The Lance September 2019

THE LANCE

We Believe.

We Will Succeed.

The student newspaper of Linganore High School Volume LVI XXXVIV, Issue Volume , Issue 1 1

12013 Old Old Annapolis Annapolis Road Road Frederick, Frederick, MD MD 21701 21701 12013

March 20092019 September

12 hours at the Great Frederick Fair “I compete in the fair to improve my showing experience and to have a good time."

Staff name Staff position (i.e. Reporter, Editor, etc.)

- Austin Welty

photo by Leah Bolger Austin Welty prepares his cow for competition.

photo by Thomas French The Little Free Library in Prospect

Eric Daniels takes flight with Little Free Library Eagle Scout Project Thomas French Editor

photo by Kendall Martin Julie Walker, Grace Gaydosh, and Abby Scott end the night waiting to get on the swings.

Frederick County residents are known for their rural traditions.

This aspect of our community flourishes during the month of The Great Frederick Fair.

There are two types of people at the fair: those who show and those who are spectators.

During the week of the 13th, students all around Frederick County showed animals, art, and many other crafts in hopes of recognition from judges around the area.

Senior Austin Welty, Vice President of Future Farmers of America (FFA), competes in dairy-showing competitions every year.

Welty said, “I compete in the fair to improve my showing experience and to just have a good time. My favorite aspect of the fair is showing my animals, seeing what the fair has to offer, and helping out any other new members.”

“Advice I’d give to someone who wants to enter a fair competition is to remember there’s no such thing as failure: there’s only winning and learning. Winning is great and all, but you improve by learning,” said he said.

photo by Mike Mallick Senior Brianna Mallick shows pig in a competition.

His sister, sophomore Haley Welty, also shows dairy at the fair. Following in her brother’s footsteps, she said, “A typical day for my brother and I starts when we wake up and first milk the cows. Then we get all the hay sorted out in their pens and as far as the rest of the day goes, we just watch the cows until we have a competition.”

Besides dairy, photo by Linzee Morris the fair also hosts Lanco, a country band, stars in the Friday night show. competitions for fun, don’t worry about winning and those showing beef, poultry, swine, try your best,” said Bonney. goats, and sheep.

Senior Brianna Mallick actively Alexa Bonney, junior, shows shows swine. She said, “My main regoats. She said, “ To prepare for the sponsibilities are to make sure they’re competitions I have to walk, shave, fed, their rate of gain is kept up with, and wash the animals. My main reand they have enough water. Advice sponsibility is feeding, washing, and I would give someone wanting to do cleaning out their pens every day.” this is to have thick skin. It’s a lot of “Advice I would give someone work and stress, but it all pays off in entering into this field would be, have the end.”

Surprise pep rally results The Class of 2021 wins the Spirit Stick! The juniors won the parade float and banner competitions and had a slight lead going into the pep rally.

The final score was close, but in the end the Class of 2021 had enough bows and school spirit to secure the win.

In a world where the ability to read is a big indicator of future success, getting books into the hands of children is critical.

Senior Eric Daniels, a scout in Troop 460, chose to build three Little Free Libraries as his Eagle Scout project, the culminating independent project of the Boy Scout program. These libraries were place in Prospect, Watkins and Wildwood Parks.

Little Free Libraries are a service project started by Todd Bol and Rick Brooks in 2009 to help get free books into the hands of children.

“I really believe in a Little Free Library on every block and a book in every hand. I believe people can fix their neighborhoods, fix their communities, develop systems of sharing, learn from each other, and see that they have a better place on this planet to live,” said Bol. Little Free Libraries are placed in parks, cities and neighborhood because of their ease of access for families with children. They are small structures, that are not only well made but also very pleasant to look at.

Before Daniels could start his project, he had to speak in front of the Town Council of Mt. Airy to get his project approved. He then spent his summer building, painting and placing these libraries in the parks.

“I had come to far to give up now,” said Daniels. “So many people had quit before they could get their eagle, so I wanted to prove I could earn it.”

“I would say that Eric has shown the fortitude and tenacity to ‘stay to it’. In a scout’s career there are plenty of opportunities to quit, what with school, church, or a job, but Eric stayed true to his initial goal and got it done,” said Jim Morton, Eric’s troop leader.

Read more at https://lhslance.org/6hpqo

2

The Lance

Opinion

September 2019

Lancer Media Music Reviews This is not IT:

Chapter Two fails to please Gabby North Reporter The second half of Stephen King’s dark and twisty thriller revisits the nightmare that is stalking Derry, Maine. Director Andrés Muschietti, features many frights as well as emotional scenes we weren’t expecting.

The movie is great for those who are big fans of IT and have seen the first movie or read the book. It’s not like the Harry Potter series where you could start on any movie and have a decent idea of what is happening. There is so much from the first movie that is incorporated in the sequel that it is necessary to have seen or read IT: the movie references a letter that Ben wrote for Beverly confessing his love, the way Pennywise appears to each member of “The Losers Club,” and deaths and backstories of main characters.

One of the bigger downsides to the movie is the crazy number of time jumps there are. Understanding that Stephen King was experimenting with cocaine in the 1980’s while writing Chapter Two of the book, I guess made up for the plethora of time hopping a little more reasonable. Almost every scene has at least one time hop. It got to the point where I could not look away or I’d miss a key detail, which was frustrating.

Chapter Two is set 27 years later in today’s time, but that does not align with the book and the original movie (the movie starts in the 60’s and then later takes place in the 80’s while the new movie takes place in the 80’s and then takes place later in current time). Most of the original club disbands until Pennywise returns to Derry and begins terrorizing the town again. “The Losers Club” must reunite to defend their hometown from the rain of terror and bring Pennywise to his demise.

Bill Skarsgård’s revival of Pennywise is absolutely phenomenal. There is another side to Pennywise that we didn’t exactly see in the first movie. In this movie, we see the human form of Pennywise and his “origins.”

Bill Hader as Richie is kind of interesting, not particularly in a good way. It feels like they threw him into the movie for comedy.

Read More at: https://lhslance.org/qfyx1

Post Malone bends and blends genres in blockbuster Hollywood’s Bleeding album Ethan Hart and Alexis Fowler Catchy. Boundary-pushing. Smooth. Introspective.

These are all words that describe Post Malone’s new album Hollywood’s Bleeding with stunning accuracy. Its universality and earworm lyrics make this album a solid listening choice in the car at night with the windows down, during a tough workout in the gym, or even studying and taking notes.

Hollywood’s Bleeding manages to be simple in its concept, yet diverse in its composition. It can be laid back and easy-going, but can also be intense and impassioned.

“Take What You Want,” featuring Ozzy Ozbourne and Travis Scott, adds a flare of rock to Malone’s album, while still maintaining his style of pop. This song has become increasingly popular, charting in the top 10 songs of the Billboard Hot 100, and it’s not hard to see why.

Another song on Malone’s album is “Goodbyes,” which features Jeffrey Lamar William. This song has a more mellow tone that adds variety to the upbeat songs on this album. “Goodbyes” is currently the highest-charting song from the album, which is also in part due to the record’s release as a single in the week prior to the album’s release.

Many albums have one song that

falls short, especially when such high expectations are set in place.

"Internet” is the one song that does

Catchy.

Boundary-pushing.

Smooth.

Introspective. not enhance the value of the album.

The topic of the internet being overused mixed in with an operatic section and only one verse don’t mix together well, resulting in the song not adding any value to the project.

“Staring At The Sun,” which features neo-soul singer Solána Imani Rowe, also known as SZA is one that includes a deep meaningful vibe but also keeps the pop and R&B tone.

“Die For Me,” which features Future and Halsey repeats the theme of

practically every song Post Malone ever made. This song has the same basic pop feel to it and provides nothing new and exciting, yet again his overall theme is about some girl that broke his heart. Malone sings, “It was love at first sight, felt like you were chosen.”

No album is perfect, and the presence of dud songs prevent Hollywood’s Bleeding from being ranked higher than a 7.5/10. “Die For Me,” even with its inclusion of superstars Future and Halsey, fails to introduce any new themes and lyrics to avid Post Malone listeners. Songs such as “Internet” and “I’m Gonna Be” are flat out boring and aren’t worth the listen.

Fortunately, the positives of the album outweigh the negatives. “Goodbyes” is a solid hit. Its relatability and hard-hitting lyrics should keep this song on the Billboard charts.

“Take What You Want” has one of the best music features of the year in Ozzy Ozbourne, with his captivating hook and his electrifying guitar solo outro. Malone’s has ability to create diverse productions, ranging from melodic acoustics from his guitar in “Circles” to the bass-booming anthems such as “On The Road."

Read more at: https://lhslance.org/xvy4s

Lana Del Rey sings the anti-Norman Rockwell music of our generation

Erica Blockinger and Josh Todd Reporter Lana Del Rey’s NFR is the perfect transition from hot girl summer into sad girl autumn, with its moody sound and heartbroken lyrics.

The album has 14 songs. She released six of the songs as singles before the album’s release including, “The greatest,” “Mariners Apartment Complex,” ”F*** it I love you,” and a cover of Sublime’s 1996 hit, “Doin’ Time.”

Our personal favorite, “Happiness is a butterfly.” is a song that doesn’t have as much traction as other songs on the album. This song is such a great representation of what the album stands for. The soft melody mixed with the sad lyrics make it almost impossible for one to not feel depressed. Trust

us, this song is the absolute best song one could listen to when you just need a moment to sit back and feel sad.

There are many others that we love and could listen to on repeat, specifically “The greatest.” The hopeful feeling that the song gives off is very well mixed into the album.

The lyrical side of the song is moderately sad and tragic. The melody, however is upbeat and joyful. If you like soft vocals mixed with ethereal echoes and contemporary beats, then this is the perfect song for you.

“F*** it I love you” is similar “Happiness is a butterfly,” with a mix of sad lyrics, and a sad melody.

“You moved to California, but it’s just a state of mind,/And you know everyone adores you, /You can’t feel it and you’re tired, /Baby‚ wish that you would hold me or just say that you were mine, /But it’s killing me slowly.” The song is filled with rock themed instrumentals mixed with a relaxing beat. This song is definitely right up with “The greatest,” however it’s rather repetitive, so listening to it can become a bit daunting.

“Doin’ Time” is a great song as well. This song is completely different from the whole album, but it’s wonderful nonetheless. It’s upbeat, a factor that plays out in it’s lyrics

and melody. The summer vibes given off relate into a nostalgic feeling, brought up from its pop sound and a heavenly voice. It’s one of the most popular songs off the album, and there’s great reason why. However, it’s overwhelming happiness clashes with the sadder songs of the album.

“Venice B****” has an early 90’s nostalgic feel to it. The instrumentals are soft and underwhelming compared to loud vocals. This song genuinely could have been a favorite; however, the song is 10 minutes long. Four minutes is the longest we can stand the repetition.

“How to disappear” is something we would give two thumbs down. It sounds like none of the other songs at all. The weird EDM instrumentals mixed with quiet vocals and confusing lyrics is simply horrendous. It’s so awkward compared to the mainly contemporary album.

The song was rated least popular off the album on a Billboard.com poll, and there’s a valid reason why.

Read More at: https://lhslance.org/n0bs1

3

The Lance

September 2019

Opinion

College applications: We don’t know what we’re doing, do you?

by Alaina Burger and Grace Gaydosh November 1: The dreaded college application deadline. Maybe you’re lucky, and the college you are applying to has a deadline of December 1. Seniors are feeling the pressure.

The entire experience would be much less miserable if we had some clear and regular guidance starting at the beginning of senior year.

After talking to other high schools, private and public staff and students, we have some common sense ways that changes could be made to improve communication at Linganore.

Some students are stuck at “square one.” They don’t know the difference between Common App and Coalition, whether or not they should waive their FERPA rights (it’s a good idea to do that), or even how to write good personal and supplemental essays.

Arya Vahdatshoar, a senior at Glenelg High School in Howard County, said, “My school had this thing called ‘Gladiators’ Skills for Success Day’. Juniors were taught about preparing for the SAT, and seniors were told everything they needed

to know when applying to colleges.”

While the college platform that FCPS students use, Naviance, does offer some insight to confused seniors, Linganore doesn’t really have anything in place during the school year to immediately give students helpful application information face to face.

Some students try to get ahead of the game by starting their applications early.

While school counselors are available during the summer, their main focus is fixing students’ schedules and preparing for the coming school year.

“I applaud students for getting a head start, but we aren’t ready for college applications during the summer,” said school counselor, Mrs. Renata Emery. In their defense, few students are working on applications in August anyway.How can we fix this issue?

The Gilman School, an all-boys private school in Baltimore, held application workshops during the last

few weeks of summer. In only four days, they help students finish the hardest part of applying to college, the dreaded essays. Alaina Burger took this class and finished her essays in August, before the stress of school.

The Gilman School’s main focus for the workshop is to alleviate the stress of college applications by beginning

the process of drafting essays over the summer under the guidance of college counseling professionals.

“Students get out of the essay workshop what they put into it,” said Gilman School counselor, Justin Baker.

“Most students work studiously throughout the course to

brainstorm, draft, and revise– when students understand what college essays add to their application and they’re open to constructive feedback from instructors, they write good college essays.”

Providing an essay writing workshop, at no cost, would help Linganore seniors.

In a Lancer Media Twitter poll, 48% voted for an inschool workshop to go over college essays.

Mrs. Patricia Kolias and Mr. Daniel Lake agree and would like to implement a workshop during October to meet the demand.

“Early action deadlines are getting closer and closer,” said Kolias. “It would have been beneficial to have a workshop over the summer, but since it did not work out we are trying to set it up for the first week of October so that it meets all college deadlines.”

We feel that an optional in-school workshop in October could be beneficial to students applying to college. This work-

shop would teach students how to write personal and supplemental essays as well as what to write and what not to write.

In order for this to work, it needs to be a school-wide effort to improve the process with English teachers, counselors, and administration all equally involved. The biggest buy-in, though, has to come from students to take advantage of the expertise.

“If we have teachers who are willing to work with students, we can find a place for that workshop to occur,” said Assistant Principal Mr. Andrew McWilliams.

Kolias pointed out that while there is an SAT prep unit in the English 11 curriculum, as well as an optional college application unit, there should also be a bigger emphasis on personal essay writing.

College applications are crucial, so creating a support system at Linganore could go a long way. This workshop could be productive for students who need an extra Read more at: https://lhslance.org/ uwwk3

VSCO girls make saving the environment popular again: We should try that The Washington Post wrote about the teens channeling their “anxieties into activism.” Teens from all VSCO girls are known for their over the country walked out of their stereotypical Hydro Flasks, metal classrooms, and some traveled to New straws, and puka shells. They wear York City to protest climate change on baggy shirts, scrunchies, and milSeptember 20. lions of friendship bracelets. But Patagonia has been using recycled after all the “oops” and “sksksk,” polyester since 1993. Patagonia realthey might be onto something. ized that the clothing industry was Their most familiar exclamabecoming wasteful so they created tion is “Save the turtles.” Their love started using recycled and unusable of metal straws helps to save turgoods to create their clothing. tles and other marine life because Patagonia even has a page about they marine life how to recycle their tries to eat plasclothes so they can tic bags, straws Download the app be recycled into new and other trash. iRecycle on the appstore! items.

Straws can get in Earth911 came turtles’ noses and out with an app for suffocate them. the iPhone so there More compaare easy ways to find nies, like Starlocal convenient rebucks and McDoncycling drop-offs. The alds are making app, iRecycle, gives and selling metal its users over 1.6 milor paper straws in response to the lion ways to recycle 350 materials in rising concern about plastics. More the United States. The app has 13 of us should be like VSCO girls, categorizes to find where your product openly supporting environmental is filed under. Everything from autoprotection (sorry about that). motive, electronics, hazardous items, Our parents and grandparents and even plastic, there is a folder for have witnessed the biggest effects you to choose. of climate change. Mrs. Beth Ericsson, science teacher, talked about how she sees the change happen Read more at: before her eyes. https://lhslance.org/ch0ks Today, most students say that climate change is their biggest fear.

by Emily Lotito Editor

Gifted education: Is it a gift?

by Emily Webb and Ruby Cerny The concept of gifted education programs is simple: to challenge and push the limits of children who appear to have above average learning capabilities. However, therein lies the problem. How does one accurately determine who is “gifted” and who is “average”?

In order to decide this, students are typically given a standardized test to see if their ability to analyze information and think critically is stronger than their peers. Although students are pushed academically, they may fall behind socially.

The main focus of gifted education programs is to not only challenge students academically, but to teach them to think critically and creatively. The learning environment is typically more fast paced, so when students are integrated back into high school classes with all different learning

levels, it can be a difficult adjustment.

One solution we can offer is creating Individualized Education Plans not only for students who need extra help, but for students who require more challenging curriculum so that students are engaged and excited to learn.

With these plans, a balance must be created between the amount of individual, separate work and the amount of time an advanced student spends integrated with their peers. Students work better and develop socially when they interact with students of all learning levels.

If teachers can navigate blended learning with gifted and regular children in the same classroom, there is no purpose for segregation.

Read more at: https://lhslance.org/z0xkh

4

The Lance

Education

September 2019

Enforcement of tardy rules increases lunch detention crowd Sierra Rossman Editor It’s 7:29 a.m and you’re rushing towards the school doors, hoping that you’ll luck out and avoid the infamous “chronically tardy” title that could ruin a student’s reputation with just one mention. You’ve already received two warnings from the attendance office, and, with the strict tardy rules, next is a lunch detention.

Just as you enter the doors, the bell rings, signifying the beginning of a long school day and another late slip. Dejectedly, you walk to the office and receive your lunch detention. Like many students before you, this will not be the last time.

At the beginning of the 2019-2020 school year a new bright green consequences poster was above the attendance window. Although these rules have been present in previous school years, the physical representation of them ensures that students are aware of the consequences.

At each first week assembly administrators reviewed the consequencs for being tardy. This let the students know that there will be no leniency.

Attendance secretary Jennifer Twiford confirmed that the number of students that were tardy has decreased since the consequences have been in place.

“It is so important for students to arrive on time because teachers start teaching right away," said Twiford.

Students like senior Kat Taylor have come in contact with these consequences before.

“My brother would drive me to school every day last year, so when he was running late it would affect me getting to school on time. I got several lunch detentions as a result of this and it would completely ruin my day.,” said Taylor.

For many, driving and getting a late slip is always better than getting up early and taking the bus.

Punishing a student because they are late could aggravate the situation instead of helping it. The potential of a punishment could also increase a student’s anxiety and they might choose to skip the whole school day, missing valuable teaching material.

“An alternative to the consequences would suggest that minor detentions and phone calls to parents are overly

harsh. We might be overly fragile if we think that’s the case,” said English teacher Daniel Lake.

With increased attention to safety in schools, a student being where they need to be at that time severely decreases the risk of a negative incident.

Lexi Cioffi is a member of the Class of 2021 and believes that missing a part of the school day could set a pattern that would continue into adulthood.

“I think that the tardy consequences are relatively fair to the students because school is a responsibility of all students and coming on time is important. There is also a warning period where students get the opportunity to adapt to their morning routine and get to school on time. It’s important to be on time because it’s important to show commitment and responsibility in a similar way that adults are expected to when they have a job,” said Cioffi.

cartoonist Jessie Hernandez

Although many high school students regularly stay up late to complete assignments and study, it is important to arrive at school on time. This will not only set positive habits, but set the student up for academic success.

Read more at https://lhslance.org/ fn748

Registrar Reggio, keeper of student records, joins staff of the records and transcripts.

Ms. Kirstin Reggio began her journey at rival school Urbana High School. From there she attended Frederick Community College and completed her general education requireReggio loves her new position at Linganore. ments. She was determined to pursue a career that Kat Taylor meant something to her. She transReporter ferred to the University of Salisbury In any movie production, most to become a teacher. people focus on the actors rather At Thomas Johnson Middle School, than the script writers. This concept Reggio saw the doorway to her goal is similar to the students knowing and accepted the job as a Learning for who the principal and teachers are Life teacher. Then, an opportunity at and not the registrar. The registrar is Monocacy Middle School opened for a the mastermind behind the accuracy registrar, and she was willing to expe-

rience another role in a school system.

She took another leap and transferred to LHS. She said, “I like that you can have more in-depth conversations.”

Teachers make major impacts on their students, and for Reggio, it determined her future. “My first grade teacher – I just loved her and wanted to be like her. In fact, when I was a senior in high school, I did an internship with her.”

She works with the office staff to check the transcripts for any errors and makes sure that each student is ready for graduation. A typical day in the fall is working on the student information cards, updating information in the system. She is also responsible for enrollments, withdraws, reviewing cumulative files, and processing midterm grades.

Reggio spends time with the student services staff. For example, she works with Mrs. Jennifer Twiford when she needs to figure out where a student

is if they are missing on the attendance sheet. Twiford says that Reggio is “great to work with.”

Reggio prefers being a registrar more than a teacher because of the connections that she can make.

She is “able to see the growth in a student from one grade to another.”

Out of school, Reggio likes to work on crafts. “Scrapbook is a big thing I do, so it’s being able to have all the memories for later.”

She loves reading. “I never read in high school, but once I got out, and had free time then I started to read more.”

Reggio believes that “Being able to be a mentor, a friend, making a difference in someone’s life,” is what makes it all worth it.

Read more at https:// lhslance.org/axim1

Google Classroom to Schoology: difficult change for some Delaney Cabe Reporter Throughout the last school year, teachers, students, and parents have been transitioning to Schoology from a primarily Google Classroom environment. Frederick County joins several Maryland school systems, including Baltimore County Public Schools, who have switched to Schoology .

The transition has been slow for teachers and students, especially. The reason is since most people are accustomed to using different resources such as HAC and Google Classroom.

It’s more difficult to understand how Schoology works with a grading system and lists of assignments in one learning management system because the platform is much more complex.

“I like Schoology. I used it last year, but I think that some teachers don’t like change,” said Mr. Mark Lastova.

That would be true of students, too.

One of the many reasons FCPS decided to change to Schoology and didn’t remain on Google Classroom, is because Schoology has more acces-

Twitter poll shows students not ready yet for Schoology.

sibility (grading, assignments, etc.) in one place; whereas, Google Classroom had limited access.

“I can’t decide between the two because I use them both for different things. I use Schoology for grading and Google Classroom for assignments,” said Mr. Dan Lake, English and math teacher.

This school year, high school teacher are required to use Schoology for grad-

ing. They do not need to use all of the tools on the platform.

Schoology has the same tools for teachers to use such as Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, and more. Another goal of Schoology is to ensure student privacy and to enable a more safe learning environment.

Teachers could begin adopting Schoology in 2018-2019. Early adopters could get various levels of training.

The FCPS rollout is to have Schoology as an optional tool in the first year; during the second year, teachers must start entering their grades into Schoology’ grade-book; and in the third year, teachers might have to commit to Schoology and have a full implementation.

“I like Schoology more because the program is more robust. There are more options for teachers. I think a majority of teachers prefer classroom, because they are used to it,” said Mrs. Leanne Elsemore. She is the liaison for the staff. If they have questions, she can mentor other teachers.

Students are not convinced yet. In a Lancer Media poll, 88% of students would rather use Google Classroom then Schoology, and 12% of students like the transition to Schoology this school year.

Read more at https://lhslance. org/69ejw

5

The Lance

Sports

September 2019

Soccer complex construction “ P a y - t o - p l a y ” g u a r a n t e e s a mediocre future for U.S. soccer triggers complex reactions Elizabeth Rajnik Jessica Young For many Mt. Airy residents, Bartholows Road is a major artery between the rural 4-county community to the urban heart of Frederick County. The two-lane road is bordered by large neighborhoods and open farmland. While the 152 acres of farmland at 4502 Bartholows Road seems to have been sitting stagnant for many years, the land has actually seen a surprising amount of action behind the scenes.

After years of attempting to purchase acreage within their budget, FC Frederick, Frederick County’s most successful travel soccer club, has bought the farmland for development. The growing soccer club is building their dream soccer complex on the empty farmland in an attempt to expand soccer’s popularity in the area.

By Fall 2020, FC Frederick plans will have four Bermuda grass fields, one pavilion and one bathroom facility. The final product will include the Bermuda grass fields, four turf fields, three bathroom facilities, three pavilions and sixty parking spots per field.

Despite the support for the addition to Mt. Airy, many nearby residents have attempted to block construction.

“We have lots of ambitions for the new complex, from making it not only a great soccer facility, but also a destination center for the club, the community and Frederick County as a whole. Our first and main goal is to get some really high level fields out there and go from there with club houses and other athlete support centers and different facilities of that nature,” said Hommey.

This addition to the club is a huge milestone, as it not only will enhance the professionalism of the organization, but also will attract

more soccer players. The coaches hope that the fields centralized location will draw new players from Carroll, Howard and Montgomery County along with the flow of players they continue to have from Frederick and Washington County.

The club currently uses fields throughout Frederick County, including Urbana High School, Hood College, Ballenger Creek and Thomas Johnson Middle School, but with the central location of an FC Frederick complex, the parents, coaches and players will benefit from a less hectic practice location schedule.

The coaches ecstatic about the effect the complex will have on current and future players. New artificial turf fields and Bermuda grass fields, with high quality irrigation systems, will allow the athletes to train in rain or shine and have constant access to a quality surface.

“Well I think it will benefit the players in lots of ways. Having a quality service for everyone to play on is number one,” said Hommey.

“We want to be a high level club that produces high level players that can go on and do great things at the college level and maybe even beyond that, and it starts with quality training.”

FC Frederick also plans to use the complex to host their own tournaments, showcases and community events, therefore, benefitting FC Frederick and the community.

Hommey also discussed how the land had previous plans to become a substation. FC Frederick hopes that they can utilize this land in a better way than the unsightly view of an electricity grid.

In time, FC Frederick’s soccer complex will blend into the everyday lives of the community and Mt. Airy.

Read more at: http://lhslance.org/k43ph

William Quansah Fransico Palacios The games against Mexico showed they still have a long way to go in their quest to compete with the world’s best and the question must be asked why the USMNT have never quite been able to compete at the top considering the U.S. is the third largest country in the world and have all the resources to have the most structured systems and best facilities?

The answer lies in the youth system and the fact to play at a high level one must “pay-to-play.”

In terms of soccer, the highest level of competition across the world is the club level. In the United States, there are two main levels of youth club soccer: Travel and academy. Most children who play club will play travel soccer due to the fact most clubs provide different levels of competition depending on one’s skill level. Clubs are also usually much more local for players.

Academy soccer is for those who are looking to pursue a professional career; There’s only one team per age group for academy soccer and most of these academies are in affiliation with MLS teams meaning the drive to these academies may be too long for some. In the rest of the world, academies have the same goals of producing professional players but there is one main difference: the players don’t pay to be a member of the club.

According to a study by Utah State University, membership fees

for an individual to play club soccer average $1,472 per year and can be as high as $5,500. From a local perspective, FC Frederick, based in Frederick County, registration per year fees range from $125 at the U-4/U-6 level to $1950 at U-16 and older.

The youth soccer system used in the rest of the world is the reason why the U.S. will always be behind.

By making the highest level of competition free, other countries are able to choose from a large pool of talent; while in America, players of low-income families may never be discovered and their potential wasted.

Even parents who do have the money to put their kids in programs rightfully may opt not to because paying $2000+ yearly isn’t worth the risk their child won’t get a college scholarship or become a professional.

These undiscovered players could be the difference between success and failure for the national team.

Many people will question the approach used by clubs like Ajax asking, “How will they [clubs outside of the U.S.] make money if everything is free?”

In an interview with the New York Times, former head coach Martin Jol of the Ajax’s professional first team answered that question indirectly when stating the club’s purpose. “I think that is the purpose of Ajax, to develop players and bring them up to the first team as young as possible.

And then we sell them, not for peanuts but for a lot of money.”

The problem for the USMNT’s lack of success is clear as well as the solution. As a country we have all the resources to be competing with the very best and if we just looked at what other countries are doing an tried to implement a few of their methods, success would be just a generation away.

Read more at: https://lhslance.org/74ikt

One practice at a time: Paige Pohopin takes over girls soccer "Being around a group of girls that love the game as much as I do, if not more, is what makes me love what I do."

Sammie Hoefs Managing Editor #3 turned in her Lancer soccer jersey in 2012. Now she watches from the sidelines, encouraging the next generation of women soccer players.

Life has come full circle.

Paige Pohopin is ready to use her past experience to encourage and impact young girls as she stepped up to become the varsity head coach a week before the season started.

Pohopin graduated from a winning soccer team in 2012 and decided to stay close to home. She then graduated from Mount St. Mary’s in 2016.

She could not stay away from the program so, she reached out to her for-

mer coach, Howard Putterman, who told her about the opening for junior varsity coach. After coaching JV for a few seasons, she interviewed for the head coach position, replacing Howard Putterman and Mark Lastova.

“Paige always gave 100%. I never had to worry about her effort or her ability to do what we asked of her.

When she came to me after college wanting to help out with coaching, it was one of the easiest decisions of my career. I knew that as a coach she would be a wonderful role model for the girls and will always represent Linganore soccer in her best light,” said Putterman.

She was most nervous about was being a young female coach following head coach, Howard Puttermern who clearly had age as well as more experience. He had a huge reputation for guiding the Lancers to a State Championship title.

Mark Lastova, new assistant coach, also has years of high school and club experience. She had to put that fear behind her and use their knowledge to her advantage.

She knows that every athlete is dif-

ferent and all respond to different coaching methods. She can gain their trust and better understand what they need in order to grow.

“It is nice to see a Linagnore alum come back to help the program she was once a part of. It’s helpful that the girls have someone they can relate to a little more, as well as someone they can go to for guidance,” said Lastova.

After a tough few loses early in the season, Pohopin responded appropriately. Improvement takes time. She did not use anger to motivate the girls after a loss, but encouragement to help them grow. She creates practice plans that can help improve what the team needs to work on, rather than yelling about what went wrong.

“I chose to be a coach because it was the next best thing to playing, there is no greater excitement than the passion you have for the game being transferred to your athletes,” said Pohopin.

The advice she can give is to never take the sport you love for granted.

If something gets in the way, like an injury, don’t ever give up. Lose the mentality that you’ll get hurt again: you cannot be scared.

Pohopin wants to see success.

She said, “My safe answer is a winning season. My real answer is making it to the state championship. I believe in these girls more than any coach can say. I’ve watched every single one of these girls both struggle and succeed over the years and with it only being early on in the season, they are getting better each game.”

Read more at: https://lhslance.org/k43ph

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The Lance

TikTok: 60 second videos taking over our brains Rachel McCoy and Ashley Nash Editors

Do you see people watching videos on their phones laughing uncontrollably?

Do you see random people doing weird dances in public?

Have you noticed people only know about 15 seconds of a song?

If you find yourself asking these questions, the answer is all because of TikTok. Like it or hate it, it’s taking over teen lives.

Previously known as Musical. ly, TikTok was released in 2017 but just recently started blowing up social media. TikTok is the #1 app in entertainment on the Apple App Store, above Netflix and Hulu.

In September, the app is available in 34 languages with 150 million active users. Thirteen is the minimum user age, but plenty of children, teens and adults are hooked.

This app is meant for making and sharing short videos up to a minute long. You can navigate the app by scrolling up and down on the ForYou page and the following page, which is made up of the people you follow. Its set up is very similar to Instagram. e people do not like the app and refuse to download it.

Skylar Stevenson, Class of 2021, said, “I find it annoying, and everyone is addicted to it to the point where I will hang out with someone, and they will just watch TikToks and not talk to me because that’s all they’re focused on.”

Musical.ly was an app for lip syncing. Tik Tok is the fresher update. Teens use the app to express themselves by creating short video clips that gain a following and build a community around their passions and their humor. These videos are for lip syncing, dancing, memes and showing off. Many videos are also

September 2019

Features

based on challenges like the clock woah challenge, Haribo challenge, and the raindrop challenge.

Teenagers find themselves watching TikTok for hours upon hours.

Since people are trying to limit their phone use, the new app automatically warns users when they’ve been

watching for more than two hours.

“TikTok is a great way for my friends and me to be creative together. I find myself on the app quite frequently, making videos or watching my friend’s videos,” While most videos are harmless and fun, some may cause parent concern. You even don’t need to create an account to view the contents on the app, but to be able to post a video, an account is required.

Users need to be careful when making an account since the default off each account is “public.” Children will be tempted to keep their account public in order to gain clout.

But if the account is private, the only thing visible to the outside user is the name and the profile picture.

Even though users can make an account private and limit who can see videos, kids often post without reviewing the videos they make.

While this app has its drawbacks, all social media is a risk.

And in our generation, we live through our phones.

Read more at https://lhslance.org/robtf

My family lives in the path of hurricanes: Why don’t they move?

Madeline Hull Editor

When I heard that Hurricane Dorian had caused more disaster to already struggling cities, I was not surprised.

I remember listening to my grandmother tell me stories after Hurricane Michael, of how she and my uncle stood knee deep in disgusting smelly, dirty water bubbling into the basement of my family home and running down the streets of Vilano Beach, Florida.

I lived in that home for eight years.

Even though I now live in Maryland, I am a Floridian at heart.

I love Florida, but I can´t help but wonder: Is there even a point to keep building homes and businesses in Florida when by 2060 it could all be washed away?

The question is becoming more real for me because we still have a house in Florida. I moved from Florida partially due to the constant worry about frequent tropical storms. A few of my family members are still In St. Augustine, and every year around September, nearby hurricanes are in the news.

My mom and her two siblings moved to a new school every few years when they were teenagers. Moving as much as they did as children caused emotional stability and behavioral problems. When they turned older and made their own decisions, they decided to live in Florida permanently.

My grandmother does not want to leave her family, so she stays where majority of them are.

Climate change is influencing the growing number of hurricanes every year. When I was born, near the turn of the century, that year eight hurricanes and tropical storms caused 6,270 deaths and cost more than 60.9

billion dollars in damages. In 2018, more than 13 hurricanes hit around the United States, ranging between category 3-5 causing 862 billion dollars in damages.

The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale is a 1 to 5 rating, based on a hurricane’s sustained wind speed. A Category 5 hurricane has wind speeds, at least 137 knots (170 mph) With such high wind speeds, the amount of damage is catastrophic. Well constructed homes can be reduced to rubble. Trees and power lines will be ripped out from the ground.

For low income families, their more temporary homes can be washed away. Often, they are not able to fix or rebuild due to lack of money.

Insurance companies can only do so much when it comes to disaster funds. American taxes go towards disaster relief and recovery, but even after insurance and tax money, some homeowners don’t have enough.

Hurricane Dorian cost insurance companies between 1 to 3 million dollars in damages.

Florida leads the nation in the number of flood policies, according to the National Flood Insurance Program, with about 1.8 million policies in force in 2017..

The emotional feel of “home” is detaching us from rational thinking.

Obviously, I am not able to think rationally about this because I plan to apply to college at Flagler College in St.Augustine, Florida.

When you think of Florida you think of the sunshine and the beach. That’s what calls out to people to make them move in the first place. The moderate response is to slow down building, but the wrong thing to do is to ignore the Read more at https://lhslance.org/tb4f7

Lancer Media Editors-in-Chief

Elizabeth Anderson Ethan Hart Grace Gaydosh Emily Webb

Managing Editors

September edition trivia 1) How old is the Frederick Fair?

2) What is the highest rank you can earn as a boy scout?

3) How many albums has Post Malone made?

4) What is the name of Lana Del Ray’s latest album?

5) When is the November deadline for submitting your college application?

6) Who’s the new keeper of student records?

7) How many tardy warnings do you get before a lunch detention?

8) What educational program replaced Google Classroom?

9) Who is the new girls soccer coach?

10) How long are Tik Tok videos?

Jacob Blue Jason Byrd Lexie Fowler Samantha Hoefs Ashley Martin

Editors

Ashley Baker, Ashley Nash, Carson Buck, Elizabeth Rajnik, Emily Lotito, Emily Love, Kendall Martin Leah Bolger, Mady Hull, Peyton Johnson, Rachel McCoy, Sierra Rossman, Tommy French, William Quansah,

Reporters

Alaina Burger, Caroline Hobson, Christian Dorsey, Dane Shaw, Delaney Cabe, Erica Blockinger, Evan Gobien, Grace Truedson, Gabrielle North, Francisco Palacios, Josh Todd, Jessica Young, Jacob Shrewsberry, Joshua Barnes, Kat Taylor, Matthew Strahlman, Ruby Cerny, Zachary Lyons, Zack Hunsaker

The Lance is an independent student newspaper. The Frederick County Public School System does not discriminate in the admission, access, treatment, or employment in its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, gender, age, national origin, religion or disability.

Advisor

Natalie Rebetsky

Answers : 1) Since 1862, 2) Eagle scout, 3) 3, 4) NFR, 5) November 1st , 6) Mrs. Reggio, 7) 2 Warnings, 8) Schoology, 9)Paige Pohopin, 10) 60 seconds