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Manhattan High School Volume 101 Issue 4 Sept. 17, 2013
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Local square dancers begin lessons Rachel Beach Staff Writer
Members of Manhattan’s square dancing club, the Lone Wranglers, dance at their weekly class. Classes are open to anyone and are held every Tuesday from 6 to 8:30 p.m. at the senior center. Photos by Rachel Beach, photographer.
From first-time dancers to people who have been mastering the seemingly endless number of steps for years, Manhattan’s square dancing club, The Lone Wranglers, are offering classes for everyone. Classes are held every Tuesday from 6 to 8:30 p.m. At the senior center at 301 N. 4th Street and are $5 per lesson. “We would love to see more high schoolers out here,“ caller-in-training Tom Hollinberger said. With its rhythm at 128 beats per minute, square dancing is not a spectator’s sport. The caller, Dana Schirmer, is often hired to call for parties for people of all ages. Schnier tries to incorporate music that has a more modern appeal to a younger crowd. Music ranges throughout the lesson from Lady Gaga to Turkey in the Straw. The Lone Wranglers travel to places like Salina and Topeka to join with other clubs and dance. “There are no strangers in square dancing,” Schirmer said. “Once you’ve taken each other’s hand, started dancing, and have a
good time, you’re all friends.” Square dancing is a great place to meet new people in a fun environment. There are 68 calls taught in basic lessons, but even if you are a master there are always more to learn. Partners are not required and square dancing is considered a health and wellness opportunity. One might think “The senior center?” But do not be fooled. The club has dancers from age nine to age 90. Schirmer has been calling for 36 years and can teach anyone. The lesson is over two hours long, but it is not required to stay for the whole time. Tonight The Lone Wranglers will have a guest caller who will call for a more advanced group after the lesson. The caller, Randy Dougherty, is a full-time traveling caller. The club is excited to have him and encourages people to stay and watch after the lesson. “We’ve got good food, good music and good people,” Hollinberger said. The Lone Wrangles have a website at www.SquareDanceMHK. org that can answer further questions.
Food drive provides meals for Youth impact the community students in need Maddie Ross News Editor
Hunger is a problem recognized by many, and efforts to end it spread to all ends of the world. Often times, the big picture is so large we forget about the smaller picture closer to home. This week social worker Gigi Cohen began her fight against hunger at Manhattan High School. The idea is to provide food for over the weekend to students who wouldn’t have meals otherwise. This program is derived from another program called BackSnack. It provides backpacks of food to low-income children to combat weekend hunger. The problem is BackSnack is only available to
grades kindergarten through sixth, while high school students are not eligible. BackSnack is an active program in USD 383’s elementary schools, but Cohen wanted it to expand to high school student population. “It’s to provide students with food for the weekends that they wouldn’t otherwise have,” Cohen said. Every week new food is gathered from the breadbasket and distributed on Fridays. “I go to the Breadbasket every week, and I shop for free,” Cohen said. “I pick out yummy foods that I feel adolescents will like.” In previous years BackSnack provided the backpacks and food, and the school simply had to distrib-
ute them. “I think the way we do it now where I go to the breadbasket and hand-select the food is better,” Cohen said, “because I am able to choose nutritious food, that most enjoy.” Little by little MHS is doing its part to tackle this issue that affects many. “Hunger exists and I don’t want kids to be hungry on the weekends,” Cohen said. In the end all the hard work and preparation pays off. “It’s a lot of fun, to see the students happy when getting the food, and I feel happy giving it,” Cohen said. “It’s a wonderful thing to give them such a necessity that some of us take for granted.”
Allison Olsen Staff Writer
Have you ever wondered what opportunities Manhattan youth have to help around the community? There is a group of students who meet once a month called Youth Impacting Community here in Manhattan High School who do just that. The group receives money from the Greater Manhattan Community Foundation to distribute to local businesses and organizations. In order to get the money, these businesses and organizations are required to fill out an application. The members of YIC go through the applications to make sure that these places fit the criteria to receive grants.
The president of the group, Christine Shiau, has been part of YIC since her sophomore year. “We have a certain amount of money in our grant system,” Shiau said. “We give it to people in the community who need it.” YIC participates in three main events during the year. They volunteer at the Flint Hills Breadbasket, host Youth Service Day in the spring and the grant process throughout the year. The grant this year is open, so the group gets to decide who is able to receive money. “I like the grant process, how we go interview different companies, and I like the youth service days that we do,” Shiau said. Senior Pilar Dritz is the
vice president of YIC. “The grant process is one of my favorite parts because we get to pick where the money goes,” she said. YIC has many opportunities to do community service throughout the year. “We’re a really active community service group,” Dritz said. “We actually get to do community service activities.” As president and vice president, Shiau and Dritz run the monthly meetings. They are also in charge of going to talk with the community foundation about the distribution of money. YIC is looking for new sophomore and freshman members to join the group.
World Suicide Prevention Day brings awareness to cause Retta Lazaris Staff Writer Last Tuesday, Sept. 10, was World Suicide Prevention Day, a day dedicated to bringing awareness to the harm that suicide inflicts on family, friends, and those who have considered it. It is also a day to remember those who were lost too soon to suicide. This years theme was “Stigma: A Major Barrier in Suicide Prevention.” “I think it’s good for people to be aware,” personal/ social counselor Erin Spreer said. According to The Centers for Disease and Control Prevention, suicide between the
ages of 10 and 24 is the third leading cause of death for young people today. Around 4600 children, teenagers, and young adults are lost by a successful suicide attempt every year in America. Spreer’s job is to counsel Manhattan High students who are going through rough times, some of which may be having suicidal thoughts or know someone with suicidal thoughts. “Even if one kid feels that way, that’s one kid too many,” Spreer said. “Don’t make promises [to friends] to ‘keep it a secret.’ Ask for help; it takes a lot of strength to express that you're having a hard time. Go to a teach-
er, or a counselor, or even SRO, or some other trusted adult.” “I think that suicide is a sad and preventable thing, and that we need to make every effort to help teens and adults feel like they have other options other than leaving the earth,” Gigi Cohen, MHS social worker, said. Cohen finds out about students who need her help through various sources -- other students, teachers, friends, family members or the teen themselves. Her job then is to refer the students to screenings, evaluations or possible hospitalization that can help. “I make sure to get in
touch with the people who love and care about them, so that they can make the appropriate appointments to keep the kid safe,” Cohen said. Often that means counseling. “I always recommend outside counseling to many, many, many students, because it’s so helpful,” Cohen said. “When it seems appropriate, I make that referral, and all cases where a student is expressing that they can be suicidal, in every case, I try to contact the family, and try get them to take their child for a screen, so that they can
Warning signs:
t Talking about self harm or killing oneself t Researching ways to harm oneself t Expressing feelings that life is hopeless and that there is no point in living anymore t Feeling trapped or caged in pain t Abusing drugs or alcohol t Acting withdrawn or isolated from their normal social groups or family
See Suicide Prevention page 5
Special Olympics begins FFA ready for convention ACT scores exceed state, national average for local athletes Adelle Sloan Staff Writer
Tracy Le Graphic Designer Special Olympic volleyball is up and running and just completed their second practice on Sunday. The athletes began practice in pairs and then went to work on serves and continued into team practice. “It’s a good chance for everybody to get out and get active,” coach Jamie Schnee said. “We offer sports yearround for a lot of our students here and also people in the community that have special needs." However, the Special Olympics aren’t just about playing sports. The organization’s main focus is presenting the opportunity to meet new people while having a good time and improving team-building skills. “I decided to join so I can be active and meet new people,” Kasey Morris said. Each sport allow the ath-
letes to interact with new members in the community while building up their skills. “When I first started I didn’t know anybody and then I met everybody here,” Jeremy Foster said. “It was fun.” Schnee has been helping with the Special Olympics for as long as she can remember. Her mother, Kim Schnee, has been a special ed teacher for more than 30 years so she has known a lot of the athletes for a long time. “My favorite part of my job is building lasting relationships with the students. I also love watching them grow and change. It's a good feeling to know you've made some sort of impact on a student's life, big or small,” Kim Schnee said. “I see the confidence level soar in our students. We give them the tools to make themselves See Special Olympics page 5
FFA is an organization meant to make a positive difference in the lives of students and expose them to premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education. Many members in the group are there for the goal of taking an agricultural career in the future. The chapter’s first meeting was last week. They have plans to meet again in the next few weeks. The chapter also takes part in the dairy cattle, horse, poultry and livestock judging events each year. Land and homesite inspecting is set for this week. “My favorite part is traveling and meeting new people, and I’m looking forward to the leadership conference,” senior Anna Jackson said. Jackson is the president of this chapter. One of her responsibilities is organizing the meetings. On Sept. 28, the chapter
is headed to a leadership conference for American Royal. Another big events each year is the National FFA Convention. The event starts Oct. 30 and ends Nov. 2. “I’m looking forward to traveling to Kentucky and the workshops,” Jackson said. Senior Natalie Dick is also looking forward to the national trip. Her favorite part is “going to the competitions and judging events.” “My favorite part is the Ag Days,” senior Darby Price said. No date has been set for the Farm Bureau Ag Days. Price is not going to the convention but is looking forward. “I like the lead school for judging,” sophomore Dawson Beffa said. He went to the convention last year and is excited to be able to go again. Another big event for the chapter is National FFA Week, which senior Megan See FFA page 5
Sarah Shi Opinions Editor
Manhattan High School’s 2012-2013 senior class ACT test average was 1.3 percent above the state’s average and 2.2 percent above the national’s, an accomplishment that Principal Greg Hoyt said is due to multiple reasons, one being, “Manhattan has really smart kids.” Last year’s MHS seniors had an average composite score of 23.1, a slight increase from the school’s 22.9 average in 2012, and higher than both the state’s 21.8 average and the nation’s 20.9 average. “We live in a university community,” Hoyt said. “These students have the option to go through a tough curriculum, which is really important. I also think that we have a lot of test prep options that the students can take. It’s really a combination of all three.” MHS Career Counselor
Katie Ball agrees that the high school’s rigorous curriculum of Advanced Placement classes can be attributed to the increase in ACT scores. Ball added that the majority of the seniors are college-bound, a big push to do well on the test. “I think as a whole the students who take the ACT are expected to be collegebound. That’s obviously why you would take it,” Ball said. “A lot of the students either do prep on their own or go to a tutor.” This year, MHS is advertising three test prep options for students -- something that the school has not done until this year. The IQ Academy option offers an ACT Prep course through Study Island, a semester-long program that is advised to be taken in the first or second semester of junior year. The ACT/SAT Prep Online is run by the ACT and See ACT page 5