THE
PROSPECTOR
801 WEST KENSINGTON ROAD, MOUNT PROSPECT, ILLINOIS 60056
THE VOICE OF PROSPECT HIGH SCHOOL SINCE 1959
VOLUME 57, ISSUE 4
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2018
RUNNING AFTER SPRINGFIELD PE department impacted by new state laws RYAN KUPPERMAN Copy Editor
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ccording to the Illinois General Assembly, the school code requiring a minimum of three days each week of physical education (P.E.) has been amended. On Nov. 13, the law was changed to require a minimum of 150 minutes of P.E. per week. As this law was put into effect this year, District 214 students carried out their P.E. courses according to the pre-2018 requirements solely because class registration took place in the 2017-2018 school year, which was before the law changed. According to the Evidence-Based Funding for Student Success Act, the reason for changing the statewide P.E. requirements was the Evidence-Based Funding Formula. This new funding plan is dedicated to provide appropriate funding in order to create unique goals and curricula for students. Originally, after the passing of the Evidence-based Funding Formula in late fall of last year, school boards were allowed “to determine the frequency of [physical education] as long as it is a minimum of 3 days per 5-day week (previous statute required daily P.E.).” According to Assistant Principal and Health and Physical Education Division Head Frank Mirandola, because of the increased flexibility in P.E. requirements, District 214 is starting to offer new P.E. courses. For example, starting in the 2019-2020 school year, sophomores will be able to take an in-
AT THE CROSSROADS: A student stands with the option of many different paths for PE. As state mandates concerning physical education change in Springfield, D214 and Illinois schools consider what they mean in their P.E. departments. At Prospect, new classes are available as flexibility in fee waivers also add to student options. (illustration by Mara Nicolaie) tegrated, year-long health class in which they will be in beginners’ weights for three out of five days per week and in health class two out of five days per week. This way, students have the opportunity to be physically active during the course of the year instead of only during one semester, while also fulfilling their health course requirement. Moreover, Prospect is tapping into its aquatic programs by starting an advanced swimming class next year. Mirandola describes the class as very similar to the ad-
vanced weights course, except students will train in the water. Students do not have to be involved in swimming or water polo to take the course. According to varsity softball coach and P.E. teacher Krystina Mackowiak, zero-hour lifting is also growing in popularity as a viable P.E. course. Zero-hour lifting is simply the advanced weights course, which is typically taken by upperclassmen in a varsity sport, that takes place before school from 6:45 a.m. to 7:45 a.m. on Monday,
Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday, with Thursday off because the P.E. teachers are in meetings. Students have the same assignments and grading system as the other advanced weights classes. By getting their lifting done before school, students would then have an open study hall 8th period to either do homework or prepare for practice. According to Mackowiak, there are already zero-hour classes being run at most other district schools. Plus, she estimates that she has 35 students in her zero-hour class,
which she says is consistent with her other class sizes during the day. Mackowiak feels that zero-hour lifting is a great option for students, as many studies show that getting a good workout in the morning, before sitting in a desk all day, helps jump start the body and prepare it to tackle the day. She also estimates that zero-hour lifting will be implemented more as it continues to grow in popularity, especially since, in the beginning, kids were unsure of the class expectations, such as how early they would have to come before school. “P.E. has really evolved,” Mirandola said. “It’s not the stereotypical P.E. that people envision in bad high school movies. It’s becoming more comprehensive and more inclusive of all types of students.” Superintendent Dr. David Schuler also says that District 214 is looking at other districts for ideas on how to further develop the P.E. curriculum. District 207 and District 220, for example, give students Fitbits and have a staff member oversee the fitness room. Students then have the opportunity to go in before, during and after school in order to record fitness time. Data is recorded on the Fitbit and sent to the supervising staff member or to the division head. According to Schuler, District 214 is considering this as one possible option out of many. Also according to the Evidence-Based Funding for Student Success Act, under the Evidence-based Funding Formula, districts are also allowed “to exempt [students] on a case-by-case basis 7th – 12th grade students who participate in sports” from P.E., by providing “a streamlined process to request waivers from the Gener-
SEE P.E., page 2
Speech changes leadership GRACE GIVAN Copy Editor While seniors Emmett Knee and Katie Jordan wrote their dramatic duet, they had trouble keeping it concise. Their goal was to cut a 150-page book into a four-page script about how a brother and sister’s relationship evolved over time. In order to shorten the performance, head speech coach Adam Levinson had Knee and Jordan read the performance aloud during an after-school practice. He helped them cut out the unnecessary information that aided in turning the 150-page book into a 10-minute performance. Levinson’s main focus for students is to learn through their struggles in order to become better speech competitors. As this is his first year coaching speech, Levinson wants to set the example for students that he will make mistakes and grow from them. “I want [the students] to be able to learn the idea of what struggle is and be success-
ful through that struggle,” Levinson said. “[I want them] to find [their] best possible skill sets and growing and learning and being coachable. Then, of course, delivering the best possible product for each tournament that they can. … To see the writing transform is amazing.” Senior Caroline Sandberg noted that Levinson improved her writing skills when writing her Original Oratory speech about American culture, which she believed was too apology-seeking. When Sandberg was trying to develop an introduction paragraph for her speech, she struggled with writer’s block. To combat that, Levinson helped spark her creativity by bouncing ideas off each other, which allowed her to develop an anecdotal introduction. “[It] taught me the importance of perseverance,” Sandberg said. “[It taught me] that it’s not a problem to ask for help and that [the coaches] really care and want to see us succeed.” Assistant speech coach Jeremy Morton
SEE SPEECH, page 2
IMPROMPTU: Speech coach Adam Levinson talks to juniors Megan Smejkal and Riley Biondi about a previous performance. This is Levinson’s first year taking over the team. “I want [the students] to be able to learn the idea of what struggle is and be successful through that struggle,” Levinson said. (photo by Grace Givan)
WHAT’S INSIDE?
06 A stroke last year changed the life of sophomore Jack Breitenstein. The key to his recovery? Perseverance, hard work and more.
08 - 09 A path never ends where it starts. Even Prospect teachers have applied their interests to different career paths.
11 To our editor Anthony Romanelli, heroes are overrated. Read to find out what makes villains the ultimate characters.