Fairview High School 1515 Greenbriar Blvd. Vol. 56 No. 4 March 2016
The Royal Banner 15-16 Staff
EDITORS-IN-CHIEF Rachel Grushan Varun Narayanswamy DESIGN DIRECTOR Maya Jayachandra STORY EDITORS Laura Brack Ben Gelderloos Sage Rose Keren Sneh Cameron Walsh STAFF REPORTERS Arvand Aidun Nate Bilbrey Molly Box Peter Buchholtz Chloe Cope James Fernandez Noah Finer Taylor Folwell Will Griffith Grace Hedlund Jot Kaur Michal Olesiak Conor Pepin Sydney Russ Ryan Swerdlin Jasmine Vital Jaxson Whittle Maggie Zukoski PHOTO EDITOR Chris Wagers BUSINESS MANAGER Dvir Goldman SOCIAL MEDIA Sara McCrea
Harrison Young
MARCH 18TH, 2016
TABLE OF CONTENTS
3GAMESspot the difference 4EDITORIALACT to SAT and back again 6BASKETBALLmarch madness 7SPORTScrazy moments 8MUSICkeeping music pirates at bay 10MENTAL HEALTHour silence is maddening 12POLITICSwho’s voting for whom 14HUMOR#fairviewproblems 16ADVERTISING Cover photo of Christine Schmiedeler; cover by Maya Jayachandra and Chris Wagers
ISSUE THEME
MADNESS
WEB MASTER Evan Derby ADVISER Sarah Zerwin staff@fhsroyalbanner.com @FHSRoyalBanner FHS Royal Banner, Room 339 1515 Greenbriar Blvd Boulder CO 80504 ABOUT THE ROYAL BANNER
The Royal Banner is a 16-page news magazine. The Banner is written primarily for the over 2000 students attending Fairview High School and is distributed free of charge to all members of the school community. Accurate reporting of fact is the goal of the staff. Commentaries, opinion columns and letters to the editor are the expressed opinion of the author and not of The Royal Banner and its Editorial Board or its adviser. *Disclaimer: Under Colorado law, no expression made by students in the exercise of free speech or freedom of the press shall be deemed to be an expression of school policy. No school district, employee, legal guardian or official of such a district shall be held liable in any criminal action for any expression made or published by a student. The Royal Banner sells advertisements for publicity and to pay for printing costs. We reserve the right to refuse to run any advertisement deemed inappropriate to the Fairview community.
The world can be an overwhelming place. Naturally, the microcosm of high school is no different. With Spring Break around the corner and spring fever upon us, what better time to explore the topics that drive us up the wall? In this issue we took on the chaos. One story explores the ridiculous discussions occurring in the political sphere, while the next calls out the lack of discussion concerning the topic of mental health. Whether it be endless standardized testing or irrational #FairviewProblems, we saw madness everywhere we looked. There are plenty of topics to be critical and aware of as young people, so we encourage our readers to step back and talk about the madness instead of contributing to it. We hope you enjoy this issue of the Royal Banner!
Questions or comments?
Email us at staff@fhsroyalbanner.com Visit www.fhsroyalbanner.com for realtime coverage of school events, additional coverage of print stories, photos, videos, and more. 2/16
spot the difference
// By Noah Finer @RBNoahFiner
Can you spot the 15 insanely difficult differences between these two photos? Check your answers at fhsroyalbanner.com!
ACT to SAT... And Back Again // By Jaxson Whittle and Keren Sneh @KerenSneh Photo by Jaxson Whittle Last December, as first semester was drawing to a close, the state legislature announced big new changes to mandatory state testing. The changes will affect all grades; however, the most surprising and polarizing part of the decision was the switch from requiring juniors to take the ACT to requiring the SAT. Because of the state’s decision, freshmen will now take a shortened version of the PARCC test that was introduced last year, sophomores will take a mandatory PSAT, and in addition to the SAT, juniors will take a science section of PARCC.
“No one who had been paying attention to the law actually knew what [the test] was going to be until this December.” Jonathan Wright Going into this school year, most assumed that the ACT would remain as the test for juniors. However, the state’s 15 years contract with ACT had expired and the state had to choose between using the ACT or the SAT going forward. The committee in charge of this decision was only able to begin working on it in late October of this year, causing the decision to be announced midway through the school year. “No one at the beginning of the year knew what the test was going to be,” said Jonathan Wright, a teacher at Boulder High School, who was part of the committee that decided between the ACT and SAT. “I think people who hadn’t been paying attention necessarily thought it was going to be the ACT, but no one who had been paying attention to the law actually knew what [the test] was going to be until this December.” The committee’s goal was to decide which test lined up with Colorado standards better. Whichever test the committee went with, the sophomores would take the prep test from the same compa4/16
ny— the PSAT for the SAT and the ACT Aspire for the ACT. “We had to choose the same testing company whichever the decision was,” said Wright. “What it came down to more than anything else is just the new SAT and the PSAT lined up with our Colorado standards better… so that was our recommendation.”
“You can’t make this abrupt type of decision in the middle of the year.” Rose Lupinacci The state went with the recommendation. Because of the late timing of the decision, many administrators, including Superintendent Bruce Messinger, argued that students would be unprepared for the SAT and pushed to keep the ACT. Because of this pushback, the state held off on implementing the SAT until 2017 for juniors but is still requiring the sophomores to take the PSAT this year. “You can’t make this abrupt type of decision in the middle of the year, so [administrators] gave a lot of push back including our superintendent and superintendents all over the state,” Fairview Assistant Principal Rose Lupinacci said, “so the state decided to go with the ACT this year but next year they’re going to go with the SAT.” The change also came as a response to the recent anti-testing backlash around the country due to a sharp increase in the amount of tests administered by public schools. Of course, no required testing was not an option, but the state has made major strides in cutting down on testing and addressing students’ and
teachers’ issues with the tests. “I think this was the legislature’s compromise… the testing has gone down really significantly, certainly for juniors and sophomores the most… [and] they did that really because of the political sentiments,” said Wright. Despite the large amount of uncertainty surrounding testing, Fairview sophomores and juniors met this new change from ACT to SAT and back again with a surprising amount of apathy. “I knew the test was changing, I just don’t know that much about it,” said sophomore Avery Young. Even students who are well informed on the subject just shrugged their shoulders in response to the change. “Personally, since it doesn’t affect me, I don’t mind,” said junior Justin Li. “Maybe for upcoming juniors and or seniors that are gonna take the test, they might’ve spent a lot of time preparing for the ACT thinking that it was gonna be the mandatory test and then all of the sudden with that changed some of that time might’ve been wasted since they were specifically focusing on the ACT.” Some of the seniors that took part in last year’s CMAS protests, however, had stronger opinions on the subject of testing.
A lack of student input leads to state officials and school administrators making hasty decisions and changes that affect the entire student population. “The reason that people were so against [PARCC and CMAS] is because they were set during the worst times they could’ve happened,” said senior Zach Sun. “For CMAS, it was during first semester, and first semester for seniors is the point at which everybody’s focusing on college apps and that’s also a bad time to be focusing on a standardized test that doesn’t dictate their future in college.” Therein lies the problem with standardized testing; a lack of student input leads to state officials and school administrators making hasty decisions and changes
that affect the entire student population. This was the sentiment during last year’s CMAS protests and is a recurring issue. “I think students should be able to have influence when necessary and it shouldn’t have to go to such extremes that we have to protest for it,” said Sun. Unfortunately, the impact to students in the short term will be sizeable, as they will have to adapt to the new test, but long term there won’t be much of an issue.
Students hope that the unpredictable testing craze will die down so they can go back to filling in bubbles in peace. “I don’t think it will change that much because it’s just like standardized tests. It’s just like benchmarks that you’re supposed to meet by that point in your life. I’m not sure it will change the teachers or students that much because it’s not like the teachers teach their curriculum based off of the ACT,” said junior Audrey Chang. While it won’t be much of a hassle or worry for students or teachers, schools like Fairview will have to create new benchmarks for their students, because the ones they had built up for the ACT over the past 15 years are no longer useful. “We look at our ACT scores over time and it’s going to be really hard to then have another [test]. Ok now we have to get a baseline of SAT, and then you lose a couple of grades in between all of that, and then that doesn’t give us the data around how are our kids doing,” said Lupinacci. Whether the current structure of testing will last long term remains to be seen. “I think that PSAT and SAT are probably gonna hold and stay,” said Wright. “What’s going to happen with PARCC during future sessions? I really don’t know, I guess it really depends on whether there are future protests.” For the moment, students hope that the unpredictable testing craze will die down so they can go back to filling in bubbles in peace. 5/16
Testing Costs
State regulated tests are not the only standardized tests students take. On top of the SAT and ACT, Fairview students may also take AP and IB exams and a number of others. Looking at the number of tests students have to take and the cost of each test, is it really any wonder that, according to the Wall Street Journal, students from higher income families score better? IB exam: $113.00 IB registration fee: $164.00 Full 6 exam IB diploma: $842.00 AP exam: $92.00 ACT exam $39.50
without
writing:
ACT exam with writing: $56.50 PSAT: Varies by school, but each test book costs $15.00 SAT exam without writing: $43.00 SAT exam with writing: $54.50 SAT subject test registration fee (covers 3 exams on one date): $26.00 SAT subject tests (except language tests): $18.00 SAT language subject tests with listening: $26.00 ...and hundreds of dollars in test prep.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Senior Tati Sobolik plays against Boulder.
WRESTLING
“One time I was losing by a bunch [of points] and I threw the kid with like ten seconds left and I ended up beating him. I pinned him in two seconds. That was pretty crazy.” Dimitri Brown, 12
CRAZY SPORTS MOMENTS
“The team hitting five or six three pointers in a quarter after being really cold in the Fossil Ridge game.” Tati Sobolik, 12
Senior Frank Ryder shoots against Boulder.
BOYS BASKETBALL
“In our first game Chris [Weatherly] threw a halfcourt alley-oop to Frank and Frank ended up getting a technical foul called, but it was a great way to start our season.” Calvin Mooz, 12
Senior Dimitri Brown takes down the competition.
“When we all jumped into the pool after the victory, with the coaches going off the diving boards.” Adee Weller, 12
// By Jasmine Vital @jasminevital1 Photos by Chris Wagers and Soren Kloepfer, swimming photo donated by Avani Singh
Senior Julia Benz dives at State. 6/16
“Watching our 400 free relay at the state finals because none of us knew if we would still be able to win and then right after when we found out we won it was so crazy.” Alex Guthrie, 11
GIRLS SWIMMING
march madness It’s what sports fans wait for all year. The most watched sporting event annually. It’s March Madness, 68 teams competing against each other, all seeking one thing. A National Championship.
1
Higher seeds do not guarantee a win. 11, 12 and 13 seeds are considered an easy win and go unappreciated and overlooked. Year after year we see the heartbreak of a lower seeded team, ranked in the top 25 going into the tournament, get shocked, but we never learn. Expect to see the upsets this year rather than getting caught off guard by a 12 seed who barely snuck into the field pull off a few upsets. A 1 seed has never lost a first round game, but this could be the year that it all changes. In past years, we haven’t even considered the thought of a 1 seed getting knocked out on day one, but this year feels different. In no other season have there been this many different teams ranked number 1 in the weekly polls, and the team ranked at the top only seems to be their because the “superior” team to them got upset the week before. It may sound crazy, and it still would be a huge shock, but the 16 over 1 upset is coming, and the time could be now. Michigan State will continue its magic in March. Last season, the Spartans marched into the Final Four as a 7 seed, and this year, being seeded higher will continue to impress with yet another deep tournament run. On the other hand, a typical dominant team in Duke will falter and disappoint their fans. Injuries and lack of experience will show this March in the Blue Devils.
Now, what should we expect? Well, we should expect the usual, of course: upsets on top of upsets, huge Cinderella Stories, and down to the wire nail-biting finishes. Here’s the Royal Banner’s guide of things to keep in mind during this year’s madness:
2
will you fill out an NCAA Tournament Bracket this year?
3
students say:
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“ “
55% YES 45% NO
I like CU, but I think that Kentucky, Xavier, Kansas, Oregon, and Arizona [will do well]. Ethan Villarreal, 11
March Madness has always lived up to its name, and there will be no change to that this year. The madness will be there, and it will get all of our hearts pounding as we (hopefully) watch our team grind their way to the end goal, a National Championship.
// By Harrison Young @harrisonyoung6 Photo by Wikimedia Commons
It just brings out the competitiveness that is natural in people... It’s a fun competitive thing that doesn’t really mean anything. Michael Bizzaro, choir teacher
7/16
keeping
music pirates
at bay
// By Sara McCrea @sara_mccrea Graphics from Wikimedia Commons
L
et’s face it: music is expensive. Downloading just two albums can eat up a $25 itunes gift card. Prices seem to be going up, and it can be so tempting to go online and copy a song onto your phone for free, because honestly, why would T-Swift need or care about your $1.29? But besides the obvious risks of pirated music shutting down your computer with a nasty virus, there are many problems with copying music that go beyond downloading from shady websites. Yes, downloading tunes indirectly is illegal, but how illegal? Straight from the RIAA’s website: “Making unauthorized copies of copyrighted music recordings is against the law and may subject you to civil and criminal liability. A civil lawsuit could hold you responsible for thousands of dollars in damages. Criminal charges may leave you with a felony record, accompanied by up to five years of jail time and fines up to $250,000.” Junior Cooper Lajeunesse believes that while illegally downloading music is
something that should be taken seriously, such an expensive fine might be taking the punishment a step too far. “If you steal a book from a bookstore you’re not going to be fined 250,000 dollars. If you steal someone’s music it’s the same as stealing someone’s artwork or creation, but that’s a lot of money for stealing anything,” said Lajeunesse.
The culture of music piracy and the way that we’ve made it seem normal ends up really hurting the careers of independent artists and labels. The RIAA reports that music sales in the United States have dropped 47 percent since Napster, a common site for illegally downloading, first launched in 1999. The availability of free music has cost the music industry $12.5 billion in economic losses. Even if you feel your $1.29 won’t make a difference, it ultimately comes down to a matter of respect for artists. Artists put labor into 8/16
their music, and by not paying for it, you are basically saying that their work does not deserve value. Having a music library full of free songs is not only disrespectful of the artists you love, but disrespectful of the value and importance of music in general. “My uncle is an independent artist who is starting to release his music, and while it might not affect Beyoncé if someone pirates her music, it will affect him, because there are only so many people who are buying his songs, and it’s really important that people buy songs from smaller artists legally,” said junior Ella Leh. Pirating music drives the price of the legal downloads up, making the problem of stolen music worse. The legal fees that companies spend cut into their profits, which makes them raise their prices, which was arguably what drove that original $0.99/song price on iTunes to $1.29. And we can only expect it to get worse. Senior Elise Legendre, who has released her own music on iTunes, feels
that even though today’s culture makes piracy seem normal, it is still unacceptable. “As far as independent artists go, the only money they make comes from the music that they sell because they’re not well known enough to be able to make money from tours. The culture of music piracy and the way that we’ve made it see normal ends up really hurting the careers of independent artists and labels.”
[Artists] need that money to keep producing music you love, so pirating is not only hurting the artists, but hurting yourself. Yes, songs aren’t tangible. However, you are still stealing someone’s intellectual property. Artists are horrifically ripped off by iTunes, Spotify, and other services. In fact, a Guardian report suggests that the average payment a signed artist gets after their label takes its share is a mere $0.001128 per stream on Spotify. However, it is artists’ ultimate choice how they want to offer their music. “It’s a little ludicrous that artists are receiving less than one cent per listen [on Spotify] especially for lesser known artists who are getting 1000 streams at most,” said Leh. If you have the artist’s consent to have that music for free, then go for it. But if you are pirating music, you are denying artists their royalties, which is even worse than those artists not being paid fairly. And though it’s true that artists make most of their money from tours, every royalty counts, especially for lesser known artists. They need that money to keep producing music you love, so pirating is not only hurting the artists, but hurting yourself. Be respectful of the artists you love to help them succeed and bring you more groovy tunes. Be aware that the consequences of purchasing illegal music are monumental. Even if you think it can’t happen to you, know that the negative affect that pirating has on the music industry is extremely harmful to the integrity of art and that stealing intellectual property should be and is taken as seriously as stealing an object.
Only 37% of the music that the average American downloaded over a course of a year was purchased legally. brandongaille.com
Over 300 million people have infringed copyright at least once. latimes.com From 2004 to 2009 alone, approximately 30 billion songs were illegally downloaded on file-sharing networks. brandongaille.com
About 70,000 jobs are lost yearly because of revenue loss from piracy. brandongaille.com Between 2008 and 2014, there was a 55% increase in filesharing in the USA and an 80% increase worldwide. digitalmusicnews.com
64% of teens actually get their music through YouTube. forbes.com Only 7.7 million Americans paid for a music subscription service in 2014. latimes.com
24% of the Internet is used to download illegal content. brandongaille.com
piracy statistics 9/16
OUR SILENCE IS
MADDENING
Why don’t we talk about mental health? // By Rachel Grushan @rachelgrushanrb, Varun Narayanwamy @vnarayanswamyrb , and Maggie Zukoski Photo by Rachel Grushan, seratonin graphics from Wikimedia Commons
W
hen someone suffers from any physical ailment, whether it be diabetes, a broken arm, or even nearsightedness, barriers to seeking treatment typically never include shame or fear of being judged. We would hope that these peoples’ resources would allow them to get the medical help they need. However, students right here at Fairview suffer every day from debilitating health issues, but are hesitant to acknowledge them, afraid to reach out, and worried about being taken seriously. These are the students who battle not only with mental illness, but the suffocating stigma surrounding their condition.
THE POWER OF STIGMA “There’s a part of our society that doesn’t see mental health and physical health as equal,” said senior Nina Kranzdorf. She’s a peer counselor who also works with Colie’s Closet, an organization which educates youth about depression and destigmatizes not only the topic of mental illness, but conversations regarding mental health in general. Kranzdorf suggests that if students were asked to rate their physical well-being on a scale, it would be 10/16
relatively easy to do. However, what if students were asked to rate their mental well-being instead? “That would be a lot harder,” said Kranzdorf. It is important to differentiate between mental health and mental illness. While mental health refers to one’s general psychological and emotional wellbeing, mental illness is defined by the National Alliance on Mental Illness as “a condition that impacts a person’s thinking, feeling or mood and may affect his or her ability to relate to others and function on a daily basis.” For those whose mental health has deteriorated to the point of mental illness, it can be very difficult to let family and friends know what it going on. “I think people are ashamed of their mental illnesses,” said Kranzdorf. “They don’t want to talk about it, they don’t want people to know about it-it’s not an easy thing to say you have.” This was the case for senior Melanie Weinstein, who has coped with mental illness since middle school. Not only did she not understand what was happening inside her brain, but misconceptions surrounding the validity of her illness served as a discouraging roadblock to getting help. “Part of the stigma is because some people react
really badly to it,” Weinstein said. “[It] was hard when a lot of or cruel person, when the clinical definition of psychosis means people were like ‘You’re doing this for attention,’ and inside I was suffering from delusions or hallucinations. like ‘Yeah, I need this attention so someone will help me.’” It is especially important that these stigmas are defeated among Talented and Gifted coordinator Terry Bradley says she teenagers. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, sees similar cases of dismissal often by those who refuse to 50% of all lifetime cases of mental illness begin by age 14, and acknowledge that someone needs help. 75% by age 24. Therefore, young adulthood is an especially pivotal “I know that a lot of kids are struggling with [being dismissed],” time to be aware of our own mental health, as well as that of our she said. “In general, there needs to be greater awareness about peers. mental health issues.” SUPPORT AT FAIRVIEW The fact that it’s so difficult to reach out (and listen) to others regarding mental illness is a product of our culture. By way of Support for students struggling with mental illness does exist movies and the nightly news, we are conditioned to fear the at Fairview: the counseling department serves as an important mentally ill. They are regarded as dangerous despite the fact that resource for students, a location full of “trusted adults” in which they are more likely to be the victims of violent crime as opposed students can confide. to the perpetrators, according to the U.S. Department of Health One such trusted adult is Mowen, who describes his job as a & Human Services. school counselor as, “supporting students by working with Counselor Matt Mowen finds our society perpetuates another their teachers [as well as] gaining support from their families,” pervasive misconception about mental illness. regarding mental health issues. However, a counselor’s role shifts “In our culture we’ve got this in regard to students with an mentality that mental illness is a Stigma (n) - a mark of disgrace actual diagnosis of a mental sign of weakness,” said Mowen. “If illness. with a particular “If it’s a bigger issue and someone was diabetic we wouldn’t associated say, ‘Oh, toughen up, you’ll be fine.’ circumstance, quality, or person. there is a diagnosis, the best Mental health should be the same bet is to have students seek Merriam-Webster way.” outside help,” said Mowen. “A Studies back this assertion up; lot of times we refer to outside according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, nearly 1 therapists in the community to support these students.” in 4 people surveyed felt that depression was a sign of personal Simply recognizing the variety of resources offered by the weakness. counseling center can make a huge difference, as it did for The fact that medical professionals don’t even completely Weinstein. understand how many mental illnesses work only adds to the “I didn’t know there were so many people that I could use as misconceptions and fear surrounding it. resources,” she said. “I didn’t really hear about them, and I didn’t As principal Don Stensrud put it, “[It’s] an area that’s hard to know there was anyone besides a counselor until after my suicide support, because it’s hard to understand. attempt. No one introduced me to them.” “[The stigma] is less than it used to be, but I think it still exists,” School Interventionist Jamie Smalley, who works with students Stensrud added. “Mental health in the past has been a taboo undergoing immediate social and emotional crises, says that new thing to talk about. Parents don’t want to sit around and say ‘my measures such as the mindfulness program send “a powerful son or daughter is struggling.’ They keep it kind of hidden.” message that we want to let you know that we care about this, and Parents are not the only ones to inadvertently perpetuate that we are trying to help you.” such a stigma; microagressions by teenagers are also part of the Although support systems for students exist at Fairview, is there issue.Many insults used by students in the halls of Fairview are more to be done? Principal Stensrud believes there is. derived from mental illness and perpetuate negative stereotypes. “We’ve done some good things over the years like Sources of For example, “psycho” is thrown around to describe a violent Strength and Peer Counselors,” he said, “but I think we need to do more.”
SCHOOL RESOURCES Counselors: Assigned by last name. Help with your college & class choices, and a resource for any social/ issues. A-Co: Wendy Herron. Cr-Has: Leslee Lundeen. Hat-Lin: Ashley Houston. Lip-Ped: Matt Mowen. Pel-Sta: Michelle Kletzky. Ste-Z: Hal Burns. Interventionist: Jamie Smalley (Office 1127) Help with immediate social and emotional crises. Psychologists: Lauren Boyenance, Donna Gibson (Office 1113) Help with long-term mental health concerns and social/family problems. 11/16
// By Sydney Russ @Sydney_Russ_RB With the upcoming elections approaching at a rapid speed, the pressure is on for the newest generation of voters to choose a candidate that they want to represent them for the next four years. Self-education on key political issues is critical in the upcoming months. As part of the up-and-coming generation, the current class presidents of Fairview are beginning to develop their own perspective on the political issues that the country faces, as well as the election’s current candidates. In this time of turmoil, Fairview students look to their leaders for guidance in the wake of the uproar caused by the recent election controversies.
IMMIGRATION
TAXATION PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES “Middle-class and working families are paying a much higher percentage of their income. When you cut off the contribution at $95,000, that’s a lot of money between $95,000 and the $46 million. We’ve got to get back to having those with the most contribute to this country.” Hillary Clinton at a campaign event “The wealthy and large corporations must pay their fair share. As president, I will stop corporations from shifting profits and jobs overseas... I will tax Wall St. speculators who caused millions their jobs, homes, and life savings.” Bernie Sanders to the Las Vegas Immigration Forum
CLASS PRESIDENTS
PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES “When it comes to bringing in immigrants into our country from other places we have always welcomed people regardless of race, creed, religion, but we have welcomed them to become Americans, to accept our way of life, not another way of life.” Ben Carson during a campaign even in Georgia
“Everyone in the top one percent worked for their money, even after income tax with equal percentages they’re still going to be living opulent lives. I think that’s a fair compromise to have when there are people who are barely making a living and still having to pay the same percentage.” Tatjana Kunz, 12
“If you are serious about immigration reform, then the key that unlocks the door to being able to do that is not just to pass a law that says it is going to enforce the law, but to actually do it.” Marco Rubio to CBS
“It’s hard for people who work for their money to keep it. The top 1% pays 95% of taxes.” Julia Combs, 12
12/16
CLASS PRESIDENTS “America as we know it is already made up of immigrants... we need to have a stricter way to allowing them to become citizens, but we need to give everyone a fair chance to become a citizen.” Michael Crowley, 12 “My mom was an immigrant from Vietnam, so I’m okay with it – I just want immigrants to take the right steps to becoming a citizen.” Kate Jordan, 12
*For more information on Kai Kloepfer, check out our QR code. ← Class presidents on country presidents See which elected officals our elected officials are voting for. graphics by Sydney Russ
GUN CONTROL
POLITICAL DISCOURSE
PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES
CLASS PRESIDENTS
PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES
“Many [major shootings in this country] existed despite the fact that local jurisdictions had gun laws even stricter than what you find in other jurisdictions. We have a violence problem in America, and we should be concerned about the violence.” Marco Rubio to CBS
“People will get hands on guns no matter what. People should own what they want to own.” Julia Combs, 12
“No matter who is elected to be president, that person will not be able to address the enormous problems facing the working families of our country.” Bernie Sanders on Facebook
“I refuse to accept this as normal. We must take action to stop gun violence now.” Hillary Clinton in a Twitter post
“The number of deaths from suicide and accidental shootings are higher than those of mass shootings. The media blows up mass shootings to make them a bigger issue... something like Kai Kloepfer’s technology* should’ve existed a long time ago.” Tatjana Kunz, 12
“Look at that face! Would anyone vote for that? Can you imagine that, the face of our next president?” Donald Trump, to The Rolling Stone about opponent Carly Fiorina.
13/16
CLASS PRESIDENTS “With everything they say, you can almost predict exactly why they’re saying it... I think [political campaigns] have degraded, in the sense that in the beginning people tried to get their overall point across, but now they try to win on little things.” Anurag Golla, 12 “I hope people can do their research and really examine what the candidates truly have to offer.” Julia Combs, 12
# fairviewp
When the wind provides daily comedy on the walk to school
Being at the top of a hill, Fairview is constantly hammered with gusts of wind from the uncertain Colorado climate. There’s nothing quite like watching dozens of kids attempt to walk from their cars to the main entrance while unsuccessfully holding back their hair and snapbacks and struggling to stay vertical. Add an icy sidewalk and you have the Fairview version of human dominoes.
When you have to walk all the way from the car to the doors As I walk all the way from the senior parking lot to the front doors, a total of eighteen steps, a cold gust of wind sends a shiver through my body. I dreadfully start walking step after step to the door. My shoulders start to ache from my heavy backpack. The doors are so far away. How do I make this long voyage from my car to the school every single morning?
Wishing you lived near the ocean instead I look at the view before me. Vibrant trees are surrounded by a serene, waveless lake, all tucked under the breathtaking Flatirons. They named our school FAIR view because the view is only fair. It’s not amazing. I think to myself, I wish I lived near the ocean.
“
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students say:
#When you aren’t good enough at foosball to play in the senior lounge #We all get angry when there is a snowday during finals #When you play ultimate frisbee and no one takes you seriously #When you carry toilet paper in your backpack because there’s none in any stalls #When you wear shorts one period and a winter coat for the next #When you miss school for science fair #Just the way people walk, they walk slow and then breathe on me #When I walk by the rock display in the science hall the rocks rumble #People put trash in my locker #When you have to go in the main entrance #Getting a B on your math test #We have these great spirit days and then no one dresses up #When I come out of the catering classroom and people want my food #I have to get to school at 7 in the morning to get a decent parking spot #BVSD Guest-Fast is the slowest network I’ve ever used in my life #Living in fear of having your every move snapchatted by a complete stranger.
14/16
wproblems // By Molly Box and Grace Hedlund Photos by Molly and Grace
a
s we all know, high school is an abyss of constant trials and tribulations. Often, our problems are very understandable: the painstaking search for a college, weekly evaluations of your proficiency, family life, and social issues. On the other hand, there are those pesky problems that crawl under our skin specifically as Fairview students.
When parents take your precious parking spot Nothing is more irritating than when you’re already five minutes late to class, and you are, as a senior, entitled to a spot in the senior lot. And there, occupying five of the spots, are those oblivious parents. They innocently play Words with Friends while waiting for their students. It’s not really their fault, as they are on the fringes of high school life and only know what their students choose to tell them. How could they possibly know the anger and aggravation their unpermitted parking causes? Possibly from frustrated faces of seniors.
Being blinded when you exit the windowless school building After school, I exit our windowless building and am blinded by the bright sun. I am so blind that I can’t even see the mountains. We are all trapped in a dark school where people expect us to enjoy the view. Might as well just attend high school in Cleveland, Ohio.
Having to complete the arduous trek up the ramps Whether you are a senior or a freshmen, everyone is familiar with the exhausting ramps that crawl up the school. Granted, they are necessary for transportation and flow of traffic from one class to another. But, when my first period class is deep in the 300 hall, and my second period is LA, that four minute uphill climb is the epitome of aggravation for a non athletic sophomore girl like myself. On top of that, the only way of communication in those packed intersections, is making awkward eye contact with someone, in order to try to get around them.
15/16
#humor
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