceptance and understanding and allows everyone to see the good in people.”
Gabriela Giza, Senior
“Wh Ame at makes som or bi rican is rth b n’t ju eone ut al foud st bl le n o in th ing prin giance od to ou ciple e ide sa r a anyw here that any nd faith o c ne, an chap ter o write th from e f -Bar our stor next ack O y.” bam a
“One of the hardest parts is seeing my parents working so hard. They do not have the best jobs in the world and only a high school education. When we still lived in Poland my dad owned his own construction company, and my mom was a stay at home mom. “Now my dad works for a construction company, and my mom has clients where she cleans their houses. I love hearing my mom talk about how she loves architecture and interior design, but it makes me sad because I know she gave up that dream to make sure that her daughters were given better opportunities. And it’s hard to see my dad come home tired and drained at 7 p.m. when he left the house at 5 in the morning. “This does change my view of America. I would think that the opportunities would be available for everybody. But nothing is obtained without sacrifice; I just wish that my parents did not have to sacrifice so much because they did not want their children to have to sacrifice anything when it came to their dreams. I used to plead with them that we should move back so that they would not have to work so hard, but they said that we would not be able to choose from so many opportunities and dreams if we lived in Poland. And because of that I tell my parents that I love and thank them everyday, and I will continue to that that for as long as I can.”
Aleksandra Slowik, Senior
the s rant thened g i m ng re im nd stre n life.” e h da ryw rica “Eve enriche of Ame ennedy e ic K hav fabr ohn F. J -
Portrait by Martyna Kot Reporting by: Alessandra Muro, Alexander Guzman, Olivia Soto @Alessandra_Muro @alex_guzman06 @woahitsolivia @_martynakot
“One of the challenges that I faced as an immigrant would be facing the constant misconceptions and always having to prove people wrong of the stereotypes that they believed in. Many of the misconceptions about immigrants is that they are ‘lazy,’ ‘dumb,’ and ‘unskilled.’ “One of the stereotypes that I had to face when I was 8 years-old would be the common perception that just because immigrants aren’t born here, and while English didn’t happen to be our first language, people always assumed right away that immigrants are illiterate. When I was 8, and transferred as the new kid from Philippines, many of my peers assumed right away that just because I wasn’t born here and had an accent, that I was dumb. In actuality, I’ve been fluent in English my whole life, and even had a wider vocabulary than most of the children who judged my knowledge. “At the age of 8, when many of my peers assumed I was dumb just because I was an immigrant, I scored higher test scores than most of them, performed better than them, and had a better understanding of the world than most of them who believed the false stereotypes that they grew up with. While I’m fortunate enough that I don’t necessarily experience the things that other immigrants go through, I think that in general, immigrants are constantly dealing with stereotypes and having to prove people wrong.”
Ulrich Nazareno. Sophomore
Features
Culture Club
PULSE Explained
A parade of new experiences
Ms. Aguilar is a district instructional coach and been the sponsor of PULSE/Culture Club since 2004.
Nada Marei - @NadaMarei1
“T
he goal is to help our students celebrate the diversity that is right around them - at school, in their communities, and around the Chicagoland area,” said Ms. Cheyenne Aguilar. PULSE/Culture Club recently attended the Chinese New Year parade in Chicago’s Chinatown on Sunday, February 5. “It ended up being a great event because it was actually nice out; usually it’s very cold when we go,” Ms. Aguilar said. Before the parade, the group went to Ming Hin, a local Chinese restaurant for Dim Sum, a particular style of Chinese food, which, as Ms. Aguilar stated, “It was a good experience for the students.” And then after that, they let the students shop a little bit at some of the Chinese markets there, and then they made their way to the parade. “It was a fun day,” said Ms. Aguilar. Alberto Maciel, a senior student at Leyden and active member of the PULSE/ Culture Club explained the value of these trips: “I have been in the club for three years
What does PULSE stand for?
P People U United L Learning S Sharing E Experiencing When are meetings? Images from the PULSE trip to the Chinese New Year’s Parade. Photos courtesy of Ms. Aguilar
now. It’s a very, very interesting club; it’s a very good idea because it exposes students to new cultures that they might not be familiar with. It’s a great opportunity for those who want to explore a little more.” Maciel, who went with the PULSE/ Culture Club to the Chinatown parade, said, “I did like it a lot. It was very interesting. I liked the restaurant we went to. And my favorite dish there was the shrimp rolls. I
do recommend other people join this club because, as I said before, it’s a very cool experience to get to know other people’s cultures. The field trips that we do in the club are based on the students’ choice[s], so it’s very open to your opinion and what you want to do. It helps you learn about different cultures [and] learn lessons such as the background behind the Chinese New Year,” explained Maciel.
Aid Life 101 “I have been a student aid since last year,” said senior Alexis Ortega. Ortega knew about student aiding through one of his friends, and then he went to ask the counselor’s office if they needed an aid. They said yes! Ortega is in the counselors office during periods six and seven. “I usually pass out passes during the beginning of the period and whenever counselor’s need me to do certain stuff for them, I will do whatever they need,” he explained. “I usually can’t concentrate so well in study hall, so I thought being in the counselor’s office will help me get work done as well as help out counselors. I definitely would recommend other students who have study hall next year to be a student aids,” said Ortega. Aids wanting to work in the counselors office should contact Ms. Geri Dombrowski at gdombrowski@leyden212.org, or Ms. Carina Alvarado at caalvarado@ leyden212.org.
Alexis Ortega
Senior Lauren Vermilyer has been a counselors’ and teachers’ aid since last semester. She spends her second period in the counselors office helping them deliver passes, then during ninth period she helps Ms. Sweeney’s Catering class. “In the counselors, I finish delivering passes and whatever extra work they have for me then after that, I finish my work that I have to get done,” explained Vermilyer. Then when she’s in Sweeney’s room she helps her with “catering prep, cleaning, helping students, and also my own projects.” When asked about why she wanted to be an aid, Vermilyer explained that she “just wanted to help out.” Sometimes she doesn’t have work to do in other classes and thinks that if she can be an aid she will have something to do for others, while also getting her own work done. “Yeah, being a teacher and counselor aid is really fun. I would totally recommend to other people because I do a lot of other things rather than being in study hall. I’m able to focus on my own work while also helping others. It’s a win-win situation.”
Since the beginning of this year, Giselle Diaz has been working in both the deans office and counselors office during her off periods as an alternative to taking a study hall. Besides the usual day to day task of delivering the respective passes to the students, she also have other jobs that she takes care off. From servings as a tour guide to new Leyden students to occasionally helping in the nurse’s office making ice packs. When asked on how she heard about the opportunity to aid was brought to her attention by one of her friends who was an aid last year and seemed to really enjoy it. “I wanted to be a student aide because I like helping and sometimes I don’t have work to do, so I wouldn’t want to be just sitting around all period. Helping in the deans and the counselors was the best alternative.” “I definitely recommend students to be an aide in their off period!” stated Diaz. Coming next year if you have a study hall and you’re interested in aiding for attendance feel free to come on up, walk right in, and ask!
The first and fourth Thursday of each month during Period 11 Questions? Contact Ms. Aguilar at caguilar@leyden212.org Or check out this link: http://www.leyden212.org/Domain/820
Fight for Air
Nada Marei, Mike Motyka, and Cristal Salgado-Franco
Lauren Vermilyer
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February 2017
Giselle Diaz
Autumn McGee Key Club attended the Fight for Air Climb on Sunday, February 12 to volunteer and fundraise for the American Lung Association. This was also a great opportunity for these students to challenge themselves and have some bonding time. This is the club’s first time participating in this event. “One of my favorite parts was watching our key club members cheer on everyone, especially the firefighters!” Anna Kass, Key Club Sponsor, said. “I loved that our kids were inspired by not only the adults that took part in the event but also the young children that were participating. It gave our kids great perspective on how volunteering/making a difference can take place at all ages,” Kristine Sobieski, Key Club Sponsor, added. For more information about this fundraising opportunity, visit http://www.lung.org/ get-involved/events/fight-forair-climb/.
Features
February 2017
11
Y.E.L.L. for the Ignored
Staff member fights for awareness Jodi DuBrock - @jodidubrock or six straight years, Ms. Carolyn Dundovich has hosted an event designed to raise money and awareness for young people who are struggling with self harm, drug abuse, mental disorders, and/ or suicide. The cause has a special place in Dundovich’s heart; her daughter, Danielle Benson, struggled with many of these issues prior to her untimely death. For Dundovich, Danielle’s death was a call to action:“We are losing too many loved ones, and as a community, we have lost way too many of our kids. If I can help just one family in this community, then my daughter’s name will live on. That’s why I do it.” Danielle’s name is embedded in the fundraising event: Y.E.L.L. (Young Empty Lost Loved) for the Ignored. It also speaks to Dundovich’s hope that people speak up and acknowledge the issues. She said, “We
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they feel stuck we are here to help.” Hosted on Saturday, February 25 at the American Legion Hall in Franklin Park, Y.E.L.L featured Leyden alumni bands, donations, and even a tattoo artist. A memory table devoted to Leyden students who have been affected by the T h e donations issues at the heart of Y.E.L.L. Photo by Jodi DuBrock went towards need to make sure that people know it is both a global, non-profit anti-suicide organiokay to talk about, and that we know it’s not zation called Project Semicolon and a local their fault. We just need to end the stigma. event called FED UP!, rallying for federal Those who are suffering need our help because they might need us to yell for them. If response to the opioid epidemic. Attendees
were encouraged to get a semicolon tattoo to show support for Project Semicolon. Those who were there appreciate Dundovich’s efforts to honor her daughter and act on these issues. Not only was her daughter honored but there was a memory table of a bunch of Leyden alumni who have passed away due to one or more of these causes. At the event, Dundovich said, “At first I was a little nervous because two of my bands canceled on me last minute but the turnout was great, and I really think that people are starting to see that this is an issue.” Dundovich looks forward to continuing the tradition and the fight against those who would prefer to ignore the reality of addiction. “We need to show that they aren’t alone and it’s hard for people to ask for help, that’s if they even know where to go for help.”
Leyden’s RULER System: How Emotionally Intelligent are you?
Created during a Yale Study in order to teach people how to cope with their emotions and how to empathize with others’ emotions, the RULER acronym was recently adopted by Leyden social workers as a way to discuss emotional well-being with students. The concepts was delivered through an all-school lesson plan. One of the members of the social work team, Arturo Martinez, said, “Sometimes we have a hard time trying to understand how we are truly feeling about a situation or an event. Emotional intelligence is so important because it helps us label or understand how we are feeling. And by doing that, you can go to things that help better regulate your feelings and/or actions.”
“Mom, I need a Day Off!” M
Why I Needed a Day Off! Q: What caused you to feel the need for a day off?
Cristal Salgado Franco- @CristalSalgado_
issing a day of school is one of the millions of pieces of our teen life that parents get to dictate. Until we are the legal age of 18, we’re at their mercy for our day off. We all know those parents who won’t let our friends stay home, even when they are puking up last week’s dinner, but most moms and dads will let us stay home when we are under the weather or have a doctor’s appointment. They’ll follow the school rules and excuse us when there are “justifiable reasons.” Then there are those extra special parents who let kids stay home for reasons other than physical well-being, giving them a “day off” for a host of other reasons. These parents understand that there is a time and a place for when other things need to be handled; for that to occur, we might miss a “precious” day of education. Parents like security guard Mr. Danny Byerly are on board with a day off, but it’s not free-for-all. Byerly has set rules. “I think that sometimes a day off is okay, but if they aren’t behaving, doing what they need to be doing at home and their grades aren’t where they need to be, then I don’t think [they] should be able to stay home from school.”
Like Byerly, most parents’ day off rules tie into academic standards. Catching up on school work might be a good reason, but if you get caught binge watching your favorite TV show, you probably won’t be able to plead your case next time. Mrs. Kim Farkas also falls in this group. “I was all for [my son] staying home. It mostly happened his junior year before the ACT and a couple times during his senior year as Airen was dealing with everything college and, of course, waiting for deadlines to hit because of senioritis.”
“As long as there was a good reason I had no problem letting him staying home. But I once had to put a stop to him after I found out about a party in River Grove.” Other parents, such as Mr. Allen Baker, allow their children to miss school to take care of their family’s “health.” He said, “On occasion, I will take my kids out from school and go out and do something. Next month my son will be missing a week from school to go with me on a Cuba trip.” If you’re lucky enough to have parents like these, congrats. For the rest of us, here’s hoping for food poisoning.
A:”I take ‘mental health days’ because I feel overwhelmed and stressed out to the point where I can’t focus in school. They’re very effective because sometimes sleep and relaxation alone are what you need to loosen up your mind a bit from all the stress.” -Senior Paulina Cylwik A:“The reason behind my ‘mental health day’ was a result from overworking myself. As a student varsity athlete with a job, my schedule can be stressful. Taking a day allowed me to recover the necessary sleep needed and give my body a fresh restart. After being tranquil and chilling, I’m ready to get back on the grind.” -Senior Krystian Havran
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Features
February 2017
Safe Celebration Impact: Students find memorable messages
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Fomby To Leyden
Mike Motyka- @MotykaMike
s some students were tuning out, nodding off, checking their phones, and whispering to their friends, then junior Sarah Krajewski was locked in on last year’s Safe Celebration speakers, feeling an instant respect for their story. She progressed from attentive, to moved, to inspired by the speakers. Krajewski recalled, “This one guy left a huge impact on me, sharing his experience of being an alcoholic, sharing his hardships and struggles he went through, where at one point it impacted his life so much he couldn’t even leave his apartment.” This type of impact is exactly the goal of Safe Celebration Week, Leyden’s annual opportunity for students to hear from guest speakers about a variety of topics. Krajewski believes that “not every speaker leaves an impact on every individual student. But for the students that actually want to learn and listen, speakers have a great effect.” Last year, the speakers were from an organization called Your Choice. It was founded by the Lybert family: Sandi, Rick, Ashleigh, and Tyler, who suffered from substance abuse. The family works with families and schools to give presentations about their own experiences with substance abuse. During the presentation, each member of the family spoke to give his or her own perspective on Tyler’s addiction and how it affected them. During the presentation last year, Tyler’s sister, Ashleigh, spoke first and gave
Visitors to Leyden during Safe Celebration, like the Lybert family from last year’s “Your Choice” program, offer students unique learning opportunities. Photos: YourChoice-Live.org
detail about how she had to be the perfect sister due to her brother’s addiction. Then after she talked, Tyler came on and shocked the whole audience by announcing that Ashleigh’s brother was him. He then went on to talk about his history with drug and alcohol abuse and how it affected himself and his family. For Krajewski, the event provided a perspective into the difficult life some face. “There is always something to learn, and hearing it from different perspectives will maybe click with students in different ways,” she said.
“[A] Major goal, other than making healthy choices, is increasing student involvement.”
Photos from 2016 East Yearbook
Mrs. Rachelle Minus and a group of students are organizing Leyden’s annual Safe Celebration Party for Wednesday, March 22. This party is three hours of fun-filled activities for students to enjoy, a night that is packed with healthy and safe choices. It will be taking place at East Leyden’s field house where there will be food, games, raffles, inflatables, and a DJ...for only $5!! “One of our major goals, other than making healthy choices, is increasing student involvement,” Minus said. So for every student reading this, Mrs. Minus wants to make a special offer: the first 10 students to email her (rminus@leyden212.org) after reading this will get free admission! Also, for every student that emails her, your name will be submitted into a raffle and the winner will receive a $20 gift card! So don’t miss out on this great opportunity to win some cash by celebrating with a safe attitude.
Calendar of Events Monday March 20
Tuesday March 21
Wednesday March 22
Thursday March 23
Friday March 24
Break Out Session- Chuck Alvarado
All School Assembly- Fomby presents The Power for Passion
Breakout SessionLife Span
Breakout SessionLeyden Theatre Department
Junior Olympics
Safe Celebration Party 6-9 p.m. in Field House
D u ring this year’s safe celebration week, we will be having De’Marco Fomby visit East Leyden to be our keynote speaker. Marco, as they call him, has been invited to Leyden before to speak to both East and West Snowball groups. Marco was born in Alabama but spent most of his life living near Jackson, Mississippi with his father, Marc Fomby. Living with his father, who was an international speaker and presenter, Marco soon began to follow in his father’s footsteps. It was not until he was about 16 when he spoke for the first time, and after that he knew he was made to leave an impact on young teenager’s lives. He began to find connections with teenagers through music, art, food, sports, and movies, but he was more passionate for music. He believes that incorporating music into his presentations will speak to them in a different voice rather than just a normal conversation. Although Marco is a national speaker, he is also a junior consultant for FTC Prevention Services and the Youth Highway Safety Specialist for SafeKids program of Mississippi. Marco works with kids all over the country to help the prevent of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs, while also incorporating Juvenile Justice, Leadership, and Youth Highway Safety.
“I am aware of the potential risks of underage alcohol consumption and the use of illegal drugs. However, to see the speakers’ presentation and hear what they had to say and their experiences, it really widens the lens on that matter and really makes you think twice and be careful. - George Almaraz, senior “Every year I look forward to the main message brought by the speakers and how a positive influence can make a great difference in our lives” - Olga Bulka, junior “Hearing the speaker for my first time last year really blew my mind. I was not expecting someone’s story to be that impactful.” - Tara Mackey, sophomore
February 2017
Arts and Entertainment
They Came from Leyden
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A Winning Play
but there are always things that are still so and competition. “This cast is such a fun group difficult for me. It varies for every character, to be with, and watching them use their skills but for this particular show, one of my main and creativity to make each other laugh is a struggles is the accent. Mastering a German blast,” said Narter. “I love the combination accent as an old British lady isn’t easy at all! We are all so drivof competition and en, and I’m so glad performance. Comto be united with petition just pushes the same wondereveryone to do high ful and driven cast. quality work, and Having such a small it’s very rewarding group of people alto steer that ship.” lows us to really Nicholson become close, and I echoed that same excouldn’t be happier citement. “The main with the people I get reason I decided to “A Night of One Acts” opens March 3 and 4 join was because this year, I really want to go to perform with.” The absurdity and humor is what to state with one of our two contest shows. For this show and Code Name Verity, we compete defines the characters and overall the play. at sectionals, and last year, we worked really “Narter always reminds us to think about the hard and sadly didn’t make it. This year, I have character’s motivation behind what they’re the honor of being cocaptain with Hadassah saying, and to ask ourselves ‘Why is your [Moser], and I’m really hoping that with these character doing what they’re doing?’ I think two shows, we can bring the shows to state to this is really important in becoming another make Narter proud because he’s been working person,” says Nicholson. “Also, I think that any character you can play has an aspect of so hard on these shows.” Nicholson spoke about the unique your personality, so trying to bring yourself challenges of the comedy. “In the play, I and acting style into the character can really play Mrs. Gillivray, who also plays Ein- help.” stein. I’ve been on the stage for quite a while,
Krystian Misiewicz - @krystianm98 well-suited to the odd combination of comedy
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hey Came From Mars and Landed Outside the Farndale Avenue Church Hall in Time for the Townswomen’s Guild Coffee Morning” or simply “They Came From Mars” is one of the newest theatre productions at Leyden, directed by Mr. David Narter. The play will be performed on March 17 at 7 p.m. at the East Leyden auditorium before the cast takes the show to compete in the IHSA Drama competition on March 18. The cast is taking great pride in the humor of the play. “It’s so painful to watch the struggle that it becomes absolutely hilarious,” explains Leyden junior Amy Nicholson. “The play is essentially a play about another play gone wrong. A theatre company in England attempts to put on a show about an alien invasion, but thing after thing goes wrong.” The absurd premise is not what’s typical in the state competition play. Narter explained, “Usually IHSA Contest Plays are serious and dark, so this is going to be a big switch for the judges. It’s also a fun contrast to our group Interpretation entry ‘Code Name Verity,’ which is about a POW in Nazi prison. Now that’s dark stuff!” Narter explained that this cast is
Oscar-man Go! Gotta watch ‘em all William White - @Billyiswhite rior to last weekend’s Academy Awards, I made it my mission to find out what it takes for a movie to be nominated as a “Best Picture.” Because this is a question that I’ve wondered every time the Oscars rolled around, I decided to finally embark on a journey to watch every movie nominated for Best Picture. Below are my notes, written before Oscar weekend. Day 1 - Preparation I woke up at around 6 a.m., grabbed a bowl of cheerios, and then got back into bed to open up my laptop. If you thought I’d be shelling out ten bucks for each movie to embark on this journey, you must not know about the Internet. Day 1 - Movie 1 - Arrival In bed surrounded by snacks, the first movie I decided to watch was Arrival, directed by Denis Villeneuve. Arrival is a movie about an expert linguist, Dr. Louise Banks played by Amy Adams, who is tasked with communicating with the extraterrestrial beings. After discovering that the alien language is more complicated than our own, Dr. Banks is on a race against the clock to either discover a way to communicate or risk a war between earth and the aliens. I feel as if the film starts slow and gradually ramps up in mystery as the story progresses and this gives it its own unique flavor that a lot of movies don’t have. The only thing that I feel the movie struggled with is that the scenes that are suppose to be emotional feel forced and extremely awkward, despite that the movie had amazing visuals and story. These and the scientific twist at the ending might have earned it an Oscar nod, but I score it 8/10. Day 1 - Movie 2 - Manchester by the Sea I dove straight into the next movie, Manchester by the Sea, directed by Kenneth Lonergan. Manchester by the Sea is about Lee Chandler, a handyman played by Casey Affleck, who is called by to his hometown after his brother’s untimely death. Chandler has been named guardian to his 16 year-old nephew, Patrick, played by Lucas Hedges. Though I don’t typically enjoy dramatic films, I was blown away by this amazing movie. Amazing acting, amazing story, and all I can say is check it out. This heartfelt
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Tales from my two-day, Oscar movie marathon.
story is my frontrunner for the statue. Day 1 - Movie 3 - Lion Next came Lion, directed by Garth Davis, a movie about a child, Saroo, played by Sunny Pawar, who is lost in India and eventually adopted by an Australian family. Fast forward 25 years, Saroo is tasked with finding his birth parents in India. The movie was not my favorite, apart from the story, the movie felt forced and was difficult to sit through--even in my bed. It’s hard to think of any reason that this movie would have been nominated for best picture other than its compelling story. Day 1 - Movie 4 - Hidden Figures It had been a long six hours, so I decided to grab some lunch: a McChicken and a Shamrock shake. I was all energized and ready to sit back down for Hidden Figures. Directed by Theodore Melfi, this movie that takes us behind to scenes of the historic Friendship 7 launch and into the lives of three African American women who were instrumental to NASA’s success. The movie was a real eye-opener into a historic event I didn’t know anything about. Great acting and amazing historical accuracy, the only thing is that I feel the movie was very slow, and I was bored easily: so much for math at the movies. This movie’s nomination was deserved because of the acting and the choice of to bring an underrepresented
story to the screen. Day 1 - Movie 5 - Fences Tired, depressed, sipping the last of my Shamrock shake, I started the next movie, Fences. Fences, directed by Denzel Washington, is a movie about a man named Troy Maxson, played by Denzel Washington, who after a failed baseball career struggles to raise his family due to dwelling on the past. The movie is very emotional and Denzel Washington does an amazing job portraying Maxson. The movie keeps you interested the whole duration and keeps you asking for more when it’s over. The movie’s only shortcoming of this movie is that it seems it was made to be played on stage and was poorly adapted for the big screen. The movie was probably nominated for the Oscar because of its compelling story and great acting. Day 1 - Movie 6 - Hell or High Water After about ten hours of movies, I was starting to feel a little tired, but I trudged on into the next movie, Hell or High Water. Directed by David Mackenzie, this action-drama follows the lives of Toby and Tanner Howard, played by Chris Pine and Ben Foster. The Howard brothers are out for revenge after their land is foreclosed upon by the bank. The brothers go on a spree robbing every branch of the bank. The movie has a western feel and comedic points,
IHSA Contest Play Judging Ensemble/Group work: “The actors work as a unified whole to act out and tell the story. As such, they create, through their physical choices, settings and atmospheres.” Story development through characters and narrators: “The idea is that we don’t have lighting, set and sound cues to develop the story. It’s all done by the actors.” Focus/Blocking: “According to the rules: focus should be primarily off-stage. On-stage focus should be used sparingly and with purpose although mixed focus (a combination of off-stage and on stage focus) is allowed.” --Mr. Narter
which I absolutely loved. The tale of the little guy striking back and some dynamic acting earned it the nomination. Day 2- Waking Up Waking up not realizing where I was, with snacks surrounding me, I couldn’t quite tell what happened the night before. But when I saw Hacksaw Ridge open on my computer, I remembered that I was torturing myself for a school assignment. Here we go again; I realize what needs to be done. Day 2- Movie 7 - Hacksaw Ridge Starting my morning with what is probably one of the most gruesome movies ever, I watched the bloodiest battle of WWII play out in front of me through the point of view of Desmond D. Doss, played by Andrew Garfield, a field medic who refuses to fire a single shot through his tour of duty. Hacksaw Ridge was most likely nominated because of its amazing visuals and new perspective of war. Day 2 - Movie 8 - La La Land From guts and glory to song and dance, I moved into one nominee that I was really hopeful for, La La Land. It follows Mia, played by Emma Stone, and Sebastian, played by Ryan Gosling, who are pursuing their dreams in the city of angels while trying to make a living. I was really looking forward to this movie, from the commercials I saw it looked really good, but as I continued watching the movie, I remembered it was a musical. The song segments were great by themselves, but they felt out of place and didn’t tie the film together. Its nomination is deserved, but it just wasn’t for me. Day 3 - Movie 9 - Moonlight Going into the last movie, I was excited for this to finally be over, but I thought I’d end it on a bang with Moonlight. Moonlight follows the life of Chiron, played by Ashton Sanders. His race, sexuality, and isolation is depicted through three important stages of his life: childhood, teenage years, and adulthood. The amazing acting and heartfelt story definitely made this a contender for the Oscar. Hopefully, no one screws this one up… 8/10
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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
February 2017
Club Penguin set to shut down next month Weronika Trzaska @VVeronikaT
“I will always remember the time I became a black belt and a master. I was the king of the dojo.” -Senior Gino Cangialosi
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ake yourself back in time. You are a seven-year-old, wanting to be a part of the Internet but too young to make a Myspace or Facebook account. You’ve been stuck playing “fun” learning games on the web. And then, the first social, virtual world for children arrives: Club Penguin. Created in 2005, Club Penguin gave my generation countless memories. The game first featured several penguins in a community, but it soon grew into communities with billions of penguins from multiple countries and continents. As the game grew, our virtual penguins gained the ability to adopt Puffles, build snow forts, have a job and play games like Pizzatron 3000, Cart Surfer, and Mancala. Our penguin selves could become a black belt in the dojo, play the role of secret agent, and party with other penguins like there was no tomorrow. I remember logging on to the server and going straight to my igloo to feed my two puffles I received for free because I was not cool enough to be a premium member. I was always jealous. Because of Club Pen-
Remembering the good times...
“I will miss my girlfriend on Club Penguin. I would always chill with her in my igloo, and we raised a puffle together.” -Senior Alex Suarez The famous iceberg finally tipped over with the help of penguins with jackhammers and their puffles.
guin, we’ve made many memories and friends, but now, the future generation won’t be able to experience it. At the start of this month, the creators of Club Penguin and Disney announced that the website will come to an end on March 29. In March, the original Club Penguin server will be replaced with Club Penguin Island. The new island will be available on computers and mobile devices. Nothing from the original server will be transferred onto the island. The island will feature a more robust virtual world, but my free puffles won’t make the trip.
Since the announcement of the shut down, longtime users started to protest in the game. As a final act of penguin protest, users went on the famous iceberg and started to jack hammer the ice to eventually flip it. After 12 years, the iceberg finally flipped. If you don’t know what that means, you were either too old or too young to enjoy Club Penguin. If you’re sad you missed the long-awaited tipping, here’s what happened: the tipping revealed a dance party with a new dance floor, music, and free hats. A message came across the screen for users stating, “Together, we can build
an island, create a community, change the world, even tip an iceberg. Waddle on.” With Club Penguin coming to an end, we should all take a moment to remember other games that left a mark on our childhood: Weeworld, Neopets, Webkinz, and Poptropica. Those games still exist, but eventually they have become less popular as new generations of children discover new entertainment online. The games get forgotten, but the memories last forever.
A Shade better Weronika Trzaska @VVeronikaT
Banger Break:
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Getting real with Rap
Joey Graf
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he hip hop industry has witnessed a constant flood of meaningless “bangers.” These songs typically top the charts, but they often lack the thoughtfulness of more refined hip hop tunes. If you’re ready for a change from these drug-laced lyrics, try checking out these albums. Big Sean found a way to mix meaningful music with a few party songs in his new album I Decided. According to Sean, “With this album I realized that life is all about the decisions we make.” He is trying to show that he has matured as a rapper and is constantly changing his game. The first song of the album, “Light,” is about how Sean has found new strength and that he is changing his life. In an interview, Sean said the “Light” represents inner strength: “When you realize that you’ve got that light and you hold all the answers that you’ve been looking for in all these other places—then that’s the first step to really changing your whole world.” In the song, he raps, “No matter how much they gon’ shade you. No, man they can’t f*** with the light.” The album does a great job at showing how flexible he is as a rapper and that he can deliver these meaningful songs while staying at the top of the game. “You can listen to this album at any occasion. If you need to sit and think, it has a few songs for that. When you are just trying to have a good time, you can find a song for that here. I feel that this album is a good move for Sean, and it is perfectly well-rounded,” senior Jonathan Roman said. An album that is completely free from “pump up music” is J. Cole’s 4 Your Eyez Only. This album delivers a real message in every song, but the core topic of the album is the death of his friend.
The album drops the best hints at this in the songs “Change,” “Immortal,” and “4 Your Eyez Only.” In the song “Change,” Cole goes in depth with the lyrics, “I made it home, I woke up and turned on the morning news. Overcame with a feeling I can’t explain ‘cause that was my ---- James that was slain, he was 22.” The song continues to discuss the funeral and other part’s of Cole’s grief over his friend’s death. Cole’s album is free of party music and really shows his talent as a rapper. The album really goes into something none of us really want to go through and it shows a different meaning for all listeners. “When I listened to this album I really didn’t know what was happening. I felt that it meant something really deep, but I couldn’t figure it out. After some research and repeated listening I finally figured out and every song changed for me. Now when I listen to it I actually think about what Cole went through and the loss of his friend,” senior Joe Cangialosi explained. An album that does a great job mixing bumping tunes and real meaningful music is Denzel Curry’s Imperial. The album includes a good amount of party songs such as “ULT” and “Knotty Head.” On the other hand, Denzel raps about the struggles of balancing his rap career and his relationships on the song “This Life.” “This is definitely my favorite song on the album. Denzel is kinda caught with his new fame and is struggling to keep his relationships with friends and family,” one fan noted. Denzel really comes to grips with these issues in the song “Pure Enough” with the lyrics “Are you pure enough? To keep it real with yourself when you in the mirror bruh? Or when you all alone girl are you sure enough? Keep it G is the key and that is the cure for us.” Hip hop music has plenty of albums with meaning. Fans may need to lay off the typical drug and money influenced songs to find them, but they’re out there. Hopefully, Big Sean’s new album will be a model for other rappers seeking balance in their own albums.
he great love story of Christian Grey and Anastasia Steele has taken the spotlight once again. Fifty Shades Darker, the second movie in the Fifty Shades trilogy, premiered Friday, February 10. My friend from work and I, both eager fans, bought tickets for the Thursday night showing, and we were definitely not disappointed. I became a Fifty Shades fan over the summer, when I read all three of the books, as well as Grey (Fifty Shades of Grey told in the perspective of Christian Grey), in one week. People quickly judge when I say that, but their love story got me hooked and made me cry legit tears. The way that Steele affects Grey is mesmerizing. Grey had never been in love before and was never interested in romance, until Steele arrived in his life. The second movie interested me more. The plot had bits of jokes to lighten up the mood and focused a lot more on how Grey and Steele built their relationship, up to their engagement, which left me sobbing. Without ruining the movie, you could truly tell how much Steele loves Grey after a crash. Although I thought it was an amazing movie, critics unfortunately didn’t feel the same. IMDB critics gave the movie a 4.9/10 star rating, receiving a 3.3/5 Rotten Tomatoes rating. The movie brought in a $24.1 M over opening weekend. The soundtrack, however, topped the Top 200 Billboard Chart. The playlist features mellow, upbeat, and romantic tracks from various artists like Sia, Halsey, John Legend, Zayn, Kygo. The closing of the movie brought a surprise for fans: a trailer and date for the premier of the final movie for the trilogy, Fifty Shades Freed.
SPORTS
February 2017
15
Winning Ways
Boys team leaves impression on coach despite losing record Nataliya Grygorash - @Missnatacusia The boys basketball team had a good run; they faced challenges and overcame them together. They practiced to be perfect, and helped each other to become better and stronger. Even if they tallied up some losses, this team won head coach Mr. Bill Heisler over because of their integrity and teamwork. Heisler said, “We knew we were going to struggle to score, and the loss of Jake Fiala[due to injury] for the year made that even worse. We also knew we had some young talent that was going to improve over the season. We were hoping to get to 10 wins and to show improvement throughout the year. We also have the expectation of our players being good people, good students, and good players.” It’s that last part--sticking together and showing improvement over the season-that will stay with Heisler. “I have had two seasons over the years that have struggled to get wins, and both of those teams struggled with energy in the gym and attitude issues. This team has proven to be of great character and really good kids,” he said. “I have had so much fun being around them, and they have shown to be level headed, poised, and constantly improving. I have really enjoyed coaching them.” Ocean Johnson, a sophomore at East Leyden and part of the boys basketball team, said, “During our season we expected to have good chemistry with each other and help one another.” Even though some of the teammates got injured during the season, they still worked hard to be the best. “We still are trying to be better as a team, but I know that we can become better if we work together to help one another,” Johnson added. “Next season I’m hoping
Kyler Britten shoots the game winning 3-pointer. Photos by Pete Skylakos
that we will work better together as a team and that we will have a better record.” Senior Michael Dibeasi said, “We expected to go into three tournaments and win them. Sadly we didn’t meet that expectation, but we just kept pushing through.” Even as his high school career ends, Dibeasi kept a team first focus: “This year, we began developing sophomores to play on the varsity team and that helped us out greatly.”Since this year they started having some sophomores on the varsity team, that made them practice more and better to have everyone be ready for the games. For his current teammates and potential players, Dibeasi said, “Stay out
of trouble, prepare yourself ,and make sure you are ready for the tryouts. You can’t play on the team if you aren’t ready to compete.” Johnson added, “Keep working hard and don’t be nervous when you play against others.” Heisler is also looking forward to progress and continued character next season. “I hope to see the continued improvement of our young kids that we brought up from the sophomore team this year. I also hope to see great off season dedication to shooting the basketball and being available to work in the weight room and on the court,” he said.
“We also have theexpectation of our players being good people, good students, and good players.”
With indoor then outdoor, track athletes ask
Photos by Pete Skylakos
Is the Finish Line too Far?
Jacob Martinez
Melanie Lopez - @Lanie_Lop3z
We’re beginning to transition into Spring season. Some students are excited and getting ready for their upcoming tryouts; however, others have already started weeks ago. Track and field begins mid January and sometimes extends until mid May, depending on sectional standings. So, to do the math for you, that’s roughly around four months of only Track and Field. Most spring sports are about 2-2.5 months. From an outsider’s point of view on the Track and Field season it seems very long, maybe even straining on the athlete, but what do the athletes
Fabian Vega
themselves and the coaches think? Head Varsity Coach Tom Cartwright and 4 year track and field athlete Ivan Perez think it’s necessary. Perez said that yes, it is a bit straining on your body but you have to push your limits in order to get better. Cartwright said,“I don’t think track season is too long, just coming from a personal standpoint being that I’ve run track in high school and in college.” Cartwright said that he’s noticed by the time outdoor season comes his athletes, who have been participating in indoor season, are starting to get into form/shape and beginning to get into the competitive mindset. Others have to play catch up.
Azu Whigham
Perez said that by the end of indoor season he feels prepared for outdoor and actually finds it easier than indoor now that he’s in shape. It is not uncommon for students to skip out on indoor track and field season and only go to outdoor, but the coaches and other athletes don’t necessarily agree with it. Cartwright said, “Personally I don’t agree with it because you’re losing so much time to build. As we get to outdoor, it’s only nine weeks, and nine weeks for people to compete track and field isn’t long enough to get really good.” Perez’s agreed: “Doing outdoor track and skipping indoor track is not the smartest idea. You lose a lot of training
Nathan Diazleal
by doing that, which puts you in a disadvantage from everyone else.” For any students debating on doing track and field next year, the insider recommendation is to do both indoor and outdoor season if you don’t participate in a winter sport. Cartwright spoke on the benefits of doing both seasons. “Obviously understanding who’s willing to go through the grind with you, all the friends that you make that you normally wouldn’t talk to, building relationships with your coaches...all that and then understanding what it means to really again do your part individually to contribute to the team.”
16
SPORTS
February 2017
Kicking Off the Season
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Ruth Merlos - @merlos_ruth25
occer tryouts have begun and will continue to this Friday, March 13. This season will be filled with new faces. The juniors and seniors will try out for varsity with Coach Rob Fowler and the new assistant Coach John Schieman. Sophomores will be trying out with their new Coach Mark Valintis. And freshman will be with Coach Angelica Buzun. Fowler provided some insight about this year’s upcoming season. Before the season started open gym for soccer was held at the West and East campuses. This was an opportunity to get out and Girls soccer is ready to run with a new staff. Photo by Pete Skylakos play some soccer but also to be seen by the coaches. This year’s open gym started in January. From what Fowler momentum and skill. “Not only that, but they get acquainted saw it was a good outcome. He thinks that this year’s team with potential new teammates. What she is most excited “have a big chance of being successful this season. We have about “is taking part as a leader this year and becoming a a number of juniors that are coming up that are seniors this good motivational captain for the team.” year. I think I counted twelve that were in last year season. I The team is also adjusting to a change in coach. think it is important to have a senior strong team that brings “Well unfortunately, we lost Coach Kari [Ferguson]. She is back a lot of experience, and I know a lot of girls coming having a child, which is awesome, but that means she can’t up from last year’s sophomore team that are juniors this coach soccer this year, so we had to make some changes.” year that could definitely help us out at the varsity level. Ferguson used to be the assistant coach for varsity. That That is promising.” position is being taken by Schieman. Suarez said that she The new faces will be especially important after is “very excited because he’s had a lot of experience with last years seniors leaving. “Well we’re replacing a lot of soccer. I’ve seen the way he coaches, and he’s very creative seniors that were pretty much starters the whole time. So with the way he sets up skillful drills. He’s going to have that’s a lot to replace. We’re going to be looking for help a huge impact on us this year because he’s also consistent in the midfield and help in the forward position, I think our with helping us correct our mistakes on the field.” defense is pretty strong coming back, but we’re just going “The exciting news is that we were able to hire to have to work on really having an offense that can help Coach Mark Valintis from the boys staff,” Fowler said. He score goals in games.” will be “joining us with the [sophomore] girls” this year. Nohely Suarez is a player Fowler relies on for The way we’re going to be organized... is “myself [Coach leadership. She is a senior this year that will be helping Fowler] and Coach Schieman will be doing Varsity, Coach out a lot since this will be her fourth year on varsity. She Rossetti the Junior Varsity and Coach Valintis Sophomores. believes that open gym is beneficial because “many girls get Then Coach Buzun (Coach B) at the freshman level.” the feeling of what it’s like to play a fast-paced game with
Nohely Suarez: “My hope for this season is to increase our technical skills as a team.”
Vanessa Gallegos: “As always, I think the goal is to be better than the year before. I hope we can perform well in the Windy City Tournament and the PepsiCo Showdown.
Lourdes Moreno: “My hopes for this season are for everyone to get along and also for all the girls to get equal playing time.”
Softball Getting In the Swing
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Jodi DuBrock - @jodidubrock
orning practices and open gyms have begun for this upcoming 2017 softball season, and tryouts will be hosted starting Monday the week of February 27 in the north gym and end Saturday March 4. Recapping last season, the team had a great record, reaching its goal of 20 wins with an ending record of 21-5. They were second in conference next to Downers Grove South, which has been a rivalry for the softball team going back a couple of years. Senior Carly Cullotta said that for varsity they will take that extra effort in practice and push the girls a little further to try and clinch a conference championship this year. She said, “With good team chemistry we can do anything and our team has gotten so close over the years I am so excited to play with my girls again.” Not only is good chemistry with the players a huge aspect to a great outcome for this season but also the coaches and girls. Sophomore Tara Mackey said, “The girls were so welcoming to me as a freshman, and I cannot wait for this next season with them. We have a great relationship with both Coach Schuett and Coach Scafidi, and in order to be a successful athlete you have to have trust in your coaches. They make it easy for us to have such a close bond.” Senior Lauren Vermilyer said what she thinks are the team goals for this year: “Well our annual goal every year is to reach 20 wins, so maybe this year we can try and get 22 to beat our record last year. The past two years we have lost in the regional championship, and I hope that we can move past regionals this year and get that title.” Leyden Softball has high expectations for this year and can’t wait to see how it plays out. Go support the softball team this spring where varsity will be playing at the Rosemont Bandits Stadium and JV and Freshman will play their home games at the Leyden Annex!
Not-so-solo Skate Jamie Nazario - @gamechanger_28
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thletes know that a sport can really become a part of you. It can define who you are as a person and who you become in the future. And for most high school athletes, that identity connection is apparent to their peers. They wear their school uniform proudly and see their friends in the stands. For those who compete outside of school, however, the connection between sport and self has to occur more independently. Sophomore Clarissa Messina knows all about that experience. A figure skater since she was five-years-old, Messina has turned that one sport she used to enjoy back when she was a kid into a part of her and has a goal to one day become a professional. “I’ve been skating since I was five years old, so 11 years,” Messina said. “I originally started skating in Franklin Park. Then I was connected with a coach in Northbrook. I did synchro skating in Franklin Park for eight years. Then, the coach I met in Northbrook directed me to their team, which was a really competitive program.” Messina confirmed that there were a lot of difficulties in the way to becoming one of the best skaters on her team. However, the love she has for the sport drove her past her limits into not quitting. “I definitely thought I didn’t belong after I spent a year or two working on one jump. Couldn’t land it, couldn’t land it, and I was starting to think I should just quit. However, definitely being with my team [helped], and just being reminded of just how much I love
skating.” Kids that compete in school sports may find it easy to get pumped up for their upcoming events, with most of their teammates and coaches encouraging them throughout their school day. However, for a competitor outside of school, this can sometimes become challenging. Their team, opponents, and sometimes coaches can be spread around the state Photo courtesy of Clarissa Messina just so afraid they’re going to fail and what other people or even country. “It’s different knowing that my coaches and team- think of them, so they don’t follow their dreams,” Messina mates are off to the side,” Messina said, “but I actually kind said. “Some kids come out of their comfort zone and try of enjoy just hearing them cheer from the sidelines. They their hardest because no one’s going to judge you if you may not be there with me, but I still know they are fully fail.” She’s got fans, too, even if they’re not random supporting me.” And while Messina can’t wear her “uniform” classmates. “My friends and family are super supportive, to school on “game day” to announce to peers that she’s like, they’ll be at all my competitions, they’ll come, they’ll competing, it’s not difficult to stay focused. “My love and support me. They help me at school when I’m gone, they’ll passion for the sport keeps me going. I’s the first thing on help me with homework and show me what to do.” my mind when I leave school and the last thing on my mind “I’ve learned that there are days where you can go before I go to bed.” out there and have the best skate of your life, and there are The nature of skating, combined with the fact days where you can go out there and suck. You just have that it happens without the support of the school system, to do your best.” requires individual determination. “I think some kids are