180206 The Mentor Edition 15

Sports Girls Basketball

Entertainment Pep Band

Girls stomp Hayden 67-37, remain perfect in league title quest. Page 4

Pep band provides energy for crowd and players at basketball games. Page 5

THE MENTOR VOLUME 105 • ISSUE 15 • FEB. 6, 2018

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Homecoming thrills students all week John Ostermann Online Editor-in-Chief

From crazy costumes to game-time thrillers, Homecoming week was full of excitement.

Students kicked off the week with the What’s Up dress-up days. The days were thought up by Tribe and used to keep the students interested in the week. Monday was Wake-Up, a day in which students were encouraged to wear their pajamas to school. Tuesday made waves with the theme Surfs-Up, where students channeled their inner beach and dressed up in Hawaiian clothes. Wednesday’s theme brought students back to their childhood as they were encouraged to bring Disney to life in the Walt’s-Up theme.

Then students jumped even farther back with the Back-Up theme.

“Back-Up day was definitely my favorite dress up day,” sophomore Mallorie Reimer said. “I got to see a lot of old trends and I saw people express their take on it.”

On Friday, the school was preparing for the Homecoming game. The Pump-Up theme was used for the day as students could be seen wearing the red, white and blue of the school’s colors. On Friday night the game was themed GrowUp, so students did their best college impressions. “[Tribe] met a couple times

in preparation for the week to discuss the theme,” senior Tribe member Olivia Belin said. “We knew we wanted certain days, like pajama day and Hawaiian day, so we just had to find a theme that include the days we wanted to.”

Homecoming week also brought an exciting pep rally during advisory period. It held a whole host of events, from PowderPuff cheer to the tug-ofwar games.

PowderPuff had one of its most successful performances.

The dance lasted eight minutes as senior boys danced around in their uniforms, putting on a dazzling performance for all the people in attendance.

“I thought it would be funny and cool to do with all my classmates,” senior Connor Lierz said. “[My favorite part was] when we did partner dancing, down the line. I feel like as a group we all did some cool things.”

The PowderPuff performance was not all fun and games. A lot of time was spent working on the dance and trying to get it perfect.

“We split the girls into two groups for choreography,” senior tribe member Juliana Schwartz said. “My group spent about four hours total choreographing, but we all put probably 15-20 hours total in rehearsals over the month of January.”

In the tug-of-war games, the sophomore boys faced

off against the juniors and the freshman boys took on the seniors. The underdogs came out on top in both of the games as the sophomores and freshman both won. The girls had a similar outcome with the freshman girls beating the seniors. However, the junior girls pulled out the victory on Wednesday. The classes faced off on Friday at halftime of the guys game.

The freshmen took out the broom and swept the competition, winning the guys and girls tug-of-war events.

Before the game, seniors Jalin Harper and Ella Bahr were crowned as Homecoming King and Queen.

“I am so honored that the student body chose me,” Bahr said. “I’m just grateful for the opportunity to represent our school.”

The basketball game kept the excitement of the week going. The boys battled Hayden in a back-andforth battle culminating in a two-point loss after the girls’ dominate win over Hayden.

With a successful Homecoming week in the books students have to go back to the normal routine of school. Departing from the crazy outfits and fun perforPhoto by Aaron Hemby mances until the next Homecoming week rolls around King and queen. Senior Ella Bahr approaches senior Jalin Harper for the first time after they are crowned between the boys and girls Varsity basketball games Friday night. Out of 12 boys and 26 girls, Harper the corner. and Bahr were chosen to be Manhattan High’s Homecoming king and queen.

Key Club assists with poster making

Forensics continues improvement

Jacob Clanton Print Editor-in-Chief

Kaitlin Clark Entertainment Editor

Although they have moved on from middle school, Manhattan High students still find ways to stay involved at the middle school level. Last Tuesday, six MHS students went to Anthony Middle School to help out members of the Kansas Association for Youth Club.

“At AMS right now,” junior historian Abbey Hayes said, “we are helping [KAY Club] make posters for their penny week, which is to help support leukemia research.”

The students went to the middle school as a part of Key Club, an international club organized by the Kiwanis Organization. As such, Key Club’s mission is identical to Kiwanis’. “[Key Club is] a club for volunteering and community service,” sophomore secretary Elizabeth Hohn said, “partially at the school and partially outside in the community.”

Though similar, KAY Club is managed by Kansas State High School Activities Association and is focused on teaching leadership through organizing and conducting community service projects.

Not only did Hayes go to the event to serve, but as club historian, she had other reasons as well.

“In Key Club, I am the historian,” Hayes said, “which means I take photos of like our service projects and such and

It was another busy week for the Manhattan High forensics team as they took on the Washburn Rural High School Forensics Tournament.

They achieved several successes, including freshman Eadon Marstall, sophomore Trinity Brockman and senior Lily Colburn reaching qualifications for state. In order to qualify for state in individual events, competitors must place in the top two, which can be difficult when there are many people taking part in one event.

“I’m definitely relieved now that I’m qualified in each of my events,” Colburn said.

“It takes some of the pressure off of the season.”

The team never stops trying to improve in their tournament events.

“I was pretty proud of my [informative event],” Marstall said. “But I could definitely work on my impromptu more.”

Marstall placed second in the Junior Varsity Domestic Extemp category, which resulted in her qualification for state.

Being a part of the forensics team takes a lot of time and effort, but team members enjoy the competitive aspect of the activity, as well as the bonds they get to make with others, even if they are from

Photo by Leah Beyer

Posters on point. Key Club sophomores Elizabeth Hohn and Duru Dogan work together with members of KAY club from Anthony Middle School to make posters for the AMS theme week.

This week raised money and awareness for leukemia patients.

I make a nice little book of all the things we’ve done over the year.”

While there is some question as to whether or not Key Club is an official club, the members are still carrying on as if they are.

“We helped out with the Kiwanis pancake feed, which raised money for the community,” Hayes said. “We make cards for Stoneybrook, the retirement home, for like Thanksgiving and winter holidays.”

Key Club is also active around the school.

“We do recycling pretty much every week around the high school,” sophomore communications officer Duru

Dogan said.

Some students involved in Key Club joined because of similar experiences in the past.

“I did KAY Club at the middle school level,” Dogan said, “and so this is kind of the next step and it’s good for networking and leadership.”

Members of Key Club enjoy the bonds they create while serving others.

“Key Club is a really fun club,” Hayes said. “It’s a great way to get service hours for your distinguished service stuff and you can make a lot of friends.”

different schools.

“Meeting all the other kids from other schools is the best part, and being around other people with the same interest as you,” sophomore Tanya Singh said.

Behind every successful team is a devoted coach. Team members constantly attest to coach Kristal Kleiner’s dedication and hard work as she prepares the forensics team for their weekly tournaments.

“The MHS class, it’s honestly so lively and Kleiner is an amazing teacher,” Singh said.

“She’s so talented and great at what she does.”

While their teacher prepares them for the competition and skill-based elements of the competition, students have to do a great deal of mental preparation themselves to be ready for the pressure tournaments bring with them.

“I’d just like to say that I’m really proud of everyone that has gone to a tournament,” Marstall said. “It takes a lot to be able to talk in front of people, especially competitively.”

The season has barely begun, with the WaRu tournament being the forensics team’s second tournament of 2018, but team members are already looking forward to the months ahead.

“Everyone’s been doing really well,” Marstall said. “I can’t wait to see how the rest of the season goes.”

Scholars Bowl moves on to state tournament with regional runner-up Kami Bussmann Staff Writer

Taking advantage of the van ride to go over questions in preparation for regional Scholars Bowl paid off.

“We practiced questions for half of the way,” sophomore Josh Brandt said. “We didn’t do anything for the other half [of the way].”

Manhattan High School

Scholars Bowl team is regionals runner-up with a record on the day of 8-2. They attended regionals on Thursday at Wichita.

Scholars Bowl had a problematic round against Junction City High School. The moderator read the question and before they finished reading a student on the team buzzed in because of being to concentrated on the answer. Manhat-

tan High got the question right when the student answered, winning the round. Junction City challenged the question due to the round being a score differentiate of one.

“The Junction City match was critical in us making it to the state competition,” senior Noah Shirk said.

Manhattan High captain Stephanie Fu replied that this even happened in an earli-

er round and that question counted. Although Junction City wanted an extra round, the judges decided in favor of MHS. This whole debacle caused a four-way-tie for third place between JC, MHS, Hutchinson High School and Derby High School. The round MHS faced Derby was a difficult round for the team.

“They are a very good

team they were just ahead of us at the time,” Brandt said.

“We maintained our intensity throughout the round and won by 30.”

The road to being the top of the teams in the state will continue in Wichita on Thursday.

For in-depth coverage of SubDeb, go to MHSMentor.com

OPINIONS

The Mentor • Feb. 6, 2018

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Kansas school funding needs addressed; Colyer to help This editorial is a compilation from a discussion held by the editorial board. To listen to the conversation that led to this piece, visit MHSMentor.com

tion of Washington-economics in the Sunflower State in 2012 -- featuring major Trump-style tax-cuts -- Kansas has seen below average economic growth, opposite from the expected outcome.

Due to this economic flop, Kansas in the last few years has fallen far below national averages in public safety jobs and most notably, K-12 schooling.

The lack of funding in Kansas schools has left residents and students in shock at the current funding system. Students’ educations have been limited due to schools simply not being able to afford certain academic opportunities such as fine arts or in-between-level and Advanced Placement classes. Manhattan High is lucky enough to not feel the full effects of the current funding

It’s official. Sam Brownback’s economic reign of terror as Kansas governor has ended with the inauguration of the lieutenant governor -- Jeff Colyer, a Johnson County surgeon and politician -- as the 47th governor of Kansas.

Colyer, inducted Jan. 31, has inherited from Brownback a heap of economic problems as well as tense relationships between Brownback’s policy and fellow Kansas politicians. The new governor will be forced to mend these riffs while fixing what is seemingly the most prominent issue in Kansas: school funding.

Since Brownback’s introduc-

system, but there are schools and districts who are suffering quite terribly under Brownback’s system.

State school districts are being investigated for under-funding and at least four are suing the state for lack of funding; plus the current system of funding has already been found unconstitutional -- Kansas obviously has an issue. Yet, the capitol has ignored this issue on funding, until recently, when Brownback announced his new plan -- a $600 million boost in funding over five years -- without any clear payment plan. This new plan left Brownback under fire by fellow Republicans in Kansas government.

Now, with Colyer taking over, it is unclear whether or not he will stick to Brownback’s poorly received plan, or create his own. He is, however,

quoted in the Kansas City Star saying, “I will not be responsible for shutting down Kansas schools. This is not Washington.”

But, what do the students of Kansas want to see happen with this issue? Ignore the many politicians who seem to live on unreachable clouds for a minute and listen to those living through this issue: what do students need?

It is the agreement of The Mentor editorial board that, quite plainly, Kansas needs to figure itself out. Sweeping this issue under the carpet and praying no one sees the dust pile is no longer working. It’s time for action.

Students need their education valued and secured. No more keeping the sufferers out of the conversation; approach students about what they need

to see reimplemented in their schools after the tax-cuts.

In addition to student-inclusion, politicians need to get a plan for funding in action.

Colyer will only have a year in office, meaning not much can be done by him, but he can get the ball rolling. Right now, the process needs started, and students are relying on Colyer to do so.

In short, Colyer needs to lay the groundwork for a constitutional and fair school-funding plan for Kansas -- one that also considers the student’s needs.

It has been much too long that Kansas students have suffered from the economic irrationalities of the current system. Stop the nonsense, and start taking some action.

State of the Union disheartening; Democratic rebuttal proves hopeful of two teenage girls, Kayla Cuevas and Nisa Mickens, to the event, and used the story of their loss to further his agenda. Cuevas and Mickens were killed by members of a gang who “took advantage of glaring loopholes in our laws to enter the country as unaccompanied alien minors,” according to Trump.

Their deaths were tragic, but it felt incredibly disingenuine to have their grieving parents stand while the audience applauded, turning them into a living, breathing reminder of what can happen as a result of immigration.

He used an isolated event to categorize an entire group of people as violent, cruel murderers.

It just felt wrong, watching all of those people in suits applauding for the families of two girls who had been killed.

This was just the beginning of one of the longest

Kaitlin Clark Entertainment Editor

After watching the State of the Union address Tuesday night, I was left feeling incredibly discouraged.

In terms of delivery, it was fairly professional, but the content of President Trump’s speech was disheartening.

There were countless standing ovations over limiting immigration and building a border wall, and a disheartening number of times he used examples of others’ pain to further his point.

Trump invited the families

Question

State of the Union addresses in the history of the presidency. After watching the 80-minute address, I felt as though there was something wrong with America’s leadership as a whole. The event felt much more like a campaign rally than an address discussing the United States’ current state. It felt like I was supposed to be proud of my country, but I wasn’t.

Then came the Democratic rebuttal. Streamed from Diman Regional Vocational Technical High School, Joe Kennedy gave an address that took some of the sting out of what I had just watched.

Admittedly, Kennedy did not give much of an argument against the president’s specific statements, but the words he spoke felt genuine. He touched on the violence and hatred of the last year and the subsequent division it’s created in our nation before delving into his main point:

of the Week

What school-appropriate and inclusive Homecoming tradition should we start at Manhattan High ?

“Pie eating competition!?.”

-- Junior Trinity Price @_trinity_price_

“Clothing drives, supplies for local animal shelters/homeless shelters, etc.”

-- Teacher Dustin Delehanty @MrD_MHS

we are all equal, regardless of whatever else is going on in the world. He discussed how the current Trump administration has made statements and actions that convey that they believe that one’s worth is something that is not inherently possessed, but rather something that is determined on their gender, race, sexuality and religion, just to name a few factors. Kennedy’s response was more in line with his political views, as if it were something that he really believed in instead of just reading it off of a teleprompter.

His discussion of inequality in America was something that conjured up images of the Women’s March, the Black Lives Matter movement, the fight for a living wage and so many other social justice movements. His speech was one that created the idea of a brighter, more equal nation, one that everyone, regardless

MLB nets wrong way to protect fans

“Dunk Contest on 9’ rims.”

-- Senior Kenny Cecil @KennyCecil_

Next edition’s Question: If you could have any superpower, what would it be?

Balancing job, education proves difficult

Mason Alberto Staff Writer

Being a teenage student can be stressful. The long hours of school is stressful enough as it already is. The five-minute passing periods and a half an hour lunch is all we have to rest after a class period. Students sit in chairs and receive lectures and assignments that are expected to be done at a certain date at home. They feel mentally tired after having their heads crammed with a subject for 57 minutes straight. The students do that seven more times three days a week along with two block days that hold only one advisory period to study on a subject or to see a teacher about a subject during “flex time.” Then they’re expected to do homework at home after school.

Not every student has that

free time after school like how most people think we do. One fourth of students age 16 and older have a job, according to NewsOk.com.

That’s over 3 million students in the United States.

That means instead of having that spare time to study and do homework we have to get ready for work. Most businesses must schedule at least a six-hour shift unless there has been an arrangement for a shorter shift. So if a student has work at 4 p.m. and works a six-hour shift then that student would get off at 10 p.m. School starts at 7:40 a.m. students need to get on their bus at 6:35 a.m.; that eight hours to do homework, eat dinner, do chores and sleep until they need to wake up for school.

According to TheAtlantic. com “49 percent of students feel stress on a daily basis.

Half reported doing homework three hours a night.”

Those students did not have jobs. Even without a job school alone can bring a student stress. Students have responsibilities outside of school. Some have an afterschool club or pets to take care of. There are just so many different cases for each student that only a handful

can stay stress free throughout their high school career.

Schools need to acknowledge the position of these students.

Students that have school and work usually do not have choice. Their parents may not be able to support them fully or they have goals that need money to be complete. Others may find an occupation that can lead to so many opportunities that a school can’t provide. Students need to know what they want to do after high school, how are they going to provide for themselves if they don’t have any sort of experience outside of a classroom to get a job?

Having a job can bring stress to a student. Schools don’t understand the position that students are in.

They need to be aware that all students have lives outside the classroom. Everyday cannot consist of seven subjects with each of them having a different type of learning style. That’s not even including sports and extracurricular activities. In the end we need to address the fact that one in four people under 20 are pulling off two jobs, being a full-time student and a parttime job worker.

On Thursday all 30 teams in the MLB decided to extend their nets so foul balls wouldn’t leave the field of play and hit fans watching the game. I feel like this is good and bad on the MLB’s part.

Expanding foul ball nets make the fan experience less exciting, but it does ensure the protection of those watching the game.

On July 10, I went to a baseball game at Coors Field in Denver to watch the Philadelphia Phillies and the Colorado Rockies.

My friends and I had seats on the third base line.

Even though my friends and I were by ourselves, if a ball where to come towards us, it would’ve still added to the experience of that game. The net at the time wasn’t expanded so the net wasn’t distorting our view of the game and we had an unrestricted view of the pitcher and the batter throughout the game.

Although it’s safer, the experience isn’t as good because it’s like watching a game through squares

Jacob Clanton -- Print Editor-in-Chief John Ostermann -- Online Editor-in-Chief Meredith Comas -- Opinions Editor Sophia Comas -- Features Editor Micheal Simmons -- Sports Editor Kaitlin Clark -- Entertainment Editor Elizabeth Alexander -- Trending Editor

Aaron Hemby -- Photo Editor Dylan Higgins -- Business Manager Staff Writers/Photographers -- Dylan Thomas, Megan Klug, MaKenna Eilert, Hailey Eilert, Makenna Wollenberg, Kami Bussmann, Aloera Ostermann, Mason Alberto, Maddy Gleason, Leah Beyer, Lauren Race and Ja-

vier Mercado.

Kristy Nyp -- Adviser Circulation -- Caleb Barnes, Angel Cid, Caleb DeLoach, Charlie Dickey, Karl Drown, Rachel Efken, Bon Fox, Terra Harvey, Colten Kirk, Joshua Kohls, Douglas McCaskill, Jospeh Myers, Allie Parker, Connie Santos,

David Sherwin and Zane Smith.

The Mentor is published each Tuesday that school is in session at Manhattan High School, 2100 Poyntz Ave. Manhattan, Kan. Telephone (785) 587-2114. More than 1,000 Mentors are printed each week and distributed free of charge to all faculty members

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of their demographic, could live in freely.

In his final few sentences, he commended all of those that work for equality and for better lives, followed by a call to action for lawmakers.

“Politicians -- politicians can be cheered for the promises they make. Our country will be judged by the promises we keep,” Kennedy said.

Honestly, I expected to feel let down by the State of the Union, but I didn’t expect to feel so strongly about the Democratic response. I was very pleasantly surprised

by Kennedy’s speech, as he touched on a wide variety of topics that have impacted America greatly in the past year. It was a well-crafted speech from a man I’ve hardly heard anything about that served as a rallying cry for the nation; we must fight towards a better future, one where we are all free to be ourselves.

because they obstruct the view, which I don’t like at all. The Rockies are one of the 30 teams expanding their nets.

On Sept. 20, a ball hit a 1-year-old girl at Yankee Stadium and she was hospitalized. Some people were defending the player, saying that the kid shouldn’t have been that close or the father should’ve stopped the ball, but I think that the nets should’ve been expanded, because the net was way too close to the field, resulting in injury.

“I like going to baseball games, but I don’t like sitting close because of them [the nets],” sophomore Mitchell Titus said.

Now, if fans want to be close to the game, you’ll have to deal with the annoying net in the way or sit somewhere else to get a clear view. But even if you didn’t sit close, you could still get hit even if you’re in the outfield. Many fans who sit behind the dugout of their favorite teams won’t get to catch a foul ball and communicate with their favorite players. I’ve gotten about two foul balls thrown to me after they cross the foul line and I won’t forget those moments.

I think that it’s a good move for the MLB to make nets, but I feel like it distracts the fans from the game. In the future, I hope that the MLB can create a way to make fans safe, but also not obstruct their view.

and students. MHS journalists are members of the Kansas Scholastic Press Association and National Scholastic Press Association. The Mentor is a public forum.

E-mail us at mhsmentor@gmail.com

FEATURES

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Manhattan High Retirees of 2018 Welcome to part one of two on the retirees at MHS. Look for part two in the next edition of The Mentor.

Linda Uthoff Aloera Ostermann Staff Writer

Photo by MaKenna Eilert

Drama teacher Linda Uthoff assists with a student’s costume during rehearsal for the school production of the musical, “Hello Dolly!” She plans to retire at the end of the 2018 school year.

Ed Chandler Elizabeth Alexander Trending Editor

The amount of time Ed Chandler has put into teaching career at Manhattan High School is longer than any of his students ages.

Chandler will be retiring from his teaching position at MHS after 22 years. Having originally started in 1996, he had begun with teaching cultural awareness, economics and government. Over the years though, while remaining consistent with teaching economics, he has jumped around a bit and will be retiring as an economics and United States history teacher.

“I have a minor in economics,” Chandler said. “I always found [economics] interesting. ...’ I always just found it interesting how the economy worked, and how people spend their money, why some businesses function and some don’t.”

Chandler believes that economics is something that students will need to know for the rest of their lives because it is going to be all around them as they grow up and develop in the world.

When it comes to teaching, Chandler has had his fair share of experiences and learned to develop his own unique method of teaching.

“When I plan at the beginning of the year, I never decide how I’m going to teach until my students come in,” Chandler said. “Each class I teach a little bit differently. …

I look into their eyes, and I just feel it, who they are and their personalities. My challenge is, by the second day, to know everybody’s personalities.”

Before being hired as a teacher, Chandler had originally been in the military.

He had retired in 1994 with a teaching degree. He had originally wanted to be a history major, but then opted for a teaching certificate instead.

Now he has decided to retire.

“I’ve been working on two books,” Chandler said. “Hopefully one will be out on the shelf by September of this year. It’s a nonfiction, it’s kind of a non-fiction, but it’s based off of some things that I’ve done. … I’m just kind of keeping it under wraps.”

A unique thing most students who are taught under Chandler know that he is quite fond of telling stories of his time in the military and

Every year, teachers come and go, some move schools, some retire, some choose different careers, but not every school gets to have a teacher in their program for 21 years.

Manhattan High has had the privilege of hosting Linda Uthoff, but at the end of this year, she is choosing to be added to the long list of retired teachers.

Uthoff started with a degree in social studies, but by the time she got to Manhattan High she decided that she wanted to take her life down a different path.

“I think it’s because I fell in love with theater, but also I’ve never encountered another subject that allowed me to pull from so many different areas of learning,” Uthoff said.

With her new masters in theater, she became the drama teacher and hasn’t regretted a second of it.

“The superintendent, Tom Hawk, now one of our state of his travels.

But for now, Chandler is currently wrapping up the year and teaching his current classes the same as he always has. While it will be sad to see him go, he leaves words of advice for upcoming teachers new to the field.

“Your first couple of years, just relax,” Chandler said.

“You have to wait to be comfortable until about your third year. When you get home at night, don’t think about any particular students.

Blank it out, enjoy yourself, do whatever you need to do.

Don’t take yourself too seriously either. And have fun.

If you can’t have fun with what you’re doing, then why do it?”

2018 is a year where MHS will be seeing a handful of teachers and administrators go, but the teachings they leave behind will be their legacies.

“It’s interesting when you get to the end of your time, it sneaks up on you,” Chandler said. “But you feel good about it. I’ve taught thousands of students and I’ll always know that. I’ve impacted them, some good and some bad. It’s been great.”

senators, who hired me said ‘When are you finally going to use that education degree that you have?’ and I’m really glad I took him up on it, it’s been a fun really fulfilling part of my life,” Uthoff said.

After teaching at Kansas State and being a part of the Columbian Theater, Uthoff finally ended up at MHS. In her early career she taught at both campuses, but she eventually ended up solely at the West campus.

“It was easier for me not to have to drag costumes and makeup and scripts and everything down there,” Uthoff said. “I feel bad that freshman have to be on the bus so much, but I also feel that they gain something being connected to the west campus.”

Making the decision to retire is difficult for any teacher especially one who connects with their students and staff, such as Uthoff.

“I always felt like the rest of the faculty and the administrators were very supportive of the program and appreciated the performing arts as much as they appreciated any other program we have,”

Uthoff said.

Uthoff put a lot of time and thought into her decision and only made it final over this past summer. Her husband has been teaching for 42 years in the theater department at K-State and decided that he was ready to retire so Uthoff thought this would be a good move for both of them.

Once they have retired, the couple hopes to spend more time together, with other family and her granddaughter who is expected to be born this month.

“There is always some bittersweet feelings about it, but I think it’s always good for students to realize that you know there is lots of things in life that everybody is going to do so it’s good to see people take chances to do other things with their time once in awhile,” Uthoff said.

While Uthoff is excited to see what kind of opportunities await her, she is going to miss being a teacher very much.

“I couldn’t have picked a better high school in America to work at,” Uthoff said. “It’s been a great ride.”

Photo by Hailey Eilert

Emily Armbrust, senior, accompanies Ed Chandler, the Grand Marshall, into the gym. Shortly following this, Chandler was presented with a gift that included some of his favorite things. This included an orange gatorade and many snickers.

Black Student Union prepares for annual poetry slam, charity event Sophia Comas Features Editor

The annual poetry slam, held by the Black Student Union, requires that the members of the club to put forth their best efforts in order to make the event special to its participants and audience members.

The event, which occurs on Feb. 27, is the third poetry slam planned by the BSU and it allows all students of Manhattan High to display their talents with writing as

well as reading aloud in front of an audience.

The theme for the poetry slam is “Lift Every Voice,” a phrase held close to the hearts of BSU members.

“We heard the black national anthem and the first verse of that is ‘Lift Every Voice,’” Greg VanDyke, president of BSU, said. “Part of unity is coming together as one, so we wanted to show that we could come together as one and lift every voice.”

The poetry slam is also an opportunity for the school to

hold a charity function, as the entry fee is either two canned items or two dollars.

“We decided that we would donate everything we collected to the USD 383 FIT Closet, because they’re in need of some toiletry items,” Morgan Jobe, BSU sponsor and American Literature teacher, said.

“We really wanted it to be something where we could give back to the community, so inviting community members in to kind of showcase student work, but then also giving back to our local com-

munity.”

The poetry slam is also one of the few events that requires its participants to audition in order to have a secured spot.

“We hold auditions mostly to make sure that student poems are appropriate for the audience,” Jobe said. “We want to make sure that if younger kids are there that we don’t have curse words or things that are too sensitive for a younger audience.”

To plan the event, BSU has split itself into different

Freshman Alice Le takes on Science Olympiad Meredith Comas Opinions Editor

Manhattan High Science Olympiad -- a club predominated by upperclassman -- has had a refreshing twist in their usual membership.

Alice Le has taken the title as the only freshman on the team: a seemingly unheard of situation.

Le has been an active member of Science Olympiad since middle school, when her Gifted coordinator introduced her to the middle school version of the club.

Since then she has pushed herself to overcome the disadvantages presented by her age to continue doing what she loves: science.

“Most people I think... just

sit down and take the test because they have the intelligence to do so,” Le said. “I knew I was at a disadvantage so I studied a lot.”

Le credits her acceptance into the highly competitive club to the upperclassman who mentored her during her middle school years and into this year.

“I had gotten like tips and advice… from my upperclassmen while I was still in middle school about the format of the class,” Le said. “Those tips really helped me get in.”

Le stands by that her age and the excess of knowledge that comes with it does not affect the team’s dynamic, rather strengthens the bond between the members.

“Our team is really strong

no matter… what age difference we have,” Le said. “I think there’s a lot to learn from the upperclassmen and underclassmen so I really enjoy that aspect.”

While Le has already pushed boundaries just as a member of the Science Olympiad, she is also highly advanced in her regular education, spending the majority of her days at West campus taking classes like Pre-Calculus, Genetics and Chamber Orchestra as well as competing in Scholars Bowl and Robotics in addition to Science Olympiad.

Though her schedule is that of an advanced student, Le remains humble, in fact she See OLYMPIAD page 5

committees.

“Right now we just have different committees for the advertising and then some for the refreshments,” VanDyke said. “With the advertising, we just got some flyers put together, trying to promote it more and trying to take it to teachers to put it in their classrooms.”

Those wishing to participate in the poetry slam can audition from 3 to 4 p.m. on Feb. 13 and during advisory on Feb. 14th in Jobe’s classroom, A-114.

ARTIST OF THE

WEEK What instrument do you play?

I play the violin.

Photo by Javi Mercado

Duru Dogan Music Javi Mercado Staff Photographer

How long have you been doing orchestra?

This will be my fifth year in orchestra.

What do you plan on doing with this experience in the future?

I think this will be a hobby for me but not an occupation.

What type of orchestras are you in?

I’m in the school symphonic orchestra, gold orchestra and I’ve been in the regional orchestra for two years.

SPORTS

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4

Boys drop third-straight close game Jacob Clanton Print Editor-in-Chief

Add Hayden to the list of close losses Manhattan High has suffered this year, the longest list this senior class has seen in their time with the program.

“It’s so hard as seniors because we’re supposed to be the leaders and we want to show the way for all the younger kids under us,” senior John Ostermann said, “especially since we have so many sophomores, but when we’ve never experienced this many close losses as well, it’s hard to lead the way.”

In a story that is all too familiar for MHS (7-7, 2-5 Centennial League), the Indians could not capitalize on their chances late, losing the Homecoming game to Hayden (6-6, 4-3) 64-62 Friday night.

After a back-and-forth beginning, Manhattan began to take control late in the first quarter. Thanks to an all-around effort, the Indians pushed to a 13-point lead late in the half. Three quick points from Hayden gave MHS the 34-24 halftime lead. “[We were just] being patient on offense and moving the ball,” sophomore Raeshon Rid-

dick said. “[It was about] taking our shot and not taking my own individual shot.”

Manhattan came out flat after halftime, but held off Hayden for half of the quarter.

However, the Wildcats were just getting started.

Thanks to lights-out shooting from juniors Levi Braun and Zach Harvey, Hayden turned a 10-point deficit into a two-point lead, going on a 13-1 run to end the third quarter.

“I’ve seen [Braun] play,” Ostermann said, “and if he sees one go through the net, he’s going to start knocking them down. Zach is a great player, so you give him open looks, he’s just going to knock them down too. We just let them have too many easy looks at the basket when they were on fire.”

MHS began slowing Hayden down, not letting the game get too far out of reach. Hayden continued to push though, taking a 63-58 lead with just 40 seconds remaining. The Indians kept fighting, closing the gap to just two points with 13 seconds left.

“If I know one thing about our guys,” George said, “it’s that we’re going to keep fighting. We’ve been in every ball game here lately against some

very, very talented, good basketball teams.”

With a Hayden timeout to think things over, George drew up a play with six seconds left.

The play didn’t work as expected, leaving Ostermann with the chance to win. Taking a 3-pointer as time expired, neither the ball nor the call went Manhattan’s way, ending the game.

“We wanted to do a play where we set a back screen for Raeshon up for the lob,” Ostermann said. “[Then], we wanted to get it into Dawson...but they broke up the pass to Dawson.

I told Nate [Awbrey, senior], ‘Throw it up to me if you can’t get it in.’ He threw it up, and then it was just trying to oneon-one ball from there, and I couldn’t finish the play.”

The Indians return to action Tuesday night, traveling to Washburn Rural (8-5, 5-2).

With the recent nail-biting losses, they know they need to stay focused on playing their game.

“We got to stay focused in practice,” Riddick said, “no playing around from this point on, especially since playoffs are coming. Just got to be dominant and be there, like my coach says, when the dust is cleared.”

Photo by Aaron Hemby

Surrounded by Hayden’s defense, sophomore Raeshon Riddick leaps up to score a lay-up during our game on Senior Night. Riddick scored 15 points in MHS’ 64-62 Homecoming loss.

Swim and Dive completes regular season

Girls basketball battles adversity

John Ostermann Online Editor-in-Chief

Micheal Simmons Blue M Sports Editor

Manhattan swim and dive finished their regular season this weekend with a third place at the Manhattan Invitational. Friday, the diving team hosted the last diving meet, and the swim meet followed on Saturday.

The team had one of its better performances with many swimmers posting season-best times. This tough swimming won them the bronze medal as they hosted 15 different teams.

Seaman won gold with a score of 497 points, McPherson outlasted the Indians to gain silver with 491 points and Manhattan secured the bronze with 300.5 points.

Senior Preston Harrison secured Manhattan’s only firstplace finishes by winning the 100 fly with a time of 53.45 and the 100 backstroke with a time of 54.11 seconds.

Other swimmers had strong showings, such as sophomore Brandon Spielman who pulled out two seventh-place finishes in the 50 (24.35) and 100 freestyle (54.27). Sophomore Xander Say finished fourth in the 500 freestyle with a time of 5:25.96 and seventh in the 100 breaststroke (1:11.02).

Freshman Igor Sheshukov

and junior Zach Payne both finished strong in the 100 breaststroke finished fifth (1:10.72) and sixth (1:10.95) respectively.

The relay teams swam hard and well, winning fourth in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:37.22.

The 400-yard freestyle team also had a strong performance, finishing in third with a time of 3:30.05.

Some swimmers will not go on to compete in the league meet, making this their last meet. For senior Dirk Andrade, it was his last meet ever.

“I feel a little sad that I won’t be able to compete in a swim meet ever again,” Andrade said. “I feel good knowing I left it all out there and seeing how far I’ve come is amazing. My sophomore year when I started swimming my first 50-freestyle time was 35 seconds. Seeing myself able to swim it in 27 seconds now is great.”

The swimmers that will be continuing on to the league meet will need to continue their improvement as they prepare to take on the best teams in the Centennial League on Friday.

They will have to bring their A-game to make it past league and on to state.

Every now and then it is normal to hear about a team blowing out another, but to hear it on a regular basis is next to absurd. That is what the Manhattan High girls Varsity basketball team has accomplished yet again as they blew out Hayden 6737 during their homecoming game.

Despite making it look easy, the Lady Indians faced some heavy adversity, after losing junior Kia Wilson to a hand injury during the McPherson tournament.

“Kia plays a huge part in our success so losing her hurts us,” junior Haleigh Harper said. “Fortunately we have players willing to step up and fill her shoes.

Josie Hilgers [senior] and Allie Ostermann [sophomore] have stepped up and played some big minutes off the bench for us. They give 110 percent and that’s all anyone can ever ask for. [Senior] Megan Worthington does an awesome job down low as well.”

To start the game, the team shut down Hayden’s offense by not allowing shots in the high post and stopping their deep shooters. While stopping the of-

fense the team fueled their own destroying the defense by attacking the basket, this combination allowed the Lady Indians to go on a 24-2 run to end the first.

“I was pleased with the way we got started,” head coach Scott Mall said. “We seemed a little passive before the game started but I thought we came out with a lot of energy. Defensively I thought we worked really hard and got in the right places, got a lot of steals that way. We didn’t have to run a lot of offensive, because the girls just did a great job of attacking the basket. Games like this, a start like that is really important.”

The team did anything but slow down. They continued to dominate the half going on a 17-7 run, ending the half with the Indians leading 419. Although the score board showed the game as being a blowout, it was far from over for both the Hayden Wildcats and the Lady Indians.

“It’s hard to stay motivated after halftime when you’re up by so much,” senior Chrissy Carr said. “We had some struggles in the third quarter but we bounced back and Haleigh did an amazing job finishing her plays. I think we just haven’t played zone in a while so we just need

Wrestling takes gold at Centennial Micheal Simmons Blue M Sports Editor

In sports, the seniors are expected to lead and be the example for the underclassmen.

For the Manhattan High wrestling team that is certainly the case as they take first in the Centennial League tournament.

MHS won with a score of 186.5 over the weekend at Topeka West.

“I feel like we performed very well,” senior Hunter Christensen said. “No one gave up even if they already lost. The wrestlers on the backside of the brackets never gave up and that helped us to get enough to

team points to allow us to win.”

The seniors were the biggest contributors. The seniors include Christensen, Abraham Sanchez and Jalin Harper. The group contributed a total of 59.5 points, 32 coming from Christensen and Sanchez.

Both Christensen and Sanchez scored 16 points, and 27.5 coming from Harper. The senior class accounts for 32 percent of the teams total points.

“Well for one, Harper has been tremendous for the program,” junior Bubba Wilson said. “He is an excellent leader in and out of the mat room.

A.B. Sanchez is an amazing athlete as well. He is just com-

ing off an injury and he has all the heart in the world and a good light hearted attitude. I think our seniors this year are definitely special people, they will be missed next season.”

Seniors were not the only contributors. The underclassmen contributed 58 points.

MHS wrestling is now entering sub-state and state tournaments. The senior class is expected to play an important role there.

“The seniors play the leader role,” Wilson said. “They keep us on track and remind us of our ultimate goal, which is to win another state title.”

Varsity bowling comes in last place, J.V. exceeds expectations Mason Alberto Staff Writer

Manhattan High bowling didn’t keep up with how they usually perform, placing fourth at yesterday’s home quad meet.

While Varsity has room to improve, Junior Varsity bowling performed well and finished first place.

The Indians faced off against Junction City, Seaman and Sacred Heart at Little Apple Lanes for their third home quad.

On Junior Varsity, junior Avery Groover and sophomore

Andrew Davis contributed majorily. Groover finished with a series of 656 and finished first individually while Davis took second individually with a score of 574. Sophomores Isaac Pease got a 427, Carlos Aguero scored a 487 and Eric Challacombe with a 454. Junior Parker Wilson bowled a 451.

“Today was different for everyone individually but I feel like as the season comes to a close, we all are enjoying to be a team and working together a lot better,” Wilson said.

Yesterday on the Varsity boys team, Sophomores Bran-

don Bragg finished with a 614, Grant Terril bowled a 495 series. Junior Michael Moran with a 553 and Nathaniel Chaput had the best with a 625 series.

On the girls Varsity team, juniors Alex Newell scored a 618 series and Zoe Johnson bowled a 628. Sophomore Emerson Murrell got a series of 298 and freshmen Ashlyn Dechant and Scarlett NapierKhan scored 369 and 310 respectively.

The bowling team’s next quad is on Monday at Gage Bowl.

to get used to it and work on that in practice. I think we do a good job of keeping each other motivated and cheering on different girls as they come. I think that will be useful when we get to closer games like next week and yeah it’s tough but we will pull through.”

MHS switched into a zone defense in the third quarter, and Hayden took advantage, scoring a total of 19 points in the third quarter. Despite the MHS defense giving way slightly, their offense was their to keep the difference so great by scoring 22 points, 13 of which came from Harper. The Lady Indians went on a 4-15 run, ending the game in favor of MHS. This game brings their total of blowout games to seven, accounting for 50 percent of their competitions.

“It feels really good to be able to consistently blowout teams,” Carr said. “It’s nice to have that but it’s nice to have close to so we are making sure we get tested that way when we get to state we will be ready for it because everything won’t be a blowout there. I think we are doing a good job of pushing ourselves in practice and making sure that we are staying at the level that we are supposed to.”

ATHLETE OF THE

WEEK Photo by Aaron Hemby

Haleigh Harper Girls Basketball Micheal Simmons Blue M Sports Editor

In every athletic event, there is always a moment where the game can take a turn for the worst or best for both teams. For the Manhattan High Lady Indians this was the third quarter of the Hayden game. Harper became a leader for MHS. Although Harper has spent years developing her craft, it was nothing short of a team effort.

“It always feels good to have a good game especially against a team that we have built up rivalry with,” Harper said. “Without the help from my team, I wouldn’t have had

•Scored a career high of 17 points •Went five for six free throws, amounting to an 83 percent hit rate •Made three 3-point plays by being making a 2-point field goal and being fouled, then making the free throw.

near the game I did.”

The team had smooth passes, well-executed plays and a near unstoppable offense going into the second half. The chemistry that has developed within the team helped them to accomplish this.

“I love my teammates,” Harper said. “We have built such a strong bond throughout the season. I can trust them to have my back no matter what.

It’s easy to get along with people who are working to achieve the same goal as you. I couldn’t imagine playing with a different group of girls.”

ENTERTAINMENT

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Pep Band excites crowd, teams

Jacob Clanton Print Editor-in-Chief

the band practices the songs it plans to play. Members try to request certain songs with one song getting the majority of the votes. “‘Jenny’ is a much beloved song throughout the entire band,” Carter said. “It’s sort of an inside joke that unites the whole group, regardless of how long each individual has been there.”

Though it is the most requested song, it is the least played song. Instead, the band plays the same songs every game.

“We play the same songs every game,” freshman Talia Clanton said. “We play ‘Crazy Train,’ we play ‘Jesus is Just Alright.’ I wish we played a larger variety of songs, but I do enjoy the songs we play. They’re fun to play, but they do get a little repetitive.”

Pep Band is completely voluntary and open to all grades.

Members who play with the band do so because they love doing it.

“I love these people,” Vasquez said. “It’s great, and

At any sporting event, the crowd’s most important role is to provide energy. However, they are not alone.

“The pep band is there to provide energy to both the crowd and the players,” junior Chris Carter said, “and to also keep everyone pumped up no matter the state of the game.”

The band plays at all MHS home basketball games, typically entering at halftime of the girls Varsity game. After playing through to halftime of the boys Varsity game, the band gets the third quarter off, but comes back for the fourth quarter.

Before games, band members meet up in the band room, eating a supper of their favorite pizza: Little Caesars.

“We usually show up here at five,” senior Christian Vasquez said. “There’s so much pizza, it’s fantastic. Then we warm up and then we go out to the gym.

We play and just have a good time.”

During the warm up time,

‘Dragon Age’ directors hint at possible game ducer Mark Darrah, who stated that “there are people hard at work on both [Dragon Age and Anthem] and I look forward to sharing more in the future.”

Emma Boyle from techradar.com states that a big cliffhanger that should be solved in the next game relates to the character of Solas, who reveals himself as the god Fen’Harel in the last game, making him “the perfect focus for the next game.”

Another fear that “Dragon Age” fans have is the potential that the next game in the series is possibly going “live”, or being multiplayer, following in the footsteps of successful recent games such as “Overwatch” or “Destiny.” However, Bioware’s general manager Casey Hudson confirmed in a tweet that their definition of “live” does not mean multiplayer.

“Too early to talk details, but when we talk about ‘live’ it just means designing a game for continued storytelling after the main story,” Hudson tweeted.

Whatever the game might have in store, fans eagerly await what the future holds for this particular games series and its storyline as it follows the lives of those who live within the land of Thedas.

Elizabeth Alexander Trending Editor

“Dragon Age” fans can officially rise again after three years with recent hints at a brand new game in the series.

Bioware’s fantasy game series “Dragon Age” last released a game in 2015, which was their third one. Ever since then, fans have been eager for more content to fill in some plot holes and learn more about characters they have come to love.

However, since their last release, Bioware released a game for their other series, “Mass Effect,” a polar opposite to “Dragon Age” as it is set in the future. Unfortunately, the game got a bad rap due to its storyline and graphics. Imagine Games Network, a wellknown gaming company, has always given the “Mass Effect” games rankings of nine or higher. However, the most recent game, “Mass Effect: Andromeda,” received a ranking of 7.7.

Fans still remain hopeful with a promising release of another game series, “Anthem,” as its trailer shows significant improvements in gaming production at Bioware.

The most recent hint that has sent “Dragon Age” fans into a frenzy was a tweet sent out by Bioware executive pro-

Photo by Aaron Hemby

Junior Elijah Emory plays with the Manhattan High Pep Band plays during Friday night’s boys Varsity basketball game, jazzing up the crowd with their songs. The Pep Band plays at every Varsity basketball game of the season.

you get to play loud and high, like I get to.”

For freshmen, it’s an opportunity to get to know oth-

er band members and the West campus. Many who play are looking forward to the future.

“It’s fun,” Clanton said. “I get

to hang out with my friends, play my clarinet and eat pizza.

I’m excited to do it again in future years.”

‘Sick Boy’ thoughtful take on modern society Kaitlin Clark Entertainment Editor

After the Chainsmokers’ initial rise to fame in 2014, the EDM-pop duo has certainly kept busy. Following the release of their studio album “Memories...Do Not Open,” they have managed to create a single rich with unique flair in a generation of music that often sounds the same.

“Sick Boy” touches on the self-doubt that societal pressures can cause through its use of meaningful lyrics and haunting melodies. The worth of one’s self is also discussed through the use of repetitively ironic lyrics asking “How many likes is my life worth?”

This conveys lead singer Andrew Taggart’s thoughts about the judgement of others, and while it has an ironic undertone, there is a ring of truth to it as well.

This reflects how easily others’ comments can affect our generation’s view of themselves, no matter how hard we try to ignore them.

“Sick Boy” has an edge to it that is reminiscent of an outsider looking in on society. The song opens with the singer’s thoughts on regional differenc-

es in America and how it affects people’s behavior as though he has risen above them after being trapped in such societal boundaries. His judgement towards society in general creates an image of someone who has broken free from its confines and now strives to tell others to do the same.

The music video for “Sick

over the piano, where the musician’s bare hands are suddenly in black gloves and the piano itself seems almost broken.

It next touches Taggart’s face, creating a rainbow-like pattern before he reaches out to it and his fingertips turn into black spikes. These transformations continue throughout the video as a strange dark figure is often seen, and objects such as the microphone appear the be melting. Eventually, the singers themselves become distorted, stretching to the beat in melting patterns with occasional pops of outlined color. The video ends with a close-up of Taggart’s face. Everything appears to be normal, but he still seems haunted. I believe all of this is related to the impact society can have. It bends and distorts who you are, leaving you with nothing genuine.

“Sick Boy” truly is a worthy song for our genPhoto Courtesy of Disruptor Records and Columbia Records eration. With its great vocals, haunting melody and Boy” is full of destruction, with commentary on modern socifire and broken wood floating in ety, it is a song that everyone the air before narrowing in on growing up in the 21st centuthe Chainsmokers themselves, ry should listen to. It urges lisand for a while, everything is teners to dare to be the outsidpeaceful. Then, beams of light er in a time when fitting in is pass over the musicians, trans- what is desired. This song will forming them wherever the definitely be on my playlist for light touches. Initially, it passes months to come.

Justin Timberlake’s ‘Man of the Woods’ goes up in flames loving-self hurt.

While I commend Timberlake for his exploration of new music, the blending of vastly different musical styles simply does not work in this particular case.

He falls way too heavily on the odd combination of modern electronic music and some kind of “mountain-man” theme he threw into the mix, as seen in his single “Man of the Woods.”

While Timberlake is known for doing his own thing in the music industry -- something in the past fans, including myself, have appreciated -- this new style he is trying to pull

Meredith Comas Opinions Editor

Justin Timberlake is a name known in pop culture for music phenomenons such as NSYNC, albums like “The 20/20 Experience” and now, the utter disaster that is his new album “Man of the Woods.”

While I went into this music experience optimistic for Timberlake’s first album in five years, I was completely disappointed by what was presented to me. The utter lack of clear sound, established theme and overall meaningful music made my ears and my Timberlake-

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off is just a desperate cry for attention that presents itself as cheesy and frankly ridiculous.

Timberlake’s new take on uniquely-against-the-“rules” of pop was against the “rules” for good reason.

Songs like “Supplies” are lyrically simplistic and repetitive, “Man of the Woods” is straight out of Blue’s Clues, and “Filthy” -- the opener to his recent Super Bowl halftime show -- presents a good dance beat but completely obstructed his unique vocals. While these songs add in his usual style of forward, modern-era pop, many simply carry no meaning un-

like past songs such as “Mirror.” They sadly waste away to fall into the category of 2006’s “Bringing Sexy Back:” tiring, annoying and purely physical.

After further listening of the songs on MOTW for awhile, they simply become annoying repetitions of Timberlake’s ego.

At his Super Bowl performance Sunday, Timberlake featured only one new song on the setlist. The performance was almost all of Timberlake’s old songs and a Prince cover.

While I don’t want to read too much into this, it almost suggests that even Timberlake seems to know he hit his peak

long ago.

Ultimately, Timberlake seems unsure about what he wanted to bring to the table with this album. While unique, it’s utterly disappointing after five years of silence. The repetitive sound mixed with odd genres really is just not the Timberlake I’ve known and loved.

The album simply seems to be the work of a middle-aged man refusing to accept that he is no longer in the spotlight.

Pass the torch along, Timberlake, before you start another campfire.

From OLYMPIAD page 3

reotypes placed on advanced students.

“I think there’s always a stigma against the ‘advanced’ students and I don’t like that,” Le said. “I think socially it’s kind of difficult… people might perceive you to be arrogant or something that you’re not.”

As just a freshman, Le is already accomplishing goals some upperclassman don’t ever even compare to. Her

continued pushing of boundaries has ushered in a new era for underclassmen to strive for and be more.

“One of my biggest goals in my high school career is to inspire someone as much as my upperclassmen have inspired me,” Le said. “I think.. my constant pursuit of improvement...has helped me a lot just to help me strive the best I can be.”

doesn’t even consider herself advanced, but rather curious and in thirst for knowledge.

“I’m just average,” Le said.

“Albert Einstein gave a good quote, ‘I have no special talents, I’m only passionately curious,’ and I think that applies to me.”

Even while she doesn’t exactly consider herself one, Le still advocates against the ste-

CAPTURE the moment

with a Blue M personalized yearbook.

Pick up a form outside of room C107 and return with payment by

Feb. 8

TRENDING

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A Time to Spread Love Giving gifts on a budget Leah Beyer Blue M Academics Editor

Each year when Valentine’s Day rolls around, many people face balancing showing someone they care about them while also not having an endless supply of money, especially teenagers. However, there are several very easy and simple giftgiving ideas that can fix this problem.

‘Open When’ Letters These “Open When” letters are an especially easy and thoughtful way to encourage someone and tell them all the things you enjoy about them in a personal way. The idea behind this gift is creating multiple letters that each say something different about the person who is the receiver. After the letters are written, they should then be labeled with titles such as “Open when you need a laugh,” “Open when you receive these letters” or even “Open when you need a hug.” This gift may take some time but will turn out as a very personalized and meaningful gift.

Ticket Box Frame Box frames are an excellent way to give a gift that references personal memories. All the materials necessary in order to complete this gift are a box frame, patterned paper, optional stick-on letters and the items that represent memories to be placed inside the frame. The first step is to tape the patterned paper onto the back piece of frame. After this, the frame is ready to be filled with various memories such as tickets, photos or even

receipts. The last step, which is optional, is to add stick-on letters to the outside of the frame to add even more personalization. One option is for these letters to spell out the words “Our Story.”

Movie Night Box This particular gift is unique because it not only includes tangible items, but also the memories that come along with completing it.

Putting together a box such as this is quite simple and only requires a movie, popcorn, candy and any other treats that will give the box an additional touch that speaks to the receiver. While this gift can sound kind of general, it can be easily adapted to specialize it through the chosen movie and treats that accompany it.

‘Hooked on You’ Tackle Box In order to start making this gift, a large tackle box is all that is needed. These can be easily found for reasonable prices at many local department stores. The only other vital step is finding the right candy to put inside each of the divisions. The types of candy that often work best for this are fish, worms, or even frogs because they are more on theme.

However, other candies can definitely be added to keep a nice, colorful variety. The last optional step is to add a piece of paper with the pun “Hooked on You” written on it. Everyone loves a good pun. Going into this next holiday season, don’t let your budget limit your gift-giving spirit.

Graphics by Elizabeth Alexander

Valentine’s Day sales to see a significant increase in 2018 Meredith Comas Opinions Editor

To most, Valentine's Day is a holiday that’s all about the love. It is a day to remind those you care about that -quite as the term “loved-one” suggests -- you love ‘em.

But, while the holiday does indeed center itself around the emotional-side of love, like most every modern holiday, consumerism brings out the materialistic side of Feb. 14. People flock to florists, chocolatiers, card stores and more to ensure they get just the right thing to get their loving message across.

This “materialistic” love prompts the question; h o w m u c h d o e s t h e United States actua l l y spend o n Va l en-

tine's Day? Well, according to the U.S. National Retail Federation, Valentine’s Day 2018 -- with about 54.7 percent of Americans celebrating this year -- is expected to make a near-record $19.6 billion, a $1.4 billion increase from last year.

This number is due to spending on a wide range of gifts, but the apple of the American eye on Valentine's Days past seems to have been jewelry, with Americans spending nearly $4.7 billion on “a girl’s best friend.”

While jewelry took the lead in the race for consumer desires on Valentine’s Day, coming in second was an evening out, which was followed by clothing and candy.

However, candy lovers have no need to fret for Valentine's 2018, as candy is expected to make a comeback with 55 percent of purchases going their way, up from last year’s 49.7 percent. Flowers and an evening out will also, once again, be popular in the holiday world of consumers.

It is expected for department and discount stores to

really capitalize off of these purchases as the holiday of love approaches.

Though materialistic gifts have been the focus so far, there is always those that are more than flowers or candy.

These “gifts of experience” are focused on the experience you gain, rather than the materials you receive.

Gifts of experience range from making dinner, traveling or even skydiving -- if one is the adventurous type that is. About a quarter of Americans, according to the U.S. NRF, are reported to be gifting one this year, but no number has been placed on these gifts as they range so vastly in price.

These gifts of experience m a y seem hard to do as broke h i g h school student -let’s b e real, sky diving i s quite a bit more than t h e c o u p l e buc k s left over in your wallet from Christmas. However, gifts of experience can be as simple as creating a playlist for your bae or sharing with them your favorite place in town. It’s all in the thought and experience.

Now, of course there are always those who don’t celebrate Valentine’s day. About 24.6 percent of Americans are reportedly not celebrating, but still have some plans on the day of love. It is projected that 11.6 percent will be doing a “treat-yourself” gift, 9.8 percent to be hanging with family and friends and 3.3 percent to be purchasing an “anti” Valentine’s gift. The NRF has not put an official price range on these “gifts.”

All in all, Valentine’s day really is the holiday of love in the age of consumerism.

From jewelry to candy to a gift of experience, America will see no shortage of love’s prices on Feb. 14 this year.

Single this Valentine’s? Netflix is Always There for You Lauren Race Staff Writer

The holiday that brings teddy bears and chocolates that ruin your New Year’s resolution of not eating any sweets is just around the corner: Valentines day. For most, it’s usually a good time of year if you’re in a relationship. For those who are single, it may be a different story, but don’t you worry, there’s always binge-watching your favorite romantic movies on Netflix! If you enjoy watching sappy sad love stories then you’re in luck.

Leap Year

Forrest Gump

If you don’t want to completely dump out your tears to the cheesy love stories, Forrest Gump is a classic film that combines romance, comedy and drama and tells the story of one man’s extraordinary life from the perspective of main character Forrest. Forrest is in love with Jenny Curran, but their love story is one that often becomes tangled.

50 First Dates

One really good romantic movie is “Leap Year.” It’s about a girl Anna, If you like romantic comedies then 50 First Dates is a must-see. It stars played by Amy Adams, who plans to propose to her boyfriend on the leap Adam Sandler as a playboy vet named Henry Roth. He sets his heart on year. Things do not, however, end up as simple as that, as her plans are romancing Lucy, but she has short-term memory loss; she can’t remember thrown for a loop. anything that happened the day before. So every morning, Henry has to woo her again. Her friends and family are very protective, and Henry must convince them that he’s in it for love. It is very funny, and such a great story to enjoy during the romantic holiday.

Ghost

Let’s not forget about the classics. Ghost is a 1990 American romantic There is definitely a large variety of romantic movies for this coming fantasy/crime thriller film starring Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore, Tony GoldValentine’s Day, so whip out the truffles and get started on binge-watching wyn and Whoopi Goldberg. The plot centers on a young woman in jeopardy some of the best love stories on Netflix. and the ghost of her murdered lover, who tries to save her with the help of a reluctant psychic. It is a great movie to watch if you’re into love stories with a bit of action.