The Eagle's Eye: September 2016

Inside this Issue:

A Passion for 3D News p. 2

THE

September 2016

2020 Vision

East Leyden High School

First Job Tips In Focus p. 6-7

Pressure to Live Up Sports p. 11

EAG E’S EYE 3400 Rose Street

Volume 86 Issue 4 Franklin Park, IL 60131

Alexander Guzman

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ver the next few years, East and West Leyden will undergo major construction aimed at changing the layout of the building to improve instructional opportunities.

According to Superintendent Dr. Nick Polyak, “There is an addition as well as a number of renovations” planned to begin in the summer of 201, which means preparations will begin soon. The major portions of the project should be finalized for the 2020 school year.

Part of the renovation is constructing a horseshoe shaped addition on the East Leyden campus, which will include a new cafeteria and recreation center, and another is a rebuilding and expansion of the West Leyden cafeteria.

At East, the intended addition onto what is currently Dodge field will add about 122,000 square feet onto the existing 400,000 square foot East Leyden campus. According to Dr. Polyak, the new construction will feature a common area for students to dine and converse and a courtyard. He explained that the school intends “to have spaces that are welcoming, that are places [students] want to be in, and are fun.”

Concept drawings for the upcoming construction show the entrance (top) to the student cafeteria (left) and where it will be added onto the current building.

[Images courtesy of Dr. Polyak]

The cafeteria addition allows for a change to an instructional routine that the Leyden community knows too well: split periods. Dr. Polyak explained that the intended changes for the cafeterias allows each school to seat more students in one period. The current East Leyden cafeteria seats about 330 students in one lunch period, which requires seating students across five twenty-five minute lunch periods. The new cafeteria and common area will be able to seat about 600 students, replacing the need for the split period lunches to about three full period lunches. According to Dr. Polyak, the elimination of the split period will provide an opening in the students’ schedules, allowing numerous things to take place. Committees are forming to discuss new schedules and

potential revisions of existing programs.

One of the possibilities is the idea of a hour-long lunch period, and possibly the elimination of a period eleven, meaning your hour-long lunch period may be a privilege, and Guided Study and Access might fit into that hour.

East Leyden currently has a pool that only has five lanes, and the inability to do diving because of its shallowness throughout the pool. The aquatic center would house an eight lane pool as well as a diving well, allowing for the possibility of a water polo team. With the new pool, the current pool will be filled with cement to house a new wrestling room. Another part of this addition will be moving the girls locker to the current band room, which would allow all general

P.E class rooms to be in one area. The band room will be moved to its more convenient and logical place, near the auditorium.

While the bus drop off will eliminate parking from the corner of King and Calwagner, Dr. Polyak assured me that he believes the fifty parking spots lost is more than made up in the front parking lot on 25th Avenue.

Dr. Polyak explained that the school district is funding the construction projects through something called debt certificates.

This is similar to a low-interest mortgage.

This allows the district to get the money it needs for construction and allows them to pay it back over the next 20 years.

Suspension alternative created

L It’s almost time for a new king and queen.

[Photo courtesy of Mr. Marten]

Homecoming Dance

Madison Stompor

Saturday, September 24, come out to the “Rock Around The Clock,” themed Homecoming Dance! The dance takes place in the West Leyden fieldhouse at 7:00 p.m.

Tickets in advance are $13 for singles and $25 for couples. If you’re deciding to go last minute, tickets are available at the door; $15 for singles and $30 for couples. Also, if you plan on bringing a guest, someone who does not attend Leyden, make sure to grab a guest form which are available in the cafeteria, dean’s office or front desk.

For anyone who is still undecided on whether that should attend or not, here are five reasons why you should! One, dressing up and going out is always fun. Two, You get to spend time with a bunch of your friends all at once. Three, you can take fantastic pictures with your date or friends. Four, for those of you who love to dance this is your time to shine. Five, it’s a time to show your school spirit and celebrate the beginning to a great school year.

Olivia Soto

eyden is undertaking a new program, SIT, Student intervention Time, which is a version of what other schools call in school suspension.

A lot of people may think in school suspension is sitting in a room all day doing nothing. But, with this new approach, Student Intervention Time (SIT), will provide empowerment to students to make healthy decisions towards positive life experiences.

According to The State JournalRegister, Illinois’ school discipline policy has reformed to reduce out-of-school suspensions and put interventions in place to prevent minor infractions from becoming major problems.

New Leyden student intervention facilitator, Entesar Ebrahimi, explained, “The program is to assist students not only with their academic studies, but also with any behavioral and/or social emotional issues. The idea is to combine group and individual counseling, academic studies assistance, and setting measurable goals to allow students to move forward and take action.”

The individuals responsible for developing the program are Assistant Principal Anita Huffman, Dean Michael Grosch, and Dean Dennis Byrne. What they plan to accomplish in the new program is to give students with behavior concerns a place and an opportunity to discuss issues that lead to misbehavior.

Ebrahimi noted, “We want students to understand that their time in Student In-

tervention is not a punishment, but rather an opportunity to grow. My motto is this: ‘Why do we SIT? To reflect, restore and revive.’

We are trying to incorporate this as we work with each student.”

Principal Jason Markey is excited that the state’s new limitations on out of school suspension led to the creation of SIT. “We never liked the idea of students being suspended out of school and not contacting them or not talking through whatever happened in the situation, and I think this will be a better opportunity to both process maybe the incident that happened and think through [the students’] decision making process but then also really prepare and come back in school with a fresh and positive approach.”

This early in the program, it might not be possible to call it a “success,” but Ebrahimi likes the direction it’s going and the support she’s received from faculty and staff.

Ebrahimi said, “I believe it is too early to tell, but I do think that over time it will be effective. As with any new process, change can and will take a lot of time and effort.” She also explained that SIT is just one part of a shift in working with misbehavior: “We must work together and change the culture of discipline, by believing that every student can learn from their mistakes through personal growth, rather than punishment. With the help of everyone at Leyden, we can certainly make this exciting opportunity flourish!”

SIT supervisor Ms. Entesar Ebrahimi [Photo by Olivia Soto]

Markey also focused on the potential for the future. You know [reducing suspensions for larger issues] is one of our big hopes.

And not just reducing suspension, which it likely will, but also reducing repeated incidents. It’s likely that if a student has had a couple incidents, they kind of get in that pattern, sometimes just having a hard time problem solving a particular situation that keeps occurring,” he said.

Markey also explained that social workers, counselors, and others in the building will take part in SIT activities to aid students. He said, “[They will] come in and have some discussions and as a group they talk a little bit as well. Hopefully they’re able to talk through some of those things to help make better choices moving forward.”

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NEWS

September 2016

Focus on the future

Counselors expand visits to help students plan Autumn McGee s an effort to increase counselor/ social worker-student interaction when it comes to planning for life after high school, the counselors and social workers at East Leyden came together and started a new assistance program called Group Guidance.

“We are adopting more of a proactive approach to helping students rather than reactive,” says Ms. Dawn Erickson, Student Services chairperson. “It is our hope that we positively impact the mindset of students regarding having as many options as possible to choose from their senior year as they develop a plan for their next steps.”

Ms. Erickson, as well as the other counselors and social workers, planned for this program during inservice meetings last year by reviewing the students’ needs and

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Student services intern Ms. Maura Gavin directs a group guidance activity. The department has expanded contact time with students to help them develop options for after high school. [Photo by Autumn McGee]

After school shift

looking at some data.

From a student’s perspective, they could use this program to their advantage when it comes to impacting future decisionmaking. After discussing the outcome of the College Fair hosted at Leyden last year, junior Sarah Krajewski believes Group Guidance is another easy way to start planning, and it can “give us more information and time to think about what we want to do after high school. We’ll think about new opportunities that we never thought of before.”

All students at Leyden will participate in and attend Group Guidance lessons.

Freshmen will meet monthly in classrooms with their counselor. Sophomore, Junior, and Senior Group Guidance will take place in Library Classroom C, and they will be taking part in three lessons throughout the year, given by counselor teams.

Even though counselor visits to classrooms once or twice every year existed, the new program should allow students to accomplish a lot more in their planning.

Alumnus Joe Cunningham feels that this program could have eased his college process.

“I feel like the program could have helped me come to a more secure, knowledgeable decision,” Cunningham

Bartos honored for passion project

L Students gather in the library because hallways are no longer an option. [Photo by Majda Causevic

Majda Causevic

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tarting the year off this year, administration has increased the efforts of the rule, “No students in the hallways after school.”

This year, directly at 2:40, security guards walk up and down hallways escorting students either to the library, cafeteria, classroom or outside. Last year, there was excessive amounts of students roaming the hallways after school. Students would hang out in the hallways would be disruptive to the programs after school such as ACCESS and clubs.

Students and teachers tended to be “annoyed” and “frustrated because kids would block hallways and doorways” after school according to Ms. Nichole Sweeney. Although students and teachers felt frustration, administration are buckling down on students because roaming the halls is a safety hazard. In a case of emergency, faculty and staff can respond better with designated students

in their classrooms without the extra addition of students who mosey around in the halls.

Leaving students with limited options, it emboldens student’s opinions on the issue. “Although students have the library and cafeteria, it doesn’t feel as a commons place,” stated senior Ashley Soller. “Students need a place to relax and decompress after a long day.”

Recognizing that there are limited options for students, administration has accommodated the need for a commons space in its upcoming construction project. A courtyard and more openconcept cafeteria, with a snack bar and lounge, will be featured in the building scheduled to be completed in 2020.

says. His advice to the underclassmen is to “progressively be more in touch with your counselor throughout the years, not only for this program, but in general.

Increasing communication with a counselor about planning for the future could help create a closer bond between the student and counselor. This could result in a less stressful situation for the student when making decisions about life after Leyden.

While counselors are implementing the Group Guidance lessons into the students’ schedules, students will also attend three Emotional Intelligence Lessons delivered by social workers. According to Ms. Erickson, the lessons will focus on “providing tools that we hope will ultimately help them be more successful in school and life.”

The counselors and social workers taking part in these progressive lessons are anxious and curious to see the results of the first few lessons in which they are hoping for success. “I’m excited to see how the new program turns out,” Erickson says. “We’re hoping to see improvement compared to the past years when it comes to getting a start on planning for after high school.”

Krystian Misiewicz

eyden junior Fabian Bartos 3D printed a violin during the summer of 2016. While others were at home relaxing during their vacation, Bartos efforts earned him recognition as a “30 under 30” Future Leader in Manufacturing according to a trade journal. He was one of only two high schoolers featured in the publications.

Bartos has long been interested in engineering, but his most recent project started after he watched a couple of videos of 3D printed violins on the internet. Bartos went on to plan out the creation of the violin in June of 2016. Within a few of weeks, he finished the project, shocking the engineering community.

Bartos was going through his Facebook feed and saw one of his friends sharing a video of a 3D printed violin. Going deeper, Fabian went on YouTube to look up how the violin is made.

“It blew my mind how something so simple could be so complicated,” Bartos said. On June 24, he contacted his engineering teacher, Mr. Frank Holthouse, to get approval on the project. In the middle of July, even though there was construction in the hallway where the engineering room is, that did not stop Bartos from coming in and printing the separate parts for the violin.

“After printing all the parts, I laid them out on the table at home, and I was amazed at how it looked. The end product was a 3D printed, full size electric violin, that could be hooked up to an amp and

played with the same sound as an acoustic violin.”

Bartos discovered engineering when he was six years old on a career day at school. Later, when he was eight or nine years old, he read “Magic Tree House: Tonight on the Titanic.” After falling in love with the book, Bartos started researching about the physics and engineering behind the Titanic wreck. He even went as far as building three quarters of a model of the Titanic made out of popsicle sticks and tongue depressors.

After high school, Bartos would like to study aerospace/aeronautical engineering. “I plan on becoming a licensed private pilot.”

Bartos is staying with music for his next project: to 3D print a cello.

Principal Jason Markey is especially happy with Bartos’s accomplishments as they highlight one of the three values he hopes students will show at Leyden.

“I would want all students that read this to know that if they truly love to do something, and they take that PASSION and just do it, they will be surprised with the outcomes,” Markey said. “It’s all about ‘FINDING YOUR PASSION.’ Fabian’s willingness to share his work publicly allows other students and Leyden families to see what is possible at Leyden and how we truly support students to find and pursue their passions.”

OPINIONS

September 2016

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Hallway policy trades one problem for another

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Krystian Misiewicz

tarting this school year, East Leyden revised its practice for the hallways after school. The policy forbids any student to be in the hallways after school.

Once the second bell rings after tenth period each day, the security guards give five minutes for students to clear the hallways. Once the five minutes are over, security gives students two options: either to go to the library to study and do homework or to go to the student cafeteria to socialize with friends.

The policy is designed to eliminate any clusters of students in the hallway that can cause disruption to other students and staff. Many students, including myself, are outraged over this limitation of where we can stay after school to socialize or do homework.

I understand that teachers and staff

were concerned about how disrupting some of the students in the hallway can be after school. Math teacher and ACCESS advisor, Mr. Salerno, personally supports this policy, claiming that “many people, both faculty and students alike, were finding that the students are congregating in the hallways after school.” Some students are loud and obnoxious, and the policy seems to have decreased the amount of disruption.

The deans have every right to take action against this disruption. Many students come in after school to the classroom to get additional help. Teachers need to prepare for tomorrow’s lesson, grade papers, and complete other tasks. ACCESS classrooms are implemented in order to guide freshmen in the right direction for their years in high school. All of these students/staff members need a quiet environment to work produc-

tively; however, there is another alternative that also supports a quieter environment.

Once five minutes pass by after the second bell, all students are directed to go to the library or cafeteria by security. Most of the students are in discontent thinking why they can’t just stay in the hallways. Senior Era Meco asked, “Why can’t security just let the quieter and more respectful students stay in the hallway? If things get hectic, then security is there to kick those students out.”

After eight hours of doing school work, some students might prefer to just socialize with their friends and relax before they go home, to work, or to a meeting/ practice. If they socialize without disruption, why can’t they stay in the hallways.

Security guards roam the hallways anyway to eliminate any disruption.

Redirecting all of the students in

the hallway to the library and cafeteria is unnecessary for students who behave in the hallway.

And it may pose some more problems. The library and cafeteria have always been packed with so many students. Even in the library, it got harder to find a spot to go do homework or read a book. Staff that work in the library constantly go over to students and tell them to quiet down even though the noise level remains high. The cafeteria, especially, is polluted with noise.

This noise makes it harder for students to concentrate on doing work in the library and making socialization harder in the cafeteria.

Has the new after school hallway policy really reduced disruption? In the hallways, yes. In other places, no.

really important” as junior Sara Snopek admitted to feeling?

While many believe that each halftime performance receives a significant amount of attention and recognition, reality strikes; remaining in the bleachers doesn’t mean the audience is providing their full attention to each performance. The Marching Band is a prime example. “We’re the marching band, but to people, we’re almost just kind of there instead of them like, ‘Ooh the Marching Band’s there. Let’s pay attention and watch them and see what they’re gonna do,” expressed senior clarinet section leader, Sophie Danek.

In the sizzling summer, each team practices during its break from school and after school, once the school year begins, in order to insure the performance is perfect.

Marching Band practices for twelve hours for three days in the summer heat and days before the halftime performance for three hours, including about two hours the day of

the game. Cheerleaders practice three days in the summer for two hours, including two days a week for two hours and 30 minutes the day of the game. Lastly, the Leydenettes practice during the summer for 12 hours for three days, including two times a week for three hours. Each team applies an endless amount of effort and time in order to bring their A-game, which is the equivalent to every single sport. Yet, still a feeling of insignificance fills the hearts of the performers because they don’t feel recognized and appreciated enough as a team during their halftime performance.

The same credit--in the form of our attention--is due to the Marching Band, Leydenettes, and Leyden Cheerleading as to football, theatre, choir, and every Leyden club and sport.

Color Guard senior Katelyn Woods articulated that, “Poms and Cheerleading get the credit they deserve because I know they work hard to get to this point. Plus, they are

smaller groups than the band, so I feel that people can connect with them more and everyone can be noticed as an individual,” while the Marching Band is “recognized as a group more than an individual,” Danek said.

Danek knows that home football games are the best experiences “You work so hard and you’re finally able to show people what you’ve done.”

Senior Leydenettes captain Jocelyn Garcia also loves it “when [fans] cheer. It gets me more hyped.”

It’s important that we fans recognize these performers. Take note, be ready to share a compliment and some encouragement. Show your #LeydenPride if you’re attending a Leyden event by grabbing your snack and having your chat before halftime.

Halftime entertainment deserves attention

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Rachel Modi

magine marching in the blazing hot sun while sweating under a heavy $200 band uniform, constantly repeating, “We’ve done the routine a million times, and we will do just fine.” That’s the pressure of performance for Lauren Vermilyer, senior Leyden cheerleading captain.

Moments later, she’s on the field, hundreds of eyes staring while time slows down as the music starts. Her heart rate is accelerating with the rush of adrenaline because of the loud, distant, encouraging cheers.

But suddenly, more than half of those uninterested eyes leave to buy greasy pizza at the concessions, sending a cold feeling of insignificance towards the team.

The Marching Band, Leydenettes, and Leyden Cheerleading passionately perfect their routines just to eventually have people divert their attention to focus in on dimwitted conversations during their halftime performance.

Halftime performances during the home football games need to have more significance considering the effort each team puts in. Of course every sport puts forth time and effort and deserves a large crowd cheering them on with looks of excitement and interest, but then why do some halftime performers feel like they are “just kind of there” as senior Sophie Danek said or “not

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Opinion

The Eagle’s Eye: September 2016

Taking a seat, taking a knee, taking a

THE EAGLE’S EYE STAFF ISSUE 1 NEWS: Majda Causevic, Editor Karla Montesinos, Madison Stompor, Aliyah Munoz IN FOCUS: Chris Corr, Jaime Nazario, Billy White, Nada Marei

stand

QB’s critics miss point of patriotism an Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick began the movement before a late August preseason game. He refused to stand for the National Anthem as a protest against racial oppression and police brutality in the United States. Several other players began to follow, including 49ers teammate Eric Reid and Jeremy Lane of the Seattle Seahawks. On September 9, Denver Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall took a knee. On September 11, four Miami Dolphins players took a knee while the entire Seahawks and Kansas Chiefs teams linked arms while multiple other players raised their fists in the air.

The protest ignited an ongoing discussion about the nature of protest and patriotism.

Kaepernick’s explained his goals this way: “I’m seeing things happen to people that don’t have a voice, people that don’t have a platform to talk and have their voices heard, and effect change. So I’m in the position where I can do that, and I’m going to do that for people that can’t.” People have definitely responded to Kaepernick’s protest, but some have not heard his message. Unfortunately, as author Peniel Joseph (CNN) articulated, “Now a black athlete that white Americans have cheered on the football field is being widely demonized for daring to ‘stand’ with the people that are being oppressed.”

From August 16 to September 16 a poll given by Reuters asked respondents the “extent to which [they] agree or disagree with the statement, ‘I support the stance Colin Kaepernick is taking and his decision not to stand during the national anthem.’” The poll included 2,093 people with a variety of racial backgrounds, and 72 percent consistently disagreed and named his behavior “unpatriotic.”

These critics argue through their values of respect towards the flag and its connection to American soldiers who fought and died in order to defend our freedom.

Kaepernick answered that criticism directly, stating, “I have great respect for men and women that have fought for this country. I have family, I have friends that have gone and fought for this country. They fight for freedom. They fight for the people, they fight for liberty and justice for everyone. And that’s not happening. People are dying in vain [at home] because this country isn’t holding their end of the bargain up.”

Critics also argue with that Kaepernick’s wealth somehow cheapen his protest.

He cannot, the logic goes, claim to fight oppression because he’s “enjoying [his] $114 million contract, [his] previous adoring fans, sucking up a life of luxury” as Sarah Palin put it. Regardless of his wealth (which he worked immensely hard for), Kaepernick clarifies that his protest “wasn’t for me. This stand wasn’t because I feel like I’m being put down in any kind of way. At this point, I’ve been blessed to be able to get this far and have the privilege of being in the NFL and making the kind of money I make and enjoy luxuries. But I can’t look in the mirror and see other people dying in the street that should have the same opportunities that I’ve had and say, you know what, I can live with myself.”

In fact, Kaepernick also summa-

“

themselves. [Kaepernick] sat in a peaceful protest because he felt motivated to exercise his first amendment right in response to a grievous social issue.” Colin Kaepernick should be celebrated for exercising his constitutional rights through a peaceful protest, not loathed.

President Barack Obama was not as explicitly supportive but acknowledges he would “rather have young people who are engaged in the argument and trying to think through how they can be part of our democratic process than people who are sitting on the sidelines not paying attention at all.” Despite Kaepernick’s “step further” to donate $1 million to organizations relieving communities impacted by racial injustice and police brutality, Obama also articulates that he “generated more conversation around some topics that need to be talked about.”

And racial inequality needs to be discussed. Those who claim we’re in a “post-racial” United States, proven by the existence of our first black president, casually ignore the difficulty of stripping away oppressive policies developed throughout a history of 43 presidents and hundreds of years of slavery before that. Eight years of a black presidency are symbolic, but they are not a sufficient amount of time to initiate monumental change in racial injustice.

Kaepernick’s critics are wrong.

All citizens should be able to proudly stand during the National Anthem, displaying real pride. When a citizen cannot feel that pride because of a real social issue, they should be able to exercise their dissatisfaction. That is the very substance of American freedom: adding one’s voice to the discussion. The United States is not perfect, and minorities do suffer mistreatment in the hands of the white majority. At least Colin Kaepernick is sparking conversation.

Now, the success of his protest, and my hope for the future, rests on whether or not legislators or communities will create real change. Allowing history to unfold will ultimately judge whether Kaepernick’s actions are positively consequential, just as Rosa Parks sitting down to stand up for our rights.

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Rachel Modi

I have great respect for men and women that have fought for this country. I have family, I have friends that have gone and fought for this country. They fight for freedom. They fight for the people, they fight for liberty and justice for everyone. And that’s not happening.

People are dying in vain [at home] because this country isn’t holding their end of the bargain up. rized his experience of mistreatment by cops while helping his roommates move out of a house in college. “We were the only black people in that neighborhood, the cops got called and all of us had guns drawn on us. I mean, [the cops] came in the house without knocking, guns drawn, on one of my teammates and roommates.”

For me, the most convincing reason to support Kaepernick is the way veterans, the very people supposedly injured by his actions, are rallying to support him. For example, military veterans spoke out, advocating for Kaepernick’s right to protest, starting the trending hashtag #VeteransforKaepernick. The Blaze host Tomi Lahren was confronted by Veteran David Kepford Meryhew, who opposed her arrogant and offensive rant. Meryhew expressed how he joined the military “to protect the rights [Kaepernick] acted under.” Also recognizing Lahren’s attitude for someone who claims to support freedom of speech, Meryhew called her “an immature school girl [because she doesn’t] agree with how someone expresses

SPORTS: Cristal Salgado-Franco, Miguel Sanchez, Victoria Valentin, Nataliya Grygorash OPINIONS: Weronika Trzaska, Rachel Modi, Krystian Misiewicz, Joseph Graf FEATURES: Alexander Guzman, Melanie Lopez, Nicole Mora, Ruth Merlos ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT: Alessandra Muro, Hanna Nazareno, Olivia Soto, Mariana Urueta-Hernandez BROADCAST: Jodi DuBrock, Madison Ganir, Autumn McGee, Michael Motyka The Eagle’s Eye is produced by students enrolled in English IV Journalism and English IV Journalism Honors with Mr. John Rossi.

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

FEATURES

September 2016

Sra. Porro prepares to exit with class of 2017

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Majda Causevic

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fter 27 years of working happily here at East Leyden, beloved Sra. Beatrice Porro is retiring with the class of 2017. Sra. Porro has worked for the Leyden district since 1989, and began working at East Leyden since 1992, teaching Spanish. She teaches different levels of, ranging from Spanish 3 to Spanish 5 AP.

Her years at Leyden have impacted Sra. Porro in so many positive ways. Working here at Leyden, she has learned how to interact with the younger generation.

Not only did she learn with the students, but from students. “My students taught me certain things I did not know, like how to enjoy life, be happy, and just be myself,” stated Porro. Her students, “bring life to her heart” she recalled with emotion.

One of the things she will miss most about Leyden will be her students.

Concerning her hopes for this year, she intends to “enjoy the next 7-8 months and try not cry too much.”

She said, “I love working here at Leyden, and I would not change a single thing if I had the chance.”

Upon retiring, Sra. Porro intends to travel to see her daughter, who lives in England, and go to Arizona. She does not plan to stop there. She plans to “come back to Leyden to substitute and help students with the AP Spanish exam.” She continues to bring spirit and excitement everyday to class despite knowing she won’t reside in room 133 next year.

Ms. Beatrice Porro has been making special connections with Leyden students for years.

[Photo by Mr. Rossi]

Wall of Fame Chromebooks updated Inductees Named

[Photo from leydentechies.blogspot.com]

Billy White

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ut with the old in with the new, that seems to be Leyden’s motto over the past few years. Leyden has switched Chromebooks once again to the new second Dell Generation.

The new Dell 2nd Generation Cchromebooks were introduced at the beginning of the 2016 school year. They are replacing the old first Generation Dell Chromebooks that were being used from 2014 to 2016.

The new Dell Generation 2 Chromebooks are faster than the previous model and they have a more protective casing. This protective casing will help defend against damage from dropped chromebooks.

This new Chromebook has no fans making them extremely quiet compared to the older model. This new chrome has a new screen, webcam, better battery, and better wifi connectivity making it better for at school and at home use.

The decision was made by the Leyden Administrators, Leyden School Board, The Technology Department, and the TSI teachers. TSI teacher Adam Labriola says “These Chromebooks are the best Leyden

has had.”.The reason Leyden decided the get new Chromebooks was because they were offered a better deal on new chromebooks with a better warranty. TSI teacher Adam Labriola said, “At the rate the older Chromebooks were breaking it made financial sense to get new Chromebooks which were more durable and came with a warranty.”.

The student feedback of the Chromebooks has been overwhelmingly positive. Student Artur Bak says “The new Chromebooks are better than the last, and with the longer battery life these new Chromebooks will last a lot longer.”

Students began receiving the new Chromebook during the last month of summer after trading in or purchasing their previous one.

Throughout the first two weeks of school, TSI students delivered noticed to those students who had not swapped prior to school starting.

Cezary Podkul, Class of 2002

Cheryl Chavarrie Francl, Class of 1986

Cezary is a reporter at ProPublica covering finance. Previously, he worked as a reporter at Reuters specializing in data-driven news stories. His work with Carrick Mollenkamp for Reuters’s “Uneasy Money” series was a finalist for the Gerald Loeb Award for Distinguished Business and Financial Journalism. He has covered energy and commodities and the private equity industry, among other beats, after leaving investment banking in 2008 to pursue journalism.

Cezary earned a B.S. in economics from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and is a 2011 alumnus of the Stabile Center for Investigative Journalism at Columbia Journalism School, where he won the Melvin Mencher Prize for Superior Reporting. He is fluent in Polish.

His message to Leyden students: “Do not be afraid of failure because the most important thing is not whether you fail at something but what you learn from it and how you use it as an opportunity for the next chapter of your personal or professional life.

Every failure in life is also an opportunity.”

Cheryl Chavarrie Francl graduated from East Leyden in 1986 as the Class Valedictorian.

She earned her Bachelor of Science degree from DePaul University in 1989 with Highest Honors and her Juris Doctorate in 1992 from Northwestern University School of Law in Chicago. At DePaul, she was honored as the Outstanding Senior in the College of Commerce, 1989. At Northwestern, Cheryl served as a note and comment editor for the Journal of International Law and Business.

After law school she began her law career in private practice (Peterson & Ross and Smith, Rickert & Smith), practicing insurance defense, corporate and real estate law and civil litigation. In September of 1998, Cheryl started her airline career by joining United Airlines. She currently is Managing Director and Senior Counsel at United and her practice concentrates on commercial transactions, aviation law, and data privacy.

Cheryl has won a variety of awards while at United but in April of 2013, she was recognized as one of 100 employees with the United 100 Award. She was recognized in the Chicago Business Journal for receiving this award. She is active in community service, including Ministry of Care and fundraising for a variety of charitable organizations, plus she is involved with probono service initiatives with United. Cheryl is married with two children.

Her message to Leyden students: “Work hard, do the right thing, stay true to yourself, and remember to give back to your community. You can truly make a difference in anything you do.”

Inductees will be speaking at East and West Leyden to classes throughout the day and will be officially inducted during a luncheon. The biographies above were prepared by Wall of Fame coordinator Ms. Janine Asmus and used in promotional materials.

6

In Focus

The Eagle’s Eye

Preparing for Your First Job 1

The Search

By: Jaime Nazario

Your first job. Here you go beginning to think about making money and trying to stabilize yourself and try to become a little more responsible and independent. Teens, and even some adults who are looking for a first job or job in general, wonder where to begin. A common place to begin is online searching, more specifically for websites that focus solely on jobs. LinkedIn.com, Snagajob.com, and Monster.com are all good places to begin searching for employment but are just among a few examples.

18,400,000 AMERICANS SAY FACEBOOK GOT THEM THEIR CURRENT JOB

There are plenty of websites out there for you to utilize to your advantage in the search. Other good places can be social networks like Facebook by focusing on events and occurrences happening around you. Local jobs can be found on newspaper articles, and even seen on your TV. While you are still in high school, remember that you can check out the Leyden Jobs website to find out about local jobs and recruiters that are holding job fairs. Sometimes, school even has employers come to the school.

10,200,000 AMERICANS SAY LINKEDIN GOT THEM THEIR CURRENT JOB

4

Got The Job

8,000,000 AMERICANS SAY TWITTER GOT THEM THEIR CURRENT JOB

By: Chris Corr

So, you got the job, what’s next? Well, there is a series of things that will come about in the coming weeks including possibly creating a bank account where you can deposit your paychecks, getting clothes to wear suitable for a work manner, among other things.

But the biggest change in your life that will come with a job is responsibility. Now that you have a job and you work for someone, you are relied on by them to be present at work on your scheduled days and times. We reached out to Lauren Martire, one of the business education teachers who stated that “students are used to not having to worry about consequences such as showing up late to class, and they just get a tardy but at a job sooner or later, you will get fired for that.” If you do not show up on time then you are not only letting your co-workers and employer down, but you’re also letting yourself down. If you have things to pay for such as rent, car insurance, gas, etc., you not being responsible causes conflict with having to pay for those items.

Not only does the responsibility of reliance come into play but also the idea of having to get along with everybody. Since you are starting a new job, you might not know everyone there. You are going to have to learn to meet new people and try your hardest to get along with them so that you can excel at your job just as much as they can. It is

a team effort no matter what job you work at, you are all trying to

help the company you work for. Not only will you have to get

along with your co-workers and management but if you

deal with customer service then you have to deal with all kinds

of customers. Whether they are angry, sad, upset,

whatever the case, you will have to deal with the customer. You can’t get frustrated, personal matters cannot come out, you have to deal with the situation in the best possible way and provide them the service that they need. Customer service is top priority in most jobs no matter what skills you condone, employers will hire you based on how well you work with your team and with the customers. With that in mind, the next step is to prepare to meet new people, new customers, new rules and responsibilities, and to be the best that you can.

2

Resumes

By: Billy White

So you found a job that you are interested in and would like to apply. The next step is to develop your resume. A resume is a list of your accomplishments, goals, and previous experience to make you look more employable during your application. The first thing you would start with would be your name, address, and contact information. Under this you would put you educational experience so far such as what grade you are in, and other accomplishments you have. If you lack work experience,

things that you can put on your resume under accomplishments

are your GPA, sports you’re involved in, clubs you participate with, and

other skills that employers look for in the workplace.

You can also list your personal skills such as organization, working well with others, and managing your time.

As a highs chool student you are not likely to have had a previous job in the past so you might not have a lengthy experience section; your employers will understand this. A key thing would be not to lie to your possible future employer; you want to build a relationship and not lie about your skills.

Lying about your skills can lead to getting a job you can not handle and may result in you getting fired.

Throughout your resume, grammatical errors are prohibited.

The resume is one of the first things that an employer will see when you apply for a job and it is their first impression of you.

Misspellings, inappropriate content, unrelated information can all lead an employer to make a quick judgement to not hire you. To prevent this situation, it is best to make sure that your resume is very professional looking, has all correct information, and no grammatical errors.

Be sure to not miss out on the chance to prep for your future careers with UPS when they visit our school on October 5.

They will be offering panel discussions on leadership, getting hired, and other important info on the job process. You will also have the chance to have a mock or practice interview session which is very beneficial to prepare for your future interviews.

Ask your teacher to sign your class up.

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70%

D FOUN G ARE JOBS TWORKIN L L OF A GH NE U THRO

55%

OF EMPLOYEES ARE HIRED THROUGH CONNECTIONS WITH OTHER EMPLOYEES

48%

OF EMPLOYEES EXPECT THEIR EMPLOYERS TO PROVIDE TRAINING

55%

E NS AR RESSIO OU ACT, T IMP Y S Y IR A F EW OF ON TH SPEAK BASED RESS, AND D

7

September 2016

Interview

By: Nada Marei

Now that you have your resumes you can start preparing for an interview where your job is to convince a recruiter that you have the skills, knowledge and experience for the job. Show motivation and convince a recruiter that you fit the organization’s culture and job description, and you get that much closer to an offer. Some last helpful tips that were found on the web were, “Have good eye contact and smile, this gives the interviewer a good idea about you and that you are focused on what you are doing, and always thinking. Dress formally, it shows that you are a clean, and an organized person. It also shows that you put effort into your appearance! Be polite, confident, and prepared, that gives the interviewer a great impression about you, and makes him think that you will be a good match for the job.

Shake the interviewer’s hand firmly at the beginning, and thank them at the end, it shows that you are happy to be there, ready to talk with the interviewer, and knows interviews traditions!

And also that you appreciated their time, and just appreciated them having you there.”

Senior Destiny Curington has been working at Romano’s restaurant for a month now.

“I started looking for a job the beginning of my junior year, and I didn’t really have any luck”.

Curington went into the restaurant, asked for an application, filled it and went back in to give it to them, then they immediately called her, and she got to her manager Damiano who interviewed her on the spot. “And the next day I got a call back and they told me to come in and start working.”

She also mentioned how school helped her to prepare for the interview; she was not nervous.

Curington also said that the questions they asked her were pretty easy. “She asked me how old I was, have I ever had a job before, any experiences in a restaurant, am I in any sports; I told him no but I am in a Mentor program in Access and that’s about it.” At the end, she gave me some job tips and what to do in order to be prepared for a job. “You have like to show that you want the job; you can’t just go and fill out an application and not follow up with it, even if they don’t follow up with you, it’s good to be persistent. Don’t’ be nervous. When you go the interview talk to them normally as if you were talking to a teacher and be there for an interview about five minutes early because you want to keep it somewhat professional.”

8

FEATURES

September 2016

Host students reflect on exchange B

Nada Marei

onjour à tous! (Hi all!) Have you ever thought about taking a different language at school ? Well, French exchange program here at Leyden is a great program. Students benefit from it, learn its advantages, gain new experiences, learn another language, AND meet new students from other schools in other countries. Leyden students recently hosted students from France.

Math teacher Mr. Jerome Patt said, “I loved it! I like having anybody from any other country in my class. It was just fun for them to see what we do, and I get a chance to ask them how is it different than what they do. It was great!”

Patt has a unique perspective on exchanges, as he hosted a student from Denmark for an entire year. He said, “My kids liked it and enjoyed it!”

Senior Taylor Morioka, a French 4 HN (AP Language) student, was one of the hosts. “At first, it was kind of weird,” he explained. “Teachers weren’t really prepared for having an extra student in their class, especially when he only speaks French. It was difficult at the beginning, but as soon as we got the schedules down, and knew the classes, it got a lot easier. I think the exchange program is a great idea because it shows other kids from different parts of the world what an American school is like.”

Morioka also said the social part required an adjustment. “At first, it was [awkward]. It’s

just pretty much a stranger following you around, so it was kind of awkward but as soon as I started to talk to my correspondent, and actually got to know about him, his life, and his family it kind of just grew a friendship. I learned a lot from this experience. I learned a lot about France, learned how to speak French better because it forced me to talk to him in French.”

Morioka is ready for more. “I am actually already registered for the France trip this year, and I am actually excited about it.” When he goes, he’ll stay with the student he hosted.

This was actually his second time hosting an exchange student from France.

He also did it when he was a freshman, and he said it was kind of difficult for him because he was in French 1 at that time, and

he barely spoke French so he had to learn and work his way through! He wanted to give next year’s exchange hosts this advice: “If you are planning to host, just study the language a lot, increase your comprehension, improve how you can speak it, and just be prepared to have someone follow you around every day of the week!”

Senior Paulina Cylwik also hosted and shared many of her classmate’s feelings. “Having a French kid in my classes was a little bit awkward because I didn’t think he would be interested in the stuff we’re learning, especially because of his limited English, and I wasn’t sure how he would act around my friends and how many friends would act around him, but he ended up having a few other French kids in all the classes we were in so I felt that he was not

bored to death while we learned.”

She provided the following perspective about the exchange program overall. “I think it’s a great idea. Not only did it help me with my French and the foreign exchange kids with their English, but I also got to learn a great deal about what French kids do in their own time. We got to learn a lot about their cultures and learned in the end that we’re very similar.” She also mentioned what she learned from this experience was, “I mostly learned about how French life differed from ours and that you can easily get comfortable with people.”

One of Paulina’s favorite moments was “going on a field trip downtown with the whole group because we went to Navy Pier and got to see a boat tour of the city.

Another memorable moment was going downtown with some of the kids and their correspondents on their last night in Chicago. We had an amazing night view of the skyline from one of the downtown beaches and also shared some great conversations with them.”

Last but not least, Paulina had really nice advice and great words for next year’s exchange hosts. She said, “The only advice I could give to Leyden students is to spend as much time as they could with their French hosts because that last day is really hard to let them go. You want to look back at the experience as a time you will never forget because it’s not often you get to spend two weeks with amazing people like them!”

International travel highlights similarities

Another year of Leyden’s preschool begins this week.

Majda Causevic The new year is upon us and that means, another year of Child Care Practicum, or preschool.

Every year, a class of preschoolers attends Leyden between periods 2 and 3. If you’ve ever seen your fellow Leyden classmates leading children through the halls, that would be the preschoolers.

Students range from 2 to 5 year olds in the program. Students who attend the program are from the community and are incorporated into the program by word of mouth or an older sibling attending the program.

Child Care Practicum is no ordinary preschool. “The high school students plan out the curriculum. They are given subject areas, but they plan out the lessons based on the Illinois State Objectives.

Everything is student driven,” stated Mrs. Jennifer Maldonado, one of coordinators of the Child Care Practicum program.

The Illinois State Objectives are a set of guidelines that each student-teacher needs to follow in their lesson plans to make sure they are on the right track in order

to make their preschoolers have a happy and educational experience.

Leyden classmates lead the children in activities concerning the eight subjects: math, science, language arts, music, art, p.e., computer technology, and social studies. Every day there is a lesson in place to make the day interesting and interactive. Leyden students aim for preschoolers to have a well-rounded base in order to be successful in kindergarten.

To be able to take preschool, students need to take Child Development or Human Development as a prerequisite.

In these classes, student learn how the child’s mind and body grow. The students take the skills they learn and apply it in the preschool.

F

Ruth Merlos

or most of us, traveling to Europe is a dream for the future. But for Maribel Martinez there was not much waiting.

She had to go. She was able to travel to Europe in the summer of 2016. Specifically, she visited Italy, Austria, and Poland.

She was able to go there on a pilgrimage to attend World Youth Day, which took place specifically in Krakow, Poland this year. The World Youth Day “is a worldwide encounter with the Pope, which is typically celebrated every three years in a different country.”

She was able to attend this event with her friends and people from her church.

Her trip started by taking a plane from O’hare to Switzerland. Then from there they had to take a plane to Italy. In Italy they were

able to stay with a very hospitable host family and visit Venice, which was her favorite place to visit out of the three countries. From there they traveled to Austria and here they stayed in a hotel. Then from Austria, they went through Czechoslovakia, and arrived at Poland in bus. Which is where the event was taking place.

The best thing of her trip was getting to have this “traveling experience with my close friends.” Although her favorite part of the trip was “the World Youth Day, where we met up with people our[their] age from different places around the world.” An interesting comment she did make was that what stood out the most to her in the difference between cultures was “how deep down, we are more similar than we think. Despite language barriers, the spirit of people’s kindness, and the connection is stronger.”

Arts and Entertainment

September 2016

Donut have a date? It’s okay, you’ll still be a cutie!

I

Hanna Nazareno

t’s that time of the year again, Leyden!

Whether it’s your first or last time attending the Homecoming Dance on September 24th, one thing is for sureyou’ll have tons of fun! Besides spirit week, football games, and other events around school, homecoming proposals are one of the highlights of the “homecoming season.” These romantic, sweet, and “awe” moments can often be seen on snapchat, instagram, and twitter to capture the sweet moments. Do you even need a homecoming date? How does someone ask you if you “donut” or “walnut” mind going to homecoming with them?

While Homecoming Proposals are cute and sweet, let me get one thing clear, they’re definitely not a necessity. For those who are losing confidence in themselves because of not having a date, Senior, Miriam Porras, says that “you’re going to shine bright like a diamond with or without a date” and whether you have a date or not, you should “just go and have fun because a day after hoco, a week after hoco, a month, a year, etc. you won’t be thinking ‘I wish I had gotten asked,’ no, you’re going to remember all the memories you made.”

And for those who have missed out, Senior Elissa Melon says that “people should go to homecoming because it’s definitely a good experience to look back on when you’re older!” Melon adds that while she regrets missing out these past few years, it’s only giving her a reason “to act extra [excited] for this year’s homecoming.”

Olivia Soto homecoming (noun)--a chance for high school students to start the year off right, typically includes a pep-rally, football game, and the dance to finish off the week.

Chance (proper noun)--a reason to skip homecoming.

Chance fans out there might want to rethink your plans on Saturday, September 24. Chance the Rapper plans on breaking the attendance record at US Cellular field, holding first-time music festival, Magnificent Coloring Day. This festival will include

If you’re thinking about that guy in your English class that elbowed your head while opening the door, maybe it’s a sign that you should ask him if he “minds” going to homecoming with you. But if you know that you have that “thing” with that special person, stop dropping hints on twitter; keep it real, keep it sweet, and maybe they’d want to keep you at homecoming too. You never know!

Senior Fabian Vega, who asked senior Alexa Orozco to homecoming says that while “I was a little nervous at the moment, I just did it!” He advises other guys to be “confident” and to simply “just do it.”

Whether you’re only friends, classmates, lab partners, in a relationship, or somewhere in between with that person, there’s nothing wrong with asking someone to homecoming. And if no one asks you, that’s okay too!

Like what senior Miriam Porras has said, going with friends is safer because “your beauty might distract your hoco date, and you don’t want to be responsible for that!”

Now here are a few tips on how to ask someone to homecoming from yours truly.

You’re welcome. #1: “Never say Never” You have to be a belieber for one day and believe that he/she will say yes. #2: If you’re asking a fan of Drake, tell them you need a “one dance” at homecoming. You’re welcome. #3: If you’re trying to ask them in a funny way, make sure that it’s funny. If not, make sure you have your friends around you to laugh at your joke.

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Junior Mike Cerna asked junior Georgia Thomas to the dance with a poster saying, “I can’t bear going to HOCO without you!” While Sophomore David Duwal asked Junior Julia Kornatowska with a poster asking, “Can you picture us at hoco?”

Dos

& Don’ts

Alessandra Muro Have a few Homecoming concerns? Look no further; we’ve put together tips to make your experience the best it can be!

You don’t want to go and dance for three hours on an empty stomach, but don’t eat a five course meal either. It’s better to have a small snack like an apple or some fruit. Leave the five course meal for after homecoming! I usually go to IHOP with a couple of friends and enjoy the rest of the night. Go crazy and eat as much as you can.

It’s very easy to get tired while dancing in heels, so bring an extra pair of shoes. Many girls, like me, forget and find themselves dancing around shoeless for part of the night. Not a big deal-until someone steps on your toes. Bring an extra pair of flats.

Something else to keep in mind is the weather. Saturday is looking to be a beautiful, sunny day. But in this town at this

time of year, nights can be windy and chilly.

Bring a sweater to wear after the dance or even before. It’s not fun to walk out of the field house all sweaty and hot into the cold air. Along with that, also bring a small purse so that you can keep your ID, ticket, and any money you decide to bring along. You can put your phone in there, because you won’t want to dance with your phone in your hand.

Also bring some makeup in their small bag to touch up, but don’t stay in the bathroom the whole time.

Don’t stand in the corner by the cookie table. Dance. No one will make fun of your dancing, no matter how bad. We’ll all be too busy having fun with friends.

One last thing to remember is to not feel bad about going to homecoming without a date. Whether it’s your freshman or senior year, go and have fun instead! Of course everyone would love to have a date, but the experience can be great either way.

Homecoming?

No, Chance.

performances from Chance himself, Skrillex, John Legend, Alicia Keys, and many other performers hoping to be a part this historic day.

Chancelor Bennett, or better know as Chance the Rapper, released his third album, Coloring Book, without a record label, and it’s more than just another hip hop album. It includes gospel with a fusion of hip hop, soul, funk, and spoken word. The album has an uplifting flow, but also hits on the issues of violent crime in Chicago and the success of an independent artist. Headline artists included in this album are hometown rappers Kanye West, Jeremih, Fu-

ture, and Justin Bieber. Rolling Stone applauded Coloring Book as the richest hip hop album of 2016 so far.

Chance wanted Magnificent Coloring Day to be accessible for everyone. He set the sales price at $75 floor seats, and the upper level is going for $35, with tickets selling out almost immediately. Luckily, in the past week, Chance the rapper bought over 2,000 tickets from scalpers and is reselling them for their original price. According to Chance’s Twitter, he cancelled the tickets that were purchased by scalpers and is reissuing them as hard tickets. Now come on, this guy is amazing. He repurchased his OWN tickets to HIS own festival just so all his fans can have the opportunity to go to this event.

Because scalping has been an ongoing issue, making their own profit and selling the tickets for triple the price, I applaud him for defeating the scalpers in his own way, and hopefully other artists will follow his courageous lead.

But do other Leyden students feel the same way I do? What will be the move?

Follow through on high school tradition and go to the homecoming dance or attend a once in a lifetime event?

Senior Daniela Hernandez will be one of the attendees from Leyden. She says that Chance has been her inspiration and couldn’t miss the opportunity to see him perform. “I had bought the tickets in advance, and had no idea the concert would land the same day as homecoming.” But it’s okay, she adds, “I’m not too upset because we still have prom.”

Others view the concert differently.

Senior Jessica Borjorn thought about going to the concert. But, she says, “concerts come and go. Even though Chance and the lineup were pretty amazing, we’re only in high school for four years.” Borjorn’s favorite part of homecoming is getting all pretty with friends. She added, “That’s something we won’t be able to do often when we all go our separate ways to college.”

Yeah, concerts do come and go, but this concert is more than just a concert.

He brought together this festival for his hometown, one day, once in a lifetime event.

With the whole crowd singing along to an unforgettable performance of, “No Problem,” don’t miss the “chance” to attend this once in a lifetime event.

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September 2016

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Hispano Fest grows, impresses Mariana Urueta-Hernandez Hispano Fest is a nonprofit collaboration that serves to not only inform but also celebrate the vast beauty of Hispanic heritage.

Drawing people from throughout the western suburbs and spanning three days from September 9-11, Hispano Fest boasts large crowds and a fervent atmosphere serenaded not only by the sounds of traditional bandas and mariachis but also by the soft clink of forks and the laughter of families.

Taking place near 25th Ave and Lake St. in Melrose Park, the fest has grown over the years. Once compromised of maybe ten vendors and local donations, Hispano Fest now brings in crowds of thousands, all dazzled by the numerous bands and big sponsors the fest has acquired such as mega powerhouses Xfinity and Univision. Another draw for the fest is that its main purpose is raising scholarship money for Hispanic communities - a deed cherished by the local and ever growing Hispanic community.

Without space to spare, Hispano Fest continued to just grow bigger and bigger with popularity. Brimming with ethnic vendors, crafts and souvenirs all spilled over with items such as handmade empanadas or handwoven shirts that were quickly bought by the attendees. The fest was very much thriving. Other hot selling items included statues of religious icons,

and shiny plastic toys hung invitingly from the vendor tents.

For those attending who wanted to skip the artisanal t e n t s , H i s p a n o Musicians perform for crowds at Hispano Fest [Photo from hispanofest.org gallery] Fest also both traditional and modern ballads. Notre contained an entire section solely for its Dame student Ignacio Fuentes said, “It’s array of food vendors. Serving anything the only place that I can hear MCR being from your run of the mill tacos, to margari- sung by a full mariachi.” A third stage oftas in entire pineapple cups, to meat being fered a constant stream of DJs. And with sizzled on hanging grills over an open fire- sets beginning as early as noon and endthe food section of Hispano Fest buzzed ing as late as 10:30 without stop, Hispano with action. As Miguel Estevan from Car- Fest’s vibrant music lasted all day. la’s Tacos said, “ I love this festival. Come On the other end from the main for the heritage, but stay for our tacos de stage, Hispano Fest featured an awe-inlengua.” spiring mini fair ground complete with

Another attraction of Hispano regular carnival snacks, games, and ticket Fest certainly lies in the voices and sounds rides. Game prizes such as oversized aliens that light up the location. Always sport- and child sized Dory’s certainly helped ing cheery narrators, two of the stages catch people’s eyes as they made their way kept roaring through the three days with across the street from Hispano Fest to the

majority of the fairgrounds, seemingly a world apart.

With over 40 possible activities, the fest no doubt carries its ‘family friendly’ brand well with the street intersection blocked off to appropriately guarantee audience safety. Safety was further accounted for by the seemingly endless droves of police officers and cars regularly patrolling the festival to ensure maximum public health and to ensure the festival continued to reign on prosperous, but also peacefully, for the thousands it drew and the thousands more who will come next year.

Artistic Process Alessandra Muro

G

etting started on a piece of art takes time and lots of work. Senior Martyna Kot took time out of that schedule to share her process for a new piece she began the week of September. Kot began this drawings by sketching with pencil then going on from there onto her outline.

While Kot was in the process of creating her masterpiece, she was unsure of whether to make it an oil pastel or not. This drawing also consists of many buildings, which she also doesn’t draw often.

She said that she wanted to incorporate more pastel and brighter colors into her works, and she also wanted to do something with buildings and architecture. The reason she wants to incorporate more colors is because her works are usually black and white. Not only that, but she usually does portraits and on this piece in particular she’s doing structures.

Kot said, “I tend to pick pictures of people with interesting features to draw-or just anything that catches my eye.”

For this focused attempt at color, she wanted to work with ground and sky.

At first, she wanted to incorporate color in the buildings, but as she started to put the color in she decided that wasn’t what she wanted.

Martyna decided that it was best to just incorporate color in the water and the sky, but not the buildings. The buildings were created using charcoal, and the water and sky were created using pastel pencils.

After a couple of days, she realized her drawing wasn’t coming out the way she

A piece of art can take hours, days, weeks, or even years. The finished drawing above took several days, beginning with a pencil outline before depth, shading, and color took form.

wanted it, and so she started from scratch.

K o t d o e s n ’t u s u a l l y start over when she’s working on something, but if she doesn’t “like how it’s working out” then she will definitely start over.

Even though she has class time to work on her piece, it’s also important to work on it at home.

She spends about “5-20+ hours depending on the size” and what she’s working on.

This piece in particular was

“...wasn’t born P i c a s s o , it takes practice.”

done at home due to her sudden color change and it took her approximately 10 hours to complete. Her piece ended up being complete September 13, which gave her about 1 week to work on it.

In the images above we can see the progress she made on her art piece. The pictures above demonstrate her progress on her second time drawing it.

As we can see, her progress began with the buildings being outlined. She then followed the outline and drew the building in with the black color using charcoal.

As her work progresses, we can make out that her drawing will definitely have buildings, as well as some water and a beautiful sky.

The finished product located at the top is definitely full of color. There is a contrast between the buildings and the sky and water. The sky and water are in color, meanwhile the buildings are black and white. The water and the sky are created using pastel pencils which bring out the blue in the water and the cloudy day.

At last, Kot decided that her drawing would be named “Venice” since that’s where the drawing is taking place.

It’s no doubt that Martyna’s work is astonishing, but she says that she “wasn’t born Picasso, it takes practice.”

Sports

September 2016

Handling the Heat?

Fall Fan Favoritism

Victoria Valentin

The boys soccer team is trying to boost the momentum in an attempt to match the playoff run from 2016. Volleyball is winning but not at the record setting pace of a year ago. And football players know that this season will be the last for the senior-led squad. In their own ways, these teams have to face opponents and the pressure of living up to expectations.

Soccer Last year’s boys soccer team was one to remember, making it all the way to the Sweet 16. They didn’t advance, making it “bittersweet,” ending with an overall record of 10-6-1. The focus for this year’s team was new relationships. Varsity soccer player Kristian Havran’s way of handling pressure is to remain calm: “Practice hard and have a chill vibe with the team.” Because this season has started similar to last year’s, with not many wins, the players are hopeful they can repeat the sudden surge come playoff time.

“We have plenty of opportunities to demonstrate our dominance,” Havran said.

Volleyball Girls volleyball came out of nowhere last season having one of their best seasons yet. “It was one to remember,” says Kamila Zieba, Volleyball player. With a 10-1 winning streak and winning there Eagle Invite last year along with many other tournaments, this team is looking for the same results this season. This season the team hasn’t gotten the same kickoff as they did last year, but repeating as Eagle Invite champs may have been the boost they needed.

“I believe we have the potential to do better,” said Zieba. To the girls staying calm is key and not letting the expectations from last season get to them. Zieba’s way of handling pressure would be “stepping up and becoming a leader, [to do] better than the day before.”

Football Football is a sport that has had its ups and downs in the past, missing the playoffs by so little.

This year’s pressure is founded on the fact that last year was junior heavy, meaning most of the starters were Juniors. Now that those starters are seniors, the experience and leadership come with expectations. “I think this year we have the potential to be a very good team if we play the way we are capable of,” said quarterback Michael Wilms. Because football has had its past experiences of coming up so short on high impact games such as Addison Trail and Morton, they must not let that get in their heads this season in order to be successful. To Wilms, “the key is to just be [ourselves] and work hard everyday.”

Upcoming Events Friday 9/23:

7:30pm Boys Varsity Football

Thursday 9/29:

5:00pm Boys Sophomore Football 7:30pm Boys Varsity Football

Saturday 9/24:

9:00am Girls Varsity Cross Country 9:00am Boys Varsity Cross Country 10:00am Girls Varsity Swimming 12:00pm Boys Varisty Soccer Tuesday 9/27:

4:30pm Girls Varsity Tennis Wednesday 9/28:

5:00pm Boys Sophomore Football 7:30pm Boys Varsity Football

Friday 9/30:

5:00pm Boys Sophomore Football 7:30pm Boys Varsity Football Friday 9/23:

5:00pm Boys Sophomore Football 7:30pm Boys Varsity Football

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Weronika Trzaska tudents are naturally drawn to the excitement of “Friday Night Lights” with the Varsity Football Team, full of competition in the game itself and competition with the away team’s student section.

The LHS Blue Crew goes all out with different spirit themes to support the boys every home football game.

I’m there as well, not with the student section, but performing with the marching band.

As I stand out on the field in my marching band uniform, I peek up to see the student section beaming with blue & gold, Hawaiian leis, and neon clothing. In that moment, I think to myself, why don’t they go all out like that for not only my swim meets, but also other Leyden athlete’s golf matches, tennis matches, volleyball games, soccer games, and cross country meets?

Since the students make such an effort to attend the football games, they can surely make the time to see the other fall sports currently in season.

Senior Ryan Langer (Golf) and Junior Jessica Minkov (Tennis) both admit there aren’t many people around here interested in their sport. I totally agree with them, as I don’t think that there are many people in the school interested in swimming as well; however, many people don’t have interest in football either.

So why is it that most of the student body goes to support them anyway? No matter what sport and level, every athlete puts their heart and effort into training and competing to do his or her best. Having the students come to just watch one meet or one game of a sport can have an impact on that athlete.That support might push them harder into doing their very best that day.

Langer, as a golfer on the Varsity Golf Team, stated, “Golf is a quiet sport. I can’t talk before I swing, otherwise I would get disqualified, but it would be nice to see some students/friends supporting me by just being there and clapping after a swing.”Like golf, tennis seems to be a quiet sport as well with a small amount of crowds, usually consisting other teammates.

Minkov, two-time State Varsity Tennis player, expresses her feelings as she “has gotten used to mostly just having her parents there and teammates to support her.” But like Langer, she said, “It would be [great] to see students from my everyday classes and the student body, in general, to come out and support the team.”

But cross country, swimming, soccer, and volleyball all allow the crowd to go wild! Sophomore varsity cross country runner Patrick Sarad explained, “During a cross country race, my teammates and I like to cheer on our teammate that is running when they pass by. Mostly we just get support from our own teammates and parents, but getting some more recognition and cheering for the sport would be great!”

The LHS Blue Crew has made it its mission to bring energy to varsity football games, both home and away. They have a calendar linking the dates, times, and location of the games with the theme for the game.

They have yet to feature other sporting events. A major invite for Girls Swimming happened on Saturday Sept.

10, 2016, the Eagle Invite. All I saw on Twitter from the Blue Crew was a retweet of what happened at the event.

The Blue Crew is doing an admirable job building school spirit, and they could do even more if they featured all sporting events. Maintaining the calendar and making daily tweets/announcements on how the games, meets, and matches went would help. As a school journalist, I know I have a similar responsibility, and I’m hoping this piece helps build interest.

Anything as small as putting a sign on an athlete’s locker or telling them they did a good job can motivate them for their game/meet/match that day. Try attending a new sport to support your fellow classmates, you might even end up liking it!

S

12

September 2016

Sports

Go Cubs, Go

Minkov aims for third straight trip to state

The Cubs had an amazing regular season. How do you feel about your team in the playoffs?

Eddie Lavallais, senior: “There’s a lot of young talent on this team, and they are heading into the playoffs with a lot of confidence which can only mean good things to come.”

Andrea Ledesma, senior: “This is a far better team than the last two or three off teams, I think.

They have one of the deepest benches in all of MLB. You could search deep in their bench and not find one weakness. Their benchers can fill a starting roster. Any of them can fill a starting roster.”

Jessica Minkov squares up her forehand. [Photo by Pete Skylakos]

F

Nataliya Grygorash

inding something that you love can be really tough for some people, but junior Jessica Minkov was lucky enough to find it early and stick with it.

Her commitment to tennis has led her to the state tournament twice, and she’s made improvements in her game.

According to varsity tennis coach Mr. Bob Smith, “Jessica went to the conference meet and she also went to state for the first two years. She plays quite a bit up at Highland Park Indoor Club, takes private lessons all year round. She played in USTA, United States Tennis Association, tournament this summer.”

Smith has already noticed the

benefit of the extra work: “Jessica plays much better this year. She had worked on her forehand, which was one of her weaknesses last year. She is still working on her foot work, but she seems to be improving all the time.”

Minkov said, “I am really prepared for this season. I practiced all of the summer.

I went to a camp this summer, and I trained there. During that camp we practice matches and drills.”

“It’s great,” she said of being back with her Leyden team and an upperclass contributor. “I love it. My team is really supportive. It is an honor to play on the varsity team. It’s really fun.”

And though she’s already “planning on continuing playing tennis after high

Jennifer Parker was instrumental in keeping the Eagles focused while cocaptains Natalie Payne and Autumn McGee were missing early in the season. [Photo by Pete Skylakos]

Cristal Salgado-Franco A team depends on leadership from its captains. This year’s girls volleyball team had captains who were ready to leave it all on the court, Autumn McGee and Natalie Payne, but first they had to recover from what they had already sacrificed.

Last year, McGee tore her ACL and

meniscus after a midseason game against Proviso East, being told that the recovery process would be a long and tough one following surgery.

McGee said, “I wasn’t mad at the fact that I was hurt. I was mad at the fact that I couldn’t be out on the court playing with my teammates.” McGee was lost for all of the last year and not scheduled to return

school,” her goals are more focused on this year and what she’s learned in past Leyden seasons.

“For high school season, I qualified for state for my freshman and sophomore year, which was a great. It was cool to play at such a high level,” Minkov said before noting a part of her game that needs work:“I take losses really roughly especially if the match is really close. It puts me down sometimes.”

Fortunately, that’s one area where club play helped. “For the outside school tournament, it’s called USTA. I won some level 5 tournaments,” she shared. “I definitely got stronger mentally, and I can come back stronger in matches after a set or two.”

Andy Quezada, senior: “I feel very confident heading into the post season as we are looking even stronger and added great players to really bring the trophy home this year.”

Xitlali Frias, senior: “I’m confident that this could be the year (even though we say that every year) and that we have the potential to make it all the way.”

Joe Adolfson, senior: “Although the Cubs performance can be unpredictable, confidence is high as they were able to maintain the best record while clinching the division title early.”

Injured captains return to court

until the end of this season.

Then cocaptain Payne rolled her ankle in the first game, leaving her out until September 9 and the Eagles worried about a season with two injuries.

“Autumn and I are both two of the most vocal people on the court,” Payne said, “so I was just worried that the girls on the court would stop talking and therefore start being down on themselves.”

Payne and McGee had no reason to worry, it turns out.

“I relied on Jennifer Parker to take my place,and she did a great job,” Payne said. “She continues to grow as a player and she is a great teammate. If anyone had to take my place I’m happy it was her. We also had a junior, Victoria [Schumeister], play and she did a good job as well. Jenny and I have been giving her tips on how to improve and she is a fast learner. I have nothing but good things to say for both of my teammates.”

With Parker and the rest of the team leading, the Eagles remained competitive, going 2-2 heading into the Eagle Invite.

Payne was scheduled to return for that Saturday, and the team also received some good news the Monday before: McGee would also be back.

With both captains back, the team won its home tournament, but even with victory, concerns of injury will remain.

While both McGee and Payne were cleared to be back and perform at their best, they had new worries. “Playing it safe” became instilled in the back of their minds.

McGee said, “I have to leave everything on the court and can’t hold back, but also play it smart.” She explained that jumping and landing frightened her in her first invite back.

Although the fear of injury might still be there, McGee is able to talk about why the experience made her stronger.

“I got close to a lot of new people during therapy, and coming back from this injury made me appreciate what I have more because they could be gone in an instant. I believe that I will come back stronger than ever as well.”

It also gave her the ability to lend advice to athletes coming back.

“If you’re currently out due to an injury, listen to what the trainer/therapist tells you. If you wanna get back on the court, work for it. You have to earn it. Even though there might be moments when you want to give up, don’t. Push through it because the results will be rewarding.”