Musical
Volume 91
the
Central’s musical production of Grease brings a splash of new tunes, a dusting of new style, and a brighter perspective. Grease is the word, page 5.
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November 9, 2011
Black Gold
Issue 2
2011 MIPA Spartan Award Winner
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Traverse City Central High School 1150 Milliken Drive, Traverse City, Michigan 49686
Newsline
Photo: K. Cullen
State Theatre honored USA Today named the State Theatre one of ‘10 Great Places to See a Movie in Splendor.’ “It’s all about our presentation,” Betsy Ray, volunteer coordinator, said. “It starts on the sidewalk with the marquee, buying your tickets, and smelling the popcorn. Then you step into the marvelous lobby and find your seats.” The State is run by volunteers.
‘Academy Day’ activities
Feature
Photo: E. Beauchamp
A two-week exchange program capped off by sad goodbyes, the start-up of a bottle recycling program and a shoedrive organization pave the way to improvement at Central. Join their efforts on page 3.
Sports
Photo: A. Hilden
Maitland Adams and Hailey Stoops, both ‘15, do the weather with TV 7&4’s anchor Diana Fairbanks at the Grand Traverse Resort. In the station’s booth, students had “the option to take a picture in front of a weather screen,” Adams said. “It was just fun.” The Business Academy went out to the Chamber of Commerce’s annual Business Expo yesterday. Adams said that colleges were also represented at the expo, so she did some unexpected preliminary investigation. “I would definitely stay with the Business Academy because it gives you the chance to see all types of businesses and how they work,” Adams said.
Extinguishing Central’s drug culture
Concerned about drug’s negative influence on Central, administrators address the issue. Editor’s note: To protect the identity of the student featured in this story, the Black & Gold changed her name Photo: courtesy of Susan Cover
As autumn air gives way to winter winds, Central’s fall athletic season comes to an end. Clutch wins and fantastic strategies help teams finish their seasons strong, and secure BNC Championships and trips to the State finals. Fall Sports Round-Up, pages 8-9.
Z-Club heads south
Photo: courtesy of Pat Rutt
The Z-Club traveled down to Ferris State University on Oct. 19 to attend the “Day of Discovery.” This day gave students an opportunity to look at different careers in marketing. Pat Rutt, the club’s advisor, enjoyed the trip. “It gave them a small taste of the classes they might take at the college level. This great opportunity brought the club closer together.”
Only two TCAPS nurses
Photo: S. Hutchison
A study from the National Association of School Nurses reported that, on average, Michigan public schools have one nurse per 4,411 students. Tina Soyring is one of two nurses for the entire TCAPS district. In addition to helping sick students, she also counsels them on nutrition and helps them learn how to problemsolve. “A big part of how I function is to teach students how to advocate for themselves, which is important in high school,” Soyring said. Briefs: K. Cullen
H
Joe Murray & Ivy Baillie
Editor-in-Chief, Staff Reporter
Head Principal Rick Vandermolen isn’t letting his short tenure at Central’s helm stop him from instilling progressive change. He hopes to extinguish the drug influence at Central and is passionate about resolving what he sees as one of the school’s most pressing issues. Although he admits he doesn’t know exactly how widespread student drug use is, he hopes that by candidly confronting the issue, students who abstain will be deterred and students ensnared in drugs will seriously consider the potential consequences and seek help. “I see students being lured into behaviors that distract them from learning,” Vandermolen said. “It puts up road blocks for the future.” Central isn’t the only school combating this issue, and the problem isn’t necessarily worse here than at other schools, but Vandermolen is determined to eliminate the drug culture from Central. “It’s interesting to see that students don’t think that we know, but we know,” Vandermolen said. Both Vandermolen and Liaison Officer Matt Verschaeve agree that alcohol, marijuana, prescription drugs, and spice are the most common drugs at Central. Spice, a chemical compound that mimics marijuana, is illegal and just as dangerous as other drugs. “It’s nasty,” Vandermolen said. Both agree there isn’t a pattern to how often administrators have to address drug-related issues, noting that infractions “go in spurts.” For many young adults, drugs are alluring; as teens make the messy transition to adulthood, it can be tempting to experiment. Student Liz Conrad said that intrigue, as well drugs’ function as social icebreakers, prompted her use. “It was definitely a curiosity thing. I had always wanted to try it.” With drugs, some students choose short term benefits over long term consequences. The decision to experiment has criminal, physical, social, behavioral, and academic ramifications. “With a student who uses a drug habitually over time, you can see that their behavior changes dramatically and their friends, family, studies, and physical level of taking care of
themselves starts to deteriorate,” Vandermolen said.
Drug Culture:
Beyond their impact on users, drugs seep into Central’s culture, so fully conscious students also feel the consequences. Vandermolen said that students who are deeply integrated into the drug culture aren’t afraid to come to school under the influence or in possession of drugs. Some students have even hidden drugs on campus, like in ceiling tiles. All of this can lead to a school culture that isn’t conducive to progressive education and healthy relationships. Vandermolen believes that students can change the school, both negatively and positively. “This is your school,” Vandermolen said. “You have a say in how it looks and feels.”
Prosecution:
When administrators notice students slipping, they investigate. Verschaeve said “discipline will be taken if discipline is necessary.” Leads about illegal substances on school property, discovered either from administrators’ observations, or from student or parent tips, are pursued and when warranted, students are prosecuted. While Vandermolen and Verschaeve both have a “burden of proof,” their respective roles as principal and liaison differentiate their domains, and as a result, their jurisdictions. Vandermolen, whose domain is the school, must have “reasonable suspicion” to search a student’s belongings or ask them to turn their pockets inside out, and a tip from a student, parent, or staff member satisfies this. As a police officer, Verschaeve’s domain extends to “society” in general. He must have “probable cause” to move forward with a claim, which is higher than Vandermolen’s “reasonable suspicion.” “If Vandermolen were to get something beyond reasonable suspicion, he can’t go any further because he isn’t a sworn officer,” Verschaeve said. “In order for me to search, arrest, or detain someone, I have to have probable cause. His level of suspicion is less than what I would need, which is why we have to work together.” Verschaeve stressed that he thoroughly investigates a claim’s valid-
Photo: K. Raymond
ity before confronting a student, because informants’ intentions aren’t always pure. As an officer of the court, Verschaeve has a higher standard to “substantiate somebody’s claim or deny it.” “If I were to receive information that someone is using, selling or possessing drugs, there are certain steps that I can take preemptively before even talking to that person,” Verschaeve said. “A lot of that does come down to certain background investigations and surveillance techniques.” While controlling drugs on school property is a challenge, the large crowds and excitement at school-sponsored events, like dances or sports games, add complexity. But Verschaeve said that even if administrators only catch a couple students, this sends the right message. “You aren’t going to catch everyone,” Verschaeve said. “People are going to get away with it, but the message you hope to send is that you never know who is going to get caught.”
Consequences:
Rather than drug use being
exclusive to a group of ‘stoners’, it transcends grade, clique, and gender, which makes targeting students who abuse drugs difficult. However, these challenges don’t stop the school from cracking down. The administration currently employs random drug-dog searches, as well as preventative instruction in gym health education and counseling through Third Level Crisis Center. “I think it is important that everybody has the opportunity to be made aware of the possibilities of what can happen not only physically, psychologically and criminally from drugs,” Verschaeve said. “But by the same token, you can present all of those things to everybody, one-hundred percent of the student body, and ten percent are still going to make the choices despite the things that they know. I think you are always going to have that particular clientele. It doesn’t matter what enforcement or disciplinary actions taken, they are still going to do what they want to do.”
continued, page 11